Max Lucado Daily: EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE WITH GOD
A rich young ruler once asked Jesus, “What must I do to get eternal life?” He thought he could find eternal life by his own strength. But Jesus said, “What is impossible with men is possible with God” (Luke 18:27). It wasn’t money that hindered the rich young man; it was self-sufficiency. You don’t need a system; you need a Savior. You don’t need a resumé; you need a Redeemer. You cannot save yourself.
It’s not just the rich who have difficulty with this teaching. So do the educated, the strong, the good-looking, the popular, the religious. Those who desire God’s presence don’t brag; they beg. Admission of failure is not usually admission into joy. Complete confession is not commonly followed by total pardon. But then again, God has never been governed by what is common.
Read more Applause of Heaven
Proverbs 9
Lady Wisdom has built and furnished her home;
it’s supported by seven hewn timbers.
The banquet meal is ready to be served: lamb roasted,
wine poured out, table set with silver and flowers.
Having dismissed her serving maids,
Lady Wisdom goes to town, stands in a prominent place,
and invites everyone within sound of her voice:
“Are you confused about life, don’t know what’s going on?
Come with me, oh come, have dinner with me!
I’ve prepared a wonderful spread—fresh-baked bread,
roast lamb, carefully selected wines.
Leave your impoverished confusion and live!
Walk up the street to a life with meaning.”
7-12 If you reason with an arrogant cynic, you’ll get slapped in the face;
confront bad behavior and get a kick in the shins.
So don’t waste your time on a scoffer;
all you’ll get for your pains is abuse.
But if you correct those who care about life,
that’s different—they’ll love you for it!
Save your breath for the wise—they’ll be wiser for it;
tell good people what you know—they’ll profit from it.
Skilled living gets its start in the Fear-of-God,
insight into life from knowing a Holy God.
It’s through me, Lady Wisdom, that your life deepens,
and the years of your life ripen.
Live wisely and wisdom will permeate your life;
mock life and life will mock you.
13-18 Then there’s this other woman, Madame Whore—
brazen, empty-headed, frivolous.
She sits on the front porch
of her house on Main Street,
And as people walk by minding
their own business, calls out,
“Are you confused about life, don’t know what’s going on?
Steal off with me, I’ll show you a good time!
No one will ever know—I’ll give you the time of your life.”
But they don’t know about all the skeletons in her closet,
that all her guests end up in hell.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, May 07, 2019
Today's Scripture & Insight:
2 Kings 2:1–6
Just before God took Elijah to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on a walk out of Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here. God has sent me on an errand to Bethel.”
Elisha said, “Not on your life! I’m not letting you out of my sight!” So they both went to Bethel.
3 The guild of prophets at Bethel met Elisha and said, “Did you know that God is going to take your master away from you today?”
“Yes,” he said, “I know it. But keep it quiet.”
4 Then Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here. God has sent me on an errand to Jericho.”
Elisha said, “Not on your life! I’m not letting you out of my sight!” So they both went to Jericho.
5 The guild of prophets at Jericho came to Elisha and said, “Did you know that God is going to take your master away from you today?”
“Yes,” he said, “I know it. But keep it quiet.”
6 Then Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here. God has sent me on an errand to the Jordan.”
Elisha said, “Not on your life! I’m not letting you out of my sight!” And so the two of them went their way together.
Insight
An interesting facet of Elijah and Elisha’s journey described in 2 Kings 2:1–6 is that, aside from Bethel, it includes some of the places important to the Israelites’ entrance into the promised land. At Gilgal the children of Israel stopped for their first Passover celebration in the land and for the circumcision of males born in the wilderness (Joshua 5). Jericho was the first major conquest as the people began taking possession of the land (Joshua 6). And the Jordan River was the point where the Israelites entered the land as God miraculously parted the waters (Joshua 3). Crossing this river would have reminded them of the parting of the Red Sea forty years earlier, which had allowed their ancestors to cross from Egypt to freedom and life as a new nation.
Someone Who Leads
As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you. 2 Kings 2:6
Who do you think of when you hear the word mentor? For me, it’s Pastor Rich. He saw my potential and believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself. He modeled how to lead by serving in humility and love. As a result, I am now serving God by mentoring others.
The prophet Elijah played a critical role in Elisha’s growth as a leader. Elijah found him plowing a field and invited him to be his protégé after God told him to anoint Elisha as his successor (1 Kings 19:16, 19). The young mentee watched his mentor perform incredible miracles and obey God no matter what. God used Elijah to prepare Elisha for a lifetime of ministry. Toward the end of Elijah’s life, Elisha had the opportunity to leave. Instead, he chose to renew his commitment to his mentor. Three times Elijah offered to release Elisha from his duties, yet each time he refused, saying, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you” (2 Kings 2:2, 4, 6). As a result of Elisha’s faithfulness, he too was used by God in extraordinary ways.
