Daily Devotional With Sis B
About the appearing of the Chief Shepherd…
1 Peter 5:4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away. (NIV)
We sometimes think of heaven as a place in the sky filled with fluffy white clouds and thick fog. We sometimes think of heaven as a wispy place with little physical substance. However, heaven is not a wispy place. Heaven is more concrete than the concrete of a sidewalk or highway. When we get to Heaven, we will see Christ Jesus. We will not see a holographic image. We will see Him as He is…tangibly and physically real. In heaven, we will receive something for the sacrifices we have made in this life. In Heaven, we will receive a tangible crown of glory because we have withstood the trials and temptations of our life on earth. In Heaven, we will receive a crown we will find to be not wispy, cloudy, nor prone to wear, tear, or fading. In Heaven, we will receive all the non-fading glorious love and non-fading riches of God. This vision, and this hope gives us a power to win at life each day. This hope makes us keep on keeping on.
About all that God is…
Colossians 1:19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, (NIV)
All of the supernatural substance of God was poured out upon Jesus. When we see Jesus, we see God. When we see Jesus, we see love. When we see Jesus, we see the love and power of God. When we see Jesus, we are filled with His love. When we see Jesus, we are filled with His love because God did not create us to be empty or vacant. God did not create us to be starving. God did not create us to be lonely. God did not create us to be hurting. God created us to be filled with His love and grace. God created us to be fully fed with His manna and immersed in His living water. God created us to walk with Him and talk with Him. God created us to be fully free of pain and suffering.
If is from Jesus we find the fullness of our being, for Jesus is…
The source of our manna and living water…
The presence of love banishing our loneliness…
The power of love erasing our scars…
The power of love healing our wounds…
All of God dwells in Jesus.
All of God dwells in us if we invite Him into our heart and life.
Daily Devotional With Sis B
About accepting all of who you are…
Luke 17:3 So watch yourselves. "If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. 4 If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, 'I repent,' forgive him." (NIV)
Self-acceptance is one of the important keys of living a full and vibrant life. When we accept ourselves for who we really are, our self-acceptance means we are being fully honest about our life. When we fully accept who we really are, we become empowered to change for the better rather than being locked down in a life of living in self-ignorance. When we accept ourselves, we can unlock the love of God in the universe to flow through us, over us, and all around us. In the eyes of God, you are important beyond your ability to know. However, you must accept all of who you are, not just the part of yourself you like. You must accept you make mistakes, fall down, and mess up, because all human beings make mistakes. When you fully accept who you are, even the bad parts of who you are, then you can go to Christ and ask Him to forgive you and to help you be a better person. When Christ forgives you, then you can forgive yourself. When you begin to accept your faults, then you can begin to really and fully become the person Christ meant for you to be.
Daily Devotional With Sis
About asking for daily bread…
Proverbs 30:7 "Two things I ask of you, O Lord; do not refuse me before I die: 8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. 9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the Lord?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God. (NIV)
The Lords prayer talks about the wealth of daily bread. This verse from Proverbs points out why we should only ask for daily bread. The prayer for our daily bread is a prayer for God’s continual care and sustainance. Satan puts upon us many falsehoods and lies about money and wealth. Satan wants us to accept the lies about money and wealth as a way to tempt us to jump into the pit of sin. However, the Lord’s truth sets us free. The Lord’s truth is this…neither poverty nor wealth prevents us from falling into sin. On one hand, poverty creates crime. Poverty creates crime by the seeking of money and power in illegal ways. Poverty creates gangs and gangsters. On the other hand, wealthy and powerful persons who want more wealth and power fall into temptation and commit crimes seeking more wealth and power. However, if we will learn to live with our daily bread and seek only our daily bread from God, we will not fall into the pit of sin created by either poverty or wealth. If you will live with a thankful heart giving God praise for even the smallest of blessings, the Lord will watch over you. He will bless you. He will keep you. He will supply your daily bread.
Today's Devotional With Sis B
About God's partnership…
2 Corinthians 2:12 We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise. 13 We, however, will not boast beyond proper limits, but will confine our boasting to the field God has assigned to us, a field that reaches even to you. (NIV)
No one is helpless. No one is hopeless. However, there are times in our life when we may feel helpless and hopeless. At the other extreme in our life there are those times when we are so full of power and enthusiasm we are able to run over any obstacle with ease. In either case, at either extreme, we need to let God get a grip on our life. We mistakenly try to live our life on our own. When we try to live our life on our own we lose. In our complex world of dependency upon one another, we do not have the capability or the wherewithal to manage every situation on our own. When we are faced with what seems to be a situation of total hopelessness, we need to let God grasp us. We need to let God grasp the situation in which we are enmeshed. By letting God come into a circumstance, we gain new power and new perspective. Letting God grasp a situation does not mean we give up control. We are commissioned to do God's will, but we are not commissioned to sit back as we try to convince God to do His will for us while we do little or nothing.
Wish you a God filled MondayA Daily Devotional Written By God
About God's fountain of life…
"In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling. † The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the people of Philistia. † How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings. † They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. † For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light. † Continue your love to those who know you, your righteousness to the upright in heart. † May the foot of the proud not come against me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away. † On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. † Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." † By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
Verse References In The Order Presented Above -- Exodus 15:13 ; 15:14 ; Psalms 36:7 ; Psalms 36:8 ; Psalms 36:9 ; Psalms 36:10 ; Psalms 36:11 ; John 7:37 ; John 7:38 ; John 7:39 ;
Daily Devotional With Sis B
About God's forgiveness beyond reason…
Luke 11:4 "'Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.' " (NIV)
In our own lives, we have all said or done things our human reason might tell us is unforgivable. What our faulty human reason does not often tell us is we can be forgiven. In your own life, you can be forgiven for committing the vilest of sins. Remarkably, God is willing and capable of forgiving you even when you cannot forgive yourself. In addition, God is willing and capable of forgiving you even when no other human being on earth is capable of forgiving you. Your human reason may tell you that you are unforgivable. Your human reason may tell you that you are unforgivable and you must stand outside the mainstream of the human family, stand outside the human mainstream of all the people you know, or stand outside the mainstream of your friends and acquaintances. However, as is often the case, your human reason is wrong. Your human reason is wrong about your being unforgivable because if you want, you can be forgiven in an instant. Your human reason is wrong about your being out of the reach of God's forgiveness, for God has already taken your heart into His hands and He has embraced you and He has already told you that you are loved, you are His, and you are forgiven if you would just accept Him and love Him as He has loved you. With God, you have forgiveness beyond reason.
Blessed Wednesday to you and yours!! Daily Devotional With Sis B
About God's cohesive force…
Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. (NIV)
We all know what it means to have things come apart. What we seldom realize is the togetherness of our life and the togetherness of our soul is made possible by God. The power of God is the power keeping all things together. Even to the farthest reaches of the universe, the power of God is the power keeping all things in tact and moving as He wills. The power of God is so vast, so strong, and so dynamic the power of God holds every subatomic particle in its place. The power of God holds the center of every atom together while keeping every electron whirling around every atom's nucleus. All things are held together in the grip of His hand. Without the grip of His hand, all things come apart. In your life, if you truly live your life for Him and in Him, He holds all things together in your life for His glory. Even in dark and stormy times, Christ is with you and He holds you in the palm of His nail-scarred hand while keeping things together for His good and perfect will.
Have a bless day in the Lord!
Daily Devotional With Sis B
How to giving in secret...
Matthew 6:3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (NIV)
Have you ever seen a politician brag about how they have helped the needy? We have become so accustomed to hearing other people talk about how they help others we almost expect it, especially from those in public life. Jesus’ words about giving to the needy do not fit in with what most people want today. Most people today want the praise and recognition that comes from other people. But praise and recognition from God is more lasting. Giving in secret results in rewards of the heart. Giving in secret is the same thing as truly giving to God. Giving in secret results in our getting back more than we give. It puts us in the middle of God’s love and care. One of the greatest challenges of our faith is to not be selfish about our relationship with God, but to be unselfish. When we are transformed by God’s grace we no longer want the praise and glory which comes from people, instead we want to praise and glorify God. One of the greatest ways we can praise and glorify God is to give to others and not let them or anyone else know who did the giving.
Daily Devotional With Sis B
About fellowship with the Light of Christ…
2 Cor. 6:14 Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? (NIV)
To lead holy and devout lives, we cannot be tied together with sin or sinners and expect to have changed hearts and changed lives. Being a holy and devout person by living a life for Christ and Him only can be incredibly difficult. The road we walk for Christ is not an easy road. In walking this road for Christ we need the fellowship of others who think like we do and believe like we do. Although we never walk Christ’s road alone because He is with us, we still need the care, support, and companionship of other Christians to walk with us. In living a holy and devout life for Christ, we must make special efforts to separate the good influences from the bad influences in our life. We must make every effort to associate with other believers as much as humanly possible. We must make every effort to not be dependent upon others, especially others who are unbelievers. We must be careful to never be physically or emotionally enslaved to anyone for any purpose. When you are dependent upon an unbeliever, you will most likely be pulled down. When you are a new person in Christ, remember you are the person who has the power of God within your life. As a new person in Christ, you must make every human effort to no longer be emotionally dependent upon unbelievers. Oil and water do not mix. You cannot walk on both sides of the street at the same time. You cannot walk on the sinful side of the street and on the righteousness side of the street at the same time. It is critical you fellowship with the Light of Christ in all ways and at all times. When we fellowship with other believers, we fellowship with Him as we walk His narrow path.
