July 31 Devotion - I trust in my God, The Father of my Saviour Jesus Christ

Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. ⁴ In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust;
I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?

في يوم خوفي انا عليك اتكل.

4 الله أفتخر بكلامه على الله توكلت فلا اخاف. ماذا يصنعه بي البشر.

Psalm 56:3-4

To the Christians of Iraq, Syria and Egypt and to all Christians who are persecuted or are in fear of persecution, let us put our trust in our God and remember that He is in control.

Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.

أليس عصفوران يباعان بفلسوواحد منهما لا يسقط على الارض بدون ابيكم

Matthew 10:29

Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.

عوضا عن خزيكم ضعفان وعوضا عن الخجل يبتهجون بنصيبهم. لذلك يرثون في ارضهم ضعفين. بهجة ابدية تكون لهم.

Isaiah 61:7

God sent these promises and words of encouragement to His people when they were going through a very difficult time in the Old Testament.

The question I asked myself was: do these words apply to us; the believers in His Son and our redeemer; today? Do they apply to the Christians who are persecuted today for their faith and killed and churches being burned? Do these words apply today to any Christian who is facing personal challenges?

I believe they do because:  

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  يَسُوعُ الْمَسِيحُ هُوَ هُوَ أَمْساً وَالْيَوْمَ وَإِلَى الأَبَدِ.

Hebrews 13:8

Let us therefore remember:

Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. ²³ They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.

اردد هذا في قلبي. من اجل ذلك ارجو.

22 انه من احسانات الرب اننا لم نفن. لان مراحمه لا تزول.

23 هي جديدة في كل صباح. كثيرة امانتك.

. I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings. Lord, great is thy faithfulness. God You care about Your children so much. If You care so much about the sparrows, how can I even think that you will not take care of Your people. Lord, I pray for the Christians of Iraq and around the world who are mourning the death of loved ones, for all of the Christians who were evacuated from their homes and lost all their earthly possessions, for all who are in fear and worry, fill their hearts with trust in You and a deep knowledge that Your compassions fail not, and they are renewed every morning. Strengthen us all God that we may say: Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! In Jesus’ mighty name I pray. Amen. 

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 30 Devotion - Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord.

Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20

. لاَ تَنْتَقِمُوا لأَنْفُسِكُمْ، أَيُّهَا الأَحِبَّاءُ، بَلْ دَعُوا الْغَضَبَ لِلهِ، لأَنَّهُ قَدْ كُتِبَ: «لِيَ الانْتِقَامُ، أَنَا أُجَازِي، يَقُولُ الرَّبُّ». ²⁰

Romans 12:19

To "avenge" is to take satisfaction for an injury by inflicting punishment on the offender.

The command is, to avoid a spirit and purpose of revenge. But this command in my opinion is not to be so understood that we may not seek for "justice" in a regular and proper way before civil tribunals.

If our character is assaulted, if we are robbed and plundered, if we are oppressed contrary to the law of the land, Christianity does not require us to submit to such oppression and injury without seeking our rights in an orderly and regular manner. If it did, it would be to give a premium to iniquity, to countenance wickedness, and require a person, by becoming a Christian, to abandon his/her rights.

 I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings. Judgment and vengeance is Yours Lord. Help me to forgive and to act in a Christ-like way without abandoning my rights. In Jesus’ name I pray.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 29 Devotion - By God's Grace not by my works

"I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”

 «الْحَقَّ الْحَقَّ أَقُولُ لَكَ: لاَ أَحَدَ يُمْكِنُهُ أَنْ يَرَى مَلَكُوتَ اللهِ إِلاَّ إِذَا وُلِدَ مِنْ جَدِيدٍ».

John 3:3

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Ephesians 2:8-9

فَإِنَّكُمْ بِالنِّعْمَةِ مُخَلَّصُونَ، بِالإِيمَانِ، وَهَذَا لَيْسَ مِنْكُمْ. إِنَّهُ هِبَةٌ مِنَ اللهِ،

⁹ لاَ عَلَى أَسَاسِ الأَعْمَالِ، حَتَّى لاَ يَفْتَخِرَ أَحَدٌ.

Your role                                                                     

1. Something to admit:

That you have sinned in the sight of God. (we all have)

2. Something to believe:

That Jesus Christ died on the cross bearing all the guilt and penalty of your sin.

