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James 1:12 NASB "Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him." Slow and Steady! Today's Word is about trials and how once we have passed through them, we will receive the promise! While cleaning up the yard at church, we rented a chipper to get rid of all the branch debris. We found out that we couldn't just shove all the branches and sticks in at one, for the machine would bog down and we would have to start again. We had to shut down the machine and clean out the shoots to start again. Many times in life we try to go to fast, cramming as much as we can into the limited time we have. We miss the opportunities that come our way, so it's best to work slow and steady. We will get more done for the Kingdom of God. I would rather do 10 things at 100% than 100 things at 10%. Let's take it slow and steady today, we will get more done for Him! peace, tom
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Ephesians 2:10 NASB "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." I stood back in awe! Today's verse tells us a lot, who we are, why we are and what we should do! His talent was amazing, he was gifted and the longer I watched him work, the more I realized how gifted he was. I am sure we have all seen those gifted with talents perform at a high level and thought to ourselves "I wish I could do that!" The Truth is that each of us have been created by Christ! Each given gifts and talents, and it's time we put them to work. Years ago there was a slogan, "God don't make junk!". We need to realize that we are His workmanship, we just need to walk in the fact that He made us! And that's awesome, if we step in and use our talents and gifts. People will say that we are awesome when they see Christ working through us! Let's get busy, there's work to be done! Be awesome in Christ! peace, tom
Proverbs 20:3 NASB "Avoiding strife is an honor for a person, But any fool will quarrel."He simply walked away! Today's Word is wisdom that we all need to remember! As the argument began to get heated, he simply walked away. No matter how loud they yelled, he kept walking. He was well aware that all they wanted to do was draw him into a fight but he never took the bait! Being a fisherman, I know how important bait can be when you're trying to catch a fish, and in this case they were trying to catch a man. For each of us, there will come a time when we need to decide whether or not we will take the bait. The bait to get drawn into a quarrel, an argument, a fight where the outcome really doesn't matter. Let's save our strength for the fights that need fighting! Find strength in Christ not to take the bait and walk away! peace, tom
Romans 12:21 NASB "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."We had to keep focus! Today's Word is about overcoming! While trying to help a gentleman during a first aid call, some of the men who had beaten him came back and wanted to fight us as well. We never found out why they were so angry or wanted to fight but we kept our eyes focused on helping the man rather than get caught up in fighting the others. Life can bring us opportunities to either do good or evil. Staying focused on doing good can be a challenge when evil raises its ugly head right in our face. Keeping focus on Christ and walking by the Spirit are two sure ways of completing today's verse. The world will try to pull us into the ways of evil but Christ will always show us the Way to overcome evil with good! peace, tom
Romans 8:7 NASB "because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,"Today's Word is about focus and choice! I remember a time as a young boy where the day wasn't what we thought it would be but we had the choice to either enjoy the moment or miss the opportunity! As we left the dock, the boat began to fill with water. The more we bailed, the more water came in but then all of a sudden the water stopped coming in! It was a wood boat that hadn't seen water in a while and the boards were dry so the water came in, until the wood began to swell and the water stopped entering! We could have either enjoyed the rest of the day or head back to the dock and given up on fishing for the day. Life will put us through those things that will cause us to lose focus and we have the choice to either keep moving forward or give up. We choose to enjoy the day and caught many fish. When we set our lives on the things of the flesh, we will miss the joy of the Lord...it all comes down to choice! peace, tom
Ephesians 4:24 NASB "and to put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth."Today's Word is part of a section where we are told be renewed, to be in the likeness of God! I had never done it before but I wanted to try it. I made sure that I had a good teacher, someone who didn't only talk about it but actually did it too. I wanted to learn as much as I could before I started so that when it was my turn to try it, I was prepared. When it comes to being a new creation in Christ, we should first believe that we actually are, then make sure we find someone to teach us, disciple us and help us on the journey. When I first tried this new thing, I wasn't that good at it at all but over time I learned and got better and better at it! Don't be discouraged if we fail a few times but keep our eyes upon Jesus, He's the perfecter of our faith! peace, tom
1 Peter 5:8 NASB "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour."Wow, just wow! Today's Word is some great advice about being on the alert! I was watching one of those documentary films about lion prides and it came to the part where it was time for them to go on the hunt. They worked together to pull down a wildebeest. Despite the size difference, the lions worked together to get the beast to the ground and began to devour it, leaving nothing left. I couldn't help but think of today's scripture where the devil is on the hunt for one of us to devour. We may never see him coming, never see the sneak attack but he's out there and he's looking for one of us. Being on the alert will help us keep from being devoured so let's be careful to have the full armor of God on. We can even help each other from being devoured by having each other's back. Let's be careful out there for it's a jungle! peace, tom
Proverbs 15:32 NASB "One who neglects discipline rejects himself, But one who listens to a rebuke acquires understanding.""Ignore once or ignore all"! Today's Word is about discipline and understanding and how the two are related! It shows up every time I begin to write a message. I make a mistake and immediately my computer gives me the option to ignore the "auto correct" or I can ignore it all. Sometimes I hit the ignore and sometimes I hit the auto correct button so that my writings have the correct spelling or the correct usage of the word. I couldn't help but think that sometimes I wish I had "auto correct" on my speech. You know, so that I don't say the wrong thing and the wrong time and make someone feel bad. As I began to think about that, having an autocorrect button on my speech, I thought I do have it and so do you - it's called the Holy Spirit. He will guide us in our speech and our actions so that we don't offend anyone, but that's if we use Him. Like the autocorrect button on our computers, we have the choice to use it or not. Let's choose to use the Holy Spirit to correct our speech and actions today! peace, tom
Acts 16:31 NASB "They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”" If only! Today's verse speaks life, life for us and for our families! We don't usually recognize them but they are there! We take for granted that when we need them, they will be there. First responders, firefighters, policemen are all there waiting when we call 911. They will come and help us in those emergency situations but what about the emergency situations of our soul?! If we call our to God, believe in His Son and the work done for us at the Cross, we can be saved. The hard part, whether its dialing 911 or calling out to God in prayer, is believing they will be there. Like the emergency crews waiting to help, so is God. We just have to make the call! Make the call! peace, tom
Mark 5:36 NASB "But Jesus, overhearing what was being spoken, *said to the synagogue official, “Do not be afraid, only believe.”"I often wonder, do we?! Today's verse speaks a very simple message but one so profound that we should live it! As we entered the fire building, we found them huddled in the corner of a room. My crew and I began to get them out one by one and while the smoke and fire was all around, we needed them to not be afraid and believe we would get them all out. Many times in life, we will find ourselves in situations that will cause fear and panic but we need to put our faith in Christ, to not be afraid but believe. Giving our life over to Him means just that, not being afraid but believing in Him and the power of the Holy Spirit to guide our life. It sounds simple but the reality is that it will take courage to believe, courage found in Him alone! Don't let fear keep us from believing in God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit! peace, tom
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Tom SEmberAuthor of Daily Devotions Archives
March 2025
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