Tag: Savior

The Reason I Live

On By Ed AlgreenIn Evangelize, Living with purpose, PurposeLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! May I encourage you to read the whole devotional, and look for a blessing, friend!………

The Bible Reference: Philippians 1:20-24
The Bible Text: 20 For I live in eager expectation and hope that I will never do anything that will cause me to be ashamed of myself but that I will always be ready to speak out boldly for Christ while I am going through all these trials here, just as I have in the past; and that I will always be an honor to Christ, whether I live or whether I must die. 21 For to me, living means opportunities for Christ, and dying—well, that’s better yet! 22 But if living will give me more opportunities to win people to Christ, then I really don’t know which is better, to live or die! 23 Sometimes I want to live, and at other times I don’t, for I long to go and be with Christ. How much happier for me than being here! 24 But the fact is that I can be of more help to you by staying!
The Bible Translation: The Living Bible (TLB)

My Take Away: Of special note regarding this scripture: Paul is in prison at the time of this writing! So if Paul has the fortitude and determination to live so that He could do more of the Master’s work, even from within four prison walls, how much more those of us who are ‘free’ should be striving to do the Master’s work? Friends, we whine and we complain about so much, but do we should really have the heart of Jesus, or of Paul, in wanting to see as many won to the Lord as possible? In the above scripture, I bolded a few sentences that, I believe, is worthy of note:

  • Living means opportunities for Christ – it is only while we have breath in our bodies that we can be witnesses for the Lord, or care about sinners. Let’s not wait any longer friends, we’re on the winning side and it is our responsibility to share the Good News of our Savior and Lord;
  • Living will give more opportunities to win people to Christ – Often we will find that it’s the threat of impending death that gives us incentive to share the love of Christ that lives inside of us. Please allow me to awaken  you to the fact that we have no assurances about the next minute. The moment of opportunity is the present. Please share the love of Christ who lives inside of you with all that you care about and/or come into contact with today!
  • I can be of more help to you by staying – Only Jesus Christ has power beyond the grave. He is allowing us to remain here on earth so that we can glorify Him and spread the Good News about the Savior who loved us enough to die for us. In a nutshell friend, this is our mission!

Friends, we remain on this earth to be shining examples of our Lord Jesus Christ.  It’s not about politics, gossip, sports, the lotto or any other purpose, so make it known to everyone you know that the reason you live is to represent Jesus, and to evangelize the lost, before it is eternally too late.

Prayer: The reason that I live is …….. Lord, as we complete that sentence today in humility and prayer before You, I ask that You will take those completed sentences and correct any misgivings about our mission, compared to the one You have assigned to us. I am pretty convinced that our mission is similar in nature to what Paul shared with the Philippians, because throughout Your Word we are told the importance of surrendering our lives to You, so that we, in turn, may be a blessing to others and convince them of their need for our Savior. Please work on us today and guide us to do Your perfect will, is my sincere and humble plea. For it’s in Your beautiful and bountiful name that I ask all this, dear Jesus, AMEN!

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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!

2016

God Will Prevail!

On By Ed AlgreenIn Deliverer, Ruler, The love of God, The power of GodLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! May I encourage you to read the whole devotional, and look for a blessing, friend!………

The Bible Reference: Judges 2:11-13; Philippians 1:12-14
The Bible Text: (Judges 2:11-13)     The People of Israel did evil in GOD’s sight: they served Baal-gods; they deserted GOD, the God of their parents who had led them out of Egypt; they took up with other gods, gods of the peoples around them. They actually worshiped them! And oh, how they angered GOD as they worshiped god Baal and goddess Astarte!

(Phil 1:12-14)      I want to report to you, friends, that my imprisonment here has had the opposite of its intended effect. Instead of being squelched, the Message has actually prospered. All the soldiers here, and everyone else, too, found out that I’m in jail because of this Messiah. That piqued their curiosity, and now they’ve learned all about him. Not only that, but most of the followers of Jesus here have become far more sure of themselves in the faith than ever, speaking out fearlessly about God, about the Messiah.
The Bible Translation: The Message (MSG)

My Take Away: I was impacted by two passages of scripture, and both made me reflect on the types of individuals that my God made, and allowed to exist here on earth. In the first scripture we see where the Israelites thought they had everything figured out, so they lost sight of God and worshipped false gods instead. Now look at us – ever noticed how full our churches get after a disaster? For a few Sundays after the 9-11 disaster, our churches were filled. However as soon as folk felt like they were safe to return to their sinful lifestyles, church-going took an unimportant place in their lives. Friends, have you ever stopped to ponder why we hear so many concerns about what appears to be doom and gloom whenever we hear groups talking? Wouldn’t you think that just as God got upset at the Israelites for straying away from Him and worshipping other gods, that He is very likely to also get upset at us for turning our backs on Him? Especially when we really trusted Him to see us recover from the disasters, but soon afterwards wanted nothing to do with God or His body of believers? God declared war on the Israelites, and He even worked against them in their battles. Could He be doing the same thing in our country, our state, our cities, our churches and our families? But look at Paul’s testimony. He was thrown into prison for his beliefs and his bold testimony of what God had done in his life. Ordinarily we would consider that a write-off, for we would think that Paul, or any other Christian in a similar position today, would be silenced and unable to continue witnessing for the Lord. Paul shared in our second scripture that God was able to use him even more in the prison environment – praise the Lord. I have a good friend in a similar scenario, and God is actively using him in the prison system. Friends, I would challenge you today to never give up on God. Never turn your back on Him, for He can use you in every scenario of life, if only you will let Him. Remember, whether it’s through the times when you feel on top of the world and see God actively involved in your life, or times when you are calling on God, but feel alone in this world, God will prevail, and He could easily prevail in all circumstances of our life, if we will let Him. God WILL prevail! And we will also, if we allow God to rule, reign and operate in every circumstance of our lives. Try it friend! What do you have to lose, when you have eternity to gain?

Prayer: Father, please forgive us for so easily giving up on You and instead grabbing the reins ourselves to create such an awful mess for ourselves. Please forgive us for our littleness, and our attraction to the things of this world, rather than remaining faithful and strong to You. Please touch the lives of Your children who will read this devotional today. May they gain strength from Your Word, and may their eyes be opened to the awful effects of sinful and disobedient actions, as shown in Your Word today. Lord, You alone are worthy and so deserving of our praise, while we are so needy and so dependent on You in every aspect of our lives. Please hear our cries today as we seek Your face and desire Your precious hand upon our lives. I ask these things in faith and in recognition of who You are, in the strong and wonderful name of Jesus, my Lord, Savior and soon coming King, AMEN!

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or 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!

2016

Start Your Day Off Right

On By Ed AlgreenIn Praise, Sovereign, WorshipLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! Read on and be blessed friend!………

The Bible Reference For Today: Psalm 59:16–17

The Bible Text: But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress. O my Strength, to you I sing praises, for you, O God, are my refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love.
The Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

My Take Away: In almost every aspect of life, a good beginning sets the stage for a good ending, and everything in between. Take for instance the construction of a house. If care is not taken to get the foundation perfectly level, can you imagine the disaster you will be faced with in every other phase of the construction, and even when you try to live in the house? So what happens then to your day when you wake up disgruntled, start by grumping at the dog and being less than respectful to your spouse? Can you possibly turn that around when you arrive at work and find the air conditioning or heat broken and the first employee to arrive prepared to quit your company and move on in their career? What if we had to imitate David and begin our day reflecting on, and singing about God’s power? You know, the same God who showed His gracious love for you by sacrificing His only Son, Jesus, to facilitate your way into heaven? You know, the same God that you witnessed bringing sunshine to your previous day – especially when you stopped and reflected on the number of friends and family who seemed doomed for an eternity in Hell and, had no hope here on earth? You know, the One who helped you to reflect on the satisfaction of having a job to go to and subsequently support your family – especially when you stopped and considered the relatives and friends who did not have a job? You know, the One who made sure that you had a safe place to rest your head the night before – especially when you turned on the news channel and saw stories of some sleeping under bridges or in tents? Friends, I believe we would have no difficulty at all finding a number of things to praise God for each morning, if only we could concentrate on the precious gifts that He gave to us the previous day. Yes, we live in an imperfect world, and I’m not naive enough to believe that everything went perfect in your previous day, but what I do know, is that if we learn to praise God for His many, undeserved, gifts then the stuff we didn’t like wouldn’t look near as bad. Furthermore, reflecting on the miracles, and the blessings, and the good things, and giving God credit for all that He did for us, gives us a sense of assurance to present our new day to that same God and plead His presence, His refuge, His guidance and His blessings on us as we strive to represent Him in every aspect of our lives. Imagine placing yourself in the hands of the Creator of this universe! Can you imagine any mountain that may be too tall or too tough for Him? Your anticipated path may seem impassable to you, but just remember friend, our Designer and Creator put those mountains in place for a purpose, and if we are to walk over, or through those mountains, He has the power to level the ground for us to pass! Praise the wonderful name of the Lord!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, glorious and almighty in all Your power, we are humbled before You today, feeling a little ashamed about how we tend to concentrate so much on the impossibilities of life instead of the accomplishments that were obviously handled by You on our behalf. Lord, we are so weak and helpless, but praise to Your wonderful grace, we who have accepted You as Lord, can praise You today for Your powerful hand intervening in our lives and protecting us from Satan’s destructive and misleading hand. Father, please inspire within us the desire to praise You with all assurance that You’ve got control of all things in the life of a believer, and for that reason we should always recognize Your power and Your might in all things, because of Your love for us. You are holy and so worthy oh Lord, and we are so needy. We humble ourselves before You in recognition of these things. Thank You for being our God, our Deliverer, our Protector, our Guide, our Savior and soon coming King! AMEN!

