December 31, 2017 … Memories and Hopes

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 365 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with Alan Jackson singing the old gospel song … Precious Memories … reflecting on the memories past which kindle our hope for the future in Christ … AND THEN ON TO THIS LINK with Chris Rice singing from Lam. 3:22-23, Great Is Thy Faithfulness, reflecting on just how we can rely on God from memories past, present challenges, and on into an unknown future.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Lamentations 3:23-24 [NLT] … 23  Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning. 24  I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in Him!” 
… God’s truth, thru His Prophet that God’s mercies never end and we can look forward to them tomorrow no matter what our past or present troubles.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Lamentations 3:19-26 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jeremiah reflects on his past troubles and heartaches; but then reflects on the hope he has and holds onto in his relationship with his God.
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Reference Passage : … Romans 8:28 [NLT] … 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
… No matter what we’ve gone thru or what we’re going thru, in Christ, it’s all for our good. … Yes, ALL OF IT !!

Reference Passage : … Hebrews 13:8 [NLT] … 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 
 .. We can rely and hope in Christ because He never changes.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Xochitl Dixon, wrote of a New Year’s Eve where many memories caused her to reflect on the hope she held - and still holds - in her relationship with Christ, the One Who never changes in His willingness to provide us with His grace and mercies. The ODB author wrote: As I stepped into the music-filled sanctuary, I looked around at the crowd that had gathered for a New Year’s Eve party. Joy lifted my heart with hope, as I recalled the prayers of the previous year. Our congregation had collectively grieved over wayward children, deaths of loved ones, job losses, and broken relationships. But we’d also experienced God’s grace as we recalled changed hearts and healed personal connections. We’d celebrated victories, weddings, graduations, and baptisms into God’s family. We’d welcomed children born, adopted, or dedicated to the Lord, and more—so much more. 

Today is 2017. Tomorrow will be 2018; and like the ODB author, any of us can reflect on many things that have happened in the past, … many of which may have been painful or troubling. But perhaps we also have memories which are endearing and hopeful.

But like the Prophet Jeremiah as he wrote of his relationship with his God, we can rely - totally and completely - on a God, our Lord Jesus, Who never changes [see Heb. 13:8]. As the Prophet reflected on his past trials in the highlight passage, we can know - with confidence - that our God is ALWAYS greater than our challenges and His mercies truly are new every morning.

So, as we reflect on 2017 (or further into our past), know that God’s grace and His mercies will be there for us in 2018; and our hope is ALWAYS in our Lord and Savior, Who is leading us homeward to be with Him forever.

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My THANKFULNESS: Oh Lord, I rest in the hope that is YOU!
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My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … I know Your mercies are there for me tomorrow just as they are 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.

December 30, 2017 … His Work Getting Done

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 364 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  … Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with images and lyrics from the group Casting Crowns singing their song … If We Are The Body … expressing in song how we, as the Body of Christ, must keeping moving forward as His body to carry out His mission on this earth.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Acts 14:26 [NLT] … 26 Finally, they [Paul and Barnabas] returned by ship to Antioch of Syria, where their journey had begun. The believers there had entrusted them to the grace of God to do the work they had now completed.
… The two missionaries for Christ, no matter how difficult their mission, we so grateful for what was being done for Christ and faithfully what would continue to be done for His glory. 
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Highlight Passage [context]: Acts 14:21-28 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Paul and Barnabas didn’t focus on the challenges they had faced; … they simply were grateful for what had been done in the past for Christ and what would be done in the future for His glory. 
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Reference Passage : … Psalm 150:2 [NLT] … 2  Praise him for His mighty works; praise His unequaled greatness! 
… We ALWAYS must praise our Lord for what He has done thru us … what He is doing … and what He will do for His glory.

Reference Passage : … Acts 1:8 [NLT] … 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”  
… Jesus put the task out in front of us. And we must continue to move forward to witness in His Name.

Reference Passage : … Ephesians 5:16 [NLT] … 16 Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. 
 … No matter what happens, we, as did Paul, must simply keep moving forward to witness for Him and serve His kingdom.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, David C McCasland, tries to help us realize what God has done, is doing, and what He will do for His glory as we close out 2017. The ODB author wrote: At the end of the year, the burden of uncompleted tasks can weigh us down. Responsibilities at home and work may seem never-ending, and those unfinished today roll into tomorrow. But there are times in our journey of faith when we should pause and celebrate God’s faithfulness and the tasks completed. 

My friends, that’s good advice, isn’t it? Sometimes, as Christians, especially as we look ahead into the New Year, it’s easy to focus on all the troubles in the world and also what may not have gotten done in the past year. But as the ODB author exhorts, we should also stop and take note of the check-offs on our TO-DO list for 2017 (see photo).

And then, thanking God for these accomplishments as we witness for Him (see Acts 1:8), we then can pray that He continues to give us His grace and use us in His kingdom service in 2018 and beyond.

That’s what Paul and Barnabas were doing in today’s highlight passage. They had faced many negative challenges in their first missionary journey; but they were grateful for what God had done thru them and focusing forward on what He would continue to do as they witnessed for Him.

And that’s a good model for us all … to do what Paul wrote about in Eph. 5:16 … to make the most of every opportunity in these evil days … and just keep on keeping on in Christ’s Name and for His glory.

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My THANKFULNESS: Oh Lord, I’m so thankful for what You’ve done thru our Battle Plan Ministry efforts in 2017 and looking forward to what You will do thru us in 2018.
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My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … Seeing the check marks of Your grace this past year, I’m excited to anticipate what You’re going to do into the new year and beyond. … 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.

December 29, 2017 … Seeing God in Creation

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 363 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with glorious images from Gordon Mote, blind Christian artist, singing his song … Don’t Let Me Miss The Glory … lovingly and poignantly declaring the truth of our ability to see God’s glory in His creation.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Psalm 104:24 [NLT] … 24  O Lord, what a variety of things you have made! In wisdom you have made them all. The earth is full of your creatures. 
… Look around and see the glory created by God
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Highlight Passage [context]: Psalm 104:24-35 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… The Psalmist declares the glory and wonder He sees created by God in all of His creation. 
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Reference Passage : … Psalm 19:1-2 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
... King David declares the glories of God are so obvious in His creation. All one has to do is look around to see the glory of God.

Reference Passage : … Romans 1:19-20 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
... Really mankind cannot deny God’s existence because of His creation.

Reference Passage : … Hebrews 11:6 [NLT] … 6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. 
 … We cannot come into a relationship with God unless we believe He exists; and all one has to do to have this belief is to look around at creation. So we have no excuse when it comes to knowing God exists.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Keila Ochoa, illustrated the glory and grandeur of our God by looking at a simple hummingbird The ODB author wrote: The hummingbird gets its English name from the hum made by its rapidly beating wings. In other languages, it is known as the “flower-kisser” (Portuguese) or “flying jewels” (Spanish). One of my favorite names for this bird is biulu, “what remains in the eye” (Mexican Zapotec). In other words, once you see a hummingbird, you’ll never forget it. 

For years, after my college years, when I tried to deny the existence of God, thinking of myself as an “atheist,” the one thing I could not deny, when believers would argue the reality of God, was the wonder of creation all around me. I just couldn’t say with any confidence that all the glory I saw around me happened by accident or some random set of biological circumstances.

And seeing a hummingbird fly, as the ODB author writes, and the attached photo, is really enough to see God’s glory, isn’t it? And for us, as Christians, it’s certainly enough to have eternal confidence that our God exists. Wow, think of it! A hummingbird flies and probes a flower with it’s wings propelling the little bird at 100-200 times per second. That kind of intricate aeronautic design simply could not have happened by some random collection of cells in the cosmos.

So, as the scriptures above declare, we can have confidence that our God exists; and in seeing His creation, we can have confidence that such a God could - and did - create me with my desire to know Him more everyday by getting to know the One Who created it all, … my Savior, King Jesus. And in that, I desire to seek out my God everyday, not wanting to miss His glory … just as Gordon Mote sings in his powerful song, linked above.

Take in the song; and then, … look around with me today and take in God’s glory.

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My THANKFULNESS: Oh Lord, I’m so thankful that You do a glorious show-n-tell everyday as I see Your handiwork thru Your creation.
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My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … Don’t let me miss Your glory 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.

December 28, 2017 … Sharing A Smile

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 362 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with song and lyrics from Nat King Cole singing his classic hit … Smile … lovingly declaring the truth of the effect a simple smile can/will have on others.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Proverbs 15:13 [NLT] … 13  A glad heart makes a happy face; a broken heart crushes the spirit. 
… If we can, we need to overcome our natural bent toward sorrow and choose to share as much joy as we can with others.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Proverbs 15:13-15 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK … https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs+15%3A13-15&version=NLT … Yes, life at times sucks! But a smile from a loved one can bring a lot of healing, can’t it? 
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Reference Passage : … Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK … There’s a time under heaven for everything … a time to laugh and a time to cry!


Reference Passage : … 1st Thessalonians 5:10-11 [NLT] … 10 Christ died for us so that, whether we are dead or alive when he returns, we can live with him forever. 11 So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. 
… No matter how much pain we feel, it’s always best to lift someone else up who’s feeling their pain.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Elisa Morgan, shared a personal moment to illustrate just how contagious and uplifting a smile can be in trying moments in life. The ODB author wrote: I piled groceries in my car and carefully exited my parking spot. Suddenly a man darted across the pavement just in front of me, not noticing my approach. I slammed on my brakes, just missing him. Startled, he looked up and met my gaze. In that moment, I knew I had a choice: respond with rolled-eye frustration or offer a smiling forgiveness. 
I smiled. 
Relief flickered across his face, raising the edges of his own lips in gratefulness. 

Hey, fellow Christian, I’m sure you’ve had a time when you didn’t feel so joyful; but sensing someone else’s pain, you chose to smile anyway. And what was the result? Almost always it’s as if it was in the ODB’s author’s experience. Smiles are contagious, aren’t they?

Oh sure, Solomon’s teaching in Ecclesiastes 3 is true, … that there’s a time for everything … a time to laugh and a time to cry. But his teaching in the highlight proverbs above is also truth, … that we can choose joy over sorrow and share it to help others in sorrow be lifted up.

It’s a hard lesson sometimes when we don’t feel good … that joy is a choice not a feeling; and that we can choose to smile, even when we don’t feel like it. And when we do, because a smile is so contagious (see photo), we can be an agent of joy for others, … just as Nat King Cole sang in his classic hit song (linked above). So, … today I’m going to try my best to infect someone with my smile … and do my best to do as Paul taught in 1Thess. 5:11. How about you?

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My THANKFULNESS: : In spite of my physical pain today, I’m so grateful for the hope of You coming to take me home some day!
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My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … Help me to share some smiles today even tho I don’t feel like smiling. … 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.

December 27, 2017 … Thank You, Lord!

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 361 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with images and lyrics from the group Hillsong singing Dennis Jernigan’s classic … Thank You Lord … powerfully declaring thanks to God in worship for all our Lord has done and will do in our lives. … AND ON TO THIS LINK to hear Don Moen singing his song of thanks as well!! … Say it with him! … ”Thank You, Lord!!

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Highlight Verse[s]: Psalm 117:1 [NLT] … 1  Praise the Lord, all you nations. Praise Him, all you people of the earth. 
… Every day we should lift our praise and thanks to our Lord.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Psalm 117 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Short and sweet … but powerful thanks and praise in the shortest of all Psalms.
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Reference Passage : … Psalm 119:105 [NLT] … 105  Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path. 
… Thank you, Lord, for shining Your light on my path thru Your word.

Reference Passage : … Romans 8:28 [NLT] … 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.
… Thank you, Lord, for working out all things in our lives for our good.

Reference Passage : … Philippians 4:19 [NLT] … 19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from His glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. 
… Thank you, Lord, for Your provision of all that I need.

Reference Passage : … 1 Thessalonians 5:18 [NLT] … 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. 
… Thank you, Lord, for just everything!!

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Poh Fang Chia, proposed a devotional idea which I’m going to implement in 2018. Perhaps you might consider the same strategy to enhance your devotional life. The ODB author wrote: When I was a new believer in Jesus, a spiritual mentor encouraged me to keep a thanks journal. It was a little booklet I carried with me everywhere I went. Sometimes I would record a thanksgiving right away. Other times, I would pen it at the end of the week during a time of reflection. 
Taking note of praise items is a good habit—one I’m considering re-establishing in my life. It would help me to be mindful of God’s presence and grateful for His provision and care. 

Wow! … What a great idea; … journaling our thankfulness to God!!

Journaling, as evidenced by this daily devotional blog which I’ve published here for years, has always been a way of focusing my attention on God’s word and where He leads me by His truth. But the ODB’s challenge today to journal our thankfulness convicts me to add that focus to my daily blogging discipline.

Really, if any reader here uses the the two linked songs, and the Scriptures provided above, perhaps you too will desire to add journaling your thanks to God to your faith disciplines in 2018. I’ll leave that up to you and God’s Spirit today and into the New Year. But you can watch for the additions of a journal of thankfulness to my blogging in 2018.

Actually, I just realized that if you look above after each “Reference Passage,” I’ve already begun to journal my thanks to God today. But each day, from now on, I will add my recognition, praise, and thanks to my Lord just before my daily prayer [as below].

My THANKFULNESS: : Thank You, Lord, during this Advent Season, for coming to save us.

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … Thank You, Lord, for just being You. … 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.

December 26, 2017 … Aw Common, God … REALLY?!!

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 360 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with images from Clay Cross, Bob Carlisle, and Bebe Winans singing … I Will Follow Christ … powerfully declaring in song how we must follow our Lord’s leading no what we face in life.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Matthew 17:27 [NLT] … 27 However, we don’t want to offend them, so go down to the lake and throw in a line. Open the mouth of the first fish you catch, and you will find a large silver coin. Take it and pay the tax for both of us.” 
… Jesus showed Peter Whom is by the curious event of paying a tax from a fishes mouth. 
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Highlight Passage [context]: Matthew 17:24-27 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus teaches on His sovereignty and divinity with the curious event of paying taxes by a coin from a fishes mouth.
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Reference Passage : … Romans 8:28 [NLT] … 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.
… Probably one of the hardest truths we, as Christians, face in times of great testing/challenge.

Reference Passage : … Philippians 4:19 [NLT] … 19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from His glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. 
… A promise and a lesson sometimes hard to believe and live.

Reference Passage : … 2 Peter 1:3-5 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… It took a lot of teaching and Jesus’ show-n-tell before the resurrection; but in the end Peter learned the lesson to have faith in whatever our Lord has promised.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Tim Gustafson, used the curious story in Matthew 17 of Jesus using a coin from a fishes mouth [see photo] to pay a tax and to teach Peter (and us) how God can/will provide for our needs … because He is GOD and that’s what He promises! The ODB author wrote: Life is full of odd stories, and we find more than a few of them in the Bible. One day tax collectors came to Peter demanding to know, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?” (Matt. 17:24). Jesus turned the situation into a teaching moment. He wanted Peter to understand His role as King. … Jesus wanted to be careful not to “cause offense” (v. 27), so He told Peter to go fishing. (This is the odd part of the story.) Peter found a coin in the mouth of the first fish he caught [again, see photo]. 
What on earth is Jesus doing here? A better question is, “What in God’s kingdom is Jesus doing?” He IS the rightful King—even when many do not recognize Him as such. When we accept His role as Lord in our lives, we become His children. 

But do we get it?! I’m sure readers here can remember moments in our past when, as my title today declares, or asks, … ”Aw common, God, … REALLY?!” Perhaps a moment when the events in our life were way beyond us, perhaps seemingly outlandishly challenging; … yet God came thru, maybe in curious or even miraculous ways. It happened for me when God came after me … and saved me from my atheist, sinful self with series of “coin in the fish” moments.

My friend(s), … God is God; and He showed that to Peter when the fisherman found that silver coin in the mouth of that fish, … just where Jesus had told him it would be. The question is … do we really believe our God can - and will - do what it takes to provide for us [see Phil. 4:19, to guide us, to protect us, and to transform us … just as He has promised us? Do we really believe what God’s word promises in Romans 8:28 or 2Peter 1:3-5. Those are the faith challenges Peter - and we - are faced with?

Personally, I’m going for a YES! on these challenges. And today as I confront the my own taxing life, I’m going to do what today’s linked song declares … to seek and follow Jesus’ way … no matter what I face. … HOW ABOUT YOU?

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … Today I follow You!! … 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.

December 25, 2017 … Christmas Traditions

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 359 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …   Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with images from traditional Christmas scenes and Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra singing THE Christmas classic … Silent … and please take in the images we traditionally associate with the day we celebrate the birth of our Savior as these two great singers honor His birth with one of the most sung and recorded Christmas carols of all time.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Luke 2:10-11 [NLT] … 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 
… Again today [see my blog from 12/24] … on this Christmas Day … we remember the GOOD NEWS of God’s greatest gift of all time, which we celebrate today.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Luke 2:1-12 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God, thru Luke, announces the Hope of the World born in Bethlehem … the coming of King Jesus, The Messiah, … The Christ. And that should be our focus today!!
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Reference Passage : … John 3:16-17 [NLT] … 16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. 
… What a gift to mankind … the thrill of hope … the Son of God … come in flesh as the Lamb of God to save the world!!

Reference Passage : … Philippians 2:6-11 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… And our Lord came, humbly in a manger, to shed His blood ad the Lamb of God, to save us all with the hope of eternal life. And that’s what we really celebrate today!!

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Dave Branon, used the depiction of the candy cane to illustrate the traditions people have all over the world to celebrate Christmas and the birth of our Savior, … The Christ. The ODB author wrote: As you savor a candy cane this Christmas, say “danke schön” to the Germans, for that confectionary treat was first created in Cologne. As you admire your poinsettia, say “gracias” to Mexico, where the plant originated. Say “merci beaucoup” to the French for the term noel, and give a “cheers” to the English for your mistletoe. 
But as we enjoy our traditions and festivities of the Christmas season—customs that have been collected from around the world—let’s save our most sincere and heartfelt “thank you” for our good, merciful, and loving God. From Him came the reason for our Christmas celebration: the baby born in that Judean manger more than 2,000 years ago. 

