Tag: Heaven

This refers to my new home in glory with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

So That We Might Know

On By Ed AlgreenIn Honesty, Knowledge, SincerityLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The New Living Translation – 1 John 3:4-10): 4 Everyone who sins is breaking God’s law, for all sin is contrary to the law of God. 5 And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in him. 6 Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is. 7 Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. 8 But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. 9 Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. 10 So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.

THOUGHTS: You would think that mankind would know if they had surrendered their heart, their life, and their whole being over to God. However, we also know that when placed under peer pressure, or the constant nagging of a parent or even a pastor, we tend to make certain decisions in order to get them off our back. I’m not saying that the only excuse we make is peer pressure, for some of us just renege on the decision we made because we have been distracted by the things of this world. This is pretty normal for many, where they will stick to one thing as long as nothing better comes up! But friends, I want you to put all of the excuses aside today and concentrate on what the Word of God says. It is very simple, and we don’t need a theological degree to understand it, or to apply it to our lives. If we break God’s laws, or commands detailed in His Word, then we sin, and sin will never enter heaven. However, we are well aware that Jesus never sinned, and if we are to live like Him and follow His example wholeheartedly, then we also must make every effort to avoid sin. If we don’t, and if we keep on sinning, then the Word is clear – see verse 6 – that we are truly not children of the King. We also know that when a person invites Jesus to take charge of their life, that God sends the Comforter (His Holy Spirit) to take up residence in their lives. However, we also know from God’s Word that He will not reside in a temple where sin abides. So friend, as our subject declares today: there are indicators for us to confirm that we are children of God and, unfortunately, there are ‘sin’ indicators that help us to identify, or recognize our lost condition. The BIG challenge that I believe we face today is: now that we know the Truth, what will we do with it? Jesus could return to take us home at any moment friend, and He will only take those who have honored His Word and sought after His righteousness. Are you a part of that group that will be taken up to meet Jesus in the air, or have you determined in your heart that you would rather hang on to things of this world – of Satan? These Bible verses today takes away the doubt of where you will spend eternity. Only you, with God’s help, can change that and make it right today!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, the decisions we make today sets the stage for where we will spend eternity. We can’t fool You. And based on this scripture today, we are probably an open book to everyone around us, because they can see if our lives truly reflect any decision we may have made in sincerity to follow You. Please help us to get real, to do away with the pretense and to make honest, heartfelt decisions today that will impact our future destination. May we live in the light of Your Word today, and may our minds be set on one day uniting with You around the throne. This is my desire Lord, and I humbly ask that You will impact the hearts of all of my readers today also. For I ask this in faith, in Your holy name, believing in You as my Lord and everlasting Savior, 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 read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, 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 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!

Proof That You Truly Know God

On By Ed AlgreenIn Hypocritical, Love, Lying, UntrustworthyLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (New Living Translation – 1 John 2:3-6): 3 … we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. 4 If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. 5 But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. 6 Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.

THOUGHTS: Obedience reveals commitment to Christ! In fact, this is a good test for yourself: If you find yourself generally at odds with obeying the Word of God and His commands, then it is time for a self-examination and a humbleness before God, asking Him to reveal the area(s) of your life that you need to recommit to Him and/or realign with His will. When you feel unloved by God, or distanced from Him, then according to John 15:10 there may be areas of your life where you have taken personal control and no longer allow God full control. Friends, I believe there are several keywords that are important in this fact finding, internal evaluation: Think about ‘hypocritical’ – for you are saying that you love God and know Him intimately, yet doing your own thing and ignoring His commands. This is very damaging to your witness to others; Think about ‘lying’ – for you are saying with your mouth that you know God but really ignoring His commands. Verse 4 plainly spells this one out for us; Think about ‘untrustworthy’ – for how can God or man trust someone who cannot be trusted to live as he claims to be? Friends, today you will have opportunity to evaluate your actions in light of your relationship with God. I pray that there is lots of evidence that you truly know God and are living according to His perfect will for your life. Remember, He loved us enough to send His only Son to die on Calvary’s cross for our benefit. Is it not way less impacting on our lives to simply love God in return, and obey His commands? I propose to you friend, that this is the least we can do to prove our faithfulness and commitment to Him. Please use the information provided in my ‘Footnote’ to contact me if there is anything I can pray with you about, regarding this subject or anything that is impacting your commitment to God. I would love to pray for you and with you!

