Monday
Our Plans and Wisdom
Get all the advice and instruction you can, so you will be wise the rest of your life. You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail (Proverbs 19:20-21 NLT).
Study God's word so that you will be knowledgeable in the things of life and informed about the spiritual world. But also understand that your wisdom and the plans that you make, may be circumvented by God.
Lord God, Your plans are perfect. Our plans are flawed. Let us seek Your will and Your plans for our lives. Lead us and direct us today, Lord. Your will; nothing more; nothing less; nothing else. Amen.
Tuesday
The Way - Joy - Eternity
You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever (Psalms 16:11 NLT).
The way - God's word is the roadmap for life and everlasting life.
Joy - having Jesus in your heart, He gives us the joy that cannot be found anywhere else.
Eternity in heaven - this is what God promises us through His Son. John 3:16
Lord God, thank You for giving us the way to joy and an eternity in heaven with You. In Jesus' name, we pray, Amen.
Wednesday
Mining for God's Gold
Listen to me, all who hope for deliverance—
all who seek the Lord!
Consider the rock from which you were cut,
the quarry from which you were mined.
Yes, think about Abraham, your ancestor,
and Sarah, who gave birth to your nation.
Abraham was only one man when I called him.
But when I blessed him, he became a great nation (Isaiah 51:1-2 NLT).
We are all formed in the image of God. Our Creator designed and formed us and knows more about us than we know about ourselves. We are His creation.
We all have the “Gold” of God deep inside our hearts. We are prone to cover up that gold with our sinful lives. We keep shoveling more and more dirt over God's Gold. The gold mining industry must move two tons of dirt to harvest one ounce of gold. That's a lot of dirt.
There was a lot of dirt in my own life that had to be moved and discarded to get to that ounce of God's Gold. I thank God for excavating, exploring and revealing His Gold that was in my heart. At times, it was painful. It was a very trying time during the excavation process. But no matter the discomfort, every scoop of dirt that was removed, the closer I got to God.
Have you let God remove the sin (dirt) in your life? Are you letting Him excavate the dirt from your heart? Are you coming to Him for deliverance from sin? Isn't it time to turn to God and accept His Son as your Savior? Isn't time to repent and let God take the dirt from your heart and reveal His precious gold?
Thank You Father God for loving us so much that You were willing to drag out the heavy equipment, get the excavator and dig deep into our lives, changing us one scoop at a time. In the name of Jesus and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we pray. Amen.
Thursday
Standing Firm With Love
Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. And do everything with love (1 Corinthians 16:13, 14 NLT).
Christians, we must get a backbone and stand up for the truth of God's word. We have the very power of God in our corner. He is with those who cling to Him.
Our backbone must be firm, direct and solidly backed up by God's word, but we must do this in and with love. Modern day Christians, it's time to bulk up, not in physical strength but in reading God's word, studying it and applying it in our daily lives.
Father God, help us stand firm, never budging, for Your truth. We must do this with a Christ-filled heart. Thank you, Lord! It's in Jesus' mighty name that we pray. Amen.
Friday
God Is Always On-Call
My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber (Psalm 121:2, 3 NLT).
When we are feeling down, tired or even just plain "whooped," don't forget Who has our back. Don't forget where we should look for help, our Lord. Even when we can't see any way out of the situation that we have gotten ourselves into, the Lord has our back. All we need to do is repent, pray and call on His name, trusting that He hears our cries for help. Remember that God acts in His timing and not ours. He always acts, but it might not be the way you desire.
Father God, hear our pleas for help. We need You, Lord. We can only struggle through life without You. With You, we can accomplish all things. I praise You, Lord. Amen.
For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength (Philippians 4:13 NLT).
Saturday
Christian Deficiency
But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves (James 1:22 NLT).
What's wrong with Christians today?
They are always “gonna” but never do!
Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20 NLT).
Sunday
Prayers and Hope
Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying (Romans 12:12 NLT).
We can be confident that God hears our prayers and works mighty miracles in the lives of those who love Him. God's timing is perfect. He will act although it might not be when or what we expect.
We must stay Christ-centered and pray. Pray often and with your whole heart. Pour out your deepest kingdom wishes and desires. Pray for needs and not wants in your life. Pray for others. Just pray.
Thank You, Lord, for an open line of communication. While we are pouring out our petitions to You, help us remember to pause and listen for Your voice in our hearts, it's not just a one way conversation. We praise You, Lord and we pray in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
