“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. – Matthew 6:24 Over the years I have tried many different diet programs. Some have been restrictive and regulated while others have had a free for all type of approach. All have had the dreaded weigh in with suggestions of weighing once a week to weighing in daily to get over your fear of the scale. That last one not only caught my attention but highlighted a much bigger problem than fear, it broadcasat my dependence on…

When others are happy, you should be happy with them. And when others are sad, you should be sad too. – Romans 12:15 I have a sweet little friend who has decided to have her own Royal Make Over. She has several physical handicaps that prevent her from many forms of activity, but she is determined to make the necessary changes in her life to improve her health and relationship with Christ. We talk with each other every week and at the beginning of her Royal Make Over she said that she was able to go outside and walk to the end of the driveway. A few weeks later she…

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. – Ephesians 6:12 Have you ever had one of those days where everything seemed hard? The alarm didn’t go off as scheduled. The kids demanded everything and cleaned up nothing. You lost your keys. The car was running on fumes after your teenage driver borrowed it the night before. Dinner burned and the laundry pile was higher than Mt Everest. And to top it off the food temptations were endless. When you experience a day like this it’s easy to lose…

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1: 5-8 What does biblical kindness look like? The simple answer is Jesus. Kindness is selfless, compassionate, and merciful which perfectly describe the heart and actions of our Savior. He made time to meet those in need and even went out of His…

But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them. – 2 Samuel 24:24 I have always admired King David for his response in today’s passage. He knew the value of counting the cost and was unwilling to take something for free then offer it to God as his own sacrifice. How often do we see something that another has and wish it was our own, often without the willingness to do what it takes to get it? We…

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 This year’s Royal Records of The Daughter of The King focuses on developing the Godly characteristics of the Fruit of The Spirit. No surprise the Fruit of the Spirit is a key factor in the process of the Royal Make Over. When you think about it, making the decision to change any behavior and bring it into alignment with the will of God, you are going to need His character and strength to accomplish the challenge and obtain the victory. Love – you will need to learn to love…

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9 Years ago I spoke to a pastor about a friend who was dealing with an addiction. No matter how much I prayed for it to be removed, the addiction remained just like the thorn in the side of the apostle Paul. The pastor told me that perhaps the addiction was not being removed because it always caused the person to eventually call out to God when they realized that in their…

But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’, Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.” – Luke 14:8-20 From the beginning of time people have made excuses. Adam blamed Eve, she blamed the snake and the excuses keep coming as people continue to make them and not take responsibility for their own choices and the consequences that follow. But before we judge to harshly, we…

‘You have circled this mountain long enough. Now turn north. – Deuteronomy 2:3 When I was in college I was huge 80’s hair band fan and especially liked a band called White Snake. One of their songs was called, “Here I Go Again,” and the lyrics said, “Here I go again on my own.” The thoughts of that song combined with today’s verse, perfectly explained why I’ve circled the mountain of health and fitness for so long. I have repeatedly tried to do it on my own. Earlier this year I began rehearsing a series of new excuses and resigned that at my age I just needed to make peace with my…