Tag: God’s presence

A Testimony Resulting From the Presence of Jesus

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, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED: Monday, August 12, 2024, and I was blessed to be at San Marcos River RV Resort 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 New Living Translation (NLT) IS FOUND IN Luke 24:35-36

THE BIBLE TEXT IS: Then the two from Emmaus told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road, and how they had recognized him as he was breaking the bread. And just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. 

APPLICATION OF THE WORD: Some reading this devotional today probably have heard about Jesus for most of your lives, and many of you have experienced answered prayer and perhaps even felt God’s presence with you during some of your happy life-experiences, or even in the loss of loved ones. If this is your situation, I bet you are dying with anticipation at the thought of being with Jesus someday soon when God is ready for you to leave this earth and join Him in heaven – a day that all Christians look forward to! But today I want us to try and place ourselves in the shoes of the two disciples that Jesus appeared to while they were walking along the Emmaus Road. They were discussing the impact the Last Supper had on them. When we re-live life-experiences like this, we tend to melt away into the very moment that we are recalling. So, I would imagine that they recalled the love, the compassion, the concern Jesus seemed to have shown for their future and His upcoming arrest and crucifixion. And before any of us dare question their faith in this particular scenario, let’s remember that these men undoubtedly saw Jesus being arrested and perhaps even saw Him on the cross, followed by watching the soldiers seal the tomb of Jesus. Friends, if you were one of these men, what do you suppose you would have done if someone suddenly appeared in your small group and began talking to you? Let’s bring this thought a little closer to home – many of us attend church each week and we sing praises to God, and we do our best to stay awake while the Word of God is expounded. Do you suppose that we would pay closer attention if we look towards the front of the church, and we see Jesus standing there with outstretched hands, inviting us to surrender our lives totally to Him? Will our altars fill up a little quicker at the end of our services rather than the emptiness we see when God’s messenger invites us to respond to the Gospel message? When we pray, do we do it in such earnest that we know we are kneeling in the presence of Jesus, and we expect and or anticipate His miraculous response? When our world is falling apart – perhaps in the death of a very young relative, or if we lost our job, or if our spouse walks away from our marriage, and we are feeling very alone and like we’ve lost everything of value in our lives, does the refreshing Spirit of God fill our hearts and remind us of His undying love, and that He will be with us until the very end? In circumstances like these, we tend to be bitter, and although we cry out to God, we tend to do so with the wrong attitude. What if God made Himself so real in our lives, and so concerned about our circumstances, that we found a place to be alone with God and just allowed Him to love on us, counsel us about where to go from here, and reassure us that His promise is still true that He will be with us until the very end of time and that He is working out His plan in our lives, for our good? Can we handle that? Will you consider asking God to do just that for you? Let’s try to remember that our mission may not change at all, in spite of our earthly circumstances, so let’s learn to lean on Jesus so that He may work out His perfect plan in our lives. This will result in an effective, continued ministry of representing the kingdom of God, to whom we belong, for His eternal good.

PRAYER BECAUSE OF THE IMPACT OF TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Thank You Lord God for the presence and effectiveness of Your Holy Spirit that is always with us, as believers in Your Son, Jesus. Just as in the case of the disciples in our Scripture today, there are times that You pull up alongside of us to reassure us of Your power, Your love, Your ongoing plan for us, and the home that You have prepared for us when we leave this earth. Please help us to keep our eyes fixed on You, and not to be distracted with the circumstances that may hit us hard while still living here on this earth. Just as it is almost impossible for us to know the comfort of a spouse walking through life with us if we’re not committed, and married to one, so it is with knowing how good You are, oh Lord, without a living, dedicated, relational experience with You on a daily basis. Please help us to not wait until the ‘bottom’ falls out in our lives to look for the God of this universe, but instead help us to dedicate ourselves to You today and live a daily devoted life in sweet communion with You. In that kind of relationship, we know that You are with us on the ‘mountain tops’ and in the ‘valleys’ of life. We can then celebrate You in the good times, and when You pull up alongside of us in our most dismal times of life. You are our God, and You will be with us through every circumstance of life, if only we will let You. Today is the day dear Lord, please teach us to accept, and then expect You throughout every circumstance of life. 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!

In The Presence of Jesus, Worship Him

On By Ed AlgreenIn Faith, Know Jesus, Rewards, Trust, WorshipLeave a comment

Wednesday, 2019-04-10

Bible Reference: Matthew 28:8-9; 16-17
Translation: The Message (MSG)

Bible Text: 8-9  The women, deep in wonder and full of joy, lost no time in leaving the tomb. They ran to tell the disciples. Then Jesus met them, stopping them in their tracks. “Good morning!” he said. They fell to their knees, embraced his feet, and worshiped him. | 16-17 Meanwhile, the eleven disciples were on their way to Galilee, headed for the mountain Jesus had set for their reunion. The moment they saw him they worshiped him. Some, though, held back, not sure about worship, about risking themselves totally.

OBSERVATION: In these two incidents told about in Matthew 28, we are reminded that when we find ourselves in the presence of Jesus, we will worship Him. In another Scripture we are told that every knee will bow and every tongue confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord – That is ‘Worship’! As we meditate on this, let’s look at today’s opportunities to ‘worship’ the King of all kings and Lord of all lords!

APPLICATION: Those looking for excuses on why we are not impacted like the women were in verse 8 above, might say that the advantage the women had over us was that they actually saw Jesus physically in all His glory; they saw Him crucified; and they would therefore have reason to be emotionally attached to Him, especially in His risen state. But I really would like for us to examine that excuse carefully, for I could see the glory of God in everything that I see and touch throughout my day; I could follow the evidence of Him being with me as I reflect on protection from a near accident while driving to work, or saving my youngest child – at a time that doctors had given up all hope of survival; I knew it was the power of my Lord that healed my aching body and gave direction to my physician. So my God’s not dead, no, He’s very much alive and evident in all aspects of my life. Therefore I can’t say that the women had one up on me. How then can you and I possibly use any excuse to not lie prostrate before Him in worship and adoration? Let’s look at the second set of verses, and be reminded that those who lived with, and worked alongside, Jesus, had doubt in their hearts and were unable to truly bow at His feet and worship Him. Could it be that we are like those disciples who may have doubted the healing touch of the Master; or perhaps looked at the miraculous experience of Lazarus being raised from the dead – just like the gathered crowd may have whispered – that he really wasn’t dead at all? The crowd doubted because the knew that Jesus was just the son of a local girl Mary, and that carpenter’s son, Joseph. What’s our excuse? Friends, this really brings us to the point of examining our own hearts, and our tendency to worship our Lord, or not. We say that ‘we have met to worship’, when we come together at a church building on weekends. How is that? Do we find a prod at the door that enables us to sing, and/or listen to a messenger of God speak his heart to us? Did we truly find opportunities to ‘worship the King’ since we last met together at church? In these verses, I was touched by the Spirit of God, to believe that when we see Jesus and witness His divine presence among us, particularly those that know Him as ‘Father’, or ‘Lord’, or ‘Master’, or ‘Friend’, or ‘Savior’, and as ‘Creator’ of this whole universe, shouldn’t our very souls immediately, and automatically, burst forth in worship to Him. Out of respect and honor, we may fall to our knees, but I don’t believe that anything could prevent the overflow of excitement and reverence that we experience internally, when we enter into His presence. Please don’t wait for the weekend services for this. Allow God to envelop you, fill you with so much of His holy presence, that praise and worship will burst forth even today! He’s our Lord and soon coming King, my friend, if we expect to worship Him throughout eternity, then let’s not hesitate doing just that even now – today!

PRAYER: Thank You Lord, for making Yourself known to even us – sinners saved by the wonderful grace of Jesus! Our love to Your Son, and our appreciation for all that You have done for us, should be reflected in worship and praise at frequent intervals. May our praise emanate from us in ways that are very obvious to You and to those around us. Oh that my family, friends, coworkers, church members, and all who come into contact with me, see Jesus today, and may they be drawn to accept and worship this same Jesus that I love, honor and look forward to seeing one day in glory! There will be readers of this devotional today whose desire it is to also see, worship and share Jesus with everyone in their circle of influence. Oh that their wishes may become a reality today dear Lord, so that You may be magnified through them. AMEN!

Sanctified Tabernacle

On By Ed AlgreenIn Honor, Praise, WorshipLeave a comment

Post Date:

 Wednesday, 2017-03-29
SCRIPTURE

From:

 Exodus 29:43-46 (TLB)

Text:

 43 And I will meet with the people of Israel there, and the Tabernacle shall be sanctified by my glory. 44 Yes, I will sanctify the Tabernacle and the altar and Aaron and his sons who are my ministers, the priests. 45 And I will live among the people of Israel and be their God, 46 and they shall know that I am the Lord their God.…
OBSERVATION:
Through the instructions given to the Israelites about their tabernacle where they would meet to offer sacrifices and praise to God the Father, they were assured that the tabernacle would be sanctified by the glory of God and that their leaders would be appropriately sanctified also. God also assured them that He would live among them and they would know that He is the Lord their God. Wow, how does that work with us today?
APPLICATION:
What do you suppose would be different about our attendance at church if we knew that a world leader would be in worship with us next weekend? Do you suppose that the sanctuary would fill up quickly and the whole service would be filled with awe over the presence of such a leader sharing in worship with us? Do you suppose that leader might gain a new respect from us after they return to their normal weekly duties? Isn’t it interesting that the Creator of the universe has promised to be in our midst whenever two or three would gather in His name to worship Him, yet some can’t be bothered to get up because its the only day they have to sleep in, or the only day they could go to the beach, or clean house, or….. Friends, when we ignore the opportunity to go and spend time in God’s presence to worship Him with other believers, why on earth should we expect to have Him at our beck and call every time during the week that we have need to call on Him. Would you make more of an effort to attend, and would you act any differently when you walked through the doors of the sanctuary if you knew confidently that God’s presence was overwhelmingly there? Do you suppose that we would find time in our respective services to just savor on His presence and offer up individual praise to our Father? Would we be able to break the man-made flow of the service and just recognize God? Would you be able to ‘turn off’ the worries of the week long enough to give Him your undivided attention and recognition of His awesome presence? If you stop and reflect on the Word of God, you will recall that it assures us that God inhabits the praises of His people. He has promised to be in our presence whenever two or three would meet in His name. This assures me that He IS there patiently waiting for us to stop talking to each other, or looking at our cell phones, or worrying ourselves sick of personal issues. Will we continue to disappoint Him and ignore Him friends? I pray that we will come to our senses every time we have opportunity to meet together to worship our Lord. Will you make an effort to give Him your attention, your honor and your praise?
PRAYER:
Lord Jesus please forgive us for ignoring Your presence, especially in our services where we claim that we are there to worship You. The Israelites were promised that Your glory would fill their tabernacle. You have also promised that You would be present in our midst, and I’m sure that wherever You are, that place is filled with Your glory. Thank You Heavenly Father for meeting in our midst and welcoming our praise. Lord, may we be more mindful of Your presence so that the sincerity of our offerings of praise and worship would be evident to You in very meaningful ways. Lord, You know that we love and appreciate You. Please help us to show that in every aspect of our lives, especially in Your sanctuary. 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!