Dona Hake, Author at The Abundant Life Center

“Fresh Faith For Today!”

Posted on Feb 21, 2016 in Devotions |

by Dona Hake

Yesterday I shared the scripture with you from Acts 17:28, “It is through him that we are able to live, to do what we do, and to be who we are..” May I ask if you have to make a conscious effort to take your next breath or does it just happen? The Lord desires that we live this life in Him just as we depend upon Him for our next breath. We need not labor to live for Him but rather we should press in to live and move and flow from His heavenly abundance, grace and strength. Let us continue to build our faith and be mindful that our dependency must be upon Him for every moment we live. The strength we received yesterday was for yesterday’s needs. Tomorrow is a new day, and we must look to Him for new strength and provision for the needs of today.

I want to share a quote with you written by Francois deFellelon…

“The comfort you find in a moment of faith will

be completely inadequate for the next.”

It is our human nature to get caught up in moments isn’t it? Some moments are so wonderful and just unforgettable. In this life we will be blessed to experience joys that are beyond our belief. There will also be times in which we release our faith, and we just know heaven and earth has been moved for us. Oh the joy of those sweet victories. But know this my friend, we cannot live off of the fumes of yesterday’s faith and victories.

Today I encourage you to reflect on the wonderful victories the Lord has blessed you with but remember that today is a new day with new demands, circumstances, and sometimes obstacles that are going to try to stop you. Look to Him with faith, new strength and grace for this day, and live and move in Him by faith as you serve Him fresh today!

“It Is Through Him We Live!”

Posted on Feb 20, 2016 in Devotions |

by Dona Hake

My youngest Granddaughter is still trying to master putting on winter gloves so she can go out and through ball to my German Shepherd. “Grandma….this is complicated!!!” she says to me. You see, I still have to help her because she ends up getting two fingers stuck in one of the fingers of the glove. We laugh as we look at the glove for there is one of the fingers of the glove that is motionless because there is no finger in it. I always say, “Okay, let’s try this again…” She opens her little hand and tries to guide each finger where it belongs. Then I hear, “There!!!! I got it Grandma, now let’s go!!!”

We too are like that glove that really can not move perfectly apart from Him filling each and every aspect of our being. He desires to live and flow through us in every area of our walk. This is His perfect will for us! Today I want you to remember that you are His very special vessel and He wants you to submit yourself to Him that He can breathe His life into every word you speak, every deed you do, and every circumstance you face today. He wants to move through you and make you a vessel of honor for Him. Let us live and move and have our total being in Him!

Acts 17:28 (East To Read version)

“It is through him that we are able to live, to do

what we do, and to be who we are…”

“Waiting With Expectancy”

Posted on Feb 19, 2016 in Devotions |

I want to encourage your heart in the realm of expectancy from God today. When we greet Him in prayer, He desires that we couple with our faith an expectation from Him as we wait before Him. Let us go about our day after we begin in prayer and walk in anticipation of what He is going to do throughout our day! Do you watch for His hand upon the happenings of your day? Do you expect Him to show up in unlikely ways? I hope these questions cause your heart to think about this in a fresh new way today.

Psalm 5:3 (CEB)
” Lord, in the morning you hear my voice.
In the morning I lay it all out before you.
Then I wait expectantly.”

I thank God that His mercies are new every morning and we can wake with the expectancy of a new day with fresh opportunities.

Psalm 145:2 (AMP)
Every day [with its new reasons] will I bless You
[affectionately and gratefully praise You];
yes, I will praise Your name forever and ever.

Today I encourage you to draw upon His strength and see your day as a fresh canvas. There may be things that you are facing that tempt your heart to be burdened but be encouraged that God is a God that never grows weary. Lift your eyes toward heaven, and lay your heart open to Him and wait expectantly for Him to guide you throughout your day. All of us have reasons to bless His Name and be thankful. No, maybe everything is not perfect, but take time to call out the blessings that you possess because of the goodness of God. Today, with it’s new beginning, praise and bless His Name for all the good things you embrace because of His goodness in your life!

“Being Transformed By the Living God”

Posted on Feb 18, 2016 in Devotions |

by Dona Hake

Today I want to share how truth can define who are as you seek it wholeheartedly. May we seek His truth from the greatest depths of our hearts like never before! The world is looking for truth, and we must live in such a way that we are living witnesses of the one true and living God. In addition to living truth before a world of those that do not know Him, we need to be living examples among those younger than us in the faith. Therefore, we as believers need to commit ourselves to know that we are walking in the truth that we know that we can be a living testimony of His Word.

