I have to admit, I rather be in heaven than on this earth who is going to hell in a hand basket. Yet, God has left me here and I'm thankful.

Thankful for another day to show God's love. Thankful to do God's will. And thankful for every blessing God has shown me.

I couldn't help but find some insightful truth in this devotion. So my hope is this devotion will kick me into gear and become Godly minded in all area's of my life.

God Bless.

What Binds the Hands of Love

John Piper

 

http://dsr.gd/1jBKYYa

 

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. (Colossians 1:3–5)

The problem with the church today is not that there are too many people who are passionately in love with heaven. The problem is not that professing Christians are retreating from the world, spending half their days reading Scripture and the other half singing about their pleasures in God all the while indifferent to the needs of the world.

The problem is that professing Christians are spending ten minutes reading Scripture and then half their day making money and the other half enjoying and repairing what they spend it on.
It is not heavenly-mindedness that hinders love. It is worldly-mindedness that hinders love, even when it is disguised by a religious routine on the weekend.

Where is the person whose heart is so passionately in love with the promised glory of heaven that he feels like an exile and a sojourner on the earth? Where is the person who has so tasted the beauty of the age to come that the diamonds of the world look like marbles, and the entertainment of the world is empty, and the moral causes of the world are too small because they have no view to eternity?

Where is this person?

He is not in bondage to the Internet or eating or sleeping or drinking or partying or fishing or sailing or putzing around. He is a free man in a foreign land. And his one question is this: How can I maximize my enjoyment of God for all eternity while I am an exile on this earth? And his answer is always the same: by doing the labors of love.

Only one thing satisfies the heart whose treasure is in heaven: doing the works of heaven. And heaven is a world of love!

It is not the cords of heaven that bind the hands of love. It is the love of money and leisure and comfort and praise — these are the cords that bind the hands of love. And the power to sever these cords is Christian hope.

I say it again with all the conviction that lies within me: it is not heavenly-mindedness that hinders love on this earth. It is worldly-mindedness. And therefore the great fountain of love is the powerful, freeing confidence of Christian hope.

 

From “The Fruit of Hope: Love”

Trust That God Loves You

Do you believe God loves you? I know I have a plan in that area. I mean come on. No matter what I do or didn't do, God still loves me?

His love is amazing and overwhelming. However have you tested it? Not in a cocky way but in a way that reaches the heart of God and His only response is to show His love for you.

Have you ever been in a position where nothing else but God and His love will get you through lifes storms? Until you trust in God's love for you no matter what circumstances you face, you will feel like you are missing something. Something big. Something so special that it is set aside just for you.

God Bless.



Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Trust that God loves you. Christ came and opened a door for us to return to right relationship with God. When Christ lived, we were not looking for a door, nor was it in our minds to get back to right relationship with God.

The Pharisees and Saducees were waiting on a Messiah that they crucified. How great the mercy and grace of God that through Christ He made a way to throw open the door of salvation for all people. He did it while humankind was too busy to be bothered; even His chosen people rejected Him. Thank you God that your love for us never fails!

Verse/Commentary courtesy of 'Jesus Daily: Bible Devotional' android app. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.idelata.JesusDaily

The Day of the Lord

Who doesn't like the wisdom of Tozer? In this devotion Tozer lays out his thoughts on the Day
of the Lord.

Please enjoy and find wisdom in Tozer's words.

God Bless.

THE DAY OF THE LORD

The human race has always been quick to blame the world's disasters, floods, famines, plagues on natural causes. But in the end of the age, when the final judgments of God begin to fall, how long will it be until people confess that there is another real, though invisible, force in operation?

Truly the wrath of God will leave no hiding place for sinning, alienated men and women! John, in the Revelation, speaks of the mighty trumpets that will sound and the woes that will descend upon the earth.

