pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 11

Stand

We can be sure of one thing this day will require of each of us—we must make a stand.

In an age of flexibility where almost anything goes, we will have to draw some lines in places that really matter, lines that we will not cross. We will have to determine the essentials of each task, and on a larger scale, of life itself, and hold to them.

The essentials of life are not negotiable. They are fixed in our hearts and they guide our thoughts.

The non-essentials are our flex points; we can

  • bend,
  • improvise,
  • learn from others,
  • even compromise for the good of the whole.

Not so with the essentials.

These are the points of unity with our fellows, our shared beliefs that bring us together and help us move forward together. Essential things mark the boundaries of the path we walk for within them we clearly see the footprints of Jesus.

Like a pilgrim on a long journey of faith, another morning on the trail demands another stand. Our destination does not draw near to us if we oversleep. We must stand to continue the journey,

  • check the map,
  • get our bearings,
  • sense the day’s conditions and
  • take the first step of a new day.

We do not stand alone, today. As the sun makes his pilgrimage across the sky, casting warmth and light upon the path before them, millions of fellow travelers take their stand as well. They draw their lines and check their maps. They stretch muscles stiff from sleep but strong and rested, ready for the trek.

Jesus, too, stands with us. He has our back. His Word is our guide, His blood our victory. He is our companion in the way.

The world doesn’t want us to make a stand. It wants to bend us this way and that, to distract us and break our concentration so, if we move at all, we will head the wrong way, a way so convoluted and confusing that we must sit down to catch our breath, another day wasted.

But the Spirit calls to us, “Arise! Take your stand! Your rest is complete. Take the first step of a new journey.”

In morning prayer, we renew the essentials as we rehearse the revelation of who God is and what He wants us to do. When the benediction sounds and the amen is spoken, we make our stand.

We stride into the day, confident of our Companion, with a lamp for our feet and a light for the path and victory ahead in the cause of Christ.

Scriptures:
2 Thessalonians 2:13-15
He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.
Ephesians 6:10
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
1 Corinthians 16:13-14; 15:58
Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love

Prayer:
In Your strength I make my stand today. In Your wisdom, my mind is poised, ready and equipped to answer, to discover, to reason, and to refrain from evil as I embrace the good. In your love I will touch those who cross my path. Through Your overcoming grace, I will be a force for good in this World. If I should fail in this stand, Your Spirit will inform me and I will renew my stand. Nothing matters as much as this, that I should stand for You today. Amen.

Song
Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus
Words: George Duffield Jr.; Music: Adam Geibel

1. Stand up, stand up for Jesus, Ye soldiers of the cross;
Lift high His royal banner, It must not suffer loss.
From victory unto victory His army shall He lead,
Till every foe is vanquished and Christ is Lord indeed.

2. Stand up, stand up for Jesus, The trumpet call obey.
Forth to the mighty conflict In this His glorious day;
Ye that are true, now serve Him Against unnumbered foes;
Let courage rise with danger, And strength to strength oppose.

3. Stand up, stand up for Jesus, Stand in His strength alone;
The arm of flesh will fail you, Ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armor; Each piece put on with prayer;
Where duty calls or danger, Be never wanting there.

4. Stand up, stand up for Jesus, The strife will not be long.
This day the noise of battle; The next the victor’s song.
To him that overcometh, A crown of life shall be;
He with the King of Glory Shall reign eternally

Semper Reformanda!
Stephen Phifer

© 2017 Stephen R. Phifer All Rights Reserved

pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 10

Awe

Every day we must stand in awe of the Lord Jesus! He nailed the indictment against us to His cross and carried our sins far away, never to be remembered against us again. Because His record of righteousness had been credited to our account, we stand in awe of Him as if had never sinned.

We are aware of Him because His Holy Spirit has drawn us to Him and revealed Him to us. Without the moving of the Spirit, we would be stumbling around in thick darkness, listening in vain for the song of life, searching without hope through the books and treatises of mankind for a truth we can count on. But His Spirit came to us and convicted us of our sin and stupidity, pointed our proud hearts toward Jesus and led us in a sinner’s prayer.

