Tag: Devotionals

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Commit Your Way To The LORD

5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. ~ Psalms 37:5

Sounds simple, yet it’s very profound. It’s much deeper than just a casual prayer or a momentary surrender. It’s a deliberate, life-changing act of placing the direction of our lives—our hopes, our dreams, our struggles, and our plans, along with our daily steps—into His hands. It means letting go of the steering wheel of life and allowing God to take the lead—easier said than done.

When we commit our way to Him, we are saying, “LORD, have Your way in my life. Do with my life as You will. Let Your Will be done in my life.” We choose to trust that His path is better than the one we have mapped out for ourselves. We are inviting Him to lead us toward the victories He has prepared—victories that may look different from what we expected, yet prove far richer than anything we could accomplish alone.

Trust is the constant companion of commitment. It is impossible to fully commit to someone you do not fully trust. The verse does not stop at just handing over our plans. It calls for us to forsake our own instincts and ideas, and to fully lean on the One who sees all and knows all. Trusting God means resting in His character even when the road ahead is unclear, and believing that He will make the right decisions for our best eternal interests. It means believing that He is both willing and able to bring to fruition everything we have placed in His care. We will believe as Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 1:12, …for I am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day.

Listen, what we entrust to God does not just vanish into silence. He takes our surrendered desires and works them according to His good and perfect wisdom and timing.

This is the beautiful exchange at the heart of the verse: we give Him our total obedience, and He works everything to our good. Not always in the manner or moment we prefer, but always in the way that leads to true flourishing. It is a win-win situation. We are freed from the exhausting burden of self-reliance, and God receives all the glory as He fulfills His purposes through our yielded lives.

Perhaps today you stand at a crossroads—facing a decision, carrying a long-held hope, or wrestling with uncertainty. Hear the gentle call of Psalm 37:5. Commit your way. Trust Him. Then watch with expectancy as He begins to unfold what only He can accomplish.

Heavenly Father, help me to submit my complete will to You. Help me to commit all my ways to You, that You might have full and complete control in my life and so lead me into paths of righteousness for Your Name’s sake, in Jesus’ Name, I pray, amen.

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Exclusive Faith

3 But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the fathers’ houses of Israel said to them, “You may do nothing with us to build a house for our God; but we alone will build to the LORD God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us” ~ Ezra 4:3

Listen to what Zerubbabel declared concerning a secular, and if I may say so, heathen king: “We alone will build to the LORD God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.” Zerubbabel was not being unkind for the sake of pride. He was making a clear and necessary distinction. Those who approached them were not part of the covenant people. They had no rightful share in the work. Therefore Zerubbabel and the leaders with him refused their help. The rebuilding of the house of God would be done by those to whom the command had been given, and by them alone.

We who belong to Christ also have a mandate from our King and God. He has commanded us to preach the Good News of His kingdom in all the world, so that people may hear, believe, and accept the sacrifice of our LORD Jesus on the cross of Calvary. In this way His Church is to be built upon the firm foundation of Jesus Christ and His shed blood. The work is holy. The foundation is exclusive. No other name is given under heaven by which we must be saved.

Yet in our day we often act as though the opposite were true. We want to include all those who have no genuine part with us—Muslims, Hindus, those who blend other religions with a claim to follow Christ, and anyone who prays to other gods. Because we are politically correct, we are afraid of offending anyone. Therefore, we become so inclusive that we will not exclude anyone, no matter what. We treat a simple profession—“I am a Christian, I believe in Jesus”—as automatic inclusion, regardless of lifestyle or unrepentant ways.

But Jesus Himself warned us that this is not how it works. Not everyone who cries “LORD, LORD” will enter the kingdom of heaven. Many will claim His Name while remaining strangers to His authority. True faith requires more than words. A person must forsake and leave behind all falsehood and wickedness. He must come to Jesus to have his sins forgiven, and his heart sprinkled with the shed blood of the Lamb. Then he must live for the LORD exclusively, because Christ has purchased us with His own death and resurrection and has given us eternal life. There is no room for divided loyalty.

