Put today’s devotional into action right away with “19 Ways to Encourage Others”

“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” (1 Peter 4:10)

Be intentional today to stand as one loved by God, with purpose and dignity. Reach out in kindness to someone today and feel His love flow to you and through you. God’s love, given generously through you, has a way of coming full circle back to you.

You have much to give! Stand tall! His grace will shelter you and protect you. His grace will fulfill you. His grace will enable you to step forward and not shrink back. His grace will enable you to give CARE even when you desperately want to receive care yourself. His grace is given to you in order to be given away. Let His grace flow to you and through you as you care in the ways He has made you to uniquely show His love. It will fill you up in an unexpected way.

Four ways to show C A R E today:

C – Compassion = concern, kindness, consideration.

As you go through your day today ask God to show you where and how you can show kindness, consideration and concern in a meaningful and simple way to someone on your pathway. When you feel the nudge, take the time to respond. Show consideration.

A – Appreciate

Show appreciation in an intentional and specific way to someone whom the Lord highlights on your radar screen today. Be genuinely appreciative. Say “thanks”.

R – Reach Out

Don’t wait for others to take the first step to greet, speak, say or do something. Be ready to reach out in the moment you become aware of the choice. Go first.

E – Encourage

It costs nothing to say a sincere and encouraging word. Be aware today that you have the power of life and death in your tongue. Bite your tongue when careless words want to spill out. Ask God to fill your mind and heart with His goodness toward others. Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. Use your words to build.

Prayer to help action CARE in your life:

Father God,

Today my heart yearns for love. To answer that yearning, please help me to extend CARE to those in my circle. Let me feel Your lavish love toward me today and help me to pass it out. May consideration, appreciation and encouragement mark my attitudes, words and actions today as I reach out with Your love. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

Question: How are you going to show compassion, appreciation, reach out, and encourage someone today?

“For, ‘In just a little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay.’ …‘But my righteous one will live by faith.  And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.’  But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.” (Hebrews 10: 37-39)

We met in Starbucks. She was just passing through town and it was a treat to get together in person. As usual, we jumped in at the deep end and wanted to share what God was teaching us these days. As she raised requests I suggested we pray. Quietly, with open eyes, I asked God to meet the needs of her life.

We talked more and then she said she wanted to pray for me. With not so quiet a voice and with eyes pressed closed and hands grasping mine across the table she lifted her heart to our Heavenly Father. And I felt my heart shrink back. Could she pray a little quieter or a little less intensely? I am ashamed to say I felt a twinge of embarrassment enter my heart.

Very shortly after that God put a book in my pathway that challenged just this very thing in my life. In essence I was denying Christ. I thought of Peter and how easy it was for him to deny Jesus on that night of Jesus’ death. Then in my own devotions I read these words,

“For, ‘In just a little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay.’…‘But my righteous one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.’ But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.” (Hebrews 10: 37-39)

It took me by surprise that I could find myself in that same position as Peter found himself in…only I was in Starbucks where there was no threat at all to my faith or my life. How good God is to reveal the very nature of our hearts to us when we feel we are being “faithful” followers. What a challenge it is to grow in our boldness in following our Lord and Savior.

Today, whether you are a quiet Christian, a bold witness, or somewhere in between why not join me in asking God to fill you with a greater boldness and more courage to stand in persevering faith?  One never knows when in this world we will be called upon to stand firm. We need to be determined not to shrink back. God will help us as we ask Him to.

Heavenly Father,

Forgive me for shrinking back when You call me to boldness. May my heart be ever more courageous to stand for You. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

Question: How can you express greater boldness and more courage as you walk your Christian life?

How can we pray for you today?

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)

Not long ago I spent a lovely weekend in the magnificent beauty of the Alaskan mountains. I was privileged to be the guest speaker of a women’s retreat there. Precious women extracted themselves from their busy lives from Friday evening to Sunday noon. They took time they didn’t really have to come away…to let their hearts drink in rest and refreshment.

Life noisily demands our attention. It clamors, persistently moving us in many directions. It’s easy to forget that Jesus Himself has invited us to come and find rest for our souls.

Are you expecting His rest to refresh you today? Are you expecting to encounter His strength holding you today? Are you expecting His peace to sustain your heart even in what can sometimes be chaotic days? Are you expecting Him to meet your heart even as you read these words?

Let this invitation, to you from Jesus, steep into your soul like a pot of tea steeps to full flavor. You can expect God to deposit something into your heart even in this moment. Now read it again this way.

“Come unto me today, _____________ (Put in your name), with all the things that weary your body and burden your mind and heart and I will give you rest … for your soul.”

Today you can have the confident expectation that God will hold you as you COME to Him. You are invited. Come and receive:

1. C – CAST your concerns on Him: 

1 Peter 5:7  “Casting all your cares on Him for He cares for you.”

Lord God, today I bring you the questions on my heart about ______, I bring you my disappointment in _________ and I look, with expectation to You to help me because You care. Thank you!

2. O- OPEN your heart:

Philippians 4:6-7 “Don’t worry about anything but pray about everything. Tell God your needs and don’t forget to thank Him for His answers.”

Lord God, Today I need  __________. I ask You for it. I trust in Your strength to hold me and I thank You that You will guide me and direct my path. I wait in expectation.

3. M-MAKE requests:

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Lord God, Your grace is enough for all I am dealing with today. You have promised that even in my weakness Your strength is made perfect. Today I feel weak in ___________. I trust You to strengthen me. 

4. E-EXPECT: 

Romans 15:13 “May the God of Hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Lord God, I receive Your joy and peace in my heart right now as I fully trust You to be the Manager of my day today. In the strong name of Jesus I pray, amen.

Question: How do you COME to Jesus today?

The tiny wrinkles around my eyes seemed to appear almost overnight. One day I was very aware of them and knew I had better get that eye cream I was hearing about. I’d better try the “triple action”! I was amazed at the results…and in such a short time! This was good.

The waistband on my jeans felt tight. Could it be those wonderful cappuccinos I was regularly enjoying? I was amazed at the results…and in such a short time! This was not good.

I didn’t like the sand paper edge that seemed to spring up between my teen and I. I asked the Lord for patience and grace to bit my tongue. I was amazed at the results…and in such a short time! This was good.

Little decisions are peppered throughout the day. Little changes push the edge of results to the negative or the positive.

It’s the same in your spiritual journey. Little changes…conscious little choices that push your walk with God in one direction or another. Little choices to let God in or to hold Him at a distance. Little choices of attitude; little choices of purity in thoughts or choices of entertainment. Little choices. Invite Him into them. You will be amazed at the results… and in such a short time!

“Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me”. Psalm 51:10

This New Years don’t make grand resolutions that will fade in a few short weeks. Choose daily to let God be a part of the little choices…choose to be amazed…and in such a short time!

Prayer & reflection

Heavenly Father,
Thank you that You can create what is right and good in this heart of mine that often struggles with the little daily choices. Thank you that I can count on You to renew a right attitude within me. I am not making grand New Year’s resolutions that will fade, but I am asking You to help me make the right daily choices in the little things of life. I want to be changed in this New Year. I want to reflect Your patience to my family; I want to turn away from entertainment that reflects the opposite of what you desire for me. I want You to renew right attitudes in me daily. Amaze me with the results, Father, as You guide me in the small things of my day. Thank you that I can face this New Year with freshness and anticipation because you are holding my hand! You will help me in the little things of my life. For this I give You my praise!
In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Question: How do you guard against the little things?

Are you struggling to hear from God this Christmas? Let us pray for you.

“God …through us, spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 2:14)

The smell of Christmas turkey baking in the oven permeated every corner of the house. Walking in from outside the fragrance was welcoming. The smell alone created an appetite and an expectation. Did you know that you permeate the circle you live in with a fragrance? Oh, it’s not your perfume or your after shave. No, the Bible tells us, “…God …through us, spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 2:14)

As you go through this special day, whether it is a flurry of activity with friends and family or a quiet day of reflection, you are taking the fragrance of Christ with you into your circle.

The celebration of the birth of Jesus is sometimes pushed to the background amid the food and gifts of the day. Yet you bring the fragrance of Him with you as you interact with those around you. You can bring acceptance and love, gentleness and kindness. You can bring an unselfish spirit and an embracing warmth. You can bring the very things His birth brought to you!

Somewhere in your circle there may be one for whom this day is difficult. Seek that person out and give away some of the love Jesus gave you. Create a hunger for Him in those around you by sharing the fragrance of Jesus.

Simply ask for His Holy Spirit to fill you today with power from Him so you can share that fragrance of His loving care. Share His gentle love today and, as the old saying goes, “if necessary, use words”.

Father God,
I want to say a special “Thank You” today for the gift of Your Son, Jesus. Thank you that knowing Him can change a life! Help me today to have a heart full of the abundance of all Jesus is, love and gentleness, acceptance and caring. Help me to be filled today with these things, by the power of the Holy Spirit, so that the fragrance of Christ will permeate wherever You have me today! In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Question: How will you celebrate Jesus today?

Learn to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit with this classic series from Campus Crusade for Christ founder Dr Bill Bright.

“We have not received the spirit of the world but the spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.” (1 Corinthians 2:12)

The beautifully wrapped gift sat under the Christmas tree. All the other gifts had been claimed and opened. This one just sat there. Each day someone told the woman to open it – it was hers. Each day she felt content to just know the gift was there, with her name on it. It belonged to her. But she never possessed it… she never used it… she never enjoyed it. What a waste!

Yet that is so often what we do with the gift of the Holy Spirit. We know, as Christians, that when we receive Jesus as our Savior, He gives us the Holy Spirit as our helper and our comforter. But many Christians never really claim this gift. They seem content to just know it’s there, with their name on it.

1 Corinthians 2:12 tells us, “We have not received the spirit of the world but the spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.”

1 Corinthians 3:16 asks us, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?”

And still more. Listen…

“For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power!” (1 Corinthians 4:20)

When we live our lives out in powerless Christianity, feeling defeated and overwhelmed, we need to ask ourselves again, “Don’t I know that I am God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in me… that I have received the spirit that is from God and not from the world so that I may understand what God has given me? Help me Lord to truly understand that being a part of your kingdom means more than just talk but it means power – power for living!”

Invite the Holy Spirit to fill you up to overflowing. Don’t be afraid of doing this. God made you to be exactly the unique you that you are! He can be trusted to come in power in your individual life. He will not make you into someone you are not. He will bring you understanding so that you may live in His power in all your circumstances.

Don’t you know, oh Christian, that the Spirit of the Living God lives in you? Invite Him to work freely and bring His power. Don’t settle for anything less.

Question: Have you invited the Holy Spirit to fill you up? If not, what holds you back? If you have, what difference did it make in your life?

Have you been following along with the Advent Journeys series? Today we have the 4th lesson, Wise Men: In Search of the King.

“Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)

The angels proclaimed “Peace on Earth” when the Baby Jesus was born. Today we wonder as we listen to the evening news, is peace possible? We all need two kinds of peace in our lives. We need inner peace but we also need peace with others. God addresses both. He tells us what to do to find that peace.

Inner peace begins with a relationship with God and it continues as we focus on His strength and allow Him to fill us. We can exchange our weakness for His strength in any area of life.  God’s Word says, “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is focused on You because He trusts in You.” (Isaiah 26:3)

Personalize that verse with your own name in it: “God will keep me in perfect peace as my mind focuses on Him and trusts Him.” Inner peace hinges on my trust in God.

If inner peace is eluding you these days and anxiety spills over in your life, choose to trust God. You can choose to put your hand in His and draw on His patience and wisdom as you take each step. He will guide you through the maze of life if you ask Him. Choosing to trust God with those blind corners in your life will take you down the road to inner peace. Choosing not to trust Him will take you down the road to stress and worry. Inner peace is there for the choosing.

Peace with others begins as we understand that God has called us to be peacemakers in our world. Is there somewhere in your own world where you can be a peacemaker this Christmas? Is there an invitation that needs to be extended to smooth over a fractured family relationship? Is there an apology to be made or a silence to be broken that has stood as a barrier for too long?  Don’t miss the blessing God promises in your life as you respond to His call to be a peacemaker in your own circle.

We can help bring peace to our world one heart at a time.

Prayer & reflection

Today, would you join me in praying the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:

Lord,
Make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; and Where there is sadness, joy… Divine Master; Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen

Question: Is there a specific situation where you can be an instrument of peace today? How can we pray for you?

Would you consider giving to help this devotional ministry continue to touch lives?

“The blessing of the Lord be upon you: we bless you in the name of the Lord!” (Psalm 129:8)

Susan wanted to find just the right gift to honor some special people in her life. Nothing she looked at seemed to fit either her budget or her heart. As she thought about it she realized what she wanted to give was a blessing. But what would that look like?

She wanted to acknowledge how each one had influenced her life. She wanted to thank them for the feeling of acceptance she received from them. She wanted to let them know that, because of their care in her life, she was richer today and felt blessed herself. She wanted God to bless their lives too.

She gathered a small symbolic gift for each one. Taking some pretty writing paper she began to craft a tribute from her heart to each one.

Giving a blessing is an ancient practice. The elements of it can still apply today and make a wonderful gift. Reinforce the value of the special individuals in your life by giving a blessing. Ask God for the words to write from a sincere heart.

• Give a small plant and some words of affirmation to someone who has helped you grow in your life.
• Give a candle and a note of thanks to someone who has helped shed light on your pathway.
• Give a coupon for a manicure or a massage with a card to someone who has blessed you with their gift of time.
• Take a meal or some baking to someone who you want to thank for their understanding and acceptance.

Blessings can be given any time of the year as you take the time to honor those whose lives have touched yours. As you speak appreciation and thanks back to them you are blessing their life. Add a prayer to ask God’s blessing on them in a special way in the coming months.

Prayer & reflection

Father God,
We give You thanks for the special people in our lives who touch us with their love and care. Shelter each one in Your care today and may they feel the blessing of Your love and protection. Nourish their hearts as they continue to give from a heart of love. Bless them today.
In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

Question: Is there someone in your life who has been a blessing to you? Do they know what they did? If not, will you tell them?

Take the third lesson in our advent journeys series: Shepherds Come and See

“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”(John 13:35)

The ring was special! It signified she belonged to the organization. As she wore it she was aware of all it represented and of who it said she was. With it she was more conscious of how she acted. As a follower of Jesus you wear a distinguishing mark as well. Is it visible?

You wear His love.

When Jesus came to this earth He brought a special kind of love. This love is unselfish, compassionate, unconditional. He loves us just as we are. Our condition is irrelevant to His love. It is a love that picks us up just where we are in life and carries us further than we could ever go on our own.

He gives us His love so we can give it away in the same unselfish, compassionate, unconditional way He gave it to us. He tells us this love will be our trademark. It will distinguish us as followers of Jesus.

Your actions reflect Jesus to the world around you. You can choose to offer love or to hold it back. In situations where it is hard to offer love, ask Him to give you an abundance of His own in your heart so you are able to give it away.

As you move into Christmas this week, be reminded of the distinguishing mark you carry as a follower of Jesus. Ask for His love to be evident in your words and actions as you interact with others. Seek to bring unity and balance into relationships or situations. Listen to people with sincerity and interest. Ask for a graciousness that comes from His Spirit as you mingle with those in your circle.

Wear the love of Jesus as your distinguishing mark as His follower.

Prayer & reflection

Father God,
Thank you for Your generous love to me. Thank you that You see the abundance in my life rather than all the shortfalls I have. Help me to offer that same gracious love to those I mingle with this Christmas season. Pour Your love into my heart so I can give it away. May they know I am a follower of Jesus by my love.
In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Question: How will you express God’s love to the people you meet today?

Rediscover the fruit of the spirit with our life lesson series in Galatians.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, self control, gentleness, goodness and faith.” (Galatians 5:22)

It was my daughter’s idea. She told me she had been thinking about the Advent devotions and how to prepare her heart, not just her home, for Christmas. And she had a great idea! Jen decided to give fruit away. Oh, not the apples and Christmas oranges that you see in the store. No, she told me she was asking God for opportunities to give away the “fruit of the Spirit”.

The “fruit of the Spirit” is nine qualities the Bible says will show up in our lives as we daily ask the Holy Spirit to fill us up with God. He cultivates these in the life of a follower of Jesus. This fruit in our lives is what shows a watching world we are different because we follow Jesus.

Here is the list of fruit from the Bible:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, self control, gentleness, goodness and faith.” (Galatians 5:22)

Each day, until Christmas, choose one fruit off the list and ask God to deposit this gift in your heart in extra measure. Then ask Him to provide an opportunity to give that fruit away in a specific act that day. It is both a rewarding and a challenging experience.

When we focus on allowing the Holy Spirit to overflow in our lives He may use the opportunity to highlight how very much we need Him. This fruit cannot be mustered up in our own strength with enough to give away. No, it is His work in our lives.

I’m taking Jen’s idea and asking the Holy Spirit to prepare my heart in a deeper way this Christmas too. As a Jesus follower I want His fruit to be in abundance in my life. I want those around me to see the difference He makes as I choose to ask Him to fill me up every day. Why don’t you join me? Let’s ask Him to fill us afresh today. Then watch for opportunities to give it way. Together we’ll prepare our hearts for Christmas.

Prayer & reflection

Father God,
I thank you that You do not leave us to try to live this Christian life alone. Thank you for giving us the Holy Spirit to fill us and flow through us to those around us. Today I ask that You would fill me afresh with Your Spirit. Cultivate Your fruit in my life today. Help me to be aware of Your deposit in my heart and show me an opportunity to give that fruit away today. Thank you for the amazing help of Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.