Devotionals

There are going to be times where we are going to have to learn about patience.  Patience is one of the most difficult things that we can learn.  When we are in a situation where patience is presented, it is difficult for us to be patient.  For instance, we need to be patient with other people.  Sometimes, there are going to be people who are going to drive us crazy.  So the question becomes “How can we be patient with them?”  One way we can be patient is to let the Spirit wash over before we have a conversation with them.  It is so important that we are taking the time to learn patience.  

While we need to be patient with others, we also need to be patient with God’s timing.  His timing is far greater than our own timing.  In Micah 7:9, it speaks about how the prophet Micah will be patient as God punishes him for sinning.  How many times has He been patient with us?  In Romans 5:8, it talks about how we God still loves us even while we are still sinners.  So because we are sinners, God shows great patience towards us because He still loves us.  He does not give up on us because we have made a mistake.  In other words, He is very patient with us.  If God is very patent with us, then we need to be patient with others.  Not only patient with others, but also being patient in different seasons throughout our lives.  Things happen for a reason within a season and we need to recognize His plan for us.  

Dear Heavenly Father, 

Thank You for making us unique in Your eyes.  I pray that as we face different things throughout our lives, help us to be patient.  Not only patient with other people, but also being patient with Your plans for us.  We recognize Your goodness and Your love.  Help us to practice being patient and letting Your love wash over us every single day.  In His name I pray, amen.  

One thing about me is that I can sing. I have enjoyed singing for a while. Whether it was singing in church to participating in musicals and plays, I have enjoyed the concept of singing. Singing is something that brings fulfillment and joy when I feel down. I would sing whenever I had the chance. Whether it was in the car, in the shower, when I’m working at home, at the Music Ministry event on Monday nights, or anything else of that nature, I enjoy singing.

The Bible reminds about this idea of singing, particularly in the book of Psalms. Today, we will look at Psalm 95 in its entirety. In this psalm, the writer is acknowledging the fact that we should sing praises to the Lord. I recognize that when we are facing or in the midst of different seasons in our lives, we usually want to do something different rather than praising God. Here’s the truth that we need to understand: no matter what season we are facing, we need to praise God regardless. It’s easier said than done, however, this is something that we need to do because the joy of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). In Psalm 95:2, it says that we need to come to him with thanksgiving. In different seasons, we may not want to feel thankful because of what we are experiencing. The truth of the matter is that we need to be thankful because the testing of our faith will produce patience (James 1:2). When we sing to the Lord, we are giving thanks to Him for what He has done for us and what He will continue to do for us. It is important that we do sing to the Lord. You may not hit the notes exactly, but we are called to make a joyful noise unto Him (Psalm 100:1-2). When we sing, it fills us up. When we sing, it makes us feel a sense of relief. When we sing, it brings a sense of joy. Remember to sing praises to Him. He loves you and is for you.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for all that You have done in my life. I know that there were some moments and seasons that were challenging, but I thank You for getting me through it. Help me to sing praises to You throughout the duration of my day. I know that I will experience different storms and seasons of hardships, but I know that You are not only the anchor for my soul (Hebrews 6:19), I know that You are the song when I sing. Thank You Jesus for being for me and with me through it all. In His name I pray, amen.

In today’s passage, we see a portion of Peter’s letter to the Church. This letter is written with a great deal of care and love for his brothers and sister in Christ as he seeks to be an encourager of their faith. He knows that they are suffering, and he does not want that suffering to endanger their faith walk, their love for one another, their growing relationship with Jesus, or the Church as a whole. Peter wants his brothers and sister to have confident hope that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose for them (Romans 8:28). He wants them to use their suffering to live obediently to God, to submit their earthly fears and ways of living, and to keep growing closer in relationship, faith, and trust with Jesus.

Having walked with Jesus, Peter understands that every person within the Church must clothe themselves with humility towards one another. All Family members must follow the example that Jesus set for us. Jesus is THE Great Shepherd, and His humble posture towards His Church is the purest example of humility, we too should serve one another. Remember, Jesus went as far as to wash the disciple’s feet. Would you serve your fellow brethren to that level? We need to be sheep that do not go against our Great Shepherd, that honor the earthly shepherds that Jesus placed within our lives and be thankful for His grace because it is given to His humble servants.

1 Peter 5:1-5 (NLT)

Advice for Elders and Young Men

1 And now, a word to you who are elders in the churches. I, too, am an elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ. And I, too, will share in his glory when he is revealed to the whole world. As a fellow elder, I appeal to you: 2 Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly—not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. 3 Don’t lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. 4 And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honor.

