Max Lucado Daily: Chapters in Life
Certain chapters in this life seem so unnecessary—like nostrils on the pre-born. Like suffering. Loneliness. Disease. Holocausts. Martyrdom. Hurricanes, earthquakes and monsoons.
If we assume this world exists just for pre-grave happiness, these atrocities disqualify it from doing so! But what if this earth is the womb? Might these challenges, severe as they may be, serve to prepare us, equip us for the world to come?
The apostle Paul wrote in 2nd Corinthians 4:17: “These little troubles are getting us ready for an eternal glory that will make all our troubles seem like nothing.”
Eternal glory? I’d like a large cup of that, wouldn’t you?
Everything in this life is preparing us for the next.
Jeremiah 24
Two Baskets of Figs
After Jehoiachin[c] son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and the officials, the skilled workers and the artisans of Judah were carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord. 2 One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early; the other basket had very bad figs, so bad they could not be eaten.
3 Then the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
“Figs,” I answered. “The good ones are very good, but the bad ones are so bad they cannot be eaten.”
4 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I sent away from this place to the land of the Babylonians.[d] 6 My eyes will watch over them for their good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart.
8 “‘But like the bad figs, which are so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the Lord, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the survivors from Jerusalem, whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt. 9 I will make them abhorrent and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword, a curse[e] and an object of ridicule, wherever I banish them. 10 I will send the sword, famine and plague against them until they are destroyed from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.’”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Peter 4:7-11
7 The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Corine
August 3, 2013 — by Anne Cetas
Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. —1 Peter 4:9
A group of us were helping to put together packets of material at an Our Daily Bread event in Orlando last winter when Corine greeted us. It was mid-morning, and she was sure we must be hungry and thirsty. I told her we were “fine,” and she replied, “I know you’re fine, but you need something to eat.” A few minutes later she came back with cold water and snacks.
Throughout the 2 days we were there, Corine came by to check on us, bring us food or water, and take away our trash. On one occasion, I thanked her and said, “You have the gift of hospitality, don’t you, Corine!” She looked down and replied, “I don’t know. But you write the devotional articles, and I’ll clean up. And God will be glorified.”
Corine’s desire is to bring God glory by helping people. She definitely has the gift of hospitality and practices it well. God has graced each of His children with skills and abilities so that He can minister to others through us. You can find those gifts listed in Romans 12:4-13, 1 Corinthians 12:27-31, Ephesians 4:7-12, and 1 Peter 4:9-11.
The Lord has gifted us “that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever” (1 Peter 4:11).
All Christians have been gifted
By grace from God above,
Equipped to build and strengthen
The church in faith and love. —Fitzhugh
You are one of a kind— designed to glorify God as only you can.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 3, 2013
The Compelling Purpose of God
He . . . said to them, ’Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem . . —Luke 18:31
Jerusalem, in the life of our Lord, represents the place where He reached the culmination of His Father’s will. Jesus said, “I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me” (John 5:30). Seeking to do “the will of the Father” was the one dominating concern throughout our Lord’s life. And whatever He encountered along the way, whether joy or sorrow, success or failure, He was never deterred from that purpose. “. . . He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem . . .” (Luke 9:51).
The greatest thing for us to remember is that we go up to Jerusalem to fulfill God’s purpose, not our own. In the natural life our ambitions are our own, but in the Christian life we have no goals of our own. We talk so much today about our decisions for Christ, our determination to be Christians, and our decisions for this and that, but in the New Testament the only aspect that is brought out is the compelling purpose of God. “You did not choose Me, but I chose you . . .” (John 15:16).
We are not taken into a conscious agreement with God’s purpose— we are taken into God’s purpose with no awareness of it at all. We have no idea what God’s goal may be; as we continue, His purpose becomes even more and more vague. God’s aim appears to have missed the mark, because we are too nearsighted to see the target at which He is aiming. At the beginning of the Christian life, we have our own ideas as to what God’s purpose is. We say, “God means for me to go over there,” and, “God has called me to do this special work.” We do what we think is right, and yet the compelling purpose of God remains upon us. The work we do is of no account when compared with the compelling purpose of God. It is simply the scaffolding surrounding His work and His plan. “He took the twelve aside . . .” (Luke 18:31). God takes us aside all the time. We have not yet understood all there is to know of the compelling purpose of God.
Saturday, August 3, 2013
Jeremiah 23, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Giant-Slayer
God called David a “man after His own heart!” One might read his story and wonder what God saw in him. He fell as often as he stood. He stared down Goliath, yet ogled at Bathsheba. He could lead armies but couldn’t manage a family. Raging David. Weeping David. Bloodthirsty. God-hungry. Eight wives. One God. A man after God’s own heart?
That God saw him as such gives hope to us all. David’s life has little to offer the unstained saint. Straight-A souls find David’s story disappointing. But we need David’s story…most of us do. Giants lurk in our neighborhoods. Giants of rejection, failure, and revenge. We must face them. Yet we need not face them alone.
Focus on God. The times David did, giants fell. The days he did not, David fell. Lift your eyes, giant-slayer! The God who made a miracle out of David stands ready to make one out of you!
From Facing Your Giants
Jeremiah 23
New International Version (NIV)
The Righteous Branch
23 “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord. 2 Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the Lord. 3 “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4 I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord.
5 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will raise up for David[a] a righteous Branch,
a King who will reign wisely
and do what is just and right in the land.
6 In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called:
The Lord Our Righteous Savior.
7 “So then, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when people will no longer say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt,’ 8 but they will say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the descendants of Israel up out of the land of the north and out of all the countries where he had banished them.’ Then they will live in their own land.”
Lying Prophets
9 Concerning the prophets:
My heart is broken within me;
all my bones tremble.
I am like a drunken man,
like a strong man overcome by wine,
because of the Lord
and his holy words.
10 The land is full of adulterers;
because of the curse[b] the land lies parched
and the pastures in the wilderness are withered.
The prophets follow an evil course
and use their power unjustly.
11 “Both prophet and priest are godless;
even in my temple I find their wickedness,”
declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore their path will become slippery;
they will be banished to darkness
and there they will fall.
I will bring disaster on them
in the year they are punished,”
declares the Lord.
13 “Among the prophets of Samaria
I saw this repulsive thing:
They prophesied by Baal
and led my people Israel astray.
14 And among the prophets of Jerusalem
I have seen something horrible:
They commit adultery and live a lie.
They strengthen the hands of evildoers,
so that not one of them turns from their wickedness.
They are all like Sodom to me;
the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”
15 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets:
“I will make them eat bitter food
and drink poisoned water,
because from the prophets of Jerusalem
ungodliness has spread throughout the land.”
16 This is what the Lord Almighty says:
“Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions from their own minds,
not from the mouth of the Lord.
17 They keep saying to those who despise me,
‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’
And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts
they say, ‘No harm will come to you.’
18 But which of them has stood in the council of the Lord
to see or to hear his word?
Who has listened and heard his word?
19 See, the storm of the Lord
will burst out in wrath,
a whirlwind swirling down
on the heads of the wicked.
20 The anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he fully accomplishes
the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
you will understand it clearly.
21 I did not send these prophets,
yet they have run with their message;
I did not speak to them,
yet they have prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my council,
they would have proclaimed my words to my people
and would have turned them from their evil ways
and from their evil deeds.
23 “Am I only a God nearby,”
declares the Lord,
“and not a God far away?
24 Who can hide in secret places
so that I cannot see them?”
declares the Lord.
“Do not I fill heaven and earth?”
declares the Lord.
25 “I have heard what the prophets say who prophesy lies in my name. They say, ‘I had a dream! I had a dream!’ 26 How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions of their own minds? 27 They think the dreams they tell one another will make my people forget my name, just as their ancestors forgot my name through Baal worship. 28 Let the prophet who has a dream recount the dream, but let the one who has my word speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain?” declares the Lord. 29 “Is not my word like fire,” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?
30 “Therefore,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who steal from one another words supposedly from me. 31 Yes,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and yet declare, ‘The Lord declares.’ 32 Indeed, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,” declares the Lord. “They tell them and lead my people astray with their reckless lies, yet I did not send or appoint them. They do not benefit these people in the least,” declares the Lord.
