Max Lucado Daily: What Matters is Who God Is
When God announced Moses was to deliver the Israelites, Moses wasn't convinced! God demonstrated that who Moses was didn't matter. What mattered was who God was.
"Moses," spoke the voice from the bush, "throw down your staff" (Exodus 4:3).
God you may not know…well, you don't go around throwing down your staff. You never know when. . .
"Throw it down."
When the rod became a snake, Moses began to run.
"Moses! Pick it up by the tail."
God, out here, well, you don't pick up snakes too often and never by the tail.
"Moses!"
Yessir!
As Moses touched the squirmy scales, it hardened. Moses lifted up the rod-the same rod he would lift up to divide the water and guide two million people through the desert. If God can do something with stubborn hearts and a stiff-necked people. . .he can do something with the common!
From The Applause of Heaven
Psalm 41
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 Oh, the joys of those who are kind to the poor!
The Lord rescues them when they are in trouble.
2 The Lord protects them
and keeps them alive.
He gives them prosperity in the land
and rescues them from their enemies.
3 The Lord nurses them when they are sick
and restores them to health.
4 “O Lord,” I prayed, “have mercy on me.
Heal me, for I have sinned against you.”
5 But my enemies say nothing but evil about me.
“How soon will he die and be forgotten?” they ask.
6 They visit me as if they were my friends,
but all the while they gather gossip,
and when they leave, they spread it everywhere.
7 All who hate me whisper about me,
imagining the worst.
8 “He has some fatal disease,” they say.
“He will never get out of that bed!”
9 Even my best friend, the one I trusted completely,
the one who shared my food, has turned against me.
10 Lord, have mercy on me.
Make me well again, so I can pay them back!
11 I know you are pleased with me,
for you have not let my enemies triumph over me.
12 You have preserved my life because I am innocent;
you have brought me into your presence forever.
13 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
who lives from everlasting to everlasting.
Amen and amen!
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
Read: Proverbs 18:1-8, 20-21
18 Unfriendly people care only about themselves;
they lash out at common sense.
2 Fools have no interest in understanding;
they only want to air their own opinions.
3 Doing wrong leads to disgrace,
and scandalous behavior brings contempt.
4 Wise words are like deep waters;
wisdom flows from the wise like a bubbling brook.
5 It is not right to acquit the guilty
or deny justice to the innocent.
6 Fools’ words get them into constant quarrels;
they are asking for a beating.
7 The mouths of fools are their ruin;
they trap themselves with their lips.
8 Rumors are dainty morsels
that sink deep into one’s heart.
Proverbs 18:20-21New Living Translation (NLT)
20 Wise words satisfy like a good meal;
the right words bring satisfaction.
21 The tongue can bring death or life;
those who love to talk will reap the consequences.
INSIGHT:
The Insight for August 4 discussed two Hebrew poetic devices that mark Jewish poetry. In Proverbs 18 we see another poetic device, synonymous parallelism, which repeats the same thing in a similar way. Proverbs 18:20 is an example of this. “Fruit of his mouth” parallels “produce of his lips,” while “shall be satisfied” lines up with “shall be filled.” As you read through the proverbs, see if you can find other examples of synonymous parallelism. Bill Crowder
The Power of Words
By Marvin Williams
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit. Proverbs 18:21
Nelson Mandela, who opposed the South African apartheid regime and was imprisoned for almost 3 decades, knew the power of words. He is often quoted today, but while in prison his words could not be quoted for fear of repercussion. A decade after his release he said: “It is never my custom to use words lightly. If 27 years in prison have done anything to us, it was to use the silence of solitude to make us understand how precious words are, and how real speech is in its impact on the way people live and die.”
King Solomon, author of most of the Old Testament book of Proverbs, wrote often about the power of words. He said, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Prov. 18:21). Words have the potential to produce positive or negative consequences (v. 20). They have the power to give life through encouragement and honesty or to crush and kill through lies and gossip. How can we be assured of producing good words that have a positive outcome? The only way is by diligently guarding our hearts: “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (4:23 niv).
Jesus can transform our hearts so that our words can truly be their best—honest, calm, appropriate, and suitable for the situation.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14
Our words have the power to build up or tear down.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
Are You Ever Troubled?
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you… —John 14:27
There are times in our lives when our peace is based simply on our own ignorance. But when we are awakened to the realities of life, true inner peace is impossible unless it is received from Jesus. When our Lord speaks peace, He creates peace, because the words that He speaks are always “spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). Have I ever received what Jesus speaks? “…My peace I give to you…”— a peace that comes from looking into His face and fully understanding and receiving His quiet contentment.
Are you severely troubled right now? Are you afraid and confused by the waves and the turbulence God sovereignly allows to enter your life? Have you left no stone of your faith unturned, yet still not found any well of peace, joy, or comfort? Does your life seem completely barren to you? Then look up and receive the quiet contentment of the Lord Jesus. Reflecting His peace is proof that you are right with God, because you are exhibiting the freedom to turn your mind to Him. If you are not right with God, you can never turn your mind anywhere but on yourself. Allowing anything to hide the face of Jesus Christ from you either causes you to become troubled or gives you a false sense of security.
With regard to the problem that is pressing in on you right now, are you “looking unto Jesus” (Hebrews 12:2) and receiving peace from Him? If so, He will be a gracious blessing of peace exhibited in and through you. But if you only try to worry your way out of the problem, you destroy His effectiveness in you, and you deserve whatever you get. We become troubled because we have not been taking Him into account. When a person confers with Jesus Christ, the confusion stops, because there is no confusion in Him. Lay everything out before Him, and when you are faced with difficulty, bereavement, and sorrow, listen to Him say, “Let not your heart be troubled…” (John 14:27).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Am I learning how to use my Bible? The way to become complete for the Master’s service is to be well soaked in the Bible; some of us only exploit certain passages. Our Lord wants to give us continuous instruction out of His word; continuous instruction turns hearers into disciples. Approved Unto God, 11 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
A Broken Savior for Broken People - #7468
Maybe it's because my father-in-law was a corrections officer for a while, and I've heard his stories about the wasted lives behind prison bars. Whatever the reason, I've always admired the men who minister as prison chaplains. That's a tough ministry, but it's a ministry so desperately needed.
My friend Bill works as a prison chaplain. This particular incident he shared with me touched me then and touches me now. Bill had been visiting this cell block and as chaplain, he went out to the exercise yard for some fresh air. Three tough young inmates walked up to him and one said, "Hey, mister, are you broke?" Bill kind of fished around in his pocket and didn't find any money in there. And the inmate said, "It doesn't matter, man. Your money's no good in here anyway. Now, are you broke?" This time the inmate was insistent about it. Here's what he said, "Mister, don't try to minister to people in here if you ain't broke, because we all are."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Broken Savior for Broken People."
You don't have to go inside a prison to find people who are, in the words of that inmate, broke. There's so much pain today and so much heartache from broken things: broken families, broken health, a broken heart, and broken trust. You may be "broke" perhaps even in spite of a life that's successful and an outward image that's looking fine.
Now, our word for today from the Word of God, Hebrews 4:14, "Since we have a great High Priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess." Here Jesus is called High Priest. And we learn from the Old Testament that those are the ones who represented people to God. So Jesus is now our personal representative with God in heaven.
Let's say that young inmate could walk up to Jesus and ask, "Are you broke?" He would need to hear that next verse, verse 15. Here's what it says, "We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence." He's walked in our shoes. He's felt what we feel and we can come to Him with confidence.
We're coming to a Savior who has lived the feelings that we are bringing to Him. He knows what it is to be poor. He knows what it feels like to be turned on by your family; to be betrayed by someone very close. It all happened to Him. He knew what it was like to be lonely. He was all of those. This Savior knows our pain. He gets us! There are other people who could empathize. There are some counselors who can help you understand the pain, but only Jesus can carry your pain and begin to heal a lifetime of scars.
He says, "I came to bind up the broken hearted." But the great tragedy could be this: You're needlessly carrying all your hurt alone, because this Savior isn't your Savior, because you've never given yourself to Him. We're all the victims of people's sin, and we're sinners ourselves. Sin is our personal rebellion against our Creator saying, "God, you run the universe and I'll run me" because we're away from the One we were made by. We keep making choices that increase our pain.
But Jesus is saying to you today, "Why are you carrying that all alone? I died for you. Won't you let Me be your Savior? Let me pick up your pain. Let me begin to apply my love to your wounds."
Don't walk alone one more day. Let this be the day you let this Jesus start driving the life that He died for and that He made. You ready for Him to take over? You ready for Him to forgive what only He can forgive and heal what only He can heal? Well, then, why don't you tell Him that right now, "Jesus, I'm yours."
Our website can help you get there. It's ANewStory.com. I hope you'll check it out. Or you can actually text us at 442-244-WORD.
If a person says, "Jesus, I'm broke." Someone who's been broke can help you. You see that mangled body of Jesus on that blood-stained cross, and you see that the Son of God was broke so you don't have to be any more.