Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-May 23, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Friday,

“Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.”

(1 Corinthians 10:12).

It is so easy to think that it could never happen to us. David and Peter, two of the godliest and best leaders in the Bible, found this out. Pride goes before a fall. Our pride can take us down.

Paul warned the Corinthians and us of Satan schemes to make us fall. Over the years I have seen pastors, televangelists, and average Christians fall into sin. It can happen but doesn’t have to happen.

In David’s case, he stayed back at the palace while his men went off to war. He was idle. Because that he was on the palace roof and saw Bathsheba bathing. He lusted for her and sent his servant to bring her and he had relations with her. She found out she was pregnant. He called for her husband Uriah to come home and be with his wife, but his plans failed. David then sent word Joab to put Uriah in harms way where the heaviest fighting took place so that he would be killed.

David’s double sin of adultery and murder damaged his relationship with the Lord and caused the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme. Once he confessed his sin and repented, God forgave him and restored him.

Peter fell by denying Jesus three times after our Savior told him what would happen. Peter in the flesh insisted he would never deny Him and would even die with Him. The Lord Jesus forgave and restored him. He went on to be a great pastor, evangelist, preacher, and teacher.

Thus, failure isn’t final but we must suffer much because of a lot. Someone once said, “Even the mightiest can fall in a moment of weakness.” We must stay close to the Lord, spend time with Him, and fully depend on Him, not on ourselves.

Jesus told the disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit is wiling, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41). God doesn’t want us to fall, neither do we or our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Have blessed day putting on the full armor of God, being careful and watching. Stay safe and healthy.

May we guard our hearts from evil and sin, being watchful without and watchful within.

Dean

-May 22, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Thursday,

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

(Psalm 23:6).

David wrote Psalm 23, which is one of the beautiful and familiar portions in the Scriptures. The title of this psalm in my Bible is, “The Lord the Shepherd of His People.

As a young man David was a shepherd boy. He cared for his family’s sheep. He led them, fed them, and protected them. He later communicated to Saul how he killed both a lion and a bear to protect his sheep. David recognized that the Lord is his Shepherd. He is our Shepherd too.

As he comes to this wonderful text, he says, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me…” Goodness and mercy are attributes of God that we can emulate toward others.

David lived a godly life, staying to the Lord and tasting God’s goodness in a personal way. We often say, “The Lord is good.” Just think, how good the Lord has been to us through the years. Even if circumstances are bad, God is always good. Psalm 34:8 says, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!”

David also writes of the mercy of God. God’s mercy is free, boundless, and rich. He doesn’t give us what we deserve. Psalm 103:8 says, “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.”

Put together goodness and mercy together, like two strong guardian angels, follow us wherever we go. Some have also used the analogy of two puppies following us.

David was not only a shepherd, a warrior, and a king, but he was a prophet as well. He said that he will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. He looked beyond this earth to heaven in the Lord’s house.

Have a great day walking close to the Lord with His goodness and mercy following our every step. Stay safe and healthy.

Our Shepherd takes care of His sheep whether we wake or whether we sleep.

Dean

-May 21, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Wednesday,

“But Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of living God.’”

(John 6:68-69).

The backdrop of this passage is when many of the disciples of Jesus were offended by His words that He spoke of eating His flesh and drinking His blood. He wasn’t speaking literally but figuratively of partaking of Him. They went back and walked with Him no more.

Jesus experienced rejection, and it had to hurt, but it had to hurt. It is tragic that that were those who walked away after hearing His words and witnessing His miracles. These were not true believers or they would not have dropped out.

The rich young ruler was such a man. He came to Jesus seeking the way of eternal life. Jesus knew his heart was on his riches. Jesus told him to go sell all he has and follow Him and he would have treasure in heaven. It was too much for him to give up and he walked away sad.

Jesus turned to the twelve and asked, “Do you also want to go away?” Peter was always outspoken, not always in good way. But here he speaks for himself and the group, “Lord, to whom shall go? You have the words of eternal life.”

As believers, disciples of Christ, we choose Jesus now and forever. The anonymous hymn writer wrote, “I have decided to follow Jesus, I have decided to follow Jesus, I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back.”

True believers have a sense of permanence. They keep going for Christ and with Christ no matter what. It could be cancer or some other severe health condition; it could be the loss of someone we love; it could be the loss of a job, a home, or a car. Nothing and no one is as important to us than Jesus who loves us.

Have a blessed day following Jesus no turning back. Stay safe and healthy.

When Jesus saves you and changes your life, you follow Him through all earthly strife.

Dean

-May 20, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Tuesday,

“Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”

(James 1:12).

Every day we experience trials and temptations. We need God’s grace to get through these times and be victorious. The big difference between trials and temptations is the source of them. God is the source of our trials; the devil is the source of our temptations.

God is holy and righteous; He has nothing to do with evil nor does He want us to fall into sin. It is a non-stop battle that we fight against our sinful flesh until the Lord takes us home to heaven. Temptation itself is not sin, but giving into it is.

Joseph is a perfect example of one who endured temptation and fled from it, as well as endured trials that tested and built his faith. Jesus in His humanity faced the devil’s temptations and stood strong in God’s truth which He quoted to send the devil packing.

Temptations always compel us to make the wrong decisions and take what is not God’s will for us. James explains how we are tempted from within. James 1:14 says, “But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full grown, brings forth death.”

Once we give sin an inch, it takes a mile. It starts with entertaining a thought, and leads to giving our flesh what it wants, when it wants it. The devil always appeals to our fleshly desires. This was the case with Eve even though God gave her everything good, she took the forbidden fruit and gave it also to her husband Adam. All people since have the sinful nature and sin against God.

We as believers have two natures: the old nature and the new nature. It often starts with a little compromise. We must seek the Lord in prayer and His Word.

Let us endure temptations and in the end we will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Have a blessed and victorious day over temptation and sin. Stay safe and healthy.

We must flee from temptation, and flee to Jesus our strong Deliverer.

Dean

-May 19, 2025-

Good morning beloved, happy Monday,

“And in every work that he begun in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart.”

(2 Chronicles 31:21).

Hezekiah was one of the best kings in Israel. After David, he is next in godliness before the Lord. 2 Chronicles 29:2 aptly describes him, “And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.”

Hezekiah was the son of a very ungodly King Ahaz, and the father of Manasseh, who was the worst king of all. King Hezekiah stood out for his reforms, his cleansing of the temple, his restoration of true worship, and revived the celebration of Passover.

He honored God and God prospered him as he did Joseph, Joshua, and David. He wasn’t perfect, none of us are, but he sought the Lord and did what was right in His sight.

We often associate prosperity with money and material things, and God can prosper us in these things; but the greatest prosperity is spiritual. God told Joshua, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and the you will have good success” (Joshua 1:8).

Obedience, faith, trust, dedication, commitment, and submission lead us to godly living and to be pleasing to God. I would rather prosper spiritually than materially or financially.

Have a blessed day honoring God with all you have. Stay and healthy.

Honor God and He will honor you, obey Him and always remain true.

Dean