PRAYER: Dear God, we say with our lips that we know You, we love You and adore You, yet we try to live our lives like we’ve always done. This is not right in Your sight, nor does it align with Your Word. We are making a mockery of ourselves in the sight of others, and especially in Your sight. Please forgive us for our failures, lack of commitment and true evidence of love for You, oh Lord. Yet again today Your Word has opened our eyes to our weaknesses and our constant need for You. Please open our minds to fully see ourselves for who we truly are, and our desperate need for You in every aspect of our lives. Lord, not only do we want to be in Your presence in glory one day, but we want to live like You here on this earth so that our lives might have an impact on those who need You as their Savior and Lord. Please continue to work on us Lord. May Your glory shine through in every phase of our lives so that You might be lifted up and the lost won to Christ. We love You Lord, and thank You for Your immense love for us. I ask all these things in the glorious name of Jesus, my Lord, with thanksgiving and in utmost praise to my King, my Lord and my Savior, 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 read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, 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 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!

God’s In Control of The Just and the Unjust

On By Ed AlgreenIn Just, Righteous, Salvation, Surrender, UnjustLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The Contemporary English Version – 2 Peter 2:7-10): 7-8 Lot lived right and was greatly troubled by the terrible way those wicked people were living. He was a good man, and day after day he suffered because of the evil things he saw and heard. So the Lord rescued him. 9 This shows that the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their sufferings and to punish evil people while they wait for the day of judgment. 10 The Lord is especially hard on people who disobey him and don’t think of anything except their own filthy desires. They are reckless and proud and are not afraid of cursing the glorious beings in heaven.

THOUGHTS: I found it interesting how, within a few verses, God shows us that He cares for, and will protect and rescue those who claim His Son as Savior of their lives, yet He will be especially hard on people who disobey Him and are unjust. I found verse 9 as the most promising verse this morning, as it plainly comforts the Christian who is serious about their relationship with their Savior, by reassuring us that God is ever present with us, even in our suffering. This is reassuring friends, because although we can easily praise God during the good times of our lives, it is especially challenging to recognize God when we are suffering. In fact, in most cases we tend to think quite the opposite – it feels like God has abandoned us. So what about evil folk you might ask? Friends, even in the same verse (9) the scripture goes on to explain that God will punish evil people while they wait for the Day of Judgment. Only you and God know where you stand in your relationship with God, but friend I believe that there are only two types of individuals who would have read down this far in this devotional: 1). You have a personal, living, dedicated relationship with your Savior, or 2). God is dealing in your life and has directed you to read this devotional in light of something that He is ordering me to share with you. Whichever of these two groups you fall into, I believe that it would be very wrong for you to ignore the Word of the Lord, or take it lightly. My God loves us so much that He gave up His one and only Son to provide the means of rescue for us from this sinful world and the Day of Judgment that is promised to all. Please don’t trifle with this gift of God, for I would hate for any of us to face the fury of God that is referred to in verse 9. The critical thing that I really want to emphasize to you today is that, when we reach the age of understanding and hear the Word of the Lord and we refuse His invitation to accept His Son as our Savior, by default, we are headed towards Hell and stand subject to God’s punishment mentioned in verse 9. The only way to change your destination and/or eternal damnation, is to accept the free gift of salvation that God calls us to, and has provided the vehicle by which we are saved. So friend, I believe the path is clear, and I believe you can easily deduce that only you can make the decision and choose the path that You will follow today that will result in your final destination in eternity. If there is personal doubt as to where you stand, I would encourage you to read, and follow through with the tips in my Footnote, to reassure yourself of your final destination. It is THE most important decision you can make today!

PRAYER: Lord God, You have made it very clear in Your Word the importance of deciding today, and following through with open communication with You, so that our final destination in life can be guaranteed. If we book a flight today, we want to see our final destination on the ticket, nothing else. Yet in life we tend to think that our destination will change depending on how good, or bad we are, or some other irrelevant aspect of our lives. Your Word is very clear, and our study today is very clear. May we be obedient to Your call on our lives, so that our final destination will be guaranteed, and secured. Thank You Father for loving us enough to care about us during this lifetime and in the world to come after we depart this old earth. Please tender the hearts of my readers so that they may read, listen and obey, so that you may be lifted up and praised. I ask all this in the precious name of Your only Son, Jesus my Savior, with thanksgiving. 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!