In my own view, I link these events to the dramatic period throughout the earth when the antichrist has prevailed by deception and force. When God is finally ready to refine and restore the earth, everyone in heaven and on earth and in hell will know that no human laboratory could compound the fire that will be poured out on the earth. God has promised that He will not hide His wrath forever. He is prepared to speak in supernatural manifestations in that coming Day of The Lord!

http://www.cmalliance.org/devotions/tozer?id=29#noredirect

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Read and Reap

Sometimes you just need Joyce Meyer to set you straight.

This devotion is just you need to get a grasp on how to read and reap the benefits of the Word.

God Bless.

Read and Reap

by Joyce Meyer - posted March 26, 2015

[Things are hidden temporarily only as a means to revelation.] For there is nothing hidden except to be revealed, nor is anything [temporarily] kept secret except in order that it may be made known. - Mark 4:22

The Word has tremendous treasures, powerful life-giving secrets that God wants to reveal to us. They are manifested to those who ponder, study, think about, practice mentally, and meditate on the Word of God.

There is no end to what God can show you out of one verse of Scripture. You can study a scripture one time and get one thing, and another time you'll see something else you did not even notice before.

The Lord keeps revealing His secrets to those who are diligent about studying the Word. Don't be the kind of person who always wants to live off of someone else's revelation. Study the Word yourself, and allow the Holy Spirit to bless your life with truth. Power Thought: Revelation is available to me when I study God's Word.

From the book the book Power Thoughts Devotional by Joyce Meyer. Copyright © 2013 by Joyce Meyer. Published by FaithWords. All rights reserved.

The Rod of Discipline

The rod of discipline isn't just for children. If you are a child of God, He discipline His children.

I don't think you will ever come to a place this side of heaven that you will not be discipline by God.

We must keep going and run our race and accept the fact when God disciplines us is because He loves us and wants to use us to win a dying world for Him!

God Bless.

Proverbs 29:15
A rod and a reprimand impart wisdom, but a child left undisciplined disgraces its mother.

The rod is discipline, and it is the imparter of wisdom. God disciplines those He loves, and one of the reasons this is so is to teach wisdom to His children. That wisdom works for their benefit and His glory, continually urging them toward right relationship with God by the Holy Spirit of God.

A child of God who rejects His discipline will not experience an amputated intimacy with God. In rejecting God's discipline, we miss opportunities to learn, to grow, and to be shaped into the person God is calling us to be. It is not too late, God remains faithful always.

Verse courtesy of 'Proverb-A-Day' android app.
http://www.idelata.com/apps/proverb-a-day/

God Is Speaking to You

Answer to the age old question! Hopefully this will put this issue to bed so we can keep reaching for the higher calling!

 

God Bless!

 

God Is Speaking to You

 

It sounds like a pretty foundational point, but I believe there are many who still question whether God really talks to people. Have you ever wondered about this? Do you ask yourself if God would ever speak to you?

 

You'll be happy to know that the answer is yes. Toward the end of His time on earth, Jesus told His disciples, "I have still many things to say to you, but you are not able to bear them or take them upon you or to grasp them now. But when He, the Spirit of Truth (the Truth-giving Spirit) comes, He will guide you into all the Truth (the whole, full Truth)" (John 16:12,13).

 

When Jesus spoke these words, He was talking to men with whom He had spent the previous three years, yet He still had more to teach them. This is surprising, because I would think that if Jesus was with me personally for three years, day and night, I would have learned everything there is to know.

 

But Jesus always has more to say because we will always be facing new situations in life that He wants to guide us through. That's why we've been given the Holy Spirit - so that we can hear God speak, even though He may not be physically in front of us. Through Christ, and the power of the Holy Spirit, God wants to speak to you on a One-to-one basis every day. He wants to lead you step-by-step to the good things He has in store for you. The Father will give the gift of His Spirit to all who ask for Him (see Luke 11:13).

 

I want to say again emphatically that each of us can hear from God and be led by the Holy Spirit daily. Are you listening? Prayer Starter: God, I ask to be guided by the Holy Spirit. I believe that You are speaking to me, and I want to know what You have to say.

