Devotional Archives

January 10, 2021January 10, 2021

The Pride of Rehoboam

“When the rule of Rehoboam was established and he was strong, he abandoned the law of the Lord, and all Israel with him.” ~ 2 Chronicles 12:1

Throughout the Bible, it is evident that when people were weak and down-trodden, they called and depended upon God and obeyed His commands. But as soon as He blessed them with strength and prosperity for keeping His commands, they abandoned Him, His commands, and His people. That is just like us today; nothing has changed.

The sad part is, we know that our strength and prosperity come from Him, but we choose to abandon Him because, after a while, we somehow become delusional, thinking we, the man/woman, had accomplished all these things on our own. We become spiritually asleep.

We close our eyes to the things of the LORD and awaken our flesh and pride. Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before the fall. Our pride will lead us straight to destruction because it wasn’t us who got us all that we have. It wasn’t our strength. It wasn’t our wisdom; it was the blessings of God. And when we try to remove God from the equation and do it on our own, we destroy all that God built. Affecting those around us, those that work with/for us, our families. When the stronghold of pride takes over, there’s only one thing that can save you from destruction, submitting entirely to Jesus.

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Double For Your Trouble

“Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double.” ~ Zechariah 9:12

How fitting is it that the name Zechariah means “God remembers.” Although some of the exiles had returned and Zerubbabel rebuilt the Temple, Israel was still in captivity. But in the midst of broken dreams and oppression, God said, “Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope…” This means that despite the chaos and confusion of unfulfilled hope, people still had hope that their God would relent and restore their fortunes. Their hope was not wasted, for God said He would restore double.

Look at how the NLT translates it:

Come back to the place of safety, all you prisoners who still have hope! I promise this very day that I will repay two blessings for each of your troubles.
Zechariah 9:12 NLT

Where is the place of safety? It is God. Who are the prisoners of hope? The people who still held on to their hope in the LORD. Now God is saying, “Get ready, my people, for your time has come, and I am about ready to repay double for your trouble.”

This is the year 2021. I believe God is saying to a lot of prisoners of hope, All that you’ve lost. All that was stolen from you. All that you unknowingly gave away, I am about to restore all that to you, but not only that, I am going to double it. Give you back twice as much.

Are you a prisoner of hope? Although your dreams look like they are dead and there is no light at the end of your tunnel, are you still holding on to hope? Keep on believing, and let 2021 be your year. Let it be the year your hope is fulfilled, and all your dreams come true.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for Your promises. Thank you that you do not leave us nor forsake us, but you come to us in our time of trouble, and you restore us in our time of need. I pray for every reader today that this year, 2021, will be a year of restoration and hope reborn. Let dreams be fulfilled, and prayers answered in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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Drive Them Out

“²¹No, do not be afraid of those nations, for the Lord, your God is among you, and he is a great and awesome God. ²²The Lord your God will drive those nations out ahead of you little by little. You will not clear them away all at once, otherwise, the wild animals would multiply too quickly for you. ²³But the Lord your God will hand them over to you. He will throw them into complete confusion until they are destroyed. ²⁴He will put their kings in your power, and you will erase their names from the face of the earth. No one will be able to stand against you, and you will destroy them all.” ~ Deuteronomy 7:21-24^NLT

Often times, fear will try to overcome us. It will show us everything we aren’t and everything we can’t do, but God sees it for who we are and who He is. He is God Almighty, and you are His child. Fear tries to get into your head and tell you how long it’s taking. He’ll whisper lies of deceit, telling you that it’ll never happen because there’s just too much for you to overcome. There’s just too much for you to have to fight. They’re too big, and you are too small.

But look one more time at what God told them: “do not be afraid of those nations, for the Lord, your God is among you, and he is a great and awesome God. ²²The Lord your God will drive those nations out ahead of you little by little. You will not clear them away all at once, otherwise, the wild animals would multiply too quickly for you.” So, don’t be afraid of attacking your strongholds that are holding you back because they’re too big. Or the ‘unmovable’ obstacle that’s been in your way for years. God’s timeline is perfect; don’t allow instant gratification coupled with fear and doubt take away the blessing and the promise that God has given you. He will drive out all of the strongholds, obstacles, failures, etc., before you; you simply have to trust Him and not be afraid, but instead, have courage and faith.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Drive Them Out.

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Abound In Hope

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” ~ Romans 15:13

Paul refers to God as the God of hope. Often times we search for hope in other places, our friends, our family, other peoples’ stories, and I’m not saying those things are bad, but why not go straight to the source? Why not go straight to God?

When you go straight to God, you’re believing Him and putting your trust in Him. When you do that, He can then give you peace and joy when things go wrong because your faith has grown. Once that happens, then your mindset will change, the way you see the world will change, the way you react to situations will change because you no longer see the glass half empty; you see it half full. You see the world through hopeful eyes.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Abound In Hope.

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Our Own Timetable

“The head cupbearer then spoke up and said to Pharaoh, ‘I just now remembered something—I’m sorry, I should have told you this long ago. Once when Pharaoh got angry with his servants, he locked me and the head baker in the house of the captain of the guard. We both had dreams on the same night, each dream with its own meaning. It so happened that there was a young Hebrew slave there with us; he belonged to the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams and he interpreted them for us, each dream separately. Things turned out just as he interpreted. I was returned to my position and the head baker was impaled’ Pharaoh at once sent for Joseph. They brought him on the run from the jail cell. He cut his hair, put on clean clothes, and came to Pharaoh.” ~ Gen 41:9-14 msg

God had given Joseph a dream and a promise, but it was taking a lot longer to come true than he had hoped. But God was keeping watch over His Word to ensure it would come to past, and He does the same thing today. Therefore, if God has given you a promise, wait for it, though it lingers, do not give up or lose hope for it will surely come to past. It awaits an appointed time and will not prove false, nor will it delay, but God’s Word will accomplish everything He has sent it to accomplish.

Our Heavenly Father, help us to hold on to our promises and not to give up. Help us to refrain from setting our own timetable because the righteous will live by faith. No more stumbling and doubting because of our unfulfilled dreams. For we know the day will come when the dream becomes a reality no matter how big or how small our dream is. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Look Away

“¹³As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good.” ~ 2 Thessalonians 3:13

As Christians, we see the world and everything that we cannot do. Sometimes we look at them in envy. We look and see their grass, and we believe that it’s greener than ours. They seem to be more successful. Life seems easier. More tolerant. More likable. The grass isn’t always greener on the other side; sometimes, that’s the Devil tricking you. Playing on all your flesh desires. Whispering in your ear, showing you all that you don’t have and will never have.

As Christians, we are under constant Spiritual Attack. Paul writes, “do not grow weary of doing good.” In other words, don’t grow tired or bored of following Jesus. Of being the good Christian. Of turning the other cheek. Of living a morally sound life. Don’t get tired of it. They may seem like their enjoying life now, but this life is only temporary. What they have now, they can’t take with them to Eternity. Look towards eternity, for your reward is great. This life and its troubles won’t last forever. Look towards eternity. Build up treasure for yourself in Heaven, for where your treasure is, so your heart is also.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Look Away From Their Grass.

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Our Own Righteousness

“⁶All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” ~ Isaiah 64:6

We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.

Have you heard someone say, “I’m a good person, I deserve to go to heaven”? Maybe you yourself have said this. The truth is, none of us are inherently good. Meaning we are not naturally righteous people. Holiness doesn’t mysteriously appear and take up residence in us. If truth be told, we are all wicked and vial. Otherwise, Jesus would not have to come to earth, to be beaten, bruised, and crucified. There would be no need for Him to die such a horrendous death on a cruel Roman cross. It’s a lie from the enemy of our souls, trying to keep us from seeking that which we all need. Salvation. Without which, we will not receive eternal life. Look at what Isaiah says. We are all infected and impure with sin. Not one of us has escaped its nasty grasp, and Jesus knew it. That is why He came and died that we might be washed clean by the cleansing of His blood.

So, the question is, then, how do we receive this cleansing that leads to eternal life? We simply ask for it and believe that we have received it. Now, if we believe we have received, then we should now live like we received salvation. Which means we no longer do or say the things that offend God, or in other words, break His commandments. We seek to please Him by forging a relationship with Him through prayer, reading of His Word, and following His commands and laws.

Think about it. If you had a pet pig that lived in a nasty filthy pigsty, he would probably believe he’s clean and would want to come and play with you and have you hug him. But you would see him for what he is, a dirty pig. So, you bathe him and wash him clean; then you are willing to hold him and hug him. And you would not want him to go wallowing in the muck again. It’s the same with God. He desires to hold us and love us, but the stench of sin is overwhelming, and He will turn away. But once we accept Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, we are immediately washed clean, and we are accepted as true sons and daughters.

Heavenly Father, forgive us of our sins. Create in us a clean heart. Give us an obedient spirit and a heart that is true. Help us to follow all your laws and decrees that we might be pleasing to You. Thank you for Jesus’ sacrifice on Calvary and help us to draw close to You that You might draw close to us. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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See Yourself Worthy

“Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: ‘We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.’” ~ Acts 13:46

Let us not be numbered among those who consider themselves unworthy of eternal life. Let no one speak such things into your life. Parents encourage your children and teach them about eternal life. Sunday School and Church are great, but when our children see that we count ourselves worthy, they will feel worthy as well.

Because you are worthy, live your life as an example for your children. Fathers set the standard for your sons. Mothers set the standard for your daughters. Raise up men and women who fear the LORD and count themselves worthy of eternal life.

Heavenly Father, I pray for everyone right now who is struggling between the pleasures of life that last only but a little while and the joy of eternal life that lasts forever. Please open our eyes that we might see the tricks of the enemy and that we will not lose heart but rather fight the good fight of faith.

I pray also for those who are weighed down by the troubles and concerns of this life and have no one to confide in or nowhere to turn to. Please be there for them like a good friend who sticks closer than a brother. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Seek Ye First

“³³ But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” ~ Matthew 6:33

Sometimes we get our priorities confused and lose sight of what is most important. Jesus was teaching on that very thing. He explains that seeking God is the most important, even more so than money and clothes. He said if we got it right, God would add all the other things we need. Admittedly, that is a hard teaching when you have hungry mouths to feed and little naked bodies to clothe. But the truth is, these things aren’t eternal, but your soul is eternal. Your soul will live somewhere forever. No one says on their dying bed, “Man, I wish I had a few more suits of clothes.” Or, “Man, I wish I had more money in the bank.” No, they don’t. At that time, those things aren’t as important as they seemed when we were experiencing the lack thereof and eternity seemed a long ways away.

I’ve experienced lack, and I’ve experienced plenty, and yes, plenty is much better by far. The world is so focused on instant gratification that we’ve lost sight of seeking God. We’re so caught up with keeping up with the Kardashians, the rich and famous, the rock stars, the rap stars, the movie stars, and the fallen stars that we have no place or time in our busy lives for seeking the Bright and Morning Star. Statistics tell us that the average Christian attend a church service twice a month. I wonder how many diligently and fervently attend the weekly TV service of their favorite show.

At the beginning of every year, my family and I observe a twenty-one day fast. We turn off our TV, our secular music, entertainment like video games, social media, secular books, etc.; we limit shopping only to emergencies, we cut out soft drinks, coffee, meats, processed foods, and other pleasures of life and come together to diligently seek God. Our children have been doing the fast with us from time they were very young. We always have a theme and a specific thing or two (bedside lost souls) that we fervently pray about.

Admittedly, a few years ago, I was a bit discouraged at work because things were not working out the way I had envisioned them to be. To my shame, I was so discouraged I was even considering not doing the fast that year, something I’ve never done since we started oh so many years ago. Nobody knew how I was feeling. Then I received a family group text from my youngest daughter (18 years old at the time) stating how excited she was about that year’s fast. How she believed that was the year for open doors. She felt like Genesis 32:25-28 should be our theme. It is where Jacob wrestles with God and doesn’t let go until he receives a blessing from God. She felt in her spirit we needed to press in and wrestle with God in prayer and not let go until we received our blessing.

Wow! Now, if that’s not a reason to get excited and want to shout about, I don’t know what is. It’s not everyday parents receive a text from their 18-year-old saying how excited they are about turning off electronics, TV, computer games, etc., and putting away Christmas presents and deny themselves in order to seek God. When they were small, we were told, “Those children are too young to fast.” But look at them now. We didn’t deny them food as children; we asked them to give up certain things: playing outside, TV, Gameboy, etc. We taught them the importance of seeking God. Train up a child in the way they should go, and when they are old, they will not turn away from it.

Let me encourage you for this New Year to seek more and covet less. Do not teach your children the pleasures of instant gratification, and it’ll pay off in the end. Set a time to diligently seek God as a family, and may your New Year bring you peace, joy, happiness, good health, a closer walk with Jesus, and prosperity, with all your children serving the LORD.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love and salvation that You’ve lavished upon us. Thank You for the privilege of being able to seek You. Help us to find You this year as we seek. Help us to hear from You, answer when we call. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Our Living Hope

³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ~ 1 Peter 1:3

Every day brings new hope. Every new year brings even greater and more wonderful hope. 2020 was filled with its ups and downs, but we have a living hope that can never be taken away from us. A living hope that we can never be cheated out of. Our living hope is Eternal Life with our resurrected savior Jesus Christ.

One day He will wipe every tear from our eyes, and we will reign with Him for a thousand years. One day we will be enjoy God’s perfect peace and rest. Until then, let us strive to make every day and every new year, especially 2021, another chance to better ourselves and the world around us.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Hold To Our Living Hope.

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Tag: Devotional

The Pride of Rehoboam

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