Prayer for the Saints

Devotion

4-9-10

Prayer for the Saints

Ephesians 1:15-23

 

For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you, and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation  in the knowledge of Him. 

 

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.  These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when he raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.

 

And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

 

Gift of God

Ephesians 2:1-10

And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience, among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

 

But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

 

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

 

Promises

Devotion

4-8-10

Promises

 

Every one of us are facing, will be facing, or have just finished facing tough times, challenges, troubles, fears, doubts, or painful situations in our lives. Therefore, the Lord wants to remind us of His promises He has for us and so today’s devotion is just that, God’s promises He gave us in His word.  I pray His word will encourage you, strengthen you, comfort you, fill you with peace, and remind you just how much you are loved.

 

 

 

Lamentations 3:24-25

The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I have hope in Him.  The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him.

 

Isaiah 40:29-31

He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.

 

Isaiah 45:2a

I will go before you and make the rough places smooth…

 

Isaiah 52:13

Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be high and lifted up, and greatly exalted.

 

 

Isaiah 55:6-12

Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.  Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the Lord, and He will have compassion on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.  For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.  For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and making it bear and sprout, and furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; so shall My word be which goes froth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.  For you will go out with joy, and be led forth with peace; the mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.

 

 

 

 

 

Isaiah 56:1-2

Thus says the Lord, Preserve justice, and do righteousness, for My salvation is about to come and My righteousness to be revealed.  How blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who takes hold of it; who keeps from profaning the Sabbath, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.

 

 

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.

 

Galatians 6:9

And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.

 

Ephesians 1:7-14

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us.  In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intentions which He purposed in Him with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth.  In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation – having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.

 

 

 

My final scripture I would like to share with you is one that made me think of you as I read it.  It is how I feel about you and what I do for you.

 

Ephesians 1:15-16

For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you, and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers.

 

God bless you with an unshakable faith and undying love in Him.

All Things Loss to Gain Christ

Devotion

4-8-10

All Things Loss to Gain Christ

Philippians 3:1-16

 

Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord.  To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you.  Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh, although I myself might have confidence even in the flesh.  If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more;  circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a  Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Low, found blameless.

 

But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.  More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, fro whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is throughout faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and  the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Not that I have already obtained it, or have already become perfect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.

 

Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.  Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that also to you; however, let us keep living by that same standard to which we have attained.

 

God’s word speaks to each of our hearts just where we need it most.  Write a letter to the Father and thank Him for speaking to your heart through His word.  God bless you

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________continue your letter on the back...

 

The Mind of Christ Will Exalt Christ

Devotion

4-7-10

The Mind of Christ Will Exalt Christ

Philippians 2:1-18

If therefore there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 

 

Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself;  do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.  Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did no regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant, and being made in the likeness of men.  And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

 

So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.  Do all things without grumbling or disputing; that you may prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may have cause to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.

 

But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.  And you too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me.

 

*Now write a letter to the Lord and let Him know how these scriptures are speaking to your heart today. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Continue your letter on the back of this page.  God bless you

 

Last Words

Devotion

4-5-10

Last Words

Luke 24:44-53

 

Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”  Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and rise again from the dead the third day; and that repentance for forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.  You are witnesses of these things.  And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” 

 

And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them.  And it came about that while he was blessing them, He parted from them.

 

And they returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple, praising God.

 

 

 

Read these verses over again several times today.

 

Ask the Lord to give you understanding of them.

 

Meditate upon them and allow the Lord to speak to your heart. 

 

Continually praise Him for the gift of life He has given you, not just on Resurrection Sunday but every day of your life.

 

Let His last words on the earth be the first words upon your mind and heart as you serve Him with your life and become a witness of His love.

Interview on the Way to Emmaus

Devotion

4-2-10

Interview on the Way to Emmaus

Luke 24:13-

And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem.  And they were conversing with each other about all these things which had taken place.  And it came about that while they were conversing and discussing, Jesus Himself approached, and began traveling with them.  But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him.  And He said to them, “What are these words that you are exchanging with one another as you are walking?” 

 

And they stood still, looking sad.  And one of them, named Cleopas, answered and said to Him, “Are You the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things which have happened here in these days?”  And He said to them, “What things?”  And they said to Him, “The things about Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him up to the sentence of death, and crucified Him.  But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel.  Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened.  But also some women among us amazed us.  When they were at the tomb early in the morning, and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels, who said that He was alive. And some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see.”

 

And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!  Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?”  And beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.  And they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as though He would go farther. And they urged Him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over.”  And He went in to stay with them.

 

And it came about that when He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them.  And their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight. And they said to one another, “Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?”  And they arose that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven and those who were with them, saying, “The Lord has really risen, and has appeared to Simon.” And they began to relate their experiences on the road and how He was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread.