What does your face show?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit.
(Proverbs 15:13 (NIV))

Why do so many people who profess a faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior walk around with such doom and gloom on their faces?

It just doesn’t make sense!

We have been given the greatest gift that could ever be given. We have been given salvation and grace when we deserve death due to our sinful nature. Our death sentence has been commuted. We are free from the bondage of sin and death, yet so many who profess a faith in Jesus don’t seem happy and joyful at all.

Are you happy?

Do you wake up every day and give thanks to the Lord for what He has done for you? Do you give thanks to the Lord because you woke up? Do you find joy in God’s Word and in His promises? Are you thankful for the sun on your face and the wind in your hair? Are you joyful at the site of family and friends, and are you truly joyful to gather with the Body of Christ to worship and praise the Lord? In other words, do you have joy deep within your heart because you are His?

What does your face show?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Is eternity long enough to give our thanks and praise?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
(Psalms 100:4 (NIV))

It is that time of year when we, as a nation, have set aside a day to give thanks. When I read the passage above, I realized a few things that jump right out at me. The first thing that I notice is that we, as the Body of Christ, should have a perpetual attitude of thanksgiving for it is tied directly to our desire to be in His presence. It should not be limited to a single day and a single meal.

Thanksgiving should be a believer’s way of life!

We should give thanks for our lives. We should give thanks for the air that we breathe. We should give thanks for our family and friends. We should give thanks for the roof over our heads. We should give thanks for the food that gives us energy. Most importantly, we should give thanks for the gift of grace and mercy that was freely given to us at the cross.

The second thing that I noticed is that when we are thankful, we should praise the Lord.

We should give praise to God for our lives. We should lift up praise to God for the air that we breathe. We should praise God for the blessings of family and friends. We should praise God for the shelter that we have been given. Our praises should be lifted to the Lord for the food that we have been given. Most importantly, we should praise and glorify the Lord for the gift of grace and mercy that was freely given to us at the cross.

Taking a long and serious look at all that we should be thankful for, one day is not enough. One life is not enough!

Is eternity long enough to give our thanks and praise?

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you believe in praise?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

It is good to praise the LORD
and make music to your name, O Most High,
to proclaim your love in the morning
and your faithfulness at night,
(Psalms 92:1-2 (NIV))

Praise!

Some people do not think that it is good to sing and shout to the Lord. We have something to be very thankful for and it is hard not to praise God for what He has done for us. Grace is an amazing thing. We have not earned it. We cannot buy it. We can only accept it for what it is: the unmerited favor from God. If this is not something to sing and shout about, then we have nothing to sing and shout about.

We should proclaim God’s love from the time that we get up to the time that we go to sleep, for without God’s love, we would be lost in a world of sin and death. God, in all of His mercy, sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the atoning sacrifice for our sin so that we would not have to face the death that is the punishment for sin. All we have to do is accept this gift and then praise God for His love, grace and mercy.

Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Praise the LORD

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.
(Psalms 150:6 (NIV))

Do we truly understand the simple truth of these words?

All of creation praises God in all that it is, yet, our intellect often keeps us from doing what God designed us to do. We are to praise Him in all things.

What happens when we fail at this?

Jesus told us exactly what would happen.

“I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”
(Luke 19:40 (NIV))

What happens when a nation does not praise God?

Another nation or nations will be found that will shout out His praises!

This is exactly what happened when Israel rejected their Messiah when He first came. Because of this, we, the “stones” have been given the opportunity to praise Him.

Unfortunately, some of the “stones” are also keeping quiet. We must not let this happen. We must be ever thankful of the gift of grace and mercy that we have been given. We must shout it with every breath!

Sometimes actions speak louder than words. We can shout with our actions.

No matter how we choose to praise God, we must never lose sight of the truth that He deserves all glory, honor and praise.

How do you praise God?

Copyright 1998 – 2012 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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