Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-November 22, 2022-

Good morning, happy Tuesday,

“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete lacking nothing.”

(James 1:2-3).

Trials are beneficial as long as we learn from them and trust the Lord through them. We accept them, and allow God to work in our lives. Patience or perseverance is the best result in our lives. This was especially true of Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, David, Paul, and many others in the Bible. They made the best of every test.

We can’t see what God sees and knows what lies ahead for us. He leads us according to His will and timing. Paul wrote in Romans how trials can benefit us: “And not only that, but we glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance, character, and character, hope” (Romans 5:3-4). When we grow through our trials, we grow in our faith. It is only when resist them, complain about them, or blame God or others for them that we miss the blessing.

May God encourage us and help us to make the best of every test. Stay safe and healthy.

Leaning on the Lord who never fails us,

Dean

-November 21, 2020

Good morning, happy Monday,

“My help comes the Lord, who made heaven and earth” (Psalm 121:2).

“The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth, and even forevermore” (Psalm 121:7-8).

Tonight I write this devotion from the Intensive Care Unit at Kaiser Hospital. Today started off well when I got to church for our Worship Team practice. But then my neck started hurting really badly and I was extra sensitive to light. When I looked at the screen with the words of our third song, I couldn’t read it. It was one big, bright light. I had to sit down they called 911. I was taken to the ER. My blood pressure had gone way low with slower than usual heart rate. They are going to implant a special pacemaker to keep my heart rate at 60. I still have a tricuspid value that is leaking very badly and need a new one. Please pray for me.

God always sends the help just when we need it. He is our helper who never slumbers nor sleeps. Nothing catches Him by surprise. He knew all about this before I was born. He often sends people to help us. My help came in the form of dear saints who cared for me until the wonderful paramedics arrived. They helped me and took great care of me. The ER doctors and nurses were great as are the ICU staff.

Psalm 121 is so rich and beautiful. The Lord promises to preserve us in our going out and our coming in. I know that He is not finished with me yet. But whatever happens to me, I am under the care of the Lord Jesus, the Great Physician. The hymn writer wrote, “Just when I need Him, Jesus is near, just when I falter, just when I fear; ready to help me, ready to cheer. Just when I need Him most.”

May the Lord help us in our needs, problems, and troubles. Stay safe and healthy.

Thanking God for His help,

p.s. – Today is our 900th consecutive verse of the day devotional on the blog. Praise be to God!

-November 20, 2022-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day,

“Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, ‘Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished. For He will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon. They will scourge Him and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again.’”

(Luke 18:31-33).

Jesus knew before the foundation of the world what He would go through to suffer and die on the cross to save us from our sins. In His humanity He realized it was approaching the time. He was committed to the Father’s will and made the choice to go up to Jerusalem. Had it been any of us, we would have avoided Jerusalem completely, especially knowing that death by crucifixion was just ahead.

Three times Jesus predicted with specific detail how He would suffer, die, and rise again. He tells the twelve disciples that the prophets wrote of it and it will be accomplished. He would be delivered to the Gentles (the Romans) who would mock Him, insult Him, spit on Him, scourge Him, and kill Him. This is exactly what He went through for you and me. He died in our place as our Substitute and bore our sins. This was certainly not what His followers wanted to hear. But then comes the encouraging news came at the end of verse 33 that says, “And the third day He will rise again.”

The following verse shows the mercy of the Lord to these men that He loved, “But they understood none of these things; this saying was hidden from them, and they did not know the things which were spoken. Sometimes in life it is better that we don’t know the sad, difficult, and fearful things that will happen to us. Even after Jesus rose from the dead they did not remember how He told them He would rise again.

Jesus faced agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, was arrested, put on trial, falsely accused, and was crucified. We in America know very little of persecution or martyrdom. Many Christians around the world face persecution and death for their Savior. Thank God that Jesus knowing all, suffered all, and died for all.

Have a blessed Lord’s Day in praising and worshipping Him. Stay safe and healthy.

All glory to our Lord and Savior who died and rose again,

Dean

-November 19, 2022-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

“Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart.”

(Luke 18:1).

Prayer is one of the biggest and most important subjects in the Bible, yet it is something that most believers don’t do enough of. It will be one of our greatest regrets that we didn’t pray enough with the passion, power, and persistence that we should. E.M. Bounds wrote a book on prayer, entitled, “E.M. Bounds On Prayer,” but more than that he prayed every day from 4 am to 7 am. He was a pastor and a real prayer warrior. It is said that no man made more more melting appeals for lost souls and backslidden Christians than him. He wrote, “Prayer is not an afterthought. It is not be to used only in “case of emergency.” It is to be the priority of our lives.”

In today’s verse, Jesus says, “Men always ought to pray and not lose heart. We often give up praying about something before God answers us. Prayer is hard work, and we must persist in prayer. Our Savior spoke a parable of a widow in need of legal protection. She asked the judge, “Get justice for me from my adversary.” The judge is called “unjust judge,” because he didn’t fear God nor regard man.” He finally succumbed to her pleas because she continually came to him. God, on the other hand wants to help us and answer our prayers.

Prayer must be earnest, continual, and impactful. Paul in writing to the Thessalonians said, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). We can never pray enough! By praying we do not lose heart. Is prayer your priority? Is it your passion? Is it your source of power? We get into our vehicles and drive them but seldom think of the power of the engine under the hood until there is a problem. We only cry out to God when there is “an emergency.” We try all our own resources first, then pray. Why don’t we pray first and last.

The hymn writer Joseph M. Scriven wrote, “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.” Let us take the daily prayer challenge and see what God can do.

Have a blessed day praying. Stay safe and healthy.

Praying always to the One who can and does answer us,

Dean

-November 18, 2022-

Good morning, happy Friday,

“The Lord’s portion is His people; Jacob is the place of His inheritance.”

(Deuteronomy 32:9).

Yesterday we considered that the Lord is our portion. He is our everything, our all. Today, we look at the fact that we as His people are His portion. These two are like a two-sided coin reflecting our relationship with the Lord. He loves us so much and we mean everything to Him. The Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross to save us and redeem us to Himself. We are His blood bought people.

Under the OT law, all the first born Israelites belonged to the Lord, along with all the first born animals. The Lord required a redemption price for each person. Numbers 18:15-16 says, “Everything that first opens the womb of all flesh, which they bring to the Lord, whether man or beast, shall be yours; nevertheless the firstborn of man you shall surely redeem, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem. And those who redeemed of the devoted things you shall redeem when one month old, according to your valuation, for five shekels of silver, according the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.” The rich did not pay any more, nor did the poor pay any less. This ceremony was carried out on the 31st day after birth and was based on how God slew all the firstborn Egyptians before Pharaoh let the Israelites go free.

Israel was and is the Lord’s earthly people and He considered them His special treasure. He chose them not because of how numerous or strong they were, nor how good they were. Jesus considers us His heavenly people. In Exodus 19:5 it says, “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.”

In 1 Peter 2:9-10, Peter wrote of us, “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.” It is all by the riches of God’s mercy and grace. We did not nor will we ever deserve it!

We are His portion; we belong to the Lord by the redemption of His precious blood. Truly our lives are not our own. We live to please and serve the Lord. What a wonderful position we have in Christ. We are His portion and the Lord is our portion. We are so blessed above all the rest! One day the Lord will take us to heaven to live with Him forever. Hallelujah!

Have a blessed day thanking the Lord for making us His portion both now and forever. Stay safe and healthy.

Attached to Jesus Christ our Lord,

Dean