[Leave It At The Cross a devotional by Max Lucado]
“Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” 1 Peter 3:18 NIV
[The path of righteousness is a narrow, winding trail up a steep hill. At the top of the hill is a cross. At the base of the cross are bags. Countless bags full of innumerable sins. Calvary is the compost of guilt. Would you like to leave yours there as well?]
God is Awesome!
As I was reading my devotionals today I first read that one, by Max Lucado, that the Lord brought me to, then the one from Charles Spurgeon below. How awesome it is how the first devotional leads into the second one. See, if not for the Cross we definitely would not, or could not expect to have a crown or mansion waiting for us after this life on earth is over.
One of my fondest memories is when I heard a Christian friend, who was then the music director of our church, sing the song, "Via Dolorosa", which is about the narrow path that Christ walked, carrying the Cross, our cross of sins, to Calvary. I loved that song so much, that I found the music for it and sing it in the Seeds of Salvation program from the Seeds for Christ series with the God's Love Outreach Ministry. No way close to how my sister in Christ sang it, but I pray with the same feeling and compassion for what our Savior endured because of His love for us.
Now as I read the devotional by Charles Spurgeon below I have no doubt of my crown, which I gladly take to give to Jesus and the mansion that will be ready for me when I hear the Fathers voice say, "Come my child, come home!"
[A devotional by Charles Spurgeon]
2Timothy 4:8 Now there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that Day; and not to me only, but also to all those who love His appearing.
[Doubting one! thou hast often said, “I fear I shall never enter heaven.” Fear not! all the people of God shall enter there. I love the quaint saying of a dying man, who exclaimed, “I have no fear of going home; I have sent all before me; God’s finger is on the latch of my door, and I am ready for him to enter.” “But,” said one, “are you not afraid lest you should miss your inheritance?” “Nay,” said he, “nay; there is one crown in heaven which the angel Gabriel could not wear, it will fit no head but mine. There is one throne in heaven which Paul the apostle could not fill; it was made for me, and I shall have it.” O Christian, what a joyous thought! thy portion is secure; “there remaineth a rest.” “But cannot I forfeit it?” No, it is entailed. If I be a child of God I shall not lose it. It is mine as securely as if I were there. Come with me, believer, and let us sit upon the top of Nebo, and view the goodly land, even Canaan. Seest thou that little river of death glistening in the sunlight, and across it dost thou see the pinnacles of the eternal city? Dost thou mark the pleasant country, and all its joyous inhabitants? Know, then, that if thou couldst fly across thou wouldst see written upon one of its many mansions, “This remaineth for such a one; preserved for him only. He shall be caught up to dwell for ever with God.” Poor doubting one, see the fair inheritance; it is thine. If thou believest in the Lord Jesus, if thou hast repented of sin, if thou hast been renewed in heart, thou art one of the Lord’s people, and there is a place reserved for thee, a crown laid up for thee, a harp specially provided for thee. No one else shall have thy portion, it is reserved in heaven for thee, and thou shalt have it ere long, for there shall be no vacant thrones in glory when all the chosen are gathered in.]
Back to Calvary
An angel of the Lord
came and said to me,
“I want to take you back
to a place called Calvary.”
So back through time we went
the Lords angel and me,
back before all time that passed
back to that special place, named Calvary!
Though I knew of this place
from the Bible I did read,
I was so excited to be there
where our Lord died for you and me.
As I stood very still
with the Lords angel at my side,
I really didn’t notice anyone but Jesus
as He looked into my eyes.
In my heart I felt His suffering,
in my eyes I saw His pain,
and through it all He smiled at me
and then He said my name.
I fell to my knees and said,
“Lord so many just don’t see
the love you have for all of us
and the importance this place is, called Calvary.
E. P. Shagott
3/9/2009
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
By, Through, and Unto
As I was continuing reading my new bible, that I got as a Christmas gift, I was reading in the Book of Genesis about Noah and the ark. Many of us know the story but what I like about this bible, the Adrian Rogers Legacy Bible, is the article that he writes and then associates to a certain verse. Of course he wrote about Noah and the ark. But what I found interesting was how he tied it to grace, God's grace.
He begins by drawing a comparison of the time of Noah to today. The same sins that brought God's wrath back then he writes "have reached Heaven again." How true. Adrian Rogers wrote, "We stand on the threshold of imminent judgement and no one cares. We just yawn in the face of God." My friends I don't know about you, but I can see that today.
As I was reading in Genesis I got to Chapter 6 verse 6 and my heart sank. It states, "And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart." My friends do you honestly think He is any happier today?
Well, back to Noah. See Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, Genesis 6:8. As Adrian Rogers wrote, "in these dangerous days we need God's amazing grace, like Noah found." He also states, "God has only one plan of salvation from beginning to end, and that is grace." Nothing we do can save us, only by the grace of the Almighty God. I love how Adrain Rogers describes the word G-R-A-C-E, "God's Riches At Christ's Expense."
