Mark DeJesus's Blog, page 133
June 11, 2014
#006: What Gets God’s Attention | Interview of Transformation with Stan Doll [Podcast]

In today’s episode, I am going to address the subject of, “What Get’s God Attention” As we look to walk in healing and freedom, what is a key component that helps us walk into deeper transformation? We also have a special guest with us, Stan Doll, pastor and man on a mission to reach people globally. He has a story of spiritual reformation that I want you to hear.
Book Give Away
We are giving away a free book, Exposing the Rejection Mindset, to the following people:
First email that gets sent to us. (feel free to use the contact form).
First person to write a review on itunes. Please email us once you post your review, so we know you posted it.
First person to write a comment at the bottom of this article.
Interview: Story of Transformation with Stan Doll
My guest, Stan Doll, is from California, and carries a deep passion for those who are lost, broken and in need of transformation. He is married to his wife Denise and has two children. He carries influence in many arenas of impacting people in the following places:
Stan is the founder and president of the Isaiah Foundation: a ministry focused on missions and assisting the work of missionaries abroad.
He is also a staff pastor at Joy City, a church in Upland, California, senior pastored by Christian Garcia & founded by Pastor Ernie Hernandez.
He is involved with Spirit of Joy International - a global ministry directed specifically at equipping, connecting and launching churches, businesses and ministries for the purpose of advancing the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.
Stan will also share with us about his involvement with Joy Global Village, a hospital project that will focus on AIDS and infectious disease in Uganda.
Stan Doll is involved in many different areas of ministry, but also has an incredible story of transformation.
TEACHING: What Gets God’s Attention
(Isaiah 61:1 NKJV)
To preach good tidings to the poor
(Luke 4:18 NKJV)
To preach the gospel to the poor
Who are the poor?
In referring to the poor, this is not just those who are in financial poverty or are broke. Although it can include that.
Poor, speaks of lowly, humble, week, needy, depressed in mind, or in circumstances, afflicted
When God speaks of the poor, these are those who are in need and recognize their need.
(Matthew 5:3 NKJV) Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Poor: recognizing that in of of yourself, you are spiritually bankrupt and in need of help.
Today, we have the same problem that was present at the day of Jesus’ life on earth. People do not recognize their need for healing and change.
Want to get God’s attention? Live with a heart that recognizes you need help from God and from others.
Common Things that Keep People from Experiencing Transformation:
1. We are too proud to see our need for healing.
We don’t like to admit our mistakes, flaws or errors in our ways.
2. We are in denial of our need for healing.
We push things down for so long, we can’t even recognize it.
3. Showing that you have need or are weak means you are not successful in modern culture.
Our culture values success at all costs. Weakness is not ok. We become inauthentic in the journey.
4. We are afraid of being vulnerable, so we put up a facade.
We become trained to develop sophisticated cover ups, over who we really are.
We present ourselves as though we have arrived.
We are afraid of rejection and what people will think if we become vulnerable.
What it often takes for us to enter into true pursuit of healing, freedom and transformation? Often people have to hit rock bottom.
Question: Where do you need to humble yourself and recognize you need healing? Where do you need to recognize this in how you relate to other people?
Comments: #006: What Gets God’s Attention | Interview of Transformation with Stan Doll [Podcast].
Comments policy
June 6, 2014
7 Practices for Living in God’s Goodness

In a day where so many question the goodness of God, thus distancing themselves from His presence; we as God’s children must cling to His goodness as our strong foundation. In a world where true goodness can be lacking, we have a chance to cut through with the pure holiness of God’s goodness.
In the world, we either witness outright evil that seeks to wipe the sense of goodness away, or we watch as mankind tries to muster up his own sense of goodness apart from God. In both scenarios, God and His true goodness is being ignored. That is why it is so key that we each capture a personal revelation of God’s goodness in all things, so that we may carry all that heaven has to offer to impact this planet effectively.
Many believers are in a battle regarding the goodness of God, questioning whether or not He is truly good. Others will agree that God is good, but their definition of HIs goodness sounds more like an evil step parent than the loving Father of lights the Scriptures speak of. I address the issue of the goodness of God in the podcast episode, “Is God Really Good?”
For our application, I want to give some daily practical things we can keep in mind as we develop cultures that are based on the goodness of God.
1. Experience the Father’s Love
His goodness begins with getting a proper lens of who God is as our Father, as a really good Dad, our Abba. I address this deeper in the following episodes:
#004: Who is Your Daddy? [Podcast]
#003: Making the Connection to Father God [Podcast]
#002: What Does Father Mean to You? [Podcast]
#001: Do You Know That You Are Loved? [Podcast]
Early on during my own spiritual renovation, I gained a personal understanding of the love of God, especially as my Father. It broke so many chains in my life, to the point that I will never be the same. One of the practices I felt God was leading me to do was to start each day pausing to reflect on the love that God had for me. Before I jumped out into the world and potentially get sucked into the demands of people and circumstances, I stopped each morning at the top of the stairs and let Father God love on me. Without a daily reference of His love, we won’t have a gauge for His goodness.
2. Confront Our Disappointments with God.
Any believer who has lived at all has experience disappointment, some very deep and heart wrenching. Every Christian will face a moment that leads us to say, “God where are You?” It is in the domain of disappointment where satan can come in and accuse God in our thoughts. Our unhealed disappointments can lead to a deep anger towards God that will create a sense of separation in our hearts towards Him. This kind of anger can hide easily under the surface. I’ve observed many Christians with unhealed disappointments walk around like nothing is wrong. They serve in church and live their lives out. But deep inside, there is a resentment towards God, where they feel He has not come through for them. This leads them to a slow fade spiritually.
