The Many Ways We See God

On 2021-11-092021-11-08 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, See God, Seeking God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Tuesday, 2021-11-09
WRITTEN AT: Ormond Beach, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Psalm 65:9-13
TRANSLATION: Good News Translation (GNT)

BIBLE TEXT: ⁹You show your care for the land by sending rain; you make it rich and fertile. You fill the streams with water; you provide the earth with crops.
This is how you do it:
¹⁰ you send abundant rain on the plowed fields and soak them with water;
you soften the soil with showers and cause the young plants to grow.
¹¹What a rich harvest your goodness provides!.
¹²The pastures are filled with flocks; the hillsides are full of joy.¹³The fields are covered with sheep; the valleys are full of wheat. Everything shouts and sings for joy.

APPLICATION: A young man stood watching a church building in his area burn to the ground. The pastor of the church happened to be standing near by and as part of his introduction to the young man, he mentioned that he didn’t recall ever seeing the young man at church before. The response was a bit sobering ‘I’ve never seen the church on fire before’! That might be how it is when we try to talk with our friends about the Lord, we will probably find it easy to relay story after miraculous story from the Bible. We usually find it easy to talk about our dynamic pastor and our exciting church. But I believe we should learn from David in today’s Scripture as we witness his precious encounter with the God of the universe, through the many miraculous things and events around him. It seems just like us to easily find whats wrong in our lives, our yards, our work, our church and our community, but as children of God, how much do we attribute to His almighty hand? I was blessed to recently complete a 4,500 mile trip that took me from Florida, to Kentucky, to Arizona and back to Florida. I left Florida in the height of the rainy season when one could hardly control flooding in low lying areas, to constant mowing of very green grass. Probably enough to complain about, right? But as I traveled west, it wasn’t long before I could only see very dry conditions, hardly any possible way for grass to grow, lots of prickles and cactus, almost impossible to find a citrus fruit tree that could survive. The people were praying for their 3-year drought to be broken, as they were purchasing truckloads of water to run a RV park. Quite the opposite to what I left in Florida, but each area had its unique qualities and evidence of God’s all powerful hand in full view. Each region had Christian brothers and sisters that I could sit down alongside and learn from God. I saw views – beautiful mountains, rivers, rock formations, and flowers that were unique to their respective regions. The same God who created the lush grasses, beautiful beaches and farmland here in Florida, He also created the beauty of the Grand Canyon, The Painted Desert, and many other sites for His children to enjoy and to be reminded of His glory, majesty and almighty power in nature. Oh that we would recognize His goodness, His awesome design, His love for mankind, His all-powerful gifts of providing for our every need. Let me encourage each one today to just life up holy hands, stop whining and complaining of how you could make your region better. God is doing that just perfectly. Just recognize Him and His works so that the unsaved will know that God has not forsaken His people, but loves them immensely through every aspect of nature, and every gift from above.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Our God is evident all around us! I believe that our minds might be reenergized after catching a glimpse through the eyes of David when he shared his vision of God in almost everything he placed his eyes on. God is always here, we just need holy eyes in search of Him to catch a glimpse!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, please open our eyes so we might see, glimpses of You all around us. Lord, we hear and see so much evil happening every day, oh that our eyes might become fixed on You so that we might be encouraged to seek after You, worship You and to lift up Your name on high so that others might be encouraged and drawn to You. Lord, You are holy and we are not, but please fill us with a desire to see You in everything that You created and placed strategically for us to enjoy. The world need Jesus, may we remind them of how close You really are. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

A Proper Introduction

On 2021-11-062021-11-05 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Know and Believe, Know Jesus, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Worship4 Comments

DATE POSTED Saturday, 2021-11-06
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: John 3:16-18
TRANSLATION: The Message (MSG)

BIBLE TEXT: ^16-18“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.

APPLICATION: A new pastor presented an excellent sermon on his first Sunday at his new church. The leaders were convinced that they had chosen the right man to lead them spiritually. However, on the next 2 or 3 Sundays the pastor repeated the same sermon. This caused the leaders to question him about his repertoire of sermons, to which the new pastor responded: ‘Once I am convinced that the congregation has received and applied the Word to their hearts and lives, I will then move on to my next sermon!!’ That sounds a lot like John 3:16, for it is probably one of the most quoted verses of the Bible, but I wonder how many simple know the words, but haven’t really applied them! I would like for you to carefully read this popular verse in the contemporary translation I chose to present the Scripture today. Perhaps hearing it afresh in simpler terms, may draw your attention and cause you to question God, like Nicodemus did, on what must you do to be saved. You see, unless you make this bold step and present yourself humbly before God, you are still under the death sentence mentioned in our Scripture. Why is that? Well, the Bible says that unless you accept this free gift given to us by God, and believe on His one and only Son, Jesus, then you are under a death sentence – eternity with Satan and his army of fallen angels in Hell where you will receive eternal punishment through fire and brimstone. Friends, this is not just vain religious threats to have you join a church, these are facts presented by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Out of perfect love for His children that He created, God sent His Son miraculously into this world, to bring hope and the means of us one day making our way back to heaven to be with God the Father and His precious Son, Jesus. If we receive the Son, by inviting Him to be Lord and Master of our lives, then we will be accepted into Heaven when we cease to live here on earth. If we don’t, then God has warned us that there is only one other place – Hell. Besides this Scripture today, I have also provided Scripture references through the link ’To Know Jesus’, referenced in my Footnote. Please consider the open invitation from God, through His Word. I have, and I would love to have every reader and listener join me around the throne of God in heaven. The choice is yours dear friend, please make the obvious, right, choice today – before it’s eternally too late.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Although we may deserve eternal damnation from Satan, yet God loved us so much that He has given us the opportunity to live in n His ‘palace’ – the portals of heaven, where He and His Son lives and reigns forevermore!

PRAYER: Normally we have to work extremely hard to have a home here on earth, but Lord I thank You for Your love and Your mercy in providing the means for our entry into Heaven, plus the assurance of eternity with You and the Father. Thank You for Your Word, Your promises, and for the place You have prepared for those who love You and allow You to rule and reign in their lives. Please use Your Word to touch the hearts of many who will read this devotional today. May they immediately fall to their knees and seek Your face as they ask You to rule and reign in their lives. Be glorified today in knowing that others will recognize You as Lord, and that they will accept You as Lord today! AMEN!

Only Evil People Do Evil Things

On 2021-11-04 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Light, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Thursday, 2021-11-04
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: 1 Samuel 24:11-13
TRANSLATION: Contemporary English Version (CEV)

BIBLE TEXT: ¹¹…. I could have killed you. But I let you live, and that should prove I’m not trying to harm you or to rebel. I haven’t done anything to you, and yet you keep trying to ambush and kill me. ¹²I’ll let the Lord decide which one of us has done right. I pray that the Lord will punish you for what you’re doing to me, but I won’t do anything to you. ¹³An old proverb says, “Only evil people do evil things,” and so I won’t harm you.

APPLICATION: I like to look at opposites when looking at certain Scriptures, hoping that it might help me to better understand what God wants to teach me. Looking at the proverb quoted by David, I believe the opposite might be something like this: ‘The child of God looking to imitate their Father (Almighty God), will always aim to do everything taught, and exampled by Him with a heart like His’. David showed us how this could be done. For unknown reasons Saul was out to kill David. Perhaps because of jealousy, but there is no indication that David did anything but respect and honor his earthly king. With this in mind, and after many attempts by Saul to kill this young man, yet David got close enough to cut a piece of Saul’s robe off, and still spared the life of his adversary. What would you have done? I believe that David has taught us that true respect for those God has placed in authority over us, demands us to respect and honor them no matter what we dislike about their actions or their challenges. But doesn’t this open our hearts to be different in a world that displays hatred in many forms for those in authority? Please allow me to encourage you to think of those in authority over you. It may be a parent, a boss, a senator, a governor, or even a president/king/queen etc. Do you respect these people sent by God to rule over you? Yes, it may seem that some of these individuals are out to get you killed, robed or perhaps reduced to a pauper, but remember that God’s Word is clear that He placed them in charge of you for His good purpose. I believe that a good self evaluation might be to think of the person in charge of you, in one form or the other, then try to ensure that it’s a person you particularly despise for various reasons. Now imagine yourself acting like David did. Can you forgive and respect that person to walk away from an opportunity to cause them physical or mental harm? Can you truly love them just as God loves them, because you convince yourself that they were sent by God for a time and purpose such as you are encountering? I bet that it’s a good thing we say over and over that ‘God’s not done with us yet’, or ‘God’s still working on me’. For you see, I believe that as long as we are left here on this earth, its ruler (Satan) will buffet us with temptations; with people that we are challenged to get along with; and with people who demonstrate hatred towards us because of whose we are. Friends, I want to encourage you, while all the while reminding myself, that only God can touch our hearts enough to love every child of His, for we are oh so different to each other that we need God’s help to consistently love everyone, including our leaders, because we represent the King of love. But God can do that my friend! He did it for David, and I am convinced that He can do it again! Ask God to help you, then trust Him as you remain faithful to Him.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Just as evil people tend to do evil things, I believe the opposite is also true – good people, especially those who love and represent God here on earth, will go beyond the realm of understanding to mankind, to love, respect and honor those around them, even those in charge over them.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, I am convinced that You placed us here on this earth so that we could live holy lives before an unusually evil bunch of family, friends and associates. Thank You for giving David the strength, courage and wisdom to love, honor and respect, in spite of a sinful man filled with hatred, jealousy and revenge. Lord, You never promised us a rose garden, nor a life of pleasure, constant happiness, always filled with riches, but You did promise to be with us, provide a way for us, and to fill us with Your wisdom and grace to help change the heart of man. We need this in very urgent ways each day Lord. Just as You helped David, please prepare my readers and I who claim You as King of our lives, to live each day in full expectation and urgency of Your soon return. We care about others. Please help us to show how much care by representing You in ways pleasing to You. AMEN!

Why Panic – Seek God

On 2021-11-032021-11-03 By Ed AlgreenIn All-powerful, Answered Prayer, Appreciation, God's Power, Needs, Power of God, Praise, Recognize God, Seek God First, Seek God's Face, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Wednesday, 2021-11-03
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: 1 Samuel 23:2-4; 10
TRANSLATION: The Message (MSG)

BIBLE TEXT: ²David went in prayer to God: “Should I go after these Philistines and teach them a lesson?”
God said, “Go. Attack the Philistines and save Keilah.”
³But David’s men said, “We live in fear of our lives right here in Judah. How can you think of going to Keilah in the thick of the Philistines?”
⁴So David went back to God in prayer. God said, “Get going. Head for Keilah. I’m placing the Philistines in your hands.”
¹⁰Then David prayed to God: “God of Israel, I’ve just heard that Saul plans to come to Keilah and destroy the city because of me.

APPLICATION: I was so impressed with the actions of David in our Scripture today. Everyone was excited and concerned about the Philistines creating havoc in the neighboring city of Keilah, but it seems like only one was interested in truly seeing the right resolution to the problem – David. For David knew that no matter the size of the army, unless God ordered the attack, the battle would be in vain. But just as in our challenges today where God may give us peace about our battles, others around us may not have the same peace. David had the same challenge when he shared with his men the orders from God. They felt like their local issues were challenging enough, and they could not imagine stepping out to battle the Philistines. They were sufficiently disturbed about this that David went back before God to make sure he had received the right message. God reassured David, just as I believe He still does for us today, ‘just do as I say, and leave the battle, or the challenge, or the thing that is disturbing you most, or the thing you fear most, up to the only One who can do ALL things’. Friends, isn’t it rewarding to be reminded that all God wants from us is to be obedient to Him? God already knows that we are not capable of doing the impossible, but He is very confident that ALL things are possible for the one who places their faith and trust in Him. For He specializes in things thought impossible by mortal man. Friends, I know that many of you are dealing with situations in life that seem mountainous to you, they are problems you never even thought possible, so how could you possible be ready to deal with these things? I believe God is telling us today just what He assured David of in the battle against the Philistines – they may appear like giants to you and your army, but remember – I made them. I allowed them to occupy the territory where they’re at because I wanted you to be reminded of how BIG your God truly is. Perhaps when you see with your own eyes how I orchestrate victory for you, perhaps then you will know that I alone am God and besides me, there is no other. Perhaps next time you will run to Me first – before you panic about things that seem impossible. Oh that we will be reminded of the awesome power of the God we serve. Nothing is impossible to Him! But take note of David’s experience – he didn’t tell God how to handle the situation. He merely took his concerns to God, listened to His response, and obeyed His commands. We should be doing that every day. If we do, then we will become accustomed to running to God with our every concern. We will be comfortable to let go and let God handle the situation in His way and in His time, knowing that all things will work best for those who place their faith and trust in the Lord their God.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Let us place our faith and trust in God alone, knowing that He alone can do ALL things for His ultimate glory, for our peace of mind and to invigorate our praises to God alone!

