The Results of Getting Along

On 2014-10-062014-10-06 By Ed AlgreenIn Getting Along, LoveLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

^{How wonderful, how beautiful, when brothers and sisters get along!}

^{It’s like costly anointing oil flowing down head and beard,}

^{Flowing down Aaron’s beard, flowing down the collar of his priestly robes.}

^{It’s like the dew on Mount Hermon flowing down the slopes of Zion.}

^{Yes, that’s where God commands the blessing, ordains eternal life.}(The Message – Psalm 133:1–3)

When we worship the right way, God doesn’t stir us up into confusion; he brings us into harmony. This goes for all the churches—no exceptions.
(The Message – 1 Corinthians 14:33).

Thoughts:

I normally read an Old Testament reading and a New Testament reading each morning. I had already sensed that God wanted me to share the passage in Psalm 133 when I turned to 1 Corinthian 14, only to find the same theme. To those meditating on this devotional but have not yet surrendered their life to God, you might consider this a great coincidence. However, I believe that finding both readings to contain a similar theme only confirmed what God wanted me to share. For God is just that awesome! The first passage dealt with individuals, while the second dealt with harmony in the church. However friends, the church is made up of individuals, and if the individuals (church members) are not getting along with each other in their homes and in their family relationships, can we truly expect anything different in the church, or anywhere else that the individuals find themselves? I would dare say that there is little chance of seeing a difference in one venue vs another. So how important is this to God? In the Psalm, David calls the act of getting along as ‘harmony’. He then compares harmony to the dew that drops off the steep slopes of the great Mount Hermon, and he declared that God had commanded His blessing on that type harmony, and even ordained eternal life to it. Now think about this friends, we know that it is only through Jesus Christ that we can obtain eternal life, so obviously David was prophesying that those who accept Jesus as Lord (Christians) who live in harmony, will receive the eternal life that only He offers. You see, it’s very evident that living in harmony is a gift of the Spirit, and therefore if we live in disharmony, we should really go back to the cross and seek the face of Jesus so that He might pour out His Holy Spirit upon us and allow us to live in peace, in harmony with one another. For this results in the greater gift of eternal life that can truly be yours. For my Christian brothers and sisters who have allowed disharmony to sneak into your holy lives, let us go before the throne, ask for forgiveness, and seek a fresh anointing from our heavenly Father. Our aim should be to please Jesus in all that we do. Let’s make sure that we get along with others like He expects of us.

Prayer:

Lord, Your Word is extremely powerful and often used to correct areas of our lives that need attention, and truly needs be better aligned with You and Your awesome example detailed in Your Word. There is a powerful song “Lord, I want to be Just like You”, and I pray that this will not just be my desire today, but that Your Word might provoke the hearts of all that will read this devotional and also help them commit to living a more dedicated and committed life for You. Please help us to live in perfect harmony with one another, just like You would. I ask this in the precious 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 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 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!

Lord, Hear My Prayer!

On 2014-10-042014-10-04 By Ed AlgreenIn Ask and Receive, Power of PrayerLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

^{1 Lord, I am in great trouble,}

^{so I call out to you.}

^{2 Lord, hear my voice;}

^{listen to my prayer for help.}

^{3 Lord, if you punished people for all their sins,}

^{no one would be left, Lord.}

^{4 But you forgive us,}

^{so you are respected.}

(The Everyday Bible: New Century Version – Psalm 130:1-4)

Thoughts:

This may seem like a very simple theme today friends, but I believe that God has no intention of making His Word complicated, nor His commands of us impossible to obey. Like David prayed in desperation (in verse 1 he said that he was in deep trouble), so it seems like we often find our way to the foot of the cross to pray in our times of desperation. But I believe that God got my attention on this today about the many times that I hesitate coming before Him for a need until I am absolutely too stressed out, and realize that I just can’t do it on my own. When we have a sincere deep relationship with our Savior, like we should, then we should be talking (praying) with Him all the time. We should be discussing our distresses and praising Him for our successes. I believe that when we succeed at this, we will be blessed to note the many times that we wind up making good decisions, or making the right turns in life, for He knows our heart’s desires and will guide us in His way everlasting. Now, just to clarify, God knows our hearts without us saying anything at all, however, He enjoys our conversation and is blessed by us turning to Him for our every need. David even gave us a little tip in verse 4 on why God forgives us and handles so many of our requests – so that we might stand in awe of Him and respect Him as God. So I have a very challenging question for my friends meditating on this devotional today: What are the three most challenging things in your life right now? Now the kicker: Have you placed these things in Jesus’ hands for a resolution? These are the things that we should have foremost in our prayers to God. Friends, I know that He will hear our voice and, knowing that He cares for us and knows what’s best for us in the long run, He will relieve us of the stress we are going through and answer our prayers according to His blessed will (Matthew 6:31-33). Trust Him, won’t you?

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, it is so rewarding knowing that we can talk with You about all of our needs, concerns and wants, knowing that You will keep it confidential, and that You will respond with our best interest at heart, despite what we might ask for. You know my name, and Your Word says that You even know every strand of hair on my head. How much more You must care about me when things of this world burden me down, or when I make stupid mistakes. Thank You for answering my prayers in the past and thank You for answering them in accordance with Your perfect will and not necessarily the selfish, silly and worldly ways that I might ask for things. You truly are the God of this universe and You have our best interest at heart. Please humble our hearts to have our one-on-one times with You and to share our most intimate desires and thoughts with You, knowing that You will either answer our prayers or at least comfort us to know that You may have even better plans for us. We have such a small view of our lives and of this world, please help us to trust in You, the one who created it all and who controls its every movement. You are an awesome God in whom I place my trust dear Lord. Bless this day in Your own special way, I pray in the name of Jesus, my Lord, AMEN!

Allow God Control of our Homes and Cities

On 2014-10-032014-10-04 By Ed AlgreenIn SurrenderLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

^{If the Lord doesn’t build the house,}

^{the builders are working for nothing.}

^{If the Lord doesn’t guard the city,}

^{the guards are watching for nothing.}

(New Century Version – Psalm 127:1)

Thoughts:

In this short verse we see the importance of always looking to God for providing our every need. Especially in the day that we find ourselves in, we must depend upon God for His blessing in the upbringing of our family, the challenges of our finances, our protection and giving us boldness to always stand for Christ in spite of all the distractions from the outside world. In the context of this verse we are reminded of several important things that are affected as we place our faith and trust in God:

For raising our family. – For if God is not acknowledged, we have no reason to expect his blessing; and the best-laid plans fail, unless He crowns them with His blessing;
For the safety of our family and/or our city. – For except the Lord keep the city, the watchmen (our law enforcement), though they may never sleep, they stay awake and on duty in vain; mischief could still break out in spite of all they might do to prevent it; and
For enriching our family. – I firmly believe that God blesses those who depend on Him. I agree with verse 4 further down where Solomon reflects on what could happen when children leave our home, as we can no longer direct them. But friends, we are ordered to do our part in bringing them up while they are with us, then when they do go off on their own they will remember and practice what they were taught. No need for us to worry what might happen later, with ongoing prayer, God will continue to guide them for us.

So friends, the bottom line is that we must live the Godly lives that God expects of His children. When we live that life in our homes and in our jobs, God will bless us, protect us and provide for our cares and concerns. Can you trust Him with that day? If you do, He can be trusted to do His part, I assure you friend!

