We have only received a small portion of God's blessings and yet we are more powerful than any of us realize.
Today's Devotional Scripture
"Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is
the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Those who are far from you will perish;
you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
But as for me, it is good to be near God.
I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge;
I will tell of all your deeds."
(Psalm 73:25-28, New International Version)
Motivation
What motivates you to pursue an eternal relationship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit?
Are you, like me, sometimes motivated a little too much by the thought of being reunited with loved ones who died years ago?
Though the reunion party will be fantastic, we need to remember God's objective - to bring as many of His children into Heaven through the power of His Son's death, burial and resurrection. Time on earth cannot be reclaimed, so the desperate need to share the salvation message of Jesus Christ is only growing stronger with each passing day.
Grace
I love Christian music of all types. I have attached Matt Maher's "Your Grace is Enough" to today's devotional article, because grace is part of the portion we have received from God and God's grace is enough for us.
The classic definition of "grace" I learned in church is "unmerited favor that God gave to us by sending His only Son to die on the cross and give us eternal life."
I have not and cannot believe that a person can "earn" his or her way into Heaven. If they could, they would lack one of the greatest gifts you can ever receive - an eternal relationship with God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit.
An Eternal Relationship
What does this relationship provide?
King David, the author of Psalm 73, says "God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." It is an incredible statement because David considered it good enough to "be near God." He longed to see the day of the Messiah, but he wouldn't witness it while he was on earth.
Reignite the Passion for Jesus through EACH
So we have an advantage King David didn't possess, because we have the Holy Spirit in us to guide us daily through the mind-traps and trials of life. This knowledge triggers a tremendous obligation in my heart and mind that many of us plan to satisfy through the Everyone A Chance to Hear (EACH) initiative.
Equipped with a small and powerful portion of God's blessed gifts, are we ready to use the EACH initiative and the efforts of over 500 churches for the third consecutive year to share the most important message with people in southeastern Michigan?
Can we, like David, make the following declarations?
- "Earth has nothing I desire besides You." (Psalm 73:25)
- "I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge." (Psalm 73:28)
- "I will tell (others) of all your deeds." (Psalm 73:28)
But we can do more than tell them. Check out the EACH website for the variety of service opportunities that are available to you. If your church has been or is an active participant in EACH, talk to your leaders about attending the unification event scheduled for March 13th from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Landmark Community Church, 24520 N. Chrysler Drive, Hazel Park.
At this important unification event, you will hear and pray for plans to move forward with regional strategies for October that will help people in Detroit and its surrounding suburbs. Click here to register for this very important unification event.
My hope and prayer is that all of us can confidently claim "God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever!"
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank you that you are always with me and I can depend on you. Thank you for being my all in all, my constant companion and my portion. Help me to desire you above all else. I praise you that though my heart may fail, you are there to sustain me. Help me to tell others about your faithfulness and your unfailing love, mercy and grace. In Jesus' name. Amen.
The tag on Twitter for this article is #EACHandus and it is logged by @denimartin. You can also comment on this article or send me an email at deni-martin@att.net.
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