All alone in my little cell, without the company of a single person;
precious has been the pilgrimage before going to meet death.
A hidden secluded little hut, for the forgiveness of my sins:
an upright, untroubled conscience towards holy heaven …
A cold and anxious bed, like the lying down of a doomed man:
a brief, apprehensive sleep; invocations frequent and early.
My food as befits my station, precious has been my captivity:
my dinner, without doubt, would not make me full-blooded.
Dry bread weighed out, well we bow the head;
water of the man-coloured hillside, that is the drink I would take.
A bitter meagre dinner; diligently feeding the sick;
keeping off strife and visits; a calm, serene conscience …
All alone in my little cell, all alone thus;
alone I came into the world, alone I shall go from it.
If on my own I have sinned through pride of this world,
hear me wail for it all alone, O God!
- Poem in the 700s or 800s

Matthew 14:14-36

Jesus comes off of the loss of John and goes off to pray. Sometimes we need to be alone. And Jesus needed time to recoup from his cousins death. But it wasn't for long. Because as He returned, the needs of others didn't halt when someone else was suffering.

He felt compassion for them. Suddenly, His cousins unjust death was in the past as people who needed healing gathered. And He healed them. But the peoples’ enthusiasm for the healing caused many to chase Jesus out of His imposed isolation.

And they were hungry. They chased Him into desolate places without thought to bringing food and now it was late and they were hungry. The disciples urged Him to send the crowds away for food, but Jesus turns this into a lesson.

He tells them to get food for the masses. They were stunned. They were probably thinking logistically about locating food and distributing it when Jesus corrected them. Now when they said “we have these fish and this bread” they were doing so as an excuse.

See Lord, they were saying, we can't feed anyone because this is all we have. So Jesus says, bring it to me. How many times do we make excuses for not doing something we know God wants us to do? His answer is always the same, “Bring it to Me.”

What little thing do we have that God can take and increase to meet the need we have? What impossible task do we have that we need resources to meet? For the apostles, the need was lunch. And not only was it enough, it was more than required as each apostle was able to gather a full basket each of the leftover food.

And now the day is over and Jesus sends the apostles to the other end of the lake while he dismissed the crowds and ascended a mountain to pray and night fell. He has spent the day mourning his cousin, and before he had the chance to recover, He was healing, preaching and passing out miraculous provisions so Jesus was exhausted.

And then at a time when the storms on the sea had turned the lake into a churning rolling sea Jesus came to them on the water. And as they saw Him approach, they panicked thinking the dark form upon the water was a ghost. Now, was Jesus doing this as a test or did He simply say, well I have to get to the other side so I'm just gonna cut across the water as a shortcut.

So Peter, ever the impetuous man he was, calls out, if it's you, call me out there. And He does. And many of us know the story, that Peter got out and walked on the water but noticed the storm around him and began to sink.

We could note that Peter was the only man brave enough to ask to step out. But we can't mention the victory of his faith without also mentioning the quick nature of doubt that caused him to sink. Why?

Could it be that the others held back with a little bit of schadenfreude, or “well I didn't have the faith to step out, but at least I didn't fail as spectacularly as Peter just did.” Leave it up to those who would never have the faith to step out, to insult the progress of the one who did.

So what is the lesson of this sad chapter of Matthew? That when God calls upon us to do anything, He will provide a way to complete it. Whether it's through multiplying resources or calling us out to do the impossible. If we have the faith to ask and the continued faith to act in spite of what we see happening around us, He will provide. And the miracle we get to see will be greater than just walking on water.




