The Great Vigneron, and the Eternal Vine

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Jesus the Vine

How great is our dependence on Jesus Christ? Is He the source of everything in our life; spiritual and physical sustenance, a firm foundation amidst the storms, the basis of emotional and mental wellbeing, and our guide to eternity with God? We should look to God for all things, and to Jesus, His Son and our intercessor, to bring us, and each of our prayers, before the Father. Do we do that in every aspect of our lives, or do we envision ourselves to be like a self-sufficient plant that is growing alongside Him?

Praying for others at the height of our own Calamity

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Praying for Others

In the midst of our own troubles do we think to pray for others? When we are suffering, or the enemy is knocking at our door, do we ask God for help, and then include our neighbors in that prayer as well? It is hard to think beyond our own circumstances when the situation is dire, because our true nature is a selfish one. Can we overcome the “ME” in our prayers long enough to lift up a stranger as we ask for personal deliverance? While we are waiting on God, we should try spending some of that time in prayer for others who are facing trials and hardships of their own... maybe while we are waiting on God He is waiting on our intercession for another.

Answers, and our Stifled Prayers

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Answered Prayers

What is it about praying that we value the most? Is it the time spent with God? The comfort that it brings us? Knowing that we are being heard? Realizing that we are never alone? Or perhaps in the way we find joy in praying for others? The list goes on and on doesn’t it... but the one thing that will stifle our spiritual lives more than any other is making the answer to our prayers paramount as we gauge their success according to how they meet OUR expectations. What if I were to tell you that success in prayer is not just receiving the expected results we have dictated to God while praying OUR will as we direct Him in exactly how to answer us?

Faith and the Pebble of Belief

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Faith and Belief

Do we fear for the souls of our children? Does the strength of their faith as it is opposed by all the sin and evil in this world worry us? No matter who we are, the love we have for our children brings us concern for their salvation. Given this, if one of our children died and Jesus miraculously healed them, what would our immediate reaction be? Wouldn’t it be to fall at His feet in gratitude, and then to tell everyone about what He had just done to make believers of them! Wouldn’t it be to shout to the world that this man Jesus Christ was a miracle worker, and to tell them that He was the Messiah? Well, what if He told us to keep that amazing miracle and revelation to ourselves… how hard would that be?

Victory; the Outcome of Waiting on God amidst the Battle

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Overcoming The World

How strong is your faith? Is it strong enough that you can face the hatred of those around you? Is your faith firm enough to withstand the trials and persecution that nonbelievers will put you through? Is it like steel when Satan comes against you because of it? Is it invincible even when those who you love, and that you thought loved you, turn against you for it? When your faith has grown, and becomes like an adornment of shiny armor, that is when the evil one will test you most, using every weapon at his disposal. It is then that you must trust wholeheartedly in the Lord because at that moment the very survival of your soul lies in the balance.

In the Kitchen with God, perfecting the Recipe of Relationship

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Relationship with God

Before we come to the point in our faith at which we understand that our relationship with God and Jesus Christ is what is of paramount importance, we seek the ancillary things pertaining to the promises in God’s Word. We search for such mysterious ingredients as knowledge, wisdom, eternal life, power, joy, and peace, but in doing so we are like any child who prefers eating the icing over enjoying the cake. We see those things that are the fruits of an intimate relationship and mistake them for its purpose.

God’s Calling, and Who Kicks the Boots of our Fear

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Doing God’s Will

Has God asked us to do something hard? Did we answer “Yes Father”, and now we find ourselves at that place He has called us to? If so, we are close now, we are facing reality, and quite possibly the terror of it. This is the moment of truth, and in it we could also be facing our deepest fears. This is the time when we must pray as though we were kneeling in Gethsemane where we are facing our own desires, and doubts. When God reveals the fullness of what He has asked of us and we have found that the nobleness of saying “Yes Lord” has worn off, we will find ourselves face to face with the reality of God’s will and our fears, and doubts too. It is in such moments when we realize fully that we cannot face what God has asked of us alone… but that even so, His will must be done.

Family, and our Holy Purpose

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional

As a believer we are set apart for God’s use, but what about our spouse, and our children? Does God have a plan for them, and does it involve us? Well, whenever something is made holy, God has a purpose and a plan for it. This is true of us as well, and especially includes our role as it pertains to an unbelieving spouse... and our children. The holiness with which we are painted, paints our families with the same color so that we will all be covered by it, and so it is that we bring the hope of our faith into our household. Salvation enters boldly with us through the front door.

When Evil Attacks, and being Held Safe in the Truth of God

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Combating Evil

How do we maintain our faith once we have it? How do we hold firm in the face of false prophets, temptation, evil, or the antichrist? Do we have to return to school like a nurse, or some other licensed professional, and receive so many additional hours of spiritual training each year? The answer is no because within us we already have the knowledge we need, and the anointing of the Holy Spirit who teaches us how to apply God’s Word, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to everything in our lives.

Jesus the Transformer, and Seeing the Face of God

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Seeing God

Do you realize that Jesus provides the life force that powers your soul, that he takes the spiritual current that flows from God, and transforms it into just the right wattage, and amperage for the spiritual motor that drives us? Certainly, there have been those people that God has interacted with directly, but His current far exceeds our limited mortal capacity. Jesus on the other hand provides for us all day long, every day, without overpowering our spiritual senses. He is the transformer that adjusts the power of God to supply our spiritual engines... our daily lives.

Our imperfect lives, and God’s perfect plan for us

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, God’s Plan

We get married, and if we are so blessed we have children. From the moment we decide to bring each of these new lives into the world we begin to make plans for them; we want the best for them. It is the same with God, and He has a plan for each of our lives; a plan made long before we were born... or even conceived. These plans, both ours and God’s, can only be accomplished if the child gives all their effort as they strive to know and do their parent’s will. Are you a fully engaged participant in God’s plan for you?

The Holy Spirit; He’s not a Reward

Richard Forbes
Christian, Curing a Broken Heart, Daily Devotional, Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit comes to us in two installments, the first is the one that leads us to God through Jesus, and the second comes at some point after our initial conversion. There is no mandatory waiting period so you might receive both almost simultaneously. Do you have both inoculations, the initial injection, and then the booster? Did you even know what you felt was the Holy Spirit, or did you think it was just a yearning for the Lord God that you felt, but couldn’t fully describe? By praying we are led to the fullness of the Holy Spirit; yet he is not a reward for righteousness, but rather a helpmate for our spirituality... especially in times of greatest need.

Faith in God and Finding Answers to the Unfathomable

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, Understanding Life

Do we really know what tomorrow will bring us? We think that we can predict it based on the events of today, but in fact we cannot. Life is fluid and ever changing, and many things are understood only by God Himself. So how does not knowing what tomorrow will bring make us feel, do we feel less human or do we feel more so in our unknowing? Does not being able to fully understand the world or something in it turn us towards God, or cause us to feel more alone and insignificant?

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