Tuesday, January 12, 2016

January 12, 2016: Hold On!!

Daily Berry Patch Devotions in 2016 - Day 12  

Devotional Song:  … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a video of Sara Groves singing her song … It Might Be Hope, where she sings of the hope we hold onto in Christ despite the realities of our live in this world.

 
Highlight Passage:   Revelation 3:11 [NKJV] …  
11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. 
… Can you get your mind around that truth? I don’t know that I ever will; but I’m so, so grateful for it.
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Highlight Context – Revelation 3: 7-11 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK  …  
… Jesus writes to His beloved Church (in Philadelphia) to hold on until He comes for them. 
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Reference Passage #1 … Proverbs 3:5-6 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK 
… Holding on to God’s promises, trusting in Him … no matter what!!

Reference Passage #2 … John 16:33 [NKJV] …  
33 “ … These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” 
… Sometimes when things seem hopeless, we trust that God can help us be overcomers.

Reference Passage #3 … 1st Corinthians 10:13 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK 
… NO TRIAL is too tough if we hold on … WITH GOD’S STRENGTH.

Reference Passage #4 … 2nd Corinthians 12: 9 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK 
… Allowing His enabling - and empowering - grace to give us the strength to hold on.

My Journal for Today:  Today’s Our Daily Bread author, David C McCasland, used an interesting word picture to illustrate how we, as Christians, must HOLD ON to the hope we have in Christ. He described how cowboys in a rodeo (see attached photo) must often hold on - for dear life - to the powerful steer they are trying to wrestle to the ground to win the competition. And this in spite of the almost overwhelming strength of the beast with whom they wrestle.

It’s that way with circumstances in life at times, isn’t it? Things just seem overwhelming as we wrestle with the beasts of challenge. But if you’ve taken in and meditated on the truths above and listened to the poignant and powerful song by Sara Groves, I pray that we all realize that when we hold on to the hope we have in Christ, we can be overcomers of any circumstantial beast we’re trying to wrestle into submission.

That’s what Jesus had John write to the Church (in Philadelphia and to us - see highlight passage above). And if we believe it, along with the truth He exhorted Paul to write in 2nd Corinthians 12: 9, we can use God’s enabling/empowering grace to give us the strength to deal with any trial. … That’s my prayer this morning.

My Prayer Today:  Heavenly Father, … Give us the strength of Your grace to wrestle our beast to the ground today. Amen  

Blogger Note:  Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled Our Daily Bread, distributed online via email by RBC Ministries.  If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.

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