A Devotion May Be Someone's Only Bible

Spirit & Heart

Where your heart is, there is where your treasure lays. Our hearts guide our emotion and decisions. Unless God is the center of the heart, things are askew. Allowing the Spirit into the matters of the heart promises the faithfulness of Jesus in our lives.

God Never Stops Working

My heart broke for my friend.

When she told me she and her husband were separated, I could see her brokenness. With each tear that trickled down her cheek, I felt her agony–her suffering. All I could do was hold her hand and listen. Through my divorce, I learned that well-meaning words from loved ones often cut deep rather than offer hope. “You won’t walk this path alone.” I squeezed her hand. I knew there was a plan–somewhere.

Paul began this chapter in Romans by describing how difficult things were at the time. He noted that even creation longed for the day of Christ’s return to redeem things. Paul conveyed that God is at work, even in our suffering.

As Christ-followers, there is a redemptive factor in that God is available to us through any suffering. Things may not turn out how we expect them to, but in the long run, He has taken those things and woven them together with peace, hope, and His plan for good. Regardless of the situation, God never stops working. He is present, and His promise is perfect.

We are called by Him who loves us, and though we cannot see it immediately, God will work good through the situation according to His plan. He is there for us. We simply reach out and grasp His promise. Hold tight and trust. In and through our suffering, God will work good.

Does God wish for us to suffer? Absolutely not. But remember, Christ did not suffer so you would not suffer. He suffered so that you would become more like Him when you do suffer. Get closer to the Father. His redemptive arms are always open.

We all have tough things that we must face. Rethink your perspective regarding your circumstance, and know that God is faithful. Trust in His promises. He will work all things for good because He loves you and has called you as His child.

(Photo courtesy of pixabay and 1388843.)

(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)



A Song in the Night

Songs are poems put to music.

The poems are written first. That’s because the words with their meaning and message are the most important. The music is written later to enhance the meaning of the words. Words carry meaning, and words that mean something to us bring meaningful feelings.

Songs are literature, and, like literature of every age, they express the mindset and morals of a people. Harriet Martineau (1802-76) says, “Ballads and popular songs are both the cause and effect of general morals; they are first formed, and then react. In both points of view, they are an index of public morals.”

The songs a church sings say a lot about the spiritual state of the church. Authentic church music uses the words of the songs with their meaning to bring the Word of God to the listener. Any spiritual music with lyrics that portray God, Jesus Christ, the Spirit, and Christianity in an unbiblical way might be popular but will do us no good in the night seasons because they were not written to edify but to entertain.

When people get saved, they dump their old songs and get a new song of praise to God. They then get a favorite song, and it becomes their song. When they hear it, they say, “That’s my song.” No doubt, Paul and Silas sang their favorite songs while imprisoned at Philippi (Acts 16: 25). Elihu said God gives songs in the night (Job 35: 10).

A song in the night is a song we sing during those hard and trying times when the Enemy oppresses us. The song’s words remind us of God’s power, goodness, love, and faithfulness. And such songs lift our spirits and voices above the night clouds into the very presence of God, who hears our song in the night.

What is your night song? Have you had to sing it lately?

(Photo courtesy of pixabay and Firmbee.)

(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)



From the Heart's Treasury

My granddaughter and I watched from the bleachers while her brother took his swimming lesson.

As an active five-year-old, she used the bleachers and nearby railing as her jungle gym—up and down and all around. At one point, she stood behind me and wrapped her arms around my neck. Then, poised to return to her routine, she patted me on the head. And that’s when she discovered the bumps under her Oma’s hair.

Sebaceous cysts under the skin on my scalp have developed over the years, but they aren’t dangerous. Not expecting them, they startled her. With artful hair arrangement, the cysts stay hidden most of the time. My granddaughter leaned down and looked into my face with wide-open eyes.

“You’ve found my lumps,” I said.

She nodded, and I gave her a brief explanation. She asked if they hurt.

“Only if someone hits them,” I replied.

