"If you're going to live in MY house, you're going to abide by MY rules!" I am sure we all heard this speech AT LEAST once growing up. I had wonderful parents, but let's be honest, no one enjoys correction. At one point, most teenagers think, "I CAN'T WAIT to be out on my own...with NO rules."

I know for me though - when that day came - I realized how good I had it at dad's house! Rules and curfews became minor compared to free rent, food and laundry service!

In the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6, Jesus advises us to pray, "Thy Kingdom come."

The word Kingdom here means "reign." When we pray for God's Kingdom to come, we are praying that God would reign everywhere...beginning in our lives.

Romans 8:17, reveals that we are heirs of God. As a believer, His house is YOUR house, your inheritance.

At dad's house, I don't have to ask to go to the refrigerator. I am his son. He makes available all that he has to me. Likewise, when God's Kingdom is established in our lives, we have access to His house - His provision. The good news is that He's not kicking us out when we're 18 or when we get married with five children! There is ALWAYS room in His Kingdom.

A Kingdom is a place where a King has complete authority and provides and protects. However, a King does not have authority beyond his particular kingdom.

If you truly desire for God to provide and protect you and your family, you must make Him King over your life - your ENTIRE life. Sadly, many "Christians" often compartmentalize their lives. They give God authority over their marriages but not their finances or over their children but not their careers. They make Him the King on Sunday but not the rest of the week...

Those same believers then tend to blame either God or the devil for all of life's woes, but in some instances, it's because they took over the rulership in a certain area of their lives and are now seeing the consequences.

God's Kingship doesn't absolve us from responsibility, but if we follow the instructions of the King, He will always provide and protect.

I challenge you today to reflect on the various aspects of your life - your career, relationships, children, hobbies, habits, finances - and consider if you have truly allowed His Kingdom to reign in your entire life.

Dear Father, I give You everything. Let YOUR Kingdom be established in my life!

I thank You, my Jesus, for dying for me. I believe that You are Lord and that God raised You from the grave so that I can have eternal life.