Editors Note: These devotionals are part of a book called '40 days of Jamming with Joy in Jesus' based on the Book of Philippians that the Lord Jesus helped me write through the years. As applicable these devotionals could be updated!

SCRIPTURE:
“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace be with you all.” (Philippians 4:9)

EXPOSITION:

OBSERVATIONS:
What stuck out to me is the word ‘or’. It is used 3 times with ‘whatever’!
1. Whatever you have learned from me
2. Whatever you have received from me
3. Whatever you have heard from me
4. Whatever you have seen in me
Put it into practice!!!

It is as if Paul is drawing the letter to a summation reminding them everything he wrote to them from Philippians 1:1-4:8. Now he wants them to put everything into practice. We have looked so far from until Philippians 2:8. We are jumping to Philippians 4:8 on this Memorial Day.

"And the God of peace be with you all." will be addressed in another devotional!

IMPLICATIONS:
Practice is not a one time thing but continuous. There is a saying that ‘practice makes perfect’. It is not enough for me to just learn, receive, or hear the Word of God. It is also not enough for me to see the Word of God being followed in someone else’s life. Rather, I need to put the Word of God into practice daily.

It is as if I am to be a soldier 24-7 for the Lord. I cannot let my guard down but need the Word of God to sustain me as I go through my daily drills. So when war time comes and I mean spiritual warfare, I will be able to withstand the devil’s arsenal because I have put into practice the Word of God in my life.

I need to be a faithful soldier for the Lord Jesus Christ. That takes effort and sacrifice on my part. Rarely have I found anyone wanting to become soldiers who like getting up early in the morning to go through drills and continue it through the day yet they do it. Putting God’s Word into practice is not going to be easy for me always. There could be times I just wish I did not have to do it that day and if I do not then I lose practice that day.

In other areas of life we can afford to take a day off or so but not when it comes to God’s Word. I need to continue to put into practice the Word of God as part of my drill to remain a faithful soldier in the Lord’s army. The more we do that, we become veterans for the Lord as we would have fought Satan, using the Word of God, multiple times.

When others see me I want them to see me as a veteran for the Lord being a faithful soldier handling war of the spiritual warfare kind as my Commander in Chief, Jesus Christ gives me the orders.

It does not help to be AWOL when it comes to practice. As I miss more practice times of the Word of God, I am making myself vulnerable to the enemy and it is possible that I can be dishonorably discharged if that continues on a daily basis. This is because I am telling the Commander in Chief that I do not believe what He stands for and I want to do things my own way. I don’t want that for me and neither do I want it for you.

When we join the Lord's army, we have in essence given up our own rights to serve our Heavenly Commander in Chief and do what He tells us to do. The difference between our Heavenly Commander in Chief is that He is never wrong in the decisions He tells us to do. One of those decisions He wants us to obey as His soldiers is to meditate on the Word of God day and night and let it lead us and guide us. He will not force us to be soldiers in His army but once we join, we cannot expect to continuously do things our own way and expect no consequences. He has also given us His manual called the BIBLE to follow! I like to think of it as 'Breathe In Bible, Live Eternally' manual for daily living as we are in a warfare against Satan and his evil schemes. The best way to fight the enemy is to wear the Armor of God mentioned in Ephesians 6. It is the Armor of God we need as soldiers of the Lord. One of the things the Armor of God mentions is the Word of God being our Sword of the Spirit.

"Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful." (Joshua 1:8, NIV)

"But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night." (Psalm 1:2, NIV)

"I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word." (Psalm 119:14-16, NIV)

"How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." (Psalm 119:103-105, NIV)

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17, NIV)

"Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer." (2 Timothy 2:3-4, NIV)

I ASK YOU NOW:
I ask you now dear friend what kind of soldier will you be?
Dear friend, on this Memorial Day as we remember all the soldiers that sacrificed their lives so others can gain freedom, you have the opportunity to be an awesome soldier for the Lord. Of course that is not on your own strength but from the strength your Commander in Chief, Jesus Christ wants to give you. When you have to go through the practice drills of applying God’s Word, you won’t be alone for He will be with you. As a faithful soldier, you can practice daily the Word of God. In that way, you will be building yourself up with the most powerful ammunition you can carry with you.

