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Get up and get God

22 Sep

Get up and get God

Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!

Here where I live it used to be in the country. Our family farm was very large and the area was very rural. The only consistent noise was the low drone of air compressors in the milking barns. At night and early morning it was peaceful and still. Progress caught us the last 15 years and finding a quiet time is next to impossible. As I sit hear early each morn I get only rare moments when cars are not speeding down the road to destinations unknown. I am up early each day for my alone time with God; to seek that peace only early morning time brings; and with it intimacy.

1 Kings 19:11 Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. The great prophet Elijah was fleeing for his life, running from the pressures of life, desperate to hear God. He got alone and God came to encourage him. God is not in the static of the world, but in the peace of it. He demands a heart that seeks Him wholly, not a heart of flippant prayer and petition. He demands your undivided attention and He is most likely using circumstances in your life to get your attention. They are not by chance, but by His allowance or design.

Jeremiah 29:13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. All that noise and distractions in your life is like the speeding cars down the highway to nowhere. Satan provides all the daily distractions to keep your heart focus away from God. Do you rise late when all the distractions already have begun? Do you seek to find God in five minutes with the TV on; with the kids awake; with the cell phone at your side, etc? How can you hear the still small voice in the midst of all the winds, earthquakes, and fires? Be like Elijah and get alone and seek God. When you find Him, your ability to rise early will never be a problem again; but a expectant passion for your Creator to speak to you.

 
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Posted by on September 22, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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What if tomorrow never comes?

29 Aug

What if tomorrow never comes?

Genesis 2:7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

There is a part of my morning prayer that is habitual. I always thank God for the breath of life to serve Him another day in some context. I consistently give thanks for the day, for I am not guaranteed the day. I frequently thank Him for the changed heart and the grace He gave me in changing my life. I was someone as the apostle Paul put it, “chief of sinners”. A prideful, sinful, shameful, man in pursuit of everything for me, and anything but God. God pursued me anyway, and I am thankful for every day He gives me now to share my faith with others.

It seems that tragic deaths have filled the air over recent weeks. We simply cannot make plans for our future, for our future is in God’s hands. I remember even telling my parents many times I would get right with God when I was ready. I wonder how many of us have lived on that imaginary false timetable? James speaks directly to our pride of life, and our pride of selfish plans for an unknown future. James 4:13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; 14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.”

You say I will ______________ tomorrow………….but tomorrow never comes. What in the blank is left undone? A task; a conversation; an apology; your eternity? Many times we want to live for this world and grab all the things of this world; then in our minds we plan to “settle down” into a life of Christianity. Settling down into a life concentrating on serving God is a life that is planning for a promised future from One who holds the future in His hands. Life’s timeline here in the temporal will only matter for how you can serve Him. When this timeline ends, infinity begins. Make today the day you realize that Christ paved the way for your forgiveness and eternal paradise with Him. It is never too late; until it is.

 
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Posted by on August 29, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Will ya?

19 Aug

Will ya?

Matthew 6:6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

I cannot accurately tell you the peace I have in this chair early every morning. Of how God meets me here, and we spend time together in His Word and in prayer. Of how He never fails me, always there waiting on me to draw near to Him. I can tell you the days I miss it, are incomplete. That word is a very simple summary; somethings missing and I feel it all day. We just returned from a great vacation, but this time was sporadic, and the enemy took every opportunity to make it difficult, or even almost impossible to be honest. I felt the world creeping in.

I bet you have a daily routine. The alarm clock,  breakfast, and most likely the news in some way. Out the door to face the world you go with all the pain of society placed in your mind first by either the newspaper or a local media. Your mind has been dulled to the things of God in less than an hour from getting out of bed. Christ spoke of this in His ministry fulfilling a prophecy of Isaiah. Matthew 13:15 For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.’  Christ is speaking of those who cannot hear Him due to their attention to things of this world and closing their minds to the things of God. Matthew Henry says of that heart; “denotes sensuality and senselessness.”

Would you pursue a routine, that will become a habit, that will move to a labor of love? Will you make the conscious effort to pray for the strength to change how you start your day? That change will be more than just the removal of the evil, but the injection of the love in it’s place. The time spent with God alone first thing every day will give you a different outlook on the day, and an awareness of Him around you that you have never noticed before. God has given you free will. What will you do with it? “Seek Ye first the kingdom of God…..” Matthew 6:33

 
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Posted by on August 19, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Daily Walk

23 Jun

Daily Walk

James 4:13-14  Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

It has been a crazy long week working over 12hr days in this 90 degree heat. On top of that, the hours I put in on both sides of work eventually catch up with me. God knew I needed the rest and granted me a couple extra hours this morning – Thank You Jesus. As I awoke Satan creeps in telling me I failed my ‘obligation’ (literally used that word) with God, and reminding me of my ‘to do’ list for today. He wants me to skip my time this morning with God. Last night one of the last sermons I heard was about someones last moments in an argument, and then an unexpected death. We never know when it will come, but what will be our last thoughts we carry into heaven? What will we put before a repent heart, a loving heart, a dedicated heart? Don’t carry the load of sin on your heart for any amount of time, for He will carry it for you. Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

We all have our ‘to do’ list, and we all have our plans for the future, but we must realize our future is NOT in our hands. God holds our every breath in His hands, and there is nothing that we can do to change that. We are to honor our bodies as the temples they are, but even that honor we place on them does not mean we control them. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” Spending time with God daily will allow you to refocus and understand that wherever you are, that is where He has placed or allowed you to be. The more time with Him will give you the ability to understand the importance and the peace of knowing He is in control. That peace will allow you to move forward with your plans; but knowing God may change the direction to fit His. Proverbs 4:26 Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.

 
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Posted by on June 23, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Flee to……

19 May

Flee to……

Psalm 9:9-10 The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, A refuge in times of trouble. And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; For You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.

I pulled an overslept card this morning and got about an extra hours rest. I awoke this morning thinking about two friends specifically and what they are going through. One is going through issues with aging parents, the other with direct illness. Both situations are very hard real life circumstances that they are facing, and they are leaning on God and those praying for them for strength. I received a heart felt email thanking those who were lifting them up in prayer. In a conversation last night the term “stressed but bathed in prayer” was spoken. Those carry a lot of weight, for their strength is found in our Lord and knowing those close to them are praying for them when they need it most. Psalm 31:24 Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the Lord.

When these real life real hard struggles come and you are squeezed, what comes out? What do you flee to? You will flee to something and hopefully it is God. Once you realize your true needs can only be met by the strength in Him, there comes an inner strength and peace. Psalm 37:39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in the time of trouble. There is a peace in eternal security that cannot be compared to anything hear that is truly temporary. Temporary does not bring peace, for at some time the temporary will flee also. Inner strength is found in eternal strength, and eternal strength is found only in Christ. That strength is available to you when you realize your need for it, humble yourself and ask for it. That strength will never flee….NEVER.

 
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Posted by on May 19, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Speaking out

05 Apr

Speaking out

Luke 22:15-16   And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”

It is your last day; what would you do? Would you think only of yourself and all the things you had not done, or would you think of those you were leaving behind? Hopefully selfishness would abandon and you would seek to spend time with those closest to you reflecting and encouraging them. Christ had entered Jerusalem and was having His last meal with those closest to Him. He was speaking words of encouragement that would last a lifetime and mold them into what God had planned for their lives. His Last Supper was a model of a servant’s heart, and an example of how they were to conduct themselves. What words would you share to last a lifetime for those closest to you in your last days? Christ places in you the ability to share those impacting words that will last someone their lifetime through the Holy Spirit.

John 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. Christ came and died to rescue us all from eternal punishment of our sin. When He died on the cross, arose and returned to Heaven, He provided us a way through Salvation the greatest gift; to dwell inside us as believers in Him. The Holy Spirit is the heartbeat of Christ living inside you, and you can be the encouraging words of Christ to someone near you in what may be unknowingly their last days. Romans 10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. If you proclaim Christ, share Christ, and live the day as if it is your last leading others to Him for the joy they may possess. He heart is beating inside you directing you to share Him with those around you so that all the world may hear. This Holy week brings about ears that are inclined to hear, but how will they hear if you silence His heartbeat inside of you? Share Him with someone near you today to encourage them for eternity.

 
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Posted by on April 5, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Tired or Weary?

30 Mar

Tired or Weary?

Galatians 6:9-10 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.

We all become tired, and a synonym for tired is weary, but it seems as though weary has a much heavier meaning. Weary to me leans towards exhaustion, and exhaustion can lead to failure. We must charge ourselves to not slip from simply tired into the failure of weariness. Weariness can come through the tribulations that are confronting us, and the drag they put upon us. We must forsake them to God whom will shoulder our burden and make it light. Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. The load that we carry can be shouldered by God, and giving Him our worries through prayer and seeking His guidance.

I love how Isaiah puts it in verse 50:4 The Lord God has given Me The tongue of the learned, That I should know how to speak A word in season to him who is weary. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear To hear as the learned. Isaiah awoke every morning by Gods grace, and he sought Him for the recharging of himself, so that he could encourage others to draw near to Christ. That is how I feel out here every day in my quiet time alone with God, recharging my soul, and the product of that is encouraging you for the same. The large trials of life will make us weary, exhausted, but through the strength He provides we can press on to encourage others in their times of need. Do you think what you are facing is without purpose? God can use where you are today to draw you closer to Him, and possibly others will be drawn also seeing His Glory shine through you.

I must include this commentary by Matthew Henry:

Those that would hear as the learned must be awake, and wakeful; for we are naturally drowsy and sleepy, and unapt to hear at all, or we hear by the halves, hear and do not heed. Our ears need to be wakened; we need to have something said to rouse us, to awaken us out of our spiritual slumbers, that we may hear as for our lives. We need to be awakened morning by morning, as duly as the day returns, to be awakened to do the work of the day in its day. Our case calls for continual fresh supplies of divine grace, to free us from the dulness we contract daily. The morning, when our spirits are most lively, is a proper time for communion with God; then we are in the best frame both to speak to him (my voice shalt thou hear in the morning) and to hear from him. The people came early in the morning to hear Christ in the temple (Lu. 21:38 ), for, it seems, his were morning lectures. And it is God that wakens us morning by morning. If we do any thing to purpose in his service, it is he who, as our Master, calls us up; and we should doze perpetually if he did not waken us morning by morning

 
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Posted by on March 30, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Big Hands

28 Mar

Big Hands

Psalm 37:7-8 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret–it only causes harm.

The one I love is suffering persecution. She had removed herself from the ways of the world, and rested in her faith to carry her daily. The world is threatened by the immoveable rock of the faith that Christ places in us. When we are pushed to lash out, and we withdraw, they do not understand but become threatened by the inner strength that they do not possess. Have you ever had that calm in the storm? Have you ever had someone approach you asking “why” or “how” you are handling that situation that others would “snap” on? This is one of the greatest opportunities to share you faith and love you ever will have when you face the trials of life in the strength and peace that only comes through resting in Christ’s hands as a child of God.

Many times I pray for God to hold us in His hands so that we may rest in that assurance that He has us there, bringing with it security and peace. Psalm 37:32-33 The wicked watches the righteous, And seeks to slay him. The Lord will not leave him in his hand, Nor condemn him when he is judged. We are told there that our Lord will not uphold the unrighteous in His hand with us, but allow them judgement for their deeds. We all have heard of God reigning down fire and destroying Sodom and Gomorrah, but do you remember how He delivered Lot from there just before destruction? All things pass through God’s hands and are in His control. 2 Peter 2:9 then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment. When you are facing big trials, know you rest in a bigger God that has you in His hands. The inner strength He gives you is the attainable strength that He can use you to reach others as a result of how you handle life’s many tribulations

 
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Posted by on March 28, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Early morning sunshine

22 Mar

Early morning sunshine

Romans 5:5     Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Why do you even bother to get out of bed? Is it the drudgery of the tasks that lie in the day ahead, or is it the hope that lies within you to arise and see where Christ will have you today? The attitude when your feet hit the floor can follow you all day. Hope is an underlayment on our awakening and our actions throughout our lives. “You are what you believe” a close friend once told me. The hope that lies within us upon Salvation is the Holy Spirit whom brings light to truth, wisdom to our hearts, and joy in our souls. I love how Hebrews 6:19 puts it; “This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast,.” That anchor that rests in you provides the peace and security to face the dawn of a new day.

Hope is the expectation of eternal that God has placed in us by His design. We all undeniably have that longing for life after this; it is the way we are all wired. That desire is hope, and the hope grows deeper upon hearing of the Good News. Colossians 1:5 because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel. Unfortunately the world preaches hope as monetary possessions and pleasures of temporary satisfactions. We all have seen the last few years how temporal they can be. Hope is eternal, is steadfast, and is the reason you have been given the power to face a new day. With the hope of a life in paradise with Christ, what can fall before you today that could be so temporal to waive the power of eternal? Awake tomorrow with a smile and a hope to face the day; “always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.”

 
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Posted by on March 22, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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Moanin’ and Groanin’

21 Mar

Moanin’ and Groanin’

2 Corinthians 5:1-2  For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven,

The older I get, the more my body hurts. My working hard and playing harder are catching up to me sooner than I expected. My physical body has taken it’s toll, and my mind troubles me consistently as a result of bad decisions and more than likely genetics too. I could easily fill this devo with my list of “groans.” But the deepest groan comes from within, the longing for that eternity in paradise. When you begin to search the scriptures and see the promises of God for what He has prepared for you, for eternity, how can the Spirit inside you not long to go home? The closer you draw to Him, the peace and desire of that security swell. Romans 8:23  Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, when we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.

We deal with many types of afflictions for our short time here. They may come as physical, emotional, or just the strains of daily life. They all pass through God’s filter, and they all can draw you closer to Him, and glorify Him as a result of whatever you are facing today. 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Matthew Henry speaks of the apostles and “whereupon they weighed things aright in the balance of the sanctuary; they did as it were put the heavenly glory in one scale and their earthly sufferings in the other; and, pondering things in their thoughts, they found afflictions to be light, and the glory of heaven to be a far more exceeding weight.” Whatever you find yourself facing today, give it to God, give the glory to God, and rest in the assurance that it is only for a short time, to prepare you for eternity.

 
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Posted by on March 21, 2012 in Daily Devotions

 

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