Thought 311: Probability is by man and for man only from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 311

Probability is by man and for man only

  Probability. How often you use this little word and put it into action because of your faith in it, your belief in its existence?

Probability. This word means, in essence, that only certain things are possible when the right conditions are present and the opposition is minimal. Well, God doesn’t work within probability. What is the probability of an All-Powerful Being creating everything that exists and will ever exist besides Himself? This amazing Being had no beginning, but shall always exist; and He can never be defeated. What is the probability of that?

  Dear Christians, we need to get our focus off of probability. The time has come totally seek God (Matt. 6:33). David struck down the Giant when he was only a ruddy “teenager.” Joshua Harris put aside his own giant of dating and by age twenty on-one had written a book about relationships entitled:  I Kissed Dating Goodbye?  Now what are the odds of that?

God wants to use you! HE Loves you!

Look, I never planned to be writing a book at age 16, 17, and 18 much less starting in at the age of 15. I never liked to talk in front of people, yet God has made that happen. Are these things probable for a young man? My plans have been adjusted and I now believe I at least partially understand Proverbs 16:3—when we commit our plans to the Lord, He will change them along the way to accomplish His plans. I used to consider men like Joshua Harris to be kind of girly, I mean come on they’re always preaching about “relationships,” but guess what? Now God has actually given me a burden to be one of those “relationship preachers.”

Let me ask this question from earlier in the book, again: what does God what to do with you, to you, or through you? . . . . . it probably won’t be what you think is probable.






 

Thought 303: Stewardship from Ryan's devotional book seris Thoughts

Thought 303

Stewardship

Stewardship. This really encompasses every area of our lives and everything we do as followers of the Way. The maintenance of our focus, which is also grounded on our Foundation; of remembering; of managing our talents; of our money; of our time; and of all our other resources are all forms of stewardship. In the beginning God gave man dominion over the earth, in essence at that point in time we (mankind) assumed the role of stewardship. With the Fall, man had the even bigger responsibility of making the right choice between good and evil. After the fruit was eaten, mankind then had the knowledge of good and evil, the very name that God gave to that tree testifies to that fact (Genesis 2:16-17).

In a deeper sense, we can think of Stewardship as they way that we look over our own affairs and those of our family in accordance with the will of God.

 

Thought 301: Scars and Scabs from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 301

Scars and Scabs

  Christ heals our wounds, but when we rip the scab off and when we pick at the sore, we just make it worse. Recovery is longer; it hurts more, maybe bleeds more, and makes us miserable. In our agony we cry out to God and some blame Him for the pain that we have caused ourselves. The continued picking at a sore results in a final healing in the form of a scar. That scar is a constant reminder of how I, not the Lord, picked and picked and caused that healing sore to fester and take longer to heal.

  What are your scabs? What are your scars?

  The Lord wants to bind up our brokenness and hurt, but we can willingly resist His healing choice. Forgiveness may not be simple, discipline may not be enjoyable, and spiritual spankings (reproofs by the Lord) may hurt, but they are ultimately for out best interest—the Lord’s future plan for us.

 

Thought 298: Humility from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 298

Humility

“The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way. All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies. For thy name's sake, O Lord, pardon mine iniquity; for it is great. What man is he that feareth the Lord? him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose. His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth. The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant. Mine eyes are ever toward the Lord; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net.”

Psalms 25:9-15 KJV

Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary defines Meek as: …humble, in an evangelical sense ; submissive to the divine will ; not proud, self-sufficient or refractory ; not peevish and apt to complain of divine dispensations. Christ says, “Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and he shall find rest for your souls.” Matt. xi

    A mentor of mine has said, “humility is the key.” In life, being humble is an important key to everything: right standing with God, proper relationships with people, and most importantly, being in the right place and season that God has for you. A few years later, the same man told me that humility and the fear of the Lord when you study them out are synomomous.

     From our text, we learn that the Lord guides the humble, instructs them, and teaches them His way. As we go on we see the characteristics of the humble: keeping the demands of covenant of the Lord; and repentance, crying out: forgive my iniquity, Lord! By the Spirit, we can also see the Lord reveal through this Scripture that the fear of the Lord and humility are synonymous because the man that fears the Lord is instructed in the way chosen for him, in the path that God has anointed him for; and that the Lord guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.

     Fearing the Lord brings prosperity and inheritance, but more than all that, the Lord confides in those who fear him! He makes his covenant known to them! Like David wrote, may we cry out and proclaim, my eyes are ever on the LORD, for only he will release my feet from the snare! Let’s be humble, let’s Fear the Lord!

 

Thought 222: Christian Freedom from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 222

Christian Freedom

“You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.”  Galatians 5:13-15 (NIV1984)

Thought 216: God does It. . . and we may not see the result from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 215

God does It. . . and we may not see the result

        The world needs a great revival, but no man or woman can make it happen.  Only the power of God brings revival; and only God can raise up the people to carry out that revival. God will heal a land if His people humble themselves and pray, right? But this doesn’t mean that amidst humbling yourself that you will see the end result. We walk, we live, on faith and not by what we see. There have been many faithful Christians have spent their lives on their knees praying for revival and it did not come in their lifetime. We should not pray just because there is a horrible president or a socialistic economy or the evil deeds of men; it is about God and what He chooses to do through and with us, and what HE has planned to do for our present world.

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 (NIV1984)

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—Ephesians 2:8 (NIV1984)

Thought 213: Justification? from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 213

Justification?

  Do you live a life in which you constantly try to defend what you do? Mankind often tries to justify its lifestyle, choices, and decisions. It is sobering, but attempting to justify our actions, is really just making up an accuse for why we have been disobedient. God sent His Son to make righteous (perfection) atonement for you and me on the Cross. If you are a follower of Christ, Christ has forgiven you of all your sins and washed them away! Jesus has covered them with His purity!

  As Believers, we were justified in Christ, that is, God sees Jesus’ payment on the Cross instead of our sin when He looks at us. We are being sanctified in Christ, that is, we are being made more and more like Jesus every day that we follow the Him as Lord. We will be glorified in Christ, that is, we will one day be in Heaven where there will be no temptation to sin and we will be perfect.

  In the Old Testament, Lot’s wife looked back and became a pillar of stone (Gen. 19:26) because she loved her explanation for turning (disobeying) more than she loved God. The Lord Jesus has paid the price, but He allows us to make a choice with our will to obey or disobey His Word. When Lot’s wife disobeyed, she reaped the consequences of death. Perhaps your disobedience will not bring death, but it will bring other consequences.

Instead of focusing your attention on why you are right in what you have done, focus on your attention on the Lord (Matt. 6:33). And out of that focus, love others at Christ loves you: practice the The Golden Rule:

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Matthew 7:12 (NIV1984)

 

Ask the Holy Spirit how to put The Golden Rule into motion today.

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Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:4 (NIV1984)

 Lord, may You help us to ground our lives in the firm foundation of Your Word. Help us to not look our own minds or reasoning for justification of our actions, but, Holy Spirit, help us to see Jesus in all we do. And may our love for Him inspire us to live by the Word. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Tip for Growth

Study the Biblical meanings of Justification, Sanctification, and Glorification.

Thought 211: Unity from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 211

Unity

If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints? Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church! I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? But instead, one brother goes to law against another—and this in front of unbelievers!

The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers.

Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.  1 Corinthians 6:1-11 (NIV1984)

Thought 210: The Word from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 210

The Word

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:22-27 (NIV1984)

  Meditate on what this verse means in relation to your own life.

Thought 201: Follow HIS Leading from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 201

Follow HIS Leading

 Read Mark 6:1-6

     IF God leads you to do something great for Him, your close family and friends might reject you. But will you still obey God, even if your loved ones spurn and reject you?

Do you know why you should stand for God?

Jesus was rejected by His own home town. He was as the prophet without honor. What does this mean to you?

Thought 198: Praise from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 198

Praise

 “O God, whom I praise…”  Psalm 109:1 NIV1984

Quick Fact

Ø Based on www.scripturektext.com the word praise occurs 594 times in the Bible.

     God desires our praise, but praise isn’t just worshiping or singing to Him. God is praised when we pay the tithe that He commanded us to pay. God is praised when we are obedient. God is praised when we proclaim His name as the source of our strength, our comfort, and our strong tower.

Praise an action not a feeling. Praise is a choice. Keep these two in mind as you read.

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!” Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”) When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.”   John 21:15-22 NIV1984

     From this passage we see the same principle reflected above about praise. Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved him and two times Peter responded that he loved the Lord as a friend, but the  last time Peter responded that he loved the Lord undeservedly. What came to mind as I was writing this is that Jesus was trying to get Peter to make a choice to love Him. The love Jesus wants is our choice to love Him, He isn’t trying to force love on us. It is the same with praise. We should love God unreservedly and should praise Him, both are a choice.

Worship the Lord. Praise Him. Love Him.

Thought 192: We live by faith, not by sight from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

Thought 192

We live by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7 NIV1984

       We don’t accept Christ because we understand everything God did through Jesus. There are many, many Scriptural prophecies that Jesus fulfilled, but we don’t have to know them all to accept Christ. We become Christians by faith in Christ. We are to live by faith, not by sight. You don’t need to be an “intellectual,” just a simple child—it’s by faith.

Thougt 190: Are you crazed by "love" from Ryan's devotional book series Thoughts

                                                                Thought 190

Are you crazed by “love”

What is “love"? It is that gushy, bubbly, suspenseful feeling that you get when you are around someone that you are attracted to…right? Wrong. You see, in our culture, and in past times, men and women have accepted this common lie. Even Solomon and David seem to have been ensnared,  just look at all those wives; many men have fallen prey to a pretty face or a “hot” body. But the book of Proverbs teaches us differently…

God’s Word applies to every area of our lives, but sometimes we have to do a lot of prayer, Bible reading, and study before we know what to do. God does not always just tell us what to do, but rest assured that His Word is TRUE and HE wants you to have a personal relationship with Him.

Examine your soul, motives, and your past…pray about, and do some Bible study, on how God wants you to approach romance, whether you are married or single. I believe the Lord’s Word has something fresh for all of us—it may be a reminder or something new.

Daily Devotion from Ryan Marks book series: Thoughts

Thought 145

“And the two shall become one FLESH….”

      God moves on to tell us in the first few chapters of Genesis that the reason for a guy and gal have to leave their mom and dad is marriage (Genesis 2:24). They leave so that they can become one flesh; and the two becoming one flesh is much deeper than the physical closeness of sex that some interpret it to mean. Instead, it is a spiritual bond, one where two individuals become one that is personified in two bodies. This one fact explains why divorce and losing a spouse is so devastating—they lost a part of themselves, not just a person they knew.   . . . what God has joined, let no man separate.

      When two people (a man and a woman and only a man and a woman) become one flesh, something happens to the one that has now been formed. Men become husbands, fathers, and providers. While women transition into wives, mothers, helpmeets, and nurture. Today, contemplate why God created the two to become one and how their new oneness is more balanced than their individuality.