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These devotions were originally posted on different sites......the URL for the site they were posted on originally will be with the devotion.
Devotions
The following devotions were originally posted onLovenGodLovenPastorsWives
Some are dated and some are not dated.
FAITH
June 11, 2002
Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
How exciting it is to live the Word. But all too often the only part of this verse we live is "now faith is not seen." I say that it is because too often when we face crisises, we are as full of anxiety and worry as the world is. We haven't yet learned that even if there isn't a miracle taking place in the midst of our troubles, God is still keeping us.To me faith is that wonderful calm assurance the three Hebrew children had, that even if God did not deliver them, he was STILL ABLE to do so, and they were still going to serve ONLY HIM. Faith is "evident" in our lives before the "substance of what is hoped for" ever materializes. It is evident by our own words, our actions and our peace of mind.If we can truly come to the place where we honestly believe that God CAN, we will find that God WILL. After all the blind man of Matthew 9:27-30 were healed "according to their faith" while they believed Jesus was "able" to heal them, and not necessarily would heal them. May your faith be alive and evident to the glory of God.
Pastor Dave
Dream Big
Week of 3-11-02
1Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.
I have always heard this verse taught as concerning Heaven. While I do believe that we will never be able to imagine what Heaven will be like, this verse holds much more than that. There is no hint here that we will have to wait for Heaven to experience the things God has prepared for us. We are serving an "exceedingly, abundantly, above what we are able to ask or think" God, so anything He has for us in this lifetime will go beyond our grasp. The exciting thing about this is that it pertains to ministry opportunities.No matter where we are, no matter how scarce our "harvest field" may appear, it doesn't even matter how large our vision is, it has not yet entered into our heart what God has prepared for us and is prepared to do in us and through us for His glory. This verse is one that makes prayer exciting because while we know what we are asking for, it hasn't enterted our heart how God will answer. Dream big, pray big, and let God exceed your expectations.
Pastor Dave
Choosing our Addictions
Week of March 17, 2002
In the world which we live today people are addicted to everything.
They are addicted to destructive things such as drugs and alcohol, and even to needful things such as food. But is addiction always a bad thing?
1Corinthians 16:15 "I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,)"
WOW!!! What a statement to have others make concerning you. How amazing would this be in the church today, especially in America with our attitude of self-promotion, and what's in it for me mentality, to have entire churches (they were located in houses then) to have a real need to minister to, or serve others. Can you imagine having the same overriding desire to reach out to someone with the love of Christ that a junkie has for a fix. The need to reach the lost with the gospel. The need to encourage a believer that is going through hell. The need to let God be God in you and through you. After all, this is the mind set that Jesus had when He said the He didn't come to be ministered to, but to minister, or serve. As leadership in the church today let us not think of ministry as simply standing behind a pulpit and teaching the Word of God, but let us come around in front of that pulpit and addict ourselve to serving those that God has entrusted into our care as five-fold ministry. God bless you as you minister not only in the power of the Holy Ghost, but in the love of God.
Pastor Dave
In a Hour you Think Not
This was written..in place of a full devotion, I included it here, because there are spiritual truths in it, no matter how short it is.
Matthew 24:44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such a hour as you think not the Son of man cometh.
And in a hour you think not Pastor Dave will update this page! The return of the Lord is a truth that has been taught since Jesus ascended that day leaving His disciples gazing at the clouds. His promise to return for His own hold just as true today as it did when He made it. Oh yes, we still have "last days scoffers, walking
after their own lusts, saying Where is the promise of His coming?", but just as sure as this page was updated the Lord Jesus is returning for a glorious church. It is time to not only prepare ourselves, as ministry we must remind the Body of Christ of this wonderful promise, and work together to bring in the harvest that Jesus told the disciples was in the field. Let's "bring in much fruit that the Father might be glorified". Pastor Dave
Great and Precious Promises
2Peter 1:4a Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious
promises:....
We must all agree that the promises that we have through Christ Jesus are truly "exceeding great and precious". Promises like salvation through the shed blood of Jesus. We've been promised
healing by the stripes of Jesus. We even have a peace that passes understanding in the troubles of life. So if these promises are ours, and if these promises are "yea and amen" as we are told in 2Cor. 1:20, why then are we not regularly walking in the "exceeding great and precious promises" of God?
I believe that for the most part what we receive from God is in direct proportion to the amount of pressure we put on the promise involved. We can see this in the case of blind Bartimaeus. Jesus came by with the promise of healing, but if
Bartimaeus had not continued to put pressure on the promise he would have missed his healing. We once had a pastor whose wife wasn't able to concieve. She knew that man was commanded by God to multiply, so she got scriptures where God opened wombs and
prayed those "promises" each day. Did it work? Well they have three grown children. Let's put pressure on the "exceeding great and precious" promises that God has given us by believing them to
be true even in the face of screaming opposition, and holding fast to the condition behind the promise. May you enjoy God's promises to you. Pastor Dave.
Bearing the Things of God
John 16:12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but
ye cannot bear them now.
In John 14-16 Jesus does some intense teaching on what
the work of the Holy Spirit will be in the lives of
believers. Knowing that His time on earth was short
Jesus sadly makes the statement recorded in John 16:12
"I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot
bear them now." God longs to give His children a better
understanding and a deeper revelation of the work of the
Spirit in our lives but all too often has to sadly make
the same statement to us today. The truth is that God
will not reveal to us that which will overwhelm us. So
how do we get to the place where we can "bear" the things
God is trying to tell us? By being obedient to the things
He has already said. Hebrews 5:11-14 "Of whom we have many
things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull
of hearing. For when for the time ye ought to be teachers,
ye have need that one teach you again which [be] the first
principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as
have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one
that useth milk [is] unskilful in the word of righteousness:
for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that
are of full age, [even] those who by reason of use have
their senses exercised to discern both good and evil." Strong
meat or deeper understanding goes to those who "by reason of
use" or by reason of obediance have their senses exercised to
disern both good and evil. Let us be obedient to the Word of
God and by "reason of use" teach those God has entrusted to us
to draw close to God that He might increase our ability to
"bear" His Word in faithfulness. ~Pastor Dave~
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