Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-July 20, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Lord’s Day,

“So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, ‘The will of the Lord be done.’”

(Acts 21:14).

The will of God settles everything; every question, every dispute, every circumstance. This was the case of the Apostle Paul planning to go to Jerusalem.

While in Caesarea, a prophet named Agabus came from Judea and took Paul’s belt and bound his own hands and feet, saying, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, “So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt, and deliver him to the Gentiles.” This did happen.

Paul was unmoved, unfazed, and undeterred in going to Jerusalem. The saints along with Luke plead with him not to go. They finally ceased their attempts to persuade him, saying in our verse, “the will of the Lord be done.”

Sometimes we look at decisions that other believers make, and they don’t make sense to us. When the Lord is leading, He will bring about His will. Someone once said, “God’s will, nothing more, nothing less nothing else.”

As long as we pray, read the Word, and seek godly counsel, the Lord will show us His will. He wants us to be assured. At times we may hear conflicting views on a decision between friends and family; and we want the Lord’s perfect will. There is peace in the will of God.

Have a blessed Lord’s Day. Stay safe and healthy.

Someone said, “The will of God will never lead you where the grace of God cannot keep you.”

Dean

-July 18, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Saturday,

“But the following night the Lord stood by him and said, ‘Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.’”

(Acts 23:11).

Paul was given an opportunity to speak on his own behalf to the Jews by the Roman authorities. His defense split two sides, and he was literally being torn in two by the Jews. They hated him and wanted to kill him for his witness of the Lord Jesus and the resurrection. One sect, the Sadducees, didn’t believe in angels or in the resurrection; the other sect, the Pharisees did. Paul was caught in right in the middle.

The Roman soldiers had to intervene to save Paul’s life. It was at this time that the Lord Jesus appeared to him and stood by him, saying, “Be of good cheer…”

This phrase, “be of good cheer,” is found eight times in the NT. Seven of the eight times it was spoken by Jesus and once by the disciples. It means to be happy, to be encouraged, to be positive, even when things don’t look like it.

Only the believer in Jesus Christ can be of good courage even when circumstances are at their worst. While in the upper room before His arrest, trial, and crucifixion, He said to the disciples, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

We all need good cheer and then we can spread it to others who are going through hard times. Being of good cheer is more than being positive and keeping a stiff upper lip. It means to be encouraged that the Lord will work things out and we just need to trust Him.

Do you need a little good cheer today? Are your burdens weighing you down? Are your problems bringing you down? It’s time to rejoice in Him. Our joy comes from within because we belong to Christ, He is with us, and He will see us through the darkest night.

The Lord stands by us, speaks our name, and gives us words of hope, peace, assurance, and encouragement. Have a blessed day. Stay safe and healthy.

Turn your to eyes Jesus and watch Him work on your behalf and see you through.

Dean

-July 18, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Friday,

“For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

(Hebrews 4:15).

One thing to avoid saying to a person in deep distress is, “I know how you feel.” Nobody really knows what another going through, except our Great High Priest, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Job’s three friends came to Job with good intentions, but they lacked the right compassion, attitude, and patience. They started off well just sitting with him for seven days, not saying a word. Then Job starting speaking and they began to accuse him of wrong doing and sin, even though knew what kind of man he was.

Jesus went through everything we go through, yet without sin; He is with us through it all. Jesus knew rejection, disappointment, sorrow, weakness, temptation, pain, sleepiness, tiredness, hunger, and thirst, and way more. Whatever you are going through He knows all about it. He feels with you (empathy) and for you (sympathy).

The three things we can we assured of are: He knows, He understands, and He cares. What a blessing, comfort, and encouragement it is to us.

One of my favorite hymns is “No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus.” The chorus says, “No one ever cared for me like Jesus, there’s no other friend so kind as He; No one else could take the sin and darkness from me, O how much He cared for me.”

Let us thank the Lord today that He knows, He understands, and He cares. Have a blessed day. Stay safe and healthy.

Though He knows—He wants us to tell Him about it. Though He understands—He wants us to draw near to Him. And even though He cares—He wants us to lay our burdens and cares down at His feet.

Dean

-July 17, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Thursday,

“Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He will bring it to pass.”

(Psalm 37:5).

Today’s verse is a tremendous promise that we can claim. When we commit our way to the Lord and trust in Him, He shall bring it to pass.

There are many “its”in our lives. We can fill in the blanks. My “it” may be different from yours, but the same Lord loves us all and works His will in our lives.

There are two things we must do: commit our way to the Lord and trust also in Him. It involves prayerful commitment and surrender to the will of God and leaving it in the hands of the Lord. He works all things together for good in our lives.

God’s timing is totally different than ours. We want things to happen right away; God knows the best way and the best time.

Have a blessed day with the Lord. Stay safe and healthy.

When we relinquish control, the Lord makes things roll.

Dean

-July 16, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Wednesday,

“But their plot became known to Saul. And they watched the gates day and night, to kill him. Then the disciples took him by night and let him down through the wall in a large basket.”

(Acts 9:23-24).

Everyone loves to hear about a great escape, especially an escape from death. There are many great escapes in the Bible. Noah, Jacob, Moses, the two Israelite spies in Jericho, Daniel and his three friends, David, Elisha, Jesus, and Peter, just to name a few.

There is a great movie from 1963, entitled “The Great Escape.” In it Allied prisoners dug a tunnel by hand through the dirt and escaped the Nazi POW camp. The story of Saul, later called Paul rivals it. It would make a great movie!!

Saul had just been saved on the road to Damascus. He spent quite a while in that city preaching, proving that Jesus is the Christ. Some loved him, but the Jews hated him, and plotted to silence him by killing him.

The Jews basically locked down the city, carefully watching it day and night. It seemed impossible for him to escape, but as we know, nothing is impossible with God. I am sure that the saints in Damascus joined in earnest prayer for Saul. The Lord gave them wisdom to devise a great plan for Saul’s escape. At night they lowered him down the wall of the city in a large basket. That had to be one large and heavy basket!

Their plan worked to perfection. God had plans for him to be a great apostle, writer, preacher, teacher, and missionary. The Lord had said to Ananias, ‘Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My sake’” (Acts 9:15-16).

How different church history would been if the Jews succeeded in their destructive plot! God protected Paul in a major way.

Let us thank the Lord we have escaped spiritual death through the death of Christ on the cross. He may have even spared us from physical death at some point or points in our lives. I know He did that for me on at least three occasions.

Have a blessed day resting in the Lord’s protection and blessing. Stay safe and healthy.

A believer is immortal until his work on earth is done.

Dean