God’s thoughts are not our thoughts—we aren’t even in the same neighborhood! Psalm 92:5 sets the standard! “Lord you have done such great things! How deep are your thoughts!”
When we’re thinking preserve the body, God is thinking save the soul. When we dream of a pay raise God dreams of raising the dead. We avoid pain and seek peace while God uses pain to bring peace. I’m going to live before I die, we resolve. But God instructs, Die so you can live. We love what rusts but God loves what endures. We rejoice at our successes but God rejoices at our confessions.
We show our children the Nike star with the million-dollar smile and say, “Be like him!” God points to the crucified carpenter with bloody lips and a torn side and says, “Be like Christ!”
From Grace for the Moment
Acts 9:1-22
Saul Becomes a Christian on the Way to Damascus
9 Saul was still talking much about how he would like to kill the followers of the Lord. He went to the head religious leader. 2 He asked for letters to be written to the Jewish places of worship in the city of Damascus. The letters were to say that if he found any men or women following the Way of Christ he might bring them to Jerusalem in chains.
3 He went on his way until he came near Damascus. All at once he saw a light from heaven shining around him. 4 He fell to the ground. Then he heard a voice say, “Saul, Saul, why are you working so hard against Me?” 5 Saul answered, “Who are You, Lord?” He said, “I am Jesus, the One Whom you are working against. You hurt yourself by trying to hurt Me.” 6 Saul was shaken and surprised. Then he said, “What do You want me to do, Lord?” The Lord said to him, “Get up! Go into the city and you will be told what to do.”
7 Those with Saul were not able to say anything. They heard a voice but saw no one. 8 Saul got up from the ground. When he opened his eyes, he saw nothing. They took him by the hand and led him to Damascus. 9 He could not see for three days. During that time he did not eat or drink.
10 In Damascus there was a follower by the name of Ananias. The Lord showed him in a dream what He wanted him to see. He said, “Ananias!” And Ananias answered, “Yes, Lord, I am here.” 11 The Lord said, “Get up! Go over to Straight Street to Judas’ house and ask for a man from the city of Tarsus. His name is Saul. You will find him praying there. 12 Saul has seen a man called Ananias in a dream. He is to come and put his hands on Saul so he might see again.”
13 Ananias said, “But Lord, many people have told me about this man. He is the reason many of Your followers in Jerusalem have had to suffer much. 14 He came here with the right and the power from the head religious leaders to put everyone in chains who call on Your name.” 15 The Lord said to him, “Go! This man is the one I have chosen to carry My name among the people who are not Jews and to their kings and to Jews. 16 I will show him how much he will have to suffer because of Me.”
Saul Is Baptized
17 So Ananias went to that house. He put his hands on Saul and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus has sent me to you. You saw the Lord along the road as you came here. The Lord has sent me so you might be able to see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 At once something like a covering fell from the eyes of Saul and he could see. He got up and was baptized. 19 After that he ate some food and received strength. For some days he stayed with the followers in Damascus.
Saul Preaches the Good News
20 At once Saul began to preach in the Jewish places of worship that Jesus is the Son of God. 21 All who heard him were surprised and wondered. They said, “This is the man who beat and killed the followers in Jerusalem. He came here to tie the followers in chains and take them to the head religious leaders.” 22 But Saul kept on growing in power. The Jews living in Damascus wondered about Saul’s preaching. He was proving that Jesus was the Christ.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, December 04, 2015
Read: Psalm 37:1-9
A Safe Place for Those Who Trust in the Lord
Do not trouble yourself because of sinful men. Do not want to be like those who do wrong. 2 For they will soon dry up like the grass. Like the green plant they will soon die. 3 Trust in the Lord, and do good. So you will live in the land and will be fed. 4 Be happy in the Lord. And He will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Give your way over to the Lord. Trust in Him also. And He will do it. 6 He will make your being right and good show as the light, and your wise actions as the noon day.
7 Rest in the Lord and be willing to wait for Him. Do not trouble yourself when all goes well with the one who carries out his sinful plans. 8 Stop being angry. Turn away from fighting. Do not trouble yourself. It leads only to wrong-doing. 9 For those who do wrong will be cut off. But those who wait for the Lord will be given the earth.
INSIGHT:
The invitation of Psalm 37 is not simply to lay down our anxiety but to replace it with something far better—trust and delight in the Lord (vv. 3-4). Replacing worry with trust is also a concern of the apostle Paul when he tells the Christians in Philippi, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6-7).
Worry-Free
By Dave Branon
Do not fret because of those who are evil. Psalm 37:1
Trying to stay aware of current events has its downside because bad news sells better than good news. It’s easy to become overly concerned about the criminal acts of individuals, crowds, or governments over whom we have no control.
Psalm 37 gives perspective to the daily news. David begins by saying, “Do not fret because of those who are evil” (v. 1). Then he proceeds to outline for us some alternatives to becoming overly anxious. In essence, David suggests a better way of thinking about negative news in our world.
What would happen if, instead of worrying about events beyond our control, we chose to trust in the Lord? (v. 3). Wouldn’t we be better off to “take delight in the Lord” (v. 4) rather than fret without limits? Imagine the freedom from worry we could have if we would “commit [our] way to the Lord” (v. 5). And how calm we could be by learning to “be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him”! (v. 7).
News of trouble we cannot change offers us an opportunity to set boundaries for our concerns. As we trust God, commit our ways to Him, and rest in Him, our outlook brightens. The struggles and trials may not disappear, but we will discover that He gives us His peace in the midst of them.
Lord, we see danger and trouble all around us. Help us not to worry but instead to trust and rest in You. Show us the peace that comes from waiting patiently on You.
Obstacles give us the opportunity to trust God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, December 04, 2015
The Law of Opposition
To him who overcomes… —Revelation 2:7
Life without war is impossible in the natural or the supernatural realm. It is a fact that there is a continuing struggle in the physical, mental, moral, and spiritual areas of life.
Health is the balance between the physical parts of my body and all the things and forces surrounding me. To maintain good health I must have sufficient internal strength to fight off the things that are external. Everything outside my physical life is designed to cause my death. The very elements that sustain me while I am alive work to decay and disintegrate my body once it is dead. If I have enough inner strength to fight, I help to produce the balance needed for health. The same is true of the mental life. If I want to maintain a strong and active mental life, I have to fight. This struggle produces the mental balance called thought.
Morally it is the same. Anything that does not strengthen me morally is the enemy of virtue within me. Whether I overcome, thereby producing virtue, depends on the level of moral excellence in my life. But we must fight to be moral. Morality does not happen by accident; moral virtue is acquired.
And spiritually it is also the same. Jesus said, “In the world you will have tribulation…” (John 16:33). This means that anything which is not spiritual leads to my downfall. Jesus went on to say, “…but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” I must learn to fight against and overcome the things that come against me, and in that way produce the balance of holiness. Then it becomes a delight to meet opposition.
Holiness is the balance between my nature and the law of God as expressed in Jesus Christ.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
We begin our Christian life by believing what we are told to believe, then we have to go on to so assimilate our beliefs that they work out in a way that redounds to the glory of God. The danger is in multiplying the acceptation of beliefs we do not make our own. Conformed to His Image, 381 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, December 04, 2015
Three Reasons for Hope in a World of Terror - #7540
These days it's rare to have a happy, happy, happy week in Washington.
National leaders usually try to cool the rhetoric so we don't panic over things. But sometimes it seems like they've given up, especially the closer we get to the next Presidential election. But the leaders in Washington have been more candid than ever before saying things folks like that usually don't say.
I mean, it wasn't very long ago when the Secretary of Defense said in a press conference, "The world is exploding all over." A leader in the U. S. Senate tells us, "The world is in greater turmoil than at any time in my lifetime." Then the person who was the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the time – the top military official we've got – talked about the metastasizing terror movement in the Middle East. He described it as "an organization that has an apocalyptic, end-of-days strategic vision." That's disturbing.
Sweet dreams, everybody. Have fun this weekend! Wow!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Three Reasons for Hope in a World of Terror."
As a follower of Jesus, I pray, "Lord, would You help me see what You see when you look at our world today." And He does. I see three messages from heaven and reasons for hope in the mayhem of our times.
First, "This is no time for business as usual." God has long predicted in the Bible there would be a time when "evil men...will go from bad to worse" (2 Timothy 3:13). When "there will be terrible times" (2 Timothy 3:1). And "because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold" (Matthew 24:12). Jesus called it "the last days."
So for those of us who belong to King Jesus, it's a time to charge, not to retreat. To live like heaven is home and earth is just my hotel. Pouring my life and resources into what will matter forever, not just for a fleeting moment.
Like helping the people around me be ready for eternity. Knowing that whatever my situation, Jesus has put me there to represent Him so I can help people be in heaven with us someday. It's just too late in the game to be clinging to my comfort zone, my Christian cocoon. There's a lost world for whom time is running out.
Secondly, "God's got this." (I just love that.) Isaiah says, "He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth...surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket" (Isaiah 40:22, 15). Here's a great verse. It's our word for today from the Word of God, verses for times like these. Psalm 11:3-4, "when the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do? The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His heavenly throne."
No president, no prime minister, no army, no terrorists will rule the future. The Lord of history "who (according to Revelation) is, and was, and who is to come, the Almighty" (Revelation 1:8) He writes our destiny. I've placed my life in those all-powerful hands. So I can watch the ever-turbulent evening news knowing my Father is in charge. Living with urgency, but not with fear.
Thirdly, "You don't have to worry, but you do need to care." An exploding world leaves in its wake a multitude of bleeding people, orphans, starving people, rivers of shell-shocked refugees, victims of religious persecution.
Jesus still says how we treat "the least of these" is how we're treating Him. So we can't just sit on our couch and watch the suffering. We can't fix the world. But we can let what breaks God's heart break our heart enough to bear the burdens of a hurting world and carry them to the Throne of God in prayer, and enough to spend less on ourselves so we can give something to help them.
Extraordinary times! I can sleep through them. I can hide from them. Or I can play like it's late in the game and it is time to play for keeps. Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man, said it pretty well when he realized he could make a difference with the power he had: "For me to live an ordinary life is no longer an option."