Devotionals

"Lord, what do you say?" - 9/15/23

Although I was 14 the first time God ripped open the veil for me and revealed Himself through Jesus Christ and filled me with His Spirit, I didn't have the root I needed to remain steadfast. Instead I backslid and did not return until my early 20s. This was when God revealed to me my calling and gifts, and I was filled purpose. At first I was shocked, having not been raised in the church, I didn't understand how divided we were. So many denominations, so many variations of those denominations. Criticisms and contention, people getting hurt, moving around. Although it seemed negative, God did what He does and caused it to work for good in my life. 

It led me to seek out a deeper private relationship with Him. My private devotion time often consisted of me saying this phrase: "Lord I know what they say, but what to YOU SAY?"  then I would worship, study the Word, pray, sit and listen. Now I am pushing 40 and though I have had many ups and downs, I still find myself asking that same question. There have been times of hurt, times of failure, times of hardening and times of repentance. Times where it seemed like I had no answer for the fiery trial upon me. But looking back, I can see that was not the case. God was speaking, confirming, revealing through His word, the exact thing that was needed for the moment. 

When the enemy comes in with Lies, ask yourself, "But what has GOD SAID". 1 Corinthians 10:13 says that God does not allow us to be tempted above what we can withstand. I truly believe that in our darkest moments, God has already planted a seed of His word to oppose and defeat the lies of the enemy. You've already been given the revelation, you already know the verse, you already heard the sermon, teaching, something He has engrafted within you. So when the enemy comes in with a flood of lies, ask yourself as He asked Moses, "What's in your hand?", "What word is within me?", "What do YOU SAY Lord?" and by faith God will raise up a standard against as you apply His truth. Praise Him and trust in His sovereignty! 

Seek Him

This morning i woke up a bit early which happens on occasion. I determined, as usual, that i would go back to sleep for my remaining 45 min prior to my alarm going off. I use the restroom, come back and just as I am about to grab my blanket, I have this little nudge..."I'm not THAT tired, I COULD get on up and seek the Lord's presence earlier today" And i took about 3-4 minutes contemplating sadly but as I’m thinking, a song started randomly playing in my head "I'll never know how much it cost to see my sin upon that cross." This replayed and resounded in my spirit for a minute, then "Here i am to worship, here i am to bow down. Here i am to say that you're my God"- Then i had another thought "He didn't JUST GO to the cross. He had a whole life that led to that point. A life of dedication, study, sacrifice, rejection, ridicule, work...lots and lots of work, restraint, humility, fasting and PRAYER!" How many times in the Gospels do we read about Him praying. He prayed after healing and delivering multitudes, He prayed before a miracle, He prayed before heading to Galilee, He prayed for many different reasons at many different times (Luke 9:8;11:1; Matthew 14:23) this isn't to inform a group of Bible believing ministers that prayer is important. I hope you all know that already. But it is to encourage us all, myself included...to seek His face always and to desire Him, to present our bodies a living sacrifice (Romans12:1), to love Him enough to inconvenience the natural with the supernatural. To dare to chase after Him, not for the things we need or that we are struggling with, He already knows about that (Matthew 6:8) and has set things in motion for you. Sure, make your requests known but.... Seek HIM for HIM and just be inspired, be reminded, and be encouraged today. Let’s all push through the carnal feelings, the insecurities, the complacency of life, and go after His heart. If we do this, He will add everything else to us (Matthew 6:33) and we might just see revival, especially if we do it in unity, as one body. I believe God wanted me to put this in perspective today. To think about, not just His death, but His life and His effort as a whole, as well as His current intercession for the saints, His ministry of salvation to the lost through that shed blood and His Holy Spirit, and yes, His future return to claim His family. Look at Him and See Christ, He who was, and IS and IS to COME! (Revelation 1:8) Do this every time you pray, every time you fast, every time you lift your hands! Praise God!

As God opened my eyes, I opened my music playlist on my phone and hit “Shuffle” to play a random song. These are the lyrics:

“I come on my knees

To lay down before You

Bringing all that I am

Longing only to know You

Seeking Your face

And not only Your hand

I find You embracing me

Just as I am” 

 Big Daddy Weave - "Redeemed"

Scriptures I am meditating on today: Proverbs 3:5-6 ; 2 Corinthians 3:4-6 ; 1 John 3:20-21 ; Romans 3&4