Have you allowed yourself to be changed?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.
(Romans 1:28 (NIV))

Take a good look at society today and tell me what you see!

Everywhere you turn, everywhere you look, you see things that can only come from a depraved mind. You see more and more of the depravity that you thought you would never see in your lifetime.

Now, I am going to turn this around on each of us and remind each of us about the things that we used to do before we encountered Jesus.

They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.
(Romans 1:29-31 (NIV))

Have you ever been greedy? Have you ever been envious? Have you ever been a gossip, or arrogant? Have you ever disobeyed your parents when you were younger? Have you ever done or said anything with a heartless attitude?

What makes us, as the Body of Christ, any different from those who are doing sinful things today? Did we have people sharing Jesus with us when we were unsaved? Did we have people praying us into the Kingdom? Did Jesus ever look at any of us and proclaim that we were too far gone and that He didn’t want to waste His time trying to bring us unto Himself?

I realize that the depravity has gotten much worse in the last years, but I want you to consider that the grace has always been enough to cover a multitude of sins. Prayer can work miracles in the world and in the lives of individuals lost in sin. When we see the depravity, we must remember that they are loved by God. We must remember the old saying, “But for the grace of God, there go I.”

Those who profess a faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior are only the sinners that have accepted the message of salvation. We are not worthy of deciding who should hear the message and who we should pray to receive salvation.

God can change a mind and He can change a heart!

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Call upon the name of the Lord!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Oh, how I wish I had wings like a dove; then I would fly away and rest! I would fly far away to the quiet of the wilderness. How quickly I would escape—far away from this wild storm of hatred.
(Psalms 55:6-8 (NLT))

Did this passage catch you off guard?

We have a habit of thinking that we, in our current society, are the ones who truly need to get away. We think that our lives are so hectic and full of troubles that no one else could possibly understand what we face. I do admit that things seem to be getting worse as far as the troubles, but in the grand scheme of things, every life in every generation since the fall from grace has had troubles. David was no different than you or I in that respect.

We all want to be able to simply leave the burdens, the troubles of the world behind us and get away to a place where we can just soar above the troubles down below.

It is universally human.

David may not have been able to have wings like a dove and fly away to the quiet of the wilderness, but he did know how to rise above his troubles. He called upon the name of the Lord. He sang praises. He lifted up his voice in song and in prayer. He spent time seeking after God’s own heart. He longed for God and in turn, he knew God and trusted that God would be there.

Can we say the same about our lives?

We all know of the things that David faced in his life, from Goliath to running for his life from Saul, yet in all that he faced, David made time to pray and to praise God. He knew where his hope lie. He knew that he had to constantly seek after that hope by seeking after God. Do you think that Goliath was a mere coincidence? Do you think that David was able to survive Saul’s attempts on his life by luck? David may not have physically flown, but he was guided by the hand of God and was protected by the hand of God because he was faithful.

Take an honest look at your life. Do you see a life of praise, prayer and gratitude or do you see a life that needs to move more in line with how David longed for God?

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Do you go outside of your comfort zone for God?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

The next morning Jesus awoke long before daybreak and went out alone into the wilderness to pray.
(Mark 1:35 (NLT))

What do you think of when you think of a wilderness?

Some people think of a wild place such as a jungle. Some think of a barren place such as a desert. Either way, it is often associated as a place that is untouched by human hands. To many, this implies that it is a dangerous place to be, and it can be.

Have you considered that a wilderness can also be a place of peace away from the hectic pace of the world? A wilderness can be a place to encounter God without the distractions of the world weighing you down. I am certain that we all know of someone, if we are not like this, who finds that a walk in the woods or a day in a boat is the most productive prayer time that they can have.

Let’s face it. God doesn’t care where you are when you talk to Him. All that He cares is that you earnestly seek His face. If that means that you need to go out to a place that is not easily accessible to other people, then do it. Look at all of the times that Jesus went into the wilderness. Look at all of the time that David spent in the wilderness tending sheep and then running from Saul. Look at the time spent by John the Baptist in the wilderness. All of these, and may others, spent time alone with God in the wilderness. If you stop to think about it, a wilderness is something outside of your comfort zone. John the Baptist wasn’t raised in the wilderness, yet he was called there. David wasn’t raised in the wilderness, but he spent a period of time in his life getting prepared for what God called him to be. Jesus, as the Son of God, was not used to a wilderness, but He spent countless times in the wilderness so that He could clearly hear God and His call.

They went outside of their comfort zone in order to hear God!

They spent countless days, weeks and months in the wilderness in order to hear God. They were willing to take that step of faith to let God know that they were sincere in their desires. I know that times have changed, but maybe the reason we don’t hear from God is the simple fact that we aren’t willing to go beyond our comfort zone. We aren’t willing to go into an unknown, into a wilderness.

How far are you willing to go to be able to hear God?

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Do you believe?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.
(John 14:10 (NIV))

Jesus spoke these words to Phillipi when he asked Jesus to show them the Father, but they could easily be directed at any one of us.

We all have needed to be reminded of the nature and persona of Jesus. Too many people still fail to truly understand who Jesus is. Some still say He was a prophet. Some still say that He was just a man, and, sadly, some say that He never lived at all. To those who know the truth, we know that Jesus is much more than anyone can comprehend. Jesus is the one foretold by the voice of one calling in the wilderness.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God– children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
(John 1:1-14 (NIV))

Do you fully understand who Jesus is? Do you fully understand who the Father is? Do you fully understand that Jesus is the only way to the Father?

Do you believe?

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Have you narrowed in on salvation?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
(Matthew 7:13-14 (NIV))

Which is easier, entering through a narrow entrance that you have to squeeze through or a wide entrance with plenty of room?

Think back on all the things that you have or have done that are the most important to you. Did they come easy or did they take work and perseverance? I would venture to say that nothing in this life worth having actually came easy. Even your own salvation carried a heavy price. You did not pay that price. Jesus paid it for you. It was difficult to bear. We could not have bore that price. If you stop to think about it, it is probably safe to say that for each of us to accept that salvation also bore quite a heavy burden. It was difficult to face the realization and to admit that “I am a sinner and I need a savior.”

Do you remember when you came to that realization? It was probably the hardest thing to admit, yet, once it was done, the weight of the world was lifted off of your shoulders. You had made a conscious decision that you were no longer going to enter the rest of your life through the wide gate. You were going to enter through the narrow gate that God had set before you.

Has that decision led to a life that has been easy? Has society embraced your decision to abandon the wide gate that everybody uses? If you accept the principle that the physical world has corresponding counterparts in the spiritual world, then we must realize that nothing worth having spiritually will be easy. Satan does not want you to have the grace and the mercy that is offered through that narrow gate. He will fight to keep you from it. You must fight to stay within it.

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Have you asked for the door to be opened for you?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
(Matthew 7:7-8 (NIV))

Jesus stands at the door of our hearts and knocks. Yet, He refers to us knocking.

Does anybody remember the song “Knocking on Heaven’s Door?” The title of the song probably states it as best as it can be. We used to stand at “Heaven’s Door” unaware that it was simple to gain access. While we were standing there, Jesus was gently “knocking” at the door to our hearts, quietly guiding us towards the one way in. When we were guided close enough to “knock” ourselves, Jesus then switched roles. He waited for us to knock and the ability to answer our knock.

When He was knocking at the door to our hearts, we probably were not fully aware of it. He guided us gently and quietly to where we could be in a position to knock and He would answer. He does not refuse anyone who comes to His door earnestly seeking Him. He answers all “knocks” by opening wide the door to the Kingdom of God.

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Don’t face the consequences of rejecting God!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

They grumbled in their tents
and did not obey the LORD.
So he swore to them with uplifted hand
that he would make them fall in the desert,
(Psalms 106:25-26 (NIV))

Moses had a lot to deal with when you consider how quickly the Israelites fell into disobedience. Just a few short verses before this passage, we hear that Moses interceded for the people to keep God from destroying them because of the things that they had done.

Think about that for a moment.

Think back on all that the Israelites had done since they left Egypt. Are we guilty of any less than what they did? Are we guilty of grumbling against God? Are we guilty of building false gods and idols and placing them before the one true God? Individually, we may not all be guilty of these things, but collectively, our society, our world, is very guilty of these sins and more!

It doesn’t take a genius to come to the conclusion that, because of our collective sin, God has something unfolding before us that will bring people to repentance or it will drive people to curse God. With all that is going on in the world right now, it appears to be unfolding very rapidly. The things that I see in the world today were not even a consideration in the society and in the world twenty of thirty years ago.

We have prophesy that tells us of things to come. We know that God’s Will is unfolding. It is my earnest and fervent prayer that we, as the Body of Christ, stay focused on Jesus and that we don’t lose sight that we can’t save ourselves.

We need the Lord!

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you accept God’s authority?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
(Romans 13:6 (NIV))

Too many people who are in authority seem to have forgotten that they are supposed to be God’s servants. Most of those people don’t even acknowledge that God exists, let alone serve Him. They do not give any respect to anyone or anything except their inner, sinful desires. Perhaps, if I may go out on a limb, this is why our society has sunk to new lows.

Even though many of the people who are in authority over us are there for selfish reasons, we must remember that they have been put there for a reason. We must pray that God will use them to His greater glory. Have you ever stopped to consider the fact that in the end times, the wheat and the tares are to grow up evenly and that maybe God is using these people to unknowingly fulfill His plans. Even so, we must pray that God’s Will be done. We must pray that we, on a personal level, may be able to accept God’s authority over that of human authority. We must be alert to the needs of the world and give what is needed when it is needed.

We must be prepared to give respect and honor for God loves everyone and does not wish for any to perish. God may plan to use us to show the love of Jesus to these people. We may be the one who plants the seed within their lives. If we do not honor and respect the authority, how can we expect them to honor and respect the authority that is God? We must teach by example. We may not like the actions of those in authority over us, but we must remember that no one is perfect and that we are all sinners in need of a Savior. What if you had not been shown enough respect and had not been shown salvation, after all, Jesus came to this earth not as a ruler, but as a common man?

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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I pray that my eyes will always be open!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh, my lord, what shall we do?” the servant asked.

“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”

And Elisha prayed, “O LORD, open his eyes so he may see.” Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
(2 Kings 6:15-17 (NIV))

Have you ever stopped to think about the impact that prayer has? Have you ever stopped to think that it is your prayers for God’s Will that God may use as the benchmark of whether or not to release the heavenly forces that He has at His command?

God will protect His people. We have seen this in the Scriptures. We have seen it possibly in our own lives.

The passage above makes me realize that God has more waiting for us than we can ever possibly imagine. It only takes faith and prayer to see God’s mighty hand at work.

I often wonder if I were in this situation, how would I have reacted? Would I have had the faith of Elisha or, in all probability, would I have been like his servant?

Can you imagine the fear and panic that the servant felt when he saw that the army had surrounded the city? How would you have reacted? It probably would initially be a very human response, a response that is based on the fight or flight instinct that seems to possess humanity in times of troubles.

Now, put yourself in the servant’s position after his eyes have been opened as an answer to prayer. I honestly believe that shock and awe occurred in this instance long before that phrase became to be known for military strategies in this current age. If you stop to think about this servant, he experienced something that took his faith level off of the charts. I can only imagine the stories he would later tell his friends and family of how God had miraculously saved him.

No matter what the world may send our way, we, as the Body of Christ, must pray that our eyes will be opened to see what the Lord is really doing in each and every situation.

Are your eyes open?

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Lift up your praise to the Lord!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the LORD
or fully declare his praise?
(Psalms 106:2 (NIV))

If you stop to think about this passage, there are a couple of ways that it can be understood, and perhaps both of them are correct. One implies the awesomeness of God while the other speaks to the fact that we as humanity have limited wisdom and understanding. I just love how God’s Word is capable of conveying so much with just a few words!

Who among God’s creation fully knows every mighty act that God has ever done? How can we even begin to comprehend the very creation of everything when all that God had to do was simply speak it into existence? We are told that words are powerful, that they can build up or that they can destroy. Our understanding of the power of God’s Word is so small in comparison to what it can accomplish! Can you speak anything into existence? All that we can do is make comments about what God has created. We cannot create!

The flip-side to this is that we, as humanity, as the creation, are limited in wisdom. We look at a beautiful day and we see the blue sky. We see the clouds. We see the trees and we see the majesty of what God has created. Even after all of the time that humanity has been on this planet since the Garden of Eden, we are only beginning to understand how God made everything to function. Each individual person is only capable of possessing just a minuscule amount of knowledge and wisdom when compared to all of the knowledge that can be attained?

When I look around, I see countless reasons to praise God for what He has done. They are everywhere, but there is one reason that far outweighs all other reasons.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
(John 3:16-21 (NIV))

This is one mighty act of the Lord for which I can forever bring praise!

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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