Daily Devotional With Sis B
About fellowship with the Light of Christ…
2 Cor. 6:14 Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? (NIV)
To lead holy and devout lives, we cannot be tied together with sin or sinners and expect to have changed hearts and changed lives. Being a holy and devout person by living a life for Christ and Him only can be incredibly difficult. The road we walk for Christ is not an easy road. In walking this road for Christ we need the fellowship of others who think like we do and believe like we do. Although we never walk Christ’s road alone because He is with us, we still need the care, support, and companionship of other Christians to walk with us. In living a holy and devout life for Christ, we must make special efforts to separate the good influences from the bad influences in our life. We must make every effort to associate with other believers as much as humanly possible. We must make every effort to not be dependent upon others, especially others who are unbelievers. We must be careful to never be physically or emotionally enslaved to anyone for any purpose. When you are dependent upon an unbeliever, you will most likely be pulled down. When you are a new person in Christ, remember you are the person who has the power of God within your life. As a new person in Christ, you must make every human effort to no longer be emotionally dependent upon unbelievers. Oil and water do not mix. You cannot walk on both sides of the street at the same time. You cannot walk on the sinful side of the street and on the righteousness side of the street at the same time. It is critical you fellowship with the Light of Christ in all ways and at all times. When we fellowship with other believers, we fellowship with Him as we walk His narrow path.
Daily Devotional With Sis B
Every day as a new day…
John 3:3 In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." (NIV)
Every day may be the same old same old to you. However, even for our God who is timeless and infinite, every day is a new start. Every day is a new beginning. To God, every day is a day of great anticipation and hope. God holds the keys to the greatness in your life. When you accept the truth of God and the truth about God, there is a renewing spirit born anew within you. As mere mortals, we cannot easily understand how our life can always be new. We live in the natural realm. God lives in the supernatural realm. In the supernatural realm, what may look the same all the time with our natural eyes always looks different through God's supernatural eyes. Every day holds immense promise. Every day is a new day to do God's will, show His love, and show His compassion. Every day is a new beginning, even if every day seems like the day will be like many of the days before. Look up to God each day. When you see God with your supernatural eyes, God is always beautifully new.
About erasing the shame and the guilt…
Matthew 12:22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. (NIV)
All shame and guilt come from what has happened in the past. We do not experience shame and guilt from future events unless we imagine the events to be like the events of the past. Turning away or repenting means turning away from the shame and guilt we experienced because of our past. Shame and guilt are not part of the new life Christ wants you to have. Christ wants you to move forward with no shame and no guilt from your past. Even when you experience shame and guilt, even the shame and guilt of the past, God wants you to push hard for tomorrow. In God's thinking, you have no time to look back and grieve over what happened to you in the past when you were blind. God is about infinite progress moving ever forward. Take just a moment and step back from the shame and humiliation you carry. Whatever humiliation you carry, from whatever source, step back and let Christ stand between you and the shame and guilt of your past. The more you let Christ intervene, the more healing you can experience as a result of His love. Christ's love is our great healing balm from the humiliation of our past. His love is our salve that can erase the emotion of our shame and guilt.
Daily Devotional
About the end result, the final answer, and the end game…
Revelation 12:10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ.. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. (NIV)
Even when tribulations roll over you, even when the treasures of earth disappear, there is always an end game. Even if you are attacked by the darkness, you know what the final outcome will be. When doubts assail you, you still know the final scene of the play. You know the final score of the game even when you are still out on the field doing battle with the accuser.
You won. You won big. You romped and stomped on the opponent until the opponent is no more.
In your daily walk, walk with the certainty and quiet humility of being a winner…because you are.
Daily Devotional
Romans 15:3 For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: "The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me." 4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
About how encouragement leads to hope...
A person or a people without hope will not last. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are forever within us talking to us and speaking words of hope. They all point to a bright, full, dynamic, and beautiful future that is ahead of us whether we are 9 or ninety-nine. The prospect of heaven, a glorious future of love and unbounded energy helps us move forward day after day and that prospect causes us to want to reach out and call others to this glorious hope.
Monday's Daily Devotion
1 Peter 1:8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls. (NIV)
People have spent their entire lives searching for the secret ingredient of life. Most often, the secrets of life we seek are not really secrets at all. Most often, the secrets of life we seek are right before us. One of the most profound secrets of life that is not a secret is related to faith. To have a faith that is alive, living and vibrant within you, embrace faith with all of your heart, mind, and soul. The skeptic who has no faith gains nothing at all in life except the satisfaction of being a skeptic. To have faith that is alive and productive, wrap your heart, mind, and soul around God. Accept faith as wispy, inanimate, and small but also accept that you need very little of this wispy, inanimate, and small thing called faith to move mountains in your life. To have faith that is alive and productive, stop expecting results from God and start producing results for God. Because when you see God and see Jesus face to face, you will find out what you did for God was vastly more important than
what God did for you
Daily Devotional
About during our times of judgment…
Acts 27:23 Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me 24and said, `Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.' (NIV)
All of us must stand against the powers of Satan seeking to destroy us, our families, our churches, and our society. No matter how great the darkness might be, we have the Light of the world within us, beside us, under us, and over us. There is no power of darkness, no power of judgment, and no power on earth capable of quelling the Light. The Light cannot be put out. The Light cannot be put on trial because the Light was put on trial long ago. The Light was innocent and pure beyond any person's ability to know or understand. Although innocent the Light was murdered. The Light sacrificed His life the sins of all persons. Although innocent, the Light underwent torture and death so we can know without a doubt we are loved and we can have eternal life. The Light was among us then. The light lives within us now if we want Him and accept Him into our hearts and lives. The light was, is, and will always be the son of God. The light is Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Friday's Daily Devotional
About loving others more than loving self…
Matthew 10:8 Freely you have received, freely give. (NIV)
Matthew 9:36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (NIV)
We are the multitudes. Please hear our cry. We want to think of others but we cannot because we can only think of ourselves. We want to help others but we cannot because we cannot help ourselves. We want to reach out to others but we cannot because we cannot reach past ourselves to give away who and what we are. We want love but we cannot get far enough outside of ourselves to take the risk love requires. We wrap our arms around loved ones but we feel no love. We leave people and lives behind us without a thought except our own regret. Then, when reality hits us we realize we made a mistake. We want others, but because we are trapped within ourselves, we do not see them. Although we see others with our eyes, they are not there. We know others but they are strangers. We recognize others but they do not exist. We are the multitudes. Please hear our cry.
If you are one of the multitudes, you are loved and you can express love. You can express love for others. You can experience love in return. The key to giving and receiving love is unlocking the door of your heart. Very often, for reasons as numerous as the stars, people lock the door of their heart. Then they think they cannot open the locked door. Sometimes in this life we lose people, we lose relationships, we lose opportunities, and we lose in various facets of our life. Very often our life seems to continue to lose, and lose, and lose. In the times of our loss, shutting tight the door of our heart is easy because our heart is where the hurt resides. However, when we shut the door of our heart, we cannot reach out. Behind our closed door we cannot love. We cannot permit ourselves to be loved. Even in our worst hurt, keeping the door of our heart open permits our hurt to fade away. An open heart to God permits God to heal the hurt within. When we open the door of our heart and let God come in, all the old hurts vanish as He touches the hurt of our heart and He heals us.
Thursday's Daily Devotional
About the cry of the multitudes for freedom…
John 8:32 "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (NIV)
Matthew 9:36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (NIV)
"We are the multitudes. Please hear our cry. We are imprisoned in a free world but we cannot find the motivation to try to escape. We cannot get out of the box we are in. We cannot escape from the prison we are in no matter where we go or how far away we run. We try our escapes in alcohol, drugs, or sex but there is no end to our imprisonment. The monsters of our life keep coming back after we think we have outrun them. Demons come to dance on our souls when we think we have exorcised them. We are so wrapped up in ourselves we are choking and we are suffocating. We are wrapped up in our selves because of the circumstances of our birth, or the circumstances of our youth, or the other circumstances in our past over which we had no control. We are wrapped up in ourselves but we do not always know the circumstances causing us to be as we are. We live so deep within ourselves it seems we are dead. Please help us, for the more we retreat within ourselves, the closer to death we move."
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About the cry of the multitudes for faith in God…
John 3:5 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, `You must be born again.' (NIV)
Matthew 9:36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (NIV)
"We are the multitudes. Please hear our cry. For us, God is not a person. For us, God is only an idea, not a reality. For us, God is not within us. For us, all we have is our own presence. All we is only our own thought. All we have is whoever it is we are."
When you live in emotional or spiritual pain, you can easily have doubts about God. In emotional pain, you can doubt whether God is real. When you live in the painful spiritual deadness of life, God can become only an idea instead of a reality. When you live in the painful spiritual deadness life can sometimes become, God is indeed far off. What is truth and what is a lie does not change whether you live in painful spiritual deadness or spiritual life. When you live in painful spiritual deadness your spirit within you seems to have died. In truth, every person can understand what it is like to be dead inside because every person on earth has lived in spiritual deadness. However, some of us have come alive in our spirit. When we come alive spiritually, God becomes a real person living within us. When we come alive spiritually, God is not just an idea but a reality. When we come alive spiritually, God is always near us and alive within us. Suddenly, when we have come alive spiritually, we have more than just our own thoughts to keep us company. When we come alive spiritually, we suddenly have access to the thoughts of God. If we are humble enough, when we come alive spiritually, we hear God speaking His words of love within our heart.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About the creation of glory within you…
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (NIV)
In the beginning God created, formed, shaped, and molded all that is. Every cell, every particle, every atom, every electron, and every quark came from the thought of God. Every part of you came from God. The living force you call life and all the particles making up the chemicals of your body came from God. God gave you a free will. God gave you a free will you can use to make decisions about the circumstances of life. God is still creating even when your free will gives you the idea God is asleep, dead, or does not care enough to interact with you. God is creating moments of potential glory in your life each day. God is creating a time and a space in which you live each moment. Every moment is a created gift from God. In life, we too often take God's created gifts for granted. Today, count each moment as a little gift from God. Count all you see as a gift from God. When you see these little gifts, give Him thanks.
