Max Lucado Daily: WHEN THE DEVIL DRAWS NEAR
When the Devil draws near, stand against him. Give him no quarter. Don’t stand for his accusations. When he dredges up your past mistakes, tell him whose you are. He has no recourse to this truth. He knows who you are. He just hopes that you don’t—or that you’ll forget. So prove to him that you know. Tell him:
“I have been bought with a price. I belong to God” (1 Corinthians 6:20).
“I cannot be separated from the love of God” (Romans 8:35).
“I can find grace and mercy at the time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).
God’s people think like this. They walk with a reverent swagger. They live out of their inheritance. They show the Devil the new name on their spiritual passport. The secret of survival when the Devil draws near? Remember what God has done. And remember whose you are!
From God is With You Every Day
Isaiah 59
We Long for Light but Sink into Darkness
Look! Listen!
God’s arm is not amputated—he can still save.
God’s ears are not stopped up—he can still hear.
There’s nothing wrong with God; the wrong is in you.
Your wrongheaded lives caused the split between you and God.
Your sins got between you so that he doesn’t hear.
Your hands are drenched in blood,
your fingers dripping with guilt,
Your lips smeared with lies,
your tongue swollen from muttering obscenities.
No one speaks up for the right,
no one deals fairly.
They trust in illusion, they tell lies,
they get pregnant with mischief and have sin-babies.
They hatch snake eggs and weave spider webs.
Eat an egg and die; break an egg and get a snake!
The spider webs are no good for shirts or shawls.
No one can wear these weavings!
They weave wickedness,
they hatch violence.
They compete in the race to do evil
and run to be the first to murder.
They plan and plot evil, think and breathe evil,
and leave a trail of wrecked lives behind them.
They know nothing about peace
and less than nothing about justice.
They make tortuously twisted roads.
No peace for the wretch who walks down those roads!
9-11 Which means that we’re a far cry from fair dealing,
and we’re not even close to right living.
We long for light but sink into darkness,
long for brightness but stumble through the night.
Like the blind, we inch along a wall,
groping eyeless in the dark.
We shuffle our way in broad daylight,
like the dead, but somehow walking.
We’re no better off than bears, groaning,
and no worse off than doves, moaning.
We look for justice—not a sign of it;
for salvation—not so much as a hint.
12-15 Our wrongdoings pile up before you, God,
our sins stand up and accuse us.
Our wrongdoings stare us down;
we know in detail what we’ve done:
Mocking and denying God,
not following our God,
Spreading false rumors, inciting sedition,
pregnant with lies, muttering malice.
Justice is beaten back,
Righteousness is banished to the sidelines,
Truth staggers down the street,
Honesty is nowhere to be found,
Good is missing in action.
Anyone renouncing evil is beaten and robbed.
15-19 God looked and saw evil looming on the horizon—
so much evil and no sign of Justice.
He couldn’t believe what he saw:
not a soul around to correct this awful situation.
So he did it himself, took on the work of Salvation,
fueled by his own Righteousness.
He dressed in Righteousness, put it on like a suit of armor,
with Salvation on his head like a helmet,
Put on Judgment like an overcoat,
and threw a cloak of Passion across his shoulders.
He’ll make everyone pay for what they’ve done:
fury for his foes, just deserts for his enemies.
Even the far-off islands will get paid off in full.
In the west they’ll fear the name of God,
in the east they’ll fear the glory of God,
For he’ll arrive like a river in flood stage,
whipped to a torrent by the wind of God.
20 “I’ll arrive in Zion as Redeemer,
to those in Jacob who leave their sins.”
God’s Decree.
21 “As for me,” God says, “this is my covenant with them: My Spirit that I’ve placed upon you and the words that I’ve given you to speak, they’re not going to leave your mouths nor the mouths of your children nor the mouths of your grandchildren. You will keep repeating these words and won’t ever stop.” God’s orders.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, November 11, 2016
Read: John 15:12–17
“I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I’m no longer calling you servants because servants don’t understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I’ve named you friends because I’ve let you in on everything I’ve heard from the Father.
16 “You didn’t choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won’t spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you.
17 “But remember the root command: Love one another.
INSIGHT:
Jesus spoke of “a new commandment” to love one another (John 13:34). The command to love is not entirely new (1 John 2:7), for God commanded every Jew to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 5:43; 22:39). What is new is that Jesus raised the bar to the highest standard of loving: “As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:34). He used the words servants and friends to contrast the new level of love and intimacy we now have with Him. The one who loved you as He loved Himself is a true friend, one who will humbly and lovingly serve you (13:1–17), and one who sacrificially loved you, even laying down His life for you (15:13).
Seeing Well
By Jennifer Benson Schuldt
You are my friends if you do what I command. John 15:14
Raleigh looks like a powerful dog—he is large and muscular and has a thick coat of fur. And he weighs over 100 pounds! Despite his appearance, Raleigh connects well with people. His owner takes him to nursing homes and hospitals to bring people a smile.
Once, a four-year-old girl spotted Raleigh across a room. She wanted to pet him, but was afraid to get close. Eventually, her curiosity overcame her sense of caution and she spent several minutes talking to him and petting him. She discovered that he is a gentle creature, even though he is powerful.
You are my friends if you do what I command. John 15:14
The combination of these qualities reminds me of what we read about Jesus in the New Testament. Jesus was approachable—He welcomed little children (Matt. 19:13–15). He was kind to an adulterous woman in a desperate situation (John 8:1–11). Compassion motivated Him to teach crowds (Mark 6:34). At the same time, Jesus’s power was astounding. Heads turned and jaws dropped as He subdued demons, calmed violent storms, and resurrected dead people! (Mark 1:21–34; 4:35–41; John 11).
The way we see Jesus determines how we relate to Him. If we focus only on His power, we may treat Him with the detached worship we’d give a comic book superhero. Yet, if we overemphasize His kindness, we risk treating Him too casually. The truth is that Jesus is both at once—great enough to deserve our obedience yet humble enough to call us friends.
Jesus, thank You for the privilege of knowing You. I acknowledge Your gentle power. I worship You as the Son of God—full of grace and glory.
What we think of Jesus shows in how we relate with Him.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, November 11, 2016
The Supreme Climb
He said, "Take now your son…" —Genesis 22:2
God’s command is, “Take now,” not later. It is incredible how we debate! We know something is right, but we try to find excuses for not doing it immediately. If we are to climb to the height God reveals, it can never be done later— it must be done now. And the sacrifice must be worked through our will before we actually perform it.
“So Abraham rose early in the morning…and went to the place of which God had told him” (Genesis 22:3). Oh, the wonderful simplicity of Abraham! When God spoke, he did not “confer with flesh and blood” (Galatians 1:16). Beware when you want to “confer with flesh and blood” or even your own thoughts, insights, or understandings— anything that is not based on your personal relationship with God. These are all things that compete with and hinder obedience to God.
Abraham did not choose what the sacrifice would be. Always guard against self-chosen service for God. Self-sacrifice may be a disease that impairs your service. If God has made your cup sweet, drink it with grace; or even if He has made it bitter, drink it in communion with Him. If the providential will of God means a hard and difficult time for you, go through it. But never decide the place of your own martyrdom, as if to say, “I will only go to there, but no farther.” God chose the test for Abraham, and Abraham neither delayed nor protested, but steadily obeyed. If you are not living in touch with God, it is easy to blame Him or pass judgment on Him. You must go through the trial before you have any right to pronounce a verdict, because by going through the trial you learn to know God better. God is working in us to reach His highest goals until His purpose and our purpose become one.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Beware of pronouncing any verdict on the life of faith if you are not living it. Not Knowing Whither, 900 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, November 11, 2016
Flying Through The Dead Zone - #7785
Missionary pilots are some of my personal heroes-especially since the incredible job they did moving our Native American team across Alaska some years ago. Often there really wasn't much of a runway to land on or good weather to fly in, but they always got us there safely. On one flight, I was in the co-pilot seat (yeah, of all things) in a little six-seater aircraft, and our pilot, Gary, was flying us to a Yukon River village through some low visibility, low ceilings-just generally lousy weather. And as we neared our destination, he said, "I hate this part. We're in the dead zone." "Dead zone" isn't exactly what I want to hear from a pilot when I'm flying with him, so I asked Gary what he meant by that. He described that part of a flight where you cannot communicate with the tower or with any other aircraft. You're kind of all alone. It doesn't last long, he explained, but if you're in trouble or you're going down, nobody knows. It's a lonely stretch. Well, after a couple more minutes, Gary broke into a big smile and he said, "Good. We're back." I smiled, too.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Flying Through the Dead Zone."
Now you may never fly an airplane, but you probably know about navigating life's dead zones-those times when it seems as if heaven is silent, answers just aren't coming, no one seems to understand, and your feelings are either blah or they're all over the map. It's a lonely stretch. Maybe it's what you're flying through right now in your life journey.
The 23rd Psalm is spiritual "chicken soup" for life's dead zones. David reminds us that "the Lord is my Shepherd", even when I can't see Him or feel Him, you're being protected, provided for, guided, even when your feelings are flat and God's invisible. Then comes that bottom line assurance that is all the difference when you feel out of touch with the tower and with all the other pilots around you.
Our word for today from the Word of God-Psalm 23:4. I go back to this often. "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." Now you may not be facing physical death right now, but it could be a season of dark shadows, a deadness inside, confusion, uncertainty about what's going on. Well, your hope and your stability is to look up to your Lord as the Psalmist did and said, "I will fear no evil, for You are with me."
My wife told me about her long walk to the school bus as a little girl. For most of it, she was in sight of her house and her grandparents' house or her neighbor's house. But the last stretch was a path through a dark woods, and that stretch she had to walk all alone. Maybe like the stretch you're on right now-a stretch no one can walk with you except one Person. Little Karen would face her fears by singing a song as she passed through her "dead zone". She sang, "Jesus loves me, this I know...Yes, Jesus loves me."
When a pilot gets in trouble during a dead zone time, nobody knows. But if you belong to Jesus, there is no such time, no matter how alone you may feel. Jesus always knows. Jesus always cares. Jesus always leads you through. Your feelings may be lying to you, so keep your eyes on the instruments. Believe God's Word right now! Plant both your feet on His promises. Don't trust anything else. Hang onto those time-tested promises of God's Word like a drowning person hanging onto a life preserver. They are still true, and you need them now more than ever.
If a dead zone is a time when no one knows and no one understands, well if you belong to Jesus, you will never really fly through a dead zone. The feelings may not be there, the people you love may not be able to be there, the visible answers to prayer may not be there. But Jesus is there! Hang on tighter than ever. You never know Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you've got.
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