This is the Weekly Devotional Message from

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries

Devotions for February 14^th through 20^th

Monday "Never Give Up!"

Hebrews 12:1-2 "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Philippians 1:6 "being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;"

Mark 13:11-13 "But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. Now brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. And you will be hated by all for My name's sake. But he who endures to the end shall be saved."

Prayer: "Thank you for wanting us to persevere and giving us the ability to do so, with your power! Help us and rescue us when we are in trouble. Thank you for never giving up on us! There's no other God like You in all the universe! Thank you for giving us life and hope. Remind us that You are in control and You are the captain of our ship. Thank you for being so powerful and letting us overcome the darkness with Your power! Give us great strength, faith and endurance. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Tuesday "There's Strength in Numbers"

Ecclesiastes 4:12 "Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken."

Hebrews 10:24-25 "And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching."

1 Timothy 5:19 "Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses."

Matthew 18:20 "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."

Matthew 5:1 "And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him."

Luke 19:39-40 "And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, Teacher, rebuke Your disciples. But He answered and said to them, I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out."

Prayer: "Thank you for giving us Christian friends, Lord! Bless us and help us to value them. Thank you for being so worthy of our devotion. Lead us to other encouraging believers. Help us to be encouragers and lift up our friends. Thank you for the opportunities we have to share our faith and talk about You! Thank you for the times we have when we just have fun and relax with believers. Remind us of the confidence and power we feel when we're with our friends and help us to never neglect them. Help us to pray for them and love them as we should. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Wednesday "Have A Vision For Your Life"

Proverb 29:18 "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keeps the law, happy is he."

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."

Philippians 4:6 "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;"

Luke 11:9-10 "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened."

Prayer: "Thank you for the vision and direction You give us! Help us to obey You and seek You and hear your voice. Thank you for having an awesome plan for our lives and an awesome will! There is no other God like You! Praise You for your sovereignty and power! Help us to obey your revealed will and find our talents, so we can fulfill your unrevealed plan. Praise You for having a plan. Remind us to pray to You and read your Word. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Thursday "The Importance of Sanctification"

1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 "For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God;"

2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

1 Timothy 4:7-8 "But reject profane and old wives' fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come."

1 Timothy 6:6 "Now godliness with contentment is great gain."

Prayer: "Thank you for wanting us to become like You, Jesus. Bless us and sanctify us! Thank you for the benefits of godliness. Remind us that Christlikeness is awesome. Praise You for being so worthy of our praise and devotion. Help us make sanctification a priority. Let us be sensitive to your Holy Spirit. Give us the ability to find sin in our lives and remove it. Thank you for giving us time to repent, Lord! You have awesome patience, mercy and love. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Friday "Dead or Alive"

Ephesians 2:4-5 "But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)"

1 Corinthians 15:22 "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive."

Romans 6:11-13 "Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God."

Romans 8:10-13 "And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors; not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live."

1 John 5:12 "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life."

Prayer: "Thank you for showing us the contrast between death and life. Thank you for saving us and giving us life! Thank you for helping us die to sin. Remind us that we have power over sin. Help us hate sin and steer away from it. Thank you for giving us an exciting life in You! Change us and make us like You, daily. Help us know You better and conform to Your image. Reveal to us what gives life and what brings death. Give us greater discernment and help us ask wise Christians for counsel, when necessary. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Saturday "What Are You Eating?"

John 6:35, 51 "And Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."

Matthew 4:4 "But He answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God."

1 Peter 2:1-3 "Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious."

Hebrews 5:12-14 "For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil."

Prayer: "Thank you for giving us spiritual food that is always satisfying! You are an awesome God. Thanks for your Word, Lord. Thank you for your countless blessings! Bless us more and reveal more of yourself to us. Give us maturity and discernment. Share deep spiritual truths with us! Make us more excited to know You and read Your Word! Thank you for wanting to feed us and give us what we need. You are our perfect God! In Jesus' name, Amen."

Sunday "Have You Asked?"

Matthew 7:7-8 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened."

James 1:5-6 "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind."

James 4:2-3 "You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures."

Prayer: "Thank you for giving us so much, Lord! Help us to keep asking you for blessings and important things. Thank you for caring about us very much. Thank you for always hearing our prayers and answering them, perfectly. Give us more faith in You, Lord. Remove our fear and our doubt. Help us to know what we need and what we don't need. Remind us to pray to You and never give up. Thank you for rewarding us and blessing us. Thank you for answered prayers! In Jesus' name, Amen."

Challenge

For 30 days, pray this prayer, "Bless me, increase my ministry, lay your hand on me and keep me from evil." I did this several years ago and I was blessed, tremendously! A man named Bruce Wilkinson asked us to pray that specific prayer for 30 days. During that time, I was blessed immeasurably, my ministry increased (I began answering the youth crisis hotline), I felt God's power in my life and God kept me from evil. Like a prayer of salvation, it won't do any good unless you mean it, sincerely. God wants to bless you and give you awesome things. Many Christians think they are on God's permanent mailing list of blessings. In James, we are reminded to ask God for what we need in prayer. God wants us to have a devoted prayer life and ask Him for things. Remember, James 5:16b says, "The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." Try praying that prayer for 30 days. You're life will be changed in a powerful way! God bless you as you meet this week's challenge!

Quotations

Let God change the way you think.

One of the biggest obstacles for confident decision making is our stubborn persistence in demanding our own purposes and preferences.

We typically don't trust what we don't know, so the more we know about God, the more we can trust Him.

God wants us to surrender our lives fully to Him.

Behave like a Christian.

Don't get lost on the rabbit trails of life.

Knowing what you don't need will save you time, energy and resources.

Those that are fully surrendered to Christ reject the philosophy that tells them to be conformed to this world.

Don't let the world squeeze you into it's mold.

Realize that when you surrender your life to God, the devil will do his best to make you water-down your commitment.

Stop putting bad messages in your head.

Start the input of God's values and stop the input of wrong values.

You're friends probably know your weaknesses and what gets under your skin.

God doesn't expect you to know everything, but He does expect you to put into practice what you know God wants from you.

Ban unacceptable and imperfect things from your life.

Dedication to God is the prerequisite for discernment from God.

We need to laugh like these guys.

Do you have a sense of vision or calling for your life?

Pray and meditate for a vision for your life?

Our visions and dreams shape our priorities.

Vision is catching a glimpse of what God wants to do and joining Him in that endeavor.

We must be available to God to fulfill His vision.

God's vision is not limited by our abilities.

God loves the "impossible."

What people are reading can show what they are interested in.

Do you listen to music or do you really listen to music?

Are you helping the poor? Are you a voice for the poor?

The earthly destiny of Christians is sanctification.

Listen at church and think about what was said, later.

Nobody is too small for God's eyes.

If you're called to make a difference in one person's life, realize that is very important.

We need to have a correct vision of God in order to have a correct vision of ourselves and life.

Every day there can be a new discovery of the greatness of God in our lives.

Don't be cynical when reading God's Word. Read it like a child, like it's new.

Do people sense the presence of God in your life?

Let the fragrance of Jesus draw people to Himself.

God sees you as more capable than you see yourself.

If your dreams correlate with God's Word, don't despise them.

Cultivate your gifts, so you can glorify God more with them.

Success is being the best you can be with the tools God gave you.

Can you go to sleep tonight, knowing what your priorities and goals are for the year?

Celebrate the things that come your way because God is using them to develop you.

God has the ability to meet everyone's individual needs.

Be flexible when making plans for your future.

Why are you doing what you're doing?

Don't put things off. Your life will pass you by.

Get specific instructions from God, every day.

If you're not excited about your future, you're not picturing the same future as God is.

God says, "I wanna hook you up!"

Failure is not doing what God says.

Where does the Bible say, "I've gotta have my vice"?

Do you know the differences between your wants and your needs?

Investigate the corners and depths of your heart for any sin or bitterness.

When you live with a funky smell, it smells fine to you.

People are wondering when you will include God in everything.

Write down all the areas of your life. Are you submitting to God's will in all these areas?

The plans God has for us are better than the plans we have four ourselves.

God has no shortage of blessings or love.

If this van is swayin', I'm in here prayin'.

After all this, I'd rather have done it all again than nothing at all!

Nobody should demand anyone to give them undivided attention, unless there's an emergency.

By trying to force your blessing on me right now, someone else could be missing out on your blessing.

I have had enough happiness to make me sweet, enough trials to make me strong, enough sorrow to keep me human and enough hope to make me happy.

If all else fails, read the instructions.

The Bible is the ultimate "how-to" book.

The life inside of me is breaking out.

When I'm drowning, You're on the way to rescue me.

When I'm crying and weak, You're the one who never gives up.

You know my weaknesses, but you see me as beautiful through your eyes.

You can't keep me silent. I can't keep it all to myself.

Don't hesitate to give up everything.

I need life, in this dead man, to make me free.

The fire breathes!

It's ok to fall down.

Your power commands the weight of my back.

Grabbing hold of You is letting go of me.

I'm caught in between knowing You and trusting me.

Your glory pervades me.

You conquer without a sound.

You're the hope that can pull me through.

I rest in the wonder of You.

You know you can't kill a man when he's dead.

The truth is invincible.

Feel the birth inside of you.

You define me with Your identity.

You're the best kept secret in my generation; you're the best kept secret of all time, and I found You out.

I can't pretend I don't know You.

What you are speaks so loudly that I can't barely hear what you're saying.

Get over your losses. Enjoy your wins.

My world would crumble if You weren't there.

Do you realize how much I notice?

Why do I keep lying to myself about you?

Don't just remember the consequences of sin, but remember you have power over it.

He speaks in harmony.

Preparing for marriage is like preparing for teaching. You want to be completely prepared, so your spouse or students don't suffer while you make mistakes.

Make a difference in someone's life today.

Like lifeguards want the sun, I want your love.

It's hard to believe that people accept me as I am, but they do.

What kind of attitude do you have when you do things, for someone else's benefit, that you don't especially like to do?

Someday, we'll play together.

Give me your heart and be real or forget about it.

People are watching to see how you will act and react toward them.

It is a relief when you realize you can be yourself with someone.

I was hoping for more.

We aren't even talking apples and oranges. We are talking like apples and blades of grass.

You can tell who the target audience is by reading or hearing a statement closely.

Focus on the important things.

The gospel is a simply beautiful picture

God will get His point across, one way or another.

What are your symptoms? What have you tried to get well?

Aren't there are always positives and negatives?

Give complete and precise directions.

Analyze your attitudes.

I'm glad I ask questions.

Although a godly girlfriend or boyfriend can tell you what you're doing wrong, they're still a better alternative than dating a weak or lukewarm believer.

Strong, godly people want to become more godly.

Procrastination is probably Satan's middle name.

Let their angels be your angels.

You'll find who your true friends are.

Apparently, everyone has to get things off their chest, occasionally.

Tell the Doctor what's wrong with you.

Your dreams and God's dreams aren't always the same.

Sin leads to more sin.

Fun is an attitude, not simply an activity.

Teachers want teachable people around them.

People who love the truth want to hear it at all costs.

Let God work through you in phenomenal ways.

I just learn and pass it on.

Everyday, God is revealing more of His love for us.

Your insides glow!

Your godliness can improve your life and the lives of others.

God is invading my character.

Those who really know you can give you the really useful gifts that you need.

Sometimes the church is like Noah's Ark. If it weren't for the storm outside, the stench would be unbearable. However, inside is a whole lot better than being in the storm!