DEVOTIONAL

365 Daily Inspirations for Winning the Battle of the Mind

Joyce Meyer

New YorkBostonNashville

Copyright 2013 by Joyce Meyer All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the authors intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at permissions@hbgusa.com. Thank you for your support of the authors rights. Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are taken from The Amplified Bible (AMP). The Amplified Bible, copyright 1965, 1987 by The Zondervan Corporation. The Amplified New Testament copyright 1954, 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are taken from the King James Version of the Bible. Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible: New International Version. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked The Message are taken from The Message. Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. Scripture quotations marked (NKJV) are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers. Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. FaithWords Hachette Book Group 237 Park Avenue New York, NY 10017 www.faithwords.com Printed in the United States of America RRD-C First Edition: October 2013 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 FaithWords is a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc. The FaithWords name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc. The Hachette Speakers Bureau provides a wide range of authors for speaking events. To find out more, go to www.hachettespeakersbureau.com or call (866) 376- 6591. The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher. Library of Congress Control Number: 2013941780 ISBN: 978-1-4555-1744-2

DEVOTIONAL

September 21

Power Thoughts Devotional 264

Taming the Tongue

I said, I will take heed and guard my ways, that I may sin not with my tongue; I will muzzle my mouth as with a bridle while the wicked are before me. Psalm 39:1 The psalmist David prayed a lot about his words. He said, Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my [firm, impenetrable] Rock and my Redeemer (Psalm 19:14). Set a guard, O Lord, before my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips (Psalm 141:3). We can see from these Scriptures that David was determined not to sin with his tongue, but at the same time, he relied on God for strength to follow through. One of the things we should ask God each day is to help us speak right things. Our words are very important, and they should be used for Gods purpose. We should desire to be mouthpieces for God, speaking His Word faithfully.

Power Thought: With Gods strength, I can tame my tongue.

265Power Thoughts Devotional

September 22

More Than Enough

And my God will liberally supply (fill to the full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19

Paul tells us God will liberally supply all of our needs. He doesnt promise God will give us everything we want, but he does assure us God will meet our every need. Many times we think of needs in terms of the basic necessities of life. These represent our physical needs, but I believe God created us to need more than these essentials. We dont simply need money, nourishment, a roof over our heads, and clothes to wear. We also need wisdom, strength, health, friends, and loved ones; and we need the gifts and talents and abilities to help us do what we are supposed to do in life. We need many things, and God is willing to meet all of our needs when we trust and obey Him.

Power Thought: God liberally supplies all of my needs.

September 23

Power Thoughts Devotional 266

Who He Is
I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, he who believes in Me [who adheres to, trusts in, relies on, and has faith in Me] has (now possesses) eternal life. John 6:47 As long as miracles happen, everybody is willing to follow Jesus. In John chapter 6, the people followed Jesus because of what He was doing for them, but Jesus spoke to them about seeking Him for Who He is and not merely what He does. God wants us to seek His face, not His hand. We will have seasons when it seems as if God is silent and still, almost as though He is hiding from us. He doesnt want us to stop following Him during those times, but we will if we are seeking only His hand (what He can do for us). During those seasons, when God is hiding and we are seeking, our faith can grow. If we are happy only when some big, exciting thing is going on in our lives, we will never be stable because thats not our routine, everyday experience. Our normal, natural, everyday lives can be supernatural when we trust God.

Power Thought: I seek Gods face and not His hand. I want Him, not just what He can do for me.

267Power Thoughts Devotional

September 24

The Danger of Anger

And become useful and helpful and kind to one another, tenderhearted (compassionate, understanding, loving-hearted), forgiving one another [readily and freely], as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 The word anger is one letter removed from the word danger. Gods Word tells us not to let the sun go down on our anger (see Ephesians 4:26). When we stay angry, we give the devil a foothold in our lives; we open a door for him to work. God promises His children a blessed and abundant life if they obey His commandments. Staying angry and harboring unkind feelings toward others is disobedience. God commands us to forgive as freely as He has forgiven us. In this life, we must be very generous with forgiveness. It is one thing we can learn to give away every day. If you are angry with anyone for any reason, even if your anger seems justified, choose to forgive, and you will be doing yourself a favor.

Power Thought: I am generous with forgiveness.

September 25

Power Thoughts Devotional 268

Are You Trusting or Worrying?

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. Proverbs 3:5 Many times we say we are trusting God, but our minds are worrying. As the above verse confirms, we are to trust the Lord not only with our hearts, but also with our minds. What do you allow your mind to do when you have problems? Do you worry and try to figure things out, or do you leave them in Gods capable hands? If you operate in the mind of the Spirit, trusting God instead of worrying, you can have the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:7 NKJV); you can have unspeakable joy (see 1 Peter 1:8) right in the middle of terrible trials and tribulations. Trusting God instead of worrying releases joy in us and provides answers to our problems.

Power Thought: I trust in and lean on my God with all my heart and mind.