Daily Devotional - 10/9/15

Day 7
Pray for:
One thing that you need to be grateful for but find it difficult to be
One person that you need to apologize to, resolve a conflict with, or forgive
One dream that you need to surrender to God
One challenge that you need to face and deal with
One health issue that you need to deal with
One sin you need to overcome
One hope that you need to hang on to



Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear Your voice today and grant me the strength to obey.


Psalms 99


"Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel was among those who called on His name; they called on the Lord and He answered them...

Lord our God, You answered them; You were to Israel a forgiving God, though You punished their misdeeds."  ( vs. 6, 8  )


Moses and Aaron were among God's priests.  God has always had people who have followed Him throughout time.  They were His priests, even before He set up all the laws and the official priesthood.  God will always have people that will serve Him.  The question is, "Will we be among them?  Are we willing to be a part of His royal priesthood?" 

I Peter 2:9 - 11

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you many declare the praises of Him who called you out of the darkness into His wonderful light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.  Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us."
                                                       

We are chosen.  Will we live like it?  We are a royal priesthood.  Will we serve like we are?  We belong to God.  Will we act like it? 

I belong.  I have mercy.  What amazing thoughts!  Now I must show my gratitude by living differently; God's mercy and love demands it.  And I can do  this.  We can do this - with God.  He will answer us when we call.  He will forgive.  He will train us in the way we should go.  Nothing is impossible for God and if He can take some rag tag fishermen and change the world, then He can use me.  I must remember the verse that encourages me to believe this.  "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.". (Philippians 4:13)  Let us live good lives so that we can bring glory to God and impact the world. 




Prayer for the Day



Dear Lord,


We are grateful to be Your priests.  Help us to be what You have called us to be.  You can do this.  We are grateful to have been chosen and we want to share Your goodness with others.  Help us to know what to do and how to live.  We praise You.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen



QFT


1.  Am I willing to be a royal priest for God?  Why or why not?  What does this mean to me?

2. Am I serving God as I should?  What do I think I could do to serve Him more effectively?  What am I doing well?  What could be improved? 

3. Am I living a good life?  Can others find anything in me that would bring dishonor to God?  What should I change?  What should I start doing that I am not?

4. Do I think God wants to use me?  Do I think God can use me?  What do I think will stop Him from being able to use me?  What should I change?  Why?

5. How do I feel about being a part of God's nation and being one of His people?  Is it exciting to me or a burden?  Why do I feel the way I do? 

Daily Devotional - 10/7/15

Prayer Focus - Needs



Day 5
Pray for:
One thing that you need to be grateful for but find it difficult to be
One person that you need to apologize to, resolve a conflict with, or forgive
One dream that you need to surrender to God
One challenge that you need to face and deal with
One health issue that you need to deal with



Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear Your voice today and grant me the strength to obey.



Psalms 97


"All who worship images are put to shame, those who boast in idols ...

Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for He guards the lives of His faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.  Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart. 

Rejoice in the Lord, you who are righteous, and praise His holy name."  ( vs. 7a, 10 - 12  )


We have a tendency to rely on things other than God.  This can be equated to worshipping them.  I know in my life I am tempted to think money will take care of my troubles.  I sometimes think that if I had enough money, then my life would be better.  I would not have to work and drive so much.  I would have more time with my children and could be a better mother.  Many thoughts run through my head, especially when I have to pay bills.  Another thing that I often look to for comfort is relationships.  I think that if my relationships were closer, I would be happier.  If my husband and I were better friends then that would fix all my issues.  Or maybe if my children were more obedient, everything would be solved.  There are many others too, such as success, and self-development.  Career has taken up a lot of my time and focus before too.  When I look to all of these things to comfort or take care of me, I am in effect making them gods.  I am looking to them to provide what only God can provide.  In the end, they can do nothing, and I am sad and disillusioned again.  They cannot save, and even rich people are miserable at times.  We just need to look at the lives of the rich and famous to see that they are not satisfied.  I end up, as this scripture says, put to shame.

It doesn't have to be this way though.  I can make God my God and worship Him only.  I can do this by memorizing the promises in His word that He will take care of me and by putting His words into practice day in and day out.  I need to hate evil.  It is okay to hate sometimes, if it is for the right things.  I can not tolerate evil.  I can not defend evil.  I must hate it, for then I will be regarded as faithful, and God will protect me.  Light and joy will be shed on me and I will receive the promises that God has woven into His word for those that walk in His ways.  I need to hate evil, not because I am better than anyone else, but because I love God.  And just because I hate evil, it does not mean I hate people.  It is possible to hate sin and love the sinner; possible, not easy.  Too many people fail at this and so we have a bad reputation for hating others when we stand up for what is right.  Let us live correctly and have lives full of love and joy so that everyone will be drawn to God, and then as they learn that God loves them and as they learn to love God, the sinfulness will drop off like so many grave clothes.  God can do this.  Let us focus on love!




Prayer for the Day



Dear Lord,


You are the only true God.  Help us to let go of all of the false gods that clamor for our attention.  They will only bring us to shame while You will bring us life and life to the fullest.  You are so good to us and we rejoice in Your blessings.  Help us to hate evil.  Help us to hate sin and love sinners.  Help us to become what You want us to become, and help us rejoice in You always.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen



QFT


1.  What things become my gods?  What do I turn to for happiness and fulfillment other than God?  Why?  How does this affect me?

2. How do I see these things leading to shame in my life?  How can I change my priorities and put God in the place He deserves to be? 

3. Do I hate evil?  Do I ever defend evil?  Are there certain things I know the Scriptures say is sin that I accept or that I think are okay?  Why?

4. How do I feel about hating what God hates?  Why do I think God hates these things and calls certain things evil?  How do these things affect us?

5. Do I think God will guard and protect me if I am faithful to Him and His commands?  Why or why not?  When have I seen God guard and protect me?   How did that feel?  Do I feel like I am in the light and do I have joy or do I feel that I am in darkness and do I have more sadness than joy?  Can I relate this in anyway to my faithfulness?  Why or why not?

Daily Devotional - 9/9/15 (11/9/09)

Prayer Focus - Gratitude



Day 5
Pray for:
One thing you are grateful for about the country that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the state/region that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the city that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the home that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about your family



Thank God for the effect that what you are grateful for has on:
your spiritual life
your physical life
your emotional life
your mental life



Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.



Psalms 69



"My eyes fail, looking for my God...May those who hope in You not be disgraced because of me, ...But I pray to You, O Lord, in the time of Your favor; in Your great love, O God, answer me with Your sure salvation...Answer me, O Lord, out of the goodness of Your love; in Your great mercy turn to me. Do not hide Your face from Your servant; answer me quickly, for I am in trouble. Come near and rescue me; redeem me because of my foes...

The Lord hears the needy and does not despise His captive people. Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and all that move in them, for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Then people will settle there and possess it; the children of His servants will inherit it, and those who love His name will dwell there." ( vs. 3b, 6a, 13, 16, 33-36)


Sometime we are searching, and sometimes we are finding.  There are many seasons in our lives.  I love the scripture in Ecclesiastes that highlights this.

"There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven:

 

a time to be born and a time to die,

a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,

a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,

a time for war and a time for peace."

 

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Psalm 69 contrasts two seasons - a season of struggle and a season of rebuilding.  Both are written by the same person.  I know I have been through both seasons and though I love the rebuilding, I do not regret the seasons of struggle.  I would not want to go through some of the valleys I have been through again, but I would never want to take them back.  They are why I am where I am at now and God has used them.  He has used them to humble me and to show me what life is truly about. 

I was very arrogant as a young person and I did not really understand struggle.  Many things came easy to me and so I became very prideful and sure of myself.  But we can not find God if there is no room for Him in our hearts; if we are too full of ourselves.  That was me.  I had been trained to be a student, not a person.  I was taught to achieve, not love.  I was taught that it was all about me.  There was no room for God in my life, even though I professed to be a Christian.  God had to allow me to face complete and utter moral failure so that I could truly see who I was.

All the things that I used to hide behind were stripped away in college.  It was there that I truly began to understand that I was not a "good person".  Whatever I had was not of my own doing.  I did not make myself intelligent.  That was a gift of God.  I did not make myself athletically talented.  That too was a gift of God.  What I had made of myself, however, was a mess.  I could finally see how I used people.  I could see how I thought so many mean and impure thoughts.  I could see how I thought I was better than others because of the gifts that God had given me.  I could finally see clearly. 

I did not want to bring shame and disgrace on those that hoped in God anymore.  I claimed to be a Christian, but in my actions I was denying Him.  I was as big of a hypocrite as the people I hated for being hypocritical.  In God's great mercy, He had allowed me to see this.  He did not show me this to destroy me, however.  He showed me this so that I could change.  He allowed me to start over.  He came to my rescue.  I had searched and searched for Him and He was found.  At the right time, when I was most open to see the truth, God was there.  God is here.  I was crushed so that I could rise to a better life.

God saved me from myself and He continues to save me from myself.  I can not believe how far I have come and I am so grateful that I can now understand life better and I know what it is to struggle.  I know what it is to have to climb that long ladder back up to normal; to be a successfully functioning human being.  God does restore and rebuild, even if everything right now lies in chaos around us and we struggle to get through each day. God will not despise us. The poor and needy will see and be glad. Our hearts will live. Our searching for God is not in vain. We will find Him and He will reward us if we are faithful.  I praise God every day for this.



Prayer for the Day


Dear Lord,


We grow weary searching for You. We are looking. We are struggling but You are strong. You are waiting for us to come to You. You are not far from each one of us. Help us to clear all the fog from our vision and throw off the sin that so easily entangles us. Help us to run our race with perseverance and not lose sight of our goal to make it to be with You. Keep our sights eternal. We love You.


In Jesus' Name,
Amen



QFT



1. What season am I in right now?  How do I know this?  What seasons have I gone through?  What have I learned from them?

2. Am I disgracing God and/or my brothers and sisters by the way I am living? What do I need to change to be living a life that pleases God?

3. Am I praying and pleading with God about my needs? How often am I praying? Can I make a schedule that would enable me to have more time to pray? When is the best time for me to pray? Where is most effective?

4. What do I need God to rebuild in my life? In what way am I like the cities of Judah that were torn down? How can God restore me? Do I believe God can and desires to do this?

5. How will I be able to help others better once I am rebuilt by God? What is my vision for what my life could be like and what is my vision for how God could use me?

Daily Devotional - 9/5/15 (11/5/09)

Prayer Focus - Gratitude

Day 1
Pray for:
One thing I am grateful for about the country that I live in


Thank God for the effect that what I am grateful for has on:
my spiritual life
my physical life
my emotional life
my mental life



Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.



Psalms 65


"O You who hear prayer, to You all men will come. When we were overwhelmed by sins, You forgave our transgressions, Blessed are those You choose and bring near to live in Your courts! We are filled with the good things of Your house, of Your holy temple. You answer us with awesome deeds of righteousness, O God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas," ( vs. 2-5)

"You care for the land and water it; You enrich it abundantly. ..You crown the year with Your bounty and Your carts overflow with abundance." (vs. 9a ; 11)



We worship "O You who hear prayer." What a good way to describe God. He hears our prayers.  He is waiting to hear from us.  It is hard sometimes to find a person who can listen to us.  Everyone is so busy these days and most people have so many things to deal with already.  Yet, God always has time.  Even silly little things are not unimportant to Him.  I am grateful I can turn to Him and pour out my heart at anytime.  I am never alone.

I am grateful that there is more to life than just the physical aspects; the seen.  I know there is more, but many people can not get beyond the seen.  This does not negate what is true, however.  There is a greater truth that does exist and some day we will all know it.  Some day, all men will come to God and bow down before Him, acknowledging that He is who the Bible says He is.  We are blessed if we have been given the opportunity to know and follow God. He chose us, not the other way around. That should make us eternally grateful; that we were chosen and that we will be filled with all the good things that God has in His house.  How grateful I am that He has chosen me now.  I am grateful that He picked me.  Why? I do not know but I thank Him daily.  I truly am blessed. 

I am also thankful that God forgives our sins. That is what makes Christianity so different. Many religions teach us how to live and have noble aspects to them but there is always the problem of sin.  We have all sinned.  We are all separated at some point because of this.  We can never work our way to forgiveness or become good enough to pay for what we have done in the past and what we continue to do because of our human frailty.  But in Christ, there is forgiveness of sin.  This forgiveness comes through the death of Jesus on the cross.

 God is the hope of all the earth. He is my hope. He can do anything and everything, even care for the land. I do not need to worry.  God is the one who keeps this whole planet functioning and He cares for all that is alive on earth. He knows every single bird. He knows the number of hears on our heads. He knows everything about us and loves us just the same.  Is there anyone else like our God?  No, not one.

God's ways are right.  God's ways are loving.  Crown us with Your bounty, Lord.  Yes, crown us as we strive to follow You. Surely Your cart does overflow.



Prayer for the Day


Dear Lord,

We are so grateful to have been chosen by You and brought close to You. We are so grateful that even though You are caring for everything n the world, You still have time for us. You have so much abundance and blessings. You are able to provide richly for us. Help us to remember that Your idea of riches and abundance are often different than ours. You are our hope.


In Jesus' Name,
Amen


QFT


1. Do I believe that God hears prayer? How is my prayer life? How can I improve it?


2. Am I asking God for forgiveness for my sins on a daily basis? Am I feeling overwhelmed or relieved? Can I make a daily list of what I need forgiving from for a week and then commit to praying about these needs?


3. Do I realize that I have been chosen by God? Am I living like a chosen one? How can my life reflect this in a greater way?


4. Do I realize that God is managing and running the whole world? List twenty of the things that God does on a day to day basis in keeping the earth functioning?

5.  Do I think about the power of God that is available in my life if He is able to do all the things previously written down? What should I be bringing to Him in prayer if I believe He is truly in charge of everything?

Daily Devotional for 8/21/15 (10/21/09)

Prayer Focus - Friends


Day 7
Pray for:
One friend that you feel close to
One friend that has become distant and you would like to be closer to
One friend from long ago
One new friend
One friend that has hurt you
One friend that has always been there for you
One friend that you have lost touch with and have no idea where they are


Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs



Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.



Psalms 51


"Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions." (vs. 1)

"Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge." (vs. 4)

"Surely You desire truth in the inner parts; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow." (vs. 6 - 7)

"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.  Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me.  Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me." (vs. 10 - 12)

"You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise." (vs. 16 - 17)

In Your good pleasure make Zion prosper; Build up the walls of Jerusalem. Then there will be righteous sacrifices, whole burnt offerings to delight You; (vs. 18 -19a)


True religion is something totally different than what most of us think.  Often we think of going to church and a bunch of dos and don'ts.  Definitely there are things that should and shouldn't be done but it all seems to boil down to love.  What is the greatest commandment?  Love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and love our neighbors as ourselves (Matt 22:37-39).  This is what Jesus said summed it all up - Love. 

God is love.  Do we remember this?


I think we forget.  We think - God is a taskmaster. God is far away.  God does not care.  God is not fair.  God is mean.  God hates.  God just wants me to obey.  But is this really true?  Does God want our sacrifices? Will our hard work save us?  Can we ever be good enough?

The answer to all these types of questions are no.  No, no, no.  God is love.  God wants truth.  God wants integrity. God wants us to come back and say, "Thank You. Do not cast me away from You."  God wants us broken and contrite. Ready to be something different.  Ready to turn away from all the secrets within us.  Bottom line, God wants us to be with Him and He knows what that will take.


I think when we look deep into ourselves, we know this as well.  There is an aching part in us that just wants to be known, loved, and changed.  I think we long for transformation. We long to be clean - to be free from what ever it is that is binding us and keeping us from life. 

But even though we know this, there is a barrier to us reaching the healing we seek.  I believe this barrier is sin.  Sometimes we think we are so clever.  We do things we know are wrong and think it will never be found out.  We think no one can really see what is going on within us.  Well, that is not really true is it?  God sees everything.  God already knows, and sooner or later everyone else usually finds out too.

When I was a child, I used to think it would be a great parenting tool to have cameras in every room so that a parent could see what was going on at all times.  Now of course, that is possible now but it wasn't back in the 70's.  I was grateful back then that nothing like that existed because I did a lot of things in secret that I didn't what anyone seeing.  It was quite a revelation to me when I finally realized that God saw everything and that He had seen every single thing I had ever done in secret.  I was quite ashamed and embarrassed.


So in order to be transformed and healed, and since all the things we have done have been seen anyway, we need to deal with them.  We need to seek repentance.  We have to get these secrets out into the open and get help.  We need to stop doing wrong and start doing right.  That is what I had to do.

I had to come to grips with the fact that God wanted me.  He wants us, all of us, and He wants us to be true believers.  He wants our hearts, not just our outward acquiescence.  But I didn't know how to get from where I was to where I needed to be?  This is where Psalm 51 is essential.  It is the cry for forgiveness and restoration that we all need to cry.

When I was finally trying to get my life right with God, I had a mentor who was working with me in my life.  He knew just about everything about me and he gave me a key assignment.  He challenged me to memorize this Psalm and repeat it as often as I could.  He felt that when I could truly pray this Psalm from my heart, then I would probably be ready to become a Christian.

I would finally be ready to become a Christian, because I would finally be ready to deal with the sin in my life.  My heart would be ready to change because it would have released the things that were at that time controlling it.  Sin hardens us.  Sin hardens and breaks us.  This world is broken.  I was broken.  Sin breaks our communion with God, others, and even ourselves.  It cuts us off from our heart and it sears our consciences.  It destroys whatever good is in us and it destroys the good in this world.  We can not be close to God and be in sin as well.  It is impossible. 

I was so hard at this point in my life from all the sin I had indulged in that I needed a transformation.  I needed a new heart, and new spirit.  I needed to come to God on His terms, not mine.

I took my friend's challenge and eventually I had a breakthrough.  God did have mercy on me.  He did restore to me the joy of my salvation and renew a steadfast spirit within me.  God was faithful and created a pure heart within me.  I had not been pure in a long time but now I was and I could be completely different.  Instead of being religious, I could be righteous - right with God.  I could have integrity.  I could have truth.  I could walk without fear of what I was hiding. 

God was and is faithful.  Thirty some years later, I am still walking this walk and striving to keep this prayer and all of God's word in my heart so that I will not sin against Him.

I praise God that He did restore and in His timing, He did make me prosper.  He has given me so much and I would never have known all the good He had in store if I had not been willing to get on my knees and pray.





Prayer for the Day


Dear Lord,

Have mercy on us we pray.  Forgive us our sins.  Cleanse us.  Only You can do this.  We thank You for forgiving us.  We thank You for Your mercy and grace. We thank you for even caring at all. We know that we are completely unworthy. Please grant us a willing spirit to sustain us. Grant us joy as well so that we may live and be the examples that You deserve. We know that in Your good pleasure, You can make us prosper. We look forward to that day.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen




QFT


1. What do I think God really wants from me?  Why?  Do I have a correct perspective of God? Why or why not?  How can I get a more accurate view?

2. Do I realize how much I sin against God?  Am I turning to Him for forgiveness?  Do I realize that when I sin against others, I am sinning against God?  Does this help me to stop sinning or could this help me?  How can I remind myself of this fact?

3. Do I feel burdened by past sins?  Have I been forgiven?  How do I know?  Do I need to discuss anything with another person to help deal with a habitual sin?

4. What does repentance mean to me?  What do I do when I have done something wrong?  How do I deal with it?  Is this the best thing to do or could I do something differently?

5. Am I turning to God for a pure heart, a steadfast spirit, a willing spirit, and a joyful heart? Which of these is the hardest for me to maintain?

Daily Devotional - 8/28/10 (9/28/09)

Prayer Focus - 8's



Pray for:
Eight things that you are grateful for
Eight people that are on your heart
Eight places that you care about
Eight characteristics to grow in
Eight characteristics/habits to get rid of


Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear Your everpresent voice and grant me the strength to follow through and obey.



Psalms 28




"He will tear them down and never build them up again." (vs. 5b)


This fragment of a verse in the middle of Psalms 28 catches my attention.  Who will God tear down? This sounds so ominous and final and so I think, "Will it be the murders? The violent? The criminals?"  When I look back to see exactly who the psalmist is talking about, I am convicted and challenged. Let's start looking in verse three.


"Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who do evil, who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts." (vs. 3)


Wow! He is talking about people who are holding grudges against someone or have hatred, anger, or prejudice against another. I know I have sinned against others in this way. Maybe there is someone right now I need to clear things up with. I need to always search my heart to be sure it is clear. How often have we been upset with someone and then they come up to talk to us and we act like nothing is wrong. We speak nicely to them and all the while we are angry deep down. Or perhaps we just avoid them altogether.  God is expressing just how He feels about that in this verse. What we are doing when we do this is evil and is putting us in danger of being torn down.


Why would this upset God so much? After all, isn't this exactly how the world works? This is so common. We are stabbed in the back continuously. People talk nice to us and as soon as we are gone gossip about us to their friends. We expect it. Sometimes we engage in it.  In the church, we are tempted to do no differently. So why would it upset God so much?  The answer lies in the first part of the psalm I quoted at the beginning of the devotional.



