See, My children, the knocking rests upon no merit of yours – though it is in response to the longing of your heart for Me.

   Keep, keep that listening ear. “If any man will hear My Voice.” Again no merit of yours. Only the ear bent to catch My tones, and to hear the sound of My gentle knocking.

   Then listen: “If any man hear My Voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me."

   What a feast! You think it would have been Joy to have been present at the Marriage Feast at Cana in Galilee, or to have been one of My disciples in the Upper Room, seated with Me at the Last Supper, or one of the two in Emmaus, or one of the few for whom I prepared that Lakeside feast!

   But oh! At each of these feasts, God-provided and God-companioned as they were, you could not have known the rapture you may know as you hear the knocking and the Voice, and, opening, bid Me welcome to My Feast.


><//>--------------------Prayer for the Day

Father, we pray that we may let Your Spirit come into our hearts. We pray that it may fill us with an abiding peace. Amen.


A Disciple’s Reflections:  Are We Not the Light?

"You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Creator in heaven." – Matthew 5:14-16

Beloved, I wish to share with you two stories that appear somewhat lighthearted, yet carry a deep and powerful message for our souls.  May the Lord help us to receive His word and put it into practice.  May our light shine brightly for Him, not only in the world, but in our families, our work places, and churches, as well.

God calls us to be this world's priests not its critics. We are called, beloved, to discern and be aware, but never to judge and condemn as we so often do.  Too often we are like the two shopkeepers who were bitter rivals. Their shops were across the street from one another and although they were both members of the same church they constantly feuded. Finally God had enough so two angels were dispatched to resolve the feud.

The angels went to one shopkeeper and said: "Listen, God has had enough of this fight so I'll tell you what we're going to do. We are going to answer all of your prayers. Whatever you want you can have. The only condition is that whatever you ask for we will give double to your rival. If you want wealth, it's yours but she will get twice as much."  If you want strength, you can have it, but she becomes twice as strong."

The shopkeeper thought for a moment and then prayed, "Lord make me blind in one eye."

That seems to be the personal style of so many of us. We let our anger, or negativity poison our own wells. So rather than being able to offer a cup of God's graceful love to others all we can offer them is the same bitter water from which we have been drinking.

A woman driving a red Honda created a traffic jam on the San Francisco Bay Bridge one day. It seems that she paid the toll for the next six cars behind her. Traffic backed up because none of those cars could believe that someone would do that for them. She didn't even know them!

You see, that woman was a Christian and that morning in her devotional she had read a challenge that said: Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty. She was giving it a try. What would happen if we did that every now and then? Could it be that our whole world might be moved just a bit closer to heaven by a thousand people practicing random kindness and senseless acts of beauty?

Beloved, with so much ugliness that is coming upon us in these Endtimes, let us be an active source of beauty the world so urgently needs.  When we trust the Lord to care for our needs, we can spend more time considering altruistic (selfless) service to others.

The temptation, even for me, is to become self-centered and self-concerned as testing comes upon me in almost any form.  We need work through this mindset with God even before the testing is lifted that we may be found approved before God and be a blessing to our Messiah.

Isn't it worth a try, precious one? Throughout each day though we may encounter a world that is bitter and angry, let us not become a part of it but rather let us see ourselves as missionaries of kindness and compassion even amongst our families. Who knows what miracles might happen if for just a moment the world was just a bit kinder and more merciful?

When we miss the mark, let us pick ourselves up, acknowledge the Lord, and start all over again.  I'm convinced that eventually we'll get it right.

Let us prayer: Lord, you have blessed us so much there aren't enough ways to say "I love you". Let us express our love for You by offering it to those here on earth most in need – especially to the most unlovable.  Today guide our actions so that they express our love and gratitude. Open our eyes to those who need an act of kindness to remind them that you love them. In Jesus' name. Amen.


By Faith Believing

"What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness?"
– Romans 3:3 (NIV)

As we know, verse 4 of Romans 3 answers this rhetorical question with the proclamation, "Not at all!" The lack of faith of a multitude cannot nullify God's eternal faithfulness. Let us be amazed and saddened by the number of people who fail to be empowered by the faith that God has given to each of us measure. It is a lack of faith that causes one to worry, or to doubt, or to be angry, or to be depressed, or to be hopeless, or, worst of all, to miss out on great and abounding blessings from God. It is faith that leads to happiness, joy, comfort, strength, wisdom, healing and eternal life! And all is naught without faith. A faith that starts first with believing in the existence of a loving, generous, forgiving and faithful God.

Believers miss out on miracles everyday by failing to believe that God is still big enough today to perform them. Untold numbers of people worry needlessly each day about their future (which is not even guaranteed) because they cannot or will not let go and let God. We need to take a spin off the old Greyhound Bus slogan and, "Leave the driving to God." Think how great our lives would be if we were just a pampered passenger on the highways of life. God still feeds the hungry, heals the sick, comforts the grieving, strengthens the weak, brings happiness and joy to the sad and guarantees an eternity in paradise for the believer. However, the first step is ours. Today, with faith, we CAN live a fear free life; now that's encouraging!

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
– Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV)


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Please have a blessed day, be hopeful, be encouraged, and know you are not alone

“God Calling” compiled by A. J. Russell.
"Twenty-Four Hours A Day" Hazelton – adapted.
Kerry Nelson writes "Are We Not the Light?" - adapted.
Greg Candelaria writes By Faith Believing.
Barry Gray writes A Disciple’s Reflections