Christ Ambassadors

Ever wonder what an ambassador is suppose to do? Well this devotional puts it into perspective and gives some guidence.

Just start, take a step, and become a Christ ambassador. The pay on earth lacks, the risks are high, but oh the benefits is beyond measure!

God Bless.


2 Corinthians 5:20-21 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Ambassador is defined as “an authorized messenger or representative.”

We have been authorized by Jesus Christ to carry the message of the gospel to all people. This is why Paul says here that God is making His appeal through us – because He is. Jesus chose you to tell others about Himself, and tell them the good news that you heard, believed in, and that saved you. Today, remember what Jesus has done for you and share that message with someone who needs to hear it. Speak the truth in love and preach the gospel.

Verse/Commentary courtesy of 'Jesus Daily: Bible Devotional' android app. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.idelata.JesusDaily

A Cheerful Heart

I always need to have a cheerful heart even in the good times. I never pass on
a good devotional that will help strengthen me.

I hope you find this helpful as well and be strengthen.

God Bless.


Proverbs 17:22
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

Spiritual and emotional health directly affect physical health. I think of those who have long-term ailments or disease, who perhaps live in despair at length uncertain of how things will turn out. This kind of thing can begin to crush our spirit.

We are all in this life of faith together, and we should live in a way that encourages unity and love in the body of Christ. I urge everyone to cultivate joy in the hearts of those who are hurting. Crushed is not destroyed: God is able to restore!

Healing may be just one hope away. Be a bringer of hope and life in the name of Jesus Christ!

Verse courtesy of 'Proverb-A-Day' android app.
http://www.idelata.com/apps/proverb-a-day/

During Those Dark Times of Life

Need encouragement during the dark times in which life can be brutal?

Here is a little devotional I'm not sure where I came acrossed it but let it encourage us all to keep the faith and walk and talk the talk and lift ourselves up out of the issues of life and carry on in victory!

God Bless.



During those dark times of life when you cry out like Jesus did on the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” there are three very important things you must tell yourself:

God is good, God is for me, and God is with me. The storms of life at times seem unbearable. We have to take ourselves from a place where it feels like God is nowhere to be found in this darkness, to truly believing these three things. We get to this place by holding on to a God that is unchangeable. The question you need to ask yourself today—especially if you’re in the midst of a dark time in your life—is do you truly trust God?

As you read today’s Scriptures, let God speak to you and ask Him to show you He is good, He is for you, and He is always with you, no matter the circumstance.

Jesus Is Our Example

Need an example on how to live, try living like Jesus.

Need someone to motivate you, try Jesus.

Want to know what Jesus would do? Walk in His steps.

Wonder who this person is? Read the bible and live a life of adventure.

Will it be hard? Absolutely but the reward is nothing you can put a price on.

Jesus is truely our example. Shall we begin our life anew?

God Bless.

Jesus Is Our Example

Love is something that can be seen. It is seen in the fruit of the Spirit working in our lives, in our behavior and how we treat people. Love has many facets, or different ways we can see it. For example, when a diamond ring is held up to the light, it can sparkle in various ways depending on which way it is turned in the light. I believe love also sparkles in different ways depending on how we look at it.

I Corinthians 13:4-7 gives us examples of the many facets of love:

Love endures long, it has the ability to put up with stuff for a long time.
Love is never envious, it doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love is not boastful or vainglorious, it doesn't call attention to itself.
Love is not conceited or rude.
Love doesn't insist on its own way.
Love pays no attention to a suffered wrong.
Love never gives up!

These are just a few ways we're supposed to love others...and it's also the way God loves us. First John 4:8 says that "God is love." He loves us and has saved us, so now we can share His love with others.

To imitate God, we have to look at Jesus, a perfect representation of God who lived out all of the descriptions of love in 1 Corinthians 13. He always acted in love in every situation, even when people came against Him.

Colossians 3:12-14 says to "clothe yourselves therefore, as God's own chosen ones.... And put on love".... Like Jesus, let's clothe ourselves in love and choose to follow His example, bringing honor and glory to God.

Prayer Starter: God, You have shown me what love is like by loving me first. Help me to follow the example of Jesus and live out all the facets of love in my day-to-day life.

God Is Listening

Ever think God isn't listening to you? Surely I can't be the only one who ever had doubts!

This devotional will help put those doubts to rest and help strenghten a closer relationship with the One who has just wanted one thing! A family whom He can talk with and enjoy!

So knowing this little tidbit, know God is always listening and waiting for us to make a move so He can meet us half way.

God Bless.

God Is Listening

Marvin Williams

Psalm 5
My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up. —Psalm 5:3

The day before Billy Graham’s interview in 1982 on The Today Show, his director of public relations, Larry Ross, requested a private room for Graham to pray in before the interview. But when Mr. Graham arrived at the studio, his assistant informed Ross that Mr. Graham didn’t need the room. He said, “Mr. Graham started praying when he got up this morning, he prayed while eating breakfast, he prayed on the way over in the car, and he’ll probably be praying all the way through the interview.” Ross later said, “That was a great lesson for me to learn as a young man.”

Prayerfulness is not an event; it is a way of being in relationship with God. This kind of intimate relationship is developed when God’s people view prayerfulness as a way of life. The Psalms encourage us to begin each day by lifting our voice to the Lord (Ps. 5:3); to fill our day with conversations with God (55:17); and in the face of accusations and slander, to give ourselves totally to prayer (109:4). We develop prayer as a way of life because we desire to be with God (42:1-4; 84:1-2; 130:5-6).

Prayer is our way of connecting with God in all life’s circumstances. God is always listening. We can talk to Him any time throughout the day.

Thinking It Over

What is one major obstacle to developing your prayer life? What changes do you sense God wants to make in your heart so that you see prayer as a way of life?
In prayer, God hears more than your words— He listens to your heart.
We are not told about the events that precipitated the writing of this psalm. Some scholars speculate that the enemies David speaks of may have been Doeg the Edomite (1 Sam. 22) or Ahithophel (2 Sam. 15–17). David brought his concerns to God because he knew God would deal with his enemies and care for him.

Deuteronomy 26-27; Mark 14:27-53

Our Daily Bread

Our Original Role

Our original role was to rule over the earth but thanks to Adam and Eve, that is no longer an option in it's original plan God had formed.

Let's face it, if it wasn't Adam and Eve who sin, it would have been me. So let's stop blaming the two and let's take back what was orginally suppose to be ours.

We can rule over this earth by prayer and love which will keep Satan at bay. Yes, things aren't what they are suppose to be and yes this world will come to an end very soon but until, let us take responsiblity for the here and now and let freeedom reign and rule as we show God's orgianal design through us!

Adam and Eve destroyed the world, but we can save and change it! Shall we begin?

God Bless.


Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

Our original role was to rule over the earth forever. He wanted to give us everything, and live together with us for eternity. We were disobedient to the direction of God and ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. God still wants to give you everything, and He proved it by sending His Son.

There is no truth that is more important than this. Jesus Christ was born, and chose to die on your behalf to save you from the cost of sin and make your relationship with God right again. Let this shatter all the lies you have been told, and leave only what is promised in Christ.

Verse/Commentary courtesy of 'Jesus Daily: Bible Devotional' android app. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.idelata.JesusDaily

This is such a great insightful devotion. Love how John Piper describes Jesus as God's Amen.

Sometimes I think we take saying Amen for granted without fully realizing what we are saying or doing or just what Jesus has done for and is doing for us.

God Bless.
 

Devotional for March 13

Jesus Is God’s Amen

John Piper

http://dsr.gd/12t5HbO

All the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Prayer is the place where the past and future are linked repeatedly in our lives. I mention this here because Paul links prayer with God’s Yes in this verse in a striking way.

In 2 Corinthians 1:20, he says (with choppy Greek that comes through in choppy English), “That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.” Let’s try to smooth that out.

Here’s what he is saying: “Therefore, because of Christ, we say Amen to God in our prayers to show that God gets the glory for the future grace we are counting on.”

If you’ve ever wondered why Christians say Amen at the end of our prayers and where that custom comes from, here’s the answer. Amen is a word taken straight over into Greek from Hebrew without any translation, just like it has come into English and most other languages without any translation.

In Hebrew, it was a very strong affirmation (see Numbers 5:22; Nehemiah 5:13; 8:6) — a formal, solemn, earnest “I agree,” or “I affirm what you just said,” or “This is true.” Most simply, “Amen” means a very earnest Yes in the context of addressing God.

Now notice the connection between the two halves of verse 20. The first half says, “All the promises of God find their Yes in him.” The second half says, “That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.”

When you realize that “Amen” and “Yes” mean the same thing, here’s what the verse says: In Jesus Christ, God says his Yes to us through his promises; and in Christ we say our Yes to God through prayer.

From Future Grace, page 104

Hand Me The Binoculars!

I need to look through God's binoculars instead of my own. God's is full of beauty and wonder where my binoculars are filled with hurt, junk, and unworthyness.

May the rocks not cry out before I do! I want to wake up and declare the beauty of God not only to myself, but to my family and to others! There is a whole world waiting for us to show them the beauty of God and not the ugliness of what we think God is.

Let us declare the beauty of the Lord together and change a world!

God Bless.


March 12, 2015

Hand Me The Binoculars!

Dennis Fisher

Psalm 19:1-6
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. —Psalm 19:1
When I was in elementary school my friend Kent and I would often spend time looking at the night sky with a pair of German-made binoculars. We marveled at the stars in the sky and the mountains on the moon. All throughout the evening we took turns saying, “Hand me the binocs!”

Centuries earlier a Jewish shepherd boy looked up at the night sky and also marveled. He did not have a pair of binoculars or a telescope to aid him. But he had something even more important—a personal relationship with the living God. I imagine the sheep quietly bleating in the background as David gazed skyward. Later he would write the inspired text: “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge” (Ps. 19:1-2).

In our busy schedules, we can so easily forget to stand in awe of the heavenly beauty our Creator has prepared for our enjoyment and His glory. When we set aside time to look at the night sky and marvel at what is there, we gain a deeper understanding of God and His eternal power and glory.

We believe that this is Your world, Lord. We marvel at You and Your creativity when we look at the sky and the world around us. You, and what You have done, are amazing! We stand in awe of You.
In the wonders of God’s creation, we see His majesty and His character.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote this about David and Psalm 19: “In his earliest days the psalmist, while keeping his father’s flock, had devoted himself to the study of God’s two great books—nature and Scripture; and he had so thoroughly entered into the spirit of these two only volumes in his library that he was able with a devout criticism to compare and contrast them, magnifying the excellency of the Author as seen in both. . . . He is wisest who reads both the world-book and the Word-book as two volumes of the same work, and feels concerning them, ‘My Father wrote them both.’”

Deuteronomy 17-19; Mark 13:1-20

Shocking Accessibility

It is kind of scary to think we have the very right to go up to God and call Him "Daddy!" and to have a normal conversation with Him.

Most of the time, I find myself feeling unworthy and back off from Him left wondering if I could have a different relationship with Him. I only have myself to blame and hopefully with this devotional, I will set my mind towards Him and not to the self-doubts I have in me.

God Bless.


March 11, 2015

Shocking Accessibility

Philip Yancey

Romans 8:14-17,24-26

You received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” —Romans 8:15
When John F. Kennedy was president of the US, photographers sometimes captured a winsome scene. Seated around the president’s desk in the Oval Office, cabinet members are debating matters of world consequence. Meanwhile, a toddler, the 2-year-old John-John, crawls around and inside the huge presidential desk, oblivious to White House protocol and the weighty matters of state. He is simply visiting his daddy.

That is the kind of shocking accessibility conveyed in the word Abba when Jesus said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You” (Mark 14:36). God may be the sovereign Lord of the universe, but through His Son, God became as approachable as any doting human father. In Romans 8, Paul brings the image of intimacy even closer. God’s Spirit lives inside us, he says, and when we do not know what we ought to pray “the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered” (v.26).

Jesus came to demonstrate that a perfect and holy God welcomes pleas for help from a widow with two mites and a Roman centurion and a miserable publican and a thief on a cross. We need only call out “Abba” or, failing that, simply groan. God has come that close to us.

We want to talk to God, but it can be difficult to find words to express the emotions of our heart. The Discovery Series booklet Let’s Pray may help. Read it online at www.discoveryseries.org/hp135
Prayer is an intimate conversation with our God.

The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is the evidence that we are saved. The Holy Spirit is also called “the Spirit of God” and the “Spirit of Christ” (Rom. 8:9). Paul taught that the Spirit is the deposit that guarantees our salvation (Eph 1:13-14) and the source of our new life (Rom. 8:11). Assuring us that we are God’s children, the Holy Spirit enables us to affectionately call out to God, “Abba, Father” (v. 15). As “the Spirit of adoption” (v.15), the Spirit changes our status from slaves to sons (Gal. 4:6), giving us the full privileges of sonship—making us heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17). The indwelling Spirit helps us to pray by interceding for us and with us (v. 26).
Deuteronomy 14-16; Mark 12:28-44

God is in the Business of Lifting Up Those Who Are Low

For several years I have felt so low and so unworthy and just wondered what it is all about. I've been through so much in life and I've often wondered "is this what life is about?"

There has been times when I thought I wouldn't make it to the next day let alone the next hour. I've often wondered if God had deserted me on this planet called earth forever.

Yet after reading this devotional, I realize I can ony go up from here. Hopefully this devotional will be the very answer someone will need to make it and realize you are not alone.

God Bless.


God is in the Business of Lifting Up Those Who Are Low

Proverbs 29:14
If a king judges the poor with fairness, his throne will be established forever.

Jesus chose to handle a bunch of ragamuffins with grace, mercy, and offered a hope for redemption. This is an example for kings, princes, leaders, and presidents of our time, and all times.

The poor is not the only consideration for those who lead nations of people, however, it most certainly cannot be ignored. God is in the business of lifting up those who are low, and bringing down those who feel they are too high to be bothered with the poor.

Verse courtesy of 'Proverb-A-Day' android app.
http://www.idelata.com/apps/proverb-a-day/

A Christian Virtue

Are you like me in the fact that you can't stand how some people behave and yet your still suppose to love them all the while thinking, "yeah right!" Which causes you to have doubts about yourself and your salvation and thoughts about how you let God down?

Here is a devotional that will hopefully help put every thing into perspective and settle how you feel towards others without feeling like your a failure.

God Bless.


A Christian Virtue

I am being very frank about this, and I hope I am being helpful: do not ever say you are not right with God because you like some people better than others!

I believe you can be right with God and still not like the way some people behave. It is easy to love those who are the friendly; others rub us the wrong way or perhaps they cut us down.

The writer to the Hebrews has appealed to us as Christian believers to "let brotherly love continue"—in other words, "never stop loving one another in the Lord." Here is what I have found: it is possible to love people in the Lord even though you may not like their boorish or distasteful human traits. We still love them for Jesus' sake!

