faith

Devotional for March 27

March 27, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

Know the Lord

5 Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high,
6 Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth!
7 He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill;
8 That he may set him with princes, even with the princes of his people.
9 He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the Lord. Psalm 113:5-9 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

What we want and what we need are not always the same things. Trust God and you may not have what you want, but you will always have what you need. Waste no time crying over the luxuries you lack. Doing so only distracts from the very opportunity God provides to help you move forward. Sometimes the providence of God is like the mother eagle deliberately making the nest uncomfortable for the eaglets so that they mature and take to the sky. Pray and go to work. Some things work better than others, but nothing works unless you do. (Deuteronomy 32:9-12; Numbers 14:2-3; Exodus 14:15-16; Hebrews 3:7-19, 4:11-16; Isaiah 40:28-31; Proverbs 26:10-15; Hebrews 6:7-12; 1 Corinthians 5:7-8; Philippians 2:14-16; 2 Corinthians 9:8; Ephesians 3:20-21)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 38; John 17

Proverbs 14; Philippians 1

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring us again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. The Book of Common Prayer

faith

Devotional for March 26

March 26, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

Sing Praises to God Our King

47 O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.
2 For the Lord most high is terrible; he is a great King over all the earth.
3 He shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our feet.
4 He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom he loved. Selah.
5 God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises: sing praises unto our King, sing praises.
7 For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding.
8 God reigneth over the heathen: God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness.
9 The princes of the people are gathered together, even the people of the God of Abraham: for the shields of the earth belong unto God: he is greatly exalted. Psalm 47 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

Finding motivation to workout is only a struggle before you learn to like it. Once that switch is flipped however, nobody has to struggle to do anything they love. Find a form of exercise that you like. Start easy and stick with it until you come to love it. Don’t expect that to happen overnight. Here is the secret of great endurance: If you hold on when it has gotten as hard as it can possibly get, from that point on it can only get easier. (Malachi 3:1; Proverbs 12:23-28; Luke 7:36-47; Matthew 22:35-40; 2 Timothy 2:1-7; 1 Peter 4:12-16; 1 Peter 3:13-17; Romans 8:28; Hebrews 10:36; James 1:2-4; 1 Corinthians 16:13; Hebrews 12:4; 1 Peter 5:4-11)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 37; John 16

Proverbs 13; Ephesians 6

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

faith

Devotional for March 25

March 25, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

God Is the Restorer Of My Soul

1 In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion.
2 Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me.
3 Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.
4 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
5 For thou art my hope, O Lord God: thou art my trust from my youth.
6 By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mother's bowels: my praise shall be continually of thee. Psalm 71:1-6 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

Pray for the means and the ends will take care of themselves. Set end goals in accordance to whether or not they glorify God. Let your motives for everything be for the love of God and doing what is pleasing to Him. The life hidden in Christ has Christ reigning as Lord and Master of the heart. Let the truth of God be our standard and rule for discerning right and wrong. Faith in the Word, prayer, and the grace of God are the means by which we bear the fruit of the Spirit. Such fruit produces all manner of good of works in the world that God predestinated us to do before the world began. There is no better news than the Gospel. (James 4:1-8; Matthew 6:27-34; John 15:1-8; Galatians 5:19-24; Matthew 16:24-26; Colossians 3:1-17; Ephesians 1:3-6, 2:10; Psalm 96:7-13)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 36; John 15

Proverbs 12; Ephesians 5

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

faith

Devotional for March 24

March 24, 2024March 24, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

It Is Written

6 Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.
7 Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me,
8 I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart. Psalm 40:6-8 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

Strive for true excellence. No one takes that building in a single bound though. It’s enough to be able to climb one step at a time to reach the top. No one need wait to be happy as long as you can be satisfied with accumulating small improvements on the way to the top. Be happy with doing your best today, expect to be a little bit better tomorrow, and don’t get discouraged when it you hit a plateau or stumble backward a bit. Get back on the path and move forward. Growth most often happens in spurts, not a straight line. The reality is that true excellence happens only after consistently working for it over a long period of time. Let happiness come and go as it pleases. Hold to faith and patience from beginning to end. (Proverbs 20:21; Proverbs 13:11; 2 Thessalonians 3:10; Mark 4:26-29; Luke 8:11-15; John 4:36; Hebrews 10:36; James 5:7-11; Romans 8:31-39; Galatians 6:9; Philippians 2:13; 1 Corinthians 16:13-14)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 35; John 12

Proverbs 11; Ephesians 4

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

faith

Devotional for March 23

March 23, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

Trust in the Lord

9 O Israel, trust thou in the Lord: he is their help and their shield.
10 O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord: he is their help and their shield.
11 Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord: he is their help and their shield.
12 The Lord hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.
13 He will bless them that fear the Lord, both small and great.
14 The Lord shall increase you more and more, you and your children.
15 Ye are blessed of the Lord which made heaven and earth.
16 The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord's: but the earth hath he given to the children of men.
17 The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence.
18 But we will bless the Lord from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the Lord. Psalm 115:9-18 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

Accept the fact that the body must be trained with weights, or gravity and time will leave you weak and frail. Train the body under resistance for physical health and train the mind under faith for spiritual health. Pair resistance training with nutrition, and faith with wisdom, for maximum effectiveness. Physical exercise is important for the body, and spiritual training is essential for the mind. The bedrock of spiritual training is being diligent about judging one’s own thoughts. Every wrong thought must be rejected or by default it is accepted. Accepted thoughts are like seeds sown and can only bring forth more of its kind. Conformity to the Word of God is our only reliable standard for judging right and wrong thoughts. The one who doesn’t learn to hold their thoughts captive and examined in this way, will be a slave to their feelings like parent tormented by the undisciplined two year-old that throws a temper tantrum in the grocery store checkout line. (Isaiah 26:3; Proverbs 16:3; Psalm 10:4; Isaiah 50:10-11; Galatians 6:7-9; 1 Peter 4:17; 1 Corinthians 11:31-32; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Matthew 7:16; Hebrews 4:12; Romans 1:17; 1 Timothy 4:8; Hebrews 11:6; Philippians 4:1, 4-9)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 34; John 13

Proverbs 10; Ephesians 3

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

faith

Devotional for March 22

March 22, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

Take Delight in the Lord

1 Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.
3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.
4 Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5 Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.
6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.
7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.
10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Psalm 37:1-11 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

Absolutely wonderful is the hope set before us. Keep it simple. Begin with the end in mind. Each day make any necessary course corrections, then focus on taking little steps in the direction of the desired end. Press on toward the goal for as long as necessary, and your desired destination will become your destiny. (Ephesians 1:3-14; 2 Corinthians 11:3; Matthew 12:33-35; Mark 7:20-22; Matthew 15:11; Proverbs 18:21; Psalm 51:10; John 15:3-8; Exodus 33:14; Romans 8:3-8; Galatians 5:16-25; James 4:5-10; Psalm 18:1-3; Philippians 4:23)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 33; John 12

Proverbs 9; Ephesians 2

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

faith

Devotional for March 21

March 21, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

Only You, Lord, Make Me Dwell in Safety

4 Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.
2 O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.
3 But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.
4 Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord.
6 There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.
7 Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.
8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety. Psalm 4 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

Tossing a coin into a wishing well pays for nothing. The difference between a goal and a wish is the willingness to pay the price to achieve it. Are you willing to eat better, work harder, and give up all that hinders? To pray for change and not put in the required work dishonors God. Repent and align your heart, head, and hands. The higher the goal, the higher the price. Count the cost before you begin, and be willing to consistently pay the price from start to end. Do this and you will be prepared to do every good work God has placed in your heart. (Proverbs 20:4, 26:15; Ecclesiastes 7:8; Luke 9:23, 14:27-35; 2 Timothy 2:3-22; Philippians 2:13-16; James 1:22-25; 1 Peter 5:6-11)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 32; John 11

Proverbs 8; Ephesians 1

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant me the fullness of your grace, that I, running to obtain your promises, may become a partaker of your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. The Book of Common Prayer

faith

Devotional for March 20

March 20, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

Let All the Earth Understand

13 The Lord looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men.
14 From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth.
15 He fashioneth their hearts alike; he considereth all their works.
16 There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength.
17 An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength.
18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;
19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine. Psalm 33:13-19 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

How you play your cards is more important than the cards you have been dealt. How you live is more important than where you live, and what you seek is more important than what you have. All that we have, and all that we are, will serve the desires of the heart. The desires of our heart direct our feet toward God and the things above, or toward self and the things of this world. Obey the Sprit, or you will be enslaved by the flesh. There is no third possibility. (Mathew 6:19-24; Colossians 3:2; Romans 8:5-8; Mathew 5:6; Luke 12:15; Galatians 5:16-17; Romans 6:16; Matthew 7:13-14, 16:24-25; John 17:3, 17:17; Psalm 51:10; Proverbs 3:13-26)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 31; John 10

Proverbs 7; Galatians 6

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

faith

Devotional for March 19

March 19, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

Our Promise for the Sure Mercies of David

89 I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
2 For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens.
3 I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant,
4 Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah. Psalm 89:1-4 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

Faith is spiritual muscle. Even the things of the natural world teach us that everything which is seen comes from what is unseen. The masterpiece cannot be seen on the blank canvas. The priceless work of art cannot be seen within the block of marble. The corn cannot be seen in the kernel of grain, and the fully grown adult cannot be seen in the baby. Only in the eyes of the artist, the sculptor, the farmer, and the Creator is that which is unseen commanded to come forth. Birth pains are sure to come, but don’t abort the vision. The journey of 1000 steps will never be reached if one turns back after taking only 999. (Hebrews 11:1-3; Proverbs 29:18; Hebrews 4:12; John 12:20-26; Hebrews 10:36-39, 4:2; Mark 4:24-32; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 30; John 9

Proverbs 6; Galatians 5

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

faith

Devotional for March 18

March 18, 2024 Bruce ColemanLeave a comment

Remember thy God

63 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
2 To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
3 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.
7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice. Psalm 63:1-7 (KJV)

The Morning Exhortation

Wisdom teaches that the means are just as important as the ends. Remember to fight the good fight of faith. The world is full of distractions that if not guarded against will cause us to forget. Both sunshine and rain are given and allowed by God to make us stronger, but we must cooperate and engage in the battle. Stop wrestling with God and start resisting all that is contrary to His holiness. Be not like the seed sowed in the rocky soil, which had little roots. Neither be the hare that takes the shortcut to a free lunch, and ends up as the main course in the trapper’s stew. Much better to be like the tortoise that takes the straight path of consistent hard work, and in time has a sure reward. The value of reaching any great height comes from the patience and endurance it takes to reach it. The longer and harder the struggle, the greater and sweeter the victory. Press on. Victory awaits. (Luke 8:4-15; Hebrews 10:36; Proverbs 20:21; James 1:2-6; James 4:7; 1 John 5:4;1 Timothy 6:12; Philippians 3:12-14; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; 2 Timothy 4:7-8)

Today’s Bible Reading

Exodus 29; John 8

Proverbs 5; Galatians 4