Tag Archives: christian living

February 18, 2022 · 5:35 AM

Honor God

Have you every known someone who threw their weight around to get something done? The word for honor in the Bible has the same connotation. When it tells us to honor the Lord, it’s telling us to give Him significant influence in our lives. His Word and will should carry weight with us. Also, almost every time the Bible tells us to honor God or someone, it has a promise attached to it. When we properly honor Him, we will receive the blessings He has in store for us. When we let Him have His rightful place in our life, things fall into place. It’s always good to examine your life to make sure you are truly and properly honoring God by giving Him full authority in your life.

Here are some Bible verses on honoring God.

1. Honor the Lord with your wealth And with the first fruits of all your crops (income); Then your barns will be abundantly filled And your vats will overflow with new wine.

Proverbs 3:9-10 AMP

2. He who offers a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving honors Me; And to him who orders his way rightly [who follows the way that I show him], I shall show the salvation of God.

Psalms 50:23 AMP

3. He supplies the needs of those who honor him; he hears their cries and saves them.

Psalm 145:19 GNT

4. He will bless everyone who honors him, the great and the small alike.

Psalm 115:13 GNT

5. Honor me by trusting in me in your day of trouble. Cry aloud to me, and I will be there to rescue you.

Psalms 50:15 TPT

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February 16, 2022 · 5:51 AM

Being A Servant

A friend of mine sent me a passage from a book called “Celebration of Discipline, Special Anniversary Edition: The Path To Spiritual Growth” by Richard J. Foster. In it, the author discusses the difference between choosing to serve and choosing to be a servant. When I read that, my first thought was, “Isn’t that really the same thing?” However, as I read it, it’s clear they are two different things. A person who chooses to serve picks the person, the time and place. We are in charge during serving, but when we choose to be a servant, we give all that up. We give up the right to choose who, when, where and how. We don’t have a problem serving. We have a problem being servants.

In Isaiah 6, he says that in the year King Uzziah died, he saw the Lord. God was sitting on the throne and the train of His robes filled the Temple. When Isaiah saw that, he felt the holiness of God and immediately saw his sin. Am angel brought a piece of coal to cleanse his lips. Then God spoke up. Verse 8 says, “Then I heard the Lord asking, ‘Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?’ I said, ‘Here I am. Send me’” (NLT). God then sent Isaiah. He told him exactly what to say and who to tell it to. Isaiah chose to be a servant in this instance. He put himself in a place to be God’s servant.

When you look at the start of that chapter, it really helps us see how what the difference is between serving and being a servant. When we are a servant, God is on the throne of our life and we are at His mercy for what He wants to do. It’s the equivalent of getting out of the driver’s seat and letting Him drive. When we serve, we are still on the throne of our life and in the driver’s seat making the decisions. We may seek His guidance on where to serve, what to say and who to help, but we still have the option to decline. God is looking for people who will choose to be servants, submitting themselves to Him. Have you been serving God or have you truly given up your rights? If you’re looking to get to that next level in your walk with God, get off the throne and let God sit there. You will find true freedom, a closer relationship with God and fully fulfill your calling.

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February 15, 2022 · 5:50 AM

Focus On Today

One of the pieces of advice that I give to people who have gone through something traumatic regarding a relationship is to stop trying to look into the future. Our minds are so preoccupied with what’s coming and planning for things that are to come. The problem with that in these situations is that it takes away precious energy that is needed for today. When you’ve gone through a divorce or have suddenly lost a spouse, the future you had been planning for years is gone. That is a tough pill to swallow on top of your other loss. So I tell them to focus on today. Sometimes you have to get so granular that you can’t focus on today, and you need to focus on this minute. Either way, anything future related is stealing they energy needed to survive the present.

As Jesus was giving the Sermon on the Mount, He told all of us to quit worrying about the future. He didn’t say not to plan. He said not to worry. He reminded them to look at the birds and the fields. God provides food for the birds and flowers for the fields. God cares for you more than those. If He takes care of them, He’ll take care of you. His message was to quit worrying about all the things that might or might not happen in the future. You’re robbing today of its energy and blessings. Then in Matthew 6:34 Jesus said, “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes” (MSG).

What has been stealing today’s energy from you? What has been distracting you to the point that you’re not even thinking about today? If you’re so preoccupied with what’s coming that you miss what God is doing today, you’re in the wrong. God wants you in the present and to focus on what He’s doing for you today. Worrying about what He will or won’t do tomorrow is robbing you of today’s blessings. When you focus on today’s blessings, it will give you the faith to trust God tomorrow for what is to come. No matter what happens, whether your fears and worries come true or not, God is going to provide you with what’s necessary to go through it. It won’t be the end of the world and you won’t be abandoned by God whatever comes your way. Ask God to have His will for what’s coming, then use today’s energy for today focusing on what God is doing in the present.

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February 14, 2022 · 5:46 AM

Awakening Your Gifts

If you’ve ever smoked meat, getting a fire going and maintaining it is critical. Because it’s been a colder than normal winter for us, dried out wood has become difficult to find. The wood I purchased was still somewhat green, which made it difficult to keep burning. I found myself blowing on it, stoking it and doing everything possible to keep it going. It reminded me of one of my pastor’s recent sermons using 2 Timothy 1:6. Paul told Timothy to fan into flames the gifts that were given to him. As I’ve been fanning my gifts into flame, God has been reawakening gifts and promises that I thought were dead.

In Ezekiel 37, God takes Ezekiel to a valley of dry bones of people who had been dead a long time. In verse 3 God asked, “Can these bones become living people again?” (NLT) I’m sure Ezekiel was bewildered by the question knowing the answer, but also wondering why God was asking. Wisely he responded, “You alone know the answer to that.” God then told him to prophesy to those bones of what God was going to do. Ezekiel did it and the bones, sinews, muscles and flesh came back together. God wasn’t asking Ezekiel to bring them to life though. He was simply asking him to have enough faith to speak to them to come alive.

Romans 11:29 says, “For God’s gifts and his call can never be withdrawn.” That means that the gifts He’s given you are still yours. They may look dry and feel dead, but God has not taken them from you no matter what you’ve done. In an act of faith, you need to speak to them, stir them up and fan them into flame once again. God is wanting us to be prepared for the coming of His Son. He is looking for a Church that is ready. It’s time to revisit those promises and gifts. It’s time to start operating in them and using them. Don’t look at them with your human eyes. Look at them with the faith of Ezekiel and call them back to life. What looks dead and gone is ready to come alive.

Photo by Ihor Malytskyi on Unsplash

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February 7, 2022 · 5:44 AM

Labor Shortage

You can’t go to any restaurant or business right now hardly without seeing signs that advertise they are hiring. When you try to buy your favorite items, many times they’re out of them temporarily because they can’t seem to get them due to supply chain issues. It turns out that the companies in the supply chain are experiencing labor shortages as well. The people who are working at these places are working as hard as they can to try to keep up with demand. They’re coming up with ingenious work arounds, but nothing can take the place of the people who are needed in those roles.

In Luke 9, Jesus called His twelve disciples together. He then commissioned them and sent them out to proclaim God’s Kingdom. They went out preaching, teaching and healing people throughout Israel. So much was going on because of their ministry that even King Herod heard about it. They returned a few months later and shared with Jesus all they had done. It wasn’t much later when in Luke 10, Jesus sent the twelve out again, but this time He added 60 more. They went out in pairs. When He commissioned this group with the same task, He didn’t just send them all over. He sent them to the towns He was about to visit.

Before He sent them out, In verse 2 He said, “The harvest is huge. But there are not enough harvesters to bring it in. As you go, plead with the Owner of the Harvest to send out many more workers into his harvest fields” (TPT). That’s where you and I come in. We are laborers in His Kingdom. We have been given the Great Commission (Mark 16:15) to proclaim the Kingdom of God wherever we go before He comes. Too many Christians are sitting on the sidelines causing a labor shortage in Kingdom work. You are called, you are commissioned and you are needed to bring in the harvest. It’s time for all of us to get to work and to be about the Father’s business.

Photo by Paz Arando on Unsplash

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February 3, 2022 · 5:30 AM

Spiritual Refreshing

When I was in high school, we would have 2 hour practices after school. Coach always started and ended practices with running. He would say, “Since we aren’t the tallest team, we are going to be the best conditioned team.” There were some brothers on the team who lived in some apartments across from the school. While running on hot afternoons, we would say to each other, “Hey, once this is over, let’s go jump in the apartment pool.” The thought of jumping into that cool water was often enough to keep us going.

There was something about diving head first into that water after practice that was so refreshing. We would swim from one end to the other under water to make sure our whole body got cooled down. It was so refreshing, and we needed that because a couple of us worked jobs in the evenings. After all day of school and a two hour practice, we still had a four hour shift to complete before coming home and doing homework. Refreshment was needed.

There are times when we need spiritual refreshing as well. Sometimes things seem to hit us one after the other. It feels like we never get a break from it all. Other times, we face the consequences of our actions, and those can lead us to spiritual exhaustion. The Bible says we can have spiritual refreshing in those times too. If you’re mentally, physically, and spiritually exhausted, you may need to repent in order to experience a refreshing.

Acts 3:19 says, “So repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, regret past sins] and return [to God—seek His purpose for your life], so that your sins may be wiped away [blotted out, completely erased], so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord [restoring you like a cool wind on a hot day]” (AMP). When you repent, it’s like jumping into that pool after a two hour practice on a hot afternoon. God brings a refreshing into your life that also brings spiritual strength with it. Just like everything else in Scripture, the first step in activating God’s promises starts with you taking the first step.

What in your mind or life do you need to change today in order to return to God’s way of thinking?

If you haven’t been living for His purpose and you’re worn out, pray that God would help you to return to living for His purpose.

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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February 2, 2022 · 5:41 AM

Testimony Night

I miss testimony nights at church. When I was growing up, at least one Sunday night a month, we would have testimony night. People would line up waiting to tell, what God had done for them. There was always one lady who would get up and say the same thing each time. Sometimes kids would get up there and freeze when it was their turn, but there were always people who called out specific things God had done for them. On those nights, we left church with our faith boosted because we knew God had answered prayers for people we knew. Those services were a way to remember what God had done in the lives of people.

I think that’s why the Psalms resonate with so many of us. They’re prayer requests and testimonies of God’s faithfulness. A read through them is like going to testimony night. David, and the other authors, were so good at calling out all God had done for them. Sometimes they would write about the faithfulness of God from the times of old. Men and women would build altars to God as a way to honor Him and to remember what He had done for them so that future generations would know. Even the Passover meal that is still celebrated today is a way to look back and remember what God did.

Exodus 13:14 says, “And in the future, your children will ask you, ‘What does all this mean?’ Then you will tell them, ‘With the power of his mighty hand, the Lord brought us out of Egypt, the place of our slavery’” (NLT). Future generations need to know about God’s faithfulness to you. What are you doing to record it or remember it for yourself? Keep a journal, write them an email or record a video of it, but do something that tells of the goodness of God. Be specific about what He’s done for you, the prayers He’s answered and the dreams He’s fulfilled. We don’t build altars anymore, nor do we have testimony night. We need to do something to create reminders for ourselves and future generations that God answers prayers and is actively involved in our lives.

Photo by Abhishek Yadav on Unsplash

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February 1, 2022 · 5:54 AM

Give Something

It wasn’t that long ago that there were national headlines that read, “Philadelphia Subway Riders Witness Rape, But Did Nothing.” There is some dispute over those headlines, but there were a number of people there who were so busy on their phones that they didn’t even notice it happening right by them. Someone needed help, and no one ingervened. It reminds me of a TV show I’ve watched called “What Would You Do?” They have hidden cameras and have actors playing out different scenarios where someone needs help. Most people don’t get involved because it’s none of their business. The ones that do help, tell the reporter that they had to do something because no one else was.

In Luke 10:25-37, Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan. A person had been beaten up and robbed on a busy road. People may have witnessed it, but did nothing. The next part is just as shocking. A priest sees the man lying there naked and beaten up, looks at him and walks by on the other side. Then a person who worked in the Temple came by, saw him and walked away. The least likely person to help walked by, saw him, had compassion on him and helped him. Jesus asked the crowd who acted neighborly towards the injured man. When they told Him the Samaritan was, He told them to go act the same way towards people.

Proverbs 3:27 says, “Never walk away from someone who deserves help; your hand is God’s hand for that person” (MSG). In order to help others, we need to be aware of our surroundings and the people around us. We are God’s hands in a broken world. So many people that you know are in need of help one way or another. We can’t hide behind the excuse that we don’t know how to help them or we don’t have enough. If the boy that had the five loaves and two fish had looked at what he had compared to the crowd, he would have thought the same thing. However, when he was willing to help, Jesus took what He had and made it more than enough. Give what you can (listening ear, money, a room, etc.), and let God do the rest.

Photo by Anne Nygård on Unsplash

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January 31, 2022 · 5:49 AM

Imperfectly Perfect

Almost all of us have something we don’t like about ourselves. We can be very critical of ourselves and often see ourselves in a negative light. Whether it’s aN imperfection, a defect, a tick or impediment, it’s important to remember that God doesn’t see that the same way you do. We often see these things as limitations or as distractions, but God sees past those things we dislike about ourselves. He even has a way of wanting to use us for His purposes that may even expose that thing we struggle with. What we see as a hinderance, He sees as an opportunity for us to trust Him and rely on Him rather than ourselves.

In Exodus 4, God is calling Moses to be His spokesperson to Egypt on behalf of the enslaved Israelites. One slight problem though: Moses has a speech impediment. He stutters. He uses that to try to disqualify himself from being used by God. It doesn’t work. In verse 9, God says, “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go! I will be with you as you speak, and I will instruct you in what to say” (NLT). Notice how God doesn’t heal the impediment. He has the ability to, but He doesn’t. He wanted to use Moses despite the issue, and He wants to use you too.

Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” You are His masterpiece, imperfections and all. What you see as an imperfection, He sees as a priceless work of art that is able to be used for His purposes. We must learn to see ourselves the way He sees us. We can give excuse after excuse to Him about how He has the wrong person or how these imperfections limit our ability to be used by Him, but His purpose will prevail. What you see as a limitation, He sees as an opportunity to trust Him. You are not defective. You are a masterpiece created with a purpose. Like Moses, we need to submit to it despite our “flaws”.

Photo by Anita Jankovic on Unsplash

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January 27, 2022 · 5:30 AM

Finding Your Encourager

I’ve always heard that each of needs someone in our life who is mentoring us to help pull us up to that next level. I’ve also heard that each of us needs to be mentoring someone who needs help getting to where we are now. What I really don’t hear much about is having someone in your life who is at the same place in life as you. All three roles are important, but I think this role is the most important. This is the person you do life with. They’re the one who is in the trenches with you when life gets ugly. They’re the one who won’t let you give up because they know your potential and challenge you to fight another day. They’re also the one that sharpens you by disagreeing with you at times to help you see through other lenses than your own.

This kind of relationship isn’t easy to have, which is why many of us don’t look for one. This person is more than a friend. They’re a pusher. Friends usually avoid conflict of any kind with you and keep the peace. This person isn’t afraid to speak the truth in love that you need to hear. They’re not going to disappear when times get tough or be too busy when you fail. They hold a mirror up to you, not to embarrass you, but to challenge you to be all that God created you to be. They don’t just cheer you on either. They remind you of why you do what you do.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 says, “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble” (NLT). This isn’t just talking about a friend. This is talking about your encourager, the one I’m describing. If you haven’t identified your encourager, ask God to show you who it is. Look at the Kingdom connections around you and find that person. If you know who it is, thank God for putting them in your life. Make sure they know you’re thankful too. They’ve helped you succeed when you’ve felt like quitting and stood by you in the hard times. In return, be the encourager that they need as well and fill that role in their life because we all need that person in our lives.

Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash

Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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