Devotions - Prayer
“But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness”. (Rom. 6:17-18).
Becoming a new person in Christ is part of a life-long journey that begins at conversion.
Before coming to Christ, we were living (in a metaphorical sense) in Egypt, in the land of bondage.
Just as the people of Israel toiled as slaves in Egypt, WE were slaves to sin and worldly ambition. (Addicted to Sin)
Before we came to Christ, we sweated and toiled to build our career and acquire material possessions.
*Work was our idol.
*Greed was our taskmaster.
We may have had all the trappings of power in the business world – We didn’t run our career; our career ran us!!!! (Been there).
Jesus once said, “No servant can serve two masters. You cannot serve both God and money” (Luke 16:13).
Jesus was saying that those who spend their lives seeking only worldly gain are idolaters.
*No one can serve two masters.
*No one can worship both the true God and a false god (anything taking 1st place in our hearts other then God Himself).
We cannot experience the grace that God gives to His children because we are too busy striving for riches and power.
The only way we can be free is to turn away from worldly stuff and allow the One true God to transform us into a different person that will bring Him Glory.
Romans 12:1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Ask yourself today:
Who or What really is #1 in my heart and my time and actions?
2 Chronicles 7:14 Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. 15 My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place.
Thank You Jesus for hearing my prayer of repentance this day. Amen
Read MoreJesus taught that our perspective in life, the way we view the world, affects every detail of our lives. Therefore it is of utmost importance. How we view God and how we think God views us will be of great importance..
Two areas to look at with the contrasts of views (eternal vs. temporal)
We live our lives on the basis of our belief system. BUT where do we get our beliefs from?
People act on what they BELIEVE to be true even if their beliefs are not true.
TEMPORAL VIEW: (1 Corinthians 1:20-25)
Here everything is relative. There are no absolutes. Because our human perspective is based on knowledge and experience, it is limited and incomplete.
ETERNAL VIEW: (1 Corinthians 2:6-9)
An eternal perspective enables us to live in light of God’s truth rather than what we perceive to be true through our limited knowledge.
Living according to God’s wisdom will appear to be foolishness to the world but is based on the true measure of reality: God’s eternal Truth. John 14:6 Psalm 119:160
It is easy to believe the wisdom of men and thus pursue VALUES with our own interests and comfort as the goal. However, what satisfies and gratifies us now is not necessarily in our best interest in light of eternity.
Left to ourselves, we’re stubborn, prideful, sinful, and utterly hopeless.
But praise God that Jesus Christ has done the work I couldn’t— taking away my sins, and given me eternal life when I certainly didn’t deserve it!
• Any chance you had of getting to heaven on your own was destroyed by sin.
• But Christ destroyed the power of sin on the cross to give you & me eternal life if we’ll only trust in Him.
• Put your faith in Christ, not yourself, for eternal life. It’s His work alone that can save you!
The true perspective is that, if we are Christians, we do not belong to this world. Our true home is in heaven. If this is our view, then we will not want to have anything to do with the world’s values. We are just passing through this life!
How to Develop an Eternal Perspective. (Eph. 5:18, Col. 3:16)
This involves both taking in the truth and acting on it.
DON’T TRUST IN YOUR OWN WORKS TO GET YOU TO HEAVEN. TRUST IN CHRIST’S WORK ALONE FOR ETERNAL LIFE!
Thank you Jesus for loving us so much you took our sins away at the cross and now through You we have Victory over this world. Amen
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“Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me. Take up shield and buckler; arise and come to my aid. Brandish spear and javelin against those who pursue me. Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.””Psalm 35:1–3
That was a prayer of David in a time of deep distress, a time when he felt himself surrounded by enemies pressing in against him and he saw no way to keep them out.
So He cried out to the Lord and said, “Lord, take Your stand against my enemies. Take up Your mighty spiritual weapons and block the way against them.”
The great conclusive answer to that prayer of David came through David’s greater son, the Lord Jesus Christ, about a thousand years later.
On the cross, Jesus did just that.
- He blocked the way against all the enemies of our soul.
- He stopped the way.
- He put an end to Satan’s claims.
- He set a limit to Satan’s territory.
- He created a boundary that Satan cannot pass over.
Remember this: the cross is God’s great stop sign.
The devil may be moving in against us at full speed, but when we put up the cross, he slams on his brakes and comes to a screeching halt because he cannot pass the cross. That’s where Jesus stopped the way against all our enemies. Now that is victory! SEE 1 JOHN 4:4
Eph. 6:11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.
2 Corinthians 10:3 We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. 4 We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.
God will come to my rescue against my enemies. But David also spoke to God about praying for his enemies.
*I will put faith in God regarding the evil powers of this world. I know that HE will protect me and my family.
*I will also pray for my enemies.
Lord thank you for this glorious day of your protection. Thank you for your unfailing love and your mercy never seize. Again thank you and we love you. We bring back all the honor and glory through the beautiful name of Jesus Christ. Amen
Read MorePsalm 78 core message addresses the importance of the home and the vital role of parents.
*This is a Psalm of instruction covering Israel’s history from Egypt and the Exodus to the time of David.
*It records the failure of the people of Israel, but it also records the steadfast faithfulness of the Lord and His wonderful works and mercy.
Ironically, one of their greatest failures was their failure as parents.
Note the emphasis of Psalm 127:“Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, To retire late, To eat the bread of painful labors; For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep. (Psalm 127:1-2)
Dads and moms bring ingredients into the home that are crucial to the spiritual and emotional stability of the home.
• Together they bring a blend of femininity and masculinity which in many ways reveal the image of God.
• These two influences together, especially when they are the product of godly parentage, are vital forces in shaping spiritually and psychologically healthy children.
• If I as a parent fail to communicate God’s truth to my children, then I am guilty of hiding from them the most important information in the world. TRUTH!
Psalm 78 stresses two great needs and responsibilities that I have as believing parent:
(1) I must put my trust in God’s Word above the ideas of men for all areas of life, including, the raising and training of my children.
(2) But if I am going to do that, I also need to communicate the character of the Bible as indeed the Word of God, an objective, inerrant, infallible guide and authority that always takes precedence over the ideas of men and the world.
The truth and instructions of Scripture are not designed for my hurt, but for my blessing.
Holy Father, I confess my sin of not always being a parent or grandparent that reflects complete trust in You and thereby have hurt my children’s path to knowing You; O Holy Father, let me hear Your Voice, that Your tone may be familiar while the noise of the world dies away. May the music I hear be the sound of Your speaking; please give me ears to hear Your voice; In the Name of my Lord Jesus Christ. Amen
Read MoreBe humble and give more honor to others than to yourselves” (Philippians 2:3b ).
Pride destroys relationships. It shows up in a lot of different ways, like criticism, competition, stubbornness, and superficiality.
The problem with pride is it’s self-deceiving. Everybody else can see it in us but us. When you have a problem with pride, you don’t see it in your life.
Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride leads to destruction; a proud attitude brings ruin”. I love this verse in the Message paraphrase: “First pride, then the crash — the bigger the ego, the harder the fall.”
- Pride destroys relationships, but humility is the antidote to pride.
- Humility builds relationships.
The Bible says in 1 Peter 3:8, “Live in harmony, be sympathetic, love each other, have compassion, and be humble”.
How are you and I going to grow in humility?
It happens by letting Jesus Christ begin to control our thoughts and hearts and attitudes and reactions. He’s got to be a part of this. Ephesians 4:23-24 says, “Let the Spirit change your way of thinking and make you into a new person” .
How do you become a new person? How do you start to think in a different way?
The basic law of relationships is this: You tend to become like the people you spend time with.
- If you spend time with grumpy people, you get grumpier.
- If you spend time with people in addictions, you get addicted.
- If you spend time with people that have gratitude, you have gratitude.
- If you spend time with happy people, you get happier.
- If you spend time with selfish people, you become selfish.
- If you spend time with people who do not respect others, you will not respect others.
If you want to have more humility, spend time with Jesus Christ. He is humble. He wants a relationship with you. He wants you to spend time with him in prayer and reading his Word and talking to him. He is humble, and as you get to know him, you’ll become more like him.
“Be humble and give more honor to others than to yourselves … You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to” (Philippians 2:3b, 5-6.
No one has done anything more humble than Jesus, coming from Heaven to Earth to become a man, live for us, give his life for us, and be resurrected for us.
When you spend time with him, it makes you more humble, and that builds your relationships.
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They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah. Acts 5:40b-42
The apostles did not stop. They counted themselves fortunate to suffer dishonor for his name. It seems to take Christians so long to face up to the simple declaration of Scripture that, when they were called to be a Christian, they were called to suffer.
As Paul said in his letter to the Philippians, For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him. (Philippians 1:29). We are called to this.
Suffering is an integral part of the Christian experience. It is not something that is unusual or reserved for just a few; it is for all. Peter wrote, Do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.(1 Peter 4:12). Don’t think it is strange. You go through problems, difficulties, heartaches, disappointments, ostracism and coolness from others, all for the sake of the Name. Don’t think that is strange. It is that to which we are called.
In a world that is run by illusions, governed by deceptions, and is a victim of lies and maliciously evil falsehoods, what else can we expect if we stand for the truth?
- People will think we are strange, at times.
- People will think we react in funny ways. There will be some degree of coolness, even among those who are, in many other ways, friendly toward us.
- They will think we are a little odd. But it is they who are odd; it is we who are normal. When a normal person lives in a world full of oddballs, they think he’s odd. But that is the suffering to which he is called.
Like these disciples, we ought to thank God for it and rejoice in it. Jesus said that, didn’t he? Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my name’s sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad, … for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you... (Matthew 5:11-12 KJV).
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1 John 2:2 And he(Jesus) is the propitiation for our sins: and not for our’s only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
*Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
*Jesus Christ, is our advocate who pleads our case before God when we sin. He is the ONLY atonement that satisfies God. So NO WORKS OF THE FLESH can atone for our sins.
What Does “Propitiation” Mean? Propitiation is a big word that means satisfaction.
Because God is a holy God, His anger and justice burns against sin. And He has sworn that sin will be punished.
There must be a satisfactory payment for sin.
*But God said, “If I punish man for his sin, man will die and go to hell.
*On the other hand, if I don’t punish man for his sin, My justice will never be satisfied.”
The solution?
*God said that He would become our substitute.
*He would take the sin of mankind upon Himself in agony and blood—a righteous judgment and substitute for sin.
His wrath burned out on the cross when His only Son died as man’s propitiation for sin. And this is love.
1 John 4:10 This is what love is: it is not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the means by which our sins are forgiven.
Rejoice and be glad for the Lord has wonderful plans for you fulfilling His eternal purpose through you!
Isaiah 43:19 Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
Dear Jesus, I will never know what you suffered and felt, and for that I am grateful. My heart hurts when I do try to wrap my brain around what was truly done to you. Yet, I know that the pain was temporary, as massive as it was. And I love you SO much for taking the pain of my sins so that I can have the promise of eternal life. I ask that you walk with me through this life, helping me to avoid sin. Sin leads to damnation, and the pain you suffered was the pain of our collective damnation! If I think that my sins would lead to my eternal suffering, I know that I never want myself or my loved ones to face that forever. I want to live with you forever! Amen.
John 17:3 And eternal life means to know you, the only true God, and to know Jesus Christ, whom you sent.
* Eternal life requires entering into a personal relationship with God in Jesus Christ. When we admit our sin and turn away from it, Christ’s love lives in us by the Holy Spirit.
The Word of God stands by itself!
Jesus chose to lay down His Life so God’s Love could be poured forth from Him to us.
* “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His Life for the sheep…No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative.”. John 10:11, 18
We all long to hear……”Well done good and faithful servant!”
Deuteronomy 4:2 clearly states “2 Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.”
*Our God is so perfect, that nothing needs to be added or subtracted from what HE decrees!
We go astray, when we as humans try to add or subtract! What God says is absolute!
*Obedience isn’t a setup to put you in chains, it’s a channel that leads to God’s freedom! It’s the key that opens the door to the Promise, to God’s best for you!
Revelation 22:18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.
*We need to speak when the Bible speaks, and be silent when the Bible is silent.
