Read Revelation 22:1-9
“And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb” (v. 1).
“To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God” (Rev. 2:7). I can think of nothing more majestic or serene than crystal, refreshing, sparkling, pure water flowing through the grandiosity of elegantly crafted and adorned structures. I doubt anyone would dare criticize the beautiful Blue Danube drifting through Budapest, the River Seine through Paris, the Thames through London, or even the Central Canal running right through the Indiana Government Center in downtown Indianapolis.
Ah, the imagined bliss of the Garden of Eden, that with one wrong choice forever marred the spotless beauty of the paradise God had created for habitation. Although today we see His handiwork, despite the impediments resulting from the entrance of sin, we have the promise that our Creator has plans to restore the perfection of His creation for the enjoyment of those who partake of the abundant life possible through His Son, the Lamb. (RB Kuhn)

O Lord, your paradise awaits our entrance; the tree of life blooms full.
Your providence will guide us; someday we’ll rest by waters cool. — RB Kuhn

The idea of paradise is nothing new with the Creator. Don’t miss what He is preparing for you, dear child of God.

This devotional is taken from the Sunday, May 31, 2015 entry of Opening the Word.
Photo Credit: southern daydreamer on Pixabay.com

Read Matthew 24:36-41
“But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (v. 37).
I am appalled day after day as I observe the extent of human wickedness in our world. Regardless of the medium, news programs inundate us with the most disgusting, heartbreaking stories one can imagine. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jer. 17:9).
As I write this devotional, news stories include a teen-age girl who killed her brother, gunmen who killed twelve people in France, a father who threw his daughter off a bridge, a celebrity being charged with fraud, a porn star and a lesbian couple in the spotlight, and on and on. One almost feels the need to take a brain shower after the daily dose of headlines to say nothing of the in-depth stories. We read that in the days of Noah, “God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen. 6:5).
I believe we have cycled back to the condition in this world that brought God to the decision to wipe man off the face of the earth. This time He will be setting events in motion for the closing of this era permanently with the greatest event being the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. (Harold Carpenter)

All the earth is groaning, crying for that day of sweet release,
For our Jesus to come back to earth again. — James M. Kirk

Focus on the up-look rather than the out-look.

This devotional is the Monday, May 18, 2015 entry of Opening the Word.
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Read John 17:9-21
“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (v. 21).
I was just reflecting on a friend who recently passed away. “You know,” I said to my wife, “he was a little crazy about that one thing.” I hurried to say that he was indeed a great man and a good Christian brother, but that one thing befuddled me. It just did not fit. What I had done over the years, was just carefully wrap that aspect up in a nice little bundle and slide it onto a back shelf of my mind where I stored things I did not really understand. I did not allow it to factor into how I interacted with him.
Just think how much God puts up with us. As we allow Him to work in our lives, sometimes the progress is slow. That may be because we are hesitant and may struggle. However, it may be that we are not in a place where God can effectively get through to us as He needs to. It may take a while. God is a very patient God!
The bottom line is that we all have some stupid stuff that needs work. Yes, even Christians. We are real people in real relationships and with real differences. Accept that. But none of our differences should keep us from experiencing the common bond we have as Christians. (Ken Farmer)
This devotional is the Thursday, April 30, 2015 entry from Opening the Word.
Photo credit: "DSC_0017" by Ted used under CC BY-SA 2.0 / Resized, text added.

Read John 14:15-21
“Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you” (v. 17).
The Lord is not a distant God. Neither has He forsaken us and gone off on a journey. He is ever present. We say He walks beside us; He leads and instructs us. It is true. He is also our inside God. He wants to fill us with His Spirit, and He wants to be and will be “closer than a brother.”
His Spirit in us cleanses, guides, and comforts. We cannot live Christian lives when we are filled with self — our ideas, our plans, and our desires. We must yield to Him and let Him lead our lives. He will fill every corner of your life — your work, your recreation, and your worship.
We must be filled with His Spirit, before we can do what He would have us do. Our lives will be happy when we no longer have a conflict in our hearts. Will it be God’s way or my way? When God is in control, we can depend on Him to love and guide us. Then the responsibility for our lives is His. We only have to obey Him. God made us so that our hearts cannot be satisfied without Him. We will always be searching for something to fill the “God-shaped vacuum” in our hearts, until we give Him first place in our hearts. (Bertha Laird)

Invite the Spirit of God to rule your heart; you will never be sorry.

This devotional is the Tuesday, April 21, 2015 entry of Opening the Word.
Photo Credit: https://download.unsplash.com/photo-1429552016556-fd6f7d9743e1 by Brandon Morgan / Resized, cropped.

Read John 3:1-8
“Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (v. 5).
“Smack, smack,” went the doctor’s hand. The air was filled with a beautiful cry! Such rejoicing and emotion went all through the room. A brand new life had been born into this world.
Five times over my husband and I have been allowed this privilege — this joy. In order for us to share living with our children, there had to be a place of birth! Then the benefits and responsibilities became ours.
Jesus shared with Nicodemus the essential requirement to obtaining an eternal life. One cannot only have an earthly birthplace, but one must experience a birthplace of the Holy Spirit.
How do we have such a birthplace? Jesus says, “He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (v. 18)
Do you remember the day you really believed in the Lord Jesus Christ to save you from your sins? If not, you can! Let this be the time and place. Believe in Jesus and be born again! Then, eternal life is yours! Jesus is the only way! (Janene Dubbeld)

By night he came to seek the Truth
Although he’d studied from his youth.
The Master said, “Be born again!”
This is OUR hope — amen, AMEN! — Janene Dubbeld

To obtain eternal life one cannot only have an earthly birthplace, one must experience a birthplace of the Holy Spirit.

This devotional is the entry for Monday, April 13, 2015, of Opening the Word.

Photo credit: "Baby" by Gabi Menashe used under CC BY 2.0.

Read 2 Corinthians 7:8-10
“For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death” (v. 10).
“I don’t want to go to jail,” wailed one of my sons. Little sister joined in the crying, “He doesn’t have to go to jail, does he? I don’t want him to go to jail!” I was amused at how quickly what had seemed so funny was now so serious. You see, the little man had discovered how to call some- one and block the Caller ID so that it would show up “Restricted.”
He was having such fun calling random numbers and teasing whoever happened to answer the phone (without my knowledge or permission). One little girl he called thought he was her friend and would not believe he was just a random prankster, so to prove it he sent her a picture as a text. This time his number showed up, and it was not long until her father called and left an urgent message. I was able to talk to the father and apologize. Soon the matter was resolved, but not before my son experienced some godly sorrow. (Daniel Edwards)

Once in sin’s darkest night I was wand’ring alone;
A stranger to mercy I stood.
But the Savior came nigh when He heard my faint cry,
And He put my sins under the Blood. — Nellie Edwards

True repentance makes you sorry enough to quit!

This devotional is the entry for Monday, April 6, 2015, of Opening the Word.

Photo credit: "Liberation" by jar () used under CC BY 2.0 / Resized, cropped.

Read Luke 24:36-44

“Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have” (v. 39).

Read Romans 1:21-32
“Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen” (v. 25).
It is unspeakably sad that man would take the very knowledge of God and pervert and change it to fit their own hearts’ desires. We see the results of sin so vividly in these verses, turning men from the knowledge of truth and of God to embrace their own sinful and twisted lust. Thus they were both darkened and depraved.
Is there judgment for these actions? Tim Keller says it this way, God’s judgment on godlessness and wickedness is to give us what we want. He “gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts.”
To lose God is to lose everything. To lose connection with Him is to sink into an abyss of darkness, intellectual and moral. It is to be fitted for wrath which always follows the life who does not esteem Him or give Him the worship due His name. And of course when sin is so embraced our life is filled with unrighteousness, wickedness, maliciousness, back-biting, despitefulness, even haters of God. (William Cook)

What a downward spiral! What a sad rebellion!

This week's featured devotional is from the Thursday, March 26, 2015 entry of Opening the Word.
Photo credit: "Downward Spiral" by M. Clarise Moore used under CC BY 2.0 / Resized, cropped.



Read John 14:26-31

“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things,

and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (v. 26).

The birth of a baby giraffe holds some fascinating lessons for us. The mother goes to a spot where there are no bushes, just flat dirt. As the baby is born, it falls ten or twelve feet. When the baby hits the ground, it rolls over and just lies there with legs all curled up under it. The mother positions herself over the baby to protect it from predators, and seeing none, she kicks the baby. It flies across the dirt head over heels. If the baby does not stand up, the mother will go over and kick it again, sending it sprawling. This will happen over and over again until the baby finally stands up. The mother goes over and sends it flying again. She knows that the baby needs to learn and needs to remember how to stand so it can save itself later in a time of danger. She kicks it again, not because she is having a bad hair day, but because she wants her baby to remember.

Is it not better to learn that way than try to learn with a lion hot on your tail? How could a God who supposedly loves us let us go through terrible times? That is very simple. God loves us so much He teaches us lessons that will help us survive during the difficult times of life. (L Gayle Woods)

The Spirit guides and teaches in every part of life.

This week's featured devotional is from the Wednesday, March 18, 2015 entry of Opening the Word.

Photo credit: "giraffe" by Sadie Hart used under CC BY 2.0 / Resized, cropped.