God’s Eternal Gifts, Blessings, and Promises

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Eternal Blessings

God blesses us and we are thankful for our blessing, but does God’s commitment to His blessing end once it is given? Does the Lord bless us and then simply walk away? Sarah had a son but her blessing didn’t end there. It continued when the Lord provided a sacrifice for him later in life as Abraham was preparing to sacrifice him. Again, when God gave the Shunammite woman a son at Elisha’s request it didn’t end there either… later in his life he died, and God raised him from the dead for her. Our blessings are not simply events… they have eternal lives and continue on. Do we believe, and have confidence in this, or do we see our blessings like lightening in the sky that flashes and then is gone? The Shunammite woman didn’t see her blessing as having an expiration date… do we?

Building Character through Suffering

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Character

We build character by facing trials and tribulations, and no one knows this better than the Christian. Our suffering hardens us in our belief, and builds up the resolve we have in our faith. Surviving our individual tribulations opens our eyes to the true character of Christ. However, our joint suffering with Him, and with one another, will bring us together as one; one in love, one in forgiveness, one in our faith, and one in every character trait of Christ that reflects the Father. Do we value who Jesus is enough to suffer with Him so that we will become as He is… free of imperfection?

Do we observe the Sabbath?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Sabbath

Do we rest on the Sabbath? On the seventh day do we lay down our instruments of labor, close our businesses, and rest as our God rested, or do we look for excuses to disobey? On the Sabbath we aren’t meant to rest from life, but from our works. We don’t cease worship or abandon those things we have built or created, no, we simply do as God did… we rest following the completion of our labor. We don’t gather herds, build homes, or prepare the dead, but we still tend to them.

What is the Life we are given as Christians?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Life

Many Christians take pride in the successes they have in life, and use those to gauge the strength of their faith, but is that a true measure? If we believe as we should, and do those things that God desires of us, is our reward an earthly one? Well, earthly treasure is not the measure that a person of faith should use, and we are warned that we are to look elsewhere. God tells us that He gives us life, but even as we are reading His Word Satan tries to twist our understanding of it.

The Nature of God’s Discipline in our Lives

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , God’s Discipline

Have we been spared the rod by our Heavenly Father, and not been disciplined when correction was called for? If so, are we true children of God or just fatherless orphans? When our Lord disciplines us it is never for the sake of punishment, but to teach us how to be more like Him. It is not so that we will learn to survive in a hard world, but to thrive in heaven above…. To become righteous and holy in our behavior, not hellions, or rabble rousers in the streets.

God our Healer, and the Author of our Health

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Healing

We all know the old saying that time heals all wounds, but as hopeful as that sounds it is not as true as we are asked to believe. In fact, the sole healer of all wounds is God. Time and natural processes might heal a wound to a degree, but it always leaves behind a telltale scar. God, on the other hand, heals us perfectly, and our scars are gone, replaced with the remembrance of the wounds of Christ.

What is the True Power of God?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , True Power

The world sees strength and power in the mighty acts of nature and life. When the ground shakes in an earthquake, the wind roars during a violent storm, or the forest groans and screams as a fire races through it, but as powerful as these things are Christians see true might and strength in a very different way; we see it in the calm before and after these events. We witness it in the calm before, when all hell is preparing itself, and mounting up against us, and we see it in the still moments just after God Has bridled and overcome the onslaught. These moments reveal God’s strength to us. We see the ultimate strength it takes to gather these catastrophes in the palm of His hand, and then still them so perfectly that we can hear nothing more than His whisper… “Be still”.

Thanksgiving Day and the Lessons we have learned

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Thanking God

Today we give thanks to our Lord for every manner of blessing from forgiveness and salvation to His comfort, peace, and provision. We are diverse in our relationship with Abba our Father; some walk closely with Him and find it easy to pray and thank him without ceasing. Others know Him, but not well enough to know how to thank Him properly. While there are those who believe that He is angry with them and that they are unworthy, and will not utter a word. Finally, there are the lost who don’t yet know God, and Jesus at all. Wherever we find ourselves in the gambit of belief and faith today this is the best day to speak with God and ask His Son Jesus to become our Savior and Redeemer. In this way we will be forgiven so that we can offer our thanks. We need to use this day that has been set aside to thank God as our motivation to repair, establish, or renew our relationship with Him.

Peace, and Praying With God in the Name of Jesus

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Thanking God

Today is Thanksgiving Day Eve, and Isaiah gives us another verse to encourage us in regard to giving thanks to the Lord our God as we prepare to join with friends and family in thanking Him together for all that we have received over the past year. The point we should dwell on as we enter into thanksgiving is that we are not writing a letter and placing it in the mailbox for the postman to deliver, or typing an email and hitting the send button hoping it makes it across the internet to Him… No, God is in our midst, and when we thank him in prayer He is right there hearing our every word, every song, and joining in our revelry. Our Heavenly Father is the guest of honor at our festivities, and is receiving the gift of our thanks in person…

Singing Thanks for all the World to Hear

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Thanking God

It’s Tuesday, and we are drawing closer to the day when we will celebrate a national day of Thanksgiving in the United States of America, but thanking God is not something that should be particular to any certain country or people, but to all the earth. Believers should be letting not only their families and neighbors know what God has done for them, but sharing this with all people everywhere. Today let’s sing praises to the Lord, and do so loudly enough for the whole world to hear, so that our voices will invite every man woman and child to join us in faith.

Remembering So That We can Give Thanks

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Thanking God

Today is Monday, and on Thursday of this week we here in the United States will give thanks to God. It is a national holiday during which we thank Him again for another year of His provision, and mercy, but many who are new to faith, have become routine in their practices, or don’t know Him at all, are at a loss as to how to really do this. So, beginning today, and each day through Thursday I will write more about giving thanks to God. Today let’s talk about the first step… remembering, and witnessing to others.

Our Celebration of Life after Death

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Death’s Sting

The mourners gather and hearts break when a loved one passes from this life to the next, but when the deceased is a Christian believer, and the mourners take possession of the victory that has been won, then although their hearts might be sad, their souls rejoice as they share in the victory claimed in that triumphant moment. We mourn for a season, but claim victory in the promise of eternity.

Serving God by Doing His Will

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Serving God

Has the Lord ever called upon you to do a work for Him? If you believe in Him then most certainly, He has, because there is always a spiritual job to be done and serving Him is doing His will. Most labor has a beginning, and an end, but occasionally we are asked to do something that only begins, and whose end we cannot see. If we have been asked to do one of these never-ending works, it can wear on us over time, and we can grow tired, but two things are certain… the Lord will always give us the strength to carry on, and our work will never be in vain.

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