Jesus Calling: April 24

     Rest in the stillness of My Presence while I prepare you for this day. Let the radiance of My Glory shine upon you, as you wait on Me in confident trust. Be still and know that I am God. There is both a passive and an active side to trusting Me. As you rest in My Presence, focusing on Me, I quietly build bonds of trust between us. When you respond to the circumstances of your life with affirmations of trust, you actively participate in the process.
     I am always with you, so you have no reason to be afraid. Your fear often manifests itself in excessive planning. Your mind is so accustomed to this pattern of thinking that you are only now becoming aware of how pervasive it is and how much it hinders your intimacy with Me. Repent of this tendency and resist it, whenever you realize you are wandering down this well worn path. Return to My Presence, which always awaits you in the present moment. I accept you back with no condemnation. 

Psalm 46:10
English Standard Version

“Be still, and know that I am God.
    I will be exalted among the nations,
    I will be exalted in the earth!”

Verse thoughts
I think the key for me is to be still and know that God is with me, that His presence is with me, throughout all of life's circumstances. And to realize that God has brought particular circumstances into my life so that I will know that I can trust in God's person and trust in God's plan.

Romans 8:1
English Standard Version

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Verse thoughts
Condemnation is to judge, discriminate or pronounce sentence against. And so there is no judgment or there is no pronouncement of a sentence against me. Why? Because I am in Christ Jesus. A change has occurred and so judgment, talked about in Romans 2, doesn't have a hold on me any longer. What an incredible comfort in my life that I don't really comprehend until I see who I am in Christ. I have escaped death.

It's the Christian that sees that he has escaped death because the Christian knows what it is to be dead. I think this is an important point. As I talk to people that are seemingly lost (apart from Christ), it is hard for them to see they are lost. And it is hard for them to see any danger for them remaining where they are at - in Adam.

This is why it is so important to read and meditate on the scripture. When I don't read it and meditate on it, then I am really living in Adam, with all of my focus on life and how my life should improve. This is the way the world lives. The world is all about self-improvement. The Prince of the World--Satan--deceives people into thinking life is all about self-improvement.  When we are reading God's Word and studying it, there is a shift in our life from self-improvement to self-awareness. This moves me to embrace people and be concerned about them.

My Prayer
Lord, it is hard for me to comprehend your words to me of 'no condemnation.' But, it makes me love you more. I know that I can return to you and that there is nothing in my life so grave, so ill, so bad that you will not forgive me and open back up your arms for me. I pray that I would respond to the circumstances of life trusting You and not by being afraid. It is hard because there are so many things that come up in my life that are unpredictable and unsettling and uncomfortable and I am so weak. Give me your strength. I do pray that I can rest in You each day. And that I will believe more and more each day that I am in Christ and all I need is You.

Note: The devotion and scriptures are from author Sarah Young. If you haven't already, please purchase the book and support the author.  

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