Monday's Daily Devotional
About the covering of God…
Luke 6:36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. (NIV)
Christ covers over our sins with so much love our sins disappear. Christ covers over our fears with so much love our fears disappear. Under Christ's covering of love, we find courage we did not find before. In addition, Christ covers over our selfishness with so much love we suddenly think more about others than we think about ourselves.
The covering of God's love surrounds every person from birth till death. However, we often throw off His covering of love and reject Him. To have His covering of love over you, under you, and all around you, ask Him into your heart and life. When you invite Christ into your heart and life, He will never disappoint you. Jesus will never leave you. Jesus will never forsake you. Jesus will help you make your fears less and He will cover your heart with His love.
Friday's Daily Devotional
Finding a new life amid the distractions…
Matthew 7:7"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. (NIV)
Matthew 9:36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (NIV)
We are the multitudes. Please hear our cry. We go through the motions of success but feel we are failures. We shop for items at the store but we could care less about what we buy. We are distracted but we do not know what distracts us. Something we cannot define eats away at us every waking moment. Something pulls our attention away from where we are and what we are doing. We are the multitudes. Please hear our cry.
There is a distracting ill wind blowing through every person's life. If your life is without focus and you are continually distracted, there is hope. There is hope for an end to the distraction because within you there is a kingdom riveting your attention. Within you there is a kingdom of riveting beauty, riveting loveliness, and riveting power. Within you there is a kingdom full of treasures not found on earth. Within you there is a kingdom so full of purpose and meaning every second of your life is focused on singular goals and singular purposes to be achieved. Within you there is a kingdom that does not eat away at you like your present life so often does. For within you, instead of losing your soul, you can gain your soul. Within you this very hour, within you this instant, lives the power of almighty God
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About crying out to God…
1 Chronicles 4:10 Jabez cried out to the God of Israel , "Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain." And God granted his request. (NIV)
There are times when we must all cry out to God. There are times when we need to seek God’s attention to free us from pain or seek His attention to pour His blessings over us. Every day we must look up to God rather than looking down at ourselves or looking down at the sin of our world. When we look up to God we should seek His blessings, for His blessings are uncountable and they are waiting for us this very moment. Jabez cried out from deep within his heart and God heard Jabez’s cry. If we cry out from deep within our heart, God will also hear our cry. In the span of eternity, from the very beginning to the very end of all things, God does grant our requests. Our request may not be granted like we want in the form or shape we want. Our request may not be granted in the time frame we want. However, God loves us and He is faithful to us. God will never turn us away but will always listen and do for us what He deems good in His love and kindness. When you cry out to God you must cry out seeking the mighty hand of God to be with you, not against you. From God we seek and rightfully expect to get His power because our God is a mighty fortress. When we cry out to God, we must seek God’s showers of blessings, because in His clouds of joy there are blessings of living water ready to pour down upon us. How willing are you to do this kind of heart seeking? How bad and how far are you willing to go in crying out from your heart in faith?
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About the creator of Heaven…
Genesis 14:18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, 19 and he blessed Abram, saying, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth." (NIV)
Heaven was created by God. Perhaps we too often think Heaven was always there. However, according this verse and according to Genesis 1:1 there was a time when Heaven did not exist. God created all that is. God continues to create the moments of your life and the opportunities you have each day. God places opportunities in your life each day to glorify His name and glorify His work and love within you. In your life, God can be glorified in every circumstance. God was glorified when Christ died on the Cross. In the most horrible moment in the history of the world, God was glorified by Christ's suffering and death. In your life, even the most horrible of moments can be used to glorify Him. You can glorify God if you have the intent and the will to look up to Him when the darkness of the world wants you to ignore Him, curse Him, and mock Him.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About the creation of glory within you…
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (NIV)
In the beginning God created, formed, shaped, and molded all that is. Every cell, every particle, every atom, every electron, and every quark came from the thought of God. Every part of you came from God. The living force you call life and all the particles making up the chemicals of your body came from God. God gave you a free will. God gave you a free will you can use to make decisions about the circumstances of life. God is still creating even when your free will gives you the idea God is asleep, dead, or does not care enough to interact with you. God is creating moments of potential glory in your life each day. God is creating a time and a space in which you live each moment. Every moment is a created gift from God. In life, we too often take God's created gifts for granted. Today, count each moment as a little gift from God. Count all you see as a gift from God. When you see these little gifts, give Him thanks.
Monday's Daily Devotional
About the covering of God…
Luke 6:36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. (NIV)
Christ covers over our sins with so much love our sins disappear. Christ covers over our fears with so much love our fears disappear. Under Christ's covering of love, we find courage we did not find before. In addition, Christ covers over our selfishness with so much love we suddenly think more about others than we think about ourselves.
The covering of God's love surrounds every person from birth till death. However, we often throw off His covering of love and reject Him. To have His covering of love over you, under you, and all around you, ask Him into your heart and life. When you invite Christ into your heart and life, He will never disappoint you. Jesus will never leave you. Jesus will never forsake you. Jesus will help you make your fears less and He will cover your heart with His love.
Friday's Daily Devotional
About courage to live tomorrow…
Matthew 14:27 But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid." 28 "Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water." 29 "Come," he said. (NIV)
In times of fear, you see your hands tremble. In these moments, your Lord is waiting to take your trembling hands. At a time when you have great fears and deep anxieties about tomorrow, your Jesus is beside you giving help and assurance. Your foreboding future can grasp your soul and shake you to the core. However, you have a mighty God. Your Master will help you deal with all the circumstances coming upon you. If you open your heart, Christ will pour out His love upon you so you will trust Him as never before. He will pour out His healing mercy upon you. As you look up into Heaven, you will see Him pouring out His love giving you courage. When you see Him, all fears are gone. When you see Him, all doubts are erased. When you see Him, you are troubled no more as you have courage to live tomorrow.
Thursday' Daily Devotional
About courage to know the truth…
1 Corinthians 16:13 Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. (NIV)
It often takes enormous courage to see, face, and know the truth. However, for those of us who have accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior, we do have the courage to see, face, and know the truth. The truth we must face about our life in the here and now can be devastating. However, the truth we must know about our life in heaven erases any earthly devastation visited upon us. In a world gone astray, we can often find it difficult to discover the truth from a lie. However, there is a truth in our world giving us an eternal hope. The truth of eternal hope is this…God loves you so much He sent His only Son to die for you. Even this truth about God requires courage from you because to accept Christ you must know the truth about yourself. In every part of your life, courage to know the truth has a pay-off or benefit. The pay-off or benefit of knowing the truth is freedom from the imprisonment of lies and distortions
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About courage to face the future…
Ezra 7:28 …Because the hand of the Lord my God was on me, I took courage and gathered leading men from Israel to go up with me. (NIV)
Courage is needed to face the future. Courage is needed to face the everyday trials of life. Courage is needed to face the small things and large things of life. Fear, panic, doubt, and anxiety can attack us but we have a mighty God who brings us the power and love of Christ. The power and love of Christ comes to us and helps us find courage when we are afraid. The power and love of Christ helps us act in spite of being afraid. The power and love of Christ calls us to repent and turn away from our sins thus giving us courage. When we repent and turn to Christ, we find new courage to face every fear.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About courage in the face of opposition…
Acts 23:9 There was a great uproar, and some of the teachers of the law who were Pharisees stood up and argued vigorously. "We find nothing wrong with this man," they said. "What if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?" 10 The dispute became so violent that the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them. He ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force and bring him into the barracks. 11 The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, "Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome." (NIV)
If we are willing to do so, all of us can look back and see the Lord's hand in our life. Indeed, Paul was able to look back at his rescue from an angry mob and see why he was rescued. The Lord told Paul he must testify further about the Lord in Jerusalem. The Lord was not so concerned about giving Paul particular words to say or a means to say them. What the Lord was most concerned about was Paul's courage in the face of the opposition wanting to kill him. Each of us lives in a world of opposition. Each of us is called to testify in one way or another. Each of us lives in a fearful and hostile world. Each of us must remember the Lord's words to "Take courage!"
Monday's Daily Devotional
About courage in a time of fear…
Matthew 14:27 But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I Don't be afraid." (NIV)
Every person has a taste of fear. Some people know fear on a daily basis. Most of us have real reasons to fear for ourselves or for the generations to come after us. Hatred boils up in a world proliferated with nuclear weapons. Terribly, someone with an evil mind will gain control a nuclear weapon and try to use it. We all have reason to fear in this case.
We have many other kinds of fears. The world faces changes it has never faced before in all of recorded history. Most of all, there are billions of people in the world who do not know Christ, who do not know His peace, and who do not know His call to live in peace.
In Christ, even when we fear, we can find courage to face every uncertainty.
In Christ, even when we fear, we can find courage to face every threat.
In Christ, even when we fear, we can find courage to face every doubt.
In Christ, even when we fear, we can find courage when we open our heart and life.
