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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."Sometimes it doesn't really matter what it is, the key is whether we have the strength to keep pushing on and through till the end! The fire was burning out of control, we were called on the second alarm meaning that it was a large fire and those responding first needed help. We worked through the night with the other crews and finally, as the smoke cleared and the sun came up, the fire was out. Today's verse speaks to us about perservering under trials and when approved we will receive the crown of life from our Lord! There are many things in a man's life that can cause us to want to give in, give up, walk away but there should be one and only one reason to keep on keeping on and that is the love of Christ. We may find ourselves lacking the strength, courage and fortitude to persevere and that's when we need to turn to Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit to remain steadfast! Be strong this day as we face the struggles of manhood for no other reason than to bring Him glory! peace, tom
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Luke 5:16 NASB "But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray."I went quietly and just sat there, no interruptions, no confusion, I even turned off my phone! Today's Word gives us some great advice when life gets too busy, too crazy, too confusing - if it was good enough for Jesus to do, don't ya' think we should do it too! Jesus went away to the wilderness to pray and I found myself remembering this verse as I sat at the waters edge. With all the distractions of life, all the appointments in my calendar, I needed to get away and spend some quality time listening to God. There's something about enjoy His Creation in the wilderness that brings a peace, a refreshing to your soul and you'll always come away blessed and refreshed. The key of course is turning off the world and turning towards Him. When was the last time we sat quietly with God?! peace, tom
1 Chronicles 16:11 NASB "Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face continually."After sharing with the men's group, a young man came up and asked me how I got rid of my anger problem! My reply was that I didn't get rid of it but learned that it's ok to be angry but what we do with our anger is where we sin or not! Today's verse is where I find the strength to put the anger in its rightful place in my life, notice the last part were it states to seek God's Face continually! For me it is a minute by minute calling out to God to walk the walk of a godly man. That doesn't mean I get it right every time but I am on the path that leads me away from sin and towards Jesus Christ. What about you, what path are you on? One will lead to peace and the other to a life of struggling over and over with our problems. Letting go and letting God can be more than a simply saying, it can be the path we set before us! peace, tom
James 1:5 NASB "But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him."It seems like such a simple thing to do but the reality is that it's hard for most men to do! Three words that can make the difference in a man's life, and yet we find it so difficult to admit. Those three words are "I need help!". Admitting that we lack the knowledge shouldn't bring us down or make us feel like we are failures, we should find strength in admitting that we need help. Today's verse speaks about a simple question that we can ask of God, but it starts with us realizing that we lack wisdom. There have been many projects around my home where I didn't have the knowledge and needed to reach out to those who did, there have been times and still are when I call an uncle for some auto repair help, and times when I ask my dad for his insight so why should it be so hard to reach out to God to ask for His Wisdom?! Let's not lack the wisdom to admit we need help from other men and especially from God! peace, tom
John 6:63 NASB "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life."We walked away strengthened as the time we spent with friends lifted our spirits! It had been a few months since we all got together, you know this Covid-19 thing! So we finally decided to spend some time together, keeping our masks on, keeping social distance and came away blessed by our time together! Today's Word speaks to us about the Spirit giving life, and how God's Word is spirit and life! Nothing can life our spirits more than spending time with good friends. Enjoying the laughter, sharing our struggles, and just spending time together. That's how it can be when we spend time with God. He will lift our spirits, make us see that life will be ok, and that He listens as we share our struggles. The key of course is whether or not we accepted His Invitation to spend time with Him?! And just think, no masks and no social distance, we can get as close to God as we want and we can do it every minute of the day! peace, tom
Romans 8:37 NASB "But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us." Everyone one of us have those days, when things begin to go wrong and yet, if we remain faithful in our walk with Christ, we will overwhelmingly conquer! That's today scripture and what a wonderful thought and an even better way to live. As it sat, it wouldn't work, but each time I tried to fix it, nothing happened. I wanted to give up on it and trash it but something inside me said one more try. So as I tweaked this and that and then pulled the cord, the engine came to life! There are times in our life when we may want to throw in the towel, maybe struggles with our children, our spouses, our job, even some of our closest friends but if we hold firm to the thought that God loves us and we stay connected to Him by His Word and prayer and walking in the Spirit, we can overwhelmingly conquer those obstacles in our life. Notice it doesn't say we just conquer them but "overwhelmingly" conquer them!! Let that sink in as we stay committed to how we live life for Him! peace, tom
Proverbs 4:18 NASB "But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,
That shines brighter and brighter until the full day."The morning was filled with fog, and the sun had not risen as we started out, probably not a good idea! On a canoe trip with a few other men, we needed to get to the other side of the lake to be picked up for the ride home, but we never accounted for the fog and darkness of the morning! Today's Word shares about the path being made brighter and brighter until it's a full day! As the time went on, the sun began to shine, and the fog slowly lifted. We found out that we were way off course and had to readjust to make it to our destination. Many times in life, our path may seem dark and clouded by a fog, but if we hold tight and wait for the "Son" to rise, we will find our way. The key of course is whether we are looking for the direction of the Son in our lives. With Jesus, the path is always clear, for He is the Way, the Truth and the Life! peace, tom Romans 15:1 NASB "Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves."I didn't understand it at the time but as I grew older and had children of my own, I understood exactly what he meant! My father often said that when he took his boys fishing, he didn't really go fishing! Seems kind of strange but the reality was that he was teaching us boys and even my sister how to fish, meaning that his line never made it into the water! Today's verse speaks about help those who need help and not just pleasing ourselves! Sure my dad could have gone off fishing without us but he cared more about us kids than himself! What a great lesson to learn, that helping others is more important than pleasing ourselves. I can only think of how Christ looked to help us, deep in sin, by going to the Cross and not pleasing Himself. I wonder who will we help today rather than just pleasing ourselves?! peace, tom
1 Corinthians 12:12 NASB "For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ."What I miss most is the camaraderie! There is something about being part of a group of people, willing to risk their lives for others that brings you together! When I retired early from the Fire Department, I lost being part of that group! Today's verse speaks about being members of Christ's family, and although we each are different, we are still members of the same "body" of Christ! It's great to get together with some of the guys I fought fires with, to share the memories but that time in my life has past and there is a newness to life. Being part of a group working together, toward a common goal is what being part of a men's group is all about. Don't go it alone, get together with some men and make "godly" memories to treasure for years to come! peace, tom
John 10:10 NASB "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."I find myself in a quagmire, I know I am supposed to pray for my enemies but there are times I want to ring their necks!! Today's verse speaks about the thief coming to steal, kill and destroy but Christ came to bring life and the fullness of that life! Recently a thief came and stole my bike! My first reaction was wanting to find him/them and get even but rather than let them destroy my peace, I had decided to pray for them! (easier said than done). Our human nature always wants to get even but when we walk by the Spirit, we can let go of those feelings and realize what's important. I am still alive, I have family and friends that love me, and I can always replace the bike! Keeping things in perspective means living God's Word not just reading it or speaking it!! Praying that you have life and it is abundantly filled with the love of Christ and prayers for your enemies! peace, tom
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Tom SEmberAuthor of Daily Devotions Archives
December 2024
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