Devotions - Prayer

Jesus commands us to love as He did, and Jesus proved His Love by giving up His rights, His Will, His desires and ultimately His Life.
*”A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you…”John 13:34

“I submit to you that if a man hasn’t discovered something he will die for, he isn’t fit to live” -Martin Luther King

Luke 22:44 “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”

It is interesting that Luke is the only one of the gospel writers to mention that Jesus’ sweat was as great drops of blood. This is probably because Luke was a physician (Col. 4:14), and therefore, this had special significance to him.

Was Jesus trying to get out of His mission? It is never wrong to express our true feelings to God. Jesus exposed His dread of the coming trials, but He also reaffirmed His commitment to do what God wanted.
The cup Jesus spoke of meant the terrible agony He knew He would endure-not only the horror of the crucifixion but, even worse, the “Total Separation from God”  that He would have to experience in order to die for the world’s sins.

Jesus’ sufferings for us were more than just physical. In the garden, before He suffered physically, He suffered emotionally, almost to the point of death.
As Luke records, an angel had to come and give Him strength or the emotional struggle alone would have killed Him.

All that Jesus did was motivated solely by LOVE.
*** It was for the joy that was set before Him that He endured going to the cross. **Jesus didn’t do what He did to save us out of pity or a sense of obligation as our Creator.
***Jesus did it because He loves us.

When God blesses us and has given us plenty within his church, sometimes we become complacent.
* God needs “full-service” action.
*** Our mission is to impact the world, not to huddle within the church.

God needs more of us INDIVIDUALLY. Each one of us has different gifts and talents, as well as an individual mission.

In order for me to fulfill my mission, I must take responsibility for my actions. *Each member must be held accountable for their purpose.
* The church is NOT about me, but about doing God’s will (Luke 22:42).
* We must be willing to deny self (Matthew 16:24).

God needs more of us COLLECTIVELY. Christ realized that He was going to be on this world physically, and that He needed His work to be completed with help. Ask someone for help if your project seems to be too much to bear on your own. We are dependent upon one another. Ephesians 4:15, 16; Romans 12: 4,5. Everyone has a gift, and it’s meant to work WITH others.

God needs more of us NUMERICALLY. God needs us to spread the Word. He needs us to work in His kingdom. Though we may have other responsibilities, GOD IS THE ONE WHO’S BLESSED US. We need to be responsive to His work and His will.

We can love one another by sharing each other’s burdens. We have a lot of talkers in the Body of Christ, but what we need are more believers willing to Listen to His Word and Pray.
*  “Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.”. James 5:16

Loyalty is God’s Love in action.
* “A friend loves at all times.”
Proverbs 17:17
*True friends should stay with you through the good times as well as the hard times.
* Love should be acted upon more so than declared. Love does not see the needy and revoke compassion.

1 John 4:16 We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.
*Knowing that God is love is perfect because there aren’t any flaws in God and when anyone receives God’s love then its real, genuine, perfect, and lasts forever!

I love you Lord today and worship you with all by soul and with all my strength I exalt you Father. I am so grateful and so  thankful to you Lord for all that you do for me and for how you love me. You love me Lord and I am so happy and so content to know that you love me. You think of me and you care about what happens to me and I am so grateful and I thank you Lord. I give You All the Praise and Glory. In Jesus Name. Amen
“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You. Show me the way I should go, for to You I lift up my soul.” – Psalm 143:8

Many people find it difficult to think of God as a loving Father. They see Him
through eyes clouded with the pain of past experiences with an ungodly father
or stepfather.

Thousands of Christians do not believe God loves them because their earthly
father abandoned, wounded, or grieved them so badly. I pray that this message
will speak not only to them but also to those of you who have not yet
discovered the depths of our heavenly Father’s love!

“But thanks be to God! He gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians
15:57

Listen to how God described Himself to Moses:
“The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in
goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and
transgression and sin . . .” (Exodus 34:6-7).

God, Your Heavenly Father Loves you so much that His only Son Jesus Became a Curse
for you and me!
*Understanding the cry of Jesus from the cross is found in Paul’s letter to the Galatians:
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is
written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree'”. (Galatians 3:13, NIV).

To be cursed is to be “removed from the Presence of God”, to be set outside the camp, to
be cut off from His benefits.

On the cross, Jesus was cursed. That is, He represented the Jewish nation of covenant
breakers who were exposed to the curse and took the full measure of the curse on
Himself.
As the Lamb of God,(even though Jesus Never Sinned) the Sin Bearer, Jesus was cut off
from the presence of God.

On the cross, Jesus entered into the experience of forsakenness on OUR behalf.

God is too holy to even look at iniquity. God the Father turned His back on the Son,
cursing Him while He hung on the cross FOR OUR SINS.
* His scream was the scream of the damned. For US Sinners! What Love!

*Reflect on what Jesus did for YOU on Calvary.
* Give thanks for the Lamb of God who bore your sin.

When we are in the midst of our trials or thoughts of our bad past experiences we forget
what God has said about His
own nature. Yet, if we would only believe Him in such times, we would have great assurance in our souls.
From cover to cover, the Bible speaks to us as God’s voice, revealing to us how Tender
and Loving He is.

He is ready to forgive at all times. “For You, Lord, are good, and ready to
forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You” (Psalm 86:5).

He is patient with us, full of tenderness and mercy.
*“Great are Your tender mercies, O Lord” (Psalm 119:156).
*“The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy”.
(Psalm 145:8).

When you go to the Lord in prayer and worship, be very careful what kind of
image of God you take into His presence! You must be fully convinced of His love for
you and believe that He is all He says He is! “Your Heavenly Father”!

*Only because of Jesus are we able to extend unconditional forgiveness. If we love and
serve Him, He will give us the grace and the inner power we need to forgive others.
* “…for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in
the presence of Christ.”
2 Corinthians 2:10

**If we want to understand anything about God we have to Study HIS word to
understand His Nature and His Character.
*His word is Living and Active and is proceeding Truth for today.
Luke 11:28 Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and
put it into practice.”

Mark 14:36 “And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this
cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.”

We are instructed to call God our Father, revealing the kind, gentle, loving nature of our
God. The term “Abba” is an affectionate term that a young child calls his father, which
corresponds to our term “daddy.” It is a term used to express “Intimacy and Affectionate
Fondness”.
*”Daddy” removes the idea of God as a strict judge and carries the image of Him as a
loving Father who cares, understands, and is our best friend.

“Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called
the sons of God” (1 Jn. 3:1).

*We ARE sons of God by adoption. Jesus was the Son of God by nature.
*** Jesus purchased us and made us adopted sons of God.
**We are not just heirs, we are joint-heirs with Christ.
To think that we share equally with the one who has inherited everything God is, and has,
is beyond comprehension.

Thank You Heavenly Father for giving up your one and only Son, Jesus for MY Sins!
You truly are my Loving Father that has my best interest in mind for your Glory. Thank
You Father for adopting me as Your Son being joint-heirs with Christ. This is True
LOVE!
I am so so blessed each day by You Lord. Help me to share this Great News of Your
Perfect Love with others. In Jesus Name, Amen

“But thanks be to God! He gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians
15:57