Devotionals

February 26, 2019

1 Samuel 24 Contemporary English Version (CEV)

There are so many amazing life lessons David teaches us, today.  I know the passage is long, but please take the time to read the whole story.   As you read our passage, please notice how David demonstrates the Fruit of the Spirit; I have noted nine in parentheses.  Manifesting the character of the Lord is David’s passion and should be ours, as well.  David trusts God even though his circumstances remain challenging and evil pursues him.  God is preparing and providing for David who will soon step in to be the King of Israel. The Lord himself referred to David as “A man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do” (1 Sam 13:14; Acts 13:22). David ran from Saul for about fifteen years.  If you were David, would you have handled fifteen years of testing this way?  The lessons are abundant and the fruit David grew during the years of preparation are eternal. 

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February 25, 2019

Luke 10:21-24 Contemporary English Version (CEV)

It is the gracious will of God to reveal his goodness and love to those who are humble enough to receive it.  Pride is a spiritual sickness that God rejects; Jesus is the Cure.  Prideful people think they see and know all things, so God confuses them in order to lovingly “dethrone” or humble them.  “Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18).

Education is valuable and we are blessed when we can enjoy higher learning.  However, we must never let what we know with our natural minds make us think we know supernatural things apart from the revelation of Christ.  It is the work of Christ to make the Father known to us.  And, with Christ, only the humble are welcomed into Kingdom Living.  Take a humble position, today, and ask Jesus to teach you about the Father.  

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February 22, 2019

1 John 2:15-17 The Message (MSG)

Since the first of the year, our LIFE Lessons Bible Study group has been focused on the Fruit of the Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Gal 5:22-23).  Through his writings to the Galatians in the early church, the Apostle Paul helps us better understand our need to allow the Spirit to produce and ripen spiritual fruit within us.  The fruit is unified and not separate; it is grown within Christ believing individuals as a whole.  The evidence of fruit reveal the manifesting characteristics of Christ’s presence in our lives; he is One and he is the Firstfruit within us as the redeemed.  

The Lord God is to be our First Love and allowing our lives to faithfully bear fruit pleases and exalts him.  That is why the enemy tempts us to get us off the righteous path by distracting us with desires for the temporal things of this world. We are innately deficient in spiritual fruit; so, instead of connecting to the Vine to be filled with righteousness, we want and accumulate worldly stuff thinking it will satisfy.   We must love the Lord and what he provides more than what the world offers, because the stuff the world offers will not last.  Don’t let the enemy squeeze out your First Love. The world’s way is not worth the price. God’s provision is abundant, satisfying, and eternal.

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February 21, 2019

Romans 8:5-7 New Living Translation

According to the Word of God, humanity has the opportunity to follow one of two paths; 1) the path of righteousness, or 2) the path of foolishness.  We must make a choice for our minds to follow; our behaviors follow our thoughts.  If we are focused on pleasing God, we will follow the path of righteousness (life in the Spirit).  This is a new life imparted by God. When we accept Christ, we are born anew from above and we cannot remain complacent to sin.  When we choose life in the Spirit, sin becomes exceedingly sinful and we never feel right or have peace about practicing what God calls sin. 

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February 20, 2019

Luke 11:37-41 The Voice

It doesn’t happen near often enough, but I love when our family gets together for a sit down dinner; time spent talking, laughing, and sharing about life (and eating great food, of course!)  Jesus did much of his teaching over dinner.  It was a time to teach, listen, and grow from the thoughts shared of those gathered around the table.  

Jesus was always prompt at telling the truth and in our passage today, he tells the truth and spiritually smacks those listening upside the head.  Actually, Jesus offends people before they even get started with dinner. He calls them a “walking contradiction.”   What will our takeaway be today as we read from the gospel of Luke? Is it possible we care more about the external things of life than the internal things which are actually eternal?

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February 19, 2019

Psalm 37:39-40 New Living Translation (NLT)

When I work on a project, I can be relentless until it is finished.  I am patient, but I want to press on and give whatever I am doing the energy necessary to complete it.  Sometimes my husband says, “Mary, you are relentless!”  lol…in other words, I keep my goal in sight.

