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“Seek The Almighty Now Diligently(S.T.A.N.D)”

Ramesh C. Reddy
Publisher

Editors Note: This devotional was originally sent through email on Thursday, October 29, 1998 at 10:39:41 a.m. to InterVarsity Christian Fellowship (IVCF) students and others who wanted to receive daily devotionals at the University of Pittsburgh while I was serving at IVCF! It is being republished on Pittsburgh Standard today.

SCRIPTURE:

"Fear of man is a dangerous trap, but to trust in God means safety." (Proverbs 29:25)

I ask you now dear friend, where will you take a S.T.A.N.D without wavering?"
I do not know about you but there are times I have gone for the approval of people than to trust in God and follow His principles. At the time it seems worth it but from experience I can say it is not worth it to sacrifice God's principles for the approval of others especially in relationships. Each of us are made special in the sight of the Lord and can find hope in trusting God through every peer pressure stressed upon us. Regardless of how we feel about ourselves we are loved and accepted by the Lord.

Fear of man is dangerous because it can even cause us to compromise our beliefs. This happens when peer pressure becomes the strongest and conformity becomes the norm. People have done a lot of things they would have never even tried if it were not for fear. Fear can be very damaging and paralyzing especially if you think you will be ridiculed, seen as an outcast, lose your friends etc. When that happens you trap yourself in doing things you may regret later. God does not want that for you. Trusting in God can give you safety. In other words, God's way will be the best way over human ways.

You don't have to be afraid of your professors if they are teaching something you feel is not right. You can challenge them on their own views as you trust in God. You don't have to let rejection or ridicule stop you from questioning your professor. God loves you so much and gave you a wonderful mind to think, reason, and evaluate information sent your way. Believe it or not, you can make the professor see your point of view too if you approach it the right way. Trust in God and allow Him to take care of the rest. When you do what is right, no matter how bad the circumstances seem at the time, you will find favor in the Lord's eyes which is more important. You will also know that you have bravely stood up for what you believe but remember to do it with gentleness and meekness.

I have done things pertaining to Christianity in my public speaking class, social psychological research class, philosophy, General writing, and poetry class and all my law classes. It has not been easy but have gained the respect of professors with the challenges I posed to them. I thank the Lord's grace for that.

Ninety-nine percent of my poetry was a message of hope through the love of Christ. I still received an A- in my class because I still followed the guidelines of writing different styles of poetry. I called one of my poems Bible Academy. She said it reminded her of Police Academy and so I decided to do 2 sequels and called them Bible Academy II: Armor of God, Bible Academy III: Fruit of the Spirit, the Last Crusade! (Last poem).

In Public speaking, I did a persuasive speech on being for life which was a scary speech to give. I thought I would fail it because I was pro-life but received 86%. I did not let failure stop me from doing the speech I wanted to.   If friends reject you, if instructors ridicule you, Jesus will reassure you how much He loves you. You don't have to be afraid of others but can stand up for God's way. It won't be easy as I can tell you from experience (Pitt News) but it is more worth finding favor in the sight of the Lord than in the sight of humans. This email is not about having a religious message to your friends, professors, etc but about taking a stand without wavering and finding safety from the danger that fear of humans can cause.

I believe when God says it is dangerous, God knows what He is talking about. Just being able to live in the presence of God is safety even if we fear for our life. When we seek the Almighty, we never need to dismay because we will be standing on the Rock of Jesus Christ!

Promise to claim:
"He will give His people strength. He will bless them with peace." (Psalm 29:11)

 "Seek The Almighty Now Diligently" (S.T.A.N.D)/"Where will you take a S.T.A.N.D without wavering?"

Prayer:
Dear Jesus, it is not so easy not to have fear especially when we feel we will be ridiculed, embarrassed, shunned for standing up to you. Yet you tell us in your Word that you will give us strength and bless us with peace. I know Lord fearing humans and doing things their way when it is contradictory to your ways can cause us danger and trap us. Please help us to overcome our fears that we may always do what is right in your sight and find safety. Thank you so much Jesus! Thank you Lord that you love us and care for us so much. When we fail, we thank you that your grace is available for us. We turn our lives over to you and thank you that we will always be special in your eyes! Please forgive us our sins and help us in our life. Thank you so much Lord for hearing us and answering our prayers! In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!

May the Lord Jesus guide you in His love leading you! Amen!

No matter what you feel in your heart, know that Jesus has come in and resides with you! You are not alone! To make your walk strong with the Lord, spend time in prayer talking to Him as you would to a friend. You don’t need special words to talk to the Lord. Spend time in His Word reading Psalms and turning them into prayer. Next allow God to heal you and speak to you through the Gospel of John or Gospel of Mark before moving on to other Books of the Bible! Slowly, let the Lord show you to which Scriptures He wants you to go to next. It is also important to be part of a body of believers to help you grow in the faith. Find a Bible believing church that preaches the Word of God from Genesis to Revelation proclaiming Jesus Christ our crucified and risen Lord who brings us hope, healing, and help by His grace alone!

Feel free to email me at reddy4hisglory2004@yahoo.com if you want to meet to study the Bible, pray with, talk about Spiritual issues or whatever is on your mind! My number is 412-641-9426

"This is my work and I can do it only because Christ's mighty energy is at work within me." (Colossians 1:29, TLB)

Express Your View

2013 DEVOTIONALS:

Matthew 18:21-22:"Why F.O.R.G.I.V.E when it will happen again?" By Ramesh C. Reddy (May 29 2013, 09:35 a.m)

Psalm 27:14:"How do you C.O.P.E with your hurt?" By Ramesh C. Reddy (May 27, 2013, 11:13 a.m)

John 12:24:"Who do you remember physically and spiritually on this M.E.M.O.R.I.A.L day?" By Ramesh C. Reddy (May 27, 2013, 11:13 a.m)

"What has the law P.E.R.M.I.T.T.E.D you to do but it goes against the Lord?"  By Ramesh C. Reddy (May 09, 2013, 6:57 a.m)

"Who do you become an A.T.T.R.A.C.T.I.O.N to and why?"  By Ramesh C. Reddy (May 08, 2013, 6:58 a.m)

"What has A.N.G.E.R done to your relationships?"  By Ramesh C. Reddy (April 29, 13, 1:28 p.m.)

"How can the L.I.G.H.T impact your life?"  By Ramesh C. Reddy (April 06, 13, 11:48 a.m.)