Daily Reflections: 365 Powerful Devotions for Stronger Faith Every Day

Daily Reflections

365 Powerful Devotions for

Stronger Faith Every Day

––––––––

by

Chris Cree

DAILY REFLECTIONS: 365 Powerful Devotions for Stronger Faith Every Day

Copyright © 2021 by Chris Cree

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Published by SuccessCREEations, LLC

Unless otherwise marked, Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked with (NKJV) are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (WEB) are taken from the World English Bible, which is a Public Domain (no copyright) Modern English translation of the Holy Bible.

Scripture quotations marked (MEV) are taken from the Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (HCSB) are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.®

Scripture quotations marked (AMP) are taken from the Amplified Bible, Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (AMPC) are taken from the Amplified Bible Classic Edition, Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) are taken from the King James Version, which is a Public Domain (no copyright) translation of the Holy Bible.

Scripture quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

To the busy believer who desperately needs a dose of encouragement today.

The path to relief from all the stress and worry of life is found when our focused attention is on Jesus.

It is my prayer that these brief daily devotions will fit into your schedule and reinforce a habit of looking to Jesus every day throughout the next year as you receive the very best that God promises to provide for your life.

CONTENTS

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Contents

Introduction

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

About the Author

More by Chris

Introduction

This Daily Reflections devotional grew out of my own personal time in the mornings with the Lord. Most mornings I grab a cup of coffee and sit down with my laptop open to my Bible app and ask the Lord what He wants to show me.

I started sharing these reflections on social media and then later offered them via our free email devotional through our NewCREEations.org website. As I type this, we’ve sent out one of our short devotions every day to thousands of subscribers for three years now.

Every month we receive feedback from believers around the world letting us know how much God encourages them through these short devotions. Over the years there have been many requests to publish our devotions in a book format.

If you are incredibly busy, you are not alone. A great many believers have more on their plates than they can keep up with. I fully appreciate that.

That’s why I keep these devotions relatively short. You will be able to read many of them in about a minute. The real value is not in that minute alone, but in those moments throughout your day when you reflect back on what you read in that minute. We’ve deliberately left plenty of white space on the pages to give you room to write notes on what you hear God saying to your own heart.

And I do encourage you to jot down notes. Time with God is a very personal experience. You will do well to make this book your own by writing down your own thoughts and what you hear from God.

In truth, you should expect God to speak to you each day through what you read, especially in those later moments as you reflect back on each devotion. And know this. One word from God coming alive in your heart can change the course of your life forever!

It is my prayer that what you read in this book each day will encourage your soul and bless you with insight and revelation into God’s amazing goodness.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. — Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)

January

Do not remember the former things,

Nor consider the things of old.

Behold, I will do a new thing,

Now it shall spring forth;

Shall you not know it?

I will even make a road in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43:18-19 (NKJV)

January 1st

The first day of a new year is always a good time to consider our direction and priorities. As always, we should prioritize the things of God as we look to experience His best in our lives. The Lord is the only true source of help in your time of need. Seeking the things of His Kingdom before we move onto other priorities will ensure all the other stuff of life gets sorted much better than if we look to the stuff first instead. God has an open hand, ready with every provision you need to accomplish mighty exploits this year. Will you receive it?

Renew your focus on the Kingdom of God and His ways. Trust Him to direct your path, to supply every provision you need, and to bring about divine connections which will propel you further and faster than you ever dared to go before. Open your own hand to receive the very best He has to offer you. God is able to accomplish infinitely more than you can ask or think!

I will lift up my eyes to the hills,

from where does my help come?

My help comes from the Lord,

who made heaven and earth.

— Psalms 121:1-2 (MEV)

January 2nd

Through Jesus, God did something totally new and radically different. When you decided to follow Jesus you became a brand new creation, something that had never existed before throughout human history. You are so completely different in nature than you were before you believed in Jesus, that it's like you were born again and starting life over. Part of that process involves God clearing a road so you can pass through whatever wilderness you might find yourself in. He brings forth rivers of living water from your spirit within you to satisfy your deepest thirst. God is doing a new thing. Do you perceive it? Do you believe it? Will you acknowledge it and act on it in faith?

Behold, I will do a new thing,

Now it shall spring forth;

Shall you not know it?

I will even make a road in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert.

— Isaiah 43:19 (NKJV)

January 3rd

Something pretty amazing happens when we receive Jesus, believe in Him, and are born again. At that moment we are grafted into God's very own family. And we're not distant cousins either. We become true sons and daughters of God Himself, just like Jesus is. That makes Jesus our brother. You are a member of God's royal family, directly related to the Father of all. The King of kings is your brother! As you go through your day, think about the privileges and responsibilities that come with that truth of your own royal status.

But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become God’s children, to those who believe in his name.

— John 1:12 (WEB)

January 4th

Jesus said that God is looking for true worshipers who will worship Him in both spirit and truth. To make sure we didn't miss that point He immediately said it again. True worshipers must worship God both in spirit and truth. All truth and no spirit makes a person harsh, judgmental, critical, and mean. All spirit and no truth causes a person to drift off into all sorts of unscriptural kookooluna weirdness. We must be strong both in the truth and in the spirit if we are to worship God the way He intends us to worship Him. When we are balanced in that way, we experience God's best in our lives. If you lean heavily to one side or the other, then why not ask God to show you how to grow more in the other area today?

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.

— John 4:24 (WEB)

January 5th

Jesus said that eternal life is knowing God intimately (John 17:3). God offers this as a free gift to as many as will receive it. A gift must be received freely to truly be a gift. The moment pressure, manipulation, or control come into the process it ceases to be a gift by definition. True gifts are not forced unwillingly on their recipients. That is called obligation. It means you have a decision to make. Will you accept or reject this gift of eternal life that God offers to you? Why not accept His offer to get to know Him personally and intimately? It's a gift with benefits you can continue to enjoy for the rest of your life and on into eternity.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

— Romans 6:23 (WEB)

January 6th

Jesus was very different from other rabbis of His day. At that time rabbis were sought out by men who asked if they could sit at the rabbi's feet and learn from him. But Jesus chose His disciples and told them, Come, follow me. Jesus was very clear that He chose us. It's not a case of us choosing Him. Not only did Jesus choose you, but He did so with a specific purpose in mind — that you bear fruit. Jesus said your fruit should remain, and that when your fruit remains it glorifies the Father. He also told us what that fruit is. Seeing your prayers answered by God is this fruit that Jesus talked about. God answering your prayers brings glory to Him and is the lasting fruit that Jesus specifically said He appointed you to bear. The more specific you get with your prayers, the more glory God gets when He answers them. Think about that when you pray in the days to come.

You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.

— John 15:16 (NKJV)

January 7th

Jesus said that the Father will be glorified when He answers our prayers. The more specific we are in our prayers, the more God is glorified when He answers them. If you just pray that God will provide a house for you to live in when you move to a new city, people can say that everyone finds a  place to live when they move to a new city. In that case God gets very little glory. But if you have a list of 27 things you are believing for in the house you ask God to provide for you in that new city, and the house you end up in has every one of those things, then God gets much more glory! The key is understanding that God answers our prayers solely because of what Jesus did on our behalf and not expecting Him to answer our prayers because we deserve it in ourselves apart from Jesus.

Whatever you will ask in my name, I will do it, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

— John 14:13 (WEB)

January 8th

God is 100% and in all ways for you. He has good plans for you and for your life. That is perhaps the biggest truth of all. You must grasp ahold of this truth and get a powerful revelation of it in your heart. God is for you. God is NOT doing any bad stuff in your life. Instead it's the enemy, the devil, who is trying to steal from you, kill you, and destroy you. But here's the thing. God is so much infinitely more than the enemy, in every possible way. And He's just as much more than anyone or anything else for that matter. Therefore, what difference does it make who is against you? God is for you. Everyone and everything that could possibly be against you is a trivial nothing compared to God. So stop worrying about who or what is against you. Focus on the God who created the universe with His word, who is for you, and walk in victory!

What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

— Romans 8:31 (WEB)

January 9th

Jesus said the way to enter the Kingdom of God is by being born again. Jesus also said this new birth involves being born of water and of the Spirit. He was alluding to the two baptisms found in the New Testament. Water baptism is an outward public expression of the inward reality that happens in a believer's life when they commit to following Jesus. In truth, your old man died with Jesus on the cross, was buried with Him in the tomb, and was resurrected as an entirely new creation the moment you believed in Jesus. Now you are spiritually alive because you are connected to the true spiritual source of life, God himself. All that old junk and ungodly behavior that made up your identity before Christ is not who you are anymore. Now you are a new creation, every bit as righteous and holy as Jesus is. You were a sinner. That was the core of your very nature. Then you were saved by grace. Even though you still sin, that sin no longer defines who you are. Instead, now you are an entirely new kind of creature called a saint. In Christ you have been consecrated to God and are now a member of His royal priesthood of believers. God has put the power to live this set-apart life within you because sin no longer can control you without your consent.

Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

— John 3:3 (NKJV)

January 10th

Whether you realize it or not, God has an active interest in your life because He genuinely loves you. Proverbs tells us that our steps are established by the Lord. He orders our steps to line them up with the plans He has to prosper us, to give us a hope and a future. The question is this. Will you cooperate with what God is working in your life? Or will you instead fight Him all along the way? Hearing God, agreeing with Him, and adjusting to come into line with what He says will give you strength and courage when you need it most. Not only will it change the way others perceive you, but it will also change the impact you have in this world. The choice is yours. Enjoy a life of significance and fulfillment in agreement with God, or endure a life of quiet desperation resisting Him.

A man’s steps are established by the Lord, and He takes pleasure in his way.

— Psalms 37:23 (HCSB)

January 11th

Some people think if they just see a big enough miracle that's all it will take for them to believe in God. Others search the depths of knowledge and wisdom of famous philosophers. But God won't be found there either. Instead, God made the way to Himself through the simple gospel of Jesus Christ. The simplicity of this perfect wisdom of God trips up those looking for a miraculous sign, while at the same time is dismissed as foolish by those trying to think their way to enlightenment. Both groups are looking for something big and totally miss God in the process. But this simple gospel that the world dismisses as foolishness is far wiser than any human wisdom. Likewise, the truth of God that the world dismisses as weakness is far stronger than any human strength could ever be.

Because God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.

— 1 Corinthians 1:25 (HCSB)

January 12th

You are an ambassador for Jesus everywhere you go. This is a serious responsibility. An ambassador is the most senior representative of a government in another country. The ambassador speaks on behalf of the head of his government back home. And the ambassador implements the instructions from his own government back home too. The Bible says that you have this role and title representing Jesus to a lost and dying world. You have a responsibility to share the good news that God has already reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ. And you can therefore encourage folks to be reconciled to God by believing in Jesus, now that God has done His part.

We are therefore ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating by us: we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

— 2 Corinthians 5:20 (WEB)

January 13th

James tells us that when we resist the devil, he will flee from us. Jesus gives us the best example of what it means to resist the devil. The single biggest attack of the enemy is to deceive you about your true identity. He wants you to buy into the lie of how the world sees you. Like Jesus, you will resist the devil when you recount what the Bible has to say about your relationship with God and who you now are in Christ. Satan is happy for you to rail against every sin under the sun as long as he can keep you in the dark about your true identity. Think about it. If preaching against ungodly behavior was what James meant by this, then why do the ungodly flock to argue with all those preachy Facebook posts? If the devil is not fleeing from you, perhaps you are not resisting him in the right way.

Therefore submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

— James 4:7 (MEV)

January 14th

The Kingdom of God will not just drop into your lap. Jesus said it takes passion and the willingness to press into God's Kingdom in order to see its benefits in your life. Seek first the Kingdom of God, then all these things will be added to you. Jesus said that once John the Baptist came on the scene preaching with the power of the Holy Spirit, people were willing to overcome big obstacles to hear him. Since that time passionate people have pressed in to receive and experience the Kingdom of God. Jesus compared it to a battle where violent people take the things of God and enter into His Kingdom by force. How determined are you to experience God's best? What obstacles and excuses are you willing to push aside so that you can lay hold of everything God has made available to you?

And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.

— Matthew 11:12 (NKJV)

January 15th

Do you know that, as one of His followers, you already have all the exact same glory that Jesus had? It's true. Jesus gave it to you. He said so. That means He gave you all the ability to do the things that He did when He walked the earth. You have all the wisdom Jesus had to deal with difficult situations and people, and all the kindness He showed to others. You share all the love and compassion Jesus displayed for those around Him. Every bit of the miracle working power Jesus displayed to heal the sick, turn water into wine, multiply food, walk on water, and even raise the dead is already inside you just waiting to be released. When you walk in the spirit and do the things that Jesus did, people will notice you. That's supposed to happen because Jesus gave you His glory. Attempting to minimize or deflect that attention is false humility. You are glorious! Jesus said so. Accept the glory that Jesus gave you.

The glory which you have given me, I have given to them; that they may be one, even as we are one.

— John 17:22 (WEB)

January 16th

Jesus made it very simple to determine who is behind stuff that happens in this world. If it's bad it comes from the enemy because the enemy's sole purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy. God brings life. In fact Jesus said that He Himself came that we might have life more abundantly. That Greek word Jesus used which is translated abundantly refers to both quantity and quality. He means for us to have life beyond measure, far more than is necessary. Plus that life Jesus offers is also superior quality, excessive even. So you can stop blaming God when bad stuff happens, or when the next natural disaster occurs. That's really just the enemy doing his thing. Instead, you can experience more of that superabundant life through Jesus now that you know He made it available to you.

The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.

— John 10:10 (WEB)

January 17th

Both the examples we follow and the example we set for others have a massive impact on our world. We all learn from others. Discipleship and the mentoring process are supposed to be a core part of our Christian walk. That means we need to have godly examples in front of us who challenge us to grow more Christlike in our spiritual