+Dev+ Michael D. Inman

Date: September 7, 2010 2:10 PM

Topic: +DEV+ A King's Humble Prayer
A King's Humble Prayer
“King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said, ‘Who am I, O Sovereign LORD, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? You know your servant.’” (2 SAMUEL 7:18, 20)

Scripture Focus: 2 Samuel 7:8-29
"You know what I'm really like," David confided to the Lord. His family members were humble people, not wealthy, not royalty. David, the youngest of eight sons, previously had the lowly job of caring for sheep. Even his father didn't consider him king material (see 1 Samuel 16:6-13). God knew all this yet chose David to be King of Israel. God said, "I have found David a man after my own heart" (Acts 13:22).

God knew what he was like. He knew all about David's flaws. At times, his faith wavered just as ours does. He experienced depression, discouragement, fear, anger, envy. Many of the psalms David wrote reveal these emotions. He made mistakes. He sometimes disobeyed God. He had an affair with another man's wife and attempted to cover it up through murder. Would God ever forgive him?
When confronted, David didn't make excuses. He humbly asked God to forgive him. God does not excuse our sin either, but because of Jesus' sacrifice, we are forgiven.

Insight: God knows what we are really like. as we seek to serve Him may we, like David, be people after His own heart.

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: January 12, 2012 10:31 PM

Topic: +DEV+ Joshua Meets His Commander
Joshua Meets His Commander

“’As commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.' Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, 'What message does my Lord have for his servant?'" (JOSHUA 5:14)

Scripture Focus: Joshua 1:1-9, 5:13-6:16

Joshua faced a daunting battle with the wall around Jericho being 25 feet high and 20 feet thick. He stood looking at the fortress, perhaps strategizing what he would do first. Suddenly, a Man with a drawn sword in His hand stood in front of him. Joshua found himself face to face with the Commander in Chief, ruler of the universe and heavenly armies as well as of Israel. He fell to the ground in awe. This prefigured Christ gave Joshua the strategy and fought with him all the way to victory.

This is what our Lord does for us even today, when we face conflicts and feel as if the wall we must get through is as impenetrable as Jericho's wall. We have Jesus, the Commander in Chief, standing beside us, drawn sword in His hands. He will fight every battle we will face today and tomorrow. Though we feel afraid and powerless, we can fall on our faces in reverence for the Mighty One who will lead us on to victory, if not in this world, then surely in the next.

Insight: We overcome and triumph in conflicts because Jesus and the whole army of Heaven are on our side, fighting for us and with us.

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: January 11, 2012 10:38 PM
Topic: +DEV+ Prayer Where and When?


Prayer Where and When?

"From inside the fish Jonah prayed 'In my distress I called to the Lord, and He answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry.'" (JONAH 2:1-2)
Scripture Focus: Jonah 1:1, 3:3

Is there a proper place to pray? You'd be hard pressed to make a case for that since God's people prayed everywhere from inside of caves to out in the desert to inside of a fish. No ornate church of any kind is required. It seems that a good time for Jonah to talk to God would have been when God commissioned him to preach to a Gentile city and Jonah was unwilling to go. If he had, he might not have ended up in a fish's stomach, praying desperately. But even from within his unwelcomed host, Jonah sought the Lord through prayer.

"I have been banished from your sight," Jonah said (2:4). He was wrong. God knew exactly where Jonah was. He always knows precisely where we are, no matter how lost we may be. When we feel billions of miles away from Him, suffocating in darkness, He hears our prayers.

We see God's grace toward His disobedient child, Jonah, as He gave him a second chance. God's grace is ours, even when we try to run from His will. His grace and kindness lead us to repentance.

Insight: No matter what our circumstances, the proper place to pray is anywhere we are. the proper time to pray is now.


Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Date: January 11, 2012 12:11 AM
Topic: +DEV+ Seeing the Invisible

Seeing the Invisible

"[Moses] regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. He persevered because he saw him who is invisible." (HEBREWS 11:26, 27)
Scripture Focus: Hebrews 11:1-40

Prayer, like faith, involves being certain of what we do not see. Many people in the Bible actually had conversations with God (A few even were in His very presence!). Hebrews 11 speaks of several who had faith in and prayed to their infinite, all-knowing, all-powerful God.

Look at Moses. Though reluctant to be God's mouthpiece and often weak in his shortcomings, Moses obeyed God and became His friend. Moses even stood in the presence of his invisible God while pagans nearby worshiped idols they could see and had made with their own hands.

Man has always had a deep need to see and believe. Thomas needed evidence before he would believe that Jesus was the risen Lord. Yet Paul reminds us that we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen because it is eternal (see 2 Corinthians 4:18). Like Moses and many who have gone before us, we pray to a God we cannot see with our eyes. But He answers our prayers often in very tangible and visible ways that we see through eyes of faith.

Insight: By faith, we see God through His Word, by His working in our lives, in the lives of others and by answered prayers.

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: January 10, 2012 12:51 AM
Topic: +DEV+ Sarah's Lie
Sarah's Lie

"'Why did Sarah laugh and say, Will I really have a child, now that I am old? Is anything too hard for the Lord?' Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, 'I did not laugh.' But he said, 'Yes, you did laugh.'" (GENESIS 18:13-15)
Scripture Focus: Genesis 18:9-15

God told Abraham, age 100 and Sarah, age 90, they would have a child, though they felt too old to fulfill God's promise. The thought of having a son seemed ridiculously impossible to Sarah. She laughed to herself.

Well, of course God knew she'd laughed because He knows our thoughts even before they reach our lips. When God confronted her, she lied. What would I have said to Sarah? Probably, "Shame on you for lying! Now there will be no son for you!" But God didn't scold her. He gently exposed the truth. "I know you did laugh." Even to His dishonest, untrusting people, His promises never fail and His compassion never ends.

I've heard people say, "I can't pray about that subject. I just can't talk to God about it." Since God knows everything about us, it's illogical to think anything could be kept from Him. He sees the hidden places of our souls. Can we hide anything from Him? He knows all our thoughts, including the "top-secret" things buried deep in our hearts. And He loves us still!

Insight: God is the same today. He whispers, “I know everything about you, my child - the good and the bad. I love you unconditionally."

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: January 8, 2012 9:40 PM
Topic: +DEV+ God Does What is Right

God Does What is Right

"Far be it from you to do such a thing - to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (GENESIS 18:25)
Scripture Focus: Genesis 18:1, 16-33

People today ask questions similar to Abraham's. "Is it fair of God to condemn people who don't trust in Jesus even though they are decent people? What happens to people who have never heard about Jesus?" We know from Scripture that the Creator of all people from every nation on earth will judge each individual fairly.

God reveals Himself to everyone throughout all of time and in all places. Those in crowded metropolitan cities, rural towns or isolated bush areas can know Him (see Romans 1:17-21). He gives people many opportunities to yield their lives to Him, and some actually do. Those who harden their hearts won't have any defense. God will not treat those who believe and those who reject Him the same way.

But praise God that our heavenly Father, whose justice and goodness are complete, has already accepted the payment for all sin through the perfect life and death of His own Son. While He demands payment for sin because He is just, He also has paid our debt in full because He is good.

Insight: No matter what happens in our lives, we can trust that the Judge of the universe, our loving God, will always do what is right.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."
Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Date: January 5, 2012 11:07 PM
Topic: +DEV+ Praying for Boldness


Praying for Boldness

"Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. After they prayed they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly." (ACTS 4:29, 31)
Scripture Focus: Acts 4:1-31

I invited my friend to church, praying my pastor or someone else would lead him to salvation through Jesus. Church didn't seem to do much for him. The next time we talked he said, "I know I need Jesus in my life. I should have accepted Him last Sunday."

At first I was too timid to say anything, afraid of rejection. I prayed, "Lord, overcome my fears. Give me courage to speak boldly." Then I told him to ask Jesus to come into his life right then. He prayed, "Jesus, forgive my sins. Please do come into my life. I open my heart to you. Thank You for dying on the cross for me and forgiving all my sins. Help me to follow Your plan for my life."

We often lack the courage to tell people about Jesus. We fear rejection and ridicule. Or we're afraid we won't say the right thing and goof it all up. We may not have all the answers to the questions they might ask. We need to pray the same prayer the early believers did and be assured that our confidence in who Jesus is and what He has done in our lives will spur us on.

Insight: When we ask God to help us talk to people about Jesus, we receive boldness and blessings. some will even open their hearts to him.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: January 4, 2012 11:50 PM
Topic: +DEV+ Talking Friend to Friend


Talking Friend to Friend

"Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." (JAMES 5:13, 16B)
Scripture Focus: James 5:13-18

Prayer is praising God for who He is, thanking Him for all He has done for us in the past and for everything He is doing for us today. In prayer we declare our trust for all He will do for us in the future. We pray for others, confess sins, and share our concerns.

We will meet several people from the Bible this month and will "eavesdrop" on their prayers. Most are not the lofty, "churchy" prayers we would expect from some of God's people. They are not elevated or meant to impress. The prayers we find in the Bible come from individuals much like us, ordinary people talking to their extraordinary God. Anyone who knows Him may have a conversation with Him; it doesn't matter what the circumstances. Though we should not approach God without respect, our privilege as believers is to talk to the One who made us, loves us, and has planned our lives.

We also will dwell on some of the prayers of Jesus. They give us more insight to what the Father is like and of the amazing love He has for us.

Insight: We may talk to God as we would talk to our dearest friend, because that is who he is.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Date: January 4, 2012 1:52 AM
Topic: +DEV+ Brokenness to Blessing
Brokenness to Blessing

"Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen." (2 CORINTHIANS 4:17-18)
Scripture Focus: 2 Corinthians 6:3-10

Throughout the month we've seen ways that the Lord pours out His grace when hope seems lost. In the face of sickness, financial ruin, disappointment, confusion or fear, we learn there is no trial too difficult for the strong arm of the Lord. Many of you may even feel, as Paul did, that you are hard pressed, persecuted, and struck down (2 Corinthians 4:8-9). The depth of your pain may be impossible for anyone to understand. But the God who made you understands it all.

If He hadn't reached out to us with the loving plan of the Savior, it would, indeed, be hard to know where to go next. But the words of Jesus Himself beckon us - all who are weary and burdened with the cares of the world - to come to Him. Lay your troubles at the feet of the One who bore our every problem and sin at Calvary. He made a way for us to confess with Paul that in having nothing, we possess everything. Giving up His life and holding onto nothing, Jesus holds you today and into eternity. Brokenness turns to blessing!

