Day 97: Let's Talk About It- "Sex and Relationships"

Romance and love is a big part of many of our lives at the moment, rather we are dating, in a committed relationship, engaged to be married, or married already. I think the biggest questions we have when it comes to question is, what is a Godly relationship, and how do we have one. The first step to having a relationship with anyone else is having a relationship with God, and finding our worth and identity within Him. Same as yesterday, there are a few topics of discussion.

It’s about love

Song of Solomon 8:7

Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away. If one were to give all the wealth of his house for love, it would be utterly scorned.

Love is known to be complicated, it’s one of the choices on facebook relationship status, but it does not have to be. When you love someone and are in love with someone and you know for sure it takes away all the complications. Complications arise when we are in a relationship trying to figure out if we really love the person we’re with. Often times we move too quick because we are lonely and just want someone to have when we want to feel less alone. That is not love, it’s selfish. Love is selfless, We see a true example of love in Genesis 29, when Jacob worked seven years for Rachel, verse twenty states, So Jacob worked seven years to pay for Rachel. But his love for her was so strong that it seemed to him but a few days.

He loved this woman so much that he was willing to give seven years of his life in order to be with her. His love was so great that seven years felt like a few days. That’s love.

Many of us have stories or testimonies where we find ourselves saying we were looking for love in all the wrong places. I know I do. If love is what we’re looking for the best place to search is in Christ, God has all the love we need.

A lot of times we get into relationships with people for what we can get out of it, and what we can benefit. I think the best lesson we can learn for having a relationship with God is that it’s a two way street, and we have to give to get sometimes. It’s not all about receiving, sometimes we have to be willing to put ourselves on the line for someone else, especially a potential spouse.

Seek Christ first.

Matthew 6:33

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these thing will be added to you.

One thing to remember is that no matter where we are in life, or who is in our life, God should always be number one. Before we fall in love with anyone, we fell in love with God. Christ is our first love, and that should never change, He should be the one we love above any and everyone else. We find our worth in Christ, not in man or a relationship.

We won’t always get it right the first time.

I think many of us in our twenties have been in love before, I have and it ended terribly. We are wrapped up in love, and sometimes that person was only meant to be in our lives for a season, and that is probably the hardest thing to accept. We have to realize that not everyone will find their one true love in their first relationship, and it does happen for many people. But sometimes we have to go through some cycles of lessons before we reach the real thing. All that to say is that sometimes we won’t get it right and that is okay. The hard part is learning when to walk away and accept that, the person we were with is not the person we will spend our lives with.

Sometimes we hold on to relationships that are toxic for us because we want them to work so bad, and that could mean we are trying to hold together the very thing God Himself is trying to separate, and let me tell you it will lead to a world of misery and heartache.

At one point in my life I was engaged, too young, but I was engaged. I was in this relationship and I was eighteen and I was okay with just dating, and taking things slow. I loved this person very much and this stopped me from walking away when I needed to. I held on to it for as long as I could even though I knew that one this relationship was unhealthy for me, spiritually and mentally. I held on because I loved this person very much and did not want to hurt him. By doing so not only did I hurt myself but I hurt him, and we both came out of it bitter and angry. I regretted being in the relationship for a long time, but I realized that God had me in that position for a reason, and I learned and grew in so many ways. I just had to learn to walk away when it was time.

-Dyamond

2 Corinthians 6:14

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?

• With that being said, there is also the other side, when we see red flags from the very beginning and choose to ignore them. Sometimes we have to put our hearts and feelings aside and listen to God and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us. We must be obedient or that will also lead to a world of trouble and heartache.

• We must not compromise or drop our morals for anyone. No relationship is that important. When we are planted in Christ it defeats the purpose to be in a relationship with someone who isn’t. If we cannot go to our significant other for prayer, or to have a bible study with them, or if they refuse to go to church with us, then they’re probably not the one. We have to be on the same page, lifting one another up and
• growing together in Christ. We should love God more than we love our significant other and they should love God more than they love us. That is the only way a relationship and marriage will last, is if Christ comes first in both of our lives.

It’s not about sex. (expanded passage 1 Corinthians 7:1-40)

Relationships are not about sex. I repeat, RELATIONSHIPS ARE NOT ABOUT SEX. Sex is for marriage, and marriages are not built on sex.

Sex is a pure gift from God, a gift between husband and wife as a means to bring life to this earth, to reproduce and populate the earth, As we see in Genesis 1:28, And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Sex is beautiful thing, and it has been corrupted because it has lost meaning and is now looked at as mostly a sin. But sex between a husband and wife is not,

1 Corinthians 6: 18-19

Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.  Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,

Prayer Time

We talked about a lot today, take this time to talk to God about whatever is on your heart. Pray about your relationship or marriage. Whatever it is talk to God, have a conversation with Him.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening, Make sure you share this with someone and open up a discussion. Have an amazing day, and be sure to come back tomorrow for day 98!

Day 96: Let's Talk About It- "Single and Waiting on God"

Today’s devo is dedicated to all the single people out there in their twenties, and waiting on God,

At this age we are going through changes, many changes, and some of those changes means trying a hand at being single or making the choice to wait on God. We are entering the age where family starts to ask us about marriage, and we start seeing our friends married and in happy relationships, and sometimes you wonder when it’s your turn. As someone who is single and has been for a while, I’m enjoying life as a single woman, and choosing to wait on God but if I’m being honest, there are times when I’m just like, God can I have someone? Can I just go on a date or something?

There is beauty in being single and waiting on God, but I also want you to know that it will not last forever. There are a few topics of discussion today.

Being Single is a time to devote ourselves more to God.

While we are waiting on God to send us whoever it is that HE has for us, it is a time to not only find ourselves but find ourselves in Christ.

Paul talks about the advantages of being single in 1 Corinthians 7:32-34,

I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord.  But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife,  and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband.

We are almost always in this state of preparing for marriage. This isn’t the time to do that, we can do that when we’re engaged and going through premarital counseling. Now is the time to get lost in God. Now is the time to enjoy being by ourselves and learning how to be alone without being lonely.

This is the time where we can dedicate our entire beings to the Lord, where we do not have to worry about someone else but we can just worry about our relationship with God. When we are single the best relationship is the one we have with God. I remember someone saying, “I want to be so lost in God, that my husband has to find God to find me.” We all want that happy ending, most of us want to be married one day and have a family, and we will get there. But use the time before it comes to build a solid foundation within the Lord. We have to focus on building a relationship with God before we can build it with anyone else.  We cannot really build a healthy relationship with anyone else until we find ourselves planted in Christ.

Being single is sometimes hard

I am well aware of how hard it is to be single sometimes. Most of the time it’s good, we are enjoying life without the worries of being attached to anyone. We are enjoying building friendships and platonic relationships. We’re enjoying finding ourselves and learning more about ourselves everyday,  but some days it’s just hard not to be lonely. A lot of times this loneliness is brought on by sexual urges, and let me tell you, they will blindside you. We have to make sure that we are covered with the full armor of GOd, because these ditches of temptation are the hardest to jump over.

Matthew 5:27-28

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart”

While we may not be married or in a relationship with anyone we are in a committed and devoted relationship with God. Therefore our eyes must stay on Him, They have to because if they don’t they will start to wonder and who knows where our minds will end up. I know from experience.

Sometimes we think that our eyes are excluded from being sinful, it’s what we see that gets us all hot and bothered. Our eyes will get us into a lot of trouble.  

Now, I’m not telling you to close your eyes whenever you see someone attractive from the opposite sex. There is nothing wrong with being attracted to someone. We have eyes, and we can appreciate the beauty upon this earth, and sometimes that beauty is another person. What I’m saying is stay away from lust. We can acknowledge someone’s beauty and keep it pushing, when we start to look at them sexually that’s when it becomes a problem. It’s so easy to fall into, but we cannot allow these sexual desires and lustful eyes take root within us or we will end up doing things we'll regret.

Please note that Jesus was single, and if He did it so can we.

It will come, don’t worry about it.

My family asks me all the time if I think I’m going to get into a relationship soon, and my answer is always, “I don’t know, right now I’m enjoying being single.”

Ecclesiastes 3:1 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens

God’s timing is perfect, perfect. You will meet the right person at the right time. I think we get caught up sometimes in the plans we have for our own lives, and comparing our lives to the people around us that we forget what God is doing within us. We see our friends in relationships and even getting married. Family is starting to put pressure on us, and we want to try to rush God. If we just wait it out we will see God’s plan unfold right before our eyes. We are not single for no reason, Go wanted us to be alone at this point in time, and the reason might be different for all of us. But one thing is for sure is that when the time is right God will send that perfect person our way. God knows exactly who we will spend our life with, He knows the person, the moment we will meet, all the details. The best part about waiting on God is that, He is the best match maker ever. Every pairing he makes will be perfect. We just have to trust His timing and in the meantime enjoy our time with Him alone.

Reflection/ Prayer Time

Talk to God about whatever stood out to you today. If you are single and waiting on God, talk to God about diving deeper into a relationship with Him. Whatever is on your heart today, lay it your to Him and be honest.

I love you! I hope you have an amazing day or evening. Make sure you share this with someone and talk about it. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for Day 97!

Day 95: Let's Talk About It- "Broken People"

Psalms 147:3

He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds.

Psalms 34:28

The LORD is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit.

This generation gets a lot of slack for acting out, we are constantly told to get our lives together. I think many times when we see people who are acting out, or having a hard time giving themselves to Christ, we must consider that these are broken people. We live in an age where people are walking around completely broken with a smile on their face. People are walking around ready to take their own lives but will smile and say, “I’m okay”. Why do we wait until tragedy strikes to notice that someone needed our ear, or they needed our prayer. They didn’t need us to beat them over the head with a bible, they needed us to be there. We have people walking around feeling unloved, and never knew that someone could love them. We are often told what we did to be in the position that we are in. Something we have to realize is that sin isn’t the only thing that causes brokenness within humanity, There is heartbreak, relationships gone wrong, death, mental illness, tragic accidents, natural disasters. There are so many things that can break a heart, but only one can truly heal a heart. Yet we have people walking around because they are unaware of this magnificent healing. We know of this healing, we know that Christ is our healer, but can we relay that message to the young girl who suffers from an eating disorder and cuts herself. Can we tell that to the young boy struggling with body image issues. Can we acknowledge that there is a deeper issue to the brokenness of people.  We are good at acknowledging pain and hurt, but what are we doing to make sure these people receive healing from God? Why are brushing off people’s pain? We have been told to let it go, let God, surrender, but what about when the wound is fresh and we can’t let it go that night or day. What if just lifting our hands in church won’t take the pain away, I have to be honest. Why do we sweep these things under the rug and act as if they are not there. There are broken people, we were once one of them, and many of us still are.

As the body of Christ we must see past what we think of people, we must look past our judgements and see the heart of humanity. We have to take our eyes off of ourselves for a second and look outward to see the brokenness of this world.

We see the flaws of humanity, and but we don’t see the heart of man. If we did we would know that the person who is walking down the street talking to themselves isn’t crazy they lost everything including hope and no one took the chance to listen to their story. No one took the time to sit with them and lend an ear. No one stopped to pray for them. No one took the time to tell them that there is healing in the Lord, that He sees the hearts of humanity even the ones that are in pieces.

We live in an era where everything must be okay, and when it’s not we put up a facade. This generation has the best poker faces I have ever seen. Because we don’t have time to deal with people who are really suffering, even if that means we ignore our own pain. We don’t have time to dig deep down to the root of our issues and be healed by God. We cover it up with a band-aid until the infection spreads and we can no longer hide it.  We have lost the ability to be vulnerable, we’d rather walk around dying on the inside than go to someone with our pain. We do not want to look weak, even when we are, The scripture tells us that God is near the brokenhearted, why are we walking around harboring pain. We have to realize that it is okay not to be okay.

I walked around broken for so many years, harboring so much pain, anger, self-loathing, hate, the list goes on. From being bullied all throughout school starting at the age of five. From looking in the mirror at the age of seven and hating who I was, and literally saying to myself, “You’re black and ugly”. To choking and hitting myself at the age of eight because the bullying was so bad, I felt like I needed to inflict pain on myself. I suffered secretly for years, and alway put on a smile and pretended like I was okay. It was only when I was twenty one that I really found healing in Christ. I felt like I always had to be okay, I had to put on a mask that said I was strong and confident even though I was broken. I was in pieces, there was still a little girl inside me who never got healed. I was walking around preaching at different churches at the age of sixteen and planned out my suicide at seventeen because I was in so much turmoil that I could not handle it anymore. Or when I had a mental breakdown when I lost my father at the age of eighteen. Because I blamed myself for His death and couldn’t understand why GOd would choose to take him from me. I gave up on GOd and church, but I had people praying for me, there were a few people who could see past my poker face, and that is why I am here today. Someone looked past my acting out and my mask and saw that I was broken. I am living proof that Christ is our healer. I did not have a platform or a place to really talk about what I was going through at the time, which is why I’m doing this, If I have to air my dirty laundry to save someone else I will do it. But God healed me and repaired my heart and if someone didn’t take the time to sit with me and pray for me and see through my pain, I would not be here today. I would probably be dead by my own hand. It is important that we talk about this stuff because it can literally save a life.  

We live in a broken world and people are walking around broken. We know what it is like to be broken our have our hearts broken. If we have encountered the love of God we know what it is like to be healed by our one and only healer. We must  let people know that their is a God, there is a Savior who can take that pain away.

I don’t know who you are but if that’s you, know that there is a Savior. Jesus Christ died to save this broken world, he wants that heart, even if it’s broken. Especially if it’s broken. Even if you have to give it to Him in pieces, he will take it and put it back together. You’re not crazy, you’re not a bad person, you’re hurting. Today is the day for you to get rid of that pain, and start a journey of healing. You do not have to hide it or cover it up. God sees your heart in every condition and He wants it the way it is, so that he can fix it and heal it.

Reflection

1. How’s your heart? Are you broken?
2. Are there some things that need to be healed in your life?
3. Are you walking around like everything is okay but it’s not?
4. Do you believe that God is our healer?
5. Do you believe that He can and will heal you?

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions  guide your prayer today. Know that God is our healer. We call Him, Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord who heals. Pray for the brokenness of humanity, and if you are broken, bring that heart to God today. Talk to GOd about whatever it is, maybe you don’t even have words, maybe it's tears, maybe you don’t even have that. Just open your heart to God and give HIm what you have. Know that He can heal the broken.

If you need someone to talk to or pray with, reach out to someone. I’m open to talk as well, you can email me, (TheDyamondj@gmail.com).

I love you, I hope you have an amazing day or evening. Share this with someone and open the conversation up to talk about it. Have an amazing day and come back tomorrow for Day 96.

Day 94: Let's Talk About It- "Forbidden Subjects"

Mark 7:8

You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

This week we are going have series dedicated to the things you told me you wanted to talk about. These are the forbidden subjects in the church. Yes we will be talking about relationships and sex, which was the main subjects people wanted to talk about. We will also talk about mental health, and other subjects plaguing our generation at the moment. There are things that we need to address and talk about, and this week that is what we are going to do. There are things that are going to be hard to swallow and we have to tough up and take. There will be things that we don’t want to hear, but it is the word of God so we must take it how it is and live the way God has destined us to live.  

We have been following the traditions and laws of man, and have neglected the truth that is in the word. We neglect to speak about certain parts of the bible, or even discuss certain topics because it is uncomfortable and it doesn’t ring holy, in our sense of what holiness is. Well this week will be full of the uncomfortable subjects.

The goal of this week is to open up a discussion or conversation within our this generation of the things that we don’t get to talk about, or the things we told not to speak on. We have to speak the truth, we have to address these things head on or they will continue to be problems within the Christian community.

We have learned to give ourselves completely to God but we cannot do that if we have things laying dormant within us, we must know that we can come to God with anything. No one should tell us that having feelings, or feeling depressed, or wanting to know the why behind why we do and follow these commands, is a sin. It’s not, as we develop a relationship with God, there will be challenges, there will be questions, there will be things that are hard to swallow, and even understand. It is my true belief that God has the answer and He wants to give it to us. We must go to Him, we must seek His face. We must get rid of our shame and pride and lay it all out before God.

Proverbs 4:7 tells us, The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight. And some versions say get an understanding.

As Christians, young Christians, we are constantly told what to do and what not to do without any context given about why we cannot or are not supposed to do it. We are just told not to sin, well yes we know that but what do we do when we feel temptations rise, what do we do when we can’t seem to shake the doubt, how about when we’re too far into addiction, or sex is the only thing we want to do. But these are the things we don’t usually talk about because it is forbidden, however there are answers to these questions, there are reasons, and no there will not be an answer for everything. Sometimes there will be things that will not be answered until we are in eternity with Christ, but as for now there are some answers that we can find in His word. There are explanations, and more importantly there is truth, whether we like it or not.

I want to create a space with this series for us to talk about these “Forbidden subjects”. I believe that it is important for us to at least talk about it. So that we can get an understanding of this lifestyle for ourselves.

This was just the intro to this week, please let me know if there are things you would like to talk about or even discuss. Leave comments, open a discussion, talk about it.

I love you, i hope you have an amazing day or evening. Share this with someone, discuss it with someone. Make sure you come back tomorrow for Day 95!

Day 93: Recap

It has been a week, it's been a very busy week. Kind of rough, but it has also been a great week. This week has been filled with all types of emotions. I want to apologize for the posts being late on somedays, I have been running around non-stop between school and work. Thank you for reading and sticking with me. We are almost to day 100, and I couldn't be more excited that we've gotten this far, and we are going to push through the year. Thank and I love you.

Day 86: Dare To Love
We started the week off with the 'Dare Series', it was more like a challenge to step outside of or normal lives, and comfort zones and take a chance on something else. It was an extension of the comforts zones devo on day 82. We focused  on John 15:12-13, and Luke 10:30-37. We talked about taking chance on loving people and putting ourselves on the line for the sake of someone else.

"We have to choose as followers of Christ to be the one person to stop and help someone in need. We have to be the person that’s going to take a lost so that someone else can win and in the end it’s not about winning or losing it’s about selfless love."

Day 87: Dare to Live
We continued the series by speaking about truly living and what it means to truly live. Knowing that we live our best lives with Christ. We focused on Proverbs 21:21 and John 10:10. We had to ask ourselves the question what does true living mean or look like to us?

"The scripture tells us that Christ came to give life and give it more abundantly. I think we are afraid to live for Christ because we don’t want to let go of our attachments to this world. We think that we can’t have fun living with Christ. But that is not true, if anything we have more fun, we are more free to live. We have no worries, we are stress free, guilt free, drama free, we are just free.  

Day 88: Dare to Dream

We ended this three day series talking about dreaming, and faring to follow and pursue those thing that we are most passionate about. Also understanding that when we commit our ways to the Lord our plans will be established in Him. We don't have to be pastor's or worship leaders to be in the will of God, that's not everyone's destiny or true calling. We focused on Proverbs 18:16, 1 Corinthians 12:4-6, and Proverbs 16:3. 

"Some of us need to be in hospitals, police stations, law firms, on sets and stages, in space, in the classroom, in business meetings etc. Christians actually need to be on the frontline of every outlet. Why do we suppress our passions, and those dreams burning inside of us."

Day 89:Never Forsaken

Today we focused on Psalms 37:25, and really broke the scripture down and got an understanding and even realization of what this scripture means for us in our lives.

"This scripture does more than encourage us by telling us everything is going to be alright, no David is stating facts. He is saying what he has known to be true. God is faithful. I believe that this is something we can all attest to, as for me I can say that God has come through for me every time, even in the times where I had only a drop of faith. He never left me and He never will. "

Day 90: Oh My Soul

Today we continued in Psalms 42:5, 42:11, and 43:5. They scriptures say the same thing with David asking himself, "Oh my soul, why are you downcast?" and then following that question with "Hope in God;..." It begs the question of why we worry about the things God has already figured out?

"We must not forget that the God we serve is; all-knowing, all-loving, all-powerful. He is God over the hills and valleys. He’s got us."

Day 91: Who...?

Today we talked about Christ as our intercessor, standing on the right hand of God interceding for us Day in and Day out. We focused on Romans 8:31, and 34. We also talked about God being untouchable and walking in faith knowing that when we have Him on our side, there is no one who is able to come against us.

