Monthly Archives: December 2020

“Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice.” -(Psalm 55:17 NKJV)

It is not unusual for a man, who is committed to prayer, to pray morning, noon, and night.  Daniel made a commitment to pray morning, noon, and night.  In fact, Daniel enemies could only find one fault with him: his extensive prayer life.  That’s really something when the only fault that your enemy can find is your prayer life!  I wonder how many of our enemies could find that “fault” with us?  But such dedication to prayer also brings forth men like Daniel—and David, who wrote Psalm 55:17.  They were mighty and powerful in God.

Sometimes Christians will complain, “I just don’t have time for a lot of prayer.”  Only the devil doesn’t “have time” for prayer.  A dedicated believer will MAKE TIME FOR PRAYER.  Jesus always made time for prayer with His heavenly Father—even in the midst of horrendous crises, such as His impending crucifixion and death.

To live in prayer is to live in power.  Set aside special times—morning, noon, and night—for your prayer life, and watch your circumstances change!

Dear Heavenly Father,

Today let us emphasize prayer in our own personal lives.  We must not look to other people to pray for us.  We are committed to a consistent, personal prayer life.  We look to You to guide us.

In Jesus’s Name,

Amen.

“For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.”  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:11-14 NKJV)

I’m persuaded that the birth of every child sets off a chorus of praise in heaven.  It is a happy moment, filled with promise for a new life led in glory to God.

God does not ask you to entrust your children to Him without giving you the all-encompassing hope that He will fulfill your children’s lives in ways that will bring Him the greatest glory and give you and your children the greatest joy.

Take some time to reflect on that truth.  To entrust your child fully to the Lord is to claim, by your faith, that:

• God loves your child with an everlasting love.
• God’s purposes for creating your child are going to be fulfilled.
• Your child’s life is going to count for eternity.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  Against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22, 23 NKJV)

The fruit of the Spirit is to be very evident in our lives.  When we are born again, we receive the fruits of LOVE, JOY, and PEACE.  These are for our personal enjoyment.  We experience love, joy, and peace.

In addition to these three fruits, there are three more that relate to others:  We need LONGSUFFERING in dealing with other people.  We also need GENTLENESS and GOODNESS.  Thus, not only do we enjoy personal fruit for ourselves, but we can extend His fruit to others.

Lastly, three final fruits deal with our relationship with our heavenly Father.  We give FAITH back to Him, along with MEEKNESS and TEMPERANCE.

Here is a beautiful picture of FRUIT THAT WE OURSELVES CAN ENJOY, FRUIT THAT WE GIVE TO OTHERS, and FRUIT THAT WE MANIFEST TO THE FATHER.  How complete God has made us in Jesus!  If you have Jesus, you have the seed of all nine of these fruits.  Partake of them all.

Dear Heavenly Father,

No law can win against love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance—the supernatural traits of Jesus Christ.  Thank You, Father, that these abide in us in our new birth.

In Jesus’s Name,

Amen.

May those who fear you rejoice when they see me, for I have put my hope in your word.

(Psalm 119:74 NIV)

When a man of God receives grace for himself, he becomes a blessing to others.  Hopeful people bring gladness wherever they go.

What do you bring to your friends and family?  Do you remind them of all the bad things that have happened or might happen?  Do you give them a catalog of your aches and pains?  If your conversations are full of complaints, worries, and problems, then you are not testifying for God; you are testifying for the devil.

Your attitude alone can be a testimony to the gifts of God.  You have been forgiven!  You are assured of eternal life!  Considering the magnitude of these gifts, what do you have to complain about?

Reflect your joy and gratitude in every situation — you will be a blessing to your friends and family and, most of all, to God.