Jesus is our solid rock and our firm foundation!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
(Hebrews 13:8 (NIV))

Unchanging.

Constant.

Steadfast.

Faithful.

Are there any other words that you use to describe something that is always the same?

Do any of these words apply to any person that you know?

To be honest with you, most people, myself included, usually don’t think of people being this way. By nature, we are a sinful, fallen creation and we are prone to change from one moment to the next. We are affected by physical limitations. We get tired. We get hungry. We become sick. Then there are the worldly things that happen to us such as we lose a job or we lose our home. All of these things can make us someone that we would never have imagined we would be. We say and do things that we don’t recognize and we wish that we could rewind time so that they never happened or they never were spoken.

Are you the same person that you were ten years ago? What about twenty, or thirty, or even fifty? Being human means that we should in a constant state of change. We can refuse to admit that we need to change when all around us is demanding that we grow and mature, or we can embrace the path of growth and maturity. As followers of Jesus, we should strive to grow and mature into His image. We should strive to imitate Jesus in all that we do. We should strive to love as He loved. We should strive to live as He lived. We should strive to obey the Father as He obeyed.

Jesus was and is unchanging.

Jesus was and is constant.

Jesus was and is steadfast, and Jesus was and is faithful!

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.
(John 1:1-2 (NIV))

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
(John 1:14 (NIV))

If you profess a faith in Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, then you have accepted these passages as truth. You have accepted that He is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Jesus is our solid rock and our firm foundation!

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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This a a fantastic reason to be thankful!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
     his love endures forever.
(Psalms 118:1 (NIV))

With all that is going on in the world. give thanks to the Lord!

To those who do not profess a faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior, that may sound completely counter to what you would expect. If you find yourself asking why you should give thanks when prices are high; if you find yourself asking why you should give thanks when people are still reeling from the global pandemic; if you find yourself asking why you should give thanks when there are wars and rumors of wars, and when evil is called good and good is called evil, and when there are more extremes in the world than you can count, then it is time to give thanks to the Lord!

He is good!

His love does endure forever!

For those who profess a faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior, we know that all of this has been foretold. We have a loving God who has told us from the beginning the things that would happen at the end. He does not want us to be alarmed. He does not want us to be caught off guard. He wants us to be vigilant and prepared for the things that He has told us would happen so that when they happen we will know that He is in control.

If you have been led to this devotional and do not know Jesus, I want to ask you a few questions.

Do you have a feeling that something is just not right in the world?

Do you see moral depravity on the increase and wonder what is going on?

Do you have a feeling that what we used to know as normal will never return?

You are not alone. The members of the Body of Christ are feeling it too. We know that the Lord is unfolding His plans and that the time is rapidly approaching when He will judge the world. I don’t have the time to explain in detail just how this happens. Just know that it will happen. There has never been a more urgent time to repent and accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior than now. Do you know where you will spend eternity? Do you think that you are a good person. No one is good except God.

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
(Romans 3:23 (NIV))

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Romans 6:23 (NIV))

Give thanks to God for sending us His Son to bring us salvation.

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.
(John 3:16 (NIV))

God loves us enough to offer us eternal life through His love that endures forever.

This a a fantastic reason to be thankful!

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you believe in the one whom God has sent?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
(John 6:29 (NIV))

What do you think of this passage?

Today we read this passage as a standalone verse and realize that Jesus is telling us to believe in Him. However, we must not take things completely as a standalone verse. We must know the context of why something was said, for it is very easy to take things out of context and twist the meaning. In this particular case, this passage was the answer that Jesus gave to a question that was asked of him.

Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
(John 6:28 (NIV))

When this was recorded, the society was very tradition oriented. They had the Law, the Prophets, and the feasts that they all knew by heart. In their minds, they were doing the works of God, but they failed to realize that these were all outward expressions of what should have come from their hearts. They felt that they had been doing the works that God requires, after all, God had chosen their ancestors as His people. They had become prideful. They thought that they had it all, yet Jesus told them that what they really needed to do was to believe in Him.

What if you walked into your church and found someone preaching that all of the things that you are doing because of tradition are all wrong and that all you must do is believe in the one that God has sent?

Would you be able to separate your man-made traditions from the true worship of Jesus?

Think about that!

What if the church is outlawed and you must not meet in public?

What if your church can no longer have the committees that you belong to?

What if your church can no longer have the social events that you like to go to?

What if there is a global pandemic that shuts down all church activities? Oh, wait! Been there! Done that! But what do you do if it happens again, or worse, if it happens and is permanent?

If you strip away all of the external things that we do as the church, would we still be the church? Would we still realize that everything that we do is because we believe in the one that God has sent? Would we still be confident in our faith to say that Jesus is Lord of all?

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
(Hebrews 11:1 (NIV))

Is you faith strong enough to believe even if all of the things that we do as part of the church are no longer legal? Would we be able to stand firm in our faith like the early church did? Would we be willing to face our “lions” instead of denying Jesus? It takes a strong faith to hold fast to Jesus when all around you is trying to force you to stop. It takes a strong belief in the one whom God has sent.

Do you believe in the one whom God has sent?

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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And His name is Jesus!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

The Lord has made his salvation known
     and revealed his righteousness to the nations.
(Psalms 98:2 (NIV))

If you haven’t noticed, the last several devotionals have all been about passages from Psalms. I have a Bible app on my ipad and I have read multiple different translations. Currently, I am reading through the English translation called the Complete Jewish Bible where I am in Psalms. I cross reference between multiple different translations as I go, and as a result, I have come to a much deeper appreciation of these passages. I have found that my eyes have been opened by reading these different translations. I have alluded to this before, but sometimes the choice of words that the translators use can shed a completely different light on a passage. It can provide a much deeper understanding.

When this passage was written, it was long before Jesus walked the earth, yet, people were prophesying that He would come. No matter what translation you read, this passage clearly points to God’s amazing grace and mercy.

Adonai has made known his victory;
revealed his vindication in full view of the nations,
(Psalms 98:2 (CJB))

I love the way that the CJB translated this passage. Victory is the Lord’s! Vindication is the Lord’s!

If you look up the word “vindication,” it means justification against denial. Satan thought that he had won when he tricked Adam and Eve in the Garden, but God’s salvation, God’s victory is through the atoning blood of Jesus. God’s vindication, God’s righteousness is revealed through the resurrection of Jesus! In other words, God will not deny humanity the option to return to Him in a relationship as it was before the fall from grace. He will be vindicated and Satan has been defeated. All that we have to do is claim that victory for ourselves. Don’t wait another moment. If you have not already made this claim for yourself, it is a simple profession of faith. It is as easy as ABC.

A is for admit that you are a sinner in need of a savior.

B is for believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and that God raised Him from the dead.

C is for call upon the name of the Lord Jesus.

This victory, this vindication, this salvation that returns us to His righteousness all came about because of God’s plan through one who is fully God and is fully man!

And His name is Jesus!

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Give me patience to wait for Your timing!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Rise up, Judge of the earth;
     pay back to the proud what they deserve.
(Psalms 94:2 (NIV))

Do you have patience?

When this was written, the psalmist was longing for the Lord to deal with the sin in this world. Today, many of us are longing for the same thing. The only difference is that of historical reference and perspective. When this was written, it was long before the birth of the promised Messiah. Today, we are two thousand years after the life of Jesus, and we now have insight into how God’s plans will come to completion. We have the complete picture of the Law and the Prophets. We have the complete picture of the immaculate conception, the virgin birth and His life of miracles. We have the documentation of the Gospels and how He was crucified, dead and buried, and on the third day He arose. We have the witnesses who recorded His ascension and we have the faithful witness of those who spread the Gospel to the Gentiles. We even have the prophetic glimpses into the future where He returns to finalize God’s plans for the enemy as well as for those who call evil good and good evil. We just don’t know the hour or the day!

God’s timing is perfect. It is we who are seeing things from a very limited vantage point. We cannot see the beginning nor can we see the end.

Our days may come to seventy years,
     or eighty, if our strength endures;
yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow,
     for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
(Psalms 90:10 (NIV))

We don’t have God’s perspective.

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.
(2 Peter 3:8 (NIV))

Patience is a virtue, but it is something that everyone who is human is drastically short of possessing. We want things to happen according to our timeline. We see the world only through the limited scope of our existence and the limited geography that we inhabit. God sees it all. He knows it all. He knows exactly what He is doing and exactly when it will come to pass. With this in mind, I have but one prayer. I hope that it is your prayer as well.

Give me patience to wait for Your timing!

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Jesus is all of these and more!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
(Philippians 4:8 (NIV))

It is difficult to find anything in this world that fulfills one of these traits, let alone all of them.

When was the last time that you encountered something that was true and also praiseworthy?

Have you ever encountered something that was noble as well as excellent?

Is there anything in this world that you consider to be right that is also admirable?

Have you ever met anyone who is lovely and is also pure of heart?

I just stated a few of the possible combinations, and I think that it is safe to say that you probably have not been able to think of anything that comes close to meeting these simple combinations of traits. If you doubt that, just look at the combination of lovely and pure of heart. Most people who the world considers lovely and far from pure of heart. Vanity, ego and self love are the usual traits that go with this outward trait of loveliness. I honestly don’t think that I need to go into details about the other combinations, for they are also difficult to achieve.

But, . . .

There is One who fits these characteristics and is worthy of our thoughts and praise! His name is Jesus! There is none like Him. He is fully God. He is fully man. He is the bright morning star. He is our Lord. He is our redeemer. He is our Savior, and He is sitting at the right hand of God the Father. He alone is worthy. He alone is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy!

Jesus is all of these and more!

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Fully commit yourself to the Lord!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
(Revelation 3:16 (NIV))

Laodicea literally means the will of the people!

They professed a faith, yet lived as if they didn’t. They thought that they were rich in both the ways of the world and in spiritual matters. They didn’t look to God. They looked to themselves. The letter to Laodicea was far from encouraging. This is the only letter of the seven written to the churches that had nothing good to say about their faith.

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
(Revelation 3:14-22 (NIV))

If I were to venture a few speculations, I think that I could safely say that they had taken worship out of their assemblies if they even met at all. They didn’t need to worship for they felt that they had it all. The Lord was not the center of their assemblies or their lives, and I think that it is safe to say that they barely gave what I refer to as lip service. Their hearts were not in it because they felt that they had to reason to worship in truth for they had made themselves rich.

Does that sound familiar in the society that we see today? We see people engrossed in what they have accomplished and in what they want that they completely forget to even acknowledge the Lord in any way at all.

We have become a society where anything and everything is feasible because truth is relative. Each person has their own truth, but how has that gone for us the last several years? We are now a society that is triggered by facts and the truth. Feelings and personal desires are now what is important. Dare I say that we are even seeing this in our churches? Some churches are no longer preaching the saving grace of the Gospel of Jesus, but are preaching a gospel of social justice or personal empowerment. If there is no absolute truth, everything breaks down. With all that is happening in the world, are we seeing this happening in real-time? Has insanity become the new normal? I heard someone say the following in reference to what is happening in the world, and in the church.

Is the tail wagging the dog?

We should recognize this to mean that things are out of order. Perhaps the following makes that statement better.

Is the cart before the horse?

Personally, every single time I see something ungodly happen, the following comes to mind. I think that it says it best, especially when God told us that He would give people over to their reprobate minds.

Are the inmates running the asylum?

In the days ahead, we, as the Body of Christ, must stay true to His Word. We must cling fast to the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and never allow anything to work its way into our lives and dilute the truth. As believers, we are supposed to be on fire for the Lord. We are supposed to be the light of the world. Don’t allow that fire to die down and the light to be put out. Don’t let your flame become just a warm ember.

Fully commit yourself to the Lord!

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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What do you want to see with open eyes?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.
(Psalms 119:18 (NIV))

Do you pray to see things come to fruition that you want or do you pray for what God wants?

With that in mind, how do you see His law? Are they simply suggestions or are they the very foundation that you attempt to live you life upon? Do you simply read God’s Word and let is spend as much time in your thoughts as it takes to move to the next sentence or do you read and reflect on each morsel of truth that His Word and His Law contain?

If you are like many people who give the proverbial lip service to worship, then your attitude toward His laws leaves something to be desired. There is no Reader’s Digest condensed version that allows you to fully understand His truths. There is no Bible for Dummies that allows you to grasp the full meaning of what God wants us to know. There is no Cliff Notes on how to live a Godly life.

There are no shortcuts!

It takes a commitment and it takes time. It takes a commitment to spend time daily in His Word. It takes time to read, pray and truly understand His Word. This is especially true when you consider that the Bible is the Living Word. The more that you read and study, the more that you understand. It is possible to read the same passage each day for the rest of your life and come away each day with new insight into what God is saying through the very same words as each and every single day before. Don’t adopt the attitude that you have read it and there is no need to read it again. Read and study it every single day of your life! Pray for discernment as you read. Pray for insight as you read. Pray for wisdom as you read.

Most of all, pray that God will open your eyes to the truly wonderful things that are in His Word and in His Law.

What do you want to see with open eyes?

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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What will you gain when you die?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

To me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
(Philippians 1:21 (NIV))

I haven’t written about this passage much before, but today I was going through my files and this particular passage and devotional caught my attention. I found myself reading it and I believe that someone needs to hear this at this point in their life.

I want you to carefully reread these words from this passage. Do they have a sound that is contrary to what we, as a society, tend to think about this world, life and “religion?”

Most people think of Jesus as a safety net for when we die, not as a way in which we can live in freedom.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
(John 10:10 (NIV))

We are told that Jesus gives us life to the full, yet, we ignore Him until we face dying. Isn’t it just like human nature to have our priorities turned around. We look to the promise of life when we are dying and look to sin and death when we are alive. For those who understand the truth behind these words, life is better with Jesus. There is hope. There is peace and there is grace.

Without Jesus, death is to be feared. We end up eternally separated from God and eternally cast away with Satan. With Jesus, death is not to be feared, for we will see the reward for our faith. We will walk with Jesus in the Kingdom of Heaven where we will be eternally at peace and in God’s presence. When we look at it like this, death for a believer is gain. It is not to be feared. It is a reward for our faith and our priorities in this life. We have all heard that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. If we are present with the Lord at our death, then we have “gained” eternal life through grace and mercy. This is truly gain.

What will you gain when you die?

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Now is the time to strengthen your resolve to boast only in the Lord!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

But, “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”
(2 Corinthians 10:17 (NIV))

The time is upon us when we must stop trying to rely on our own strength. Even those of us who profess a faith in Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior still try to rely on our own strength. We boast and brag about what we are capable of doing, but in the grand scheme of things, what we can do is absolutely nothing.

All of us have become like one who is unclean,
     and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,
     and like the wind our sins sweep us away.
(Isaiah 64:6 (NIV))

Can a filthy rag clean itself? Can a filthy rag clean up other filthy rags?

Only the Lord is capable of anything righteous. Only the Lord is capable of cleansing the filthy rags that come to Him seeking salvation. Only the Lord is capable of cleansing the filthy rags that come to Him because He is the way, the truth and the light. We must cling to His truth! We must cling to His light!

If you have paid any attention to the things happening in this world, you know that something is not right. There are things that are transpiring that are rapidly fulfilling the prophecies of the end times. We see wars and rumors of wars. We see good being called evil and evil being called good. We see God’s truth being slandered and rejected while they openly embrace the lies of the enemy.

I saw something today from a source that I trust, and it made me sad for those who are drinking the kool-aid. At the same time, I was happy for the implications of what was unveiled to me.

Do you trust the media? Do you trust social media? Do you trust big banks? Do you trust large corporations? Do you trust the U.N.?

Let’s pause on the U.N. for a moment. You will not find this in the media, for it is all part of the plans of the enemy. They are calling for people in all countries to turn in those who don’t drink the kool-aid. They are calling for those of us who don’t blindly accept what is being fed to us to be turned in. They are saying that the only “truth” that you can accept is the information that comes from big media, the governments and the so-called fact checkers.

This makes me want to boast all the more in the Lord. I love the way that David boasted.

The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
     my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
     my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
(Psalm 18:2 (NIV))

Living in this world is not easy. Living in this world without Jesus is impossible.

Now is the time to strengthen your resolve to boast only in the Lord!

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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