Tag Archives: email devotions

December 24, 2013 · 7:44 AM

Be It Unto Me

A friend of mine recently wrote a post entitled “Hail Mary, Full of Grace“. It got my mind rethinking what I had assumed about Mary. It was a very thought provoking piece and in today’s post, I want to share some of what it sparked in me. I encourage you to click the link and read that post as well.

If you’ve ever read the story of Jesus’ birth, you’ve read how the angel visited Mary and told her that she was highly favored and would conceive a child who would be the Messiah, the Son of God. Before the angel left, Mary responded in Luke 2:38. She said, “Be it unto me according to your word.” In essence, she was accepting this task to bring the Son of God into the world and to raise Him as her own. She accepted her calling just like you and I would when we get a calling from God.

Since reading my friend’s post, I’m wondering if she really understood what all that would entail and the hardship that would come along with it. Soon after being told she was pregnant, she went and visited her cousin Elizabeth for a few months. I wonder if she had told her friends that she was pregnant, out of wedlock, and was carrying the Messiah. I wonder if they laughed at her and ridiculed her. I wonder if that’s why she spent several months with Elizabeth. When she said, “Be it unto me”, I wonder if she knew that her calling would bring ridicule from others.

Where she sought support, she found laughter. Where she looked for help, she found closed doors. Being pregnant without being married was enough reason to kill someone. Telling others you were carrying the Messiah was blasphemy. Mary did not have an easy road. After Jesus was born, they stayed away from their home for a couple of years. They then were uprooted and had to move to another country with another culture and language. By the time they were comfortable there, they had to move back. They didn’t even get to go back to their hometown. “Be it unto me” meant that they would be uprooted and not have a “home” for several years.

Later in life, Mary watched this precious, God-given child get murdered right in front of her. She could only stand by and watch as she was powerless to stop this act. She spoke to Him as He was dying. I’m sure she began to rethink everything. How could the promised Messiah be hanging on a cross dying? How could her calling lead her to a hill called Golgotha? As they placed his lifeless body in the tomb, I’m sure she questioned that visit from the angel and wondered what was happening. “Be it unto me” meant she wouldn’t fully understand God’s plan.

When God calls us, we are gung-ho to say yes. We are all about being used by Him. But when people start doubting the ministry we were called to, it affects us. When our lives get uprooted because we said yes, it’s hard to understand. When things start happening that seem contradictory to what we thought God was going to do, we start questioning our calling. We won’t see the full picture of what God is doing in our lives, yet we still should follow. We will be told we can’t fulfill our calling because we lack the ability, yet we should still walk by faith. We will have bad things happen to us because we are in His will, yet our response should still be, “Be it unto me.”

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December 23, 2013 · 7:36 AM

He Simply Obeyed

Joseph, the father of Jesus, has always been one of the people in the Bible that have intrigued me. There’s not much written about him, but he played such an integral role in the story of our salvation. Outside of Jesus, we tend to focus on Mary when we think of the birth of Christ rather than Joseph. We’ll look at her role tomorrow. For today, I want to spend some time looking into the man who would shape the man Jesus would become.

Joseph is mentioned in all four Gospels, but not a word of what he ever said was recorded. I’ve always heard it said that “actions speak louder than words.” If that’s the case, then Joseph speaks volumes. Here’s a man who is engaged to the woman he loves and finds out from her that she’s pregnant. He knows it’s not his. Instead of blowing up and making a big scene, he thinks his response through and decides to handle things quietly so as not to disgrace her publicly. He had every right to have her stoned to death, but he chose not to.

While he was still reeling from the news, an angel visited him and explained that the baby was indeed conceived by God. In Matthew 1:21, Joseph received some amazing news. Not only would he be the earthly father of the Messiah, he would be the one to name Him. God reserved that honor just for Joseph. In verse 24, it says, “When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel commanded.” He didn’t question or argue with God. He simply obeyed at the risk of looking like he had gotten her pregnant before marriage. He took the shame that would have been Mary’s and provided a covering so that Jesus would be born.

