Devotion: Put God First

Most of us claim to love God and put him first in our heart, or at least this is what we believe to be true.

“Master, which is the great commandment in the law?  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  This is the first and great commandment” (Matthew 22:26-38).

Jesus tells us that loving God with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mind is the first and the greatest commandment.  But did you know that you could love God with all of these things, your heart, your soul, and your mind, and still not put God first in your heart?  Yes, it is truly possible to do both.  So many believers love God with all their heart, soul, and mind, yet God does not have first place in their life.  We find the reason for this explained in “The Parable Of The Sower.”

“And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine, ‘Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: and it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.  And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: but when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.  And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some a hundred’” (Mark 4:2-8).

The sower sows seed, which according to scripture is “the word of God” (Mark 4:14), into the hearts of the believer, who faithfully receive it, but then they “allow the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things to enter in their heart” (Mark 4:19).  It is these things that believers tend to give first place to in their hearts instead of the things of God.  It happens day in and day out.  This does not mean that these people love God any less or are doing sinful things; it just means that they have focused their attention on other things and have no longer put God first in their hearts, so the word of God is choked from their hearts.

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee” (Isaiah 26:3).  “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7).  “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23).

Instead of “keeping our mind stayed upon God, which will keep us in perfect peace,” as is stated in scripture, we keep our mind stayed upon the things of the world, the things that everyday living brings about.  We focus our attention on family, friends, and work, in no particular order and tend to put God “on the back burner or in the back seat.”  We tend to think about this situation and that situation going on in our life, we focus on this tragedy and that tragedy, and we get caught up in this daily struggle and that daily struggle, eventually meditating on these things day and night, which ultimately produces doubt, fear, discouragement, and unbelief.  These are the things that we now give first place and because we think on these things in our heart.  These are the things that we become because “as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.”  We become depressed become we think on depressing things.  We are fearful, because we think on fearful things.  We are discouraged because we think on discouraging things.  We have doubt and unbelief because we allow them to come into our hearts and then we think on them, “for out of the heart come the issues of life and it determines the course of your life.”

“And now, brothers, as I close this letter, let me say this one more thing: Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right.  Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others.  Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about” (Philippians 4:8).  “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” (Matthew 6:33 NLT).

Finally, we are to think on these things instead, those things that are true, honorable, right and just.  We should think on those things that are pure, lovely, admirable, and are of good report.  Think on those things of virtue, things that are excellent and worthy of praise.  And about all, think on those things that you can praise God for and give praise to God for them.  We are to seek first the kingdom of God, putting his work first, above all other things that we may do.  We are to live righteous, doing all that God wants us to do.  And when we have done these things, all of the other things will be ours as well, for God will give us everything else we need.  When we think on these things and seek first the kingdom of God, we put God first in our heart, we keep our mind stayed on him, and we guard our heart with all diligence, which keeps us in perfect peace.

We pray that today’s inspirational message will give you a new perspective on what it means to “put God first.”  We also pray that this message will bless you, inform you, and that you will be the better for having read it.  If blessed by this message, please share so that others may be blessed as well.  Amen.

Enjoy your blessings - KW

Devotion: Delay Is Not Denial

There has always been some question in the minds of most believers as to how God answers our prayers.  We have been taught that God is always faithful to answer our prayers, but we have been told that God answers some prayers with a “Yes,” some prayers with a “No” or so it seems sometimes, and other prayers with a “Wait.”  Is this really how God answers our prayers?  Does he really tell us “No” or to “to wait” or is this something that has been created by man to console ourselves when we do not get that immediate, desired answer from God?

For the answer to these questions, let us turn to a prayer by Daniel, who was seeking wisdom on a prophesy that Jeremiah had given to the children of Israel that said they would be held in captivity for seventy years (Jeremiah 25:11-12; 29:10).  The time had passed and it looked like the prophesy was not going to come true so Daniel prayed seeking revelation from God.

“And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God; yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.  And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding.  At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to show thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision” (Daniel 9:20-23).

We see from this passage that while Daniel was still praying, the answer to his prayer was so immediate that it interrupted his prayer.  God had sent forth the angel Gabriel to deliver the answer to Daniel’s prayer.  Besides giving Daniel the answer to his prayer, we also note that Gabriel explained to Daniel that when he first began to pray, the commandment came forth for Gabriel to come forth and show him the answer to his request.  We see from the onset of Daniel’s prayer, God immediately answered his prayer and within a matter of minutes, the answer manifested itself in the form of the angel Gabriel.  By the way, the answer was seventy weeks of years or seven times seventy years (490 years in all) (Daniel 9:24).  But Daniel had a second prayer, but with this prayer, Daniel prayed and fasted for three full weeks (Daniel 10:1-2).  Why was such a delay in God answering this prayer?  Had he somehow told Daniel to “wait?”

“And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.  And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent.  And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.  Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.  But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.  Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days” (Daniel 10:10-14).

We see from this passage that while Daniel prayed this time for three full weeks, the angel told him that from the first day that he had set his heart to understand, God heard his prayer and the commandment came forth for this angel to come forth and show him the answer to his request.  We see from the onset of Daniel’s prayer, God immediately answered his prayer, but for some reason this answer took three weeks to manifest.  Why was there a delay of three weeks for this prayer and manifestation for the previous prayer received immediately?  According to the angel, it the prince of the kingdom of Persia or a demonic entity that delayed him one and twenty days or three weeks and it was not until the angel Gabriel came to help him that he was able to get free and come to make Daniel understand what would befall the children of Israel.  From this, we see from this prayer that the delay was not of God but of a demonic force.

“And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him” (I John 5:14-15).  “For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us” (II Corinthians 1:20).

Scripture tells us that we can now have this confidence in knowing that if we ask any thing according to his will, he hears us and knowing that he hears any request that is according to his will, whatever the request, we have the petitions that we have asked of him.  But here is the icing on the cake, all of the promises of God and any thing based on the word of God are “Yes” and “Amen.”  God simply does not answer “No” to our prayers, however, he just doesn’t answer, honor, or listen to any request that is not in his will.  As for the delays being or not being denials, we see that had Daniel not stood on his faith and on the promise of God for three weeks, waiting for the manifestation, “the delay” may have been seen as “a denial.”  But now that you know the truth, knowing that God answers all prayers that are according to his will, immediately, how will this knowledge change the way you view prayer?  Will you now preserve one and twenty days or one and twenty years?

We pray that this inspirational message will be a blessing to you as well as informative.  If blessed by this message, please share so that others may be blessed as well.  Amen.

Enjoy your blessings - KW

Devotion: Prayer Strengthens You

Prayer is always an interesting subject because of the many aspects associated with the process.  We know from previous discussions, prayer is nothing more than how we communicate with God.  We now know that prayer will also strengthen us.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank him for his answers.  If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand.  His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7 TLB).

Worrying causes stress and stress can causes all kinds of other issues, mainly issues that can affect our health.  Instead of worrying about things, we are told to pray about everything.  And when we pray, we will experience God’s peace, which will keep our thoughts and our heart quiet and at rest.

“Pray without ceasing.  In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (I Thessalonians 5:17-18).

We are told to pray without ceasing.  As we know, prayer is just a conversation between God and us, so basically God is telling us to “communicate with him without ceasing.”  God is telling us that we should not cease to be in constant contact with him, constantly having a conversation with him, which will allow us to experience his peace.

“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” (Romans 12:12 NIV)

Prayer should always be our first response to everything and never used as our last resort because we have become desperate and run out of options.  We should devote ourselves to prayer and to being in constant communication with God.  Prayer, that constant communication with God can actually strengthen your faith.

“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.  They shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31 TLB).

We should never underestimate the power of prayer, especially when we do it the way God wants us to do it.  Prayer can renew our strength.  Cease not to pray.  Cease not to constantly communicate with God.  Prayer, constant communication with God, will strengthen us.

We pray that this inspirational message will be a blessing to you as well as informative.  If blessed by this message, please share so that others may be blessed as well.  Amen./span>

Enjoy your blessings - KW

Devotion: If You Don’t Know What To Believe

Each day we struggle with what to believe, questioning whether what we hear is of God or of the devil.  While there appears to be some ambiguity in the minds of many about God, we wanted to know who this God is that so many claim to serve.  Since we were tired of being tossed back and forth, going this way and that, turned about by every wind of doctrine and teaching of man (Ephesians 4:14), we decided to search the scriptures for ourselves to see what God has said about himself.  We found that the God we are supposed to serve tells us to put our trust in him.

“Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord.  For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.  Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.  For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit” (Jeremiah 17:5-8).

Because we do not know who God is, then our faith and our trust ends up being misplaced.  We place more trust in mortal man, who can turn our hearts away from God than we place in trusting the actual word of God.  God tells us to “study to show thyself approved” so that we can “rightly dividing the word of truth” (II Timothy 2:15).  Scripture tells us that this “word of truth is given to tell you what to believe (for doctrine), what is wrong (for reproof), how to correct wrong (for correction), how to live (for instruction in righteousness).  You are to rely on the word of truth because it includes everything needed to grow in maturity, to be perfect (meaning proficient or capable), and to do what God wants” (II Timothy 3:16-17).

What must we do if we don’t know what to believe?  If you don’t know what to believe, then we suggest that you find out the truth for yourself.  Search the scriptures for yourself because the word of truth contains all you need, so that you will know what to believe and what not to believe.  We pray that today’s inspirational message will bless you and that you will share it so that others may be blessed as well.  Amen.

Enjoy your blessings - KW

Devotion: Fight The Good Fight Of Faith

One of the biggest enemy’s in “fighting the good fight of faith” is what is called “sense-knowledge.”  “Sense-knowledge” is the kind of knowledge that is based on physical evidence.  This enemy forces us to concentrate only on those things that can be perceived by our five senses.  We only believe those things that we can see, taste, smell, hear, or touch.  “Sense-knowledge” requires us to rely upon physical evidence as the motivator for our belief system, which in turn drives our faith in God.  By allowing this enemy to grow within us, we in turn, place our trust only in “the witness of the senses or what the senses are telling us.”  But is this the kind of faith that God requires of us?

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).

We know from scripture that faith actually provides substance or assurance and then evidence.  There is not a lot of difference between assurance and evidence other than the qualifiers for each of them, which involves hope and realities that are unseen, respectively.  Everything in our life that we have learned has come through our five senses or through “sense-knowledge.”  However, “the God kind of faith” is not at all perceived by the senses.  Faith is actually the evidence of the thing hoped for, the evidence that the thing exists but it is not the thing itself.  Faith is the substance or the tangibility of hope.  While hope cannot change your circumstances, it can change your attitude about the circumstances.  Hope is a goal setter and faith is the way to achieve the goal.  You see, we do not need evidence to believe in something that we can physically see, taste, smell, hear, or touch.  The thing itself provides the evidence of the thing’s existence.  Faith is the evidence that something does exists regardless of the witness of the senses or what the senses are telling us.  Again, “the God kind of faith” is not perceived by any of the senses.

“For we walk by faith, not by sight” (II Corinthians 5:7).  “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (II Corinthians 4:18).

In order to walk by faith, we must leave the world of the senses.  As we walk by faith, we leave behind what our senses are telling us and completely trust God.  This is key component to “the God kind of faith,” completely trusting in him.  When we take up this walking by faith, our mind is not focused on the things that can be seen.  Our mind is not focused on the troubles around us.  The things that are seen or perceived by our senses are temporary in nature and can only be seen for a time.  When we walk by faith, our mind should be focused on those things that cannot be seen, for the things that are not seen or perceived by our senses are eternal and everlasting.  Some people will disagree with this assessment because their faith is based one hundred percent on their “sense-knowledge” or what some would call “head faith.”  Again, this type of faith requires one to rely upon physical evidence as the motivator for his or her belief system, which in turn drives his or her faith in God.  When we walk by faith, we are not walking by our senses when it comes to the things of God.  This is the kind of faith that God requires of us, this is that “God kind of faith.”

“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses” (I Timothy 6:12).

In all of this, we see that faith contingent upon “sense-knowledge” or “head faith” has several limitations and can become a hindrance to our faith.  Focusing our mind on only those things that we can see, taste, smell, hear, or touch or physical evidence will limit or hinder our faith and is just another one of the many enemies to our faith that we need to overcome in our efforts to “fight the good fight of faith.”

Today’s inspirational message just might give you a new perspective on what it means to “fight the good fight of faith.”  We pray that this message will bless you, inform you, and that you will be the better for having read it.  If blessed by this message, please share so that others may be blessed as well.  Amen.

Enjoy your blessings. - KW

Devotion: Have A Happy Life

“The good life is the healthful life, the merry life.  Life is health, joy, laughter” (Jean Bodlin).

