Word Of Encouragement To Start The Day (Monday 01/04/10)

Today’s Devotional Written By an Enlightened Young Woman: Tracy Koweh

Calvary Wasn’t Cheap or Free

James 1:2-4 (New Living Translation)

² Dear brothers and sisters,^[a] when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. ³ For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. ⁴ So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

Today’s message in the music comes from Syleena Johnson’s song “Guess What”. The chorus says: “Wanna play the boss (Guess what), You got to pay the cost (Sho' 'nuff), You wanna wear the pants (Guess what) You got to be a man (Sho' 'nuff).”

As we begin this year of 2010 a lot of us have many expectations that we are waiting on God to fulfill, but how many of us have totaled up the cost of Cavalry. Sunday our Bishop warned us that biblically the number ten meant tests, and that in this year the Lord was going to require us to take a final exam before allowing us access to the benefits of Calvary.

So many times we want the accolades, praise and respect that comes with graduating at the top of our class, but we don’t want to show up for class, complete our assignments or take the final exam. The same is true in our spiritual lives, we expect all of the benefits of the cross, but we don’t want to live right, be in order, or walk in obedience at all times. In this new year, just as we are expecting mountain moving miracles from God, He is expecting and requiring faithful obedient wills from us.

We testify we walk in God’s healing, but one report from the doctors’ office causes us to question God. In front of the people we proclaim that God is the provider of all of our needs, but behind closed doors we wrestle with paying our tithes or our creditors. It’s easy to perpetrate the blessings of God, but it requires true faith and trust in Him, to stand when tests and trials come.

Today as we enter into the first Monday of the year, let us check out our own inventory and see what areas we need to strengthen to be better witnesses for Christ. Let us not take a list of what we want/need from God, but let us retrieve a list of what God wants/needs of us straight from His throne.