March 12

Posted on March 12, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

an excellent day to run and not grow weary.

“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”  Isaiah 40:31 NKJV

It is impossible to make it from one end of this earthly life to the other without times when we feel alone, abused, abandoned, tired or uncertain. God is the only One who never tires and whose strength is never diminished.

It is important to remember to turn toward God when we feel the weakest and are the most susceptible to the temptations and negative influences of the world. At times, this may be particularly difficult to do, especially in those instances where we may allow the notion that God has forgotten about us to creep into our minds. God’s love is powerful and always present.

“How priceless is Your unfailing love, O God!” (Psalm 36:7a NIV).

The key word there is “unfailing.” God’s love never fails us, it never waivers, and it never drifts away from us for even a moment. It is only our own human weakness and insecurity that causes us to feel helpless at times and those feelings of helplessness may cause us to lose sight of the love of the Lord if we are not careful.

We only need to reach out to be replenished and reassured for, “He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless.” (Isaiah 40:29 NLT).

It is when we are anxious that we must relax; it is when we feel the slightest bit of doubt that we must trust; and it is when we are the most tired that we must look to the Lord for the strength to “mount up with wings like eagles.”

Many of the crushing pressures that we feel upon us are placed there by ourselves.

We have a tendency to drift from God and put ourselves in a position where we think we can go it alone. We place our hopes and our dreams on things of the earth that have little or no consequence when compared to the everlasting life with God that awaits us.

When this happens, we begin to slow down; to drag; to feel the burdens we have placed upon ourselves.

Now is the time to ask God to relieve us of our burdens; to recharge us with His love; and to send us forward for His purpose with new strength.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

(Author’s Note: I know that there is a lot of stock put in scripture memorization, but my brain really has difficulty functioning that way. Phone numbers, no problem. Back when we actually had to dial them, I could remember them easily. But while I was incarcerated, I found scripture memorization quite difficult.

I did remember about a half dozen, though. Jeremiah 29:11 was the first one, having been on a note of encouragement sent by my dear friend Diane. That was taped to my mirror, so it was something I saw each day. As I mentioned, there were a few others, not the least of which was Isaiah 40:31.

When someone reads the book these devotions come out of, or when someone reads them here, my only hope is that at least one person will find something, uplifting, encouraging, meaningful, convicting, or useful in them.

Today, that person (hopefully there are others) happens to be me. I feel those things and I needed to be reminded of where my strength comes from. Praise our almighty God for always being there for us, and for never leaving us alone.

PS: There was nothing posted yesterday because WordPress didn’t want to cooperate.)

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March 10

Posted on March 10, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the perfect day to thank God for His patience.

“Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant and patient God is with you?”  Romans 2:4a NLT

Each one of us should thank God each day for His tolerant patience.

He is the perfect Father as He watches over us each day as if we were small children learning to walk and talk. In many ways we are, but fortunately for us the lessons He wants us to learn are taught with a patience that is beyond our comprehension.

It is important that we do not mistake God’s kindness, tolerance and forgiveness for weakness or approval of our behavior when we do things we know we shouldn’t.

The lessons of the Holy Bible are quite simple when we think about it, for the main themes of love, kindness, and looking out for one another are repeated time and time again. Our obligation to praise God and worship Him for all that we have should be something we do eagerly and with enthusiasm, so if there is anything complicated or burdensome about our relationship with God, it is more likely centered on a lack of understanding of God’s ability to wait for us to learn the lessons He wants us to learn.

We may have a tendency now and then to think that something we do is acceptable in God’s eyes because He waits so patiently for us to learn that it is not.

When our actions are acceptable to God, we will know it. The absence of any kind of guilt is one way and the absence of any need to justify our actions will be another.

God is patient, but He is not blind. He is tolerant and forgiving but He cannot be fooled.

Be thankful that He is the way He is and pay close attention to the gentle (and, sometimes, not so gentle) signs He will give as He helps you learn the lessons He is trying to teach.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

 

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March 9

Posted on March 9, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

a good day to learn from past mistakes.

