Monday, April 14, 2008

refuge


Take Refuge in Him
Today's Scripture
“Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him” (Psalm 34:8).
Today's Word from Joel and Victoria
Where do you take refuge when the storms of life come? Where do you go for comfort and safety? Some people find it easy to turn to their friends, their job, or even a bowl of ice-cream! There’s nothing wrong with any of those things, but God the Father wants us to turn to Him first. He wants us to take refuge in Him. He longs to protect us and defend us and give us His strength. We serve a good God, and when we take refuge in Him, He will pour out His abundant blessing in our lives. Taste and see that the Lord is good today. Taste and see that His promises are good. When you turn to God, the Bible promises that you will find rest and refuge for your soul. No matter what you may be facing today, come to the Father. He will give you His peace and strength, and you’ll live the blessed life He has prepared for you!
A Prayer for Today
Heavenly Father, today I open my heart to You and choose to take refuge in You. Thank You for Your peace and rest and for showing me Your hand of blessing in every area of my life. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Patience



The Patience of God
PATIENCE
An active endurance of opposition and suffering, not a passive resignation to the inevitable, and not accompanied with grumbling or complaining. Patience and patient are used to translate several Hebrew and Greek words. Patience is endurance, steadfastness, longsuffering, and forbearance.
God is patient, and gives us His Divine example:

Rom 15:5-7 (KJV)
Now the God of patience and consolation
grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
{6} That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God,
even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{7} Wherefore receive ye one another,
as Christ also received us to the glory of God.

Exo 34:6-7 (KJV)
And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed,
The LORD, The LORD God,
merciful and gracious,
longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
{7} Keeping mercy for thousands,
forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin,
and that will by no means clear the guilty;
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children,
and upon the children's children,
unto the third and to the fourth generation.

Psa 86:5-7 (KJV)
For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive;
and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
{6} Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer;
and attend to the voice of my supplications.
{7} In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee:
for thou wilt answer me.

2 Chr 30:9 (KJV)
For if ye turn again unto the LORD,
your brethren and your children shall find compassion
before them that lead them captive,
so that they shall come again into this land:
for the LORD your God is gracious and merciful,
and will not turn away his face from you,
if ye return unto him.

Psa 86:3-7 (KJV)
Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily.
{4} Rejoice the soul of thy servant:
for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
{5} For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive;
and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
{6} Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer;
and attend to the voice of my supplications.
{7} In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee:
for thou wilt answer me.

God's patience with sinners allows time for them to repent, especially in the apparent delay of the return of Christ. However, God's patience with sinners will have a limit: inasmuch as His justice must be satisfied against evildoers and the unrepentant at a designated time. This time is called, "The Day of the Lord".
Rom 2:4-13 (KJV)
Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness
and forbearance and longsuffering;
not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?
{5} But after thy hardness and impenitent heart
treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath
and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;
{6} Who will render to every man according to his deeds:
{7} To them who by patient continuance in well doing
seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:
{8} But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth,
but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,
{9} Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil,
of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;
{10} But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good,
to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:
{11} For there is no respect of persons with God.
{12} For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law:
and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;
{13} (For not the hearers of the law are just before God,
but the doers of the law shall be justified.

2 Pet 3:8-15a (KJV)
But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing,
that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years,
and a thousand years as one day.
{9} The Lord is not slack concerning his promise,
as some men count slackness;
but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish,
but that all should come to repentance.

{10} But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night;
in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise,
and the elements shall melt with fervent heat,
the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
{11} Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved,
what manner of persons ought ye to be
in all holy conversation and godliness,
{12} Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God,
wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved,
and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
{13} Nevertheless we, according to his promise,
look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
{14} Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things,
be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace,
without spot, and blameless.
{15} And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation;

Heb 10:36-39 (KJV)
For ye have need of patience,
that, after ye have done the will of God,
ye might receive the promise.
{37} For yet a little while,
and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry(G=delay).
{38} Now the just shall live by faith:
but if any man draw back,
my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
{39} But we are not of them who draw back
unto perdition{G=spiritual damnation};
but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.
IXTHEUS CHRISTIAN GROWTH DEVOTIONALS
ALWAYS FREE OF CHARGE
(but not necessarily free of COST)
Feel free to redistribute these materials to whomever you want.
Please submit all questions, comments, suggestions,
requests for archived devotionals on Biblical topics
or REQUESTS FOR SUBSCRIPTIONS to
http://www.blogger.com/

Request a free email copy of my evangelistic presentation:
"The God Who is Really There" from http://www.blogger.com/ .

Visit my Devotionals Archive site at
http://www.blogger.com/

to unsubscribe from these devotionals at any time,
send an email with CANCEL in the subject line to http://www.blogger.com/
God Bless You.....brother bob.......<><