local Daily Devotions

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Fruitful Suffering


..."It is because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering." - Genesis 41:52

Joseph named his second son Ephraim. Ephraim was given to him after he had been delivered from his suffering of 13 years. Joseph said that he named him this because God had made him fruitful in the land of his suffering. Ephraim means "twice fruitful."

Joseph was fruitful in two instances. He was fruitful during his time of adversity and in his prosperity. When God brings us into a time of suffering, it can be a fruitful time. It's rare for us to see the fruit during the suffering period. But know that the roots are going deep into the spiritual soil of our soul because of our pressing in to God during our time of suffering. This is producing a work in our character that cannot be seen until it finishes the process. Such was the case for Joseph.

It was not until several years after such a time of suffering that I began to see the fruit of the trials that the Lord allowed me to experience. How grateful I am to understand some of the "why" that has led to a new life in Him that I would never have had without this period.

Samson had great anointing but lacked character. We see many today who have great anointing yet lack character. But God is rising up Josephs who not only have great anointing for these days but also great character. Suffering produces character.

If you find yourself in a time of suffering, now is the time to press into God. Let your roots grow deeper. Whenever there is a famine, tree roots are forced to drive deeper into the soil to find water. These times are designed to create such a deep-rooted faith that our natures will be changed forever.

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Neither Poverty Nor Riches, But Prosperity


Proverbs 30:7 "Two things I ask of you, O LORD;
do not refuse me before I die:
Proverbs 30:8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.
Proverbs 30:9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, 'Who is the LORD?'
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God.


This models how we are to pray regarding our possessions. As we ask God to meet our needs, we grapple with how to ask Him to prosper us. Our goal is not to accumulate wealth (riches) or renounce it (poverty), but to faithfully oversee our individual portion from God and remain undistracted in our love for Him.

Third John 2 says, ÔÇ£I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.ÔÇØ Prosperity is more than money. It is a lifestyle that includes spiritual fullness, physical well-being, mental soundness, social friendships, and financial well-being. Prosperity is possessing and stewarding wisely all that God gives to you. Prosperity results from GodÔÇÖs grace and our faithfulness to follow biblical principles. A prosperous person is one who is wealthy in all things that eternally matter.

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ever notice, the people who are REALLY happy are not the guys with the most money?

the guys with simple lifes, they are the happiest.

i got WAY too much crap going on in my life. annoying to have all this churn.

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My God Shall Provide


And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19

Have you ever gone through a time of complete dependence on God for your material needs? Perhaps you lost a job and could not generate income on your own. Perhaps you got sick and could not work. There are circumstances in our lives that can put us in this place.

When God brought the people of Israel out of Egypt through the desolate desert, they had no ability to provide for themselves. God met their needs supernaturally each day by providing manna from Heaven. Each day they would awake to one day's portion of what they needed. This was a season in their lives to learn dependence and the faithfulness of God as provider. By and by, they entered the Promised Land. When they did, God's "supernatural provision" was no longer required. "The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate of the produce of Canaan" (Josh. 5:12). In both cases God was the provider of the need.

For most of us, we derive our necessities of life through our work. Like the birds of the fields we are commanded to go out and gather what God has already provided. It is a process of participation in what God has already provided. Sometimes it appears it is all up to us; sometimes it appears it is all up to God. In either case we must realize that the Lord is our provider; the job is only an instrument of His provision. He requires our involvement in either case.

"You may say to yourself, 'My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.' But remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms His covenant, which He swore to your forefathers, as it is today" (Deuteronomy 8:17-18).

Acknowledge the Lord as the provider of every need you have today. He is a faithful provider.

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Hebrew Word Pictures - Thirst

The Hebrew pictures for the word thirst are tsadik (hook), mem (water), and
alef (strong). So the Hebrew word picture for thirst is ÔÇ£hooked by water stronglyÔÇØ.

