- I said, ‘Surely you will fear me; you will accept correction. Then your dwelling would not be cut off according to all that I have appointed against you.’ But all the more they were eager to make all their deeds corrupt. Zephaniah 3:7 – God was watching over Jerusalem and was seeing how far into sin they had gotten. His people stopped listening to Him, stopped accepting correction from Him, and even stopped drawing near to Him even though He was seeking nearness with them. To get His people’s attention, the Lord displayed His power over the surrounding nations, hoping they’d learn how God handled nations that refuse to repent of their sin. Yet instead of responding in their own repentance after seeing God’s wrath on other nations, God’s people sought to make their deeds even more corrupt. How do you respond when you see the Lord begin to bring justice to the sin in the world around you? When people face the consequence of their action, does that steer you away from your own sinfulness? In the case of Zephaniah’s hearers, they saw God bring judgement on other’s sins and chose to go deeper into their own sin. How about you? The Lord’s desire is that you’d repent of your sin, and as you see the consequences of those who refuse to repent that it would push you to your own repentance even harder. God does not enjoy bringing His wrath, but He will. Let’s offer Him a heart that responds faithfully to His leading and turns from the sin that is hurting us. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 3318
- The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17 – When looking into this verse it seemed many wanted to focus on the first part, the part where God is this mighty one who will save us. As beautiful as that truth is the phrase “he will quiet you by his love” is the one that stood out to me. It means that He in His great love for us isn’t going to make any mention of our past sins and has no plans to bring them up against us. Instead He allows us to quietly settle into His arms knowing He isn’t going to suddenly push us away. Yes we need to see God as a mighty warrior, but also see God as the loving father who is holding you close to Himself quieting every cry by his embrace and love. Move freely then in your walk with God today knowing He suddenly isn’t going to bring up your past and push you away. His heart is to free you from the weight of shame, not add to it. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1556
- At that time I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” says the Lord. Zephaniah 3:20 – This is what God desires for His people. To take who they are and bring them into all they can be in Him. For His people who this message was given to they we scattered from their home because of their enemies and a people looked down on by the people groups around them. Scattered and shameful were the labels they carried, yet God’s promise here was to rewrite those labels for all to see to now home and honored. God’s desire is to bring you into what you could be in Him. He wants to help you live free from sin, shameless, strong, fearless, and fully loved. Know then when He moves, even when those moves are confusing to us, this is the direction those moves are seeking to take you. Not to your demise but to your best life. God has so many desires for you and His heart is to lead you into them. Be open then to His guiding and be willing to walk faithfully after Him even in the seasons where the steps are unclear. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2107
Daily DEVO 