Posts Categorized: Devotional

How To Deflect Cruel Words

Posted January 13, 2014 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

Psalm 69:18-20 (The Living Bible)

A psalm of David.

Come, Lord, and rescue me. Ransom me from all my enemies. You know how they talk about me, and how they so shamefully dishonor me. You see them all and know what each has said.

Their contempt has broken my heart; my spirit is heavy within me.

Consider

The old adage “sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me” is a lie.

David wrote that his heart was broken by the cruel things being said about him. We all know what it feels like to be falsely accused or criticized, to be mocked for a mistake.

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Deep Rooted

Posted January 6, 2014 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

Jeremiah 17:7-8 (New Living Translation)

But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.

They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water.

Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought.

Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.

Consider

We are deeper than our relationships. We get into trouble when we expect our friends and loved ones to satisfy all our needs and give us our sense of worth.

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Resolutions That Stick

Posted December 30, 2013 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

Ephesians 4:22-24 (New Living Translation)

Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.

Consider

“Headaches are like resolutions. You forget them as soon as they stop hurting.”

This quote from the movie Psycho (1960) gives us a clue as to why our New Year’s resolutions tend to give out before the winter snow melts.

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Naughty But Nice

Posted December 23, 2013 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

Revelation 3:5 (New Living Translation)

All who are victorious will be clothed in white. I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce them before my Father and his angels that they are mine.

Consider

Like Santa, we each have our personal Naughty or Nice list. We evaluate people according to how they’ve treated us and let our feelings determine how we think about them. We count ourselves justified in treating people differently depending on where their names appear on our list.

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Forever Love

Posted December 16, 2013 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

Psalm 118:1 (Amplified Bible)

O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever!

Consider

How fortunate we are to be children of a God whose loving faithfulness never expires, no matter what we do. Although we cannot earn his love, by the same token we cannot disqualify ourselves from his loving favor! We may ignore him, turn our backs on him and go our own way, yet our Father stays right beside us, showering us with mercy and loving-kindness in blessings we are often slow to acknowledge or even to recognize.

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