Daily Devotional for Thursday February 13, 2020

Praying for your enemies and the promise they will be defeated!!!

(Deuteronomy 28:7, Psalm 44:4-8, Matthew 5:44)

***DAILY PERSONAL PRAYER FOR YOU: Dear Lord, please help me to be the person You want me to be for You today. Help me focus each day on doing my best to follow Your Word and to live my life in a way that is pleasing and acceptable to You. Each day I have many opportunities to obey you or rebel against You. Even in the smallest of things, give me the strength to faithfully follow You and honor You with my life. In the name of Jesus I pray...AMEN!!!

***THE DAILY LIVEPRAYER TV NUGGET: Well, after 124 years the state of Utah has gone full circle. Utah became a state on January 4th of 1896. The key to becoming a state was the Mormon majority agreeing to make polygamy illegal. It is important to understand that polygamy was, is, and always will be a key tenant of the Mormon cults theology. They have never backed away from the teaching of polygamy, and despite it being against the law MANY Mormons throughout the western states have openly engaged in polygamist marriages. Polygamy is also a key teaching in the Mormon’s false theology of the afterlife. They teach that Mormon men who have kept the tenets of Mormonism throughout their life will become the “god of their own planet” after death, and there will be an unlimited number of women to have sex with to produce “spirit babies” which will populate their planet. As I shared 20 years ago, if same-sex marriage was ever legalized, you would also see every other kind of marriage perversion legalized...including polygamy! Well, Utah is now on the verge of decriminalizing polygamy! It only took our nation 124 years to turn from God’s Truth to the point the satanic Mormon cult can now openly practice their false beliefs, one of those being polygamy!!!

*Don’t miss the Liveprayer TV program, airing “LIVE” every Monday thru Friday from 11pm EDT to Midnight! For details on viewing options for the Liveprayer TV program, “LIVE” or “On Demand,” go to: https://liveprayer.com/liveprayer-show-about.cfm

"You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob. Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes. I do not trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame. In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever." - (Psalm 44:4-8 NIV)

Praying for your enemies and the promise they will be defeated! At the recent National Prayer Breakfast, the message was to love your enemies. I appreciate the honesty of President Trump when he was confronted with that message and openly stated that “he isn’t there on that one yet.” He went on to say that “this is a tough one and I have lots of work to go.” I give him credit for saying out loud what a large percentage of Bible-believing Christians won’t even admit.

MOST PEOPLE HAVE A HARD TIME LOVING THEIR ENEMIES, LET ALONE SIMPLY PRAYING FOR THEM!!!

There was once a man named Saul of Tarsus. To the early Christians he was an evil man. He sought to kill those who followed Jesus Christ. One day on the road to Damascus, God visited Saul. Saul of Tarsus became Paul, one of the most powerful Christians that ever lived. A man God used to write a good portion of the New Testament and plant many of the early churches that still exist today. I have no doubt that those in the early church followed the example of Jesus and PRAYED FOR SAUL!!! Be like Jesus, and pray for your enemies.

I am about to give you a quick spiritual test. What is your attitude towards your enemies? We all have those people in our life that we just can't get along with. We all have those people in our life that don't like us. We all have those people in our life that do not wish us well. What is your attitude towards those people?

It is easy to like your friends, but how do you feel about those who do not like you? On the ladder of spiritual maturity, this is a very big rung. How we feel about and deal with those people in our life that are NOT our friends, is a major indicator of our spiritual growth and maturity.

Of course, our perfect example in this area is Jesus. How did He handle those who were involved in his death? He loved them, He forgave them, and He prayed for them. This becomes the standard that we must work to achieve in this area. We must love those who hate us. We must forgive those who mean to do us harm. We must pray for those who are out to get us. You see, the Bible says the Lord will fight for us, that the "battle is the Lord's."

The reason God fights for us is that we can get so weary, so worn out, that we become ineffective for God. We become so distracted in fighting those who oppose us, we lose sight of our mission which is to serve and glorify Him with our lives.

I realize today that you have people in your life that wish only the worst upon you. Love those people today, pray for them. Anyone that has allowed bitterness to become such a stronghold in their life needs our prayers. Those who allow bitterness and hatred to creep into their life are to be pitied. They are hurting themselves, so out of that hurt, lash out on those around them.

Pray for them. Pray the Lord will grant them peace. Pray the Lord will take the hatred and bitterness from them and replace it with peace and joy. Love them.

How? In our own strength, it is NOT POSSIBLE to love, or pray for our enemies. That is when we need to tap into the strength only God can give us. In our own strength, it is virtually impossible to love and pray for our enemies. But when we let God take over, when we call upon His strength, it is possible. AND THIS IS WHAT THE LORD IS CALLING YOU TO DO TODAY!!!

Make a list right now of everyone in your life that means you harm. Make a list of your enemies. My suggestion is that you call each one, or meet with each one and tell them you love them, forgive them, and are praying for them. At least sit down each morning, and pray for them. THIS IS WHAT GOD IS CALLING YOU TO DO TODAY!!!!

I love you and care about you so much. Jesus Christ died on a cross 2,000 years ago so that you could live TODAY in victory. That is why if you put your faith and trust in Jesus, you not only have the assurance of victory over death, but you have the assurance of victory over your enemies in this life as well! Jesus told His disciples that in this world they would have tribulation, but to be of good cheer because HE HAD OVERCOME THIS WORLD!

I will be praying for you. The Holy Spirit told me today that so many of you simply needed a word of encouragement. You needed to be reminded that God has promised you victory. Instead of going through this day with your shoulders slumped, your head down, looking like someone that has lost, you need to stick your chest out, walk boldly and confidently forward, because you have already won the victory. YOUR ENEMIES HAVE ALREADY BEEN DEFEATED!!!!

I realize that these are difficult words to hear, and even more difficult to put into action. Trust me, there is a key of freedom attached with what I am telling you today. A freedom that you cannot begin to understand. This is a test, a spiritual test. I will pray for you today that you pass it with flying colors. It is no accident that you are reading these words today. God is clearly speaking to you.

Take a few minutes right now, and pray for all of those in your life that are not your friends, that are against you. Pray for their souls, and then pray the Lord will bless them and open their hearts to His love. God is calling you today to rise above the day-to-day emotions of life. Realize that the wars we fight are not of this earth, not of flesh and blood, but are spiritual. Pray for your enemies today, and be like Jesus!!!

In His love and service,

Your friend and brother in Christ,

Bill Keller