"Don't Leave It Behind"

"He hath made his wonderful works to be remembered: the Lord is gracious and full of compassion." Psalm 111:4

 

Recently we talked about forgetting/leaving some things behind-- past failures and victories-- and not camping out in yesterday. God has called us to go forward and not allow the "past" to hinder us from doing so. But there is one thing we have to mention on this subject. There is something that we can't leave behind and we must remember-- God's wonderful works, His grace, goodness, and compassion to us.

 

We can't leave our testimony of what God has done for us in the past-- His wonderful works are to be remembered. In saying that I need to also say that we don't "camp out" in what He "did" for us and stay in that. He wants to do new works and miracles in our lives today. But at the same time we should never forget what He has already done. Don't forget where He brought you from. Don't forget the time He delivered you out of the pit. Don't forget the time He calmed the raging storm that threatened to destroy you. Don't forget the many times He has healed your body, given you wisdom in a situation, given you strength when you were weak, lifted up your head when it hang down, came through at the last minute, and made a way when there was no way in sight. These wonderful works should never be forgotten. 

 

In the Old Testament the Lord told the children of Israel to set up memorials-- through feasts, by the placing of stones, through writings, etc. These were to be reminders to them and the generations to come of God's wonder working power in their lives. By remembering the wonderful works that the Lord has done for us, we are making a memorial to constantly remind us of how good He has been to us. When you are going through a trial, you can look back at what He did for you in the past and be encouraged by it. When you are going through the fire, remembering the last time He delivered you from the fire will give you faith to know that He will do it again. When you remember how He came through for you in the past, it will remind you of His power to do what seems impossible and you will know that He can do the same again this time.

 

Again, in leaving those things that are behind, we must never leave in the past our confidence in the Lord, our faith in Him, the knowledge of His mighty power, the memory of the times He did great and wonderful things for us, or our praise of His faithfulness. 

 

Have a great day. When we forget those things that are behind, we can't forget the wonderful works that the Lord has done. The memory of them will encourage us in the trials we face today.

 

For further reading:

Exodus 12:14

Ecclesiastes 12:1

Psalm 42:6; 77:11

 

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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

"Get Out And Go"

"Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord: we have blessed you out of the house of the Lord." Psalm 118:26

 

This may be "stretching" the verse a little, but "get out of the house of the Lord and start blessing people". It is so easy for us as Christians to want to shut ourselves up behind the four walls of the church. We want to stay in our little comfort zone and do our own little religious things. We want to stay around other Christians in our own safe little world. But the Lord commissioned us to go, not stay. 

 

Church and church attendance play a vital role in our Christianity. We are told not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together. It has a place. It is where we are helped to grow and be encouraged so that we can "go" out into the world and do the work we were called to do-- reach the lost for Christ. 

 

"Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord". This was a prophesy about the Messiah who would come. The key word is "come". Jesus didn't stay in heaven behind gates of pearl, enjoying the splendor of heaven, surrounded by adoring angels, strolling down streets of gold. He came to earth. He walked among us. He went to the temple, but He didn't "live" there. He went at the appointed time-- it was His custom to do so. But the rest of the time He got out where humanity was-- the highways, byways, market place, the seashore, etc. He went to where the lost, the hurting, the afflicted, the rejected, the scorned, the condemned, and the guilty were. We are to not only follow His example, but continue the work He started by reaching people with the good news of the gospel. We do this by being those who "come in the name of the Lord" to those who are lost and in the darkness of sin. 

 

Are you fulfilling the commission to go? Are you staying in the house of God and neglecting the call to go into your world? Are you blessing others by giving them the good news that God loves them and Jesus saves-- outside of the house of the Lord, as well as inside it? 

 

Have a great day. We have a commission to fulfill, and we won't fulfill it inside the four walls of the church. We have to get out of the house and start blessing others in the name of the Lord.

