Max Lucado Daily: Your Problems Matter to God
Your Problems Matter to God
Posted: 03 Jan 2010 10:01 PM PST
Thank God! He deserves your thanks. His love never quits. Psalm 136:1 The Message
If I know that one of the privileges of fatherhood is to comfort, then why am I so reluctant to let my heavenly Father comfort me?
Why do I think he wouldn’t care about my problems? (“They are puny compared to starving people in India.”)
Why do I think he is too busy for me?
1 Kings 11
Solomon's Wives
1 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh's daughter—Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. 2 They were from nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, "You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods." Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. 4 As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been. 5 He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech [bi] the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the LORD; he did not follow the LORD completely, as David his father had done.
7 On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8 He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.
9 The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. 10 Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD's command. 11 So the LORD said to Solomon, "Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. 12 Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen."
Solomon's Adversaries
14 Then the LORD raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom. 15 Earlier when David was fighting with Edom, Joab the commander of the army, who had gone up to bury the dead, had struck down all the men in Edom. 16 Joab and all the Israelites stayed there for six months, until they had destroyed all the men in Edom. 17 But Hadad, still only a boy, fled to Egypt with some Edomite officials who had served his father. 18 They set out from Midian and went to Paran. Then taking men from Paran with them, they went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food.
19 Pharaoh was so pleased with Hadad that he gave him a sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes, in marriage. 20 The sister of Tahpenes bore him a son named Genubath, whom Tahpenes brought up in the royal palace. There Genubath lived with Pharaoh's own children.
21 While he was in Egypt, Hadad heard that David rested with his fathers and that Joab the commander of the army was also dead. Then Hadad said to Pharaoh, "Let me go, that I may return to my own country."
22 "What have you lacked here that you want to go back to your own country?" Pharaoh asked.
"Nothing," Hadad replied, "but do let me go!"
23 And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah. 24 He gathered men around him and became the leader of a band of rebels when David destroyed the forces [bj] of Zobah ; the rebels went to Damascus, where they settled and took control. 25 Rezon was Israel's adversary as long as Solomon lived, adding to the trouble caused by Hadad. So Rezon ruled in Aram and was hostile toward Israel.
Jeroboam Rebels Against Solomon
26 Also, Jeroboam son of Nebat rebelled against the king. He was one of Solomon's officials, an Ephraimite from Zeredah, and his mother was a widow named Zeruah.
27 Here is the account of how he rebelled against the king: Solomon had built the supporting terraces [bk] and had filled in the gap in the wall of the city of David his father. 28 Now Jeroboam was a man of standing, and when Solomon saw how well the young man did his work, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph.
29 About that time Jeroboam was going out of Jerusalem, and Ahijah the prophet of Shiloh met him on the way, wearing a new cloak. The two of them were alone out in the country, 30 and Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 Then he said to Jeroboam, "Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'See, I am going to tear the kingdom out of Solomon's hand and give you ten tribes. 32 But for the sake of my servant David and the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, he will have one tribe. 33 I will do this because they have [bl] forsaken me and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Molech the god of the Ammonites, and have not walked in my ways, nor done what is right in my eyes, nor kept my statutes and laws as David, Solomon's father, did.
34 " 'But I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon's hand; I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David my servant, whom I chose and who observed my commands and statutes. 35 I will take the kingdom from his son's hands and give you ten tribes. 36 I will give one tribe to his son so that David my servant may always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put my Name. 37 However, as for you, I will take you, and you will rule over all that your heart desires; you will be king over Israel. 38 If you do whatever I command you and walk in my ways and do what is right in my eyes by keeping my statutes and commands, as David my servant did, I will be with you. I will build you a dynasty as enduring as the one I built for David and will give Israel to you. 39 I will humble David's descendants because of this, but not forever.' "
40 Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam fled to Egypt, to Shishak the king, and stayed there until Solomon's death.
Solomon's Death
41 As for the other events of Solomon's reign—all he did and the wisdom he displayed—are they not written in the book of the annals of Solomon? 42 Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. 43 Then he rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son succeeded him as king.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
2 Corinthians 5
Our Heavenly Dwelling
1Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, 3because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
6Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7We live by faith, not by sight. 8We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
The Ministry of Reconciliation
11Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.
January 4, 2010
The Review
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READ: 2 Corinthians 5:1-11
We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done. —2 Corinthians 5:10
Imagine going to work one day and being greeted by your boss, who says, “Come by my office at 9:30. I’d like to talk to you about how you’re doing on the job.”
This could be a nervous time for you as you think about what your supervisor might say. You wonder, How does my boss think I’ve been doing? Could there be a promotion with a pay increase? Or could I lose my job? Am I going to hear, “Well done” or “You’re done”?
As important as this kind of meeting is, the Bible speaks of another, far more significant review. After this life is past, we will stand before our Lord. Paul wrote, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Cor. 5:10). We will not enter that future evaluation fearful of losing our salvation, nor will we desire personal benefit or human approval. Instead, we will be eager to hear the Master say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21).
