24 SEP 23 Sunday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 24 SEP 23 Sunday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! He is to be feared above all gods.  O nations of the world recognize that the Lord is glorious and strong.  Give to the Lord the glory he deserves! Tell all the nations, The Lord reigns!” Psalm 96: 4, 7-8, 10

In the military, we have a phrase known as ‘stolen valor’.  It means that someone is wearing awards that they didn’t earn to make them look better than they are or to receive glory and adoration from others.  It is the sin of Satan himself.  He desired the glory that belonged to God alone.  He desired to be worshipped.  Social media is proof positive of that, people are searching for their fifteen seconds of fame whether good or bad.

When I hear people say that they are not religious, I smile and yet cringe inside.  The truth of the matter is, that we are all religious.  We worship someone, something, an ideology or philosophy, or self.  We give glory and honor to them or we take it.  There is only one that is worthy of our praise and only one that is due glory to his name.

God is very clear, he will not share his glory.  He is the only one worthy of it.  God tells us like he told Job.  “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much.  Who kept the sea inside its boundaries? Have you ever commanded the morning to appear and caused the dawn to rise in the east?” There are two chapters of questions that he gives Job.  It is worth reading, especially if you are worshipping something other than God.  Whether you like it or not, The Lord reigns! One day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord of all.

Are you stealing the praise and glory that belongs to God?

Reading Plan: Psalm 93, 96; 2 Kings. 4:8-37; Acts 9: 10-31; Luke 3:7-18

23 SEP 23 Saturday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 23 SEP 23 Saturday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“Elisha picked up Elijah’s cloak, which had fallen when he was taken up.  Then Elisha returned to the bank of the Jordan River.  He struck the water with Elijah’s cloak and cried out, ‘Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?’ Then the river divided, and Elisha went across.” 2 Kings 2:13-14

Has there been a person in your life who was a role model for you? Did you want to be like that person? As children and teenagers, we often find those figures who become our heroes or someone who captures our attention.  Passions and purpose can spark from that moment and can last a lifetime.  I find it is not the person himself, but what is inside them that draws us.

Elijah and Elisha were prophets of God in the Hebrew Bible.  Elisha was Elijah’s apprentice and was seeing the work of God through Elijah.  Elijah was speaking direct messages from God, pronouncing judgment, and performing miracles.  He was a vessel of honor unto the Lord and Elisha desperately wanted to have what Elijah had.  One thing is clear, it is up to God to choose the vessels of honor and dishonor.  Before Elijah was caught up to heaven, he told Elisha that if he saw him go up to heaven then he would know that God had chosen him to carry out the work he had been trained to do. 

 Elisha saw him and trusted God to follow through with the promise.  He grabbed Elijah’s cloak slapped the water of the Jordan and cried out, ‘Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?’ He wanted God to show up and show out.  He knew that he couldn’t do this life in his own power, he needed God to do it through him.  As Jesus said, apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5) God worked through Elisha in power to part the Jordan River and many other things in his life.  If you are in Christ, he will work through you too.

Do you know that God wants to work powerfully through you?

Reading Plan: Psalm 75, 76; 2 Kings. 2:1-18; 1 Cor 4: 1-7; Matt. 5:17-20

22 SEP 23 Friday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 22 SEP 23 Friday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“You are the salt of the earth.  You are the light of the world, like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.” Matthew 5:13a, 14

My life in the United States Navy has a set purpose for our role in the world.  Part of it is to protect and promote freedom and democracy worldwide.  We do that while we defend and support our own constitution.  It is the basis for all that we do.  We step out from under the shadow of our great flag into adventure and danger to deter and sometimes called to destroy evil.

As a follower of Christ, I am told that I am the salt of the earth.  In the Navy to be called ‘salty’ has a different connotation.  To be ‘salty’ as a Christian means to be a speaker of truth to preserve, protect, and flavor those around us with the Word of God.  That is a great task that touches all of life and all the people you meet.  Salt in a wound makes for pain and healing.  People don’t often like the sting that is required to bring change.

I am also told that I am the light of the world.  Light reveals what is in the dark.  It exposes wickedness but also illuminates the path to safety and salvation.  Light reveals the plumbline of righteousness and gives people a standard to set lives to.   A life lived as ‘the light’ is one of being a comforter, developer of people, and promoter of accountability.  When people see this done well, they praise the God who chose us.

How are you being salt and light to those around you?

Reading Plan: Psalm 69:1-23; 2 Kings. 1:2-17; 1 Cor 3: 16-23; Matt. 5:11-16

10 SEP 23 Sunday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 10 SEP 23 Sunday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word.  Stretch out your hand with healing power, may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” Acts 4:29

There is something about this chapter that makes my heart warm with excitement and the feeling of being able to go out and do the work that God has given me to do.  Peter and John preached the gospel and healed the sick, and thousands of people came to faith in Jesus.  When we are faithful, we will be fruitful because the Holy Spirit will make it so.  We will see answers to prayers and lives changed.

We will also see people come against you doing the will of God.  If you are not getting pushback, then you are probably not sharing the Gospel.   Peter and John are brought before the religious leaders and questioned about who gave them the authority to do these things.  They were told not to do these things in Jesus’ name.  The Lord gave them boldness, confidence, and strength to resist the enemies of the cross.  They refused to stop preaching and healing.

When the church got together, Peter and John testified to all that the Lord had done through them and they rejoiced.  They also went to prayer.  They did not complain, gossip, or hate those who came against them.  They prayed that God would grant them ‘great boldness’ in preaching the word.  Think about that.  They didn’t shrink back from their calling.  They didn’t ask for the destruction of their enemies.  They desired to strike while the iron was hot and ask God to let the multiplication of the church continue.

 Are you praying for great boldness? Why not?

Reading Plan: Psalm 63:1-8; 1 Kings. 12:21-33; Acts 4:18-31; John 10:31-42

7 SEP 23 Thursday: A Closer Walk Devotional

 7 SEP 23 Thursday: A Closer Walk Devotional

“You want what you do not have, so you scheme and kill to get it.  You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them.  Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it.  And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are wrong-you want only what will give you pleasure.” James 4:2-3

One of our temptations to sin is to go after our desires at the expense of our relationship with Jesus.  The world focuses on pleasure and getting what you want.  It sparks lust of the eyes and flesh and pride of our accomplishments. (1 Jn. 2:16) James warns the church not to align itself with the world because our Master, Jesus, has expectations on our lives.

To be a friend of the world: its ways, ideologies, philosophies, and worldviews, is to become an enemy of God.  Sin dominated us prior to being called out to be the people of God.  We are no longer in bondage as a slave to sin but are Christ’s own forever.  We also are citizens of the Kingdom of God.  No Christian holds dual citizenship.

How we live is a reflection on our Lord and also affects our witness to non-believers and to fellow believers.  When we are so self-focused we become blind to what is really important and what ultimately matters.  Jesus commands our allegiance and knows that we cannot be a slave to two different masters.  You will hate the one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other.  Every believer struggles with this at some point.

Are you struggling with being in the world and not of it?

Reading Plan: Psalm 37:1-18; 1 Kings. 11:26-43; James 3:13-4:12; Mark 15:12-21