Guidance For Any Kind Of Day

On 2015-12-122015-12-12 By Ed AlgreenIn Guidance, The WordLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ¹³Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. ¹⁴ And do everything with love. ~ 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 ~ _{New Living Translation (NLT)}

⁴ Sing to the Lord, all you godly ones! Praise his holy name. ⁵ For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning. ~ Psalm 30:4-5 ~_{New Living Translation (NLT)}

THOUGHTS: Nearing the conclusion of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians he continued to speak to them as a father would to his children, especially in light of everything they were facing at the time as a church under persecution. In light of everything that we face in our world today, I was extremely encouraged by Paul’s blessing, because here’s what I got from the first two verses above. Paul admonished the church to:

Be on guard, or be alert – Don’t you feel some days like it may have been better if you had just stayed in bed? It is so obvious that Satan is out to tear us down at every possible opportunity. Paul, in telling the Corinthian church, is also telling us, to be strong in our relationship with the Lord, so that we will be armed with God’s love and His power and His strength, to face any and all circumstances that Satan may fire our way. Imagine leaving home with an armed guard by your side, and one who knows all things, sees all things, made all things and who happens to be the one who loved you enough to have given His very life for you. Wouldn’t that be an ultimate way to guard your way and keep you alert to the attacks of Satan that are just lurching around the corner?
Stand firm in the faith – Friends, it’s impossible to do this if you don’t have faith. Likewise, if you don’t maintain, and grow in your faith, do you really have something that you can trust when under pressure? I would encourage you to get connected to God in Bible Study and Prayer, and further strengthen your faith by getting with folk of like faith as often as you can. ‘Iron sharpens iron’ is a phrase used in the Bible. I would suggest to you today that not only do you need the strength and encouragement of other believers, but they need you also. As your faith is sharpened and strengthened, you become better equipped to not cave in to the things of this world – Satan’s tools that he has placed to trap you;
Be courageous – I believe that we must be willing to stand up for what we believe, and often this will involve a courageous spirit, especially to one who is generally timid in life;
Be strong – This is especially important, because folk are judging whose inside of your heart based on your actions, your attitude and your words. When we consider all that God has done, all that He is doing and all that He has prepared for our future in heaven, and then to imagine that He is the one controlling us, protecting us and guiding us, whom then shall we fear?
Do everything in love – It’s so easy to do loving things for those who show love towards us, but we know all too well how challenging our job is when folk are unkind to us. Perhaps we should take our eyes off others and stay focused on God, then perhaps we will more easily ‘do everything in love’ knowing that God will be pleased with us? Imagine the smile on His face when He recognizes that we have depended on Him and done amazing things for others, knowing that we are aiming to please Him, regardless of how others may react to our actions?

I realize that I have gone a bit long today, but friends would you take note of these two verses and my commentary, then read the two verses I included from Psalm. Don’t you see that we serve a most awesome God, and that joy will come in the morning, regardless of what the night has revealed? My earthly energies are geared towards honoring, worshipping, pleasing and adoring the God that I plan to spend eternity with. Where do you spend your energies each day? The above information gives you guidance on how God expects you to spend your day!

PRAYER: Father, You are awesome, and I thank You for conveying Your principals, Your character, Your will and Your encouragement to us through your Holy Word. May it be a light to our feet and a constant guide to our path each and every day, so that others may see and believe on You. I ask these things in the name of the One who gave it all for me, 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!

