Devotionals

12 Dec Devotional Thought – Sin’s First Sign

"And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also." Matthew 2:8  Well, there you have it. Sin never shows itself to be sin in the beginning. If it did so, we would naturally be repulsed and repelled. If sin were to come to a young man or woman and say, "I'm wicked and evil. I'm going to destroy your life. Follow me," surely no one would accept its invitation.

07 Dec Devotional Thought – The Draw of the Divine

"Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.” Jeremiah 31:3 God says that He has loved us "with an everlasting love" and it is because of that love, and with that love, that He has “drawn” us.  What does it mean to “draw” someone?  Well, as I understand it, “to draw” is the opposite of “to drive.” So, the truth that I take from this verse is this: “Because I love you, I do not force you.  I desire to win you by my love.” I believe that is true, because as Adrian Rogers often said, “Forced love is not love at all.”

05 Dec Devotional Thought – Heaven’s Prompting For Prayer

"Ask of Me, and I will give You The nations for Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth for Your possession." Psalm 2:8  It was God Himself who spoke these words to the Messiah, prompting the Lord Jesus what to pray for. This simple verse suggests something very important then about the nature of all successful prayer - that it must first be prompted by the Father. You see, my prayer doesn't change His mind or cause Him to move. No, it is His mind that is to determine my prayer and direct my movement. That's why effective prayer isn't so much of a petition as it is a prophecy. My Father says to me, "Here is my will, ask for this."

30 Nov Devotional Thought – The Promise of Divine Prosperity

"He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper." Psalm 1:3   At first blush this appears to be an amazing, astounding - almost unbelievable - promise. What a grand incentive for a good man to be, well...good. Think of it. Who wouldn't want the good, godly man to be prosperous? Who wouldn't want such a man to see whatever he touched turn to gold? Who wouldn't think it a good thing for one like the Psalmist describes in the beginning chapter of his hymnbook to be blessed materially, financially, personally?

28 Nov Devotional Thought – God’s Magnificent Mercy

"I will not execute the fierceness of My anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim. For I am God, and not man. . ." Hosea 11:9 It's a very original, unusual, unique statement.  We would have expected something completely and totally different - even from the prophet himself.  He has been expressing in the clearest, starkest, strongest, loudest terms possible his sense of the divine horror of sin.  He has been sharing from the lips of God the most withering, the most scathing denunciations of the evil around man.  With this as a backdrop we would expect that there would follow something like this  - "I will utterly and completely destroy these wicked men.  I will wipe them from the face of the earth and from the memory of all of creation."  But instead there comes this startling statement - "I will not execute the fierceness of My anger. . .For I am God, and not man. . ."

24 Nov Devotional Thought – The Witness of Thanksgiving

“Therefore I will give thanks to You, O LORD, among the Gentiles, And sing praises to Your name.” 2 Samuel 22:50 The first personal declaration of thanksgiving in the Old Testament is one for divine deliverance. It is David’s open acknowledgement of the Lord’s power, provision and protection in the midst of his enemies. In fact, standing just after the Lord’s awesome acts, David shouts and sings of the Almighty’s salvation “among the Gentiles.” He declares that he will “give thanks to the Lord…and make known among the nations what He has done.”