Category: Recognize God

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!

God’s Work among the Nations

On By Ed AlgreenIn Recognize God, SubmissionLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (English Standard Version – Habakkuk 1:5): “Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.

THOUGHTS: It is so easy for us to see the ‘bad’ in everything, or the ‘wrong’ in everything, or the ‘hopelessness’ in everything, but very challenging for us to see the positive things. I believe that this happens very often when our expectations are not met, and especially when we don’t try to align our expectations with God’s plan. We have become such an instant world that any action that takes longer than a few seconds we tend to think of as inaction by God. We are told in God’s Word that our ways are not His ways, and His ways are not ours. This means that God is not a puppet set to our agenda, or programmed to act exactly like we may want to program Him! So why then do we whine or complain? It may be the same reason why churches are not running full capacity. It may be lacking folk who feel like God and the church has stopped listening to them and not performing up to their expectations. Friends I believe that we have tried to sit in the ‘driver’s seat’ and, in our weakness and powerlessness, we are trying to ‘run the show’. How ironic that we would then get disappointed or disgusted when we see failure and try to blame God! Habakkuk was told that he would be astounded by the work that was already going on in nations around him. I would dare say that if we would set aside our personal agendas and expectations, that we would see the marvelous work of the Lord also in our day. We can’t change the politicians, so why get worked up over all that we wish they would do differently. Let us refocus on God and His handiwork. Let us stop focusing on the things we feel should be done differently and start praising God for all that He does in and around us. He deserves our glory and praise for even the things that we take for granted, such as the sun, the moon, the air we breathe and the water to drink. Perhaps as He recognizes our thanksgiving in these things then He might open our eyes to other ways that He is already working around us and blessing our nations.

PRAYER: Lord You are awesome, and again this morning I am reminded that You are busy at work in areas that we often forget or overlook. Please help us to keep our eyes focused on You and look for ways to celebrate Your mighty works, rather than picking apart the things that we selfishly feel should be different. Lord may You be the focus of our attention and may You be recognized as God of this universe in every aspect of every day, so that we may praise You as we should at all times, for You alone are worthy. I ask these things in the wonderful name of Jesus and for His sake, 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!