"Perjury"

"The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne." Psalm 132:11

 

Have you ever had anyone tell you something and they swore that they were telling you the truth only to find out that they weren't? They made, or took, an oath that what they were saying was the truth but it was a lie. This happens in our courts of law frequently-- it is called perjury (willfully telling an untruth in a court after having taken an oath or affirmation- swearing).

 

People may deliberately lie to you. They may even try to get you to believe the lie by enforcing it with an oath-- swearing that it is the truth. Man may lie. He may even swear that the lie is true. But God never lies. He never perjures Himself. He always tells the truth. When He swears, it is always in truth. So we never have to wonder, or worry, whether He is telling us the truth or not.

 

At the fall, God said He would send a Savior to bruise the head of the serpent-- He did two thousand years later when Jesus came. He promised Abraham that He would make him a great nation-- He is still doing that. He swore to David that He would set up his throne forever-- this will be fulfilled in Jesus when He returns and establishes His Kingdom on earth. Time doesn't affect God's word or His oath. It is eternal. The promises He made in the past are just as trustworthy today as when they were made. God cannot lie.

 

Time, circumstances, our unbelief, nothing affects the promises of God. God's word is always truth. It is immutable- does not change and is unable to be changed. God is not a man that He should lie. Therefore, we can place our trust and faith in Him and His word, because He is faithful as promised. 

 

Have a great day. God never lies and He always swears to the truth. 

 

For further reading:

Isaiah 9:7

Numbers 23:19

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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.

"Christ Living In Me"

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." Galatians 2:20

 

"Yet not I, but Christ lives in me". In other words, although I am "alive" I should be "dead" and it is no longer me who is living my life, but Christ is living His life through me. When Jesus comes into our lives, we die (to self) and He lives in us. So then that means that it is Jesus who is living through me. When you see me, then you see Him. Can you imagine the change there would be in our lives and the impact we would have in the world around us if we truly understood those words and took them to heart?

 

It is not only Christ living in me but living His life through me. This means that my whole attitude would be different-- I would be loving, compassionate, forgiving, turning the other cheek, blessing those who curse me, praying for those who use me, going the second mile, and so on. It means I would not say some of the same things I say-- like foolish jesting and cursing. My words would be kind, gracious, uplifting, encouraging, edifying and full of wisdom. It also means my treatment of others would be different, the way I dress who be more modest, my lifestyle would have morals, my motives would be pure, my hand would be extended to others, I wouldn't do some of the things that I do and act the way I act. If Jesus was really living His life through me, which is what true Christianity is about, I wonder what changes it would affect in my life? 

 

What about you? Are you living a "crucified" life with Christ? Who is being seen in your life-- you or Him? Is He having freedom to do the things He desires to do through you? Is His character being seen through your life? When the disciples asked Jesus to show them the Father, Jesus replied that when you saw Him you saw the Father. It was because He and the Father were one. Jesus was "dead" to His self and will and the Father was "living" through Him-- "I came not to do my own will but the will of Him who sent Me". Can you say the same thing-- "When you have seen me, you have seen Jesus."? More importantly, can others say that about you-- "When I see him/her, I have seen Jesus."? They can and will if we are crucified to self and Christ is living through us.

 

Have a great day. If we are crucified with Christ we are no longer living our lives, but He is living His life through us. Is that evident in your life? 

 

For further reading:

John 14:9; 6:38; 5:30; 17:22

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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.

"Are You Listening?"

"Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord." Psalm 34:11 

 

"Hearken unto me"-- or in other words, "listen to me". Listening is something that people don't do much of. Parents try to get their children to listen to what they are saying in order to keep them on the right path. Married couple's biggest complaint is that the other spouse never listens to them. We live in an age where people just don't listen. Oh, they may "hear" words coming out of your mouth, but they aren't listening to what you are saying. Our society thinks they already know it all. They think that there isn't anything you can say that they haven't already heard. They already have their minds made up about something so it is a waste of their time to have to listen to what you say. They let it "go in one ear and out the other". 

 

The Psalmist was saying, "Listen to me and I will teach you the fear of the Lord". If a person doesn't listen, he won't learn. There are some things we learn through experience, but there are other things that we learn through listening. Have you ever talked to someone until you were "blue in the face" but it didn't matter what you said, how often you said it or how much emphasis you placed on what you said, they still didn't hear you and did the wrong thing anyway. 

 

It is one thing to listen, or not listen, to your parents, your spouse, your friend, a counselor, your boss, your child or someone else who is trying to tell you something, but it is another thing not to listen to the Lord. He speaks to us often and in many forms. The most frequent way He speaks to us is through His Word (the Bible). Within its pages are His words that will instruct us, guide us and help us. If we would listen to them, we would prosper and have peace. But people aren't listening-- even to God. They ignore what He says, act like they know more than He does, or excuse themselves by saying it is too difficult to understand. What is so hard to understand about-- "You shall not lie, love your neighbor, forgive those who do wrong against you, be kind, believe in Jesus, etc.? 

 

Listening is a vital part of life. We have to listen if we are going to learn anything or succeed. Are you a listener? Do you listen to others who are trying to help you? Are you listening to yourself only? Are you listening to God? 

 

Have a great day.  If you don't listen to what I say, you may miss something important. But if you don't listen to what God says it can carry eternal consequences. His words are a matter of life and death. 

 

For further reading:

Revelation 3:6

Isaiah 34:1

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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.

"Hypocritical Worship"

"And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward." Matthew 6:5

 

Last night I was reading a quote by Keith Green and in it he addressed the subject of worship. He wondered if the passion, singing and loud exclamation of praise that he saw displayed from people in church worship was presence in their private life. He wondered if they still have this same intense passionate joy when they were alone and no one was around to watch or hear, but the One that counts.

 

In our relationship with the Lord are we like the hypocrites? Are we very vocal with our prayers and praise in church where others can see us, but in our private life we hardly give the Lord any praise? When we are alone, are we the same as what others see in public? Hopefully, when we are alone we are more so! Hopefully, when we are in "secret" and no one else is around by the Lord, our praise and worship is so passionate that He silences all of heaven so He can enjoy what we are offering up to Him.

 

Our worship and praise is like an aroma in His nostrils. It is either a good aroma or a stench. When we offer up our praise in public only, it is a stench because it is hypocritical. When we do it to be seen of men and get their attention, it is a stench. Our praise is a sweet smelling aroma and acceptable sacrifice when it is done in private as well as public, and when it is done with the motive to be seen purely by the Lord Himself. So what aroma is your worship sending up? What does God smell when you worship Him?

 

Have a great day. Is your worship for the Lord only displayed in public for others to see? Or are you just as passionate in your private worship when no one else is around but the One to whom it is directed?

 

For further reading:

Matthew 6:1-8; 23:1-7

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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.

"God's Plan"

"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2:8,9

 

I woke up this morning with these words repeating over and over again in my mind. "Oh, the love that drew salvation's plan. Oh, the grace that brought it down to man. Oh, the mighty gulf that God did span at Calvary." The cross was a place of shame, pain and death. But it was also the plan that God devised in order to redeem mankind from sin. This was the plan of God that would settle the sin debt that we owed. The cross, the death of God's Only Begotten Son, this was the only plan that could save men.

 

We have tried to come up with our own plans. The Pharisee's plan was through the keeping of the Law. The heathen through worshipping idols and giving gifts to them. The rich young ruler's plan was through keeping the Commandments. Saul tried through his education and knowledge. Countless numbers throughout history, including today, have a plan that they believe will save them. Their plan is called-- salvation by works. They think that church membership, water baptism, giving offerings, singing in the choir, serving on some church committee, or going to church once or more a week will save them. 

