Today’s devotional is a bit different, simply because on the day I’m writing it, I’m feeling overwhelmed – in a good way. Let me give the backstory to set up the devotional.
Over the last few weeks, things have been crazy! Please understand that this is not a complaint. It’s just the way the weeks have been. On top of preparing three sermons per week and writing devotionals, the weeks have been filled with daily hospital visits (sometimes multiple trips per day), trips to the ER for people, visitation to those shut in or recuperating, numerous phone calls and emails, meetings, a funeral, working on VBS lessons and music, and so much more ministry related things. On top of that, there has been a structure fire, a house fire in the middle of the night, and a couple of other runs with the fire department. And I can’t forget my daily bus route.
On top of all that, mowing season has begun and the yards are growing fast enough that they require mowing twice a week. None of this includes the normal chores in life that are all a part of having a home, vehicles, and anything else that requires upkeep. Let’s not forget the most important task of all – loving your spouse and spending quality time with them. They should never be neglected, amen?!?
Again, please don’t read any complaining, whining, grumbling, grousing, or anything else into this. There is not one ounce of griping in this. I share it only to provide context for the rest of the story. This devotional is an opportunity for me to brag on God. He deserves 100% of the praise, thanks, and glory for what I’m about to write.
It is through driving the school bus that I’ve had a big entry into the community. Kids have come to Bible school and been saved. I’ve done the funerals for a few bus drivers or their immediate families which has given me a platform to present the Gospel, and I’ve seen several saved through the years.
The funeral I just had this week was for the great grandma of a kid I had on my bus years ago. He is now 21 years old. When the funeral home called, they told me who had passed and gave me the contact information for the person making the arrangements. This person said I knew them and gave their name to the funeral director. Do you think I knew the name? Absolutely not. As soon as I called them, though, I realized I did know them, however, I had always called this person “Joey’s grandma.”* I picked Joey up at grandma’s house every day, had waved, and would see her occasionally in a store. She still went by the name Joey’s grandma in my mind until the funeral home put a name with her. It was her mom who had passed away, and I had the privilege to preach the funeral. During the funeral invitation, three indicated they had trusted the Lord as Savior. Praise the Lord!
Similar situations have happened with the fire department family as well as the families ministered to during some of the worst moments of their lives. Praise the Lord!
As I’ve been studying for sermons, the Lord has given me messages that have come so quickly, messages that have excited me as I’ve been studying. Now, if the message didn’t come out good, that’s on me. The message itself, though, came from the Lord. How do I know?
Most people have no idea what it takes to put a sermon together. I do not plagiarize. I do not get my sermons off the Internet. Chat GPT doesn’t write my sermons. I don’t find them in a book, magazine, or any other source. I study. I write. Most importantly, I pray and ask the Lord to give me something. When the sermon is flowing on to the page faster than I can type it, I know the source of that sermon. God has been so good and gracious to give me some amazing times of study, revealing things to me that I’d never seen before, and stirring my heart on Bible truths. Praise the Lord!
We’ve seen the Lord answer some neat prayer requests. Just a few weeks ago, we prayed about a situation on Wednesday night that was a couple of weeks old and had seen no resolution. The prayer request was presented at the end of the service and I led in prayer. When I got home, I had a text from someone, absolutely amazed at the power of prayer and how within 20 minutes of us praying, an answer had begun to develop. It is fun to watch God answer prayer and it makes you want to pray even more. Praise the Lord!
Lately, I’ve had some of the best sleep at night! You say, “Sure you have, you’ve been exhausted.” Not really. Tired? Yes. But not exhausted. Who isn’t tired at the end of the day? That’s the whole point of crawling into bed, right? Lately, though, the sleep has been solid. That’s not always been the case. Praise the Lord!
Am I bragging about myself, tooting my own horn? Am I dislocating my shoulder by patting myself on the back? Absolutely not! I don’t want anyone to ascribe any credit to me for anything. Instead, I am praising the Lord and for some reason, I’m feeling especially overwhelmed with a sense of gratefulness for Him. I tried to write something else for this devotional, but I couldn’t steer away from feeling so full gratitude that I had to share it.
It is a joy to know that you’re saved and to feel God’s peace and presence with you. It is a joy to hear His quiet voice, leading you through the day, calming you when you get “fired up” over something. It is a joy to sense His conviction when you’ve messed up, knowing that the Lord cares enough to correct. It is a joy to feel His burden and to participate in it, experiencing the truth of Matthew 11:28-30. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
To God be the glory, great things he hath done!
So loved he the world that he gave us his Son,
Who yielded his life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that we may go in.
O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood!
To ev’ry believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus forgiveness receives.
Great things he hath taught us, great things he hath done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear his voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father through Jesus the Son,
And give him the glory, great things he hath done!
Psalms 105:1-3 O give thanks unto the LORD; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. (2) Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of all his wondrous works. (3) Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD.
*Not the real name
Images are taken from https://pixabay.com/, https://www.pexels.com/, or https://unsplash.com/images or created in Windows Copilot. According to the websites, they are Royalty Free and free to be used for our purposes.
