October 23 – Do You Feel It?

You have shown me the path to life, and you make me glad by being near to me.
Sitting at your right side, I will always be joyful. – Psalm 16:11 (Life Application Study Bible)

Jesus Tells us: As you decide to come close to Me, the Light of My Presence shines brightly upon you. Do you feel it? It’s that warm feeling when you know you’ve done something that makes Me smile. It’s that Peace In your heart when you’ve poured out all your sorrows to Me. It’s that bubbling – over Joy that fills your voice when you sing My praises. It’s that perfect Love I always have for you – even when you mess up. This is one of those wonderful things about Me, the closer you get to Me, the closer I draw you to Me, which brings Me closer to you, and on and on and on.

Jesus Concludes: Do you feel the Joy? Open your heart to Me, and receive even more joy! 

Psalm 16:11; John 17:20-23

Footnotes Psalm 16:11 David stated confidently that God would not leave him in the greave. Many people fear death because they can neither control nor understand it. As believers, we can be assured that God will not forget us when we die. He will b ring us to life again to live with him forever. This provides real security.

Passage John 17:20-23 20 ”My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22I have given them the glory that you game me, that they may be one as we are one, 23I in them and you in me, so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me, and have loved them, even as you have loved me.

Footnotes John 17:20-23 20Jesus prayed for all who would follow him, including you and others you know. He prayed for unity, protection from the evil one, and sanctity. Knowing that Jesus prayed for us gives us confidence as we work for his kingdom.
21-23Jesus’s great desire for his disciples was that they would become one. He wanted them unified as a powerful witness to the reality of God’s love. Are you helping to unify the body of Christ, the church? You can pray for other Christians, build them up, work with them in humility, be generous with your time and money, avoid gossip, exalt Jesus, and refuse to get sidetracked arguing over divisive matters.

Jesus prayed for unity among Believers, based on the believers’ unity with him and the Father. Christians can know unity among themselves if they are living in union with God. Each branch living in union with its vine is united with all other branches doing the same.

Jesus Tells us is from the Jesus Calling 365 Devotions for kids.

THE WORLD…we see history

Queen Isabella of Spain

This could in fact be called “Isabella and Ferdinand,” for the dual reign of these “Catholic Monarchs” of Spain, as the couple is called, reshaped the world, and launched enterprises that had a titanic effect in their day and that continue to influence the lives of untold millions. Just as Michael H Hart, in his book The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History, Chose Isabella over Ferdinand for inclusion, so do we, and for the same reason: Although “most of her policies were decided upon after consultation with her shrewd and equally capable husband, it was her suggestions which were adopted in their most important decisions.” These decisions led to, among other things, the reconquest of Spain from the Moors, the institution of the Spanish Inquisition, the sending forth of Christopher Columbus to the America’s, (and all the unpredictable consequences thereof) and the divvying up of the world as it was then known with the Portuguese.