 

If salvation through works was a good plan, if it was the best plan then God would have come up with it-- it would have been God's plan and way. That would have been the plan He put into place. But it wasn't. It is a faulty plan. It is a plan based on our own ability. We have no ability to save ourselves. No matter how hard you work at accomplishing your plan of salvation, it won't work. The rich young ruler accomplished it rather well to a point-- he did the works, he kept the commandments-- but he still went away sorrowful not receiving salvation because he fell short in his plan, and then would not surrender to God's plan. The only plan that will work was Jesus dying on the cross. This plan is perfect and without fault. Whose plan are you working on to receive salvation? Are you working on your own plan as to how you are going to be saved? It won't work. 

 

Have a great day. Our plan for salvation is by doing good works. God's plan for salvation is by grace through faith in the shed blood of Jesus on the cross. That is the only plan that will work. 

 

For further reading:

Titus 3:5

Matthew 19:16-22

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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.

"Today, Not Tomorrow"

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

 

"This is the day which the Lord hath made". The Lord made this day-- today. So many people are living in "tomorrow". They are looking ahead to tomorrow. They are hoping tomorrow will be better. They are excited about some plan that they have made for tomorrow. They are thinking about an appointment that they have tomorrow. There is nothing wrong with preparing for the future, keeping a check on the calendar, or taking care of an upcoming responsibility, but we can't live in tomorrow and neglect today.

 

All we have is today. We don't have the promise of tomorrow. The Lord has created "this day", He hasn't created your tomorrow for you yet. He sees your tomorrow. He sees your future. He knows the number of your days. But He has not created tomorrow for you or me yet. But He has created today for us. 

 

So don't live in the past or in the future--- live in today. Enjoy His plan for you today. Today draw near to the Lord. Today be a light and witness for Him. Today love and serve Him. Today walk in His grace and blessings. Enjoy His peace today and don't be anxious about tomorrow. Make full use of today. Don't miss what He has for you today because you long for or are already thinking about tomorrow. 

 

Have a great day. Don't miss what the Lord wants to do for you today because you are already living in "tomorrow". Live each day to the fullest. 

 

For further reading:

Matthew 6:34

James 4:13-15

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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.

"Nothings"

"And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod." Exodus 4:2

 

How many times have we heard it preached that God will take whatever you have "in your hand" and use it? Have you ever felt, though, that you have "nothing" in your hand? You don't have a rod like Moses. You don't have a sling like David. You don't have a lunch of bread and fish. What do you have? You have nothing. Well, neither did they to begin with. Moses didn't always have the rod. David didn't always have the sling. The little boy didn't always have the lunch. It was given to them or they obtained it at some point. 

 

"For the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey." (Matthew 25:14,15) The truth is, we all start out with nothing. You may not feel as though you have anything to give Him- no talent, no ability, no rod, nothing- and that is correct, you have nothing. But He wants our "nothingness". He wants us just as we are. He wants to take what is nothing and make us into something. Without Him we are nothing. Without Him we have nothing to give Him. All we have is ourselves- such as I am. But when we surrender our nothing and give ourselves to Him, He will give us- and make us- something. 

 

He will make us someone who is an heir and joint-heir to Christ Jesus; who is a co-laborer with Him; accepted in the beloved; the righteousness of Christ; bestowed with gifts; blessed of the Lord; etc. Just ask Gideon. He was a nothing with nothing to give the Lord. He was a coward, from a poor family and the least in the family. When God came to Gideon, he had nothing. God wasn't after what Gideon had, He was after Gideon. He took Gideon, who was nothing, and gave him something and made him into something-- a mighty man of valor, a judge in Israel. 

 

Stop bemoaning, or using as an excuse, that you have nothing to give the Lord and you have nothing in your hand. None of us have anything. That is why we need Him! We start with nothing and we give that nothing to the Lord-- that is all He is after. And He will take the nothing and replace it with something-- something (someone) that He can use for His glory.

 

Have a great day. You may think that you have nothing to give to the Lord-- you are right. But that nothing is what He wants. 

 

For further reading:

Judges 6:11-15

John 15:5

Romans 8:17

2 Corinthians 5:21

 

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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.

"A Call To Arms"

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." 1 Peter 5:8

 

I woke up during the middle of the night and before I went back to sleep, just out of nowhere I heard very clearly in my spirit four words- "a call to arms". I didn't even know what it meant so I had to look it up. The dictionary defines the phrase as: a command to report for active military duty. 

 

In doing a little further study, I looked up some of the other words that were related to the phrase. Among them were such words as: enlist (sign up for responsibility); mobilize (ready for action); rally (reorganize, unite); recruit (gather resources); engage (involve, commit). 

 

The phrase "a call to arms" that I heard was not a physical call to a natural army, but a spiritual one. When we came to Christ and became saved/believers, we enlisted in the Army of the Lord. "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ." (2 Timothy 2:3) We enlisted, it was a free choice that we made. And in doing so, we signed up for responsibility in the Kingdom of God, not just for fire-insurance from hell, or to receive blessings. 

 

Whether we realize it or not, we are in a spiritual warfare; there is a battle going on. "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." (Ephesians 6:11,12)

 

The Bible says that the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. (Matthew 11:12) "A call to arms", is the Lord's trumpet sounding to awaken and rally His troops to engage in battle. It is time we recognize that we are in a war (a spiritual one) and that we have a very real enemy (the devil) who has an intense hatred for God, and us because we love and serve Him, and is out to steal, kill and destroy us. (John 10:10)

 

The Lord is calling us off of our soft couches, to lay down our bless me mentality, to stop worshipping the gods of entertainment, quit compromising, stop being lazy, remove our lack of concern, our disobedience, self-centered, half-hearted Sunday kind of Christianity, undisciplined and uncrucified lives. 

 

He is calling us to self-denial, zeal for His kingdom, to endure hardship as a soldier, to take us our cross and follow Him, to surrender our wills to His will, to love Him with all our hearts, souls, strength and minds, and to love not our lives unto death. 

 

He is calling us to mobilize- get ready for action (we can't as long as we are lazy in our Christian disciplines).

He is calling us to rally- reorganize, unite (we can't if we don't love one another, live with prejudice, or have ought in our hearts).

He is calling us to recruit- gather resources (pick up our spiritual weapons, clean then up, give the gospel to the lost, make disciples- others joining the army of God is the best resource).

He is calling us to engage-- involve, commit (we can't if we are lazy and won't surrender ourselves to the Lord whole-heartedly). 

 

Will you hear His call this morning? Will you engage in this spiritual war? You can't sit by and think you will avoid it-- you are already in it and just don't realize it. 

 

Have a great day. The Lord is calling His church to arms-- to get to "active" duty, and stop being "inactive". 

 

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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 Non-Existent Place"

"But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord." Jonah 1:3

 

The verse above is almost comical. Where can a person go from the presence of the Lord? There is no place-- it doesn't exist. God is Omnipresent. You will never find a place where He is not. He is every where. He fills all of creation-- even those places that we have never heard of. 

 

The Psalmist asked this question-- "Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?" (Psalm 139:7)-- but he turned around and answered his own question because he knew the answer. The Lord is in heaven. He sees in hell. He is in the uttermost parts of the sea. He is in the darkness and night time, as well as the day and light. He was there even watching over you in your mother's womb. (Psalm 139:8-16) There is no where where you can go from the presence of the Lord. Jonah learned that the presence of the Lord is everywhere the hard way. The Lord was in Joppa. He was in Tarshish. He was in Nineveh. He was in the boat, in the storm, and in the belly of the whale.

 

For the sinner this may not be good news because there is no place you can run, no where you can hide, nothing you can do that the presence of the Lord does not see it. "The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good." (Proverbs 15:3) For the saved/believer this is good news because there is no place where the presence of the Lord is not with us-- through good times, trials, tribulations, storms, problems, difficulties, etc. "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." (Hebrews 13:5b) 

 

Have a great day. Like Jonah you can't escape the presence of the Lord-- He is everywhere. A place where God is not does not exist.

For further reading:

Psalm 139

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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.

