Past Devotions

The LORD’s Right Hand!

by TerryLema

I am spending a couple days living in and praying through Psalm 118. When I read the verses God chose for today, my heart soared from this proclamation in the Old Testament to its fulfillment in the New. “Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous: ‘The LORD’s right hand has done mighty things! The LORD’s right hand is lifted high; the LORD’s right hand has done mighty things!’” [ vs15-16]

The “Right Hand of the LORD” stands for Jehovah’s omnipotence, His power and strength. It is the place of authority, the place where intercession is made, and blessings and forgiveness are granted. Seated in that place is our LORD Christ Jesus.

Heb 12:2-3: “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

Everything in the world at this moment is designed to cause weariness and make us lose heart. The world’s message leads to hopelessness. It makes us dread each day, fear what we might have to face, and generates a desire to just quit. The world’s messages of fear are hard to ignore and difficult to escape.

Believers, however, hear and see a different message. We are told to fix our eyes on Jesus. We are also told why to do that – our Jesus is sitting in that place of authority and power. We are to remind ourselves of what He endured in order to be exalted to that place. He endured the cross with all its pain and shame for us. He took upon His Very Body, Soul and Spirit every sin, every perversion of all mankind and through that brought freedom and salvation for any who come to Him in repentance.

When we keep our eyes on Him, we keep our eyes on the Almighty Power and Glory of God. Then “Shouts of joy and victory [will] resound in the tents of [those made] righteous” through Him. That is where we should be looking right now. That is the message we should be heeding.

That is the message we should be shouting from our tents to this world of gloom and doom. Our God Reigns in Power and Authority. “The LORD’s right hand has done mighty things! The LORD’s right hand is lifted high; the LORD’s right hand has done mighty things!” Thank you, King Jesus. Amen & Amen.

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The Better Way

by TerryLema

I am amazed at how relevant Psalm 118 is to our present situation with the threatening virus in our midst and the panic in many places because of it. When I needed an attitude adjustment a while back, after succumbing to the world’s message for a couple days, God took me to Psalm 118. He reminded me that today, this day, is His day, just as all the others are. If I keep my thoughts and attitudes secured in Him, I can rejoice rather than be frustrated or fearful.

He also reminded me to pray through Psalm 118, so today’s prayer will be centered on verses 8-9: “It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.”

As I read those verses again this morning, my immediate thought was “where am I looking for answers?” Am I looking to man, to scientists, to doctors for a cure for this virus that is in our midst? Am I looking to politicians to set us free from our shelter-in-place directives? Just whom am I trusting to get through this virus-and-fear-pandemic?

This pandemic has certainly lowered our focus from the heavenlies to what is happening all around us. We seek daily news reports trying to learn if someone has found a vaccine or a treatment. We wonder each day when the shelter-at-home directives will be lifted and we can return to our normal lives, jobs, school, church. By lowering our focus to these issues (which granted are important issues) we move our trust from the LORD to men.

We must be aware of these things, but the most vital of all issues is where we are placing our trust, where we are taking refuge. It is, as the psalmist reminds us, better to take our refuge in the LORD. He is the one who will give the scientists the knowledge and wisdom to find the cure. He is the one who will govern where this country is heading. He is sovereign over all things.

Today, I am praying that my focus remains on the LORD; that the peace, the joy, the security I so long for is found in Him. I am praying that He supplies men and women with the knowledge to overcome this virus, and politicians with the wisdom to re-open this nation. But whatever men do … He will still be my refuge and I can, I will, trust in Him.

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He Set Me Free!

by TerryLema

When I needed an attitude adjustment, God took me to Psalm 118, and the reminder that “This is the day the LORD has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it.”

In order not to allow my attitude to become maladjusted again, God is having me pray through the Psalm. Today I am praying through verses 5-7: “In my anguish I cried to the LORD, and he answered by setting me free. The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? The LORD is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies.”

What is the greatest fear playing out in the world today? It is the fear of death. We are sheltered-in-place because we fear what a virus can do to us. It not only has the potential of making us sick, it has the potential to kill us. We are bombarded with that fact constantly every day. The airways are filled with the latest statistics about how many are acquiring the virus, how many are on ventilators, how many have died, where the latest outbreak has occurred. We leave our homes in trepidation and see people wearing masks, avoiding contact with others. We cannot help but be fearful.

The Psalmist reminds us however, that when we cry out to God, His answer is to set us free from that fear. He reminds us that whether we shelter-at-home or venture out He is with us. He is our helper. Paul confirms that in 2 Timothy 1:7: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

God is with us. I will add my voice to that of the psalmist, “I will not be afraid. What can man [or virus] do to me?” All my days are already numbered. When it is my time to go, via virus or some other conveyance, I will march into the presence of my God in triumph.

Father, remind us today that you are with us every moment, whether we are inside our homes or outside of them. Keep us in Your precious care. Give us that spirit of power, love, and a sound mind so that every fear is driven far from us. Amen & Amen.

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Shout it!

by TerryLema

I needed an attitude adjustment from the LORD last week (after expressing my frustration for everyone to see, and ranting about the extension of the Stay-in-Place order by our governor). When you need an attitude adjustment, God does not wait long to bring it!

He brought the words of Psalm 118:24 to life in front of me, “This is the day the LORD has made, let us be glad and rejoice in it,” and with them came a call to repentance. I plan on living and praying in Psalm 118 for a few days and am hoping you will join me.

 Psalm 118 begins (and ends) with the words, “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.”

Immediately after introducing that thought, the psalmist calls upon the nation of Israel and the house of Aaron (the priesthood) to also acknowledge that the love of the LORD endures forever. Then to make sure that no one is exempt from acknowledging that truth, he adds: “Let those who fear the LORD say: ‘His love endures forever.’”

God’s love endures; it endures forever. The KJV and NKJV translate it this way, “His mercy endures forever.”

Whether love or mercy, the word means God’s favor, loving kindness, mercy, goodness. Forever means just that, forever. God’s love will not disappear, dissipate, or disappoint. We do not need to beg for it, He gives it willingly to all who fear Him. I need never fear that I will wake up some morning and find God’s love has left me, or that there is not enough mercy for that day.

Because of the greatness of God’s love that remains forever, we are to live lives of thankfulness. We are not simply to be grateful; we are to express that gratefulness. That was where I got off base last week. I had not been thanking my Precious Savior as I should have been. When my voice grew silent, the world’s frustrating messages grew louder. When I began again to voice my thanksgiving, I drowned out the world’s messages.

 

Try that today – it works!

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My Attitude Adjustment

by TerryLema

Occasionally, I have been putting a short video out on Facebook during this period of “Shelter-at-Home.” It is supposed to be a short message of hope and encouragement. Unfortunately, last Wednesday and Thursday, it was more a video of frustration and a rant against the church doors remaining closed, in Idaho at least until April 30. I mentioned in one of the videos, jokingly, that I would probably have to repent and get an attitude adjustment from the LORD. One should never joke about such things.

Thursday afternoon I walked past a plaque on my china cabinet that contained the simple message, “This is the day the LORD has made, let us be glad and rejoice in it.” [Psalm 118, verse 24]

 It was not long after reading those words that the LORD began my attitude adjustment. I repented before Him, and Friday morning after praying through Psalm 118, I also repented in my morning video.

A long time ago, perhaps 45 years, I was told that my “service” gifts were those of encouragement in the first position, followed by teaching. I have found that to be true. I am an encourager. I encourage through the gift of teaching. I have learned, however, that even “encouragers” can become discouraged at times, especially when we take our eyes off the “Great Encourager” and start listening to what the world is saying. And the world has been saying quite a lot lately.

God brought me back with that simple verse from Psalm 118. Friday morning, I began to pray through that Psalm.

