Devotion.al

Feed Your Soul

  • Joy Refill

    Psalm 47, Psalm 48, Revelation 19:6-9

    “…God ascends among shouts of joy…”
    Psalm 47:5

    “…[God’s] mountain, rising splendidly, is the joy of the whole earth…”
    Psalm 48:1

    “Let us be glad, rejoice, and give him glory because, the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his has prepared herself.”
    Revelation 19:7

    All around God is rejoicing. There is not only and glorifying, there is joy. While God is just, God wants to be surrounded by rejoicing, or joy-filled, saints. You and I are called to be those joy-filled saints. It is one of those strange things where it is our duty to be joy-filled. Dutifully joy-filled seems contradictory, as if we are being commanded (as in obeying the law or a vengeful dictator) to feel a particular way. It isn’t that. Duty acts as a check and balance. It is our duty to assure that we are joy-filled saints. When doing our duty of checking the joy in the tank (so to ), and we find it empty, we know that we need to refocus on God, thanks to Christ our Savior and surrendering (again) to the Holy .

    The image of bride has been applied to the since the beginning. In that image, there is a tension of collective (everyone) and individual being the bride (not in a gendered way) of Jesus. The bride prepares herself. While she may be crying as she walks down the aisle, the tears should be ones of inescapable joy, of and thankfulness of an eternal bond. A bride that is not joy-filled walking down the aisle should really be rethinking the marriage.

    That is why it is our calling to be joy-filled. Every day we take one more step down the aisle toward Jesus. When it comes to Jesus, it isn’t good to be a runaway bride.

    Lastly, the populace of Heaven (of Heaven!) is rejoicing at this marriage! How amazing is that? Instead of viewing us as dirty or unworthy, we are the celebrated bride, and everyone is happy for the , Jesus!

    1) Heart check. Are you joy-filled toward God?

    2) What things can people do to refill their tanks of joy?

    3) What practices or habits do you use to refill on your joy?

    KD) What does it mean to refill on joy?

  • Successfully Unsuccessful

    Successfully Unsuccessful

    Psalm 144; Song of Solomon 8:5–14; John 11:45–57 ISV ‌⁜Focus⁜ A great deal of water cannot extinguish love,rivers cannot put it out.If a man were to give all the wealth of his house for love,he would surely be viewed with contempt. Song of Solomon 8:7 ISV “…You don’t realize that it is better for you…

  • Reconciling Fruit

    Reconciling Fruit

    Psalm 144; Isaiah 27:1–6; 2 Corinthians 5:17–21 (ISV) In times to come, Jacob will take root,   and Israel will blossom, sprout shoots,   and fill the whole world with fruit. Isaiah 27:6 ISV All of this comes from God, who has reconciled us to himself through the Messiah and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 2 Corinthians…

  • Perspective and Significance

    Perspective and Significance

    Psalm 144; Ezekiel 19:10–14; 1 Peter 2:4–10 (ISV) In the fictional universe housing the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (written by Douglas Adams), there is a machine called the Total Perspective Vortex. Originally built (per the fictional universe) to provide beings a comparison of themselves to the infinity of creation, it became a torture device…

  • Untrashed

    Untrashed

    Malachi 1:6-9 Perhaps you’ve heard an acquaintance, a friend, a family member say, “God won’t accept me until I clean myself up.” Or perhaps, “if I enter the church, lightning will come down and/or the church will catch on fire.” Behave, believe, belong has long been the order in the church. That’s likely where these…