If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. John 14:15

 

Do you struggle with certain sins? Maybe its gossip, lying, lusting, cheating….the list is endless. Every time you say to yourself, I’m not going to do these things. Yet, just as you say you aren’t going to do them, you walk right back into the same, comfortable sin, you’ve battled with for what seems forever. Yea, hands raised all over the room!

 

God has been talking to me about sin and the reason I struggle. First off we know that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of wickedness, the devil (Ephesians 6:12). The devil is very clever and knows our weaknesses. It’s like someone hanging a piece of cheese outside a mouse’s hole in the wall. Eventually the temptation will bring us out from the comfort of our security in Christ. But, what pushes us to the point of accepting that cheese and partaking of the sin act? That’s the question God has been asking me and each time, today’s verse comes to mind. Do I love sin more than God? How deep is my devotion to God?

 

Let me share that same question with you in regards to your frequent sin pattern. Do you love your sin more than God? Most likely your answer is no, but your actions might prove otherwise.

 

Just like having a spouse, you are committed to that person out of your love and devotion to them. Why not have that kind of intimate relationship with God? Get to know Him more, spend time in daily prayer and bible reading. As you draw closer to Him, He will draw closer to you and your love will certainly grow for God. As a result, your commitment to God will give you the strength to say NO to the cheese temptation satan is dangling before you. Loving God more will bring a stronger commitment to Him, less occurrences of spiritual failure and blessings will shower you for your devotion to the One who loves you most! God bless

For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:19

 

While my grandmother, Nedra, was still alive, I provided her a journal to write down her thoughts on spiritual matters and life’s experiences that I could read and treasure. She always studied the bible and gained much wisdom throughout the years.

 

The last few years of her life were spent in a nursing home because she required more care than family could provide. In her last journal entry, she was complaining about the food and some of her dislikes. The last thing she wrote was:

 

“My devotions for this past month, just be thankful that the Lord has made me content. Don’t know how long this will last but I’m depending on Him – and David’s prayers. I know there are lots of prayers for Linda and me and that helps.

 

I can tell you, there is much power in prayer. When someone asks for prayer and people respond, God moves in ways we might not see, but the person receiving those prayers feels them. Prayer sustains the person going through the trial. Just as Paul said in his writing to the people of Philippi. So when you see or hear of a need, pray for that person and know God is working to encourage and sustain those whose names you lift up to God. God bless!

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.         Jeremiah 29:11

 

The brothers of Joseph had plans to harm him and they fit with the plans of God for good. Though everyone involved was quite unaware of God’s hand, their steps were controlled by Him. He had seen the whole tragedy ahead of time and had woven His plan into it.

 

Even when life throws the unexpected at us, it is never unexpected for God. He always has a plan. We forget we are children of the God who sees ahead and has already interwoven His good, sovereign plan with the strange, presumptuous will of human beings.

 

He orders our steps even when we aren’t sure of them. Seek God’s will and determine to pursue it, but don’t worry about your steps as He always puts them in order. God bless!

Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with fever. So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served them. Matthew 8:14-15

Has God ever healed you of an illness? Maybe it was something as simple as a fever, or more complex like cancer, a rare disease or a physical impairment. Maybe God has healed you from an addiction that has held you captive for years.  No doubt, God can heal anyone, even bring the dead back to life, as documented in the bible. Why does God heal?   

God has a plan and purpose for every human being. First off, His desire is that every human come to accept Jesus Christ into their life (1 Timothy 2:4). Secondly, God desires that we serve Him in every area of our life. That can be the most challenging thing for a Christian, to yield every area of their life to Him. Challenging yes, impossible no.

As humans we are broken. Bent towards sin and the ways of the world. As I look back over 54 years of my life, I see areas of my life where I was spiritually sick and God was not able to use me because of my sinfulness or brokenness. Yet, as time progressed, He slowly began to heal the darkest areas of my life and brought me to a healthy state, spiritually and in the flesh. As a result, I became more useful to serve Him.

God wants you to have a personal relationship through the sacrifice of his Son, Jesus Christ. Once your journey begins with Jesus, He will touch areas of your life that need healing, so you can serve Him. You know what needs healing, call upon God for His healing touch today, so you can serve Him and be blessed.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. Philippians 4:8 

Between the news, social media and all these videos displaying violence and injustice, they have stirred hearts, angered souls, made people react in ways they normally wouldn’t and say hurtful things. It appears that everyone has a voice and no matter how truthful they may feel about a subject, there is an opposing belief that is equally believable. It’s a mess out there and I’m ready to take a mental escape from it all.

Today’s verse was brought to my attention and I wanted to share a thought. As we know from past experiences, everything changes over time and what has our blood pressure up now will be history in time. Another crises will arise (and Lord knows 2020 has not been short on them!), that will scream for our attention and reaction. But there is one thing that never changes and that’s God and His word.

Through an excellent devotion and today’s verse, I was reminded that my focus needs to be on the consistency of God. Nothing changes, its clear and truthful and most of all backed by God’s love and care for His creation…you and me!  I know it might be difficult, but lets slowly back away from social media and the news for a while and spend an equal amount of time in God’s word and pray. The minute you take your mind off the world’s troubles and focus on God, your mind turns from anger to peace, hate to love, justice to forgiveness.

Join me right now in prayer and some time spent in scripture. Let God lead you through His word. Simply ask Him to reveal what you need at the moment and soak it up. Meanwhile, silence that phone and pay no attention to the news and social media. It’s time we declutter our minds and fill it with God’s goodness! God bless!

For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord will give grace and glory: No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly. Psalm 84:11

Have you had enough of 2020? Between the Coronavirus, strange weather and social unrest in the country, this year has been taxing on many Americans, including myself. I’ve had enough and desire so much for us to get back to the way things were. In the midst of this year’s chaos, many have asked if these are signs of Christ return.

Far be it that I predict His return. But one thing I do know, we as a nation have been out of sync with God. Society as a whole has deteriorated so much that I truly fear its beyond repair. I wonder if God himself has had enough of his creation’s disastrous ways, beliefs and lack of respect for Him. As a result, He is slowly withholding His hand of protection and allowing our nation, and world, suffer the consequences by turning our backs on Him.

Today’s verse gives encouragement for His children to walk uprightly. As a result, God blesses and withholds nothing good. Well, 2020 has been anything but good. Although God is good Himself, we have royally screwed up things and we are reaping what we’ve sown. The truth is, no one is innocent. We are all sinners, thankfully saved by grace.

So what can we do? Pray. Pray that through all this mess we are seeing in the media and in our own communities, we as a society will turn back to God and give Him the true respect He deserves. He has a basket full of blessings, ready to share with the nation that honors Him. Your prayers have power to change, and we are in need of every one of them! Join me in daily prayer for our world, our nation, our community and our neighbors! God bless!

For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever. Philemon 1:15

If you’ve never read the book of Philemon, I encourage you to do so. Its only 25 verses long and has a great story. Onesimus was a slave to Philemon. He did some bad things and ran away from his master. Onesimus was caught and imprisoned. There, he met the disciple Paul. During their time together in prison, Onesimus accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior.

With his newfound faith, Onesimus knew he needed to return to his master. Back in those days a runaway slave who returned was sure to be treated badly or worse yet killed. To smooth the transition back, Paul wrote a letter to Philemon, asking for him to offer grace and mercy to Onesimus. If it wasn’t for him running away, he would never had the opportunity to discover the life transformation Jesus Christ could offer him and make him a better person.

As I read this story, the verse above really spoke to me. Maybe you have someone in your life whose left the comfort of your family and looking for escape from the realities of life. You worry about them, pray for them and hope to see their return. Have faith in the Lord that even on the run, God will help them cross paths with someone like Paul who can minister to them and transform their life into someone better. When they return, have grace and mercy for the one you love. God is working on your runaway! God bless!