Daily Encouragement Net
“Encourage one another daily” (Hebrews 3:13).
Daily Encouragement Net is devoted to encouraging followers of Jesus Christ.
This site is updated with a new message each weekday.
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THE DEVOTIONAL
All through my Christian life I have been enriched by a rather interesting genre in Christian literature called the devotional. The word devotional comes from the word devote and extensions of this word are used both for our personal time with the Lord "our devotions" (prayer and Bible reading) i.e. "Have you had your devotions" and for the short, usually regular readings. The word devotional is also commonly used as a synonym for meditation or short message of about five minutes.
I recall written devotionals in my home growing up and as long as I can remember it seems I can picture the "Our Daily Bread" laying on a table!
Devotional is used to describe ministry that feeds the inner man. Ministers often distinguish their devotional reading and study from preparation for sermons, although I never did. I feel that how the Lord is dealing with me in my personal life could very well be His leading for what the people I serve need to hear.
Early in my walk with the Lord I was blessed by Spurgeon’s "Morning and Evening" and later by Frank Gabelian’s "Another Day".
Many excellent daily devotional resources are now available both in print (in monthly, quarterly or full book format) and on the Web.
Several directories of Web-based devotionals:
An extensive directory of online devotionals (This is an extensive directory that will require discernment to use)
Devotional ministry that published "Our Daily Bread"
Devotionals published by "Back to the Bible"
Several of these devotionals also have a subscription feature similar to the Daily Encouragement devotional.
I believe written devotionals are helpful for a number of reasons:
- Their brevity. Most of us would simply not read material that took several hours every day!
- Their challenge – I have found that devotionals often contain a personal challenge to my walk with the Lord or a reminder of some aspect of God’s promises.
- Their focus on Scripture – A good devotional in my view is far more than a touching story but a real focus on the Word of God.
- Their consistency – Usually devotionals are designed for a brief daily reading (no more than a page)
The one distinction in the daily encouragement devotional is the practice I have of writing it each weekday morning as I seek to fulfill the Biblical command to encourage one another daily.
"Living today anchored in God’s solid foundation"
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