We all need someone who models what it means to follow Jesus. May God give us godly men and women who help us grow spiritually. And may we too, by the power of His Spirit, invest our lives in others. By Estera Pirosca Escobar
Today's Reflection
Who are mentors that are currently building into you or who have built into your life? Why is it vital for us to mentor others in Jesus?
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, May 07, 2019
Building For Eternity
Which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it… —Luke 14:28
Our Lord was not referring here to a cost which we have to count, but to a cost which He has already counted. The cost was those thirty years in Nazareth, those three years of popularity, scandal, and hatred, the unfathomable agony He experienced in Gethsemane, and the assault upon Him at Calvary— the central point upon which all of time and eternity turn. Jesus Christ has counted the cost. In the final analysis, people are not going to laugh at Him and say, “This man began to build and was not able to finish” (Luke 14:30).
The conditions of discipleship given to us by our Lord in verses 26, 27, and 33 mean that the men and women He is going to use in His mighty building enterprises are those in whom He has done everything. “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple ” (Luke 14:26). This verse teaches us that the only men and women our Lord will use in His building enterprises are those who love Him personally, passionately, and with great devotion— those who have a love for Him that goes far beyond any of the closest relationships on earth. The conditions are strict, but they are glorious.
All that we build is going to be inspected by God. When God inspects us with His searching and refining fire, will He detect that we have built enterprises of our own on the foundation of Jesus? (see 1 Corinthians 3:10-15). We are living in a time of tremendous enterprises, a time when we are trying to work for God, and that is where the trap is. Profoundly speaking, we can never work for God. Jesus, as the Master Builder, takes us over so that He may direct and control us completely for His enterprises and His building plans; and no one has any right to demand where he will be put to work.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The remarkable thing about fearing God is that when you fear God you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God you fear everything else. “Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord”;… The Highest Good—The Pilgrim’s Song Book, 537 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, May 07, 2019
Waiting for the Best - #8432
I'm pretty sure there's a five-year-old kid in all of us (for sure there is one in me), and one place it came out in me was years ago when we took our kids to one of America's major theme parks. Like a lot of theme parks, we found you had to get there very early because you have to wait for some of the most exciting attractions. The earlier you get there, the shorter the line. Of course, you can't ride all the rides simultaneously, so even the early birds end up in lines a good part of the day. Now, at this particular park, some of the longest lines are (you're going to know where it is now) for a ride called Space Mountain. You might have been there. It's basically a wild roller coaster ride through outer space in almost total darkness. When we took the kids there, I asked someone coming out how long they waited in this obviously long line. "An hour," one guy told me. An hour? Well, we did it. We even went back later and did it again. We even saw a lot of teenagers - you know, people not normally known for their patience, enduring the wait for Space Mountain. Why? Because you have to wait if you want the best stuff.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Waiting for the Best."
Most of us aren't too good at this waiting business, unless apparently, we know that what we're waiting for is worth the wait! That's why those people stood in that line. The Bible introduces us to several of God's impatient servants, like the prophet who wrote our word for today from the Word of God. His name is Habakkuk. He was seeking what he considered to be justice in some events that the prophet considered to be unjust. And, in essence, God says, "I'll answer your prayer." Then comes that dreaded word: wait.
In Habakkuk 2:3, God says, "The revelation awaits an appointed time." In other words, it's coming, Habakkuk, but not until it's time. It's not time yet. God continues, "Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay." "Wait for it." I don't like those words. We don't like that idea. I mean, take a line at a theme park! But it's okay if we know there's something real good at the end of the wait. We don't like that idea in our lives right now unless we know there's something real good at the end of the wait.
By the time we get to our word for today from the the Word of God in Habakkuk 3 beginning with verse 16, the impatient prophet has changed his tune. He said, "I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us." That was the justice Habakkuk wanted, he wanted it right now! But it wasn't going to come right away. He says, "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior."
Underlying this model of patient waiting is a solid gold lesson of Scripture: getting God's best is a lot like getting the best rides at a theme park - you have to wait for the best. Sadly, Scripture is filled with the lives of people who couldn't wait for God's answer, who took matters into their own hands - maybe like you've been doing right now - or you're tempted to do.
God promised a son to Abraham in his old age, and Abram couldn't wait for God to do it, so he conceived a baby through his wife's handmaiden. And the result was a centuries-old battle between the children of Isaac, the Jews, and the children of Ishmael, the Arabs. Moses wanted to deliver his people from Egypt, but he acted too soon and in the wrong way, and he ended up a fugitive in the wilderness for 40 years.
It could be that right now God has asked you to spend some time in His waiting room - and it feels like the line's not moving...nothing is happening. But God's best almost always comes after a wait - like the birth of a baby. Right now God is preparing you for your answer and your answer for you and you can't rush it. He's building faith in you right now that you'd never have if you got your instant answer.
Don't rush it - you'll ruin it. You may be getting tired of waiting, but don't leave the line or jump the line. Stay where you are, and wait patiently. Believe me, what's at the end of the line is really worth the wait!