Saint Rest Women of RESToration

Good morning Here is your morning devotional Scripture Reading Genesis 1:1-5... God said, Let there be . . . Genesis 1:3 In the Bible we have God’s great story of the world from its beginning to its end. This story includes not only complexity and beauty but also great tragedy and sorrow. One of the golden threads woven into this story focuses on the world’s true King. Who is this King, and what does true kingship look like on the earth? In the Bible’s opening verses we hear God speaking. In the ancient world, no one could make things happen the way a king could by just speaking. If the king said, Let there be a banquet, the servants jumped into action. Your wish is our command, they would say. In Genesis, God speaks as King, and the cosmos itself springs into being. God can even make something out of nothing! Light and darkness, day and night, water and sky, sun and moon, vegetation and creatures. Whole arenas of life are formed and filled. And the King says, It is good. This Creator King builds by speaking, and his lordship over all things is put on display. Ancient kings in their earthly kingdoms would build temples, palaces, and gardens. The Creator King has built the marvelous temple-palace-garden complex that is creation, the whole universe, including our earthly home. The world in which we live and move and have our being exists because our King continues to speak and uphold its existence (Colossians 1:16-17). Amazing! Prayer Creator God, we see your kingship in creation, and it is good. Give us delight and joy in all that you have so marvelously made. Amen.

Good morning family. Here is your morning devotional. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever- 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be[1] in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. John 14:16-18... Most of us don’t like being alone for extended periods of time. In fact, we are not designed to live in isolation. Even at the very beginning, God said, It is not good for the man to be alone (Gen. 2:18). But sometimes situations in life leave us separated from others. Or perhaps we simply feel lonely, even though we live with our mate or family. But whatever your situation may be, if you are a believer, you’re never alone. Knowing His followers could feel abandoned after His crucifixion and ascension, Jesus promised to send them a Helper who would never leave themthe Spirit of truth. The same One who came to them at Pentecost still abides within every believer. He has been sent to walk alongside us as our comforter, enabler, and guide. The Holy Spirit, unlike human companions, is perfectly adequate to meet our every need. Since He knows us intimately, He can comfort us in pain and loss when no one else can. Anytime we find ourselves in a quandary, He knows exactly what we ought to do. Since the future is laid bare before His eyes, He’s aware of all the details that concern us. What’s more, He promises to guide us each step of the way, calming our fears and overcoming our inadequacies. Because we were created for God, only through His Spirit are we made complete. He is the ultimate solution to man’s aloneness: He’s always available and will never forsake or forget you. When others let you down, the Comforter is present to lift you up with the reminder that you’re not alone.

Good morning family. Here is your morning devotional In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears. Psalm 18:6... David was the anointed king of Israel, but before he could enjoy the realization of God's promises, he had to go through a season of testing and waiting. During this time, he was forced to hide out in caves and literally run for his life. King Saul, who was bent on David's destruction, continually hunted for him. Perhaps the Lord has given you a promise through His Word. You are ready to see it unfold, but it hasn't happened yet. Though you have waited, it seems that there is no hope on the horizon. Remember, God's timing is perfect. He knows what you need, when you need it. He knows that if we are going to learn how to walk with Him in the daylight or the good times, we must learn first to trust Him in times of darkness. At some point, each of us has waited for God's promises to come. David may have wondered when the Lord would open the door to blessing. However, he never allowed his thoughts to turn to doubts. In fact, in Psalm 18:17, 19, he praises God for the victory he knew would be his one day. "(God) delivered me from my strong enemy, and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me He brought me forth also into a broad (or spacious) place, He rescued me, because He delighted in me." When God delivers you from trial and trouble, you can be sure that He will bring you out into a spacious place of joy and delight - one that also will glorify Him and add encouragement to your life. Have you been pushing and shoving in an effort to move God on to the place where you think you should be? If so, stop and be determined to wait on God. The time you spend waiting in darkness will one day be rewarded by the Father of lights (James 1:17).

Good morning family. Here is your morning devotional Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.... The people of Judah were on their way into captivity, and Habakkuk was just one of the prophets that God used to deliver His message of judgment and repentance. Judah's sin and disobedience had grown to such a proportion that God knew He had to do something to stop their downward spiral. The nation needed to turn back to the Lord and begin to worship Him as their only God. Therefore, He allowed them to face captivity in a foreign land. As promised, Judah was invaded, and most of the people were deported to Babylon. It was there that King Nebuchadnezzar ruled over them. Like many of us, Habakkuk felt the weight of what was about to come, and he was not settled with the matter at all. In fact, he became anxious and cried out, "How long, O LORD, will I call for help, and You will not hear?" (1:2) As long as life runs along well, we rarely feel the need to ask God for help. However, the moment the skies of our lives turn dark and stormy, we immediately cry out to Him. You may be a Christian who has worshipped the Lord most of your life. In fact, you consistently take time to be with Him in prayer and praise. However, difficulty has come, and you wonder what you will do. Not all suffering is the result of sin. It is true that Judah needed a course coreection or they would have totally abandoned their faith. This was not God's desire for the nation He loved. Nor was it on track with His promise to Abraham and David. Other times, suffering comes in order to prepare us for an even greater blessing. While the storms of life may descend on us without warning, God always has a rainbow planned for those who turn their lives over to Him and trust Him even in the most difficult circumstances.

