DEVOTION JOURNAL 2021 – DON MCDANIEL, 2021

AUGUST 2021    

 8/1/21                        ESCORTED BY ANGELS                                                   1                             

 So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.  Luke 16:22

 Recommended Reading: Luke 23:43

⁴³ And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

COMMENTS:

Of all His stories, only in the account of the deaths of a rich man and a beggar (Luke 16:19-31) did Jesus assign a name to a character. Naming the beggar “Lazarus” suggests this story was true and conveys truth about God’s care for His deceased saints.

Unique in this story is the role of angels at death. The poor beggar died “and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom”—a metaphor for Paradise, or the gathering place of the saints awaiting the inauguration of the Messianic kingdom (Luke 23:43). It’s easy to look at death as an ending of life, and it is the end of the mortal, physical body. But immediately upon the beggar’s death, angels from heaven came and carried him—that is, they escorted him—into the presence of God. The accompanying role of angels at death is just another proof of the continuation of life for those who die in faith. And evidence of God’s continuing care.

Those nearing the end of life can expect to be joined by angels when they breathe their last. Yet another reason to have no fear of death.

Those who have welcomed Christ may welcome death.
Matthew Henry

8/2/21                                               Help From Above                                               2  

He said to them, “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.”
John 8:23

Recommended Reading: John 8:21-30

²¹ Then Jesus said to them again, “I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin. Where I go you cannot come.”

²² So the Jews said, “Will He kill Himself, because He says, ‘Where I go you cannot come’?”

²³ And He said to them, “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. ²⁴ Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”

²⁵ Then they said to Him, “Who are You?”

And Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning. ²⁶ I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him.”

²⁷ They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.

²⁸ Then Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. ²⁹ And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.” ³⁰ As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.

COMMENTS: Have you ever been in a situation, either caused by your own poor choice or ignorance or same of someone else that impacted you, that put you in peril or even life threatening but you were not able to escape yourself without help.   I think everyone at some time encounters such a situation.   It renders us aware of our own mortality and dependency on others.   Well, God never intended for us to live alone but to be in community with others and with himself.  Family is the core or key community unit God designed to grow strong and thrive individually and corporately.  Family is the core unit God desires to work within in order to minister and bring life to individuals within the family unit and setting.   Church is also designed and intended by God to provide support and strength and encouragement for individuals members too.  To be a part of a healthy Christ centered family and part of a thriving Christ centered church is key to having and sustaining a Christ-like life and discipline of worship and devotion and prayer God desires and we need to maintain the healthy life giving relationship with Christ that He wants and offers to each believer. 

The story was  reported recently of  woman hiking with her dog near Horsetail Falls in California’s El Dorando National Forest.  The woman became trapped while navigating through some of the rough more challenging trail areas.  She began to panic seeing no way to free herself and not seeing any evidence of help or seeking help since some time has passed without encountering any other hikers.   But then help came from above.   A California Highway Patrol helicopter spotted the woman and her dog and rescuers quickly came and descended by rope to them and lifted them to safety unharmed.  

Think about all those times when help was not evident but later realized help  was being organized and preparing without your knowledge so the help would achieve the needed goal.

Help always comes from above for God’s children when we become disoriented by life.   Having a healthy – thriving  relationship with Christ means a direct line of communication with Him so help will be available quickly but even more important, we will be prepared to hear His instruction and council  and receive His help too.  Scripture tells us, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights” (James 1:17). The best and most perfect gift ever given was the Lord Jesus Christ, who came from above to stand beside us. The Bible is God’s Word from above. The Holy Spirit also came down to indwell you.  Rest assured that God reaches down to you in your darkest times to be with you and bring you comfort. Today you have help descending down from above!

We can do no good thing at all, except we are aided by help from above.  John Chrysostom

8/3/21                                GOD’S RESPONSE IN HIS TIME AND WAY                                 3

“I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills his purpose for me. He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me; God sends his love and his faithfulness.”  Psalm 57: 2-3

COMMENTS:  Desperate times warrant desperate responses.  That is what most justify and what the world tells us.  But what does God tells us?   To seek His help first and early.  To wait on Him.   To seek and follow council that matches His Word.  To seek council first from Him but also seek help and council from church family.   Have friends and family who are close  to Christ and have a  reputation of consistent living and conduct compatible with Christ’example and biblical teaching.    A solid support system that  will build wisdom and a stable relationship with Christ in all situations is vital and so helpful especially in trying times.  

So, how do you seek help when need it?   Who has been  the most  reliable friend and helpmate in trying times? 

Christ is more reliable than any human is or can be, but He is not always heard by us because we are not always  listening to Him nor even wanting to – anticipating a response we are not wanting or  willing to follow.   But we need reminded His ways are always best in  the long term.  

Perhaps long ago when you first believed in Christ you may have heard those familiar words, “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.” That brand-new thought warmed your heart.

God will fulfill his purpose for you. He’ll do it for you because he keeps his promise. He’ll fulfill his plan in you by creating in you the image of his Son. Also, God will fulfill his plan through you as you touch others with his love and faithfulness.

Nothing ever thwarts the purpose of God. Nothing can ruin his plan. If you are trusting him, then God’s plan for you is progressing right on schedule, full speed ahead.

This needs to be our prayer of praise and submission often: “God Most High, I praise you that you always fulfill your purpose. You are glorified in that you always keep your promises. You never fail to send help from heaven and you are faithful in giving your love and strength. I want to get in line with your will and say “yes” to your plan for my life.”

8/4/21                                 AFTER GOD’S LIKENESS                                              4   

Ephesians 4:17-24, 5:2 – Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!—assuming that you have heard about Him and were taught in Him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. … Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. COMMENTS: Lot’s wife lost her life when she looked back to her home in Sodom.  God had warned her not to do so – leave that evil place and not  turn back. Lot had chosen to live in that sinful place and had taken a wife there but she had never fully surrendered to Lot’s God.  She tried to make him happy and do what he asked but her heart and allegiance remained in her home town, in Sodom.  God offers eternal life free of bondage and death sin ultimately costs.  Christ’s sacrifice means we no longer need to bear the eternal consequences for our sins.  We have freedom to choose our allegiance but we must choose.  God doesn’t permit split allegiance or half hearted allegiance.  Lot’s wife gives us an example of consequences of trying to “serve two masters”  – serve her pagan gods and serve Lot’s God. The trap she got caught in is a common one for everyone in every generation.  A trap everyone of us is vulnerable to fall prey too.  But God’s standard has not changed and requires our allegiance without reservation or condition if we are going to live the Christ – centered life. Looks like some in the church at Ephesus were struggling in their Christian walk. The apostle Paul here is speaking to those who have learned Christ, were taught the truth in Jesus to put off the old self, but who have, it seems, reverted to their former ways. It’s an age-old story, isn’t it? How many times do we seek to do the right thing only to fall back into sin? Paul knew this was true of the believers he instructed in the faith. Here, and elsewhere (see 1 Corinthians 15:58; Colossians 3:14-15; 1 Timothy 4:12), Paul encourages the faithful to live lives of love and service to God and one another, and to remain steadfast in their commitment to God. Paul was well aware of the difficulties of putting the teachings of Christ into daily action. Yes, there will be times when people lie, but we are to be truthful. There will be days when the sun sets and our anger still burns hot, but we are to control it—lest the enemy make an even greater mess of things. Though we may want to speak harshly and tear down, we are to resist that urge and, instead, build up with our words, edifying and uplifting those around us (see Ephesians 4:25-29). If only we could remember—we are not who we were: the old self is dead; through faith in Christ we are new now, “created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” And as Paul says elsewhere, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). And what smarter way to put this truth into action than to become “imitators of God, as beloved children.” When we flounder and want to sin, Paul reminds us to focus on Christ and His cross. Jesus set the ultimate example for you and me, giving Himself up for us, “a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God,” and then rising in resurrection victory. So when temptations are strong—pray, resist, and look to Jesus and the life He lived—and ask for the Holy Spirit’s help to become an imitator of God.

  8/5/21                                                   AFTER GOD’S LIKENESS                                            5

Ephesians 4:17-24, 5-2:   ¹⁷ So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. ¹⁸ They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. ¹⁹ Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.

²⁰ That, however, is not the way of life you learned ²¹ when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. ²² You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; ²³ to be made new in the attitude of your minds; ²⁴ and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

² and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

COMMENTS:   Churches in every generation, including the first century churches, grew in spite of and also because of great persecution.  People were converted and lives were transformed but humans with human weaknesses remained.  That means instruction and correction and accountability was necessary regularly and frequently in order to prevent false teaching and sin to infiltrated and cause corruption in the church body.   Even more, indifference and decaying discipline and faith would gain a foothold too especially when peace and prosperity blessed the body of believers.  Hardship and suffering is the most effective way of motivating believers and seekers to seek and follow and rely on a personal relationship with Christ and obey the council and instruction and discipline scripture and the Holy Spirit provides.

Even Paul confessed in his writings in scripture that his tendency is to do the opposite Christ exampled and taught and opposite the Holy Spirit leads and directions even though in his mind and heart he knew better.   Same is true for us.    Even Christ, especially at Gethsemane struggled in prayer and anguish over the cross He was to bear.  But the important thing to realize and know is what matters is what we choose and do.   Making our will follow God’s plan and instruction and not the temptations or desires of our own mind and soul.

Paul shows us his passion and determined will to do God’s Will at any cost but also shows us the inward battles and struggles he still endured.  He shows us this so we can be encouraged to not just know such battles are normal and common with all Christians but with God’s help and abiding presence are winnable each and every time encountered.   Satan is a formidable foe and too strong for us, BUT NOT FOR OUR GOD WHO IS READY AND WILLING TO DO BATTLE WITH AND FOR US!

Temptations are strong at times but our God is stronger!  His is the source of our strength and access to that strength is readily available through prayer – bible study – accountability to other believers – looking to Jesus for help and putting our eyes and mind on Him – even by running from temptation…

Choosing our battles and walking or even running away from unnecessary temptations and evil is an important and effective tactic to learn and practice.

8/6/21                                                                          TIMELESS MOMENTS                         6  

“Be very careful, then, how you live—not unwise, but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”

Ephesians 5:15-16

COMMENTS:  The miracle of a brand new day each morning and rest at the end of each day is given us with each sunrise and each sunset.   I know, many of us have a work schedule that doesn’t match those hours.  But when was the last time you took opportunity to enjoy a beautiful sunrise and a beautiful sunset?

Amy Carmichael once said, “We will have all of eternity to celebrate the victories and only a few hours before the sunset in which to win them.” Like a sunset, life will soon be over in a flash. All the color and glory that we now enjoy will one day suddenly vanish. When standing on the other side of eternity I wonder if we will be amazed that life went by so quickly. I suspect that at that time we literally will not have time to think about it. That’s why we must think about it presently and realize there are timeless moments to be lived right now. A smile for the gas station attendant. A pleasant “God bless you” for the woman at the market. A hug for your spouse, straight from the heart. Prayers offered in spirit and truth. Amy Carmichael would call these victories–and there is little time to collect these, the small victories. The days are fleeting, the hours are evaporating. Before you know it, our chance to prove our love for Jesus will fade. The sun will have set. So hear the echo of Paul’s words and make the most of every opportunity. With each sunrise, God gives us new opportunities to enjoy His creation and take advantage of opportunities He gives us to share His Good News by word and by example and by showing His love to others.  Those who could be impacted by our lives if we took opportunity given to stop and listen and show God’s love in some way.  Those opportunities need not be long and drawn out but simply stopping a few minutes to say hi and listen. God doesn’t ask much of us nor does He ask anything we aren’t capable of doing nor anything we don’t have sufficient time to do, but we need to be open and of the right attitude to see and take opportunities He gives us. If we do, we will one day see the eternal impact those used opportunities have because God will use them to change lives and accomplish His will, which is always good for you and for me and for others we may not realize. “Dear Father, sometimes I live as though this life will go on forever. I realize that it will not, so help me today to live timeless moments for Jesus. Help me to win victories, no matter how small, for you.”

  8/7/21                                   HE SATISFIES                                        7

“You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.”

Psalm 145:16

COMMENTS:   You and I are designed to be in constant fellowship with God.  Stop and think.   With cell phones and internet and computers, we have become not only accustomed to but addicted to being in constant communication with friends and even with strangers.  But think about face that from ancient times beginning with Adam and Eve, God enabled and gave to them the ability to be in constant communication with God and God with them.  Prayer can be given from any place at any  time directly with God without waiting in line or for a turn.  We all can communication with God at the same time without limits and He will hear and responds to us uniquely and personally and individually.  There is more of a problem with our lack of attention or focus on hearing His voice than from Him hearing ours.  He hears us when we pray even if only pray with our minds and thoughts and not thru our mouths and voices.  Below is a familiar and old hymn that expressing the Joy the author knew from being in fellowship His Lord and Savior Jesus Christ:

Well of water ever springing, Bread of life, so rich and free, Untold wealth that never faileth, My Redeemer is to me. Hallelujah! I have found Him Whom my soul so long has craved Jesus satisfies my longings— Thru His blood I now am saved. There’s nothing quite like the satisfaction of a glass of cold spring water on a hot August afternoon. A cold shower after mowing the lawn. A dive into a stream after a long, tiring hike. Sometimes a glass of lemonade fresh out of the refrigerator. Being satisfied means you’ve been filled, you want nothing more, and that the thirsty longing has been quench.  Air is needed constantly to live.  Water and food are needed every day to sustain life and replenish strength and health.  Spiritual health and strength require daily fellowship with Christ too.  He provides spiritual air and food and water which gives eternal life and direction. That’s exactly how Jesus satisfies. To have him means that you have it all. To trust him means that your needs are met. To know him is to realize that he is your dearest, most faithful companion. “But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit” (Jeremiah 17:7-8). The next time you pour a cold drink on a hot August afternoon, pause and praise the Lord for the way he quenches your thirst. He, the Wellspring of Water, overcomes, subdues, fulfills, and satisfies like nothing else, like no one else. Lord, sometimes I feel so thirsty… and I’m not even sure of what I want. I search for that which will satisfy and always come away feeling empty. Teach me to see that you give satisfaction on the deepest and most personal level. I drink in Your love today, Lord Jesus.

8/8/21                                    FOR  THOSE WHO SEARCH                                8                                     

“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter.”

Proverbs 25:2

COMMENTS:  On the surface, there seems to be some conflicting passages of scripture.  We have free will to make our own choices (good or bad) while God predestines us.   We are viewed by Him as perfect when we accept His Grace while experientially we are still imperfect.  We must work our own salvation but salvation is not about our works or earning it but all about accepting His sacrifice as payment for our sins. These and many other scriptures are a paradox. However, the mystery starts to clarify when we view God as our loving Father instead of as a Judge and Firm Ruler. But God is both and much more. Revelation’s description of heaven is sketchy but we are given assurance what kept secret is more wonderful than we can imagine.

He delights in concealing secret treasures so that we might be drawn to search and enjoy the discovery of finding those treasures, but some treasures need to wait until Christ gives them to us in heaven. For “The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them” (Psalm 25:14). To those who draw closest to the Lord, to those who desire his intimate company, Jesus says, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you” (Mark 4:11). If you sit at his feet, full of awe and wonder, he will draw you into his confidence, unraveling his innermost thoughts and heartfelt hopes, voicing his desires for you and for the rest of those who search. The Lord Jesus is the treasure you seek, the precious gem you must mine. And Jeremiah 29:13 assures, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” You have everything you need to equip you for the search. You have his Word, the key to heaven’s hieroglyphics. You have been initiated into the fellowship of things above. You have the mind of Christ. Now you must find his heart! I want to love you, Jesus, with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. For as I do, I believe you will reveal to me your heart.

8/9/21                                               God’s Appointment                                              9 