“The Israelites had not celebrated like this since the days of Joshua, son of Nun.”  Nehemiah 8:17b NLT

When we make God an important part of our day, we demonstrate a desire to learn from the mistakes of those who came before us.

The Old Testament shows us repeatedly how the Israelites would drift away from the way God instructed them to live until their behavior was so far removed from what God wanted that He would become angry and punish them. As humans are apt to do, they would then ask for another chance and God, being the pillar of love, compassion and forgiveness that He is, would always provide the opportunity they sought to correct their behavior.

Things would go along well for a while, but eventually the pattern would repeat itself. People would cut corners in their lives and devote less time to prayer, meditation and worship and inevitably behavior that was not of the Lord’s liking would slowly return.

How much simpler their lives would have been if expressing their love of God was the last corner they cut in their lives instead of the first.

And so it is today with many of us. Our lives become too focused on what we need in this life that we forget that the purpose of this life is to ready us for an eternal life with God.

Prayer, meditation and worship should be as automatic to us each day as breathing. The Word of God is as important to our spiritual health as the food we eat is to our physical health. When we have properly learned from the mistakes of those who have gone before us, we are as hungry for the Word of God as we are for any food we can think of.

Of all the things that can be adjusted in our schedules; of all of the things we do that consume the minutes that make up the hours of our days, asking for His guidance, His wisdom and His strength should be the most important to us.

Learn from the lessons taught in the Holy Bible.

Make God an unchangeable, unshakeable and non-negotiable part of each day of your life.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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March 8

Posted on March 8, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

an ideal day to “Go and sin no more”.

“She said, ‘No man, Lord.’ And Jesus said unto her, ‘Neither do I condemn thee: go and sin no more.’”  John 8:11 KJV

The gift of forgiveness is not a license to do whatever we wish.

It is an act of love for which we should be grateful and it should have an impact upon us that creates change within us. As long as we are of this earth, we can never be perfect, but our conscious goal each day should be to “sin no more.”

When the woman who had been caught in an act of adultery was brought to Jesus in the temple, He knew that the religious teachers were trying to trap Him. When He agreed that according to the Law of Moses she should be stoned, He said simply, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone.” (John 8:7b NLT).

When He looked around and discovered that all her accusers had slipped away, Jesus told the woman to go. He did not condemn her, but He did not condone her sin. He forgave her and sent her on her way with a clear admonition to sin no more.

It is important that we all come to terms with this admonition. Through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, God gave us the gift of forgiveness and it certainly must be God’s intention that we ask for forgiveness when we have allowed ourselves to succumb to the temptations that surround us in our daily lives. Once we have asked for forgiveness, we must ask the Lord to provide us with the strength to “sin no more.”

We must endeavor to seek a change within our hearts that will strengthen our love for God, for ourselves and for those around us and will ultimately cause us to ask God for strength to resist a particular temptation before the need arises to ask for forgiveness.

Being sin-free just may be beyond our human reach, but there is a saying that goes, “If you aim for the stars, you just might hit the moon.”

So set your sights on a sin-free life. If you live to “sin no more,” God will certainly not be disappointed with the result.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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AUTHOR’S ADDENDUM:

Most of us are familiar with the expression, “Give until it hurts.”

The subject of forgiveness has been at the forefront of my mind this past week as I (and others around me) have had to deal with some heartbreaking and difficult issues in the workplace. I have prayed (alone and with the others) and read applicable scripture and I have developed a different version of the aforementioned expression that applies to us when we are wronged (or feel that we have been wronged):

“Forgive until it stops hurting”

It wasn’t really clear to me until a couple of days ago (even though I have addressed it in these daily devotions) that the forgiveness an individual receives when they ask God for it, is different from the forgiveness we give to each other.I knew this, of course, but I didn’t quite ‘get it,’ if you know what I mean.

God’s forgiveness is complete, of course. When we ask for His forgiveness, He graciously and lovingly provides it, and then…..He forgets whatever it is He is forgiving.

“I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.”  Isaiah 43:25  ESV

Our forgiveness of transgressions against us is different. While it demonstrates our Christian love to the transgressor, the forgiveness we extend to another is intended to help us lay down our hurt at the foot of the Cross. When we truly forgive another individual’s transgression against us, we are releasing the pain it caused us while demonstrating our faith to that person.

Anyone who has spent time in the Word is familiar with the more well-known versus relating to our forgiveness of others. Jesus was quite clear on how many times we are to forgive those who sin against us.

“Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not just seven times, but seventy-seven times!”  Matthew 18:21-22  NIV

And, of course, He was also quite clear what would happen (or not happen) if we did not forgive others.

“But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Matthew 6:15   NIV

What if the sin is one that involves a loss of trust? Knowing that God has forgiven them (provided they have asked for it, of course) and forgiving them ourselves does not mean that we must instantly restore trust. Jesus demonstrated that it is acceptable to not trust someone.

“But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people. He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person.”   John 2:24-25  NIV

So, we forgive others to lay our burden in the Lord’s capable hands as well as to ensure that we receive God’s forgiveness when we need it (and we will all need it at some point!) And then we pray for those who sin against us, that they will ask God for His forgiveness, knowing they will receive it, and knowing, too, that if there is any judgement due relating to the sin requiring forgiveness, God will deliver it.

And how will we know when we have truly forgiven someone?

When the hurting stops.

Until then, forgive, forgive, and forgive some more. Seven times seventy times, if that’s what it takes. Just

“Forgive until it stops hurting”

 

 

 

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March 7

Posted on March 7, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the day God wants you to take all He wants to give.

“’Test Me in this,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.’”  Malachi 3:10b NIV

The Bible is rich with references to the gifts that God wishes to share with us.

It is truly ironic that so many of us work so hard in this life for things which have relatively little meaning or importance and ignore the wealth awaiting us if we are only willing to do as instructed by God, which is nothing compared to what we do each day for our employers.

What are some of the treasures that await us when the floodgates of heaven open? Many of the gifts have already been given to us and we simply fail to recognize them, appreciate their significance, or thank God daily for them.

At the top of this list would be Jesus Christ.

God has already given us the greatest gift we could ever ask for or expect to receive – the gift of redemption and restoration through the sacrifice of His son. If that isn’t enough, God added the gift of eternal life. And not just any life. No, this gift of eternal life will be the perfect life that is the reward for accepting the gift of sacrifice given by Jesus.

The more gifts we accept from God, the more He wants to give us, and all of His gifts to us should fill us with a burning desire to share our gifts with others.

As the floodgates of heaven open and we are overwhelmed with blessings, we will find it necessary to share them with others simply to make room for more.

Some of us find the concept of sharing God’s gifts in order to receive still more a difficult one to understand. But when we remember the masses that Jesus fed, it is easy to believe that no matter how much God gives us, He will always have more to give.

So accept all of the love, joy, goodness, kindness and peace that God wants to give you. Accept the gift of salvation His loving hands hold out to us all.

And as fast as God gives His gifts to you, pass them on to others and allow Him to give you still more.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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March 6

Posted on March 6, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

a good day to think about the spiritual side of retirement.

“They shall bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing.”  Psalm 92:14 NKJV

Doctors say that staying mentally and physically active is good for our health and is particularly important when we reach retirement age.

For too many of us, our work consumes so much of our time and energy that when it is done, we feel useless and unneeded; lost in ourselves; unable to function. For while we may have planned financially for our retirement, many of us have neglected to plan spiritually for our retirement.

This is truly something that must be done because it will give new breath to older lives as our time, wisdom, patience and spiritual maturity all come together to work for good as we work for God. Not only will we be refreshed, recharged, renewed and restored, the positive impact we can have on others our age, our communities, our churches, and on our children and grandchildren will enhance our remaining time on this earth.

