Jan 31, 2021 … Taking God’s Road

Berry Patch Devotions in 2020 - Day 31 

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...   Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from Matthew West singing … Forgiveness …  poignantly singing how we, as Christians, must strive to share God’s love/grace to forgive others when we feel wronged.  

God's road in resolving relational conflicts ... 

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Highlight Passage:   Romans 12:21 [ESV] ... 

21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. 

… Disciples of Christ will never take revenge as our pursuit when wronged;… but rather we will seek to forgive and move forward with mercy and God’s justice as our pursuits.           

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Highlight Passage [Context]: …  Romans 12:9-21 [ESV] …  USE THIS LINK … 

… God, thru Paul, teaches on the marks of a born-again Christian.    

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Reference Passage: … Micah 6:8   [ESV] ... 

8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?  

…  Living out what God demands, thru Micah, of all believers. <b>But do we?</b> 

Reference Passage: … Matthew 5:8   [ESV] … 

8  “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 

…  Jesus blesses those who are peacemakers in life.      

Reference Passage: … Matthew 18:21-34  [ESV] ... USE THIS LINK … 

…  Jesus helps Peter (and us) see that we must never hold back God’s mercy and grace in order to forgive those who have wronged us … as often as it takes. 

Reference Passage: … Ephesians 4:32   [ESV] ... 

32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.  

…  Paul exhorts fellow Christians (and that’s us too) to choose to forgive others just as Christ has forgiven us.  

My Devotional Journal: Today's Our Daily Bread author, Monica La Rose, AT THIS LINK  quotes Rev. Desmond Tutu, the South African Anglican Bishop, as his country was coming out from under a government formerly steeped in apartheid rule, … stating in his book No Future Without Forgiveness, … “We could very well have had justice, retributive justice, and had a South Africa lying in ashes.” … In other words, revenge is never God’s way to find justice, … only the road of forgiveness [see photo] is God’s road to follow in resolving relational disputes. 

And oh how pertinent Tutu’s words are for us today, aren’t they?  With all the division and anger being spewed forth by the right and the left these days, … all of us need to use the Bible’s teaching <b>(see Scriptures above)</b> and follow Jesus’ mandate to forgive others and be peacemakers rather than taking revenge [see Matt. 18:21-34]. 

But do we? … Will we?  

My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for calling us out to exercise mercy and forgiveness rather than fighting with one another. 

My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray that all reading here will join me, … today … to do all we can to exercise a Christlike, forgiving, attitude when we’re wronged by others.  … Amen

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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.

Jan 30, 2021 … Witnessing Boldly

Berry Patch Devotions in 2020 - Day 30 

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...   Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from Jeremy Camp singing … Walk By Faith …  powerfully singing how we, as Christians, can walk and witness boldly our faith in Christ in a very hostile world. 

Elijah's bold witness of God's power ... 

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Highlight Passage:   2Kings 1:10 [ESV] ... 

10 But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, "If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty. 

… We need to have the courage of an Elijah as we witness our faith in the world. </b>.          

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Highlight Passage [Context] </u>: …  2 Kings 1:9-15 [ESV] …  USE THIS LINK … </b>

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Kings+1%3A9-15&version=ESV

… Elijahs's bold witness, calling down fire from heaven.    

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Reference Passage: … Joshua 1:9   [ESV] ... 

9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”   

…  God gives us the same command to trust our God wherever we walk.

Reference Passage: … Proverbs 3:5-6    [ESV] ... USE THIS LINK … 

…  We, as believers, are to simply trust God and follow Him as His witnesses in the world. 

Reference Passage: … Acts 1:8   [ESV] … 

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”   

…  Jesus commands all disciples to rely on God’s Spirit to give us the power to witness in His name … anywhere and everywhere.     

Reference Passage: … 1John 4:1-4  [ESV] ... USE THIS LINK … 

…  We need not fear to witness in the world because God’s Spirit power in us is so much greater than the enemy’s power in the world.  

My Devotional Journal:  Today's Our Daily Bread author, Mike Wittmer, AT THIS LINK writes of a missionary who wore a name tag advertising his church in a country where it was illegal to witness for Christ, … boldly following the command of Christ to be His witness, … yes, even in a hostile world. 

I think we all realize that the world is becoming more and more hostile to those of us who openly witness our faith, sharing the grace of God’s salvation and sanctification with others.  But if you’ve listened to the YouTube song, linked above, … as well as the Scriptures cited, … I pray you’re as convicted as am I to boldly go forth - in faith - to witness our Lord’s greatness.  Oh, we may not be called to bring down fire from the heavens, as did Elijah [see highlight passage]; but we are commanded, by no less than Jesus Himself  (see Acts 1:8), to witness our faith in Christ as our Gospel calling in this life.  

So, … let’s go do it today!!  

My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for giving us Your power to be Your witnesses.

My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray that all reading here will join me, … today … to boldly walk in the Spirit and witness our faith in Christ to others <u>where ever and when ever</u> we have the opportunity.  … Amen

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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.

Jan 29, 2021 … Our Rush Culture

Berry Patch Devotions in 2020 - Day 29 

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...   Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from Kari Job singing … Be Still My Soul …  poignantly singing how we, in Christ, can rest our souls in our relationship with our Lord. 

A Sabbath attitude ... 

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Highlight Passage:   Deuteronomy 5:13-14a [ESV] ... 

13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.  

… God’s command to rest, remembering how He delivered God’s people from the drudgery of slavery.            

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Highlight Passage [Context] : …  Deuteronomy 5:12-15 [ESV] …  USE THIS LINK … 

… God, thru Moses, lays out His commandment to rest one day out of six.  

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Reference Passage: … Psalm 37:7   [ESV] ... 

15 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in His way, over the man who carries out evil devices! 

…  We are to avoid the ways of the world because we are to wait patiently and rest in our relationship with the Lord. 

Reference Passage: … Isaiah 30:15   [ESV] ... 

15 For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” 

…  Isaiah declares for God that we find our rest and strength when we trust in the Lord.

Reference Passage: … Matthew 11:28-30   [ESV] … USE THIS LINK … 

…  Jesus calls us to yoke ourselves to His strength when we’re weakened or tired.    

Reference Passage: … Hebrews 4:9-12   [ESV] ... USE THIS LINK … 

…  God’s word declares that we can trust and rest in God’s word <b>(see photo)</b> which is His Sword of Truth.    

My Devotional Journal: Today's Our Daily Bread author, Sheridan Voysey, AT THIS LINK uses an illustration of what he calls a ”culture of rush”, where we expect businesses and people to almost crash-and-burn to wait on our needs. 

Another example is the fast food industry, which has led to what I’ve referred to in our culture as the “MacDonalds mentality;” and it goes against what God has commanded and what the Lord has provided for His people and His family.  And when you take in God’s truth on the matter [see Scriptures above], we realize that rushing about, … 24/7 …, ignores God’s command to observe a “sabbath” in our lives and to trust that He will, … as Jesus said, … give us His strength when we’re willing to yoke ourselves to Him (see Matt 11:28-30).  

And so, my fellow Christian, how about every day, as in the attached photo, we start each day by resting on God’s word and by trusting in His Truth.  It’s a good way to start each day with a Sabbath attitude.  

My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for calling us out to rest in You.  

My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray that all reading here will join me, … today … to have a sabbath rest in God’s word … and then, … EVERY DAY!     … Amen

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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.

Jan 28, 2021 … Sharing His Love

Berry Patch Devotions in 2020 - Day 28

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...   Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from Dionne Warwick singing … What the World Needs Now …  poignantly singing how the world still needs God’s love being doled out by everyone … always … to overcome the injustice and division in the world. 

Smithsonian Contemplative Court ... 

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Highlight Passage:   Amos 5:24 [ESV] ... 

24 But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.  

… Justice and righteousness are shown to God when we have love in our hearts for God and others.            

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Highlight Passage [Context]: …  Amos 5:21-24 [ESV] …  USE THIS LINK …

… God, thru Amos, shows that sacrifices to God are meaningless unless their is love and justice in the hearts of those who sacrifice. 

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Reference Passage: … John 13:34-45   [ESV] ... 

34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” 

…  Jesus teaching His disciples that share His love for others when we show love/grace to others.   

Reference Passage: … Romans 12:10   [ESV] ... 

10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 

…  Paul exhorted fellow Christians to do all we can to share God’s love with one another. 

Reference Passage: … 1Corinthians 13   [ESV] ... USE THIS LINK … 

…  Paul expounds on what Christlike love looks like in the way we live our lives for others. 

Reference Passage: … 1John 3:18   [ESV] ... 

18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. 

…  John exhorts other Christians to SHOW our love in the way we live our lives. 

My Devotional Journal: Today's Our Daily Bread author, Lisa M Samra, AT THIS LINK uses the Contemplative Court in the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture [see photo], which illustrates Dr. Martin Luther King’s quote taken from Amos 5 (see highlight passage), charging all to show love and justice to all … ALWAYS!

And how often do we have to read that charge, repeated so often in God’s word (see Scriptures above), before we internalize it and then live out God’s call for His children to show our love for Him by being obedient to God’s truth and doing all we can to out do each other in showing love and grace for one another.  And I pray that is our goal today … and every day!! 

My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for giving all of Your love to show us how to share that grace in the way we treat others. 

My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray that all reading here will join me, … to take every opportunity today - and tomorrow - to share God’s love and grace with others.    … Amen

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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.

Jan 27, 2021 … Freedom In Christ

Berry Patch Devotions in 2020 - Day 27 

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...   Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from the group Jesus Culture singing … Freedom …  powerfully singing how we are freed from the shackles of the past in our relationship with Christ.  

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Highlight Passage:   John 8:36 [ESV] ... 

36 … So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.   

… Jesus declares the freedom His real disciples will experience by following Him.            

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Highlight Passage [Context]: …  John 8:31-36 [ESV] …  USE THIS LINK … 

… Jesus helps His followers understand that surrendering to follow Him as their Messiah would free them from their past sin shackles. 

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Reference Passage: … Romans 8:1-2   [ESV] ... 

1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.  

…  Paul taught fellow Christians that in Christ we are set free from sin and death.  

Reference Passage: … 2Corinthians 5:17   [ESV] ... 

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 

…  All things become new in Christ and we become free of past hurts and hangups.  

Reference Passage: … Galatians 5:1   [ESV] ... 

1 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.   

…  Once we are free from our past sins in Christ we must stand against that yoke of slavery to sin for our future. 

My Devotional Journal: Today's Our Daily Bread author, Patricia Raybon, AT THIS LINK tells of  journalist, John McCarthy, who was held hostage in Lebanon for five years and his gratitude for what a U.N. envoy did, … risking his own freedom, … to help McCarthy be set free.   

And the ODB author compares the gratitude that McCarthy had for being set free with how grateful we, as Christians, should be for what our Lord did on the cross to secure our freedom from the shackles of sin, shame, and even death. And oh, how grateful yours truly is in that regard. 

For 35 years of my life, I was a captive to the enemy’s temptations and his lies and my own flesh, … shackled to habitual - even addictive - sexual sin.  But when I was able to seek, find, and surrender to follow Christ, He set me free from my past chains to sin (see photo) as I chose to serve Him rather than myself.  

And I pray that all reading here with me have been set free as depicted in the attached photo, … by the truths of the Scriptures above, … and by what is sung in the linked song.  And in that freedom, I pray we all use the empowering grace provided by our Lord to shackle ourselves to Him and to serve Him today … and tomorrow. 

My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for setting me free from myself. 

My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray that all reading here will join me, … to walk in freedom from ourselves today by choosing to be a slave to our Savior.   … Amen

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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.

Jan 26, 2021 … Cleansed Inside-Out

Berry Patch Devotions in 2020 - Day 26 

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...   Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from Natalie Grant singing … Clean …  poignantly singing how we are made clean from the inside out when we  surrender to the cleansing power of God’s Spirit. 

Jesus cleanses His Father's house ... 

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12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.  

…  Jesus see the desecration of His Father’s Temple and cleanses it of the sinful money-changers [see photo].          

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Highlight Passage [Context]: …  Matthew 21:1-12 [ESV] …  USE THIS LINK … 

… Jesus upon entering the Temple to “Hosannas,” … proclaimed as THE Messiah, discovered that the Temple had been desecrated by thieves, requiring that He cleanse it from the inside out. 

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Reference Passage: … Isaiah 53:6 [ESV] ... 

6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

…  God, thru Isaiah, prophesies a Messiah to come and take the sins of wayward mankind upon Himself.  

Reference Passage: … 1Corinthians 6:19-20 [ESV] … USE THIS LINK … 

… Paul recognized that our bodies are the “temple” of God and we need to keep them cleansed of sin by the blood of Christ. 

Reference Passage: … 2Corinthians 5:17  [ESV] ... 

