Devotional

John 21: Follow Me

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Journaling Through John Fall Picture leaves falling

“As for you, follow Me.” John 21:20. (NLT)

Jesus appears to some of His disciples for a third time. They are out in their boats and are not catching any fish. Jesus calls to them from the shore and tells them to throw their nets to the right side. They do what He says and their nets are filled. Peter swims to shore to be with Jesus.

Jesus asks Peter 3 times if He loves Him. Peter replies, yes each time. The third time, Peter is a little frustrated that He keeps asking Him, because He does love Him and has said yes. Jesus reply is to tell Peter, then “feed my sheep.” He is calling Peter to go and continue His ministry to people.

Another disciple is there and Peter asks Jesus, “What about him?” And Jesus replies in verse 22, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? As for you, follow Me.” Jesus is letting Peter know He needs to mind his own business and do what he is called to do. What the other does or does not do is none of his concern.

What a great reminder for me today. There are things God has called me to do. His plans and purposes for my life don’t match anyone else’s. What others do is not my concern. I must follow Him and obey the call and commands He has placed in my life. My life won’t look the same as anyone else’s. I can’t compare what I have done or have not done to others accomplishments.

Thank you Lord today for the plans and purpose you have for my life. I pray for a continued desire and determination to go after those things you are calling me to. May I not fall into the temptation to compare myself to others. I pray that I would keep my eyes fixed on you and follow where you go. Amen.

What is God speaking to you today in chapter 21 of John? Share your insights in the comment section below.

John 17: His Prayer for Me

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“I am in them You are in Me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent Me and that You love them as much as you love Me.” John 17:23. (NLT)

This chapter is a prayer from Jesus. He knows the time has come for Him to fulfill His purpose. He prays for His disciples and in verse 20 He says,, “I am praying not only for these disciples, but also for all who will ever believe in Me.” Which means He is praying for me in this chapter. His words to His Father are for me! For my life! Today! Right now! In this moment! His words are for me!

In verse 23 He says He is in Me. His presence and power fills me today. It’s His presence that strengthens me and holds me. I am so very grateful for the assurance I have that He is in me.

He prays that we, those who believe He is who He says He is, will experience “such perfect unity”. SO THAT, “the world will know that You sent Me and that you love them as much as You love Me.” Our unity as believers will show the world Jesus and the greatness of His love!

There is and has been, such a need for the peace, hope and joy that Jesus brings. i believe He truly is the answer to all we need. Jesus prays for perfect unity and when I look around me I see a lot of disunity. I see the division among believers, those who believe and know the presence and power of Jesus. How different would our world look if we could be in “perfect unity?”

I pray today for the presence of Jesus to be greater in my life. I pray that I will be slow to speak and quick to listen. I pray for His peace to be in me, with Me and that it will be evident where I go. I pray that as much as possible, that I live peaceably with everyone (romans 12:18). And I pray for His presence to strengthen me. I want to be a woman who is lead by the Spirit, who speaks and responds by the leading of the Spirit. I pray He is greater and I am less. Amen.

What is God speaking to you today in chapter 17 of John? Share in the comment section below.

John 9: Now I See

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“I know this, I was blind, but now I can see.”  John 9:225 NLT

This is one of my favorite stories in the Bible.  A man who is born blind is healed by Jesus.  I wonder what that moment was like? Being born blind means you’ve never seen color, depth, shape or even your own reflection.  Then, in a moment you can see it all.   Seriously, think about that moment, going from no sight to seeing clearly for the first time!  It had to be crazy awesome! Although I was not born blind, I have lost most of my vision and wonder what this moment will be like? The moment I can say, “I was blind, but now I can see!”

And then, isn’t it just like the religious to question and try to disqualify the power and presence of Jesus!  And that is what happens here in this chapter.  Verse 16 says, “there was a deep division among them.”  The division was among the Pharisees, the religious leaders.  Some felt that there was no way Jesus was from God because He performed a miracle on the Sabbath. And others said an ordinary sinner do such miraculous signs? And so there self-righteous attitude kept them divided and they missed the miracle.

