Scripture: Isaiah 40:1-3; Malachi 3:1; Mark 1:1-13 / SOAP: Mark 1:1-2
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. 2 As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,
“Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way,
Mark 1:1-2
We may not always know or specifically see what the next trial or blessing will be but we can rest assured that they are coming and that God is preparing us for them along the way. We must also remember that Christ has called us, much like God did John – to “prepare the way” for more disciples. Consider Christ’s words to the disciples in Matthew 28:19, when He commissioned them to go into all the world and share the message about/from Christ, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. We are the commissioned messengers of today. For more insight on what this means read today’s devotional from the LGG Team –
Prayer of Response
Father, thank You that you are a God of purpose – interactively involved in our life. Thank You for going ahead of us and preparing the way and for using us to prepare the way for others. Help us to be faithful to the call upon our lives. Tn Jesus’ Name Amen!
Reflections on the Journey
God is always preparing us for what He has for us – whether that be trials, blessing, or meeting Jesus for the first time. How is God working in you today to prepare you for what is to come?
For a child has been born to us, a son has been given to us. He shoulders responsibility and is called Wonderful Adviser, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
His dominion will be vast, and he will bring immeasurable prosperity. He will rule on David’s throne and over David’s kingdom, establishing itand strengthening it by promoting justice and fairness, from this time forward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will accomplish this.
Isaiah 9:6-7
In our larger passage, verses two through five are a message from the prophet Isaiah that tells of a time when God will send light back to Israel. War will cease and Israel’s enemies will no longer rule over them. Verses six and seven tell us how that will happen.
Oh the beauty of a promise kept and of hope given. Through God’s Word we have seen the child, the son that Isaiah spoke of, born to a virgin who called His name Emmanuel. We have seen Him on a cross bearing the weight of sins that belonged to the world. We have watched as God let Him die and listened as He cried in agony, “My God, My God – why have You forsaken Me?” We’ve peered into the tomb with Mary and the others to see the grave clothes but no body and then watched as He later ascended into heaven. Perhaps we’ve even doubted with Thomas but then realized the reality of His presence and cried out as Thomas did, “My Lord, and my God!” By faith we now believe that He sits at the right hand of God’s throne interceding on our behalf. And by faith we believe and wait with great anticipation for His promised return. Yes, oh yes! There is beauty in a promise kept and that beauty comes in the hope, peace, and strength that come from knowing Him .
Feel free to share your thoughts (observations, application …) about today’s passage – in the comment section
Reflections on Today’s Journey
Who is Jesus to you?
Why is He such an important person?
Why do so many people still follow Him?
Going Further
For more insight on today’s reading be sure and ready today’s blog from the LGG Team
It’s Tuesday friends and one day closer to the Thanksgiving Holiday and some time off with family and friends. If you’re like my daughters and are already enjoying a nice week-long break – I pray it is off to a good start. 🙂 Our new advent study, The Promised Messiah, begins next Monday (Nov.27) but for now let’s continue through our journey of Scriptures that prompt praise and worship for all God is and does.
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
Romans 8:28
What is the promise?
The promise is, for those who are saved, all things will indeed work together for good. “All things” should be taken to mean each and every circumstance one might experience, even pain or suffering. “Work,” or “work together,” must be understood in light of God taking action in the world. He is the one who causes all things to work together or, perhaps, works in and through all circumstances toward a specific end. What is that end? “Good.”
Bibleref.com
From Joseph being sold into slavery by his brothers to Jesus hanging on the cross for our sins this truth/promise brings us hope as it is played out in the lives of those who came before us and certainly in our own trouble or regrets. Is there anything in your past that you would do over if you could. Are there decisions you made then that have adversely affected your now? Take some time right now to remember or grasp hold of the truth from this verse of promise and hope – perhaps for the very first time. I used to think it said, “And we know all things work together for good…” and I remember the day and the place when I realized what it really said/meant: “…God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.” Mistakes, regrets, things you had no control over, hurts, betrayal … these will surface in our minds from time to time – the enemy uses them as arrows but this powerful truth will combat them.
We must be careful to keep these words in the context Paul intended – and that was to bring hope to those believers who were struggling or suffering in life. He wanted them to remember that God is good and He is in perfect control on behalf of His children and according to His purpose, which by the way is perfect. Take hope in the encouragement that Paul’s words offer to those who belong to God – and trust that He truly has been and is continually working all things together for the good of those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose.💜
You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.
Joseph, to his brothers – Genesis 50:20
Your Turn
What about today’s verse, Romans 8:28, makes you thankful? Is there a way you have seen its truth played out in your life? – If so give thanks!
Will you take a minute and share your response(s) in the comment section – It may be just the encouragement that someone else needs and for certain it will bring God glory.
Worship Through Music
I do not own the rights to this music nor do I use it for any profit or gain –
This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118:24
Some days are exciting from the moment you wake up. You’re excited about the planned adventure, the day off work, or expected company. Some days are just regular get up and go kind of days. Then there are the days full of challenges from the time you open your eyes – right? On those days, I often find myself singing or reciting this verse over and over. I find it an uplifting reminder that I can still rejoice despite the challenges because God made the day – which in turn reminds me that He has a purpose for it and me. It takes my eyes off the challenges and places them squarely on Him, His goodness to give me life and breath, His promise to direct my path, His call on believers to count it all joy when troubles come our way and the hope that comes from knowing if He can make the day He can certainly help me through it. I should note that this verse is a good way to start every day – I just find the Spirit brings it to mind most often on the more challenging/difficult days.
Your Turn:
I also find that it is a rather easy verse to memorize – give it a try. I promise it will be a blessing.
Name something about this day for which you are thankful.
Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.
Psalm 5:3
I wonder sometimes if we truly realize the blessing and utter privilege of prayer. Think about it, the God who created the universe and holds it all in place. – the One who gave His only son to die for sinful, wretched humans and then raised Him from the dead – not only invites us to pray but hears and answers when we do. The psalmist was so certain of this truth that he waited expectantly for the answer. Do you?
Your Turn
Share something about prayer that you are thankful for.
Praise the LORD! Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever. – YET how quickly they forgot what he had done!
Psalm 106:1, 13a
Psalm 106:1; 107:1; 118:1; 1 Chronicles 16:34 and so many other passages call us to “give thanks to the LORD.” The passages site various reasons like His faithfulness, His goodness, His steadfast love and more. The problem is when we fail to be impressed with the Lord’s character and acts of kindness and when we fail to notice His miraculous works. There is great danger in forgetting to acknowledge Him with praise and thanksgiving. For look at the example of the Israelites in today’s passage who failed to be impressed with the works of God’s hand and then quickly forgot what He had done. May we never find ourselves in this place – but rather daily find time and reasons to sing His praises and give HIm thanks – even for the littlest of blessings or fingerprints –
Your turn
What is that impresses You about God? – Make sure to journal it or write it out somewhere or even tell someone – and don’t forget to give thanks to Him to whom the praise/thanks is due. We must be intentional about this discipline in our life – not being so captivate by the day or the moment or the person but fully captivated by God alone – and intent on remembering the works of His hands. 💜
We will remember, we will remember We will remember the works of Your hands We will stop and give you praise For great is Thy faithfulness We will remember, we will remember We will remember the works of Your hands We will stop and give you praise For great is Thy faithfulness You’re our creator, our life sustainer Deliverer, our comfort, our joy Throughout the ages You’ve been our shelter Our peace in the midst of the storm With signs and wonders You’ve shown Your power With precious blood You showed us Your grace You’ve been our helper, our liberator The giver of life with no end We will remember, we will remember We will remember the works of Your hands We will stop and give you praise For great is Thy faithfulness When we walk through life’s darkest valleys We will look back at all You have done And we will shout, our God is good And He is the faithful One … Hear the entire song at https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=AcUA7x9CVgs&feature=shared
Scripture: In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
“Give thanks.” God’s Word is full of this phrase from the Old Testament to the New. From Joseph’s attitude of gratitude in Genesis to the words of the twenty-four elders who fell down in worship in John’s Revelation, saying: “We give thanks to you, Lord God, the Almighty, the one who is and who always was, for now you have assumed your great power and have begun to reign.” These examples and all of the others we find between them are not just words on a page. They are there to teach us and to remind us that God is worthy of our praise – those that flow from a truly thankful heart. Such gratitude can’t help but flow forth from heart and tongue when we truly realize the good and perfect gifts that flow from the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Thankfulness keeps our hearts in right relationship to the Giver of all good gifts.
Gotquestions.org
Giving thanks to God isn’t for God’s glory alone – but it is a benefit for us as well, as God uses our acknowledgment of gratitude and our words of thanksgiving to remind us that everything we have is from Him. Every good and perfect gift, every awareness of Him acting on our behalf, keeps us centered on Him rather than on self and any problems or fears we might know.
Giving thanks also reminds us of how much we do have. Human beings are prone to covetousness. We tend to focus on what we don’t have. By giving thanks continually we are reminded of how much we do have. When we focus on blessings rather than wants, we are happier. When we start thanking God for the things we usually take for granted, our perspective changes. We realize that we could not even exist without the merciful blessings of God.
gotquestions.org
Let’s Apply It
In the spirit of Thanksgiving and as an encouragement to others and glory to God please share one thing, here in the comment section, that you are thankful for today. Then at home grab a journal or make a note on your phone and write down as many gifts from above that you notice throughout the day. I promise you will feel better and others will be blessed – it’s a win-win!
Worship through song: Give Thanks With a Grateful Heart is one of my favorites. You can find it on youtube
Prayer of Response to God’s Word
Father, You are beyond worthy of our praise and honor. You are worthy of our thanksgiving, worthy of our acknowledging all that you do and have done for us. Forgive us where we get caught up in our days and thoughts and ways and fail to thank You for Your acts of mercy, love, and grace – or for Your gifts of peace, and strength, and protection or provisions. We are most blessed and should faithfully tell You so. Open our eyes to see all Your fingerprints through any given day of our life. – In Jesus’ Name amen.
In my heart I store up your words, so I might not sin against you.
Psalm 119:11
Oh my goodness, I love-love-love this passage. I can’t remember when I first ran across it, but I believe it was one of the first set of verses I put to memory back in the early nineties. I’ve probably said it here before, but I love passages of Scripture with straightforward, step-by-step instructions like this one.
The Psalmist asks, “How can a young person maintain a pure life?” From the same pen flows the simple but complex answer(s). Obviously, the SOAP verse is the crux of the answer: to “hide or store up God’s Word in our heart.” As we saw in the previous post, this is undoubtedly a chief means of combating the enemy in battle. Jesus is a testimony of this throughout His ministry, but very clearly in Matthew 4:1-11. However, by way of application to our everyday life we must also note all the other ways the Psalmist outlines living a pure life.
Living by God’s Word
Knowing God’s Word
Staying faithful to God’s Word
Focusing on God’s Behavior
Seeking God
Praying to God for Help
Praising God
Being taught by God
Delight in God’s way
Remember God’s instructions
Meditating on God’s precepts*
*Rules dictating behavior
Is Living A Pure and Holy Life Possible?
Absolutely! Everything God has called us to is possible through Him, who called us by His own glory and goodness. However, it takes intentionality and consistency in choosing God’s way over yours. Applying the criteria the Psalmist lists takes a lifetime of dying to self and daily following Christ’s steps, which is basically what Christ told the crowd in the ninth chapter of Luke when He said: “If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.” When this is how we choose to live, when we intentionally and consistently choose God’s way over the world’s, we will find ourselves living the pure and holy life the Psalmist sought after and that God has called us to live.
God has already made us holy in Christ. He has already set us apart and saved us. Now he calls us to make choices that reflect who we already are.
Commentary on 1 Peter 1:15-16 / Bibleref.org – See Going Further in the Journey
Prayer of Response to God’s Word
Father, You have called us to be holy as You are holy. This can seem an overwhelming demand upon our life until we also remember that Your servant Peter said that You have empowered us to be all that You have called us to be. We are able to be set apart and holy because through Christ You have made us new creations – the old has gone and the new is here. Help us to live up to what You created us to be. Help us to live lives that are set apart from the world, lives that reflect You and not the world. Help us to die to self and live for You, to follow in the ways of Christ our Lord and Savior. Help us to remember that we are Yours and have been set apart for You. Help us to be hungry for your Word, to hide it in our heart so that we might not sin against You. Help us to stay faithful to Your Word that it might dictate our behavior. In this You will be glorified as we live as Your representatives in Christ – in Whose name I pray – Amen and amen!
Reflecting on the Journey
What role does God’s Word play in our lives, and what impact does it have?
Then Jesus said to him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: ‘You are to worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’” 11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and began ministering to his needs.
Matthew 4:10-11
I love love love this example from the life and trials of Jesus. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t love that He had to suffer the temptations of Satan, but seeing how Jesus handled it has been a life-saver and an encouragement to me over and over again. Our temptations may not always be the same but the way to handle them is. When we speak God’s Word to the enemy he will flee. James says, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you -” which I assure you is a tried and true promise I have experienced. The key is knowing how to resist the devil. I have found the only way to truly resist him – is to do as Jesus did and draw on the strength we find in God and His Word. I have also found and experienced the reality of praise silencing the enemy, as we read in Psalm 8:2 – where the Psalmist declares: “You have taught children and infants to tell of your strength, silencing your enemies and all who oppose you.”
So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
James 4:7
Verses ten and eleven of Matthew chapter four are beautiful words of encouragement and a testimony of how the enemy responds when we hit him, the father of lies, with the Truth. However, they are even more beautiful in the context of verses one through nine. If you missed them go back and read them – better yet open your Bible so that you can highlight or make note of Jesus’ response to every temptation that Satan hurled at him. Note how the enemy came at him at a time when Jesus would have been ‘famished’, as the NET version puts it. Read each verse and watch as Jesus uses God’s Word to stand firm against the enemy’s schemes and lies and note how Jesus had great victory in the battle – heard clearly in the words of verse eleven – “Then the devil left him”. We can have this same victory when we know and use the Word of God to put the devil in his place.
What’s it look like in the day to day?
Note cards with verses
Sticky notes on the car dashboard or the inside of the refrigerator at home
Praise and worship music playing in your car or your ear
Regular quality time with God in His Word
Praying the Word back to God
Working on memorizing God’s Word
Church
Small Groups
Bible Studies and/or discussions with others
Anything that gets you into God’s Word and God’s Word in you
Prayer of Response to God’s Word
Father, thank You for showing us ways to combat the enemy and not just showing us ways but equipping us with the armor and empowering us with Your Spirit and for the praise that flows from just knowing You as our God! There is power in Your name, power in Your Word, power in Praise, power in prayer, power in resisting the devil though the power of Your Spirit! Help us to faithfully spend time with You in Your Word and with Your people so that we might stand faithfully firm against the evil one. Help us to remember that he has no power over us for we belong to You. Help us to remember the words of John, who said – that greater is He that is in us than the one who is in the world! Help us to stay alert and stand ready in body, mind, and soul – to Your glory – Amen – in Jesus’ name.
Reflecting on the Journey
How did Jesus stand against temptation in the wilderness?
What does this teach you about how to stand against temptation in your life?
What are some practical and/or supernatural ways we can defeat the enemy?
Going Further in the Journey
Why will resistance cause the devil to flee? Because he knows he cannot have victory over us if we are prepared to do battle against him. As mentioned before, the Bible assures us that we need only put on the full armor of God to be fully protected from evil and to actively resist it. There is nothing more frightening to Satan than a believer who is fully equipped with spiritual armor, beginning with the “helmet of salvation,” which protects our minds, and the “breastplate of righteousness,” which protects our hearts because it is the righteousness of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21). Only a true believer wears these because only those who have received God’s forgiveness by grace through faith have eternal salvation and the righteousness of Christ imputed to them.
For though we live as human beings, we do not wage war according to human standards, 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not human weapons, but are made powerful by God for tearing down strongholds. We tear down arguments 5 and every arrogant obstacle that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to make it obey Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
In the first two verses of the Scripture for today, Paul makes it clear that he doesn’t want to be seen as living according to human standards but rather by the meek and gentle qualities of Christ. As Paul has made known in many if not all of his letters – while we are human beings we are not to live by the old nature of the flesh but by the new nature of Christ and His Spirit in us. This is true in every situation of life, even, if not especially, the times when we seem to be at war.
When the enemy engages us in battle it is important to not fight back from our own strength or our human emotions – these get us no where in the spiritual battles. We must use the weapons that are made powerful by God, such as the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, as well as prayer and praise. Only with these will we be able to tear down the arguments or arrogant obstacles that set themselves up against the knowledge of God. Only with God’s Word will we be able to take our thoughts captive, making them obedient to Christ. God’s Word is not only a light to our path and a lamp to guide our feet but it is His power for every situation we will face. It is His power against sin and for salvation, and for life and breath and peace and all else we have need of. With it we have victory and without it we face anxieties and sure defeat.
Prayer of Response
Father, Your Word is a lamp to our feet it is a light that guides us in the way we should go, it brings joy and strength and peace to every day. Through it we have hope and know Your love. Help us to know Your Word Father and to use it well in the spiritual battles of this world. Help us to lift up our prayers and praises to You faithfully for in them there is great power to defeat the enemy! Thank You that this world is not our final home and that Your Word and the truth of who You are and what You’ve done is ours to know and use as victorious weapons in the battles that wage around us. Thank You for not only equipping us but for being with us in the battles – for we know that You never leave us or forsake us – and we know that we do not fight alone!
Worship Through Song
Check out Michael W. Smith’s – Surrounded (Fight My Battles) for a beautiful time of worship and emphasis that we do not fight alone. God has provided His Presence, His Armor, and a Garment of praise (Isa 61:3). https://youtu.be/YBl84oZxnJ4?feature=shared (I do not own the rights to this song.)
Reflecting on or Journey
How can we destroy the strongholds and arguments in our lives?
Me From the Inside Out 