We must learn to stop suppressing our disappointments and talk them out with God. Don’t be afraid that God will strike you for expressing your heart. David was so good at doing this. He would cry out to God in honest feelings of what he was going through. Yet in that expression, he would always make an exchange with God, realizing God’s power and ability to work in his life. We cannot understand His goodness, without properly processing through our pain and disappointments.
3. Learn the Gift of Repentance.
I believe that biblical repentance is one of the hidden gems in the Kingdom of God that many do not utilize fully. Many people see repentance as something you only do when you get saved. Others see repentance as groveling before God, typically when you do something really wrong. This is a shallow understanding of what it means to repent.
Repentance at its core means to turn from one way of thinking while moving into another way of thinking. Repentance is a daily gift. It is our opportunity before God to turn from ways of thinking that are killing our wholeness, relationships and health, while moving into God’s way of thinking, speaking and behaving that breathe life into our being.
This is good gift from God! This is why the goodness of God leads us to repentance. When we truly taste of God’s way of thinking, in His goodness, we will automatically want to throw away the counterfeit ways of thinking that satan has seeped into our lives.
4. Focus on What God is Doing.
In a world where humanity becomes so focused on things that are going wrong, we as believers must be trained to focus on what God is doing with laser sharp vision. This is not a task that comes easily, especially because we are bombarded daily with obstacles that seek to lead us into hopeless, discouragement and despair. The enemy does not want people to see hope in the midst of difficult circumstances.
When we focus on what God is doing, we keep ourselves aligned with heaven. I have made a decision to daily focus on what God is doing, not on what satan may try to tell me He is not doing or has not done. This positions me to hear God more in what He going to do out of His goodness.
One way that I do this is by journalling. I try to keep a regular habit of writing down everything that God has done and documenting what I sense He is doing. This keeps my heart and mind fresh with the goodness of God in my daily life!
5. Live in Thanksgiving.
One of the quickest ways to sense the goodness of God in our hearts is to enter into thanksgiving. (I wrote an article on ways we can practice this.) The Bible says we “enter into His gates with Thanksgiving.” (Psalm 100:4 NKJV) So this means that offering up thanks to God sets our hearts to the frequency of heaven, so that we walk in alignment with the Father’s nature in all things. Thanksgiving leads us into His courts, where we then experience His goodness. In that goodness, the praises of God are meant to be lifted up, so that we recognize that He is good! That is why it is important to daily “offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name” (Hebrews 13:15 NKJV) so that we are reminded of His goodness.
6. Stop Doing Life on Your Own.
When Jesus walked the planet, a ruler came to Him and called Him “Good Teacher.” Jesus turned to the man and said, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.” (Luke 18:19 NKJV) What Jesus was showing us is that there is no goodness that can be found in humanity’s strength alone. True goodness comes from Father God. He is the source of all that is good.
With that in mind, it is very subtle work where the flesh becomes a training ground for satan to convince us to do life in our own strength, power and personal sense of goodness. We become conditioned to rely on our sense of goodness in life. Our own goodness does not lead us to the goodness of God. Father God is the only source, through Christ. We must learn to rely on that.
Relying on His strength and His power keeps us feeding on His goodness and keeping our source aligned with it daily. We must be reminded of this daily.
7. Look to Release the Goodness of God to Others.
It is our job as believers to manifest the goodness of God. The Father sent His Son into the world to die to show His love for us. It is now our responsibility to demonstrate His goodness and glory of God to the world. This can only be done by getting our eyes off of ourselves and our selfish concerns, while looking to God’s heart to shine His goodness on humanity.
In every situation that seems dark, the goodness of God needs to be made manifest. In giving out His goodness to others, we are reminded ourselves of that goodness. One of the ways I am reminded of how good God is through giving out His goodness to others. As I give it out, I grow in the awareness of how wonderfully good He is! This keeps my heart aligned with God’s heart; reminding me that life is not about me, but about seeing God’s goodness reach the nations.
Question: Where do you need to embrace the goodness of God in your life?
Comments: 7 Practices for Living in God’s Goodness.
Comments policy
June 4, 2014
#005: Is God Really Good? [Podcast]

In today’s episode, I am going to address the question, “Is God really good?” In a world where there seems to be so much evil going on, with heartache, sickness, insanity and more . . . what is God’s role in all this?
Free Book Giveaway
I so excited about the release of my new book, “Exposing the Rejection Mindset.” Today I will be giving two copies away to the following people:
1. The first one who sends me an email (you can use our contact section) with your name and address.
2. The next person who writes a review on itunes and then sends me an email with your name and address.
Feature Presentation: Is God Really Good?
In today’s episode, I want to address the question, “Is God really good?” This is a subject that stirs up a war within the hearts and minds of people. Even for many Christians, the phrase “God is good” can become a cliche, without a deep heart connection to what that means. The question is really, do we understand His goodness? This episode will challenge you. We can say “Amen” or say “Ouch”. Either way, I encourage you to listen through.
Isaiah 61:1-2 NKJV
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor
Good tidings: h1319. ḇâśar; to be fresh, i. e. full (rosy, (figuratively) cheerful); to announce (glad news):— messenger, preach, publish, shew forth, (bear, bring, carry, preach, good, tell good) tidings. to bear news, bear tidings, publish, preach, show forth ( Piel) to gladden with good news to bear news to announce ( salvation) as good news, preach ( Hithpael) to receive good news (From Strong’s Concordance)
Luke 4:18-19 NKJV
The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor
God’s Plan for Transformation:
Receiving Good News from a Good God
Whenever you hear the Gospel, there should be a hear of good news from a good God in there.
- Its sad that often the Gospel is given as a message of bad news from an angry God.
- This does not mean we ignore bad news, but the Gospel by its nature releases hope: good news of what is available to us.
Satan’s plan is for you to receive bad news from a God that appears to be everything but good.
- Satan wants you to think God is against you. (Not for you.)
- Satan wants you to think that God has abandoned you. (instead of being faithful)
- Satan wants to blame God for the pain and destruction in your life.
- Satan wants you to think that God is holding out on you.
Jesus’ ministry involved releasing good news from a good God.
- Because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor
Luke 18:18-19 NKJV Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “ Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” So Jesus said to him, “ Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.
- Jesus was pointing us to the source of all goodness = the Father.
James 1:17 NKJV Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
Matthew 5:43-45 NKJV 43 “ You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. ’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
- That is how good God is!
Romans 2:4 – the goodness of God leads to repentance
The Foundation of God’s Goodness
We cannot walk a healthy and fruitful life if we are constantly questioning His goodness. It must become a solid foundation in our lives.
God’s goodness is tested by the enemy all day long. How? In out thoughts. He gives us a story to perceive life around us through a tainted lens that questions the validity of God’s goodness.
Classic Strategy: satan steals, kills and destroys. In the aftermath, he blames God in our thoughts. We then become accusers of God. You see this in our world. “If God is so loving and so good, then why . . . or how could He….?”
The Great War
We will never understand the goodness if we do not understand that we are at war:
- the war is not God against satan. The war is with satan against the people of God. (he that is in the world)
- Satan challenged God’s goodness in the garden and he is doing it today . . .
One of the great wars in our generations and the generations to come will be on whether or not God is good.
How is God’s goodness manifest the most? Through His children who will show the ways of Father and His goodness.
The Father’s goodness is not understood mostly because of people who have misrepresented Him.
Why People Struggle With God’s Goodness:
1. People have misrepresented God to us.
- God’s ideal is that His nature would be shown through people.
2. Tragedy took place.
- sickness came in
- loss of a loved one
- disaster
3. We have been trained to serve a God who is very angry.
- He was not shown as a loving Father who deeply cares, but a angry God to run from; who will crush us at any opportunity.
4. We think goodness from God means He will only leads us into comfort.
- God’s number one concern is not our comfort.
5. We expect God to just drop everything on us, with little contending or battle engagement of our own.
- Very passive Christian perspective.
- If Its God will, He will just do it.
6. Disappointment
- You didn’t get healed . . .
- Breakthrough did not happen . . .
- The marriage fell apart . . .
Without a Revelation of the Goodness of God:
1. We will not see the battleground clearly.
The church in many countries has forgotten the war that exists.
Book Recommendation: God at War by Gregory A. Boyd
Amazing Theology = God is Good. The devil is bad.
Much of what we see in life can be explained by those two sentences.
John 10:10 NKJV The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
2. We will think that God passively “allows” evil.
We begin to think that God is OK with murders, rape, destruction and tragedy . . .
We need to understand our positioned authority as the church.
Psalms 115:16 NKJV The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s; But the earth He has given to the children of men.
Instead of asking, “How could God allow” we need to ask, “How could we allow this kind of action to take place?”
We are the representation of God’s goodness in the land.
What are you doing to demonstrate the goodness of God in the land?
When there is tragedy, are you a voice and presence in the land to manifest God’s goodness?
3. We begin to think that God did this evil.
- We carry an Old Testament lens on God, not realizing who the Father is in His goodness.
James 1:13 NKJV Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.
So if God does not use evil to tempt us, why would we think God is the author of evil?
In our pain, we look for answers . . . we look for someone to blame . . . something to pin it on . . . instead of getting mad at sin and the enemy . . . and saddened over the unbelief of people, we blame God and develop an anger towards Him. “How could You!?”
Isaiah 5:20 NKJV
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
- satan flips the tables on what he has done in the land. And God gets blamed for all calamity on this planet . . . as “acts of God”. . .
4. We think God puts sickness & insanity on us.
- In our lack of seeing breakthrough, we think, “This must be God’s will for us.”
- Why would God put sickness on you and then write in His word He wants to heal you? That is a sick relationship…
- Then why go to a doctor?
Low Level Spirituality:
When we don’t understand the goodness of God, we lose a grid for the healing and miraculous power of God, so we begin to develop a low-level theology in our expectation of what He can do.
1. We settle only for a salvation, get me to heaven kind of Christian life.
- We live out of the Staples “easy” button. Get me out of here.
- Things are getting worse – we wait for the end to come, instead of being exited about our time to shine.
2. We lose our ability to contend and overcome.
- contend: fight for what the Word says but is not manifesting yet
- overcome: to keep a fighting heart to defeat what is not of God in our lives and stay the course.
3. We lose the sense that God wants to heal us.
- so we lose our spiritual passion
- why draw near to a God who is making you sick and crazy?
4. We think He gives us sickness.
- this is our suffering for Jesus . . ..
- thorn
- cross to bear
- Job
5. So we simply stay in the shallow end of spirituality.
- We just work on trying to be nice people.
- No overcoming heart. No sense of breakthrough. No desire to contend.
- No generational heart for breakthrough.
- No desire to work on the sinful patterns in our families.
- We become content with religious activity and “being good people.”
