A Devotion May Be Someone's Only Bible
The peace we find in the presence of Christ is like crawling under a warm blanket on a cold winter’s day or feeling the soft breeze on a warm spring morning. Seeking after God is a continual process that grows us into a deep and long lasting relationship with Him. Come into His presence and find peace.
Recently, in the western mountains of North Carolina, we experienced an earthquake.
The quake measured 5.4 magnitude. Water lines burst, and streets cracked. Folks over in East Tennessee also felt the mountains tremble. The last recorded quake was documented over one hundred years ago, in 1916. I thought about this verse when I felt the quake: For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
When we know God’s love, we can experience His peace—in times of trouble, turbulence, and uncertainty. Peace when our hearts are breaking and our minds racing.
In Isaiah, God speaks to His people, the Israelites. Over and over, they broke ranks with Him, but over and over, God had mercy on them. Isaiah reminds God’s people of the covenant of peace made with this wayward nation. God responded to them with everlasting kindness. A covenant requires action on the part of both parties. While God has never broken a covenant, humans have.
The covenant God made with His people is also a prophetic promise. In the Old Testament, we know the covenant as the “Covenant of Peace.” Jesus fulfilled this covenant through His birth, life, death, and resurrection. Only our Creator could orchestrate the beautiful plan to build a bridge from His heavenly throne into our hearts. Jesus carved out the covenant with his life and sealed it with His blood—becoming our “Gospel of Peace.”
God’s steadfast love will never leave us. He will never remove His covenant of peace, no matter what happens in the hills all around. His perfect peace gives assurance in every circumstance, courage in every challenge, and comfort for every broken heart.
The Lord will not leave us hopeless when the ground crumbles beneath our feet. Nothing happening in our life surprises Him. Although the nights are long and the ground shifts beneath our feet, we are not alone.
Remember God’s promises and call on His name. He will give you perfect peace.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay and FrankyFromGermany.)
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Beware of vanity, for it has no essence.
The world system is Vanity Fair. Bunyan, in Pilgrims Progress, said Beelzebub, Apollyon, and Legion set up vanity and was where houses, lands, trades, places, honors, preferment, titles, countries, kingdoms, lusts, pleasures, and delights of all sorts were sold every day all year long.
The word vanity means useless, empty, worthless, and futile. It is related to the English word vacuum. Solomon said, “Vanity of vanity all is vanity, and there is no profit of anything a man does under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:2–3).
Life was vain to Solomon because he walked away from God and followed vain things: idols, women, and wealth. Although his hands were full, his heart was empty, and he hated life. He looked at all his works and labor and saw all was vanity and vexation of spirit. Solomon created his own secular Eden and became vain.
When people follow vanity, they live in vain because vanity gives no real substance to their lives. Israel followed vanity, became vain, and God judged them. Solomon followed their pattern.
Vain people are empty, arrogant, proud, insincere, silly, valueless, worthless, hollow, and foolish. When we become vain, we are good for nothing. When the church becomes vain, it is no longer the light of the world and the salt of the earth. We become good for nothing when we follow nothing good.
The best way to avoid vanity is to recognize all things in this temporal world won’t matter two seconds on the other side of eternity. God is the one great reality and essence of life. He gives life meaning and purpose.
What are some ways you can keep from becoming vain?
(Photo courtesy of pixabay and NoName_13.)
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It was a question of peace.
“When did you stop worrying about how and when you got your clients and work?”
My mother-in-law’s question caught me by surprise. I quit my office job in 2014 to start my own editing business, and since then, I felt as if I’d been worrying daily over every detail.
Initially, I worked with many clients I wished I hadn’t, and for little pay. But even though I took on almost every assignment that came my way, the work began to dry up. I worried that my decision to quit my job had been the wrong one. Yet I had felt God leading me in this path, so I prayed and sought His direction.
With God’s prompting, I decided to be more discerning with the clients I accepted and only work within the Christian market. God acknowledged my commitment as I relied more on His timing and the work He wished me to do.
When I needed a break, work dwindled, so I would have a few days to do fun things or relax my brain. And every time I said, “Okay, Lord, I could use some more work,” more came.
As I kept my mind on Christ and what He desired, He kept me in perfect peace about my career choice. I recognized the ebbs and flows of my job as part of God’s plan to sustain me while doing His work.
I pray I can eventually stop worrying about my career path and give every aspect to God, but I was glad my mother-in-law’s question highlighted how far I had already come.
How has God been faithful to you and kept you in perfect peace?
(Photo courtesy of pixabay and Fotorech.)
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Catching the Aurora Borealis while in Fairbanks was at the top of our bucket list.
We consulted the Aurora forecast and asked the hotel staff to call if they spotted the lights. The call came, and my husband and I jumped into the SUV with our thermos of hot chocolate, picnic goodies, blankets, and camera and headed to the highway pullout, where darkness reigned and provided the best views.
The pink pirouette from the horizon announced the beginning of the celestial dance-a-thon. What started as a ballet with green and violet dips and arabesques low in the evening sky rapidly became a twirling waltz with breathtaking leaps and vaults, breaking into hip-hop footwork and reggae grapevines—all the while changing colors from pinks to violets to greens to blues. Partnering lights glided in tandem through the sky until the unheard music changed rhythm, and a glide transformed into a skip, a cha-cha, a moonwalk, and then a twist. Eventually, the brilliant lights calmed and sashayed out of the skies to dance another night.
The northern lights, the Auroras, were everything I imagined and more. As I watched the sky fade to black, my heart filled with song. I sang “How Great Is Our God” to the one who loves me with an outlandish love, praising Him for who He is—showing Himself in that moment and always. Creator. Sovereign. Savior. Lover of my soul. The one who deserves glory, honor, and praise—all proclaimed through the works of His hands in the dark skies of Alaska.
We may never see the northern lights dance when we look into the night sky, but we will see stars twinkling on velvet, a streaking comet, or the moon wrapped in haze. All the heavens radiate the message of God’s love for us and showcase His glorious nature.
Take a moment to stop and praise God for who He is and what He has done, then rest in His glory and delight in His wonder.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay and Noel_Bauza.)
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A bright yellow pig can cause a lot of dissension, especially when it’s in your house.
After my husband and I married, I decorated our bedroom in shades of blue. I placed a bouquet of baby’s breath and azure blue silk flowers on the dresser. Then, I set blue-hued vases on either side of the bouquet. It was an eye-pleasing arrangement—until the yellow ceramic pig claimed squatter’s rights next to one of the vases.
My husband brought the yellow pig when we married. It was the type of piggy bank someone might win at a carnival—bright yellow and cheaply made. It definitely was not what I considered a pleasing accent to my flower arrangement.
I sneaked the pig out of sight, but my husband soon returned it to the original site. We continued to move the pig until I realized the futility of it. Now, the pig sits undisturbed in his corner.
Often, we must be willing to compromise, to separate the important from the trivial. It is senseless to allow unimportant things to create snags in communication. We must consider the desires of others and sometimes place them before our own.
Many churches have split because members on both sides were unwilling to communicate and consider the other side’s viewpoint. Many marriages have ended because the husband or wife refused to compromise. And many families are ripped apart because parents thought only of themselves.
The results may have been different for the churches and marriages if those involved had tried to live in peace, even if they had to run after it to catch and hold it.
When I did my share of running after peace, the clashing of a bright yellow pig and blue vases became less important than peace in my marriage.
Allow God’s peace to enter any problematic relationships you are in.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay and StillWorksimagery.)
(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)