Author Archives: jsjdevotions

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October 3, 2014

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Bible Stories, Knowing Him, Miracles

WHAT WILL IT TAKE?

Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!” [Matthew 8:26-27 (NLT)]

“Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen—the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.” [Matthew 11:3-5 (NLT)]

Jesus had cast out evil spirits, made lepers clean and healed the centurion’s servant from afar. Even Peter’s mother-in-law had received healing from him. Blind people had been given their sight, the paralyzed had walked and a girl had been brought back to life. He’d calmed the storm and still the disciples wondered, “Who is this man?” They’d heard his words and radical gospel: love God, love your enemies and turn the other cheek. They’d left their homes and families to follow Him. Certainly they thought they knew who He was: the promised Messiah. It was not until he’d walked on water, however, that they truly knew what he was: the Son of God – God in flesh – God incarnate! Then, the disciples worshipped him.

What will it take to convince us?

When they climbed back into the boat, the wind stopped. Then the disciples worshiped him. “You really are the Son of God!” they exclaimed. [Matthew 14:32-33 (NLT)]

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October 2, 2014

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Holy Spirit, Wisdom & Guidance

MAPPING OUR WALKS

I advise you to obey only the Holy Spirit’s instructions. He will tell you where to go and what to do, and then you won’t always be doing the wrong things your evil nature wants you to. For we naturally love to do evil things that are just the opposite from the things that the Holy Spirit tells us to do; and the good things we want to do when the Spirit has his way with us are just the opposite of our natural desires. These two forces within us are constantly fighting each other to win control over us, and our wishes are never free from their pressures. [Galatians 5:16-17 (TLB)]

Realizing that my power walks had become more like leisurely strolls, I recently got an app called “Map My Walk” that keeps track of my mileage and pace. Now that I’m using it, I’m walking faster and farther and enjoying it more. The app knows exactly where I’ve been and how long it took me to get there; there’s no more fooling myself about how far I’ve walked or how much effort I exerted. Moreover, the app doesn’t care if I’m tired or the weather is hot and humid. It’s made me accountable! Of course, I do have to remember to turn it on before I go walking.

Let us never forget that we don’t need to have an app on a Smartphone to map our daily walk in life. We have the Holy Spirit within us and He will, indeed, make us accountable. If we’re wandering off course, He’ll tell us. If we’re lingering when we should be jogging or rushing when we should take our time, He’ll either prod us to get moving or slow us down. He’ll even point out the errors in our ways and, like my walking app, the Holy Spirit isn’t much interested in excuses! We just have to remember to listen to His voice and follow His instructions!

Now glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of—infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes. [Ephesians 3:20 (TLB)]

 

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September 30, 2014

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Obedience, Salvation: A New You, Sharing Our Faith

JESUS SAVES

9-9-14 Jesus SavesWEBFor “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!” [Romans 10:13-15 (NLT)] 

For some thirty-five years, we’ve driven by the “Jesus Saves” rock. To my knowledge, in all of these years, the rock has never been defaced. Granted, it is in rural Illinois, but I still find it difficult to believe that no kids, especially on a Saturday night after consuming too much beer, have been tempted to add the words “at the 1st National Bank” to the sign. Perhaps that speaks to the virtue of small town values or maybe the farmer keeps a few bulls in the pasture below. The paint always looks as fresh as when I first saw it.

9-9-14 Jesus Saves(2)WEBRecently, while driving on a city street, I saw two women holding a sign with the words, “Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand – Jesus Loves you.” That sign got me thinking about the “Jesus Saves” sign. Although separated by more than a thousand miles, those women and the farmer have much in common. They both believe in Jesus and are not afraid to say so. In fact, they are reaching out to others to share His word.

We probably don’t have a boulder or billboard near at hand and most of us wouldn’t feel comfortable standing on a street corner holding a sign asking people to repent. But, I’m not so sure those two ladies were enjoying themselves in the heat and I imagine keeping that sign freshly painted has gotten a bit tiresome for the farmer. Yet, they are answering God’s call to share His Word. What can we do to join them in their efforts?

God’s plan for enlarging His kingdom is so simple – one person telling another about the Savior. Yet we’re busy and full of excuses. Just remember, someone’s eternal destiny is at stake. The joy you’ll have when you meet that person in heaven will far exceed any discomfort you felt in sharing the gospel. [Charles Stanley]

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September 27, 2014

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Bible Stories, God's Word: The Bible, Holy Spirit, Temptation & Sin

DO WE NEED TO BE RESCUED?

Rescue me from my enemies, O God. Protect me from those who have come to destroy me. Rescue me from these criminals; save me from these murderers. They have set an ambush for me. Fierce enemies are out there waiting, Lord, though I have not sinned or offended them. [Psalm 59:1-3 (NLT)]         

The ropes of death entangled me; floods of destruction swept over me. The grave wrapped its ropes around me; death laid a trap in my path. But in my distress I cried out to the Lord; yes, I prayed to my God for help. [Psalm 18:4-6a (NLT)]        

Many of David’s psalms are about battles, protection from his enemies, or being rescued from an attack. For example, Psalm 59 was written about the time soldiers were sent to watch David’s house in order to kill him and Psalm 18 was sung on the day David was delivered from the hand of his enemies and King Saul.

Granted, there may be people who don’t particularly like us, but they’re not our enemies and, while we may have a few disputes, we aren’t preparing for combat. Since we’re probably not on anyone’s “hit list” and we don’t have an angry king or opposing armies waiting to ambush us, how do David’s psalms relate to us? Who are our enemies and what are our battles?

Our enemy, of course, is Satan, and we enter into a spiritual battle with him every day. It’s good to remember that no matter how safe we may feel in our comfortable homes and lives, we are never safe from him. He is always looking for ways to ambush or trap us because he wants our souls. God, however, wants our salvation. With the power of the Holy Spirit we have all of fire power we need for today’s encounter with the enemy.

When the devil comes knocking upon the door of my heart and asks, “Who lives here?” the dear Lord Jesus goes to the door and says, “Martin Luther used to live here, but he has moved out; now I live here.” The devil, upon seeing the pierced hands takes flight immediately. [Martin Luther]

I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and he saved me from my enemies. [Psalm 18:3 (NLT)]

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September 26, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, Family, Friends & Fellowship, Love & Works, Obedience

LOVE RULES

Greet each other with Christian love. [1 Peter 5:14 (NLT)]

Live in complete harmony with each other … accept each other … teach each other. [Romans 15:5,7,14 (NLT)]

So encourage each other and build each other up … Show them great respect and wholehearted love … live peacefully with each other … always try to do good to each other and to all people. [1 Thessalonians 5:11,13,15 (NLT)]

Pray for each other. [James 5:16 (NLT)]

Take an interest in others. [Philippians 2:4 (NLT)]

You must help one another every day. [Hebrews 3:13 (GNT)]

Serve one another in love … Let us not…provoke one another, or be jealous of one another. [Galatians 5:13,26 (NLT)]        

Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another. [Ephesians 4:32 (NLT)]

Take delight in honoring each other … Live in harmony with each other [Romans 12:10,16 (NLT)]

Don’t grumble about each other. [James 5:9 (NLT)] 

The Bible makes it clear that love is more than a warm fuzzy feeling; it requires effort and action. We can’t simply say we love; we must do it. It is a tall order to welcome, accept, encourage, respect, live peacefully and in harmony, pray for, be interested in, help, serve, be kind and forgiving, and honor one another. It is even more difficult for some of us to refrain from complaint, deceit, temptation, conceit, anger, provocation and jealousy. But, by the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, we can and must do it!

Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. [1 John 3:18 (NLT)]

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September 24, 2014

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Challenges & Difficulty, Faith & Hope, God's Word: The Bible, Nature

BRACE ROOTS

9-26-14corn-crop338-cropWEBOnce there was a man who went out to sow grain. … Some of it fell on rocky ground, where there was little soil. The seeds soon sprouted, beause the soil wasn’t deep. But when the sun came up, it burned the young plants; and because the roots had not grown deep enough, the plants soon dried up. … The seeds that fell on rocky ground stand for those who receive the message gladly as soon as they hear it. But it does not sink deep into them, and they don’t last long. So when trouble or persecution comes because of the message, they give up at once.  [Matthew 13:3,5-6,20-21 (GNT)]

We’ve had several storms with high winds and yet the corn stands strong and tall in the fields. With such a thin stalk, I wondered how it could grow so high without being bent and battered by the severe weather. Looking down at the base of the stalk, I noticed several little roots growing into the soil. Corn has two sets of roots that can reach as deep as six to seven feet in the ground. The little roots above the ground are called brace roots. Not only do they help take up water and nutrients from the soil but they also provide support for the seven-foot 9-26-14brace root-cropWEBplant. Lack of enough brace roots might not harm corn in absolutely perfect growing conditions, but the plant won’t survive adverse conditions such as drought or high winds without them.

Seeing the corn’s brace roots reminded me of Jesus’ farming parable in Matthew. I thought about the seed that was unable to develop deep roots. Without deep roots, the seed couldn’t survive harsh conditions. It’s easy to be like that seed: we attend church more or less regularly and read a few devotions, but we don’t dig deep into God’s word to take in His strength. We’re fine as long as everything goes smoothly and the conditions are ideal. When adversity comes (and we all know it eventually will), we lose faith; there will be nothing to harvest because survival is impossible without strong roots. It’s not enough for us to simply hear God’s word; we need to absorb it into our lives and use it for spiritual nourishment and support. When we do that, like the corn, we’ll develop brace roots that will keep us standing tall and strong during the droughts and storms of life.

Since you have accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, live in union with him. Keep your roots deep in him, build your lives on him, and become stronger in your faith, as you were taught. And be filled with thanksgiving. [Colossians 2:6-7 (GNT)]