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S O A P

14 Nov

Posted at 14:22h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: Psalm 149:6 May the praise of God be in their mouths and a double-edged sword in their hands. O-bservation: King David was honest about the life of every believer. He said our mission is to praise the Lord with a song of praise in our mouths at all times and to keep fighting for what we believe. This was the Old Testament believer’s mission of “Singing And Fighting.” A-pplication: Yes, I know we live in a day and age where the mission of the people of God is not so “out there” as it was in David’s time. By that, I mean we live here in the United States (my country), which is historically known as a Christian nation. So the idea of carrying a sword or an AK-47 to work to fight for one’s faith is presently out of the question. Yet, there is a way of singing at work. In other words, there’s a way to maintain a happy and positive demeanor at work or university that is attractive while at the same time being willing to defend your faith verbally (fight for what you believe) and not give the devil an inch. I know...

13 Nov

Posted at 13:22h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: Job 39:1 Do you know when the mountain goats give birth? Do you watch when the doe bears her fawn? O-bservation: Once again, we read of God the Father’s questioning of Job. Job had called out the Lord for what Job perceived to be injustice towards him. When God had heard enough of this little man’s ranting, he told Job to close his mouth, and HE (God) would question Job. The Lord presents too many brilliant questions to mention here; however, this one question catches my attention. First, the Lord asked Job if he knew when the mountain goats (plural as in all at once) give birth? Then He asked Job if Job knew when the doe (as in every doe, every year) bears her baby fawn? The questions seem endless, and some, like this one, feel intimate and deeply engaging. When I read it, my first thought was, “Our Loving And Detailed Heavenly Father.” A-pplication: Seriously, when you look at the tremendously intimate and loving care our God gives to female mountain goats and does, it reminds me of the words of Jesus when He said, “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the...

12 Nov

Posted at 12:27h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: Job 38:28 Does the rain have a father? Who fathers the drops of dew? O-bservation: In his pain, suffering, and anguish, Job questioned why God would allow such unfathomable turmoil in his life. However, at a certain point, Job began to defend his righteousness. With that came a sense that Job was questioning God’s justice in his matter. At one point, God had listened enough and began to question Job. One of the questions God posed to Job was, “Does the rain have a father? Who fathers the drops of dew?” A-pplication: What kind of a question is that? When you read the FOUR CHAPTERS of God’s questions to Job, you realize that’s why God is God. Who else could even think of questions so deep and so wise and so unthinkable? But this question on who fathers the rain? It spoke to me. Fortunately, our earth’s water will never go away. It’s stored in our inner earth regions, and should it try and escape the earth’s atmosphere, it freezes and falls back to earth in the form of ice crystals. Much of it evaporates into the clouds only to come back in the form of rain....

11 Nov

Posted at 13:23h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: Psalm 122:9 For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your prosperity. O-bservation: In this chapter of the book of Psalms, King David writes about his two great loves. First, he is grateful to the Lord for the house of the Lord. Second, he is grateful for the great city of Jerusalem. Finally, in this last verse, he made this statement (my paraphrase), “I seek for God’s prosperity so the house of the Lord (the church) may be maintained and stay strong.” A-pplication: When I read this passage, I always think, “Here’s Another Reason To Pray For Prosperity!” I often hear people who speak of being a Christian yet are very vocal and anti about what they consider to be their coined phrase, “The Prosperity Gospel.” Indeed, if given a choice, few of us would choose poverty over prosperity. Most of us want to pay our bills. Most of us want our children and grandchildren to be cared for so that they receive food and shelter, which means someone must prosper to provide these essentials. But here, David said, “I have to pray for prosperity to take care of the house...

10 Nov

Posted at 14:23h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: 1 Corinthians 7:7 I wish that all of you were as I am. But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that. O-bservation: The Apostle Paul said to the church at Corinth that he wished all of them were like him. But then he said that the matter he was speaking of was a gift given to him by God. He then seemed to reconsider and say, each of you has your own gift as well. One has this gift. Another has another gift. A-pplication: You may be wondering, “What Was Paul Saying?” The Apostle was dealing with marriage and the act of sex within the boundaries of marriage. When he said that he wished everyone had his gift, he spoke of the gift referred to as continence. Continence, in this case, is the ability to control one’s need for sexual relations. He wasn’t saying he wanted everyone to be single as he was single. He also wasn’t saying he wished that no one was married because that would go against Holy Scripture. Paul had been given a gift from the Lord to abstain from sexual relations. That’s what...

09 Nov

Posted at 13:22h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: 1 Corinthians 4:15 Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. O-bservation: The Apostle Paul talked about The Need For FATHERING amongst the people of God. He told the young church at Corinth that even though they might have ten thousand folks watching over them, they still lacked FATHERS. A-pplication: What’s the difference between a guardian and a father? I believe a father is responsible for a minimum of four qualities in the raising of his children. At least I’ll give you what I saw it to be as a father. First, a father is a MODEL of how a man is supposed to operate biblically. Second, a father is there to PROTECT his children from whatever may come their way that would hinder their growth physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Third, a father is there to bring DISCIPLINE to a child who steps out of the biblical pattern the father lays down for his children to follow. And fourth, a father is there to APPLAUD his children. That means in whatever field they want to elevate their calling. He...

08 Nov

Posted at 14:23h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: Job 33:26 Then that person can pray to God and find favor with him, they will see God’s face and shout for joy; he will restore them to full well-being. O-bservation: These are the words of Elihu. This young man had stood by and watched for days as Job’s three friends had interrogated him and thrust blame upon him, and finally, the young man could take it no longer. He stepped up to speak and said he had waited because he felt he was too young to speak, but now he wanted to speak for God and help Job acknowledge that God does all things well. He used the illustration of a man in deep despair, and because of physical sickness, he was on the brink of death. But at that moment, an angel was sent to him, and the angel helped him see the face of God. The man was filled with such joy that he repented of his sin, and God forgave him. Even though this was an illustration, it informs us that there was an “Old Testament Salvation in that day.” A-pplication: I’m only saying this because Job is believed to be the oldest...

07 Nov

Posted at 16:23h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: Galatians 6:7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. O-bservation: The Apostle Paul, as he was preparing to close out the letter to the church at Galatia, reminds us that a man or woman reaps whatever it is that they sow. It’s part of the law of “Sowing And Reaping.” All of life has to do with the “Law of the Harvest.” A-pplication: During this season, I’ve been preaching a Bible series at the church I’m pastoring here in Miami, Florida, and it has to do with “Sowing And Reaping.” Here are just a few simple statements that help us understand what Paul was saying. First, you must sow before you can reap. Second, you reap after you sow. And third, you reap more than you sow. I could go on and on. I also believe that you reap in the category you sow into, and it matters where you sow and how much you sow. Ultimately a person reaps what they sow. I have a friend who created a machine to make picture frames. He wanted to make something people could enjoy in their spare time. So many people...

06 Nov

Posted at 13:22h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: Galatians 3:9 So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. O-bservation: In this passage of scripture, St. Paul told the church at Galatia not to rely on the law to experience peace with God. He said Abraham, the Old Testament Jewish patriarch, had originally stepped out in faith to seek the new land God promised to give him. He did not know where he was going but depended solely on God’s word. Thus he was called “The Man Of Faith.” Paul promised that if they would rely on faith and not the law, they would be blessed because “Faith Brings The Blessing.” A-pplication: I’ve learned this passage to be true for all of my life. Faith has a certain “Good Fear” to it. You’re kind of scared because you know that if God doesn’t help you there will be real trouble ahead. But it’s in those times that your spirit is on high alert to the things of God. You pray more. You search Scripture more, and oddly enough you refuse temptation more. Why? Because you’re living by faith, and if God doesn’t help who knows what might happen. However,...

05 Nov

Posted at 13:25h in S O A P

S. O. A. P. Here’s Your 90 second AM Devotional! S-cripture: Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. O-bservation: The word crucify means execution. When Jesus was crucified on the cross, He was executed for crimes no Roman authority could define. So when the apostle says he had been crucified along with Christ (his old person that is), he, like all of us, could definitely describe crimes committed against the King of Glory. Yet He (Jesus) filled us with His power so “The Old Me Was Executed” and Jesus now lives in me! To tell you the truth. I’ve never been happier. A-pplication: Nobody likes to talk about their crimes against humanity. But all of us have committed them. When you look at the “Fruits of the Spirit” in chapter 5 of this same letter to the Galatians, you will see that anything opposite of each of those fruits ends up being a crime against humanity. That makes us all guilty. But thank God for Jesus. Because of Him, we can be...