5 In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for

“God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble.”

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for Peter’s heart to write to Your Church as an encourager for You. Help us to be more humble, to see our brothers and sisters how You see them, and to selflessly love them. We ask all of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

All believers are called to do God’s work, but often as the Lord’s disciples and servants we just need some physical, emotional, and spiritual rest and refreshment. This is in addition to gathering to honor our Sabbath Rest—Jesus! Ministry is both challenging and rewarding; there are always needs to be met and messages of hope bathed in God’s love to be shared. We pour ourselves out as an offering of worship to the Lord.

For this reason, we need the Good Shepherd to lead us to a place of rest [nuakh—meaning to settle in], so we can receive and enjoy the restoration of our souls in the refreshing waters of the Spirit. We purposely pause to enjoy moments to be renewed as ordered by the Lord. We receive from our King and enjoy the tasty blessings from his Kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy (Matthew 11:28-30). From this place of receiving we will start again. Our Shepherd always knows what we need when we need it; therefore, the Lord leads us into his blessings, so we will continue his work. Jesus came so that we might settle into him and enjoy the blessings of life found only under his rule! (John 10:10).

Yesterday, we reflected on Psalm 23 from the Old Testament about placing our confident trust in the Shepherd’s rule. Today, in our New Testament passage, we see the work of the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep. He knows how to keep his sheep together and guard them from wandering from God. He teaches about nuakh, because he knows how to help each one in his care to enjoy the refreshment of the soul. So, settle in and enjoy life as you follow the Shepherd who loves and nourishes the whole you!

Mark 6:30-34 NLT Jesus Feeds Five Thousand
30 The apostles returned to Jesus from their ministry tour and told him all they had done and taught. 31 Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat.

32 So they left by boat for a quiet place, where they could be alone. 33 But many people recognized them and saw them leaving, and people from many towns ran ahead along the shore and got there ahead of them. 34 Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for leading us to quiet places to enjoy the refreshing waters of Kingdom life. We require the rest you offer and all we need to do is follow you to the pastures you have ordered for refreshment and settle in. You truly are the Rewarder of those who diligently seek you. Thank you, Lord! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

You and I may receive many invitations during our lifetimes to things that seem important, but no invitation is more essential and life-changing than the invitation God sends asking us to come and feast at his table of righteousness. According to Scripture, Truth is a person—Jesus— and he has been made divine Wisdom for us. So, when we want the Truth that leads to Wisdom, it means we listen to the Spirit of God and allow him to teach us how to follow righteousness. To walk in Wisdom is to accept the Word of God as revealed and modeled by Jesus—the Righteous Branch.

Our passage today reminds me of a parable Jesus used to teach his disciples about an invitation to a banquet—the wedding supper of the Lamb (Luke 14:15-24; Rev. 19:6-9).

Wisdom is a precious gift from God; it is the food for those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. The Kingdom of heaven comes with an invitation to join the King for a feast of wisdom. God offers it to those who want a greater understanding of life as it was designed by God for humanity.

Most invitations come with a request to R.S.V.P.—to respond if we are attending or not attending the event. Right now all of humanity is being invited to God’s banquet, it is our turn to R.S.V.P. The humble will leave foolishness and fleshly living behind; to come to the table of righteous and gain wisdom. In other words, to come to the Truth and be saved by his love and Wisdom. Have you R.S.V.P.’d?

Proverbs 9:1-6 AMP Wisdom’s Invitation
1 
Wisdom has built her [spacious and sufficient] house;
She has hewn out and set up her seven pillars.
2 

She has prepared her food, she has mixed her wine;
She has also set her table.
3 

She has sent out her maidens, she calls
From the highest places of the city:
4 

“Whoever is naive or inexperienced, let him turn in here!”
As for him who lacks understanding, she says,
5 

“Come, eat my food
And drink the wine I have mixed [and accept my gifts].
6 

“Leave [behind] your foolishness [and the foolish] and live,
And walk in the way of insight and understanding.”

Prayer: Lord, thank you for seeking to help us, through your Word, to understand godly living. We desire to sit at your table and feast on your righteous character. Please make us in your image. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

There are five main Books of Psalms [Heb. tehilim; Gk. psalmos]; these writings are actually sung prayers of praise and part of the Hebrew writings [Ketuvim]. David wrote at least 73 of these musical prayers and as we read them we can recognize the alignment they reflect with many of the things that transpired throughout Israel’s history with God documented in the Torah. Therefore, these writings become life lessons.

Woven throughout all five Books, the psalmist occasionally found himself offering a sacrifice of praise or lament, because life was just so difficult and challenging for God’s people. We, too, learn how to praise God for his strength and power even in the midst of our worst trials; thanking him for his forgiveness, living with a spirit of gratitude for his goodness in the past, and growing in our obedience by trusting in his love to lead us successfully into the future. These Books lead us to the revelation the Word of God is the Light of our salvation!

The first Book of psalms [Chs. 1-41] is focused on praising God for his justice [righteousness], because humanity is depraved, needs to be rescued (forgiven and delivered), and must learn obedience to the will and word of God. In Book II [Chs. 42-72], the psalmist is focused on praising God for rescuing Israel [and us] from the many ways we self-slaughter or get ourselves enslaved to the things of the world, because we have disobeyed God’s word. In Book III [Chs. 73-89], the psalmist sings prayers of praise about God’s holiness and our need to enthrone him by honoring his word above all other things, because only the Lord can deliver and make us spiritually mature. In Book IV [Chs. 90-106], the psalmist sings about Israel’s [and ours] relationship to the other nations of the world as we serve God’s Kingdom and keep our main focus on the word or commands of the Lord. And lastly, Book V [Chs.107-150], is focused on praising God with great thanksgiving by living a life of worship to the Lord. From beginning to end the Books of Psalms leads us into prayers of praise and worship.

So, the entirety of these prayerful writings help all of us remain devoted to God as we praise the Lord each day. Believers are people who are forgiven, redeemed, obedient, loving, and grateful! Being loved by God is the greatest blessing and knowing whatever we face in life the Lord has promised to be with us. We can find comfort in knowing God loves us and he is the One in control; he will bring his strength to deliver, protect, and sustain us according to his word. So, let every living thing sing praises to the Lord!

Psalm 150
1 
Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
    praise him in his mighty heaven!
2 
Praise him for his mighty works;
    praise his unequaled greatness!
3 
Praise him with a blast of the ram’s horn;
    praise him with the lyre and harp!
4 
Praise him with the tambourine and dancing;
    praise him with strings and flutes!
5 
Praise him with a clash of cymbals;
    praise him with loud clanging cymbals.
6 
Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord!
Praise the Lord!

Prayer: Lord, thank you for always being there for us and helping us see our spiritual journey in this world can only be successfully lived as we connect to you. Life and death are placed before us all the time; help us to choose life so we can enjoy the blessings! We praise you today for being our Shepherd, Encourager, Comforter, and Friend. In Jesus’ name we pray and praise! Amen.

Friends, last week we spent 4 of our 5 devotional days together in the second chapter of 1 John. Today, the lectionary daily passage continues in 1 John, but we are moving into the third chapter. The topic, however, remains in alignment with the one I wrote on last week, which is our call to “Love One Another” as the Children of God, and as brothers and sisters of faith in Christ.

I was thinking about when John wrote his Gospel message, specifically when he outlines the time Jesus spent with the disciples before, during, and just after The Last Supper. If you recall, from John 13, Jesus washes the disciples’ feet. In the first verse, of John 13, we are reminded that Jesus loved His disciples during His ministry on earth, and that He loved them to the very end of His physical existence. His love was so pure and deep that He washed their feet. He knew that within the same timeframe that the devil would prompt Judas to betray Him, leading to His capture, and death, yet He still washed Judas’s feet. Jesus told the disciples, “I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.” (13:15) If we move two chapter ahead in the Gospel of John, and flip the last chapter and verse around, to 15:13, we see the purest and deepest love, the love of Jesus, as “There is no greater love than to lay down One’s life for One’s friends.”

If Jesus could wash Judas’ feet before he betrays Him to death, and then Jesus could sacrifice His life for you and me, you and I should be able to simply love one another. As you read today’s passage, remember the opposite of love is hate, and the opposite of life is death. So, when John tells us that when we do not love, we are hating and dead living, it is Truth. Don’t allow the devil to convince you that you would never hate someone and that you are not dead living, if in fact you are not loving all of your brothers and sister in Christ equally and in the likeness of Christ Himself. I believe this is a place we all need to grow in, and so it starts by being honest and asking the Holy Spirit for guidance, not being offended by the words, “hate” and “death”.