We are reminded of those old cowboy shows on TV when the cowboy is stranded in the desert, his horse is gone, he is hot and sunburned, he turns up his canteen to try and get the last tiny drop of water. We can imagine the cowboy would understand perfectly the word picture for thirst, ÔÇ£hooked by water stronglyÔÇØ. We can certainly understand that literal concept of being thirsty. But what about the spiritual understanding of the concept of being thirsty.

John 4:14
But those who drink the water that I will give them will never become thirsty again. In fact, the water I will give them will become in them a spring that gushes up to eternal life."

Jesus spoke these words to the Samaritan woman at the well but He is speaking to us today as well. He is saying to stop thirsting for your salvation somewhere else.

Jesus offers something infinitely better than Ponce de LeonÔÇÖs Fountain of Youth, Jesus offers us the Fountain of Eternal Life.

If the literal thirst means to be hooked by water strongly, how much more should we be spiritually thirsty and hooked on the living water? The well that never will run dry.

Matthew 5:6
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness! For they shall be filled.

God has promised that if we hunger and thirst for righteousness, for the truth, for the living water, we will be filled to overflowing, filled in profusion, in abundance with knowledge of Him and His ways, then streams of living water will flow from deep within us

John 7:38
As Scripture says, 'Streams of living water will flow from deep within the person who believes in me.'"
Hebrew word picture for thirst, ÔÇ£hooked by water stronglyÔÇØ ÔÇô so simple and yet so deep!


--
Shalom Alechem B'Shem Yeshua HaMashiach.
(Peace be unto you in the Name of Jesus the Messiah)

Phil and Patti
www.philandpatti.com.
www.philandpatti.blogspot.com.

"We live by faith

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got a two'fer today...
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Seek Ye First

Matthew 6:33 "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you..."

Dear friends, it is all about PRIORITIES! You would not believe how many lives are messed up because they don't have their priorities right, and I am talking about Christians. I hear many people talk about how things in their lives and in their homes are not going right. If you listen to people talk long enough that have these problems, most of the time it is all because their priorities are not right. IF OUR PRIORITIES ARE NOT IN ORDER, NOTHING IN OUR LIFE WILL BE IN ORDER!

Our devotion scripture is really the key to a very good life. "But seek YE FIRST," is sounds too simple doesn't it? Surely there must be something else that we must do. GET THIS, our lives, our homes, the lives of our children, our communities, OUR NATION; all would make a 180 degree change for the better if ALL WOULD "SEEK YE FIRST."

"Seek first, the Kingdom of God and HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS!" That alone is all it takes! I guess you could call it, 'THE CURE ALL FOR WHAT IS WRONG!" We could call it the MEDICATION for all sickness! So here is what I am going to prescribe for us all to do, every morning when we get up, SEEK GOD FIRST, PLACE HIM, HIS WILL FIRST IN OUR MINDS AND OUR LIFE, every day, every morning.

Look at this verse again; there is a promise at the end of it. It tells us plainly that if we will seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, look, "AND ALL THESE THINGS SHALL BE ADDED UNTO YOU." If people would just follow the plan of God, the way of God, they would find that their lives would be so much better. TRY IT!

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Are You Lukewarm?

ÔÇ£I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were one or the other! So because you are lukewarmÔÇöneither hot nor coldÔÇöI am about to spit you out of my mouth.ÔÇØ Revelation 3:15-16, NIV

Food is not very appetizing when it is lukewarm. In Revelation 3:15-16, Jesus made reference to this when He was writing to the Church in Laodicea.

Recently, I came across this passage in my quiet time and felt simultaneously convicted and encouraged.

I was convicted because it caused me to re-examine my walk with Christ.

Have I been going through the motions with my time in prayer and time in the Word?
Have I been attending church with an ÔÇ£I know it allÔÇØ attitude?
Have I been lukewarm in my relationships with my kids, employees, friends and clients?

When I take a hard look at this, it is very convicting to me that Jesus often might find me lukewarm, and wish to spit me out of His mouth!

