Category: Honor

Obey God, By Obeying The Government

On By Ed AlgreenIn Government Leaders, Honor, Humility, Obedience, ObedientLeave a comment

Saturday, 2016-10-22

Scripture

Bible Reference: Romans 13:1–2

Bible Text: 1 Obey the government, for God is the one who has put it there. There is no government anywhere that God has not placed in power. 2 So those who refuse to obey the laws of the land are refusing to obey God, and punishment will follow.

Bible Translation: The Living Bible (TLB)

My Take

During this heated/sensitive time in America, with our general elections at hand, this subject may almost seem like provocation towards how we are to look at our government leaders. However, friends I believe I would be wrong to overlook my responsibility if I skip over regularly scheduled portions of the Bible where God has a word for me, and hopefully for all reading this devotional. In fact, I believe that our most worthy God is pointing out to us through His Word, that our elections are all about Him, and not about our ideals, or our wishes, or the platform of the candidates. It appears to me that God has a plan for us and our respective countries. Yes, our assumptions may be correct in saying that if a particular person is elected, we project that there are great times ahead for us, or perhaps to the contrary, that there are very challenging times ahead for us. The point is, when Christians look to God for His perfect plan for us, and submit ourselves to the leader that He would have us choose to fulfill His mission, God’s mission, then we will be at peace with God and with the results of our elections. God is the only one who could steer us towards choosing the right leaders so that He (God) might accomplish His will for His people over the next number of years. In looking for excuses, we may doubt this process because we don’t see godliness in any of our candidates. To reread the scripture is to remind ourselves that this is not one of the conditions. In fact, if the recent statistic is true that only 9% are followers of Christ, wouldn’t it be easy to conclude that our people will not vote in a proclaimed Christian? I believe that God is teaching us that in this life, there will be steering currents that will point us towards the cross, and some that will lead us to the depths of Hell. In this scripture today, God is teaching us about who’s in charge, even in our government, and how we are to be obedient to the fact that He will direct our paths, even through a corrupt government. Friends, the bottom line is that God said it, and our responsibility is to believe and obey His Word without analyzing it to pieces and trying to find a way to make it irrelevant to us, in this day and time. So I repeat the Word of God, our government leaders are put in place by God, and if we choose to dishonor or disobey our leaders, we are disobeying God Himself. I believe He will judge us for that friend!

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank You for pointing out to us through Your Word how we are to be obedient to You in all aspects of our lives, even through the election, and leadership of, our government leaders. We easily see, and praise You for the good things done by our respective governments, but then we fail by assuming Satan has taken control when things are done that impact us negatively. Throughout Your Word You have shown us where various methods have been used by You when it became necessary to get the attention of Your people. We are probably more stubborn today than ever before, about wanting things our way, and wanting our lives coated with nothing but good, so I dare not question how You will get our attention, but learn to trust in You for all things. Traditionally bad things have brought out the best in Your children, but Lord we hope that You could teach us to honor all those that You have placed in authority over us, without asking why You’ve put them there. May our hearts and minds be fixed on You, and not the leaders or government that may prod us towards the path You have set out for us to travel. We are Your children Lord, bless us and make us usable by You to a lost world. For I humble 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 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!

Use God-Given Gifts for His Glory!

On By Ed AlgreenIn gifts, God's Glory, HonorLeave 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: 1 Peter 4:10–11
Today’s Bible Text: Each of you has been blessed with one of God’s many wonderful gifts to be used in the service of others. So use your gift well. If you have the gift of speaking, preach God’s message. If you have the gift of helping others, do it with the strength that God supplies. Everything should be done in a way that will bring honor to God because of Jesus Christ, who is glorious and powerful forever. Amen.
The Bible Translation: The Contemporary English Version (CEV)

My Take Away: I thought this was awesome to be reminded that we are all gifted. So often we hear folk say that they admire a certain individual because of their wonderful gifts, and that they wish that they were as gifted. Friends according to this scripture we are calling God a liar when we say such things. I wonder if just like everything else in life, perhaps we are constantly wishing that we had something different. You see, I believe that God knew exactly what He was doing when He gifted each of us, so I am reminded that whenever I am tempted to say such a thing, I must be careful because I am really saying that God messed up, and we all know that is not the case. Perhaps the key to recognizing our God-given gift and being thankful for it, is when we stop to consider how we are using that gift to bless, or serve others. After all, of what use will a gift be to us unless we use it to bless or serve others? I can’t imagine it giving us extra credit, or something that we can store up for our own benefit at a later date! Friends we really need to get outside of our own little world of self-pity and selfishness and look at how we might bless someone else. It may be a word of encouragement at just the right time, or a timely prayer especially during a time that a friend is in dire need of a touch from God. Most often the use of our gift(s) do not involve money, because you are then looking to purchase something that will satisfy a need. Instead we should be asking God to use us as His hands extended, or His words to bless or encourage someone. Remember friends, when we use our ‘gift’, it is God who will receive the glory, so please don’t do something expecting anything in return. He gives us our gift, we use it for His glory, honor and praise. It’s all about Jesus, friend. We’re just His humble servant that He allows to represent Him here on earth. How are you doing with that?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we are blessed with so much from the bounty of Your hand. Please help us to pass the blessing along by using our gifts for Your honor and Your glory. You are so worthy of receiving the praises of Your people, please allow us to continue being Your hands and feet here on earth as You bless others through everything we do or say. I ask these things in total humility, but a very thankful heart, in the name of Jesus my all sufficient Savior, 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

Help Others To See God

On By Ed AlgreenIn Holy Spirit, Honor, Respect, WorthyLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – … didn’t you realize that your body is a sacred place, the place of the Holy Spirit? Don’t you see that you can’t live however you please, squandering what God paid such a high price for? The physical part of you is not some piece of property belonging to the spiritual part of you. God owns the whole works. So let people see God in and through your body. ~ 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ~ The Message (MSG)

THOUGHTS: These verses came at the conclusion of Paul warning the Corinthians about sexual impurity. However, I believe that we should look closely at all aspects of our life where we tend to abuse the ‘temple of the Holy Spirit’ – our bodies. First, let’s stop and think about the holiness we recognize in our churches, and the respect we give to the ‘house of God’. I agree it should be respected, because it is a place where we go as a family to meet God and worship Him. However, God’s Word is clear on the subject of the Holy Spirit (part of the triune godhead) taking up residence within us when we accept Jesus (another part of the triune godhead) as our Savior and Lord. So if, at conversion, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in us to help us live godly lives, wouldn’t you assume that He also partakes of all other aspects of our life? Wouldn’t it be obvious that some of the things we do must obviously be done against the will of the God who lives within us? Let me list just a few, just in case you are questioning what I could possibly be thinking about:

  • Gossip – the Word is clear that we are to build each other up and not tear down. When we spread news about a Brother or Sister we are helping to tear them down. Surely the Holy Spirit, who has been drug into this cruel act, is hurt that we have chosen to disobey His Father and deliberately disobeying what He desires of us;
  • Alcohol; Drugs; Tobacco; Gorging ourselves – Some of these are controlling substances, so we sinfully allow these things to take control while we put our primary Guide (the Holy Spirit) on the back burner, until we need Him to guide us again. Very sad. All of these things are destructive to our bodies, and remember this is where the Holy Spirit resides. So we ask Him to stand by while we send in very destructive things to make His living extremely challenging and impossible;
  • Pornography; and Undesirable movies – Ever noticed how embarrassed we are to let our friends see us watching such a movie. I wonder why we never stop to ponder why would we ever subject the Holy Spirit to such ‘trash’ that was obviously designed for the children of this world (Satan).

Perhaps there are other things that the Holy Spirit might speak to your heart about friends, but whatever it is, please seek the help of the Holy Spirit and work towards getting your ‘temple’ clean, respectable and worthy of the King of all Kings, for He deserves the same honor that we would give to God Himself. Let’s not take for granted all that was sacrificed so that we might become holy, even as God is holy. Remember, when we allow the Holy Spirit to fully control our lives, it is evident to others who rules and reigns in our lives. We become usable witnesses for Him!

PRAYER: Lord God, You are so worthy, and we are so needy. Please help us to stay focused on the Savior of this world and all that You have done for us. Please help us to always remember who resides inside of us, so that we may respect Your Holy Spirit who came to help us live life pleasing to You in every way. We all love choices, but yet we abuse those options so frequently. Please keep us accountable, but more than anything, please prompt us towards holy living so that we will offer no disrespect to the Holy Spirit. I ask these things in the precious name of Jesus and under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, 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 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 blogger.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!

The Plan of God for You and Me

On By Ed AlgreenIn Honor, Love, PraiseLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (New Life Version – John 9:1-3): 1 As Jesus went on His way, He saw a man who had been born blind. 2 His followers asked Him, “Teacher, whose sin made this man to be born blind? Was it the sin of this man or the sin of his parents?” 3 Jesus answered, “The sin of this man or the sin of his parents did not make him to be born blind. He was born blind so the work of God would be seen in him. 

THOUGHTS: There were two things that God really drew to my attention in these verses today, and I want to share them with you so that you might also be encouraged by the Word of God. First of all, I can only believe that there were lots of people watching along the way as Jesus and His disciples passed by. Imagine how word had gotten around that this miracle-working man, or prophet was going to be within sight distance of the people. You will remember that one lady at one time felt like if she only touched the hem of Jesus’ garment she would receive enough power to totally heal her of her decease, so don’t you know that every person possible tried to make their way near to the path that they heard Jesus would travel? But more than all this, Jesus actually ‘tuned in’ on one particular man who had been blind since birth. So why do I feel like Jesus was ‘tuned in’ to this man? Let me give you a personal explanation. While at church yesterday I saw hundreds of people, but there were some that I can tell you particular details about because I ‘tuned in’ to them for one reason or another. I believe that it was obvious to the disciples that Jesus had ‘tuned in’ to the blind man, because they started to ask Him questions without having to first explain who they were talking about. So why is this important? Friends, I don’t know about you, but I often question “Who am I Lord, that a King should bleed and die for“! Imagine the crowd, who was this blind man that it warranted the close attention of the Savior that day? Now what really brought this home for me, is when I tie that together with the second phrase that spoke to me. Friends, we must realize that God not only sees us as His special jewel, but imagine that we are so special, in spite of what we may look at as natural imperfections, that Jesus would use us in accomplishing His will. This blind man was very special to Jesus, because He declared that even through his infirmity, His mighty works could be accomplished. Others will see God and recognize His power and His might as He declares His handiwork through him. So can God use even us for His mighty work? You bet! He designed us just the way we are, for a purpose. Are you ready to surrender your life to Him to be used for His glory in whichever way He sees fit today? This is what He is looking for friends! Let’s just be obedient to His call, and watch Him perform mighty works even through us, if He chooses to, so that He might be glorified!

PRAYER: Father, Just as You chose to use a blind man to display Your mighty works, I believe that You also have a plan for each one reading this devotional today. We are a masterpiece made by You, yet so often we allow Satan to defeat us by showing us everything that wicked men might look on as proof of success, or love or worth. Please forgive us Lord for allowing our worldly eyes to take over and cause us to lose sight of the wonderful worth of being a child of the King of all kings. Lord, may Your perfect will be accomplished in and through the lives of my readers and myself this blessed day. Please rule in us, so that You may display Your mighty works through us, all for Your glory, Your honor and Your praise. To be considered as Your son is an honor worthy of my unending praise. Please use my readers and I for Your glory today, is my humble prayer that I ask in thanksgiving and through the precious and worthy name of Jesus, my 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 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!

Acknowledge God In All Things

On By Ed AlgreenIn Honor, Humility, RespectLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The Contemporary English Version – Daniel 2:26-30): 26 The king asked Daniel, “Can you tell me my dream and what it means?” 27 Daniel answered: Your Majesty, not even the smartest person in all the world can do what you are demanding. 7 But the God who rules from heaven can explain mysteries. And while you were sleeping, he showed you what will happen in the future. 30 However, you must realize that these mysteries weren’t explained to me because I am smarter than everyone else. Instead, it was done so that you would understand what you have seen.

THOUGHTS: Leading up to these verses, the king had declared that he would kill all ‘wise men’ (magicians and such), if they could not tell him his dream and give the interpretation of what the dream meant. Yet, even under these very demanding conditions, Daniel stood tall in acknowledging God as the answer to his (Daniel’s) prayers and he identified God as the one who really interpreted the king’s dream. Now, to many this may look like a brazen young man who insisted on smearing in the face of the king that his God, whom the king despised, was the supernatural answer to all of man’s questions and precarious positions that we find ourselves in. However, I believe that Daniel had no intentions of doing anything spitefully, but merely to acknowledge his King, his Master, his Lord, in all circumstances and to everyone, even if it may have led to persecution. I mean, the life of Daniel, and other such men who considered themselves ‘wise’ before the king, were literally on the verge of extinction, yet it seems like this had no impact on Daniel and the way that he responded to the king. I sincerely believe that Daniel would have responded this way if he was the greatest aid in the king’s court, or if he was brought from a dungeon prison to speak before the king. He acknowledged that his God was responsible for the answer given, and that it was given for His glory and ultimate design, and nothing at all for the glory or benefit of Daniel himself. Friends, God spoke very loudly to me in this passage today, for I was reminded that in all things we must give God preeminence, and honor, and glory, and to always endeavor to praise Him and give Him credit for all that is accomplished in and/or through us, for He is our Guide, our Deliverer, our Creator and answer to all of life’s circumstances. We are as clay in His hands, molded in every way by His might works, for His glory and the advancement of His kingdom. I am here to encourage all of God’s children to join me in humbling ourselves and praying, seeking God’s face and His ways in all things, and turn from our wicked and selfish ways and desires. I believe that it is only then that we will hear from heaven and see our land healed, forgiven and lifted up (2 Chronicles 7:14). This is something that we need personally, corporately as God’s church, and nationally as a hurting, struggling country that seems to be heading down a very ungodly path. Are you willing to be like Daniel today and give God His rightful position in your life? I would challenge you to do this friend. He wants us to stand in awe of Him and represent Him here on this earth, and our nation needs this, especially at this time in our history.

PRAYER: Dear God, we have strayed so far away from You and become so self-sufficient in our own destructive ways. Please forgive us, and in Your own miraculous way, direct our paths and humble us to our rightful position, where You might once again rule and reign over us individually, and as a nation. I sincerely believe that You must first of all impact the lives of Your children, and in turn impact our nation. I acknowledge that You don’t need us in order to impact our nation, but I believe that if our nation is convinced – like king Nebuchadnezzar was, that You are ruling and reigning in the lives of Your children, then they too will know without a doubt that they can surrender their lives to You and, in turn, the nation that they were assigned to rule/lead. We need You Heavenly Father, please forgive us, hear our prayers and heal our land. All these things are possible through Christ, so it is in His name that I plead, seek Your face and ask these petitions today, with thanksgiving, 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 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!