Category Archives: Thankfulness

The LORD Is Our Abundant Helper

The LORD is our abundant helper. What a gracious God to be such a helper to those who seek Him. He does not expect us to achieve what we are called to do or to serve Him all in our own power. He loves us and helps us. He makes a way for us through His goodness.

Psalm 146

The LORD an Abundant Helper.

1Praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD, O my soul!

      2I will praise the LORD while I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

      3Do not trust in princes,
In mortal man, in whom there is no salvation.

      4His spirit departs, he returns to the earth;
In that very day his thoughts perish.

      5How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
Whose hope is in the LORD his God,

      6Who made heaven and earth,
The sea and all that is in them;
Who keeps faith forever;

      7Who executes justice for the oppressed;
Who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets the prisoners free.

      8The LORD opens the eyes of the blind;
The LORD raises up those who are bowed down;
The LORD loves the righteous;

      9The LORD protects the strangers;
He supports the fatherless and the widow,
But He thwarts the way of the wicked.

      10The LORD will reign forever,
Your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the LORD!

Take a few minutes to praise God for who He is and what He has already done in your life. Pray through this psalm focusing on each line and what it reveals to us about our God. Let it soak in. Do not rush it.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross

God Makes a Way Where We Cannot

When we see obstacles and challenges laid out in front of us, focus not on the size of the problem but rather on the size of our God! God makes a way for success where we cannot. Seek His help. Honor Him. Praise Him. Remain in faith even as you face what seems like overwhelming odds.

Isaiah 37

Hezekiah Seeks Isaiah’s Help

      1And when King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth and entered the house of the LORD2Then he sent Eliakim who was over the household with Shebna the scribe and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz. 3They said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah, ‘This day is a day of distress, rebuke and rejection; for children have come to birth, and there is no strength to deliver. 4‘Perhaps the LORD your God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to reproach the living God, and will rebuke the words which the LORD your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer for the remnant that is left.’”

      5So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6Isaiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to your master, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. 7“Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he will hear a rumor and return to his own land. And I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.”’”

      8Then Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he had heard that the king had left Lachish. 9When he heard them say concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, “He has come out to fight against you,” and when he heard it he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, 10“Thus you shall say to Hezekiah king of Judah, ‘Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” 11‘Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, destroying them completely. So will you be spared? 12‘Did the gods of those nations which my fathers have destroyed deliver them, even Gozan and Haran and Rezeph and the sons of Eden who were in Telassar? 13‘Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Hena and Ivvah?’”

Hezekiah’s Prayer in the Temple

      14Then Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of the LORD and spread it out before the LORD15Hezekiah prayed to the LORD saying, 16“O LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 17“Incline Your ear, O LORD, and hear; open Your eyes, O LORD, and see; and listen to all the words of Sennacherib, who sent them to reproach the living God. 18“Truly, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have devastated all the countries and their lands, 19and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. 20“Now, O LORD our God, deliver us from his hand that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, LORD, are God.”

God Answers through Isaiah

      21Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah, saying, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria,

22this is the word that the LORD has spoken against him:
“She has despised you and mocked you,
The virgin daughter of Zion;
She has shaken her head behind you,
The daughter of Jerusalem!

      23“Whom have you reproached and blasphemed?
And against whom have you raised your voice
And haughtily lifted up your eyes?
Against the Holy One of Israel!

      24“Through your servants you have reproached the Lord,
And you have said, ‘With my many chariots I came up to the heights of the mountains,
To the remotest parts of Lebanon;
And I cut down its tall cedars and its choice cypresses.
And I will go to its highest peak, its thickest forest.

      25‘I dug wells and drank waters,
And with the sole of my feet I dried up
All the rivers of Egypt.’

      26“Have you not heard?
Long ago I did it,
From ancient times I planned it.
Now I have brought it to pass,
That you should turn fortified cities into ruinous heaps.

      27“Therefore their inhabitants were short of strength,
They were dismayed and put to shame;
They were as the vegetation of the field and as the green herb,
As grass on the housetops is scorched before it is grown up.

      28“But I know your sitting down
And your going out and your coming in
And your raging against Me.

      29“Because of your raging against Me
And because your arrogance has come up to My ears,
Therefore I will put My hook in your nose
And My bridle in your lips,
And I will turn you back by the way which you came.