Heavenly Father, I come to You asking for Your forgiveness. Teach me Your ways that I might serve You with a pure heart and clean hands. In Jesus’ Name, I pray, amen.

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A Dangerous Orchid

6 For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7 always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. ~ 2 Timothy 3:6-7

14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. ~ 2 Corinthians 11:14

6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. ~ Hosea 4:6

I recently learned that there is a certain type of Praying Mantis that lures its prey to them by mimicking an orchid. The Orchid Mantis, native to the tropical forests of Southeast Asia, doesn’t hunt down its prey; instead, they lay wait, near/on an Orchid or disguised as an Orchid themselves. When a pollinator comes expecting to pollinate a flower, they are immediately grabbed, pinned, and then devoured by the mantis before they even know what really hit them. What looked like good quality nectar (food) was actually their death in disguise. We, humans, are much like this.

There are so many people searching for Truth, but never coming to the Truth. They fall for false prophets, teachers who have an appearance of Christianity. A likeness of Christians, but don’t have fruit. The Truth isn’t in them. There are false prophets that cause their followers to go into a trance-like state where they go outside and eat grass like an animal. Then laugh at them and mock them from the pulpit with the rest of the congregation. Others dish out hundreds to thousands of dollars for the promise of a healing or blessing. They seek Truth, but never seem to find it.

I believe it’s because, much like the pollinators that fall prey to this mantis, they don’t study the source of the Truth. If the pollinators were to pay attention to true Orchids, they’d be able to distinguish between them and the Orchid Mantis. If those seeking Truth would study The Scripture, they’d be able to distinguish between Truth and Lies. They’d be able to distinguish between Life and Death. Just as the Orchid Mantis doesn’t have to hunt down its prey, neither do these false teachers and preachers. They attract them with empty promises and empty words. False signs and false wonders.

So, pay attention to who you follow. Pay attention to what you study. Seek The Truth of God. That means studying His Word in order to more accurately examine what others are saying. Compare their words and teachings with the Scriptures. If it contradicts, run. If it cannot be proven in Scripture, do not accept. Don’t allow yourself to become a pollinator consumed by a Praying Mantis disguised as a beautiful Orchid.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Don’t Pollinate Every Orchid.

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The Person In The Mirror

19 As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects the man. ~ Proverbs 27:19

King Solomon uses an everyday picture—the reflection of a face in still water—to teach a deeper truth. When we look into a mirror, we see an exact representation of ourselves. What we see is the same face everyone else sees. In the same way, Solomon says, a person’s heart reflects who they truly are. What is inside—our motives, desires, attitudes, and character—eventually shows itself in our words and actions.

There’s a funny scene in the movie Daddy’s Home 2 that illustrates how easily we can miss this. Brad is trying to give his co-dad Dusty some hard truths. He points him toward a mirror and says, “The only person who can ruin your Christmas is looking back at you from that mirror.” The problem is, because of the angle, Dusty only sees Brad’s face staring back at him. They keep adjusting the mirror, but every time Dusty looks, it’s still Brad. Finally, Brad gives up in frustration and says, “Forget the mirror exists!”

Brad’s point was clear: the only person who could spoil Christmas was the one looking back from the mirror—not his dad, not anyone else. Yet Dusty kept seeing someone else—Brad.

We often do the same thing spiritually. We look in the mirror of our hearts, and instead of seeing ourselves, we see someone else’s face. So, we shift the blame: “It’s their fault… my childhood… my parents… my circumstances.” We refuse to take responsibility for what is actually in us.

But Proverbs 27:19 will not let us off the hook. The heart of a person reflects the person. No one else gets to dictate the condition of our heart. The face we must face is our own. So, let us look straight into the mirror—honestly, without excuses—and take responsibility for what we see. Then, by God’s grace, we can repent, learn, grow, and move forward in Christ.

Heavenly Father, help me to look honestly at my own heart. Give me courage to take responsibility for my own actions, attitudes, and words. Change me from the inside out, and help me grow more like Jesus. In Jesus’ Name, I pray, amen.

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Bear His Good Fruit

1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. ~ John 15:1-8

I saw a video where a guy taught that the fruit that we are told to bear is words, not works. He condemned anyone who taught or believed otherwise. This is a prime example of teaching doctrine, not Bible. See, you have to not know Scripture in order to believe Jesus is speaking about words and not works.

Here’s the thing, you don’t have to be saved to say Jesus is LORD. You don’t have to be saved to say that The Father is God Almighty. You don’t have to be saved to say anything Christian or profess Christianity or its doctrines. Salvation is not mandatory for those things. That’s why God weeps over His people, saying:

8 This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
9 in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.

Matthew 15:8-9

God doesn’t desire lip service from us. He isn’t an egotistical god. He isn’t like the other gods. He’s not like Allah, who just wants your praise and honor, caring not about your actions and sin. No. The LORD despises sin. He is holy. Unrighteousness in His presence is an abomination to Him. This is why we are told to be transformed by the renewal of our mind. This is why we are told to keep His commands. This is why we are told to turn away from sin and sin no more.

It’s not about empty words, but your heart. From your heart come your thoughts, words, and actions. It’s about bearing the Fruit of the Spirit.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Galatians 5:22-23

Unless you bear fruit, good fruit, the Fruit of the Spirit, you will be cut off from the Vine. Because it’s not about lip service. It is about the condition of your heart, which manifests not just in words, but thoughts and actions.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Bear His Good Fruit.

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Watch Out For Antichrist

22 Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. ~ 1 John 2:22-23

The Spirit of Antichrist is something often misunderstood. It’s not a coming human ruler. It’s not just a spirit that claims God has no Son, but that divinity of the Son. See, we often look at verses from our worldview and understanding and not in the context of the time period and culture it was written in and to. Calling Jesus the Son of God was blasphemous, not because the Son is a ruler over man or because He is a kind of lesser god, but because it is claiming that Jesus is equal with God (John 10:33-39).

Antichrist denies who the Son is. It denies the divinity of Christ. For without the divinity of Christ, there is no salvation. No hope. There is nothing. Man cannot save us. Another god cannot save us. Only the Almighty, Yahweh, the Great I Am has the power and authority to redeem His creation. For He alone created us. He alone is our savior.

This belief is running rampant through the Church right now. Antichrist is deceiving many in the Church and the world. It’s cherry-picking verses out of context and blinding them to the verses that say the Son is One with the Father. Antichrist has only grown stronger over the years as it digs deeper and deeper into the Church and the World, so we must be on guard. We must be awake and aware. We have to be knowledgeable of the Scriptures, lest we ourselves be deceived. Lest we miss an opportunity to deliver a soul from the fires of Hell. Therefore, study your Bibles and memorize Scripture. Seek understanding. Don’t just go on blind faith alone, but learn what you believe and why. Where it is in Scripture and how to defend it.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Watch Out For Antichrist.

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Avoid The Thyatira Stumbling Block

20 But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. 21 I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. 22 Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, 23 and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works. 24 But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. ~ Revelation 2:20-24

From the very beginning of time, mankind has sought to know things that do not belong to them. Things that they have no right to know, and it has gotten us in trouble each and every time. From the Garden of Eden, we have been tempted with the secret things by Satan. We desire to know things that we feel have been hidden from us that we think we should be able to know. Eve desired to be wise like God in order to obtain forbidden knowledge, and we all judge her for it. We point out all of the other fruit she could have eaten. The Tree of Life was right there next to it in the middle of the Garden, yet she chose the forbidden tree. We want what we feel we deserve to know/have.

Today’s Church is no different. Today, instead of a forbidden tree promising forbidden knowledge, we seek ‘forbidden’ books with ‘forbidden’ knowledge. Books that people claim were taken out of the Bible, such as the Book of Enoch and the Gnostic Gospels, including The Gospel of Thomas, Mary, and Philip. Like the Apocrypha: Tobit, Sirach, Judith, Baruch, etc. We seek what we believe has been kept hidden from us. We seek secret knowledge. Each time I see someone pushing these books, maybe not all of them, but some of them, it’s always someone who has read these and studied these, but not the Bible. They focused on these books instead of the books given to us by the LORD God Himself. Why? Secret Knowledge.

The Church in Thyatira was chastised by the LORD Jesus Himself because they tolerated that woman Jezebel who claimed to hear from God, allowing/pushing eating food sacrificed to idols and sexual immorality. Teachings that they began to call the deep things of Satan. They held to teachings that were forbidden because they sought what they felt was being kept from them, just like we do today with these ‘forbidden’ books. Why do we do this? Paul said:

7 Well then, am I suggesting that the law of God is sinful? Of course not! In fact, it was the law that showed me my sin. I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, “You must not covet.” 8 But sin used this command to arouse all kinds of covetous desires within me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power. 9 At one time I lived without understanding the law. But when I learned the command not to covet, for instance, the power of sin came to life, 10 and I died. So I discovered that the law’s commands, which were supposed to bring life, brought spiritual death instead. 11 Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me; it used the commands to kill me.

Romans 7:7-11

The enemy doesn’t have to force us to do anything. All he has to do is present lies to us as something that has been kept secret from us. Not everything is good for us. There is a reason these books were not included in the Canon of Scripture: not because of secret knowledge or to keep us ignorant, but because of outright lies and contradictions to Scripture, the Word of God. These things would be easily seen by those who read them, if they were first grounded in Truth and desired it. God has given us 66 books that explain the Truth and give life to mankind. What could those books that contradict God’s Word give us other than death? Therefore, don’t be seduced by the promise of forbidden knowledge, a higher understanding, or some deep teaching promising hidden secrets to be revealed. The LORD has already revealed to man an entire Garden of good fruit; why would you sacrifice all of that for one forbidden tree that only causes death?

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Avoid The Thyatira Stumbling Block.

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These Are Hard Things

14 Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. 15 And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 16 as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. 17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. ~ 2 Peter 3:14-18

Paul’s writings are hard. They’re difficult to understand, which adds an even higher chance of misinterpretation to all of his letters. Romans 9 is a chapter that is amongst the hardest to understand. Paul writes what sounds like God creates some specifically for Hell and others specifically for Heaven, and there’s nothing we can do to change that. But is this true? If we read just this chapter alone and nothing else, it sure sounds like that, but in the context of Scripture, it can’t be.

Peter assures us that:

9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

2 Peter 3:9

If God desires all to reach repentance, then He cannot withhold the ability to repent from some or create some specifically for Hell. As Paul is explaining these things, he quotes the book of Exodus.

14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! 15 For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.

Romans 9:14-16

Paul is quoting Exodus 33:19. The very chapter before the people of Israel had created a golden calf. What was the LORD’s response? He told Moses He was going to consume all of the people of Israel and start over with Moses. So, Moses interceded on their behalf. Then he came down, condemned the people, and then returned to the LORD the next day in hopes of making atonement for their grievous sin. It is during Moses’ intercession that God makes this statement. God says to Moses:

17 And the Lord said to Moses, “This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.”

Exodus 33:17

The most interesting part of this is that God tells Moses He will show mercy to whom He will show mercy as a response to Moses hearing that the people will be spared and then asking to see the Glory of God. God then places Moses in the cleft of a rock, covers him with His hand, and then removes His hand so that Moses can see the LORD’s back. See, God tells Moses I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy because not everyone receives mercy. The people didn’t receive mercy because they sought the LORD. It was too late. The LORD was ready to bring judgment on them, but because Moses had sought the LORD while He could be found, He could seek and plead on their behalf.

Sometimes, it’s too late because the LORD has given us chance after chance, and we refused to take it. The LORD gave Pharaoh chance after chance, but Pharaoh continuously hardened his own heart. So, the LORD then gave Pharaoh over to his own desires and refused to have mercy on him. Paul warns us that today is the day of salvation. Not just because tomorrow is promised to no one, but also because tomorrow may be one day too late. He may not be able to be found. You may have hardened your heart so much that the LORD gives you over to that hardness and you have no more hope.

This is where intercession is so important. If Moses would not have interceded, then all of those people in the wilderness would have perished. But because Moses had found favor with the LORD and prayed and sought Him on their behalf, they were given another chance. The LORD looks for only one person to stand in the gap. One person to intercede. Therefore, if you see that family member, friend, co-worker, neighbor who is consistently pushing off the tugging of the LORD, pray for them. Seek His face on their behalf, lest the LORD stop tugging and they lose their opportunity.

Dear LORD, I’m sorry for all of the times I have hardened my heart. For all of the times I ran from Your call and refused to humble myself before You. I’m sorry for all of the times that I gave in to my flesh and sinned knowingly. Please forgive me. Please give me another opportunity to be saved. Another opportunity to seek Your face. Draw me close to You, LORD. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

Dear LORD, please don’t give up on [insert name here]. Please soften their heart and do not give them over to their own flesh. Please tug at their heartstrings. Keep them up at night with thoughts of You. Distracted throughout the day with You on their mind. Call out to them, LORD, that they might hear Your voice and come to You. Remember Your Will that none should perish, but all come to acceptance. Remember Your plan that You have for their lives. Please LORD, intervene in their lives, even now as I pray. Let their hearts be not content with this world but uneasy in all of its false splendor. Draw them close to You. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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The Final Warning

15 And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. 16 But they mocked the messengers of God, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, till there was no remedy. ~ 2 Chronicles 36:15-16

The LORD God sent warnings to the people of Israel over and over and over again by His messengers. Why? Because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place, which is the Temple. The people had abandoned God and were serving false gods. Still, God kept warning them to turn back to Him, because they were His people and His inheritance and He was jealous for them. And if they did not turn from idolatry and back to serving the One True God, then judgment would fall on them. But here’s the thing: God does not take pleasure in the death of the sinner, nor is it His delight to render just judgment. He would rather forgive than punish. But His people refused to turn back to Him. In fact, they mocked the messengers that He sent, and by doing so they despised His words of warning. They scoffed at the messengers and jeered at them as they poked fun and laughed them to scorn. This did not sit well with God. It actually awakened the wrath of the LORD against them until there was no remedy left for them.

The same pattern operates in the individual life, the family, the Church, and our modern society. Make no mistake, our God has patience with us, but there comes a time when His patience will run out, and there will be no remedy left. It’s not that He is cruel or unjust. He keeps saying, “Stop! Don’t do that! Quit it! Return to Me!” But when His warnings go unheeded, and His messengers are mocked, God takes that personally. If He has to continue sending warnings every single day with no change, then there will come a final warning, and God will act in judgment. There will eventually come a time when He will say, “Enough is enough.” Then there will remain no remedy but only the dreadful expectation of judgment. So may the LORD keep our hearts soft, our ears open, and our wills ready to turn while the day of mercy is still called “today.”

Heavenly Father, please guide my heart that I might hear Your voice, and when I hear, that I might obey Your commands. In Jesus’ Name, I pray, amen.

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Obedience

22 …be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. ~ James 1:22-25

James is clear: you can listen to the Word of God and read it all you want, but if you do not put into action what you have heard and learned, you are only deceiving yourself. Samuel told King Saul that it is better to obey than to sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22). Jesus Himself declared in Matthew 7:21, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” In other words, it is all about obedience.

When Samuel said ‘to obey is better than sacrifice,’ the Hebrew word translated ‘better’ is tov—good, pleasant, excellent, beneficial. Obedience is not just preferable; it is the higher-quality, more excellent response God desires.

So we must ask ourselves: Am I being obedient to the commands of Jesus? Each one of us must evaluate our lives, our actions, and our intentions. We must examine the reasons why we do what we do, ensuring that we are not acting from selfish motives that bring only a momentary and temporal reward. Obedience, by contrast, carries an eternal reward.

The bottom line is this: hearing the Word of God alone profits nothing. But hearing coupled with action—true obedience—brings eternal benefits. No one who hears the good he ought to do yet continues in opposition should expect a good reward. Only those who hear and immediately put the Word into practice will receive both an eternal reward and a blessing here and will be prosperous in whatever they do, according to Psalm 1. Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the Word that cleanses me. Help me to be a doer of Your Word and commandments. Let me not stray away from Your Word, but hold fast to the good things You require of me. In Jesus’ Name, I pray, amen.

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