A Christian Devotional

[Shammu]

Keep going -- don't stop!!!

Hebrews 12:1-2 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

In the Greek olympic games of old, a unique race was run. The winner was not the runner who finished first --- it was the runner who finished with his torch still lit!

There are times in our lives when we feel like we just can't continue in the race. These are precisely the times when the enemy loves to assault us to the point of breaking and torment us saying "You'll never make it to the finish line, you may as well just quit now". This is the time we need to cling on to God's promises! The Lord will soon reward our diligence for all our toiling here in this world. Paul said, "Let us not grow weary in well doing for in due season we shall reap if we do not faint".

Let's allow God's wonderful promises to strengthen and comfort us in each circumstance so that we can run the race --- not to finish first, but to run together, side by side --- the flame of our torch reaching the finish line blazing brightly with fire for Him!

AMEN!!!                   

[Shammu]

He is the potter, we are the clay!

Isaiah 64:8 But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

Early in the last century, sculptor Gutzon Borglum gazed at the cliffs of South Dakota's Black Hills. As any great artist would, He saw what no one else could the sculpted faces of US presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. After 14 years, he finally completed his project -- Mount Rushmore.

How in the world did Borglum foresee such a work of art by looking at a cliff? He envisioned what those Black Hills could become.

God is envisioning what we are to become in Him! But in order for the Him to make a beautiful monument of us, we must allow ourselves to be moldable. He wants to mold us into the image He desires -- His own! He wants to chip away at our rough edges and make us into a fine work of art, that all who see us will be awed and enriched. In the hands of a great artist, we can be created into incredible works of art that survive the ages, even after we have passed through this life into the next!

Let's become moldable in the Father's hands and make Him proud to show off what He's created!

[Shammu]

Sunny skies ahead!

Isaiah 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

After our very small wedding in Jerusalem, my wife and I planned to have the big ceremony she'd always dreamed of, in Havre De Grace, Maryland. Rivka had it planned it to the tee. It was an outdoor wedding next to the longest standing lighthouse on the east coast. We were going to wow our guests with an entrance by way of sailboat. Ten dancers with candles in glasses were to proceed my beautiful bride as I awaited her under our hand-crafted chuppa, lit by the sunset on the bay.

Unfortunately, things didn't flow quite the way we had planned. Nothing went right -- and when I say nothing -- I really mean nothing. We got started terribly late because some important wedding party guests were late, so the sunset entrance didn't happen. It rained and rained and the cold wind blew. We had no indoor option. We did end up coming in on a sailboat, but we were both soaking wet! The electricity kept flickering on and off, along with the sound, during the ceremony because the generators we rented were not working well. The wrong song was played as I was coming down the isle. There were ducks quacking and meandering around in search for food in the tent beside us,and I tell you, that was only the beginning! The whole event seemed like it was written by the Marx brothers!

Despite the circumstances however, we laughed throughout the whole thing. We decided to trust that the Lord was in control, and just enjoy each other. Just before our pastor closed out the ceremony, he said something along these lines: "Marriage is not about sunny skies and perfect weather -- what it's really about is being joined together to weather the storms!" Surprisingly, many of our cold, wet guests shared with us that they were incredibly touched and blessed. Both believers and non-believers alike remarked that they could see the joy of the Lord in our lives.

The Lord has joined himself to us, not just through the sunny days, but through every storm of life. God never promised us perfect weather, but He does promise that He will walk beside us even in the most difficult of times.

Keep your mind set on Him and you will be at perfect peace through every storm!

[Shammu]

Take out the trash!

2 Corinthians 7:1 Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

As we were leaving for Jerusalem this morning, my wife made one of her frequent requests of me – “Honey! Could you take down the trash?” Well, I don’t know about you-- but this is not one of my favorite tasks. Why does it always seem like we guys always get pinned with the dirty work?!(My wife -- and probably many of you ladies out there would probably have a good laugh at that question!) But really, though -- I was sure I had just emptied that trash can two seconds ago! I mean, I turn around and it’s full again!

