Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-February 11, 2022-

Good morning, happy Friday,

“Then his wife said to him, ‘Do you hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!’ But he said to her, ‘You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?’ In this Job did not sin with his lips.”

(Job 2:9-10).

Life is filled with both prosperity and adversity. God knows how much we need. On the prosperity side, we have our share of successes, victories, and blessings; on the adversity side, we also experience losses, defeats, failures, and mistakes. Given our choice we would eliminate all adversity. The problem is: our faith wouldn’t grow and we wouldn’t rely on God. The truth of the matter is: it is actually harder in times of of prosperity than adversity. When things are going well we start thinking we deserve God’s blessings and take God and His goodness for granted.

Up to this time in Job’s life, he experienced God’s goodness and blessings to a great degree. All of the sudden a series of severe and difficult trials struck him. From the loss of his children, servants, livestock, and most of all his health. Even his wife turned against him, as did his friends. All that he had left was was God, and he found God to be all he needed.

The Bible is full of examples of men and women who had very difficult trials and also very great blessings. Paul so poignantly wrote to the Philippians, “I know how to be abased, and how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and suffer need” (Philippians 4:12). What really helped Paul was that he learned to be content in whatever state he found himself in. He accepted the good and the bad, the positive and negative, the ups and the downs. He took everything as from the hand of God.

How about you? How do you deal with adversity? How do you do in prosperity? We have seen examples of our American athletes at the Winter Olympics. For some there has been the thrill of victory, but for others the agony of defeat. Only one team can win the Super Bowl this Sunday. It will be the highest of highs for the winners, and the lowest of lows for the losers.

Adversity draws us to God, humbles us, and helps to depend on God not ourselves. It also causes to appreciate what the Lord has done for us. Prosperity often causes the opposite: pride, self-reliance, and laxness. We should thank God for both and surrender fully to His will in our lives. He will never give us more than we can handle, nor allow too much prosperity. He knows just the right balance, the perfect combination for our growth and development in Christ.

Have a blessed day of both prosperity and adversity with a joyful and thankful spirit. Stay safe and healthy.

In His sufficient grace,

Dean

-February 10, 2022-

Good morning, happy Thursday,

“The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.”

(Numbers 6:24-26).

This portion in Numbers 6:23-27 is known as the Aaronic or priestly blessing. The high priest was to pronounce this blessing on all the Israelites. It was not just a blessing, but also a benediction and an encouragement to the people of God. It is composed of three parts: Blessing and keeping us, shining His face and being gracious to us, and lifting up His countenance on us and giving us peace. It is so rich and beautiful.

• The Lord bless you and keep you – The Lord wants to bless us even more than we want to be blessed. He keeps us throughout our earthly journey and will take us safely to heaven. Psalm 121:2-3 says, “He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.” God always watches over us to bless us and keep us. He loves us so much. We need His constant care.

• The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you – When Stephen, the first martyr stood before the Jews in Acts chapter 7, it says of him right before he gave his defense and testimony before them in Acts 6:15, “And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him, saw his face as the face of an angel.” He radiated the face of Christ on his face. People saw Jesus in him. He dripped with grace and truth as he traced the history of Israel leading up to the crucifixion. They listened to him up until that point. Then they covered their ears and stoned him to death. When we preach the gospel or share our faith, we need both grace and power. Do others see Jesus in you?

• The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace – Peace is of the greatest blessings we have in Christ. Jesus said in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” We who are saved have peace with God and experience the peace of God. His peace surpasses all understanding and guards our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. We face so many uncertainties, troubles, problems, trials, and fears. The Prince of Peace, our Lord Jesus is with us and leads us through them all.

This Aaronic blessing was directed to Israel, God’s earthly people but applies to us as well. We have all these things in Christ and so much more. We are so blessed, blessed above the rest. We are His children, His servants, and His disciples. It doesn’t get any better than that.

Have a blessed day rejoicing in God’s rich and abundant blessings. May we be truly thankful for what we have in Him. Stay safe and healthy.

In His abundance in Christ,

Dean

-February 9, 2022-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

“Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man? The goodness of God endures continually.”

(Psalm 52:1).

David, the writer of this psalm, fled from King Saul who wanted to kill him. He and his men visited Ahimelech the high priest at Nob. Ahimelech gave him the sword of Goliath and the show bread for David and his men to eat. Ahimelech was unaware of what was going on with Saul and David because David told him that he was on a special mission for the king. Little did David know the Doeg, a servant of King Saul saw David there and relayed word to Saul. By the time Saul and his troops arrived David was gone, but Saul was furious with Ahimelech for helping David and order all the priests there in Nob, who were of the house of Eli the priest to be executed. None of Saul’s men would do such a thing against the priests of the Lord. Only Doeg the Edomite was willing to kill them and he did. The Scriptures tell us that God was bringing judgment on the house of Eli as He said He would.

