Your Daily Encouragement: Recent Episodes
Brian Kirk
There are so many things enticing us to pursue and follow every day. In Matthew chapter 16, Jesus calls us to follow him so that we will Find true meaning, joy, and life! Bible reference: Matthew 16:24-26.
Today's podcast is designed to encourage you to look at the life of Jesus and run the race God has set before you because of the example of Christ. Bible Reference:Hebrews 12:1-3 NLT
God has given us clear direction regarding how to live. We need fellowship with other followers of Christ. Today’s podcast highlights our need for fellowship, and gives practical truth from God’s Word to guide you in this process. Bible Reference: 2 Timothy 2:22
Rejoice - Pray - Thank! This simple prayer sandwich is an example that Paul provides in many of the letters that he wrote. It’s a simple idea to remember as we grow in our prayer life. Bible reference: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
God is our provider! Seeking His Kingdom first recognizes that He is our provider, and that His will encompasses meeting our needs.
Bible Reference: Matthew 6:25-33
God enables us to follow Jesus obediently with His power, love and self-discipline.
Bible Reference: 2 Timothy 1:7
Today, grow in God’s grace as you step out in faith obeying God with confidence that he will never fail you or abandon you. He knows your needs and will supply for you. Trust in Him, call upon Him, and obey whatever He’s calling you to do today!
Bible reference: Hebrews 13:5-6; Philippians 4:19; Matthew 6:25
We can be courageous in following God because God’s presence and activity in our lives provides all that we need. Bible Reference: Deuteronomy 31:6
Fear and discouragement often are a challenge to our obedience, but God is with us to provide all we need to obey Him.
God's enabling power in your life is able to help you follow Christ in obedience.
Bible Reference: Philippians 2:13
God is faithful to continue to make us more like Christ!
Bible Reference: Philippians 1:6
In this podcast, we begin to understand God's heart to make us more like Christ every day. This is a process known as sanctification.
Bible Reference: 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 NLT
Learning to be still takes time and practice. Listen for encouragement today! Bible reference: Psalms 37:7
It is important to learn how to be still before God. When we slow down, God is able to speak to us to give wisdom, strength, reassurance, and the knowledge that He is still God and in control!!
Bible Reference: Psalm 46:10; Isaiah 26:3
This podcast breaks away from the normal format to offer a glimpse into a time of prayer. This is meant to help you apply God's principles to your life. Sometimes we need to slow down and stop to give God time to speak to us. Take time today to ask God, "Is there anything that you want to speak to me about today?
This podcast reinforces the importance of persistence in prayer. It is challenging to ask, seek, and knock without getting discouraged at times, but God as our perfect Heavenly Father loves us and knows how to answer us at the right time and in the right way. God will answer us according to His will!!
Bible Reference: Luke 11:5-13
This is the first podcast that focuses on assurance of answered prayer. Jesus taught us to ask in His name and to pray with confidence. When we are praying according to His will, we can have the assurance that as our perfect Heavenly Father, He will answer us in the right way and time.
Bible Reference: John 16:24; 1 John 5:14-15
Paul's prayer for the Ephesians is a powerful prayer for us to remember each day! Bible Reference: Ephesians 3:14-21 NLT
What's flowing out of your life? We have a daily conflict waging in our soul between the sinful nature and the Holy Spirit. Join me in making this faith statement: Lord, I want Your fruit in my life. Help me to follow You in obedience. I want You to have every part of my life and be Lord over it.
Bible Reference: Galatians 5:19-23
In yesterday’s podcast, we mentioned bringing sorrow to the Holy Spirit. Today we’re going to read several other Bible passages that teach us more about living by the Holy Spirit.
Join me in this faith statement today: Lord Jesus, help me to learn to hear your voice and follow You. Don’t be discouraged that you live in this continual struggle between the old sinful nature and life in the Holy Spirit. Every believer has this same struggle. You’re not alone. Get into fellowship with other believers and encourage one another to follow closely the Holy Spirit’s leading in your life!!
Bible References: Galatians 5:16-17, Galatians 5:25-26, Romans 6:6, Galatians 2:20, Romans 6:13.
Get off the treadmill! The Holy Spirit has been given for you to empower you to live an obedient life for Christ.
Please join me in making this faith statement today: I will obey God by His Spirit’s power. God, fill me with Your Spirit today so that I may obey and follow you. Fill me to overflowing so that I can be Your witness! In Jesus’ name, Amen!
Bible References: Acts 1:8, Ephesians 5:18
Understanding that your sins are forgiven goes beyond feelings. We need to depend on God’s Word and His promises of forgiveness. We learn to overcome doubts of our forgiveness by looking at the facts in scripture, choosing in faith to believe that God is faithful and true, and then allow our emotions to catch up. “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” 1 John 1:9 NLT https://www.bible.com/116/1jn.1.9.nlt Our faith statement for today is: when I have confessed my sins, I know that God is faithful to forgive me.