The next time we read about Joseph is when the wise men left for home. The angel came back to him at night and said, “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother. Stay there until I tell you to return (Matthew 2:13 NLT).” The next verse says that during the night Joseph left for Egypt. He didn’t even wait until dawn or for Jesus to wake up. He obeyed immediately. Again, he never questioned the angel or God’s plan. He simply obeyed. He was a man of action when it came to obeying the voice of God. I think that’s just who he was as a person too. He was a hard worker, a man who feared God and a man who heard from God.

Joseph heard from the angel one more time. Again, it was at night and the angel said, “Get up! Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel.” Joseph woke everyone up, packed and headed out before sunrise. He simply obeyed what the angel spoke to him. Mary didn’t argue with him over waking her and the baby up to leave. She knew that he was a man of obedience to God. When he told her God spoke to him, she trusted him. She was obedient as well. Simple obedience is what God desires from each one of us. I believe that’s why Joseph was chosen to be the earthly father of Jesus. It’s a trait that Jesus would see modeled in Joseph and later practiced when He went to the cross. You’ll recall that Jesus said, “Not my will be done, but yours.”

Our lives are built around following our own will. They’re built on doing what’s right for ourselves and making ourselves look good in the eyes of others. Those things are the opposite of what being obedient to God is all about. Joseph was a man of simple obedience. He was a man of few words. A man of action. We could learn a lot from this silent hero in the Bible if we just took some time to listen to his actions. The next time God asks you to do something out of the ordinary or that could paint you in a negative light, will you argue with Him or answer in simple obedience? You won’t have to say a thing. Your actions will speak louder than words.

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December 19, 2013 · 7:53 AM

The Everlasting Father

This week, I’ll be breaking down Isaiah 9:6 piece by piece. It says, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (NLT)”. Today, we’ll look at Everlasting Father.

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I remember how my life and thinking changed the day my son was born and I became a father. A minute before my son was born, I had an idea of what being a father was. The minute after he was born, I knew. My whole way of thinking and reason for living changed in an instant. Suddenly, I had an awesome responsibility to protect and shape his life. Who he becomes is largely dependent on what I do as a father. He will mimic what I say, treat others how I treat them, base his idea of love on how I love his mom and act the way I do.

When I think of myself and my role as a father, I begin to see the relationship God wants to have with each one of us. As a father, He wants to protect us from the things that would harm us. He wants to point us in the right direction and to shape our lives. He wants nothing but the best for you and me. He wants us to talk like He talks, treat others the way He treats them, act like He acts and love like He loves. His desire is for us to mature and to develop into the people that He dreams of us becoming.

When I think of myself in the role of a child, I begin to see how my actions are not much different than those of my two year old. He tests every boundary. When I say, “No”, he looks at me and struggles with the decision to do it or not. He weighs the consequences of being disobedient versus doing what I say. He throws fits when he doesn’t like what I have to say. He also runs and jumps into my arms when he’s afraid. He gives me hugs and kisses to show his affection for me. He has no idea of the real dangers around him because I’m looking out for them.

As an Everlasting Father, we don’t have to worry that He’ll disappear on us or leave us. He will always be there to look out for our well being. He sees the dangers around us in our lives that we don’t see. He tells us no to keep us from injury or harm. Like a two year old, we stomp our feet and argue with Him because it’s not what we want to hear or do. We are often disobedient and suffer the consequences of those actions. That doesn’t change God’s love for us as children. In His love, He continues to correct us and to shape our lives so that we can be the people who He wants us to be.

I believe God positioned Himself as a father so that we could see how He sees us. He wanted us to see what it feels like to give out unconditional love, to experience the satisfaction that can only come from a child climbing into your arms and saying, “I love you.” He wanted us to see that He only wants good things for us. In doing so, He sometimes has to say, “No” in order to make sure we are on the right path and protected from danger. He gives us good things and has our best interest at heart always. He is your Everlasting Father who loves you.

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December 18, 2013 · 7:42 AM

Mighty God

This week, I’ll be breaking down Isaiah 9:6 piece by piece. It says, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (NLT)”. Today, we’ll look at Mighty God.

