Happy Thursday

LIONS

By Ray Naidoo

"Be vigilant, watch. Your adversary {the} devil as a roaring lion walks about seeking whom he may devour." 1 Peter 5:8 (KJV) 

"My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocence was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt." Daniel 6:22 (KJV) 

I feel shame to admit defeat in my life but it has been the story of my life. It is always up and down without any sign of calm ahead. My faith has been sometimes almost non-existent and I question where I am going and where is God. 

But the startling revelation in all this is that God loves me but the devil hates me. I am a child of God and in all the struggles I faced, I gave the devil a foothold into my life. He took no time to make himself at home creating chaos. But another startling revelation was that it wasn't all the devil's doing, much of it was me. I moved away from God when things were tough. Then this scripture just kept on playing in my heart. I never thought of these two scriptures together before and how much sense it makes. 

The devil is like a roaring lion seeking his prey. When we let go of our Protector, God, we become helpless, we become easy targets. The devil's hunger is never filled until all of God's people are devoured. 

God is our refuge and shelter. He protects and provides for our every need. Jesus said that all the power and authority has been given to Him in heaven and earth. The devil has no power over you, no authority over your life. God meets us at our point of weakness while the devil tries to break when we are already down and out. 

The devil is like a roaring lion but remember God can shut the mouth of the lion. So take time today and see where you are in your life. Maybe, like me, you need to return to where you are supposed to be... 

Remember: God does not move away from us, we move away from Him. 

Prayer:
"Dear Lord, Thank you for your word today. Forgive us, Father, for not holding on to your love in our lives. Help us overcome our difficulties. Shut the mouths of the lions in our lives. Take full control in our lives today. In Jesus' precious name...Amen." 

 

"Often times God demonstrates His faithfulness in adversity by providing
for us what we need to survive.  We are never alone.

Bring Them In
Hark! ’tis the Shepherd’s voice I hear
Out in the desert dark and drear,
Calling the sheep who’ve gone astray
Far from the Shepherd’s fold away.

Refrain

      Bring them in, bring them in,
      Bring them in from the fields of sin;
      Bring them in, bring them in,
      Bring the wand’ring ones to Jesus.

Who’ll go and help this Shepherd kind,
Help Him the wand’ring ones to find?
Who’ll bring the lost ones to the fold,
Where they’ll be sheltered from the cold?

Refrain

Out in the desert hear their cry,
Out on the mountains wild and high;
Hark! ’tis the Master speaks to thee,
“Go find My sheep where’er they be.”

Refrain

Daily Smile:

In the middle of a forest, there was a hunter who was suddenly confronted by a huge, mean bear.

In his fear, all attempts to shoot the bear were unsuccessful. Finally, he turned and ran as fast as he could. The hunter ran and ran and ran, until he ended up at the edge of a very steep cliff. His hopes were dim.

Seeing no way out of his predicament, and with the bear closing in rather quickly, the hunter got down on his knees, opened his arms, and exclaimed, "Dear God! Please give this bear some religion!"

The skies darkened and there was lightning in the air. Just a few feet short of the hunter, the bear came to abrupt stop, and glanced around, somewhat confused.

Suddenly, the bear looked up into the sky and said, "Thank you God, for the food I'm about to receive..."