Daily Devotionals

Deuteronomy 8:2 – Don’t Forget Your Wilderness

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:00:52 +0000

Daily Devotional Bible Verse

And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. (Deuteronomy 8:2 ESV)

And you shall call to mind and never forget to speak of the roads of tests and paths of afflictions the Lord Thy God navigated you down these 40 years in an strange unhabituated land. With no natural maps or compasses for the purpose of manifesting what was in your heart through calculated trials of experience to see if your obedience to His commandments would take precedence over your flesh which is your own way of thinking, feeling, doing and not His (my very own).

We will all have a wilderness experience which is an experience of attacks, oppression, rejection, grief and so forth. Some of these experiences may be shocking, embarrassing, sudden and self-afflicting. Yet and still some of our journeys of mental and emotional uncertainty will be orchestrated by God Himself for the purpose of blessings us after the fact through the testing of our level of faithfulness to His word in the face of our predestined and situational trials and tribulations. But not just that! God wants us to call to mind these experiences for the purpose of teaching and correcting. The Lord understands revisiting our wilderness experiences from time to time will keep us mindful, grateful and “in check”. Even if mistakes, regrets and sin is what comes to mind recall it more so because like every Scripture is for our edification (Rom 15:4) every experience (good or bad) is for our edification as well. We must be careful not to forfeit our thoughts and feelings of our wilderness experiences for the thoughts and feelings of complacency; contentment and “fullness” once the Lord brings us out of the wilderness into our promised land of fulfilled dreams, goals, prophecies and desires.

Take the challenge and recall in prayer or by a testimony a wilderness experience God brought you through. Now I’m not talking about a hop and skip excursion testimony down lovers lane, but a recollection about the lonely and scary road of singleness, uncertain dreadful paths of bankruptcy/unemployment or the heart draining journeys of divorce, death or imprisonment. And once you recall these experiences, praise Him again and again for bringing you out!

Is there a wilderness experience you need to recall?

Guest devotion by Felecia Scott. Felecia is a writer, singer, crafter who loves to study the word and write poetry, devotions, songs. She is currently writing a book titled “What really happened in the Garden of Eaten”. You can learn how to become a guest writer here.

Matthew 5:16 – Good Works

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 08:00:10 +0000

Daily Devotional Bible Verse

In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 5:16 ESV)

With almost all things in life, there needs to exist a healthy balance. For instance, you can workout all you want, but if you don’t balance that effort with a healthy diet, it won’t do you much good. You can work all the hours in a day to buy anything you want, but if you don’t balance your work with time off, you can’t enjoy your toys. Churches can fall into this trap too. They might focus on one doctrine and forget to teach the many others that are profitable to a Christian’s walk; this is one of the reasons we have denominations (which aren’t bad).

One such doctrine is that of “good works”. There are many churches that do great community work. They feed the homeless, provide clothing to those in need, or even offer rehabilitation programs. But the sad part is that some still never share the gospel with those they are helping. Now at the same time, there are other churches that focus on evangelism. They will go door to door, stand on the street corners, or maybe even stand outside a sporting event yelling into a megaphone. But they won’t give the homeless guy a quarter standing right beside them.

Jesus told us we need to have a balance with our good works and evangelism. They go hand in hand. As we help those around us, do they know it is because of what Jesus did for us on the cross that we are showing them mercy and grace? When we are sharing the gospel, do they see a sacrificial giving because nothing is ours and all is given to us by God?

How do you approach others, with words, works, or a healthy dose of both?

Proverbs 17:27-28 – 3 Things To Learn From Awkward Interactions – Pt. 3

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 08:00:53 +0000

Daily Devotional Bible Verse

Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent. (Proverbs 17:27-28, ESV)

From Jordan:

This is part three in the series, 3 Things To Learn From Awkward Interactions. If you missed parts one or two, you can begin here.

3. We genuinely mean-well, but we’re all prone to say silly things.

Sometimes, we just say stupid stuff and that’s okay, because on occasion, we’re all going to say or do silly things. If we handle them rightly, though, they become exercises in humility, self-control, and wisdom. As Proverbs 17:28 tells us, even the “fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.”

This act of restraining, of holding something in rather than unleashing it on the world, flows from knowledge. It displays an understanding that we don’t always have something to add to the conversation, and that, too, is okay. Humility and wisdom each spring from the same root: the fear of God (Proverbs 1:1-7).

When we fear God rightly, we understand ourselves better. Fearing God doesn’t only mean cowering in the fetal position beneath a desk, but possessing a healthy reverence, awe, and respect for him. It means understanding he’s in a place of preeminence and sovereignty, whether we acknowledge this fact or not. In turn, we understand ourselves from a theocentric (God-centered) perspective, rather than an anthropocentric (man-centered) perspective. This is crucial, because we are made in God’s image (Genesis 1:26-27), which means we can only be properly understood in relation to the Creator as his special creation. This produces humility and is the starting place for wisdom.

When we reflect honestly about the motivations beneath our behavior, we grow as people; even in seemingly small ways. Join me in thinking before speaking. Our words and how we say them matter.

Why? Because people matter.

This series is adapted from a post originally appearing on Jordan’s blog, which you can follow here.