DEVOTIONALS

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3: 5-6 Can you imagine going on the road without a google map or any other familiarity to assist with the road ahead of you?  Well, soon or later you’ll reach a point where you have no sense of direction! Those who have experienced this before have found that it can be frustrating and a waste of time! We know that techn

For you are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble. You surround me with songs of victory. Psalm 32:7 Where do you turn when things go wrong?  You get a surprise that the company you work for is closing down. You probably will reach out to contacts in your industry, brush up your resume or start browsing job websites. Or perhaps you just found out there is a particular illness in your family, where would you go for help? If we are honest, the immediate response to illne

Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out like an army, one after another, calling each by its name. Because of his great power and incomparable strength,    not a single one is missing. Isaiah 40:26 At the beginning of the year, we all engage in self-reflection, journaling about the past year's lessons, and clarifying priorities and intentions for the future. But not before long we alter our opinions, break promises, modify plans, and procrastin

“Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word.” Psalm 119:37 The moment we walk into a restaurant, a mall, or grocery store our senses tend to easily get bombarded with various images or cultures even if we don’t willingly participate in these things.  It is so easy to fill our minds with meaningless worldly distractions. The sights, sounds and worldly messages can easily cluster our minds and undermine our ability to be focused on the Lord. David re

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17

“Rather, cling tightly to the Lord your God as you have done until now.” Joshua 23:8 Have you ever played the sport “tug of war” that puts two teams against each other in a test of strength. The teams pull on opposite ends of a rope, with the goal being to bring the rope a to certain distance in one direction against the force of the opposing team's pull. The team that holds on tightly and doesn’t let go wins! It is almost the same thing when we face challenges as believers. 

There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:42 On Martha’s “to do List” perhaps the “turkey” was probably all done waiting to be served! Almost everything was completed and now she was getting worked up about what in the world Mary was doing? An outer focus lets us navigate the larger world like Martha. On the other hand, Mary was all absorbed, listening, learning and meditating on Jesus’ words;

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. John 15:4 Fruits are known to be nutritious and provide essential vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants. They also have a range of beneficial compounds. Eating a variety of fruits is recommended for overall health. One day a friend invited me to go and pick some pears from her pear tree that had gone crazy by produ

"You surround me with songs of victory". We can fully trust God’s protection in difficult times.  Just as a bird protects it’s young, God nurtures and defense his people.  David’s story is a great example that still remains significant today!  When you wear someone else’s gear, you will certainly feel uncomfortable or even awkward because it isn’t made to fit you! David walked in faith with confidence knowing who was in charge! He was under God’s covering.  What an encouragem

Safety in God’s shelter is for the sake of gaining what we need and when we need it.  We have a wonderful promise of protection through God’s everlasting presence. Scripture is so powerful but it becomes more powerful when we speak it out and apply it daily in our lives.   We are reminded in Romans 8:32 that God did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else.” This includes our protection. We can be sheltered for protection fr

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely, I have a delightful inheritance. Psalms 16:6 Oceans are vast and something to behold, yet they still have boundaries. Why?  They are divided into boundaries for practical reasons, although they are all connected as one global ocean. The boundaries are primarily for navigation, economic reasons and others, rather than natural divisions. The boundaries are used to reference specific regions for mapping and defini

Draw near to God and God will come close to you. James 4:8 Jesus is the only one who is directly qualified to enter into God’s presence. God is looking for people who are upright, genuine, reflect his character and pursue holiness, integrity, honesty, and  many others!  He is omnipresent and desires to interact with us regularly to hear him. During the Transfiguration Jesus' physical appearance changed to reveal his divine glory, with his face shining like the sun and his clo

The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress. Psalm 46:7 (a) In the past, building an ancient fortress was not an overnight process.  They did it day by day, brick by brick until they completed. This also applies to building a safe strong house that would stand strong.  This analogy reminds us that knowing God is a process requiring reading the Bible, worship and staying in a community.  This slowly leads into an intimate relationship with G

Living in this world is hard work but God is watching over us, providing refuge and giving promises of restoration. He says in Psalm 12: 6 that “The Lord’s promises are pure like silver refined in a furnace purified seven times over”. God has something greater for us than chasing more money, power or a life of experiences.  We need more of God and less of things.  Things can be replaced but not people.  Humility allows us to be more like Jesus.  It is characterized by a willi

And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19: 12 Have you heard someone who is very angry say “I’m not shouting” while they are actually doing that! Shouting involves producing very loud sounds generating high-amplitude sound waves, while whispering involves producing quiet sounds. Therefore, the key differences are sound intensity or volume. At mount Horeb. God spoke to Eli

“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” 1 Timothy 4:8 After watching some exciting successful young athletes recently, I recognized that these were some of their common motivations; the enjoyment of playing their sport, the challenge of competition and reaching new personal goals. They definitely paid close attention to their skill improvement and exploration of their potential.  Just to

……. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory. Isaiah 61:3 (b) Recently, I visited Kew Gardens and saw so many different types of oaks.  But one thing that caught my eye was that they all had one common feature, they were really large and strong. You could sit on the branches without fear. They reminded me of a strong house! The Oak tree is a good analogy for Christians, symbolizing strength, endurance, and steadfastness

“I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have but little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.” Revelation 3:8 A welcome, an invitation or encouragement can be called an open door. It is primarily an opportunity to serve the Lord, even if it eventually becomes a guarantee for a better job or personal life.  It is God given as an opportunity to individually advance His Kingdom. Our focus sho

“That man Daniel, one of the captives from Judah, is ignoring you and your law. He still prays to his God three times a day”. Daniel 6:13 Sometimes the way down is really the way up! In God’s kingdom those the world calls wise are called foolish in the Word.  Those who are powerful by corporate standards are often weak and those who see freedom as doing whatever they want end up enslaved.  What really matters is that we are not defined by what we have or don’t have, but by wh