Category: Devotions

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Daily Devotion

Follow Directions

‘But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”’ John 2:5

On my desk, on a little apple that I got at one of the career fairs I recruited at, I have a list of 5 things for a “Great, Blessed Day”. Attached to my monitor stand I have a variation of that list with a different title, “Steps To A Good Day”. I noticed that I have these directions for myself to avoid being angry or in a bad mood, that I don’t always follow. Here are the two lists:

Steps for a Great Blessed Day
1. Seek God first. (Matt 6:33)
2. Be positive. Find the good in every situation. (1 Thess 5:16)
3. Stop worrying. (Matt 6:34)
4. Realize that there are things for which you have no control.(Col 3:15)
5. Have faith, believe you have received it, and let it go.(Mark 11:24)
“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” John 15:7

Steps To A Good Day
1. Remember you are blessed and highly favored(Prov 3:4, Prov 8:35)
2. God never puts more on you than you can bear (Matt 11:28, 1Cor 10:13)
3. God will give you the desires of your heart if His word resides in you. (Jn 15:7)
4. Have faith! (Mark 11:22, Matt 21:21, Heb 10:39)

Yes surprisingly I was able to find scriptures in support of all I have written, but honestly I didn’t follow the directions I set for myself. I allowed the things that happened some days to dictate how I would feel. I did not follow these basic, simple directions. I let my mind tell me what to do—obviously that did not work because plenty of days I would leave agitated or aggravated.

That is one of the first things we are taught to do in school. Follow directions. On homework assignments, in class, in dealing with other people, following directions is stressed. If you follow the directions on the assignment, you are likely to get a good grade. So why don’t we carry that over into our spiritual lives? Why don’t we do what God tells us to do? Why don’t we listen to Him like we listened to teachers and bosses? I won’t dare say parents because we all have disobeyed our parents at some point or another, or we have even done something we saw them doing. Why don’t we do what GOOD doctors say? For the men folk: why don’t we even follow the directions for putting something together?

If you read the passage John 2:1-11, you will see that the servants above followed Jesus’ directions and brought the wedding party the best wine afterwards. They did exactly what He said.

It is in our natural, fleshly behavior to be disobedient. Like a teenager, it is second nature to rebel against the instructions of a parent. How can you expect breakthrough if you don’t do what God says? How can you expect any of God’s promises to hold true for you if you are disobedient! I’m definitely talking to myself, because I wake up nearly every morning at 6:15am and go back to sleep when I should get up! But I want to keep growing, keep progressing, and keep moving forward so I cannot do the same things and expect anything but the same results. It’s time to change and read the directions, and follow through this time around.

‘If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth.’ 1 John 2:4

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Daily Devotion

What are YOU allowing to Steer your Eternity?
 
"People won't be saying, 'Look! Here it is!' or 'There it is!' because now the kingdom of God is among you."  Luke 17:21
 
Hello everybody, and happy new year!  I had to think long and hard about this one because I want to be sure I have done everything that God wants me to do in His will.  We all have our vices or things that cripple us in life, but don't let them steer you in the wrong direction for eternity.  Salvation is a very important thing, and we are promised to eternity by accepting Christ. (John 3:16) Romans 6:22 says "But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life."  But how can you truly be in Christ if you are in the flesh, allowing fleshly things to run your life?  And by that I do not just refer to the things mentioned in Galatians 5:19-21 or Proverbs 6:16-19, but unforgiveness, bitterness, not caring for your neighbor or brother, etc.  Mainly unforgiveness–because unforgiveness of one minor thing turns into bitterness.  And Jesus says "But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." (Matthew 6:15)  Like pride or greed, unforgiveness in turn causes a lot of problems.  I will never forget the story about the ill man in the hospital.  His pastor came to pray for him.  He asked the man, "Do you want to be healed?"  The man said, "yes."  The pastor replied, "Then forgive."  The ill man said "No, I can't forgive, I can't."  The man died.
 
This particular scripture says that the kingdom of God is within us.  God has blessed us with His presence through the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is here to guide us, to help us through, to intercede for us, and to lead us.  But how can the Holy Spirit do His work if there are road blocks all within us?  Praying to God, staying in the presence of the Lord through prayer, being around mature Christians, and just yielding to and reverencing Him can change things.  You can let others see God shine through you.
 
Good night!

"For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time–to show us his grace through Christ Jesus."  2 Timothy 1:9