Dr. Ken Canfield of the National Center for Fathering has done research and found the top five things daughters want from their fathers:

1. Daughters long to hear their fathers communicate love and encouragement. “The best thing my dad has ever done for me is let me know he loves me.” “I wish my father would say, ‘I love you.'” “When my dad encourages me, I feel like I can do anything.”

2. Daughters want their fathers to take the time to strengthen their relationship. “I wish my daddy wouldn’t work so much and spend more time with me.” “If I could add one thing to our relationship, I would add time.”

3. Daughters ask their dads to communicate with them more and give them guidance. “If we talked more truthfully, we would have a better relationship.” “I wish my dad would talk to me more and give me advice.” “I need more input from my dad.”

4. Daughters want their fathers to seek to understand them. “Sometimes I feel like my father has no idea what I’m going through.” “I wish my father would try and understand me.”

5. Daughters want their fathers to trust them more. “If I could add one thing to our relationship, I would add trust.” “I wish my dad would trust me more.”

The best way to hit all these five principles at once? Take your daughter on a date. Here are 10 things to do on a date with your daughter.

1. Dress up for the occasion. Dressing nicely will let her know you take this date seriously. Definitely lose the gym shorts and shoes without socks.

2. Make sure she’s happy with her outfit. If you daughter doesn’t “feel” pretty, she won’t have a good time with you. If you can afford it, offer to take her shopping beforehand to pick out an outfit she really likes.

3. Buy her flowers before you go. If you want to get really creative, have a single white rose in the middle of a dozen red roses and talk about how much she really does stand out.

4. Hold open doors. Show her what a gentleman looks like and what she needs to expect from her future dates.

5. Take her to an upscale restaurant. Save up and take her somewhere really nice. This is not an Arby’s kind of night.

6. Give her a meaningful gift of some kind. It doesn’t have to be expensive, just something she will keep and every time she looks at it, think of you.

7. Have the conversation revolve around encouraging her. This is not a time for you to lecture, but to listen and encourage. Share with her all the things you love and appreciate about her.

8. Share with her some of the first dates you had with her mother. She’ll get a big kick about hearing how you had the best leisure suit at your high school back in the day.

9. Talk about what your next daddy/daughter date should be as you’re heading home or on to your next activity.

10. Leave a thank you card on her pillow the next day. Write how much you appreciated getting to spend time with her. {eoa}

For the original article, visit .

Miracles. What does it take to experience a bona fide, too-good-to-be-true, honest-to-goodness miracle?

Why are miracles rampant throughout the New Testament, yet they seem to elude all of us living in the 21st century?

Why are miracles a way of life in Africa and in other Third World nations but are scarce in the Western church?

Where are the miracles?

Some great theologians believe that the age of miracles has passed. I feel sorry for those particular theologians, don’t you?

I choose to believe. I choose to stand in faith for a miracle of epic proportions in spite of the winds of circumstance that blow ferociously and in defiance of the clouds of doubt that loom threateningly over my life.

I choose to pray. I choose to pray without ceasing and to push mountains out of the way while on my knees. I choose to stay in the prayer closet until hell surrenders with just a whimper of protest.

I choose to declare. I choose to declare the goodness, the power and the authority of God over every impossibility in my life. I choose to declare the things to come and to usher God’s promises into every circumstance by the words that I boldly speak.

I choose to fast. I choose to fast until a breakthrough occurs in the circumstances of earth. You know, every man or woman who saw the miraculous occur in the Bible chose to fast rather than to faint.

God has not changed. The same God who parted the Red Sea, who closed the mouths of lions and who protected three men in the fiery furnace is the God of me.

The same God who turned water into wine, who raised Lazarus from the dead and who fed a hungry, ravenous crowd with five loaves of bread and two fish is the God of today!

The God of Acts is the God of now. The God of Moses, Abraham, Esther, Hannah, Peter and Paul is the God of you. His hand still moves … His power is still strong … and He always has the last word. Always!

