Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-June 26, 2022-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day,

“‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the Lord. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.’”

(Isaiah 55:8-9).

We think we know more than we do. We forget it was God who created us, and His knowledge, understanding, and wisdom are far superior to all of man’s combined. He sees all and knows all; we have such limited knowledge of the past, present, and especially the the future. Our decision making is limited at best and completely flawed at worst.

God not knows us better than we know ourselves, but He knows everyone the same way. He knows what is coming around the corner, we do not; He wants the very best for us. Left to ourselves and our own thinking, reasoning, and understanding we would constantly fail and be frustrated. Today’s text is spoken by the Lord to Israel and also by application to us as believers today. He doesn’t mean these words to shame us, but to help us.

David wrote in Psalm 139:1-4, “O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. For before there is a word on my tongue, but behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.” David didn’t resent how well God knew him, he appreciated it.

Because God’s thoughts and ways are higher than our’s, we often think His plan and will don’t make sense to us. We imagine our mortal plans would somehow work better than God’s. How foolish we are at times! God promised Abraham a son from his own body. Sarah told Abraham to take her maid Hagar so she may have a child through her. This caused so many problems then and is still causing many problems today between the Israelis and the Arabs. God was still faithful to His promise and gave Abraham and Sarah a son when he was 100 and she was 90! Man only messes things up. It is always good to have God’s best for our lives and not strive for our own second best.

God moves in miraculous, mysterious, and marvelous ways. Paul wrote in Romans 11:33, “O the depths of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! We should bow down before Him and worship Him! The more we know of Him and His Word, the more we realize how much we don’t know.

Have a blessed day worshiping the Lord and seeking His will, guidance, and help in everything great and small. Stay safe and healthy.

In humble adoration to a limitless God,

Dean

-June 25, 2022-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

“But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one.”

(2 Thessalonians 3:3).

God has proven Himself faithful in our lives, especially when the devil attacks us. Here in our text, He promises to establish us and guard us from the evil one. One of the schemes of the devil is to discourage us. With all the bad things happening in the world and in our lives, Satan has a lot to use against us. He wants us to doubt God and doubt ourselves.

It is thus vital that we read, meditate on, and study the Word of God daily to keep up our spiritual strength. It also so important to pray for others and for ourselves. They are like two pillars that we can cling to in times of adversity, trial, and temptation. It reminds me of the pillars that Samson held onto and shook, before he brought down the Philistine temple, causing the death of many, including himself. Just prior to that his hair grew back, and with it his strength. There was a lad there that he asked to let him feel the pillars to lean on. He was blind and couldn’t see them, but he could feel them. Then he prayed, “O Lord God, remember me, I pray! Strengthen me, just this once, O God, that I may with one blow take vengeance on the Philistines for my two eyes” (Judges 16:28).

We shouldn’t take our strength from the Lord lightly or for granted as Samson did for most of his life. We need the Lord to establish us in His mighty power. We in ourselves are no match for the devil, but he is no match for the Lord. The Lord not only establishes us, but he guards us as well. Jesus knows what temptation feels like. He was tempted as we are, yet without sin. He resisted and defeated the devil using the Word of God so that we could learn to do the same. We thank God for His faithfulness. He is faithfully with us at all times.

Our Lord Jesus Christ is faithful, day in and day out, without fail. Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Let us trust Him and not be discouraged. One day when our time on earth is completed, He will take us home to glory. Until then, let us keep fighting.

Have a blessed day thanking the Lord for His faithfulness and holding on to the pillars of the Word and prayer. Stay safe and healthy.

In His faithful care,

Dean

-June 24, 2022-

Good morning, happy Friday,

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may life, and have it more abundantly.” I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.”

(John 10:10-11).

What a contrast between the devil, who seeks our destruction, and Christ our good shepherd who seeks our ultimate good and blessing. Before we were saved the devil was in control of our lives, and we were in bondage to our sins. We survived but we didn’t thrive. He kept us busy accumulating the things of the world with no joy. On the other hand, Christ came to deliver us from our sins and give us life eternal and abundant. The life in Jesus Christ is the best life for us both now and for all eternity.

We are His sheep, and He is our Good Shepherd, Great Shepherd, and Chief Shepherd. He leads us, feeds us, and He cares for us. David wrote, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1). The life we have in Him is rich, fulfilling, satisfying, joyful, and peaceful. There is no better life. The word abundant is defined as, “Existing or available in large quantities; plentiful; having plenty of.” Someone wrote, “The word abundant in the New Testament means, “exceedingly, very highly, beyond measure, more, a quantity so abundant as to be considerably more than what one would expect or anticipate.” He gives not only a good quantity of life, but a good quality of life as well.

Having and living the abundant life doesn’t mean we won’t have pain, disappointment, trial, suffering, or sorrow. In fact, those who desire to follow Christ must bear His cross, walk the way of righteousness, follow Him, and be persecuted. There is also a difference between having the abundant life and living it out in our lives on a daily lives. This is why we as believers should rejoice and give thanks to the Lord always. We sometimes blame the Lord for messes we get ourselves into. This was true of both Jacob and Naomi.

When Pharaoh asked Jacob how old he was, he answered, “The days of my pilgrimage are one hundred thirty years; few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage” (Genesis 47:9). Naomi, when she returned to Israel, told the people in Ruth 1:20, “Do not call me Naomi (means pleasant) but call me Mara, (which means bitter), for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?” Jacob was a supplanter and schemer, and Naomi left Israel with her husband and two sons to go outside God’s will to the foreign land of Moab. Her husband and both sons died there. Neither Jacob nor Naomi lived an abundant life until they went back to where they belonged, got right with God, and were subsequently blessed abundantly.

