"Launch Out Into The Deep"

"Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught." Luke 5:3

 

Another year is behind us and a new year is before us. What will this year bring? What is God's plan for the new year? What does He want to do in our lives? For weeks the Lord has been speaking something to my heart, I believe it is a word for the year ahead. I would like to share it with you. The word I have been hearing is-- get out of the shallows. 

 

The Lord is calling His people, as He did Peter, to launch out into the deep. In Ezekiel God gave the prophet a vision of waters coming into a house. Those waters started off as ankle deep in depth and continued to rise until they were deep enough to swim in. The people of God- His children, the church- have been hanging around the shallow areas of this great river. We have been wading in "ankle deep" waters content and not pressing out any further. The time has come when we can't do that any more. If we are going to be light and salt in this dark and thirsty world, if the commission that the Lord commanded us to do is to be fulfilled, if we are going to have the fullness of God in our lives, we are going to have to launch out into the deep. 

 

The deep river to swim in is simply God Himself. He is the River-- and He said out of us would flow rivers of living water. What does it mean to launch out into the deep and how do we do it? It means to submerse yourself in God. It means to draw near to Him. It means to surrender yourself and will to Him. It means to desire as Paul did to know Him, and love Him with all your heart. 

 

We have hung around the shallow places because they are comfortable, they don't require much of us, or we have been afraid to go deeper. When you are in shallow water, you feel in control because you can "touch bottom" or easily make your way back to the safety of land. Going out into the deep you lose that control and power. You can't touch bottom and all you have surrounding you is water. You are, in a sense, at the mercy of the water. That's where the Lord is calling us-- surrender to Me, trust Me. 

 

This is a word to all of us-- launch out into the deep. Some of you have never made that step before, you have been in the shallows your whole Christian life-- a little reading of the word, a little prayer, a little church, a little service, etc. For some of you it is a call to get back into the deep. The word for launch is also translated-- return. You were once out there. You were once serving God, loving God, surrendered to God, anointed powerfully of God, but you started turning back toward the shallow areas- for whatever reason- and that is where you have been for a long time. God's plan for you is that you not stay there. He is calling you to return to the deep waters- the same call that He gives in Revelation when He admonishes the church of Ephesus to return to their first love and do the first works again. It is not too late. He is calling you to return. He is calling you to move out this year into a deeper relationship with Him. Don't be afraid Jesus is in the "boat" with you. He didn't get out of Peter's boat at the shore, He went out into the deep with him. 

 

Have a great day. Are you wading around in the shallow areas or swimming around in the deep waters of God?

 

For further reading:

Luke 5:1-11

Revelation 2:4,5

 

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"There Is Already A Plan In Place"

"This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

 

You never can tell about a day. We don't have the ability to see into the day and know what is going to happen in it. We just have to live it minute by minute as it unfolds before us. Some times that unfolding brings good things into our lives. Some times it brings tragedy, heartache, pain, or bad reports. Who can know? God does. He knows what lies ahead each day. He sees the end of the day at the beginning. Actually, He has already seen the end of each day that has yet to be before the foundation of the world. He foresees the future from the past.

 

Knowing this should bring us great comfort because that means that though things may happen in a day that take us by surprise, nothing takes Him by surprise. He has already seen it. And not only has He seen it, He has made provision ahead of time for it. God doesn't come up with a plan for the events that happen in our life as they happen. He doesn't try to decide what to do on the spur of the moment when faced with the situation. He doesn't try to figure out the best route to take when the situation presents itself. He has already decided, planned and figured out what to do. For example, He saw the fall of man before He ever created mankind. It was at that point that He came up with the plan of redemption, not at the fall when they disobeyed and ate from the tree. 

 

Whatever you are facing today, God has already seen it in the past, and He has already made a provision for it. He isn't trying now to come up with a solution, He already has one. So trust that He has seen ahead what you are going through, it isn't taking Him by surprise, and He already has a plan to work all things together for your good through it.

 

Have a great day. Because God has already seen this day before it ever got here, He knows what will happen and He already has a plan in place to take care of it. So trust Him. 

 

For further reading:

1 Peter 1:18-21

Revelation 13:8

Hebrews 4:13

 

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Merry Christmas"

I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and yours a Very Merry and Blessed Christmas. Rejoice in God's wonderful goodness that He showed to mankind by sending His Only Begotten Son into the world to give His life as the ransom for our sins. He didn't send Him to condemn us, but to save us. Thank God this Christmas season for loving us so much that He gave the greatest gift of all so that we could receive the greatest gift of all-- eternal life and relationship with God the Father. I am taking the rest of the week off so there will be no Coffee Break until next week. Love and blessings, Lorraine

 

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." John 3:16,17

 

"Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John 4:10

 

"Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." Matthew 1:23

 

"And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins." Matthew 1:21

 

"And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn." Luke 2:6,7

 

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Give Him Strength"

"Give unto the Lord, O ye mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength." Psalm 29:1

 

I understand how we give God glory-- we do it by showing Him honor, respect, reverence, by testifying of His greatness and showing what marvelous things He has done in our lives. But how do we give Him strength? How can we who are so weak, frail and powerless on our own, give God who is already stronger than the strongest strength? How can we add to the perfect strength He has? How can we make Him any stronger than He already is? 

 

Lest we misunderstand, the verse isn't saying that God has some weakness and He needs us to help Him and give Him some added strength. Neither is it implying that we can "help" God out by sharing our strength with Him. He is Omnipotent-- All Powerful, All-Strong. 

 

How do we give strength to God? By acknowledging our weakness. The Bible says that His strength is made perfect in our weakness. It says for the "weak" to say they are strong-- strong in the Lord and the power of His might. When we acknowledge that we need Him, that we can't make it without Him, that we are weak without Him, that we just can't do it without Him, then we are "giving" Him our strength.

 

Have you ever been around- or had- a child who insist that they "can do it"? You knew the task was too large for them; you knew they weren't able to do it; you knew that they didn't have the know how or ability to do the thing that they insisted that they were able to do. No matter how unable they were to do it, they kept telling you they could. When we try to do something in our own strength, we are not giving God strength. Giving our strength to God means that we surrender what ability, and strength, we may have to Him and acknowledge that without Him we can't do it. 

 

Are you struggling trying to do a task in your own strength? Are you insistent that you can do it by yourself without God's help? Then you are not giving your strength to God. Surrender your "crown of strength" to the All Strong God and let Him give you His perfect strength to accomplish the task. By doing so, not only are you giving up your strength to Him, but you are also giving Him glory at the same time. "Give unto the Lord glory and strength."

 

Have a great day. Surrender you little strength to God and He will give you His perfect strength. 

 

For further reading:

Joel 3:10

2 Corinthians 12:9

Ephesians 6:10

 

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"It Came To Pass"

"And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us." Luke 2:15

 

"And it came to pass". I thought it was interesting that this phrase is mentioned over 400 times in the Bible. It speaks of something that is proceeded by something else-- an event proceeded by another, a revelation of something previously hid before hand but now revealed, an understanding of something that may not have been clear before, or a promise that was given and is now coming to pass.

 

In the verse above, "and it came to pass", the promise that the Lord made at the fall to send one who would bruise the head of the serpent had come to pass. His arrival in the earth had finally come after all the thousands of years of waiting. 

 

We have all experienced the "it came to pass" times. Times when we have heard a word from the Lord but then had to wait. Times when He has given a promise, and we haven't seen it come to pass. There is a timing to when "it came to pass". "Though the vision tarry wait for it". But when it does come it usually comes like it did for the shepherds-- suddenly and at an unexpected time. They were keeping watch over their flocks by night, as they had done every night, and without prior notice or warning the angel of the Lord came to them, and then suddenly the angels were there singing of this wonderful thing that had "came to pass".

 

As I said earlier we have all experienced these times when "it came to pass", and we will again. So don't get discouraged while waiting for "it to come to pass". God has a timing, God has a plan, God is orchestrating and putting all things in place. Though it tarry it will come and it will come at the appointed time for it "to come to pass".

 

Have a great day. "It will come to pass" in God's appointed time--suddenly and unexpected. 

 

For further reading:

Luke 2:8-16

Genesis 3:15

Habakkuk 2:3

 

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Your Petition"

"And the king said unto Esther at the banquet of wine, What is thy petition? and it shall be granted thee: and what is thy request? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be performed. Then answered Esther, and said, My petition and my request is; if I have found favour in the sight of the king, and if it please the king to grant my petition, and to perform my request, let the king and Haman come to the banquet that I shall prepare for them, and I will do to morrow as the king hath said." Esther 5:6-8

 

When Esther had a petition, there were many people in the palace she could have gone to with that request. There were servants, the king's advisors, guards, etc. in the palace. But it would not have done her any good to go to them. They were unable to grant her petition. There was only one out of the many in the palace that could-- the king. 

 

When you have a petition, who do you take that request to? Who are you seeking out to grant it? Are you going to your spouse or another family member? Are you going to another brother or sister in Christ? Are you going to your pastor? Are you going to another person? Or are you going to the King? The king was the only one who had the power and authority to grant Esther's petition. Our beloved King of kings is the only One who has the power and authority to grant our request. Esther had advisors around her-- thankfully, we do too. But they only advise, they don't grant. 

 

If this king-- being a mere man, and evil-- knew how to give the good gift and petition that she requested, how much more does and will our Heavenly King give us the good thing that we are petitioning for. Take your request and petition to the One who has the power and authority to grant it. Don't be "running around the palace" looking to others to give you what only He can.

 

Have a great day. Take your petition to the King, He is the only One who can grant it.

 

For further reading:
Esther 5

1 Samuel 1:17,27

Matthew 7:11

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Take Aim"

"And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment: For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole." Matthew 9:20,21

 

The lady with the issue of blood needed a healing. She pressed through the crowd and touched the "hem" of Jesus' garment. The hem was the tassels that hung on the corners of His garment. They were called "wings". Malachi prophesied that He would rise with healing in His wings. She aimed for those "wings" because she needed a healing. When she touched it, His healing virtue flowed into her body and she was healed.

 

What do you need today? Then take aim and touch Him. She touched His garment and healing virtue met her need. Do you need strength, perseverance, direction? Take aim for His feet. They will give you virtue to walk throughout this world without getting weary, and you will know how you should walk among a wicked and perverse society. Do you need provision? Aim for His hands. He carries what you need in the palm of His hand and supplies it according to His riches. Do you need wisdom? Take aim for His head. "Let this mind be in you"-- His mind. Do you need compassion, love, kindness, mercy, gentleness? Then take aim for His heart. John leaned upon the chest of Jesus and heard His heartbeat. Lean upon His heart and you will hear it too-- it spells out love with each beat. Do you need spiritual understanding and discernment? Aim for His eyes. They don't see as we see-- man looks upon the outward appearance, God looks at the heart.

 

Again, what do you need today? Jesus is your answer. Take aim and touch Him in the area that you have a need in. We often say that we shouldn't seek His hand but seek His heart, and that is true, and as we do, all the things that we need will be added to us as we seek Him first. In Him is our whole provision and there are times when we have to seek Him for that particular need and touch Him in that area, like the woman with the issue of blood did, she touched His hem for her healing.

 

Have a great day. Take aim at Jesus and touch Him in the area of your need. 

 

For further reading:

Malachi 4:2

John 13:23

Matthew 6:33

1 Samuel 16:7

Philippians 2:5; 4:19

 

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Part Of The Eternal Kingdom"

"He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end." Luke 1:32,33

 

Kings and kingdoms rise and fall, and come and go. One of the most powerful earthly kings Nebuchadnezzar was shown this in the dream of the statue that the rock hit. There is only one Kingdom and One King that shall continue forever-- the Kingdom of our Lord and His Christ. 

 

When Jesus came to earth, the people, including His disciples thought He had come to relieve them from Roman oppression and sit up His Kingdom on earth. Well, He did... but not in the same way that they thought. He set it up in those who would crown Him as King and Lord of their lives. "The kingdom of God is within you." (Luke 17:21) His kingdom is within the heart of His followers, but one day the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of our God and then every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord! 

 

Are you one of His followers? Is His Kingdom within you? Is He the Lord and King of your life? Have you already bowed the knee of your heart to His Lordship? If you haven't done it already willingly here and now, you will do it then, but it will be too late to make Him the King of your life in a personal way. His return is soon. He will establish His Kingdom on earth. The dream that Nebuchadnezzar had is continually being fulfilled with the rise and fall of nations and kingdoms, but one day it will be completed and Jesus will reign as Lord and King over all the earth. You have the choice now to receive Him as your King or to deny Him-- which will it be?

 

Have a great day. The Kingdom of God is the only eternal Kingdom, are you a part of it?

 

For further reading:

Daniel 2

Revelation 11:15

Romans 14:11

Philippians 2:11

 

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"The Lord Is"

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." Psalm 23:1

"The Lord is"- I began to think about that a little. The Lord is... who? what?

The Lord is my shepherd-- leading and guiding me.

The Lord is the Bread of Life-- He satisfies me so that I hunger no more.

The Lord is Living Waters-- He quenches my thirst.

The Lord is the Light of the World-- I never have to walk in darkness again.

The Lord is my Refuge-- He is the place of safety for me.

The Lord is my Rock-- a solid foundation upon which I can build my life.

The Lord is the Way-- I never have to get lost again.

The Lord is the Truth-- I never have to fall for a lie.

The Lord is Life-- I will never die; through Him I have eternal life.

 

The "list" of who He is is endless because The Lord is God. He is eternal, there is no beginning nor end in Him. He is God, therefore, He is All Powerful, Almighty, All Knowing, and All Present.

Take some time today to meditate on Who the Lord is. Then think about, not only is He who He is, but He is all that to you personally-- your rock, your shepherd, your refuge, etc.

 

Have a great day. The Lord is a great, mighty, awesome, personal God. 

 

For further reading:

Psalm 23

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Live It Out"

"And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15

 

I think there is a misconception of Christianity among many believers. That misconception is the idea that Christianity is lived out at church-- in other words, Christianity is lived out when you are in church services only. Christian living is much more than a church gathering or service.

 

When Jesus said to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, the words "go ye" translates "as you are going". So as you are going about the task of life, preach the gospel. Your Christianity is to be lived out everywhere you are-- at home, on your job, out in the market place, when gathered with friends, at church.... anywhere life takes you. 

 

We also have had the misconception that this command to preach the gospel means we have to stand in a pulpit or on some platform in front of a group of people. To preach as you are going means just telling others about what the Lord has done in your life be it at the kitchen sink with a friend, or sitting in the doctor's office with someone you are having a conversation with. Preach it by telling others that Jesus loves them. Preach it by taking advantage of opportunities to encourage others in the Lord. Preach it through your lifestyle.

 

So as you are going through life, live out who you are where you are.

 

Have a great day. Christianity is not lived out only in church, it is lived out wherever you are.

 

For further reading:

Mark 16:15-20

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Hard Words"

"Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." Matthew 16:24

 

We are always wanting someone to give us "a word". But we don't want just "a word from the Lord", we want one that is pleasant, easy, will tickle our ears, tell us good things and only what we want to hear. Well, it just isn't always like that. Even Jesus spoke hard words to His disciples while on earth. "Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you." (John 6:53) That word was a "hard" word and offended many of His disciples to the point where some of them turned back and stop walking with Him at all. (v.60,61,66) 

 

We want the blessings, the benefits, the good things, and the promises but His Words are not always easy, for example, His word, "Follow Me". When we accept that invitation and then find ourselves in some "unpleasant" places why do we get offended by it? Didn't we know that to follow Him means that we will go where He goes/went. Following Him will take us into the wilderness to be tested. It will take us on a path of rejection. It will take us into the storm. It will take us to the place of self-denial. Following Him will take us to the cross-- the place where our flesh (will) dies and conforms to His will. 

 

Jesus did not walk an easy path, neither will His disciples. He faced hardships, we will too. The servant is not greater than his lord. Don't think that it is strange when you are following Jesus' words and hardship comes into your life. You are following down the same path He has traveled.

 

Lest what I am saying offends you and causes you to want to turn back, let me say this... as you follow Jesus and the path doesn't look easy, remember that He is walking it with you. He is not leaving you alone. Just as the Father was with Jesus on His journey, so is Jesus and Holy Spirit with you as you follow Him. Remember this also, Jesus has already walked down these paths... He is well acquainted with them. He knows how to "get through them" because He went through them, and overcame them in victory. Because He overcame so can we-- we not only follow Him down paths of hardship, but also paths of victory. 

 

So be encouraged. While Jesus' words are not always pleasant like we would like for them to be, even the hard words are full of blessings. Just because we can't see them, doesn't mean they aren't there. There is eternal life hidden in them... and that is the greatest blessing of all.

 

Have a great day. Jesus' words are not always easy or what we want to hear, but the hard words are the ones filled with the greatest blessings.

 

For further reading:

John 6

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Good Television"

"Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter." Isaiah 5:20

 

Last night my husband and I ate our dinner in the living room and watched television as we ate. We watched a couple of episodes of the "Andy Griffith Show". Have you ever heard anyone say, or perhaps you have said it yourself, why don't they make shows like those any more? Today everything is full of blasphemy of God and that which is sacred, immorality, violence, and vulgarity. Compared to what is on today, those shows were good... or were they?

 

I looked at my husband and told him how disappointed I was in what I was seeing. Both episodes centered around lies and deception, and they went to great lengths to perpetrate the deception. Perhaps compared to the other shows that the world is producing it is "good"? But compared to God's Word it is not. Lies, deception, immorality, etc. it is all the same to God. His Word tells us how to judge what is "good and evil".

 

Church, if we keep watching these things and not heeding what the Word of God says about them, we will find ourselves in a constant state of compromise and wind up as those it talks about in the verse above-- we will call evil good and good evil. It only takes a short period of time for us to begin to condone what is clearly not good for good-- just let something a little worse come along and what once wasn't suddenly becomes acceptable. You can't compare worldly with worldly. You can't compare flesh with flesh. You have to compare it to the Word of God. You have to judge everything by the Word of God. You don't choose "for" something because it is the "lesser of two evils". Instead you forsake it and avoid it. If you don't... well, we have already discussed the consequences. (In case you missed it-- you will wind up like those in the verse above.)

 

How do we keep this from happening? By judging it by the Word of God, then believe what God says about it, and then just simply heed what God says and avoid it. If you don't you will live in a state of compromise, which will cause you to live a less than victorious, abundant life because you will not be walking in the whole truth. And part truth is not truth at all, but a lie. Lies bind you, truth sets you free.

 

Have a great day. To find out what is good and what is evil, you don't compare it by anything but the Word of God. 

 

For further reading:

John 8:32; 17:17

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Proud Or Grateful?"

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." James 1:17

 

I was in the doctor's office yesterday and when I first walked in the door, I heard a lady humming a Christian song. I sat down beside her and she started singing one of the old classics. She didn't care that the room was full-- she kept singing about Jesus. I told her I enjoyed it and we got to talking. I asked how long she had been waiting and she proceeded to tell me what an impatient person she was. I answered back with what the scriptures said about impatience and that it was a Fruit of the Spirit. She said, "Really?". She seemed to not know what I was talking about. She told me she has always sung even from a young age. She sang in church often and even now has won some awards for her singing. But throughout the whole time there, she was impatient, complaining, negative and didn't know much of anything about the Bible.

 

Just because you go to church doesn't mean you are the Church. Just because you hear preaching doesn't mean you are a doer of the Word. Just because you sing about Jesus doesn't mean you know Jesus. Many are like her-- church goers with a talent. They go on Sunday, they may even sing in the choir and hold positions in the church, but there is no evidence of Christ in their lives during the rest of the week. There is an old children's song that says, "If you're saved and you know, then your life will surely show it." She had a beautiful voice, and sang the "right" song, but had no personal evidence to back up what she sang. 

 

This lady was very proud of the talent that she had, but didn't know the One who gave it to her. Do the things that God has given you-- the blessings, the talents, the abilities, the wealth, etc.-- mean more to you He does? Are you proud of the "gifts" or grateful for them? Every good gift comes to us from God. Having pride doesn't just mean that you take credit for them. People with pride may even recognize that it came from God, but they don't live like it did. Gratitude for the gift is shown by wanting to get to know the One who gave it to you, by desiring to use it for the purpose in which He gave it, and by not using it for your own self but for Him. 

 

Have a great day. Your life will reflect whether you are grateful for or proud of the gifts and talents God has given you. 

 

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"Grace Bubble"

"When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee." Isaiah 43:2

 

For some reason we Christians have the idea that we will never go through anything. We think that just because we are saved we will never face "hardships" again. We tend to think that we will live on a "big soft fluffy pink cloud" far above any troubles. Well we don't live on a cloud, we live on earth. And in this world Jesus Himself told us that we would have tribulations. We were told we would have many afflictions. We were told there would be weapons that would form against us. We were told that we would pass through the waters, through the rivers, and through the fire.

 

No, we don't live in on a "cloud", but we do live in a "grace bubble". We like to think that this "cloud" keeps us from going through anything-- it doesn't. The "grace bubble" doesn't keep us from going through difficulties, it protects, consoles, gives peace and strengthens us when we do go through these times. 

 

What is this "grace bubble"? It is the protective place that is under the shadow of the Almighty. When we go through the waters, He will be with us (that is the grace bubble-- His presence) surrounding and shielding us. When we go through the rivers, they shall not overflow us-- that's the grace bubble. When we walk through the fire, it will not burn us and the flame will not kindle upon us-- that's the grace bubble. In the many afflictions, His deliverance is the grace bubble. In tribulation, His victory is our grace bubble. When weapons are formed against us, they will not prosper-- that's the grace bubble. We are kept by God's grace that surrounds us when we go through trying times-- that's what the grace bubble is. 

 

When you go through difficulties, remember the grace of God is with you walking with you through it. That grace will keep you, deliver you, strengthen you, undergird you, protect you, and keep you from being utterly destroyed. This is why the Apostle Paul could say, "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed." (2 Corinthians 4:8,9) He lived life in the "grace bubble"

 

Have a great day. We don't live on a cloud above troubles, but we live in a grace bubble protected during those troubles. 

 

For further reading:

Psalm 34:19; 91:1

John 16:33

Isaiah 54:17

 

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.

"His Train"

"In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple." Isaiah 6:1

 

After Israel's king, Uzziah, whom they had served under for over fifty years died, Isaiah saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up. This was not only a glorious revelation of God, but a vision of hope. How so? 

 

Israel had lost their king but they had not lost their God. The king was dead, but God wasn't- He was still there. King Uzziah's throne was temporary, but God's throne is eternal. Rulers come and go, but God will always be there. 

 

The Lord was sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up. God's throne doesn't just transcend man's throne- like one king that is greater than another king. His throne rules over all other thrones. His throne has dominion over every throne that is established on earth. 

 

"His train filled the temple." His train/garment of majesty, honor, authority and glory filled the entirety of the temple. I read something interesting about kings and their trains. When a king would go to battle, if he defeated the opposing king, he would cut off the hem of the king's train/garment and attach it to his own. The more victories the larger his train became. It showed he was a great, mighty and powerful king. Isaiah saw the Lord's train filling up the entire temple. The Lord is mighty, great, victorious and powerful all by Himself. His train would naturally fill the place. But I also submit to you that His train filling the temple represents His victory over 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. (Ephesians 1:21)

 

At the cross Jesus defeated the "principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world, and spiritual wickedness in high places." He destroyed the works of the devil and spoiled principalities and powers, making a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. 

 

In the wilderness satan tried to tempt Jesus to worship him by promising to give Him all the kingdoms of the world. Jesus didn't give in to the temptation. Jesus knew that one day they would be His anyway. "And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever." (Revelation 11:15) He knew that He would gain possession of the keys of death and hell, and all power in heaven and earth will be given unto Him. He knew He would receive them by defeating the devil, not by submitting to him. 

 

His train fills the temple because He is the victorious, conquering King of kings. He has "added" His victories over death, hell and the grave to the hem of His train. He has "added" His victory over sin, sickness, temptation and the flesh to the hem of His train. He has defeated the lust of the flesh, pride of life and the lust of the eyes and "added" them as well to His hem. He has defeated every "king" that would try to set up its throne in our lives. He has defeated them all and added them to His train showing His great power, majesty and authority. 

 

Have a great day. Jesus is the mighty King whose train fills the temple. 

 

For further reading:

Ephesians 6:12

Matthew 28:18

1 John 3:8

Revelation 1:18

Colossians 2:15

 

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or
Email:mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact unless permission is granted to do otherwise. Please remember to give credit to About the Master's Business Ministry.