Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-September 23, 2021-

Good morning, happy Thursday,

“And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.”

(Romans 5:3-4).

You can summarize the Christian life in the simple phrase “from trial to triumph.” If we did not experience trials, our faith would not grow. Trials definitely make us stronger and more reliant on the Lord. Pain, trouble, sorrow, and pressure help us to trust the Lord and be victors and overcomers.

Tribulations produce perseverance and patience. The more difficulties we encounter, the more patience and perseverance we gain. James wrote, “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 1:2-4).

Not only do trials produce patience, they also produce character. The hardest thing to change is our character. The word character is defined as, “The mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual.” As our parents raised us, our character developed over time. When we got saved, the Lord began His work in our lives to make us like Jesus. It a slow, painful process, but it yields great results. The old expression from realm of exercise is so true in our walk with the Lord, “No pain, no gain.”

Trials produce perseverance and perseverance produces character, and character produces hope. Hope is a needed and wonderful thing in our lives. Hope helps us look forward to the future, to something better, bigger, and brighter. The child of God looks beyond this present world, beyond the grave, to our future glory with the Lord in heaven. We look forward to the the Lord’s coming with great joy and anticipation.

Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:6-7, “In this you greatly rejoice, though for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” The path to growth and maturity isn’t easy; there is no simplistic way, no short cuts.

God builds His people to be His servants. He employs trials to work out His purposes in our lives. He is not in a rush in making his vessels for honor, fit for the Master’s use. We can all look back at what God has done in our lives and the growth and experience we have gained. Take heart, dear one, God isn’t finished with you yet. You are His special treasure and the best is yet to one.

Have a blessed day growing through trials to spiritual maturity. Let us submit to God’s plan and accept everything in His hand. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean

-September 22, 2021-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

“And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’”

(2 Corinthians 12:9).

Paul in his many writings in the NT, shared his personal experiences with those he spoke to and wrote to. Today’s verse is part of one of those personal experiences in 2 Corinthians 12:1-10. He was very humble and did not brag of his knowledge, preaching, or teaching. He didn’t keep count of all the souls he won to Christ. He gave his personal testimony on numerous occasions of how he got saved. Our personal testimony has a powerful affect on others.

Here in our passage Paul describesexperience of being caught up into the third heaven. He heard inexpressible words which were not lawful to utter. He saw the Lord, heaven, and many wonderful things. God sent him back to earth, but didn’t allow him to share the details. Because of this, God gave me a thorn in the flesh to keep him humble. Paul described it as a “messenger of Satan.” Whenever Satan does anything to any of God’s people he must have God’s permission. That was also true in the case of Job.

Paul prayed three times that this thorn be removed, but God didn’t remove it, rather He said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” God always answers our prayers, with either a yes, a no, or wait; is is so hard when the answer is no. God gave Paul something far greater than taking away his pain, He gave him the sufficient grace to handle it. Many Bible scholars believe that his thorn was an eye problem. He gave clues about when he pointed out what large letters he wrote with and how the Corinthian Christians were willing to pluck out their eyes and give them to him.

God’s grace is needed in our lives day by day, sending fresh grace for each new day. Grace is the strength we need when our strength is exhausted. The hymn writer Annie Johnson Flint wrote, “When we have exhausted our store of endurance, when our strength has failed ere the day is half done, when we reach the end of our hoarded resources, our Father’s full giving is only begun.”

God’s strength is made perfect through our weakness. He shows power to us and through us every hour. And because He comes through for us at just the right time, in just the right way, all the glory goes to Him. I have experienced God’s grace innumerable times in my life. He has always given me His sufficient grace to handle anything that comes my way. He gives me the second wind to go the second mile. He will do the same for you.

Have a blessed day relying on the Lord’s grace to see you through. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean

-September 21, 2022-

Good morning, happy Tuesday,

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

(Philippians 4:6-7).

Today, September 21, is both The International Day of Day of Peace and World Gratitude Day. Peace is what the world yearns for and strives for; gratitude is something that is very rare. The world is looking for these two beautiful things but in the wrong places.

For the child of God, we have peace with God through Jesus Christ. We also experience the peace of God as we pray with thanksgiving. It is a peace that surpasses all understanding. Paul wrote in in Romans 5:1, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” There is no greater blessing than to have peace with God.

Jesus, while with His disciples in the upper room before His crucifixion, said in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” We are so blessed to have this peace that enables us to go forward trusting in the Lord, no matter what we face. Peace comes from God and is a great gift and blessing. We don’t need one day a year to think about peace, we have it every day of our lives. I love the bumpersticker that says, “No Jesus, no peace; know Jesus, know peace.” There is no true peace outside the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ!

Not only is peace rare and elusive in this world, but gratitude is as well. So few people are thankful to God for all His blessings and bounties. In our country we celebrate Thanksgiving Day on the fourth Thursday of November. One day or even two is insufficient to give thanks to the Lord. We should be thankful to God every day of our lives. Thankfulness to God helps be thankful to others for what they have done for us.

