Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-July 4, 2021-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day, happy Independence Day,

-We Are A Blessed And Chosen Nation-

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance.”

(Psalm 33:12).

Today is our nation’s Independence Day and birthday. On July 4, 1776, our founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence. Then came the hardest part, winning that independence from Great Britain. The British, the strongest world power at that time were committed to squelching, squashing, and smashing our revolution. They even hired German troops, called Hessians, to help them.

The colonial army, led by George Washington, was largely comprised of farmers, businessmen, and other unprofessional soldiers. They took on the British and with God’s help and won a great victory. At the beginning though, times were tough and there more defeats than victories. General Washington was a devout believer in the Lord and spent much time on his knees in prayer.

We were blessed then and we are blessed now. The Lord has so favored us a nation and guided us and protected us down through the years. Freedom isn’t free, it cost many American lives, both men and women. Many were wounded and many gave their lives for us.

Our nation was founded on God and His Word. Our public and private schools were based on teaching the Bible as well our the other scholastic subjects. Harvard and Yale universities were theological schools, much different than they are today. Our people feared God, loved their families, established many churches, and lived in peace, liberty, and freedom.

We are not only blessed but we are chosen by God as His inheritance. God loved us and still loves America. Our national motto is, “In God We Trust.” True patriots put God first, then country. Their passion is equally strong for both. Sadly, our nation today is very divided and has drifted so far from God. We as believers in Christ should be model citizens, obeying our leaders, the laws, and the Word of God.

To be blessed is to be happy. America is not perfect but is still the greatest country on earth because of God in heaven. Psalm 144:13-15 describes our prosperity, “That our barns may be full, supplying all kinds of produce; that our sheep may bring forth thousands in our field; that our oxen maybe well laden; that there be no outcry in our streets. Happy are the people who are in such a state; happy are the people whose God is the Lord!” We are richly blessed and blessed richly in so many ways.

Let us thank God for our country and pray for her, stand beside her, defend her, and be proud to be Americans. There will be picnics, barbecues, fireworks, parades, and other celebrations today and tomorrow. May we never forget God our Blesser and Keeper. We have so much to thank God for! God bless America!

Have a blessed 4th of July! It is appropriate this year that it falls on the Lord’s Day. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean

🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

-July 3, 2021-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

-Righteousness Exalts, Sin Reproaches-

“Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.”

(Proverbs 14:34).

Our nation, America, the U.S.A., is about to celebrate its 245th birthday tomorrow. Our republic and our constitutionally formed government of the people, by the people, and for the people has survived and thrived for all this time. America is far from perfect, and we have strayed from God for many years, there is hope that she will repent and come back to the Lord.

We have so many freedoms, so many opportunities, and so many blessings to thank God for. As Christians we have the freedom to assemble, to express our views, to pray, read the Bible, among so many more. We as a country were formed and united as one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Solomon, the writer of today’s verse tells us two incontrovertible truths: “righteousness exalts a nation but sin is a reproach to any people.” In a real sense that is a microcosm of Solomon’s own life: when he honored and obeyed God, God exalted him and blessed him. He was the wisest king ever. However, when he married so many foreign women, they influenced him to worship idols and his spiritual life with God crumbled. Leaders are examples either for the good or the bad.

• Righteousness exalts a nation – Down through this past 245 years, when America has pursued righteousness, she has been greatly blessed. Of all the countries in the world, America along with Israel, has been so favored. Unfortunately, there are those in our country who have chosen a path of secularism, humanism over God and His righteousness. Oh how we need to pray for our country. Thank God for all the Christians and Bible believing churches that we still have in America. The devil is fighting non-stop to bring America down, we must lift America up, up to God and righteousness.

• Sin is a reproach to any people – This is exactly what happened to Israel and it is happening to us. The further we have gone from God, the more sin we see around us today. There is crime, corruption, exploitation of vulnerable people, injustice, violence, division, and a general disregard for our elders, leaders, and morals. Sin is destroying us from the inside out. Psalm 11:3 says, “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

May the Lord help us to stand for Him, His righteousness, and His truth no matter what may happen. We need to thank God for our country and pray for our country. 2 Chronicles 7:14 is our only solution, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” Revival starts with God’s people then it will spread far and wide.

Have a blessed day reflecting on America past and present, thanking God for all His blessings and living for Him and serving Him. God bless the U.S.A. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean

✝️🇺🇸📖🙏😀❤️

-July 2, 2021-

Good morning, happy Friday,

-Pursuing Things Which Lead To Peace And Edification-

“Therefore let us pursue the things which which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. one another.”

(Romans 14:19).

Everyone likes to be around positive people who promote peace and encouragement. Some people have a natural tendency to be upbeat and encouraging, while others are tend to be pessimistic. In Christ and through the Holy Spirit we should all be encouragers and through faith promote peace and edification.

Today’s verse gives the recipe for how to get a long with one another. It won’t just happen on its own. Paul says we must pursue the things that make for peace and edification. It takes action on our part. We must be team players, working for the good of others. As fellow believers we are brothers and sisters in Christ, members of the body of Christ, and joint heirs with Christ. We will spend eternity together in heaven.