Prayer:

Dear Lord, please give me strength/wisdom/power to surrender my home, my family and my city to Your powerful, awesome, protective and guiding hand. I am reminded daily that these things are way bigger than me, but in recognizing the great big awesome God that I serve, I surrender these things to Your care and direction. While still in this world, I need You in my life though, to help me be the man You designed and could be proud of. Please help me to depend heavily on You so that You may truly bless my home and bless my city. I also ask that You intervene in the lives of my friends who will meditate on this devotional today. For those who have never committed their lives totally and completely to You, please open their eyes to the truth of the gospel so that they may make that first, very important choice to accept You as Lord of their lives. For my fellow Christian friends, may they be filled with Your peace, Your comfort, Your strength and guidance to surrender themselves as guided in this scripture today, and allow Your mighty hand to guide them in every circumstance of life. I ask all this believing, but also knowing that only You can change our families and our cities, Therefore I ask all this in Your holy and precious name, AMEN!

24/7/365 Availability

On 2014-10-02 By Ed AlgreenIn PeaceLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

^{1 I look up to the mountains—}

^{does my help come from there?}

^{2 My help comes from the LORD,}

^{who made heaven and earth!}

^{3 He will not let you stumble;}

^{the one who watches over you will not slumber.}

^{(New Living Translation: Psalm 121:1–3)}

Thoughts:

There are so many help aids available to us via books, or Google or any of the other online search engines that we can easily become a bunch of do-it-yourself professionals. However friends, I don’t know of any cases where someone may have called for prayer, and they indicated that they have searched every online search engine for help and they have failed, so now they are turning to God for help! This may sound humorous friends, but way too often we try everything else before we finally look to God for help. David asked a rhetorical question about whether he should look to the hills/mountains for help, but like David, we must always look way beyond the hills for our help, for our help can only come from the Lord, the One who makes all earthly things. Now one thing that we must be cautious about, is that when we ask our parents for something, most of the time we don’t receive it immediately. This God that we serve, knows exactly what is best for us and the best timing for us to receive those things. Sometimes the response may be immediate while other times delayed to a more appropriate time. This Psalm teaches us to be comforted in always knowing where our help comes from in its perfect form and timing. Unlike times when we go to the internet for help where we might find it down, our God is always available to us! This is an exciting reminder friends! This is reassuring to Christians, and although this may sound strange to those who have not yet placed their faith in our God, it is vital that we share our experiences with them so that they too might have a desire to meet our Jesus, know Him personally, and experience the comfort of knowing that He is always available and comforting to us in every circumstance.

Prayer:

What a comfort it is to know You as my Lord and Savior, dear Jesus! Thank You for being there for me at all times and in every circumstance. May I learn to always depend in, and trust You during the good times in my life and especially in the challenging times. Thank You for hearing my cry and answering my prayers. I appreciate Your perfect timing as I have become so impatient in this instantaneous world that I live in. Please touch the hearts of those that will be led to this devotional today. May they too find comfort and peace in knowing You, or a deep desire to accept You as their Lord and Savior so that they may experience this peace of which I speak about. I ask this in the precious name of Jesus, my wonderful Lord and Savior, AMEN!

Let Go and Let God!

On 2014-10-01 By Ed AlgreenIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

The Holy Bible – The Good News Translation

1 Corinthians 14:1

Let love be your highest goal! But you should also desire the special abilities the Spirit gives—especially the ability to prophesy.

My Thoughts:

Over recent days our studies seem to have highlighted Paul’s teaching to the church at Corinth, and this may be because we see so many similarities to our church today! God spoke to me through this verse today in conjunction with the ending of verses 4 and 5, where Paul emphasized that these gifts are for the uplifting of the church, not ourselves. So based on the verses referenced, I would humbly suggest: desire the gifts of the Spirit that are available to you, pray for them and be anxious to receive them. However should you be blessed with one or more gifts, remember, it is not for personal gain or bragging, but for the benefit of others and for the glory of God. I believe that God will use these gifts to enrich His church; to encourage those that you come into contact with and you are especially at a loss for words; to help someone when, ordinarily, you may feel very inadequate to handle such a thing. Friends, I am convinced that when we set self aside and allow God to freely work through us, we will be amazed at what He will do through a humble, fully surrendered individual. Are you willing to give this a try? Just let go, and let God have His way in and through! After all, God has a lot of work to do in this old sinful world, and I believe that He would just as soon fulfill His promise to touch hearts, take care of the weary and challenge the unsaved through us who belong to Him. He just wants our availability, not our abilities!

My Prayer:

Father, You are so wonderful to us! You have blessed us with the gift of Your Son, Jesus, and yet You continue to shower us with gifts through Your blessed Holy Spirit. How can we ever thank You enough? I am personally very thankful for all that You do for me each day, and I am thankful for the gifts that You have already allowed me to use for Your service and for the benefit of others. Please continue to work in our lives, so that we may not gloat about our gifts, but rather, use them for the benefit of Your church and for Your glory. To God be the glory for any and all things accomplished through the miracles of the Holy Spirit working in and through us. Lord, may You be lifted up, magnified and glorified through me, and all those meditating on this devotional today, is my humble prayer that I ask through Jesus, my Lord, AMEN!

**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.

Love Is….

On 2014-09-302014-09-30 By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Christian, Love, Love God, Love your Neighbor, ObedienceLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

⁴Love is patient, love is kind.
Love does not envy,
is not boastful, is not conceited,
⁵does not act improperly,
is not selfish, is not provoked,
and does not keep a record of wrongs.
⁶Love finds no joy in unrighteousness
but rejoices in the truth.
⁷It bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things.

Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Thoughts:

If we paid attention to the television, then we will know that ‘love’ is one night stands, beauty, riches, sex or even products, because we are fed all the advertisements that is prevalent way more than the actual movie that we are watching. So grows our children who stay fixed on television each day. But what about the adults, anything different for us? Of course not, unless we concentrate on the Word of God, embed it into our lives and be obedient to its teachings. I want you to think about a typical evening in the life of married couples, so that we can compare that to our understanding of God’s Word, and I believe it will be evident why our country is so filled with cohabitating adults and/or divorcees, from which more broken homes are developed by their kids. First of all, both parents are out working all day – sometimes late into the evening, they arrive home tired, stressed and ready for bed, but their habitual ‘meal clock’ tells them that it is time to eat. So a fast food item is placed in the microwave, or soup is warmed, to satisfy any hunger pangs. In the meantime, the television is on, text and/or Facebook messages are dinging in and demanding the attention of the modern day adults, while we sit down to gobble our food and prepare for bed. Did I forget to include the time needed to sit and truly give our undivided attention to each other to hear about their day, or whether they still have a job. Oh, and what about time to celebrate what God may have done in our lives that day? When this routine repeats itself day after day friends, can you see how verse 7 above can possibly be developed, or matured? Unfortunately, many homes are facing this challenge. Unfortunately many couples are finding little time to express love towards each other, because they have absolutely worked true ‘love’ out of the picture. There’s no time for it and even if there is a minute, our minds are so wound up that we just want to be left alone in a corner with some peace and quiet. Has Satan sneaked his way into our marriages and into our homes to destroy something that God has designed? I believe that Satan would like nothing better friend. Please re-read the above verses, reflect on God’s design for true ‘love’ one for another, and don’t look at what needs to change in the life of your spouse or children, but what do you/I need to do personally so that we may be true followers of Christ and His commands. Our spouse, our families and our world deserves better. Can we do it? What does ‘love’ mean to you? What must be realigned in your life to help you align you life with the true plumb-line – the Word of God?

