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Post Date: |
Thursday, 2017-06-15 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Luke 1:45 (NCV) |
|
Text: |
45 You are blessed because you believed that what the Lord said to you would really happen. |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| On Mary’s visit to her relative, Elizabeth, there were several events that confirmed that the child inside of Elizabeth and Mary were very special, miraculous gifts from God. In fact, from the very first announcement to these ladies, they accepted that God was using each of them in ways that would impact the whole world and bless them beyond anything they deserved or could imagine. Let’s look at how this might impact us…. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
In addition to being blessed immensely by the results of the two pregnancies of Mary and Elizabeth, I fell like there are tremendous lessons for us to learn from these two women of God, but I want to concentrate on a few of the very special reasons we can identify why Elizabeth was so true in what she said to Mary, and how this could be applied to us today:
Friends, you too can be blessed through your relationship with Jesus Christ; your belief in His mighty power and kingship; in your obedience to His commands taught in the Bible; and in your obedience to His leading each and every day. Remember friend, it’s all about Jesus, not you. |
|
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord, thank You for Your servant Mary and her relative Elizabeth, who accepted from You what seemed impossible to mankind. Lord, I believe that You are still seeking believers to have that kind of faith today, and to seek to follow Your guidance and will for their lives. The example was clear with these two ladies, and I truly believe that the same God who created those miracles for them, is the same God that I serve even today. Lord, may we commit again to give You full reign in our lives 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 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! | |
Tag: creator
In A State of Readiness
|
Post Date: |
Monday, 2017-05-29 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Mark 13:32-33; 36-37 (ERV) |
|
Text: |
32 “No one knows when that day or time will be. The Son and the angels in heaven don’t know when that day or time will be. Only the Father knows. 33 Be careful! Always be ready. You don’t know when that time will be.
36 If you are always ready, he will not find you sleeping, even if he comes back earlier than expected. 37 I tell you this, and I say it to everyone: ‘Be ready!’ |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| Jesus truly loved His disciples and He didn’t want them to miss out on the opportunity of a lifetime, the return of God the Father to take His loved ones home to glory. However, Jesus shared with the disciples, and us, that we could live knowing about this very special day, but we must be careful to live in a state of readiness at all times, as our eternal destination will be determined by our spiritual condition when He returns to take us home. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| I want you to imagine with me that you were taking a very special, and long awaited trip by train to visit your closest relatives that you haven’t seen in years. The only thing you could get out of the train operators is that the train should be at your station around 6am, but it has been known for the train to arrive within plus or minus 2 hours of the scheduled time, and it will leave within 3 minutes of its arrival time. I wonder how many will be at the station at 3:30, knowing that the train could arrive as early as 4am, and how many will wait until 7:45, knowing that the train could actually arrive two hours late? Also, consider that pregnant mothers are ready for their infant’s arrival months in advance of the predicted arrival date, knowing that the baby could very easily come at any time. Friends, quite often I hear people sharing their shock of someone dying young, or sharing how important it is for them to enjoy life, as eventually they will get old and depart this life. I believe that we all should be warned today, that God could call us out of this world at anytime. Sometimes because He is ready for us in heaven, and other times because we have been so careless in this world that we have compressed our earthly life duration without any thought of heaven, or preparation for our eternity. Friends, our verses today reminds us that we may meet our Maker today, tomorrow, next week, by the end of the year, or perhaps in a few more years. I will repeat the emphasis that Jesus used in our Scripture today, are you ready? Not giving a specific date is not unfair, for it should lead to us in to taking the Word of God seriously and ensuring that we are ready today. Throughout human history mankind has been known to procrastinate until the very last minute, so if they knew the specific time the deadline will actually occur, guess what would happen? May I encourage you to examine your state of readiness today friends, so that you will be ready when God is ready for you. | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Father, thank You for providing life itself for us to enjoy all the blessings that You pour on us every day. Thank You for preparing a home for us to look forward to when we finish up our time here on earth. Thank You for providing the Lamb – the means for us to graduate from this old wicked world, into the glories of heaven, IF we accepted Your Son – Your gift of salvation while there was still time for us to do so. Lord, please touch the hearts of family and friends who have yet to make that decision. Today truly is the day of salvation, because we want to be ready to see You face to face when called out of this world. Thank You heavenly Father, thank You Lord Jesus and thank You Holy Spirit for being our Guide each and every day. Oh that we may be convinced of our eternal destination, even if You returned today to take believers home to glory! 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! | |