I was also encouraged by this passage. You see, twelve years ago, I was a lukewarm Christian most if not all of the time. But I saw a video that changed me, the video that I saw was called, ÔÇ£Leading a Company for ChristÔÇØ by Dr. Bruce Wilkinson. As I watched this video, some profound truths were presented to me that I had never considered before:

My beliefs and convictions determine my behaviorÔÇöif I am unclear about my beliefs, my behaviors will reflect that.

When Jesus died on the cross for my sins and I accepted Him as my Savior, He bought me out. I should view myself as a willing slave of His.

We are to be priests in the marketplace. Paying ÔÇ£professional PriestsÔÇØ to do my part of the ministry is not Biblical.

I cannot serve both God and money. I will either hate the one or love the other or I will be devoted to the one and despise the other (Matthew 6:24).

This video was absolutely radical to me! I thought that being a good Christian business owner meant putting a little money in the offering plate on Sunday and trying to be nice to people during the week. The idea of being a ÔÇÿpriest in my workplaceÔÇÖ never occurred to me. I was the epitome of lukewarm.

I look at my purpose in business altogether differently than I did 12 years ago. The relationships that God has blessed me with my Church family as well as the friends I have made from around the world have been priceless. Seeing GodÔÇÖs hand working in our businesses as we have prayed for His wisdom and divine intervention has been an awesome experience.

More importantly, God has transform me into a businessman who is more on-fire and less lukewarm than I used to be.

ÔÇ£Are you lukewarm in your faith, your life and your business?ÔÇØ If so, we have something that can help.

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Obeying the Spirit of God


"Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, 'Go south to the road - the desert road - that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.'" - Acts 8:26
Philip was conducting what we might today call a revival meeting. God was blessing the meeting, and many were being healed and delivered from demonic influence.

Here is the scene:
Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city (Acts 8:5-8).

And yet, in the midst of this great event, the Holy Spirit spoke to Philip and told him to remove himself and go to a completely different area to speak to one individual. Philip was so sensitive to the directive of the Holy Spirit that he left what would be deemed a successful event to go speak to another - an Ethiopian eunuch. The result of his obedience was that Philip led the eunuch to faith in Christ and baptized him. The Lord then took Philip away
supernaturally to another region many miles away.

God's ways of determining where we invest our time and energy often has little to do with results. The danger for each of us is to determine that we are in the center of God's will simply by the success or failure of the events we are involved in. Our plumb line for determining success can be only one thing: obedience. Philip responded in obedience to the direction of the Holy Spirit.

Are you listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit? Has God prompted you to speak, go, or come alongside another? Ask God today to help you hear the Holy Spirit's voice so that you might be used mightily in your workplace.

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LOVE IN ACTION

1 John 3: 18 "My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth."

For a person to say, "I love you," takes no effort at all. As a matter of fact, we can say that and it may be absolutely a false statement. Now, don't misunderstand me, we all should tell others that we love them, but we should mean it when we say it.

I think that REAL sign of our love for others are when we show our love by our deeds. Putting LOVE IN ACTION is the best way to tell someone that you love them. It is very important to the Lord that loving others in very important to us.

Just think what this world would be like if we all REALLY loved one another. There would be no fighting, no hurting others, no Racism, and no divided families. I could go on and on with the affects that loving one another would have on the World, but it is true that the world needs love. 1 John 4: 8 "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." Hey, I say try it, YOU WILL LIKE IT!

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Belief or Unbelief


"...Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." - Romans 4:3

You can be a believer yet act as though there is no God. Whenever you fret over life circumstances, you immediately demonstrate unbelief. Whenever you move out of fear or anxiety, you believe a lie about God's nature.

Each day your actions affirm or convict you of your belief system. It reveals who the central focus of your life really is - you or God. It reveals who you place your ultimate trust in - you or God. It is one of the great paradoxes for believers. One day we can believe Him to move mountains. The next day we can question His very existence.

