HAND OVER THE BATON
March 21, 2020 Blog Admin
In Devotionals

TSP DAILY DEVOTIONAL
HAND OVER THE BATON
21st MARCH 2020
Dr. Phil Ransom-Bello

KEY SCRIPTURE/MEMORY VERSE: Luke 22:31‭-‬32 (NKJV)
And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

Every time I meditate on the redemption plan of God for us in the person of Christ, it leaves me in awe because it reaffirms the fact that God has a track record of restoring dead situations, of restoring belief no matter the length of time that has passed or how severe the situation has gotten or how deep the pain is.

And we keep seeing this pattern of restoration from the way Jesus dealt with His scar.
Yesterday, by looking at the way He handled Thomas, we saw that your scar can actually cause people to believe.
From our text today, look at how Jesus handles Peter’s denial, a betrayal that had not yet happened. Many of you have had those closest to you like Peter was to Jesus, hurt you the most. How do you handle that pain?
This was Jesus about to face the hardest time of His life- the assignment of the cross, needing all the support He can get, only to deal with the near future reality of Peter’s denial.
But here’s what He does- He prayed for him(Verse31)
Jesus was so particular about Peter’s faith, that his faith would not fail. He also tells him, “When you are restored, also give that same hope and comfort to your brethren.”
In other words, strengthen your fellow disciples.

Dear believer, if you’ve been hurt, battered and your worth, relevance or esteem is on the line, if nothing seems to be working despite your relationship with God and service in the kingdom, hear me, that scar will be a sign of the revelation of the power of God.
That same scar will be the sign of somebody else’s strengthened faith or hope or comfort tomorrow.
If you never experienced hunger, you may never understand someone who is hungry tomorrow.

Often, I realize that I’m able to counsel and respond to people with a great deal of empathy and compassion when I’ve faced a similar experience because from the heart of brokenness will come forth a heart of healing and restoration.
That nail is no longer there. Stop reinflicting yourselves with the pain by meditating on the problem rather than the promise. Otherwise, you’d be reopening the wound and preventing it from healing.

Listen, it’s time to shift focus. When Jesus appeared to His disciples, He didn’t show them a hand with wounds but a hand with scars because He had healed.
Hear me, the guarantee of your healing is that you go throuh the cross.
And when you do, the same you who was once bitter, can extend the baton of comfort, ministering love and healing to someone else and ultimately reinforcing/strengthening their faith.

REFLECTION
Do I reopen wounds or do I see an opportunity to extend hope, healing and strengthen someone’s faith?

DECLARATION
-I receive the love of God.
– As my heart is strengthened by the revelation of this love, my service has become an inspired response to this love.
– My life is patterned after Christ, producing the kind of results that are synonymous with His nature.
-I let go of my hold on every pain/weakness/failure and I heal supernaturally.
– Grace is multiplied to me always causing my scars to produce peace and joy. I seize the opportunity of my scars to strengthen the faith of others.
-I instruct my heart to forgive. Just as I have been forgiven, completely and without reservation.
-God is glorified in my pain and His power is revealed mightily in me.
– I am daily loaded with benefits. Testimonies abound for me because the Gospel works. Hallelujah!

HEARING BY THE WORD
(Recommended Listening)

Listen to The Believers Heart – Service >> Dr. Phil by The StandPoint Church on #SoundCloud