Everyone wants to have a good life, a life that is healthful and merry.  Is it possible to have a happy life?  What must we do to have a good life?

“The thief cometh not (except), but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10: 10).  “Beloved, I wish above all things (I pray in all things) that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth” (III John 1:2).  “For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:  let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it” (I Peter 3:10-11).  “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof” (Proverbs 18:21).  “My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.  Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.  For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh” (Proverbs 4:20-22).  “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth or straight) thy paths.  Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.  It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones” (Proverbs 3:5-8).

Jesus came so that we might have life, and in having this life, we might have it in greater measure and more abundantly.  A life where above all things, all is well, we prosper and are in good health just as our soul prospers because of the word of God.  Yes, this is true.  However, if we want to be happy and have a good life, we must be very careful of what we say.  We must learn to control our tongue.  We know that death and life are in the power of your tongue; therefore, we must learn to use it, that being our tongue, wisely.  We must guard our lips from telling lies, turn away from evil, do what is good, and above all, live in peace.<

God tells us that if we listen carefully and give ear to his sayings, keeping them in the midst of our hearts and mind not allowing them not to depart from our eyes, then we will find that God words are life unto those who find them and health to all their flesh.  We must immerse ourselves in his word; we must hunt for, look for, and seek the answers that he has provided us through his instruction manual.  In all of this, we must open our mind, open our heart, and seek the wisdom of God that we may see the truth; the truth that he has been trying to reveal to us for many years.  Just maybe, these are the only words that we should allow our tongues to speak.

In all that we do, we must trust in the Lord with all our heart, putting God first, and then, he will make straight our way and crown our efforts with success.  We are to turn from evil and be not proud of your own wisdom, but instead, trust and reverence the wisdom of the Lord and as we do, this will be health to our body and strength to our bones.  We are to rely on the word of God because it includes everything needed to grow in maturity, to be perfect (meaning proficient or capable), and to do what God wants (II Timothy 3:16-17).  This type of life is a godly life, a healthful life, and merry life, and truly is a more abundant life.

As always, we pray that our inspirational message will abundantly bless you, greatly inform you, and that you will be the better for having read it.  If blessed by this message, please share so that others may be blessed as well.  Amen.

Enjoy your blessings. - KW

Devotion: Don’t Wait For Tomorrow

One of the biggest misconceptions in the world is the belief that “there is plenty of time for someone to get right with God.”  So most people put it off and put it off and put it off until, in many cases, “it is too late.”  Part of the reason so many put off this “act of getting right with God” is because they love the darkness more than they love the light.  People enjoy living in their darkness, living in their sins, doing the lustful things that they are doing more than they want to come to the light.

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.  God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.  There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him.  But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son.  And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil.  All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.  But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants” (John 3:16-21 NLT).

God loved us so much that he sent forth his son to save anyone who would leave the darkness and come to the light.  Because there is this kind of “euphoric high” associated with the darkness, many continue trying to satisfy their sinful flesh nature much like an addict seeking to satisfy that “relentless itch.”  The “itch” that we speak of here is that desire to obtain the “same level of sinful pleasure” or in the case of the addict, the “same level of intoxication” from their first experience with the darkness.  They stay in the darkness, sinking further and further into the abyss, seeking to obtain the unobtainable.  But there is a price associated with being in the darkness.

“For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

Here is the interesting thing about being in the darkness, you can choose to stay in the darkness, living in the pleasures associated with being there, but you cannot choose the consequences.  The consequence, the payment, and/or the wage that is earned for playing in the darkness is “death.”

“But what does it say?  “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.  For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame” (Romans 10:8-11 ESV).

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you can be freed from the allure and the addiction of the darkness.  You need only “speak the word and believe” in order to come to the light.

“I am the door.  If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.  I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.  I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:9-11 ESV).  “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12 ESV).  “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6).

Jesus is the way.  Jesus is the truth.  Jesus is the life.  Jesus is the door, the way to leave the darkness.  So, before you take your last, make that confession unto salvation and come to the light.  If you continue to wait, if you continue to wait for tomorrow, it could be too late.  Do not wait for tomorrow.

May our inspirational message abundantly bless you and greatly inform you.  We pray that you will be the better for having read it.  If blessed by this message, please share so that others may be blessed as well.  Amen.

Enjoy your blessings. - KW