David lived to regret this awful, brutal, and sinful act. He blamed himself for it. It is against this backdrop that David wrote this psalm. He acknowledged a acknowledged that Doeg was a mighty man boasting in evil. David faced many evil men in his life such as Goliath, Saul, Nabal, and even his own son Absalom. The one constant is God’s goodness that “endures continually.” God’s goodness like all His attributes never changes.

As someone said, “God is good all the time, and all the time, God is good.” God’s goodness is like the sun that is always shining on us. Even on cloudy, rainy, or snowy days, God’s goodness is always there. God’s goodness is great, and His greatness is good. One of my favorite sayings is “God is So Good.” I use the expression a lot under a host of circumstances to acknowledge His presence, power, and providence in my life.

We need to remember the goodness of God at all times, whether we a facing difficulties or receiving blessings. We tend to grow more under the trials than we do in the good times. Why is this? We tend to cast ourselves upon the Lord and rely on Him more in hard times. When things are going well we somehow think we deserve it. If we reflect on God’s goodness always we will be greatly encouraged. God is good not just in the good times but at all times.

May the Lord help us to thank Him for His continual goodness toward us who don’t deserve it. In the song written and sung by Laura Story, she penned, “‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops, what if Your healing comes through tears, what if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You’re near, what if the trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise.” His trials come in packages of goodness; the trials are indeed blessings in disguise.

Have a blessed day basking in God’s continual goodness whether we in times trials or in times of blessings, whether we are on the mountaintop or in the valley. Stay safe and healthy.

In His continual goodness,

Dean

-February 8, 2022-

Good morning, happy Tuesday,

“Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God.”

(Romans 15:7).

The standard for receiving others is extremely high: we must receive others as Christ has received us, to the glory of God. How did He receive us? The answer is in love, kindness, forgiveness, and truth. The Lord loved each of us and by grace through faith, He received to Himself. Jesus is our greatest example.

There is no room for partiality or prejudice; indifference or callousness. We must see others through the eyes and heart of our Savior. It calls for us to open our hearts to others in the name of Christ, for His sake, and in His love. When we do something for others, we are doing it to the Lord Jesus Himself. Jesus said in Mark 9:41, “For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.” Such small acts of generosity, kindness, and love done on earth are noticed, recorded, and rewarded in heaven.

Jesus also said, “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me” (Mark 9:37). Jesus loves little children and blesses them, and we should too. It is especially wonderful if we do good to others who have no means to repay us. Our Lord also said in Matthew 25:35-36, 40, “For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.” And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’”

May the Lord help us to receive others as Christ has received us and as He has done for us. Let us treat others extremely well in Jesus’ name. He will reward us for it.

Have a blessed day receiving others as the Lord has received us. Stay safe and healthy.

In the name of Christ and His love,

Dean

-February 7, 2022-

Good morning, happy Monday,

“Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man” (Matthew 15:11).

“But those things which proceed out of the heart, they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matthew 15:18-19).

The Pharisees had formal religion much of which were devised by themselves. They believed in looking good on the outside, but were completely dead on the inside. Their hearts were far from God. Jesus rebuked them in Matthew 15:8-9, “These people draw near with their mouth, and honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.”

The source of sin is the heart and that is where all defilement comes from. What one eats or drinks, how one dresses, or how much money one has makes no difference in the eyes of God. God sees our hearts. When we get saved, we have a new nature, but we also still have the old nature, which is in opposition to our new nature.

James wrote, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death” (James 1:13-15). The devil brings the temptation before us, but he cannot force us to succumb to it. We must stay close to the Lord, pray, and obey the Word of God.

Jesus said to, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” We are vulnerable and weak, and we need the power of the Holy Spirit to live a victorious life. We have the capacity to commit every sin, but also the power to overcome each one. In Matthew 25:18-19, Jesus mentions seven deadly sins: evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.” They are start in the heart and are manifested in some outward action. We often consider stealing and lying as minor sins. We even call some lies, “white lies.” All sin is an abomination to the Lord.

Paul warns us in 1 Corinthians 10:12, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” We cannot trust our sinful flesh, we must trust the Lord and obey Him fully. God desires that we be victorious over sin and the flesh. let us call sin what it is: wickedness and evil against the Lord, and hurtful to others.

Have a blessed day walking with the Lord and being on guard, watching and praying. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean