Rise Up

Rise up and bless the Lord,

His Word is still your sword,

He makes His purpose known,

Where’re His seed is sown.

 

Rise up and bless the Lord,

He is your great reward,

He lives, and His Being,

Is His Spirit’s working.

 

Rise up and bless the Lord,

What can He not afford?

His Word can never fail,

His truth will still prevail.

 

Rise up and bless the Lord,

His Word is still your sword,

He makes His purpose known,

Wait now on Him alone.

Amen!

 

Faith Beyond

 

May 3

FAITH BEYOND – What is your faith like? Make sure that your faith exceeds the faith of the enemies of God. Demons, evil spirits, are enemies of God, but they do have open and bold faith in Jesus. Their faith allows them to tremble and fall down in His presence. They have faith to recognize Jesus and confess who He is, but they are not of Him. Make sure that your faith goes beyond, bowing down to Jesus, calling out His Name and confessing Him as of God. Seek the faith that makes you one with Jesus and in Jesus. 

 

Lord Jesus, may my faith go beyond the faith of evil spirits. May I bear Your fruit alone. Amen!

 

Read Mark 3: 11 - 12

 

Aggressive Treatment

 

May 2

AGGRESSIVE TREATMENT - The never ending troubles and deepening trials of this world come, and will mercilessly choke your faith and trust in God. They come with bullying powers to pull your courage and confidence from you, seducing you into having a self-pity party of despair and hopelessness. You must be prepared to deal with these enemies aggressively. Take the offensive position. Use the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God to defeat all these attackers. The Word of God never fails to deliver.

 

Spirit Divine, please teach me divine skill in using Your weapon, the Word of God. Amen!

 

Read Ephesians 6: 17 - 18

 

Go To God

 

May 1

GO TO GOD – Never be afraid to approach God with your problems, fears and even your doubts. Speak to God as a child speaks to his or her loving, understanding father. God is your Heavenly Father and His love for you is greater than any human father’s. Whenever you go to God, know that you are going to One who is gracious, compassionate, slow to get angry and abounding in mercy.  Go to Him! He will help you.

 

Father, I come to You as You have told me to. Please look upon me in my distress and save me from all that will make me not trust You. Amen!

 

Read Jonah 4: 2

 

 

Compassionate God

 

April 30

COMPASSIONATE GOD – God, Invisible, Only Wise God, is full of compassion. Scripture tells us that His love never ceases and His mercies never come to an end. How compassionate is Sovereign, Creator God? David, the psalmist, who speaks of the goodness and tenderness of God as a Good Shepherd, also speaks of God’s compassion, in terms of an earthly father. He assures us that just as an earthly father has compassion on his children, so too with God. God has compassion on all those who fear him. 

 

Holy, Compassionate God, teach us how to fear You. Amen!

 

Read Psalm 103: 13

 

The Stone Of Assurance

 

April 29

THE STONE OF ASSURANCE – Jesus is our Capstone, our Foundation Stone, and God has assured us of some fantastic, powerful truths about our Capstone. We can believe with all surety that the Stone is a tried Stone, a precious Stone, and One that has never been shaken nor removed. This is the firm assurance we have in our Foundation Stone. It is assurance that allows us to know beyond the shadow of any doubt, that right here in this world of evil, if we put and keep our faith and trust in this Stone, we will never be dismayed. 

 

You alone, O Lord, are our Cornerstone. Amen!

 

Read Isaiah 28: 16

 

Take God At His Word

 

April 28

TAKE GOD AT HIS WORD – When you take God at His Word, you’ll soon realize that you’re becoming more and more acquainted with His Voice, and His Word is not a stranger to you. You become His living testimony and witness to know and appropriate all that He has offered you and placed within you. To take God at His Word is to test God at His Word.  It is to accommodate all that He gives and offers, ensuring that there is adequate room in your life for them. It is to know the power and privilege given to you, to be the true test of His Word in human flesh. Just take God at His Word!

Your Word, O Holy God is faultless. You never make mistakes. Teach us how to trust You implicitly. We look only to You. Amen! 

Read Numbers 23: 18 - 20

 

Trust God

 

April 27

TRUST GOD - To Trust God is to take God at His Word. It is to activate that Word in you. When you trust God, your motivation is His Holy Spirit. It is He who enables you to be open and bold, unafraid to step out in faith in Him.  It is to be bold to speak and act in His Powerful Name, knowing that His Words are flawless and His works are fruitful. Put and keep your trust in God; He will never disappoint you.

 

Father God, I confess that I know what trust can be, for I trust so many people and things around me, for my daily living. Yet Father, I find myself not trusting You for those things which are beyond human effort. Forgive me and help me to trust You for all things, for You never ever deceive those whose trust is in You. Amen!

Read Psalm 37: 4 - 6

 

I AM The Resurrection And The Life

 

Is there resurrection without life, I ask?

Jesus, from my eyes, remove the blinding mask,

Which keeps my eyes from all the full good You give

With partial truth, I no longer want to live.

 

Speak to me Jesus, as You spoke long ago,

When You told grieved Martha, what she did not know,

You are the resurrection and the life too,

Having one, not the other, just will not do.

 

Open my ears, my eyes and heart Lord Jesus,

For Your quickening word I’m desirous,

To live with half-truth, is in no way Your style,

And Jesus, I’ve been living thus, all the while.

 

Thank You Jesus, for this blindness removing,

Where truth in me You are planting and proving,

As you use Lazarus complete truth to tell,

And like him, remove all my grave-clothes as well.

 

You raised Lazarus and called him from the tomb,

The grave, for the living, just had no more room,

Lazarus! Come forth! The dead heard Your loud call,

And immediately came out, grave-clothes and all.  

 

You resurrected the dead, all eyes could see,

But to live Your life, Lazarus was not free,

Risen, but still bound by the trappings of death,

Resurrection’s more than receiving life-breath.

 

Resurrection and life, Jesus must give both,

One without the other is of little worth,

For when Jesus raises people from the dead,

Binding grave-clothes must be loosed from foot to head.

Amen!

 

 

Hearers

 

April 26

HEARERS – We are all warned that to be a hearer of the Word and not a doer of the Word is most futile. We all hear the exact Good News of Love and Jesus dying to save us. We are all called to repentance, to turn from our own self ways and follow Jesus. However, responses are totally different, as many stubbornly refuse to do as the Word commands. You have heard the Word. Are you a hearer only, or a hearer and doer?

 

Blessed are those who hear and do not forebear. The Lord receives the penitent sinners. Amen!

 

Read James 1: 22 - 25

 

 

Jesus, Stumbling Stone

 

April 25

JESUS, STUMBLING STONE – Why are people still stumbling over this Stone? It’s because faith in Jesus is foiled. It is faith in this Stone, which ensures that whoever believes will never be put to shame. Faith is in our own good deeds and not in the Stone. As long as the Stone is rejected, we will know the shame of being crushed to pieces. However, when we fall on the Stone, we are broken and come to deep, sorrowful repentance. Such a broken and contrite heart is never despised by the Rock.

Jesus, do I trust You and know Your abiding peace? Your Word is free to all, yet Your Word is a Stumbling Stone, because we continue to seek You according to law and human works.  Unless I am broken, I will never know change. Break me Lord. Amen!

Read 1 Peter 2: 6 - 8