Of One Heart and Mind

On 2016-11-21 By Ed AlgreenIn Love others, Others first, Prayer, Unity, UnselfishLeave a comment

Monday, 2016-11-21

Scripture

Bible Reference: John 17:20-22

Bible Text: ²⁰“I am not praying for these alone but also for the future believers who will come to me because of the testimony of these. ²¹My prayer for all of them is that they will be of one heart and mind, just as you and I are, Father—that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me. ²²“I have given them the glory you gave me—the glorious unity of being one, as we are

Bible Translation: The Living Bible (TLB)

My Take

I believe that if 5 families left my city in Florida to head to Atlanta, Georgia, there would probably be several different routes taken because we all have our own ideas about what will be the fastest route, or the most scenic, or the most enjoyable due to attractions along the way that we would like to visit. However, we will all probably wind up at our final destination in Atlanta, Georgia at some point. I believe it was extremely evident to Jesus that this would be the case with His children in many walks of life, even in religious circles where we have the ultimate goal of coming face-to-face with Jesus in heaven when we pass on from this old world. I was reminded in a very bold and obvious way in our scripture today that Jesus knew right from the very beginning that this would pose a challenge for His children. I was able to see where Jesus approached the Father in much the same way as I would, if I was leaving the state of Florida on an extended retirement trip throughout the rest of the United States. There would be concerns for ministries I am involved in at my church, and there would also be concerns that my relatives would be OK with me out of the picture for an extended period of time. Now, I must quickly acknowledge that I have nothing to worry about with any of these things falling apart, because I am not the glue that holds all these things together. However, we do worry about things that mean a lot to us, if we’re not around to do our part. Friends, Jesus came to this earth for one intended purpose, to save mankind from eternal damnation. To achieve this, He showed Himself in some very bold ways – through miracles, through loving the unlovable, through sacrificing Himself so that we might not have to sacrifice anything in order to be saved from our wretched sin. However, in spite of all that He did, we went back to the Father and prayed about His concerns for the wellbeing of His church – His children here on earth. I believe that anyone meditating on this devotional today will agree that the concerns of Jesus were right on target, just like the rest of His life and ministry were. For we have such a problem here on earth in that we segregate ourselves from other believers who are headed for the same destination. In my example above, if we come across one of our friends on that long trip to Atlanta who had chosen a different route than we did, we may tease and poke a little fun at each other, but we would still welcome them and celebrate with them at the destination point. In religion, it seems like we have become so secure in our understanding of the Word of God and/or other ancillary books given to us from our respective denominations, that we erect walls between ourselves that non-Christians probably look at and wonder how many destination points are there, because obviously we are not headed to the same one! Friends, I know that this may seem like I am picking on religious denominationalism, and perhaps I am, but I believe that Jesus has shared the concern with us to ponder, that He shared with His Father when He returned to Him. What can we do about it? Jesus wants us to be ‘one’ just as He and the Father are ‘one’. We know that the trinity represents three persons all in one, meaning that they have the same attributes and same power and are the same in the eyes of the Almighty God. For us to appease Jesus in His wish for us, we must be willing to tear down the walls of hatred and separation, and love one another as we love ourselves (according to the commandment of God). Great walls separate men and women, yet they are ‘one’ in marriage. Can we please set our goals on unity in the only thing in common, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? I get the distinct impression from our scripture that this would please Jesus beyond anything else we may attempt today. Please don’t wait for your church to adopt a philosophy to do this, I believe Jesus wants this to begin with you and I. Let’s personally commit to this wish of our Lord, and love one another unconditionally.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, You saw this coming and You prayed for this scenario ever since the beginning of time. I don’t know that things have gotten any better, so I want to commit myself to You today asking that You open my eyes to any injustices that may occur between myself and other believers in Jesus Christ. I don’t have all of the answers, but I do know that regardless of what part of the world one might be from, or the color of their skin or their financial status, we all have the same channel to travel through in order to one day see You and the Father in heaven. Please help my readers and I to live today in a way pleasing to You, and in a way that we intend to live when we sit around your feet in heaven as one body of believers. Lord, may we practice today what we expect to do ‘tomorrow’ when You call us home to glory! I ask these things in the only One who can change our hearts and our minds, and the One who set the example for us while here on earth. AMEN!