We have no reason to fear because we have a Savior waiting for us in Heaven. We have no reason to fear because Christ is waiting to wrap His arms around us and welcome us home to paradise
Thursday's Daily Devotional
About continuing in Christ…
1 John 2:28 And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.
It is easier to stop a ball from rolling down a hill before the ball starts rolling because once the ball starts rolling, the ball picks up momentum. In the same way, living out the Christian life is easier if we continue in Christ from one hour to the next. In the Christian life we experience obstacles, setbacks, temptations and diversions. However, if we have developed spiritual momentum, if we have developed a spiritual lifestyle in Christ, we can roll over the obstacles, setbacks, temptations, and diversions with greater ease. The power of Christ is a power propelling us forward in our life in spite of hindrances. The more days we are continuing in Christ's love and grace, the easier our life will be when we hit obstacles, setbacks, temptations, and diversions. In Christ, we do not stop, we do not relent, we do not give up, and we do not quit. Our momentum in being Christ-like is difficult to stop. The reason we want Christ's power and His spiritual momentum in our life is because when we see Him face to face we will be confident and full of joy because we have lived out our life like He wants us to live. When we see Christ face to face we will be unashamed because we will have lived the right way and we will have walked only His path of righteousness.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About contacting God…
Exodus 33:14 The LORD replied, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." (NIV)
Everyone can call upon Christ and we do not need a telephone, fax, or email. It is precisely because we do not need to use a telephone, fax, or email so many people do not have contact with Christ. To contact God you need something more than a tangible piece of hardware. To truly contact God you need a pure heart, a pure mind, and a pure spirit. It would indeed be easier to contact God if all we needed were tangible objects to make the contact. However, God needs more from you than ownership of things. What God wants from you is a humble and contrite heart. God wants you to place all your mistakes, sins, and transgressions at the foot of the Cross. When you are willing to turn away from a life of sin, selfishness, ego, and pride then you are sending a signal to God you are serious about living for Him. When you love Him with all your heart, all your mind, and all your heart, the laying down of your mistakes, sins, and transgressions automatically connects you to His heart
.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
The consequences of patience…
James 5:7 Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near. (NIV)
What if we had no patience? Whatever faith we would have in our impatience would be lost in the shambles we would make of our life and our relationships. God does not need and you do not want to be shaky, unstable, and wavering at every wisp of adversity as a result of your impatience. Impatience kills whatever faith exists.
Patience is a hands-on demonstration to God we believe in Him. Patience is our clear message to God we will wait on Him to do His will. Patience is our clear message to God we will wait for as long as it takes. Patience means we will not be moved by adversity, pain, suffering, or trials. Patience and faith are so intertwined we can say patience is the outcome of faith and faith is the outcome of patience.
Patience will win out in the end because God is a being of infinite time. God may take a long to do what He needs to do and those who wait upon Him will not wait in vain.
Lack of patience creates chaos.
We have patience because our belief goes beyond just believing to knowing.
We have patience because we know positively without any doubt…the seasons of our life bring change but in the end, at the end…when we are patient, God blesses us with a mighty reward.
Patience means standing firm, being stable, being unmoving, and being unwavering
Monday's Daily Devotional
Consequences of hearing God in the stillness…
Isaiah 30:15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. (NIV)
What if we never heard God in the stillness? What if we never heard God's incredible rush of knowledge, wisdom, grace, and love?
If we never hear God in the stillness we are consumed by a deathly silence. If we never hear God speak, we are consumed by a deathly silence where there is no today and no hope for tomorrow.
Living your life and never hearing God in the stillness is like running on fumes.
Yes, you can believe in God but never hearing Him in the stillness brings up the next question about how much you believe without some personal experience in hearing Him in the stillness.
Yes you can trust God but without hearing Him in the stillness, how much can you trust Him?
It is in the stillness we come to God.
It is in the stillness God comes to us.
It is in the stillness we melt down our ego and we come kneeling in total humility at the foot of His cross.
Friday's Daily Devotional
The consequences of hearing God…
Hebrews 1:2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. (NIV)
What if we had never heard God speak in any way, shape, or form? What if we had no Bible, no message from God of any kind, and no way to even know there is a God?
If you never heard God speak, there would be and there definitely is emptiness in your soul.
If you never heard God speak, there would be and there definitely is emptiness in your life.
If you never heard God speak, there would be and there definitely is a vacuum continually consuming your every thought and action.
If you never heard God speak, your needs would never be filled and your needs would be ever-growing.
If you never heard God speak, your wants would never be satisfied and your wants would always be increasing.
However, if you are willing to listen, you can hear God.
You can hear God speak.
You can know what God has said because you can read the words God spoke in His word.
You can, because God has spoken and you can hear Him, describe God to some degree.
You have a record, a written record, about the time when God walked the earth.
God has not only spoken to you, but God has provided you a way to purify yourself from your sins…the sins putting a barrier between you and God.
God spoke and gave you His Son as the atoning sacrifice for you, so you could inherit eternal life in heaven.
Since you have heard God, would your picture of God be of Him hanging from a cross?
Thursday's Daily Devotional
About the consequences of fearlessness and steadfastness…
Psalm 112:7 He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. 8 His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes. (NIV)
What if we were always afraid?
If we were always afraid we would not make progress.
If we were always afraid we would not learn and we would not grow.
If we were always afraid we would not utilize our fullest potential.
If we were always afraid we would never reach for the stars and remain ever bound to live in our cave.
To fully live our life, we must muster up the courage to live without fear. Once we have found the courage to face our fear then we find we have nothing to fear at all.
To fully live our life, we must live a life that is steadfast and unmoving.
To fully live our life, we must live a life full of gratitude and giving thanks for the blessings God pours over us every hour.
To fully live our life, we must live a life full of trust…trust in God, trust in others, and trust in ourselves.
To fully live our life, we must be strong enough to live a life where we keep moving forward even when we perceive our trust has been violated.
In the end, at the very end, our trust will be rewarded in victory.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
The consequences of trusting and believing…
John 14:1 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. (NIV)
Hoping Christ is the Savior is not the same thing as believing Christ is the Savior. Really believing Christ is the Messiah has life changing consequences. However, to get to those life changing consequences means we must take a big risk and believe. The consequence of not believing Christ is the Savior is an eternal disaster. The consequence of believing is eternal life in heaven. To believe Christ died for you without seeing requires trust. If your trust has been violated too many times, you must take one more chance and trust in Christ. Christ never violates anyone's trust or violates their life. Christ does not come into your life without your invitation. Remarkably, Christ wants you to unburden your life by trusting in Him. Christ wants you to act on the chance He exists and act on the chance He is real. Christ wants to comfort you and hold you close. Christ has been with you all your life and if you trust Him, He is and will be real for you.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
Consequences of being righteous in every way
Isaiah 32:8 But the noble man makes noble plans, and by noble deeds he stands. (NIV)
Being righteous in every way has incredibly positive consequences. We do not often think about these positive consequences unless we are unrighteous, we get caught in our unrighteousness, and we must pay a penalty. We live in freedom when we are righteous. When we are unrighteous, we lose our freedom because either the society in which we live takes our freedom from us or we imprison ourselves in our unrighteous darkness. When we are righteous our living in openness and in the light brings healing, wholeness, and fearlessness. Being unrighteous results in our closing off the world and living in the darkness of sickness, unwholesomeness, and fear. The result of being righteous results in our living in a continual state of healing and renewal because the light and love of God shines in our heart.
Monday's DailyDevotional
The consequences of always stopping to listen
Psalm 46:10 "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."(NIV)
What if we never stopped to listen to God's still small voice?
If we never stop to listen to God…we can spend hours, days, even years in prayer but we miss His guidance, we even miss Him, if we never stop to listen to His still small voice.
If we never stop to listen to God…we can go to God wanting what we want but never wanting what He wants.
If we never stop to listen to God…we can expect our wants and needs to be met our way not His way.
If we never stop to listen to God…we can, after awhile, lose faith when things do not work out like we want.
If we never stop to listen to God…we can miss all the power and wisdom of God in the here and now.
If we never stop to listen to God…we can miss all the glory, peace and love of God in the here and now
When we stop to listen, we can actually know God in all His fullness, radiance and love.
When we stop to listen and we do listen, we begin a real-life, real-time conversation with our Creator, and with our Lord and Savior.
Friday's Daily Devotional
Consequences and mistakes…
Proverbs 19:15 Do not lie in wait like an outlaw against a righteous man's house, do not raid his dwelling place; 16 for though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity. (NIV)
How close you are to God determines your resilience and your ability to stand against evil. If evil has its way in your life, you will crumble and fall. If God has His way in your life, you will come back again and again to see victory. Living in the power of God's rightness gives you His power to come back against every adversity. The evil person is going down to sure defeat because the evil person lives in darkness and stupidity. Evil people are stupid, because if they were smart, the evil person would clearly see how wickedness brings devastation upon a person. Evil people eventually go to prison or die in circumstances related to their wickedness. Each of us is faced with daily small decisions about doing right or doing wrong. A Christian is a person vulnerable to the wiles and temptations of Satan. Satan tries to blind a person and essentially make a person ignorant to the consequences of ones actions. One of the greatest deceptions used by Satan is the deception sin has no consequence. Satan succeeds in convincing people they can sin without any consequence, any payment, or any result. The road of righteousness is sometimes a hard road to walk. However, at the end of the road stands Christ who welcomes you into a gleaming city full of eternal joy, life, and peace.
Thursday's Daily Devotional
The consequences of being a noble person…Isaiah 32:8 But the noble man makes noble plans, and by noble deeds he stands. (NIV)
A noble person is admirable, a person of merit, and a person who is beneficial to the society or the community. The kind of person we are, whether we are a person of nobility or a scoundrel starts in our heart. The plans we make, the objectives we want to achieve, the things we want in life start at the very center of our heart. When we have the love of Christ at the center of our heart, then we want only those things that are Christ-like. Our hopes and dreams, our innermost desires, and our plans are the foundation of our future. When we only think of ourselves we are caught in a dark trap and our only escape is surrendering all we are and all we have to Christ. Our noble deeds done in the name of Christ, not the dark deeds done in selfishness for ourselves, give us a firm foundation for our life.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About confronting evil and doing good…
Luke 6:35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. (NIV)
As you slog through the daily grind of life, you see evil. You see evil on television, in movies, in print, even in people around you. Sometimes you do not see evil because evil wants you to be blind to what evil is and what evil does. However, in every aspect of your life, you must never ignore evil. To deal with evil in your life, you must confront evil. Of course, evil does not want confrontation. Evil wants to slither around in the darkness unseen and unnoticed. To confront and win over evil, you must do good deeds when evil strikes. To confront and win out over evil, you must do good deeds at all times and in all ways. The point of evil is to erase the good in your life and erase the good in the world. If evil strikes and erases the good in your life, you must take action to replace the good erased. In addition, the point of evil is to try to get you to be evil in return. To counteract what evil wants, you must do good deeds in the face of evil. The point of evil is to destroy all that is within you. To make sure evil does not get its way, do good and godly deeds. Do good and godly deeds to those who hurt you. Do good and godly deeds to those who despise you. Do good and godly deeds to those who hate you. Do good and godly deeds to those who do evil things against you. The end result of doing good and godly deeds in the face of evil is peace within your heart and life. The end result of doing good and godly deeds in the face of evil is joy in Heaven and incredible peace within your heart and life.
