I am a Christian, a retired teacher, a mother and a grandmother. I love to read and I love the Lord Jesus Christ! Unless otherwise specified ,all visual illustrations are from the YOU VERSION APP of the Bible.
I must confess that I have been more than a little fearful about the incoming President and his group of Cancel Culture flunkies who want to destroy or hide everything conservative. But God spoke to me in a Scripture this morning and reminded me (once again) that He is still in control.
If I know that God loves me (and I do), then there is nothing that He cannot handle, even the Cancel Culture. They can cancel the truth on the news, the conservative movement and even church services, if it comes to that. What they cannot cancel is God’s love for me and my total assurance that I am His and He is mine. He is my Savior and nothing can cancel that! A good word from me to you today!
Be blessed today with the assurance that you are His, which is your insurance for an eternal future with Him!
This is the first promise in my devotional this morning. I’m sure that I don’t like the suffering part, but Jesus suffered, so why should we think that we will escape all suffering? But look at the next sentence: AFTER you a suffered a LITTLE WHILE, He will RESTORE, SUPPORT and STRENGTHEN you….So, isn’t the suffering here on earth worth what is coming. God Himself will restore us, support us and strengthen us. We don’t have to worry about carrying all of that burden alone. Hallelujah!
In this age of bribery and all kinds of chicanery, God reassured me that He takes no bribe. He is totally unbiased and loves everyone the same. That is an awesome character trait of God, isn’t it? We look at the politicians who can’t seem to function without taking money from some lobbyist somewhere, on top of their exorbitant salaries. We look around us and see some people who are very rich, with big houses and fancy cars. Then, we drive by homeless beggars, some with children with them. God does not care what our possessions are. He it totally unbiased. He doesn’t see our color or our stature or our standing in society. That is something that I strived for when I was teaching. I wanted to make sure that I treated all of the students the same way, regardless of the wealth of their parents (or lack thereof). I know that I fell far short of my own expectations at times, but I would like to think that I showed all children respect because each one is a special creation from God.
This is why, in my opinion, that God is totally unbiased. He looks right through all of our fluff and sees our hearts. There are so many times that I get frustrated with the way things are in the world, and God calms me down and speaks softly to me that He is working things out, that I can trust Him because He sees the hearts of ALL men. Like David in Psalm 51, I desire God to create a clean heart in me. I hope that is your desire, too.
Those are just a few thoughts from my devotionals today. I pray God’s blessing on each of you this Sabbath day. May you rest in the knowledge that God will restore you, that God is unbiased and that He is looking at your heart and can create a new one in you if necessary. All glory to God, our Creator and Redeemer!
We were never meant to carry the heavy burdens that life seems to heap on us daily. Jesus wants us to daily give Him our burdens and then to just rest. I confess that in this season of having a democratic socialist elected as President of our nation, the burden has been heavy. I have a whole page of “what ifs,” a list of my low expectations for this new President. Nevertheless, as someone once told me, “Nothing is going to happen today that God and I cannot handle together.” So, each day, I lay my burdens (worries) at the feet of the Lord and then go about my day, secure in the knowledge that He is with me. Thus, I am learning to feel the peace of God all day long. When I go to the physical therapist and he tells me that I will have to wear my stability boot at least a couple of more weeks, I feel peace. When I get home and the gutter is falling off the house, I point it out to my husband who says that he knows but he has to drill new holes, My first thoughts are that, like the new steps that we need, it will just not get done. But when I pause, God’s peace comes to me and I just let the whole thing rest with Him. You see, men break promises all the time. But God doesn’t. And when He promises rest, then we can and will receive it if we truly give Him the burdens. I pray that each of you will feel God’s presence today and know His rest, the rest that comes from trusting Him to take care of the big things and the small things in your life since He cares about all of the little details. Bless you, my friends, with a good day, a good weekend and a close relationship with the One who makes all things possible, even His rest always.
I’m still discovering daily God’s purpose for my life. Yes, I am old, but I truly believe that I’m still on earth because God isn’t finished with me yet. That has always meant to me that He is still perfecting me, helping me daily to become more like His Son Jesus. But, with today’s Scripture verse, I also think it means that God is still looking to use me here, to fulfill His purpose for me.
The two greatest days in your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why.-Mark Twain
Think about that quotation, my friends. We each have a purpose in life, and God is merciful to us, giving us the days on earth to discover that purpose and to fulfill it. I pray God’s blessing on each of you as you set out to continually work for Him and to discover His purpose for your life. You were not an accident! You were wonderfully made for a specific purpose in God’s kingdom. Isn’t that praiseworthy news?
I don’t make resolutions, but this year I think that I need more encouragement than normal, so I have decided to keep a notebook of God’s promises and the attributes of Jesus as I read my Bible this year. This is the first one. ALL of God’s promises are “yes.” If He has promised it, He will bring it to pass. In these days that seem to be a forerunner of the end times of Revelations, it is good to remember that God wins in the end. That’s a promise! Plus, his promises are “amen” meaning a resounding “so be it.” If God says something, He will bring it to pass. I have been known to forget promises, only to be reminded by my children, “Mom, remember that you promised that we could go to the pool after dinner tonight?” I learned not to make promises that I could not keep. God didn’t have to learn that. He knows exactly what His plans are and works to fulfill them, making and keeping promises in our lives. I’m really looking forward to rediscovering more of God’s promises this year so that at the end of the year, I have a notebook filled with them. It will be a tangible piece of the Bible that I can hold on to when I need that small word from Him that gives me the peace that I need in my soul. I hope and pray that each of you will hold steadfast to the promises of God, whether you write them down or not. God is always good, always on time and always sovereign. Bless you, my friends!
I will just leave this here for you to think about. Sadly, I am a lot like the elder son and need to spend some time before the Lord repenting for my own self-righteousness. I hope that each of you will take a good look at your hearts. Are you like the prodigal son, the one whose sin was so evident? Or maybe you are like the elder son, suffering from what Mark Hall calls “sinvy”? Blessings to each of you for a day filled with love, kindness and introspection.
On a side note, if you happen to be on Twitter, please go on the site of our gracious First Lady and read her post today. Without getting political, I just want to say that Melania Trump has been a shining example of what a First Lady should be. In spite of all of the constant criticism of her husband, she has maintained a calm and loving demeanor. I pray for her and Barron (and the President) as they leave the White House and pursue a private life. I wish them all the best that God has to offer because of all of their sacrifices and hardships for the last four years.
Never, never give up! Jesus faced hostility on every hand, up to and including death on the cross. Yet He never stopped ministering to the needy and speaking truth to the people who desperately needed to hear it. We say that we are living in hard times. Well, so were the Israelites as they were under the mighty and ruthless hand of the Roman government. Who has it tougher? That’s not a question we can answer because those living during a particular time only have the viewpoint of their own timeline in which they are living. I’m sure that the Israelites thought that they had it tougher and I’m equally sure that the “man on the street” whom you ask would reply that today is tougher. Nevertheless, Jesus ministered. He walked the walk and talked the talk. He said that what He spoke and did was what His Father in Heaven had told Him to say and do. Can we do any less? We need to spend time in prayer, ask God what He wants us to do and say and then do it and say it. We cannot grow weary just because things are hard. Following Jesus’s lead, we should never give up. There are souls who need to hear the Gospel and for whom we are the hands and feet of Jesus. Let’s move, Army of God! We have our orders and they don’t say to sit and wait passively for His coming! Our orders say to work and to go! God bless you as you complete your mission.
In my devotional this morning, the speaker, Mark Hall from Casting Crowns, said something so simple and yet so profound. He said, “God doesn’t love me because I’m good. He loves me because He is good.” That was a “wow” moment for me. Now, don’t get me wrong. I don’t consider myself self-righteous and/or good. In fact, I have always been in the camp that believes that I can never be good enough to earn salvation. After all, it is a free gift from God. We just celebrated Christmas, the time when we rejoice in the free gift that God sent to the earth, His Only Son. Why did God send Jesus? Because of His love for us. Because God is good. Yes, I already knew that, and so did you. However, today, this word got into the deep parts of my soul, creeping into the places where there has been doubt and fear. He loves me. He is good. Nothing will happen today that I can’t handle because God is on my side. Almost fifty years ago, I stopped running from God and accepted His free gift of salvation. The road since then has been rocky and twisted. I’d like to think that I have never doubted God’s love for me, but if I am honest, that is not true. When I was feeling all alone in yet another new place, I can remember having pity parties for myself instead of turning to God and His love. In the middle of those parties, God would reach down, pluck me out and tell me what He wanted me to do so that I would feel better. That was His love, continually reaching out for me. In less than two weeks, many in the U.S. will be celebrating the inauguration of a new President. I am already mourning this new government because it means change. I don’t like change; I have never liked change because it is…well, different, unexpected and frightening. But God keeps telling me that He is in control. I have been “lost” in my fear and God spoke to me clearly this morning that He knows what is going on with me, why I cannot stand to watch a news broadcast or hear the sound of the voice of the incoming President. He knows my heart, the heart that He created. He has spoken to that heart that He loves me and I’m going to be okay. That won’t be because the new administration promises hope and prosperity. It will be because God offers that hope, in His Word as I study it daily. I pray that you realize today just how much God loves you, not because you are good and deserve His love. No, He loves you because He is good and will always want what is best for you. God is good, all the time. Blessings, my friends, for a day filled with love, joy and laughter, knowing that the King of the Universe loves Y-O-U!
The answer to the question that I have posed is in the Scripture–ALL the time! When things are going well, when things are going badly, when you’re well, when you’re ill, basically always. When you pray, it’s okay to tell God that you are having problems with faith. In fact, I prayed this morning for God to help my unbelief. It’s not that I doubt the existence of God, but that just sometimes like many of you, I get discouraged. The pain in my body was overwhelming this morning; there were not enough ice packs to take care of all of it. Nevertheless, I arose, thanked God for a new day, and here I am with this Scripture verse that God gave me in my devotional this morning. Perhaps this verse is only for me, but I’m sharing it here just in case someone else out there in the blogosphere needs it. It’s okay to tell God exactly how you’re feeling because He already knows and provides a shelter for us in His loving arms. God is good…all the time. I repeat that mantra to myself frequently, sometimes to remind myself and sometimes as a praise to Him. I hope that you remember that God wants what is best for you, all the time. He is always there to answer, even when you may be like me and suffering and grumpy. It’s amazing to me that God never gets grumpy with me! Blessings, my friends, for a day that is filled with God’s goodness and a day of trust and amazement at God’s goodness to you!
www.bible.com/1171/mat.11.28.mev
www.bible.com/1171/psa.138.8.mev
www.bible.com/1171/2co.1.20.mev
www.bible.com/reading-plans/23588/day/5
www.bible.com/1171/heb.12.3.mev
www.bible.com/1171/luk.15.32.mev
www.bible.com/1171/psa.62.8.mev
Vickie's Book Nook and Meditation Corner 