Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-February 3, 2021-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

-God Has Been Our Defense And Refuge In The Day Of Trouble-

“But I will sing of Your power; Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; For You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble.”

(Psalm 59:16).

The context of this psalm is when Saul sent men to David’s house to kill him. Not only did God protect him on this occasion but also on several other times. The Lord watches over us and is our defense and refuge in the day of trouble. Trouble is everywhere around us, especially in this Corona virus pandemic. There are so many different troubles we face on a daily basis. All we need to do is trust in Him.

The Super Bowl is coming up this Sunday afternoon. When the two great quarterbacks and teams line up against one another it usually comes down to the defenses. When two nearly unstoppable offenses, with two of the best quarterbacks to play the game, someone on defense must step and make a key plan to secure the win. Also, the offensive lives must protect their quarterbacks and not turn the ball over.

• God is our defense – Our Lord protects while we are awake and when we are asleep. The devil is on the prowl daily, and our other two enemies, the world and the flesh attract and attack at the most in opportune times. Psalm 121:7-8 says, “The Lord shall protect you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. The Lord shall preserve your going out and coming in from this time forth and even forevermore.” He is great Defender. Now that is a great defense.

• God is our refuge – He protects us like a great offensive line, forming a wall between us and our foes. When Pharaoh and his army pursued the the Israelites to the Red Sea, the Lord set a pillar of cloud between the Israelites and Egyptians all that night. It was a cloud of light to the Israelites and a cloud of darkness to the Egyptians. What a great refuge He is to us. Psalm 46:1 says,”God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

God has all power and all mercy. There is nothing He cannot handle for us. He shows us His mercy in the morning and all through the day. He is always with us and will never fail us. He will either remove the trouble or give us the grace to get through it. So when you watch the Big Game this Sunday, look at the offensive line when the quarterback drops back to pass. They form a wall of protection. The left offensive tackle is responsible for protecting the quarterback’s blindside. Both quarterbacks are right handed. And just remember God has our blindside when we cannot see what is coming at us.

Have a blessed day knowing the Lord is our defense and our refuge in our times of trouble. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-February 2, 2021-

Good morning, happy Tuesday,

-Only God Knows What He Has Prepared For Us-

“But as it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.’”

(1 Corinthians 2:9).

Many of the best things in life take a lot of preparation. We have all been in on the giving or the receiving end of celebrations of birthdays, graduations, engagements, weddings, retirements, and other special times. They do take a lot of work but well worth the effort. Surprise parties are also great but must be kept secret.

In today’s verse we see that only God knows what He has in store for us in heaven for all eternity. God has whetted our appetite in the Scriptures but it will be even greater for us. Jesus said in John 14:2-3, “In My Father’s house are many mansions (or dwelling places); if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you will be also.” That’s all I need to know. He is preparing a place for me and I will be with Him forever. He is coming back to receive me to Himself.

Though we do have quite a few details of what heaven will be like, God will have many surprises for us. It will far exceed our expectations. Paul says, “Eye has not seen, nor heard heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” It is the “things” which we do not yet know about that are really exciting!

Paul himself was caught up into the third heaven, into Paradise, and heard inexpressible words, which are not lawful to utter, as he said in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4. Many Bible scholars believe this happened after he was stoned to death at Lystra and before God raised him up. He saw and heard wonderful and marvelous things that he could not tell us about. There have been others since who have died and went to heaven but God sent them back to earth. They have given us some details.

What we do know is there will be no more death, sorrow, crying, or pain, and of course no more sin. God’s light and glory of the Lamb will shine so there is no need of any other light. There will be twelve gates with twelve angels, each gate will be one massive pearl. The city will be a square 12,000 furlongs, about 1500 miles in each direction. There will be a pure river flowing down the middle, with the tree of life that has twelve fruits on it. We shall see Jesus, serve Him and reign with Him. Most of all the details about heaven are found in Revelation 21-22.

Even with all these details, there will still more. Just seeing it all will take our breath away! Just seeing Jesus will drive us to our knees in worship, adoration, and praise. We will be home and home forever. I cannot wait. The last words of Jesus in the book of Revelation say, “Surely I am coming quickly” (Revelation 22:20). If what we do know is glorious, we realize, it will be even greater than we can imagine, it will be the very best!

Have a blessed day thinking of our future glory with the Lord and all the saints. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean we

-February 1, 2021-

Good morning, happy Monday,

-The Greatest Commandment Of All: To Love God-

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord, our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”

(Deuteronomy 6:4-5).

The word great or greatest is bandied about so much today. Whether it is the greatest leader, greatest country, greatest company, greatest team, or greatest player now or for all time. With all the hyperbole, there is no doubt that today’s verse represents the greatest commandment in the Scriptures. God is great, His Word is great, and to love Him with every fabric of our being is the greatest commandment of all.

This verse is called the Shema in the Hebrew. It is very sacred among Orthodox Jews to this day. It begins by expressing the oneness of God, “The Lord our God, the Lord is one. He is one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In the very first book of the Bible we read in Genesis 1:26-27, “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth.’ So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” The Hebrew word for God in this portion is Elohim, a plural pronoun. Just as there is the triune God, man is also a tripartite being: spirit, soul, and body. You and I are one person with three distinct parts.

God’s love is the greatest of all. He loves all people, and desires that everyone get saved. His love is eternal. God can never and would stop loving us. He has a special love for His children. In the NT, the Greek word for God’s love is agape; it is a sacrificial, unselfish, and giving love. We will never fully know why God would love us.

God calls upon us to love Him as He loves us with all our heart, soul, and strength. In the NT, love and obedience go together as it does here in our verse. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments. He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him” (John 14:15; John 14:21).

Love is the greatest virtue and love for God is the greatest love. The only way to love Him is with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our strength. We love each other, our parents, spouses, children, and friends, but none can compare to our love for God. All other loves are based on His love.

May the Lord help us to love the Lord and by being obedient to Him, devoted to Him, to live for Him, and to serve Him. Love for our Lord is the greatest motivation of all.

Have a blessed day loving the Lord with all your heart, soul, and strength. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-January 31, 2021-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day,

-The Lord Is Good And Ready With Forgiveness And Mercy-

“For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You.”

(Psalm 86:5).

David, the author of Psalm 86, loved the Lord and walked closely with Him all his life. He wrote so many beautiful psalms that bless our hearts so much. He did not feel God was far away but by faith knew that the Lord was right there with him in every circumstance.

He found that the Lord is good, ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all who call upon Him. With every answer to prayer, every victory in battle, and every blessing, his faith grew and relationship with the Lord matured. Even so he knew his share of pain, sorrow, and loss.

David found that the Lord was good and good all the time. He was not under the illusion that his own strength and wisdom was the reason behind his success, but recognized God’s power and help in his life. He gave all the glory to God. He was indeed the greatest king of all time.

David, like all believers and all people was not perfect. In fact, his sin of adultery and murder was evil in the sight of God and scandalous among the people of God. God forgave him and restored him, yet he had to suffer the consequences of his sin in his family. His sons Amnon and Absalom were both killed, the latter of which usurped his kingdom and sought to kill him. We as believers, like David, and others such as Moses, Peter, and Paul need to be forgiven. We cannot justify our sin but need to confess it, repent, and forsake it. God is always ready to forgive.

David also experienced God’s abundant mercy. Mercy means God does not give us what we deserve. In Psalm 103:8-11, David wrote, “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him.” God’s mercy showers us daily.

Let us say with David, “The Lord is good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all who call upon Him.” The song writer Don Moen wrote, “For the Lord is good and His love endures forever, He’s a faithful God to all generations. For the Lord is good and His mercies will not fail us, they are new each day, O lift your voice and say, ‘the Lord is good.’ Great is your faithfulness, O Lord, Your lovingkindness fills our hearts to overflowing. Songs of rejoicing and sweet praise, they fill our hearts, they fill our days.”

Have a blessed day in His presence rejoicing in His forgiveness and mercy through the death of Christ for our sins. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-January 30, 2021-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

-The Worthy Walk Of The Believer-

“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

(Ephesians 4:1-3).

Every one of us strives to walk with Lord in such a way as to be pleasing to Him and worthy of Him. A worthy walk glorifies the Lord and is a testimony before both the saved and unsaved. In Colossians 1:10, Paul wrote, “That you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

Paul wrote to several churches: Rome, Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, Colosse, and Thessalonica. He taught them, encouraged them, and comforted them. He covered many of the same topics in his epistles. His goal was that all the saints walk with the Lord and please Him daily. Here in our text, he mentions five qualities that show a worthy walk: lowliness, gentleness, longsuffering (or patience), love, and unity in peace.

• Lowliness – To get along with each other we must be humble, take the lowly place, esteem others better than ourselves, and give credit to others. Paul best expressed his humility in Ephesians 3:8, “To me, who am less than the least of all saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.” If the great apostle Paul felt he was less than the least of all saints, about us?

• Gentleness – Treating others with gentleness is so important. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ, and as such, we should treat one another as Christ has treated us. Gentleness is one of the fruit of the Spirit and is so needed in the church and in the world today. Someone once said, “A gentleman is a combination of gentle strength and strong gentleness.”

• Longsuffering (or Patience) – Just as the Lord is so patient with us, we should be patient with each other. None of us are perfect; We make mistakes, we sin, we fail. The word longsuffering means we have a long fuse. We must suffer long without complaint. Our patience is tested every day.

• Love – Love is the lubricate that make everything in our lives work smoothly. Just as an automobile needs enough clean oil, so too, love is the most important virtue and is the first of the fruit of the Spirit. Jesus said in John 13:34-35, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

• Unity in peace – The Holy Spirit joins us together in unity in the bond of peace. We must do all we can to maintain it. Paul wrote in Romans 12:18, “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.” In the church there is great diversity and at the same time great unity. We are all washed in the blood of Christ.

May the Lord help us today to walk in the Lord in a worthy way showing lowliness, gentleness, longsuffering, love, and unity with peace. We can only do it through the power of Holy Spirit. A worthy walk is pleasing to the Lord and blesses others.

Have a blessed day in walking worthy of the Lord and treating others well. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean