Devotional for friends // Devocional para as amigas

“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so whether   I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened   in anything by your opponents” Philippians 1: 27 – 28. It is interesting when you have the habit of reading the Bible, and you know you have already read this passage so many times, and suddenly, you realize something new. Something new strikes your head and you are amazed! That is why the Bible is alive. Every day you read, no matter how many times you have read, you’ll find something new. So, how is your manner of life? How are you doing? Is it worth? Is it worthy of what? Paul counsels us to have a manner of life worthy of the gospel. What does he mean by that? In my understanding, he is making you analyze if the way you are living it is the way Jesus has taught us because Jesus ...

“By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; By knowledge the rooms are filled with all the precious and pleasant;” Proverbs 24:3 – 4 . Have you asked yourself how your house was built? What about your home, how is it established? Or should I ask if it is still standing? You know, people think that secular knowledge is a big deal. Well, it is for your secular life and job and acquaintances. But, do you know what the Bible means when it speaks about knowledge and wisdom? Let’s review Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction”. So, do you fear the LORD? Maybe, you don’t know what it means to fear the LORD. You would know if you have dedicated yourself to know Him. Because in my point of view you can only fear something if you know what you’re talking about. Right? If you know a little you fear, if you know a lot, you might trust it and fear at the same ti...

“...remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, (…) strangers to the covenants of promises, having no hope and without God in the world. ( Ephesians 2:12  ESV)”. There was a time when you and I, for some reason doubted God. For some reason you might have believed that you, by yourself can do it all; you believed that no one needs God, He might not even exist. But there was a time when life got hard, and harder; you had no strength to fight back; you had no one to hang on; you were ashamed of your sufferings. You thought all those things were in your head, but you could not get rid of it. You felt hopeless. It didn’t matter how many people you were by your side, you were still feeling alone. Lonely. Loneliness. Terrible feeling. If you are feeling this way right now, I have something to tell you. Jesus loves you no matter how you are currently living your life. He is still with open arms to receive you; to take away all your guilt,...

Psalm 121: 1 - 1; Salmos 121: 1 - 2 I am going to start today with Isaiah and then I’m going to jump to Paul. That’s right, big jump. I was going to write yesterday about Isaiah, and I got distracted because my husband chose to stay at home, and I love helping him with scientific bibliography search. Anyway, and today I started a new bible study at church about 2 Corinthians, which is amazing, because,  it seems that today is the complement of yesterday’s passage. “ Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the LORD. (… v.3b) and they will all perish together ”. Isaiah 31: 1, 3b . Wow! That was strong! I know, right? Let’s understand it a little bit. Egypt reminds us of slavery, past, nothing really good. Horses and chariots remind us of tools, means to something or somewhere that w...

Pensamentos felizes!! “It’s not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person… but what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts …” ( Mathew 15:11, 18, 19 a). In those days when Jesus was walking on the earth, people used to follow the law strictly, without even knowing what that means. They followed it blindly. They didn’t have the habit of examining themselves. They thought just because you follow the law strictly, you are ok, you are righteous. But Jesus came to interpret the law to a deeper level. He wasn’t paying attention to the exterior, but the interior. In another opportunity, Jesus also said, “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” ( Matthew 12:34b ) If you are a person who has hope, you are going to speak hopeful things. If you a person with envy, you are going to speak about things or people that you ...

Anxiety. A word that almost everybody has used lately. Do you feel anxious? Are you consider yourself as an anxious person? Would you like to live without it? I have overcome anxiety. I put it behind me. How? Yes, I have tried with medicine once, it didn’t work. Does it work with you? Are you trying with relaxation methods? Does it work? Just for a while, right? Anxiety robs you your joy, your sleep, and your present. My solution was not in human methods. I learned to recognize in me the signs. Can you recognize in yourself the signs of your anxiety? They are like a chain of events, and also like a vicious cycle. Once you’re in, it is hard to get out. Can you give yourself a plausible explanation of why you are anxious? Does your anxiety solve any of the problems? Jesus said that your worries won’t add an hour in your day ( Matthew 6:27 ) Why suffer? Who are you trying to please? If the solution is at your hands, so do it. If you have done everything i...

A verdade vos libertará Everybody has heard this sentence: “the truth will set you free”. Do you know who said it? That’s right. Jesus said it. Let me show you the context. “ 31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.” ( John 8: 31 – 38 ). There is a c...

Who has never been betrayed? For a person who used to be a friend, for a brother, a sister, a spouse, a boss. We have all been through some sort of betrayal. It hurts. It hurts deeply. It is almost taking our skin out alive. How can we trust again? Why did that person do what he did? Did I give him any reason?   Was it not worth our relationship? Was it about money? I thought she knew me better. Those are questions that come to our minds when we are betrayed. It is a deep wound; deep wounds take time to heal. Sometimes they get infected. We feel angry, we feel disrespected, insulted. Sometimes we want revenge. It isn’t an easy subject to talk about. Forgiveness, OMG! How can I forgive that person after everything she has done, and after everything I was to her and what she meant to me? How? She made it look like nothing mattered. OH, we feel frustrated. It hurts and keeps on hurting for so long. Maybe we get used to the pain, maybe we gave up on that pers...