Suffering, and the Eternal Nature of Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Eternal Prayer

Have you ever faced a personal life or death situation, or prayed through one in the life of someone near to you? Have you come to a point in a long relationship with a loved one in which you find you have been taking them for granted, and their love for you is about to end because of your complacency? In moments such as these our feelings are suddenly heightened, reignited, reinvigorated, and we cling desperately to life, or to our love for another. Suddenly, in these desperate times, we realize the importance of life, or the depth of a relationship that is teetering on the edge of being lost. As Christian believers, these are situations that draw us closest to God, and in our suffering or despair we find our faith in Him has sprung to life, and reached a crescendo. These moments of suffering cause us to lean on the Lord in ways that might have grown cold in us during the calm and peaceful times when we felt in control of our own destinies.

Waiting to hear God's Voice in the Wilderness

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Waiting in the Wilderness

How long have we been waiting on God? Do we even realize that we have been waiting, or do we simply think that we are living a life subject to our own actions? Are we going to a dead end job every day, or simply living hand to mouth, and not see that the Lord is about to do something wonderful in our lives? So many people wander about, or carry a heavy burden in their heart, feeling lost in the world when in fact they are one step or one day away from God calling their name. Are we one of those that are waiting today, and don’t realize it?

Overcoming the Challenge and Fear of doing God’s Will

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Transforming Call of God

Jesus got into the boat with Simon Peter and told him to pull away from the shore a short distance, then he taught the crowd that had gathered on the shore about the Word of God, but when He had finished teaching this lesson He told Simon to pull into the deep water, and there He not only taught Simon a greater lesson about faith, by miraculously filling two boats with fish, but convinced these men to follow Him. The question we need to ask ourselves this morning is this… are we standing on the shore listening to Jesus teach us about what we are already familiar with, or are we prepared to pull away into deeper water and learn a lesson of faith that will not only amaze us, but frighten us as well?

What are our Communion Remembrances?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Remembrances of Jesus

In communion we consume the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ, and as often as we do so, we are told to remember Him, but what are our remembrances? Do we recall His miraculous birth, the Sermon on the Mount, a particular miracle, his passion, death, resurrection, the moment we first embraced Him, or are our thoughts drawn to His return, and how we will become one with Him just as in marriage we become one flesh with our earthly spouse? Do we recall the thought of this ethereal spiritual reunion, and how He has brought peace to a relationship that was once marred by hostility, and by our rampant pursuit of sin?

Faith - Do We Worship What We Do Not See?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Faith and Belief

What is the nature of our belief? Is it founded in unseen faith, or does it need to see physical evidence of God’s power before it will prosper and grow? Do we live in a matter of fact spiritual world where giants are slain by a single smooth stone thrown by a young shepherd boy, or do we believe in the incredible wonder of a God who speaks to us mysteriously from burning bushes that are not consumed by fire, in an awe inspiring God whose small still voice whispers to us, or an unseen God who reveals himself to us in dreams, visions, and mysterious voices in the night? Are we like Thomas the disciple who needed to feel the wounds of Christ, or Samuel the Prophet who only heard the voice of God in the night?

Praying in the Spirit - Worshiping in Spirit and Truth

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Spirit and Truth

We are in need of many perfections of faith, and so often we can’t see in ourselves what we are lacking. Our spirit feels the presence of the void, and yet we can’t put that emptiness into words. As we kneel to pray, in the presence of such wounds, there is only unsettled silence because we are at a loss for words to express our inner suffering, and in that moment of despair and heartbreak, when our soul feels like it is being rent in two, the tears and groans well up in us, and the Holy Spirit begins to pray for us. He is our helper, and in merciful intercession, He prays in ways that we alone find ourselves unable. Does this sound familiar? Have we wrongly recognized a spiritual hole within ourselves as being human depression?

Asking God for Help in our Faith, and Belief

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Help My Unbelief

There is no cry for help that we can utter which is more important than when we call out to God asking Him to help us believe. If we are seeking God, and Jesus Christ, but find ourselves unable to bridge that gap between us and Them… it is time to pray; not simply to know who God is, or to believe that Jesus actually walked this world, but to believe with all our heart, mind, souls, and strength that Yaweh is the one true God, and that Jesus, His Son, lived, suffered, died, and was resurrected, so that our sins would be forgiven, and we could have a loving, and righteous, relationship with Him. Jesus did this so that our life with God would be restored, and it would be peaceful, joyous, and eternal.

