Theme for the Month of July

Primary Verse for the Month

Proverbs 2:7 (HCSB) ⁷  He stores up success for the upright; ⌊He is⌋ a shield for those who live with integrity.

Joshua 1:8 (NASB) ⁸  "This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

The Summary – How to have Good Success

1.  Be Firm, not Feeble

2.  Be Fearless, not Fearful

3.  Be Focused, not Fickle

4.  Be Faithful, not Faithless

5.  Be Fathered, not Forsaken

Today’s Lesson

The Spiritual Posture that Leads to Good Success

·       Firm, not Feeble

Joshua 1:6-7 (NKJV)
6  Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.
7  Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.

Genesis 49:3-4 (NKJV)
³  "Reuben, you are my firstborn, My might and the beginning of my strength, The excellency of dignity and the excellency of power.
⁴  Unstable as water, you shall not excel, Because you went up to your father's bed; Then you defiled it-- He went up to my couch.

1 Corinthians 15:58 (NIV) ^{{1Co 15:58}}  Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

1 Corinthians 16:13 (NIV) ^{{1Co 16:13}}  Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.

Philippians 4:1 (NASB) ^{{Php 4:1}}  Therefore, my beloved brethren whom I long to see, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.

1 Peter 5:9 (NIV) ^{{1Pe 5:9}}  Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

o   Rely upon God’s grace.

1 Peter 5:10 (NIV) ^{{1Pe 5:10}}  And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

o   Put on the full armor of God—truth, righteousness, peace, hope, faith, the word, and praying.

Ephesians 6:11 (NASB) ^{{Eph 6:11}}  Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

Ephesians 6:13 (NASB) ^{{Eph 6:13}}  Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.

·       Fearless, not Frightened

Joshua 1:6-7 (NKJV)
6  Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.
7  Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9 (NKJV) ⁹  Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

Psalm 125:1 (NIV)
¹  Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever.

o   Don’t be afraid of folks.

Proverbs 29:25 (NIV)
²⁵  Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe.

Ÿ  King Saul lost his throne and his anointing because he feared the people and didn’t destroy all the Amalekites as God instructed him.

1 Samuel 15:24 (ESV)
^{{1Sa 15:24}}  Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.

1 Samuel 15:20 (ESV) ^{{1Sa 15:20}}  And Saul said to Samuel, “I have obeyed the voice of the LORD. I have gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me. I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction.

1 Samuel 15:7 (ESV) ^{{1Sa 15:7}}  And Saul defeated the Amalekites from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt.

1 Samuel 15:18-19 (ESV)
^{{1Sa 15:18}}  And the LORD sent you on a mission and said, ‘Go, devote to destruction the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.’
^{{1Sa 15:19}}  Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you pounce on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the LORD?”

1 Samuel 27:8 (ESV) ^{{1Sa 27:8}}  Now David and his men went up and made raids against the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites, for these were the inhabitants of the land from of old, as far as Shur, to the land of Egypt.

1 Samuel 30:1 (KJV) ^{{1Sa 30:1}}  And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire;

1 Samuel 30:18 (KJV) ^{{1Sa 30:18}}  And David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away: and David rescued his two wives.

2 Samuel 1:1 (ESV) ^{{2Sa 1:1}}  After the death of Saul, when David had returned from striking down the Amalekites, David remained two days in Ziklag.

Esther 3:1 (HCSB) ^{{Est 3:1}}  After all this took place, King Ahasuerus honored Haman, son of Hammedatha the Agagite. He promoted him in rank and gave him a higher position than all the other officials.

Ÿ  The children of Israel wondered in the wilderness for 40 years, because they feared the giants and refused to take possession when God instructed them.

Matthew 10:28 (NASB) ^{{Mt 10:28}}  "Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

o   Don’t be afraid of failure.

Proverbs 26:13-14 (NKJV) ¹³  The lazy man says, "There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion is in the streets!" ¹⁴  As a door turns on its hinges, So does the lazy man on his bed.

Matthew 25:25 (NKJV) ²⁵  And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.'

Matthew 25:25-26 (NKJV)
Mt 25:25 (NKJV)  And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.'
Mt 25:26 (NKJV)  But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.

o   Don’t be afraid of the future.

Isaiah 41:10 (NASB) ¹⁰  'Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'

Isaiah 41:13-15 (NASB)
¹³  "For I am the LORD your God, who upholds your right hand, Who says to you, 'Do not fear, I will help you.'
¹⁴  "Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel; I will help you," declares the LORD, "and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
¹⁵  "Behold, I have made you a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges; You will thresh the mountains and pulverize them, And will make the hills like chaff.

Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) ^{{Jer 29:11}}  For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Romans 8:28 (HCSB) ^{{Ro 8:28}}  We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.

Matthew 6:34 (NASB)  "So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Psalm 37:22-25 (NKJV) 
²²  For those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth, But those cursed by Him shall be cut off.
²³  The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, And He delights in his way.
²⁴  Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the LORD upholds him with His hand.
²⁵  I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.