Read: Psalm 34:8, Psalm 84, Mark 10:18; SOAP: Psalm 84:11
For the Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.
Psalm 84:11 NLT
Reflection Question: How can it be comforting to know that God is your protector?
Although the gifts God gives us aren’t wrapped up with bows and beautiful paper, they are worth so much more than anything we will ever find under the Christmas tree.
Truth: And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Philippians 4:8 NLT
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
How does thinking on what is true help us overcome lies?
Truth: Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 8:31-32
What do you think?
Where do we find truth?
What does it mean to ‘walk in truth’?
If we want to stand firm against deceit, we must learn to walk in truth.
The link shared below is something I found both encouraging and helpful. I wanted to share it with the hope that it will also encourage you to spend some quality time with God. I will preface it with this … prayer can also be spontaneous which Scripture supports in Colossians 4:2, where it tells us to pray continually or devote yourselves to prayer as some translations say, painting a picture, not of praying once a day, but praying throughout the day.
However, as Pastor John teaches in this devotional, Plan for Prayer, prayer is also meant to be a time planned or set aside to spend purposefully with God – for the specific purpose of praying. I will also add – we should set aside time to spend in His Word – the two can be combined but neither should be neglected or we cheat ourselves out of one of the greatest privileges of our salvation – a personal relationship 💗 with the True and Living God💜 . This includes entering into His presence boldly and with confidence both to talk to and to hear from God (Ephesians 3:12 and Hebrews 4:16 [14-16]), knowing that we have been brought near through the blood of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:13 [11-18]), and believing He wants us to understand His Word and know His will for us (Luke 24:45, Romans 12:2, and 2 Timothy 2:15) – May this add strength and encouragement to your day and blessings to your weekend 😊
This is a segment of “Solid Joys” from Desiring God, a site I follow by John Piper
Truth: Many people say, “Who will show us better times?” Let your face smile on us, LORD. You have given me greater joy than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine. In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O LORD, will keep me safe.
Psalm 4:6-7 NLT
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Can you truly be happy apart from God?
Why or why not?
Psalm 68:3 declares that the righteous will be glad and celebrate because of God. He is the reason for our joy and our salvation. He gives us purpose and life. Those who do not believe often try to fill their lives with other things, but they ultimately are unsatisfied. –
Think about your life, or more specifically your day, and make a list of things that make you happy. Now, what if all those things were stripped away from you, could you still be happy? Would the day be a good day, or a bad day? Would life still be worth living? I fear that many of us would answer those questions with an unapologetic, “no.” –
Read: Proverbs 31:30, Psalm 39:4 and SOAP: 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
Truth: So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.-
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NET
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
What lies do you believe about your body and your health?
What is the truth according to Scripture?
On average, an American woman spends $313 per month on her appearance. However, this high price of vanity does not guarantee happiness. Proverbs 31:30 tells us that our beauty fades. We cannot trust in it to bring us everlasting joy. –
I would never tell Him that He made a flower the wrong color or made a mountain too tall or too wide but yet I looked at myself and could only see the flaws. –
Read: Ecclesiastes 5:10, Hebrews 13:5 and SOAP: Hebrews 13:5
Truth: Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness!
(Hebrews 13:5) NLT
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Why shouldn’t we love money?
What is a proper view of money?
King Solomon, the wealthiest and wisest king of Israel, said in Ecclesiastes 5:10 that the person who loves wealth will never be satisfied. How much do you rely on money for your own satisfaction?
People like money, but it can only bring superficial, temporary happiness. It cannot bring joy or contentment. And, money can too easily be a stumbling block for us and become an idol in our lives.
Read: Genesis 50:19-21; 1 Peter 2:22-23; Philippians 1:12-14; Psalms 10:14; and SOAP: Isaiah 43:18-19
Truth: “But forget all that— it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.”
Isaiah 43:18-19
While we cannot control what happens to us, we do have a choice in how we respond. We can either allow our pain to keep us in our past, or we can choose to move forward in faith trusting God to redeem our pain and bring beauty out of ashes.
Recently, I’ve been seeing a lot of women walk through incredible pain. -Not one story is alike and yet they all have one thing in common: they are broken.
Read: Proverb 16:18; John 15:5; James 1:17; and SOAP: John 15:5
TRUTH: “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:5
It is no wonder that success can be addictive. But we must remember that achievements do not define us.
It’s crazy how easily we can talk ourselves into wanting to be more, have more, and do more. We’re bombarded with the lie that our worldly success defines us.
