Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
March 26
God’s Surprises
No one has ever imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.
1 Corinthians 2:9 (NCV)
Have you got God figured out? Have you got God captured on a flowchart and frozen on a flannelboard? If so, then listen. Listen to God’s surprises.
Hear the rocks meant for the body of the adulterous woman drop to the ground.
Listen as the Messiah whispers to the Samaritan woman, “I who speak to you am he.”
Listen to the widow from Nain eating dinner with her son who is supposed to be dead….
God appearing at the strangest of places. Doing the strangest of things. Stretching smiles where there had hung only frowns. Placing twinkles where there were only tears
Isaiah 1
1 The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
A Rebellious Nation
2 Hear, O heavens! Listen, O earth!
For the LORD has spoken:
"I reared children and brought them up,
but they have rebelled against me.
3 The ox knows his master,
the donkey his owner's manger,
but Israel does not know,
my people do not understand."
4 Ah, sinful nation,
a people loaded with guilt,
a brood of evildoers,
children given to corruption!
They have forsaken the LORD;
they have spurned the Holy One of Israel
and turned their backs on him.
5 Why should you be beaten anymore?
Why do you persist in rebellion?
Your whole head is injured,
your whole heart afflicted.
6 From the sole of your foot to the top of your head
there is no soundness—
only wounds and welts
and open sores,
not cleansed or bandaged
or soothed with oil.
7 Your country is desolate,
your cities burned with fire;
your fields are being stripped by foreigners
right before you,
laid waste as when overthrown by strangers.
8 The Daughter of Zion is left
like a shelter in a vineyard,
like a hut in a field of melons,
like a city under siege.
9 Unless the LORD Almighty
had left us some survivors,
we would have become like Sodom,
we would have been like Gomorrah.
10 Hear the word of the LORD,
you rulers of Sodom;
listen to the law of our God,
you people of Gomorrah!
11 "The multitude of your sacrifices—
what are they to me?" says the LORD.
"I have more than enough of burnt offerings,
of rams and the fat of fattened animals;
I have no pleasure
in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.
12 When you come to appear before me,
who has asked this of you,
this trampling of my courts?
13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
I cannot bear your evil assemblies.
14 Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts
my soul hates.
They have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.
15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I will hide my eyes from you;
even if you offer many prayers,
I will not listen.
Your hands are full of blood;
16 wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds
out of my sight!
Stop doing wrong,
17 learn to do right!
Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed. [a]
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow.
18 "Come now, let us reason together,"
says the LORD.
"Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.
19 If you are willing and obedient,
you will eat the best from the land;
20 but if you resist and rebel,
you will be devoured by the sword."
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
21 See how the faithful city
has become a harlot!
She once was full of justice;
righteousness used to dwell in her—
but now murderers!
22 Your silver has become dross,
your choice wine is diluted with water.
23 Your rulers are rebels,
companions of thieves;
they all love bribes
and chase after gifts.
They do not defend the cause of the fatherless;
the widow's case does not come before them.
24 Therefore the Lord, the LORD Almighty,
the Mighty One of Israel, declares:
"Ah, I will get relief from my foes
and avenge myself on my enemies.
25 I will turn my hand against you;
I will thoroughly purge away your dross
and remove all your impurities.
26 I will restore your judges as in days of old,
your counselors as at the beginning.
Afterward you will be called
the City of Righteousness,
the Faithful City."
27 Zion will be redeemed with justice,
her penitent ones with righteousness.
28 But rebels and sinners will both be broken,
and those who forsake the LORD will perish.
29 "You will be ashamed because of the sacred oaks
in which you have delighted;
you will be disgraced because of the gardens
that you have chosen.
30 You will be like an oak with fading leaves,
like a garden without water.
31 The mighty man will become tinder
and his work a spark;
both will burn together,
with no one to quench the fire."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Colossians 3:12-17 (New International Version)
12Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
March 26, 2009
Faithfulness In Everything
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READ: Colossians 3:12-17
Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus. —Colossians 3:17
In August 2007, a major bridge in Minneapolis collapsed into the Mississippi River, killing 13 people. In the weeks that followed, it was difficult for me not to think about that tragedy whenever crossing a bridge over a body of water.
Some time later, I was watching an episode of Dirty Jobs on the Discovery Channel. Host Mike Rowe was talking to an industrial painter whose work he was trying to duplicate. “There’s really no glory in what you do,” he said. “No,” the painter agreed, “but it’s a job that needs to be done.”
