Exodus 13:17-18
When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for battle.
The best path is not always the shortest. Sometimes, the road you take is as important as the destination. As a matter of fact, if we wanted the quickest way between two points, we would have to fly like a bird!
We sometimes get frustrated with God because He doesn’t seem to be leading us to our destiny by the shortest route. As Israel had to learn, the shortest way may prove disastrous. God knew the road ahead and took them the way that would insure their survival. We need to trust God’s plan for our lives as well. It may be that the longer path is what’s needed for our ultimate victory.
Why are you taking the route you are on? That is not only a question you need to ask on the road, but also in life. What choices brought you to this place? Where does this road ultimately lead you? Is the destination worth the trip?
These are things to ponder in God’s presence as you free yourself of distractions. One of your goals should be to see where you’ve come from and where you are headed. That way you can make a course adjustment if necessary.
Spend time with the Lord today seeking His insight. Let Him share His mind with you. Remember, you might not be on the quickest path, but that doesn’t mean it is not the right one. Take the time today to establish God’s path as the final authority for your journey through life.
Tags: Bible, Christian, course adjustment, course change, course correction, destiny, devotion, disciple, distractions, encouragement, faith, God's will, overcoming, path, path of life, presence of the lord, questions, shortest route, trust, trusting God, victory
Isaiah 44:3-4
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams.
When I go hiking, I always prepare by reading what the trail guide says about the area. Many times I find these words concerning a campsite. “The spring may not be reliable in dry seasons.” Practically speaking then, what good is it? At the very time you’d need it the most – it’s gone.
Some of our friends are like that. Just when you need them the most they’re not around. Or, along the same lines, they promise to be somewhere to help you and then never show up.
This is not so with the Lord. He is the friend that “sticks closer than a brother.” He is always right there when you need Him. As a matter of fact, the Word says that He even knows what you need before you ask Him.
He is that spring in the wilderness that is always flowing, always reliable. Even in the driest point in your life, you can draw cool, refreshing water from that living well. He promised “never to leave us nor forsake us” and “He is not a man that He should lie.”
Draw life-giving water from that well today. Spend some quality time in His presence being renewed, refreshed and refilled. Avail yourself to the resources only the Lord can provide. You will find your walk with Him to be much more enjoyable.
Tags: Bible, Christian, devotion, dry season, encouragement, faith, God's faithfulness, Holy Spirit, living water, overcoming, praise, prayer, presence of the lord, refill, refresh, reliable, renew, revival, spring, strength, unreliable, victory, water, wilderness
1 Timothy 4:8
For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
Physical training and exercise is good. We need to be in shape if we want to do our best work for God. I firmly believe that God wants us to take proper care of our physical bodies.
That, however, is only part of the story. We also are to be in shape spiritually. Our inner being requires just as much care and attention as the outer. Unfortunately, most Christians ignore this fact to their own detriment. Of the two of these goals, I believe that keeping our spiritual life in shape is the tougher assignment.
One of the reasons I enjoy hiking so much is that wilderness training can meet both needs – physical and spiritual. On the one hand, I have lost thirty pounds since I started hiking and I can now run up a flight of stairs without breathing heavy. On the other side of the coin, through my time spent with the Lord in the woods I have developed a new depth of insight into the Word of God. In the wilderness, prayer and meditation can be accomplished for hours at a time with little or no interruptions. At the same time you are increasing your physical endurance.
However you choose to work out your spiritual training, this is a good day to deepen your walk with the Lord. Seek Him as you walk before God this day.
Tags: Bible, Christian, devotion, disciple, encouragement, godliness, hiking, Holy Spirit, in shape, meditation, overcoming, physical training, prayer, prepare, presence of the lord, spiritual, spiritual life, strength, victory
There is nothing worse than being lost. Confusion, fear and depression can take over. If you are not careful you can end up simply going in circles.
Life is the same way. There are thousands of conflicting paths that all intersect at our feet each morning. Without a guide we’re lost. How can we make sense of it all? Which path will bring us to the place we want to be?
Psalm 25:4-5
Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.
The Holy Spirit wants to lead us though the tangled network of choices that lay before us. Only He knows the outcome of each path, whether taken or not. He has the wisdom to bring us victoriously into the destiny God has prepared for each of us personally.
There is no better place to start hearing the voice of the Lord than in a quiet place of prayer each morning. Here you can be free of the distractions that are constantly begging for your attention. Use your time in the Lord’s presence to strengthen your relationship with Him. I know that you will find that it is time well spent, as your path grows clearer before you.
Tags: Bible, Christian, destiny, devotion, disciple, distractions, encouragement, God's leading, God's will, God's wisdom, guidance, Holy Spirit, leading, lost, path, prayer, prepare, presence of the lord, victory, wisdom
Psalm 72:3
The mountains will bring prosperity to the people, the hills the fruit of righteousness.
I have always thought this was an interesting verse. It tells us that the mountains will bring God’s people prosperity, the fruit of righteousness.
How can a mountain “bring” anything? It can’t unless we do something first. If it is to be an abundant harvest of crops, then the mountainside or hillside must be cultivated, planted, and harvested. If it is to be a spiritual harvest, then we must climb the mountain by prayer and intimacy with the Lord. Either way it will require an effort on our part.
The mountain cannot do it alone. We are expected to initiate the blessing. People talk about “mountaintop experiences”, but I don’t think they fully understand them. They think it’s just a happy time in their life. That’s not quite it. A spiritual mountaintop is a place of clarity in your walk with God. It is a time when you see that way ahead and have a renewed vision for your destiny. This is the basis of true prosperity.
Seek out these mountaintop times with the Lord. Find a quiet time and place to prepare your soul to hear from the Lord. You can be changed in His life-giving presence. You can receive a new abundance in your life that you have never known before.
Spend time with the Lord today. Have a “mountaintop” experience. Come down from that place refreshed and renewed in your inner man.
Tags: Bible, calling, Christian, clarity, devotion, distractions, encouragement, glory, God's will, harvest, higher, Holy Spirit, intimacy, intimacy with God, mountain, mountaintop, power, prayer, prepare, presence of the lord, prosperity, revival, spiritual mountain, victory, vision
Psalm 65:9-12
You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly. The streams of God are filled with water to provide the people with grain, for so you have ordained it. You drench its furrows and level its ridges; you soften it with showers and bless its crops. You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance. The grasslands of the desert overflow; the hills are clothed with gladness.
Most people don’t like dark, rainy days. Too many of them in a row tends to bring on depression. In the same way we don’t like trouble and testing. We even call days of trial “dark days.”
No one is exempt from testing, however. We must all face our own particular trials. But remember, as we face resistance, we gain strength.
If I want to have a beautiful lawn or garden, then it must be watered. Rain is a part of the cycle of life. We may not like it, but we need it to survive. There are many drought ravaged parts of the world that would do anything for a rainy weather pattern.
It is the same with our inner life. The only way to strengthen our faith is through difficulties. There is no other course. Testing is the spiritual rain that waters the seed we have planted in our hearts.
The end result of all this is abundance – abundant faith, abundant strength, and abundant victory. Nobody likes problems, but if we face them without complaining and with the realization that they will strengthen us, it will help keep our focus on the Lord and our joy intact.
Tags: abundance, abundant life, Bible, calling, Christian, devotion, encouragement, faith, God's will, Holy Spirit, joy, problems, rain, rainy days, resistance, spirituality, strength, test, testing, trouble, victory
What is your view of God?
Isaiah 6:1
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.
Isaiah is an interesting Old Covenant prophet. He lived during uncertain times. In this passage he tells of a life-transforming vision he had of the Lord. It causes me to take a step back and ask myself how I view and serve God.
Probably the most important point is when this encounter took place. Isaiah said that it happened in the year king Uzziah died. Uzziah was a great king. He served God with all his heart. He renewed the temple worship of Judah. Because of his devotion to God, he was victorious in his battles against the enemies of Israel. The borders were secure and their cities and towns were returning to their former glory. It was a wonderful time.
Then one day, because of pride, Uzziah tried to worship God in a way that was only reserved for the priesthood. At that point he was struck with leprosy until the day of his death. Now the future of Israel was in the balance.
This was a turning point in their history. The people were slipping back into complacency. Their devotion to God was waning. It’s in this climate that Isaiah saw this vision. He got a glimpse of the majesty of the Lord – enthroned in the heavenlies.
We live in uncertain times. The economy, politics, weather, and a host of other issues scream for our attention. What is your stability in all of this. We need the same vision as Isaiah.
GOD IS STILL ON THE THRONE!!!
Don’t let the events around you, rob you of your peace and joy. We are the children of God. Nothing is beyond His knowledge or ability. As a matter of fact, He knows what is going to happen before it does. Nothing takes Him by surprise.
See the Lord on the throne today. Lay your burdens and cares at His feet. Trust Him to guide you through these days in victory and joy. Then we can truly be people of vision.
Tags: Bible, burdens, cares, Christian, devotion, encouragement, faith, glory, Isaiah, joy, majesty, peace, praise, prayer, prepare, presence of the lord, prophet, uncertainty, Uzziah, victory, view of God, vision
Philippians 3:12-14
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
It is not always easy to press on. Sometimes it is an effort just to put one foot in front of the other. Hikers and joggers have learned to just keep moving forward. There have been times when I was hiking that, because of injury or pain, I have felt like giving up. It is in times like those that I had to keep telling myself, “As long as you keep taking each step, you will come to the end of the trail.”
It is the same thing in life. It is usually not the big things that knock us down, but the continual monotony of our daily lives, day after day, week after week. It is the constant grind that saps our strength and weakens our spirit.
In order to overcome, we need to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. We know that if we keep to His course for our lives, we will come out with His result. We will lay hold of the prize for which He has called us.
Don’t give up. Go to the Lord today and ask for His strength for the road ahead. Don’t live a day without allowing His renewing Spirit to work in your life.
Tags: Bible, calling, Christ, Christian, daily grind, devotion, disciple, effort, encouragement, faith, giving up, glory, God's faithfulness, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, monotony, move forward, overcoming, path, prayer, press on, problems, renew, renewal, strength, trust, victory
Romans 8:22-23
We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Whenever we exert ourselves we are given signs of the mortality of our bodies. Sometimes every muscle and ligament is crying out to be fixed. The weight of a heavy box, playing sports, pushing a lawnmower, or the wrong turn of an ankle – it all causes us to experience pain and stiffness.
I have some good news for you. The day is going to come when this is no longer true. Jesus Christ is going to return soon for His people. When He appears we will trade this body in for a new one – a perfect one. We will have a body like Christ had after His resurrection.
As a part of creation we are all in a state of decay. The best humanity can hope for is to hold off the inevitable as long as possible. But the “Blessed Hope” of the church is that those of us in Christ will arise with a resurrected body just like Jesus had. We will no longer be shackled with the pain of mortality.
Praise God today for the future expectation of glory that we have as believers. Thank Him for the perfected body that is in store for you. You can also meditate on this as you go through the day, especially if you’re feeling some aches in your body, knowing that it’s only a temporary condition.
Tags: aches, Bible, blessed hope, Christ, Christian, decay, devotion, encouragement, expectation, glory, Jesus Christ, mortality, overcoming, pains, problems, resurrection, return of Christ, stiffness, victory
Abraham was an intercessor. He was concerned about people he didn’t even know. The following passage takes place when the Lord told Abraham about His plans to judge the cities around Sodom.
Genesis 18:22-24
The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the LORD. Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?”
There was a Bible scholar, Dr, Joseph Parker, who had some insightful things to say about the intercession of Abraham. He made four observations (I will put them in bold type) that I think are very applicable to the church today.
1. “God holds inquest upon the moral conditions of cities.” I believe that even though we, as individuals, live under grace, God treats cities and nations differently. Many times a city will sow injustice and reap disaster. That’s why I call all believers to pray for the USA. As a nation we cannot keep telling God to keep out, and then expect Him to protect us from catastrophe.
2. “God is accessible to earnest human appeal.” That is the basis of intercession. We need to be spending quality time in prayer for our families, friends, neighbors, and officials. That’s when we see the miraculous happen. When God’s people join with God in His work.
3. “The few can serve the many.” Sure, there are very few Christians that take the call to prayer seriously. Just look at the difference in attendance between a church dinner and a prayer meeting. The fact is, it doesn’t take a lot. God only looks for a few committed intercessors who are willing to “stand in the gap” for those around them.
4. “Human prayers fall below Divine resources.” One thing I know beyond a doubt – our prayers never even scratch the surface of God’s ability. From our perspective the task looks so daunting. The problem seems insurmountable. Yet to God, it is a simple thing for Him. He specializes in the impossible. Our prayers don’t even come close to challenging Him.
Answer the call to intercession. Our cities and nation are in desperate need of a move of God. Be on the cutting edge of the Lord’s work. Cry out to Him and see His power manifest in our lifetime.
Tags: Abraham, Bible, calling, Christian, church, devotion, disciple, encouragement, God's will, intercession, intercessor, intimacy, prayer, presence of the lord, revival, Sodom, sowing and reaping, victory
The Spirit and the Word 