Peter believed God and walked on water.
A sick woman touched the hem of His garment and was healed.
A Canaanite woman believed and freed her daughter from demon-possession.

In what circumstances do you act as an "unbeliever"? Ask God to increase your level of trust so that your actions match up with one who believes every day

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Great Joy

Psalms 5: 11 "But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee."

If your trusting in THINGS to bring you joy, you joy will only come in TRICKLES. Many people today are resorting to THINGS to bring them joy and so they spend a lot of time looking for THINGS that will bring Joy. The sorrowful thing is this, THINGS only bring imitation Joy, something that may feel similar to joy but it's not! That is why there are so many sad people in the World and around us because they are resorting to the wrong well for sufficient water that can only supply.

In the devotion verse, the spout from which our joy really comes from is our trust in the Lord and our love for HIM! That's right; there is JOY to be had even without the THINGS! Real joy only comes from the Lord and it is a lasting joy, even when all else fails us. Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1: 8, "Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:" As one's desire for things, is exchange for Trusting in the Lord, it is then that one will find Great Joy exploding in their hearts.

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ÔÇ£It is WellÔÇØ
by Scott Hunter

2 Kings 4:8-36
In 2 Kings 4:8-36, we read about the Shunamite woman and Elisha. This is a fantastic example of holding on to your prophetic inheritance. This woman invests into the man of God life and as a result, a promise is given to her. As the promise comes to pass, the enemy comes to steal what God has birthed in her life. Many people today are fighting to hold on to their promises.

They began to walk in what God has said about them only to see it begin to die away. This woman does several important things. First, she carries the boy to the prophetÔÇÖs room. This is the place the promise was conceived.

When your promise begins to fade away, go back to the place of conception, which is your place of connection. Here, you will reconnect to your dream. Then, she saddles her donkey and goes to see the prophet. She humbled herself and took authority over her own situation. She didnÔÇÖt depend on anyone else to do it. She did herself. DonÔÇÖt depend on someone else to fight your fight. ItÔÇÖs your dream, take it back! Lastly, she held fast to her confession of faith. She refused to say anything else but, ÔÇ£It is wellÔÇØ. DonÔÇÖt speak anything but the Word.

The Word is power and life, and as you speak it, it will change the situation. As we know, Elisha raises the boy up and she continues to live with her promise and see it grow. The connection she made to God and with man helped her to see the fulfillment of her promise. DonÔÇÖt lose your connections. Speak the word, and stand firm on what God has said!

You can go to ScottÔÇÖs website at www.compassionfireandglory.org and check out how God is using him mighty. Remember whatever you can do for God, do it and He will reward you

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REPENT


2 Peter 3: 9 "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long suffering to us ward not willing that any should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance."

God is calling the World to "Repent!" From the Pulpits, from the TV preachers, and yes, from a 95 year old man of God, God is using ever resource available to send out the message, send out the Alarm, that time is running out and mankind needs to repent.

I still have hopes of a land sweeping revival and I know that the same God that made it all possible in times past is the same God and He can still send it today but there is one common things that was present in the Revival of times past and the same thing that must be present today before Revival can come and that is genuine heartfelt sorrow for our sinful ways, and REPENTANCE!

I truly believe it is the ONLY hope for America, because America has become as SODOM, people today are standing in the face of God and openly carrying out sinful acts. Even Christians today are accepting the sin in America and saying it is the ways of the times and we must learn to change, but I say we must call sin what it is and REPENT from our sinful ways!

I truly believe that Jesus is coming soon and people had better be getting ready! Today is the day of Salvation; we have no promise of tomorrow. REPENT!

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Little by Little


"All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty" (Proverbs 14:23).

Is there something you would like to accomplish in life but simply cannot find the hours in the day to get started? Many of us suffer from procrastination. We justify putting our dreams aside because we don't believe we have the time or resources to accomplish the task.

