Daily Devotional Day & Night

HAPPY MONDAY!

I pray all is well with everyone, and you’re enjoying the beginning of another workweek (for most). I’m doing well, and have been enjoying the last few weeks of vacation. This weekend we’re having our 1^st Annual Pig Roast fund raiser at my Church, Saturday, June 11^th starting at 4pm. All is welcomed, so if you don’t have anything planned, please bring the entire family out for fun, food, games, and prizes! Please see our website for http://fairfaxchristian.org/ for further details, and directions. I would love to see you there! Enjoy the remainder of your day, and be blessed family!

Today’s scriptures are about the unconditional love of God. I’ve heard all of my Christian life that God loves me unconditionally, yet there are times when I feel like I’m not worthy of His love. Especially times when I know I’ve fallen short of His commandments, or have made wrong choices and bad decisions. I know that God will forgive me as soon as I ask, but I also know that I will reap what I sow. The devil is very smart and crafty, however he’s no match for a wise Christian, because we know how to put on the full amour of God. At the same time, he’s always going to attempt to place fear, doubt, and guilt into our lives, so that we lose sight of the fact that God does love us unconditionally. There’s nothing we can do or say to stop His love, because it is indeed “unconditional”.

Let’s think of the human body, and how much God put into creating us. How much care, attention to detail and love it had to take to create such complex yet simple creature. Compared to all of His other creations, we are superior, and were made with great precision. He took His time and molded us, and made sure that there are no two that are alike. He loves each individual that much that we’re unique in our own way. That alone should tell us just how much He loves us. The enemy doesn’t want us to know that, so he tries make us feel like we’re unworthy of God’s love, but the fact still remains that Jesus died for all mankind. I don’t care what type of sinner you are, He loves you no matter what. If you go to Him and repent, with a right heart and spirit, then you’re forgiven, no questions asked. There’s nothing that you can do that will separate you from Him for all eternity, once you’ve been saved. Look at where you came from and the type of stock you’re made of—you were created for a reason, because you are special to Him.

We can never base the love of God on the love of mankind—not even your mother can love you as deeply as God does. I know the love of a mother, and my mom would literally die for me, but she still cannot love me the way that God loves me. My mom has a limit to the things she’ll take from me; though her forgiveness runs deep, she is only human, and has a breaking point. God however, does everything for our good, even when He punishes us, or allows us to go through trials and tribulations—they’re all meant to work together for our good, we just have to pay attention and take the wisdom from it. I’m a firm believer that if we truly understood how much God loves us, then we can better love Him. We wouldn’t be so quick to sin against Him, because we’ll understand the sacrifices Jesus made so that we can have life.

Through Jesus we are blessed and highly favored, and we have inherited the Kingdom of God, and we’re truly righteous. You have authority by His Name to rule over all of the evil on this earth; remember through Christ, God has made your enemies your footstool. There aren’t many things that happen in our life that happens without our say; we have choices in everything we do, and those choices make up our life. Yesterday is Gone, tomorrow isn’t promised, all we can do is be better today. I was feeling a bit lost over the last week, and I’d been struggling with focusing on the wrong things, and when I spoke to God, He lead me to read Psalms 37. I absolutely love David’s Psalms because he truly bears his soul. He tells us like it really is, and he’s the first to say, “I’m not perfect but I love God, and God loves me”. If we each take responsibility for the choices we make in life, then we’d have a better relationship with God, because He truly understands what we’re going through, He simply asks us to confess and repent. Remember He was here in the flesh once before. I urge you, if you feel like you’re lost, and that God is just done with you, then think again. He will never be done with you, and will work on you until the day that you die. He loves you! Just love Him with all of your heart, and do the best that you can. When you seek Him, He will show Himself to you. He’s waiting for you. If you don't know Jesus as Lord, please take that first step, and ask Him to come into you life as Lord and Savior. Take a few moments to take the God Quiz right now! My favorite verses today are: The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: but because the Lord loved you. (Deuteronomy 7:7-8)

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Anytime you’re felling weak, Psalms 37 is a great Psalm to turn to. I found great strength in these words:

The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD,
And He delights in his way.
²⁴ Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down;
For the LORD upholds him with His hand.

²⁵ I have been young, and now am old;
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,
Nor his descendants begging bread.
²⁶ He is ever merciful, and lends;
And his descendants are blessed.

²⁷ Depart from evil, and do good;
And dwell forevermore.
²⁸ For the LORD loves justice,
And does not forsake His saints;
They are preserved forever,
But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off.
²⁹ The righteous shall inherit the land,
And dwell in it forever.

Daily Devotional Day & Night

HAPPY MONDAY!

Today’s scriptures are about prioritizing the laws and will of God. Jesus came to set us free from the penalty of sin, which is death and complete separation from God. However, we’re still obligated to make following God’s will for our life our number one priority. Just because we’ve been redeemed, doesn’t mean that we still don’t have to walk on the path of righteousness, and complete the will set forth for us. Remember our flesh wants what it wants, but our job is to please God first, and He’ll in turn reward us according to His riches and glory. Choosing the Spirit over the flesh, right over wrong, is commonly the hardest thing for us to do, because we were born with a sinful nature, however, through Christ we can accomplish all things. So we must commit to doing whatever it is that God’s has for us to do, because it’s not about us, it’s about the Kingdom as a whole. God said, love Me, and love each other, and that’s all that He requires of us. Granted, there are a lot of things that fall under those two very loaded commandments, but Love comes from the heart, and it’s the easiest thing that we can give.

What comes with our freedom? Do we have the ability to live life any way we see fit, and still inherit the Kingdom of God? That’s question has a few answers. First, once you believe Jesus as Lord, and sincerely repent for your sins, your name has been written in the Lambs Book of Life. You can sin until the cows come home, and still go to heaven, because you’re a believer. At the same time, we will ALL stand judgment one day, and our sins won’t go unpunished. Moreover, we won’t have any type of quality of life here on earth. Being covered in sin is just as bad as a terminal illness—it’ll keep eating away at you, until you have nothing left. You’ll feel hollow inside, and alone, trust me I’ve known the feeling very well. You see when Jesus comes into your life, He takes up residency in your heart, and God begins a good work in you. The Apostle Paul told the Philippians to be “confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ”. (1:6) No matter what happens in this life, Jesus won’t ever give up on us, and will never stop pushing us to be righteous. The Holy Spirit will convict us of our sins, as well as offer continued guidance along the way. However, in every situation you still make the final choice—do you choose righteousness or the flesh?

It’s written: What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. (Rom 6:1-4 NIV) There you have it! It’s not okay to keep sinning against God and saying, “God knows my heart”, “He’ll forgive me whenever I ask”, or “I’ll repent later”. Being a Christian isn’t a joke, it’s a new life that we take on. We must make a conscious decision to live right, and do right by God. We must follow the laws of Moses, because they are guidelines to help us be good people. If we break them, it doesn’t mean condemnation, as it once meant, but it will grieve the Holy Spirit of God. We must decide to live right each and every day, and in every situation, because that’s who we are in Christ. As long as we’re trying our best to do right, He’ll carry us the rest of the way.

With Jesus in our life, all we have to do is put one foot in front of the other, and follow His lead. He laid a good foundation—He was in the flesh, tempted and tried just as we are, yet He overcame every trap set by the enemy, because His focus was on His Father and keeping His commandments. That’s something that we all have to learn, how to realize that we’re no longer under the laws of the flesh, or ruled by darkness, but we’re righteous through Christ. We’ve overcome the world, and live above it. We’re royalty and joint heirs to the Kingdom of God, and we’re free! When you’re armed with the wisdom and knowledge of God, it’s important to walk by it. It’s written: If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them. (James 4:17)

To reiterate, Jesus offers salvation and freedom to all who believe in Him, but it’s a choice. In order to choose Jesus, just confess your sins with a sincere heart, and ask Him to be your Lord and Savior. Once we say that initial prayer, we must choose Jesus everyday and in everything that we do. We must choose to stay on the straight and narrow path Jesus warned us about. We must make an effort to Love God, and love each other. We must make good decisions, but most importantly pray without ceasing—keep that communication open with God. If you’re not sure what you believe right now, please take a moment and take the God Quiz right now. My favorite verses today are: What the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Romans 8:3-4)

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Daily Devotional Day & Night

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

Today’s scriptures are about serving the Lord with humility of mind. I didn’t read today’s passage, before I wrote the opening paragraph. Isn’t it awesome how the Holy Spirit works?! This leads me right into what we’re discussing today, serving God with humility of mind. What does this mean in the life of the believer? It means for us to know that it’s not us, but God who’s doing all of the work in our lives. God grows everything in our life at its proper time—there’s a time to sow, and a time to reap what has been sown. We must keep that in mind in our day to day life. There’s nothing by chance, and God is always in control. When there’s a calling on your life, take heed, because He won’t stop until He gets what He needs from you. He’ll bless you with as much “stuff” as you need to successfully achieve what He’s set out for you. He’ll also remove as many things from your life as necessary.

We have a bad habit of thinking that our life is in our hands, and the positive things, and growth that happens in our life, strictly comes from our hard work and determination. Unfortunately, that is a horrible way of thinking, and I urge you to stop right here, and turn that around. Praise God, because He didn’t have to allow you to be where you are. At the same time, when doors are closed, and things just don’t seem to go the way you planned, praise God, because He has something better for you. He’s setting you up to receive a great amount of wisdom, through your circumstance, and He’s never through with you. You should worry if He isn’t chastising you, because that means He’s put you up on a shelf. When that happens, it’s up to you to find your way back to that close relationship, through repentance and lots of one on one time with Him.

We often tell people who become successful in life, not to “forget where you came from”, because your past has made you who you are. There are so many people who were great Servants of God, and when blessed with an abundance of earthly gifts, they forget who they came from. There are many leaders who have hardened their heart, because either their role became a bit overwhelming and stressful, or they forget to give it all to God. When that happens, they start relaying on their natural self to solve problems. That can happen to anyone, especially the ones who think that it’ll never happen to them. People say that you can tell when someone comes from “new money”, maybe by winning the lottery, or gaining fame and fortune seemingly overnight. Those are the people who don’t know how to act, because they’re newly rich. Well there are some Christians who have just grown into the “teenage” stage of their faith walk. You know how we get to a certain age and think we know it all, but we don’t. We walk around all “holier than thou”, and think that we’re the best Christian walking. We start to judge other people, because we think that we have it all together. I remember that stage, and it happened not too long ago. God quickly shut me down every time. I can remember convicting someone for what they were doing, and God tested me with the same exact situation, and I failed each time. He truly taught (and is still teaching) me humility. I must say, I’m so grateful for those lessons.

The most important lesson in living in humility is to know that everything isn’t for everybody. We understand that we need to stop comparing ourselves to the growth of our brothers and sisters, asking God why we aren’t where they are. We must learn how to stop asking “why me”, and ask “why not me”. I don’t know how many people say “I’m 30 years old so I need to be here, or I’m almost 40 and I need to be at this point in my life”. It’s okay to set goals, but you have to remember that everything works in God’s perfect timing. We must stay in the mind frame of Jesus, when He prayed, “Not my will, but your will be done”. It’s only by Him that you live and breathe, and He’s behind all things. As long as you’re doing your best to live right, and walk according to His Word, He blesses you with everything you need. It’s written: There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. (1 Cor. 12:4-6). (I love what Paul teaches in this passage entitled “Concerning Spiritual Gifts”.)

