Tabetha’s Devotions

1 John 1:7
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

In the light, we can have fellowship. What does in the light mean? How does that affect our relationships?

Let me answer those questions by asking you what do think when you think of darkness? We usually think of sin. It can be lies, hatred, anger, cruelty, or any other number of awful things. Put it this way, you aren’t likely to find these listed in an ad or description on one of those dating sites. Seriously can you imagine!

Could be single, lying, cheating, scum of the earth seeking, cruel, heartless individual to share a life full of hate, anger, and misery. 😂😂😂😂

When we are in the light, we are open, honest, humble, patient, kind, and enter fruits of the Spirit here. We practice all those things we want in a companion. We want to work together and do it quite well.

It is in the light we find not only each other but Christ Himself. So, why would we not want to be in the light? Yes, it is revealing and we see our shortcomings, but we also find the grace to work on them. Best part, we are never alone there!

Lord, I know the light is bright and will reveal things about me that I would rather keep in the dark. However, I also know to work on them, I need You and honest relationships with others. ~amen

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Isaiah 41:10
So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Check out the Message version today:
Don’t panic. I’m with you.
There’s no need to fear for I’m your God.
I’ll give you strength. I’ll help you.
I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.

My heart just wants to shout, “Hallelujah!” Seriously, how can you not? “I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.” When your world is crashing around you, the One who created the world has a firm grip on you. He is not going to let you go. You are steady.

I don’t know if you have ever experienced vertigo. It is not fun. Everything is spinning and shifting all around you, like some overcharged carnival ride. Even though you are standing on solid ground. I usually drop to the ground, close my eyes, and grip something that I know is not moving no matter how I feel. This is exactly what it is like when you have spiritual and emotional vertigo. Your life is twisting and turning. You can’t control the spinning. However, you don’t have to crash and burn. You can drop to your knees, close your eyes, and grab the one thing you know is not moving, God. Best part, He already has a firm grip on you!

Lord, thank You for never letting go! ~amen

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Psalms 119:7
7 I will praise you with an upright heart
as I learn your righteous laws.

“As I learn your righteous law” what beautiful words! My favorite word in there is ‘as’. Why would that be my favorite word? Thank you for asking! As simply means I don’t have it yet. It means I am working on it. God does not expect me to be perfect

We are human. Shocking I know. We are all making mistakes. That is OK. We are learning. If we became perfect the minute we became Christians we wouldn’t need God. We would not need grace. Jesus’ death would have been for nothing!

Even better news, we are all growing together. We are all making mistakes together. We can learn from each other and help each other. We can study God’s word together. We can just be there for each other.

However, to do this we need to put the judgments down. Take off the holier than attitudes. We need to quit looking down at others and start helping them up. Today’s meme is spot on. Be a real woman (or man) and straighten others’ crowns. Don’t tare them down. Help raise each other up! We are all learning God’s righteous law.

Lord, thank You for having patience with me. Help me transfer that patience and grace to others as we all learn together. ~amen

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James 1:21
Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

Heads up, I may lose a few people today, but before you send the hate mail read this all the way through. Morality does not bring you or keep your salvation. Being a good person is not what gets you into Heaven. If that were so, we never needed Jesus to die on a cross for our salvation. We never need grace. God’s plan was unnecessary.

Morality is a legalistic term. Every culture has its own ideas of what morality looks like. Yes, we all can agree on the basics of kindness, goodness, doing no harm, and (insert the fruits of the spirit and ten commandments here.) Beyond that, we get into some pretty heavy arguments. How a person walks, talks, looks, dresses, or eats, any of these sound familiar?

James is not referring to salvation in today’s verse. Getting rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent in you is not your salvation, Jesus is the only thing that can do that. However, ‘cleaning up your act’, whatever that may mean to you, will bring your soul healing, peace, and security.

I am not going to lie to you. This was not always me. Paul and I have a lot in common. I use to persecute Christians and non-Christians with my legalistic views. God had to give me a Damascus road moment. I needed to humbly accept the word planted in me. I learned it is not my job to bring someone to my moral standard. It is my job to bring someone to Christ.

Lord, I want to lead people to You, not to what I think they should be in You. ~amen

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Luke 1:37
For no word from God will ever fail.

Fail is in the eyes of the beholder. We all see failure differently. Some say the only person who fails is Isthe one that never tries. Others say the only one who fails is the one that stops trying. Sports are full of people who use these analogies for failure. I know in football we often talk about how many completions a quarterback has made. Often those with the most also have the most incompletions. It goes for baseball also. Often the highest amount of home runs are accompanied by the highest amount of strikeouts. It is because you have to try something in order to gain something. They are not failures. They are just determined to succeed.

We can get caught up in the not yet’s, or the no’s in our lives from God and see them as God failed us. In reality, He has never failed us. He has never given up. Heck, He didn’t even strike out or make an incomplete pass. He just isn’t done with you yet. The game is not over. The final ball has not been thrown. He is still in control. He will not fail you. You just have to be that batter or receiver and wait patiently for that ball. It will come to you. When it does, I promise it will be the home run or touchdown you have been looking for and you will win the game!

Lord, I know You will never fail me. Help me to wait upon You and not fail You. ~amen

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PSALMS 56:3
When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.

When I am (fill in the blank) I put my trust in you. You can literally fill this blank with any emotion you want. It will not change the meaning. No matter what we do we trust in the Lord.

When I am confused, I put my trust in the Lord. (Proverbs 3:5-6)
When I am tired, I put my trust in the Lord. (Matthew 11:28-30)
When I am facing impossible odds, I put my trust in the Lord. (Luke 18:27)
When I am feeling unloved, I put my trust in the Lord. (John 3:16)
When I am feeling like I can’t go on, I put my trust in the Lord. (2 Corinthians 9:8)
When I am anxious, I put my trust in t Lord. (2 Timothy 1:7)
When I am feeling alone, I put my trust in the Lord. (Hebrews 13:5)

Where are you at today? Fill in the blank, then trust in the Lord. I can make this promise. God has an answer for you. He can and will meet your need. You just have to trust in the Lord.

I am not sure what I am feeling today, but I know I can trust in You. ~amen

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1 Corinthians 13:1
If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

There is just something about the way the Message Bible puts today’s verse that cracks me up!

1 Corinthians 13:1
“If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate.”

There are lots of phrases we use for people who speak without love. Such as being full of hot air. However, I am not so sure I can look at a politician and not hear a creaking gate from now on . . . LOL! Sorry, I had to go there.

Point if all of this is simple. It does not matter how well you speak. It doesn’t matter if you know the exact words at the exact time. If you don’t mean what you say it is useless. I am going to throw one more saying in here to drive it all home. You can talk the talk, but can you walk the walk.? If you can’t your words are nothing more than the creaking noise of a rusty gate. So, are you ready to get off your Sunday pew and stop talking about Jesus and start living like Him?

Lord, I want to walk with You, not just Talk about You.

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Mark 9:23
“If you can?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”

The question was simple, “If you can?” A young man who had been plagued with seizures by a demon most of his life was set before Jesus. The father took a chance and brought his son in hopes that Jesus could do something. My question is what is the real word the man was thinking ‘could’ or ‘would’?

These two words are not interchangeable. They are very different words. Could signifies a barrier. There is something that prevents you from being able to complete a task. You have no control. You will do your best, but have no idea if you can finish. Would on the other hand gives you complete control. You have everything you need to complete the task if you so choose. You have a choice.

Reading these words the man was questioning Jesus’ ability, not His desire. Is that what you are questioning when you worry. I must confess that is not what I worry about. I have no doubts of God’s abilities. My question is when, where, and how He will answer. My doubt lies in the “If you will?” I can also tell you the answer, “Yes.” God is always there to answer your questions. You just have to be patient and be willing to accept HIS answer, not just the answer you want or the when or way you want it answered.

So, today what are you asking, ‘can’ or ‘will’? God can and will do anything. Just ask Him. He has the answer waiting.

Lord, I am sorry for questioning you. I know you can and will take care of my needs in the best way for me. ~amen

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Psalms 121:7 (MSG)
7-8 GOD guards you from every evil,
he guards your very life.
He guards you when you leave and when you return,
he guards you now, he guards you always.

What evil lurks around every corner? I don’t ask you this to scare you. I ask you this to remind you that there is so much more than meets the eye to the world that is swirling around you. We try to say we are observant and not going through life with blinders on our heads. We try to say we are not narcissistic and believe the world revolves around us. However, take a moment and really take a good look at yourself. Now, this isn’t a bad thing unless you become the narcissist. We may believe we are multitaskers and many are, however, we can only focus on so many things. We most definitely can’t focus on things we don’t even see or know.

You have no idea how many times God has saved your today. Those little things you found annoying like not finding your keys right away, or the traffic, the lights, or the train just may have saved your life. Who do you think did that? I know on a couple occasions, something slowed me down only to find out if I had left on time I would have been in the middle of an accident. God is guarding you from every evil. Yes, things could be worse. Yes, sometimes that protection means taking you home. But I guarantee God is on your side if you will let Him.

Thank You for being my bodyguard, Lord! ~amen

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Proverbs 11:24
One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.

What do we gain when we give of ourselves? We gain everything. When we give from our hearts, our heart skips a beat, a smile comes to our face and we just feel good. So, why do we tend to side with pre-ghosts Scrooge? Why do we want to believe we only win when we have it all?.

Have you ever heard of Hetty Green, “The Witch of Wall Street”? She was said to be the richest woman in America at one time. She accumulated millions and yet owned one dress, refused to pay for hot water, and even let her son’s leg be amputated because she deemed treatment costly and unnecessary. By the world’s standard she was wealthy, but emotionally, spiritually, and mentally, she was living in poverty.

I am not trying to convince you to give money to charities or churches. I am not trying to tell you to give money at all. I am trying to make a point that we have things in our lives we can give like time, talents, smiles, and kind words. We do give, we gain so much more. So, which Scrooge are you going to side with today? I hope it doesn’t take a few ghosts to show you the true meaning of life.

Lord, help me find ways today to not be a Scrooge or Hetty Green. ~amen

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