Devotions

I came across a warning in Psalm 146. It seemed a timely warning following this recent election. No matter what side of the election you are on (winners or losers) it is a warning we should heed. “Don’t put your confidence in powerful people; there is no help for you there.” [vs 3 NLT]

I wonder if we have been putting too much confidence in our government. Are we looking to them for the things we are to be seeking in God?

We should be responsible citizens and vote wisely and always with God’s holy standards and principles in mind. But at the same time, we must recognize that our citizenship here is a temporary one. Our true and eternal citizenship is in heaven. Out true government is a Theocracy … We serve the King of Kings, and LORD of Lords.

In fact, the psalmist opened Psalm 146 with a statement of truth about where our confidence should reside. “Praise the Lord! Let all that I am praise the Lord. I will praise the Lord as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.” [vs1-2 NLT]

Tomorrow, we enter the Christmas season. Tomorrow, we turn our attention to the King of Glory who became a Babe in a Manger to save us from sin and judgment. Let’s put our confidence in Him, Christ Jesus our LORD.

Some days I cruise through the verses that come into my email inbox as either a study verse or verse of the day. Other days I hit the brakes, and you can almost smell the rubber burning as I come to an abrupt stop.

That happened this morning. The verse was from 1John 2:6: “Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.” [NLT]

Immediately I am wondering if I am living my life “as Jesus did.”  That is a tough assignment. But how can I claim that I am “in Christ,” and that Christ is living in me If I do not say the things Jesus said and do the things Jesus did.

Jesus identified Himself with the prophecy found in Isaiah 61. He said that prophecy was fulfilled in Him.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.” [Isaiah 61, Luke 4:18-19 NLT]

That was how Jesus lived. Now His Spirit lives in us. Now we are anointed to proclaim the Gospel to the lost. We are to declare that those who are held captive by sin, and guilt, and shame can be set free. We are to announce that those bound in darkness, those spiritually blinded and oppressed, now can have the light of Christ.

Am I living my life “as Jesus did?” I pray, Father, that I have courage and strength to do so. Amen

No devotion today – just a reminder that we are Children of God. And not only that!

“You are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. ‘Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.’”  [1Peter 2:9-10 NLT]

Have a blessed and joyful Thanksgiving Day!

I am truly thankful for all of you who take the time to read these devotions. I pray you are blessed and encouraged.

Terry

My eyelids droop. Probably from years of removing eye makeup the wrong way! I don’t usually notice they are drooping until I have been looking at my computer screen or reading on my Kindle for a long time without a break. Then suddenly, I’ll sense that my eyes are nearly closed, demanding that I look away and consciously raise them.

One of my recent daily verses came from Psalm 119:18: “Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your instructions.” [NLT]

The verse made me stop and think – which I assume is the intention of daily verses. It reminded me that just as my natural eyelids gradually droop until I am barely seeing … so my “spiritual eyelids” do the same.

I get distracted. My focus shifts. I become complacent (or arrogant). I start concentrating on the things around me. Difficulties, illness, aging, finances threaten my peace.

Thankfully, the Holy Spirit will give me a great big nudge and I’ll realize that my “spiritual eyelids” have drooped once more and almost blinded me to the “wonderful truths” that are mine in God.

His great big nudge will remind me to repent and re-focus… to open my eyes to God’s Faith, Grace, Love, Mercy, Peace, Strength, Courage. And when I respond to Him, all that God is to me and in me becomes clear once again. Amen

There is a little book I love. I pick it up once a year and read through it. It is “The Valley of Vision.” [A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions, edited by Arthur Bennett]

I don’t just “read” those prayers, I “pray” the prayers of Thomas Shepard, Thomas Watson, John Bunyan, Isaac Watts, Charles Spurgeon and others. The prayers of those saints of God expand my vision and deepen my resolve to live the life Christ has called us to live.

A line in today’s prayer caught my attention. “Help me to be … a dispenser of grace as well as a partaker of it …. That the name of Jesus may be glorified in me and I in Him.”  

A “dispenser of grace.”

In Matthew 10:1-10, Jesus called His 12 disciples. He gave them power to deliver and heal. Then He sent them out and commanded them to preach the Gospel, heal, cleanse, and deliver. They were to do this relying totally on the provision and power of God. He provides their motivation in Vs 8, “Freely you have received, [now] freely give.”

They were to be both “a dispenser of grace as well as a partaker of it.”

We have freely partaken of God’s grace … now we are to freely dispense it to others. In doing that the name of Jesus will be glorified. Amen and Amen

I downloaded a new mystery novel to my Kindle. I enjoy reading mysteries to just give my brain a bit of a break from deeper things. I like the old-fashioned whodunits.  I do have one bad habit, especially if the book is a good one … I read the last page to find out how it ends. I do like to know the end from the middle!

Maybe that is part of what I love about being a Christian … I know the end. I know how it is all going to turn out.  The Author of our Faith published it all so that we might know.

