Tag: Gratefulness

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A Path to Freedom

JANUARY 22

MATTHEW 5:7_for they shall obtain mercy.

What a lovely blessing the merciful receive – they obtain mercy. Meditate on that. After all the giving and pouring out of yourself and your time, there is mercy to receive! Everyone needs to be on the receiving end of mercy! Praise God there is a time when mercy is poured out on you! 

A day will come when you need mercy. You will experience what a beautiful thing mercy is. You will feel the warmth, comfort, and peace mercy gives. And since mercy is not a Band-Aid, you will receive freedom – from guilt. To give mercy to someone is to free them from the wrong done to you. 

Be glad you were a part of blessing another person. Be grateful that when you felt rejected or taken advantage of, you chose to respond with mercy – even though your offender was undeserving. Most of all, be grateful to the Holy God of Heaven because you are full of the Holy Spirit. That’s the only way you can be merciful. You see, you don’t deserve mercy either.

Mercy not only frees your offender; it is a part of the path to your freedom – from unforgiveness.

PRAYER

Loving Father, Forgive me for any time I have not bestowed mercy. Help me focus on You and Your truth more than the world’s deceptions. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.                    

Christ’s mercy is the path to freedom—He will help me!

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How You Become Foolish

DECEMBER 15

MATTHEW 7:26_shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand.

Sandy soil is no substitute for rock. The foundation of your life must be rock solid! There is nothing solid about sand. It slides right through your fingers. A gust of wind can toss it away. 

The only way to live out the salty-lit-up life is to live out the teachings of Jesus. Anything else, and I do mean anything, is sandy soil. 

Proverbs 24:10 (KJV), “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.” You will lack courage and lose heart if you choose to face life’s storms from the world’s standards. Jesus calls this foolish. A foolish person is someone who makes poor decisions. 

Romans chapter 1 (KJV) says it well, “21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.”

Sounds to me like foolish people do not glorify God, because they are not grateful. The foolish imagine themselves to be wise.

That’s how you become foolish. Thinking you’re wise. No need for God.

PRAYER

Wise God, Please give me a grateful heart which glorifies who You are. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.          

 Christ wants me to make courageous decisions—I will!

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You Are Precious in God’s Sight

OCTOBER 17

MATTHEW 7:11_how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask Him?

You are precious in God’s sight. Never let the devil tell you otherwise. 

What Jesus is teaching in this verse is a kind of comparison lesson between earthly fathers and the heavenly Father. If you are blessed with a responsible and loving father, never cease to praise God for him. If you have an adoptive or foster father, as many people in the Bible had, praise God for bringing you together as family. 

Pray for your father. He faces tremendous responsibilities that you are not old enough to fully understand. Do everything in your power to support, help, and encourage him. Make your gratefulness known to him—don’t just assume he knows it. And more than anything love and respect him.

If an earthly father will meet your needs, because he hears you when you ask—what are the capabilities of your heavenly Father? He is the owner of the universe. His love and compassion are as big as His kingdom—which knows no end. 

If your earthly father experience did not go well—you have the opportunity for an even closer relationship with your heavenly Father.  

PRAYER

Owner of the Universe, Help me see the vastness of Your power and love. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.                                                                                                 

Christ’s abilities are boundless—He uses them for me!

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Take It to the Bank!

OCTOBER 11

MATTHEW 7:10_Or if he ask…

Earthly parents can stray from God’s path the same way you can. Don’t be too quick to sentence judgment upon them. Remember another lesson you learned is the judgment with which you judge comes back to you. That’s a principle taught by Jesus—you can take it to the bank!

If you are pouting, or have an ungrateful attitude, because your parents’ discipline you—don’t. That never ends well. Perhaps you are stuck in the comparing thing.  Your friends’ parents don’t keep an eye on them and they get by with anything. Remember, getting by with something will not keep you from repeating it. A small straying-from-the-path decision, when repeated, grows into a larger decision. 

The lack of discipline in the life of youth can lead to a destructive and bitter life as an adult. Proverbs 6:20-22 (KJV), “My son, keep thy father’s commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: 21 Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. 22 When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.”

If you have parents who teach you to stay on God’s path—you are blessed!

PRAYER

God of All, Help me be grateful for people who teach and correct me. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.                                                                                                              

Christ wants me to be grateful for discipline—I will!

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Be Grateful!

OCTOBER 10

MATTHEW 7:10_Or if he ask…

If you’ve been disobedient and disrespectful to your father, expect him to discipline you—and be grateful for it! If your earthly father has been disobedient and disrespectful to the Heavenly Father, he can expect the same … from the Father!

An earthly father’s discipline comes directly from the Heavenly Father. It is painfully designed to restore a lost relationship. This is a time for you to be patient and compassionate. This is not a time to gloat or have any pleasure in your father’s chastisement (or anyone else you see under God’s disciplinary rod). And there is never a time in life for you to have any kind any kind of superiority attitude toward your father. In the first place, you don’t know what God is up to, or His ultimate plan … which may involve you! 

Only those in authority should administer judgment. You are not in an authoritative position, your father is. Your father is under the authority of God and you are under the authority of them both. Trust God to do what is best for your father. Trust Him to teach your father to do what is best for you.

If you have a father who would give you a stone when you ask bread, find a Christian leader you can confide in to help you. 

PRAYER

Loving Father, Help me be respectful and obedient to my authorities. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.                                                                                                              

Christ wants me respectful and obedient—He helps me!