I am not sure if any of you are discouraged or frustrated as I was. I am not sure if the world’s messages to you have become louder than the message of love from Father God. I am not sure if you need an attitude adjustment as I did.

I am sure that God wants His message to be louder than all the others. I am sure that if this shelter-at-home lifestyle goes on much longer, I am going to need once again to be reminded of God’s love message to us. So, over the next few days, let us live and pray together in Psalm 118.

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Away From Temptation & Evil

by TerryLema

We come to the end of The LORD’s Prayer today with the last request to our Father God. “And do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from the evil one.”

 I have often heard people debate about those words and whether God leads us “into” temptation. We do not need God to lead us to temptation, we can find that readily on our own. We need God to lead us away from temptation and that can be inferred from what Jesus told us to pray.

“Our Father … lead us away from temptation and deliver us from the evil one who enjoys tempting us!” [paraphrased]

James is quite clear when he describes the origin of temptation and the progression of sin and death in James 1:12-15: “Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” [NKJV]

Evil desires are endemic to fallen mankind. While I do not believe the enemy of our soul can read our minds, he can certainly throw disgusting thoughts toward them, and then he can judge by our response just how to tempt us next time. If we succumb to temptations that arouse anger, guess how we will be tempted going forward. If we display pride and arrogance, how many ways do you think the enemy will tempt us to do that again. If we fall into greed and covetousness, he will promote that.

The enemy of our soul will never waste an opportunity to draw us away to sin. We need to cover ourselves in prayer as we face each day.

Father, by the power of Your Holy Spirit, lead us away from temptation. Give us victory over all the attempts of the enemy to entice us. Keep us in Your loving care, close to Your heart, where no evil may befall us. Amen & Amen.

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Repentance & Forgiveness

by TerryLema

Ah, the next part of The LORD’s Prayer is a part which often stops us in our tracks. “And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.”

Asking for and giving forgiveness is not as easy as it sounds. I saw this statement on a friend’s Facebook page and thought how true it is. “We repent enough to be forgiven, but do we surrender enough to be changed?”

Repentance is both a single act for specific sin as well as a way of life for the Christian. Repentance for specific sin brings God’s forgiveness. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” [1 John 1:9]

Repentance as a lifestyle is our daily course correction, keeping us pursuing God, on the narrow pathway, surrendering every thought, word, and deed to His rule daily. It is a repentance that changes us, conforms us to the image of His dear Son.

While forgiveness following our repentance before God is received by us, it must also be granted to others. Therein lies part of the problem. Jesus tells us we must forgive even when others do not repent of their wronging us. “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” [Mark 11:25 NIV]

In that command Jesus does not put any of the responsibility for forgiveness on the other person. He puts it squarely on us. For two reasons. First, for our own benefit. When we hold unforgiveness in our hearts towards another, that unforgiveness chains us to that person. When we forgive, we set ourselves free.

Second, when we hold unforgiveness in our hearts towards another, we put a barrier between us and our Father. We render ourselves unable to receive good things from our Father when we fail to grant those same good things to others.

It is not always easy to ask for or grant forgiveness … but oh, beloved, it is vitally important that we do. God bless you.

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Today’s Needs

by TerryLema

“Give us today our daily bread.” Wow(!), if there was ever a prayer for our current situation, it is this one. With the shelter-in-place orders many businesses have had to shut down and furlough or lay off employees. People who live paycheck to paycheck are especially hurting. Those who have a little savings are seeing that deplete rapidly.

Fear has driven some to hoarding things like toilet paper, hand sanitizer, sanitizing wipes, bleach. Others are searching everywhere to find those items. Our daily needs have consumed us and taken over much of our daily endeavors. When, if, the economy starts up once again, it may take quite a while for it to get back to where it was prior to the fear-pandemic. There is the looming specter that it may never do so.

Jesus tells us that in our relationship with our Father, we are to pray to Him and depend upon Him for our daily needs. We are to rely on Him for our daily care. We cannot change what happened yesterday, we cannot control what will happen tomorrow. We have this day and this day only. We must learn to seek and be aware of God’s presence and care for the day in which we live. We cannot put that off to the future. To do that means we may never be aware of it.

I must admit that as I watch the rolls of toilet paper on my garage shelves dwindle that I become a bit anxious. But then I remember that God already knew about my circumstances this date, April 19. He is mindful of my needs. I need but seek Him to find the assurance of His care for me today.

What is your greatest need today? May I be so bold to tell you that it may not be what you think it is? Your greatest need, my greatest need, is simple – to have the wonderful presence of God’s Holy Spirit within. When we live in the awareness of His presence, fear of “what may happen” is banished.

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On Earth, As in Heaven

by TerryLema

When Jesus taught His disciples the LORD’s prayer, He told them to pray “Your Kingdom Come.” That has a two-fold meaning. First that His Kingdom takes up residence within us through our relationship with Him in the power of the Holy Spirit. Second, that every day we look to the Second Coming of Christ, when the King of Kings and Lord of Lords will set up His Everlasting Kingdom, all evil banished forever. In the meantime, Jesus added, we should pray to our Father, “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

God’s will is done in heaven, without any discord, disagreement or dissension. Not so on earth.

The greatest curse of our generation is an attitude of entitlement. We expect, and sometimes demand that our wants be satisfied by others. One definition I read says: An entitlement mentality is a state of mind in which an individual comes to believe that privileges are instead rights, and that they are to be expected as a matter of course.

 Unfortunately, that entitlement mentality has invaded the church as well. We seek out a church body not because of what we can offer (or because God has chosen this place for us), but because of what they can provide for us. As dangerous as that is, it is even more so when we apply that mentality to our relationship with God.

We have no right to demand anything of God—not wealth, health, anointing, success, financial security, or anything else. Good Friday should have taught us that. If Jesus prayed in the garden to His father, “Not my will but Yours Father,” who are we to demand “not Your will Father, but mine.”

God has brought us by the blood of Christ Jesus into the marvelous privilege of relationship with Him. He has promised to never leave us, nor forsake us, and to take us through storms, floods, and fire. Beyond that, anything we receive is a gracious blessing of His love and mercy.

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The Voice of a Great Multitude Singing

by TerryLema

One last thought today on the part of Jesus’ prayer that reminds us to pray, “Your Kingdom Come.” It is a simple thought. “The LORD God Omnipotent Reigns!”

Yes, we are to be praying for God’s Kingdom to come. We looked at that two-part focus. First, that God’s Kingdom takes up residence within us. That it changes us from the inside out, giving credence to our testimony that God is our Father. Second, we look every day for the return of our Savior and King, Christ Jesus. Our prayer is to be, “Amen. Even so, come LORD Jesus.”

Let us not, however, fall into the mistaken belief that God is waiting off somewhere to assume the Throne and Reign over all. That has never been the issue. Our God is on the Throne today, as He has been since eternity past and will be into eternity future. There is no argument, there is no challenge to His reign that will succeed. He rules over what He created. Man may not like the idea. Man may fight against His reign. But that changes naught. Our God is still on the Throne.

One of the greatest tributes to the reign of God is the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah. Once cannot listen to that chorus without sensing just a smidgen of what it must be like to hear those words sung in the heavenlies. Handel used the words from Revelation 19:6: “And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, ‘Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!’” [NKJV]

If you are worried about a virus today – let me remind you, “The LORD God Omnipotent Reigns!”

If you are worried about finances or employment today – let me remind you, “The LORD God Omnipotent Reigns!”

If you are worried about this country’s future today – let me remind you, “The LORD God Omnipotent Reigns!”

If you are just worried today – let me remind you, “The LORD God Omnipotent Reigns!”

Take a moment and revive your soul – listen to possibly the greatest piece of music ever written: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUZEtVbJT5c

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