May 3
________________________________________
JESUS CALLS LEVI (MATTHEW)
A poem by ILMA
As Jesus left the town, he saw Levi, the tax collector sitting at his booth
“Follow me and be my disciple” Jesus said to him so he got up
He left everything he had and followed Jesus immediately
Later, Jesus was the guest of honor at a banquet he hosted.
Then the Pharisees and teachers of the law complained bitterly
“Why do you eat and drink with such scum as Levi?” they asked Jesus
Christ replied, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor-sick people do”
“I have come to call those who acknowledge their sins and repent.
________________________________________
MEMORY VERSE
Healthy people don’t need a doctor-sick people do. I have come to call not those who think thy are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.
– Luke 5:31-32
Read: Luke 5:27-32
I heard one preacher describe what a church is. He said that the church is like a hospital and all the members represent the patients who are sick, not one is totally healed or they won’t be in the hospital anymore. When I heard him say this, an image comes to mind. A picture of people waiting to be given care and attention, waiting to get healed and get back to their normal lives, recuperating and getting stronger.
Isn’t it wonderful that Jesus called those who are not perfect to be his disciples? In fact, he chose messed up and sick people like Levi. His desire to follow him and turn his back on sin was truly Spirit led. ________________________________________
REFLECTION
• Why do we go to church and think that everyone in it has it altogether?
• How can we give compassion as Jesus did to those who are sinners and weak?
• How can we guard ourselves from giving a verdict to someone we don’t really know what’s going on in their hearts?
• How do we set other people up for failure when we have unrealistic expectations from them?
Tag Archives: Christian devotional
OLD HAS GONE, NEW HAS BEGUN Poem Devotional
December 31________________________________________
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! – 2 Corinthians 5:17(NLT)
OLD HAS GONE, NEW HAS BEGUN
A poem and essay by ILMA
The old year has gone by quickly
Have we loved faithfully?
If anyone is seeking Christ
They will be transformed and be full of life.
Are there areas of your life that is in bondage?
Run to the throne so you will have an advantage
God didn’t create you with the spirit of fear
He made you powerful, loving and disciplined.
Renew your mind and make it captive to Jesus
He loves all the faithful, he considers them precious
Embrace the new year with a new attitude and stay objective
Welcome the challenges; they’ll give a new perspective.
Dream big and present it to the Lord so he can bless them
When you request anything, remember to ask in his name
Be joyful and humble and keep on loving others
You will totally be blessed if you love one another.
________________________________________
The old year has passed and a new beginning for the coming year is just around the corner. Have you reflected on the past year? What needs to be changed? Many people make new year’s resolution but I think we all should have our minds renewed in Christ Jesus so that we will have his perspective when challenges arise in the coming year.
________________________________________
PRAYER
Lord, thank you for all the things I learned this past year.
REFLECTION
How can we change our thinking or doing things successfully?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com
LOVE GOD’S COMMANDS Poem Devotional
December 30________________________________________
Those who love your instructions have great peace and do not stumble.
-Psalm 119:165(NLT)
LOVE GOD’S COMMANDS
A poem and essay by ILMA
There’s a secret to peace and victory
It comes form loving God’s command and authority
When you constantly seek the Lord and obey
You will have strength and peace along the way.
God loves those who live in obedience and wisdom
He blesses them with joy and constant freedom
Love all of God’s instructions and your life will be good
He ensures protection to all those who obey and are faithful.
________________________________________
So many people in the world today live in a spirit of rebellion and pride. True believers who love to follow the laws of God are a novelty these days. Laws are usually made so that the laws who were made to and the law-making body will both be protected under such boundaries. God created many boundaries that we need to honor and respect. When we do not respect such boundaries or laws, we eventually get in trouble if not right at the instance that we defy it.
We were all created in God’s image and when God made all these commands for us to follow, it is for our own good. The bible says that if we want to live in peace and stay out of trouble, we need to follow and love his commands or instructions. It protects us from stumbling.
