Motivation that we need! Philippians 3:12-14

Hello and God bless each of you,
After a long absence of nearly 2 years and 2 months, I've returned.  Pray that I be consistent in getting out His word!  If you are in need of motivation, look up.  If you are in need of Holy motivation, look all the way to the Son!  Don't look back because you will always be held in check.  You will not reap the bountiful blessings that God has in store for you.  You will have obstacles that will offset His Holy motivation.  Philippians 3:12-14 says, 'Not that I have obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.  Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.'  God the Creator saw that you were needed in His creation.  Jesus Christ was sent as Redeemer for your transgressions and the Holy Spirit was provided so that you would have the Guide and Counselor that you would need so that you could stay on His path!  Everything you need is provided!  Will you take the opportunity or will you brush it off because you are too busy doing things that don't really matter?  Once you are prompted with the fact that you are in need of something better than what you have, ask Him to fill that void!  Ask Him to show you all that He has in store so you can see that Holy motivation is at work!  Give Him all the praise and glory and see what follows!!!
Your brother in Christ,
Paul

Transitions in Life! Daniel 2:22; Job 27:8; Psalm 25:5

Good morning everyone,
If I were to ask you a question regarding how you handle transitions or changes in your life, what would you say?  Maybe for some of you, you don't feel as though you've really had to make any big transitions.  Well I'm here to tell you, if you live long enough, they are going to take place.  For some of those changes, it is fairly easy to make the necessary adjustments without too much sweat.  For others, well needless to say they are quite a bit more challenging.  Today I would specifically like to focus on the more difficult choices you will have to make.  Daniel 2:22 tells us that He changes times and seasons; He disposes kings and raises up others.  He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.  That verse is evident that the more we connect with the Father, the better choices we are going to make about decisions throughout our lives.  As we age, we will have to make tougher and tougher decisions about things that we really might not have control over.  As I write this devotional this morning, I am reminded of my good friend Scott Arnold who is struggling with life because of a brain tumor.  Every breath is a transition of sorts for him because of the uncertainty of what will come next.  The tumor is the culprit of many other ailments that he has to keep in balance.  Over the next five days he will need injections to help restore his white blood cell count which in turn will allow more treatments needed for other ailments.  His body is but a shell of the once vibrant man that I knew just a few years ago.  Yet his countenance and his faith are as strong as ever!  When I speak with him, in between his naps, he will lighten up at the mention of praying or reading scripture.  Life has become so precious to him that every breath is a gift from the Savior.  Do each of us need to have something so life altering to be reminded of just how short life on earth is?  Job 27:8 
asks a question that all should consider.  For what hope have the godless when they are cut off, when God takes away their life?  So Scott can smile and know his eternal home is waiting on him when he draws his last breath.  Can you?  Psalm 25:5 leads us to ask God to guide us in His truth and to teach us for He is our God and Savior, and our hope is in Him all day long.  Scott would be the first to tell you that you can have the same hope that has already been etched on his heart. 
Your brother in Christ,
p

What mighty things are you grateful for? Luke 1:46-47

Good morning everyone,
As I awake this morning to start my day, I look out the window of my hotel in amazement that yet another day is to begin!  What happened yesterday is history; what happens today is really all that any of us are assured of having!  What happened some 2000 years ago to a small child is still a mystery and who is to say that He might not pick you as a participant in one of His present or future amazing feats.  Luke 1:46-47 says, And Mary said:  "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for the Mighty One has done great things for me---holy is His name."  Mary may have questioned why God picked her to be the mother of the Savior of the world but she was obedient in everything that He ask her to do.  Are you listening to Him to carry out what He is asking you?  If you are like Mary, you probably won't feel worthy of what He is probably going to ask you to do.  The real issue is missing the opportunity of a lifetime.  When we are given an opportunity that is definitely God directed and God's timing, we shouldn't question it!  Instead we should ask God how to carry it out to fruition.  Start by praising Him for the mighty things that He has done for you!  If you are having a mental block about blessings that He is responsible for, let me remind you of one of those.  Each one of you is a blessing in my life and I believe that none of you are happen chance that receive this devotional this morning.  Just like Mary, be available to the Lord first and foremost and then don't question His direction of where He takes you.  Just be willing to hold on by pulling up your boot straps and digging your heels tight into the stirrups!  He is ready to give you the ride of your earthly lifetime!  May God richly bless each of you as you discover how praising Him leads to connection to the One who really cares about your future!
Your brother in Christ,
p

Christmas all year long! Mark 12:43-44; Joshua 24:15

Good morning everyone,
It seems as though I've been hearing Christmas music even before Thanksgiving.  At heart, that is okay with me because it reminds me of a lot of old memories but it also is how I think we should be all year long!  Instead of making it a holiday that you remember about what you got, make an effort to make it a holiday about what you give.  I'm not necessarily talking about physical gifts; I'm talking about giving the gift of your heart.  Do you know how many people suffer this time of year for various reasons; loss of a loved one, homelessness, being alone, being hungry, separation due to miles, financial difficulties and the list goes on and on.  You will quickly forget about the previous gift you were given or you purchased, but I can guarantee you will not very quickly forget serving a homeless person a meal!  It has become very apparent that I have been given way more than I deserve and who knows for what reasons.  We can justify that we deserve things because we work hard for them and we manage our money like we think we should.  Do we manage it like the widow who gave all she had or do we use it to satisfy our own wants and desires.  Mark 12:43-44 says, Calling His disciples to him, Jesus said, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.  They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything-all she had to live on."  You may say to yourself that you have no idea where you can help out because there are many scam artists out there that misrepresent being needy.  Remember to ask God to provide you with a need that needs to be met and I promise you He will not steer you wrong!  Look at you own situation and praise Him for something you are thankful for and He will duplicate that blessing.  See, we all have difficulties that we could choose to focus on or we could praise Him for the air that we breathe!  He will multiply ever thankful praise in more ways than you can imagine.  Joshua 24:15 says, choose for yourself this day whom you will serve.  But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!
Your brother in Christ,
p

