For help and wisdom from God for Gen. James Jones President Elect Obama�s choice for National Security Advisor
You will be secure, because there is hope; you will look about you and take your rest in safety. You will lie down, with no one to make you afraid, and many will court your favor.
�Job 11:18-19
O Loving Lord God, thank You for making us with a need for community, safety and security. In this, we look to You for all our needs, and we acknowledge You as the only true source of protection. We place our trust fully in You and take shelter in You as our strong tower, our rock and our refuge. All praise to You O holy God!
We thank You for calling on Gen. James Jones to serve as National Security Advisor. Grant, Lord, that he will be strong, humble and capable as he steps up to serve. Give him great and godly wisdom as he advises the President Elect on matters of great concern to our national security and well-being, both now and after January 20. In Jesus� name, amen.
If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O LORD, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. Verses 3-4
Hallelujah!
It's review day again, so I look back at the last six devotions to see if God was able to teach me anything. Actually, seem to remember it being a pretty exciting week.
DAY 288--COMPLETE ACCESS TO THE INHERITANCE--Galatians 4:1-7
Through our relationship with Christ, we have complete access to God; intimate conversations and great riches. We can even call him "Daddy!"
DAY 289--GETTING OUR WAY--Galatians 5:16-17,19-23
We are encouraged to "live freely," which is described as being "animated and motived by God's Spirit." It means not trying to get our own way all the time. We can be self-focused or God-focused, and there was a long list of consequences to both ways of living. The consequences of being self-focused were pretty ugly.
DAY 290--FREE FROM PLEASING OTHERS--Galatians 6:11-16
This kind of continues the message of Day 289. If we live freely, then we are also free from the trap of trying to impress or please other people. One huge question is asked: Is your security rooted in others, or is it rooted in your total acceptance by God? Where do you get your sense of self-worth? The end of the passage was beautiful to me: It is not what you and I do--submit to circumcision, reject circumcision. It is what God is doing, and he is creating something totally new, a free life! All who walk by this standard are the true Israel of God--his chosen people. Peace and mercy on them!
DAY 291--WHO WE ARE--Ephesians 1:11-19
Who are we? Again, where do we get our sense of self-worth? Is it in job performance? Is it in being accepted by others? Or is it solely in God? I am a brother of Christ, an heir to God's kingdom. Without him, I am nothing. Less than zero. Paul states it very clearly: It's in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. But the real kicker in this passage is when Paul tells us that the amazing power of God that is exerted towards us who believe is just like the power that God exerted when he raised Christ from the dead!
Just take a moment to ponder that!
DAY 292--REALLY ALIVE IN CHRIST--Ephesians 2:1-6
What God did for us is described in this passage. He embraced us. Wrapped his arms around us. Hugged us. He made us alive! He took dead people and made them alive. And, since a dead person can do nothing be lay there and be dead, he had absolutely no help from us! It was all him! After he made us alive, he picked us up and placed us in the heavenly places with Christ Jesus.
That is so beautiful.
DAY 293--CHRIST'S EXTRAVAGANT LOVE--Ephesians 3:10-20
These days just seemed to build on each other!
The part of this passage that really spoke to me was this: And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God. I've got to plant my feet firmly on love. And not just any "love," but the love of Christ, which is the only true "love" anyway.
This is also the day when I believe that God "gave" me the words that I hope to have inspire me for 2009. "Feet firmly planted."
Grace and peace, friends!