Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-November 30, 2024-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

“‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which is translated, ‘God with us.’”

(Matthew 1:23).

Jesus was sent by the Father to be born of a virgin, as the Son of God. His mission was to die on the cross to save us from our sins. He came as Isaiah the prophet prophesied in Isaiah 7:14, hundreds of years before Christ.

Immanuel is both a name and a title. The meaning is defined as, “God with us.” God came down in the person of Jesus Christ. He identified with us, yet without sin. He felt our pain, bore our shame, took our blame, and carried and buried our sins.

It is so encouraging to know that our Lord Jesus is with us and will be with us forever. In Revelation 21:3 we read of the final triumph of Jesus and we His people with Him, “And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.”

He is with us now spiritually, but in a coming day, He will be with us physically. We belong to Jesus, and Jesus belongs to us. Have a blessed day with the Lord. Stay safe and healthy.

Immanuel came the first time to die; Immanuel will come again to reign.

Dean

-November 29, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Friday,

We are all very familiar with the expression, “There was an after effect.” It is defined as, “an effect that follows after the primary action of something.” We often think of negative consequences after a main event such as an earthquake, fire, flood, tornado, hurricane, tsunami, cyclone, certain drugs, foods, or even strenuous exercise.

Many of us ate too much yesterday, and may feel some aftereffects today. But for the believer in Christ there are good aftereffects when it comes to God’s grace. When we are saved, we are saved by God’s grace. As we grow we experience His grace through our trials, and sufferings; His grace gives us the strength to handle whatever comes our way.

Peter, the disciple and apostle of Jesus learned from his sins, failures, and mistakes. He was the outspoken leader, but his tongue often got him into trouble. On one hand he confessed that Jesus was “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” But later denied Jesus three times. We are like Peter in so many ways, God’s grace is always there for us when we need it the most.

Peter lists four good aftereffects of the grace of God who has called us to eternal glory. His prayer is that God would perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle the saints through their trials and sufferings. They experienced severe persecution and many were put to death for their faith in Christ.

We also need to be perfected (meaning to be completed or made mature); established (grounded in the Word); strengthened (from on high); and settled (calmed by His peace). We can face anything or anyone by the grace of God.

May the Lord perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you today. Have a blessed day by the grace of God. Stay safe and healthy.

We can either be bitter or better as a result of what we go through; let’s choose the latter.

Dean

-November 28, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Thursday, happy Thanksgiving Day,

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures mercy endures forever.”

(Psalm 136:1).

Today across America we celebrate Thanksgiving Day, not with fireworks, but around the dinner table with those we love. It is fitting because the pilgrims ate a meal in peace and harmony with the native Americans.

The pilgrims were thankful to God for bringing them to this land and for all that God had provided for them. Like them we should collectively thank Him for all that He has done for us and given to us.

The unknown psalmist writes, “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” This phrase, Oh, give thanks to the Lord” is found 11 times in the Scriptures. It is a call to action—thanksgiving from the heart.

You can just imagine the joy, excitement, and gratitude in his voice and in his words. In my translation (NKJV), there is an exclamation point for emphasis. I love exclamation points; they express fervor and excitement to what is being said. It is a writer’s way of speaking loudly and clearly.

The psalmist tells what to do: give thanks; who to render it to: the Lord; and why we should do it: For His mercy endures forever. All the blessings we have as individuals, as a church, and as a nation are because of the Lord alone.

The hymn writer Seth Sykes wrote the short chorus, entitled, “Thank you, Lord.” He proclaimed, “Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul, Thank you, Lord, for making me whole; Thank you, Lord for giving to me Thy great salvation so rich and free.”

Have a blessed and happy Thanksgiving Day. Stay safe and healthy.

Blessed and thankful we come to Jesus, thanking Him for our salvation; and so much more.

Dean

-November 27, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Wednesday,

“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

(1 Thessalonians 5:18).

Giving thanks to God is not just a suggestion, it is a commandment. Thanksgiving should be as natural for the believer as breathing. The difference is breathing happens without us even thinking about it; giving takes both thought and action.

The definition of a thanker in the Collin’s Dictionary is, “a person who thanks or expresses gratitude.” Are you an occasional thanker or a habitual one? I found another word I really like: thankaholic. It means, “a person who has developed a proclivity for thanking somebody every time something is done for him, however minor it may be.” I want to be a thankaholic!

A few months ago we had a series of devotions on habits. Giving thanks to God in everything is definitely a good habit we must build and develop, which must spring from a thankful heart.

Today’s verse is an excellent one to memorize, and an even better one to obey and practice daily. It doesn’t mean that it is going to be easy. Sometimes we don’t feel very thankful when dark clouds overshadow our lives, when we are beset by pain, problems, and perplexities.

Giving thanks to the Lord keeps us grounded in Christ, reminding us of what God has done for us, and that He is in control. Giving thanks is not based on feelings, otherwise, our thanksgiving, like our happiness, would be sporadic at best. It is rather connected with the joy that we have in Christ, which never changes.

Giving thanks is clearly the will of God for us in Christ Jesus. Therefore we can never thank the Lord too much or too often. As we ready ourselves for our Thanksgiving Day’s feasts and festivities, let us stop for a moment and thank God for all His blessings which He has lavished upon us.

Have a blessed pre-Thanksgiving day thanking the Lord in everything. Stay safe and healthy.

Not just thanking God once a year, but many times a day.

Dean

-November 26, 2024-

Good morning beloved, happy Thursday,

“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).

Thanksgiving Day, coming up Thursday, is a special day to gather as family and friends for fellowship, food, fun, and football. It is estimated that 18 million Americans will travel by air and 80 by automobile. I was also surprised to hear that 42% of Americans will eat out or take from restaurants on the holiday.

For us as believers, the best part of holiday is being together and thanking the Lord for all His blessings to us. We have so much to be thankful for. The Lord has richly and abundantly blessed us as a nation and as individuals. Because we are so blessed, we should be thankful to the Lord.

People have thought of some pretty creative food combinations over the years. Paul liked combinations too. He spoke of service and thanksgiving in the same verse. We don’t always think of these two things in tandem. Many ministries, especially on Thanksgiving Day, feed the soul as well as the body.

Whatever we do for others, we do it for the Lord Jesus. In service, we must always remember this and do all in the name of the Lord Jesus. God is the source of every blessing; let us use what He has given to us to help, provide for, and encourage others.

Doing good is good; doing good in Jesus’ name is better; and doing good in Jesus’ name with thanksgiving is the best of all. When we do the latter we are acting most like Christ, glorifying Him, and pointing people to our Savior.

Let us have a blessed day of serving and thanking. May we roll up our sleeves, not just to eat but to serve. Stay safe and healthy.

Serving Christ with thanksgiving, makes life fulfilling and worth the living.

Dean