Morning Devotions by Sheila Lloyd

Day Twenty

A couple years ago the small, rural community in which I live was hit by a series of tragic teenage deaths. It was truly heartbreaking - obviously to the families and friends closely involved, but there was an overshadowing of grief throughout the entire community. In the light of a current loss - the son of friends of mine - I remembered this journal entry.

I am contemplating the verse in John 11:35 , "Jesus wept."

Why, Lord? Why did you weep? You didn't weep when you heard the news that your dear friend Lazarus had died. You didn't even seem shocked. You wept when you saw the sisters' mourning, when you sensed their pain. You heard their confusion and disappointment which clouded their blossoming faith as they questioned you, "Lord, if you had only been here, our brother would not have died!" If you had come sooner. If you had stepped in. If you had just stopped that truck, thwarted the gunman, let the paramedics arrive sooner.

As they led you to the tomb you wept.

What was it, Lord, that made you weep?

Because you were God in the flesh you knew that Lazarus' soul was already rejoicing, already at peace with the Father in Heaven. You knew that death is a mere shadow, just as this life is a mere breath. Eternity is just around the corner. At the forefront of your mind must have been your impending death and then your glorious resurrection in which you would conquer death forever!

You also knew that in just a few moments you were going to raise Lazarus from the dead! So, why did you weep?

It gives me comfort to know that you did. Perhaps it was that in that moment the part of you that was fully man, fully flesh, felt for the first time the incredible human pain of loss. You saw with eyes of mortal man the seeming finality of death. Although your mind was Divine Creator, Sustainer, Resurrection and Life, your flesh felt the deep ache and longing of a loved one gone - never to be held or seen or heard again - and your heart grieved.

Your thoughts must have gone back to the Garden of Eden and images of what our existence was meant to be before sin, pain and death entered the world. So you wept. You saw your beloved ones hurting, and you felt their pain.

We are hurting today, Lord. We are grieving. Young lives have bee cut short in senseless tragedy. The questions spin and swirl, and the answers come up trite.

Weep with us, dear Jesus. let your tears fall like rains of mercy and healing.

How I wish you would go to the grave of these beloved ones and call, "Come forth!" and life would be restored! And yet, Lord, I know that you offer HOPE for each one of us in the face of death. You conquered death by your resurrection. You invite ANYONE to believe in you and to accept your death on the cross as payment for his/her sin. When we accept that forgiveness, you grant us eternal life! We do not need to fear death! It no longer holds power over one who has accepted your free gift of salvation.

As your children, we can know that when we take our final breath on this earth, You will hold us by the hand and usher us directly into glory, directly into the throne room. We will not be out of your presence for one single second! Praise you, Jesus! Thank you!

Scriptures for further study: Romans 3:23 ; 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-10 ; John 3:16-17 ; 1 Corinthians 15:51-55

Day Nineteen

"He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me,

and he prepares the way so that I

may show him the salvation of God."

Psalm 50:23

Sometimes thanking God, praising Him IS a sacrifice. there are times in our lives, circumstances in which we really don't feel thankful. Maybe we're discouraged, depressed, sick, in pain, grieving, feeling forgotten by God, facing a difficult challenge...any one of a hundred scenarios. In such times praising God is really the last thing on our minds.

This Scripture tells us that when we choose at that very time to praise and thank God anyway, we are bringing honor to Him. We honor Him with our obedience. The truth is that He is worthy of our praise always! His character, attributes, power, and worth do not change like the circumstances of our lives. Regardless of our experience at the moment, God is still Almighty, Holy, Sovereign and worthy of praise!

And so, when I humble myself and do what I do not "feel" like doing, I am giving a sacrifice. It is costing me something, and that sacrifice honors God.

The next statement fascinates me, though, "...and he prepares the way so that I might show him the salvation of God." My sacrifice of praise paves the way for God to show me favor, grant me salvation, shower me with blessing! Wow! Who doesn't want that?!

But why? Why does my praise prepare the way for God's favor and blessing in my life? Because of the obedience exhibited. A son or a daughter has chosen to override personal feelings and perspective in order to do what is right= give God praise. God is worthy of praise!

I can choose to obey and offer praise, even when it comes as a sacrifice and not a natural overflow of my emotions -- even when it is not easy and goes against every "feeling," against every fiber of flesh in my being. This act of humble obedience then paves the way, prepares the channel, for me to see the very hand of God move in my life.

If I spent more time giving a sacrifice of praise rather than worrying or complaining, would I see God's hand stirring my circumstances? Would I see barriers removed and "mountains" moved?

Other scriptures: Galatians 6:9 ; Psalm 107:8-9 ; Psalm 145 ; 1 Thes. 5:16-18

Day Eighteen

Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out,
that times of refreshing may come from the Lord,
and that He may send the Christ who has been appointed for you --
even Jesus.
Acts 3:19-20

Repentance. Confession. Admission of guilt. Sin. Too many times we view repentance as a negative thing instead of the act that brings us freedom!

No of us are unfamiliar with feelings of remorse over something that we have done - or failed to do. We feel the prick of guilt, and our conscience is burdened. But where do we go from there?

Scripture makes it plain that at such a moment we need to openly confess to God. Take responsibility for our actions, and come to Him humbly and honestly.

And what happens next? Forgiveness! Pure and immediate. (1 John 1:9 ) We are washed clean, absolved of guilt. Our sins are removed at that very second as far as the east is from the west. (Psalm 103:12 )

Friends, too often, instead of following these very simple steps, we allow the guilt to eat us alive. We allow the enemy to so infuse us with shame that we no longer believe we can ever have freedom. And we are effectively bound with the very chains that Christ died on the cross to break!

It is normal to sin - we are human! (Romans 7:14-25 ) And until we enter heaven we will succomb to our sinful nature. However, Jesus died in order that we do not have to be slaves to sin any longer! (John 8:34-36 ; Romans 6:5-5 ,16; 8:1-2) It's time to stop allowing Satan to hold us in bondage with shame and guilt. We have been given freedom through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Look at the scripture above from Acts 3:19-20 . We are admonished to repent of our sins so that "times of refreshing may come from the Lord." Wow! I don't know about you, but I certainly welcome times of refreshing from the Lord! So I will choose to take ownership of my sin, to confess it honestly before the Lord, and then to repent of it - which means to turn away from it - so that I can experience forgiveness and freedom.

Our Savior Jesus has already paid the penalty for sin. (2 Corinthians 5:21 ; 1 John 1:7 ) We do not need to carry chains of guilt and shame. We need only to turn to God and confess...and experience joy and freedom!

Additional Scriptures: Psalm 32:5 (read in context of whole psalm); Psalm 51

Day Seventeen

When you hear two sermons on the same passage of scripture within 24 hours, you realize that God is trying to tell you something! Let me share it with you...

Acts 16:16-24 paints a graphic and exciting scene, full of enough drama to fill the movie screens in Hollywood: After exorcising a fortune-telling demon from a slave girl, rendering her useless to her owners, Paul and Silas are not only confronted but severely beaten and then thrown in prison. Bruised and bloodied, they sit in a maximum security prison for hours. At midnight they are praying and praising God, while the other prisoners are listening. Suddenly God sends an earthquake strong enough that all the chains break loose and all the prison cell doors swing open! Read for yourself the rest of the story in verses 27-34.

At times I am beaten up by the enemy, bloodied from battle -- spiritually and emotionally -- as I strive to walk this path of faith. Circumstances or even my own fear of failure can feel as confining as a maximum security prison cell.

But, praise can change my perspective! We've all heard the statement: "You cannot always control what happens to you in life, but you can choose your response." When we choose praise, we usher in the presence of Almighty God! A pathway is paved for the Holy spirit to enter right into our prison cell and shake the shackles loose!

Praise delivers us...and it can also launch us into our destiny. Having an attitude of praise even in the midst of darkness and despair can allow such power and presence of the Holy Spirit to flow that I am launched to a whole new level of my faith walk. Fulfilling the destiny that God has planned for me is advanced by a choice to praise!

Another point from this passage that overwhelmed me was this: Just being in the atmosphere, the environment of praise brought freedom.

There are times when we are so beaten down, so discouraged, so overwhelmed by life's circumstances that we cannot muster up any energy to praise. We cannot exert the effort. At those times, we need to just get in the environment of praise -- surround ourselves with others who are praising the Lord. Spend time in that atmosphere, that setting, and the freedom will come to us as well! Praise is contagious!

From the indication of the scripture in Acts 16:25 , Paul and Silas were the only ones praying and singing. Perhaps the other prisoners were mocking them -- "You fools! Why are you singing and praising God? You're in prison. He's abandoned you." Or even, "It's late! Be quiet and go to sleep!" Perhaps the other prisoners were just listening and watching, intrigued. Perhaps they were overwhelmed by their own circumstances, and the sound of hope and joy was foreign in their ears. I have found myself in each one of those prison cells. How about you?

Regardless, the truth is that Paul and Silas might have been the only ones praising, but all of the prisoners were set free!

Let us always choose to praise and usher in the presence and power of Jesus Christ.

Day Sixteen

1 Peter 2:4-5

“As you come to him, the living Stone – rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him – you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

When the Israelites crossed over the Jordan – at flood stage mind you -- God gave them instructions to build an altar to commemorate the miracle. They were told to pick up stones from middle of the river bed, marking the place where God rolled back the waters and brought them safely across. This altar, these stones, were to be a sign for the nation and for their children – a testimony and remembrance of the hand of Almighty God.

I find it fascinating that the stones were picked up in the middle of the river…signifying the deepest part, the greatest challenge, the highest level of difficulty during their passage. God did not tell them to pick up the stones along the bank of the river which would have been easily visible and accessible. No, He instructed them to gather these stones of remembrance from the most potentially dangerous part of their journey.

So it is with our journey of faith.

Oh, there are times when I build an altar of praise from any rocks laying around – quick to set up a sign of what God has done for me. However, the altars of remembrance that are the most significant in my life are built from boulders that were embedded in the mud of the deepest part of a flood-stage river. Mud-caked hands and broken fingernails scraped and clawed and lifted those stones out of position and placed them with tears into a new position of testimony, reflecting the covenant of my God to care and provide for my needs.

And when I see those stones, I am instantly reminded of His deliverance…and I am quick to tell the story to all who will listen!

I shake my head with amazement, then-- reading the passage from 1 Peter above—that we are like living stones being built into a spiritual house. Certainly, He has dug His nail-scarred hands down into the mud and mire of sin and lifted us out of the pit. Perhaps those of us who have been rescued from the deepest point sing the loudest praise.

As we submit our lives to the Chief Cornerstone, Jesus Christ the Rock, we become a living stone on an altar of praise bringing glory to His mighty name!

Other scriptures: Joshua 4:1-7 ; Psalm 40 ; Romans 12:1

Day Fifteen

She gave this name
to the Lord who spoke to her:
"You are the God who sees me."

Genesis 16: 13

Have you ever had something happen that you knew without a doubt was directly from the Lord? I believe we all have - many, many times - the more appropriate question is if we recognized it!

I had such an experience this morning. I do not have caller id on my phone, so I am totally dependent on my recollection of the individual's voice or their stating their name after I say, "Hello." Well, this morning I received a call from a friend that I have not heard from in months. In fact, it took me a few seconds to realize who was speaking. We used to be in a Bible study together, and she and her daughter had taken piano lessons from me a few years ago. She called just to ask how I was doing because the Lord kept bringing my name to her mind. She felt such a strong desire to hold me up in prayer the last several days and had been doing exactly that. So, she just called to see if I was ok.

Well, she had no idea what an encouragement that was to me! It's rare that we call one another just to offer a kind word or to let someone know we're praying for them.

We talked briefly and got caught up on one another's lives. God's faithfulness to both of us had been evident through answered prayer, and so we rejoiced with one another. I told her that I had experienced challenges lately and really appreciated her prayers and encouragement.

When I hung up the phone I shed some tears of gratitude to the Lord. How in the world would she have thought to call me today except by the nudging of the Holy Spirit? She had no idea what was going on in my life, but my heavenly Father knew.

Immediately this verse came to my mind - "You are the God who sees me." Read it in context in Genesis 16 . It tells the story of a seemingly insignificant woman, feeling used, abused, abandoned and forgotten. God meets her in the desert - definitely an emotional desert as well as a literal one - and assures her not only of His presence, but His provision. He even reveals to her the destiny that He has planned for her life.

Friends, our precious Lord does the same with us. Regardless of how we feel, He never abandons or forgets us. He cannot. We are written on the very palm of His hand.

Walk in peace today knowing that your God sees you and loves you.

Additional scriptures: Hebrews 13:5 ; Isaiah 49:15-16

Day Fourteen

See, a king will reign in righteousness
and rulers will rule with justice.

Each man will be like a shelter from the wind
and a refuge from the storm,
like streams of water in the desert
and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land.

Isaiah 32:1-2

God showed me this scripture to pray for my church, for the leadership, for the Body -- that we would indeed be a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storms of life. Too often we allow the enemy to create storms, turmoil, damaging winds inside the walls of the church. So, what is intended to be a safe place filled with love, mercy, encouragement, exhortation, grace and peace becomes just one more place of tension, conflict and hurt. We must pray against this, fix our eyes on Jesus, and strive for peace -- in the church corporately and in our individual lives.

Do we offer streams of water in the desert lands of people's lives?

Jesus said of himself in John 4:10-14 that He was the source of living water. Are we pointing others to that source?

I love the imagery of this scripture from Isaiah -- "the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land." Can you picture it? Perhaps it looked like the rock at Horeb from which God gave the Israelites fresh water. (Exodus 17:1-7 )

That certainly was a thirsty land! Physically it was a desert, but spiritually the people were thirsty for God's presence, His deliverance. Any spiritual moisture in their souls was being sucked dry by their grumbling and unbelief.

God showed up in a mighty way, gushing fresh water from that huge rock.

So, too, in our lives our Rock offers not only shade in our desert-like lives but a rush of living water which, if we let it, will saturate our very souls.

Other scriptures for study: Psalm 91:1 ; 46:4; Numbers 20:1-13 ; John 4:10-14 ; 7:38