Daily Devotional

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  • BE THANKFUL, NOT ANXIOUS
    

    

    Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgivingG2169, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
    
Philippians 4:6-7 (BSB)
    




    

    G2169 ĕucharistia – gratitude; act. grateful language (to God, as an act of worship): – thankfulness, (giving of) thanks (-giving).
    
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
    




    

    G2169 – . . . Eucharist is used in modern language for Holy Communion, embodying the highest act of thanksgiving for the greatest gift received from God, the sacrifice of Jesus. It is the grateful acknowledgement of past mercies.
    
Zodhiates, Spiros, ed., The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament, G2169.
    




    God’s peace will be mounted as a sentinel around our hearts and minds in the midst of situations in which most people would consider it quite normal to be anxious. What is the condition for having that calm, protected feeling? When we begin to worry about something, we must take it to the Lord in prayer with thanksgiving. In other words, we must ask in faith (James 1:6). We need to be able to worship God with gratitude even before the answer to our prayer is visible. We love the definition of faith in Hebrews:
    




    

    Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title-deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality – faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses.
    
Hebrews 11:1 (AMP)
    




    When we begin to feel anxiety, we need to take the problems that are weighing us down to the Lord and, by faith, thank Him in advance for the peace He will give us. We need to worship Him in our prayers and trust that He only allows those things in our lives that will make us more like Jesus (Romans 8:28-29). Being able to pray with this confidence takes practice. Sometimes our minds must tell our emotions that we are going to trust God whether we feel like it or not. In other words, “Emotions, you are not the boss of us. God is our boss!”  We must trust the goodness of God as fact whether our senses or our emotions can see what good can possibly come out of a situation. Fortunately, God understands that we humans struggle with this; and it is okay to pray like the father who brought his son to Jesus for healing, “Lord, I believe. Help thou mine unbelief” (Mark 9:24).
    




    Father, help us to bring all our cares to You trusting that You care for us as your word tells us in 1 Peter 5:7. You are our loving father, and by faith we praise You now for all that You will do in and through us in the future. Thank You for Your loving kindness to us.
    




    

  • GIVE THANKS FOR EVERYTHING
    

    

    Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your hearts to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
    
Ephesians 5:19-20 (BSB)
    




    We’ve heard many sermons or Sunday school lessons on Ephesians 5:18 about not getting drunk but being filled with the Spirit. But we’ve heard very few indeed on the verses immediately following which define what being filled with the Spirit looks like. As we read over these verses, we couldn’t help thinking it would seem a little strange to run around spouting song lyrics at each other. Then I (Susie) took a mental step backward and remembered the importance of music in many of my relationships. I will forever associate “The Band Played On” with the memory of my father taking his little toddler daughter up in his arms and waltzing me around the room while singing that tune. I also hold dear the more recent memory of singing the same song to soothe Daddy to sleep in his hospital room. The lyrics of a song sung by Whitney Houston and CeCe Winans reflect mine and Susan’s friendship/sisterhood, “Count on me through thick and thin, A friendship that will never end. When you are weak, I will be strong, helping you to carry on . . .” We count on each other as we count on the Lord together! Song lyrics are powerful. Why shouldn’t we encourage one another with Psalms (even more potent because they are God’s word), hymns, and Christian song lyrics?  Reminding each other of the truths found in them may just help us to obey the next command which is to have music in our hearts directed to our Lord and to be thankful for everything He places in our path. Being filled with the Spirit means we should exhibit the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) in our daily lives. Those traits—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—are reflected in many of the lyrics we use to spur each other on as we walk with Jesus. How can we live as conquerors in a world bent on beating us down? Speak courage to each other through the lyrics God has placed in our memories and sing those songs back as praise to the Lord who enabled his servants to write them. Then remember to thank God for everything. EVERYTHING? Even the circumstances we perceive as “bad” are used by God for our ultimate good. Faith is standing on that truth even when you don’t understand what God is accomplishing.
    




    Not saying you have to belt out a song the next time you greet a friend but do try to encourage others by reminding them of a scripturally sound song. If you put that lyric into their head, they may just walk around singing it throughout the day to be encouraged. If someone is going to have a song stuck in their heads all day, it should be one that encourages them in the Lord!
    




    Father, let the words of our mouths be a witness and an encouragement to others (Psalm 19). Let the songs you have placed in our hearts bring joy and comfort to our family and friends. For you are “my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in you, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy, and I will give thanks to you in song” ( Psalm 28:7 NIV).
    




    “Count on Me” sung by Whitney Houston and CeCe Winans: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ae2iX6vZCoM