I believe that we are about to enter a new and exciting day of miracles! I believe that as the people of God stand in faith with their hands in the air and their focus on the resounding power of God that He will indeed begin to move among us in a new season of miracles. I believe that we are about to see blind eyes instantly be restored to 20/20 vision, that the lame will walk with a spring in their step and unexplainable strength in their motion and that long-held addictions will miraculously disappear.

I believe that babies will be birthed from formerly infertile wombs, that prodigals will come home and that doors of destiny will be opened in a “suddenly”! God’s hand is extended still, and He has not changed.

The miracles of the New Testament are about to become the expected occurrences of daily life in the 21st century. His power is headed toward Earth in an avalanche of grace and goodness. Time does not lesson the authority, resolve or intention of God.

I will believe … I will pray … I will declare … I will fast … will you? Your miracle may be just one choice away. {eoa}

Carol McLeod is an author and popular speaker at women’s conferences and retreats, where she teaches the Word of God with great joy and enthusiasm. Carol encourages and empowers women with passionate and practical biblical messages mixed with her own special brand of hope and humor. She has written five books, including No More Ordinary, Holy Estrogen!, The Rooms of a Woman’s Heart and Defiant Joy! Her most recent book, Refined: Finding Joy in the Midst of the Fire, was released last August. Her teaching DVD The Rooms of a Woman’s Heart won the Telly Award, a prestigious industry award for excellence in religious programming. You can also listen to Carol’s “A Jolt of Joy” program daily on the Charisma Podcast Network. Connect with Carol at .

I prophesied earlier this year that 2016 would be marked by shifting seasons and suddenlies. Part of those shifting seasons and suddenlies includes promotions and demotions. God is going to raise up the humble, hardworking saints and humble the prideful ones with wrong motives. Put another way, doors are going to open for some, and opportunities will diminish for others. The Lord spoke these words to me:

“I am promoting My faithful ones in this season to positions in My spirit and in the natural that defy human reasoning. My faithful ones have prayed and sought My face and walked in My will with the little things, and I am making them ruler over more in My kingdom. Those faithless ones will be demoted while my faithful ones are raised up in this hour. Those walking in pride will be brought low. Those walking in arrogance will not stand in My special places in this season. But those who have walked in the low places with Me, I will exalt and raise up and send out with an anointing to stand and withstand in this hour.”

I have been in a season of constant promotion for more than a decade. That’s not to say that I haven’t had setbacks or trials, but the Lord has worked it all together for my good. I’ve learned sometimes what looks like a demotion or closed door can really be the Lord setting you up to shift you into a new season. With that in mind, let’s look at six ways to respond to this prophetic word.

Listen to Jennifer’s podcast on this topic for more insight.

1. Don’t try to make it happen. Don’t chase dreams, chase the God who gave you the dreams and He will make your dreams come true in the right time. No man on earth and no devil in hell can stop what God wants to do in your life—but you can make a big mess trying to make it happen.

In Genesis 16, God promised Abram and Sarah a son, but they got impatient and birthed an Ishmael that brought grief and sorrow into their lives. Manipulating situations may get you somewhere more quickly, but it won’t keep you there long. Remember, whatever you do to get somewhere, you’ll have to keep doing to stay there. You will never have to force anything that’s truly meant to be. Don’t promote and exalt yourself. That’s God’s job.

JOIN JENNIFER ON FACEBOOK FOR SPIRITUAL COMMENTARY AND ENCOURAGEMENT. CLICK HERE.

2. Don’t look to man to make it happen. What man gives you, man can take away. If you look to man to make it happen for you, you’ll be tempted to compromise. You’ll be expected to do things God may not have called you to do. Some Christians have sold their soul to man for a quick promotion instead of selling out to God and trusting His timing. Consider Jeremiah 17:5-6 with reverential fear and trembling:

“Thus says the Lord: Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, and whose heart departs from the Lord. For he will be like a bush in the desert and will not see when good comes, but will inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.” This is not to say that you can never receive help from a person, but don’t look to man to open doors only God should open.

3. Don’t be jealous of what others have. God won’t promote a jealous heart. Jealousy is a work of the flesh (Gal. 5:20). Think about it for a minute. Saul was jealous of David—and tried to kill him. Joseph’s brothers were jealous—and tried to kill him. Cain was jealous of Abel—and did kill him. When you allow jealousy into your heart, you are tapping into a murderous spirit that will ultimately kill your dreams. James 3:14-16 says:

“But if you have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, do not boast and do not lie against the truth. This wisdom descends not from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, and devilish. For where there is envying and strife, there is confusion and every evil work.” (For further study, read Proverbs 14:30 and Philippians 2:3.)

4. Trust God with the timing. Ecclesiastes 3 declares, “To everything there is a season.” Many times, we think we can change our times and seasons, but Daniel 2:21 makes it clear that this is God’s role and explains, “He removes kings and sets up kings.” David rightly told the Lord, “You are my God. My times are in Your hand” (Ps. 31:14-15). Remember, “For neither from the east nor west, nor from the wilderness comes victory. But God is the judge; He brings one low, and lifts up another” (Ps. 75:6-7).

5. Work on your character. If you were ready to handle the promotion now, God would give it to you now. Many times, we need to develop the character that will keep us to where the anointing takes us. Romans 5:3-5 tells us patience produces character. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you areas of your life that need work—and then ask for the grace to get to the next glory.

6. Practice humility. Humility has no rights. Here are three witnesses to keep in mind: “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time” (1 Pet. 5:6-7); “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up” (James 4:10); and “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14:11).

Finally, once God exalts you, stay humble. Pride comes before the fall. {eoa}

Jennifer LeClaire is senior editor of Charisma. She is also director of Awakening House of Prayer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, co-founder of , on the leadership team of the New Breed Revival Network and author of several books, including The Next Great Move of God: An Appeal to Heaven for Spiritual Awakening; Mornings With the Holy Spirit, Listening Daily to the Still, Small Voice of God; The Making of a Prophet and Satan’s Deadly Trio: Defeating the Deceptions of Jezebel, Religion and Witchcraft. You can visit her website here. You can also join Jennifer on Facebook or follow her on Twitter. Jennifer’s Periscope handle is @propheticbooks.

When coming into Jerusalem prior to his death and resurrection, Jesus entered the city through the Golden Gate into the temple ground. There is deep significance in Jesus’ choice to use that gate, which was reserved for the high priest to use.

Jesus was and is our high priest, the one who atoned for our sins.

Since then, man has closed up that gate with bricks because many believe Christ will use the gate again when he once again enters the city of Jerusalem after his Second Coming. It’s another one of man’s feeble attempts to stop God.

Christian author and pastor Jamie Buckingham says in this video devotional that, although men will continue to brick up the gate to which Jesus enters and remains in your heart, the attempt will be feeble if you hold onto His promises for your life. {eoa}

Have you ever wondered, How do I maintain my excitement about change? You may have gotten excited about a new weight-loss program, do well for about a week, then completely fizzle out.

I used to do that all the time until I discovered how to get out of that self-defeating cycle.

Believe it or not, there is a biological reason why this happens. But you can learn how to make motivation last.

When your brain starts something new, it releases a neurotransmitter called “dopamine.”

Think of it as like kindling wood to start a fire.

Dopamine makes you feel energetic and excited when you start pursuing a goal. But there’s only one problem.

Just like kindling wood burns hot and fast, so does dopamine! The high from starting something new typically lasts only four to 10 days.

That’s why most people start feeling discouraged when they don’t feel the same level of excitement as they did at the beginning of a new program.

They feel their fire going out. They think this is a sign that they shouldn’t change. At this point, many people quit.

But that is a gigantic mistake!

The ultimate solution is to use a powerful, unseen ability the Lord gave you to stoke your faith—much like stoking a fire to keep it burning.

What is this force? I call it imagination excitement. In this article, I share how this works and give you five questions to excite your imagination for lasting motivation.

With your imagination, God empowered you to paint mental pictures of things not seen. Unfortunately, many of us use this ability the wrong way.

Here’s the issue: Even though Jesus lives in your heart through the power of the Holy Spirit after you accept Him as your personal Savior, your mind is not renewed automatically.

So you can remain at the mercy of your old ways of thinking and acting.

For transformation to occur, it takes reading or listening to God’s Word, meditating on it and then applying what you learn.

Because many of God’s people do not know what God’s Word says about health, they use their imagination to paint tragic pictures!

They consider what their eyes or circumstances whisper to them and then make their decisions based on that.

But consider what Hebrews 11:1-3 says about faith:

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the men of old obtained a good report. By faith we understand that the universe was framed by the word of God, so that things that are seen were not made out of things which are visible” (MEV).

Compare that to our definition of imagination: “the ability to paint mental pictures of things not seen.”

I am convinced that God built imagination into us as a gift. He designed it to help us strengthen our faith, especially during times of doubt or discouragement.

God designed us to use our imagination to paint pictures of triumph, not tragedy.

To use your imagination properly in your weight-loss journey, you need to know what God’s Word says about health—and then paint a mental picture of what that looks like in your life!

Not only that, but return to that picture throughout your day, experiencing the joy and excitement of it.

When doubt or discouragement knocks on your door, use that as a signal to start praising God for success—even though you can’t see it yet. Keep taking wise actions and keep praise on your lips until you experience your breakthrough!

Just as you can’t eat one meal and expect that you’ll never need to eat again for the rest of your life, so you feed upon God’s Word, your vision, and praise Him throughout the day.

Your goal is to mature your motivation into “commitment,” which has more stability than motivation.

Commitment is when you declare, “This is it. I am not going to turn back, no matter my mood. I know that this is the right thing to do and I am going to keep doing it no matter what. If I make a mistake, I am going to rise again.”

For an example of commitment, let’s look at how Abraham obtained God’s promise for him. Abraham was old and childless. Yet God promised Abraham a son:

“Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘This man will not be your heir, but a son that is from your own body will be your heir.’ He brought him outside and said, ‘Look up toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.’ And He said to him, ‘So will your descendants be'” (Gen. 15:4-5).

Romans 4:19-22 tells us how Abraham responded to God’s promise:

“And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body to be dead (when he was about a hundred years old), nor yet the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully persuaded that what God had promised, He was able to perform. Therefore ‘it was credited to him as righteousness'” (MEV).

That’s our pattern for success! Have you found a word from the Lord with which you can put your imagination to work?

Here is one:

“Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits,
who forgives all your iniquities,
who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
who satisfies your mouth with good things,
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s” (Ps. 103:1-5, MEV).

I recommend reading this Scripture out loud (or other biblical health Scriptures). Allow it to capture your imagination. Then answer the following questions:

• What mental pictures are you seeing?
• How would your daily life change as these words manifest?
• How would the words you speak to yourself and about yourself change?
• What good things would you eat as you believe they satisfy you and renew your youth?
• How could amazing health energize your life?
• Write down your answers to these questions as if they are your daily reality. Why am I asking you to describe your day?

I believe you can’t control your life unless you can control your day.

Your daily habits determine the direction of your life.

Read your vision daily and keep it where you can review it easily. Remember, you want to keep that inner fire burning, so you need to keep stoking it!

It is a lot easier to keep an existing fire burning brightly through periodic stoking than letting that fire die, then having to start one all over again from scratch.

In this way, you allow your motivation time to mature into commitment. With commitment comes consistency and with consistency comes ultimate success!

Kimberly Taylor is the author of The Weight Loss Scriptures and many other books. Once 240 pounds and a size 22, she can testify to God’s goodness and healing power. Visit  and receive more free health and weight-loss tips.

For the original article, visit .

Take a few moments with your New Testament and look up every passage detailing the crucifixion. Once you’ve found them all, write out the statements recorded as coming from the lips of Jesus while He hung on the cross.

Now, slowly repeat those statements aloud, one after the other. You’ll find they barely fill one minute of spoken conversation when strung together. Seven one-liners!

What was Jesus saying during the rest of His six hours on the cross?

There is much He could have said. He could have ended the opening argument of His extradition with an ear-splitting sermon or offered up a plateful of prophetic thunder as a parting shot for Pilate. He could have unloaded an earful at the elders. He could have undressed with righteous rhetoric the Roman cohorts who stripped His clothes, and then showered condemnation on those who spat upon Him. He could have bellowed out a few shots from Jeremiah’s prophecies to wayward Israel or ordered up a few hungry bears as Elijah did.

Yet the Bible says, “when He was reviled, [He] did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten” (1 Pet. 2:23). In the natural, Jesus’ actions made no sense. When taunted, He remained tight-lipped. When abused and pierced, His words of forgiveness flowed as quickly as His blood.

He didn’t require His wounds to dry, scab and scar before He forgave. There is no record that Jesus calculated His personal pain before discharging His pardon. Each bruise and blow was met with silent mercy.

In His silence, Jesus was doing more than dying. He was communicating in red ink the timeless secrets of the kingdom. He was openly showing His bride how to embrace the cross that awaited her—and no true disciple can escape the cross.

We all know that it is tough at times to maintain a pure perspective through strenuous seasons of cross shaping. My only hope of success comes when my eyes remain fixed on the body language of Calvary’s quiet Lamb, when I carefully listen to the words He didn’t say. For when my eyes and ears tune out the cross, I fast become exasperated with people and plummet into spiritual defeat.

There will always be people who make big things out of small things in my life. But then, I remember the cross—and how Jesus went through it first.

I can always count on uninvited guests who enjoy watching my heavenly Father discipline me—and that can be terribly embarrassing. But again, I remember: Jesus went through that, too.

Even if God sends spiritually immature Christians into my life as part of His mysterious blueprint to grow me—to school me in silence—I must not forget that Jesus felt that too. All of this was the cross! At least it’s the one Jesus knew.

But for all the strains you and I face as followers, no one will ever pay a toll like Jesus. His death is filled with endless grace and boundless perplexity.

For it was I, not Jesus, who should have died for violating my Creator’s commands. And it was I who deserved the burden of transporting heavy timbers barefoot over jagged hillsides for my iniquity. It was I who merited loud public laughter and the agony of pointy thorns stabbing through my forehead.

And it was I who should have felt my ribs being pierced as pagan spittle dripped from my face. Yes, it was I who should have hung incapacitated for six millennia, not six hours.

Yet it was Jesus, not I, who violently died in silent payment.

So this Easter, I encourage you to rise early, don the bonnets and polish the shoes. It’s the day when God’s people around the world colorfully rejoice in His resurrection!

But while you’re celebrating, pause to remember the greatest silent sermon ever preached—the one that lasted for six hours. It’s the one that’s easy to memorize but difficult to emulate—the one that was lived, not spoken, by a silent Lamb.

Prayer Power for the Week of March 20, 2016

This week as you focus on God’s wonderful gift of reconciliation through Christ, pray that many will find repentance and receive eternal life through Him. Remember Israel and ask for the protection of its citizens and seasonal travelers this week. Continue to pray for revival in our churches, especially during this Easter season. Pray that Christians would unite in prayer and purpose for God’s kingdom to expand. Remember the persecuted church and ask God to send more laborers into the harvest field. Thank Him for directing your steps this week and giving you opportunities to share His love with others (John 3:14-17, 1 Thess. 5:15-19, James 5:16-17).

Jesus’ execution was a result of personal choice. He was not a victim of an evil empire, nor was He broken or defeated. And on the cross, there was never a moment when He was not in full control.

In this video devotional, Christian author and pastor Jamie Buckingham says we should give thanks for Jesus and give our lives completely to Him so that we can have the same victory over Satan as He enjoyed. {eoa}

Last year, the American Cancer Society revised its recommendations for mammograms. They suggested that most women get their first mammogram later in life, at age 45 instead of age 40 as previously recommended, and get them less frequently after that, every other year, instead of every year as previously recommended.

Not all physicians agree with those new guidelines. Recently I spoke with breast cancer surgeon Dr. Charles Ives, who practices at the Bon Secours Cancer Institute in Norfolk, Virginia about what women should think about when considering a mammogram.

During the interview, Dr. Ives revealed four behavioral risk factors for breast cancer:

1. Lack of physical activity

2. Poor diet

3. Being overweight or obese

4. Being a heavy drinker {eoa}

Watch the video to get more information. For the original article, visit .

The question is still asked in Israel today: “Who killed Jesus?

Was it the Roman soldiers who drove the nails into His hands and feet and raised a cross where He hung until He died? Was it Pontius Pilate, who sentenced Him to death? Was it the Jews and their religious leaders who brought Him before Pilate to be sentenced? Or was it Judas, who betrayed Him?

In this video devotional, Christian author and Pastor Jamie Buckingham reveals the answer to the question, “Who killed Jesus?”

I have always been a fan of Saturday Night Live. One of my favorite eras of SNL was the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Dana Carvey had so many memorable characters and catchphrases. There was a character he did called Grumpy Old Man who would complain about progress and lament about how easy things are today. He’d spout off:

“Today everyone’s spoiled rotten. When I was a boy, we didn’t have these video games. We made up our own games, like ‘Chew the Bark Off the Tree.’ You and your friends would find a nice oak tree and you’d start chewing the skin off of it. And there were no winners. Everyone was a loser. It rotted your teeth and left your intestines scarred and knotted. And that’s the way that it was, and we liked it. We loved it!”

It’s easy to look at today’s generation of teenagers and say they are babied, oversensitive and have a sense of entitlement. In some ways, that criticism is accurate, but when I see a viral video of a Jeff Daniels character calling late adolescents, “The worst period. Generation period. Ever period.”

I think it’s time to stop for a reality check. If I were given the choice between being a teenager now or 30 years ago, I’d take 30 years ago any day of the week. Young people growing up today have challenges more difficult to navigate; these challenges would be more difficult for anyone—let alone a teenager who hasn’t figured out who they are yet.

They are living in a world that is completely different than the one we grew up in, and we can’t rely on our own teenage experience to guide them effectively. When we understand their world, we will have a deeper influence.

Here are three reasons being a teenager is harder today than it was in our day:

1. Under the microscope and forever documented. Imagine having a filming crew document your teen years and then posting it all online. Think about every dumb or immature thing you did or said in high school or college. The Internet has provided a permanent and public place for all of that to be exposed and mercilessly judged. Privacy is nonexistent. There’s always someone, mainly peers, documenting their every move and word. It’s pressure we were fortunate to live without.

2. Never-ending exposure. The Internet is their world, and the stream of information is constant. Sure, they can decide not to go on, but that is like telling a teen to stay in their room for all of high school. It’s not realistic. They are going to be on there and encounter everything offered, positive and negative. Unfortunately, the negative can do major damage. A kid being bullied could, at least, find a safe haven when they got home. There is no safe haven from cyber bullying.

They are exposed to violence and pornography at an early age without an ability to process what they are seeing. Most teenage boys, in particular, end up with an addiction to pornography as a result. Innocence and childhood are cut short while adulthood is still many years away.

3. Unhealthy expectations. I’m all for setting a high standard. The problem is that we are asking teenagers to do too much with not enough time. Today’s teenager needs to play sports all year with the commitment level of a professional athlete. Most are forced into taking advanced placement courses, giving them a workload they are ill-equipped to complete. They must complete service hours, be a stage performer, do activities outside of school and sometimes have jobs. They do not have the time to do all of it at a high level. It’s exhausting.

When I asked one teen to go to a summer camp several years ago, he asked if he would get service hours. When I told him no, he asked why he should go. When I said, “To have fun,” he said, “I don’t have time for that.”

What a sad statement.

BJ Foster is the content manager for All Pro Dad and a married father of two. For the original article, visit .