Good Morning Loved By God Stewards! Amen! Think about how that is going for you. He always blesses us. Are we thankful for and stewarding those blessings well? Is there some corrective needed? As we steward well His blessings in worship and service, more will be added to us to continue to grow in doing all we are created to do. Check out our devos below. Pray for a revelation of His love and to be filled with and steward His love well and thank Him for that. All he asks is that we try to do what we can with what we've been given according to how we are made, gifted, prepared and sent. Ask to be a faithful steward. And what does it ;look like to be a harvester of blessings as you seek Him, dwell in His presence and work at walking more fully in His ways. What's all that look like for you and how can you steward what he has blessed you with better? Seek first His Kingdom and Love. Dwell in His loving presence. Then go live and love like Jesus. That's His challenge for us all. Thanks Lord! How's that going ? What will you do about it? I'm praying for Him to reveal Himself and lead you to His best and for you to have open hands and a cooperating spirit. Amen!
TWFYT
UR: Faithful Effort
Each person should test their own work and be happy with doing a good job and not compare themselves with others. - Galatians 6:4 (CEB)
Several years ago, I watched a short video from a weight-lifting competition. The two competitors had to deadlift a huge amount of weight — over 200 pounds — as many times as they could within the allotted time. Whoever completed the most repetitions before time ran out won the competition.
Both men showed an outstanding display of strength and endurance. However, when the first man reached his limit, he responded in a way that impressed me. He quickly turned to the competitor who had bested him and cheered for him to keep going! With his amazing performance and his highly respectful sportsmanship, the man who lost the competition showed how big and strong he was — literally and figuratively.
Sometimes in our walk with Jesus Christ, our effort in pursuing a goal doesn’t yield the success we want. Thankfully, in Christ Jesus, our effort is never in vain when we embrace God’s grace and mercy. We have no need to be ashamed when we’ve given our all and done what we can to glorify God.
's devotional is available to you for free because of the generosity of our donors.
Thanks to donor support, anyone can read 's meditation without logging in for up to 7 days.
Please consider supporting our ministry. Your donation or paid subscription helps ensure that readers around the world continue to receive spiritual encouragement every day.
's Prayer
Dear heavenly Father, thank you for loving and caring for us at all times. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
ODB
Alan is a fifth-generation fruit farmer who manages his family’s cherry, peach, and apple orchard. Over the years, his family has perfected growing trees with maximum yield. They’ve carefully planted saplings for the future, put up a deer fence, and invested in special fans that help keep the air warm when frost threatens their crops. Even so, they’re never assured of a good harvest. Factors like weather, pollinators, and disease are beyond their control.
Yet all of nature is under God’s control. He knows we need physical provision like healthy crops, but He encourages us to look even higher to the ultimate good—Himself. The book of Leviticus contains decrees that God gave the Israelites governing everything from sacrifice and worship to relationships and criminal justice. Obeying His direction would lead to blessing, including provision of a bountiful harvest (26:3-4), but disobedience would result in a curse, where their enemies would enjoy the fruit of their labor (v. 16). More than just plentiful crops (v. 10), God’s blessing included a promise to dwell with His people (v. 11) and look on them “with favor” (v. 9).
The Israelites messed up again and again. So will we. But we can repent, submit, and turn back again to enjoy the gift of His presence (vv. 40-42), manifested in Jesus and now expressed through the Holy Spirit.
By Karen Pimpo
REFLECT & PRAY
In what ways are you seeking peace and provision on your own? What does it look like to walk in God’s presence and in His ways?
May I dwell with You as I follow Your pattern for life, dear God.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In Leviticus 26, God promised His people that obedience to His commands would result in their land flourishing with abundant harvest and peace from war. The most significant promise is found in verse 12: “I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people.” At the same time, the chapter warns that rejecting God’s ways would result in famine, defeat in war, and eventually exile from God’s land and presence (vv. 14-35). Yet God assured them that, even then, if His people repented, He’d “remember [His] covenant” (v. 42) with them and bring restoration. Because of God’s faithfulness (v. 44), there’d always be a path back to His presence. The same is true for us . When we confess our sins, we can enjoy the gift of His presence.
Monica La Rose
Prayer Points
Praise God that he cares about this world.
Thank Christ that he calls the church “his” and that he has promised to build it (Mt. 16:18).
Confess your own failures in using your time, talents, and tithe as God desires.
Commit yourself to being an energetic, ability-using, enthusiastic part of the body in which Christ has placed you.
Ask that, as a part of the church, you will live the fact that you belong to all the others (Rom. 12:5).
Ask God that your congregation will tirelessly live out the love that it has been given in Jesus Christ. Pray that the character and depth of this love will cause non-Christians in your community to want it for themselves.
·
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
LISTEN ONLINE