[14] When He came ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick. [15] Now when it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, “This place is secluded and the hour is already past to eat; send the crowds away, so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” [16] But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go; you give them something to eat!” [17] They *said to Him, “We have nothing here except five loaves and two fish.” [18] And He said, “Bring them here to Me.” [19] And ordering the crowds to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looked up toward heaven. He blessed the food and breaking the loaves, He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. [20] And they all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up what was left over of the broken pieces: twelve full baskets. [21] There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children. [22] Immediately afterward He compelled the disciples to get into the boat and to go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away. [23] After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. [24] But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary. [25] And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. [26] When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. [27] But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” [28] Peter responded and said to Him, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” [29] And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. [30] But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and when he began to sink, he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” [31] Immediately Jesus reached out with His hand and took hold of him, and *said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” [32] When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. [33] And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are truly God’s Son!” [34] When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. [35] And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent word into all that surrounding region and brought to Him all who were sick; [36] and they pleaded with Him that they might just touch the border of His cloak; and all who touched it were cured.

Matthew 14:1-13

Matthew 14 opens with the explanation of why Herod had John the Baptist beheaded at a feast. The rumors of miracles being performed, the dead being raised has Herod thinking back on the forced execution of John the Baptizer.

John had been imprisoned for approaching Herod and rebuking him for stealing his brother's wife. Understand this, John knew that taking this stand would result in his death. And at a party where Herod was content with leaving John locked up forever, but his manipulative new wife was anything but content. She wanted blood.

So she manipulated her daughter, likely Herod's niece into dancing seductively for her new stepfather, the king. She was promised in a moment of hubris on Herod's part anything her heart desired. And with one consultation with her mother, she asked for the head of John the Baptist on a platter.

And despite his fear of John's followers, he listened to his wife, which honestly is the source of many a man's downfall. It is this depiction of his execution that the producers of the Chosen have brought to life the tragedy and hope John the Baptist had at his time of death.
I encourage you to watch that scene if you haven't already. As he is led to the chopping block, the wry grin on his face as he says, “I've never been to a banquet.” And as he kneels to see the lamb in front of the setting sun as the axe falls, the irony of his first banquet being his last is felt.

The actor captures all of that emotion with a look. He is amazing. When you watch, remember, this is the man Jesus said was the greatest man alive. Fortunately, not all believers are called to die for their faith but we are all expected to do so if it comes to it. So will we approach our end with the same faith John had?

We can only pray that we would remain faithful with His strength. We can only in these times do as he did and look to the lamb. And maybe, with this faith, look forward to the banquet we will be welcomed to when we open our eyes in death the first time.


[1] At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the news about Jesus, [2] and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he himself has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.” [3] For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. [4] For John had been saying to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.” [5] Although Herod wanted to put him to death, he feared the crowd, because they regarded John as a prophet. [6] But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod, [7] so much that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. [8] And after being prompted by her mother, she *said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” [9] And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths and his dinner guests. [10] He sent word and had John beheaded in the prison. [11] And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. [12] John’s disciples came and took away the body and buried it; and they went and reported to Jesus. [13] Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the people heard about this, they followed Him on foot from the cities.

A WORD FOR YOU.
(Insights For Life)


And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. Genesis 32:24 KJV


JACOB WAS LEFT ALONE - part 2.
Let me share a particular story about BILL GATES.
Bill Gates, the Founder of Microsoft (stepped down as CEO in 2000), has and practice what is called "Think Weeks" program. It is a legendary "twice-yearly ritual", where he "ISOLATES" himself in a remote cabin to DISCONNECT for seven days. He retreats to a secluded, two-story clapboard cabin in a cedar forest in the Pacific Northwest, with a view of the Olympic Mountains—an intentionally DISTRACTION-FREE ENVIRONMENT. During this "Think Weeks", he receives/accepts No visitors, no phone, no internet, and no TV. The only human contact is a caretaker who drops off two simple meals a day.
- He spends up to 18 hours a day reading and annotating technical papers and employee memos . His record is 112 papers in a single week! He takes his Meals at the kitchen table while still reading.
- These "weeks" led to major pivots for Microsoft, including the Internet Explorer strategy in 1995 and concepts that became the Tablet PC and online gaming. He noted that this intense, distraction-free focus was crucial to his success. This practice was a key strategic tool during his time at Microsoft.