Mighty Is Our God
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Post Date: |
Saturday, 2017-05-13 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Psalm 33:13-16 (CEV) |
|
Text: |
13 The Lord looks at the world 14 from his throne in heaven, and he watches us all. 15 The Lord gave us each a mind, and nothing we do can be hidden from him. 16 Mighty armies alone cannot win wars for a king; great strength by itself cannot keep a soldier safe. |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| David was part of a nation that God cherished as His own, yet David saw that man was trying every man made scheme to find happiness, safety and security. However, David had found extreme faith in His Lord, who had provided for him in so many ways, that it became evident to him that it was not the mighty armies that saved a nation, it was not the noble kings with all the smarts, but it was God almighty who looked out after His own. Isn’t that a noble thought for so many nations today who struggle so deeply in so many ways? | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| Isn’t it interesting how nations will try one strategic move after another to win an election, or to govern a nation, while all the time God has all of the answers already and just waiting for leaders to look to Him? David’s country was no different to ours, or many others just like us. We have the book of instructions and we know the Master who holds the key to all of life’s challenges, yet we fool ourselves into thinking that we could do this alone. Think about it friends, God not only has a prophet’s eye into what the future holds, but He knows right down to the heart of our leaders who make decisions and steer this great big ship – our country. Now before you start thinking that this Scripture today revolves only around country leaders, I must also challenge you to apply this to all phases of your life. Your family role, your work role, your church role, and just in case you are thinking that you absolutely have no leadership roles, let me remind you that others are watch your Christian role, or lack thereof. Some young person might be making decisions based on what they saw you do. They may be stirred to a closer walk with God, based on the godly person they have seen in you. Our God is mighty and awesome in every way, and if we are to represent Him and imitate Him in every aspect of our lives, then we must depend on Him daily to be: our Guide through this life’s journey; our Protector when trials and strife comes our way; our Deliverer who will keep us away from the temptations of the devil and temptation of every kind; our Comforter who will be there for us when we feel all alone and unloved by this world. Our God is real, friends, and He wants a relationship with you, so that you may overcome this world and appreciate the gift of His Son that He allowed to be crucified so that we may have life eternally with Him in heaven! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Dear Lord, thank You for being our Master, Lord and Savior. Thank You for the reminder from Your servant David in this Scripture today. We can again today rejoice and be glad, for we know who holds tomorrow and who holds our hand! Precious Lord, please touch our leaders today – leaders in our homes, our churches, our work places, our states and our countries. Please draw our leaders to a clear vision of Your power, Your grace and Your love for all mankind. Allow these leaders to lead as directed in your Word and in accordance to Your will, so that the world might know and believe on Your precious Son, Jesus. 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! | |
That’s Our God!
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Post Date: |
Thursday, 2017-05-11 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Psalm 33:6-9 (NLT) |
|
Text: |
6 The Lord merely spoke, and the heavens were created. He breathed the word, and all the stars were born. 7 He assigned the sea its boundaries and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs. 8 Let the whole world fear the Lord, and let everyone stand in awe of him. 9 For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command. |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| This is one of those times that David just stopped and reflected on the awesome power of God. Did David have challenges in life like you and I? Of course he did. Did David have reason to be down because of life’s trials and problems? Of course he did. But in spite of it all David realized that there was an awesome God that created life and everything around him, and it was that same God that loved him unconditionally! | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| Like David, don’t you suppose that we have every reason to complain; be upset; feel distraught; feel like giving up; or even feel like we may not make it through another day? However friends, I want you to look closely at some of the reasons for which David found hope, and how he found cause to worship and praise his God. I believe that you will easily find many other personal reasons to add to David’s list, that might give you cause to lift up the name of Jesus, in spite of all that you face each day. Friends, we serve an awesome God. One who is worthy of our praise and honor. I believe that when we make time to concentrate on Him and give Him the praise He deserves, then we will notice a slow fade on the emphasis we once placed on our issues that we thought were so overbearing. There is no god like our God, friend. Know Him today and know peace, love, joy, and true happiness that comes from our Father above. There is no greater peace than knowing that the Creator of this universe is in charge of all it’s everyday affairs and so loves us that He is constantly looking out for our good. That’s my God, friend! Do you know Him? Trust Him today, won’t you? | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Lord, how we praise You today for who You are, and for all that You do for us. Nothing good have I done, to deserve God’s own Son, yet because of His awesome love, God sent His Son, (Jesus) so that everyone of us that believes on Him, might receive everlasting life. It’s the greatest gift of love ever given to mankind. Praise God that I am a child of the King. Thank You Jesus! Lord, please also soften the hardened hearts of my family, friends and every subscriber and reader of this blog, so that they might surrender their lives to you. Lord, we want to see Jesus! What a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see! Hopefully I will also see all of these I am praying for Jesus! 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! | |
The Family Of God
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Post Date: |
Thursday, 2017-04-20 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Mark 3:31-35 (NIV) |
|
Text: |
31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 32 A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”
33 “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked. 34 Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| The mother and brothers of Jesus went to search for Him to make sure that He was safe, and not getting into any trouble. At first glance, these verses may seem like Jesus was not respectfully recognizing his family members, but on closer observation, it is clear that He was using their appearance as a ministry opportunity. |
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| APPLICATION: | |
| When close family members come to town, we often halt many activities in order to spend quality time with them. Some may take a few days off work; others may not attend church; while others go out of their way to find extra special activities or shows to attend and therefore entertain their guests. How does this compare to the effort we assume to win a sinner to Christ, or to entertain a new believer and disciple them in the faith? Do you see the connection that Jesus made between the two? We have no question about who our blood relatives are, but please be reminded that for those of us that call God ‘Our Father’, we automatically become brothers and sisters, for that’s what children of the same father are called, and considered. So let’s look the the parallel again with this in mind. I jumped on a plane and traveled about 150 miles to see my sick mom recently, and to encourage her in her spirit. I wonder how quickly I would be willing to sacrifice the dollars and precious PTO days off work, if that was a Christian Brother in the same condition that my mom is in? Jesus considered the connection one and the same. Don’t you think that if we considered our Christian Brothers and Sisters like Jesus did, and showed no prejudice to one or the other, that more Christians might be encouraged in their everyday lives, and be drawn closer to God because of the ministry one brother or sister to another? There’s a song entitled ‘I’m So Glad I’m a part of the Family of God’, I love that little song, but it really speaks volumes to the theme of this devotional today. I pray that each one reading this will do their part to treat mother, father, brothers and sisters so that the world will see evidence of our Father in action through us – His children! |
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| PRAYER: | |
| Father/Dad/Loving Lord, thank You for adopting me into Your family and treating me like a son. Lord You are good, and Your mercies are endless and beyond anything I could ever desire or ask for. As Your son, may I please ask that You speak to the heart of Your children, as You did with me this morning. Please help us to invest our time into the lives of other brothers and sisters who need to draw close to You, or may be struggling with something beyond their control. I don’t believe we can help others, if we are personally struggling to survive the discouragement, hatred and depression brought on by Satan and his suppressors. Please help us to look heavenward to the Creator of this world and all human beings. May we see the welcoming face of our Father and be willing to share that same love with others as if they were our closest blood relative. Be glorified through Your children today oh Lord, especially this humble servant, 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! | |
On Recognizing Jesus
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Post Date: |
Friday, 2017-04-07 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Matthew 27:54 (AMP) |
|
Text: |
54 Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, they were terribly frightened and filled with awe, and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| Scripture mentions a few of the people on the scene at Calvary where Jesus was crucified. Of course there were guards on hand to make sure that Jesus, who some thought was a criminal, would not escape from His destiny, to die on that Roman cross. The guards saw the heart of God in His Son throughout this whole ordeal, especially as Jesus died, for at that very moment, they concluded that, surely, ‘this truly was the Son of God’. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| There comes a time in our lives that Jesus becomes ‘real’ to us. For some, it might be through the proclamation of His Word in a church service, but for others it might be through something in nature, or a miracle that you witnessed in response to earnest prayer by a saint of God. Some folk respond to these first experiences with Jesus by bending of the knee, seeking His face in prayer, asking for forgiveness of their sin and surrendering leadership of their remaining life to Him. Others become distracted by trying to apply some other phenomenon that may have contributed to the miracle they just witnessed. Friends, for all of us there will come a time that, through the power of the Holy Spirit, we will recognize God for who He is. We will immediately respond to that experience in one of several ways: Try to ignore it; Try to reject it; Try to reason it away from our minds; or stand in awe of the presence of the holy Son of the living God because of His awesome and powerful Holy Spirit convicting us of our need for a Savior. You may have done one or more of these things already in your life, and you are still remaining with us here on this earth for another opportunity. Just yesterday I heard of two men who went into eternity very unexpectedly. In fact, so quickly that they would not have had time to ask for acceptance by Jesus. If at some point in their lives they stopped making excuses and accepted the tug of Jesus on their heart, then their spirits united with Jesus yesterday, otherwise they are facing the damnation of Hell for all eternity. The choice is exactly the same for you today, friend. Your decision today affects where you will spend eternity. If you have read this blog, then you are making a decision again today. If you have never accepted Jesus as Lord, and you do not invite Jesus into your heart today, then you have made the decision to spend eternity in Hell. I would not wish that on anyone, especially you my friend. Know Jesus today and know eternal peace, won’t you? | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Father, You created us to love, honor and follow Your commands as Your loving children. I pray that hearts will be softened and reopened to the truth of Your Word today as this blog goes out to the world. Please allow those who need a Savior to happen across this blog, and may Your all powerful Word return fruit as it is read and understood. Please allow the excuses to cease and acceptance and commitment to prevail. I ask these things solely for Your glory 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! | |
A Test of Your Faith
|
Post Date: |
Thursday, 2017-02-23 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Matthew 17:19-21 (Voice) |
|
Text: |
19 Later, when they were away from the crowds, the disciples asked Jesus why they hadn’t been able to drive out the demon themselves.
Jesus: 20 Because you have so little faith. I tell you this: if you had even a faint spark of faith, even faith as tiny as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and because of your faith, the mountain would move. If you had just a sliver of faith, you would find nothing impossible. [21 But this kind is not realized except through much prayer and fasting.] |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| One could only imagine the frustration that the disciples must have felt when they kept receiving hints from Jesus that they could do what He does, and yet they felt so powerless at times. This particular incident was one of those cases, for a man presented his epileptic son for healing, and the disciples were totally helpless. Let’s examine why… | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| There were so many things that Jesus did that might be compared to magic today. It may seem to some that they merely say the word and the lame will walk again and the blind will once again see like you and I. However, I believe that Jesus clears this up for us in these verses. If the power was truly given to us to bring about healing, why would one need Jesus, or to know about His Father? First of all, we must remember that as His children, we are merely messengers of the Almighty God. Meaning that God still does the healing, and not us. Often mankind is out to win the battle and claim the victory personally, and that is not the way that God works. I remember gathering with others to pray down God’s blessings on upcoming revival services, and that hearts that had become hardened, would be touched by God and drawn back to Him. By the time the revival services began, I remember looking down the aisle with expectation and anticipation of individuals walking the aisle who we had prayed diligently and desperately for. The praise and rejoicing went to the Father as we saw results though, because we prayed to Him asking Him to move in their hearts. So to see ones walk the aisle meant that God had accomplished His work as a result of our prayers and His perfect will for the individuals we prayed for. In the verses we are looking at today, we are reminded that verse 21 was not included in some ancient manuscripts, but I believe it was inserted later to help us understand that miracles are still a work of the Almighty, and if we are sincere about our requests to Him, then we must be earnest in our prayers to Him about the individual or the situation. Friends, when we are willing to do more than just mere words. When we are deeply convicted and are ready to seek God’s face over a situation. When it becomes a priority to us, enough that we are willing to seek His face more than some other pleasure in life, then I believe Jesus recognizes the earnestness of our prayers and the deep desires of our heart. Are you ready to take a need before the Lord in such earnest today? If so, God assures us that it could be as big of a challenge as moving a mountain from one location to another, for nothing is impossible with God! Let’s get serious about the needs that we pray about, and be willing to commit more than just words to the need. Our God is able, if we are willing! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Dear God, we have become so trivial with our promises to pray, that our promise to pray for a Brother or Sister just rolls off the tongue. Sometimes we make promises to pray, and then allow the busyness of life to take over, and overwhelm the promise we made to pray. At other times we are challenged to put our all into the request because of our lack of concern, or perhaps because of our lack of faith in the Father who can do ALL things. Please forgive us Lord, and fill us with hearts like Yours, where we are willing to sacrifice, or fast, and pray to the Father over the needs we might have. Thank You for the awesome powerful God that You are! Please give us renewed strength, boldness and power to pray as You did, Lord Jesus. 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! | |
Through Our Actions, Who do we Say Jesus Is?
|
Post Date: |
Tuesday, 2017-02-21 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
|
From: |
Matthew 16:15-17 (NCV) |
|
Text: |
15 Then Jesus asked them, “And who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus answered, “You are blessed, Simon son of Jonah, because no person taught you that. My Father in heaven showed you who I am. |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| Because Peter was first asked who others were saying Jesus is, it almost seemed like Peter was being tempted to respond like the world and therefore respond to Jesus’ question along the same lines of what he felt like others were saying. However, Peter, led by the Holy Spirit, responded to Jesus’ question appropriately, but it sure does open the eyes of believers that followed Peter to stop and ponder what they truly believe! | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| I wonder how many of us today would respond to a question like Jesus posed to Peter. I wonder how many of us would have a scriptural response for Jesus, and possibly the preacher, but a slightly different response for our unsaved friends, and an altogether politically correct response, if asked in public in the presence of the authorities. Friends, we are called on daily to show the world who Jesus is to us. Think about it. When we are asked to respond to a crisis, do we automatically panic and display our worry that the world is coming to an end because we can’t see clearly what’s ahead of the fast train that could easily jump the tracks? What about right inside of the church (with other believers) how do you respond when someone is about to desecrate another believer who is struggling with a situation? How do you respond to an individual who is very ‘needy’, not necessarily financially, but one who can’t see light at the end of their long, dark tunnel. There’s a lot less stress to just run in the opposite direction, and many of us choose that option, but is that really what Jesus would have done? I wonder what Jesus must truly think at the end of the day after having watched what you and I told the world who it is that we honestly serve and evangelize? I could only imagine that some days I would be honestly ashamed of what Jesus would say about me. How about you friend? From the very depths of our hearts we speak and react. I believe it is time for us to really fill our hearts with more, and more, and more of Jesus? Will you commit to this along with me? | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Oh Lord Jesus, please open Your loving arms to this weak and sinful son, for I am afraid that way too often I reflect a very poor image of who you truly are. I’m afraid that folk must sometimes walk away from me assuming that you are mean, selfish, stuck up with pride, unwilling to speak to the poor and lowly, uncaring and unloving. Please forgive me Lord, for I want my heart, my mind and my life so filled with You that You will spill forth from every word I speak and every action, each and every day. Lord, may I ask that You also tender the hearts of my readers so that they may also examine themselves and be prepared to face those who need proof of a Savior today. May there be no doubt that You are alive in us and may the world recognize that, and have a desire to know the Lord that we love, adore and aim to portray every day. 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! | |
The Source of Happiness and Contentment
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Post Date: |
Monday, 2017-02-20 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
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From: |
Psalm 16:7-9 (ERV) |
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Text: |
7 I praise the Lord because he taught me well. Even at night he put his instructions deep inside my mind. 8 I always remember that the Lord is with me. He is here, close by my side, so nothing can defeat me. 9 So my heart and soul will be very happy.… |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| David sounded very content in recognizing all that God had taught him, both during the day and even at night as he acknowledged learning additional things while he rested. He was reassured by God’s presence with him at all times, and he reflected on how he had proven Him over and over that nothing, or no one, could defeat him with God as his guide, protector and everlasting Father. His heart was happy and content! | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| I believe that any of us reading this devotional, or anyone that we might connect with today, would all desire such a peace as David shared in this Psalm. As we face the world each morning, and the many challenges that a day might bring, wouldn’t our blood pressure drop several numbers if we were reassured that God’s in control, and not us? For those of us who have seen God work out His plan for our lives, including overcoming what seems like ‘battles’ in our eyes, isn’t it rewarding to be reminded of God’s power in teaching us the right things, directing our path each day, and reassuring us of His love and protection no matter what a day brings? Friends, stress will have very negative effects on our lives, especially our hearts. Knowing Jesus intimately and being assured of His leadership, love and care for us, should calm our nerves and lead us towards a peace that passes all understanding. Do you know my Lord? Do you have a sense of that peace that I am referring to? I am convinced that Jesus loves us so much that He would like nothing better than to show His love towards us in very meaningful ways such as I’ve mentioned, however He can only do that when we fully surrender to His call on our lives. May we find this peace and comfort today as we strive to surrender more and more to our Lord. | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Son as a sacrifice for my sin. Lord Jesus, thank You for being obedient to the Father and for loving me so much that You willingly went to the cross for sinners such as I. Your love, protection and ongoing guidance is like sunshine to a plant, for it helps us to survive the many trials and challenges of this world, and it provides life to our daily survival. Thank You heavenly Father, thank You Lord Jesus, and thank You Holy Spirit. Oh so unworthy, yet I’m a child of the King! Praise God from whom all blessings flow! I love You Lord, and I lift my voice, to worship You! May my life be worthy of allowing You to work through me to reach some soul today, oh Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer, 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! | |
Spiritually Fit
Today’s Bible Reference: 1 Timothy 4:6-10
Today’s Bible Text: You’ve been raised on the Message of the faith and have followed sound teaching. Now pass on this counsel to the followers of Jesus there, and you’ll be a good servant of Jesus. Stay clear of silly stories that get dressed up as religion. Exercise daily in God—no spiritual flabbiness, please! Workouts in the gymnasium are useful, but a disciplined life in God is far more so, making you fit both today and forever. You can count on this. Take it to heart. This is why we’ve thrown ourselves into this venture so totally. We’re banking on the living God, Savior of all men and women, especially believers.
The Bible Translation: The Message (MSG)
My Take Away: I believe that a lot of money is spent on gym memberships, and a lot of time is well spent on physical fitness in order to keep our heart and muscles in great physical shape, due to the stationary, inactive lifestyles we have in our desk jobs or just the choices we make to watch TV or play on computer devices. So what if we did to our physical bodies what we do in our spiritual lives? You know, we may open our Bibles once a week when we attend church, or in some cases two or three times per year for special occasions. Do you suppose that we might see more physical deaths if we only exercised that infrequent? Do you suppose that this might be the reason we see so many spiritual ‘deaths’ in the church? If we only connect with the Master of this world on a very occasional basis, will that develop ‘relationship’ with Him? Physical exercise requires commitment to a designated time of fitness each day. It means sacrificing a warm bed for working out at the gym or jogging down a long, dark path, often until we feel like we are about to drop! It means ‘beating’ ourselves into submission, so that we can do it even when we don’t feel like it. Now, think about Spiritual fitness. Should it be any different? The results, or the outcome, is way more important, for it leads to an active, participating relationship with the King of this universe, One who sent His Son to die for us so that we might accept His sacrifice and therefore ultimately be with Him in glory one day. Physical fitness helps you condition your bodies to fight off diseases, have less pain and recover much faster from illnesses, and it may extend your life here on earth by a few years. Spiritual fitness opens the doors of heaven for you while here on earth and to life ever after with the Creator. It gives you hope, peace and love here on earth and rewards for eternity that are out of this world! Spiritual fitness is suitable for all walks of life, for those fit enough to do Physical fitness or not. Please don’t make excuses Brothers and Sisters. Seek to strengthen your spiritual lives so that you may be usable by God here on earth, until He is ready for you in Heaven. Each of us will face Him at Judgment Day, will you be prepared to smile and thank Him for allowing You to stay Spiritually Fit while here on earth? I hope there will be no regrets.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, we are such a blessed people, because of Your persistent love for us, and the way that You show that in so many ways to us daily. Please touch the lives of each one reading this devotional today with a desire to enhance our Spiritual fitness so that we might be drawn closer to You in every aspect of our lives. Others are watching to validate that we are who we say we are. May we be so engrossed in Your Word, and have such a determination to follow Your teachings, that the evidence might be obvious in all that we say or do while here on earth. We want them to see Jesus. May we be fit vessels that You can work through to reach those in our realm of influence dear 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. 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 www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org 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!
2016
Nuggets From God's Word 