Transformational Living Begins with God’s Goodness
1. The nature of God can be seen in the life of Jesus.
Colossians 2:9 NKJVS For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily
2. Jesus healed every disease He came into contact with.
Acts 10:38 NKJVS how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.
3. Satan will always accuse God of not being good.
Especially during tragedy, sickness and destruction.
4. Its up to believers to demonstrate the goodness of God.
Question: In what way do you need an understanding of God’s goodness restored in your heart? In what way can you show the goodness of God in the land?
Comments: #005: Is God Really Good? [Podcast].
Comments policy
June 3, 2014
5 Ways to Cultivate Thanksgiving

One of the greatest ways you can live an overcoming life is to remain grateful in all things. A grateful heart can never be defeated, no matter what comes their way. This is why the Bible says in everything give thanks. This means learning to cultivate a grateful heart, no matter where you find yourself. Thanksgiving will open up the power of praise in your life. The following are thanksgiving strategies can you apply today:
1. Start each day with thanksgiving.
As soon as your feet hit the floor, begin offering up thanks to God. Make that tyne first expression. Don’t get into any other tasks in the morning until you have taken a moment to give God thanks. This will set the day in proper order. As you take your first morning breath, begging thanking God for His life-giving breath.
2. Write down notes of thanksgiving to God.
God dwells in the atmosphere of thanksgiving, so its important that we exercise this as His creation. Take a moment to write down 10 things that you are grateful for. This exercise will help you focus your mind and help you reflect on what God has done. With so much we have been given, we easily forget all that God has blessed us with.
3. Give Thanks With Your Words.
Thanksgiving is important as a place of meditation, but speaking it out loud gives it even greater life! Most people are trained to use their words to complain and gripe about the day. This becomes a very toxic pattern and sets a hopeless lens on life. Your words set the course of your life, so set your words on thanksgiving, which will give you an amazing power over what binds you.
Ultimately, we want to make a heart-felt connection to thanksgiving. But we can’t wait until we “feel” it to express it. We need to do it the other way around. Start giving thanks until it kicks in to your system.
Don’t be surprised if anger, ingratitude and unbelief kick up when you start offering up thanks. This shows the war going on in your thoughts. Keep pressing in, because thanksgiving will set the stage for praise, and praise ushers in the joy of God!
4. Live a lifestyle focusing on what God has Done.
Those who develop a lifestyle of thanksgiving have learned to focus their hearts on what God has done and what He is doing; not on what they may think He is not doing or has not done. Whatever we meditate on expands in our lives. If we focus on what God has done and is doing, we grow in knowing more about what He is up to in our lives.
5. Surround Yourself with Those who will Encourage Gratitude.
This is where you need to get the negative and unbelieving dump trucks out of your life. You will carry what you surround yourself with, so find those who will breathe life and the hope of God into your life. Get away from gossipers and negative talkers, who often remain stuck in the same patterns and problems.
If you don’t have anyone like this, pray for one! Begin operating like the people you want to surround yourself with. Find dream feeders, not dream stealers. Understand that some people do not want to hear good words, but would rather stay in the slime of complaining. Take your peace and continue to remain thankful.
Question: Which practice do you need to put into activation today?
Comments: 5 Ways to Cultivate Thanksgiving.
Comments policy
May 30, 2014
15 Everyday Habits for Taking In God’s Word

For most Christians, one of the biggest frustrations is their lack of developing a healthy ingestion of the Word of God in their daily life. They often fall into guilt, feeling like they should read the Bible more, but struggle to have a consistent pattern. Others can develop very rigid and religious routine that have no heart connection. Regardless of the struggle, we must realize that our enemy does everything he can to keep us distracted, busy and overwhelmed–anything to keep us from settling in and taking in the Word of God.
Developing Healthy Habits
Cultivating a mindset of the Word of God in our lives really all comes down to the habits that we develop. God’s Word needs to become a daily habit. Like eating our meals, we need to see the imperative value of processing the vital nutrients of God’s Word. These habits must be guarded and kept fresh.
In the book of Joshua, we see how creating a habit for God’s Word can be cultivated through lifestyle habits.
Joshua 1:8 NKJV This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
A habit is a usual way of behaving; something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way.
Keys in Habits Becoming Ingrained:
Here are some things we can observed from Joshua’s exhortation about keeping a habit of experiencing God’s Word in our lives.
1. We can often break bad habits by creating new ones.
We often focus on our bad habits and seek to break them. Yet the key question is, what habit are you going to fill those bad habits with? We can often turn the corner on our bad habits by firmly starting new healthy ones.
2. Habits need to be practiced daily. (you shall meditate on it day and night)
To keep the Word of God as our habit, it must be mediated on day and night and all in-between. The Word needs to become the lens by which we see our day and how we process our relationship with God. This cultivates an atmosphere in our lives where we are setup for growth.
3. Talk about what you are learning. (shall not depart from your mouth)
It is important that what we practiced with our habits be shared with others. This reinforces what we are taking in, so that we do not forget and lose it.
4. Your ways will become prosperous.
In the original language, “prosperous” means “to break out, to push forward, come [mightily], go over, be good, be profitable, prosper, make progress, succeed.”
5. You will have success.
This word used for success has so many powerful meanings. Look at the power of what God’s Word as a deep habit in your heart will bring. Strong’s concordance tells us that success here means, “to have good success, teach, ( have, make to) understand (- ing), wisdom, ( be, behave self, consider, make) wise (- ly), guide wittingly, to be prudent, be circumspect, wisely understand, prosper, to be prudent, be circumspect, have insight to give attention to, consider, ponder, be prudent to have insight, have comprehension insight, comprehension to cause to consider, give insight, teach the teachers, the wise to act circumspectly, act prudently, act wisely to prosper, have success to cause to prosper.”
15 Everyday Habits for Taking In God’s Word:
The following are 15 very practical ways that you can take in God’s Word, develop a habit of experiencing the Word of God and keep it in your heart.
1. Read Sections of the Bible
This is where you develop a strategy to read and study a certain section of the Bible. For example, the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke & John) or the Pentateuch/Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers & Deuteronomy).
2. Read a Theme or Word Search
You may want to take a journey through the Bible and study a certain theme, such as holiness, love or forgiveness. You can start by finding all the mentions of a certain word and take in the context of meaning.
3. Read the Entire Bible through.
This takes some long-term investment and realization ahead of time. The goal here is to gain an overview of the Scriptures to help gain a grid of how God reveals Himself and the way He thinks. You have to remember, there will be books and sections that are harder to process through, simply because they have a lot of genealogies and names that at first can seem confusing. Just keep in mind, everything was written for a reason.
4. Write Down What You Learn.
Every believer should should have some way of writing down what God shows them at all times. Whether it is an electronic device or a notepad by your side, find ways to immediately write down everything that you learn.
5. Read the Word Out Loud.
Reading anything out loud helps to reinforce what we are taking in. God created our words to increase the power of what we are learning. If you struggle with sudden fatigue coming upon you while reading the Bible, then stand up and read the Scriptures out loud. This will awaken your body more and possibly drive away any spiritual interference that may be coming at you. It is also beneficial to read the Word of God publicly, where you take opportunities to share insights, exhortations or even just simply read the Word and let it speak for itself.
6. Whisper the Word Out Loud.
Don’t ask me why, but there is something special about the quiet solitude with God, where you learn to mutter and whisper His Word out loud. This becomes a very precious habit of treasuring each word and taking it to heart.
7. Hand Write a Scripture.
This involves taking a Scripture and writing it down word for word. In our modern culture of typing everything, we can lose the power that comes when we write things out by hand. Studies show that writing something out by hand will actually help your brain retain the information better.
8. Study Passages Through Word Study.
This can be one of the greatest ways to receive revelation from God’s Word; by simply studying what each word means and discover the context of what was being communicated. This is a lifelong journey, because the Word of God is endless rich with revelation after revelation.
Two good tools to use are a Strong’s Concordance and a literal Bible translation that will help you break down each word and gain the insights of what was written.
9. Memorize the Word.
In the old days, we sang songs, where the lyrics were directly from Scripture. Even though some of them were pretty corny to sing, they imbedded the Scriptures to memory, where they can forever be accessed in our long term memory. It is important to memorize what is in the Word and allow it to take deep root. The Holy Spirit works in conjunction with the Word. So the more we have hidden in our hearts, the more the Holy Spirit has to work with to speak and lead us into all truth.
One way to help yourself memorize the Word is to record yourself reading through a passage of Scripture. Play it back over and over again. You can even get fancy and play some background music while you record it.
10. Personalize the Word.
As you read a certain area of Scripture, put yourself into the context. Allow yourself to consider how you would feel in the person’s shoes. Consider how God may be at work in a similar way in your life. Take the life lessons and be aware that the same God that worked with those people is alive and able to meet you today.
11. Pray the Word.
This is an excellent tool to help enhance your prayer life with God. We often do not know what to pray or even how to pray, but when we come with our hearts before God, we cannot go wrong praying the Scriptures. Doing this keeps our prayer focused and direct. When you pray the Word, you are always praying the will and heart of God. It can be an excellent spring board to allow your prayers to go further into other areas that are on your heart.
12. Teach or Preach the Word.
Personally I know that one of the best ways I retain what I gain from God’s Word is to teach it. You don’t have to be a teacher who stands in front of audiences to do this. Begin with your family. That is where I start with everything I learn. I first share it with my wife and allow her to be blessed. I then allow the precepts God is teaching me to have a work in our home. Then it can flow into our relationships and ministry. As you share with others, God’s Word becomes more deeply reinforced in your own life.
As a word of caution, don’t teach the Word like you have arrived, and don’t teach precepts in the Word that you are not seeking to apply in your own life. The best way to teach is to take the bread of the Word that you are getting in your own walk and share it with others.
13. Listen to the Word.
It can be a tremendous blessing to sit back and listen to the Word of God being spoken, through some form of audio Bible format. One in particular that I love is the “Word of Promise” Bible. It gives an audio version of the New King James Bible, spoken by tremendous voices. Included is some dramatic music and sound effects that enhance the experience. Personally, I have found that previous audio Bibles have a “cheesy” factor with the background music and added drama. This one comes across with excellence. I have even found myself stopping the playback, as the reading presentation was so powerful, the passage was hitting me in a fresh way.
14. Display the Word.
Take passages that are key for your life and post them all over. This doesn’t have to be fancy, but it doesn’t hurt to do it with excellence. As God key verses in your mirror, around your house and in your car. This something God taught Israel to do, so they would always be reminded of His ways. We as human being can easily forget and leak what God has done and what He is capable of.
One tip on this. Every now and then refresh these. Put new ones up or present them in new ways, because over time, your brain becomes used to the verses and key thoughts that you put up as background decoration. Keep it fresh so that the Word never becomes cliche in your home.
15. Do What the Word Says
There is nothing better than being a person who hears the Word, marinates on it and applies it. Nothing will make God’s Word more hard wired in you as being a daily doer of the Word. Don’t just hear it and memorize it so you can impress people. Do what it says and let the Holy Spirit produce great fruit in your life!
Question: Which habit will be helpful to you in making God’s Word a daily experience in your life?
Comments: 15 Everyday Habits for Taking In God’s Word.
Comments policy
May 28, 2014
Exposing the Rejection Mindset (Available Now!)

We are happy to announce the new book launch for Exposing the Rejection Mindset, a new book by Mark DeJesus!
Exposing the Rejection Mindset
Getting to the Root of Our Relationship and Identity Struggles
Take Back Who God Says You Are!
Your identity and relationships are everything when it comes to living a full life on this planet. But what happens when your lens in those areas becomes distorted or tainted? Discover in this book how the subtle mindset of rejection seeks to alter your thoughts and train you to carry a tainted lens on life. You will discover that rejection is not just something that happens to you, it is a toxic stronghold, set up to prevent you from walking in the love of God and knowing who you are.
Throughout this book, you will learn to see how this root system of rejection seeks to get itself into every facet of relationships. You will understand how to:
- Confront unresolved brokeness and the masks that we wear in relationships.
- End the slave life of performance, perfectionism and people pleasing.
- Walk free from constant busyness and hyper-driven living.
- Let go of relationship burdens you should not be carrying.
- Address the toxic relationships around you.
- Break addictive habits and addict living.
- Love and accept yourself right where you are.
- End the twisted communication that goes in in relationships.
- Take the limits off where you are stuck in breaking free.
- Practical steps on walking free from rejection.
- Develop a healthy lens of God, yourself and your relationships.
- Get out of isolation, get back out there and live an authentic life!
Get Your Copy Today!
Comments: Exposing the Rejection Mindset (Available Now!).
Comments policy
#004: Who is Your Daddy? [Podcast]

In this episode, I want to give you probably the most important precept that you will need in your life. It has to do with relating to God as Father, but also as Abba, which means Dad or Daddy. Without this revelation in your life, you will struggle to develop a strong and stable walk with God.
In today’s episode, I am going to speak on the subject of Dad. Father’s Day is coming up and I want to speak heart to heart, on what it means to relate to God in heaven, as a perfect Dad. And for those of you that do not have a healthy reference for that, may you be touched and renewed today.
New Book Release:
Exposing the Rejection Mindset:
Getting to the Root of Our Relationship and Identity Struggles
We are excited to announce the release of Mark’s third book, dealing with a spiritually toxic mindset of rejection.
Take Back Who God Says You Are!
Your identity and relationships are everything when it comes to living a full life on this planet. But what happens when your lens in those areas becomes distorted or tainted? Discover in this book how the subtle mindset of rejection seeks to alter your thoughts and train you to carry a tainted lens on life. You will discover that rejection is not just something that happens to you, it is a toxic stronghold, set up to prevent you from walking in the love of God and knowing who you are.
Throughout this book, you will learn to see how this root system of rejection seeks to get itself into every facet of relationships. You will understand how to:
- Confront unresolved brokeness and the masks that we wear in relationships.
- End the slave life of performance, perfectionism and people pleasing.
- Walk free from constant busyness and hyper-driven living.
- Let go of relationship burdens you should not be carrying.
- Address the toxic relationships around you.
- Break addictive habits and addict living.
- Love and accept yourself right where you are.
- End the twisted communication that goes on in relationships.
- Take the limits off where you are stuck in breaking free.
- Practical steps on walking free from rejection.
- Develop a healthy lens of God, yourself and your relationships.
- Get out of isolation, get back out there and live an authentic life!
Tip of the Week: Making Time With God
I want to make an encouragement to you, to start your day, everyday, with siting before God, and letting His presence soak over your life.
[Song: "Before the Day" by Newsong from the Album: Rescue]
Who is Your Daddy?
In today’s episode, I want to give you probably the most important precept that you will need in your life. It has to do with relating to God as Father, but also as Abba, as Dad. Without this revelation in your life, you will struggle to develop a strong and stable walk with God. We have talked about your relationship with Father God, but I want to go deeper, and let the love of Abba or Daddy, invade your life. But we will have to face some brokeness to get there.
Observations: Americans don’t like to face pain. We want to have glory without any agony, without any spiritual and emotional surgery. We often have to face our pain in order to understand God better and become healed from what is hindering our understanding of His love.
[Song: "Your Favorite Name is Father" by Newsong from the Album: Rescue]
Knowing our identity is extremely important and powerful. Unfortunately, we are in an identity crisis today. This is especially true because of the lack of fathers in the world. Without the father’s presence, we will lack an experience of the father’s love and an experience with knowing our identity.
God gives us our identity in the Scriptures.
Romans 8:14 (NKJV) For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.
Who gives us that identity? God does. Our Father. Our Dad.
God created the Whole Family & Relationship Structure to see Him
Romance → see God’s constant pursuit of us
Wedding → reveal the love and power in the bride of Christ
Marriage → Relationship of us to Christ
Children → Show image of the Father’s love for His children
Romans 8:15 (NKJV) For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”
The spirit of bondage is a rejection spirit that keeps you locked in rejection thinking.
. . . but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father”
Abba = “Dad” or “Daddy”
It is a very intimate expression when calling out to your father.
“father” is a formal use. Dad is a personal use.
3 Scriptural Uses of Abba
1. Galatians 4:6-7 (NKJV) And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
when we understand Daddy’s love, we gain the identity that He gives us, not what the world gives or what satan would give.
This is the difference between a slave and a son. Do you know who your Daddy is? Do you know He loves you? Have you received your identity from Him?
Daddy Wounds We Carry:
Abandonment
Dad with Addiction
Abuse (Physical, Sexual, Emotional, Defilement, Performance Pressured)
Passivity Silence (Majority of people today do not ever remember hearing their earthly father say the words, “I love you.”)
2. Mark 14:36 And He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.”
3. Romans 8:15 (NKJV) For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”
Here’s the problem . . . we don’t get this. When we hear the word Dad or Daddy, it makes us squirm and get uncomfortable inside.
God is saying, “This is Not me!” I am not that way . . .
For Men:
Men are told in their childhood years: “Boys don’t cry” and “toughen up” but then 20 years later, women want to hear us share our feelings.
Satan sees men as a 2 for 1 sale. If he can get the man, he’s got the seed. He’ll break his heart as well as the woman in his life, which will then trickle down to the children.
Satan is seeking to attack the man, keeping them from showing the heart of Father God.
Men are not given the tools of mentoring, so now they stay busy at work or other things, but live passive in teaching his children about the love of God and mentoring them in the ways of God.
For Women:
They will struggle in feeling safe.
Don’t feel protected.
Will struggle with insecurity and deep fear.
Will either get trapped in emotional isolation and depression or in fear will take the reigns of life and carry life’s burden on her shoulders. Often taking leadership where a man in her life has not filled his role.
Causes females to become very open to disease, especially because of the strongholds they face coming out of not being loved properly.
cardiovascular disease
urinary tract and bladder issues
migraine headaches
Gastrointestinal issues
So what do we do? It is time we allow God to heal our Daddy lens, so that we can receive His love and run into His arms without fear or shame.
[Audio: The Father's Love Letter]
Prayer Ministry for the Father’s Love
Question: In what way is God healing you of your lens of what Daddy or Abba means?
Comments: #004: Who is Your Daddy? [Podcast].
Comments policy
May 25, 2014
A Key to Facing Fear and Overcoming It

As you desire to face fear and overcome it, God wants you to become intimately acquainted with who He is in the Godhead. The Godhead is one, but also plural. Within the Godhead are the Father, the Son, who is God the Word, and the Holy Spirit; they operate in perfect unity. We must draw near to who God is in His multifaceted nature to walk free of fear.
Paul, in his writings to Timothy, shared that God did not give him a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). If you carefully look at each of those words, you will see that they connect to a particular person of the Godhead.
Power
Power operates from the work of the Holy Spirit. He is sent from the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to give you the power to walk boldly in life. Notice, however, that when you are battling fear, power seems to be lost.
Sound Mind
A sound mind comes to us through a renewing, washing and regeneration of our mind by the Word of God. Jesus Christ is the Living Word, the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us. Getting to know Christ coincides with getting to know the Word, because that is who He is. When fear is at work, insanity is kicking in, seeking to separate you from a sound mind or any sanity whatsoever. Growing in the Word of God will help create a solid stance against what the enemy will bring your way. Ignorance or lack of knowledge, which prevents us from taking a solid stance on what God has said to us in His Word, can literally leave us feeling insane in fear’s torment.
Love
The third “gift” Paul said comes from God is the aspect of love, which comes from the Father himself. Drawing near to the Father is so important, because it is His love that is going to cast out your fears! There is no love like a father’s love and God is the perfect Father with a perfecting love that will change your life forever. Anyone struggling with fear needs a revelation of the Father’s love to come and fill every void in their hearts. That kind of love truly evicts fear from your life.
Question: Which area of God’s nature is He showing you today?
Comments: A Key to Facing Fear and Overcoming It.
Comments policy
May 23, 2014
8 Reasons Why Worry is a Waste

Excessive worry is a habit that will drive a person into an anxiety disorder. Talk to most people, and the negativity they express often carries large threads of worry in it. Worry empowers a hopeless lens on life. Because of it, we as a culture have become bound by this incessant habit that need not be a part of our lives.
So what do we do about this annoying habit called worry? The following reasons why worry is a waste will help you gain leverage over its operations.
1. Worry is a Liar
The nasty work of worry is that it convinces you that you NEED to mull over an issue over and over. We have become convinced that if we worry enough, we will finally solve the problem or resolve the conflict in our thoughts. We have been subtly trained that worry will help us. It takes advantage of our heart to show genuine care over a matter, but lures us into torment. Soon, its all we become familiar with–to worry about things.
2. Worry is a Peace Stealer
By its very nature, worry is filled with torment. It first comes as a seemingly reasonable way to deal with uncertainty or conflicting issues. Worry is the operations of a spirit of fear, designed to keep you locked in to a never ending pattern of narrowly focusing on an issue. We pay so much attention on worry. Meanwhile, our peace is being stolen thought by thought.
3. Worry Keeps You From Being Present Now
One of the greatest experiences that worry steals from our lives is the blessing of being in the here and now. Instead of being present and experiencing what is in front of us, worry trains us to anticipate the “next thing” that could come, the possibility of something going wrong. Worry tells us, “This will only be for a little bit, then you can relax.” Years and decades later, we are still worrying and not experiencing our lives with joy. Your children, spouse, relatives and friends all lose out on being connected to you. Even though you may be present physically, in your mind, worry has taken you somewhere else.
4. Worry Drains You of Energy With No Return
Plainly stated, worry is a waste of time and energy. Jesus said it well when he said, “Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?”
(Matthew 6:27 NKJVS) Worry is like putting money into a jar that has holes at the bottom. No matter how much energy you put into it, you will only get drained, not replenished.
“Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow. It empties today of its strength.” ~ Corrie Ten Boom
“Worry is like a rocking chair: it gives you something to do but never gets you anywhere.” ~ Erma Bombeck
5. Worry Stifles Your Personality
Over time, we become so trained by worry that it becomes a part of who we are. Many people have become one with worry, and it has immersed into their personalities. They now become “worrywarts,” taking most situations as a cue to go into the patterns of worry. People around you receive the affects of this constant fear projection in your life, and it stifles their relationship with you.
6. Worry Steals Your Health
People with chronic worry will not develop solid health over the long term. Persistent worry will cause the gastrointestinal system to malfunction. Worry often comes in the form of fear of the future, fear of failure or fear of conflict. These strongholds can affect the body’s chemistry negatively, creating an imbalance to overall homeostasis. Heart conditions and high blood pressure can result in people who are not able to drive out the temptation to worry.
7. Worry Will Make You a Control Freak
The more we worry, the more we become compelled to act on the worry. Fear has a driving force to it, so eventually, the programming of worry will teach you to constantly take matters into your own hands. Those who struggle with control have a fear issue driving the need to feel safe by controlling circumstances or people. Yet being in control of life is a myth. Worry does not want you to be free from control issues, so it keeps the dreaded scenarios playing in your mind.
8. Worry Steals How God Made You To Be
God did not design you to live in chronic worry. Despite what many people would think, He did not originally form you to be made with worry. It is the counterfeit of God’s rest in our lives. Jesus warned us that we would have trouble, but to take peace. Our Savior has overcome the world, so as we walk through this world, we must learn to release our cares and shut down the programming of worry over our lives. God did not create us to be worrywarts.
So if God did not create us to worry all the time, and if He commands us not to worry, then where does worry come from? Who told you to worry? This is where we need to see how the enemy uses a spirt of fear to train us in worry’s ways.
If you struggle with worry, why not take a few moments to come to God and repent for serving its ways? Take authority over that worry and drive it out of your life today! Enter into the rest of God that He has for you. In there, worry has no place to land.
Question: Can you name some more reasons why worry is a waste? What do you do to combat worry and keep it far from your life?
Comments: 8 Reasons Why Worry is a Waste.
Comments policy
May 20, 2014
#003: Making the Connection to Father God [Podcast]

In this episode, I am going to address how we can make a deeper connection with God, by knowing him intimately as our Father. Masses of people still do not know how to connect with God as a wonderful Father.
A deep cry for so many believers: “I want to feel close to God.”
[Song: Just to Be Close to You by Fred Hammond]
Experiencing closeness to God involves being immersed in the love He has for us.
We do not understand the love of Father God because of our broken lens of what Father means.
This is the key is transformation. We must first understand who God is as Father.
1. Jesus, when He taught the disciples to pray, he taught them to say “Our Father.” (Matthew 6:9)
(Matthew 6:9 NKJV) In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
2. Jesus came to show He is the way to the Father.
(John 14:6 NKJV) Jesus said to him, “ I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
3. Jesus came to show the ministry of the Father’s heart.
(John 14:9 NKJV) He who has seen Me has seen the Father…
4. Jesus lived out of complete intimacy with the Father.
(John 5:19-20 NKJV) 19 Then Jesus answered and said to them, “ 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. 20 For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.
5. Jesus always sought to glorify the Father.
(John 14:28 NKJV) ‘I am going to the Father,’ for My Father is greater than I.
(Philippians 2:10-11 NKJV) 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
(1 Corinthians 15:24 NKJV) Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power.
6. Jesus taught the importance of going to the Father.
(John 16:23-24 NKJV) 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. 24 Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
(John 16:26-27a NKJV) In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; 27 for the Father Himself loves you…
With all that in mind, why do we struggle so much in relating to Father God?
When we do not have an intimacy with Father God, another father comes to become a counterfeit.
John 8:38-44 NKJV
37 “ I know that you are Abraham’s descendants, but you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. 38 I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father.”
39 They answered and said to Him, “ Abraham is our father.”
Jesus said to them, “ If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham.
40 But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this.
41 You do the deeds of your father.”
Then they said to Him, “ We were not born of fornication; we have one Father — God.”
42 Jesus said to them, “ If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me.
43 Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word.
44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.
Satan uses a our poor father reference to speak lies:
1. Through our father’s harshness.
2. Through our father’s silence.
3. Through passing on the lies that he believed.
4. Through a lack of being fathered.
What kind of lies have you believed, because of your distorted father lens?
1. “I don’t have what it takes.”
2. “I am not of value, unless i perform.”
3. “I need to listen to this fear.”
4. “I will never break through this.”
5. “I am not worth….”
6. “I have nothing of value to say.”
7. “I’m gonna have to do life all on my own.”
8. “No one really cares.”
9. “People need to love me in order for me to move forward.”
10. “I feel far from God.”
Application:
1. Receive the Father’s Love today. Begin approaching Him as Father.
2. Let that love develop a confidence to go bold before God.
3. Face the lies and receive the truth.
4. Face the poor Father image and be renewed in what Father means.
Question: What lie do you need to address, because of not knowing the Father’s love?
Note: song played early in podcast episode was “No Limits (Enlarge My Territory)” By Israel Houghton and New Breed from the Album “Live in South Africa”
Don’t have an IOS device? Subscribe with Stitcher
Comments: #003: Making the Connection to Father God [Podcast].
Comments policy