Sin and the Sea

Micah 7:19

He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities underfoot. Yes, Thou wilt cast all their (our) sins into the depths of the sea.

Our God is a God of compassion, of mercy. He loves us deeply with a love that never lets us go.

This scripture tells us that He is going to bring our bondages, our perversity, depravity, and guilt under His foot. In other words, He captures the things that put us in bondage and makes them subservient to Him.

He goes on to tell us that He hurls our sins, our iniquities and its consequences, into the deepest depths of the sea.

Corrie tenBoom always added a P.S. to this truth. She said, “and then God posts a sign that says, ‘NO FISHING.’” In other words, don’t go trying to dredge up confessed sins. They’re gone. God has stomped them and thrown them in a sea too deep to retrieve. Hallelujah!

Father God, thank You for sending Your Son
to overcome all my sins;
for taking the punishment I deserved.
May I walk in freedom before You
all the days of my life.

Check out my new devotional book Looking Deeper at Amazon.com.

Faith and Trust

Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

The Bible’s definition of faith is “the trust that God exists and that He is the creator and ruler of all things.” The meaning of faith doesn’t stop there. Biblical faith is “a deep conviction, a firm trust God gives to believers, resulting in eternal salvation through Jesus Christ.”

As believers, we wait and hope with joy and a full confidence, for this salvation. We do not see this truth, this established fact, with our eyes. We discern this as truth with the eyes of our spirit—that part of us that lives forever.

These things, this salvation, is an accomplished fact. It’s like a “done deal” in a business transaction. Jesus purchased our salvation when He signed His name with His own blood to seal the deal.

Although this is a free gift to us just for the receiving, it cost Him everything.

Lord Jesus, I receive Your most precious gift.
Thank You for providing it for me.
May I share this good news
with the people You place in my path.

Check out my new devotional book Looking Deeper at Amazon.com.

Need Help?

Hebrews 13:6

. . . so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall men do to me?”

When we lose sight of the fact that we are the Lord’s and He is ours, we tend to become afraid. We think we have to provide for our need or our protection. We have the mistaken idea we will suffer lack, or that someone may do us harm. We tell ourselves we have to work harder in order to accumulate more.

This only tends to move us farther from God. This kind of thinking becomes burdensome. Jesus said, “My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:30). Let Him be in charge.

God is our helper in all things at all times in all circumstances, no matter what we face. Nothing happens to us apart from His notice. If He allows it, He has a purpose for it. It’s up to us to seek Him for why He permitted a certain thing.

My Lord, my Master,
thank You that You neither slumber nor sleep.
I rest in the fact You will supply all my needs
according to Your riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

 Check out my new devotional book Looking Deeper at Amazon.com.

God's Omnipotence

Psalm 139: 7

Where can I go from Thy Spirit? Or where can I flee from Thy presence?

This scripture shows one of the qualities of God—His omnipresence. He is everywhere at all times. He doesn’t go out to lunch or on a vacation. We never get a voice message of, “I’m not here at the moment but if you leave your name and number, I’ll return your call at my earliest convenience.”

No matter the hour, day or night, He is ready and waiting to hear from us. He longs to hear about whatever concerns us, no matter how small or great the need.

He also loves to hear from us just because. If you’re a parent, you know the joy of hearing from your child, even if it’s just to chat. How about setting aside fifteen minutes to have a little chat with our Creator?

Father God, I praise You for Your ever-open ear and heart
to those who will call upon Your name.
May we often take the opportunity to sit in Your presence
and enjoy Your Spirit as we let the world spin on.

As a side note, I’ve published a new 366 day devotional book entitled Looking Deeper. It’s available in paperback and e-reader.

God's Prescription for Healing

With Ebola banging on our door it might be a wise thing to search God's word, the Bible, for His prescription for our healing. He has a prescription for all our needs whether it be physical, mental, or emotional healing. Here is a page from my new book Looking Deeper.

Exodus 15:26
And He said, “If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the Lord, am your healer.”

In order to enjoy God’s divine health, we must do four things:
Give heed to God’s voice (hear and obey)
Do what is right (pleasing in His sight)
Give ear (listen) to His commandments
Keep all His statutes (His prescribed limits, boundaries, laws and conditions).
    God lists some of the diseases of Egypt in Deuteronomy 28:27 which are, “boils, tumors, scab, and itch, from which you cannot be healed.”
    But there is hope. Jesus has come to heal us. Perhaps as a nation and individuals, we need to repent to see His healing. As long as we’re still breathing, God’s mercy extends to us. Let us call upon Him now.

Father, forgive us.
We have listened to the world and obeyed its voice instead of You.
We have gone our own way and failed miserably.
We have written our own rules and fallen far short of Your desires.
We have run rough-shod over Your boundaries
and neglected Your conditions.
In Your mercy, please cleanse and heal us as individuals
and as a nation, so we might enjoy Your favor once again.

I’ve published a new 366 day devotional book entitled Looking Deeper. It’s available at Amazon.com.

When God Knew You

Jeremiah 1:5

(God said) “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Acts 10:34 tells us that God does not show partiality. God knew Jeremiah before He formed him in his mother’s womb. He knew us, too. Psalm 139:16 tells us that our days were written God’s book before we lived one of them.

The word “formed” in today’s scripture carries with it the meaning of a “pre-ordained divine plan, a divine purpose of a situation.” Each of us comes with His plan and purpose for our lives. With that in mind, we need to seek Him to find out what He planned for us in order to fulfill His purpose.

Each day brings a new purpose. Each situation a new plan. So we need to be constantly listening for His next instruction.

Lord God, tune my ears to Your voice so I may obey You
and fulfill the reasons You sent me here.
Thank You for Your plans mapped out long before
I lived my days.

As a side note, I’ve published a new 366 day devotional book entitled Looking Deeper. It’s available in paperback and e-reader.

God's Secrets

Amos 3:7

Surely the Lord God does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants the prophets.
God doesn’t reveal His secret counsel to the casual inquirer. This passage tells us He shares His business with His servants. A servant here is defined as a worshiper of God in the Strong’s Concordance.

He promises to reveal, to make known, His plans in the secret counsel, in familiar conversation. Conversation is defined as, “Informal interchange of thoughts, information, by spoken words; oral communications between persons, intimate acquaintance.”

Hebrews 11:6 tells us that he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. If we worship God in recognition of who He is and worship Him that He does exist, we will have often, intimate give-and-take conversation with Him. He will begin to reveal hidden things to us as we spend time with Him in our frequent, intimate conversations.

Lord God, I worship You, my living Lord.
I praise You for Your overflowing love.
I seek to know You better and love You more each day You give me life.
May our communications be deep and often as we walk together each day.
May You trust me with Your thoughts so I may make You known.

As a side note, I’ve published a new 366 day devotional book entitled Looking Deeper. It’s available in paperback and e-reader.