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Romans 12:1-2 Easy-to-Read Version

“So I beg you, brothers and sisters, because of the great mercy God has shown us, offer your lives[a] as a living sacrifice to him—an offering that is only for God and pleasing to him. Considering what he has done, it is only right that you should worship him in this way. Don’t change yourselves to be like the people of this world, but let God change you inside with a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to understand and accept what God wants for you. You will be able to know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect.”

The world is putting such a pressure and demand on all of us but especially our young people. It is trying to mold their minds to adapt to the world’s ways, thoughts, etc. Our billboards give visuals to us of what beauty and success are, causing us to be tempted to endeavor to measure up to such unreality. How sad it is that these things have so much power that one tries to define themselves by such demands.

If we allow anything or anyone else to define us we lose our ability to grow genuinely and discover what the Lord has for us as an individual. Confusion will run through our minds over the simplest of problems and decision making. We will be tossed about with every wind of change or newest thing which presents itself as an answer rather than turning our eyes and hearts to the wisdom of God. We need to make the decision to let God define who we are according to His Word and His standards.

It is as we seek His truth with every fiber of our being that we will walk in total freedom from the dictates of this world. What freedom to know we are allowing Him to mold us into what He sees as a success, and not what the world defines as success. When we continue in His Word, and we receive greater revelation, God will begin to challenge our hearts to change, and this is a good and wonderful thing. There is no need to fret because God will work in you, and it is His good pleasure to work in you, and bring His will to pass in your life.

Philippians 2:13 (AMP)
“[Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while [a]effectually
at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both
to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and [b]delight.”

We can rest assured that as God is at work in us, and He will energize within us the desire to do what it takes to make any changes needed. I encourage you today to look to God’s truth wholeheartedly in everything you put your hand to. He is faithful and well able to cause your hand to prosper, and you will live transformed in the freedom of being who God created you to be! God bless you.

“Eternity Was Planted In Our Hearts”

Posted on Feb 17, 2016 in Devotions |

by Dona Hake

Make no mistake…whatever God does, He has a plan and a purpose for it. When God created man, He not only formed him and breathed life into him, He created a place in man’s heart in which His life would fit. He created man with a need for his Creator. I can remember two whole years of my life as a teenager in which every night I prayed a particular prayer before I went to sleep. These were the two years before I gave my heart to Jesus Christ. My heart was struggling against the living God. I had two friends diligently praying for my salvation and I was so stubborn. Every night for those two years before I closed my eyes I would say to God, “There has to be more to this life than this.” I know now that my heart was implanted with a need for Him and He was the only one that could fulfill that need. Because of prayer going forth for me, my heart was experiencing a lost and lacking feeling because of my need for the Living God. My heart continued to grow curious and look for answers. My friends, I exhort you to never grow weary in praying for those that look hopeless for I can remember how stubborn I was. I thank God for those that did not give up and continued to pray for me!

Ecclesiastes 3:11 (AMP)
“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He also has planted eternity in men’s hearts and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy], yet so that men cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.”

God has planted eternity in every heart and mind that has ever lived. But remember this…we are born with the choice of whom we will look to to satisfy our every need. Within the heart of man is a longing that only God can satisfy yet man who chooses to fill his voids apart from Christ will never be fulfilled. I can remember someone saying that there is a whole in every man’s heart that only God can fill. Until one accepts Jesus Christ as Lord of their life, there will always be a yearning for more and an emptiness in the soul of that person.

This is how the New Life Version of Ecclesiastes 3:11 is translated:

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has put thoughts of the forever in man’s mind, yet man cannot understand the work God has done from the beginning to the end.”

I particularly want you to look at “man cannot understand the work God has done from the beginning to the end.” All of God’s ways and thoughts are above and beyond our comprehending, and the beauty of this fact is that this makes God who He is! He is beyond us figuring Him out, He is awesome and we should not try to comprehend His ways.

Let us trust Him today with all of our hearts. Let us also rejoice that because we know Him, we can live in all of the beauty and abundance that He desires for us. I praise God that He did plant eternity in every man’s heart and mind. Lord, we askthat You lead us in our actions and words that we would be a testimony to those around us that have not yet made that choice for You. God, you have planted eternity within those hearts that are still empty….oh that they would see their need for a Savior!

“The Righteous Man Will Not Be Defeated”

Posted on Feb 16, 2016 in Devotions |

by Dona Hake

Proverbs 24:16 (The Expanded Bible)

“Even though ·good [righteous] people

may ·be bothered by trouble [fall] seven times,

they ·are never defeated [ get back up]”

I have been amazed at times at testimonies given by believers of receiving great strength during some of the deepest trials of their lives. What a testimony we can be in those times in which situations and circumstances could serve to weaken us yet as we stay focused and keep our hope on Him, we continue to stand strong! Yes there will be times that we are weak, weary, and there are times in in which our choices may set us back. Praise God for those times that even when we are at our worse, He promises to lift us back up…IF we look to Him. As we reach for His strength in our time of weakness He promises to meet us where we are at, and stand us back up on our feet again.

This life brings obstacles and difficulties that can stand in our way in the good fight of faith, IF we permit them to. Let me say that again…. things can stand in our way IF we permit them to. Along with difficulties and trials, we can become worn down in our hearts and minds. Many times during trials we can be tempted to focus so much on the problem that our thoughts become saturated with them. Let us meditate on the truth that God has commanded us to be diligent to guard our hearts and minds with His Word. He well knows the fight that we have before us, and He is well able to equip us to fight it!

I want to encourage you today as you run the good race, and set out to serve Him to be diligent to do all that He requires of you and do it with all of your heart. God is looking for a people that are willing to give their all, He is not looking that we do everything perfectly for He knows we are human and that is impossible. He is looking for the pure and diligent heart that seeks to obey Him.

“Satisfied Seeking His Righteousness”

Posted on Feb 14, 2016 in Devotions |

Blessed are they which thirst after righteousness

by Dona Hake

The other morning I found myself reading the beatitudes in the Amplified version and I was loving the wording in this translation. God desires that we hunger for His righteousness so that He can fulfill that desire. Let us look at Luke 6:21 in the Amplified:

“Blessed [joyful, nourished by God’s goodness]

are you who hunger now [for righteousness, actively

seeking right standing with God], for you will be [completely] satisfied.”

The words that stood out to me and ministered to my heart were ~blessed~ being defined as ~joyful, nourished by God’s goodness~ You know when we are hungry in the natural, we can reach for the wrong things, and they certainly to not nourish our bodies. Yet if we are hungry we can reach for that thing that will bring healthy nourishment to our bodies. I love though how His Word is showing us that as we hunger from deep within for His righteousness that we will be nourished by His goodness, and the blessing of joy will accompany that filling from Him.

As we seek to walk in righteousness, we are desiring to walk in all that God is. He is all good, He is all moral excellence, He is all virtue, and He is all pure! May we actively hunger after His righteousness all the days of our lives for as we do, we will be satisfied and spiritually nourished in that desire.

Psalm 17:15 AMP

As for me, I shall see Your face in

righteousness; I will be [fully] satisfied when I awake

[to find myself] seeing Your likeness.

“The Time We Are Given”

Posted on Feb 13, 2016 in Devotions |

by Dona Hake

Time is a gift to all of us, and we must use it wisely. I hear people say it all the time, “Time flies…” Wow! Some days I wonder where the day has gone, and I think even now that we are half way through February already!

I recently saw something that was shared on social media that I thought was thought provoking about time. This young lady was 37 years old and she has decided to return to school. It is a University of Western Sydney in Australia, and it was a three hour work shop for mature age students returning to learning. She shared a shot of what was on the overhead screen, and it was about time. This is what it said:

*We all get 24 hours a day

*It does not matter how rich, how smart or otherwise. Nobody gets more time in a day, week or semester than anyone else.

*No one can make more time

*We can only use it wisely or waist it

*Even the most intelligent student can fail at this University if they do not manage their time well.

I think this is a wonderful bit of wisdom for anyone and any age. As I meditated upon sharing this with you today, there were three words on my heart that I want us to ponder. They are grace, choices, and wisdom.

It is true that all of us have the same amount of time, yet each of us have totally different demands on the “plates” of our life. I know in my life that different seasons seemed more demanding, and there were seasons in which those demands could have brought me great stress. As I look back on a particular time I still cannot believe that I was able to swing the schedule I had along with raising two young sons at the time. It simply was God’s grace and the instruction of His wisdom in my life. I simply want to share with you that there may be times in which our days may seem impossible but know this…God’s grace is sufficient to help us deal wisely with every demand. His wisdom will enable us to do exactly the right thing at the right time. Lastly I want to share about our choices with what we do with our time. Let us look at the scripture from Ephesians 5:16 …

“…making the very most of your time [on earth, recognizing and taking advantage of each opportunity and using it with wisdom and diligence], because the days are [filled with] evil.”

In the realm of our choices may we be reminded that wrong choices with our time will cause our time to slip away. Once it is gone, it is gone. We cannot wish it back nor can we buy it back. That time is gone. If we waste time, many times we really do pay for it. Wasted time can cause small demands that need accomplished to seem impossible. If you have ever tried to hold sand in your hands, you will find it almost impossible for it slips away quickly, and this is how time is as well. My friends, time really does go quickly, and we must use wise choices over every minute of our day knowing that we are honoring Him with all of our time. May you recognize today the value and blessing of each and every minute that He has given you. Enjoy your life, make the most of your time, and bless the Lord with every opportunity that life brings to you!!

“God’s Sufficient Grace”

Posted on Feb 12, 2016 in Devotions |

by Dona Hake

Last evening just as I pulled up to my home at the end of a long day my gas light went on, and I heard the “ding!!”. It is nearly on the “E”. I knew it was low but I did not feel like standing out in the bitter cold and pumping gas. Today I must stop and get gas for if I do not I am going find myself sitting somewhere on yet another cold, frigid day, and I am really going to be inconvenienced. Not only would there be the inconvenience but because of not doing my part, I would be wasting precious time to get done the things that need done. Sometimes we must stop and get exactly what we need for specific things if we use them to accomplish certain purposes. Today we will look at the word ~sufficient~. Sufficient defined is when something is enough to meet a need or purpose. It is the adequate amount of something. Today if I plan to go anywhere, I must put a sufficient amount of gas into the tank. I cannot put water into it or some other substance, it must be gas. You see I know that you know that it would be silly to put anything but gas in my tank, but how many times to we try to replace God’s strength and ability with our own knowledge, ability or strength?

Let us use this analogy to reflect upon our need for His grace to do specific things. If we do not look upon Him and ask for His grace, we will surely rely upon our own resources, knowledge and ability. May I suggest that as you begin your day in prayer that you can ask Him for His much needed grace to live your day. I ask the Holy Spirit to remind me to beware of doing things in my own ability. I desire with all of my heart that my strength and help is from Him and from Him alone! It is His grace that will see us through any circumstance, and He desires that we draw upon it in all that we do.

In the scriptures (2 Corinthians 12:8-10) Paul spoke of calling out to God to help him. Paul had enough of dealing with problems and he begged God that the whole issue would depart from him. God’s response…”My grace which is my favor, my lovingkindness, and my mercy are all that you need. My grace is SUFFICIENT against any danger and it enables you to bear this trouble manfully. My strength and power are made perfect and show themselves MOST effective in your weakness.”

Paul’s heart was totally toward God and he realized that all he had to do was allow God’s grace to rest upon him. One translation implies to allow God’s grace to rest as a tent pitched upon us. What an awesome way of looking at dwelling and drawing upon His wonderful grace.

Paul then said, “when I am weak in my own human strength, then I am truly strong, able and powerful in God’s strength.” Paul saw that God’s grace was all that he needed. He saw that it was sufficient. God’s grace is adequate for His purposes and it will always be more than enough. Today I encourage you to make sure that you are drawing upon His grace. In the morning and throughout the day, remind yourself to look up and draw upon His strength and ability that flows from His throneroom of His grace. May we draw upon it as we live this life.

“But Seek First…”

Posted on Feb 10, 2016 in Devotions |

by Dona Hake

Matthew 6:33
Easy-to-Read Version
“What you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what he wants you
to do. Then he will give you all these other things you need.”

In this portion of scripture Jesus is teaching that our priority as a believer is to seek His kingdom first and His righteousness and all else will be taken care of. He was teaching that heavenly things are always more important than anything else. He well understands how things in this world can occupy our hearts and minds and cause us to lose site of the most important thing.

Prior to Him sharing this He spoke about worrying about being clothed. He spoke of the lilies of the field, and how they grow without care and they thrive. How much more will He take care of us? Yet we worry. In the life in which we live it always seems to be something to be tempted to pick up care about.
Jesus understands our weaknesses and our human nature, yet He commands us to cast our care, and wants us to do the most important thing, and that is to just seek Him first. Let us read some scriptures from the writings of Luke.

Luke 10:38-42
Easy-to-Read Version
“While Jesus and his followers were traveling, he went into a town, and a
woman named Martha let him stay at her house. She had a sister named
Mary. Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet and listening to him teach. But her
sister Martha was busy doing all the work that had to be done. Martha went
in and said, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the
work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are getting worried and
upset about too many things.”

This story tells us once again that our Lord desires that we seek Him first. Mary understood this well, but poor Martha in all her good intentions did not understand. The cares of her duties were being placed before her doing the right thing. I do not believe Martha was wrong for wanting to serve, she went wrong in her serving by ending up carrying care, and then assuming that Mary needed to be doing the same. Mary understood that she needed to cease from her work and sit at the feet of the Lord. Martha did not understand that she needed to set the work aside and sit before Jesus.

May we learn from this story of Mary and Martha. Let us seize the opportunities in which the Lord is desiring us to stop and hear what He has to say. Remember in your walk with Him that there is ONLY ONE THING THAT IS IMPORTANT and that is to seek Him first!