House and Castle

Prayer of the Day!
Dear God, thank You for this day. You know the anxious thoughts that sometimes overwhelm me. You know what’s been keeping me up each night. I ask for Your peace to calm my mind and heart. Help me to release my worries and focus on Your presence.....
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Devotional by Zach Fontaine
MONDAY OCTOBER 28

THE MILLION-DOLLAR QUESTION
“Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?” Matthew 18:33 (NLT)

Let’s pretend you owed someone millions of dollars and had absolutely no way to pay it back. What if that person told you, “I’ve decided to forgive your debt. Your slate is clean with me”? Imagine the excitement and incredible relief you’d feel, knowing you’d been forgiven for a debt you could never repay. Yet, while we enjoy being forgiven by God, often many of us don’t extend the same forgiveness to others.

We can be like the servant Jesus talked about in Matthew chapter 18, who begged his king for patience to repay a debt. The king, filled with compassion and pity, chose to forgive his servant’s massive debt. But what did the forgiven servant do next? He went to a fellow servant who owed him a relatively puny amount and demanded instant payment. And when his fellow servant begged for patience and mercy, the first servant had him thrown in jail! When the king heard about the forgiven servant’s actions, he called the servant evil and had him thrown in prison too.

Now, this was Jesus’ teaching under the old covenant. Don’t misunderstand this parable and think we serve an unloving, unforgiving God. We live under the new covenant, and as believers in Christ, we are fully forgiven.

So, why did the king call his servant evil? Because the servant didn’t choose to forgive. As believers, we are to forgive because our King has already forgiven us. Have you been withholding forgiveness from someone? Reflect on God’s incredible forgiveness toward you… and then choose to extend the same forgiveness to them.

If you'd like to give your life to Christ, click here.

Prayer of the Day:
Father God, as I start out my day this Sunday. I ask for the precious blood of Jesus to cover my family and me. That no scheme or plan of the enemy would come near us and that you O’ Lord would place a hedge of protection around about us.......

Devotional by Zach Fontaine
SATURDAY OCTOBER 26

NEED HELP FORGIVING?
“This is the reason I urge you to boldly believe for whatever you ask for in prayer—be convinced that you have received it and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24 (TPT)

Forgiveness and faith go hand-in-hand. In fact, your faith won’t work properly without forgiveness.

For example, we need faith to experience God’s forgiveness and grow in our relationship with Him. Now, when I say “experience God’s forgiveness,” I don’t mean that God’s forgiveness of our sins hinges on our ability to forgive others; that’s old covenant doctrine. I’m saying it takes faith in what Jesus did for us to enjoy His forgiveness and walk in that amazing freedom.

It also takes faith to believe we’ve received something we haven’t felt or experienced yet. Often, we stand in faith on today’s verse when it comes to getting a particular job or physical healing, but did you know it also applies to forgiveness? It’s an act of faith to believe you can forgive someone who has wronged you.

Now, I know how hard it is to move past what someone has done to you and say, “I forgive you.” But for believers, forgiveness is not an option; it’s a must. However, it isn’t to excuse someone else’s behaviour or “let them off the hook.” It’s for our benefit so that nothing keeps us from moving forward in our relationship with God and every other area of our life.

If you struggle with past offences done to you, don’t worry; God doesn’t leave you trying to forgive in your own strength. Ask Him to help you let it go. Even if you don’t know how it’s possible, stand in faith that it is. After all, everything is possible with God—including forgiving someone else.

If you'd like to give your life to Christ, click here.

Prayer of the Day:
For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and self-discipline. – 2 Timothy 1:7
Lord, this Wednesday morning I ask that I would not walk in fear......