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8/31/2020 0 Comments Psalm 62:5-6 "My soul wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defense; I shall not be moved. " - Psalm 62:5-6
What a beautiful verse. It sounds just like poetry, doesn’t it? It has an equally beautiful meaning. Read this verse and ponder it. Notice that the author writes “He only is my rock and my salvation......” It means that nothing we do, and nothing anybody else does can support you and save you. Doesn’t that make you feel small? God is all powerful and nobody can come even close to what he can do. It’s incredible. Ponder this verse every day. You will begin to be amazed. -B
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8/24/2020 0 Comments 1 Peter 3:15 "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:" - 1 Peter 3:15 (KJV)
If someone walks up to you right now and asks you why you are so joyful and full of hope, what will you tell them? This is a hard question. I'd love to say that I would enthusiastically begin talking to the person about God and how he changes our lives, but it seems more likely that I'd mumble something about it being a good day today, and move on. Is it just me? The truth is, God does change lives, and he does fill the hearts of all who truly believe with hope. In the verse, followers of Christ are challenged to "be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope...". Maybe you and I need to do some thinking today about the following questions: - Am I truly filled with God's hope? And if I'm not, why not? How I can I grow closer to God and become a follower who is perpetually filled with hope? - Where does my hope come from? - What would I tell someone who asks me where my hope comes from? I hope you enjoyed this post! Love, A 8/17/2020 0 Comments Hebrews 13:2 "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." - Hebrews 13:2, KJV
Wow. That’s what I immediately thought when I read this verse. Wow. Take a moment and read that verse again. Let it sink in. Read each word slowly. Yes, you probably read it right. People have “met” angels by entertaining or caring for strangers. I’m not really sure if this means that they entertained angels themselves, but they for sure got a sort of blessing, and just by caring for a stranger! How often do we skip by people? How often do we ignore them? I think this verse is saying “Care for people” because we usually forget to do so. I don’t mean that you have to give random people all your money, or invite them to your house, but stop now and then to give someone a track, give them a smile, be pleasant with them, send someone a card. You will find many blessings from doing so. -B 8/10/2020 0 Comments Colossians 1:17 “And He is before all things, and by him all things consist.” - Colossians 1:17 (KJV)
This verse tells us that God existed before all things, and that all things are “composed or made up of” him. Other translations say that “he holds all things together.” What a picture of glory and power it paints for our God! Even when the world seems to be spiraling out of control or out of your grasp, God still holds all of this in the palm of his perfect, endless hand. He existed before all other things, and everything is composed and made up of him. We can never outrun God’s love and glory! -A 7/27/2020 0 Comments Galations 1:10 “For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.” - Galatians 1:10 KJV
There are probably lots of people in your life that you want to please and be approved by. There are lots of people in my life whose approval I try to earn, like my parents, teachers, youth leaders, friends, and classmates. However, this verse says that we don’t need to earn anyone else’s approval. In fact, some people may even disapprove when we choose to follow Jesus - and that's ok. When we choose to be a follower of Christ, we are declaring God as the most important thing in our lives, and saying that we will not conform to human opinions. So, while we should respect our leaders and follow their guidance whenever possible, if they ask us to do something that goes against God, or if they disapprove of our faith, then politely walk away. We are not trying to please people. We are working for the Lord. Love, A 7/20/2020 0 Comments Hebrews 10:23 I love this verse because it is very important. It can be so hard to be bold about our faith when we are being pushed, and shamed, and even bullied for just mentioning God. We can sometimes feel embarrassed or ashamed because we love Christ, but we should not feel that way!
The second part of Hebrews 10:23 has a promise for us if we hold fast to our faith. It says “for he is faithful that promised”. God will be faithful to us if we are bold with our faith. He will always take care of us, and never leave us. So I would like to encourage you today. Hold fast and stay strong. You will be so glad that you did. Don’t waver under pressure, and if you feel like you are getting weak, pray. God will help you. -B 7/13/2020 0 Comments Psalms 71:14 But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more. -Psalms 71:14
What does "hope" mean to you? There are lots of different ways to define it. Author Annie F. Downs describes hope as "an anchor that roots us firmly in the Lord so that we don’t drift away". Hope can also be defined as “a feeling of trust” and “grounds for believing something good will happen.” I love these definitions! Now that we know what hope is, let's talk about how hope and praise fit together. Something that I find interesting here is that the Psalmist put "hope" and "praise" in the same sentence. Hope and praise go hand in hand. Praise reminds us that God is good, even when things don’t seem to be going our way. When we proclaim God's truth, (praise!) it makes it easier for us to believe he truly can do all of those things and that he will make something good happen (hope!). Love, A 7/6/2020 0 Comments Ephesians 6:20 "For which I am an ambassador in bonds; that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak." - Ephesians 6:20 (KJV)
What is an ambassador? What does an ambassador do? To really understand this verse, we must first understand these questions. I’m sure you already know, but let’s cover it again. Ambassadors at a glance: * Ambassadors represent their country in foreign lands. * An ambassador is always taken care of. * Ambassadors celebrate their country’s holidays and follow their laws. * Ambassadors need to give an honest impression of their country. * Ambassadors are chosen by their country. In a way, we are all ambassadors. Not for countries, not for towns, but for our heavenly home. When you say “I am a Christian.” you immediately become an ambassador in the eyes of people. If you lie and cheat, that’s what people associate Christians with. If you are good and kind, that what people associate Christians with. When you are an ambassador, you have the right to “speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” That is what ambassadors need to do to give a fair impression. So speak boldly. Tell people what you need to about God. Stand up for the right, no matter how uncomfortable it can be, because you are an ambassador. -B 6/29/2020 0 Comments Psalms 119:11 "Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee." - Psalms 119:11
Do you have a good memory? Do you like to use your memory? That’s a good thing if you do, because this verse is all about memorizing. God wants us to learn his word and know it in our hearts because it is pleasing to him, it helps us know right from wrong, and it gives us strong faith. In fact, those all happen in the order I listed them. It works like this: Memorizing = Pleasing God = Knowing Right From Wrong = Strong Faith So memorizing is sort of like a 3 in 1!bI hope you found this devotional what you needed today. -B P.S. Don’t know where to start memorizing? Look back through our other devotions for ideas. 6/22/2020 0 Comments Psalms 143:8 “Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.” - Psalms 143:8
B and I have written about the Psalms a lot. The Psalms are a series of songs and prayers written by David and other people in the Old Testament. They include songs of praise, prayers for guidance, and mourning over difficult things that have happened. If I had to pick a favorite verse from the Psalms, it would be this one. Before we dive into it, take a moment to read it. Then, read it again and think about what the author is saying. Ready? In my opinion, they are saying four main things:
It’s a prayer of sacrifice, dependence, and trust in the Lord. However, there are two different ways that we can choose to read this verse. We can choose to read the verse and count it as a touching prayer someone from the Bible said centuries ago. Or, we can read like a life changing prayer of sacrifice where we commit our entire day - our entire life - to God. How are you going to read this verse? Are you willing to be led by God in everything that you do? When you pray in the morning, what prayer will you pray? Love, A |
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