God will never forsake his faithful servants; our faith maturity in Christ is his goal.  He is relentless and steady as he loves his children.  He takes care of us and rescues us from the temptations and pitfalls of the ever-present evil around us; the Lord provides a way of escape.  To find shelter in the Lord is to find a secure place in his care.  We can enjoy  God’s shelter because we are connected to Christ by grace through faith. So take a deep breath, ask the Lord to be with you, and know God holds you and will be working in your life, today.

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February 18, 2019

Psalm 37 New Living Translation

Although it may look like the wicked are prospering, they cannot sustain it because they do not have a right relationship with God.  The wicked are more interested in being their own god; living by their own rules and taking care of themselves.  The righteous do have a right relationship with God; they trust and obey the Savior.  Therefore, spending time in prayer asking for God’s help is wisdom that brings provision. 

In our passage today, we find some steps for the righteous to enjoy the Lord. The psalmist shares one “don’t” and four “do’s.” The one “don’t” is don’t worry.  The three “do’s” are trust in the Lord, delight the Lord, and commit everything to the Lord.  Your help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth (Ps 121:2).  The Lord wants to help you with every struggle, so “do” your part and God will be there for you.

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February 15, 2019

1 Peter 1:17 The Message (MSG)

It has been said confession is good for the soul.  So, I must make a confession to you today; essentially, I am a neat-nut for clean spaces. I like things clean and in order in my environments.  I will also confess to you that I cannot always achieve my desired goal of neatness, because life “stuff,” as well as  the “goodies” others leave clutter my many spaces.  lol…By the way, asking for help with the clean up is not always fruitful. To be honest, some people do not even see the mess. I try not to feel frustrated by the clutter, but I do work at sorting, organizing, and pitching until I am more satisfied.

Do you know Father God sent the Spirit to help us bring order and holy neatness to our lives? We know we cannot bring holiness or clean living to our own lives, so we ask for the Lord to help us.  Unfortunately, even though we ask him many times for help, we keep living sloppy lives that he cannot tolerate. He wants to clean house.  So, let’s open our lives up to our loving Father and ask him to do the work of sorting our thoughts, organizing our priorities, and pitching smelly baggage we are carrying from years gone by.  The Lord only has good in mind for us.  May we all pray, “Come and clean up my spiritual house, Lord Jesus!”  

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February 14, 2019

1 John 4:7-10 The Message (MSG)

Love is a focus for many, today; it is Valentine’s Day. The card industry will certainly prosper today. Cards will be exchanged between people expressing feelings and emotions. John usually makes me a Valentine card and I have saved most of them over the forty-one years of our marriage. I love my husband, our sons and daughter-in-loves, our sweet puppy Gracie, our whole extended family, our amazing friends, our spiritual family, and…all of God’s creation. Yet, the greatest focus of my love story begins with the One who extends pure agape to me; Jesus the Anointed One.  

The highest form of love is agape: the selfless and sacrificial love that God has for human beings and the love human beings were created to return to God and share with others. I cannot even truly love the people in my life well apart from being loved by My Lord. So, I challenge you to begin your day with the Lord who perfectly and sacrificially loves you, and then love him in return. Please do not leave the greatest Love out of your day; spend time with the Lord.

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February 13, 2019

Luke 5:27-32 The Message (MSG)

Jesus spent his energy wisely when it came to ministering to people. For those who knew they needed the healing touch of a Savior, Jesus made himself completely available to them. He spent time with them; he wanted something better for them and they knew it. The people who rejected Christ, were those who felt they had a corner on God’s favor; they worked on outside appearances and managed a form of godliness, but inside they were dark and lawless when it came to the rule and authority of God.  

In our passage today, Jesus further upsets the religious leaders with his heart for bringing salvation to crooks and sinners. In our lesson, Levi is one such man; a crooked tax collector. Levi knows he is not living as a man made in the image of God. So, he opens himself up to the Savior who promises to change him inside and out. He is changed through a connection to Christ and he cannot wait to introduce Jesus to others. So, who were the real outsiders—the sick ones—in the lesson? The answer is “everyone!” Every human being needs to make Jesus Lord by giving Him authority over his or her life.  Inside change is where it begins.

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