The commandments of God and the traditions of men are not the same thing and must always be clearly distinguished.
Any attempt to place them on the same level will always result in making the Word of God of none effect.
God’s Word is true (Rom. 3:3-4) and will not return to Him void (Isa. 55:11).
The Word will not profit anyone who doesn’t believe it, but God’s Word itself doesn’t lose any power.
1 Corinthians 4:6 ….”Do not go beyond what is written.” Then you will not be puffed up in being a follower of one of us over against the other.
*Many times our pride wants to take us beyond what a person wrote or said. We think, “Well this is what they really meant when they said this.” And that thought never passed their minds. Don’t worry about what other people think of you. Only worry about what God thinks of you.
Lord, as I draw closer to you, draw closer to me so that as I grow I will become more and more like you and less and less like me. I love you, Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Read MoreThe Cross has been forgotten in many Christian homes and churches, simply because we have chosen to place our human happiness above God’s Will.
“For the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”. 1 Corinthians 1:18
Take Up His Cross Daily
Can you recall Jesus’ radical philosophy: “Be a servant, give to others”?
The basis of that statement is tucked away in Luke 9:23.
Following Christ is a costly, unselfish decision. He says: “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”
When you look closely at Jesus’ statement, a couple of things seem important.
*First, those who desire to follow Him closely must come to terms with self-denial.
*And second, this decision to give ourselves to others (taking up our cross) has to be a daily matter.
Some questions we must ask and answer ourselves are:
*Am I serious about being a follower of Jesus Christ?
*Do I think of others to such an extent that self-denial is becoming the rule rather than the exception in my life?
*Is my walk with Him a daily thing?
*A thorough self-examination is one of the requisites for following closely. Paul tells us to abound in generosity, be givers, be people who excel in unselfishness. That’s costly stuff, terribly expensive. Can we pay the price?
2 Corinthians 2:14 Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.
When I believe the Good News of the cross the power of God becomes a reality in my life.
Lord I thank you for your indwelling presence in my life made possible by the work of Christ on the cross. Amen
Read MoreOnce we have confessed and repented of our sins, we must relinquish them to God. He will not violate our free will by taking them from us, so we must CHOOSE to hand them over.
“As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” Psalm 103:12
*We are forgiven by grace, from the first time we confessed our sin. God will never bring it up again.
Romans 8:1 There is therefore now NO condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
*Quit feeling guilty for the things you have confessed to God.
*Quit doing things that you know you will feel guilty about later.
*Root yourself in God’s word.
Get off the performance treadmill and rest in His grace.
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)
The hardest person to forgive sometimes is ourselves.
Philippians 4:19 And my God will supply your every need according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
It is especially hard for high achievers to forgive themselves.
*We think we are above such failure. (Pride)
However, the Bible says we all sin and it is impossible to remedy that sin by ourselves.
Romans 3: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives?” (1 John 1:8,10).
The question is not whether we will sin, the question is what we will do when we do sin.
There is only one thing for us to do. Go to the cross.
Jesus paid for that sin by dying on the cross.
Picture yourself writing your sin on a white piece of paper, then pinning it to the cross.
Now, leave it there. The cross is for sinners. We all make mistakes!! Self Pity is of the devil.
When Jesus looks at you, He no longer sees your sin. He cannot see the sin because He can only see the cross.
When you come to Jesus with your sin, there is nothing more you can do besides confessing and renouncing your sin.
*Sometimes it may require restitution with others. However, once you confess your sin and ask forgiveness, it is no longer on the ledger of debts.
Why not choose to walk free. The cell has been opened.
Father, I want to walk in your grace. I want to take off the yoke of guilt and put on the yoke of grace today. Lord, help me to eliminate the negative self-talk in my life. Help me to focus my mind on the positive things. Help read my Bible every day and memorize it and meditate on it. And as I read it, (the Bible has over 8000 promises for US) remind me again and again how much you love me. Amen
Read MoreLaying Down Our Life for the Bride
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os Hillman
Thursday, November 05 2015
“Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father” (John 10:17,18).
Jesus was called to lay down His life for His bride, the Church. Men are called to emulate this same “laying down” our lives for our wives – our earthly brides. Men are to be a physical representation of what Christ has done for each of us. As we men do this, we experience the love of the Father. Wives will experience the love of the Father as husbands do this. Most of us men fight this process due to our own insecurities, independence, pride and ego. However, it is the very laying down our lives that allows us to connect to the Father just as Jesus connected to His Father.
It is in the sacrificial, free will act that this occurs. This activates in the woman a response of love that allows the man to experience a deep love that is rooted in the Father but channeled from the wife, the one we lay our lives down for. Jesus did not feel something was being taken from Him because He chose to give it willingly. Conversely, if husbands lay down willingly their lives, they will not feel something is being taken. It is when husbands defend, negotiate and withdraw from the needs of a woman that it negates this process. When we think we are being used or manipulated against our will, we believe others are trying to control us and we resist. Jesus did not do this. He gave willingly. Men must realize they are the initiators called to lay down their lives for their wives. Women respond to this sacrificial act by giving their heart and physical love to their husbands. Both husband and wife experience the love of the Father when this happens.
Giving up our lives for our wives feels like just that – giving up our life. We give up rights, privileges, and desires. We focus only on them. When we become dead, God loves us by giving us the desires of our heart. We give up life, in order to gain it. “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matthew 16:25).
This is what it means when Jesus laid down His life for His bride. This is what it means when Paul said: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish” (Eph 5:25-28).
This principle is key to impacting the marketplace for Jesus Christ. The family has been greatly wounded by a failure to understand this principle. This has also led men and women to become slaves instead of sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father. Today, if you are a husband, commit yourself to laying down your life for your bride.
Amen
Read MoreAre you a disciple? Just because you are a Christian doesn’t necessarily mean that you are a disciple.
Every disciple is a believer, but not every believer is a disciple.
Jesus gave us the definition of a disciple in Luke 14. Three times in this passage, He said that if we do not do these things, we cannot be His disciples.
1. First, Jesus said, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple” (verse 26).
A statement like that is shocking, but let’s understand what Jesus was saying. He obviously was not telling us to hate in the traditional sense. Rather, Jesus was saying that your love for God should be so strong, so intense, that all other loves would be like hatred in comparison.
2. Second, Jesus said, “And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple” (verse 27).
If you want to live life to its fullest, then you must deny yourself and put Christ first.
You take your goals, desires, dreams, and aspirations, and you present them to God. And ultimately you will discover that God’s plans for you are always the best.
3. Last, Jesus said, “For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it? . . . So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple” (verses 28, 33).
You must count the cost to follow Jesus. Yes, it costs to follow Jesus. But it costs more not to follow Him.
Jesus called us to go and make disciples (see Matthew 28:19). But it takes one to make one.
Matthew 28: 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Amen
Read MoreThis is a word about affliction and the purpose of affliction.
• Why affliction comes in our lives.
• How we should respond to affliction.
After all, there’s nobody who won’t encounter affliction(suffering, burden, problem, pain, hardship, trouble, misery) at some time or another in his life. Listen to what the psalmist says about affliction and what he learned from it:
Psalm 119:67, 71, 75—Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word. It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees. I know, O Lord, that your laws are righteous and in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
You see, the psalmist didn’t view affliction as a disaster. He saw it as a kind of corrective medicine. It was something that he needed to adjust his life. He says, “Before I was afflicted I went astray and I paid for it, but now,” he said, “I obey Your word. I’ve learned my lesson. It pays to obey.”
And then he says at the end, “O Lord . . . in faithfulness you have afflicted me.” You didn’t do it because You were cruel or because You were angry with me. You did it to straighten me out, to bring me back from my own evil way into Your way, to find the way of peace.
Are you in the midst of affliction? Don’t fight. Don’t argue with God. Ask Him the reason. God is afflicting you in His faithfulness. He has a reason. He’s trying to turn you back from something, to bring you out of the wrong and bring you into the right – a life of obedience to His statutes.
If you have any affliction or know someone in it: Take time to read the verses below on what the Bible says about affliction. You will be blessed.
Bible Verses: John 9:1-3, John 11:3-4, John 21:18-19, Psalm 34:19, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Deuteronomy 4:30-31, Hosea 5:14-15, Job 36:8-9, Psalm 32:5, Proverbs 17:3, Deuteronomy 8:2, 1 Peter 1:7, Revelation 2:10, (2 Corinthians 12:7-Acts 12:23), James 1:3, (1 Peter 2:20-Hebrews 10:26), John 15:2, Hebrews 12:10-11, Philippians 1:12, 2 Timothy 2:9-10, 2 Timothy 4:16-17
HEBREWS 5:8 AND HOSEA 4:6
Lord, thank you for the Bible, your truth to freedom of affliction. Amen
Read MoreMan has revolted against God. We are all “sinners.”
Psalms 51:12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. 13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you.
**Let’s Ask God through the day to cleanse us of sin.
*If you are recovering from a serous sin’ it’s hard to imagine teaching others or being spiritually helpful to others, yet that is what God desires and plans for us.
Not too soon—mind you, and not without the oversight of mature believers, but eventually God’s intention is for us to get back in the game.
*Everything-even our sin-can be used by God to help others and heal ourselves. (Romans 8:28 is a great read)
Psalms 51:17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.
*It is amazing how God looks beyond our mistakes and failures and find something worthwhile in us.
Yes God punished David for his mistakes but still, He looked beyond all that and found a right spirit, a repentant spirit and a man who was sincerely after His heart.
Perfection may be a tall order for us, but a heart after the heart of God is what moves God. A broken, contrite and honest heart is what he asks for. I’m convinced a lot of us take pride in our doctrine when what the Lord desires from us is just our affection. “To Know Him is to have Eternal life”(JN 17:3).
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
*Steps To Personal Deliverance–Lifestyle evangelism.
1. Admit that you have a problem.
2. Confess with a repentant heart.
3. Ask God for forgiveness.
4. Turn away from your past life.
5. Obey the Holy Spirit by hearing and reading Scriptures.
1 John 1:10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
*We might deceive ourselves about our own sin by rationalizing or minimizing the wrong.
*We might blame other people or circumstances instead of accepting responsibility.
*No matter how we deceive ourselves, it is important to understand the dangers of deceit.
The most important danger of delusion is what it does to our relationship with God.
If we deny our sin, we are calling God a liar. We are blocking our own path to walking with him
Is there sins in our life that we’ve been denying? Ask God to help you admit the wrong, take responsibility for it, and turn to him for forgiveness. He will help you and me overcome.
Lord help me be a doer of your word–not a bench warmer. Teach me more and more of what Your love(agape) means and looks like for my neighbor as well as my marriage, my kids, my grandkids, my friends and myself. God, You are love and You are the only solid foundation upon which human love can be built. Help Love be a LIFESTYLE!. Amen
Read More“Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance” (1 Corinthians 13:7 NLT, second edition).
The kind of love that really makes a difference in this world requires a big effort on your part, but you’ll enjoy huge rewards.
Sometimes you just don’t feel like you have any more love to give. Maybe you’re in a people-intensive job, such as teacher, salesman, or waitress, and you come home and think, “I just can’t face another need, another problem, or another heartache.” So you just shut down.
Or you need to show love to a particular person who is demanding, selfish, and never returns your love. And you just think to yourself, “I’m done. No more.”
While that’s perfectly natural and perfectly human, it’s not the standard of love God calls us to in the Bible. The Bible says, “Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance” (1 Corinthians 13:7 NLT, second edition). Love never gives up.
How can you have that kind of patient love for another person? You get refueled.
To give the kind of patient love that God wants you to give, you have to refuel your love tank. Look around at society, and you’ll see it’s littered with debris from relationships that have crashed and burned because people didn’t refuel their love.
How do you refuel your love tank? You start by letting God love you. “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19 NIV).
When you’re worn out, tired, and can’t imagine showing love to anyone else, remember that God loved you so much that he sent his Son to die for you. Read John 3:16-17
Now that’s real fuel. That’s what keeps you going when you want to quit.
Thank You Jesus for the Love you have given us all. May we show Your love to all we meet by our actions as well as our words. Amen
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