Footnote

If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

Prayer In Anticipation of What’s To Come

On 2016-11-20 By Ed AlgreenIn Holy, Persistence, Power of Prayer, Prayer, PureLeave a comment

Sunday, 2016-11-20

Scripture

Bible Reference: John 17:13-17

Bible Text: ¹³“And now I am coming to you. I have told them many things while I was with them so that they would be filled with my joy. ¹⁴I have given them your commands. And the world hates them because they don’t fit in with it, just as I don’t. ¹⁵I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from Satan’s power. ¹⁶They are not part of this world any more than I am. ¹⁷Make them pure and holy through teaching them your words of truth.

Bible Translation: The Living Bible (TLB)

My Take

Jesus was about to leave this world and return to His Father. While on earth He touched the hearts of many and saw them come to a saving knowledge of the Father. However, He knew that there was great opposition to the stand His followers took as children of God, as compared to the rest of the world being led by the evil one. So while Jesus was happy to return to His Father, He dreaded the idea of leaving His children among the likes of Satan and his earthly tempters. I believe that is most admirable of our blessed Savior, don’t you? So I believe that the question for us today is that knowing what our Lord did for us, how concerned are we for those we love? Can we honestly stand before God and say that we have prayed in all sincerity for our lost ones, or that we have shared the Word of God with them? I believe that we are prepared to pray that they be shielded from the evil one, because we would never want to see anything bad brought to them, but how often do we in all sincerity pray for that? As a child of the King, and aiming to be more like Jesus every day, I believe that God would rather see us imitate the example of our Lord and Savior, more than anything else that may seem somewhat important to us. Friends, let us be reminded that we have only one life to live here on this earth, and only what’s done for Jesus will last. Oh that we will start each day determined to live a life pleasing to God, and that our relatives, friends and loved ones might come to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, based on the reality of what they see lived out in us. This is so important, especially knowing that one day soon we will stand before the throne of God and answer for our choices that we have made here on earth. My determination is that God might look intently into my eyes and share His pleasure with the choices that I have made and the life I have chosen to live here on this earth. May I count on you to do the same friend? If there is anything I can do to help you insure your eternal destination, or anything I can help you pray for regarding a loved one you fear is still without Christ, please drop me a note and allow me to pray with you. Jesus knew that we who are left on this earth would suffer through the temptations of this world and its leader, but He also knew that for the joy of what lies ahead of us, we may stand strong and joyful in the fact that greater is he that is in us than he that is in this world! Friends, we are assured that joy lies ahead for those of us that have the eternal hope of being with Jesus on that great resurrection morning! Based on the word of God, I can be confident in that fact that joy will come in the morning for me, I pray that you can do the same!

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank You for all that You have done for me and Your other children who have accepted You as Lord and Savior. We may struggle in our circumstances today, but praise be to the God of this universe, I know what the future holds for me and I know who holds the key to that future hope. You provided the way, and through Your Word You have shown us the way to eternal hope in You oh Lord. Please help us keep our eyes of faith focused on You and a burden for the souls of those that we love and care for, as we should be most concerned about their current decisions in preparation for their eternal hope. Please burden us with an urgent heart for the eternal destination of our family and friends so that together we may look full into the wonderfrul face of Jesus on that judgment day and sing praises to the King of Glory, together with our loved ones. AMEN and AMEN!

Footnote

Ask for anything in My name

On 2016-11-19 By Ed AlgreenIn In Christ, Integrity, Miracles, Prayer, SubmissionLeave a comment

Saturday, 2016-11-19

Scripture

Bible Reference: John 14:12-14

Bible Text: ¹²I tell you the truth: whoever believes in Me will be able to do what I have done, but they will do even greater things, because I will return to be with the Father. ¹³Whatever you ask for in My name, I will do it so that the Father will get glory from the Son. ¹⁴Let Me say it again: if you ask for anything in My name, I will do it.