"We must walk in this confidence knowing that we are not condemned, there is no one on this earth able to do so. No one. Even when we fall, even when we mess up, when we repent God’s love covers our sins. Our sins cannot condemn us, our hearts cannot condemn us, our family, our pastor’s, our friends, no one."

That's it for this week. I love you, I hope you had an amazing week and I hope you have an amazing Day. Share this with someone, catch up if you've missed anything this week, and make sure you come back tomorrow for Day 94!

Day 92: Who...?

Romans 8:31

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

Romans 8:34

Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

Before I say anything I’d like to say that, Christ is on our side. He is rooting for us, He has our best interest at heart. He is constantly going to God on our behalf, he is praying for us, He is watching us and making sure that we are okay. He’s dodging bullets for us and giving us a second chance day in and day out. I think there is sometimes this misconception that God knows we are going to fail, and therefore we have to talk ourselves back into good graces with Him. But that is not true, we are freely offered grace, we have been gifted with a life payed for by the blood of Christ. There is one person in this world able to condemn and He doesn’t, he stands at the right hand of God, praying for us, protecting us, sending people to help us. He gave us the Holy Spirit so that we can walk a life that is free, without condemnation.

Intercede- to act or interpose in behalf of someone in difficulty or trouble, as by pleading or petition:

When we are in difficult times Jesus is intervening on our behalf, He’s like our fighter pilot, as my pastor put it. He is shooting attacks down before they even get to us. There are so many attacks that never reach us because God is shooting them down and intervening before they even have a chance to get to us. And if they do get to us, He makes sure that they will not destroy us. God is our protector, He is everything we need. We serve an untouchable God. I'm reminded of Daniel in the lion's den and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fire.  

Daniel 3: 16-25

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”  Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the expression of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace heated seven times more than it was usually heated.  And he ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace.  Then these men were bound in their cloaks, their tunics,[e] their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace. 22 Because the king's order was urgent and the furnace overheated, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.  And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell bound into the burning fiery furnace.

 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up in haste. He declared to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”

Daniel 6:16-22

 Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den of lions. The king declared to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, deliver you!”  And a stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel.  Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; no diversions were brought to him, and sleep fled from him.Then, at break of day, the king arose and went in haste to the den of lions.  As he came near to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a tone of anguish. The king declared to Daniel, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?” Then Daniel said to the king, “O king, live forever! My God sent his angel and shut the lions' mouths, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless before him; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.”

This king thought he was the most powerful man on earth, but He could not touch GOd's children, even when he threw them in the fire, and the lion's den. God was right there with them protecting them. God is untouchable.

I love that the question is asked, “Who is to condemn” and “Who can be against us?” It’s like a parent asking, “who dares lay a hand on my child?”

If Christ is not condemning us, no one has the right to do so, not even ourselves. We have to understand that, we have to know that God is bigger than anyone, and when we have Him on our side, there is no one that can come against us. People will try and sometime they will succeed in scratching us, but they cannot penetrate the love of God, or blood of Christ on our life.

We must walk in this confidence knowing that we are not condemned, there is no one on this earth able to do so. No one. Even when we fall, even when we mess up, when we repent God’s love covers our sins. Our sins cannot condemn us, our hearts cannot condemn us, our family, our pastor’s, our friends, no one.

The main point here today is pretty straight forward. It is us understanding that no one can come against us when God is for us. No one can condemn us when Christ himself chooses not to do so. When Paul asks “Who is to condemn or who can be against us?” I believe that they are both rhetorical questions, as we are well aware that no one is able to do these things but GOd.

We are so blessed to serve a God who is watching our every step making sure that we are always in good hands.

Reflection

1. Have you been subject to condemnation?
2. Do you believe that as long as God is on your side that no one is able to come against you?
3. Do you see Christ as a protector?

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer today. Thank God that He is always for us. Thank Jesus for standing at the right hand of GOd interceding for us, every second of every day. Find hope and peace in the fact that we serve an untouchable God.

I love you, I hope you have an amazing day or evening. Make sure you share this with someone and come back tomorrow for day 93!