Devotional

Devotional 9, Wednesday, September 9

Let’s Not Look Back in the Midst of Chaos

“18 Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”  Isaiah 43:18-19 

Although times of chaos may seem an unlikely time to be made anew, God is always working in our lives no matter what is going on around us. This is a time of transformation, change, and growth. Now is not the time to look back on what once was; but look forward to the things that will be. God is using this time to restore you, to restore your family, and to give you perspective. The chaos we are experiencing is nothing more than a process, to make you anew and to bring you closer to Him.

Objective:

To understand that prayer and fasting is meant to bring us closer to God which allows us to get to know Him better. We need to submit ourselves and our past to Him. Let’s cleanse ourselves, sanctify ourselves and release the person that we used to be, which includes the things that once made us feel unworthy of His love and mercy. We need to forgive ourselves and give way to God to work in our lives. By looking back at the people we used to be, with the errors we may have committed that may have affected us deeply, we are creating obstacles and barriers to the purpose that God has for our lives. 

Do not let the past bind you, even though uncertain times make it easy to go back to old habits. Instead, know that God is working in your life and making you a new creation in Him. 

Devotional 8, Tuesday, September 8

CREATION CRIES OUT

For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. Romans 8:19

OBJECTIVE:

To understand that we will see changes and healing only when our intimacy with God is consistent with our lifestyle.

God is preparing His Church to give birth to the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are living in difficult times, yet we are about to see the glorious manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ here on earth.

In times of crisis, we are encouraged to seek God more than ever and to cry out for His presence.

Psalm 86:6-7

Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications. In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.

God wants us to find peace in the midst of trials and crises; to seek Him more than ever, and to be certain and trust that God has everything under control; that He remains God, that He rules in the midst of any situation, and that we can put our trust in Him.

There are situations we will not understand, but in the midst of everything we must invoke our almighty God, recognizing that He is Sovereign.

Psalm 77:1-6 

I cried out to God with my voice—

To God with my voice;

And He gave ear to me.

2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord;

My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing;

My soul refused to be comforted.

3 I remembered God, and was troubled;

I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah

4 You hold my eyelids open;

I am so troubled that I cannot speak.

5 I have considered the days of old,

The years of ancient times.

6 I call to remembrance my song in the night;

I meditate within my heart,

And my spirit makes diligent search.

These are times to have a more intimate relationship with God, to continue growing in the Lord, and to partake of this glorious manifestation; let us remain consecrated and surrendered to God.

Let our desire be to give birth to the life of Christ, may we not see one another from afar or be insensitive to the actual events of crises, but that we may be moved to mercy, so that we may bring a message of hope to people, speaking of our Lord Jesus Christ to all those souls who do not yet know Him.

Isaiah 66:7-9

7 “Before she was in labor, she gave birth;

Before her pain came,

She delivered a male child.

8 Who has heard such a thing?

Who has seen such things?

Shall the earth be made to give birth in one day?

Or shall a nation be born at once?

For as soon as Zion was in labor,

She gave birth to her children.

9 Shall I bring to the time of birth, and not cause delivery?” says the Lord.

“Shall I who cause delivery shut up the womb?” says your God.

Devotional 7: Monday, September 7

COMING OUT OF CHAOS IN HIS LIGHT

The earth was total chaos, darkness covered the abyss, and the Spirit of God moved on the surface of the waters. Genesis 1:2

We see that, in the beginning, the earth was a chaos, it was in darkness, and it was empty.  Today the world seems to be in the same condition that the earth was at the beginning. We can see extreme confusion and disorder, riots and vandalism, anarchy and rebellion, and the governments of the nations have unpredictable behaviore.  But just as the Spirit moved in the beginning, it is moving today on the face of humanity waiting for the eternal word of God to be spoken through the church!

OBJECTIVE:

The purpose of fasting, praying, and interceding is to be able to approach God'sheart to hear what He is speaking; this is achieved in intimacy, and thenit will be known in broad light.

Don't be silent; it is time to declare what God tells us in intimacy.

Matthew 10:27

What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops.

We, the church,  have the answer to the world. God has allowed a global pandemic to cause a lockdown.  But we know that God provides all things for the good of those who love Him, those who have been called according to their purpose,  Romans 8:28. So let us use this time to enter God's secret place, to know his heart and learn to hear his voice. Thus we will speak only what He says, as the verse above says in Matthew 10:27, and not what the world in chaos is saying.  When we live in God's secret place, our hearts become one with His, this leads us to enter into an agreement with God and his Holy Spirit. If the Church does not enter into an agreement with God, nothing will happen.  The Prophet Amos swrote: Can two walk together, except they be agreed? Amos3:3

The Church needs to walk together and the power of the Holy Spirit today more than ever!  The Holy Spirit is not like a pond in us, but it is  like a powerful river, ready to flow!  It is time to proclaim the word of God filled with the power of the Spirit of God via zoom or  facetime. Seeking God's presence empowers us to speak a message that transforms a world into chaos.

Let's use this time of lockdown wisely, it's no longer a quarantine, look for the things above, the eternal things. Do not seek the earthly, which is only temporal and causes death. Let us look at what God says in his word:   But if they had stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.  Jeremiah 23:22

We, the Church, filled with the Spirit, have the great privilegeoflust in the midst of chaos to enlighten the heart of God through the proclamation of a powerful Gospel that transforms, taking away chaos, darkness, and filling all emptiness in the world.

Devotional 6: Sunday, September 6

TIME TO EXHIBIT THE FRUIT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT!

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."

Galatians 5:22-23

OBJECTIVE:

The work of the Holy Spirit in our life gives birth to its fruit in our lives; that fruit is exhibited/manifested in our life and allows our character to be formed.

The objective of fasting and prayer is to seek the presence of the Lord. In tandem with the Holy Spirit’s help there can be a transformation in us as children of God. And through this transformation we will become instruments of power to impart to all those who have not yet experienced the light of Jesus Christ.

Love: The fruit is love and all the manifestations derive from love.

If there is no love, we cannot be grateful; without love we cannot love ourselves or our neighbor; without love, we can't forgive.

When we allow God's love to be in us:

- All fear goes away, 1 John 4:18

- We keep his word, John 14:21

- Multitude of sins are covered, 1 Peter 4:8

Joy: When love has been produced in us, there will be joy and we understand that joy is something permanent, not temporary; happiness is temporary, but joy is continuous in our life, no matter what situation we are going through because we have understood that our joy comes from God. Psalms 16:11, Romans 15:13

Peace: when we speak of peace it does not mean the absence of problems, but rather it is talking about the peace that comes from the Lord, which leads us to fully trust in Him even through difficult times. We have peace in the midst of the storm; we have peace in the midst of trials and in the desert. Philippians 4:7; John 16:33

Patience: when the wonderful work of the Holy Spirit has been conceived in us, patience will come as a result of love, joy and peace because when these ingredients are already in us, patience will manifest itself, we will take all things more calmly and we will learn to wait in the Lord. Hebrews 6:15, Romans 8:25

Kindness: It is associated with the concept of benevolence, compassion and mercy; it consists of treating others as we wish to be treated by them. Jesus spoke about this simple principle in Luke 6:31 "treat others as you want to be treated."

Goodness: it refers to the way we should live. A way that we can give testimony of God’s existence. The biblical concept of goodness encompasses the idea of ??excellence. When we preserve a genuine testimony we become vessels of God's kindness, then kindness will be a reality in our lives and in that way we become open letters that can be read by others. Excellence and a good testimony shows the Holy Spirit in our life. 2 Corinthians 3:2-3

Faith: It means to depend solely and continuously on God even if the circumstances are not favorable to us. It helps us to take every adverse situation as a blessing, since God's faithfulness is manifested and the important thing is to be willing to do our part and let Him do His. Hebrews 11

Meekness: It is a synonymous of gentleness and humility of heart. Matthew 11:29. A meek person is one who is not easily dominated by anger; it is a special grace of the children of God and denotes authority in everyone who possesses it.

Temperance (self-control): It is the ability to control our mood, overcoming any weakness; it is related to self-control, overcomes any weakness, it is related to self-control and prudence and this should distinguish the believer who is guided by the Holy Spirit who leaves to manifest in wise conduct. Philippians 2:13

Devotional 5: Saturday September 5

NEED FOR LIGHT IN THE MIDST OF DISORDER.

“2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”  Genesis 1:2-3 (KJV) 

God always moves in the midst of every chaotic situation. We can see that in the beginning, God’s first order was to create the light in the midst of disorder, and these days, that is what the Lord wants to do in our lives. For many believers, these have been difficult times. During quarantine, we didn’t have the option to go out and be distracted by life’s desires. Being in that situation, there was nothing left but for us to confront ourselves.

OBJECTIVE:

To understand that only the power of God's word gives us the authority to put our lives in order. In the midst of chaos, we can declare a word that gives light to any negative circumstance.

Perhaps those who do not always pray, out of fear began to pray and speak with the Father. During that time of prayer, while being locked up, we realized that there were areas in our lives that were in chaos and disorder - things we didn't want to give up, habits or attitudes that were hidden and we didn't have the courage to face. I believe that this has been a time of process, for us to be in the desert. We may have felt as if there is no end to this process and this could deter us from going through our desert and back to our disorder and chaos.

 God wants to prepare us in order to use us as a powerful instrument in these times, and He is the only one who can make light in the darkness. The whole earth is in chaos, and we are the chosen ones to bring forth the truths of God. It may not be the most pleasant time of your life, but there is a purpose in this whole process. And I want to encourage you to keep moving forward amid the chaos.

1. The desert is necessary to give birth to your calling.

Our Lord himself went through this. After being baptized, he had to go through the process of the desert to fully begin his ministry. It is in the desert where the Holy Spirit empowers you and gives you new authority.

“14 Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region. 15 And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. 16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,

Because He has anointed Me

To preach the gospel to the poor;

He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,

To proclaim liberty to the captives

And recovery of sight to the blind,

To set at liberty those who are oppressed;

19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”"  Luke 4:14-19

2. No obstacle will prevent his light from entering our lives

 “For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you." Isaiah 60:2

No matter how thick darkness may be, the light of the Lord will always come to your life. The enemy wants your life to be in chaos, confusion and defeat. But when the light of our Lord shines on us, we will rise from the dead! We have to understand that this is the time to shine in the darkness, because the Lord also wants to use us as an instrument to raise the dead. 

3. You have to shine the light of Christ to manifest his good works.

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” 1 Peter 2: 9

Always remember the purpose for which the Lord brought you out of chaos! You were born at the perfect time to be chosen as a light in the midst of all darkness present on earth. Everything we do is for the glory of our Lord, to show that in his word there is an answer to our disorder, that we must not trust in man, but in the Lord, who is the only answer.