 

For further reading:

Mark 16:15

Acts 1:1

Luke 4:16

Isaiah 52:7

Romans 10:15

Hebrews 10:25

 

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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

"Appreciate The Gift"

"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23

 

A gift is something that is given willingly to a person without payment in return. There is nothing that the recipient of the gift does to earn it. God gives us gifts everyday, and many of them we take for granted-- like air to breath. The greatest gift He has given is the gift of eternal life. This gift was provided for us by Jesus at the cross. 

 

There are many things that a person can do with a gift. They can refuse it, they can receive it, they can neglect it after they have received it or they can enjoy the gift and use it. It is the same with the gift of salvation/eternal life that God has provided. 

 

Many have and still are refusing the gift of salvation. They don't want it or anything to do with it. Therefore, they will not receive it. When they stand before the Lord one day, they will want it then but it will be too late. When that time comes, they can't blame God, it will not be His fault. It is not up to the giver whether a gift is accepted or not, it is up to the receiver. It will be their fault that they did not receive it-- not God's.

 

On the other hand, many have received this free gift that God has so graciously provided. But what are they doing with it? If you have received it, what are you doing with it? Are you enjoying it and using it? Are you neglecting it? If you appreciate a gift you will use it and not neglect it. I bought my husband a turkey hunting vest for Christmas. It is evident that he appreciates that gift because every time he went turkey hunting he wore it. Had he not liked or appreciated it he would have left it hanging in the closet.

 

If we "appreciate" the gift of God's salvation there will be evidence. The main evidence is our lives will show it. They will show it through our communion and fellowship with the Lord. They will show it through praise, worship and adoration of the Lord. They will show it by our lifestyle. They will show it through the love of God radiating from our lives. They will show it through our witnessing and testifying of God's love and goodness to others. If we don't appreciate it there will be evidence also-- neglect. 

 

Have a great day. If you appreciate the gift of salvation that you have received, you won't neglect it and your life will show it.

 

For further reading:

John 3:16; 4:10

Ephesians 2:8

James 1:17

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

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

"The Place Of Rest"

"Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord." Acts 3:19

 

This has been an extremely busy time for me. If I let it, it could be overwhelming. After the next couple of weeks it will slow down a little. I have been thinking-- I need a break. I need to get away and go somewhere where I can just rest for a couple of days. 

 

We all need times to get away where we can be refreshed and regroup. We need times of solitude and quiet where we can rest our bodies and clear our minds. But taking a trip or vacation is not always the answer. Have you heard anyone say, "I need a vacation to rest up from my vacation."? Leaving the familiar and routine and getting a change of scenery is fine if you can do it (I might do it yet), but it isn't our answer. It does help and there is nothing wrong with doing it. But there is only one place where we find true rest and refreshing. It is in the presence of the Lord. "To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear." (Isaiah 28:12)

 

Jesus showed us by example where this place was. If anyone needed a rest, and a break, it was Jesus. He was constantly surrounded by people wanting something from Him. He couldn't eat or sleep without someone right there all the time. Yet, He was always "refreshed", it never got "the best of Him". That place was in the presence of the Father. Often, He would get away, go up to a mountain, the other side of the sea, or stay up all night to commune with His Father. This is where we find the rest that we need. Like the old hymn says-- "There is a place of quiet rest, near to the heart of God." 

 

"For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have replenished every sorrowful soul." (Jeremiah 31:25) We may not be able to go somewhere away from the place of demands upon us, but we can go straight into the presence of the Lord and find rest and refreshing for our weariness. The rest that He gives is complete-- not a little rest. It refreshes our whole spirit, soul and body. He satiates us and replenishes us when we ask. He causes us to no longer be weary but instead we receive the strength to "mount up with wings like eagles. So that we can run and not be weary, walk and not faint." 

 

There is no better place on earth to receive the rest that we need and are looking for, than in the presence of the Lord. The best thing about it is that you don't have to make reservations-- there is always a place available for you. You don't have to travel far to get there-- just the distance to your knees. It doesn't cost one cent-- it has been paid for through the blood of Jesus. And you can always go there at any time.

 

Have a great day. Do you need a break? Do you need a rest? Do you need to be refreshed? There is a place where you can find perfect rest. It's in the Presence of God. 

 

For further reading:

Isaiah 40:31

 

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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

"Don't Camp Out In Yesterday"

"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

 

Yesterday is gone, today is a new day. We have to leave yesterday's failures and victories behind and face what lies ahead of us this day. With each new day comes new challenges, new mountains to climb, new valleys to pass through, and new seas to cross. 

 

When Jesus walked the earth, He and His disciples were constantly going from one place to another. They were either crossing a sea, climbing a mountain, walking the shores or going from one town to another. They didn't stay in one "place" too long. On the mountain of transfiguration the disciples wanted to build a temple to the Lord and stay there. But Jesus took them back down into the valley instead. 

 

Life is not a place of standing still. It is a place of going forth and forward. We can't camp out on the mountain top. We can't camp out in the valley beside still waters. We can't camp out in yesterday's failures and give up and stop going to our next appointed destination. We can't camp out in yesterday's victories and not press on to new ones today. 

 

Are you "stuck" in yesterday? Are you wanting to camp out there? Camp out in self-pity, in the mistakes, in the condemnation, in the guilt? Are you wanting to camp out in the triumphs, in the victory, in the glorious experience? Get up and move on. It is time to "get into the boat". It is time to go to "Samaria". It is time to go to the "mountain of transfiguration". It is time to go to the "shore". It is time to go into the "highways and byways". It is time to leave yesterday and go forward into the new places of today.

 

Have a great day. You can't camp out in yesterday. Today is a new day with new battles to fight, new places to see, new challenges to meet and a destiny to fulfill.

 

For further reading:

Matthew 17:1-5

Luke 14:23

John 4:4

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

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 Word Perspective"

"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." Romans 12:2

 

Yesterday morning because I overslept I really had to hurry to do all I needed to do before I left for the shop. I told my husband that I woke up late so it put a "squeeze" on my time and I had to hurry. As I said that the thought came to me-- if we are people who live by the Word of God, then we need to renew our minds with the Word and look at things from its perspective. At that point I stopped feeling "squeezed" and "rushed" and decided that my steps are ordered by the Lord, therefore, I didn't oversleep I was in the perfect timing of the Lord-- He was ordering my steps. Including when I got up.

 

Because we are so fleshly minded, we tend to look at everything from a fleshly/physical perspective. We respond, react, and live our lives by worldly principles. But if we are truly people of the Word, it should be the governing factor of our lives-- how we think, how we respond, how we react, and how we live. We should see and judge the circumstances of life, not from a worldly perspective but from a heavenly one. Some might say that is being too spiritually minded. I wonder if there is such a thing. Jesus was not earthly minded at all. We are told to have the same mind as Him. 

 

Our thoughts govern our actions. What we think is what we do. And what we think is what we become. This is why the Bible tells us repeatedly to watch what we think. We are to guard our thoughts. Think on things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely and that have a good report. We are to set our thoughts on things above and renew our minds. By doing so we know what is the good, acceptable and perfect will of God. His word is His will. If we are going to live by His will, then we need to start living by His Word. And living by His Word means looking at life through its perspective. 

 

Have a great day. We are to be people of the Word, therefore, we should look at the things of our lives from its perspective. 

 

For further reading:

Philippians 4:8; 2:5

1 Corinthians 2:16

Psalm 37:23

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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

"Praise Him On Both Sides"

"For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed." Malachi 3:6

 

Anyone can praise God when things are going well. But can you praise Him in the storm? Can you praise Him in the darkest night of your life? Can you praise Him in trouble? Can you praise Him in the valley? Can you praise Him in the fire? When the children of Israel left Egypt, they soon found themselves hemmed in between Pharaoh's army and the Red Sea. God delivered them by parting the sea, making a path through it and drowning Pharaoh's army. When they came across on the other side, they sang a song of triumph, deliverance and victory. What a wonderful, glorious time! It was a time of rejoicing, celebration and giving praise to God. They sang the right song-- praise and glory to God-- they just sang it on the wrong side. They should have sang it on both sides of the sea.

 

You may ask, "How can you sing praise when you are in the middle of a trial, tribulation or problem?". That is the wrong question to ask. The right question is, "Why can't I?". After all, God is no different on this side of the sea then He was on the other side. He is the same on both sides of the trial. He is the same in the storm as He is after He calms it. He is still God. He is the Deliverer while you are facing the enemy as much as He is when the conflict has passed. He is as much the Healer when the bad report comes that you have an illness as He is at the end of it and the reports come back negative. He doesn't change after the problem has passed and then become the Victor. He already is the Victor-- before the battle, during the battle and after the battle. 

 

Job praised God when he got the bad reports that he had lost everything including his children. Paul and Silas praised God while sitting in chains in the prison. They didn't wait to praise Him after He delivered them. They praised Him before. They could do this because they knew who He was. They knew that He was just as powerful, just as mighty, just as able to deliver, and was with them while the storm was raging as He was after He had calmed it. Don't wait to give Him praise until after the problem has passed. Give Him praise and worship when it first comes, during the middle of it and after it is over because He is the same before, during and after the trial.

 

Have a great day. Praise God on both sides of your trial-- when it first starts and when it ends. Because He doesn't become your deliverer only when it ends. He is the deliverer even before it begins. 

 

For further reading:

Acts 16:25

Exodus 15:1-3

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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

"Open And Not Ashamed"

"The Lord hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen." Psalm 98:2

 

When the Lord made the provision for our salvation, He didn't do it in secret. He didn't do it behind closed doors. He did it openly before all to see. Jesus' death on the cross is our provision for salvation. He was crucified on a hill, not in a cave. He was crucified in the open, not inside the temple. He wasn't crucified on ground level but on a cross- lifted up so that even those who were in the distance could see it. 

 

He was crucified openly so that there would be no doubt as to what He did. He did it openly so that we would know that it was provided. He wasn't ashamed to be seen hanging on the cross for us. He did it openly as a reminder also. Should you ever doubt His love for you, should you ever wonder about the provision of salvation, just look at the cross. It is right there in the wide open for you to see. 

 

If everything He did for us was done openly, shouldn't we live our lives openly for Him? Should we be "undercover-secret" Christians? I am not talking to my brothers and sisters who are in countries where you are being persecuted and martyred for the cause of Christ, and you have to be more "secretive" about your relationship with Jesus. I am talking to my brothers and sisters who live in countries where you have the freedom to live openly for Christ, but don't. We said earlier that He wasn't ashamed to hang on the cross for all to see because He loved you that much. Are you going to be ashamed to let others see that you love Him that much by living for Him openly? 

 

Have a great day. What Jesus did for you was done in the open, not in secret. He wasn't ashamed to love you and provide salvation for you so that all could see it. Are you ashamed to live openly for Him?

 

For further reading:

Mark 8:38

John 12:32

 

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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 Will Reclaim Itself"

"O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" Romans 7:24

 

Our home is located on a couple of acres with lots of trees. When you come to my house, it is obvious that we haven't done any yard work this winter. There is a thick blanket of leaves and limbs on the ground. The contrast between the way it looks now and the way it looks during warmer weather is quiet different. There is one thing about nature, if left unattended it will always reclaim itself. You can take a piece of land and clear it but if you don't maintain it, it will go back to its original state. This happens with my garden each year. During the off season the grass and weeds take over.

 

This isn't just confined to nature, our souls will do the same. Once we receive salvation we then have to "work out our salvation". It isn't about a one time trip to the altar. Daily we have to guard our hearts from the pull of the old man to "reclaim" itself. If we leave our lives "un-kept" it will be noticeable- just like my yard. Signs of the flesh will be seen. There will be no joy. Peace will not be evident. Love will give way to selfishness. And so on. If left un-kept temptations will overtake us and we will find ourselves doing those things that we do not want to do. 

 

How do we do that? In order to keep my yard looking like a yard instead of a wilderness I have to work at it- constantly. I have to rake, pick up the limbs, mow it, pull up weeds, etc. It is the same with our lives. We have to "work" at it daily-- not just on Sundays at church. We have to read and study God's Word, and apply it to our lives. We have to hide it in our hearts. We have to keep our minds renewed with God's Word. We have to pray without ceasing; seek first the kingdom of God; take up our cross; deny ourselves; put on the full armor of God. If we neglect those things that bring spiritual growth and change in our lives, it won't be long before it is evident. 

 

Have a great day. Nature will reclaim itself if left unattended. Our old nature will try to reclaim itself if we neglect our spiritual man. 

 

For further reading:

Romans 7:18-25

Philippians 2:12

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

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

"They End When They Are Over"

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:" Ecclesiastes 3:1

 

The weather here has been much colder this year than usual. We have had snow, ice and record breaking temperatures. I have heard so many people say that they will be glad when warmer weather comes, how tired they are of the cold, or how they wish it would hurry and get over. It may be an extreme winter, but it is winter. The winter season is suppose to be cold. 

 

There are seasons in our lives, not just in nature. Like the four seasons- spring, summer, fall and winter- each season brings its own characteristic. Spring brings new life. Summer is hot. Fall things begin to transition. Winter is cold. Each of the four seasons have to "run their course" before they give way to the next one. It is the same with the seasons of our lives. We want certain "seasons" to "hurry and change", but they have to run their course as well. 

 

I much prefer the summer season. My least favorite is winter, and I look forward to it being over. But winter is needful to the earth. In life I don't enjoy the seasons of testing and trials, (I much prefer the seasons of peace and prosperity) but they are needful. The point I am trying to make is, although we don't enjoy some seasons and try to rush them up and get them over with, we need to learn to be content in them. They are set to "run their course". They will be over when it is time for them to be over. They are not going to end until they have accomplished their full purpose. Joseph tried to hurry his season in the prison up by asking the butter to remember him to Pharaoh. It was two years later before the butler told Pharaoh about Joseph. His season wasn't over until it had "run its course". It came to an end when it had accomplished what it needed to do. 

 

We might as well stop trying to rush winter so warmer, more pleasant weather will come. Winter will end when it is the appointed time for it to end. In the meantime, be content in it. The season you are in will end when it is the appointed time for it to end. So, stop trying to rush it up until it does. Be content and let it accomplish its purpose.

 

Have a great day. This season will end when it has "run its course".

 

For further reading:

Philippians 4:11

Genesis 40

 

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

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

"Sense Driven Or Word Driven?"

"(For we walk by faith, not by sight:) 2 Corinthians 5:7

 

I woke up with another song repeating over and over in my thoughts again this morning. "I'm not moved by what I feel, I'm only moved by the Word that real." If we aren't careful it is so easy for us to walk/live by our feelings and emotions. We are "sense" driven people-- motivated by our own senses. (Seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting and touching.) If I can't see it then it isn't real. If I don't like what I hear then I ignore it. If it doesn't feel good then I don't want to do it. If it doesn't taste to my liking then I won't eat it. If I am not allowed to touch it then I get angry. 

 

If you walk by your feelings you will go astray. Feelings are fickle. They are constantly changing. What made me happy yesterday doesn't today-- if you don't believe it, look at marriage and divorce. What made me cry in the past may not any more because I have hardened to that situation. What once appalled me, may be acceptable to me now. Our feelings change daily. You can wake up feeling great and on top of the world and within minutes be so distressed that you just want to die. 

 

As Christians we can't allow our feelings to govern, dictate and influence our lives. Are "feelings" a bad thing? No, God gave us our feelings. But our feelings have to be kept in check, sanctified and brought into submission to the Lord. They have to be ruled by His Word-- not allowed to rule us. Our feelings don't "call the shots". They don't tell us what to do and what not to do. They don't tell us what is and isn't acceptable. They don't make decisions for us. We can't allow them the "headship" in our lives because they are often "false". The Word of God is the determining, ruling factor in our lives. 

