Devotionals
The Power of Intercession
“And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.” James 5:15 (NIV)
Did you know that even godly people who have a vibrant faith in God can go through seasons of adversity? Often these difficult seasons can strengthen your faith and also cause you to become weary. As you fight the good fight of the faith (1 Tim. 6:12), you may experience spiritual exhaustion. Battle fatigue is a potential reality for the follower of Christ.
James wrote to believers who had experienced severe persecution. Their faith had been tested and many of them had become emotionally depleted and spiritually exhausted. In some cases, their spiritual weakness caused them to be unable to call on God.
We need each other. God does not expect you to live the Christian life on your own. God wants you to live out your faith as you connect with your spiritual family. God adopted you into His family. Allow other believers who are spiritually strong to come alongside to help you through seasons of spiritual lethargy and warfare.
The spiritually strong will offer their prayer in faith, fully trusting that God is able to do what He says (Rom. 4:21), and you will be restored. God will raise you up from a condition of spiritual weakness to a state of spiritual strength and stability.
Will you invite a spiritually mature follower of Christ to offer a prayer in faith on your behalf? Don't walk alone through the seasons of adversity. Allow your spiritual family to intercede for you.
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
Calling for Prayer Support
“Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.” James 5:14 (NIV)
The Christian life is not a solo flight. God never intended for us to live out our faith in isolation. As followers of Christ, we have Jesus at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us (Rm. 8:34) and we have the Holy Spirit interceding for us with groans that words cannot express (Rm 8:26-27). God has also given us fellow believers who can stand in the gap for us in prayer.
The Apostle Paul asked for the believers in the church at Ephesus to pray that he would fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel (Eph. 6:19). Paul asked the church at Colosse to pray that God would open a door for his message so that he could proclaim the mystery of Christ (Col. 4:3). Paul asked the church at Thessalonica to pray for he and his ministry partners that the message of the Lord would spread rapidly and be honored and that they would be delivered from evil and wicked men (2 Thes. 3:1-2).
James affirms the need for outside prayer support for our lives. If you are experiencing spiritual weakness or even a physical illness, ask a spiritual leader to pray for you. If you are walking through a challenging situation or combating a difficult season, ask a spiritual leader to pray for you. Surround yourself with prayer warriors who will do warfare praying on your behalf. Don't be afraid to ask for prayer support. God has placed people within your sphere of influence who can stand in the gap for you in prayer.
Do you have someone praying you through?
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
He Can Hear You Now
“Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.” James 5:13 (NIV)
Independence is valued in our society. Being strong and self-sufficient tend to be the marks of success by the world's standards. However, God's economy has a much different value system. It's not about personal strength, but reliance upon God's strength. Self-sufficiency is replaced with dependency upon God and His provision. Success in God's economy is marked by instant obedience and alignment with God's plan.
Part of God's plan includes our relational connection to God through an abiding relationship with Jesus Christ. The love relationship that God has made available to us in Christ is nurtured by our daily communion with God in prayer. The prayer connection flows from God to us and from us to God. God invites us into an intimate prayer connection that radiates from His heart of love and our response of awe and wonder. Imagine being able to share your heart as well as your heartaches with the God of the universe. We have that amazing privilege to bring everything to God in prayer. In Christ, we have been given access to the Creator of the universe.
Are you in trouble? Are you experiencing challenging circumstances or strained relationships? Don't delay! Take your burdens to the Lord in prayer. Empty the contents of your heart before the loving and faithful God that you have come to know by experience. God has provided you with the ultimate communication instrument called prayer. Just pray! Begin to articulate to God whatever is perplexing you and whatever is bothering you. God can handle your hurt. God can make the fog lift. Be still and know that He is God (Ps. 46:10). God's line is never busy and yes, He can hear you now!
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
Unlocking Generosity
"And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well." Matt 5:40 (NIV)
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
Redefining Retaliation
"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also." Matt 5:38-39 (NIV)
The religious leaders Jesus confronted during His earthly ministry had perverted the Mosaic Law. They inflamed the law of retaliation, known as the lex talionis, for their personal benefit. The law was intended to control excess and to ensure that the punishment would not exceed the offense (Ex. 21:22-25; Lev. 24:19-20). It was intended to prevent people from employing personal revenge. The religious leaders leveraged the law as a minimum. You would be expected to retaliate by punishing your offender at the same level of their offense to start with and then add to that revenge.
Jesus inverted their perversion by portraying the law of retaliation as a maximum. Revenge and retaliation would not be the proper response for the follower of Jesus Christ. Jesus presented the life-giving response of choosing to see the evil person as an opportunity rather than an obstacle. When someone strikes you on the cheek physically or through verbal assault, the fully yielded follower of Christ is to not retaliate based on his natural proclivity.
