Max Lucado Daily: Rise Above the Past

Maybe your past isn't much to brag about. Maybe you've seen evil, and now you have to make a choice. Do you rise above the past and make a difference? Or do you remain controlled by the past and make excuses?
Many choose the latter. Many choose the convalescent homes of the heart. Healthy bodies, sharp minds, but retired dreams. Lean closely and you'll hear them. If only…  If only I'd had kinder parents, more money, greater opportunities. If only I'd been treated fairly…  Maybe you've used those words.  Maybe you have every right to use them.
God is willing to give you what your family didn't. Galatians 4:7 says, "Through God you are a son; and, if you are a son, then you are certainly an heir." Never had a parent who wiped away your tears? Think again. God has noted each one!
From When God Whispers Your Name

Matthew 23:23-39

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.

27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.

29 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. 30 And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started!

33 “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? 34 Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. 35 And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36 Truly I tell you, all this will come on this generation.

37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. 38 Look, your house is left to you desolate. 39 For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’[a]”
Footnotes:

    Matthew 23:39 Psalm 118:26


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

A miktam[a] of David.

Keep me safe, my God,
    for in you I take refuge.

2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
    apart from you I have no good thing.”
3 I say of the holy people who are in the land,
    “They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
4 Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
    I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
    or take up their names on my lips.

5 Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup;
    you make my lot secure.
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
    surely I have a delightful inheritance.
7 I will praise the Lord, who counsels me;
    even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I keep my eyes always on the Lord.
    With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
    my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
    nor will you let your faithful[b] one see decay.
11 You make known to me the path of life;
    you will fill me with joy in your presence,
    with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Footnotes:

    Psalm 16:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
    Psalm 16:10 Or holy

Insight

David affirms that God is his protector and provider (Ps. 16:1-2). In response to who God is, David delights in the fellowship of like-minded believers and disassociates himself from idolatry (vv.3-4). He depends on God’s Word and celebrates the security and safety he has in the Lord’s presence, not only in this present life but also beyond this life (vv.5-11).

Feeling Chained?
By Dennis Fisher

I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content. —Philippians 4:11

Boethius lived in sixth-century Italy and served the royal court as a highly skilled politician. Unfortunately, he fell into disfavor with the king. He was accused of treason and imprisoned. While awaiting execution, he asked for writing materials so he could compose his reflections. Later, these became an enduring spiritual classic on consolation.

As Boethius sat in prison, pondering his bleak prospects, his faith in Christ infused his perspective: “Nothing is miserable but what is thought so, and contrariwise, every estate is happy if he that bears it be content.” He understood that our view of changing circumstances and contentment is a personal choice.

The apostle Paul reinforced the idea that the way we view our circumstances is more important than the circumstances themselves. While he too was in prison, he wrote: “I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content” (Phil. 4:11). Both men could be content because they drew their ultimate satisfaction from God, who never changes.

Do you feel chained to difficult circumstances? God can give you contentment. Lasting satisfaction can be found only with Him, for in His “presence is fullness of joy; at [His] right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Ps. 16:11).
Lord, lead me today as You see best. Use the gifts
You’ve given me to encourage others on
their journey. Help me not to compare
myself with others but to be content.
When all you have is God, you have all you need.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, July 16, 2014

The Concept of Divine Control

. . . how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! —Matthew 7:11

Jesus is laying down the rules of conduct in this passage for those people who have His Spirit. He urges us to keep our minds filled with the concept of God’s control over everything, which means that a disciple must maintain an attitude of perfect trust and an eagerness to ask and to seek.

Fill your mind with the thought that God is there. And once your mind is truly filled with that thought, when you experience difficulties it will be as easy as breathing for you to remember, “My heavenly Father knows all about this!” This will be no effort at all, but will be a natural thing for you when difficulties and uncertainties arise. Before you formed this concept of divine control so powerfully in your mind, you used to go from person to person seeking help, but now you go to God about it. Jesus is laying down the rules of conduct for those people who have His Spirit, and it works on the following principle: God is my Father, He loves me, and I will never think of anything that He will forget, so why should I worry?

Jesus said there are times when God cannot lift the darkness from you, but you should trust Him. At times God will appear like an unkind friend, but He is not; He will appear like an unnatural father, but He is not; He will appear like an unjust judge, but He is not. Keep the thought that the mind of God is behind all things strong and growing. Not even the smallest detail of life happens unless God’s will is behind it. Therefore, you can rest in perfect confidence in Him. Prayer is not only asking, but is an attitude of the mind which produces the atmosphere in which asking is perfectly natural. “Ask, and it will be given to you . . .” (Matthew 7:7).


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Unnecessary Drowning - #7178

You know it can't be good news when someone yells, "Everybody out of the water!" That's exactly what I heard the day I was in the water at the Jersey Shore. My first thought was Jaws. And since I didn't have my shark repellent, I got out pretty quickly.
But sharks weren't the problem. Drowning kids were. These kids got too close to a jetty, and it was high tide. They were in big trouble! So the lifeguards cleared the water; plunged into the surf. They were swimming, they were rowing. Hundreds of people were lined up along the beach watching this life-or-death drama. I was one of them. And the Beach Patrol guys got there before those kids disappeared, and it was a good thing. There was no way those kids were going to be able to swim their way out of that. They were rescued. And you know what they contributed to being saved? Nothing.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Unnecessary Drowning."
Let's go to the Word of God for our word for today from it. We're in Matthew chapter 14, beginning at verse 27. It's an incident from the life of Jesus and His disciples. But more importantly, it's also a picture of how a person begins their own very personal relationship with God. There is a major surprise in here, even to many of us who know Jesus. Here's what it says.
Jesus and His disciples, of course, are out in a terrible storm. He has not been with them, and He comes walking on the water to them and He says, "'Take courage! It is I. Do not be afraid!' 'Lord, if it's you,' Peter replied, 'tell me to come to you on the water.' 'Come' He said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, 'Lord, save me!' and immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. 'You of little faith,' He said, 'why did you doubt?'"
Peter was like those children on the Jersey Shore, drowning and not able to rescue themselves. And Peter prayed this simple but powerful prayer, "Lord, save me!" Maybe it's time for you to finally pray that to Jesus. Somehow we want to be able to get to heaven ourselves. After all, we believe in God, we believe in Jesus, we believe in His causes, we've learned his commandments, we go to His meetings. We pretty much agree with everything Jesus said. And yet, somehow there has never been that desperate reaching out for Him as our only hope.
God gives us a pretty sobering description of our true spiritual condition in Ephesians 2:1. He says, "You are dead in your sins." Oh we're still breathing. What does it mean by dead? Well, since we were created by Him and for Him, when we're away from Him we're dead inside. We don't know our reason for being here. We don't have the love that we were made for. So without meaning, without purpose, without hope we are adrift. So we're away from God, and that's a terrible place to be; a horrible place to be to try to get through life without the God who put you here. And He's the only one who knows why you're here.
Worse yet, if you die without Him, it's an unthinkable thing to be away from God forever. Sin is running your own life instead of God running it. And that is the verdict God has passed on every one of us. "All of us have sinned." But the Apostle Paul talked about having all of that sin erased so that we could replace a death penalty with eternal life. Ephesians 2:8 says, "It is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works." You can't save you. "Not by works, so that no one can boast." You are saved by the Rescuer God sent here for us-His Son, Jesus.
But those who believe that they can rescue themselves aren't going to make it. None of us will. So many of us have believed the lies that eternal life is a reward for our performance. It's not by works. Eternal life is not a reward, it's a rescue. If you could have made it, God's Son would have never given His life. The only possibility we have for being saved is to put all our trust in God's Rescuer, Jesus.
If you've never done that, let this be your day to cry out in saving faith, "Jesus, you're my only hope." If you're not sure you belong to Him, would you spend a couple of minutes at our website and make sure. Find out how to know you belong to Him. It's ANewStory.com. I'd love to help you find Him.
This is your day to pin all your hopes on Jesus and that simple prayer, "Lord, save me."