This is the Weekly Devotional Message from

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries

JCSM.org

Over 1500 Links!

Hello!

I pray that you had a great week, weekend and Monday!

I've been doing great. There have been some fun and interesting things in my life. Between building deeper relationships with my Christian friends and doing my internet ministry, I've been catching some waves (I've gotta get some exercise, somehow!), studying God's Word and worshiping the Lord.

Please pray for me as I do some substitute teaching at Santa Fe Christian schools. I've been blessed with this opportunity and look forward to teaching on Wednesday and Thursday. SFC is a great school that has also hired me to coach their junior high, boys soccer team! PTL.

To all the female mentors who sent me a message, would you please resend me your message? My computer crashed before I could send you an email. On the same note, if you have some questions about God or need to talk to an older, Christian female, please let me know. Three are several who want to answer your questions and be your friend.

I'm creating a new web site called Famous Architectural Feats. This site will have pictures and links to some of the greatest structures of all time. If you have an pictures or ideas, please send them to me!

Please pray for a Christian friend named Tiffany. She is suffering from a tumor in her brain. It has been removed, once, and is growing again. She is a teenager and taking some steroids to help it go away. Please pray that she doesn't gain more weight (a side-effect of the steroids) and the tumor will go away.

Have you ever fasted for 40 days? Do you know someone (with email) who has? I feel led to do a 40 day fast, so I'm getting some input from people who have done one. I will be doing it soon, so I'll keep you posted. It should be an incredible time of revelation, warfare and intimacy with God. I've been reading about it and doing smaller fasts in preparation. Please pray for me.

Concert update: Switchfoot is playing, on Friday, at Point Loma University. Ticketmaster has tickets. Joyfest is Saturday, at Great America. Newsboys, Sonic Flood, Supertones, Clay Crosse, Aaron Benward and Nicol Smith will be performing! Go and be blessed!

Do you have any worship tabs? If you know any online sites with worship songs and tabs, I'd love to have them. Thanks in advance.

My Berean show was canceled, due to a problem on Berean's part. They recently changed facilitators for their concert planning and forgot to put me on the list. Liz was very apologetic and I accept her apology. We are still auditioning musicians and we will have a more completed sound and band when we perform.

Right now, there are over 4,000 people on my list for devotions. I'm praying that God sends me 10,000 email addresses! I'm also praying that my main site registers 1,000,000 hits! Please join us in this vision and pray, send people the devotions (and me their email addresses) and let people know about the site! It's simple to remember - jcsm.org.

Praise the Lord! I was given a free ticket to the Promise Keepers festival in Los Angeles! This was an answer to prayer. I'm really looking forward to it. I could still use a place to stay, preferably with a Christian or Christian family, near the Great Western Forum in Inglewood. The dates are October 13 and 14, so if you would like a briefing on the day's events and even some guitar worship, let me know! I don't snore or bite.

Please visit my web page! There's over 1500 links (pictures, midis, Bible lessons, humor, proverbial stories, links, devotions, poetry, prayer journals and much more!) and it has registered over 35,940 hits!

If this ministry has touched you in a special way, please pray and consider sending a gift to Jesus Christ Saves Ministries. On the web, we're encouraging the believers and sharing the gospel with unbelievers. I'm also doing counseling on a regular basis. As I do full-time ministry on the web, love and help others, I never charge them anything for my time or services.

Would you like to support God's work on the web? You can become a Super Supporter of JCSM by sending only $5 a month. You'll be joining us in our vision to reach people on the web with the good news! Of course, a gift of any size will be appreciated! My address and more information is at the bottom of this message.

Welcome to the new screen names or recipients of this message! Here are the devotions, moment of introspection, challenge and quotations for the week. Have a fantastic week and God bless you!

Love in Christ,

Jason J. Gastrich

ICQ#: 20731140

The Weekly Devotional Message

Day 1: "A Voice From Heaven"

Daniel 4:31 "While the word was still in the king's mouth, a voice fell from heaven: 'King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you!'"

John 12:28-30 "'Father, glorify Your name.' Then a voice came from heaven, saying, 'I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.' Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, 'An angel has spoken to Him.' Jesus answered and said, 'This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.'"

Matthew 3:16, 17 "When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.'"

Matthew 17:3-8 "And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, 'Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.' While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!' And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. But Jesus came and touched them and said, 'Arise, and do not be afraid.' When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only."

Acts 11:7-9 "And I heard a voice saying to me, 'Rise, Peter; kill and eat.' But I said, 'Not so, Lord! For nothing common or unclean has at any time entered my mouth.' But the voice answered me again from heaven, 'What God has cleansed you must not call common.'"

Prayer: "Thank you for the accounts of voices from Heaven, Lord. Help us to love You and serve You even if we don't hear an audible voice from Heaven. Thank you for speaking to us in our heads. Thank you for giving us what we need! Praise You for having ways that are higher than our ways. Help us to listen for your voice and obey what You tell us. Thank you for always being faithful to us, Lord. Forgive us for our sins and purify us. Draw us near to You and help us be faithful. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 2: "Jesus is Coming Back!"

John 14:28 "You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.' If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I."

Colossians 3:4 "When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory."

John 14:2, 3 "In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."

Matthew 24:30, 31 "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."

Prayer: "Thank you for promising to return, Jesus! There is no other God like You. Give us more faith in You and your promises. Thank you for being so trustworthy and awesome. Thank you for not abandoning us! Remind us that You are here and You will return to take us home and judge the Earth. Thank you for preparing a place for us in Heaven! Help us remember that You are going to give us incredible rewards if we devote our life to You. Thank you for being a living, true God! In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 3: "He is Our Strength!"

Psalm 73:26 "My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble."

Psalm 18:1, 2 "I will love You, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold."

2 Samuel 22:33 "God is my strength and power, And He makes my way perfect."

Proverb 10:29 "The way of the LORD is strength for the upright, But destruction will come to the workers of iniquity."

Isaiah 40:29-31 "He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint."

Prayer: "Praise You for giving us such awesome power! There is no other power source like You, Lord. Help us to realize the things You can do. Forgive us for neglecting You and your power. Remind us of the incredible things You have done. Thank you for being the same God, yesterday, today and forever! Let us be like You, Lord. Help us to pray big and have radical faith in You! Protect us as this world gets more and more evil. Lift us up and be the strength of our life! You are the only way to conquer sin. You are our everything. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 4: "Wage War on Lust"

Matthew 5:27, 28 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."

Proverb 6:25, 26 "Do not lust after her beauty in your heart, Nor let her allure you with her eyelids. For by means of a harlot A man is reduced to a crust of bread; And an adulteress will prey upon his precious life."

Romans 13:13 "Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts."

Galatians 5:16, 17 "I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish."

1 John 2:16, 17 "For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever."

Prayer: "Thank you for warning us about lust. Protect us and give us strength to overcome. Forgive us for lusting. Let us find ways to win our spiritual battles. Give us knowledge of You and ourselves. Reveal to us where we sin and how we can be more like You. Thank you for giving us the ability to overcome temptation or flee from it. Give us great wisdom, so we can distinguish which we should do and how we will do it. Bring Christian friends into our lives that have high standards and a strong devotion to You! Thank you for setting our feet on a Rock, even when the demons of lust try and make our head spin. Praise You for being our lifeboat on the stormy seas! In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 5: "You Can Say Nothing"

Mark 14:60, 61 "And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, saying, 'Do You answer nothing? What is it these men testify against You?' But He kept silent and answered nothing."

Mark 15:3-5 "And the chief priests accused Him of many things, but He answered nothing. Then Pilate asked Him again, saying, 'Do You answer nothing? See how many things they testify against You!' But Jesus still answered nothing, so that Pilate marveled."

