“Our Daily Bread” http://odb.org/

The Daily Devotions of Greg Laurie http://www.harvest.org/devotional

“Homily Grits Devotional” http://www.homilygrits.com/

John 1:41-42… He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone). (NKJV)

The opening scripture has the future apostle Andrew [Simon (Peter’s) brother] running to find his brother, shortly after John the Baptist pointed out Jesus (the Lamb of God) to him… This is the first meeting between Simon (Peter) and Jesus… The word “Cephas” in the opening scripture, means “rock” in Aramaic, and “Peter” in Greek…

We see Jesus’ supernatural ability to look at Simon, and see him for what he would later become, as Jesus’ head disciple… I find comfort in the fact that though Peter made many mistakes…including his denial that he was Jesus’ disciple (Luke 22:54-62), that Christ still loved him…and molded him into the leader of His 12 chosen disciples, and head of His church…

Jesus tells Peter this (well into the 3 years that Jesus spent with His disciples), in…Matthew 16:18… “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” (NKJV)

The Lord has a plan for each and every one of us… Some of us will become believers in Jesus Christ, through saving faith alone in Him [See (1) below]…eternally secure that heaven will be our destination upon our death… And some people will never be able to officially call Jesus Christ their personal Lord and Savior…and will die in their sins…John 8:24…

The plan the Lord has for His redeemed children, is a perfect plan…according to the will of God the Father… The key for us as Christians, is to find, and then live in God’s will for our lives… We can start by doing our best to live in God’s revealed will for all Christians…that is found in God’s Word, the Bible…

And we know that we as Christians have been called to be followers (disciples) of Christ…

There is much revealed will for Christians to follow in the Bible… But I believe the following scripture is a good place to start…

John 8:31-32… Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (NKJV)

Abiding in Jesus’ Word, means the true disciple of Christ (2) understands, obeys, and then applies Jesus’ teachings that can best be learned by habitually spending time reading, and then digesting God’s Word…Matthew 4:4… Armed with the Word of God, Christ’s disciple should then put into practice what Jesus and His Word reveals as the inerrant truth God wants all of us to understand and obey…

When we start living for the Lord as His follower, and a doer of the Word (James 1:22-25), by spending time digesting God’s Word…through constant prayer to the Lord…through fellowship in a Bible believing and teaching church (3)…and through becoming a contributing part of the body of Christ (4)…we will hopefully be allowing ourselves to be molded and shaped by the Lord Himself, into a closer and closer likeness of Christ…as we are being conformed into His image…Romans 8:29…

God’s plan for us as Christians, might not be what we had in mind… But if we humbly seek His guidance in all areas of our lives…and we submit our lives to Him, to do as God sees fit…we can be sure that God’s plan for our lives will be far better than anything we can imagine or achieve in our own strength…

I am reminded of this scripture penned by the apostle Paul, that expresses this very thought, in…Ephesians 3:20… Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, (NKJV)

This “power that works in us” is the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit, that if left in total control of our lives, will help guide us toward God’s perfect will for our lives… But we as obedient Christians need to be content with whatever cards God deals to us, just like the apostle Paul was, as he pens…Philippians 4:11-13…

The apostle Paul ends this scripture on his contentment, with this, in…Philippians 4:13… I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (NKJV)

My friends, we need this same mindset that the apostle Paul had…and we will be well on our way to living a life that will be both pleasing to the Lord, and filled with an abundance of rewards that we see the writer of Hebrews proclaim, in…Hebrews 11:6… But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (NKJV)

Heavenly Father, I am so thankful for Your Word, and the truth that I have found proclaimed throughout the Bible… I pray Father, that others will seek to become followers of Your Son Jesus Christ… And that they will experience the many blessings that You promise to those that humble themselves into living lives that are obedient to Your will and Your ways… I pray for this fullness of Christ, and the godly peace (Philippians 4:6-7) that only You can provide to all of Your obedient children, in Jesus’ most precious name and for His sake…Amen…

Blessings in Christ, bruce r mills

Related articles:

1) Here is a link for this most important days writing, about how God’s grace is received to become a Christian in God’s eyes; through understanding and obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, after first being drawn in by God…John 6:44… https://godsmanforever.wordpress.com/2013/07/11/gods-group-thoughts-for-7112013-the-truth-about-sin/
2) https://godsmanforever.com/2013/11/18/what-is-a-disciple-of-jesus-christ-11182013/
3) https://godsmanforever.com/2013/01/05/gods-group-thoughts-for-1052013-the-right-church/
4) https://godsmanforever.com/2013/01/19/gods-group-thoughts-for-1182013-get-plugged-in/