Living by God’s Power Poem Devotional

Posted on September 10, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 10 The Power of God’s Word
For the kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk. It is living by God’s power.
-1 Corinthians 4:20 (NLT)
LIVING BY GOD’S POWER
A poem and essay by ILMA
Do you believe that God loves you so much?
Is your life peaceful or full of grudge?
The moment you trust Christ as your Savior
He will fulfill his promises and you will be a victor.
The kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk
It requires believers to choose the road of love to walk
You must completely depend on his grace, mercy and power
That is how you defeat the enemy and make the devil cower.
There are a lot of believers who do not have a clue what is required of Christians once they put their trust in the Lord. I can understand unbelievers who don’t know but it’s sad to see many Christians who do a lot of talking but no walking. So many lives are compromised when we don’t walk our talks. The book of James challenges us and tells us that faith without good deeds is dead.
The apostle Paul stressed so much that to be able to enter God’s kingdom, we have to heavily rely on God’s power. We can never trust our own selves because our nature is sinful.
PRAYER
Lord, teach me to rely on you alone in all things.
REFLECTION
Why does God require dependence on him so badly?

THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH Poem Devotional

Posted on September 9, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 9 The Power of God’s Word
When the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. – John 16:13(NLT)
THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH
A poem and essay by ILMA
There are many kinds of spirit in our midst
God will show you which ones are counterfeits
When his Spirit comes, he will reveal
You will know the truth and you’ll be free.
The Spirit of truth does not speak on his own
He will tell you what he heard from the Son
He will ensure that the Father gets all the praise and glory
When he dwells in you, you will have life and gain victory.
Have you ever experienced moments when you suddenly know something which you never knew before? Have you battled with a decision for a while and then unexpectedly, something just told you to do something you’d never normally do?
These are some ways that the Spirit of God tells us to do the right thing. When the spirit of truth comes, you will know it because it will always work for your best. Be careful not to boast that it is from you because the he himself points to the only source, God.
PRAYER
Lord, I welcome your spirit.
REFLECTION
How can you cooperate with God’s spirit?

THE PRIVILEGE OF KNOWING GOD Poem Devotional

Posted on September 8, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 8 The Power of God’s Word
Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is. 1 John 3:6(NLT)
THE PRIVILEGE OF KNOWING GOD
A poem and essay by ILMA
Anyone who believes in God will have life
They will have victory over sin and have insight
Those who belong to him follow his commands
They want to God and he makes them understand.
Those who keep on sinning don’t know Christ
They disobey him and blindly follow their desires
Those who know God walk in love and embrace peace
They keep their eyes focused on him that’s why they see.
Many people live not knowing how much they are loved by God. They may have been deprived of love from their parents or their other relatives. This does not change the truth that even when we are unable to accept God’s love, he still wants to have a relationship with us. He loves us deeply and gave us free will to choose. He leaves it up to us to either give him back the love or turn away from him.
Peace and love are some of the privileges of knowing God. Anyone who continues to live in Christ, they will not sin. But those who keep sinning don’t know him or understand who he is.
PRAYER
Lord, help me to choose to love.
REFLECTION
What can “seeking God “ bring in our lives?

CRAVINGS FROM THE WORLD Poem Devotional

Posted on September 7, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 7 The Power of God’s Word
For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. – 1 John 2:16(NLT)
CRAVINGS FROM THE WORLD
A poem and essay by ILMA
Do you long to own things and power?
Is your time consumed by satisfying pleasure?
Are you obsessed to have something?
Do you succumb to every physical craving?
Watch out what your flesh yearns for
It can consume your being and make you a fool
Don’t partake of the longings of this world
Instead, crave for the truth that comes from the Lord.
In the past, multi-tasking and finishing many things in a short period of time gave me so much pleasure. Checking the list of things to do gave me a sense of fulfillment. I took pride in finishing my plans and didn’t realize that they were not aligned with God’s.
What are you pre-occupied with? Do you prioritize work, career or your family than spending time with God? Are you always busy with accumulating money and wealth? Do you take time to devote for relationships with God and others? Cravings from the world are usually longings for things we see, pride in our achievements and possessions. The bible says that they are not from God, they are from this world.
PRAYER
Lord, let me long for you always.
REFLECTION
What are the things you crave?

AS LONG AS WE LIVE IN THESE BODIES Poem Devotional

Posted on September 6, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 6 The Power of God’s Word
So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies, we are not at home with the Lord. – 2 Corinthians 5:6(NLT)
AS LONG AS WE LIVE IN THESE BODIES
A poem and essay by ILMA
As long as we live in our earthly bodies
We will always struggle to see
The kingdom of God is not of this world
You’ll have a view of his kingdom through his word.
As long as we continually live in the old life
It will be hard to see a glimpse of his light
When we focus on his truth and promises
We will have his blessings and righteousness.
Have you ever wondered why people suffer? Why are there so much conflicts, wars and corruption in the world? In the beginning, Adam and Eve had everything. They didn’t have to struggle to work. They can eat any fruit of every tree except the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden. If they did, they would die (Genesis 2:16). When they disobeyed, original sin was born. We inherited sin but God sent Jesus to free us from it if we only believe.
The bible says that as long as we live in our bodies, we will not be at home with the Lord. Sin loses its power when we believe.
PRAYER
Lord, give me grace.
REFLECTION
Why do we need to succumb to God’s will?

