Tag: devotional

Devotions, Women's Devotionals

🌿 Kingdom Living Devotional — Day 54

Rooted & Raised

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other… You cannot serve God and wealth.”

— Matthew 6:24 NASB1995

🚫 Undivided Loyalty

Jesus makes it clear: you can’t split your heart between two masters. Sooner or later, one will win. Kingdom living demands complete devotion. Money, comfort, popularity—none of these can share the throne.

To serve God means to trust Him fully, obey Him wholly, and love Him entirely.

🔗 Ante-Nicene Reflection

The early Church often chose poverty, persecution, and simplicity over status or wealth. They believed that the Kingdom of God was worth more than any earthly treasure.

💭 Reflect

  • Is there anything competing for my devotion?
  • Am I truly living as if God is my only Master?

✨ Prayer

Lord, I don’t want a divided heart. Help me to serve You alone. Tear down idols and teach me to love You first. Amen.

Devotions, Women's Devotionals

🌿 Kingdom Living Devotional — Day 53

Rooted & Raised

“The eye is the lamp of the body; so then, if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light.”

— Matthew 6:22 NASB1995

💡 Vision That Fills with Light

Jesus teaches that what we focus on shapes our whole being. A clear eye—one fixed on God’s purposes—fills us with light. But when our gaze is clouded by greed, jealousy, or distraction, darkness settles in.

Kingdom living requires single-minded devotion. A pure focus brings clarity, peace, and purpose.

🔗 Ante-Nicene Reflection

Early believers guarded their eyes from corrupt influences. They believed that what they looked upon shaped their hearts and lived with focused discipline to reflect Christ.

💭 Reflect

  • What has my attention most these days?
  • Am I fixing my eyes on the eternal or being pulled into distraction?

✨ Prayer

Lord, clear my vision. Help me see what matters and turn away from what darkens my heart. Fill me with Your light. Amen.

Kingdom Discipleship, Kingdom Living

A New Heaven and a New Earth

Rooted & Raised

Eternal Glory with Our King

The return of Jesus ushers in more than judgment—it brings restoration. The groaning of creation will end. Death will die. The curse will be reversed. And the saints will dwell forever with their God in a new heaven and a new earth where righteousness dwells.

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth… and the dwelling place of God is with man.”
— Revelation 21:1–3

The Promise of Eternal Renewal

This is not merely a spiritual promise—it is cosmic redemption. The world that was marred by sin will be made new, not destroyed. God is making all things new (Revelation 21:5).

“Creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption…”
— Romans 8:21

The Saints Will Reign Forever

“They will reign forever and ever.”
— Revelation 22:5

No more sorrow. No more sin. No more separation. The hope of the early Church was not simply to escape this world—but to inherit a perfected one with Christ at the center.

“They shall see His face… and His name will be on their foreheads.”
— Revelation 22:4

The Early Church Lived for the City to Come

“Here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.”
— Hebrews 13:14

They were pilgrims and strangers, not clinging to comfort, but longing for the better country God had prepared for them.

“Let us walk worthily, that we may be found in the land of the living.”
— Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 50

Our Hope Is More Than Heaven—It’s Union with Christ

He is the reward. He is the glory. He is the light of that city. The new heavens and new earth are glorious because Jesus will be there, and we will be with Him—forever.

What We Can Learn

  1. Eternity is not escape—it’s restoration and renewal.
  2. The saints will dwell in a real, perfect world with Christ.
  3. Our hope is not just heaven—it’s union with Jesus.
  4. Living for that day empowers purity, endurance, and joy.

Sources:

  • The Holy Bible — Revelation 21:1–7; Revelation 22:1–5; Romans 8:18–25; Hebrews 13:14; 2 Peter 3:13
  • Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 50
  • Hermas, Similitudes 2
  • Didache, ch. 10
  • Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Smyrnaeans
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Devotions, Family Devotionals

🏡 Kingdom Family Devotional — Day 53

Rooted & Raised

“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light.”

— Matthew 6:22 NASB1995

🔦 A Family That Sees Clearly

Jesus reminds us that what we focus on shapes who we become. When a family sets their sights on truth, love, and God’s Word, light fills the home. But if we focus on noise, fear, or selfish desires, darkness creeps in.

What we allow into our home matters.

🕯 A Mother’s Role

Help guide what your children watch and read. Create a home that values wholesome, truth-filled media and discussion. Let the light in.

📖 Talk About It:

  • What are we spending most of our time looking at?
  • Do those things bring God’s light or cause distraction?

🪡 Kingdom Practice

Turn off the screens one evening and read Scripture together. Talk about one way to keep your family’s focus on what is good and true.

✍️ Prayer:

Lord, let our home be full of light. Help us focus on You and shut out anything that brings darkness. Amen.

Devotions, Teen Devotions

😎 Kingdom Teen Devotional — Day 53

Rooted & Raised

“If your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light.”

— Matthew 6:22 NASB1995

🌟 What You Feed, You Become

Your eyes lead your heart. What you scroll, watch, and fixate on is shaping you. Jesus says a focused, healthy gaze fills you with light. But if your focus is broken, darkness follows.

You can’t chase God and stare at garbage.

🖊 Real Talk:

  • What are you consistently exposing yourself to?
  • Is it leading you closer to God or further away?

✨ Try This:

Fast from visual distractions (TV, social, games) for 24 hours. Use the time to seek God and ask Him to reset your vision.

✍️ Prayer:

Lord, train my eyes to seek You. Fill me with light and lead me away from what dulls my heart. Amen.

Children's Devotionals, Devotions

🧢 Kingdom Kids Devotional — Day 53

Rooted & Raised

“Your eyes are like a lamp for your body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light.”

— Matthew 6:22 (Paraphrased)

👁 Keep Your Eyes on Good Things

Jesus says our eyes are like windows. What we watch or look at can bring in light or darkness. If we look at good things, our hearts will be happy and full of God’s light.

Let’s be careful with what we watch, read, or play with.

🏛 Long Ago…

Children in the early Church were taught to keep their eyes on things that helped them grow in love and truth. They were careful with what they allowed into their hearts.

💡 Think About It:

  • What do I look at that fills me with joy or light?
  • What should I turn away from to stay close to Jesus?

✨ Let’s Pray:

Jesus, help me look at things that make me more like You. Keep my eyes and heart full of light. Amen.

God Is Love, Kingdom Discipleship

Love in Holiness: Set Apart by Love, Not Lawlessness

Rooted & Raised

From the series “The Love of God: Revealed, Received, and Radiated”

Love is not permission to do what is right in our own eyes.
It is the power to do what is right in God’s.

The love of God is not passive. It is purifying.
It does not lower the standard—it fulfills it.
It does not ignore sin—it rescues from it.

If God is love, and that love now lives in us, then we must live as He lived—in holiness.

“Just as He who called you is holy, so be holy also in all your behavior; because it is written: ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”
— 1 Peter 1:15–16

Holiness is not legalism. It is not asceticism.
Holiness is the character of God reflected through the life of a redeemed person.
And it is inseparable from love.

The Church was never meant to be known for compromise or cold religion. It was meant to be known by a love that obeys.

“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.”
— 1 John 5:3

The love of God does not cancel the Word of God—it confirms it. It doesn’t reject commands; it makes them possible. Only a transformed heart can fulfill what God requires. That transformation is the work of His Spirit, not our self-discipline.

We don’t love God by dismissing His boundaries.
We love Him by walking in His ways.

“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”
— John 14:15

These are the words of Jesus—not to enslave, but to awaken.
Holiness is not just abstaining from evil.
It is the pursuit of what is beautiful in God’s sight.

The early Church knew this. They rejected the world’s pleasures not out of pride, but out of devotion. They separated themselves from idolatry, immorality, and deceit—not because they were better, but because they had been born again.

Their love for God was visible in their choices.
Their desire for holiness was rooted in the cross.
They did not earn salvation—they walked in the salvation they had received.

The Didache (c. AD 50–100):
“There are two ways: one of life, and one of death… and this is the way of life: First, you shall love God who made you. Second, your neighbor as yourself… and whatsoever you do, do it in holiness and in the fear of God.”
— Didache, Chapters 1–3

The love of God is not just a message to receive.
It is a life to be lived.

And if it is truly in us, we will hate what is evil and cling to what is good (Romans 12:9).
We will set aside every sin that entangles, because we have seen something better.
And we will walk in a purity that comes not from self-effort, but from surrender.

“Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.”
— Hebrews 12:14

The Church today must remember what the Church once knew:
God’s love is holy.
It does not excuse sin—it delivers from it.
It does not affirm rebellion—it calls us into restoration.
It is not lawless—it is loyal to the heart of God.

To love Him is to walk as He walked.
To belong to Him is to be set apart.
And to be set apart is not to withdraw in pride—but to shine in purity.

We are not called to reflect the world.
We are called to reflect Christ.

Sources & References

Love in Holiness: Set Apart by Love, Not Lawlessness

Scripture (NASB 1995):

  • 1 Peter 1:15–16 – “Be holy, for I am holy.”
  • 1 John 5:3 – “This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments…”
  • John 14:15 – “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”
  • Romans 12:9 – “Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.”
  • Hebrews 12:14 – “Pursue sanctification, without which no one will see the Lord.”

Ante-Nicene Source:

  • The Didache, Chapters 1–3.
    “There are two ways: one of life, and one of death… and whatsoever you do, do it in holiness…”
    [Available at: EarlyChristianWritings.com/didache.html]
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Kingdom Discipleship, Kingdom Living

The King Will Return

Rooted & Raised

And Every Eye Will See Him

The return of Jesus is not symbolic, secret, or spiritualized—it is literal, visible, and global. Just as He ascended in the clouds, He will descend in power and glory. This is the climactic moment all of history moves toward.

“Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him…”
— Revelation 1:7

His Return Will Not Be Hidden

“This same Jesus… will come in the same way as you saw Him go into heaven.”
— Acts 1:11

Jesus will not return in secret. He will return as King of kings and Judge of all, visible to all peoples, tribes, and nations. The early Church never doubted this—they declared it with certainty and hope.

“He shall come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.”
— Apostles’ Creed

The Resurrection and the Gathering of the Saints

“The dead in Christ will rise first… then we who are alive… will be caught up together with them in the clouds…”
— 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17

This is the blessed reunion of the Bride and Bridegroom. Not mythology. Not metaphor. This is the long-awaited day when Christ returns for His own.

Every Knee Will Bow, Willingly or Not

“At the name of Jesus every knee should bow… and every tongue confess…”
— Philippians 2:10–11

For some, it will be joy. For others, dread. The difference lies in whether we knew Him as Savior or rejected Him as Lord.

The Early Church Lived for This Day

“Let us not grow weary, for He will soon appear.”
— Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 23

They didn’t speculate on the timing—they lived in readiness. They looked to the sky, not in fear, but in faith. Their hearts were anchored in the certainty that the King was coming.

What We Can Learn

  1. Jesus will return visibly, gloriously, and victoriously.
  2. All people will see Him—and respond with either joy or fear.
  3. The resurrection and gathering will be real and glorious.
  4. Readiness means living with our eyes and hearts lifted.

Sources:

  • The Holy Bible — Revelation 1:7; Acts 1:9–11; 1 Thessalonians 4:16–18; Matthew 24:27–31; Philippians 2:10–11
  • Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 23
  • Apostles’ Creed
  • Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Trallians
  • Didache, ch. 16
2–3 minutes
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Devotions, Family Devotionals

🏡 Kingdom Family Devotional — Day 52

Rooted & Raised

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth… but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.”

— Matthew 6:19–20 NASB1995

💼 A Family That Invests in Eternity

Jesus tells us that earthly treasures don’t last—but heavenly ones do. A Kingdom family learns to value generosity, compassion, and righteousness more than stuff.

What we model as parents teaches our children what truly matters.

🕯 A Mother’s Role

Lead by example. Let your children see you give, serve, and invest in things that matter to God. Speak often of eternal rewards, not just earthly achievements.

📖 Talk About It:

  • What do we treasure as a family?
  • How can we give more to others and focus on heaven this week?

🪡 Kingdom Practice

Pick one item to give away this week as a family—to someone in need or as a surprise gift. Talk about how giving builds eternal treasure.

✍️ Prayer:

Lord, help our family value what You value. Teach us to invest in heaven through love, generosity, and faithfulness. Amen.

Devotions, Teen Devotions

😎 Kingdom Teen Devotional — Day 52

Rooted & Raised

“Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven… for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

— Matthew 6:20–21 NASB1995

🚀 What You Chase Reveals Your Heart

Jesus isn’t against savings accounts—He’s warning us about misplaced priorities. What you chase shows what you value. Kingdom teens invest in what matters: truth, people, and eternity.

You can’t carry earthly treasure into heaven, but you can send it ahead.

🖊 Real Talk:

  • What gets more of your attention: God or stuff?
  • What would it look like to store up eternal treasure this week?

✨ Try This:

Give something valuable (time, attention, generosity) this week that costs you something. Let it build treasure in heaven.

✍️ Prayer:

Lord, redirect my heart. I want to live for what matters to You, not for what fades. Amen.