“Praise Him For His Mighty Acts”
by Dona Hake
Psalm 150:2 KJV
“Praise him for his mighty acts: praise
him according to his excellent greatness.”
Let us ever be reminded of how great and mighty that the Living God is!! When doubts and fears try to make us shrink back in our faith, let us call to mind that with man it may seem impossible but with God ALL things are possible. The Hand that created and called into existence the Heaven and Earth waits for you to turn to Him in your time of trouble. He desires to do mighty acts in your life according to His excellent greatness!
Psalm 77:12
“I will meditate also upon all Your
works and consider all Your [mighty] deeds.”
I encourage you to reflect on the times that He has done a mighty work in your life. His Name is called mighty and there is nothing too big for Him. “Now to Him who is ABLE to do above and beyond all you dare ask or think…exceeding your highest hopes and dreams.” Ephesians 3:20
“The Breakthrough That Grace Brings”
by Dona Hake
Today I want to share with you about breakthrough. A breakthrough is when there is an instance of removing or surpassing an obstruction or restriction. Can you think of a time that you have needed a breakthrough because your problem or trial seemed unsolvable. Today I want to encourage your heart to look to the Lord for the grace that you need. It is His grace that is sufficient for all that you need, and His grace will cause you to breakthrough whatever seems to pose a hindrance in your walk with Him. God’s grace will cause you will have all that you need, and you will excel in the good fight and in the good work.
“And God is able to make every grace overflow
to you, so that in every way, always having
everything you need, you may excel in every good work.”
This scripture just really blesses me. I love meditating on the fact that God is desiring to shower us with His all sufficient grace as we set out to do His will. He desires that we draw upon that grace that is well able to break through the clouds and darkness that this life brings at times.
Today, look to Him with great desire to be a living example of excellence in all that you put your hands to. Draw upon His great grace, and just watch for how He showers it upon you. It is as we do this that we will demonstrate that He is the God that is more than enough!
Psalm 1:3 (ESV)
“He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.”
“You Are My Hiding Place Oh Lord”
by Dona Hake
Recently our German Shepherd was diagnosed with a mild ear infection. I cannot begin to tell you how upset this dog gets when it is time for her ear drops. The poor thing knows exactly the time of evening when they are due to be put in, and her whole countenance changes. She is afraid, and beside herself. It makes me feel so bad but she has to have the medicine put in. There were times that my husband found her making plans to hide from me. The one evening she was attempting to go inside our shower and the next evening she crawled in and hid behind the shower curtain. It was kind of funny yet the poor thing was trying to find a hiding place from that which she feared. She certainly must of thought that if I could not find her she would escape the ear drops! We too in this life are faced with things that cause our hearts to dread and be fearful.
When we are afraid, we too need a hiding place. Today we will praise Him because we can run to Him when we need to be hidden. We can always run to His place of safety and He has promised to keep us safe in the storms we will face. Sometimes this life can tempt our hearts to be troubled and afraid. In those times of trouble you can know that He will hide you under His wings and keep you safe in the storm.
Psalm 32:7
You are a hiding place for me; You, Lord,
preserve me from trouble, You surround
me with songs and shouts of deliverance.
Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
I love this scripture! It causes me to visualize the Lord’s strong arm of protection in the worst of storms and even while the storm is trying to rob my peace I can believe that songs and shouts of deliverance are round about me. He knows the outcome and He well understands that He is able to cause us to be victorious!
Psalm 119:114
You are my hiding place and my shield;
I hope in Your word.
As we look at Jesus being our hiding place in the storm, let us also look at Him as being the hope of our soul. He will always keep us anchored in our faith as we continue to hope and abide in His Word. To Him be the glory!!!
“Jesus Never Changes”
by Dona Hake
It is quite common that people do not like things around them to change too much. David in the Psalms in Chapter twenty-three wrote that He leads us by still waters, and causes us to lie down in green pastures. Let us take one day at a time as we serve Him knowing that He promised to take care of our every need. Today I want to encourage your heart to remember that Jesus never, ever changes, and He can always be depended upon.
Aren’t you thankful that Jesus never changes? His love never changes for us. No matter how bad we mess up He still loves us. If we fall, He promises to reach out His loving hand and pick us up…but let us remember that we must reach out and ask for His help. His mercies are new every morning, His faithfulness endures, His forgiveness is always there. Just a few beautiful things about our Lord that never changes.
I am glad that He never changes positions… He is always by our side and we can count on that. His ear is always towards us when we pray, He has never failed to be there for us with a listening ear. In His Word it says that He NEVER fails, that fact will never change. On and on I could go but it’s just that simple… Jesus never changes. He is not capable of it!