He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings. Daniel 2:21a I SAMUEL 26:1-25 The Ziphites went to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Is not David hiding on the hill of Hakilah, which faces Jeshimon?” 2 So Saul went down to the Desert of Ziph, with his three thousand select Israelite troops, to search there for David. 3 Saul made his camp beside the road on the hill of Hakilah facing Jeshimon, but David stayed in the wilderness. When he saw that Saul had followed him there, 4 he sent out scouts and learned that Saul had definitely arrived. 5 Then David set out and went to the place where Saul had camped. He saw where Saul and Abner son of Ner, the commander of the army, had lain down. Saul was lying inside the camp, with the army encamped around him. 6 David then asked Ahimelek the Hittite and Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, “Who will go down into the camp with me to Saul?” “I’ll go with you,” said Abishai. 7 So David and Abishai went to the army by night, and there was Saul, lying asleep inside the camp with his spear stuck in the ground near his head. Abner and the soldiers were lying around him. 8 Abishai said to David, “Today God has delivered your enemy into your hands. Now let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t strike him twice.” 9 But David said to Abishai, “Don’t destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless? 10 As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “the Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish. 11 But the Lord forbid that I should lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. Now get the spear and water jug that are near his head, and let’s go.” 12 So David took the spear and water jug near Saul’s head, and they left. No one saw or knew about it, nor did anyone wake up. They were all sleeping, because the Lord had put them into a deep sleep. 13 Then David crossed over to the other side and stood on top of the hill some distance away; there was a wide space between them. 14 He called out to the army and to Abner son of Ner, “Aren’t you going to answer me, Abner?” Abner replied, “Who are you who calls to the king?” 15 David said, “You’re a man, aren’t you? And who is like you in Israel? Why didn’t you guard your lord the king? Someone came to destroy your lord the king. 16 What you have done is not good. As surely as the Lord lives, you and your men must die, because you did not guard your master, the Lord’s anointed. Look around you. Where are the king’s spear and water jug that were near his head?” 17 Saul recognized David’s voice and said, “Is that your voice, David my son?” David replied, “Yes it is, my lord the king.” 18 And he added, “Why is my lord pursuing his servant? What have I done, and what wrong am I guilty of? 19 Now let my lord the king listen to his servant’s words. If the Lord has incited you against me, then may he accept an offering. If, however, people have done it, may they be cursed before the Lord! They have driven me today from my share in the Lord’s inheritance and have said, ‘Go, serve other gods.’ 20 Now do not let my blood fall to the ground far from the presence of the Lord. The king of Israel has come out to look for a flea—as one hunts a partridge in the mountains.” 21 Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Come back, David my son. Because you considered my life precious today, I will not try to harm you again. Surely I have acted like a fool and have been terribly wrong.” 22 “Here is the king’s spear,” David answered. “Let one of your young men come over and get it. 23 The Lord rewards everyone for their righteousness and faithfulness. The Lord delivered you into my hands today, but I would not lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. 24 As surely as I valued your life today, so may the Lord value my life and deliver me from all trouble.” 25 Then Saul said to David, “May you be blessed, David my son; you will do great things and surely triumph.” COMMENTS:     “We must begin to believe that God, in the mystery of prayer, has entrusted us with a force that can move the Heavenly world, and can bring its power down to earth.”  Andrew Murray  The account of King Saul is a sad one.  He started out with great potential and had everything going for him – besides being king he had a son that honored him and was next in line to replace him. Jonathan would likely have been a great king.  King David would have been a great adviser to Jonathan if only Saul had remained faithful to God.  He didn’t and disobeyed God in critical areas because he would not wait on God and trust Him.  That downward spiral became evident when God took favor away from Saul and gave it to David.  Saul’s jealousy caused his death and the death of his son, Jonathan – a great tragedy since Jonathan was  a dear friend to David and saved David’s life many times from his father’s jealous attempts to kill David.  David’s life was not without its sins and regrets.  We may think David’s sins were greater than Saul’s but he was not equally punished.  However, we need to remember David repented of his sins and Saul did not even though he did regret them.  The difference between a sorrowful and regretful heart and a repentant heart may not be significant in our eyes but in God’s eyes they are a world apart.  David admitted his sin but was willing to give it up and turn to God to have fellowship with him and change him.  Saul only was sorry he got caught and for consequences.  David was willing to rely on God and wait for God’s help, Saul was not.  David did not take advantage of Saul and kill him when he could have in order to save his life.  David had confidence in God’s promise David would live to be king and would not take Saul’s life in order to save his.  It meant hiding from the king and his men for several years and nearly getting caught more than once but God was faithful to His promise to David.  These examples help us understand what is important to God and how He wants us to respond to Him too.  The ways He helped David be true and have confidence in His promises can help us have the same confidence and be as faithful.  David’s sins help us realized when we fail and sin, there is a way back and forgiveness if we repent and submit to Him to change us.  Isn’t it amazing God wants to do this, but also is capable of dealing with us individually with such detail while dealing with the world’s billions each with same detail as well as managing the entire universe…  I’m so glad He Can!!! You too???

8/10/21                                                       WARNING!                                           10    

For her house leads down to death, and her paths to the dead.
Proverbs 2:18

SCRIPTURE READING:  PROVERBS 7:1-27  My son, keep my words
    and store up my commands within you.
² Keep my commands and you will live;
    guard my teachings as the apple of your eye.
³ Bind them on your fingers;
    write them on the tablet of your heart.
⁴ Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
    and to insight, “You are my relative.”
⁵ They will keep you from the adulterous woman,
    from the wayward woman with her seductive words.

⁶ At the window of my house
    I looked down through the lattice.
⁷ I saw among the simple,
    I noticed among the young men,
    a youth who had no sense.
⁸ He was going down the street near her corner,
    walking along in the direction of her house
⁹ at twilight, as the day was fading,
    as the dark of night set in.

¹⁰ Then out came a woman to meet him,
    dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.
¹¹ (She is unruly and defiant,
    her feet never stay at home;
¹² now in the street, now in the squares,
    at every corner she lurks.)
¹³ She took hold of him and kissed him
    and with a brazen face she said:

¹⁴ “Today I fulfilled my vows,
    and I have food from my fellowship offering at home.
¹⁵ So I came out to meet you;
    I looked for you and have found you!
¹⁶ I have covered my bed
    with colored linens from Egypt.
¹⁷ I have perfumed my bed
    with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.
¹⁸ Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning;
    let’s enjoy ourselves with love!
¹⁹ My husband is not at home;
    he has gone on a long journey.
²⁰ He took his purse filled with money
    and will not be home till full moon.”

²¹ With persuasive words she led him astray;
    she seduced him with her smooth talk.
²² All at once he followed her
    like an ox going to the slaughter,
like a deer^[a] stepping into a noose^[b]
23     till an arrow pierces his liver,
like a bird darting into a snare,
    little knowing it will cost him his life.

²⁴ Now then, my sons, listen to me;
    pay attention to what I say.
²⁵ Do not let your heart turn to her ways
    or stray into her paths.
²⁶ Many are the victims she has brought down;
    her slain are a mighty throng.
²⁷ Her house is a highway to the grave,
    leading down to the chambers of death.

COMMENTS:    Today’s devotion is once I wrote in 2013 and decided to include in this month’s journal:                     This week has been a week of conviction, contemplation, renewal, and fellowship. Family camp at Pleasantville has been an annual meca since Debbie was born in 1979, and for Arlene in the years prior to our marriage in 1978.  Over the years we have developed close friendships with many in the camp, as have our children and now our grandchildren.  It is good to see God working in their lives, as in ours.   Our evangelist Brett Heintzman has given us many challenging messages and God has been working to draw us closer to him in fellowship and in relationship with Him.  I have a sense that there is more God wants to reveal to me as well as more in my relationship He wants me to be in with Him.  I keep reflecting back to what my brother-in-law, Sam Shreffler said about his mother, Bobby.  Early every morning she raises and spends several hours with God in prayer-devotion-fellowship and describes that time as holding hands with her savior.  I spend time as well with Him but infrequently to the depth she does daily.  I will be seeking such a regular fellowship with Him and look forward to enrichment such a regular time will bring.  However, I also am more aware that my walk with Him is still very shallow and spend too much of my day going after my own interests and working my own will, missing opportunities He gives to be the light of hope He wants me to be.  So often He spares me from dangers by His warning signs but see too many examples of those who either did not see or ignored His Warning Signs and are suffering the consequences of those choices.  I see examples of many in camp who have had several opportunities even during camp because they have built relationships with others and were commonly at the right time and place to be a help to someone in need, but since I haven’t invested as much, missed many such opportunities.  However, I was very encouraged to be able to spend an afternoon with Mike Stalter and for Tammy to be able to spend an afternoon with Arlene and her sister and cousin as well.  I pray those seeds will blossom in their lives and their relationship with Christ.  We were also glad, afterwards, for Mike to share he was offered employment at a small company he applied to in Detroit, Michigan.  Will be praying and inquiring with interest to see how God is guiding and helping and protecting them as they prepare to move and begin a life there. 

8/11/21                    Right On!: Do What Is Right in God’s Sight                       11       
If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you. Exodus 15:26

RECOMMENDED SCRIPTURE READING: LUKE 6:46-49 ⁶ “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? ⁴⁷ As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. ⁴⁸ They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. ⁴⁹ But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”

COMMENTS: Below are comments I wrote about this devotion in 2013 just after returning from our annual family retreat at Pleasantville, Pa.:

Today is first day home from 9 day retreat at Family Camp in Pleasantville.  Camp was enriches but now is time to apply experience into a deeper daily walk with Him and a brighter reflect of Christ in my life.  Our scripture in Luke reminds me that if I don’t apply the deep teaching I have received last 9 days, will be like building a house on sand which fill fall when storms come.  As I reflect on trouble of others I care for, and see their struggles, I am reminded that even after we commit our lives to Christ, we continue to make choices that will either bless or future or bring more hardship.  I am becoming more convinced that Christ wants us to recognize and be totally dependent and submitted to Him and turn from anything that distracts or hinders that surrender.  As I reflect on revivals happening in Haiti, or many countries in Africa or in China or even in many Islam countries, I realize the fertile soil revival comes in is usually soil of poverty and persecution and hardship.  I think the reason is desperation brings focus and commitment since we can’t survive or keep our sanity on our own in that environment.  In an atmosphere of prosperity and comfort, it is much more difficult to focus on Him and surrender to Him.  I see that battle in my own life.  Our camp evangelist, Brett Heintzmann, indicated that the church at Laodicea was the most comfortable and wealthiest of all the churches in Asia Minor but was the luke warm church that Rev. 3 spoke of that was neither hot nor cold and would be rejected by Christ.  I fear we are like that church because of comfortable life style and security even the poorest of us enjoy as compared with Christians in most of the world.  Can we overcome our indifference without losing our incomes and possessions and our freedoms?   I pray not but I also fear not.  God loves us enough He may indeed take these things from us in order to awaken in us a desire and need for Him.  If hardship has come into your life and are wondering why, consider it may indeed be God’s hand drawing you back to Him….   Remember, 100 years from now it won’t matter how much money or how good a job or how nice a house you owned, but will matter how faithful you and your family were to Christ.   It isn’t hard for Christians in China to remember that but is a truth we in US need to keep bringing back into focus.   Pray that I will and I will do same for you…..

8/12/21                                                  Sprayed With Foolishness                               12 

Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.  Isaiah 1:18 RECOMMENDED SCRIPTURE READING: ISAIAH 1:16-20  Wash and make yourselves clean.     Take your evil deeds out of my sight;     stop doing wrong. 17 Learn to do right; seek justice.     Defend the oppressed.[a] Take up the cause of the fatherless;     plead the case of the widow. 18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,”     says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet,     they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson,     they shall be like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient,     you will eat the good things of the land; 20 but if you resist and rebel,     you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.   COMMENTS:   As I read and reflect on todays devotion, several things come to mind.  Sometimes when we kid around we say “digs” or make fun of others that often are hurtful even though most of the times we are only teasing.  Yet, I’ve seen such cause rifts in marriages.  Fortunately I sense that early in our marriage and have been diligent to hold my tongue and try to shift conversation to be complementary and have been diligent to only speak of Arlene in complementary ways whether she is with me or not. A cool thing that has come out of that is she speaks of me complementary as well – making us both feel better about ourselves as well as deepens our love for each other. That has gone a long ways towards making ours an extraordinary marriage.  Experiences of other couples we know had a much different path when one in a marriage would not shift to a complementary mode – both would end up hurting each other with their words with love fading or ended in their marriage.  How tragic and could have been avoided – cycle of hurt could have been broken.  However, God has pricked my heart those times I was careless with my words and did say something that hurt Arlene.  Forgiveness is an ongoing need for us to receive as well as give.  However, I’ve learned it is far better to never try to be “funny” at the expense of someone else, better to be perceived as quiet or boring than to say something that is hurtful.  I am not 100% cured of that but continue to make that a goal I am working on.  Can you look back and recall experiences both when you said something hurtful that you were only intending to be funny.  Can you also recall times you thought of something but didn’t say it and were glad later you didn’t. More often than not, when I refused to respond with “digs” or hurtful kidding when in conversation with others who were, conversation would shift to be more positive and would end well…    I believe the Holy Spirit will guide our discernment to that detail if we are close to Him and let Him do so.

8/13/21                                                   WHAT IS FAIR?                         13     

“Who has understood the mind of the Lord, or instructed him as his counselor? Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way? Who was it that taught him knowledge or showed him the path of understanding?”

Isaiah 40:13-14

COMMENTS:  Is God fair? When we ask this question, we usually mean, does God treat some people better than others? At those times, we need reminded that we all need God’s mercy more than His fairness.    Fairness isn’t about being fair to us but fair to Him.  Was it fair for Christ to take our punishment for our sins?  NO!   Was it fair Him to be humiliated and spat on and beaten by Roman guards and accused of things He didn’t do?  NO!   Even more, was it fair for Him to receive rejection and indifference as our response for His love and faithfulness to us?  NO!  Well then, instead of looking at others and comparing our sinfulness to sins we see others guilty of, we need to look to Jesus and compare our remaining sinfulness to His perfect sinless life example and realize how unworthy and sinful each one, including you and me, still are and in need of His mercy and forgiveness.  It is like a rich young son enjoying his father’s wealth but becoming jealous of a poor better his father gave some charity to.  That jealousy would tarnish and potentially destroy the relationship he needed with his father and prevent him from enjoying and his father enjoying that relationship.  Likewise, what do we miss out on when we neglect our relationship with Christ no matter the reason?

Trying to discern whether or not God is fair in any given situation is much like walking into a room halfway through someone else’s argument. For one thing, you don’t have all the facts, and you won’t have them until you get to the other side of eternity. Besides, “fairness” is impossible to grasp because you are unequipped to appreciate the hidden purposes God has in mind. Those who don’t believe in God may be presumptuous enough to play the “fairness” game, but Christians know better. The world’s definition of fairness is based on the sliding scale of society’s values and the changing will of the majority. But God doesn’t buy that definition. That’s why he will never be “fair” from society’s perspective. He will, however, always maintain justice. Justice, unlike fairness, is based on the unchanging principles of his Word. The “fairness doctrine” is based on a person’s limited value system and timetable. Remember, God is not fair — he is just. He is loving. His values are higher, far exalted above yours. His timetable is different. So bow to his justice, trust in his love, and forget about fairness. Lord, you will never seem fair from the world’s perspective and that’s why I praise you for being merciful, not fair. May your purposes prevail and may you receive glory!

8/14/21                                                             MAPS                                                          14 

“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’”

Isaiah 30:21

COMMENTS:   GPS has replaced the paper road map as the means of guiding road travelers to their destination.  Maps were great but didn’t show road construction or detours.  Family trips bring back memories and usually necessary times to stop and ask for direction.   GPS has been a wonderful tool but in recent years with phone tools like “google maps” have added benefit of modifying directions to accommodate road construction – car accidents – road changes, etc. Even so, I still enjoy having and using a map.  But a map with errors or a map that is not current is an inaccurate map that cannot be trusted.  This year we took a road trip out west to Yellowstone and Yosemite national parks with our daughter and granddaughter.  The GPS on their phone alerted them of interesting stops along the way.    There were a number of extra stops we made that became a highlight of our trip. This helped make that trip more about the journey and less about reaching a destination at a predetermined day or time.   We ended up still getting to destinations with ample time to tour these two parks while discovering many hidden sights to explore along the way. Well, have you ever been lost?  Anxiety may not grip you immediately but being lost for a longer period of time can definitely cause anxiety.

Most would not dream of starting a long journey without a map or GPS and path to the destination.  Well, we all are on a lifetime journey with heaven being the goal – destination.  We have scripture as our guide, the Holy Spirit to give us updates and course corrections and detours around roadblocks and obstacles.   We also have continual fellowship with prayer with the Father and Jesus too. Jesus tells us He is the way – the only way to the Father (John 14:6). Lord Jesus, you are the Way, and I know that no matter what lies ahead today, I am safe and secure when I keep close to you. Thank you for being my guide and my map. Your Word tells me exactly where I’m going and how to get there. I love following you!

8/15/21                        STUDY SCRIPTURE DAILY                                     15

“You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.”

John 5:39-40

COMMENTS:  Christ is the One and Only source of Eternal Life (John 14:6). It is by admitting our sins and asking His forgiveness that we are cleaned sufficiently for the Father to accept us into the Home is planned for and is preparing for us.  Our part is accepting His plan and forgiveness offered to all, but our part doesn’t end there.  To continue strengthening the relationship God has with us must be nourished and strengthened each day or will wither and die of neglect.  God reached us but we must open the door to our soul (Rev. 3:19-20 19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.) daily to welcome Him and allow Him to nourish us just as our physical bodies must be watered and fed daily to survive. Yet, there are people who read the Bible regularly and still miss knowing the One Scripture is revealing.  Maybe you know someone like that or maybe even you can relate to that. Studying scripture can lose its nourishment if it’s reader loses the desire and longing for a deeper relationship and fellowship with Christ.  Study of scripture and even prayer can become dry and mechanical.   Christ always comes to us seeking a deeper relationship with us but we often fail to be ready to welcome Him.

John 16:13-14: “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.” Lord, as I read Scripture, help me to remember to always ask the Holy Spirit to open up my eyes and my heart to your word. Let me see how every book, every chapter points to you.

8/16/21                                      DISCOVERING GOD’S WILL                                               16                       

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18

COMMENTS:  The importance and value of daily fellowship with Christ by study of scripture and prayer is vital and life giving as well as spiritual life sustaining. Even seasoned Christians who have been in such fellowship with Him for many decades can easily and often do find their time of devotion growing cold and stale. Sadly, often that deterioration is so gradual that it is unnoticed by them.  However, I dare say those around them start noticing a difference before too long?  Have you experienced such in your own life or in the life of someone close to you?   I’m sure we all have or maybe are experiencing right now.  Well, like any important relationship, work and discipline is necessary at times to stay true especially when emotions, including discouragement and indifference, become a barrier instead of a catalyst. There’s hardly a Christian who hasn’t looked into the future and questioned, “What is God’s will for my life?” Today’s verse may be short and sweet, but it’s all the answer you need. Be joyful. Pray continually. Give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. “But you don’t know my circumstances,” I hear you saying. “How can I be thankful for pain and heartache?” God is not asking you to be thankful but to give thanks. There’s a big difference between feeling thankful and giving thanks. One response involves emotions, the other, your will. Trusting God has absolutely nothing to do with trustful feelings. Also, God’s not asking you to give thanks for the tough times–only that you give thanks in them. Give thanks that he is sovereign… that he is in control… giving you grace and peace… and planning it all for your good and his glory. Joni Eareckson Tada has endured over 50 years of being a paraplegic and enduring breast cancer and treatment for that illness.  Discouragement and even anger and desperation were part of the emotional roller coaster she battled, but she too learned to give thanks knowing God is still faithful and will bring great good out of suffering both for her and to all who know her and are blessed by her witness and life example and ministry. Finding God’s specific will for her life less a mystery when she made 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 the her soul’s anchor. Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances and God will move heaven and earth to push you forward into his will. Whatever happens, whatever you decide, you will have every confidence that you are completely centered in his will for your life. I want to find your will for my life, O Lord. In other words, … I want to find your heart.

8/17/21                       WHEN GOD WASHES US, WE ARE CLEAN                  17  

“Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.”

Psalm 51:7

COMMENTS:   God blesses us by providing everything we need and much of what we want.  He even allows us to have some things that can do us harm if we insist on them.  Israel wanted a king and persisted until God allowed them to have a king.   But the king they chose was Saul while his replacement was one God chose, David.   Their lives reflect the difference.   Saul never got past his own wants and ambitions and selfish choices that consistently drew him farther and farther away from God, while David chose the path of repentance that drew him closer to God.   They both were prone to sin and both made significant wrong choices, but they both made some good choices too.  Saul could have repented when Samuel confronted him with his sin.  David did when confronted by Nathan with his sin.   Saul tried to hide his sin while David humbled himself and repented before God and before his subjects.  God rewarded David with forgiveness but also rewarded him by making his family line include Christ.  Today’s verse reminds us how complete and necessary God’s cleansing is to us – life giving and life sustaining. Being remorseful for our sins is a sign of a softened conscience, which pleases God and opens us to receive His forgiveness and abiding presence in our soul. Psalm 51 expresses the remorse David felt and the remorse you and I need to feel daily as we seek His cleansing spirit to clean us from the dirt and sin we accumulate daily while living in this corrupt world.  Cleansing that enables us to receive His life giving council and living Word as David did instead of death that Saul continued to consume.   I think it is unsettling to also realize just how unaware David was of how far he had wondered away from God because of his sin with Bathsheba.  He had justified in his own mind and heart the evil he did and murder of Bathsheba’s husband.  David, like Saul, was worthy of death but instead repented and received God’s mercy – forgiveness – blessing. David’s example is not to show us how to get away with sin and “with murder” but where to go for forgiveness and also where to go to avoid sin.   Psalm 51 is such a psalm to remind and empower us to learn from David’s example and learn also how to receive God’s cleansing too. Scripture reminds us that we all have sinned and are all unclean and in need of a Savior.  We all need cleaned daily and not just once…

Sin is anything that does not express, or that is contrary to, the holy character of God. Sin then is not merely what we do, but what we are. Praise God he has dealt with our sin finally and completely on the cross–that’s why nothing will soften a conscience more than a lively and buoyant love for the Savior. Lord, according to your great compassion, blot out my transgression and wash away all of my iniquity. Make me clean, O God!

8/18/21                     Receiving His  Strength and Sharing Strength  to Others          18    

“Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength till each appears before God in Zion.”

Psalm 84:5–7

COMMENTS: You and I know that God’s Will and Ways are best.   We know He has our best interests at Heart and following His Plan will benefit both ourselves and others influenced by our actions and influence.  We know God’s Will will be done either in spite of us or with our help.  We know our work has eternal (lasting) impact when obey God’s direction.  So, why do we drag our feet resisting Him?  Well, there are a number of reasons: 1. God’s way is less appealing and more difficult at least in the beginning 2. Satan’s influence is appealing because it appeals to human desires and our selfish – prideful nature even though he has no intention of keeping his promises or delivering what we want or expect. 3. Satan given short term appeal with no regard to long term consequences while God delivers long term benefits at some short term sacrifice.   So, once we finally get past making the wise and best choice to turn from satan’s lures and to Christ’s long term goals, the next obstacle or challenge is to sustain the journey of obedience to God’s Plan.  That requires: 1.  Planning and determination on our part. 2.  Prayer and Bible Study to put and keep our minds on Him. 3.  Seek His strength and help to reach and sustain faithful obedience each days. 4.  Join with other believers in Church and small group study and gathering to encourage and be accountable each other – to strength each other.   We each have strengths and weaknesses, different talents and natural abilities, different experience and skill sets, different personalities and passions, different opportunities and interests.   So, working together and sharing and working together to reach common goals – especially the Goal of accomplishing His Goals is best for us and accomplishes the best to others.  Stop and think.  What company would survive without employees working together to build product or provide services its customers pay for.   Restaurants require good cooks to make quality meals and waiters/waitresses to bring those meals to customers.  How about truck drivers and managers to bring ingredients and manage workers and provide an appealing place to work and purchase and consume those meals. I’ve often pondered who people can get along in a work environment but fight and argue bitterly in their home or church or neighborhoods.  That shows me that we do what we choose to do, but serve God half-heartedly or with less discipline because we fail to see the need or benefit. Maybe that is because God asks us to trust Him to provide benefits and rewards without seeing evidence of those benefits immediately. Joni Eareckson Tada has endured pain and limits of being a paraplegic and cancer survivor, but she has learned to trust God sufficiently to obey His call and do His Will while enduring those hardships even without evidence of coming healing in her lifetime.

If you have set your heart on pilgrimage, you’re going somewhere! But you can only get there if you move through your busy day from strength to strength. Remind me, Lord, to take many pauses throughout the day to think about you, pray to you, share a verse of Scripture with a friend, or sing a hymn even if no one’s around. Carry me from strength to strength.

 8/19/21     THE EVIDENCES OF GOD’S POWER WORKING IN AND THROUGH US     19                 

“I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead.”

Ephesians 1:18–20

COMMENTS:    The evidence of God’s power working in our lives is evident in calming peace we show and confidence in His promises and wisdom in the choices we make, especially during difficult and trying and even dangerous times.  Daniel showed that confidence as he was thrown into a den of hungry lions.  Joseph showed that confidence as he was waiting in prison unjustly accused.   Esther showed that confidence as she approached the king to spared her fellow Israelites. Joni Eareckson is one such person who demonstrates that same confidence as she continues to endure paralysis and pain.  The power of her faith and trust in Christ has become a powerhouse of determination and strength for her that enables her to lead a ministry far beyond the vision and ability of many in far better physical health. God has an infinite reserve of power available to His faithful followers.    Meekness is defined by Webster as “Power under Control”.   Christ is the ultimate example of “Power under Control” as well as “Perfect Love”.  He is so worthy of our love and obedience and full trust.  Those who fully learn and live knowing that discover fresh access to that power and love – transforming their lives and impacting the lives of all who know them.  You and I need to pursue and seek Christ too and embrace the transformation He desires to do in and through us too.   Joni has accomplished amazing things both in spite of and because of her handicaps, but she is quick to confess it is not her but Christ who lives within her soul.  She is also quick to give the glory and praise and credit exclusively to Him “FOR HE IS WORTHY!”

The usual word for God’s power in the Greek New Testament is dunamis, from which we get the word “dynamite.” What a display of God’s dynamite power it would be if, let’s say, people in wheelchairs, like me, were raised up. Such explosive miracles would be a powerful witness of the mighty strength of God. We also get the word “dynamo” from dunamis. A dynamo is just as strong as dynamite, and maybe more so. But the power of a dynamo isn’t as obvious. Its power is quiet, controlled, and steady, unlike the explosive “bang” you get from sticks of dynamite. This is the kind of inward power that is displayed by God in the lives of saintly Christians who may never experience a rising up out of their suffering, believers who may never know an outward miracle. It takes God’s power to be a faithful spouse, a conscientious parent, or a responsible office worker. If you’re struggling, remember that his power for you is incomparably great. If the Father could raise his Son from the dead, he can raise you above your circumstances. Lord, by your power, I ask you to do dynamo miracles on the inside of me and, as

8/20/21                                              NAMES OF GOD                                                 20                     

“Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.”

