Sylvania Heights Church of Christ

04/20/2026

Everything You Put Your Hand To
The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to.
Deuteronomy 28:8, NIV

The blessing is an anointing on your life, which means God has marked you or set you apart. You are marked for favor—that’s where people are good to you and don’t even know why, where doors open that weren’t supposed to open, where you get promoted when you weren’t the next in line. You are marked for opportunity to come looking for you. You’re marked to excel in whatever environment you’re in—whether people are for you or against you, whether the economy is up or down, whether you’re getting good breaks or doors have closed. The blessing is the reason you keep rising up when circumstances try to keep you down. The blessing doesn’t stop the adversity, but it causes you to triumph in the trouble. With His blessing, deep down you know that God being for you is more than what’s trying to stop you. Now do your part and have this blessed mindset. Get in agreement with God. All through the day, keep telling yourself, “I am blessed. Whatever I put my hand to today, I’m expecting God’s favor.”

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You for Your greatness and power and how Your hand has been upon my life in so many ways. Thank You for the countless blessings You have made happen for my good that I could never make happen. I believe that Your blessing is upon all I put my hand to. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

04/19/2026

04/15/2026

What’s Limiting You?
Zachariah said to the angel, “Do you expect me to believe this? I’m an old man and my wife is an old woman.”
Luke 1:18, MSG

Zachariah and his wife, Elizabeth, had tried unsuccessfully for years to have a child. When Gabriel showed up and told Zachariah that they would bear a son named John, Zachariah had fed upon the lies that they were too old for so long that he couldn’t believe it was possible. He did what we do so often. Rather than feed upon what God says about us, we dwell on what we can’t do, how we’ve made too many mistakes, how we tried before and it didn’t work. We think that the giant is too big, the sickness, the addiction, the dream. God is saying that you’re still destined to do great things. You’re not limited by your background, your education, by how big the opposition is, by how old or how young you are. What limits us is what we’re feeding upon, our wrong thinking. Stop feeding the limited, the average, the “can’t do it” you, and start feeding upon what God says about you. Start saying, “I can do all things through Christ. I am strong in the Lord. I am equipped, empowered, and anointed.”

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You for the promises You have spoken to my spirit. Thank You that I can speak words of faith that agree with Your promises and give them the right to come to pass. I will stop feeding the doubts and feed upon what You say about me in Your Word. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

04/13/2026

Jars of Clay
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
2 Corinthians 4:7, NIV

The apostle Paul reminds us that though we may feel like ordinary jars of clay with imperfections and cracks, inside our jar is the greatest treasure imaginable, “the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” You may seem ordinary, but the truth is you’re extraordinary. God loves to show Himself through the unexpected. He loves to put treasure in people who seem unlikely, at a disadvantage, ordinary. You may feel small, but the Most High God is on your side. When you look at what you’re up against, it can seem daunting—a sickness, a financial issue, struggling in your career. What you can’t see is that God has put in you the talent, confidence, and skills that will empower you to accomplish dreams that look impossible. You don’t know the treasure inside that’s going to wake up—the gifts, the calling, the ideas, and the potential that’s suddenly going to come alive. You’re going to feel a supernatural strength, a supernatural power, God breathing in your direction. He’s already preplanned your victory. You will discover the treasure in your jar of clay.

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You for the unimaginable treasure You have put in me and for the privilege of representing You as a jar of clay, even with my imperfections and weaknesses. I believe that You will show Yourself to the world through the light of Jesus living inside me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

04/09/2026

The Ultimate Place of Victory
“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
Acts 1:11, NIV

It’s interesting that the last place Jesus appeared to His disciples before He ascended to heaven was the Mount of Olives. That’s where the Garden of Gethsemane is located. Forty days earlier, He spent the night in the garden in agony, in great distress, as He faced the coming suffering on the cross and death for our sins. Now He’s at that very place, but He’s victorious over death and the enemy, alive forevermore, with the keys of death and hell. He’s not suffering but reigning, not in agony but in victory, not in great distress but clothed with all power. All that suffering was a setup for a resurrection. It was all a part of God’s plan that would launch Jesus into His purpose.

You may go through some Gethsemanes, but like Jesus, you’re going to go back to that place with great victory, great favor, great courage. The enemy doesn’t have the final say. God does. He’s ordering your steps. In those times of pressure, keep reminding yourself that it’s a setup. That suffering is a sign that a resurrection is coming.

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You that when the difficulties in my way look bigger, stronger, and more powerful than I can handle, You have the final word. Thank You that You turn what look like setbacks into setups and bring me through to great victory. I believe that You are bringing resurrections. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

04/07/2026

The Fellowship of His Sufferings
…that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.
Philippians 3:10, NKJV

For Jesus to reach His destiny of the resurrection, He had to go through suffering in Gethsemane and the agony of the cross. The apostle Paul says that if we want to know the power of His resurrection, it involves enduring some suffering. You have to have a strong will, a made-up mind, a warrior mentality. “I will not give up and start complaining, blaming, doubting, or worrying. I know that on the other side of this suffering is the power of the resurrection.” On the other side, there’s healing, abundance, divine connections, new levels. The suffering is not permanent. It’s for a season. It’s designed for you to pass through it so you can come into the power, the fullness, the abundance that God has in store.

