Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-November 29, 2020-

Good morning, happy Lord’s Day,

-Be Like Phoebe: A Servant And Helper In The Church-

“I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the church in Cenchrea, that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and assist her in whatever business she has need of you; for indeed she has been a helper of many and of myself also.”

(Romans 16:1-2).

As Paul concludes the book of Romans, he greets many of the saints in Rome that he knows by name and says something about each one. Before doing this he commends to the church in Rome a Christian lady named Phoebe who will be visiting their city to conduct some business. Paul introduces her and describes her excellent background.

We do not know very much about this dear lady. This is the only time she is mentioned in the Scriptures, but what Paul shares about her is outstanding. She is a sister in Christ, a servant in the church at Cenchrea, and a helper of many, including Paul himself. She has a wonderful testimony and is an example of Christ, especially to the women in the church.

• “I commend to you Phoebe our sister” – She was a sister in Christ in the church in Cenchrea. All those who saved are part of the body of Christ; the men are our brothers and women are our sisters. Paul had visited Cenchrea when he left Corinth on his way to Ephesus. Acts 18:18 says, “So Paul still remained a good while. Then he took leave of the brethren and sailed to Syria, and Priscilla and Aquila were with him. He had hair his cut off at Cenchrea, for he had taken a vow.” This was the vow of the Nazarite mentioned in the book of Numbers 6:1-21. He was not there very long but he met Phoebe and the other saints and she helped him in some way.

It is a wonderful thing to meet and visit other Christians and have fellowship with them. Though Paul’s visit was not very long, he was touched by Phoebe in a special way. Her testimony and her work for Christ was excellent. Imagine being complimented by the great Apostle Paul!

• She was a servant in the church at Cenchrea – She was not just a member of the church, she was a servant. The word servant is the Greek word “doulos,” meaning servant, and is the same word we get our English word deacon from. She is not called as deaconess, but that is exactly what she was. She served actively in the church in some capacity. Every believer in Jesus Christ should be a servant and have a certain ministry or ministries. Are you a servant in the church?

• She was a helper of many and of Paul himself also – In her ministry she helped many people. Paul saw it with his own eyes and experienced for himself. Her testimony was genuine, generous, and gracious to others in need. Now she visiting Rome and she would need some assistance herself. The Roman saints would be the ones to help the the helper, and serve the servant.

Often it is easier for us to serve than it is to be served. Whether it is our pride or not, we do not like to depend on others or put them out of their way. But we need to let others get the blessing of serving us.

One day we will meet Phoebe in heaven and tell we read about her and how her testimony touched our lives. Young girls or women can follow her example as well as all the boys and men as well.

May the Lord help us to be godly examples of Christ, to be servants in the church and be helpers in the work of the Lord. Jesus said in Matthew 23:11, “But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.”

Have a blessed day serving and helping in the work of the Lord. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-November 28, 2020-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

-Giving Thanks And Making God’s Deeds Known To The People-

“Oh, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples!

(1 Chronicles 16:8).

This particular verse is part of David’s Song of Thanksgiving in 1 Chronicles 16:8-36. The occasion of this this song is the placing of the ark in the tabernacle. The chapter is a celebration before the Lord with all the people. They offered burnt offerings and peace offerings to the Lord, which was common as part of worship.

David loved God so much as well as the people of God. He was the greatest king of Israel. After the offerings were finished, David blessed the people and distributed food to all of them. According to verse 3, it says, “Then he distributed to everyone of Israel, both man and woman, a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins.” David wanted to include the common people in the celebration not merely the dignitaries of the day.

This celebration in David’s day reminds us of some of the elements of our Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day celebrations all in one. David did not care about the cost, which had to be a lot of money, he wanted to honor and encourage all the people. His minister over treasury probably let the king know how much this celebration would cost. Can you imagine if our president did this today for every American man and woman?

David and all the singers and musicians were filled with great joy and thanksgiving. They say, “Oh, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name.” We all miss our public meetings with collective singing and worship. We have added music on line with soloists and the Worship Team, which is great and we are so blessed to have it along with Sunday sermons and devotions on Monday and Wednesday evenings. Still as great as in line meetings during this pandemic are, it still cannot compare to being at church with each other, which we have not had since March. We are waiting for the vaccine to be widely distributed before we can safely return to church.

Not only did the Israelites thank the Lord and call upon His name, but they made mention of His deeds among the peoples. The Israelites remembered back to how God delivered them from their bondage in Egypt and brought them into the Promised Land. God was also greatly blessing them in the days of David more than any other time in their history since the days of Moses and Joshua. There was so much joy.

We as believers go through so many trials, but there are also times of victory, success, and plenty. When we do have them we praise the Lord with all our hearts. When the Israelites crossed the Red Sea and God conquered Pharaoh and his entire army, Moses led the people in a song of victory and praise, and Miriam led the women in praising God as well.

May the Lord help us to rejoice in this Christmas season that God sent His Son Jesus Christ to be born into this world. In every light, we remember He is the Light of the world; in every gift, we remember that Jesus is the greatest gift. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 9:15, “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” Jesus is the reason for the season!

Have a blessed day and Christmas thanking and praising the Lord and proclaiming Him to everyone around us. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-November 27, 2020-

Good morning, happy Friday,

-Let The Word Dwell In You As You Dwell In The Word-

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”

(Colossians 3:16).

The Bible is unlike any other book in the world. It is God’s Word, and therefore is the way He speaks to us. As believers we receive knowledge, understanding, wisdom, discernment, and insight for our lives. The Scriptures bring us encouragement, comfort, and conviction when we read its sacred pages.

Paul says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…” Another word for dwell is absorb. We should absorb the Word of God like a sponge. Then, like a sponge, the Lord can use us to squeeze out the water of His Word to others around us. It takes time to let the Word dwell in us as we dwell in the Word.

The problem is we are usually too great a hurry, and we want a quick meal in the microwave instead of preparing, cooking, serving, and cleaning up. That may work when it comes to eating food but doesn’t work very well when comes to eating the meat of the Word. If we expect to be blessed and to be a blessing to others, we need to take the time to study and meditate on the Word.

We should ask ourselves, not how much have I read, but how much have I absorbed from the Word? It reminds me of the question Jesus asked Peter in the Garden of Gethsemane after they had all fallen asleep, “…What! Could you not watch with Me for one hour? Watch and pray lest you enter into temptation. The spirit is indeed willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:40-41).

We live in a fast paced, hectic, busy world and we have many responsibilities and many things to do. That means we need the Word more than ever. May the Word dwell in us as we dwell in the Word. It will make us stronger and healthier spiritually, and we will grow in the Lord.

Have a blessed day and weekend as you dwell in the Word prayerfully and carefully. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-November 26, 2020-

Good morning, happy Thursday, happy Thanksgiving Day,

-Bless The Lord And Don’t Forget All His Benefits-

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.”

(Psalm 103:1-2).

David wrote this glorious Psalm 103, entitled, “Praise For the Lord’s Mercies.” Six times David in this psalm, verses 1,2, 20, 21, and twice in verse 22, David uses the phrase, “Bless the Lord.” To bless the Lord is to praise Him, exalt, and extol Him.

David loved the Lord so much, from the bottom of his heart. He says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me.” David held nothing back, he blessed the Lord in song and also was skillful harpist. He thanked the Lord for everything God gave Him and had done for him. Though he sat on the throne in Jerusalem as king over Israel, he praised the God who sat on the throne in heaven, who is King of kings and Lord of lords, who rules over all the universe!

He also writes, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.” He has done so much for us over this past year as well as over all the years. We may forget some of our benefits, but we should not forget them all. In verses 3-5, David mentions just a few of the many benefits he and we have in the Lord: forgiveness, healing, redemption, crowning with lovingkindness and tender mercies, satisfaction with good things, and renewal the of one’s youth.

No wonder David was ecstatic over all his benefits. Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:3, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” We are so blessed spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, socially, materially, and financially. It amounts to a mountain of blessings higher than Mt. Everest!

On this national Thanksgiving Day, let us pause as individuals and families to give thanks to God. We are thankful also for our nation and all the freedoms and opportunities we have. God bless America and all those in the military, doctors and nurses, firefighters and police officers. They are the true heroes and we owe them a huge debt of gratitude. And we thank the Lord for all our elected officials whom God has placed over us.

Let us then thank and praise the Lord for all His benefits and blessings. Those who are incredibly blessed should bless the Lord incredibly! May we say with David, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.”

Have a blessed day of thankfulness and joy. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean

-November 25, 2020-

Good morning, happy Wednesday, happy pre-Thanksgiving,

-Doing All In Jesus’ Name And Thanking Him-

“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

(Colossians 3:17).

Christians should be doers. There is so much to do and so little time to do it. Everything we say or do should be in the name of Jesus and for His glory. As we work in the Lord’s service, we should thank Him for everything He has given to us and done for us.

Paul encourages us, “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus…” This is something to remember for it covers a multiplicity of things we say and do at home, at work, at school, at church, or wherever we go. We are full time servants who serve the Lord daily. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Thursday we are going to feast as our national day of Thanksgiving. As long as we give thanks, eat and drink to His glory, and don’t overeat, we can really enjoy it with our families.

The Christian life is a blessed and thankful life. We have so many things to thank the Lord for. Paul wrote, “…giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” This is my first year of celebrating Thanksgiving as a retired person. I am so thankful to the Lord that He made it possible for me to retire at the perfect time in January. I may have retired from secular employment, but I will never retire from the Lord’s work. I thank Him that I am serving Him even more than before.

God has a plan for every person. His plan for you is different than for anyone else. You are unique and I am unique. We will each have to give an account of our service and He will reward us for our faithful service done in His name and for His glory. None of us know how much time on earth we have left; it is all in God’s hands. Let us labor for the Master with thanksgiving until He calls us home to heaven. It is the quality of our service that counts even more than the quantity.

Have a blessed day in the service of our Lord with thanksgiving. Stay safe and healthy.

Dean