The Gift That Started All Christmas Celebrations

On 2015-12-252015-12-25 By Ed AlgreenIn Christmas, Eternal Life, Gift, JesusLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE ~ NLT and CEV ~ 2 Corinthians 5 ~ ¹¹Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others. (NLT)

¹⁷ Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new. ¹⁸ God has done it all! He sent Christ to make peace between himself and us, and he has given us the work of making peace between himself and others. (CEV)

²⁰ So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” ²¹ For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. (NLT)

THOUGHTS: I want to share a gift with you on this day that is noted for gift-giving – Christmas! The gift is the wonderful Word of God! Notice in vs 11 above, where Paul said that he and his team were working hard to persuade the Corinthians about the ‘gift’ of Jesus – the One who reconciles us with God, and Paul and his team were doing this because of their fearful responsibility to God. Oops, we have a ‘responsibility’ as Christians? I believe most of us consider the ‘gift’ of Jesus as a blessing, perhaps as a privilege, or perhaps a calling from God, but I bet we rarely think about the ‘gift’ of Jesus as a responsibility. Let me explain where I believe God took me on this, to help me understand. Let’s assume for a moment that a crowd of your friends were in a large hotel room for a meeting or celebration of some sort, and you saw where a fire had started at the other end of the hotel. Would it be your privilege to know that information, or would you feel an urgent responsibility to run and tell your friends that they must leave their celebration and get far away from that hotel which may soon burn to the ground? May I suggest that our responsibility to God is very similar, for we see friends walking in the danger of eternal death every day, while we keep bottled up inside the ‘GIFT’ of Jesus Christ, that God sent to this world on that very first day – whose anniversary we celebrate as ‘Christmas’. However, this highlights how way too often we miss our God-given responsibility of sharing that reconciliation, that joy, that hope and that peace with our family and friends, who could very easily be walking into the fires of Hell, because of their lack of knowledge, lack of convincing by us, or just plain lack of concern for themselves, because they are too busy enjoying the ‘fun’ things of life. Not a fun thing for you to consider on the biggest day of gift-giving, but may I remind you that this is the greatest ‘gift’ that we have ever been given, and it is so important that we share this with others around the tree with us today! For this will give family and friends the kind of ‘gift’ mentioned in vs 17 & 18 – a new take on life; forgetting the ugliness of the past, and discovering the gift of newness in Christ so that our conscience will be clear between us and God – a brand new lease on life! For those of us who have the ‘gift’ already, remember that this is quite different to any other ‘gift’ we will receive under the tree – it is one given to us so that we might share it with others and convince them to accept the ‘Gift’ personally. We become ‘Gift’ demonstrators and imitators, not ‘Gift’ users or destroyers, because we become ambassadors for Jesus Christ – the ‘GIFT’ send to us by His Father. The ‘Gift’ that started this whole Christmas celebration. So if you are feeling down and out about the financial burdens of gift-giving this Christmas, please consider accepting the greatest ‘Gift’ ever given. What will it cost you? The total surrender of all your sins, your regrets, your past for which you may not be very proud. The ‘Gift’ of which I am referring, was totally paid for in blood, by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He paid in full, so that through His ultimate ‘Gift’ we might live with the assurance of eternal life with Him one day! Wow, what a ‘Gift’, and this can be ours today! And can by yours today also dear friend!

PRAYER: Thank you precious Father for the ‘Gift’ of Your Son that You sent as a baby in Bethlehem. An occasion that we celebrate as ‘Christmas’. As we celebrate that significant occasion today, may we reflect on the reason for the gift, the joy of the gift, the everlasting value of the gift, and the ultimate cost of that ‘Gift’ in order that His purpose would be fulfilled. Thank You for the ‘Gift’ in the manger at Bethlehem, and thank You for the ultimate cost of that ‘Gift’ so that we might one day see You in glory! Make Yourself very present today as we open our presents, and may we receive You as quickly as we receive our presents from under the tree today. Thank You Lord Jesus for touching us in such a way that we enjoy a worldwide celebration of Your birth each year – today! May we truly understand the significance of that gift, is my humble prayer that I offer up to You in total thanksgiving and praise, 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!

Who’s Holding Your Hand?

On 2015-12-242015-12-24 By Ed AlgreenIn Guidance, Love, SecurityLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE ~ The Good News Translation (GNT) ~ Psalm 37:23-24 The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand.

THOUGHTS: I heard an interview at one time that asked adult females why they were so attached to their fathers. The answers somewhat surprised me, because they were not geared towards the financial welfare or wisdom of their father, but rather around the comfort brought by just holding their hand in circumstances where they would have otherwise felt insecure. Notice that this scenario revolved around a relationship between father and daughter, but have you ever thought of God in that type of relationship with you? Have you ever thought about the comfort you receive when you are reminded that our great, big, wonderful God is in charge of this universe and yet He is intimately concerned about our well-being and our security? Friends, there is just one catch to this. God will not push Himself on anyone who has chosen to do this thing we call ‘life’ alone. For this verse, and many others, make it clear that God will take extra good care of those who have chosen to open their hearts to Him. But may I quickly caution you that this does not mean that you can just conveniently open your heart to Him when you are in trouble, for He desires to know you, and subsequently care for, and about you in all walks of life. Although it is clear in the Word that He will protect His own, I believe this also means that He will not barge in, or interfere with you, if you have personally chosen to reject Him or live your life without Him. BUT, for those of us who have chosen Jesus as our Master and Lord, the Psalmist is assuring us that ‘greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world’, for He delights in us and assures us that even if we stumble, we will never fail or fall, for the great God of this universe holds our hand! Friends, it is very obvious throughout the Word of God, that His children are the ‘apple of His eye’ and that He loves us, cares for us and will protect His own very carefully until the day we see Him face to face! That’s exciting and comforting for the Christian! This could be exciting and comforting for the non-Christian who humbles yourself and follow the suggestions in my ‘Footnote’ – but please make that decision TODAY, for there is no promise of life for tomorrow.

PRAYER: Father, we are such a blessed people. When we consider this huge universe, the sun, the moon, the planets, the whole concept of land, sea, skies and the air, who are we that a King would send His very own Son as a child to a mere human female, to be born in a stable, to perform endless miracles as proof of His power and relationship to God, then to die a cruel death on a cross – who are we that You would do all this in the name of love for Your children. Wow! Wow! Wow! This song of praise by David (in this Psalm) reminds us of how special we are in Your eyes, of Your love, of your protection and of Your concern for even us. Thank You Lord Jesus for still leaving the option open for those who are still uncommitted to You. Tomorrow we will celebrate Your birthday, I pray that our gift in return to You will be a total surrender of our lives to You, even if this may be a first time surrender for some. In deepest appreciation for all that You do for me and for who You are to me, Lord Jesus, I ask these things in honest humility and deepest gratitude, AMEN!

Hope For Tomorrow!

On 2015-12-232015-12-23 By Ed AlgreenIn Hope, SurrenderLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – The Living Bible (TLB) ~ 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 ~ That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our inner strength in the Lord is growing every day. These troubles and sufferings of ours are, after all, quite small and won’t last very long. Yet this short time of distress will result in God’s richest blessing upon us forever and ever! So we do not look at what we can see right now, the troubles all around us, but we look forward to the joys in heaven which we have not yet seen. The troubles will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.

THOUGHTS: No one had as much opposition as Paul did, yet he found hope in knowing that there was great hope in all that he was doing. A greater purpose; a God to please – one who sacrificed His very own Son to bring hope, salvation and ultimate love for mankind. In fact, as much as we despise rules/commands/guidelines, yet it is obvious that God’s commands are to help us; mold us into His image; and prepare us for the day when we graduate from this earth into our new, eternal home, with Jesus in Heaven! Friends, when we realize that kind of hope, when we are reminded of the joy that is ours to see our blessed Savior face-to-face and receive His blessing for things we have done, or people we have touched because of His love inside of us, then we have a new determination to serve Him all the more while here on earth. I am in no way minimizing your struggles here on earth Brother, nor the backbiting, envy and strife that you may face Sister, but what I am telling you is that no matter what we face today, it is nothing compared to the joy that will be ours when we are welcomed into the presence of Jesus! There’s an old hymn entitled ‘Oh That Will Be Glory For Me“! Friends, there may be trouble for a time, but if You are a committed child of God, there is joy that comes in the morning. So let’s endure the day, knowing that there is hope ahead for the Christian. This is known as one of the most stressful times of the year. A time that more folk become terribly depressed. May I remind you, as I have in my thoughts so far, these struggles are only for a moment. We have brighter days ahead! Much brighter, if you have invited Jesus into your heart as your personal Savior and Lord! If you haven’t made this step friend, please read my ‘Footnote’ carefully and know that I am available to pray with you or help you in any way that I can.

PRAYER: Lord, I rejoice in the fact that there is hope for the Christian! I thank You that You gave Your all for me. Please help me to not complain about the challenges of life that I face in this world, because they are nothing compare to the persecution that Paul faced, or the torture that You went through for me. The great news is that, like Paul, I too can survive the stresses of today knowing that my hope lies in what is yet to come – graduation to heaven where I will live eternally with You! ‘Oh I want To See You, Look Upon Your Face‘! Lord, please remind Your children of the hope that is ours, so that we might easily deal with the issue while here on this earth. Please especially humble the hearts of those yet to acknowledge You as Lord. May they find peace in knowing that they can surrender their lives to You even today. Tomorrow may be too late, as You have not assured us of tomorrow. I rejoice in know Jesus as my Savior and Lord. I pray that all of my readers can do the same, or make a decision today that will give them that assurance. I ask these things in the wonderful name of Jesus, the new-born King, AMEN!

Christmas Love

On 2015-12-222015-12-22 By Ed AlgreenIn Christmas, Love2 Comments

THE HOLY BIBLE – New International Version (NIV) ~ Psalm 36:5-7 Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, Lord, preserve both people and animals. How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

THOUGHTS: I have a nephew who told my wife that he loved her “to the moon”! The Psalmist also resorted to sharing his love for God in similar measures. This is really amazing when you consider that most people will describe their love in terms of an arm’s length, or similar. I believe there are many times that we are so overwhelmed with God’s love that it may be challenging to describe the extent of our love. Challenging because we live in a world where children become fed up with the arguing and lack of love at home, so they leave with every intent never to return. Think about the broken marriages where one or both of the parties may have felt like the measurement of love for each other had dwindled past zero and gone into a negative measurement. A desperate feeling of hopelessness in consideration of love for each other. Now to the contrary, ponder with me about the love of God. The One who made everything, including you and I, yet when He saw that we were drifting away from Him (in sin), He decided to create the scene that we try to duplicate every year at Christmastime. Through the purity of a virgin girl, God caused His Son Jesus to be born for the purpose of being the ultimate sacrifice that would clear the veil that separates sin from purity; righteousness; faithfulness; justice and unfailing love – God Himself. In fact, this is what our Christmas celebration should be all about! Celebrating the greatest gift ever given for the greatest sacrifice ever imagined. Love beyond any possible measurement or description. Love for the undeserving – you and me. Wouldn’t it be great for us to say in our Christmas card this year that: following in the example of Jesus Christ, we are sending our sacrificial love so that the recipient might enjoy life to the fullest at Christmas time and throughout the New year? I trust that this year we might be able to step back and ponder, like David, how immeasurable the love, faithfulness, righteousness and justice of Jesus has really been to us, and in doing so, look for new ways to appreciate the love of our awesome God that created the Christ of Christmas!

PRAYER: To the God of immeasurable love, we say thank You, for Your love reaches way into the heavens. Lord, may we catch a glimpse of the baby in the manger this Christmas way more than the gifts around the Christmas tree. Gifts come and go, but the baby born to Mary was sent out of love for each of us. I pray that we may not only concentrate on the core reason for our celebration, but that we may express our thanksgiving from the depths of our heart. Lord, I pray that each home celebrating this Christmas will also find ways to return their love to God in appreciations for all that His Son went through for our benefit. Thank You for Your incredible love for us Lord Jesus. May we love and appreciate You in return, is my humble prayer this Christmas, that I ask in the name of Jesus, AMEN!

If…, Then…, Else…

On 2015-12-212015-12-21 By Ed AlgreenIn Conditional, Love, ObedienceLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – New Living Translation (NLT) ~ Deuteronomy 11:13-17 ^“If you carefully obey the commands I am giving you today, and if you love the Lord your God and serve him with all your heart and soul, then he will send the rains in their proper seasons—the early and late rains—so you can bring in your harvests of grain, new wine, and olive oil. He will give you lush pastureland for your livestock, and you yourselves will have all you want to eat. “But be careful. Don’t let your heart be deceived so that you turn away from the Lord and serve and worship other gods. If you do, the Lord’s anger will burn against you. He will shut up the sky and hold back the rain, and the ground will fail to produce its harvests. Then you will quickly die in that good land the Lord is giving you.

THOUGHTS: In programming and even in the simplest spreadsheet programs there is something called a ‘conditional’ formula, when you can have a cell where the content will be the result is based on the condition and content of one or more other cells or constants. Please don’t give up and wander away from this devotional based on my chatter about my work, but this formula popped off the pages to me in this passage of scripture relaying what Moses told the Israelites centuries ago. Notice I changed the color of the font on ‘If‘, ‘Then‘ and ‘If you do/Else‘, so that you can see where my ‘techie’ mind went when I read this. Friends, I believe that it is very important that we keep similar thoughts in mind as we read the scripture, because we read a lot about how good God is and how good He will be, if we do certain things. I would encourage you to always look for the ‘Else’ in every instance, or the ‘what if’ I don’t do what God is insisting throughout the scripture. Often the impact will be greater for us when we understand the ‘what if I don’t’ repercussions, than anything else. Moses warned his people that as they entered their Promised Land given to them by God, that:

If they carefully obeyed and served God alone with all their heart, soul and mind,
Then God’s blessings would be showered on them through bumper crops, lush pastureland and great food to eat,
Else God’s anger will burn against them, the rain will stop, the harvest will stop and they would quickly die.

Friends, I saw this as a warning to us, for I believe that God is getting our attention to understand that yes, He is a loving and all powerful God who will do everything for us, but:

If we fail to be the children He designed us to be and continue in disobedience, and follow the ways of man instead of the commands of God,
Then we should realize that we have chosen our own path in life that can only lead to eternal damnation,
Else we must continue to seek God’s face, stay closely in tuned with His Word, obey His commands and enjoy His immense blessings that He has in store for us, and prepare for the eternal home that He has prepared for us in Heaven!

Find yourself in this If, Then, Else formula friend, and be prepared to talk with God about helping you attain a close and intimate walk with Him so that He might fulfil all that He has in store for you, His beloved child.

PRAYER: Lord God, thank You for showing us in Your Word where You came through time and time again for Your children. Thank You for the assurance that You will come through for us, if only we would be obedient to Your instructions given for our benefit. I believe that You have so much in store for us that our minds could never comprehend the awesome love that You are waiting to pour out on us. The formula for us to receive Your blessing is all outlined in Your Word. Lord may we be found obedient and pleasing in Your sight, is my simple prayer today, and I ask this in the precious name of Jesus my loving Lord, AMEN!

Our Response to the Christmas Child – Jesus

On 2015-12-192015-12-19 By Ed AlgreenIn Christmas, Committed, Faithful, Worship, WorthyLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – The Good News Translation (GNT) ~ Deuteronomy 10:20-21 Obey the Lord your God and worship only him. Be faithful to him and make your promises in his name alone. Praise him—he is your God, and you have seen with your own eyes the great and astounding things that he has done for you.

THOUGHTS: If you have not discovered this already, I believe that as you read the Word of God, you will recognize that mankind has not changed a whole lot. Yes, in spite of all that we read about that happened in the days of Moses, you and I are still just a stubborn and sinful as our ancestors were. The Israelites spent 40 years in the wilderness, which you would have thought was plenty enough time for God to work on them. Plenty enough time for them to see God at work, in how He provided for their every need, and how He fought their battles for them, protected them from harm, and loved them enough to see them rise from the life of slavery they were subject to in Egypt. Now that they are in sight of the luscious, fruitful, beautiful land to which God had led them, wouldn’t you think that they would probably be flat on their faces before God in praise and thanksgiving? But wait just a moment, we have learned about the great works of God all of our lives; we have the added knowledge about Jesus and how he came miraculously as a child, then 33 short years later was murdered at the hands of folk just like you and I – all for the forgiveness of our sin. In fact, during His short life, and even still today, He has performed mighty miracles in many forms. If we had done a better job than the Israelites in learning from our past, I believe that one would conclude that we must be building churches every time you look around to accommodate appreciative Christians. You know, the ones who can’t wait on church doors to open for corporate praise and worship services; and who are so anxious to attend midweek corporate prayer services, if only to lift up holy hands and hearts in an attitude of thanksgiving. Friends, I don’t know about your church, but this is not what I am seeing at my church. I don’t know what conclusion you have come to, based on the excuses you hear why our friends and/or family see no need to prioritize this important act of worship, but in most cases it’s very similar to the Israelites: “it’s the only time I have for myself”; “my husband has a cold and I needed to stay with him”; “my kids had a sleepover”; “this is the only day of the year that I could possibly make it to the beach”; “my favorite sports team is playing this afternoon and I had to prepare for friends coming to watch the game with me”, etc, etc. Would you please remind me again why we are so tough on the Israelites who messed up time and time again in the wilderness? What do you suppose God is comforting His Son with when He hears some of our excuses? Might He be wondering again why it was necessary to die for such an ungrateful bunch? We are in the Christmas season, and you would think that we are on our way to the manger to worship the new born King, but where again are the majority of folk you know? Can’t you hear the many, many excuses much louder than the carols of Christmas or the message that the angels first proclaimed? Isn’t it unfortunate that we hear the cash register dings, much louder than the Christmas bells proclaiming the birth of our Savior? Moses pleaded with his people who were about to make some important choices as they left him, to be faithful to the God who brought them through. I would humbly plead with all those reading this devotional, to be faithful to the God that loves you so much that He gave you everything He had, and it wasn’t even Christmas! How do you plan to react to that kind of love?

PRAYER: Lord God, thank You for taking such awesome care of our ancestors while traveling to the land You had promised them. May I humbly ask that You tender our hearts today and help us to recognize the outstanding God that You are to us each and every day? Please help us to ‘Think God First’ so that nothing else will come between us and our times for praise and worship to Your powerful name. Lord, You are good and Your mercies endures forever! Thank You for having loved us when we were unlovable. Thank You for loving us in our current state, and praise to Your wonderful name Heavenly Father. Thank You for loving us enough to provide a promised land for us – heaven, where we will one day soon united with You and worship You through all time and eternity. We are so needy, but praise God You are so worthy! Blessed be Your wonderful and powerful name! AMEN and AMEN!

Pass It On

On 2015-12-162015-12-16 By Ed AlgreenIn Evangelism, Love, Pass It OnLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – Deuteronomy 4 ~ _{Contemporary English Version (CEV)} ~ ⁹You must be very careful not to forget the things you have seen God do for you. Keep reminding yourselves, and tell your children and grandchildren as well.

THOUGHTS: Moses was preparing to see his people, whom he faithfully trusted in God to lead out of Egypt over the past 40 years, now he was about to witness them drift off into the land promised to them by God, but without him (Moses)! An exciting moment, but think about how cautious you were when your young adult was about to leave the nest and move out into this big world on their own. Think about the cautions and precautions you tried to cram in at the last minute to make sure that your young adult stayed on track and continued the legacy that you had taught them for the past two decades. Friends, this is a normal part of the cycle of life, for we all reach a time in our life where something had a major impact on our lives, and we have to decide how, or whether we will allow that thing to impact our lives for good. When God created us, He gave us the option of personal choice. Like in the case of our children, God expects that we would take our encounter with Him and allow it to positively impact our lives to the extent that our lives would be changed forever. Fortunately, this is true for many, but for some, unfortunately they brush off the powerful hand of God and decide to do life on their own. For those of us who accepted Jesus as Lord of our lives, we were/are faced with the same challenge as the Israelites faced when they were about to leave the guidance, protection, encouragement and direction of their leader. We must decide what we will do to stay confident in our faith, and we must decide whether we keep this miracle to ourselves. Friends, how will others know, if we don’t tell them? What will help us keep the faith during challenging times, if we don’t keep reminding ourselves of the God who impacted our lives, or look for encouragement of another like person who is going through tremendously good times of answered prayer at that very moment? Unless we do this, Satan will quickly find a very vulnerable opportunity to batter and bombard us with disappointment and disillusionment. This is exactly the reason why it is so important for us to share the experiences of our walk with the Lord. It could very easily make all the difference in the world in the life of one who is down and out. It could make all the difference in the world to one is has only known or witnessed the very negative aspects of life. Your child(ren) will grow up facing the challenges of life using the principles of life that you have taught them – good or bad. Are you currently passing on the good news of the Savior who rescued you from sin and giving you daily strength and encouragement to face every day? Please don’t leave it for the ‘other person’ to do this for you. God has placed us individually where He wants us. We know all too well that He still has a lot to do in this old wicked world. Be reminded that we are His servants with grave responsibilities to ‘Pass it On’ – the wonderful and blessed good news of the One that help us through each and every day.

PRAYER: Just as it only takes a spark to get a fire going, so it could be in the life of one who is lost, if we open our mouths and share the love of our Savior with that lost person. Father, I believe that we need to do this under the inspiration and help of Your Sweet Holy Spirit though, as we want the weaker ones to be inspired by You and not any pretense of our own. Lead us and guide us dear Lord, so that we may pass on the legacy of all the miracles You have performed in our lives, especially the miracle of new birth. Lord, may You therefore impact lives for Yourself through our lives. Thank You Father for loving even me. Please help me to pass Your precious love along to others. For I ask this in and through the precious name of Jesus, AMEN!

God Keeps Us Focused on Himself

On 2015-12-152015-12-15 By Ed AlgreenIn Dedicated, Focused Christian, Transparent, UncompromisedLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – The Message (MSG) ~ 2 Corinthians 1 ~ ¹²Now that the worst is over, we’re pleased we can report that we’ve come out of this with conscience and faith intact, and can face the world—and even more importantly, face you with our heads held high. But it wasn’t by any fancy footwork on our part. It was God who kept us focused on him, uncompromised.

THOUGHTS: As I meditated on these verses today, I actually thought of additional words by Paul in 2 Timothy 4 where, right at the end of his life, he said: ⁷I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. ⁸And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing. This combination of verses made me realize that, like Paul, we also can remain faithful, and stay focused on the Lord, if we would keep our minds fixed on Him, our minds made up to serve Him faithfully, our determination to remain obedient, and our constant prayer of faith in the only One who can direct our path and keep our eyes fixed on Him. Paul’s words right at the end of our focused verse convinces me that we must live such a determined and consistent life that our friends will recognize it, and the Good Lord will know it, that we have kept the faith, uncompromised, and dedicated our lives fully to our Savior and the truth of His Word. Friends, it is this type of life that will touch the hearts and lives of our unsaved friends, for we are a lot more transparent to our unsaved friends that what we may care to think. They know when we are sincere and uncompromised, and they can discern when we are faithful and true. I believe that God will only use us when we are prepared to allow Him to be portrayed in and through our lives – our actions and our words. Where are you at today friends? What do you suppose that God would say, if you stood before Him today? And don’t be fooled friend, that face-to-face meeting could actually take place today. We have no assurance of tomorrow. Get things straightened out today, won’t you friend?

PRAYER: At this time of the year we concentrate on the greatest gift ever given to mankind, the gift of God’s only Son, Jesus. While we love to celebrate at Christmas, Lord, we must acknowledge that we feel so awesomely blessed each and every day by the works of Your hand in our lives through the many blessings that You bestow on us. We can hardly imagine that such an awesome God, would use the vehicle of mankind (my readers and I included) to spread Your Word, to witness to the unsaved, and to actually participate in convincing them of their need for salvation. Thank You Lord Jesus, thank You Father God! May You receive our uncompromised walk and talk today, is my humble request, and I ask these things in the wonderful, blessed name of Jesus, AMEN!

Stand Firm

On 2015-12-112015-12-11 By Ed AlgreenIn Perseverance, Stand Firm, UnshakenLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ⁵⁶Sin is what gives death its sting, and the Law is the power behind sin. ⁵⁷ But thank God for letting our Lord Jesus Christ give us the victory! ⁵⁸ My dear friends, stand firm and don’t be shaken. Always keep busy working for the Lord. You know that everything you do for him is worthwhile. ~ 1 Corinthians 15:56-58 ~ _{The Contemporary English Version (CEV)}