The challenge before us as followers of Christ is to serve Him with excellence now so that we can hear His words, “Well done” then. Based on the way I am living today, what kind of review will I get when I see the Savior? — Bill Crowder
The day will come when we will stand
Before our Judge, God’s Son;
Have we so lived that He will say,
“Well done, My child, well done”? —Sper
Service done well here on earth will receive a “Well done” in heaven.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 4, 2010
Why Can I Not Follow You Now?
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READ:
Peter said to Him, ’Lord, why can I not follow You now?’ —John 13:37
There are times when you can’t understand why you cannot do what you want to do. When God brings a time of waiting, and appears to be unresponsive, don’t fill it with busyness, just wait. The time of waiting may come to teach you the meaning of sanctification— to be set apart from sin and made holy— or it may come after the process of sanctification has begun to teach you what service means. Never run before God gives you His direction. If you have the slightest doubt, then He is not guiding. Whenever there is doubt— wait.
At first you may see clearly what God’s will is— the severance of a friendship, the breaking off of a business relationship, or something else you feel is distinctly God’s will for you to do. But never act on the impulse of that feeling. If you do, you will cause difficult situations to arise which will take years to untangle. Wait for God’s timing and He will do it without any heartache or disappointment. When it is a question of the providential will of God, wait for God to move.
Peter did not wait for God. He predicted in his own mind where the test would come, and it came where he did not expect it. "I will lay down my life for Your sake." Peter’s statement was honest but ignorant. "Jesus answered him, ’ . . . the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times’ " (John 13:38). This was said with a deeper knowledge of Peter than Peter had of himself. He could not follow Jesus because he did not know himself or his own capabilities well enough. Natural devotion may be enough to attract us to Jesus, to make us feel His irresistible charm, but it will never make us disciples. Natural devotion will deny Jesus, always falling short of what it means to truly follow Him.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
What to Do With the Messes We've Made - #5996
Monday, January 4, 2010
A family on vacation. Nobody feels especially like doing the usual chores, like picking up the mess. Besides, there's that "room fairy" who comes while you're out and magically makes it all better, right? Unfortunately, "room fairies" only work when you're away from home. They don't do your house for you. Have you noticed that? My friend, Mike Silva, was staying with his family at a hotel in Nigeria when they heard a knock at the door. Mike opened it and found a smiling Nigerian gentleman standing there ready to clean the room. That was no small order. Actually, they were pretty embarrassed because of all the travel bags and curling irons and crumpled clothing sprawled all across their unmade beds. And the bathroom floor was carpeted with beautiful wet towels. Mike apologized profusely. The young man, though, just put him at ease. He said, "No problem, sir. For this reason I have come, to put your things in order."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "What to Do With the Messes We've Made."
One day, Jesus Christ came to the door of my life, and there was my mess - the mess we all have. The sin, the selfishness, the scars, the trail of tears we've left. But Jesus said, "No problem. For this reason I have come, to put your things in order." That's what He has done for millions of people around the world. That's what He's waiting to do for you...on your invitation.
Sin really does mess things up. It messes up marriages, children, relationships, reputations, bodies, minds, souls. A lifetime of living our way instead of God's way is just too much for any human to clean up. No matter how religious or how nice we try to be. The Bible is blunt about how bad the mess is. It says in Isaiah 59:2, "Your sins have cut you off from your God." Imagine, cut off from the One who has the love, the meaning, and the eternal life that we're looking for. And in case we're operating under the illusion that somehow we can remove this mess that separates us from our God, the Bible simply says, "No one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the law...All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:20, 23).
There are two deadly mistakes that keep people from heaven. Thinking you're too good to need Jesus or thinking you're too bad for Jesus to take you. Both wrong - dead wrong. The truth is illustrated vividly in our word for today from the Word of God in Isaiah 6, beginning with verse 3. God's prophet, Isaiah, sees a vision with the Lord seated on His throne and angels proclaiming, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty." This great spiritual leader is leveled when he sees how holy God is. He says, "Woe to me!...I am ruined! I am a man of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty." Then an angel comes to him with the cleansing of God and says, "Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."
That can happen to you at the cross of Jesus Christ, because it was there that your sin was paid for. And it's there and there alone that the mess can be removed. Knowing every wrong thing you've ever done, Jesus stands ready right now to say to you, "Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." That is the moment you are forgiven and you are free.
But like that housekeeping person at the door, you have to invite Him in. If you're not sure you've ever done that, you probably haven't. When you give yourself to Jesus, you know you did. And it makes no sense to keep living with the mess of a lifetime of sin, knowing that if you die with that mess there, you have no chance of heaven. You'll be without God forever.
But right now, Jesus stands ready to make you clean in a way you could have never dreamed possible. He made His move when He died on the cross for you. Now, it's your move to tell Him you're putting all your trust in Him to be your personal Rescuer from your personal sin.
Our website is there to help you at this moment to know how to make this new beginning with Jesus Christ. I hope you'll go there. I think you'll find it encouraging. It's YoursForLife.net. Check it out soon.
Jesus is standing at the door, and He's waiting to clean up the mess. It's your move now.