Is Serving Others Where I Need to Be? - Faye Jalbert

Many times, Christians are really not experiencing the joy of serving Jesus, because they are not serving His children. In Matthew 25:42-45, Jesus says, “For I was an hungred, and ye game me no meat: I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked and ye clothed me not: sick and in prison and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him saying, Lord when saw we thee hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?” And now for the topic of our devotion…verse 45, “Then shall he answer them saying, Verily I say unto you. Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.”

Facts, Feeling, Faith and the Future - Zana Reichen

A young lady came to me upset over a health problem which caused her loss of energy, frequent pain, and feelings of defeat. In addition, she did not have money to take final exams, and she is to have surgery when she returns to her home state this summer. She wanted to feel better, have money for finals, have money for surgery, was fearful of surgery, and wanted to know where money would come from in the fall for school—and wanted all these answers now! I wanted to say, “Whoa! Slow this horse down, woman!” Knowing her health situation, I suspicioned that her particular physical problem was playing a part in her mental and emotional well-being.

Music: Where Is Your Heart? - Sarah Teague

Let’s start with how music affects us physically. Have you ever heard a song that had a fast beat to it? Often we call it a “toe-tapper,” because the fast rhythm makes our body react in a happy, go-lucky way. Here’s a question to ponder: does the music you listen to affect your body in a positive way? If the music you listen to causes your body to react in a worldly manner, is it truly Christ honoring? One of the three aspects of music is the rhythm. Is the rhythm so prominent in the music you listen to that it overwhelms everything else?

Who Do You Think You Are? - Tina Orosco

The thought of a Christian feeling worthless and unworthy is a lie from no one other than the devil. He’s been a liar from the beginning and he’s trying to stop you from doing God’s will for your life. Resist the devil by putting on the full armor of God.

Faithful Servant - Joyce Kiefer

What does the word faithful, or faithfulness mean to you? To me it means to be loyal, constant, and steadfast. Daniel was all of these and more. He was loyal to His God, he was constant, and he was steadfast. The princes and presidents tried to find something to accuse him of but couldn’t. All they could say is that he was faithful.

Christian Life, Christian Service, Encouragement, Faith, God's Will, PrayerAmy SappApril 25, 2022Faith, Faithful, Servant, Tests, Trials, Stand, Believe

What in the World is Happening - Vicky Pope

Why can we not just rest in that? Do we think we can do a better job of figuring it out on our own? Do we think we can fix the problems better than He can? Or do we just prefer to wallow in our misery and seek pity from others? These are all the Devil’s ploys to keep us from being the peace-filled, powerful, and productive Christians God wants us to be.

Keeping Focus - Sharon Rabon

What am I going to do about this situation? Is there anyone who can help me? What is going to happen? We often don’t know what to do or where to turn. We seek counsel, think about it nonstop, and we worry. We worry about how we were treated and what they deserve. We lose our focus on what we should be doing and become distracted by things that lead us away from our main purpose in life. We spend time telling a friend instead of telling our one Friend, Jesus.

When God Rocks Your Boat - Danielle Pickering

Have you ever been in a storm? A bad storm? A storm that sends you running to the basement. A storm that you can feel the house shaking. There is no doubt those storms are terrifying. You have a healthy fear of those storms, as you ought.

A Sure Foundation - Leighann Peoples

This was the foundation of their protection. Without girdling up the long garments they wore, they were not able to effectively fight. This thought brought out so much truth about making sure we are standing on the right foundation so that we can effectively fight this spiritual warfare we are in. We must make the Word of God our sure foundation if we are going to be strong and stand against the tactics of Satan.The Christians armor can not be their own sincerity and truthfulness but wholly governed by truth through the words of Jesus. The truth is a settled conviction that we know who we believe and what we believe. Jesus and His Word must be our sure foundation.Satan has created so much uncertainty and confusion, making it so hard to distinguish truths and untruths.

A Very Mary Response - Laura Pearson

One of the greatest characters in all of the New Testament had to be Mary, the mother of Jesus. I believe that some of the best characters to study from in Scripture are those, not necessarily with talent, wealth or fame – but with willingness. A servant’s heart goes a long way!

To Everything There is a Season - Charity Payton

Everyone is going through something. It may seem like the hardest thing you have ever faced. No matter the age it’s big for you! A different season a different time.To Every Thing there is a season - a time for every purpose under the Heaven. What will you do with your Season?

