James 2:24 NASB "You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone."I can say that I'm going to do it but it's not done till I do! Today's verse speaks to action rather than just words! I love making lists of things that I need or want to accomplish. Some of those lists are fun and enjoyable things while others are jobs that need to be done. I can say the words "I'll do it" but not until I get down to action will they get done. It's like reading God's Word.. We can read all about sharing our faith but until we actually get off our good intentions and share Jesus, it won't get done. Along with making lists, I also like making excuses, maybe you do too. We need to stop making excuses for not sharing our faith and find the reason in Christ to get 'er done! No excuses today, let's share Jesus! peace, tom
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Psalm 130:5 NASB "I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, And I wait for His word."Sometimes it seems to last forever! Today's verse is about waiting on the Lord! How many of us have ever ordered something and the wait for it seems to last forever?! We wait with anticipation but then at some point our anticipation turns to wondering if it will ever come? Or how about fishing as we wait for the fish to take the bait. Waiting for that strike seems exciting at first but the longer we wait, we begin to ask if we are in the right spot or using the right lure. Waiting on the Lord can seem to last forever but we must remember it's not about our timing but His. The key is learning to wait patiently! I know easier said than done but once the waiting is over, we will see that it was well worth it! peace, tom
Ezekiel 36:25 NASB "Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols."It was hard work but it had to be done! Today's Word is a promise from God that He will cleanse us but we have our part to do too! For the wall to be repainted, we needed to scrape off the old blistering paint. It was hard work, but in order for the new paint to do it job, the old must come off. So too in our own life, the old lifestyle needs to be scraped away so that we are ready for God's cleaning. No one ever said that it would be easy but if we hold to the promise from today's verse, we can find the reason to let go of the dirt and take hold of being clean. Let's set the example for the younger ones by cleaning up our lives! Let's run through God's sprinkler today! peace, tom
Colossians 3:12 NASB "So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience;"I had to put them on! Today's Word has a list of words that we are to wear! As I prepared to do the job, I realized that I needed to change clothes, to put on the appropriate clothing for the job! Weed wacking in flip flops or power washing the house in a suit doesn't even make sense so why would we claim to know Jesus and not follow His Lead in how we treat others?! The words in today's verse, if worn properly, will show the world that we are in fact followers of Christ. We need to do a better job at the words we live by so we don't tarnish the name of Jesus! Just my thoughts! peace, tom
2 John 1:8 NASB "Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward."Yes it was time! Today's verse gives us some advice about not losing what we have done! About this time every year, I begin to think of ways to keep the critters out of our garden.Things that I need to set up so that they can't get to the crops that are beginning to ripen. If I don't put the wire cage around or the netting over the top, the critters will get to eat what we planted, and have cared for as we waited for the fruit of our labor. We too must protect what we have accomplished in life. The wisdom and knowledge that God has allowed us to learn. Protecting His Word that we live by means that we will have to go against the grain of the world. It's like the flesh verses the Spirit, they are in conflict with one another, so too the Word of God and the lies of the world. Be sure to set up some barriers to keep Him first! peace, tom
Proverbs 18:15 NASB "The mind of the discerning acquires knowledge, And the ear of the wise seeks knowledge." Sometimes I just like to sit and listen! Today's verse is a bit about wisdom and knowledge! I am not being lazy, i just like to hear the wisdom of those who are older than me so I sit and listen. Many of those have gone through it before us have some great advice and wisdom to share, we just need to sit and listen. I have said this before, I would much rather learn the mistakes they made so I can avoid them than to have to go through the mistakes myself. There is so much free wisdom and knowledge available to us from those who are in their senior years, we just need to ask and listen. Letting them speak means we need to acknowledge their wisdom. It's like reading the Bible, there's so much wisdom and knowledge available, we just need to sit and read it. Let's make sure we are the ones looking for wisdom between the lips of others and between the pages of His Word! peace, tom
1 Thessalonians 4:11 NASB "and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we instructed you," I kept getting poked! Today's Word is rather simple but speaks volumes on how we should live! Each time I bent over, I got poked and I finally found out why. While doing some wood working, a small piece of wood had fallen down my shirt. No matter how I moved, the wood kept poking me. Finally, I had enough and took off my shirt and removed the piece of wood! In life, there will be those who poke us, and keep poking us no matter what we do. Sometimes we just need to say "enough" and ask them to stop. It's never easy to say those who do the poking to stop but it needs to be said. And let's make sure we aren't the ones doing the poking and live like today's Word says! peace, tom
Acts 17:30 NASB "So having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now proclaiming to mankind that all people everywhere are to repent," For there to be real change, I had to repent and stop lying to myself! Today's Word speaks to us of ignorance and repentance, both words that need to be understood. No matter how much I wanted the anger to go away, I needed to stop being ignorant of the fact that I had a choice. When our sin runs our life, we have to stop and take notice that it is not the sin making the choice but we ourselves. In order for us to truly repent, we need to stop lying to ourselves about the cause of our sin. For me, I needed to come clean that my choice was to let the anger run my life. What about you? Is there a sin that you need to repent of, instead of just ignoring it and praying it goes away? Sometimes honesty hurts but the Truth shall set us free! peace, tom
Hebrews 10:26 NASB "For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,"Something had to change! Today's Word is about continuing the wrong way after learning the Truth! No matter how many times I ran my train around the track, it kept falling off at a certain spot. I tried different engines, different cars, different groups of cars and yet it kept falling off at the same location. I needed to find out the "why" it was falling off the track so that I could fix it and enjoy the ride! Life can be like that, falling off the track at the same point in our lives.We need to find out why we fall where we fall, when we fall. Once I found the problem, I fixed it so that the train could run efficiently. Let's find out what we keep sinning and fix the problem so that we can move forward without falling back into sin! peace, tom
2 Corinthians 3:17 NASB "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." Freedom! Today's verse tells us where to find true freedom! As I stood by his bed and prayed, he began to talk. He wanted to be free of all the wires, tubes, meds that went along with his sickness. It was then that he spoke the words of today's verse to me and added that being with Jesus will bring total freedom. He had struggled for years with his health. He would gain some strength but then there would always be a set back. He asked me to pray with him that Jesus would take him home. On this day, as we celebrate our nation's independence, we must not forget the pain that went along with breaking away from English rule. I pray that the spirit of our forefathers will be with us as we celebrate but more importantly that the Spirit of Jesus will set us truly free! peace, tom
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Tom SEmberAuthor of Daily Devotions Archives
May 2024
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