As the enemy approaches during war, you can fight that war with the Word of God. For the Word of God is our best ammunition against Spiritual Warfare. The Word of God gives us the full armor we should wear. It starts with practice my friend.

Have we become soldiers for the Lord that He can be proud of?
Friend, it starts with putting into practice what we have learned, received, heard, and seen others who follow the Word of God do. We have that opportunity friend as we fight the Spiritual Warfare that comes our way. It is not easy being a faithful follower of Christ and His orders but that is the right thing to do. When we die, our memorial in Heaven will be with our Commander in Chief Jesus Christ who will give us all the medals that we have attained while we fought here on earth for the sake of the Kingdom of God!

Not only that but our Names would be engraved in the Book of Life for having fought the enemy of this world, Satan and being faithful to our country, Heaven. For remember, we are citizens of Heaven and our allegiance is to Jesus Christ first! We have been placed on earth as pilgrims and soldiers for such a time as this. We do not want to betray our Commander in Chief, Jesus Christ and go our own way. If we do that, we would have committed desertion and would not be worthy to remain a solider of the Lord. This especially happens in the last days when people decide to align with the enemy Satan and take the Mark of the beast.

My prayer is that we would be faithful as soldiers in the Lord’s Army and all believers can remember this day also as a Memorial Day for all the soldiers in the Lord's Army who gave up their lives so others could receive the Word of God and the wonderful commands of our Commander-in-Chief Jesus Christ! They died so that you and I can come to know Jesus Christ and attain freedom from the enemy. It is because of many of them that we now have the Word of God in print.

Dear friend, it is not easy being a soldier for the Lord but I have found it to be worth it. When that happens, I need to stand up for what God stands up for rather than what my friends or family members stand up for. This can cause tension but we need to have our allegiance to the Lord.

May we not forget the soldiers of this country who fought and fight for freedom from the tyranny of the enemies so that we can have life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Their sacrifice is what brings us freedom just as Christ's sacrifice on the cross paved for the freedom of humanity to be available.

May you know that you can be a soldier of the Lord as you put the Word of God into practice everyday!

I am a Soldier
Author Unknown

I am a soldier, a prayer warrior, of the army of my God.
The Lord Jesus Christ is my Commanding Officer.
The Holy Bible is my code of conduct.
Faith, Prayer and the Word are my weapons of warfare.

I have been taught by the Holy Spirit, trained by experience,
tried by adversity, and tested by fire.

I am a volunteer in this army, and I am enlisted for eternity.
I will either retire in this army at the Rapture or die in this Army;
but I will not get out, sell out, be talked out.
I am faithful, capable, and dependable.

If my God needs me, I am there.

I am a soldier, a prayer warrior. I am not a baby.
I do not need to be pampered, petted, primed up, pumped up, picked up, or pepped up.

I am a soldier, a prayer warrior.
No one has to call me, remind me, write me, visit me, entice me, or lure me.

I am a solider, a prayer warrior. I am not a wimp.
I am in place, saluting my King, obeying His orders, praising His name
and building His Kingdom!

I am a soldier, a prayer warrior.
No one has to send me flowers, gifts, food, cards, candy, or give me handouts.
I do not need to be cuddled, cradled, cared for, or catered to.

I am committed.
I cannot have my feelings hurt bad enough to turn me around.
I cannot be discouraged enough to turn me aside.
I cannot lose enough to cause me to quit.

Source: http://www.dare2share.org/devotions/are-you-in-the-lords-army

"Soldier Of Lord Doing Important Exercises Rigorously! (S.O.L.D.I.E.R)/”What kind of soldier will you be?”

PRAYER:
Dear Jesus, I love you so much. Thank you Jesus for dying for our sins so that we can have Eternal Life when we turn to you. Your blood was shed for us for our freedom. Thank you for coming back to life to save us. We come to you right now and pray for the families who lost their loved ones fighting for this country's freedom and to keep away terrorism from our soil. Please Lord strengthen them on this Memorial Day as they remember what their loved one gave up. Help us never to forget what the soldiers who serve have done so we can continue to have life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I also pray for those that put the troops down that you will convict them to support them and not use this Memorial Day as an opportunity to speak out against war when the war is fought to preserve freedom now and in the future. Thank you Jesus for being our Commander in Chief and for the orders you have given for our own good. Help us please Jesus to put into practice your Word Oh God so that we can be faithful in all our drill training. This way Lord when the real war comes from the enemy, we can stand up to the Spiritual Warfare for we have your training to back us up and win the battle. Oh Lord, it is not easy going against the enemy and many times we have taken casualties because we have not been focused on you. We are sorry Lord. We want to be a faithful soldier in your Army and need your help. Thank you for helping us as we depend on you. And Lord, we thank you as we become a spiritual veteran through the years and die later, you will have a special memorial for us with your medals ready. Thank you for having our names engraved in your Book of Life for our service here on earth. We know Heaven is our home and our citizenship but sometimes that’s easy to forget on this battlefield called Earth. We need your help always. Thank you for your help and your Word. We thank you for all those that have served you through the years. Thank you for being an awesome Commander in Chief that people have loved to serve you Jesus! We want to serve you too! We thank you that your peace can be with us no matter what we face. Thank you for hearing us and answering us. In Your Name We Pray Jesus! Amen!

If you want to be a soldier in the Lord's army, you can become it right now. Now is the time of Salvation! You do not have to wait but can pray this prayer and give your life to Christ to serve Him daily! There is no draft but coming to Christ is voluntary. He loves you so much and wants you to come to Him! He will take care of you, guiding you and leading you!

Dear Jesus, I love you. Thank you for loving me so much and thank you for choosing the cross to die for me. You became the Son of Man and lived here on earth. Then you humbled yourself and became obedient to death-even death on the cross. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sin. You died on the cross so that I can be covered in your blood and cleansed by your blood as I acknowledge that I need you and cannot enter Heaven without you being my pathway. So, Jesus I confess all my sins to you and all the ways I have tried to get into Heaven when you already provided the means and the Way. Thank you for all that you have done for me. The cross is the place, a wonderful place where accused and condemned find mercy and grace. Thank you Jesus, it is at the cross where the wrongs we have done and the wrongs done to us were nailed at the cross. Thank you Jesus, at the cross you died for our sins and at the cross you gave your life for us. I thank you for that and thank you for coming back to life to save us. Thank you Jesus for being there for me! Thank you for loving me. I love you Jesus! Please take me as I am and make my life into something that you will be proud of. I surrender my life to you and need your help to live for you. I am forever grateful for what you have done for me and I can never repay you. I want to live for you and need your help. Help me Jesus please. I thank you Jesus for saving me! Thank you for hearing my prayer and answering me. Whatever your will give me the willingness and strength to bear it. Thank you Jesus! I acknowledge you as my Lord and Personal Savior! In Your Name I Pray precious Jesus! Amen!

Friend, if you have prayed this prayer and meant it in your heart, you are a new creation in Christ and all old things are passed away and everything has become new! You may feel something or may not but don’t base it on feelings but base your new life in Christ on the promises of our Savior who will never leave you nor forsake you! Amen!

Spend time in His word and let the Lord speak to you! Start out in the Gospel of John! You can also check out the Gospel of Mark which are the devotionals I have been going through. Learn from Jesus through study and prayer. Also find yourself a church fellowship and a college fellowship you can be part of where you can be part of a community of believers to supplement your own walk with the Lord. Let it be a Bible-believing and Bible-breathing church! Believe in Bible Live Eternally!

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 412-720-4579

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

Love in Christ,
Ramesh

Express Your View

SEPTEMBER 2005

MARK: CHAPTER 1

How seriously do you T.E.S.T.I.F.Y to prophecy? (Sept 01, 05)

Who do you P.O.I.N.T to? (Sept 02, 05)

"Will you take a S.T.A.N.D?" (Sept 03, 05)

How is your loving P.R.A.I.S.E? (Sept 06, 05)

"How do you handle T.E.M.P.T.A.T.I.O.N?" (Sept 07, 05)

"Who controls your T.I.M.E?" (Sept 08, 05)

"What kind of P.R.O.F.E.S.S.I.O.N are you in?" (Sept 09, 05)