Psalm 54:2-Hear my prayer, O God; give ear to the words of my mouth.

Let us look at the word Ziphims; they were Ziphites. In 1 Samuel 26:1, it says that the Ziphites went to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Is not David hiding on the hill of Hakilah, which faces Jeshimon?”

When I look at Psalm 54:2, David is praying to God because strangers have risen up against him, his oppressors seek after his soul: because they have not set God before them. David is hiding from Saul because he is trying to kill him. Saul knows that David is going to be the next King, so he is doing everything he can to kill David. David is running for his life! He has never did anything to King Saul to disrespect him. David is asking God to protect him from his enemies. Even though Saul is doing this to David, he will never retaliate against Saul because he is the King. David knows that one day King Saul’s reign is going to end, but he will not harm King Saul. David was there to play the harp for Saul when the evil spirit came upon him to calm him down, but King Saul was mad at David because of jealousy. Jealousy is something that will make people do crazy things that they would not normally do. One would think that King Saul would be proud to have David around. David won wars, he made his fair share of mistakes, but nonetheless He was a man after God’s own heart.

King David still prayed to God even though he made mistakes, when he was in despair, when he did not understand something, when his baby died because of what he did to Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband. He called on God for help.

Whenever I look at the things that I go through sometimes, I called on God in every last situation that I have ever had to face in my life. God has delivered me through heartache, sickness, and pain, anxiety, and depression, through all of the surgeries I have had to have in my life. Just as God delivered King David from King Saul, He still delivers us out of all of our troubles today. He delivers us from our enemies that they may not triumph over us, just as King Saul did not triumph over King David. When I look at King David, I see hope and faith, just as well as I see mistakes he made in his life, but the thing is we all make mistakes in our lives…we are human beings. For as long as we live, we will make mistakes and we will call on God to deliver us from the mistakes we make, but while He is delivering us from those mistakes, we have a lesson to learn from them. We will not make that same mistake again. We cannot please everyone, just as King David could not always please King Saul.

King David asked God to give ear to the words of his mouth. He wanted God to hear every word he was saying to Him, He did not want God to turn a deaf ear to him. He was saying, God, please hear me! God, I need You! I need You to deliver me from my enemies that are trying to kill me!

In verse(4.) David said Behold, God is mine helper: the Lord is with them that uphold my soul. David realized that God was his helper. He knew that God would help him even though he was in distress…in fear for his life. He knew that they wanted to take his life from him. When we are in distress about something, no matter what it is, we can call on God, but when we call on God, we cannot doubt, we have to know that He hears us , just as David knew that He heard is plea…his prayer. We must have that kind of faith…faith that is unwavering. We must have the faith as the size of a mustard seed, and a mustard seed is very small. Having a little faith is better than having no faith at all. Having no faith will get you nowhere, but just having a little faith can move mountains. That is mustard seed faith. There is nothing wrong with being afraid of something, but do not let fear overtake you. Perfect love casts out all fear, and that is the perfect love of God.

No matter where we are in our lives, God is with us, just as He was with King David. He was with the disciples even when Jesus returned to heaven. What would ever make us think that He is not with us? He said that He would never leave us nor forsake us. He is our ever present help when we are in trouble… when we are facing things that we do not understand. When we cannot feel His presence, He is with us. When we cannot find Him, He is still wit us, just as He was with Job, just as HE WAS WITH JACOB, JOSEPH, ABRAHAM, DANIEL, and all of those who came before us! They lived by faith, they walked by faith and not by sight, just as we should today! Yes, there are going to be hard times that will come along that we have no control of, but we must realize that we have a Savior to call on, and His name is Jesus Christ! If you have not talked to God in a while, or never talked to Him at all for whatever reason, He is waiting to hear from you. It does not matter what you have done in your life, or where you are in your life, He is here for you. Whatever you are going through, He can work it out, I know because He has did it for me more times than I can count. He loves you. He took our sins upon Himself so we could be free from sin, so we would not have to be separated from Him for all eternity. When you make the decision to live for Jesus, it will be the best decision you will ever make in your life. All praises be to God and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ…who was and is and is to come, Amen!

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, Thank You for allowing us to be here on this earth another day. Thank You for our health and strength, and for all that You do for us. Thank You for always watching over us, and taking care of us, and making a way where there seems to be no way. Thank You for Your love, mercy, and grace, and lovingkindness. Most of all, thank You for sending Your precious Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. I give You all the praise, glory, and honor, in Jesus’ name, Amen!

Romans 8:29-30-For whom he did foreknow, he also did *predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. (v.30.)Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified, them he also glorified.

Romans 8:29-Predestination-The word “Predestinate” is used only here and in Ephesians 1:5,11, where the meaning is the same as here(see Ephesians 1;5 note, “Adoption” and Ephesians 1:11 note, “Predestination”). It means to plan beforehand. Just as earthly parents make delightful plans for the future of their children, so God does for His children. The verse does not say that He planned that certain people would become His children. It says that He planned that all His children would be like His beloved Son, Jesus Christ. He made plans for “whom he did foreknow.” He looked ahead from the beginning of time to the end of time and saw His Son, and in Him all believers. This does not in any sense whatsoever take away from the fact that each person who is born into the world has a free will to receive or reject Jesus Christ as Savior.

Verse 31. Asks us a question. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

In verse 32., Paul tells us, He that spared not His own Son(He, God), (Son, Jesus Christ). delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?

When God sent His son into this world to die for our sins, He gave us all that He had. He gave us His one and only precious Son. He sacrificed His Son to take our sins upon Himself so that we could be free from sin; so we would not have to live apart from God forever. When sin entered into the world in the Garden of Eden, we were separated from God. He could not look at us the way He did at first, everything was ruined. We could not commune with Him, or go to Him, He did not continue to give us all of the luxuries we had in the Garden of Eden. We had to work hard then, just as we do now. When I say “we”, I mean our ancestors. If God had not sent Jesus to take our place, we would die in our sins. There would be no remission for our sins, no forgiveness, no second chances, no nothing. We would be doomed to hell for all eternity. Everything that God did then, and does now is for our good. It is not to harm us. Yes, we go through things we do not understand, but it is for our good. Trials in life comes to make us strong so we can help someone. We never know who we are going to have to encourage in our lives. Just as God encourages us when we read the Word, we can encourage others by sharing the love of God with them, by showing them HIS love through our demonstrations in life. Sometimes we are the only way people see Jesus.

God has given us Salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ. It is our own choice whether we accept it or not. We can only come to the Father through Jesus Christ, because He is the way, the truth, and the life. Anything we need, He will freely give when we do not doubt. When we ask God for something, we must ask in His Son’s name, and not only that, we must believe that we have already received it by faith.

In verse(33.) We are asked, “Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.” God justifies everything no matter what it is. God is our final judge. He is the One who makes all things come to the light through the Holy Spirit who dwells inside of us.

In verse(34.) We are asked, Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intersession for us.

We should be thankful that we have someone standing up for us in heaven when we make mistakes. We should be grateful that we have Jesus speaking on our behalf. Just think how it would be if we did not have Him standing and speaking for us, we would be in a terrible fix. It is wonderful that God is a for giving God! He loves us so much. Sometimes we go through so much in our lives that we tend to forget that. We forget that we have someone always looking out for us.

(Verse 35.) Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (Verse 36.) As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. (Verse37.) Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

We are conquerors through Jesus Christ! Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. (Verse 38.) For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, not things present, not things to come, (Verse 39.) Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We cannot forget what God did for us to show us how much He loves us. The love He has for us will never change, and we should not let anything come in between us for the love that we have for our God. We are to love God with all of our might, nothing wavering.

John 3:16-17 is another two verses that I go to when I just want to read about just how much God loves me. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.

Jesus died for everyone in the entire world. Everything that God does is for our good.

Today I want to talk about Spiritual Fitness. It is very important that we are fit spiritually just as we want our bodies to be fit. Let us look at the definition of Spiritual Fitness.

Spiritual Fitness-It is a term used to capture a person’s overall spiritual health and reflects how spirituality may help one cope with and enjoy life.(Google)

Spirituality may be used generally to refer to that which gives meaning and purpose in life.(Google)

Let us look at what God has to say about Spiritual Fitness. In 1 Samuel 16:7, this is what God say about it. “But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.

It does not matter what we look like pertaining to our height and stature, or what we look like personally, but God is looking at our heart to see what state our heart is in. Whatever we do, and whatever we say comes from our heart. If we are angry all of the time about how we look, we should do something about it. We should ask God to fix whatever is wrong with our heart spiritually so that He can use us in the areas of our lives that will lead to increasing His Kingdom. Our heart must be healthy as well as the other parts of our body, because it is what keeps us alive. When the heart stops… life ends. That is why it is very important that we have a healthy heart.

This is what 1 Timothy 4:7-8 say about it. But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness. For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.

We have to exercise our spiritual selves just as we exercise our physical body, because it all works together. How will we be able to help others when we can’t, or do not try to help ourselves spiritually. We have to be focused mind, body, and spirit. When we are not focused on making sure we do what we have to do for ourselves, how will we focus to help someone else? Just because we look a certain way on the outside, it does not mean everything is well on the inside.

As time change, we all grow older. When we are up in age, we will still want to do the things that makes us happy. In order for that to happen, we must start taking care of our bodies now. Let us not wait until it is to late to start. The reason I say this is because tomorrow is not promised to any of us, not even our next breath. Let us lead as examples for the next generation to follow. I am also talking to the young generation today. Health and fitness is for everyone. We only get one body, and we only get one life on this earth…let’s make it count.

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, I am very thankful that You have given me the opportunity to do this. I pray that You will continue to give me wisdom knowledge, and understanding to be able to help and encourage others. Where ever You are taking me on this journey in my life, I am with You all of the way. Amen.

“Whatever path you choose to take, just enjoy the journey along the way.”

app.adjust.com/fm2tr7g

“Health and fitness is very important. Exercise and eating right is an important factor to staying healthy. We only have one body, so we must take care of it.”

Mrs. Shaunelius L. Sterns

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When we were growing up life was simple. We ate when we wanted to eat, and we ate what we wanted to eat; it did not matter how much we ate, because our metabolism was high and our bodies would burn off the fat that we consumed. We did not have a care in the world. As we get older in our age, our bodies change. We change how we look physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. What can we do to stop our bodies from becoming how we do not want them to be? We cut back on our caloric intake, and we cut back on the amount of sugar we consume from snacks and other things we eat, but what do we do when that does not work? What else is there? We become depressed and start not to like our bodies, we buy scales to see how much we have gained or lost, but all in all we are still upset. We try dieting that does not work. We read books that only make us feel worse than we did at first, and we find ourselves in tears. We stress eat to make our sad feelings go away, but what we do not realize is that we are only hurting ourselves. We have our little pity party feeling down on ourselves; wanting others to feel sorry for us, but what good is that? What is that going to help? We need to get up and dry our eyes and start taking responsibility for our own bodies! In the first place no one can do it for us. We have to do the research if we want to know things and how to start making good decisions about our bodies, and our health. We should sit down ant write down the things that we consume on a daily basis. Then we should look at each one and write down the pros and cons about each one. Thirdly, we need to look up those things to see what it is made out of and do the research on the ingredients. Yes, packages have the information listed of the back with the daily value, and the percentages of the vitamins on it as well. We do not normally look at it if it is something we have been eating all of our lives, and we do not pay attention as to how much we eat either. We eat things because it tastes good, and because it is pleasing to our eyes. everything we see, eat, and want is not good for us, but too much of any thig is not good either no matter what it is.

Let us think about it for a minute. We all have different body types, we are all different. Some eat more than others, some eat less than others, and there are some that count calories every time they eat, or drink any thing. That is all good, but in some ways it is not. I say that because sometimes when a person is in a rush, we do not pay attention to what we are eating, we just need to put something inside of us to get ourselves going. There are times when a cup of coffee is all we have time for, and sometimes we do not even have time for that. We go throughout our day running on fumes.

At the end of the day, our bodies are depleted of nutrients that we need to keep us strong and healthy; our bodies feed on itself. Well this is what we should do. In order to keep ourselves healthy and in shape, we must exercise! Exercising gives us energy. It helps to release toxins in our bodies that makes us tired and sluggish. It helps us to get rid of the things that makes us feel bad, or are making us feel bad. We feel our blood flowing in our bodies. It is good for our heart to get the blood flowing. We feel good at the end of a good workout; and we know that we have done something good for our bodies, and we have done something good for ourselves. We must take ourselves into consideration because we only get one go around in this life.

When we want something sweet to eat, or something to drink, we should eat fresh fruits and drink juice, such as Gatorade, Powerade, but most importantly, drink plenty of water. Water has all of the right minerals that is good for our bodies. There’s nothing in it that’s artificial. There are sweet waters that are bottled and sold in stores just as regular water, but those kind of waters are not so good for you. Some have artificial sweeteners to make them taste good, and there are some that are made out of real fruit juice. Some are even caffeine free. Gatorade puts the electrolytes back into our bodies when we have had a hard workout; especially when we have sweat something fierce.

There’s nothing wrong with starting slow and working your way up when exercising. It is good to consult your health care provider when you are attempting to start a fitness program. He or she can tell you what to do and how to do so you will not hurt yourself. Make sure to have something comfortable to work out in. Make sure to stretch before doing any kind of exercise to get the blood flowing in the muscles; especially if you are going to be working out in the morning before you start your day.

Make it fun. Have family and friends join you on your journey to getting fit and staying healthy.

There is something here for everyone to enjoy working out to. There are more videos on YouTube that you can workout to. Just take your time and have fun on this amazing journey to fitness and good health.

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Love means caring, helping, listening, covering an offense, being patient, never envying or boasting(1 Corinthians13:4-7). This kind of love and friendship can only be supernatural. It also means speaking the truth in love when it is necessary (Ephesians 4:15).

Supernatural love comes from Jesus. His love s perfect. His love is perfect because He is love. There will never be anyone on the face of the earth who will love and care for us like Jesus. There is no one on this earth that has power like Jesus. Jesus is patient with us, He is caring to us, His love covers a multitude of sins, does our love cover a multitude of sins, no it does not. If it were not for Jesus showing us love, we would not know how to love, or know what real love is. Jesus speaks to us through the Word with love. He shows us things about ourselves in love, not to hurt us. We may not always like what Jesus tells us, or shows us about ourselves, but it is for our own good. We should not boast about anything but the love of God.

Peter tells us that “Love covers a multitude of sins”(1 Peter 4:8). He echoes the proverb, “Hatred stirs up strife but love covers all sins” (Proverbs 10:12). Some think that one person’s love can blot out another person’s sin. The only love that can cover sin in that sense, is the love of Jesus Christ.

When we think about friendship, we can totally talk about Jesus, because He is a friend that will stick closer than a brother. Jesus will always be with us, but our family members will not, because of whatever the case may be. We do not have ever have to worry about not having a friend in Jesus; He will always be there when no one else is. We can count on Jesus, we cannot always count on our family, because sometimes your family can be your worst enemy. We do not ever have to worry about Jesus turning His back on us, He may not come when we call Him, but He is always on time.

Sometimes when we have to give someone advice, it may not always be taken whole heartedly depending on the way it is said, and who is receiving it, but when we give advice, it is always given in love. The person may not think so at first, but in due time they will see that it was said in love. When Jesus told the disciples what was going to take place when it came time for Him to go back to the Father, the disciples did not understand what He was talking about, they were confused. When time came, when it was all said and done, they understood what Jesus was telling them. He did not tell them what was going to happen to Him to hurt them; although He knew it was, but He told them in love. He knew their hearts would break because of it, but He wanted them to know because they were His friends… they were family. They were always together. They looked out for each other, and they loved one another.

Jesus set the example for us to follow today, but we do not always follow that example. We let anger, hate, jealousy, envy, and strife with one another keep us from doing that. Jesus wants us to love one another just as He loved us then and now…just as He loved the disciples. What greater love can compare to the Love of Jesus. Love sacrificed His life for us. Love opened blind eyes. Love walked on water. Love calmed a raging sea. Love did it all for us. When we feel that no one loves us, we can always know that Jesus loves us. We can always know that He will never leave us nor forsake us. Knowing that brings a smile to my face. Knowing that He laid His life down for me makes my soul jump for joy! There is no love like the love of Jesus, and there is no friend in the world like Jesus.

Let us look at the word caring- 1 Peter 1:22. And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.-Ephesians 4:32. Everyone should look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.

We should care about what others want, not just what we want. When we do that, we are showing that we care for others just as much as we care for ourselves. We want to see them succeed just as we want to succeed as well. When we do that, it gives that person encouragement, and boosts their confidence to do what they want to do in their lives. Not only that, we are showing and sharing the love of Christ.

Let us look at the word kindness. Kindness is selfless, compassionate, and merciful; its greatest power revealed in practice to our enemies and amongst the least of these. Love your neighbor; show kindness to EVERYONE. For a perfect emblem of Biblical kindness, we need to look no further than Jesus.

When I look at what kindness is, Jesus are all of these things and more. He is more than our minds can fathom. When we learn to be kind like Jesus, we can be kind to our enemies and love them as well. Nevertheless, we have our struggles with being kind to all people, we just have to go to Jesus and ask Him to teach us how to be kind in all aspects of our lives. When we are kind to people, that kindness is returned to us, it may not happen then, but it will. We can have compassion for people; Jesus did. People tried to kill him, but He was still kind and compassionate to everyone, and that is how we should be. We should not let what we go through keep us from being kind and compassionate to people. Everyone needs compassion and kindness in their lives, it is what makes life worth living. It is what makes us feel that we can succeed in life no matter what. Jesus shows us kindness and compassion every time we make mistakes. He forgives us for everything we do wrong, because He knows what we are going to say and do before we say, or do it. Are we quick to forgive others just as Jesus is quick to forgive us? Do we forget about it just as Jesus does? We need to examine ourselves from time to time to see if we are really doing what we are suppose to do as children of the Light. I am talking about the light of Jesus Christ. God gives us a chance every day to be better people. He gives us chance after chance to strive to be more like HIs Son. He knows that we are just human beings. He knows that we are not going to get it right all of the time, so that is why He is here for us to call on.

Let us look at the word Mercy. “Mercy” can be defined as “compassion or forbearance shown especially to an offender or to one subject to one’s power”; and also ” a blessing that is an act of divine favor or compassion”. “To be at someone’s mercy” indicates a person being “without defense against someone.”

Mercy is a “love that responds to human need in an unexpected or unmerited way.” At its core, mercy is forgiveness. The Bible speaks of God’s love for sinners-that is, for all of us. But the Bible also relates mercy to other qualities beyond love and forgiveness.

What would we do without God having mercy on us when we do things wrong? If God did not show us mercy, there would not be any forgiveness. God loved us when we were sinners just as much as He does now, but when we were sinners we were separated from God, but when Jesus came and died for our sins, we were shown mercy and forgiveness. We are all sinners saved by God’s amazing grace! It is nothing that we did to deserve it, but it is the gift of God through His Son Jesus Christ. We should be eternally grateful for it. We should thank God every day for the mercy that HE shows us. We should thank Him for loving us when we were not worth His love, but He sent His one and Only Son to die for our sinful selves.

https://av1611.com/kjbp/kjv-dictionary/merciful.html

By clicking on the link above, you can find out more about the word merciful. It is a wealth of information on it.

The word Selfless has many cross reference Scriptures, so I am just going to list the Scriptures if you should want to explore them on your own time. It will give you a chance to spend some time with Jesus in God’s Word.

Mark 12:31

Galatians 5:14; Leviticus 19:18; James 2:8; Matthew 5:44; Matthew 5:47; Matthew 5:45; Philippians 2:7; Philippians 2:5; Mark 10:45; Luke 22:42; John 3:30; Luke 10:29-37; Luke 10:30; Luke 10:34; Luke 10:34-35; Luke 10:35; Galatians 2:20;

Compassionate is when you are showing someone compassion. It means to empathize with someone who is suffering and to feel compelled to reduce the suffering.

The word Patience means, the quality or virtue is presented as either forbearance or endurance. In the former sense it is a quality of self-restraint or of not giving way to anger, even in the face of provocation; it is attributed o both God and man and is closely related to mercy and compassion.

When I think about it, God did not have to show us any compassion, love, mercy, or grace because of our sins. He did not have to send His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins, but He did. He could have just gave up on us and let us die in our sins, but He did not do it. When we look at the things we face in life, who do we turn to? Who do we run to? Who does our soul cry our to? When we are at our lowest point in our lives, who do we call on? When we do not know which way to go in life, who gives us direction? When there is nothing in the refrigerator to eat, who provides for us? When we need clothes, and shoes, who do we ask to make a way so we can afford it? Who always comes through? Jesus! He knows everything that we need before we can even realize that we need something. That is why we always thank Him in advance for the things we need. We thank Him for all that He has done, for all that He is doing, and for all that He is going to do in our lives. We thank Him for holding everything together in this world. Most of all we need to thank Him for His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior! Stay safe, and God bless. Don’t forget to spend some time with Jesus, He is always waiting and ready to hear from you.

“A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. Proverbs 17:17”

“He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes. Proverbs 13:24”

“Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins. Proverbs 10:12”

“Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love. Proverbs 5:19”

“Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God. Psalm 42:11”

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. Mark 16:15 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/mrk.16.15.KJV

God, thank You for sending Your only Son to save us. What a beautiful gift that I can never earn. Lord, sometimes I struggle to believe that I am worthy of Your presence in my life. Remind me that this is not the case. Remove any barriers that are keeping me from committing my life completely to You. And then give me the courage to share Your good news with everyone I meet. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

The Gospel • Devotional https://bible.com/reading-plans/3864/day/1?segment=0

God, thank You that nothing I go through is wasted, and nothing I face is too hard for You. When I am tempted to believe a lie, please remind me of Your truth. Keep me centered in Your Word so that I don’t miss out on the plans You have for me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.