A spiritual plan for retirement may not add years to our lives (although it is quite possible that it could), but it will certainly add life to those years.

“When Joshua was an old man, the Lord said to him, ‘You are growing old, and much land remains to be conquered.’” (Joshua 13:1 NLT).

At the time God said this, Joshua was between 85 and 100 years old! God wasn’t done with him and if we make ourselves available to Him, there will be plenty of work for us to do as well. With people being people, sin being sin, and the devil being the devil, we need not worry about whether or not there will be work for us when we retire.

The only question will be, “Have we spiritually prepared to do the work?” The answer, of course, will be “Yes!” if we start today building ourselves spiritually. And how do we do that?

It’s quite simple really: Get involved, be involved and stay involved in the spiritual health and growth of yourself, your family, your friends and your church. Start making “deposits” into your spiritual “bank” today and when your time comes to retire, you’ll be able to make “withdrawals” and use them to do God’s work.

Your regular investments will pay off in your ability to make a positive difference in the lives of those around you and your golden years will prove to be rewarding in ways you had never dreamed.

Retirement should only mean that now we are ready to go to work full time – for God.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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March 5

Posted on March 5, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the day to see what we believe.

“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.”  Psalm 27:13 NIV

When Jesus returns to earth, everyone will be able to see Him. It won’t matter whether we believe or not. When He comes for the final judgment of the world, all of us will know who He is and why He is here.

“’Look, He is coming with the clouds,’ and ‘every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him.’” (Revelation 1:7a NIV).

But why wait?

St. Augustine said, “Faith is believing what we do not see and the reward for this kind of faith is to see what we believe.”

We must all learn to “see” with our hearts, through the “eyes” of our faith. We must all grow in our love for God and each other until all that is before us is the beauty that God created and the glory of the gift of His love.

God is everywhere we look.

He is in every breath that we take.

He is in the sun that warms us, gives us light and helps things grow.

He is in the stars that are revealed to us when it is dark, that enable us to be awed at the vastness of all that He created.

And it is “By faith we understand the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what is visible.” (Hebrews 11:3 NIV).

Our faith will let us see God in everyone we meet. It will help us look beyond the pain of the world we live in to the promise of the world to come. Faith is the knowledge that every new day is a gift from God and is full of opportunities to praise Him, to worship Him, to glorify His name and to serve Him.

We could do none of these things without faith and the reward for that faith is the opening of our hearts that will let us face each new day in this life with the knowledge that when we open our eyes, God will be everywhere we look.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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March 4

Posted on March 4, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

a wonderful day to love your enemies.

“But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”  Luke 6:27-28 NASB

Not everything that God expects of us comes easily.

Sometimes, as in the case of loving our enemies, or those who have wronged us, the expectation is met with something less than enthusiasm. In fact, we often have a desire to do the exact opposite.

Jonah was that way. God wanted to use him to warn the people of Nineveh that their wickedness had not escaped God’s notice and appropriate punishment was headed their way if they did not change. Jonah so hated them that, instead of departing Jerusalem and heading east toward Nineveh, as God wanted, he boarded a ship that was headed to the west.

“But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord.” (Jonah 1:3a NLT).

This did not please God, of course, and He set upon the ship a deadly storm that threatened the lives of all on board. Jonah was discovered to be the cause of the storm and was thrown overboard. While the seas became calm once again for those on the ship, Jonah’s troubles were not over. God had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah, whereupon Jonah had three days and three nights to reflect upon his insistence to disobey God’s wishes. When the fish spit him out onto the beach, Jonah decided the best thing to do would be to go to Nineveh and warn them as God had wanted.

After Jonah warned the city, the inhabitants changed their ways and God decided not to destroy them. This angered Jonah. He could not understand why God would want to save the 120,000 people who lived lives that displeased Him. Jonah could not take joy in his part in saving them, so convinced he was of his own righteousness and the fact that they deserved destruction for their evil ways.

How could God not deliver the punishment Jonah felt they deserved?

God will punish but He is first and foremost a merciful God and He expects us to be merciful as well. It is easy to love those who return our love. It is much more difficult to be generous with our compassion and our kindness with those who have wronged us or who exhibit hate toward others.

The instructions of Jesus leave no room for equivocation or misinterpretation.

“You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.” (Luke 6:36 NLT).

Jesus asks of us nothing more than to follow His example.

The right thing for us to do is not always the easiest, but if it is the Lord’s wish, it most definitely should be ours as well.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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March 3

Posted on March 3, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the perfect day to work on a home worthy of God.

“But who can really build Him a worthy home?”  2 Chronicles 2:6a NLT

As we all know, God cannot be contained within any dwelling of any size.

Solomon acknowledged this fact but humbly accepted the task of doing his best to build a place of worship. Ninety feet long, thirty feet wide and thirty feet high, the gold used just to overlay the interior of the temple weighed “600 talents”, which calculates out to 46,000 pounds.

But does God require such a place?

What good is a fine temple overlaid with gold if the quality of the faith, the reverence and love of those who go there to worship is not equal to its value? At the same time, if the spirit of worship is vibrant and the love of God is obvious through the worshipers’ love of their fellow man, does it matter if the place of worship is a barn or a backyard or a storefront in a strip mall?

If the home built for God is lined with gold but inhabited by individuals more concerned with the value of their building than the value of the hearts in the building, then of what value is the building itself to God? Is it really a worthy place in which to ask Him to bless those who worship there?

If the walls were made of wood and the hearts of those who worshiped there used the gold to feed the hungry and house the homeless, would God not consider this to be a worthy place to call home?

Comfortable, welcoming, and functional are words that do not translate to expensive, flashy or ostentatious. Money spent on unnecessary adornments or luxuries is money not spent to do the work of God here on earth.

Do not judge a place of worship by its appearance or by the quality of the cars in the parking lot on Sunday. Find out about the work its members perform in God’s name and the prudent and effective use of the funds that are raised.

We wouldn’t want to donate $100 to a charity that spent $99 on administrative costs would we? So why would we spend money given to do God’s work on gold to impress God when God really cares less about what is on the walls than what is in our hearts.

The foundation of a home worthy of God begins in a person’s heart. A close relationship with God will help us learn how to build on that foundation and produce a home that is truly worthy of God.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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March 2

Posted on March 2, 2018 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the ideal day to think about the power of one.

“For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.”  Romans 5:19 NASB

There is certainly no questioning the awesome power of God.

At the same time, God wants us to know that individuals can be extremely powerful and wield great influence over others on this earth. He is aware that this influence can be a positive one or a negative one. The Bible stresses the importance of being a positive influence and that is what we should all strive for in our time in this world.

Unfortunately, many good people underestimate the power of one, so let’s take a look at just how powerful “one” can be.

One man’s disobedience brought condemnation down on the entire world.

Adam’s sin paved the way for all of the hate, anger, dishonesty, sexual immorality, separation from God, and death that mankind has experienced since.

Fortunately, God also gave us Jesus Christ and through Christ’s obedience, we have salvation, redemption, love, joy, peace, compassion, a restored relationship with God and the promise of eternal life.

Although none of us can claim the distinction of being the first human being created by God or the Son of God given to the world to save it from itself, each one of us has the ability to demonstrate to the rest of the world our desire to make a difference. That difference may not be as extreme, or affect every living being on the planet, as in the case of Adam or Jesus Christ, but we can still show those around us that we can – and do – have a positive Christian impact and they can too.

If we reach out in fellowship to others and encourage them to do the same, we will prove just how powerful “one” can be.

When Adam sinned, he brought sin into the world. Its impact is evident throughout the world on a daily basis.

Our duty as Christians is to simply do our part to eliminate it, to deny it the fertile soil of darkness it needs to grow and to spread the Word of God to others so that they, too, can experience the power of one.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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