Daily Devotional
Come to Jesus as You Are
“But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”
John 4:14
September 3, 2023
Ponder This
Holiness is not the way to Christ; Christ is the way to holiness. You don’t work your way to the way. He is the way. Don’t get the idea that if you could live right, God would fill you with the Holy Spirit. You can’t live right until you are filled with the Holy Spirit. If you could be holy and live right in order to be filled, why do you need to be filled anyway?
God is not like a banker. Do you know how to get a banker to loan you money? Prove to him you don’t need any. Then he’ll loan you some. Well, God’s not that way. Come to Jesus. Don’t wait ‘till you’re better. Don’t wait ‘till you’re stronger. Bring your weakness. Bring your fears. Bring your failures. Bring your heartaches. Bring it all to Jesus. Jesus throws open His arms to you today and says, “Are you thirsty? Come to Me.” If we could only learn that! I’m not saying you come clinging to your sin. I’m not saying you come to Him with your fingers crossed behind your back. I’m not saying you come to Him while intending to cling to Satan and this world. Oh, no. Let go of everything but come to Jesus.
- When have you tried to get your life together to “be better” for Jesus? Why does this always fail?
- What happens when we depend on our own works instead of on Jesus to be close to God?
Practice This
Talk to God and confess the broken parts of your life right now.
FOR YOUR GIFT TO THE MINISTRY
Front Porch Moments by Gayle Foster
WITH KEY INSIGHTS FROM HER FATHER, ADRIAN ROGERS
I try to unplug each morning with Jesus with just my rocking chair, my Bible, and a pen.
Having a secret place is very important because I know that Jesus is always there waiting for me. I know where I can find Him! His presence is everywhere, but there are places where it is so thick you can cut it with a knife. You may not even have a front porch, but there is a secret place for you as well. God’s invitations are for anyone who will respond. There is no more important request than the one found in Psalm 27:8: “My heart has heard You say, ‘Come and talk with Me.’ And my heart responds, ‘Lord, I am coming.’”
