OUR PROTECTOR

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.  But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.  To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever.  Amen.”

1 Peter 5:8-11 KJV

I am so glad that when we have bad dreams at night that they are only dreams and are not real.  I had a terrible nightmare the other night that frightened me so much I was shaking.  It took me a long time to realize it was only a dream.  We need to realize that satan will attack us whether we are awake or asleep.

It makes satan very angry when we serve Jesus and satan will do his best to discourage us so much that we stop serving Jesus.  We must not let that happen!  Jesus knows how we feel because when He was here on His mission, He got discouraged just like we do and being human, He also felt like giving up.

No matter how many times Jesus was ridiculed, rejected and cursed He stayed on the battlefield and completed the mission His Father had given Him.  You and I also need to stay on the battlefield and complete the mission that God has given us.  Have you answered the call of Jesus to serve Him (Isaiah 6:8)?

Heavenly Father, thank You for protecting us from the attacks of satan.  I have lost count of the many times You have encouraged me and dried my tears.  Precious Heavenly Father, You are a tender loving and compassionate Father.  Thank You for all You do for us.  I love You so much.  In Jesus’ Name, I pray.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

August 31, 2016

BROKEN HEARTS

“He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.”

Psalms 147:3 KJV

Doctors can do open heart surgery but only Jesus can heal our broken heart when someone hurts us.  How does our precious Saviour heal our broken heart?  He heals it with His tender compassionate words and kisses.  Jesus knows how it feels to have a broken heart because His heart was broken on Calvary.

Marvin P. Dalton wrote what I consider to be the greatest hymn I have ever heard “O What A Savior”.  Just as the Star Spangled Banner is our National anthem, I believe O What A Savior should be the Christian’s anthem.  Mr. Dalton described the love that our Saviour has for us in this beautiful hymn.

Let the words in this hymn go into your heart.  “O what a Savior, O hallelujah!  His heart was broken on Calvary, His hands were nail scarred, His side was riven, He gave His life-blood for even me.”  Jesus died on the cross and shed His own blood for you and for me because He loves us unconditionally

What kind of love is this?  This is an amazing unconditional love that can only come from the heart of our precious Saviour.  There have been many times that Jesus has picked me up, carried me through dark valleys and dried my tears with tender kisses.  What a precious Saviour we are privileged to know!

People can tell us they’re sorry when they hurt us and we can forgive them but the hurt is still there just as it is when we hurt someone.  When we say sarcastic and criticizing words we might as well take a knife and plunge it deep into their heart because it hurts just as much and only Jesus can heal us.

Joanne Lowe

August 30, 2016

BLESSINGS

“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 5:10 KJV

If you have ever been ridiculed, cursed and rejected because you are serving Jesus, you are blessed.  There are some people who have been rejected by their families because they are serving Jesus.  Some people have been scorned and laughed at by their friends.  Those people are not friends.

When God first called me to the mission field, someone said to me “You don’t want to be a missionary because everyone will be watching your life”.  I didn’t want people watching me so I didn’t surrender to the mission field for several more years.  I found out that people are always watching Christians.

A leader in the Christian field said “People are always watching me to see if I make a mistake”.  We read in the Bible “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).  We are to let the light of Jesus shine through us by our good works.

Don’t let satan or even people keep you from serving Jesus.  It doesn’t matter if we are laughed at, rejected or scorned because of our service to Jesus.  Even Jesus was ridiculed, scorned, cursed and rejected but He stayed on the mission field His Father had given Him and died on the cross for our sins.

Joanne Lowe

August 29, 2016

KNEES AND TONGUE

“For is it written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.”

Romans 14:11 KJV

One day Jesus is going to get the glory, the honor and the respect that He deserves because every knee will bow and every tongue confess to God.  What a wonderful day that will be.  If ever someone deserves to be praised, adored and exalted it is Jesus, the Saviour of the world.

However, just bowing our knees to Jesus is not enough.  We must also bow our heart to Him.  Jesus should have first place in our heart, in our life, in our relationships, in our thoughts and in everything we do.  When we wake up in the morning our first thought should be of Jesus and we should tell Him we love Him.

When I wake up in the morning before I even get out of bed, I say “I love You, Heavenly Father.  I love You, Jesus.  I love You, Holy Spirit”.  When I go to bed at night I tell Them again that I love Them.  Do you realize what a privilege it is to be loved by the Saviour of the world?  He loves us so much He died for us.

If you have bowed your knee to Jesus but have never bowed your heart to Him, I urge you to bow your heart to Him.  All hail, King Jesus!  Worthy is the Lamb of God!  He is the LORD OF LORDS AND KING OF KINGS!  Please bow your knees and lift your voice and join me in praising our precious Saviour.

Joanne Lowe

August 28, 2016

WE DON’T KNOW

“Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?  Then said I, Here am I; send me.”

Isaiah 6:8 KJV

As I watched Bill Gaither and the Speer Family singing “The King is Coming”, the thought came to me.  They don’t know how much they have encouraged me and inspired me by their service to Jesus.  We don’t know who God will encourage and inspire by our service to Jesus.  We just need to be faithful.

Sometimes I get discouraged because there are days that I visit almost one hundred websites to tell them about the devotions and to tell them Jesus loves them and sometimes I only receive two responses.  It is very discouraging and I feel like I am failing Jesus.  God spoke to me and reminded me of these verses.

“I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.  So then neither is he that planteth any thing,, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase” (1 Corinthians 3:6,7).  It is not us that give the increase.  We plant the seed but God gives the increase.  We just need to be faithful.

Pastors, please don’t be discouraged.  Keep preaching because you don’t know whose heart God is touching.  Many years ago, one of my pastors preached a sermon about bragging on Jesus.  Pastor Byron said “If you want to fly higher than a kite, start bragging on Jesus”.  That sermon was planted in my heart.

My pastor was so right.  Since I have been writing devotions and bragging on Jesus, I really do feel like I’m flying higher than a kite.  Again, Pastors, don’t let satan discourage you.  Keep preaching your sermons because you don’t know what God will do in the heart of someone with what you say in your sermon.

Joanne Lowe

August 27, 2016

WE CAN KNOW

“These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”

1 John 5:13 KJV

There are times when satan lies to us and tells us that we aren’t saved and that Jesus doesn’t love us.  I submit to you on the authority of the Word of God that satan is a liar.  If we have invited Jesus into our heart to be our personal Saviour, we are saved and Jesus loves us so much He died for us.

We read in the Bible.  “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:28).  Don’t ever forget that Jesus loves you so much He walked that long lonely road to Calvary and allowed them to crucify Him on the cross for you.  O how He loves you!

The next time satan lies to you and tries to discourage you, ask Jesus to help you.  Jesus is faithful and He will help us.  We must stay on the battlefield for Jesus.  He stayed on the battlefield for us.  How can we do less than serve Him with all of our heart and with all of our time after all He has done for us?

Joanne Lowe

August 26, 2016

HAPPINESS AND JOY

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  And this shall be a sign unto you; ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

Luke 2:11-13 KJV

What beautiful verses.  This is one of my favorite passages in the Bible because it tells about the birth of our Saviour.  It was a day of happiness and joy when Jesus was born.  There is going to be a day when this Baby Jesus Who grew up and died on the cross for our sins is coming back for us.

When He comes back for us and takes us home to Heaven to live with Him for all eternity there will be no more crying, sorrow or pain.  Children won’t have to run in terror to hide for fear of being hit.  There will be no more beating of spouses and no more drugs and alcohol.  We will have happiness forever.

It is very important for us to remember that one day all sorrow, heartache and pain will be gone forever when Jesus comes back for us.  This world is filled with violence, hatred and all other things that hurt Jesus and break His heart.  When people criticize us and hurt us, we need to remember Jesus cares.

Heavenly Father, we praise You and thank You for Jesus.  Precious Saviour, how I long to see You face to face and thank God, one day I will see You face to face.  I am going to give You a hug that will last for all eternity.  Thank You for loving me and for never leaving me.  I love You.  In Jesus’ Name, I pray.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

August 25, 2016