This blog is for VCS Conservatory faculty, elementary, junior high, and high school, who cannot make the regular scheduled weekly devotions. It is to complete the required devotionals twice a week. You must view the two selected inspirational videos anytime during the week and give a comment on the video (at least 3 sentences). Your comments are what counts for credit.
This article is the second devotional for the week of October 30
through November 3. This is a devotional from the book My Utmost for
His Highest by Oswald Chambers. The topic is similar to Devo One this week: The Trial of Faith. May it strengthen
you today! What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
We have the idea that God rewards us for our faith, and it may be
so in the initial stages. But we do not earn anything through faith—
faith brings us into the right relationship with God and gives Him His
opportunity to work. Yet God frequently has to knock the bottom out of
your experience as His saint to get you in direct contact with Himself.
God wants you to understand that it is a life of faith, not a
life of emotional enjoyment of His blessings. The beginning of your life
of faith was very narrow and intense, centered around a small amount of
experience that had as much emotion as faith in it, and it was full of
light and sweetness. Then God withdrew His conscious blessings to teach
you to “walk by faith” (2 Corinthians 5:7). And you are worth much more to Him now than you were in your days of conscious delight with your thrilling testimony.
Faith by its very nature must be tested and tried. And the real trial
of faith is not that we find it difficult to trust God, but that God’s
character must be proven as trustworthy in our own minds. Faith being
worked out into reality must experience times of unbroken isolation.
Never confuse the trial of faith with the ordinary discipline of life,
because a great deal of what we call the trial of faith is the
inevitable result of being alive. Faith, as the Bible teaches it, is
faith in God coming against everything that contradicts Him— a faith
that says, “I will remain true to God’s character whatever He may do.”
The highest and the greatest expression of faith in the whole Bible is—
“Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15).
This article is the first devotional for the week of October 30
through November 3. This is a devotional from the book My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers. The topic is Faith and may it strengthen your faith. What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
Faith in active opposition to common sense is mistaken enthusiasm
and narrow-mindedness, and common sense in opposition to faith
demonstrates a mistaken reliance on reason as the basis for truth. The
life of faith brings the two of these into the proper relationship.
Common sense and faith are as different from each other as the natural
life is from the spiritual, and as impulsiveness is from inspiration.
Nothing that Jesus Christ ever said is common sense, but is revelation
sense, and is complete, whereas common sense falls short. Yet faith must
be tested and tried before it becomes real in your life. “We know that
all things work together for good…” (Romans 8:28)
so that no matter what happens, the transforming power of God’s
providence transforms perfect faith into reality. Faith always works in a
personal way, because the purpose of God is to see that perfect faith
is made real in His children.
For every detail of common sense in life, there is a truth God has
revealed by which we can prove in our practical experience what we
believe God to be. Faith is a tremendously active principle that always
puts Jesus Christ first. The life of faith says, “Lord, You have said
it, it appears to be irrational, but I’m going to step out boldly,
trusting in Your Word” (for example, see Matthew 6:33). Turning intellectual faith into our personal possession is always
a fight, not just sometimes. God brings us into particular
circumstances to educate our faith, because the nature of faith is to
make the object of our faith very real to us. Until we know Jesus, God
is merely a concept, and we can’t have faith in Him. But once we hear
Jesus say, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9)
we immediately have something that is real, and our faith is limitless.
Faith is the entire person in the right relationship with God through
the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
This video is the second devotional for the week of October 24
through October 27. This video, by Carlos Whittaker, is about How to Deal with Worry. Down to earth sharing in this somewhat random vlog, Los gives some tips and helpful Scripture for dealing with anxiety and worry. What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
Bio
Los was the speaker for our Mount Hermon staff spiritual retreat and is the speaker for our Spiritual Emphasis chapels all week. Carlos Whittaker is a People’s Choice Award winner, a former recording
artist signed to a major label, a social media maven, and currently
spends the majority of his time writing books and speaking on stages
around the world. http://carloswhittaker.com/
This video is the first devotional for the week of October 24
through October 27. This video, by Rene Schlaepfer, is about Unleashing Hope. Anxiety and depression are very real. It's not easy to talk about. It can cause all kinds of side effects and cause one to dread the future. Psalm 31 reveals the depth of dispair and also the hope of trusting in God. What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
This video is the second devotional for the week of October 16
through October 19. This video is about praying by a girl named Ashley. Is it easy for you to talk with God daily? Here's 5 tips to help. What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
Here are my top 5 tips for praying!! Prayer can be difficult sometimes and totally has been for me too. I can read my Bible for days... but praying is sometimes a struggle! These tips totally have helped me with praying more and more recently. I hope these tips will help you pray more and more as well!
This video is the first devotional for the week of October 16
through October 19. This video is a reminder to "Love your neighbor as yourself" from Matthew 22:39. It is compelling! What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
This video is the second devotional for the week of October 9
through October 13. This week we focus on HOPE and resting in the Lord.
Both devotionals are songs to reflect on. This second one is a song
called My Hope Is in You, made popular by Aaron Shust. In the last few weeks, we have seen tragedy after tragedy in our nation and in the world. Sometimes things don't go as we hope they would, but let us put our hope in the Lord. There's a peace that passes understanding only found in Christ. The lyrics are below. What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
Lyrics to My Hope Is in You
I meet with You and my soul sings out As your word throws doubt far away I sing to You and my heart cries "Holy! Hallelujah, Father, You're near!"
My hope is in You, Lord All the day long, I won't be shaken by drought or storm A peace that passes understanding is my song And I sing my hope is in You, Lord
I wait for You and my soul finds rest In my selfishness, You show me grace
I worship You and my heart cries "Glory Hallelujah, Father, You're here!"
My hope is in You, Lord All the day long I won't be shaken by drought or storm A peace that passes understanding is my song And I sing my hope is in You, Lord
I will wait on You You are my refuge I will wait on You You are my refuge
My hope is in You, Lord, all the day long I won't be shaken by drought or storm My hope is in You, Lord All the day long I won't be shaken by drought or storm
A peace that passes understanding is my song And I sing my hope is in You, Lord My hope is in You, Lord, yeah My hope is in You, Lord
This video is the first devotional for the week of October 9
through October 13. This week we focus on HOPE and resting in the Lord. Both devotionals are songs to reflect on. This first one is a song called I Will Not Be Shaken by Tony Guerrero. Tony was a pastor at Saddleback Church and this recording is off of a Maranatha! Praise Band album. The lyrics are below. What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
Lyrics to I Will Not Be Shaken
My soul finds rest in You
My fortress and my rock
My hope for life my hiding place
My refuge and my God
In You I’ve found my home
My shelter from the storm
And I’ll pour out my heart to You
And lean upon Your throne
I will put my trust in You
I will put my hope there, too
I will stand upon Your word
And I will not be shaken
I will let my praises show
Holding on to what I know
Because I know You’re always there
And I will not be shaken
I will not be shaken
I will not be moved
I’m leaning on the throne
Because You died for me
And called me to Your own
And even when the strongest winds begin to blow
I will stand my ground
I will not be moved
I will not be shaken
My soul finds rest in You
My fortress and my rock
My hope for life my hiding place
My refuge and my God
I will put my trust in You
I will put my hope there, too
I will stand upon Your word
And I will not be shaken
I will let my praises show
Holding on to what I know
Because I know You’re always there
And I will not be shaken
I will put my trust in You
I will put my hope there, too
I will stand upon Your word
And I will not be shaken
I will let my praises show
Holding on to what I know
Because I know You’re always there
And I will not be shaken
I will not be shaken
This is the second devotional for the week of October 2 through October 6, 2017, from Vicki Wagner.
Since I’m more comfortable with the written word than the
spoken (and especially not video!), I decided to share an idea that is
currently helping me in daily life. It’s not a new idea, I’ve done it many
times in the past, but like many devotional practices, it can get old or trite
or uninteresting, or your attention just goes somewhere else. When I discover
it all once again, I’m overwhelmed by how easy it is!
Many people have daily devotional time, in the morning, in
the evening, before bed. Some do it with families. For that quiet, personal
time, some people read the Bible, memorize verses, read an inspiration Christian
book, write in a journal, go to Bible studies, go to weekly chapel or
devotions, etc.
For the musicians in this group, especially worship leaders J, this daily devotional
may be a standard practice. For parents
in this group, you might have similar feelings about what is driving me to pull
closer to God and find more time each day for prayer.
Here’s a bit of background of where I’m coming from, before
I reveal the simple idea I use.
When I had my first son in 1987 and I became responsible for
this tiny, beautiful gift from God, I had to stop reading, watching and
listening to the news. I also cancelled my newspaper. It was just too upsetting
to think that my perfect, innocent child would have to deal with this broken
world. Even though I had a strong faith, it hurt my heart to read about all of
the trouble and then look at his happy, baby face. How could I ever explain it
all to him?
There were wars, fires, shootings, natural disasters,
political fighting people suffering, dying, crying, cheating, lying, killing…well,
being a journalism/public relations major, it was difficult because I was a
news hound.There was no internet, but I
devoured newspapers, magazines, TV and radio talk shows all my life. I studied
how to analyze, dissect, and discuss. Of course, after a baby, I had lots less
time for these things, but really, I had no stomach for it. The world was a
scary place, as I looked at it through my infant’s eyes. I wanted to live in oblivion,
in the warm, cozy, sweet place we weaved around our son and in our home, and
the bubbles we created at church, school, with family and friends.
As my boys grew up, I found the skills to discuss world and
local affairs with them, to help guide them to an understanding of their place in
the world, and how they could help by dedicating their lives to Jesus and his
teachings. We all grew together in our faith in God’s protection and love.
So gradually, we started reading the newspaper, selectively
watching the news, and discussing what we saw. Then came 9/11, and that primal
fear came back. This time, I did not shield them from anything – we saw and
talked and prayed about it all. They were in middle & high school by then.
I am proud of where my boys are in their lives now. Since
9/11, I tuned back in. I must say, this past year and a half have been
difficult for many of us. So much chaos in the political and natural realms,
it’s dizzying. Just when you think it can’t get any worse, another hurricane
hits, tweets fly, people are suffering 24-7, right on our screens, in print,
and in discussions with family and friends. Just this past weekend, the
girlfriend of my nephew was hit by a bullet in the Las Vegas tragedy. She is
still hospitalized, but will survive. It’s terrifying when it starts to hit
close to home.
But it seems I can’t look away from the chaos. Maybe I
should mute notifications of news on my cell phone and my browsers. Maybe I should impose another news blackout.
Because it hits me hard on somedays.
This time, it’s because a new life was born to my son last
March, a beautiful, innocent grandson, who looks just like his dad. That
instinct to protect came roaring back. I needed a break from news and gloom and
doom. I needed to turn my face to God.
So…I turned once again to a tried and true way to pray
daily, several times a day, whenever I’m in my car. It is so good for my soul,
because sometimes, I just can’t find the words.
I turn on Christian radio, and sing along with the songs.
Or, if I don’t know the song, I just listen with my heart. God is speaking to
me.
My favorite now is Sirius/XM “The Message,” channel 63.
Before I was fortunate enough to have that service, I’d listen to KLOVE
91.9FM.I’ve even put that on at work a
few times, with the sound low. Even if I’m not paying attention to the words,
that blessed music is pounding into my psyche and soothing the cares and fears.
It’s so easy – singing, tapping along on the morning
commute. I dedicate that time to God, and it’s like prayer. 20 minutes of
prayer in the morning, 20 minutes of prayer in the afternoon. WOW. I wasted
that time so many days, listening to bad news, fake news, oldies, alt rock,
even jazz and spa music (not that music is ever a waste!) But it’s the easiest thing in the world to
tune in to Christian music and it doesn’t take a lot of thinking of what to say
to God – just use the words others are writing and performing, and use them to
pray.
Here are the lyrics to my current favorite song, because it
sums up what I want to say to God right now. We need you, God. It’s not a new
song, it’s not a new idea. I’ve heard it a hundred times in the past. But it
really hit home a few weeks ago. Itfits
so relevantly with today’s news and chaos. It’s an awesome prayer.
Casting Crowns (2009)
Hear our cry, Lord we pray,
Our faces down, our hands are raised,
You called us out, we turned away, we've turned away.
With ship wrecked faith, idols rise,
We do what is right, in our own eyes,
Our children now, will pay the price,
We need Your light, Lord, shine Your light.
If we've ever needed You, Lord, it's now, Lord, it's now,
We are desperate for Your hand, we're reachin' out, we're reachin' out.
All our hearts, all our strength,
With all our minds, we're at Your fate,
May Your Kingdom come, in our hearts and lives,
Let Your Church arise, let Your Church arise!
If we've ever needed You, Lord, it's now, Lord, it's now,
We are desperate for Your hand, we're reachin' out, we're reachin' out, we're
reachin' out
If we've ever needed You, Lord, it's now, Lord, it's now,
We are desperate for Your hand, we're reachin' out, we're reachin' out,
If we've ever needed You, Lord, it's now, Lord, it's now,
We are desperate for Your hand, we're reachin' out, we're reachin' out
We need You now
Revive us now
We need You now
There’s even a cool video of this song.
Like I said – this isn’t new. Many of you contribute
musically to your church, your school, your family. It’s worship practice. But
this proved to be easy for me, and sometimes I just put my playlist on wherever
I am. It’s filled with songs like this, along with some Coates, Wolfe, Vitchev,
and VCJazz Ensemble mixed in!
One more share - I saw this poem recently in a Facebook post
by a friend. As Adrian said in his devotional last week – listen to the quiet
sounds around you – it’s God’s voice. It’s your spirit.
I now use this as a prayer.
When we can’t find the
Words to express our
Needs, feelings, thoughts
Or depth of desperation,
The Holy Spirit is
present to help us.
When we don’t know how to pray,
The Spirit intercedes
for us
With sighs too deep
for words.
~ ELCA Prayer Ventures adapted from Romans 8:26
I hope this writing might help some of you, and I look
forward to your sharing of your ideas/routines/devotions in a future post here
on this Conservatory Devotions site.
This video is the first devotional for the week of October 2
through October 6. This video is a devotional by Adrian Roman, one our new teachers. Elijah went through some tough times, but God gives him some good insights. What do
you
think? Leave a comment.
