Daily Devotional for June 16, 2024 – Serving God with a humble and contrite heart and recognizing His power and presence in everything…it’s time to make every day our 𝑭𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓’𝒔 Day!

Isaiah 66:1-2
God’s Message:

Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool: What Temple can you build for me as good as that? My hand has made both earth and skies, and they are mine. Yet I will look with pity on the man who has a humble and a contrite heart, who trembles at my word.

The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Last night, Greg and I took our great-nephews and niece to Searcy, Arkansas, for a dinner theatre performance on the Harding University campus. For forty-one years, the residents of Searcy have presented a summer dinner theatre…and they now utilize the University’s theatre facilities and food service. The combined result is a “fine dining” experience, complete with well-appointed tables, cloth linens, a buffet dinner, and impeccable service courtesy of [primarily] the school’s theatre students, some of whom we recognized from performances we previously attended.
 
This was the first time for our kids to experience this kind of fine dining, and as we stood to leave after the play, Nathan asked, “Don’t we need to clear the table?” I explained that this was part of our experience – we got to get up and walk away and let someone else do the dishes/cleanup! (I was also secretly proud that our kids are accustomed to helping with “kitchen duty” after meals!)
 
Let me say that we have fun munching on popcorn and candy at the movies – or eating ice cream at a local drive-in. We are perfectly at home with a fast-food meal and paper napkins and utensils. But there was something special about being served in this fashion…the elevated feeling of dressing in nice clothing, placing a cloth napkin in our laps, and having someone clear our plates after each course and refill our glasses. It was a treat for sure…and I must say that our kids were all incredibly appreciative.
 
In this passage from Isaiah, we hear God telling us that He often provides a “fine dining experience” for us. Most days, we dwell in the “routine” world of “fast food meals” and “popcorn/soda” events. We don’t set our tables with cloth linens and specific dining utensils for certain courses during the meal. Nobody comes along to pour coffee, clear our dishes, and ask if everything is to our liking. But God is plenty capable of offering us the elevated experiences and abundance…and He does this more often than we recognize. God desires that we acknowledge and appreciate these blessings with a humble attitude and a grateful heart. 
 
Just as Nathan asked if we should help clear the table, you and I should be asking, “LORD, what can I do for You? How can I serve You better and demonstrate my appreciation and gratitude for Your abundance? What can I do to further Your Kingdom?” We all get complacent at times and take God’s love and care for granted. Too many of us have gotten to the point where the “fine dining experiences” God offers us are customary – maybe even monotonous. We have grown so accustomed to God’s presence and power that we don’t fully notice – or appreciate – these gifts. And we surely don’t give God the glory He deserves. But we can fix this…and we should!
 
Today, stop and realize just how much God is blessing you. As we sat down last night, Nathan said, “I feel like a millionaire!” As children of the Most High God, we should feel like this every single day in even the simplest of experiences. Everything we have…everything we are…every “good gift” comes from our Heavenly Father. On this day of all days – Father’s Day – let’s bow before God and give Him glory and honor. Then let’s make every day going forward our “Father’s” Day. Alleluia!

©2024 Debbie Robus

Daily Devotional for December 14, 2019 – “Native” or “foreigner”…what kind of gratitude do you have?

Luke 17:11-19
On his way to Jerusalem, Jesus went along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men with leprosy came toward him. They stood at a distance and shouted, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

Jesus looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.”

On their way they were healed. When one of them discovered that he was healed, he came back, shouting praises to God. He bowed down at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. The man was from the country of Samaria.

Jesus asked, “Weren’t ten men healed? Where are the other nine? Why was this foreigner the only one who came back to thank God?” Then Jesus told the man, “You may get up and go. Your faith has made you well.”
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.

In 1997, Greg and I built a big white house on farmland that had once belonged to my grandparents. One day, my cousin (who was in the timber business) brought a van FULL of men to plant about 3 acres of our land in fast-growing pine trees. The men were from another country – none spoke English. But one of them looked at our house and asked the foreman to ask us how many people would live there. I sheepishly replied – “Only two.” One Halloween, a friend brought her children to trick-or-treat, and one of the little ones asked, “Who lives in this hotel?” I suspect that the “foreigners” planting the pine trees assumed (understandably) that many people – perhaps multiple families – would live in this home.

As I read this scripture passage today, I thought about that house. Greg and I worked very hard to be able to afford to live in a beautiful home and have the things we have. And we take none of it for granted. I know what it is to grow up “middle class” or lower…and I watched my grandparents lose everything they owned and had worked for all their lives go up in flames one December morning. But I will also be the first to tell you that staying humble and grateful takes work – and focus.

It is easy to become complacent…to be like the “natives” who Jesus healed of leprosy and all but expect privilege – even in our Christian lives. We cannot assume that Jesus will always heal us and take care of us (even though He will). We cannot take for granted our place at Heaven’s table. We cannot “rest on our laurels” and go our merry way with the presumption that Jesus will rescue and redeem us from everything. We have to continually work at staying close to God…we must be genuinely grateful every day for our blessings and abundance…and we must “come back, shouting praises to God”.

I was struck today by the thought that “foreigners” are often more grateful and appreciative – for everything – than we natives. The same could be said at times for us as redeemed believers of Jesus Christ. We grow complacent in our faith and fail to recognize Christ’s presence – much less His gifts. And we are far less grateful than we should be.

So my question to you today is this…are you a “native” or a “foreigner”? Are you making the effort to stay focused on Christ…and to be vigilant in your efforts to recognize – and appreciate – the miracles and blessings He provides in your life? When was the last time you really, truly thanked Jesus…especially for the seemingly small things? I know that God has blessed us all more than we can ever begin to put into words. When was the last time you showed Him your gratitude? Isn’t this a good day to get back on track?

©2019 Debbie Robus