As the attached photo depicts, many of our families have Nativity Creche Scenes in our homes, which we pull out of storage each year to help us remember what we’re really celebrating on this Christmas Day. Most certainly, … we’re surrounded by what the world makes of this time of year each December … with all of the lights and music to promote the sales of products which we buy to give to our friends and loved ones.

But for those of us who truly desire to honor the birth of our Savior on this date, I pray that we can focus on our “reason for the season” as we celebrate whatever Christmas traditions we will share today. And that’s why our Pastor at Christmas eve service yesterday preached a wonderfully pertinent message about the origins of probably the most popular Christmas carole of all, … Silent Night. 

And I, for one, hope all reading here will use the link above to hear Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra sing this old traditional carole written by an Austrian Pastor and his organist in the 19th century.

 The carole really says its all when it comes to what we celebrate today; and I pray we can keep our focus on what God brought into our world that night to save mankind.

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … Today we focus on You, King Jesus, and Your birth to save us all. HALLELUJAH!! … 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.

December 24, 2017 … A Broadcast of Hope

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 358 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with images from Josh Groban singing … O Holy Night … poignantly singing of that night divine when Christ was born. … O what a hope filled night it must’ve been; … and what a hope-filled life we have awaiting with the Son of God, our Messiah, Who will come and take us home to be with Him forever.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Luke 2:11 [NLT] … 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 
… Incredible news - GOOD NEWS - for these lowly shepherds, keeping watch over the flocks of lambs being prepared for Temple sacrifice, … to be invited by God’s Angels to be present at the birth of the Lamb of God.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Luke 2:8-20 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God, thru Luke, announces the Hope of the World born in Bethlehem … the coming of King Jesus, The Messiah, … The Christ.
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Reference Passage : … John 3:16-17 [NLT] … 16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. 
… What a gift to mankind … the thrill of hope … the Son of God … come in flesh as the Lamb of God to save the world!!

Reference Passage : … Philippians 2:6-11 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… And our Lord came, humbly in a manger, to shed His blood ad the Lamb of God, to save us all with the hope of eternal life.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Amy Peterson, uses the illustration of the first radio broadcast to compare with the incredible Angelic broadcast of the birth of Messiah, the Lamb of God, to the Shepherds on that incredible morning in Bethlehem. The ODB author wrote: Reginald Fessenden had been working for years to achieve wireless radio communication. Other scientists found his ideas radical and unorthodox, and doubted he would succeed. But he claims that on December 24, 1906, he became the first person to ever play music over the radio. … 
He reportedly played a record of an operatic aria, and then he pulled out his violin, playing “O Holy Night” and singing the words to the last verse as he played. Finally, he offered Christmas greetings and read from Luke 2 the story of angels announcing the birth of a Savior to shepherds in Bethlehem. 

And those shepherds, the lowest cast in that culture, … the ones who were watching over the lambs to be used for Temple sacrifice, … were invited by God’s angels to come see the Lamb of God, … the Son of hope, … their Messiah, … the One Who had been born there in Bethlehem. What a THRILL OF HOPE they must’ve felt as Reginald Fessenden sang in that first radio broadcast and as Josh Groban sings in the linked song. … “O Holy Night” of hope!!

And this Christmas eve, I pray we all feel that kind of hopeful thrill, in the face of this degraded world; because we should realize that God’s Lamb has come to save you and me, as well as those shepherds; and we can revel in the reality that He’s coming again for us … just like He came to save Mary and Joseph and all who were there to see that Babe in the manger.

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … We await Your second coming with hope, Lord Jesus!! … 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.

December 23, 2017 … Immanuel

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 357 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video and lyrics from an anonymous soloist singing the 6th century … Hymn of St. Patrick … poignantly singing of the reality that God fulfilled the prophesy by giving us Christ to live in us forever.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Matthew 1:22-23 [NLT] … 22 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet: 23  “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’” 
… Matthew quotes the Prophet Isaiah (see Isaiah 7:14) as to the coming of the Messiah born of a virgin and to become “Immanuel” - God with us!
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Highlight Passage [context]: Matthew 1:18-23 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Matthew’s account of the birth of Messiah, Who would become Immanuel - “God With Us” 
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Reference Passage : … Matthew 28:20 [NLT] … 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
… Jesus as He ascended into Heaven after the resurrection, promises to NEVER leave those who would believe on Him as Lord.

Reference Passage : … Hebrews 13:5b [NLT] … 5 … “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
… God reminds his people what He promised in Deut. 31:6, that, no matter what, He would be with them and never leave them.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, David C McCasland, uses a 17th century poem to illustrate how God changes our hearts when He is born into the manger of our lost souls. The ODB author wrote: “Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ at my right, Christ at my left . . .” These hymn lyrics, written by the fifth-century Celtic Christian St. Patrick, echo in my mind when I read Matthew’s account of Jesus’s birth. They feel like a warm embrace, reminding me that I’m never alone. … 
 St. Patrick’s lyrics [use song link] remind me that Christ is with believers always through His Spirit living within. When I’m nervous or afraid, I can hold fast to His promises that He will never leave me. When I can’t fall asleep, I can ask Him to give me His peace. When I’m celebrating and filled with joy, I can thank Him for His gracious work in my life. 
Jesus, Immanuel—God with us. 

If any reader here today takes in all that I’ve journaled and posted here, taken from the Our Daily Bread entry today, I really should not have to write might more.

No, … if we believe in Christ as Lord, especially during this Advent season where we celebrate God’s incarnation, and we believe in HIs promises, … that He would would be with us by indwelling our hearts, … then we should really be praising our Lord, especially coming up on the day we wish Him “Happy Birthday!”

So, take in St. Patrick’s hymn, linked above, and meditate on the Scriptures provided; and then please join me in a robust HALLELUJAH !!! Because ”Immanuel” dwells in us and will never leave us or forsake us … NO MATTER WHAT!!! 

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … You dwell in my heart/mind, Lord; and that is why I can write this today! … So, I praise Your Holy Name!! … 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.

December 22, 2017 … Into Our Silent Night

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 356 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …   … Please take the time to take in a YouTube video and lyrics from the group Casting Crowns singing… Somewhere In Your Silent Night … poignantly singing the reality that God came in a manger and died on a cross to be the light in our life and in the dark manger of our heart.
 

