My family and I have had morning devotions, or family altar as some people call it, every day ever since my wife, Meriqua, and I were married 30 years ago. We have prayed and read the Bible together as well as other devotional books as a family, and it is the only reason why this family has stayed together, and the only reason why God has blessed our family and used our family in ministry all of these years. We read Ephesians 5 and 6 every morning as it relates to the role of each member of the family and how that we need to put on the whole armor of God to fight against the devil who is seeking to destroy our family and all Christian families, churches, and Christians. So, now after 30 years of doing this in our home, we are opening this up to others who don’t have a family to pray with, who don’t have a spouse, or who are single by choice, and to encourage all families who are still intact to go back to the family altar and have devotions together every morning. In these devotions, you may hear me deal with a temptation I’m facing in my life, you may hear me rebuke my wife about not doing what she should be doing, or you may hear me get on one of my children’s cases about something they’re doing. Don’t be shocked; this is real life.
SING “DOXOLOGY”
Praise God from Whom all blessings flow
Praise Him, all creatures here below
Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost
Amen
Billy Graham said, “Our relationship must be right with God before it can be right with man.”
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PRAY THE LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father which art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name,
Thy Kingdom come,
Thy Will be done in earth, as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For Thine is the Kingdom,
and the power, and the glory, for ever.
Amen.
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EPHESIANS 6:1-3
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
2 Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise;
3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
Steven J. Cole writes in his commentary on this passage, “The opposite of honoring your parents would be to show contempt for them, to despise them in your heart, or to be rude and ungrateful towards them. It’s your heart attitude that matters. If you aren’t honoring your parents, you have a deeper heart problem of rebellion towards God. If you’re grateful to God for His salvation, then you can honor those whom He has placed over you for your blessing and protection. But maybe you’re thinking, ‘My parents don’t deserve any honor! Why should I honor them?’ You should honor your parents because God commands it. God is the sovereign of the universe. His holy law is the final court of appeal. He didn’t give us the Ten Suggestions for a Happy Life, or the Ten Habits of Highly Successful People, although keeping His commandments will result in a happy life. To dishonor your parents is to disobey God, who ordained these commandments for our good. We should keep them because we love and fear God.”
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PRAYER
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DEVOTIONAL PASSAGE: Psalm 119:73-80
73 Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments.
74 They that fear thee will be glad when they see me; because I have hoped in thy word.
75 I know, O Lord, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me.
76 Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant.
77 Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live: for thy law is my delight.
78 Let the proud be ashamed; for they dealt perversely with me without a cause: but I will meditate in thy precepts.
79 Let those that fear thee turn unto me, and those that have known thy testimonies.
80 Let my heart be sound in thy statutes; that I be not ashamed.
Regarding this passage, Matthew Henry writes: “God made us to serve him and enjoy him; but by sin we have made ourselves unfit to serve him and enjoy him. We ought, therefore, to continually beseech him, by his Holy Spirit, to give us understanding. The comforts some have in God should be a matter of joy to others. But it is easy to own that God’s judgments are right until it comes to be our own case. All supports under affliction must come from mercy and compassion. The mercies of God are tender mercies; the mercies of a father, the compassion of a mother to her son. They come to us when we are not able to go to them.”
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PRAYER FOR THE ESTATES
1. Clergy (church)
2. Government
3. People (citizens)
4. The press (media)
5. New media/Online journalists
PRAYER FOR CHURCH LEADERSHIP
– For all pastors, church leaders, denominational leaders, Bible teachers, missionaries, and ministry workers.
GOVERNMENT LEADERS
1 Timothy 2:1-2 says, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.”
President Donald Trump and his administration
Vice President Mike Pence
First Lady Melania Trump
Second Lady Karen Pence
All White House staff including: Director of Budget Policy Paul L. Winfree
All leaders of federal agencies including: National Archivist David Ferriero
All state governors including: Georgia Governor Nathan Deal
All city mayors including: Chesapeake, VA, Mayor Alan P. Krasnoff
All members of Congress including: California Representative Alan Lowenthal
All law enforcement officials including: Reno, NV, Police Chief Jason Soto
All military leaders including: Defense Secretary James Mattis / Admiral John M. Richardson, Chief of Naval Operations
Leaders of nations around the world including: Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister Bakh-yt-zhan Sa-gin-ta-yev
For the peace of Jerusalem
PRAYER FOR THE PEOPLE / CITIZENS
PRAYER FOR THE MEDIA
PRAYER FOR CURRENT EVENTS AROUND THE WORLD
– For the comfort of the families of 4 people killed in bombings in Afghanistan
– For the comfort of the families of 3 people killed in a hotel fire in Manila; for the recovery of the 23 who were injured.
– For the comfort of the families of the 6 people killed in the bridge collapse in Miami; for the recovery of those who were injured
PRAYER REQUESTS
Barry
please have the problems on his wife side of the family to be exposed and resolved; provide them a place to live; heal Barry from his disability and provide them enough money to live
Arun
please protect his wife and their new child; help them to raise him to be God-fearing and wise; bless Arun to find the work that you want him to do with a good salary
Martha
please help her to repent of all her sins and bless her with a child
THOSE WHO HAVE ACCEPTED CHRIST AS SAVIOR
Sylvia
Rosario
Maggy
THOSE WHO HAVE RECOMMITTED THEIR LIVES TO CHRIST
Anne
Dominic
Amgela
DEVOTIONAL READING: “Be Sensitive,” by Billy Graham
1 John 4:8 says, “If a person isn’t loving and kind, it shows that he doesn’t know God—for God is love.”
Jesus wept tears of compassion at the graveside of a friend. He mourned over Jerusalem because, as a city, it had lost its appreciation of the things of the Spirit. His great heart was sensitive to the needs of others. To emphasize the importance of man’s love for men, He revised an old commandment to make it read, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and thy neighbor as thyself.” This generation is rough and tough. I heard a little boy boasting one day about how tough he was. He said, “On the street I live on, the farther out you go the tougher they get, and I live in the last house.” Until you have learned the value of compassionately sharing others’ sorrow, distress, and misfortune, you cannot know real happiness. Follow Jesus’ example of sensitivity of spirit and let Him fill you with love and empathy for others.
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Now, if you do not know Jesus Christ as your Savior, allow me to show you how you can place your faith and trust in Him for Salvation from sin and Hell.
First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
Now that is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.
Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your Salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. I am sorry for my sins, and today I choose to turn from my sins. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. I trust Jesus Christ as my Savior and I choose to follow Him as Lord from this day forward. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you just trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, and you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, I declare to you that based upon the Word of God, you are now saved from Hell and you are on your way to Heaven. Welcome to the family of God! I want to congratulate you on doing the most important thing in life and that is receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
Until next time, May the Lord Bless You!
Gospel Light House of Prayer International 