THOUGHTS: I’ve heard terms like ‘hunker down’ and I’ve heard it used in scenarios where all preparations have been completed, so now settle in for the main event. Before I give you another scenario, I promise you that I will not talk politics on this blog, because my story, and this blog, is about a much more important matter and individual. However, I’ve seen in every case where politicians will begin their campaigns in fairly low gear as they try to organize their campaign and gear up towards the BIG day, but they will stand committed to their campaign principles and goals. Now, let’s think about all that Paul is sharing in his admonition to the Corinthian church, and why I believe that God placed this in His word especially for us. In the verses preceding the ones above, Paul explained what happens to our bodies after they wear out here on earth. I realize for the non-believer reading this devotional, this simply means that life is done, so no need to worry about any possible future life. The Bible teaches otherwise, friend, and I would love to share more on that with you. However, for the believer, it’s almost like a kid looking towards Christmas and counting down the days, for we know that the greatest gift ever imagined, was given for us through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Knowing that the time for us to see Him, builds our anticipation towards that day, and it causes us to rejoice in anticipation of His presence throughout all eternity! Praise to the everlasting Prince of Peace! When a child builds up so much excitement about Christmas, parents must find ways to really keep them busy, so they don’t become overwhelmed with anticipation. Paul knew that we would have that same type of anticipation, but yet face ongoing pressure and distractions by the evil one while we remain in his territory here on earth, so Paul advises that we are to ‘hunker down’, or stand firm in our faith, so that He in whom we have placed our faith, will be our strength, our deliverance, our provider, our encourager and therefore, become the focus of our faith and our trust while we wait for His return. As we do this, we encourage those who are still in doubt and who tend to waiver when faced with challenges and distractions. There’s a little children’s chorus with words “if you’re happy and you know it clap your hands”. I would like to encourage all God’s children with the words we are reminded of in these verses today, “if you’re truly His and you know it, stand firm and don’t be shaken by anything Satan will fire at you while living in his territory here on earth, for we have a much brighter future to look forward to and an awesome Savior awaiting our welcome home to spend eternity with He and His Father – God”! It just don’t get any better than that friend! The great news for everyone – especially the unbeliever, is that you can have this truly awesome experience also, if you surrender your life to, and accept the invitation of, my Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Even better news is that there is no big secret in how you can be saved, in fact, I have all the help you need in the Footnote below! Make your decision and commitment today friend, then join us in standing firm in our faith as we await that awesome day, when our Lord will welcome us home!!

PRAYER: We are so blessed by the Gift that You provided for us dear God, so that we might have a means of seeing You and worshiping You in person one day! Thank You dear Father, thank You dear Jesus for the greatest gift ever given! Please help us to stay focused, stand firm in our faith, so that we would not cave in to the snares of Satan and his many cohorts here on earth. As we focus on eternity with You, may we aim to live like You and in full obedience to all that You have instructed us, may we stand so firm in our faith, that it will become obvious to all that we come into contact with, whose we are. It’s You we love, and live to be with, dear Jesus. Please grant us strength and perseverance to live our life pleasing to You, for I ask these things in the precious name of Jesus, AMEN!

Bursting Into Songs of Thanksgiving!

On 2015-12-102015-12-10 By Ed AlgreenIn Praise, Prayer, ThanksgivingLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – ⁷The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving. ~ Psalm 28:7 ~ _{New Living Translation (NLT)}

THOUGHTS: David, the Psalmist, had such great results in his prayer life that he would often break into outbursts of praise, such as seen in this verse from Psalm 28. Was he always this pumped up about his prayer life? No, David was very much human, as we are, so he often became impatient, despondent and felt abandoned by God, especially when God’s timing and David’s immediacy was at odds. Friends, as we build solid relationships with God, perhaps we too may one day identify with the Psalmist in saying, Oh Lord…:

You are my strength – because so often I am overwhelmed by life and the circumstances that result from my being here. You help me to overcome and You give me strength to carry on;
You are my shield – for in every circumstance of life I am protected from the evil one, and you shield me from the wicked that would otherwise pull me down and destroy my witness;
I have learned to trust You – for you are my only constant in life. You are always there for me, and You love me enough to not answer all of my prayers in the manner in which I selfishly and ignorantly ask without any vision of tomorrow;
You help me – especially when I am weak, down and out. You have restored my faith in You and assured me of Your awesome power. You along are God!
I am so overwhelmed with Your goodness that – I can barely contain myself. My soul rejoices in the awesome God that I adore and serve, for You are God, and besides You, there is no other. I burst into thanksgiving right now as I reflect on Your goodness. Please help me to consistently thank and worship You, because even when I am weak, distraught and feel so far away from You, yet You are always there for me. Thank You Father! Thank You Lord Jesus for being my awesome and loving God!

Lord, may we daily burst into songs of thanksgiving as we recognize Your awesome power and love in our lives and through our walk with You. Lord, You are good and Your mercies endures forever!

PRAYER: Lord, may we daily burst into songs of thanksgiving as we recognize Your awesome power and love in our lives and through our walk with You. Lord, You are good, and Your mercies endures forever! You are so worthy of our praise, and we are so needy of our awesome, powerful, loving God. Thank You Lord Jesus! We are Your humble servants, so I ask these things in the name of our loving Savior and Lord, AMEN!

Nuggets From God's Word

Tag: King