Have you embraced the Lord’s great love?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
(Lamentations 3:22 (NIV))

When we hear these words, can we honestly claim them as our own?

It is not always easy to claim them because of the burdens of the world and the things that we face every “morning.” Yet, all we have to do is stop and reflect on God’s promises to see that He has gotten us through another day and that we were indeed not consumed by the burdens of this world.

Each day that we have is a gift from God and should be approached with thankfulness and joy for the enemy is all around. Through God’s great love and mercy, we have escaped the enemy to see another day. The enemy that I speak of is death. Death through sin. Physical death and spiritual death are both a part of the enemy’s arsenal of weapons. The spiritual death is the consumption of our souls by the enemy.

Through God’s compassion, He sent His Son Jesus Christ to face the ultimate “consumption” for our behalf. Even though Satan tried to consume Jesus, Jesus defeated Satan, and through this act, we have the ability to claim that we will not be consumed by the enemy, but covered in grace and “compassion.”

What better gift can we receive?

Have you embraced the Lord’s great love?

Copyright 1998 – 2019 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
Subscribe to daily email delivery
Visit us on facebook

Has your love matured to this level?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
(1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV))

Have you ever given any thought to this passage and asked yourself why love is the greatest of these?

I realize that 1 Corinthians 13 defines characteristics that we all long to possess, but if you read through it carefully, you realize that these characteristics, no matter how desirable, are useless and meaningless if they are not accompanied by love.

Can we speak eloquently and have hatred in our hearts? Can we possess head knowledge and understanding of God’s Word and what He says will happen and still feel no compassion for those who are not saved? Can we possess a faith in Jesus and still have anger and animosity in our hearts? Is it possible to firmly believe, yet not care for others? Can we claim that we have hope for an eternity with the Lord and still neglect to share Jesus with others?

Each of these scenarios paints a picture of people who truly do possess desirable characteristics, yet, they all lack one crucial aspect.

Love!

Love is the manifestation of all that is best. Love places others above yourself. Love is the culmination of the desire to see others lifted up. In essence, love can be defined as putting your faith and your hope into action for the benefit of others.

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
(John 15:13 (NIV))

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))

To me, this type of love is the result of a mature faith and hope. Has your love matured to this level?

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

His compassions never fail!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”
The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;
(Lamentations 3:22-25 (NIV))

Seventy times seven! That is the number of times that God says we must forgive others when they sin against us. When that was written, that was considered a large number and was intended probably to mean that we are to forgive unlimited times.

If we, who are not perfect, are to forgive unlimited times, how much more can God forgive if His compassions never fail? If we place our trust in God, He will forgive those who earnestly seek after His Will.

Look at two different scenarios. If you had a son who constantly disobeyed and did not wish to take Godly counsel, you would want to change his attitude, but would not help him until he did. If you had a son who wished to do what is Godly and right, but constantly fell short, you would assist him in his struggles. It is his desire to do what is right, but he needs guidance. One son you would stop helping until he changed his heart, the other son you would continually help because his heart is right.

God is the same way. If you earnestly seek after God, then He will assist you immeasurably to achieve His Will for your life.

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

God’s love stands faithful!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

I will sing of the LORD’s great love forever;
with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all
generations.

I will declare that your love stands firm forever,
that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself.
(Psalms 89:1-2 (NIV))

Even before Jesus came to earth, people were singing the praises of God. They were preaching the good news before they knew what that news was. All they knew was that God had promised, and that was sufficient for them. What faith they had!

Today, we have the benefit of history to look back at and see that:
For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ.
(2 Corinthians 1:20a)

Is it no less appropriate to realize that what God has promised that has not yet happened, will happen. God has promised that His people would know the season for things to come. Even to the end, He is faithful and His love does stand firm forever.

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