We stand in awe!

Jesus has promised to meet us at the place of worship in spirit and truth every day. He will take our heartfelt words of thanksgiving to be His dwelling place. He will rule in us from His throne in our hearts. He will take us all, divided by race and rancor, tongue and tribe, culture and custom, pride and position, power and poverty, and make us a new nation, one royal priesthood, one chosen generation, and one holy race. This He will do by personally pulling down the walls of hostility that divide us.

We stand in awe!

To worship is to make the journey to Mt. Zion where an enumerable company of angels in joyful assembly continually sing His holiness and we  join their song. We take our place with the saints of the ages in that gallery of heroes of the faith and join their song as well. In our spirits we sense the moment when the elders before the Throne rise to cast their crowns at Jesus’s feet and we do the same, judging all our accomplishments, trophies, and awards as worthy only to be thrown at His feet.

We are in awe!

Scripture:
Revelation 4:6-11
In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures…. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, today I pledge all my energy—heart, soul, mind, and strength—to the Sacrifice of Praise! I hold nothing back. There is no other more important event or enterprise—only the joy of ministering to You, giving You the glory due unto Your name. I give myself no rest until awe is turned to praise, respect is turned to adoration and our love for You is both seen and heard. I stand in awe of You today. All others fade to periphery as You shine with growing intensity until You are all I see. In Your glorious name. Amen.

Song:
Stand in Awe
Words and Music: Mark Altrogge

You are beautiful beyond description,
Too marvelous for words,
Too wonderful for comprehension,
Like nothing ever seen or heard.
Who can grasp your infinite wisdom?
Who can fathom the depth of your love?
You are beautiful beyond description,
Majesty enthroned above.

And I stand, I stand in awe of you.
I stand, I stand in awe of you.
Holy God, to whom all praise is due,
I stand in awe of you.

Semper Reformanda!
Stephen Phifer

© 2017 Stephen R. Phifer All Rights Reserved

pathoflifedevotions Uncategorized

January 9

Mercy

Since days of the early church a particular plea has sounded in the halls of worship from humble house churches to cavernous cathedrals—“Lord, have mercy! Christ, have mercy!”

Kyrie, eléison! Christe, eléison!

In ancient Latin or contemporary English, this prayer is both thanksgiving and petition; we are thankful for His mercy and we need more of it today. It also contains a command. If we are to receive God’s mercy, then we must respond by extending mercy to others.

The cry for mercy comes from the deepest place in wounded hearts. As the final plea before any bar of judgment, the guilty one casts himself on the mercy of the court.

In the faces passing by us each day,

  • eyes look for mercy,
  • ears strain to hear mercy’s refrain,
  • wounded souls stretch to each stranger seeking a healing touch, and
  • guilty offenders cast one eye behind them to detect the pursuit of the law and one eye ahead in hopes of a glimpse of grace in someone’s face.

Walking in the mercy of Christ, as we will today, we can be God’s voice of promise, or His healing touch, or the face of His grace.

It is true that we will be taken advantage of as guilty ones repeat their offences in the face of the mercy we extend. In this we share in the injustices that Jesus endured at the cross. It is true that unthankful souls will take what we offer as if they were entitled to it, never realizing its cost to us or its source in the Lord Jesus. In their presumption we also share the abuse heaped upon Jesus by the arrogance and selfishness of people.

We must remember that we have received mercy, both as a remedy for our sins and as a gift from God to be quickly and thoroughly given away to others.

As we give from our supply of abundant mercy, our storehouse is not depleted. No! Check the inventory. You will find that the more you give, the more you have.

Kyrie, eléison! Christe, eléison!—“Lord, have mercy! Christ, have mercy!”

Scriptures:
Psalm 107:1 NKJV
Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.
Psalm 25:4-7
Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Remember, O LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O LORD.
Hosea 6:6
For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
Matthew 5:7
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank you for your mercy. Because I believe in you and because I asked You to, You have cast the whole record of my sinful life into a sea of forgetfulness. My sins dwell as far from me as the east is from the west. This gift of salvation amazes me every day. I ask you again today for the gift of mercy. When I think of those who have wronged me, let my first thought be mercy. May the knowledge of Your mercy take any sword from my hand except the sword of truth, the only sword sharp enough to cut away the bondage of sin. In Your lovely name, Amen.

