A Feast For Your Soul

by Sheri Rose Shepherd

Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together.
— Revelation 3:14

Watch this week's video by clicking on the image below.

Do you feel like your life is being lived in fast-forward, or that your spiritual food tastes like bad fast food when you're craving a good meal? It may be that we are starving our soul and feeding our spirit artificial faith!

I can remember many years of committing to anything and everything that was asked of me—and on top of that list of commitments was my own personal unrealistic list. Being still was never on my list. I was raised with a father who was a mover and motivator. Being still was looked at as lazy in my driven Jewish family. Because I did not know how to be still, I lived every day overstressed and overcommitted.

Being still is not something many of us have mastered. We feel like we have too much to do to stop and spend time with God. Even those of us in ministry can become so focused on what we want to conquer for God, we forget to go to God and get refreshed. We underestimate the power of being still in His presence and dining with our Savior.

God's Letter to You
My Princess Warrior,

I am knocking at the door of your heart and hoping you will dine with me. If you will open the door I will come in. I prepared a feast for you my beloved. Will you accept my invitation? I long to feed your hungry soul until you are completely satisfied. Let your prince come in and nourish your spirit, your mind and your body. I am the only one who truly can.

Love
Your Prince & Savior

 

For more about Sheri Rose's ministry, visit HisPrincess.com.

Night Light for Couples - The Third Party

“No one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
1 Corinthians 3:11

To experience genuine love with our mate, we must bring a third party into the equation—Jesus Christ. Only through this spiritual connection with Him can we begin to fulfill all the potential of the relationship we call marriage.

Anyone who studies the Bible will recognize numerous principles woven throughout that apply to married life. Judeo‐Christian values have effectively guided men and women from the beginning. These values were inspired by the Creator Himself, the originator of the institution of marriage. No matter what society says, or how laws change, the precepts that make up this scriptural system remain the way to find love and happiness in life.

Establishing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is the critical first step toward attaining every meaningful goal, including the intimacy we all seek. If you haven’t already given your heart to Him, we urge you to do so. It will bring meaning and purpose to every dimension of your life—including your marriage. Tomorrow we’ll explain how.

Just between us…

• How have we been putting biblical principles to work in our marriage?
• How can I encourage you to spend more time in God’s Word?
• Have we both personally invited Jesus Christ to be Lord of our lives and of our marriage? If not, can we take that life‐changing step right now?

Lord Jesus, You are the foundation of our marriage. Help us look to You and Your strength in every way as we build a life together. Amen.

From Night Light For Couples, by Dr. James & Shirley Dobson
Copyright © 2000 by James Dobson, Inc. All rights reserved.

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His Princess Every Day - Believe

Devotionals for Women - Inspirational author and speaker Sheri Rose Shepherd imagines what a letter written from God to you would look like.

My Princess,

How many times I see you struggle to believe that I am here with you! What must I do to prove that I am who I say I am--and that you are mine? Can I paint you another sunset to kiss you good night? Can I place more stars in the sky to bring a sparkle in your eye? Can I comfort you one more night when you call out to me? Can I answer another prayer for my princess? I will do whatever it takes and I will never stop creating ways to prove to you I am here.

Love,
The one who is real

The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
The skies display his craftsmanship.
Day after day they continue to speak;
Night after night they make him known. - Psalm 19:1-2 (NIV)

This devotional is written by Sheri Rose Shepherd. All content copyright Sheri Rose Shepherd 2015. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Visit HisPrincess.com for devotionals, books, videos, and more from Sheri Rose Shepherd.

Standing Strong Through the Storm - THE WORD OF GOD IS LIFE

“The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” Isaiah 40:8

Amir, a young Algerian man, was temporarily staying in an apartment of a friend while recovering from depression. His friend had moved out leaving only a few items behind, but unbeknownst to him, he had left behind his most prized possession, God’s Word!

“While I was cleaning the apartment, I found a New Testament,” Amir says. “This New Testament changed my life. I found the Lord Jesus Christ by reading the book.” In the following months leading into years, he kept reading the Bible. Slowly, his depression lifted and the recovery and healing began to transform his life.

Amir continues, “One day I was watching Christian satellite TV and I saw the phone number of another Christian in Algeria. I immediately contacted that person and soon afterwards we met, which was great. This brother in Christ brought me into contact with a small group of believers, which I am attending regularly now. Praise to God for His healing and mercy. And thanks to the one who forgot his New Testament in the apartment.”

Meanwhile, Brother Gideon is in prison in Eritrea with a group of other believers because of their faith. He says, “The government representatives came up with a new idea to ask us to stop our faith and sign an agreement that we will not read the Bible. We will not pray and not have a meeting of more than two people. If we comply with that, we will sign and they will release us from the prison. But I told them I will not. Because of the Holy Spirit’s assurance in me I was ready to face anything…I said ‘No, Christ is my life. As Paul said in the book of Ephesians that for me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.’

