When it comes to theme parks, Disney is the gold standard. The cleanliness, the attitude of the staff, the systems and the ride innovations are at the highest level.

Anytime a person goes to a different amusement park after experiencing Disney, they see the difference between above average and excellence. As fathers, it is our job to guide our daughters to be strong, independent women and set the gold standard of a man through our actions, words and deeds.

Here are five ways dads can be good examples of a great man:

1. Honor the Golden Rule. Follow the Golden Rule and treat others how you would like to be treated. This includes the way you speak to each other and how you act, because sometimes actions speak louder than words.

2. Do what you say and mean what you do. Words mean something, be a man of your word. Be dependable, a person people can count on.

3. Be a “gentle man.” Conduct yourself with dignity and strive to leave others feeling positive and respected with every interaction. Be kind and express your feelings openly and honestly.

4. Solve conflict with words not violence. Anger is a natural emotion. If you are angry, take a minute and cool down before you speak, because words are like toothpaste, you can’t put them back in the tube after they have been squeezed out.

5. Show how you care. Showing how you feel can be difficult sometimes. Small gestures towards your daughter can go a long way. For example, a simple “thank you,” making her favorite dinner or giving her a hug. Ask her what you can do to show her that you care.

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Did you know, according to the Bible, acting a certain way could alter your physical appearance? If your face is downcast and showing your age, then you have the power to brighten it right up!

If you put this principle into action, you will bring glory to God because you will be reflecting His glory.

The idea of a spiritual facelift came to me from meditating on the following Scripture:

“Who is like a wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a matter? A man’s wisdom makes his face shine, and the harshness of his face is softened” (Eccl. 8:1).

Wow, do you mean that becoming wiser will make your face shine? Yes, and that is not the only place the Bible states that fact.

Daniel 12:3 says: “Those who are wise shall shine as the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who turn the many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever.”

I am aware of two examples in the Bible of people who shined physically. The first is Moses. Do you remember how Moses’ face shone after he came down from the mountain after God gave Him the 10 commandments (Ex. 34:29)? Not only had He been in God’s presence (who is the source of wisdom itself), but He also had God’s law in his hands—written wisdom.

Matthew 17:1-2 tells us that Jesus’ face shone: “After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother and brought them up to a high mountain alone, and was transfigured before them. His face shone as the sun, and His garments became white as the light.”

This shining did not come from grease, but from God’s glory. I believe that God wants each of us to be shining examples of His glory! That is why He gave us His word to live by.

Deuteronomy 4:6 says this about God’s Word: “Therefore, keep and do them, for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations which shall hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.'”

Does that sound good to you? It does to me! God’s people were not meant to fit into this world, but to stand out—in a good way.

If you need a spiritual facelift, then think about the wisdom God has already given you. Are you walking in it?

2 Timothy 3:6-7 gives us a warning that we would all do well to heed. Paul was talking about false prophets:

“For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

God wants His people free, untangled from the yoke of sin’s bondage. We live in freedom when we live according to God’s truth! Don’t be like the virgins in the parable Jesus told in the parable of the wise and foolish virgins (see Matt. 25:1-13).

Recall that both groups had lamps (the containers for light), but only the wise had oil with them (the fuel for light). The foolish did not. Symbolically, oil represents the Holy Spirit. Jesus sent Him to us to guide those who believe in Him in the ways of wisdom. In addition, oil is associated with joy (see Is. 61:3).

Consider what God has already spoken to you about what you ought or ought not be doing. Write that down. Think about how you can put it into practice in your daily life. Then, look for opportunities daily to do so.

This is what Joshua 1:8 is all about:

“This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth. Meditate on it day and night so that you may act carefully according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way successful, and you will be wise.”

You don’t just read the Bible to heap up knowledge; you ‘observe to do’ so that you can put what you learned into practice. That is when knowledge becomes wisdom! The path of wisdom may not always be easy, but the rewards are worth it!

Take God at His Word and put this principle to work. Proverbs 19:8 promises:

“He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who keeps understanding will find good.”

After a period of time of wise living, watch your face start to shine. The oil of joy will be inside of you. Plus, you will feel better about yourself, which will reflect outwardly so that others can see it!

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven (Matt. 5:16).”

Once 240 pounds and a size 22, Kimberly Taylor can testify of God’s healing power to end binge eating. She is an author and the creator of the Christian weight loss website . Visit today for inspirational health and weight loss tips

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Have you ever wondered what is of value to God? 