Help In Seeing The Good in Your Trials

On By Ed AlgreenIn Faith, Surrender, TrialsLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The New Living Translation – 1 Peter 1:6-7): 6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. 7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

 THOUGHTS: We must be extremely careful not to doubt our salvation when we, as Christians, have troubles and trials arise in our earthly lives. Think about it friend, if we didn’t have these, what kind of witness would we be to those who need a Savior. For God would not have opportunity to show the unsaved how gracious He truly is to His earthly servants, and the handiwork of His miraculous hands in the lives of His children. Secondly, if we were spared from trials, how might we experience the graciousness of God to be especially loving, caring and powerful in helping us to overcome these things that are way beyond our reach and/or resolution? In this scripture today, this analogy is compared to the proving process used in the precious metal ‘gold’. For when it is brought to extreme heat, it is maximized in strength and durability. Likewise, when we face trials, it’s not that God doesn’t love us or care for us, for it is then that He is preparing us for battle, or to use the phrase of an old TV star, God is preparing us for the ‘big one’! Probably the most challenging thing for us to do, is to praise God, even in the midst of our trials, because we understand, and have faith to believe that He is strengthening us. Friends, when we say that we are Christian and we truly believe that we have placed our hand in the hands of the Almighty God, we must then hang on for the ride of our lifetime, knowing that we are under His control, His protection and His will, knowing full well that He loves us way too much to see any harm or hurt impact us. Can you imagine the admiration and pride that must come across the face of Jesus when He looks on His creation (us) and see us living in full submission to Him, and we finally get the scripture that indicates – all things work together for good, to those who love and have surrendered their lives totally to Jesus? My challenge today is first of all for self, that I may be totally surrendered to the Savior and allow Him full control over my life. Only then can I truly desire to see each of you do the same. However, for yourself, if it’s to be, it’s up to you! Therefore align yourself with the Lord of all lords and the King of all kings, who loved you enough to personally sacrifice His very best so that You might trust in Him, handle life’s circumstances and look forward to spending eternity with Him in glory!

 PRAYER: Father God, I adore You, I love You and I praise You for who You are and for all that You have helped me through already in my short life. However, You have taught me through Your Word that I am not perfect, so I surrender my total self to You today and pray that You might use me in ways that might allow Your kingdom work to increase and flourish here on this earth. I am equally concerned for my friends who will read this devotional today, for I always want Your very best for them also. Please satisfy every doubt or weakness in commitment and/or total surrender. Please provoke decisions in their personal lives that will cause Your name to be lifted high and every soul be drawn closer to You in full obedience. May we learn to celebrate You in all aspects of our lives, even when going through tough times. You alone are worthy of our praise in all aspects of our lives, so I worship You and ask all these things in Your precious and holy name, Lord Jesus, 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 read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, 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!

We Have A Hope!

On By Ed AlgreenIn HopeLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The New Living Translation – 1 Peter 1:3-6): 3 All honor to God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; for it is his boundless mercy that has given us the privilege of being born again so that we are now members of God’s own family. Now we live in the hope of eternal life because Christ rose again from the dead. 4 And God has reserved for his children the priceless gift of eternal life; it is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5 And God, in his mighty power, will make sure that you get there safely to receive it because you are trusting him. It will be yours in that coming last day for all to see. 6 So be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though the going is rough for a while down here.

THOUGHTS: When the world looks at a bad day, or the end of life for someone, there is nothing but despair, depression and a deep absence of hope. Peter wanted to make sure that Christians living in provinces that he served knew that there was more to this life than merely meets the eye. I believe that God led Peter to pen these words so that Christians today – you and I, would know that we need to look beyond our circumstances, no matter how bleak they may seem, and to stand encouraged to know that there is a whole lot more to look forward to, especially after all that we go through on a daily basis here on this earth. Friends, may I encourage you with the words directed by God? Based on the words through Peter, I believe God is telling us that we are to look beyond our temporary issues and challenges, whether it be medical, financial, family related or whatever – look beyond life as we know it today, and remember that the same God who sacrificed His one and only Son to save us from our sin, that He rose again from the dead and sits at the right hand of His Father. This serves as a foresight for us to envision how we also will one day rise from the dead and bow humbly at the feet of Jesus and His Father, where there will no longer be strife, worries, health issues or quarrelling, for there will be no more sorrow there, nor sickness, nor parting over there, but peace forevermore on that happy, glorious day! The logical question by any reading this might be “So when, where or how do I get my ticket, or pass, for this great event?” I’m so glad you went there friend, because unlike any other destination where you may have travelled before, this destination is set aside for those who have made preparation here on earth. You see, it’s because of your choice today that will determine whether you spend eternity in heaven with Jesus, or if you will be faced with an even deeper wrath of Satan than you face daily here on earth. Have a look at the link in my ‘Footnote’ called “How to Know Jesus”. I believe you will find evidence there about what you can expect. Fortunately, if you are reading this, it means that you still have the option to change your destination choice. Unless you already know Jesus as your personal Savior, then if you do nothing you will continue your unfortunate destination to Hell. However, if you act on the information available to you in the referenced document using God’s Word, then you will be assured of your final destination in glory with Jesus and all His precious saints. It’s a matter of choice, friend. You must make that choice personally.

PRAYER: Praise the powerful name of Jesus, my Savior, I Have A Hope! It’s written in this scripture today, and so beautifully sung by Tommy Walker in the hyperlinked title. I praise You Heavenly Father for that wonderful hope, and I thank You from the depths of my heart for impacting my life some 39 years ago by helping me make the most important decision of my life. Father, I pray that each one that You will cause to read this devotional today might examine their heart closely and either be reminded of that hope which is theirs, or be provoked by Your precious Holy Spirit into accepting You as Lord and Savior today. Lord, may they make the right decision today, because doing nothing equates to a decision to continue their path towards hell. For the family that I love, the friends that I admire and the friends that I care so deeply about, I humble plead with You Lord to move in their hearts today. May You be honored repeatedly today as more of your children make decisions to accept the sacrifice You made at Calvary for our good. I ask this all in the precious name of Jesus, 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 read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, 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!

Don’t Give Up, Strengthen Your Resolve!

On By Ed AlgreenIn Heaven, Patience, Wait PatientlyLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The Voice – James 5:7-8): 7 For this reason, my brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the return of the Lord. Look! The farmer knows how to wait patiently for the land to produce vegetables and fruits. He cannot harvest a freshly planted seed. Instead, he waits for the early and the late showers to nourish the soil. 8 You need this same kind of patience, so in the meantime, strengthen your resolve because the Lord will be coming soon.

 THOUGHTS: One of the toughest things in life is ‘to wait’! Imagine in a written test when you finish first – you sit worried about whether you must have barreled into the test and possibly missed the point. In picking up someone from the airport and you arrive early – you may tend to beat up on yourself for not having gone the speed limit and possibly been more kind to those drivers who just seemed to have poked along. In Christendom we may tend to do something similar – we may become impatient with those who are struggling to surrender their lives to Jesus Christ, or we may lose identity with the unsaved and therefore be challenged to understand their reasoning for delaying their salvation decision. Similarly, for those who easily meet all the bills and have lots of extra to do all those things that some of us can only dream about, they may tend to look down their noses and find many reasons why someone is possibly struggling financially. I believe that James is telling us that, in life we have choices and each of those should really lead towards the ultimate goal of spending eternity in heaven with our Father God, and many saints that have gone on before us. Meanwhile, we each have a personal responsibility – one that applies only to our heart and our life – how can we draw even closer to God? How can we do even more towards our relationship with God and all those that He loves? Try looking at a groom waiting for his bride to walk the isle, he is either in deep thought about what he might do to make his bride more proud of him, or how much more can he do to provide for their wellbeing and happiness, or even what else can he smooth over in his appearance at that moment to look his very best for his bride. So it is with saints of God, while we wait for our ‘BIG DAY’ when we shall see our Savior face to face, we are to be patiently striving to be more like Him; trying to be His hands extended to those around us, by blessing the rich and/or the poor; we are to be deeper into the Word than ever before as we build anticipation of seeing Jesus! Friends, there’s no time to coast along, or get impatient, or even feel like an over-achiever, for we are to be busy about the Master’s work and never give up. Constantly working towards being more like Jesus – the author and finisher of our faith. Let us therefore strengthen our resolve to be as much like Jesus as we can; yearn for His Word daily, ask Him to grant you faith, knowledge and wisdom to be more like Him in every way. Constantly remind yourself and sing.. ‘You’re the One I live for Jesus‘, and look forward to pleasing every day!

 PRAYER: Thank You Lord God for providing the means to salvation! Thank You for reaching deep into my heart and convicting me of my sin, causing me to surrender my life to You. Having heard the call by James, I humbly plead with You dear Lord, to touch the hearts of my readers and myself to never think more of ourselves than we are, to never look down on others, but to constantly look for ways to offer a ‘hand-up’ to them. Please help us to look at their soul and not their circumstances dealt to them by this cruel and selfish world. Please help us to never be anxious about tomorrow, while still keeping our eye, and our goal on the prize that lies ahead of us. Your Word is clear, that we are to strengthen our resolve to be more like You every day, as we prepare for that great union with You in glory! Oh, What A Day that Will be, when my Jesus I shall see!! Praise the wonderful name of Jesus! I humbly place these petitions at Your feet oh Lord, for it’s in Your magnificent name that I ask all this, 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 read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, 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!

Through Godly Eyes

On By Ed AlgreenIn Love, UnconditionalLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The Living Bible – James 2:1-4): 1 ….how can you claim that you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, if you show favoritism to rich people and look down on poor people? 2 If a man comes into your church dressed in expensive clothes and with valuable gold rings on his fingers, and at the same moment another man comes in who is poor and dressed in threadbare clothes, 3 and you make a lot of fuss over the rich man and give him the best seat in the house and say to the poor man, “You can stand over there if you like or else sit on the floor”—well, 4 judging a man by his wealth shows that you are guided by wrong motives.

THOUGHTS: I would imagine that the title alone might draw attention thinking that perhaps I would address various sins that might be acceptable to God. No that would never happen, because God makes it clear in His Word that He hates sin. However, there are certain actions we are guilty of that reveals our ugly motives and ultimately leads to sin. Often Satan will place the thought of greed and self-promotion in our hearts and we easily concede to sin. The example given in this scripture today is still very real today, but I want us to examine what might be the motive behind it. We are still recovering from a fairly challenging financial depression, where we have seen a number of churches close their doors and/or reduce staff in order to survive the financial crisis. Church treasurers are excited to see new tithers enter their church, and they morn the departure of those that faithfully give financially. Churches are called on more than ever before to help poor families who may have lost jobs and/or faced crucial financial challenges that have really impacted their homes. If this kind of information is well known to church leaders, how do you suppose they would react to a well-known rich person visiting their church, versus a struggling family who may have to call on the church for help? If we do this in our churches, don’t you know that we do this in every phase of our lives? Will you prepare your home as nicely to receive a humble clerk from your employment for dinner, as you would the CEO? In our scripture we see where God gave James insight into this by challenging us to think about our motives behind the ways that we treat people from various walks of life. Friends, we should never treat someone based on their financial status, or the color of their skin, or their social status in society. These are worldly statuses we have given to each other, because all God sees is a sinner in need of His grace. He will save the poor person as quickly as He would a rich person. Because all are simply children made by God, He loves the rich person as much as He does the poor person. If we are to be just like our Father, why would we act any differently that He? Let us learn to love one another, without regard to their social or financial status, friend!

PRAYER: Lord, I need to love my CEO as much as I love my lowliest co-worker. They both were designed by You and they both need You as their Savior to be acceptable into heaven. I believe that You love us as much today, with all that we have attached to ourselves from this old world, as You did the day You released us from our mother’s womb. For worldly attachments will remain, and only those basic things created and blessed by You will rise to meet You in the air. I pray that You will help us to rid ourselves of prejudices and wrong motives. Please help us to see Your children for who they are, not for what they have become throughout their lifetime here on earth. Financial gains as well as poverty will remain, but our hearts, souls and minds will all look the same as we enter Your kingdom. Please help us to see each other in this form while we remain on earth, so that when we rise to meet You we can lock arms with people of every nation, social status or walk of life – all children saved by Your wonder grace. Please help us to look at others through Your lens today and see folk in need of our Savior, or celebrate with them as children already saved by Your grace. I ask this in the powerful and almighty name of Jesus, 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 read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, 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!

God is Coming Soon!

On By Ed AlgreenIn Eternal Life, Hope, SalvationLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The Contemporary English Version – Hebrews 10:36-39): 36Learn to be patient, so that you will please God and be given what he has promised. 37As the Scriptures say, “God is coming soon! It won’t be very long. 38The people God accepts will live because of their faith. But he isn’t pleased with anyone who turns back.” (Habakkuk 2:3–4) 39We are not like those people who turn back and get destroyed. We will keep on having faith until we are saved.

THOUGHTS: To some who will read the subject and the Bible verses, we might hear “Come Lord Jesus, come!”, and they may be referred to by their friends as Paul said of himself, “They have fought a good fight and they have kept the faith, enter now into the kingdom of heaven prepared for you by our Lord”. However, some will try to claim the victory and protest their position with the Lord because of their giving, or church attendance, or the faithfulness of their parents, only to sadly hear the words of Jesus reverberate “I never knew you”. There will also be some who will face eternity as lost as they are here on earth, because they consider the Word of God as ‘fables’ or ‘meant for the people of old who knew no better’. Friends, I believe that you should clearly understand the intent of the gospel – the Word of God, and this scripture serves as a great tool to remind us of that. An example to help explain this might be the need for a driver’s license to legally drive a vehicle on the public roads of any country. You know, and understand that driving without that legal document could lead to a prison term for you. You should also clearly understand that you are required to surrender your life of sin, and ask for forgiveness from the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. According to John 3:16, God loves us all, and if we Admit our sin, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and Confess our unworthiness and our ‘lost’ condition without Jesus, then we will become His very special child; saved from this sinful world and kept secure in His keeping until the day He calls us home to heaven to live with Him eternally. So compare the two scenarios given: driving without legal permission (a driver’s license) will send you to prison; living without ever personally accepting Jesus as your Savior will lead to eternity in Hell with Satan. The choice is clear, but it is totally up to you to decide your destiny, or what you will do. My desire is that God will soften your hardened heart and lead you to the cross of Calvary where you would see the great love expressed by my Savior to make your only positive choice a viable option. The plan is in place Brother and Sister, the choice is entirely yours. Please be smart and choose faith in Christ. I really want to see you in glory where we will kneel together at the feet of Jesus and praise He and His Father forever!

PRAYER: Lord God, we are given the liberty of making choices every day. Often some will lead to success, while others lead to failure, and possible destruction. In Your Word, You revealed our options about whom we will serve while here on this earth, and where that will ultimately lead us to in death, as we know it here on earth. I thank You and praise You that I accepted the best option available for my life, and that, based on Your Word, I have fore-knowledge about where I will spend eternity when the day comes for my graduation from earth to my new home in Heaven! I believe You have led me to clearly explain the above to my readers today so that they may KNOW in whom they believe, and with whom they will spend eternity. I humbly plead for Your help to those who are challenged with making a sound choice today. Please, may this be the day of clarity of mind and sound decisions, so that all who have received this challenge will walk away having made the only decision that leads to eternal life with You in heaven. I ask all this in faith, and in the name of Jesus, my Lord and soon coming King, 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 read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, 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!

What’s Your Plan of Action?

On By Ed AlgreenIn Heaven, SalvationLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (The Good News Translation – Hebrews 9:17-28): Everyone must die once, and after that be judged by God. In the same manner Christ also was offered in sacrifice once to take away the sins of many. He will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are waiting for him.

THOUGHTS: In the business world we are required to have a Disaster Recovery Plan. It must be a documented plan, tested at least annually, and audited by our regulators, as accountability that the ‘Plan’ is a workable and proven one. In our family life here in Florida, it is highly recommended that we have a plan in place that we can quickly implement in the event of an approaching hurricane. Some of us take these plans seriously, while others look at the odds of ever needing such a plan. Some businesses and families survive disasters because of their plan, while others are destroyed because of the lack of planning. This scripture reminds us of another aspect of life that can bring totally different results, depending on whether we take certain actions while we are alive, or not making any plans at all. I would like to challenge you with a very important question today that will help you know, in advance, what you will face when life here on the earth draws to a close. “Have you surrendered your life to the lordship of Jesus Christ yet?” You see, we are all born into a sinful world and while there is hope for us and a bright eternity, it is required of us that we personally seek a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, the One who sacrificed His life so that we might, through Him, have new life, and a living, vibrant relationship with the Creator, Master, Loving Savior of this world. In doing so, we will secure our action plan for a future filled with hope, love, peace and everlasting joy, because we will then be assured of the One who holds our hand and leads us into the Promised Land – Heaven with our Lord Jesus Christ and His Father. Our decisions today will have eternal effects. Doing nothing, and assuming life as it is, leads to eternal damnation with Satan and his cohorts. I want you to join me in deciding today whom you will serve, and what eternity will bring for you! You can button this up TODAY, friend! If you are willing to do so, please read carefully the information in my Footnote and take steps towards securing your future! Your family, your God, myself and ultimately you, will be comforted by your decision and celebrate before the throne with you! I’ve seen the importance of this decision and have secured my future, I pray that all who are reading this devotional will either rejoice with me on having done the same, OR make this a priority decision TODAY!

PRAYER: Father, I thank You for providing Your Book of Instructions, Your Holy Word, to clearly remind us of the results of our life-choices today. You’ve reminded us that we have no assurance of tomorrow, therefore TODAY is the day we must make sound life-changing decisions – about our salvation; about eternity in Heaven with Jesus and His followers; or are we satisfied knowing that we are bound for Hell, with Satan and his evil workers of damnation? It is also clear that no decision towards these questions, or failing to accept the truth of Your Word, leads to eternity with the Evil one, Satan. Thank You for prompting me to accept You as my Savior some 39 years ago. Please touch the hearts of those reading this today and encourage them to actually make a decision about their eternal future. I am concerned that many of my family and friends have not taken this seriously, and I want so badly to be comforted that one day we all will stand before You as a prepared people ready to spend eternity with You. Thank You Jesus for loving us so much and providing the means by which man shall be saved! I love You Lord and look forward to being with You whenever You are ready for me to make the transition! I rejoice in this assurance, yet plead for those that don’t know You as Lord, in the precious and sacrificial name of Jesus, 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 read through Biblical truths on How To Know Jesus, 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!

A Hope That Is Ours!

On By Ed AlgreenIn Anchor, HopeLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE (New Century Version – Hebrews 6:18-19): 18 These two things cannot change: God cannot lie when he makes a promise, and he cannot lie when he makes an oath. These things encourage us who came to God for safety. They give us strength to hold on to the hope we have been given. 19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, sure and strong.

THOUGHTS: In our busy, fast paced and often greedy/selfish environment that most of us find ourselves in today, it is very easy to mistrust folk, as we never know if they are looking out for our best interest or that of themselves. In the preceding verses to our passage today, we are reminded of the promise that God made to Abraham, and although the promise was not immediately revealed, through the faith, trust and steadfast hope of Abraham, he was able to witness the hand of God in revealing the answer to the promise given to multiply the earth, even at his old age. With that promise, and its fulfilling in the backdrop, we are told that we can depend on the promises of God, because by His very divine nature, He cannot lie. So when we place our faith in God and in His promises, it’s not like the kind of faith that one would have when they purchase a lottery ticket, it’s a sure thing. Friends God has made many promises to us in His Word. If you believe in Him and trust His Word, then you too have the strength to hold on to the hope given to you, and it’s as strong as an anchor that will prevent you from drifting or crashing into the hopelessness of a dark night where worldly obstacles might otherwise obstruct your path and/or the currents of this sinful life might steer you away from the truth of God’s Word. This is a sure thing friends! It is reserved for those who know Jesus as Lord and have learned to trust wholeheartedly in Him. Do you know Him? If not may I recommend that you read my Footnote carefully, as it contains help and direction for you to resolve this problem? Perhaps you know Jesus, but not sure if you have the faith that it takes to trust Him completely with His promises. Please be reminded that God never changes. Just as He came through on His promise to Abraham, He will also come through on His promises to us. Since He never changes, this means that you must beg Him to work on you so that you might become more trusting in the One who gave His very life so that you might have life more abundantly. Stay closely attuned to Jesus, friend, and trust in His Word today, won’t you?

PRAYER: Father, You are more wonderful than anything we could imagine. You are more trustworthy than anything we can comprehend, especially in our world of mistrust one for another, where ulterior motives seem to be the norm. Thank You for making Your promises so evident to us in Your Word. Unfortunately we have developed such mistrust in everything and everyone that it becomes challenging for us to totally place our faith in You and Your promises. Please touch the hearts of Your children today with a reminder that You are still God, still in control, will never lie to us and will live by Your many promises to us. Please help us to do our part in being true to You so that our faith might be strengthened, renewed and cause us to never doubt You. Thank You for being my Savior and Lord! Thank You for loving Your children enough to promise us hope and life beyond anything we can imagine. I praise and honor You with a heart of thanksgiving today. Please impress upon the hearts of Your children reading this devotional how important it is that each of us draw closer to You, so that You might reveal Yourself to us. I ask all this in the precious name of Jesus, 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!