THAT YOU MAY KNOW WHAT IS THE HOPE OF HIS CALLING

Photo provided by June Roberson Ormesher

 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ 

by the will of God, to the saints 

which are at Ephesus, and 

to the faithful in Christ Jesus:

Grace be to you, and peace, 

from God our Father, and from 

the Lord Jesus Christ.

Blessed be the God and Father 

of our Lord Jesus Christ, who 

hath blessed us with all spiritual 

blessings in heavenly places 

in Christ:  According as he hath 

chosen us in him before the 

foundation of the world, that we 

should be holy and without blame 

before him in love:  Having 

predestinated us unto the adoption 

of children by Jesus Christ to 

himself, according to the good 

pleasure of his will,  To the praise 

of the glory of his grace, wherein 

he hath made us accepted 

in the beloved.  In whom we have 

redemption through his blood, the 

forgiveness of sins, according 

to the riches of his grace;

Wherein he hath abounded 

toward us in all wisdom and 

prudence; Having made known unto 

us the mystery of his will, according 

to his good pleasure which he hath 

purposed in himself:  That in the 

dispensation of the fulness of times 

he might gather together in one all 

things in Christ, both which are in 

heaven, and which are on earth; even 

in him: In whom also we have obtained 

an inheritance, being predestinated 

according to the purpose of him who 

worketh all things after the counsel of 

his own will:  That we should be to the 

praise of his glory, who first trusted 

in Christ  In whom ye also trusted, after 

that ye heard the word of truth, the 

gospel of your salvation: in whom also 

after that ye believed, ye were sealed with 

that holy Spirit of promise,  Which is 

the earnest of our inheritance until the 

redemption of the purchased possession, 

unto the praise of his glory.  Wherefore I 

also, after I heard of your faith in the 

Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints,

Cease not to give thanks for you, 

making mention of you in my prayers;

That the God of our Lord Jesus 

Christ, the Father of glory, may 

give unto you the spirit of wisdom 

and revelation in the knowledge of him:

The eyes of your understanding being 

enlightened; that ye may know what 

is the hope of his calling, and 

what the riches of the glory of his 

inheritance in the saints,  And what is 

the exceeding greatness of his power 

to us-ward who believe, according to 

the working of his mighty power,  

Which he wrought in Christ, when he \

raised him from the dead, and set him 

at his own right hand in the heavenly 

places,  Far above all principality, 

and power, and might, and dominion, 

and every name that is named, not 

only in this world, but also in that 

which is to come:  And hath put all 

things under his feet, and gave 

him to be the head over all things 

to the church,  Which is his body, 

the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

Ephesians 1

THAT YOU MAY KNOW HIM!

But what things were gain to me, those I 

counted loss for Christ.  Yea doubtless, 

and I count all things but loss for the 

excellency of the knowledge of Christ 

Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered 

the loss of all things, and do count 

them but dung, that I may win Christ,

And be found in him, not having mine 

own righteousness, which is of the law, 

but that which is through the faith of 

Christ, the righteousness which is of 

God by faith:  That I may know him, 

and the power of his resurrection, and 

the fellowship of his sufferings, being 

made conformable unto his death;

If by any means I might attain 

unto the resurrection of the dead.

Not as though I had already attained, 

either were already perfect: but I follow 

after, if that I may apprehend that for 

which also I am apprehended of 

Christ Jesus.  Brethren, I count not 

myself to have apprehended: but this one 

thing I do, forgetting those things which 

are behind, and reaching forth unto those 

things which are before, I press toward 

the mark for the prize of the high 

calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:7-14

TO HIM WHO IS ABLE TO KEEP YOU FROM FALLING

Photo provided by Katie Peace

 But, beloved, remember ye the words 

which were spoken before of the 

apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;

How that they told you there 

should be mockers in the last time, 

who should walk after their own 

ungodly lusts.  These be they who 

separate themselves, sensual, 

having not the Spirit.  But ye, 

beloved, building up yourselves 

on your most holy faith, praying 

in the Holy Ghost,  Keep yourselves 

in the love of God, looking for the 

mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ 

unto eternal life.  And of 

some have compassion, making 

a difference:  And others save 

with fear, pulling them out of 

the fire; hating even the 

garment spotted by the flesh.

Now unto him that is able to keep 

you from falling, and to present you 

faultless before the presence of 

his glory with exceeding joy,

To the only wise God our Saviour, 

be glory and majesty, dominion 

and power, both now and ever. Amen.

Jude 1: 17-25

THANKS BE UNTO GOD

Photo provided by Katie Peace 

Behold, I shew you a mystery; 

We shall not all sleep, but 

we shall all be changed,

In a moment, in the 

twinkling of an eye, 

at the last trump: for 

the trumpet shall sound, 

and the dead shall be 

raised incorruptible, 

and we shall be changed.

For this corruptible must 

put on incorruption, and 

this mortal must put on 

immortality.  So when 

this corruptible shall 

have put on incorruption, 

and this mortal shall have 

put on immortality, then 

shall be brought to pass 

the saying that is written, 

Death is swallowed up in 

victory.  O death, where is 

thy sting? O grave, where 

is thy victory?  The sting 

of death is sin; and the 

strength of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God, 

which giveth us the victory 

through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brethren,

be ye stedfast, unmoveable, 

always abounding in the work 

of the Lord, forasmuch as ye 

know that your labour is not 

in vain in the Lord.

I Corinthians 15:51-58

HOW TO AVERT USELESS ARGUMENTS

Photo provided by Kathy Mitchell

A devotion written by Steve Long

Sometimes arguments are needed because they are the only way we can communicate our point of view to another. There is a right way to argue and a wrong way. I am not always sure about the right way, but shouting and throwing things is not the right way!

But do you sometimes find yourself arguing about something that is pointless? Do conflicts between you and those you love escalate but not abate? Have you ever said something with agitation in your voice that garnered an equally agitated reaction until one or both of you were left with hurt feelings and a sour taste? As your emotions accelerated have you ever said something you wished you hadn’t?

There is a principle in God’s word that I have seen work very beautifully. I hope you will consider it the next time someone gets in your face and spills out caustic verbiage.

A soft answer turns away wrath,

        But a harsh word stirs up anger.

The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly,

        But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness.

                                                                      Proverbs 15.1-2

A “soft answer” does not mean appeasing compromise. It is not fair to others or to ourselves if we enable others for their wrong behavior. It is not necessarily Spiritual when we become too agreeable. We should agree when we can but not while compromising godly convictions.

Years ago, when I was a pastor, my wife and I received a late night phone call to our home. She answered. The voice on the other end was loud, harsh and shrill, pouring out accusations with anger. It was directed at both of us.

I was sure that the caller was the one at fault and asked her to hand me the phone. I was going to give this individual a piece of my mind. I thought, “How dare they talk to my wife like that, and how dare they falsely accuse us both.”

Wisely, she didn’t give me the phone, and wisely, she never increased her volume but spoke in calm, even tones, speaking the truth in love. She never gave the individual on the other end of the line any justification for raising their voice. This caused things to settle and caused the angry accuser to look at things more realistically. Before they both hung up the phone, I heard the antagonist’s voice cool down into quietness. Surprisingly, the caller actually apologized for speaking such harsh words.

Neither my wife nor I had any trouble going to sleep that night but felt blessed that things had turned out as they had. I was amazed at how the Lord had used her soft answer to turn away someone’s wrath.

I wonder how it would have gone if she had handed me the telephone that night. I might have returned their accusations with accusations of my own. The volume and tone of our conversation might have intensified until we both got more and more irrational. Then, neither of us would be willing to listen to the other, only wanting rather to make our own points loudly and clearly. Instead, the conversation ended with peacefulness rather than with perpetual punches.

I cannot guarantee that your soft answers will produce the same results every time. Some people are too irrational to hear what you have to say regardless of the tone or volume. But “harsh words stir up anger.” Speaking harshly to another might cause them to shut up, but it will never quell any hard feelings they might have toward you.

Next time someone jumps on your case about something, try to answer them truthfully but gently and see how God might use it in both of your lives.

Written by Steve Long

ARE YOU BEING UNMASKED

Are You Being Unmasked?
A Devotion by Steve Long




"Behind the Leaf" Photo by Allef Vinicius

Dennis Montgomery, a former United States intelligence contractor is suing former FBI Director James Comey on the premise that a large number of American Citizens have been “unmasked,” (meaning under surveillance). Montgomery claims Comey and his agency covered up this illegal activity. He said that over twenty million Americans have been unmasked by the FBI according to Sara Carter who appeared on the Sean Hannity Show.[1]

I don’t know if all of this is true, but if it is, it’s even possible it could include you or me.

“Unmasked;” that’s a term I had never heard until about a year ago. It almost makes it sound like the person being spied on is presumed to be guilty. If there is no mask (nothing to hide), one cannot be unmasked. Of course, most everyone has some private information such as personal finances, that they may not want the public to know about. That doesn’t mean, of course, that one is guilty of anything; just that they might not want everyone to know about something.

In the world of the Spiritual; however, everyone is guilty. Most of us have some things presently or in the past that we don’t want everyone to know about. Even as you read these words, something you’ve done may come to your mind.

Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden, were suddenly ashamed after sinning. They tried their best to cover themselves (using leaves, which would eventually dry up and blow away). But they were unmasked. God knew what they had done and examined them concerning it. They would have to face the consequences of their sin, but then God made a sufficient covering for them by giving them coats of skin.

Jesus said, “For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.”[2]

Paul wrote, “… God shall judge the secrets of men...”[3]

One of these days the whole world, each one of us, will be “unmasked.” Like Adam and Eve, we all have sinned against God. We may be able to hide things from each other, but we can hide nothing from God – nothing.

There is one way we can keep from being unmasked. How? We can do so by removing our own masks now in the presence of God. We can come before him at this very moment and confess our sins – ugly as they are. We must place your faith in his Son, Jesus Christ as Savior and ask him to forgive us for all we’ve done wrong. He already knows, so just be open with him. By doing so you will enter into a relationship with the most powerful and holy one but also with the most loving person there is.

{1] circa.com
   freerepublic.com

[2] Luke 12.2-3

[3] Romans 2.16

IN THIS PRESENT WORLD

Photo provided by Kathy Mitchell

For the grace of God that bringeth 

salvation hath appeared to all men,

Teaching us that, denying ungodliness 

and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, 

righteously, and godly, in this present world;

Looking for that blessed hope, and 

the glorious appearing of the great 

God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

Who gave himself for us, that he 

might redeem us from all iniquity, and 

purify unto himself a peculiar people, 

zealous of good works. These things speak, 

and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. 

Let no man despise thee.

Titus 2:11-15