Tuesday Daily Devotional
About conforming to Christ's words…
1 John 2:5 But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. (NIV)
The words of Christ are like a mold in which we pour our life. When we repent and turn away from our sinfulness, we must, in our melted down state, pour our life into the mold Christ has for us. We must, after we are melted down, pour our life into His nail-scared hands.
Because you live your life totally in the eyes of God, try to conform all you do to His words of life. Make sure you live your life according to God's word because God's word is living and alive. Every word in His word applies to you and your life. Every word in His word should be your guide in how you think and be your guide in carrying His attitudes of love and grace in your heart. All of us have a force of darkness against us. Our spiritual job in life is to go against the force of darkness by conforming all of our heart, mind, and soul to the words and love of Christ.
Monday's Daily Devotional
About confidence in our abilities…
Hebrews 10:22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. (NIV)
Some persons want God to take care of everything so they do not have to do anything themselves. This kind of relationship with God is not based upon trust but upon weakening dependence. This weakening dependence is a way of shirking ones responsibility to be and do all God wants one to do and be. God needs you to be strong enough to do His work. God wants you to be His person while you are alive here on earth. We must learn to feel confident in our own abilities. We must learn to have a healthy trust in a relationship whether the relationship is with God or with others. If we do not feel confident in our abilities, we will want God to do for us what we can do for ourselves. Wanting God to do what we can do creates a circumstance where we will eventually be disappointed in God. Consequently, in our selfishness and ego, we put our own agenda in life ahead of the agenda God has for us. We can all reach our true destination ordained by God. We can all reach His destination for us if we would reach out more fully, trust more deeply, and take chances when we do His work. When we reach His destination for us by doing His will, good things happen for us, for others, and for Him.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About confession…
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (NIV)
The great wall or the great separator of God and human beings is our sin. It is our basic lack of honesty before God that keeps Him so far away. If each person would just be honest before God and admit their faults, their fallacies, their shortcomings, and sins the wall between God and themselves would be broken. Satan’s power tries to convince everyone they do not have a wall between them and God. Satan’s power tries to convince everyone that sin is normal, is to be expected, and that nothing needs to be done about sin except ignore it. Satan continues to convince millions that not only is sin to be ignored it is fun and permissible. It is when we turn on the Light of Truth that the evidence of sin becomes clear. When we confess our sins the Light of Love shines in the darkness and our redemption is not far off.
Monday's Daily Devotional
About the comfort of God…
Matthew 5:4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. (NIV)
Sometimes in life there is grief and sorrow. Sometimes it seems the grief and sorrow in life will never end. However, we have a caring and compassionate Shepherd who walks with us. Christ our Shepherd looks out for us every second we are alive upon the earth. Although Jesus is not visible to our naked eye, we can still see Him with our heart. In our times of grief and sorrow, He comforts us. He is with all persons who need Him and who seek Him. He comforts all those who are grieving if they turn to Him. For the coming sorrows of the future, we know He will be with us. For those who grieve in the present, our prayers and love brings Him closer to those who need Him. The terrible hurt of those who grieve does not go without His notice. The hurt of the grieving is always within His tender touch. In every hurting heart, there lives the Door who opens to the place where angels live. In every hurting heart, there lives the Door who opens to supernatural glory and grace.
Friday's Devotional
About the common sense of prayer…
2 Kings 20: 4 Before Isaiah had left the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: 5 "Go back and tell Hezekiah, the leader of my people, `This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. (NIV)
If you have a friend, a true friend, you should talk to this person. It is not much of a friendship if you never communicate in some way. Over the years, we can lose track of people or we only write to them in our Christmas cards. In Jesus, in God, in the Holy Spirit, we have a friend. To never talk to Him, does not make sense. When you talk to God, He listens. When you have a bad day and feel really lousy, it makes sense to tell your friend in Christ about how things are. Yes, He knows how things went during the day, but He still needs you to talk to Him so you will be closer to Him. When you are afraid, go to Christ and talk to Him. When you are angry, even angry at Him, talk to Him. With God, you can talk about anything. No matter what you have done, no matter what mistakes you have made, no matter what…you can talk to God. God will never turn His back on you. God will never turn a deaf ear to you. God always listens, always understands, and always cares. The more you talk to Him, the closer you are to Him.
Thursday's Devotional
About commitment as a producer of fruit…
Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. (NIV)
The more you hang tough and stay focused on your goals, the more likely you are to achieve them. As obvious as this truth is, a great number of people give up too easily. Many people give up to soon. If you are truly doing God's work, no matter what your role is in His kingdom, giving up is not an option. If conditions change in your life and you are not able to do His work in one area, then moving on to other areas to do His work makes sense. However, if you want to give up or quit what you are doing because your task is too difficult, too boring, too menial, or you are not getting recognized, you have no reason to quit. Commitment for Christ produces great fruit in God's kingdom. Without commitment by the early church members, there would be no Christian faith today. In times of persecution and hardship, the commitment of the believer's faith keeps Christ's light burning in the world.
Wednesday's Devotional
About coming back from failure…
Proverbs 24: 16 for though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity. (NIV)
Part of the life of a righteous person must be devoted to persistence. The righteous person refuses to quit because he/she wants to glorify God in every way, in all things. For a righteous person, quitting is never an option. The unrighteous person may fall, but without a willingness to glorify God, the unrighteous person has only himself or herself and a dark and perhaps evil purpose to live for. The persistence of the person with darkness in their heart causes the darkness to prevail and persistence evaporates quickly. This evaporation of persistence takes place because there is only a selfish desire to please oneself. With Christ in your heart, you live for Him and keep coming back against every adversity and every foe. Living with Christ in your heart gives you a reason to live and goals to achieve no matter what obstacles stand in your way. You keep coming back again and again to glorify God.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About coming back against the impossible…
Romans 5:3 .Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. (NIV)
All of us, at various points in our daily life, must confront what seems to be an impossible circumstance or an impossible situation. When we face what seems to be impossible, we must first have the determination to come back against the impossible. Without determination and resolve, what seems to be impossible now, most likely will remain impossible for us in the future. When we have the determination to come back against what seems impossible now, we make the possible more likely in the future. To come back against the impossible, you must also have mental focus and a mindset to not let the impossible get you down and discouraged. To win out or come back against the impossible, your mind must be totally focused and not distracted away by what seems to be a circumstance you cannot control. To come back against the impossible requires you have a clearly visible goal before you. When your goal is to come back against the impossible, every effort, even the effort that seems to fail, is a victory. To come back against the impossible, you must have a reason to live, breathe, and attack the impossible. When you have faith in God, God gives you the power to come back against the impossible. When you have faith in God, God gives you the determination to fight back against your adversity. With faith, God gives you a mental focus and mindset to live as Christ has called you to live and not be distracted by the darkness or be distracted by sinful temptation. When you are faithful to God, He gives you a goal, the goal of humble service for your Savior. In addition, God gives you a reason to live, a reason to love others, and a reason to lift up His name no matter how impossible things seem to get. With faith in God, what is impossible now may be possible in the next moment here and now or later in Heaven
Thursday's Daily Devotional
About comfort and rest…
Matthew 11:28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. (NIV)
We all need comfort and rest. We all get tired. We all get burned out. We all get used up. In every aspect of our physical life, we need a time of comfort and rest. In our physical world, it is difficult to find real comfort and rest. No matter what we do, where we go, or how we attempt to find comfort and rest, our old physical problems, issues, and pains can remain with us. However, God is a being of comfort and rest. In the hands of Christ, in His hands so full of His healing and wholeness, you can find His comfort and rest. Even the smallest effort at reaching out to Christ can help you. Even the smallest desire to be His child brings His touch to your heart and life. Even the smallest prayer brings Him near. Even the smallest commitment endears Him to you. You can turn away from the cause of your discomfort and tiredness in the world. When you turn away from your discomfort and tiredness, there is someone you can turn toward who will help you find comfort and restoration. His name is Jesus.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
A
clear conscience in suffering…
Romans 8:17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. (NIV)
When you live a life of doing good deeds, Christ will give you a clear conscience about how you have lived. When you suffer because others maliciously speak against you about your doing good deeds, your conscience can remain clear about your actions.
Suffering has a way of twisting the heart and soul into shapes God does not want.
When you suffer in your life, it is great and grand to suffer for doing good deeds for others.
When you suffer, keep the image of Christ suffering for you, an undeserving sinner, in your heart and mind.
When you suffer, use your suffering to go witness about Christ and Him crucified. In this way, the darkness will be defeated and Christ will win through you.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
Cleaning up the mess we make…
Isaiah 63:10 Yet they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. So he turned and became their enemy and he himself fought against them.
Some people have a way of messing up their lives. It seems some people can not help but turn things upside down no matter how hard they try. Some people lead lives going in the opposite direction of God. When anyone goes in the opposite direction of God, bad things will happen. Aren't there enough bad things happening in the world without our piling on and adding to the mess we typically make on our own? In addition, people can make God their enemy. To clean up the mess we make in our life we must remember God does not want to be our enemy. However, when we grieve Him and we do the opposite of what He wants us to do, just as a consequence of what we do, we will have a big mess to clean up from the mess we make in our life. We have to want to be in tune with God. We have to want to be on the same page with God. We have to want to be going in God's direction. When we are going in God's direction, His will is at our back pushing us onward. When we have God's will pushing us onward, we have truly made friends with God. The people who go in God's direction have an extra power in their life pushing them ahead. The people who go in God's direction have an extra power to clean up their mistakes when they make a mistake.
Monday's Daily Devotional
Christ taking your pain and sorrow upon Himself…
Matthew 8:17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: "He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases." (NIV)
Jesus has taken your pain, sorrow, and infirmities upon Himself. Although we may be able to expound upon the theological significance of this truth, we cannot ever possibly know the full impact of this truth upon the life of those persons who fully believe and trust in the Lord. When we fully believe and fully trust in the Lord, the pain, sorrow, and infirmities we carry are not carried alone. There is from heaven and from Christ within us a massive godly force and power pulling up upon our every pain, pulling up upon our every sorrow, and pulling up upon our every infirmity. In the most fundamental of truths, you are not alone in this life when you are in pain or in sorrow. You are not by yourself. There is upon you this very second a power pulling off of you all the pain and sorrow you feel. Christ Jesus is, at this minute, carrying your burdens. If you will let Him, He will lift them up even more. Christ Jesus came into this world to take away your suffering. One way or another, if you are willing, it will be done. Jesus knows what you are going through and someday He will end your suffering in a blaze of heavenly glory as He wraps His arms around you in Heaven.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ's way as the sure way…
Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. (NIV)
Only God's way is the sure way. Only God's way leads to glory and immortality. We have our own plans and goals. We have our own ideas about where we should go and what we should do. In the tangled mysteries of life, we tell ourselves our plans are godly even when we know they are not godly. We tell ourselves we are doing God's will, even when know we are doing our own will. Certainly, we cannot always fully know what God's will is for us on a second by second basis. However, we can know God's will for us when we come to deal with other persons, when we come to deal with Him, and when we are confronted with sin and corruption. We can know God's will when we are confronted with temptation. We can know what God wants us to do when we see the pain, suffering, and hurt of life. We know we are to reach out and touch the hurting, help mend the broken, and support with prayer all those who need Him most.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
Christ's suffering upon the cross and your job…
Acts 20:35 In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" (NIV)
Acts 20:35 I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive. (KJV)
We see the world from within our own life. Seeing Christ's suffering upon the cross takes us out of our life and then we see everything, including our job, in a different light. It sounds sacrilegious to speak of the cross and your job at the same time because it is. It is sacrilegious to talk about your job and the cross at the same time. The cross is a symbol of the horrific sacrifice Christ made for each of us. The cross is a symbol of our Lord and what is sacred. Your job is not sacred. You need your job. You need your job to survive financially and survive in other ways in this temporary life. However, you also need Christ. You need Christ so you can live fully in this life and so you can live forever in Heaven. The more we really and truly see all of our earthly wants and needs in the background and Christ's suffering upon the cross in the foreground, the more we are able to see the relevance and irrelevance of our job. The cross connects to your job as long as you understand the magnitude of Christ's suffering for you and how you are supposed to walk and talk as He wants you to walk and talk…on your job. By having a Christ-like view of the world with the cross in front of all you see, then your job takes on Christ's perspective. When you accept Christ, you see your job as if you were looking through a window with the cross in front of your job while your job
remains in the background.
Monday's Daily Devotional
Christ's suffering upon the cross and your contact with God…
Col. 1:20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. 21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation-- 23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant. (NIV)
Col. 1:20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. 21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled: 22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: 23 If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister; (KJV)
Each of us has a choice about coming to Christ's suffering and death upon the cross.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to be so overwhelmed by His suffering we are to collapse before Him.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross our sinful self is to be utterly and totally destroyed before Him.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to see Christ is God and we are to see what we have personally done to Him in crucifying Him.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to see we personally put Him upon the cross.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to see we personally hammered the nails into His hands.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to see we personally flogged Him and tortured Him until He nearly died from the torture.
Your contact with Christ upon the cross is a way to make contact with God.
You make contact with God when you kneel before Him in holy and godly sorrow over what you have personally done to Him and what you have personally done in your sinful life.
Your contact with God depends upon how much of your human sinfulness is destroyed when you see Him suffering and dying upon the cross because of what you have done.
Your contact with Christ depends upon how much of your heart is left clean and pure by your kneeling before His cross.
You cannot make contact with God in your sinfulness.
In your sinfulness you can only make contact with Him if you choose to ask Him to come in and take away our sinfulness.
If you choose to turn away from your sin and you ask God to come and take away your sinfulness He will bring you to the foot of Christ's cross.
Then, at the foot of His cross, you make contact with God.
Friday's Daily Devotional
About Christ's suffering upon the cross and your contact with God…
Col. 1:20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. 21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation-- 23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant. (NIV)
Each of us has a choice about coming to Christ's suffering and death upon the cross.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to be so overwhelmed by His suffering we are to collapse before Him.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross our sinful self is to be utterly and totally destroyed before Him.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to see Christ is God and we are to see what we have personally done to Him in crucifying Him.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to see we personally put Him upon the cross.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to see we personally hammered the nails into His hands.
When we come to Christ dying upon the cross we are to see we personally flogged Him and tortured Him until He nearly died from the torture.
Your contact with Christ upon the cross is a way to make contact with God.
You make contact with God when you kneel before Him in holy and godly sorrow over what you have personally done to Him and what you have personally done in your sinful life.
Your contact with God depends upon how much of your human sinfulness is destroyed when you see Him suffering and dying upon the cross because of what you have done.
Your contact with Christ depends upon how much of your heart is left clean and pure by your kneeling before His cross.
You cannot make contact with God in your sinfulness.
In your sinfulness you can only make contact with Him if you choose to ask Him to come in and take away our sinfulness.
If you choose to turn away from your sin and you ask God to come and take away your sinfulness He will bring you to the foot of Christ's cross.
Then, at the foot of His cross, you make contact with God.
Thurday's Daily Devotional
Christ's suffering upon the cross and your finances…
Luke 21:1 As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. 2 He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 3 "I tell you the truth," he said, "this poor widow has put in more than all the others. 4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on." (NIV)
Luke 21:1 And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. 2 And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. 3 And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all: 4 For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had. (KJV)
In many respects, it is ungodly to put your finances in the same sentence as Christ's suffering upon the cross. What we must understand is no matter what we go through with our finances, whether we are wealthy, whether we live in poverty, or whether we live in a financial state between wealth and poverty, we must always understand our finances are temporary. Our finances are temporary because our life is temporary. As much as we might want or need money, our money will cease to exist when we die. After we die, no matter how much or how little money we have when we are alive, we will have no need for money. Christ's suffering upon the cross should always stand between you and your finances. For every worry you have about your money, with Christ's suffering upon the cross in the foreground, His suffering puts you and your financial worries in the background. When you write a check or use your credit card, you must see Christ's suffering upon the cross as being in a place where you have to physically reach around the foot of the cross to write a check or use your credit card.
If you had to physically reach around Christ's suffering upon the cross to do anything regarding your finances, your finances and your financial worries would be drastically different.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ's suffering upon the cross and others…
Romans 8:29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. (NIV)
Romans 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. (KJV)
When the suffering of Christ upon the cross is the first thing we see when we look at others, then we treat others and we respond to them as Christ would treat them and respond to them. With Christ's suffering upon the cross in the foreground, when others treat us badly then we forgive them and we treat them with respect. With Christ's suffering upon the cross in the foreground, when we see others in need we respond to them with love and with no selfish motives of our own. With Christ's suffering upon the cross in the foreground, we treat others as if Christ is alive in us reaching out from within us...because He is alive within us reaching out from within us. With Christ as our savior and with His suffering before us, others can often see the difference in us. Our Christian life may be selfishly about us in the very beginning of our walk with Christ. However, after the very beginning is over, our Christian life is then about others and not about ourselves. We all need to grow out of our beginning stages of our faith and grow into a more mature stage where others become more important as we grow less important. Our growth in Christ begins and ends as we kneel at the foot of His cross. As we kneel before Him, we are then empowered to reach out in love to help others and love them as just Christ loves them.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ's shining light of love and grace…
1 John 1:5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. (NIV)
In the darkness of this world, Christ provides each of us with a shining light of love and grace. In the darkness of this world, Christ will fill your heart with His immaculate joy. In your personal life lived out before God, the darkness has no power when Christ's love and light are shining within you.
When you love God, He loves you back. When He loves you back, no event, no matter how bad, can change your inner joy and happiness for very long. When you love God, the dark power of the world is cast aside like the trash it is. In Christ and with Him, you can have peace, security, and happiness no matter how much the darkness tries to take you down
Monday's Daily Devotion
About Christ's return…
Hebrews 9:28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. (NIV)
We await the return of Christ upon the earth. We have various theologies concerning His return and the events surrounding His reappearing. In the dark times of our life, we may want Him to walk the earth as a visible and tangible person. However, when He was with us before, we crucified Him. Only a handful of persons recognized Him for who He was. Our purpose in life should not be to just gaze upward into the sky searching for Him. Our purpose in life is not to put all of our life on hold waiting for His return at the next moment. Our purpose in life is to keep our heart turned toward Christ and our hands busy doing His work. When Christ returns we should be tired laborers in the field. We should be tired from bringing in His harvest. As preoccupied as we can get over world events and what we may see as the end of time, we must remember we live in a fallen world full of persons whose lives are dead in heart, mind, and soul. For those people you see, hear, and know each day, Christ living within you can be the tangible and physical evidence Christ is still alive and living on earth. When people look at you, let them see Christ living and alive in your heart so they will know He is still with us.
Friday's Daily Devotional
Christ’s presence in every moment
Acts 17:27 God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. (NIV)
When you think there is no light, Christ surrounds and immerses you in His glory and grace. When you think no one knows your plight, the Lord is with you and knows every moment of your life. When you think there is no hope, Christ’s outstretched arms wrap around you and show you His eternal life. When you think you are alone in your pain, Christ is present and He lets you know of His presence as He comforts you. When you think you will never be healed, Christ comes to you, He touches you, and He makes you whole. When you think you will never be happy, Christ comes to you and He touches you with His joy and gladness. When you think your pain will never end, Christ comes to you and He gives you rest and comfort. When you think you will surely die, Christ comes to you and He shows you His empty tomb. When worry devours your soul, Christ comes to you and He gives you peace of mind. When doubt assails you, Christ comes to you and He gives you a certainty beyond words. When the underpinnings of your life shake, Christ gives you a firm foundation lasting forever.
Thursday's Daily Devotional
About Christ's kindness, forgiveness, and compassion…
Matthew 9:36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (NIV)
Jesus sees you. All the time you are alive on this earth, you are being watched over by Jesus. When He sees you every hour of the day and night, He does not watch you like an unbiased observer. Jesus does not watch you like you would watch a boring television program. Christ does not just stand back and watch you. Jesus is involved in your life, even when you may not care about Him. Jesus watches over you with a yearning in His heart for you to be righteous, holy, godly, devout and loving. Jesus watches over you and His eyes are full of kindness, forgiveness, and compassion for you. When Jesus sees you do something wrong, He sees you and understands more about why you did something wrong than you could ever know. When Jesus sees you do something wrong, He sees you with eyes full of forgiveness. So full of forgiveness are Jesus' eyes, if you ask Him to forgive you, He erases all your wrongs and He forgets as no human being could ever forget. Jesus sees you and wraps His compassion and love around you every second.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ’s healing scars…
Psalm 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. (NIV)
Heartbreak is a part of life. Heartbreak is a cruel part of life nearly all of us must undergo. If we tell the full and total truth, we are often broken people. If we tell the full and total truth, we are often wounded people. However, in God’s hands, your heart will be healed. In God’s hands, your heart will be mended. To heal your heart, God needs no medicine from a pharmacy. To heal your heart, God needs no therapy given by a licensed therapist. To heal your heart, God needs no special treatment administered by a machine. In God’s hands, hope abounds for the healing of your heart. Hope flows down from God and in that hope you go beyond hope to a place of certainty, to a place of fully knowing, to a place where God’s love is so real and so profound there is no question about His healing power. What is most profound of all is the most wonderful fact that when God heals, there is no scar. When our Lord’s nail-scarred hands touch us, He erases our scars with His.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ's healing of our heart…
Mark 6:56 And wherever he went--into villages, towns or countryside--they placed the sick in the market places. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed. (NIV)
When we turn our heart over to Jesus, He wants the scars of our heart no matter how the scars got there. Christ's healing touch can and will make any heart new again. His touch erases the awful shame and humiliation we carry or may have experienced. His touch erases the fear and dread put upon us by terrible people or terrible circumstances. In place of the scars upon your heart, Christ writes notes upon your heart about His love, care, and compassion.
MONDAY'S DAILY DEVOTIONAL
About Christ's healing hand of power…
Matthew 9:25 But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose. (KJV)
We are all imperfect. We all have spots and blemishes. We all make mistakes. We all hurt. Most of us suffer pain, heartbreak, and loneliness. Most of us are weak and heavy-laden. However, we have a healing hand reaching out to us. We have the healing hand of Jesus reaching out to us to help us come back from the trials we face every day. What we must soak in, what we must try to take in, is the fact the hand of Jesus reaching out to us has scars. What we must try to take in is the hand reaching out to us has scars put upon that hand by something we did. We crucified Him. We tortured Him to death. We killed Him. We murdered Him. We made Him suffer as no one else has suffered. Yet, almost unimaginable in human terms, He came back to heal us, to restore us, and to forgive us.
If you kneel down at the foot of His cross in holy contrition…if you kneel down at the foot of His cross utterly destroyed because of what you have done and utterly destroyed because of who you are…then He will touch you with His healing hand of power. He will restore you. He will make you into a new person. He will give you a new life, and He will give you eternity.
Friday's Daily Devotional
About Christ’s eternal spring of life…
1 John 5:11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
There are times in life when it seems our cold and bitter days will never end. There are times when our bleak days go on and on without stopping. However, with Christ and because of Him, we can have an eternal spring. In the eternal spring of Christ, even when we must live in times of pain, hurt, heartbreak, or devastation, we can look forward to eternal newness, eternal love, and eternal peace. In Christ, we can see the blossoming beauty of His eternal kingdom waiting for us. In Christ, we can see His ever-present splendor as the substance of all His heavenly realms. In Christ, we can see His eternal Light forever giving us love and comfort…comfort in the here and now as well as comfort in eternity. In Christ, we can see the beauty of His creation. In Christ, we can see new life. In Christ, we can see and feel His joy in us. No matter how dark the winter season of our life may be, we are not alone because He is always with us. With Christ as our Savior and Lord, we can all look forward to a new time just ahead. In the cold and winter-like days of our life we can all look forward to Christ’s eternal season of spring.
Thursday's Daily Devotional
Christ's gift of being unmoving in faith…
Rev. 17:14 They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings--and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers." (NIV)
We are often assaulted by the world and the dark influences of the world. The dark powers of the world want to destroy your faith. Christ came into the world so your faith would be an unmoving faith. Christ came into the world so your faith would be rock solid as you stand upon the Rock. Christ was born so your faith would be stable and would be strong against the assaults by the dark powers of the world. It is the will of Christ for you to have an unmoving faith, refusing to weaken. It is the will of Christ you refuse to give in to unending trials wanting to take you down. Christ was born so you would accept His gift of unmoving faith in Him. Christ was born into the world so your faith would enable you to reach out to others in love, even when others curse you, abuse you, and reject you. Christ gives you the gift of unmoving faith so you would be His child rather than being a child of Satan's darkness in the world. Christ wants most of all for you to refuse to lose your faith, to remain determined, and to never, ever lose sight of His sacrifice on the cross for you.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ's gift of a better future…
When Christ was born, He gave to you an unlimited future. Christ was born to give you eternity. Christ was born so all the cares, problems, worries, and woes of this life would melt away in the eternal glory of His love and grace. Many of us have had in the past and will have in the future our share of problems. Many of our problems are not of our own making. However, all of us can carry the hope for a new day ahead. We can all carry the hope of a new day here on earth and a new day in heaven above.
In reality, we all have our afflictions, faults, and limitations in our body.
However, in our spirit, there is no limitation other than the limitation we permit. Because Christ was born, you can see above the clouds. You can see over the mountaintop. You can see past obstacles. In your spirit, you can leap tall buildings in a single bound like Superman. Even when you are down and out, Christ came into the world giving you a super vision to see your glorious future in Him.
Because Christ was born, you have a hope for tomorrow and a hope for eternity.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ's discipline in love…
Hebrews 12:6-7 "…because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son." Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? (NIV)
No one wants to be disciplined. We all want to be free to do whatever we want to do, whenever we want to do it. The Lord disciplines us for our own good. If we were mature enough to accept His discipline, we would receive His discipline with joy and thanksgiving. The hardships and afflictions of our life put upon us by Satan become incredibly easier to bear when we are self-disciplined and self-controlled in God's love and grace. One of the ways we can become self-controlled and self-disciplined under God's will is for God to administer the discipline. When God disciplines us, God is helping us find His power to endure hardships and afflictions. God does not hurt us. However, God can put roadblocks in our path when our path does not lead us in His direction. Our afflictions are a time to muster up the courage to do His will, in His time, in His power. To win out for Christ, we must have His discipline in us at all times. God gives us an opportunity to be disciplined by Him because He wants us to come back against every defeat and every obstacle…and win.
Monday's Daily Devotional
About Christ’s desire to see you healed…
Matthew 8:1 When he came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. 2 A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean." 3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately he was cured of his leprosy. (NIV)
When we are sick, hurting, and broken…
We forget about God being with us.
We forget about God being on our side.
We forget about God pulling us in His direction.
We forget about God wanting to touch us.
We forget about God wanting to heal us.
We forget about God wanting to make us whole.
However, when we are sick, hurting, and broken we are to fight back against our darkness. We are to fight back against our darkness and make sure we get into the God’s will for us. In our afflictions, we must make every possible effort to travel in the direction of God. In our afflictions, we must make every possible effort to travel in the direction of God’s will. In our afflictions, God’s power can give us an extra boost. In our afflictions, God’s power can give us the extra push we need to get over the hills and through the valleys we all can face every day. God always pulls in His direction if we are adamant about pulling in His direction. When we are sick, hurting, and broken…we must be adamant about letting Him pull us and lead us in His direction.
Friday's Daily Devotional
Christ's birth and you…
Luke 2:11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. (KJV)
Jesus was born unto you so you would know He is real. He came back to life after His bodily death so you would have hope and so you would know He would never leave you. Whenever you are alone or lonely, visit His manger and see Him alive, just for you. Christ was born because all of us need to know He is with us. Christ was born because all of us need to have Him within us in a real and tangible way. Whenever darkness tries to attack us, we need think of nothing more than Jesus being born into the world. Knowing Christ would suffer and die in the world's greatest crime, God still brought Jesus to us. Knowing Christ would suffer and die in the world's greatest crime, God brought Jesus to you so you would be saved and so you would know God loves you. God did all this and Jesus suffered in ways we cannot imagine as a gift to you…a gift of life to you. It was not enough for God to just make your life better. What God wants is to make your life marvelous, wonderful, and happy forever in His special place called Heaven. This Christmas season, if things are not going well, remember Christ was born unto you as your savior. Christ was born unto you hoping you will believe on Him and accept Him. At this very moment, Christ is with you, touching your heart, touching your soul, and touching your mind in His boundless ways of love.