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or 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!

2016

Will God Find You Faithful?

On By Ed AlgreenIn Faithful, Pure, TrueLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! Read on and be blessed friend!………

The Bible Text: 20 For I am afraid that when I come I won’t like what I find, and you won’t like my response. I am afraid that I will find quarreling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly behavior. 21 Yes, I am afraid that when I come again, God will humble me in your presence. And I will be grieved because many of you have not given up your old sins. You have not repented of your impurity, sexual immorality, and eagerness for lustful pleasure.
The Bible Reference: 2 Corinthians 12:20–21
The Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

My Take Away: If someone catches us doing something we shouldn’t be doing, we tend to get embarrassed because of our guilt. However, there are times that we could be fired for being caught doing something that we shouldn’t be doing. Ever got downright angry at a child, or maybe even an adult, when you caught them doing something that you specifically told them not to do? Our scripture reading today illustrates how Paul shared with the Corinthians about his fears in what he would find when he returned to them. Friends, I believe this was placed in the Book to not only show us the heart of Paul, but also help us understand how God might feel if He returned to gather His church together today. For some, I believe we would really wish that God would come right after our devotional time in the mornings, or perhaps right after church on the weekend. The reality is, that God could return to get His church at anytime He chooses to, for He’s in control of that. Paul listed a number of qualities he was afraid he would find when he returned. What would you be embarrassed to have God return and find you doing today friend? What character qualities are you ashamed of, especially when backed up against a wall? Which of your relationships are less than pleasing to God? Paul may have asked that some be excommunicated from the church. However, God may cause you to question if you ever really gave Him control of your life. Remember, He is either Lord of all, or not Lord at all to you. He could return to take you home even today friend, won’t it be joy to hear the words from our Father, “Well done good and faithful servant, enter now into the eternal glory of heaven with my Father and I”. May I encourage you to either make a decision to accept Jesus as your Savior today, or to renew and refresh Your relationship with Him if you are already a child of the King? May I also encourage you to seek the face of God and ask for forgiveness of the sin in your life, and for strength, guidance, and wisdom to overcome the temptations of this old world, so that you may remain faithful to Him until He calls you home? We need to be ready at all times friend!

Prayer: Lord God, thank You for loving us enough to provide the means for our forgiveness of sin. Thank You for providing Your living Word to show us the way to live here on earth, while pleasing You who art in heaven.  Please forgive me for allowing the things of the world into my life that distract me and cause me to stumble along my path of trying to please You. Please touch the hearts of Your children today and help us to be reminded of the urgency in which You can easily come to take Your church home to be with You. Please help us to live holy lives, even as You are holy. Please help us to stay so connected to You and Your Word that we can know right from wrong, and that we may gain strength to go on without giving in to the temptations of this world and its master, Satan. Your love is amazing dear God, may our love for You in return be evident by the way that we choose to live. For I ask these things in the strong and wonderful name of Jesus, AMEN!

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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!

2016

God’s Grace Is All We Need

On By Ed AlgreenIn Grace, Humility, Submission, Sufficiency, SurrenderLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! Read on and be blessed friend!………

The Bible Text: (Paul speaking)… Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn’t get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,
My grace is enough; it’s all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
The Bible Reference: 2 Corinthians 12:7-9
The Bible Translation: The Message (MSG)

My Take Away: I was recently speaking with a friend who showed me a collar he had purchased for his dog who, would normally pull you off your feet when you tried to walk him on a chain. This collar would now pinch together more and more whenever pressure is applied to it. So the harder the dog pulls the more the collar would pinch, therefore causing the dog to stop pulling so hard. I hope you will forgive me for using that as a demonstration to show what I believe Paul meant in this passage of scripture. Think about it, Paul was thanking God for his infirmity, because he felt like whenever he was tempted to ‘take the wheel’ and assume responsibility of a situation, his infirmity would limit him, and therefore cause him to deflect and plead with the God of this universe. And rightfully so friends, for God, and God alone has the power to handle all of life’s challenges, or deal in the hearts of man and draw mankind to Himself.

Application: So, how then should we apply this to our lives when we are so sure of how every situation should be handled, or how the church should be run, or when we feel like our heads will explode if we had to deal with one more crisis? Friends, the Words of our Savior quoted by Paul, are still very applicable to us today, for I believe God is constantly reminding us that His grace is sufficient for everything we need. In fact, God’s grace works best for us when we surrender to our weaknesses and submit our concerns to God. It’s at the feet of Jesus where miracles occur, where His wondrous acts occur, where it becomes extremely evident that it is God who is in control and that we are merely servants ready and willing to carry out His commands. Let’s be careful to never try and assume God’s roll, for we must never de-throne God. He’s our guide, and He’s our friend, BUT He will always be God and He will always rule in majesty, not just over us, but also in every circumstance of our lives. Let’s never be too ‘big’ to take even the ‘little’ things of life before Him, for it is in every answer by God that we gain our confidence and increase our faith. This encourages us to submit  even the ‘largest’ things (those things that seem downright impossible to mere man) to God for His divine intervention. Remember, His grace is sufficient, and it is all that we need for situations today, or that we will ever need. For He is… our great BIG wonderful, miracle working, awesome, sacrificial, Son of the Almighty God of this universe, and of you and I!

Prayer: Lord God, thank You for Your awesome power, yet Your humility to be concerned about our every need, and especially about our humanly impossibilities. Thank You for taking the impossibilities and challenges of Your servant Paul, to remind us that Your grace is still sufficient for even us, and even in our modern day world of technology and human accomplishments. Each and every day we are presented with situations that we wish we could do something about. Please help us to always stay true to our role as Your servants and allow You to be the awesome God that You are. I ask these things in all humility, and in the precious name of Your Son, Jesus, AMEN!

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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!

2016

Trusted and Proven Source of Help

On By Ed AlgreenIn Help, Surrender, TrustLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! Read on and be blessed friend!………

The Bible Text: Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.
The Bible Reference: Psalm 55-22
The Bible Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

My Take Away: Generally when one hears words such as relayed to us in verse 22 of Psalm 55, they tend to brush it off thinking that it’s the same old religious lingo that they heard their forefathers talk about, but the idea is so out of touch with the issues they are dealing with in this 21st century. Friends, let me take you back to the beginning of this very chapter when David was pleading before God for help. In fact, it sounded pretty desperate to me. However some 21 verses later and David is bragging about proven results, for He is now telling us the awesome news of what we might expect when we place our burdens at the feet of Jesus, like he did in verse one. I believe that almost any child of God can identify with David, for there are times that we have felt, what appears to be, the weight of this world on our shoulders, yet when we take those concerns before our Lord, and surrender our weaknesses before Him, we quickly see where He intervenes and lightens that load for us. Notice I didn’t say that God removes the load. He never said that we would be free from concerns, He just assures us each and every day that no matter what the concern may be, we are to be comforted in knowing that we know who holds tomorrow, and we know who holds our hand. So for my friends reading this who have not accepted Jesus as Lord of your life, may I give you the good and the bad news? Verse 23 goes on to tell us that God is honoring your choice to run your own life without His help. The good news is that His ear is always attuned to your cry for salvation, so may I encourage you to first recognize that the missing factor is a personal relationship with the Creator of the universe. Just as you won’t walk up to a stranger and ask for something, I would impress upon you to know my Lord and Savior personally before discussing your needs with a stranger. God loves you so much that He allowed His one and only Son, Jesus, to die on a cruel cross at Calvary. This was the sacrifice He made for you friend. Won’t you accepts His gift of salvation today? He cares for You, and He wants to be available to help you through your daily challenges. However, He is a perfect gentleman and will only respond to you, not barge in on the desire of your heart to do life all by yourself. I am thankful that I can identify with the words of the Psalmist and thank God daily for His hand of protection, love and uplifting each and every day! He is available to you also friend!

Prayer: Oh Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder, consider all that You have done for me and provide for me each day, I can only shout and praise You for Your awesome goodness. Please touch the hearts and lives of my friends reading this devotional today, so that they also may know and believe in You. Lord may they surrender the vast concerns of this challenging world to You and allow You to be God over ALL things, especially over us individually. Lord, may unbelievers come to know You as Lord today, and may your children be drawn to a closer walk with You, for this is my humble prayer that I ask in the name of Jesus, my Lord, 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!

2016

What’s Inside Us Will Exude From Us

On By Ed AlgreenIn Imitator of Christ, Light, Reflection of ChristLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! Read on and be blessed friend!………

The Bible Text:

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! Read on and be blessed friend!………

The Bible Text:
The Bible Reference: 1 John 1:7
The Bible Translation: New International Version (NIV)

My Take Away: Ever heard friends say that they would never agree to put a  bumper sticker on their car with a Christian message, because they know what it looks like when a driver passes you in a fit of rage, pointing his finger and all, only to look on his rear bumper and see a fish symbol or a church bumper sticker? Is it any wonder then why we see churches split and huge divisions in the church among Christians? For breaking man’s laws, is in direct conflict with God’s law. John shares with us in the surrounding verses of this scripture that God himself is light, and that there is no darkness in Him. If we live in Him – obeying His commands and imitating His walk while here on earth, then other like Brothers and Sisters will sense that communion and there will be great fellowship together. Does this not conclude then that when there is not that sweet fellowship, or when there is rumblings, or when we are acting like children of Satan, that we are not walking in the ‘Light’? Friends, please note the subject of this devotional, and also re-read the text. I believe you can easily discern that if we have the Light of the World in our lives, directing our paths, controlling our tongues and leading us to His Word for our ‘daily bread’ (our inspiration for every aspect of our lives), then wouldn’t it make sense that our lives will reflect that ‘Light’, and that our actions will impact lives because they are imitating the teachings and example of Christ? For the Christian, our speech and our actions can also act as a thermometer, if we are totally honest with ourselves, because when we speak and/or act like the Devil, we would quickly realize that we have permitted way too much darkness to enter our lives, and that we must diligently strive to reunite and/or realign our lives with Christ. The secret is, that we spend time in the Word, and pray to our Father daily. Only then will our lives truly take on the character of Jesus and therefore permit our lives to honestly reflect Him before mankind. So the challenge today is: based on what you see exuded from your mouth each day, and based on your actions, who exactly is it that you serve? Who is inside, controlling what you preach and/or example to others? If it’s Jesus, the world will know and believe, because of your interaction with them, and your witness to them! When you have a desire to serve only Jesus, I believe that He will fill any gaps or shortcomings that you may be sensitive to. He just needs your availability, He will take care of the necessary abilities!

Prayer: Father, may Your light, Your character, Your commands and Your love fill our lives to overflow, so that we may become more like You in every possible way, every day and in every circumstance. Lord, we want others to know You personally. I pray that they will see so much of You in us, that they will be assured of Your existence, and have an undying desire to know You in a very personal way. I ask these things in the precious name of Jesus, and for Your glory oh Lord, 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!

2016


The Bible Reference: ^
The Bible Translation: ^

My Take Away: ^

Prayer: ^

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!