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Highlight Verse[s]: 2nd Corinthians 5:17 [NLT] … 17 This [i.e, being redeemed by Christ’s blood] means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 
… And living in/for Christ means what He is born into our hearts as He was in the manger, bringing life to a dead heart as He did being born to bring light to a darkened world.
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Highlight Passage [context]: 2nd Corinthians 5:11-21 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Got, thru Paul, writes of the change in the hearts of believers so that we can become His ambassadors, … His witnesses as His disciples.
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Reference Passage : … John 3:5-7 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus to Nicodemus (and us) that we must be born-again in the Spirit to be raised from spiritual death to eternal life.

Reference Passage : … John 5:24 [NLT] … 
24 “I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life. 
… Jesus on what happens in the heart of man when He is born into our hearts, … bringing us from death to life … just as He was born in a manger to bring life to a deadened world.

Reference Passage : … Acts 1:8 [NLT] … 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 
… Jesus’ promise that His Spirit will indwell the hearts of believers and the will be born-again to become believers.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, David C McCasland, uses a 17th century poem to illustrate how God changes our hearts when He is born into the manger of our lost souls. The ODB author wrote: Long before Joseph Mohr and Franz Gruber created the familiar carol “Silent Night,” Angelus Silesius had written: 
Lo! in the silent night a child to God is born, 
And all is brought again that ere was lost or lorn. 
Could but thy soul, O man, become a silent night 
God would be born in thee and set all things aright. 
Silesius, a Polish monk, published the poem in 1657 in The Cherubic Pilgrim. During our church’s annual Christmas Eve service, the choir sang a beautiful rendition of the song titled “Could but Thy Soul Become a Silent Night.” 

Note in the poem the connection between Jesus’ birth in a manger, being like the light and life which comes into our hearts when we are born-again in Him. God became a babe in a manger to bring light to a darkened world. And when He is born into our hearts by our faith, His Spirit lights up our silent night so that we can come alive and live for Him rather than trying to live for a deadened self.

The attached picture is what our darkened/dead self must be like before His Spirit brings warmth/light into the silent night in our hearts. We reach out, … faceless, … in the coldness of our selfish spirit, seeking to come alive from His love. And in our faith, He is born into our hearts just as He was into that silent night and manger; and His love brings warmth and life to our cold/dead hearts.

And as Paul wrote in the highlight passage, His rebirth into our hearts, brings the light of His grace and the newness of life so that we can serve Him with our witness (see also Acts 1:8). So, I pray, as the group Casting Crowns sings, that somewhere in the darkness and loneliness of our hearts, we let Christ in to bring light/life to the manger of our souls.

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … You were born into the manger of my heart to bring me light and life. And may I serve You to spread that light to others. … 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.

December 21, 2017 … Going Home for Christmas

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 355 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …   Please take the time to take in a YouTube video and lyrics from Michael Buble’ singing the old Christmas classic … I’ll Be Home for Christmas … a reflection of what Christmas is … AT HOME!

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Highlight Verse[s]: Genesis 28:15b-16 [NLT] … 15b One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.” … 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it!”
… In a dream God promises Jacob of the ultimate home coming.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Genesis 28:10-17 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God promises Jacob that one day He, The Lord, will take Jacob and God’s people back to the Promised Land … to their eternal home.
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Reference Passage : … John 14:1 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus’ promise to His Disciples (and us) that He will come for His Bride and take us to our eternal home.

Reference Passage : … Revelation 22:20 [NLT] … 20 He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” … Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! 
… And what a great Christmas wish this is!!

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Tim Gustafson, relates a personal story of a very special Christmas tree and a reminder of being home for Christmas. The ODB author wrote: One year Christmas found me on assignment in a place many of my friends couldn’t locate on a map. Trudging from my worksite back to my room, I braced against the chill wind blowing off the bleak Black Sea. I missed home. 
When I arrived at my room, I opened the door to a magical moment. My artistic roommate had completed his latest project—a nineteen-inch ceramic Christmas tree [see photo] that now illuminated our darkened room with sparkling dots of color. If only for a moment, I was home again! 

This season can be warmly special if we’re home for Christmas, as Michael Buble’ sings. Or it can be a lonely time if we’re not home, longing for loved ones to share the Advent season.

I have wonderful memories of Christmases spent with my grandparents as a child. I have special memories of seeing our kids squeal for joy around our Christmas tree as they grew up. And this year we’ll spend our Christmas around a tree with our grandchildren in the home of one of our girls.

But the greatest Christmases are yet to come; and they will be spent with my Savior in the home He has waiting for all who’ve come to long to be home with our Lord and Savior. And, my dear ones, … God promised His people that one day He’d bring them HOME to the Promised Land (see highlight passage); and our Lord promised us that He would come again to take us home for the ultimate Advent season [see John 14:1-4].

So, as the Apostle John wrote longingly from his vision of going to our home in glory, [see Rev. 22:20] … I say longingly this Christmas, … ”Come soon, Lord Jesus!”

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … I so look forward to spending all my eternal Christmases … in our home with You, dear Lord. … 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.

December 20, 2017 … It Was Heaven’s Child

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 354 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with from The Martins poignantly singing about … Heaven’s Child … about how God interrupted history with HIS STORY and His plan to fulfill the Old Covenant with the New Covenant Babe in a manger.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Luke 2:11-12 [NLT] … 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 12 And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” 
… The Angels declare to the shepherds what has transpired in a manger … that the long awaited Messiah had been born.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Luke Chapters 1 and 2 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Reading Chapters 1-2 from Luke reminds us of the excitement and the monumental happening in a manger over 2000 years ago.
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Reference Passage : … Isaiah 9:6-7 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Prophesied over 700 years prior to his birth.

Reference Passage : … Philippians 2:6-11 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… And that’s how far God was (and is) willing to go to bring His Bride home to be with Him.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Philip Yancey, reminds us of the coming of the Messiah after centuries of waiting for the Old Covenant to be realized. The ODB author wrote: At the end of the Old Testament, God seems to be in hiding. For four centuries, the Jews wait and wonder. God seems passive, unconcerned, and deaf to their prayers. Only one hope remains: the ancient promise of a Messiah. On that promise the Jews stake everything. And then something momentous happens. The birth of a baby is announced. 
You can catch the excitement just by reading the reactions of people in Luke. Events surrounding Jesus’s birth resemble a joy-filled musical. Characters crowd into the scene: a white-haired great uncle (Luke 1:5–25), an astonished virgin (1:26–38), the old prophetess Anna (2:36). Mary herself lets loose with a beautiful hymn (1:46–55). Even Jesus’s unborn cousin kicks for joy inside his mother’s womb (1:41). 