________________________________________
PRAYER
Lord, give me a love for your instructions.
REFLECTION
What happens when we don’t obey God’s laws?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com
REBUKE AND DISCIPLINE PURIFY HEART Poem Devotional
December 29________________________________________
Physical punishment cleanses away evil, such discipline purifies the heart.
-Proverbs 20:30(NLT)
REBUKE AND DISCIPLINE PURIFY HEART
A poem and essay by ILMA
When we are faithful believers of Christ
We will not avoid rebuke and correction in life
Physical punishment cleanses away evil
Discipline purifies and wards off the devil.
Do not be afraid when you are rebuked by truth
Because God loves you, he wants you to choose good
Don’t fear pain and suffering, it will make you endure
Jesus went through pain so you can be made new.
________________________________________
Matthew Henry’s concise commentary on Proverbs 20:30 says that “Severe rebukes sometimes do a great deal of good. But such is the corruption of nature, that men are loth to be rebuked for their sins. If God uses severe afflictions, to purify our hearts and fit us for his service, we have cause to be very thankful.”
It is a wonder how our world has become a world of comfort. It avoids all forms of hardships, trials and sufferings. Not many people want to be corrected or told what to do or referred to face the truth. Discipline has become a novelty in our society. Very few people are responsible for the consequences of their own actions. Freedom has been twisted in its meaning.
The bible reminds us that rebuke, physical punishment and discipline are all very important processes that we need to go through in order to grow.
________________________________________
PRAYER
Lord, help me to face rebuke and correction from you.
REFLECTION
Why do you think people are scared of suffering and discipline?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com
WHY QUESTION GOD’S WAYS? Poem Devotional
December 28________________________________________
The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?
– Proverbs 20:24(NLT)
WHY QUESTION GOD’S WAYS?
A poem and essay by ILMA
Didn’t the Lord create all humans?
He knows what’s best for all men
How come people want to understand everything?
When we do, it only leads us to rebellion and sin.
Why try to understand when God knows best?
Isn’t it better to trust him and never ask or guess?
When we question God’s ways, we don’t trust him
If we leave all things to him, we grow up and avoid sin.
________________________________________
I love to ask the “why” questions since I was a little girl. I think God made me a very inquisitive person and for the longest time, I used this curiosity. Sometimes it did me good to know what I wanted to know but many times, it also got me in trouble. I am a very analytical and deductive thinker. Sometimes it takes me hours to ponder on something. I go around in circles going back and forth on something that catches my curiosity. It can be a rewarding thing to get answers but sometimes it can be an obsession to find answers as well.
When things don’t go well in my life, I ask God many questions but in the process. One day he revealed to me that I don’t have to have to have answers all the time.
________________________________________
PRAYER
Lord, help me to trust you more and more.
REFLECTION
How can curiosity be a bad thing sometimes?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com
ON TRUST AND DECEPTION Poem Devotional
December 26________________________________________
No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others. – Psalm 25:3 (NLT)
ON TRUST AND DECEPTION
A poem and essay by ILMA
Those who trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ
They will be guaranteed a shame-free life
The Lord protects those who honor him
He does everything to ensure their integrity.
When you deceive others intentionally
You will be full of shame and disgraced instantly
The Lord commands us to walk in love and peace
He wants us to live in purity and to stay always free.
________________________________________
In my dark past, I have lived with people who have compromised their lives and have no integrity. The hardest people to be with are those who are dishonest and always out to deceive others to get what they want. What a shameful life it was to be these people. I became accessory to their evil ways because I was so scared to lose these relationships. By doing so, I lived a life of shame as well.
I thank God that he has freed me from these lies that I lived in and freed me from the fear of not being loved. I am grateful that I was no longer a slave of my desires and cravings. What matters most to me now is to trust the Lord and obey his commands. When I did, I was freed from shame and guilt.
