Are you capable of waiting?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
(Psalms 27:14 (NIV))

There is something about human nature that doesn’t like to wait!

Do you have the patience to wait? Do you know of anyone who has the patience to wait? Have you ever thought about this passage in that context?

God uses things that are contrary to the sinful, fallen world to bring people to Him, and this is no different. Since waiting goes against human nature especially since the fall from grace, perhaps God uses the concept of waiting to teach us and to explore our hearts. He uses waiting to see if we are willing to go against our sinful nature. Let’s face facts. Waiting is not easy! Is God using this to see who is willing to go the extra mile and deny themselves in order to spend time with Him?

Think about that from the standpoint that humanity likes instant gratification!

I am sure that when you were growing up, you were constantly told, “Good things come to those who wait.” What better thing is there than the Lord, our God? Is He worth waiting for? Is He worth going against the world in order to receive Him? What do we receive when we what for the Lord? We come away with a wonderful understanding of who He is. We come away with a thankful heart because of what He has done. We receive an eternity in His presence! I find these to be the ultimate good that I long for while I wait for the Lord.

Are you capable of waiting?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery
Visit us on facebook

Hold on!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
(Hebrews 10:23 (NIV))

Does this world make your weary? Do you ever simply want to give up, to throw in the towel?

That is what the enemy wants us to do, but we are called to persevere in our faith.

Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
(James 1:12 (NIV))

The weight of the world and the pressures, trials and troubles that it can bring are an extreme burden, but we do not have to carry that burden alone. Jesus has overcome the world and He walks with us through this life to give us joy, strength, courage, hope and faith. He is calling us to complete the journey before us. He is calling us to stay strong and reach for the goal that He has set before us.

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
(Philippians 3:14 (NIV))

That goal is to live a life of faith in Jesus. That goal is to keep our eyes on Jesus even when things are tough. That goal is to finish the race of faith that has been set out before us.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
(1 Corinthians 9:24 (NIV))

Are you still running your race of faith? Are you holding on to the hope that we profess?

Hold on!

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery
Visit us on facebook

Never forget that your faith impacts more than just you!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
(1 Timothy 4:16 (NIV))

I realize that you have heard this concept before, but please take note, for it is true.

When you professed your faith in Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, people started watching you. Some want to see you fail so that they can reinforce their personal conclusion that Christians are hypocrites. Others are watching you and praying for you. Many are somewhere in the middle. They could care less if you persevere or if you fail, but they will be very vocal if you do fail. It should be the goal of every believer in Jesus to persevere, especially when those around you expect you to fail. This shows the power of the Lord working through you.

I love Paul’s take on this. He wanted people to know that he is weak and that whatever happens is not a result of his strength.

That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
(2 Corinthians 12:10 (NIV))

When we can show weakness in our own strength and still persevere through the Lord’s strength, then we are a strong witness to those around us of the power of God! When we persevere, people will sit up and take notice. They will want to know how we were able to persevere. They will want to know our secret. That is the time that we share the power of God with them. That is when we share the grace and mercy of God with them.

That is when the faith that saves us will also save others.

Never forget that your faith impacts more than just you!

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery
Visit us on facebook

What has happened to our priorities?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.
(Acts 4:29-30 (NIV))

Do we speak God’s Word with great boldness, or have we become complacent in our faith?

The book of Acts tells us of the great things that the early church did. They did them because they had the faith to be bold. They knew with certainty that what they believed was true. They were not ashamed to boldly profess their faith. They were not too timid to stand firm on the promises that they had been given. They were not too engrossed in the trivial issues that surround us in our daily lives.

Sure, they worked to provide for themselves, but they did not become workaholics and so focused on achievement that they ignored what they knew to be true.

Why do we, in our so-called advanced society, lose focus of the very things that the early church boldly embraced? We no longer are bold in our faith. We are bolder about our support for our favorite sports team than we are about the grace and mercy that is freely given through the Blood of Christ. We can spend hours talking to each other about the game we saw yesterday, but we are not willing to even talk about Jesus at all.

What has happened to our priorities?

Are we the church? Are we the Body of Christ? A body is in motion and doing all that it can to make sure that it not only survives, but thrives. Is the Body of Christ in motion? Is the Body of Christ just surviving or is it thriving?

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery

Are you willing to imitate Jesus?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
(1 Thessalonians 1:6 (NIV))

Are you willing to imitate the Lord even if it means that you will suffer?

Think about your work environment.

Think about your friends.

Think about your family.

Are you willing to imitate Jesus in all of these scenarios?

I know that we all have times when it is easier to follow Jesus because we are with people of like mind. Place us in a situation where Jesus is ridiculed and how do you respond? Are we willing to follow Jesus if we will be ridiculed? Are we willing to follow Jesus if we will be tormented for our faith? Are we willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice for our faith? Are we willing to be imitators of Jesus even if it means that we will face death?

Jesus was willing to go to the cross so that we could have salvation.

What are willing to do for Jesus?

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery

Where do you long to dwell?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

One thing I ask of the LORD,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to seek him in his temple.
(Psalms 27:4 (NIV))

I think that David wrote the words that anyone earnestly seeking God truly holds as their one desire. Just as a young man in love does not want to leave the object of his affection, so, too, is the true believer and his Lord.

Are you in love with all of your heart, mind, body and soul? Do you long to stay with Jesus or are you in a hurry to get on to other things that you think are important? Any relationship takes time to build and maintain. Have you committed your time to Jesus?

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery

Stand firm in your faith even if the world thinks you are a fool!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

The heart of the wise inclines to the right,
but the heart of the fool to the left.
Even as he walks along the road,
the fool lacks sense
and shows everyone how stupid he is.
(Ecclesiastes 10:2-3 (NIV))

Have you ever encountered someone who just did not seem to understand how foolish they were to everyone else?

Did these people rebel against God? Did they deny God?

The fool says in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, their deeds are vile;
there is no one who does good.
(Psalm 14:1 (NIV))

Foolishness is different things to different people. To the believer, those who deny God are foolish. To those who deny God, we appear foolish.

Who do you think God considers to be foolish?

I have seen too many things in my lifetime that I thought I would never see. All of these are centered around what God considers foolishness and how it has become the societal norm. We have moved far past foolishness into areas that are pure evil. We, as the Body of Christ, must take a stand. We must recognize the things that God calls foolish and stay as far away as possible from these things. We must pray for those who are doing foolish things. We must pray for those who are caught in the evils of this world.

At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
(Titus 3:3-8 (NIV))

The time has come when professing a faith in Jesus Christ is considered foolish by many in this world. We must remember that we do not embrace the things of this world. We are to embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are to live the Gospel, even if it means looking foolish in the eyes of the world.

Now is not the time to falter in our faith!

Stand firm even if the world thinks you are a fool!

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery

Serve the Lord no matter what!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.
(Acts 20:19-21 (NIV))

The words of Acts are attributed to Luke, the physician. They sound like they could have been written by Paul. Either way, the message is the same. We should take these words to heart when we are facing tests.

We should always strive to serve the Lord in all that we do. We should not alter what we say or how we say it just because we are with different groups of people. Just as faith in Jesus was declared to both Jews and Greeks, we must always declare our faith in Jesus no matter what we face or who we may be with. We must not waiver in our faith. Jesus left us strict guidelines as to how we should always declare Him.

Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.
(Matthew 10:32-33 (NIV))

We must always strive to serve the Lord no matter what our circumstances. We do not want to find ourselves being disowned by Jesus because we were too ashamed to call upon His name in certain groups.

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email deliveryBe Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.
(Acts 20:19-21 (NIV))

The words of Acts are attributed to Luke, the physician. They sound like they could have been written by Paul. Either way, the message is the same. We should take these words to heart when we are facing tests.

