Have you come to your senses?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

When he came to his senses, he said, `How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!
(Luke 15:17 (NIV))

How far have you wandered from your Father? What caused you to wander? Did you see something that looked appealing to you? Did you think to yourself that you would do something for a little while and then return? Perhaps you simply found yourself drifting away and did not even realize it until it was too late.

I like the words “When he came to his senses.” The son had realized that he was a fool for choosing to stay in the squalor that he found himself in. He realized that he had a way out of his predicament and he was going to accept the consequences, humble himself and ask for forgiveness.

When did you come to your senses? Did you wake up one morning and not remember were you were? Did you look in the mirror and not recognize the person you saw? Maybe your personal story is not as bad as these examples, but each of us has a story. We realized that we had been foolish to think that we could do things on our own. We came to our senses and returned to the Father. Isn’t it nice to know that no matter how far we stray, it is only a single step back to the loving embrace of God. Isn’t it good to know that our sins have been forgiven through the atoning blood of Jesus. Through Jesus, we are offered grace, mercy and eternal salvation. All that we have to do is come to our senses and accept it by accepting Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior.

Have you come to your senses?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Does Jesus live in you?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
(Galatians 2:20 (NIV))

What do you think of when you think of being crucified with Christ?

It is so easy to skip over hard questions such as this and simply think to yourself that you know what it means, but do you truly know? Are you able to articulate to yourself and to others just what this means to you? If you were asked to stand up in front of a group of people and answer this question, could you? If you were standing in front of the Lord and He asks you this question, what would your answer be?

We all know the standard answers to what this means, but that is only the beginning of what should be a personal response. Just as no two individuals are the same, I honestly believe that if we truly looked at ourselves and came up with our own personal response, no two responses would be the same.

It is said that when Jesus was on the cross, each one of us was on His mind. We know without a doubt that He died so that we could have salvation, but did He think of each one of us down to the individual sins that we have committed? Did He say, “I’m doing this so that Joe can be free from the power the enemy has over him and his addictions?” Did He say, “I’m here so that Mary can have freedom from the shame of her past?”

If Jesus thought of each one of us by name, what did He take to the cross on your behalf?

This is your personal response!

How can you express your thankfulness for the specific sins that He was crucified for?

Have those sins been replaced with Jesus living in you?

If you can give testimony of a personal response, then you should be able to boldly claim that Jesus lives in you! If Jesus lives in you, then you know exactly what Jesus took to the cross on your behalf. Jesus took all of our sins upon Himself when He went to the cross. The price that He paid was great. He did not walk away from the cross carrying anyone’s unpaid sins. The price He paid covered them all so that we can boldly proclaim that we have been crucified with Christ!

Does Jesus live in you?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you know the Lord well enough to know that He will be exalted?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Be still, and know that I am God;
(Psalms 46:10a (NKJV))

As most of you know, my ministry is built upon this passage. For the most part, I have focused on the first part of Psalm 46:10, for this is where we are called to be still and know God. This focus was to remind us that we can truly learn to be still in His presence, for it is only when we can truly be still and acknowledge Him do we truly understand His love, power and authority. When we are still in His presence is also when we learn to hear from the Lord. It is when we experience the intimacy that our spirit yearns for. It is when we experience the Lord as Abba, Father.

How is your relationship with the Lord? Do you proclaim that He is your Father? Are you able to spend time completely still in His presence?

Are any of us able to completely stop the cares of this world and focus on God? Perhaps if we go beyond the first part of this passage we can begin to see the results, for what is truly happening in this passage is much different than most people realize. This passage was written immediately after a time of extreme panic by the people of Israel. They were surrounded by a vast army that had never been defeated. They were facing certain defeat and perhaps annihilation at the hands of this enemy. The king humbled himself before the Lord, and to make a long story short, the Lord defeated the army over night. Those who were not killed fled for their lives. Through this, we learn another aspect of God. We learn that He is a mighty warrior who will protect those who love Him and call upon His name. We learn that He will do mighty things in the sight of the nations that will glorify Him as He saves those who believe!

Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!
(Psalm 46:10 (NKJV))

Are you fearful because of the things in this world that are surrounding you at this very moment?

Be still!

Are you so full of panic that you only see the enemy and not the Savior?

Be still!

If we profess a faith in Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior, it is time to sit at the feet of the Lord and remember what He has already done and what He promises that He will do. We are not on our own! We must remember that we don’t have to handle things by ourselves. If you are concerned about anything, be still and allow God to handle it. If you stop and let Him manifest His plan, you will see that He will be exalted. Do not be afraid! Be still!

Do you know the Lord well enough to know that He will be exalted?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you believe?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

“Don’t be afraid; just believe.”
(Mark 5:36b (NIV))

Do you know the first part of this story?

Jesus was asked by a ruler of a synagogue to come and heal his daughter. Along the way, a woman touched the hem of his robe and was healed. Jesus was sidetracked from his plans. During this time, some men came and told the ruler of the synagogue that his daughter had died. It appeared that Jesus was too late. It appeared that all hope was lost.

With that scene laid out before you, can you imagine the feelings of despair that the ruler of the synagogue probably felt. I can also imagine that he was probably also feeling anger toward the woman who had distracted Jesus. He was afraid that he had failed his daughter and that he had failed his family and himself. I can imagine the deep anguish that I would feel if I had gone to get someone who could save my son or daughter only to discover that circumstances had delayed the saving grace that I had been so sure of.

“Don’t be afraid; just believe.”
(Mark 5:36b (NIV))

Words.

Words that are so easy to say, yet, are so difficult to hold on to when all around you seems to be falling apart.

I want you to ask yourself this one question – Have any of the promises that God has made ever been broken?

Jesus, the word made flesh, had willingly gone with the man to heal his daughter. He had promised to go. It is not in his nature to break a promise, even when in the eyes of the world, things are too far gone for anything to happen. But, happen it did.

Jesus healed the girl. He brought her back from the dead. According to all worldly knowledge, it was too late, but according to God’s timing, it was not. In fact, the timing of this resurrection was perfect, for it magnified God through the actions that transpired.

With God, things may never be too late. Is there something in your life that just will not change, something that has been troubling you for a very long time? It is not too late for God to turn that around. Is there a dream that you feel that God has given to you, but it has not come to fruition and you are getting older? It is not too late for God to make it happen.

In all honesty, I believe that these five words can be used to define a faith in Jesus. They can be used to help us walk through the darkest shadows of life. They can be used to encourage us when we walk through whatever wilderness we find ourselves in.

Don’t be afraid.

For I am the LORD, your God,
    who takes hold of your right hand
  and says to you, Do not fear;
    I will help you.
(Isaiah 41:13 (NIV))

Just believe!

Copyright 1998 – 2019 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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