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| Today |  | October 25 - October 31 2026 |  |
Oct25
You Are What You Think- Winning The Mind Battle
1 Cor 1:24 | |
| 24 | but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. NKJV I love Jesus. He is so good to us. Praise Yahweh for the freedom He has given us to choose Him or whatever way we want to go. I am so glad I have chosen to serve Him and I hope you too have become a part of the Kingdom of God. If you have accepted Him, then you are called. If you are called, then you should have the power of God on you and in you. If you don’t, get to a Spirit-filled church and get prayed for to received the baptism of the Holy Spirit by Spirit-filled pastors. No matter whether you are red, white, black, yellow, or any other ethnicity, the cool thing is God doesn’t care. My mother was from the red group. That means her father was Native American. It was not easy for red folk to grow up in the US in the 1900s because some bad white folk (there’s bad and good in every group) persecuted the Native Americans (the reds). It was bad enough that when my mother started going to school, her father told her, “Don’t tell people you are Native American”. As long as we are living in this physical body world, it is going to be a fight. There are some great people, but the majority of the world is in the darkness. We have to do our best to bring them to the Light of the Gospel before Jesus comes back. It is not just a fight, to live in this world with unbelievers. It is also a fight to just be a believer. If we let our imaginations go wild. We have to watch what we think. You let your mind and thoughts go off and you could get stuck in sin. 2 Cor 10:4-6 gives us some insights that we have to remind ourselves of in how to deal with thoughts saying, |
| 4 | For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. NKJV You have to fight your flesh with the Word of God. You have to cast down arguments (unscriptural topics, ‘imaginations’ the KJV says) and everything else that comes to mind to distract you from the truth you know. Those thoughts can be you thinking, but they can also come from demonic spirits urging you to do wrong. You want your thoughts to be in line with the Holy Spirit and to be led by Him. The passage talks about “taking thoughts captive” meaning, be careful what you think. They have a saying, ‘you are what you eat’ meaning you eat junky food and processed snacks and your body is not going to last very long, you’re going to be easily tired, get sick frequently, and likely overweight. Food is body fuel. THoughts are mind fuel. Taking it a step further, I say, ‘You are what you think”. People of strong faith are strong because they have learned to renew their minds from the old ways of thinking to God’s ways of thinking (Romans 12:2). They have learned to think and speak healing even when they feel a sore throat attacking. They have learned to speak words of prosperity over their bank accounts even when they are not sure how they are going to support their family. Even when their wife or husband is going through some mental crisis they can speak peace in the situation and get through. When they are tired and their mind starts wandering, they can say “No, I will not think those thoughts. I cast down those imaginations and things that try to exalt themselves against the knowledge of God and His Kingdom in my life in the mighty Name of Jesus.” Then we get our minds focused on thinking what God thinks. God’s thoughts are His Word. What you are thinking in your mind, is what is going to manifest in your life. If you think you are a loser, then you are going to be a loser. If you think you can just get by, then you are just going to get by. Haven’t you had enough of just enough? Think you are going to be champion, then you are setting yourself up for victory. Today’s Reading- |
Proverbs 10 | |
| Annual Bible Reading Plan at www.vwc.jp | |
Oct26
Increasing
Luke 2:52 | |
| 52 | And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. NASU Life is a rhythm. It is all about keeping in that rhythm. When you are flowing in that rhythm you are healthy, well, and happy. When you get out of rhythm, then you are in trouble. Your health rhythm is out, then you’ve got a cold or some type of sickness. Your sales rhythm is out in your business, and you’ve not got any revenue. Your rhythm out with your family, and you’ve got discord in your home. God’s plan is about increasing. Notice I didn’t say ‘increase’. I said increasing. One of the things I like about the New American Standard translation of the Bible is that it translates everything in the progressive form of the grammar. I was taught by one of my Bible teachers that the Greek New Testament (the language the NT was written in), was originally written in the progressive form. That means when the fishermen were on the shore of the lake washing their nets, they were washing their nets. They were doing it then, when Jesus came up to them. Also, when some translations say Jesus taught in the temple, it was really more like, “Jesus was teaching in the temple”. For Luke 2:52, doesn’t say “Jesus increased in wisdom”, it says “Jesus kept increasing in wisdom.” How excellent! As I prayed one night at the church building I asked the Lord for the message for that Sunday. I went home later and before going to sleep pulled out my Bible as I laid in my bed. The Holy Spirit showed me this verse. He showed me that success in life is not just about following some step by step plan. Success is a progression. The steps help but you’ve got to be progressing. It starts with whatever you have and how you use what you’ve learned. So as I read that verse in my bed (really good thing to read the Word before you sleep), He gave me the message on “Increasing”. If you want to be increasing, you can see the progression in Luke 2:52. Jesus showed us the perfect example of the progression. You see, every year the Joseph family (that’s the earthly step father of Jesus) would go to Jerusalem. They would likely go their three times a year. Luke chapter two starts out with the child Jesus being taken to the temple for dedication. We know that family were pretty poor because they could only offer turtle doves (Luke 2:24) and not a lamb. Later in the chapter we see that when Jesus went to Jerusalem with His family in the 12th year, things were different. In the culture, at the age of 12, a Jewish boy was to be a ‘son of the law’. He was supposed to know and understand the things of the law. So that year he turned 12 he didn’t head back with half brothers (and sisters?) and relatives. He stayed in the temple for at least two days without them and wasn’t even bothered. He was hungry spiritually and was listening to the teachers of the law. His mother and Joseph came back for Him, and when Mary asked why He wasn’t bothered with letting them know He was there He made the famous statement, "Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?" We just get a very short glimpse of Jesus’ early years. We don’t know much about when He was a teenager. It must have been a time of increasing. He began His ministry around 30 years old. He was increasing for 18 years. What was He increasing in? He was increasing in wisdom, stature and the favor of God and man. Wisdom in that he was learning. Everything He learned became a foundation for what was coming next. That’s right, it was a progression. What you learned on your first job, you should be able to use in your next position. What you learn in your next position, you should be able to use when you are promoted. If you don’t use what you have now, you will not be “increasing”. Secondly, He was increasing in stature. What is stature? Stature is your level of achievement. What is the difference between wisdom and knowledge? Knowledge is knowing something, wisdom is being able to apply what you know correctly. Wisdom is the application of knowledge. As you apply knowledge, that wisdom is going to increase your level of achievement. That level is going to get higher and higher with your level of what you achieve. You can be living in a mud hut, but you don’t start by believing for a skyscraper, you believe for a concrete house or a better building. Then you believe for an apartment building, a bigger building and follow the faith progression. What we get depends on how we use what we’ve got. So we are increasing in wisdom, at the same time we grow in our stature, and finally the last part of the progression is receiving favor from God and mankind. When you are wise, when you honor God, you rise and stature and people want to be around you. Nothing can put you down. Look at Joseph’s story. He was sold into slavery by his own brothers. He rose up. He was falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife. He rose up. He was thrown in prison, but yet he rose above all the prisoners. In the end he was put over not only his brothers but became the number two man of the greatest nation of the earth during that time. It is time for you to be increasing! Today’s Reading- |
Proverbs 14 | |
| Annual Bible Reading Plan at www.vwc.jp | |
Oct27
Angels- The Ministering Guards
Hebrews 1:14 | |
| 14 | Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation? NKJV Whether you believe it or not, there is a spiritual world around us that is more than the physical world than we see. That’s right, you can see the trees, the sky, the buildings, the rivers, the roads, and the people. Those people in darkness (and even some of us in the light) never think about the fact that there are other beings around us that we cannot see. They can influence us. It can be good or it can be for bad. There are two groups of spirit beings that are on this earth, demons and angels. From what we know, demons are fallen spirits (most think angels) that report to the fallen angel, satan (original named lucifer before his failure). On the other side, there are much more powerful beings that are called angels. Just as there are all sorts of different types of people, there are all sorts of demons and angels as well. Demons are all evil. Their goal is to deceive as many humans as they can at varying levels. For example, demons usually have various missions. There are spirits of depression, doubt, fear, violence, sexual perversion, anger, unforgiveness, deceit, controlling spirits and many others. If you feel abnormally under pressure, possibilities are that you are under some spiritual attack. Is it a demonic attack or not, you may not know? The saying I have is, ‘If in doubt, cast it out’. Enough on the losers. Hebrews 1:14 talks about the angels. Angels are here to help believers. Notice the verse says that these angels are here to help those who will ‘inherit salvation’. Angels are spiritual beings created by God (Col 1:16). From the Word of God we know they have several functions. 1) Serving believers- Hebrews 1:14 2) Protecting the weak or helpless- Matthew 18:10 3) Proclaiming God’s messages to people- Revelation 14:6-12 4) Executing the judgements of God- Acts 12:1-23, Revelation 20:1-3 With these different types of angels, they seem to have different positions. We know that there are archangels two of which are named Gabriel and Michael (which some deceived people try to pray to). In God’s presence in heaven, we know there are special angels called cherubim and seraphim. We don’t know too much about the details from the Word on the various levels and so forth, therefore it is better not to spend too much time on trying to study this. The cool part is that Kingdom evidently assigns angels to us. Matthew 18:10 says |
| 10 | "Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven. NKJV It talks about the angels of children. Do we still have them around as adults? Evidently so! One night on the way home from an evening outreach, my family and I were protected from a speeding car crashing into us on a Tokyo highway because our angels pushed that car away. I say it come flying at us and came to 3 centimeters of our car and bounced off the empty air. My mouth dropped as my heart was still bracing for some impact. Then the Holy Spirit said, “I told you I would give my angels charge over you”. Praise God! Today as you go about your day. Thank Him for the ministering angels that He has given you. But remember, we don’t pray to men or angels, we pray to the Father in Jesus name. Praise God for these spiritual body guards that can intervene to do physical things as needed. God answered our prayer for protection of our family that night on that highway. He can do some much more. I am sure there are many times things don’t happen because of our prayers blocking the potential tragedy. Hallelujah! He loves you so much! Today’s Reading- |
Proverbs 15 | |
| Annual Bible Reading Plan at www.vwc.jp | |
Oct28
Call Him Father
John 16:23 | |
| 23 | "And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. NKJV I woke up that morning, just recovering from my busy weekend and preaching on Sunday. If you are called into the five-fold ministry (5 roles defined in Ephesians 4:11), it is so exciting to relax after a great message and worship service at your church on Sunday nights. It is a lot of work to get ready for it, but after you’ve worshipped with your worship team, and preached a good message, there is nothing like just enjoying that anointing the rest of that Sunday’s afternoon. It was a Wednesday AM, I had sent my kids off to school, wife off to her day job, and I had the house all to myself. As I stepped out of my study and started to walk the house’s second floor from back to front, I prayed and thanked Him for His goodness. I started by saying, “Father...”. I stopped right there. Isn’t that amazing? Those who repent, turn to Him, and believe are children of God Almighty, Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob! The God of Spencer, oh that’s my God! He is so good to you and me! Although, He is the creator of all, He is doesn’t call Himself the God of the trees or the sea, or even the god of Asia, the Middle East, or America. Yahweh is the God of people not rivers, mountains, areas, or even the sun in the sky. He created them all for His people. He is so much greater than His creation. But what are we to call Him? We know His Name is Yahweh. The Jews referred to Him as Adonai which means Lord. But again, what are we to call Him? Jesus God told us to call Him “Father”. He also makes it clear in Matthew 23:9 that we are to call no one our spiritual father but God alone. But, isn’t it cool that by the work of Jesus, we can call Yahweh Father?! What is the significance of being able to call Yahweh Father? It means that we are His children, children of the Most High, we have access, we are a part of the family (the Kingdom of God), that we don’t have to go through some priest or intermediary. We have direct access to the Kingdom of God. You screw up, pull 1 John 1:9 and confess your sins to the Father. You lonely and in prison or confined, talk to the Father. You depressed or down, bind the spirit in Jesus name and talk to the Father. Don’t let sin, doubt, fear, discouragement, pride, arrogance, money, things, or anything else separate you from that Father-child relationship you have with Him. Although, we like to use the Lord’s prayer is a framework of how to pray as Jesus God taught us, it is also a good prayer to pray regularly. Let’s pray it now and see what it has to do with Father God. Matthew 6:9-13 say, |
| 9 | Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. |
| 10 | Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. |
| 11 | Give us this day our daily bread. |
| 12 | And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. |
| 13 | And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. NKJV You can call Him Father! You are a part of the family of God. Keep up your side of the relationship. Going deeper with God is our desire. To better know the Father through the work of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit. Today’s Reading- |
Proverbs 16 | |
| Annual Bible Reading Plan at www.vwc.jp | |
Oct29
The Forgiveness Factor
Matt 6:14-15 | |
| 14 | "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. NKJV One of the worst roots of trouble in the lives of people is unforgiveness. People get offended by this or that, they think about it, they stew on it, instead of meditating the Word of God, their constantly meditating on why, how, when, where someone (or even something) wronged them. Usually , the person that they feel wronged them hasn’t got the faintest idea that the person they offended is consumed by this. I have seen people in depression, discouragement, and suffering mental instability because of unforgiveness. We know this happens with unbelievers, but sadly, this happens with believers as well. A close friend is married to a woman from another country. They were married in the US many years ago. Recently, he has shared how his wife became unstable and we prayed for her. Every time she talks about his parents, she becomes angry because they did help pay for the wedding, but instead the wedding was covered by the brides parents. This couple are both believers, and although the husband has tried to explain to her repeatedly that in American culture, the bride’s family pays, this wife still talks about the issue. The sad part, she apparently knows Jesus. She has got to let go forgive, and in this case, forget. Although I don’t know all the details, unforgiveness is likely hurting her in other areas. Just after Jesus teaches us to pray in Matthew 6, He concludes that if we do not forgive others, then God will not forgive us. Wow! You want to be forgiven, you’ve got to forgive others. That’s right, forgive and move on.. That doesn’t mean you should allow yourself to be ripped off, cheated, beat up or anything else foolish along those lines. If someone rips you off, then that gives you a good reason to keep your distance from them. For believers, forgiving and moving on is really important. To be healthy, happy, and well, we shouldn’t have any grudges against people. NEVER. Jesus had more to say about it. Remember He taught us how to pray prayers that would move mountains in Mark 11:22-24? Look what He said just at the end of that teaching. Mark 11:25-26 says, |
| 25 | "And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses." NKJV Getting the picture? You will be a spiritual weakling if you refuse to walk in love and forgiveness. When you walk in forgiveness, you are doing exactly what God did for you. Even though you were filthy dirty in sin and imperfection, He forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 says, |
| 32 | And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. NKJV Don’t let unforgiveness stop you from building your faith or your relationship with God or man. Pray this prayer below outloud and insert the name of the person who hurt you in the blank. Say it out- “Father, I thank you for your goodness and mercy. I thank you for forgiving me of every vile, evil, and even stupid thing I have done. I receive that forgiveness right now by faith and the promise in 1 John 1:9. As you have forgiven me even though I didn’t deserve it, Father I forgive __________ (name). I release forgiveness over this situation. From now on, whenever I think of ___________, I will thank you for helping me to forgive them. ______ is forgiven. I am forgiven. Father you are so good. Thank you for loving me. In the powerful Name of Jesus I pray. AMEN!” Keep praying and saying the prayer throughout the day, week, or month whenever you are. Say it out, every time you think of the person. Faith is a confession. Confessing is speaking. Before you know it, you will have forgiven them and will sailing along in even more abundance as you walk by faith. Today’s Reading- |
Proverbs 23 | |
| Annual Bible Reading Plan at www.vwc.jp | |
Oct30
Wanna See More- Just Talk About It
Ps 71:15 | |
| 15 | My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness And Your salvation all the day, For I do not know their limits. NKJV You love Jesus? You better talk about it. The more you talk, the more stuff happens. I think that is why We have the famous verse in Romans 1:16 saying, |
| 16 | For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. NKJV People talk about what they like. Although it changed a bit, when I first moved to Japan, the country’s economy was booming. People were really into golf and were paying enormous fees to play 18 holes of the game. I thought it was a bit extreme as I had never played golf. But I watched people frequent golf shops, talk about their weekend golf outings, and even saw people practicing their strokes as the waited on the platform for the train. They had a passion for golf, and they talked about it because they did it. The vision of golf became bigger inside them because of the passion for the game. Unfortunately, there is no power for life in the game of golf. But there is power in the Kingdom for all things. If you want to see people come to Jesus in your life, you have to be talking about Jesus. If you want to see miracles, then you have to be praying for people. If you want to see demons flee, you have to cast them out when you see them manifest themselves in or on someone. You can’t be ashamed or shy. Talk about what God is doing in your life, and you are going to see more. More salvations, more healings, more prosperity, more joy, more of everything good and perfect because you serve the good and perfect God. I began talking with a friend on the phone after undergraduate work at university. Each evening, he would share on the phone how many people he was able to share Jesus with., who he prayed with, and what was happened that day. Before I knew it, I was inspired and I started talking about Jesus with people. Then I started to see people accept Jesus, get healed, and get free from all sorts of junk. That demonstrated to me that there was so much more and that I could tap into it, if I wasn’t shy and just did what Jesus did. We have had the privilege to share Jesus with the homeless and pray to repent and turn to Jesus. We also have had the privilege to meet the top people in government of several countries as well as the chief executives of the world’s most famous companies. Simply, we have met princes, and we have met paupers: People of great influence in their nations and people of very little influence. Before God, they all are desperately lost. Therefore, we have not been ashamed to share Jesus with the guy living on the street, or the guy that owns the street itself. If you want to see me more of the Kingdom in your daily life, then it is time to start talking. We know faith is speaking what you expect over your situation (not what you have). Once you start talking, then it’s time to start walking. In this case, really doing. Faith without action is dead. Faith with action is alive! Today’s Reading- |
Proverbs 24 | |
| Annual Bible Reading Plan at www.vwc.jp | |
Oct31
Shaking Experience
Hebrews 12:27 | |
| 27 | Now this, "Yet once more," indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. NKJV If you have ever been to Japan for any extended period of time, then you have likely experienced an earthquake. For people from other countries not used to feeling the earth shake, it is an unsettling experience. Especially, if you are in a 50 or 60 story hotel or office tower. That means that you are some 180 meters from the ground. The local people are not too bothered by the shaking of the earth. They just build everything to withstand a major earthquake. The buildings, the highways, the houses, the famous bullet trains... everything is built for dealing with earthquakes. However, they take comfort too easily, as one earthquake can virtually level a city or neighborhood. What is strong will stand, what is weak will crumble and fall to the ground in ruins. In life, there are also shaking experiences such as losing loved ones and tragedies, but frankly we believers need to have a shaking experience to get rid of all the weaknesses, sin, and junk in our lives. For me, I have had many spiritual shaking experiences. Church summer camps, revival meetings, and other places were I have heard the anointed preaching of the Word and been under powerful worship. However, the greatest experience I have had thus far was attending the Brownsville Revival meetings in Florida in the late 1990s. It shook me. I sensed the presence of God so strong and the Lord spoke to me about junk in my life. The Holy Spirit shook the weaknesses off me as I realized what I was doing before was holding me back from more of God. Years ago, a pastor attended a revival meeting in North Seattle. No one knew his role or who he was. At the end of the service, there was a time for prayer as they opened up the altars. The people came forward for prayer, and that pastor sensed he needed to get right with God as with time he had stepped back from his relationship with God. He went to the altar at the front and was prayed for by a teenage girl on the prayer team. She prayed, “Father get rid of all the junk in his life in Jesus’ Name”. When her hand touched his shoulder he immediately fell down and hit the ground shaking. He had fallen under the power of the Holy Spirit. He was unable to get back up for 90 minutes. While on the ground, the Holy Spirit dealt with him regarding his spiritual coldness, some issues in his life, and things that he needed to change. When he got back up, he was changed as he went home to change those things in his life. That pastor got right with God because of the shaking of God, and went back to his city and church a changed man. His church experienced revival because of the shaking power of the Holy Spirit that night in North Seattle. Don’t put your hope in what you have or what is around you. Put your hope in the Father of all hope; the author of faith, hope and love. If you know Him, then everything else really does matter but then again, it doesn’t... because knowing Him is knowing His word. Matthew 24:35 says, |
| 35 | Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. NKJV Are you listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit and getting around anointed men and women of God? You’ve got an upcoming weekend to do just that. Today’s Reading- |
Proverbs 25 | |
| Annual Bible Reading Plan at www.vwc.jp | |
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