Daily Devotional Day & Night

HAPPY TUESDAY!

I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying your day. I'm doing well, had a wonderful weekend! I got a lot of rest, but most importantly I got to spend much needed time with my family. Along with celebrating Easter, we also celebrated my Grandparent's 60th wedding anniversary; you don't see that every day, that's awesome! It's a true testimony of what marriage is supposed to be. We all had a good time at Deep Creek Lake, it's so beautiful and pristine up in the mountains. I didn't go outside much because it was still a little chilly, but other than that I wouldn't have traded it for the world, I didn't want to come back so soon. There's a true order to everything, so I'm happy to be exactly where God has me, and am thanking Him for every moment of everyday! I pray you have a wonderful day as well!

Today's scriptures are about delighting in the Lord! Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. (Psalms37:4) It is written several times in the bible that we should delight ourselves in the Lord, and He's delighted with us. The word Delight is a very happy word. To me it says "excitement”! It's defined: Something that gives great pleasure or enjoyment. Do you feel this way about God? Don't answer right away; take some time to think about it. When you think of God do you get excited inside? Do you feel the butterflies in your stomach, and get an overwhelming since of Joy? This is the type of relationship we should have with Him, because He loves us that much. He's delighted in His righteous children, and because of Jesus' blood we're all righteous. He's delighted when we speak highly of Him, and give Him praise. He's delighted when He can bless us with things, people, and circumstances that make us happy. He only wants our peace and happiness. Knowing all of this, we should be "in love" with God. In my personal opinion, I don't think you can truly love anyone else until you experience the Love of God. You may be asking yourself, "What does it mean to experience the love of God?” God loves each of us from the day we're born, even before we're born. How awesome must it be to have someone constantly looking out for you, and making sure your every need is supplied? We go through most of our lives blind to God's presence. I can only speak for myself, there used to be some days, or weeks, I would go without even acknowledging God. I only prayed when it was convenient for me, when I was asking for a blessing, or when I as asking Him to get me out of trouble. He got me through all of those things, and I continued to put myself through all types of heartache in pain, because I wasn't experiencing His Love, even though it was always there. It wasn't until I started thinking about God and His love for me, did I truly start to understand, and receive His love. I refused His constant tugging at my heart, so long that I missed what He was trying to tell me. I went through years of being unhappy and depressed because I wasn't receiving His Love. We can only experience His love by going to Him, keeping Him in our inner thoughts, meditating on His promises, His Word, and His ways. Study Jesus, because He was the personification of God's love. His life teaches how to live in God's love, through forgiveness, giving, and also receiving. I am a very self-sufficient person, and receiving can be hard for me at times. I'm willing to give whenever someone asks of me, but I some how didn't like to receive things from people. I always felt like I was somehow insufficient, almost like I should be able to take care of everything by myself, and if I needed anyone's help I was irresponsible and weak. I don't know where that spirit comes from, but I know in my heart that it isn't right. This makes me think of the story in Matthew 26:7-12, at the last supper a woman broke an expensive jar of oil and started rubbing it on Jesus' head, and his friends became upset, because they wanted to sell that oil and give the money to the poor. Jesus told them that she was giving Him a precious gift and He received it with open arms. He said in verse 11: For you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have always. God does everything for a reason, sometimes it may seem like things are just gloomy, but when we start to think about who He is, and the magnitude of His love for us, it should delight our hearts! When we finish praying and meditating at night, we should lay down with a smile on our faces, and Joy in our hearts, because of the reflection. When we start our days in prayer, we should be delighted that He's guiding our every footstep. The more you know about Him and His love, the more delighted you'll be. When you think about your life, and your heart, are you happy? I mean truly happy? Don't look at your circumstances, bank account, or your spouse, etc, I mean examine your heart. If your answer is no, then the solution to that problem is getting closer to God. Meditation is a very important part of it. Sometimes we need to sit quietly, and reflect on His promises. We're so busy talking, we may miss what He's trying to tell us, we need to just sit still for a while and listen to Him, and to our hearts. If you don't know God, then your heart isn't delighted. You ever felt like something was missing from your life? You could have everything that you want in life, but you still feel empty. Please allow Jesus into your heart, so He delight you! That inner joy is what sustains you, and ensures you have a wonderful life in Christ. He's only a prayer away! If you feel a deep sense that something’s missing, He's knocking and waiting for you to answer. My favorite verses today are: How precious ... are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee. (Psalms 139:17-18)

ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2454936&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/site/pp.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943197
http://www.intouch.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4949629&ct=6865977

I love you!