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Matthew 18:20 NASB "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.”All it took was the strength to ask one guy to coffee! Today's Word is about meeting together in His Name and He is there! No guy likes to be "that guy"! You know, the one who steps out of his comfort zone and asks another guy to meet for coffee. It takes courage and strength to step out and ask another man to meet to talk about life, our walk with Christ, but someone has to take the first step! Finding the courage in Christ to reach out and ask a guy from church to have a cup of coffee has led me on some great adventures and we've never left the coffee shop! Sharing life, guy to guy and our struggles, victories, joys and sadness takes one man to ask another man for coffee! BE that guy! Go to your church this weekend and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you to that one man and then ask him out for coffee! Jesus will show up in ways we never thought possible! peace, tom
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Psalm 40:2 NASB "He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the mud; And He set my feet on a rock, making my footsteps firm."Rise above the muck! Today's Word shares about how Christ can raise us up and put our feet on solid ground! As I drove my son-in-laws 4 wheeler, I thought I was on solid ground but no sooner did I find myself stuck in the muck. Unable to move forward or reverse, I had to call for help. He came with a bigger tractor and pulled me back to dry ground. In life, we will find ourselves stuck in muck. Where we can't seem to move forward or reverse! It is then, that we need to call out to God and He will send His Comforter, His Helper, the Holy Spirit to help us rise above the muck! And there is no greater feeling than the freedom found in Christ! So, if we are spinning our wheels, going no where, it's time! Time to call out to God for direction and the strength to rise about the muck! peace, tom
1 Thessalonians 5:14 NASB "We urge you, brothers and sisters, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone."It wasn't that he didn't know, it was that he was never taught! Today's Word speaks of things we can do and act upon regarding each other! I remember when I was there too, not sure how to do the job until I was taught. When he arrived on the job site, he had a willingness to work, a healthy attitude to learn all about the position but until he was taught, he wasn't quite sure what to do. If we had judged him on his first day, we would probably said he was a slacker but in reality he stood back to learn. Let's not confuse the difference and teach those who don't know. And the best thing we can teach about is knowing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and how there is this "Book" that has all the answers! Let's not be so quick to judge but be willing to help those who don't know, for we were there once!! peace, tom
Acts 3:19 NASB "Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord"It was silent! Today's verse speaks of repentance (saying we are sorry) and a time of refreshing! We did not see eye to eye and it eventually led to an argument where neither one of us agreed and it led to silence not only in words but in how we interacted with each other. No marriage is perfect and my wife and I found ourselves disagreeing and eventually silent with each other. Not until I told her I was sorry and she did the same, did the conversation and our life began to be refreshed. Some times we need to step back, take a look and see where we fell short and ask for forgiveness so that a time of refreshing can come. Don't allow a disagreement keep us from enjoy the blessings that God has given us! peace, tom
1 Corinthians 16:13 NASB "Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong."Drag queens in elementary schools, no wonder young men are confused these days! Today's verse tells us to stand firm in the faith, to act like men, to be strong! I was utterly shocked when I saw the report of school boards allowing men dressed as woman to read books to elementary schools! I wondered to myself, who allowed this to happen? Have we gotten so far off course in being a godly nation that we allow things that go against God's Word into our lives?! And then I began to think how God is not allowed in schools and who allowed that to happen? WE DID! By not standing up for the things of God and His Ways, we have allowed the evil of the world to take the place where God was and needs to be. We will take some persecution in standing firm in the things of the Lord but isn't that what Jesus did for us?! peace, tom
Proverbs 22:6 NASB "Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he grows older he will not abandon it."I can't do it without thinking of him! Today's fatherly advise verse is about raising up our children in the ways of the Lord and when they are older, they will remember! It doesn't matter whether he's with me or not, but when he's not, he still is! I know, sounds like a riddle but every time I cast a line into a river or lake or stream, my dad is with me in spirit! He has taught me how to fish as a young boy and I continue to fish even as I grow older! But more importantly is the fact that I can't open my Bible without thinking of him too. He has taught me the importance of God's Word, about walking in the Spirit and how to give God the glory. As a young boy, I saw my dad not only reading God's Word but living it and teaching it to me. Let's be careful what we are teaching our children, cause they will remember!! peace, tom Have a blessed Father's Day!
Hebrews 12:11 NASB "For the moment, all discipline seems not to be pleasant, but painful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.""This is going to hurt me more than it will you! Today's Fathering Message is about discipline and the verse for today speaks right to the point! As my father began to discipline me, he uttered the words "this is going to hurt me more than you!". I couldn't understand that until I had daughters of my own and realized that it does hurt when we have to discipline those we love. Years later, that discipline has helped me grow as a man. We must remember today's verse that for the moment, discipline is not pleasant but it will yield a well trained and peaceful man. Let us father with love as we discipline those given to us to train up in the ways of the Lord! peace, tom
Psalm 68:5 NASB "A father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows, Is God in His holy dwelling."It just happens, cause we care! Today's "fathering" verse is about fathering the fatherless! There are men who gather around the families of those who gave their life while serving in the fire service. They make sure that the children and widows are taken care of. They repair homes, help financially, and they make sure the children are loved. It's cause, in the fire service, we are all family! Taking care of the fatherless and helping the families left behind by the loss of a father is a God thing. The sad reality is that many children are fatherless while their biological fathers are still alive. Let's take care of the fatherless and teach the absent father what a God honored thing it is to be a father! peace, tom
Ephesians 6:4 NASB "Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord."I wish I could go back and do things differently! Today's verse and all week we will be sharing about fatherhood and today's is about not provoking our children to anger! I have lived the downside of today's verse, I have sadly provoked my children to anger. The reality of life is that we can't go back and change what was done in the past but we can learn from our mistakes and move forward. Too many times, I lived anger and I am sure the outburst caused my children to be angry with their dad. I thank God I changed, a little late, but better late than never. What I am most concerned with is that my actions as a father may have damaged their relationship with God the Father for by how we father, they learn about our Heavenly Father! Let's make a better example of who He is by how we father! peace, tom
2 Corinthians 8:1 NASB "Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let’s cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."It was time! Today we read about cleansing ourselves, and perfecting holiness in the fear of God! It started out with my files, then the tool box, then the tackle box! It was time to clean things up. The files both on my computer and in the file cabinet needed to be gone through and cleaned up. I said to myself, why stop there and went to the tool box and got rid of the tools that I no longer use and just take up space, then finally I did an inventory of the fishing lures I use and catch fish and those that just attracted me to buy but don't catch fish. It felt good to get things back in order and I couldn't help but think that there were and are areas in my walk with Christ that need cleaning up. Taking a personal inventory of what needs to be removed from my life is perfecting holiness in the fear of God, a reverence to be holy as He is holy. How about you, is it time?! peace, tom
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Tom SEmberAuthor of Daily Devotions Archives
June 2022
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