Joyce Meyer - New Day, New You: 366 Devotions for Enjoying Everyday Life

Copyright 2007 by Joyce Meyer

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Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from The Amplified Bible (AMP). The Amplified Bible, Old Testament. Copyright 1965, 1987 by The Zondervan Corporation. The Amplified New Testament, copyright 1954, 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scriptures noted (THE MESSAGE) are taken from The Message: The Prophets by Eugene Peterson. Copyright 2000 by Eugene H. Peterson. NavPress Publishing Group, P.O. Box 35001, Colorado Springs, CO 80935. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked TLB are taken from The Living Bible 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked GNT are from the Good News Translation 2001 by American Bible Society. Used by permission.

Scriptures noted (CEV) are taken from the Contemporary English Version, copyright 1995 by the American Bible Society. Used by permission.

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First eBook Edition: October 2007

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Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come!

2 CORINTHIANS 5:17

O n so many occasions, a timely word from my heavenly Father has pulled me from the depths of discouragement or despair and brought me to a place of new hope and fresh vision. I have often found spending just a few minutes with Him in the morning has greatly helped me to enjoy my everyday life.

New Day, New You is one years worth of these moments we have compiled from nineteen of my most popular books. Whether you are a new Christian or have been a believer for many years, I trust this book will be a great tool to help you gain wisdom and inspiration from Gods Word.

I encourage you to commit the next 365 days to your heavenly Father... to devote each day to Him with quiet and focused moments in His Word. As you do, expect the God of the universe to descend into your everyday life and fill it with joy beyond measure. Just as He makes each day new, He will make a new you, a person full of His Spirit and confident in His purpose for your life.

Joyce Meyer

JANUARY 1

God said, Let Us [Father, Son, and Holy Spirit]
make mankind in Our image, after Our likeness.

GENESIS 1:26

W hen God said, Let Us make man in Our image, this image refers to character likeness. He meant that we were going to take on His nature, His character, as reflected in His Son Jesus. In Colossians 1:15, Paul tells us that Jesus is the exact likeness of the unseen God [the visible representation of the invisible]; He is the Firstborn of all creation. As believers, we are to be transformed into His image and likeness.

The greatest goal of every believer, and certainly those of us who want to be used by God in positions of leadership, should be Christlikeness. We should want to handle situations and treat people the way Jesus would.That should be our goal. Jesus is to be our example.

In John 13:15 He said to His disciples, after washing their feet like a servant, For I have given you this as an example, so that you should do [in your turn] what I have done to you. And Peter tells us in 1 Peter 2:21, For even to this were you called [it is inseparable from your vocation]. For Christ also suffered for you, leaving you [His personal] example, so that you should follow in His footsteps. The vocation, the high calling of every believer, is to be transformed into the image of Jesus Christ.

God is going to keep working with each of us until we get to the place where we act the way Jesus would act in every situation of life, until we manifest the same kind of fruit of the Spirit that He manifested.

JANUARY 2

I trusted in, relied on, and was confident in You, O Lord;
I said, You are my God. My times are in Your hands.

PSALM 31:14-15

I ve trained myself now to start each day by giving God the first fruits of my time. Ive realized that Im not going to get through the day peacefully if I dont spend time with God. So, each morning, I get coffee, and usually while still in my pajamas, I just spend as much time with God as I need to in order to feel I can behave properly and walk in the fruit of the Spirit throughout the day.

I learned to use the best part of my day to give God the best part of my heart. Giving God the first moments of the morning helps keep my priorities straight for the rest of the day. Dont use this gift of time with God to meditate on your problems. During this time with God, set your heart as the psalmist did, who wrote, But I trusted in, relied on, and was confident in You, O Lord; I said, You are my God. My times are in Your hands. (PSALM 31:14-15, EMPHASIS MINE)

The Bible says to lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes. (PROVERBS 3:5-7)

God wants to hear us say, Lord, I dont know how Youre going to do this. I dont care how You do it. I know its going to be right. I trust all my circumstances to You. My times are in Your hands. Trusting You is my first priority in life.

JANUARY 3

For on My holy mountain, on the mountain height of Israel, says the Lord God,... There will I require your offerings and the firstfruits and the choicest of your contributions, with all your sacred things.

EZEKIEL 20:40

E zekiel 20:40 says that we should bring the Lord our first fruits, the choicest selections of all our offerings. To stay in perfect peace, we should give God the best of our time and our goods. We must be honest with ourselves about what our priorities really are and start making changes to keep God in first place. Dont give God your leftovers; dont give Him the part of your day when youre worn out and you cant think straight or hardly keep your eyes open. Give God the first fruits of your attention. Give Him the best part of your day. Thats where your real priorities will be found.

God needs to be your priority in everything you do. From getting dressed to setting your schedule, you can ask God for wisdom to make choices that will glorify Him. You can intermingle your time with God into everything you do to such a degree that you can pray without ceasing (pray your way through the day). As you become aware of His presence, it will not be possible to compartmentalize God or separate secular activities from sacred ones. Even ordinary events will become sacred because He is involved in them.