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Each of us will face difficult times in our lives. It’s part of life and necessary for growth. I was watching a TV show that had an artist in it. When it appeared he was nearly finished, he began to break it apart and destroy it. When asked what he was doing, he replied, “Destruction is part of creation process.” He went on to make something even more beautiful than what he had originally made. As an artist, he wasn’t content with just a beautiful work of art. He wanted a masterpiece.

God works the same way in our lives. Just when we think He’s almost done with us and our lives are right where He wants them, things start breaking apart. We thought things were going well and life was going great. From our perspective, we were happy with what He was creating. He, as an artist, sees more in you and wants to bring about that masterpiece. He’s not content with just a beautiful life that people can look at. He knows that there’s complexity and character that is created in the destruction process that can’t be formed any other way. He uses the broken pieces to create a mosaic piece of art.

We don’t understand the process and we question His methods when they happen. We get overwhelmed when we look at the things that were once dear to us laying broken on the floor. We lose sight that we are His art and He is working on us to develop the person He sees in us. It’s in those times, where my focus is on my own brokenness, that I have to remember He is the Mighty God. He is bigger than the things that, in my eyes, are going wrong and falling to pieces. He is more powerful than the forces that break apart our lives. He is in control and knows what He’s doing.

When pieces start to break apart from my life, I call to remembrance Job 36:5 that says, “God is mighty, but He does not despise anyone! He is mighty in both power and understanding.” When life falls apart, We often think that God is mad at us or despises us in some way because of something we’ve done. God does not despise you! He is working things for your good and betterment. The destruction in your life is part of the creation of the masterpiece He sees in you. He is mighty not just in power, but also in understanding. He knows what He’s doing in your life even when you can’t see it. He’s creating a complex piece of art in you that can only be done through the destruction process. When He’s done, you and others will stand back, look at your life and be amazed at what He was able to do in you because He is the Mighty God.

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December 17, 2013 · 7:47 AM

Wonderful Counselor

This week, I’ll be breaking down Isaiah 9:6 piece by piece. It says, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (NLT)”. Today, we’ll look at Wonderful Counselor.

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I’ve tried to think back to all the times when I needed a counselor in my life. I had to have one in school when it came time to help me pick out classes to make sure I graduated. I had to have one when I got married to make sure that the proper foundation was laid for a lifelong marriage. I’ve used one in business to help me make decisions that would ensure the company was profitable. I’ve used them when someone close died to help work through the grieving process. I’ve used counselors any time I’ve had a huge decision to make and wasn’t sure what the right decision was.

I believe in Proverbs 15:22. It says, “Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail; take good counsel and watch them succeed. (MSG)” In order to be successful, we need good counselors around us. We need people with different perspectives who can help us see the things that our own limited vision can’t see. The problem is that too many people see using counselors, for any reason, as a sign of weakness. They make life altering decisions without the help, guidance or input from others and this scripture tells us that that is a recipe for failure. God has no desire to see you fail. He wants you to succeed.

In order to help you succeed, He has set Himself up to be a counselor for us. He wants to be that person in our life that we go to for advice, to help us make the difficult decisions and to point us in the right direction. He wants each of us to have such a close relationship with Him that we can go to Him with anything. Who could be better at giving you advice on anything you’re facing than God Himself? He knows what your future holds and He wants you to succeed. Just like with the counselors I’ve used in the past, it only works if you listen.

God can speak to you directly if you let Him. He can speak through others to you. He can even speak to you through His Word, the Bible. There are many ways He can be your counselor, but it’s up to you to give Him the opportunity. It’s up to you to listen and then to follow that advice. Life is hard and full of difficult choices. God knows that and never intended for you to have to make them on your own. He has been and always will be available to you as the one you can turn to for guidance.

Whatever you’re facing today is no surprise to God. He knew you would be standing at this crossroad and knows what path you should take. Seek His guidance, ask for His advice and listen. When you follow His counsel, you are guaranteed success in the long run. You may have a few bumps in the road He takes you down, but they are intended for your good. You may not see immediate success, but it’s coming. Trust in what He tells you. Follow the path He points to and listen to His voice. It’s not a sign of weakness to seek the advice of the Wonderful Counselor, it’s wise.

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December 16, 2013 · 7:51 AM

A Son Is Given

This week, I’ll be breaking down Isaiah 9:6 piece by piece. It says, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (NLT)”. Today, we’ll look at the first part of that.

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I saw a Christmas play a few years ago where they told the story of Jesus’ birth as seen through the eyes of two angels. They were reading Heaven’s newspaper when they saw the headline that Jesus was going to earth. They were ecstatic thinking of what all it could mean. As they read on, they were suddenly confused. “Wait! It says here that He’s going down there as a baby,” said one of the angels. The other replied, “How will He fit into something so small?” The God who is bigger than the universe He created, came down and entered our world as a baby.

He didn’t just come as a baby, but He came as a boy. When you think of it culturally and in that time period, a boy brought honor to his family. It meant that their lineage would continue. Since Joseph was a descendant of King David, it meant the royal line would continue and provide hope to Israel that at some point one of David’s heirs would rule the nation again. Everyone knew the promises God had made to establish David’s throne forever. They had been waiting for centuries for the House of David to return to the throne. The government of that country would once again be on the shoulders of the king.

Not only was that part of it important, but the fact that He was a boy has other implications. When a boy grows up, he gets married and his spouse takes his name. God came to earth to win our hearts. He came to propose marriage to each of us. In that time period and culture, a dowry was needed to secure a bride. It was usually something very expensive that would cost the groom everything he had. He had to work for years just to afford the dowry of engagement. After that was paid, He would have to provide a paid off home so that they could live together without worry. She would give up her family name and take his. She would leave her father and mother and cleave to him.

What does that have to do with Jesus? Everything. He came to pay a price that was equal to your worth. He came to win you over with His love. His life was all about proving how much He loved you and me. He did miracles, signs and wonders in an effort to get our attention. He bled and died in order to pay the dowry for you to be engaged to Him. He gave up everything He had to come in the form of a child, lived His life trying to get our attention and paid that price just to ask if you would marry Him. When you accept His proposal, all of Heaven rejoices just as we would for one of our friends. You then take on His name, Christian, and leave the life you once lived.

John 14:2-3 says, “There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. (NLT)” He is following the culture and customs of that time in His proposal of marriage to you. Revelations says that we will be going to the wedding feast in Heaven one day. You and I are the bride of Christ if we accept His proposal. He’s coming back for us once He’s finished preparing it. I can’t wait to see it. If He made this world in 6 days, can imagine how incredible Heaven will be after 2,000 years? I can’t wait for the wedding, how about you?

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December 13, 2013 · 7:54 AM

Free From Shame

It’s Free Friday! What are you going to be free from today? The choice is yours to let it go. To celebrate Free Friday, I’m giving away a free copy of “The Shack: Reflections for Every Day of the Year” by William Paul Young. Keep reading to find out how.

Shame is defined by dictionary.com as “the painful feeling arising from the consciousness of something dishonorable, improper, ridiculous, etc., done by oneself or another.” There’s not a single person who ever lived, besides Jesus, who didn’t do one of those things. The problem with shame is that it can imprison us and keep us from moving forward even after we’ve been forgiven. It can dominate our thoughts and make us feel worthless. The sad part is that we don’t just have to do the action ourselves. Sometimes what someone else does to us can make us feel shame too.

If we’re not careful we can end up in a prison of shame through no fault of our own. An action that was done to us by someone we trusted can create those feelings of worthlessness, pain and embarrassment. If we’re not careful, those feelings of shame can turn into bitterness. Bitterness can then turn into hatred. Hatred can keep us from forgiving. If we can’t forgive even the worst offenses done to us, we ourselves can’t be forgiven by God. We have to learn to forgive the ones who have brought shame on us. When we forgive them, we release ourselves from the mental bondage we were held in.

I’m not saying the pain will go away. I still feel the pain years later, but I’m not held in a prison of hatred and shame anymore. Instead of being in bondage, I use that pain to speak to others who have been shamed by someone else. It is possible to forgive the unforgivable. It is possible to move forward after you’ve been seriously wronged. I know it’s a tough mental battle to get rid of the feelings of shame and to be able to find forgiveness for them and yourself. It’s not something that happens overnight. It’s a process that takes time, but it starts with one choice, forgiveness, and only you can make that choice.

It took me years to get to that point. I held on to the pain and those thoughts weighed me down. They kept me from reaching my potential. They kept me from an intimate relationship with God. They affected every other relationship I had. Those thoughts are so harmful and are designed to isolate you from the people who do love you and truly care for you. You must make the choice to release yourself from something you’ve done or someone else for what they’ve done if you truly want to get rid of shame. You must find a way to forgive them if you want God to forgive you. Today, make the choice to start down the road of being free from shame.

If you’d like to win “The Shack: Reflections for Every Day of the Year” by William Paul Young which is collection of highlights from the book “The Shack”, you have three ways to enter today. The first way you can get your name in the drawing is by signing up to receive Devotions by Chris in your email. The second way is to go to www.facebook.com/devotionsbychris and like my page. The third way you can enter is by going to that Facebook page and liking one of today’s statuses. Anyone who does any of those three things today, December 7, 2013, will be entered. I’ll draw tomorrow morning and announce the winner on my Facebook page. If you win, send me a private message with the address you’d like the book shipped to.

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December 12, 2013 · 8:00 AM

Led Into The Desert

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Have you ever been to a desert? I used to live in Egypt and got to experience the Sahara firsthand. There was sand as far as you could see. The ground was covered with rocks. When the wind would blow, you’d get sand in your eyes. There were very few signs of life when you got out there in it. The desert part of Egypt wasn’t where you wanted to be for very long. That’s why a majority of Egyptians live in the Nile valley near the water source. I started to think about living in the desert when I read Hosea. Chapter 2 verse 14 caught my eye. God said, “I will lead her into the desert.”

He was talking about Israel at the time, but I believe it applies to you and I as well. He was talking of how Israel had strayed from Him. In order to win her back, He was going to lead her to the desert and speak tenderly to her. A desert is a place we usually don’t want to go to. When we are experiencing a spiritual drought, we often say that we’re in the desert. But here, God said He was going to lead them to the desert so He could speak to them. I think that He does that to get us away from all the distractions that keep us from hearing Him.

Our lives are so full of noise from meetings, technologies, TV’s, video games and music that it’s hard to hear God. He desperately wants our attention and to speak with us. To get our attention, sometimes He has to take us to the desert. Instead of listening for His voice, we whine and beg Him to get us out of that place. Instead of understanding there’s a purpose for being in the desert, we try to find our own way out of it. Instead of looking for Him, we complain to others about how hard our life is and how everything is going wrong. The thought never entered our minds that it was God who led us to the desert.

He wants to use those dry times in our lives to speak tenderly to us. When things are going wrong in your life, He wants you to look for Him as a shelter not as a complaint hotline. There is a lot to learn in the desert. Most importantly, there can be growth and the start of new life. In verse 15, God says, “I will return her vineyards to her.” What you’ve lost by going to the desert will be restored to you. It may not be exactly how you expect it. It will be better. What seems like the death of one life is really the birth of a new one. What you lost in the old one, will be restored in the new one. God leads us to the desert to destroy the things that hold us back and then restores the things that will renew our love for Him.

Maybe you’re in that desert today thinking God is punishing you. Maybe you’ve been complaining because of how tough things are. Maybe you’re at the point of giving up. If you’re there, consider that God has led you to this desert to remove what needed to be gone and to restore what He wants in your life. Yes, the removal part hurts. It’s a long, drawn out, painful process at times. Your day of restoration is coming. I want to leave you with the last words of verse 15. God said He would “transform the Valley of Trouble into a gateway of hope.” Your restoration and transformation are on the way.

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December 11, 2013 · 7:54 AM

The Biggest Gift

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A big part of the stress of Christmas is buying gifts. How much should you spend? What do they want? Will I find parking at the mall? Will it be sold out? Will they love it? What if they return it? All these questions create stress in purchasing gifts. Multiply that by how many people are on your list and there in lies the level of your stress. Some people try to avoid all that stress by purchasing everything online. There’s also a stress with that. Will it look like the picture? Will it get here in time? How do you return it if you have to? There are so many things to worry about.

There’s a story in Luke 21 about a widow giving a gift. She might have been stressed too. As she stood in the temple and waited to bring her gift to God, several others made a show about their gifts. Verse one says that Jesus watched as the rich people dropped their gifts in the collection box. I’m sure she was watching too. As others dropped off their bags of money, she stood there with two little coins. She could have been wondering, “Is this enough? It’s nothing compared to the gifts they’re bringing in.” When the time seemed right, she went and gave her small gift to God.

Jesus was still watching when she did. He turned to the others around him and said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them.” Her tiny gift meant more to God than the extravagant gifts that others brought. Why? Because it was from her heart. She knew that it’s not the size of the gift or the amount of the gift that matters. She knew that even though she didn’t have much, what she had belonged to God. She gave Him what He had given her. Everything. She wasn’t content to give a fraction of what she had because God hadn’t given her a fraction of what He had. She gave everything she had.

When it comes to giving gifts, it’s not the price tag that matters. When it comes to giving to God, it’s not the amount that matters. What matters to God and others is if it came from the heart. Anyone can give from their surplus. Anyone can give a gift in order to gain the praise of people. It takes a special person to give a gift that matters. It takes a person who isn’t intimidated by the show that others make of their giving to step out and give a gift that matters. Jesus is watching and sees it all. He sees beyond the external side of giving gifts and looks into the heart. He doesn’t measure gifts by the amount, He measures them by the attitude.

This Christmas season, don’t stress over the things that really don’t matter. You should live your life to please an audience of one. Giving gifts is meant to be a joyous occasion. Since the very beginning, God has been a giver. If you look at how God gives and what He looks for in givers, it’s not about excess. He’s never been impressed by that. He is always impressed with those who give from their hearts and who give their all. Don’t be ashamed that your gifts may not be as extravagant as what other people give. Give anyway. The smallest gift is often the biggest gift to God.

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December 10, 2013 · 7:45 AM

Change = Growth

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I once heard the story of a newly wed couple who were hosting all of their family in their home for the first time. The young lady was so excited to be cooking for her mom and grandmother. While she was preparing the meal, her husband noticed she cut off about a third of the roast and put it away before starting. Her husband asked her why she did that. She replied, “I don’t know. That’s how my mom always did it.” They found the mom and asked her why they cut off a third of the roast. She replied, “I don’t know. That’s how my mom always did it.” All of them went to where the grandmother was and asked her why she cut off a third of the roast. She replied, “Because I never had a pot big enough for an entire roast.”

For over 40 years, the next two generations had been doing what was previously done just because it had always been done that way. They didn’t even know why. How many things do we do in life without knowing why and just because that’s how it’s always been done? How much have we wasted because we were so resistant to change that we never questioned the way we do things? That’s really what the problem is. We don’t like change so we never question why things are done a certain way.

When life gets flipped upside down, we get unexpected surprises, job changes, life changes or whatever, we fight them. We don’t do it because we’re opposed to that particular thing. We do it because we’re opposed to change. We like to know what tomorrow will bring. There’s security in doing things the way we’ve always done them. We know exactly what we’ll get because we’re only doing what we’ve always done. The problem is that things change. Times change. Life changes. We can be open to what God is trying to do or we can fight Him and try to hold onto our routine of doing life how we’ve always done it.

God isn’t opposed to change. In fact, He’s all for it. In Isaiah 43:18-19, God said, “Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand new.” God understands that change is how we grow. He wants to do something brand new in our lives, but we’re too busy going over the past and how things have always been. God said to get your mind out if the past and into the present. He understands that change is a part of creation. He just wants us to be willing to go through that change so He can do something new in your life.

What changes has God been trying to make in your life, but you’ve been to caught up in the past to allow Him to do it? Why have you really been opposed to the changes He wants to make in your life? Change is His way of keeping you close to Him. When you get caught up in doing things the way you’ve always done them, you remove yourself from a life of walking by faith. Instead, you are walking by routine. God wants to challenge you and to grow you. He can only do that through change. He can only get you to walk by faith if He can get you out of the past. What can you do today to embrace the change God wants to do in your life?

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