Pastor Tom's Daily Devotional

Jeremiah 29:11 (NKJV) For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. This verse is amazing!  This is how God, our Father, thinks towards us.  His thoughts toward us are not to make us sick, to destroy us, or to give us a lousy life.  His thoughts are not to bring death and destruction.  He is not looking for ways to make us sick and miserable.  No, and a million times no!  My Father’s heart is to bless me, and to help me in my race on earth. I do not know how much clearer God could put it for us: His thoughts are of peace and not of evil.  He wants us to have a peaceful life; a life of resting in Him.  One thing I figured out is that God wants the best for me, just like I want the best for my kids.  He has much bigger shoulders than I have, and He knows the paths that are in front of me, so He can show me the traps that the devil would li...

Matthew 27:45-46 (NKJV) Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" When Jesus was on the cross, in God’s eyes, the whole world was on that cross also.  The sin of Adam was laid upon Jesus, and He became sin for us.  Some people have a hard time receiving this, but look at what it says in 2 Corinthians 5:21: “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”  Jesus, Who knew no sin, (He never sinned once in His 30 plus years upon this earth) became the sin sacrifice for all of us.  This gift that God gave us is so powerful that if a person chooses not to accept it, it will separate them from God for all eternity.  At the moment that Jesus cried out these heart-wrenching words, all of creation shut down...

Psalm 92:14 (NKJV) They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing, As we walk with our Father each day, we continually bear fruit.  Jesus said that if we remain connected with Him, that we will bear good fruit.  As we get older, we cannot always do what we used to do, but we can still do things for the kingdom of God. One thing that is so important that can be done by a person of any age, is prayer.  Prayer is the key to all the victories in the kingdom, and God is looking for those who will lay down their lives for someone else.  As we take time and let the Holy Spirit lead us in our prayer life, He will show us people that we might not even be thinking about but He is, and we can partner together with Him to help someone else out. I really wonder how many people we are going to meet in heaven that will tell us that it was the prayers that we prayed when no one else was around that saved them or protected them....

Pastor Diane Feola Psalms 91:14-16 (AMP) Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he knows and understands My name [has a personal knowledge of My mercy, love, and kindness—trusts and relies on Me, knowing I will never forsake him, no, never].  He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.  With long life will I satisfy him and show him My salvation. We have come to the last few verses of Psalm 91.  These three verses are where God speaks to us.  He wants us to know that He has set His love upon us.  God loves us, not because we deserve it, but simply because He is love !  His love for us is received by grace, through faith.  When we realize His love is unconditional, unchanging, and eternal, we can rest in that love. It says in the next part of this passage that He will set us on high.  The interesting thing is...

Pastor Diane Feola Psalms 91:11-13 (AMP) For He will give His angels [especial] charge over you to accompany and defend and preserve you in all your ways [of obedience and service].  They shall bear you up on their hands, lest you dash your foot against a stone. You shall tread upon the lion and adder; the young lion and the serpent shall you trample underfoot. This is another amazing promise from God.  Angels accompany and defend and preserve us in all of our ways of obedience and service.  We do not see the spiritual realm where angels operate, but we sometimes see the results of their protection.  It is unexplainable in the natural realm, but cannot be denied. A friend of mine was at a stoplight, and when the light turned green his car stalled.  He looked down and he was in second gear.  As he started his car and put it into first gear, a car ran the red light.  He could have been killed if his car was not in the wrong gear.  Tha...

Pastor Diane Feola Psalms 91:9-10  (AMP) Because you have made the Lord your refuge, and the Most High your dwelling place, there shall no evil befall you, nor any plague or calamity come near your tent. Psalm 91 continues with its amazing promises.  No evil befalls me, no plague or calamity comes near my dwelling.  Notice though, you need to make the Most High your dwelling place.  Where are you dwelling today? The Israelites were not touched by the plagues that devastated Egypt.  They were living in the land of Goshen.  Exodus 9:26 says, "Only in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were, was there no hail."  As long as they stayed in the place God had for them, which by the way was the choice part of Egypt (Genesis 47:6), they were safe from the plagues. If we stay close to God, stay in the refuge and fortress, we are safe from the plagues and calamities that are coming on this earth.  There are a lot of new and ...

Pastor Diane Feola Psalm 91:5-8  (AMP) You shall not be afraid of the terror of the night, nor of the arrow (the evil plots and slanders of the wicked) that flies by day, nor of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor of the destruction and sudden death that surprise and lay waste at noonday.  A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall not come near you.  Only a spectator shall you be [yourself inaccessible in the secret place of the Most High] as you witness the reward of the wicked. We are continuing with Psalm 91, and it just gets better and better.  In these verses, we learn that no matter what horrible plagues or calamities come on the earth, they will not touch us.  Verse 5 is a key.  Do not be afraid!  The enemy tries to make you afraid.  He wants you to look around at all that is going on around you.  Faith in God’s great love and grace will calm all those fears.  God is for ...

Pastor Diane Feola Psalms 91:3-4  (AMP) For [then] He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence.  [Then] He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings shall you trust and find refuge; His truth and His faithfulness are a shield and a buckler. To continue on from yesterday, when we dwell in the secret place of the Most High, when we say of the Lord, He is our Refuge and Fortress, THEN He delivers us!  He wants to deliver us from every trap of the enemy, and from everything the devil would like to ensnare us with.  1 Peter 5:8 says that the devil walks around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  If we stay close to Father God, we stay in His protection.  And we learned yesterday, no foe can withstand Him.  Hallelujah! He also delivers us from the deadly pestilence.  There are so many new diseases and strains of diseases.  There are so many who become fearful of flu season,...

Pastor Diane Feola Psalms 91:1-2  (AMP) He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power no foe can withstand].   I will say of the Lord, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God; on Him I lean and rely, and in Him I [confidently] trust! For the next several days we are going to look at Psalm 91 from the Amplified Bible.  We need to see this Psalm of protection as very personal, and very relevant for us today.  We can grab a hold of this Psalm, and confess it for our families and ourselves. Right from verse one, we see where we need to stay if we want to be safe.  We need to stay in that secret place, so close to Father God that we are in His shadow!  That is where no foe can defeat us because no foe can withstand His power. Look at what happens if we remain very close to the Most High.  We are stable and fixed .  Our life becomes very consistent....