PRAYER: Lord God, it seems like our struggle each and every day becomes more complex, more demanding, and creates so many more questions for us. In David’s case, he was met with the surprise of the Philistines in a neighboring city. He immediately recognized that their army was much bigger than he and his men could approach with any amount of success. But just as David found peace, success and confidence to overcome the Philistines, I believe You are encouraging us to take note and follow in David’s example. Our problems seem new to us and to all mankind, and we all are at a loss for answers. Praise God that You deal in things that appear impossible to us, and You are the only One who can handle ALL situations in this life, for You placed us here and You are anxiously awaiting our arrival in heaven to be with You and the Father for ever and for ever. Thank You for peace of mind and ease of panic while we are challenged each day. May we always place our hands in the hand of the only One who knows about our challenges and could do anything at all about them! To God be the glory today and always! AMEN!

Jesus Knows All About You

On 2021-11-022021-11-01 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Tuesday, 2021-11-02
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: John 1:46-49
TRANSLATION: The Passion Translation (TPT)

BIBLE TEXT: ⁴⁶Nathanael sneered, “Nazareth! What good thing could ever come from Nazareth?” Philip answered, “Come and let’s find out!”
⁴⁷When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said, “Here comes a true son of Israel—an honest man with no hidden motive!”
⁴⁸Nathanael was stunned and said, “But you’ve never met me—how do you know anything about me?”
Jesus answered, “Nathanael, right before Philip came to you, I saw you sitting under the shade of a fig tree.”
⁴⁹Nathanael blurted out, “Teacher, you are truly the Son of God and the King of Israel!”

APPLICATION: Children are usually amazed that mom and/or dad knows about what they did while they were with friends or out of their sight! But for the child of God who gets into His Word, we are reminded that God is fully aware of our words, actions and even our thoughts. Isn’t it interesting that when we are confronted with our sin, we tend to act like Nathanael and question ‘who me’, or quickly declare ‘not me’. Friends, notice that Nathanael must have really been embarrassed that Jesus knew all about his snide remark when invited by Philip to join he and the others as followers of Jesus. But also notice that Jesus readily accepted Nathanael and basically honored him for his honest response to Philip. Perhaps many of you are like me, and we try to be so politically correct, or kind to everyone, that we often hide our true opinion. I believe it is good that we don’t poison the whole group with our negativity, but I also find it amazing that Jesus understands our heart-felt opinions, and He works with us to either correct the inward man, or teach us His way. Friends, I am convinced that from the depth of our heart, come the words that spew from our mouths. Therefore let us enrich our hearts daily through close communion with our Savior. For it is His love that we need to have ready to share with others; His words that we want to be encouraged by, instead of allowing the evil of this world to get to us. Remember, God loved us while we were unlovable and so drenched in sin, that no one wanted to hang around us. Furthermore, He gave His very best for us, even while we were still sinners in need of a Savior. My desire is that each day I will enrich my heart with more of God’s love, and that I will reach out to Him for encouragement, even when life seems to be at its worse. Then, filled with His goodness and love, perhaps I then can show love to others – the love of Jesus my Savior. Of course, it would be my desire that each reader and listener would also reach out to Jesus each day and seek His face for more and more of His grace, so that others will see our Lord, and not our ugly selfish likes and dislikes. ‘Oh that they would see Jesus’, is my sincere desire, and I hope it will be yours also.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Jesus loved Nathanael in spite of his snide remark about Him and His people. I believe He loves us also, even though we may appear to the world as unlovable.

PRAYER: Lord, I acknowledge that You created us. But we mess up so often, I have to question at times how could You possibly still love us. But in our Scripture today, You saw beyond the snide remarks of Nathanael and right into his honest heart. Please Lord, work on us each day so that we may fill our hearts with more and more of You. We want others to see Jesus, and not our rotten attitudes that seem to, unfortunately, come through in our words. Please use even us to reach unsaved friends and loved ones. May they always be reminded of, and see Jesus through our words and in our actions. AMEN!

Here’s A Gift – Receive or Reject It

On 2021-10-302021-10-29 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Ask and Receive, Gift, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Rejection, Worship2 Comments

DATE POSTED Saturday, 2021-10-30
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: John 1:10-12
TRANSLATION: The Voice (VOICE)

BIBLE TEXT: ¹⁰He entered our world, a world He made; yet the world did not recognize Him. ¹¹Even though He came to His own people, they refused to listen and receive Him. ¹²But for all who did receive and trust in Him, He gave them the right to be reborn as children of God;

APPLICATION: Hopefully this Scripture will mean more to you today than just another story in the Bible. To me, it serves as a reminder of how God must have felt when He realized that we were just finding it way too difficult to live a holy life through blood sacrifices, so He miraculously sent His very own Son to earth on our behalf. Jesus provides the way for us to one day meet with the Father and the Son in Heaven, IF we would accept Him as Lord of our life, believe on Him with all of our heart, and obey His commands as laid out in His Word. John tells us in today’s Scripture that although God created us, placed us into a world that He filled with beauty and adequate food, yet we had no desire to accept this awesome gift from God. Now, before you pounce on the terrible people of John’s day, let me remind you that the Word of God is a living and active word for us today also, and it seems like we have become worse than what we read about with the Pharisees, Jews and Gentiles of John’s day. Think about it friends, just as John said: God created us, placed us in a wonderful world that He created for us, blessed us with much to eat and drink, provided an ample supply of churches where we might worship with other believers and grow from their experiences with Almighty God, yet we carelessly reject this wonderful gift from God. Instead, we tend to choose very trivial priorities such as beach, sun, over-indulging at restaurants and night clubs, choosing to sleep in on the morning we should be heading to the place we have chosen to worship the awesome God who loves us just as we are. Friends, we have allowed Satan to interfere and drive us towards things that are very temporary and will distract us from eternity in heaven with our Maker. I have no doubt that God has placed these Scripture verses before us today as a reminder of what our family and friends are missing out on. Other Scriptures also show us that the day of Jesus’ return is nearing. That lends urgency to our prayers for God to touch the heart of unsaved loved ones, so let’s be about the work of the Lord today while there is still time.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: We serve a loving and awesome God who has presented His greatest gift ever, His very own Son, so that we might enjoy extreme blessings here on earth, and look forward to even greater things in Heaven! Lord I accept your precious gift, and I kneel at Your feet pleading for my unsaved loved ones.

PRAYER: You gave it all, so that we may have it all. Thank You Jesus for your precious gift! Please forgive us when we tread upon that gift lightly and do not accept the faithful promise from on high. Many of our family and friends have consistently rejected Your gift oh Lord, and I am pleading once again on their behalf that You would tender their hearts and drawn them unto Yourself. Lord, if there is a reader or listener who have not fully accepted Your gift of salvation, please may this be the day. AMEN!

Control Your Mind

On 2021-10-282021-10-27 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Thursday, 2021-10-28
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: 1 Samuel 18:6-9
TRANSLATION: Good News Translation (GNT)

BIBLE TEXT: ⁶As David was returning after killing Goliath and as the soldiers were coming back home, women from every town in Israel came out to meet King Saul. They were singing joyful songs, dancing, and playing tambourines and lyres. ⁷In their celebration the women sang, “Saul has killed thousands, but David tens of thousands.” ⁸Saul did not like this, and he became very angry. He said, “For David they claim tens of thousands, but only thousands for me. They will be making him king next!” ⁹And so he was jealous and suspicious of David from that day on.