Many times people tell me they believe they are called to write a book. I tell them, "Great, if God has called you to write a book, begin to write it." Sometimes the response is: "But I don't have a publisher." "That has nothing to do with it," I say. "That is not your problem. If God calls you to write a book, you are to begin to write. You may not be writing to get published. You may be writing for other purposes."

"The LORD your God will drive out those nations before you, little by little" (Deuteronomy 7:22). If God has given you a vision to do something, begin by taking baby steps toward that project. Begin to focus on the vision and take action steps toward it. Many times people ask me, "How in the world do you have time to write? You work so much and seem to have such a full schedule." My answer to them is that I have a specific time of day in which I commit to writing. I have found this to be my most creative and productive time. Very little can get in the way of this time if I believe God has given me a project to do.

You will be amazed at what God can do with a little each day. Do not let procrastination prevent you from accomplishing what God may want to do through your life. Make plans today to take baby steps toward the vision that is in your heart.

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LESS THAN THE BEST


Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled. Matthew 5:6

It is disheartening to those who care, and surely a great grief to the Spirit, to see how many Christians are content to settle for less than the best. Personally I have for years carried a burden of sorrow as I have moved among evangelical Christians who somewhere in their past have managed to strike a base compromise with their hearts holier longings and have settled down to a lukewarm, mediocre kind of Christianity utterly unworthy of themselves and of the Lord they claim to serve. And such are found everywhere.

Every man is as close to God as he wants to be; he is as holy and as full of the Spirit as he wills to be. Our Lord said, ÔÇ£Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled.ÔÇØ If there were but one man anywhere on earth who hungered and was not filled, the word of Christ would fall to the ground.

Yet we must distinguish wanting from wishing. By ÔÇ£wantÔÇØ I mean wholehearted desire. Certainly there are many who wish they were holy or victorious or joyful but are not willing to meet GodÔÇÖs conditions to obtain it.

Lord, may I settle for nothing less than the best when it comes to my relationship with You. Give me a wholehearted thirst for You that I may partake of the incredible privilege of intimately fellowship with You. Amen

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WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON


1 Corinthians 10:31 "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God."

How dedicated are you to Jesus Christ? That is the question that every Born Again Child of God should ask themselves.

If a married couple was as devoted to each other as you are to the Lord how long would they stay married? Romans 12: 1 commands every Believer, "I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable, unto God, WHICH IS YOUR REASONABLE SERVICE." It is the duty of ever Believer to give their all to Jesus Christ.

The reason today that many are not devoted to Christ is because of sin in their life. Romans 6: 12 "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it, in the lust thereof." Sin is the major problem with everything! I ask you,

WHERE IS THE LINE? You may be wondering, "A LINE, What am I talking about, a line?" Where is the dividing line between a child of God and the World? When I look at people, where do I see a difference? Should it not be that there should be such a vast difference in the lives of a Child of God from those that are lost that one could clearly see the dividing line, we should be able to see a difference.

How about you, if someone look at your life, WHICH SIDE DO THEY SEE YOU ON?

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"Knowing Jesus as our personal Savior is very important. As a matter of fact, being Born Again is the difference between going to Heaven or Hell"

shoot me a PM if you got any questions about this, it's pretty basic.
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Where Are We Today

2 Chronicles 7:14 "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

It is amazing how many Christians need revival, but what is even more amazing is how few want it. Every Child of God needs to remember this; Grace is God giving us what we don't deserve and Mercy is God NOT giving us what we do deserve.

How close are you to Jesus? Knowing Jesus as our personal Savior is very important. As a matter of fact, being Born Again is the difference between going to Heaven or Hell. John wrote in John 3:3 that if a person was not born again they could not see the Kingdom of God. After a person is saved, they then have a Relationship with God. Every Child of God must understand that sin will cause a break in the communication between them and God.

David clearly tells us in Psalms 66:18 "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me." Has sin caused your relationship with the Lord to not be where it should be? If so, humble yourself, pray, seek the face of God, repent of your sin, and then your relationship with the Lord will get much better.

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Defining Moments


"Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left" (Exodus 14:21-22).

History often remembers people because of a defining moment that took place in their life. There are good defining moments and bad defining moments. September 11, 2001 was a bad defining moment for the United States of America. Many people's lives were changed as a result. Israel had a defining moment when they crossed the Jordan River and stepped onto the Promised Land. Moses had a defining moment when he parted the Red Sea with his staff. We could go on.

How would you like to be remembered? Is there a defining moment in your life with which others will associate your name? Thomas, one of the disciples of Jesus is remembered as "Doubting Thomas." What a shame. I wonder what other good things Thomas did. However, because Thomas doubted that Jesus had truly come back from the dead and needed Jesus to show the nail marks in his hands and side, he will forever be associated with this question posed to the Savior when He saw Him after he was resurrected.

For most of us we can still define our moments for the future. God may yet have a defining moment when you will discover something new or see the work of God in your life in a unique way. I think God likes defining moments. He wants you to have an experience with Him that is memorable.

Make a commitment to the Lord today to allow your defining moment to be one that has a positive faith experience, not a regret.

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Discerning the Work of God


"Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my God, because of what they have done; remember also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who have been trying to intimidate me." - Nehemiah 6:14

Nehemiah set out to rebuild the wall at Jerusalem that had been destroyed. Nehemiah held a position in the Persian Empire that would be comparable to Chief of Staff in our government. Nehemiah wept over the destruction of the city wall and repented for the sins of his generation and the generations before him that had led to the fall of Jerusalem. Nehemiah responded to the news by seeking approval from his superior to take time off to rebuild the wall. Tobiah and Sanballat met Nehemiah's action with resistance, as did Noadiah the prophetess and other prophets. These were the religious and political leaders of his day. They became distractions to his work and opposed him.

Whenever God does a new work, it is often met with resistance by those in the established religious community, and sometimes among those from whom we would expect support. Jesus met the same resistance when He began His public ministry.

This same phenomenon happens today. When God begins a new work that cannot be easily explained based upon prior experiences, many make the mistake of assuming it not to be of God.

The very people who should embrace and encourage the work become the source of skepticism and opposition. God tells us that His ways are not our ways. He does things in ways beyond our limited understanding.

Before you are tempted to criticize or oppose something that looks different from your past experience, ask God for wisdom and discernment. Examine why you might be tempted to oppose it. The Lord cannot be put in a box. He delights in doing things in ways that may not fit our former paradigms

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The Worship Service


"This is why I weep and my eyes overflow with tears. No one is near to comfort me, no one to restore my spirit. My children are destitute because the enemy has prevailed" (Lamentations 1:16).

He walked into the worship service. He pushed his Mom's wheelchair into the room among many, many others. This was no ordinary worship service. This wasn't his first time. The organizer recognized them and asked if they would assist in handing out the songbooks.

About only 20% of the participants could actually use them. For most of them it sat on their laps. "Why does life have to be reduced to this?" He questioned and prayed silently to the Lord. "If Jesus walked through this room, how many would He restore?" He continued to ponder. You see, He was in a dementia and Alzheimer's elderly care nursing home unit where his mom resided. A few chairs over sat the father of his older sisters' longtime best friend. Next to him was his brother-in-law's grandmother.

They were all once successful people - doctors, lawyers, business leaders, and stay-at home moms. They had, at one time, lived in fine southern homes. But they now lived in one-half of a single room. Some patients could recognize their loved ones, others could not.

The service began with singing. Only a few voices could be heard among the patients. A simple message followed. Then, something remarkable happened. The speaker said they would now close with a well-known song.

It began this way; "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so." Suddenly, the voices in the room got louder. Patients that were not singing before were now singing. He looked over at his mom. She was whistling the tune. He looked over at his wife; tears were streaming down her face.

Yes, the presence of Jesus was walking through the room. But it wasn't in the way He thought He'd come. Sometimes the presence of God can show up in the smallest and simplest acts.