Lillie Ammann's Blog, page 77

Devotion for Tuesday after Advent 2

Isaiah 40:9-11(NASB)

9 Get yourself up on a high mountain,

O Zion, bearer of good news,

Lift up your voice mightily,

O Jerusalem, bearer of good news;

Lift it up, do not fear.

Say to the cities of Judah,

“Here is your God!”

10 Behold, the Lord GOD will come with might,

With His arm ruling for Him.

Behold, His reward is with Him

And His recompense before Him.

11 Like a shepherd He will tend His flock,

In His arm He will gather the lambs

And carry them in His bosom;

He will gently lead the nursing ewes.

We know Jesus is the Good Shepherd, who gathers His lambs and carries them in His bosom. He is a gentle guide to those who love Him, and we want to be among His lambs. All we have to do is to open our hearts to Him and make Him Lord of our lives, putting Him first above all the cares and distractions and allures of the world.

Heavenly Father, we give our hearts to You and accept Your Son as our Lord and Savior. We trust that He will guide us gently and carry us in His bosom. In His holy name. Amen.

Image: © Depositphotos.com/Qingwa

Devotion for Monday after Advent 2

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Isaiah 19:19-25 (NASB)

19 In that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the Lord near its border. 20 It will become a sign and a witness to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to the Lord because of oppressors, and He will send them a Savior and a Champion, and He will deliver them. 21 Thus the Lord will make Himself known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will know the Lord in that day. They will even worship with sacrifice and offering, and will make a vow to the Lord and perform it. 22 The Lord will strike Egypt, striking but healing; so they will return to the Lord, and He will respond to them and will heal them. 23 In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrians will come into Egypt and the Egyptians into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians. 24 In that day Israel will be the third party with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth, 25 whom the Lord of hosts has blessed, saying, “Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.”

When the day of the Lord comes, even pagan people will worship the One True God. Ancient enemies will be blessed and worship together. We look forward to that day, but we are also reminded to tell others about the Lord. Perhaps we aren’t called to take God’s Word into dangerous jungles or evil places, but we can share the Lord with family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers. We can invite them to worship with us. We may not be able to bring peace to the world, but maybe we can resolve conflicts we have with other people. We look for the coming of the Lord, and one way we can prepare for it is to do our part to bring people together to worship God.

Lord, help us to have the courage, discernment, and wisdom to tell others about You and to bring peace where there is conflict. Prepare our hearts for the day of the Second Coming. In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Image: © Depositphotos.com/natis76

Devotion for the Second Sunday in Advent

Matthew 1:18-25 (NASB)

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. 20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” 22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” 24 And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25 but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

Joseph had every right to disgrace Mary for becoming pregnant during their betrothal. After all, he knew he wasn’t the father of her child, but others would assume that he was. The pregnancy was a disgrace not only to Mary but to Joseph as well. Yet he didn’t question the angel. When the word came from God that he was to wed Mary, he readily did what he was told, just as Mary had readily accepted the message an angel delivered to her. These two ordinary people risked gossip, ostracization, and even punishment by death. They believed the messages they received from God’s angels and trusted Him to take those risks. Would we react the same way?

Heavenly Father, thank You for Mary and Joseph and countless others who believed in You and did Your will. Give us the same strong faith and willingness to sacrifice and take risks for You. In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.

Devotion for Saturday after Advent 1

Isaiah 11:1-5 (NASB)

1 Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse,

And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.

2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him,

The spirit of wisdom and understanding,

The spirit of counsel and strength,

The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

3 And He will delight in the fear of the Lord,

And He will not judge by what His eyes see,

Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;

4 But with righteousness He will judge the poor,

And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth;

And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,

And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.

5 Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins,

And faithfulness the belt about His waist.

We get so weary and frustrated seeing the injustice, corruption, and lack of wisdom in the world. Most of us hold politicians in contempt because they know many serve themselves or their personal agendas before they serve the people. Those who make decisions about the lives of other people often make unwise or even evil decisions. God’s promise to send a righteous and faithful judge to slay the wicked gives us hope. But with that hope we have to examine ourselves to see where we will stand on the Day of Judgment: will we be slain with the wicked or saved with the righteous? We know we are not righteous on our own merit—our righteousness comes through Christ.

Lord, thank You that You will make us righteous through the Blood of the Lamb, Your Precious Son, Jesus Christ. Give us love and faith in Him and help us to make Him the center of our lives. In His holy name. Amen.

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Devotion for Friday after Advent 1

Isaiah 7:10-14 (NASB)

10 Then the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, saying, 11 “Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; make it deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord!” 13 Then he said, “Listen now, O house of David! Is it too slight a thing for you to try the patience of men, that you will try the patience of my God as well? 14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

Ahaz apparently didn’t want to ask God for a sign, even after God told him to ask for one. The Lord provided a sign anyway: a virgin shall bear a son and call His name Immanuel. That son was Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, whose birth we celebrate at Christmas. That sign was fulfilled, and all the other signs and promises and prophecies in the Bible will be fulfilled as well. Jesus will come again with glory to usher in His Kingdom that will live forever. Maranatha, Lord Jesus!

Thank You, Lord, that Your promises are always fulfilled in Your perfect time. We look forward to Jesus return, just as You promised. In His holy name. Amen.

 

Image: © Depositphotos.com/yanlev

Christmas Mystery Special

Choose one. Choose some. Choose all.

FOR THREE DAYS, DECEMBER 4th, 5th and 6th, sample these selected authors’ books for only 99 cents each! CLICK ON THE  BOOK TITLE LINKS TO ORDER!

Dream or Destiny

Lillie Ammann

Marilee Anderson dreams about a murder and wakes to find it really happened. She and David Nichols, the victim’s brother, become the prime suspects. Though they have their secrets and aren’t sure they can trust each other, Marilee and David team up to find the killer in this psychic suspense.

Admittedly, I’m slightly biased (only slightly!), but since this is my own novel, I’m a little partial to it! For the romance and/or mystery lovers on your shopping list–or for yourself if you love romance and/or mystery!

A DANGEROUS HARBOR: Pilgrim’s Progress Trilogy (A Romantic Mystery Sailing Trilogy Book 1)

RP Dahlke

When Katrina Hunter is forced to shoot her sister’s stalker, she takes the required leave of absence from the SF police department as her chance for a long over-due sail to Mexico.

But when she discovers a floater close to her first port-of-call, she naturally does the right thing; she reports the dead body to the Mexican Navy. Except that doing her civic duty brings her into the Ensenada police station where she comes face-to-face with her unfortunate past. A past that could cause her to lose her hard won position as a detective in the San Francisco police department.

Murder at the Mansion: A Logan & Cafferty Mystery/Suspense Novel

Jean Henry Mead

Dana Logan Grayson finds the body of her gardner in her yard. He’s been stabbed but was he the intended victim? Her friend Sarah arrives from Texas to help her discover the killer and they flee for their lives to Texas and the Alaskan outback before the killer is discovered.

Although I haven’t read this novel, I’ve read and reviewed two previous books in this series.

The Big Mouth: A Novel of Crime and Suspense

John King

A crime thriller about a well-to-do New Jersey man who foolishly brags about his wealth and high cash position to win a political argument at a holiday party. Big mistake. He might win the argument, but he loses the war. Seems not everyone in the room is as well-to-do or honest. In fact, some are downright criminal. Rex Jones’s big mouth makes him the target for a group of lowlifes who plan to use his wife, Lena, and daughter, Laurie, as leverage to extort his cash. Can Rex save his family? Does he even have the ability to go up against these violent thugs?

Mistletoe Medium (A Lottie Baldwin Mystery) (Lottie Baldwin Mysteries Book 3)

Elizabeth Delisi

No sooner does psychic Lottie Baldwin pull up stakes and move to Cheyenne, North Dakota, than she finds herself up to her neck in a series of mysterious robberies. Can Lottie and the handsome new man in her life, deputy sheriff Harlan Erikson, solve the crime spree before Lottie becomes the next victim?

Crying Woman Bridge (The High Country Mystery Series) (Volume 6)

Loretta Jackson and Vickie Britton

Haunted bridge, crying woman, missing baby! While returning from Professor Dawson’s lecture on haunted places, the last thing Sheriff Jeff McQuede and Dawson expect to encounter is a terrified woman clinging to the railing of Mirabella’s Bridge, crying for her lost baby. It looks as if Rae Harris has thrown the infant over the bridge in a fit of despair, but she claims he has been stolen by a ghostly figure she calls Mirabella.

You can read my review of Crying Woman Bridge on Goodreads. 

Devotion for Thursday after Advent 1

Deuteronomy 18:15-19 (NASB)

15 “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him. 16 This is according to all that you asked of the Lord your God in Horeb on the day of the assembly, saying, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, let me not see this great fire anymore, or I will die.’ 17 The Lord said to me, ‘They have spoken well. 18 I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. 19 It shall come about that whoever will not listen to My words which he shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him.

God has been telling His people about the Messiah since Moses’ last message at the end of his life. When “that prophet” is mentioned in the New Testament, the people knew that God had promised a prophet 1500 years ago. His people had been waiting all that time for the fulfillment of the promise. Jesus has promised that He is coming again. We can count on that with the same certainty that the Jews anticipated the Messiah. We don’t know when it will happen, but we know it will happen—in God’s time. We must be ready when it happens, whether it’s tomorrow, decades from now, or eons away.

Lord, we look for Jesus to come back. Help us to stay focused and alert, ready for that glorious moment no matter when it comes. In the name of Jesus, our Lord, Who is coming again in glory. Amen.

Image: © Depositphotos.com/lowthian

 

Devotion for Wednesday after Advent 1

Genesis 3:15 (NASB)

15 And I will put enmity

Between you and the woman,

And between your seed and her seed;

He shall bruise you on the head,

And you shall bruise him on the heel.”

We have an enemy, the serpent, Satan, the devil. He will attack us and hurt us any way he can, but the power doesn’t belong to him. It belongs to the One Who put the enmity between us. Satan has a lot of power on this earth now, but during Advent we look forward to his demise. It is coming. Jesus is coming!

Lord God Almighty, we praise You that You are in control. You have allowed Satan to be our enemy here in earth, but we thank You that You will ultimately destroy him and rule in glory. Though we are enemies, Satan doesn’t always bruise us on the heel. Often he entices us promises of things we think we want but that can’t compare to the treasures You have stored up for us. We know the day is coming when Satan will be cast into the pit of fire, but in the meantime, Lord, we need the help of the Holy Spirit to serve You and You alone. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Image: © Depositphotos.com/SimpleFoto

Devotion for Tuesday after Advent 1

Genesis 3:1-24 (NASB)

3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” 4 The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! 5 For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.

8 They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” 11 And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” 12 The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14 The Lord God said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,

Cursed are you more than all cattle,

And more than every beast of the field;

On your belly you will go,

And dust you will eat

All the days of your life;

15 And I will put enmity

Between you and the woman,

And between your seed and her seed;

He shall bruise you on the head,

And you shall bruise him on the heel.”

16 To the woman He said,

“I will greatly multiply

Your pain in childbirth,

In pain you will bring forth children;

Yet your desire will be for your husband,

And he will rule over you.”

17 Then to Adam He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’;

Cursed is the ground because of you;

In toil you will eat of it

All the days of your life.

18 “Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you;

And you will eat the plants of the field;

19 By the sweat of your face

You will eat bread,

Till you return to the ground,

Because from it you were taken;

For you are dust,

And to dust you shall return.”

20 Now the man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all the living. 21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.

22 Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. 24 So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life.

God created man in His own image and gave man rule over all the creatures on earth. But Eve and Adam yielded to the first temptation they encountered because they wanted even more than the riches God have given them—they wanted to be in control, even in the only thing God denied them. As a result, they were cast out of Eden into a world of toil and pain. It’s so easy for us to see their sin and think How could they do that? It’s much more difficult for us to see our own sin, our own desire to take God’s place, our own justifications for our rebellion. We don’t like to admit it, but can’t help ourselves. We need a Savior. We will never be free of sin on our own volition. The only way we can be clean from sin and pure as snow is if God Himself cleans and purifies us. During Advent, we look forward to the coming of the One who cleans and purifies and makes us whole.

Lord, thank You that Jesus came to earth to save us from our sin. We look for the day when He comes again in glory so that we can be with You—Father, Son, and Holy Ghost—forever in the place where there will be no pain, no toil, no tears. Maranatha, Lord! Amen.

Image: © Depositphotos.com/Qingwa

Devotion for Monday after Advent 1

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Genesis 1:26-31 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; 30 and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so. 31 God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

God created everything from nothing. He made all the animals and fish and birds. As the almighty, omniscient, omnipresent creator of the universe, He could make anything He wanted any way He wanted. Yet He created man in His own image and gave man rule over the other creatures He had created. We look in the mirror or look at the people around us and realize we are created in the very image of the God of gods and Lord of lords. And God saw that it was good.

Thank You, Heavenly Father, that we are made in Your image. Often we are an indistinct and distorted image, but we are in Your image nonetheless. Help us to sharpen that image and become more and more like You. Make the desires of Your heart the desire of our hearts so that we worship You fully and completely. In the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Ghost, now and forever. Amen.

Image: © Depositphotos.com/natis