Birthdays - Alpha, Omega, and Just Enough Eternity to Know God

Richard Forbes
Understanding God , Christian , Daily Devotional , Birthdays and Faith

Birthdays are excellent times to look back on the lives we have lived thus far, and to take stock of what we have gathered to ourselves, the wonders we have seen, the blessings received, and the good moments we have experienced, but the richest memories are those that are branded into our thick hides, the ones that came from suffering, and God’s deliverance. Each time the Lord rescues us we find that our faith in Him has leapt forward, and each moment spent crying on the shoulder of Jesus brings us that much closer to Him. Only by weathering these trying times of tribulation do we find peace, abundance, and hope in tomorrow. Nowhere is God’s love, goodness, and grace more abundantly obvious than in those times when we need Him most.

Schoolyard Bullies, and Waiting on the Lord

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Spiritual Dew , Waiting on God

In these times of constant change, and intense spiritual warfare, it is easy to become disheartened, and if we aren’t courageous, and don’t trust enough to wait upon the Lord, we can become spiritually wounded. We see Satan’s minions taking control of governments, killing the innocent, and his warlords brutalizing entire countries, and we call out for Jesus to come now. Yet in all of this we must endure, persevere in our faith, and wait in absolute trust. In these times of our greatest earthly suffering, and despondence, we are told to lean on God, and wait in Him. Are we able to do so without fainting? Is God our strong tower?

Abraham Taught by God’s Will, Knowledge, and Mercy.

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , God Teaches Abraham

When Abraham negotiated with God and asked Him to spare Sodom and Gomorrah even if there were only ten righteous people there, and God agreed, was He changing His mind, or revealing to Abraham that He already knew how debase these cities were from the very beginning? When God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac did He change His mind at the last moment, and realize the error of His ways? Did he have a change of heart, or was His mercy already decided before Abraham took Isaac to Mount Moriah… even before the foundation of the earth?

Walking in the Furnaces of Life and Faith

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , In The Furnaces with Jesus

It’s one thing for us to feel that we are in a fiery furnace like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, but we should not only survive such experiences in our lives, but walk around within them. Even more, we should never feel alone there because Jesus is with us. There are some among us who are suffering the heat of a physical or spiritual furnace right now. But, are we consumed by it, giving into it, or walking around within it talking to Jesus about what it means to truly suffer?

Do We Piddle at our Faith and Calling?

Richard Forbes
Dedicated to our Faith

Are we piddlers? It’s one thing to be this way in our everyday lives, but quite something else to be known as a piddler when it comes to our faithfulness to God, and belief in Jesus Christ. A piddler is a person who wastes their time in trivial pursuits, while avoiding the more important things. They miss the mark by wasting their time on piddley pursuits while ignoring what really needs to be done. Is this how we are known to the saints in our church when it comes to religion, or to God regarding our faith? Has He called us to do certain things for Him, but we busy ourselves with unrelated pursuits and never seem to get around to obeying Him… to doing His will?

Pray without Doubt, and Glorify God

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Glorifying God in Prayer

We have learned to never stop praying, but are we sorrowful in our prayers? Our troubles often prompt us to come to the Lord broken, with great despair, and our needs hanging around our necks like heavy weights. But, although these are things we can’t solve for ourselves, they are nothing that our Lord God can’t easily solve, or lift from us. When we are praying before God there is no need to lament. We should rejoice to be in His presence, and we should be filled with joy and thanksgiving because as Christians our God defends us, and provides for us. What is our mood when we pray?

God Corrects His Beloved Children

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Discipline

Have we ever been through times when our sins became so intense that we cried out in pain from within the midst of them, and sobbed as we asked for God’s forgiveness and mercy? Perhaps an addiction was destroying our body, or ruining our marriage; maybe we stole or lied about something, and when found out, our transgressions brought great shame on us, or we lost our job as a result of them. The consequences of sin can be severe as God disciplines us for them. Are any of us being disciplined now? If we are, take heart for God loves you… and will bless you in your correction.

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