Monday
God Of Grace
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT).
Thanks be to God for saving us from ourselves. He sent the Savior Jesus Christ so that through Him we might be saved and our lives changed.
Thank you, Lord! I praise your mighty name. Amen.
Tuesday
The Trials Will Pass
(Jesus speaking)
“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NLT).
There are many of us who are going through terrible hardships. In these tough times, we must remain focused on Christ. He is with us, nothing catches Him by surprise. He will bring us through these tough times. Remember to stay focused on Him. Rest on His promises.
Trials will come but they will pass for all those who trust in God!
Thanks be to God! Amen!
Wednesday
Dealing With Life
“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.
Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you.
I will hold you up with my victorious right hand” (Isaiah 41:10 NLT).
Our nation seems to be crumbling around us. Everything that is good is now bad and everything that is bad is good. We must remember God's promises and His words, it's more important now than ever before.
It's your choice on how to deal with life. We can worry and fret over problems in life and stress over stuff we can't control, or we can let God handle these issues. It's our choice. God will and can handle these problems better than we can. He just might handle these issues in a totally different way than we would. He just might amaze us with His solution to our needs. All we have to do is get out of His way, listen, and then let Him work as we obey.
Thank you, Lord, for being a God of relationship. You created us Lord and will never leave us. Thanks be to you, Father God. Amen.
Thursday
Moral Laws Are Valid
(Jesus speaking)
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 5:17-19 NLT).
God's Ten Commandments are just as relevant today as they were when He gave them to Moses. Yes, we are living under the new covenant of Christ, but the moral laws are still valid. Jesus accomplished making the ceremonial and judicial laws non-applicable for today. God's moral laws are valid.
Thank you, God, for Jesus and your mighty Word. Amen.
Friday
Human Understanding
All of us must die eventually. Our lives are like water spilled out on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. But God does not just sweep life away; instead, he devises ways to bring us back when we have been separated from him (2 Samuel 14:14 NLT).
I have lost a lot of good friends and family members during this past year. It really hurts to lose them but knowing that they all professed a relationship with Jesus, I can rest in that comfort. We will be together again one day.
God's plan is not to destroy us, but to prosper us. He always has a plan to bring us into or "back" into His presence. As humans, we can't comprehend the love, mercy, and grace this requires. What we can be sure of is God has the Way for us to come to Him. We must choose whether we want a relationship with Him, or not.
It's our choice even though He wants us to be in a relationship with Him.
Father, bring us to the realization that you want each of us in your kingdom. Lord, help us to attain the knowledge of your love, mercy, and grace. I ask and pray in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.
Saturday
He Calls Us Worthy
This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most (Hebrews 4:15-16 NLT).
I'm so thankful we have a "dumpster diving" Savior! He came to earth and left His throne to save us from ourselves. Without His love, mercy, and grace, we would be doomed to an eternity of separation from God, in other words, hell. But because of His kindness, we are saved through our faith in Jesus Christ. We can now approach the throne of God with confidence, not because of what we have done but by what Jesus did for us. We are undeserving, but He calls us worthy. Thanks be to God!
Lord God, thank you for saving us from an eternity of torment. We praise you for the promise of heaven. In Jesus' name, we pray. amen.
Sunday
His Plentiful Love
God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him (1 John 4:9 NLT).
If God didn't love us, He wouldn't have sent His Son to die for us and become the only legitimate path to heaven and God. This is blazingly clear in John 14:6 NLT, "Jesus told him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.'"
Lord God, thank you for loving us. Thank you for Jesus, by whom we might spend eternity in heaven. We praise your mighty name! Amen.
(Editor's Note: "God Has a Gift for You" is the good news that restores the broken relationship we have with God because of our sin.)