1 Chronicles 16:8, 10–11

COMMENTS:    God provides us many names to identify Himself. Names that reveal His nature – character – accomplishments – purpose – goals – ways – … God has made Himself accessible to everyone individually and corporately by admitting our sins, accepting His mercy and forgiveness, and then seeking His fellowship and council – instruction – Love.  By calling on His name – the name He provides that reflects reflects the attribute(s) He wants to bless us with, we then open opportunity to receive and give that connects us both to Him – Us to others – Others to Him…

There are times we battle pride or wasting hours in daydreams. That’s when God’s Word slices through my sinfulness. It stings. His hand seems heavy. That’s when I call the Lord my refiner, my purifier. There are times we feel helpless and frightened, when no one, not even a spouse or best friend, seems to understand. It is then having the shelter of his wings makes all the difference. When it comes to God, one name just isn’t enough. And because Scripture is full of different names for him, we can always know exactly how to relate to our Lord, whether we fall to our knees in awesome respect, or climb up in his lap to be held in his arms. “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe” (Proverbs 18:10). Herman Bavnick said, “Fire does not change whether it warms or illumines or burns. In the same way, in addressing God, we use his various names because of the various effects of his unchanging essence upon us.” Dig through Scripture to find that name of God that best expresses your heart. He is your Rock. The Door. A Wall of Fire. Your Bread and Water. Your King and your Friend. Your name is wonderful. How I love the name of Jesus!

8/21/21                                                KNOWING CHRIST                                            21                         

“What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.”

Philippians 3:8

COMMENTS:  If we look at entire chapter 3 of Philippians, we notice Paul shares with us his discovery.   As a devout Jew, he had a envied “pedigree” of lineage and keeping all the rules and formalities the priest and scribes taught him.  He studied under the famous Jewish scholar, Gamaliel.  He was quickly winning the respect and authority of the Jewish religious leadership, but was completely ignorant and unaware of lack of personal fellowship with the God of Daniel and David and Joseph scripture also recorded.  When Saul met the crucified and risen Jesus on the road to Damascus, his life completely changed.  He went from serving an idol he claimed to be God to serving the real living God.  His perspective changed and all the laws and rules he focused on did not save or cleans his sin.   He was blind to his own sins while judging sin in other’s lives but he was transformed by Jesus to see his own sin but also experience the complete forgiveness Jesus provided for him. Saul’s name changed to Paul and his new perspective is revealed in today’s scripture.

Saul of Tarsus excelled all his classmates and contemporaries in learning about the God of the Bible. He was able to quote Scripture at great length and leap tall doctrines in a single bound. He was faster in a debate and more powerful than any other Pharisee. Every time he persecuted a Christian, he thought he was fighting for truth, justice, and the excellent way of God. But Saul’s knowledge of God was an illusion. One day under the hot sun on the road to Damascus, the One about whom Saul had studied spoke from heaven. In that moment the man who knew all about God from his earliest childhood began to know God for the first time. Then, as Paul, his eloquence was transformed from teaching and believing a false doctrine of legalism to the life giving Gospel Jesus lived and taught and purchased for Paul and any who receive and accept it. “Lord, I confess that I know more about you than really know you. I don’t want it to be that way. Never, never do I want my knowledge of you to be an illusion. Help me to consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing you.”

8/22/21              EXPERIENCING FELLOWSHIP WITH CHRIST                                                     22  

“I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ–the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.”

Philippians 3:8–9

COMMENTS:  Salvation doesn’t end when we accept Christ’s gift of forgiveness but is when the discovery of God mercy and fellowship begins.  Knowledge of Christ then takes on a much more powerful and meaningful definition.  Paul has a wonderful way of putting vital doctrine and both personal and corporate fellowship with Christ relationship into words fellow Christians understand and share experience in.  They also enable non-Christians to understand enough to desire such an experience or at least admire some of the attributes faithful Christians demonstrate.  Some of those faithful Christians have founded most of the historically best and most respected hospitals and orphanages and schools and universities in the world, especially in the “free world”, many or most of which have in recent years turned from their Christian roots and discipline, resulting in quality and integrity of their services.

Paul writes about kind of more personal and intimate knowledge of Christ. Paul no longer comments on his position, the fact that he has been “found in him… through the righteousness that comes from God.” No, Paul talks about his experience of God… “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead” (Philippians 3:10–11). Positioning may have been God’s responsibility; but experiences were Paul’s responsibility. To experience God means to enjoy and realize, apprehend and understand the Lord in a deep, personal union. And, like Paul, this is your responsibility, too. If someone were to ask, “Do you know Jesus?” what would you say? “Yes, I’ve been saved and I know I’m going to heaven.” If that were your response, then good. You’ve just told everybody that you are justified and forgiven. But I hope you could also say, “Yes, Jesus and I are intimate with each other. Let me tell you about the kind of person He is and how much I love spending time with Him.” More than a head knowledge, I desire a heart knowledge of You, Lord.

8/23/21                           THE MEANING OF ENCOURAGEMENT                                         23       

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”

1 Thessalonians 5:11

COMMENTS:  How do we render support and encouragement for each other effectively?  What is the difference between couples and friends and families where encouragement is felt and received and where it is lacking?  I have known families where a father tried to show support but came short of successfully giving the support and commitment in a way and consistency that was needed.  However, I also noticed the difference a little effort consistently makes too.  In those instances, and examples of failure, I noticed that just a little more effort would have made a world of positive difference.  Someone quit on the final lap of the race and goal was in sight.  Satan has a sinister way of discouraging and distracting us just when we are about to reach the goal we want and goal God wants for us too.  Satan tells us it is too hard and not worth it or that blame does not belong to us. Joni Earickson Tata shared a personal example recently of her husband, Ken, telling her that even though she cannot wash his shirts, but feel her support and love is felt and so much appreciated. Joni is paralyzed below her neck but can talk and drive a wheel chair.  Ken carries a heavy load with responsibilities at the local school and for care of Joni.  Joni is heavily involved in her own ministry but they both have found subtle but brief but effective ways of encouraging and supporting each other without sacrificing much time while energizing each other.   She said:

“Ken considers encouragement to be one of the best ingredients in our marriage. And it’s not because I tell him he’s a nice guy, a good teacher, or a great husband. For instance, as faculty advisor for the student government organization at his school, Ken recently had to organize an awards banquet. I decided that at the banquet I would not sit on the sidelines and just smile admiringly when he looked my way. I made a point of wheeling to each table to introduce myself to the parents of all his students. It was a special ministry to his kids, but mostly, it was an encouragement to my husband. Later on when I congratulated him, he knew I meant it. Why? Because he saw me join him in the effort. Encouragement that builds people up is the kind that is not content to sit on the sidelines at a polite distance. Bodybuilding encouragement will always roll up its sleeves and put words into action.” Her words of wisdom and experience with  the following advice: “When you give encouragement to your spouse or friend, give more than pleasant words. Take the initiative. Be creative. Look for a way of supporting your loved one in his or her efforts. With up–close and personal encouragement like that, you’ll be doing more than lifting spirits, you’ll be helping to build another’s faith. Let me encourage with your healing touch, Lord, those who are wounded. Let me encourage those in grief with your hope. And let me find ways to put this prayer into practice as I serve others in your encouraging love.”

8/24/21                                HIS YOKE IS EASY                                                              24                   

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28–30

COMMENTS:  If you are like me, there are times, rather often, when my burdens don’t seem very light and are commonly overwhelming, right?  Well, how do we reconcile this verse with normal life?   Bearing responsibilities of earning a living, raising a family, paying bills and doing home repairs…  Then added is responsibilities at church and school.  What about church duties we take on because others refused to accept their duties and we don’t want to see church ministries and programs die or wither because of lack of support and resource. So how do we reconcile?  Well, Christ’s burden is light because it is carried with love and compassion.   The burden is light because of the energy and power love generates.  The burden is light because Christ carries the heaviest portion of it. Time each morning and often during day opens out minds and attitudes and bodies to accept God’s help and council and encouragement.  Also, we need to recognize He also   worked on the minds and hearts of others, so they feel His nudging to help and lighten our burdens too.  A personal relationship with each of us and building strong relationships of us with each other is His primary motivation.  Yet, trusting Him to take the initiative of going ahead alone but with hand in His Hand is the proper way to start, but journey includes inviting and encouraging others. Burdens become light not in amount of accomplishment but light in resource required compared to resource provided.  Love is a powerful motivator and energizer and source of power and inspiration.

Lord, it’s not my faithfulness that counts. May I move in your love and power today and find your yoke… light.

8/25/21                         PRECIOUS MEMORIES                             25

“Make the most of every opportunity.”   Colossians 4:5         COMMENTS:   What is your most valuable asset and possession.  Well, possessions are simply those things we have legal right to use or abuse or destroy as we wish. Ownership of a house or car or book or … means we are free to use it as long as we wish for purpose it was made to do or not. It also means freedom to not use it and ignore or let it sit unused for as long as we wish.  But, ownership ends when we die.  Any and all possessions do not go with us at death and any legal right of ownership terminates at our death.  We can pass on that ownership to whoever we want using legal documents like a will to instruct lawyers and court who we want to pass on ownership to. Such is appropriate for material possessions and non-living things.  In the past and even today in some parts of the world, slavery or possession of human beings still goes on.  Abuse of non-living and man made things can be legally used or even abused or destroyed by their owner without legal or moral ramifications. However, abusing living animals or torture has legal and moral consequences in most countries. But, when it comes to ownership of human beings, all countries with laws prohibiting slavery and abuse of humans have their beginning in the influence of Jewish and Christian scripture and doctrine and influence. Saving and investing a portion of our income for future needs and goals is wise, but we need to remember increasing material possessions and resource is important for the purpose of building a lasting legacy.  That legacy can only last if equips and enables the sharing and spreading of Christ’s good news of redemption.   The only possession we can take with us to heaven is our salvation and the only legacy we can take with us there is those we care about who have embraced Christ’s redemption for their salvation too. Stop and think, the God of the Universe who created and manages the entire earth, the solar system, all the stars, all the galaxies and beyond, all of heaven desires to be our best friend and comforter.   He has the ability and desire to abide with and give us His full attention individually without distraction, only limited by our willingness to accept Him.  How awesome and wonderful is that?    So, let’s work on not taking Him for granted or neglecting our relationship with Him.   Let’s focus on investing in ways that honor Him and bear interest or fruit in the lives of others. Build your eternal investment. Pray for an unsaved neighbor. Visit a nursing home. Ask for forgiveness from someone you’ve offended. Such things can never be auctioned away! “If for one whole day, quietly and determinedly, we were to give ourselves up to the ownership of Jesus and to obeying his orders, we should be amazed at its close to realize all he had packed into that one day.”* —Oswald Chambers

 8/26/21                         GOD’S WISDOM FOR ANCIENT RIDDLES                                           26     

“And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.”

Luke 12:10

COMMENTS:

There are many riddles or mysteries we encounter in our lifetime that escape human wisdom and have gone unanswered by human scholars and educated people of science and philosophy in both ancient times of the past up through and including modern times.  Sure, it seems modern thinkers are eager to give contemporary wisdom and answers they believe answers many of those questions but history has a way of rendering the truth and validity of those answers.  Voltaire was an atheist 200+ years ago who claimed in 50 years his writings would replace the bible in popularity and value.  Well, 50 years after he said that his house was used to print bibles while his memory and writings faded into writings only valuable to a few devout philosophers who embraced his world view. But time has proven Voltaire’s world view to be false and the Bible to be the only source of wisdom and truth that has proven to pass the test of time over the centuries and millenniums and continues to do so.  Yet, every new generation brings a new crop of people trying to create or resurrect a world view  that previous generations followed and proved false. The Bible records the experience of both faithful God and Christ followers and experience of non-faithful and even enemies of those faithful  to God.

Christ’s ministry and mission is one of redemption. When it comes to redemption, many people simply aren’t aware that Jesus died for them. They are ignorant as to what their sin did to Christ on the cross. And as Jesus himself said from his cross, “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.” God is One but revealed to us in scripture as “Father”, “Son”, and “Holy Spirit”.  The have a common goal and mission.  However, the ministry of the Holy Spirit is different from the “Son” (Jesus Christ). The Spirit’s work is one of revelation. He reveals truth to your heart, truth that convicts and convinces. Once God’s truth is revealed to you, ignorance is a thing of the past. You can’t play dumb. You can’t say, “I didn’t know,” as perhaps the soldiers who crucified Christ could say. And this is precisely the point of our reading today because, if you know, you are accountable. When the Holy Spirit opens up your eyes and heart to salvation truth, it’s dangerous to ignore it. Hebrews 6:4–6 says, “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.” Thank you, Lord, for this awesome warning, reminding me how precious my salvation really is.

 8/27/21                                                           AN OBI OF LOVE                                                 27   

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

Colossians 3:12, 14

COMMENTS: In Japanese culture and tradition, the traditional gown is called a kimono and a wide belt wraps around the outside of the kimono to hold it together.  This belt is called the “obi” is both functional and beautiful and the kimono is not complete without the obi. God has an amazing way of revealing Himself to believers as well as to those who don’t know Him through His creation and even through their own environment and culture.  This example of dress from Japanese culture is one such illustration. Japanese women will use many layers of clothing as part of the kimono to convey their character and beauty, thereby giving Christ a door for them to be open to the Good News of Christ’s message of love and forgiveness and redemption through common examples like their dress. Paul used such examples when preaching to crowds that gathered to hear him in many of the pagan cities he traveled to and stayed in.  This example of the Japanese kimono and “obi” belt could have been one Paul might have used if he had traveled to Japan, but is certainly one God has revealed to more contemporary missionaries to Japan. God also uses such examples to encourage and inspire us to reflect and notice examples from our own experience and culture and families.  To receive spiritual characteristics of “clothing” on our lives from His Word and then allow His Holy Spirit to wrap the “obi” of His love tightly around us Lord, I desire simple beauty in my life. Work from the inside out. Make me humble and forgiving. And make me a binding spirit within your body.

  8/28/21                                            THE CLEANSING FOUNTAIN OF LIFE                           28                           

“On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity.”

Zechariah 13:1

God has opened up a fountain to you through the Lord Jesus. He invites you to come on in and enjoy his love. Don’t stand on the edges of his joy. He has washed away your sin and you, like a child, can be free and full of life.  COMMENTS:  Fresh clean cool water is refreshing and life giving.  Encountering such a fountain in a desert or in a hot environment can be lifesaving.  To see children playing in a poor or in an open fountain or source of replenishing water energizes and uplifts our spirits just to watch them play and have fun.  It makes us seniors even want to join them. A fountain is a place of joy. That’s what I think of when I hear this hymn. There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel’s veins; And sinners, plunged beneath that flood, lose all their guilty stains.* O, to be like a child, relishing in the freedom and joy of all that your love gives, Lord. Thank you for cleansing me from sin and washing away all my impurity. I lift my face and spread my hands in adoration of you. Hymns, Scripture based songs, and even contemporary Christian choruses bless us with an opportunity to hide scripture in our mind and soul.  There is something about hearing and singing scripture and scripture based words of truth and praise that is put to music.  There is something about the old hymns of times of revival that moves our spirit and draws us closer to our God and Savior and Friend.  We tend to gravitate to hymns and songs of the era and time when our faith was young.  However, if we give them a chance, the hymns of yesterday or the hymns and gospel songs of today will all bless our soul.  Pay attention to their words to determine first that they honor and reflect scripture and give honor and praise to Christ.   Then make their words you hymn of praise to the Creator and Christ who loves and bought your salvation with His own blood.  When we are in heaven, we all will be worshiping and praising Him with those hymns as well as our favorites.  Will we be singing them standing with our arms reaching out to Him or will we be on our knees? I can’t imagine not falling to my knees when I first see Him?  How about you?  He so deserves our love and praise and worship.  AMEN?  AMEN!!

8/29/21                                 WORSHIPPING HIM ON OUR KNEES                                  29

“Come, let us bow down and worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.”

Psalm 95:6

COMMENTS:  Have you ever wondered how you will react when you enter heaven and see Jesus face to face?   The contemporary song “I Can Only Imagine” expresses that thought along with some options.  For myself, I can’t imagine not kneeling in awe of Him.  During corporate prayer time at my home church, prayer was normally while bowing while seated.  The tradition and common practice at Arlene’s church was to turn around and kneel with arms on the seat of the pew.  I really appreciated and related to that posture more than the posture I was accustomed to and felt much closer in prayer to Him by doing so.  Even though God hasn’t mandated a specific posture during prayer, I believe scripture, like above noted, encourages kneeling and bowing to honor Him and help us be in an attitude of worship and humble surrender to His power and authority and love. I believe God hears and honors our prayers no matter our posture or time of day or where we pray, but do believe it does matter how focused and attentive we are to Him during our time with Him. Joni Eareckson Tata expressed her desire to kneel before the Lord and looks forward to the day she can do so.  That is the confident hope we all have once we accept His redemptive sacrifice and gift of forgiveness and salvation. So, if you are able to kneel, I invite you to spend some time with your Lord in prayer on your knees and see if this posture helps prepare you for quality time with your Lord and mine. Today, do what so many who are paralyzed, or too lame, or old can’t do. Read Psalm 95:6 and take its advice, and when you kneel in prayer, be grateful for knees that bend to the will of God. I bow before you, Lord, in submission to your will. And when I rise from my knees, may I serve you wholeheartedly.

8/30/21                                                 WERE YOU THERE…?                                                       30

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Galatians 2:20

COMMENTS:    You and I were not at the foot of the Cross when Christ was crucified.  We hadn’t been born yet.  But God transcends time and was there knowing about us and dying there with us in mind even before we were born. Satan can’t comprehend God’s power and abilities but has witnessed them many times over the years, but still thinks God can be defeated.   Satan still thinks he is able to govern and manage the universe or at least this world. But, of course, God will soon say “Enough!” and do what He has promised – to return and bind satan and institute His rule and “remodel” the world to be as He originally intended at creation, before satan’s evil corrupted it. Joni Eareckson Tata has endured much pain and suffering since her accident that rendered her paralyzed over 50 years ago.  Yet, in spite of and at times because of that suffering, she has been drawn into such a powerful and intimate relationship with Christ to empower her to example Christ and have a powerful and effective ministry to others. Yet, even Joni becomes discouraged at times and needs encouragement from others.  Below is a portion from a letter she received and is sharing in her devotions.