Friends, Jesus is our example so “We know what real love is because Jesus gave up His life for us. So, we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters.” (v. 16) Jesus says, “I tell you the Truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message.” (13:16) So, it does not matter who the brother or sister are within His Family, Jesus says, “You didn’t choose Me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for using my Name. This is my command: Love each other.” (15:16-17). We are ALL commanded to love each other as God the Father, Himself, loves each one of us as His Children.

1 John 3:10-16 (NLT)

10 So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.

Love One Another

11 This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another. 12 We must not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because Cain had been doing what was evil, and his brother had been doing what was righteous. 13 So don’t be surprised, dear brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.

14 If we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead. 15 Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them.

16 We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters.

Prayer: Father, we ask for Your forgiveness because we do not always love one another the way that You love each of us. Thank You, for grafting us into Your Family. Holy Spirit, we need Your wisdom, guidance, and quick conviction so that we can have a heart that is more and more like Jesus. Jesus, Your love is the example for our lives, so please help us to be more like You. We ask all of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

In our present culture, we seem to be fixated on words like inclusiveness, because we are afraid to exclude anyone for any reason or even keep a person accountable for a crime, a lack of skill, diligence, or motivation on a job. We are hesitant to temporarily hold children back in school even when they cannot yet demonstrate a proper level of learning, because we are more focused on their self-esteem and feelings than helping them cope with small failures and learning through hard work and sacrifice they are able to achieve more! Let’s remember, we [human beings] are made wonderfully complex; the workmanship of Almighty God (Ps 139:14).
Yesterday, I saw a report of how Mattel has designed a new version of Scrabble—a 75 y/o competitive spelling board game—that is more inclusive for Gen Z. The new name is called “Scrabble Together” and in the game everyone wins, because each player is offered helper cards, team advantage, and a simple scoring system. The release of this new game will begin tomorrow in Europe on April 13th to celebrate National Scrabble Day. No criticism from me, but really?

Every human being needs to find the “Pathway” to unity; however, we also need help to grow emotionally stronger through obstacles, spiritually wiser through temptation, and gain more knowledge through study each day. Of course, believers know Jesus is that Pathway, and although we are all invited to enter his Kingdom, each one of us must work out our salvation in the Spirit. It is, by the way, hard work that requires endurance and perseverance through failure. We need to be able to learn from the Spirit what is true and fight our flesh in order to follow righteousness. If all we do is cater to our flesh and think we will enjoy the fruits of heaven, we have believed a lie.

There is a term call “the gospel of universalism” which is the theology that all human souls will be saved and reconciled to God. But, Jesus referred to himself as the “Door” or “Gate” through whom people must enter salvation (John 10:9). So, God himself demonstrates spiritual exclusion for those who refuse to bow to Christ the Living Word of God to enter the Kingdom through the Great Door of salvation. Are we going to rewrite God’s Word to make it more inclusive?

This week in our lessons, the Apostle John has warned us about the lies of the Antichrist, as well as about false spiritual teachers who do not groom God’s family to live in the righteousness of Christ. False teachers pander to human weakness, rather than focus on God’s power to redeem. When John says we do not need anyone to teach us, he does not mean we do not need higher education, spiritual training, or position ourselves to learn from other believers. He means every believer has the indwelling Holy Spirit who bears witness when we hear the truth that is taught or shared by others. We don’t need to be led astray by lies, we can follow the Truth as long as we stay connected him!

1 John 2:26-28 NLT
26 I am writing these things to warn you about those who want to lead you astray. 27 But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship [connected] to Christ.

Living as Children of God
28 And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the lessons you have brought forward for us, today. We pray for our hearts to love and respect others. We pray for our minds to desire to learn and grow from you. We pray for healthy emotions and courage to learn from our mistakes and failures and grow in righteousness and endurance. We pray for the Holy Spirit to make us aware of lies and lead us into the Truth. We want to remain connected, Lord, so we reach out our hands to you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

So far this week, we have looked at divine love and eternal life from the perspective of Christ’s disciples. John was an eyewitness to the power the Messiah brought to change hearts and renew minds. No religion has ever been able to influence this kind of radical change to the soul of human beings; we must be born of the Spirit who is Truth and raised from spiritual death. John himself was changed by the Anointed Truth; so he spoke and wrote from a personal place of experiential knowledge. However, when we have embraced the Spirit of Truth, the enemy begins to lay a series of spiritual traps/lies in order to bring confusion and chaos to the soul. We cannot open the door or we leave our hearts and minds unguarded to the lies!

