"Give me your old for new." To some, the phrase is simply an excerpt from a favorite childhood fairy tale. However, many people feel that in real life, no one gets a desirable bargain if they give someone their old items in exchange for new items. The new items would have to be cheap, easily broken, quickly worn out, shoddy goods that no one would pay much for, anyway.

We must be, and should remain, a needy, desperate people. God has no use for, and no way to use, anyone who is self-sufficient and well-qualified.

Mark 2:17 When Jesus heard this, He told them, "Those who are well don't need a doctor, but the sick do need one. I didn't come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Psalms 72:12 For He will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. (v.13) He will take pity on the weak and the needy.

Draw nigh unto God and He will draw nigh unto you. Turn to God when a problem you face is greater than your resources. Exercise your faith by giving the burden to God to be carried and answered. Cultivate the habit of letting Father God know what presses down on your heart and causes your hands to be weak. Become consistent in calling on God for strength, wisdom, knowledge, understanding, patience, direction, power, authority, guidance, love, mercy, grace, justice; in other words, all things we need each day to walk victoriously in God' kingdom as His children, His sons and daughters, His representatives, ambassadors, shepherds, healers, judges, warriors. Only by practicing His presence in our daily lives can we fulfill our responsibilities to those He sends us to.

Psalm 60:5 Save us and help us with your right hand, that those you love may be delivered

Deuteronomy 33
v.26 There is no one like the God of Israel. He rides across the heavens to help you, across the skies in majestic splendor.
v.27 The eternal God is your refuge, and His everlasting arms are under you.

"I will never leave nor forsake thee." This is a promise we can depend on. God's presence, and His provision, has been proven through the ages, daily, to be available to His people in endless supply. When we need His patience, it is waiting for us. When we need God's power, it is working in our lives. When we need God's love, He is there with His arms around us. No battle we fight will find God asleep; no temptation we face will find God distracted; no persecution we suffer will find God weakening; no accusation we endure will find God misunderstanding. There are no shortages in God's resources or creativity. He meets our needs liberally when we ask Him. He is in debt to no one; no one has done God a favor or supplied a lack on God's part.

Job's comforters -- it is such a cliche that everyone knows what it means, even people who do not spend time reading the Bible. These guys get together to go spend time with a friend who has suffered loss of family, fortune, and health, and they end up arguing with him, accusing him of deserving these terrible things because of sin in his life.

Isn't Scripture wonderful? After reading the section in Esther describing Haman's attempt to destroy Mordecai and all the Jews under King Xerxes, a section in Psalms 36 so perfectly describes his behavior and attitude.

Nehemiah 1:4 When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.

The central fact of our lives is the absolute certainty that God has brought us into His kingdom, revolutionizing our entire attitude toward life, toward others, and toward God, in a way that is indeed miraculous. He has started to accomplish those things for us in our lives that we could never do for ourselves, and He will finish what He has started.

John 3:16 For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

I am eternally grateful that God did not simply give us some advice on how to work through our issues in life, and to stay strong when troubles come along. Instead, God gave of Himself, He gave His best.

Psalm 119:10 With my whole heart I have sought You; oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!

The conflict rages on within us. One part of us desperately hungers for more of God, a closer walk in His Spirit, a deeper intimacy with His heart. Another part jumps up and races off in random directions, following whatever happens to appeal to it at the time, or following old habits and tendencies that we have released and left behind.

Hebrews 2
v.16 For surely His concern is not for angels, but He is concerned for Abraham's descendants.
v.17 For this reason He had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God. Then He could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people.
v.18 Since He Himself has gone through suffering and testing, He is able to help us when we are being tested.

Matthew 18:20 Where two or three are banded together in My name, I will be there in the midst of them.

When God finds two or three people in union, who only want His Will to be done, who want only to serve Him, He has a plan that can be revealed to them. The grace of God, which is the power of God, can come to people who are together in one place with one accord. A union like this is miracle-working. God is able to use such people. Only good can come through such consecrated people, brought together in unified groups for a single purpose and of a single mind.

Our birth in Christ is as certain as God's promise. When we come to recognize our need and turn in belief to God's promise, and in acceptance of Jesus' sacrifice, the Spirit moves in ways we can not understand but with results we cannot deny to lift the burden of sin from our hearts and give us joy that shows in our faces and voices and actions.

We all know people who question every thing that they are told. Not in the sense of wanting to learn more or understand more thoroughly, but to try to prove they know as much or more than the teacher. They pose hypothetical questions, they go into nit-picking details.

Psalm 40:13 Be pleased, O Lord, to save me; O Lord, come quickly to help me.

Never yield to weariness of the spirit. Our physical bodies may become tired, and we have to put aside the activities of the world to rest, sleep, renew our strength, but our spirits rest in the eternal God and are sustained by Him.

Psalm 35:10 My whole being will exclaim, "Who is like You, O Lord? You rescue the poor from those too strong for them, the poor and needy from those who rob them."

Do not be afraid of what is in your heart. Simply be attentive to it, and allow God to direct you.

2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching.

The world is broken. Not just because of the current crisis of employment, finance, politics, energy, but from long ago when our forefather, Adam, gave away what was not really his to give. Adam was not the creator -- only the steward. The authority over creation was in his control, but it was entrusted to him by God.

Having a heart-healthy lifestyle is important, both in the natural as well as in the spiritual. Many of the same principles work in both environments. We need good food, we need plenty of exercise, and we need a good attitude.

Psalm 139:7 Where can I go from Your spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?

Throughout the day, acknowledge God's presence. When you need His wisdom, call upon Him for that moment's need. When a problem arises, reach out to Him, for He is already there with the answer -- a word, a prayer, an anointing to heal or to fight off an attack.

The fellowship of the saints is a real, vital, and integral part of our relationship with the Father. We must each have that strong, supporting vertical connection directly from our own heart and mind to the thoughts and feelings of God, held, cherished, protected and renewed in that secret place where we can shut out the world and all distractions.

The judgment of God is righteous and fair. Although we often think of judgment only in turns of punishment and wrath which falls on evildoers, consider that the validation of righteousness is also the rejection and conviction of evil. By upholding the honor of the poor, defending the rights of the widow and orphans, fighting for the freedom of the oppressed and captive, we are executing the judgment of God and walking in the light of His integrity and love.

Psalm 43:3 Send forth Your light and truth. Let them guide me; let them bring me to Your holy mountain, to the place where You dwell.

When God approaches you and whispers in your heart that He would like you to do something, what is your reaction?