As for Me and My House – Day 9

DAY 9: GIVING UP ANYTHING TO OBTAIN EVERYTHING

Matthew 13:44 

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. 

Leading up to the 1994 World Cup, our son collected Upper Deck trading cards. Certain rare cards offered a chance to win the grand prize—an all-expense-paid trip to the championship at the Rose Bowl. 

He mowed lawns and sold home-baked pretzels to earn money to purchase hundreds of cards, many useless to him. Whenever he found an eligible card, he mailed it in. But none of them won the contest. Then he read the fine print and learned of a second-chance drawing. His diligence paid off when his name was drawn, and he and his dad were flown to Pasadena, housed in a hotel, and seated two rows behind the Italian bench for the championship game.

Like the man in the parable, our son was willing put all his money into purchasing something as ordinary as a field (or boxes of collector cards) in order to garner something much more valuable.

QUESTIONS What will it take for you to give up everything to gain what Jesus says is everything—eternal life? Have you decided He is all you need? For the joy set before Jesus, He endured the cross. Can you sacrifice what seems like everything to gain the joy of what amounts to more than everything?

PRAYER I get so distracted from what is of real importance, Lord. Help me today to lay down my life and let You take it. I consecrate it for Your purposes. Only You can help me do this. I desire to give myself completely to You.

ACTION Take a moment and tell the Lord, “I give you my life and all that I have.” Let go of whatever holds you back from allowing Him to be your greatest treasure. Move beyond desiring to let Him be Lord to actually letting Him take control of your life.

As for Me and My House – Day 8

Week 2

CONSECRATION

As for me and my house, we will be set apart.

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DAY 8: FIRSTFRUITS BELONG TO HIM

James 1:17-18
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. 

If we are the “firstfruits of all He created,” then that means we are to give ourselves to Him—becoming fully devoted to God. We consecrate ourselves through self-surrender. This means we are no longer the center. He is the center of our lives. We yield everything to Him: our will, our time, our abilities, our possessions. 

This is only possible if we are fully convinced that Jesus gave Himself for us. Our love for Him is a response to His great love for us. If He gave all for us, how can we not give all to Him?

QUESTIONS Do you give the firstfruits of your will, your time, your energy, and your wealth to the Lord? Give to Him first because He gave everything to you. Will you remember to give to Him first?

PRAYER I want to give you the firstfruits of all I am and have, Lord. Show me what I need to do to be devoted to You. Teach me how to give and not merely take, to not have a scarcity mentality but a heart of generosity. 

ACTION Give the first of your time, your energy, your paycheck today plus anything else the Lord points out to you give as an offering to Him.

As for Me and My House – Day 2

DAY 2: GRATITUDE BRINGS PEACE TO OUR SOULS

Philippians 4:4-7 

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 

Rejoice. Don’t be anxious. Pray about everything with thanksgiving. Petition. Present your requests to God. This process will yield peace which we cannot understand. 

Some of us have a naturally gentle spirit. But all of us need the Spirit of God to help us rejoice and make His gentleness evident to all. 

Paul tells us in every situation we are to pray and “petition” or ask God meekly, humbly, and earnestly for a specific, significant need. We are to do this with thanksgiving. It should be something you cannot get or accomplish for yourself or for others without God’s help. So you ask Him to make it happen. 

QUESTIONS What causes you to lose your peace? Are you giving thanks in everything? How can you do this right now, even if you don’t feel like it?

PRAYER I rejoice in You, Lord, and I want to sense and experience Your peace that passes all understanding. I submit my request to You with thanksgiving right now, knowing I don’t have to be anxious. I receive Your peace.

ACTION Choose now to rejoice in whatever situation you find yourself. Pray and appeal to (petition) God now with thanksgiving and see what happens.

As for Me and My House – Day 1

 INTRODUCTION

Joshua 24:15
But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve...But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

As the Living Streams Church family fasts and prays together in the next 21 days, we want to focus on consecration—being set apart—being in the world but not of the world. 

What is consecration? Consecration is giving yourself to God, becoming His living sacrifice. As Romans 12:1 says: Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

Before consecration, our life is lived in pursuit of our own desires and goals; but the consecrated life is lived in pursuit of and obedience to God’s will. Our goal during this fasting season is to humble ourselves and move closer to total submission to our Father.

We hope you will enjoy this daily devotional, and that it will help enrich your “alone time” with the Lord each day during this fasting season:

Week 1

GRATITUDE

As for me and my house, we will give thanks.

DAY 1: GOD’S WILL FOR YOU

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 

Pray continually, give thanks always in all circumstances—why? Because this is His will for you. 

Admittedly, giving thanks is challenging when life is difficult or we don’t feel well or world events go opposite of the way we want them to go. Yet we’re to “give thanks always.” Will you do it? Will you rejoice? Will you pray continually? Will you give thanks in the worst of times, as well as in the best? 

This is His will for us, so let’s do this!

QUESTIONS What can you be thankful for and rejoice about in your physical world today? In your emotional world? In your relational world? What has to change for you to do this?

PRAYER As I contemplate my circumstances, God, I choose to rejoice and pray. I choose to do Your will. I choose to praise and thank You for every blessing I have, rather than complain about how I feel or what is going on around me. 

ACTION Write down ten things you can decide to be thankful for, even though they are not the circumstances you would choose for your life. Then tell God, “I will rejoice in You. I will praise You right now, not because I feel like it, but because it is Your will for me.”