Psalm 121:1-4
I lift up my eyes to the hills – where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip – he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
Whether you are talking about the Rockies or the Appalachians, mountains and hills are a majestic sight. I can spend hours praising, worshiping, and praying to God when I am in the presence of such beauty. When I look at their splendor I cannot help but sense a power far greater than my own.
It is an awesome revelation that the God I am in relationship with is the Creator of those mountains. Greater still, He also created the stars I see wheeling over those peaks.
Yet, in spite of all that power, He wants to help me. Now that is a humbling thought! The God of the universe wants to be a part of my life.
Praise the Lord! He is my source and my strength. It is He who upholds and sustains me. I can rest in Him knowing that the path of my life is safe and secure in His loving hands.
Even though I get tired and fall asleep, the Lord does not have that weakness. That is a comforting thought. He is always awake and alert, watching over my life and helping it to conform to His Word.
Take the time today to thank God for His unfailing help and protection in your life. Give Him praise for His majesty and strength.
Tags: Bible, Christian, Creator, devotion, encouragement, God's faithfulness, help, Holy Spirit, holy worship, Jesus Christ, mountain, mountaintop, outdoors, praise, presence of the lord, problems, protection, sleep, strength, trust, wilderness
Mark 2:23
One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain.
On one of His journeys, the Lord and His disciples passed through a field of grain. As they went through they began to pick and eat some of the heads of wheat. This was something the Law of Moses allowed so that a traveler could have something to eat along the way.
This reminds me of a time when I was hiking a trail up Mt. Everett in southwestern Massachusetts. As I neared the top I suddenly came into a stand of high bush blueberries. Each bush was overflowing with ripe fruit. Without even bending over I was able to grab a handful at a time and pop them into my mouth. What a great snack God had provided!
God always desires to refresh the weary traveler. He provides a bounty in the wilderness. This is especially true along the path of life. God wants to keep your spirit fresh and vibrant.
Our job is to keep our eyes open and to look for these times of refreshing. They could happen anywhere and at any time.
Spend a few moments right now thanking God for His abundant provision. Give Him praise for the times of encouragement you have received in the past. Ask Him to give you a sensitive spirit so that you can recognize the signs of His presence all around you as you continue your journey.
Tags: Bible, Christian, devotion, distractions, encouragement, faith, God's faithfulness, goodness, Holy Spirit, mountain, overcoming, path, presence of the lord, refreshing, traveler
I Kings 19:5-8
Then he [Elijah] lay down under the tree and fell asleep.
All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” He looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.
The angel of the LORD came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.
While he was on the very edge of despair, Elijah received sustenance from the Lord. As he was running away from the stress in his life, God provided him with supernatural food to sustain him. God knew that the journey before him was too much for his flesh to handle. So, He provided what Elijah needed.
I will let you in on a secret. If you are following God’s plan for your life, then your journey is more than you can take. You will need this supernatural food to strengthen you.
That is why your life experience must have a spiritual side to it. Meeting with God in a quiet place is one of the most powerful, life-changing events you could ever plan for. Don’t neglect your spiritual food.
Take the time to find nourishment for your soul in the Lord’s presence. Cast your burdens upon Him and allow His strength to revive your spirit.
Tags: Bible, Christian, despair, devotion, Elijah, encouragement, enemies, faith, God's faithfulness, God's will, mountain, overcoming, presence of the lord, problems, spiritual food, strength
I Kings 19:3-4
Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day’s journey into the desert. He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.”
Elijah is probably one of the most powerful Old Testament figures. Through him, God performed incredible miracles to turn Israel around. Yet at this point in his life he was ready to throw in the towel. He actually prayed for God to take his life.
What could cause such an uncompromising individual to leave the race? The answer lies in the first line. “Elijah was afraid.” The evil queen, Jezebel, had ordered his arrest and execution. Fear had gripped his heart in spite of the presence of God in his life.
How many times do we lose sight of our calling when faced with the overwhelming problems of life? We need to take the same path that Elijah took – but not the same attitude. We need to run to the place of solitude with God and pour out our heart in prayer.
Just like Elijah, we need to admit our faults and failings. Only the Lord is able to meet the need of our inner man.
Use this time to seek the Lord’s help for the challenges you face. Confess your failures and trials. God stands ready to enfold you in His arms. Allow His strength to work in you the restoration that is needed.
Tags: afraid, attitude, Bible, calling, Christian, devotion, distractions, Elijah, encouragement, enemies, faith, fear, giving up, God's faithfulness, God's will, Jezebel, mountain, mountaintop, overcoming, presence of the lord, problems
Acts 9:3-6
As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
We all make mistakes. The unfortunate thing is, that sometimes we compound these mistakes by going off into a totally wrong direction.
In this section of Scripture we find that Saul (later to become Paul the Apostle) has become self-deceived. He thought that by persecuting the church, he was in the center of God’s will for his life.
It took a wilderness journey and a voice from heaven to knock him off his horse and break through his defenses. Apparently there was no other way to get through to him. He needed to be shaken up in order for God to get his attention.
As we spend time in the wilderness we should be open for the Lord to wake us up and turn our lives around. Every once in a while God has a life altering event waiting for you just around the next corner. We need to be prepared and open for these heavenly interruptions.
As you go before the Lord today, make sure that you reaffirm your intention to obey Him no matter what comes your way. Let Him know that you will remain true to Him even if it calls for you to change your plans.
Tags: attention, Bible, calling, Christian, devotion, disciple, faith, God's faithfulness, God's will, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, light, mistakes, path, Paul, persecution, presence of the lord, Saul, self-deceived, wake up call
Psalm 36:5-6
Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. O LORD, you preserve both man and beast.
The majesty of nature is indescribable. I have taken pictures and videos of mountains, lakes, and rivers that have left me breathless. Yet when I return home and look at them, they don’t come close to the experience of actually being there. Nothing gives you the sense of wonder like standing in the wild and experiencing the real thing.
It is the same with God’s love, His faithfulness, His righteousness, and His justice. You can read about it in the Bible. You can tell about how God has poured them into your life. Yet, until someone actually experiences these things for themselves, they will never really understand the full impact.
God is a person. He can be described and read about. But there is only one way to fully appreciate His awesome majesty. You must come face to face with Him for yourself.
Take the time to enter the presence of the Lord. Worship and praise Him for who He is and what He has done in your life. Let His majesty overwhelm you the same as a view of mountains and lakes. Experience God today in the beauty of His holiness.
Tags: Bible, Christian, devotion, experience, glory, God's faithfulness, Holy Spirit, holy worship, majesty, mountain, presence of the lord
Psalm 78:19
They spoke against God, saying, “Can God spread a table in the desert?
Once again we find that Israel is complaining. They seemed to have spent most of their time angry and grumbling at God. Usually they didn’t even give God the opportunity to prove Himself before they went off on their own tirade.
In this instance they didn’t think that He was capable of feeding them all in the wilderness. They were complaining over what they saw as a short supply of food. God, however, once again proved that He was more than able to abundantly supply their needs.
Hopefully you have enough food as you read this. The truth is that our life is more than just being well fed physically. There is a deeper hunger that natural food, no matter how plentiful, cannot ever satisfy.
The issue I want to deal with today is not food for our body, but food for the soul. As with your body, God is equally able to feed your spiritual man. As we come into His presence each new day we can have a rich feast awaiting our soul. God has already provided everything we need for life and godliness. It is up to us to believe God and pull up to the table.
Spend some quality time with the Lord today. Let Him satisfy your inner hunger. Go your way rejoicing in the goodness and bounty of the Holy Spirit working in you. Find out for yourself that God can truly spread a table in the wilderness.
Tags: Bible, Christian, complaining, desert, devotion, encouragement, God's faithfulness, goodness, presence of the lord, spiritual food, wilderness
Lamentations 3:22-24
Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”
Never get the idea that God is just waiting for us to mess up so that He can strike us down. It is just the opposite. He is looking out for our best. The Lord wants each of us to experience the ultimate fulfillment in life.
To bring this about, He walks with us, guiding us each day – showing us compassion and faithfulness. Let’s face it, if it were God’s goal to judge us, He would not have to wait long for us to make a mistake. Each one of us has a personal history such that if He wanted to, the Lord could lock us in Hell and throw away the key.
The fact is, God has proven His intent through the death and resurrection of Christ. He loved us enough to go to the cross. He wouldn’t have done that if He was intent on condemning us.
Come to God today in a spirit of expectancy. Be ready to hear and obey His plans for your life. Wait on Him in the stillness of trust and dependancy. Spend some time just listening for that still, small voice inside you. It will be well worth your time.
Tags: Bible, Christian, devotion, encouragement, faith, God's faithfulness, God's love, Holy Spirit, holy worship, presence of the lord, trust, wrath
Isaiah 54:10
Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
They seem so powerful, so enduring. Their immense size and lofty construction give us the idea that they will last forever. Yet a viewing of the pictures of the Mount St. Helens tragedy illustrates how even a mountain can crumble at any time.
We, as human beings, tend to be impressed very easily. We are quick to use labels such as “always”, “never”, and “forever.” We seem to apply these to the most inappropriate parts of life – governments, economies, relationships, and so many other man-made institutions. The events of September eleventh proved the foolishness of that kind of thinking.
Don’t fall into the trap of assigning eternal value to temporary things. In spite of all this, there is a stable place in the world. Even though the seemingly unshakable can topple, God’s love, His covenant, and His compassion will never fail. They are established, eternal, and unshakable.
Meditate on the Lord’s faithfulness today. Give Him praise for His unchanging and unwavering love – that love which reaches down to us at our point of need. Spend time in the presence of the Eternal One today. Receive from Him what you need to be established in your way.
Tags: Bible, Christian, devotion, encouragement, established, eternal, faith, God's faithfulness, mountain, presence of the lord, temporary, unshakable
Psalm 18:31-33
For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights.
There is nothing like the feeling you get when you stand on a high summit overlooking all of creation. It is like you are king (or queen) over all you survey.
It is God’s desire for us to be victorious in life. He wants us to stand on the mountaintop events of our lives and know the thrill of the moment. Realize that the Lord rejoices over our accomplishments.
But during those “peak” experiences – whether an actual mountain or some other achievement – we need to acknowledge the Lord as our source of strength. We must follow the example of the Psalmist. It is obvious that he knows the joys of victory. But he also knows where that victory came from. He gives credit and honor to God as the One who enables him to do these exploits.
Today – look back on your journey and praise God for His hand at work in you. It is He who gives you the strength and guidance that you need to make it to the tops of your personal “mountains.” Show Him your gratefulness for all He has done in your life. In that way you will be prepared for the victories yet to come.
Tags: Bible, Christian, devotion, encouragement, God's faithfulness, gratefulness, mountain, mountaintop, overcoming, trust, victory
The Spirit and the Word 