Imagine

The Lord gives His people strength.  The Lord blesses them with peace. Psalm 29:11

You don’t have to search too hard to determine that we live in a broken world.  If you don’t agree, just watch the news or pick up a newspaper.  Staying busy over the summer by spending time with family is always good for the soul, and has kept me so occupied the past few months that I barely even had the time to watch the television at all.  It’s not that bad things quit happening around the world this past summer, it’s just that I am back into my routine now and more in tune with all of the crap going on in the world now.  Sometimes, it is overwhelming and hard to find peace. 

The above passage from Psalm 29 assures us that true peace can only come from God.  Furthermore, peace with God comes from living the way that God wants his people to live.  Once we are in a relationship with our loving Father, we must choose to live according to the standards he provides us in his Word.

When we follow God’s instructions on how to live, God strengthens us and blesses us with a peace that is only found in Him!

Keeping The Faith

He takes no pleasure in the strength of a horse or in human might.  No, the Lord’s delight is in those who fear Him, those who put their hope in His unfailing love.  Psalm 147:10-11

As the summer comes to an end, the early part of August always makes me think of two-a-day football practices in the blistering heat of East Alabama.  Most players start the preseason off competing for a spot as a starter on the team.  During practice, the players give their best effort on the field with hopes that the coaching staff will award them with a coveted position on the team.  As exciting and competitive as this entire process is, I am convinced that God is more impressed with our faith than our actual abilities.

If we want to accomplish great things in this life and delight God in the process, we must be willing to step out in faith and allow God to accomplish great things through us.  Our abilities give us the potential to do good while our faith gives us the power to do good.

Our potential and limited power is not sufficient; we must change our limitations to an unlimited faith in God!!

Long Time Gone

God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.  So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.  Psalm 46:1-2 

I have been spinning vinyl records most of my free time this summer and just haven't found anything on TV that has captured my attention. It has been refreshing to take a break from the regularly scheduled ‘junk’ and also a nice change of pace not to hear the foolish bickering of politicians and reality celebrities re-affirm that we live in a broken world, which is most evident when watching the tube (or flat-screen) for any amount of time.

It is when we recognize that sin has corrupted this world that we are no longer surprised or overwhelmed by all of the troubles you see in the world.  You see, God is greater than any problem or threat that we can ever face in our lifetime.

We must constantly ask God to stay close to us at all times.  Jesus promises us that we will face certain troubles during our lifetime, but He also promises that to always comfort us and help us when we are afraid.

Again I Say Rejoice

More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him…that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.  Philippians 3:8-11

When I read the portions of the Bible that the apostle Paul wrote while imprisoned, it’s hard for me to comprehend.  Despite being locked up in a cell and in chains, Paul was able to “rejoice in the Lord always.”

When facing troubled times, it is not usually a natural instinct for us to focus on Christ.  If you are like me, you may focus on your problems and dwell on all that is going wrong in your life-even to the point of becoming anxious and overwhelmed with a sense of defeat in most circumstances. In lieu of my mother's passing, this has certainly been the case, but God has been with me and my family every step of the way and like Paul, I have been able to remain joyful despite my broken heart.  

The heart of a believer should not live in defeat as we must trust that God is in control and that He is good.  We must remain positive, knowing that He will provide for us and comfort us as He never breaks His promises.

Negative emotions are hard to deal with and can be consuming, but we must learn to seek comfort in the Lord so that we too can rejoice in the Lord always, no matter what hard times we are faced with!   

Right Now

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all of your might.  Ecclesiastes 9:10

I recently read an article written by a former insurance agent who was comparing an athlete to being in insurance sales.  The similarities in excellent performances between the two were astounding.  We all have potential, but like concrete needs something to be poured into before it takes shape, we must also have a prayerfully considered and well-thought plan for ourselves if we want to reach our full potential.

There are too many people I know that are basically unhappy because they aren't doing anything to develop their full potential.  The reason being is that many of them don’t do anything but complain that they aren't doing anything.

We can’t wait until everything is perfect before we reach our potential.  If you are waiting on the perfect house, or the perfect job, or perfect city, that day will never come.  We must do something now.  You must give your best effort at whatever it is you are doing now and realize that you have to start at the beginning before you cross the finish line…just like everyone else!

Freedom of Choice

I am not seeking glory for myself; but there is one who seeks it, and He is the judge.  John 8:50

It was seven years ago today that I successfully wrote and posted the first Daily DEVO on this “God’s Will; Fisher of men" Blog site. It has truly been a joy and labor of love, both personally and spiritually, and I would like to say a very grateful and humbled “THANK YOU” to all of the folks who read the Daily DEVO.

I hope that along the way, the DEVOtions have been what you needed to read, at a time that you needed to read them.  After all, I try to write about something that is relevant to people in their walk of faith; things that we struggle with, as spouses, as parents, as friends, as siblings, as neighbors, as co-workers, etc.

There are so many Blogs out there, each one different in many aspects and many are focused solely on the glorifying the individual.  I have prayerfully sought God’s will and have attempted to apply His word with my personal life experiences to ultimately glorify Him and not seek glory for myself.

I am convinced that God puts certain people in your life for a reason.  Just like each of His many provisions-He always gives us what we need, just when we need it.  The same holds true for His living and breathing Word; when we seek Him though scripture, He speaks to us and gives us His infinite and Holy wisdom.  When I had my ‘calling’ into the ministry, I would have never imagined in a million years that it would begin in the blogging world, by writing a daily devotional.

It’s inspiring to know that the Daily DEVO has been viewed nearly 90,000 times over the past seven years, and I hope that God will continue to use this Blog to reach more people in the days to come.

Again, I thank you for reading the Daily DEVO and I hope you have a blessed day!!

-Will

Sunrise

His compassions fail not.  They are new every morning.  Lamentations 3:22-23

I enjoy watching the sun rise in the mornings.  The sunrises are exceptionally beautiful here in East Tennessee.

With every sunrise that I witness, I am reminded that God is the One who meets our needs each and every day.  His supply is never-ending and He always gives us precisely what we need at precisely the time that we need it.  He never gives us stale leftovers; instead we are each given something that’s new and alive.

It’s hard to begin each day without being reminded of His mercy, forgiveness, compassion and love.  On any given morning, the dark night’s sky is pierced by the red and purple rays of the morning sun and the peaceful sounds of living creatures stirring to begin their day.

Regardless of what happened to us the day before, God greets us with open arms so that we can start fresh every morning.