 

Every situation we face should be governed by and viewed in light of the Word of God-- not our feelings. The Word of God is Truth-- it is the only truth. It isn't fickle. It isn't up today and down tomorrow. It doesn't change with every wind. It isn't affected by circumstances. It stays the same day in and day out. It has always held steady- the same. It is the same in adversity and in victory-- it does not change. It is the same yesterday, today and forever. It isn't moved by feelings, by the economy, by trials, by tribulation, or by temptation. It is the same in the good times as it is in the bad times. Therefore, we have to be "moved" by the Word of God and let it hold us steady in all circumstances of life-- and not our feelings.

 

Have a great day. We can't be moved by what we feel-- feelings can be false. We have to be moved by the Word of God-- it's the truth. 

 

For further reading:

Psalm 119:89; 160

John 17:17

Romans 1:17

Matthew 24:35

 

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

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

"Defeating The Enemy"

"And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it." Nehemiah 4:8

 

In context this verse is talking about when Nehemiah had gone to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls of the city, and while they were working Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, came against them to stop the work.

There is still an enemy who will try to conspire against us in the work of the Lord.

 

That enemy is not Sanballat, or the Ammonites, or any of the ones that were named in this scripture. But it is the same enemy. It is the same enemy that conspired against Nehemiah, against David, against Daniel, Paul and against the Israelites. The real enemy who is behind the one who appears to be the enemy is the devil/adversary. He is the one who tries to stop the work of the Lord. He is the one who goes about seeking whom he may devour. He may come in many "forms"-- a wolf in sheep's clothing, an angel of light, a wicked king, a seductive woman, etc.-- but it is still him. 

 

How do we withstand and fight against this enemy? How do we keep him from stopping us in the work of the Lord? How do we keep him from side-tracking us and causing us to stop doing what we are called to do? The answer is in the next verse. "Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them."

 

The first thing we do is pray to God. We call upon the Lord to defend, protect, advise, give us strength and wisdom. We bring God into our situation-- not think that we can handle it by ourselves. (The battle belongs to the Lord.) 

 

The next thing we do is keep an eye out for the enemy. How do we do that? Through God's Word. Ephesians tells us to put on the full armor of God so that we can stand against the schemes and devises of the devil. That armor is Christ Himself-- it is the Word. When we are clothed with God's Word, our spiritual eyes are enlightened and we see clearly the tactics and plans of the enemy.

 

How do we fight against the enemy who conspires against us in our work of the Lord. The answer is clear, Jesus summed it up for us-- "Watch and pray". 

 

Have a great day. The devil still comes to stop us from doing God's work, but he is defeated when we watch and pray. 

 

For further reading:

Matthew 26:41

Ephesians 6:11,12

John 10:10

1 Samuel 17:47

 

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

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

"I Am - Not I Was"

"And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you." Exodus 3:14

 

We live in a world where literally everything around us changes. People change, weather changes, the economy changes, seasons change, there is nothing that does not change in this physical realm. In a world that is constantly changing we must remind ourselves often that God does not change. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. 

 

Whatever God was yesterday, whatever He was in the past, He still is in the present. He told Moses to tell the children of Israel that He is I Am. He didn't say to tell them that He Was. When He says He was and is and is to come, He is referring to His existence. He has always been and He always will be. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but He never will. 

 

If "He Was", instead of "I Am", then He Was the miracle working God. Then He Was the Healer. He Was the Savior and Deliverer. He Was Love, Peace and Joy. But He is not the "I Was". He is the "I Am". I Am the Healer. I Am your Fortress. I Am your Strength. I Am Love. For us past is past. Past will always be the past-- never the present. But for God when He says He is I Am, I Am is present tense. God is a present God, even the past becomes the present. For us the future is future, and it will always be the future. But for God, the future becomes the present. Past and future become present in God-- I Am. 

 

The point is that the past doesn't hold God back or confine Him. The future doesn't restrict Him. He is the ever-present God who is as He has always been. This is comforting to us. Knowing this should give us peace and confidence. It should bring us security in knowing that whoever and whatever He was and did for us in the past, He hasn't changed and will be the same for us today, in the future, and always. 

 

Have a great day. Everything in this life changes, except God. 

 

For further reading:

Matthew 24:35

Malachi 3:6

Hebrews 13:8

Revelation 4:8

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

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.