3. Something to do:

Accept Jesus Christ to be Lord over your life, your Saviour to cleanse you, your friend to guide and be with you.
Revelation 3:20. Jesus is speaking, `Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him...
Jesus Christ waits outside the door of your life. He will not force his way in. He wants to be asked in. The handle of the door is on the inside; only you can open the door.

 I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings and love. Lord, In Your great mercy You have not given me the penalty I deserve. By Your grace You have given me what I do not deserve; repentance and faith in Jesus The Saviour and Lord and a new birth into a living hope. I am born again to a new life as God’s child. Praise be to You. Thank you for making it clear to me that only those who receive Jesus—not merely know about Him— but rely on Him for salvation, submitting to Him as Master, and loving Him as the supreme treasure—become God’s children. For by grace I have been saved through faith, and that not of myself; it is Your gift God, it is not by my good works, lest I should boast. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 28 Devotion- God's Grace

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.

2 Peter 1:2, Ephesians 2:8

 Grace in mentioned around 170 times in the Bible. I would like to study God’s Grace. It will take 4 devotions to cover it.

God’s Grace is:

A favour and an unfathomable gift that we receive from God even though we do not deserve it. It is God's unmerited favour.

God’s Grace is different from God’s Mercy.

Mercy is:

God withholding judgment and punishment that we deserve.

Because of God's mercy, we do not receive God’s  judgment against our sins;

Because of God's grace, we receive eternal life and a promise of heaven though we do not deserve them.

We receive both God’s Mercy and Grace through our Lord Jesus Christ.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings and love. Lord I praise You and glorify You. Thank You God for the riches of Your grace. Thank You that You have said that as Your child I can come boldly to Your throne of grace, and obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:16. Heavenly Father I come boldly to Your throne of grace and ask You to help me always seek first Your kingdom and Your righteousness, for Jesus said that when we seek them first, all other things will be added unto us. In Jesus’ name I pray. To Him be the power, the glory and the dominion forever and ever, Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 25 Devotion - Resolving Conflict

‘Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you’

Ephesians 4:32

وَكُونُوا لُطَفَاءَ بَعْضُكُمْ نَحْوَ بَعْضٍ، شَفُوقِينَ، مُسَامِحِينَ بَعْضُكُمْ بَعْضاً كَمَا سَامَحَكُمُ اللهُ فِي الْمَسِيحِ.

Anger is not intrinsically wrong (Matt. 21:12–17). Anger in response to sin and its ill effects is a form of righteous anger, but when it crosses over the boundary into bitterness or a spirit of vengeance, it is not honouring to God.

Our health and well-being are important reasons for quick resolution of an angry conflict; bitterness must definitely be avoided.

 I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings. Father please do not let anger control me and teach me to resolve conflict and to replace it with a  win-win alternative and to be tenderhearted toward the person I am having conflict with. Please work on his/her heart also. Lord, help me to get rid of any desire to get revenge, and to able to quickly forgive just as You God have forgiven me in Christ. Lord help me to realize that my total dependence on You to help me forgive is not an indication of weakness on my part, but a sign of strength and confidence in You and Your promises. In the name of my Lord and Saviour Jesus The Christ, the only begotten Son of God, I pray. To You Jesus be the power, the glory, the majesty, the blessings, and the dominion forever and ever, Amen.

Jesus loves you,
In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 24 Devotion - I take refuge in You, LORD

God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. Let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You.

اللهَ يَقُولُ: «لاَ أَتْرُكُكَ، وَلاَ أَتَخَلَّى عَنْكَ أَبَداً!» ويفرح جميع المتكلين عليك. الى الابد يهتفون وتظللهم. ويبتهج بك محبو اسمك.

Psalm 5:11, Hebrews 13:5

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

 Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings. My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. Psalm 121   Abba Father, Let all who take refuge in You be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread Your protection over them that those who love your name may rejoice in You. Psalm 5:11 Give ear to my words, O Lord, Give heed to the voice of my cry, My King and my God, For to You I will pray. Psalm 5:1-2  Those who know Your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9:10 Keep me safe, O God, for in You I take refuge. Psalm 16:1. I trust in Your promise God that You will never leave me nor forsake me. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

يَأْتِي عَوْنِي مِنْ عِنْدِ الرَّبِّ، صَانِعِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ.

وَيَبْتَهِجُ جَمِيعُ الْمُتَّكِلِينَ عَلَيْكَ. إِلَى الأَبَدِ يَتَرَنَّمُونَ، لأَنَّكَ تُظَلِّلُهُمْ بِحِمَايَتِكَ، فَيَفْرَحُ بِكَ الَّذِينَ يُحِبُّونَ اسْمَكَ.

وَيَتَّكِلُ عَلَيْكَ الَّذِينَ يَعْرِفُونَ اسْمَكَ، لأَنَّكَ يَارَبُّ لَمْ تَخْذُلْ طَالِبِيكَ.  لكلماتي اصغ يا رب. تامل صراخي.

استمع لصوت دعائي يا ملكي والهي لاني اليك اصلّي.احْفَظْنِي يَااَللهُ ، فَإِنِّي مُتَوَكِّلٌ عَلَيْك                

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 23 Devotion - God will repay us

I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—

واعوض لكم عن السنين التي اكلها الجراد

Joel 2:25

You may have had some or a lot of disappointments in your life; but instead of dwelling on the past and living in defeat, choose to focus on His promises because God wants to restore everything that's broken in your life. He wants to restore your joy, your peace, your health, and your finances. But here's the key: you have to have a vision for it and be renewed by the changing of your mind.

but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

بل تغيّروا عن شكلكم بتجديد اذهانكم لتختبروا ما هي ارادة الله الصالحة المرضية الكاملة.

Romans 12:1-2

Today, choose to focus on the future and release past hurts through forgiveness. Proclaim that you are a child of a loving God, a God of restoration!

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings and for choosing to restore my life. Thank You for the promises and truth of Your Word that set me free. Lord, I choose to focus on Your promises and I am convinced that You have already begun to repay me for the years that the locusts have eaten. Fill me with Your power and renew my mind today so that I may stand strong and move forward on the path You have designed for me. Father, all I need, You have already provided. I am open to receive Your blessings. Thank You for Your love for me. I love You, bless You and glorify You. In the name of The King of kings and Lord of lords, in the Holy Name of Jesus I pray. To Him be the glory and the power and the dominion forever and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 22 Devotion - Love God with all your strength

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment

وتحب الرب الهك من كل قلبك ومن كل نفسك ومن كل فكرك ومن كل قدرتك هذه هي الوصية الاولى

                                                                                                                    

Mark 12:30

What does it really mean to love God with all of my strength and what does the word ‘love’ in this context really mean?

I believe ‘love’ here means a reverent adoration toward God which is intense and steadfast, with passion and enduring loyalty.

In order for me to love God with all my strength, I need to reverently and passionately put all the gifts He has given me under His service. The gifts He has given me that I would put under His services include but are not limited to my abilities, resources, time, and energy. When I serve God it awakens love in me, and my love for God is continually refueled when I feel that I am pleasing Him. Since I treasure my relationship with the Lord, my actions reflect that.

In order to bring my life (ship) in from the storm, the rudder of my ship (my actions, deeds) needs to be my love for God with all my strength.

How do I do that? God teaches me that:

‘If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me’

My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

1 John 3:18, John 12:26

So my love for God with all my strength will be demonstrated by my actions and deeds in serving God and the rudder of my ship is controlled by following Jesus.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, I thank you for your abundant blessings. I praise You and glorify You. Lord, help me and teach me to love and serve You with all my strength in the way that pleases You. Lord, awaken love in me, and continually refuel my love for You. Help me to put under Your service all the gifts You have given me; with passion and enduring loyalty. Jesus I want to follow You and love You in deed and in truth. In Your mighty name Jesus I pray. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 21 Devotion - Love God with all your mind

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment

وتحب الرب الهك من كل قلبك ومن كل نفسك ومن كل فكرك ومن كل قدرتك هذه هي الوصية الاولى

                                                                                                                     Mark 12:30

In the last two devotions we covered how to ‘love God with all your heart’ and ‘love God with all your soul’. Today let’s discover how to ‘love God with all your mind.’

What does it really mean for me to love God with all my mind?

In order for me to love God with all my mind, I need to fill my mind with God’s Word. When I agree with God it awakens love in me, and my love for God is continually refueled when my mind encounters truth over and over again. When I use my mind to remember His qualities, and His love for me, I am putting love in my mind’s memory bank.

Since I treasure my relationship with the Lord, my thoughts and memory reflect that.

In order to bring my life (ship) in from the storm, the rudder of my ship (my thoughts and memory) needs to be my love for God with all my mind.

How do I do that? God teaches me that:

“I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,”

اجعل نواميسي في قلوبهم واكتبها في اذهانهم

Hebrews 10:16

So my love for God with all my mind will be demonstrated by my thoughts and memories of God in my life and the rudder of my ship is controlled by every Word that God has written in my mind.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, I thank you for your abundant blessings. I praise You and glorify You. Thank You God for writing Your laws in my mind. Lord, help me and teach me to fill my mind with Your Word and to be in agreement with it. Lord, awaken love in me, and continually refuel my love for You. Help me to use my mind to remember Your qualities, and Your love for me, and to store love for You in my mind’s memory bank. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 18 Devotion - Love God with all your soul

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment

وتحب الرب الهك من كل قلبك ومن كل نفسك ومن كل فكرك ومن كل قدرتك هذه هي الوصية الاولى

                                                     Mark 12:30

How should I/can I love God with all of my soul?

I researched the definition of ‘soul’ and came to the conclusion that the soul is the place where we make our decisions and choices that ultimately decide our behaviour.

If we treasure our relationship with the Lord our choices and behaviour will reflect that.

In order to bring my life (ship) in from the storm, the rudder (my choices and behaviour ) needs to be my love for God with all my soul.

How do I do that? Jesus teaches me that:

“If you love Me, keep My commandments.”

ان كنتم تحبونني فاحفظوا وصاياي .

John 14:15

So my love for God with all my soul will be demonstrated by my choice and behaviour in keeping His commandments in my life and the rudder of my ship is controlled by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

O my soul, you have said to the Lord, “You are my Lord, My goodness is nothing apart from You.”

قُلْتُ لِلرَّبِّ: «أَنْتَ سَيِّدِي. خَيْرِي لاَ شَيْءَ غَيْرُكَ».

Psalm 16:2

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, I thank you for your abundant blessings. I praise You and glorify You. Jesus help me and teach me to make the right decisions and choices. Strengthen me Lord to keep Your commandments and to love You with all my soul by living in a way that pleases you and is based on Your Word O’Lord. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 17 Devotion - Love God with all your Heart

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment

وتحب الرب الهك من كل قلبك ومن كل نفسك ومن كل فكرك ومن كل قدرتك هذه هي الوصية الاولى

                                                                                                                     Mark 12:30

When Jesus laid out the most important commandment for humanity, He started with loving the Lord with ALL of our hearts.

What does it really mean for me to love Jesus with all my heart?

The heart is where we keep our emotions, cares and desires. The rudder of my ship is my cares and desires.

In order to bring my life (ship) in from the storm, the rudder (my cares and desires) needs to be: my love for God with all my heart.

How do I do that? Jesus teaches me that:

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

لانه حيث يكون كنزك هناك يكون قلبك ايضا

Matthew 6:21

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, I thank you for your abundant blessings. I praise You and glorify You. Jesus help me and teach me to make You my undisputed treasure. Help me to have the discipline of spending time with You daily and give me the gift of treasuring this time and rejoicing to be in Your presence. I love You God and I want to increase this love by quantum leaps. I pray in Jesus' name, to Him be the power, the glory and the dominion forever and ever and unto ages of ages.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

July 16 Devotion - In The Son, not under the Sun

Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done
      And on the labor in which I had toiled;
      And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind.
      There was no profit under the sun.

ثم التفت انا الى كل اعمالي التي عملتها يداي والى التعب الذي تعبته في عمله فاذا الكل باطل وقبض الريح ولا منفعة تحت الشمس

. Ecclesiastes 2:11

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

قال له يسوع انا هو الطريق والحق والحياة .ليس احد يأتي الى الآب الا بي .

John 14:6

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings. Lord, please give me wisdom to learn from Solomon who ‘became great and excelled more than all who were before him’, yet found everything under the sun to be ‘vanity and grasping for the wind’.

Change my focus O’Lord from earthly glory to spiritual glory IN Your Son Jesus. I come to You Father in the name of Your Son Jesus acknowledging, declaring and confessing that Jesus is The way, The truth, and The life and that no one can come to You Father except through Jesus Christ my Lord and Saviour. Strengthen me Jesus and teach me to be content under all circumstances as You taught the Apostle Paul and to be able to face any situation with the belief that ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me’. In the name of The King of kings and Lord of lords, in the Holy Name of Jesus I pray. To Him be the glory and the power and the dominion forever and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein