What Would It Take to Convince You?

On 2019-09-232019-09-29 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Joy, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Salvation, WorshipLeave a comment

Monday, 2019-09-23

Bible Reference: Luke 24:36-41
Translation: Living Bible (TLB)

Bible Text: ³⁶And just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them, and greeted them. ³⁷But the whole group was terribly frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost!
³⁸“Why are you frightened?” he asked. “Why do you doubt that it is really I? ³⁹Look at my hands! Look at my feet! You can see that it is I, myself! Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost! For ghosts don’t have bodies, as you see that I do!” ⁴⁰As he spoke, he held out his hands for them to see the marks of the nails, and showed them the wounds in his feet.
⁴¹Still they stood there undecided, filled with joy and doubt.

OBSERVATION: The prophets foretold the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus told his disciples about His death, burial and Resurrection. The ladies to first visit the tomb found out that Christ had risen. The two disciples on the road to Emmaus saw that Jesus had risen. Yet when he stood before the disciples, they thought it was a ghost. I wonder how we might react to seeing Jesus in person at our work sites, or our homes, or our church services this week?

APPLICATION: In light of the challenge that the disciples faced, the Holy Spirit prompted me to look inward and see what I would do if Jesus appeared at my church, or in our Elders’ meeting, or Bible Study, etc. Whoa, that brought a whole new perspective on this. You see, I believe that often we will read these Scriptures and. if we’re not careful, we start to examine the hearts and lives of the individuals, like the disciples, to see what on earth might have distorted or blocked their faith at such a sensitive time. But what about us? I often attend a Easter Sunrise service each year, where we highlight, celebrate and try to envision with the rising sun, what it must have been like to see the rising Son. What if Jesus became our guest speaker at one of those services one year? Wouldn’t that truly break the routine what we might expect from those services each year? I can’t imagine the impact that would have on the believers present, or at least those who don’t die from shock! I make our midweek prayer service a vital part of my public, corporate, worship time each week. Often we will pray that Jesus might come down and heal our bodies, our church and our land. What if He came in person one night and just chatted with us about His Kingdom and perhaps His intentions for our ministry? Would our feeble hearts be capable of handling that? Friends, our Savior is no longer in the grave, for He arose! So as we reflect on the wonderful experience of the disciples, let’s be sure to prepare our hearts for seeing Jesus again some day. Whether it’s here on earth, or when we get to heaven, I am convinced that it will be a glorious time for us to kneel at His feet and worship Him endlessly! Fortunately I have never needed an organ donated, but I could only appreciate the thankful hearts of those who have benefited from such a miracle. But what about someone who agreed with His Father to lay His life on the line for our benefit? Can you even imagine how our hearts will sing, and how we will try to cling to our Savior who sacrificed it all for us, when we see Him face to face? Oh Lord Jesus, come!

PRAYER: The disciples experienced it first! Meeting you in person after Your Resurrection, had them in awe! And I can’t even imagine how such a miracle would impact us today. Lord, You gave it all for my friends and I, and we’ve read and understood from Scriptures that You are very much alive and awaiting our arrival in Heaven! Thank You Lord Jesus for making the way possible for us to overcome the evil of this wicked world and to make the transition to heaven one day where we might worship You throughout the rest of eternity. Please help us to live as children of the King, and may every selfish desire disappear as we work on convincing our unsaved loved ones and friends about the need for our Savior. Please soften hearts even today as we go about our way and make contact with various ones who have not yet accepted You. Please give us boldness and wisdom to share the joy of our salvation with everyone we come into contact with today. AMEN!

What The Prophets Foretold

On 2019-09-21 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Example, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Salvation, WorshipLeave a comment

Saturday, 2019-09-21

Bible Reference: Luke 24:25-27
Translation: Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

Bible Text: ²⁵Then Jesus said to the two men, “You are foolish and slow to realize what is true. You should believe everything the prophets said. ²⁶The prophets said the Messiah must suffer these things before he begins his time of glory.” ²⁷Then he began to explain everything that had been written about himself in the Scriptures. He started with the books of Moses and then he talked about what the prophets had said about him.

OBSERVATION: As I read these verses this morning, I believe that the Holy Spirit prompted me to prepare a response to Jesus, should He question why I am so downhearted over the destruction in Florida a year ago, and the more recent disaster in the Bahamas, because of hurricanes. I believe the natural response would be to question ‘Why, Lord?’. But I believe God is teaching us here that we should run to the Word of God and see what else is on the way for us. Meditate with me as we contemplate what the Word of God teaches us about everyday occurrences.

APPLICATION: As hurricane Dorian plundered around out in the Caribbean, I believe that most of us thought of it as having a motor and/or steering mechanism that would move it in a certain direction, and at chosen speeds. But I believe that God opened the eyes of this 65 year old, and finally showed me that this ‘bundle of wind’ is something moved around by the steering wind currents at the time. For just a quick moment, my mind wondered to question: then who controls the wind currents? Silly me, of course it is God who controls our wind currents, therefore God who steers the hurricanes. So the question remains: then why would God choose to steer the disastrous winds of a hurricane into the path of His people? Friends, the mystery of God is unknown to mankind, otherwise we might consider ourselves ‘God’. Think about this: In spite of what you may feel about why on earth was your challenging neighbor ever created, yet God, in His wisdom, not only created him/her, but also arranged that you two would wind up as neighbors! In spite of me being born in Long Island, Bahamas, brought up on the island of Eleuthera, and worked across several islands in the Bahamas, yet in 1987 God opened the doors for my wife and I to move to the United States of America. This, opened the doors to: 1) The adoption of our prized daughter; 2) My dad and sister-in-law being given another chance at life because of the medical professionals here; 3) My awesome job, that I am about to retire from, after 32 years; 4) Three wonderful churches that loved on us and allowed us to serve our Lord with them over our 32 years here; etc, etc. So would you remind me again why we should ever question God? Although my dad dreaded the idea of his oldest son leaving him in his old age, and move across the waters to another country, yet within 6 months of being in the US, and after he had received a stint in one of the vessels to his heart, he said to me ‘Now I can see what God was doing’. My dear friends, we need not question God, for He alone is God and His ways are far greater than our ways and above anything we could ever comprehend or imagine. Let me encourage you to saturate yourself with the Word of God. Meditate on it and allow it to fill your mind with the mind of Christ. Let it steer your thoughts, your decisions and your path, so that you will wind up in a place where God wants you, and not where you’ve always want to go. Depend on God to lead you and help you to understand His ways enough to be a blessing to someone else. People need the Lord, and it’s only when they look at you and see ‘Jesus’, that they might truly believe that He lives, because they could see Him living in you. It’s not about us friends, or about our material belongings. It’s about God, His Kingdom, and us being used by God to help win the lost from eternal death. Oh that we may praise God each and every day as we draw closer and closer to seeing Him face to face!

PRAYER: Lord, I feel like I may have gone off track from the referenced Scripture, but I pray that I could one day say like my dad did: ‘Now I could see what God was up to’! Lord, these devotionals are a testimony of Your wonderful grace and how You express Your unconditional love towards me in so many awesome ways. May others experience Jesus as they read these, and may they make decisions to draw close to You in their temporary walk here on earth, so that You may be glorified in all aspects of their life. AMEN!

Your Interest in The Living Christ

On 2019-09-20 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Commitment, Committed, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

Friday, 2019-09-20

Bible Reference: Luke 24:1-3
Translation: The Passion Translation (TPT)

Bible Text: Very early that Sunday morning, the women made their way to the tomb, carrying the spices they had prepared. Among them were Mary Magdalene; Joanna; and Mary, Jesus’ mother. ²Arriving at the tomb they discovered that the huge stone covering the entrance had been rolled aside, ³so they went in to look. But the tomb was empty. The body of Jesus was gone!

OBSERVATION: Perhaps it’s part of the difference between how men and women think, or perhaps what each find important, but regardless of the differences, the three ladies mentioned in our text were determined to take good care of our Lord after His death, while the men gathered together for prayer. As we meditate on these verses, I pray that God will draw us into a time that we place ourselves into the picture and think about what we may have done!

APPLICATION: While reading God’s Word, I was led to reflect on how any of this applies to us today. I was reminded of the major crisis going on today in our communities, where crime is at such critical levels, while at the same time the family structure is probably at it’s worse. I wonder if there is a parallel? Throughout the Bible we can see clearly how God expects our men to take an important role in life. Leadership of their families, and leadership at our churches. So let us therefore look inward to see how we might have handled this situation today. First of all, let us reflect on our family structure. Where are our men? Gentlemen, is it enough to date our women and have children with them, but have no leadership role in their home? Could it be that too many of you are without the key leadership role of Jesus Christ in your lives, so there is therefore no prompting of the Holy Ghost to be good husbands and/or dads? Could it be that because you have no true relationship with Jesus Christ, that it is not important for you to teach His principles in your homes, or lead the way in taking your family out to church? I believe it is evident that because of our dysfunctional families and homes, our kids have resorted to lives of crime in order to find attention from someone. I want to encourage our men to stand tall Brothers. Jesus Christ sacrificed His life, so that we might have an eternity to look forward to with He and His Father! He invited us to know Him personally, and to lead our families into a relationship with Him. He led a perfect life – without sin! So if we commit to Him, and we lead our families to do the same, and we are obedient to His Word, then our families will be led to lives free of crime! So why did God take me in this direction today? I don’t believe it was to indicate that the disciples were living sinful lives, unworthy of Christ, but in wondering why the disciples chose not to take care of the body of Jesus after his death, I was led to also wonder why our men today are satisfied in resting while: their wives take on the role of getting her family out to church; while their children follow the crowd in committing crime (sin); while churches struggle to find qualified men for leadership. Wake up men! Please take on your assigned role and be good leaders. Become a ‘Paul’, who told his followers to follow him as he follows Christ. Please, let’s take our roles seriously. Only what’s done for Jesus will last, so let’s make our lives count!

PRAYER: Oh Lord Jesus, please help our men to be men of God. Our communities are going to ‘pot’, and our young people are resorting to everything Satan has to offer, because of the lack of leadership and role models in their lives. Oh that we might commit ourselves so faithfully to You Lord, that our kids will see the living Christ working through us. May our words remind others of Jesus, may our actions and our lives be living examples of all that we know of Jesus – the One who never sinned. For the one who stumbled on this devotional and might be trying to understand its message, please Lord, touch their hearts and call them to Yourself today. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please 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 might 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 Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Sebring, 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!

The Man in the Middle

On 2019-09-16 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Worship2 Comments

Monday, 2019-09-16

Bible Reference: Luke 23:39-43
Translation: The Passion Translation (TPT)

Bible Text: ³⁹One of the criminals hanging on the cross next to Jesus kept ridiculing him, saying, “What kind of Messiah are you? Save yourself and save us from this death!”
⁴⁰The criminal hanging on the other cross rebuked the man, saying, “Don’t you fear God? You’re about to die! ⁴¹We deserve to be condemned, for we’re just being repaid for what we’ve done. But this man—he’s done nothing wrong!”
⁴²Then he said, “I beg of you, my Lord Jesus, show me grace and take me with you into your everlasting kingdom!”
⁴³Jesus responded, “I promise you—this very day you will enter paradise with me.”

OBSERVATION: Two criminals about to receive their due sentence for the crimes they were guilty of, yet each dealt with the ‘Man in the Middle’ quite differently. Both recognized Him as God, but their attitudes were totally opposing. We make those same evaluations every day, and because we are impacted differently, we often wind up making totally different decisions about life, based on those impacts. Perhaps we need to meditate together on the thought that God speaks to each of us daily, in some form or fashion, but it’s up to each of us individually how prepared we are to handle that, and how we process those God encounters.

APPLICATION: I am always amazed at the way that one church member will emerge from a church service on a spiritual high, because of the spoken word that day. Yet if you speak with another member who sat just a row behind, they got absolutely nothing from the sermon. One walked away blessed, drawn closer to the Lord, and determined to serve God better in every aspect of life. The other walked away untouched, unchanged, and no closer to God than they were before. This is very similar to one who might sit and read the Word of God. For the one who simply sits and reads the Bible as any other novel, they will search for certain styles of writing, and for a story-line that appeals to them. For the child of God interested in learning more about God, to hearing from Him, and wanting more direction form God so it could be applied to their life, they will seek God first, ask for His direction, and desire that He clearly show them how to apply what they will read. Each reader will walk away having read the Word, but I believe that only one will have discovered the voice of God. Unfortunately in life, we are very much like the two criminals, for some will be ready to fight back, find fault and negativity in everything they encounter, while others look for the good in others, and they look for ways in which God will use fellow humans to confirm His word to us that day. We have no way of determining how each of these criminal started off their day, but we do know that they each realized that their life of sin was now coming to a close through corporal punishment. They also had to deal with a fellow who was about to receive their same punishment, but never committed a crime. What on earth would they do with that? Perhaps one faced the situations of that day just like he did any other day – in anger and total disregard for everyone else. Perhaps the other one finally realized his mistakes and spoke to God that morning, knowing that he had but just a short time left here on earth. Something truly impacted their mindset as they hung there on those crosses waiting for the final bell. The plight of the criminals were extremely similar to ours dear friends, what we do with the Man in the Middle today, will determine what happens to us at the final bell. The criminals knew their ‘Bell’ would be rung that day. We also know that ours could be rung today! Are you ready for it?

PRAYER: Oh for a thousand tongues to sing, my great Redeemer’s praise…. The words of a popular old hymn, yet so true for the how I feel today dear God. You have reminded me once again in Your Word, that my attitude and my preparation for eternal life will make the difference in how my day is presented, and what I can expect when my ‘final bell’ is tolled. My desire is to allow You as Lord of my life, and under Your control and with Your awesome power, I would ask that You prepare me for the day ahead where others might see Jesus in every aspect of my life. I acknowledge that I must seek to be blessed, if I expect to be a blessing to others. Lord, have Your awesome will and way in my life today. Please also touch the heart of everyone that stops to meditate on this devotional today. May Your Holy Spirit speak volumes to each one about Your will for their life. AMEN!

Your Song of Praise

On 2019-09-15 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Praise-worthy, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

Sunday, 2019-09-15

Bible Reference: Psalm 59:16-17
Translation: Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

Bible Text: ¹⁶But I will sing about your strength.
    I will rejoice in your love every morning.
You have been my place of safety,
    the place I can run to when troubles come.
¹⁷I will sing praises to you, my source of strength.
    You, God, are my place of safety.
    You are the God who loves me!

OBSERVATION: When we’re about to receive thousands of dollars, we could probably assemble an unbelievable great song of praise to God! When our first grandchild is born, our hearts are so filled with the miracle of new birth that words of praise to our God would flow forth uncontrollably from our lips. But what about our song when we reflect on the ups and downs of our week? What about when our marriage is not going well, or when we’re overwhelmed with the stress of people out to ‘get us’? Should those times of praise look any differently? Meditate with me as we think about this.

APPLICATION: It is so easy for us to raise our songs of complaining about our finances; our health; our loved one’s hospitalization; and so on. All I know is, that no matter how hard one might have it, as for me, my situation is at a breaking point, so listen up dear friend as I unload on you!! To the contrary, can you imagine the feeling that must have come over the spies from Saul’s group as they snuck up to David’s house and overheard Him singing praises to his God? Friends, I don’t know about you, but I am very ‘human’ when it comes to stressful situations, similar to the situation David must have been facing at this time in his life where Saul was out to kill him. I become jittery inside, grouchy with those around me, and often become silent (to make sure I don’t say the wrong thing), so would I ever think of making time to glorify God in the middle of my pity party? Highly unlikely! But is it not true that Jesus never fought back, or showed anger, or hatred towards those who set out to harm Him? He knew it was the Father’s will that He should go to the cross, and He was prepared to honor Him in everything ordained by God. Could it be that God places us in certain situations to help us grow closer to Him, or perhaps learn to understand others, or perhaps get that chip off our shoulder? Scripture repeats itself in telling us that ‘in ALL things, give thanks’! Imagine with me for a moment that the same God who blesses us richly each and every day, is the same God that waits for our acknowledgment of His lordship even when things don’t seem to be going the way we expected. He’s in control Brothers and Sisters, so never turn your back on Him. Satan would love nothing more than to temp you with something and than see you fail, or at least falter in your faith. Be strong in the Lord and trust in Him in ALL your ways, my friend! This is a good day to strive for that goal! Prayerfully get before the Master and ask Him to help you make right decisions; read His Word for His answer back to you and the direction you should follow; listen to the spoken Word from Bible Believing pastors; and then be busy about His work. His ways will ultimately lead to a path that brings praise back to the Almighty. So seek my Lord while you are able to, and be obedient to His call. There’s nothing more satisfying in this whole world than to know that you are following the will of God, for this is what He desires of His children seeking to be with Him for eternity!

