Devotionals

Intro: The other day my husband, John, and I were laughing about his transparency; I usually know what John is thinking by his facial expressions. When John plays cards or dominoes with the family, we can all read his next move. He just cannot hide his thoughts or plans. If he is getting ready to go out and win the round or game, we all know it. Transparency may not be great if you are serious about competition, but it is a sweet fragrance before the Lord in spiritual matters.

In our passage today, David is entirely transparent in his song of prayer before the Lord. He cries out to God by saying exactly what he is thinking. He hates evil and asks God to deal justly with it because he is tired of the wicked getting away with their deeds. David wants God to give those who do evil a taste of their own wickedness. He doesn’t try to hide what is going on inside his head, he knows God is already aware. David is transparent and honest; therefore, the Lord ministers grace to him.

We know God will deal with evil one day; however, we do not know when that will be. Therefore, in His goodness, God moves to make us strong in the midst of the world’s mess. The Lord encourages us to press on as He fills us with joy. Trust will always be a necessary part of our faith while we live in this fallen world; so, be transparent with the Lord in your prayers and know He will find a way to lift your head, touch your heart with confidence, and fill your soul with joy. He is the Savior and His grace is always enough!

Psalm 28 NLT
1
I pray to you, O Lord, my rock.
    Do not turn a deaf ear to me.
For if you are silent,
    I might as well give up and die.
2
Listen to my prayer for mercy
    as I cry out to you for help,
    as I lift my hands toward your holy sanctuary.
3
Do not drag me away with the wicked—
    with those who do evil—
those who speak friendly words to their neighbors
    while planning evil in their hearts.
4 
Give them the punishment they so richly deserve!
    Measure it out in proportion to their wickedness.
Pay them back for all their evil deeds!
    Give them a taste of what they have done to others.
5 
They care nothing for what the Lord has done
    or for what his hands have made.
So he will tear them down,
    and they will never be rebuilt!
6 
Praise the Lord!
    For he has heard my cry for mercy.
7 
The Lord is my strength and shield.
    I trust him with all my heart.
He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy.
    I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.
8 
The Lord gives his people strength.
    He is a safe fortress for his anointed king.
9 
Save your people!
    Bless Israel, your special possession. 
Lead them like a shepherd,
    and carry them in your arms forever.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for welcoming us to your throne of grace and inviting us to be transparent with you. Sometimes it is hard to watch evil prevail, but we know you are stronger and we trust your promise to one day bring everything under your authority. As we press on in faith, please strengthen us and fill us with joy. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

For those of you who joined in yesterday’s time of worship you heard me talk at the end of service about my upcoming change from being a paid employee at C2C Church to being an active voluntary pastoral assistant during the times when I am not working a full-time job that will serve and further financially support my family. I am mentioning this change again, because just like Pastor Mary’s message yesterday from Matthew, today’s message from Paul is all about growing to love more like God intended us to love, like Jesus.

When I decided that God was calling me to make this change for my family at home, I immediately thought about my time with our spiritual Family. Jesus allowed me to see that I would still be able to attend Tuesday morning prayer, Wednesday night Bible study, Sunday worship, and many other times of gathering with our spiritual Family at nights and on the weekends. I immediately praised Jesus for this knowledge because much like Paul, every time I pray with and for our spiritual Family I am filled with great joy. As Paul mentions, the joy that we feel when we are together as a spiritual Family is because we are living out the Gospel message and spreading the Good News in an effort to further grow God’s Kingdom.

Friends, Jesus does not care about our attendance, nor does He tally our good deeds, He is concerned with our hearts and how we love Him and how we love one another (Matt 22:37-39). Pastor Mary reminded us yesterday about this sacrificial, obedient, and serving love. You and I are called to love like Jesus by loving our enemies, praying for them (Matt 5:44), and forgiving anyone who sins against us (Matt 6:14-15), because that is how Jesus loves you and me. He is our High Priest Who has all authority, and as we grow to love more and more like Him, we bring Him glory and much deserved praise.

Philippians 1:3-11 (NLT)

Paul’s Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. 4 Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, 5 for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now. 6 And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

7 So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News. 8 God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus.

9 I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. 10 For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return. 11 May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ—for this will bring much glory and praise to God.

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for loving us and for setting the example of how we are called to love. Help us to love deeper and more authentically like You. Allow us to love those who hurt us, to forgive them, and to trust them and their actions, in actions, and/or words in Your Hands. We want to continue to grow individually in our faith walk, we want to grow collectively as Your Church, and we want to be used to further grow Your Eternal Kingdom, Lord Jesus. Please use each one of us today. Help guide us, Holy Spirit, to be a container of Your perfect love. All of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

Intro: Wisdom is essential for our lives because we live in a sinful world that provides a wide open door for ungodly living. However, we are blessed with godly Provision, because Jesus has been made wisdom for us by our heavenly Father (1 Cor 1:30). Connecting to Christ is God’s plan for rescuing those who seek to live in a way that pleases the Father. We simply need to listen to the Holy Spirit.

Sometimes we may forget we are all—every created being and thing—part of God’s story. Satan consistently plants doubts and unbelief in human minds to generate the idea we somehow have the power to rewrite what God has decreed, but all of these thoughts are lies. We can either get into agreement with God or not, but history is His-story. This does not mean we always understand the chain of events that manifest in our lives. It is simply that God’s will is sovereign [supreme and absolute], He is Love, and His-story will prevail. God has the final say in all things. Oh, how I pray for us to learn from His-story. I also pray for the wisdom to accept the things I cannot change.

In our passage today, we are reminded about the hidden lessons (symbolic) God writes in order to impart wisdom to us about who He is and what we can expect from his nature and rule. Wisdom is not about some mystical theology. Wisdom is about trusting the Truth of “In the beginning God created…” and living in a way that pleases our Creator. If we truly believe God desires to deliver believers from evil, as well as continue to reveal Himself each day in life around us, we will soar in wisdom by having the same attitude as Christ. 
Psalm 78:1-4 NLT A psalm of Asaph.
1 
O my people, listen to my instructions.
    Open your ears to what I am saying,
2 
    for I will speak to you in a parable.
I will teach you hidden lessons from our past—
3 
    stories we have heard and known,
    stories our ancestors handed down to us.
4 
We will not hide these truths from our children;
    we will tell the next generation
about the glorious deeds of the Lord,
    about his power and his mighty wonders.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for writing your instructions on the heart of every believer. Continue to open our eyes and ears to the spiritual significance of each day and the importance of every choice we make to follow you. Give us opportunities to teach our children and grandchildren more about your instructions, as well as model and share your loving nature with them and others around us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Intro: Although it is not always easy to hear, I do appreciate honest character and ministry feedback. In seminary, we were taught to receive instruction from those who were “seasoned” in leadership, as well as welcome feedback from those who were experiencing our leadership. The challenge comes when we encounter folks who simply do not like us, approve of us, or accept our style of leading things. Sometimes, we are simply not welcome to speak into people’s lives; their hearts are not open to the gifts we may bring.

For the past 13+ years, I have been blessed beyond measure to be in ministry with a group of people who are honest with me as family members, but do not seek to condemn or destroy. Instead, the goal is to encourage and edify. Just for honesty sake, the reason I so value our present spiritual family and those God has placed in my life, is because I have walked painfully in the past with “self-appointed critics.” This does not just happen in ministry, it happens in every area of life. The flesh nature of people just loves to judge others—placing self on the throne in the center of it all expecting he or she knows much more than anyone else.

In our passage today, James is giving encouragement to the Body of Christ—believers. We are all called to be on the field of this world and participating in the events of redemption. There is no room for arrogance. Many times, people feel justified to judge another; yet, they have no idea what it is like to be that person…or lead that ministry…or experience their burdens and infirmities. Satan always comes to bring division and destruction, so he will try to manipulate believers toward arrogance. There is only One who does know the heart of every human being, so let’s invite Christ to be the only Judge and resist the temptation to be a self-appointed critic, ok?

James 4:11-16 NLT 11 My brothers and sisters, do not assault each other with criticism. If you decide your job is to accuse and judge another believer, then you are a self-appointed critic and judge of the law; if so, then you are no longer a doer of the law and subject to its rule; you stand over it as a judge. 12 Know this—there is One who stands supreme as Judge and Lawgiver. He alone is able to save and to destroy, so who are you to step in and try to judge another?

13 Listen carefully, those of you who make your plans and say, “We are traveling to this city in the next few days. We’ll stay there for one year while our business explodes and revenue is up.” 14 The reality is you have no idea where your life will take you tomorrow. You are like a mist that appears one moment and then vanishes another. 15 It would be best to say, “If it is the Lord’s will and we live long enough, we hope to do this project or pursue that dream.” 16 But your current speech indicates an arrogance that does not acknowledge the One who controls the universe, and this kind of big talking is the epitome of evil.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the character check we have been given today in our passage. Help us to remain humble and loving with others. Correct us when we need to stop talking before being unrighteously critical. We bow to you and choose to love others as you love us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Intro: The word ‘turn’ in Hebrew is shub and it is mentioned over 1000 times in Scripture. The fact that it is repeated so many times means we need to pay attention. The definition of the word shub is to overturn, change, transform, or turn back. When we ‘turn’ toward God, we ‘turn’ away from sin. God cannot tolerate sin, because it is the devil’s/liar’s work (1 John 3:8). There is no sin in the Lord (1 John 3:5). So, to turn away from sin is to turn toward our destiny; living the Truth. No matter which direction we turn, we face the results of our choosing. If we do not turn toward God, our future is guaranteed to be permeated with sin and littered with destruction because the devil is a liar (John 8:44).

