Daily Devotional By Archbishop Foley Beach

The Holy Spirit, God’s Personal Relationship Presence, Is Our Life’s Ultimate Counselor and Helper – the Creator of the Universe

The Holy Spirit, God’s Personal Relationship Presence, Is Our Life’s Ultimate Counselor and Helper – the Creator of the Universe

MESSAGE SUMMARY:  Your relationship with God is a continuous and not a one-time event; therefore, followers of Jesus are to be continuously filled with the Holy Spirit, as we are told in Acts 2:3-4: “And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.". We should ask the Lord to fill us with the Holy Spirit every day. You need the continuous refreshing of the Holy Spirit because YOU are a broken vessel – you sin; you get tired; you work hard; you act stupid; and you rebel against God. Be filled with the Holy Spirit now – filled in this moment of the present. Being filled with the Holy Spirit, the presence of God in our lives in a personal relationship, provides us with the ultimate counselor and helper in our life – the Creator of the Universe. Do you ask the Holy Spirit to fill you every day to experience the continuous power of God’s gift?

 

TODAY’S PRAYER: Lord, I relate to Peter’s headstrong nature, and to his struggle to understand what you were telling him. It is difficult for me to understand how you are running the universe and my place in it. Transform my stubborn will, O Lord. Teach me to wait on you. Help me to trust you. In Jesus’ name, amen.                                                          Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 95). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Evil Ways. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Goodness. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f).

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Ephesians 5:21; Acts 2:1-4; 1 Peter 4:1-6; Psalms 31b:13-24.

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “The Ultimate Call of a Father -- Where Are the Faithful Fathers?", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

Is Your Life Driven by Anxiety, or Do You Walk with the Holy Spirit Who Is Working Out God’s Purpose in Your Life?

Is Your Life Driven by Anxiety, or Do You Walk with the Holy Spirit Who Is Working Out God’s Purpose in Your Life?

MESSAGE SUMMARY: Where is God’s involvement in your life? God’s “life interventions”, in your life, can provide either a success or a setback. For example, we lose a job; or we get a job. God can turn our world upside down. It is not that we have done anything wrong; it is the Holy Spirit working out God’s purpose in your life. We need to hear what the Angels said in Mathew 1:20: “an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.’”; and we need to hear what Jesus said in Mathew 6:34: “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”. If we follow the lead of the Holy Spirit in all aspects and seasons of our lives, we can see the birthing of another miracle in our lives.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Heartlessness. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Kindness. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f).

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 20:19-25; Luke 24:46-49; John 1:12; Psalms 78e:49-60.

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “After Jesus’ Resurrection, He Appeared Many Times to Many People and the Apostles; Today, We Have His Gift of the Holy Spirit ", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “We All Need “Hope” in Today’s World of Fear, Doubt in Our Faith, and Feelings of “Hopelessness”; and God Is this “Hope””:  www.AWFTL.org/watch

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In Times of Uncertainty, Like Today, We Search for “Answers”; If You Are Filled with the Holy Spirit, You Have the Ultimate “Answer” Source!

DEVOTIONAL VIDEO

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

Are You Filled with the Holy Spirit? (Highland Chapel; Chattanooga, TN)

When we believe in Jesus the Christ as our Lord and Savior; accept God’s Grace of Salvation; and follow Jesus, then God provides us with His incredible gift of the Holy Spirit. As we follow Jesus in our daily lives, it is difficult to be “filled with the Holy Spirit” as we are instructed in Ephesians 5:18: “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,". God Himself comes to us in His presence as the third part of the Holy Trinity, the Holy Spirit. Paul tells us, in Ephesians 1:13, that when we become a follower of Jesus, we are “sealed with the Holy Spirit”.

“Grieving the Holy Spirit” means that we hurt or wound God’s expectations for us as Followers of Jesus, as we live our lives, by not being “filled with the Holy Spirit”. Most of Ephesians 4 and Ephesians 5 describe the binary positions of lives that “grieve the Holy Spirit” or are “filled with the Holy Spirit”. When we “grieve the Holy Spirit”, we limit the power of the Holy Spirit and our access to God through our personal relationship with Him. Therefore, anytime we sin we “grieve the Holy Spirit”. God, through the Holy Spirit, will make us aware of when we grieve Him: and we then have the opportunity for Confession and Repentance of our sin; therefore, we can continue to “be filled with the Holy Spirit” as God wishes and expects.

Are you grieving the Holy Spirit or are you filled with the Holy Spirit?

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD.Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f).

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Ephesians 5:18; Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 1:17; Ephesians 4:1; Ephesians 6:17-18; Ephesians 4:31; Ephesians 4:32; Ephesians 5:1-2; Ephesians 5:3-4; Ephesians 5:5; Ephesians 5:6; Ephesians 5:7-11; Ephesians 5:12-14; Ephesians 5:15-17; Ephesians 5:18; John 7:38-39; 1 John 1:8-9.

THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Because of Jesus’ Resurrection. You Are Forgiven of Your Sins and You Have Eternal Life – If You Have Faith, Confess, and Follow Jesus", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/.

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “In Times of Uncertainty, Like Today, We Search for “Answers”; If You Are Filled with the Holy Spirit, You Have the Ultimate “Answer” Source!”:  www.AWFTL.org/watch

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

As a Follower of Jesus, God Speaks to You Through the Inward Voice of the Holy Spirit

MESSAGE SUMMARY: Isaiah tells us in Isaiah 30:21: "And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.". We know, from the New Testament, that Christians are given the Holy Spirit to walk with them -- "a voice behind you". Since the Holy Spirit takes up residence in you, the way the Lord speaks to you is through the inward witness of the Holy Spirit – “the Spirit will speak, and you will know that it is the Lord”. In John 14:26, Jesus reminds us about His promise, to His followers, of the “Helper” (Holy Spirit): “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”. Additionally, in John 16-7, Jesus tells us that not only will the Holy Spirit be your “Helper”, the Holy Spirit will be your “Comforter”: “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.".

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Self-centeredness. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Love. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f).

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Ezekiel 22:30-31; Isaiah 30:21; John 14:23-27; John 16:7-13; Psalms 80:1-19.

 

THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Today, the World Needs to be Renewed With an Outpouring of the Holy Spirit - a Global Spiritual Awakening”: www.AWFTL.org/watch

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

DEVOTIONAL VIDEO: “‘All Scripture {Bible} is breathed out by God’ Because God Gave Us the Holy Spirit”

DEVOTIONAL VIDEO

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

The Holy Spirit; the Promise Fulfilled (All Saints, Peachtree City, GA)

On Pentecost, the birthday of the Church, the Holy Spirit, the third entity of the Trinity, was poured out. The Holy Spirit is a gift from God, as a part of His Grace of Salvation through Jesus, to all that believe and follow Jesus. Because we were given the Holy Spirit, we have the Bible.  As we are told in 2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.". Therefore, because of the Holy Spirit, we can believe that “the Bible is the inspired Word of God that contains all that is necessary for our Salvation”.

Rene Descartes, the French philosopher, mathematician and scientist, said “I think, therefore I am”. In your life as a follower of Jesus, are you, as one could imply from Descartes, being led solely by your thoughts and what you think is best; or are you being led by the Holy Spirit? You cannot lead a Christian life without the Holy Spirit as Paul tells in Philippians 4:13 when the “Him” in this text is the Holy Spirit: “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.". Your being filled with the Holy Spirit is normal Christianity. It is the Holy Spirit that enables you to commune with God and to have a personal relationship with Him -- the Holy Spirit is the presence of Jesus among us. You will be filled with the Holy Spirit every day that you surrender your life to the Holy Spirit. You cannot be filled with the Holy Spirit if you are consumed by sin and the desires of your flesh. Additionally, you must learn to discern the voice of the Holy Spirit in your life from what you think, in isolation from the Holy Spirit, is best. Therefore, to live as a follower of Jesus, you must be filled with the Holy Spirit. 

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5).

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Acts 2:38; Genesis 1:2; 1 Corinthians 2:1-11; Acts 2:1-13; Ephesians 5:18; 2 Peter 1:20; Galatians 5:16-20; Philippians 4:13-20; Acts 1:8; Psalms 23:1-6.; Psalms 62:1-12.

 

THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Turkeys and Eagles, Part 1: Called as an ‘Eagle’ But Saved as a ‘Turkey’", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Today, the World Needs to be Renewed With an Outpouring of the Holy Spirit - a Global Spiritual Awakening”: www.AWFTL.org/watch 

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

The Day of Pentecost – The Promise Fulfilled

MESSAGE SUMMARY:

Are You Filled with the Holy Spirit? (Highland Chapel; Chattanooga, TN)

Today, the world, along with all of us, needs to be renewed with a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Pentecost, initially, was about: people being filled with the Holy Spirit; people received Spiritual gifts; and people witnessing for Jesus. On this initial day of Pentecost, Peter stood up and preached a sermon. Afterwards, he was asked: “What must we do to be saved?”. Peter responded in Acts 2:38-39: “And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.’". These events of the initial Pentecost and from the various revivals of the 20^th Century relating to the Charismatic Movements are normal Christianity; this outpouring of the Holy Spirit is what God intends for His people. If we are going to have a growing relationship with Jesus, we must be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Too many of us are trying to live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. The question is asked: “When do we receive the Holy Spirit?”. We cannot put God in a box regarding a timing for the receipt of the Holy Spirit. However, a better question is: “Have we received the Holy Spirit?”. We are told in John 3:8: “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.". Therefore, the real question should be: “Does the Holy Spirit have me?”. Until we surrender our lives to Jesus, the Holy Spirit cannot indwell our lives and lead us. The best answer to the timing our receipt of the Holy Spirit is: “We should receive the Holy Spirit every day.”.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13).

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Acts 1:5; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Acts 2:38-39; Galatians 5:16-26; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Philippians 4:13; John 3:8; Luke 11:13; Ephesians 5:18; Romans 12:9-31; Ephesians 4:30-32.

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “The Day of Pentecost – The Promise Fulfilled (All Saints Anglican Church; Peachtree City, GA)”:  www.AWFTL.org/watch

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

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God, Through His Gift of the Holy Spirit, Speaks to You; Are You Listening?

MESSAGE SUMMARY: In Isaiah 30:21, Isaiah tells us: "And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.". We know from the New Testament that Christians are given the Holy Spirit to walk with them -- "a word {voice} behind you". Since the Holy Spirit takes up residence in you, the way the Lord speaks to you is through the inward witness of the Holy Spirit -- the Spirit will speak, and you will know that it is the Lord. As God told His people in Exodus 19:5-6: “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that, because I am in Jesus Christ, God is working His will in my life. (Philippians 2:13). “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”. (Philippians 4:14).

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 14:23-27; Acts 2:1-4; Exodus 19:1-6; Psalms 107d:35-43.

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/

 

THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “The Resurrection -- Part 3: Jesus Gives Us His Great Commission Just Before His Ascension", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/.

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Where Is Your Interior Life Leading You? {Nurturing The Interior Life – Exercising the Mind – Part 2] (Camp House; Chattanooga, TN)”:  www.AWFTL.org/watch

 

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The Holy Spirit Is God Himself, and He Comes and Indwells You as a Follower of Jesus

MESSAGE SUMMARY: The third presence of the Trinity is the Holy Spirit -- God Himself. In Acts 1:8-10, Jesus, at His Ascension, reaffirmed the coming of the Holy Spirit to those that follow Him: “’But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’ And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes . . .". When you are a follower of Jesus and you have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit, God, the Creator of the Universe, comes and takes residence in your life – God, in your life through the Holy Spirit, is trying to make you like Jesus.

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13).

 

THIS SUNDAY’S SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Contemplating the Mighty Acts – Palm Sunday and Holy Week (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA)", at our Website: www.AWordFromTheLord.org/listen/.

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 16:4-11; Acts 1:8-10; Acts 2:38-39; Romans 14:17-19; 1 Corinthians 12:1-4; Psalms 85:1-13.

Is the Holy Spirit Manifested In and Through Your Life?

MESSAGE SUMMARY: You are not your own If your life is characterized by the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 6:17,19 about the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in you if you are a follower of Jesus: “But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him . . . Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?”.  Can it be said that your church is, also, characterized by the fruit of the Holy Spirit? Again, if not then why not? You can play church all you want; but if you follow Jesus, then the Holy Spirit will be manifested in and through your life, as Paul tells us in Romans 8:16-17: “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.".

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because I am in Jesus Christ, I will seek God’s perspective on my situation. For I know that in all things God works together for good to those of us who love Him and are called according to His purpose. (From Romans 8:28).

 

THIS SUNDAY’S SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “The Upper Room Part 2: The Promise of Forgiveness (Christ Cathedral; Kampala, Uganda)", at our Website: www.AWordFromTheLord.org/listen/.

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Romans 12.1-2; Ephesians 4:19-24; 1 Corinthians 6:17-20; Psalms 84:1-12.

Have You Received the Holy Spirit?

MESSAGE SUMMARY: The question is not "When did you receive the Holy Spirit?" BUT "Have you received the Holy Spirit?". As Jesus told us in John 14:26-27: “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.". Is the Holy Spirit Present in your life, and does the Holy Spirit have you? Have you surrendered your life and will to Jesus the Christ? Until you surrender to Jesus, the Holy Spirit can't lead you. As soon as you put up any resistance to "surrendering", you quench the Holy Spirit in your life. 

 

TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Inconsistencies. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Faithfulness. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f).

 

THIS SUNDAY’S SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “The Upper Room Part 2: The Promise of Forgiveness (Christ Cathedral; Kampala, Uganda)", at our Website: www.AWordFromTheLord.org/listen/.

 

WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S RECENT VIDEOS:  https://awftlvser.podbean.com/.

 

A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.

 

DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV):  John 14:25-27; Acts 1:4-9; Acts 2:38; Acts 10:45; Romans 14:17-19; Psalms 83:1-18.