Do you know Jesus, I mean really know Jesus? If you answered no, or not really, then spend some time with Him. You’ll find that Jesus was the most humble man you’ll know. He lived the life of a common servant, but had the mind and attitude of a King. Keep that in mind when you’re trying to find your way through life. You are a lowly servant of God, and serving Him is all that matters, everything else is vanity. However, you are joint heir to the throne of God, so you are royalty, and everyone who looks at you will know it, without really knowing it. If you want to learn more about becoming an heir to the throne, take a few moments to take the God Quiz today. My favorite verse today is: When ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do. (Luke 17:10)

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Daily Devotional Day & Night

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

Today’s scriptures are about Understanding what the will of the Lord is (Eph 5:17 How many countless Christians are clueless as to what God’s will is for their life. I have to admit that even I get confused sometimes. On one hand I love to write [and some of you seem to think I’m pretty good at it], and on the other hand I love to cook, and that too brings me joy. I also love to serve and teach, and I feel so at home when doing both—so what is God’s true will for me? I’m sure I’m not the only person who wonders whether your gifts and talents, are what you’re supposed to use to complete God’s will for your life.

Just to be clear, God’s will is the same for each of His children—to love Him and fellowship with Him, to love His Son Jesus Christ, and to strengthen His Kingdom. At the same time, the path to accomplishing these things is different for each person. The way you show you love may be different from the way I show love. I show my love through feeding someone a good meal, and you may show your love by singing to them to uplift their spirit. You have a gift to sing and I have a gift to cook. To strengthen His Kingdom, I was called to write daily devotional emails, and serve as a Deacon at my church. Yours may be to show Jesus through you, by speaking uplifting words to those in need, or doing mission work in underprivileged countries. Ultimately we’re each Disciples of Christ, and just as it’s written: Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt. 28:18-20)

God created us for His own personal reasons, so there’s a purpose or will for our life, and your part is just as important as mine. He wants us to stay near to Him at all times, so He gives us the resources to receive all of the wisdom and knowledge necessary to complete His will for our life, all we have to do is seek Him. Praying without ceasing allows us to keep that connection, and avoid being vulnerable to sin. Studying His Word allows us to truly know what He expects from us. As we know, His will could change each day, so we must look at each day as a present, a hidden treasure or gem, because God has something special planned for us that day. You are the light of the world, and He will place you on top of a hill where for many to see, so that those who are in darkness will turn toward the light (Matt. 5:14).

Following God’s will is an awesome responsibility, but it comes with great rewards. In one of my favorite verses in the bible it’s written: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. (Eph. 1: 3-6) God has blessed us with EVERY Spiritual blessing in heavenly places, just because we believe in Jesus Christ, so our faith and works is a very small price to pay, for such a grand reward. The beauty of all if this is that we’re blessed no matter what. As long as we believe, we’re blessed even when we mess up or fall short, because He already knew you and everything you were going to do before He chose you. As we learned yesterday, don’t allow mistakes and sin to allow you to give up, because He’s still here, life goes on, and you have a job to do. Repent!

See, it isn’t that complicated after all? All God wants from you is love, but how you show that love is something the He’ll show you in due time. Jesus says to love Him is to do whatever He commands of you. I love the story of when Jesus Counsels the Rich Young Ruler—this man had every earthly desire, and was asked to sell all of His possessions, give it to the poor, and follow Jesus; the man went away unsaved. I used to be at point in my life where I honestly thought about it. If I was the rich man, and didn’t know anything about Jesus, would I have made that sacrifice? Back then I honestly said no, but today I can seriously say that I would rather face being penniless, homeless, and without food, to spend one day with Jesus Christ, than to have all of the riches in the world. You may think that that’s extreme, but I know in my heart that as long as I’m following Jesus [which would no doubt be in God’s will], I’ll have everything I could ever desire for all eternity.

Do you get it now? Dr. Stanley said it best, “Obey God and leave the consequences to Him”. The only way to know Gods will is to first accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. Take a few moments to take the God Quiz today! My favorite verses today are: The God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, ... give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe. (Ephesians 1:17-19)

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Daily Devotional Day & Night

HAPPY MONDAY!

Today’s scriptures are about being focused on the things not seen. There are so many things going on in this world, if we stay focused on them, we’ll lose our mind. There’s so much evil—when you turn on the News there are constant reports of terror. Evil runs rampant, so I often opt out of watching the News day in and day out. I’d rather focus my time and attention on the “things not seen”, which is helping me store my treasures up in Heaven. Reading the bible, we know that there was evil from the beginning of time, starting with Cain and Able—a story about one brother killing the other because he was jealous. King Solomon wrote: That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. (Eccl. 1:9) King Solomon was said to be one the wisest people in history, but what He didn’t know was that Jesus would one day overcome the world. Currently, all who believe in Jesus have something new to look forward to. At the same time, the enemy hasn’t changed a bit, so he’s still up to his same ole tricks.

By the blood of Jesus, we no longer have to worry about the evils of the world, because we have a great reward waiting for us once this life is over. On earth, we will suffer as Jesus suffered, but we’ll also rejoice as He rejoices. We can live amongst this evil and perverse nation and never fear, because we have Salvation through Christ. Having a Savior we can trust in and rely on gives us everlasting peace, joy, and happiness all the days of our life. Without Him we are of the world—the enemy will use us in ways we never thought possible—and we become lost. Even believers, who lose sight of the Kingdom of God, fall victim to the world. That’s why it’s important to stay in the Word daily. It’s important to fashion your life around the kingdom of God, because it’s so easy to get caught up. We must make it a point to make the unseen seen with our Spiritual eye, and watch for the leadership of Jesus Christ. He shows up in ways we could never imagine.

I’m at a point in my faith walk where I recognize when I’m straying off of the path of righteousness; I can feel in the weight of the world. Have you ever felt that way? You know the times when you’re doing things you know you shouldn’t be doing, a little too often, and you can feel a heavy conviction in your heart? Once we get used to living by the spirit, there’s no other way to live. The Holy Spirit continues to remind us that He’s present, and His conviction is noticeable. Especially when we’re with a group of “worldly” people, who lives a life way different than ours, we can still feel their influence. The enemy makes the worldly things look way more appealing, and if you don’t know any better, you’ll fall into his trap. Always know that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. We don’t have to wait until we die to experience the utter bliss of Salvation, but the more we focus on it, the more we experience it. For example, if you’re on a diet, and you vow to give up cake for one month, you cannot hang out in the bakery—eventually you’ll succumb to the temptation. However, if you’re hanging at the gym, and surrounding yourself with other health conscious people, you’ll be able to stay focused.

The world offers glitz and glamour, but you know the saying, “everything that glitters isn’t gold”. Jesus offers freedom, inner peace, and eternal life, but there’s a road of growth you’ll have to walk down to receive your rewards. On that road, you’ll be tempted and tried, you’ll stumble and fall, but Jesus is right beside you to help you along the way. When you fall He’ll pick you up, and when you’re tempted, He’ll give you the strength to endure. We just need to stay focused, and His love permeates our heart, and allows us to see. We begin to see the “unseen things”, things that we couldn’t see when we were lost. We begin to be able to better discern between good and bad, and recognize when people mean us more harm than good. Remember, there’s always a lesson or a test behind everything. God has so many blessings in store for us, but He wants to make sure we’re focusing on the “unseen”, and that we realize this life is more than material possessions.

Jesus is your key to true happiness. I know there are many naysayers who make valid points about your faith, Christianity, attending church, etc. Those are people who are “seen”, and are only looking for things that are “seen”. We are children of God, heirs to the Kingdom, and there’s nothing here that can stop of from getting there. There’s no problem to big for God, and there’s no hurt that He can’t heal. You must first trust Him. The biggest act of faith, to God, is for you to believe in Him, and love Him, without ever seeing Him. When you accept Jesus as Lord, and start to focus on the “unseen”, then He’ll start to reveal Himself to you, and you’ll come to a point where you’ve never seen anything so clearly in your life. If you’re still confused, take a few moments to take the God Quiz today. My favorite verse today is: We look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:18)

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