Good morning family I am praying for each of you this morning as I send you this morning’s devotional: Scripture Reading Psalm 139... I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. . . . Search me, God. . . . See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:14, 23-24 These verses from Psalm 139 remind us that while each one of us is a beautiful creation of the Lord, there are also offensive ways inside us that need to be dealt with. After the fall into sin (described in Genesis 3), we human beings continue to live as precious works of the Creator while also needing to be redeemed from sin and brokenness. So in his great and amazing love for us, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the price for our sin and to give us new life forever with him. And now the Spirit of God lives in us, guiding us to become like Jesus. He leads us in the way everlasting. The apostle Paul describes it this way: I no longer live, but Christ lives in me (Galatians 2:20), giving us one of the clearest statements in the Bible about dying to live. The fact that we are fearfully and wonderfully madeand remadeleads to some of the most glorious announcements in Scripture, like this one: You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy (1 Peter 2:9-10). Prayer Thank you, Father, Son, and Spirit, for your gifts of creation and redemption. Continue to search us and to lead us in your way everlasting. Amen.

Good morning family Here is your morning devotional We've all seen restored furniture. Restoring furniture involves stripping away old varnish or paint with strong chemicals. This reveals all the nooks, crannies and original spots on the piece. The sanding takes place next - the wood is rubbed with coarse sandpaper in order to level out its imperfections. Then the furniture is ready to receive a new stain or paint color - it's ready for a new look. New glory can be given to o...ld furniture. And God can do the same thing with us. He can put new glory inside an old life, but He must first strip away our old nature and sand away our sinful strongholds. We shouldn't run from being broken. It's not pleasant or happy, but it will produce a better life. Brokenness is a blessing because it puts us on the road to a breakthrough. Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit" (Matthew 5:3) Those who are spiritually broken will be blessed because they will see God and experience His reality flowing through their lives. Scripture promises that God remains with those who are broken and makes them stronger than before. Psalm 34:18 says, "The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." Isaiah 61:3 teaches that God would give those who mourn and are broken "a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified." See more

Good morning family Here is your morning devotional God, Who Raises the Dead God won't bless us if He can't change us. We can't stay the same. Some of us may be wondering why we haven't had a spiritual breakthrough. One reason could be that we've not yet been broken. God makes it very clear that He only relates to those who are humble and contrite in heart. Isaiah 57:15 says, "Thus says the high and exalted One who lives forever, whose name is Holy., ‘I dwell on a high and h...oly place, and also with the contrite and lowly of spirit in order to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.'" The Most High God hangs out with the lowly and the humble. He cares for those who acknowledge their need for Him. God has to grind away at our pride until we realize we are not self-sufficient. If you are facing tough circumstances right now, you are a prime candidate for a breakthrough because God is at work through your trials. Paul said, ‘We do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life." (2 Corinthians 1:80. Paul was burdened beyond his strength to bear it - it was such a deep, piercing, and exhausting struggle. But we know that even if we are in a bad place, it is a wonderful place for God to do an amazing work in our lives. "Indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope." (verses 9-10). When you are beyond all earthly help, you are better able to trust in God - the God who raises the dead and saves us from death. God lets us get so low that we understand that He is our only real option. See more

Good morning here is your morning devotional Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Matthew 6:12... In this day of credit cards, it’s easy to get deep into debt, and the interest rate can make our debt snowball. If we get into that kind of trouble, we may need to visit a credit counselor to help us plan a way out. In the Law of Moses, God commanded the Israelites to cancel debts at the end of every seven years. The cancellation of debts was a merciful feature of the Law of Moses, and it called for an openhanded, generous attitude toward the poor. Stinginess and lack of concern was inconsistent with the heart of the Law, which, as Jesus said, was based on loving God and caring about your neighbor as much as you care about yourself (see Matthew 22:37-40). Canceling debts on a society-wide level was to be echoed by a forgiving attitude. The apostle Paul expresses this beautifully when he says in Ephesians 4:32: Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Have you ever thought of sin as like getting into debt? If you’re a slave to some particular sin, it’s like digging yourself into a hole, deeper and deeper, making it harder and harder to climb out. Don’t indulge yourself, but cry out to God for the forgiveness of your debts, and seek his strength to live an obedient life. Prayer Lord, thank you for your tenderheartedness to us sinners. Forgive us and teach us to be like Jesus, loving and forgiving toward others. In his name, Amen

I soooo look forward to every 2nd Thursday of the month. Why? Because that us when the Women of RESToration (our women’s ministry at Saint Rest) get together for our Impact Group meetings. We currently have 2 groups that are now meeting via Zoom. The Pearl Group led by Sis. Debra Cruz starts at 6pm and the Purple Group led by Sis. Olivia Thomas ( Olivia Rae) starts at 7pm. COVID has not stopped our monthly gatherings. So, if you would like to join one of our groups, message us and we will get you plugged in. #womenofRESToration #womensministry #ministrymatters #ministrycontinues #SaintRest LaTisha Pitts

Good morning family. Here is your morning devotional: Psalm 2:7-8 I will proclaim the Lord's decree: He said to me, "You are my son; today I have become your father. Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.... One of the most important things that we can do as a Christian is to pray in line with our covenantal rights. But we often don't do this because we misunderstand what prayer is. Let me define prayer by first saying what prayer is not. Prayer is not simply talking to God. Prayer, rather, is asserting earthly permission for heavenly interference. Prayer is earth giving heaven authorization to intervene in the affairs of earth as heaven has previously stated that it would. That permission is granted based on your legal position and rights. That's why it is essential to study the Word of God and to know the rights that He has granted you through His Word. If you are being held in bondage by an illegitimate force in your life, cry out to God. Pray to God for deliverance by appealing to Him based on your covenantal rights. There is a legal obligation that God has to respond to you based on the fact that you have a legitimate agreement with Him found in His Word. Go through the Scriptures and read everything that relates to your stronghold and pray it back to God. When you do that, prayer is no longer just a spiritual exercise or something to check off of your "Christian List of Things To Do." Rather, prayer becomes a legal meeting where you and God get together in agreement on the same covenantal arrangement. Prayer becomes an act of holding God accountable, in the right sense of the word, to what He holds Himself accountable: His Word.

Good morning family. Here is your morning devotional: Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither- whatever they do prospers. Faith is not about how much you believe in what you b...elieve. Faith is about believing that the One you believe in is believable. In fact, you can have all of the faith in the world that your SUV is going to take off and fly you to Canada cruising at 12,000 feet in the air. But that won't change the fact that you're still going to be stuck in traffic somewhere with all four wheels firmly on the ground. Faith is about believing that the One you believe in is believable. The way you find out if the one you believe in is believable is by knowing and experiencing Him. It's like when a child climbs up on the back of her daddy for a piggyback ride. She doesn't get up there and start asking herself if he can hold her or if he is going to drop her. Instead, she immediately starts asking him, "Do you have me?" as she wiggles and adjusts her legs into place. By asking her daddy, "Do you have me?" she is affirming in her mind that the one she is putting her faith in is faithful. Because if he says, "Yes, I have you," and she rests up there only to discover that he really does have her, then the next time she climbs on for a piggy-back ride, the questions become fewer. But until she first climbs up onto the back of her daddy, she can say all day long that she believes that he can hold her. Saying it a thousand times won't reduce the hesitation she feels when the offer to get up there is first extended. She will never get to the point where she can experience the full pleasure of his presence until she takes that first climb of faith to discover that he is faithful. See more

Good morning. Here is your morning devotional: Scripture Reading John 9:1-12 This happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. John 9:3... The disciples see a man who was born blind, and they assume that his blindness is someone’s fault. This was a common way of thinking about suffering in those days. Sickness and disability were often believed to be a result of sin somewhere in the family line. If we think about it, we can see how people could fall into that kind of thinking. It has happened in many cultures. If a person has a disability or a terrible disease, or if they are down and out in some kind of hardship, it can be convenient to blame them or their family or even their friends or community. It calms our fears if we can state a reason or a cause for something we don’t understandor don’t want to. In this story Jesus complicates things even more by implying that God allowed the man to be blind so that his healing by Jesus could help people see the works of God being done. This is hard to understandthere is no getting around that. Human suffering is a lot more complicated than we would like to believe. Sin has broken this world in ways that go beyond our understanding. But at the same time, this story offers comfort because we see that God can and will work to bring good out of challenges and suffering. God works for our good in all things (Romans 8:28)and he has redeemed us in Christ. When the works of God shine through adversity, he shows in a unique way that he is good and loves us. Prayer Father, in difficult times, help us to see you working for good, wanting to free us completely from the curse of sin. Amen

Good morning family Here is your morning devotional We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure. . . . But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God. . . . 2 Corinthians 1:8-9... I’m guessing that most of us have never been shipwrecked, or been whipped within an inch of our lives, or had a group of assassins after our blood, or been lowered over a city wall in a basket at night to escape our pursuers. But all of those things happened to Paul, and he was frequently under unbearable pressure. This is not to say we don’t live with stress, however. Stress has a way of bending us out of shape, making us act in uncharacteristic ways, and making us more vulnerable than usual to temptation. We find ourselves snapping at people, losing patience when we need it most, or becoming depressed. Ultimately stress can cause us to take our eyes off God and focus only on our problems. When we’re under pressure, it’s important to realize that if we are not careful, it could have an adverse effect on our relationships with others. Most importantly, we should use those situations to learn to rely on God. How do we do that? Pray, Lord, help me. I need your wisdom and strength! Continue to trust God when things are beyond your control. Believe that God can bring victory out of seeming defeat. Continue to obey God’s revealed will, his clearly expressed commands. And be courageous. Prayer Lord, we ask not for a stress-free life but that you will teach us to rely on you. Through your Spirit living in our hearts, give us wisdom and strength. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.