Thu, Jan 31st - 11:13PM
Putting God First!
I think I am doing ok and then I slip up again. It seems if I don't do my devotional first thing after I get up, that somehow my day gets away from me and I either am too late to get it to you, or it's late when you read it. I am understanding why David said in Psalms 5:3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning; O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. In Matthew 6:33 it says But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. I am learning that God, and His righteousness is more important than anything else in my life. Getting to know Him is like going on a long journey. Sometimes I have a clear map of where I am going and other times it's hazy until I seek His Word for clear directions. I have to remember day by day step by step choice by choice yes by yes
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Tue, Jan 29th - 12:15PM
God Does Not Change!
Greetings, WOW! I got up to 7 new inches of snow on the ground this morning. Everything is dressed in bridal white. It is absolutely beautiful with the sun just peeking through the clouds. What an awesome show God put on for me. I was thinking through my tears yesterday about my walk with the Lord down thru the years and when I have felt closest to Him. You know what I discovered? During the hardest times when I cried out to God has been some of my best times. Which led me to analyze why this was and I came to this conclusion. First I spent more time in fellowship with Him. Second God says in Malachi 3:6 For I am the Lord, I change not. Therefore any changing that was done in my faith, peace, joy ect. I did not God. Third It was believing the enemy in thinking God had forgotten me or didn't answer my prayer. He DID and has answered every prayer I have ever prayed.. The key here is sometimes I didn't like His answer, so I threw a little fit thinking He would change His mind. God does know the plan He has for my life. If I would quit trying to change that or take control I believe my walk thru this life would be so much easier. I'm sure I am not the only one who tries to help God do what is best for us (to our way of thinking.) God does not change and His Word does not change, so the only ones who change is us. We have to decide if we are going to get closer to God when the tough times come or if we are going to use that as an excuse to walk away from Him. I don't know about you but I choose to walk closer to Him. Father today I would ask you to open the spiritual eyes and ears of each person, let them know you and your love in a new and fresh way I pray. God bless you! Joy
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Sun, Jan 27th - 11:17AM
Faith Looks Up!
Good morning, "Sorrow looks back. Worry looks around. Faith looks up." Hebrews 12:2 Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. I don't know about you, but I intend to go around looking up. I pray "Lord increase my faith." It is easy to get our eyes off Jesus when things are going wrong; but that is when we need Him the most. I am so thankful He doesn't get upset, or decide to forget about us when our faith begins to waiver a little. He is still a whisper away. He will give us strength and joy as we look unto Him. Praise His Name! Lord, my prayer for each of us is to increase our faith. Have a great day! Joy p.s. I don't know what kind of a day weather wise it's going to be on the farm, however inside my heart the SON is shining.
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Sat, Jan 26th - 11:11AM
Sing Praises to His Name!
Good morning, It is a gray, overcast morning here on the farm. One of those mornings to snuggle either beside a warm fire or a snuggly quilt and read a good book. I was looking at the Bible I use the most at home to read from it is a Kings James version and I got it in 1972 by winning a Sunday school contest. It wouldn't be so big if I cleaned it out. Every time I find a verse I want to remember I not only try to mark it, but I put something in place to find it again. I have string, paper, coupons, receipts, sticky notes, hat pins, bookmarks, and invites to some of Jason's birthday parties just to name a few. I really enjoy sitting down and just thumbing through some of the places I have marked to remember why I marked it in the first place. Most of them are in Psalms but not all. Today I would like to share a couple with you. Psalms 135:1-3 1 PRAISE THE Lord! (Hallelujah!) Praise the name of the Lord; praise Him, O you servants of the Lord! 2 You who stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God, 3 Praise the Lord! For the Lord is good; sing praises to His name, for He is gracious and lovely! I thank the Lord I had a dad and mom who loved to praise the Lord. They were good examples for all our families. Daddy taught my boys to know what it meant to praise the Lord by being an example to them. What kind of an example are you being to your families? Father, I ask you to help each of us be a good example to our families. To show love, compassion, and to reach out in your love to help each other, and our neighbors. Thank you Father. Have a great day. Joy
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Thu, Jan 24th - 12:06PM
Eating God's Word!
Good morning, What a glorious day this is going to be! I am excited! Good things are happening in our families. What wonderful news that God is on the move; Or maybe I'm on the move for God which makes the difference. Jeremiah 15:16 Your words were found, and I ate them; and Your words were to me a joy and the rejoicing of my heart, for I am called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts. I am finding the more I am into God's Word, the sweeter they become; not only are they sweeter but they are making sense. I am so glad God's Word makes me feel joyful and my heart rejoices. I am called by His name. Which means I need to walk worthy of the name of God. How about you, do you eat the words of the Lord. The SUPER GREAT THING about eating the Word of God is there are no calories, fat, sodium, sugar or anything else that we strive to watch in our daily lives to help our physical bodies. That right there makes me want to eat more of the Word. Father I would ask today that you enlighten each heart that reads this devotional to your Word. May they develop a desire to read your Word, and to apply it to their heart so they will experience the peace, and joy that comes only from you. Thank you Father. Have a great praise filled day. Joy
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Wed, Jan 23rd - 11:39AM
May The Lord Bless You!
Good morning, It is a beautiful, sunny, and crispy day here on the farm. I love to go walking when it is a morning like this, not that I do it as often as I should. Psalms 115:13-16 13 He will bless those who reverently and worshipfully fear the Lord, both small and great. 14 May the Lord give you increase more and more, you and your children. 15 May you be blessed of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth! 16 The heavens are the Lord's heavens, but the earth has He given to the children of men. Have you ever thought about how many scriptures in the Bible could be used as a prayer? I've heard people say they really don't know how to pray. Guess what all you have to do is open your Bible and find a scripture; (especially the Book of Psalms) it seems like most of those are prayers David prayed to God. I was reading the above scriptures this morning and thought I would put them in as my prayer to you today. May God give you increase more and more to you and your children, and to their children. Thank you Lord. May you have a great day! Joy
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Thu, Jan 17th - 12:29PM
Being Prepared!
Greetings, It is a beautiful crisp morning here on the farm. I enjoy looking out my office window which faces east and wonder is this the morning Jesus will return on the clouds? I went to church last night even though it was a chilly night and had the potential for slick roads on the way home. It seemed to be cool in the church, so I picked up a lap robe and put it over my legs. Yes I had an appropriate length skirt on. It was well below my knees ( I could hear some of you saying she should wear a longer skirt.) My pastor (Bro. Bristow) at different times has called on someone to preach at the last moment (he feels this gives them practice.) Anyway I often wondered what I would do if he did that to me. Well last night I found out what I would do, because just when I got comfortable he called on me to come preach. I thought I would be a nervous wreck, but you know I just walked up behind the pulpit and God dropped some scripture and words of encouragement into my heart that I felt he wanted me to share. It is so amazing to me how God is always there to help us and to use us (whether behind the pulpit) or just going about our daily walk he can use us to minister to others. I want you to know when I finished with what I felt the Lord wanted me to say I certainly was not cold. II Timothy 2:15 Study and be eager and do your utmost to present yourself to God approved (tested by trial), a workman who has no cause to be ashamed, correctly analyzing and accurately dividing [rightly handling and skillfully teaching] the Word of Truth. I realized last night the benefit of taking time to study the Word of God. You never know when you are going to need it. I'm not talking about just being ready to preach in church; but what about being able to reach out to your neighbor? Someone in a crises that you are put in there midst to help them. What about your family? There are many ways and opportunities to witness, sometimes without even saying a word. I also realized there is a difference between reading the Word ( a few scriptures here or there) and really studying the Word. I don't want to face a test and come up short on knowing what to do. I believe God's Word handles any test we will ever face, the thing is we have to get into it to know where the answers are located. Have a great day! Joy
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Wed, Jan 16th - 11:37AM
Increasing my Faith!
Good morning, It is a chilly, but sunny morning here on the farm. The Lord has been so good to me. I can't give Him enough praise. He is worthy of all praise, honor, and glory. When it's time to breathe a prayer of thanks, don't hold your breath. I have been sitting here trying to get a feel of what the Lord wants me to share with you this morning. I can't seem to get away from the thought that when you have prayed for something or someone, to remember to give God praise. I thought about the ten lepers who came to Jesus, saying "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." Jesus healed them, only one returned and glorified God. Jesus asked where the other nine were, they could not find them, Jesus told the one "Arise, go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole." Luke 17:12-19 I sometimes wonder did the other 9 get to keep their healing, or did they loose it by not taking time to thank Jesus for what he did. If you look at verse 19 Jesus says it was the man's FAITH that made him whole. It would appear that our FAITH has a lot to do with whether we receive what we pray for. Mark 11:23-24 23 Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! and does not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him. 24 For this reason I am telling you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe (trust and be confident) that it is granted to you, and you will [get it]. I love sharing with you guys, because it is the Lord speaking to my heart first so I can share with all of you. I need to increase my faith. Love Joy
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Tue, Jan 15th - 11:24AM
Observing and Doing God's Will
Greetings, It is a beautiful white morning here on the farm. There is about 2 inches of fresh snow on the ground. The sun is just beginning to shine, makes everything so fresh and pretty. Do you want this year to be different? Do you want it to be better? Do you want to prosper? If you do here is how to do it. Joshua 1:8 This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success. My desire is to get to know the Lord like I've never known him before. To know without the shadow of a doubt that he loves me and cares about every detail of my life. To walk in fellowship with him every second of every minute of every hour of every day for the rest of my life. May you desire to know God in a whole new way is my prayer for you today. God Bless You! Joy
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Sat, Jan 12th - 11:43AM
Does God Hear Our Prayers?
Greetings, It is liquid sunshine here this morning. Maybe next week we will get some dry weather which would be nice. I was talking to an older man from my church this morning. I have been trying to reach him for several days as he hasn't been to church for awhile. I thought maybe he had fallen or was ill; he told me he there are days he just doesn't answer his phone. That set me to thinking about my relationship with the Lord. Are there days He would just not want to be bothered with my prayers? Are there days He is too busy with someone else's needs to be concerned with mine. Does He ever feel like I am constantly bothering Him? Do you ever feel any of those things I have mentioned above. Do you feel God is to busy to be concerned about you? Romans 8:31-32 31 What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?] 32 He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] things? I am so thankful that no matter where I am, time of day, day of week or anything else keeps me from communicating with my Father. He is always there and listening to anything I say to Him. In fact He knows my thoughts before I do. Now that I think about that, that's almost scary. He does know what you are going through and wants you to know He is going through it right along beside you. Have a blessed day! Joy
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Thu, Jan 10th - 11:07AM
Does God Do As He Pleases?
Greetings from Joy, It is indeed a joy to greet you in the mornings, and to share scripture with you. It is a wet, rainy morning here on the farm. Most of the snow is gone for this time anyway. I am on my way to the District office in Drain today so pray I have a safe trip. Psalms 115:1-3 1 NOT TO us, O Lord, not to us but to Your name give glory, for Your mercy and loving-kindness and for the sake of Your truth and faithfulness! 2 Why should the nations say, Where is now their God? 3 But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases. Does God really do as he pleases? When we pray does God listen to our pleas and answer the way we want or what pleases Him? The bible tells us "For this reason I am telling you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe (trust and be confident) that it is granted to you, and you will [get it]." Mark 11:24 So then it must please God for us to pray, ask, and believe for things, and He gives it to us. I believe it pleases God, and blesses Him when we sing praise unto Him. Have a great praise filled day!
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Wed, Jan 9th - 11:01AM
Fixing my Heart on God!
Good morning, It is starting out to be a dry day here on the farm. Still some snow left, but melting fast. There was a beautiful sunrise, but that is gone also. I attended a ladies meeting at church last night, and the devotional was on prayer. I thought it interesting that I have been studying on prayer and how to pray only to have that come up again last night. This morning I would like to share from Psalms 108:1-5 1 O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise, even with my glory. 2 Awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early. 3 I will praise thee, O LORD, among the people: and I will sing praises unto thee among the nations. 4 For thy mercy is great above the heavens: and thy truth reacheth unto the clouds. 5 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: and thy glory above all the earth; This is my prayer this morning that my heart be fixed, steadfast in the Lord. I desire to go around singing, and giving praise to the Lord. To show God's mercy and loving-kindness to all people. To live a life that others will know and see Jesus in me immediately on meeting me. May the Lord bless each of you as you go about your day, and make his face to shine upon you. Joy
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Mon, Jan 7th - 4:25PM
God's Eyes Watching over US!
Psalms 33:18 Behold, the Lord's eye is upon those who fear Him [who revere and worship Him with awe], who wait for Him and hope in His mercy and loving-kindness, I Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous (those who are upright and in right standing with God), and His ears are attentive to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who practice evil [to oppose them, to frustrate, and defeat them]. I am so thankful the Lord's eyes are upon me, He watches over me more so than a mother watches over her newborn babe. He is always there to protect me, to lead me, and to guide me. I walk daily in His mercy, and love. Isn't it super to know that not only does the Lord watch over me, but He watches over each of you at the same time.
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Sat, Jan 5th - 12:17PM
Humble Yourselves!
I was thinking about the elections for the presidency here in America and depending on who gets elected will have a big impact on not only our Nation, but the world as a whole. Then the Lord brought the following scriptures to mind: II Chronicles 7:14-15 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and PRAY, and SEEK MY FACE, and TURN from their wicked ways; then I will HEAR from heaven, and will FORGIVE their sin, and will HEAL their land. Now mine eyes shall be OPEN, and mine ears ATTENT unto the prayer that is made in this place. Two scriptures that if we would only do them, could change the world. When I read this it sounds so simple, but if it is that simple, then I would have to question "Why aren't we doing it?" Perhaps in all the hustle and bustle of life, we have forgot the very foundation of prayer and how we should walk before the Lord. Blessings on you today!
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Fri, Jan 4th - 12:13PM
How to walk before the Lord
I was thinking of how each person began the new year. Some probably didn't feel very well, depending on how much partying they did and what they had to drink. Some probably didn't feel well physically and some probably felt the same as they always had. I thought about what the Lord would like of us and came across this verse: Micah 6:8 “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” God want us to act justly to each other. To love mercy, be kind to our neighbor, and to walk humbly with the Lord. I wonder is that really such a hard thing? Why does it seem so hard for some “Christians” to live a life pleasing to God? Why do they want to compromise the relationship with the Lord? I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize my relationship with the Lord. In fact this year I want to strive to get more intimate with Him each day.
God Bless You!
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Thu, Jan 3rd - 9:58PM
Missions Trip
I have been invited to go on an Aglow mission’s trip to Cebu and Island in the Philippines. We would leave from Los Angeles March 2nd and return around March 20, 2008. In order for me to go on this trip I have to raise $3,500.00 by January 25th. I believe God for the funds and would ask that you believe with me that He will provide. I would ask you to become part of my ministry, first by upholding me in your prayers, and second ask God if you are to help with financial support. Any amount would be greatly appreciated. With everyone giving something it wouldn’t take much to have the full amount. I’ve included a statement about the last trip they took to Cebu. “In just 9 days last June, our Aglow team was able to see over 6,000 men and women come into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. We watched God unveil His mercy as we prayed for over 3,000 who received healing miracles in their bodies (the blind see, the deaf hear). Each day, the follow-up teams were able to begin new Bible studies in 121 homes for these baby new believers.”
I feel in my heart God has something for me to do on this trip. Remember wherever I go, wherever I minister, you are a part of that ministry.
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Thu, Jan 3rd - 1:02PM
Power of Prayer
Greetings from rainy, soggy, Oregon, Yesterday I commented on prayer and how do we pray? In the night last night and this morning when I woke up I thought about different prophets, men and women in the Bible who prayed and God answered most of them instantly with amazing results. Take Elijah for instance, I Kings 18:37-38 37 Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. 38 Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. To me this is a simple prayer that Elijah prayed, but look at what the Lord did; First He heard Elijah Second He turned the people's hearts back to Him Third The fire of the LORD fell Fourth it consumed the burnt sacrifice Fifth it consumed the wood Sixth it consumed the stones Seventh it consumed the dust Eight it licked up the water that was in the trench. There was absolutely nothing left of the sacrifice or the altar. This amazes me that Elijah prayed such a short prayer and God did such a miracle; but then I went back a verse and therein lies the answer 36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. Elijah had such a relationship with God he knew God would not let him down. I know if I am to be the effective woman God wants me to be an if I want to be used of God to have miracles happen then I have to spend time in the Word and in prayer. I want to see changes this year in the family, and friends not only spiritually, but financially and physically as well. In order for that to happen I (and anyone else who feels called) needs to develop a closer relationship with the Lord. God Bless You!
Joy
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Wed, Jan 2nd - 4:08PM
How should we Pray?
have been thinking a lot about prayer and how to pray and thought I would share some of them with you. How should a person pray? Have you ever thought about how you pray? Do you just say "Lord help Joy" (for example) and then go on your way? Sometimes I feel that is what I do, but other times I spend time in deep prayer for someone. When someone asks you to pray for them, do you pray with them right then? Do you put if off and then forget about it? Do you pray God's will or pray what you think that person needs. Do you try to pray your will on their life and not God's? Do you kneel when you pray? Do you walk around with your eyes open. If you walk around with your eyes open, are you focused on your prayer or all the things that need done? These are things I have been pondering so I can change the way I pray if God directs me to pray differently. Psalms 5:3 In the morning You hear my voice, O Lord; in the morning I prepare [a prayer, a sacrifice] for You and watch and wait [for You to speak to my heart]. Another scripture talks about praying morning, noon, and night. So I guess praying anytime is the right time. Can you pray through song or would that be praising? Isaiah 61:1-2 1 THE SPIRIT of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed and qualified me to preach the Gospel of good tidings to the meek, the poor, and afflicted; He has sent me to bind up and heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the [physical and spiritual] captives and the opening of the prison and of the eyes to those who are bound, 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord [the year of His favor] and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, In talking with my sister, Fawnie, the other day we talked about verse 2 and we have decided to proclaim this year as the acceptable year of the Lord. To proclaim all the good things we want to have happen not only in ourselves, but in our families, and friends lives as well. But I think in order to do the first part you have to do the second part and that is to proclaim God's vengeance against the things that are not good. We also need to comfort each other.
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Tue, Jan 1st - 11:19AM
I'M BACK
WOW, I just signed in this morning thinking it had only been a week since I had posted a devotional; only to find out it was a lot longer than that. I have had a really hard time this year with the death of my husband even though he died in 2006, a cousin getting killed in a car accident, and a host of other things that I guess I allowed to get me down. I didn't realize how far or discouraged I was until God began dealing with me on not doing my devotional. I ask you to forgive me as I begin this new year wanting to again try to do the devotionals. I have received such encouragement from you that I know now I should have shared what I was going through and asked you guys to pray with me. Only sometimes I don't think we really know what or why we go through things. I was going through all the motions of everything be ok, but knew they weren't. In Jeremiah 42:6 the people told Jeremiah "Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God, to who we send thee; that it may be will with us, when we obey the voice of the Lord our God. That is my desire this year and for the rest of my life is to obey the voice of the Lord my God that it may be well with me. I pray it will be well with each of you as you begin this new year. God Bless You!
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Name: Joy Durham
