Face-to-Face with Papa: A Weekly Devotional

By Renate Maureen Goude

Lover of God, do you need a "reset"? Are you hungry for more of His presence and eager to grow in your intercession and life as a lover of God? Then come--come get face-to-face with Papa. These weekly devotions are meant for that exact need. We hurry through life and often don't take enough time to stop, allowing His words of hope, purpose, and love to flood us, sinking deep in our being, into our spiritual man, where Papa can then work in ways we can't imagine. "Come grow with Me," He says. "Come see Me. Allow My joy to heal and energize you. Then come be my echo to this world."

He is calling you lover of God--"Get face-to-face with Me."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Nov 29, 2023
• ISBN: 9798888513224

Book preview

Table of Contents

Title

Copyright

Introduction

An Abiding Spirit of Gratitude

A Spirit of Humility

Sheer Abandonment

Be Fearless

Breathe

A Newfound Hope

A Soothing Comfort

Who You Are…Loved!

His Poetry

Broken, Now Alive

A Habitation

A Spirit of Quiet Confidence

A Renewed Mind

A Dim Light Still Shines

Fresh Mercies and Incredible Grace

Unshakable Hope

A Cry Out to Papa

Blessed Assurance

Coincidences…Never!

A Safe Place

Abundant Restoration

Breathe, Oh Breath of God, Breathe

Our Bright Light

Come to Me and Be Restored

The Fight Is Real

Rebuke the Giants

He Is for You

Alert! Alert! Low on Laughter!

Our Prayer

Listen. He Is Speaking to You!

His Voice

You Are His Beloved

Streams of Salvation

A Quiet Spirit

Remember Me

Unrelenting Forgiveness and Grace

Come Home —Papa

Come with Me

A Surrendered Heart

Time Away

Clarity in the Chaos

Real Freedom

A Hug from Heaven

Nature of God

The Word Became Flesh…Jesus

In the Bleak Midwinter

Be Wise to Evil

Dream Again

What Love Does

Papa's Heart for Others

The Way of Tenderness

The Human Face of God

About the Author

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Face-to-Face with Papa

A Weekly Devotional

Renate Maureen Goude

ISBN 979-8-88851-321-7 (Paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88851-322-4 (Digital)

Copyright © 2023 Renate Maureen Goude

All rights reserved

First Edition

Front cover quote - St. Augustine

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Covenant Books

11661 Hwy 707

Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

www.covenantbooks.com

To my God, Papa, Abba, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, my heart is always listening and open to You. I rest in You.

To Jo Dring who first spurred this idea in me, love you, my friend.

To my sister, Cathy, who lovingly encouraged me throughout this process, my other pea in the pod, I couldn't imagine my life without you.

To the love of my life, my Kevin, thank you for tirelessly listening, critiquing, and being a constant soundboard for me in this endeavor. I love you forever.

And to all those that have loved me and saw who Papa made me. Thank you.

Introduction

A weekly devotional for intercessors and lovers of God:

Here's the one thing I crave from God, the one thing I seek above all else; I want the privilege of living with Him every moment in His house, finding the sweet loveliness of His face, filled with awe, delighting in His glory and grace. I want to live my life so close to Him that He takes pleasure in my every prayer. (Ps. 27:4)

Meet God face-to-face and see what He has for you, where He is taking you and how He wants to use you in prayer.

In Hebrew, there is no word for presence. When the Psalmist wanted to speak of God's presence, he used the Hebrew word for face.

For you bring me a continual revelation of resurrection life, the path to the bliss that brings me face-to-face with you. (Ps. 16:11 TPT)

Let's get face-to-face with God. Come crawl up on Papa's lap. Be loved, and be encouraged by His truths and promises to you. Whether you are young, or whether you are old, allow Him to show you where you came from. Reveal to you who and where you are. And open up for you what more He has for you. Let's experience a beautiful taste of the poetry our lives can echo of Him, as we touch the realm of heaven together in intercession…for the Kingdom of God on earth.

Throughout these devotions, each week, dig in, study, and check different translations. What is Papa saying to you in each entry, in these scriptures, and selected worship within this week of your precious life? What words and phrases pop out to you? Grab ahold of that; drink it in for yourself first, allowing revelation and understanding to flow over you like living water throughout the week within these words and His Word. Then, lover of God, be that light in the darkness and the warrior Papa knows you are. Intercede and stand on His truths for yourself and others as you meet Papa face-to-face.

At each and every sunrise you will hear my voice as I prepare my sacrifice of prayer to you. Every morning I lay out the pieces of my life on the altar, and wait for Your fire to fall upon my heart. (Ps. 5:3)

Prayer is essentially the expression of our hearts longing for love. It is not so much the listing of our requests but the breathing of our deepest request, to be United with God as fully as possible.