Conversely, David and Paul both lived an abundant life of joy in a close relationship with the Lord. Each had their share of trials and difficulties, but they were thankful, praised God, and trusted in Him for everything. Neither blamed the Lord, others, or their circumstances when hard times came. So often, it is all about our attitude. We must choose to rejoice in the Lord and live above our circumstances. We have look beyond our circumstances to Christ our Shepherd.

May we thank the Lord for the abundant life we have in Jesus and choose to live it out daily. The song writer said, “I can smile as I walk along life’s road, I can smile if I carry a heavy load; I can smile because I walk with Jesus.” Let’s live the abundant life with joy. Stay safe and healthy.

In the care of Jesus our shepherd,

Dean

-June 23, 2022-

Good morning, happy Thursday,

“And David said in his heart, ‘Now I shall perish someday by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should speedily escape to the land of the Philistines; and Saul will despair of me, to seek me anymore in any part of Israel. So I shall escape out of his hand.’”

(1 Samuel 27:1).

Spiritually, David was at his lowest ebb. He had been on the run from Saul for many years. In his flesh, he was tired and frustrated. Had he forgotten that Samuel anointed him as king? Had he forgotten how God had preserved and protected him from Saul so many times? He wanted to give up and give in, to throw in towel. In our flesh, we are a lot like David. We have little endurance and find it hard to wait on the Lord.

Elijah the prophet was discouraged and depressed, making him flee from the wicked queen Jezebel who had threatened his life. She blamed him for the 450 prophets of Baal who died on Mount Carmel. God encouraged him and brought him strength. The Lord also worked on David’s behalf, and he became king over Judah for seven years, then over all Israel for thirty three years. In David’s case, Saul was killed shortly after this as recorded in 1 Samuel 31.

God does not want us to quit or give up no matter how difficult our circumstances are. Nowadays people give up on their marriages, their jobs, their college studies, and even their ministries for the Lord. We build endurance by enduring, we gain strength through hard times. When we give up, we are in affect, laying down our cross, rejecting our lot and our thorn. It never works well for anyone, especially when the Lord is with us.

It got so bad for David that he colluded with the Philistines, Israel’s great enemies. In fact he would have fought with them against Israel had not the lords of the Philistines refused to let him and his men fight with them, fearing he would turn against them in battle. We can do some pretty awful things when we go outside the will of God. God intervened for him or things would have been much worse. Someone once said, “If God brought you to it, He will bring you through it.” Let’s not give up before the miracle and victory comes.

May the Lord help us to pray, have faith, and keep pressing on. He is with us and will never leave us nor forsake us. If we quit and give up, the devil will win. We must keep our eyes on Jesus not on our circumstances.

Have a blessed day looking to Jesus for His help. Don’t give up or quit. Stay safe and healthy.

In His presence and power,

Dean

-June 22, 2022-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

“And he took him up by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered with the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God.”

(Acts 3:7-8).

This lame man at the temple gate had been in that condition since birth; He had never walked before. His friends or family had to carry him daily to the temple so he could beg for alms. The definition of alms is, “money or food given to poor people.” Peter and John came to the temple at the ninth hour, about 3’ o’clock in the afternoon, which was the hour of prayer. Peter felt compassion on him at said, “Look at us.” He gave them his full attention hoping to receive some money from Peter and John. Peter instead of giving him money said in Acts 3:6, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give to you: in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise and walk.”

Peter had something to share with this lame man that was better than money, material things, food, or any other earthly things. He had the message of the gospel, for the healing of the soul, and the healing of the body as well. This man received both. Peter lifted him up and he was immediately healed. It is not surprising that Luke, a physician and writer of Acts, described the details of his healing: “his feet and ankle bones received strength.” He was immediately saved spiritually and showed fruit unto salvation by going with Peter and John into the temple to pray.

There is no greater joy than the salvation of a soul. There joy for the sinner saved by grace through faith, the person leading him to Christ, and for all of heaven. Joy is that inner quality of a personal relationship with Jesus. It is not dependent upon outward circumstances. This lame man showed the joy of his salvation by walking, leaping, and praising God. All the people saw him walking and praising God, and knowing he was the one who sat begging at the temple gate daily. All the people were filled with wonder and amazement. What great testimony he had to share!

Peter used the opportunity to give glory to the Lord who had healed him, and he preached the gospel of Christ to them. Peter and John were joyful to lead a precious soul to Christ. His physical lameness was gone and he was a new creation in Christ. If you have ever led a soul to Christ, you know how exciting it is. Not everyone we share our faith with gets saved, especially not right away. Sometimes we sow the seed, other times we water it, and there are other times when we reap the results and see someone saved.

Not only was there joy for the healed and saved man, and for Peter and John, but also there was joy in heaven. Jesus said in Luke 15:7, 10, “I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety nine just persons who need no repentance. Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

The lesson for us is rejoice in our salvation every day. To be saved, forgiven, have eternal life, and to have a home in heaven is beyond words. We are so blessed and thankful. The song writer expressed it so well, “I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart, down in my heart; I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart, down in my heart to stay.” The joy in our hearts isn’t just a passing fancy, it lasts and stays in our hearts forever. Let us drink freely from the wells of salvation.

Have a blessed and joyful day in and with Jesus, the source of our joy. Stay safe and healthy.

In His eternal, exuberant, and emphatic joy,

Dean