Devotions

As we begin this Thanksgiving Season, I am thinking about this God we trust. Trust, even trust in God, does not come easily. To trust our God, we need to know exactly Who He is. We need to understand His character revealed in the Scriptures. We must see how His character ensures His trustworthiness.

Our God is “All Powerful” (Omnipotent). Psalm 33:6: “By the Word of the LORD, the heavens were made, their starry host by the breath of His mouth.” (Just try answering the questions in Job 38 to see the power of our God!)

Scripture is clear that God is strong and mighty, and nothing is too hard for Him to accomplish. He has all the power to fulfill every promise made in the Scriptures.

Power in the hands of men and women can be frightful. It can be corrupt. (That old saying: Power corrupts; Absolute power corrupts absolutely). And corrupted power is often cruel and deadly.

God’s power, however, is governed by His Goodness (another characteristic of God). John MacArthur wrote: “Although such power might seem frightful, remember that God is good. He can do anything according to His infinite ability, but will do only those things that are consistent with Himself. That’s why He can’t lie, tolerate sin, or save impenitent sinners.”

Thank you Lord! Amen & Amen

As I was reminded recently, trust, even trust in God, does not come easily. If we are going to trust anyone, even God, we must know that they are trustworthy. God’s attributes and characteristics speak to God’s trustworthiness.

One of God’s attributes is that He is Self-Sufficient. That means He Has No Needs. John 5:26: “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in Himself.”

I don’t know about you, but I have incredible needs. I need goodness, peace, mercy and grace. I need strength, direction, discernment, and wisdom. The list is endless and changes from day to day. God, however, possess everything in perfection. I know I can go to Him and trust that He has exactly what I need when I need it.

But this attribute tells me something else. God doesn’t need me. He can accomplish all He wants to do without my help … YET … it is the most amazing thing that God WANTS me! He willingly and lovingly uses me (and you) with all our limitations and failings to accomplish His purposes.

God WANTS me! God LOVES me! God WANTS you! God LOVES you! So much so that He made the way for us to be His Children. Thank you LORD! Amen.

“In God we trust,” is the official motto of the United States, adopted in 1956, and placed on all U.S. currency beginning in 1957. The phrase replaced “E pluribus unum” (Latin: “Out of many, one”), which had been the country’s unofficial motto since the 1780s.

I am not sure if, as a country, we place much trust in “God.” We seem to be more interested in what our politicians are doing than what “God” is doing.

As I was reminded recently, trust, even trust in God, does not come easily. I think that is because to trust someone, we must know that person is trustworthy. If we say we trust in God, then we must know the God in whom we trust.

For me, one of the most wonderful attributes or characteristics of our God is that He is immutable.  Malachi 3:6 proclaims, “I the LORD do not change,” and Hebrews 13:8 promises, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

The God Who Saved US and Whom we worship and serve never changes. He never gets better or worse. He is absolutely dependable. And because His promises to us are based on His character, they will never change.

That can be difficult for us to understand – because we change all the time. Sometimes we get better and sometimes we get worse. The promises we make are based on our character, which is always subject to our changing nature. BUT OUR GOD and HIS PROMISES remain ROCK SOLID, STEADFAST, IMMUTABLE – just like His character! Thank you LORD! Amen and AMEN!

November! I love it when the calendar turns from thoughts of Halloween to thoughts of Thanksgiving! I love the changing atmosphere. November 1^st is one of my favorite days of the year.

I know the world will rush headlong into Christmas – that’s already begun. After all, there isn’t much commercial profit in the Thanksgiving holiday (except perhaps for turkey farmers and cranberry growers!). But oh, the personal profit that flows from gratitude and giving thanks.

Today, I simply want to obey Psalm 100. Those five short verses contain so much truth! Read it today – whatever your translation – and “Shout triumphantly to the LORD” for “we are His.”

“Shout triumphantly to the Lord, all the earth. ² Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.³ Acknowledge that Yahweh is God. He made us, and we are His—His people, the sheep of His pasture. ⁴ Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. ⁵ For Yahweh is good, and His love is eternal; His faithfulness endures through all generations.” [HCSB]

Amen & Amen

I am not a fan of Halloween. I never have found anything delightful in this commercially energized holiday. I hate the gore, the occultic proclamations of witches, demons and devils that too often take a front row seat. I find no beauty, nor goodness, nor grace in this day. There is enough evil in this world without dressing our children in it.

Whenever this date rolls around, I think about what Paul wrote. “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things.” [Phil 4:8-9]

I love those words … true … noble … right … pure … lovely … admirable … excellent … praiseworthy. I don’t see many of those words in this day. I sometimes wonder if those words have even become archaic in our day and age.

We no longer talk about true … we talk about relevant. We don’t call out noble or right, we lift success and power. As for lovely, admirable, or excellent, we highlight defiance, opposition, and failure. Praiseworthy? I’m not sure we even know what that means any more.

It’s time, beloved, to focus on Paul’s words again, not the words we see touted in media and politics. If I am going to think about anything on this day, I want it to be defined by one or more of those words.

Today, it’s the true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy that will capture my attention and inspire my thanksgiving. AMEN!

