Max Lucado Daily: THE CHILD IS FATHER OF THE MAN - June 11, 2018
“The child is the father of the man,” wrote William Wordsworth. Want direction for the future? Then read your life backward.
Job placement experts asked over seventy thousand people this question: “What things have you done in life that you enjoyed doing and believe you did well?” In every case people reverted to the same pattern of functioning. Or to put it succinctly, our past presents our future.
The Bible says, “it is God himself who has made us what we are and given us new lives from Christ Jesus; and long ages ago he planned that we should spend these lives in helping others” (Ephesians 2:10). You are heaven’s custom design. What God said about Jeremiah, he said about you: “Before you were born, I set you apart for a special work!” (Jeremiah 1:5 NCV).
Read more Cure for the Common Life
Luke 1:1-20
So many others have tried their hand at putting together a story of the wonderful harvest of Scripture and history that took place among us, using reports handed down by the original eyewitnesses who served this Word with their very lives. Since I have investigated all the reports in close detail, starting from the story’s beginning, I decided to write it all out for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can know beyond the shadow of a doubt the reliability of what you were taught.
A Childless Couple Conceives
5-7 During the rule of Herod, King of Judea, there was a priest assigned service in the regiment of Abijah. His name was Zachariah. His wife was descended from the daughters of Aaron. Her name was Elizabeth. Together they lived honorably before God, careful in keeping to the ways of the commandments and enjoying a clear conscience before God. But they were childless because Elizabeth could never conceive, and now they were quite old.
8-12 It so happened that as Zachariah was carrying out his priestly duties before God, working the shift assigned to his regiment, it came his one turn in life to enter the sanctuary of God and burn incense. The congregation was gathered and praying outside the Temple at the hour of the incense offering. Unannounced, an angel of God appeared just to the right of the altar of incense. Zachariah was paralyzed in fear.
13-15 But the angel reassured him, “Don’t fear, Zachariah. Your prayer has been heard. Elizabeth, your wife, will bear a son by you. You are to name him John. You’re going to leap like a gazelle for joy, and not only you—many will delight in his birth. He’ll achieve great stature with God.
15-17 “He’ll drink neither wine nor beer. He’ll be filled with the Holy Spirit from the moment he leaves his mother’s womb. He will turn many sons and daughters of Israel back to their God. He will herald God’s arrival in the style and strength of Elijah, soften the hearts of parents to children, and kindle devout understanding among hardened skeptics—he’ll get the people ready for God.”
18 Zachariah said to the angel, “Do you expect me to believe this? I’m an old man and my wife is an old woman.”
19-20 But the angel said, “I am Gabriel, the sentinel of God, sent especially to bring you this glad news. But because you won’t believe me, you’ll be unable to say a word until the day of your son’s birth. Every word I’ve spoken to you will come true on time—God’s time.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, June 11, 2018
Read: Proverbs 3:1–7
Don’t Assume You Know It All
1-2 Good friend, don’t forget all I’ve taught you;
take to heart my commands.
They’ll help you live a long, long time,
a long life lived full and well.
3-4 Don’t lose your grip on Love and Loyalty.
Tie them around your neck; carve their initials on your heart.
Earn a reputation for living well
in God’s eyes and the eyes of the people.
5-12 Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don’t try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
he’s the one who will keep you on track.
Don’t assume that you know it all.
Run to God! Run from evil!
Your body will glow with health,
your very bones will vibrate with life!
Honor God with everything you own;
give him the first and the best.
Your barns will burst,
your wine vats will brim over.
But don’t, dear friend, resent God’s discipline;
don’t sulk under his loving correction.
It’s the child he loves that God corrects;
a father’s delight is behind all this.
INSIGHT
The first nine chapters of Proverbs don’t follow the same format (pithy sayings; poetry couplets) that the rest of the book follows. The beginning chapters are a father’s encouragement to his son. The father tells his son of the benefits of wisdom, of its ability to make life more pleasant and fulfilling. Wisdom and folly are personified and invite the young man to pursue them. But why is this important? It seems obvious that wisdom is better than folly, so why go to such lengths to convince a child of the need to pursue wisdom?
The answer is experiential. You see, folly is the easier of the two, the more natural. As we read chapters 10–31, we see what the better choice is. But folly is far simpler to choose—it seems hardwired into us. Whether it’s a harsh word, a selfish action, or self-indulgence, folly is always ready to embrace us. That’s why the father takes such time to encourage his son to pursue wisdom. Wisdom isn’t restricted to big decisions, however; we need it for every action we take and every word we speak.
How can we pursue wisdom today? - J.R. Hudberg
Advice from My Father
By Linda Washington
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5
After being laid off from an editorial job, I prayed, asking for God to help me find a new one. But when weeks went by and nothing came of my attempts at networking and filling out applications, I began to pout. “Don’t You know how important it is that I have a job?” I asked God, my arms folded in protest at my seemingly unanswered prayer.
When I talked to my father, who had often reminded me about believing God’s promises, about my job situation, he said, “I want you to get to the point where you trust what God says.”
My father’s advice reminds me of Proverbs 3, which includes wise advice from a parent to a beloved child. This familiar passage was especially applicable to my situation: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5–6). To “make . . . paths straight” means God will guide us toward His goals for our growth. His ultimate goal is that I become more like Him.
This does not mean that the paths He chooses will be easy. But I can choose to trust that His direction and timing are ultimately for my good.
Are you waiting on God for an answer? Choose to draw near to Him and trust that He will guide you.
Lord, thank You for guiding and caring for us every step of the way. Help us to trust in You daily.
Your Father in heaven knows what’s best for you.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, June 11, 2018
Getting There (1)
Come to Me… —Matthew 11:28
Where sin and sorrow stops, and the song of the saint starts. Do I really want to get there? I can right now. The questions that truly matter in life are remarkably few, and they are all answered by these words— “Come to Me.” Our Lord’s words are not, “Do this, or don’t do that,” but— “Come to me.” If I will simply come to Jesus, my real life will be brought into harmony with my real desires. I will actually cease from sin, and will find the song of the Lord beginning in my life.
Have you ever come to Jesus? Look at the stubbornness of your heart. You would rather do anything than this one simple childlike thing— “Come to Me.” If you really want to experience ceasing from sin, you must come to Jesus.
Jesus Christ makes Himself the test to determine your genuineness. Look how He used the word come. At the most unexpected moments in your life there is this whisper of the Lord— “Come to Me,” and you are immediately drawn to Him. Personal contact with Jesus changes everything. Be “foolish” enough to come and commit yourself to what He says. The attitude necessary for you to come to Him is one where your will has made the determination to let go of everything and deliberately commit it all to Him.
“…and I will give you rest”— that is, “I will sustain you, causing you to stand firm.” He is not saying, “I will put you to bed, hold your hand, and sing you to sleep.” But, in essence, He is saying, “I will get you out of bed— out of your listlessness and exhaustion, and out of your condition of being half dead while you are still alive. I will penetrate you with the spirit of life, and you will be sustained by the perfection of vital activity.” Yet we become so weak and pitiful and talk about “suffering” the will of the Lord! Where is the majestic vitality and the power of the Son of God in that?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.
Not Knowing Whither
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, June 11, 2018
The Big Game And The Big Letdown - #8196
In every sport, and in every season, there is always that one event that everyone calls "The Big Game". And it's not unusual for real champions to rise to the challenge and put in a powerful performance – so much so that they absolutely cream the other team! But there is also a strange phenomenon that often follows the Big Game – it's called the Big Letdown. It's amazing how a team that has just buried another great team can go into their next game all flat and sloppy. It's not uncommon for the winner of the Big Game to go into that next game – often against a much lesser opponent - and they look terrible - they lose miserably. They literally go right from powerful to pitiful.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Big Game And The Big Letdown."
That doesn't just happen in sports. No, it's happened to most of us who are trying to follow Jesus. Take the prophet Elijah, for example. For him, the Big Game was at a place called Mt. Carmel where he challenged 450 false prophets of Baal to the ultimate showdown – whose God would send the fire from heaven to consume the sacrifice on the altar?
Surprise! Baal never showed up - no matter how much his priests agonized. Our word for today from the Word of God begins in 1 Kings 18:36 as Elijah steps forward and prays. I'm going to emphasize every time he mentions something about God in some way. "...O Lord . . . let it be known today that You are God . . . and that I am Your servant and have done all these things at Your command. Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so these people will know that You, O Lord are God..."
So, God sends fire . . . the leadership of the false religion is done. A lopsided victory in the Big Game. Now, Act Two – the Big Letdown. The queen orders a hit on Elijah and he takes off to hide out. 1 Kings 19:4 says, he "prayed that he might die". What? What happened to the powerful warrior of the Battle of Mt. Carmel? He has gone from powerful to pitiful! How does Elijah go from powerful to pitiful in one roller coaster ride? The same way you and I do.
Listen to his prayer this time, and I'll emphasize every time he talks about himself. "...I have had enough, Lord . . . Take my life. I am no better than my ancestors . . . I have been very zealous for the Lord . . . They have rejected Your covenant . . . I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me." Did you get it?
When Elijah is at his most powerful, he is self-forgetting – he barely mentions himself but he refers to God eleven times! But when he's hurting and miserable, who is he focused on – himself! And that's the story of our spiritual roller coaster, isn't it? You're powerful when you're self-forgetful, when you're all about God. You're pitiful when you're God-forgetful and all about you. You lose all perspective. That's why God's answer to Elijah – and to us – is: "Go out and stand in the presence of the Lord". Stop lying around in your negativity, and your fear, and your discouragement, and your self-pity – and let your Lord happen to you again! He dwarfs all that other stuff!
Satan knows he probably can't touch you in the rush of the Big Game – so he waits for the Big Letdown that often follows. But you don't have to let down. It was because you focused yourself on your very big God that you won so big in the Big Game. So, now don't abandon the God of the Big Game because suddenly you're experiencing a letdown.
This battle is the Lord's battle, too. And through Him, you can win this one, too!