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, You have inspired great writers like Paul to share Your Word with us so that we may be better aligned with Your expectations for Your children. I can only imagine how You must shake Your head in disgust sometimes at the mess we have made of life in today’s society. I know for sure that we need You more today than we have ever needed You before. I know for sure that we have really failed to do this thing called ‘love’, in its truest form, and that we need Your powerful hand upon us for the strength, guidance and overwhelming power to overcome the evil one. We need the encouragement of Your loving arms around us to cheer us along and to give us the confidence that we need to lay the things of this world aside and truly give our undivided attention to our spouses, our children, our family and all those that take time to listen and/or share with us. I’m afraid that if we are to truly be Your example, we must overcome these weaknesses and depend on You for strength to be the man/woman that You intended and the ones that You can use to minister to unbelievers today. Please be my strength and my guide today dear Lord. Please forgive me where I have failed to express my love to You and to others. Please touch the hearts and lives of Your children who will meditate on this devotional today Oh Lord. We all need You! I place my desires at Your feet and ask all these favors in the precious and loving name of Jesus, my soon coming King, 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.

What Is Your Role In The Local Church?

On 2014-09-29 By Ed AlgreenIn Christian, Disciple, Encourage, Evangelism, Imitator of ChristLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

The way God designed our bodies is a model for understanding our lives together as a church: every part dependent on every other part, the parts we mention and the parts we don’t, the parts we see and the parts we don’t. If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance.

The Message:1 Corinthians 12:25–26

Thoughts:

I am constantly amazed by folk who attend church and would normally answer the question posed in my title by saying “O I’m just a visitor” or “I’m just a regular attendee”! Friends, in light of this passage, Paul likens the church to our human bodies. So for a moment, imagine with me if the hand said to the brain “hey, I’m just here for show, as I wanted Mr. XYZ to see that you had a hand also, but you go right ahead and pick that food up by yourself”, how would that work for you? I know the example sounds silly, but in the context of these verses, and in light of the reasons given by some for church attendance or involvement, I believe you might get a better understanding of my illustration. I will give another very real illustration to you. My dad had injury to a kidney after having a heart stint installed. The doctors decided not to operate, as they relayed to my dad that the non-functioning kidney would just dry up like a prune and remain in his body. Unfortunately, I believe this is what happens to those who ‘just attend’ church and never become, or feel like, a functioning part of the church. However, based on our study in this chapter, I feel like there are two aspects worthy of attention here. First, is the visiting, or regular attendee who just shows up, sits in a very inconspicuous place hoping that no one will see them or come to trouble them. Perhaps, although God prompted them to attend church, Satan may still be working powerfully in their lives to stop them from getting anything out of attending, so I would strongly encourage this person to please do your part as a vital part of the body. I recently had a tooth implant and it was amazing how the body quickly accepted that foreign piece of metal and starting knitting to it! Likewise, I believe that an individual such as described, will be quickly received if they do their part in being loveable and showing interest in wanting to be a part. Secondly, I believe that the existing church members have a responsible to fight hard in making all attendees feel welcomed, loved and encouraged. Remember, this is like a foreign body to the human body, so they need extra care and attention. If God sends someone to a church, then those Christian members who are already a vital part of that ministry must do their part in response to God. Friends, you are in one of the roles mentioned, are you doing your part to further the kingdom of God? Will you commit to being more conscious of your role in growing the spiritual lives of all that worship with you?

Prayer:

Dear God, thank You for creating us and forming us into a body of believers for corporate worship. May I be more conscious in my daily life about the needs of others and respond in a manner that will be pleasing to You. For those that attend my church, I pray that although I may have no official role in church terms, I will respond to the key role you have made evident to me through the study of Your Word today. Sharing the love of Jesus through the spoken word, or just in a friendly smile or encouragement of some sort, is something that any of us can do. Please give me the boldness to do my part dear Lord. Friends meditating on this devotional today might also need help in this regard, please give us Your strength and Your vision to be the hands, feet and words of Jesus in all that we do and say. I ask this in the precious name of Jesus, my Savior, AMEN!

What Adds To Your Worth?

On 2014-09-272014-09-27 By Ed AlgreenIn WorthLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

As it is, we see that God has carefully placed each part of the body right where he wanted it.
But I also want you to think about how this keeps your significance from getting blown up into self-importance. For no matter how significant you are, it is only because of what you are a part of.