Insight: "Therefore, we do not lose heart" (2 corinthians 4:16a) because Jesus takes us through every trial, already knowing them Himself.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

An Ohio State Trooper's Christmas Eve ( Please Watch This !!! )

You wont be sorry you watched this one
(officers, you will get a quick reminder
when you see this !!)
About a 4mins video of a touching story.
A search shows the speaker was withOhio State Highway Patrol for 30 yrs.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxjZB5S_g7s&feature=youtu.be

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: January 2, 2012 10:13 PM
Topic: +DEV+ GPS Direction
GPS Direction

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6).
Scripture Focus: Proverbs 3:1-8

My friend told me that they had a Global Positioning System gadget in their car set to take them to their destination. A "voice" in the box would tell them exactly what turns to make and when; all they had to do was follow the instructions. They were impressed; even the detours were captured on this thing! But as they came up on a freeway interchange, the GPS told them to go one way that he questioned. By the time he figured out the answer, he had missed the turn and went several miles out of their way before getting back in sync with the "voice."

How often this typifies our walk with God. He knows where we're going and how to get there. We listen for a while, then get sidetracked. We miss His direction, and it costs us...maybe in mileage, but often in stress, frustration, relationship agony, and regret. This beginning of a New Year is a good time to make sure we are coordinated to our heavenly Father (the GPS that stands for "God's Positioning System!), listening more carefully than ever to His voice.

Insight: Be It Resolved To Be Connected To Him, Abiding In The Threshold Of Sensitivity To His Delicate Guidance, Tuned To The Tenderness Of His Heart.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."
Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Date: January 1, 2012 10:02 PM
Topic: +DEV+ Resolutions That Matter


Resolutions That Matter

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust'" (Psalm 91:1-2).
Scripture Focus: Psalm 91

Through the years I've attempted to make resolutions for the New Year. Most of them have failed. However, one that has lasted beyond January is my goal to have a closer daily walk with Christ. Year after year this resolution increases in priority.

Jesus has brought us to Himself and invites us to follow Him. Moreover, He calls us to abide in Him. I love how this is described in John 15 where Jesus tells us to remain or abide continually in Him. In abiding I will have an awareness of His presence, knowing He is near. I will have His influence in life issues through prayer and His Word. I will know enjoyment with Him as my Savior and friend. I can be His personal Ambassador in a needy world.

Will I fail to keep this resolution as with all the others that have faded over time? No doubt, I will. But the God who is my refuge and strength will never fail in His great resolve to redeem me from my sin and walk beside me each day of the year.

Insight: Look forward to His joy as we walk the hills and the valleys of the New Year with Him.


Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."
Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Date: December 29, 2011 11:08 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Setting: Bethlehem
The Setting: Bethlehem

"'But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel...'" (Micah 5:2).
Scripture Focus: Micah 5:1-5

The words of the Christmas carol "O Little Town of Bethlehem" portray a peaceful, still, sleepy town on the night Jesus was born. Yet with all the family reunions going on in Bethlehem, the place must have been quite a spot for celebrating during the day. Indeed, Bethlehem was unlike the larger, more noteworthy cities such as nearby Jerusalem. Still - as the prophet Micah attested - it was a place of which God had taken note since the very beginning of the history of His people. While God came down that first Christmas night, many in Bethlehem caroused; others slept; all cowered under the shadow of an evil government.

And the treasure of heaven was hidden. No one knew what God was doing. Many still do not know. How often our preoccupations, inactivity, or fears prohibit us from focusing our heads and hearts on what the Lord is doing right under our noses!

The name Bethlehem means "House of Bread." The true Bread of Life was brought to us in lowliness so that we might be raised up with Him.

Insight: "O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray; cast out our sin and enter in - be born in us today" (Phillips Brooks, 1865).

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Topic: +DEV+ Seekers: The Wise Men

Seekers: The Wise Men

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Hebrews 11:6).
Scripture Focus: Matthew 2:1-10

Speculation and tradition surround the characters of the Magi. We envision three of them; we give them names; we picture them in the stable with shepherds the night Jesus was born. None of those notions is in the Bible. We know that these gentile religious/political advisors came from a distant country laden with gifts, searching diligently until finally reaching Jerusalem and Bethlehem some time after Jesus' birth. They found Mary at her house (Matthew 2:11) with the child (not the "baby"), and they worshiped.

Their journey started with calculations of their own heathen wisdom. But God reached down to them and directed them, causing their faith to grow by way of their longing. Had not God prepared them and awakened faith in them, they never could have persisted and dropped immediately to their knees, knowing the little toddler in a diaper to be The King, God's gift to the entire world.

You may know the Bible stories about Jesus. Go the extra steps of the journey to learn Who He is.

Insight: Let's begin our journey and believe in the Christ Who came without riches so that our lives might be rich in Him.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 28, 2011 1:03 AM
Topic: +DEV+ Set Design: Stable, Manger


Set Design: Stable, Manger

"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).
Scripture Focus: Hebrews 4:14-16

God sent every angel in heaven to announce the birth of Jesus, then made His first home in this world a cowshed with a feeding trough for a cradle. The first throne for the miraculously conceived baby, Christ the Lord, was a manger. It held the King of the entire universe; it was made of wood from a tree He created. If it perplexes you and me, how strange it must have seemed to Mary and Joseph. These lowly circumstances foreshadowed much in Jesus' life that would challenge the assumptions of what a king should have. But despite the pathetic accommodations, God exalted Him to the highest place so that at His name every knee might bow (See Philippians 2:9-10.).

