Devotional Thoughts

1 Chronicles 29:9    "Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the LORD: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy." King David had brought his gold and silver to contribute to the work. Then the chiefs and princes and captains had brought their money and talent to join in the work. Then the people began to offer willingly unto the Lord. The result of this is found in today's passage: ""Then the people rejoiced ... And David the king also rejoiced with great joy."  Their hearts were joined in one effort for one purpose. They came to glorify the Lord and God granted them His joy. They became strengthened in heart and mind to the work. Decades later, after the people had been returned from the Babylonian captivity, they were rebuilding the wall. As they were working together in harmony, they experienced great joy. In Nehemiah 8:10, we read "the joy of the LORD is your streng

1 Chronicles 29:6-7    "Then the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribes of Israel, and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers of the king's work, offered willingly, (7)  And gave for the service of the house of God..." Every word in the Bible is important. Such an example is the first word for today, "then".   This word indicates a matter of time.  It would not do damage to the verse if it started, "(At that time), the chief of the fathers....offered.... and gave....".     Something took place to motivate these men to  offer willingly and to give their service for the house of God. What could have happened? I'm glad you asked.  In the prior verses, (3-5), King David set his affection to the house of God. He gave gold and silver in abundance to make ready for the construction. His heart and mind was established to do everything possible in order for the materials to be available for the building.   "Then the chie

1 Chronicles 29:1    "Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation, Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great: for the palace is not for man, but for the LORD God." At this writing, David is nearing the end of his life.  One of his greatest desires was to build the temple for public worship of God. This desire was deep in his heart, but he was not allowed to build it.  God spoke to him, "... thou shalt not build an house unto my name, because thou hast shed much blood upon the earth in my sight." (1 Chronicles 22:8) God gave the responsibility to David's son, Solomon. Instead of pulling back, David gave all of his energy (and finances) into this great project. I want us to think about some words spoken by David. "...  the work is great: for the palace is not for man, but for the LORD God."  Yes, the physical work of building the temple was tremendous. David realized the impact this could h

Romans 12:2    "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what  is  that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." "... be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind..."  Why is it so important to renew our minds? How often should we be renewed? What effect does renewing have upon us? "Be not conformed to this world." Water takes on the form of the container? The philosophy of the world tries to cause us to conform (take on the form) to its teaching. The problem with that lies in the fact that we live in a world of spiritual darkness. Darkness restricts us in our movement. Your eyes cannot see as well when you walk into a dimly lit restaurant. It's difficult to read the menu. But after sitting in that darkness, our eyes adjust and the menu becomes readable.  The world wants us to adjust to its darkness, and the longer we stay there, the more our minds adjust to that darkness an

Revelation 19:6    "And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth." Today, I want to look at only one portion  of the verse: "Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth." The word, "Alleluia," means in a very strong fashion, "Praise ye the Lord!"  There may be times when we say those words because God has given us what we ask for. Other times, we say those words because we realize He has protected us from some dire situation. We say, "Praise the Lord" when we receive a raise, our children do something good, or any situation that we feel is going our way. One of the three major attributes that we speak of God is found in this verse. "God is omnipotent."  God has all power. Jesus stated it to the disciples before He ascended back into heaven, "All power is given unto me in heaven

Romans 15:13    "Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" I am often guilty of reading Scripture without stopping to really think about what God is saying to me. But on those days when I feel the words in my heart, I know God in heaven is speaking directly to me.  You might say, "Well, those words were written thousands of years ago." That's true, but "the God of hope" knew then what I would need now.  Therefore He is always the source of hope in my heart May I say that I truly believe that.  I hope you do too. God never changes therefore the things that often take me by surprise do not affect Him that way.  Nothing catches God off guard.  That gives me hope to know that God already has the answers when I take my trials and struggles to Him in prayer. With that understanding, I exchange my struggles for His joy and peace. 

John 9:25   "Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see." These are beautiful words spoken by the man who had been blind from birth. A quick recap reminds us that Jesus had made a spittle of clay and anointed the blind man's eyes. He then told him to go wash in the pool of Siloam.  His sight came to him when he did as Jesus told him.. Can you imagine what a glorious thing he experienced that day?  The man was able to perfectly see things he had never experienced before. He saw beautiful colors. He saw his mother's face for the first time. He saw the flowers and trees all around him. But the most glorious thing was when he saw the face of Jesus. Did he understand everything that happened to him? I don't think so. Did he understand everything about the One Who had performed this great miracle? I don't think so. But even as the Pharisees were trying to get him to deny the miracle, his understanding began to

Deuteronomy 4:29    "But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul." Have you ever felt like throwing up your hands and saying, "I quit!"  Have you ever felt like someone was getting on your last nerve and you needed to escape? Maybe you have come to that place before, or you're at that point just now. I say all those things and I understand those emotions, but I have one more question. Aren't you glad that God isn't that way with you?  I surely am so very thankful that our God does not give up on me. Today's verse of Scripture was planted in the middle of some things that the Lord understood Israel would encounter. He gave them advance warning and also the advanced answer to their situations. If you feel like you are all alone and begin to place your dependency upon someone or something other than God... if you will seek Him, you shall find Him. If you feel like th

Psalm 56:9-10    "When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me.  (10)  In God will I praise his word: in the LORD will I praise his word." "God is for me." Can we really fathom the depth of truth in that statement? Can we take it into our hearts and let it be settled there and also feel its settling effect? "God is for me." This  morning, I'm trying to let that become such a reality that I know any enemy that would try to devour and destroy has to turn back away from me BECAUSE "God is for me." The more I read those four words, the more I want to sing, "Oh! How I love Jesus!"  "There is a name I love to hear. I love to sing its worth. It sounds like music in my ears. The sweetest name on earth." (Frederick Whitfield, Author) "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" (Romans 8:32) "G

Exodus 12:13-14    "And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. (14) And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever." God gave great grace to the people of Israel by giving them the blood of the Lamb as a token of His love for them. I love the words given to them, "... when I see the blood, I will pass over you..."  That night all the firstborn of the Egyptians died. The people of Israel were spared because of the blood.  As I think about this, I am made to realize that every deliverance given to them was because of the blood.  The manna, the water, the pillar of fire and cloud, and every other blessing was due to the blood. You and I also have the blessings of deliverance and every other

Mark 14:8    "She hath done what she could..." Today's passage of Scripture concerns the woman who came to anoint Jesus before His betrayal. She came in with a jar of spikenard which was very costly. Because she was not going to hold anything back, she broke the top of the bottle and poured it upon the head of Jesus. The ointment then ran down his head, his beard, and upon His garments. It is said that she spent a year's worth of wages in order to purchase this expensive ointment. Judas complained that the oil could have been sold and the money given to the poor. Jesus was very much to the point when He said, " Let her alone... she hath done what she could do..... "   My thoughts this morning are also very pointed; but, they are pointed back to me. Maybe they point at you also. James wrote to those people who had been scattered because of persecution that the Word of God is like a mirror. But it does us no good if we look into the mirror, see what we reall

John 2:6-8    "And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece.  (7)  Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.  (8 )  And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it." This was Jesus' first miracle and it was performed at a wedding in Cana of Galilee. Certainly it was a festive occasion and people of high degree were in attendance. They were having a wonderful time when suddenly it was discovered that there had been a miscalculation of the amount of wine. They ran out. Mary, the mother of Jesus, came to Him and said, "They have no wine."  This would be a time of great embarrassment for the parents to run out of any type of refreshment before the part was over.  What were they going to do? She turned to the servants and said, "Whatsoever He tells you to do - do it." Wha

John 13:8   "Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me." This was the night Jesus was betrayed by one of His own disciples. There are many wonderful thoughts concerning this precious scene.  We read, Jesus "...  riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself." (John 13:3-4) The lowest servant was always stationed at the door with water and a towel to wash the dusty feet of all visitors. As Jesus' disciples watched this unfolding, they understood what the action represented; but they could not see Jesus as that lowest of servants. It was with this understanding that Peter said, "Thou shalt never wash my feet." Peter could not see the Lord as that humble servant and did not feel himself worthy of Jesus bowing to wash his feet.. Notice Jesus' answer, "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me." I'm sure there are ma

