December 31 Devotion - Our God of Restoration

Some of us, or all of us, have had some or many disappointments in 2025 and cannot wait for this year to end. Some of us may be dreading that the coming year or a portion of it will be a continuation of the troubles of 2025. We may be dwelling on the past and living in anger, grief, fear, and defeat. We can choose in this coming New Year 2026 to focus on God’s promises to us, because God wants to restore everything that's broken in our lives for He said:

I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten

واعوض لكم عن السنين التي اكلها الجراد

 

Joel 2:25

He wants to restore our connection with Him, our joy, our peace, our health, our relationships and our finances. There is however a key to receiving God’s blessings, each one of us has to believe (visualize with clarity receiving the blessings) for God said:

I am telling you, whatever things you ask for in prayer [in accordance with God’s will], believe [with confident trust] that you have received them, and they will be given to you.

لِذلِكَ أَقُولُ لَكُمْ: كُلُّ مَا تَطْلُبُونَهُ حِينَمَا تُصَلُّونَ، فَآمِنُوا أَنْ تَنَالُوهُ، فَيَكُونَ لَكُمْ

Mark 11:24

And each one of us must:

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, let us choose to release past hurts, let us believe in confident trust that we have received God’s answer to our prayers, let us be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Let us proclaim that we are children of a loving God, a God of restoration.

 

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for choosing to restore my life. Thank You for Your good, pleasing and perfect will for my life. Thank You for the promises and truth of Your Word that set me free. Lord please strengthen me with power through Your Spirit in my inner being, so that I can renew my mind today and visualize with clarity receiving all the blessings I desire which are in accordance with Your will for my life. Father, all I need You have already provided for, please let me experience Your blessings and restore all the lost years which the locusts have eaten. Thank You God for loving me with a deep, unfailing and everlasting love, thank You for Your abundant blessings in my life, and for the riches of Your grace upon my life. Father God I praise You, glorify You, revere You, worship You, I stand in awe of You, and I lift You up on high. Father I pray to You in the name of Your only begotten Son, my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To Jesus be the majesty, authority, power, glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

 

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

 

December 30 Devotion - God's plans for us

Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done…, For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.

 

مخبر منذ البدء بالاخير ومنذ القديم بما لم يفعل

لاني عرفت الافكار التي انا مفتكر بها عنكم يقول الرب افكار سلام لا شر لاعطيكم آخرة ورجاء.

Isaiah 46:10

Jeremiah 29:11

 

Everyone has challenges of one sort or another. As we are about to start the New Year 2026, let us not worry about the future and wish we could see it. God sees the end from the beginning, and He already knows the outcome, God never ends in defeat.

Whatever is happening in our lives now, let us remember that God’s promises never fade and…

 ‘We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.’

 

ونحن نعلم ان كل الاشياء تعمل معا للخير للذين يحبون الله الذين هم مدعوون حسب قصده.

 

 

Let us respond to Jesus’ invitation to ‘come’ to Him and depend totally on Him and receive our rest in Him:

Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest.

تَعَالَوْا إِلَيَّ يَا جَمِيعَ الْمُتْعَبِينَ وَالثَّقِيلِي الأَحْمَالِ، وَأَنَا أُرِيحُكُمْ

 

Matthew 11:28

 

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, You declare the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done. Thank You Lord that the thoughts and plans You have for me in 2026 and beyond are thoughts and plans for welfare and peace to give me hope in Your final outcome. Thank You Lord that You have called me according to Your purpose for my life. Father God, please strengthen my faith to know beyond a doubt that all things will work for good for me in 2026 because I love You Lord. Lord I am holding You to Your promises. Jesus, please teach me to ‘come’ to You and leave all my troubles at the foot of Your Cross and receive Your rest. Teach me to wait upon You LORD because You said that ‘they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 Thank You Jesus that You have asked The Father and He has sent me The Comforter to live in my heart. My Heavenly Father, In the multitude of my anxieties within me, Your comforts delight my soul. Psalm 94:19 In Jesus’ name I pray to You Father. To Jesus be the power, the glory, the majesty, and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

December 29 Devotion - Your thoughts impact your destiny

Finally, believers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable and worthy of respect, whatever is right and confirmed by God’s word, whatever is pure and wholesome, whatever is lovely and brings peace, whatever is admirable and of good repute; if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think continually on these things [center your mind on them, and implant them in your heart]. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, 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.                                                          

وَخِتَاماً، أَيُّهَا الإِخْوَةُ: كُلُّ مَا كَانَ حَقّاً، وَكُلُّ مَا كَانَ شَرِيفاً، وَكُلُّ مَا كَانَ عَادِلاً، وَكُلُّ مَا كَانَ طَاهِراً وَكُلُّ مَا كَانَ مُسْتَحَبّاً، وَكُلُّ مَا كَانَ حَسَنَ السُّمْعَةِ، وَكُلُّ مَا كَانَ فِيهِ فَضِيلَةٌ وَخَصْلَةٌ حَمِيدَةٌ، فَاشْغِلُوا أَفْكَارَكُمْ بِهِ.

وَلا تَتَشَبَّهُوا بِهَذَا الْعَالَمِ، بَلْ تَغَيَّرُوا بِتَجْدِيدِ الذِّهْنِ، لِتُمَيِّزُوا مَا هِيَ إِرَادَةُ اللهِ الصَّالِحَةُ الْمَقْبُولَةُ الْكَامِلَةُ.

Philippians 4:8, Romans 12:2

 When we choose to think about those things that inspire us, encourage us, teach us, and build us up emotionally, we find that we want to follow God’s will and we remain faithful to Him. When we choose to think about the majesty and glory of God, we rely upon Him with increasing faith and trust.

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, help me Lord to think the way You want me to think, to constantly think positive and pleasant thoughts of people and circumstances. Help me to concentrate on Your love for me and feel Your joy in my heart. Help me to think thoughts of obedience and discipleship. Thank You Father for loving me with a deep and everlasting love, thank You for Your abundant blessings in my life, and for the riches of Your grace upon my life. Father God, I praise You, revere You, worship You, I stand in awe of You, I lift You up on high, and glorify Your Holy Name. In the Holy Name of Jesus, I pray. I declare Jesus as my Lord and Saviour, to Jesus be the power, the glory, the majesty, the blessings, and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.  

 

In Him,

Wagdi Henein

 

December 26 Devotion - Blessed is She Who Believed

Now Maryam* arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, ⁴⁰ and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Maryam, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴² Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³ But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. ⁴⁵ Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”

 

وَفِي تِلْكَ الأَيَّامِ، قَامَتْ مَرْيَمُ وَذَهَبَتْ مُسْرِعَةً إِلَى الْجِبَالِ، قَاصِدَةً إِلَى مَدِينَةٍ مِنْ مُدُنِ يَهُوذَا. 

 40 فَدَخَلَتْ بَيْتَ زَكَرِيَّا وَسَلَّمَتْ عَلَى أَلِيصَابَاتَ.

 41 وَلَمَّا سَمِعَتْ أَلِيصَابَاتُ سَلاَمَ مَرْيَمَ، قَفَزَ الْجَنِينُ دَاخِلَ بَطْنِهَا. وَامْتَلَأَتْ أَلِيصَابَاتُ مِنَ الرُّوحِ الْقُدُسِ،

 42 وَهَتَفَتْ بِصَوْتٍ عَالٍ قَائِلَةٍ: «مُبَارَكَةٌ أَنْتِ بَيْنَ النِّسَاءِ! وَمُبَارَكَةٌ ثَمَرَةُ بَطْنِكِ!

 43 فَمِنْ أَيْنَ لِي هَذَا: أَنْ تَأْتِيَ إِلَيَّ أُمُّ رَبِّي؟

 44 فَإِنَّهُ مَا إِنْ وَقَعَ صَوْتُ سَلاَمِكِ فِي أُذُنَيَّ حَتَّى قَفَزَ الْجَنِينُ ابْتِهَاجاً فِي بَطْنِي:

 45 فَطُوبَى لِلَّتِي آمَنَتْ أَنَّهُ سَيَتِمُّ مَا قِيلَ لَهَا مِنْ قِبَلِ الرَّبِّ! »

 

 * Jesus spoke Aramaic. In Aramaic His mother’s name is Maryam.

Luke 1:39-45

We know from the above Bible verses that Maryam went to visit Elizabeth. The open question to me is why did Maryam decide to travel while pregnant to visit Elizabeth?  The outcome of the visit was beneficial to Maryam; and all of us; because the welcome which Elizabeth, by the Spirit of prophecy, gave to Maryam, the mother of our Lord; was not as to a common friend making a common visit, but as to one of whom the Messiah was to be born. Obviously, the visit was also beneficial to Elizabeth too. The answer to my question of why may be: that it was a visit created and made possible by The Holy Spirit.

A lesson that we can learn could be as follows:  It is very beneficial for those of us that grace has begun in their souls, and Christ is in the forming there, to consult those who are in the same condition, that they may communicate experiences one to another; Christian to Christian.

 

I invite you to repeat the following prayer for yourself:

Abba Father, thank You for loving me with a deep and everlasting love. Lord, You blessed Maryam, the Mother of Jesus, and did great things for her. Help me Lord to learn from the mother of our Lord to be humble and to get rid of all pride within me. Lord I join the blessed mother of our Lord Jesus in saying: ‘My soul magnifies You God and my spirit rejoices in my Saviour’. Teach me to hear Your voice God and to believe in the fulfillment of the things which I will hear from You. Father God thank You for Your abundant blessings in my life, and for the riches of Your grace upon my life. I declare Jesus as my Lord and Saviour, to Him be the power, the glory, the majesty, the blessings, and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.