Turning the other cheek becomes the choice whereby you respond to the offense in the power of the Holy Spirit rather than reacting in the flesh. Instead of striking back by executing personal revenge, the believer is to respond with the grace and mercy of Christ.
You cannot redefine retaliation without operating in the power of the Holy Spirit. Your natural response will be to unleash revenge. Jesus ushers in a new response that blesses your offender and brings honor to God!
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
God's Team
"All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." Acts 2:44-47 (NIV)
God's team is made up of those who have been saved by His grace. God's team members wear the Jesus jersey and play for His glory. His team is characterized by unity, community, selflessness, generosity, compassion, loyalty, fellowship, gladness, sincerity, evangelism, and growth.
Doing church first involves being the church. Our doing flows out of our being. It is possible to become so busy doing church that you bypass the relational aspect of being the church. God has called us, the church, to an abiding relationship with Christ.
- "Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone." Eph 2:19-20 (NIV)
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
Fully Devoted
"Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day." Acts 2:41 (NIV)
Wow! On the day of Pentecost, three thousand were adopted into God's family. Three thousand were delivered from the clutches of hell and placed on the path that leads to heaven. Three thousand were saved by God and for God. They became followers of Jesus Christ and were added to His Body, the church. An eternal transaction took place!
What's next? Now that the three thousand are in Christ, how are they to function as a community of Christ-followers? What will be different about their conversation and their conduct? Do they go back to business as usual or do they embrace a new way of living?
- "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles." Acts 2:42-43 (NIV)
Take a moment to examine your life in light of Acts 2:42-43. Are you devoted to the reading, study, hearing, and application of God's Word? Are you in fellowship with a group of believers you can do life with? Are you consistently embracing the privilege of prayer? Are you in awe of the redemptive activity of God?
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
No Greater Task
"When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them." Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)
God empowers us for participation in His redemptive activity.
We cannot operate in God's kingdom economy without God's kingdom resources. God's agenda can only be fulfilled by God's enabling. Without God's power, we cannot fulfill God's mission. On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit indwelt the believers and enabled them to speak forth the Gospel. Everyone heard the Good News in their own heart language. This miraculous communication of the Gospel was God's demonstration that the Gospel is for everyone!
What is your spiritual story? How did you come to know Christ personally? What has your life been like since being filled with the Holy Spirit? What does God's Word say about how a person can be saved? If you have experienced the Gospel firsthand, then you are now ready to witness to Christ's saving power. You are now ready to share your faith with others. Read Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:23, 10:9-10, and 10:13.
God has reconciled you to Himself so that you can join God in reconciling others to Himself. Build bridges to those who don't know Jesus so that they can have the saving relationship that you enjoy in Christ. There's no greater task on planet earth!
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
Learning to Wait
"'I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.'" Luke 24:49 (NIV)
Jesus instructed the believers to wait in Jerusalem until they had received what His Father had promised, namely, power from on high. Jesus had to ascend back to the Father so that He could send the Counselor, the promised Holy Spirit (John 16:7). Yet, Jesus did not give them an exact time or date for the Holy Spirit's arrival. They had to wait!
- "On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: 'Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'" Acts 1:4-5 (NIV)
Are you currently waiting for God to reveal His next step for your life? Is there anything in your life that God wants you to deal with before He shows you what's next? Ask the Lord to search your heart (Ps. 139:23).
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell
Expressing Our Union
"And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." Matt 16:18 (NIV)
God ordained marriage and God ordained the church. We are married to Christ and our union is expressed through His Body, the church. Peter confessed that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus affirmed that He would build His church on that reality.
In order to become a follower of Jesus Christ and become a member of His Body, the church, a person must confess Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God. This profession of our faith is essential to salvation (Rom. 10:9-10). Jesus builds His church by adopting us into His family (Eph. 1:5). Only those who are born again enter into His Kingdom (John 3:3).
Jesus builds His church. Our job is to be the church. Jesus saves people from their sin. Our job is to share the Good News of Jesus so that others can know Jesus personally and eternally. Jesus saves us, not to sit, but to serve. Our role in the Body of Christ, the church, is to empty hell and to populate heaven.
The church is not the physical building. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are the church. We are the church gathered in worship and the church scattered on mission during the week. God wants us to be the church so that the world will have the opportunity to come into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Express your union with Christ. May others be drawn to Christ through your witness. Testify of His redeeming love and share your spiritual story.
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell