He Calls Me His Child E-Book

Marie Chapian

• Herausgeber: BroadStreet Publishing Group, LLC
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 230

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

You are a child of God. Christian counselor and author Marie Chapian takes you on a new adventure of self-discovery and spiritual empowerment in He Calls Me His Child. Its one hundred inspiring teaching meditations and over six hundred Christian affirmations are daily gifts to give to yourself. Read them again and again to - embrace the power of speaking the truth aloud, - build your faith to new heights, and - live a transformed life as a child of God. Don't doubt yourself or God any longer. Be strengthened with the power and assurance found in the promises of God.  

Leseprobe

BroadStreet Publishing® Group, LLC

Savage, Minnesota, USA

BroadStreetPublishing.com

He Calls Me His Child: 100 Days of Meditations on the Promises of God

Copyright © 2024 Marie Chapian

9781424567201 (faux leather)

9781424567218 (ebook)

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Unless otherwise marked, Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture quotations marked NIrV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®. Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIrV” and “New International Reader’s Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™ Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible. Copyright © 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMP). Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org. Scripture quotations marked AMPC are taken from the Amplified® Bible, Classic Edition. Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org. Scripture quotations marked NRSVUE are taken from New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 by the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version, public domain. Scripture quotations marked ISV are taken from the Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.0. Copyright © 1995–2014 by the ISV Foundation. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC. All rights reserved internationally. Scripture quotations marked VOICE are taken from The Voice™. Copyright © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB). Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org. Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from THE MESSAGE. Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, a division of Tyndale House Ministries. Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked CEB are taken from the Common English Bible. Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible. Scripture quotations marked PHILLIPS are taken from The New Testament in Modern English by J. B. Phillips. Copyright © 1960, 1972 by J. B. Phillips. Administered by The Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked NET are taken from the NET Bible®. Copyright © 1996–2016 by Biblical Studies Press, LLC. http://netbible.com. Quoted by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked GW are taken from GOD’S WORD®. Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God’s Word to the Nations Mission Society. Used by permission.

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HOW TO READ THIS BOOK

I’ve written this book as a thoughtful practice of God’s Word for a deeper reality of our identity and power as children of God. He Calls Me His Child is a call to awareness and action. How are we to live the sacred position we hold in the kingdom of God in this time? The one hundred meditations in this book point to the power and authority God has given us to live bold, overcoming lives at all times.

Jesus explained his presence to the world as coming from heaven to earth for the express purpose of showing us the heart, mind, and soul of God in every word he proclaimed, in every miracle he performed, and in everything he did. Jesus is our role model for how to speak, affirm, and live the truth that glorifies the Lord.

In my previous books on Quiet Prayer Christian meditation, I defined meditation as dedicated periods of silence with God. The meditations here are words to read for insight into the nature of God and our human nature and to gain spiritual wisdom to be transformed into his image (2 Corinthians 3:18). The meditations prepare us for the affirmations that follow. Pause to think about what you’ve read and then go on with intention and purpose as you speak the affirmations. Based on the promises of God in his written Word, they are profound statements of spiritual power. Every affirmation in this book is a true, Holy Spirit–filled statement founded on the redemptive work of Christ and the ratified fact of the new covenant in his blood.

But why affirmations? Our daily self-talk is often in direct opposition to the blessings, gifts, and purpose of the Lord. We don’t realize how affected our brains are by negative self-talk like, “God never talks to me.” Can that be true? Jesus said in John 10:27, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” We wonder why we’re depressed, tired, bored, anxious, fearful. It’s because we’re not speaking the truth to ourselves. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21). The next time we speak out of turn, are rude or self-effacing, we need to do a mouth checkup. What’s in our words? Life or death? Now is a good time to partner with the Holy Spirit and stop speaking and repeating negative, life-swallowing lies that contradict God’s truth.

Jesus made affirmations all the time by proclaiming who he was and how he and the Father are one (John 10:30). He could do nothing without his Father. He said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner” (5:19).

The Holy Spirit has taken permanent residence in you and will ignite your faith and relationship with the Lord Jesus. The reality of God’s Word has power in these affirmations because they’re true and eternal. When you affirm, “I no longer criticize others,” you’re not asking God to help you stop criticizing others; you’re stating as a fact that you no longer criticize others.

Speak the affirmations aloud, but if it’s uncomfortable for you to speak aloud, write the words down in a special notebook or enter them into your mobile device where you can look back on what you’ve written and see more clearly the work God makes alive in you. The spiritual inner work you’re doing is transforming.

Take your time but make a daily practice out of using this book. You have faith and trust in God within you. Think of a time when you were in a dangerous situation that you didn’t think you were strong enough to handle. All looked hopeless. Imagine that you took a deep breath and repeated Ephesians 6:10 to yourself: “I am strong in the Lord and in his might” (author’s paraphrase). Then you handled the situation brilliantly, and good came out of it. Where did your strength come from? Did God think, Oh dear, where did I put his (her) strength? It’s around here somewhere, and then send you an angel with a strength care package? No. His strength was already within you by the power of the Holy Spirit. You called into action the strength of the Lord in you.

Biblical affirmations are not just positive statements that don’t contain the authority of the Holy Spirit. They are a daily practice of affirming and proclaiming faith and deep trust in God. The words you speak glorify the Lord, and his Word never returns to him without results that glorify him (Isaiah 55:10–11). It’s my prayer that your journey into the promises of God will go on for years to come. I pray this book will kindle a new flame in your faith and give you more insight and multiply your blessings. You’re following Jesus’ example and admonition to fearlessly confirm and affirm the truth that sets us free.

Love,

CONTENTS

A New Beginning

Blessed Child of God

Silence

Breathe

Making Choices

Compassion And Mercy

God’s Best For Me

The Power of Love

When My Soul Blesses God

Focus

Visualization

Decluttering My Mind

Living Right Now

I Have Divine Purpose

No More Complaining

I’m Righteous

Faith

His Cross, My Cross

Constantly Growing Faith

Turning Bad To Good

Guilt And Shame

Never Alone

Loneliness

Anxiety

Patience

Frustration

Ambition

My Sheep Hear My Voice

I Am Enough

Desire

Hope

I Am Content

The Happy Child of God

God Knows Me

Laughter

Taking A Break From Life

God’s Friend

I Am Not Afraid

Filled With The Holy Spirit

Prayer In Stillness

Blessings of The Yes Prayer

The Eyes And Ears of God

Humility

I Guard My Soul

I Resist Temptation

Strong

The Whole Armor of God

Rejoice

I Am Giving

I Am Kind

I’m A Good Listener

My Free Time

Decisions

My Body

Sleep

Grace

Harmony

Helping People

To Have Empathy

Expectations

Endurance

How’s Your Day Going?

Worry

Love Your Enemies

Mysteries of God

I Am Filled With Wisdom

I Choose My Friends Carefully

Encouraging

Discernment

Deliverance

I Am Nonjudgmental

The Name Jesus

God’s Word

The Word No

I Am Forgiving

I Am Forgiven

Anger

Discipline

Critical Spirit

The Controller

God’s Call

Work

All That I Do

The Ogres of Hurry

Noise

Never Bored

Laziness

The Wonders of Exploring

Beautiful Music

I Am Creative

The Natural World

Animals

God’s Method of Provision

God Protects Me

Wisdom And Knowledge

Words of Wisdom

I Don’t Hold Grudges

Sufficient

Falling Apart

My Eternal Home

Acknowledgments

About the Author

1

A NEW BEGINNING

If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;

old things have passed away;

behold, all things have become new.

2 CORINTHIANS 5:17

“I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit

within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh,

and give them a heart of flesh.”

EZEKIEL 11:19

“For you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will

rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic

like well-fed calves.”

MALACHI 4:2 NIV

Meditate

Every day can be a new beginning. Every day when you wake up and greet a new morning, it’s a new event. Don’t wait to discover and experience your new beginnings. They don’t show up only when you’re starting a new job, moving to a new place to live, or starting a new relationship.

Of course, we may not always feel ready to tackle such opportunities. The obstacles to taking hold of a new beginning are old habits that could include shame, doubt, grief, fear, lack of faith, and ignorance of what’s out there for you in God’s kingdom on earth.

Lamentations 3:22–23 reads, “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning” (NRSVUE). How can your day be new every morning? Your new beginning is that moment when you decide to rest completely in the Lord’s hands.

Imagine a beautiful theater stage setting of a new opera. You’re the star of this opera, and you’re standing on stage with the curtain about to go up. Your voice is warmed up, you’ve rehearsed your arias, and now it’s showtime. The great thing is that you can’t do this on your own. You must have the blessing and anointing of God before you can sing a note. Lifting your head from the pillow is like the orchestra tuning up. The conductor is about to enter an orchestra pit. This is the biggest event of your life. The curtain goes up to God’s grace. Yes, waking up in the morning to meet God’s grace is the biggest event of your day. It’s your new beginning.

Affirmations

I no longer see my morning as anything but a great event.

The Holy Spirit in me is alive, and his mercies are new every morning that I wake.

I am living in my new beginning every day.

I play an important role in God’s opera, and he is the director and my song.

2

BLESSED CHILD OF GOD

May the one who comes in the name of the LORD be blessed.

We will pronounce blessings on you in the LORD’s temple.

PSALM 118:26 NET

“We pronounce a blessing on you in the name of the LORD.”

PSALM 129:8 NET

“‘May the LORD bless you and protect you.

May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you.

May the LORD show you his favor and give you his peace.’”

NUMBERS 6:24–26 NLT

Meditate

The beautiful benediction found in Numbers 6:24–26 is a good example of the meaning of the word blessing. Look at blessing from the Lord’s standpoint, and you’ll find it in this prayer that God spoke to Moses. It begins “May the LORD bless you” (NLT) and then goes on to tell us what that means. Everything in this prayer defines the word blessing: favor, kindness, support, protection, grace (unmerited favor), mercy, preference, approval, and, finally, peace.

When David exhorted himself to “bless the LORD, O my soul” (Psalm 103:2), he used the word bless to mean to exalt, praise, honor, worship, and express true heartfelt gratitude from the depth of his very soul.

Live in the arms of blessing the way God uses the word. You are blessed. You are favored, supported, protected, smiled upon; shown kindness, grace, mercy; and given peace. All this in one word: blessed.

Speak and affirm the divine favor you carry into the world with you.

Affirmations

I end the cycle of finding negativity everywhere and always focus on God’s blessing.

I put an end to sabotaging the blessings of God by being spiritually blind to them.

The first thing I do when I wake in the morning is thank God for my blessings (Ephesians 1:3).

I’m surrounded by God’s blessings.

I find blessings in every hour of the day.

By living my life as blessed, I bless the Lord.

The blessings of God are my inheritance.

I am a blessing to others.

I live a blessed life.

3

SILENCE

Truly my soul silently waits for God.

PSALM 62:1

The LORD is in his holy temple;

let all the earth be silent before him.

HABAKKUK 2:20 NIV

Be still [silent] before the LORD.

PSALM 37:7 NIV

Meditate

You have the very same access to God the Father that Jesus had. After the inner noise has settled and you’re comfortable in the silence, a jumble of thoughts will inevitably interrupt you. What’s for dinner tonight? Why hasn’t so-and-so called? Did I lock the back door? We need a new car.

Come back to stillness. Prayer in this stillness is a wordless, reliant opening of your soul to interact with the presence of God. We take “not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42 KJV) into this time of silence. I like to spend the first moments of prayer in silence as a prelude. I take those moments to settle down, catch my breath, relax my body, and listen for his presence. It may sound strange to listen for silence, but God is in the silence. John of the Cross, a sixteenth-century saint, put it, “Silence is the first language of God.”

If you use silence to figure something out, think through a problem, go over your calendar, make plans, or eat lunch, that’s okay, but silence is best when doing nothing, saying nothing, and putting your busy thoughts aside. The more acquainted you are with silence in prayer, the less attracted to busy thoughts you’ll become and the less attracted to the thought itself you’ll become. Silence doesn’t need to entertain itself. Silence is fine being silent.

God has prepared a secret place for you to rest, and it’s alone with him in the silence (Psalm 91:1).

Affirmations

Be still, my soul, and be silent.

I love the silence with God.

God meets me in silence.

I love the presence of God in my silence.

I make it a priority to set time aside for silence with God.

Silence is teaching me the first language of God.

4

BREATHE

The LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground,

and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life;

and man became a living soul.

GENESIS 2:7 KJV

The spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the

Almighty hath given me life.

JOB 33:4 KJV

When he had said this, he breathed on them,

and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost.

JOHN 20:22 KJV

Meditate

Try this exercise: Sitting still with your eyes gently closed, inhale very slowly while silently whispering the name Jesus. As you slowly exhale your breath, silently whisper the name Jesus again. Keep your breath moving very slowly and evenly, no rushing or gasping, just keep your breath flowing smoothly until you sense the name of Jesus becoming a part of your breath.

You have to admit we take breathing for granted and rarely tell ourselves, Hey, I’m breathing, unless there’s a problem with our breathing. “Let everything that breathes praise the LORD” (Psalm 150:6 NRSVUE). That’s you. You have breath, and with your breath, you constantly praise the Lord.

The Hebrew word for “breath,” ruach, is the same word for “spirit” or “wind.” Ruach is the breath of God breathing into your lungs right now. You and I exist because God breathed his breath into Adam, the first human. You have God’s breath in you too. When you breathe in the name Jesus, he breathes your breath. Do it now: breathe in Jesus…breathe out Jesus…

Continue to do the breathing exercise above. Allow yourself to rest in the awareness of the breath of God in you and through you. During the day, be aware of his breath bringing life to all created beings. The world is suffocating itself, but God’s children live in the goodness of his love with every breath.1

Affirmations

I breathe in the breath of God, and he breathes his breath in me.

I focus on the breath God has given me by taking nice, deep, slow breaths and silently whispering the name Jesus.

Focusing on the breath of God in me gives me supernatural peace.

With all my breath, I will praise the Lord.

Breath is holy, and I honor the

ruach

of God breathing life and power into my lungs and my body.

1 To learn more about breath practice, visit QuietPrayer.org.

5

MAKING CHOICES

“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”

JOHN 15:16

Meditate

Choice is what controls everything we do, say, think, and believe. The Hebrew Bible uses the words choose and choice and their variants 246 times. Choose and choice appear fifty-nine times in the King James Version of the New Testament. When your choices bless the Lord, you’ll experience your days far more fully because you’ll take charge of the choices you make. David made this command of his soul in Psalm 34:1: “I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” To command your soul to bless the Lord is a choice.

Behind everything you do is a choice, from brushing your teeth to showing up at your in-laws’ anniversary party, from buying a new car to scratching your nose. You stand up, sit down, lie down, look in the mirror, eat an egg, dance—all choices. To pray or not to pray, to love God or not to love God are choices. You take command over your life by taking command over your choices.

Some choices you make determine your entire life. Joshua, being fed up with people who were following false gods, commanded them to “choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve” (Joshua 24:15). When Joshua said “choose,” he was talking about a life choice.

Look at the choices you make. In the morning when you rise, give the Lord the many choices you’ll make during the day. He will send his Holy Spirit to guide, nudge, and lovingly steer you as you make life-fulfilling choices. You can’t live without making choices. By being aware of this fact, you will be far more equipped to follow the path God has set before you.

Take extra time now with the affirmations. You choose whether to be upset during the day or to remain calm. You choose whether to practice stillness or go through the day feeling the sting of its turmoil. You have the privilege of choosing God because he already chose you (John 15:16). He chose you before the very foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4).

Affirmations

I choose right now—this minute—whom I will serve (Joshua 24:14–15).

I love and serve God only.

I make it a priority to think and pray about my choices.

I’m responsible for the choices I make in my life.

I do not blame situations, events, or people for my poor choices.

I ask the Holy Spirit every day to guide, nudge, and steer me in the path God has set before me.

6

COMPASSION AND MERCY

He is good to everyone, and his compassion

is intertwined with everything he does.

PSALM 145:9 TLB

His compassion never ends. It is only the Lord’s mercies

that have kept us from complete destruction.

LAMENTATIONS 3:22 TLB

Meditate

When Jesus told us to cast our cares on him, he took humanity on his shoulders. His compassion and mercy shape, maintain, and build our faith as Christians.

In the parable of the unmerciful servant (Matthew 18:21–35), the master shows mercy and great kindness to the man who owes him a lot of money by forgiving the debt entirely. It was an act of mercy.

There is a difference between compassion and mercy. Mercy is forgiving someone when it’s within one’s power to punish or harm them. Mercy isn’t always compassionate. A person can show mercy without feeling compassion. Mercy by itself forgives and does good but not necessarily with compassion. A judge can show mercy by pronouncing a lenient sentence on a defendant, but compassion isn’t necessarily an influencing factor in the case. Similarly, we can feel compassion but not show mercy. Compassion means sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others. We can show pity or concern for someone but not necessarily act on it. We can feel sorry for someone, but we don’t necessarily act on the feeling. It is only a feeling. God, however, always acts with both mercy and compassion on our behalf.

When Jesus tells us to be merciful as our Father is merciful, he is not just telling us what to do but also telling us how to do it. Jesus tells us to forgive our enemies, which is mercy, and he says to love our enemies, which is compassion. In our Christian tradition, the virtue of solidarity bridges both compassion and mercy. Compassion and mercy meet one another in us when we feel compassion toward others and do something about it. Micah 6:8 explains our calling: “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” God’s mercy and compassion are forever.

Affirmations

I have compassion living in me. I only have to reach into my soul to find God’s compassion there.

My compassion brings out God’s mercy in me.

God has shown me the way to please him, and I will walk with both mercy and compassion.

I love showing mercy and acting on my compassion.

I am not afraid of what mercy might cost me, nor am I afraid to show compassion.

I show mercy and compassion even when I don’t think the other person deserves it.

7

GOD’S BEST FOR ME

“The LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.”

ISAIAH 58:11

“I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans

for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

JEREMIAH 29:11 ESV

We know that for those who love God

all things work together for good,

for those who are called according to his purpose.

ROMANS 8:28 ESV

Meditate

Aren’t success, prosperity, love, and a good family God’s best for me? The answers seep into my spirit slowly as I spend more time alone with God. When we pray for something or someone, we ask God to do what we believe is right according to Scripture, and of course that’s good. But there’s more.

If I am one with God and he is one with me, my entire existence belongs to him. I make affirmations not because of what I want but because of who he is—and who we are together. I invited Jesus into my life when I said yes and surrendered myself completely to him. Because I am his child, he lives in me by his Holy Spirit, and I am now