1 John 4:8    "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." How many friends do you have?  I'm not talking about Facebook friends. How many people do you know well enough to say they are your friend? How many acquaintances do you have? Hopefully you're stopping to think just now that you have many more acquaintances than you have true friends.  A friend is someone that you have close interactions with to the point that you know their likes and dislikes. You pretty much know how they will respond to most situations.  You enjoy the same things, and spend a lot of time together.  You even begin to act alike. Next, how many relatives do you have? In the past year, I have met at least two relatives that I didn't even know existed.  I met them, but I really don't know them.  I dare say we all have blood relatives that we do not know much about them and some we do not even know. John is saying in our verse that if we do not have love for others, then w

Genesis 50:25-26    "And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence.  (26)  So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt." Exodus 13:18-19    "But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.  (19)  And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you." Do you have any momentos of special occasions in your life? Do you ever buy souvenirs when you are on vacation? What is the purpose of carrying something around that has no life in it? For me, those things stir sweet memories to come into your heart and mind? Why would Joseph want his bones to be carried out of Egypt into the promised land? He d

Genesis 50:16-21    "And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying,  (17)  So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.  (18)  And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.  (19)  And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?  (20)  But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.  (21)  Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them." I used several verses this morning because it shows grace to the brothers and honor to God. Jacob had died and they had taken him back to bury him. Now they a

Genesis 45:4-8    "And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. (5)  Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. (6)  For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. (7)  And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. (8 )  So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God..." The mindset of Joseph as he named his two sons wsa this, "God has made me forget all my toil and has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction." In today's passages, he has the opportunity to put that mindset into action. Joseph could have just as easily held his brothers at bay and made them suffer for their action in selling him to

Genesis 41:50-52    "And unto Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him.  (51)  And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father's house.  (52)  And the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction." Quite honestly, we could go months in the study of Joseph. Instead, I want us to look at a couple matters concerning him. First, you will find there was one constant throughout his life that is found in these words, "And the LORD was with Joseph..." (Genesis 39:2)  Joseph had been sold into slavery by his own brothers, but "the LORD was with Joseph." He had been falsely accused by the wife of  the captain of the guard, but "the LORD was with Joseph."  He had been forgotten while in prison, "but the LORD was with Joseph."

Genesis 35:3-4    "And let us arise, and go up to Bethel; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went. (4)  And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem." Jacob settled in the land of Shechem after the Lord had blessed him and Esau to be reconciled. The son of the Prince of that land took Jacob's daughter to be his wife. This upset her brothers and they went into the city where they slew all the males.  Jacob was distressed because an agreement had been made with those people and now his sons had broken the agreement. If you remember very early in our study, Abraham had gone back to the beginning point in order to make amends with the Lord for a transgression.  We do not know if Jacob has been taught that from the story of his grandfather or if the Lord directly

Genesis 33:4   "And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept." "And Esau ran..." Let's put ourselves in the mind of Jacob.  He never wanted to have to face Esau again. The report given to him was that his brother was coming with four hundred men. He was fearful because Esau had vowed to kill him. His only recourse had been to pray to the God of his father and grandfather.  But his skill was to depend on himself. Now he was having to depend upon God. He looks with his eyes and sees Esau running toward him.. what was about to happen?? He could not have been ready for what he experienced. He had prayed as though he felt he had to remind God, "You said you would surely do me good." He had no idea how good God really is.  Until "... Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept." You are the God of my father and  grandfather and now.... You are my

Genesis 32:29-31    "And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.  (30)  And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.  (31)  And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh." God had just asked Jacob's name. Again, just to keep our minds in the right place - God did not need to learn Jacob's name; rather, Jacob needed to be reminded of what he was capable of doing on his own. Neither he, nor any of us, are capable of doing anything good on our own ability. Jesus said, "Without me, you can do nothing." I fully believe that. But now, Jacob is asking God's name.  "Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name?"  Why are you asking my name?  You have heard my voice back at Bethel. You have been praying to me and now you have seen me. You know who