      30“Then this shall be the sign for you: you will eat this year what grows of itself, in the second year what springs from the same, and in the third year sow, reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 31“The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. 32“For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant and out of Mount Zion survivors. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.”’

      33“Therefore, thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, ‘He will not come to this city or shoot an arrow there; and he will not come before it with a shield, or throw up a siege ramp against it. 34‘By the way that he came, by the same he will return, and he will not come to this city,’ declares the LORD35‘For I will defend this city to save it for My own sake and for My servant David’s sake.’”

Assyrians Destroyed

      36Then the angel of the LORD went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, all of these were dead. 37So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and returned home and lived at Nineveh. 38It came about as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons killed him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.

Praise God that He is an ever-present help in times of trouble.  Take some time and prayerfully reflect on situations where God has delivered you or provided a way for you in the past. What are the key challenges you are facing now that you need to bring before God to ask for His help? Do that now, with humility and faith.

Shalom. May the grace and peace of our Lord, Yeshua, be with you. Devotion by John in service to Christ


Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

 

How Blessed Are the People Whose God Is The LORD!

I really appreciate the example David sets in his psalms. He prays to the LORD and asks for help, yes, but he first focuses on praising and recognizing YHWH for who he is and what he has done. He does not simply jump into a list of requests or demands. He comes before YHWH with humility and thankfulness and focuses first on the greatness of our God.

Psalms 144

Prayer for Rescue and Prosperity.

A Psalm of David.

1Blessed be the LORD, my rock,
Who trains my hands for war,
And my fingers for battle;

2My lovingkindness and my fortress,
My stronghold and my deliverer,
My shield and He in whom I take refuge,
Who subdues my people under me.

3O LORD, what is man, that You take knowledge of him?
Or the son of man, that You think of him?

4Man is like a mere breath;
His days are like a passing shadow.

5Bow Your heavens, O LORD, and come down;
Touch the mountains, that they may smoke.

6Flash forth lightning and scatter them;
Send out Your arrows and confuse them.

7Stretch forth Your hand from on high;
Rescue me and deliver me out of great waters,
Out of the hand of aliens

8Whose mouths speak deceit,
And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

9I will sing a new song to You, O God;
Upon a harp of ten strings I will sing praises to You,

10Who gives salvation to kings,
Who rescues David His servant from the evil sword.

11Rescue me and deliver me out of the hand of aliens,
Whose mouth speaks deceit
And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

12Let our sons in their youth be as grown-up plants,
And our daughters as corner pillars fashioned as for a palace;

13Let our garners be full, furnishing every kind of produce,
And our flocks bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our fields;

14Let our cattle bear
Without mishap and without loss,
Let there be no outcry in our streets!

15How blessed are the people who are so situated;
How blessed are the people whose God is the LORD!

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Embracing Sukkot by Increasing Our Understanding

Once again, I am focused on Yahweh’s appointed time of Sukkot, or Feast of Tabernacles. It is a fun celebration that reminds us how God led His people out of bondage in Egypt and looks forward to the return of our King, Yeshua, when He will dwell among us again.

Today I am highlighting two resources for you to consider that can help to broaden your understanding of Sukkot and how to celebrate it. I encourage you to explore both and test them against scripture. Both present a view of this appointed time in the context of scripture and our Messiah. You do not have to agree with everything they say and do in order to learn from the material which is well laid out and I find very helpful.

119Ministries.com will provide a video to watch. SetApartPeople provides personal insight into their journey celebrating this appointed time. You can refresh the search to get more recent articles on their page by searching “Sukkot”.

I include a few additional links below. However, be sure to validate everything you read against the truth of scripture. As a last encouragement, note that Yeshua even set an example by celebrating the Feast of Booths, or Tabernacles, despite people seeking to kill Him (John 7). I encourage you to click the link and read all of John 7.

Have fun with it. This is a celebration! Our Messiah returns! Consider even some easy online searches for songs or music videos associated with Sukkot. We have found some that are very cheerful and fun and some that are more spiritually focused and meaningful. Do not be discouraged from these resources because Sukkot is celebrated by Jews. It can be observed by anyone who rejoices in our Creator and His appointed times. With Christ, we have even more reason to celebrate these appointed times.

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, please help me to embrace Your appointed times. Help open the eyes of Your followers everywhere to Your celebrations and their purpose in drawing us closer to You. Amen. 

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ


Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Words to Praise By

I find personally that Psalms can help me put into words the praise and prayer I want to pour out on God for who He is and how He has and does and will help me. When I am at a loss for words, I can often find them in Psalms and offer them up in praise to the LORD!

Psalm 34

The LORD, a Provider and Deliverer.

A Psalm of David when he feigned madness before Abimelech, who drove him away and he departed.

1I will bless the LORD at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

      2My soul will make its boast in the LORD;
The humble will hear it and rejoice.

      3O magnify the LORD with me,
And let us exalt His name together.

      4I sought the LORD, and He answered me,
And delivered me from all my fears.

      5They looked to Him and were radiant,
And their faces will never be ashamed.

      6This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him
And saved him out of all his troubles.

      7The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him,
And rescues them.

      8O taste and see that the LORD is good;
How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

      9O fear the LORD, you His saints;
For to those who fear Him there is no want.

      10The young lions do lack and suffer hunger;
But they who seek the LORD shall not be in want of any good thing.

      11Come, you children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

      12Who is the man who desires life
And loves length of days that he may see good?

      13Keep your tongue from evil
And your lips from speaking deceit.

      14Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.

      15The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous
And His ears are open to their cry.

      16The face of the LORD is against evildoers,
To cut off the memory of them from the earth.

      17The righteous cry, and the LORD hears
And delivers them out of all their troubles.

      18The LORD is near to the brokenhearted
And saves those who are crushed in spirit.

      19Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
But the LORD delivers him out of them all.

      20He keeps all his bones,
Not one of them is broken.

      21Evil shall slay the wicked,
And those who hate the righteous will be condemned.

      22The LORD redeems the soul of His servants,
And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.

I encourage you all to set aside time for just praising God. I have been surprised how good it feels to focus on the goodness of God and He is certainly worthy of praise! It is too easy to focus only or primarily on what we want.

Shalom. Devotion by John in service to Christ


Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Praise the LORD in Song

Isaiah 12 continues where Isaiah 11 left off, looking ahead to the thousand-year reign of Christ on earth. It is a look ahead that can bring hope and peace to mind and heart as the world is under the reign of our Messiah and we are gathered back together as His people.

Isaiah 12 reminds us to express our thankfulness to our Father, especially when He is bringing us to times of peace and hope.

Isaiah 12

Thanksgiving Expressed

1Then you will say on that day,
“I will give thanks to You, O LORD;
For although You were angry with me,
Your anger is turned away,
And You comfort me.

      2“Behold, God is my salvation,
I will trust and not be afraid;
For the LORD GOD is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation.”

      3Therefore you will joyously draw water
From the springs of salvation.

      4And in that day you will say,
“Give thanks to the LORD, call on His name.
Make known His deeds among the peoples;
Make them remember that His name is exalted.”

      5Praise the LORD in song, for He has done excellent things;
Let this be known throughout the earth.

      6Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,
For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

Truly this is a great reminder for us to praise and thank our Father with joy! We can do that on the mountaintops and in the valleys. He is good always. Let us put our faith and trust in Him at all times!

Take a few minutes to come to a prayerful mindset and pray through the scripture above rather than just reading it. Let it be your conversation with God. Praise Him. Be joyful. Thank Him for the wonderful things He has done and is doing in your life. Dwell on the forgiveness He has granted as His anger turns away from us even after we have sinned (once we repent).

Shalom. May the grace and peace of our Lord, Yeshua, be with you. Devotion by John in service to Christ


Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

For I Am Not Ashamed of the Gospel

Paul is a great example. Consider how he engages fellow believers and how he intercedes on their behalf in prayer. He is enthusiastic, encouraging, thankful, and he prays for them often. He seeks fellowship with them. He is not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation for those who believe.

Romans 1:8-17

      8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world. 9For God, whom I serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of His Son, is my witness as to how unceasingly I make mention of you, 10always in my prayers making request, if perhaps now at last by the will of God I may succeed in coming to you. 11For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be established; 12that is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine. 13I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.

      16For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.”

I ask God that I would be able to be more like Paul in his attitude toward other believers. I pray that believers everywhere would be as well. Imagine if we all were more enthusiastic, encouraging, and thankful and that we prayed often for each other and seek fellowship with one another. This attitude remained while Paul experienced much hardship.

