Max Lucado Daily: A Spirit of Fear
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7
Fear! It sucks the life out of the soul! And when fear shapes our lives, safety becomes our god. We worship the risk-free life!
The fear-filled cannot love deeply. Love is just too risky. No wonder Jesus wages such a war against fear.
Don’t be afraid. Take courage.
Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.
Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.
Jesus steps into the storm and asks, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?”
Fear may fill the world, but it doesn’t have to fill your heart! Hysteria is not from God. And Jesus doesn’t want you to live there! The promise of Christ is ... God has not given you a spirit of fear!
Psalm 24
Of David. A psalm.
1 The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;
2 for he founded it on the seas
and established it on the waters.
3 Who may ascend the mountain of the LORD?
Who may stand in his holy place?
4 The one who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not trust in an idol
or swear by a false god.[a]
5 They will receive blessing from the LORD
and vindication from God their Savior.
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,
who seek your face, God of Jacob.[b][c]
7 Lift up your heads, you gates;
be lifted up, you ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The LORD strong and mighty,
the LORD mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, you gates;
lift them up, you ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
10 Who is he, this King of glory?
The LORD Almighty—
he is the King of glory.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Ephesians 6:10-18
The Armor of God
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Regaining Our Balance
January 18, 2012 — by Bill Crowder
Take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. —Ephesians 6:13
For the last few years, my wife, Marlene, has suffered from inner-ear problems that cause her to lose her equilibrium. Without warning, something inside her ear is upset and she becomes dizzy. If she tries to sit or stand, a condition called vertigo makes that impossible—and she has to lie down. No amount of effort can compensate for the power of the inner ear to disrupt and disturb. An active person, Marlene finds these unwelcome episodes frustrating.
Sometimes life is like that. Something unexpected upsets our routine, and we are knocked off-balance. Perhaps it’s bad news about our job being eliminated or disturbing test results from our doctor. It may even be an attack from our spiritual enemy. In each case, our emotional equilibrium is hammered, and we feel as if we can’t stand.
Those moments should cause us to turn to God. When we feel we are losing our balance, He can help. He provides spiritual resources to help us stand. Paul says, “Take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (Eph. 6:13).
When life knocks us off our feet, we don’t have to be frustrated. With God’s strength lifting us up and God’s armor protecting us, we can still stand strong.
With patience in His love I’ll rest,
And whisper that He knoweth best,
Then, clinging to that guiding hand,
A weakling, in His strength I’ll stand. —Pentecost
We can endure anything if we depend on God for everything.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
"It Is the Lord!"
Thomas answered and said to Him, ’My Lord and my God!’ —John 20:28
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
Rebel With the Cause - #6528
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Shades of the '60s: lots of angry, discontented young people, occupying public places, trying to call attention to their cause. Haven't we seen this before?
The '60s demonstrations were about a war, and they turned more violent. The 2011 crowds? Well, they were occupying high-profile public areas like Wall Street, for example, around the world, and with a different cause; claiming that their protest was about jobs, and corporate greed, concentrated wealth, economic injustice. Of course, only time will tell whether this is a game-changer or just a loud blip on the screen.
And while the real goals and agenda of the "Occupy" demonstrators could be debatable, one thing isn't. Once again, the world is watching the power of young people fighting for a cause. We've seen it in passionate revolutions against dictators. And a lot of brokers and traders have been seeing it every day on their way to work in the financial epicenters of the world.
But one day the world is going to be rocked by the greatest youth revolution in the history of the planet. But it won't be about bombs or billionaires. It will be about bringing back the King of all kings.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Rebel With the Cause."
The Jewish prophet Joel said it first, then Simon Peter thought it was worth repeating at Pentecost - the day the Church was born, our word for today from the Word of God. It's Acts 2:17, and God says, "In the last days I will pour out My Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams."
It sounds to me like the most powerful Jesus-movement in history will happen just before He comes back. And apparently, young people will be the point of the spear! Their fervent young passions will be poured into the greatest cause there is - saturating this planet with the Good News of Jesus Christ. They're going to help birth and help lead a bold vision that will touch, as the Bible says, "all people." A young army, backed by older people who share the dream, committed to taking back what the enemy has stolen.
That might seem far-fetched if you're used to seeing church kids who are bored, apathetic, yawning, unengaged. But that's actually unnatural for young people, because they're instinctively fired up, and full of energy, and restless to change things. So maybe some, or most of this counterintuitive complacency is our fault. Maybe they're just rising to the level of our expectations and we haven't expected much.
Today's Christian young people are over-entertained and under-challenged. We give them bread and circuses instead of mobilizing them to make a difference. If you've known me for long, you know what I told my kids every day when they left for school. I challenged them to "GO MAD!" Go Make A Difference! That's what being salt and light is all about. What do salt and light have in common? Well, not much, except for one thing. They both change their environment!
That's what our young people can be doing! Not just going to one youth event after another where we try to keep them entertained and interested. They need a mission; something to do with all that Christian stuff they know.
There are senior citizens whose lives would be illuminated by a teenager who listens to their stories and shows them love. There are kids who struggle in school who could be given a future by a young person who would take time to tutor them. There's that rescue mission downtown...those homeless people...those children in your own church who look up to a teenager and who need one who will show them Jesus. How about a Christian drama team, or band, or choir that they could put together and move out into the community. There's a whole generation in your town who will go to hell unless someone figures out a way to attract them to Jesus. And their best hope is people just like them, except with Christ in their heart.
You've seen what happens to kids on a church missions trip. Suddenly their faith comes alive! So, a truly life-changing youth ministry isn't just going to be meetings to go to; it's going to be a year-round missions trip to meet needs all around us in our own area.
So before the wake-up call reaches our young people, we have to wake up first. To how we've failed to challenge them, to believe in them, to show them what God sees when He looks at them, as leaders who can be examples of the believer.
And who knows, we just might be recruiting warriors for that young army who will one day bring back the King.