~ Dionna Sanchez (http://emphasisonmoms.blogspot.com)

Psalm 89 is much too long for this short devotion.  However, if you read this psalm in it’s entirety you may start to see a pattern, as I did. 

 

Psalm 89:1-18 ascribe praise and worship to God.  The psalmist writes about how no one can compare to God and how God is creator of heaven and earth.  If you ever need some encouragement or a little extra faith, this section of scripture can help put your mind in proper perspective by focusing on God.  That’s exactly how we should start out our prayers by focusing on all we know about our loving, merciful, and mighty God. 

 

Psalm 89:19-37 describe God speaking (or perhaps answering) the psalmist.  This section is all about what God has done and will do for His chosen one David and his descendants.  Looking at the “I have or I will…” statements He declares gives us great insight to the character of God:

• I have given help to one who is mighty
• I have exalted one chosen from the people
• I have found My servant David
• I have anointed him
• I will beat down his foes before his face
• I will set his hand over the seas
• I will make him My firstborn
• I will keep for him [My mercy] forever
• I will make his seed endure forever
• I will punish their transgression with the rod
• I will not utterly take [My lovingkindness] from him
• I have sworn by My holiness
• I will not lie to David

 

God is the one who gives helps, lifts up a person, anoints, deals with your enemies, gives you responsibilities, adopts you into His family, corrects us when we when it and doesn’t lie.  Can you see yourself striving for some of those things?  Well, stop striving because it’s God who makes it happen. 

 

Psalm 89:38-51 outlines the cares, concerns and worries the psalmist had.  The psalmist struggled with how things appeared.  In his life he felt “cast off”, “renounced”, and “profaned”.   However, it’s okay to let these feelings flow freeing before God.  He is open to hearing our woes.  As the psalmist had no problem laying it out for God, we shouldn’t either.   

 

Psalm 89:52 closes with an accolade to God: Blessed be the Lord forevermore!  No matter what the situation looked like, the psalmist was going to trust God.  Ending the psalm this way is a good reminder to put our worries in proper relationship to God. 

 

Let’s review what this psalm’s pattern has highlighted:

1)      Begin our time with the Lord in praise and worship.  Focusing on who God is will help open our hearts and ears to hear Him.

2)      Listen for God speaks.  God is the one setting things in motion according to His plan and purposes.  He is in control.

3)      Lay out your concerns, fears and worries.  God can handle them.  But don’t stop there.

4)      Praise God for all He is doing, no matter what the situation looks like at the time.

 

Lord, thank you for your Word that shows us who you are and gives us a pattern to follow.  Thank you for being in control of all things and knowing the plan and purpose you have for us.  Enable us to come to you, praise you, release our worries to you and be strengthened by you.  In Jesus’ name Amen.

 

© Elizabeth Marks, author of ThinkOnIt Devotions and has a heart for encouraging others with God’s Word.  For more articles, devotions and book reviews, visit http://www.ThinkOnItDevotions.com today.

 

Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. John 15:5 NKJV

When I looked up the word “abide” in the dictionary I found several interesting things.  In the verb tense one of “abide” definitions means to accept without objection.  Isn’t that what Jesus wants of us?  He wants us to accept Him without objection.  Isn’t that what has to happen for us to be saved?  We must accept Jesus for who He is and believed He died for us. 

The list of definitions also said it meant to remain stable or fixed in a state. This coincides with instructions from Paul as he exhorts us to keep our thoughts fixed on good things in Philippians 4:8-9.  We are instructed to renew our minds by letting God’s change the way we think in Romans 12:2.

One last definition was how “abide” also means to continue in place: sojourn.  This one really struck me because God has told us repeatedly throughout the whole Bible we are strangers and sojourners here on earth.

 

Leviticus 25:23 says “for you are strangers and sojourners with Me.” 

Psalm 39:12 “Hear my prayer, O LORD, and give ear to my cry; Do not be silent at my tears; For I am a stranger with You, a sojourner, as all my fathers were.”

One Peter 2:11-12 says “Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

 

Paul tells us to think on heavenly things instead of the temporary things (2 Corinthians 4:18).   The reason to think about heavenly things is to remind us this life is not all there is.  Heaven awaits us and earth is our temporary home.  We are to keep this perspective in all we do.  We cling tightly to Jesus Christ who is our sustainer, our provider and our very life.

 

Lord Jesus, thank you for being life to us.  Help us remember we are sojourners here on earth.  Teach us to enjoy what we have, use the opportunities we’re given to share God’s love with others and use our gifts, talents, and abilities to honor you.  In your name we pray. Amen.

 

© Elizabeth Marks, author of ThinkOnIt Devotions and has a heart for encouraging others with God’s Word.  For more devotions, bible studies and a recommended book store, visit http://www.ThinkOnItDevotions.com today.

 

If you couldn’t find him, you looked in the garden. If he wasn’t there digging in the dirt, then my father was in his greenhouse sticking lifeless limbs and plants into his special soil mixture. In their own time, each plant came back to life in my father’s greenhouse. 

Paul said, “Let your roots grow down into Him and draw up nourishment from Him,” (Colossians 2:7a TLB). When we allow the sucker branches of circumstances to sap our strength, the weeds of worries to weaken our faith roots, and the vermin of busy schedules to eat away at our relationship with the Lord, how much nourishment do our spiritual roots draw up? 

One who does not keep his roots firmly planted in the special soil of God’s Presence and His Word will remain a Lifeless branch, separated from the Vine. Only when each soul-branch is “nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine” (1 Tim. 4:6 NKJV) will it come back to Life in the Father’s house. Then, “Those who are planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.” (Ps. 92:13 NKJV). 

Thought for today: Jesus said, “I am the Vine; you are the branches…However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing” (John 15:5 AMP). 

Prayer: Father, as our roots of faith grow deep within Your Son, “like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots,” (Jer. 17:8a NKJV), we draw up the spiritual nourishment necessary to bring eternal life into all we say and do. Help us to stay firmly planted in Your truths, that our roots may be holy. Amen.  

~ Lynn Mosher ~

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit - Romans 8:1 (KJV)

Did you know that the root of condemnation is what keeps us in bondage?

It causes us to fear that we aren’t good enough and that we don’t measure up. It causes us to be sick because we worry and are afraid. It causes our relationships to be rocky because when we are weighed down in condemnation, we don’t like ourselves. Nevertheless others.

The good news is God judged Jesus for all our sins–past, present and future. Once we accept Christ, God sees us as forgiven, blameless and without condemnation. That’s how God sees us and that’s how we need to see ourselves as well.

<>Your Sister In Christ,<>

<>Annagail Lynes

<>

 

Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” Mark 9:23 NKJV

 

I believe most peoples have heard “all things are possible to him who believes” quoted in various ways.  But have you ever stopped to check out the context in which it was said?

 

Mark 9:14:-29 NKJV is the account where the disciples couldn’t heal a certain boy and Jesus rebukes them as a faithless generation.  The boy’s father desperate to help his son, comes to Jesus asking, “But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”

 

How does Jesus respond?  Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”  I love this about Jesus.  He got right to the point, the reason the boy wasn’t healed was because of unbelief.  Yet, Jesus is gentle to the man because He knows how hard it must have been to watch the son being tormented.  The rest of the passage is about Jesus healing the boy and the disciples asking why they couldn’t heal the boy. 

 

Getting back to the opening verse, Jesus teaches us “all things are possible” if we believe.  Does it say some things are possible?  No.  Does it say only one thing is possible?  No.  He said “all things are possible to him who believes”.  All in its adjective form is an inclusive word, it literally means any and everything you can think of and even the stuff you haven’t thought of yet.   

 

If Jesus said all things are possible, then it means ALL things are possible to him who believes, doesn’t it?  Yes it does.  It means you can be freed from the power of sin, you can overcome an addiction, your heart can be made new, your marriage can be restored, your faith can increase and many more things are possible to him who believes.

 

What are you choosing not to believe today? 

 

If you find yourself holding on to unbelief, do what the father did in our story today.  Mark 9:24 NKJV says the father cried out, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”  You can be assured that’s a prayer Jesus will answer. 

 

In Matthew’s (17:19-21) account of the same story, Jesus said to them, “…I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”  As God’s word teaches, I encourage you to believe nothing will be impossible for you. 

 

Lord Jesus, thank you for your clear teaching all things are possible to those who believe.  As the father cried out, help our unbelief. In Your name, Jesus, we pray Amen.  

 

© Elizabeth Marks, author of ThinkOnIt Devotions and has a heart for encouraging others with God’s Word.  For more articles, devotions and book reviews, visit http://www.ThinkOnItDevotions.com today.

Isaiah 41:10a, “Fear thou not; for I [am] with thee: be not dismayed; for I [am] thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee…”  

I listened to a sermon today about fear and anxiety.  The pastor, Ed Wright, noted that in the Bible, when God’s angels approached a human, they would first say, “Fear not!”  Humans are fearful creatures.   1 John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”  Obviously, no Christian is perfect in (their) love.  It is safe to assume we all deal with fear on occasion.  Some of us have chronic anxiety.  We worry about a myriad of life’s troubles, like our health, finances, children, or the salvation of a loved one. 

Remember, God’s love is perfect.  God is Love.  The only place we can rest our fear and anxiety is in Him, by trusting in Him.  To have faith that He loves us with His perfect love.  To  have faith that He cares so much for us, that even the hairs on our head are numbered.  To accept comfort from Him, as a child running to daddy to be told, “it’s okay, Honey.  I’m here.  Daddy will keep you.”  We can cast our fears before Him and trust in His Sovereignty, not depending on our own strength (or lack thereof) to pull through, but to be comforted in His strength, because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world. He is “with you always.”  Remember this whenever fear or worry grips your heart.

 

Love,

Rachel Lower 

When do you truly feel as if you’ve “come into your own.” In what atmosphere, setting, or moment in time have you felt like you were the person you truly wanted to be? What makes you feel good about being YOU?

So many women don’t feel good about themselves. You can see it in their faces. Maybe they believe lies that were told to them when they were young. Maybe no one has encouraged them or told them they were valuable in a really long time. Or maybe they are just trying to be something…someone that they simply were not created or destined to be!

I’m still in the process of “coming into my own.” But the more I am able to truly know who I am, what I feel, and what embodies or makes me “me” - the freer I feel in my own skin. The more relaxed I am able to be and the more I seek to learn about myself, because I have found that I am a very intricate person!

For me, I have found that I will never be okay with who I am when I am seeking things outside of God’s love, plans, and messages that are aimed just for my personal heart and soul. The more I desire to be closer to Him, the more I embrace the truth that He loves me “just as I am” - then those are the moments where I can enjoy life the most and live it with the most abandon, because then, I can forget myself in the process. And I believe that is how God truly wants us to live.

~ Dionna Sanchez

http://www.EmphasisOnMoms.com

My spiritual director shared this story with me:

A little girl woke up with a bad dream. Her mother attempted to comfort her by reminding her that there was nothing to be afraid of because God was with her. The young girl replied, “Oh, I know God is with me, but I need someone with some skin!”

This is true for all of us, isn’t it? We know God is there, but we also need the signs of God’s love that come from other human beings. We, too, need someone with “skin” to offer encouragement, to give us a hug, to physically help us when we are struggling, to hold the door open, to help us carry a burden (both literally and figuratively.) By the same token, we need to be a sign of God’s love for those we encounter on a daily basis. We need to be the one offering our help and support and our concern.

A Church I pass on a regular basis has the words “I have no body now but yours” written on the outside. How true that is! We need to remember that we are God’s “skin” in the world.

-Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur
http://spiritualwomanthoughts.blogspot.com
http://momentofbeauty.blogspot.com

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
John 14:27

The other afternoon, Chase came running out of his bedroom proclaiming, “Carson’s the best!” Evidently, Carson did extremely well at one of the games they were playing on their computer and Chase was quite impressed.

Chase is Carson’s biggest fan. You can always find him standing beside Carson, cheering him on in whatever endeavor he happens to be pursuing. It’s always been that way. That little guy was just a tiny little fellow and his eyes would never leave his big brother. And they still don’t.

Sidebar - Carson and Chase are not perfect little angels. They do fight, and get into trouble, on occasion. I know from some of these stories, you might think that they wear halos. They don’t. But they have good hearts. That is what Jesus sees and that is what I see.

We all need an advocate; our own personal cheerleader. I will never forget how nervous and scared I was, the first time I was going to share my testimony. Oh my goodness. I was a physical wreck! It took everything I had to get to that meeting that night. And I remember as I got in my truck and headed out and my stomach was doing flip flops, I told the Lord that He was going to have to help me with this one, cause there was just no way I could handle this on my own.

And then I got to the meeting and when I opened my mouth to start to talk, His words just flowed out of me. It was the wildest thing. It was like He was right there with me, encouraging me and giving me just the right thing to say. And He was!

And He’s not stopped. Each and every time I share the story of what He’s done in my life, I sense Him standing there beside me, cheering me on, His eyes never leaving me, saying, “You can do this Joyce!”

It’s been the coolest adventure, with Him encouraging me every step of the way!

Father, thank You for being my own personal cheerleader. You surely have known how much I needed one and You’ve never missed a game or even a practice!

I Love You Jesus.
  In Your Name I Pray,
  Amen

God Bless You!
Joyce

——————————————————————————–

My new book is now available on Amazon.com

Click Here For Purchase Information!