29 Wednesday Feb 2012
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We all sin and we all mess up on a regular basis. Forgiveness is very easy to accept but not always easy to give. Jesus makes it clear that forgiveness is not something we are to give once; it is something we need to give on a regular basis. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.” When we repent God forgives us endlessly, the least we can do is forgive others when they repent to us.
28 Tuesday Feb 2012
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I love Jesus’ prayer in the second part of verse 41 and 42, “Then Jesus raised His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You heard Me. I know that You always hear Me, but because of the crowd standing here I said this, so they may believe You sent Me.”” Even Jesus gives all the glory over to God. How much more do we need to do the same thing. In everything we should realize that God deserves all the credit and glory for all we have and do.
27 Monday Feb 2012
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Ok, I’ll be the first one to admit that I don’t fully get the parable of the Shrewd Manager. To me it seems like the manager did something wrong and cheated his master out of what was rightfully his. It’s not until we get down to verse 13 that we start to understand where Jesus is going, “No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” The point is that money can either be used for personal gain or to further the kingdom of God. In this case, the servant was able to use money to gain influence for himself and, more importantly, for his master. When we use what God has given us to advance His influence, we are being shrewd. It is less important how much money or influence we have and more important how we use it.
26 Sunday Feb 2012
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This chapter focuses on the lost and the joy it brings to Jesus when the lost are found. The parable of lost son is a great illustration of what it is like for God when those who are lost are found. The interesting thing to me in this story is about the older brother. It wasn’t until recently that I understood Jesus was talking about the Pharisees. Here they are, people who have followed the law and Jesus comes along and changes everything; even allowing Gentiles to receive salvation. Verses 31 shows the love The Father still has for His chosen people, ” ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.” The important part of this parable is that they story does not have a real ending. The story is still being written and Jesus is still waiting for the lost to come home and His chosen people to know He still loves them.
25 Saturday Feb 2012
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In verses 28 – 30 Jesus paints a very clear picture of what happened when we do not count the entire cost of following Him, “28 Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? 29 For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ Too often we will say that we will follow Christ no matter what, but the reality is that we don’t really know what that truly means. We must be prepared to experience difficulties when following Jesus, but we also need to realize we are never alone. More importantly, our eternal reward is worth it.
24 Friday Feb 2012
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I love Jesus’ description of the kingdom of heaven in verses 18-21, ” 18 Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? 19 It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air perched in its branches.” 20 Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? 21 It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.” The kingdom of heaven is so much more than any of us could ever imagine. We tend to limit God and His greatness, but the reality is that He and His kingdom are limitless!
23 Thursday Feb 2012
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Verse 25 is a simple verse with a very important thought, “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” Every time I read this passage I think about how profound it is and how much wisdom it gives us. Worrying is something that produces zero (0) results, yet we engage a tremendous amount of energy into it. I need to remember that the more I trust in God and His perfect plan, the less I need to worry about the things I can’t control.
22 Wednesday Feb 2012
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I love reading John 10:10. It says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” This verse is part of a larger topic, but the reason I love this particular passage is because it tells me that Jesus did not come to make my life miserable. He came to allow me to live my life to fullest. Too many times people feel that the life of a believer is boring or sad, but the truth is that some of the happiest, most fulfilled people I know are believers. Why? Because they experience life the way it was intended; in a fulfilling relationship with their Creator and God!
21 Tuesday Feb 2012
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Once again there is a lot of information in today’s reading. The verses that stick out to me are 9 and 10 where it says, “9 So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” Our Father in heaven wants to bless us, He really, really does! We need to be bold in asking Him for blessings and know that in His plan He has nothing but the best in store for us, even when it’s not necessarily what we think we want.
20 Monday Feb 2012
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In verses 27 and 28 Jesus answered the expert in the law’s question about how he could inherit eternal life, “27 He answered: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” 28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”” I found it interesting that the expert didn’t ask about salvation, he asked about eternal life. Jesus acknowledged the expert’s assessment of how to gain eternal life with the story of the Good Samaritan. I love this story because it not only shows what is right but also the spirit of doing what is right. Sometimes it is not easy to love people who are difficult to love. We need to reflect the love of Christ in all we do no matter how difficult it may be sometimes.
Daily Devotion 