The first knees to bow may have been those of Mary and Joseph. Mary placed him in a manger, Luke tells us (2:7). Why? Wouldn't she and Joseph want to just hold Him? The awe of God's everlasting promise being fulfilled so intimately gave Mary pause...perhaps she stepped back to worship. May we also bend our knees to worship the Christ child.

Insight: In the humiliation of cloths, manger and stable, He was available and close at hand to shepherds, to Mary and Joseph, to us.

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 27, 2011 12:20 AM
Topic: +DEV+ The Townsfolk: Innkeeper
The Townsfolk: Innkeeper

"In my Father's house are many rooms...I am going there to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2). "...there was no room for them in the inn" (Luke 2:7b).
Scripture Focus: John 14:1-4

With the Roman Empire inventorying the population, Joseph left Nazareth and returned to Bethlehem, his hometown. Why did he and Mary find no assistance from other family members who might have been there? Perhaps the shame of Mary's pregnancy still burned. Maybe their nighttime arrival in Bethlehem made finding relatives difficult. Or possibly the baby's insistence on coming presented too much urgency. Whatever the case, dear Joseph sought lodgings for Mary. From that course of events, we have conjured "the innkeeper."

Not only does he (she?) have no lines recorded in Scripture, he is not even in Scripture! The one word we have dared assign this character is "No." Joseph may have wondered, "Would he knowingly turn away the Messiah?" Though the expectant parents did not understand the governing grace of God's plan that night, we can assume that somehow a person at the inn denied their request for a room.

"No room." Those words ring an eerie echo in our ears. Is there room in our hearts for the Savior?

Insight: "O, come to my heart, Lord Jesus! There is room in my heart for Thee" (Emily E. Elliot, 1864).

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one.

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 25, 2011 11:21 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Heavenly Host: Army


The Heavenly Host: Army

"Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests'" (Luke 2:13-14).
Scripture Focus: Hebrews 1:4-9

God sent out the entire angelic army of heaven - not one left behind - for the most gladsome event ever: the birth of the Savior! How many shepherds were there? I suppose it could have been as few as two. Surely, they were outnumbered. Sheer terror seized them. Every angelic visitation in the Bible struck fear in the heart of the visited. How much more so would thousands upon thousands of celestial beings who came calling in the dead of night?

Artists depicting angels have fixed our minds on soft, serene individuals, baby-like or girlish, the likes of which you may find on Christmas cards or atop a Christmas tree. These representations wilt compared to the dazzling multitude of heavenly soldiers indicated by the Greek translation of "heavenly host." Reducing God's messengers to sweet, winged creatures also reduces the impact of this world-changing point of time. We do not want to lessen the defining moment of all history...the moment that identifies us as worshippers of the Christ, proclaiming "Glory to God in the highest!"

Insight: "Let all God's angels worship him," we read in Hebrews 1:6. Let us, too, worship with elation and not miss the true celebration!


Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...

"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 25, 2011 2:00 AM
Topic: Letter from Jesus about Christmas

Letter from Jesus about Christmas --

It has come to my attention that many of you are upset that folks are taking My name out of the season.

How
I personally feel about this celebration can probably be most easily
understood by those of you who have been blessed with children of your
own. I don't care what you call the day. If you want to celebrate My
birth, just GET ALONG AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

Now,
having said that let Me go on. If it bothers you that the town in which
you live doesn't allow a scene depicting My birth, then just get rid of
a couple of Santa’s and snowmen and put in a small Nativity scene
on your own front lawn If all My followers did that there wouldn't be
any need for such a scene on the town square because there would be
many of them all around town.

Stop worrying about the fact that people are calling the tree a holiday tree, instead of a Christmas tree. It was I who made all trees. You can remember Me anytime you see any tree. Decorate a grape vine
if you wish: I actually spoke of that one in a teaching, explaining who
I am in relation to you and what each of our tasks were. If you have
forgotten that one, look up John 15: 1 - 8.

If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth here is my wish list. Choose something from it:

1.
Instead of writing protest letters objecting to the way My birthday is
being celebrated, write letters of love and hope to soldiers away from
home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I know,
they tell Me all the time.

2.
Visit someone in a nursing home. You don't have to know them
personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.

3.
Instead of writing the President complaining about the wording on the
cards his staff sent out this year, why don't you write and tell him
that you'll be praying for him and his family this year. Then follow
up... It will be nice hearing from you again.

4.
Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can't afford and
they don't need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth,
and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and
remind them that I love them.

5. Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.

6.
Did you know that someone in your town will attempt to take their own
life this season because they feel so alone and hopeless? Since you
don't know who that person is, try giving everyone you meet a warm
smile; it could make the difference.

7.
Instead of nit picking about what the retailer in your town calls the
holiday, be patient with the people who work there. Give them a warm
smile and a kind word. Even if they aren't allowed to wish you a "Merry Christmas" that doesn't keep you from wishing them one. Then stop shopping there on Sunday.
If the store didn't make so much money on that day they'd close and let
their employees spend the day at home with their families

8.
If you really want to make a difference, support a missionary--
especially one who takes My love and Good News to those who have never
heard My name.

9.
Here's a good one. There are individuals and whole families in your
town who not only will have no "Christmas" tree, but neither will they
have any presents to give or receive. If you don't know them, buy
some food and a few gifts and give them to the Salvation Army or some
other charity which believes in Me and they will make the delivery for
you.

