Devotions

Thurs March 20, 2008

A Devine Hunger for Him

I hear the Spirit of the Lord saying, "Throughout eternity I have called you, I knew you before the foundations of the world. I thought of you and I designed you as perfect in My sight from the beginning and throughout eternity I will love you and call you Mine!

I Am the glory that makes heaven shine, and you are My glory, you are My beloved and I Am yours. Soon we will be together for an eternity to come.

I Am releasing a divine hunger in you for Me, to be My ambassador on earth as it would be in heaven. This divine hunger will draw you deeper into Me, to love My people and to deliver and to heal the broken hearted, and equipped to draw them to Me

I will keep you in perfect peace as your mind is stayed on My Perfect Son.

I Am YHWH, the everlasting Rock of Ages your strength and your peace."

Shalom, My Child

Candace

Friday  Oct 26, 2007

God's Divine Purpose

God's divine purpose for your life is for you to bear spiritual fruit. Your relationship to Jesus (Yeshua) is described inJohn 15:5 in this way, "He is the vine, and we are the branches."

Again in John 15:16 the Bible declares, "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it to you."

In order to bear this fruit, you must be planted and properly rooted spiritually:

"Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper"(Psalm 1:1-3).

Fri Sept 14, 2007

He Uses The Usable

John 2:24, "But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all [men]."

JOHN 2:18-25

This was the first time Jesus had ministered in Jerusalem. Multitudes believed on Him when they saw the miracles He performed (v. 23). This looked like a perfect opportunity for Jesus to take these people and use them to spread the news far and wide that He was the Christ. Instead Jesus did just the opposite. He didn't want people proclaiming His gospel in their own ability.

This reveals an attitude of Jesus which is lacking among many Christians today. Jesus is more concerned with the quality of ministry than the quantity of ministry. In contrast, today's Christians often feel that "the end justifies the means."

We take new converts and place them in leadership--which is directly opposed to the Bible's instructions (1 Tim. 3:6). Many times movie stars or other famous people who have come to the Lord are made spokesmen for the Christian faith. This works to the harm of these people and the Body of Christ as a whole.

Some of you can't understand why the Lord hasn't used you, but rest assured the Lord is using everyone who is usable. Instead of looking at the need and begging God to use you, take a hard look at yourself and ask the Lord to make you usable.

Andrew Womack

Tues Sept 4, 2007

Lift Up Your Eyes

“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:1-2)

The phrase starts when God instructed Abraham to “lift up now thine eyes” (Genesis 13:14) to see all the land that was being given to him.

When God appeared to Abraham in the plains of Mamre to inform him of the mighty nation that was yet to come through his offspring, Abraham also lifted up his eyes and looked.

Another instance was when God instructed Abraham to sacrifice his only son; he lifted up his eyes and looked to the place where the sacrifice was to take place. (Genesis 22:13)

Moving along, we soon find:

·        Abe’s son Isaac lifting up his eyes to see his wife-to-be, Rebekah (and Rebekah does the same). (Genesis 24:63-64)

·        Jacob lifted up his eyes and saw in a dream all the cattle God was to bless him with when he left his father-in-law's house to make a home of his own. (Genesis 31:10)

·        The children of Israel, after being freed from Pharaoh, lift up their eyes to see the Egyptians pursuing them and cried out to God for help. (Exodus 14:10)

Like the Hebrews, we also lift up our eyes to see blessings from God. However, there are also times in life when we seem to get caught up in our own set of problems. It’s not unusual for one problem to weigh us down and bring us into a state of despair. It’s amazing how that gives one a new perspective on the situation.

In worship, we lift up our hands, lift up our heads, lift up our voices and lift up our hearts to God. It’s nice to know that in times of trouble, we can also lift up our eyes to the Lord and in turn He will lift us up.

Mon August 27, 2007

Living on Borrowed Time!

We need to be cognizant of the times we are living in. Truly it is the last days. We have heard this said from days of old and many have grown immune to the  clarion call to be aware of the times. Twice we see in scripture a story concerning the usefulness of the fig tree.

First we see Him Matthew 21:18-19

“Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leav, and said to it, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Immediately the fig tree withered away es.”

In verse 19  Jesus cursed the tree. Why would He do this? The scripture gives no explanation of this. However, it is a fact that a fig tree should have figs by the time the leaves are evident. The fig tree actually produces green figs before the leaves appear and if no figs are produced by that time, then that tree will not have any figs that year. Therefore, this fig tree was professing something that it didn't have even though it was still too early for figs.

 And again in Luke 13:6-9

 6 He also spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7 Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?’ 8 But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. 9 And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that^[a] you can cut it down.”

The fig tree represents the nation of Israel. The Lord planted the nation to bring forth the fruits of righteousness unto Him (Mt. 7:16-20), but they had been barren. The whole nation was worthy of judgment ("cut it down"--Lk. 13:7) just as we would cut down an unproductive tree and replace it with a good one. However, Jesus, who is represented by the dresser of the vineyard, interceded for the nation and gained an extension of God's mercy to see if the nation would bring forth the fruits of repentance (Mt. 3:8). They did not and therefore were "cut down" in A.D. 70 when the Roman army under Titus destroyed Jerusalem.


WHAT IS THE LESSON?:

Let us take a lesson from the children of Israel yet once again.  Note that at the end of Luke 12, Jesus reminded his disciples to always be ready and live with a sense of urgency about his return. Jesus began the next chapter by calling on people to repent. Now Jesus is basically reminding us that we are on borrowed time. We need to repent now. We've been extended a season of grace to become fruitful, so we've got to be fruitful. No more playing “church”. It’s time to BE the CHURCH! No more hypocritical living. No more operating in dead works. No more religious talk without living spiritual. He said to walk in the light as He is in the light. It's time to put up or shut up! And I am talking about producing fruit unto righteousness, not unto unrighteousness.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Father, Please help us to bear fruit unto righteousness. Please let it be fruit that remains. Prick our hearts by your Holy Spirit to be cognizant of the time and to live lives that are laid down for you. Let passion burn in our hearts for the things of you. Let our souls be set on fire for those that do not know you. Today let us not harden our hearts to Your voice but hearken unto your call when you say “come up hither.” We want to be sold out for you and not concerned about the trappings of this world. Help us to not procrastinate but do all for you with a sense of urgency knowing our time is short and there a more souls to be saved.

This we ask in the precious name of our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ, Yeshua HaMashiach. Amen

Tues August 21, 2007

Help Us To Forgive

“If you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” Matthew 6:14, NIV

I just finished up a tele-series with James Murray on the talk radio show The Breathing Room. The series dealt with the Root of Bitterness and Unforgiveness. As Christians, we live in the environment of forgiveness and grace. As we forgive others, the basis of that forgiveness is the incredible debt that God has already forgiven us according  to Matthew 18. But at the same time, as God sees that His forgiveness is kept in circulation and passed on to others by us, He continually pours out more forgiveness on us. As hard as it is to forgive someone when we have been genuinely harmed, Jesus wants us to know that the blessings of doing so far outweigh the costs!

Father, thank you for cleansing and forgiving me by the blood of your Son Jesus. Thank you for challenging me to forgive others as you have forgiven me. Thank you for demanding that your people be a ministers of forgiveness and reconciliation. Forgive us, and especially forgive me, when we are reluctant, slow, or suspicious about forgiveness. I ask especially that you will forgive ___ for ____, and I ask you to bless this person with your love and grace. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Mon August 20, 2007

Age Ain't Nothing But  A Number

Luke 2:37, "And she [was] a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served [God] with fastings and prayers night and day."
LUKE 2:36-40

We have heard this saying for years, usually in conjuction with "I am interested in dating someone younger or older." We can also apply it to fulfilling our purpose and destiny. It is never too late to get started on what the Lord has for you to do.

Let's just say Anna was 13 years old when she got married. You know back in those days they got married pretty early. She would have been 106 years old. Yet she was still fasting and praying night and day! Satan tries to convince us that God won't use us because time has passed us by.He may cite things like age or lack of abilities, or failures that we've had. But just like Anna, there are many scriptural examples of the Lord using those who would be considered unusable by worldly standards.

Moses was eighty years old before he began to fulfill God's plan for his life and he worked right up until he was 120 years old. Abraham was in his nineties before he had the son that God had promised him.

Truly, God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty... (1 Cor. 1:27-28).

If you feel foolish, weak or old then you qualify. There is nothing stopping you from letting the Lord use you today.

Sun August 19, 2007

GOD LOOKS FOR AVAILABILITY

Luke 2:24, "And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons."

LUKE 2:21-24

The Old Testament passage being quoted is from Lev. 12:6-8. There the Lord commanded a lamb and a young pigeon or a turtledove as the prescribed sacrifice. If the woman was unable to offer a lamb, then two young pigeons or two turtledoves were acceptable. Mary would not have offered the lesser offering if it had been in her power to provide the lamb.

This reveals that Joseph and Mary were not well off financially, yet the Lord chose them to be the earthly parents of His only begotten Son.

The Lord doesn't choose the way man chooses. Man looks on the outward appearance but God looks on the heart (1 Sam. 16:7).

Mary and Joseph were chosen when they were without: without fame, without position, without money. God entrusted the most precious gift He had to a couple who would surely have been overlooked if men had been conducting the search.

God isn't looking for ability, but rather availability. D. L. Moody once heard a preacher say, "The world has never seen what God can do with one man who is totally yielded to Him." In response, D. L. said, "By the grace of God, I'll be that man." This uneducated man went on to shake three continents for God.

God will choose you too, if you'll make yourself available to Him (1 Cor. 1:26-28).

Sat August 18, 2007

CHOOSING JOY