Habakkuk 3
Habakkuk's Prayer
1 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. On shigionoth . [a] 2 LORD, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O LORD. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.
3 God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah [b] His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth.
4 His splendor was like the sunrise; rays flashed from his hand, where his power was hidden.
5 Plague went before him; pestilence followed his steps.
6 He stood, and shook the earth; he looked, and made the nations tremble. The ancient mountains crumbled and the age-old hills collapsed. His ways are eternal.
7 I saw the tents of Cushan in distress, the dwellings of Midian in anguish.
8 Were you angry with the rivers, O LORD ? Was your wrath against the streams? Did you rage against the sea when you rode with your horses and your victorious chariots?
9 You uncovered your bow, you called for many arrows. Selah You split the earth with rivers;
10 the mountains saw you and writhed. Torrents of water swept by; the deep roared and lifted its waves on high.
11 Sun and moon stood still in the heavens at the glint of your flying arrows, at the lightning of your flashing spear.
12 In wrath you strode through the earth and in anger you threshed the nations.
13 You came out to deliver your people, to save your anointed one. You crushed the leader of the land of wickedness, you stripped him from head to foot. Selah
14 With his own spear you pierced his head when his warriors stormed out to scatter us, gloating as though about to devour the wretched who were in hiding.
15 You trampled the sea with your horses, churning the great waters.
16 I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us.
17 Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls,
18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
19 The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights. For the director of music. On my stringed instruments.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Romans 12:9-21
Love 9Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. 14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[a] Do not be conceited.
17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay,"[b]says the Lord. 20On the contrary: "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."[c] 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
January 18, 2008
The Hospitality Manager
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READ: Romans 12:9-21
Distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. —Romans 12:13 About this cover Victoria’s family refers to her as the “hospitality manager” of their home. She lives in Singapore with her daughter and son-in-law. He is the RBC Ministries international director, and they often have visitors. Victoria stays busy as a volunteer in the RBC office on that island nation, but her primary ministry is the gift of caring and hospitality. She makes their visitors feel welcome, loved, and cared for in their home.
The word hospitality means “love of strangers,” and this is precisely what the apostle Paul was calling us to in Romans 12. In the midst of the practical challenges to believers about our relationship with God and one another, Paul said that we are to be “distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality” (v.13). This may call us outside our comfort zone to show love and care to those the Lord brings across our path. Hebrews 13:2 adds this intriguing thought about hospitality: “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.”
Often overlooked and sometimes unappreciated, the ministry of the “hospitality manager” is a great gift, and it brings with it the added possibility of surprising blessings along the way! —Bill Crowder
My heart is filled, dear Lord, with love,So let it show in words and deeds;And help me share, in all my ways,The overflow for others’ needs. —Hess
To stretch your soul, reach out with Jesus’ love.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 18, 2008
"It Is the Lord!"LISTEN: READ:
Thomas answered and said to Him, ’My Lord and my God!’ —John 20:28 About this cover Jesus said to her, ’Give Me a drink’ " (John 4:7). How many of us are expecting Jesus Christ to quench our thirst when we should be satisfying Him! We should be pouring out our lives, investing our total beings, not drawing on Him to satisfy us. "You shall be witnesses to Me . . ." (Acts 1:8). That means lives of pure, uncompromising, and unrestrained devotion to the Lord Jesus, which will be satisfying to Him wherever He may send us.
Beware of anything that competes with your loyalty to Jesus Christ. The greatest competitor of true devotion to Jesus is the service we do for Him. It is easier to serve than to pour out our lives completely for Him. The goal of the call of God is His satisfaction, not simply that we should do something for Him. We are not sent to do battle for God, but to be used by God in His battles. Are we more devoted to service than we are to Jesus Christ Himself?
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Fighting for Life - #5485 Friday, January 18, 2008
Kaitlin just lost her long battle for life. She was born with a defective valve in her heart, and that weakness in her heart pursued her through her all-too-short life. Although she had multiple surgeries and times of physical limitation, she had a positive spirit and, often, a pretty normal life. And then, after seventeen years, that heart just gave out. They said her only hope was a heart transplant before that, and she eventually got one, but it just didn't work out for her. In her last weeks, she sometimes battled just to breathe, but she never stopped fighting. And in Kaitlin's dying, her aunt - a relatively young woman herself - learned a powerful lesson about life.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Fighting for Life."
Kaitlin's aunt, in the past, has reached the end of her rope and more than once tried to commit suicide. When Kaitlin graduated from life on earth to life in heaven, her aunt went to Kaitlin's mother and said, "I am so sorry for the times I tried to kill myself. After seeing how Kaitlin fought so hard to stay alive, how could I just throw my life away?"
When you see someone fighting for just a little more life, you realize how priceless life really is. When you see how much Jesus paid with His life to save ours, you see how priceless life really is. And you begin to understand the stark challenge God lays down to us in Deuteronomy 30:19, our word for today from the Word of God. The Lord says, "I have set before you life and death ... so choose life that you may live, and your descendants."
Life is always the right choice. Only God has the right to choose anything else. Life is the right choice when you're considering throwing yours away. Life is the right choice when you're considering throwing away the life of an unborn baby. We just can't decide to end a life that God has created; that only the Creator of a life can choose to end.
David's prayer in Psalm 139 is so revealing. He says to God, "You formed my inward parts; You wove me together in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made...Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were written all the days that were ordained for me when as yet there was not one of them."
A baby is the unique, handmade creation of God, "fearfully and wonderfully made" the Bible says. The circumstances of conception have nothing to do with the value of the life God made. And we have no right to take into our hands the decision as to when our life ends or when any other life ends. God has ordained the number of our days before we even lived our first day. Who are we to interfere with that sovereign choice?
A life - no matter how new, no matter how old, no matter how difficult - is a treasure from God that none of us has the right to throw away. To do so is open defiance of the One who created us and every other life. It may be that it has been a struggle for you to choose life, and many people at that wall that they've hit at the end of their rope, have finally found the Savior who said, “I have come that you may have life and have it to the full." He said of the devil, “The thief comes to steal and kill and to destroy, but I come to give you life."
Today you could experience that eternal life that - that life with meaning that He died to give you. If you'll let Him forgive your sin, He died to do that, and let this living Savior come into your life. Would you tell Him, "Jesus, I'm here at the end of my rope. I'm Yours." And then I'd encourage you to visit our website where I've laid out there simply how you can be sure you belong to Jesus Christ. The website is yoursforlife.net. I hope you'll go there right away.
When you know how people fight to live one more day, and when you know what we will spend to save a little baby's life, when you remember how much Jesus paid for our lives, how can you do anything but choose life! To find out how you can begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, please visit: yoursforlife.net or call 1-888-966-7325.