The Bishop’s Mind: Christian Wisdom, Daily Devotionals & Empowering Messages for Kingdom Living

Balancing Learning & Teaching: Jesus, the King of the Kingdom R EAD | Matthew 3:1-16 There is always more for you to learn. As you grow, God places various natural and spiritual teachers in your life to share with you the things that you need to know to be the best version of yourself that you can be. Some of those teachers offer guidance about the things that are yours to do. Other teachers instruct you through their example of what not to do. John, the Baptist, was not only Jesus’ cousin but he was also his spiritual teacher. John, the Baptist, preached about repentance and the Kingdom of God in the wilderness of Judea. Jesus continued that kingdom message by spreading it into numerous cities and villages. John, the Baptist, baptized people with water. Jesus took baptism to the next dimension when he baptized people with the Holy Spirit. No matter how evolved you think and feel you are, you never graduate from needing a spi...

  Balancing Awareness & Adolescence Jesus, the King of the Kingdom R EAD | Luke 2:41-52 There is a part of you that knows who you really are and what you are called to do. Your true identity is more than your gender, age, race, culture, religion, orientation, socio-economic status, family dynamics, educational level, or credit history. The authenticity of who you are is deeper than any title in front or behind your name, any role that you fulfill, or position that you hold. Your life is a search for deeper meaning that surpasses human limitations. When Jesus was 12, he and his parents traveled to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish feasts. While in Jerusalem, Jesus left his parents, Mary and Joseph. They were unable to find him for three days. While his parents were searching for him, he was on a mission to discover his true identity and a search for the meaning of his life. The spiritual awakening that Jesus had at 12 years ...

Balancing Being & Birth: Jesus, the King of the Kingdom R EAD | Matthew 1:16-25 Whether your parents were married, separated, or divorced, your conception was perfect for your purpose. Perhaps your parents were unmarried teenagers or adults who had not planned on having more children; your conception was still divine. Even if you were the product of rape, incest, abuse, or adultery, the Kingdom Principle of Divine Order remains in effect. As challenging as it may be, this principle reminds you of the truth that everything that has happened in your life happened exactly as it was supposed to happen. Your conception is no exception. Jesus, your Wayshower, was not born under ideal circumstances. His conception was immaculate, yet very few people believed it. Many believed that Joseph and Mary did not wait until their honeymoon to consummate their marriage. Others thought that Mary was unfaithful to her fiancé, Joseph and that Jesus was the r...

Love through nutrition There are several ways to evaluate and demonstrate our love for ourselves. One way is through our eating habits. When we love ourselves, we will feed ourselves properly and maintain a healthy weight. Obesity puts a strain on the body and causes it to break down. It is also important that we eat balanced meals, drink plenty of water and discipline ourselves as it relates to foods that have little or no nutritional value. The same discipline that we exhibit in our eating habits will extend to abstaining from other destructive ways of being, seeing, thinking, speaking, and behaving. We must also pay attention to what, when and why we are eating. Sometimes we are so busy rushing that we deny our bodies any nutritional substance. We wait so late to eat that our system lacks the energy to properly digest and break down what we have eaten. Sometimes we take better care of our cars than we do ourselves. Foo...

The Keys to the Kingdom The Kingdom of God is where God rules and reigns. It is not a physical place or location, but it is a system, form of government, a lifestyle. The Kingdom of God is a way of being, seeing, thinking, speaking, and behaving in which God is the center. The Kingdom of God is wherever God’s perfect will is being done. Jesus tau ght h is disciples to pray, “Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as i t is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).” When God’s will in heaven (Kingdom of Heaven) is being done on the earth (in our lives), it is a manifestation of the Kingdom of God. Jesus came to the earth as our Wayshower to reveal the Father to us and show us what heaven was like so that we realize who we are as offspring of God and live according to Kingdom principles (Matthew 11:27). In preparation for his departure from this earth, Jesus established Peter, one of his core disciples, to be his successor. Jesus gave Peter the Keys to the...