Devotions

First day of March. Meteorologists consider this the first day of spring (for statistical purposes). Astrological spring this year is March 20.

The first day of March (no matter how bad the weather) always sounds like a promise that warm weather and flowers are on the way. March reminds me of the Genesis promise God gave following the flood. “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest … will not cease.” [8:22 HCSB]

This year the last day of March is very special. It is Resurrection Sunday. It is the celebration of another Genesis promise God gave following the fall of mankind. “I will put hostility between you (the serpent) and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.” [Genesis 3:15 HCSB

Genesis 3:15 is called the “protoevangelium” or “first gospel” because it is the first promise of a Savior found in the Scriptures.

The most amazing thing about this “first gospel” is that it shows us that God had already planned the salvation of fallen man – and He revealed it as soon as sin entered the world through Adam’s & Eve’s wrong choices. God was not caught unawares, and was way ahead of Satan’s plan to bring God’s creation down.

God knew He would send a Savior, and He knew just whom that Savior would be. “The Son of God [Christ Jesus] was revealed for this purpose: to destroy the Devil’s works.” [1John 3:8 HCSB]

Nothing thrills my soul more than thinking about that phrase we often find in the Scriptures … child [or children] of God. You can imagine my delight when I opened one of my “Verse of the Day” emails and found this: “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.” [John 1:12 HCSB]

The word translated as “right” in that Scripture is “exousia,” and it means the power to act, or the authority God gives to His children. It can be translated as privilege, power, authority.

To be a child of God is more than just a pretty title. It is a deep down, soul changing position. And that position, while originated in and empowered by God, still requires our cooperation.

Romans 8:29 reminds us that we have a wonderful promise in God, “For those He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.” [HCSB]

That conformation is not some work that magically occurs. It means that when we surrender our lives to Christ Jesus our LORD, the Spirit of Christ transforms our inner essence from sinner to child of God. Now we cooperate with the Holy Spirit in that inner essence to conform our thoughts, decisions, attitudes, choices, and behavior.

When we do that, we take on the image of Christ and people who see us can see Christ through us. Isn’t that the most thrilling thought!  Amen & Amen.

Have you ever noticed how hard it is to stay on a diet and how easy it is to fall off one. I can vow to drive past the donut or ice cream shop and even do it for weeks or months. Then I stop once … just once. And then it becomes so easy to stop twice, until it is again a daily habit. It is as if I never stayed away.

It is also difficult to stay on a spiritually good track if all we focus on is what we should not be doing.  We can’t just stay empty – we need to fill ourselves with spiritually good things.

If we want to be spiritually heart healthy, we need to ….

Think praiseworthy things: Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brothers and sisters, 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.”

Speak Praiseworthy Things: Ephesians 5:19-20: “Speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music from your heart to the LORD, giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our LORD Jesus Christ.”

Pursue Praiseworthy Things: 2 Timothy 2:22: “…pursue righteousness, faith[fulness], love, and peace.”

Holy Spirit, help us fill our hearts with praiseworthy things that glorify you! Amen.

The last risk factor for our spirit hearts is found in how we entertain the thoughts that often invade our minds.

I had a really difficult time falling and staying asleep the other night. I just could not shut my mind down. One thought after another floated through. It was tough to sort through everything.

Our thoughts can come from several sources. Sometimes they originate from our own rebellious desires or anxieties. Our dead sin nature often forgets that it is dead and tries to lead us back to old ways. It wants us to abandon the new creation and move back into the old.

The enemy of our soul is also adept at shooting those fiery darts our way. We can also succumb to the world’s propaganda and attitudes that are aimed at us continually.

Finally, our thoughts can flow from the Holy Spirit in us leading us, providing wisdom, and showing us what God would have us be and do.

We need to identify who is talking to us … and if it is not the Holy Spirit, we need to make sure that we are not entertaining the thoughts that come from the world, our flesh, and the devil. Entertaining means we allow those unholy thoughts to progress and take root.  2 Corinthians commands us to take “every thought captive to obey Christ.” [vs 5b HCSB]

LORD, keep our minds pure and clean. Give us discernment to recognize the origins of our thought life and the spiritual power to take authority over everything that is not of you. Amen

One of the greatest risk factors for our hearts is Pride. The Scriptures are filled with warnings against pride and how God views pride.

“Everyone with a proud heart is detestable to the Lord; be assured, he will not go unpunished.” [Proverbs 16:5 HCSB]

Pride is extremely dangerous. Pride takes credit for what God has done. It takes credit for the talents God created within us, credit for the salvation / grace He has freely given us, credit for everything we have done since being saved.

“What do you have that you didn’t receive. If in fact you did receive it, why do you boast as if you hadn’t received it.” [1 Corinthians 4:7 HCSB]

Pride can lead to other deeper sins, such as arrogance, vanity, and contempt of others. It is extremely harmful to our hearts because it prevents us from admitting our faults and learning from our mistakes. It can also keep us from seeking help when we need it.

It especially keeps us from seeking God’s help. Psalm 10:4 tells us that pride makes us so consumed with ourselves that our hearts have no room to seek God.

Lord, keep me from a spirit of pride, keep me humble before you with a grateful heart for all you have done, are doing, and will do in me, for me, and through me. Amen

Anger is a major attitude of our culture, and it is becoming more prevalent. We are a frustrated society, often made more frustrated by the media. We are frustrated with politics, economics, big corporations, governments, etc. Violence is the frequent choice of many to alleviate frustration and violent responses are becoming more prevalent.

Anger, however, is one of the risk factors for our spiritual hearts. Paul wrote, “All bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander must be removed from you, along with all malice. And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.” [Ephesians 4:31-32]

There are many types of anger, some are justified. But anger becomes sinful when it is motivated by pride or bitterness. Then it becomes unproductive and distorts God’s purposes.

The Christian is to avoid anger. We are to guard our hearts against anger-type responses to circumstances and difficulties. We are instead to be kind, compassionate and forgiving – always with the focus that God forgave us through the sacrifice of Christ.

And we must always keep in mind that we do not battle as the world battles. “For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.” [Ephesians 6:12 HCSB]

And that battle is won on our knees!

“For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, the sheep under His care. Today, if you hear His voice: Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah, as on that day at Massah in the wilderness.” [Psalm 95:7-8 HCSB]

One of the greatest risk factors for our spiritual hearts is to allow them to become hardened. Here the Psalmist reminds his readers that the Israelites fell victim to that during their trek in the wilderness.  The writer to Hebrews will repeat this warning three times in the Book of Hebrews. [3:8, 3:15, 4:7]

But what is involved in the hardening process?

Hardening of our hearts is an inability to see, understand, hear but most of all an inability to remember what God has done and continues to do for us.

When life gets difficult (or if we allow ourselves to grow complacent), we can forget how God has blessed us and what He has already done for us. That exact thing was often said of the nation of Israel … “They forgot the LORD their God.” [1 Samuel 12:9]

I have often said that if God never does another thing for me, I still cannot say thank you enough for His amazing grace and love and salvation in taking me out of my darkness and putting me into the Kingdom of His Dear Son.

LORD, keep my heart soft before you. May I never forget all you have done for me. Amen