“Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, ‘Let us go over to the other side of the lake.’ So they launched out. But as they were sailing along, He fell asleep; and a fierce gale of wind descended on the lake, and they began to be swamped and to be in danger. They came to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, ‘Master, Master, we are perishing!’ And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves, and they stopped, and it became calm. And He said to them, ‘Where is your faith?’ They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, ‘Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?’” Luke 8:25 NASB

Does it seem as though it’s your darkest hour?
Remember that our Mighty God is clothed with power.

He knit you together in your mother’s womb…

He can take a desert and cause it to bloom…

And by His great power, Christ was raised from the tomb!

You may have to pray in the Spirit at length;
but as you wait upon the Lord, He will renew your strength.

“Where is your faith?” Jesus asked, discouraging doubt.
He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever—

He’s still out and about!

P. A. Oltrogge

“For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His Name will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Isaiah 9:6 NKJV

‘By awesome deeds in righteousness You will answer us, O God of our salvation, You who are the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of the far-off seas; Who established the mountains by His strength, being clothed with power; You who still the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the people.” Psalm 65:5-7 NKJV

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.” Psalm 139:13 NIV

“Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” Romans 8:26-27 NKJV

“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31 KJV

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8 NASB

Be strengthened by teachings on the Holy Spirit:
http://www.moorelife.org
http://www.awmi.net

Search You Tube, Chip Brim, Branson Tornado
for a storm story of today….
Romans 5:17, Ephesians 1:18-23,
Ephesians 2:4-10, Ephesians 6:16

Psalm 65 NKJV

Praise to God for His Salvation and Providence
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. A Song.

Praise is awaiting You, O God, in Zion;
And to You the vow shall be performed.

O You who hear prayer,
To You all flesh will come.

Iniquities prevail against me;
As for our transgressions,
You will provide atonement for them.

Blessed is the man You choose,
And cause to approach You,
That he may dwell in Your courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house,
Of Your holy temple.

By awesome deeds in righteousness You will answer us,
O God of our salvation,
You who are the confidence of all the ends of the earth,
And of the far-off seas;

Who established the mountains by His strength,
Being clothed with power;

You who still the noise of the seas,
The noise of their waves,
And the tumult of the peoples.

They also who dwell in the farthest parts are afraid of Your signs;
You make the outgoings of the morning and evening rejoice.

You visit the earth and water it,
You greatly enrich it;
The river of God is full of water;
You provide their grain,
For so You have prepared it.

You water its ridges abundantly,
You settle its furrows;
You make it soft with showers,
You bless its growth.

You crown the year with Your goodness,
And Your paths drip with abundance.

They drop on the pastures of the wilderness,
And the little hills rejoice on every side.

The pastures are clothed with flocks;
The valleys also are covered with grain;
They shout for joy, they also sing.

by LuAnn Mudrak
Guest Contributor

I’m reading this devotion today about being stronger on my knees. It’s an interesting devotion by Phebe Gamata Crismo from the Philippines.

Having put all five of us children and all our belongings into the cart, my father helped my mother get onto the carabao (water buffalo) and led us back to his church assignment about five kilometers across the river. It was raining hard, and the trail was muddy, knee-deep in some places. Father prodded the carabao to go faster because we had to cross the river before it became impassable. Going up the riverbank on the steep and slippery trail was difficult. Suddenly, my younger brother cried out, “Father, look! The carabao is kneeling. It can’t pull us up anymore!” Father looked back at us in the cart. “Don’t worry, son. The carabao is strongest when it kneels.”

I watched the carabao as it struggled on the slippery trail one step at a time. It would stop, kneel, strain, get up slowly and pull, until we were over the top. The carabao’s strength came from kneeling, just as Father had said. Each time it knelt, it pulled us up farther and faster.

That was many years ago. I often think of the carabao as I pass through difficult times in my personal life. I, too, have discovered extraordinary strength when I get down on my knees.

**********

Now I’ve only seen pictures of a water buffalo. They are very large animals and, obviously, very strong. I can’t imagine, first of all, wading across a river with five children and belongings. I can’t imagine doing it in the pouring rain. I can’t imagine trusting a large animal to get all of us up the other side. Wouldn’t you worry that the animal would lose its footing and we’d all roll into the water? That would be my first thought.

The Father was an amazing example of trust in God and that animal. He knew the animal would kneel down and keep going, muddy, rainy or not. Can we do that in our lives? Can we trust the God we kneel down to pray to? Can we trust the God who will get us through even the rainy times in life?

The verse attached to this devotion is Daniel 6:10 “Daniel knelt down, prayed, and praised his God three times (each) day.” Some days, God is lucky to hear from me one time a day. There isn’t a legitimate reason to forget about Him. I just do. It’s easy to go to Him with problems but not as easy to praise Him.
I have much to be thankful for. All of us do.

So, today, think about that carabao and the strength it had as long as it went to its knees. Realize that nothing is impossible with God—NOTHING. Praise Him for all you have and all He will provide.

Lord, help me to have a thankful heart, even if things seem to have gone wrong,
For it’s only by trusting in Your love, that the faith in my heart will remain strong.

Help me to see what’s been good, and how You have touched my days;
Then, in thinking upon such things, my words will be given to praise.

Help me to thank You, in faith, for any specific blessing I might desire.
Let thankfulness be my “prayer” always, for it’s that which will lift me higher.

And I should thank You in front of problems–there’s benefit and healing in laughter—believing in Your solutions before they’re seen, not waiting to have joy ’til after.

Keep me from forgetting to count blessings, or of thinking only of my own concerns; for it’s in considering the various needs of others, that any discontent turns.

Remind me to look to Your finished work and Your victory for us through the cross. As the Israelites looked at the serpent on a pole, only then were they kept from loss.

Thank You for giving me the example, of earnestly seeking Your Father’s will,
so that I may do the same with my own life, seeking His plan to follow and fulfill.

Yes, even if I’ve gone through something hard or have come to a difficult place, help me to thank You for being there with Your presence, Your love, and Your grace.

P. A. Oltrogge

“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.” Psalm 100:4 NKJV

“Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.” Hebrews 13:15 NASB

“I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the Lord.” Psalm 116:17 RSV

“A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.” Proverbs 15:13 NKJV

“All the days of the afflicted are evil, but he who is of a merry heart has a continual feast.” Proverbs 15:15 NKJV

“A merry heart does good, like a medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.” Proverbs 17:22 NKJV

“The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17 NKJV

“And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent (of bronze) and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.’” Numbers 21:8 AMP

…I am posting this poem in dedication to and memory of Nabeel Qureshi, who wrote, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men cast insults at you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on account of Me. Rejoice, and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (words of Jesus in Matthew 5:1-12)

In case you’re among those who have happened to come here,
who were raised in a totally different spiritual atmosphere–

If you’re grieving about causing your beloved family some pain
by embracing Christ’s Gospel, which, to you, has become plain,

remember His words, that “blessed are those who mourn.”
Trust there will be blessings in your being spiritually reborn.

Jesus said He didn’t come to bring peace once you’ve taken that stand–
There will be a sword of division when family members don’t understand.

Your heart of love is good, but you cannot love them more than loving Him;
To do so, would cause the light on your spiritual pathway to dim.

You must take up your cross, following Him as your Savior and Lord;
for it’s only in doing this, that you’ll have His guidance and reward.

Those who seek to find their life will lose it, and are misled.
However, if you lose your life for Jesus’ sake, you will find it instead.

Showing love by His Spirit within, and praying for your father or mother,
sisters, brothers–any you love, can open their eyes to see no other…

than Jesus Christ, our Lord.

P. A. Oltrogge

“Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven. Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household. He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.”

“He who has found his life shall lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake shall find it. He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. And whoever in the name of a disciple gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink, truly I say to you he shall not lose his reward.” Matthew 10:32-42

Nabeel Qureshi’s book, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, and other books authored by Nabeel, can be obtained through http://www.Christianbook.com and other book sources. Though he lived only into his thirties, his encounter with and faith in Jesus, his speaking and writing, made a big impact in this world.

Let’s continue to pray for the entire families of those, from other spiritual backgrounds, who have made the important decision to receive and follow Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord.

“…and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”
2 Corinthians 3:17 KJV

So grateful, as we see the fireworks displayed,
that this is a land founded by people who prayed…

So many who recognized that this world’s true King—
is Jesus, the Christ—Lord above everything.

Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty;
and it’s through God’s beloved Son that men are truly free.

P. A. Oltrogge

“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, if ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:31-32 KJV

“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John 8:36 KJV

“…no man can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost.”
1 Corinthians 12:3 KJV

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, and to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” spoken by Jesus in Luke 4:18-19 KJV

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 KJV

Photo/Porch of the Lord

“For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” Isaiah 55: 10-11 KJV

Photo/Unsplash