Monday
Pray, Trust, and Believe
Hear me as I pray, O LORD. Be merciful and answer me! (Psalm 27:7 NLT).
Pray often, trust that God hears, and believe He will answer. Just remember His answer might be different than what you want.
Dear God, Your will; nothing more; nothing less; nothing else. Amen.
Tuesday
He Changes Us
For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God (Romans 5:10-11 NLT).
God comes to us as we are, but He loves us too much to leave us as we are. When Christ becomes our Savior we are changed. Our hearts are pricked with His love, mercy, and grace. When we accept Him He will bring us to true repentance and will drive us to exclaim that Jesus is Lord. This is only the beginning of a lifetime of growth in our faith. As Humphrey Bogart stated in the movie, Casablanca, “This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” I think it is not only a friendship with Jesus but that friendship is better stated as a relationship.
Accepting Christ opens our hearts to a right relationship with God. This relationship is only available through Christ Jesus. He is the only way, the truth, and the life. Believe it, live it, and worship Him.
Lord God thank You for giving us your Way to come into your mighty presence. We give thanks and praise in the mighty name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Wednesday
Thankfulness Brings Peace
And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful (Colossians 3:15 NLT).
If you are feeling sorry for yourself, just look around. I bet it won't take you long to find someone in a lot worse situation in life than yours.
The world is broken, and we must live in this broken world. This world has many trials and tribulations to endure as part of life. Remember today is the first day of the rest of your life. Use it to praise God, help others, and show others how to live a good, Christ-following life in a lost and dying world.
Dear Father, lead us to the realization that no matter what we are going through, you are with us and will never leave us. Remind us of how blessed we are no matter the situation. Teach us how to pray for the lost and those that are struggling. In the mighty and matchless name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.
Thursday
He Laid the Foundation
The Lord will work out his plans for my life — for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever. Don’t abandon me, for you made me (Psalm 138:8 NLT)
Created by God; formed by God; saved only by God. He lives in each of us and gives us free will, which gives us the right to choose. Choice is not always a good thing for our human condition. He has a plan for each of us, and we have our plan. Are we going to choose our plan or His plan? If any of you choose your plan over His, let me know how that works out.
His love for each of us is far greater than we can comprehend on this side of heaven. Thanks be to God.
Dear Father, we praise your mighty name. Thank you for all things. Thank you for being a righteous, just, and loving God. Without your justice, all we would have is anarchy of the heart. Let us be thankful for your correction and direction in our lives. May we live a life that is beneficial to your kingdom. With your love, we will never know being unloved or lonely. Lead the lost back to you, Father, so that they might have a good life and a secure eternity. Help us, Lord, to be bold and proclaim the truth of salvation. I pray this in the mighty and matchless name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.
Friday
Valleys and Mountain Tops
For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow (James 1:3 NLT).
We all go through our valleys in life. We have many trials and tribulations as we walk through this world. It's a part of our broken nature. Stuff will happen. We also must know that this "stuff" even happens to the strongest Christian people that we know. Being a follower of Christ doesn't make us bulletproof and ten feet tall in this broken world. Satan hates a Christian, especially those that are truly following God's will.
This is why it's so very important to regularly read Ephesians 6:10-18. This is a set of verses that instruct us on fighting the spiritual battle that rages around us. Be vigilant in prayer for ourselves and our fellow believers. Pray for the lost and misled. Prayer is vital, and we should be in a continual conversation with our Lord.
Be cheerful, brothers and sisters, as we fight the battles of life. God has already won the victory for us through His Son, and all we need to do is walk each day with our Lord, Jesus Christ. Claim that victory! Take one step at a time by the grace of our God.
Let us shout out together -
We praise Jesus, our King and our Savior. Amen.
Saturday
Traveling the Highway
And a great road will go through that once deserted land.
It will be named the Highway of Holiness.
Evil-minded people will never travel on it.
It will be only for those who walk in God’s ways;
fools will never walk there (Isaiah 35:8 NLT).
I've been sitting here, reminiscing of my 45 years, as an avid biker (motorcyclist). There was one thing that never changed, we looked forward to all the sights that we would see. We looked forward to riding by that lonely farmhouse, early in the morning, and smelling bacon and eggs cooking in their skillet. We even looked forward to the not so pleasant smells that remind us why we don't live next to a chicken farm.
It was glorious to be on the bike with the breeze on our knees and enjoying God's creation. But we also had to pay attention to any possible dangers. We can't get caught up in the ride, to lose sight of possible potholes in the road or vermin running across our path.
This should remind us that we need to pay more attention to the highway that we are cruising. Are we on the road to a desolate land? Or are we on the Highway of Holiness?
Lord God, thank You for giving us a Highway to Heaven. Amen!
Sunday
The Good News
But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8 NLT).
No matter how busy we get in our lives, we can rest on the fact that God loves us. He will never leave us and will never forsake us. He proves that over and over in His word and by His actions in our lives.
Today's verse is a perfect example of how much God loves us. He comes to us while we are broken sinners. He doesn't wait for us to get our lives right and then come to us. He comes to us knowing we have need of Him.
The even better news is the fact, that even though He comes to us as we are, He loves us so much that He will never leave us as we are. In Christ there is a life change. It is a change that transforms us currently and eternally.
Thank You, Lord God, for loving us, broken sinners, and claiming us as your children. Amen.
