Holy Spirit – Page 173 – A Verse A Day

Not Struggling To Be Free

mrpatvincent — Not Struggling To Be Free – 2 Cor. 12:9

When I was little, I was scared of quicksand. I was absolutely certain I was going to fall into some quicksand and never get out. I don’t have facts on this, but I’m pretty sure there isn’t even any quicksand in West Virginia. Anyways, try telling that to a 10 year old.

Anyone who has ever seen a Western or Indiana Jones, can tell you – don’t struggle! It will only make you sink faster! If you just remain calm, you may have more of a chance… to find a rope, or branch, or call out for help, or something.

2 Cor. 12:9-10 tells us that God’s Grace is sufficient. His power is made perfect in our weakness. Boast happily in your weaknesses and then the Power of God may rest upon you. If that doesn’t make your heart burst in praise, I don’t know what will. The weaker you are, the easier it is for God to jump in and blow that hardship out of the water? Sign me up!

Tenth Avenue North has a song called, “The Struggle.” It has a line that really resonates with my wife and I. “We are free to struggle, We’re not struggling to be free.”

Thank God for that.

God Bless!

The Stars Are Out Tonight

Every night at around 10 o’clock, I let my dog out for one last time. The first thing I do is look up to the sky and see if “the stars are out.” I’ll tell my wife, “Man, the stars are really out tonight!” or “No stars out tonight!” Now, I know full well that the stars are not precarious things that are sometimes there and sometimes hiding. It’s just that on certain nights, I cannot see them. I can thank Miss Grewe at East Dale Elementary for that.

There are times when you feel like God is not there. Saint John of the Cross called it “The Dark Night of The Soul.” You walk out into that night and there are no stars. The sky is black. Your gut sinks as you peer into the cold vast nothing. You are unprotected, alone and forgotten.

God has gone out of His way to let you know how ridiculous that is: Deut 31:8, Heb. 13:5, Joshua 1:9, Phil. 4:6-7, and Psa. 55:22 just to name a few. Over and over He tells us we are not alone, He will never forsake us and He protects His children. So when your flesh is weak and when your heart fails, remember – God is there, He has not left you and He alone can get you where He needs you to be.

The stars are ALWAYS out there, it’s just sometimes you can’t see them.

God Bless!

The Nose On Your Face

I read somewhere that your brain can always see your nose, but it chooses to ignore it. There is a section in your field of vision that gets continously… deleted.

Sin can be like that. It’s gets so constant, that we just sort of ignore it. We knows its there, we can see it… but we continously delete it from our sight.

Conversely, Good can be like that also. Far too often we ignore what’s so plainly in front of us: good health, amazing riches, and unbelievable blessings. The fact that you are reading this right now means a coulple of things: 1. You can see. 2. You can read (14% of US Adults are illiterate). 3. You have access to the internet (119 million lack broadband internet). How about thanking God for any of those?

Ignoring something doesn’t make it go away. If it’s something bad – address it. Proverbs 3:6 says in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. If it’s something good – give thanks for it. Psalms 95:2 says let us come before Him with thanksgiving. Either way, let’s stop deleting things from our sight and acknowledge our Lord and Saviour!

It’s as plain… as the nose on your face.

God Bless!

Keep Her Safe

“This will not hurt your dog. Using these steps, you can keep her safe.” said Joe as he described his dog obedience techniques. He also said something curious: “I can tell she loves you, but she doesn’t respect you. Respect is how you’re going to keep her safe.”

Anyone who’s met my labrador retriever, Annie can attest to her… energy. I say we misnamed her: Godzilla would’ve been more appropriate. Anyways, what Joe said made sense. She didn’t respect me and that could lead to her getting hurt or worse, killed.

It’s the same with God: the only way He can keep us safe is if we respect Him. If we do not listen to his commands, we are putting ourselves in harm’s way. Just as much as I would never want anything bad to happen to my dog, God only wants to take care of us. If only we would settle down and listen for once!

He’s not trying to limit us, He’s trying to set us free!

God bless!

No Longer Orphans

The Human condition leaves many people feeling disconnected, isolated and forgotten. “Who cares about me? What does any of this mean?” A.W. Tozer called it “cosmic orphanage*.”

This feeling couldn’t be further from the truth. John 1:12 tells us that anyone who “even believes in His (Jesus) name” is now a Child of The King! God gives you that right!

To be a child is to join in the inheritance of the Father. We are co-heirs with Christ! (Romans 8:17) Not just conquerors, but MORE than conquerors! Romans 8:37)

So forget this disconnected, isolated and forgotten nonsense. You are no longer outside the Father’s house in the cold, alone and naked. The Father welcomes you in. Take that human condition and kick it out the door. Claim your right! God bless!

Listen to: Hello, My Name Is – Matthew West

*Mornings with Tozer Daily Devotional

God is…

Even I know if a=b and b=c, then a=c. My wife, the Mathlete, however informed me that it is called: the Transitive Property of Equality. I love Brittany and her math-brain! She was telling me how by applying I Cor. 13:4-8 to the Transitive Property, we can learn about the character of God.

Anyone who’s ever been to a wedding is familar with 1 Cor. 13:4-8. It is the whole “love is patient, love is kind” spiel that softens even the most stubborn of hearts. John tells us in 1 John 4:8, that GOD IS LOVE. Therefore, we can insert God for “love” in 1 Cor. 13 and get a closer insight into who God is.

God is patient. God is kind. God does not envy, He does not boast, He is not proud. God does not dishonor others, He is not self-seeking, He is not easily angered, He keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. God never fails.

Take a minute in your busy schedule today to meditate on this and to thank God for all His astounding attributes! God bless!

*Thanks to Brittany for my math lesson for the day.

**Thanks to Jessica Sell for the pic.

Restore to me the Joy

Are you a happy witness? That may sound like a childish question, but I would like for you to take a few seconds to meditate on it. Am I happy in my Christian walk?

Everyone loves a camp fire. Camp fires put out a lot of heat and light. But if you don’t keep your eye on it, the fire will die down. Ever notice how cold it seems AFTER a fire burns out? It didn’t seem that cold before you started! It also seems so much darker AFTER a fire. Your body got used to the warmth. Your eyes got used to the light.

To keep the fire going you have to keep stoking the flames. You have to put more logs on the fire. You have to keep your eye on it. David prayed, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,” (Psa. 51:12).

Only Jesus can restore your joy. Only He can sustain you. It is through His salvation that all things have their luminance. It is through His salvation that all things have their warmth. Renew your relationship with Jesus and then you will rekindle your happiness in your Christian walk.

God bless!

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: