September 14 Devotion - Abundance

Jesus said:

“Give and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

أَعْطُوا، تُعْطَوْا: فَإِنَّكُمْ تُعْطَوْنَ فِي أَحْضَانِكُمْ كَيْلاً جَيِّداً مُلَبَّداً مَهْزُوزاً فَائِضاً، لأَنَّهُ بِالْكَيْلِ الَّذِي بِهِ تَكِيلُونَ، يُكَالُ لَكُمْ».

Luke 6:38

God applies what He preaches. He is a God of abundance! He is always giving us; He wants to pour out His abundance on us until we are so full that we are running over with His abundance.

We should notice however that Jesus said: "Give and it will be given to you." We need to start giving. Giving is not just financial. Spiritual, emotional, acts of service are included and required.

When we plant an orange seed, God gives us an orange tree with a single orange…No, he gives us an orange tree with an abundance of oranges. If we plant many orange seeds we can get an orange grove. That's what happens when we obey God in our giving, we get an abundant harvest in return and when we give some away, the cycle repeats itself.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings and inseparable love. Thank You for the gift that no one else can give, salvation through Jesus Christ. Help me to be a blessing to others and to give in the same way I want to receive, a good measure that is exceeding expectations. Father God please help me to open the door to Your abundance in all areas of my life. I declare Jesus as my Lord and Saviour and I pray in His Holy Name. To Jesus be the power, the glory, the majesty, the blessings, and the dominion forever and ever, Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

September 13 Devotion - Reconciled with God

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

وَكُلُّ شَيْءٍ هُوَ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللهِ الَّذِي صَالَحَنَا مَعَ نَفْسِهِ بِالْمَسِيحِ، ثُمَّ سَلَّمَنَا خِدْمَةَ هَذِهِ الْمُصَالَحَةِ.

 ¹⁹ ذَلِكَ أَنَّ اللهَ كَانَ فِي الْمَسِيحِ مُصَالِحاً الْعَالَمَ مَعَ نَفْسِهِ، غَيْرَ حَاسِبٍ عَلَيْهِمْ خَطَايَاهُمْ، وَقَدْ وَضَعَ بَيْنَ أَيْدِينَا رِسَالَةَ هَذِهِ الْمُصَالَحَةِ.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19 

To reconcile is to exchange enmity for friendship, and it usually requires that the cause of enmity or hostility be removed. The cause of hostility between God and man was removed by Jesus taking on the sins of the world. Peace is not merely that state of calmness and ease which we seek in desperate times. It is ultimately the condition that can exist between God and man because of the redeeming work of Christ who through the Cross reconciled us with God.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings. Thank You Jesus for the precious gift of reconciliation and peace that You gave me through the Cross. Without this gift of grace I was separated from God. In Jesus’ name I pray. To Him who is able to keep me from stumbling and to present me before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy, to the only God our Saviour be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore. Amen. Jude 1:24-25

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

September 12 Devotion - ABCD

If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. ⁴¹ And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. ⁴² Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. ⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

وَمَنْ أَرَادَ أَنْ يُخَاصِمَكَ وَيَأْخُذَ ثَوْبَكَ فَاتْرُكْ لَهُ الرِّدَاءَ أَيْضاً.41. وَمَنْ سَخَّرَكَ مِيلاً وَاحِداً فَاذْهَبْ مَعَهُ اثْنَيْنِ.

42. مَنْ سَأَلَكَ فَأَعْطِهِ وَمَنْ أَرَادَ أَنْ يَقْتَرِضَ مِنْكَ فَلاَ تَرُدَّهُ.    وَسَمِعْتُمْ أَنَّهُ قِيلَ: تُحِبُّ قَرِيبَكَ وَتُبْغِضُ عَدُوَّكَ. ⁴⁴ أَمَّا أَنَا فَأَقُولُ لَكُمْ: أَحِبُّوا أَعْدَاءَكُمْ، وَبَارِكُوا لاَعِنِيكُمْ، وَأَحْسِنُوا مُعَامَلَةَ الَّذِينَ يُبْغِضُونَكُمْ، وَصَلُّوا لأَجْلِ الَّذِينَ يُسِيئُونَ إِلَيْكُمْ وَيَضْطَهِدُونَكُمْ،

Matthew 5:40-44

At one of my work assignments, the organization encouraged people to go beyond their job descriptions and their objectives. When a person did that they got an ABCD award. Above and Beyond the Call of Duty.

How can we get an ABCD award in our Christian life when the bar is as high as Jesus puts it? On our own we cannot because we cannot even meet the bar that Jesus has set. In my opinion these verses are there to teach us three things:

·     One lesson is: that is the nature of God. That is how He loves and treats us.

·     The second is: to show us that on our own we cannot but through The Holy Spirit we can.

·     The third is: that we can never do enough works to enter heaven, we need the Grace of God demonstrated by the justification we experience through the death of Jesus in our place.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for Your abundant blessings and inseparable love. Lord, thank You for Your gifts from the lowest pulsation of life to the highest powers of action and of continued existence. God, I acknowledge my constant and absolute dependence on You for in You Lord I live and move and have my being. Acts 17:28 Lord, strengthen me with power through Your Spirit in my inner being to go the extra mile and to be generous toward others. Thank You Jesus that you sympathize with my weaknesses and that You are my high priest to whom I take my needs, and through You Jesus I can come boldly to God’s throne of grace. Keep me safe, O God, for in You I take refuge. Psalm 16:1 Let all who take refuge in You be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread Your protection over us 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. In Jesus’ mighty name I pray. To Him be the power, the glory and the dominion forever and ever, and unto ages of all ages. Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

September 11 Devotion - Keeping our faith high

So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

فنرى انهم لم يقدروا ان يدخلوا لعدم الايمان

Hebrews 3:19

As Christian believers, faith is the foundation of our relationship to God.

Ways of keeping our faith high:

     •     Understanding the nature of God

     •     Remembering God’s power

     •     Focusing on Jesus and not our obstacles

We need to fill our minds with God’s truth. When we know the character of our heavenly Father, we will be prepared to respond with spiritual maturity when our faith is tested. As we plan to spend time with God today, let us focus on His characteristics which He has shown us.

The Lord longs for us to know and trust Him so that His perfect will may be carried out in our lives.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, I confess that there are situations and events in my life which I fear. I pray that out of Your glorious riches You strengthen me and spiritually energize me with power through Your Spirit in my innermost being and personality, so that I can immerse myself in Your truth and that my strengthened faith in You will carry me through. Replace my focus on my obstacles Lord and shift it to Your love, mercy, grace, faithfulness, graciousness, power, wisdom and goodness. Father God, I thank You for loving me with a deep and everlasting love, thank You for Your abundant blessings and for the riches of Your grace upon my life. Now to Him who is able to carry out His purpose and do infinitely beyond our greatest prayers, hopes, or dreams, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever. Ephesians 3:20-21 (AMP) Amen.

Jesus loves you,

In Him,

Wagdi Henein