Thurs Devo: Miracle Key

Have you ever locked yourself out of your car or house or office? What did you do?

Joe locked himself out of his office a few weeks ago. I don’t think he realized he was the last counselor in the building and that the front door was locked. After going to his car to get a fork for his dinner, he realized he was locked out. He didn’t even have his phone on him. He prayed about what to do. He then went to the industrial trash bin area outside his office complex to look for anything he could use to pick the lock. He found a couple things to try, but made one more loop around the trash bin area and suddenly saw a key in the rocks nearby. You guessed it! The key miraculously fit his particular office door out of all the office doors in the complex!!! We praised God for “He Holds the Keys” as the Christian song title says!!!

The early Christian church in Philadelphia faced much bigger troubles than a locked door. However, Jesus reminded them that He holds the key and will reward their perseverance.

Revelation 3:7-10     ⁷ “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:

These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. ⁸ I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. ⁹ I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. ¹⁰ Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.

Jesus recognized the weakness of the Philadelphia church, worn down by continual persecution. He commended them for their patient endurance and promised to redeem their reputation. He also promised to spare them from a far worse trial.  

If you are a follower of Jesus, He has made the same promises to you. No matter what we suffer in this life, He will spare us from eternal death and bring eternal justice on evil. How are you and I comforted knowing this? What current situation is easier to endure knowing Jesus, as the miracle key, holds the door to Heaven open for us?

Alice

No Never Alone

Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.  Matthew 28:19-10

While there is so much going on in the world today, I want to speak of something more personal as it has relevancy to much of what is going on.  This past weekend, I lost a friend, and while all indications was that he was a believer, I could not help but feel the sadness of a life gone too soon.  It also brought me to realize one of the worldly devices that is creating greater stress in the world.  It is called loneliness.  I listen to experts, and see the data that points to a declining church and that people feel a disconnect with it.  With that disconnect, there is this empty space where loneliness takes its place.  It is not easy for me to ignore because I have such a connection with an awesome God, but many will say I just need to worry about myself.  But I can’t.  So I ask myself how can I not feel suffering when others feel they have no one to turn to.  What can I do to be accountable to making God’s presence in the world more known?

There is a reason Jesus commissioned us to teach others of God.  Many will disagree, but I believe much of what has gone awry in the world deals directly with the void of God in those places.  People who are alone are much more susceptible to evil, violence, and deception.  Our job as followers of Christ is to stay connected not only with God but also those who do not know of Him.  They are the ones who need to know of a God who loves them deeply, and must realize that whether they don’t have someone or do but sense no one cares about them, God is always watching, listening, loving, and protecting them.  There is no depth of loneliness or despair that God cannot touch, heal, and make one feel anew!

God is the only answer to save others.  The world is a ruthless tool of the devil for as 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.”  Armed with the truth, we have joy everlasting through Jesus Christ.  We have been given true victory, and with it, we know He is with us always for God has said. “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.” (Deuteronomy 31:8)  Anyone who knows this will never ever be alone.  Who do you know that may be feeling alone?  Who in pain needs a reminder of God’s faithful promises?  My prayer is that when others feel abandoned, we are able to sing to them the old spiritual hymnal, ‘No Never Alone.’  Amen.

Tues Devo: Gratitude, Part 2

Luke 12:6-7 “Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.” (NASB)

Hello,

When we think of things to be grateful for of God, certainly Him sending Jesus to die for our sins is at the top of the list. But this one above, I feel this one is right up there close by.

If you reflect on the times where you recognized someone cared about you, the chances are quite high that it involved that person knowing or remembering a smaller detail – often in the middle of chaos. These verses make me think of just that. Yes, life is full of chaos – but God knows the number of hairs on our head (OK – for some of you, that number is pretty low….). And beyond that, If God won’t forget the about any of the cheapest birds for sale – how could he forget about us? Our value to Him is incredibly high, and for that we should have gratitude.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Pray for the world around us

Psalm 1

¹ Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers,
² but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.
³ That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.

⁴ Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away.
⁵ Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

⁶ For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

It’s hard to look at the world today and not see evil all around us, to see the destruction that has come from all of the wicked ways of the world. As Christians, we have to remember that the Lord watches over us and that all of this evil was predicted in the Bible. No, it doesn’t make it easier to see happen or deal with however we do know that if the glorious promises of God are to come to fusion, we must first live out what the Bible has said would happen, which includes the destruction of this world.


Today I encourage you to pray for the world around us.