Carter Conlon | Daily Devotionals

Isaiah 1:5: *The whole head is sick and the whole heart faints.* There are times in life when we lose heart. There comes a moment when you no longer see a future. Your plans fail right in front of you. You can't see your way forward. David once said that his strength failed him and even the light of

Isaiah 1:5: *The whole head is sick and the whole heart faints.* There are times in life when we lose heart. There comes a moment when you no longer see a future. Your plans fail right in front of you. You can't see your way forward. David once said that his strength failed him and even the light of

In the Book of 1 Kings 18 , Elijah the prophet called the people near, and he repaired the altar of the Lord that had broken down. He took twelve stones according to the tribes of Israel, even though the nation at that time was divided. God was making a statement.  If it is His altar, there is no division, no black, white, brown, red, or yellow; no righteous side or unrighteous side; no history th...

False prophecy often raves, plays the madman, and moves through agitated, spasmodic actions. Scripture shows that an evil spirit came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house. Not all prophecy is from God. Not all spiritual expression is the Holy Spirit’s power.  Some manifestations are abnormal, driven, and disconnected from the Word of God. They may sound spiritual, but they deviat...

The devil is trying to convince many that they have no part nor portion in what God has called us to be in this time. The Holy Spirit is still in the business of breaking barriers that the devil has placed in front of people’s hearts and minds.  It is by the Word of God that we are guided, admonished, cleansed, instructed, and led into an incredible life that is promised to us through Jesus Christ...

There’s a difference between worship and false prophecy, even when both look spiritual. Saul in the Bible was prophesying in the house while David was worshiping God. To the undiscerning eye, it all appeared holy, but there was a javelin in Saul’s hand.  He was full of rebellion, envy, self-ambition, and hatred for the true anointing of God. His prophecy eventually twisted away from truth and led...

The fire reveals what theology alone cannot. A believer may study sacrifice and faith, but the fire shows what truly sustains the soul.  In the garden, the disciples learned that desire is not the same as ability. Jesus showed them that what is of man cannot survive the fire. Only what is of Christ remains. God leads every believer to this understanding, not to humiliate us, but to free us. When s...

In the Bible, the prophets of Baal cried aloud, leaped on their altar, and even cut themselves. Yet there were no voice and no answer from heaven.  You see, sincerity was not enough. They raved, acted insanely, exhausted themselves, and mistook emotion for power. Fire was not a feeling, not a tingling presence, not a sensory experience. The Word of God does not make superficial cuts. It is sharp a...

Among God’s people, Jeremiah said wicked men were found laying snares, setting traps for the unwary. These were not outsiders; they were within. They became great and waxed rich, shining in the sight of men but not in the sight of God. Their houses were full of deceit. They cared nothing for the needy or those in genuine spiritual distress. Their focus was money, success, and influence. This was a...

We know that Jesus is coming soon. He also said that before He comes, He would reach out in mercy, and He would have a harvest of people who can still hear His voice.  It’s time now to stop living your life without Christ. It’s time to stop allowing the devil to come in and destroy your home, your family, your mind, and your future. It’s time to rise up and begin to walk with God. He has an abunda...

Jeremiah the prophet cried out to a people who were standing, listening, and yet already gone. God spoke to the prophet and said, “They have revolted and gone,” meaning that they had already left in their hearts. They knew what they were in was not of God, yet they would not return to the One whom they knew was real. There was no cry in their heart anymore saying, “Let us now fear the Lord our God...

Jesus said, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” This is not an excuse; it is a revelation. Human willingness cannot overcome human weakness. Peter wanted to stand, but he could not without divine strength. God allows each of us to reach this place, so we stop trusting in ourselves.  Religion survives by comparison, but grace begins with surrender. When the fire comes, every false confi...

Elijah once said to the people, “How long will you halt between two opinions?” And the Scripture says the people answered him not a word.  The word halt means to hop, to skip over, to dance as a lame man. Elijah was asking why they would skip over truth, spare themselves the deep dealings of God, and worship as the lame when they could be whole. They stood halfway, unable to move forward or turn b...

