daddy4ms

Happy New Year!  Now I can share all the new books that I received for my birthday and Christmas.  Here is my first "New Book Friday" for 2016.

For my morning devotions over the last few months, I have been reading one Psalm each morning and listing the character or attributes of God.  It has been a blessing to me.  I specifically look for words related to God not the person. This has reinforced a few thoughts for me: God is good!  So often, we make God out to be a grumpy mean deity in the Old Testament. The Psalms are a reminder of God being loving, good, and gracious. God is for us!  I am currently in Psalm 69 and I am reminded how God is for us as his people.  Many times the author of the Psalm asks for deliverance or help from God.  We see a God who is interested in the lives of His people. God is powerful!  Listen to these words from Psalm 68: " O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God; sing praises to the Lord, Selah to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens; behold, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice. Ascribe power to God, whose majesty is over Israel, and whose p...

My wife was asking me this week if I had chosen a word to focus on in 2014.  She had heard about it on K-Love.  I really had not thought much about it.  But during my morning devotions on Thursday, I felt led to a specific word. It is power . I look forward to meditating on this word and sharing Scriptures and thoughts with you about this word in 2014.  Today, I wanted to start by sharing from the Blue Letter Bible .  There are many words that are translated into power, but I will focus on two Hebrew words and one Greek word. They are: gĕbuwrah Outline of Biblical Usage strength, might strength might, valour, bravery might, mighty deeds (of God) koach Outline of Biblical Usage strength, power, might human strength strength (of angels) power (of God) str...

I am continuing to use Hidden in Christ for my devotional times.  I highly recommend this book.  Here are some thoughts on hope from James Bryan Smith: Hope is not wishful thinking; it is being certain that the future is bright. Hope gives us confidence. Hope gives us assurance. Hope enables us to trust, to have faith in the present moment, no matter how bleak. Hope gives us peace in the midst of strife. Hope brings us joy in times of sadness. Confidence, assurance, trust, faith, peace, and joy are things that make life wonderful, that give us strength and courage, realities that make us sleep well and work hard. As long as we have hope we will never give up.

As many of you know, I have recommended and given away several copies of Jesus Calling over the last few years.  I have enjoyed reading it each morning.  Recently, I discovered a new book that I am using as early morning reading.  I have to be honest I downloaded it because it was free on kindle.  But it has already been a blessing to me.  I encourage you to check it out too. It is called Everyday Prayers: 365 Days to a Gospel-Centered Faith by Scotty Smith. I have posted a few quotes on my Facebook page if interested in finding out more about the content.

I started using a new devotion in 2011 called, Jesus Calling, by Sarah Young. Here is a picture of the front cover. I have enjoyed reading it each day. The readings are short and are written as if Jesus is speaking directly to you. Young has done a great job of using Scripture and writing daily devotions to challenge as well as encourage believers. I would recommend you pick it up and start reading today. Thanks for the recommendation Amy!