APPLICATION: I found it interesting to read this chapter of 1 Samuel and see how Saul allowed his best warrior to become his worst enemy, at least in his mind. The first time he looked at David with jealousy and suspicion followed almost immediately after he thought that David was the best thing that ever happened to his army. In his mind, Saul let the words of a playful song from women along his path to the palace just gnaw at him into imagining things like:
a). The people prized David more than Saul – in the lyrics they sang of David killing ten times as many as Saul while in battle. This incident happened immediately after David killed Goliath, so there was absolutely no basis for Saul to get jealous. Looking in from the outside, it would appear like Saul should have been a proud king who had a very young man go out and single handedly kill what the Philistines prided as their most masterful warrior;
b). The people will soon elect David for their king – There was absolutely nothing mentioned in the story that could have cause Saul to jump to this conclusion. But because it became real to Saul in his mind, it gnawed at him and cause him to despise, and even hate David;
c). Saul feared for his life because of the success of David – There is no indication that David ever threatened Saul in any way, but in Saul’s mind the idea of David being recognized as a great warrior, caused Saul to become very frightened and he feared for his life, even without sensible basis;
Because Saul allowed all of the above to interfere with his peace of mind, he became a very angry man who started devising ways to attack, harm, destroy and just hurt David in any way possible.
So might we ever fall into the trap that Saul fell into? Of course we can. It happens all too frequently. Perhaps never to the extent that we may want to cause physical harm, but we know that mental anguish and revenge could very easily result in extreme bitterness.
But how do we protect our minds from becoming intertwined with the sort of bitterness that plagued Saul? Philippians 4:8 instructs believers to: think on those things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, and worthy of praise. If there is anything of excellence and worthy of praise, we are to think on these things. These are characteristics of our loving God, and we can develop and implement these as we feed on the Word daily. So when you start feeling like Saul, let me encourage you to dig a little deeper into the Word while yearning to be more like Jesus in everything He directs you to in His Word. Don’t leave any room for Satan to tempt you or bombard your mind with his lies and his hatred for anyone.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Greater is He that is in You, than he that is in the world. Overpower old Satan with a fresh bit of courage, wisdom and direction from God’s Holy Word! Seek God and all of His righteousnesses, and all these things will be given to you, child of God!

PRAYER: Thank You Lord Jesus for showing us what happens to our mind when we sit, sour and soak in the bad attitudes of Satan and his cohorts. That life is not for the child of God, but Lord we need You daily to help us stay focused on You and the many blessings that You bestow on Your children. Saul was a great warrior, but he allowed Satan to slip in and fill his mind with evil plans against a young man who respected him and fought hard for him. Lord, we desperately want others to see the love of Jesus in us, and we pray that they might hear Your call on their life. Please use us for Your good, and keep the evil one at bay at all times. AMEN!

Refer Only What You Have Proven

On 2021-10-272021-10-26 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, God our Provider, Needs, Praise, Proven, Recognize God, Share, Testimony, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED Wednesday, 2021-10-27
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Psalm 62:5-8
TRANSLATION: The Passion Translation (TPT)

BIBLE TEXT: ⁵I am standing in absolute stillness, silent before the one I love, waiting as long as it takes for him to rescue me. Only God is my Savior, and he will not fail me. ⁶For he alone is my safe place. His wraparound presence always protects me as my champion defender. There’s no risk of failure with God! So why would I let worry paralyze me, even when troubles multiply around me? ⁷God’s glory is all around me! His wraparound presence is all I need, for the Lord is my Savior, my hero, and my life-giving strength.
⁸Trust only in God every moment! Tell him all your troubles and pour out your heart-longings to him. Believe me when I tell you—he will help you!

APPLICATION: When we are at our wits end and feel like there is no where else to turn, we often look for advice from family and friends that we believe care about us. There are times that many Christians will only want to speak with a pastor, when times are especially stressful and seem out of control. Like David, I believe that it is vitally important for others to know that we have first-hand experience about the subject we are asked to counsel on and share a reference on. For example, our personal testimony about what the Lord has done for us, is way more important to a friend than any Bible story we might share, or any recent story shared by our church pastor or leader. The latter is a third party reference, and we may leave out certain details, or we may add to the story to make it sound believable. In telling our own story, or testimony, we may show the emotions of the moment that we are sharing, or we may throw in some very personal feelings into the story. I am always thrilled at the way that David shares from such a sweet personal relationship with God. He personalizes the story and speaks of His Father in the first party. I might say that he (David) stood in silence before his God, the One whom he loved very deeply. David instead spoke of standing in the presence of the One I love! You may find room for error, or questioning in my story, but in David’s story it was very personal. Because David had such a personal relationship with the Father, he was able to safely say to others, I could afford to tell you to trust in God, because I did so, and He created for me a clear, safe path, fit for a king. I am confident as I suggest that you share your troubles with this loving God of mine, because I did so and He calmed me and made me rest besides still, peaceful waters. It seems like David was sharing that ‘you could go to the bank with this – He will help you if you only ask and believe in His awesome power. Friends, let me encourage you to share a first-hand experience with those you are witnessing to. I believe that they would rather know that this is a proven formula you are giving them! When you tell someone to ‘give it to Jesus’, hopefully you can support that with an example of something you gave to Jesus and you witnessed His awesome love in response to your request. Sure I might have a good story you might find worth sharing with your friends, but there is absolutely nothing better than your own personal experience with your Savior and your Lord!

BLESSING(S) NOTED: If Jesus did it for me, I am convinced He can do the same for you, if you believe and trust in Him. Teach us Lord to share all that You have done for us so that others will be encouraged to also ask You for help in their situations of life.

PRAYER: Thank You Lord for the peace that passeth all understanding. Thank You for the love that surpasses all other love, and thank You Lord for the assurance of knowing that one day soon we will meet You and the Father in Heaven, where will will sing and shout with the angels about our finally being ‘home’! Lord, You have been so personal to us in taking care of us and watching out for our every dilemma. Help us Lord to share these blessings with others. It’s always good to share how You blessed others, but may we make it a point to follow David’s example in sharing our story, our relationship with You, and our many blessings that we have been recipients of. Often we will share about many other earthly trips we have taken, gifts given to us, and people we have met, but we seem to shy off from sharing about how You have blessed us, Lord. Others need to know about You. May those we know, hear about our Lord because of the many times that we share our story with them. Reach out and touch your people today Oh Lord, so that the unsaved will be drawn to You and the saved will be encouraged. AMEN!

Who Can Stand Against Our God?

On 2021-10-262021-10-25 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Miracles, Miraculous, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Stand Firm, Stand in awe, Take a stand, Worship1 Comment

DATE POSTED Tuesday, 2021-10-26
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: 1 Samuel 17:26
TRANSLATION: New Living Translation (NLT)

BIBLE TEXT: ²⁶David asked the soldiers standing nearby, “What will a man get for killing this Philistine and ending his defiance of Israel? Who is this pagan Philistine anyway, that he is allowed to defy the armies of the living God?”

APPLICATION: As a young, innocent child, we tend to stand up for our tall, handsome, strong dad as we’ve seen him overcome many obstacles and provide for our family in amazing ways. Through good Sunday School teachers, VBS (Vacation Bible School) teachers, and young-at-heart pastors, we may learn very early in life that there is One even more powerful, more loving, more caring, more giving and even more outstanding than our dad. Some of us go on to accept this Jesus as our Lord, and give Him full access to our lives and our energies, while others tend to shrug off the idea of Christianity so that they could enjoy all that the world offers. As I read today’s Scripture again, I believe the Holy Spirit made me analyze whether I fit in better with Saul’s army, or with young David. The army saw a huge giant in front of them. In fact, something much larger than the whole Philistine army that surrounded them. They were paralyzed by this giant of a man. For the non-Christian, they can only see the giant, because they have rejected God and would prefer that He leave them alone. But for the Christian, what do we see when obstacles appear? Are we as confident as young David, and able to say in the presence of our senior officials and church leaders: but wait a minute, that thing, or that disease, or that financial burden, or that huge question mark, they are just minor obstacles to our awesome and almighty God. As a church leader, are you willing to listen to your young innocent Christians who have not been struck by doubt and fear, and still strongly believe that our God is one who stands ready to move mountains for us, and able to handle all of our obstacles, even if they appear like ‘giants’ to us? As a young Christian, please be encouraged to stand firm in your faith, and while I strongly believe that you should respect your elders, I want you to always remember that no one outshines or overpowers Almighty God. Friends, the body of Christ consists of men like those who made up Saul’s army. They tried to run David off to go and attend his small flock of sheep, and leave the big job to the big guys. But praise God, He also sends along young men like David, whose faith has not been dampened by the doubt of unbelievers and sometimes, older Christians. In fact, they are still young and innocent enough to believe that God will make a way, even when there seems to be no way – at least in the eyes of men. Romans 8:31-39 assures us that there is nothing that could separate us from the love of God. Because of that connectedness to God, I firmly believe that neither will anything prove bigger than our God, or more powerful than our God. Trust in the Lord your God, and ALL these things will be granted to you! David trusted God, and gained his confidence in God through His relationship and proven miracles from God. As a child of God, we too can have that same assurance today!

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Who or what can defy the army of God? David assured us that nothing is bigger or more powerful! Let us therefore trust in our God for ALL things!

PRAYER: Thank You heavenly Father for the confidence we can have in You! David showed us that there was no room for fear, but instead, we should look at the obstacles in life through the lens of our awesome God. Oftentimes there are life-challenges that will seem like giants standing before us and blocking our path to victory, but Lord it is especially these times that we need to hear Your still small voice reassuring us of Your might and Your power over EVERYTHING You created. Please calm our nerves today and help us to see You, the maker and ruler of all things created. Please use these stories of reassurance to draw the lost unto Yourself. May today present opportunities for lost family and friends to find Christ. Use us Lord to be Your hands, feet and lips here on earth. Draw all men unto Yourself, for Your ultimate honor, glory and praise! AMEN!

Look at The Heart

On 2021-10-242021-10-23 By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Heart, Heart Knowledge, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Worship2 Comments

DATE POSTED Sunday, 2021-10-24
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: 1 Samuel 16:6-7; 18
TRANSLATION: New Living Translation (NLT)

BIBLE TEXT: ⁶When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed!” ⁷But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
¹⁸One of the servants said to Saul, “One of Jesse’s sons from Bethlehem is a talented harp player. Not only that—he is a brave warrior, a man of war, and has good judgment. He is also a fine-looking young man, and the Lord is with him.”

APPLICATION: For years I served on various Search Committees looking for church pastors and/or church staff. For years I also interviewed applicants for jobs where the individual would be subject to my supervision. I now hope that things would have been somewhat different if I had long ago studied this chapter of 1 Samuel in more detail! A lot of times we often hear the saying ‘Common sense is just not that common anymore’, perhaps that comes from a person intent on being obedient but without applying their heart to their actions. Notice that as soon as Samuel saw the looks, stature and age of Jesse’s oldest son, he was sure he knew who God’s pick was for the next king of Israel. But God not only knew the heart of the next king based on history, but also based on his commitment to God and his future dependence on God to make good decisions. Friends, I believe it is beyond amazing how God was preparing the path for His new king. In Saul’s depression, he needed the calming music of a harpist. God had been preparing David for this opportunity from a very young age. Also, God had arranged for one of Saul’s advisors to have knowledge of David and He gave the advisor the boldness to share what he knew about the heart of David: 1). Talented – meaning that he devoted his time to learning an instrument that he fell in love with, the harp; 2). A brave warrior – usually this will be a character of a man with great confidence in what he and God could do, in spite of the circumstances around him; 3). A man of war – David had principles towards things that were important and necessary at times, even if that happened to be ‘war’; 4). Good judgment – we know that David was the youngest son, so to be considered for this character trait, he must have listened well and obeyed. No doubt his dad was a key mentor, but this advisor also knew that God was super important in David’s life; and 5). The Lord is with him – just as David was credited with having the Lord on his side, I pray that we too will be so much like Jesus Christ, that the world will give reference to our relationship with God. For He is also on our side!
So let me encourage you dear friends, to live your life for the One you serve. May it be evident whose you are. Also, let’s learn from this experience by Samuel, look at the heart of a person, not at the outward appearance or on their personal achievements. God has blinders on for the latter, and He concentrates on the heart of man instead. So should we!

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Forego the outward appearance and concentrate on the heart of man. This is good for every purpose in life, and for every person that we meet or associate with!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, instead of spending so much time and money on improving our outward appearance, please continue to teach us the lesson that is so prevalent in today’s Scripture. Please teach us to constantly work on the heart, based on what You have commanded, and on what You demonstrated to us while You were here on earth. I truly believe that others need to experience how much we care based on our actions and kind words. I pray that it will be very evident to them that it’s all about Jesus, and nothing of our sinful selves. Be glorified today precious Lord, even through Your humble servants who need Your touch in every aspect of life. Please reach into the hearts of the unsaved today also, may this be the day that they will experience You in all of Your fullness. AMEN!

Nuggets From God's Word

Tag: Promises