Every great man has a secret - an open secret. One of their secret is the ability to isolate, seclude, withdraw themselves into solitude. Have you noticed that great people have few circle of friends. The Eagle spends 150days in isolation, Bill Gates spends 7days twice a year. DESTINY IS WAITING FOR YOU, NOT IN THE OPEN PLACE - BUT IN THE SECRET PLACE. Destinies are birthed in wilderness and in the solitary place. The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them... Isaiah 35:1 KJV. Be blessed, Stay refreshed!


#AwordForYou
#InsightsforLife
#nnamdicaezarsammyministry
#NCSM
#DewChurchGlobal
#LifereFreshingMinistry
#IAMADEW

St. Benedict

He was born around the year 480 A.D. in a distinguished family of a Roman noble, in Umbria, Italy. He was a twin with his sister St. Scholastica. He studied in Rome and wanted to live a secluded life away from the busy city life, to avoid watching marching armies, sufferings of people. He left Rome with his aged nurse and settled down at Enfide, near the church of St. Peter. Later he met a monk Romanus of Subiaco, whose monastery was in the mountains. Romanus gave St. Benedict the habit of a monk. Benedict lived a life of a hermit for three years in a cave in the mountain. He became a very respectable monk and people used to gather around him for spiritual guidance. When the abbot of a nearby monastery died, the monks came to St. Benedict and requested him to take over the abbot of the monastery and Benedict gave consent reluctantly and became the abbot knowing well that the manners of the monks are different from his views. Benedict made many reforms in the monastery and introduced many reforms for the monks. The monks did not agree with the reforms of St. Benedict and tried to kill him by poisoning. Once the monks added poison in the drink given for St. Benedict but when St. Benedict prayed before drinking, the cup shattered. In another occasion the monks gave poisoned bread to him but when St. Benedict prayed before eating the bread, a bird called raven suddenly came in and took away the poisoned bread and miraculously saved the life of St. Benedict. Disgusted about the behavior of the monks, St. Benedict returned to his cave for hermit life and attracted by his sanctity many people came to him again for solace. He founded 12 monasteries in the vicinity of Subiaco and later founded the famous Benedictine Monastery of Monte Cassino, on the hill top between Rome and Naples. He died at the Monte Cassino Monastery due to high fever, on March 21, 547. He wrote the \'Rule of Benedict\' with 73 chapters about how to live a Christ-centric spiritual life and about how to run a monastery efficiently. He contributed more to the rise of monasticism and his rules are the fundamental document for many religious communities even today.
#Benedict #Benedictine #monastery #spiritual #monk #Christian #cathol8c #rules #Constitution #cave

THREE ANGELS BROADCASTING NETWORK DEVOTIONAL.
Not a Whim.

By Andrey Kotorov

April 4th, 2026

“Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments… then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house.” 1 Kings 11:38

I came to the Lord quite early, when I was only 16 years old. I began attending Bible courses in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, and I learned about God, believed in Him, and was baptized by full immersion like the Bible teaches. It was a radical change in my life since from childhood I had followed the example of my parents, who drank and often fought. From the age of 14, I, too, smoked and drank.

But shortly after my baptism, I was called up to serve in the army, and I felt I had to defend my new religious beliefs there. When I arrived, I immediately announced my convictions. I refused to take the oath, take up arms, or learn to kill. They sent me to a combat battalion where almost all of my fellow soldiers were indifferent to my faith. In fact, some of them thought I was simply shying away from service and treated me accordingly.

My insistence on observing the fourth commandment and rest on the Sabbath caused a lot of misunderstanding because Saturday in the army is the busiest day of cleaning and preparing for the week. On that day, I read my Bible but seemed to always be in everyone’s way. I could not find a secluded place to be by myself with God. The soldiers drove me from corner to corner, got irritated, and even threatened to beat and maim me. But I entrusted God with my protection, and He saved me from the beatings.

