START SERVING THE LORD

11- 23- 10 MI DAILY DEVOTION (Acts 20:19- 21)

START SERVING THE LORD

19- “Serving the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many tears, and temptations, which befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews: 20- And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have showed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house, 21- Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.”

“I am happy in the service of the King. I am happy, O so happy! I have peace and joy that nothing else can bring. In the service of the King;

In the service of the King; every talent I will bring. I have peace and joy and blessing; in the service of the King.
I am happy in the service of the King. I am happy, O so happy! Through the sunshine and the shadow I can sing, in the service of the King.

I am happy in the service of the King. I am happy, O so happy! To His guiding hand forever I will cling, in the service of the King. I am happy in the service of the King. I am happy, O so happy! All that I possess to Him I gladly bring, in the service of the King.” (Alfred Ackley-1912) www.hymnlyrics.org/lyricsall/i.html

Here are some of the benefits in serving the Lord (Exodus 23:25) “And ye shall serve the LORD your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.” (Deuteronomy 10:12) “And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,”
Serving God is not an option for Christians, it is a requirement with God expecting us to do our best. We can have blessings from the Lord as we serve Him faithfully. The Bible said that…”we should walk after the LORD our God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and we shall serve him, and cleave unto him.” (I Samuel 12:20) “…yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart;” (Joshua 24:14) “Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.”
 

TRUST…

11- 22- 10 MI DAILY DEVOTION (Psalm 56:3- 4)

TRUST…

3- “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. 4- In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.”

“I just keep trusting my Lord as I walk a long, I just keep trusting my Lord and He gives a song. Though the storm clouds darken the sky o'er the heav'nly trail,
I just keep trusting my Lord, He will never fail. He's a faithful friend, such a faithful friend; I can count on Him to the very end. Though the storm clouds darken the sky o'er the heav'nly trail, I just keep trusting my Lord, He will never fail.” (unknown)

(Psalm 9:10) “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.”

Trust the Lord for your salvation. You don’t only accept Him as your Lord and Savior, but you will have to trust Him and believe in Jesus from your heart. The Bible said in, (Acts 16:30- 31) 30- “And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31- And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” (Psalm 37:40) “And the LORD shall help them, and deliver them: he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in him.” (Psalm 49:6- 8) 6- “They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; 7- None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: 8- For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)”

Trust the Lord in the service of the King. (Psalm 4:5) “Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.” Even in our service and worship to God, we still have to trust in Him. We will put our trust in God for strength and wisdom. And we need to trust Him as we offer to Him our sacrifices and offerings.

Trust the Lord for your supplication. (Proverbs 28:25) “He that is of a proud heart stirreth up strife: but he that putteth his trust in the LORD shall be made fat.” It means that, if we only put our trust in God for our daily needs; God will bless us and will supply all our needs. The Lord in His grace and mercy provided all our needs according to His riches in Glory. Apostle Paul testifies of this in (Philippians 4:19) “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

CONFESS…

11- 21- 10 MI DAILY DEVOTION (I John 1:7- 10)
CONFESS…
7- “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 8- If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9- If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10- If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
Confess your sins to God. Speaking of “confession”, it has different meaning and interpretation to different religions or religious denominations. Confession according to Unger’s Bible dictionary, from the “(Hebrew word yadah, literally, to use, extend the hand) is used in the Old Testament in the sense of acknowledging one’s sin (Leviticus 5:5; Job 40:14; Psalm 32:5). In the prayer of Solomon at the dedication of the temple he uses the expression “confess thy name” (I Kings 8:33, 35; II Chronicles 6:24, 26).
The Greek word rendered “confession” is “homologeo”, literally, to say the same thing, i. e., not to deny, and so to admit or declare one’s self guilty of what he is accused. It is also used in the sense of a profession, implying the yielding or change of one’s conviction (John 12:42; Acts 23:8; Romans 10:9-10; I Timothy 6:13).” (Unger’s Bible Dictionary by, Merrill F. Unger, Moody Press Chicago)
Confess your need for God. Whether we like it or not; we are a needy people and everybody who are living and is in a right mind knows that he is in need of God and of something that only God can fill them. Blaise Pascal 1623 – 1662, a French Mathematician, Physicist and inventor once said, “…In the heart of man there is a God shaped vacuum that only God can fill it.”
Confess the Lord Jesus Christ not only as your Savior and Lord and confess to others that He is your King and you are His disciple. If you’re a married individual, you would not be ashamed of telling others about your spouse. You are married to the Lord Jesus Christ so don’t be shy to confess Him to others. (Romans 10:9- 10) “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10- For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

ACCEPT…

11- 21- 10 MI DAILY DEVOTION (Romans 10:9- 13)

ACCEPT…

9- “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10- For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11- For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. 12- For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. 13- For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

1- Accept that you are a sinner before God. (Romans 3:10, 23) 10- “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:” 23- “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” I know it’s not easy to humbly come before the presence of God and accept before Him your sinfulness and unworthiness and ask Him to forgive you of your sins. As you accept before God your sinfulness, it means that you also accept your hopelessness, your depravity and your need for the Blood of Christ to wash you and cleanse you of your sins. (Ephesians 1:7) “In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;”

2- Accept Christ as your Lord and Savior. (John 1:12) “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” When you accept Christ as your Lord and Savior, it means you also accept His Lordship, His shed Blood, His finished work at the Cross of Calvary and you also accept Him as the only Savior and the second person of the Holy trinity. You heard of people say that Christians made it so easy to go to Heaven. Actually, it was not the Christians who made it easy, it was the work of the Holy Trinity through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross. Because of what He has done at the Cross; all we have to do is to accept it by faith.

3- Accept the free gift of salvation. The gift was offered, but the question is; would you be willing to accept that gift by humbly coming to God and accepting it by faith. (Romans 6:23; John 3:16) “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

THINGS TO BE THANKFUL TO GOD FOR…

11- 20- 10 MI DAILY DEVOTION (Psalm 100:1- 5)

THINGS TO BE THANKFUL TO GOD FOR…

1- “A Psalm of praise. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. 2- Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. 3- Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4- Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. 5- For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.”

(II Corinthians 9:15) “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” (Psalms 30:12) “To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.” THINGS TO BE THANKFUL TO GOD FOR: Give thanks to God for your unspeakable gift. Let’s be thankful to God for the salvation that God gave us though our Lord Jesus Christ. We can also rejoice and be grateful for the spiritual blessings that He blessed us with. And we can also look forward to the heavenly places which God prepared for those who came to Him in humility of spirit for their salvation. Paul said that we have His grace and the Lord made us accepted in the beloved. One of the things that we may take for granted is “redemption through his blood”. It was not of money, blood of the animals or of man’s way, man’s will, manmade salvation, but through His blood. We can also look up to God with gratefulness for the forgiveness of our sins through Jesus Christ. The guilt, the dirty conscience and burdens is gone, because we were forgiven. Thank God for the brethren and pray for them. Keep them in your prayers and be thankful to God for the wisdom and knowledge from above. I’m so thankful to God for being a part of your life by sharing to you the Lord’s unspeakable gift and spiritual blessings through His Words of wisdom. Today, don’t hesitate to say, “Thank you…”

Ephesians 2:3-10 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:  6- To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. 7- In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; 16- Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; 17- That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:”

“Z”- ZEALOUSLY SERVE THE LORD (ON CHRISTIAN’s ABC’s)

11- 18- 10 MI DAILY DEVOTION (Joshua 24:14- 16)

“Z”- ZEALOUSLY SERVE THE LORD (ON CHRISTIAN’s ABC’s)

14- Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD. 15- And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. 16- And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;

Some Christians, they have a misconception and different mindset when it comes to serving God. Some religious organizations or People would sometimes think that serving God would mean Pastorate or mission work at home or overseas. Some religious groups, their leadership will asked them to do things that are beyond our imaginations as their proof of their love and service to God. Some were trained to be a warrior while other religious organizations are training their converts and send them to foreign Countries to be missionaries in their own expense even if they’re not called to be one. When I was growing up in my home church where my parents used to go, I thought that the Pastors, missionaries, church leaders and deacons were the only group of people who were called to serve God. And I was thinking about my Dad who was one of those who served, but at night he would come home drunk. Back then, my Dad was not a Christian, but he was a good church member. So was he really serving the Lord? I don’t think so. In the process of time, the more I come to church, even on weekdays, the more I began to think that my presence at church was my deepest expression of my service to God. I was wrong because it should start from loving the Lord our God. Seven ways to serve the Lord: 1- Serve God from where you are 2- Serve Him for Who God is and what you have. 3- Serve God in whatever situation you are in right now. 4- Serve the Lord with what you have in your hands. 5- Serve the Lord by being a good parent, son or daughter… 6- You can serve God with your talents, time treasures. 7- Serve God faithfully and with sincerity. (Joshua 24:21- 22) 21- “And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the LORD. 22- And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you the LORD, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.”

“Y”- YIELD TO THE WORD OF GOD AND TO HIS WILL (ON CHRISTIAN’s ABC’s)

11- 17- 10 MI DAILY DEVOTION (II Chronicles 30:8)
“Y”- YIELD TO THE WORD OF GOD AND TO HIS WILL (ON CHRISTIAN’s ABC’s)
8- “Now be ye not stiffnecked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves unto the LORD, and enter into his sanctuary, which he hath sanctified for ever: and serve the LORD your God, that the fierceness of his wrath may turn away from you.”
One single word could change the course of your life and future. Just a single word could even leads to death, life, freedom, blessings and we can go on and on… The word “yield” is a very powerful word. If you yield to God for your salvation; your life will be changed, your destiny will be determined and your future will make a difference. One of the rules in a fight in Ultimate Fighting Championship is “submission”- a fighter taps on the mat or his opponent three times (or more) or verbally submits.” (Wikipedia) “Submission” is the synonym of “yield”. Indeed, unless we submit or yield ourselves to God, His Word and His will, we will never win. It’s opposite to the rules of whatever sports, especially in boxing or martial arts. In Christianity, the more we surrender, submit or yield the more we win. The more sin you surrender, the more you win over sin, Satan and self. Here in the United States of America and some parts of the world, we have a traffic rules in which whether you’re in a freeway or residential area; once you see the sign “yield”, it means you really have to yield and give way to the oncoming vehicles or the vehicles behind you as you’re driving in into the freeway.  You can get into a deadly accident if you will not yield. It’s just a single word, but it has made a lot of difference in traffic and in the lives of many. I had an accident with my wife few years ago, because a woman who was coming out from the subdivision did not yield to the vehicles with the right of way. It’s a good picture of what will happen to people who will not yield to God’s Word and will in their lives. (Romans 6:13, 16, 19) “Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 16- Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 19- I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.”