Seeing everything in life as an opportunity to worship God!
Song of the Day “Joy of the Lord” by Rend Collective Scripture to reflect upon Neh 8:10, Ex 15:2, Ps 7:10, Isa 12:2, Ps 28:7, James 1:2-4, Devotional thought Joy can be a very fleeting and difficult thing to experience in this life, if we do not understand its Source. Unfortunately, many of us equate … Read more
There are times that I say something similar to that of a father desperate to see God’s intervention in his son’s life, “Lord, I believe, but help my unbelief!” (see Mark 9:24). I don’t feel like there is anything more I can do to make myself believe more! I trust, I seek, I plead, and still the solution seems to illusive to me. This is where faith needs to take place, believing in the unseen at work in what I can see!
I believe most of us can relate to the first couple lines of our song today, “God, I’m on my knees again, God I’m begging please again. I need You, Oh I need You!” Sin is a very present reality in our lives, and the battle against it can be very fierce at times, but the reality of forgiveness actually has the potential of allowing us the ability to overcome those nagging sins in our lives!
There are times in our lives when we will have to get out of the “boat” and trust the Lord. Starting a new job, showing love to our spouse when they don’t deserve it, following the steps to sobriety when it will result in us losing so-called friends, signing up to serve in a ministry that we feel inadequate to be in, etc. These are just some of the ways we need to keep our eyes on Jesus and trust in Him, even as we see the effects of the “wind” around us that seems to be fighting against our progress. We have to stay focused, stand firm in our faith, and call upon our God to increase our faith as we follow Him!
In the song for today, we sing lyrics that come right out of this prophecy (Lyrics like; “You’re the Prince of peace, You are mighty (Mighty God).”), and when we know that to be true in our heart, it will result in us praising and worshiping our Savior for that peace we feel now that we know Him! Our lives will be dedicated to holiness (which also promotes peace for us) as we follow the Lord out of the love we have for Him and for all that He has provided for us.
God has a wonderful track record of stepping in throughout history and delivering those who call upon Him by faith! You can read about it in the Bible, you can look up Godly testimonies and listen to transformation in other people’s lives, or you can keep a journal and describe your own deliverance experience. All of those are ways to “remember” the works of the Lord, and as we do that our joy and confidence will increase! This is so important and I hope that you can remember that work of deliverance/salvation in your own life.
There is an unlimited number of counterfeit fortresses that promise safety for us, but the Lord our God is our only true refuge in times of trouble. He will never fail us when we seek refuge in His name. He is Jealous for us, a consuming fire, and the Righteous Judge that reigns supreme over all of our foes! Seek refuge in his Name today! Keep your eyes fixed upon Him for the help you need today.
Communion is a spirit of fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ at all times! We do not have to wait till the first of the month (or whenever your church holds a special Communion service) to partake in Communion. We can, and should, be having a Communion service in our spirit at all times for what God did by sending us the Messiah to forgive us and provide for us everlasting life.
There are times throughout our day when we get tempted to think that we are alone, inadequate, defeated, etc., but through the Bible we can see that God is with us in all things and fighting for us at all times. He is greater than any problems that we could ever face! He is mighty and strong to save! There is no reason to fear when we have God with us – He will never fail us!
I know that we all face various seasons in our lives, some better and some worse, but I really believe that worshiping through the seasonal changes keeps us centered on the things that really matter and provides hope for us when we are hopeless! Hebrews 12:2 tells us to keep our eyes fixed upon Jesus, and the more we can do that by Blessing His Name regardless of our situations will be the level to which we will have stability in our lives.