Tag: Devotionals

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Spread Light Regardless

John 3:19-21

[19] And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. [20] For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. [21] But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.

Today, I went to the Post Office to mail two packages and because my hair wasn’t done, I put on bandana, like I usually do. Now, when I wear a bandana it’s one of two things, either the American flag or military green camo. I couldn’t find my camo one, so I grabbed my American flag bandana and went about my business. Now, fast forward to arriving there, the Post Office worker, who is usually always nice, greeted me very nice as always. Asked me how my day was, etc. Then pointed at my bandana and told me it was a bad time to be patriotic.

I asked why and the conversation went from there. I quickly realized that this very nice young woman was genuinely angry with me for not agreeing with her. Now, I’m a firm believer in (and I practice it myself daily) if you don’t actually know a subject don’t bring it up and try to shame someone for it. Everything she said, she was simply repeating what she heard someone else say. She didn’t actually know any of the facts. She didn’t research or even look anything up for herself, but she was confident enough to accuse people of mass murder, rape, fraud, and pedophilia, without any evidence or even looking into any of the allegations or cases.

When she was shown evidence, she abruptly ended the conversation and continuously said she’s not political and that she didn’t care. This told me that one she did care and two she was offended by the facts that were shown to her. This attitude has become the normal thing in today’s world. We hate correction. We hate facts. We hate anything that would dare contradict our fragile world view.

This encounter today really bothered me. It has consumed my thoughts for the past 12 hours and only now am I understanding that this is exactly what the Devil wants. This is how he wins. How can we know Truth if we hate it? How can we ever grow if we hate anything that contradicts our world view? We can’t. Jesus said that the judgment that has come upon the world is the world loved the darkness rather than the Light.

Light exposes. It corrects. It doesn’t care about your feelings or opinions. It only care about Truth. The Truth. The only Truth. And when we can’t handle the Truth, we hate the source of the Truth. The Light. I was dismissed, laughed at, and mocked today because I shed light into the darkness and the world hated it. And even though I found it extremely uncomfortable, stressful to the point my hands were shaking uncontrollably, I’d do it again in a heartbeat. Why? Because the Light can never back down to the darkness. Who knows, someone in that darkness might just catch a glimpse of the Light and find Truth.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Spread Light Regardless.

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Know Why You Hope

5 This is the message we have heard from Him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with Him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. ~ 1 John 1:5-7

Because of the love of God, He has lavished grace upon us. Because of that grace, we have a blessed hope. A promise to hold to. See, sometimes the world around us can feel heavy—full of challenges, uncertainties, and divisions. It can feel like it’s weighing us down, yet, because of God’s love and grace, we are unfazed.

Because God has made us a community of faith, united in one sacred space, bonded together and seeking the One who is light, the One who casts out all darkness. Therefore, we strive to live in that light by running to it and away from the darkness…

John declared in all confidence that God is light. What was he saying? John was affirming that God is completely:

  1. Pure and Holy
    1. There is absolutely no darkness at all in God
  2. He’s morally perfect and the source of all truth
    1. There is no relative truth
    1. There is no: your truth, my truth, someone else’s truth
    1. There is one truth, God’s truth
  3. He’s good, kind, and forgiving
    1. He is never changing but always the same

According to John and also to Jesus Himself, Jesus came so that we might know the Father.

We were once separated from the holiness of God. Yes, the Israelites saw God’s holiness from a distance, but a veil separated all of mankind, including them, from a perfect and holy God.

Jesus came to bridge that chasm by dying on the cross for us—for our sins, and thus, through His body, He has made a way back to God the Father.

At the point of death, the veil in the temple separating the holy place from the most holy place, or the holy of holies, was torn in two, signifying our permission to enter God’s holiness—the very Presence of God.

This is reason we have hope. This is why we aren’t phased by the darkness because we have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. We are no longer our own, but bought by the LORD God Himself. We have been redeemed, restored, and renewed.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Know Why You Hope.

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Let Your Gift Provide For You

Genesis 41:14-16

[14]  Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they quickly brought him out of the pit. And when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, he came in before Pharaoh. [15] And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.” [16] Joseph answered Pharaoh, “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.”

Your gift will always provide for you. See, Joseph was in the pit. He wasn’t just in prison, but in a pit that they had to bring him up out of. I used to think Joseph was in like a large cell or something, but no. He was in a pit. A deep pit for criminals. That’s where Pharaoh brought him out of.

See, Joseph didn’t do anything but use his God-given gift. In every circumstance, Joseph used his gift. Whether it be being a natural leader, manager, or dream interpreter, Joseph was always using his God-given gift no matter where he was.

