Simply Victorious for Life
30+ Daily Devotionals for Spiritual Enlightenment, Empowerment, and Illumination of the Mind, Body, and Soul
Jennifer Workman
Simply Victorious for Life
30+ Daily Devotionals for Spiritual Enlightenment, Empowerment, and Illumination of the Mind, Body, and Soul
Copyright © 2018 Jennifer Workman. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.
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paperback isbn: 978-1-5326-5963-8
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Manufactured in the U.S.A. 09/27/18
Lord, What Shall I Do?
“Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take (Proverbs 3:6, NLT).”
What shall I do? Have you ever asked yourself that question? Have you ever been in a situation that seemed daunting and overwhelming? If you have answered “Yes” to any of these questions, then you are in good company! All of us have been at a point in our lives whereas, we needed clarity of direction regarding some crucial decisions that we were making. An excellent example of this is Solomon in the word of God i.e. “You made me king . . . but I am like a child . . . Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong (I Kings 3:7, 9, NLT).” Even though Solomon was a well-respected and prominent leader, he recognized the sovereignty of God and that only God could lead him down the right path. And, as Solomon, we need to seek God and his direction for our lives for the Bible indisputably states that “for us not to lean to our own understanding but in all our ways acknowledge God and he will direct our paths” (Proverbs 3:6, NKJV).
God is everywhere, God is all knowing and God is the “Alpha and the Omega,” the beginning and the end (Revelation 1:8, NKJV).” We can’t go wrong when we allow God to spearhead and orchestrate every arena of our lives. Contrastingly, if we become prideful, arrogant and “self-seeking,” the final result will be destruction i.e. “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death (Proverbs 14:12, NKJV).” To add, the Apostle Paul was a prisoner on board a ship headed from Palestine to Rome. After they ventured through the Mediterranean Sea and docked at the island of Crete, God told Paul to advise the crew not to leave the harbor because there was going to be a great storm but they didn’t listen and they ended up shipwreck (Acts chapter 27).
When asking the Lord, what shall I do? It is imperative to talk to the Lord and not listen to ourselves, the chatter of others or what appear to be the best scenario at the time. For instance, the Bible highlights the fact that “the officer in charge listened more to the ship’s captain than to Paul (Acts 27:11, NLT).” When asking the Lord what shall I do? We can’t afford to receive wrong counsel because it could be the difference between “life and death” and many times people often give advice from skewed or contaminated lenses based on their personal experiences or things they have encountered in life (Proverbs 28:10, NLT).
Earlier in one of my articles, I used the example in (I Samuel 16:6, NLT) to specify how Samuel used human understanding or finite knowledge to choose God’s next appointed king i.e. “when Samuel took one look at Eliab, he thought, “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed.” And, as a result, God had to remind Samuel “Not to judge based on his appearance or height, for God had rejected him. The Lord continues to express to Samuel the fact that “He doesn’t see things the way Samuel sees them and that people judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” In other words, your eyes can steer you in the wrong direction but “listening to God’s voice . . . can keep you on track (Proverbs 3:6, TM).”
Yes, God will keep us on track if we ask him too i.e. “one day Elisha and his servant awoke to find their house surrounded by an army of soldiers, as a result, Elisha’s servant became hysterical and asked a pertinent question, “what are we going to do?” Elisha then prayed to the Lord to open his servant’s eyes so that he may see (II Kings 6:17, NIV).” And, when seeking direction and asking the Lord, what shall I do? We need to pray to God likewise to “open our eyes that we may see wonderful things (Psalm 119:18, NIV).”
I know many times in my own life, when I was faced with difficult decisions to make, I consulted with the Lord. I asked for his will to be performed in my life and to guide me as he saw fit because he is God and he is in control. And, although I didn’t have any idea of the final outcome or what God was doing, I had faith that it would all work out for my good “because my father knows exactly what I need (Matthew 6:8, NLT).”
So, in conclusion, anytime you need the question answered Lord, what shall I do? God is open and receptive to hear from you. Don’t pick up the phone, don’t say what you are going to do and please don’t listen to unwise counsel from others. Instead, make connection with God through prayer, meditation and study of his word and through quiet time in his presence. For in the presence of the Lord, you will receive clear direction and instructions for life, you will receive joy inexpressible and come out with a peace unfathomable, knowing you have made contact with God, that he loves you very much and that he is equipped to appropriately handle your situation.
For You to Ponder: What are you seeking the Lord for? Take time daily to sit in his presence, meditate on his word and let him minister to your heart to receive clear direction and guidance for your life.
I Will Arise
“Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; when I fall, I will arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me (Micah 7:8, NKJV).”
Getting back up after a fall is never easy for it requires a great deal of stamina to pull yourself up from a horizontal position to a vertical position. I remember viewing a Track and Field meet on television and watching two seasoned female athletes compete against each other. It was obvious from looking at both of them that they were in superb physical condition and have prepared themselves for this hurdling competition. As they and all the other female competitors took their marks, you could see the determination and focus in both of these women’s eyes. Then the gun was shot in the air, they were off and began to run very fast and leap over the hurdles. One by one they jumped and these two ladies were very close in proximity to each other that it would be hard to determine who would win the race, until all of a sudden, out of nowhere, one of the ladies unexpectedly trips and falls over the hurdles. And, it was a hard fall indeed as the audience gasped in shock.
The cameras focused on her as it was evident from her facial expression, that she was very upset and disappointed but then, she composed herself, got up and left off the asphalt as people clapped to show that she gave a great performance and the other lady ended up winning the race. Note, this was not the first time these two ladies competed against each other and the other lady (Dominick) won the race earlier and this was Queen’s chance