Over 700 years prior to the coming of The Messiah in a manger in Bethlehem, Isiah prophesied His coming to save His people [see Isaiah 9:6-7]. But after all that time, only the prophetic few would see that the little babe which came in that manger (see photo) would be, as the Martins sing, “Heaven’s Child.”

And so there’s a reason for all the confusion and excitement that Luke wrote about in the first two chapters of his story about Jesus’ coming. And you know, … it’s been over 2000 years since our Savior, born in that manger to a blessed virgin and the One Who died on a cross (again, see photo), would become the One Who promised that He would come again to take His Bride to be with Him in eternity. And like the shepherds on that breakthrough day, we, here and now, wait for Him to come (AGAIN).

And as we try to look past all the worldly hustle/bustle of the Advent Season, perhaps we can stop for a moment in silence and just celebrate our Lord’s incarnation, His resurrection, and His promise that He is coming again.

Who knows?! … Maybe today!

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … O Come soon, Lord, to take us home! … 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.

December 19, 2017 … The “Hound of Heaven”

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 353 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with from Phillips, Craig, and Dean singing their song … He’ll Do Whatever It Takes … poignantly singing of the lengths God will go to save and sanctify those who’re lost in His kingdom.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Luke 19:10 [NLT] … 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” 
… Jesus tells Zacchaeus (and us) just how far He will go to save those who are lost. 
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Highlight Passage [context]: Luke 19:1-10 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus seeking out one like Zacchaeus shows just how much God seeks the lost to bring them back into His loving arms.
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Reference Passage : … Luke 15:1-7, 11-24 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus’ parable of the lost sheep and the prodigal illustrates just how far our Good Shepherd will go to seek out a lost lamb from His flock or a prodigal son to lavish His love on them.

Reference Passage : … John 3:16-17 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… And that’s how far God was (and is) willing to go to save and sanctify His children.

Reference Passage : … Revelation 3:20 [NLT] … Luke 19:10 [NLT] … 20 “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear My voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends. 
… Jesus so wants his wayward ones to open the door of our hearts and let Him in to share His saving/sanctifying grace with us.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Joe Stowell, used a story of a mother seeking a lost child in a crowd to illustrate just how much love God had in sending His Son to save His lost children. The ODB author wrote: A few years ago, a friend of mine lost track of her young son while walking through a swarm of people at Union Station in Chicago. Needless to say, it was a terrifying experience. Frantically, she yelled his name and ran back up the escalator, retracing her steps in an effort to find her little boy. The minutes of separation seemed like hours, until suddenly—thankfully—her son emerged from the crowd and ran to the safety of her arms [see photo]. 
Thinking of my friend who would have done anything to find her child, fills me with a renewed sense of gratitude for the amazing work God did to save us. 

The ODB author’s story certainly puts a human spin on just how desperately God would seek to find one of His lost children. He’s been called “the Hound of Heaven,” because our Lord will go to all measures to bring a lost lamb back into the flock, just as Jesus illustrated that quality of the Good Shepherd in His parable of the lost lamb (see Luke 15:1-7) or in His story about the prodigal.

And the highlight passage of Jesus being willing to save a reprobate like Zacchaeus shows just how far God will go to bring someone to Himself. And that’s why I so identify with today’s OBD story and with the song Phillips, Craig, and Dean sings in the linked song … as well as Jesus reaching out to save one like Zacchaeus. My emotional tie to these scenarios is just how far and how long Jesus came after me when I was an angry atheist, deeply into habitual sexual sin, … a reprobate like Zacchaeus, whom Jesus, as the Good Shepherd, was willing to seek out and to save His wayward and lost lamb (me).

But He did!! … And in His prevenient grace, God reached out to save me! And now as the song proclaims, He’s doing all He can to hug me just as the mother hugs her foundling in the attached photo. And even more my Lord is willing (and able) to make me over in His own image [bonus verse - check out Phil. 1:6 on your own].

So, … if you feel estranged from God, either a lost lamb or one of His children in need of a loving do-over, … come to Him and as it says in Rev. 3:20, and He’ll be there to come to you, as He did for the prodigal son [also in Luke 15], and just as He did - and is doing - for me.

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … O Lord, thank You for coming after me as the Hound of Heaven. … 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.

December 18, 2017 … In Christ Alone!!

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 352 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with lyrics of Kristian Stanfill leading a large audience in worship singing a new version of the old Christian standby … In Christ Alone … powerfully singing of the of the only hope we have in this sorry world … IN CHRIST ALONE!!

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Highlight Verse[s]: Psalm 146:5 [NLT] … 5  But joyful are those who have the God of Israel[a] as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord their God. 
… Our joy - our hope - is in our God!!
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Highlight Passage [context]: Psalm 146 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… The unknown Psalmist declares his praise, his trust, and his hope in Yahweh.
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Reference Passage : … Psalm 63:1-5 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… King David, even when he was in trouble, knew to seek and trust the presence and power of his God.

Reference Passage : … Proverbs 3:5-6 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Solomon knew that the only hope he had was to trust in God.

Reference Passage : … 2 Corinthians 12:9 [NLT] … 9 Each time He said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 
 …Paul had learned from Christ’s own words that in times of weakness, his only hope was to seek and receive God’s grace.

Reference Passage : … Hebrews 13:5b [NLT] … 5b  For God has said, … “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.“ 
 … God repeats His promise (also in Deut. 31:6,8) to never forsake us - no matter what!!

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Xochitl Dixon, used a moment of weakness and grief to show how her (our) only hope is in the strength and grace we receive from our relationship with Christ. The ODB author wrote: The week before Christmas, two months after my mom died, holiday shopping and decorating sat at the bottom of my priority list. I resisted my husband’s attempts to comfort me as I grieved the loss of our family’s faith-filled matriarch. I sulked as our son, Xavier, stretched and stapled strands of Christmas lights onto the inside walls of our home. Without a word, he plugged in the cord before he and his dad left for work. 
As the colorful bulbs blinked, God gently drew me out of my darkness. No matter how painful the circumstances, my hope remained secure in the light of God’s truth, which always reveals His unchanging character. 

Tho I’m not a gambler, I think I could safely wager that we’ve all, as Christians, been in a place where we were so weakened or broken that the only hope we could hold on to was our hope in Christ. … Can I get a witness? …

Yeah, we’ve all been there, felt that, … got that T-shirt, haven’t we? Perhaps you’re there now, feeling like God is way far away and you’re having trouble trusting … maybe even hoping? But I would hope, … and I will pray today below, … that using the song link above and meditating on the powerful - AND TRUE - passages provided, your faith and trust in God will be buoyed and bolstered to a point where you see/feel a glimmer of hope and at least another glimmer of trust in a God … our God … Who will never leave us, nor forsake us.

So, let’s trust Him enough today to even praise Him and to seek His empowering grace to lead us thru any troubled times we may be experiencing. Yes, dear one, He is our ONLY HOPE!!

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … O Lord, lift us all up today as we trust you, … seek You, … and praise Your Holy Name! … 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.

December 17, 2017 … Clay In His Hands

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 351 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …   Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with lyrics of a group of children singing … I’m Trying To Be Like Jesus … preciously singing of the of the desire of what should be in the hearts and pursuits of all who know Jesus as Lord and Savior.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Ephesians 4:2 [NLT] … 2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.
… Paul’s exhortation for his fellow Christians to become more like Christ … humble and gentle.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Ephesians 4:1-6 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Becoming more like Christ is becoming more humble and gentle.
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Reference Passage : … Jeremiah 18:5-6 [NLT] … 5 Then the Lord gave me this message: 6 “O Israel, can I not do to you as this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand. 
…As Jeremiah prophesied to God’s people, … our Lord wants His children to be like the clay in the hands of a Master Potter, … totally surrendered to Him as He makes us into His image.

Reference Passage : … Matthew 11:29 [NLT] … 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 
 …Jesus declaration of what He was like - “HUMBLE and GENTLE”

Reference Passage : … Philippians 1:6 [NLT] … 6 And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. 
 …God, thru Paul, promises that, if we surrender to His sanctifying work, He will remake us into the image of our Lord/Savior.

Reference Passage : … Philippians 2:3-5 [NLT] … 3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. … 5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. 
… Paul trying to exhort Christians to become more like Jesus.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, David H Roper, taught on how Christians need to submit as clay in the hands of The Master Potter and let Him mold us into the image of Christ. The ODB author wrote: The troubles of life can make us cranky and out of sorts, but we should never excuse these bouts of bad behavior, for they can wither the hearts of those we love and spread misery all around us. We have not fulfilled our duty to others until we have learned to be pleasant. 
The New Testament has a word for the virtue that corrects our unpleasantness—gentleness, a term that suggests a kind and gracious soul. Ephesians 4:2 reminds us, “Be completely humble and gentle.” 

“Gentleness” [also translated “meekness”) is a character trait which most in our western culture reject, thinking that it’s anti-strength or too submissive. But the Greek root for the term, which Jesus used to describe Himself (see Matt. 11:29) really means “strength under control.” And that was Jesus’ character. As He walked this earth, even all the way to the cross, He was totally submissive to the will of His Father; and that’s why the Apostle Paul was so insistent on teaching his fellow Christians that we must do all we can to let God’s Spirit mold us, as a Master Potter molds His clay, into the character traits of our Savior; … and that most certainly includes being humble and gentle [or “meek”].

The questions we need to ask ourselves today are: … 1. Are we being the Potter’s clay (see the photo and Jer. 18:5-6). 2. Are we surrendering to have our Lord’s Spirit to do a complete make-over of our Spirit into that of His likeness; and i.e., Christlikeness (see the reference Scriptures above). 

Personally, I’m here to put myself on the Potter’s wheel today and let Him do His reshaping work in me. How about you?

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … O Lord, You are the Potter; and I am Your clay … 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.

December 16, 2017 … Big Problems - Way Bigger God

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 350 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video with lyrics of Carrie Underwood singing an old classic … How Great Thou Art … singing of the greatness of the God who made little old me and the entire universe. … And ON TO THIS LINK  with Phillips, Craig, and Dean helping us to appreciate just how great is God’s grace, which He provides us to be His overcomers in the challenges of life.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Colossians 1:15-16a [NLT] … 15  Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, 16  for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. … 
… Truly, as Carrie Underwood sings, “How great is our God!!”
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Highlight Passage [context]: Colossians 1:11-20 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God, thru Paul, teaches Christians just how great our God really is.
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Reference Passage : … John 16:33 [NLT] … 18 Yes, and the Lord will deliver me from every evil attack and will bring me safely into his heavenly Kingdom. All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.…The word’s problems are big, but no where near as big as our God!

  Reference Passage : … 1st Corinthians 10;13 [NLT] … 13 The temptations [or also “tests, trials, or troubles”] in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure. 
 …Again, … the word’s problems are big, but our God is always there to show us the way.

Reference Passage : … 1st John 4:4 [NLT] … 4 But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world. 
…No matter how big our problems might be, our God, Who lives in our hearts, is bigger … WAY BIGGER!!!

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Bill Crowder, used a personal story to illustrate that our God, Who is bigger than the universe, is way big enough to handle our problems.  The ODB author wrote: As we drove through northern Michigan, Marlene exclaimed, “It’s unbelievable how big the world is!” She made her comment as we passed a sign marking the 45th parallel—the point halfway between the equator and the North Pole. We talked about how small we are and how vast our world is. Yet, compared to the size of the universe, our tiny planet is only a speck of dust. 
If our world is great, and the universe is vastly greater, how big is the One who powerfully created it? 

Our God is WAY BIG; … way bigger that anything we can see or encounter. As the photo exclaims: “God’s grace is immeasurable, His mercy inexhaustible, His peace inexpressible!” …

THAT’S BIG!!!

Yes, … the universe is vast, … way beyond our comprehension; but our God created it!! So, just how great is our God?!!

Yes, … our problems may seem very big, … sometimes even unsolvable; but our God has overcome anything in the world on the cross [see John 16:33]; and His power, … which is in us, … is far greater than anything our spiritual enemies can throw at us (see 1John 4:4).

So today, I will worship, … and serve, … the God Who will take me thru anything that I will encounter (see 1Cor. 10:13).

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … O Lord, You are are SO GREAT; … way bigger than anything I will deal with 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.

December 15, 2017 … My Super-Hero Savior

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 349 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …   Please take the time to take in a YouTube video of the acapella group Pentatonix singing a contemporary version of the old Christmas classic … Joy To The World … singing of the joy we should feel, in this Advent season, … that God would send us the ultimate Super-Hero to save mankind thru His free gift of King Jesus, … born incognito in a manger.

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Highlight Verse[s]: John 1:14 [NLT] … 14 So the Word became human [or “flesh"] and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness [or “truth and grace”]. And we have seen His glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. 
… Jesus is our Super-Hero Savior!!
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Highlight Passage [context]: John 1:1-5, 9-14 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus came to save us all from ourselves!!
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Reference Passage : … Isaiah 9:6-7 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… The prophesy of the coming Super-Hero Savior … 700+ years before He came.

Reference Passage : … Philippians 2:6-11 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… And our Super-Hero came by setting aside His majesty to humbly show Himself in a manger and then go to a cross to save all of those willing to receive His free gift of grace.

Reference Passage : … 2nd Timothy 4:18[NLT] … 18 Yes, and the Lord will deliver me from every evil attack and will bring me safely into his heavenly Kingdom. All glory to God forever and ever! Amen. 
 …Yes, as King Jesus was for Paul, He is my Super-Hero … Who has saved me from my self and is taking me with Him to glory. … HALLELUJAH!!!

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, David C McCasland, used a modern-day movie hero to illustrate how God sent the ultimate super-hero in His Son, Jesus, to be the King Who would save the world. The ODB author wrote: As Star Wars fans around the world eagerly await the release of Episode 8, “The Last Jedi,” [see photo] people continue to analyze the remarkable success of these films dating back to 1977. Frank Pallotta, media reporter for CNNMoney, said that Star Wars connects with many who long for “a new hope and a force of good at a time when the world needs heroes.” 
At the time of Jesus’s birth, the people of Israel were oppressed and longing for their long-promised Messiah. Many anticipated a hero to deliver them from Roman tyranny, but Jesus did not come as a political or military hero. Instead, He came as a baby to the town of Bethlehem. As a result, many missed who He was. 

And I find it interesting that the Star-Wars phenomena in the last decade or so, along with the many DC Comics movies, play to our need, as humans, to seek a super-hero to save us from ourselves. But God, in His eternal plan, put the ultimate Super-Hero in a manger in Bethlehem over 2000 years ago to be our Savior! In that regard, that King, born in a stable, is the first and the last Jedi Knight Who has saved us from our humanity.

But this Super-Hero baby confused the people in the first century AD, because they were looking, as many are now, for a super-strong image-bearer to be their (our) savior. But, as Pentatonix sings in the linked song, “Joy To the Word!”

Yes, … our Super-Hero has come; and, as we read in the Scriptures above, He did His Super-Hero work on the cross so that we can be saved from our selves for eternity.

I can only pray that any reader here believes - completely and utterly - in our ultimate Jedi Savior; … that HE IS KING JESUS!!!

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … O Lord, You are my HERO … and You came to save me from myself. HALLELUJAH!! … 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.

December 14, 2017 … Here I Am … Send Me!

Berry Patch Devotions in 2017 - Day 348 

Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video of images and lyrics from Kari Jobe singing … You Are For Me … poignantly and powerfully singing of the reality that our Lord will always be there for us … no matter what we face in life.

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Highlight Verse[s]: Joshua 10b-11 [NLT] … 10 … Today I am eighty-five years old.  11 I am as strong now as I was when Moses sent me on that journey, and I can still travel and fight as well as I could then. 
… Caleb knew that His God would be with him for the remainder of his life; and so he knew that he could serve his Lord.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Joshua 14:7-15 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Caleb, at 85, still knew that he could serve His Lord.
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Reference Passage : … Isaiah 6:8 [NLT] … 8 Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?” … I said, “Here I am. Send me.”. 
 … The question is how we will answer God’s call to serve Him.

Reference Passage : … Philippians 4:11-13 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… No matter what the circumstances in life, our Lord is always there to give us the strength to serve Him.

Reference Passage : … 2nd Corinthians 12:9 [NLT] … 9 Each time He said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 
 …Jesus reminded Paul that God’s strength would always be there to cover his (our) weakness.

Reference Passage : … Hebrews 13:5b [NLT] … 5  … “ I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” [from Deut. 31:6] 
…We can ALWAYS rely on God to be there for us and with us.

My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Linda Washington, used a story about God’s servant, Caleb, who, at 85 still had the faith to take on whatever God would lay before him. The ODB author wrote: As I’ve grown older, I’ve noticed more joint pain, especially when cold weather hits. Some days, I feel less like a conqueror and more like someone conquered by the challenges of becoming a senior citizen. 
That’s why my hero is an older man named Caleb—the former spy sent by Moses to scout out Canaan, the Promised Land (Num. 13–14). 

As I write this, just last week I turned 74; and there are times I identify with what the ODB author writes about feeling my age and weakness. But, like Caleb in the highlight passage and in today’s ODB entry, I’m reminded that no matter how creaky these old bones are, I can stand up (as in the photo) and realize that I serve a God that is so big and so willing to give me the strength to cover my weaknesses [see the reference scriptures above].

As Kari Jobe sings in the linked song, my God is with me! And in Him and for Him, I can know that (as in Heb. 13:5) my God will NEVER leave me or forsake me. But with Him, “I can do all things through Christ, Who gives me the strength.”

So, no matter what we face today, let’s go out there, and serve our Lord just as Caleb knew he could.

My Prayer Today: Abba Father, … King Jesus, … Precious Spirit … O Lord, just as Isaiah declared to You, I declare, … “Here I am, … send me!” … 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.