13Feb
02Jul
Our Mixed Up Society
S. O. A. P.
Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional!
S-cripture:
Isaiah 5:20a Woe to those who call evil good and good evil.O-bservation:
These are the words of Isaiah, the great prophet of Israel. Not long afterward, the Babylonians moved in and took them over. After that, the nation of Israel never recovered as a great biblical force for righteousness and power. Only in 1948 did Israel once again regroup and be noticed as a formidable force.A-pplication:
What brought the nation that God had called His chosen people to an end? It’s found here in this short warning by Isaiah. Israel had so turned from God that what they had once called evil they now called good, and what they once called good they now called evil. There are other comparisons that Isaiah makes, but all of them are opposites from the way they originally believed. That brings us to “Our Own Mixed Up Society.” We have finally arrived at the same place Israel was before her demise. How has it come to this? There has been a steady chipping away by secularists of the moral truth upon which this society was founded in my lifetime. As far back as I can remember, it alarmed me. While in the fifth grade, my teacher said we would no longer read the scripture and pray each morning in class! I had no idea as a little boy what that would turn into. But here we are. As I write this AM, I’m appalled at what this nation calls good. I’m brokenhearted that light is growing dimmer and dimmer, and yet that’s the desired end when they now call light darkness. You and I must not live WOKE. Instead, we must live AWAKE at all times lest Our Mixed Up Society steal what light we have left.P-rayer:
Dear Jesus, This AM, I’m praying against all odds that this nation of ours will wake up to their “mixed up” way of thinking. With You, all things are possible, and this is one thing I believe is still possible. With Your help, we can see revival again. Amen
06Jan
The First Tenth Belongs To God
S. O. A. P.
Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional!
S-cripture:
Genesis 14:20“And praise be to God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand.” Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
O-bservation:
These are the words of Melchizedek, the high priest of what was to be known in history as Jerusalem. Abram and his men had put down an attack directed at the man of God, who was the spiritual leader of Jerusalem. When the victory was accomplished, Melchizedek came out and blessed Abram and praised the God he served. When he finished, this passage tells us that Abram gave the man of God a tenth of everything he had. This passage initiated the first fruit principle of tithing in the Jewish faith. When Jesus ascended into heaven, and the Holy Spirit was poured out, the Early Church took it a step further by combining their weekly family incomes into a pot of sorts and dividing it up amongst themselves to meet all of the Church families' needs.A-pplication:
I don’t know how to say it, but giving to the Lord through the centuries eventually became emotional or pressured or for means of penance. In time, the idea of pooling everything into a pot and dividing things up was not reasonable to the Christian church people. Consequently, most evangelicalism has practiced the tithe like Abram (Abraham) instituted early in his spiritual journey. I can tell you that if you follow this principle, like my wife and I have for 48 years of marriage, God will bless you back in ways you cannot begin to fathom. So operate with this passion, “The First Tenth Belongs To God!”P-rayer:
Dear Jesus, As Robyn and I begin our 49th year together today, I ask that You would help us give more to Your work than ever before. May we always remember that “Generosity Is Our Privilege.” Amen
10Jul
God Has Shown Us What Is Good
S. O. A. P.
Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional!
S-cripture:
Micah 6:8
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
O-bservation:
The prophet Micah once and for all erases any doubt as to what God’s calling is on our lives. Micah says we are to ACT JUSTLY. That means we are to be FAIR with every fellow human we meet. We are to LOVE MERCY. This means we are not quick to condemn others. But instead, we are the kings and queens of FORGIVING. Finally, we are to WALK HUMBLY WITH OUR GOD. Not proudly or in a condescending way, but in a humble wayA-pplication:
These words of Micah are so very important to every Jesus Follower on the planet. They instill in our moral, legal, ethical, and soulish hard drive our Christian calling every day of the week. Never, ever, never should any of us wake up one morning and say, “I wonder what God would have me do today?” No! “God Has Shown Us What Is Good!” Every day we are called by God to incorporate into our daily walk that we ACT JUSTLY, we LOVE MERCY, and we WALK HUMBLY WITH OUR GOD. We do those three things every day! It has been my experience that as I have followed this divine directive, there has been MORE THAN ENOUGH TO DO. In fact, as I strive to put God’s command into my daily agenda, I never finish what I needed to get done that day. Why? Because people gravitate to the person who will follow God’s command to be fair, forgiving, and humble. When people show up, there’s too much to finish. So before you throw any “Yeah buts” out there, remember, “God Has Shown Us What Is Good!”P-rayer:
Dear Jesus, With Your help this AM, I will do everything to act with justice in mind. I will love mercy more than ever, and in so doing, be a forgiver. And I will endeavor to walk HUMBLY with You, my God. Amen
03Jul
Good Just Isn’t Good Enough
S. O. A. P.
Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional!
S-cripture:
2 Chronicles 27:2
He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Uzziah had done, but unlike him he did not enter the temple of the Lord. The people, however, continued their corrupt practices.