The Message: 1 Corinthians 12:18–19

Thoughts:

I love the words of Paul as he taught the church at Corinth, who were obviously challenged with working together with each other to accomplish the work of the church. We may sometimes say that they were off doing their ‘own thing’! Paul cautioned that no matter how significant they thought they were, it is only because of the added strength and combined qualities of the body (the church) with whom they were associated with, and worked together with, for the common cause of Christ. So I reflected on the success, or lack thereof, of the local church today. I realize that the primary source of strength for the local church comes from God. But I also know that we, the people, are the church, and if we are to be collectively effective in ministry for our Lord, then we must make every effort to work as one. Paul likens the church to the human body, in that the hand can’t get across town to do anything for a person in need without the feet to carry it, the heart to provide the blood and every part of the body to do it’s part. Likewise, we must remember that the church will not be productive if we can’t get ourselves together and work towards the same goal of ministry. Think about it friends, if we don’t display love one for another, or if we are always gossiping about other members, how effective will our words – our ministry, be when we go before the unsaved person? Don’t we realize that successful ministry is only possible when the unsaved see us come before them with a clear expression of Christ’s characteristics, and a working part of the local church? Unfortunately, our inability to work together with the local church is a clear deficiency of Christ’s qualities in our lives. I can confidently assure you that it’s not our Brother or our Sister in deep trouble and causing havoc in our lives, but it’s me oh Lord standing in the need of prayer? How is it with you friend? Anything you need to reconcile with God to help you be a useful part of the local church body?

Prayer:

Lord Jesus I plead with you today to touch my heart, and the hearts of Your people who are struggling so much to get over self and truly recognize that they are only who they are because of what they are a part of, as declared by Paul. Father I believe that it is probably more important now than ever before that Christians fully exemplify You, so that the unsaved may catch a glimpse of the Father. Lord, I pray that we might truly unite as a true church, a true representation of You. Please touch Your people once again Lord, so that we may truly set self aside and allow You to reign in and through us to accomplish Your work set aside for the church. I ask this humbly in the name of Jesus, my savior, AMEN!

Let The Church Be The Church

On 2014-09-262014-09-26 By Ed AlgreenIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

The Holy Bible – The Good News Translation

1 Corinthians 12:12-13

12 The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. 13 Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.

My Thoughts:

Yesterday I finished my remarks with a sentence “Let the church be the church”, and after allowing God’s Holy Spirit to speak to me this morning, I was pointed to these two verses with a similar theme to what I ended with yesterday. I’m sure that Paul was, in a lot of ways, very similar to pastors and church leaders today, where they are probably sick of the ‘hand’ telling him (the pastor, or Paul) what the ‘feet’ should be doing and how they should be doing it, or least telling him every time they have stumbled. I believe the message from the Holy Spirit to churches today is that you are enormously blessed of God, you have members who have been gifted to help you achieve the ministry needed in your community that is desperately in need of the Savior. Have them respectively do their part to ensure that the combined body will be effective. To the members, I believe that the Holy Spirit would compel us to ask the Master for the wisdom, strength, boldness and power to do your part well, and pleasing to the Master, and oh, please pray for the other parts (members) to also be diligent about their part of the work, so that you can come back to your weekend service and fill your church building with worship, praise and thanksgiving to me (God). I believe that we must each discern our gift, with the help of the Holy Spirit and get to work, for the time that we have to accomplish this all is very short. Friends, fellow Christians, there is no indication that we are to gossip about our brother who may not be as strong as us; no indication that we are to get our fellow Christians together and gloat over the work that our remaining brothers are doing and how they are filling the gap for what we should be doing. Otherwise, what will you celebrate at your next church service? Yes, we can praise God for all that others have achieved, but won’t we be embarrassed and disappointed to apologize for us doing nothing for the glory of God? There’s a song that I started to hum as I paused, and the words included in that song are: “There’s a Work for all to do”, and friends, this is exactly what I discerned from this passage in 1 Corinthians 12. If you are not doing something to compliment the work of the Lord, your stagnancy can almost be considered a deterrent. Will you commit to do your part today towards building up the kingdom? You may not be the preacher or the teacher, but as a child of God your work is assigned to you! I encourage you to do it with every fibre of your being and with the help of the Almighty!

My Prayer:

Lord Jesus, Master and Almighty God, please forgive me for not always doing my part in the work of Your church here on this earth. Please give me guidance, wisdom and direction on all that I might do to edify, encourage and challenge all those that I come into contact with, so that they may feel a touch from You. I’m a part of Your enormous work here on this earth and in all walks of life I am reminded how badly ‘People need the Lord’. I can’t sit back and wait for my Brother to speak with, or impact the lives of my friends, I must use the gifts that You have blessed me with so that together with my Brother, we may impact a life for You and direct them towards the cross, where You might also give them the gift of eternal life. Please speak to Your church once again and open our eyes to the gifts that You have given to us and clearly enlighten us of the ways that we can use those gifts to bring You glory. Lord, may the church once again be the church! I ask this in the precious name of Jesus my Savior, AMEN!
**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.

Using The Spiritual Gift(s) Given to Us

On 2014-09-25 By Ed AlgreenIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

The Holy Bible – New Living Translation

1 Corinthians 12:4-7

4 There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. 5 There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. 6 God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. 7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.

My Thoughts:

Believers in the Corinthian church had challenged Paul with their doubts, questions and misunderstandings about the gifts that Christians are blessed with by the Holy Spirit after accepting Jesus as Lord. I believe that God influenced Paul to write about this and that his writing and explanation would be included in the Bible to serve a purpose in our churches by Christians even today. Friends, it is so easy to sit back and soak in the preaching of God’s Word, pat the preacher on the back and go on back home feeling satisfied that we have done our Christian duty for the week. After all, many churches see most members for a weekend morning service, and provided that all the expectations are adhered to, such as no more than 1 hour service, then they may return the next week. I hate to burst your bubble Brothers and Sisters, but that’s not Christianity, that’s church attendance – much like you might do when you take your spouse to the movies. Paul is explaining here that as a child of God, we receive God’s Holy Spirit, who resides within us to guide us, protect us, give us God’s wisdom and be our personal comforter. We are also given a spiritual gift that is customized just for us. Some of us may have the gift of preaching, or of teaching, or encouraging each other, or praying for each other, or witnessing to unbelievers, etc. However, because these gifts are given by the one and only God, they are to be used for His glory while helping others out. Because our gifts are used for the glory of the same God, we can conclude that we are on the same team, making every effort to please the same team leader, God. To sit and sour and say that you have no gift, is to call God a liar, because He declared through His servant Paul that a gift is given to every believer. For us to say that we are incapable of fulfilling or using the gift given to us is an insult to God, because we are actually doubting His Word and His ability to fulfill His promise. Friends, let us seek God’s face and ask Him to make very evident to us the special gift(s) He has blessed us with, then lets commit to using it/them for His glory, through the power of His blessed Holy Spirit. Others will be blessed and God will be glorified. Imagine the joy this will bring to your heart!

My Prayer:

Holy Father, thank You for the precious gift of Your Son, Jesus who, through His sacrifice we can become a child of the King. Thank You for going a step further and providing Your Holy Spirit to indwell us with power from above to handle everyday situations and to overcome challenges that are often beyond our control. Thank You for the gifts given to us to bless others with, so that You may be glorified. Please highlight the gift within each one meditating on this devotional today so that we may be refreshed on our purpose here on earth, and so that Your church may indeed be Your church. I can only imagine the overwhelming offerings of praise at our weekend services if Your children would be obedient to You and actually use the gifts empowered by Your Holy Spirit to bless others this week. Please glorify Yourself through us dear Jesus, for I ask all this in Your precious and wonderful name, AMEN!
**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.