False Prophecy
33 “When these people, or a prophet or a priest, ask you, ‘What is the message from the Lord?’ say to them, ‘What message? I will forsake you, declares the Lord.’ 34 If a prophet or a priest or anyone else claims, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ I will punish them and their household. 35 This is what each of you keeps saying to your friends and other Israelites: ‘What is the Lord’s answer?’ or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 36 But you must not mention ‘a message from the Lord’ again, because each one’s word becomes their own message. So you distort the words of the living God, the Lord Almighty, our God. 37 This is what you keep saying to a prophet: ‘What is the Lord’s answer to you?’ or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 38 Although you claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ this is what the Lord says: You used the words, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ even though I told you that you must not claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord.’ 39 Therefore, I will surely forget you and cast you out of my presence along with the city I gave to you and your ancestors. 40 I will bring on you everlasting disgrace—everlasting shame that will not be forgotten.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
READ: 2 Corinthians 1:3-7
Praise to the God of All Comfort
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.
Our Daily Bread -- Pass It On
As you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation. —2 Corinthians 1:7
As you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation. —2 Corinthians 1:7
I’ve noticed through the years that those who have suffered are quick to comfort other sufferers. When a young couple suffers the loss of a child, another couple who also lost a child in the past asks if they can help. If a couple loses their main income, almost immediately another couple steps forward to offer their aid, remembering their own journey through foreclosure years earlier. Again and again we see the body of Christ supporting and encouraging one another. These Christians have learned that they can use the trials they’ve been through to reach out to others going through similar difficulties.
Have you been sick? Lost a loved one? Been imprisoned? Unfairly treated? In all of our trials, God promises to bring something good out of even our darkest moments (James 1:2-4). One key way this takes place is when we share the comfort He offered us with those who are now going through trials.
As Paul points out in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7, we are comforted by a Savior who knows our suffering, and we honor Him when we pass His comfort on to still others.
May we never leave someone to suffer alone. If we know the trail another is on, God will help us to guide that person to His presence—the surest comfort of all. —Randy Kilgore
Dear Lord, help us to step forward when
others around us are suffering trials similar to
what we’ve been through. Enable us to be a
comfort, as You have been to us in the past.
God comforts us so that we can comfort others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 2, 2013
The Teaching of Adversity
In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world —John 16:33
The typical view of the Christian life is that it means being delivered from all adversity. But it actually means being delivered in adversity, which is something very different. “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling . . .” (Psalm 91:1,10)— the place where you are at one with God.
If you are a child of God, you will certainly encounter adversities, but Jesus says you should not be surprised when they come. “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” He is saying, “There is nothing for you to fear.” The same people who refused to talk about their adversities before they were saved often complain and worry after being born again because they have the wrong idea of what it means to live the life of a saint.
God does not give us overcoming life— He gives us life as we overcome. The strain of life is what builds our strength. If there is no strain, there will be no strength. Are you asking God to give you life, liberty, and joy? He cannot, unless you are willing to accept the strain. And once you face the strain, you will immediately get the strength. Overcome your own timidity and take the first step. Then God will give you nourishment— “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life . . .” (Revelation 2:7). If you completely give of yourself physically, you become exhausted. But when you give of yourself spiritually, you get more strength. God never gives us strength for tomorrow, or for the next hour, but only for the strain of the moment. Our temptation is to face adversities from the standpoint of our own common sense. But a saint can “be of good cheer” even when seemingly defeated by adversities, because victory is absurdly impossible to everyone, except God.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tim Tebow's Roller Coaster - #6930
Friday, August 2, 2013
The first time my dad shamed me into riding a roller coaster, honestly, I couldn't wait to get off. Roller coasters aren't always fun.
Now, Tim Tebow's roller coaster ride has taken a serious dive. When he came to the New York Jets he was the toast of the town. Then they barely played him. Then they released him after a season. And rumors have been circulating ever since about his future in the NFL.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Tim Tebow's Roller Coaster."
It's been a wild ride for the quarterback known for his trademark - one-knee "Tebowing" prayer; Heisman Trophy winner as America's outstanding college player. And then called on mid-season to quarterback the faltering Denver Broncos - and leading them to the playoffs. And then traded to play in the "Big Apple." Then "see ya!" from the Jets. Discouraging? You bet. Tim Tebow even said that himself. Devastating? I doubt it, because even when the ride is crazy, Tim Tebow's coaster never leaves the tracks. See, He's anchored. He knows who he is without football.
And that's hard. To know who you are when you can't do what you do. When suddenly the company you worked so hard for decides they don't need you any more; when an illness or a disability robs you of your ability to work anymore. Or even when the children you've lived for leave you with an empty nest.
I still remember the day years ago when that doctor told me there was a dangerous growth on my vocal cords, and he sentenced me to weeks of voice rest to see if surgery could be avoided. I'm a speaker; that's what I do. And sometimes, I have to admit, it's been who I am. Suddenly, I had to contemplate losing the ability that, in many ways, defined me. If I could never speak again, would I know who I am?
So many of life's "I. D. cards" are like that. They're lose-able: the youthful beauty, the "Adonis" body, the fleeting accomplishments, the applause, the title. Even the one who promised to love you "till death do us part."
After Tim Tebow was released by the Jets, he tweeted a glimpse of where he's found his identity. It's our word for today from the Word of God, Proverbs 3:5,6, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." A team may dump you, a friend, a boyfriend or girlfriend, a spouse, an employer. If they're where you get your worth, they take it with them when they walk out the door. See, we need an identity we can't lose.
That boyhood roller coaster really jerked me around. But no matter how rough the ride, it got me safely to my destination. That's the test of where I'm staking my value and my identity. Will it carry me all the way to my destination even when the bottom drops out?
That's why I'm going with Tim Tebow's "trust in the Lord" I. D. After all, we are in the Bible's words, "God's workmanship," "created by Him and for Him" (Ephesians 2:10; Colossians 1:16). Thanks to Jesus, I've landed who I really am. My Bible tells me I am "complete in Him" (Colossians 2:10). Isn't that great? Complete! Nobody on earth gave me my worth, and nobody on earth can take it away.
I feel so safe, staking everything on the One who said, "I know (My sheep)...I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them away from Me" (John 10:27, 28 - NLT). I know He won't dump me; He died for me. He died for you. We didn't deserve it. The Bible says, "While we were still sinners Christ died for us." We did everything against Him; He did everything for us; taking our death penalty when He died on that cross, then walking out of His grave under His own power to show that He can give life and eternal life. And only He can, because He's the only One who has it to give. He's the only One who proved He has it.
Once you open your heart to Him, you are home in the identity and the relationship you were made for. Maybe you've never begun that relationship and you'd like to know how. Well, I want to invite you to join me at ANewStory.com.
When you know you belong to Jesus, you're finally safe forever. Let's make sure.
God called David a “man after His own heart!” One might read his story and wonder what God saw in him. He fell as often as he stood. He stared down Goliath, yet ogled at Bathsheba. He could lead armies but couldn’t manage a family. Raging David. Weeping David. Bloodthirsty. God-hungry. Eight wives. One God. A man after God’s own heart?
That God saw him as such gives hope to us all. David’s life has little to offer the unstained saint. Straight-A souls find David’s story disappointing. But we need David’s story…most of us do. Giants lurk in our neighborhoods. Giants of rejection, failure, and revenge. We must face them. Yet we need not face them alone.
Focus on God. The times David did, giants fell. The days he did not, David fell. Lift your eyes, giant-slayer! The God who made a miracle out of David stands ready to make one out of you!
From Facing Your Giants
Jeremiah 23
New International Version (NIV)
The Righteous Branch
23 “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord. 2 Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the Lord. 3 “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4 I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord.
5 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will raise up for David[a] a righteous Branch,
a King who will reign wisely
and do what is just and right in the land.
6 In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called:
The Lord Our Righteous Savior.
7 “So then, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when people will no longer say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt,’ 8 but they will say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the descendants of Israel up out of the land of the north and out of all the countries where he had banished them.’ Then they will live in their own land.”
Lying Prophets
9 Concerning the prophets:
My heart is broken within me;
all my bones tremble.
I am like a drunken man,
like a strong man overcome by wine,
because of the Lord
and his holy words.
10 The land is full of adulterers;
because of the curse[b] the land lies parched
and the pastures in the wilderness are withered.
The prophets follow an evil course
and use their power unjustly.
11 “Both prophet and priest are godless;
even in my temple I find their wickedness,”
declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore their path will become slippery;
they will be banished to darkness
and there they will fall.
I will bring disaster on them
in the year they are punished,”
declares the Lord.
13 “Among the prophets of Samaria
I saw this repulsive thing:
They prophesied by Baal
and led my people Israel astray.
14 And among the prophets of Jerusalem
I have seen something horrible:
They commit adultery and live a lie.
They strengthen the hands of evildoers,
so that not one of them turns from their wickedness.
They are all like Sodom to me;
the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”
15 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets:
“I will make them eat bitter food
and drink poisoned water,
because from the prophets of Jerusalem
ungodliness has spread throughout the land.”
16 This is what the Lord Almighty says:
“Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions from their own minds,
not from the mouth of the Lord.
17 They keep saying to those who despise me,
‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’
And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts
they say, ‘No harm will come to you.’
18 But which of them has stood in the council of the Lord
to see or to hear his word?
Who has listened and heard his word?
19 See, the storm of the Lord
will burst out in wrath,
a whirlwind swirling down
on the heads of the wicked.
20 The anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he fully accomplishes
the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
you will understand it clearly.
21 I did not send these prophets,
yet they have run with their message;
I did not speak to them,
yet they have prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my council,
they would have proclaimed my words to my people
and would have turned them from their evil ways
and from their evil deeds.
23 “Am I only a God nearby,”
declares the Lord,
“and not a God far away?
24 Who can hide in secret places
so that I cannot see them?”
declares the Lord.
“Do not I fill heaven and earth?”
declares the Lord.
25 “I have heard what the prophets say who prophesy lies in my name. They say, ‘I had a dream! I had a dream!’ 26 How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions of their own minds? 27 They think the dreams they tell one another will make my people forget my name, just as their ancestors forgot my name through Baal worship. 28 Let the prophet who has a dream recount the dream, but let the one who has my word speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain?” declares the Lord. 29 “Is not my word like fire,” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?
30 “Therefore,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who steal from one another words supposedly from me. 31 Yes,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and yet declare, ‘The Lord declares.’ 32 Indeed, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,” declares the Lord. “They tell them and lead my people astray with their reckless lies, yet I did not send or appoint them. They do not benefit these people in the least,” declares the Lord.
False Prophecy
33 “When these people, or a prophet or a priest, ask you, ‘What is the message from the Lord?’ say to them, ‘What message? I will forsake you, declares the Lord.’ 34 If a prophet or a priest or anyone else claims, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ I will punish them and their household. 35 This is what each of you keeps saying to your friends and other Israelites: ‘What is the Lord’s answer?’ or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 36 But you must not mention ‘a message from the Lord’ again, because each one’s word becomes their own message. So you distort the words of the living God, the Lord Almighty, our God. 37 This is what you keep saying to a prophet: ‘What is the Lord’s answer to you?’ or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 38 Although you claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ this is what the Lord says: You used the words, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ even though I told you that you must not claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord.’ 39 Therefore, I will surely forget you and cast you out of my presence along with the city I gave to you and your ancestors. 40 I will bring on you everlasting disgrace—everlasting shame that will not be forgotten.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
READ: 2 Corinthians 1:3-7
Praise to the God of All Comfort
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.
Our Daily Bread -- Pass It On
As you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation. —2 Corinthians 1:7
As you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation. —2 Corinthians 1:7
I’ve noticed through the years that those who have suffered are quick to comfort other sufferers. When a young couple suffers the loss of a child, another couple who also lost a child in the past asks if they can help. If a couple loses their main income, almost immediately another couple steps forward to offer their aid, remembering their own journey through foreclosure years earlier. Again and again we see the body of Christ supporting and encouraging one another. These Christians have learned that they can use the trials they’ve been through to reach out to others going through similar difficulties.
Have you been sick? Lost a loved one? Been imprisoned? Unfairly treated? In all of our trials, God promises to bring something good out of even our darkest moments (James 1:2-4). One key way this takes place is when we share the comfort He offered us with those who are now going through trials.
As Paul points out in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7, we are comforted by a Savior who knows our suffering, and we honor Him when we pass His comfort on to still others.
May we never leave someone to suffer alone. If we know the trail another is on, God will help us to guide that person to His presence—the surest comfort of all. —Randy Kilgore
Dear Lord, help us to step forward when
others around us are suffering trials similar to
what we’ve been through. Enable us to be a
comfort, as You have been to us in the past.
God comforts us so that we can comfort others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
August 2, 2013
The Teaching of Adversity
In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world —John 16:33
The typical view of the Christian life is that it means being delivered from all adversity. But it actually means being delivered in adversity, which is something very different. “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling . . .” (Psalm 91:1,10)— the place where you are at one with God.