Yes, I believe you can be right with God and still not like the way some people behave. Our admonition is to love them in a larger and more comprehensive way because we are all one in Christ Jesus. This kind of love is indeed a Christian virtue!

http://www.cmalliance.org/devotions/tozer?id=2#noredirect

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Privilege

This devotional is full of insight, wisdom, and truth. If you ever felt like this like I have then you will find this devotional an answer to prayer and will take it to heart. The sooner we get rid of the junk the more we can follow Him.

 

He doesn't mind us questioning and seeking. So this is His answer back to us!

 

God Bless.

 

 

 

Privilege

by Joyce Meyer - posted March 06, 2015

 

Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding.
- Proverbs 3:5

 

Part of trusting God is having unanswered questions. When you get answers, you don't need to trust God anymore. But if you don't have answers, then you will need to trust God. He could give us all the answers to everything, but He doesn't because He wants us to trust Him.

 

Have you ever said, "There's nothing we can do but trust God"? Like it's your last-ditch effort—you've done everything else and now you're left with no other choice.

 

We need to change the way we talk. We need to realize trusting God is the greatest privilege we have. What an honor to be able to say, "No matter what kind of problem I have in my life, I get to trust God!" God wants to take care of you, but He doesn't start until you stop. Retire from self-care, and start trusting God.

 

Power Thought: I don't have all the answers, but God does. I put my trust in Him.

 

From the book the book Power Thoughts Devotional by Joyce Meyer. Copyright © 2013 by Joyce Meyer. Published by FaithWords. All rights reserved.

Serve the Lord

Do we really serve the Lord or do we just know about Him?

 

This devotional will help seperate the two and hopefully put us on a path that runs straight into His arms and we then boldly proclaim that we will serve the Lord!

 

God Bless.

 

Serve the Lord

by Joyce Meyer

Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, . . . but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. 
—Joshua 24:15

In Jesus’ day, many leaders who were believers in Jesus would not confess their faith to others. They feared they would be expelled from the synagogue if they went public with their belief in Him (see John 12:42, 43). They were hindered from a relationship with Jesus because they cared too much about other people’s approval. Although they wanted a relationship with the Lord, they wanted the approval of their peers more. That is sad, but it happens all the time.

Joshua, on the other hand, was bold about his belief in God, declaring that, “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). Be like Joshua, and determine that you and your household will serve the Lord. Whether other people agree or not, serving and following God is the only way to live a fulfilling, victorious life.

The leaders of Jesus’ day knew He was real. The believed in Him, but their love of people’s approval would not permit them to have a true relationship with Him. I wonder how their lives turned out. What did they miss because they said yes to people and no to God? I wonder how many of them were never mentioned in the Bible again. I wonder if they faded into oblivion and never fulfilled their destinies because they loved the approval of men more than the approval of God. How many of them spent their lives disrespecting themselves because they were people-pleasers?

We need to realize that not everyone is going to like us. If we live our lives worrying about what other people think, we will never take risks or stretch ourselves into new realms.
Jesus died to give you the freedom to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit for you as an individual. As you follow Him, I guarantee that He will lead you into a rewarding life.

Love God Today: Like Joshua, make a deliberate, personal decision to serve the Lord and boldly declare: “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

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From the book Love Out Loud by Joyce Meyer. Copyright © 2011 by Joyce Meyer. Published by FaithWords. All rights reserved.

Pushing Through Plateaus

NO MORE MILK! GROW UP TIME!

God Bless.



Pushing Through Plateaus

Many of us are satisfied with echoing Christian jargon and subsisting on a spiritual diet of milk instead of growing spiritually. Strong growth requires a healthy diet. It requires what the apostle Paul called "meat." We need the discipline of study, the discipline of prayer, the discipline of service.

Most of us require being disciplined under the authority or tutelage of another. Self-discipline is merely the extension of discipline learned under another. It does not come by magic. If you desire to break out of the plateau on which you are paralyzed, then it is imperative that you get under the discipline of someone qualified to take you further and deeper into the Christian life. Your pastor is the most obvious person to help.