We should always strive to serve the Lord in all that we do. We should not alter what we say or how we say it just because we are with different groups of people. Just as faith in Jesus was declared to both Jews and Greeks, we must always declare our faith in Jesus no matter what we face or who we may be with. We must not waiver in our faith. Jesus left us strict guidelines as to how we should always declare Him.

Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.
(Matthew 10:32-33 (NIV))

We must always strive to serve the Lord no matter what our circumstances. We do not want to find ourselves being disowned by Jesus because we were too ashamed to call upon His name in certain groups.

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery

Will we get tired of waiting for the Lord?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.
(Psalms 27:14 (NIV))

We have problems waiting for an answer to a pray if it is not answered immediately. We have problems waiting for special events and special days, such as Christmas. We act as if they will never get here.

Could we have the patience that Job had? Could we have the patience that Noah had when he was told to build the ark? I wonder how many days Noah and his family thought that they would never get through with the construction. Look at Abraham and the patience that he exhibited. How did these people handle the anticipation of the fulfillment of God’s promises?

Think about those who earnestly looked for Jesus to come to this earth. We think that we have problems waiting for Christmas each year, yet these people waited without knowing when God would send the Messiah. We know that the day that we celebrate as the birth of Jesus will come every year, so we only have 365 days to wait until it happens again. Those people who earnestly waited for God and for the Savior to be born did not know when it would happen. Their anticipation was an open-ended anticipation. It required a faith and a hope far greater than we are probably capable of understanding when we live in a society of instant gratification.

Did any of these people simply give up on life and focus on their waiting? Did Job give up and die? Did Noah and his family give up and not build the ark? Did those who looked for the Messiah to come simply stop taking part in every day life?

They pressed on! They moved forward in what they had to do. They did not simply give up all hope and give up on life because they thought that they had waited too long!

Do we truly understand what it means to wait for the Lord?

Are we willing to persevere in our patience as we wait for the Lord?

Do we have the faith and the hope that will sustain us if what we wait for does not happen when we want it to?

Many people believe that we are rapidly approaching the time when we will no longer have to wait for the return of Jesus. We do not know the hour or the day, but we can know the season. Many signs point to this being the season, but what happens if the season takes longer than we hope?

Will we get tired of waiting for the Lord?

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery

Pray like you have never prayed before!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
(2 Chronicles 7:13-14 (NIV))

On this anniversary of the atrocious acts of September 11, 2001, I have mixed emotions. We are seeing things rapidly change and most changes are not for the better.

We have allowed ourselves to become a society, or at least a government, of appeasers. Many today are afraid to call evil what it truly is. Many are afraid to speak out for their convictions. Even if people do not profess a faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior, we can trace our society’s foundations to the Judeo-Christian ethic. We can trace our founding father’s intentions and spiritual guidance if we will only look at what is right before us.

The very principles upon which this nation were founded are being ignored. They are being expunged from history.

Now is the time to pray. Pray like you have never prayed before!

I know that many, including myself, are tracking the events of the world in relationship to Biblical prophesy. Things are escalating rapidly.

I have a question for each of us to consider with respect to the much hoped for Rapture and Second Coming.

Did Jesus tell us that when we see the signs that we are to give up and wait?

He told us to persevere. He told us to hold fast!

The Body of Christ must unite in our prayers. We must pray. We must be bold.

One thing that I have been watching is the 2 million motorcycle ride to Washington D.C. I am sure that some are part of the Body of Christ and some are not, but what I am overjoyed about is that they are being bold for what they believe in. They don’t like the direction that our country is going. They want it to change back to the principles that made this nation what it is. If they are willing and bold enough to take a stand, why can’t the Body of Christ take a stand and humble ourselves and pray?

God blesses nations and individual people. It is time for the individuals to unite and bless God through our prayers.

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery