Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14, NIV. You’ve probably heard the quote, “Having a strong end is more important than having a perfect beginning.” Do you agree? When we look at the beginning of Saul’s story, it becomes clear that there was much more to Saul than failure. His story didn’t start in rebellion or pride—it…
“They came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus… began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.” Mark 10:46–47, KJV In this passage we meet Bartimaeus—a blind beggar sitting beside the highway. That roadside was known as a place where outcasts, the unclean, and the overlooked gathered. His daily routine was painfully predictable: “I’m blind… can you spare a shekel?” Nothing about his day suggested anything extraordinary was coming. But then he heard something; voices, footsteps, movement. And because he was blind, his ears were trained to pick up what others might ignore. He could feel something was shifting in the atmosphere. When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by, something awakened in him. He cried out: “Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me!” Blind Eyes, But Spiritual Insight Though Bartimaeus was physically blind, he had a spiritual revelation of who was walking down that road. He didn’t call Him “Jesus of Nazareth.” He called Him “Son of David”—a Messianic title. He recognized the Healer before he ever saw Him. He had no physical sight, but…
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Matthew 5:14. I’m one of those people who love a power outage; I think it’s fun to get off the grid for a few hours, playing a board game, reading a book to candlelight, or just being cozy with blankets acting like a shelter of protection. Even though there is darkness in the world, it doesn’t mean there isn’t something more powerful. Light will always prevail. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. John 1:4-5. God has a remedy for every bit of darkness in the world and that is Himself, the truest light form in the universe. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Psalm 119:105. When we are led by the Word of God we will have clear direction on where we need to go and what we need to do. You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under…
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.” 1 Peter 4:8-11. This time of year evokes a deep sense of gratitude because I reminisce my childhood around Thanksgiving and Christmas. In past devotions I’ve shared how I did not grow up with a lot of monetary blessings; some Thanksgiving dinners were baked chicken breasts, rather than a Turkey, and many of my Christmas presents were from the Dollar Store. None of those memories bring me to a place of sadness; rather, I feel so blessed to feel…
Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near. , ESV. For the sake of discretion, I will tell the story like this… in the last twenty years, between the north pole and south pole, there was someone who made my life very difficult. It seemed like their goal was to make my day miserable with their distasteful attitude. They had a problem with me regardless of how nice I was or how hard I tried to make “things right.” So, what did I do? With the prompting of the Lord, I invited them to dinner. There is something that happens when you break bread with someone. There is a calmness that saturates a dinner table when you sit down and enjoy a meal with other people. Time slows down and conversations flow freely. Most of the time, people’s walls are down. When you sit next to someone, you share your life with them and vice versa. When you share a meal, you share a piece of yourself with them. That, to me, is true fellowship. The Greek word for fellowship is ‘koinonia’…
Sometimes I forget what God has done in my life. A few weeks ago in a church service we sang, “When I think about the Lord, how he saved me… it makes me want to shout hallelujah, thank you, Jesus!” I began to weep at the keyboard as I thanked the Lord for completely changing my life around. Where would I be without the Lord? Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might,while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart. 2 Samuel 6:14–16, NIV. David danced without reservation because the Ark of the Covenant was finally retuning to Jerusalem. He danced because God made a covenant with Israel and he was demonstrating his love toward his LORD. However, Michal, David’s wife, despised his worship and told him he was only dancing for vain glory, (2 Samuel 6:20–21). David responded saying, that his worship was exclusively for the Lord. The next time you worry about other people’s opinions…