“This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” Joshua 1:8
“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and inters of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12
Our weekly Christian devotional
“My dark spots are even worse!” The panicked expression on my client’s face was serious.
“Let’s take a look at your skin from close up.” Swinging the magnifying mirror as close as possible, I flip on the halo light. Krystal’s tender, swollen skin was flushed a rosy hue.
“Did you go out without wearing any sunblock?” The line of demarcation on the bridge of her nose already answered my question. I continue on, trying hard not to let my aggravation show.
“When you do a strong procedure like a skin peel, your skin is even more vulnerable to the effects of the sun. You know, all of this was covered in that list of post-peel instructions I gave you…”
“Yeah, I know.” Krystal twists a lock of her hair in shame. “I guess I was just being lazy…so, now what do I do?”
“You’ve got to commit to wearing a high SPF until your skin heals. When it does, come back and I can assess just how much damage was done.”
By Krystal’s expression, I could tell that she was hoping that I would work a miracle for her…today! A great complexion happens after several good choices are continuously repeated over an extended period of time. Great skin is usually the result of one carefully following a healthy regime.
Unfortunately, many people are just like Krystal when it comes to hearing from God. They can be passionate and aggressive in the beginning, but if they aren’t seeing instantaneous results and if hearing from the Lord takes more than a minimal effort, their momentum simply dies out. How can one ever expect to see success if you don’t give God the proper time to develop you?
When one gets a major breakthrough from the Lord, it’s imperative to wear your spiritual “SPF”. I call this slathering on the Word of God every chance that you can get.
The reason for this is that satan sees our vulnerabilities. As soon as any person reaches out to God for help, there will often be new challenges to overcome.
Reading and bathing your mind in the word of God is a powerful weapon of defense. This is because it not only strengthens your faith, but reminds you of the spiritual battle we are all in. It’s easy to forget the spiritual realm— because it’s not visible to the naked eye! Out of sight equals out of mind if you’re like most folk.
Let me encourage you to relax in the Lord. Take things one day at a time and obey what you last heard from Him. If you’re discouraged and feel like you aren’t hearing from Him, just continue reading His word. The Bible is a powerful and living thing; it’s how God communicates to His children. God promises that you will reap the benefits of applying His word to your life.
“Dear Heavenly Father,
Most of the time, I want my answers…right now. I realize that the world doesn’t revolve around me, but that hasn’t stopped me from being impatient.
Lord, how many of your blessings have I missed out on because I was not patient enough to wait for them?
In my haste, I have often turned to the ‘wisdom’ of man or even to the advice of a stranger! How foolish this is when I could have brought my questions to you and sought your thoughts on the matter through prayer and reading your word.
Lord, I repent. I’m willing to change my ways, but many of them are bad habits.
I commit to starting the day off by reading your word and taking the time to talk to you with prayer. Remind me when I forget. Help me to make you a priority in my life. You are worthy of more than I am currently giving you. I bow my heart in remorse. In Jesus’ precious name, forgive me. Bless me to keep in step with you and to receive your grace and mercy without condemnation, Amen.”
Thank you for reading our weekly Christian devotional on verses: Joshua 1:8, Hebrews 4:12
Please check back and see what we have for you next week!
Author: Julia Shalom Jordan