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What has God promised you? | Pastor Eric Dykstra, The Crossing Church, Elk River, MN

Scripture for today:  

 

Psalm 119:49 Remember your promise to me; it is my only hope. Your promise revives me; it comforts me in all my troubles.

 

What promises has God given you? There are general promises like: He loves you. He forgives you. He will strengthen you. 

 

These are great promises! I need these to make it through my day. They comfort me like the Scripture says. But I am asking - what specific promises has God given you personally?

 

The Word of God is active and powerful (Hebrews 4:12). God speaks specific promises to specific people to get them to walk by faith. God told Abraham he would have son, and he was given Isaac in his old age (Genesis 21). God promised Elijah he would be taken care of in a drought, and ravens came and fed him (I Kings 17). God promised David he would be king and it took awhile, but it came to pass (1 Samuel 16).

 

What has God promised you? Whatever it is - hold on to it. Never lose that promise. If God declared it to you, IT WILL COME TO PASS!  

 

I have special promises from God to me. I keep them close to my heart. I only share them with people I trust. They are God's special words of favor to me. On dark days they get me through. On good days I feel like they are coming closer to reality. But I never want to forget what God told me. His promises always come to pass. 

 

2 Corinthians 1:20 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God.

Heaven will be HUGE | Pastor Eric Dykstra, The Crossing Church, Elk River, MN

Scripture for today:

 

Revelation 7:9-10 After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” (NIV)

 

I grew up thinking hell is going to be huge! I used to think most people were somewhere on the "Highway to Hell" and only a few people were "Knocking on Heaven's Door". Heaven was a small place reserved for the few "real" Christians and most people were in real trouble when they kicked the bucket.

 

Wow, am I thankful for verses like Revelation 7:9-10! This Scripture tells us heaven is going to be huge! It will be so large, it has too many people to count! The verse goes on to say there are people in heaven from every nation! Which means every culture, every language, every society in the history of the world is going to have people in heaven!

 

What good news! In heaven, we are going to be surprised not at how few people got in, but how big God's grace really is! In heaven, we are going to be awestruck by how God brought billions and billions to Himself.

 

I saw this quote recently from the great preacher Charles Spurgeon. He says:

"How often do I hear people say, 'The gate is straight and the way is narrow, and there are few who find it. There will be very few in Heaven; most will be lost.'

 

My friend, I differ with you. Do you think that Christ would let the devil beat Him? That He would let the devil have more in Hell than there will be in Heaven? No, it is impossible! For then Satan would laugh at Christ. There will be more in Heaven then there are among the lost. God says, 'there will be a great multitude that no one can number who will be saved.' But He never says that there will be a great multitude that no man can count that will be lost. What glad tidings for you and me!"     

That is such good news! Christian, keep praying for those you love who don't believe! God is going before your prayers. He is actively working to bring them to Himself. He has no plan to fill hell and leave heaven empty! He is going to reach your neighbors, co-workers, friends, and family members with His love and grace! You just stay in faith! You will see God do miraculous things in the lives of those you love! Every life matters to Him! He is on an all-out search to find them (Luke 15), and He will celebrate when they are safely home with Him!  

 

Don't get discouraged - God's grace and love is strong and He will bring those you love to Himself! I believe this. I declare it in Jesus' name!

 

Pastor Eric 

Being a Christian is Easy & Hard | Pastor Eric Dykstra, The Crossing Church, Elk River, M=

Scripture For Today:

 

2 Timothy 4:5 As for you, be calm and cool and steady, accept and suffer unflinchingly every hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fully perform all the duties of your ministry. (AMP)

 

Being a Christian is both easy and hard. It is easy because we have the grace, wisdom, and strength of Jesus to protect us, empower us, and guide us. It is hard because when we chose Christ, we chose sides in a spiritual war. There is a very real supernatural enemy that seeks to crush our faith in Christ. He is out to destroy our lives, our families, our relationships, and our churches. He is the master of lies and he loves to twist truth in order to ruin something beautiful. (John 8:44)

 

That is why I love this scripture! Paul encourages his apprentice Timothy to:

• Be calm, cool, and steady. Don't get stressed out when the enemy attacks you. Don't lose your peace. Remember, Jesus is the Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)
• Accept and suffer unflinchingly every hardship. I love that word "unflinchingly". Don't get discouraged! Don't give up! Don't even have a momentary freak out! Don't allow your situation to move you! Remember, Jesus is the ROCK and your salvation! You shall not be moved! (Psalm 62:6)
• Do the work of an evangelist. We are the Good News Bringers to every relationship in our lives. We graciously, kindly, enthusiastically point people to the HOPE that is found in Jesus! We get to be HOPE DEALERS today! What a great role to play in this spiritual battle! We get to be the ones to offer the Good News that Jesus is for you and not against you! 
• Fully perform all the duties of your ministry. Every day is different. Every day the tasks of my ministry (and yours) are unique. Today I am going to pray over a man who the doctors have only given a few months to live. I am going to pray for a miracle. I believe in miracles. I have seen God do miracles before, and I believe He can do it in this man's life. This is what I think ministry is - to help people, encourage people, pray for people, and point them to Jesus every chance we get.  

Being "in Christ" is both easy and hard. This spiritual war we are in, to be a blessing in our world, is both a privilege and a responsibility. Let us celebrate His grace and accept and suffer every hardship UNFLINCHINGLY!  

 

We can do this because: "His grace is enough." (2 Corinthians 12:9)

We can do this because: "We can do all things through Christ who gives us strength." (Philippians 4:13)   

We can do this because: "Greater is He that is in us, than He that is in the world." (I John 4:4)

We can do this because: "We know in all things God works for the good of those who love Him." (Romans 8:28)

We can do this because: "Overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, WHO LOVES US!" (Romans 8:37)

 

Pastor Eric

 

Strength to keep us from stumbling | Grace-based Fasting Day 12 | Pastor Eric Dykstra, The Crossing Church, Elk River, MN

Scripture for today:

 

Jude 1:24 To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy.

 

Many days we feel like we have to find strength in ourselves in order to succeed in life. We feel like we have to keep ourselves from stumbling. But this is not the case. 

 

If we are in Christ, this verse promises that Jesus will give us the strength to keep us from stumbling. He will give us the strength to stay in faith and the wisdom to make good choices. He promises to present us fault-free to the Father.  

 

This should give you great joy today! You don't have to try on your own - He will keep you from stumbling.

 

The strength and wisdom of Jesus is enough. If you will keep your eyes fixed on Him and your ears open to His voice, you can't fail today. You can't be overcome because you are in Christ. 

 

I want to leave you today with one more promise from the book of first Corinthians:

 

1 Corinthians 1:8-9 He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns. God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says...

 

Isn't that awesome? He will keep you strong to the end. Walk confidently in this grace today!

 

Pastor Eric

God Reversed the Curse | Grace-based Fasting Day 11 | Pastor Eric Dykstra, The Crossing Church, Elk River, MN

Scripture for today:

Numbers 23:20 Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it.

This passage is about a man named Balaam who is hired by the enemies of God's people to curse God's people. But every time he tried to pronounce a curse over them, a blessing came out instead! God reversed the curse into a blessing for His people!

Here is what is amazing about this:
I believe this is true for all of God's people. You are blessed and cannot be cursed! Each and every day we go through difficulties, trials, and unexpected pains. I want you to know that if you are in Christ, you are still blessed and can not be cursed! Just like God reversed the curse for Israel, I believe in every "curse" that comes against us, God is speaking greater blessings over us.

Today if you feel beat down by something or someone, know that God is still pronouncing blessing over you. It can not be reversed! He loves you. He is proud of you. In Christ you are approved and favored and forgiven and He has planned a GREAT FUTURE for you!

Romans 8:31 says, "If God be for us, who can be against us?"

Isaiah 43:13 says, "From eternity to eternity I am God. No one can snatch anyone out of My Hand. No one can undo what I have done!"

1 John 4:4 says, "Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world."

Isaiah 54:17 says, "No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment, you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is from me,” says the Lord.

Wow! What a great privilege it is to be the people of God! You are blessed and cannot be cursed!

Pastor Eric