You Can Overcome
What is your greatest obstacle to overcome? Discover a way you can handle anger that is pleasing to God.
Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30am EST.
(Application Study Bible) So what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose?
I was standing in the Old Growth Forest near Nelson, British Columbia, staring at a most extra-ordinary pine tree. The base of the tree rested on a huge boulder like a giant sitting on a chair. The bark was split open like a brown cloak on either side of the rock. The tree, like a grinning champion after a noble fight, stood triumphantly on top of its enemy. In fact, it was taller than some of the trees beside it. All because of the boulder!
As I gazed at the tree, I got quite excited. “Come back,” I called to my party, “have a look at this brave tree.” Soon a motley group of men and women gathered round. “Isn’t this a lesson for us all,” I said. “A lesson in overcoming.” A guy winked at his friend, as much as to say, “Here she goes again, finding a lesson in whatever!”
But no matter, my mind continued to imagine what it was like for this tree. Many years ago, at the edge of a boulder, like a menacing mountain, a small seed sprouted in the ground. What chance did it have to grow up? Still, it pushed its way through the ground. As it grew in size it kept bumping into a rocky wall, a constant reminder of its unyielding, ornery neighbour. If it had been like us, it might have grumbled, ‘What did I do to deserve this? I can’t even stretch and grow like other pine trees around me.’ But it kept growing and reaching and stretching and climbing, one inch at a time. Right on top of the boulder! Thus elevated, it continued to grow, perfectly straight, with the rest of the trees.
Now, the tree seemed to be saying to me, “If you have a boulder in your way and you can’t move it or tunnel through it, use it to your advantage. Turn a stumbling stone into a stepping stone.”
Take one little step by giving thanks that God knows all about this obstacle and He will turn it into something good.
Father, show me a way of surmounting this obstacle, one inch at a time.
Questions: What is lying in your path today? How can you make a positive out of a negative?
About Helen Grace Lescheid
Daily podcast: A second daily devotional, God’s Timing is Not Ours, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
Deny Self
Do you struggle with denying yourself? Do you need to talk to one of our mentors?
Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30am EST.
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).
What does it mean to deny myself?
The primary thing that springs to mind is the idea of doing without things desired - a picture of a monk leading a strict and harsh life, far from luxury.
Although the concept of doing without is found in the dictionary under “deny”, the first definition under “deny” is “to declare untrue”. Of course the dictionary was referring to denying a statement, but I began to wonder if it might apply to denying oneself.
If I declared myself as being untrue, I would point to someone or something outside myself as the ultimate source of truth - it could not be found in me.
If I declared myself as being untrue, I wouldn’t trust my feelings or my interpretation of the facts.
If I declared myself as being untrue, I would admit that I am not right, that my ways are not right, that I indeed have a sinful nature that desires what is contrary to what God desires.
Is that not what Jesus is asking us to do? We must acknowledge Him as the only true one. God’s ways are always right.
We are called to choose His way rather than our own, to surrender our will to Him and to follow Him where ever He leads.
God, teach me what it means to deny myself. Show me how to give up not just external things but how to give up my right to decide for myself. I want to be led by Your Spirit as I choose Your way.
Questions: Why is denying yourself difficult? Why does God ask us to deny ourselves?
About Suzanne Benner
Daily podcast: Hear this devotional, Deny Self, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
Tell the Next Generation
Asking God how He wants to use you? Share with a mentor who can come alongside you in prayer.
Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30am EST.
“We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done” (Psalms 78:1-4 (NIV).
Do you have the impression that the next generation is not interested in hearing about the things of the Lord? We sometimes feel the divide is so great that we simply stay in our familiar circles far removed from theirs. Sometimes our own judgments even keep us from seeing past the earrings and tattoos. Yet there is a deep growing hunger in our youth for spiritual understanding and they are seeking answers that we, who have walked with the Lord and have experienced His faithfulness, have to offer.
Would it surprise you if you drove past your church this week and found over 500 young people lined up to ask a Christian mentor questions about life and faith?
That is exactly what is happening here at TruthMedia. It’s amazing! God is at work! One year ago in November ’07 Truth Media partnered with a teen help line in the US called DMLive. Our mentor center received 91 emails that month from teens wanting to talk with someone about the challenges of their lives. Last month alone, just one year later, we received 776 emails from this helpline. 282 on going conversations between teens and mentors are taking place. Yet we have only 56 mentors in this group and hundreds of emails await a caring response.
Would you consider being a mentor to teens? We offer training and resources to help you. If you receive an inquiry you don’t feel equipped to respond to you can return it to the pool and receive another so you only deal with ones you are comfortable with. You can sign up for just one a month, one a week or one a day, whatever works into your schedule.
Look around you today and watch for the teens in your circle of influence. Pray for them as you pass them on the street. Share your own story with a grandchild. Ask God for creative ways to tell the next generation of His faithfulness to you. And please investigate the possibility of becoming a teen mentor. These kids are sitting down at their computers and seeking answers that their hearts yearn for.
Your faith in Jesus and your stories of His faithfulness to you are just the things that will inspire this next generation to look to God as well. Won’t you consider being a teen mentor today?
Father God, Thank you that Your Spirit never ceases to draw hearts to You. Help me today to see the teens in my circle with new eyes. Help me to see the hungry hearts behind the fashion statements and to pray for those I encounter each day. Open opportunities for me to share Your faithfulness in fresh ways. If You desire for me to be a teen mentor online please don’t let the thought leave me and help me to respond. Lord, I want to share Your praiseworthy deeds with the next generation in whatever way You open for me today. In the strong name of Jesus I pray, amen.
Check out the Mentor Application.
Questions: How do you view the next generation? Are you willing to let God use you today to reach out to a teen in your world or online?
About Gail Rodgers
Joy Every Day
Do you need encouragement in your walk with God? Study Online one of the most joyful books in the New Testament.
Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30am EST.
While a prisoner in Rome, Paul wrote the Philippians a letter that sounds like a shout of victory. Its theme is joy and rejoicing in the Lord.
Paul knew the secret of victory over anxiety and depression. After telling the Philippians to rejoice in the Lord always, he advised them not to worry about anything, but to bring everything in prayer to the Lord with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6). Then, instead of being worried and depressed, the Christian would have God’s peace (4:7).
Paul was well acquainted with victorious rejoicing in the Lord. When he and Silas were evangelizing in Philippi, they were arrested, beaten, and imprisoned.
In chains in the rat-infested dungeon, they prayed and sang praises to the Lord. Suddenly an earthquake shook the prison’s foundations. The doors flew open; the prisoners were loosed from their shackles.
Similarly, we are loosed from the shackles of depression, anxiety, fears, and worries as we pray and rejoice in the Lord. For how can the flesh keep us down when we are up in the Spirit?
If you rejoice in the Lord every morning, think what a difference it would make in your life. Practice this when you awaken. Tell the Lord you love Him. Then thank and praise Him for every blessing you can think of. Rejoicing in the Lord will soon be a habit.
The Apostle Paul put it this way: “Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say I again: Rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4).
Lord God,
Thank you that You alone can break the shackles of discouragement and fear. Today I bring all my worries to You and I thank You for the victory that emerges in my heart as I rejoice in You. Fill my mind and heart with love, thanksgiving and praise to You today. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Questions: What situation do you need to begin praising the Lord in? What will you praise the Lord for today?
About Muriel Larson
Daily podcast: A second daily devotional, Love that Sweats, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
Agreement with God’s Word
Do you have difficulty praying for others?
I often need to let things steep in my mind and heart much like making a good pot of tea. Lately I’ve been pondering a thought from Dr. Myles Munroe book on “Understanding the Purpose and Power of Prayer”. It is this…
“The backbone of prayer is our agreement with God’s Word…”
As this steeped in my heart I began to see my praying differently. Often I determine what would be the best answer in my situations and then ask God, in faith, to accomplish it. Scripture is sometimes a part of that. Yet God began to challenge my heart to ask Him first what His Word says about what I am praying for. How could I agree with His Word in the things that I felt prompted to pray for?
Here are some prayer nuggets I found as I asked God how to pray according to His word.
When praying for someone who seems oblivious to God’s care for her.
Show her the wonder of Your great love, O Lord. Psalm 17:7
When praying for someone who seems directionless in her work.
Establish the work of her hands, O Lord. Psalm 90:17
When praying for someone who sincerely desires to walk in God’s ways.
Since she lives in the Spirit, help her keep in step with the Spirit. Gal. 5:16-20
When praying for someone who is tempted to go back into her old ways.
Thank you Lord that it is for freedom that You have set us free. Help her to stand firm and not be entangled again in this slavery. Galatians 5:1
When praying for someone who is confused about how to live.
Lord, help her not to conform to the patterns of the world but to be transformed by the renewing of her mind so she can prove out Your will in her life. Romans 12:2
When praying for someone who is distracted spiritually by acquiring things.
Lord, help her to set her affections on things above and not on things on the earth. Colossians 3:2
When praying for someone who is despondent and brokenhearted.
Lord, restore her soul and lead her in right paths for the sake of Your name.
Psalm 23
When praying for someone who needs to give her heart to the Lord.
Thank you Lord, that You are patient and desiring everyone to come to repentance. Help her to choose to turn her life into Your hands. 2 Peter 3:9
When praying for someone who desires a mate, a new job or a change.
Thank you Lord that You will perfect that which concerns her today.
Psalm 138:8
When praying for those worn out in ministry.
Lord, may she be energized today as she lives her life on the wavelength of the great commission. Matthew 28:19
Heavenly Father,
Thank you that Your word gives us everything we need for life and for godliness.
Teach us to pray according to Your Word and not according to our wishes. Lead us in new paths of prayer as we look to discover first what Your word says about what we are praying for. Teach us to pray, Lord. In Jesus’ powerful name I ask, amen.
Question: How can you use the Scripture to shape your prayers today?
About Gail Rogers
Daily podcast: A second daily devotional, When We Miss the Target, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
Mountain Peaks and Regal Robes
Do you want to live a life of significance? This Online Bible Study will help you how to do that.
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord…” (Colossians 3:23).
If I walk just a few hundred feet from the door of our small home, the grandeur of Pikes Peak fills my eyes. Snow covered much of the year with crags jutting into brilliant blue sky the scene is breathtaking. The Creator God displays His magnificence in ways beyond my comprehension.
But then I read how God once chose and commissioned skilled artisans to create “three cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms.” Men - and perhaps women - designed regal robes of “blue, purple and scarlet yarn…of finely twisted linen” (Exodus 36 and 37).
God chooses to reveal Himself in His glory and beauty in both soaring mountain peaks and even in things like well-crafted clothing. He likewise asks that His followers be involved in both monumental world-shaping endeavors and those more hidden - but equally important - expressions of His love. The artisans of Moses’ day were “filled with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills”. Our heavenly Father is ready and willing to do the same today. He just asks for willing people to work with all their hearts, knowing that God accepts our service.
Lord, sometimes I feel as though the small things I attempt don’t matter much in the grand scope of things. Help me understand that you accept all endeavors if done in Your name and for Your glory. Amen.
Questions: What endeavors are you involved in that reveal God’s great love? What do you see around you that reflects the Creator God’s magnificence?
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Daily podcast: A second daily devotional, Let God Vindicate You, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
God is my Salvation
Are you totally discouraged today… too many challenges? Need someone to talk to?
Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30am EST.
“Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid” (Isaiah 12:2).
Do you ever feel like you can’t face another day of challenges? Perhaps it’s time to take a day off and to spend it in quiet refection walking through nature or reading a good book by the fireplace. But what do you do when none of this helps to lift you out of the doldrums? May I suggest something that has helped me to get out of the fog–literally and emotionally?
One night as I driving home the fog was as thick as pea soup. I could not see the road in front of me. I could barely glimpse the dim reflectors marking the lanes of the highway. How was I going to find my way home? By focusing on these “bright spots” in the fog. I inched forward from one reflector to the next. What a relief when, an hour-and-a-half later, I reached the warmth and light of home!
By using the same mind - focusing principle, I’ve learned to let Scripture guide me instead of my moods. I take a portion of Scripture like Isaiah 12—a favorite–– and personalize it. Then I say it out loud.
Today I will give thanks to you, O LORD!
When I feel afraid I will remember, “Surely God is my salvation. I will trust, and will not be afraid.”
When I am weak, “The LORD God is my strength and my might; He has become my salvation.”
When my resources are gone, “I will draw water from the wells of salvation”.
I’ve discovered there is power in speaking the Word of God out loud. As I recite God’s life-giving words throughout the day, my mood lifts and I receive courage to move forward one step at a time.
Lord Jesus, thank you that I don’t have to navigate this day alone. With your help I will face every challenge and conquer it. For great is the Holy One of Israel who lives among us. Amen.
Questions: What is your response when things pile up and you don’t know where to turn? What steps can you take in order to stay focused on God?
About Helen Lescheid
Daily podcast: A second daily devotional, Surviving Your Schedule, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
Can I Risk It?
Is your life chaotic and you feel too busy to take time for God? Take a Life Lesson.
Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in the Women’s Chat Room at 10:30am EST.
Kathy had neglected the little things. This season of her life was hectic. It wasn’t possible to keep on top of all the small things that she usually tended to. Some thing had to go so she let things slip around the house and yard. At first no one noticed. Yet as the weeds took hold outside and the paperwork and the closets were ignored inside, she could feel the growing chaos around her.
The same thing happens in our inner lives when we neglect the regular care of our spirit. We begin to feel the growing chaos within. The reality of our lives begins to be contrasted against the promises of our faith. And we become discouraged in our spiritual journey.
God’s Word reminds us to be careful about what we ignore. In the book of Hebrews we are given reminders not to ignore the great salvation God has provided for us.
“Do you think we can risk neglecting this magnificent salvation” (Hebrews 2:1-4 The Message)?
It’s so easy to be caught up with the busy things of life that we do overlook tending our inner lives. Then we often find chaos skirting the edges of our heart and mind and wonder why God seems distant. During those times we will most likely find our Bible starting to gather dust. God’s Word is nourishment for our souls.
If your life is chaotic and your spirit is dry…if panic is becoming more often present in your heart and mind than peace is… then make a beeline back to God’s Word and to fellowship with His people.
Make a new determination and declare the words that David declared so long ago in Psalm 119:16…
“I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.
I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.
I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word.”
Keep God’s Word at the very core of your life. As a Christian you simply cannot risk living otherwise.
Father in Heaven,
You know how easy it is for me to neglect Your Word. I confess that my Bible stays closed far too often. When You feel distant I blame You. Forgive me Lord. Help me to learn to love Your Word in a greater way. Open my eyes to what You have to say to me through it. Reveal Yourself to me in new ways. Help me to make this a priority in my life. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.
Questions: What keeps you from spending time with God each day? How can we prevent our lives from becoming chaotic?
About Gail Rodgers
Daily podcast: A second daily devotional, Evangelism? Me?, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
Calloused Hearts
**Can you hear God talking to you? Do you hear the cries of those who are suffering?
Please join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our women’s chat room at 10:30am est
My heels are dry and cracked. The skin is thick and hard. I can’t feel much with my heels, even if I’m poked with something sharp it takes a while for me to respond.
This verse made me wonder if my heart could be like my heels.
“For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them” (Matthew 13:15).
Is it possible that I’ve developed a callous on my heart, a thick skin that is insensitive to the things of God?
The warning against a calloused heart was first prophesied by the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 6:9, 10), then quoted by Jesus during his ministry (Matthew 13:15) and later repeated by Paul as the reason he stopped preaching to the Jews and went instead to the Gentiles (Acts 28:27).
Reaching across history, this warning comes to us.
We can become hardened toward what God wants, indifferent to His voice, unfeeling toward the things that grieve Him.
When we close our eyes to injustice, when we fail to hear the cries of those who are suffering, when we fail to listen to God speaking truth in our hearts or refuse to respond to His prodding us to repent, then we are allowing a callous to build up on our hearts.
Let us acknowledge that God is calling to us and heed the call.
~Holy God, I don’t want a calloused heart. Show me the things that I have closed my eyes to and help me to see the sin in my life. Open my ears so that I can hear what You are saying and understand how You want me to respond. Help me to humble myself before You because I want Your healing touch in my life.
Questions: What things in your life have caused your heart to become calloused? What softens a calloused heart?
About the Author Suzanne Benner
** Daily audio podcast: A second daily devotional, Only One You, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
All Day Long
**Are you too busy to think about God on a daily basis?
This Remembrance Day why not share this helpful website. Join us in praying for our friends and family in the Military at 7:00 pm est in our chatroom
“Show me Your ways, O Lord, teach me Your paths; guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long” (Psalm 25:4 & 5).
Father in Heaven,
Thank you for the promise and hope of Your word. Thank you that You can be counted on to guide me through my day. Today I need to walk in the hope that only You can give. My way is unclear, my path sometimes feels like it twists and turns in confusing and busy ways as I wind my way along my journey.
Show me Your ways, Lord. Show me how You would walk in these places. Teach me Your paths of grace and mercy and integrity and love. Help me to grasp Your ways so I can walk securely in them even in insecure places. I need Your perspective today.
Guide me in Your truth, Lord. With out Your Word active in my heart and mind I cannot know Your truth. Help me to make time to read my Bible. Help me to take time to think on it and let it penetrate my heart. Lord, Your Word will guide me as a beacon and a light. I need Your word to guide me. Forgive me when I have left it on the shelf or have simply grabbed a verse and run off for the day, quickly forgetting what I read.
Thank you that You promise to guide me and teach me as I let Your truth impact my heart and my mind.
Oh Lord, You are my Savior, my rescuer and my redeemer. You alone are the One who restores and renews my spirit and brings meaning to my life. You bless me. May my heart overflow with thanksgiving to You for Your hand in my life.
I will put my hope in you today, all day long. Remind me by Your Holy Spirit to look to You to guide me. Call me into Your quiet presence to think on Your truths and may I not be distracted. This is the oxygen of my soul. Thank you that You give the hope and help and peace I need today. Thank you that You never cease to call me to Yourself. Help me to respond afresh to Your presence in my life. In Jesus’ strong name I pray, amen.
Questions: Are you allowing God to show you His path of grace and kindness? Even when our life feels like it’s in total chaos, how can we still feel His quiet presence?
About the Author Gail Rodgers
** Daily audio podcast: A second daily devotional, God’s Love in Our Hearts, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog
