Lion Bites – Global Prophetic Alliance – Give Thanks

Yesterday I talked about the good courage and strength that Joshua developed in his life. He trusted me.

Another way to be strengthened is to give thanks. My son was able to give thanks as he broke bread in the upper room with his disciples (Luke 22:19). He knew he was about to go to the cross; he knew he was about to suffer deep pain physically, emotionally, and spiritually. And still he gave thanks.

Giving thanks is a way to receive my grace and my strength as you navigate different seasons of life. Your circumstances will change but my steadfast love for you will not. My character and nature of love, redemption, and compassion does not change and that’s how you can give thanks in every circumstance.

Growing in maturity allows you to recognise my faithfulness and loving kindness will carry you through every season of life. That gives you strength and good courage.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NKJV)

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.

Psalm 136:1 (NKJV)

#lionbites

Tuesday Morning Scripture (Wk29/2022) – Joshua 1

Joshua Installed As Leader

1 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide:

2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites.

3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses.

4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west.

5 No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsakeyou.

6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.

7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Mosesgave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.

8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.

9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

10 So Joshua ordered the officers of the people:

11 “Go through the camp and tell the people, ‘Get your provisions ready. Three days from now you will cross the Jordan here to go in and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you for your own.’”

12 But to the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, Joshua said,

13 “Remember the command that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you after he said, ‘The Lord your God will give you rest by giving you this land.’

14 Your wives, your children and your livestock may stay in the land that Moses gave you east of the Jordan, but all your fighting men, ready for battle,must cross over ahead of your fellow Israelites. You are to help them

15 until the Lord gives them rest, as he has done for you, and until they too have taken possession of the land the Lord your God is giving them. After that, you may go back and occupy your own land, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave you east of the Jordan toward the sunrise.”

16 Then they answered Joshua, “Whatever you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go.

17 Just as we fully obeyed Moses, so we will obey you.Only may the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses.

18 Whoever rebels against your word and does not obey it, whatever you may command them, will be put to death. Only be strong and courageous!”

Joshua 1:1-18 (NIV)

Lion Bites – Global Prophetic Alliance – Good Courage

Four times I told Joshua to be strong and of good courage because I wanted to encourage him.

I want to encourage you too.

You are moving into the land of your inheritance and like Joshua and Caleb you are developing character and faith. You are growing in good courage.

Like Joshua and Caleb you are learning not to murmur and complain (which is what kept the Israelites in the desert forty years) because good courage believes me and what I have promised. You are learning to trust me more than your current circumstances and believe me when I say I will never leave you nor forsake you.

No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. (Joshua 1:5, NIV)

Good courage reaps a reward.

Look at what Joshua, who learnt to be of good courage and be strengthened by me said at the end of his life to his people:
And you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one good thing has failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed. (Joshua 23:14, NIV).

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9 (NIV)

#lionbites

Lion Bites – Global Prophetic Alliance – My Sound

My sound resounds. Do you hear the sound of My calling deep inside of you? Do you perceive it? The sound that you hear is My heartbeat. Calling each one of you to come into alignment with My heartbeat. It’s time to walk in My power.

A surrendered life will produce My power in you. You lay down your life, your ways, and pick up My ways. My ways give life to you. A life full of My goodness that comes only from My breath.

Activation: Submit ALL to God, Don’t withhold anything from Him. Give your life as an offering to Him. Embrace God and all His ways.

Place Your Life Before God

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

Romans 12:1-2 (MSG)

Surely goodness and mercy and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell forever [throughout all my days] in the house and in the presence of the Lord.

Psalm 23:6 (AMP)

#lionbites

Friday Morning Scripture (Wk28/2022) – John 5:33-47

Testimony of John

33 You have sent [an inquiry] to [1]John [the Baptist] and he has testified [as an eyewitness] to the truth.

34 But the testimony I receive is not from man [a merely human witness]; but I say these things so that you may be saved [that is, have eternal life].

35 John was the lamp that kept on burning and shining [to show you the way], and you were willing for a while to rejoice in his light.

Testimony of Works

36 But the testimony which I have is far greater than the testimony of John; for the works that the Father has given Me to finish—the very same works [that is, the miracles and proofs of My deity] that I am [now] doing—testify about Me, [by providing evidence] that the Father has sent Me.

Testimony of the Father

37 And the Father who sent Me has Himself testified about Me. You have never heard His voice nor seen His form [His majesty and greatness—what He is like].

38 You do not have His word (Scripture) abiding in you [actually living in your hearts and minds], because you do not believe in Him whom He has sent.

Testimony of the Scripture

39 [2]You search and keep on searching and examining the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and yet it is those [very Scriptures] that testify about Me;

40 and still you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.