Plan A - Robin Ogle

Recently, my thinking was adjusted. MY PLAN, ideas, event, or schedule may have be altered- but I realized it was changed to line up with GOD’S PLAN A. Now when there is a snafu, my heart is joyful and excited that NOW the day is going as HE PLANNED. I can embrace the reconfigurations of my life because my great God is constantly revealing His Plan A. No longer do I drudge through Plan C,D, or E. With thankfulness, contentment and peacea, I choose to dwell on Plan A.

Mighty Miracles - Sandy Noonan

1. Be filled with the Spirit and not with selfish desires. Gal 5:22-26

2. Keep prayer as the first “go to”, not as our last resort in a world that attempts to find answers with a punch of a button.

Ps. 143:1, Pro. 15:8, Ps. 141:2

3. Rejoice for the answered prayer. Ps 20:5

4. Lift up the God of righteous people not the people themselves. God uses ordinary people for His glory. I Sam 18:18-19

Children, Christian Life, Encouragement, Faith, God's WillAmy SappDecember 27, 2021mighty, miracles, love, Encouragement

USED by God - Angey Nelson

When Mary said to the angel, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word,” do you think she really knew what she was getting herself into? I’m sure she grew up learning that a virgin would bring forth the Messiah, but do you really think she realized what was ahead for her? Afterall, she was facing ridicule, false accusation, and the possibility of being stoned to death. Not to mention the ultimate sacrifice…. the Son she would carry in her body would be crucified for sins He never committed. If you ask me, Mary was just being USED.

Christian Life, Christian Service, God's Will, Life Changes, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappDecember 20, 2021Used, Used by God, Christmas, Hurt, Being Used

How Thirsty Are You? - Debbie Netterville

Here is when the “thirst” really began. They gave me a “green lollipop”, (that is what I called it.) A green sponge on a stick that I could dip in a glass of water and then just wet my lips. The doctor wanted to wait a couple of days to see if I could hold anything down. On Monday they started giving me some soft foods, but I was throwing up again. My doctor said I needed to have surgery, so they scheduled it for Tuesday. After surgery I could have some ice chips with my “green lollipop”. By this time the ice chips were GREAT! But still barely quenching my “thirst”.

How Well Do You Know Ed? - Jan Neill

Upon crossing over they stopped to build an alter for reflection, and reembrace. Joshua 22:34 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar Ed: for it shall be a witness between us that the LORD is God.

I Think I'll Just Praise Him Anyways - Amy Brown

Last year, our family went through one of the hardest trials that we’ve ever had to face together as a family. My dad had been in the hospital with some major complications from an everyday procedure he had gotten done weeks prior, and he had to have emergency surgery to have his colon reconstructed. That, in itself- was very scary and very serious, but little did we know in the days following, the storm we would be facing. His emergency surgery had been that Saturday, but by Wednesday, instead of him getting better, he was getting much worse. During this timeframe, our church had a huge outbreak of Covid, and my mom finally convinced the doctor to test my dad for Covid.

They are Leaving, What Do I Do Now? - Sharon Monzo

Parts of me want to scream and say No! You can't leave me, but then God reminds me she has a whole life that she needs to live. I think, what if something happens to her, but then God reminds me, nothing happens without his approval, and He loves her more than I do. I think what if people are mean to her, but then God reminds me, they WILL be mean to her! There will be people all throughout her life that will be mean to her, They were mean to the nicest person to walk this earth! (Jesus) but He will comfort her and get her through it all. I think, but I will miss her, but then God reminds me, she was never mine to keep! I think, did I prepare her enough, but then God reminds me, you've done all that you can, it's between Me and her now. I think, then what should i do, but then God reminds me just pray for her and trust Me! So, that's what I'm doing! When I start to worry or get sad about my daughters all growing up and hitting these new chapters in their lives, I will just stay focused on the Lord and remember all the things God reminds me of!

Busy for the Lord - Megan Monaghan

Every day of our lives we have tasks to accomplish; whether it is as a mother, a wife, a student, or a child. We as Christians must choose to accomplish these tasks with God on our side or with the world. Every day we have to wake up and make a conscious effort to follow God’s will or do things our way. As Christians, it’s so very important to allow God to lead us in our choices.

Christian Life, Christian Service, God's Will, FriendshipAmy SappSeptember 27, 2021Busy, Work, Might, Schedule, Gossip, Christians, Effort

I Can't - Kristy Miller

One of my biggest struggles was when I was a senior in high school. I had the privilege of being born into a Christian home, went to a great church my entire life and had wonderful Christian parents, preachers, and teachers that taught me the Bible and how God wanted me to live. In spite of church 4 times a week, Christian education, chapel services, family devotion, etc., I still wasn't really sold out on this whole living for Jesus thing. I had watched several people graduate from our Christian school and immediately begin doing the complete opposite of what we had been taught our entire lives.