10.
Finally, if you want to make a statement about your belief in and
loyalty to Me, then behave like a Christian. Don't do things in secret
that you wouldn't do in My presence. Let people know by your actions
that you are one of mine.

Don't
forget; I am God and can take care of Myself. Just love Me and do what
I have told you to do. I'll take care of all the rest. Check out the
list above and get to work; time is short. I'll help you, but the ball
is now in your court. And do have a most blessed Christmas with all
those whom you love and remember :

I LOVE YOU,

JESUS

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...

"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 24, 2011 11:42 AM
Topic: CHRISTMAS at the Gas Station

I know this has made the rounds but it is good to continue to pass on.


MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILIES

The old man sat in his gas station on a cold Christmas Eve. He hadn't been anywhere in years since his wife had passed away. It was just another day to him. He didn't hate Christmas, just couldn't find a reason to celebrate. He was sitting there looking at the snow that had been falling for the last hour and wondering what it was all about when the door opened and a homeless man stepped through.

Instead of throwing the man out, Old George as he was known by his customers, told the man to come and sit by the heater and warm up. "Thank you, but I don't mean to intrude," said the stranger. "I see you're busy, I'll just go."

"Not without something hot in your belly." George said.

He turned and opened a wide mouth Thermos and handed it to the stranger. "It ain't much, but it's hot and tasty. Stew ... Made it myself. When you're done, there's coffee and it's fresh."

Just at that moment he heard the "ding" of the driveway bell. "Excuse me, be right back," George said. There in the driveway was an old '53 Chevy. Steam was rolling out of the front.. The driver was panicked. "Mister can you help me!" said the driver, with a deep Spanish accent. "My wife is with child and my car is broken." George opened the hood. It was bad. The block looked cracked from the cold, the car was dead.

"You ain't going in this thing," George said as he turned away.

"But Mister, please help " The door of the office closed behind George as he went inside. He went to the office wall and got the keys to his old truck, and went back outside. He walked around the building, opened the garage, started the truck and drove it around to where the couple was waiting. "Here, take my truck," he said. "She ain't the best thing you ever looked at, but she runs real good."

George helped put the woman in the truck and watched as it sped off into the night. He turned and walked back inside the office. "Glad I gave 'em the truck, their tires were shot too. That 'ol truck has brand new ." George thought he was talking to the stranger, but the man had gone. The Thermos was on the desk, empty, with a used coffee cup beside it. "Well, at least he got something in his belly," George thought.

George went back outside to see if the old Chevy would start. It cranked slowly, but it started. He pulled it into the garage where the truck had been. He thought he would tinker with it for something to do. Christmas Eve meant no customers. He discovered the the block hadn't cracked, it was just the bottom hose on the radiator. "Well, shoot, I can fix this," he said to himself. So he put a new one on.

"Those tires ain't gonna get 'em through the winter either." He took the snow treads off of his wife's old Lincoln. They were like new and he wasn't going to drive the car anyway.

As he was working, he heard shots being fired. He ran outside and beside a police car an officer lay on the cold ground. Bleeding from the left shoulder, the officer moaned, "Please help me."

George helped the officer inside as he remembered the training he had received in the Army as a medic. He knew the wound needed attention. "Pressure to stop the bleeding," he thought. The uniform company had been there that morning and had left clean shop towels. He used those and duct tape to bind the wound. "Hey, they say duct tape can fix anythin'," he said, trying to make the policeman feel at ease.

"Something for pain," George thought. All he had was the pills he used for his back. "These ought to work." He put some water in a cup and gave the policeman the pills. "You hang in there, I'm going to get you an ambulance."

The phone was dead. "Maybe I can get one of your buddies on that there talk box out in your car." He went out only to find that a bullet had gone into the dashboard destroying the two way radio.

He went back in to find the policeman sitting up. "Thanks," said the officer. "You could have left me there. The guy that shot me is still in the area."

George sat down beside him, "I would never leave an injured man in the Army and I ain't gonna leave you." George pulled back the bandage to check for bleeding. "Looks worse than what it is. Bullet passed right through 'ya. Good thing it missed the important stuff though. I think with time your gonna be right as rain."

George got up and poured a cup of coffee. "How do you take it?" he asked.

"None for me," said the officer..

"Oh, yer gonna drink this.� Best in the city. Too bad I ain't got no donuts." The officer laughed and winced at the same time.