WAGING WAR WITH STRONGHOLDS Poem Devotional

Posted on September 5, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 5 The Power of God’s Word
We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. – 2 Corinthians 10:3-4 (NLT)
A poem and essay by ILMA
Strongholds are mindsets that the world is conveying
They come in the form of arguments, reasoning and thinking
They slowly sneak in our minds, hearts and souls
They can ruin relationships and make us out of control.
We use God’s mighty weapons to wage war with the world
Take the sword of the spirit which is the word of God
Put on peace that comes from the good news and have faith in the Lord
This is the only way we can have victory over strongholds.
Have you ever have recurring negative thoughts and behaviors or attitudes that sometimes you have no control over? It just comes out naturally from you. Beware! They can be strongholds. They can be passed on to you from many generations or they can be curses that you were unaware of that your families had suffered in the past.
Confession and repentance is essential for God to give us revelations how to wage war with these strongholds. We wage war by walking in love, embracing peace, and using the word of God.
PRAYER
Lord, be with us as we battle the world and overcome strongholds.
REFLECTION
What strongholds hamper your life?

DEPENDING ON GOD’S GRACE Poem Devotional

Posted on September 5, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 4 The Power of God’s Word
We can say with confidence that we have lived with a God given holiness and sincerity in all our dealings. We have depended on God’s grace not on our own human wisdom. –2 Corinthians 1:12(NLT)
DEPENDING ON GOD’S GRACE
A poem and essay by ILMA
Do you live a life of purity and holiness?
God wants you to abide by his righteousness
Do you depend on God’s grace for everything?
He wants you to rely on him for anything.
Do you always count on your own intelligence?
If you do, you won’t have God’s grace and his essence
Reliance on God is the measure of one’s holiness
It protects us from selfishness, pride and foolishness.
What is holiness? Many people view holiness as a pious act or religious ritual that shows they belong to a church. Some people think that going to church on Sundays and wearing your church behavior is an act of holiness. Others think that being holy is going out on a mission and helping the poor. These are all acts of love, but they do not necessarily make one holy.
The bible tells us that when we rely on God for everything and not depend on our own understanding, that is when we are considered holy. We need to heavily rely on God to be holy. We need to give up independence.
PRAYER
Lord, help me to depend on you always.
REFLECTION
How is independence a manifestation of pride?

HIGH SOUNDING NONSENSE Poem Devotional

Posted on September 3, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 3 The Power of God’s Word
Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of the world rather than from Christ. – Colossians 2:8(NLT)
HIGH SOUNDING NONSENSE
A poem and essay by ILMA
Are you dazzled by someone else’s intelligence?
Do you easily get swayed by high sounding nonsense?
Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies
They come from human thinking, viewpoints and beliefs.
Rely only on the truth that will set you free
God’s word is the only way that you will see
There is nothing else that works and gives life
Only the one that God provides can bring us light.
I used to be amazed by people’s intelligence and verbosity. I found it fascinating to hear what they have to say about a topic especially about life. I attended symposia, forums and discussions about different philosophies from noted scholars and philosophers when I was in college. I became exposed to Ancient, Asian, Greek and Western viewpoints about life, death and relationships. They gave answers to the many questions that had been left unanswered by my family since I was a child. By the time I was an adult, I was a mishmash being. The bible warns us to believe only God’s truth and not what comes from human thinking and the spiritual powers of the world.
PRAYER
Lord, lead me always to your truth.
REFLECTION
Why is it important to focus on God?

FUTILITY OF HUMAN WISDOM Poem Devotional

Posted on September 2, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 2 The Power of God’s Word
Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe.
– 1 Corinthians 1:21(NLT)
FUTILITY OF HUMAN WISDOM
A poem and essay by ILMA
How often do you rely on your own wisdom?
Can human knowledge lead you to God’s kingdom?
Without God, we can never comprehend anything
It is foolish to try and figure out for yourself something.
God’s wisdom is beyond our understanding
He wants us to continue following and trusting
Even foolish preaching God uses to save those who believe
You can open your heart, accept him and receive.
The quest for knowledge and wisdom had always played a big role in my life. Even at a very young age. I always wanted answers to unending questions in my head. I get frustrated when I can’t get answers. I became an easy prey to the enemy. My mind became my stronghold. It was used so I can be enslaved by “thinking addiction.” Overanalyzing things became automatic and later on, I became proud of what I knew. God revealed to me that I can’t have answers to everything.
The bible tells us that we can never know God through human wisdom. He uses foolish preaching to save those who believe. Only his word can lead us to know him.
PRAYER
Lord, keep me in your word.
REFLECTION

AVOIDING DISTRACTIONS Poem Devotional

Posted on September 1, 2014 by ilmaarts

Sept 1 The Power of God’s Word
Turn my eyes from worthless things and give me life through your word.
– Psalm 119:37(NLT)
AVOIDING DISTRACTIONS
A poem and essay by ILMA
Lord, show me how to de-clutter my life
Cleanse me from all impurities and shed me light
Turn my eyes from worthless things and all distractions
Show me how to focus on your word to avoid temptations.
When I get weak and vulnerable, prompt me to choose right
When I am tired and lonely, please give me insight
Let me hunger for your word always
It will guide me to follow your ways.
Do you easily get distracted by many things in life? Sometimes when I pray, I end up doing something else. The enemy tricks us and derails us from focusing on the word and spending time with God. The last thing he wants us to do is to be faithful to pray and reflect on God’s word. What do you do when you get distracted? One of the many tactics of the enemy is to tell lies to our minds and to bring distractions to keep us away from our relationship with God and others.
The bible says that we have to turn our eyes from worthless things and get into the word of God. What are worth our time? Anything that is true, right, honorable, just and lovely.
PRAYER
Lord, help me to focus on you always.
REFLECTION
How is the word of God an antidote to distractions?

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