Devotion Tuesday

 

 

 

Devotion

10-27-09

 

Be Strong In The Lord

 

The Book of Ephesians

The book of Ephesians is a vast book of guidance for the believer. It begins with the blessing of redemption and talks of how we are made alive in Christ. It tells us that He is our peace and that we are fellow citizens of heaven. Paul shares about stewardship, prayer and praying for the church. He explains the importance of Christian unity and a Christian’s walk.  He says we are to be imitators of God and to walk in love. He shows what is pleasing to the Lord and how to walk wisely and not as fools. Family relationships are addressed and the blessings that come from living in His order. He wraps the book up with a powerful message of putting on the armor of God. But one statement in this book stands out in my mind and spirit.  It is the statement that begins with “finally”.(Eph 6:10)

After Paul shares all these powerful messages about the Christian’s life he says, “Finally”.  Finally what? “Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might.”  This is the statement the Lord gave me while praying for you. I kept asking Him, what do I share with the ladies today? Please give me a scripture to share.  As I splashed my face with warm water suddenly the word came to me,  Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.  Over and over again those words returned to me while getting dressed.  So before I could even put on my make up I went to my study and opened God’s word to read it for myself. Now it is clear.

The Lord, I believe, gave me this word to share with you as an encouragement for whatever you are facing today and for the answer to your prayers concerning your roll in the His ministry.  He wants each of us to understand that it doesn’t matter what we are facing in life, how we are feeling inside or what He has called us to do, He is the one who will do it through us.  It is His strength that will carry us through.  We are strong in Him. The decisions in our lives are not really ours to make they are His.  The battles in our lives are not ours to fight they are His. 

God WILL give you the answers you are seeking.  God WILL fight the battles that are wearing you out.  Put on His armor today.  Let Him be your strength.  Trust in who He is. He is God!!!  Nothing is impossible for Him.  All He needs from us is a “Yes Lord, I will be strong in You and allow Your strength to empower me for whatever I face in life, to enable me to walk a Christian walk and to equip me to answer Your call.

 

Wednesday Devotion 10.28.09

Devotion

10-28-09

A Celebration of Life / You’re Mine

John 5:24

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”

 

Wow celebrations are so much fun, don’t you think so? A grand party to honor the birth of a child, to rejoice in the union of marriage, to recognize the accomplishments of a graduate, or to enjoy the holidays seasons are all special times when we go to great lengths to celebrate. But do we really celebrate LIFE?

 

I was thinking about the special day when a child is officially adopted into a family. The judge rules the child is now a part of that family, giving her the family name and a new birth certificate with her birthday now the day of her adoption. The father looks at her and says with tears, “you’re mine.” Every year when that day rolls around there is a great celebration to remember the day she became part of the family, a new birthday. Yet, even in that celebration are they truly celebrating Life? Perhaps we can see more clearly what it means to celebrate life by this story. Let me explain.

When I was 7 years old my life was filled with heartache, pain and fear from the physical, sexual and emotional abuse I was enduring by the father. It was a time that seemed dark and scary and yet it was during this time that was the most precious and important time of my life. It was at this time that I was given Life. For when I was seven, I was introduced to the Savior and received Him as my Lord and in so doing I received true LIFE, the life that lives forever. Because of this, all the other things that were happening in my earthly life were small to my eternal existence. Therefore, I can look at that time of life and rejoice because I was given a new birthday that day.

 

Just like the adopted child who is given a new birth certificate on the day she became a member of a new family, so we are given a new birth record on the day we are adopted into God’s family. Wow what a celebration we should be having on that day! Perhaps the new life we receive in Christ is the moment of birth that should stand out in our hearts and minds the most. Eternal life is something worth celebrating. In fact I hope that my birth as a child of God in April of 1966 becomes more important to me than the day of my earthly birth in June of 1959. I want to celebrate LIFE, the life that Christ died to give me.  The Life that even death cannot take from me. The Life that breathes inside me hope and peace for my future and carried me through some of the stormiest and darkest days of my earthly life, and the Life that can be celebrated even when I close my eyes for the last upon this earth.  I pray this Life is so real to me that those around me grasp the value of it and rejoice with me when God calls me home to live it with Him in heaven.  I pray that the power of this knowledge of eternal LIFE will instill within my own heart a peace so deep that when one of my loved ones is called home, I can celebrate their homecoming with joy more than sorrow. Oh that is a big request for sure, but somehow I do believe it is possible. You know there are a lot of children all around us who have yet to become adopted into God’s family. They don’t have Life to celebrate. They need a new birthday. Let’s celebrate Life by sharing that Life with others. Let’s honor God in our celebration of the Life He has given us.

Meditate upon your LIFE today, the day you received it, the day the Father said, “You’re Mine!”

Monday Devotion

Devotion

 

Dinner with God

Revelation 3:20

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door I will come in to him and will dine with, and he with Me.”

 

Reflecting on my life, I thought of all the times the Lord has come to my rescue. I sat in my chair remembering the countless times I felt His hand upon my heart calming it through the pain of abuse and the brokenness of rejection. I could envision me sitting at a table and there across from me was a man, that man was Jesus. He talked with me in a gentle yet firm voice of compassion as He told me of His promises for a better life. We sipped on tea and ate a wonderful meal as He explained the Father’s love so personal for me.  As I listened I was in awe of the command of each word He spoke that captured my attention. The sound of His voice soothed my anxious thoughts and brought a smile to my face. Somehow I knew that this Man, Jesus, was my hope and my freedom.

 

Suddenly I was back into reality and a tear formed in my eye. The thought of having dinner with Jesus and being able to talk with Him face to face overwhelmed me with emotions. Oh how wonderful it would be to have dinner with God, Himself, and listen to Him tell me the stories of the scriptures and hear His voice speak the words “I love you”. How awestruck I would be to know I was in the presence of the Almighty, my Creator, my King, and the One who gave His life for me. I would reach for His hands and take a deep breath as He showed His nail scared wrists and knowing those scares were for me, I would cry from the depth of my heart.

 

 I don’t know that I would really be able to say much, for once I might be speechless, because I would want to absorb every word that He spoke like a sponge soaking up the ocean. But if I did speak, I wonder what I would say. I wonder if I would have questions for Him.  I wonder if the questions would even matter at that point. I wonder if all I could do was admire, praise, and worship Him because of the love that shines in His eyes for me. Having dinner with Him, would mean to me that I was special because He only sups with those He has relationships with. Sharing His table, His bread, His water, would be like sharing in His very life of sacrifice. I wouldn’t want the dinner to end. I wouldn’t want our time to end. I would want the moments to last forever because the peace and security that I feel in His presence would be the most amazing feeling in my life.

 

The Lord does call us to dine with Him. He says He will dine with those who will open the door to let Him in.  We have the opportunity to sup with our Lord every single day.  He is in our presence “Now” and we can be in awe of who He is. He is with us; He does fill us with His peace. He has sent you an invitation to dine with Him written in blood. He loves you and wants a relationship with you. RSVP, yes, today and enjoy your meal. The Savior is waiting to tell you personally of His life He has died to give you, for your opportunity to live eternally with Him.

So dine with God today, enjoy the words He speaks to your heart and the comfort He brings to your life.