Pursuing the things which make for peace is not always easy. It really starts with praying for each other and seeking the welfare of others. The words we speak to one another are important and the way we speak them is critically important. Jesus called us to be peacemakers. Matthew 5:9 says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.” We who have peace with God and experience the peace of God, are then able to spread and promote peace with each other.

Peace then becomes like a ripple in river, that spreads out over the water. We need peace in our homes, our schools, our workplaces, our churches, and wherever we go. We should leave behind a blessing for Christ. Conversely, we should avoid those so called “hot button,” topics that anger and upset others, while maintaining our convictions with love and respect.

It is also important to pursue those things which lead to edification. To edify means to build up others. We have two choices in every relationship and conversation: to build someone up or tear them down. The former is constructive and the latter is destructive. Every believer should seek to be an encourager. Barnabas was a great example in the early church. Acts 4:36 says, “And Joses, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the country of Cyprus.”

Will you choose to promote peace and encouragement today? Will you build up others and seek their good? Smiles work better than frowns, positively works better than negativity, and kindness and gentleness work better than harshness and criticism.

Have a blessed day being a blessing by pursuing peace and edification. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean

-July 1, 2021-

Good morning, happy Thursday,

-Not Thinking Of Ourselves More Highly Than We Should-

“For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each a measure of faith.”

(Romans 12:3).

For every believer there is a fine balance of how we think of ourselves. On the one hand, we are children and sons of God, heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. We have a very high and blessed position in Christ. On the other hand, we are sinners saved by grace and everything we have has been given to us from above. God’s mercy did not give us what we deserve and His grace gave us what we did not deserve.

It is easy to think of ourselves too highly. Pride is a sin we must always be in guard against. Proverbs 27:2 says, “Let another praise you, and not of your own own mouth; a stranger and not your own lips.” Pride comes naturally, humility must be learned. When we think of ourselves too highly, God has a way of bringing down and humbling us.

Paul says we should think soberly. It is so important to put the Lord first, others second, and ourselves last. The acronym J-O-Y has always blessed my heart: Jesus first, Others second, Yourself last. If we keep this perspective, our lives will be properly balanced. If we don’t, it so easy to get off track and out of focus.

The true measure of a man or woman is: what do they think about God, others, and themselves? Paul wrote in Philippians 2:3-4, “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each of you esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”

When we think correctly, we will live correctly. Jesus said in Luke 14:11, “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” We have nothing to be proud of, for everything we have is from the Lord and God has used so many people in our lives to get to where we are today. Let us give the Lord all the glory.

Have blessed day putting Jesus first, others second, and ourselves last. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean

-June 30, 2021-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

-Chosen Vessels For Jesus-

“But the Lord said to him, ‘Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before the Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake.’”

(Acts 9:15-16).

The conversion of Saul of Tarsus to the Lord Jesus Christ was one of the most drastic, dramatic, and delightful in the history of the church. While on the way to Damascus, with letters in hand from the chief priests to arrest and bring back believers to Jerusalem. He really believed that He was doing God’s will to quench this new way.

It is amazing how God turned things around so completely that Saul got saved and became the greatest apostle, the Apostle Paul, and servant of Christ. He was the greatest preacher, teacher, missionary, church planter, and leader the church has ever known. The Lord Jesus describes him as, “a chosen vessel.”

Ananias was also chosen to take him in, pray over him, and introduce to the believers in Damascus. It is easy to see why Ananias was skeptical over Saul. How could one who hated Jesus so much and was so against Him, change so radically to be His great proponent? Only the Lord through the power of the Holy Spirit can accomplish this!

Paul was a living example of his own words in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” When Christ changes your life, you are never the same again! Before we are saved we are vessels of the devil; after we get saved we are vessels of Christ.

Paul’s mission, like ours today, is to bear the name of Christ. The Lord revealed to Ananias that Paul would, “bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.” This is exactly what Paul did for the rest of his life. Nothing could stop him, he was on fire for the Lord until the day he was martyred for the sake of Christ. Acts 9:20 says of him in Damascus, “Immediately he preached the Christ, (or as it can be translated, Jesus the Christ) in the synagogues that He is the Son of God.” So many believers loved Paul, yet many Jews and false teachers hated him.

This brings us to Acts 9:16, “For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” Vessels of Christ will never be popular among the masses due to their commitment and zeal for Jesus Christ. Jesus warned us that we would be hated as he was hated, and persecuted. Jesus said in Matthew 5:12-13, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Persecution takes many forms from physical abuse to false accusations, put downs, and other harsh treatment.

Paul was a chosen and clean vessel for the Lord. The Lord used him in a mighty way to touch so many lives. The Lord has chosen us also to be his vessels in this world. We are channels through which the Lord works in the power of the Holy Spirit. The hymn writer Mary E. Maxwell wrote, “Emptied that Thou shouldest fill me, a clean vessel in Thy hand; With no pow’r but as Thou givest graciously at Thy command.”

May the Lord use us as His vessels to spread the gospel and teach the Word. We must be emptied of self and filled with the Holy Spirit.

Have a blessed day serving the Lord as His chosen and clean vessels. Stay safe and healthy.

In His grace,

Dean