Devotionals

Psalm 62:8 Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.

“Pour out your heart before Him…”

That phrase caught my attention this morning during my personal devotion time. I wanted to figure out if there was some hidden, deeper meaning behind those words. Honestly, it means just what it sounds like. But I did find a truth that I wasn’t quite expecting.

To pour out our hearts before God does not just mean in praise and worship – it also involves letting Him know our desires and (get this) complaints!

Most of you that will read this have never bene parents, but just about all of you have been in the presence of a crying baby. Babies cry for several reasons – and all of those reasons are complaints. “I am wet, change me!” “I am hungry, feed me!” “I am tired, rock me!” “I am uncomfortable, hold me!” Sometimes babies cry just to cry – but it is there only way to communicate if there is a problem. As the baby matures he or she learns how to show affection and love in ways that make those complaining moments more bearable. As a parent, I understand how important it is for a baby to pour out their complaints.

God loves to hear our praises. He loves to receive our worship. But He also desires to hear our complaints. Even though He knows our needs before we ask, He still wants us to ask Him. He wants us to bring our problems, our heartaches, our anger, our struggles to Him in their entirety. Even David, while he was hiding in a cave from King Saul, said in Psalm 142, “I poured out my complaint…”

Part of praying is bringing our hearts to the Lord – the good, the bad, the ugly. The good = our praise and appreciation for Who He is and what He has done. The bad and the ugly = our sin, our struggles, our complaints. God is a great listener. Let me encourage you to share with Him all of your complaints and troubles today. Then take some time to sit there and wait for His response. His response may be some sort of reminder of a truth you already know. It may be a silent “voice” you hear in your heart. It may be a feeling of encouragement. Take some time today to pour out your heart to God. He wants it all!

So I have been reading in the book of 1 Samuel over the past few days, and I have been noticing some things about King Saul that I never paid particular attention to. I want to share some of those observations with you.

The first thing that I noticed is that Samuel prophesied this over Saul’s life:
“And the Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them (the prophets), and shalt be turned into another man.” 1 Samuel 10:6

Saul had a transformation take place in his life. God did not appreciate being rejected by His own people. After all of the things He did for them they still wanted to be led by a man instead of by the one true God. Yet we see that God made sure Saul, the first anointed king, was equipped for the job.

Another thing I noticed is in the same vein as the first:
“God gave him another heart…” 1 Samuel 10:9

This was confirmation that a true transformation did take place. But it wasn’t just Saul’s heart that was changed by God. Check out what I found later on in the chapter:
“And Saul went home to Gibeah; and there went with him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched.” 1 Samuel 10:26

God made sure Saul started out with a good support group. Saul was chosen for a very important position in history. God made sure Saul had a road to success as the king of Israel. But very quickly Saul began to digress from the path God set him on. He offered sacrifice when it wasn’t his job. He gave a very deceptive explanation regarding that action. When this took place we get a glimpse into the quick decline in Saul’s heart:
“But now thy kingdom shall not continue; the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart…” 1 Samuel 13:14

Saul’s changed heart quickly changed again. This second change was extremely opposite of the change God made. Prior to God’s touch Saul was a very humble and submissive person it seems, but the power of the position seems to have caused an issue with pride within his heart. He could have regained the ground he had lost, but God knew that Saul’s repentance was never sincere. He continued this decline the rest of his reign.

The point of this devotion is to encourage those who read this to guard their hearts! God made sure Saul’s life was made new (salvation). God provided everything for Saul to live a victorious life. Saul still was responsible for guarding his heart from things that no one else could see (pride). Guard your heart! Keep your eyes, ears, hands, and mind from evil. Don’t allow the thoughts of evil or pride find residence in your mind. God has given us the weapons to win. Use them! We can make it through Christ!

The battle of the mind is one of the most important that we have to win. Missionary and evangelist Zane Estis said this week at Camp Blessing something like this: “What gets in the eyes and what gets in the ears will get into the mind!”

Psalm 36:4 is talking about the mind:
He deviseth mischief upon his bed; he setteth himself in a way that is not good; he abhorreth not evil.

That is all in the mind. Then the action follows.

It is in the mind that we lose the fear of God.
It is in the mind that we justify our sins.
It is in the mind that we convince ourselves that we are not at all bad.
It is in our minds that we create this deception that God has no access into our thoughts or our daily lives. But all the while He does! He sees our sin within our thoughts!

The goal then must be to take our thoughts captive. 2 Corinthians 10:5

Craig Groeschel recently listed 9 Declarations to Help Win the War in Your Mind:
1. Jesus is first in my life. I exist to serve and glorify Him.
2. I am disciplined. Christ in me is stronger than the wrong desires in me.
3. Pain is my friend. I rejoice in suffering because Christ suffered for me.
4. I am strengthened by God who upholds me, protects me, and defends me.
5. I am not easily offended and will not hold onto bitterness.
6. I wake up with purpose, direction, and meaning every day of my life.
7. I love people and believe the best about others.
8. I take all thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ.
9. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives within me.

We can enjoy victory in our minds. Purpose in your heart to live in victory today! God bless!

By definition depression is a mental health disorder characterized by persistently depressed mood or loss of interest in activities, causing significant impairment in daily life.  It is a battle within the mind. 

According to a study done several years ago 77% of all self-talk (yes, people do talk to themselves – like a lot) is negative and berating in nature.  That stat shows us that three out of every four things you speak to yourself in your mind are potentially harmful to how you view yourself.  This often leads to a feeling of depression or even being depressed. 

During the past year many things have changed in the lives of all teens and students.  There are not as many social gatherings.  Schools have changed their normal activities.  Teens are spending a lot of time on their own, at home, on their phones, on social media – and it all has led to an increase in depression.

Why is that?  We are losing the battle within the mind.  Since we are prone to think negative of ourselves anyway, it is easy for us in times of isolation to think these lies:

No one likes me because no one likes my posts on Instagram; I guess I’m not pretty enough.

I don’t have any friends because no one is snapping me back.

I always have to text first, so I guess no one is my real friend.

Those guys made fun of the way I play Fortnite or Apex, they must think I am stupid.

I don’t understand any of my schoolwork, I am an idiot.  I will always be an idiot.

How can this be combatted against?

We must realize that we control our thoughts.  They don’t have to control us.  Look at these scriptures:

2 Corinthians 10:5 KJV

Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

Philippians 4:8 AMP

Finally, believers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable and worthy of respect, what is right and confirmed by God’s Word, whatever is pure and wholesome, whatever is lovely and brings peace, whatever is admirable and of good repute; if there is any excellence if there is anything worthy of praise, think continually on these things [ center your mind on them, and implant them in your heart].

Note the first verse says that our imaginations (our thoughts) can exalt themselves against the knowledge of God.  Our negative thoughts about ourselves tend to go against how God truly sees us.  He sees as a masterpiece created in His image for His purpose.  The second verse tells us how to think and what types of things to dwell on within our minds.  So instead of thinking negative, remember you are a Child of the One True King!  You are worth dying for.  You are worth leaving all of heaven for.  You have a Friend in Jesus.

If you are dealing with depression talk to someone about it.  Talk to your parents, pastors, youth pastors, or someone else you trust.  Also, start fighting against the negative thoughts that flood your mind by reciting some of the truths I mentioned above.  We are praying for you!

Consistent – means behaving or acting the same way or doing something the same way over time.

Persistent – means continuing to do something despite difficulties and challenges.

This is something that has been on my heart for a while, and it is something that has challenged me.  I truly believe that you can’t write a devotion without it being something that either the Lord has specifically laid on your heart or something that He’s dealing with you personally about.  And this topic is one of those for me.

In everyone’s life there are highs and lows (some greater than others and some that stand out to us more).  And sometimes it’s easy to serve God, go to church, and read out Bible.  I thank God for those “easy” times where we have that desire to learn and grow in Him.  But other times it’s just not.  Now, I don’t mean that we don’t want to live for Him anymore, but I’m talking about the times that we know we need to go to church or read our Bible because we feel that urge or pull, but we can’t seem to get past the heaviness of our trial.  Or, maybe, we’ve allowed ourselves to become dry or bitter because of our circumstances.  

We’re all human, and it’s understandable to feel defeated or overwhelmed when bad things happen.  But the first step to overcoming and ‘persisting’ on is laying all our cares at the foot of the cross and recognizing that we cannot go through this life on our own and we need Him to help us!

Psalm 55:22 says, “Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee; He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”

We often hear Christians say to be consistent with God and to “just keep going”; but as we read in the definition it’s not given into account of our circumstance.  That’s why I like to say persistent because it means we keep going, despite the difficulties and cares of life.

Philippians 3:14 says, “I PRESS toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

The story of Job’s life always inspires me because he lost his family, his home, and his health.  At first he had the normal human reaction; and he did get bitter, and then it went away.  

1 Peter 5:7 says, “Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.”

In conclusion, I’m grateful that I have a God Who sees and knows every season of life that we walk through and wants to see us “press” on to the end.  Life does come with challenges and seasons of bitterness, hardship, and confusion; but God promises that He’ll never leave or forsake us.  I’ve experienced His hand that walks beside us during difficult times.

Do not give up, friend!  God sees and knows where you are.  The reward is always greater than the suffering, and it will get better.  Persist till the end, because it wall all be worth it soon!

Luke 21:14

Settle it therefore in your hearts…

The word settle means to fix or to establish.  In legal terms when one party sues another party many times they will settle their dispute outside of court by establishing a written agreement that cannot be legally broken.

When Christ made this statement to the disciples it was during His prophesying of harsher circumstances to come.  There would be persecution.  They (the disciples) would be brought before dignitaries and key authority figures for a testimony.  Christ said that He would in that moment give them the words they needed to say – but they must settle it in their hearts!

What does that mean?

Have complete faith and trust in God’s plan.

There was a great element of mystery in what Christ was saying.  The trials to come would definitely test their faith – so they must have everything settled in their hearts.  They must establish their faith, fix their faith in Christ completely and trust His process.

How is your faith?  Is it fixed on Jesus?  Have you come to the agreement within your heart that Jesus is the only Way?  Have you established in your heart that you will follow no other and boldly stand for Jesus? 

We do not know what lies ahead, but Jesus’ end time prophecy has yet to be completed.  We must have our faith settled in our hearts so that nothing can cause us to switch directions and cower to the world.  He promised He would give us strength and make a way of escape for us in our trials.  It is settled!  Let it be so in your own heart today!

Luke 8:35

Then they went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind: and THEY WERE AFRAID.

Luke 8:37

Then they whole multitude of the country of the Gadarenes round about besought him (Jesus) to depart from them; for they were taken with great fear…

When I read those two verses earlier today I was surprised at what I saw.  The people were so nervous about what Jesus was doing in their town that they actually were driven to ask Him to leave them alone.  

What was Jesus doing that caused this fear or nervousness?  He was changing things that they had become too familiar or comfortable with.  He was making a difference for the better of their society and culture.  Their fear came after Jesus had delivered the man called Legion from all of his demons.  This man was found following his deliverance clothed, listening to Christ, and able to think for himself.  They should have rejoiced with him, but they were afraid and wanted no part of what was happening.  I had to ask myself why this was so.  The only logical answer is they had become too comfortable with darkness.

It is crazy to think that could be the case, but it was.  They had seen the man in the tombs, acting crazy, howling in the night, and unable to be tamed.  And they were comfortable with that.  Actually, they probably used his situation to justify why theirs was not so bad.  They were running an industry that was unclean (the swine) according to Levitical Law.  That had not driven them to demonic possession, so their darkness wasn’t as bad as Legion’s!  I wonder if that is what they thought.  

As soon as the LIGHT came into their coasts they were confronted with their sin.  This caused them to fear, to get uncomfortable, and ultimately to reject the One Who could save and heal them.  It is easy to get comfortable in the dark.  We can hide – or so we think – from the conviction and condemnation that gnaws at us in the Light.  That conviction, though it feels negative and is uncomfortable, is one of the most positive things you or I can experience.  It is what helps us draw closer to the Light, the Savior!  

Don’t allow yourself to get comfortable in the dark!  I have seen young people your age stop coming to youth or hanging out with the youth group because they wanted to stay in the dark.  Don’t let that be you!  I remember having a counsel session with a young person who had made a decision to stay away from church activities for a while.  My counsel to their parent was to not allow that to happen!  They were too embarrassed to come back after what had happened, but I knew the church and the youth group was where they belonged.  I didn’t want them to get comfortable in the dark.  

Here are some things you can do during our quarantine that can help you stay in the light: read your Bible, talk with your friends about spiritual things, listen to worship music, read these devotions, facetime your youth pastors, pray, talk with your family about spiritual things, watch some sermons on youtube, etc.

Katy and I are praying for you.  We hope to meet together soon.  If you need anything get in touch with us!  We love you guys!

2 Chronicles 20:3, 12

And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah… (Jehoshaphat speaking) “O our God, wilt thou not judge them?  For we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon Thee.”

Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, was in the middle of difficult circumstance.  Several different countries were allying against Judah.  He looked at the situation and quickly came to this conclusion: we are no match for them!  He was most definitely overwhelmed.  There was another emotion that weighed heavily on the king, FEAR. 

In this strange season of pandemic and social unrest, it is very easy for us to experience fear.  Fear about the present and the future.  Fear about any number of things, both big and small.  I want us to see Jehoshaphat’s response to fear as something we can apply to our daily lives during this time of chaos.

1. Jehoshaphat remembered Who was on his side.

Jehoshaphat refused to allow what surrounded him to keep him from remembering the TRUTH: God had always been there and always will be there.

2. Jehoshaphat ran to the One Who was on his side.

Almost immediately, in spite of his fear, the king called out to the Lord in prayer.  He knew he could run to God and find the answer he needed. 

Something else I want us to take note of: in the midst of fear Jehoshaphat asked God some tough questions.  “Art not Thou God in heaven?  Rulest not Thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen?”  Asking God questions is not wrong.  We need answers, and He has them. 

3. Jehoshaphat remained faithful and obedient to God during this time of fear.

He knew Who was on his side.  He knew where to run.  He knew what to do: obey whatever God says.  He asked God the questions and gave God the time to answer.  When God spoke, the king followed the directions. 

Jehoshaphat found out that God was fighting the battle on his behalf.  God showed up and showed off!  The big key was Jehoshaphat ran to Him before he tried to fight on his own.

Let’s do the same with our fear.  Allow it to be the thing that drives us to God.  He is fighting for us, not against us.  He’s got a plan in this mess!  Trust and obey!

Galatians 6:2

Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. KJV 

Bear (endure, carry) one another’s burdens and troublesome moral faults, and in this way fulfill and observe perfectly the law of Christ (the Messiah) and complete what is lacking [in your obedience to it]. AMP

Years ago a commercial for Life Alert burst onto the tv screens across America.  During this commercial a phrase gained instant fame and popularity: “Help! I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up!”  I cannot tell you how many times I’ve either heard or said this phrase repeated as a joke.

I remember a time when I fell on some ice (some of you may remember too!).  I broke my leg during the fall.  The famous phrase became more than a joke to me that day.  I needed assistance to get up from the icy floor where I lay in pain.  I had two friends with me who helped me get up from where I had fallen and get to a place where I could recover.

I have heard this same phrase repeated – not word for word – by individuals who were in a battle within their hearts.  They were stressed out, overwhelmed, depressed, searching for answers.  And they were crying for help! 

You have friends who are struggling.  You may be struggling.  There are burdens or things that are weighing on your mind.  You have questions that you can’t seem to find the answers to.  You are not alone.  Knowing this I want to appeal to you to be willing to help one another in this burden bearing.

When a person is lifting free weights he will usually ask someone to be a spotter if the weight he is trying to lift has the potential to get too heavy.  A spotter will help lighten the load at the time of need.  Be a spotter for someone today!  It is part of fulfilling Christ’s Law: to love the Lord with all we have and to love our neighbor as ourselves. 

Listen for the cry for help, and selflessly share the burden of someone else today.

Philippians 2:11 – And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 

Romans 10:9 – That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

It is good to believe in Jesus.  But is that enough to be considered a Christian?  The honest answer to that question is, “No!”  We are told in the New Testament that even the demons believe in Jesus, but we know that they are not (nor can they ever be) Christians.

So what does it mean to be a Christian, or Christ-like, or a disciple? 

A disciple was one who would follow a teacher, learning from day to day the doctrines that the teacher believed or was commissioned to teach.  A disciple would not only learn the lessons of the teacher, but he would also learn to mimic the habitual lifestyle of the teacher. 

When you read in the New Testament book of Acts you will discover that the disciples had done just that.  They knew how to follow Jesus while He was on Earth.  After His ascension they began to walk in the Spirit and to live like Christ lived: selfless, humble, in power and in meekness.  Jesus had become not only their teacher, but He was also their Lord.

Lord is more of a title than a name for God.  Lord means “one that rules”.  Is Jesus your Lord?  Does He guide your decisions?  Do you ask for His direction in your daily life?  What you would be doing differently if He was the Lord?

Jesus is a gentleman.  He will not rush into your heart and take over.  He wants you to allow Him to be Lord of your life.  It is good to believe in Jesus.  But He must be Lord over everything in your heart!