The Blessing Has Your Name on It (— Joel & Victoria Osteen )

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The Blessing Has Your Name on It

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore...”

(Genesis 22:17, NIV)

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

The moment God said you were blessed, you became blessed. Now, you may not pick up that blessing for a year, five years or a lifetime, but that does not change what God said. The blessing still belongs to you. You’ve got to rise up and say, “You know what? I’m going to go get it. I’m not going to live another day defeated. I know God has a crown of favor with my name on it, and I’m going to go pick it up today. I’m going to start acting like I’m blessed, like I’m redeemed, like I’m the head and not the tail, like I’m more than a conqueror.” Friends, the blessing already has your name on it. The good news is there is no line to get it. There is no “Will Call”. There are no late charges and no shortage in heaven! It’s all yours, totally paid for: blessings, favor, confidence, forgiveness. Rise up in faith. It’s your time. It’s your season. Start acting on it and receive everything He has in store for you!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, thank You for Your goodness and faithfulness to me. Thank You for Your hand of blessing upon my life. I receive it by faith. I choose to walk in Your ways and thank You for leading me into victory in every area of my life in Jesus’ name. Amen.

— Joel & Victoria Osteen

Matthew 9 - Tai New Version (TNV)

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Matthew 9

Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralyzed Man

¹Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. ²Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”

³At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”

⁴Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts?⁵Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?⁶But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” ⁷Then the man got up and went home. ⁸When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to man.

The Calling of Matthew

⁹As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.

¹⁰While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. ¹¹When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

¹²On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.¹³But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’+ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Jesus Questioned About Fasting

¹⁴Then John’s disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?”

¹⁵Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.

¹⁶“No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse.¹⁷Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

Jesus Raises a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman

¹⁸While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” ¹⁹Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples.

²⁰Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. ²¹She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.”

²²Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment.

²³When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, ²⁴he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. ²⁵After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. ²⁶News of this spread through all that region.

Jesus Heals the Blind and the Mute

²⁷As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”

²⁸When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

“Yes, Lord,” they replied.

²⁹Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”;³⁰and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.”³¹But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.

³²While they were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was brought to Jesus. ³³And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”

³⁴But the Pharisees said, “It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons.”

The Workers Are Few

³⁵Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. ³⁶When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. ³⁷Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.³⁸Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

Celebrate Freedom (— Joel & Victoria Osteen)

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Celebrate Freedom

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“You have been set free from sin...”

(Romans 6:18, NIV)

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Today in America, we celebrate Independence Day. July 4, 1776 was the day America declared their independence, but the battle for freedom went on until 1783 — seven years later. Even though the people declared their freedom in 1776, they had to stand and fight for many years before the British would accept and recognize the United States of America. In the same way, we have to declare our freedom and be determined to stand against the opposing forces of darkness in our lives. We have to declare our freedom from addiction, poverty, sickness and lack. We have to stand and fight until we fully experience His freedom and the peace that He has promised. Do you know what the early colonists did once they signed the Declaration of Independence? They read it out loud in public. They published it in the newspaper. They spread the word. They continued to declare and celebrate even though they were in the midst of the battle. Today, no matter what battle you may be facing, declare that you are free and celebrate your freedom because victory is on the way!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, thank You for setting me free in every area of my life. I declare today that nothing can hold me back. I declare that You have set me free! Thank You for freedom and victory in every area of my life in Jesus’ name. Amen.

— Joel & Victoria Osteen