Max Lucado Daily: Your Kindness Quotient
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. Galations 6:10/i>
What is your kindness quotient?
When was the last time you did something kind for someone in your family? What about your school or workplace?
Who is the most overlooked or avoided? A shy student? A grumpy employee?
Maybe he doesn’t speak the language. Maybe she doesn’t fit in. Are you kind to this person?
Kind hearts are quietly kind. They let the car cut into traffic. They let the young mom with three kids move up in the checkout line.
Paul writes in Galations 6:10: “When we have the opportunity to help anyone, we should do it. But we should give special attention to those who are in the family of believers.”
The neediest person you meet all week may be the one sitting behind you in worship service. People are watching the way we act more than they’re listening to what we say!
John 21
Jesus and the Miraculous Catch of Fish
1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee.[a] It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus[b]), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”
“No,” they answered.
6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards.[c] 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Jesus Reinstates Peter
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
16 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
17 The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”
20 Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”) 21 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
22 Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” 23 Because of this, the rumor spread among the believers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true.
25 Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: James 4:1-10
Submit Yourselves to God
1 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
4 You adulterous people,[a] don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us[b]? 6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:
“God opposes the proud
but shows favor to the humble.”[c]
7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
“Me First”
March 22, 2012 — by Albert Lee
Put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts. —Ephesians 4:22
A man once asked me, “What is your biggest problem?” I replied, “I see my biggest problem every day in the mirror.” I am referring to those “me first” desires that lurk in my heart.
In James 4:1 we read: “Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?” The words “desires for pleasure” refer to our self-serving desires. That’s why in James 1:14 we are told: “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” James warns that such “me first” desires will destroy our friendship with God (4:4) and cause divisions, wars, and fights (vv.1-2).
Therefore, we are told to put off “me first” thinking. How do we do this? First, “Submit to God” (4:7). We need to get our ranking right—God is God and His will must always be first. Second, “Draw near to God” (v.8). Deal with those desires that lead to sin by going to God for cleansing. Don’t be double-minded, desiring both evil and good. But rather desire to please God alone. Third, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord” (v.10). Then “He will lift you up.”
Remember, “me first” living is not the key to success. Put God first.
I once was full of self, and proud
Just like a Pharisee,
Until one day, quite by surprise,
I caught a glimpse of me. —Hawthorne
When you forget yourself, you usually start doing something others will remember.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
March 22, 2012
The Burning Heart
We need to learn this secret of the burning heart. Suddenly Jesus appears to us, fires are set ablaze, and we are given wonderful visions; but then we must learn to maintain the secret of the burning heart— a heart that can go through anything. It is the simple, dreary day, with its commonplace duties and people, that smothers the burning heart— unless we have learned the secret of abiding in Jesus.
Much of the distress we experience as Christians comes not as the result of sin, but because we are ignorant of the laws of our own nature. For instance, the only test we should use to determine whether or not to allow a particular emotion to run its course in our lives is to examine what the final outcome of that emotion will be. Think it through to its logical conclusion, and if the outcome is something that God would condemn, put a stop to it immediately. But if it is an emotion that has been kindled by the Spirit of God and you don’t allow it to have its way in your life, it will cause a reaction on a lower level than God intended. That is the way unrealistic and overly emotional people are made. And the higher the emotion, the deeper the level of corruption, if it is not exercised on its intended level. If the Spirit of God has stirred you, make as many of your decisions as possible irrevocable, and let the consequences be what they will. We cannot stay forever on the “mount of transfiguration,” basking in the light of our mountaintop experience (see Mark 9:1-9). But we must obey the light we received there; we must put it into action. When God gives us a vision, we must transact business with Him at that point, no matter what the cost.
We cannot kindle when we will The fire which in the heart resides, The spirit bloweth and is still, In mystery our soul abides; But tasks in hours of insight willed Can be through hours of gloom fulfilled.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Silent Killer - #6574
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Some of the most important real estate in the world is an island - an island you may have heard of. It's called Manhattan. A lot of folks need to get in and out of that island each day to run the business of this country. And since it's an island, needless to say, New York City is a city of bridges.
Remember that old song "London Bridge is Falling Down"? Well, you know what? A few years ago, another New York bridge was falling down. See, for quite some time a lot of bridges in New York had been showing their age. And a while ago, for example, they had to close the Williamsburg Bridge completely, cutting off a major access route to Manhattan.
The reason? Well, inspectors had found serious weakness in certain supports. And the sad part was, it didn't have to be that way. In fact, one engineer was quoted as saying, "If only this bridge had been regularly maintained, we'd be celebrating a bridge's centennial instead of holding its' funeral." And you know what the cause was? Neglect.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Silent Killer."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Hebrews 2. I'll be reading verse 1 and then we'll drop down to verse 3. "We must pay more careful attention to what we have heard so that we do not drift away. How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?" See, this passage refers to something that is so insidious, so invisible, but so common and easy to fall into. It talks about drifting spiritually; that slow but steady getting away from our first love.
You go from being passionately Christian when you begin, to without even realizing it, becoming professionally Christian; from what was once love to what is now a duty; from warm to cold. And maybe if you were to take your spiritual temperature, it could be you're drifting. You're not doing anything terribly wrong; you've just drifted from your first passionate love for Him.
Well, ultimately, there's going to be a collapse. Not from rejecting your Lord, but rather from neglecting your Lord. This doesn't say, "How shall we escape if we reject such a great salvation?" It says neglect. Now, that bridge in New York didn't suddenly become unstable. Nobody bombed it, or ran into it, or tried to take it apart. Nobody did anything bad to weaken it. It's what they didn't do. See, bridges give way because of neglect. It's a silent killer of spiritual commitments. You can't stand as a Christian without daily maintenance.
That means a daily checkup as God's Word is allowed to turn its light on your life. I used to think it was a book I was neglecting if I missed my quiet time. It's not a book; it's a person. Remember there was a booklet called "My Heart - Christ's Home"? In it the man is admitting Christ into the various rooms of his life and he'll meet with the Lord in the study every morning. Finally, he gets a little busy; forgets one day; comes back after a month of days to grab his briefcase. And as he runs into his study, he sees Jesus and he says, "Lord, what are you doing here?" The Lord says, "Oh, I've been here every day waiting for you."
Have you been neglecting your time with Jesus? You can't see it, but you're being steadily weakened and eroded by what you're not doing. You just can't afford another day away. There have been too many already. The alternative is that one day you'll be closed; you'll cave in.
Neglect can have eternal consequences. What did the verse say? "How will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation (such a great rescue)?" It's possible for you to have been around the message of Jesus dying on a cross for your sins and coming back out of His grave. And you have heard of this great salvation, this great rescue act of His on the cross over and over again, but somehow you have never acted on it. You've never made personal what He did for you. You have neglected Him. You will be in hell, not in heaven, not because you rejected Him, but because you just walked on by. You lost Him through neglect.
Well, don't let that happen today. Today is the accepted time. "Today is the day of salvation" the Bible says. Reach out and grab what you've passed up so many times. I hope you'll go to our website, and you can watch, or read, or listen to a presentation there that will help you begin your relationship with Him. Go to YoursForLife.net.
Neglect: it's a silent killer of what you can't afford to lose.