Genesis 25 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: In the Middle of the Storm - August 11, 2021

When Peter and a few other disciples found themselves in the middle of the Sea of Galilee one stormy night, they knew they were in trouble. “But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary” (Matthew 14:24). The disciples fought the storm for nine cold, skin-drenching hours, and about 4:00 a.m. they spotted someone coming on the water.

They didn’t expect Jesus to come to them this way. Neither do we. We expect him to come in the form of peaceful hymns or Easter Sundays or quiet retreats. We never expect to see him in a bear market, pink slip, or war. We never expect to see him in a storm. But it is in storms that he does his finest work, for it is in storms that he has our keenest attention.

Genesis 25

Abraham married a second time; his new wife was named Keturah. She gave birth to Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah.

3 Jokshan had Sheba and Dedan.

Dedan’s descendants were the Asshurim, the Letushim, and the Leummim.

4 Midian had Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah—all from the line of Keturah.

5-6 But Abraham gave everything he possessed to Isaac. While he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons he had by his concubines, but then sent them away to the country of the east, putting a good distance between them and his son Isaac.

7-11 Abraham lived 175 years. Then he took his final breath. He died happy at a ripe old age, full of years, and was buried with his family. His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite, next to Mamre. It was the field that Abraham had bought from the Hittites. Abraham was buried next to his wife Sarah. After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac. Isaac lived at Beer Lahai Roi.
The Family Tree of Ishmael

12 This is the family tree of Ishmael son of Abraham, the son that Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s maid, bore to Abraham.

13-16 These are the names of Ishmael’s sons in the order of their births: Nebaioth, Ishmael’s firstborn, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah—all the sons of Ishmael. Their settlements and encampments were named after them. Twelve princes with their twelve tribes.

17-18 Ishmael lived 137 years. When he breathed his last and died he was buried with his family. His children settled down all the way from Havilah near Egypt eastward to Shur in the direction of Assyria. The Ishmaelites didn’t get along with any of their kin.
Jacob and Esau

19-20 This is the family tree of Isaac son of Abraham: Abraham had Isaac. Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan Aram. She was the sister of Laban the Aramean.

21-23 Isaac prayed hard to God for his wife because she was barren. God answered his prayer and Rebekah became pregnant. But the children tumbled and kicked inside her so much that she said, “If this is the way it’s going to be, why go on living?” She went to God to find out what was going on. God told her,

Two nations are in your womb,
    two peoples butting heads while still in your body.
One people will overpower the other,
    and the older will serve the younger.

24-26 When her time to give birth came, sure enough, there were twins in her womb. The first came out reddish, as if snugly wrapped in a hairy blanket; they named him Esau (Hairy). His brother followed, his fist clutched tight to Esau’s heel; they named him Jacob (Heel). Isaac was sixty years old when they were born.

27-28 The boys grew up. Esau became an expert hunter, an outdoorsman. Jacob was a quiet man preferring life indoors among the tents. Isaac loved Esau because he loved his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29-30 One day Jacob was cooking a stew. Esau came in from the field, starved. Esau said to Jacob, “Give me some of that red stew—I’m starved!” That’s how he came to be called Edom (Red).

31 Jacob said, “Make me a trade: my stew for your rights as the firstborn.”

32 Esau said, “I’m starving! What good is a birthright if I’m dead?”

33-34 Jacob said, “First, swear to me.” And he did it. On oath Esau traded away his rights as the firstborn. Jacob gave him bread and the stew of lentils. He ate and drank, got up and left. That’s how Esau shrugged off his rights as the firstborn.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion          
Aug 11, 2021

Today's Scripture Matthew 7:13–14

    “Don’t look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.

Insight

Today’s passage (Matthew 7:13–14) begins the last section of the Sermon on the Mount. Over the centuries, these words of Jesus have become foundational, but when we slow down and absorb the imagery Jesus paints, we begin to feel their true weight. The words Jesus uses to describe the gates and roads (wide and broad/small and narrow) bring with them comfort and challenge. The first pair gives the hearer a sense of comfort and ease. There’s no challenge to crossing through a broad gate, and a wide path leaves plenty of room for exploration and wandering. Those who walk the wide path don’t need to focus or be deliberate. The small gate and narrow path, on the other hand, express intentionality. Choosing this door and path requires a choice and a focus on one’s actions.

Accessible to All
Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Matthew 7:14

From a manmade bridge on the small Bahamian island of Eleuthera, visitors can admire the stark contrast between the roiling dark blue waters of the Atlantic and the calm turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea. Over time, storms washed away the original strip of land once marked by a natural stone arch. The glass window bridge that now serves as a tourist attraction on Eleuthera is known as “the narrowest place on earth.”

The Bible describes the road that leads to eternal life as narrow “and only a few find it” (Matthew 7:14). The gate is considered small because God the Son is the only bridge that can reconcile fallen man and God the Father through the power of the Holy Spirit (vv. 13–14; see John 10:7–9; 16:13). However, Scripture also says that believers from every people, nation, and societal rank can enter heaven and will bow before the King of Kings and worship together around His throne (Revelation 5:9). This phenomenal image of contrast and unity includes all of God’s beautifully diverse people.

Though we’re separated from God by our sin, every person God created is invited to enter eternity in heaven by walking this narrow path of reconciliation through a personal relationship with Christ. His sacrifice on the cross, resurrection from the tomb, and ascension to heaven is the good news, accessible to all and worth sharing today and every day.

By:  Xochitl Dixon

Reflect & Pray

How did you respond after hearing the good news? How can you be more intentional about sharing it with others?

God the Father, please empower me through Your Holy Spirit so I can show others the accessible path that leads to Your approachable Son, Jesus.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Aug 11, 2021
This Experience Must Come

Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha…saw him no more. —2 Kings 2:11-12

It is not wrong for you to depend on your “Elijah” for as long as God gives him to you. But remember that the time will come when he must leave and will no longer be your guide and your leader, because God does not intend for him to stay. Even the thought of that causes you to say, “I cannot continue without my ‘Elijah.’ ” Yet God says you must continue.

Alone at Your “Jordan” (2 Kings 2:14). The Jordan River represents the type of separation where you have no fellowship with anyone else, and where no one else can take your responsibility from you. You now have to put to the test what you learned when you were with your “Elijah.” You have been to the Jordan over and over again with Elijah, but now you are facing it alone. There is no use in saying that you cannot go— the experience is here, and you must go. If you truly want to know whether or not God is the God your faith believes Him to be, then go through your “Jordan” alone.

Alone at Your “Jericho” (2 Kings 2:15). Jericho represents the place where you have seen your “Elijah” do great things. Yet when you come alone to your “Jericho,” you have a strong reluctance to take the initiative and trust in God, wanting, instead, for someone else to take it for you. But if you remain true to what you learned while with your “Elijah,” you will receive a sign, as Elisha did, that God is with you.

Alone at Your “Bethel” (2 Kings 2:23). At your “Bethel” you will find yourself at your wits’ end but at the beginning of God’s wisdom. When you come to your wits’ end and feel inclined to panic— don’t! Stand true to God and He will bring out His truth in a way that will make your life an expression of worship. Put into practice what you learned while with your “Elijah”— use his mantle and pray (see 2 Kings 2:13-14). Make a determination to trust in God, and do not even look for Elijah anymore.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

We never enter into the Kingdom of God by having our head questions answered, but only by commitment. The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption, 565 R

Bible in a Year: Psalms 81-83; Romans 11:19-36



A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Aug 11, 2021

A Grandfather's Three Big Ideas for the Road You're On #9023

Well I love that my grandchildren love to hear my stories and sometimes my ideas. There's something about being a grandfather or grandmother. Because you've got a little distance. You're not the one making all the rules all the time and enforcing them at home. And I even see sometimes and I know of some young people who are choosing roads that are kind of scary. I know they are probably going to lead to a sad outcome. And I think to myself...as a grandfather, what would I tell them if I had the chance? What would I write them as I would say to one of my own grandchildren. And that brought me to a place where I kind of wrote down what I would call "Three Big Ideas From a Grandfather's Heart."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Grandfather's Three Big Ideas for the Road You're On."

The first one is this: You're choosing a road, not just something to do.

One time I was driving from northern Arizona, straight south to Phoenix to see my little grandson in the hospital. When I got to Flagstaff, I picked a ramp. Two hours later, I should have been in Phoenix; I wasn't seeing Phoenix, I was seeing signs for California! Little did I know when I got on that ramp I was choosing a road that would take me where I did not want to go.

Life has a lot of "ramps" like that: deciding to hook up with someone, picking friends to hang out with, partying like you want because, 'Hey, I'm young, I want to have some fun! What's wrong with that? Trying stuff that helps you feel good or forget feeling bad.'

What we don't realize until it's too late, like "why am I in California?" is that we're choosing a road we'll be on for a long time, not just something to do right now. And if it's the wrong road, we're going to end up where we never meant to go; maybe in a courtroom, maybe in a destructive relationship, or just looking in a mirror and saying, "What happened me?" I don't want that to happen to you.

Jesus actually said these words, and it would be our word for today from the Word of God. It's in Matthew 7:13-14. "Enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the road." Hey, that's a good one; an easy one to be on. Well he said, "that leads to destruction." Oh!, "and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it." It's the destination that matters isn't it?

Here's Big Idea #2 - The calculator's always running. Temptation says, "Hey, forget the consequences." Reality says, "The bill is gonna come, man." Or, as the Bible says in Galatians 6:7, "Whatever you sow, you will reap." The harvest may not come immediately, but it's gonna come. We may not see it. We may not feel it. But that calculator is always running, and it's adding up the bill that's going to come for our choices.

Big Idea #3 - You're made for more. You can begin to get the idea that you're the "sun" and everyone else is the "planets" who revolve around you. That's not how we were created to live. Maybe you've discovered already that a world that's only as big as you are is a world that's too small to live in. "Me" living leaves you lonely, empty and hurting. "Laughing on the outside, crying on the inside."

No, you're made for more. You've been blessed with a lot. Whatever road you're on, other people follow you there. If it's a road to a "make a difference" life, you're going to lead other people there. If it's a road that goes over a cliff, they're going down with you.

If you want a hint of the "more" you were made for, listen to this. The Bible says, "All things were created by Him and for Him." It says that of Jesus. You were made to revolve around Him, not to have everybody revolve around you. And He died for you, and He rose from the grave to prove that He can conquer everything in your life.

It's time to aim your life in the direction it was created for. You want His love? You want His power? You want His forgiveness for the mistakes you've made? Tell Him, "Jesus, I'm Yours." Get to our website, we've got information, there, for how you can really have a new start. The website is ANewStory.com.

The poet said, "Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and I took the road less traveled. And that has made all the difference." I pray you'll choose that road. You know why? Because I like happy endings.