Max Lucado Daily: THE EFFECTS OF FEAR
Christ-followers contract malaria, bury children, and battle addictions. And, as a result, we face fears. It’s not the absence of storms that sets us apart. It’s whom we discover in the storm— an unstirred Christ.
Matthew 8:24 says, “Jesus was sleeping.” Now there’s a scene. The disciples scream, yet Jesus dreams. “Do you not care that we are perishing?” Fear corrodes our confidence in God’s goodness. It unleashes a swarm of anger-stirring doubts. Fear creates a form of spiritual amnesia. It makes us forget what Jesus has done and how good God is. Jesus takes our fears seriously. Don’t be afraid.
Read more Fearless
2 Samuel 7
God’s Covenant with David
7 1-2 Before long, the king made himself at home and God gave him peace from all his enemies. Then one day King David said to Nathan the prophet, “Look at this: Here I am, comfortable in a luxurious house of cedar, and the Chest of God sits in a plain tent.”
3 Nathan told the king, “Whatever is on your heart, go and do it. God is with you.”
4-7 But that night, the word of God came to Nathan saying, “Go and tell my servant David: This is God’s word on the matter: You’re going to build a ‘house’ for me to live in? Why, I haven’t lived in a ‘house’ from the time I brought the children of Israel up from Egypt till now. All that time I’ve moved about with nothing but a tent. And in all my travels with Israel, did I ever say to any of the leaders I commanded to shepherd Israel, ‘Why haven’t you built me a house of cedar?’
8-11 “So here is what you are to tell my servant David: The God-of-the-Angel-Armies has this word for you: I took you from the pasture, tagging along after sheep, and made you prince over my people Israel. I was with you everywhere you went and mowed your enemies down before you. Now I’m making you famous, to be ranked with the great names on earth. And I’m going to set aside a place for my people Israel and plant them there so they’ll have their own home and not be knocked around any more. Nor will evil men afflict you as they always have, even during the days I set judges over my people Israel. Finally, I’m going to give you peace from all your enemies.
11-16 “Furthermore, God has this message for you: God himself will build you a house! When your life is complete and you’re buried with your ancestors, then I’ll raise up your child, your own flesh and blood, to succeed you, and I’ll firmly establish his rule. He will build a house to honor me, and I will guarantee his kingdom’s rule permanently. I’ll be a father to him, and he’ll be a son to me. When he does wrong, I’ll discipline him in the usual ways, the pitfalls and obstacles of this mortal life. But I’ll never remove my gracious love from him, as I removed it from Saul, who preceded you and whom I most certainly did remove. Your family and your kingdom are permanently secured. I’m keeping my eye on them! And your royal throne will always be there, rock solid.”
17 Nathan gave David a complete and accurate account of everything he heard and saw in the vision.
18-21 King David went in, took his place before God, and prayed: “Who am I, my Master God, and what is my family, that you have brought me to this place in life? But that’s nothing compared to what’s coming, for you’ve also spoken of my family far into the future, given me a glimpse into tomorrow, my Master God! What can I possibly say in the face of all this? You know me, Master God, just as I am. You’ve done all this not because of who I am but because of who you are—out of your very heart!—but you’ve let me in on it.
22-24 “This is what makes you so great, Master God! There is none like you, no God but you, nothing to compare with what we’ve heard with our own ears. And who is like your people, like Israel, a nation unique in the earth, whom God set out to redeem for himself (and became most famous for it), performing great and fearsome acts, throwing out nations and their gods left and right as you saved your people from Egypt? You established for yourself a people—your very own Israel!—your people permanently. And you, God, became their God.
25-27 “So now, great God, this word that you have spoken to me and my family, guarantee it permanently! Do exactly what you’ve promised! Then your reputation will flourish always as people exclaim, ‘The God-of-the-Angel-Armies is God over Israel!’ And the house of your servant David will remain sure and solid in your watchful presence. For you, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel’s God, told me plainly, ‘I will build you a house.’ That’s how I was able to find the courage to pray this prayer to you.
28-29 “And now, Master God, being the God you are, speaking sure words as you do, and having just said this wonderful thing to me, please, just one more thing: Bless my family; keep your eye on them always. You’ve already as much as said that you would, Master God! Oh, may your blessing be on my family permanently!”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, January 02, 2019
Read: Psalm 143:4–11
The enemy hunted me down;
he kicked me and stomped me within an inch of my life.
He put me in a black hole,
buried me like a corpse in that dungeon.
I sat there in despair, my spirit draining away,
my heart heavy, like lead.
I remembered the old days,
went over all you’ve done, pondered the ways you’ve worked,
Stretched out my hands to you,
as thirsty for you as a desert thirsty for rain.
7-10 Hurry with your answer, God!
I’m nearly at the end of my rope.
Don’t turn away; don’t ignore me!
That would be certain death.
If you wake me each morning with the sound of your loving voice,
I’ll go to sleep each night trusting in you.
Point out the road I must travel;
I’m all ears, all eyes before you.
Save me from my enemies, God—
you’re my only hope!
Teach me how to live to please you,
because you’re my God.
Lead me by your blessed Spirit
into cleared and level pastureland.
11-12 Keep up your reputation, God—give me life!
In your justice, get me out of this trouble!
In your great love, vanquish my enemies;
make a clean sweep of those who harass me.
And why? Because I’m your servant.
INSIGHT
The word spirit is used several times in Psalm 143. Twice David refers to the weakness of his own spirit (vv. 4, 7), and once he asks the Spirit of the Lord for guidance (v. 10). Was David referring to the Holy Spirit in his request for guidance? Having both the Old and New Testaments at their disposal, Christians have a more comprehensive understanding of the person and work of the Holy Spirit than ancient Israelites who lacked full revelation. Most of the time when the Spirit of God is referred to in the Old Testament, the author isn’t thinking of the Holy Spirit as a person, even though we understand that’s who was at work. Instead the writers were referring to God’s power, the “breath” of God that empowered and moved people. So when David asks the Spirit to “lead me on level ground” (v. 10), he’s asking for God’s empowering presence to go with him. - J.R. Hudberg
It’s Good to Ask
By John Blase
Show me the way I should go. Psalm 143:8
My father has always had a directional sense I’ve envied. He’s just instinctively known where north, south, east, and west are. It’s like he was born with that sense. And he’s always been right. Until the night he wasn’t.
That was the night my father got lost. He and my mother attended an event in an unfamiliar town and left after dark. He was convinced he knew the way back to the highway, but he didn’t. He got turned around, then confused, and ultimately frustrated. My mother reassured him, “I know it’s hard, but ask your phone for directions. It’s okay.”
For the first time in his life that I’m aware of, my seventy-six-year-old father asked for directions. From his phone.
The psalmist was a man with a wealth of life experience. But the psalms reveal moments when it appears David felt lost spiritually and emotionally. Psalm 143 contains one of those times. The great king’s heart was dismayed (v. 4). He was in trouble (v. 11). So he paused and prayed, “Show me the way I should go” (v. 8). And far from counting on a phone, the psalmist cried out to the Lord, “for to you I entrust my life” (v. 8).
If the “man after [God’s] own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14) felt lost from time to time, it’s a given we too will need to turn to God for His direction.
What has caused you to feel turned around, possibly confused, maybe even frustrated these days? Why might you be resisting asking God and others for help?
Welcome to John Blase! Meet all our authors at odb.org/all-authors.
Asking God for direction is more than okay—it’s best.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, January 02, 2019
Will You Go Out Without Knowing?
He went out, not knowing where he was going. —Hebrews 11:8
Have you ever “gone out” in this way? If so, there is no logical answer possible when anyone asks you what you are doing. One of the most difficult questions to answer in Christian work is, “What do you expect to do?” You don’t know what you are going to do. The only thing you know is that God knows what He is doing. Continually examine your attitude toward God to see if you are willing to “go out” in every area of your life, trusting in God entirely. It is this attitude that keeps you in constant wonder, because you don’t know what God is going to do next. Each morning as you wake, there is a new opportunity to “go out,” building your confidence in God. “…do not worry about your life…nor about the body…” (Luke 12:22). In other words, don’t worry about the things that concerned you before you did “go out.”