In the Bible, Elijah gathered the people to Mount Carmel, a place of remembrance where God had once given victory under Joshua. The Holy Spirit always draws the people of God back to remembrance. It does not come to condemn the church, even when she has grown apostate. It comes to woo and to draw back what has been alienated from the heart of God.  Elijah stood before the people and asked a simple...

In the Gospel of John 10, Jesus said that He came that we may have life and have it more abundantly. Jesus didn’t only come so that we would have eternal life, but that we would have an abundant life on this side of eternity and a reason to live.  He came to give us a purpose in life. Now, it won’t always be easy, but it is divine. It bears eternal dividends and gives us a reason to live. God call...

In the Bible, during a morally religious practice, God raised up a voice of truth. The people of God had become captivated by a false god called Baal—a god of personal increase and prosperity, a religion that allowed sensuality and immorality while still claiming the presence of God. If the crops grew and the rain came, they said Baal was pleased. But this was a licentious and wicked worship that...

The Kingdom of God advances through those who know where their strength comes from. Walking in the flesh is trying to follow Christ by human will and human ability alone. It will always fail.  In the fire, this truth becomes unavoidable. God is building a testimony in your life that cannot be sustained by human effort. When you surrender your rights and yield your life, the Spirit of God takes res...

In the Old Testament, the prophet Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal. Elijah rebuilt the altar carefully and put the wood in order before anything else happened. Nothing was rushed; nothing was skipped. The altar was prepared according to God’s design, not human urgency. God is intentional about order because order reveals trust.  At the center of the altar was the sacrifice God Himself had es...

At the center of Christianity, there is wood that must be dealt with. God planted that wood on a hill called Calvary, and on it He laid His sacrifice, His Son. Growth in the Christian life depends on how you and I understand that sacrifice. If we lay hold of the complete victory won at Calvary and trust the Holy Spirit to make it very real in us, then transformation of our lives will follow.  We a...

When the Spirit of God came into your life, He didn’t just come to be a part of your life. He came to evict everything that is unlike Himself from your life. He literally took over your life. He gave an eviction notice, and those old things inside of you, although they may try to hang on, they may even try to argue a reason why they are staying, but they can’t stay any longer. You see, they’ve all...

In the story in the Bible, Elijah the prophet dug a trench around an altar. He dug it wide and deep, and it took time. He was in no rush.  False religion is quick. It surveys what people want, secures financing, and builds something that never challenges the heart. What God builds takes time. Digging the trench mattered because it prepared the altar for what was coming. God is never hurried when H...

Today I want to remind you that Jesus could not carry the cross to Calvary in His physical strength alone. God sent Simon of Cyrene to help Him finish the journey. If the Son of God needed strength beyond Himself, then so do we.  The call to take up the cross is not a call to self-powered endurance. It is an invitation to dependence. God always provides strength for the journey that He ordains. St...

You know, people often push away the Word of God. When truth is revealed gently and clearly, it is the pause that reveals our hearts. A man hesitates because he knows that something is not right. He may wish it were right, but he feels his needs are met where he is. Although deep inside, he knows that it is not what God has ordained for his life.  This same thing is true spiritually. People know i...

There was once a time of great spiritual conflict. You find that in the Book of 1 Kings 18 . And it was because God’s people had drifted far from the truth. They refused to separate from the gods around them, and those gods became to them, as with people throughout time, a snare. What was meant to give them life instead swallowed them in confusion. God’s desire was to give them a true heritage, bu...

There’s an incredible promise of new life given to people by God. Anyone who believes can receive it and can have a new, full, and abundant life in Christ. Now, the problem is that many people try to hang on to a little of the old, and they want to bargain with God.  They want the new, but they also want the old. So many people don’t get the victory because they won’t let the old things in their l...