Bible Translation: The Voice Translation (Voice)

My Take

Ever noticed that your son may go and ask a friend of equal age to do something that both he and you feel is the best thing to do, but it may have little relevance to the friend, until he brings down the power by saying that my dad asked that we do this right away? Bringing the dad’s name into the equation always adds power to the instructions being given. Ever noticed also that as a son, you may tell your buddies to do something that sounds different to what they know your dad has always preached, and they will give you a funny look and wonder where are you coming from with those instructions? Jesus had just introduced the Comforter to His disciples as He (Jesus) prepared Himself to go and be with the Father. Jesus assured His disciples, as He still assures us today, that He will be sitting at the right hand of the Father interceding for us, and that He will receive glory from the Father as His children carries on His work here on earth with the help of the Comforter, or the Holy Spirit. Notice that great emphasis is directed to the fact that even though we stand to do things even greater than He (Jesus) did while here on earth, we must never lose sight of who we are representing, and whose power resides with us to enable the work. Remember that in Acts 19:13-16 there were some who went around trying to cast out demons in Jesus’ name, but even the demons recognized that they were not of Jesus and not speaking on His behalf. Friends, it is safe to say, based on the Word of God, that if any miraculous work is to be done, it will be the power, and the work of Jesus Christ portrayed through us to do the work, with the results being totally for His glory. I believe that there are two important things to remember about being blessed with the power of Jesus working through us: (1) That doing the work of the Lord, demonstrates our love for Him, and not what we might be able to brag on, or benefit from personally; and (2) Miracles are performed in order to bring people to a full knowledge of Jesus Christ. Not for any gain of ourselves, and not for the purpose of relieving our friends from some earthly burden, but that they might know Jesus as their Lord and personal Savior. Please note that there is nothing mentioned about the obedient servant who God uses to stand in His stead and allow His miracle to be transmitted through. But I can assure you that for those who will do this, we will be blessed beyond anything words can describe. To God be the glory for all the great things He can do through even us who believe in Him, and are willing to be used by Him!

Prayer

Lord Jesus, I believe that we, Your children, in our meager faith tend go from one extreme to another way too often. For I believe we recognize our powerlessness and know that we can do nothing miraculous by ourselves. However, I also believe that there are times that our ego steps in at times and we want so badly to see our friends overcome obstacles that we tend to jump in there and pray peace and/or healing over them so they could return to a sense of normalcy. I was recently reminded by a pastor when He said that we could very easily step in the way of You actually disciplining someone, by trying to humanly help them correct or overcome their situation. This scripture has once again opened my eyes to the fact that we must be so driven by the Spirit of God that the things we say and the things we do, are very much aligned with His will and His purpose. I also believe that if the Holy Spirit leads us to a miraculous scenario with our friends that will demonstrate the love of God for them and bring them to a full knowledge of Jesus Christ, then we must, in obedience, seek your leadership and carry out Your work, particularly among the unsaved. Lord, I am concerned that there are so many in each of our circle of friends that don’t know You as their Lord and personal Savior. If it takes a miracle to convince them of Your love and power today, I pray that Your will may be done. Please speak clearly to Your children today so that we may in obedience do Your perfect will. AMEN!

Footnote

Persistent Praying

On 2016-11-17 By Ed AlgreenIn Perseverance, Persistence, Prayer, Seeking GodLeave a comment

Thursday, 2016-11-17

Scripture

Bible Reference: Luke 11:9-13

Bible Text: 9 So I say to you, Ask and keep on asking and it shall be given you; seek and keep on seeking and you shall find; knock and keep on knocking and the door shall be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks and keeps on asking receives; and he who seeks and keeps on seeking finds; and to him who knocks and keeps on knocking, the door shall be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a loaf of bread, will give him a stone; or if he asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, evil as you are, know how to give good gifts [gifts that are to their advantage] to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask and continue to ask Him!

Bible Translation: The Amplified Bible (AMP)

