Category: Daily Devotionals

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You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  Psalm 23:5

There are two stunningly beautiful things about this verse.  

1. There is a table that is being set for me, prepared by God Himself.
2. It’s on display for my enemies.  

God prepares sumptuous meals no matter the season.  When I’m resting, it’s green grass to nibble on and enjoy.  When I’m working, it’s fuel for my labors.  When I’m with kindred spirits, it’s the fodder for rich conversation.  And when I’m with enemies, it’s my life-source for strength.  Nothing else will sustain me. 

The thing is ~ it’s the same Word ~ with the same power ~ from the same Father ~ all the time.  What changes is my need and my application.   The more dire the circumstances, the more life-giving the spiritual meal. 

It is humbling enough that God prepares the feast.  Even if He didn’t customize what’s on the table, I would be in awe that He called my name to come and dine.  But considering that He has anticipated my circumstances ahead of time and discovering that the table spread out before me reveals delicacies fit for royalty, I am arrested in place by this kind of love.  Who does this?  Once in a lifetime would be enough but this banquet table is there any time I want to go partake of it.  

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!  I John 3:1

Do my enemies discern that such a spiritual meal exists?  Oh yes, and it confounds them.  They wonder why I don’t give up, why I still trust God, why I’m not bitter, why I’ve not conceded in the battle, and why I have the strength to keep going until the end.  They may not see the awe-inspiring spread on God’s banquet table up close, but they know it’s there.  They see its effects.  

As God is preparing and serving your feast, he makes your enemies sit on the outer fringe of the scene and watch everything unfold. They see the Lord himself spreading your table with food, escorting you to your seat and waiting on you. Then they watch as you fill up your soul with heaven’s delightful fare. I tell you, no demon power, including the devil himself, could ever comprehend this kind of love, mercy and grace.             From David Wilkerson

Lord, I smell the bread baking and hear the wine being poured.  I’m coming.  Amen

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He leads me in paths of righteousness . . . Psalm 23:4a

The beauty of walking slowly through a passage is being able to look at every little thing as if it were a new gift to unwrap.  As someone well-seasoned in Bible study, I can just assume (especially if I can recite the 23’rd Psalm from memory) that I understand a phrase like ‘paths of righteousness.’  I don’t and I’m still learning.   

I have often asked, and perhaps you also voice these questions ~ “Why does God make it so hard?  Since He promises to lead, and since He tells me that I am a sheep who cannot find my way on my own, why not speak louder so that the path is unmistakable?”

God is all about growing me up into the stature and maturity of His Son.  If I can take God by the hand and not have to think for myself at all, isn’t this the stuff of toddlerhood? Infant faith begins with this kind of baby steps but mature faith encompasses the ability to engage my intellectual faculties to the glory of God. 

“Those who are skittish when it comes to rigorous study, deep thinking, and theological precision have wanted us to believe that our problem is the mind, when in fact it’s the flesh.”  Sam Storms

I must learn to train my mind, to know how to build precept upon precept, in the artful ways of wisdom.  Sound decisions are, more often than not, made by a student of the Word who has set out to learn the mind of God, through Scripture, with abject humility.  

Yes, great knowledge presents a temptation to be proud but it is not knowledge that is the enemy.  It is my pride.  Paths of righteousness are ever before me.  God makes them clear for every level of spiritual development.  Milk for the babes; meat for the mature.  And, in that light, I can know that God will grant me the humility to listen, the grace to obey, but He also encourages every intellectual pursuit to be harnessed to the truth of the Scriptures.

I can be lazy and want to be led like a baby.  Forgive me.  Amen

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The Lord is my shepherd. Psalm 23:1

In the daytime, sheep are put out to pasture.  They graze, nap in the sun, even play.  At nighttime, they go back into the sheepfold to sleep in safety. Day after day, and night after night, their way of life is unchanged.  Their familiar routine offers security, abundance, and relationship.

The rhythm of a Christian’s life, the person who knows Jesus, should also be one of resting, grazing, and working.

• When threatened by wild animals, I run back to my shepherd, and to the safety of the fold.  My heart may be beating wildly but nothing can hurt me outside of His will if I stick close to Him.  Restorative rest is a promise He gives me.
• When following the Shepherd, I enjoy abundant spiritual food.  The Word of God is a pasture, always green.  It must surely resemble the lush green landscapes of New Zealand, the most beautiful countryside I have ever seen.  Take a back country road and what you see around every turn is another pasture of sheep.  Each view is a postcard.  The food Jesus provides for me, meditatively and instructively, is the likings of the finest pastures.
• When I have eaten sufficiently, work awaits.  The work is not abusive.  It is not laden with high expectations without the foundation of proper nourishment and proper equipping.  The shepherd has given me both.  He has fed me, He has tutored me, and He has trained me.  My work is the culmination of His promise.  “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Work in the context of a relationship is the key to a joyous calling.

When this rhythm exists, the rest of the Psalm makes sense.

Your pastures are so green and satisfying, Jesus.  I have rested, I have eaten, and now I will work.  In Jesus name, Amen

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The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.  Romans 8:16

What do our hearts often do when we read God’s words? Yes, on some days, there’s a struggle to connect. Ah, but on other days, there’s a visceral connection. Sometimes when we read His words, when we hear a kingdom story, when we sing certain worship songs, or when we see something He created, we exclaim.  Right? Our hearts leap and strain toward God.  We are moved, wide open, and stirred to adore with a new level of passion. 

Perhaps this is exactly what Elizabeth felt in her womb when her unborn baby, John the Baptist, was in the presence of Jesus for the first time.  Jesus was, at this point, in Mary’s womb and the two women were just greeting one another.  Elizabeth felt John leap within her.  Metaphorically, I believe this perfectly captures what happens when the Holy Spirit bears witness with my spirit.

Yes, there have been a few periods of spiritual dryness in my life when I felt almost nothing.  God seemed distant even though I knew He wasn’t.  When I read scripture, it was dry as dust in my mouth.  But, I’ve come to believe that this should be a temporary place on a Christian’s journey.  For the most part, my heart should be experiencing a habitual kind of ‘leaping.’

I am not a big fan of the ‘What would Jesus do?’ bracelet.  Christianity is more than just doing what is right. Many unbelievers have a sharp moral compass and do the right things most of the time even though they don’t embrace Jesus.

Following Jesus is a journey of the heart. Truth must elicit a heart-response.  I need to live asking, “Jesus, would you help me feel what you feel as well as think what you think?”  When He does that, more of me will be fully in sync with Him.  A leaping spirit will characterize more of my life.

Perfect union. That’s it, Lord. You grafted me in, made me to dwell in the Vine for sweet communion. Don’t let me be content with anything less than a spirit that leaps in Your presence. Amen

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For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.  Roman 8:14

Isn’t everyone who lives on planet earth God’s child?  Many think so and refer to the human race as children of God.  It is a warm, fuzzy concept but untrue.  Everyone who lives on planet earth is God’s creation but not necessarily His child.  The dividing line is what each one does with Jesus.

In John 8, Jesus told a few Jewish people, including its leaders, that the only ones who were really disciples were the ones who followed Him.  Those who didn’t accept Him as the Messiah and follow His teaching were slaves of sin.  The Jews were indignant, insisting that they were related to Abraham and were not slaves to anyone.  Had they forgotten that they had been slaves of many nations during their long history?  And even while they were saying this to Jesus, they were under the domination and authority of the Roman Empire?  Pride does obscure the naked truth!

It is not possible to be led by the Spirit of God if I have not embraced Christ. Why? Because the Spirit of God will lead me to think and act like Jesus. His Words and His actions will challenge my own thoughts and actions most every moment I am alive. His Spirit will call me to do what is against my old nature. Submitting to the steep climb will not be possible without loving the One I follow. It will be too hard to sustain the pace without the fuel of love propelling me upward.

Another paraphrase of today’s scripture is this, from Jesus’ teaching.  All who love Jesus will prove it by listening to and obeying His Spirit. Deferring as a way of life defines sons and daughters of God.

Even now, the thought of following you in the hard things makes me feel alive. There is an ache to walk the path of Your Spirit.  Amen

But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet.  Hebrews 10:12-13

The enemy of God is the god of the anti-kingdom.  He does not war silently.  Peter says that he is like a lion and his roar is ferocious.  In the plains of Africa where lions roam, I’ve read that a lion’s roar can be heard five miles away if there are no competing noises.  I can picture what happens with the sound, can’t you?  Every potential prey stops what they’re doing to listen and discern how close, or how far away, their predator is.  Every living thing is on edge.

While there are certainly periods in my life that are peaceful, they are short lived.  I feel the enemy’s breath on my cheek.  His roar is the bedfellow, and the precursor, of spiritual attacks.  He customizes devastation to hurt as much as possible.  He targets my areas of weakness.  He waits for my vulnerable moments.  Where the ground is shaky beneath my feet, he lies in wait for the perfect moment to gain the upper hand.

I dream of the day when I will see consistent evidence that every enemy is under God’s feet. The picture is that of a Ruler who wins the battle against an opposing king.  Victorious in battle, he puts his foot on the neck of the enemy as a sign of conquest and subjugation.

As a child of God, I am waiting for the time when every spiritual enemy of Christ will be visibly under the authority of King Jesus.  Victory has already been declared now but I do not see that sweeping defeat as a reality.  Not yet.  There is still fighting and while I engage in the battle, where is my King?  Seated at God’s right hand in a position of rulership.  Where are His enemies?   Already beneath Him.  Look how Satan’s kingdom is described as ‘levels of rule and authority, power and dominion’ and Jesus is above them all.

 God seated Jesus at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.  And He put all things in subjection under His feet.  Ephesians 1:20-21

At this present time, and from my earthly perspective, I am unable to see that reality.  But one day I will.  Until then, I must know who my Victor is.  I must believe that He has authority, and has conferred that authority upon me, to rule over our spiritual enemies on His behalf.  Satan will continue to act as though he still has all the power if I let him.  The Word of God is my sword and God will show me when and where to speak it, to impose limits and parameters to the activity of the anti-kingdom.  During this brief period when Satan is still allowed to roam the earth and wield some destructive powers, the church must battle and look forward to the day when every enemy will be vanquished, put under God’s feet, and then eternally subjugated.

Without You, I’m no match for them.  With You, and in You, there’s no contest.  The victory is Yours and the victory is mine.  Amen