I hope this stirs you to think about the concrete fact that He is faithful and there is no changing in Him. The world may change and we all well know that it does. There may be things that are changing and it is beyond our control to make it the way it was. But take comfort in the fact that the God of the Universe NEVER changes…it’s that simple.
Hebrews 13:8 (TLB)
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. “
“…and You Will Never Thirst Again”
by Dona Hake
This world seems to have so much to offer and tempt us. If we do not keep our eyes on Jesus we can be pulled and tugged to find our satisfaction is things other than Him. Only Jesus can satisfy the thirst of our souls. Jesus explained to the woman at the well the meaning of the true spring of water that only He gives.
“Jesus answered her, All who drink of this water will be thirsty again.
But whoever takes a drink of the water that I will give him shall never, no never, be thirsty any more. But the water that I will give him shall become a spring of water welling up (flowing, bubbling) [continually] within him unto (into, for) eternal life.”
When you feel life problems and this world draining you of your strength and peace, stop and drink of His water that will strengthen and refresh your soul. Know that it is living and refreshing to the soul. It will continue to minister to that thirst within you because it is from God. Everything that God gives is above and beyond all that we dare ask or think. As this scripture translation says, His water “shall become a spring of water welling up (flowing, bubbling, continually…” This gives such a beautiful image of His living water within us. It truly is the life flow from which we can draw upon whenever we meet uncertainty and overwhelming problems. God is gracious and He ever lives to pour forth that living water to you!
” Your Life Is a Gift”
by Dona Hake
Did you know that your life is a gift from God and you are a gift to people around you? God saw a plan for your life before you were even born. When He created you within the womb of your mother, He saw purpose, He saw a future for you and He has wonderful plans for you to fulfill.
Psalm 139:14 (GW)
“I will give thanks to you
because I have been so amazingly and miraculously made.
Your works are miraculous, and my soul is fully aware of this.”
Now I want to add to this thought that those that are in our life are also a gift. No…I did not say they are perfect, but God created them with a purpose as well. God has put family and friends in our life to love us, help us and walk along side of us during the good and the bad times. He has put people in our life to help us to do His will, and encourage our hearts.
I thank God for all my precious family members, and my friends, and especially my church family. I think the more you go on you realize that the real gifts in this life are not those that come in boxes with beautiful bows but those precious people that He has called along side of us to do His will, and help us when we need help!
Today I encourage you to stop and give thanks for the life and breath that He has given you. If you do not know you purpose, then simply ask Him. He is faithful to bring us answers as well as direction and instruction. Also, stop and think about all the special people that are in your life…now give thanks to God for them.♥
“May We Never Forget”
by Doan Hake
May we never forget the day we surrendered it all to Him for we knew in our hearts it was time. I can remember my stubborn heart before I surrendered. I can remember going to a week of revival meetings with my best friend. I sat in the pew as hard as ever rejecting the evangelist’s call to salvation each and every night until the very last night. He said one last sentence, and what he said made me think, “This guy really believes what he is preaching.” He said, “If I do not ever see you again here on this earth, if you know Him, I will see you in Heaven.” I thought to myself…”this guy really believes this stuff!” My girlfriend was kneeling at the altar praying and weeping for me, and I slowly and nervously walked up and knelt beside her, and gave my heart to Jesus. It was as if the weight of the world was lifted from my heart, and for the first time ever I felt free. I leaned over and whispered in her ear, “I did it!” She was so ecstatic for she had been diligently praying that I would come to know Him. I was overwhelmed with my sin and how my life was, and it was time to give up and surrender.
Psalm 65:3 (NCV)
“Our guilt overwhelms us,
but you forgive our sins.”
Today I want to encourage you to never forget the day you gave up and surrendered your all to Him. It is important that we stir praise in our hearts for all that He has done for us. Think about it, where would you be today without Him? Day by day let us rejoice in our salvation!
Psalm 103:1-5 (NASB)
“Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His (B)holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget none of His benefits;
Who pardons all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases;
Who redeems your life from the pit,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.”
“Oh That My Actions…”
by Dona Hake
Oh that we would consistently reflect the Lord’s ways! The psalmist wrote this, and he spoke his heart’s desire to reflect all that was right and good that he could represent God according to the decrees he knew. We too should desire this. The Amplified version of this scripture shares the secret to doing this in four words. We need to truly hear, receive, love, and obey His Word.
Psalm 119:5Amplified Bible (AMP)
“Oh, that my ways were directed and established
to observe Your statutes
[hearing, receiving, loving, and obeying them]!”
Have you ever heard something, and it went in one ear and out the other? We have all been guilty of that one. Yet, God wants us to be cautious that we do not do that when we hear the living Word of His truth. May we hear it, and take hold of it, and receive to be our very own revelation. As we hold fast to it, love, and obey it, we will indeed reflect His decrees. Let us be faithful to read and study His Word. It is as we meditate and reflect upon the Word that it will grow within our hearts.
“I will study your commandments and reflect on your ways.”
Psalms 119:15 NLT
Lord, we ask you to help us to remember that as we are here on this earth, you desire to live in and through us. We are your vessels, and we long to radiate and reflect Your life, light, and love in all that we do. Keep us humble Lord, and show us those things that would hinder us from reflecting You fully. We thank you for Your great and awesome works that you plan to do through us. Lord, “You are good and kind and do good; teach me Your statutes.” Psalms 119:68 (Amp.)
♥
“He Notices Everything!”
by Dona Hake
For those of you that know me well you know that I love feeding my outdoor feathered friends, and of course my squirrels! So many times I have learned little lessons from their behavior, and these lessons remind me of God’s love for me. I have been thinking about how God watches us ever so closely and He notices everything about us. There is a scripture that says that the hair on our heads is numbered and also a scripture that states that He will perfect all that concerns us.
Today, I am going to share some photographs that I have filed from the fourteen years of feeding and watching my bird’s and squirrel’s behavior. One thing that I know is that my birds keep a close eye on me! I have seen at times when am filling my empty ground feeders that they are sitting in the trees watching me fill them. Not even a minute after I return, they are heading to the feeders to eat.
I have ~noticed~ my doves will literally sit and watch in my window when their favorite food is empty. They wait patiently until I ~notice~ that they have a need. These two beauties are sitting right outside of my kitchen window, again waiting patiently, until I ~notice~ them. I am hoping you are noticing that I am trying to emphasize the word ~notice~ !!
I love knowing that these precious creatures of the Lord know they can come to my deck, and their need to be fed is met. I can remember one time during an extremely hot and humid day, I looked out the window and found this “regular” customer of mine finding some relief from the heat. You see, he wanted to stay close to the food source, yet get cooled off at the same time by basking in the shade of the ground feeder!
I have ~noticed~ how God has taught His creatures how to take care of their own. It is so precious to see my cardinal dads bring their little ones to the feeder and feed them. I think it is precious to watch them as they watch and soon they learn how to eat on their own.
I know these feathered ones that have been my regulars depend on me, especially during snow storms. I always keep a close watch on my feeders and if I ~notice~ them being empty, I attend to them. So today I want to leave you with this scripture.
Matthew 10:29 (TLB)
“Not one sparrow (What do they cost? Two for a penny?)
can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it.”
Our loving God ~notices~ even the little sparrow and He has His eye on You at all times. He desires so much that you totally depend upon Him for each and every need that you have. He desires that in your time of need to patiently wait for Him, for He is faithful to supply your needs…if only you wait. Remember He is watching over you and He takes ~notice~ to everything that pertains to your life. He loves you and cares about you more than you would ever know!
“Let His Beauty Be Upon You”
by Dona Hake
In Psalm 8 verse three, the Psalmist makes mention of how he considered and saw that the heavens were the work of God’s fingers. He then said “the moon and the stars, You ordained and established.” We marvel at God’s magnificent creation, yet He promises to do great things in and through us as we serve Him in our life.
Acts 17:28 (CEV)
“…and he gives us the power to live, to move, and to be who we are.”
He enables us to live this life by His power. He helps us to be the person He desires us to be. Today I want to encourage your heart to just let Him do things through you today. I found one of the definitions for the word ~let~ to be interesting in light of the scripture I am going to share with you.
Let: to grant the occupancy or use of
Now let us read this scripture from the Psalms..
“…And ~let~ the beauty and delightfulness and favor of the Lord our God be upon us; confirm and establish the work of our hands—yes, the work of our hands, confirm and establish it.” Psalm 90:17 Amplified Version
May we LET or grant the occupancy of our total being to the Lord today, may we give Him total use of us of however He wishes to use us. May we LET His beauty, delightfulness, and favor rest upon our lives that people would see Him and not us. I believe that as we do this that all that we put our hand to will indeed prosper and He we be able to confirm and establish the work of our hands.
This is a good way of teaching the kids to forgive each other(Matt. 5:7). I like the power of this gentle scripture and lesson… Thanks!!
thank you Lisa for sharing. I am blessed that this was a blessing to you!
Ralph &I are really enjoying your devotional together.
So glad this is blessing you both!
Oh, what a wonderful reminder! I want to break the magnifing glass of worry and trust God for each step I take.
It is interesting Selena how the more we worry the bigger and more magnified things get in our minds. Oh how important it is to trust our God for the smallest of things! Thank you for sharing!