Satisfied with the information, she went back to her play.

Having a certain amount of vanity, I’m grateful my hair covers these disfigurements. But I’m not always so successful with the flaws that erupt from my heart. An unkind comment to my husband, a demeaning opinion expressed about politicians, a swear word, or any verbal ugliness I can’t hide so easily. And then there’s the keyboard that connects my fingers to the internet and social media, where I could wreak all kinds of havoc.

In those moments, I remember what Jesus cautioned. I should tuck His gems of grace and love into my heart’s treasury. His Word provides these jewels for us with abundance. Equipped with generous wealth, I do not need to keep them hidden.

What gems are you gathering into your treasure chest?

(Photo courtesy of pixabay and screechand.)

(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)



God's Memory

Memory is an activity of the heart.

Our minds can remember and forget. Remembering is recollecting a person, thing, or event. When we remember something, we think about it again to avoid forgetting it. To forget means to be unable to, or decide not to, think of something. In former times, for as a prefix denoted negation or exclusion. So, forget meant “not get.”

For many different reasons, our memory fails. We do not remember things because we cannot remember them. Forgetfulness becomes a weakness and is one sure sign of aging.

Forgetfulness can also be a choice and a sign of maturity. We forget what we shouldn’t remember. We then forget because we choose not to remember. We reject thoughts that remind us of something we’ve decided to forget. But if we choose to remember certain things, we will never forget those things.

God viewed Israel as His bride. In our text, God says He remembers the beginnings of His relationship with Israel. Although Israel was now rebellious, God could still remember when she was close to Him. God never forgot those good ole days, although Israel did.

The one thing, and maybe the only thing, God forgets is sin—sin that has been confessed and repented of. The Bible does not speak of anything else that God forgets. Forgetfulness is not a weakness with God. His memory is not failing. God doesn’t literally forget our sins; He chooses not to remember them anymore once we confess them. 

We need to join God in forgetting those sins we have confessed and put under the blood of Jesus. He’ll never recall them again, and we shouldn’t either.

 

(Photo courtesy of pixabay and kalyanayahaluwo.)

(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)



Teach Me

Never underestimate the older ladies in the church.

They taught me as I led a Bible study with them. We spent a year studying Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth’s Choosing Gratitude. We planned to wrap up with a summary and luncheon at my house. However, I took an unexpected fall at my daughter’s house when I tripped over a suitcase in the middle of the night. I landed with all my weight on my right knee. The worst eruption of pain since childbirth shot through my entire body, and my utterances were unintelligible (thank goodness).

Not one word of Choosing Gratitude came to mind. My granddaughter brought me an ice pack. My grandson worried. I had proven I could not care for myself, much less for them, while their mother was out of town.

To my great surprise, I could walk the following day if I braced myself against the wall. Fluid gathering in my knee shook like a bowl of Jell-O. Nothing seemed broken or torn. When I returned home, my daughter called to say she had tested positive for COVID-19—double whammy.

Hobbling around, I watched my aggravation increase as I pondered necessary cancelations. I felt irritation rising in my soul. After nine months of studying gratitude, I was about to hit rock bottom. Finally, I prayed—with some impudence, I admit.

“Okay, God. Is this another one of those ‘Be careful what you pray for events?’” I suddenly recalled what Joni Eareckson Tada had written in the foreword of the book we studied. A quadriplegic for fifty years, Joni thanked God daily for her wheelchair because it kept her focused on her constant need for God’s strength.

I felt sorry for myself because I faced an inconvenient week or two to rearrange. Joni rearranged every day and every detail for living for the rest of her life. She thrived on gratitude.

I have a personal paraphrase from John’s gospel: “The world could not contain the books if we wrote all God has done for us.” My fall could have been so much worse.

By Sunday morning, I had contacted those women God put into my life. I have difficulty asking for help, so perhaps that was a part of the lesson learned as well.

What are some ways you can let the Lord teach you?

(Photo courtesy of pixabay and ast25rulos.)

(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)



All Posts