Today’s Devotion 6.12.12
OUR Roll
We all have a roll to play in this lifetime; and that is to be God’s servant. We are not here to serve ourselves to get the most out of life to make it what we want it to be. That is what’s wrong with the world today. We often have too many people that are out to see what “I”, “ME”, and “SELF” want. That isn't how God intended us to live. It is NEVER about US. I know you have heard the saying “there is no I in team.” I agree to a certain extinct. How I like to reword it is “The ONLY I in team is when I team up with God and participate”. The “I” in team is the work I should do to part apart of the team. Do you agree? How are we apart of a team if we don’t contribute? This relationship with God isn't one sided. He entrust in us to do our part. However, He already knows if we are lazy about it. He tells us that if He brings us to it, He will bring us through it. He will never give us anything we can’t handle to perform. If you feel like you have been given a lot and in reality you only have a little of the pie to perform; maybe you need to evaluate yourself and see if you can increase your mobility and handle the more.
We don’t wake up one morning and feel like we can conquer the world and everything in it. God will plant, water and prune you in the adventures He has in store for your life. Know this:
• He will not put on you what He fills you can’t handle
• He will not leave you alone to do it by yourself
• He will guide and instruct you in what the goal is
• You shall never quit. Quitting doesn’t get the job done
• He equips us in bits and pieces, not all at once
• God is way more powerful that us, there isn’t anything He can’t do – but us on the other hand are nothing without Him.
I hope you have learned something from this as we have walked through it. I know after a slap in the face by a dear friend on how I have been selfish – surely has opened my eyes. Will they stay open – I don’t know; but I surely would like to say I hope so.
God Bless~
Today’s Devotion 1.1.12
Be Renewed – Start Over
Don’t you just love the feeling of a hot shower and being clean after a hard work out, or strenuous work in the yard? I know I do. There is nothing more refreshing than a glass of cold water after working hard in the yard on a hot summers day. Oh – yeh, don’t forget the newness of a fresh smelling baby. Cleanliness, that makes us feel so pure, accepted, new, CLEAN.
Jesus cleanses us and tells us to get ourselves cleaned up. He gives us the reassurance that the old should stay the old and the new should become the new – new and that we should dress ourselves in cleanliness.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
As the New Year has arrived and I know you have made some resolutions, I hope that you have looked at your current life, status, and have decided to rid with the old and take hold of the new. Whatever that “New” is for you, I wish you much success. Hold fast to what you want to change and keep focused. Pray for renewal and change. Start a diary or journal of your daily success. Open your Bible and learn new scripture. Stay Focused~ that is what God wants us to do. Staying focused and keeping on tract will ensure that you can get rid of the OLD and bring on the NEW.
God Bless~
Today’s Devotion 12.26.11
On That Christmas Night
What do you know about that first Christmas night? I mean what have you heard? Many of you may go to church and have heard The Christmas Story, many may have not. There are several things to get from hearing The Christmas Story.
Who were the participants to The Christmas Story? It all started first with a young girl name Mary. Mary was betrothed (engaged to be married) to a man name Joseph. Later in the story we learn that the other participants are The Wise Men, the Shepherds, the Innkeeper, the Angel, and Herod the King.
Who are our characters that played such an important part of The Christmas Story?
Mary – virgin, young, had favor with God, espoused to Joseph, from Nazareth, mother of Jesus, Jewish
Joseph – a carpenter, a righteous man, Jewish, Jesus’ earthly father, strong, sensitive, husband of Mary
The Angel – name is Gabriel, delivered the message to Mary and Joseph and The Shepherds about the upcoming arrival of Jesus, appeared several times to others in the Bible, stands in the presence of God
The Shepherds – keeper of sheep, tended to, fed, and guarded the sheep, lived in the fields with the sheep, one of the first to see Jesus after he was born, glorified and praised God for what they had seen and heard about Jesus
The Wise Men – astrologers, known as the Magi, came in numbers by 3, The Three Kings, The Three Wise Men, came from the East, visited Jesus after his birth, followed the star to Bethlehem where Jesus was
The Innkeeper – owner or keeper of the stable that Jesus was born in, compassionate
Herod the King – Roman, King of Judea, threatened by the birth of Jesus, “King of the Jews”, had infants killed hoping that Jesus would be one of them killed and he wouldn’t be threatened
So how did all of this take place?