It amazes me how much garbage our little family makes. But it got me thinking about spiritual garbage. Let’s face it. We live in a world running rampant with spiritual trash. It’s everywhere -- and though we as believers try and avoid it, we step out our front doors and there it is to greet us. As a matter of fact, we don’t even have to step out our doors anymore! The trash has inundated our television, our music, our computers. It’s in our schools and even in our churches! We’re probably so chock full of trash by now, we’re overflowing! I think it’s time we empty our spiritual trash cans.

We have a responsibility to make sure we empty our spiritual trash – and empty it often. Let’s ask the Lord to help us take out this yucky mess and clean us up from head to toe -- that we might be able to do greater things for Him!

[Shammu]

Has someone been watching?

2 Corinthians 13:5-6 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates? But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.

We came across this interesting story by Leslie B. Flynn in her book Dare to Care Like Jesus.

A Christian baroness, living in the highlands of Nairobi, Kenya, told of a young national who was employed as her houseboy. After three months he asked the baroness to give him a letter of reference to a friendly sheik some miles away. The baroness, not wishing the houseboy to leave just when he had learned the routine of the household, offered to increase his pay. The lad replied that he was not leaving for higher pay. Rather, he had decided he would become either a Christian or a Moslem. This was why he had come to work for the baroness for three months. He had wished to see how Christians acted. Now he wanted to work for three months for the sheik to observe the ways of the Moslems. Then he would decide which way of life he would follow. The baroness was stunned as she recalled her many blemishes in her dealings with the houseboy. She could only exclaim, "Why didn't you tell me at the beginning!"

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the minute we label ourselves "Christian", we must know that people will be watching us everywhere we go. This does not mean that we have to be perfect (although that is what the world often expects to see)! But what it means is that we have to be daily walking in repentance, frequently examining our behaviors and motives, and praying for God's deliverance from all the ways we fall short. We must be bettering ourselves for the Kingdom every single day! Yes, it must be the main focus in our lives!

None of us have arrived. We all have work to do. Let's make it a point to be in daily, or even hourly contact with the Lord, asking Him to restore our hearts and minds for His sake and for the sake of all who are watching!

[Shammu]

Look beyond the blessing!

Psalm 3:8 Salvation belongeth unto the LORD: thy blessing is upon thy people.

Jesus told His disciples to go into the deep waters and let down their nets for fish. When they did, their nets were filled up with fish to the point of breaking. Being fishermen and businessmen, they may have been tempted to start doing business. I mean, think how much they could make!

But God had a different purpose. The disciples' occupation as fishermen was just a vehicle for God to demonstrate His great power and love. He wasn't blessing them with fish so that they would get excited about fishing -- He was blessing them with fish so that they could get their eyes off their fishing and on to the greater call He had for them! Thankfully, they left the fishing business and went off with the Lord to do great and mighty things.

Too many of us are wrapped up in fish. We seek the Lord for His blessings, prosperity, and success. But true discipleship is focusing not on the blessings of the Lord, but on the Lord of the blessings!

We can rejoice in our blessings, but let's not dwell on them! Let's set our eyes on the Lord and the calling He has for us. When He sees that we have pure and willing hearts, He will be faithful to use us to accomplish His glorious plan!

[Shammu]

Grow up!

Revelation 5:10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

Ever use that phrase on your kids? "Come on, will you grow up already?!"

As our little three year old explorer, Elianna, is becoming more agile and able to communicate her desires, she's discovering more opportunities each day -- climbing on the furniture, opening the refridgerator and asking for various items, reaching things she was never able to reach before, whew! She's experiencing her new freedom and we're experiencing major exhaustion! But we've noticed that with her new found freedom comes the desire to have even more freedom -- and when something doesn't go quite the way she wants when she wants it, uh - oh, look out. Screaming, crying the whole nine yards. We are trying to teach her that this kind of behavior is not acceptable but it seems that she won't fully understand that concept until she "grows up" a bit.

One sign of maturity is the ability to delay gratification, or deny it completely. Wanting our way when we want it is childish behavior and doesn't work with God's plan for an anointed life! This may sound harsh, but I'm speaking to myself too!

There are no shortcuts to God. We cannot demand our way and our timing with Him. He has a perfect plan based upon His desires and His timing and if we want to go God's way, we must comply! And not only that, the things of God take time too -- developing a strong and annointed prayer life takes time a focused mind and spent with the Father, it doesn't come overnight. Reading and understanding the Word and applying it to our lives, it takes time and much practice!

Let's grow up today. God wants us to be a mature bride -- one ready to rule with Him when He comes!

[Shammu]

Welcome the wrecking ball!

2 Corinthians 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

Some of the wealthiest individuals in the United States are real estate developers. They make their money by buying a piece of property that is terribly run down, seemingly useless, without any value to the naked eye and reforming it completely, making it look brand new! These businessmen are not as much interested in what is on the property as they are interested in the land it's on!

So it is with God and us. He's not at all interested in what we've built with our lives -- he's not interested in our wealth or the diplomas we've acquired or the name we've made for ourselves. He wants to completely renovate us! He has a vision for our lives much greater than we can imagine. All He needs is for us to give up our land so that He can go to work and start rebuilding!

We're an old warehouse, slated for the wrecking ball! And we have the opportunity to be renewed today. Let's give Him our lives yet again.

[Shammu]

Beware of your thoughts!

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Picture this -- you come home from a long day of work -- you walk into your living room -- plop down on your couch in exhaustion -- and there in the corner of the room -- your eyes are drawn to something moving -- it's a rattlesnake! Do you say to yourself, "Oh, I'm too tired to worry about that now, I'll deal with it later?" Of course not! You'd jump up right away, find a bat or something of the like, alert your family, call the neighbors, call 911, call the fire department and who knows what else! It's a life-threatening situation!

In the same way, we need to consider it an emergency when a negative thought enters our minds! We immediately need to jump up, put our armour on, alert others and ask for help if needed and take cover in the promises of God! When those unrighteous thoughts enter our minds, we must deal with them immediately -- lest they linger and fester -- and before we know it, poison our entirety.

Sadly this is a battle that continuously rages on. We must renew our minds daily -- and even hourly in order to remain in a place of peace. Let's not wait 'till the enemy has us in his grip! Let's put him in his place at the first sign of attack!

[Shammu]

Let us sit together!

1 John 4:20-21 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.

A very sad news story from Wales tells of a feud in a church looking for a new pastor. It reads: "Yesterday the two opposition groups both sent ministers to the pulpit. Both spoke simultaneously, each trying to shout above the other. Both called for hymns, and the congregation sang two—each side trying to drown out the other. Then the groups began shouting at each other. Bibles were raised in anger. The Sunday morning service turned into a bedlam. Through it all, the two preachers continued trying to out shout each other with their sermons." Eventually a deacon called the police. Two officers came in shouting for the congregation to quiet down, and began to direct them to leave the premises immediately. The rivals filed out, still arguing.

Ugggh. I think we can all agree that this behavior is ridiculous. But how often do we rival with our brothers and sisters in the Lord? Yet the Lord's second most important commandment remains: love your neighbor as yourself!

If we can't sit at the same table down here, how will we ever be able to sit together at the glorious table with Him up there? Let's work out our issues and strive to love one another as He has loved us.

[Shammu]

Are you in love?

1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

Have you ever noticed that when people are in love, they tend to forget everything else? Everything becomes secondary -- cars, houses, money -- nothing matters -- it is all secondary to love. Then, when they fall out of love, as in a divorce, all of a sudden those things mean everything! They argue about all the little meaningless things they ever owned together. Each wants it all for himself.

The same is true with the Lord. Before we know Him, all we really have are possessions. But when we come to know God -- truly know Him -- those things mean very little -- we're in love! We're willing to give up everything. Those people who are most in love with God and filled with His love are the least possessive and the least materialistic.

If we have been wrapped up in our possessions, we've lost sight of our greatest treasure! All that stuff means nothing. Let go of it. Return to your first love. Lighten your heart and fall in love again with the love of God!

[Shammu]

Hop on and take a ride through the country!

