The Devotion

I love this about Jesus! While it was still dark and sacrificing some well-earned sleep, Jesus chose to start His day with His Father. Jesus knew He needed time to be restored, refreshed, and renewed. He needed encouragement and strength for the day ahead. Now, if Jesus needed time with God, then I certainly do! And you do, too. Jesus shows us that the most important appointment every day is that first appointment – with God. We need to begin our days renewed and strengthened by our heavenly Father. Starting our days with God means leaning on HIS strength rather than OUR strength throughout the day. It means staying focused on who we are and why we’re here. It means following the example of Jesus and starting every day with God – first things first.

When Paul was at his weakest, it was the power of Jesus that gave him the strength to stand and the ability to soldier on. While we may have never been physically attacked like Paul, we know what it’s like to be knocked down by life, don’t we? The adversary swoops in with his discouraging voice, tempting us to abandon our assignment and walk out on what the Lord has called us to do.

The greatness of God offers comfort and reassurance that even as the world spends out of control in this perilous time with covid-19, God remains IN control.

One interesting aspect of human nature is that when we find ourselves in a desperate situation, we cry out to God; we cry out for His help. Even skeptics begin to pray when facing a serious illness or a serious injury. When we need the intervention of God, we pray as never before.

Your greatest impact will come from your greatest struggles. What do I mean? God never wastes a hurt. Instead, God uses the pain and struggles we face in life to point us back to Him, to strengthen us, to grow us and yes, to comfort others.

God never promised a safe, easy, and “comfortable” life. To go where God is asking us to go, to share what God is asking us to share and to send who or what God is asking us to send, often requires a step of faith, risk, or sacrifice. A life pursuing God will always be at odds with our desire to live a comfortable life. Why? Because pursuing God is about His will and pursuing my own comfort is about my will

What does a safe, comfortable life look like? Well, it depends on where you look. The salary that provides peace of mind to one might be insufficient to another. God did not promise a safe, easy life, but He did promise a life of joy – if we choose to pursue Him first

 God’s word is showing us a level of personal care and attention that is exactly what our hearts crave during a challenging time. In the same way that a mother knows just how to comfort her child in a very unique, personal way, so God wants to provide for us during seasons of insecurity, fear, and pain. Because no matter what you’re facing, you’re not alone. God is bigger. Allow the God of comfort to comfort you.

It eazy to lose faith when life becomes tough and circumstances keeps getting worse...... God calls us to trust him enough and put our faith into action because it is through that, our Father transforms us. Simply put God FIRST in all that we do

Most of us will battle some level of depression, anxiety, or feelings of hopelessness at one time or another. So, it should be reassuring to see that Elijah, one of the greatest prophets in the whole Bible, fought his own battle with fear and depression.

Think about how many times your thought life has caused you to stumble or fall into temptation. Perhaps it’s the fear of the unknown in light of the COVID-19 crisis that consumes your mind. This episode speaks on the Need to Love God especially in these times.

The need to pray and seek God after turning away from His purpose for your life

A prayer about storms of life

Sands of Forgiveness is about the need to let hurts go and move on in your Christian life