Tag: Devotionals

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Be The Influence

5 Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. 7 Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! ~ Matthew 18:6-7

Jesus said, if you cause one of these little ones who believe in Him to sin, woe be on you. As a matter of fact, it would be way better for you to have a millstone tied around your neck and then thrown into the depths of the sea and left to drown. Jesus isn’t just speaking empty words; this is a serious warning. Why was this warning so strong? Because children are innocent. Turning them away from God at a young age can be like taking away their hope of salvation. They’re like sponges; the way you raise them up is the way they will continue in when they are old. Not only are they precious, they are also the future.

Look at the world we live in today. Teachers, movies, TV shows, music, and social media are all geared toward grooming our children. Raising them up to be God-haters, sexually confused, confused about their identity, apathetic to morality, anti-faith, walking in darkness continually, never once even thinking to look for the Light. The world is after our children.

Therefore, it’s up to each parent to pay attention to what their children are watching, listening to, consuming, and pumping into their brains. Our children are under attack because, in a single generation, the entire world can be changed. Therefore, don’t let just anybody speak into and influence your child’s life. You speak into your child’s life. You influence your child. Teach your child right from wrong, and lead by example. Teach your child about God, His ways, His desires, His righteousness, and His love, making sure you always first lead by example in all things. Then, make sure you pray over your children and for your children daily. Don’t give the Devil an opportunity to influence your children and lead them away from God.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Be The Influence.

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The Hate of A Lying Tongue

24 Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips and harbors deceit in his heart; 25 when he speaks graciously, believe him not, for there are seven abominations in his heart; 26 though his hatred be covered with deception, his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly. 27 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling. 28 A lying tongue hates its victims, and a flattering mouth works ruin. ~ Proverbs 26:24-28

King Solomon wrote, a lying tongue hates its victims. If you hate, you will lie. If you lie, you are harboring hate in your heart. It does not matter who that person is. Whether it is supposed to be a friend or a family member, it does not matter whether it is a stranger or a politician. If that person is lying, he or she is filled with hate. But they will disguise their true feelings. They will pretend to be doing what is best for you and to have your best interest at heart, but they will lead you to a bitter end.

Solomon said, even when he or she speaks to you graciously, don’t believe them because seven abominations are in their heart. They will try to cover their hatred with deception, but God will expose their wickedness. Because God is just and true, He will give those people enough rope to hang themselves.

But as for us, we are to believe God and trust His Word. We must not believe everything that is told to us but measure it against the Word of God and use His Word as our standard. And may the God of truth open our eyes to see and our ears to hear.

Heavenly Father, give us discernment that we will not be fooled or taken advantage of. Be our shield and our protection. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Walk In Light

6 If we say, “We have fellowship with Him,” and yet we walk in darkness, we are lying and are not practicing the truth. 7 If we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. ~ 1 John 1:6-7 CSB

John said that it is literally impossible to have fellowship with Jesus and continue to walk in darkness. But what does it mean to walk in darkness? Well, for one, you walk in darkness when you refuse to see truth even when it’s right there in front of you. For another, you walk in darkness when you have fellowship with the world and accept their definition of morality even if it contradicts Scripture just because it is the popular thing or the cultural thing to do.

It does not matter what the world says or what the world thinks; it is only what God thinks and what God says that is right. It is God who we, as Christians, aim to please. Nothing else matters except His approval. If you obey His precepts and follow His commands, you will walk in the light just like He is in the light. And if you walk in the light like He is in the like, the blood of Jesus will cleanse you from all sin.

But if you continue to walk in darkness, there will be no unity within the brethren. It’s only when you walk in the light of Jesus that you will have true fellowship with one another. You cannot be constantly bickering and arguing with each other and still say that you’re walking in the light, or in the knowledge of who Jesus is. If you find yourself constantly in fights and arguments with a brother, first evaluate your own life and be thorough and sincere. If your evaluation finds something, then change that thing or things. If it is not you, maybe you might need to help that brother evaluate his own self. If he or she refuses, then maybe you need to make a change.

Father, help me to constantly evaluate myself, my words, my motives, and my actions. Help me to change for the better so that I might walk in fellowship with You and with my fellow brethren. In Jesus name, I pray, amen.

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Give Your Life Away

20 I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. ~ Galatians 2:20CSB

There’s a Gospel song by William McDowell that says:

I give myself away
I give myself away
So You can use me
Take my heart
Take my life
As a living sacrifice
All my dreams all my plans
Lord I place them in your hands

When you really think about it, these words are so powerful. Think about what you’re saying every time you sing this song. You’re saying it’s no longer about me. It’s no longer about my flesh and my feelings; it’s now about Christ. It’s no longer about my ego but the Kingdom of God.

Imagine if we, as a Church, lived our lives like this. Just think about that for a second. Every single action we make directly impacts our testimony. We overcome the Devil by the Blood of the Lamb and the Word of our Testimony. If we accept Christ but don’t live as Christ, our Testimony is useless, and if our Testimony is useless, then we make the Blood of the Lamb void.

Our Testimony will make void the Blood of the Lamb if we refuse to allow the Blood of the Lamb to change us. We have to live as Christ each and every day in order to truly make an impact on the world for Christ. This is our call as Christians. We aren’t called to just accept Christ and continue on our way. We are called to change and then change the world. We are not our own; we are bought by the Blood of The Lamb. Therefore, live your life as such and change the world around you.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Give Your Life Away.

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Strive For More

31 When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. 32 Before Him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on His right, but the goats on the left. ~ Matthew 25:31-33

Two groups of people stood before Jesus. One was the sheep, and the other was the goats. Then Jesus separated the two groups. To one, He gave eternal life to the other, He gave eternal damnation. Now, here’s the thing, these two groups don’t represent the Church and the world. They are both Christians. The difference is one represents the Christians who followed Christ and lived their lives for Him, the other only said they did, but their actions spoke otherwise.

See, they accepted salvation, but they didn’t allow Christ to sanctify them because they refused to be set apart from the world and their own sin, taking up their cross and following Christ. They didn’t allow salvation to change them, instead, it became a one time event that didn’t impact the rest of their lives.

Today, don’t take your salvation for granted. Each day strive to growing in the LORD. Strive to bettering yourself. Strive to bettering the world around you.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Strive For More.

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The Lullaby of Pop Culture

5 For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. 6 So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:5-6

There was a time when the Church separated itself from popular culture. It did not let the dictates of society compel them to act or think in a certain way. Instead, they relied on Scripture combined with the teaching of the Church elders.

But today’s Christians are so caught up in politics and political parties that they are more loyal to them than to God, ethnicities, fame and fortune, wealth and riches, movie stars and music stars. The worst part is the Christians of today will defend all of these distractions and false idols tooth and nail, even against the Word of God. It has caused their hearts to grow lukewarm, at best, and have completely lost their way entirely, at worst.

They no longer give their full allegiance to the LORD, nor do they hold His holy Word in high esteem, reading and studying it every single day. Why? Because when we constantly give into our flesh and stop feeding our spirit man, our flesh begins to take over and give way to spiritual slumber.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Ignore The Lullaby.

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Pray For Peace

6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! “May they be secure who love you! 7  Peace be within your walls and security within your towers!” ~ Psalms 122:6-7

I believe that with all that is going on in the world today, it is good to know so that you will remember what the Psalmist instructed us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Why? Our destinies are tied to Jerusalem. We, the Church, have not replaced Israel as some erroneously believe.

If you read Matthew chapter 24 along with other Scripture, you will see that Israel, more specifically, Jerusalem, is tied to last-day events that involve us Christians, such as Matthew 24:15-16, Matthew 24:32-34, Deuteronomy 30:3, Isaiah 43:6, and Ezekiel 36:24.

Therefore, I would encourage you to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, if for no other reason than for your sake and for the sake of the Church. For our peace on this earth is directly tied to the peace of Jerusalem.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Pray For Peace.

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Be Completely Separate

16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17 Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, 18 and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” ~ 2 Corinthians 6:16-18

Anton LaVey was the founder and high priest of the first church of Satan. Let us see what his thoughts are on Halloween. He says:

“We think because we are not performing any demonic rituals or human sacrifices that we are on safe ground. But did you know that as soon as you dress up, whether you color yourself or put on a costume, the enemy owns you? Because by doing so, you have turned over your legal rights, and you have dedicated yourself and your kids to celebrating the devil’s holiday. You have just made a pact with the enemy, and you are already sacrificing your children spiritually by dressing them up and changing their identity.”

Let us now take a look at another witness. John Ramirez, an ex-satanist, who claims he was a general in witchcraft. He said he would sit and talk with the devil like people sit and talk to each other. Here’s what he had to say about Halloween:

He said he had a demonic wedding on Halloween with animal rituals and blood sacrifices because that is the devil’s holiday. He goes on to give five reasons why Christians should not celebrate Halloween:

  1. It gives the devil legal rights to change your identity
  2. Eternal mistake because it brings a curse
  3. Satanists celebrates it (so, why should we)
  4. When we bring it into the Church, we grieve the Spirit of God
  5. The candies and other stuff are prayed over to bring a curse

In other words, it opens demonic doors. Apparently, witches and wiccans claim Halloween to be one of their high holy days. It’s a time for marriages and celebrations as their New Year begins. This is why I believe, without a doubt, “celebration by participation” in the dark occult practice of Halloween, no matter how innocent we try to make it, will open spiritual doors, just like any other occult activity.

Therefore, don’t open yourself up to spiritual attack and demonic interference in your life. Don’t freely allow the enemy any claim of your life. No, the Holy Spirit doesn’t take off a day, but that’s not the problem. Halloween isn’t dark because of the day. Halloween is dark because of the pagan/occult origins and the pagan/occult celebration itself.

The body of Christ should never associate with evil and embrace the occult. It should only ever shine the Light of Christ into the darkness. Why? Because we aren’t called to be a part of the world, we are only to be in the world, not of it. We are to be separate. We are to be Christ to the world. He should live through us. Therefore, separate yourselves from the world and don’t allow any open doors for the devil to have any part in your life.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Be Completely Separate.

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Combat

14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? 15 What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17 Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, 18 and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” ~ 2 Corinthians 6:14-18

As you are well aware, Halloween is nigh upon us, and people are genuinely wondering what to do on Halloween if they can’t celebrate it. We teach that Christians Can’t Celebrate Halloween; why? Because Halloween is darkness. Witches and warlocks cast spells that night. Halloween is NOT a Christian holiday.

Therefore, we should refrain from participating in it in any fashion. We cannot legitimize evil just by saying, or claiming it is something else. A whitewashed sepulcher is only a whitewashed grave. So, I gave three things that can be done to combat the evil: Fasting; Prayer; Group Bible Study/Worship.

We have to combat that the darkness with light. If we don’t the darkness will contain to reign supreme and the world will continue to get darker and darker. Therefore, separate yourself from the darkness and let the Light of the LORD shine through you.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Combat.

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Be Careful Who Your Shepherd Is

14 Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. 15 I speak as to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. 16 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? 17 Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. 18 Consider the people of Israel: are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar? 19 What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? 20 No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the LORD and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the LORD and the table of demons. 22 Shall we provoke the LORD to jealousy? Are we stronger than He? ~ 1 Corinthians 10:14-22

Paul, out of great concern for the Corinthian Church, was trying to get the Saints there to understand that it is impossible to partake from two tables: the table of the LORD and the table of demons. He called it idolatry, and then he warned his readers to flee idolatry. God warned the Old Testament believers to flee idolatry as well.

Paul said, “Look, you are sensible people. You can understand what I am saying, so judge for yourselves. Do not just blindly take what I am saying but weigh it against Scripture and with reason. The problem with today’s Christians is that they get too caught up in the worldview of popular culture, by which they judge everything and all standards.

You were born that way. God does not make mistakes. God wants you happy. It’s your body, it’s your choice. They use society’s morals to judge instead of God’s standards. Look, culture changes with whoever is in charge or whoever has the loudest and most pronounced voice.

Over and often, we see the trend in the Old Testament where the Israelites followed the LORD and obeyed His Law as long as the leader, or the judge, or the king, or whoever it was that was in charge was still alive, but then as soon as he died, they went right back to doing wrong. This is the importance of keeping Christ as your Shepherd and not the world as your shepherd. Therefore, cling to the Word of God and stand firm on the Scriptures.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Be Careful Who Your Shepherd Is.

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