Category: Acknowledge God

We Can’t Fool God

On By Ed AlgreenIn Acknowledge God, Example of Christ, Genuine example of Jesus, Godly example, Know God's HeartLeave a comment

Wednesday, 2016-08-31

Scripture

Bible Reference: 1 Kings 14:4-6

Bible Text: 4 So Jeroboam’s wife went to Ahijah’s home at Shiloh. He was an old man now and could no longer see. 5 But the Lord had told Ahijah, “Jeroboam’s wife will come here, pretending to be someone else. She will ask you about her son, for he is very sick. Give her the answer I give you.” 6 So when Ahijah heard her footsteps at the door, he called out, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam! Why are you pretending to be someone else?”

Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

My Take

If you click on the scripture link you will have the opportunity to read the whole story that surrounds the verses I included above. I found this story so interesting that I laughed as I enjoyed the glory of God and his all-knowing power! For a brief understanding of what transpired before these verses: the son of king Jeroboam took seriously ill. The king was well aware of how much he had digressed in sin from the time that the prophet had told him he would be king, so although he knew that Ahijah would have some answers for him about his son, he was embarrassed for the prophet to know that he still would approach him for answers from God. Therefore he told his wife to disguise herself and go to the prophet on their behalf. Friends, just like God knows everything that goes on in our lives today, He was also well aware of what the king was up to, so He prepared His servant for the visit of the king’s wife. To her surprise when she arrived at the home of this very old, blind, man, he called her by name; knew she was disguised; and invited her in before she could knock on his door! Imagine the shock to this lady who thought she had her act together! Friends, I believe that our take away on this today is to be reminded that we can’t hide anything from God. If we are His child, then we should be living as His child. We can be sneaky about our lifestyle to our spouse, family, pastor, or our boss, but because God knows our heart, He knows how we are thinking about things and people. He knows our ulterior motives. There was a saying back in the day “come clean, man”, which meant drop the sham and be totally transparent with me. I believe that God expects us to always be transparent with Him, and to prove our ‘heart’ by being transparent with all those that we touch. How are you doing friend?

Prayer

Having been molded by You oh Lord, we must also endeavor to live like You. Thank You for setting the pace and the example for us. Lord, teach us to be transparent in every way with You and with our fellow man. May we glorify You today in every aspect of our life, AMEN!

Footnote

If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to http://www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

Well Grounded in Your Faith

On By Ed AlgreenIn Acknowledge God, Blinded, Bold Confidence, Born AgainLeave a comment

Saturday, 2016-07-02

Scripture

Bible Reference: Acts 19:1-2

Bible Text: While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul traveled through the interior regions until he reached Ephesus, on the coast, where he found several believers.* 2 “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” he asked them.

Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

My Take

It seems like we have been taught to be tolerant of almost anything in the name of ‘peace’ and ‘goodwill’ towards all mankind. While I believe this has its place, I believe that it will really be awkward when we stand before God and try to explain why we didn’t take our responsibility as a ‘Christian’ very seriously. Why would we settle for knowing that our friend didn’t ‘make the cut’ – is resting in torment in Hell because we saw their downfall, had the answers for a better life, but didn’t love them enough to share the Good News with them? Friends, in today’s standards, if presented with the same scenario as Paul, I believe that most of us would have walked into town, saw these ‘believers’ jus as Paul did, but we probably would say something like “well, you have your beliefs and I have mine, blessed be the name of the Lord, now let’s get on with life”. Please understand that I am not suggesting that baptism would save anyone, but what I am saying is that there are so many ‘preachers’ going around talking to our unsaved friends, and their message is not always from the same gospel that Christians live and breathe. Friends, there are tons of false religions around today, so if we are sincere in our desire to see our family and friends saved, we had best get serious about getting the true gospel of Jesus Christ to them. Getting into heaven has nothing to do with denominations or any other religious ideas about the Bible or similar book, it’s simply about accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior and having an ongoing relationship with Him. The Bible says repeatedly that THE only way to heaven or eternal life with Jesus and His Father, is through accepting Jesus as your Savior and Lord. I hate to question even my readers today, but just as Paul questioned ‘believers’ I must also challenge you to obey the Word of God, and ensure that you can recall a specific time when you surrendered your life to Jesus – you will need that to flash at Satan anytime that he tempts you or causes you to doubt your salvation. If you have truly made that commitment, are you enriching that relationship every day through your communication with God? Listen to His voice as He gets your attention while reading His Word. Talk back to Him in prayer. Communicate with Him! Do you truly know Him friend? Will He recognize your voice when you call out to Him?

Prayer

Lord Jesus, You are so patient with, and kind to us, and I thank You from the bottom of my heart for that. Thank You for also being so forgiving of us, yet I know from Your Word that this is not an automatic thing – You still want us to communicate with You. It is so unfortunate that some have taken Your Word so trivial and using it as trickery to attract others into false and deceptive beliefs. Please touch the hearts of those that will read this devotional today and all my friends and family. May they become so grounded in Your Word that their faith will be unshakable. May our relationship with You become stronger and better grounded every day. For I ask these things in the precious name of Jesus, AMEN!

Footnote

If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to http://www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

Yet I Will Rejoice

On By Ed AlgreenIn Acceptance, Acknowledge GodLeave a comment

Friday, 2016-07-01

Scripture

Bible Reference: Habakkuk 3:17–19
Bible Text:  17 Even though the fig trees are all destroyed, and there is neither blossom left nor fruit; though the olive crops all fail, and the fields lie barren; even if the flocks die in the fields and the cattle barns are empty, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will be happy in the God of my salvation. 19 The Lord God is my strength; he will give me the speed of a deer and bring me safely over the mountains.
Bible Translation: The Living Bible (TLB)

My Take

What does it take to break your will to rejoice in the Lord? Habakkuk had seen a lot going on in his day, yet he vowed to  stay firm in his faith; recognize the strength that comes from God alone, remembering that God, and God alone offers salvation. Friends, I’m afraid that we play into the hands of Satan way too easily by caving in to our circumstances, and looking inward in self-pity. Think about it, when funds are low and we can’t do everything that our friends tend to do very easily, do we resort to thinking that God just doesn’t love us as much as He loves our friends, or are we able to rejoice in the Lord anyway? When we lose a loved one, do we remain strong in our faith, or do we tend to cave in and feel like God must have forsaken us? If only we can stay strong enough in our faith to recognize that no matter what our circumstances are, our God remains faithful, and He is still the one who provided salvation for us. What I find most praiseworthy, is that even through there are circumstances that really seem to hurt me individually, yet I reflect back on the time and see where God used the occasion for His glory. Perhaps a family member got saved, even though we may have lost a relative and went through a very sad time. I hope that we can learn to never accuse God, or blame him for things that happen in our lives in a slightly different way to what we would have ordered. Let’s remind each other that God’s ways are perfect and, just as a parent would tell us about their love for us, be reminded that no matter what happens – know that God loves us beyond anything we could think or imagine. No circumstance or life-happening could change that. Let’s be like Habakkuk and say that no matter what happens in this life, I will stay strong in my relationship with God, and will always praise Him in all of life’s circumstances.

Prayer

It is not always easy to shake the circumstances and lift our hands and hearts in praise to You dear Lord. So thank You for this reminder today. Please help us to always separate the circumstances in this life from the undeserving and limitless love that You have for us. Lord, You are good, and Your mercies are unending. Praise Your most worthy name! Should there be one who reads this devotional and is challenged to understand Your love, I pray that You will tender their heart and draw them to Yourself. May this be the day of salvation for that person today. All this I ask in the precious and loving name of Jesus, my Savior and Lord, AMEN!

Footnote

If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

What If We Say Only What God Says

On By Ed AlgreenIn Accountability, Acknowledge God, Ask and Receive, Commanding Officer, Confidence, Dependence on God, Godly ConfidenceLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! May I encourage you to read the whole devotional, and look for a blessing, friend!………

Today’s Bible Reference: 2 Chronicles 11:13-14
Today’s Bible Text: Meanwhile, the messenger who went to get Micaiah said to him, “Look, all the prophets are promising victory for the king. Be sure that you agree with them and promise success.” But Micaiah replied, “As surely as the Lord lives, I will say only what my God says.”
 The Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

