DAILY DEVOTIONAL THURSDAY AUGUST 18, 2005
(Matthew 11:28-30, 1 Peter 5:7)


YOU can be free from your past, TODAY! This message applies to every single
person who is reading this right now. It doesn't matter how old you are,
whether you are a man or a woman, what your skin color is, what nationality
you are, how much money you have or don't have, this is a universal message
that is applicable to everyone. You see, nobody that has lived very long in
this sin-filled and evil world has escaped the trials and tribulations of
this life and not experienced some sort of pain. EVERYONE reading this
Devotional knows the pain that comes from time to time during this journey
we are on.

For some, that pain was experienced in your childhood through mental,
physical, or sexual abuse. Some have experienced that pain later in life
through failed relationships, many through being divorced. Everyone has
lived through the pain of the death of a loved one. Many of you have
experienced the pain of financial hardships. Others have lived through the
pain of losing your job or other employment and career issues. Sadly, some
have lived through the experience of being a crime victim. Everyone has
experienced the pain from making poor choices at some point in their life.
Most have had to experience the pain of some bondage such as alcohol, drugs,
gambling, sex, food, money, shopping, lying, or a myriad of other bondages
that people get caught up in.

NOT ONE PERSON READING THIS HAS NOT HAD TO LIVE THROUGH
THE PAIN THAT COMES FROM LIVING THIS LIFE HERE ON EARTH.

Today, I want to share a word with you that could be one of the most
important things anyone has ever told you. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO KEEP LIVING
WITH WHATEVER PAIN YOU HAVE FROM YOUR PAST. Let me repeat that, because I
really want you to hear these words clear. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO KEEP LIVING
WITH WHATEVER PAIN YOU HAVE FROM YOUR PAST. If you are, that is only
because you have CHOSEN to live with that pain!

The fact is, God has made a way through faith in His Son for you to put the
pain of your past behind you and live your life in freedom. Jesus has told
us to give Him our burdens, that He would carry them for us. The Bible
tells us to cast our cares on Him, because He cares for us. You see, God
doesn't expect you to carry the pain of your past with you each day. He
wants you to live FREE from your past so that you can enjoy the abundance
that
this life has to offer.

Just hours before going to the cross, Jesus told His disciples that in this
world, they would experience trials and tribulations. But He told them to
"be of good cheer" because HE has overcome this world. You see my friend,
trials and tribulations are part of this human experience, but God has made
a
way through His Son for us to still enjoy the abundance that this life can
offer despite those trials and tribulations.

The only reason you are carrying the pain of your past with you today is
because you have chosen to believe the LIE instead of the TRUTH. Jesus
tells us in John 8:44 that satan is a liar. He is the "father of lies."
When he speaks, he speaks his native language, lying! God on the other hand
is TRUTH. The Word of God is TRUTH. The lie of satan is that you have to
carry the pain of your past around with you each day like a 1,000 pound
anchor around your neck. The truth from God is that you can take that pain
of your past and give it to Jesus. HE WILL GLADLY TAKE THAT 1,000 POUND
ANCHOR FROM YOU TODAY!!!

I love you and care about you so much. Everyone reading this Devotional
today has experienced some of the pain that this life offers. So many of
you have never let go of that pain and have simply learned how to live your
life each day with that pain. Because of that, you are missing the fullness
of the joy, peace, and abundance that this life can offer. Because of that,
you are not completely fulfilling your purpose in this life which is to
serve and glorify God with your life. Because of that, you are not living
in total freedom and victory each day.

Right now, this very moment, I want you to stop whatever you are doing. If
you are at home, at work, at school, it doesn't matter. Stop whatever you
are doing right now and pray this prayer.

"Dear Father, I thank you for this day. I know that today was not promised
to
me, but it is a gift from You. Dear God, You know the pain I have today
from
what has happened in my life. I am tired of carrying this pain with me day
after day.
It is robbing me of my joy, of my peace, of knowing the abundance that this
life
can offer. I trust Your Word today that tells me that I can give this
burden to You, that You will take it from me. I trust Your Word today that
tells me to cast my cares on You, because You care for me. In the name of
Jesus, I give You the pain of my past today. In the name of Jesus, I
surrender it to You. Take it from me, and fill me right now with Your joy,
with Your peace, and let me live from this day forward in FREEDOM FROM MY
PAST! In Jesus name I pray, AMEN!"