—Jeffrey D. Imbach

An Abiding Spirit of Gratitude

Agrateful heart cries out in the morning, Thank You, Lord, for the gift of a new day. Simply put, the person with an abiding spirit of gratitude trusts in God.

A great author and lover of God, Brennan Manning, said this,

The underlying cry of this one is an unshaken trust in the person and promise of Jesus.

Uncontaminated trust in the revelation of Jesus allows us to breathe more freely, to dance more joyfully, and to sing more gratefully about the gift of salvation.

The rediscovery of the precious gift of life and existence, often taken for granted, gives birth to the Spirit of Gratefulness.

Coupled with an intermittent awareness of the divine indwelling words of Jesus,

I have come so that you may have life and have to the full (John 10:10). (Brennan Manning, Ruthless Trust).

This week pray that a spirit of gratefulness floods you, literally falls on you. Catch us, Holy Spirit, when we least expect it. Let us catch the simple ordinary everyday things as a gift from you. Show us Your beauty. That need be, a rediscovery of gratefulness explodes from deep within. Papa, meet us, and as you meet us in this, do it for others. Lay on our hearts the names of the people who need this rediscovery. Then, Holy Spirit, rain on us…rain on them as we echo Your gratitude to them.

In the midst of the chaos, the ordinary, the mundane, I can find the beautiful. Then whisper to Papa, Thank you.

Go deeper with Papa: John 10:10; 1 Samuel 12:24; 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18; Philippians 4:6–7; Psalm 95:2; Psalm 107:21–22

A Spirit of Humility

Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You."

—Exodus 33:13

My husband, Kevin, spoke a message at church entitled God only helps those who help themselves.

He pointed out the reality is that God helps those who humble themselves and find freedom in realizing you can't ultimately help yourself, without His help!

Humility…is not a bold display of I am less but a quiet display of He is more. (Cassie Kent, from blessedisshe.net)

Having humility is when we have found His amazing grace and ask God to show us the way.

It was through this message that the Holy Spirit whispered to me, Humility is needed!

This week pray for a spirit of humility over ourselves, our families, our church, our communities, our leaders, and our nation. Pray it would be deeply entrenched within us all—every tribe and every nation. Lord, we pray that this spirit of humility will take hold within us, where it cannot be snatched away. We come against pride, arrogance, and self-help, which have gone rampant—where the enemy has deceived and placed false hopes and ideas with other gods.

For the spirit of humility will bring truth, refreshment, and freedom.

For humility two things must be discovered: the greatness of God and the vastness of the devastation of the fall as pertaining to your own soul. It is an understanding so vast that no tongue can express it. From this revelation proceeds a glimpse of the grace of God…a grace which takes pleasure in encompassing that person with the pure goodness of God. (Michael Molinos, 100 Days in the Secret Place)

Pray this week and further as the Lord leads you, that an understanding awakens. A pure revelation of that glimpse of God's grace is taken hold, and in turn, a glimpse of His path for us is recognized. May we see the goodness of God reign down as the spirit of humility rushes like a wind over every family, every nation, every soul…over me. So may it be.

This week make these scriptures personal, putting your name in or a name the Holy Spirit puts on your heart.

Keep showing the humble your path, and lead them into the best decisions. Bring revelation-light that trains them in truth. (Ps. 25:9)

Lord, direct me throughout my journey so I can experience your —plans for my life. Reveal the life-paths that are pleasing to you. Escort me along the way; take me by the hand and teach me. For you are the God of my salvation; I have wrapped my heart into yours. (Ps. 25:4–5)

Humility…that low, sweet root, from which all heavenly virtues shoot. (Thomas Moore)

Go deeper with Papa: Exodus 33:13; Psalm 25:9; Psalm 25:4–5; Ephesians 4:2; Phil. 2:3; Proverbs 11:2; Proverbs 22:4; 2 Chronicles 7:14

Sheer Abandonment

In our living room, we have a picture on our wall of a pig jumping off a dock into a pond of water. It's called Kohler's Pig . My husband, Kevin, loves pigs, and it has been something he has fancied for years. I finally surprised him with it one Christmas. Soon after, I remember sitting and looking at the picture of this little pig with no care, no hesitation and just leaping into this possibly deep water. At that moment I heard the words sheer abandonment , and I knew it was the Lord speaking to me. In Webster's Dictionary , abandonment is defined as carefree freedom from constraint. Now each time I look at that picture on our wall, I am reminded to abandon all concerns to Him like that little pig. To