Good News Daily - December 25 | Lara Love & Good News Ministry

TODAY’S LITTLE LETTER FROM LARA

Dear friend,

Years ago, I made a mess of ministry. In a nutshell, I wasn’t prepared. I had been warned to be prepared before jumping into ministry. But I foolishly, pridefully disregarded the warning and jumped into ministry and created a disaster. Biggest problem with my lack of preparation? I did my ministry work without the love of Christ!

Friend, there are two scriptures that come to mind regularly in my heart now, and I encourage you to consider them concerning your own life.

““I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

“And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13:2

My life and ministry without the love of Jesus were nothing.

Now day by day I am learning to walk by faith – in Christ’s love.

Please do the same!

love & blessings,

lara

TODAY’S UPDATE & PRAYER REQUEST

Thank you so much to those of you who are led by the Lord to pray for me and Good News Ministry! The Lord is so growing me and so growing this ministry and I am so in need of love & prayers as I continue down this blessed pathway of following Jesus and of telling the world about Him!

TODAY’S DAILY INSPIRATION

WHAT CAN I DO FOR YOU?

“and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.” 2 Corinthians 5:15

This is the shocking prayer I wrote to the Lord one morning:

“Oh, Father, what can I do for you? You are so beautiful, so wonderful, so gracious and kind and I love you with all my heart and others as myself because of you and I want to honor you always my precious Lord and Savior forever King, AMEN!”

Why shocking? Because I was so consumed with myself for so long that I figured the Lord was perched far away up on His throne in the sky to love and serve and honor me instead of the other way around!

Now I am so madly and passionately in love with the Lord and devoted to Him that I live and breathe to love, serve, honor, please, and glorify Him!

Are you living for self, friend, are are you living for Christ? Live for Jesus! Oh, forever live for the Lord! Ask Him what you can do for Him!

DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT

GOD CALLS, GOD SENDS”As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.

So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.” Acts 13:2-4

If you read the verse above, you may think the people gave Barnabas and Saul their calling and sent them out. out to serve the Lord. But look more carefully, friend, as the Holy Spirit caused me to do.

The Holy Spirit gave Barnabas and Saul their calling, and the Holy Spirit sent them out! Strong’s concordance shows that “they sent them away” includes in its meaning, “released them.” The Holy Spirit called and sent them, and the some prophets and teachers in Antioch according to Acts 13 released them to depart and fulfill their calling from God.

Let us understand that the Lord’s calling and His sending need to be our priority in serving Him!

TODAY’S WISDOM FROM ABOVE

DO YOU HAVE IT BACKWARDS?

“I delight to do Your will, O my God,
And Your law is within my heart.”” Psalm 40:8

“I do not speak in line with your flesh. You need to live in line with my Spirit,” the Lord chastened me one day. “You have things backwards when you want me to line up with your will. You need to line up with mine.”

Uh oh. Ouch. Yikes. Can you relate? Do you need this wisdom from above for yourself?

The Lord God almighty is not to change His will to line up with ours! We are to humbly submit to Him and line our hearts and lives up with HIS WILL for HIS GLORY!

TODAY’S 365 BLESSINGS

365 BLESSINGS is a devotional book I wrote that is available in print by contacting me at 843-338-2219 or via lara@GoodNews.love.

Blessing 238

“Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.” Romans 7:4-7

Ugh. If you look back at the fruit you were producing when you lived according to the ways of this world and were mired in sin, ugh is an understatement, isn’t it? Thank the Lord God almighty He forgives us when we turn to Him with genuine sorrow over our sins and believe in Christ as Lord!

But receiving Christ as Lord and God’s forgiveness and the promise of everlasting life isn’t the end. It’s the beginning – of a new life in Christ! Of “the newness of the Spirit” who comes to live inside those who turn their lives over to Jesus as Lord. Now we will begin to produce new fruit. Fruit for the Lord. Fruit we are blessed to produce. Fruit others can enjoy. Fruit we find ourselves enjoying as we bear it. Fruit that is a blessing. The fruit of God’s Spirit. The fruit of lives lived for Christ.

No more ugh. Instead, we can find ourselves humbled, in awe, amazed that the Lord could take someone as sin-ridden as we once were and now use us to bear fruit which shows we truly have repented and now sincerely live for Jesus!

Oh, the blessing of leaving behind the bad fruit – and moving onto the new! Fruit for Jesus, yes! Fruit by His Spirit, new fruit, good fruit, fruit for the Lord, AMEN!

(some extra encouragement in this issue…!)

SHUT YOUR MOUTH!

“Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips.” Psalm 141:3

“Shut your mouth,” the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart as clear as day. “Because you’re dishonoring me.”

What could I say? He was right. I shut my mouth and walked to my computer to write this message.

I needed to repent. I did. I turned from the wickedness coming from my heart and mouth.

Friend, sin against God isn’t limited to our actions. It also is what evil we hold in our hearts and the darkness that comes out of our mouths.

ANYTHING that dishonors the Lord Jesus Christ is sin against Him. Continually we need to purify our hearts, our mouths, and our actions so we live in a manner day in and day out that brings Him glory, honor, and praise!

TODAY’S THE CROSS DEVOTIONAL

IT’S NOT YOUR GLORY

“And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.” Acts 3:16

What did the apostles Peter and John do when the man who was paralyzed from birth to whom they ministered was miraculously healed? Did they take the credit? Did they take the glory? See the verse above? NO!

Friend, when the Lord does something beautiful, wonderful, exciting, marvelous, and miraculous THROUGH us, we need to NOT STEAL HIS GLORY! We need to GIVE HIM ALL THE GLORY!

One of the most magnificent blessings of having a deeply intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ is on a daily basis seeing His love, beauty, and power right before our very eyes in all sorts of ways. Let us remember to praise the Lord and to proclaim Him to others and to be sure to give Him the glory!

TODAY’S SERVING JESUS IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE

DON’T LEAVE UNTIL

“And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their ministry, and they also took with them John whose surname was Mark.” ACTS 12:25

Just like Barnabas and Saul did not leave Jerusalem until they had completed the ministry assignment the Lord had given them there, we should not leave a location, opportunity, commitment, relationship, etc. to which the Lord has called us to love and serve until He says so.

It may be hard to stay where we are, but the Lord will give us everything we need to stay where He has assigned us to serve until it’s His will for us to leave.

Seek the Lord about His will and timing, and in His love, mercy, grace, and strength, obey!