Do you know the heart of God?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
(Matthew 24:37-41 (NIV))

Isn’t it amazing how easily we get so wrapped up in our own little worlds that we ignore the things that we should truly be wrapped up in?

Some people take this to the extreme with respect to the blessings they have been given in this world. They ignore spouse, children, other family and friends all for the sake of doing something that truly has no value beyond the day. No wonder the coming of the Son of Man will be as it is foretold. Even if we, as humanity, are given blatant signs that the time is drawing near, we will miss them because we are so wrapped up in our daily lives that are completely focused on our own little worlds.

Perhaps Psalms 46:10 is more appropriate than we care to admit when it tells us “Be still, and know that I am God.” We have let the worldly things become our gods and we pay homage to them in our frantic pace while we ignore the one, true God. God gave us our lives to enjoy. We are to enjoy each other. We are to use the talents that He has given us. We are to care for the world that He created for us. We are to embrace the salvation that He has given to us, and, especially, we are to enjoy our time with God.

Don’t get so wrapped up in this world that you miss what is truly important in your life.

Where is family?

Where is friendship?

Where is quiet time to sit at the feet of Jesus and to be still and know God?

Don’t be left behind because you did not know the heart of God!

Do you know the heart of God?

Copyright 1998 – 2019 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Learn the true heart of God and not the “rules” taught by men

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
” `These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are but rules taught by men.’
(Mark 7:6-7 (NIV))

It is my desire to learn the true heart of God and not the “rules” taught by men.

What single thing do you hold on to that is not Biblical, but is actually a man-made rule? Come on and admit that you have them. They are the things that we all hold on to because they are tradition, or because they are part of our comfort zone. Perhaps the biggest one is thinking that other people can’t be true believers because they don’t look and act the same. I hate to say this, but I would bet that every believer struggles with this from time to time. And I think I know where that all started. Could it be that we are so ingrained in our own set of rules made by man, that we forget that they are only rules? We start to judge others by our set of rules that we have applied to ourselves, while we overlook the much bigger and much more important aspect of grace and mercy.

Human nature is a fickle thing. We long to be forgiven, but then we add all types of stipulations that God never would have even begun to think of. It is interesting that God could only come up with Ten Commandments and then salvation through Jesus. We have added so many things to this that we could easily be guilty of worshipping in vain, for we could be following our rules instead of God’s teachings.

We need to focus on what is true and righteous in the eyes of God. We must focus on God. We must focus on His Word and on Jesus, His only begotten Son. We must focus on the Holy Spirit. All other, if it does not point you to God, Jesus His Son, and the Holy Spirit, is a false teaching and must be removed from our lives.

Don’t let man-made rules hinder your relationship with God and your salvation through Jesus, His Son. It’s not worth what you will lose.

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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