Monthly Archives: December 2018

LOVE GOD’S COMMANDS Poem Devotional

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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.
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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.
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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

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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.
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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.
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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

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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.
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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.
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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

SPIRIT IS WILLING BUT BODY’S WEAK Poem Devotional

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December 27________________________________________
Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak! – Matthew 26:41 (NLT)
SPIRIT IS WILLING BUT BODY’S WEAK
A poem and essay by ILMA
When we want to overcome evil
The more we will be tempted by the devil
Watch out and constantly pray
That is the greatest and only way.
The spirit may be wanting and willing
The body is easily tempted and feeble.
Pray long and hard and focus on Jesus Christ
Give him praise for he brings peace, joy and life.
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How many times do people make a new year’s resolution and end up unsuccessful even in less than two months? The spirit is willing, but our nature is very weak. We easily succumb to our cravings and desires. We do things out of our own effort and expect to be blessed by the Lord.
I used to rely on my strength in so many ways. I read a lot of self-help books when I wasn’t born again. I patted myself on the back or rewarded my own efforts. What an ungodly thing to do. It was boasting and an exercise of pride. But I didn’t know that when I was doing all these works of the flesh. One day the Lord revealed to me that the only thing we can boast is how much we love and how much we pray.
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PRAYER
Lord, help me to never boast about what I can do.
REFLECTION
How can one overcome a weak body and mind and strengthen one’s spirit?
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

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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.
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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.
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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

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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.
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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.
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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

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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.
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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.
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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

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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.
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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.
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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

SUFFERING GIVES US ENTRY TO GOD’S KINGDOM Poem Devotional

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December 21________________________________________
They encouraged them to continue in the faith, reminding them that we must suffer many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God. -Acts 14:22(NLT)
SUFFERING GIVES US ENTRY TO GOD’S KINGDOM
A poem and essay by ILMA
What are you tormented with these days?
Is it a relationship, offense or health issues that makes you dazed?
If you are a believer of Christ, you must embrace pain
There’s no need to avoid it, fix it or constantly complain.
There’s none like Christ who was abused to death
He was sinless, yet he endured for all our debts
If you want to enter God’s kingdom, you need to endure
If you can’t share his suffering, you’re not living in truth.
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Our world today likes to deaden pain or avoid confronting issues that makes one uncomfortable. We have become a world of “comfort” huggers. We won’t let go of anything we have been used to and relaxed with. As soon as trouble comes, we run away from it so very quickly. No wonder many of us don’t grow up. We have grown in age but not in wisdom.
I can’t tell you enough about the pain and abuse I have experienced in life, but don’t we all go through it? The bible tells us that as Christians, we need to follow Jesus’ example. He endured all suffering so we can all be saved. Shouldn’t we share in that suffering as well? That will give us the key to heaven.
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PRAYER
Lord, let me know what you are teaching me through adversities and trials.
REFLECTION
Why do people avoid suffering?