Do you ever feel like spiritually you are on a treadmill? You are running in the faith, but you feel like you’re going nowhere. I know this has certainly been the case for me, and if it’s some thing that you’ve experienced, I hope this podcast encourages your heart today! One way to get off the treadmill is by practicing making good decisions. There are many different aspects related to becoming good decision makers, all of them relate to obeying the Holy Spirit in your life and glorifying God in all your ways. Join me in making this face statement today: I will trust that you know what’s best for my life, and I will follow you.
God has given us great motivation to live in obedience and for His glory: He will reward us. You have an opportunity to offer up all of your motives and your work for the glory of God. Join me in making this faith statement: Lord, use my life for Your glory!
So, death is not an endpoint for believers in Jesus. We will trade this broken earthly body for the perfected heavenly body that God has prepared for us. God has given us great hope that death is not an end point, rather it is the start of something wonderful, and God gave us His Holy Spirit to continue to confirm this promise to us and remind us that God’s best is still to come! Join me in this faith statement: “Thank you, Lord, for your Holy Spirit that confirms that we are yours and that you have prepared a heavenly body for us at just the right time.” Listen as we draw observations from 2 Corinthians 5:1-8.
When your sins have been placed upon Christ through faith, your are forgiven and free. God doesn’t remember those sins anymore! Here is our faith statement of the day: I will trust that You have forgiven my sins and don’t remember them anymore.
May the Lord lift your heart today, and may you find humor and relief from the stress and worries that so often confront us. Today, join me in this faith statement: I will trust that you are with me and choose joy today!
When we exercise our faith in Christ, we become new creations. We are born of the spirit, and the Bible says we are made new spiritually. 2 Corinthians 5:17 is our verse of encouragement for today! I will trust that God’s word is true and I’m a new creation in Christ.
John 1:14 explains the amazing truth that God intersected history with unfailing love and faithfulness. Forevermore there is hope, meaning, and the opportunity to know God personally through the Word made flesh. Jesus Christ is the Word!
Jesus is the true light! This podcast examines some of the implications of Jesus as the true light, and what that means for you.
God uses ordinary faithful people to accomplish His purposes and plans. Join me in praying: Lord, I will trust that you are going to use me when I am faithful, available and teachable.
This title is from an interview with Dave and Ann Wilson of Family Life Today. They interview Levi and Jennie Lusko who share about the tragic loss of their daughter. It fits well with our focus on John 1:4b-5 that proclaims hope through Jesus Christ as the Light of the world. I would also encourage you to listen to the message from Family Life Today entitled, "Turning Off the Dark." Their website is https://www.familylife.com/podcast/familylife-today/. May God encourage your heart as you consider the faith challenge for today: I will trust that my hope in Christ is greater than any struggle I am facing.
We are on a faith journey, and John 1:1-4 directs us to find Jesus as our light. I will trust that Jesus is my Light!
Jim Corley provided challenging teaching regarding discipling people into the faith. This is the first application of that challenge. As we read John 1:1-13, join me in pursuing God by making this decision in your mind: "I will seek to know Jesus Christ personally."
This is the conclusion to an interview with Jim Corley about what it means to disciple someone into the faith. We've been discussing how to follow Jesus. Our prayer is that this episode will further encourage you to pursue God. He is most definitely pursuing you!!
In part 3 of my interview with Jim Corley, there is further clarification provided about what it means to disciple someone into the faith.
This is part 1 of talking about following Jesus. This introduces the concept of following Jesus as His disciple.
As we consider the death of Christ for our sins, defining the word, "atonement" will give clarity and provide a deeper understanding of God's plan for mankind.
God broke into history and provided the way for peace and restoration of our relationship with Him through Jesus Christ.
God desires for us to know Him personally, but Adam's sin caused a separation in our relationship. Hope is on the way!
Paul knew that one of the secrets of relying on God is walking in Christ’s sufficient grace.
Paul shares a secret to learning to rely on God through contentment and dependence on God.
Paul demonstrated with his life how to rely on God through every situation. This podcast introduces this concept and prepares us for more instruction on relying on God.
Paul sets forth a principle of learning to have right thinking through a renewed mind which leads to right living (1 Corinthians 15:33-34 and Romans 12:2).
Have you struggled with feeling like your work isn’t doing anything for God‘s kingdom? 1 Corinthians 15:58 and Colossians 3:23-24 offer hope!
God often challenges us to care for others by interrupting our time! Rather than peeling these times with frustration, God wants to move in us and through us to joyfully love.