A Devotional for Understanding & Acceptance: Volume 1

By Dr. Jay B Newman

This series is four books, with each book resulting from the Daily Devotionals written for each Volume for Series covers a quarter of a year. I hope you enjoy this series and even more, I hope you find inspiration to live a life filled with the Love of Christ. Some of the topics might seem controversial,

• Language: English
• Publisher: Direct amazon publishing
• Release date: Mar 28, 2024
• ISBN: 9798869282330

Book preview

An Introduction to this Devotional Series

Introductory Comments: I made a commitment, at the beginning of 2023, to write a devotional and post it for my colleagues, friends, and acquaintances. I have nearly completed that task. As I write these introductory remarks for this first installment of these devotionals to be published, it is December 14, 2023, and I have not missed a single day of posting these. The response has been remarkable. I have been constantly encouraged to continue to write them and now to publish them for everyone to enjoy and receive inspiration from. Many of the readers have told me how inspirational they have found my words, but I must confess, these are not my words, but my utterings of what God has revealed through the scriptures, the words of those people I talk to and interact with on a daily basis and the thoughts that the Holy Spirit has put into my brain.

If it were not for the comments and encouraging words of so many faithful readers, (now more than 2,000 different people sending me positive feedback, challenging my assumptions, and urging me on) this project would have ended a long time ago. So I go forward with publishing the devotionals from 2023 and ready myself to continue writing through 2024 and as far into the future as God Continues to inspire my words and gives me the strength to put them down on a page. I have truly been blessed and I am eternally grateful for all those blessings. At the top of my blessing list is my Wife Barb, who has been so patient as I have often been writing early in the morning or late at night as I have been inspired to do.

My prayer for our world is that we will finally find Peace, Love, and Understanding! As a Baby Boomer Generation Member who has been blessed beyond what I deserve, I encourage every human to follow Christ’s two Great Commandments: Love God with all your Being (Heart, Mind, Psyche, Body, and Spirit) and Love One another as He has loved us. No Greater Love has anyone than that they have given their life to save the life of others. Every aspect of my devotionals will be dedicated to Loving God who sacrificed His amazing son for our Salvation. This is a Labor of Love that focuses on Bring Love to our entire World! AMEN

Day 1

A Devotional for Understanding and Acceptance

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! —

2 Corinthians 5:17

What does this statement by Paul really mean? This is not a concept to be trifled with. The Apostle Paul is telling us that Christ wants us to let our old ways die, bury them, and then experience a truly Christ-like rebirth! To be born again does not mean WE are required to do anything for ourselves. In fact, we are incapable of saving ourselves. The only thing we must do is acknowledge that through God’s amazing LOVING GRACE, we have been redeemed.

Be thankful for the gift and remember, you earned nothing. So, stop trying to tell anyone else how to live. Jesus came to us because the religious leaders of the day were morally off the mark. Today, we seem to have found our way right back to that bad place! And I’m not talking about political leaders. I’m referring to all the So-Called Christians that would be swarming around a person accused of sexual bad behavior, (while ignoring starving children) ready to be part of the execution team. Remember, Christ Challenged the crowd that was ready to kill by stoning, the woman. He asked them who among you is without sin, let that person cast the first stone! One-by one the crowd dispersed. Then Christ turns to the woman and says, Where are your accusers now? No one remains to accuse you, nor will I! Go now, remember what happened here today, and therefore change your life. (Sin no more: might be easier than CHANGE YOUR LIFE! But God is asking to truly CHANGE!) When St. Paul states Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, (s)he is a new creation:" he is telling us exactly what Christ wants us to do!

Our Prayer for today:

Heavenly Gracious God, we ask you to be with us in our journey. Left to our devices we may wander aimlessly, take too many wrong turns, and put words in your mouth that are completely opposite of what your intentions might have been. Let us not be so quick to condemn and be constantly reminded that out Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ forgave sins of many who elders of the day would have executed those people for. You are our Redeemer God, please help us act like it! AMEN

If you appreciate this first day of my Day-by-Day 365 Devotionals, let me know. Feel free to share them, they will never cost you a penny. If you would like to have a speaker, come to your community, just ask. We’ll work with you to schedule a visit.

Day 2

A Devotional for Understanding and Acceptance

January 2, 2023

In the beginning there was nothing and into that nothing and out of nothing, SOMETHING WAS CREATED! In the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. She was with God in the beginning. John 1:1 Does that sound crazy? Based on our concept of nothing, yes that’s crazy! Based on Quantum Mechanics, it all makes sense. Even though Dr. Albert Einstein was not sure about God, he very definitely knew that there were forces, powers, and energies about which we had and still have very much to learn!

Once the focus turned from the fundamental building blocks of matter being immutable; matter could neither be created or destroyed, to how does our understanding of relativity explain how our universe came into existence, the connection between science and religion started to emerge. As is usually the response to any threat of change in how we explain our human presence on this planet, many people have been very hesitant to embrace a different explanation. This is true for both those who deny the existence of God and those who are literalists in regard to the creation story as they understand it, from a more organized religion’s point of view. While the most extreme points of view argued over faith versus godless evolution, most scientist spent their time trying to gain a better comprehension of how matter could be created through altering energy in a manner that converted wavelengths into particles and in so doing began to see that what we thought about God was viewed from a very human point of view! However, if we looked from the Quantum Field, it all made sense.

What do I really believe? I believe every life is sacred and the real original sin, was the first time one of God’s created creatures decided it knew better how to go about living than did the creator. With that incredible act of arrogance, we started our journey away from where the creator truly wanted us to be!

John 2:2-3 He was God in the Beginning. Through him (Our Savior Jesus) All things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life and that life was light of men. The light shines in the darkness, the darkness has not understood it.

Our Prayer for today:

Holy Lord God, we pray that you will help us understand the glory and graciousness of your creation. We think we know, but too often fail to take into consideration the simple fact that our minds cannot conceive of all that is possible to You! Help us stop putting limitations on your capabilities and incredible power. The more we examine the mysteries of science, the more we understand the incredible simplicity it has in your realm. Keep us in your arms and teach us that there is nothing that Love cannot fix. Give us our daily requirements and keep us in your constant care. For you are omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent in our lives, and you are our hope and our salvation. AMEN

Day 3

A Devotional for Understanding and Acceptance

Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Luke 6:37

I don’t know about you, but I have definitely had judgement issues throughout my adult life. We’ve been trained to do so! Over the eons of time, we have worried about where our enemies are. Whether they be human, beast, supernatural, from beyond the planet, or from under the surface of the water or ground; It has never been in our own best interest to look at our continued success, through the lens of fear. Yet, we certainly are aware of a great number of people who continue to make their futures must less rewarding because of their excessive and powerful desire to keep to what they are familiar with and therefore will only include people that look like them, think like them, and believe what they believe. Jesus was fully aware that failure to explore novel ideas, unusual places, and unconventional solutions to recurring problems could be the undoing of humanity.

Will we continue to be so narrow-minded and self-protective that we miss the very real warning signs of the very real and pending apocalypse. It won’t be Satan that brings us down. Satan can sit back, watch, and enjoy the show as we fight each other on our way to oblivion. What too many of us just don’t realize is that both our Creator God and the Destroyer Satan have access to our HEARTS! Satan can move in the second our predominant emotions are hate, anger, jealousy, exclusivity, and/or the fear of the different, unknown, and change. You cannot love God and Hate what the Creator Created! When these extreme and harmful emotions become our guiding force, we lock Jesus outside. Remember Our Amazing, Loving Creator God sent Jesus to us to try to convince all of us of our need to change.

The Creator knows that we can be (every single, solitary human) very easily fooled into believing that we should carefully guard the very wrong thoughts and (amazingly 2,000+ years later) so many of us continue to think that these notions are very important and what we all, not only need to do but more importantly, this the only way to please God. Remember the 2 most important commandment are:

1. Love God

2. Love your Neighbor: and in Jesus’ eyes you know who he thinks your neighbor is!

As you have done to the least of these, so have you done to me! Matthew: 25:40

Our Prayer for today:

Lord Jesus, we pray that you will teach us to Love as You have Loved. We make excuses as for why we cannot love certain people, but in your eyes; none of these excuses hold any sway. To Love Our Neighbor, and your definition of our neighbor, not ours, is an inclusive command. We cannot be exclusive and meet your expectations. Help us stop judging, so that we can enter your kingdom with the same measuring stick we have applied to others. These things we pray in your Holy Name: AMEN

Day 4

A Devotional for Understanding and Acceptance

In Matthew 9:27-31, we read: As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, ‘Have mercy on us, Son of David!’ When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, ‘Do you believe that I am able to do this?’ ‘Yes, Lord, ‘they replied. Then he touched their eyes and said, ‘According to your faith let it be done to you’ and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, ‘See that no one knows about this.’ But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.

Now we’ve all heard about the miracles of Jesus, but did you pay very close attention to how this miracle happened? According to your faith let it be done to you’ and their sight was restored. This is an important idea! You must have complete faith if you desire complete healing! If you have complete faith in God’s healing power, as soon as you ask for healing, you know you have already been healed. God will take the ongoing steps for your healing. Don’t question The Creator God’s intention, capacity, love, and desire for you to be healed; completely!

How will this healing take place? God will use every tool he has made available to humankind! Doctors, healers, prayer circles, natural foods, and all other possible means. I saw a post on a social media site, that showed Linus from the Peanuts Comic Strip. In that piece, Linus makes this statement: Trust the science is the most anti science statement ever made. Questioning science is how you do science! Not really, trusting science is what has created some of the most amazing advancements in our human existence. What the real truth is, Scientists trust the science only when it has been verified through repeated positive experimental results and then only until a viable and better alternative is discovered. This cartoon defies that principle and quite often, those who adhere to what Linus is saying here, are succumbing to the errors too many non-scientists make; they cling to old science or inadequately tested science in order to keep real advancements from shaking up their comfortable worlds.

Consider this, Jesus tells us: In my father’s house, there are many rooms, if it were not so, I would tell you! John 14:2. Yet too many of us want to limit access to his father’s house! Why, because too many are afraid there just won’t be enough room for me if we just let anyone in. That scarcity thinking results from believing that Our Creator God would create a world that would possibly be fraught with inadequate space to handle all of God’s creation. This will cause us to hang on to ways of life that say: Why should I care about ‘THEM?’ They are not my concern. However, Jesus says, As you treat the least of these, so have you treated me!

Our Prayer for today:

Gracious Creator God: Teach us to accept ALL and reject none. For in this inclusivity, we find redemption. By not excluding or condemning, we open the doors to redemption. It is not ours to say that this person here, or that person there is unworthy of Christ’s Redemptive Love. Christ invites everyone to the table, and it is up to each to accept or reject the invitation. And there is no time limit on acceptance. The parable of the Vineyard workers is an excellent example of this concept. Those that come at the very end of the workday receive the same salvation as those who came earliest in the day. Indeed, we should all rejoice that another has found the promise! AMEN

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Day 5

A Devotional for Understanding and Acceptance

Then Moses said to God, Suppose I go to the People of Israel, and I tell them, ‘The God of your fathers sent me to you’; and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ What do I tell them? Then God said to Moses, I am that I am. Tell the people of Israel that I-am sent me! Exodus 3:13

Can we talk for a moment about the names we give God? Do we need anything other than this! (I am) If we need another name, we just don’t get it. What does it mean when we God says, in answer to the question Who are you? I AM-(That) I AM! What God wants us to know and fully comprehend is that whatever we need, HE IS ALL WE WILL EVER NEED! Is there anyone who is willing to advise us on what will cure any specific disease? How about a the Great I am! Yes, God says I AM ready, willing, and able to solve any problem