Let us also not overlook verse 16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” It is the death and resurrection of Yeshua, our Messiah, that makes a way for us to be saved, to be reconciled with God. It is not through good works or our own righteousness. Let us remember that with humility and thankfulness.

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, please help me and other believers to maintain the attitude of Paul in Romans 1. Help us enthusiastically pray for one another, give thanks for one another, seek fellowship with one another, and maintain humility in remembering that it is You who made a way for our salvation through Yeshua. Thank You! Amen.

I would encourage you also to take a few additional minutes to start praying for others today and to give thanks to God for other believers in Your life or even those you don’t know personally. This is a good practice to do regularly.

Shalom. Devotion by John in service to Christ


Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

O My God, In You I Trust

Psalm 25 is an inspiring prayer for protection, guidance, and pardon. Don’t just read it, but pray it before almighty God with a genuine heart.

1To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul.

2O my God, in You I trust,
Do not let me be ashamed;
Do not let my enemies exult over me.

3Indeed, none of those who wait for You will be ashamed;
Those who deal treacherously without cause will be ashamed.

4Make me know Your ways, O LORD;
Teach me Your paths.

5Lead me in Your truth and teach me,
For You are the God of my salvation;
For You I wait all the day.

6Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and Your lovingkindnesses,
For they have been from of old.

7Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
According to Your lovingkindness remember me,
For Your goodness’ sake, O LORD.

8Good and upright is the LORD;
Therefore He instructs sinners in the way.

9He leads the humble in justice,
And He teaches the humble His way.

10All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth
To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.

11For Your name’s sake, O LORD,
Pardon my iniquity, for it is great.

12Who is the man who fears the LORD?
He will instruct him in the way he should choose.

13His soul will abide in prosperity,
And his descendants will inherit the land.

14The secret of the LORD is for those who fear Him,
And He will make them know His covenant.

15My eyes are continually toward the LORD,
For He will pluck my feet out of the net.

16Turn to me and be gracious to me,
For I am lonely and afflicted.

17The troubles of my heart are enlarged;
Bring me out of my distresses.

18Look upon my affliction and my trouble,
And forgive all my sins.

19Look upon my enemies, for they are many,
And they hate me with violent hatred.

20Guard my soul and deliver me;
Do not let me be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.

21Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
For I wait for You.

22Redeem Israel, O God,
Out of all his troubles.

Share this prayer with others you care about!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Open Our Eyes That We May Behold the Wonderful Things of Your Law, O’ God

Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible. It is written originally in Hebrew in a literary style that begins one section after another, each with the next letter of the aleph bet (Hebrew alphabet). It is beautiful and passionate. It focuses on the law of God. It is only one place in scripture that speaks about the law of God, but it is a great place to start. Read and digest all that it claims about the law of God and then ask yourself, does describe the law as burdensome? difficult? harsh? or does it describe it as quite different than that? Does it describe something that we would want to be set free from? Is it bondage?

Take time and consider what was said about the law of God by New Testament writers like James. James calls on us to be doers of the word and then refers to the “perfect law, the law of liberty”. Those who abide by it will be blessed.

James 1:22-25

22But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. 23For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. 25But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.

Paul is often misunderstood by many who take scripture out of context to claim he taught against the law. In truth, he calls on the law as holy and righteous and good. He teaches against following the law for salvation. He does not teach against following the law once we are saved through Yeshua.

Romans 7:12

12So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.

Put aside what you think you know about the law from those who do not understand it and listen to how it is described by one who understood it well and loved our heavenly Father very deeply. Don’t worry for now about what is the full content of “the law” or if we can fully follow the law today, but instead let us just try to better understand if scripture reveals it to be burdensome or something else.

Pray that the Lord would open our eyes that we may behold the wonderful things of His law!

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, please let me not be led astray by the culture around me or the ways of man which have strayed far from Your ways according to Your word in the Bible. Help me to study Your word and seek a meaningful relationship with You. Help me test every teaching against Your word. Open my eyes to the wonderful ways of Your Law. Help me to delight in all of Your commandments, not just 10. Help me to understand how to apply your Law to my life today. 

Learn more…

Shalom.

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.