PRAYER: Oh Lord, I am truly reminded today to continue praising You in the good times, but also to never forget to praise You in the storms of life. You never promised us life without challenges, but you assured us that You will be with us at ALL times, and in every circumstance of life. Lord, You know the challenges that we face, and how overwhelmed we become at times. Please help us to always keep our heads up, looking full into the face of the One who loves us beyond compare, and reminding us that You will love us through the good, and the challenging times of life. Thank You for Your unconditional, sacrificial love for us, please help us to love You enough to never question Your ways and Your decisions. Please help those that will read this devotional and may not know you personally, to realize that You’re are every bit as awesome as I have tried to portray in this devotional today. For You are alone are God, and there is no one above or beyond You. AMEN!

Be Faithful in Following Jesus

On 2019-09-13 By Ed AlgreenIn Commitment, Committed, Faithful, Sold out, True, Unwavering1 Comment

Friday, 2019-09-13

Bible Reference: Matthew 4:18-22
Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

Bible Text: ¹⁸ One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers—Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew—throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. ¹⁹ Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” ²⁰ And they left their nets at once and followed him. ²¹ A little farther up the shore he saw two other brothers, James and John, sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, repairing their nets. And he called them to come, too. ²² They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind.

OBSERVATION: Accepting Jesus because mom pressured you to do so, or because your prospective father-in-law only wants his daughter to marry a believer, would receive a totally different commitment from you, than a personal encounter with God, where He called you to repentance for the way that you have totally ignored His gift of salvation. In our example today from the Scripture, God had a personal encounter with the disciples. I believe that you should also listen closely for the call of God on your life, and that you should quickly respond.

APPLICATION: Imagine for a moment if Peter and Andrew had concluded after meeting Jesus that He was a good man and would make a wonderful Savior for many people, especially for those who had time to follow Him around and observe His marvelous works. Imagine how little impact Jesus would have had on these two men if they chose to continue making a living and left Jesus alone to go and impact the brothers up the road who had nothing better to do. James and John had similar choices to make in verses 21 and 22, but like Peter and Andrew, these guys immediately dropped what they were doing and followed Jesus. Friends these stories were included in the Word to show us the impact of total surrender. I don’t believe for a moment that God intends for every Christian to give up our jobs to be obedient followers of His. However, I do believe that God is showing us that it is important for us to take a 180 degree turn from what we did as a sinner, so that we might prove to whom we now belong. We don’t need to prove it to God, for He knows our very inmost thoughts and desires, but we need to convince ourselves that we have seriously redirected our lives to following the Savior, the King of all kings, Jesus Christ. We need to prove it to our friends. We can’t continue doing the things of this world (Satan approved things) and still expect our friends to see a difference in our lives. Think about everyday scenarios: what do you do when you go on a diet? You can’t lose weight eating the same junk food and sweets that brought you to your obese state in the first place. What do you do when you get married? You can’t hang out with your buddies until the wee hours of the morning and expect to go home and find your new spouse happily waiting for you. So what about the Christian walk? I would dare say that you can’t live like the Devil and say that you are a Christian. We have to leave the garbage behind, much like the disciples left their nets and their boats behind, and choose to give God our all – our undying allegiance, our unwavering love and dedication. Show Him that You are serious about the decision you made to follow Him – perhaps He will use you like He did in the case of the disciples mentioned! Won’t that be awesome!

PRAYER: Gracious Lord, thank You for being patient with us. I’m afraid that too often we tend to try and continue doing what we’ve always done, yet expect different results, or worse still – try to convince ourselves that our allegiance has changed. Lord, I believe that these four disciples were so sold out to you that they gave up their fishing careers to become ‘fishers of men’ in your kingdom work. I am convinced that we need more folk like this today Lord, so that the world might know without a doubt who rules in our lives. Please work on us today and convict us of any shortfall You see in our lives and our commitment to You. May we be usable instruments in Your hands to reach the lost. I ask this in the strong and unwavering name of Jesus, AMEN!

Relationship Denials

On 2019-09-12 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Boldness, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Relationship, Relationships, WorshipLeave a comment

Thursday, 2019-09-12

Bible Reference: Luke 22:26-60
Translation: The Passion Translation (TPT)

Bible Text: ⁵⁶A girl noticed Peter sitting in the firelight. Staring at him, she pointed him out and said, “This man is one of Jesus’ disciples!”
⁵⁷Peter flatly denied it, saying, “What are you talking about, girl? I don’t know him!”
⁵⁸A little while later, someone else spotted Peter and said, “I recognize you. You’re one of his, I know it!”
Peter again said, “I’m not one of his disciples.”
⁵⁹About an hour later, someone else identified Peter and insisted he was a disciple of Jesus, saying, “Look at him! He’s from Galilee, just like Jesus. I know he’s one of them.”
⁶⁰But Peter was adamant. “Listen, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Don’t you understand? I don’t even know him.” While the words were still in his mouth, the rooster crowed.

OBSERVATION: We are identified and referred to by the people and places that we hang around, and often by the clothes we wear. Imagine a doctor walking around your favorite store in a pair of shorts. Would you ever recognize him? Imagine a charismatic pastor sitting in a waiting room at the hospital in casual clothes calmly and softly chatting with a young lady, would you recognize him? Also, what if you traveled to a country that is unfriendly to the gospel, and the authorities identified you as ‘one of those Christians’. Would you quickly step forward and rejoice that God has answered your prayers? Join me as we meditate on the dilemma of Peter.

APPLICATION: With every good intention, many of us pray that others may see the character and love of Jesus in us, hoping that others might be drawn to Christ because of our testimony. Inside our churches we sing His praises, love on other like believers, and we may even shout ‘Amen’ in agreement to all that the Pastor has to say. All things that the Savior might be proud of, right? But what are we like in our business places? In our business decisions? In our after work parties? Or in our political affiliations? Will the servant girl identify us as ‘one of His’? We might very easily become entrapped in similar challenges with other associations in life. Like Peter, some may be afraid of the consequences that might ensue because of family affiliations, or political affiliations, or others. Friends, I believe that our challenge in this Scripture today is ‘What will we do with Jesus?’. Is He just a good relationship to keep mom, spouse, children and the pastor, happy and off our back? Is He good to know when things are really rough on us – medical challenges; dying relative; a child in trouble with the law; etc. or have you truly accepted Him as your Lord and personal Savior? I pray that you’ve developed such a relationship with Him that you are comforted by His love; His guidance; His wisdom; and His promise of eternity with He and the Father in heaven? Let me suggest that if you feel all of the latter, and you know that your eternity is secure in Him, then may I challenge you today to think about what your answers would be to the questions asked of Peter? For I believe that you will be challenged along the same lines as Peter was, while living this life here on earth. Decide this day whom you will follow, and to whom you will cling to, when challenged by the ungodly and those who are out to get you.

PRAYER: Precious Lord, take my hand, lead me on through every step of this Christian life. Whether in the good times of rejoicing with fellow Christians, or in situations where we are faced with the daggers of the enemy, please give us the boldness to never back down from our association and relationship with You. After all, You bore the embarrassment and the sting of punishment for us while carrying out the plan of Your Father, so that the mean and the wicked of this world might have the means of salvation – union with God the Father. Thank You for Your sacrifice, and thank You for the love shown for us. Please embolden us with Your power and Your strength to never back down from our ties with You. Oh that You would rule and reign in us, until the day You call us home to glory! AMEN!

Consider Your Form of Betrayal

On 2019-09-11 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Betrayal, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

Wednesday, 2019-09-11

Bible Reference: Luke 22:47-48
Translation: The Passion Translation (TPT)

Bible Text: ⁴⁷No sooner had he finished speaking when suddenly a mob approached, and right in front of the mob was his disciple Judas. He walked up close to Jesus and greeted him with a kiss. For he had agreed to give the religious leaders a sign, saying, “The one I kiss is the one to seize.” ⁴⁸Jesus looked at him with sorrow and said, “A kiss, Judas? Are you really going to betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”

OBSERVATION: A story that we’ve read and/or heard many times, yet the Holy Spirit will challenge you each time that you read it again. I bolded a statement that I was challenged with today as I read this Scripture. I trust that as we meditate on this, we might ponder what actions we take individually in betraying, or denying our Lord.

APPLICATION: Betrayal is one of the most painful human experiences. Discovering that someone we trusted has deeply hurt us pulls the reality rug from under us. We might look at Judas and wonder how could he possibly betray his Lord after seeing Him heal the sick; bring the dead back to life; feed the 5,000; show love to the unlovable; and sit down at the table with he and the other 11 disciples. Why Jesus even showed deep humility in washing the disciples’ feet. Yet for a small bag of coins, and a moment of recognition by the religious leaders, Judas escaped the reality of a loving Savior and joined the side of the enemy to crucify Jesus. I couldn’t help but ponder what we would feel like if Jesus looked into our eyes and asked the same question of us. Will you betray me with ______ Ed? Friends, we may not be in the same position as Judas, where we are selling out to the religious leaders, but I’m afraid that there are times that we hide our relationship with the Master. Perhaps in a public setting known for their stand against religious lingo, or Christian practices; Perhaps in the presence of government officials who are bombarded by fellow representatives who frequently speak of the separation of church and state; Perhaps just in a public setting, like a restaurant, where others may steer at you if you pause to give thanks for your food. I believe that anytime we fail to recognize Jesus in all walks of life, or are embarrassed to claim Him as your Lord and Savior, you are betraying the trust that He expects from you. Can you imagine hanging on a cross half naked and beaten to a pulp, because it was His way of displaying His ultimate love for us? Imagine if He would have backed out of that, because we were just not worth the pain it would cause our Lord? How would you feel about Him? Friends, is there anything you wouldn’t do in return for our Savior’s love and the provision of salvation made possible just for us? For Judas, it was a simple, everyday kiss that told the whole story of denial for him. What is it for you?

PRAYER: Precious Lord, thank You for never backing down on Your commitment to Your Father. Thank You for always loving us, and Your willingness to even be crucified just for us. Please touch our hearts today with a renewed sense of boldness and love for You. May our commitment to serving You be so strong that nothing will ever separate us from the love of God. Yes, we want to please our friends, please our government leaders, and be a noble citizen, but please give us the strength to never do any of that at the expense of serving You and being true to our commitment in loving You for all eternity. Oh that others may see Your love in us today and want to know You personally, before it’s too late. AMEN!

What If God Turned His Back On You?

On 2019-09-10 By Ed AlgreenIn Choice, Trust, Unashamed1 Comment

Tuesday, 2019-09-10

Bible Reference: Judges 10:9-14
Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

Bible Text: ⁹…. The Israelites were in great distress. ¹⁰Finally, they cried out to the Lord for help, saying, “We have sinned against you because we have abandoned you as our God and have served the images of Baal.”
¹¹The Lord replied, “Did I not rescue you from the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, ¹²the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and the Maonites? When they oppressed you, you cried out to me for help, and I rescued you. ¹³Yet you have abandoned me and served other gods. So I will not rescue you anymore. ¹⁴Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen! Let them rescue you in your hour of distress!”

OBSERVATION: We have become such a spoiled people, that we seldom ever think of God turning His back on us. We hear it all the time: Oh, well, I will just ask God to forgive me; Oops, I shouldn’t have done that, but God will forgive me; God always forgives me; etc, etc. I’m sure you may have even uttered these words as well, so I hope that our Scripture passage will not be a shock to you today, for God told the Israelites “NO”! Meditate with me friends, for we must know the truth about God, and His plan of forgiveness.

APPLICATION: We hear so much about death-bed conversions – that is, folk who do not want to make a decision while they are healthy and enjoying life, but when they know that there is no choice and they are indeed dying, then they ask to know and accept Jesus. Friends, I’m not saying that those decisions are necessarily hopeless, but there are at least two dangers:

1. Who knows whether you will survive a fatal crash and have the ability, and possibly last opportunity, to accept Jesus before passing away from this world? We could be snatched from this world instantly and without further opportunity to accept Jesus.

2. The Israelites in this Bible story, were blessed by God, protected, guided and loved dearly, but they were easily led by Satan to follow other gods. However, when they got into serious trouble and needed rescuing, they didn’t turn to these ‘little’ gods for help, but rather turned to the Almighty God. The good thing is that, like the prodigal son, they came to their senses and they realized that they needed something/someone greater – God.

Words that I wish no one meditating on this would ever hear, “Go away for I never knew you” or “I will not accept you, because you rejected me and worked against me so much during your lifetime”. But the Israelites heard similar words because of their stubbornness and ungodly acts.

I would beg all that may meditate on this today, and especially all that I know and love, to not delay in surrendering your life to Jesus. Please know that He loves you, and loved you enough that He gave up life itself so that you may have life everlasting with Him in glory. That’s a gift offered to you today, but its only yours if you accept it. Please respond to this post if you would like to learn more about accepting the gift of eternal life with Jesus, I would be overjoyed to help you biblically with this. Alternately, you are free to read every detail in my Footnote, and follow the plan outlined in the Bible.

PRAYER: My prayer today is that I will always be steadfast in my faith and my commitment to Jesus. May He find me faithful. My prayer for family and friends who may read this devotional and might be afraid of giving up a life of ‘fun’ to accept Jesus, I pray that God would open your eyes and help you see that there is never as much fun when you are living in fear. Living life without the fear of hell and the fear of dying unprepared is a life of peace and assurance – a life worth living! Friend, know God and know peace! When there is no God, there is no peace. May God grant you the boldness and the strength to make the right decision today. AMEN!

The Results of Half-Hearted Commitment

On 2019-09-07 By Ed AlgreenIn Bible Believing, Christian, Commitment, Committed, Defeated foe, Pleasing to God, Power of PrayerLeave a comment

Saturday, 2019-09-07

Bible Reference: Joshua 13:13 ; 15:63
Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

Bible Text: Joshua 13:13 But the Israelites failed to drive out the people of Geshur and Maacah, so they continue to live among the Israelites to this day.
Joshua 15:63 But the tribe of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites, who lived in the city of Jerusalem, so the Jebusites live there among the people of Judah to this day.

OBSERVATION: There are consequences for lack of commitment, whether in our homes, our jobs, or in our decision to wholeheartedly follow Jesus Christ. Join me as we meditate on a few examples of this and how God totally used a man who was sold out in his commitment to Him.

APPLICATION: Over the past chapters we read where Joshua and/or Moses were, with the help and direction of God, successful in overcoming a number of territories and their respective kings. I found it odd to read the two verses above where the Israelites were unsuccessful, or perhaps failed, in driving out the Jebusites and the people of Geshur and Maacah. Surely the God they served, and of course the same God that we serve today, is very capable of overcoming all obstacles. In my further study I found where these same people that failed to fully conquer, were the same ones that caused unending difficulties for the Israelites, as recorded in the book of Judges. This sounds like there may have been personal reasons that the Israelites just didn’t push hard enough to really oust these people. This reminds me of ourselves, for there are times that we refuse to seek God’s forgiveness of certain things that we like to hang on to, or His power to truly rid ourselves of certain sins that are either profitable for us, or meaningful to us. Often these little sins that we hold dear to our selfish little hearts are the very same things that come back to bite us and cause us extreme difficulties. I believe that like in the case of Joshua, God is still looking for folk that are totally sold out to Him. Folk that have totally surrendered everything to Him. Folk that have set aside the sinful things of this world, committed themselves, and surrendered themselves to the unadulterated Word of God and have sought to serve Him unconditionally. In fact, the Word of God goes on to substantiate this, for in Joshua 14:9 we are told that Caleb was given special favor with God because he ‘wholeheartedly‘ followed God’s commands. Because God gave up everything for me, yes His one and only Son, so that I might have life eternally and more abundantly, then the least I can do in return is to surrender ALL sin to Him – yes everything that does not align with God’s Word, His will, and His commands. I commit myself anew to serve my King unconditionally, and without compromise. I pray that my readers who are serious about the Lord will consider this same commitment today. For those who have not yet met my Lord personally, I pray that you will read my Footnote carefully, including the hyperlinked Scriptures, and invite Jesus into your heart today. He loves you and He wants to rule and reign in your life today! Friends, there is no room for halfheartedness – oh that we may all be totally sold out to Jesus! There is nothing that this world can offer that compares to Him!

PRAYER: There is only one way that I can be a totally true, unselfish, child of God and overcome daily temptations and sin, and that is to seek Your help O God and look to You in all humility for strength and guidance to live as You would have me live – so that You can truly have a usable vessel through which You can touch others. May others come to know You as Lord, and surrender their all to You. Many need the Lord, and I pray that You will be able to use all of us meditating on this devotional today as we fully place our trust in You. Please forgive me where I have been deliberately selfish and weak and given in to sin. This is unbecoming of a child of Yours and I need Your forgiveness and strength to overcome. May my readers and I live our lives in total surrender and commitment to our Lord, is my humble prayer O Lord! Amen!

Nuggets From God's Word

Tag: Bible