See, it doesn’t matter where the Devil tries to bring you down to. He could bring you as low as possible. It doesn’t matter. As long as God sees you. See, when God sees you, no one can cover you. No one can stop you. No one can keep you down.

And God has given you a way out. Your gift. Your gift is your key and guide to your call. It will help you navigate your life. The life God has for you.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Let Your Gift Provide For You.

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Stay In God’s Plan

Matthew 7:21

21 Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

I recently heard a Catholic exorcist say, “God has a plan for you; so does the Devil.” This is an interesting concept. We often think about the LORD having a plan for us, but we don’t really think about the Devil having a plan for us as well.

See, the Devil’s plan doesn’t always seem evil. In fact, a lot of the time it seems good. It seems like a good idea. Like our own idea.

It could be as simple as staying home instead of going to war (King David) or numbering the kingdom (King David). These in themselves, weren’t evil, but because they weren’t a part of the LORD’s plan, they were evil and brought great consequences upon David and his household.

Sometimes the Devil’s plan looks a little more mischievous like saying you sold something for one and amount when you really sold it for another amount (Ananias and Sapphira), and as innocent as making a sacrifice instead of being obedient from the beginning (King Saul).

The Devil’s plan doesn’t always seem evil. It doesn’t even have to be an evil action. All he really wants is for us to be outside of the will of the LORD. Why? Because Jesus warned us that it’s only those who do the will of the Father that will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. So, be careful not to be distracted by the enemy. Be careful not to miss God’s plan for your life.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Stay In God’s Plan.

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Stay Prepared

 

If you’ve read a few of our devotionals, you know that The Hobbit is one of my favorite trilogies. One thing I love in the series is how Dain, Thorin’s cousin, comes prepared to battle the elves, specifically. See, the elves are masters at hand to hand combat, but they are also masters at archery. Their archers send perfectly coordinated arrows into the air at their opponent, that it takes out much of the army before the even reach the elves. Dain’s army prepared for this.

They created large arrows that spun a large chain of sorts around the arrow like a propeller. When the elves shot their arrows, the dwarves shot these special arrows that destroyed the elve’s arrows, and the large arrows impact killed many elves when it landed.

The dwarves studied their enemies. They knew their gameplan, so they prepared for it. They planned for it and when the time came, they defeated their enemy. We have to do the same.

See, we are not unaware of the Devil’s schemes. We know how he attacks. What his go to jabs are, so we have to prepare for them. We have to get ourselves ready. We train our spirit man through prayer, fasting, memorizing Scripture, worship. We memorize Scriptures that help us when we are tempted. We know what the Devil likes to attack, so we prepare for it their Scripture. That way we are never caught unaware. Never caught by surprise. Always prepared to defend ourselves no matter what comes our way.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Stay Prepared.

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Stand On Childlike Faith

Matthew 18:2-4

[2] And calling to Him a child, He put him in the midst of them [3] and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. [4] Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

Jesus tells His followers that they have to have childlike faith. Why? Because children believe easier and faster than adults do. A child will believe anything, an adult, not so much so.

We are called to childlike faith so that we might easily belief the impossible, for all things are possible through Christ who gives me strength. Children believe you when you tell them who they are and what they can accomplish.

Jesus’ statement wasn’t about fun, but innocent belief without constraint so that miracles might be prevalent in your life.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Stand On Childlike Faith.

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Walk With God

8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? ~ Micah 6:8

Enoch walked and talked with God, then God took him. This is one of the very first examples of a spiritual walk in Scripture. In fact, I’d venture to say that it’s the first spiritual walk that ends with achieving the ultimate goal that is recorded in Scripture. That now begs the question, what exactly is a spiritual walk?

Our Spiritual Walk is our personal, individual journey with Jesus. Our personal connection and understanding of who Jesus is and what His sacrifice on Calvary did for us as individuals, and how we should respond. It’s personal.

Our walk with Jesus does not end when we say, “I believe, please forgive me, amen.” It is a lifelong walk, a struggle even. It is a seeking, searching, asking, knocking, a total dependence upon Jesus, it’s living by faith, walking by faith, talking by faith, and seeing by faith. Genesis 5:24 tells us that Enoch walked faithfully with God, or as the NLT puts it, walking in close fellowship with God. Do not begin to say to yourself that God is up in heaven, and I am here on the earth, so there’s no way to seek Him or to truly know Him.

God said through Isaiah, “…I would not have told the people of Israel to seek me if I could not be found…” (Isaiah 45:19b NLT). God has revealed Himself to us, so that we might find Him if we but diligently seek His face and call upon His Name. He can be found by anyone willing to seek Him. And when you find Him, He will walk with you.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Walk With God.

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Remember His Steadfast Love

29 The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery. They have oppressed the poor and needy, and have extorted from the sojourner without justice. 30 And I sought for a man among them who should build up the wall and stand in the breach before me for the land, that I should not destroy it, but I found none. 31 Therefore I have poured out my indignation upon them. I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath. I have returned their way upon their heads, declares the Lord God. ~ Ezekiel 22:29-31

God makes a long list of wrongs and calls out the iniquities that both the people and the priests are all guilty of. But He doesn’t want to bring a swift and terrible punishment on them as He would be justified in doing. He doesn’t do it because He does not take pleasure in the death of the wicked. Neither does He find delight in punishing the guilty.

God would rather bless than curse. Give than take. Help than hinder. Forgive than punish. Because His love is a steadfast love. Therefore, God looked for someone, anyone who would stand in the gap and intercede for those wayward people, but He could find none. His first thought was not execution of His justice, but pardon was the first thing that came to His mind. “Forgive them, for they know not what they do,” Jesus cried out from the cross (Luke 23:34).

And why is that? It is because of The Steadfast Love of God. I’m talking about the unbiased love of God that we’ve been talking about. So unbiased that He causes His sun to rise on the wicked as well as the good. And He sends His rain on the just as well as the unjust (Matthew 5:44). This word translated steadfast love also means great kindness and could also mean loyalty.

In other words, God’s steadfast love is grounded in great kindness and lathered with loyalty. He will never leave you nor will He ever forsake you. God will never leave you holding the bag, as they say, for his steadfast love is filled with mercy and grace.

Here is the good thing about it. It doesn’t matter who we are, where we came from, or what we have done. It doesn’t matter our station in life. It doesn’t matter whether we’re rich or poor, white or black, red or yellow. God’s steadfast love is poured out in abundant grace upon all.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Remember His Steadfast Love.

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A Key To Success

Proverbs 6:6-11

[6]  Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. [7]  Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, [8] she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. [9]  How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? [10]  A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, [11]  and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.

Success can be fleeting, or it can be seized through focus, action, and purposeful intent. Success is drawn to the diligent and the hardworking, but it avoids—and even evades—the sluggard and the faint of heart, slipping past those who hesitate like sand through the fingers, leaving only memories of what could have been.

It refuses to come to those who merely call from a distance, but runs swiftly toward those who chase and pursue it with relentless diligence, like a river rushing to fill a dry and weary land.

In short… success responds to intentional effort, not passive desire. So… get up and chase it. Don’t wait for it to knock or for everything to be perfect; it never will.

Success is a stubborn heifer that refuses to plow if left unprodded; therefore, chase success with all your strength and with the full intention of capturing it, no matter the cost.

Wake up every morning with success on your mind and in your heart, aligned with what God has for your life. But never sacrifice your relationship with God or your family, or your integrity.

Our Christian success is not independent of God, but is centered in God. Therefore, our vision and our goals must be rooted in Christ. They must find their existence in Him because we find our existence in Him, “For in Him we live and move and have our being…” (Acts 17:28a).

We don’t bring our plans to God and demand that He bless them, but instead, we come to God and ask Him to bless us with His plans and vision for our lives and our ministry.

So, today, let us apprehend that for which we have been apprehended, as Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippian Church (Philippians 3:12). Because, in reality, Christian success is not self-made, but is fulfilling the purpose that Christ has apprehended, or saved us for. Therefore, when you become as desperate for God and for Jesus, as for your next breath of fresh air, then success is halfway achieved.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Do Not Sacrifice Him. 

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Devour The Speared

 

Lionfish is an invasive species that is overpopulating the western north Atlantic region, like the coasts of Florida. They have since spread to the Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico) and the Caribbean. These Lionfish are destroying the natural ecosystems in these areas. Why? Because they don’t belong, so they have no natural predator to keep them at bay.

The Lionfish are a lot like sin. Sin isn’t natural not intended. And it has no natural predators within us. This is where Christ comes in. He, being God, isn’t bound to our weaknesses. He knows how to overcome sin. He is strong enough to overcome sin. So, we depend on Him.

The local wildlife don’t know how to hunt the Lionfish or kill them, but if a diver/fisherman stuns or kills the Lionfish, the bigger fish, sharks, eels, etc. can safely grab and consume the Lionfish.

We can’t overcome sin on our own. We need the LORD to intervene in order to overcome. Just like the animals cannot naturally kill and devour Lionfish without help, neither can we overcome sin without the help of Christ. He is our spearman.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Devour The Speared.

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