Guidelines For Living Devotional

Stop Living Your Life In Fear

In the Upper Room Jesus charged the disciples: "Don't be troubled; don't be afraid!"  He knew what was ahead; they didn't.  But instead of struggling with panic, Jesus was calm, fully in control.  When you are stronger than the circumstances which confront you, you, too, can have that peace.  Jesus finished his challenge to the disciples, saying, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).

What Does It Mean To Have Peace?

"My peace I leave with you," said Jesus as He met with the disciples in the Upper Room.  This was immediately followed by two commands:  Don't be troubled; don't be afraid."  What Jesus had in mind was a good deal more than worry, being concerned about something. The word means to be confused, to be in turmoil, to be distraught.  And that's the condition of many people today who have trouble sleeping, are anxious, fearful, and have hearts filled with worry.

Discover Peace In An Uncertain World

Why are we always apprehensive about the future?  Because, we just don't know what's out there.  What lurking terrors await us?  What surprises are there?  We may whistle in the dark, or pretend we're unconcerned, but the reality is that our world will never go back to the days when things were normal--whatever that is.

Start Leaving A Legacy Of Peace

Six days before the Jewish Passover, Jesus and His disciples came to Jerusalem.  At the Passover meal, Jesus washed the feet of the disciples, giving them an example to follow, then opened His heart and talked with them.  So important was it that John recorded it explicitly.  You'll find it in the Gospel that bears his name, beginning with chapter thirteen. 

How To Find Peace In The Storm

Google the phrase, "Peace Institutes in the world," and you will be amazed at the number that exist today.  Among them are The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Global Peace Institute, Peace Brigades International and a host of others, all dedicated to what they call "a scientific basis for permanent peace."  Described by some as "the science of human survival" these brain trusts are searching for a formula that will allow men to beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks as Micah said would someday happen.

Who Is Afraid Of The New Year?

 Facing the New Year is always somewhat scary.  Who knows what the year may hold of bane or blessing?  Have you ever asked yourself, "Why fear the unknown?  When you were born, you had two basic fears: the fear of loud noises, and the fear of falling.  But soon after your birth you began to develop other fears.  The fears that you had at birth were necessary to survive.  But as you grew older, you became afraid of other things, and sometimes by the time we reach adulthood, our list of fears has grown quite long.

Here Is The Challenge Of The New Year

Then Jesus took his disciples up the mountain and gathered them around him.  He taught them saying: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are the meek.  Blessed are they that mourn.  Blessed are the merciful.  Blessed are they that thirst for justice.  Blessed are you when you suffer.  Be glad and rejoice for your reward is in heaven."

Start Living In The Present

"Look here, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there for a year.  We will do business there and make a profit.' How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow?  Your life is like the morning fog—it's here a little while, then it's gone," reads a paraphrase of what James, the half-brother of Jesus, wrote in the first century.

How To Cure Loneliness In Your Life

A lonely, dejected man sat in the office of Dr. James Hamilton, a British physician who practiced in Manchester, England.  The patient told of a sickness which he said was taking his very life.  "I am frightened of the terror of the world around me.  I am depressed by life. I can find no happiness anywhere.  Nothing amuses me, and I have nothing to live for."  He continued, saying, "If you can't help me, I shall kill myself."

Why Do I Feel The After-Christmas Blues?

Christmas is over, at least it is for most of you.  However, in some places such as in Russia, Christmas is observed in early January.  But no matter when you celebrate Christmas, there comes a time when it is over; and when it is over, it is over.