Good morning everyone,
It is apparent to me that I get frustrated at times when there is very little I can do to change my situation. God has placed me in the very place that I'm at to see how I will respond to things that go on around me. I'm so busy being busy that I really miss what He is trying to show me. I get frustrated at others when I have failed to see their dilemma because I'm so focused on my own dilemma. Thinking back over the times that I've been frustrated at others, I'm reminded of the patience that my Father has for me! Why can't I have the same patience for others that He has for me? In Luke 9:41, Jesus asks the question, 'how long must I be with you and put up with you?' Many times I'm sure that He has scratched His head and wondered will Paul ever get it? In the heat of the moment, I say and do things that really shows my lack of sensitivity and caring for others. Thankfully He isn't done with me yet and He gives me opportunity after opportunity to get it right! 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18 describes how I need to model my behavior. 'Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to everyone else. Always be joyful. Keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.'
Your brother in Christ,
p
Friday, October 7, 2011
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Spreading the Good News results in bringing Joy! Psalm 67
Good morning everyone,
We are always looking at what brings us Joy but many times we fail to look in the right place! According to Psalm 67, Joy comes from spreading the Good News. 'May God be merciful and bless us. May His face shine with favor upon us. May Your ways be known throughout the earth, Your saving power among people everywhere. May the nations praise You, O God. Yes may all the nations praise You. How glad the nations will be, singing for joy, because You govern them with justice and direct the actions of the whole world. May the nations praise You, O God. Yes, may all the nations praise You. Then the earth will yield its harvests, and God, our God, will richly bless us. Yes, God will bless us, and people all over the world will fear Him.' Amazing Scripture to remind us that as a nation, we should turn from our wicked ways, and praise the One and only true God! I think God expects everyone of us to identify Him as the One that we are to tell the world about His Good News! If we don't, then the result is going to be catastrophic! I don't want to make this sound like a doom and gloom devotional, but while we still have life and breath, we should share with others what He has done for us! If you claim Him now as your Lord and Savior, He will claim you when you are done here! Simple and a matter of fact!! See God has something that comes from no other source. He has saving power and that tells me that there is still hope for a world that denys Him! The result for those who spread His Good News will bring in a bountiful harvest. For those who don't, they will fear Him! None of us know how much time we have left here on this earth, but while you are here, don't you think that it makes sense to 'spread news' about something that is beneficial for all!
Your brother in Christ,
p
We are always looking at what brings us Joy but many times we fail to look in the right place! According to Psalm 67, Joy comes from spreading the Good News. 'May God be merciful and bless us. May His face shine with favor upon us. May Your ways be known throughout the earth, Your saving power among people everywhere. May the nations praise You, O God. Yes may all the nations praise You. How glad the nations will be, singing for joy, because You govern them with justice and direct the actions of the whole world. May the nations praise You, O God. Yes, may all the nations praise You. Then the earth will yield its harvests, and God, our God, will richly bless us. Yes, God will bless us, and people all over the world will fear Him.' Amazing Scripture to remind us that as a nation, we should turn from our wicked ways, and praise the One and only true God! I think God expects everyone of us to identify Him as the One that we are to tell the world about His Good News! If we don't, then the result is going to be catastrophic! I don't want to make this sound like a doom and gloom devotional, but while we still have life and breath, we should share with others what He has done for us! If you claim Him now as your Lord and Savior, He will claim you when you are done here! Simple and a matter of fact!! See God has something that comes from no other source. He has saving power and that tells me that there is still hope for a world that denys Him! The result for those who spread His Good News will bring in a bountiful harvest. For those who don't, they will fear Him! None of us know how much time we have left here on this earth, but while you are here, don't you think that it makes sense to 'spread news' about something that is beneficial for all!
Your brother in Christ,
p
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
How long do we need to struggle from despair? Psalm 13
Good morning everyone,
Do you ever feel like you are running on the same little cage that your hamster runs on? The faster you run only results in running in the same place and getting nowhere! Do you ever feel as though your praying for relief from despair and your trust in God seems to wain because He doesn't answer you immediately? If you are really honest with yourself, probably all of us at times have felt that kind of despair! David did and in Psalms 13, he prays up to God about relief from despair. 'O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way? How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart everyday? How long will my enemy have the upper hand? Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the light to my eyes, or I will die. Don't let my enemies gloat, saying, "We have defeated him!" Don't let them rejoice at my downfall. But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because You have rescued me. I will sing to the Lord because He has been so good to me.' The next time you feel defeated, deflated or just 'wore slick', don't hesitate from trusting God to restore you and even making you stronger! Think about all and every setback as the stage to shine a light on the One who is capable of giving you a floodlight to show you the way! Rejoice in the Rescuer before you see any signs of a rescue and before you know it, He will show you a way that you didn't even know existed! An old hymn comes to mind and the words go like this; trust and obey, for there is no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey!
Your brother in Christ,
p
Do you ever feel like you are running on the same little cage that your hamster runs on? The faster you run only results in running in the same place and getting nowhere! Do you ever feel as though your praying for relief from despair and your trust in God seems to wain because He doesn't answer you immediately? If you are really honest with yourself, probably all of us at times have felt that kind of despair! David did and in Psalms 13, he prays up to God about relief from despair. 'O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way? How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart everyday? How long will my enemy have the upper hand? Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the light to my eyes, or I will die. Don't let my enemies gloat, saying, "We have defeated him!" Don't let them rejoice at my downfall. But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because You have rescued me. I will sing to the Lord because He has been so good to me.' The next time you feel defeated, deflated or just 'wore slick', don't hesitate from trusting God to restore you and even making you stronger! Think about all and every setback as the stage to shine a light on the One who is capable of giving you a floodlight to show you the way! Rejoice in the Rescuer before you see any signs of a rescue and before you know it, He will show you a way that you didn't even know existed! An old hymn comes to mind and the words go like this; trust and obey, for there is no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey!
Your brother in Christ,
p
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Do you thrive or do you just survive? Proverbs 11:28
Good evening everyone,
Many of us just do the basic stuff that we need to do to get by and I think I do that a lot also! We don't want to step on toes because we think we need to let people believe what they want, give them space, and let them determine their own destination! Is that what Christ did? I don't think so! He let people believe what they wanted but He never shied away from the Truth! He didn't shy away from letting people know when they were totally off course! A song I have on a new cd by Swithfoot has a great line in the words and it goes like this; Am I here to just survive or do I want to thrive? Folks, in order to thrive, you've got to be willing to step outside of the box and take a chance occasionally! It may not always be the right decision, but it may give you the opportunity to see things from a totally new prospective. I work in sales and occasionally I'll talk to my co-workers when I get the opportunity to share the keys to my previous successes. First of all, if I'm successful, it is only because He allowed me to have success. So number 1, the credit goes to the Father. Secondly if you don't want to make adjustments in the way you do things, don't expect any different results (myself included)! If you look over the course of history, all of the people that are considered successful, all failed many times before they had success. Let me suggest that you consider the fact that God has so much more in store for your life than what you may have experienced up to this point. Never, never stop giving Him credit and before you know it, success will be measured in a whole new way when you look at your life! God talks throughout the Bible about thriving and in Proverbs 11:28 we are reminded that those who trust in their riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf. Will you thrive or will you just survive? Pray that God will help you trust Him with your whole heart so that no matter what situation you are faced with, He will give you a new prospective to see it in a different light!
Your brother in Christ,
p
Many of us just do the basic stuff that we need to do to get by and I think I do that a lot also! We don't want to step on toes because we think we need to let people believe what they want, give them space, and let them determine their own destination! Is that what Christ did? I don't think so! He let people believe what they wanted but He never shied away from the Truth! He didn't shy away from letting people know when they were totally off course! A song I have on a new cd by Swithfoot has a great line in the words and it goes like this; Am I here to just survive or do I want to thrive? Folks, in order to thrive, you've got to be willing to step outside of the box and take a chance occasionally! It may not always be the right decision, but it may give you the opportunity to see things from a totally new prospective. I work in sales and occasionally I'll talk to my co-workers when I get the opportunity to share the keys to my previous successes. First of all, if I'm successful, it is only because He allowed me to have success. So number 1, the credit goes to the Father. Secondly if you don't want to make adjustments in the way you do things, don't expect any different results (myself included)! If you look over the course of history, all of the people that are considered successful, all failed many times before they had success. Let me suggest that you consider the fact that God has so much more in store for your life than what you may have experienced up to this point. Never, never stop giving Him credit and before you know it, success will be measured in a whole new way when you look at your life! God talks throughout the Bible about thriving and in Proverbs 11:28 we are reminded that those who trust in their riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf. Will you thrive or will you just survive? Pray that God will help you trust Him with your whole heart so that no matter what situation you are faced with, He will give you a new prospective to see it in a different light!
Your brother in Christ,
p
Monday, September 26, 2011
Thanking God for you! 1 Thessalonians 1:2
Good evening everyone,
1 Thessalonians 1:2 says, 'We thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.' When you think about your brothers and sisters in the Lord, can you say that you continually pray for them like Paul did for the Thessalonians? The power of prayer is better than any gift that you can give to someone! And your prayer does matter! It is amazing to me how many times I see my prayer answered before I can even put in on paper or before it even leaves my mouth. Ladies and gentlemen, God knows your heart and He is capable of answering before you have even conceived the idea of praying! With that said, I will get an email and someone is requesting prayer! God prompts me to pray for that individual and at that point, I make a conscious effort to either pray or put it off! Sometimes when I take the few seconds that it takes to respond, whether in writing or just speaking it, I will go down a few more emails and realize that it has already been answered! The important thing is when God prompts, don't delay. His desire is for you to listen and obey! In the previous verse I would like to say that I love each of you so much as brothers and sisters in the Lord that my desire is to pray for you continually. I learned a long time ago that when someone ask you to pray for them, if you delay, you will get too busy and more times than not your remembering to pray for that person will sort of fall through the cracks. If someone ask you to pray, stop what you are doing long enough to shout out to the Lord! Your Father is always ready to text you back!
Your brother in Christ,
p
1 Thessalonians 1:2 says, 'We thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.' When you think about your brothers and sisters in the Lord, can you say that you continually pray for them like Paul did for the Thessalonians? The power of prayer is better than any gift that you can give to someone! And your prayer does matter! It is amazing to me how many times I see my prayer answered before I can even put in on paper or before it even leaves my mouth. Ladies and gentlemen, God knows your heart and He is capable of answering before you have even conceived the idea of praying! With that said, I will get an email and someone is requesting prayer! God prompts me to pray for that individual and at that point, I make a conscious effort to either pray or put it off! Sometimes when I take the few seconds that it takes to respond, whether in writing or just speaking it, I will go down a few more emails and realize that it has already been answered! The important thing is when God prompts, don't delay. His desire is for you to listen and obey! In the previous verse I would like to say that I love each of you so much as brothers and sisters in the Lord that my desire is to pray for you continually. I learned a long time ago that when someone ask you to pray for them, if you delay, you will get too busy and more times than not your remembering to pray for that person will sort of fall through the cracks. If someone ask you to pray, stop what you are doing long enough to shout out to the Lord! Your Father is always ready to text you back!
Your brother in Christ,
p
Saturday, September 24, 2011
What is your favorite scripture? John 3:16-17
Good morning everyone,
When I prepare for the devotionals that I send to you, I usually look at the Bible Gateway website because if I'm looking for topic, I can plug one word in and it will identify a number of different scriptures. I can also plug in a particular verse and it will show me a variety of different languages and versions. A great tool to help you with your daily walk. What caught my eye this morning was an article about the top 10 most searched bible verses from the 8 million visitors who stop by their website each month. See if one of these verses is your favorite or let me know if you have a different one.
(10) Matthew 28:19-'Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.'
(9) Philippians 4:6-'Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.'
(8) Romans 12:2-'Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-His good, pleasing and perfect will.'
(7) Proverbs 3:6-'In all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.'
(6) Proverbs 3:5-'Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.'
(5) Genesis 1:1-'In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.'
(4) Philippians 4:13-'I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.'
(3) Romans 8:28-'And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.'
(2) Jeremiah 29:11-'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'
(1) John 3:16-'For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.'
There are so many favorites of mine but for the moment John 3:17 comes to mind because God did not send His Son into the world to condemn it but to save it. That gives me 'incredible hope.' Brothers and sisters, get to know your Bible so that you know where to go when you need to and you will find that you will never leave home without it! By the way, it is the Sword of Truth and it will protect you from anything that this world has to throw at you!
Your brother in Christ,
p
When I prepare for the devotionals that I send to you, I usually look at the Bible Gateway website because if I'm looking for topic, I can plug one word in and it will identify a number of different scriptures. I can also plug in a particular verse and it will show me a variety of different languages and versions. A great tool to help you with your daily walk. What caught my eye this morning was an article about the top 10 most searched bible verses from the 8 million visitors who stop by their website each month. See if one of these verses is your favorite or let me know if you have a different one.
(10) Matthew 28:19-'Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.'
(9) Philippians 4:6-'Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.'
(8) Romans 12:2-'Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-His good, pleasing and perfect will.'
(7) Proverbs 3:6-'In all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.'
(6) Proverbs 3:5-'Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.'
(5) Genesis 1:1-'In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.'
(4) Philippians 4:13-'I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.'
(3) Romans 8:28-'And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.'
(2) Jeremiah 29:11-'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'
(1) John 3:16-'For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.'
There are so many favorites of mine but for the moment John 3:17 comes to mind because God did not send His Son into the world to condemn it but to save it. That gives me 'incredible hope.' Brothers and sisters, get to know your Bible so that you know where to go when you need to and you will find that you will never leave home without it! By the way, it is the Sword of Truth and it will protect you from anything that this world has to throw at you!
Your brother in Christ,
p
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Will you recognize Him when He reveals Himself to you? John 21:1-25
Good morning everyone,
It seems simple enough to think that we would recognize Jesus if He were to be in our presence. Yet those that knew Him intimately, those closest to Him, failed to realize who He was when He showed them how to fish. Now the story in John 21:1-25 is much bigger than the disciples just catching a bunch of fish. Jesus was trying to tell them a story to show them how to be 'fishers of men.' How many times do you know something is from the Lord, but doubt creeps in and makes you wonder? How many times do we give credit to others when the credit should go to the Lord? Life is about us being ready to serve the Lord with our whole heart! It is about us being ready to show compassion to folks that don't know Him as their Lord and Savior! Think back about your journey and how your being lost equated to You not knowing Him intimately! Not identifying with having patience and compassion for the hurting world! All that changed or should change when you said yes to following Him. It is amazing how things become clearer when you take your eyes off of your own self. When you stop dancing for yourself and you start dancing for Jesus Christ! He gives us opportunities daily to interact with folks that are down and out. Will you be ready to be sensitive to those that He sends across your path? It may be an opportunity for you to entertain angels! Hebrews 13:2 says, 'Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.' My prayer for each of you is to show compassion as opportunity crosses your path and you recognize Him when He reveals Himself to you!
Your brother in Christ,
p
It seems simple enough to think that we would recognize Jesus if He were to be in our presence. Yet those that knew Him intimately, those closest to Him, failed to realize who He was when He showed them how to fish. Now the story in John 21:1-25 is much bigger than the disciples just catching a bunch of fish. Jesus was trying to tell them a story to show them how to be 'fishers of men.' How many times do you know something is from the Lord, but doubt creeps in and makes you wonder? How many times do we give credit to others when the credit should go to the Lord? Life is about us being ready to serve the Lord with our whole heart! It is about us being ready to show compassion to folks that don't know Him as their Lord and Savior! Think back about your journey and how your being lost equated to You not knowing Him intimately! Not identifying with having patience and compassion for the hurting world! All that changed or should change when you said yes to following Him. It is amazing how things become clearer when you take your eyes off of your own self. When you stop dancing for yourself and you start dancing for Jesus Christ! He gives us opportunities daily to interact with folks that are down and out. Will you be ready to be sensitive to those that He sends across your path? It may be an opportunity for you to entertain angels! Hebrews 13:2 says, 'Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.' My prayer for each of you is to show compassion as opportunity crosses your path and you recognize Him when He reveals Himself to you!
Your brother in Christ,
p
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