No child understands the logic of going to bed while there’s energy left in the body! I remember when our daughter, Andrea, was just five. We finally got her to bed. I went in to give her a final kiss, when she lifted her eyelids and said, “I can’t wait until I wake up!” Oh for the attitude of a five-year-old!
Is it any wonder Jesus said we must have the heart of a child before we can enter the kingdom of heaven? He said, “Believe me, unless you change your whole outlook and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:3).” In other words, quit looking at life like an adult. See it through the eyes of a child.
“I can’t wait to wake up,” are the words of a child’s faith. Andrea could say them because she plays hard, laughs much, and leaves the worries to her father. Let’s do the same.
From And the Angels Were Silent
Revelation 17
New International Version (NIV)
Babylon, the Prostitute on the Beast
17 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters. 2 With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”
3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. 5 The name written on her forehead was a mystery:
babylon the great
the mother of prostitutes
and of the abominations of the earth.
6 I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus.
When I saw her, I was greatly astonished. 7 Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns. 8 The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.
9 “This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits. 10 They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for only a little while. 11 The beast who once was, and now is not, is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction.
12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”
15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. 16 The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. 17 For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are fulfilled. 18 The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Judges 7:2-8
The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, or Israel would boast against me, ‘My own strength has saved me.’ 3 Now announce to the army, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.
4 But the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will thin them out for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
5 So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the Lord told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues as a dog laps from those who kneel down to drink.” 6 Three hundred of them drank from cupped hands, lapping like dogs. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.
7 The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the others go home.” 8 So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites home but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.
Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley.
Empty Fort Strategy
By Poh Fang chia
Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me? —Jeremiah 32:27
In the Chinese historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, author Luo Guanzhong describes the “Empty Fort Strategy,” a use of reverse psychology to deceive the enemy. When 150,000 troops from the Wei Kingdom reached Xicheng, which had less than 2,500 soldiers, they found the city gate wide open and the famous military tactician Zhuge Liang calmly playing the zither with two children beside him. The Wei general, baffled by the scene and believing it was an ambush, ordered a full retreat.
The Bible offers another example of a bewildering battle strategy. In Judges 7, God had Gideon use 300 men, horns, jars, and blazing torches against armies that were “as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number” (v.12).
Could Israel defeat such a formidable foe? It was humanly impossible! They had neither the manpower nor the military hardware. But they had one thing that worked for them and that was all they needed. They had God’s promise: “With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory” (v.7 nlt). The result? Victory!
Are you facing a formidable challenge? The Lord has said, “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?” (Jer. 32:27).
With God, all things are possible.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
February 24, 2014
The Delight of Sacrifice
I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls . . . —2 Corinthians 12:15
Once “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit,” we deliberately begin to identify ourselves with Jesus Christ’s interests and purposes in others’ lives (Romans 5:5). And Jesus has an interest in every individual person. We have no right in Christian service to be guided by our own interests and desires. In fact, this is one of the greatest tests of our relationship with Jesus Christ. The delight of sacrifice is that I lay down my life for my Friend, Jesus (see John 15:13). I don’t throw my life away, but I willingly and deliberately lay it down for Him and His interests in other people. And I do this for no cause or purpose of my own. Paul spent his life for only one purpose— that he might win people to Jesus Christ. Paul always attracted people to his Lord, but never to himself. He said, “I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22).
When someone thinks that to develop a holy life he must always be alone with God, he is no longer of any use to others. This is like putting himself on a pedestal and isolating himself from the rest of society. Paul was a holy person, but wherever he went Jesus Christ was always allowed to help Himself to his life. Many of us are interested only in our own goals, and Jesus cannot help Himself to our lives. But if we are totally surrendered to Him, we have no goals of our own to serve. Paul said that he knew how to be a “doormat” without resenting it, because the motivation of his life was devotion to Jesus. We tend to be devoted, not to Jesus Christ, but to the things which allow us more spiritual freedom than total surrender to Him would allow. Freedom was not Paul’s motive at all. In fact, he stated, “I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren . . .” (Romans 9:3). Had Paul lost his ability to reason? Not at all! For someone who is in love, this is not an overstatement. And Paul was in love with Jesus Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Circuit Breakers - #7076
Monday, February 24, 2014
Some friends of ours were staying in a basement apartment, and they invited us to their place for dinner. So, here I was seated with my wife and our friends and suddenly the lights went out, and the skillet went out. Well, we thought about getting out the candles and having a romantic candlelight dinner. But we decided we should do something more practical-check the circuit breakers. And sure enough, the extra cooking had put an overload on a circuit that doesn't usually get that much activity. So, the circuit breaker did it's very important job. It stopped the flow of electricity so we would not melt down.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Circuit Breakers."
Our word for today from the Word of God is in Psalm 23:1-2. I think you'll recognize them. "The Lord is my Shepherd. I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake." Now, there is a simple truth in this old, familiar passage. There are times when the Shepherd makes you lie down so He can restore you and guide you and put you in a quiet place.
Reminds me of that little electrical shut down in the basement apartment. The circuit breaker shut us down so we wouldn't melt down. God does that with us sometimes when we're running on overload. In fact, maybe He's making you lie down right now. This is a loving thing our Shepherd does for us, but it doesn't always feel loving because He uses a variety of circuit breakers to interrupt the flow. Maybe one of them is at work in your life right now. Like a health issue that forces you to slow down, or at least a warning from a doctor. God may be using a financial circuit breaker to say, "Stop for a while!" It could be there are warning signs of trouble in your spouse, or maybe one of your children, or in some important relationship.
If you've been running at a high rate of speed, don't be surprised if there's something in your life that's almost forcing you to put on the brakes. Don't fight it! Get the message so God doesn't have to turn up the heat to get you to slow down. When you're running, it's easy to miss the voice of God trying to redirect us, trying to encourage us, convict us of a compromise. He wants your undivided attention for a little while, and He doesn't want you to run yourself right into the ground.
People who are overtired and overstressed make big mistakes, which cause major damage or major regrets. That thing that's slowing you down right now? Maybe it's a circuit breaker from God. So don't keep trying to force the current past it. Instead of being frustrated by it, maybe you should be thankful for it. Embrace this season. It's your loving Shepherd applying the brakes so you can refuel, so you can recover, so you can reconsider. He thinks you need rest more than you need to get everything done right now. He's making you lie down.
Well, we were cooking up a storm that night in that basement apartment, and we didn't know we were on overload until the circuit breaker shut us down. Maybe you're on overload and you don't even realize it. Well, your Savior loves you enough to protect you from melting down; by sometimes shutting you down, so don't keep pushing more voltage through. Would you let the Shepherd do what He's trying to do? He wants to make you lie down.