No one is perfect (Romans 3:23) and just because I routinely post spiritual and uplifting devotionals doesn’t make me perfect either! I am flawed and I make mistakes everyday, but I am thankful for God in Christ Jesus because He consistently remains faithful even when I am faithless (2 Tim 2:13).
His goodness is too good not to share. Therefore, point blank and unapologetically stated, Jesus is the only cure for sin (1 John 1:9) and Jesus is the only way back home to God (John 14:6). Here’s another kicker; this Rx cure I am referring to cost us absolutely nothing (Ephesians 2:8), but it cost God everything absolutely everything (John 3:16-17).
That being said, if you are one of the 99 Jesus referred to in the parable of the lost sheep please forward this message to your one and feel free to use my testimony because like God, I don’t want anyone to perish, but all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
Before God parted the Red Sea, He first appeared to Moses in the non-consuming burning bush. If you remember the story, God instructed Moses to go to Egypt to lead the Israelites out of slavery. In response, Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” (Exodus 3:13).
God then said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:14).
Beloved of God, when God identified Himself as I AM WHO I AM, He was assuring Moses (as He is assuring us today) that, no matter when or where, He is there. It is similar to the New Testament expression in Revelation 1:8, “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.’” This is true of Him for all time, but it would have been especially appropriate for a message in Moses’ day to a people in slavery and who could see no way out. I AM was promising to free them, and they could count on Him!
Here’s some more good news; when used as a stand-alone description, I AM is the ultimate statement of self-sufficiency, self-existence, and immediate presence. God’s existence is not contingent upon anyone else. His plans are not contingent upon any circumstances. He promises that He will be what He will be; that is, He will be the eternally constant God. He stands, ever-present and unchangeable, completely sufficient in Himself to do what He wills to do and to accomplish what He wills to accomplish.
Hallelujah….need God say anymore….sometimes in order to move forward on what God has told us to do, the only five words we need to hear is “I AM WHO I AM!”
Psalm 34:1-3, “I will praise the LORD at all times. I will constantly speak his praises. I will boast only in the LORD; let all who are helpless take heart. Come, let us tell of the LORD’s greatness; let us exalt his name together.” ( NLT)
Matthew 21:22 tells us, “Whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”🚨Spoiler Alert…God doesn’t always answers our prayers with a ‘yes’! Too often we fail to see the answer to our prayers because it doesn’t look the way we expected when it comes to us. I’ve heard it said that God answers prayers in one of three ways. God says “Yes,” and you receive what you ask for. God says “Not yet,” and you have to accept it and be patient. Or God says “No” because He has something better in mind.
I love country 🤠 music 🎵and one of my favorite artist is legendary Garth Brooks. The chorus in his song, entitled “Unanswered Prayer” says, “Remember when you’re talkin’ to the man upstairs. That just because he doesn’t answer, doesn’t mean he doesn’t care. ’Cause some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.” Brooks suggests that God cares deeply enough to do what is best for us, even if we don’t understand at the time.
At the end of the day God knows what’s best. Therefore even if we don’t get what we think we need we should not let that impede in our prayer life. In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, the Apostle Paul encourages us to “Pray without Ceasing.” Prayer is not a vending machine; it is a simply a conversation with God. Prayer is opening your heart to him and sharing what matters most. Prayer is seeking God’s will not our own. Undoubtedly, time spent with God changes us and it changes things. It helps us see the big picture (God’s picture). It reminds us we aren’t alone and it affirms that we are loved.
Charles Spurgeon once said of God, “[A Christian] trusts him where [he] cannot trace him.” When the dark night of the soul comes, when the tears flow over like a river after a rainstorm, and when our prayers seem to bounce off the ceiling, we can rest assured that our prayers are heard and answered not just by the God who reigns, but by the God who provides, nourishes, and promises to make all things new.
There is nothing that we can do to earn salvation because a) it s a gift and b) we are saved by the blood that was poured out on Calvary’s hill. (Ephesians 2:8-9) However, James 2:14-26 reminds us that faith without works is dead! In other words we have to put our feet on the same frequency with the words that we speak! Now don’t get it twisted; James is not saying that our works make us righteous before God but that real saving faith is demonstrated by good works. Works are not the cause of salvation; works are the evidence of salvation. Faith in Christ always results in good works. The person who claims to be a Christian but lives in willful disobedience to Christ has a false or dead faith and is not saved. Paul basically says the same thing in 1 Corinthians 6:9–10. James contrasts two different types of faith—true faith that saves and false faith that is dead.
Faith without works is dead because it reveals a heart that has not been transformed by God. When we have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit, our lives will demonstrate that new life. Our works will be characterized by obedience to God. Unseen faith will become seen by the production of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives (Galatians 5:22). Christians belong to Christ, the Good Shepherd. As His sheep we hear His voice and follow Him (John 10:26–30).
Lastly, faith without works is dead because it comes from a heart that has not been regenerated by God. Empty professions of faith have no power to change lives. Those who pay lip service to faith but who do not possess the Spirit will hear Christ Himself say to them, “I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers” (Matthew 7:23). I can assure you that these are not the words I want to hear when I stand before God. So I am going to do my best to let my light shine before men, so that they may see my good works, and glorify our Father which is in heaven (Matthew 5:16).
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28 #BeStrong #TGBTG #NAP
“Dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord’s return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to ripen. You, too, must be patient. Take courage, for the coming of the Lord is near. Don’t grumble about each other, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. For look—the Judge is standing at the door! For examples of patience in suffering, dear brothers and sisters, look at the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy. But most of all, my brothers and sisters, never take an oath, by heaven or earth or anything else. Just say a simple yes or no, so that you will not sin and be condemned.” James 5:7-12 NLT
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ Matthew 25:40
It cost you absolutely nothing to be kind and trust me when I tell you that you never know when you’re standing by someone who is trying their dead level best not to fall apart. Being kind, “expressing kindness, are actions that should not feel like a cost or a chore, but to many, it is a significant effort outside of its euphoric chemical reaction.
I’ve read that research studies compound the idea that kindness is a chemical reaction. Linking ‘random acts of kindness’ to releasing dopamine, a chemical messenger in the brain that can give us a feeling of euphoria. This feel-good brain chemical is credited with what’s known as helper’s high— positive emotions following selfless service to others. In addition to boosting oxytocin and dopamine, being kind can also increase serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood. Why then aren’t we all striving to be more kind? Actively seeking out ways to make kindness a core and manifesting art to our lives? The benefits clearly indicate happier, healthier communities, yet it remains a distant reality.
The late american author Augustine “Og” Mandino once said, ”Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness, and understanding you can muster, and do it with no thought of any reward. Your life will never be the same again.”
The science of kindness tells us that it is just about the only thing in the world that doubles when you share it, from the random act of helping an elderly person across the street, a warm hug, to an anonymous donation for a worthy cause. In which case—kindness is at best, unattached, unflattering and unrewarding of self, unbiased of personal gain and can grow into infinite potential when we become aware.
Kindness is an international currency that’s transcends langauage barriers and will always double in value. Therefore, I encourage everyone reading this message to spend it well, non prejudicially, and thoroughly because what you do for the least of them….you do it unto Christ!
4GIVEN 