My Take

At one time I asked a young man how did he land a waiter job at such a distinguished restaurant. He said he attributed it to the fact that he was persistent. He felt it was not enough to just complete an application online, but he kept checking with the restaurant manager to see if his application was reviewed and if he could have the job. Now friends, take a moment to consider that compared to the multitude of folk that apply so they could tell their loved one that they had filled out ‘x’ number of applications that day. The restaurant manager knew that the young man in my story wanted the job and would probably be just as persistent in being at work every day. In our story today, Jesus tells us just the opposite of what I have heard taught by man, for here we are taught to keep on asking, keep on seeking and keep on knocking. Do we think for a moment that God didn’t hear us the first time? No, but I believe God helps us to understand that if our need is important enough, we will continue asking. It really shows our heart’s deepest desire as opposed to just asking for something on a whim. In verse 13 we are told that we could ask for a deep indwelling of the Holy Spirit and God would be no less of a giver than our earthly dad, He would give the Holy Spirit to those of us that would ask. Now many of you may stop and ask like I did, how we thought that the Holy Spirit was given to us at new birth – when we invited Jesus to save us from our sin. Yes, Romans 8:9 confirms our belief about this. So I did some additional study on this and found that even after the promised Holy Spirit was promised to us, it was not an automatic indwelling with everyone as indicated in Acts 2:33; Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4. The point that Jesus aimed to get across to His audience was that His Father will give of the very best that could be offered to His children when we ask. Friends I don’t believe that anything has changed in that last statement, for Jesus loves us with such a passion that He stood in our place at Calvary. He sacrificed His very life as the greatest gift to mankind, for His shed blood became the sacrifice necessary for us to be accepted into heaven to spend eternity with He and His Father. You need only to ask Jesus into your heart friend. Will you do that today?

Prayer

Father God, we give to our children, and we think at times that we even sacrifice for their well-being. However, You loved us enough to show us what the ultimate sacrifice could look like. Thank You for the precious gift of Your Son, Jesus, and thank you immensely for the gift of Your Holy Spirit, our comforter and our guide in life. Lord teach us to love like You demonstrated love to us. I feel like this is required for us to present ourselves to a lost world as being your representative. Please have Your way in our lives this day oh Lord. May You be honored in every way through our character today. AMEN

Footnote

If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to http://www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

Be Diligent in Prayer

On 2016-11-16 By Ed AlgreenIn Persistence, Prayer, TemptationLeave a comment

Wednesday, 2016-11-16

Scripture

Bible Reference: Mark 14:38

Bible Text: ³⁸Stay awake and pray for strength against temptation. Your spirit wants to do what is right, but your body is weak.”

Bible Translation: Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

My Take

Jesus had been around His disciples long enough that He knew their weaknesses, just like He knows yours and mine friend. However, He took a few of His closest disciples with Him to experience His agony; how He dealt with it (through desperate prayer before His Father); and how He wanted His disciples to be persistent in prayer at important times such as this particular time in the garden of Gethsemane. Jesus also taught them to be very careful in saying things that they were not prepared to back up through their actions. This was particularly true with Simon Peter who vowed to stick it out with Jesus through good times and bad, yet when asked to keep watch and pray for just one hour, he failed. Friends, when we accept Jesus as Lord; when we are on a high because of a revival in our souls; and when we are around Christian friends, we sometimes feel like we could conquer the world for Jesus, and many times we promise Him to be a very consistent witness before the lost and needy. However, may I encourage you to examine yourself closely for the consistency in which you have lived up to your promises? In the presence of Jesus and the safety of like-minded friends it is easy to feel like, and promise to be the hands and feet of Jesus, but how often do we back down from that when faced with challenging individuals, or when we feel like we are on the’ battlefield’ of life all alone? Jesus coached His disciples, and I believe that His plea is just as sincere today for His followers like you and I, to be diligent in our prayer lives, because even though we may feel secure in our commitment to live noble lives before God and to be His witnesses everywhere we go and with whomever we meet, yet we live in this old sinful world that is ruled by the prince of darkness, Satan himself. Remember, our goal may be to stand firm in our faith, but Satan’s goal is to trip us up at every possible opportunity. So let’s trust God and obey Him when He pleads with us to pray diligently so that we may stand firm against the evil one. Satan is lurking around the corner to get at us, but only if we let him, for greater is He that is in us than he (Satan) that is in the world!

Prayer

Lord Jesus thank You for Your Word, and for Your encouragement and prompting to pray always. I’m sure that each of us face challenging times as we partake in this world in which we live, but as we were reminded in this scripture Lord, please help us to keep our eyes; our hearts and our very beings fixed on You. The source of our strength and the protection that we need from temptation is founded in You Lord. We need You daily to protect us and watch over us so that we may be living testimonies for You Lord. Please keep Your hand upon us today, so that as we go, our friends will witness the love of God in every way, and desire more and more to want to know You as their Savior. I ask these things in the name of the true and living Savior, Jesus Christ. AMEN!

Footnote

Prayer – Faith, Believe, Receive

On 2016-11-15 By Ed AlgreenIn Faith, PrayerLeave a comment

Tuesday, 2016-11-15

Scripture

Bible Reference: Matthew 21:20–22

Bible Text: 20 The disciples were shocked when they saw how quickly the tree had dried up. 21 But Jesus said to them, “If you have faith and don’t doubt, I promise that you can do what I did to this tree. And you will be able to do even more. You can tell this mountain to get up and jump into the sea, and it will. 22 If you have faith when you pray, you will be given whatever you ask for.”

Bible Translation: The Contemporary English Version (CEV)

My Take

I believe that when we can’t explain an action we call it ‘magic’. From this scripture, I believe many may call what Jesus did with the fig tree ‘magic’, but as we read this passage carefully we see where this action, and indeed what Jesus assures us we can do, boils down to the faith we have in the One who can do all things, and the fact that we must believe in Him wholeheartedly if we expect to receive from Him. Friends, here are a few things that jumped out off the page at me. I believe we must follow these things if we expect to receive from God:

Faith – there is a passage of scripture where Jesus tell us that without ‘faith’ we can do nothing. As an example, we may admire a beautiful boat anchored on the lake, and because we have always been told that we could use a boat to cross the body of water over to the other side, then we tend to believe that. However unless we have faith enough to step into the boat and let it takes us across the lake, we will remain stay put and only wave at our friends who are safely on the other side. Likewise, having ‘faith’ in the One to whom we are praying, helps us to pray that His will and ours are in sync;
Don’t Doubt – I believe you will find it extremely challenging to pray in faith, and totally believe in the One to whom you are praying, if you have doubt in His existence and His power. Please try to never approach God thinking that you are presenting an impossible situation to Him, because that gives clear evidence that you have doubts about Him being able to satisfy your prayer request about that need;
Believe – Unless you believe in the awesome power of the One to whom you are praying, why bother to pray to Him? Our belief system is developed based on the facts we have already learned about the One to whom we are praying. So don’t be afraid to include an example of answered prayer along the lines of what you are praying about. For example, when praying about a blind person, be sure to reflect on the fact that Jesus actually gave sight to the blind, as it helps you pray in faith and confidence that Jesus is still very capable of answering your prayer concern about your blind friend;
Purpose – We should always pray with the end in mind. I have studied under a wonderful teacher who helped me include a ‘so that’ in my prayers. Example, Father God, please give my blind friend the determination and boldness to fight the battles that Satan will throw his way about his blindness, so that my friend may succeed in life in spite of his disability. This is intended only to help us seek God’s will with purpose, and helps us think about the purpose behind our request. This becomes a lot more specific than just simply asking God to bless my blind friend. Try this with your prayer requests friends!
Expectation – Those that pray, expecting God to respond, are praying with all of the above in mind. They are exercising their ‘faith’ ‘without doubting’, ‘believing’ that the God who created this whole universe could easily answer their prayer request, ‘so that’ their loved one may be restored

Friends, praying faithfully to our awesome God, knowing that He can do all things, if only we will trust Him, is what a believer in Jesus Christ does. How’s your prayer life friend?

Prayer

Father, I believe that You have built into each of us the warning signs of not attempting to do things that we are incapable of, in order to save ourselves from injury. I also believe that way too often we apply that principle to our prayer life without consciously recognizing that we are really praying to the God that CAN do ALL things. In our scripture verses today You have shown us five things that we must keep in mind as we pray. Thank You Lord for taking us to a whole new level, recognizing that with God all things are possible. This requires faith, determination and dependency on You oh Lord. Please grant us the boldness and faith needed to let go and let God. You are awesome oh Lord, and I just want to thank You for drawing me to Yourself. May I seek to serve You all the days of my life, and may You be honored and praised in every way, through every thing that I do or say. Please also meet the needs of my readers today. Draw them to You and remind them of Your awesome power. May You be glorified today in everything, because of our faith in You. AMEN!

Footnote

Prayer – A Connection Between You and God

On 2016-11-14 By Ed AlgreenIn Blessings, Giving, PrayerLeave a comment

Monday, 2016-11-14

Scripture

Bible Reference: Matthew 6:14–15

Bible Text: “In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part.

Bible Translation: The Message (MSG)

My Take

I believe that most of us may have considered the idea of our conversation, or prayer, with God being a major connection point with God. However, Jesus reminds us in this passage today that it really makes no sense in us asking God for blessings that we are not willing ourselves to bless others with. The particular point mentioned in this scripture is ‘forgiveness’. We should not expect to receive God’s forgiveness, if we are unwilling to forgive others. Wow! Ever stopped to think about that before? After all, of what purpose would it serve for God to continue blessing, or forgiving us, if we bottle that up inside and never use that act of forgiveness, as humility and strength to help us forgive others? There is also similar scripture that reminds us about the act of giving. That scripture reminds us that our blessings received will be in proportion to our giving. In other words, don’t expect God to continue giving if you are stingy in what you give to His work and to His children in need. God is not a get-rich scheme,where all you have to do is ask, and He will pile it on for you. He blesses us so that we may, in turn, bless others. I believe that in verse 15, Jesus clearly reminds us that as we refuse to forgive others, or as we choose not to give of our earthly means to others, we create a division between God and ourselves. In other words, we cut ourselves off from the part that God would have blessed us with, if we were truly His hands and feet here on earth. May I encourage you to examine yourselves friends and see if there is something in your life that separates you from the love, and the gifts of our holy God? I’m sure that we all love to receive God’s richest blessings. To do so, we should be willing to shower those blessings, or pass them on to others!

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, You were such an example for us to follow, for You forgave the very ones that beat You, and crucified You. How much more than should we be forgiving to others in obedience to Your words to us? Lord, the words in our text this morning are quotes from what You instructed us to do. Important for us to realize today, is that the world knows what to expect from us as followers of Christ, a whole lot better than we ourselves would care to acknowledge. Holy Spirit, please open our hearts and our eyes to the things of God at every turn today. This short scripture is just one reminder of what it means to be a true warrior and imitator of Jesus Christ. Oh Lord, may the words of our mouths and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight, our Rock, our Redeemer and our soon coming King! AMEN!

Footnote

Found ‘GUILTY’ of Praying?

On 2016-11-132016-11-13 By Ed AlgreenIn Commitment, Dedication, Determined, PrayerLeave a comment

Sunday, 2016-11-13

Scripture

Bible Reference: Daniel 6:10-11

Bible Text: ¹⁰When Daniel learned that the decree had been signed and posted, he continued to pray just as he had always done. His house had windows in the upstairs that opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he knelt there in prayer, thanking and praising his God. ¹¹The conspirators came and found him praying, asking God for help.

Bible Translation: The Living Bible (TLB)

My Take

Many of us meditating on this scripture today probably don’t have any state laws prohibiting us from any religious activities, but I wonder when last we could have possibly been found guilty of ‘praying’? Over in Philippians 4:6 we are told to not fret or worry about anything, but instead ‘pray’ about everything, yet in a country where we are free to pray and worship the God of this universe, we ‘worry’ so much that our doctors probably deal more with depression and anxiety than anything else. Daniel shows us that in spite of man’s efforts to hinder his relationship with his God, that nothing would separate him from the love of his Lord. I would encourage each of us to take particular note of this, because it doesn’t take much to hinder us in our prayer life. Of course I could only speak to our corporate prayer life, but it is sad that our midweek prayer and Bible study is attended by only a very small percentage of our congregation. In fact, so poorly attended that I am reminded by the words of a pastor in my younger life, who said that it looks like the church at large has voted to cancel the service, for the absence of the vast majority speaks volumes about how they feel about corporate prayer meetings. In fact, I wonder how God must feel when He looks at our corporate prayer meeting attendance, for He said through His servant in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 ‘Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.’ So friends I would challenge you to seriously consider and declare who you are claiming as your King; your Lord; and your Master. Have you personally accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior? God’s Word tells us that if you have, then you would have a desire to ‘pray all the time’. If your ‘love-for-God’ meter is measured by your prayer life, are you proud of the love you show to God every day? How about your concern for the church as a whole, do you attend corporate prayer enough to pray for its survival and its outreach for your community? Is your pastor empowered because of your prayers for him? Daniel maintained his prayer life in spite of a new law being enacted that he knew could have led to his imprisonment. How valid do you feel your excuses are for not attending your corporate prayer services, compared to Daniel’s commitment in the circumstances he was under?