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 

…  Paul declares the truth of how we are made completely new in Christ from the inside out.  

Reference Passage: … 1John 1:7-9 [ESV] … USE THIS LINK … 

…  If we, as Christians, are willing to repent and confess of our sinfulness, our Lord WILL CLEANSE US COMPLETELY. 

My Devotional Journal: Today's Our Daily Bread author, Glenn Packiam, AT THIS LINK uses several word pictures to illustrate how we, as Christians, need to surrender to the blood of Christ and be cleansed from the inside out.  

The author showed how sometimes we need to clean out the nests of birds or animals from our roofs or attics.  Then he showed how the Greeks used a wooden horse to hide their soldiers, bent on destroying the city of Troy.  And finally the ODB author used the story of how Jesus, after being proclaimed as THE MESSIAH as He triumphantly entered God’s Temple, recognized the need to cleanse God’s temple of the sinful money changers [see photo and highlight passage].  

All of these illustrations in today’s ODB show us that every one of us, being sinners (see Isaiah 53:6) need the cleansing blood of our Messiah, King Jesus, to make us over into the newness of Christlikeness (see 2Cor 5:17).  But we have to be willing to intentionally surrender for God to cleanse His temple - i.e., our hearts (see 1Cor 6:19-20 and 1John 1:7-9). 

And that’s my prayer today … that we all stop and take note of God’s temple today and - if necessary - confess and repent, allowing God’s Spirit to turn over the tables of any dirtiness in our souls and let Jesus cleanse us from the inside out, … just as Natalie Grant sings in the linked son.   

My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for Your cleansing grace.     

My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray that all reading here will join me, … to allow Jesus in today to cleanse His Temple - our hearts.   … Amen

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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.

Jan 25, 2021 … Follow The Leader

Berry Patch Devotions in 2020 - Day 25 

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...   Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from Chris Tomlin singing … I Will Follow …  poignantly singing how we must do all we can to follow Christ by following Godly leaders.  

Following well-ground Biblical leaders ... 

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Highlight Passage:   Ezra 7:28 [ESV] ... 

28 …   I took courage, for the hand of the Lord my God was on me, and I gathered leading men from Israel to go up with me.  

…  Ezra leads God’s remnant back to Jerusalem from Babylon; and to do so, he brings leading men to help the people find their way to Godliness more easily.         

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Highlight Passage [Context]: …  Ezra 8:15-21 [ESV] …  USE THIS LINK … 

… As the remnant returns to Jerusalem from Babylon, Ezra calls for the Priests, i.e., the Levites, to come and minister Godly leadership to the people.  

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Reference Passage: … Proverbs 27:17 [ESV] ... 

17 Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another. 

…  Jesus’ surrender to the will of His Heavenly Father was complete, … just as our’s should be to Him … since our Lord and The Father are one.   

Reference Passage: … John 14:6 [ESV] … 

6 Jesus said … , “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. …”   

…  Jesus shows His disciples that HE is the ONLY ONE to follow to glory.

Reference Passage: … 1Corinthians 11:1  [ESV] ... 

1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. 

…  Paul knew that others could follow him because He was following and imitating Christ. 

Reference Passage: … 2Timothy 2:2 [ESV] … 

2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.  

…  Mentoring Timothy, Paul exhorts the young church leader to follow what Paul had taught him about following Christ. 

My Devotional Journal: Today's Our Daily Bread author, Tim Gustafson AT THIS LINK  writes about how a missionary in a small bible college in Ghana helped a few new Christians become leaders, … who, in turn, … poured their lives into many other Christians, … the result being many, many churches raised up in Ghana.   

It’s the principle of Pastors (or Church leaders) mentoring and equipping others to be mentors of others.  And what Ezra did in the OT, when the Israelites returned to Jerusalem from Babylon (see highlight passage) and what the Apostle Paul did with Timothy in the NT (see 2Tim 2:2), shows the value and power of real BIBLICAL leadership.  

I had a biblically strong mentor when I came to Christ from my atheist background; and following his leadership was a cornerstone in my discipleship, showing me the way to follow Christ from His word.   And I pray that all reading here are following strong - truly BIBLICAL - leaders and learning how to lead others … to lead others … closer to Christ every day.  

My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for leading me to a leader who followed You and showed me how to lead others to You.    

My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray that all reading here will join me, … to do wall we can today to follow our Lord and lead others to follow Him as well.   … Amen

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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.