Beloved in Christ Ministry

Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths. Proverbs 3:5–6, AMP Depending on the Lord’s grace and resting in His finished work does not mean doing nothing. Just look at Apostle Paul, who lived by God’s grace. He saw first-hand how a revelation of God’s grace turned him into the effective and hardworking apostle that he was (1 Corinthians 15:10). How do we rest in the Lord and still find ourselves effectively doing what we need to do? It’s simple—just do what you ought to do, but do it trusting in the Lord’s favor, not in your smarts or careful planning. Whatever you need to do today, do it with an inward rest, without worrying or fretting, knowing that He loves you, is in charge and is for you. For example, let’s say that you’ve got a job interview comin...

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria As a believer in Jesus, you are ...

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you...” (Isaiah 66:13, NIV) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria Oftentimes when people face challenges, their natural tendency is to seek ...

…do not…fear the people [giants] of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them. Numbers 14:9 The 12 men whom Moses sent out to spy on the promised land all saw the same thing. They all saw the same big houses, the same huge grapes and yes, the same giants standing in their way! But unlike the others, Joshua and Caleb saw the giants as bread . The rest saw the giants as insurmountable, impossible obstacles. As a result, Joshua and Caleb were the only ones of their generation to enter the promised land. When you see a “giant” today in your business, health or ministry, I challenge you to see it as bread that will only make you stronger . Don’t run away in fear, but face your giant head-on—knowing that you are armed with the Lord’s unmerited favor and the powerful promises of your faithful God! Beloved, meditate on today’s verse. Let God’s Word drive out all timidity and give you t...

John 8:32 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Consider the cold, hard facts that these three people faced: The aunt of a lady in our church saw her X-ray which showed that one of her two kidneys was cancerous. A couple in our church read their medical reports which said that they would never be able to produce a child. A lady in our church who acted as a guarantor ended up being asked by the finance company to pay it S$34 million. When such situations hit us and we allow the facts to settle in our hearts, we end up feeling greatly troubled. But when we let the truths of God’s Word settle them all, we will sense the Holy Spirit bearing witness to the truths that we are believing. He is the Spirit of truth. (John 16:13) He is not the Spirit of facts and does not bear witness to facts. It may be a fact that you are sick. The doctors say that you are sick. The X-ray film shows that you are s...

So he [Elisha] answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 2 Kings 6:16 Imagine waking up one morning, going to the window and being greeted by the sight of a massive army. Hundreds of well-armed soldiers with their horses and chariots have surrounded you, and they’re there to take you down! What would you do? In the Old Testament, Gehazi, Elisha’s servant, was consumed by such a frightening vision one early morning. Naturally, he panicked…until the Lord opened his spiritual eyes to see that the Lord’s army was present with them—in far larger numbers than their physically visible enemies! My friend, never see yourself alone in your struggles or challenges. Don’t go by what you can only see, feel or hear with your natural senses. See with eyes of faith how the Lord and His angels, horses and chariots of fire are right with you to protect, provide for and deliver you! And if God is for you, how can you not eme...

Isaiah 53:5 5 … The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. You know, one of the biggest outcries against Mel Gibson’s movie, The Passion Of The Christ , was that it was too violent, especially the part where Jesus was scourged. Let me tell you this: It was not violent enough! The Bible says that at the cross, Jesus’ visage was marred beyond that of any man. (Isaiah 52:14) In the movie, even after all the beatings, the actor James Caviezel, who played Jesus, still looked quite handsome. But the reality is that when Jesus hung on the cross, He had “no form or comeliness… there is no beauty that we should desire Him”. (Isaiah 53:2) He was beaten to a pulp until His face looked like jelly hanging out! In the movie, when they scourged Him, only a small portion of His bones was exposed, so it was still quite tidy. But the messianic psalms say, “The plowers plowed on my back; they made their f...

2 Peter 1:2 2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, If you would like to walk in a greater measure of God’s favor, 2 Peter 1:2 says that grace, which is the undeserved favor of God, and peace, can be multiplied to you. Peace is the word “shalom” in Hebrew. Its definition includes wholeness, health, safety and provision. So when you walk in divine favor and peace, you will walk in blessings in every area of your life! But how do the undeserved favor and shalom of God increase in your life? It is not by your laboring or toiling to earn it. The Bible says that it comes as your knowledge of Jesus and His finished work increases. It comes as you learn more about and believe that through Jesus’ one sacrifice at the cross, God removed all your sins, gave you His righteousness as a gift and put you in Christ to enjoy everything Jesus has. God’s favor is multiplied in your life whe...

Death and life are in the power of the tongue… Proverbs 18:21 When God saw darkness covering the waters, He said, “Let there be light,” and light existed. When Jesus saw a man’s withered hand, He said, “Stretch out your hand.” The man stretched it out and found it made whole. Beloved, speak the good that you want to see, and not the bad that you may see in your circumstances. Instead of seeing yourself jobless, see yourself with a great job and call it forth. Say, “Because I’m God’s beloved, He will provide me with a fantastic job.” Then, start sending out those résumés! Perhaps you want to get married. Instead of seeing yourself single for the rest of your life, see yourself having a wonderful marriage and call it forth. Say, “Because God favors me, I can’t wait to meet my life partner!” Then, trust the Lord to lead and position you to meet the right person! Speak good over yourself because you know that God is for you, and step into the good plans ...

…but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13–14 Despite having repented and getting saved, Apostle Paul could have dwelled on his serious past mistake of persecuting the early church. He could have chosen to live a life of regret and thus fail to fulfill God’s call on his life. But he didn’t. Instead, he chose to forget the past, “reaching forward to those things which are ahead.” My friend, don’t live in the past. Whether it’s a failed marriage, a huge mistake you made, or a hurtful remark from someone, leave them all in the past and move forward. By all means, learn from your mistake. But look to Christ as your success, wisdom, comfort and strength, and see Him do a new thing in your life by His unmerited favor. See Him giving you stronger and blessed relationships through His wisdom...

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” (Proverbs 14:30, NIV) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria It’s so easy to let the pressures and distractions of life pull...

Romans 8:31 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? Are you faced with challenges in your life right now? Are you having marital problems and financial woes? Maybe your child is going astray or an old illness has returned. What then will you say to all these things? Do you know what God wants you to say? He wants you to say, “If God is for me, who can be against me?” If you knew that the President or the Prime Minister was for you, you might believe that everything will be okay. But you have an even better backing! The Bible tells us that God, the Almighty, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, is for you! What problem can fasten its grip on you when the Almighty God is for you? Can the devil come successfully against you with God on your side? If God is for you today, if God is for you right now, you don’t have to moan, “If only I had this… If only I didn’t say that…...

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “Before I formed you in the womb I knew [and] approved of you...” (Jeremiah 1:5, AMP) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria Did you know that God was thinking about you before you were ever b...

But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out His special favor on me… I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by His grace. 1 Corinthians 15:10, NLT The apostle Paul “worked harder than any of the other apostles.” But he attributed his success to the favor or grace of God in his life. My friend, God’s grace will never provide you with reasons to just sit around and wait for a miracle to fall into your lap. No, it will give you faith to believe that God is working in and through you despite your limitations. It will give you a get-up-and-go-for-it spirit. It will make you say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13)! So in whatever role or position you find yourself right now, see the Lord’s favor empowering you to do what you need to with extraordinary diligence, creativity and effectiveness. The more you lean on His grace in all that you do...

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” (Galatians 6:9, NKJV) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria I’d love to tell you that if...

John 14:26 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things… If you are asking whom or where you can go to to get the help you need, ask no more. Just turn to God who has already promised you the Helper, the Holy Spirit whom He has sent in Jesus’ name to dwell in you. The Holy Spirit will teach you all things. Yes, teach you all things! Do you really believe that? Or are you like some who believe that you seek God’s counsel only for spiritual things, but consult “professional” help for all other things in your life? God does not want you to run to and rely on worldly wisdom. Now, there is nothing wrong with going to a doctor or engaging a financial consultant, but God wants you to come to Him first for counsel and direction. That is why He has sent the Holy Spirit, the Counselor (John 16:7, NIV), to teach you all things. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth and He ...

Luke 12:6–7 6 Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. 7 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. Many Christians make the mistake of thinking that God is too busy taking care of the “big things” to be interested in the little problems they are facing. Are you one of them? It may be your child’s bed-wetting habit, a quarrel with a friend or the small pimple on your face. No matter how trivial it sounds, if it troubles you, then God wants to take care of it! God wants to take care of every area of your life, even the smallest detail. He loves you so much that He knows the number of hairs you have on your head. And if your loving heavenly Father knows and is interested in the small details of your life, then you don’t have to overcome any problem on your own. When my daughter Jessica turned three, m...

For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. Hebrews 10:14, NASB When God was with Moses on Mount Sinai, the Israelites became impatient and asked Aaron, whom Moses had left in-charge, to make them other gods to worship. And without so much as a word of protest, Aaron crafted a calf from the gold that the people had given him, so that they could worship it. While this abomination was happening, God was telling Moses that Aaron would be His very first high priest: “Call for your brother, Aaron, and his sons…Set them apart from the rest of the people of Israel so they may minister to me and be my priests” (Exodus 28:1). Didn’t God know what was happening down below? Of course He knew, but He did not see Aaron as he was then. He saw what Aaron would become by His grace—His undeserved, unmerited favor. God saw Aaron representing the people before Him as high priest of the nation, and entering the Holy Place on the Day of Ato...

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. Proverbs 4:23, NLT I can’t stress enough the importance of guarding your heart. The Book of Wisdom says that as a man thinks in his heart , so is he (Proverbs 23:7). Jesus also said that a man is only able to “bring forth good things” in his life if he has first filled his heart with good treasure! How then do you guard what enters your heart? You guard what comes through your ear and eye gates! What this means is that if all the bad news on television or the Internet is causing you to despair, turn your attention to something else that’s edifying and God-glorifying. If the people you hang out with are speaking fear, doubt and cynicism into you, I encourage you to hang out with kingdom friends who are faith-filled. Just as fear is contagious, so is faith! Beloved, store up good treasures from the Lord in your heart and you will bring forth good success!

How precious is Your steadfast love, O God! The children of men take refuge and put their trust under the shadow of Your wings. Psalm 36:7, AMP Divorced. Mature. Displaced. Most people would have been discouraged by these official terms to describe their status in society, but not a precious lady who wrote to me sharing her testimony. She didn’t let how others saw her stop her from pursuing her dreams—she applied for a university education in her latter years. What caused her to rise above those voices of defeat? What caused her to be success-minded? She shared with me that through reading my devotionals on God’s grace and Jesus’ finished work, she became infused with faith and boldness to pursue her dreams no matter what limits others put on her. Instead of seeing herself divorced, old and displaced, she said, “I see myself as God says I am—His beloved. Because I am His beloved, I’m trusting Abba for abundant provision.” She saw Almighty God backing up her...

For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Mark 11:23 Did you know that when it came to a blessing (rain for Israel), Elijah prayed hard by bowing his head between his knees (Kings 18:41–45)? But when it came to a curse (drought for Israel), he simply declared it with confidence (1 Kings 17:1). Why? It’s because Elijah had more faith in God’s judgment than in God’s goodness! He was an old covenant prophet with an old covenant mindset when it came to prayer! My friend, old covenant prophets call your sins to remembrance and deliver to you the judgment and punishment of God. They are judgment-minded. New covenant prophets, on the other hand, call your forgiveness and righteousness in Christ to remembrance, and point you to the finished work of Christ. So when it comes to praying, ...

1 Peter 5:8 8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. The devil cannot just walk right up to you and rob you of your health, peace or family. He cannot just come into your life to enforce disease and destruction. If the devil can do that, then he does not have to walk about “seeking whom he may devour”. He only has to walk straight up to anyone he wants to devour and devour him! But since the Bible says that he goes about seeking whom he may devour, the truth then is that there are people whom he cannot devour. You see, the devil goes about like a roaring lion trying to stir up fear in people with his roars. But the people who are not devourable are those who refuse to be intimidated by his roars because they know that the true Lion of Judah, Jesus Christ (Revelation 5:5), has already come and rendered powerless him who had the power of death. (...

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer...for I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33, AMP) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria ...

…it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:13 Once as a young child, I came across a shrub with gorgeous flowers. When I discovered a budding flower among the fully opened ones, I thought that it would be a great idea to help it blossom. So I tried to peel open the petals one by one…and bit by bit, the flower became undone as the petals were torn off in my little hands. I had begun with good intentions, but killed the poor flower in the end! My friend, when it comes to our areas of concern, our human efforts to solve our problems, despite the best of intentions, cannot produce results that are as beautiful as if we were to allow God’s wisdom and timing to do it. It’s when we rest from our self-efforts and struggles to solve our problems, and allow God to work in us and through us, that we see divine results. I’ve often said this: If God wants all the glory, then allow Him to do all the work. God loves it when...

Joshua 24:13 13 I have given you a land for which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.’ God is more willing to bless you than you are willing to be blessed! In fact, He is so keen for you to enjoy His abundance that in His mind, giving you over and above what you need is a settled matter. God has already promised: “ I have given you a land for which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.” He did not say, “I may give,” which means that it may or may not happen, but He said, “I have given,” which means that it has already happened. It is only a matter of time before your revelation of what you have through the work of Christ brings forth the abundance that He has already blessed you with. A brother in t...