The cross is a place of peace and power. Just look at this man’s letter: “I spent one–and–a–half years on a kidney machine before getting a transplant. At first I did a lot of complaining, but then I stopped when I read the account of the Crucifixion. Because in the kidney center, they helped me get out of my coat; with Jesus, they stripped off his clothes. When entering the center, the nurses spoke a kind word; Jesus heard ‘Crucify him!’ “On my machine I would develop a headache and they would bring me an ice pack and aspirin; a crown of thorns was shoved on Jesus’ head. Sometimes I would get thirsty and they’d give me juice; Jesus got vinegar. I laid on a comfortable bed for five hours; Jesus hung on nails. I hardly felt the needle they inserted in my vein; spikes were driven through Jesus’ hands and feet. My blood was cleansed; his blood spilled on the ground. Jesus turned my days of complaining into days of praising when I took time to look at the cross. A careful look into the events that took place that day on Calvary should stop all our complaining.” The cross is a place where one dies to self, enjoys no rights, and grovels in humility. How odd for our Lord to invite us to be crucified with him; but God knows the cross is also a place of grace, and the nearer one draws to Calvary, the more abundant the peace and power.” O blessed cross, teach me to nail my cares to you. Crucify my complaining, mortify my grumbling, and cause me to praise!

 8/31/21     THE LORD’S PRAYER – GOD’S PATH TO HIMSELF – TO LIFE                 31

Matthew 6:9-15; Luke 11:2-12

The Lord’s Prayer was given by Jesus to His disciples and to the gathered crowd (and to us) as part of a time of teaching / instruction that started with the Beatitudes (Matthew 5), the parable of salt and light, instruction on God’s standard about anger / sexual sin / divorce / overall conduct as well as setting a standard for loving others / giving / keeping the Law and promises, worship.  His instruction also provided help and instruction w.r.t. worry and the wise use of money. 

His instruction gave a broad and complete guide to living a Christ like life.  Christ instructed by example as well as by word.  But  His instruction also, by example and by word, showed those present (and us thru scripture) how to effectively pray as well. His instruction was direct, simple, and easy to remember both to the crowd as well as to us.  The Lord’s Prayer is the most profound and meaningful prayer but also the easiest to remember and repeat.  Only God could accocmplish that!  

So let’s both pray and meditate on what this powerful prayer says.   Before sharing this important prayer, Jesus cautions to not pray for purpose of impressing others or for personal gain.   Instead He is encouraging a honest and humble and contrite communion with the One and Only God and Creator of everything. 

1. – direct your prayer to God who has

complete and eternal authority and power and who is on His throne in heaven.  Be mindful you are addressing God Almighty who is above and over everything and everyone – including you and including satan.   Show reverence and respect and humility knowing the One you are talking to is God Himself.

• – we need to take time to not only acknowledge but prepare ourselves to both believe and want God’s kingdom to come here on earth and get our wills in line with His.  Preparing ourselves before making requests for our own and other’s needs done first, so stating our desire for God’s will to be done over ours is important.
• – we think of heaven being a prefect – eternal place more beautiful and perfect than earth.  A place without pain or death or any evil and a place of perfect peace and harmony. A place we dream of.  We need to prepare our minds and hearts so we desire that earth reflect God’s Will as much as heaven does already.  We are recognizing and desiring Christ to return to earth to set up His kingdom and bind and stop satan’s reign of sin and destruction and death.  We also need to conform our wills and actions and thoughts to reflect this goal and plan as well instead of hindering and opposing His Will and Plan.  We need to also realize we are as futile as satan in stopping or slowing His Will. 
• – we desperately depend on Him each and every day for the food we eat, the air we breathe.  Every beat of our heart and movement of our bodies and thought in our minds and word we speak and image we see with our eyes is a result of His love and mercy and grace each and every day.  We would not survive one second, let alone a day without His constant provision.  Yet His provision is so complete and constant it is so easy to take it for granted or assume it will continue as it has.  Yet He tells us there will be a time of great tribulation and judgment.  Recognizing and expressing gratitude for what God does for us is vital to our relationship with Him and our ability to express Joy and Love towards Him, which is so deserves.  We also need to recognize how undeserving we are of such faithfulness and love and grace.

US – I think it is no coincidence this comes directly after the request for daily bread.  We are told to forgive each other each and every day as He forgives us each and every day.  We need to recognize we, as imperfect and sinful creatures, will continue to fall short of His perfect example, which means we need His forgiveness each and every day.  That needs to motivate us to show compassion to each other and be ready to forgive others each and every day when they continue to hurt and offend and mistreat us.  The parable Jesus told of the servant who was forgiven a huge debt by the king and then didn’t forgive someone who owed him a very small amount reflects Jesus’ revelation.  We must forgive daily over and over again if we want God to forgive us over and over again.  This is not to give us an impossible task to do and doom us to failure, but to guide us into a more wonderful and richer relationship with each other and with Him.  His desire is to give us life, not death.  Joy, not misery.  Hatred hurts the hater more than the hated.  Forgiveness gives more life to the forgiver than the forgiven.  God is the definition of life and loves to forgive more than judge – afterall, He loves us like no other even when we ignore Him and sadden Him with our sins.  Mark 11:25 further reinforces this truth “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that you Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

EVIL – This may be the hardest portion of this prayer to comprehend. No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. Why would God want to lead us into temptation or desire for us to be tempted?  I Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.  God is on our side and uses both good and evil, both His help and even satan’s mischief for our good  (Roman 8:28).  Yes, He does allow satan to do evil for a time but within restraints.  He also allows us to be tempted with limits based on our ability to resist and maturity.  Also based on how closely we are walking with Him.   By stating this, we are verbalizing our desire for Him to help us overcome and spare us from temptation.  It also reminds us to flee temptation and not seek temptation out to satisfy our own selfish desires.  Resisting temptation becomes impossible when we are seeking the pleasures temptation offers.

FOREVER – This final statement acknowledges to God and reminds us who God is and will ever be.  He is God Almighty – All powerful – Eternal – Perfect and Holy in every way – worthy of all our praise and worship.  This is something we need to remind ourselves of as well as needing to express such praise and worship to Him because He deserves it and because we are drawn closer to Him by expressing our praise and worship.  Doing so strengthens our faith and gives us strength and enables us to live closer to the example Christ showed us.    John 14:6-11 tells us the only way to eternal life is through Jesus and by knowing and seeing Jesus, we know and see God the Father.  As we become closer to Him, He becomes more real to us and we slowly become more like Him.  We also desire His Will be fulfilled and for this world to reflect that Will.  Our sinful desire wither and a more Christ-like character begins to blossom and grow.  That is what “growing on our faith” and “striving to perfection” and becoming more Christlike all are describing.  Will you and I achieve perfection in our human bodies this side of the grave?  NO.  We are not capable of comprehending that level of perfection let alone achieve it.  But we can improve greatly and will each day if we are in fellowship with Him daily.  That is my goal and my desire and my quest.  How about you?

Let’s face it.  All other religions are satan’s tricks or man’s foolishness to distract us from the One and True God.  That means the gods they worship and promote do not exist.  Satan does exist and is formidable to us but is no match to God or even one of His angels. Satan was Lucifer, the greatest of the Archangels until He thought himself equal to God and was stripped of his authority and removed from heaven along with 1/3 of heaven’s angels who he deceived and convinced to follow him. (Rev. 12) When we think about it, why would anyone ever follow satan?  He, unlike God, can not create anything.  All he can do is destroy.  So which is easier and who is more powerful.  Someone who kills or someone who creates?   If doubt that, try stepping on an ant and then try to fix it. Today our children’s heros are not those who accomplish great things but those who are powerful enough to destroy and kill.  What is mostly on TV and in cartoons?  Well, we all do to some degree follow satan’s temptations all too often because we take our eyes

off Christ and allow ourselves to be tempted.  Another reason for praying “LEAD US

NOT INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL”.

So let’s now pray the Lord’s Prayer together:

OUR FATHER WHO ART IN HEAVEN

HALLOWED BE THY NAME

THY KINGDOM COME, THY WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IT IS IN

HEAVEN

GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD

AND FORGIVE US OUR SINS AND WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO SIN AGAINST US.

AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

FOR THINE IS THE KINGDOM AND THE POWER AND THE GLORY

FOREVER.  AMEN

As previously, below is the Gideon Bible Reference I have been included in monthly devotions for some time.  I decided to continue including this for benefit of new readers and to continue to make it accessible to any and all who read and share this journal.  I encourage you to use and share as God directs.  If you wish to contact me or access more devotions, below is link to access.   

In His Service,

Don McDaniel

Email: dmcdaniel12@zoominternet.net

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If you wish, you can access my blog at “https://donsdevotions.wordpress.com“. There you will find 590 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/ )

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