How well do you know God?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

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

How often can you take the time to sit in silence? If you are like me, the hectic lifestyles that we live do not allow any time like this. Yet, God has made us for these times. He did not make us to live in this hectic pace. He made us to be at peace with Him, with the world, and with ourselves.

How can we receive this peace?

God told us to “Be still, and know that I am God.” He did not tell us to live our lives frantically striving to attain something worldly. He told us to be still.

God is not going to shout to get our attention. God is a gentleman. He will not force Himself on anyone, yet He is there for everyone. You must approach Him! You must then learn to be still in His presence and nurture the relationship that He longs to have with you. You must learn to long for a relationship with God.

How do you approach someone that you wish to get to know? Do you go somewhere where it is really noisy, or do you go somewhere where it is quiet and you can talk. God wishes to talk to us in this manner. He also wishes for us to talk to Him in this manner.

Be still and listen.

Be still and talk.

Be still and know.

How well do you know God?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Has God confided in you?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them. My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare.
(Psalms 25:14-15 (NIV))

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

You can’t have Psalms 25:14-15 without fulfilling the command of Psalms 46:10.

To have the privilege of having God confide in you, you must take the time to be still in His presence. You must desire the knowledge of Him who calls you to be His own.

There are certain principles in life that apply both to the physical world as well as the spiritual world. One of these principles is “that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” If you push God away, then it seems that He gets further and further away. If you desire to draw Him close, then He will become closer to you. In reality, God never goes anywhere. He is always there calling out to you, but, appearances are everything. When you push Him away, it seems that He is no where to be seen. It is a matter of the heart.

Since it is a matter of the heart, it is important to fill your heart with matters that are of God. Take the time to be still and know God on an intimate and personal level and He will confide in you.

Has God confided in you?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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How do you desire to love?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.
(1 John 3:18 (NIV))

How many times a day do you say the words, “I love you.”?

Do you always mean it when you say them?

Do you have varying degrees of meaning behind what you say?

If you are like most people, these words could carry a meaning of anything from a strong like to a feeling of complete and total devotion. We say that we love ice cream. We say that we love puppies. We say that we love our families. We say that we love our spouse. We say that we love Jesus, and we say that we love God. When we say any of these, how do our actions reflect the statement? Do we say that we love puppies and then kick the next dog that we see? Do we say that we love our families and then spend all of our time at work? Do we say that we love Jesus and then use His name as a profanity? Do we say that we love God, yet choose to not spend time in His Word and in His presence?

It is said that talk is cheap and that actions speak louder than words. I truly like the following statement about how we are to convey the greatest love of all.

“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
(St. Francis of Asisi)

Gospel means good news. It is the good news of God’s great love for us.

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 so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross as an atoning sacrifice to save us from our sins. Even though Jesus was the Word made flesh, it took action on His part to redeem us and to claim us for the truth. God said that He loves us, but He showed us just how much He loves us through actions. Think about that concept as it applies to your own life. What garners more results? Telling someone that you love them, or going out of your way to show them that you love them? The Lord went way out of His way to show us!

We can follow His example and show love or we can simply utter a few words.

How do you desire to love?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you possess a confident faith?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
(Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV))

Just what is the difference between hope and faith?

According to some definitions of the words, hope can be summarized as a feeling. Faith can be summarized as confidence. I know that this greatly oversimplifies things, but for the sake of argument, let’s go with these simplified definitions.

In other words, confidence is rooted in the feeling that we have. Let’s face facts. We have all had times in our lives when we just knew something would work out. We couldn’t give a reason for knowing, we just knew that it would. We had a feeling that we could not explain. That feeling gave us confidence. it gave us faith. Some things just feel natural. They feel perfect.

Trusting in Jesus is one of those things that feels perfect. It feels natural to place our trust in Him. We are confident of that feeling of trust. Our relationship with Jesus has gone beyond one of a feeling of hope to a confident faith. We don’t have to see Him. We are confident in His presence. We can feel His presence. Just as we feel the wind, we can feel His presence bathing us in His love.

Do you rely on what you can see before you believe? You can’t see the air, yet if fills your lungs and gives you life. You can’t see the wind, yet it can be powerful enough to move even the largest of objects. Faith and hope are just like the air. They fill you up and give you life. Faith and hope are just like the wind. They are powerful enough to move the most stubborn of objects.

Without hope and faith, without feeling and confidence, we are lost. Jesus is the only one who can give us what we long to possess. Jesus is the only one who can redeem us from our sin and the death that results from that sin.

I have a confident feeling that comes from knowing Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior.

Do you have that confident feeling?

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you fear the return of Jesus?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:

KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS
(Revelation 19:11-16 (NIV))

Are you afraid of this scene?

To me, this is a scene that I long to take part in!

I don’t mean to sound like I have an escapist attitude, but I am so weary of the things that are going on in this world. I long to be in His presence!

Many people will call me weak. Many will laugh at me and mock me.

I don’t care!

My eyes are focused on Jesus!

Do you long to be in His presence?

Copyright 1998 – 2015 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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God’s timing is unfolding right before our eyes!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short.
(Revelation 12:12 (NIV))

Do you believe that the devil’s time is short?

It gets shorter every day!

I have a question for you and I want you to answer truthfully.

Are you aware of what is going on in the world or are you so focused on what you are doing that you are oblivious to anything else?

God created a great, big, beautiful world. Unfortunately, we, as fallen humanity, have allow things to happen that God never intended to happen. We have given the devil free reign over what God had intended for good. Lately, it appears that the devil is working overtime.

Things are escalating rapidly!

Evil is marching across the face of the earth in many different forms. We are faced with not just one enemy, but multiple enemies: False religions; Teachers of false doctrines; Persecution of those who earnestly and truthfully call upon the name of the Lord Jesus as well as many, many others.

Are you aware of the wars and the rumors of wars?

Are you aware of the financial issues that the whole world seems to be facing?

I could go on and on, but I hope that you get the picture. We, as the Body of Christ, must focus on more than what God can do for us in our daily lives. Far too many of us look upon the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit only in these terms. There is so much more than our little lives in this battle of good and evil. If we are not careful, we will fall in with the wrong side simply because we are blind to what is going on.

Don’t allow your life and your issues to blind you to the bigger picture that God is unfolding right before your eyes! Focus on Jesus! Focus on God’s word! Focus on God’s calling upon your life and not your desires. Your desires can lead to an undesirable end. God’s desires will lead to an eternity in His presence!

Do you know that the devil’s time is short?

Copyright 1998 – 2015 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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God has not turned His back on you!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

For the LORD will not abandon His people on account of His great name, because the LORD has been pleased to make you a people for Himself.
(1 Samuel 12:22 (NAS))

Too many people feel that God has turned His back on them. They think that He has abandoned them in the middle of their troubles and simply left them there to flounder in their situation. What they don’t realize is that it is not God who has abandoned them, but they who have abandoned God.

God has made a covenant with His creation through the atoning blood of Jesus, His Son. This covenant means that He will always be there for those who call upon the name of Jesus as their Lord and Savior. We have access to God the Father through Jesus, the Son. God’s covenant was made so that those who call upon the name of Jesus would have eternal life with God the Father. If God has given us a means to spend eternity with Him, why would He abandon anyone? Even those who have not called upon Jesus to be their Lord and Savior are under the covenant, they simply have not claimed it for themselves, yet.

It is us who has broken the covenant relationship with God. Even those who have claimed salvation through Jesus may loose sight of God occasionally. When this happens, God is not the one who has abandoned us. We have abandoned Him for earthly objectives and distractions. He is still there, we simply choose to not acknowledge His presence in our lives. He can never break His promise made through Jesus to be with us to the end of the age. God cannot lie.

The next time that you feel God has abandoned you, simply look around you. God is still there. He is still in covenant with you through the atoning blood of Jesus.

Copyright 1998 – 2015 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you notice what comes first?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.”
(Joshua 3:5 (NIV))

Take a good look at the order of events in the passage above.

Do you notice what comes first?

Too many people expect God to do amazing things in their lives before they do anything to prepare themselves for it. They want the rewards before the commitment and the sacrifices are made.

God has an order in which He works. He seeks people who have humbled themselves and have prepared themselves for His presence. Take a look at Jabez. He prayed to have his area of influence increased so that more people would know about God. Take a look at Moses. He was raised in Pharaoh’s palaces, yet, he ended up tending sheep in the desert. During this time, he learned about God and was obedient to what his new place in life meant. Take a look at Mary. She was of such a nature that she found favor with God. You don’t find favor with God by going against everything that He instructs. You find favor through an earnest desire to know God personally.

Take a look at today’s society. We have become a society of instant food, instant credit, and instant divorce. If we want something today, we order it today and get it today. There is no personal patience. We expect everything now and our way. We have even extended this to our outlook and understanding of God. Even preachers are preaching this with all of the prosperity sermons that you hear. Don’t get me wrong. God wants to bless us, but the blessing only comes AFTER you have prepared yourself for that blessing.

What order do you expect in your life?

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Godly Rest!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
(Genesis 2:2-3 (NIV))

Rest?

Even God needed a rest from the task that He undertook. What is it about today’s society that makes us think we can go 24/7 without taking that much needed rest?

We are created in God’s image. If God rested, what does that say about our need to rest? He is the Creator. We are the creation. The creation is not capable of outdoing the Creator. In fact, the creation needs to speak and listen to the Creator. Perhaps that is why we refuse to rest, for when we rest, we are following the desires of our Creator. It is Satan’s influence upon this world that tells us that we do not need to rest, for he knows that when we rest, we spend time with God. Satan does not want us to do anything that will draw us closer to God. Perhaps that is why the world is in such a hectic state of chaos.

We must strive to be within God’s Will. We must strive to do what pleases God. IF God rested on the seventh day, we should rest as well. I doubt that we will find this Godly rest unrewarding, for we will be ushered into His presence.

Rest!

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