By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. – 2 Peter 1:3 (NLT) How much has God given us? Everything! Through Christ, God gave us all that we need to prosper, overcome temptation, grow loving relationships, know peace and walk in health. That’s why it is counterproductive to plead with God for something He’s already provided us. In fact, begging Him is essentially believing that He hasn’t given it to us. Our prayers are then operating in unbelief. Imagine inheriting a house and holding the ownership documents and keys, but instead of making it your home, you keep asking the bank if you can have the house. It’s already yours! So, if God has given us all …

And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he’s listening. And if we’re confident that he’s listening, we know that what we’ve asked for is as good as ours. – 1 John 5:14 (MSG) What we believe affects how we pray. Unfortunately, many people have come to believe inaccurate doctrines about prayer. And the more they struggle to see their prayers work, the more their faith erodes. One misguided doctrine involves begging and pleading with God to act, as though He is unwilling and needs convincing. Another out-of-context doctrine involves believing Satan is so powerful that he’s blocking things from believers, such as healing. So people think they have to fight the devil to get to their …

And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole. – Luke 17:19 (KJV) There is something about thankfulness that brings God on the scene. Luke 17 tells the story of the time Jesus healed ten lepers. All ten were healed on their way to show themselves to the priest, but only one returned to thank Jesus, and only this thankful man was made “whole” (Luke 17:19, KJV). We can’t be sure what Jesus meant by this, but we do know that leprosy could cause the loss of fingers, toes and other extremities. Did this mean that the thankful leper was the only one who received a full restoration of all he had lost? Well, the word “whole” was translated …

Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, thanked God for them, and broke them into pieces. He gave them to the disciples, who distributed the food to the crowd. – Matthew 15:36 (NLT) Many think that miracles are up to God, and you never quite know if He’ll grant your requests. But when God adds His supernatural ability to your efforts, it’s not by chance. It is the result of aligning your heart with, and making use of, what God has already made available to you. One key to walking in the supernatural is thankfulness. In Matthew 15, Jesus performed an amazing miracle. A crowd that numbered into the thousands had followed Jesus far into the countryside to listen to Him preach. He had been …

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:7 (NKJV) In our ever-busy world, we need to learn how to walk in peace. Paul spoke of this peace that surpasses all understanding, which is much more than a fleeting feeling of calm or tranquility. This peace runs much deeper, and as a follower of Christ, you can experience it. But how? The way most of us look for peace is by trying to control our external world. When we’re stressed out, we try to get rid of what’s stressing causing stress or we look for ways to unwind. While problem solving is key and it’s important to recharge our batteries, we need to …