Words Of Inspiration: A Weekly Devotional

By Nick Brooks

Hi, my name is Nick Brooks; and to start, I would like to thank you for reading this devotional. It all began when I was working at a fabrication facility as a welding inspector. I had the responsibility of speaking about quality topics at the weekly safety meeting. I had not been saved very long, so I was very zealous for the Lord, and I began to testify and just say something about Jesus during the meeting each week. Everything was going great; everyone at work started getting curious about God and started asking questions. Many of them I did not know the answer to, but that gave me a chance to look up the answer in my Bible and learn God's Word for myself! Then one day, during a safety meeting, the foreman didn't give me an opportunity to speak! I was devastated. I didn't know why he didn't let me speak! I was determined not to let that stop me. My coworkers had started looking forward to me speaking and had started asking me what I would be speaking on the following week! THEY HAD BECOME HUNGRY FOR THE WORD! So I wrote down what I was going to say, made copies, and passed them out to everyone. Everybody complimented me on it so much, and at that time, I felt led by the Spirit to begin a new adventure in my life. During all my free time, I was studying my Bible and praying, asking God for guidance and direction, and to let the Holy Spirit use my hand to write the words that He would have these people to read each week! Every week, I typed and printed a devotional that was inspired by God. Sometimes I had to dig in the Word all week long just to complete a two-page devotion. Then at other times, it felt like the Holy Spirit took over and a four-page devotion was finished within just a few hours. Either way, the Lord had guided me in the writing of each one of these devotions, and I pray that they will bless each one that reads them! I pray that they inspire each one of you to give the Lord Jesus Christ praise, honor, and glory!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 21, 2018
• ISBN: 9781641408868

Nick Brooks

Nick Brooks is an author and award-winning filmmaker from Washington, DC, Promise Boys is his first YA debut. He is a 2020 graduate of USC's TV and Film Production program. His short film, Hoop Dreamin', earned him the George Lucas Scholar Award and was a finalist in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Film Fest. He is currently in development for his first feature film, We Were Born Kings, with Mandalay Pictures. Before becoming a filmmaker, Nick was an educator working with at-risk youth and many of his stories are coloured by his experiences with the children and families of his community.

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Return to the Lord

Dear friends and coworkers,

In this week’s letter, we will talk about the mercy of the Lord if you will only turn to Him or for the backslider, to RETURN TO HIM ! Those that have fallen away or those that have never known God will not receive His mercy unless they find Salvation through Jesus Christ.

Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep anger for ever. Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord. Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. (Jer. 3:12­–15)

A voice was heard upon the high places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel: for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the Lord their God. Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the Lord our God. Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel. (Jer. 3:21–23)

Here, Jeremiah is prophesying to the Israelites while in captivity in Babylon. God is speaking through Jeremiah to tell the people to turn from their evil ways such as idolatry, which was very common then and is common today. He says that if they will return to Him, He will forgive them (or be merciful). God tells them in verse 22 that He will heal their backsliding, or in other words, He will help them change their ways from evil to righteous but only if they return to Him. All of this applies to us today since everything God has promised the Jews is a promise to us (the gentiles) through Jesus Christ. We are given this promise in Galatians 3:26–29, "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise."

We are the children of God if we believe in Jesus Christ. Verse 28 tells us that we are all one in Christ Jesus. Then in verse 29, we are told that if we belong to Jesus, then we are also the seed of Abraham. Therefore, we inherit the promise God made to Abraham. My study Bible says, The original covenant with Abraham was intended for the whole world, not just his descendants. All believers partake of this covenant and are blessed as children of Abraham.

The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself. (Prov. 14:14)

In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. (Prov. 14:26)

We all can get into a routine, do the same things over day after day, and get so caught up in it that we forget to praise God for the things we have and the good life we live. Then we stop praying, and we stop going to church. Some may take on some bad habits that eventually become the most important thing at the time. This process, in my opinion, is backsliding.

Backsliding is very dangerous. What if you don’t return to the Lord before He returns to rapture the church? Do you get stuck in a routine a lot? Are you filled with your own ways? If you are, then you need to return to the Lord and seek His forgiveness to obtain his mercy, which He gives us freely; all we have to do is ask.

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. (Matt. 7:7–8)

And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole. (Luke 17:12–19)

Jesus healed these ten men, I believe, just to make a point about having faith in Him. The one leper, which was a Samaritan, returned to praise Him and thank Him, but the other nine did not. The Bible doesn’t say, but I believe that these nine men became leprous again because they were so ungrateful, and the Samaritan was healed by his faith and gratitude. That’s just my opinion, though, but think about it. God created all and can do all, so if we don’t return to Him, praise Him, and thank Him for all He does, then why should He do anything else for us? He doesn’t have to, but He gives us chance after chance to be the Christian He wants us to be because He loves each one of us and is trying to get us to love Him in return.

Unfortunately, many will not accept His love. But if you do, and you repent, then the Bible tells us in Hosea:

O Israel, return unto the Lord thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity. Take with you words, and turn to the Lord: say unto him, Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously: so will we render the calves of our lips. Asshur shall not save us; we will not ride upon horses: neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, Ye are our gods: for in thee the fatherless findeth mercy. I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him. (Hosea 14:1–4)

Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name. And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not. (Mal. 3:16–18)

God will remember who has remained faithful, and who has loved, respected, and honored Him. He wants to spare you, but it’s your choice! Do you want to be righteous or wicked? Will you serve Him or not?

I will end this letter with Malachi’s description of the Day of Judgment:

For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts. Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. (Mal. 4:1–6)

The Son of God

Dear friends and coworkers,

In this week’s letter, we will talk about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We will talk about who He is, why He became human, and why He died. Also, what we must do to be saved by Him.

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

And the word was made flesh means He became human, He came and lived as a man to be a living example for us to follow, He was and is a model of what He wants us to become. He is perfect in every way, blameless, and without blemish. Isaiah prophesied about His coming hundreds of years prior in Isaiah 9:6–7, For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

The names given to Him that Isaiah used to describe Jesus are referenced in a chart in my study Bible. I will share them with you:

WONDERFUL—He is exceptionally distinguished and without peer.

COUNSELOR—He always gives the right advice.

THE MIGHTY GOD—He is God Himself in the flesh.

THE EVERLASTING FATHER—He is timeless; He is God our Father.

THE PRINCE OF PEACE—His government is one of justice and peace.

For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. (John 3:34–36)

He can speak the words of God because He is the son of God, He came from Heaven, He sits on the right hand side of the Throne. As a matter of fact, He is God incarnate. He speaks the Words of God because He is God. Then it says, God giveth not the Holy Spirit by measure unto Him, which means, God didn’t give Him a little bit of the Holy Spirit, He gave Him all of the Holy Spirit. God the Father in Heaven gave the Holy Spirit in full to God the Son on Earth, Jesus Christ! Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, God incarnate, the Savior of the World; and He wants us to accept Him, love Him, and live with Him for all eternity!

And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. (Gen. 22:13)

Everyone knows this story about Abraham going to sacrifice his son Isaac, but my study Bible uses this verse as a parallel with the sacrifice of Jesus. Bear with me as I try to explain. Abraham is like God the Father, Isaac is like us (the children of God), and the ram, like Jesus, was offered as a sacrifice instead of us. The main two purposes of Jesus Christ coming to earth were to be an example for us and to die for us. To die for our sins so that we could live, live for Him and with Him! If Jesus had not become the perfect sacrifice, then there would be no chance for any of us to make it to Heaven!

Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isa. 53:1–6)

Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah would die as a sacrifice to atone for the sins of all mankind. In verse 2, we are told that he was not a handsome man: He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. Jesus didn’t attract many followers because of his physical appearance; He attracted the people by His words and actions. Then in verse 3 it says that He is rejected by many, just as He is today. Many people have heard of Him and may have attended a church service or two, but have not accepted Him in their hearts; and that’s where He wants to be, in our heart, to be loved as He loves you! Now in verse 5, it says that He would be punished for our sins (transgressions) and that by being the ultimate sacrifice, we will be forgiven (and with his stripes we are healed)!

So ask yourself this question and be honest with yourself because Jesus already knows the truth: Do you reject Him, ignore Him, or accept Him?

Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. (Heb. 7:25)

And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. (Heb. 9:27–28)

In Hebrews 7:25, uttermost means completely. We as mortals on this earth can’t fathom what it is to be saved completely, but for those that accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, and repent of their sins, they will know when He meets them in Heaven. This is reaffirmed in Hebrews 9:28.

I haven’t used this in quite a while but this is my favorite passage, and I think it will inspire many, so I will end this letter with it!

But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many