Thursday's Daily Devotional
Christ’s rejection of immorality in His flock…
Revelation 2:12 "To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword. 13 I know where you live--where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city--where Satan lives 14 Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality. 15 Likewise you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.17 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.
Remaining a Christian and committing immoral acts is not acceptable to Christ. Letting others slide into immorality is not acceptable. Worshipping other Gods like fame, money, and worldly power is not acceptable. You can say you are a Christian, you can believe you are a Christian, but sliding down into immorality will not be tolerated. Each of us must repent or turn away from the acts and temptations that are not holy. If we would ever truly want a power, the power to turn away and/or repent is the power that gains us eternal life. This power to turn away from temptation and toward Christ has an eternal reward.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ’s call to live in hope…
1 Peter 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. (NIV)
God did not bring you into the world so you would look down in hopelessness and dejection. God brought you into the world to live with His power of hope and promise for eternity. There is no time in our life that seems to look the darkest than the time just before our death. But we are often deceived by appearances because the time just before our death, if we have accepted Christ into our heart and life, is a time full of eternal hope and eternal promise. The times when it seems there is no hope for anything good to happen to us or for us, will, in the eternal span of time, be made to exist as if time did not exist. In Christ and because of Him, the times when you have no hope and promise are really times when there is for you hope eternal. In the times when you have no joy there is already joy waiting to be poured out upon you. Christ came to give you hope for every second you are alive. Christ walked away from death in the grave to give you hope. Christ lives today and calls you to live in hope. Christ walks and talks with you every second you are alive so you will look beyond the way things are to a time when all things will be made new and every hope will be realized…all in an eternal stream of His love and grace.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
Christ's abundant life…
John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. (KJV)
The abundance of our life is not measured in what we possess, what we own, or what we can buy. The abundance of our life is measured by what we carry in our heart. The abundance of our life comes about when we give thanks. When we give thanks, we add treasures to the storehouse within our heart. When we give thanks, we add more life to our life. When we give thanks we add life to our life. When we give thanks we add more love, more of the essence of all that is, and more hope for life in eternity to our life. Christ did not come to steal from us, kill us, or destroy us. Christ is not a thief who came to take things away from us. Christ came to give to us. Christ came to call us to give to others because when we give to others Christ will in turn give to us and we will have a more abundant life.
Monday's Devotional
Christ reaching out to you…
John 11:35 Jesus wept.
When Jesus was alive upon the earth He was a human being in the finest sense of the word. Jesus was both human and divine. Because Jesus was both human and divine He has compassion for you and is always reaching out to you. When you suffer, He suffers. When you grieve, He grieves. Most of us can endure our suffering. What most of us cannot endure is suffering alone. When we see Jesus weeping, we must also know He is grieving and weeping when we weep. However, our weeping will not be long. Our weeping will come to an end in the glory of Heaven. Someday all your tears will dry up. Someday He will come and make all things new. Someday He will come and turn every moment of your grief into an eternal moment of total joy. Someday grief will be no more. Someday pain will be no more. Someday temptation will be no more. Someday sin will be no more. Turn now to Him and find His love. Turn now to Him and find His glory unending. Turn now to Him and weep no more.
About Christ keeping us safe…
1 John 5:18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him. 19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. (NIV)
We can see the truth. We can tell the truth. We can shout the truth. We can live the truth each moment. What is this truth? The truth is, God and His love protect us if we want His protection. God protects us from the devastation of living in hell for eternity if we want His protection. As responsible adults, God protects us from being victims of evil here on earth if we want His protection. The truth is we are not beings without wills. We are beings capable of making decisions. We are beings capable of choosing between right and wrong, good and evil, God and Satan. The truth is, when we choose God, when we choose right, when we choose the good, then we inherit God’s protection. In many cases, most of the time, although it is hard to tell when we are suffering, our decision to choose right, God, and the good, always produces good results for us. Go to any crime ridden inner city neighborhood and you can see how choosing crime brings its own terrible punishment. Go to any prison and you will see how crime does not pay. At the end of the imprisoned sinner’s life, if the imprisoned sinner has not repented, there is terrible punishment…a terrible punishment for the sinner who does not believe until it is too late. Go to any church fellowship hall and you can find an elderly person who lives in holy and devout faith…a person who may be suffering in the body… but a person whose spirit is winning. At the end of the elderly person’s life, there is a great and precious prize…an eternity of wonderful surprises called Heaven.
Thursday's Daily Devotional
About Christ looking out for us…
Luke 22:35 Then Jesus asked them, "When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?" "Nothing," they answered. (NIV)
We all have our needs. We all have our human instincts. We all have the seven deadly instincts that can drive us into hell. And when we go somewhere or do something in our day to day life, if we are honest, we often go because of what we want, not because of what God wants for us or from us. We go where we want to go and do what we want to do because of our selfish egos and our selfish thoughts. There is an axiom, an unwritten law, a working truth that works in our lives. Here is the law. When we do for God because God wants us to do something for Him, He provides the way and the means. This does not mean we are to act stupid and walk around on a mission for God with our hand out waiting for God to pour blessings on us. For in our walk for God, we are to be resourceful and we are to be as wile as serpents. In our walk for God, we are to use His unfathomable wisdom to help us get through the day. Here is the point. When God sends us someplace, and we go there only because God sends us, then His blessings flow out of our decision to follow Him. Doing God’s will in spite of all hardships, trials, temptations, and obstacles as big as mountains, is sometimes hard to do. However, after we have done His will in all the ways He wants His will done, after we have renounced our own will, we will say we lack for nothing and mighty blessings will flow from within our lives.
Wednesday's Daily Devotional
Christ knowing what is in your heart…
Hebrews 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin. (NIV)
Someone always knows what you are going through each moment. Someone always knows what is in your heart. You are never ever alone in life because Jesus knows. Jesus knows what is in your heart. Jesus knows your weaknesses and how you really do want to live right and be right just for Him. When you fail and feel bad, Jesus knows. When you seek to do His will but Satan attacks you, Jesus knows everything. When you long to be stronger and do more but you are held back, Jesus knows your frustration and your feelings of weakness. Jesus is not like a human being who does not know about the pain you feel. In the world you live in, not many people know what is in your heart. Not many people know about your loneliness. Not many people know about your grief. Not many people know about your trials and burdens so heavy to bear, but Jesus knows. However, Jesus will not just stand back and watch. Jesus will not just stand back and sympathize. Jesus will not just stand next to you and do nothing. Jesus came into the world to give you life and life more abundantly. Jesus is a friend in your time of need but He is a being of power to help you, comfort you, encourage you, and uplift you. Jesus came into the world to help you pick yourself up so you can keep moving forward. Jesus came into the world so you can cast off your burdens and feel His
joy and embrace His promise of eternal life.
Tuesday's Daily Devotional
About Christ keeping us safe…
1 John 5:18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him. 19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. (NIV)
We can see the truth. We can tell the truth. We can shout the truth. We can live the truth each moment. What is this truth? The truth is, God and His love protect us if we want His protection. God protects us from the devastation of living in hell for eternity if we want His protection. As responsible adults, God protects us from being victims of evil here on earth if we want His protection. The truth is we are not beings without wills. We are beings capable of making decisions. We are beings capable of choosing between right and wrong, good and evil, God and Satan. The truth is, when we choose God, when we choose right, when we choose the good, then we inherit God’s protection. In many cases, most of the time, although it is hard to tell when we are suffering, our decision to choose right, God, and the good, always produces good results for us. Go to any crime ridden inner city neighborhood and you can see how choosing crime brings its own terrible punishment. Go to any prison and you will see how crime does not pay. At the end of the imprisoned sinner’s life, if the imprisoned sinner has not repented, there is terrible punishment…a terrible punishment for the sinner who does not believe until it is too late. Go to any church fellowship hall and you can find an elderly person who lives in holy and devout faith…a person who may be suffering in the body… but a person whose spirit is winning. At the end of the elderly person’s life, there is a great and precious prize…an eternity of wonderful surprises called Heaven.
Monday's Daily Devotional
About Christ' expectations of you...
Revelation 2:1 "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: 2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. 4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. 6 But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. (NIV)
Christ needs perfection. Christ wants perfection from you. He does not want to hear excuses. He does not want to see His sheep slacking off. Most of all He wants you to live in His love. He wants you to live in the love that saved you. Even if you cannot tolerate wickedness, and test those who claim to be apostles, and persevere and endure hardships, and not grow weary, you can still lose the power of Jesus' love. In most of us, we remember the first time Jesus came into our heart. We remember the overwhelming love, peace, and grace we experienced that moment. We must keep that moment alive. We must not let the flame of His Light go out in us.
Thursday's Daily Devotional
About Christ coming back and earth changes…
Psalms 144:5 Part your heavens, O LORD, and come down; touch the mountains, so that they smoke.
We can think of many things associated with Jesus coming back to us. We can think of scary life-threatening things. However, in our hearts we know that no matter what kinds of earth changes might occur when Jesus comes back, the events preceding His return will be as nothing compared to our actually seeing Him, in person, face to face, in real life, just as we see other people and things in the present day. Nothing will compare to the eventual sight of Jesus upon the earth. Things will indeed happen upon the earth. When Jesus comes back the order of all things will be changed and rearranged in glory. Creation things will change that magnify the Lord. There may be earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes prior to His return. We don’t know for sure about the exact details about what will happen before we see Him upon the earth, and we shouldn’t care, because the glory of His returning is vastly more important than the events leading up to His appearance. Earth changes and preview events should make no difference to us because what is important is that we will see Him. We will see Him. We will see Him. We will see Him. We will get to see him, hear Him, and maybe even touch the hem of His garment. Praise Jesus. O Happy Day when we get to see Him again! O Happy Day! O Happy Day! He is coming back! O Happy Day!