________________________________________
PRAYER
Lord, thank you for being the only one I can truly trust.
REFLECTION
What do you do when you see someone you love deceives others?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com
GIVING BIRTH TO THE SON OF MAN Poem Devotional
December 25________________________________________
He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son.
Luke 2:5-7(NLT)
GIVING BIRTH TO THE SON OF MAN
A poem and essay by ILMA
Mary was traveling with Joseph to Bethlehem
She was due to give birth to the Son of Man
Can you imagine how she must have felt?
She was probably scared to give birth to her first.
While Joseph and Mary went to enlist in the census
The time came for the birth of Mary’s first child, Jesus
She was blessed among women to be the mother to Christ
Giving birth to the Savior is such a significant moment in her life.
________________________________________
If you are a mother, you will never forget your very first childbirth. I was twenty-seven years old when I gave birth to my one and only child. It was a mixed feeling of excitement and fear. I was a solo parent and scared and worried how I was going to bring up my son on my own. It was a tough experience because I only had a helper with me and I had to share a bed on a public hospital because the rooms were all full.
Can you imagine how Mary must have been through? As she looked at her baby, she was filled with joy and honor.
________________________________________
PRAYER
Thank you for letting your Son come to save us.
REFLECTION
What does the birth of Christ mean to you?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com
JESUS: FULFILLMENT OF THE PROMISE
December 24________________________________________
And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee.
– Luke 2:4(NLT)
JESUS: FULFILLMENT OF THE PROMISE
A poem and essay by ILMA
The Lord promised a Savior to all of mankind
He doesn’t want us all lost and stay blind
He said that he will come from King David’s lineage
Joseph, his father actually was from Bethlehem.
Mary was with child when they went for the census
They had to go back to Bethlehem, a village that’s ancient
Then the baby Jesus was born in a manger on a silent night
The fulfillment of the promise happened exactly as God planned.
________________________________________
The promise of a Savior has long been talked about in the Old Testament for thousands of years before Jesus was born. God planned the whole creation and everything revolves around the Lord Jesus. So why doesn’t all people he created appreciate him and prioritize him in their lives? God chose Abraham and told him that he will have many descendants. He gave him all the blessings and it was from his lineage that Jesus was going to come from. What a promise!
Has anyone else given you a promise of salvation and eternal life? No one like God can truly fulfill a promise. Jesus’ birth was the true manifestation of his great love for us.
________________________________________
PRAYER
Thank you for fulfilling your promise to us Lord.
REFLECTION
What does the birth of Jesus mean for mankind?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com
DON’T ARGUE ABOUT WHAT’S RIGHT OR WRONG
December 22________________________________________
Blessed are those who don’t feel guilty for doing something they have decided is right. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning. Romans 14:22 & 23(NLT)
WHEN YOU DO WHAT’S RIGHT
A poem and essay by ILMA
When you believe something’s not right
Don’t do it for it will complicate your life
It is a sin when you do what is not true
When you feel guilty, check the truth.
When you seek God and get deep into Scriptures
You’ll learn to fight the battle and be a victor
Blessed are you when you are afraid to do wrong
The Holy Spirit will help you overcome this world.
________________________________________
Researchers at Cornell University estimate we make 226.7 decisions each day on food alone. And as your level of responsibility increases, so does the multitude of choices you have to make. It’s estimated that the average adult makes about 35,000 remotely conscious decisions each day. Each decision, of course, carries certain consequences with it that are both good and bad.
What if our decisions are based on unfounded facts or lies? Can you imagine what it would be like if you are surrounded by things or ideas that are not true? The apostle Paul was explaining to the Romans about how we need to be guided by God’s truth and how blessed are those who don’t feel guilty for doing something they decided is right.
________________________________________
PRAYER
Lord, help me to always decide to do the right thing.
REFLECTION
What happens when you continue to do what you believe is wrong?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com