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Mark 16:15 NASB "And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation."Did you hear the news?! Today's verse is about sharing the news of Jesus Christ, plain and simple! I am always amazed at how fast news travels. Sometimes we don't even know the person who is sharing the news with us but as we stand, whether in line at the grocery store, or hardware store or coffee shop, they turn and say "did you hear the news". It would seem that news travels fast, whether it's bad news or good news, it is passed along at an amazing rate. I wonder what would happen if we began to pass the news of Jesus Christ as fast as we do other things?! Would people begin to go back to church, would we see miracles, signs and wonders like never before?! All it takes is the courage to say "did you hear about Jesus Christ"! Why not try to share Jesus with one person this day, share the Good News! Did you hear... peace, tom
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3 John 1:11 NASB "Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does what is good is of God; the one who does what is evil has not seen God." It's a simple game but so much fun! Today's verse shares about who we should imitate! It's a childhood game, maybe you've played it too - it's called "Simon Says"! I have had the opportunity to lead a group of children in the game of Simon Says, some followed and won while others made the mistake of not following what was said and lost. In life, it's the same way! When we follow where God leads us, we can find the good in all things but when we follow the ways of the world, we will only find loss where we keep looking for a better way. Jesus Christ is the best way and will lead us if we follow Him. Sure, His Words maybe difficult at times to follow but in the end He will lead us to the good of life. Simon says "read His Word every day" - wonder if we will follow His Lead?! peace, tom
John 14:26 NASB "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and remind you of all that I said to you."He may be gone but his words still ring in my ears! Today we read about help from the Holy Spirit and how we will be reminded of all that Jesus has said! I could hear him in my mind! I could hear his words of encouragement and advice! While doing a home repair job, I could hear the words of my dad in my head. It was almost as if he was right there. My dad went on to glory over a year ago and yet his words of advice still ring out. When we have the Holy Spirit as our helper, we too can hear the Words of Christ ring in our minds. The key of course is whether we listen to Him and the Word spoken to us. Let's not be so arrogant that we think we know it all but be open to advice and help along the way! peace, tom
Romans 15:7 ESV "Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God."There is nothing like coming home! Today's verse shares that we are to welcome others as Christ has welcomed us! After being away for the last week, it was good to come home! Home to our family, home to our house and home to our church family. We did take time to refresh and relax as we were away but coming home and being welcomed home is always a blessing. Just as Christ welcomes us to His Family when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior and one day we will be welcomed home to heaven. But in the mean time it's back to work, back to sharing Christ, back to where He calls us to go and share. Let's make sure whether people are gone for a day, a week or even longer, we welcome them back with the love of Christ! It's good to be back and thank you all for the messages of how these were missed. Peace, tom
Exodus 34:21 NASB "You shall work six days, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during plowing time and harvest you shall rest."It's that time again! Today's Word is about working hard but also taking a day of rest. As many of you know, I have been sending these daily devotions out for over 20+ years and from time to time, I feel the Lord tell me to take a rest. I will be listening to the Lord and taking next week off. Time to refresh, relax and go deeper with God through His Word and His Spirit of comfort. Lord willing, I will be back next week! I ask that during this week of no devotions from me, that you would spend time with the Lord as well - maybe just sitting back and listening for His Voice. Whatever you do, know that I will be praying for you - that God would speak to your heart. May your week be blessed, peace, Tom
Matthew 7:13-14 NASB “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it."We were called to a structure fire but getting to it was nearly impossible! Today's verse speaks to us about the narrow gate, and how there are only a few who find it! When we arrived on scene, we found the path to the fire building almost impossible to get through. There were cars parked in the driveway, debris scattered about while the house on fire was down the alleyway. Struggling to get over the cars and past the debris was difficult but we were called to be firefighters and get the fire out. There are many times in life, when the path to Jesus Christ will seem blocked, but if we persist, and keep moving forward, we will find Him. Don't let the difficult road keep us from Christ! Yes, we got to the house and put the fire out because we remained faithful to our calling, so can you! peace, tom
John 8:12 NASB "Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life."He needs the flashlight! Today's verse is about Light and darkness, one will help while the other offers nothing! One of my grandsons loves to play in our boat. He always likes to go under the front deck but before he heads in, he asks me for a flashlight. Although he is only 2 years old, he knows that the difference between light and darkness and doesn't like to be in the dark! Life can be pretty dark for us and that's all the more reason we need the Light of Christ. Jesus wants nothing more than to light the way for us in a darkened world. I can give my grandson the flashlight but he has to turn it on. Have we turned on the Light of Christ in our lives?! peace, tom
Luke 15:7 NASB "I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance."I will never forget the joy I had when she returned! Today's Word is about heaven rejoicing when we return to Christ! When I was a young boy, our dog had run away and I was heartbroken. I remember searching the neighborhood looking for her. After a day or two, which seemed like forever for a young boy, she came home. I had so much joy and happiness, I hugged her, cried over her return and my life seemed complete again. When one of us, who have gone astray from the Lord, returns, the heavens rejoice, like a small boy who's dog returned. We are only a few steps away from returning from the Lord when we have gone astray. Don't let he lies of satan, like "she'll never come back" keep us from repenting and having heaven rejoice. It always comes down to choice! peace, tom
Ephesians 4:28 NASB "The one who steals must no longer steal; but rather he must labor, producing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with the one who has need." What's the reason?! Today we read about the one who steals, the one who labors and the one who shares! As we sit with family and enjoy a dog or two, and celebrate Labor Day, I wonder if we really understand why we labor. Why go to work, is it just for the paycheck, the health insurance, or the benefit package?! I remember as young boy, getting my first job and thinking to myself, I am now part of the work force. What that meant was that I was part of all those who labor. I had seen my father go to work to provide for his family, providing for others. We need to ask ourselves, why do we go to work? Jesus did His labor of love by going to the Cross for us, what are we doing for Him?! peace, tom
Psalm 43:6 NASB "This wretched man cried out, and the Lord heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles."I am not sure how many times, but there have been a lot! Today's verse speaks about crying out to God and being saved! There have been times in my life, and I am sure there will be more to come, when I have cried out to God for His Help. Times when I had lost my way, or struggled with the loss of a loved one, and after crying out, I felt a peace that God has it all under control. We may be going through a difficult situation right now and our only hope is try cry out to God, asking Him for His help and guidance. He does hear us and wants nothing more than to help but we must give up our pride, our selfish attitude and allow Him to have control. One of our greatest gifts we have is choice and we can choose to keep trying to do it ourselves or let Him take care of it. One is about us while the other is all about Him. Why not let go and let God, He can do a much better job of things! peace, tom
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Tom SEmberAuthor of Daily Devotions Archives
September 2023
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