2016

Needed–A Pure Heart and A Right Spirit

On By Ed AlgreenIn Cleanse me Oh God, Forgiveness, Heart, Right SpiritLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider feeding even us with His Word! Read on and be blessed friend!………

The Bible Text: 10-13 Create in me a pure heart, God, and make my spirit right again. Do not send me away from you or take your Holy Spirit away from me. Give me back the joy of your salvation. Keep me strong by giving me a willing spirit. Then I will teach your ways to those who do wrong, and sinners will turn back to you.
17 The sacrifice God wants is a broken spirit. God, you will not reject a heart that is broken and sorry for sin.
The Bible Reference: Psalm 51:10-13, 17
The Bible Translation: New Century Version (NCV)

My Take Away: Sin is something we do, or say, or think, that is contrary to the command and will of God. David had just committed sin through an unlawful act with Bathsheba, that resulted in the birth of a child, and the child being taken by God as punishment to David and Bathsheba. Now, after just what I’ve written so far, most of us would dismiss any conviction of sin in our lives, because most of us would probably say “thank God, I’ve never done anything quite that bad”. Before you get too pious friend, let’s be reminded again about what sin is. You see, we are quick to compare our acts, thoughts or deeds to the guy next to us, or the lady across the street, or even David, as described in God’s Word. But I must humbly remind you that sin is something against God, so when you go before a righteous and holy God, there is no need to compare yourself to anyone else, and no need to tell God about the provocation by the other person that may have caused you to sin. He only wants to hear how your heart got out of sync with Him, His design and His commands. Getting our hearts right again with God will return a ‘right spirit’ within us and cause us to desire reaching out to teach others the ways of God, so that they may surrender their hearts to God. Verse 17 reiterates that God will not reject a heart that is broken. One that is sad about the sin that has occurred in our lives. There’s a song that is written based on these verses, click here to listen to it as you continue to meditate on this devotional today! I pray that today you will get together with God and ask that He renew a right spirit within you, and that you will be willing to ask Him to cleanse you of any sin that might prevent that ‘right spirit’ within you.

Prayer: Dear God, no matter how hard we try, we will not succeed in sharing Your love and Your forgiveness with others, especially when there is enmity and sin in our hearts. This is not what we want oh God, for we want sin removed and we want the temptation of sin to be taken away from us. Please create in me a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within me. Please return to me the joy of my salvation, and may that joy overflow in me so that others might see and believe in You. Its all about You God, but please cleanse my heart so that You can easily and freely use me as Your instrument to reach those around me. I pray the same for me readers today Lord, for the world needs more of You to be seen in more of us. I ask these things of my awesome God, through the name of Your awesome Son, Jesus, AMEN!

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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!

2016

The True Worshipper

On By Ed AlgreenIn Forgiveness, Give thanks, Sincerity, WorshipLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider even us, to nourish us for His glory! Read on and be blessed!………

The Bible Translation: The Good News Translation
The Bible Reference: Psalm 50:22-23
The Bible Text: “Listen to this, you that ignore me, or I will destroy you, and there will be no one to save you. Giving thanks is the sacrifice that honors me, and I will surely save all who obey me.”

My Take Away: In my first read through these verses I was convinced that verse 22 was referring to a non-believer and verse 23 to a believer in Jesus Christ. If you got the same impression, may I encourage you to click on the scripture so you could see the whole chapter. You will quickly agree with me that the whole chapter is referring to those who ‘worship’ God. This was quite an eye opener for me, for I quickly recognized that just as David saw people coming to the temple to offer a sacrifice to the living God, I believe there are still some today who offer similar sacrifices through the money they give to the church, thinking that surely God will be satisfied with them if they give a little from the excess they have earned. There may be others who give, or ‘sacrifice’, of their time, or even attend church services. Friends, when your heart belongs to God, it means that you have surrendered your whole self to God – body, soul and spirit. If everything about you belongs to God, then who do you suppose owns your money? There is no ‘sacrifice’ in what you give to God, when you truly belong to Him. Perhaps, instead you are to be thankful for the 90% that He allows you to keep for your earthly obligations. When you surrender your all to Jesus, you are acknowledging that everything you are, or have, now belong to God, so you are in a continual mode of thanksgiving for the mighty works that you recognize Him doing through you. Why else would you be blessed with a job, when so many others are struggling to find one? Why else would you have the opportunity to witness to someone for Jesus, when they live right next door to the pastor? God has vowed to destroy, or as some translations read, “He will rip you apart” if you ignore Him and His gracious hand in your life. There’s no pretending, lying, or hiding anything from God friend. You are an ‘open book’ in His eyes, and therefore it really upsets Him when you think for a moment that you could ‘pull the wool over His eyes’. A totally surrendered life will be one looking for ways to worship God for His awesome power and love to you. It will be one to recognize God’s handiwork and His blessings in your life and praise Him continually for His unmerited grace. This is what pleases God and honors Him. This is what is referred to in verse 23 when we see God reaching out His hand to save us! Is there anything you need to clear up before approaching the throne of God friend?

Prayer: Lord God, You are so merciful to us. You are so patient with us, especially when we try to convince ourselves that it was our knowledge, or our health or because of the people we know, that we are surviving in this rough old world. Please sober our confused minds for ever thinking that we could do anything, or survive any day, without Your ongoing grace in our lives. There is no way that we can save anyone, but based on Your Word Lord, I believe that You will work through those who have presented themselves before You with a heart that is contrite, and has been washed by Your blood, and that is totally surrendered to You. Please allow Your Holy Spirit to work on us today so that we may clear up any misconceptions that Satan may have planted in our minds. It is only then that You will find room to work through us to minister to Your children. Lord, please open the hearts of my readers today, so that they might draw closer to You and present themselves faultless before the Father one day. These things I ask in the strong and sacrificial name of Jesus, the Christ, 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!

2016

Your God-Tools For 2016

On By Ed AlgreenIn Give it up, God tools, Let go and let God, SurrenderLeave a comment

May I encourage you to get your spiritual ‘Nuggets’ to start your day off right? Pretty amazing that our awesome God would consider even us, to nourish us for His glory! Read on and be blessed!………

The Bible Translation: The Message (MSG)
The Bible Reference: 2 Corinthians 10:3-6
The Bible Text: The world is unprincipled. It’s dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn’t fight fair. But we don’t live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren’t for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.

My Take Away: I was blessed to be a part of a group last night that watched the movie ‘War Room’. In that movie we were taught a similar principle as is taught in this passage of scripture today, that the Christian has at least one major God-tool at our disposal, and that we should take every opportunity to use it for the glory of God. As Paul indicated to the Corinthian church, there are tools of Satan in place all around us that we are powerless to face and challenged with on our own – that’s why they are so successful in this world with non-Christians. Often we can fight those things that are seen, and or obvious to us, but when we see our God-given marriages, children, extended families, neighbors, friends and churches failing, we quickly deduce that we are so helpless to do anything about those things. Friends, I was reminded that it’s not our marriages, children, extended families, neighbors, friends and churches that we are fighting, but instead it’s the Evil One that is trying very hard to kill, steal and/or destroy God’s chosen people – you and I. There is only one way to fight Satan, and that’s on our knees, crying out to God and pleading our case before our awesome, all-powerful, all-knowing, all-encompassing creator and Lord over everything – Jesus Christ. I believe that it is so important to remind ourselves daily who’s in charge, and that our God has the power to handle everything that we are willing to surrender to His control. I believe it is only then that our minds will be fresh. May we never forget to call on God when we sense an act of Satan that hinders our walk, our talk and our glorifying of the Lord Jesus Christ. Friends, these tools of Satan is nothing that the untrained should ever approach, these are God-sized, and can only be handled by Him. Let’s not waste time trying, or permitting the risk of us being sucked into, or wooed by Satan. Let’s surrender to God the things that we know should be handled by Him. No experimenting or trying to do it yourself. God’s got this, and we just need to humble ourselves and surrender our lives totally into His care. I believe that He loves us enough that He truly desires to be our Father!

Prayer: Father we are really quick to grab the right tools and physically take care of issues around our home, but then we fall apart when we have emotional or sin issues that impact our Christian walk, or our relationships. Thankfully You have provided tools for us to communicate with the Creator of this universe, and of mankind; the Great Physician; our Healer; the only Son of God; the Redeemer of mankind and the only One who can save us from our sin-riddled life, and bring us before the throne of grace, that we are so undeserving of. You loved us enough to die for us, Lord may we love You enough to totally surrender and dedicate our lives to You. May You find open, accessible lives that You can use for Your glory in all that You permit us to be a part of here on earth. This is my heart-cry today Father. May Your will be done in my life and in the lives of those who will meditate on this devotional today, is my prayer that I ask in the strong name of Jesus, AMEN!

Footnote: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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!

2016