41 I do not receive glory and approval from men;

42 but I know you and recognize that you do not have the love of God in yourselves.

43 I have come in My Father’s name and with His power, and you do not receive Me [because your minds are closed]; but if another comes in his own name and with no authority or power except his own, you will receive him and give your approval to an imposter.

44 How can you believe [in Me], when you[seek and] receive glory and approval from one another, and yet you do not seek the glory and approval which comes from the one and only God?

45 Do not think that I [am the One who] will accuse you before the Father. There [already] is one who accuses you: Moses, [the very one] in whom you have placed your hope [for salvation].

46 For if you believed and relied on [the Scriptures written by] Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me [personally].

47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

John 4:33-47 (AMP)

Footnotes

  1. John 5:33 All references to “John” in this Gospel refer to John the Baptist. See note 1:6.
  2. John 5:39 Or Search the Scriptures! The Greek form found here can be either a command or a statement (indicative mood).

Friday Morning Scripture (Wk28/2022) – John 5:18-32

Jesus’ Equality With God

18 This made the Jews more determined than ever to kill Him, for not only was He breaking the Sabbath [from their viewpoint], but He was also calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

19 So Jesus answered them by saying, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, the Son [1]can do nothing of Himself [of His own accord], unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever things the Father does, the Son [in His turn] also does in the same way.

20 For the Father dearly loves the Son and shows Him everything that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will be filled with wonder.

21 Just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life [and allows them to live on], even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes.

22 For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment [that is, the prerogative of judging] to the Son [placing it entirely into His hands],

23 so that all will give honor (reverence, homage) to the Son just as they give honor to the Father. [In fact] the one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who has sent Him.

24 “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, the person who hears My word [the one who heeds My message], and believes andtrusts in Him who sent Me, has (possesses now) eternal life [that is, eternal life actually begins—the believer is transformed], and does not come into judgment and condemnation, but has passed [over] from death into life.

Two Resurrections

25 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, a time is coming and is [here] now, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear it will live.

26 For just as the Father has life in Himself [and is self-existent], even so He has given to the Son to have life in Himself [and be self-existent].

27 And He has given Him authority to execute judgment, because He is a Son of Man [sinless humanity, qualifying Him to sit in judgment over mankind].

28 Do not be surprised at this; for a time is coming when all those who are in the tombs will hear His voice,

29 and they will come out—those who did good things [will come out] to a resurrection of [new] life, but those who did evil things [will come out] to a resurrection of judgment [that is, to be sentenced].

30 “I can do nothing on my own initiative orauthority. Just as I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just (fair, righteous, unbiased), because I do not seek My own will, but only the will of Him who sent Me.

31 “If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not [2]valid.

32 There is another [My Father] who testifies about Me, and I know [without any doubt] that His testimony on My behalf is true and valid.

John 5:18-31 (AMP)

Footnotes

  1. John 5:19 Jesus uses the analogy of a son learning a trade from his father to show the religious leaders that when they condemn what He does, they are condemning the Father as well.
  2. John 5:31 I.e. admissible as legal evidence.

Lion Bites – Global Prophetic Alliance – Model Yourself On Me

My behaviour is perfect. I always walk in love, and you are blessed because of it. Now watch what I do and take my example.

I am always with you; are you always with me?

My heart is turned towards you; is your heart turned towards me?

My heart is open to your prayers; are you open to my words?

My eyes are attentive to your circumstances; do your eyes look at things the way I do?

My mouth speaks life; does yours?

My hand does good; are you working with it?

Model yourself on me.

Activation: Examine your heart and your life and see if there is any area that does not reflect your status as a child of God. Surrender it to the Father and let him teach you how to move the way He does.

Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, the Son is not able to do anything on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, the Son likewise does these things.”

John 5:19 (CSB)

For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done for you.

John 13:15 (CSB)

#lionbites

Thursday Morning Scripture (Wk28/2022) – Mark 5:21-43

Jesus Raises a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman

21 When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake.

22 Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet.

23 He pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands onher so that she will be healed and live.”

24 So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed and pressed around him.

25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years.

26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.

27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak,

28 because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.”

29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

30 At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”

31 “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”

32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it.

33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth.

34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

35 While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?”

36 Overhearing[1] what they said, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”

37 He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James.

38 When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly.

39 He went in and said to them, “Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.”

40 But they laughed at him.After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was.

41 He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum!” (which means “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”).

42 Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around (she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished.

43 He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this,and told them to give her something to eat.

Mark 5:21-43 (NIV)

Footnotes

  1. Mark 5:36 Or Ignoring