Proverbs 15:15 All the days of the afflicted are evil: but he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast.

A new driver for an interstate trucking company was having a difficult time. He found the long cross-country trips extremely tiring. The older driver who traveled with him, however, seemed to thrive on those long trips. He always seemed to look as fresh at the end of the ride as he did at the beginning.

One day, the young man asked the older what his secret was. "Well, it's really all in the way you look at it," he replied. "While you went to work this morning, I went for a ride through the country."

Our focus will determine whether life is work or a ride in the country. We are privileged to be here in this day and age. God is doing awesome things right before our eyes and He’s allowing us to take part!

Let's get excited about taking a ride with the Lord today! He has great things to show us and teach us along the way!

[Shammu]

Hoping for a visitation?

Matthew 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

There was a knock on Megan's door but she opened it only to find a note. It read:

I'm going to be in your neighborhood today and I would like to visit you.
Love Jesus

She couldn't believe her eyes. Jesus was coming to visit her? But her place was a mess, she still needed to shower and she didn't even have anything good to serve Him in the house. She quickly hurried out to the corner grocery store, bought a few items and headed back to clean and prepare.

On her way home, a homeless man called out. "Hey lady, I'm hungry, got anything in there for me?" She contemplated for a moment, and then replied "Really, sir, I'd like to help you, but I'm having a very important guest to prepare for -- maybe next time." "No problem -- thanks anyway," He said.

A part of her felt bad for the poor guy, but the feeling passed quickly. The Lord was coming and she had so much to do! As she approached her house, she noticed another note on the door.

Dearest Meg,
It was good seeing you today on your way home. I was really hungry, and hoping to have a meal with you, but maybe next time.
Loving you always,
Jesus

Let's open our eyes! There are so many needs around us and if we have not done it to the very least of His brethren, we've not done it unto Him! The Lord is visiting us today and we don't want to miss Him!

[Shammu]

Speak up already!

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

An elderly woman returned to her home from an evening of Church services when she was startled by an intruder. She had caught a man in the act of robbing her home of its valuables. "Stop!" she yelled, "Acts 2:38!" (Repent and be baptized, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven).

The burglar stopped dead in his tracks and froze while the woman calmly called the police and explained the situation. As the officer was cuffing him, he asked the burglar, "Just out of curiosity, why did you just stand there? All the old lady did was yell a scripture at you." "Scripture?!" gasped the burglar. "She said she had an ax... and two 38's!!"

It's a funny joke, yes, but on a serious note -- I think we often underestimate the power of the Word of God! We have the source so very close -- its right at our fingertips and should be right on our lips! Yet, we neglect to declare it over our circumstances, that we may see the victory!

Let's make it a point to start spending regular time in the Word, learning it and speaking it over our lives again and again! We need to be a walking testimony of His power and victory

[Shammu]

Shana tova oo-metukah!

Isaiah 43:19 Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

Tonight begins one of the highest holy days of all the feasts of the bible, Rosh ha Shana (Head of the Year). According to Jewish tradition, Rosh haShana is the Day of Judgment, the day when the righteous have their names inscribed in the Book of Life and the wicked are judged for their transgressions. It is a day to commemorate the creation of the world, the creation of mankind, and the Akeida, the binding of Isaac to the altar. On this day only the ram's horn (or the shofar) is blown in synagogues all over the world to commemorate the ram that was provided in lieu of Isaac's life and call us to repentance.

After the sound of the Shofar, many eat apples dipped in honey and say "shana tova oo-metuka" (to a good and sweet new year)!

For those of us who know Jesus, this is a day to remember our sweet redemption in Him. Every portion of Scripture that is read and remembered in this service paints a beautiful portrait of our salvation in Jesus our Messiah, Yeshua haMashiach.

This is a time of conception of goals and aspirations of things we desire to attain for His Kingdom during the next year. It is a time to pray for the world to unite and press forward under the banner of Messiah. It is a day of salvation for all mankind both Jew and Gentile alike.

Let's take this opportunity to crown Him as King of our lives once again and determine to live every breath, every moment, every day for His honor and glory in this new year of 5768!