Devotional for friends // Devocional para as amigas

You sometimes don’t know how to pray, or feel like you are always praying the same thing over and over? Let me help you with that. I have been trying to make a prayer with everything I read in the Bible. Yeah, it is possible, and it is really good. As you pray what it is written you are also declaring for yourself the truths and promises that God has made us. Let’s start.   Today I prayed 1 Peter 1 – 2:12. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! You, O God, has caused me to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for me. In this, I rejoice, though now for a little while I have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of my faith may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.   Though I have not seen You, O Lord, I love Y...

Are you holy? What do you understand about the word holy? Well, in the common dictionary the meaning of the word holy is:   ho•ly (ˈhoʊ li)   adj. -li•er, -li•est. 1. recognized as for or declared sacred by religious use or authority; consecrated: holy ground. 2. dedicated or devoted to the service of God, the church, or religion. 3. saintly; pious; devout. 4. having a spiritually pure quality: a holy love. 5. venerated as or as if sacred: a holy relic.   However, in English, we have two words that can be read with similar meanings: Holy and Saint.   Holy is also seen as saint. As nouns, the difference between holy and saint is that holy is (archaic) a thing that is extremely holy; used almost exclusively in (holy of holies) while saint is a person to whom a church or another religious group has officially attributed the title of "saint"; a holy or godly person; one eminent for piety and virt...

What would you ask if you find a genie lamp?   Most people would ask for riches, health, the love of someone… but there was one person who chose to ask for an understanding mind to discern what is good and evil, and wisdom to govern the people of God. Wouldn’t be awesome if our government asked the same?   Yes, I might have written about this before, but I’m always amazed by Solomon. God gave him that and so much more.   What would you like to ask God? Think. We must want to ask for something that will please Him. Something that isn’t selfish; I have to admit that lately, my prayers have been only about those I care about. They aren’t selfish generally speaking but they are not wide either. There are so many people in the world and most of the time all we can think about is our own; our own family, our own friends, our own city, country… What if we start caring about those we don’t know the name of; those countries that are ...

  It is Christmas, finally! Who doesn’t want for this year to be over sooner rather than later? Wow, what year!   But what gives you the hope that next year will be better than this? According to Murphy’s law, “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong". In fact, we don’t know that next year will be better or worse. What makes you wonder?   Maybe, there is meaning why they chose to place Christmas at the end of the year (nobody knows exactly the date of Jesus’ birthday). The birth of Jesus, in the Christian world, Jesus represents hope. The hope of a new beginning, the hope of a new life, a rebirth. So, everybody hopes to start the new year with a fresh start, a clean slate.   Why? Maybe you have no idea why you and most of the world thinks that this is how it is. A new year, new things, the old has passed, the new has come.   The gospel says exactly this. Once you decide to believe that God came down to earth to tell us th...

  Isn’t it good to give gifts? Does it feel good, doesn’t it? Why is that? We are made to give, donate. We are made to make another person happy. It is a pleasure to see the other one happy. Our brain likes it. If you try, you will feel more fulfilled than when you buy something for yourself. People lately are saying things that “you must think of what YOU want”. Really? Doesn’t the world have enough selfishness around? Can you really stand a selfish person? Someone that is always put oneself first? Does any relationship survive if one, at least one of the people are selfish?? Doesn’t require some sort of selflessness, sacrifice, to make a relationship work out? Yes, Jesus came to the world to teach us that. He said: “Love one another as I have loved you.” Do you think that in this phrase selfishness fits? Apostle Paul once said, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,” Philippians 2:3. How does t...

Feliz dia de Ações de Graças Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and here COVID is spreading faster than any gossip that the gossiper could ever imagine. So, everybody that I know is re-thinking about their plans or thinking very carefully if they are going to meet or not.   Despite that, in my opinion, this is not a case of not being grateful for this unexpected year. I know from some people this year couldn’t be worse. I know that domestic violence has increased, alcoholism too, depression, anxieties and so other many bad things happened.   However, the Bible teaches us to be thankful despite the circumstances (Philippians 4:10 – 13). How is that possible? Here is how it is possible: Philippians 4:13 – I can do all things through him (Jesus) who strengthens me.   It is possible. We should start looking at the half-full cup of water instead of a half-empty cup of water. Did you get that? I mean we should not keep l...

"E se 2020 foi só o trailer de 2021? " We are one month and a half to the end of the year. What a year was this!!! I think everybody can’t wait to see this awful year ends. Although this year will enter the history book throughout the world, the next generation will remember 2020.   I am going to dare to make a parallel here between a person without Christ and 2020, and a person with Christ and the hope of the new. I am not good at this, bear with me.   "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17"   This year of 2020 was a waste, many would say. Many lives went into pause. Others have been broken completely. Some got depressed and lost their ways. Confusion. Hopelessness. Despair. Sorrow, oh so many sorrows. But somehow, we hope. We hope to find our way back. To put our lives back on track. To move on from this horrible nightmare that seems that never end...