Sharing Devotions

I received the following through a friend this week and thought of Pastor Sione Tilini’s message from last week. And just like my friend who sent it to me I too think it is worth sharing.

Whenever opposition arises, God’s grace thrives in us. Think about what happens to a tree when a great storm beats violently against it. The wind threatens to uproot the tree and carry it away. It breaks off branches and blows away its leaves. It loosens its roots and blows off its buds. And when the storm is over, things look hopeless.Yet, look closer; the same storm that opened crevices in the earth around the trunk of the tree has helped the roots go deeper. The tree now has access to new, deeper sources of nutrition and water. And it has been purged of all its dead branches. The buds may be gone,but others will grow back more fully. I tell you, that tree is now stronger, growing in unseen ways. And just wait till harvest—because it’s going to bear much fruit!Maybe you’re in a storm right now. The wind is blowing hard, shaking you violently, and you think you’re going down. Beloved, don’t panic! You’ve got to know that in the midst of the tempest, you are putting down deep spiritual roots. God is developing in you a deepening humility, a greater mourning and sorrow for sin, a heightened hunger for his righteousness.God is making you a seasoned soldier of the cross—battle-scarred, but battle-smart and courageous. You may get down on yourself at times—but the Lord never does.
The fact is, he could have acted sovereignly at any time to pluck you out of your struggle.But he didn’t—because he saw it producing in you a greater thirst for him!


Romans 5:3 (NLT) says, We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.

In 2 Corinthians 4:17 (NLT) we read, For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!

You can find this devotion and others online at http://www.worldchallenge.org/en/node/9880

Re-Evaluating

I have had a rough week examining myself. I have been re-evaluating Who I am in Christ and also being reminded that I am His Temple and that He dwells in me. Well by the end of the week my conclusion was this; I didn’t like what I saw. Mind you, I understand that I am His daughter-but I had to ask myself what kind of daughter was I being? The next thing I had to ask myself (and this one was really hard) what was I doing to His temple– the place He lived? Am I taking care of it and being mindful of what goes into it? That means what I hear and see and eat and again the question arose what kind of daughter am I being?

I was reminded of the two men who went into the temple to pray. The passage is as follows:

Luke 18:10-14 (MSG)
10 "Two men went up to the Temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax man. 11 The Pharisee posed and prayed like this: 'Oh, God, I thank you that I am not like other people - robbers, crooks, adulterers, or, heaven forbid, like this tax man.12 I fast twice a week and tithe on all my income.' 13 "Meanwhile the tax man, slumped in the shadows, his face in his hands, not daring to look up, said, 'God, give mercy. Forgive me, a sinner." 14 Jesus commented, "This tax man, not the other, went home made right with God. If you walk around with your nose in the air, you're going to end up flat on your face,but if you're content to be simply yourself, you will become more than yourself."

It wasn’t that I was praying like the Pharisee but God revealed to me that who I thought I was, wasn’t the truth, and when he opened my eyes to the truth I humbled myself before Him and just like the tax collector cried out to God for forgiveness.

Have a wonderful week in the Lord!

Friends In Our Lives

A couple of months ago a very good friend of mine had sent me an email and said she wanted to
encourage me and asked that I read Psalm 103. Believe it or not I had just read it when I got her email. God puts people in our lives to help and encourage us. I pray that I can be that person to you. If you get a chance read all of Psalm 103– but for now here are verses 1-19.

1 Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.

2 Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.

3 He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.

4 He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies.

5 He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s

6The Lord gives righteousness and justice to all who are treated unfairly
7 He revealed his character to Moses and his deeds to the people of Israel.

8 The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.

9 He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever.

10 He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.

11 For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.

12 He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.

13 The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him.

14 For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust.

15 Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die.

16 The wind blows, and we are gone— as though we had never been here.

17 But the love of the Lord remains forever with those who fear him. His salvation extends to the children’s children

18 of those who are faithful to his covenant, of those who obey his commandments!
19 The Lord has made the heavens his throne; from there he rules over everything.

Isn’t God Wonderful?