I will be praying for you today my friend. God loves you SO MUCH! He cares
about you SO MUCH! We live in an evil and sin-filled world. Because of
that, we all will experience pain in this life, but God has made a way so
that we do not have to carry that pain around with us for the rest of our
days. He has offered to carry it for us, to take it from us. I pray today
that you will trust Him and give Him the pain of your past and live in
FREEDOM from this day forward!


In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at
bkeller@liveprayer.com

DAILY DEVOTIONAL FRIDAY AUGUST 19, 2005
(Mark 5:25-34)



Do you need God's healing touch on your body today? I know that a large
percentage of people reading these words need God's healing touch. Many of
you are reading these words today in tremendous pain. Many of you are
reading these words today as you face an upcoming surgery. Many of you are
reading these words today as you deal with a serious disease. Many of you
are reading these words today as you are trying to heal from a sickness or
injury. Every person reading these words today has a family member, friend,
or someone you know who needs God's healing touch. Let me say this very
clearly, GOD IS STILL IN THE HEALING BUSINESS IN AUGUST OF 2005!

Out of the 40,000+ emails for prayer we receive every day here at
Liveprayer, out of the phone calls I take 5 nights a week from viewers of
the Liveprayer TV program, healing is one of the top 3 requests along with
financial problems and relationship issues. Several hundred thousand of the
over 1.6 million praise reports we have received since we started Liveprayer
nearly 6 years ago, are from people God has healed. Rarely a night goes by
on the TV program that a caller doesn't share a praise report of God's
healing. Don't forget, Jesus healed 10 lepers and only one came back to say
thank you, so I have no doubt God has healed 10x more people who we never
heard back from. GOD IS STILL IN THE HEALING BUSINESS IN AUGUST OF 2005!

As you read these words today I want to remind you of a great truth. GOD IS
NO RESPECTER OF PERSONS. What that simply means is what God has done for
someone else, God will do for you. Please, let me say that one more time so
you can let it sink into your Spirit. What God has done for someone else,
God will do for YOU!!!

In the Bible, we read about the woman with the issue of blood. God's Word
tells us that she spent all of her money on the doctors of her day trying to
get better without any success. Then one day she heard about a man name
Jesus coming to her town that was doing great miracles, including healing
people. With no other hope, she exercised that "measure of faith" each
person has and began to believe Jesus could heal her. We read how when she
got to the place Jesus was ministering, a great crowd, the Bible calls it a
"throng," was already present. Now it would have been very easy for this
woman to get discouraged after seeing all the people gathered around Jesus
and simply give up and go home. But you see this woman was not going to be
denied the opportunity to see our Lord, the One she was believing could heal
her.

We read how she pressed through the crowd of people. I can picture this
woman elbowing her way past people, pushing them out of her way, wading
through this sea of humanity foot by foot until she was finally close enough
to reach out and touch the hem of the garment Jesus was wearing. The Bible
tells us that the moment she touched the hem of His garment she was
instantly healed. Please understand that there was nothing magical about
what Jesus was wearing that day. His garment had no magical healing powers.
It simply became a point of contact for her faith. She had the faith to
believe as she stretched our her hand and grabbed the hem of His garment
that she would be healed, and she was!!!

Let me share something exciting with you today. There is a powerful truth
in the Book of Hebrews that tells us "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday,
today, and forever." Listen to me carefully now. The powerful meaning of
that truth for YOUR life today is simply this. The very same Jesus that
healed that woman we read about in the Bible that had the issue of blood, is
the very same Jesus that is here to heal you today. Please, stop for a
moment and meditate on this powerful truth. THE VERY SAME JESUS WE READ
ABOUT HEALING THE WOMAN WITH THE ISSUE OF BLOOD, IS THE VERY SAME JESUS WHO
IS HERE TO HEAL YOU TODAY!!!

I love you and care about you so much. My friend, as I come to you today I
want you to know that not a day goes by I don't see the healing power of
Jesus Christ at work in people's lives. Every single day I receive praise
reports from people Christ has healed. If you need God's healing touch in
your body today, if there is someone that you know that needs to be healed,
I want to encourage you to be like that woman with the issue of blood and
exercise that "measure of faith" today. Just like she reached out to touch
the hem of the garment Jesus was wearing, you can reach out to Him today
through prayer.

