Marie’s daily verse: Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up (James 4:10).

DAILY DEVOTION, January 20, 2024

 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7).

We receive the Holy Spirit as a gift when we place our trust in Jesus. Paul reminds us of how the Holy Spirit works in us. He does not make us timed or fearful. He gives us power (ability) to live the Christian with ever increasing faithfulness. The Holy Spirit makes us new and different persons. And of course, since God is love the Holy Spirit fills us with divine love. We become more patient and kinder with those who used to irritate us. We learn to love our enemies. Finally, we become more delf-disciplined. We are no longer driven by sinful excesses. The Holy Spirit leads us into a disciplined life. These divine attributes do not appear instantaneously. We never manifest them to perfection. But as we walk by faith we grow in these attributes.   

Father, help me to listen to the Holy Spirit as He leads me into a new life. I want to know more of His power, love, and discipline. I want to honor Jesus in my daily life. In His name I pray, amen.

Marie’s daily verse: Nahum1:7: 

The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in Him.

DAILY DEVOTION, January 16, 2024

“Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant” (Gal. 6:7).

Paul uses a unique word translated as “mock.” It means “to turn up the nose or sneer at” (Thayer’s Greek Lexicon). The term “mock” seems a bit weak. We don’t want to sneer at God – – – ever. God has revealed to us His moral law, which tells us how to live in fellowship with God. We don’t want to turn up our noses at the Ten Commandments or the Sermon on the Mount. We must remember that God’s wisdom and power transcend our feeble brains. Paul uses a farm illustration to make his point. If you plant beans, you harvest beans. If you sow sin and then sneer at God because you think He doesn’t care, doesn’t know, or doesn’t even exist, guess what? When the harvest of final judgment comes, there is a grim price to pay. Don’t allow Satan to mislead you. God sees all, remembers all, and passes judgment on all. If we repent and trust in Jesus, we have planted good seeds leading to forgiveness and everlasting life. If we entertain the idea that we can mock God’s will, we learn too late that God is never mocked. He will have the last word.

Gracious Father in heaven, forgive me for those times when I have gone my own way, turning my back on You. Help me to see that when that happens, I am mocking You. May I always honor and respect Your Word and seek to live according to Your will. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.

Marie’s daily verse: John 15:4Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it Abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me

Yikes, our furnace is not working. Pray it will be operational soon. It has to drain and the drain is  frozen.

DAILY DEVOTION, January 15, 2024

Psalm 92:14: They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing.

Sometimes I think I am too old to be still preaching. Our congregation also is heavily loaded on the senior citizen side. Are we ever too old to serve our Lord Jesus? You probably know the story of one older man who went from job to job for decades. He was finally old enough to retire and started receiving his social security checks. He had spent his life doing unimportant jobs and retired without ever accomplishing much.

He decided to continue working. He obtained an old beat-up building, which had been a restaurant. He liked to cook chicken and had his secret recipe. People liked his chicken, an d his business grew and spread to franchises all around the country and even overseas.  I suspect all of us have eaten Kentucky Fried Chicken at one time or another. Colonel Sanders became a wealthy man after reaching retirement age.

The lesson is that you are never too old to contribute to life. That is what the Psalmist said. If Colonel Sanders could promote chicken during his retirement years, I can promote the bread of life in my retirement years.

For those of you who are like me (old!), don’t think you have nothing to contribute. As long as God gives us strength and a sound mind, we can serve our Lord. As we live by faith, God will lead us into areas of service, no matter how old we are. Don’t sell yourself short because of age or any other factors. There will be plenty of time to rest in heaven. For now, there is Kingdom work to be done whether we are young, old, or in between.

Dear Father in heaven, I want to bear fruit for you despite my age! I want to bear fruit in my old age. Help those of us who are senior citizens to use our gifts and resources for your glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Marie’s daily verse: 2 Timothy 2:7: Consider what I say, and may the Lord give you understanding in all things.

It seems strange for me to say, but I hope no one went to church today! I hope everyone got the word that church was canceled due to the very cold weather.

DAILY DEVOTION, January 14, 2024

Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways! For who can know the LORD’s thoughts? Who knows enough to give him advice? (Romans 11:33-34).

There are two sides to God from our human perspective. There are aspects of God that we know, and there are unknowable things about God.  God has revealed many truths about Himself in Scripture and the person of His Son, Jesus. Thankfully, we know God is love and that He has acted in Jesus to redeem us. We could compile a long list of truths we know about God from Scripture and Jesus.

In our verses, Paul focuses on the things about God that we will never know or understand. Many of the ways of God are hidden from us, and no amount of study will[B1]  unlock the secret ways of God. This aspect of God may create frustrations for us. We often want an answer to our “why” questions, but those answers are hidden. There are things God does that are impossible for us to understand. Why cancer? Why this unexpected death?  Why? Why? Why? We need to memorize Romans 11:33 and accept that many of His ways are beyond us. As vs. 33 says, “Who knows enough to give Him advice?” It’s a rhetorical question. No one can advise the almighty. If you ever plan to advise God, tape your mouth shut!

When faced with a challenging situation, focus on what you know about God. He loves you.  He is always working for your good. Heaven is the final home for those who trust and love Jesus.

Father God, forgive me when I question Your ways.  Who am I to question the Creator of the universe? Thank You for revealing Yourself to me and the world as a God of love and forgiveness. Help me be content with what I know and not fret about things I can never know. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Marie’s daily verse: God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them (Hebrews 6:10).

DAILY DEVOTION, January 13, 2024 

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Paul speaks here of our opportunity to contemplate the Lord’s glory. He calls upon us to reflect on Jesus. We contemplate His glory as we study His life and teachings and draw near to Him in prayer. If you want to find a good role model, can up do better than Jesus! As we reflect upon Him in our mind’s eye, we see the most incredible man who ever walked this earth. He created this earth. He is God the Son, one with the Father, the second person of the Trinity.

As our attention is focused on Jesus, we are increasingly transformed into His likeness. I can’t think of a better goal in life than to become more and more like Jesus.

I think Paul is inviting us to use our imaginations. As you read the Gospels, picture Jesus in your mind.  See Him healing the sick, raising the dead, walking on water, interacting with Mary and Martha, dialoguing with the Pharisees, hanging on a cross, etc. Contemplate Jesus, and you will reflect more and more of His character in your life. Isn’t that an excellent life goal, to be transformed into His image?

Lord, I want to be more and more like Jesus. I know I have a long way to go, but I want this to be my life goal. You have shown me that my behavior will change the more Jesus is in my thoughts. Remind me daily to focus my attention on Him.  In His beloved name, I pray, Amen.