Tag: Compassion

Finding Compassion: Reflecting on Jeremiah’s Message

On By Ed AlgreenIn Accept Jesus NOW, Acknowledge God, All have sinned, Awesome God, Compassion, Evangelize, God Cares For Us, God’s Word, Love2 Comments

DATE POSTED
Tuesday, January 21, 2025, and I was blessed to be at Mariposa at Hunter Road, San Marcos, TX when God inspired me to prepare this devotional. My Footnote will tell you how to find and read any and all episodes that I have shared over the years.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
Quoted from The Message (MSG) and found in Jeremiah 9:1-2

THE SCRIPTURE READS
1-2 I wish my head were a well of water and my eyes fountains of tears So I could weep day and night for casualties among my dear, dear people.
At times I wish I had a wilderness hut, a backwoods cabin, Where I could get away from my people and never see them again. They’re a faithless, feckless bunch, a congregation of degenerates.

APPLICATION – as inspired by the Holy Spirit
Unless you are aware that Jeremiah is known as ‘The Weeping Prophet’, it may be challenging for you to understand where he is coming from in these first two verses of chapter 9 in the book he wrote, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Although I must be the first to say that I have not been led to tears over the sins of my fellow believers, I have often pondered if pastors ever get to this stage after seeing their parishioners continue to live in sin, in spite of the heartfelt, Holy Spirt-led teaching and preaching they do each week. I believe that we all can identify to some extent when we think about our children who continue in rebellion regardless of the lessons we have taught them and the life-examples we have lived out before them. As for these devotionals, I was once asked where do I find these on the internet so that I could share these through Nuggets From God’s Word. For those who read these carefully, you already know that these are from my heart as inspired by the Holy Spirit who lives inside of me. However, in my study on these verses, I was so touched by one of the commentators that I refer to often, that I feel compelled to share his teaching with you on these verses. John Courson explains: ‘Jeremiah didn’t deliver his prophecies condemningly, with fingers pointing. He delivered them from a broken heart and with tear-filled eyes. That’s why God chose him. Some people come into our lives and say, “Woe is you,” as they condemn and point their fingers. Not Jeremiah. He shared the message of God accurately, but not without weeping compassionately. I believe we have no right to judge any other person or situation if we’re not brokenhearted about it. If I don’t feel compassion and tenderness, brokenness and love, I need to keep my mouth shut. I don’t have any right to point out the dirt on another’s feet unless I’m willing to do what Jesus did—to get down and start washing. If I’m not willing to get involved in restoring, loving, weeping, and caring, I’m missing the mark entirely.‘ Friends, there are some principles in this, that if our church followed them, we might be as close as we could get on earth to having a righteous, God-loving, holy and caring church. One that the unsaved would feel more compelled to join, and learn together with us about the God that we serve. If they got the slightest inkling that God is impacting our lives in such a way, they would be so excited about also accepting His Son, Jesus, as their Savior and allowing Him to be Lord of their life. So why don’t we mourn over the sin and its effects on our family, neighbors and fellow church members? Could it be that we don’t care about them? Or that we’re afraid of how they might respond to us? Or, could it be that we are so on and off in our own relationship with God because we don’t have a living, daily, intimate relationship with the Savior who died for us so that we might have the chance of eternity in Heaven? Is the sin in your own life causing you to cry out before a holy and righteous God? Is your relationship with Jesus fueled only by the Pastor’s sermons whenever you attend church, or do you enjoy a daily, regular, intimate time with the Lord each and every day? Have you been accused by a friend of being Christ-like, or is that reserved only for your time inside the church walls? I believe we were designed to cry, or shed tears, for things that truly hurt us deeply. When we do all we can to lead someone to the Lord, it will hurt us to even look at them and see them continue in sin. This might very well trigger a flood of tears from the hurt we feel inside. Perhaps we should petition the Father to cause us to hurt for the things that bring Him reason to hurt. This might incent us to seek God’s help to fulfill His purpose in reaching the lost for Christ.

PRAYER
Precious Lord Jesus, thank You for creating us to hurt for the things You hurt for. I can only imagine how it must hurt You deeply when we allow Satan to intervene and take away our God-likeness, and harden our hearts to either gossip about our struggling neighbors or to put them down, instead of following Your example to love us, sacrifice for us and lift us up from our life of sin. Praise God for showing, and promising us the glories of Heaven, that’s fit for a child of the King. Please Lord, teach us to desire a living, daily, personal relationship with You, so that we may desire and aim for the same for those in our inner circle of family and friends. Jeremiah was known as the ‘weeping prophet’ because of his deep desire to see people know His God and live like His children. Please touch our hearts to desire the same thing You want for Your children who need a Savior and a close relationship with You. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE
If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please take advantage of information provided on my page ‘To Know Jesus’. I would also suggest that you speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com and share your good news! Perhaps one of God’s servants will pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue, your walk with Jesus. If you would like to read more of my devotionals, or subscribe for a daily email containing each new devotional, please go online to NuggetsFromGodsWord.org. Friends, please allow me to encourage you to find a church home nearby your home and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider being a part of that, while also growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Praise God for His Compassion!

On By Ed AlgreenIn A Lamp unto My Path, Adoration, Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Awesome God, Beyond Description, Blessing, Celebrate God, Needs, Praise, Praise-worthy, Recognize God, Worship1 Comment

DATE POSTED: Friday, February 2, 2024, and I was blessed to be at Advent Christian Village, Dowling Park, FL when God inspired me to prepare this devotional. My Footnote will tell you how to find, read or listen to any and all episodes that I have shared over the years.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE FROM THE Good News Translation (GNT) IS FOUND IN Isaiah 30:18-23

THE BIBLE TEXT IS: And yet the Lord is waiting to be merciful to you. He is ready to take pity on you because he always does what is right. Happy are those who put their trust in the Lord.
You people who live in Jerusalem will not weep any more. The Lord is compassionate, and when you cry to him for help, he will answer you. The Lord will make you go through hard times, but he himself will be there to teach you, and you will not have to search for him any more. If you wander off the road to the right or the left, you will hear his voice behind you saying, “Here is the road. Follow it.” 
Whenever you plant your crops, the Lord will send rain to make them grow and will give you a rich harvest, and your livestock will have plenty of pasture. 

APPLICATION OF THE WORD: To get the full impact of these verses today, you will want to click on my Scripture reference and read the whole chapter of Isaiah 30. In fact, you may also wonder if Isaiah may have been blessed with this prophecy because of everything that has happened in your life! Israel had turned to Egypt for help instead of turning to the God of this universe – very much like we tend to do when we moan, complain, and turn to various government programs or other resources when we feel like we have reached the end of our supply chain, friends list, protection or hope. God disciplined Israel pretty severely through heartaches, trials, lost battles, and just plain hopelessness. He wanted them to see what life would be like if they got their wish to truly exclude Him from their lives. Not sure about you dear friends, but there seems to be times in my life also when so many unexpected things are occurring that I am made to wonder if my life is properly aligned and obedient in every way with my Master – Jesus Christ. But then comes verse 19 above where we are reminded that we serve a compassionate God. For me, this breaks down to Him being loving, caring, and always having our best interest at heart, even when He has to discipline us. However, although this is what we derive from our understanding of God, what do we learn about ourselves in this Scripture today? Unfortunately, it becomes very evident that we are spoiled worse than the most undisciplined child we can think of. In spite of us not doing our part, we first blame God for not caring about our situation, or denouncing all those that God may have placed in our path to love and care for us, or complaining about our lack of perfect health, finances, material goods, opportunities, and prospects for our future. Oh that we would be reminded today that God is still love; that He created us in His image; that He sacrificed His very own Son so that we might be forgiven of our sin and allowed to join Him in heaven one day; that His love for us is far greater than anything our human minds could comprehend; and that He has a future in mind for us just as He had for the Israelites, if only we would turn from our wicked ways and acknowledge Him as Lord and everlasting Savior. Yes, my friend, we serve a compassionate God. Do you know Him intimately? Have you given Him lordship of your life? I really want to see you in heaven one day, so please allow me to encourage you to sure up your relationship with the only One who can make this possible, Jesus Christ.

PRAYER BECAUSE OF THE IMPACT OF TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Thank You Lord for loving me, even when I may appear unlovable to others around me. Thank You for providing the means for my future in heaven to be assured. Please Lord, continue to impress upon the hearts of my readers, listeners, and myself that we have a strong hope and a very bright future. Soften hearts so that we might take our eyes off self long enough to see a loving, compassionate and caring Savior who truly wants us in His presence one day when life here on earth is complete. Please give us opportunity to share this love with others today so that they may also be reminded of Your compassion and grace causing them to develop a growing desire to find and accept You as Lord. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There’s another page on my website, entitled ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to this 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. If you would like to read more of my devotionals, or subscribe for a daily email containing each new devotional, please go online to NuggetsFromGodsWord.org. For my podcast, go online to Apple Podcasts or, using the Apple Podcast app, simply search for Nuggets From God’s Word to hear more episodes, or click ‘Follow’ to be notified of Podcast updates. Friends, please allow me to encourage you to find a church home nearby your home and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Jesus Cares For You

On By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Compassion, Miracles, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Tuesday, 2023-01-03
WRITTEN AT: O’Brien, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Luke 7:12-14
TRANSLATION: The Passion Translation (TPT)

BIBLE TEXT: 12As he approached the village, he met a multitude of people in a funeral procession, who were mourning as they carried the body of a young man to the cemetery. The boy was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow. 13When the Lord saw the grieving mother, his heart broke for her.  With great tenderness he said to her, “Please don’t cry.” 14Then he stepped up to the coffin and touched it. When the pallbearers came to a halt, Jesus spoke directly to the corpse, “Young man, I say to you, arise and live!”

APPLICATION: Research shows that Jesus, and the crowd following Him, went out of their way by 25 miles for Him to be available for this poor widow in her time of loss. That tells me that the Father had a very important appointment for His Son, Jesus. In our minds, I believe I can safely say that we would do anything to avoid a detour of 25 miles by automobile today. For as little walking as many do today, I believe we would squirm if we were asked to go an extra city block to get to our destination! So, imagine walking an extra 25 miles, and then to meet up with a funeral procession. But, I don’t believe there was any coincidence to Jesus meeting the procession just outside the gate of Nain. The Prince of Life was about to enter the gate of the city when death came out. There at the gates where life and death meet, life wins and death is defeated. Just outside of Jerusalem one day, death and life met again, and life won forevermore – praise the Lord! But why was it important for Jesus to console this poor widow and help to rectify her position of losing her last relative? You know, I believe it was not only for the purpose of winning the heart of that mother, but can you even imagine the awe and excitement of the crowd when the saw something that had, no doubt, never happened before in their lifetime – a young man being carried to his gravesite just sat up and began talking after an encounter with the King of all kings? Furthermore, how many times have you given up hope because you just couldn’t imagine Jesus finding time to respond to your prayer request or to feel your pain? Is it not clear that Jesus wants us to see that He not only gave up His life for us on Calvary, but because He rose again, He is forever available to us for whatever needs we may bring to Him? Please don’t confuse your trivial requests for things that might align you with the rich guy down the road, I’m talking about the things of the heart. To the saved, let me assure you that as you endeavor to live each day more closely aligned with your Master – Jesus Christ, you will want to do those things that He exampled for you while He was here on earth, and you will want to learn more about God’s Word so that you can validate that you are following His will for your life. To love someone and desire to live life pleasing to them, then you are more than willing to do what they say – plus some, and you will want to do what they ask of you, because you know that pleases them. You will love them unconditionally, which means that you will love them, even if it seems like they may not always return that love in the ways you demand or wish, but because you know they love you. That’s Jesus, my friend! To the unsaved – I’m not so sure that You could appreciate the grace and mercy of my Lord, but I hope that you have experienced one more example of how He has unbelievable compassion for His children, as he did for the grieving mother in our story today. You won’t find this kind of compassion in your circle of unsaved loved ones, but this may be perhaps this might just be the right opportunity for you to meet my Savior, accept Him as your Lord, and commit your life to Him for all eternity. Please read my Footnote carefully, as I have shared with you several avenues for help, should you need it in turning your back on the world and instead accepting Jesus as Lord.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Jesus went a long way out of His way to comfort a grieving widow. I am reassured that He would do the same for me!

PRAYER: Thank You Jesus for showing us how to love. Thanks for helping us to see how Your heart was broken when You saw the broken heart of the grieving widow, and how You brought life back into her son. These are all things that are beyond our understanding, but Lord You alone are merciful and loving in such an unconditional manner. Teach us Lord to follow in Your example, so that people will see Jesus, understand Your love, and know that You will overcome many obstacles, if need be, to show Your love towards them. 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. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Listen to God So that He may listen to you

On By Ed AlgreenIn Forgiveness, Listen, Obedience, Obedient, SurrenderLeave a comment

Tuesday, 2019-08-20

Bible Reference: Zechariah 7:9-14
Translation: The Message (MSG)

Bible Text:  9-10 Well, the message hasn’t changed. God-of-the-Angel-Armies said then and says now: “‘treat one another justly. Love your neighbors. Be compassionate with each other. Don’t take advantage of widows, orphans, visitors, and the poor. Don’t plot and scheme against one another—that’s evil.’ 11–13 “But did your ancestors listen? No, they set their jaws in defiance. They shut their ears. They steeled themselves against God’s revelation and the Spirit-filled sermons preached by the earlier prophets by order of God-of-the-Angel-Armies. And God became angry, really angry, because he told them everything plainly and they wouldn’t listen to a word he said. 13–14 “So [this is what God-of-the-Angel-Armies said] if they won’t listen to me, I won’t listen to them. I scattered them to the four winds. They ended up strangers wherever they were.

OBSERVATION: God’s commands are condensed in the first part of our Scripture today. In the middle part Zechariah reflects on all the effort made to obey God’s commands, and in the latter part God finally issues His reaction to the lack of desire and commitment by mankind to honor Him – the giver and sustainer of life. Unfortunately, not a whole lot has changed over the years, so let us meditate on the heart of God and how He reacts to our hardened hearts and actions. Perhaps today God might be allowed to have His way in our lives.

APPLICATION:  I am fascinated how history repeats itself in spite of the lessons we should learn from our past. Much like Zechariah did when sharing the visions he was blessed with from God, our pastors today dig into God’s Word seeking what God might reveal to them that would bless and/or convict their parishioners. They share with us the consequences of disobedience by our ancestors, hoping that we would see the error of our ways, turn from our sin and obey God without the need for further consequences. A few sins were mentioned in verses 9 and 10, and not only do we still see these unfortunate sins recurring today, but they were also concerns that reoccurred in the New Testament. Several translations used the same verbiage in verse 11 that indicates to me that it is of grave concern to our Master. I believe that it truly concerns Him when He sees us plot and scheme against one another. When we look for ways to hurt one another. He announces this as pure evil and I believe this is something that we must not only be on guard for personally, but also look for ways to help each other fight against this awful sin. Let’s learn to pray for each other, that we would see the good in fellow humans and learn to celebrate it. Let us learn to pray for those who find it challenging to do life just like Jesus would have done it, or perhaps like He expects of us. I believe the biggest thing that got my attention in these verses today, is the consequences of disobedience. The Word says “if we don’t listen to (obey) God, He won’t listen to us” Oh my, oh my! Do you suppose that this is the reason we feel like we sometimes hit brick walls with our prayers, or feeling ignored by God? There’s an old spiritual that I learned later in life that I am reminded of as I meditated on these words today: “It’s me, it’s me oh Lord, Standing in the need of prayer“, it’s not my brother or my sister that I need to be most concerned about, but I need to get my act together first and take care of my personal cleansing before God first, before ever attempting to help a brother or sister where I easily, and glaringly, see obvious sin. I don’t know about you friend, but I need God to listen to me, so it is imperative that I listen to Him and obey Him. Will you commit to doing the same? It is so critical that we have believers who are actually getting through to God with our prayers – our needs and concerns. Let’s do our part in being obedient.

PRAYER: Dear God, please forgive us for so easily attempting to do Your job by zoning in on the wrongs of others, while overlooking the sin in our own lives. “It’s me, it’s me oh Lord, standing in the need of prayer – not my brother or my sister, but me….” I need thee every hour of every day, for in my own strength I cannot overcome the evil pull of this life. Please touch the lives of each one that will read this devotional. Please impact our lives with a desire to surrender full control of our lives to You so that we all may be usable instruments for Your kingdom work here on this earth. I humbly ask these things in the wonderful, and strong name of Jesus, AMEN!

God’s Way vs Man’s Ways

On By Ed AlgreenIn Compassion, Imitate Jesus, Imitating Christ, Imitator of ChristLeave a comment

Post Date:

 Tuesday, 2017-02-14
SCRIPTURE

From:

 Matthew 14:15–17 (NLT)

Text:
15 That evening the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.”
16 But Jesus said, “That isn’t necessary—you feed them.”
17 “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered.
OBSERVATION:
Man’s Way: Send the crowds away….
God’s Way: It’s not necessary to send them away, you feed them!
Man’s Way: BUT, we don’t have enough food for all of them…
APPLICATION:
In verse 14, the Scripture says that Jesus saw the needs of the people and He had compassion on them. He was concerned about their needs, just as I believe He is also concerned about our needs today. Friends, you could be the most wealthy person around, but in the presence of Jesus, my King, you will be reminded of how needy you truly are. In our quoted verses, I was reminded of the decisions we make in life today, and how those choices also carry forward into our churches. Seeing us in the world setting vs seeing us make decisions as church leaders, I wonder if our people actually sees a difference. I believe that we are so much like the disciples, for we are quick to judge, and make decisions based on our emotions and how the individual, or crowd is impacting our space, or our personal lives. The disciples saw the crowds and probably knew of their many and varied needs, so they thought to head off one more obvious need, and that was the worry of feeding the crowd. I learnt very early in my marriage that I didn’t just pop up on my wife, with one or more people, around lunch time, without giving her hours of preparation time to clean the house and prepare a nice meal! I wonder how much food the disciples would have taken to the hillside for a hungry crowd the size they were facing! The disciples saw the crowd as an inconvenience, but Jesus saw their needs. Also, even after proving Himself over and over before, yet when He told the disciples that they would feed the crowd, there was a rebuttal because they could not see the miracle that was possible by and through the hand of God. So how might we identify with this story today in our world? Do we have those times that we want the crowds to go away, so that we could…. Are there times that the needy approach us and all we look at is their physical condition and assume what their physical needs must be? Do we stop to consider what Jesus might say to those same individuals, or what He might say about our decision to ignore them or send them away? Would you compare your compassion for the needy to be in line with the compassion of Jesus, or are you at the opposite ends of the spectrum on how you might react, compared to Jesus? Friends, perhaps we should consider this Scripture in view of the personal decisions that we make regarding the physical needs of others, and imagine just for a moment that we might also be rejecting their spiritual needs when we turn the needy away. Oh that Jesus might penetrate our hearts so that we may see needs as He would, so that we may express love in ways that exemplify Him.
PRAYER:
Lord Jesus, just as You have opened my eyes to being more compassionate of the needs of those around me, or the needs of folk that might walk through our church doors, I pray that You would also tender the hearts of my readers. As Your representatives, I sincerely believe that we must desire the heart and compassion of our Master. Please humble us to look beyond our expectations and our image of the poor and needy, and help us to instead be concerned about their heart and their readiness to meet You, should You call them home today. Lord, teach us to imitate You and to gain the heart of Christ as we approach the needs of individuals today. Oh that they may see Jesus and want to know Him personally! May we not be a stumbling block to hinder such decisions today, is my humble prayer, oh Lord, 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 could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

He’s Still God!

On By Ed AlgreenIn Commitment, Compassion, SurrenderLeave a comment

The Holy Bible (The Good News Translation – Isaiah 30:19-21): The Lord is compassionate, and when you cry to him for help, he will answer you. 20The Lord will make you go through hard times, but he himself will be there to teach you, and you will not have to search for him any more. 21If you wander off the road to the right or the left, you will hear his voice behind you saying, “Here is the road. Follow it.”

Thoughts: Friends, I am a firm believer that our God never changes, and that He is the same today as He was yesterday and He will be same until He calls us home to be with Him in glory. I also believe that God inspired His written Word, the Bible, so that we might be drawn to Him, grow in Him, encouraged in Him and be counseled and/or corrected by Him to enable a consistent walk with Him. I therefore believe that just as these highlighted verses were prophesied by Isaiah to challenge the people of Israel who had strayed from Him, that God is also encouraging us today to keep our heads up, to return to Him, and to be encouraged in knowing that no matter what struggles and discouragements and challenges we face, that He’s still God, that His love for us is everlasting, and that we can come to Him, or return to Him, in confidence knowing that He is compassionate and that He will answer our cry for help. Please be reminded that God is not a yo-yo, or a puppet, but instead He loves you enough that He will answer your prayers in ways according to His will for You, and that would best satisfy your needs. In other words, if you ask Him for a new Cadillac and He knows that you will remain humble, and could afford a Toyota Corolla better, then you may receive transportation (answer to prayer), just not the car you asked for, because it would increase your struggles and not help your situation. Some reading this devotional today may also feel like they, or a loved one, is ‘at the end of their rope’, because life seems so impossible. May I encourage you to look to God, place your faith and trust in Him, and surrender your life totally to Him? As you do this friend, You will:

  • Have peace in knowing the ‘hand-off’ has taken place!
  • Find peace in your circumstances, knowing that the God of this universe is working on your behalf! Remember, He is a great big God, who has this world in His hands, so He can easily handle your circumstances;
  • Be encouraged in knowing that God loved you, even as a sinner, enough to sacrifice His only Son so that you may have life, and have it more abundantly in and through Him. And it is that type of deep love that is your today as you trust in Him!

Because He’s still God, I must remind you that He loves you today friend! I believe that His love is even more intense, but He will not force Himself on you. He wants you to take the first step, by surrendering your will to Him and allowing Him to do all that I have shared above. If you have never made a personal commitment to Jesus and invited Him to rule and reign in your life, then I would encourage you to make this most important decision today. Perhaps there is one meditating on this devotional who has previously invited Jesus into your life, but has strayed far away from Him. Friend, you will see from these verses that Israel had strayed far away, yet God was ready to welcome them back and love them with the intense love possible only by God. He’ll do the same for you, if you recommit to Him! I have included helps for you in the ‘Footnote’ below. Please make this the first day of ‘real’, ‘committed’, life in Christ today!

Prayer: Thank You Jesus for the reminder in these verses today of Your awesome love for us, and how You are so ready and willing to accept us, Your children, when we call upon Your name in humility and forgiveness. Many of my friends are hurting and filled with one disappointment after another because of worldly circumstances or possibly bad choices by them. Please use Your Word, and possibly this devotional to encourage them, to soften their hearts to the point of surrender, and a new life in You. This my humble prayer that I ask in faith, and in the 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 this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to blogger.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, Sebring, FL! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

Mercy and Compassion – God’s In Charge!

On By Ed AlgreenIn All have sinned, Bible Believing, Eternal Life, Evangelism, Forgiveness, God our Provider, Reaching the Lost, Thank You Jesus2 Comments

The Bible – The Message

Romans 9:14-18

14–18       Is that grounds for complaining that God is unfair? Not so fast, please. God told Moses, “I’m in charge of mercy. I’m in charge of compassion.” Compassion doesn’t originate in our bleeding hearts or moral sweat, but in God’s mercy. The same point was made when God said to Pharaoh, “I picked you as a bit player in this drama of my salvation power.” All we’re saying is that God has the first word, initiating the action in which we play our part for good or ill.

 Thoughts:

We hear a lot of folk say that God’s not fair, and I cringe whenever I hear those words. Friends, we place ourselves in very compromising places at times, and unfortunately bad things happen, especially in places where Satan is very present. I heard a preacher speak on the subject “Why do bad things happen to good people”, and although he was the right person to preach that sermon, seeing that he himself had Multiple Sclerosis and had difficulty speaking. Yet he helped his hearers to understand that we are all blessed by God in that He sent His one and only Son to die a cruel death on the cross, so that all those that believe on Him might have eternal life. So who are the ‘all’ he referred to? People such as Saul who was a persecutor of Christians and the church, yet God made such a difference in His life that he became a great evangelist and writer, having written many of the New Testament books. He made such a turnaround in his life that his name was changed to Paul to reflect the total life change. What Paul is explaining to his audience at Rome, and what God is using this message to speak with us about is that:

  • God is the author and maker of mankind and we are to be thankful and celebrative for this;
  • God loved us while we were still sinners and provided a means to enter His kingdom, and we are to be thankful and celebrative for this;
  • God showed compassion on us and chose us to be His children – because, friends sinners only has a mind for sinful things, not Godly ownership and Godly happiness, and we are to be thankful and celebrative for this;

So Paul’s question to his audience and to us today is, “what are we complaining about God not being fair about?” From the points above, I believe we can clearly see that God loves us way more than we deserve, and what is unfair about that? Let’s not question God when He doesn’t handle a situation the way that we instructed Him, He’s still God and above Him there is no other. Count your blessings friend, and I assure you that you’ll not have enough fingers left to consider the self-inflicted, unfortunate things that we tend to blame on God. I serve an awesome God, and my heart’s desire is to encourage as many as I can to know this Savior I love and adore! Are you ready to make a decision friend? Please use the contact information at the foot of this post to email me and allow me to pray with you, encourage you and introduce you to Jesus!

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, we are such an undeserving, yet very blessed people. Please help us to count our blessings and stop the whining and complaining. Where would we have been had it not been for Your love, Your mercy and Your compassion? Thank You for Your mercies on me. Thank You for Your blessings on me. Thank You for the assurance of my eternal home in glory with You. Please dear Lord, speak to the hearts of my friends and family that are not living life to its fullest today, because they have not given You full control of their lives. The sacrifice has been made, and I thank You for that, please help them to accept the gift that You so lovingly gave just for us. I am very thankful, yet I continue to ask on behalf of my unsaved friends, in Your precious and worthy name, Jesus my Lord, AMEN!

NOTE: **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.