When New York Yankee great Lou Gehrig spoke to the fans at Yankee Stadium, he referred to himself as “the luckiest man on earth.” We as believers aren’t lucky, we are blessed. Blessed with salvation and eternal life; blessed with we all of God’s promises and blessings. May we not be anxious in anything but prayerful and thankful for everything! Let us bask in His blessings and experience His peace.

Let us rejoice today with the peace that God has given to us and be thankful to Him for all His blessings. We have both peace and gratitude today and each day through our Lord Jesus Christ. We don’t need special days of acknowledgment of peace and gratitude, for we have them at all times.

Have a blessed day in peace and gratitude today. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean

-September 20, 2021-

Good morning, happy Monday,

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.”

(Ecclesiastes 12:13-14).

King Solomon wrote three books of the Bible: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon. They all fall into the category of poetical books. Proverbs is a book of wisdom and how to live for the Lord; Ecclesiastes is written when Solomon was older, and is from man’s perspective under the sun. It shows us the vanity of life without God and in search of pleasure and satisfaction; and Song of Solomon which is a love story between Solomon and the Shulamite maiden, which pictures Christ and His bride the church.

Today’s verses represent Solomon’s conclusion at the end of Ecclesiastes. After all is said and done, the conclusion is for man to “fear God and commandments, for this is man’s all. Solomon is called the Preacher throughout the book of Ecclesiastes. A good conclusion to any book, speech, or sermon is a summary of what is said and application to the readers’ or listeners’ lives. This conclusion is no different, and is one of the best conclusions in the Scriptures. It boils the book, and in fact life, down to two important things: fear God and keep His commandments.

• Fear God – After all his messages about man seeking pleasure and trying to find satisfaction in money, possessions, and pleasure apart from the Lord, he concludes that all of that is vanity and is useless. Instead one should fear God all his days on this earth. To fear God, as we have discussed before, is to reverence Him, honor Him, and put Him first in our lives. He is our Lord and King.

When we fear God, we desire to please Him by the way we live our lives. We live in the light of His presence, knowing He sees all and hears all; and in the light of His coming, knowing He could come at any time. Verse 14 says, “For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether evil or good.”

• Keep His commandments – The fear of the Lord and obedience to God’s commandments frequently go together in the Bible. When we fear God we will keep His commandments, and when we obey His commandments, we will fear Him more. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” He associated love and obedience together. Love is the best motive for obedience, and obedience is the best way for us to show our love for Christ.

One last thought, Solomon uses the phrase, “every secret thing.” There is nothing secret to the Lord. People can hide things from others, but they can’t hide anything from God. Thank God He saved us, forgave all our sins, and gave us eternal life. To get saved one must confess his sins and ask for forgiveness through the blood of Christ. One must see his need of salvation. Some secrets we carry to the grave, others get exposed during our lifetimes. Either way, God knows them all.

Let us follow this simple two pronged approach: fear God and keep His commandments. It is so easy to remember but much harder to do in these bodies of clay. Thank God for the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Have a blessed day fearing God and keeping His commandments for this is man’s all, his duty. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean

-September 19, 2021-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day,

“Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.”

(Ephesians 4:29).

Our words have the potential for great blessing or great harm. Paul wanted the saints in Ephesus to grasp that concept. We have before us both the negative and the positive, as is the case so often in the Scriptures. First the warning against corrupt words that tear down; then we have the edifying words that encourage and build up.

Words are very powerful for the bad or for the good. James spoke of the harmful effects of the tongue in James chapter 2. Paul wrote, “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth.” Before we were saved, our tongues spewed evil, vile, lying, and despicable things. But now that we know the Lord and are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, we choose our words.

In the New American Standard Bible, the word unwholesome is used. Nowadays people are very health conscious and do not want to put anything unwholesome into their bodies; that is a very good thing. Words come from our mind and heart and defile us. We must guard against profanity, off color jokes or comments, sarcasm, and comments harmful to others based on their race or gender. So many have lost their jobs in disgrace over comments that they made. Our bad words have a bad affect on those who hear them.

We all want to be a blessing, to point people to Jesus, and encourage and build up others. The word edify is defined as, “to instruct and improve especially in moral and religious knowledge.” It has to do with building up, establishing, and encouraging others. It involves positivity over negativity. Just think of the sheer number of words we speak on a daily basis. Once we say something, good or bad, we can’t take back the words.

When we do say something bad, we must ask the Lord and those whom we offended to forgive us. When we say something good, we are assured that the words will do good to others. Good words lead to necessary edification and impart grace to the hearers.

We as believers don’t often realize how many people hear what we say and how we say it. Paul wrote in Colossians 4:5-6, “Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside (i.e. unsaved people), redeeming the time. Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.” Let us avoid angry, hurtful, lying, and destructive words and speak words of love, grace, truth, and encouragement.

Have a blessed day speaking positive, edifying, truthful, and encouraging words. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean