Life is a Test...: Hope in a Confusing World

By S. R. Watkins

365 days of inspiration, wisdom, comfort and life-challenging questions. We live in difficult and trying times. The world is in turmoil and getting worse. This daily devotional will give you direction about navigating through life. In a thought-provoking way, the author gives you the truth about the only person who does have the answer to the wo

• Language: English
• Publisher: New Start Ministries
• Release date: Oct 25, 2022
• ISBN: 9781738756605

S. R. Watkins

In addition to being a self-employed entrepreneur for 40+ years, Dr. Watkins is a consultant, teacher, pastor and an Apostle to the nations, teaching in Canada, the USA and Rwanda. His "life learn skills" have been added to the Bible's wisdom which created 365 short daily messages filled with Bible verses, practical guidance and common sense. Reading just five minutes a day will give you insight into the mysteries of life! You will be a different person in weeks!

Book preview

If you have not already noticed, you will see that I always refer to Holy Spirit as Holy Spirit; I never refer to Him as the Holy Spirit. That is because Holy Spirit is not a thing or an it; Holy Spirit is a person - part of the Trinity of God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). I do not believe that referring to Holy Spirit as the fits the person of God that Holy Spirit exemplifies.

One of the things I've learned about book publishing is that selling books is all about marketing, and the best form of marketing is word of mouth which comes from reviews and endorsements. If you enjoy this book of wisdom, I would very much appreciate it if you could go to Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Chapters/Indigo, and write a review. If you desire, an endorsement emailed to me would be greatly appreciated. A review on Goodreads is appreciated as well.

In some instances, I may have repeated myself in this book. The theme yes, but the wording, no, as I have used different examples and Scriptures to make the point. Why repeat them? Because some things are just too important and need to be heard again, and again, and again… Learning the Bible is a life-long, revelational journey.

On the 15th of each month, I will introduce you to God’s calendar month. Why am I teaching God’s calendar? Biblically, months are critical. The ancient Jews recognized that every month was a new prophetic season. Every month has its own meaning, and the purpose is to move forward in God’s plan. Therefore, understanding the month helps us stay in touch with God and we can receive His blessings by aligning ourselves with His cycle (calendar/timing). Is it wrong not to honour God’s months? No, but you can miss out on His blessings because you’re out of His timing. Each month I will refer to a stone/mineral that aligns itself with the tribe for that month and also a constellation in the sky. My editor was concerned that these subjects might be mistaken for new age or astrology and suggested that I explain the difference.

According to the Canadian Oxford dictionary, astrology is the study of the movements and relative positions of celestial bodies interpreted as an influence on human affairs. This is part of the New Age phenomenon, where the skies, the moon and the stars influence human behaviour. Nothing could be further from the truth! Conversely, astronomy is the study of the universe and its contents beyond the bounds of the earth’s atmosphere. When God created the heavens, one purpose of the sun, moon and stars was to serve as signs to mark time - the seasons, days and years. He gave us this in His calendar in Gen. 1:14. The stars even sing to God! (Job 37:8) Use this site to download God’s calendar to your computer calendar. www.heb.cal.com (and it is free)!

Please look at my website. You will find many free things like blogs, Bible studies, sermons, videos, book suggestions etc.

Finally, please enjoy this book of wisdom and insight! May God shield you from all works of the enemy as you read, study, and grow towards Him (Eph. 6:10-18).

Doc

[e-mail]

Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?

(Gal. 4:16 NIV)

Dedication

I dedicate this book to my closest friend, Larry Dayment.

Larry owns one of the best and biggest cattle ranches in Southern Alberta. Our backgrounds are entirely different, and we have nothing in common from an agricultural perspective! However, Larry and I can sit at the kitchen table with a bottle of good scotch and solve all the world's problems in a matter of a few hours; if folks would just listen to us! Larry, you are the most patient man and one of the most intelligent and educated men I’ve ever met. You have always been there for me, especially in my desperate times. Thank you.

lifeisatest.eps

January

1

It is Time to Advance.

No matter how you look at life, there’s a time when you need to pull up your socks and move forward to advance yourself in the Kingdom of God. No better time than the first of the year! Review your life and note how far you’ve come in the last year. God is always speaking to you about your destiny. Hopefully, you’ve been making notes through-out the past year about your next steps in life. If you have not, start this year! Set aside time each week when you spend at least an hour or so with Him. Talk to Him, listen to Him, and journal.

January is an excellent month to fast and listen to the Lord for what He wants to do with your life in this next Roman Calendar year. Break free from the things that have kept you captive and in bondage in the last year, and like Lot’s wife, do not look back! (see Gen. 19) Make a list of the bad stuff - your sinful behaviour and situations you handled poorly and take a stand. Draw a line in the sand and commit to making changes and improvements in your life. The past is over; leave it there; forgive your-self and move on.

Doc’s Book Club: Read Redeeming the Time; Get Your Life Back on Track with the God of Second Opportunities by Dr. Chuck D. Pierce.

Life is a test...  What is God saying to you for this new year?

lifeisatest.eps

January

2

What is Trust?

According to Merriam-Webster, it is assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something. One of the most complex and challenging parts of being a Christian is learning to trust God. It goes hand-in-hand with the word thankfulness, and the truth is that trust and thankfulness together will get you safely through the day. If you are focussed on trusting God, then you’re not focused on fussing about all the details of life and worrying about things that

probably aren’t going to happen anyway. Thankfulness keeps you from whining and complaining. My experience in life is that the more a

person has an indignant attitude, the more they complain. How do we do this - be thankful and trust God? It’s a tall order.

The solution is to keep our eyes focused on Him, an exercise in faith. It is a decision and a free choice we must make many times a day. The good news is that the more we do it, the easier it becomes. Thought patterns of trust become engrained into the psyche of our brain. Learn to trust God in everything, but trust and gratitude do take practice.

In time it becomes second nature to fall into a state of trust and faithfulness rather than old habits of fear, worry and ungratefulness.

But I trust in you, Lord; I say, ‘You are my God.’ (Ps. 31:14)

"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live

your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. (Col. 2:6-7)

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

(1 Peter 5:7)

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own under

standing." (Prov. 3:5)

Life is a test...  Can you trust God?

lifeisatest.eps

January

3

How Valuable Are You? (Part 1 of 3)

We are everything to God! Why wouldn’t we be? He created us. Perhaps one of our most significant problems in life is that we do not realize how incredibly valuable we are in the eyes of God. We need to focus more on how God sees us than how we see ourselves. If we don’t, we can go through life making many avoidable mistakes relating to our identities. We are like a person who is the legal owner of a vast fortune that sells it off for something less than its actual worth for alcohol, Illicit sex, drugs, lust for things etc. Maybe it’s pride, prestige and fame in the entertainment industry or a particular high office in the church. However, nothing compares to the value of our God-ordained and God-centered inheritance, which we receive in exchange for our sins.

God wants to move in His power in our lives. He wants us to be more successful, healthier, and a blessing to others while learning more about Him and ourselves. We are to learn how to be soldiers in a battle that has been forced upon us (i.e., the war with satan, which we win if we fight)! as we enter the training camp of the greatest teacher and helper that ever lived - Holy Spirit. What’s the obstacle? Our desire to be independent (I can do it!) instead of being dependent upon Him.

Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. (3 John 1:2)

Life is a test...  Are you independent from Him or dependent on Him?

lifeisatest.eps

How Valuable Are You? (Part 2 of 3)

In the Garden of Eden, satan said to Eve, ...you will be like God, knowing good and evil.... (Gen. 3:5). Who would not want that? What was the real root of the lie? The promise of independence. Once you know good and evil, you have a choice to make, and you can choose either, and that ability to choose is called independence.

The Greeks were the first to exercise their choice thinking that the solution to life’s problems was knowledge and science. This explosion of science has not solved humanity’s most fundamental issues like injustice, war, poverty, and disease; the world is in a bigger mess than ever before (who will forget 2020 and 2021)! Man has tried various religions with established laws and systems of worship so complex that there is no need for God. Just obey the rules! They are all the same if you study Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, etc. It’s about some-thing you must do to get from some deity. Christianity is not a religion, but a relationship based upon grace. All you need to do is confess, surrender, and then receive. Another way that man seeks indepen-dence from God is by attempting to get rich with material possessions and control. It is about pride and power. I can do it; I am a self-made man! Right...

Worldly people basically consist of all those who have decided to be independent and not submit themselves to the authority of God’s appointed King - the Lord Jesus Christ. It takes much more strength to humble and submit yourself to Jesus Christ than taking pride in yourself and becoming a self-made man.

Life is a test...  Are you self-made or God-made?

January

4

lifeisatest.eps

January

5

How Valuable Are You? (Part 3 of 3)

To become followers of Jesus, we must make sure that our sins are forgiven by true repentance and faith. Secondly, we must pronounce the sentence of death over our rebellious and independent egos. Jesus said this quite well in Luke 14:33: In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.

The bottom line? We must give it all up, folks - family, friends, money, career, prestige, honour - all of life. It’s not our life anyway; it’s His to do with as He pleases since He created us. We are not owners of

anything; we are stewards of His possessions. He owns everything

(Ps. 50:10). We are stewards of our bodies, which He created (temples of Holy Spirit - 1 Cor. 6:19). Every breath that you take is because of Him. Once we genuinely renounce all these worldly things, God may choose to return any of these things that fit the purpose He has and the plans for our lives. ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’ (Jer. 29:11) Our dependence then is solely on God.

Sometimes it may take a crisis, even a disaster, to bring us to a place where we fully realize that we need God. As the expression goes, there are no atheists in a foxhole. In Acts 27:20, the Apostle Paul said that all hope had been given up. Was this the purpose of Paul’s trials? To bring him to a place where he had no hope left? Now, Paul would have nothing to hope for except God Himself. That was when he proved that God is all-sufficient because God brings us to a place of total reliance and dependence upon Him to demonstrate that He is truly dependable.

Life is a test... Have you surrendered? It is a daily event.

lifeisatest.eps

January

6

In the Doldrums?

If we allow the doldrums to get us down, life can be mundane, but it doesn’t have to be. Too many people fall into the same old, same old trap. They have the same job (which they dislike) and lifestyle - nothing new or exciting. Or they could be trapped in addictions without knowing it (including video games, addictive sports/hobbies, con-stantly checking their phone etc.) Inside, many people are longing for something new, different, challenging, and adventuresome…

However, life is often what we make of it, and it does not have to be anything like the previous paragraph. Every day can be an adventure if we take the time to listen to His voice and follow Him. Life is not dull with God, even through the hard times. He is there with care, comfort and ideas to overcome every obstacle. The good times are there, too, for He desires to activate us in our Giftings, and our gifts are always something we like to do and are good at. Praying and obeying leads to a life of Holy excitement and fullness of