Prayer

Lord God, we are a sorry bunch considering all the gracious gifts that You bless us with every day, compared to the uncaring attitude we take in returning thanks to You. Friends are dying every day without Jesus, and ashamedly we acknowledge that our prayers and our influence in their lives could have made a difference. We have read, heard and seen the power of prayer, yet many have chosen to ignore its power through their attendance and commitment to pray corporately. Please forgive us Lord. I feel like we are witnessing the greatest need for revival probably in the life of Your church here on earth. Only those who have actually accepted you as Lord can be ‘revived’, so Lord, please begin a great work in the life of Your church – Your people. May Your children be reminded of the power of prayer, and their obligation to converse with their Master. We need you heavenly Father, revive Your church again, I pray. AMEN!

Footnote

Live Before God The Testimony You Portray Before Man

On 2016-11-122016-11-12 By Ed AlgreenIn Honesty, Hypocritical, WitnessLeave a comment

Saturday, 2016-11-12

Scripture

Bible Reference: Isaiah 1:14–17

Bible Text: I’m sick of your religion, religion, religion, while you go right on sinning. When you put on your next prayer-performance, I’ll be looking the other way. No matter how long or loud or often you pray, I’ll not be listening. And do you know why? Because you’ve been tearing people to pieces, and your hands are bloody. Go home and wash up. Clean up your act. Sweep your lives clean of your evildoings so I don’t have to look at them any longer. Say no to wrong. Learn to do good. Work for justice. Help the down-and-out.
Stand up for the homeless. Go to bat for the defenseless.

Bible Translation: The Message (MSG)

My Take

In the days that Isaiah addressed his writings, there were sacrifices at the temple for just about every thing imaginable. However, based on my understanding of Isaiah’s message, I believe God became very agitated at all of the sacrifices while still seeing the same folk who brought the sacrifices live just like the rest of the world, trying to cover up their worldliness by bringing sacrifices and visiting the temple often. In The Message, I feel like Eugene Peterson did a great job in presenting this scripture in terms that really opens our minds to where, and how, we still live today. For I believe that way too often we sit back and read about Old Testament teachings and just can’t get over the awful things they did back then. Friends, unfortunately I believe that God had these words placed in His Book of Instruction (the Bible), because He knew that His people who are often called by His name today, would still try to pull off the same nonsense, assuming that their testimony to man is taken at surface level, because they just can’t see what goes on in the hearts and minds of so called ‘Christians’. I believe that God would have me remind us today that it is the testimony before God that really matters, for only He can match the words from our lips with the intent of our heart, our very thoughts, and our outward actions. I can give you a good example, I believe: I live in a small community where it appears like very few attend a regular church service – a normal indication of an inward decision they may have made to the Lord. My wife and I usually hear comments about how often we leave for a church meeting of one type or another. And not that we have attained perfection, by any stretch of our imagination, but we often hear remarks about our attitude, our commitment and our stand as a Christian. Imagine if those things were opposing to the first remark that I said we often hear, do you suppose we would ever be able to witness to our neighbor. However, as indicated already, God is able to deal with me in passages of scripture like this, because He knows my very thoughts, and He sees my actions in all aspects of life, so I feel like God is ministering to me in much the same way that I pray you would be impacted as you meditate on this devotional today. Friends, I am convinced that God wants us to reach for the perfection that He demonstrated for us, and stop using the excuses like “Well, I’m only human”, or “Oops, I shouldn’t have thought or said that, but God knows I’m not perfect”. I believe that God wants the church to be the church. In other words, I believe that He desires to see the world become confused when they deal with Christians and find them to be totally different to the rest of the world. In fact, it should make them feel like they just had an encounter with Jesus! Unfortunately we still find today that there are multiple opportunities for folk to attend church. I pray that as we exit the doors of our churches, we would carry with us the likeness of Jesus Christ. That we would unashamedly be His hands; His feet and His witness to a world that desperately need Him as Savior and Lord. May our actions, attitudes and thoughts enhance the picture that the world sees, and not be a stumbling block to those who need to know our Savior, because of the hypocrisy that they may witness in our lives.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, You were so serious about Your love for us, that You allowed Your very own Son to die a cruel death for our salvation. Yet I believe that You probably have as much need as ever before to be upset at us for being so casual about our Christian life and walk here on earth. Please forgive us Lord, and renew within us a right spirit so that the words from our lips, the thoughts from our hearts and the desires of our very being, may always be acceptable in Your sight, our Rock; our Redeemer; our Savior and our Lord, AMEN!

Footnote

How’s Your Heart?

On 2016-11-11 By Ed AlgreenIn Forgiveness, Heart, SinLeave a comment

Friday, 2016-11-11

Scripture

Bible Reference: Psalm 51:16-17

Bible Text: ¹⁶I would surrender my dearest possessions or destroy all that I prize to prove my regret, but You don’t take pleasure in sacrifices or burnt offerings. ¹⁷What sacrifice I can offer You is my broken spirit because a broken spirit, O God, a heart that honestly regrets the past, You won’t detest.

Bible Translation: The Voice (Voice)

My Take

From a very early age, we demand our kids to say “I’m sorry” when they have wronged a sibling or someone else. Also from a very early age we easily detect that those words are sometimes forced out of kids, because they know that parents are not satisfied until they hear their kids, in obedience, say “I’m sorry”. So what do we think happens when we meet God personally? “Lord, I’m sorry for my sin”, might come quite naturally when introduced to Jesus, but how sorry are we, really, when we turn around and do the same thing over and over again. David, the Psalmist, was confronted about his awful sin with Bathsheba, and while he could very easily spurt those famous words out to Nathan the prophet, David had to face his all-knowing God with this sin. Now we should be reminded that God didn’t only know the fact that Nathan just presented to David, but God knows even our thoughts and the intent of our heart. So do you really think that it would have helped for David to sacrifice a sheep or a goat on the altar as his way of saying I’m sorry? For the world, that may have been enough, because from all apparent evidence, David would have acknowledged his sin and paid the price for his forgiveness. But just like you and I, David not only needed this to look good in the eyes of his friends and the local priests, but in true repentance, he wanted a clean heart in the presence of his God. So friends, we not only need to ask for forgiveness from our earthly friends, family and the impacted one(s) for our sin, but in order to right our heart and resume our oneness with God, and to one day present ourselves faultless before our King, we must get before God in humility and deepest sincerity and ask for His forgiveness. Like David, we must always be aware that God desires:

A broken spirit – this means that we must be willing to break down our pride of thinking we know everything, and thinking that what occurred was a private matter between two consenting adults. We must acknowledge that we recognize that our hearts and our lives are transparent before an all-knowing God, so we may as well ‘come clean’ and ask His forgiveness for everything we have done or said or thought that may be contrary to His perfect design and will. There is nothing we can hide from God, so may I encourage you to break down the walls of pride and secrecy and be totally open with God;
A humble heart that honestly regrets the past (our sin) – Our acts may have been fun at the time, or our words may have revenged the individual we were out to get back at, but I believe that when the God of this universe looks into our eyes and our hearts, and He sees unconfessed sin, then we will be pushed aside or rejected from His presence, as sin cannot enter His kingdom.

I was at a conference yesterday where we were reminded that when we stand before God, we will deal with our personal condition in the face of a righteous, all-knowing God. The normal tendency of our actions here on earth of trying to compare to another individual, or pointing out their sin, while pushing ours under the table, is not the way God will handle our judgment on that day that we stand before Him, for that will be a one-on-one conversation. It won’t matter what the neighbor did, or the deacon said, it will only matter how in sync our heart is with a righteous and perfect God. If that was to happen today, and it could very easily happen, what would God challenge you with? Consider getting that straight today friend, for we have no assurance of a second chance to do so tomorrow.

Prayer

Father God, You created us, included our heart, our soul, our mind and our intellect. Why would we ever think that we could hide anything from You is most astonishing to our sober minds when we are not trying to escape Your wrath. Please speak to those who seek after you today. Lord Jesus, may the words from our lips and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight, our Rock, our Redeemer, our Savior and our Lord. AMEN!