Always, in All Ways

When I read this devotion several situations from God's Word came to mind. Remember when the Israelites were in the desert and they were not focused on where they were going...but what they left behind. They were not focused on what God WAS providing but what they did not have. We are very creative in our thoughts and imagination. We picture moments of our day going blissfully, everyone enjoying us and thinking all our desires are best for everyone...and so everyone is on board. We see ourselves having all the whims before us fulfilled and enough left that there is no possible way we could be left with a want. Okay, maybe I am overshooting this a bit; but subconsciously I think there might be some truth to these statements.


If we were left to our own devices with no consequences, no imploring from wise counsel, don't you think we might be immature, selfish and lazy? I thank God that when we look through His history we see how good His ways are. We can see, because he had the wisdom to have people record the good, the bad, the ugly and the transformed. He was gracious enough to give us the beginning and the end, so what do we have to complain about....we should be focusing on all He is providing, which is MUCH, to make sure we arrive at the appointed destination.  We should focus and accept His joy and peace through it all.

I pray that we cast down false imaginations and simultaneously replace it with His reality. I pray that we begin to see clearly, believe hopefully and trust faithfully in Him who loves us enough to defend, liberate and care for us always, in all ways.

With the Love of our Christ,
Candace

Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me . . . —Matthew 11:29

devotion from Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest

Whom the Lord loves He chastens . . .” ( Hebrews 12:6 ). How petty our complaining is! Our Lord begins to bring us to the point where we can have fellowship with Him, only to hear us moan and groan, saying, “Oh Lord, just let me be like other people!” Jesus is asking us to get beside Him and take one end of the yoke, so that we can pull together. That’s why Jesus says to us, “My yoke is easy and My burden is light” ( Matthew 11:30 ). Are you closely identified with the Lord Jesus like that? If so, you will thank God when you feel the pressure of His hand upon you.
“. . . to those who have no might He increases strength” (Isaiah 40:29 ). God comes and takes us out of our emotionalism, and then our complaining turns into a hymn of praise. The only way to know the strength of God is to take the yoke of Jesus upon us and to learn from Him.

“. . . the joy of the Lord is your strength” ( Nehemiah 8:10 ). Where do the saints get their joy? If we did not know some Christians well, we might think from just observing them that they have no burdens at all to bear. But we must lift the veil from our eyes. The fact that the peace, light, and joy of God is in them is proof that a burden is there as well. The burden that God places on us squeezes the grapes in our lives and produces the wine, but most of us see only the wine and not the burden. No power on earth or in hell can conquer the Spirit of God living within the human spirit; it creates an inner invincibility.

If your life is producing only a whine, instead of the wine, then ruthlessly kick it out. It is definitely a crime for a Christian to be weak in God’s strength.