The fact that you feel distressed by adversity is a sign that a resurrection is coming, that you’re close to something amazing—doors opening that you never dreamed would open, the right people showing up, healing from what looks impossible. You keep doing the right thing when it’s hard, and you’re about to see the power of the resurrection.

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You that You are with me through every season of suffering. Thank You that You can bring me through the difficulties better off than I was before they showed up. I believe that as I keep doing the right thing, I will experience the power of Jesus’ resurrection. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

04/06/2026

Preplanned
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, the days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.
Psalm 139:16, MSG

The psalmist David says that before you got here, God already decided your purpose. He already planned out your days, already put in you everything you need to fulfill His plan. You have gifts and abilities inside that you may not even see right now. Your part is to honor God, to keep Him first place, and you’ll walk into His prearranged plan for your life. This doesn’t mean you won’t have difficulties and face situations that are unfair. It means that God has already taken that into account. When He preplanned your life, He arranged the comeback for every setback, a solution to every problem, mercy for every mistake, and a new beginning for every loss. You don’t have to struggle and try to force what you’re concerned about to work out. It will happen as the Most High God orders your steps. Solutions are already in place. So stay in peace. God is working all things according to the counsel of His will. You’re about to step into some prearranged blessings, some preplanned favor, something you didn’t see coming.

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You that in the midst of a very insecure world, I can rest in the security of knowing that You planned out my days before I was born. Thank You that I don’t have to struggle and try to force things to happen. I believe that You are working all things to my advantage. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

04/04/2026

Before You Even Call
“I will answer them before they even call to me.”
Isaiah 65:24, NLT

There are things you’re concerned about now, dreams you want to accomplish, situations you need to turn around. It’s easy to get discouraged and think God hasn’t heard you. “Why isn’t it happening?” Can I encourage you that God has already taken care of it. He says, “Before you call, I will answer you.” He is always going ahead of you. He knows what you’re going to need in the future. He has solutions before you have problems. That’s why you can live in peace. You don’t need to be worried about your children, stressed over your health, losing sleep over your finances. God is ahead of you. He’s doing things right now that you can’t see. The hand of God is working, taking care of what you’re concerned about. The answer has been dispatched. Blessings are coming your way. Don’t let what you don’t see talk you out of what has already happened. It’s just a matter of time before you see things change in your favor.

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You that before I even ask You for my needs and desires, You’ve already lined them up and have them headed my way. Thank You for the people, the favor, and the promotion You’ve ordained to come across my path. I believe that, even now, answers to my prayers are on the way. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

04/03/2026

A Definite Plan
“This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.”
Acts 2:23, ESV

There was nothing random or happenstance about the betrayal, arrest, trial, crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. God had already prearranged it all as a part of fulfilling His plan to bring us salvation. It may have seemed out of control and frightening to His disciples, but God preplanned how He was going to turn that for their good and our good.

Do you ever think that a setback, a disappointment, or a betrayal has caught God off guard? No, He wouldn’t have allowed it if it was going to stop your purpose. You just don’t see what He is doing behind the scenes. What He’s already planned in your future is bigger, better, more rewarding than you can imagine. When you understand this, you won’t live striving, straining, or worried. “How’s it going to work out?” You’ll live from a place of peace, a place of rest. You’re confident that your Creator has a “definite plan” for you. Your job is to keep being faithful, keep living with excellence and integrity, and you’re going to walk into all that’s already been prepared for you.

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You that when things seem out of control in my life, You have preplanned how to turn it to my good. Help me to stand firm in my faith in the times when nothing seems to make sense. I declare that I’m going to keep being faithful, keep doing the right thing, and living from a place of peace. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

04/02/2026

Surrendered
Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Matthew 26:39, NIV

The Garden of Gethsemane is an olive garden in East Jerusalem. “Gethsemane” means “a place of pressing.” Here workers put olives into a press and squeezed out the valuable olive oil under great pressure. It’s not a coincidence that before Jesus went to the cross and rose from the dead, He had to go through Gethsemane. That’s where He was so distressed, knowing what He was about to face on the cross, that His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. He had this season of suffering that He had to endure and pass the test.

We celebrate the resurrection, but the real victory was won in Gethsemane. That’s where He refused to give up despite being under great pressure, and where He made this decision: “Father, not My will but Your will be done.” He showed that real victory is won in private. It’s how you surrender your will and control to God’s will when life is unfair and you don’t understand it. You believe that He has you in the palm of His hand and will bring you through to victory.

Prayer For Today
“Father, thank You that You know best when it comes to the difficulties and challenges I face. Thank You that You are directing my steps and that You’ll take me through the things I don’t understand. I am going to rest in faith, knowing that I am in the palm of Your hand. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”