You see, that man paints the inside of the Mackinac Bridge towers in Northern Michigan. His unnoticed job is done to ensure that the steel of the magnificent suspended structure won’t rust from the inside out, compromising the integrity of the bridge. Most of the 12,000 people who cross the Straits of Mackinac each day aren’t even aware that they are depending on workers like this painter to faithfully do their jobs well.
God also sees our faithfulness in the things we do. Though we may think our deeds—big and small—sometimes go un-noticed, they are being observed by the One who matters most. Whatever our task today, let’s “do all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Col. 3:17). — Cindy Hess Kasper
Whatever task you find to do,
Regardless if it’s big or small,
Perform it well, with all your might,
Because there’s One who sees it all. —Sper
Daily work takes on eternal value when it is done for God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
March 26, 2009
Spiritual Vision Through Personal Purity (1)
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READ:
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God —Matthew 5:8
Purity is not innocence— it is much more than that. Purity is the result of continued spiritual harmony with God. We have to grow in purity. Our life with God may be right and our inner purity unblemished, yet occasionally our outer life may become spotted and stained. God intentionally does not protect us from this possibility, because this is the way we recognize the necessity of maintaining our spiritual vision through personal purity. If the outer level of our spiritual life with God is impaired to the slightest degree, we must put everything else aside until we make it right. Remember that spiritual vision depends on our character— it is "the pure in heart " who "see God."
God makes us pure by an act of His sovereign grace, but we still have something that we must carefully watch. It is through our bodily life coming in contact with other people and other points of view that we tend to become tarnished. Not only must our "inner sanctuary" be kept right with God, but also the "outer courts" must be brought into perfect harmony with the purity God gives us through His grace. Our spiritual vision and understanding is immediately blurred when our "outer court" is stained. If we want to maintain personal intimacy with the Lord Jesus Christ, it will mean refusing to do or even think certain things. And some things that are acceptable for others will become unacceptable for us.
A practical help in keeping your personal purity unblemished in your relations with other people is to begin to see them as God does. Say to yourself, "That man or that woman is perfect in Christ Jesus! That friend or that relative is perfect in Christ Jesus!"
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Looking at Something Better - #5794
Thursday, March 26, 2009
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Some friends of ours were at the Universal Studios Park in California, and they wanted to see behind the scenes of TV and movies. So they went on the tram that takes you on their backstage tour. They had their preschooler with them, and they weren't too excited about him being terrorized by King Kong and the shark from "Jaws." So, when King Kong appeared on one side of the dark tunnel, they just turned their child's attention to the tunnel and said, "Ooo, look at this dark tunnel! What's this inside your hat?" It worked. He never saw King Kong. Same with "Jaws." As the shark was jumping out of the water near his father's back, the little guy was studying the scenery on the other side. He never saw the shark.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Looking at Something Better."
Now, we could discuss whether this couple should have taken their preschooler on that tour or not, but they did do something smart. When there was something their child shouldn't experience, they creatively turned his attention to something else. That's not a bad strategy for parents who are raising their children in a world that is increasingly filled with monsters that can hurt them and destructive things that they should never experience.
It's a strategy actually directed by God in our word for today from the Word of God in Deuteronomy 11, beginning with verse 16. Like us, these parents were trying to raise their children in a culture where sin was cool and temptation was everywhere. God says, "Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods. Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds, teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up, so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land."
God is calling godly parents to play offense, not just defense, in a spiritually hostile culture. Don't just try to keep your children from touching wrong things. Help them look in the other direction and find better things to experience - God's things!
You can't just say no to everything; you have to offer alternatives and positive reasons. For example, sex is something that is too beautiful to ruin by taking it out of the Creator's fence called marriage. Heavy dating can be morally dangerous, but why not be for guys and girls having some great times as friends in mixed groups? In fact, why don't you help set some of those up? In fact, why not at your house?
If you don't want your kids listening to destructive music, invest in music they can listen to. Invest in constructive interests and constructive friendships they have. Make your house a fun and welcoming place for their friends so they don't have to go to other homes where it's easier to get in trouble. Have great parties for your kids and their friends. And maybe you can give them the two words I gave my kids as they left for school each day, "Go MAD!" Well, that has nothing to do with having insane children. That's another discussion. No, "'Go MAD' means Go Make A Difference!" I wanted them to see they didn't have to follow their friends down roads to nowhere; they could lead their friends to experiences that leave no scars and no regrets.
We need to show our children that what we're against is because of what we're for: things like living without guilt before them, relationships without regrets, the specialness of sex, the value of life, a good reputation, protecting the worth that God gave you. We can't just be against the monsters and predators - the sharks and gorillas - that are around our children. We've got to redirect their attention to all of God's good stuff!