Wait Patiently For The Lord

On 2015-12-092015-12-09 By Ed AlgreenIn Prayer, Wait on the LordLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ¹¹Teach me how to live, O Lord. Lead me along the right path, for my enemies are waiting for me. ¹² Do not let me fall into their hands. For they accuse me of things I’ve never done; with every breath they threaten me with violence. ¹³ Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness while I am here in the land of the living. ¹⁴ Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord. ~ Psalm 27:11-14 ~ _{New Living Translation (NLT)}

THOUGHTS: David had gone through many obstacles, battles and setbacks, and we often do as well in our everyday walk of life here on earth. Fortunately, David realized that he needed the God of all creation to lead him, protect him and guide him, so that he could make if safely through the traps of his enemies. Just because we have been blessed to enjoy life in a different century than David, we know that our challenges are just as real today as they were for David. We have the benefit of reflecting back on the awesome hand of God upon David, and we know that we serve the same living God that he served, and that God can do it all over again just for us. David gave us direction on how to overcome; how to get the help we need and where to get it from. We are instructed to wait patiently for the Lord, for He is not a puppet waiting for us to press a button for immediate action. He knows the perfect timing for us, no matter what the circumstances are, so let us learn to wait on His timing. I found it interesting that the Psalmist would add that we should be brave and courageous. I believe that this is a reminder that ‘waiting on God’s timing’ and Him answering our prayers in His timing, all serve to remind us that God is in control and we are not. He is the potter, and we are mere clay waiting to be molded by the Potter’s hand. I believe this reminds us that since our prayer life is more than just one way posting of our needs list, and that God actually talks back to us, He may very well give orders that may take us outside of our comfort zone. Are you ready to do whatever He says today friend? Yes, we must learn to be patient and obedient, but we must also be prepared for God to possibly steer us outside of our comfort zone.

PRAYER: Lord God, You proved Yourself over and over to our ancestors, and in many of our lives You have already done the same for us. We are such an impatient bunch, please don’t give up on us. We seriously need Your patience with us Lord. Please help us to always wait on the Lord, for only You have all the answers and the power to change hearts and lives so that You might receive the glory due to You. I humbly ask these things in the name of Jesus, AMEN!

Come To Jesus Meeting

On 2015-12-082015-12-08 By Ed AlgreenIn Integrity, RighteousnessLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ¹Declare me innocent, O Lord, for I have acted with integrity; I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. ² Put me on trial, Lord, and cross-examine me. Test my motives and my heart. ³ For I am always aware of your unfailing love, and I have lived according to your truth. ~ Psalm 26:1-3 ~ _{New Living Translation (NLT)}

THOUGHTS: As I read about David’s one-on-one meeting with the Master, I remembered our pastor mentioning in a recent sermon that he and his family would see the need for a ‘Come to Jesus meeting’ every so often to settle some issues or misunderstanding that the kids may have perceived or strayed away to. This was very close to me, because we had those same type meetings in my family also, and perhaps you might do the same. The reason I feel like I was so impressed with David’s actions in these verses, is because I felt like God was telling me this should be a good checkpoint in my life also. I believe that a lot of times we feel like we are doing ok, and that we have this ‘Christian living’ thing under control. Friends, may I remind you that you and I are not to parallel our righteousness with that of our spouse, our Sunday School teacher, our deacon or elder nor after our pastor, but only after the one true righteous One that ever lived, Jesus Christ. So with that in mind, how then shall we approach the God of this universe about our righteousness? By the way, what righteousness? Remember, God not only sees our actions, like other men do, but God knows our very thoughts and intentions behind everything we say and do. So although we appear ‘good’ to those who only see the outward self and expressions, how do you suppose we stack up in God’s eyes? You also know yourself very well, are you ready to look in the face of God and say like David, that you have acted with integrity; trusted in the Lord without wavering; always aware of His gracious love and lived according to His Word? Can you truly say these things to God with enough conviction that you would welcome His cross-examination and testing? Wouldn’t it be grand to go on a retreat for about 3 days with dedicated hours towards meditating alone with God and in His Word? Do you suppose that sometime during that retreat you might truly be able to have your ‘Come To Jesus’ meeting and wait for His judgment? I bet it would totally and radically change your Christian walk and experience. I bet your eyes would be opened to areas of your life where you feel so inadequate and mis-aligned with God and His purpose for your life. Perhaps you may even feel like David when he declared at the end of the same chapter “Now I stand on solid ground, and I will publicly praise the Lord.” This sounds like cleaning up the garbage that separates, or drives you away from the God that you love, doesn’t it? Friends, for us to stand firm with our friends, we must first be extremely firm in our relationship with God.

PRAYER: Father, You alone are perfect and good, but I believe You would love to see us try harder to become perfect and good in all our ways so that we may be better aligned with You. Our lives are very transparent, so in spite of us convincing ourselves of our goodness, others see our faults and the large variance in our ways vs Your ways. Please help us to get honest with ourselves by asking You to highlight our weaknesses and our sin. We realize that we will never become perfect, as You are the only perfect One, but Lord I feel like we should all strive towards being more like You every day. We can only fight the war with Satan here on earth through Your strength and the assurance of Your presence each and every day. Thank You for loving us enough to care about our righteousness. I ask this humbly in the name of Your very precious Son, Jesus, AMEN!

Love Is….

On 2015-12-072015-12-07 By Ed AlgreenIn Imitator of Christ, LoveLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ⁴Love is kind and patient, never jealous, boastful, proud, or ⁵rude. Love isn’t selfish or quick tempered. It doesn’t keep a record of wrongs that others do. ⁶Love rejoices in the truth, but not in evil. ⁷Love is always supportive, loyal, hopeful, and trusting. ⁸Love never fails! ~ 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 ~ _{The Contemporary English Version (CEV)}

THOUGHTS: This scripture will probably sound very familiar to you, because you either heard it read at your wedding, or at a wedding ceremony where you were in attendance. Yes, I agree that this whole chapter, known as the ‘Love’ chapter, very much applies to a couple either considering marriage or may even serve as a commitment for a couple making a lifetime commitment based on the love that they share for each other. This actually hit me a little differently as I meditated on this passage this morning, and it is from this perspective that I would like to share a few words with you today. God is the greatest demonstrator of love – to the extent that He is even referred to as ‘love’ in the Biblical phrase “God is ‘love’“. So considering that He sent His Son as our example of His love for us, and if everything ‘Love’ did while here on earth represents ‘love’ in its truest form, should we not be following His example? If we expect to be ‘little Christs’, then we must closely study what Christ himself did, and what He stood for. Don’t you know that we must always question our motives or even our relationship with the Lord when we realize that we are being: unkind; impatient; jealous; boastful; rude; selfish; quick tempered; keeping records of the wrongs other do; despising the truth; rejoicing in evil; unsupportive; disloyal; mistrusting and always failing in our commitments and love towards others? Friends, these actions are more characteristic of the enemy (Satan), so can we truly convince the world that we are a child of the King of all kings, when we act like that? May I challenge you to review your actions after your events of today and talk it over with God, so He could open your eyes to whether you represented His characteristic of ‘Love’, or whether it was probably pretty obvious to everyone who controls your life? This could result in a pretty sobering turn around in your life, all because of ‘LOVE’. I trust that it will be evident to the world whose you are by the love that you show towards God and mankind each day!

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, loving Savior, thank You for the ultimate love that You demonstrated on the cross so that we may know You – that we may know the essence of ‘Love’. Lord, Your Word is clear that we must demonstrate all that You have taught us so that the world might see You in all that we are and in all that we say. May this be a day that Your children will make it obvious to the world, that they are Yours and may it be proven through our words, actions and love. Thank You Father for first loving us! Now, may we carry on that tradition by loving all that we come into contact with! I ask these things in all sincerity and through the loving name of Jesus, AMEN!

What Is Best For Others

On 2015-12-042015-12-04 By Ed AlgreenIn Committed, ObedientLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ²³You are certainly free to eat food offered to idols if you want to; it’s not against God’s laws to eat such meat, but that doesn’t mean that you should go ahead and do it. It may be perfectly legal, but it may not be best and helpful. ²⁴ Don’t think only of yourself. Try to think of the other fellow, too, and what is best for him. ~_{1 Corinthians 10:23-33}_{~ Living Bible (TLB)}

THOUGHTS: Glance back at today’s title again and think about how ‘worldly’ that statement sounds. Not at all, right? That’s because this is an attribute of a child of God, friends. Paul used this in teaching the Corinthian church, where members who had accepted Jesus as Lord, realized that there were some traditional practices where they had recognized they may have been questioning God’s authority to bless and/or authorize them to eat. The problem Paul saw in that, is that they chose to eat these meats in the presence of weak Christians or even those who had yet to accept Christ. This created an air of unacceptance or separation by the unsaved, where it could have become almost impossible to break through their barrier, to teach them anything about the Lord. Let’s put this into a current, practical application. Assume with me that you invited a person to your church who is unsaved, but have always felt ‘religious’ convictions about eating pork, because they had at one time in their life been taught that the pig was ‘unclean’. So after the worship service, at the church-provided luncheon you filled your plate up with pork chops and proceeded to sit next to your invited friend to gorge yourself on this delicious meat. You noticed that after excusing themselves several times to make trips to the bathroom, your friend finally told you bye, and they left. Your eating of a food that made them sick to their stomach, not only put a wedge between the two of you, but could very easily have placed such a disgust in the mind of that friend for Christians as a whole, that they would never again accept an invitation to your church. This is an example of something being OK (legal) in your mind, but it totally offended your friend that you invited to church. Food is not the only thing that offends, or turns a prospect off from the Jesus you have been trying very hard to share with your friends. However, may I suggest to you that if you stick to the things of God and the practices taught by His Precious Son, then you can’t go wrong. You have developed a hardness in your heart against those things that may offend God, things that you automatically do in the presence of weaker Christians and/or prospects, causing them to question what kind of God could you possibly be serving. Right or wrong, non-Christians have their view about what a ‘perfect’ follower of Christ should look and act like. We have a responsibility to God to act and talk like Him so that He might use us to minister and/or encourage those that we come into contact with. We are to be ambassadors for Christ and learn to stay pliable by Him. This will lead to a life where our friends will see the difference in us, and not question to whom we could possibly belong. If you are truly on the Lord’s side, may I encourage you today to seek His face and desire to live according to His Word and His will for your life. Time is short before the Lord returns. We can’t afford ‘mess-ups’ like given in the example above. We are on mission for Jesus Christ, not on a self-pleasing mission for personal pleasure or gain. Join me, won’t you?

PRAYER: Father You sent Your Son to this earth to witness how far we had strayed, and to teach us how we should live obedient lives that are pleasing to You and therefore be individuals who are usable by You. Lord, this old sinful world has such a tug on Your children, especially when we lose sight of Your goodness and Your teachings. Lord, personally, I want to be just like You. I want my life to be a living example of all that You have taught us in Your Word, so that others touched by me would have touched the hand of God extended through me. I pray that You will multiply this request over and over, as individuals read this devotional today and share a desire to also be Your committed servant. Touch Your people once again dear God, so that we might become servants that You can be proud of, and usable instruments in Your hand – all for Your ultimate glory and honor. For these blessings I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus, my Savior and Lord, AMEN!

God Will Never Let You Down

On 2015-12-032015-12-03 By Ed AlgreenIn encouragement, God Can Do It Again, God's Not DeadLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ^11-12These are all warning markers—danger!—in our history books, written down so that we don’t repeat their mistakes. Our positions in the story are parallel—they at the beginning, we at the end—and we are just as capable of messing it up as they were. Don’t be so naive and self-confident. You’re not exempt. You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; it’s useless. Cultivate God-confidence. ¹³ No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it. ~ _{1 Corinthians 10:12-13}_{~ The Message (MSG)}

THOUGHTS: I believe that Paul was warning the Corinthian church to take note of what God had done in the past to help their ancestors, and know that He can do it again for them. Our message in this study today is to also help us realize that our God hasn’t changed, and that He can do it again for us – similar miracles as performed for Moses and the Israelites in the wilderness. I am always amazed how things in our everyday life changes – cars; technology; houses; churches; dress, etc. but when we read about the works of our God from the very beginning of time, and as we are reminded by Paul in our passage today, I can’t help being totally encouraged to know that our God – the One who spoke to Moses through a burning bush; the One who used a man who was afraid to speak in public, yet used Moses to lead his people – in huge numbers through the wilderness, I can only reassure myself and encourage you in the fact that Our God’s not Dead, and that He can do that, and any other miracle beyond anything we can imagine, with just a word, or just the touch of His powerful hand. That’s right Brothers and Sisters, He can Do It Again! I know that we feel overwhelmed with the challenges of life, and I know that we may often feel like we are fighting a very challenging battle in our normal day-to-day lives, but just as Paul encouraged the Corinthians, I must use his example and encourage my readers today to know that whatever you may be going through, rest on His promises, depend on His strong hand, and be confident in His Word, that HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN! That’s just the wonderful, miraculous, saving, loving, awesome God that you and I serve friend! Let me encourage you that should you be in a good place emotionally when you read this today, please take note of these words and be prepared to ‘Carry Your Candle‘ of encouragement with you today so that you might allow God to work through you to encourage someone who may be struggling to see that hope that’s offered by God alone. To the one who will read this today and wonder about who this awesome God is, may I encourage you to read my ‘Footnote’ for the ‘keys of knowledge’ on how to know my Savior, and how to contact me so that I might introduce you to my best Friend. I serve an awesome God and I want you to know Him like I do.

PRAYER:
Dear God, You are so good! Thank You for Your love that You showed evidence of at Calvary, when You made the ultimate step of providing the means for us to know You personally. Lord, there are many that will read this devotional today who are taking very lightly the great sacrifice You made for us. There will also be some who read this as a total stranger, because they have yet to surrender their life to You and accept You as Lord and Savior. Please Do It Again – by melting hearts, convicting Your children of sin and loving them into a relationship with Yourself. Especially at this busy time of the year, there are many who are overwhelmed with all that they feel is necessary to bring happiness into their lives, and those of their families. Please Help us to celebrate the One who came into this world to be our Savior and Lord. A most treasured gift that could never be replicated by anything we buy from the stores. So please help us to give, and share the greatest, most meaningful gift imaginable, the gift of Jesus Christ. Thank You Jesus for accepting me into Your family and treating me as Your very own son. Bless all who reads this devotional today, for I ask all these things in the wonderful name of Jesus – Emanuel, AMEN!

Watch For Distractors In Your Ministry

On 2015-12-012015-12-01 By Ed AlgreenIn Committed, Dedicated, DistractionLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ³⁵I am saying this for your benefit, not to place restrictions on you. I want you to do whatever will help you serve the Lord best, with as few distractions as possible. ~ 1 Corinthians 7:35 ~ _{New Living Translation (NLT)}

THOUGHTS: Paul seemed to have been addressing church members who were caught up in trying to find happiness for their lives, without much regard to what might benefit their long-term benefit to the ministry of Jesus Christ. It seemed like there were members who were wanting to break marriages, because their spouse may not have been a believer at the time they came to know Jesus Christ. It seemed like some wanted to get married to find happiness, but wasn’t sure what to do. Friends we find these dilemmas every day, and although they may not involve marital choices, yet we ponder the right decision for ourselves under the circumstances. Paul encourage the Corinthian church to always bring into the decision equation whether the choice being considered will not only be pleasing to God for our future happiness, but also strongly consider how the decision will impact their ministry for the kingdom. Friends, decisions involving change in your life will tend to either facilitate or enrich your ministry, or it will negatively impact it and distract your ministry. I know, by now you are saying that you are safe because you are not the minister/pastor. May I encourage you to apply this squarely to your life Brothers and Sisters? You may think that your only ministry is praying for church leaders and the needs of church members. Fair enough, will the decisions that you make involving change in your life get in the way of your prayer life? Will it distract you and possibly hinder the time you spend in prayer, or the solitude of your prayer time? Paul’s plea with the Corinthian church is very applicable to us today. We must be careful, and seriously consider any changes in our lives that might distract our ministry for the Lord. If God is truly FIRST in our lives, then we really need to make sure that nothing else becomes first, or that it at least diminishes the value of our dedication to God and His work. May I encourage you to think carefully of any distractors in your life? It may not be a marriage partner, it may just be a girlfriend or boyfriend, or it may be your job, or it may be the demands of your friends to party with them. Whatever it is, only you and God will know. Seek His help and His guidance to help you stay focused and committed to your ministry for His kingdom’s sake. The benefits are ‘out of this world’!

PRAYER: Father, there is so much tugging on us for our time and our attention. For some, it may be exactly like the situation that Paul was addressing, it may be a new partner that someone is looking to take on for selfish reasons. For others, it may be total absorption into their job, for it totally consumes them. Lord we see the distractions that digital devices have brought to our homes, our churches and in our witnessing, yet we know that there are even more powerful distractors that Satan will use to trip us up, or block our ministry opportunities. Please touch your children today, and encourage Your servants to stay focused on You – the God who gave everything so that we might enjoy life eternally with You. Lord You are good and Your mercies endures forever. I pray that we might follow in Your footsteps. I ask these things in the strong name of Jesus – the name above all other names, AMEN!

Actions Reveal One’s State of Christianity

On 2015-11-272015-11-27 By Ed AlgreenIn Actions, Honest Relationship, Reflective of Jesus ChristLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ³You still live as men who are not Christians. When you are jealous and fight with each other, you are still living in sin and acting like sinful men in the world. ~ 1 Corinthians 3:3 ~ _{New Life Version (NLV)}

THOUGHTS: I want you to consider for a quick moment the frustration by a pastor on a Monday morning when he hears about the fight between two members of his church the previous night. Of course this is in light of a sermon the previous day on the characteristics of Jesus Christ. Now take this one step further: John 3:16 reminds us that God allowed His very own Son to suffer at the hands of sinful men in Herod’s court; hung to a cruel cross and suffer beatings and disgrace by the same men He was actually dying for. Time and time again Jesus modeled the character that He wanted His followers to display on this earth so that unbelievers might recognize and/or be reminded of the qualities of their Lord and Savior. Now, in addition to the Pastor being disappointed and frustrated on hearing the bad news of his church members the previous afternoon, imagine the sadness that must sink deep into the heart of our Lord. Paul made it very clear to the Corinthian church that they were fooling themselves, for they were acting like sinful men, or men of the world, or men led by Satan himself. I would like to suggest to you friend, that Satan is always looking for opportunities to bring division, and cause disruption among the people of God. For you see, God loved the world so much, that He gave His only Son so that we might have life eternally in heaven with Him. Satan’s job, and ultimate aim in life, is to stop folk from knowing the love of Jesus and the peace that comes from His almighty hand on our lives each and every day. Satan looks for opportunities and weaknesses every day to distract believers and cause them to question their actual relationship with Jesus. Friends, just as we stay in sweet communion with our spouse to maintain a healthy and loving marriage, it is also incumbent upon us to do the same in our relationship with Jesus. Because He has given us ‘choice’ in life, He will not force Himself upon us, but He is always ready and willing to respond to our desire to follow Him and to help us as we endeavor to learn His ways, communicate regularly with Him and exemplify Him in every aspect of our lives. Each day others can conclude whose we are. Jesus always knows the very heart of His children, so there’s no fooling Him. Where do you stand today friend? Christians, let’s not disappoint our Lord. To my readers, if you are totally new to the things of the Bible and have never met this Jesus of whom I have referred, please go on to read my ‘Footnote’ and either get in touch with me, or sit down with a local Bible-believing church leader. We would be overjoyed to introduce you to our Savior!

PRAYER: What a Might God we serve! Thank You Father for making the way for us to be assured of our ultimate destination! In much the same way that we live like a married man/woman – because we are married, I pray that it would be very evident to all that may come into contact with us that there is another ‘love’ in our lives also, because of the way we live and the things that we say. Lord Jesus, You very clearly know each heart and our innermost thoughts, so You know how messed up we can often be. Lord, we don’t want to be Christians still controlled by the world and therefore our lives sometime reflect You, while at other times the world can easily say like Paul did to the Corinthians: your actions strongly indicate that you are not ‘Christian’ at all. We never want You to embarrassed to claim us as Your very own child Lord, so please forgive us for allowing the world to so easily distract us and turn our eyes and dependence away from you. We need You each and every minute of every day. Please help us to always seek Your face so that we may stay focused on the joys of knowing You and having Your watchful eye and helpful hand upon us to guide, protect and lead us in the way approved and pleasing to You. I ask these things in the name of Jesus, because ‘I Need Thee Every Hour‘, AMEN!

Jesus Will Never Give Up On You!

On 2015-11-252015-11-25 By Ed AlgreenIn Jesus Loves you, LoveLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ^7–9 Just think—you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all! All God’s gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene for the Finale. And not only that, but God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that. ~ 1 Corinthians 1:7-9 ~ The Message (MSG)

THOUGHTS: I am excited in being reminded of how special I am in God’s eyes! Wow!! But I am not alone in this, for this scripture refers to the special provisions for all those who have accepted Jesus as Savior. That’s you Brother, and yes, you Sister! Now because I believe it is just like God to provoke someone to read this devotional today who is incapable of understanding the same joy in this passage that I find, I would ask that you kindly allow me to highly recommend that you contact me, or any other Bible believing Christian, so we could introduce you to the author of the book from which I extracted these verses. He’s the One referred to throughout these verses as the provider of all good and perfect gifts in store for those who have called on Jesus and surrendered their lives to His care. Friends, I could never expect to benefit from the estate of a very rich unknown person, because I am not a son. In other words, I’m a stranger. However, for those of us that have accepted Jesus as Savior, we are sons and daughters of the King. So these are some of the exciting promises found in just this small clip from His Word:

We are in need of nothing!
God has provided for our every need until He returns to take us home to glory with him!
We have reason to be excited about our future, in spite of how dismal things may appear here on planet earth, for our Lord will come back for us to take us out of this evil world, to join Him in the glories of heaven, in just the right time!
Our Savior will NEVER GIVE UP ON US!!!!

To my friends who can’t expect to benefit from this wonderful promise because you are a stranger, and not a part of the family of God, may I remind you that as long as you have breath – and know that you have absolutely no promise of your next breath, but while you can, please consider reaching out to Jesus, asking for His forgiveness of your sin, and ask to become a part of His intimate well-loved family. Jesus has a soft heart for sinners who want to sincerely make a change in their lives. He sacrificed His life so that all who asks may become children of God, so of course that includes you! He has not given up on you friend! This can be the most exciting Thanksgiving for you and your family! Please consider becoming part of the family of God.

PRAYER: Father, what an awesome privilege to call You ‘Father’! Thank You for accepting me as an integral part of Your family! Thank You for all of the promises wrapped up in these verses! Who is mere man that You should be so loving and kind to us? We’ll never know, but thank You for loving us anyway Jesus! Lord, I believe that there are many that will quickly read over this devotional whose ‘love tank’ is probably sucking air, because they don’t feel at all loved by You, or anyone. I pray that You would use the words of Your servant above to trigger a change in the heart of a reader today, or of a family member because of the prayers of Your children. Thank You for being my Father, my Savior and my Redeemer. To God be all the glory, honor and power in my life today, AMEN!

Loving Jesus and Willing to Follow Him

On 2015-11-242015-11-24 By Ed AlgreenIn Commitment, Follow Jesus, TransformedLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ¹⁹….Then he said to Peter, “Follow me!” ²⁰ Peter turned and saw the follower Jesus loved very much walking behind them. (This was the follower who had leaned against Jesus at the supper and said, “Lord, who is it that will hand you over?”) ²¹ When Peter saw him behind them, he asked Jesus, “Lord, what about him?” ²² Jesus answered, “Maybe I want him to live until I come. That should not matter to you. You follow me!” ~ John 21:19b-22 ~ Easy-To-Read Version (ERV)

THOUGHTS: All of our lives we are trained to think about the other person and not be selfish, but I believe you will note in this scripture today that there comes a time in life where Jesus calls for our undivided attention to what He is saying directly to us. In this chapter of John’s gospel, Jesus had just questioned Peter about HIS relation – HIS love for the Master. Jesus got so personal with that question that He asked it of Peter 3 times. When we repeat a question like that, usually we are trying to make sure that we have the person’s undivided attention, and by the second or third time we ask it, the person is really questioning to himself if he truly understood the question, or if the hearer is doubting his answer. You might remember that this is the same Peter who will deny Jesus three times while Jesus hangs on the cross, even though Peter told Jesus ahead of time that he would be with Him right up the very bitter end. As for how we might normally handle this type of question, I believe it all depends on where we are at and in whose presence. At church, where we are surrounded by a crowd of fellow Christians. I bet we would easily respond in the affirmative to Jesus, as we listen for a loud ‘Amen’ from those around us! But how would our response differ if we were asked the same question by Jesus at work; or at the football stadium where folk all around us are drinking and partying? Would we be as quick to respond affirmatively? However, this was not the only sobering thought of this scripture. As indicated already, imagine if the question Jesus asked Peter was asked of us individually in a crowd. Can’t you see us looking around for support, before we respond? “Come on church, let’s respond collectively”, we might say. Imagine Jesus stopping your parade and saying “wait a minute young man/lady, I am looking for a personal response from you only. May I hear your heart’s response, in spite of what you feel the rest of the church/co-workers/theme park crowd might say collectively with you”. Friends, this is exactly what Jesus did to Peter, for He told me that He was more concerned that he (Peter) would follow Him, even if no one else did. What about you friend? If you were singled out like that, how would you respond to Jesus? Are you at that place in your relationship with Jesus that you will respond, based on your heart, and not what you think the crowd would like to hear? Friend, I would encourage you to join me in solidifying our relationship with the Lord. This could be the day that He decides to take one or all of us home, and I don’t know about you, but I really want to know that Jesus was pleased with my life while here on this earth. That I stood firm in my faith and in my witness for Him. I pray that this would also be the desire of each reader.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, You stayed true to Your mission right up to Your time on the cross. Like us, I believe that Peter stayed true to you, but he and us, we are so easily swayed in our decision making, that the crowd (Satan) may easily find a ‘soft spot’ and distract our thoughts and commitment to You. Lord, we are so weak. But praise to Your glorious name, You are so strong. So Lord, we come to the solid ‘Rock’ today pleading for Your strength in our commitment; our boldness; and our witness – regardless of the environment or crowd that we might be in. Please help us to remain strong. For those reading this who have not made a personal decision to accept You as their Lord and Savior, I ask for clarity in their minds so that they might recognize the priority of accepting You as Lord, before following the crowd to ask a total stranger for help. Please impact the lives of Your children today, so that we might stand firm in our faith. May our transformed lives be so sincere, that the lives of others will be transformed when they ‘rub shoulders’ with one of Yours today. For I ask these things in the strong name of Jesus, AMEN!

Nuggets From God's Word

Tag: God