Scripture: Psalm 139; Ephesians 6.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Psalm 139:1-2 (NLT)

1
O LORD, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.

2
You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.

Ephesians 6:10-12 (NLT)

10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.

11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.

12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

Both of these chapters offer a lot more than the verses I copied and pasted into this devotional, so if God is dealing with you on finding peace with Him in a troubled world, then I would encourage you to read both of these chapters. In the Psalm David is comforted in knowing that God is totally in control of everything around him, so he is able to place his faith and trust in God for his every need, every thought, and every concern that affects his life. Because of this acknowledgment in God’s power and control, David therefore releases himself in verse 23 by asking God to search him, test him, know his anxious thoughts, point out his non-conforming ways and lead him along a path to everlasting life. Friends, I believe that it is not until we reach this stage in our lives that we truly practice total surrender to the Master. We must first acknowledge who He is, including the power and direction that He is capable of using to bless and direct us, and that He loves us enough to use those characteristics to bless us and give us peace of mind. Similarly in Ephesians 6, Paul reminds the Ephesian church that they must learn to allow God in the lives and in their daily walk so that He could protect them and guide them. When we recognize God’s power and we acknowledge that He is our Master and Savior and Lord and that we are willing to let Him rule, guide and protect us, then we will go about our daily path with God in control and we will have that assurance that He will guide and protect us from the darts of Satan and the evil of this dark world. Today, let’s find peace in knowing that we serve the Creator of man, the Creator of this universe, the only One to overcome death and the grave, the only One who willingly surrendered His life so that we might enjoy life eternally with Him in glory! That’s the God that we serve, and the God that we should place our faith and trust in everyday! This results in unlimited peace for us, even in what appears to be the most troublesome times.

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Father, what an awesome peace to know that You are in control of every circumstance and every event that I may interact with each day. There are so many times and so many circumstances where things seem so out of control and I am forced to reflect on whether I could possibly overcome. Praise God, I am reminded in Your Word that I need not worry about that, because when I place my hand in Yours, and when I place my life at Your disposal and have surrendered every aspect of my life to You, then I can rest in peace knowing that You are in control and that every little thing is gonna be alright! Lord, I love You today and so appreciate Your acceptance of this child as Your humble servant that You long to watch over, love and protect.

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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Scripture: Ephesians 5.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Ephesians 5:15-20 (GW)

15 So then, be very careful how you live. Don’t live like foolish people but like wise people.

16 Make the most of your opportunities because these are evil days.

17 So don’t be foolish, but understand what the Lord wants.

18 Don’t get drunk on wine, which leads to wild living. Instead, be filled with the Spirit 19 by reciting psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs for your own good. Sing and make music to the Lord with your hearts.

20 Always thank God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

Paul saw the struggle that the Ephesian church had with trying to live in accordance with Christ’s instructions, so he gave them some tips on how to do this. In believing that the Word of God is specifically placed in His Word for the benefit of His followers today, I therefore believe that God knew that His church today – you and I, fellow Christians, would have the same struggles today, and He wanted us to have the tools and advice at our fingertips to deal with the problem. Let’s therefore look at some of the tips given to us to live our lives worthy of our calling as children of God:

• Live as wise people – I believe that we are being told to be wise in our decision making and not just do what comes natural, or accept everything as mere luck or undirected wisdom for our daily living. In being wise we will read God’s Word and seek His will about those things that He would have us do, rather than just accepting everything that might come our way as a natural course of action for our daily living. Seek God first, and His righteousness……
  
• Make the most of opportunities – I believe that God is telling us to not let an opportunity slip by where He presents us with excellent opportunities to witness, love and influence someone in need of the Savior;
  
• Understand what the Lord wants – get into His Word, associate with other believers, listen to the preaching of His Word, pray – and all these things will become evident to you;
  
• Be filled with the Spirit – when we are reciting psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, we will fill our hearts and soul with the things of God. When we sit idly by or constantly gossip about people, we are most often foolish and filling our hearts and minds with ungodly things that will be no benefit to the kingdom;
  
• Always thank God – It is very challenging to thank God and praise Him when we are not following the wise advice emphasized above. Let’s keep our minds fixed on Jesus and enjoy the peace of constantly thanking Him and praising Him in all of life’s circumstances, because we are crediting Him for blessing us with each and every occurrence.
  