Ecclesiastes 3:7 "(There is) A time to tear, And a time to sew; A time to keep silence, And a time to speak;"

1 Timothy 2:12 "And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence."

James 1:19 "So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;"

Prayer: "Thank you for encouraging us to be silent; at least, at times. Give us wisdom and self-control. Thank you for giving us words to say. Let us not waste words and use them to edify one another. Forgive us for using words carelessly. Help us speak your words of truth and love one another. Help us to pray in our silences. Speak to us and show us what to say. Thank you for Jesus' example. Remind us of Jesus' character as we do our daily tasks. Help us to emulate Him. Let us listen and learn and not feel like we always have to speak. Let us think and articulate. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 6: "Keep From Complaining"

Philippians 2:14, 15 "Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world"

1 Corinthians 10:8-10 "Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer."

Philippians 4:8 "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy - meditate on these things."

Prayer: "Thank you for wanting us to avoid complaining. Give us great attitudes, no matter what the circumstances. Help us to see things from your perspective. Praise You for your goodness and mercy! There's no other God like You, Lord. Forgive us for having bad attitudes. Remind us that it is pointless to complain and whine. Help us to think, get to the root of problems and speak logically. Help us not to waste words about how awful life or our situations are. Praise You for helping us overcome complaining! Give us self-control. Remind us that we can be talking and thinking about positive things, instead of bringing ourselves and others down. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 7: "Choose"

Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."

Joshua 24:15 "And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."

Prayer: "Thank you for giving us a choice, Lord. You are an awesome God. Thank you for deciding not to make us robots. We love You, Lord. Give us more love for You and for others. Praise You for wanting to be number one in our lives. Remind us that being number two isn't so bad when number one is more incredible than words. Help us to love others and submit to them. Thank you for showing us how to live. Thank you for coming to Earth and being a humble, meek God. Let us be like You. Thank you for the joy that you give us. Give us unexplainable joy, Lord! Thank you for answering this prayer so many times. Thank you for the joy of choosing You! There is no other God that answers our prayers and puts a smile on our face. Remind us that You are the one that needs to dominate our thoughts. Praise You for being more than worthy. To You be all the glory, honor and praise, forever and ever. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Challenge

Take some old clothes and put them in a bag. Put the bag in your car, truck or van. Give them to some homeless people! While you're blessing them, ask them if they're saved and pray with them. You'll be blessed and rewarded.

Today, I did this with a homeless man named Leon. It was awesome. Just to see him getting something he needed, smiling and laughing was a great reward.

You can do it! Be wise and don't put yourself in danger. Consider giving things away in the daylight or in populated areas. However, don't miss out on helping the homeless and getting eternal rewards and earthly blessings. God bless you as you meet this week's challenge!

A Moment of Introspection

"Note the things that Jesus never did." I thought of this quote as I was reading through the gospel of John.

Jesus did many things - He healed the blind, choose his disciples, turned water into wine, walked on the water, raised the dead, died on the cross, etc. However, have you ever considered what He didn't do?

Jesus didn't - physically threaten or harm anyone, including the evil religious leaders, allow His disciples to call fire from Heaven to destroy people, allow there to be supernatural craziness (flying people, aliens, pointless miracles, etc.), steal, lie, hate what was good, back down to Satan, force us to obey the levitical law, etc.

There are a lot of things Jesus didn't do! Can you think of more?

Quotations

Before there are big blessings, there is often serious spiritual warfare.

Satan attacks us in subtle ways.

Don't believe Satan's imps and wimps.

If you are on a college campus, you have many opportunities for ministry.

Are you depending on your own power?

Drawing on your own power will help you lose spiritual battles.

Satan's attacks bring his own demise.

There are some believers that have never used their spiritual gifts.

The devil doesn't want you to hear what your pastor says.

If you want to get a good man, be a good woman.

Another person can't cure all your problems.

Do a background check on a potential mate.

If you're playing a game with God, you won't get His blessings.

Don't see how close you can get to the fire. See how close you can get to God.

If you're a Christian, dating an unbeliever is a sin.

God's light will scare away the knuckleheads in your life.

Sex is shameless oneness.