My Take Away: I believe that much like our ‘worldly’ counterparts, Christians are often guilty of trying to be the popular one in a conversation, or a party, or a family, or among our friends. We all want to be thought highly of, and we would really like to be the popular one in the group. But let’s think that through for a moment. Did we commit our lives to God so that we could have one more on our side, or on our team? Do we need to have one more that we could tell what to do? Friends stop and think this through, did God need us when He created the earth, or the skies, or the heavens? What about when He created you and I, did He do all that alone – without us telling Him what to do or how to do it? I would dare say that I surrendered my life to Jesus Christ because I realized that I didn’t have all the answers; that I have no idea about what tomorrow will bring. I was convinced that Jesus was the answer to all of life’s questions, hopes and dreams. I knew there must be a God, but I also knew that He was far beyond anything I could imagine. I knew that I needed a Savior to fill the gap between myself and the Master, and praise God I found that to be the Lord Jesus Christ! So recognizing that this was a need, why on earth do I try so hard to still make decisions on my own and try to please my peers/friends? Can I possibly be a ‘Micaiah’? Friends, Micaiah’s bravery and determination to be God’s spokesman is a challenging thought for us, because as we can gleam from this story, he declared what God had revealed to him in a dream, even though it was the unpopular thing to do, and even though it led to his imprisonment, and not his place at the head of the king’s banquet table. So why is this important, you might ask. First of all, can you imagine the freedom this must have given Micaiah? He spoke exactly what he knew the Lord had given him to him say. No guilty conscience, but a freedom in knowing that the God of the universe was then controlling his mouth and his words. Can you remember taking a message to your young siblings and adding the words “hey, don’t look at me, that’s what daddy said. I’m just the messenger”!! What if we took that stance in all walks of our Christian life? But wait, that’s exactly what God expects of us. We surrender our lives to Him, because we trust Him to be totaly in charge of all aspects of our life. Are you ready to let Him do exactly that? Our stresses would be greatly reduced, and God will actually make a lot more difference in this world, if only mankind would step away and let Him be God!

Prayer: Oh Lord, may we do exactly what You taught us in and through Your Word today. Micaiah’s boldness proved to us that it is important that we allow You to perform Your mighty works without interference from us, and in spite of what might be the popular or even demanding thing to do. Lord, we mess up way too often and I believe that we stand in the way of Your perfect decisions and will, way too often. Please touch the lives of Your saints today and give us boldness to stand firm for what we believe, and confident in whom we believe. You are Lord of all – or really not Lord at all to those who doubt Your power and who run interference in all that You want to accomplish in and through Your people. Please forgive us Lord, and please redirect our thoughts to one of total dependence on You. I ask these things in the name of the one and only Savior of this world, Jesus, the Christ! AMEN! 

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

2016

If You SEE Jesus You Will Worship Him

On By Ed AlgreenIn Acknowledge God, Recognize God, See God, WorshipLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (New Living Translation – Matthew 28:16-17): 16 Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him—but some of them doubted!

THOUGHTS: In our scripture reference today we see one of many instances where folk saw Jesus, and they bowed and worshipped Him. I acknowledge that this particular instance is so miraculous that it would cause anyone to ‘worship’, because Jesus was crucified, died, buried, three days later arose from the dead, and now stands in their very presence. However, how often do we stand in awe of the presence of the Lord Jesus, but do we even acknowledge Him and/or offer up our sacrifices of praise to Him? Matthew Henry in his commentary on this verse says “All that see the Lord Jesus with an eye of faith, will worship him.” I could almost imagine by now you are dumbfounded as to what I might be getting at here, because the Lord Jesus stood in the presence of the disciples, and you probably can’t remember the last time that He did that to you, right? Friends, we are presented with reminders of our Lord Jesus every day and we make personal choices as to what we do with that. If you pick up the precious Word of God and read it, you will be flooded with evidence and overwhelmed by the presence of God as you read about Him, but do you stop to worship Him and acknowledge His greatness? If you walk out of your home and stop complaining about the humidity long enough to see the beauty of all that God has provided for you to enjoy, you might consider raising your hands in praise to Him for His miraculous touch on everything from the heights of the skies to the beautiful green grass and flowers that you see, to the cattle that produces dairy products and/or beef for your plate. If you enter God’s house of worship and hear the stories of how God has miraculously healed and/or touched His children, you will worship Him knowing that there is still hope for Him to also miraculously help you through your challenges that seem so unsurmountable to you. Friends, it is time for us to stop whining and start praising. It is time for us to stop attributing God’s miracles that occur all around us every day, to happen-chance, or good luck, or any other worldly credit, and truly SEE God in our miracles and then worship Him in deep sincerity like the disciples exampled for us in this scripture. Jesus is still alive and He is looking for opportunities to bless you, if only you will let Him into your world. Won’t you do that today friend?

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for Your presence each and every day. Please forgive us for the times that we find every other reason in the world why something special occurred in our life, before we finally realize that it truly was the God of this universe that stepped in and took care of our situation. You have provided lots of evidence of your miraculous hand at work in our lives and all around us. Please open our spiritual eyes so that we may SEE Your goodness, Your miracles and Your love that You want so badly for us to accept and envelope. Lord, may we truly learn to worship You in every way, because of all that You place before us as evidence of Your presence. Please also open the eyes of the non-believer today so that they will realize that there is no other explanation for the miracles around them other than the awesome power and greatness of the Almighty God. Lord I pray that our worship and our praise will come naturally, as we recognize the originator of our blessings. Thank You for being so good to us! I ask these things in the gracious name of Jesus, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, Sebring, FL! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!