Have you been asking God what He is going to do? He will never tell you. God does not tell you what He is going to do— He reveals to you who He is. Do you believe in a miracle-working God, and will you “go out” in complete surrender to Him until you are not surprised one iota by anything He does?
Believe God is always the God you know Him to be when you are nearest to Him. Then think how unnecessary and disrespectful worry is! Let the attitude of your life be a continual willingness to “go out” in dependence upon God, and your life will have a sacred and inexpressible charm about it that is very satisfying to Jesus. You must learn to “go out” through your convictions, creeds, or experiences until you come to the point in your faith where there is nothing between yourself and God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
To live a life alone with God does not mean that we live it apart from everyone else. The connection between godly men and women and those associated with them is continually revealed in the Bible, e.g., 1 Timothy 4:10. Not Knowing Whither, 867 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, January 02, 2019
Yesterday's Dream, Today’s Disappointment - #8343
Every once in a while as you're cruising down the highway, you'll see one of those trucks—the ones that are carrying a truckload of smashed cars. We're talking, you know like, steel pancakes. Sometimes you'll drive by the scrap yard where these junkers end up, and there you'll see row after row with stacks of these flattened old vehicles. "Junk," you say. Today it is, but there was a day when that hunk of steel was someone's dream come true. It was the new wheels they'd hoped for and saved for; a prize they wouldn't let anyone touch…now flattened.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about “Yesterday’s Dream, Today’s Disappointment.”
The last time I passed one of those automobile scrap yards, I got to thinking, “In a way, a lot of our life's dreams end up that way.” At one time the dream was new and shiny—something we thought would make us happy for a long time. But so many dreams ended up letting us down—flattened. Excitement turns to tedium. Having what I wanted turns to restlessness and dissatisfaction. A great gain suddenly becomes a great loss. Yesterday's discovery becomes today's disappointment.
We thought those friends would do it for us. They didn't. A girlfriend, a boyfriend, a husband, a wife, children—good, but not enough. Or sometimes a dream actually turned into a nightmare. Yesterday's dream job, or home, or degree, or milestone, or money, it's amazing how many of these seem to go flat before long. I guess there are at least three ways that yesterday's dream turns into today's disappointment. Your dream gets flattened because you never get it, or because you get it and you lose it, or because you get it and find out it wasn't the answer you thought it would be.
This cycle of disappointing or disappointed dreams breeds sort of an "un-peace" in our heart; this restlessness to find out what is the dream that will finally fulfill us. Our Creator steps into this satisfaction void with a word that might put us on the right track. It's recorded in the Bible in Isaiah 55, beginning with verse 1. It’s our word for today from the Word of God. He says, "Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Why spend money (or your life for that matter) on what is not bread, or your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen to Me and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare." That's it…the end of our lifelong search for meaning, and peace, for what goes in that hole in our heart.
Jesus Christ has made this amazing promise: "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me will never go hungry, and he who believes in Me will never thirst" (John 6:35). Jesus says He can finally satisfy your lifelong heart-hunger. Here's why: what we're missing in our soul is the God who made us. We're missing Him because we've kept Him on the margins of our life, running things our way, not His way. Which has put an eternal wall between us and Him. But because God loves you so much, He sent His Son, Jesus, to pay the death penalty for our "me first" lives and to conquer death, then, by coming back from His grave. You've given yourself to other pursuits that weren't the dream after all. When you do that with Jesus, the wall between you and God comes down forever and a love relationship with your Creator finally completes you.
In a world of flattened hopes and dreams, the purpose, the relationship you were made for, they're right in front of you because Jesus is moving in your heart right now to move you to Him. Your part is to give yourself completely to this one who gave Himself totally on the cross for you. With a faith commitment like that, He will come into your life and He’ll do what only He can do.
Look, I want to invite you to go to our website ANewStory.com. And I think you will find there the information that will help you be sure you are belonging now to Jesus Christ.
Please, grab Jesus while He's close.
