Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
Freedom to Choose
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
“We are people who have faith and are saved.”
Hebrews 10:39
God honors us with the freedom to choose where we spend eternity.
And what an honor it is! In so many areas of life we have no choice. Think about it. You didn’t choose your gender. You didn’t choose your siblings. You didn’t choose your race or place of birth.
Sometimes our lack of choices angers us. “It’s not fair,” we say. It’s not fair that I was born in poverty or that I sing so poorly or that I run so slowly. But the scales of life were forever tipped on the side of fairness when God planted a tree in the Garden of Eden. All complaints were silenced when Adam and his descendants were given free will, the freedom to make whatever eternal choice we desire. Any injustice in this like offset by the honor of choosing our destiny in the next.
1 Kings 9
The LORD Appears to Solomon
1 When Solomon had finished building the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had achieved all he had desired to do, 2 the LORD appeared to him a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3 The LORD said to him:
"I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
4 "As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws, 5 I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father when I said, 'You shall never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.'
6 "But if you [al] or your sons turn away from me and do not observe the commands and decrees I have given you [am] and go off to serve other gods and worship them, 7 then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. Israel will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. 8 And though this temple is now imposing, all who pass by will be appalled and will scoff and say, 'Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?' 9 People will answer, 'Because they have forsaken the LORD their God, who brought their fathers out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why the LORD brought all this disaster on them.' "
Solomon's Other Activities
10 At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built these two buildings—the temple of the LORD and the royal palace- 11 King Solomon gave twenty towns in Galilee to Hiram king of Tyre, because Hiram had supplied him with all the cedar and pine and gold he wanted. 12 But when Hiram went from Tyre to see the towns that Solomon had given him, he was not pleased with them. 13 "What kind of towns are these you have given me, my brother?" he asked. And he called them the Land of Cabul, [an] a name they have to this day. 14 Now Hiram had sent to the king 120 talents [ao] of gold.
15 Here is the account of the forced labor King Solomon conscripted to build the LORD's temple, his own palace, the supporting terraces, [ap] the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer. 16 (Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire. He killed its Canaanite inhabitants and then gave it as a wedding gift to his daughter, Solomon's wife. 17 And Solomon rebuilt Gezer.) He built up Lower Beth Horon, 18 Baalath, and Tadmor [aq] in the desert, within his land, 19 as well as all his store cities and the towns for his chariots and for his horses [ar] —whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.
20 All the people left from the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites (these peoples were not Israelites), 21 that is, their descendants remaining in the land, whom the Israelites could not exterminate [as] —these Solomon conscripted for his slave labor force, as it is to this day. 22 But Solomon did not make slaves of any of the Israelites; they were his fighting men, his government officials, his officers, his captains, and the commanders of his chariots and charioteers. 23 They were also the chief officials in charge of Solomon's projects—550 officials supervising the men who did the work.
24 After Pharaoh's daughter had come up from the City of David to the palace Solomon had built for her, he constructed the supporting terraces.
25 Three times a year Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings [at] on the altar he had built for the LORD, burning incense before the LORD along with them, and so fulfilled the temple obligations.
26 King Solomon also built ships at Ezion Geber, which is near Elath in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea. [au] 27 And Hiram sent his men—sailors who knew the sea—to serve in the fleet with Solomon's men. 28 They sailed to Ophir and brought back 420 talents [av] of gold, which they delivered to King Solomon.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Psalm 131
A song of ascents. Of David.
1 My heart is not proud, O LORD,
my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
or things too wonderful for me.
2 But I have stilled and quieted my soul;
like a weaned child with its mother,
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD
both now and forevermore.
February 11, 2009
Path To Humility
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READ: Psalm 131
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. —James 4:10
My friend declared, as he tried to keep a straight face, “I’m so proud of my humility!” That reminds me of the joke about a leader who was given an award for his humility. Because he accepted the award, it was taken back the following week!
David seemed to be making the same error when he said, “My heart is not haughty” (Ps. 131:1). When we understand the text, however, we know that he wasn’t boasting about his humility. Rather, in response to the accusation of treason made by Saul’s men, David stated he didn’t consider himself so important nor think of himself so highly as to have “lofty” eyes.
Instead, David learned to be like a “weaned child” in the Lord’s arms (v.2). Like a baby who is completely dependent on his parents, he waited on God for His protection while he was a fugitive under King Saul’s pursuit. In his darkest hour, David realized his need and then advised his people: “Hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever” (v.3).
The path to humility is twofold. It involves knowing who we are—having a proper self-esteem rather than thinking too highly of self. But most important, it requires knowing who God is—holding Him in highest esteem and trusting Him for His best in His time. — Albert Lee
Humility’s a slippery prize
That seldom can be won;
We’re only humble in God’s eyes
When serving like His Son. —Gustafson
When we think we’re humble—we’re not.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
February 11, 2009
Is Your Mind Stayed on God?
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READ:
You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You —Isaiah 26:3
Is your mind stayed on God or is it starved? Starvation of the mind, caused by neglect, is one of the chief sources of exhaustion and weakness in a servant’s life. If you have never used your mind to place yourself before God, begin to do it now. There is no reason to wait for God to come to you. You must turn your thoughts and your eyes away from the face of idols and look to Him and be saved (see Isaiah 45:22 ).
Your mind is the greatest gift God has given you and it ought to be devoted entirely to Him. You should seek to be "bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ . . ." ( 2 Corinthians 10:5 ). This will be one of the greatest assets of your faith when a time of trial comes, because then your faith and the Spirit of God will work together. When you have thoughts and ideas that are worthy of credit to God, learn to compare and associate them with all that happens in nature-the rising and the setting of the sun, the shining of the moon and the stars, and the changing of the seasons. You will begin to see that your thoughts are from God as well, and your mind will no longer be at the mercy of your impulsive thinking, but will always be used in service to God.
"We have sinned with our fathers . . . [and] . . . did not remember . . ." ( Psalm 106:6-7 ). Then prod your memory and wake up immediately. Don’t say to yourself, "But God is not talking to me right now." He ought to be. Remember whose you are and whom you serve. Encourage yourself to remember, and your affection for God will increase tenfold. Your mind will no longer be starved, but will be quick and enthusiastic, and your hope will be inexpressibly bright.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Realizing What Time It Is - #5763
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
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We were watching the annual White House Correspondents Dinner on TV one night, and I was actually amazed by what I heard. Reporters from all over the world are at this dinner, along with the President of the United States, who usually does an uncharacteristically humorous speech. Well, the President finished and then one of America's most popular comedians was introduced as the night's entertainment. But this man, who is known far more for being suggestive than spiritual, made this statement: "I've been watching the evening news a lot lately with my Bible opened to the Book of Revelation. And as I'm hearing what's happened in the world, I just go "check...check...check."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Realizing What Time It Is."
That's a comedian - not a theologian - observing how closely current events seem to be following the Bible's description of this world's climactic events. But these days a lot of people are suddenly thinking about things like a future that's beyond our control and an eternity that's one heartbeat away. There's this sense - both cosmically and personally - that our time may be shorter than we thought.
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from the first chapter of Revelation, and it's a reassuring note actually in a very unpredictable world. In Revelation 1:8, Jesus says, referring to the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, "I am the Alpha and the Omega...who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty." Then in Revelation 1:17and 18, Jesus says, "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades."
As countries rise and fall, as leaders come and go, as the world seems to be exploding, Jesus is the unchanging, undying Lord of history. That was settled the day He walked out of His grave under His own power after His death for our sins on the cross. When every loved one is gone, when everything you've been depending on collapses, there stands Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He holds the keys! He is your safe place in a dangerous world! A new follower of Christ was given a Bible and since no one showed him where to start reading, he started at the end with Revelation. A veteran Christian asked him if he understood anything he read there, and the new believer simply said, "Well, I understood one thing. We win!"
Well, actually Jesus wins. And that's in a world where we're so vulnerable, where things are so unpredictable, not to mention the fact that eternity is always just a heartbeat away. This is a good time to be sure that you belong to the Lord of history, to the Conqueror of death - Jesus, the man who died for your sin so you could belong to Him.
If you've never begun this anchor relationship with Jesus Christ, you could do it this very day. You don't have to be inside stained glass windows. You could talk to Him right where you are. Just say, "Jesus, I want to be Yours from this day on. I have run my life. I've been a rebel against You and Your ways. I now turn the wheel of my life over to You. I turn from running my own life and doing it my way. I'm Yours. You died for me."
He promised at that point that He would enter your life because of your personal invitation. If that's what you want, I would urge you to go visit our website at your first opportunity today, simply because it's been a big help to a lot of people in getting their relationship with Jesus Christ started. And I think it might be an encouragement to you. Just go to YoursForLife.net. Or you could call for my booklet Yours For Life toll free at 877-741-1200.
Once you belong to Jesus Christ, you are secure no matter what collapses and you are ready for eternity, no matter when it begins.