I had a great experience trusting God when I had to go before our regiment’s chief of staff. I was summoned to the office of the lieutenant colonel, and he asked me to explain my position. I told him that my behavior was not a whim, and then I proceeded to use common sense as I explained my desire to keep God’s law. He threatened to lock me up and send me to a disciplinary battalion, where nothing good awaited me—and that’s when I began to pray, Lord, please help him understand that it is useless to try to dissuade me.

The answer from God was instant! The lieutenant colonel suddenly stopped mid-sentence and said, “Well, if you can’t take the oath, then no problem. You won’t take it.” Then he followed me into the corridor and shook hands in front of everyone—a signal that turned into a kind of defense against everyone else’s attacks.

I have never regretted taking the side of Jesus Christ because He gave my life meaning. He put my feet on solid ground and gave me hope of eternal life with Him!

From Ellen G.White
Daily Devotions

A Spotless Example.

For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Hebrews 4:15. {LHU 33.1}

The life of Christ had been so secluded at Nazareth that the world did not know Him as the Son of God—their Redeemer. He was regarded as nothing more than the son of Joseph and Mary. His life in childhood and youth was remarkable. His silence in regard to His exalted character and mission contains an instructive lesson to all youth. His faithful obedience to His parents until He was thirty years of age is a pattern for youth to imitate more than the Jesus in Gethsemane and upon Calvary. {LHU 33.2}

We shall never be required to endure the agony of the Son of God which He bore for a guilty world; but His life of submission and faithful obedience to His parents is the pattern for all children and youth. Although they may never experience, as did the Redeemer, the agony of Gethsemane or Calvary, they are required to imitate the life of Christ in humility, self-denial, self-sacrifice, and in filial, respectful obedience to their parents.... {LHU 33.3}

The Lord had revealed to John that Jesus would be among the candidates who were to receive baptism at his hands, and that He would give him a special token whereby he might know the Lamb of God, and call the attention of the people to Him as the long-expected Messiah. {LHU 33.4}

John had heard of the sinless character and spotless purity of the life of Christ, and that He claimed to be the Son of God. He had been informed of His wise questions and answers in the Temple, which astonished the grave doctors. He had listened to the recital of the Galilean youth silencing the doctors by His deep reasoning. He thought this must be the Son of God, the promised Messiah.... {LHU 33.5}

As soon as the discerning eye of John rested upon Jesus, his spirit was stirred with the deepest emotion. He knew that He was not like any other man that had received the ordinance at his hand. He had strong convictions that this was the Christ of whom Moses and the prophets had written. His heart went out to Christ with intense love and reverence that he had never felt before. The very atmosphere of His presence was holy and awe-inspiring.... His heart had never been stirred with such emotions as when in the presence of Christ.... {LHU 33.6}

Christ came to receive baptism, not with confession of sins to repentance, for He was without the taint of sin.... Through the perfection of His character He was accepted of the Father as a mediator for sinful man.... The Captain of our salvation was made perfect through suffering, and thus qualified to help fallen man just where he needed help (Youth’s Instructor, January 1, 1874). {LHU 33.7}

Dear Father,

The Psalmist says, “Sing to Him, sing praise to Him; tell of all His wonderful acts.” When I read this Scripture, I was reminded of the woman with the issue of blood, how she lived secluded from the rest of the world, and how, even after she was healed, she remained hidden. We would never have known her story if Jesus had not insisted on knowing, “Who touched Me?”

Under Levitical law, a woman with a continual issue of blood was considered unclean and required to separate herself. For twelve years, she was rejected, embarrassed, and faced continual disappointment. It was, therefore, a natural response for her to remain hidden even after she was healed.

This illustration reveals the psychological effects of trauma on the mind. That repeated disappointment, rejection, or infirmity can shape us in more ways than we know. I’ve seen wounded partners remain insecure, even with healed partners, and I’ve seen sudden elevation remain foreign to people who have endured a series of rejections. Father, the damage of trauma often remains untold.

Jesus showed that His concern was not limited to her physical healing. When He called her out, He restored her identity. Perhaps restoration requires profession, a declaration that tells our minds what our bodies already know: “I am healed.”

#LettertoGod

Basic Training


Basic Training 1: Staying Connected to the King


The first and most essential principle of our training is this: we must stay intimately connected to the King—we in him and he in us. Whatever else happens or doesn’t happen, Warriors stay close to their King.


Jesus is where our Life is and where it comes from. Through his own deeply connected relationship with the Father, Jesus showed us how we, in turn, can live our lives in a similar connected relationship with the Father, and why we must. And he removed everything that impeded our intimacy with him and the Father (His prayer in John 17 confirms it).


Basic Training 2: Fighting for Freedom


Setting captive hearts free is no mere abstraction. It’s as real as the friend who struggles with alcoholism, the wife who bears the wounds of childhood sexual abuse, or the guy two seats over in church who is contemplating suicide. They’re why we fight: because they’re in pain, bound and brutalized by an enemy they can’t see in a war they don’t comprehend. And a Warrior well knows, “That used to be me.” And feels compassion to those still broken or bound.


Basic Training 3: Seeing with the Eyes of Your Heart


Through Christ and in Christ we are free, yet we live with a gravitational pull toward the old ways of the old nature. So after our initial healing from our wounds (during which we confess and repent as often as we need to), we continue to vigilantly engage our will and say no to whatever our enemy throws at us that will impede our freedom.


We are trained as our Father’s Beloved Sons to see, listen, and discern between the presence and voices of two kingdoms: Life and death. This is what the Father is up to in the hearts and lives of his Beloved Sons. It is what Jesus practiced, and so must we.


Basic Training 4: Listening and Patience


It’s all training: what to do, what not to do, and learning how to exercise care in drawing conclusions. The false self is quick to run crazy commentary of how we should act, react, judge, or accuse. Every moment consists of a multitude of variables, it’s never just one thing.


The Heart of a Warrior must learn that God is good and is up to good in his life and in the lives of others.


The Father’s aim is to deploy his Beloved Sons into many different situations where he wants a Kingdom presence. Learning how to be that presence takes time.


Basic Training 5: Solitude and Cunning


Being still (Psalm 46:10) is a daily practice of a Warrior that is uncommon to most men. The Message version of the Bible does a beautiful job of rendering Jesus’ instructions about praying in solitude:


Here’s what I want you to do: find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace. -Matthew 6:6 (MSG)


Only by practicing stillness aggressively, pushing all the clamor and busyness of life aside, can a man truly experience God. In the still and quiet, discernment is learned so that in the heart of the battle it can be practiced. If a man can’t practice it when things are still, there is no way he will be able to do so when the arrows are flying.


Basic Training 6: Moving in Glory


The letters of Peter, James, John, and Paul to first-century believers were all written with a common expectation: those who read them would “get better” because they were oriented and equipped to get better. The new believers’ old hearts of stone (Jeremiah 17:9; Ezekiel 11:19) had been replaced with new ones (Jeremiah 24:7; Ezekiel 18:31). Now, at the center of their being, the heart, they were made noble and good (Luke 8:15).


So it is with us as well! Now we too are to learn how to live our lives out of the good heart within us. Our Father invites us to get better, to become more—more loving, more kind, more patient, more like Jesus in thought, words and deeds, more who we truly are as Beloved Sons.


Basic Training 7: Love


Love is what we were made for, and in love God restores us. Our job as men is first to receive and experience God and then offer him to others—because he is love.


Love is the family business of the kingdom. It will take some training, and everything we have and everything we are as men, to protect love and see it done. Love will not happen without a fight. If we fight for it, the outcome is certain. He became like us (sinful man) so we could become like him (glorious ones, Romans 8).


For most of our lives, as with all those lives around us, we have experienced love so “conditionally” that the vital move toward unconditional love will take time.


A man can’t just buckle down and make it happen in a moment.


Love is something that happens to a man and then settles the heart within him.


What does that love look like? Jesus. Jesus!