God's standard is never gonna change.

Don't miss the changes that you could make after this sermon.

Loving someone is helping them love God.

Lust wants to please the self at the expense of others.

Love wants to please others at the expense of self.

If your relationship is based on physicalness, how can it last?

If you can't get excited about your salvation through Jesus, what can you get excited about?

Have you set your face against sin?

Which things do you do that make your teeth clench and your heart race?

Now is the time for the saints to shine!

You knew the words I'd say, before I lived one day.

Satan tells us we are losers.

Satan tells us that we have to prove ourselves on the world's standards.

The world is mimicking spiritual people.

Shine on the darkest place in me.

What would have I done if it wasn't for Jesus?

I would rather be dead than without Jesus.

Look at fasting as getting yourself more in tune with Him rather than as getting Him to do something for you.

Do not view fasting as somehow spiritually twisting God's arm and obligating Him to answer your prayer. It does not work that way.

Jesus taught fasting was not done to impress or prompt anyone else, but it was a matter of personal resolve and individual liberty before.

Godly people love it when others despise their ungodliness because so do they.

It is only when we see things in the light of God that we see what things are really important and what things are not.

Only when we see things in the light of God, do we see things as they are.

I'm a prayer request with feet.

Thank you so much for praying for me. I can hardly wait to feel it!

Negative thinking keeps us from enjoying life.

Negative thinkers don't build great churches, in fact they, don't believe that great churches can be built.

Negative thinking will create clouds at critical decision times.

Thinking negatively is contagious.

Those who entertain lies may entertain a demon.

How do you explain demon possession if there are no demons?

If you want to deny Jesus Christ because some of His followers made mistakes, go ahead, but it doesn't make any sense.

I never did the things you are judging Christians for, so why do you keep complaining to me?

Play the music that gives you relief from the spirits of darkness; the music that invites the angels to sing with you.

People who reject God will get exactly what they want - eternal suffering away from Him.

Without fruitfulness in good works, springing from the Holy Spirit, all other fruitfulness will be found as empty as the uncertain riches of the world.

God often gives in displeasure what we sinfully desire.

It is the happiness of the saints, that, whether God gives or takes away, all is in love.

You don't know what I know.

If you want to ignore or discount Jesus' many claims to be God and God's Son, you couldn't even call Him enlightened because you'd have to discount everything He said.

If people can't understand what you're saying, the message is lost.

Knowing I am walking with the Lord means knowing I am never alone.

God is bigger than the air I breathe.

Your love is better than my life.

My life is an open book, so turn the page and take a look.

What would I have done without Jesus?

Investigate my life and make me clean.

God, You are my God.

Use spiritual discernment.

Note the things that Jesus never did.

One key point Christians need to contemplate - their lack of action is not only causing people to remain lost, but they're also short-changing themselves by not having an eternal investment plan.

You can say you don't believe in Hell, but you'll believe it when you're there.

Every unbeliever needs to hear the gospel and be reminded of their future if they do not believe and repent.

God's love is why unbelievers can daily sin and still live.

I don't think anybody would truly want to see what any human would have done if they were God.

I dare you to move.

I dare you to move like today never happened before.

The tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be.

Where can you run to escape from yourself?

You and You alone can break my fall.

I'm learning to breathe and learning to crawl.

I'm dying to breathe in these abundant skies.

When I'm a world away from peace, behind Your eyes is where I know I'll find it.

Who You are defines my dreams.

You've already taken me to Heaven.

Lose yourself in His grace.

God gave His life to put motion inside my soul.

When you are on your knees, who do you believe?

In the currency of grace is where my song begins.

Is this fiction or divine comedy where the last of the last finish first?

We'll never know God fully until we learn how to worship Him.

Sing to the Lord and you won't be the same.

Like a mother calms a crying child, God knows how to calm us and He does.

God knowing what we will do and God controlling us are two different things.

Not only does sin keep us from glorifying God, it harms us.

Be the example of a godly person, despite how others behave.

I almost have the right attitude to respond to them now.

No other person could have done what You did on the cross.

If you're not 100% sure you'd go to Heaven when you die, you should pray and accept Christ as Lord and Savior.

These quotes came from God, me, the Inspirational Study Bible (with Max Lucado), Switchfoot, William Barclay, Don Carner, Tyrone Moore and Miles McPhearson.

These quotes can be used for sanctification and fun. Most of them are directly based on scripture and scriptural principles. Some of my quotes are humorous or rhetorical. Some are written from sermons and Bible studies. Others are lyrics from songs. Like most verses in the Bible, they can be debated. To use what I have written in the most beneficial way, try and trace them back to the scriptures they were derived from and apply the true principles to your life in a meaningful way! Please don't sell my quotes or publish them for profit. If English is not your first language, you may not understand some of the quotes. I'm sorry, but some of them are English metaphors and deal with multiple word meanings. God bless you all!

Please make a commitment to pray for this ministry. As every believer is tempted and tried, this ministry faces trials also. God has blessed me, JCSM and the people who have been reached! Unfortunately, the enemy knows this and spiritual warfare is the result. Please, at least pray that the devotions continue to be sent religiously, the web pages stay on the www and the subscribers are blessed, sanctified and protected from evil. Thank you very much in advance!

Do you want to help people receive the good news? I have sent nearly 500,000 emails, encouraging people with God's Word! Please join me in the great commission. I'm reaching new people every day with God's awesome Word! If God has blessed you and you wish to send a love offering to me and my ministry, please send it to the address below.

3431 Seabreeze Walk

Oceanside, Ca 92056

You can help this ministry! Your donations will keep my ministries running and they further my visions for evangelism. The internet, the telephone (volunteering time for the Youth Crisis hotline), the guitar, singing and gospel tracts are some ways that I encourage people and lead them to Christ. I'm certain there will be more ways to reach people in the future. Along with getting support, I also give support! I regularly give to my church and frequently give to needy people. Lastly, I do a lot of research on religious topics on the internet and at the library. You will definitely see the results of my work on my web page and in the weekly messages!

For more about me and my service history, go to http://resume.jcsm.org. For what I do, my ministries and giving, go to http://vision.jcsm.org

If you have received these devotions from someone other than I, please email me and I will send them to you, personally, each week. Don't worry, I don't send forwards or any other junk mail. I also refrain from giving your name to anyone. Also, email me if you wish to be removed from this list. If you prefer to receive the devotions in Spanish or French, please email me and I'll send you them each week in either Spanish or French!

If you have never accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, please email me! I would love to share the gospel with you. The Bible is very straightforward when it speaks about Heaven, Hell and eternal life. If there is any doubt that you are going to Heaven when you die, please let me know today!

Are you having trouble in life? Do you need someone to talk to? You can call the youth crisis hotline at 1-800-HIT-HOME, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I'm currently volunteering time for this hotline. Our motto is "help, not hassle". We will listen to you and encourage you. If you are hurting and need someone to talk to, please feel free to call. YDI pays for these calls and has helped over 1 million people! They are also looking for people to answer calls. Their web site is at www.1800hithome.com

Would you like to feed starving people by simply clicking a button and paying absolutely nothing? Sponsors pay to donate food to hungry people all over the world. I click this nearly every day. It takes about 10 seconds and it donates food to needy people! Go here: www.thehungersite.com

JCSM now does regular mailings! If you are getting rid of your email or know someone who wants the devotions, but doesn't have email, please give me their address and we'll send them the devotions. If you don't have internet access, but want to read a certain web page or Bible lesson, let me know. I could copy and paste something into an email message for you.

Since April of 1997, the weekly devotional message has been sent on the internet. This message currently reaches 4140 people in 98 countries. To read a list of these countries, go here: http://www.jcsm.org/misc/countries.htm. To read the archived devotions online, go here: http://devos.jcsm.org.

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries

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Jesus loves you!

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever should believe in Him should have everlasting life."