I assure you that whoever tells this hill to get up and throw itself in the sea and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.  – Mark 11:23

There’s power in your words. When you speak words of faith, awesome things can happen. But how do you begin speaking faith-filled words? How can you speak faith over a situation that seems hopeless or over something that seems dead? You do it by beginning to dream. Begin by dreaming and imagining what you’d like your situation to be like.

As you do that, you’ll find that you begin to have faith to see these things come to pass. When that happens, it’s easier to speak faith-filled words. As you speak faith and life over your situation, you begin to see results.

For example, let’s say doing well at school has always been hard for you. Maybe you have anxiety about taking tests. To overcome this, you’d want to begin to dream and imagine yourself successfully taking tests. Maybe you’d imagine yourself getting a good grade, or being really confident when it became time to take a test.

Once you see something in your mind’s eye, it’s a lot easier to speak faith over it. So if you can imagine it happening, you can speak it into existence. So today, begin to watch what you speak and expect God to help you in those difficult and even hopeless situations. He will give you the wisdom to get through whatever you face.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. – John 1:1 (NIV)

Do you ever feel like you don’t fit in? I know many times I’ve felt that way in my life. I never quite fit in at school, and I never quite fit in at church. As a result, I always felt a bit of an outsider. More than anything, I wanted to feel like I belonged.

When I read the book of John, I feel encouraged. I know that regardless of what I experience from humans here on earth, that with Jesus, I find love and belonging. That is much of the message of the book of John.

John is a unique book. When we read it, we see a very interesting picture of Jesus. John is showing us that Jesus was the son of God and the son of man. By reading John, we can get a really good idea of what makes the Christian faith special.

One of the first things we see is that Jesus is eternal, and was not created. Jesus existed from the beginning. And in the beginning there was fellowship between the trinity. We see that God the father, God the son, and God the Holy Spirit were all active in the beginning.

Out of their relationship, the world was made. The world that we know came into existence through Jesus.

Many other religions in the world today have an account of creation. However, where Christianity differs from them is that Jesus as the creator is a relational god. He had relationship with the members of the trinity at the beginning . It was from that relationship the world was created. In that relationship, we find our value, as we were created from a God who loves us. And from that love, we see the rest of the account in John unfold.

What excitement and meaning that should bring into our relationship with Jesus. We get to know the creator who is loving, knowable, and who created from a heart of love.

Today’s Truth: Jesus existed from the beginning and is a relational God.

If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up. – Daniel 3:17-18 (NIV)

“Even if….” Those two words say a lot. They suggest a situation that the speaker considers to be unlikely. They say that even in this unlikely scenario, nothing would change. They show the strength of conviction of the speaker.
Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego were faced with a difficult situation. King Nebuchadnezzar had set up a large golden statue in Babylon and ordered all people of every nation to bow down to it every time they heard the sound of music. If anyone refused, they were to be thrown into a blazing furnace. The three friends knew that bowing down to an idol was against God’s laws, but if they refused the king’s order, they would be put to death. Their situation was even more complicated because they had been put in a position of authority. The people of Babylon were watching everything they did, and the Israelites in the area would have been looking to them as an example of what to do.

These men chose to put their trust in God, confident that He would deliver them from the king’s punishment. When they were questioned about their refusal to serve the king’s gods or worship his image of gold, they told the king they didn’t need to defend themselves to him. They knew that only God’s judgement mattered, and they made sure the king knew their conviction was strong. “Even if he does not (deliver us from your hand), we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

As a result of their conviction, all three men emerged from the furnace completely unharmed. Even their clothes and hair were untouched, and there was no smell of fire on them- as if they had never been in there at all! King Nebuchadnezzar then recognized the power of God and promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to hold even more authority in Babylon!

Today’s Truth: Make sure your convictions reflect a complete surrender to God’s will.

Today’s devotion was written by Danni Manning. Danni grew up in a small, country church, where the members were like an extended family, and she helped her brother lead Sunday morning services in the local nursing home. As an adult, she works part time at a salon, and works as a freelance makeup artist. Danni is a craft-loving, book-reading, homeschooling mom of two, and is dedicated to raising a family who knows and loves God.

Teach us to number our days,
    that we may gain a heart of wisdom. – Psalm 90:12 (NIV)

Have you ever wished that you were more productive? Maybe that you did a better job with getting all the things done that need to be done each day? I know I have more than once.

There’s usually lots of homework, your job, your friends, your chores, your sports and other activities that keep your head spinning and you wondering how you will fit it all in.

One thing that God has recently been showing me is that even in the busiest of days, we can go to Him and ask for His wisdom in numbering and ordering our days. Many times, I’ve wondered how to fit in all the things I need to do each day. When I’ve gone to God and prayer and asked for His help, He has always been so faithful. Time after time, He has given me an idea of what to do and how to move things around in my life so that I have the time for Him.

The same is true for you. Yes, you’re probably busy. There are the demands of life, but God can help you with those things. If you’ll ask Him for wisdom, He will show you how you can count your days and get all the things that need to be done, done in your life. So today, don’t be afraid to ask Him. He is faithful and will always help you with the wisdom that you need to get those things in life done.

Today’s Truth: Ask God’s wisdom for getting things done each day.

Sing to the Lord a new song,
    for he has done marvelous things;
his right hand and his holy arm
    have worked salvation for him. – Psalm 98:1 (NIV)

One day, as a fifth grader, I became so worried. I realized that I had checked out an item from the library and thought that I hadn’t returned it and lost it. The item I had checked out was really expensive and I was certain that I was going to owe the library hundreds of dollars. I felt as if I was going to be sick. Nothing that was being taught that day was retained and I was constantly worried.

As soon as I could, I called my mom at home. I asked her if she could bring the item to me so that I could return it. During the call, she reminded me that she had already taken the item back to the library. I realized that I had forgotten that she told me that she had returned the item.

Forgetting what my mom had done led me to worry and to have a really bad day. So often, we do the same with God. We forget the good things He has done for us. As a result, we often live life worried or afraid. How much better off would we be if we simply reminded ourselves of God’s faithfulness?

Today’s verse tells us that God has done marvelous things. We should remember those things and hold onto them. Instead of living full of worry and fear, we should challenge ourselves to recall God’s might, His goodness and all the things He has done for us. In doing so, we can leave worry and fear behind us in this new year.

Today’s Truth: Remember the things God has done.