Tag: 7-day devotion

[Persevering] Day 3: God Made a Way

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Reading: Psalm 40:6-8

Sacrifice and meal offering You have not desired;
My ears You have opened;
Burnt offering and sin offering You have not required.
Then I said, “Behold, I come;
In the scroll of the book it is written of me.
I delight to do Your will, O my God;
Your Law is within my heart.”

Reflection:

During the time of David, they offer animals as sacrifices to the Lord but these are not what God desires. In the time of King Saul, Samuel told Saul, “To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.” (1 Samuel 15:22-23)

The verses 7-8 speak about Jesus being the perfect sacrifice that is only pleasing to God. Because God was not pleased with burnt and sin offerings of men, Jesus had to come to do the will of the Father. In Hebrews 10:10, it says, “And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

God does not want us to show off to Him how good or best we are at something. What God desires for us is to see Jesus sitting at the throne of our life. Why? Because Jesus is the only pleasing sacrifice that God accepts as a payment of our sinful life. Our good works or good intentions will never be enough because our lives are stained with sin. The blood of Jesus is the only cure that when God looks into our lives, He will see the blood of His Only Son covering our sin. And that will be enough for God.

Have you come to that point in your life that you feel so tired of trying to be better or to have a good life? I have good news for you. Jesus said, “Come to me all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”(Matthew 11:28) All you need to do is to receive Jesus in your life and trust Him to be your Lord and Savior. Through Him, you will receive forgiveness for all your past, present and even future sins. And not only that, through Jesus you will receive the most precious give of salvation that leads to eternal life. Once you open your life to Jesus, your life will never be the same again. There will still be difficulties along the way, but this time, the yoke will be much easier because Jesus is walking with you to strengthen you and sustain you.

If you are sincere in your heart to accept Jesus, you can say this prayer.

Prayer:

Dear God,

Thank you for your amazing love that you have showed to us through Jesus Christ. Thank you for making a way for us through Jesus so that our lives will become acceptable to you. Today, with a sincere heart, I accept you Jesus to be my Savior. I believe that you have died and resurrected that I will receive the gift of salvation and eternal life. I ask of you today to also become the Lord of my life. Forgive me for all of my sins and help me to turn away from my wrongdoings. May You take over my life Lord Jesus that I may live in obedience to You. This I pray in Jesus’ Name,  Amen.

If you have accepted Jesus, I would love to hear from you and would love to pray for you. Please leave a message here.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” – John 3:16

“Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.” – Hebrews 10:18

Song:

May this song remind you of the sacrifice of Jesus for all of us.

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[Persevering] Day 2: God Hears You

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Reading: Psalm 40:4-5

How blessed is the man who has made the Lord his trust,
And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.
Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders which You have done,
And Your thoughts toward us;
There is none to compare with You.
If I would declare and speak of them,
They would be too numerous to count.

Reflection:

Knowing God

  • God blesses the man who trusts in Him and who does not turn to the proud and those who lapse into falsehood
  • Many are God’s wonderful works and thoughts toward us, too numerous to count
  • God is incomparable

When you have trials in life, to whom do you first turn to?

Before I had a deep relationship with God, I always turn to my friends first whenever I have problems. I don’t even go to my family. And when I remember God, that’s only when I pray. However, this has changed when I realized that God is the only one who could sustain me in the midst of my problems.

Now, I always turn to God first and just pour out unto Him all my concerns. When we start trusting God, knowing that He is in control of everything, we will have peace, stillness and joy that we can’t explain. These are the blessings we can receive from God even if we are flooded with problems.

Then, I turn to the people whom God uses to help me in my problems. When we turn to people, let’s make sure that they will impart to us wisdom that comes from the Lord and not from the standard of the world (And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.) It’s important that we pray to God to give us people who could give us godly counsel. I realized how blessed I am to be a part of a community of believers because there are people who will not just give me counsel but will also pray for me.

Have you been trusting God not just with your problems but with your whole life? Only God can understand the very depth of your heart. He will be pleased that you run to Him first. And if you feel like you don’t have anyone to turn to, always remember that God is just waiting for you. He hears you. And He will speak to you through the Bible. In the Bible, you will see how God has heard the cry of a lot of people and how He has helped them during difficult times. He will also do the same for you as long as you trust Him.

If you haven’t called to God, maybe, it’s time you call upon Him. Let this prayer guide you.

Prayer:

Dear God,

Thank you for always thinking about me even if I fail to remember you.  Today, I commit that I will always run to you first – in my victories and trials. Thank you for the promise of blessings for those who trust in you. Teach me Lord to trust you always that I may walk not in the ways of this world but in Your ways.  This I pray in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Song:

Hope this song will remind you of who God is.

[Persevering] Day 1: The Cry

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Reading: Psalm 40:1-3

I waited patiently for the Lord;
And He inclined to me and heard my cry.
He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,
And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.
 He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;
Many will see and fear
And will trust in the Lord.

Reflection:

David waited patiently, calling out to God.

God did the following for David:

  • Turned to David
  • Heard David’s cry
  • Lifted David out of the pit of destruction and of the miry clay
  • Set David’s feet on the rock that he may stand firm

David’s response to God:

  •  God put a new song on his mouth, a hymn of praise to God
  •  David proclaimed – many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord

I’m so much grateful that God does not change. How He loved and protected David, He does the same for all of us. David must be very troubled as he wrote this psalm. As he described his situation, he was in a pit of destruction, crying out to God for help.

Indeed, everyone – a king or a commoner has his own problems. No one is excused in living a life full of trials and problems. However, David has a big God. He turned to God alone to seek refuge. He described how God lifted him up from that pit and put him on a rock that he could stand firm again. And God does this to everyone who calls on Him. There was never a time that God failed me every time I’m so down and hopeless. He is the only one who could take me out from that pit, gives me strength to get up and go on with life. And just like David, the only response I could make is to be in awe of God, to give praises to Him even if the times were difficult.

Have you ever experienced God this way? Have you allowed God to help you not just in times of trouble but in everything that you do? Have you entrusted God with every step of your life? Always remember, God hears you. You just need to call unto Him and He will turn to you.

If you are in a difficult situation right now, you can say this prayer to God.

Prayer:

Dear God,

Thank you for showing to me the life of David; that, even a king does not have a perfect life. Thank you for reminding me that I can entrust my life to you and I can call upon you on any situation of my life. I ask for your strength dear God that I may overcome all the trials in my life. Help me to see you always that I may put my trust in you alone. This I pray in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Song:

I hope this song will bring you encouragement and be reminded of who God is.