"Since they show no regard for the works of the Lord and what His hands have done," (vs. 5a)



The answer goes back to Psalms 24 which reminded us that the earth is the Lord's and everything in it is His as well (Psalms 24:1). Every person belongs to God and is special to Him; whether they have a relationship with Him or not. He created them and knit them together in their mother's womb (Psalms 139:13-16). They are important to God and as such deserve good treatment, especially from me as I profess to be a Christian. This is referring to my family, to strangers, and especially to those in the church. We are to treat our brothers and sisters in Christ with special regard (Gal 6:10).  But how is this possible?


"Hear my cry for mercy as I call to You for help, as I lift up my hands toward Your Most Holy Place." (vs. 2)
Thank goodness that God hears our cries for mercy (vs. 2). By myself, I cannot stand. I need the mercy of the Lord. I need His strength to do right, especially in this area; even after all this time. Conflicts will continue to happen in my life. As long as I am alive and interacting with people, I will have to deal with my heart, hurt feelings, and conflicts. I will never out grow it. Sometimes it will be my fault, sometimes it will be the other person's fault, and sometimes it will be just a misunderstanding. Even so, I need mercy and I need to give mercy.


When I do this and clear my heart so there is nothing false in me, I will be able to rejoice. My heart will leap for joy (vs. 7). It is so good to have a clear heart and a clear conscience. We can truly thank God then. He is our strength and will save and bless us when we are obedient. He will be our Shepherd and carry us forever.


Thank You Lord, because I cannot do it alone.


"Praise be to the Lord, for He has heard my cry for mercy.  The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped.  My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song.  The Lord is the strength of His people, a fortress of salvation for His anointed one.  Save You people and bless Your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever." (vs. 6-9)


Prayer for the Day

Dear Lord,

We want You to be our shepherd forever.  Purify our hearts and help us to not harbor any ill will towards anyone.  It is so easy to do wrong in this way.  We struggle to value people as You do.  It is easy to love those who love us but it is difficult to love everyone and keep our hearts pure.  Grant us strength.  We do not want to be torn down but rather built up.  Have mercy on us we pray.  We know You will do it.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen



QFT



1. What is my reaction to the seriousness of harboring ill feelings towards another person? Do I see it as as serious offense as God does?

2. Is there someone I need to speak to and work something out with? When will I do this?

3. Do I have any stereotypes or prejudices that are hindering my relationship with God and my effectiveness for Him? How can I change my attitude about these things?

4. How do I feel when I have a clear conscience? How can I strive to maintain this?

5. Am I treating everyone as a person that is special to God?  Who is the most difficult for me to treat right?  Why?  How can I change this?

Daily Devotional - 9/28

Prayer Focus - 8's

Pray for:

Eight things that you are grateful for
Eight people that are on your heart
Eight places that you care about
Eight characteristics to grow in
Eight characteristics/habits to get rid of

Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear Your everpresent voice and grant me the strength to follow through and obey.

Psalms 28

"He will tear them down and never build them up again." (vs. 5b)

Who will He tear down? This sounds so ominous. The murders? The violent? The criminals? When I look back to see exactly who the psalmist is talking about, I am convicted and challenged. Let's look starting in verse three.

"Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who do evil, who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts."

Wow! He is talking about people who are holding grudges against someone or have hatred, anger, or prejudice against another. I know I have sinned against others in this way. Maybe there is someone right now I need to clear things up with. I need to always search my heart to be sure it is clear.

How often have we been upset with someone and they come up to talk to us and we act like nothing is wrong. We speak nicely to them and all the while are angry deep down. God is expressing just how He feels about that here. That is doing evil and is putting us in danger of being torn down.

Why would this upset God so much? After all, isn't this exactly how the world works. This is so common. We are stabbed in the back continuously. People talk nice to us and as soon as we are gone gossip about us to their friends. We expect it. Sometimes we engage in it. In the church, we are tempted to do no differently. Why would it upset God so much?

"Since they show no regard for the works of the Lord and what His hands have done," (vs. 5a)

It goes back to the earlier psalm that reminded us that the earth is the Lord's and everything in it (Psalms 24:1). Every person belongs to God and is special to Him; whether they have a relationship with Him or not. He created them and knit them together in their mother's womb (Psalms 139:13-16). They are important to God and as such deserve good treatment from me. This is referring to my personal family, to strangers, and especially to those in the church. We are to treat our brothers and sisters in Christ with special regard (Gal 6:10).

Thank goodness that God hears our cries for mercy (vs. 2). By myself, I cannot stand. I need the mercy of the Lord. I need His strength to do right, especially in this area; even after all this time. Conflicts will continue to happen in my life. As long as I am alive and interacting with people, I will have to deal with my heart, hurt feelings, and conflicts. I will never out grow it. Sometimes it will be my fault, sometimes it will be the other person's fault, and sometimes it will be just a misunderstanding. Even so, I need mercy and I need to give mercy.

When I do this and clear my heart so there is nothing false in me, I will be able to rejoice. My heart will leap for joy (vs. 7). It is so good to have a clear heart and a clear conscience. We can truly thank God then. He is our strength and will save and bless us when we are obedient. He will be our Shepherd and carry us forever.

Thank You Lord, because I cannot do it alone.

QFT

1. What is my reaction to the seriousness of harboring ill feelings towards another person? Do I see it as as serious offense as God does?

2. Is there someone I need to speak to and work something out with? When will I do this?

3. Do I have any stereotypes or prejudices that are hindering my relationship with God and my effectiveness for Him? How can I repent of these things?

4. How do I feel when I have a clear conscience? How can I strive to maintain this?

Daily Devotional - 9/5

Focus Letter - E

Pray for:
Five things you are grateful for beginning with the focus letter
Five people whose first or last name begins with the focus letter
A place that begins with the focus letter
A characteristic beginning with the focus letter that you would like to see you and your family grow in

Dear Lord, open my ears to Your voice and grant me the strength to obey

Psalm 5

In the morning God should hear our voice. In the morning, we should come with our requests. It is so important to pray and meet with God in the morning. I must pray for my needs. I must make this a priority. God is waiting to meet me. Where am I? Am I still in bed when the Creator of the Universe waits? If He was my boss, would I be there and be on time? Probably. Would I blow him off and sleep in? Probably not.

I need God. I need this time to get ready for the day. He has never failed to provide me with the time and the energy for the day when I have made the time to be with Him for awhile. Even if I have gotten up very early and am really tired, I have still been able to accomplish what I need to and do well if I have set my heart on Him, even for a few moments.

Then, after I have gotten up and made my requests, had my prayers, listened to God's voice, I am not supposed to just forget what I prayed for. I am to wait in expectation! I am to be confident I will receive an answer. I need to be looking for it in everything I do and everything that happens that day.

Have you ever waited for an important letter to come, or maybe a check? Every day you check the mailbox eagerly, running out as soon as the mail truck comes by. I imagine I should be like this with God; excited, and waiting eagerly for the answer to come, focused on how He will provide. It will add a sense of mystery and fun to our days, looking for that answer, that message from God. Where will it be? How will it look? I hope I don't miss it.

Next, I need to focus on how God feels about evil and sin. He hates it. He hates arrogance. He hates wrongdoing. He hates lies. This is frightening because I know I do a lot of things wrong. I see these things in myself so very often. How can I stand before God when I fail so frequently? By myself, I cannot, but because of God's great mercy, I can. I can even come into His house and worship. His grace and mercy makes me feel so grateful. It allows me to have the reverence towards Him that I need because I know that I do not deserve to be close to Him, not now or in the past. I have never been good enough, nor will I ever be. It is a lost cause, but how amazing it is, I am not a lost cause.

I can even be glad in spite of my sin and myself. I am not supposed to go around moping and feeling sorry for myself. I am to be rejoicing. I can sing for joy because I have taken refuge in God and in His merciful forgiveness. I have taken refuge in Him for the protection from my enemies both external and internal. I can now let go of the past and strain on toward my goal of knowing Him. I am free to do right and to be righteous.

When we are dwelling on our sins and faults it is very hard to do right or be righteous. I know the hardest times for me to do right, especially as a wife and mother, are when I allow myself to worry (which is sin) or to be down and depressed (which is also sin). So instead of moping, I need to run to God, accept His forgiveness, love Him for His grace, worship Him for His mercy, and dwell in His house. When I do this, then His favor will surround me like a shield, and then He will bless me. His protection will be spread over me and I will be able to rejoice even more in what a great God we serve!