I can’t help but think about the division we are experiencing today in our nation.  And most heartbreaking is the division we are experiencing within the Church.  Have we, have I become so confident in my own beliefs and opinions that I fail to see the greater work of Jesus here all around me?  Am I so strongly stuck to my own idea of what is wrong with everyone, that I miss the opportunity to expand the Kingdom of God?

In verse 39 Jesus says, “I entered this world to render judgement, to give sight to the blind and to show those who think they can see that they are blind.”  I’m asking myself today, what do I think I can see, but is really a mirage I’ve made up, because really, I am blind?  In the medical field this is called the Charles Bonnet Syndrome.  This is when someone with little or no sight sees, or rather, thinks they see something that isn’t there.  For example, like looking through a doorway and seeing a person because you heard someone talking and assume somewhere in your subconscious that he or she is standing there. So, today I’m wondering, where in the Spirit do I think I see, but really am blind?  When have I allowed my own thoughts and opinions to taint my witness?  Where am I so confidently prideful in my own accomplishments, that I’m missing the miraculous move of Christ? And where have I allowed my judgement of others to become more prevalent than Christ love for them to flow through me?

Lord, open my eyes to see what you see.  Give me supernatural sight to see beyond the physical.  Lord, I want to see where I’ve missed it.  Reveal those blind spots to me and change me.  Help me to love like you love. Amen.

What is God speaking to you today?  Share your thoughts and insights in the comments below!

John 3: Eternal Life

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“For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.  God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through Him. John 3:16-17 (NLT)

God sent His only Son to save me from the judgement that I deserve.  His sacrifice was perfect and complete.  My response is to believe He is who He says He is.  By faith, I believe His love was so great that He made a way for me to have eternal life separate from sin.

My hope is in this eternal promise.  I recognize that today, this life here on earth is not all there is.  When troubles come, difficulties rise up, despair and hopelessness call out to me, uncertainty shakes me, it’s this gift of Jesus that makes hope alive in me.

I have hope today because of this great gift of love!  It is by faith and not by sight, that I believe Jesus is real.  It is His presence that holds me and stills my soul.  I am so thankful for knowing the Truth today.

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of your Son, Jesus.  I know I am a sinner who is in need of a Savior.  I welcome you into my life and my heart.  Thank you for forgiveness and for eternal life with You. Amen.

What is God speaking to you today in chapter 3 of John?  Share your thoughts in the comments below.

John 2: Perspective

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“Jesus replied, “Destroy this temple and in 3 days I will raise it up.”  “What!” They exclaimed. “It has taken 46 years to build this temple and you can build in in 3 days?”  But when Jesus said “this temple” he meant His own body.”  John 2:19-21. (NLT)

Jesus had just cleared the temple of merchants selling and dealers making exchanges of money.   He used a whip and scattered all their merchandise, livestock and their coins.  He told them to stop turning His Father’s house into a marketplace.

The Jewish leaders were not happy.  They demanded that if God gave Him authority then He needed to show them a miraculous sign.  Jesus replied, “Destroy this temple and in 3 days I will raise it up” (V. 19).. There was just no way He could rebuild them temple that took 46 years to build in only 3 days.  But what they didn’t yet understand was that Jesus was referring to His own body.  Later, after Jesus resurrection, the disciples would remember this and believe  what He had said (v. 22).

This story has lead me to think about perspective.  Jesus said ‘tear down this temple,” and the Jewish leaders believed He was referring to the physical building.  Jesus was speaking of His own body that would be broken, killed and resurrected.  What a profound difference, not just in the reality, but in the significance and impact.

As 2020 continues and changes and uncertainties abound.  I’m stepping back and asking the Lord to give me a new perspective.  I want to step back and take a wider view of what is happening.  Much of what I am spending my time on may not have an eternal value, so what can I surrender?  There are inconveniences that I am facing that have no eternal value, so why allow myself to get so worked up about them?   Some of the things I think need to happen or not happen, have no eternal value, so why not just let those things go.  I must pause and wait to see where the Lord is moving and leading.

I pray today for a shift in my perspective from worry and focusing on things that will pass away, to a focus on eternal and lasting things.   I’m looking to the Holy Spirit and the Word for my peace, provision, hope and for my future.   Amen.

What is God speaking to you today through chapter 2 of John?  Share your thoughts in the comment section below.