First Mary was betrothed to Joseph. Mary was a virgin and young. She was visited by the Angel Gabriel that she was to give birth to the child of the Holy Spirit. She was scared and didn’t understand since she was a virgin and had not had any relations with a man. The Angel Gabriel told her not to be afraid that God had found favor with her and that this was to take place and she would call the baby, Jesus. But not only was she going to have a child without having relations with Joseph, this was to be the Son of the Highest. This was the one that would save all of his people from sin. This was a great deal, job. Mary knew she had to share this with Joseph. When she told Joseph, he was confused but compassionate. Because he was a sencire man and knew that Mary could be put to death for this, he decided to marry her and then later divorce her quietly. The Angel Gabriel came to him and told him not to be afraid or concerned. The Angel Gabriel explained to him the same thing he had explained to Mary earlier. Joseph awoke from a deep sleep and did as the Angel had told him to do. They traveled to Judea to register or give census of his wife Mary. Once they arrived there was not place at the Inn for them because the Inn was at full occupancy. The innkeeper was compassionate and offered them a place in the stables. While they were in Judea, Mary gave birth to Jesus. The Angel Gabriel came upon Shepherds in the field and told them of the Great News and where they could find Jesus. They were very specific in their instructions and direction. The Shepherds left on their way to Bethlehem to find this Great One. After they had found the baby Jesus they returned and glorified and praised God for what they had heard and seen. Herod the King had heard of this Great One that was born and how He was called “The King of the Jews”. He became very irate and called on The Wise Men. He ordered them to find this “Jesus”, “King of the Jews”. He ordered them to bring Him back to him so he could worship Him also. The Wise Men followed the star which they had seen in the East. This led them straight to where Jesus was. Jesus was around 2 years old about this time. They fell down and worshipped Him and gave gifts to Him. They had been warned in a dream to not return to King Herod. They set out on their own and didn’t return to King Herod nor did they send Jesus to him.
This is the Great Christmas Story, the Greatest Gift, and the Ultimate News of all time. I encourage you to read the story for yourself. These passages are found in Matthew 1 – 2 and Luke 1 – 2. I hope you have more understanding of what Christmas is all about, and why it is important today. Jesus was sent through a virgin to be born so you and I could be forgiven for our sins. Jesus died for our sins and with that we have the opportunity to accept Him and have an eternal life with Him in Heaven. Another great reference is John 3:16, and Ephesians 1.
Matthew 1:23
“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
God Bless~
Today's Devotion
Depressed? 11.28.11
I have heard that the winter Holiday’s brings about depression. I can’t figure out why that would be except the cold, damp weather having something to do with it. I mean, I guess, in the summer people get out and enjoy that natural Vitamin D that is so nourishing for the body. In the winter there just isn’t much to do when it is rainy, snowy, cold and burrrr……There are winter sports to do, but really, unless you enjoy the cold weather, there is not much fun out of staying inside most of the time.
Well, God has a cure for that. Like we needed to know. He is the Doctor for all causes. God tells us over and over in His word that He is our comforter, He is our strength, He is our courage. It’s almost like the credit card commercial, “never leave home without it”. I tell my Sunday school students, you don’t go to your classes at school without your study books, why do you come to church without your Bible. I mean, how are we to grow if we don’t focus on what God wants us to focus on?
There is just too much time to think in the winter time vs the summer months. The winter holidays seem to be so much more precious and family oriented. Think about it, what holidays do you visit more with your families? Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. 2 of these are guess what – in the winter.
Don’t be depressed and dwell on the things we can’t fix or change. God has a message for you:
“I know the thoughts that I think about you,” says the Lord, “thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a future with hope. Then shall you call upon me, and you shall go and pray to me, and I will hearken to you. And you shall seek me, and find me, when you shall search for me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13
What is he saying? He already has a plan for us. He already knows that there is a future and it doesn’t involve sadness or sin. He tells us how to get it. Call Him, pray to Him, seek Him…you can find Him when you search with not part of your heart, but with ALL of your heart.
Cast all your care upon him; for he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7
Gather your strength and courage and overcome depression~
God Bless!
Thanks be to God 11.23.11
With the Holiday’s coming, we get so anxious and excited, overwhelmed, rushed and of course sometimes just plainly lost. I know I do anyway. From going to this persons house to that persons house and back down this highway, oh – let’s stop here, gotta see them…..I feel overpowered and rushed through it all. But, when the night falls and it’s time to stop and rest the body, I know I am blessed. I mean, think about it….how many people really have someone around that they can still go visit or call?
At work, we have recently had one of our co-workers loose her husband to cancer. It has been a sad time, stressful time, at times just totally lost. I feel for my friend. I couldn’t even imagine. I hurt and ache for her. No matter if you have loved and been with that person 1 year or 25, it still hurts and aches deep within you.
This time of year as we rush around and get this done and go here to see that one and try to make everyone happy….I pray you take time out to just say “Thanks” to God. God is so good. He sends us some of the bestest friends, laughable moments, time out , busyness, times to cry, times to meditate, go go times, family, and even those we don’t like. But with all of these, He uses this to build our character. I know we can all say we have a friend that just totally makes us laugh, and one that we can cry on their shoulder, one that gets mischievous with us, one that is a great hang out partner, and many others. I am so thankful for that.
This thanksgiving, I pray for you and your family that you will draw closer to God and that you will Thank Him and praise Him for all that He does for you daily. Take “time out” to just sit and “meditate” and feel His presence.
Happy Thanksgiving~
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6
Today’s Devotion 10.3.11
If you were asked, “what kind of flaws do you have”, what would you say? Well, I know that we as people think we are flawless. However, we are human and NOT perfect so we do have flaws. Because of our arrogance and selfishness God had to send His one and ONLY son to Earth to live a life like we do so He could feel what we feel, see what we see, hurt like we hurt and so on. So, with that being said, “What kind of flaw do you have?”
How would you best describe FLAW? Here is the definition:
A feature that mars the perfection of something; defect; fault. A defect impairing legal soundness or validity. A crack, break, breach, or rent.
So, where are you broke? What could use some work? What would you change to make yourself more perfect? We all know we will not be truly perfect until we arrive and live with our Savior in Heaven.
Here are some examples of our flaws: impatient, uneducated, un-godly, bitter, hypocrites, unforgiving, arrogant, conceited, un-disciplined, hatred, envious, critics, not self-controlled, selfish, sinful, violent, ungrateful, worrier, prideful, disobedient, lying, lazy, judgmental, controller. These are just a few of our flaws; however, we all may not have all of these flaws. So, what would you say your flaw is?
I would characterize mine as impatient, uneducated, disobedient and controller. Now, I may not be all of these all of the time and some of these may be a good flaw. Here is what I mean.
Impatient – quick to say, “what is the problem, what are we waiting on”. I want it to happen now, if I wanted it tomorrow, I would have waited and asked tomorrow. I think being impatient is never a good thing; it could lead to anger and hatred.
Uneducated – I consider myself very smart, however, I know I could use some more educating. I want to learn more about the Bible, God and the here and now on into the tomorrows. This could be a good thing. This could be a good thing because I will work toward getting myself educated in things I want to be smarter in. But, it could also hurt me; maybe what I want to be educated in is not what God wants me to be educated in.
Disobedient / Controller – these could play together. Maybe because I can’t control a situation I become disobedient; not willing to let go of what “I” think should happen or the way “I” want it to happen. Sometimes someone has to just take control. Or at least that is what my husband keeps telling me.
So, where does all of this lead? Here is today’s scripture that feeds into some of this.
Add to your faith virtue, and to virtue add knowledge; and to knowledge self-control; and to self-control patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. 2 Peter 1:5-7
So see, correct your flaw (crack) with some super glue and mend it to perfection. Whatever your flaw is, it can be corrected.
God Bless~
Today's Devotion 9.12.2011
Do You Think U Can?
The only time “I” is in team is when you team up with Jesus Christ.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Phil 4:13
Do you think you can? God says you can. I remember when my children used to watch Bob the Builder. For the longest time I would repeat, “Can we do it? Yes we can”. That seemed to be the new focus. Of course at that age, you want them to start learning that they are capable of doing things themselves. So many times I have been told that same thing. “I” CAN do it. “I” CAN keep the focus and get the job done. “I” AM capable. But I also remind myself, “I” didn’t learn it on my own and “I” can’t do it on my own, BUT “I” CAN do it with Christ. I am so glad of that because “I” do good messing things up by myself, so why not team up with Jesus and do it right?
Many years ago I had a couple of ladies come to me and tell me that I needed to take on a certain position at church. I was so into the knowing that “I” can’t do that. I don’t speak in front of people, I don’t direct, I don’t know how to bring people together, “I”, “I”, and on and on. However, that very season, “I” couldn’t rest for God telling me – “YES, YOU CAN”. Not only was he telling me that, but He was also telling me how. He gave me ideas, suggestions, ways, and direction. I couldn’t sleep or focus on anything except this one thing. Finally one night I told God, “Alright. I get it. Just please let me get some rest. I am tired”. Peace came over me. I became so excited. I took that position. I still get nervous at times and it is a hard job for the most part. But, God has been there the whole time.
Don’t ever let the devil tell you “YOU CAN’T”, because with GOD “YOU CAN”. Stay focused on the job, trust in Him, and talk with Him and He will make it happen. It was a GREAT lesson to learn and I am glad I learned it. It not only works with the position I took on at the church, but it works with me each day throughout my daily works and living.
Want inspiration – read all of Philippians 4. He teaches us how to stay focused and how it will benefit us.
Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, andheard, and seen in me (Paul), do: and the God of peace shall be with you. Phil 4:9
FOCUS and YOU CAN~
God Bless~
v
TODAY'S DEVOTION
How do you like moving? I am sure that everyone has moved at least once in there lifetime. It takes a lot out of you. Just the preparation of all of it is tiring. Getting the bills changed over, electricity, credit card statements, phone changed, schools changed (if in another district)…..and on and on. It takes a lot to move. Maybe you have moved because your spouse had to move with the job he / she has. Maybe you had moved away from home and now the parents have gotten older and you have to move back. Maybe your house was bought out so some large company to take your spot. Whatever the reason – moving takes a lot.
I love the thought that God has set for us an internal home. We may not live forever here, but we will live forever in 1 of 2 places. We may live forever with God or with Satan. It’s that simple. God tells us this in His word. And, guess what – it’s our decision. Moving from place to place here may be our decision or not (depending on the reason(s)). When we leave this place, we will spend eternity somewhere – heaven or hell.
I am so excited that God thought enough of me to want me to join Him when my journey here is done. How great it sounds to know, we will walk on streets of Gold, the walls that surround us will be precious stones. The gates will be pearl, there will be not darkness, for God is so bright – He will shine the light. He holds a book with my name and my life stories. That is scary just the same. My life story…..GOOD & BAD.
Revelation 21:7-8
7He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
8But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
I pray that you have started putting your down payment on your new home and that new home will be in heaven above.
God Bless~
v