Think about it … God, the Creator of the majesty of Niagara Falls … the Architect of the glory of the Rocky Mountains … and the Gardener of the lush, rich growth that surrounds the Nile River … what does He consider priceless?

The God who sculpted the sparkling facets of diamonds … who sprinkled the spots on a leopard … and who placed the giggle in the belly of a baby … what does He consider costly above all else?

“But let it be the hidden nature of the heart, that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God” (1 Pet. 3:4).

I want to value what God values, don’t you? I want to count as precious, or costly, the exact same commodities that the Creator of the universe considers as a treasured or cherished commodity.

The Holy Spirit states that what God values is a gentle and quiet spirit. I am silenced when I read those words. I am left speechless in the face of the strong opinions and assertive nature that my culture considers valuable and therefore laudable.

I must pick up my 21^st-century, Western jaw off the ground of opinion and stubborn entitlement, and simply meditate on that which is of great value to God.

” … the hidden nature of the heart, that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.”

The word “precious” that the Holy Spirit specifically selected means “requiring very great outlay, very costly, excellent, of surpassing value.”

As a woman in ministry, choosing to adorn oneself in a gentle and quiet spirit might cost me something. It might cost me the right to state my mind, it might require me to die to self, and it might even demand of me an outlay of humility and of unselfish behavior.

The Holy Spirit has chosen to use a lovely word to describe the character and nature that God values in a woman’s life. The Greek word for “gentle” is the word praus.

Praus is the opposite of self-assertiveness or self-interest. It implies laying down heart attitudes that display stubbornness or argumentative behavior. 

Can you say, “Ouch!”? I say “Ouch!” to be praus nearly every day of my life! 

The Holy Spirit gently draws me back from the pain that the word praus has inflicted with this telling question, “Carol, do you want to value what God values? Is it your heart’s desire to treasure what God treasures?”

And I humbly respond, “Yes, Lord, I do value what is of high treasure in your Kingdom.  Yes, Lord, I do.”

God values a spirit of gentleness and a heart attitude of quietness rather than blustering opinion and self-promoting cockiness. A gentle person is rarely occupied with self-interest but is consumed with the joy of trusting God’s goodness in every situation in life.

A gentle woman places her trust in an all-knowing, all-loving and all-powerful God.

As women in ministry, we serve in a kingdom whose value system is strikingly different than the world in which we live. If the desire of your heart is to value what the King values, you will embrace a quiet and gentle spirit which is precious in the sight of God.

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, 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, will be released on Aug. 1. Her teaching DVD The Rooms of a Woman’s Heart won the Telly Award, a prestigious industry award for excellence in religious programming. 

One of my most poignant memories of my late father is of him seated at his desk with his Bible open, studying. My dad wasn’t a highly educated man, but he was devoted to Jesus Christ and had an insatiable hunger for biblical knowledge.

I remember watching him many times as he pored over passages and prayed for understanding. Years later, I had the privilege of getting a seminary education, and one day during a class lecture, I thought of him.

Surrounded by my fellow graduate students in a stately lecture hall, my eyes began to water. I was imagining how much my father would have loved being in this class.

He never made it to seminary, but because he held out before me the example of someone who “trembled” at God’s Word, studying it became my own desire. I observed what he did, and I sought to emulate him.

My behavior was not unusual. Children who are nurtured and trained in the safety of their parents’ love seek to embrace the parents’ qualities throughout their lives.

Not every one of us has the experience of love and protection in an earthly sense. But in a spiritual sense, we can all attest to having that experience with our heavenly parent—God, the Father.

We are commanded to imitate Him: “Therefore be imitators of God as beloved children” (Eph. 5:1). As His beloved children, we should resemble Him and act like Him.

There’s a good reason for this. Our nation and the world are longing to see the reality of God in the lives of His people.

The apostle Paul wrote, “The eager expectation of the creation waits for the appearance of the sons of God” (Rom. 8:19). There are many for whom a demonstration of the reality of the One we worship is long overdue.

If only they could see Him reflected in His church! If only our brokenness didn’t cause us to reflect so poorly on our precious Lord!

What is the creation waiting to see? I believe above all things, the unsaved desire to see the reality of Christ’s sacrificial love.

Sadly, it seems harder for us to exhibit unconditional love toward those in the family of God than to those on the outside. We hear too many stories about brothers and sisters who are wounded by other members of the body of Christ.