Stop what you are doing right now and call on the name of Jesus. Reach out
to him IN FAITH ask Him to heal you or the one you love. As you do,
remember that the very same Jesus you are crying out to today, is the very
same Jesus that healed the woman with the issue of blood. He is no
respecter of persons and what He did for her, He will do for you. As the
healing virtue of Christ flowed through her body and she was made whole,
Jesus looked at her and said, "go your faith has made you whole."

I want you to know that I will be praying for you today. I will be standing
in agreement with you today as you take that step of faith for God's healing
touch on your body or the body of the one you love. GOD IS STILL IN THE
HEALING BUSINESS IN AUGUST OF 2005! May you hear Him say to you, "go, your
faith has made you whole!!!"


In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ.
Bill Keller

DAILY DEVOTIONAL SATURDAY AUGUST 20, 2005
(Acts 19:8)

The relentlessness of satan! With the amount of email Liveprayer receives
each day, you can only imagine the amount of SPAM that we get. As I was
weeding through the SPAM in my personal email account the other day, I
actually had to stop and look carefully at a few, that looked almost like
prayer requests but were SPAM for porn sites. If there is one thing in this
world that upsets me more than anything else, it is the bold way that satan
shares his message of sin with this world, and how afraid most Christians
are to share our message of Truth and hope!

Satan brings the world a message that is designed to kill, steal, and
destroy lives. He has NO FEAR in presenting that message as boldly as he is
able to. Yet we, those who have placed our faith in Christ, who have the
ONLY true message of everlasting life, who have the ONLY message of hope for
this hurting and lost world, meekly, almost ashamedly, present our message
in the most low-key form possible! WHY?????? I actually got mad that if
satan can be so diabolical and relentless in trying to destroy peoples
lives, why can't we be as relentless in trying to SAVE people's lives???

Satan knows the weaknesses of man. He has man's nature down to a science.
Greed, sex, alcohol, drugs, gambling, food are the most base weaknesses. So
satan uses the modern day media to flaunt his message of "greed is good,"
sex is great any way that you can get it no matter what form it takes,
alcohol is socially acceptable, drugs are the "in thing," gambling is just
harmless entertainment, and food is a necessity of life that we should enjoy
no matter how much of it we eat.

These messages permeate the world that we live in. We are bombarded
endlessly with them by the media to a point that we accept them as fact.
Satan knows that this strategy works because there will be nobody bold
enough to counter or challenge his message. His message in the mainstream
media goes mostly unchallenged. HE REALIZES THAT VERY FEW CHRISTIANS IN A
SECULAR FORUM WILL CHALLENGE WHAT HE SAYS!

The FACT IS, greed is NOT good, it is evil. Sex is designed ONLY in the
confines of marriage. Alcohol affects your brain and is a crutch that many
turn to, to numb their way thru life. Drugs are an escape from reality that
will destroy you. Gambling is a misuse of the resources that God has
entrusted to you and is poor stewardship. Food is necessary, but only when
you consume the right kinds of food and the right amounts. Who out there is
telling THIS SIDE, the TRUE SIDE, GOD'S SIDE of this story to the world at
large???? Answer...not many!!!!

My friend, it is time for God's people to stand up, to say, "DEVIL, ENOUGH
IS ENOUGH." Our churches are just as much to blame!!! Many don't even deal
with the needs of their congregations, let alone the world outside the doors
of the church. It is time to stand up and accept the responsibility God has
given to those in leadership, those who call themselves Christians, and take
His message of hope and everlasting life through Jesus Christ to this lost
and sin-filled world. How can the devil be so bold with lies, and God's
people so timid with the truth????

I love you and care about you so much. Jesus in MANY parables told us that
our time is short, we must be busy about our Father's business. Now is the
time to be aggressive. Now is the time when those who God has placed in
roles of leadership must be willing to sacrifice all to take HIS message to
this world at large. EVEN IF IT MEANS LOSING ALL THAT WE HAVE. We can
never lose everything when we have Jesus!!!!

The fact is, what we have is simply given to us by God to further His
Kingdom, NOT to create our own personal fiefdoms. That is why when the
opportunity came 72 months ago to start Liveprayer, my wife and I and the
Board of my ministry had no problem committing ALL that we had to this
ministry. It was a vehicle God could use to open hearts and share the
everlasting message of faith through Jesus Christ with the lost and hurting
of this world. It was a privilege to give all that we had to be able to
share Christ with hurting people.

God is calling YOU today to be bold. Look around you. How bold is satan
with a message of destruction? How much bolder should YOU be with a message
of everlasting life? DO NOT LET THESE WORDS GO UNHEEDED TODAY. GOD IS
CALLING ME AND YOU TO A LEVEL OF BOLDNESS LIKE NEVER BEFORE.

It is time to take on the same mindset of satan in regard to presenting our
message. Satan has no fear, there are no limits to him. We must operate
the same way. We must never tire, never lose sight of who the real audience
is..the lost in this world!!! We must get outside the comfort zone of the
existing church, Christian community, and be bold enough, creative enough,
to share the message of hope and faith in Christ with this lost and hurting
world. Now is the time, today is the day. Time is short!!! A lost and
hurting world is waiting to hear the TRUTH!!!

***Let this word today be a wake-up call to pastors, those who work in
ministry. Let this also be a wake-up call to YOU. Just because others
choose to stay within the safety of the Christian community, does not mean
God is not calling you TO THE WORLD THAT YOU LIVE IN TO MINISTER. It is
time to "think outside of the box", quit doing what is comfortable, and
start making some noise in the world at large as we proudly, and boldly
proclaim that Jesus Christ is the ONLY way, the ONLY truth, the ONLY life,
and the ONLY way to God! HE is the answer all men and women worldwide seek!
God gave you this life to serve and glorify Him. We only get one chance to
make a difference. God is calling YOU today to share the GOSPEL with the
world!

IF SATAN IS SO BOLD WITH A LIE, HOW MUCH BOLDER SHOULD WE BE WITH THE
TRUTH!!! SATAN IS RELENTLESS IN DESTROYING THE LIVES OF PEOPLE, WE HAVE TO
BE JUST AS RELENTLESS IN SAVING THE LIVES OF PEOPLE WITH THE TRUTH OF GOD'S
WORD!!!


In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

DAILY DEVOTIONAL SUNDAY AUGUST 21, 2005
(Psalm 30)

Rejoicing comes in the morning. I have a very simple, but special message
for you today from the 30th Psalm:

"I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not
let my enemies gloat over me. O LORD my God, I called to you for help and
you healed me. O LORD, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me
from going down into the pit.

Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; praise his holy name. For his anger
lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for
a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

When I felt secure, I said, "I will never be shaken." O LORD, when you
favored me, you made my mountain stand firm; but when you hid your face, I
was dismayed.

To you, O LORD, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy: "What gain is there
in my destruction, in my going down into the pit? Will the dust praise
you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness? Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to
me; O LORD, be my help."

You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me
with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I
will give you thanks forever."

I realize today that as you read these words of comfort and hope, you are
facing some of the trials that we all face along our journey during this
life. No matter what those trials may be, you have the promise from God
Himself that He will see you through. He is not going to let you down.
You need to understand that God loves you more than you could ever begin to
comprehend. You are important to Him. You are special to God. That is why
no matter what you are going through, He will never leave you nor forsake
you.

For those of you dealing with health issues, weeping may remain for a night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning! For those of you dealing with financial
problems, weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the
morning! For those of you dealing with problems in your marriage, weeping
may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning! For those of
you dealing with problems at school or work, weeping may remain for a night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning! For those of you dealing with the death
of a loved one, weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the
morning! For those of you dealing with problems with your children, weeping
may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning! For those of
you battling with some sort of addiction, weeping may remain for a night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning!

NO MATTER WHAT THE TRIAL THAT YOU ARE FACING IS, NO MATTER WHAT THE BATTLE
IN YOUR LIFE MAY BE TODAY, WEEPING MAY REMAIN FOR A NIGHT, BUT REJOICING
COMES IN THE MORNING!!!

I love you and care about you so much. I know the pain and heartache many
of you are dealing with in your life today. I wish I could snap my fingers
and make it all go away. I can't, but I know the ONE who can! God is not
going to abandon you in your hour of need. He will be there with you every
step of the way. Call out His name, He will answer you. I pray today that
you will know His peace in the midst of the trials you may be facing.
Praise Him even in the midst of those trials since you already have His
promise
that weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning!!!


In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

DAILY DEVOTIONAL MONDAY AUGUST 22, 2005
(Jonah 2:1,2)


Running from God. Just 15 years ago, I found myself in the belly of
the fish. It was August 20th of the year 1990. I had been in Federal
custody at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in downtown Chicago for 8
months, awaiting trial on insider trading charges. It was on that night,
that I finally stopped running from God.

Saved at 12, I knew almost immediately God had called me into the ministry.
Growing up during my teen years, there was never any doubt what I was
supposed to do with my life. After my junior year at Ohio State, I ran out
of money and had to take a year off to work full time so that I could finish
college and have enough to start seminary. I started working as a rep for a
mail order company selling computers, and started to make so much money that
going back to college, going into the ministry were not in the plans any
longer. I decided I wanted to build my kingdom, not God's.

For the next 10 years I ran from God. I made millions of dollars operating
a network of marketing companies selling computers, office equipment, office
supplies, and about anything else that could be sold on the phone. I cashed
out of that business and rolled all of my money into the stock market, day
trading options, commodities, and futures before there was such a name for
it. Life on the surface was good, I had everything you could want in life,
but deep inside I knew that I was running from God.

The amazing thing was, I never got too far away from God during those years.
EVERY Sunday during this 10 year period, I was in church. It was not out of
my commitment to Christ, and probably more out of habit than anything else,
but deep down, I knew what God wanted me to do with my life. He spoke to me
numerous times over the years to make sure I knew what He wanted, but like
the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:22, I always "went away sorrowful." I
wasn't willing to give God what He wanted, my life, unconditionally
surrendered to Him.

So, God sent a big fish after Bill Keller. That fish was called the United
States Government! Over several months in 1988, I got involved in trading
stocks in several companies based on inside information. I knew that it was
illegal, but when you are running from God, you do things that you normally
never would. When you are running from God, you are not reading your Bible,
you are not praying. When you are running from God, you become an easy
target for the enemy that is out to "steal, kill, and destroy."

The Securities and Exchange Commission brought a civil action against me
that was then referred to the US Attorney's Office for criminal prosecution.
I was denied bond because they were afraid I would leave the country, and
was taken into custody on December 18, 1989. It would take 8 months in
Federal custody as I was waiting to go to trial before I would finally stop
running from God.

I don't know how long Jonah was in the belly of the fish before he finally
cried out to God, but Bill Keller was there for 8 months. On that August
night, after the lights went out, I was lying in my bed. As I lied there, I
began to think about my wife. We had been married for 7 years, and I had
put her through so much the last several years. I was potentially facing a
significant amount of time in Federal Prison. NOBODY, least of all myself,
would have blamed her for leaving. But she had told me that afternoon when
she came to visit, that no matter what the outcome was, she would stand by
me.

As I lied in my bed that night, I was thinking of my wife. I was thinking
of how a person of flesh and blood could love someone so unconditionally.
All of a sudden, God began to speak to me. God said that if a person of
flesh and blood could love me so unconditionally, how much more must He love
me. It was at that moment, I finally broke. I spent the night on my knees,
asking God to forgive me, confessing my sins, and finally giving God the one
and only thing He had ever wanted from me..my life unconditionally
surrendered to Him! I finally stopped running!

I love you and care about you so much. Many of you are running from God
today. It is NO ACCIDENT that you are reading this message. God is
speaking to you as loud and clear as if He was standing next to you and
shouting in your ear. Like Jonah, like Bill Keller, you can keep running
and pay the price, or, you can stop running and surrender your life to the
Lord. By the way, when you accepted Christ as your Savior, the Bible states
that it is no longer your life, that it now belongs to Him. That is
something many
people forget.

I am praying for you today. God has done more incredible things in my life
since that night 15 years ago than I could have ever dreamed of. If someone
had told me 15 years ago what I would be doing today, I would have told them
they were crazy. But you see, when God is in control, He can do "exceeding
abundantly above all that we ask or think." God is no respecter of persons.
What God did in the life of Jonah when he finally surrendered to Him, what
God has done in my life once I finally surrendered to Him, God can and will
do in your life when you finally surrender to Him. God is calling you
today, it is time to stop running from Him and answer.


In his love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller