07 Wednesday Aug 2013
Posted in Reflection
For our reflection post this week I wanted to share a short and interesting video with a great message for us all. As most of you know, I am a big fan of Francis Chan. He is that rare individual who practices exactly what he preaches. I hope you enjoy the video. We will be back to our reading on Thursday.
If you ever come across anything you’d like me to post on this blog, please feel free to contact me at dino.evangelista@gmail.com.
30 Saturday Mar 2013
Posted in Reflection
I received the picture and prayer below from my alma mater this morning in an email. I thought I would share it today as we approach Easter this weekend. I pray you have a blessed Easter weekend. I hope you enjoy it.
If you ever come across anything you’d like me to post on this blog, please feel free to contact me at dino.evangelista@gmail.com.
29 Friday Mar 2013
Posted in Reflection
Tags
The most amazing days of our faith are upon us. We are about to celebrate the resurrection of our Savior. But first we have to experience a day of sadness; the day our King was beaten, tortured, and killed because of our sin. I guess by now you all have figured out that I love the Skit Guys, and this Good Friday video is one of the best. I hope you enjoy it.
If you ever come across anything you’d like me to post on this blog, please fee free to contact me at dino.evangelista@gmail.com.
18 Monday Feb 2013
Posted in Daily Reading
As I read today’s passages in Acts, I kept thinking to myself, “what has the modern church become, the Sadducees or the Pharisees?” I’m not thinking about their literal beliefs, but I’m comparing the quarreling we have internally as “Christians” when we get hung up on the mundane aspects of who we have become as a religion and forget to focus on Who made us as believers in the salvation we received through Jesus Christ. Every time we choose to focus on anything other than Jesus, we turn away from the reason Jesus came, died, and rose again in the first place. Let us not lose sight of our Savior and the freedom He has given to us. Not a freedom to sin, but a freedom to focus on Him and our true purpose in life which is to serve Him and draw others into relationship with Him.
16 Monday Apr 2012
Posted in Daily Reading
Tags
Verse 11 is interesting, He is “ ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’ The notes in my Bible says that the capstone unites the two sides of an arch and holds it together. Peter is talking about how the Jews had rejected Jesus, thus making Him the capstone that united us all in the church. Without Jesus there would be no church because it would not be able to stand on its own without everything He did to fulfill His purpose here on earth.
14 Tuesday Feb 2012
Posted in Daily Reading
The last part of today’s reading, for me, has always been more about the miracle of a fish having a coin in its mouth than the meaning behind this particular event. Jesus was making it clear that He is the King and as the King He really was not obligated to pay any taxes. It would be the equivalent of me tithing to myself. But Jesus understood the rulers did not understand who He really was. It was not worth making a big stink about it so He paid the taxes through the miracle of supplying a fish with the money in it (kind of like an ancient pez dispenser). The application for us is to remember that we are foreigners on this earth and we are not citizens here. However, we still to be good residents and be good ambassadors of our true King.
05 Sunday Feb 2012
Posted in Daily Reading
In this chapter, my focus was turned to Jesus walking on the water. Peter’s experience is very much how I am with Jesus in my own walk sometimes. When my eyes are focused on Him, I can handle any of life’s obstacles. But when I focus on the waves crashing all around me, I struggle dealing with the issue at hand. God never asked me to suck it up. He asked me to trust in Him and know that He will never leave me alone. When I stop long enough to see this, my level of understanding leaves me at peace. The other day a friend posted the following dialog on her Facebook page…
Me: God, can I ask You a question?
God: Sure
Me: Promise You won’t get mad…
God: I promise
Me: Why did You let so much stuff happen to me today?
God: What do u mean?
Me: Well, I woke up late
God: Yes
Me: My car took forever to start
God: Okay
Me: at lunch they made my sandwich wrong & I had to wait
God: Hmm
Me: On the way home, my phone went DEAD, just as I picked up a call
God: All right
Me: And on top of it all off, when I got home, I just wanted to soak my feet in my new foot massager & relax. BUT it wouldn’t work!!! Nothing went right today! Why did You do that?
God: Let me see, the death angel was at your bed this morning & I had to send one of My Angels to battle him for your life. I let you sleep through that
Me (humbled): OH
GOD: I didn’t let your car start because there was a drunk driver on your route that would have hit you if you were on the road.
Me: (ashamed)
God: The first person who made your sandwich today was sick & I didn’t want you to catch what they have, I knew you couldn’t afford to miss work.
Me (embarrassed):Okay
God: Your phone went dead because the person that was calling was going to give false witness about what you said on that call, I didn’t even let you talk to them so you would be covered.
Me (softly): I see God
God: Oh and that foot massager, it had a shortage that was going to throw out all of the power in your house tonight. I didn’t think you wanted to be in the dark.
Me: I’m Sorry God
God: Don’t be sorry, just learn to Trust Me…. in All things , the Good & the bad.
Me: I will trust You.
God: And don’t doubt that My plan for your day is Always Better than your plan.
Me: I won’t God. And let me just tell you God, Thank You for Everything today.
God: You’re welcome child. It was just another day being your God and I Love looking after My Children…
21 Saturday Jan 2012
Posted in Daily Reading
There is so much great stuff in today’s reading. I want to focus in on an area that always made me wonder because I always found it interesting that Jesus seemed to pick the Sabbath as the day He wanted to push the Pharisee’s buttons. Jesus must have known that healing someone on the Sabbath would annoy them, yet He did it anyway. I think some of the reasons are obvious, like wanting them to focus on what is really important rather than simply following the rules. However, I think one of the main things He wanted to show to them was simply that He is the creator of everything, including the Sabbath. If all they cared about was the Sabbath, then they were missing God’s entire reason for creating us in the first place. How many times do I miss God’s reason for doing something in my life because I simply focus in on the thing He has allowed to happen to me instead of learning to pull myself away from the individual incident and learn to see the big picture and His plan for it all.
20 Friday Jan 2012
Posted in Daily Reading
Tags
There is a lot to take in with today’s reading. I focused in on final verse of the chapter, verse 35 where it says, “Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” In this simple verse Jesus places all of us exactly where He wants us to be, which is in perfect relationship with Him. Jesus readily calls us His “bother and sister and mother”. I sometimes have to remind myself just how much He loves me and how much He wants to have a real and personal relationship with me.
18 Wednesday Jan 2012
Posted in Daily Reading
The lame man being healed at the pool is a story that has always bothered me. Ever since I was a little boy I remember how troubled I was that it took him 38 years to be healed. For 38 years no one helped this man get into the “healing pool” and it took Jesus to come along to finally heal him. It wasn’t until recently that I realized that this man’s life was put into place to ultimately glorify Jesus. He was asked by God, unknowingly I’m sure, to live out his life for the sole purpose of helping to shine a light on the Messiah. I don’t know about you, but I can’t stand suffering for more that 5 minutes, much less 38 years. I was reflecting with someone today about how easy it is to be an American. We have everything at our fingertips and when we suffer just a little it seems like the whole world is coming down on us. We must accept the life He has given us and know that all circumstances are for His purpose and not ours. I think it is also important to remember that our lives, whether in prosperity or in suffering, is put in place for the sole purpose of glorifying God.
Daily Devotion 