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Christian Devotional – July 23, 2013
VERSE: Jeremiah 24:7–I will give them a heart to know me; that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart. TRUTH: Two baskets of figs, one good and one bad. The bad figs will be destroyed, but the good figs will be saved. God says that He will give those people represented by the good figs a new heart. They will recognize the Lord and they will seek after Him and follow Him. They will be called His people. Do we seek after God? Do we have a heart that yearns for knowing…
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Book Review – Persistent Love by Laura J Marshall
After Tara witnesses her mother’s murder as a child, she never feels like she quite fits in with the rest of her family. Persistent Love by Laura J. Marshall is a historical fiction romance that is set in the 1600s. Years have passed since her mother’s death and Tara is grown. Tara’s father inherits a large castle and so he chooses to move his family from their home to a different part of the country. However, with a run in with some ruffians that try to take Tara’s sister and the confusing yet dashing neighbor Lord Andrew Sharpton on top of Tara’s secret plans to leave and sear h for…
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Christian Devotional – July 22, 2013
VERSE: Jeremiah 23:4–“I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord. TRUTH: God places certain people in leadership. However, in Israel, those people had been abusing their power and the people were afraid. The leaders were using their position as a means to personal power instead of using it to care for the people under their charge. When that happens, God will remove the leaders and they will be held accountable for their actions. If we are in a position of leadership we must recognize that God has allowed that and seek…
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Christian Devotional – July 21, 2013
VERSE: Jeremiah 22:16–“He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?” declares the Lord. TRUTH: What does it mean to know God? Right here it states that we care for and are concerned about people other than ourselves. We seek to help people and to defend them against others who would walk all over the down-trodden of this world. Are we seeking to uplift and support those who cannot support themselves? Do we cry out as the voice of those who have no voice? Know God and knowing His heart means feeling His love and compassion…
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Christian Devotional – July 20, 2013
VERSE: Jeremiah 21:14–I will punish you as your deeds deserve, declares the Lord. I will kindle a fire in your forests that will consume everything around you. TRUTH: What do our deeds deserve? If we are honest, even though many of us can say we have several good deeds, none of us can say we are perfect. We’ve all done wrongs that are deserving of punishment. According to Romans 3:23, any wrong, no matter how seemingly small, is deserving of death. The people in this chapter were receiving what they deserved. Without God’s mercy, we too will receive judgment and death. Are we seeking God’s mercy through repentance or are…
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Christian Devotional – July 19, 2013
VERSE: Jeremiah 20:9–But if I say, “I will not mention His word or speak anymore in His name,” His word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed I cannot. TRUTH: Jeremiah had been ridiculed and persecuted for sharing the message of the God. However, here, when he contemplates not sharing and keeping his mouth shut, he realized that the message God has given him is too powerful. It’s too important and urgent and is bursting to be told, so much so that Jeremiah couldn’t hold it in even if he tried. Do we respond to…
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Christian Devotional – July 18, 2013
VERSE: Jeremiah 19:15–This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Listen! I am going to bring on this city and all villages around it every disaster I pronounced against them, because they were stiff-necked and would not listen to my words.” TRUTH: How good are our listening skills? God tells Jeremiah that the reason the people of Israel are going to face judgment is because they refused to listen to Him and His words. God is speaking to us everyday. He shares His plans, His expectations, and His love with us through His word. Are we listening? RESPONSE: Father, I will listen to Your word. I desire…
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Christian Devotional – July 17, 2013
VERSE: Jeremiah 18:6–He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel.” TRUTH: God asks each one of us this question. He has the right to mold and shape us in whatever way He sees fit. Do we allow Him to do that? Or do we insist upon fighting Him and trying to move out of His hand because the molding process is uncomfortable and we are uncertain of the outcome? The Lord is the master potter and we are clay in His hands. By faith, we can relax…
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Christian Devotional – July 16, 2013
VERSE: Jeremiah 17:7–“But Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him.” TRUTH: What do we trust in? Who do we have total confidence in? If we are trusting in anyone or anything besides the Lord God, then we will fail. However, when we place our complete trust in the Lord, He will be the one to bless us. The Lord is worthy of our trust, but until we take that step to act upon our confidence in Him, we will never be completely trusting in Him. Do we say we trust God? Do our actions display that trust on a daily basis? RESPONSE: Father,…
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Book Review – A Heart’s Home by Laura J. Marshall
I don’t know about you, but his has been a very busy summer so I apologize for not having gotten the book reviews up weekly like I usually do. I’m hoping to get things back on track! A Heart’s Home by Laura J. Marshall is a historical fiction romance novella that is set in the 1700s. The story starts when young Asyra, whose mother died in childbirth, receives word from her maternal grandmother that she has been arranged to marry a young man in England. Asyra has grown up almost her entire life in India with her father and, after his death, her uncle and has never even met her…