RAISE UP THE STANDARD!
"To Him Who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious Presence without fault and with great joy - to the Only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen." (Jude 24)
Morning Devotion: Feasting in His Presence - Read John 15:7-8
Jesus used the word "abide" ("remain") eleven times in the explanation of this, the seventh of His self-descriptive "I am" statements: "I am the true Vine" (reference John 15:1-11). To "abide" means to live, or to dwell; the Greek word means "to stay in expectancy." To expound on what it means to abide in Christ then, one could say that in doing so, we allow the life of Christ to live inside of us so much so that we live in constant anticipation of what He is doing in and through us. The evidence that His life is within us, and that He is indeed working in us, is the presence and production of His spiritual fruit in our lives (reference Galatians 5:22-23). In addition, a believer who is abiding in Christ, is a life that is alive and is no stranger to the painful pruner's shears, but whose life is also evidenced by answered prayer.
"If you remain in Me and My words remain in you,
ask whatever you wish, and it will be given to you.
This is to My Father's glory, that you bear much fruit,
showing yourselves to be My disciples."
(John 15:7-8)
The Lord wants living, loving, and productive disciples. He went to the cross and was crucified, and He died and was buried; but He didn't stay in the grave, no, He was Resurrected from the dead and our Savior is alive! That Resurrection life, that cost Him heavens greatest price, is the life He has deposited within us and now we can truly live. We have no excuse for a weak, powerless, and lifeless existence. We, who have believed, have the glory of God dwelling inside us and our lives are now meant to be used for His glory. Just as a branch draws life from the main trunk of the tree, so we are to draw life each day from our true Vine. We do this by becoming intentional about spending time with the Lord in His Word and in prayer each day, and staying away from worldly enticements that would only distract us and keep us away from Him. "The Word of God and prayer are inseparable - the power of the one is dependent upon the presence of the other."
"See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you.
If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.
And this is what He promised us - even eternal life.
I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead
you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from Him remains in you,
and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as His anointing teaches
you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit -
just as it has taught you, remain in Him."
(1 John 2:24-27)
One of the greatest ways we cultivate and produce spiritual fruit that will nourish and bless others is through the discipline of prayer. Prayer is our greatest privilege as children of God. It is our native language. It is the language of love, because it connects us to the One Who is love and who does all things through love. We show our love to others in the most powerful and productive way through prayer. Prayer is the way we communicate with God and it is the way He works through us to bless others. We are to be conduits of His grace to the world and when we keep our lives free from sin and obediently abide in Him the channel of His grace is free to flow the abundance of heaven's spiritual wealth upon those He wants to touch and bless the most.
When Moses lifted his hands up to heaven the Israelites were winning the battle before them. As long as his hands were lifted up in an appeal to God for His help the people were enabled to fight the battle and experience victory (reference Exodus 17:11). Note also that Moses did not stand in that posture of prayer alone, he had two friends who stood with him and supported him. Our private personal communion with God in His Word and in prayer will greatly determine the measure of our effectiveness for His kingdom in the public realm, and the time we spend in corporate prayer with other believers will only help to multiply the work that is done. "For where two or three come together in My name, there am I with them" (Matthew 18:20). Jesus set for us the greatest example for One who's life and ministry was absolutely dependent upon prayer, because He was totally dependent upon the Father. May we follow His lead that our lives, devoted to God and prayer, would be an example that others would want to follow. This is to the Father's glory. May we glorify His name by lifting it up daily in prayer!
"If My people, who are called by My name,
will humble themselves in prayer and seek My face
and turn from their wicked ways , then I will hear from heaven
and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
(2 Chronicles 7:14)
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REVOLUTIONIZE THE WORLD!
"Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty." (Zechariah 4:6)
Afternoon Devotion: Filled with His Power - Rest in Him
During the week of Jesus' Passion He held to a very specific schedule to accomplish the will of the Father. On Wednesday, however the Scriptures do not mention this day or what is was He did. The prior week before entering Jerusalem He went to Bethany, as He was known to do, to find rest and fellowship with His friends. It is possible, and quite probable, because of the example He set, that our Lord used this day to spend time with the Father in prayer, for the next few days would prove to be the most extraordinary, excruciating, impossible days in all of human history. His faithfulness, however, would reveal the glory of God!
Yesterday, we learned that when the Lord is hungry, the devotion and worship of His people is the food that satisfies Him (reference Deuteronomy 32:9a). Today we will follow Jesus' example and devote this afternoon to prayer and give the Lord what He desires most - and what He died to achieve - fellowship with the ones He loves! As you pray, recognize that He has already given you everything you need, express your gratitude to Him for all He has done in your life and ask Him to show you what it is that you are holding back from Him and offer it up as a sacrifice of praise and a commitment to living a life more fully surrendered and devoted to Him. Enjoy this time of solitude and rest in the presence of God Most High!
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RESTORE PRAISE!
"Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever, Amen!" (Revelation 7:12)
Evening Devotion: Focused on His Praise - Read John 17:20-26
At the end of Jesus' farewell prayer He turns His attention to all those who would believe as a result of His followers being sanctified to Him. His prayer continued to emphasize the unity of His people, with the relationship between Him and the Father being the high and holy standard we are to follow. We are to be God's witnesses to the world, and to the degree to which Christians live in harmony and unity will determine the world's acceptance or rejection of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are all individual branches abiding in the True Vine; when we are healthy and productive we, together, provide a beautiful picture of God's Glory to the world, and they will desire the food we have to offer them to eat. May we not hold anything back from them, but share from our bounty so they can taste and see how good the Lord is (reference Psalm 34:8a); and may we not hold anything of ourselves back from God so He can enjoy His portion and receive the glory He deserves. "They are the shoot I have planted, the work of My hands, for the display of My splendor" (Isaiah 60:21b). This evening may we rest in God's strength as we lift up our hearts and lips in adoration and praise; may everything we say and do bring blessing to others and bring glory to His name.
"My prayer is not for them alone.
I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message,
that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You.
May they also be in us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me.
I have given them the glory that You gave Me, that they may be one as We are one:
I in them and You in Me. May they be brought to complete unity to
let the world know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me.
Father, I want those You have given Me to be with Me where I am,
and to see My glory, the glory You have given Me because You loved Me
before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, through the world does
not know You, I know You, and they know that You have sent Me.
I have made You known to them, and will continue to make You known
in order that the love You have for Me may be in them and
that I Myself may be in them."
(John 17:20-26)
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Heavenly Father,
"Blessed be Your glorious name,
and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise."
(Nehemiah 9:5b)
"I will sing for the One I love a song about His vineyard."
(Isaiah 5:1a)
Every day that I awaken I wait expectantly
upon You to show me what it is You have
to share with me and what it is You have for me to do.
Thank You for the privilege to be able
to approach Your throne and make
my requests knowing You have an answer
already prepared. May I spend more
days just worshiping You so You can have
Your fill of me, because that is ultimately
all that You desire. I want my life to reflect
the beauty of who You are and I want
the world to see and know how wonderful You are.
May the name of Jesus Christ be glorified in everything I do and say.
"The Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious,
and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory
of the survivors of Israel."
(Isaiah 4:2)
May we be a united and fruitful tree that will bring glory
and honor to You!
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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The entire CRUCIFIED journey will be available
online in a few days. To access the first 10 days of this journey
go to www.trumpetandtorch.org and
click on the Year of Jubilee seal on the home page.
When the Jubilee page opens up simply go to the
calendar to your right and scroll down to
March/April and click on CRUCIFIED.
Click on the CRUCIFIED image in the center of
your screen to access the pdf and download
and print out the journey.
Additional prayer and fasting journeys are available
online at www.trumpetandtorch.org
under the "HOW TO FAST" button at the
top of the website home page.
If this is your first time participating in a 40-day fast
it is recommended that you begin with
"EAT at the Table of the King"
This journey can be downloaded and printed out
under the How To Fast button
or accessed online in the Temple at LOGIN.
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