"Spiritual Focus"

"I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living." Psalm 27:13

 

We tend to put the emphasis on the first part of the verse-- "I had fainted". It is human nature to dwell on the negative, on the bad, on our problems and on troubles. (Isn't that what most of us do?) We are always looking at how bad the situation is. We are prone to give up easily when trying times come. We feel so defeated by our circumstances. 

 

But as born again believers in Jesus, we no longer live as "natural" but "spiritual"-- "walking after the spirit and not the flesh". So our emphasis now, like the Psalmist, should be, "I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord". 

 

Our belief (the just shall live by faith) and our focus should be on the Lord. The natural man walks by sight- what he sees and feels. The spiritual man walks by faith-- faith in God. "Unless I had believed". We should believe that we will see His goodness, even in a bad situation. We should believe that He is faithful to fulfill His promises- what He said He will do, He will do. We should believe that He will cause all things to work together for our good. We should believe that nothing is too difficult or impossible for God to do. We should believe that He loves us will not abandon, or forsake us, and will meet and supply all our need. 

 

Where is your focus and belief this morning? On the problems, on your difficulties, on the overwhelming situation? Is it on the Red Sea or the God who parts the sea? Is it on the storm or the God who calms the storms? Is it on the lions, the fire, the enemy? Or on the God who is able to do exceeding, abundantly above all we ask or think?

 

Have a great day. The natural man focuses on the problems. The spiritual man puts faith in the Lord who is bigger than the problems.

 

For further reading:

Romans 1:17

2 Corinthians 5:7

Ephesians 3:20

Luke 1:37

 

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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.

"Side Tracked"

"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," Philippians 3:13

 

If we aren't careful, sometimes it is easy to get off track and set our affections and attention on the wrong thing, the things of the flesh, and temporal things. We are suppose to keep pressing toward those things which have eternal value-- heavenly things, things above, the Lord Himself. 

 

Have you gotten "side-tracked"? Are you lacking in the area of pressing toward heavenly things? Did you lose your focus? Have you set your affection on things of this world and off of the things that are heavenly? 

 

With each new day comes a new opportunity to get back on track and get refocused. Each new day is a new beginning. Yesterday is gone, the past is the past. But ahead of you this morning is a new day, a new dawn, a new chance. That's because God's mercies are new every morning. 

 

When the prophet Balaam was heading the wrong direction-- he had gotten his eyes on the riches that were to be gained and off of his devotion to the Lord-- the Lord sent an angel with a sword to get him heading back in the right direction. He also sent a donkey to talk to him and correct him. This morning, if you have stopped heading in the right direction and are heading the wrong way, the Lord isn't sending an angel or a donkey, He Himself is standing before you with outstretched arms to help you get back on track, refocused and heading in the right direction- upward. Let Him help you.

 

Have a great day. Have you gotten side-tracked, off-track, heading in the wrong direction? Today is a new day and you have a new opportunity to get refocused and heading in the right direction. 

 

For further reading:

Lamentations 3:22,23

Revelation 2:5

Numbers 22

Colossians 3:2

 

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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.

"Ministry"

"Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering..." Romans 12:7

 

When we think about ministry, we often think that it has to be preaching and teaching. We think it means standing behind a pulpit or delivering a sermon or being in a foreign land as a missionary. Ministry comes in different forms. Sometimes it is simply giving a cup of cold water to someone who is thirsty. It might be sleeping with your five year old grandchild because they are missing their parents. It may be cooking a meal to take to someone who is sick. Perhaps it is paying for someone's groceries. It could be a quiet smile to someone who looks sad. Maybe it is nothing more than a phone call or text message letting someone know you have missed them and are thinking about them. It may be a dollar bill tucked in a hand shake. 

 

There are endless ways in which to minister. Yes, ministry does involve preaching, teaching and pulpits. But it also involves acts and deeds of goodness and kindness to others. The Bible said that Jesus went about doing good. That's the bottom line of what ministry is. It is going about doing good to all people. It is doing what Jesus would do. That may include preaching, teaching, healing the sick, casting out devils, as well as sitting the little children in your lap, eating with sinners in order to share the gospel, or washing feet that are dirty. It is doing whatever it takes to lift up Jesus and show someone His love. 

 

Have a great day. Ministry is simply doing whatever it takes to show someone that Jesus loves them.

 

For further reading:

Acts 10:38

Mark 10:14

Matthew 9:11; 10:42

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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 New Birth Event"

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17

 

Yesterday was the joyous occasion of the arrival of our second grandchild. Her birth was not a concept, an ideal or imagined. It was real. It was an actual event. It was something that took place and was witnessed and attested to by others.

 

The new birth that we receive in Jesus Christ is a real event that takes place in our lives. It is not imagined or just a feeling. Unlike the birth of a flesh and blood baby, we can't lay our natural eyes on it but we can see its reality through the evidence that it produces-- a transformed (brand new) life. 

 

When we are born again, just as with a natural birth, there is something that takes place. It is a real experience. It is something that takes place inside and is evident on the outside through our works, words and attitude. There is a change that can be "seen". "Behold". We are able to look upon the life that has been born again and note that something has taken place. 

 

If there is not a change, then was there truly the event of the new birth that took place? When my daughter gave birth to our grandbaby, there was a visible change in her, and we saw the "fruit" of it-- the grandbaby. The new birth brings change in us. It is something that happens "to" us and makes us brand new people. (Which becomes evident to others.) "Old things pass away, all things become new." We see examples of this in the Bible. There was a change in Matthew the tax collector-- he stopped cheating the people and started following Jesus. He never went back to that lifestyle again. The same in the life of Mary Magdalene-- she did not go back to her old way of life when she was set free by Jesus. Zacchaeus the tax collector was so changed that he repaid everyone he had cheated out of their taxes. 

 

Have you experienced the new birth in Christ? Have you been born again? Is there evidence in your life? Are others able to attest to a change in you? Have you left the "old" behind and are living in the "new"? If not, today is the day of salvation, now is the acceptable time. It is time for your new birth.

 

Have a great day. When we are born again, it is an event that happens to us and changes us in such a way where it is evident to those who are looking at your life.

 

For further reading:

Luke 19:8

2 Corinthians 6:2

John 3:7

 

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

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.

"God's Kingdom"

".... and of his kingdom there shall be no end." Luke 1:33

 

Kingdoms rise and kingdoms fall. Once great nations are no longer powerful, some don't even exist any longer. King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream of a great statue which was made up of many different materials- clay, brass, etc. The Lord gave the interpretation of the dream to Daniel. The statue represented many strong and powerful nations that would rise throughout history. In the dream the king also saw a great stone strike the statue and broke it in pieces-- signifying that these nations would be destroyed. 

 

History has recorded the rise and fall of nations. God Himself through dreams, visions and prophecy has told us that the earth and all its kingdoms are temporary. They will not last forever. So when we see the things that are happening in our world between nations, we cannot let our hearts be troubled. We have already been told what will happen. The stone that the king saw in his dream was Christ and His coming Kingdom. The Bible tells us that, "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) Earth's kingdoms are temporary. One day they will be destroyed. When that happens, Christ will establish His Kingdom here on earth, and of His Kingdom there will be no end. It will never be destroyed. It will never be dissolved. It will last forever and forever. His is an eternal one, and He sits on the throne eternally.

 

Until that time comes, He is establishing His Kingdom in the hearts' of men and women who have been born again. "...the kingdom of God is within you." (Luke 17:21) Is it established in you? Has Jesus set up His throne in your heart? Does He rule and reign there? None of us know when He will return. None of us know whether the events that are unfolding before us in the world will usher in His return. None of us know how close we are to the removing of the temporary kingdoms and the establishing of His eternal one. It may happen soon, or it may yet be out in the future. But the important thing is whether or not you are a part of His kingdom now. If you are now, you will also be in the future when He sets up His Kingdom among men. 

 

Have a great day. The kingdoms of this world are not going to last forever, but God's kingdom will. Are you a part of that kingdom?

 

For further reading:

Daniel 2

Matthew 6:33

Mark 1:15

John 3:5

 

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

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.