Song:
There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy
Words: Frederick Faber; Music: Lizzie Tourjee

1. There’s a wideness in God’s mercy Like the wideness of the sea;
There’s a kindness in His justice Which is more than Liberty.

2. There is welcome for the sinner And more graces for the good;
There is mercy with the Savior; There is healing in His blood.

3.For the Love of God is broader Than the measure of man’s mind;
And the heart of the Eternal Is most wonderfully kind.

4. If our love were but more simple We would take Him at His word,
And our lives would then be sunshine In the sweetness of our Lord.

Semper Reformanda!
Stephen Phifer

© 2017 Stephen R. Phifer All Rights Reserved

pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 8

Trusting

Trusting is not like throwing a football. It is not a physical act that can be witnessed live or on video. Trust is an action of the heart in league with the mind. It is a choice people and nations make.

When we Americans decided to put “In God We Trust” on our money, this was a bold statement. We said that even if we build a navy to guard the high seas, or an army to guard our interests, or an air force to patrol the skies of the world, our ultimate trust is not in those military machinations.

We said that we will do commerce from sea to shining sea but our trust is not in the free market, but in the faithfulness of a covenant keeping God.

We also said that we would freely investigate all truth, all natural phenomena, to discern the secrets of creation and carefully pass them on to our young, but our trust will be in the Word of God, the beginning of wisdom.

We made the choice.

Today we make it again.

We trust in God because of so many things and in spite of some things.

Sometimes the evidence of God’s trustworthiness shines against the darkness of other choices.

There are also times when His hand seems delayed, when His answer cannot be clearly heard and understood, when His immediate care and provision cannot be detected, when His presence seems to have fled. Like His manifestation at Mt. Sinai, He seems hidden by smoke and thunder and the ground beneath our feet seems to tremble.

But still, we choose to trust, to continue on with the disciplines of daily life in Jesus: prayer, Word, worship, obedience, repentance, and stillness of spirit. Desperate for the atmosphere of Heaven, we breathe deeply in worship here on earth. As we do, the winds of the Spirit stir from their heavenly storehouses and race to us at the speed of His light. Like His manifestation at Mt. Zion, our spirits behold His face clearly and in great detail and we are changed in the process. Our hearts are refreshed.

This is vital to the day ahead, for it is in the heart that we trust in God.

Scriptures:
Psalm 20:7
Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
Psalm 37:3-7
Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, You alone know what this day holds for me and for those I love. I choose to trust You with today and all it will bring. Your Word is sure, fixed in the heavens and powerful here on earth. I walk in Your truth, confident in your Covenant, content in Your will, trusting in Your Character. Teach me to delight in Your ways. Empower me to do good as You direct me so that I might be a blessing as I dwell in the land and enjoy safety. In Your Name, Amen.

Song:
‘Tis so Sweet to Trust in Jesus
Words: Louisa Stead; Music: William Kirkpatrick

1. ‘Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to take Him at His word,
Just to rest upon His promise, Just to know “Thus saith, the Lord.

Refrain:
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er.
Jesus, Jesus, Precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more.

2. O how sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to trust His cleansing blood,
Just in simple faith to plunge me ‘Neath the healing, cleansing flood.
(Refrain)

3. Yes, ‘tis sweet to trust in Jesus, Just from sin and self to cease,
Just from Jesus simply taking Life and health and joy and peace.
(Refrain)

4. I’m so glad I learned to trust Him, Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend,
And I know that Thou art with me, Will be with me to the end.
(Refrain)

Semper Reformanda!
Stephen Phifer

© 2017 Stephen R. Phifer All Rights Reserved

pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 7

Courage

Knowing God’s will is one thing. Doing His will is something else again. Courage is required.

Accomplishing something in this life is a matter of timing, skill, opportunity, sensitivity and often, sacrifice. What it does not require is luck.

Luck
Luck is all about randomness, chance, and unpredictable circumstances. Luck has absolutely no role to play for someone who seeks to know and to do God’s will. We confess that our lives are in God’s hands, our very steps are ordered by the Lord each day. This amazing grace comes to us contained in our free will. We have the choice to follow the Lord’s leadership or to go off on our own. When we choose to follow Him, He begins to order our steps and those of others who may or may not be following Him.

The people we need to meet will be right where we need them, right on cue. The things we really need will be in our hands when we need them. The words we need to speak will be in our mouths just when they need to be spoken, and on and on this grace goes. Continue reading “January 7” →

pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 6

Covered

Belgium, 1944:
“Cover me!” the sergeant yells to his pinned down squad as he breaks his cover to charge the machine gun nest. As he runs a zigzag pattern, the corporals and privates in his command lay down a withering fire from M1 Garand carbines and the Browning automatic rifle. The enemy machine gunners cease firing to find cover as the soldier with the stripes tosses a grenade into their emplacement, ending the war for them.

Today, on the job:
“Cover for me,” the guilty party pleads to his friend. Friendship overrules common sense and the boss never finds out.

When we are under attack, and even when we are guilty, there is One who covers us.

In Today’s Battle
Against unnumbered foes, the Lord Jesus covers us from a position of power with weapons of a spiritual warfare that are mighty indeed. We can charge boldly into the day with all its dangers knowing the enemy must cower before the Name of Jesus and retreat in the face of determined obedience to His Word. Continue reading “January 6” →

pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 5

Justice

Justice: when we are in the wrong, we fear it; when we have been wronged, we seek it. Justice confronts the sinner and comforts the one who has been sinned against.

When we see the blue and red flashing lights of the State Trooper’s car in the rear view mirror, we react in one of two ways:

  • If we are speeding, or if our tags are expired, the pit of the stomach rotates 360º.
  • If we are stranded on the side of the road with a flat tire, we are relieved that our help has arrived.

Justice is the foundation of the Throne of God. Continue reading “January 5” →

pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 4



Sabbath

The center-column strength of the Old Testament Tabernacle and Temple was the Sabbath.

On the Sabbath, all activities were forbidden except those associated with the worship of Jehovah and rest for the souls and bodies of people. The Sabbath principle held the Old Covenant together. The Law extended the Sabbath beyond the seventh day of worship and rest into annual festivals celebrating the agricultural seasons of the year—the production of food and wealth was halted for times of worship and rest. Every seven years the land was granted the blessings of rest and twice each century all the people were to be granted Sabbath rest and a new start in the Year of Jubilee.

When the Sabbath in all its phases was honored, God’s blessing rained on the Holy Nation; His covenantal power secured their borders and His holy presence dwelt at the center of their hearts, their homes, the politics, and their peace. Continue reading “January 4” →

pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 3

Rhythm

God lives in a constant moment called eternity.
We live in a constant flow of moments called time. One of His greatest gifts to us is rhythm. Just as a piece of music is formed by small units of time called measures which are equal groups of pulses called beats, life consists of small units of time called hours, days, weeks and years.

A music teacher once said, “In the beginning was rhythm.” He was right. The rhythm of the creation story is obvious—day and night, day and night. The universe God made is filled with rhythm:

  • the daily rotation of the earth,
  • the orbit of the moon around the earth, and
  • the movement of the earth and her sister planets around the sun.
  • Perhaps the ever expanding universe is moving to a beat too large for the devices of man to detect.

Continue reading “January 3” →

pathoflifedevotions Devotions, January

January 2



Next

The Second Day, the Second Step
The first day is easy. The clock strikes the hour. The calendar turns the page. The New Year begins—a fresh start—a grace gift from God’s amazing mind.

You step out with new promises and renewed dreams of victory over old and stubborn foes. The first day is one of enthusiasm and optimism as old failures fade in the light of another chance.

Then, the clock continues to tick and the pages of the calendar turn again and it is the second day. The impulse that was so strong yesterday is not so powerful today. The second step on this journey is not as brisk and forceful as the first.

But you still make it, that second step on the second day. Continue reading “January 2” →