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Yesterday I was talking with one of our partners and he reminded me of the powerful principle of the first thing in our mouth every day. He was telling me that he had been focusing on praising and thanking God for a beautiful day first thing in the morning, and how much of a difference this little thing made. 

One of my mentors in health and fitness used to teach that the first thing we put in our mouth every morning influences our brain chemistry for the rest of the day. My mentor was talking about nutrition, but I have found that this is also a spiritual principle. Waking up and going immediately into praise and thanksgiving, sets the tone for the whole day. Another area of firsts to pay attention to is the first thing that comes out of our mouth when pressure or adversity comes our way, because it sets the tone for how the whole situation is handled. 

Tonight is Passover, which in Hebrew is translated as "talking mouth." God told the people in the Old Testamen...

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This time of year is a reminder that God always causes us to triumph, and it reminds me of how the Israelites marched triumphantly out of Egypt on the day after Passover, which is tomorrow night.

2 Corinthians 2:14-16 says 14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us spreads and makes evident everywhere the sweet fragrance of the knowledge of Him. 15 For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ [which ascends] to God, [discernible both] among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; 16 to the latter one an aroma from death to death [a fatal, offensive odor], but to the other an aroma from life to life [a vital fragrance, living and fresh].

In today's communion we are thanking God that he always causes us to triumph and we are asking for insight, revelation, and understanding of the sweet fragrance of Christ and how when we triumph it spreads the sweet fragrance of him. 

Today's Workout/Health Tip

In our worko...

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In today's communion we are asking God to help us implement a new standard into our lives. Down below is an excerpt from my book The 8th Date on the Standard of Grace. 

Several years ago, a good friend of mine was leading a Bible study. “The Bible tells us to set our minds on the things above or the things of heaven,” he said, “but can anybody tell me what these things are? Because I want to know.”

No one among the 15-20 men had an answer for this question. This seemed like an important question, so I started seeking God for an answer. And he began to teach me about the things above. 

God’s standards for our lives are the things above. This is what we are supposed to focus on. However, his standards are different from the world’s standards. His standards become the “high thing,” which is like true north on a compass. If we want to see the fruit of the kingdom, and navigate our lives successfully, we must constantly be comparing our lives to true north.

“The 8th...

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Today we are taking communion over 1 Corinthians 10:14-24 and we are asking God for insight, revelation, and understanding of these scriptures. 

1 Corinthians 10:14-24

14 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. 15 I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. 16 Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? 17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf.

18 Consider the people of Israel: Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? 19 Do I mean then that food sacrificed to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything?

20 No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s tabl...

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Galatians 6:7-10 says, 7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

One of the skills I believe we all need is the ability to stay encouraged and energized when we are doing good but haven't seen the harvest yet. In today's communion we are asking God for his help to stay encouraged and not grow weary so that we make the most of the opportunities that are coming to us each day. Love never fails and love always perseveres!

Today's Workout/Health Tip

Health and fitness is a way for us to practice staying encouraged because our bodies don't transform instantly....

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Today we are taking communion over Psalm 32 as a time of gratitude that our sins have been forgiven and God surrounds us with his unfailing love. 

Psalm 32

Of David. A maskil.

1 Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

2 Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.

3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.

4 For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.

5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord. ”And you forgave the guilt of my sin.

6 Therefore let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them.

7 You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.

8 I will instruct you and teach you in t...

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We are less than a week away from Passover and it seems like every year around this time God brings back to mind scriptures on how he causes us to triumph. Here are some scriptures to meditate on today. And in today's communion we are thanking God that he causes us to triumph in Christ. 

Numbers 33:3 says They(the Israelites) set out from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month. On the day after the Passover, the people of Israel went out triumphantly in the sight of all the Egyptians.

2 Corinthians 2:14 - But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere.

Colossians 2:13-15 - When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh(we had no covenant with God), God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14 having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; ...

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Here are this week's Yearly Cycle Updates.

We have some important dates coming up...

April 15th is Passover - This a reminder that God has released us from darkness and transferred us into the light. Passover is "Pesach," in Hebrew which means," talking mouth." It is a reminder that we are supposed to be talking about and giving thanks for this transfer regularly.

April 16-22 is the Feast of Unleavened Bread - This is a reminder that after we have been transferred into the light, we must clean out our old ways. This feast is a reminder of our righteousness in Christ and all he went through for us. 

April 17th is Easter and the Feast of First Fruits - This is a reminder of new beginnings and a fresh start. It's also a reminder that God planted the Spirit of Jesus within us and in that seed is everything needed for life and godliness. 

Action Step for This Week - This is a time of year to put some extra emphasis on gratitude. Watch out for venting frustrations a...

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1 Corinthians 4:1-2 says

So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2Now it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.…

God is mysterious. He has mysteries about him, and the definition of the word mystery means beyond understanding. These mysteries are beyond our normal understanding, so they must be revealed to us by him. Mystery is attractive and draws us in, causing us to want to know him more. As we draw closer to him, he reveals mysteries to us and then we are expected to steward those mysteries well, because they often serve as core fundamental principles for living, that can also be used to help others. 

In today's communion we are thanking God for his mysteries and asking him to reveal more of his mysteries to us and help us to steward those mysteries well. 

Today's Workout/Health Tip

In my book Cracking Heaven's Code, there is a chapter on the "Mysteries of God," and the mysteries provide the...

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Lately I have been thinking about 1 Corinthians 11:28-30 which says...

Each one must examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.…

The phrase discerning the body keeps coming to mind and I have been thinking about how our physical bodies are a representation of the body of Christ and it works like a community. I used to do a teaching while in the gym about how our body works like a business, and I would say now that it works like a business and ministry.

In today's communion we are asking God for help to discern the body the way he intends for us to do while taking communion. 

Today's Workout/Health Tip

Our bodies work like a business or organization. Something I have been thinking about lately is that a lean business is one who keeps expenditures low. ...