Max Lucado Daily: He is Eternal
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He is Eternal
Posted: 26 Jan 2010 10:01 PM PST
“God is so great, greater than we can understand!” Job 36:26
We may search out the moment the first wave slapped on a shore or the first star burst in the sky, but we’ll never find the first moment when God was God, for there is no moment when God was not God. He has never not been, for He is eternal. God is not bound by time.
Song of Solomon 2
Beloved [d]
1 I am a rose [e] of Sharon,
a lily of the valleys.
Lover
2 Like a lily among thorns
is my darling among the maidens.
Beloved
3 Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest
is my lover among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
4 He has taken me to the banquet hall,
and his banner over me is love.
5 Strengthen me with raisins,
refresh me with apples,
for I am faint with love.
6 His left arm is under my head,
and his right arm embraces me.
7 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you
by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until it so desires.
8 Listen! My lover!
Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
9 My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag.
Look! There he stands behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
peering through the lattice.
10 My lover spoke and said to me,
"Arise, my darling,
my beautiful one, and come with me.
11 See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.
12 Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree forms its early fruit;
the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
my beautiful one, come with me."
Lover
14 My dove in the clefts of the rock,
in the hiding places on the mountainside,
show me your face,
let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet,
and your face is lovely.
15 Catch for us the foxes,
the little foxes
that ruin the vineyards,
our vineyards that are in bloom.
Beloved
16 My lover is mine and I am his;
he browses among the lilies.
17 Until the day breaks
and the shadows flee,
turn, my lover,
and be like a gazelle
or like a young stag
on the rugged hills. [f]
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Nehemiah 1:11-2:5 (New International Version)
11 O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man."
I was cupbearer to the king.
Nehemiah 2
Artaxerxes Sends Nehemiah to Jerusalem
1 In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before; 2 so the king asked me, "Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart."
I was very much afraid, 3 but I said to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?"
4 The king said to me, "What is it you want?"
Then I prayed to the God of heaven, 5 and I answered the king, "If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it."
January 27, 2010
The First English Samurai
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READ: Neh. 1:11–2:5
For I was the king’s cupbearer. —Nehemiah 1:11
William Adams (1564–1620) is believed to be the first Englishman to reach Japan. Taking a liking to Adams, the ruling Japanese shogun made him his interpreter and personal advisor concerning the Western powers. Eventually, Adams was presented with two swords with rank of a Samurai. This showed just how much the Japanese revered Adams. Because William Adams served his foreign king well, he was also rewarded with greater opportunity for influence.
Centuries earlier, another man in a foreign country also had great influence over his king. Nehemiah was a cupbearer to Persian King Artaxerxes (Neh. 1:11). In the royal court, the cupbearer would test the wine before it was given to the king to protect him from poisoning. But this position also meant he had the king’s ear as a trusted advisor. Nehemiah’s integrity, administrative gifts, and wisdom made him a confidant to his ruler, which paved the way for the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.
Like Nehemiah, each of us has been given a unique sphere of influence. Raising children, church or community work, and employment all provide a platform where we can have a beneficial effect on others. Has the Lord placed someone in your life upon whom you can have an influence? — Dennis Fisher
When we live with integrity,
We please our God above
And influence society
With truthfulness and love. —Sper
Even a little example can be a big influence for Christ.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 27, 2010
Look Again and Think
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READ:
Do not worry about your life . . . —Matthew 6:25
A warning which needs to be repeated is that "the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches," and the lust for other things, will choke out the life of God in us (Matthew 13:22). We are never free from the recurring waves of this invasion. If the frontline of attack is not about clothes and food, it may be about money or the lack of money; or friends or lack of friends; or the line may be drawn over difficult circumstances. It is one steady invasion, and these things will come in like a flood, unless we allow the Spirit of God to raise up the banner against it.
"I say to you, do not worry about your life . . . ." Our Lord says to be careful only about one thing-our relationship to Him. But our common sense shouts loudly and says, "That is absurd, I must consider how I am going to live, and I must consider what I am going to eat and drink." Jesus says you must not. Beware of allowing yourself to think that He says this while not understanding your circumstances. Jesus Christ knows our circumstances better than we do, and He says we must not think about these things to the point where they become the primary concern of our life. Whenever there are competing concerns in your life, be sure you always put your relationship to God first.
"Sufficient for the day is its own trouble" (Matthew 6:34). How much trouble has begun to threaten you today? What kind of mean little demons have been looking into your life and saying, "What are your plans for next month— or next summer?" Jesus tells us not to worry about any of these things. Look again and think. Keep your mind on the "much more" of your heavenly Father (Matthew 6:30).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Excitement of Exploring - #6013
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Our kids learned what "shun piking" is at a very early age. That expression actually goes back to Colonial days when people would leave or "shun" the pike, the main road, and take side roads. Today, it's just a good word to describe getting intentionally lost - just exploring some of those side roads you've never been on to see things you've never seen. Apparently, this shun piking thing has been inherited by the next generation. The other day our daughter took our three-year-old grandson on one of those crazy adventures on some unexplored back roads. And he saw lots of things he never saw before. When she asked him if he was ready to go home, he told her he wanted to keep going. His reason? "I liked exploring."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Excitement of Exploring."
The same old scenery gets boring after a while. It's exciting to explore some new ground. That may be exactly what your Lord is trying to get you to do right now - to dare to leave that safe, predictable road you always travel on and follow Him into something new and exciting. And, yes, unknown and unpredictable.
Listen to His invitation, and command, in our word for today from the Word of God in Isaiah 43:18-19. "Do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?" Could it be that God is setting out before you some new ground to explore? You'll miss it if you insist on hanging on to the same old way of doing things, the same old security blankets. Spiritual cocooning - curling up in this "status quo" comfort zone - is a sure way to miss the ever-dynamic, ever-groundbreaking will of God.
God may be saying, "Look at the new thing I'm putting in front of you!" But you can't see it because you keep looking back at the old thing. This addiction to what's safe and comfortable and familiar afflicts individual believers, churches, ministries. God may even be trying to stretch your understanding of Him and how He works; to see Him and your relationship with Him in a new and more powerful way.
Of course, exploring new ground implies that you don't know exactly what you're going to encounter; how you're going to have what you need to meet whatever is on the new road. Listen to God's next statement here: "I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." OK, you can't see a way - God says, "I'm going to amaze you by making a way where there is no way." You can't see where the resources are going to come from - God says, "I'm going to send resources where there seem to be no resources - 'streams in the wasteland.'"
But you'll miss all of it if you won't leave the road you've been on for so long. There is incredible beauty; there are thrilling discoveries on unexplored roads. It's time to say to the Lord, "I'm ready for more, Lord. I'm opening your Word now looking for some new discoveries. I'm listening to Bible teaching and worshiping, looking for the new things You want to say to me. And Lord, I'm following You wherever You want to take me...whatever the risks." The Bible calls that "the good and perfect and pleasing will of God."
Could it be that God's leading you to a new season in your life, or maybe a new approach or a new challenge? Don't be afraid to go with your Father onto a road that you have never been on before. Like my grandson, you may end up saying, "Father, I like exploring!"