Pray for God’s righteousness to be made manifest!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent—
     the Lord detests them both.
(Proverbs 17:15 (NIV))

Can you imagine what the Lord thinks about our current society?

I’m not going to go into any examples, for I am confident that you can come up with your own examples that fit this passage from Proverbs. All that I will say is that based on recent events, the Lord is probably not very happy with the way things are going. I will also take a moment to remind everyone that everything that is happening has not caught Him off guard. He has told us what would happen before it has happened. With that in mind, do you recognize the events that are transpiring in the world as prophetically significant? Do you even pay any attention to the things that are happening, or are you so engrossed in your own life that you can’t see the proverbial forest for the trees?

When governments don’t do what is right in the eyes of God, we have problems. When the courts don’t do what is right in the eyes of God, wee have problems. When the media pushes an unholy agenda, we have problems. And, the one that gets me agitated the most is when the churches espouse a different gospel, or they don’t follow Biblical principles, then we have problems.

When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice;
     when the wicked rule, the people groan.
(Proverbs 29:2 (NIV))

Are you groaning?

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.
(Romans 8:26 (NIV))

Rest assured that the Lord sees and hears what is transpiring. When we see things in this world that go against what God calls good, we feel it in our spirit. We groan in agony over the wickedness that seems to get worse every day. We groan in agony over those who are lost in their sin. We groan in agony over the lies that the enemy has convinced far too many people that it is truth. We groan in agony over the churches who have bought into the lies.

But, we have another option to consider when we groan.

The Lord understands these groans as prayers, and they are as incense lifting up to Him. All that we need to remember is that everything is in His timing and not ours. We are called to be patient. We are called to be prayerful, and we are always called to share the Gospel with anyone and everyone who will listen. I have a challenge for you the next time that you see the guilty acquitted and the innocent condemned. I have a challenge for you when you see anything that is not righteous in the eyes of the Lord. Pray! Pray in agreement with what you know that the Lord desires, and never forget that groans are acceptable.

Pray for God’s righteousness to be made manifest!

Copyright 1998 – 2023 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Lord, we need you to revive us!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Will you not revive us again,
     that your people may rejoice in you?
(Psalms 85:6 (NIV))

Do you ever feel overwhelmed with the weight of the world?

Perhaps it is health related. Perhaps it is finances. Perhaps it is a job, or lack thereof. Each of us have many potential reasons to feel overwhelmed.

But, . . .

Each of us has a singularly amazing reason to feel joy even in the midst of all that we may face. If you have professed a faith in Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, you simply need to shift your focus from what the world is sending your way to what Jesus has done for you to overcome the world.

Each of us needs to have our faith revived periodically. We may profess a faith in Jesus, but we are only human and human nature is easily distracted by the physical world. Currently, there is so much going on in this sinful, fallen world that we can lose sight of the glorious promises that we have been given. Some people are saying that what we have been seeing on many college campuses and other various places are not revival, but I want to present some questions for your consideration.

Are people turning to the Lord?

Are people rejoicing in the Lord?

Are people repenting of their sins?

Revival is a personal increase in faith, and since it is personal, we can’t truly know the hearts of those who are involved. With that in mind, I want you to consider these words.

“Master,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.”
“Do not stop him,” Jesus said, “for whoever is not against you is for you.”
(Luke 9:49-50 (NIV))

In other words, those who are involved may not be part of your group, but as long as they are truthfully lifting up the name of Jesus, we should not be quick to condemn. We may even find that they are seeing things anew. We need to be cautious to not become Pharisees simply because things go against our preconceived rituals. With that said, I have but one thing to say.

Lord, we need you to revive us!

Copyright 1998 – 2023 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do these words describe your faith?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
(Romans 12:12 (NIV))

I have read this passage numerous times, and each time that I have read it, I have stopped to reflect on my life and whether I am living up to these commands.

The other day, I read this passage in the Complete Jewish Bible translation and the meaning took on so much more. I have often alluded to how different translators will use different words that mean the same thing, but in this particular instance, I found myself stopped in my tracks. The words came to life! It may simply be the results of reading this with different words, after all, we are creatures of habit. When one translation becomes so familiar that you take it for granted, a fresh perspective is often needed.

Rejoice in your hope, be patient in your troubles, and continue steadfastly in prayer.
(Romans 12:12 (CJB))

God’s Word is so much more than any language can accurately convey. Even our own conversations with each other utilize different words to convey the same things. For example, if you ask a group of individuals to all explain the very same sunset, you will receive as many different descriptions as there are people.

In reflecting upon these new words with the same meaning as those that I am familiar with, I realized that we all need a fresh perspective at times. This is especially the case even with what we know to be the truth. This does not change the truth. It simply enhances our understanding of the truth by making us stop and discover anew what we have already known.

After reading this translation, I immediately prayed that these words truly do describe my faith! Perhaps we all need to come to this same conclusion as often as we read Romans 12:12.

With that last statement that I just put forward, I have but one question for you to prayerfully consider.

Do these words describe your faith?

Copyright 1998 – 2023 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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How do you celebrate the presence of the Lord?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

When the ark of the Lord’s covenant came into the camp, all Israel raised such a great shout that the ground shook.
(1 Samuel 4:5 (NIV))

How do you celebrate the presence of the Lord?

Think about that!

God would lead His people by going ahead of them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. When He stopped, the ark was brought in and set within the tabernacle. To the nation of Israel, the ark of the covenant was the presence of God. It was the mercy seat where God came to dwell with His people. The whole nation of Israel rejoiced greatly when this happened. They praised God with such a great shout that the ground shook.

How does that compare to what we do in our churches?

The Israelites had the events of the Exodus to be thankful for. God saved them out of physical bondage in Egypt. They had been slaves for four hundred years and God rescued them. He made a choice to show His power to the world through the actions He took bringing them out of Egypt.

They had a reason to rejoice, and their rejoicing shook the ground!

I hate to say this, but in most of our churches today, we barely even make a noise, and we have so much more to be thankful for than the Israelites did!

God saved them from physical bondage, but they were still in bondage to sin and death. We have been given something that they weren’t given. We have grace. We have mercy. We have salvation freely given to all who will simply profess a faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. The Israelites escaped physical bondage. We can escape eternal bondage to sin and death, and yet we act as if we are dead. We don’t shout out our thanks. We don’t lift up His name in praise. Most believers are more enthusiastic about their favorite sports team than they are about lifting up His name in praise.

The Lord moved mightily in and through the nation of Israel when they had not forgotten the things that He had done for them. Have we forgotten what He has done for us? We can now stand in His presence through the atoning blood of Jesus and we act like we are watching a show on tv. We simply sit back and watch as a spectator.

Faith is not a spectator sport!

How do you celebrate the presence of the Lord?

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
https://www.dailylivingministries.org
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What do your groanings mean?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice;
      when the wicked rule, the people groan.
(Proverbs 29:2 (NIV))

I am going to ask a question that many people will say has an obvious answer, but just to make sure, here goes.

What are you hearing from the people, from the world today?

I honestly believe that the only people you hear rejoicing are the ones at the very heart of all of this mess. There is a big push by the global elite to do things that are fulfilling things foretold of long ago in God’s Word. Whether you believe that the new world order is planning a great reset or you believe that Planet X is making people crazy, one thing is certain – there is something big going on in this world. I want to let you in on a little secret that should put your mind at ease if you profess a faith in Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior. God is still in complete control! None of this has caught Him by surprise. We are the ones who are surprised.

Why?

Do we not spend enough time in His Word? Do we not know His Word well enough to know what He is allowing to happen as it happens right in front of us? Are we groaning because we are saddened by the state of the world as it has so rapidly changed? Are we groaning because we long for the way things used to be?

Personally, I like to believe that the groaning that we are hearing is from the Body of Christ as we pray through the Holy Spirit to express our desires for His righteousness and His plan as it unfolds.

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.
(Romans 8:26 (NIV))

This may sound strange, but I believe that those who profess a faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior can groan in the Spirit, yet still be able to rejoice, for we know that Jesus will return sooner than any of us would have even considered ten years ago. We groan because we long for the evil to end and His righteousness to be established, and we rejoice because we know that it will come.

We don’t know what tomorrow will hold, but we do know who holds tomorrow. All that I know is that I pray to be able to be as faithful as those whom were fed to the lions in the Colosseum. It is written that they sang with eyes lifted toward heaven!

Are you prepared? Do you stand firm in your faith?

What do your groanings mean?

Copyright 1998 – 2022 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Are you hearing groans?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan.
(Proverbs 29:2 (NIV))

Sadly, people have been groaning ever since the fall from grace!

There are many times throughout history where the wicked have ruled. It is not difficult to identify many of these. Each continent has had their share of wicked rulers. Some are currently groaning under the weight of oppression. If you stop to honestly think about it, God’s Word has many examples of wicked kingdoms from the past. We are even given a very detailed picture of many of them from the stories of the Tower of Babel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace, Daniel in the lion’s den, the Roman occupation of Jerusalem and all of Israel, and the crucifixion of Jesus at the hands of the Romans.

We are also told of a time when wickedness will rule the whole world. When good is called evil and evil is called good. The whole world will be groaning in anguish during this seven year period of tribulation. With what is going on in the whole world at this moment and what is currently happening in this country, many people are in anguish. They are groaning because of what they see currently and what they see as the next logical step as it leads down a path from which many feel there is no return to what we now long for as normal.

Privacy is going.

You have to think a certain way. Anything different is vilified.

Sin is embraced and righteousness is ridiculed.

There is talk in many countries and regions in this world of having to have a vaccine passport in order to take part in society. Some places are even going so far as to hint at requiring this to even go to work, or to buy and sell basic commodities such as food. This is rapidly looking like it could evolve into what the Body of Christ refers to as the mark of the beast.

It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.
(Revelation 13:16-17 (NIV))

There is a time rapidly approaching when the father of lies will have his way with the whole world. Does this make you groan? I know that this is all part of God’s plan, but it still makes me groan deep in my spirit. I ache for those who have not come to a saving knowledge given to all through the atoning blood of Jesus. I can only imagine that if this makes my spirit groan, what is it doing to God?

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))

If you are hearing groans or are groaning yourself, imagine what this is doing to the very heart of God!

Are you hearing groans?

Copyright 1998 – 2021 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Happy New Year!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
(Revelation 1:8 (NIV))

God is good all the time! Yesterday, today and tomorrow, He is the same. He is the Alpha and the Omega. Now that we are ending a year that has had the whole world afraid to be in public and as we are entering a new year that has many people worried and wondering, we must remember that God is God and He never changes. No matter what happens when January 1st comes, God is still God.

If you have accepted Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, your joy is not tied to the events of this world. No matter what may happen in this world, we should have a true sense of joy. We should have a true sense of peace.

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
(Philippians 4:4-7 (NIV))

There are a few words in this passage from Philippians that stand out to me.

Rejoice.

Always.

Peace.

Guard.

Hearts.

Minds.

If we profess that God is the Almighty, and we also profess that Jesus is Lord, why do we look at this world with such a pessimistic outlook? Are we truly allowing our hearts and minds to be guarded by the peace of God?

Think about that as we step into what I am certain will be a very uncertain year. No matter what we may face, we must remember who is in charge and in whom we have placed our faith. With the promises that we have been given by God, we should be able to face anything in this world with a joy and a peace that is beyond the ability of the world to understand. We just need to make sure that we don’t fail to understand.

Happy New Year!

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Rejoice in God’s light! His name is Jesus!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
(Philippians 4:4 (NIV))

If you had to proclaim the birth of a baby in your family, you would be joyful. You would exude enthusiasm. You would rejoice in the fact that God has blessed you with a new life to share. It would be an extremely happy occasion. Unfortunately, though, that baby would be born with the very same curse that we all face. That baby would be bound by the law of sin and death.

Now, consider that a baby was born into the family two thousand years ago. This baby was no ordinary baby. I am sure that He brought joy to the lives of those whom He called His family, but He was so much more. He came into this world to be a part of the family of each and every single person who has ever lived. This baby came into the world to bring great joy. God sent His Son, Jesus, to be one of us. Unlike everybody who was born under the law of sin and death, Jesus came into the world sin free. He grew up sin free and He remained sin free even to obedience that called Him to die on the cross. Through Jesus, we truly have grace and mercy. Through the baby Jesus, we truly have something to rejoice about. The infant that came into this world symbolizes a rebirth of our human natures.

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
(Philippians 4:4 (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. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
(John 3:16-21 (NIV))

Rejoice in God’s light! His name is Jesus!

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Are you persecuted because of Jesus?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
(Matthew 5:11 (NIV))

Is this the type of blessings that you signed up for?

There is a difference between worldly blessings and godly blessings. When the world attacks, we must remember that the enemy has control of the world at this time in history. We are at war! Does an army at war attack itself? The attacks fall on those whom the enemy feels are threats to its very existence. Do you profess the name of Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior? Do you share this faith with others? Do you spend time daily in God’s Word? Do you see the evil in the world and have a heavy heart because of all of the ungodly things that are occurring?

Are you taking a stand for Jesus?

If you aren’t being attacked by the enemy, it is time to reevaluate your faith. The enemy doesn’t see you as a threat to what he has planned. He doesn’t see you as a prayer warrior who has put on the full armor of God! If the enemy doesn’t see you as a threat, how does the Lord see you? Would He call you lukewarm like He called the church at Laodicea? Will He simply say He never knew you.

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
(Matthew 7:21-23 (NIV))

Have we, as the Body of Christ, grown too comfortable with the world to the point that we would rather receive worldly blessings now instead of receiving heavenly blessings later? Do we fail to take a stand for Jesus because our faith isn’t strong enough or do we simply want the worldly concept of instant gratification?

We must reevaluate our priorities and focus on eternity. This world is a sinful, fallen world that is rapidly declining. If we profess a faith in Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior, then we must be prepared for the battle, for the war that is ensuing. Is you faith strong enough to face persecution from the enemy?

Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
(Matthew 5:12 (NIV))

Are you persecuted because of Jesus?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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Is this continually on your lips?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation say continually, “Great is the Lord!”
(Psalms 40:16 (NIV))

Do you proclaim the greatness of the Lord at all times?

Think about that question with respect to these situations. Are you able to proclaim the greatness of the Lord when you’ve just lost your job? What about when you have no money left and you still need food? What about when someone whom you love passes away? Is it easy to still proclaim the greatness of the Lord in these situations?

I realize that these are extreme examples and that everyone has times that they can think of when it was difficult to proclaim the greatness of the Lord. Have there been specific times in your life when you found this difficult to do? Did you ever get to the point where you could proclaim this again? Perhaps you are in a situation at this moment in time that you simply feel that the Lord has forsaken you. You are not alone!

Even David had these times in his life where he felt that the Lord had forgotten him or forsaken him. Let’s put this in perspective. David was the young man who faced and killed Goliath. David was the young man whom God anointed to be king over all of Israel. David was the man who defeated all the enemies of Israel. David purchased the land for the location of the Temple. David was called a man after God’s own heart. Still, in all the ways that the Lord blessed him, there were times when David felt that God had turned His back on him. We can read this in the Psalms that he wrote. He goes from praising God to asking why He has been forsaken. In all instances, David quickly comes full circles and praised God in the midst of the troubles because he has a history with the Lord. He knows that the Lord will do once again what He has done in the past. He knows that the Lord will not leave him in the situations that he found himself in.

In essence, David knew to praise the Lord for what He has done. He also knew to turn to the Lord and seek His blessing when the enemy was closing in, even when it appeared that the enemy was winning. David knew that he needed to lift up praise to the Lord for the greatness of the next thing that the Lord would do. It could easily be said that David’s praise could be broken down into two categories.

David praised the Lord for what He has done.

David praised the Lord for what He would do.

Do we have the faith to praise the Lord in this manner? Are we able to say “Great is the Lord” even when we don’t see what He is doing?

We must rejoice at all times for Great is the Lord!

Is this continually on your lips?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
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