December 30, 2018

December 30, 2018

Judy Hollaway

September 23
Running with Jesus  

Acts 10:4 "And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God."

      Today we will focus on this man Cornelius giving alms that was noticed by God.  Alms were donations given to the poor and needy and are given above the tithe. I have heard we have not given sacrificially until we learn to give alms. Our tithes are expected but alms are voluntary sacrificial giving. Church members do not usually realize that the blessings come when we go beyond giving our tithes. God looks upon our hearts and He is looking for givers.
       I can tell you from experience you will never out give God. He honors giving. He is our ultimate role model for giving. He gave His only Son for sinful men. God keeps on giving do you realize everything we have is a gift from God. He gives us energy and strength to work to be able to have money. He gives us air to breathe that sustains us. He gives grace and peace. He gives mercy and love. If God cease to give we would cease to live.
               

Father, help us to follow You, our ultimate role model of giving. If we see someone who has a need help us meet that need. Lord we want Your blessings upon our lives. Give us what we need to help others. Let us understand what it means to give alms. Help us to intentionally be a giver looking for opportunities as we go through this day.
               
I am not through with Cornelius, so expect him to run with us tomorrow!

December 29, 2018

December 29, 2018

Judy Hollaway

September 22

Acts 10:4 "And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God."

     Cornelius had a vision and let's look at what he learned from it and how to apply it! First, we see what the angel of the Lord told him. "Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial!" God noticed the FAITH of this one man seeking to know God! God sent someone to answer his prayers. 
     Praying should have a pure motive!  They do not go unnoticed by God! Old Satan wants us to think differently. He wants us to think our prayers are wasted. We can learn from the centurion that prayers don't go unnoticed and He will answer in His own time. So don't give up! Victory is just in sight.

Lord, we refuse to stop crying out to You our Abba, Daddy. Father, we trust in You with our whole heart. We lean not to our own understanding. We pray because prayer is our life support! It is our life line to God! Help us not get discouraged. We worship You in spirit and truth. 

One more application from this man, meet me in the morning!

December 28, 2018

December 28, 2018

Judy Hollaway

September 21

Running with Jesus

Acts 10:2 "A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway."

     Look at this testimony of the Roman official Cornelius, devout feared God with all his house, gave alms, and prayed to God! He was a God seeker doing all he knew to do in the flesh. God sent Peter to explain how to find Him! When we seek God the Bible tells us we will find Him! I went to Beth Moore's simulcast last week end and she talked about us romancing God! 

     Now if I wanted to romance someone what would I do? I remember our dating days.  I would dress up and spend an hour fixing my hair and my face. I would write love notes and fold them special and draw hearts on them. What did you do to romance your number one? Maybe you need to write him or her a note today. We have to keep that romance going. 

      Why not sit down right now and write God a love note. I stopped and wrote one for God and Mike before I typed the rest of this devotion. I want to intentionally seek God, I want to find Him. For me I can't go a second away from Him. He wants us to want Him! He wrote us a whole Bible of pages of love notes. Take a minute and hold your Bible close to your heart. Think about all the life He poured out at Calvary to give you eternal life. Spend some time just loving and praising God this morning.

Father, thank You for Your love letter and let my life be a love song for You! Some days it is hard to get passed earthly emotions and doing works to express  my love to You. Thank You for Your Word and keep our country safe so we can continue to have freedom to read It.  I am going to spend today seeking You. I will chase You down. I want You, Lord. 

More on this man Cornelius, so see you in the morning!

December 27, 2018

December 27, 2018

Judy Hollaway

September 20

Running with Jesus

Acts 10:1-2 "There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band, A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway."

     We never know what God is up to. This man’s name was Cornelius, a centurion, serving as captain for the Roman providence in Judah. God was about to use his conversion to begin his first Gentile church.  Revealing salvation is for all men. I’ve heard preachers say, “How many is all?” and we say “It is all”! Whosoever believes in me shall have everlasting life. God never tells us how the person we share Christ with will end up. All we are told to do is tell them about Christ.  We must be obedient and share Christ with anyone, any time or place. The key is to just obey! What they do with God is their choice.

     We must stay focused and be intentional about witnessing. We get so busy with doing life we are not seeing our Cornelius's. It only takes one to open a door for the whole family.

Father, help us cross barriers and share with anybody that You place in our path. Open doors today for us to witness. Give us boldness. As we move forward help us stay alert and sober and watch out for the doors you open. We love you and want others to know Your unconditional love for us. 

Let's look into this and the life of Cornelius, in the morning.

December 26, 2018

December 26, 2018

Judy Hollaway

September 19

Running with Jesus  

Acts 9:39 "Then Peter arose and went with them. When he was come, they brought him into the upper chamber: and all the widows stood by him weeping and shewing the coats and garments which Dorcas made, while she was with them."

      Well lots of talk about the dates on our tombstones. The day we were born - the day we die! The most important part is the dash! The dash represents the years of our life!

      When Peter got to Lydda two men came to get him to take him to this lady named Dorcus who had died. Widows stood around weeping showing the work of Dorcus hands. The impact she had on the poor and those around her was amazing. 

       Dorcus used her gift of helping others. Life is more about helping others and getting out of self. You will never know the joy until you get rid of self start seeking to help others. 

       We write our own funerals by what we did during the dash! Wonder what will be said about us? We must seek to walk in obedience to His word and live by His commands. That will take care of our dashes! Let's work till Jesus comes and calls us home!

        So let's have a think! If you could hear what people will say at your funeral, what would they say about you?   Let's ask God to help us empty ourselves of our self. Now ask Him to fill you and help you use your gift for his glory. 

Ever met a centurion? We will tomorrow, come back!