In our passage today, Jesus teaches his disciples about their need to turn. The focus of his lesson is for them to turn from sin toward humility—which would be right actions with God. Our actions are the results of the choice we make in whom we will serve, as well. The disciples must do more than say they serve Christ, they must live their destiny. Every time we turn toward making a righteous choice, we are turning our backs against sin. To every sin turn, turn turn…

Matthew 18:1-5 The Greatest in the Kingdom
1 About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”

2 Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. 3 Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. 4 So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.
5 “And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me.

Prayer: Lord, please continue to teach us the many ways we must turn toward you in order to develop righteous actions. Keep us humble and focused on the greatness you bring our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Intro: Dreams are images or even stories experienced in the mind while we sleep. Because these images are involuntary, they have the potential of being very surprising, inspiring, as well as fascinating. When we have a rather mysterious dream, we may try to put all the pieces together in our natural minds in order to make sense of them or to discover some hidden meaning. However, in order to gain the righteous interpretation of our dreams, we need a right relationship with Jesus—the Truth.

In our passage today, Jacob has a dream. It is a vivid and Spirit-directed vision where the God of heaven communicates with the man of earth. God wants Jacob to know he is not alone in his journey; God and his angels are with him—protecting and watching over him. At this time, Jacob does not understand the bigger revelation, but we know the stairway he saw was a symbol of Jesus and what he would do through his life, death, and resurrection to connect God with his people once again. This beautiful dream calls for a response from Jacob. Will he reach up to God with respect and gratitude to receive his blessing and offer to guide his life?

God does not show favoritism; what he does for one person he will do for all (Ro 2:11). As believers, we have been given the redeeming work of Jesus to connect us with the Father and have been given the Holy Spirit who guides us into truth so we can live in the blessing. It is the Spirit of Christ poured out at Pentecost who gives revelation knowledge, dreams, and visions for our lives, so we can understand and become blessings to others (Joel 2:28). The presence of the Lord is with us, today; so let’s listen and allow the Spirit to speak revelation to our spirits! Blessings for you and others await!

Genesis 28:10-17 NLT Jacob’s Dream at Bethel
10 Meanwhile, Jacob left Beersheba and traveled toward Haran. 11 At sundown he arrived at a good place to set up camp and stopped there for the night. Jacob found a stone to rest his head against and lay down to sleep. 12 As he slept, he dreamed of a stairway that reached from the earth up to heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down the stairway.

13 At the top of the stairway stood the Lord, and he said, “I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather Abraham, and the God of your father, Isaac. The ground you are lying on belongs to you. I am giving it to you and your descendants. 14 Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth! They will spread out in all directions—to the west and the east, to the north and the south. And all the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants. 15 What’s more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.”

16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it!” 17 But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! It is none other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!”

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your protective love covering our lives and loved ones, today. You are so good and gracious in your love for us. Send us out into our communities and cause us to be a blessing to others around us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Some of you may know this, but Psalm 119 contains 176 verses that are divided into 22 stanzas, and each stanza is titled with a letter from the Hebrew alphabet. Today’s stanza is titles with the Hebrew letter, Mem, which means the water of wisdom, knowledge, the Torah. It represents both water and the ability to dive deep into wisdom. Every person should thirst for the wisdom of God, but that wisdom can only be found within the Word of the Creator because He Alone is our Living Water. Jesus is the One from Whom we should dive deep as we thirst, drink, seek refreshment, and call out to be replenished, each day, to overflow as His containers who are then guided to release pour Him into the lives of others.

Last week I found myself reaching more and more for the Living Water, asking Jesus to replenish me each night before I woke up the next day. In the midst of worldly chaos, I was connecting constantly with my Guide through His Word, so His wisdom would lead each of my steps. He connected me with a friend who was struggling with a situation. I had come across Isaiah 33, and was reminded that Jesus is our sure foundation, and through our greatest gift of salvation, He provides us with His wisdom, His knowledge, and this happens when we fear (or have reverence) for Him (v.6). Jesus is the One relationship that we should value the most because He is our greatest gift.

Psalm 119:97-104 (NLT)

Mem

97 Oh, how I love your instructions!
I think about them all day long.

98 Your commands make me wiser than my enemies,
for they are my constant guide.

99 Yes, I have more insight than my teachers,
for I am always thinking of your laws.

100 I am even wiser than my elders,
for I have kept your commandments.

101 I have refused to walk on any evil path,
so that I may remain obedient to your word.

102 I haven’t turned away from your regulations,
for you have taught me well.

103 How sweet your words taste to me;
they are sweeter than honey.

104 Your commandments give me understanding;
no wonder I hate every false way of life.

Prayer: Jesus, I love you beyond human words. Thank You for saving me from my sinful ways. Please continue to work within me to quicken my soul to know when I am not living the life that You are calling me to live. Holy Spirit, help to guide me with Your wisdom to live for Eternity now. I ask all of this in Your Holy Name, Jesus. Amen.

Day 10 of 10 – Turning from Looking Back to Looking Up

Luke 21:28 (NLT)

28 So when all these things begin to happen, stand and look up, for your salvation is near!”

ADORATION:

You are The Bright Morning Star

Revelation 22:16-17 (NLT)

16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this message for the churches. I am both the source of David and the heir to his throne. I am the bright morning star.”
17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life.

REPENTANCE:

Forgive us for being weighted down with cares and bound up in our sin. remind us to lift our eyes up in preparation of your coming & forgive us for our sin, oh God: cares of this world and today’s worries.

Hebrews 12:1 (NLT)

God’s Discipline Proves His Love
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.

PRAY FOR:

A harvest in North America

Philippians 2:10-11 (NLT)

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

PRAY: for believers to prepare for Christ’s triumphant return, pray for the body of christ to live & work in anticipation of His return & for the bible to be accessible & readable in all languages.

FROM PRAYER TO MISSION:

Turn from Looking Back to Looking Up

Set your eyes upon the return of Christ. talk with your community of believers about how you can further prepare for the return of Christ.

2 Timothy 4:8 (NLT)

8 And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.

Day 9 of 10 – Turning from The World to The Kingdom.

Galatians 5:16-18 (NLT)

Living by the Spirit’s Power
16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. 17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. 18 But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.

ADORATION:

You are The Prize

Philippians 3:7-13 (NLT)

7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ 9 and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. 10 I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, 11 so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!

REPENTANCE:

Forgive us for settling for the things of this world and for not pursuing more of a relationship with You, Jesus, who is our righteous ruler & forgive us for our sin, oh God: laziness and instant gratification.

2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (NLT)

17 For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

PRAY FOR:

A harvest in Central & South America.

Psalm 96:3 (NLT)

3 Publish his glorious deeds among the nations.
Tell everyone about the amazing things he does.

PRAY: for believers to have a revelation of God’s heart for the lost & unreached, pray for the body of Christ to grow as disciple makers & for the bible to be accessible & readable in all languages.

FROM PRAYER TO MISSION:

Turn from Living for This World to Living for The Kingdom:

Go through your phone/computer and delete/remove distractions that take up time & are not kingdom centered.

Hebrews 6:10-11 (NLT)

10 For God is not unjust. He will not forget how hard you have worked for him and how you have shown your love to him by caring for other believers,[a] as you still do. 11 Our great desire is that you will keep on loving others as long as life lasts, in order to make certain that what you hope for will come true.

Day 8 of 10 – Turning from Greed to Generosity

Proverbs 11:24 (NLT)

4 Give freely and become more wealthy;
be stingy and lose everything.

ADORATION:

You are Lavishly Generous

Romans 8:31-32 (NLT)

Nothing Can Separate Us from God’s Love
31 What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? 32 Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?

2 Peter 1:3 (NLT)

Growing in Faith
3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence.

REPENTANCE:

Forgive us for selfishly clinging to our meager possessions rather than imitating you, Jesus, and trusting you will give us everything we need as we seek you & forgive us for our sin, oh God: stinginess, ungratefulness, and selfishness.

Matthew 6:33 (NLT)

33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

PRAY FOR:

A harvest in Europe/Eurasia

Psalm 86:9 (NLT)

9 All the nations you made
will come and bow before you, Lord;
they will praise your holy name.

PRAY: for God’s believers to move away from the world’s system, pray for the body of Christ to reach out in generosity to those in need & for the bible to be accessible & readable in all languages.

FROM PRAYER TO MISSION:

Turn from Greed to Generosity:

Create a homemade gift or make food and give it to a neighbor or someone you wouldn’t normally give to or give a monetary gift anonymously.

2 Corinthians 9:10 (NLT)

10 For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you.