No sense complaining or trying to run away! Jonah 1:10

Good morning everyone,
Sometimes sleep eludes me as well as it does many of you!  You have a choice of whether you lay there and be miserable wondering why you can't sleep or you do something.  Most of the time, I feel it is the Lord telling me to get up because He has work for me to do.  It is times like those that give me some of the best connecting times with Him that I've experienced.  For many years, I've fought restless nights because I thought it was eating too late or just too many thoughts running through my brain.  Sometimes it is one of those reasons but more so than not, it is His way of getting my attention.  He wants to spend time with me and if I'm not going to give Him the time of day during the day (which happens more than not), then He simply wakes me up for His 'special' time!  See, I can run from Him, but when I'm at my weakest, then He simply tells me He has me right where He wants me.  I'm too tired to elude Him and I find that I pour my heart out to Him in those moments.  There is no sense complaining about what is eventually the best thing for me.  It is ironic that we run, a lot of the times, from the things that are good for us.  Are you running from Him?  Moses tried to, David tried to, Jonah tried to and many other Biblical characters tried to.  Jonah 1:10 says, This terrified them and they asked, "What have you done?"  (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had told them so.)  It didn't make much sense because when they became tired of running, they finally decided to listen.  When they did, each of them had 'God life changing' moments!  Are you ready to stop complaining and start listening to Him more intently.  He is persistent and He will accomplish much through you if you will just spend time with Him.  Don't try and figure out the process.  He has a much better plan than the one you are conjuring up!  He knows you because He created you and He wants you to accomplish so much more in His name than you think you are capable of accomplishing.  Jeremiah 1:5 says, 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.'  He doesn't make junk, so (as my wife would say), quit complaining and do something!
Your brother in Christ,
p  

Plunge into the deep part! Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 25:10; 145:17

Good morning everyone,
When you go swimming, whether it be in a pool, a creek, a lake, or the ocean, do you plunge in or do you tip-toe into the water?  I know with my wife, if you can't see the bottom then you don't need to even get wet.  The mystery for some folks is just too much to handle.  For folks who are just plumb scared of the water, they stay as far as they can from the water.  When you ask Jesus into your heart and begin the relationship with Him, He doesn't want you to just tipsy-toe around.  He wants you to plunge in with all of your gusto.  Humanly, we have a tendency to check the temperature of the water before we decide if want to enter.  We do the same thing with our relationship with Him much of the time.  If it gets a little uncomfortable (hot or cold) in what needs to change about us, we have a tendency to want to retreat!  Anytime we enter into the water, we are going to be changed immediately, if we plunge in with our whole body.  You can't hold on to the things that are the old self because He wants to change you completely.  That right there folks is an extremely hard lesson for me because I live in a comfort zone with my income and life style that affords the things I think are important.  Does God have that same attitude toward my comfort?  I don't think so!  I'm learning life lesson #5000 as we speak or is it #5001?  To recklessly abandon my old ways, checking with Him first, and trusting that His ways are better than mine!  Deuteronomy 32:4 says, 'He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just.  A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He.'  Stop depending on your own intellect to make your pathway smooth.  The more you allow intellect to rule in your decisions, the less you will rely on Him to make the impossible, possible!  
                            Trust and obey,
                            for there's no other way
                            to be happy in Jesus,
                            but to trust and obey.
Your brother in Christ,
p

What signs have you had lately? Isaiah 7:14

Good morning everyone,
Have you ever felt as though you were just going through the motions and wondering what the next step would need to be?  Sometimes I believe God puts us in that state so that we will depend on Him completely!  We have a choice to proceed in a manner that seems to be chaotic or we can surrender to the fact that we need help.  This past year has been a challenging year for the Hicks' family but it has been a year where I can see God moving in ways that I've never seen Him move before.  God is the Creator of solutions for every situation you are faced with if you will allow Him to work in and through you.  It may not be the route that you had intended to take for the solution but it can be the solution that will reveal His pure and perfect will.  Deborah and I have come to a cross-roads of sorts in our life, as I suppose a number of you have, and it is at those times that He stretches us in ways that we may not like how He twists us at the time, but the results are rewarding in His name.  When you are given signs from Him, do you trust His leadership or do you question Him too much and miss the opportunity that He is presenting to you?  When Mary was chosen by the Lord to be the mother of Jesus Christ, she was at a cross-roads of sorts in her own life.  Would she decide to get on board or would she say, 'Lord, not me!'  Isaiah 7:14 tells us, 'Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign:  The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel.'  See when God gives you a Godly job to complete, only God can help you complete it!  If you are placed with a situation that seems too much for you to handle, it is probably time to consider including Him in the decisions that you will be making.  My wife has tried to tell me for several years that the decisions we make are not wrong, even if they seem wrong to us, as long as they are done with Him benefiting from the decision.  May God richly bless each of you as you seek Him to make those changes that need to occur in your life!
Your brother in Christ,
p