All tagged Forgiveness

Though we are Dust, are we worthy in the Eyes of God?

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Worthy, Forgiveness

Do you ever find yourself worrying about being inadequate in the eyes of God? Do you recall all of your human shortcomings, and think “How can God, the creator of the universe, possibly tolerate me; much less love me?” Then, In your despair, He takes your hand, fills you with His Spirit, and you find yourself amazed to realize that despite all your faults He does love you... so deeply that He sent His Son, and His Spirit to redeem, and transform you? This is more than mercy, it is more than grace, it is a love that conquers all things, forgets all your faults, and forgives the bitterness of every sin. 

Judging, and hindering the Souls of God’s Children

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Judging

Are there those we know who were called by God, and stood before Jesus to profess their faith, just as we did, but have since fallen away? Well, how do we treat them? Do we shun them, look down on them, and make them to feel unwelcome in our midst? Do we judge them, and stand firmly between them and God at the moment they might desire to reconcile themselves? Do we feel that we are the guardians of the sanctuary, and defenders of God Himself? Woe to us who keeps one of God’s children from Him. 

Under Construction - Our Faith, Life, and the True Builder

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, God’s Provision

We go through our day working hard to secure those things that will sustain us, but as we complete today’s chores we often forget the one who has made this possible, and who actually provides for us. Over the course of time we tend to forget who gave us the skills we now employ, or even the breath we breathe, and we claim our efforts as our own. Our faith is like a cathedral that is still under construction after hundreds of years; the amazing foundation stones given by God when the ground was first broken are long forgotten, and only what has just been added is praised. The Lord provides for His children now as He gives us every good thing... building today on the blessings of yesterday.

Thoughts on Mother’s Day, and finding God’s Peace

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Forgiveness, Restoration

Yesterday was Mother’s Day, and mothers were widely celebrated with phone calls, visits, and gifts, but in the year since the previous Mother’s Day many children had lost their mother, and men had lost their wives who had blessed them with children. In the midst of our joyous celebration we can find ourselves saddened, and sometimes feeling bitter towards God in the midst of our mourning. But in all things, even the loss of a mother, or wife, we should worship, and call out blessings to God. Job shows us this after losing all of his children to a tragic storm.

Sin; The pandemic of death, and Jesus our inoculation of life

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Facing Our Sin

Why is it that sin is so prevalent in man? How did one sin multiply to fill us so completely? Our obsessions begin with a single glance, and our sins in the same way; what starts out small, and seemingly innocent, grows into something monstrous. Don’t those little sins pick at us until we are covered with tiny sores that eventually join to become one large festering mess? 

Defeating Temptation, Sin, and Death through Transformation

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Sin, Temptation, Transformed

Do we think that we can flirt with the coals of temptation and not be burnt, or draw Close to the flicker of sin and not erupt into flames ourselves? Are we on the verge of such occurrences today? Are we speaking about someone negatively, calling it a correction, or warning, when in fact it is bitterness and hatred? Surely our words, and actions, will rub against us like a rasp, and we will find ourselves bleeding, or worn away.

Fear Not... God Corrects the Children He Loves

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Discipline, Redemption

The world is writhing under the torment of Coronavirus, and other plagues, yet those known as men of God are remiss in mentioning His name In association with these times. Perhaps this explains why the call for every soul to return to God in the places of worship is so faint. Are the believers praying fervently as if they trust  in God’s ability to save us in these times of plague, or has their faith become so watered down and weak as to be useless? Have we turned to other men, and governments, as we cry out “Save us!“, when we should be looking to God and saying such things as “Forgive us Lord!”, “Rescue us from this scourge!”, “Strengthen our faith!”, “Heal our land!”, and “Jesus is worthy! Hear our prayers in His name!”?

Temptation... A Sweet Smell, but with a Bitter Taste, and a lasting Stain

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Temptation, Cleansing

Are you dealing with temptation in your life right now? Is there a fragrance that wafts around you like a vapor and whose scent lures you towards something sinful? Perhaps it is an attraction to someone other than your spouse, or to a person who is already married. Maybe you are hungry, and are being drawn to steal a meal, or thirsty and want to grab another’s flask. Whatever it is, and temptations abound, do you linger in these thoughts, or do you pray for freedom and release from them? Do you ask God for an escape?

Jesus, our perfect Inoculation against Sin

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Separation From Sin

We concentrate on the fact that we have all sinned, and are sinners, but in order to be transformed we need to redirect our focus. Jesus died to sin once and for all, and as we strive to be like Him we must also die that same death, and consider ourselves dead to sin. Jesus didn’t die just to give us a topical treatment for sin, that we apply every time we sin, no, he died to provide us with a lasting cure. Are you using the Cross as a Band-Aid that you apply to each wound of sin, or as a vaccination against sin in your life?

Adam Attempted to Hide Himself from God... Will We?

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Perfection, Sin, Commitment

Do we hold back our commitment to faith, and belief in the Lord because we are yet sinners? Do we back away from faith because we have stumbled? Well there is something amazing about how God deals with our failures, and that is that His grace grows all the more to cover them. We are never too stained that the blood of Jesus can’t wash us clean. What God values most is our love for Him, our obedience, and our contrite heart that mourns every sin, bringing us to tears as we confess them and ask for His forgiveness. 

In the Midst of Plague Hold Fast to what is Good!

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, God’s Will, Miracles

Did you ever think that you would live through a biblical scale plague? In your wildest dreams could you forsee the world experiencing something that we have read about happening during bible times? Did you wonder to yourself how those ancient figures could experience such catastrophe and not see that it was brought upon them by the hand of God, and that He was greater than they were? Well to understand those stories, and the seemingly unbelievable reluctance of those people to hear God, all we need do is look around us today. 

Conscience, and the Holy Spirit, our Bridge Between Body and Soul

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Conscience, Holy Spirit

What strives to keep us from sinning when we are tempted to our very limits? What haunts us day and night, and pursues us relentlessly to repent, and seek forgiveness for even the smallest of sins? It is the Holy Spirit, coupled with our conscience, and together they serve as the causeway that joins our spiritual selves with our physical selves; together they work to reconcile them. Do you have a nagging sin that causes you to toss and turn at night, or a guilt from long ago that convicts you when your mind tries to find peace? This is the burden that comes from a handshake between our faith, and our conscience which resides within our mind, and leads us to contrition. 

Father Restore my Heart, and Heal my Land

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Redemption, Forgiveness

So many of us make empty attempts at fasting and prayer, or say we believe and then act differently during our days. We call a day Sabbath, but never rest, nor attempt to seek the presence of God in it. In these ways, among others, we dishonor Him, and raise His ire against us. Then without our focus on Him we believe that the calamities that befall us are not meant to be our punishment, and act surprised when they arise. It is time to open our eyes to Jesus Christ, to pray and fast before God as we should. It is time to honor Him on the Sabbath, and call out His name with expectation.

God’s counsel, and our prayers for His guidance

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotion, Council and Advice

We are headstrong in so many ways, and a great deal of the time we insist on going our own way, or doing our own thing, but God’s desire is that we follow His guidance. By blazing our own trail we come to find ourselves seeking His deliverance from various messes we have created, rather than living a peaceful life, and thanking Him for it. Does this sound familiar? Do you seek God’s good counsel, or take your own path?

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