Refuse to be satisfied with milk. It is possible to break out of stagnation and move ahead into a growing, enriching development. We are called to be disciples, not for one year but for our lives. It is ultimately impossible for the Christian to quit his growth lessons. Our master teacher is God the Holy Spirit. If the Spirit dwells in us, He will not allow us to remain stagnant in our growth.

We must remember, however, that sanctification is a cooperative process. The Spirit is at work within us, yet we are called to work diligently under His divine supervision. The degree of our growth is dependent in large measure on our practice in godly discipline. We still may experience the frustration of getting stuck at various plateaus of spiritual growth. In order to progress beyond them, we need meat and practice, practice, practice.

Coram deo: Living before the face of God

What steps can you take to institute a personal program of spiritual growth?

Copyright © Ligonier Ministries. Get a free book from R.C. Sproul at Ligonier.org/freeresource.

Balloon Blessing

This devotional is short, sweet, but full of truth. Sometimes all it takes is a little doses of truth to jump start you and pull you back into the right direction. May we find this devotional as a small wake up call.

 

God Bless.

 

 

Daughters of the King Daily Devotionals

Balloon Blessing

And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:31 NKJV)

 

The Bloomberg reported that according to a recent study, Americans can add as many as two years to the nation’s life expectancy if they stand up more often and watch fewer hours of television.

What a concept — move around and you’ll live longer! Watching the report reminded me of an illustrated sermon I did one time for children’s ministry. I grabbed an uninflated balloon from the table, blew it up real big and then let it go. Boy did they love that! They laughed hysterically as they watched this balloon zipping around the room until it ran out of air and plopped down on the floor. It prompted everyone to want to do the same, and soon tons of balloons were riding high in the air everywhere in the room.

 

We need to be like these balloons, filled to the max with God’s breath, and then….. let go, to experience the ride of our lives! And…equally important, we need to recognize when we’re running out of air — when we’re deflated and depleted of His power and anointing. Then we need to run back to Him for more, because receiving the infilling of the Spirit is not a single event, but a lifetime of repeated refillings, so that we aren’t living or serving in our own strength.

The Lord hasn’t entrusted us with His power to sit around and watch TV — but to activate us for the work of the Gospel, and the blessing of the saints; to do great things for Him in the power of His Spirit wherever He may take us. Let’s be filled again today! Ask, seek, knock, read, worship, meditate on His promises, get FILLED — you don’t want to sit idly watching life pass you by…. do you?

 

Prayer: Father, I ask that you fill me up to overflowing with your Spirit. I want to filled to the max with all that is YOU. Deplete me of anything that is not right, true, or praise worthy. I want you power and anointing. I receive your joy, power, and strength today.

 

 

 

 

The Challenge

Oh Lord how to take this devotional to heart! I need to get it deep down in my soul tat God desires a relationship with me and that He cares and He sees what is going on in my life and the only thing He requires is I forgive myself and others of their wrong doing which is easier said than done.

When I let the sin's I committed fall away never to be picked up again and let the hurts from past, future, and present no longer have any hold on me, then my trust in Him will become stronger than anything that comes my way.

Until then, day by day, I begin my journey out of the pit of nothingness and brokenness into the light of His son Jesus Christ who can deal much better with my world better than I can.

God Bless.


Psalm 147:5-6 Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit. The Lord sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.

Today the challenge is to remember the depths of the power of God, or perhaps His infinite wisdom. In His wisdom, the oppressed and humble are looked after. So, to all who feel like they are lost and broken, in despair or damaged beyond repair, know that God desires to be in relationship with you, and to see you through your situation. God will deal with whatever else is going on in your life. Come to Him as you are and receive His gift of Christ Jesus. Jesus is everything! Let bitterness and anger fall away, and let the healing Holy Spirit reside within you.

 Verse courtesy of 'Psalm-A-Day' android app. http://www.idelata.com/apps/psalm-a-day/