Meat for the Hungry

  FLAG robert-linder-fcFEnjBmm14-unsplash Heavenly Father, You did it! You gave A m e r i c a 2 5 0 Y e a r s o f B l e s s i n g ! Thank You!   Thank You not only for the physical freedom of this land, but also for preappointing our time and the boundary of our dwelling, so we should seek You, [1] and celebrate this amazing country.   Holy, holy, holy, LORD, You alone deserve glory, honor, and power, but above all, our worship. [2]   LORD, when I think about the history of A m e r i c a , it wasn’t just deciding to break from Great Britain and signing our Declaration of Independence. It was these heroic men backing up that decision with action, a willingness to die to make men free, which became the Battle Hymn of OUR Republic . [3] And why? Because it was exactly what the Lord Jesus Christ did for us. [4]   I know You, O God, placed that determination within the hearts of each founding father, each officer, and soldier who fought in t...

       Spiritual darkness hung in the Praetorium like a dense fog. Black wisps of demonic hordes flitted about and entered the minds of the Romans. Heavy oppression compressed the lungs while heaving chests squeezed out air, and eyes clouded over with great deception.      Pilate rose from his seat of judgment and strolled toward Jesus, shaking his head at the insanity of the bogus trial, and this condemned One’s refusal to defend Himself. “He only mentioned truth ,” he mumbled, “and bearing witness to truth .” His brows furrowed. Nearing the place where Jesus stood, Pilate looked Him in the eye and said in a condescending tone, “ What is truth ? ”   Such an amazing question! And, one we need to know how to answer because TRUTH has been deemed relative for quite some time now. In other words, your truth may not be my truth. But this thought is just a regurgitation of Israel’s sad state of affairs, “In those days there was no king in Israel; e...

     www.dreamstime.com free stock photo    Do you ever think life is hard? Goodness, I do. There are days, even weeks, where everything goes well. I feel God’s presence, hear His voice, learn from His Word, and life flows along like a deep, smooth river. And then there are times I slip on a rug and crash to the floor blindsided by a situation so confusing I just throw up my hands and shout, “What in the world is going on?”   In those moments, I tend to focus on the situation. What did I do to cause this, and how can I fix it? But after a while, I get irritated. If I hurt someone’s feelings by giving my opinion, why am I not entitled to my opinion? And why am I always the one punished? Why can’t that person just shrug it off and forgive?   The Lord allowed me to wallow for a few minutes, and then He said, “Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me.” [1]     “Yes, Lord, I’m listening.” ...

  DAY ELEVEN   Father God, we come before You this morning almost in disbelief of the swiftness with which the evil in our government worked. It is mind-boggling to see this whirlwind of corruption. And like a raging flood tearing a path of death and destruction, it appears as though it will not be humanly stopped. Almighty God, deliver us from evil .   You, Lord, opened our spiritual eyes, and now our hearts are heavy. We are speechless, for we do not know what we should pray for as we ought. Yet, in our weaknesses, we look to You and groan. Holy Spirit, according to Your Word, make intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered and give us Your prayers that we might gain understanding. Let them pour forth from my lips so the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart may be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer, and fully in sync with Your heart and will. [1]   The enemy thinks he has won, but he is no match fo...

PRAYER FOR DAY SIX: Almighty God, we look to You in our time of need. “I will lift up my eyes to the hills—from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth.” [1]   All flesh is grass—all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. And because sin is in the world, grass withers, flowers fade, and flesh goes to the grave. [2] Forgive our sin, deliver us from evil , and help us to hold tightly to Your promise that when we are absent from the body, we are truly present with the Lord. [3]   But should the enemy rush in like a flood, Father, we ask You, the Holy Spirit of the Lord, to lift up a standard against him. [4] For Your eyes keep watch on the evil and the good. [5]   Lord Jesus, we are Your children, the sheep of Your pasture. And as our Good Shepherd, please feed us, gather Your lambs in Your arms, carry us in Your bosom, and gently lead us because we don’t know where to go from here.   With our physical and finite eyes, we s...

I was first made aware of the 2007-2008 best-selling book, THE SHACK , by a co-worker, who stated, “This is the best book I have ever read.” I accepted the book and took it home to read because the cover listed raves reviews by Eugene Peterson, the author of The Message, and Michael W. Smith, Christian recording artist. Nevertheless, it sat on my nightstand for weeks and for some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to read it. The day I decided to return the unread book to my co-worker, I received a letter and monthly catalog from Southwest Radio Church. The correspondence read, “The Shack” teaches New Age thought. “Ah-ha!” I thought, “Now I know why I couldn’t read this book.” The Holy Spirit had kept me from reading until I could be warned of the errors within. Then He gave me the desire to read as an exercise in discernment.