The article then went on to explain just how Noah was saved. By grace, through faith, unto good works. Noah found grace in the Lord, and through faith went into the ark. See Noah had to take that step of faith to get into the ark even though it wasn't raining. Adrian Rogers wrote, "Noah wasn't saved by doing good works. He was saved to do good works. So Noah was saved by grace through faith unto good works."
My friends when the Lord calls me home and He reaches out those loving arms and says, "Well done good and faithful servant", it's not what I did for salvation but what I have done after salvation. Salvation is a gift of grace through Christ Jesus. The "well done" is what you now want to do for Him. Thank You, Jesus!
As Adrian Rogers wrote, "There is an Ark of Safety for you today and His name is Jesus. "If you don't get on board, you're going down."
Throne of Grace
I was called to the Throne of Grace
for my life God wanted to review.
With His loving Son sitting by His side
God said, “what was done with the gifts I gave to you?”
It was for sure God knew the answers
to each question that He asked of me.
But He waited very patiently
for the answer I would give you see.
My body started to tremble
as I struggled with what to say.
I’ve heard this mentioned in many sermons
that the Pastor spoke of in so many ways.
Gifts like wisdom, knowledge, faith,
healing, prophecy and tongues,
my mind was searching frantically
what did I have, was it many or just one?
As I raised my head to answer
Jesus looked down from the throne above
He looked over to our Heavenly Father
and said, “Father this child is special because of his love!”
Remember the many wounded, lost and hurting
that so many others just let be?
Each and everyone you touched with love my child
you were actually touching Me!
E. P. Shagott
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
He begins by drawing a comparison of the time of Noah to today. The same sins that brought God's wrath back then he writes "have reached Heaven again." How true. Adrian Rogers wrote, "We stand on the threshold of imminent judgement and no one cares. We just yawn in the face of God." My friends I don't know about you, but I can see that today.
As I was reading in Genesis I got to Chapter 6 verse 6 and my heart sank. It states, "And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart." My friends do you honestly think He is any happier today?
Well, back to Noah. See Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, Genesis 6:8. As Adrian Rogers wrote, "in these dangerous days we need God's amazing grace, like Noah found." He also states, "God has only one plan of salvation from beginning to end, and that is grace." Nothing we do can save us, only by the grace of the Almighty God. I love how Adrain Rogers describes the word G-R-A-C-E, "God's Riches At Christ's Expense."
The article then went on to explain just how Noah was saved. By grace, through faith, unto good works. Noah found grace in the Lord, and through faith went into the ark. See Noah had to take that step of faith to get into the ark even though it wasn't raining. Adrian Rogers wrote, "Noah wasn't saved by doing good works. He was saved to do good works. So Noah was saved by grace through faith unto good works."
My friends when the Lord calls me home and He reaches out those loving arms and says, "Well done good and faithful servant", it's not what I did for salvation but what I have done after salvation. Salvation is a gift of grace through Christ Jesus. The "well done" is what you now want to do for Him. Thank You, Jesus!
As Adrian Rogers wrote, "There is an Ark of Safety for you today and His name is Jesus. "If you don't get on board, you're going down."
Throne of Grace
I was called to the Throne of Grace
for my life God wanted to review.
With His loving Son sitting by His side
God said, “what was done with the gifts I gave to you?”
It was for sure God knew the answers
to each question that He asked of me.
But He waited very patiently
for the answer I would give you see.
My body started to tremble
as I struggled with what to say.
I’ve heard this mentioned in many sermons
that the Pastor spoke of in so many ways.
Gifts like wisdom, knowledge, faith,
healing, prophecy and tongues,
my mind was searching frantically
what did I have, was it many or just one?
As I raised my head to answer
Jesus looked down from the throne above
He looked over to our Heavenly Father
and said, “Father this child is special because of his love!”
Remember the many wounded, lost and hurting
that so many others just let be?
Each and everyone you touched with love my child
you were actually touching Me!
E. P. Shagott
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Differences
"The body is not one member, but many" (I. Corinthians xii. 14).
[A devotional by A. B. Simpson}
I like the point that A. B. Simpson was making in this devotional both religious and also secular. As for the religious aspect to fully understand we must read these other verses along with verse 14.
1Corinthians 12:15 If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 1Corinthians 12:16 And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 1Corinthians 12:17 If all the body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If all hearing, where would be the smelling? 1Corinthians 12:18 But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body as it has pleased Him.
Ah, there lies the answer, "as it has pleased Him." I believe that is why we were put here, not one is any more important than the other. Once He becomes, because we let Him, part of our lives, we all please Him! Now read as A. B. Simpson in this devotional explains about the "phonograph". Keep in mind this was written, "a long time ago". I had to do research to understand what he was talking about. Yea, right! Forgive me lord for that fib.
[We have a friend who has a phonograph for his correspondence. It consists of two parts. One is a simple and wonderful apparatus, whose sensitive cylinders receive the tones and then give them out again, word for word, through the hearing tube. The other part is a common little box that stands under the table, and does nothing but supply the power through connecting wires.
Now, the little box might insist upon being the phonograph, and doing the talking; but if it should, it would not only waste its own life but destroy the life of its partner.
Its sole business is to supply power to the phonograph, while the latter is to do the talking. So some of us are called to be voices to speak for God to our fellow-men, others are forces to sustain them, by our holy sympathy and silent prayer. (Some of us are little dynamos under the table, while others are phonographs that speak aloud the messages of heaven.)
Let each of us be true to our God-given ministry, and when the day comes our work will be weighed and the rewards distributed.]
Amen, to that comment about being true to our God-given ministry. Please be what God created you to be.
Now about the secular aspect I found in this devotional. Man and woman. Let me explain. For Christmas I got a new Bible as a Christmas present called the Adrian Rogers Legacy Bible. As I was starting my daily reading plan, beginning in Genesis, I read one of his many articles pertaining to a bible verse or verses. In chapter two of Genesis Mr. Rogers speaks about "Celebrate the Difference". Just as A. B. Simpson was discussing each body part being better or more important that the other, Adrian Rogers asked, "who is better man or woman?" He made me chuckle when he said the answer is "yes!" He wrote that God made us different that He might make us one. Interesting.
Mr. Rogers wrote that the difference between male and female is the difference between the beauty and the beast. Another difference is what Adrain Rogers wrote as the tortoise and the hare. Guys we are the hares. We may have a lot more energy but the women have durability. Therefore the women are going to outlast us. A third difference is what Adrian Rogers called the romantic and the mechanic. He wrote man has a job to keep the garden. Remember now he is referring to Genesis and the Garden of Eden. So man needed a hard outer shell. The woman was the homemaker, she is to love, nurture, and raise the kids. I loved reading as Adrian wrote, "a smart man will learn to be romantic, a smart woman learns to keep herself as physically attractive as possible." Which is better, neither, God made us different.
OK, two differences left. The radar and the computer. The man takes in and analyzes information logically, like a computer. A woman takes in the same data but also sweeps a scene like radar, noticing and feeling what a man might miss. As I think about myself, "might miss?". Now get this part about the brains hemisphere's. Adrian Rogers writes the man uses the left hemisphere while woman uses both sides of their brains. That is why science is showing "men only have half a brain!" Guys, Adrian Rogers wrote it, I just rewrote it.
Now the last difference is the lover and the achiever. The man wants to fix, looking for admiration for his achievements whereas the woman wants to be loved. She wants to be understood and cherished. That is why God's Word tells husbands to love their wives, and He tells women to reverence or respect their husbands (Ephesians 5:33 So each husband should love his wife as much as he loves himself, and each wife should respect her husband. ). Why? So that we can meet each other's deepest need.
God made us different that He might make us one!
OH, sure now I get it!
My thanks to my daughter for a wonderful Christmas gift. Your mother was right all those times she said, "your father has only half a brain!" I love you.
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
[A devotional by A. B. Simpson}
I like the point that A. B. Simpson was making in this devotional both religious and also secular. As for the religious aspect to fully understand we must read these other verses along with verse 14.
1Corinthians 12:15 If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 1Corinthians 12:16 And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 1Corinthians 12:17 If all the body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If all hearing, where would be the smelling? 1Corinthians 12:18 But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body as it has pleased Him.
Ah, there lies the answer, "as it has pleased Him." I believe that is why we were put here, not one is any more important than the other. Once He becomes, because we let Him, part of our lives, we all please Him! Now read as A. B. Simpson in this devotional explains about the "phonograph". Keep in mind this was written, "a long time ago". I had to do research to understand what he was talking about. Yea, right! Forgive me lord for that fib.
[We have a friend who has a phonograph for his correspondence. It consists of two parts. One is a simple and wonderful apparatus, whose sensitive cylinders receive the tones and then give them out again, word for word, through the hearing tube. The other part is a common little box that stands under the table, and does nothing but supply the power through connecting wires.
Now, the little box might insist upon being the phonograph, and doing the talking; but if it should, it would not only waste its own life but destroy the life of its partner.
Its sole business is to supply power to the phonograph, while the latter is to do the talking. So some of us are called to be voices to speak for God to our fellow-men, others are forces to sustain them, by our holy sympathy and silent prayer. (Some of us are little dynamos under the table, while others are phonographs that speak aloud the messages of heaven.)
Let each of us be true to our God-given ministry, and when the day comes our work will be weighed and the rewards distributed.]
Amen, to that comment about being true to our God-given ministry. Please be what God created you to be.
Now about the secular aspect I found in this devotional. Man and woman. Let me explain. For Christmas I got a new Bible as a Christmas present called the Adrian Rogers Legacy Bible. As I was starting my daily reading plan, beginning in Genesis, I read one of his many articles pertaining to a bible verse or verses. In chapter two of Genesis Mr. Rogers speaks about "Celebrate the Difference". Just as A. B. Simpson was discussing each body part being better or more important that the other, Adrian Rogers asked, "who is better man or woman?" He made me chuckle when he said the answer is "yes!" He wrote that God made us different that He might make us one. Interesting.
Mr. Rogers wrote that the difference between male and female is the difference between the beauty and the beast. Another difference is what Adrain Rogers wrote as the tortoise and the hare. Guys we are the hares. We may have a lot more energy but the women have durability. Therefore the women are going to outlast us. A third difference is what Adrian Rogers called the romantic and the mechanic. He wrote man has a job to keep the garden. Remember now he is referring to Genesis and the Garden of Eden. So man needed a hard outer shell. The woman was the homemaker, she is to love, nurture, and raise the kids. I loved reading as Adrian wrote, "a smart man will learn to be romantic, a smart woman learns to keep herself as physically attractive as possible." Which is better, neither, God made us different.
OK, two differences left. The radar and the computer. The man takes in and analyzes information logically, like a computer. A woman takes in the same data but also sweeps a scene like radar, noticing and feeling what a man might miss. As I think about myself, "might miss?". Now get this part about the brains hemisphere's. Adrian Rogers writes the man uses the left hemisphere while woman uses both sides of their brains. That is why science is showing "men only have half a brain!" Guys, Adrian Rogers wrote it, I just rewrote it.
Now the last difference is the lover and the achiever. The man wants to fix, looking for admiration for his achievements whereas the woman wants to be loved. She wants to be understood and cherished. That is why God's Word tells husbands to love their wives, and He tells women to reverence or respect their husbands (Ephesians 5:33 So each husband should love his wife as much as he loves himself, and each wife should respect her husband. ). Why? So that we can meet each other's deepest need.
God made us different that He might make us one!
OH, sure now I get it!
My thanks to my daughter for a wonderful Christmas gift. Your mother was right all those times she said, "your father has only half a brain!" I love you.
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
I Saw The Light
Genesis 1:4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
[A devotional by Charles Spurgeon]
As one of my Christmas gifts I received a new bible. I am always in awe of those individuals that say "I have read the Bible from cover to cover. Some I have met have done this more than once. To be honest I have tried several times but have still not accomplished keeping to a continual reading of it. So as my new bible came just at the beginning of the year I am trying to, with God's help, maintain a daily reading. I have learned more about the bible last year than any previous years. See once the Holy Spirit opens your eyes to His Word it becomes real. Now as I read God's scripture I can say, "I saw the light"! We need His light, through His Word, to take us through the darkness of this world. Read as Charles Spurgeon writes about God's light.
[This morning we noticed the goodness of the light, and the Lord’s dividing it from the darkness, we now note the special eye which the Lord had for the light. “God saw the light”-he looked at it with complacency, gazed upon it with pleasure, saw that it “was good.” If the Lord has given you light, dear reader, he looks on that light with peculiar interest; for not only is it dear to him as his own handiwork, but because it is like himself, for “He is light.” Pleasant it is to the believer to know that God’s eye is thus tenderly observant of that work of grace which he has begun. He never loses sight of the treasure which he has placed in our earthen vessels. Sometimes we cannot see the light, but God always sees the light, and that is much better than our seeing it. Better for the judge to see my innocence than for me to think I see it. It is very comfortable for me to know that I am one of God’s people-but whether I know it or not, if the Lord knows it, I am still safe. This is the foundation, “The Lord knoweth them that are his.” You may be sighing and groaning because of inbred sin, and mourning over your darkness, yet the Lord sees “light” in your heart, for he has put it there, and all the cloudiness and gloom of your soul cannot conceal your light from his gracious eye. You may have sunk low in despondency, and even despair; but if your soul has any longing towards Christ, and if you are seeking to rest in his finished work, God sees the “light.” He not only sees it, but he also preserves it in you. “I, the Lord, do keep it.” This is a precious thought to those who, after anxious watching and guarding of themselves, feel their own powerlessness to do so. The light thus preserved by his grace, he will one day develop into the splendour of noonday, and the fulness of glory. The light within is the dawn of the eternal day.]
John 1:4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
John 8:12 Then Jesus spoke again to them, saying, I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
May This Be The Year
May this be the year
that you understand as I do,
it is not about what happens today,
but that God was there to get you through.
May this be the year
that He will touch your heart,
in such a way it can change your life
so that with Christ you never be apart.
May this be the year
as you see just what a blessing is
to think of all the other people
that really don't even know Him.
May this be the year
that you can tell some one today,
"Look what He has done for me,
for He is the truth, the light and the way!"
E. P. Shagott
1/5/10
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
[A devotional by Charles Spurgeon]
As one of my Christmas gifts I received a new bible. I am always in awe of those individuals that say "I have read the Bible from cover to cover. Some I have met have done this more than once. To be honest I have tried several times but have still not accomplished keeping to a continual reading of it. So as my new bible came just at the beginning of the year I am trying to, with God's help, maintain a daily reading. I have learned more about the bible last year than any previous years. See once the Holy Spirit opens your eyes to His Word it becomes real. Now as I read God's scripture I can say, "I saw the light"! We need His light, through His Word, to take us through the darkness of this world. Read as Charles Spurgeon writes about God's light.
[This morning we noticed the goodness of the light, and the Lord’s dividing it from the darkness, we now note the special eye which the Lord had for the light. “God saw the light”-he looked at it with complacency, gazed upon it with pleasure, saw that it “was good.” If the Lord has given you light, dear reader, he looks on that light with peculiar interest; for not only is it dear to him as his own handiwork, but because it is like himself, for “He is light.” Pleasant it is to the believer to know that God’s eye is thus tenderly observant of that work of grace which he has begun. He never loses sight of the treasure which he has placed in our earthen vessels. Sometimes we cannot see the light, but God always sees the light, and that is much better than our seeing it. Better for the judge to see my innocence than for me to think I see it. It is very comfortable for me to know that I am one of God’s people-but whether I know it or not, if the Lord knows it, I am still safe. This is the foundation, “The Lord knoweth them that are his.” You may be sighing and groaning because of inbred sin, and mourning over your darkness, yet the Lord sees “light” in your heart, for he has put it there, and all the cloudiness and gloom of your soul cannot conceal your light from his gracious eye. You may have sunk low in despondency, and even despair; but if your soul has any longing towards Christ, and if you are seeking to rest in his finished work, God sees the “light.” He not only sees it, but he also preserves it in you. “I, the Lord, do keep it.” This is a precious thought to those who, after anxious watching and guarding of themselves, feel their own powerlessness to do so. The light thus preserved by his grace, he will one day develop into the splendour of noonday, and the fulness of glory. The light within is the dawn of the eternal day.]
John 1:4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
John 8:12 Then Jesus spoke again to them, saying, I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
May This Be The Year
May this be the year
that you understand as I do,
it is not about what happens today,
but that God was there to get you through.
May this be the year
that He will touch your heart,
in such a way it can change your life
so that with Christ you never be apart.
May this be the year
as you see just what a blessing is
to think of all the other people
that really don't even know Him.
May this be the year
that you can tell some one today,
"Look what He has done for me,
for He is the truth, the light and the way!"
E. P. Shagott
1/5/10
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
Monday, January 4, 2010
Are You There
Psalm 1:1 Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, and has not stood in the way of sinners, and has not sat in the seat of the scornful.
[A devotional by A. B. Simpson]
[Three things are notable about this man:
1. His company. "He walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful."
2. His reading and thinking. "His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law doth he meditate day and night."
3. His fruitfulness. "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."]
As I was reading this devotional my mine keep say, "how true, how true!" I understand the three notable things that A. B. Simpson was writing about in a Godly man. Usually once a month I sing with a business men's gospel group. One of the songs is called "There Is A River." The song talks about a woman at the well who was drawing water. Then she met Jesus there and was never again the same. For lyrics to this song click here to go to another blog of mine.
[The river is the Holy Ghost; the planting, the deep, abiding life in which, not occasionally, but habitually, we absorb the Holy Spirit; and the fruit is not occasional, but continual, and appropriate to each changing season.
His life is also prosperous, and his spirit fresh, like the unfading leaf. Such a life must be happy. Indeed, happiness is a matter of spiritual conditions. Put a sunbeam in a cellar and it must be bright. Put a nightingale in the darkest midnight, and it must sing.]
A lot of people I meet either through the God's Love Outreach Ministry or in my daily life say that I am a happy man. How true that is. I also tell them I chose to be happy but I also believe that choice was the same one I made when I asked Christ to take control of my life. The fruit I am bearing for the Kingdom now is continual. I am drawn less and less to ungodly things as the minutes tick away on the clock. Praise God that my eyes were opened and are now in tune with my heart. My prayer for each reader of this and also those they may not read this, that they can feel as I do if they don't already.
Closer to the Lord
I went up to the mountain top
so closer to the Lord I could be.
My eyes looked in all directions
but my Savior I did not see.
I thought maybe if I yelled
from the top of my lungs,
the Lord would hear my voice
and see how far I’d come.
So as I stood and waited
for my Savior to appear,
I let my heart be still
and waited without fear.
And then within the moment
in my heart He did speak.
Jesus said, “My child,
what is it that you seek?”
I felt His presence in my spirit,
and said, “My Lord with You I want to be!”
Jesus’ love touched me deeply and replied,
I am with you always, even in the valleys.
Jesus said, My Spirit is within you
no matter where you roam,
His love is the same as the Father’s and Mine,
and through Our love it will bring you home.
3/12/2009
E. P. Shagott
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
[A devotional by A. B. Simpson]
[Three things are notable about this man:
1. His company. "He walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful."
2. His reading and thinking. "His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law doth he meditate day and night."
3. His fruitfulness. "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."]
As I was reading this devotional my mine keep say, "how true, how true!" I understand the three notable things that A. B. Simpson was writing about in a Godly man. Usually once a month I sing with a business men's gospel group. One of the songs is called "There Is A River." The song talks about a woman at the well who was drawing water. Then she met Jesus there and was never again the same. For lyrics to this song click here to go to another blog of mine.
[The river is the Holy Ghost; the planting, the deep, abiding life in which, not occasionally, but habitually, we absorb the Holy Spirit; and the fruit is not occasional, but continual, and appropriate to each changing season.
His life is also prosperous, and his spirit fresh, like the unfading leaf. Such a life must be happy. Indeed, happiness is a matter of spiritual conditions. Put a sunbeam in a cellar and it must be bright. Put a nightingale in the darkest midnight, and it must sing.]
A lot of people I meet either through the God's Love Outreach Ministry or in my daily life say that I am a happy man. How true that is. I also tell them I chose to be happy but I also believe that choice was the same one I made when I asked Christ to take control of my life. The fruit I am bearing for the Kingdom now is continual. I am drawn less and less to ungodly things as the minutes tick away on the clock. Praise God that my eyes were opened and are now in tune with my heart. My prayer for each reader of this and also those they may not read this, that they can feel as I do if they don't already.
Closer to the Lord
I went up to the mountain top
so closer to the Lord I could be.
My eyes looked in all directions
but my Savior I did not see.
I thought maybe if I yelled
from the top of my lungs,
the Lord would hear my voice
and see how far I’d come.
So as I stood and waited
for my Savior to appear,
I let my heart be still
and waited without fear.
And then within the moment
in my heart He did speak.
Jesus said, “My child,
what is it that you seek?”
I felt His presence in my spirit,
and said, “My Lord with You I want to be!”
Jesus’ love touched me deeply and replied,
I am with you always, even in the valleys.
Jesus said, My Spirit is within you
no matter where you roam,
His love is the same as the Father’s and Mine,
and through Our love it will bring you home.
3/12/2009
E. P. Shagott
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Jesus Is Our Everything
Isaiah 49:8 So says Jehovah, in a favorable time I replied to You, and in a day of salvation I have helped You; and I will preserve You, and give You for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause them to inherit the wasted inheritances;
[A devotional by Charles Spurgeon]
The first Sunday of the New Year and what a devotional to read this morning. Please read how Charles Spurgeon describes Jesus as our covenant.
[Jesus Christ is himself the sum and substance of the covenant, and as one of its gifts. He is the property of every believer. Believer, canst thou estimate what thou hast gotten in Christ? “In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Consider that word “God” and its infinity, and then meditate upon “perfect man” and all his beauty; for all that Christ, as God and man, ever had, or can have, is thine-out of pure free favour, passed over to thee to be thine entailed property forever. Our blessed Jesus, as God, is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent. Will it not console you to know that all these great and glorious attributes are altogether yours?]
What does it mean to be omniscient? - all-knowing: knowing or seeming to know everything.
What does it mean to be omnipresent? - always present everywhere: continuously and simultaneously present throughout the whole of creation.
What does it mean to be omnipresent? - all-powerful: possessing complete, unlimited, or universal power and authority.
Wow, how can anyone go wrong with Jesus in your life? Read on as Charles Spurgeon more of Christ's attributes. And to think it is all ours because of His grace. Praise God!
[Has he power? That power is yours to support and strengthen you, to overcome your enemies, and to preserve you even to the end. Has he love? Well, you may dive into the immense ocean of his love, and you may say of it all, “It is mine.” Hath he justice? It may seem a stern attribute, but even that is yours, for he will by his justice see to it that all which is promised to you in the covenant of grace shall be most certainly secured to you. And all that he has as perfect man is yours. As a perfect man the Father’s delight was upon him. He stood accepted by the Most High. O believer, God’s acceptance of Christ is thine acceptance; for knowest thou not that the love which the Father set on a perfect Christ, he sets on thee now? For all that Christ did is thine. That perfect righteousness which Jesus wrought out, when through his stainless life he kept the law and made it honourable, is thine, and is imputed to thee. Christ is in the covenant.]
I love that sentence about Christ's love, "there is not a drop of love in his heart which is not yours", I get excited just reading those words. Did we deserve His love? No, but because He loves us we can sing words like this refrain from the hymn "Greater Than All Our Sin" states:
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin.
Listen to how Charles Spurgeon writes about His love!
[“My God, I am thine-what a comfort divine!
What a blessing to know that the Saviour is mine!
In the heavenly Lamb thrice happy I am,
And my heart it doth dance at the sound of his name.”]
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
[A devotional by Charles Spurgeon]
The first Sunday of the New Year and what a devotional to read this morning. Please read how Charles Spurgeon describes Jesus as our covenant.
[Jesus Christ is himself the sum and substance of the covenant, and as one of its gifts. He is the property of every believer. Believer, canst thou estimate what thou hast gotten in Christ? “In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Consider that word “God” and its infinity, and then meditate upon “perfect man” and all his beauty; for all that Christ, as God and man, ever had, or can have, is thine-out of pure free favour, passed over to thee to be thine entailed property forever. Our blessed Jesus, as God, is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent. Will it not console you to know that all these great and glorious attributes are altogether yours?]
What does it mean to be omniscient? - all-knowing: knowing or seeming to know everything.
What does it mean to be omnipresent? - always present everywhere: continuously and simultaneously present throughout the whole of creation.
What does it mean to be omnipresent? - all-powerful: possessing complete, unlimited, or universal power and authority.
Wow, how can anyone go wrong with Jesus in your life? Read on as Charles Spurgeon more of Christ's attributes. And to think it is all ours because of His grace. Praise God!
[Has he power? That power is yours to support and strengthen you, to overcome your enemies, and to preserve you even to the end. Has he love? Well, you may dive into the immense ocean of his love, and you may say of it all, “It is mine.” Hath he justice? It may seem a stern attribute, but even that is yours, for he will by his justice see to it that all which is promised to you in the covenant of grace shall be most certainly secured to you. And all that he has as perfect man is yours. As a perfect man the Father’s delight was upon him. He stood accepted by the Most High. O believer, God’s acceptance of Christ is thine acceptance; for knowest thou not that the love which the Father set on a perfect Christ, he sets on thee now? For all that Christ did is thine. That perfect righteousness which Jesus wrought out, when through his stainless life he kept the law and made it honourable, is thine, and is imputed to thee. Christ is in the covenant.]
I love that sentence about Christ's love, "there is not a drop of love in his heart which is not yours", I get excited just reading those words. Did we deserve His love? No, but because He loves us we can sing words like this refrain from the hymn "Greater Than All Our Sin" states:
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin.
Listen to how Charles Spurgeon writes about His love!
[“My God, I am thine-what a comfort divine!
What a blessing to know that the Saviour is mine!
In the heavenly Lamb thrice happy I am,
And my heart it doth dance at the sound of his name.”]
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Pray for the New Year
Colossians 4:2 Continue in prayer and watch in it with thanksgiving,
[Devotional by Charles Spurgeon]
As I read this devotional this morning I was reminded as we start the second day of 2010, the importance of prayer. Charles Spurgeon takes us on a brief walk through the Word, by mentioning how so many of the men mentioned within knew the importance of talking with the Lord through prayer.
[It is interesting to remark how large a portion of Sacred Writ is occupied with the subject of prayer, either in furnishing examples, enforcing precepts, or pronouncing promises. We scarcely open the Bible before we read, “Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord;” and just as we are about to close the volume, the “Amen” of an earnest supplication meets our ear. Instances are plentiful. Here we find a wrestling Jacob-there a Daniel who prayed three times a day-and a David who with all his heart called upon his God. On the mountain we see Elias; in the dungeon Paul and Silas. We have multitudes of commands, and myriads of promises. What does this teach us, but the sacred importance and necessity of prayer? We may be certain that whatever God has made prominent in his Word, he intended to be conspicuous in our lives. If he has said much about prayer, it is because he knows we have much need of it. So deep are our necessities, that until we are in heaven we must not cease to pray. Dost thou want nothing? Then, I fear thou dost not know thy poverty. Hast thou no mercy to ask of God? Then, may the Lord’s mercy show thee thy misery!]
In this last paragraph Charles Spurgeon tells it like it is. Just reading the words "Christless soul" brings a chill in my thought. Just thinking in this past year how many times I have prayed because of my need, or the needs of so many. Praise God those prayers were answered. One that will always be most prevalent on my heart was praying for a 1 year old baby boy who had tumors throughout his body. As church family and I prayed in one accord, we learned that every tumor was removed from his body. Prayer works! In this wonderful bible verse we understand why, Isaiah 53:5 But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was on Him; and with His stripes we ourselves are healed.
[A prayerless soul is a Christless soul. Prayer is the lisping of the believing infant, the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying saint falling asleep in Jesus. It is the breath, the watchword, the comfort, the strength, the honour of a Christian. If thou be a child of God, thou wilt seek thy Father’s face, and live in thy Father’s love. Pray that this year thou mayst be holy, humble, zealous, and patient; have closer communion with Christ, and enter oftener into the banqueting-house of his love. Pray that thou mayst be an example and a blessing unto others, and that thou mayst live more to the glory of thy Master. The motto for this year must be, “Continue in prayer.”]
My friends let us start the New Year in prayer. Prayer for our country, our leaders of this great country, our neighbors for we are to love them as we love ourselves, for all non-believers that they can be brought to the cross, for our spiritual leaders that they may continue to hear the Word of the Lord and that our ears will be open to hear it. Also for all our friends and family that they may have a closer relationship with Jesus.
Then and Now
Many, many years ago,
back in the Garden of Eden,
Adam and Eve because of their sin
from God’s eyes they wanted to be hidden.
Though God called out to each of them
and knew exactly where they were,
Adam and Eve‘s sin seemed so much greater
than the relationship with God they wanted to share.
Though many days has passed since then
and in this world sin is still all around,
God is still calling out to you and me
and knows exactly where we are to be found.
Please listen to His Words of love
and ask Him to forgive you of your sin,
make sure to give thanks to Jesus, His Son,
a relationship we can have today, just because of Him!
E. P. Shagott
12/29/09
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
[Devotional by Charles Spurgeon]
As I read this devotional this morning I was reminded as we start the second day of 2010, the importance of prayer. Charles Spurgeon takes us on a brief walk through the Word, by mentioning how so many of the men mentioned within knew the importance of talking with the Lord through prayer.
[It is interesting to remark how large a portion of Sacred Writ is occupied with the subject of prayer, either in furnishing examples, enforcing precepts, or pronouncing promises. We scarcely open the Bible before we read, “Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord;” and just as we are about to close the volume, the “Amen” of an earnest supplication meets our ear. Instances are plentiful. Here we find a wrestling Jacob-there a Daniel who prayed three times a day-and a David who with all his heart called upon his God. On the mountain we see Elias; in the dungeon Paul and Silas. We have multitudes of commands, and myriads of promises. What does this teach us, but the sacred importance and necessity of prayer? We may be certain that whatever God has made prominent in his Word, he intended to be conspicuous in our lives. If he has said much about prayer, it is because he knows we have much need of it. So deep are our necessities, that until we are in heaven we must not cease to pray. Dost thou want nothing? Then, I fear thou dost not know thy poverty. Hast thou no mercy to ask of God? Then, may the Lord’s mercy show thee thy misery!]
In this last paragraph Charles Spurgeon tells it like it is. Just reading the words "Christless soul" brings a chill in my thought. Just thinking in this past year how many times I have prayed because of my need, or the needs of so many. Praise God those prayers were answered. One that will always be most prevalent on my heart was praying for a 1 year old baby boy who had tumors throughout his body. As church family and I prayed in one accord, we learned that every tumor was removed from his body. Prayer works! In this wonderful bible verse we understand why, Isaiah 53:5 But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was on Him; and with His stripes we ourselves are healed.
[A prayerless soul is a Christless soul. Prayer is the lisping of the believing infant, the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying saint falling asleep in Jesus. It is the breath, the watchword, the comfort, the strength, the honour of a Christian. If thou be a child of God, thou wilt seek thy Father’s face, and live in thy Father’s love. Pray that this year thou mayst be holy, humble, zealous, and patient; have closer communion with Christ, and enter oftener into the banqueting-house of his love. Pray that thou mayst be an example and a blessing unto others, and that thou mayst live more to the glory of thy Master. The motto for this year must be, “Continue in prayer.”]
My friends let us start the New Year in prayer. Prayer for our country, our leaders of this great country, our neighbors for we are to love them as we love ourselves, for all non-believers that they can be brought to the cross, for our spiritual leaders that they may continue to hear the Word of the Lord and that our ears will be open to hear it. Also for all our friends and family that they may have a closer relationship with Jesus.
Then and Now
Many, many years ago,
back in the Garden of Eden,
Adam and Eve because of their sin
from God’s eyes they wanted to be hidden.
Though God called out to each of them
and knew exactly where they were,
Adam and Eve‘s sin seemed so much greater
than the relationship with God they wanted to share.
Though many days has passed since then
and in this world sin is still all around,
God is still calling out to you and me
and knows exactly where we are to be found.
Please listen to His Words of love
and ask Him to forgive you of your sin,
make sure to give thanks to Jesus, His Son,
a relationship we can have today, just because of Him!
E. P. Shagott
12/29/09
From God's heart, to mine, to yours,
Ed Shagott
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