Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 16 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 16 May2008

Security and Identity in Christ. What are the foundational building blocks to building a strong sense of security and identity in Christ? No matter where we are at right now with our personal relationship with God, it is vital that we constantly guard our hearts and self-check. The moment we let our guard down, we will be prone to the enemy's attack. Today’s word of encouragement is: taken from Psalm 73:25-26 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. We have to come to grips with the reality of life that we are mortal, and sooner or later we are going to leave this world. If we continue to strive for the things of the world and not strive for God, we will always feel empty inside. Today, we may fail, lose our job, lose our son/daughter in an earthquake or cyclone, but the Word of God is clear, My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 15 May 2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 15 May 2008

Security and Identity in Christ: Where is your anchor in. What are the foundational building blocks to building a strong sense of security and identity in Christ? No matter where we are at right now with our personal relationship with God, it is vital that we constantly guard our hearts and self-check. The moment we let our guard down, we will be prone to the enemy’s attack. The enemy wants to rob us, confuse us, and take away what is rightfully ours that has been given to us by God. Today’s word of encouragement is an encouragement to always be anchored, firmly secured in God’s promises. The moment we lose faith, hope, and trust in God, we have already lost. Hebrews 6:13-20 are verses which I hope will open our eyes to realize how awesome and powerful our Lord is. Hebrews 6:13 When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, 14 saying, "I will surely bless you and give you many descendants." 15 And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised. 16 Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. 17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. 19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 14 May 2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 14 May 2008

Security and Identity in Christ: Recognize your sin. What are the foundational building blocks to building a strong sense of security and identity in Christ? No matter where we are at right now with our personal relationship with God, it is vital that we constantly guard our hearts and self-check. The moment we let our guard down, we will be prone to the enemy’s attack. Writing this series has made me realize the importance in understanding the meaning of having an identity in Christ. Having an identity in Christ means that God defines me and no one else. Recognizing our weaknesses, our flaws, our sin, is the first step. The foundation of INSECURITY is an unwillingness to recognize that we are sinning, stubbornness to repent and surrender everything to God. It is easy to recognize insecurity, because we keep apologizing, but we still fall to the same sin over and over again. The greatest example of insecurity in the bible is King Saul. (1 Samuel 9-15) The very foundation of King Saul’s character was insecurity. Even when he was chosen he doubted himself, he hid himself because he wanted to see peoples’ reaction first. He was more concerned by what people thought of him than what God thought of him, he disobeyed God’s commands because he valued pleasing men more than God. Saul failed to recognize his sin. God is love and God is a just God, the choice is really up to us to decided whether we want to recognize our sins or not. What is your choice going to be today? I encourage you to read 1 Samuel 9-15, it is through Saul’s life that we can understand the power of having an identity in Christ and not in man. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 13 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 13 May2008

Security and Identity in Christ: Surrendering everything to God. What are the foundational building blocks to building a strong sense of security and identity in Christ? No matter where we are at right now with our personal relationship with God, it is vital that we constantly guard our hearts and self-check. The moment we let our guard down, we will be prone to the enemy’s attack. Today’s word of encouragement is about surrendering everything to God. How in the world is this related to our security and identity in Christ? Well, if we are not fully surrendered to God, we are simply not His children and He does not call us His own. Having an identity in Christ, means we are modeling our lives after Him. Not just on the day we accepted Christ as our Lord and savior. Not just when we go to church. BUT ON A DAILY BASIS. Today, I hope we are challenged to renew our identity in Christ. If we are not in Christ daily, means we are in control, and if we are in control—our lives are open to sin. Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 12 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 12 May2008

Today, I begin on a new series: Security and Identity in Christ. What are the foundational building blocks to building a strong sense of security and identity in Christ? No matter where we are at right now with our personal relationship with God, it is vital that we constantly guard our hearts and self-check. The moment we let our guard down, we will be prone to the enemy’s attack. Some of us already have strong foundations in God, and we know where our security lies in. I offer you a challenge today, “Be an example to those that don’t.” Today’s word of encouragement is, loving God more than anyone or anything. It is a simple statement, but many of us take this for granted. No one can teach us how to love God, and no one can tell us how to do it. It is a personal desire, and that is what God is after, HOW MUCH DO WE DESIRE GOD. It is so easy to fall trap to insecurity, if we constantly SEEK APPROVAL from friends, from people, and even our family. The only person that we need to seek is God and no one else. God defines us, I hope that we will always remember this. Psalm 9:10 Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 11 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 11 May2008

Building the right character for courtship. Today I end my series on building the right character for courtship, with this final encouragement. Today's word of encouragement is: Remove idleness and take action. 2 Thessalonians 3: 10 For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat." In any relationship it takes work and effort. God has His best for us and in order to receive that blessing, we need to take action, work at it, and give our best. The verse above is very clear, If a man will not work, he shall not eat. Today, I hope that we would be encouraged not to get too comfortable with our lifestyle. For some of us, the single life, doing things on our own, has become a habit, and we are happy where we are at. Let us be careful that we aren’t getting to comfortable with that lifestyle, because it may cause us to become self-reliant, self-trusting, and the attitude that, “I can do it myself. The challenge is to simply allow God to open our hearts. God is specific; it is a matter of trusting fully in God and not ourselves. Let us continue to pray for those that are single and the youth. That they may build the right character for courtship. As we pray, God will use generations of Godly men and women who built the right character for courtship as examples to those who are entering relationships for the wrong reasons. Watch and see, God use these relationships to transform His kingdom—healthy marriages will be a testimony of building the right character for courtship. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 10 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 10 May2008

Building the right character for courtship. Today's word of encouragement is about priorities. If we do not have the right priorities in place before we enter courtship, we may be adding unnecessary stress to our relationship. What are some key priorities? Having a stable career is crucial because no one wants to be financially burdened in any relationship. Secondly, having individually strong relationships with God is vital. If one person is constantly walking with God and the other is lukewarm, eventually there is going to be a strain on the relationship. Thirdly, in my opinion make sure you are not entering a relationship to run away from your past. Some of us had bad relationships and unresolved issues with our family, and entering a relationship was a way of “dealing” with the issue. This is not a solution, because anything that is unresolved will surface into any relationship you enter in. Finally, making personal convictions top priority. Some people are clingy and depended on relationships for security. To me personally this is one non-negotiable, non-compromising conviction. No matter how attracted I may be to a person, I will not enter courtship with anyone who is emotionally depended on me and not on God. Priorities are key, convictions are vital when it comes to courtship. God wants to bless us and not harm us. The devil wants to harm us, so who are we listening to? I pray today we are listening clearly to God’s voice. Acts 5:38-39 For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39 But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God." © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com