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Lord Jesus, please humble me today so that I may use these words to guide my footsteps and mold my thought process. May I be wise in my decision making and careful in how I live my life. Nothing else matters when I face You and parallel my life with what You have exampled before me and shown me in Your Word. Thank You Father for loving me enough that You would guide my thought process and my every step in life’s journey. Please now give me the boldness to follow Your will for my life. May I not give reason for You to be disappointed in my walk or in my talk or in my actions towards others today.

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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Scripture: Ephesians 4.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Ephesians 4:1-6 (CEV)

1 As a prisoner of the Lord, I beg you to live in a way that is worthy of the people God has chosen to be his own. 2 Always be humble and gentle. Patiently put up with each other and love each other. 3 Try your best to let God’s Spirit keep your hearts united. Do this by living at peace. 4 All of you are part of the same body. There is only one Spirit of God, just as you were given one hope when you were chosen to be God’s people. 5 We have only one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. 6 There is one God who is the Father of all people. Not only is God above all others, but he works by using all of us, and he lives in all of us.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

While studying God’s Word I normally highlight verses where God really spoke to me and caught my attention. In this chapter today, I have most of it highlighted – not because I felt like Paul was hitting a homerun with his Ephesian church, although I bet that he hit the nail right on its head with what he taught them, but Paul was addressing the church of small town USA even back then, he was addressing me and my fellow members of my local church. What an eye-opener, reminder and challenge for us today in these verses. Here are some things that particularly spoke to me:

1. Let us first recognize in verse 1 that we are a chosen people. God loved us so much that in spite of our sin, yet He called us to be His very own sons and daughters;
   
2. To coin a phrase that I have heard: ‘If we would get off our high horses’ and humble ourselves as an honored child of the Most High, and if we practice gentleness like our mentor (Jesus Christ) did, then we would easily practice patience with each other and love each other. Unfortunately, we often become very impatient with folk (brothers and sisters), who are not as good as we think we are, or as holy as we think we are, or as educated as we feel like we are. When we become impatient with someone, we speak wrongly to them, we put them down to the level where we picture them in our minds, and we place a wedge between them and us, making it impossible to show love to them. Yet in this passage, God through Paul is admonishing us to be both patient AND loving to each other;
   
3. In verse 3 we are told how this all can be possible. One translation reads: “Through the peace that ties you together, do your best to maintain the unity that the Spirit gives.” In other words, it is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us that we could have that strength and power to overcome the temptation of thinking, or acting like we are better than any other saint of God. But friends, God, and His Holy Spirit are true gentlemen and they will only act when we ask for their help. Let us therefore be true followers of Christ and lean heavily on Him and not our own evil desires or traits. To follow His example and be obedient to His Holy Spirit, we must put self aside and lean not on our own understanding but on the will, power and direction of Him.
   

Something that is even more sobering as we meditate on this passage today is actually found in verse 30 (And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.) In other words, when we fail at the above points raised, we are bringing sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit. I don’t know about you friend, but the last thing I ever want to do is to cause sorrow to someone I love, especially Almighty God. Let us therefore be challenged to truly follow the example of Jesus in being patient and loving to all those we come into contact with. Let’s allow Jesus to shine through in our actions and in our character!

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

I’ve heard preachers talk about the need for steel toed boots when there are challenging words that God would have us to hear and follow. I really needed those boots this morning, because this passage is very applicable to me and my church at this time. Thank You Father for making Your Word so powerful that it speaks to our hearts right where we’re at. If the world is to be won for Christ, then they will need to see Christ. I pray that those that I come into contact with each day will see Christ very clearly in me and through my words and actions. May I receive Your strength today to be more patient, kind and loving to those that may not be very lovable. May I remain humble so that I not place myself above any other child of Yours. May I allow You to be God today, even in and through circumstances in which I may be involved, all for Your glory dear God!

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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Scripture: Psalm 133.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Psalm 133:1-3 (GW)

1 A song by David for going up to worship.

See how good and pleasant it is when brothers and sisters live together in harmony! 2 It is like fine, scented oil on the head, running down the beard—down Aaron’s beard— running over the collar of his robes. 3 It is like dew on {Mount} Hermon, dew which comes down on Zion’s mountains.

That is where the LORD promised the blessing of eternal life.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

We hear so many stories about folk ‘living together’ these days, and even though I could never find from God’s Word where He would condone such an unlawful experience, yet I want to use this as an example to develop my thought on this passage this morning. When folk ‘live together’, they often say that it is a trial period to see if they could possibly live together and be happy – in harmony. When I read Psalm 133 I think about Christians living together, or spending time together, or enjoying each other’s company, or looking for specific ways to help each other grow in the faith, or looking for ways to love each other more than we did the day before, or looking forward to being in each other’s presence because of the love we feel from each other and the harmony that we feel each time we’re together. In fact, I think about the harmony in a church family being very similar to the harmony we feel in our homes, because after all we are a ‘family’ of Christian brothers and sisters serving and worshipping the one Father, Jesus Christ. Just as in our ‘home families’ this requires lots of give and take, lots of communication, lots of expressions of love, lots of acceptance for the individuality of each person and their respective attributes, so it is in our church/Christian families. When we feel this harmony, we can think like David did when he said right at the beginning of the chapter, THEN we can go up to worship! You see, I believe that the scented oil that David referred to is equaled to God’s Holy Spirit that will pour down on us when we come to worship Him as a body of believers living, loving and practicing true and honest harmony. Oh, how I long to leave God’s house feeling overwhelmed by His Holy Spirit, blessed, encouraged, feeling loved, having expressed love, and now ready to tackle the world who knows nothing about that kind of harmony and Godly relationship. David ends the Psalm by saying that when we arrive at that place in our Christian relationship, then we will be blessed of God and receive His promises. I need that. How about you friend?

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Lord Jesus, You went all the way to Calvary so that I may be able to enjoy eternal life with You. Thank You for loving me that much! Thank You also for placing me in a church home where I can love, and be loved by other believers in search of the same thing, as we wait for Your return. I believe that You intended for Your love to be expressed in very powerful ways through us while here on this earth. Please help us to put self aside, and allow Your Holy Spirit to pour Your blessings all over us, like David spoke of in the case of the fine, scented oil. Please forgive me for the times that I am unlovable. Please help me to seek ways to express the love that You have poured all over me, so that brothers and sisters that I come into contact with may be encouraged and filled with that awesome love that You have blessed me with. May I example You in every way today is my humble prayer. In Jesus name, Amen!

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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Scripture: Ephesians 3.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Ephesians 3:16-19 (NLT)

16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.

17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.

18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.

19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

I believe that if there ever was one hope that each of us would wish for ourselves, I bet it would be that we could feel complete – whole, loved, forgiven, and accepted. No doubt, like me, you often wonder how God could love us throughout the width, or breadth of our experiences, or to the length of our lives. Praise be to God, friend, that He loves us to the height of our celebrations and even to the depths of discouragement, despair and even death. Yes, when we feel shut out from the world and from those around us, let us be reminded that we could never be lost to God’s love for us. Remember that even while people hated Him, despised Him, rejected Him, spit on Him and crucified Him, yet He sacrificed His only Son so that we could witness the love of God that saves all men, yes even you and I, so that we may have eternal life and live with Him in glory someday. That’s the kind of God that loves you and I. That’s the One who makes my life complete and helps me to understand that no matter what may be going on around me, I have a Savior who loves me enough that He cares for me and makes me feel fully loved and totally complete. It is with the love of this Jesus, that we in turn can love others with that same sacrificial love whether we are loved in return or not. As Paul said in verse 19, this type love is too awesome for us to fully comprehend, but it gives us the comfort and assurance to feel complete and enveloped by the love that our Savior has for us. Praise God forever!

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Thank You Father for that love shown for me at Calvary when You allowed Your precious, only Son to die so that I may live forever in glory with You. This example was such that I may be challenged to reflect on the small petty reasons that I become despondent when others ridicule, or show remorse to me. What I encounter is nothing compared to what You faced, yet You sacrificed it all just for me. Please help me dear God to love the unlovable, to encourage those that may otherwise upset me or use me in ways that may not seem right. To show Your love is to overcome these barriers and love them anyway. I can feel complete today because of Your amazing love for me. Thank You Father!

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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Scripture: Ephesians 2.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Ephesians 2:1-10 (GW)

1 You were once dead because of your failures and sins.

2 You followed the ways of this present world and its spiritual ruler. This ruler continues to work in people who refuse to obey God.

3 All of us once lived among these people, and followed the desires of our corrupt nature. We did what our corrupt desires and thoughts wanted us to do. So, because of our nature, we deserved God’s anger just like everyone else.

4 But God is rich in mercy because of his great love for us.

5 We were dead because of our failures, but he made us alive together with Christ. (It is God’s kindness that saved you.)

6 God has brought us back to life together with Christ Jesus and has given us a position in heaven with him.

7 He did this through Christ Jesus out of his generosity to us in order to show his extremely rich kindness in the world to come.

8 God saved you through faith as an act of kindness. You had nothing to do with it. Being saved is a gift from God.

9 It’s not the result of anything you’ve done, so no one can brag about it.

10 God has made us what we are. He has created us in Christ Jesus to live lives filled with good works that he has prepared for us to do.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

This Scripture reminds me that it is on Christ, the Solid Rock that I stand because of His love and sacrifice for me. We hear a lot about people who look at others and call them Mr. or Mrs. ‘Goodie 2’Shoe’ because they stand before them with their chest protruded and boast about how good they are. Friends, we were born into a world of sin and it captured our very hearts. Had it not been for the grace of God – His unfailing love, His enormous sacrifice, His everlasting mercy and His saving grace, we would have still been living in our sinful nature. Unfortunately, many still are living this way because of their own choice to not accept God’s gift of eternal life. But I believe that God repeatedly deals with them and places a desire in their heart to surrender their lives over to Him before it is too late. You see, sin has such a grip on this world and the children of this world that it is only through the power of our wonderful Lord that this hold can be broken and lives humbled into submission to the only One that loves them unconditionally and gave His life for them so that, once surrendered to Him, they too can join us around the throne of grace and live eternally in heaven one day. Where are you at friend? Have you allowed Jesus to help you break the chords of sin and truly give it all up for Him? As one who has, let me assure you that you will lose nothing, but instead gain the love of One who has sacrificed himself for you and has prepared a place for you in heaven. So not only will you lose nothing of value in this world, but you gain access to the creator of this universe and gain the world to come – heaven itself! Why not join me and millions others who have accepted this gift of love and given Jesus rule, authority and dominion over our lives so that we may live a better and more acceptable life in Him.

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Father, thank You for softening my heart some 37 years ago and leading me into a decision to accept You as Lord and Savior of my life. I am reminded that this occurred only because of Your love for me and your patience with me and Your constant prodding. Thank You for loving me that much, as many in this world had probably given up on me already. Please touch the hearts of my family and/or friends today, especially those that will read this devotional and reflect on its truth from Your Word. Please don’t give up on them, but whisper words of encouragement to them even today so that they may surrender unconditionally to the only One who loves them sacrificially. May this be a day that You will see results from Your Word being shared through this media and in Wednesday evening services around the world. Thank You for accepting this child into Your kingdom and for watching out for me each and every day!

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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Scripture: Ephesians 1.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Ephesians 1:19-20 (NLT)

19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power

20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

Paul spent most of this first chapter of Ephesians reminding the church at Ephesus how great our God is, and how awesome He is, in that He saved us by choosing us and sacrificing His Son to die for us, so that we may truly live eternally with Him in glory. I believe that this is something that the people of God need to be reminded about today also. I bet that for those of you reading this today, you are probably very much like me, in that we become so caught up in our own little world of personal problems, family challenges and church weakenesses, that we lose sight of the awesome power of the God that we love and serve. I encourage you to consider and be reminded that the One who created this world, that brought us into existence, that saw us choosing to go our own way and lose sight of Him and could not follow His commands, but yet He sacrificed His One and only Son so that the way might be open for us to accept this gift as the means for forgiveness of our sins and a right relationship with Him, our Creator, Lord and Savior! Wow, what a Savior! Wow, how could we wallow in self-pity and weakness when we have a resource like this by our side, and in our hearts and lives? The keys to the kingdom are ours friends! The answers are in the Book to all of life’s challenges and are readily available to us through God’s Holy Spirit that dwells in each of our hearts that have been cleansed and surrendered to the Master. As Paul said in the above verses, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead, is available to us as children of God. Why not commit with me today to lean not on our own understanding, depend not only on our own strength, but on the power of this awesome God that dwells within us, through the presence of His Holy Spirit.

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Lord Jesus, I must seek Your forgiveness today, for far too long have I tried to solve life’s problems on my own and tried to fix everything on my own. I am reminded today that I serve an all-powerful Savior who cares for me and for the things in my life, the lives of my family, the concerns of my church family and for those that I come into contact with each day. Please help me to always welcome and allow Your Son, Your powerful hand and Your awesome presence to fill my life and be such a part of my everyday decisions that I will always reflect back on Your mighty works and give You praise. I know that it is only through Your awesome power that many of the needs that concern me today will be met. Please have Your will and way in my life today.

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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Scripture: Galatians 6.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Galatians 6:1-3 (NLT)

1 Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.

2 Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.

3 If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

It is so easy to look down our glasses of indignation and put down a weaker brother or sister. It is almost as indignant to see a brother or sister struggling in sin and to sit back and praise God that we are better off than them and really hope that they would receive help soon. The Galatian church was reminded that it was not their responsibility to place that person before the pastor, although that may help, or before the church, although that may be needed at times, but friend we are encouraged to humbly help that person back onto the right path. I believe that when we humbly think of ways to help that person, we tend to pray intently that God would give us direction in how to help them – truly help them and not look for ways to punish them for their wrong doings. The latter part of verse one really brings the point home, because no matter how badly we think a brother may have done, we had best be very careful that we don’t fall into the same temptation ourselves. Had it not been for the grace of God, we could easily have been the one overcome by sin, rather than the one trying to help. It’s not until we share that brother or sister’s burden that we really feel the weight of what they are carrying, and see the need of help that they could badly use. Notice how Paul didn’t say anything about trying to fix their problem for them, let’s leave that to the Master. Share the burden so that you can feel the weight of their pain, then do all you can to help them back on the right path.

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Father, I thank You for Your precious Word. So often I might find it easier to ridicule and put a brother or sister down, rather than stepping alongside them and helping them carry the burden that they bear. You do that for me on a frequent basis, please help me as I strive to be more like You, to learn to humble myself and help a brother, or pray for a sister that may be struggling in sin. Please show me how to help them get back on the right path, without preaching a sermon to them.

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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Scripture: ^.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Galatians 5:19-25 (NLT)

19 When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division,

21 envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.

25 Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

Although Paul was preaching to the Galatian church when these words were penned, God authorized these words for His Holy Book because He knew that today we would need this direction and reminder in our churches. Now for those reading this devotional, I’m sure that you are throwing darts at me because this is not the case at your church. Praise be to God for blessing your church and separating it from this world!! Just being funny, because I can guarantee you that as long as humans make up the church body, that we will be plagued by the devices of Satan, and whenever we talk about our ‘sinful nature’, as Paul did in verse 19, we are talking about the negative impact that Satan has on God’s people today. Friends, I am reminded that we are to be so focused on the characteristics mentioned in verses 22 and 23 that anytime one of the characteristics in verses 19 – 21 sneaks in on us, we would automatically drop to our knees in prayer and ask God’s forgiveness – do as commanded in verse 24: decisively nail them to the cross. When we ignore these warning signs we reveal to God, and to the world, that we have not received the gift of the Spirit of God that leads us to a transformed life. Where are you today friend? Click on this hyperlink and meditate while surrendering yourself to God and allowing Him to show you if there be any wicked way in you. Let Him search your heart and know your thoughts and help you to overcome the attacks of Satan.

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Father, You have made us to be like You: holy, righteous, and filled with the characteristics of which Paul spoke in verses 22 and 23. How it must hurt You to see our failures and deliberate choices in allowing the desires of our sinful nature to take control of our lives. Please touch my life and help me anew today to live my life pleasing to You. May Your character and example be so evident in me today that others may see Jesus at my workplace, in my home, on the roadways and everywhere I will be today. Although many will not open Your Word today, I pray that Your teachings will be so evident in my life that they will be encouraged and drawn to You. May this be a glorious day in which You are celebrated in multiple ways, especially by those who call You Lord!

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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