This kind of behavior isn’t lost on those who are looking for God. The unbeliever may not have any great knowledge of who (or what) God is, but he or she is quite adept at identifying who (or what) He is not. I believe the biggest beef unbelievers have with us is our lack of real, sacrificial love for one another.

We simply must love one another more. Now is a moment when hearts are being taken captive to fear. Men and women are desperate to know if there is any hope—any security out there.

Let’s tell them, “Yes, there is hope, peace, protection!” Better yet, let’s show them the evidence of the hope we have: Let’s show them how we love one another.

Prayer Power for the Week of June 15, 2015

This week spend time in your prayer closet enjoying the presence of God, loving and receiving His love in spiritual devotion. Ask Him to make you a conduit of that love and show you ways to express it to others—both in word and action. Thank Him for giving you the grace to make amends where needed and heal broken relationships caused by pride, misunderstanding and self-absorption. Ask Him for opportunities to express His sacrificial love. Remember to pray for those persecuted for Christ’s sake, our military personnel, the peace of Jerusalem and those whom God has placed in authority over us. (Rom. 8:19; Eph. 5:1; 1 John 3:18).

Most dads wouldn’t want to readily confess their failures as a parent. It’s simply not in our nature to admit that we’ve made mistakes that have negatively impacted our children.

Author Gregory W. Slayton says the good news, however, is that dads don’t have to continue to pay for those mistakes. In his book, Be a Better Dad Today: 10 Tools Every Father Needs, Slayton wants to remind men—especially with Father’s Day approaching—that God continually gives us grace to move forward and to strive to be the Godly dad that your children need.

“I think we all struggle. I know that I’ve been a failure at times too,” Slayton says. “The good thing about it is that you can make a mistake, ask for forgiveness, get up and keep going. You really can be a better dad. You may say, ‘I’m terrible at this.’ But, you cannot give up. The only failure that occurs is when you give up.”

You may have said, or constantly say things to you children that you regret. You may have been inconsistent in disciplining your children. Perhaps you resorted to bribing your child to get a desired behavior. Or, maybe you allowed your “busy” schedule to intrude upon the quality time you should have been spending with children.

It doesn’t matter what your indiscretion, mistakes can be fixed. But it’s up to you to seek God, to allow Him to touch your heart, and to guide you as to how to repair the brokenness with your kids.

After all, Slayton says, being a dad is the most important job a man will ever have.

“Admitting that you have failed in your role as a father, or realizing you didn’t have the skills to be a good father, is a good place to begin,” Slayton writes. “Don’t lose hope. You can still be a good father in the future. … It takes time and practice.”

Slayton outlines 10 tools with which every father should be equipped:

1. Put your family first. Have fun with your wife and your children. It will bless them.

2. All-in marriage. Unconditionally loving your wife can be one of the greatest gifts you can give your children.

3. True moral compass and true humility. Set a high moral standard for you and your family and those standards will transfer to your children.

4. Heartfelt love. Commitment, fidelity, grace and tenderness. What more do you need?

5. Empowering servant leadership: Put your own needs second to that of your family.

6. Relationship tools that work. Have a willingness to listen and to relate deeply to your family.

7. Heaven’s help. In order to be your best as an earthly father, frequently consult your heavenly Father.

8. Other good dads: Get the support of good friends that are role models. They did.

9. Optimistic, never-surrender attitude: No matter how tough it gets, don’t quit on your family or they will quit on you.

10. Dynamic, whole-person support: Give your family members emotional, physical, mental and spiritual support when they need it.

Slayton says fathers can be good with some of these tools, and then there are those that they really need to work on to improve.

“It’s different for different families,” he says. “It’s all about applying God’s wisdom to your particular family. Really search your heart and pray to God to show you which ones you need help with. He will help you if you are truly seeking Him.”

Slayton, his wife and children are a military family and are proud supporters of our troops. In an effort to help equip military families for success, they have implemented a Buy One Give One program for the book, where for every copy of Marina Slayton’s Be the Best Mom You Can Be and Be a Better Dad Today that is purchased between now and July 31, the Slaytons will donate a book to a military family through their HOME program Help our Military—Every Family).

The hope is to give these families resources to help them grow and strengthen during or after deployment so they can go on to live healthy lives together.   

Men who undergo a one-time ultrasound chest screening can greatly reduce their risk from a deadly abdominal aortic aneurysm, but few men undergo the procedure, according to new research.

An aneurysm, in which a key blood vessel to the heart bursts, typically strikes without warning and is often fatal unless emergency surgery is performed immediately. But the new research, reported by the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care, finds ultrasound screening can identify men at risk, allowing doctors to intervene before the condition becomes life threatening.

The new analysis compared the results of four studies that tracked the benefits of one-time screening via ultrasound with a different screening strategy or no screening. 

Three studies included only men aged 65 years or older; one also included women, but they only comprised 6.8 percent of the study population.

The results showed screening can reduce the frequency of ruptures in men, and the researchers said they believe the same is true for women. As a result the researchers said men over 65, and women at risk for cardiovascular problems, should undergo one-time screenings.

For the original article, visit .

What protection do you have in the face of adversity, particularly an adversity generated by another person? David wrestles with that question in Psalm 141—the trauma caused by an “enemy.” It’s a familiar theme in David’s prayers.

Take comfort from David’s endless struggles. God permitted him to write his psalms so we would not fail in faith when our own sufferings do not come to an end all at once. Yes, time and struggle are needed if you are to overcome. David asked God to act quickly (v. 1), but emergencies on earth are not always emergencies in heaven.

What are the protections you need in your difficult times?

Worship

Prayerlessness and withdrawal from God during adversity only intensify your problems. David practiced the truth in the gospel song: “Take your burdens to the Lord and leave them there.”

In temple sacrifices, incense served the practical purpose of perfuming the stench of burning animal parts. Your problems, by themselves, can make you nauseous. Prayer deodorizes the foulness of your circumstances by perfuming them with praise and trust in the Lord.

In lifting your hands, you take the posture of a supplicant yielding yourself to God and His perfect will. Your upraised hands surrender your need to the Lord and bring the peace of His presence in what otherwise would be a completely unmanageable situation.

Self-control

Your tendency when deeply injured is to mouth off. You need others to feel your pain. That’s why David placed a filter on his words by asking the Lord to put a guard over his mouth. Don’t surrender your tongue to revenge, rage, self-pity, and blame. Ask the Lord to give you discretion over what you say and who you say it to. Leave more unsaid than spoken.

Avoidance

The short New Testament letter of Jude tells us that when the archangel Michael disputed with the devil about the body of Moses, he did not dare bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.” In other words, when you fight the devil, be careful you do not become like him. Michael acted like the good angel he was. Too many have shipwrecked their faith by acting like the devil when fighting the devil.

David recognized the same danger, and asked the Lord to help him avoid acting like the evil persons who had caused him grief. If another person has misused or abused you, set a different standard for your own conduct—even in dealing with them.

Correction

Take good advice. Consider it fortunate when a good and godly person warns you about your attitudes or behavior.

Anger

No emotion is more misunderstood by believers than anger. Anger is a gift from God to help you create distance between yourself and the wrongdoer. If, for example, you see an adult mistreating a child and you don’t become angry, then something is wrong with you. In the same way, you need to let anger create distance between you and someone who violated your trust.

David is so angry he asks the Lord to push his enemies off cliffs and desecrate their graves. Notice, however, David didn’t volunteer for the job. He found a way to release anger without destroying himself or others.

Perspective

“My eyes are fixed on you, O Sovereign Lord,” David affirms.

It’s no easy task bringing your focus back upon the Lord rather than on your external circumstances or internal feelings. The aspect of “eyes fixed” connotes a steady and unbroken gaze.

You must avoid the mistake of glancing only occasionally at God during the time you are wounded. You can’t afford to go a single day without integrating His Word into your life, or conversing with Him in prayer.

George O. Wood is the general superintendent of the Assemblies of God. For the original article, visit .

Watching old videos of healing evangelists like Kathryn Kuhlman, A.A. Allen, Jack Coe and Oral Roberts is one of my favorite things to do. In the last few months alone, I’ve consumed hundreds of hours of videos showing the miracle-working power of God and bold revival preaching that makes no apologies for the Rock of Offense.

While watching an A.A. Allen miracle reel my ears perked up when I heard the late Brother Allen declare a revival of the devil’s witchcraft. Of course, this was back in the 1950s. What was a revival of witchcraft then has turned into a full-blown movement.

“An awful lot of people are sick, diseased and afflicted under a curse, under a spell because of the present revival of witchcraft around the world,” Allen declared. “There has never been a time in history when there has been such a devil’s revival of witchcraft.”

Think about it for a minute. In Allen’s day, there was no such thing as Harry Potter. Allen made this declaration before popular TV shows like Bewitched, Charmed and The Witches of East End—and before films like Rosemary’s Baby, The Blair Witch Project and Season of the Witch. Indeed, it was before children’s media like Meg and Mog, The Witch Family and Witches in Stitches hit the mainstream.

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A Revival of the Devil’s Witchcraft

In recent weeks alone, we’ve seen the devil pressing hard to bring witchcraft deeper into our schools, our homes and our entertainment venues. We reported on how a new witchcraft-inspired challenge is luring kids into summoning demons. It’s called Charlie Charlie and it’s sweeping the nation and the world under the guise of a carefree fortune-telling game. Faith leaders are sounding the alarm.

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

Recently, I wrote about a new devil-inspired show called Lucifer on, of all stations, Fox. “Bored and unhappy as the lord of hell, Lucifer Morningstar has abandoned his throne and retired to L.A., where he owns Lux, an upscale nightclub,” the show’s description reads. “Charming, charismatic and devilishly handsome, Lucifer is enjoying his retirement, indulging in a few of his favorite things—wine, women and song—when a beautiful pop star is brutally murdered outside of Lux.”

Meanwhile, theaters in Miami are putting on a play based on John Van Druten’s Bell, Book and Candle, which is about a witch who puts a love spell on a publisher who is soon to be engaged to his sweetheart. Of her new album, Florence and The Machine singer Florence Welch says she “got into obsessing about the LA witchcraft scene, and I was imagining this concept album about a witch trial in Hollywood, and someone falls in love.”

And you may have heard that Eddie Radmayne inked a deal to play Newt Scamander in a new Harry Potter spin off called Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I could go on and on. There truly is a revival of the devil’s witchcraft, as Allen put it, and it’s far darker today than it was in his time.

A Dangerous Awakening

I’m believing for a Third Great Awakening. But the devil is clearly driving toward a great awakening of the occult. This revival of the devil’s witchcraft is unto an awakening to the occult that will set the very elect up to be deceived, it if is possible (see Matt. 24:24). False signs and wonders will rise, along with false prophets and false christs.

As you may know, I’ve written a book dealing with spiritual witchcraft called Satan’s Deadly Trio: Defeating the Deceptions of Jezebel, Witchcraft and Religion. Many times, infirmities are rooted in the devil’s witchcraft—and sometimes it comes from the spirit of Jezebel. The Bible talks about Jezebel and her witchcrafts (2 Kin. 9:22). Witchcraft can’t heal you, but it can release confusion, sickness and disease, depression and other ailments. At our recent women’s conference, Jesus healed 23 ladies—and several of them were afflicted with witchcraft.

We need to pray. A generation of youth has been exposed to witchcraft games, television shows, movies and more. The enemy is seducing people who are looking for the supernatural into a counterfeit movement could have dangerous eternal outcomes. In the book of Revelation, God has made it clear the fate of those who practice such things: sorcerers will have their portion in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone (see Rev. 21:8). Let’s keep pressing back this darkness.

Jennifer LeClaire is senior editor of Charisma. She is also director of Awakening House of Prayer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 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.

Often our prayer lists and personal needs can eclipse our awareness of God’s presence in prayer. In this episode Eric Gilmour and I discuss the role of petition and intercession in our private prayer lives and how they can flow through intimacy resulting in greater confidence toward God.

Take a moment and allow the Spirit to speak to you.

As much as we’re tempted by our flesh to do so, we should not let these things come out of our mouths when speaking to our children. If you’ve done these, go back and apologize immediately:

1. “Why can’t you be more like … ?”

2. “Watch out! Go in the other room, you’re just in the way.”

3. “Will you please get to the point?”

4. “Stop crying. You’re OK. Don’t be such a wimp.”

5. “Why can’t you just get this?”

6. “You can’t do this.”

7. “Stop, you’re embarrassing me.”

8. “You’re setting a horrible example.”

9. “Don’t bother me right now.”

10. “I don’t have time for you.”

11. “Leave me alone.”

12. “Stop or I’ll give you something to cry about.”

13. “Ugh. You’re just like …”

14. “I’m done with you.”

15. “I give up.”

16. “Well, I hate you too.”

Our tone of voice and the way we phrase what we say can make all the difference. Instead of saying “You’re setting a horrible example,” the National Center for Fathering encourages you to find a way to rephrase it. Maybe “Think of the example you are setting for your younger siblings.”

If you’ve downloaded this free e-book, The Power of Your Words, then you know just how powerful your words can be. Make sure you are using your words wisely and avoid these 16 phrases that are on our “never say” list. Download our Tools for the Journey: Things You Should Never Say to Your Kids.

For the original article, visit .