The evil instigator and tormenter and his cronies will get their just punishment.  Those who are faithful to the King of kings will receive their rewards. (Read the end of the Book)

I also know that the love of our Father will “endure forever.” Mercy and grace will be the password at the gate. Hope will no longer be needed because everything we hoped for (and more) will be realized. Faith will be retired; in its place we will see the One Who Gave It All for Us.  Love will flow endlessly. Loved ones will be reunited. Bodies and minds that failed will be strong and brilliant beyond imagination. There will be work to do surely; but, it will be glorious and we will never grow bored, tired, sick, or old again.

Oh, yes, I love knowing the end from the middle!

Thank you, Father! We do not have to worry that You will accept and love us at the end; You have already told us that Your love endures forever. Thank you for giving us the reassurance of “the end of the Book” now while we are in the middle of it all! Amen.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18:  Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 

Paul wrote to the Thessalonians the above instructions. The Thessalonians were confused about the return of the Lord. They were also undergoing difficult times. Even Paul, himself, was having difficulties. He reports that he had longed to come to them to strengthen them in their faith, but Satan hindered him. [1 Thessalonians 2:18]

Paul’s instructions seem a bit odd in the face of such things–confusion, difficulties, persecution, and Satan’s hinderance, but Paul understood that only the power of God in our lives will overcome such things. His instructions are a pathway to finding that power.

First, we are to be joyful always. Paul knew that in joy we find strength. “The joy of the LORD is your strength.” [Neh 8:10]

Second, he told us we are to pray continually. Jesus said that “whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”  [Mark 11:24]

When we pray to God for wisdom that overcomes confusion, He will give it. When we ask for peace during difficulties, He will grant it. Paul also knew that if we need power to be an overcomer, we must “give thanks in all circumstances.”

 Paul, David, Daniel, and Jesus understood the power that flows into and through our lives when we live a life of thanksgiving to God. It is power to overcome.  It is also God’s will for us in Christ Jesus.

People were jealous. The king liked him better than they did them. They searched for a way to topple this favored one but could not find anything amiss in him. They decided instead to deceive the king into making a ruling against praying to anyone except the king.  The ruling was only in effect for 30 days, but the punishment for breaking it was severe—death. These jealous men were hoping that the favored one would ignore the ruling and continue to pray to his God so that they could accuse him before the king and do away with him for good.

The favored one of the king, of course, was Daniel. And he did not disappoint his foes. Daniel did exactly what his foes thought he would do.  “Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.” [Dan 6:10 NIV]

Isn’t that amazing?  All Daniel had to do to avoid the lion’s den was wait 30 days for the ruling to expire. Or he could have simply given his thanks to God silently out of sight. But Daniel did not change—not even when giving thanksgiving to God became against the law and punishable by death.

There are places in our world today where men and women face death by publicly acknowledging faith in Christ Jesus, where the giving of thanks to Jesus Christ brings the wrath of others upon them. We need to lift them up in prayer every day so that they might have the courage of Daniel.

Father, I confess today that there have been times in my life where I have failed to offer my thanksgiving to you for at least 30 days. I confess today that I often forget those who are risking their lives for their faith. I pray today to be more like Daniel. And I pray today for those who are suffering and dying for their faith. May their testimony resound around the world. Amen.

David wasn’t the only one to designate people to sing and give praise and thanksgiving before the Lord [1Chronicles 16]. Years later, when the Jews returned from their captivity in Babylon, Nehemiah did the same thing.

When the Babylonians seized Jerusalem and carried off the Jews into captivity, the city was left in ruins. Solomon’s temple was destroyed. The wall which guarded the city was broken down. God put it on Nehemiah’s heart to return from exile and rebuild the wall. Others had already rebuilt a smaller version of the temple.

At the dedication of the wall, Nehemiah brought the Levites from where they were living to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals, harps, and lyres. Singers were also brought in. Two choirs were formed as they went up on top of the wall … Nehemiah directed one to the left and the other to the right. The two choirs gave thanks and took their places in the house of God. Even the women and children rejoiced.  You can read about it in Nehemiah 12:27-43.

Nehemiah reported that “on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.” [v 43 NIV]

“The sound of rejoicing … could be heard far away.” What a testimony! Oh church, is that what the world hears coming from us?  Is that what flows out of our hearts and lives? God gave them great joy. God has given us greater joy in His Son, Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior. Let the world hear today the sound of our rejoicing!

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” [Phil 4:6-7 NIV]

Anxiety surrounds us in this life. Remember the words from yesterday that cause anxiety in our times.  Never forget that the enemy of our soul wants to keep us anxious.  He wants anxiety to take root and burrow deep down in our minds and hearts so that we can never feel safe, never feel peaceful.  He’ll use whatever it takes to generate fear.  That fear will keep us from enjoying life.

That fear will do something even more profound.  It will cause us to doubt God.  How many times after a disaster or diagnosis or death have we been confronted with, “Why did God allow this to happen?”

Unfortunately, “why?” questions are unanswerable. None of us knows the mind of God. And there must always be that acknowledgement of “free will.”

But Paul promises that if we take everything and present it to God through prayer cloaked in thanksgiving, God will guard our hearts and mind with a peace that cannot be understood in the natural. We may not know “why.” We may not see things change for the better. We will, however, have this kryptonite-like peace covering our hearts and minds so that anxiety cannot take root there.

We will be able to face life with all its dangers. We will be able to face God without any doubt that He is for us.