365 BLESSINGS is a devotional book the Lord has led me to publish piece by piece even as I’m writing it rather than waiting until it’s in print to share it. Please join me & be blessed as I write my latest book. Today you will find FIVE NEW BLESSINGS rather than the usual other devotionals I publish in my GOOD NEWS DAILY. May the Lord use them mightily in your life to bring you love, help, hope, encouragement, & inspiration!…
Blessing 116……
“But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5
Here in this verse is the Lord Jesus Christ being prophesied in the Old Testament. When I was under the false prosperity gospel teaching, the focus was almost always on ME, ME, ME and US, US, US and feeling good and getting everything we wanted. There was an enormous focus on physical healing which is absolutely an awesome blessing from the Lord. Problem was I developed a tendency to skip over everything else in the Bible to rush to anything about healing and prospering in one way or another. I was prone to seeing the words, “…by His stripes we are healed” and entirely overlooking the awesomeness of this verse prophesying of how the Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross to TAKE THE PUNISHMENT WE DESERVE FOR OUR SINS ON HIMSELF! Awesome, awesome, awesome. His wounds, bruises, and chastisement were what ALL humans deserve for ALL our sins, and He took ALL the punishment on Himself! How could we ever be thankful enough for what Jesus did on the cross for us? We can’t, but we sure can make it our goal day by day to live to glorify the Lord with hearts filled with love, humility, and thankfulness! Oh, let us be thankful, thankful, thankful!
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Blessing 117
“For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.” Romans 11:36
All glory for everything good in the universe goes to the Lord God almighty, yes! Let us be thankful that everything good is from God, through God, and for God! Let us remember daily to give the Lord glory for each and every blessing He bestows upon us! Let us be thankful more than anything for the Lord Himself, hallelujah, yes, AMEN!
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Blessings 118
“As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him.” Mt. 9:9
Look at the sequence of events in these simple verses. Jesus sees Matthew. Jesus tells Matthew to follow Him. What does Matthew do? Wait? No. Wonder? No. Hesitate? No. Debate? No. Run the other way? No. Consider whether he may have better things to do? No. Look at all his options and tell Jesus He has better things to do? No. Matthew gets up and goes! Just as we should do when it comes to Jesus inviting us to follow Him! We should simply get up and go! But we humans tend to get caught up in the flesh, don’t we? We don’t always follow as immediately as we should – if we follow at all! We let things and people get in the way sometimes. But nothing and nobody should be more important to us than following the Lord Jesus Christ not just as a one-time act of repentance and believing in Him as Lord, but day in and day out as His Spirit leads us forth. For there is no greater blessing in the universe than the Lord – and His invitation to follow Him – day by day and forevermore! So let us be thankful the Lord desires we follow Him, and let us demonstrate our thanksgiving by doing as Matthew did. He arose and followed. Let us do the same, AMEN!
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Blessing 119
“Blessed are the undefiled in the way,
Who walk in the law of the Lord!
Blessed are those who keep His testimonies,
Who seek Him with the whole heart!
They also do no iniquity;
They walk in His ways.
You have commanded us
To keep Your precepts diligently.
Oh, that my ways were directed
To keep Your statutes!
Then I would not be ashamed,
When I look into all Your commandments.
I will praise You with uprightness of heart,
When I learn Your righteous judgments.
I will keep Your statutes;
Oh, do not forsake me utterly!” Psalm 119:1-8
How remarkable, how beautiful, how surprising, how lovely that the psalmist recognizes he – and we – are BLESSED when we live in obedience to the Lord! When we live according to God’s ways rather than the world’s ways. When we humble ourselves before God instead of bow down to the devil. When we turn from wickedness to the Lord and His righteousness. We are blessed when we do right in the strength of Christ, oh yes! Let us be thankful He shows us the difference between right and wrong, brings conviction by His Spirit for us to choose right, and compels and empowers us to live in a manner pleasing and honoring to Him! Thank you, Father, thank you, dear Lord! How blessed we are!
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Blessings 120
“With my whole heart I have sought You;…” Psalm 119:10
Psalm 119, the longest psalm in the Bible, is so fabulously full of blessings as is all of the Lord’s Word, and here is but one of them. That the psalmist describes his wholehearted seeking of the Lord! His yearning, his longing, his hunger, his thirst, his seeking of the Lord’s presence and righteousness and loveliness! Friend, through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ as Lord, with our hearts and lives truly devoted to Christ, we have 24-7 access to the throne room of God almighty! We can seek and find Him with all our hearts! We can rest and rejoice in His presence any time of day or night no matter our circumstances! When we belong to Him through faith in Him, we are His – forever! We can seek, seek, and seek Him! Anytime! And all the time! And we are so very blessed in so doing! Oh, thank you Lord that you make yourself available to us day and night, night and day, forever, through faith in you, oh Lord, thank you! My God, thank you! Our God, thank you, Lord, Amen!