When [Jesus] saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. — Matthew 9:36
COMMENTS: Have you ever noticed just how much attitude influences and impacts how well and energetically and enjoyable and how well we accomplish tasks or obligations or not? Even unpleasant tasks seem so much easier and more pleasant to accomplish when our attitude is good. Well, isn’t it attitude that motivates us to put off unpleasant tasks or even pleasant tasks for people we consider unpleasant? Experience may drive us to get unpleasant tasks done first and out of the way so we can better enjoy the more pleasant tasks. Knowing unpleasant tasks tend to take longer than planned to accomplish than do pleasant tasks, so there is merit to doing unpleasant tasks first when more time is available. Besides, looking forward to more pleasant tasks can motivate more energy and focus to complete unpleasant tasks more quickly. Resisting temptations to take short cuts or herrings through more difficult portions of tasks is a risk that will result in loss time redoing or fixed improperly performed tasks or work.
We have discussed our human inclinations and nature but let’s discuss our attitudes and what we can do to change our attitude. “Mind over matter” is a familiar phrase identifying the ability to set our minds on a course of action and stay focused on that task until complete while ignoring or refusing to submit to pain or distractions or emotions that hinder completion. Jesus exampled a number of such instances to us. Enduring starvation and pain and rejection and hatred and all the human weaknesses and temptations and emotions that flooded his soul while living here as a human are all demonstrated and recorded in scripture. Jesus was a master at “mind over matter” while enduring all the human temptations and emotions and weaknesses and limit we all do.
But Jesus also exampled something else far more powerful and effective than just “mind over matter”. This empowered “mind over matter” to succeed in instances where success was impossible for humans. Jesus chose to depend completely on this one source instead of His own divine attributes. He walked away from His own divine attributes to depend on this one source, the same source available to you and me and all who will accept and use that source. So what is that source and how did Jesus show us how to accept and use that source? The source is a relationship with the Father that includes access and dependence of His Holy Spirit. Jesus prayed frequently and continuously to the Father and His Holy Spirit abided in and with Jesus all the time. When Jesus was discouraged or weak or tempted, He submitted to the Father and embraced the Holy Spirit. He did so instead of tapping into the same divine attributes He already possessed as the Divine Son because He wanted to show what and how to do so. He also chose to face His mission as a weak human and perfect sinless human required by God’s Law in order to take all our sins so we can all have forgiveness available and enjoy the eternal relationship with God as He intended for us. Jesus not only showed us how to but also how effective doing so is.
A true story was told recently shared of a successful young businessman who recently discovered just how unkind he is to employees and associates. His discovery came after seeking God each night for a week to show him an area of disobedience he needed to repent of. Prayer was motivated by David’s prayer recorded in Psalm 139:23-24 “23 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting...” The response he received was an unsettling and unpleasant revelation of just how unkind he was especially in professional relationships.
So, what did he do? He tried to help a colleague who he knew was going through a crisis. Spending time listening to him was lacking but needed. That man responded by saying, “I think I might need to go to church with you. I think I need some spiritual help.” He did just that. Conversations developed related to Jesus’ life and our purpose. Within 3 months he accepted Christ and a transformation slowly but surely became evident both to him and then to others.
A noteworthy transformation also became evident to that businessman too along with a greater purpose and focus that came from that experience. Both developed an “Attitude of Christ” instead of a selfish – self motivated attitude and purpose. Their business goals weren’t what needed to change. Most of what they did and who they interact with didn’t need to change. But what did change related to the attitude they did such. They gained a deeper interest in others and more naturally showed that interest in others and would be more willing to take a moment during the day to listen and show a caring attitude, gaining a better awareness of God’s nudging to do so during the day. This became an effective way and opportunity to “Pray without Ceasing” we are called to do (1 Thess. 5:16-18).
That businessman also discovered another fringe benefit. He discovered greater joy and efficiency in doing his job and work and greater wisdom and discerning in doing his work.
So what does this devotion and example teach us? I believe we would do well to pray David’s prayer too with an open and seeking heart. But also to seek God’s insights into times and places and even with certain people when we are unkind and ask what we need to do different. Then, when we discover who we have been unkind to, hate do we need to do? Will apologizing be a start, and what else will be needed and sustained to give credibility to and healing to that apology?
AMEN? AMEN!
If you wish, you can access my blog at “https://donsdevotions.wordpress.com“. There you will find 363 blog posts I have made plus a link to my devotional journal material archives from 2013 to present.
You may also access my Facebook page and request to be my friend and automatically receive my daily journal publications daily. My Facebook page is: https://www.facebook.com/Dondevotionals/ Many thanks to a pastor and dear brother in Christ in Nepal who set up the above Facebook page to help and encourage and give opportunity for more to explore and use my devotional blog materials.
My hope and prayer are, my blog and devotional materials will become a source of encouragement and tools in ministry for you.
Published by donsdevotions
Don McDaniel - Who am I?