God is good. All the time. All the time. God is good. We say it, but do we think about what it says? Do we believe it? Is God good? Is He good when the circumstances around us are not? Is He good when illness strikes? Is He good all the time? Or is He good only during the times all is going well?

Do you know that what you think or know about God will either invite you to know Him more or it will become a wall to knowing Him at all?  What do I mean by that?

Remember the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25. Jesus told the story of a master who called three servants into his presence before he went on a trip. He gave one five talents, another two talents and the last one talent. When the master returned, he called each back into his presence.

The first with the five talents had doubled them and returned ten to the master, the second with the two had also doubled his and returned four talents to the master. The master’s response, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.” [vs 21-22]

The last servant, however, had not done anything with his talent. He simply buried it and gained nothing to give back. This servant viewed the master differently. The first two saw him as a good master, one who would reward them for their faithfulness. The third viewed the master as a hard, demanding man, so he did nothing to please him. He gained nothing, returned nothing, and ultimately received nothing.

Our view of our Great and Almighty Master will determine whether we gain or lose, whether we pursue or ignore Him. So, is God good? All the time? For me, the answer is a resounding “Yes!”

I came across this devotion from a few years ago and decided to repost it … I love this baby turtle story!

 “A baby turtle was standing at the bottom of a large tree and with a deep sigh, started to climb. About an hour later, he reached a very high branch and walked along to the end. He turned and spread all four flippers and launched himself off the branch. On landing at the bottom in a pile of soft, dead leaves, he shook himself off, walked back to the bottom of the tree and with a sigh started to climb.

 “About an hour later, he again reached the very high branch, walked along, turned, spread his flippers and flung himself off the branch. Again, he landed in the leaves, shook himself off, went to the bottom of the tree, sighed and started climbing.

 “Watching these proceedings from the end of the branch were two little birds. Mommy bird turned to Daddy bird and said, ‘Don’t you think it’s time we told him he was adopted?’”  *

There are those days when I feel a bit like that baby turtle-bird! I know I am supposed to fly – and not just fly but soar on wings like eagles. Instead, all I seem to have are a bunch of flippers that won’t function like wings. I’ve been adopted into the family of God, I am being conformed to the image of His Dear Son, but I’m just not there yet!

So, I keep climbing up, and I keep crawling out, and I keep launching myself off in faith … and one of these days, these old earth-bound flippers will be wings and I will soar!

Isa 40:31: “those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint.” [HCSB]

*Taken from “Encouragement-Wired,” by Tom Reid.

Toward the very end of the Sermon on the Mount recorded in the Gospel of Matthew are some of the most terrifying words ever uttered or heard.  “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?’  Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!’” [7:21-23]

I have heard many sermons based on the Sermon on the Mount, given a few of them myself. I’ve studied and read commentators thoughts on what Jesus said. I’ve heard people worry about whether they might be included in the dire warning given here. (I have reminded people that if they are worried about their inclusion, they are probably not included.)

The foundation principle of Jesus’ warning is “…but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven.” If you do the will of the Father, you do not need to be warned. If you, however, do not do the will of the Father, you should stop and heed the warning.

And what is the will of the Father about which Jesus is talking?  “[The LORD is] not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” [2 Peter 3:9 NKJV]

It is not our ability to prophesy or drive out demons or perform miracles that matter, it is the condition of our hearts. It is the knowledge of our Lord and Savior and coming to Him in repentance, that will keep us from ever hearing the most terrifying words ever to be uttered … ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!’

The third chapter of Paul’s second letter to Timothy is so relevant for these end times. It is divided into two sections. The first half provides a description of the difficult atmosphere of the last days. The second half give us a picture of the struggles particular to the Christian life.

The chapter ends with the remedy to staying strong amid such things – knowing the Scriptures “which are able to give [us] wisdom for salvation.”

The final few verses tell us just how the Scriptures work at providing that wisdom. “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” [vs 16-17 HCSB]

As we study the inspired Word of God, we are taught, rebuked, corrected, and trained for righteousness. As such, we become complete in God and equipped for those good works He has already ordained for us to do. [Ephesians 2:10]

We must get into the Word of God, and we must let the Word of God get into us! It is vitally important that we don’t just pick and choose what we want out of the Word but instead allow the fullness of Scripture to complete us for all God has chosen for us in our walk with Him.

Without a doubt, I am not a night person. Never have been. I get up early and spend most of my energy in the first part of the day. By 5 PM I am searching for my PJ’s and slippers. Growing older has not lessened that tendency. It has increased it and added the fact that I don’t see as well driving at night anymore.

So, knowing that, I am joining a Bible Study that begins at 6 PM. I attended twice when invited to bring the study, but last Thursday was the first time I attended as a member. As I drove home, I realized just how much I have missed studying Scripture with others.

We have topical series on Sunday mornings at church, and they are excellent. But I miss just opening a book of the Bible and going through it verse by verse.

2 Timothy Chapter 3 is an interesting chapter. It is divided in half, beginning with a description of the difficulties that will be present in the “last days.” Midway, in verse 10, Paul writes about the struggles particular to the Christian life. He ends with the remedy:

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed. You know those who taught you, and you know that from childhood you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are able to give you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.  [vs 14-15 HCSB]

We need to spend time studying the Scriptures “which are able to give [us] wisdom for salvation.”