Daily Devotional By Archbishop Foley Beach A Word From The Lord (AWFTL)

Is Your Faith Yours, or Is Your Faith Really the Faith of Others?
MESSAGE SUMMARY: We first believed because of what our parents taught us; but then we heard for ourselves, and we believed. You and cannot live on another’s faith in Jesus – With regards to faith, “God has no grandchildren”, only His Children; therefore, your Salvation can only come from your faith and not the faith of others. Each of us must hear for ourselves and come to the Lord in our own faith. As Paul tells us in Romans 10:16-17: “But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?’. So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ." You and I each will stand before the Lord alone in judgment -- we will speak for ourselves with only Jesus to speak for us. Others to whom we minister, such as our children, can her about the Lord and the Gospel from us – for the first time or in reinforcement – but they must hear for themselves and believe for themselves to be saved.
 
TODAY’S PRAYER: Lord, I have unhealthy ways of relating to others that are deeply imbedded in me. Please change me. Make me a vessel to spread mature, steady, and reliable love so that those I come in contact with will sense your tenderness and kindness through me. In Jesus’ name, amen.  Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 140). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Procrastination. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Self-Control. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 2 Timothy 1:5; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; Matthew 7:24-27; Psalms 53:1-6.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Be Strong & Courageous”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/
DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

Jesus Followers Seek First God’s Will, and then They “Die” to their Self-Ambitions and Self-Appetites and Take Up Their Cross
MESSAGE SUMMARY: In a time in which we hear so much about self-help, self-image, and self-actualization, Jesus is saying self-denial is the way to life for Jesus Followers. Jesus tells us, in Matthew 16:24, that self-denial is a key element in following Him: “Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’". “Taking up one’s cross” means to die to self-ambitions and self-appetites. When we die to our self-ambitious and self-appetites, we put them on the cross; and  Jesus’ life moves through us: “Not my will but Thy will.”. By denying self, we become alive in Jesus; and His Spirit flows through us – we experience eternal life and abundant life.
 
TODAY’S PRAYER: Most merciful God I confess that I have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what I have done, and by what I have left undone. 
I have not loved you with my whole heart; I have not loved my neighbors as myself. I am truly sorry and I humbly repent. 
For the sake of your son Jesus Christ, have mercy on me and forgive me; that I might delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of Your Name. Amen. 
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Past Failures. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Grace. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Matthew 16:24; Mathew 10:38-39; Galatians 6:14-17; Psalms 141:1-10.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Be Strong & Courageous”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/
DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

At Times, Are You Unrepentant in Your Spiritual Life and, Therefore, “storing up wrath for yourself on the {Judgement} day of wrath”?
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Penitence is not a once in a lifetime occurrence. Penitence is a daily and moment by moment occurrence. None of us is perfect, and not one of us always does the will of God. Paul, in Romans 2:4-5, is unequivocal in establishing the need for your continuing penitence and the consequences of your not repenting of your sins on a real-time basis: “Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed.". Therefore, we all need to repent and return to the Lord. You can become cocky and arrogant in your spiritual life – “I am a Christian; God has done this for me.”. As the Psalmist tells us in Psalms 32:5 of his confession and his penitence: “I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,’ and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.". You can rest on our perceived laurels; but these perceptions, of personal goodness and righteousness, can lead you quickly to a need for your penitence.
 
TODAY’S PRAYER: Most merciful God I confess that I have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what I have done, and by what I have left undone. I have not loved you with my whole heart; I have not loved my neighbors as myself. I am truly sorry and I humbly repent. For the sake of your son Jesus Christ, have mercy on me and forgive me; that I might delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of Your Name. Amen. 
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that, because I am in Jesus Christ, I press on toward His goal for me. (Philippians 3:12f). “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”. (Philippians 4:14).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Mathew 3:8-11; Romans 2:4-5; 2 Corinthians 7:10; Psalms 140:1-13.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Be Strong & Courageous”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/
DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

Jesus Followers “also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation" While We Are Still Sinners
MESSAGE SUMMARY: No one, including you, can separate you from the love of God. While we were and are still sinners, Jesus the Christ died for us. God loves you exactly where you are; God loves you no matter what you said about Him; and He loves you no matter what you have done. In Romans 5:8-11, Paul confirms God’s unconditional love for us: “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.".
 
TODAY’S PRAYER: Lord, I now take a deep breath and stop. So often I miss your hand and gifts in my life because I am preoccupied and anxious. Grant me the power to pause each day and each week to simply rest in your arms of love. In Jesus’ name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 132). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Addictions. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Self-Control. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV):  Romans 6:23; John 17:1-26; John 5:24; Psalms 139b:13-24.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Be Strong & Courageous”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/
DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

Jesus Asks: “But who do you say that I am?” and Jesus Answers: “you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you”
MESSAGE SUMMARY: In Mark 8:29, Jesus asked His Disciples the question He asks you: “And he asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered him, ‘You are the Christ {Messiah}.’". As Paul writes in Ephesians 4:1-6: “There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift.”.  God IS Father, IS Son, and He IS Holy Spirit. Jesus told the crowd in the Temple; and He tells us, as it is recorded for us now by the Apostle John, in John 10:25,30: “Jesus answered them, ‘I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me . . . I and the Father are one.’”. Also, Jesus provides more insights to your Trinitarian relationship with God in John 14:18-20: “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.".  God is one God, but He is in three natures: God is Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Therefore, when you pray, you are praying to one triune being – God, the Creator of the Universe.
 
TODAY’S PRAYER: Lord, help me to grab hold of you today. I need you. Set me free to begin reorienting my life around you, and you alone. Help me to pay attention to and honor how you have uniquely made me. Thank you for the gift of rest. In Jesus’ name, amen.       Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 122). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Ephesians 4:1-8; John 10:24-30; Mark 1:9-11; Psalms 139a:1-12.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Be Strong & Courageous”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/
DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

Daniel’s Prayer Was “seeking him {God} by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting . . . ‘O Lord, the great and awesome God . . . we have sinned and done wrong’”
MESSAGE SUMMARY: There are times when you need clarity, understanding, knowledge and insights from God about the specific issues that you, your family, your church, or your country are facing. In your personal relationship with God as a Jesus Follower, the Lord will speak to you; but sometimes it takes your listening and fasting to hear Him. For example, when Joel received a Word when the land was to be destroyed, he called a fast (i.e. Joel 1:14): “Consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD.”. Some things you are facing in your life must be dealt with by both prayer and fasting. Fasting releases a spiritual power – in your weakness, God is made strong in your life. Daniel’s prayer, from Daniel 9:3-5, provides a context for asking direction from God: “Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, ‘O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules.’".
 
TODAY’S PRAYER: Lord, Sabbath rest is truly an unbelievable gift! Thank you that there is nothing I can do to earn your love; it comes without any strings attached. As I close my eyes for these few minutes before you, all I can say is, thank you! In Jesus’ name, amen.  Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 133). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD’S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Joel 1:13-16; Matthew 6:16; Daniel 9:3-7; Psalms138:1-8.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Be Strong & Courageous” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/   
DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB