With Jesus living in our hearts, we can experience heaven on the way to heaven.
From Romans 14:17: “For the kingdom of God is not food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
David Jeremiah (born 1941) is an American pastor and Christian author.
From Isaiah 9:2: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness—on them light has shined.”
Outlook’s scarred landscape
Uncertainty’s shadows
Pervading, cold darkness
Hope’s final ember glows
Peace overpowered
Gloom of night never leaves
Witnessing life’s heartbreaks
Another day must grieve
Despair comes ashore
Empty vessel of grace
Asking, where has light gone?
Hope discovers its place
Each burden gathered
Sunrise at last arrives
Breaking oppressor’s rod
Messiah’s love alive
Resurrection breathes
Savior’s mercy shall rise
Sharing heavenly view
Redemption’s lasting prize
From Isaiah 9:6: “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon His shoulders, and He is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
God’s grand strategy, birthed in His grace toward us in Christ, and nurtured through the obedience of disciplined faith, is to release us into the redeemed life of our heart.
From Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.”
John Eldredge (born 1960) is an American author, counselor, and lecturer on Christianity. More details are available on his website: wildatheart.org.
Trusting
Heavenly lamp
Spirit’s faithful beacon
Heart illuminated in light
Clarity
Placing
Burdens aside
Spirit’s embracing hope
Heart transformed by light
Tranquility
Downloading
Resurrection’s peace
Spirit’s forgiving grace
Heart strengthened through light
Eternity
This series of poems (written in the German-inspired style of Elfchen or Elevenie) shares a total of eleven words in each poem, with a sequence by line of one, two, three, four, and one words.
With fear and trembling we must reply upon God for guidance in the inner depths. This is the sole way to walk according to the spirit.
From Psalm 143:10: “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.”
Watchman Nee (1903-1972) was a Chinese church leader and Christian teacher. He authored a collection of Christian books, and he endured persecution for his beliefs. Ultimately, he died while being imprisoned for the final twenty years of his life.
From Colossians 13:13-14: “Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.”
Faith’s journey with Christ
Seeking all things above
Heavenly treasures wait
Revealed in Messiah’s love
Bitterness removed
Embracing Christian love
Salvation’s welcome voice
Nourished from heavens above
Spirit of patience
Spreading each truth of love
Just as Scripture teaches
Joined in Christ, grace shines above
God’s mercy forgives
Sharing peace from above
Harmony’s hope brings joy
Marked with unlimited love
Resurrection’s light
Raising praises of love
Redemption fills each heart
Witnessed by Lord from above
From the words of American pastor, Harry Emerson Fosdick: “Bitterness imprisons life; love releases it.”
God is the giver, and we are the receivers. And His richest gifts are bestowed not upon those who do the greatest things, but upon those who accept His abundance and His grace.
From Numbers 6:22-26: “The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying: Thus you shall bless the Israelites. You shall say to them: The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.'”
Hannah Whitall Smith (1832-1911) was an American lay speaker and Christian author. She was an active voice during the women’s suffrage movement as well as the temperance movement in the United States.
The great antidote to anxiety is to come to God in prayer. We are to pray about everything. Nothing is too big for Him to handle, and nothing is too small to escape His attention.
From Philippians 4:6-7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Jerry Bridges (1929-2016) was an American Christian author and speaker. In his autobiography, God Took Me by the Hand, Jerry said, “When I was seventeen years old, it seemed as if God took me by the hand and said, ‘Come with Me.’ And for more than sixty-five years, God has, as it were, continued to hold my hand and lead me in the path He has marked out for me.”
From Proverbs 16:22: “Wisdom is a fountain of life to one who has it, but folly is the punishment of fools.”
Wisdom’s fountain of life
Vision of Christ unblurred
Blessing days without strife
Measuring every word
Wisdom’s voice fills each mind
Left hand joins truth of right
Maturing faith aligned
Cascading from Christ’s light
Wisdom’s appetite knows
Joy in Christ, never cease
Sowing hope’s seeds, trust flows
Reaping from fields of peace
Wisdom’s patience merging
Just as Father hath planned
Witnessing strength surging
Reaching out from Christ’s hand
Wisdom’s honest sweetness
Christ transforms man’s blindness
Filling life’s completeness
Building grace of kindness
From Proverbs 16:24: “Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.”
If our common sense decisions are not God’s order, He will press them and check; then we must be quiet and wait for the direction of His presence.
From Isaiah 40:31: “But those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
Oswald Chambers (1874-1917) was a Scottish evangelist and Christian teacher. Following his death from an illness while in Egypt during World War I, his wife took on the task of transcribing the detailed notes she had written from his lectures and sermons. Gertrude Hobbs Chambers’ efforts resulted in the publication in 1924 of MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST. I frequently read from this devotional, and it has greatly deepened my faith and understanding of God’s Word.
Big Sky Buckeye 