“They beat every part of my body…until I almost died. I was thinking of Jesus. What an honor for me to share his affiliation. I remember I said to myself inside, ‘Lord, please forgive them. They don’t know what they are doing to me, but I give you my soul to rest in your hand.’

“They took us to the prison again. After three months we had a Bible smuggled in without their knowledge. We tore the pages out of different Bible books and we distributed those to different cells.

“We chose four believers to take responsibility to do distribution of the parts of the Bible. I was one of those four chosen believers and it was my responsibility to coordinate all these things. Because there is no paper in the prison cells, I was using toilet paper to write verses of the Bible and send them to others. When the government agents searched our cell, they found all those verses I sent to the sisters. They asked ‘Who sent those papers, those verses?’ When they found it was me, they put me under severe torture for months. There was no part of my body without pain.

“One of the persecutors asked me a question. ‘Why you are paying so big a price? Why don’t you renounce your faith and live a peaceful life?’ I replied, ‘To me, the Word of God is life!”

RESPONSE: Today I will honor and prize God’s Word and build my life upon its everlasting promises.

PRAYER: Pray for those in prisons around the world who pay a huge price for loving God’s Word.

Girlfriends in God - Choices Determine Destinies

by Sharon Jaynes

Today’s Truth

‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. (Matthew 25:21 NIV)

Friend to Friend

One day Jesus told a parable to a group of listeners. We’ve come to know it as the Parable of the Talents, but it is really more the Parable of the Three Choices. Jesus was explaining what the kingdom of heaven would be like in common terms.

For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey. Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents. In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more. But he who received the one talent went away, and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. (Matthew 25:14-18)

When the master returned home, he was well please with the two servants who had invested and doubled their talents, but he was furious with the one who hid his one talent in the ground.

‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scattered no seed. Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest. Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents’ (Matt. 25:26).

This story gives me chills every time I read it. For you see, God has given each and every one of us gifts . . . gifts that He has purposed for us to use, invest, and multiply. And I’m not just talking about money, but gifts in our inner being. He has given you talents and abilities that He expects you to use to further the kingdom and minister to others.

So what kept the servant with one talent from doing so? Fear. Giving into fear prevented him from investing what he had. I think the master would have been more pleased if the servant had said, “Lord, I invested the talent and unfortunately lost it all.” At least he would have tried. At least he would have made some effort.But the master saw him as evil and lazy.

Fear makes us lazy. Think about that a minute. A fearful person does little.

Moving forward despite the fear gets the spiritual couch potato out from under the afghan and into the life she was meant to live.

So here’s what I want us to think about today: Are we investing the gifts and talents that God has given us, or are we hiding them because of fear.

I don’t know about you, but I want to invest all I have and live bold. We’re going to pick back up on this in my next devotion, but for now, let’s ponder which servant we want to be.

Let’s Pray

Lord, thank You for entrusting me with gifts and talents. Sometimes I’m not sure what they are, but I pray that You will make them clear to me. Help me to be brave and share the talents that You have given me with others. I want to invest in other people and multiply the fruit in Your kingdom.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.

Now It’s Your Turn

Read Matthew 25:14-30 in your own Bible. Which servant do you resemble the most? Which servant do you want to resemble most?

How did the servants’ choices determine their destinies?

Here is a quote from Take Hold of the Faith You Long For: You either show fear the door, or it will bolt the lock to keep you out of the places God has prepared for you to go and do all that He has planned for you to do. Fear has no choice but to leave the premises when you stand on the promises of God and say, “You are not welcome here.” 

What area of your life do you need to “show fear the door?”

Click over to my Facebook page and leave a comment (not a message) and share your answer.

More from the Girlfriends

Today’s devotion was taken from my new book, Take Hold of the Faith you Long For: Let Go, Move Forward, Live Bold. A mediocre, mundane faith is not what you were made for! In Take Hold of the Faith You Long For, I reveal the most common reasons we get stuck in our Christian faith, living less than what we had hoped. I show you how to break free of all that holds you back, move forward with all that God promises, and live the adventurous faith of bold believing. It’s time to TAKE HOLD of all that Jesus has already taken hold of for you and placed in you! Click on the book cover to download a sample chapter and view a quick video. And if you’re looking for a new study for your women’s group or individual study, Take Hold includes a Bible Study guide in the back.

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Girlfriends in God
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Verse of the Day - July 06, 2016

Matthew 24:35 (NIV) Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

Read all of Matthew 24