Tag Archive for Lord

Quit Struggling

2017-02-01 Devotional with Hymn No comments

Psalm 46

Father, today
I am swept up in so much that I cannot
know,
control,
understand, or
change.

But You are my protection.
You are my strength.
You are with me, and
I am immovable.
I am in You, and
all is peace.

What do you call me to do today?
To quit struggling, and
simply know that You are God.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Lord, How Good to Rest in You
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

Compassion

2016-06-19 Devotional with Hymn No comments

When a need stirs your compassion, what do you do next? Jesus was frequently moved with compassion, and whenever He was, He always took immediate action to meet the need before Him.

  • He taught and healed the crowds, then sent His disciples to do the same. (Matthew 9:36 – 10:8)
  • He fed the hungry. (Matthew 14:14; 15:32; Mark 6:34; 8:2)
  • He gave the blind their sight. (Matthew 20:34)
  • He touched the untouchable leper and healed him. (Mark 1:41)
  • In the middle of a funeral, Jesus felt compassion for the bereaved widow and raised her son back to life. (Luke 7:13)

All that is fine for the Son of God, but what about us? We can’t feed thousands with a boy’s lunch, or give blind men their sight, or heal all the sick, or raise the dead. What are we to do when we are moved with compassion?

Jesus answered this question through three of His most memorable parables. In each, a human being like us is moved with compassion and takes action in response. These parables point the way for us.

  • We can use what we have to help the needy as we encounter them. The Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37) was moved with compassion toward a needy person of a different race. He used his own time, energy, and resources to help him.
  • In mercy, we can help restore those who are trying to rebuild their broken lives. While the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) was still far away, the father saw him, felt compassion for him, and ran to him. He kissed and embraced him, then restored him to his former relationship by giving him a robe, a ring, and sandals. Then he threw a lavish party to celebrate his return.
  • We can show those who have wronged us the same compassion and forgiveness that God has shown us. In the story of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:21-35), when the master completely forgave the overwhelming debt of his servant, he expected the servant to do the same for his own debtors.

God moves us with compassion for a reason. Don’t be satisfied with simply feeling the sentiment. Use what the Lord has given you and reach out to help the needy. 

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Lord, Keep Us Reaching
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

SIMPLY CHRIST Devotional Tapestry

2016-06-09 Devotional Tapestries No comments

SIMPLY CHRIST Devotional Tapestry

Devotional Tapestries are short recordings designed to draw your heart and mind to the Living God. Each includes a devotional reading over instrumental music, leading into a hymn.

Listen to SIMPLY CHRIST Devotional Tapestry
Printed devotional & hymn
More Devotional Tapestries

Foot Washing

2016-02-23 Devotional with Hymn One comment

John 13:4-17

What would you have felt as you watched Jesus, the Son of God,
get up from this important meal,
take off His outer clothing,
wrap a towel around His waist,
pour water into a basin,
get down on His knees, bend low, and
one by one wash His disciples’ absolutely-filthy feet?
How would you have felt when He got to you and began washing your feet?

If a picture is worth a thousand words,
a living example is beyond words.
Instead of lecturing them,
He gave them an unforgettable experience complete with
sight,
touch, and
deep emotional memories.
Because He loved them,
He wanted love to take root in their daily lives.
He wanted them to grasp how absolutely vital it is that each and every one of us
humbly serve one another.

Look around at the situation in which God has placed you.
Consider the resources He has lent you.
How does He want you to wash feet?

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Here at Your Feet, Lord
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

Let Love Fill My Moments

2015-08-02 Devotional with Hymn, Prayer No comments

O God, you are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you,
my body longs for you,
in a dry and weary land
where there is no water. 

Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.
I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods;
with singing lips my mouth will praise you. 

On my bed I remember you;
I think of you through the watches of the night.
Because you are my help,
I sing in the shadow of your wings.
My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.
(Psalm 63:1, 3-8, NIV)

Lord, help me spend my thought time
more wisely.
Let’s keep an open conversation
between You and me,
talking and listening,
no matter what else is going on.
As we face each other, Lord,
let Your love fill
all my spare thoughts and moments.

Make my life a constant gift of love
from You
to Your children. 

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Lord, May Our Thoughts Begin with You
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

Live Love

2015-01-11 Devotional with Hymn No comments

Imagine a world where everyone loves everyone else, sincerely, from the heart.

Imagine a place where people speak of each other only what is true, and only what will build each other up;

  • a place where everyone treats others the way they themselves want to be treated;
  • a place where self-centeredness, greed, and fighting are gone;
  • a place where people live each day as joined to everyone else, as part of each other, as members of one body;
  • a place where gentleness and kindness are highly prized;
  • a place where forgiveness, patience, and forbearance are the norm;
  • a place where need is no more, since each person shares what they have, freely and unafraid;
  • a place where everything, everything is done in love.

Wouldn’t you like to live in such a place? That’s the kind of world our Creator is building. And that’s the kind of life He wants for you. He wants to grow it in you. He wants to help you live such love in your home, on your job, in your neighborhood, among your friends. And He wants to start today.

But how could anyone live such a life in this world of greed and brute force? What’s more, how can we live that kind of love when selfishness is so deeply rooted within us?

The good news is this: God is love (1 John 4:16). Our Creator is love. The One who designed this world designed it for love. The One who designed us designed us for love. Love is our purpose, our heritage, our destiny. Love is the rich life, the full life, the natural life that He is giving to every one of us.

A life of love is not an heroic feat of self-control. As we trust Him simply, step-by-step, we grow in Him. As we grow in Him, He grows in us. His love grows in us. It begins as a tiny seed and grows into a beautiful tree that gives shelter and nourishment to everyone around.

Listen and sing:
Hymn: Lord, You Are Love
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics

Praise to You, Our Father!

2013-12-01 Devotional with Hymn No comments

Luke 1:46-55

As you read the above passage, called The Magnificat, hear the joy and praise in Mary’s words. She realized that the coming of Christ proved that God was faithful to all His promises.

His coming shows that God is all He says He is and does all He says He will do. Praise to You, Father!

Christ’s coming displays our Father’s deep compassion on all our human weakness and need.

In Christ God pours out His grace on the unworthy and lavishes His mercy on we who don’t deserve it.

In the infant Jesus, the tenderness of our Father becomes flesh and blood. We can touch Him, and He touches us.

In Christ we see the power of our holy God to make us like Himself.

In Christ we sense God’s desire for intimate fellowship with us human creatures.

Father, in Jesus Christ we see You as You are! Praise to You! Praise and glory and thanks to You forever and ever!

Listen…and sing if you want:
Hymn: My Soul Exalts You, Lord
Recording
Printed Music & Lyrics