The front door of the office flew open. In burst a young man with a gun. "Give me all your cash! Do it now!" the young man yelled. His hand was shaking and George could tell that he had never done anything like this before.
"That's the guy that shot me!" exclaimed the officer.
"Son, why are you doing this?" asked George, "You need to put the cannon away. Somebody else might get hurt."
The young man was confused. "Shut up old man, or I'll shoot you, too. Now give me the cash!"
The cop was reaching for his gun. "Put that thing away," George said to the cop, "we got one too many in here now."
He turned his attention to the young man. "Son, it's Christmas Eve. If you need money, well then, here. It ain't much but it's all I got. Now put that pea shooter away."
George pulled $150 out of his pocket and handed it to the young man, reaching for the barrel of the gun at the same time. The young man released his grip on the gun, fell to his knees and began to cry. "I'm not very good at this am I? All I wanted was to buy something for my wife and son," he went on. "I've lost my job, my rent is due, my car got repossessed last week."
George handed the gun to the cop. "Son, we all get in a bit of squeeze now and then. The road gets hard sometimes, but we make it through the best we can."
He got the young man to his feet, and sat him down on a chair across from the cop. "Sometimes we do stupid things." George handed the young man a cup of coffee. "Bein' stupid is one of the things that makes us human. Comin' in here with a gun ain't the answer. Now sit there and get warm and we'll sort this thing out."
The young man had stopped crying. He looked over to the cop. "Sorry I shot you. It just went off. I'm sorry officer."
"Shut up and drink your coffee " the cop said.
George could hear the sounds of sirens outside. A police car and an ambulance skidded to a halt. Two cops came through the door, guns drawn. "Chuck! You ok?" one of the cops asked the wounded officer.
"Not bad for a guy who took a bullet. How did you find me?"
"GPS locator in the car. Best thing since sliced bread. Who did this?" the other cop asked as he approached the young man.
Chuck answered him, "I don't know. The guy ran off into the dark. Just dropped his gun and ran."
George and the young man both looked puzzled at each other.
"That guy work here?" the wounded cop continued.
"Yep,"� George said, "just hired him this morning. Boy lost his job."
The paramedics came in and loaded Chuck onto the stretcher. The young man leaned over the wounded cop and whispered, "Why?"
Chuck just said, "Merry Christmas boy ... and you too, George, and thanks for everything."
"Well, looks like you got one doozy of a break there. That ought to solve some of your problems."
George went into the back room and came out with a box. He pulled out a ring box. "Here you go, something for the little woman. I don't think Martha would mind. She said it would come in handy some day."
The young man looked inside to see the biggest diamond ring he ever saw. "I can't take this," said the young man. "It means something to you."
"And now it means something to you," replied George. "I got my memories. That's all I need."
George reached into the box again. An airplane, a car and a truck appeared next. They were toys that the oil company had left for him to sell. "Here's something for that little man of yours."
The young man began to cry again as he handed back the $150 that the old man had handed him earlier.
"And what are you supposed to buy Christmas dinner with? You keep that too," George said. "Now git home to your family."
The young man turned with tears streaming down his face. "I'll be here in the morning for work, if that job offer is still good."
"Nope. I'm closed Christmas day," George said. "See ya the day after."
George turned around to find that the stranger had returned. "Where'd you come from? I thought you left?"
"I have been here. I have always been here," said the stranger. "You say you don't celebrate Christmas. Why?"
"Well, after my wife passed away, I just couldn't see what all the bother was. Puttin' up a tree and all seemed a waste of a good pine tree. Bakin' cookies like I used to with Martha just wasn't the same by myself and besides I was gettin' a little chubby."
The stranger put his hand on George's shoulder. "But you do celebrate the holiday, George. You gave me food and drink and warmed me when I was cold and hungry. The woman with child will bear a son and he will become a great doctor.
The policeman you helped will go on to save 19 people from being killed by terrorists. The young man who tried to rob you will make you a rich man and not take any for himself. "That is the spirit of the season and you keep it as good as any man."
George was taken aback by all this stranger had said. "And how do you know all this?" asked the old man.
"Trust me, George. I have the inside track on this sort of thing. And when your days are done you will be with Martha again."
The stranger moved toward the door. "If you will excuse me, George, I have to go now. I have to go home where there is a big celebration planned."
George watched as the old leather jacket and the torn pants that the stranger was wearing turned into a white robe. A golden light began to fill the room.
"You see, George ... it's My birthday. Merry Christmas."
George fell to his knees and replied, "Happy Birthday, Lord Jesus"

This story is better than any greeting card.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND GOD BLESS!

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...

"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 22, 2011 10:26 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Baby: Jesus Christ

The Baby: Jesus Christ


"A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world" (John 16:21).
Scripture Focus: John 16:17-14


Is there anything sweeter or more captivating than a newborn? This is how our Lord began . . . exactly as we did, save for sin. He had our same soft baby skin, silky hair, cries of hunger, soiled diapers. But He was Immanuel, God with us. His parents must have been won over by His infant charms while marveling at His arrival.


God could have come to earth as an angel. But that would have been too frightening. No one would have felt they could touch Him. Why didn't He come as a fabulously rich King in the splendor that was due? We would have felt too poor, worthless, and distant. He chose to break into our world as a newborn because in His many ways of inviting us to know Him, He invites us through something to which we're all attracted: a baby.


The disgrace of Mary's circumstances, the hardships that followed, the lonely delivery out in a cowshed...all of these agonies would dissipate as the spotlight now illuminated the human, yet otherworldly face of the Baby King.


Insight: INSIGHT: "The Lord has done great things for us...Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy" (Psalm 126:3, 5).

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."







Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...

"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 21, 2011 9:19 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Animals: Sheep

The Animals: Sheep


"...it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed...but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect" (1 Peter 1:18-19).
Scripture Focus: Hebrews 1:4-9


We have no reason to believe that the sheep from the fields accompanied the shepherds into Bethlehem to find the Messiah in a manger. More likely, the unreasoning animals stayed put until the shepherds returned to them. Being pastured just outside of Bethlehem, they were no doubt designated for sacrifice during the Passover celebration which was close at hand.


Old Testament law prescribed with detail how the Israelites were to sacrifice spotless lambs in atonement for sins. For generations that practice would be a graphic picture of the need for the blood of One who was perfect to cover over the sins of the imperfect. Many sheep would die at the altar, stirring up in the hearts of God's people a yearning for a better way. When God sent Jesus to earth, the better way - the last and final spotless Lamb - had arrived. The shepherd's flock had a role in this act of the drama, too. They remind us that the real Lamb who took away the sin of the world was just beyond the field in a lowly cattle stall.


Insight: God's promises have stood from days of old. Abraham assured young Isaac that God Himself would provide the lamb (Genesis 22:8). He did, indeed!

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."







Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...

"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 20, 2011 9:58 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Return: Glorifying

The Return: Glorifying


"The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told" (Luke 2:20).
Scripture Focus: Luke 2:17-20


Lights! News! Action! That was how the most memorable of all nights went for the shepherds. After searching Bethlehem, they found Mary, Joseph and the baby exactly as the angel said. They approached the little family in the sparse stable, feeling quite at home . . . their own filth and odor would not have mattered there. God had designed a birthplace that wouldn't shun these inglorious visitors. He still bids us approach Him today!


And what did the shepherds do after seeing the Savior? They told everyone! People were amazed at their story. Some believed them; many did not. After all, why would a shepherd be deemed credible, and why would something this magnificent be revealed to ones as ordinary as they? In the ordinariness of my life and yours centuries later, aren't you glad He worked in this way?


The shepherds returned to the fields, their work now sanctified, now a very part of their worship. They returned glorifying and praising. May our post-holiday life overflow with the same.


Insight: Like the shepherds who heard and heeded, witnessed and worshipped, so must we!

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."







Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...

"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

--------
Date: December 19, 2011 9:52 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Nighttime Intrusion

The Nighttime Intrusion


"But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you...'" (Luke 2:10-11).
Scripture Focus: Luke 2:8-16


King David temporarily improved the shepherd image a thousand years earlier. So when the angel's voice directed our shepherds to the town of David, they listened. In fact, everything about the angel's words gripped them. "Do not be afraid," he told the normally brave ones who could fight off wolves handily. "I bring you good news of great joy;" how welcomed that would be for ones used to hardship. "Today a Savior has been born to you." Today? Now? After generations of waiting? Would their mundane lives of sheep tending now be punctuated by the event foretold to them for centuries? Amazing! The angel declared that the Savior was born "to you." Nothing in society was ever for them...unless it was blame for thievery or disgust for their filth. Yet he said the Savior was for them.


In other translations of the Bible "Behold!" is found in the angel's greeting. I tell my children it means "Wow! Look!" That is exactly what God would have us do: be awed at His miraculous plan, and draw near to see how it is for you and me.


Insight: "The Lord protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me" (Psalm 116:6).

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."







Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...

"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 18, 2011 10:34 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Lowest: Shepherds

The Lowest: Shepherds


"And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them..." (Luke 2:8-9a).
Scripture Focus: 1 Corinthians 1:27-31


Remember church Christmas pageant shepherds? All the spare kids wore dads' bathrobes and towels fastened on their heads. Only one fellow had to worry about memorizing a line. The shepherd role provided parts for leftover youngsters. I wonder if the actual shepherds of ancient times felt "leftover" themselves.


They were the lowest in society, rivaled only by tax collectors. The nature of shepherding meant these men and young boys were illiterate and often dirty and smelly. Accustomed to outdoor living and sleeping, they were rough around the edges. They were deemed unclean, incompetent, lazy and untrustworthy. Some actually earned their poor reputations; others were maligned unfairly. To these inarticulate, ragged fellows came the first announcement of "It's a boy! And He is Messiah!" To these outcasts of society came the only personal invitation to see the newborn baby, King of the Universe.


Even from birth, Christ came to lowly, sinful people like shepherds and like you and me.


Insight: He was the Good Shepherd as well as the Lamb, and we the humble recipients of His divine invitation to come and see.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."



Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...

"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

*Twas the month before Christmas*

*When all through our land,*

*Not a Christian was praying*

*Nor taking a stand.*

*See the PC Police had taken away,*

*The reason for Christmas - no one could say.*

*The children were told by their schools not to sing,*

*About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.*

*It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say*

* December 25th is just a ' Holiday '.*

*Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit*

*Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!*

*CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod*

*Something was changing, something quite odd! *

*Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa*

*In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.*

*As Targets were hanging their trees upside down*

* At Lowe's the word Christmas - was no where to be found.*

*At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears*

*You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.*

*Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty*

*Are words that were used to intimidate me.*

*Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen*

*On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton !*

*At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter*

*To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.*

*And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith*

* Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace*

*The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded*

*The reason for the season, stopped before it started.*

*So as you celebrate 'Winter Break' under your 'Dream Tree'*

*Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.*

*Choose your words carefully, choose what you say*

*Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS ,

not Happy Holiday !*

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 15, 2011 7:13 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Angel: Gabriel

The Angel: Gabriel


"Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. As soon as you began to pray, an answer was given, which I have come to tell you..." (Daniel 9:22-23).
Scripture Focus: Daniel 9:21-27


The Christmas plays performed by youngsters I know depict Gabriel in a flowing white gown and sparkly halo. When my friends little niece donned the costume one year, she was adorable. But the Bible tells us that God's heavenly messenger struck fear in the people to whom he appeared. Daniel, Zechariah, and Mary all trembled at his arrival. His name means power, and evidently his majestic, dazzling visage projected just that. Gabriel was commander in chief of the heavenly host...how inaccurate our softened ideas of him must be! Scripture records that it was Gabriel who spoke to Daniel (8:16, 9:21); we do not read of him again until some 600 years later when he was commissioned by God to deliver urgent messages to Zechariah and Mary. God used him at momentous times.


Though we hardly know Gabriel, of this we are sure: God sent His mighty angel to common people to announce the coming of His Son whose power and majesty would know no end. May the joy of the angel's news thrill you!


Insight: "Angels from the realms of glory, wing your flight o'er all the earth; ye who sang creation's story, now proclaim Messiah's birth" (James Montgomery).

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 14, 2011 9:34 PM
Topic: +DEV+ The Dilemma
The Dilemma

"Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly" (Matthew 1:19).
Scripture Focus: 1 Peter 2:24-25

Joseph's intention to leave Mary was understandable. The two were pledged to be married, a notion similar to engagement only more serious. Betrothal had all the responsibilities of marriage, minus consummation. So when his beloved left for three months (to visit Elizabeth) and returned pregnant, what was he to think? Disappointment thrust him into logical solutions: he would not expose her, but he must divorce her. He would do so quietly to protect her from shame and ñ worse - from the stoning the law required if she alone were guilty. But God intervened by dispatching His messenger again, this time to redirect Joseph's sensible plans onto God's sovereign plans. Had Joseph been a godless fellow, he would have dismissed that dream as a delusion. But honorable Joseph knew it to be the dependable Word of God.

By taking Mary for his wife, he was taking on her shame and guilt. Do you see the foreshadowing of how Jesus would bear the shame and guilt not only of His parents, but of the entire world? He came for us!

Insight: Joy to the World! The Lord is come! The coming emerges from tears and hardship in order to fill our hearts with gladness.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 14,
Topic: +DEV+ The Adoptive Father: Joseph

The Adoptive Father: Joseph

"When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife" (Matthew 1:24).
Scripture Focus: Matthew 1:18-25

A main character in the Christmas drama, Joseph is the only one with no lines. Christian singer/songwriter Michael Card imagined poignant words for him in "Joseph's Song," saying, "How can a man be father to the Son of God?" That had to be a question dear Joseph pondered. All his life he'd been a simple carpenter... valued in society, but not elevated. And now he would be intimately woven into God's redemption plan. Joseph would gain no power, wealth or applause for his involvement; rather fear, uncertainty, and embarrassment awaited him. Yet he rose from his sleep and did exactly as he'd been told.

Joseph was of David's line. The angel noted that significance by addressing him as "Joseph, son of David" (vs.20). He would be the adoptive father of the Savior so that through the Savior he might in turn be adopted by Him! "In love [Christ] predestined us to be adopted as his sons" (Ephesians 1:5). If we belong to Christ, we are of David's line, too...children of promise (Galatians 3:29, 4:28).

Insight: Joseph believed God's word; it was all he had to go by. Thousands of years after it’s writing, the Bible still tells all we need!

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Date: December 12, 2011 1:18 AM
Topic: +DEV+ Not Seeing Yet Believing
Not Seeing Yet Believing

"The angel answered, 'The Holy spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God'" (Luke 1:35).
Scripture Focus: Luke 1: 34-38


Mary's question of how she would conceive without a husband sounds similar to Zechariah's. Her confusion, however, was quite different than his distrust. The angel uses language with a familiar ring: the same overshadowing ("hovering over") that brought life from emptiness (Genesis 1:2) also would bring life from a virgin. God would move in a time when the future of His people seemed dim, in a way that used a virgin's womb, and through a messenger that one day just "appeared." "When the power of man fails, the power of God begins," Martin Luther said in one of his Christmas sermons.

Mary's response of solid faith is a dramatization of belief leading to obedience. She could have sent Gabriel looking for someone more worthy. She could have argued that she simply was not up for the job. She could have said, "This is impossible." Instead she clung to the angel's words because already she was becoming a new creature. The same God whose promises she stood by is the God who is renewing our hearts today.

Insight: Mary submitted to the divine plan, standing on the promises of God, knowing that even in the privilege there would be pain.


Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."
Date: December 12, 2011 10:19 PM
Topic: +DEV+ Magnify Him!


Magnify Him!

"For the Mighty One has done great things for me - holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation" (Luke 1:49-50).
Scripture Focus: Luke 1: 46-55

Unmarried and pregnant, Mary would be scorned by many a townsperson skeptical of her story. Extreme consequences were due, according to Jewish law. But her hymn, the Magnificat, sings joy and confidence in God. Nearly every line comes from the ancient Scriptures. While magnifying her Lord from the very depths of her soul, she drew the glory away from herself and onto the God of her fathers who was setting in motion His promised redemption plan. Mary's words began in present tense, but moved to past tense as she spoke of how God already had lifted the lowly and turned sorrow to joy. Why would she proclaim this while cruel Herod still terrorized God's people?

Mary knew God would see His plan to the end. She spoke with such certainty that it was as if it were already so. Anchored in His constancy, she knew the God Whose words came for centuries through the prophets, but Whose Word now was His Son, and - wonder of wonders! - her Son. Jesus is God's last and best Word. Know Him; magnify Him.

Insight: Anchor yourself in the unchanging God whose great "Christmas gift" - salvation through Jesus - will change your heart more and more each day.
Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."

Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship and Bible study groups.

Michael D. Inman
- The Only Thing Necessary For Evil to Triumph is for Good Men to do Nothing -- Edmund Burke...
"If the First Amendment fails, use the Second one."