I shudder sometimes at how humanity, as a whole, really loves to connect themselves with the enemy’s spiritual lies. Satan is the father of lies and he is very cunning and convincing (Gen 3:1). I understand the temptation, because the Spirit of Truth is very convicting and uncomfortable when we want to see things from a fleshly perspective. Yet, as children of God, we need to know and experience life from Christ’s perspective who was fully human and fully divine and now whose Spirit lives in believers. Jesus is a complete picture or example of human life in a righteous relationship with Father God and in the power of the Spirit (Luke 4:18). Since the resurrection, believers are partakers in the spiritual incarnation of Christ; he lives in and through our bodies.

Although John’s testimony and writings to the Church [people of God throughout all generations] is extremely helpful to us as we learn to discern the Truth from lies, Jesus himself claimed to be the Son of God who served the Father as the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father unless it is through the Son (John 14:6). The spirit of antichrist was present with the first disciples and is present now.

One day the spirit of antichrist will accumulate in one evil human being; John calls him the Antichrist. So, let’s restate the Truth: Christians are those who repent from sin, deny themselves, place Christ—the Son of God—on the throne of their hearts knowing it is through his mercy (shed blood for our sin) and grace (work of the Spirit of Truth) that we have eternal life with God. Anything else, is a lie.

1 John 2:18-25 NLT Warning about Antichrists
18 Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come. 19 These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.

20 But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you his Spirit [Christ’s anointing] and all of you know the truth. 21 So I am writing to you not because you don’t know the truth but because you know the difference between truth and lies. 22 And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Anyone who [habitually] denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist [the enemy/antagonist of Christ]. 23 Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

24 So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father. 25 And in this fellowship we enjoy the eternal life he promised us.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the discernment to know the Truth from lies. We can know this in the divine spiritual realm, as well as the human natural realm, because Jesus was both and has become our Wisdom. Thank you for protecting us by the Truth. May we guard our hearts to continue to live in the Truth. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Sadducees—a group of Jewish aristocrats who were focused on the written law—did not believe in life after death and they spent time in many contentious arguments with the Pharisees about the subject. They based their stand of the resurrection on the fact they found nothing in the Pentateuch—the Books of Moses—to confirm it. So, when the Pharisees could not prove life after death according to Scripture, the Sadducees decided this was a great question to ask Jesus; they were certain it would stump him, as well. But, they did not understand who they were talking to: the Word of God who is the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25).

In our passage today, the Sadducees use an example about marriage to prove a point about resurrection, but their focus is not marriage. They simply want to prove themselves right about the permanency of death. In this world, there will always be battles over correct doctrine; in this case the doctrine of resurrection. Jesus does not fight them, he simply tells them they don’t know Scripture; they think they are standing on God’s Word, but they don’t make a connection with him when they are talking to him.
Jesus knows all about the argument between these two religious groups and he takes the opportunity to tell them that Moses indeed wrote about the God of the Living.

Do you ever wonder what life will be like beyond this temporal world? I do, but I know it is not just another phase of this human life. It’s something supernatural, because the laws of nature are not hindering to eternal life with God. Jesus spoke about Abraham, Issac, and Jacob—patriarchs who had physically died—as though they were living. Although I can only imagine the heavenly state of being, I know our believing loved ones are alive with Jesus, too.

Mark 12:18-27 NLT Discussion about Resurrection
18 Then Jesus was approached by some Sadducees—religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead. They posed this question: 19 “Teacher, Moses gave us a law that if a man dies, leaving a wife without children, his brother should marry the widow and have a child who will carry on the brother’s name. 20 Well, suppose there were seven brothers. The oldest one married and then died without children. 21 So the second brother married the widow, but he also died without children. Then the third brother married her. 22 This continued with all seven of them, and still there were no children. Last of all, the woman also died. 23 So tell us, whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all seven were married to her.”

24 Jesus replied, “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures, and you don’t know the power of God. 25 For when the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. In this respect they will be like the angels in heaven.

26 “But now, as to whether the dead will be raised—haven’t you ever read about this in the writings of Moses, in the story of the burning bush? Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, God said to Moses, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ 27 So he is the God of the living, not the dead. You have made a serious error.”

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the love that moves you to teach us the truth. You correct our wrong doctrine and you build us up in wisdom so we can apply the truth to our lives. May we trust you when it comes to things like heaven that are too much for us to understand with our natural minds. In Jesus’ name. Amen.