If you are a child of God, you will certainly encounter adversities, but Jesus says you should not be surprised when they come. “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” He is saying, “There is nothing for you to fear.” The same people who refused to talk about their adversities before they were saved often complain and worry after being born again because they have the wrong idea of what it means to live the life of a saint.
God does not give us overcoming life— He gives us life as we overcome. The strain of life is what builds our strength. If there is no strain, there will be no strength. Are you asking God to give you life, liberty, and joy? He cannot, unless you are willing to accept the strain. And once you face the strain, you will immediately get the strength. Overcome your own timidity and take the first step. Then God will give you nourishment— “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life . . .” (Revelation 2:7). If you completely give of yourself physically, you become exhausted. But when you give of yourself spiritually, you get more strength. God never gives us strength for tomorrow, or for the next hour, but only for the strain of the moment. Our temptation is to face adversities from the standpoint of our own common sense. But a saint can “be of good cheer” even when seemingly defeated by adversities, because victory is absurdly impossible to everyone, except God.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tim Tebow's Roller Coaster - #6930
Friday, August 2, 2013
The first time my dad shamed me into riding a roller coaster, honestly, I couldn't wait to get off. Roller coasters aren't always fun.
Now, Tim Tebow's roller coaster ride has taken a serious dive. When he came to the New York Jets he was the toast of the town. Then they barely played him. Then they released him after a season. And rumors have been circulating ever since about his future in the NFL.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Tim Tebow's Roller Coaster."
It's been a wild ride for the quarterback known for his trademark - one-knee "Tebowing" prayer; Heisman Trophy winner as America's outstanding college player. And then called on mid-season to quarterback the faltering Denver Broncos - and leading them to the playoffs. And then traded to play in the "Big Apple." Then "see ya!" from the Jets. Discouraging? You bet. Tim Tebow even said that himself. Devastating? I doubt it, because even when the ride is crazy, Tim Tebow's coaster never leaves the tracks. See, He's anchored. He knows who he is without football.
And that's hard. To know who you are when you can't do what you do. When suddenly the company you worked so hard for decides they don't need you any more; when an illness or a disability robs you of your ability to work anymore. Or even when the children you've lived for leave you with an empty nest.
I still remember the day years ago when that doctor told me there was a dangerous growth on my vocal cords, and he sentenced me to weeks of voice rest to see if surgery could be avoided. I'm a speaker; that's what I do. And sometimes, I have to admit, it's been who I am. Suddenly, I had to contemplate losing the ability that, in many ways, defined me. If I could never speak again, would I know who I am?
So many of life's "I. D. cards" are like that. They're lose-able: the youthful beauty, the "Adonis" body, the fleeting accomplishments, the applause, the title. Even the one who promised to love you "till death do us part."
After Tim Tebow was released by the Jets, he tweeted a glimpse of where he's found his identity. It's our word for today from the Word of God, Proverbs 3:5,6, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." A team may dump you, a friend, a boyfriend or girlfriend, a spouse, an employer. If they're where you get your worth, they take it with them when they walk out the door. See, we need an identity we can't lose.
That boyhood roller coaster really jerked me around. But no matter how rough the ride, it got me safely to my destination. That's the test of where I'm staking my value and my identity. Will it carry me all the way to my destination even when the bottom drops out?
That's why I'm going with Tim Tebow's "trust in the Lord" I. D. After all, we are in the Bible's words, "God's workmanship," "created by Him and for Him" (Ephesians 2:10; Colossians 1:16). Thanks to Jesus, I've landed who I really am. My Bible tells me I am "complete in Him" (Colossians 2:10). Isn't that great? Complete! Nobody on earth gave me my worth, and nobody on earth can take it away.
I feel so safe, staking everything on the One who said, "I know (My sheep)...I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them away from Me" (John 10:27, 28 - NLT). I know He won't dump me; He died for me. He died for you. We didn't deserve it. The Bible says, "While we were still sinners Christ died for us." We did everything against Him; He did everything for us; taking our death penalty when He died on that cross, then walking out of His grave under His own power to show that He can give life and eternal life. And only He can, because He's the only One who has it to give. He's the only One who proved He has it.
Once you open your heart to Him, you are home in the identity and the relationship you were made for. Maybe you've never begun that relationship and you'd like to know how. Well, I want to invite you to join me at ANewStory.com.
When you know you belong to Jesus, you're finally safe forever. Let's make sure.
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