Make Today Special by Spending Time with Jesus!

Bill Keller wrote a devotional today that I recommend to
you for your consideration.  It has food for thought.  He
has given me permission to copy his e-mails, and I'm sure
he would be happy if you would share this with people you
know as well.

Do you ever fall into a rut?  You just go through the
motions every day.  At the end of the day, you cannot
remember what you did that day.  But you must have done
something!  What could it have been? 

If so this Devotional is a great wake-up call.

I would like personally thank Jesus for healing my ailing
right shoulder that has been very painful for 18 months.
I was scheduled to go the doctor on Monday, but on Sunday,
June 4, I listened to two healing services . . . and
during the prayer for healing in the second one my pain,
stiffness and loss of movement all disappeared.

Thank you, Jesus!

Since then, I had a dream in which I finally realized
how I had hurt my shoulder . . . so now I won't repeat
that mistake.

Thank you, Jesus!

Please read on.

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL   TUESDAY JUNE 13, 2006
( 1 Chronicles 29:15, Job 7:6, Psalms 39:5, James 4:14 )

Don't miss the opportunity to make today SPECIAL!  Here
is something for you to think about.  I was born on
February 18, 1958.  God has blessed me to have lived
17,647 days or 423,528 hours.  When I look at those numbers
in black and white two things immediately come to mind. 
First, where did all of those days and hours go.  Second,
that is many days and many hours, yet they have gone by so
fast.  Today, I want to challenge you to stop for a few
minutes in the midst of all that you are doing and reflect
back on your own life, and focus on today and making it
special!

We have many places in God's Word that reminds us how brief
this life is, how fragile it is, how quick it is over.  I
like James's description of life best of all when he calls
it a "vapor."  I remember growing up how I couldn't wait to
be 16 so I could drive, 18 so I could vote, than 21 so I
was an "adult."  In those early years, it seemed to take
forever to get from one year to the next.  Now it seems
like the years are zipping by just like in the old cartoons
when you would see the pages flying off of a calendar.

My goal today is to get you to stop long enough to not only
realize how brief this life is and how quickly it is over,
but that each day truly is a gift from God.  As the Bible
teaches, tomorrow is promised to none of us, today is all
we are certain of so it only makes sense that we make each
day God blesses us with special.  Do we do that?  Sadly,
we don't.  Rather than treating today like the special gift
from God that it is, most people will be simply trying to
"get through the day."  It is almost like we treat the day
as a curse instead of a blessing.

Listen, I understand that you may be going through a
difficult time in your life.  Life is full of trials and
tribulations.  That is simply part of living in this sin-
filled and fallen world that we do.  However, we can't let
the problems of life rob us of our peace and joy that the
Lord has promised to those who follow Him.  The reality is,
we will always have problems each day.  In this life
everyone faces financial challenges, health concerns,
relationship issues, work/career trials, the death of
those we love and care about, and our own bondages we fall
into.  These are common problems everyone who lives has to
face.  The key is to not let whatever problems you may be
experiencing in your life keep you from making today special.

I realize that every day can't be like Christmas morning. 
I understand that some days it is a challenge just to get
from one hour to the next as you face the unexpected
challenges life throws at you.  However, if you step back
and think, that is normal and how life is.  If you get to
the place where you accept that there will always be
challenges, always be unexpected events happening that we
don't and can't plan for, always trials and tribulations
facing us in every day, then you won't allow the problems
of any given day overwhelm you to the point you wish the
day would simply be over.  Don't forget, today is the ONLY
day you are certain of, tomorrow is NOT promised to any of
us.

The big question is HOW do we make each day special,
especially if we accept that each day will be filled with
many challenges.  That my friend is why I harp constantly
on our daily walk with the Lord.  That quiet, intimate
time with Jesus in prayer, in the Word, in just being
alone with Him in fellowship.  I am shocked at how many
people who have given their lives to Christ by faith,
spend little to NO time with Him each day.  They simply
live their life in the flesh each day and do virtually
nothing with their spiritual life.  It is like walking to
work in the rain when you have a brand new Rolls Royce in
the garage sitting there to take you in grand style.  So
much of the pain each day comes from our lack of time with
Jesus!

Listen to me.  That daily time with the Lord won't make
the trials of life go away, but it will give you the
strength and ability to deal with whatever life throws
your way and still maintain the peace and joy Christ
promised you would have.  It is how even in the face of
living with very little by this world's standards, you can
enjoy the ABUNDANCE of this life, since God's abundance is
not about what is in your bank account but what is in your
spiritual account!!!  To have a personal relationship with
Jesus and not take advantage of that personal relationship
is simply foolish!  It is the difference between making
today just another day and making today special!

I love you and care about you so much.  I pray that you will
realize how critical and important it is to have and
maintain that intimate, daily time alone with Jesus each and
every day.  It is the most important time of every day and
without it you are simply living each day and not fully
enjoying each day.  Instead of looking forward to each day,
you dread each day.  That is so sad since life is short
enough and will be over sooner than any of us think.  This
is our one and only opportunity at this life and it is
simply foolish to squander it.  Without that time each day
with the Lord, we miss out on making the day the special gift
from God that it is.

I will be praying for you and that God will really speak
to your heart about making today special.  It hurts when
I think back on how many of those 17,647 days I squandered,
took for granted, and in many cases dreaded and wished they
were over.  I failed to realize how special each day really
was.  Only God knows how many days I have left in this
life, but I can assure you that I will work hard to make
every one I get special.  Nothing is more important to me
each day than my time with Jesus in the Word, in prayer,
and in just "hanging out together."  I know as long as I
have my time with the Lord each day, no matter what may
happen during that day, I will still know the peace, the
joy, and the abundance of the day and it will be SPECIAL!

In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

***If I can help you in any way you can contact me
through my personal email at bkeller@liveprayer.com

***ARE YOU 100% CERTAIN WHERE YOU WILL SPEND
ETERNITY?  The fact is you will die one day.  At
that moment, you will either spend eternity with
the Lord or be cast into everlasting darkness
forever separated from God your creator.  To know
for certain you will be forever with Jesus, go to:
http://www.liveprayer.com/bdy_salvatn.html

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(C) Copyright 2006, Bill Keller Ministries.
All rights reserved

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May God bless you as you learn from this message!

Donald W. Mitchell, Your Dream Concierge

Copyright 2006 Donald W. Mitchell