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God Wants More for You. It’s Time to Stop Just Surviving.

Gary Keesee • Jan 23, 2018

“I’m sorry, Sir. Your credit card has been declined.”

We had gathered about 20 of our friends for dinner at a local restaurant. I don’t remember what special occasion we were celebrating.

What I do remember is that I was so uptight during the meal that I could hardly eat. I had agreed to pay for this event, expecting the money from a business deal I had been working on to come before that night. But it had been delayed.

I didn’t have the money to pay for dinner. The only credit card I had that wasn’t canceled was maxed out, and I wasn’t sure if it would work one more time or not.

Sure enough, my server let me know my card had been declined.

It was humiliating.

I had to humbly ask one of my guests to pay for the event.

Unfortunately, I have many stories like that where I found myself humiliated and embarrassed over our financial situation. I certainly understand having shame because of debilitating financial issues. But praise God, through Jesus and His Kingdom, everything changed!

And it can change for you, too.

Isaiah 61:7-9 tells us:

Instead of their shame my people will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace they will rejoice in their inheritance; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy will be theirs. For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and iniquity. In my faithfulness I will reward them and make an everlasting covenant with them. Their descendants will be known among the nations and their offspring among the peoples. All who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the Lord has blessed.

If you’ve read any of my previous books, you know that the Lord taught me a lot about the Kingdom through deer hunting. In fact, deer hunting was the vehicle that God used to first catch my attention with the Kingdom.

Now, Drenda and I have followed the same steps the Lord taught me for the last 30 years. I have seen God do some pretty amazing things while out hunting, and I have learned quite a few lessons about the laws of the Kingdom through hunting as well. (All of those early stories are recorded in my book Faith Hunt.)

To appreciate what I am about to tell you, you need to know that while hunting all those years I had never shot two deer from the same tree in the same morning or evening hunt. (By the way, if you are not a hunter, yes, we bow hunt from a tree stand.) Typically, when I killed a deer, I would leave the woods and come back out another day and take another one. But the Lord wanted to teach me something on this particular evening hunt.

It was a Sunday evening, I was a bit tired from conducting multiple church services that morning, and I was looking forward to being in the woods. Drenda was heading out to do some shopping for a few things, and she and I had agreed that this would be a good night to put some venison in the freezer. I was putting my camo on and gathering up my things as she went out to the car. I came outside just as she was starting the car to pull out. As she started the car, she rolled the window down and said to me, “The double portion.” I didn’t know why she said that, although later she said that she heard the Lord say that to her at that moment and felt led to tell me that.

We had sown for three deer that year, and this was the first day out hunting for that season. I gave her a quick kiss and told her I agreed, and I headed out to my tree stand. Within 15 minutes, a large 8-point came running in, I took a 40-yard shot, and my buck was down. That was awesome! I climbed down and walked out to the buck, but then I remembered what Drenda had said— the double portion —so I left the buck where he had fallen and walked back to my tree and climbed back up into the stand.

I figured with all the commotion that I had made getting down, walking around, and then walking back to the stand and climbing up, let alone all the scent I had probably scattered around, that in the natural there would be a slim chance of another kill in the few remaining minutes of legal shooting light. But within 15 minutes of being back in the tree, a button buck walked directly under my tree, and I dropped him with a perfect shot.

Two shots and two deer in a row from the same tree! I had never done that before. That caught my attention and I knew it was the double portion Drenda had spoken of.

Friend, the double portion is available for you, too. God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34).

He didn’t create you to just survive—living from paycheck to paycheck, humiliated and embarrassed about your financial situation.

He created you to THRIVE, to live in His favor, to live a life of rest—where your needs are met.

And the best part is you don’t have to work more hours to accomplish it.

The power of rest is a law of God’s Kingdom that frees you to stop chasing after money and start accelerating toward your destiny. It’s one of the most life-changing principles God has ever taught me, and that’s why I’m so excited to announce my new book, Your Financial Revolution: The Power of Rest. I really believe the Holy Spirit has given me a message that is going to change the way you work forever!

Click on this blog’s offer to unlock the double portion and the power of rest in your life!

The Power of Choice: How to Choose Happiness in Every Situation

By Gary Keesee • 08 May, 2024
Reading Time 3 mins 43 secs – Are you happy right now? Or are you feeling a little grumpy, or negative, or sorry for yourself? We’ve all been there. Years ago, I had one of those months. Yes, I said months , not days. I was negative. I was feeling sorry for myself. The weight and pressures of life and certain situations were bearing down on me. For some reason, during that time, I went to a conference I really didn’t feel like going to, and the speaker got up and said he was going to talk about being thankful. Great , I thought. Just what I want to hear. What I really wanted was for someone to join me in my pity party. But that wasn’t happening. Because God knew that wasn’t what I needed. He knew I needed someone to tell me the truth. See, I had taken my eyes off of all of the blessings of God. I had stopped remembering all of the amazing times He had come through for me. I had taken my focus off of His promises and put it on my problems. That message was just what I needed. The Holy Spirit dealt with me right then about my heart and how I had been ungrateful. I had to repent. God set me free that day. Here’s the thing: studies show that when you’re happy and thankful , you have 17% more friends. When you’re happy, you live longer and you have less health problems like heart attacks, strokes, colds, the flu, and even pain. Being grateful also strengthens your emotions, makes you more optimistic and less self-centered, improves your sleep, increases your self-esteem and your energy, helps you bounce back after a setback, reduces feelings of envy, helps your marriage, makes you look better, and makes you more productive. Proverbs 17:22 (KJV) says, “ A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones .” See that? Happiness is like medicine. Discouragement sucks the life out of you. Are you reading this and thinking, “ Gary, you don’t know what I’m going through. I have serious problems” ? I understand. But here’s the thing: happiness is not circumstantial. Happiness is a choice you make. I hear it all the time… “Gary, you don’t understand. I hate my house.” Sell it. “Gary, you don’t get it. I hate my job.” Quit it. Find a new one. “Gary, I just hate my life.” CHANGE it. You’re not stuck. You have options. Every single day, you make choices to do something or NOT do something. And you have plenty of reasons to be happy. Stop thinking you can only be happy when everything seems “perfect.” Because “perfect” is really rare, and I do mean really rare. In fact, odds are there will always be something in your life that isn’t “perfect.” The good news is, no matter what you go through or deal with in life, you can still be thankful and happy, because you can always trust God despite your circumstances. Philippians 4:6 (NIV) says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God .” Wait. Did you see what that said? Notice it didn’t say, “Only be anxious about the big things you can’t handle on your own.” Nope. It says don’t be anxious about anything . It also says by prayer—and with thanksgiving —present your requests to God. That means you should be thanking Him for all He’s already done and for what He’s about to do in your situation. You should be thanking Him before your answer shows up, because He’s faithful and good. Look at Judges 20:19–25. There, we see the nation of Israel suffering great loss after a huge battle. They had lost 22,000 men. 22,000. Can you even imagine? I’m sure you’ll agree that that was a really bad day. Then, on the second day of battle, they lost 18,000 more men. 40,000 men lost in two days. The Bible tells us they took a day off at that point. They stopped and regrouped. Then, in verse 26, we see that the entire army presented offerings of thanksgiving to God. Things had gone really wrong, and they needed to remind themselves that God was for them, that He is good and faithful, that He was with them. And the next day, they went out and won the battle. So, what about you, friend? Do you need to stop? Do you need to take your mind off the negative and remind yourself that God is for you, that He is good and faithful, and that He is with you?

5 Steps to Release the Kingdom in Your Life

By Gary Keesee • 10 Apr, 2024
Reading Time 2 mins 13 secs – In John 6, we read the story of Jesus feeding 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish. Do you know it? It’s where we see Jesus teaching the disciples how to release the Kingdom of God into the earth realm. Basically, a large crowd was following Jesus, listening to Him teach, and watching Him perform miracles. It got to a point where the people needed to eat, and Jesus asked the disciples what they planned to feed the people. Of course, Jesus knew the disciples would freak out. They couldn’t feed 5,000 people. In fact, they started talking about how it would take more than half a year’s wages to buy just a bite for that many people. Jesus was teaching the disciples, and He was teaching us— the Kingdom of God has all the answers you need . How can you release the Kingdom of God into your life? Here are the five steps Jesus took. 1. Look at what you have. Jesus asked the disciples what they had to feed the people. What do you have in your life that you can give God to work with? Jesus multiplied bread into bread and fish into fish. What do you need multiplied in your life? Find some of it. That’s your seed. Also, remember that money can be named. You don’t sow money to believe for more paper or digital money. Money represents your life and can be named to be the thing you need multiplied. 2. Make sure you’re in faith. “To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see” (Hebrews 11:1, GNT). You have to know how to judge whether or not you’re in faith. How? Do you have the right picture? When you close your eyes, what do you see? Do you see yourself with the thing you’re believing for? Can you defend your position? Why do you believe it? Prove it! Because you can be sure that between the “Amen” and the “There it is!” the enemy is going to contend for it, so you better be able to defend it. Do you have joy, expectancy, and peace? Are you in agreement with your spouse? 3. Confess over what you have, and release it in faith. Be specific. Say exactly what you’re believing for and release the seed to God. 4. Get the plan from God. Be ready for new direction, new ideas, and new concepts by revelation from the Holy Spirit. Carry a notepad and a pen. Write everything down. 5. Act quickly! When God gives you the plan, MOVE! It’s wise to have counselors and get wisdom, but you need to act swiftly on any direction you receive from the Holy Spirit.

Want Growth and Success? Here Are 10 Steps to Help Take You There

By Gary Keesee • 13 Mar, 2024
Reading Time 2 mins 34 secs – How can you make sure you’re equipped for the growth coming your way this year? Here are my 10 steps to posture yourself for opportunity and success. 1. Ask yourself how you’re handling your current responsibilities. Don’t run from your responsibilities. No matter where you are or what you’re doing, you should be a success. People will still see the evidence of God even if you think you’re in the wrong spot. 2. Detox your life of the things that keep you from having time to think. We live in a fast-paced world. There are plenty of things that can keep you distracted. But it’s in the moments that you stop to think that you’ll find ways to solve problems, and that’s where the opportunities are. So figure out what is consuming your time. Start saying no to some things. Find time to think. 3. Don’t hang around people who are always losing. I know people hit rough spots, but if the people in your life are chronically losing, it’s time to expand your circle. Hang around people who are better than you are, who don’t see things as impossible, and who have vision. It may be uncomfortable for you, but their influence will cause you to think differently. 4. Write down EVERY idea that you have, no matter how strange it seems. Most people filter opportunities and ideas through what they perceive their ability to be. This means most people discard ideas by the dozens because they don’t think they can do them. But God isn’t limited to what you know how to do. The ideas He gives you might seem so weird to you that you can’t process them fully. Write them down so you have time to think about them. 5. Research. Research. Repeat. You don’t need to know how to do something; you need to know how to learn how to do it. Research until you find what you’re looking for. 6. Count the cost before you jump. A lot of Christians hear God and jump out too soon, resulting in catastrophe. There are seasons for everything. God will prepare you for where He wants you to go. Be patient. 7. Always be in agreement with your spouse. Never, ever march out into battle without your spouse being in total agreement and your faith aligned. 8. Ask God for direction. Ask Him to help you, to show you where to go, and what to do. And always remember that prophecy from other people shouldn’t lead you; it should only confirm what God has already said to you. 9. Commit to never quit. Quitting is not an option. Once you’ve moved, don’t move again until God speaks to you. Stay with it. Walk it out. Don’t quit. So many people have so much potential, but they get uncomfortable and they quit. If you want to win, you should always be stretching. 10. Get ready to embrace bigger things. Your ability to see the big picture will keep growing as you change and grow on the inside. You’ll pick up on even more opportunities. For more principles, check out this FREE video on success.
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