Thursday Devotional - Certainty in God

After 2 heart surgeries, including a defibrillator/pacemaker implant, my Dad is home recovering. It was a scary week for all of us. As I cried out to God for help, direction, healing, etc., I knew I could trust God. I wasn’t sure I could trust all the doctors or any of our own research and wisdom, but I could trust God who sees all and knows all and is in control of all. He’s the only Sovereign One over all creation.

As God prepared Joshua and the Israelites to enter and take over the promised land in Canaan, He had the spies enter the home of someone who had already believed in God’s sovereignty (His power and control over all things).

Joshua 2:1-11            Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.

² The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” ³ So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.”

⁴ But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them…

⁸ Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof ⁹ and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. ¹⁰ We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. ¹¹ When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.

As the spies were in good hands, so is my Dad. God goes before us. He paves the way, just as He did for Joshua and the spies. My Mom and sisters and I had moments of doubts this past week. At times we doubted the right decisions were made or the right care was done. However, God reminded us of the ways He had provided when we had asked for wisdom and direction.

 

When has God gone before you in the past?

How can you and I remember that as we trust Him to go before us in the future?

We’re in the best hands with God. Only He is Sovereign.

We can have certainty in Him!

Alice

My 'Dr. Phil' Gift

God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.  1 Peter 4:10-11

Lately, my life has been inundated with a wave of sadness, tragedy, and heartbreak.  The thing is none of it is directly relating to me.  It is as if somehow God has given me this ‘Dr. Phil’ gift.  Some of you know exactly what that means.  People seemingly come to you because in their mind they have no place else to go.  Being honest, I’m unsure how I got it.  However, I am grateful God gave it to me.  It is a privilege that I do not take lightly because it is like all other gifts God has given me.  They have a purpose that is not for me to question.  They are to be given and used as He sees fit. 

I knew God had gifted it to me one fall evening.  While visiting my mom in the hospital, I had left something in the car.  As I entered the hospital parking garage, a man was sobbing uncontrollably because he lost his child and needed to know why.  I felt his anguish and pain, and could not muster words to say to him because I did not have an answer to his question.  But I did have a shoulder.  I hugged and assured him it would be alright.  While I felt terrible for the gentleman, I could sense I was there at that moment just for that reason.  This is what it is like when you know God is using your gift.

God gifts us with abilities for His will to be done.  My pastors over the years have provided guidance as to what my gifts are.  Through greater awareness, those gifts have grown to where people rely on me for them.  If you have not taken note of what your gifts are, first pray to God for wisdom and discernment.  Ask Him to highlight those times where God showed up not for you but through you.  Then, take time out to ask someone who knows you.  Ask what they rely on you most for.  See if there are recurring trends.  I am not saying seek out and ask, “Kent, do you think I’m an empathetic person?”  Sincerely go up to someone who knows you well, and ask open-ended questions.  What makes me a great friend to you?  What do you come to me for?  Why?  Finally, ask God to give you clarity what on His will for you going forward.  Do as 1 Peter said; give freely.  You’re doing it right when the spirit in you moves positively with each act of generosity.  The goal is not for you to be perfect.  It is to grow in Christ as you continue to give that which He has gifted you for.

God gives us so much.  He gives us unconditional love, and provides us with protection.  He gives us grace and His Only Son to ensure we would have no barriers between Him and us.  When you think of it in that context, it sounds silly to keep that which you are gifted for your own personal gain.  Let us give share our gifts such that as God said in Matthew 25, “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities.” (Matthew 25:21a)  Do you know your spiritual gifts?  How can you go about both learning and utilizing them?  My prayer is we give of our gifts willingly and freely as my ‘Dr. Phil.’  Amen.

Tues Devo: Prove it

Hello,

We say we trust…but do we? We trust for the eternal and things beyond our control, but do we trust in the short term where we feel we can control?

I don’t have much to add to this – but just encourage you to reflect on how you reacted the last time something didn’t go your way. Did you scramble to control and fix, or was prayer and real openness to God part of your approach? Let’s prove our faith through our responses.

Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” (NASB)

Philippians 4:19 “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” (NASB)

Psalm 46:10 “Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (NASB)

Psalm 57:2 “I will cry to God Most High, To God who accomplishes all things for me. (NASB)

Will Hill

Make a Choice

I must admit that what I am sharing today is not my own.  I read this when someone else posted it this morning and I just thought it was good to share.

By Max Lucado

Maybe your past isn’t much to brag about.  Maybe you’ve seen raw evil – and now you have to make a choice.  Do you rise above the past and make a difference?  Or do you remain controlled by the past and make excuses?

Healthy bodies.  Sharp minds.  But retired dreams.  Back and forth they rock in the chair of regret.   Lean closely and you’ll hear them.

If only I’d been born somewhere else…

If only I’d been treated fairly…

If only I’d had more opportunities…if only…

Put down the scrapbook of your life and pick up the Bible.  Read Jesus’ words in John 3:6: “Human life comes from human parents but spiritual life comes from the Spirit.”

God has not left you adrift on a sea of heredity.  You have a choice in the path you take.

Choose well!