Hello everyone and welcome to my devotional journal blog. In order to get acquainted and help you get to know me a bit better before considering following my blog, let me give you some background. I am a 74-year-old male and a retired engineer. I worked for a major supplier of underground mining equipment for nearly 40 years before retiring in 2012. Arlene and I have been happily married since April 1978 and have two grown – married children, one granddaughter and 2 step grandsons. I joined the local United Methodist church at age 12 after accepting Christ as my Savior at age 10 during revival services in that same church in 1961, so I have been a “Born Again” Christian all my teen years and adult life. Christ has helped and guided me all that time. He guided me in choosing my wife and life’s career. My life journey has included regrets and failures, but God has picked me up and protected and spared me from life threatening consequences and dangers more times than I can recall or count. But many I do recall and encourage and motivate me to trust and follow Christ with more passion than ever.
Christmas 2011 our daughter gave Arlene and I each a devotional journal. Journals were books with devotion for each day and space to give personal impressions and thoughts related to each devotion. Her desire was to have a lasting legacy she could refer back to and share with her children and grandchildren especially after we are gone. I was touched by that gesture. My parents and Arlene’s were devout Christians, so we would have greatly treasured having that from them, so we felt a sense of urgency to honor her request. I finished my journal first and returned it to our daughter the following Christmas. I’m glad I did it then because Parkinson’s has caused my hand writing to deteriorate since then. The exercise was such a blessing for me. Discipline of keeping journal helped me gain a deeper walk with Christ and greater discipline in honoring my time of prayer and devotion with Him each day. So, I decided to continue the practice but since I could not find a paper journal I liked, I decided to create my own. I had already been receiving electronic devotions by email every day from several sources, my favorite being “Turning Point” from Dr. David Jeremiah. What I decided to do was to include devotional scripture but add my own thoughts and comments only so there would be no issue of copyright infringement. Creating and maintaining journal by computer also addressed my deteriorating handwriting ability. I started an electronic devotion journal January 1, 2013 and have been faithful to that practice every day since. I prayed about method and level of distribution. My initial intent was to only share it with my two children by email, but quickly discovered others in my family, my church, and friends from work (both retired and still working) who knew me and wanted to be included in distribution when they learned what I was doing. I now distribute by email my daily journal at the beginning of each month to over 150 friends and relatives. God has richly blessed and encouraged me.
I am concerned with the state of our church and nation, and world for that matter, believing we are living in the end times the prophets of old and Christ have talked about in scripture, so time is short. I desire to be true to my Savior and a witness to help others come to a saving knowledge of Him and equipped to share His Good News too. If my journal can encourage and help others, I believe God wants me to share it. I struggled, for a time at first, because I know many others keep similar journals but only for their own edification and do not want to share them because they are private.
However, Christ has stirred my heart to share it as a witness tool.
Our son and daughter have a long-time friend who grew up with them who we also befriended nearly 25 years ago. He had a lot of family problems, so would gravitate to our family as a refuge and eventually thought of us as his adopted parents and he as our adopted son. We lost contact with him for some time when he grew up and left home. He traveled around the U.S. and eventually ended up in Ukraine where he resided for next 10 years. He had to return to the US to renew his visa and took opportunity to recommend I begin a blog of my devotions and helped me set it up. He is also an active blogger and has been an email subscriber to my journal for several months, so he has been suggesting I expand my distribution by starting a blog to get broader exposure. After reflection and prayer, I concluded God was in this, so he is helping me set up my blog site. This brief autobiography is my first entry.
He returned to Ukraine, then resided there until circumstanced made him decide to move back to US with his young son. This biography was my first post February 29, 2016 .
I have published 600 posts from 2016-2023 automatically sent to all my Facebook friends, published on WordPress to be accessible to anyone curious or seeking a deeper walk with God. I decided to take a sebatical to prepare for a new chapter. In 2014 I was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease which affects patient ability to walk, drive, do physical work, and eventually talk. By mid 2023 it became evident our home for last 42 years (previously owned by my parents for previous 44 years and by my mother's grandparents for 39 years before that) would eventually not meet my needs so we decided to sell it and move into 1st floor of a duplex we also owned that was the town school from 1855-1913. Likewise, the property was requiring more maintenance that I was no longer able to keep up with. 2023 involved selling our home and moving into apartment next door and then in early 2025 an opportunity to move closer to our daughter and granddaughter in Kentucky which was completed in May 2025. For a number of months I have been seeking direction seeking God's direction and timing to return to blogging as my journey with Parkinson's continues to unfold with God's guiding hand in mine.
I hope and pray my devotions will continue to be a blessing for you. God certainly has become closer and more real to me since started this blog in 2016. I have spent time with Him studying scripture and praying and listening and writing this journal. I will continue seeking God’s help and will welcome your input to make this site as meaningful as I can and true to God, who is motivating me to create and maintain it. I will also welcome input in order to make format more meaningful going forward.
Don & Arlene McDaniel
In His Service,
Email: mcdanieldonald769@gmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Don1951
If you wish, you can access my blog at “https://donsdevotions.wordpress.com“. There you will find 600+ blog posts I have made plus a link to my devotional journal material archives from 2013 to present (https://donsdevotions.wordpress.com/2016/03/02/link-to-dons-devotional-journal-entries-2013/ )
You may also access my Facebook page and request to be my friend and automatically receive my daily journal publications daily. My Facebook page is: https://www.facebook.com/Dondevotionals/ Many thanks to a pastor and dear brother in Christ in Nepal who set up the above Facebook page to help and encourage and give opportunity for more to explore and use my devotional blog materials. View all posts by donsdevotions
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