Max Lucado: A HEART LIKE JESUS - December 30, 2022
You and I live in a trashy world. Unwanted garbage comes our way on a regular basis. Haven’t you been handed a trash sack of mishaps and heartaches? Sure you have. May I ask, what are you going to do with it?
You could hide it, pretend it isn’t there. But sooner or later it will start to stink. So what will you do? If you follow the example of Christ, you’ll learn to see tough times differently.
He wants you to have a hope-filled heart…just like Jesus. Wouldn’t you want that? Jesus saw his Father’s presence in the problem. Sure, Max, but Jesus was God. I can’t see the way he saw. Not yet, maybe. But don’t underestimate God’s power. He can change the way you look at life.
Proverbs 20
Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler;
whoever is led astray by them is not wise.
2
A king’s wrath strikes terror like the roar of a lion;
those who anger him forfeit their lives.
3
It is to one’s honor to avoid strife,
but every fool is quick to quarrel.
4
Sluggards do not plow in season;
so at harvest time they look but find nothing.
5
The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters,
but one who has insight draws them out.
6
Many claim to have unfailing love,
but a faithful person who can find?
7
The righteous lead blameless lives;
blessed are their children after them.
8
When a king sits on his throne to judge,
he winnows out all evil with his eyes.
9
Who can say, “I have kept my heart pure;
I am clean and without sin”?
10
Differing weights and differing measures—
the Lord detests them both.
11
Even small children are known by their actions,
so is their conduct really pure and upright?
12
Ears that hear and eyes that see—
the Lord has made them both.
13
Do not love sleep or you will grow poor;
stay awake and you will have food to spare.
14
“It’s no good, it’s no good!” says the buyer—
then goes off and boasts about the purchase.
15
Gold there is, and rubies in abundance,
but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel.
16
Take the garment of one who puts up security for a stranger;
hold it in pledge if it is done for an outsider.
17
Food gained by fraud tastes sweet,
but one ends up with a mouth full of gravel.
18
Plans are established by seeking advice;
so if you wage war, obtain guidance.
19
A gossip betrays a confidence;
so avoid anyone who talks too much.
20
If someone curses their father or mother,
their lamp will be snuffed out in pitch darkness.
21
An inheritance claimed too soon
will not be blessed at the end.
22
Do not say, “I’ll pay you back for this wrong!”
Wait for the Lord, and he will avenge you.
23
The Lord detests differing weights,
and dishonest scales do not please him.
24
A person’s steps are directed by the Lord.
How then can anyone understand their own way?
25
It is a trap to dedicate something rashly
and only later to consider one’s vows.
26
A wise king winnows out the wicked;
he drives the threshing wheel over them.
27
The human spirit is[c] the lamp of the Lord
that sheds light on one’s inmost being.
28
Love and faithfulness keep a king safe;
through love his throne is made secure.
29
The glory of young men is their strength,
gray hair the splendor of the old.
30
Blows and wounds scrub away evil,
and beatings purge the inmost being.
Our Daily Bread Devotional
Today's Scripture:
Psalm 107:23–32
Some went out on the seaa in ships;b
they were merchants on the mighty waters.
24 They saw the works of the Lord,c
his wonderful deeds in the deep.
25 For he spoked and stirred up a tempeste
that lifted high the waves.f
26 They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths;
in their perilg their courage meltedh away.
27 They reeledi and staggered like drunkards;
they were at their wits’ end.
28 Then they criedj out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he brought them out of their distress.k
29 He stilled the storml to a whisper;
the wavesm of the seab were hushed.n
30 They were glad when it grew calm,
and he guided themo to their desired haven.
31 Let them give thanksp to the Lord for his unfailing loveq
and his wonderful deedsr for mankind.
32 Let them exalts him in the assemblyt of the people
and praise him in the council of the elders.
Insight
Psalm 107 opens and closes with the ideas that guide the understanding of all forty-three verses. Verse 1 says, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” And verse 43 reads, “Let the one who is wise heed these things and ponder the loving deeds of the Lord.” The combination of these verses tells the reader that God’s “loving deeds” will endure forever. The verses in between are broken into sections that describe the stories of the redeemed (vv. 2–3). Taken together, this psalm paints a picture of a God who acts to bring people to Himself. His loving deeds that endure forever are what bring people to a recognition and dependence on the goodness and love of Him.
By: J.R. Hudberg
Grace Amid the Chaos
They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven.
Psalm 107:30
I was drifting off into an impromptu nap when it hit me. From the basement, my son ripped a chord on his electric guitar. The walls reverberated. No peace. No quiet. No nap. Moments later, competing music greeted my ears: my daughter playing “Amazing Grace” on the piano.
Normally, I love my son’s guitar playing. But in that moment, it jarred and unsettled me. Just as quickly, the familiar notes of John Newton’s hymn reminded me that grace thrives amid the chaos. No matter how loud, unwanted, or disorienting the storms of life might be, God’s notes of grace ring clear and true, reminding us of His watchful care over us.
We see that reality in Scripture. In Psalm 107:23–32, sailors struggle mightily against a maelstrom that could easily devour them. “In their peril, their courage melted away” (v. 26). Still, they didn’t despair but “cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress” (v. 28). Finally, we read: “They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven” (v. 30).
In chaotic moments, whether they’re life-threatening or merely sleep-threatening, the barrage of noise and fear can storm our souls. But as we trust God and pray to Him, we experience the grace of His presence and provision—the haven of His steadfast love.
By: Adam Holz
Reflect & Pray
When have you experienced God’s haven of peace in other people? To whom might you offer similar encouragement?
Father, help me to remember to call out to You when the waters of life are rising, and help me to offer hope to others.
For further study, read Navigating the Storms of Life.
My Utmost for His Highest
“And Every Virtue We Possess”
By Oswald Chambers
…All my springs are in you. —Psalm 87:7
Our Lord never “patches up” our natural virtues, that is, our natural traits, qualities, or characteristics. He completely remakes a person on the inside— “…put on the new man…” (Ephesians 4:24). In other words, see that your natural human life is putting on all that is in keeping with the new life. The life God places within us develops its own new virtues, not the virtues of the seed of Adam, but of Jesus Christ. Once God has begun the process of sanctification in your life, watch and see how God causes your confidence in your own natural virtues and power to wither away. He will continue until you learn to draw your life from the reservoir of the resurrection life of Jesus. Thank God if you are going through this drying-up experience!
The sign that God is at work in us is that He is destroying our confidence in the natural virtues, because they are not promises of what we are going to be, but only a wasted reminder of what God created man to be. We want to cling to our natural virtues, while all the time God is trying to get us in contact with the life of Jesus Christ— a life that can never be described in terms of natural virtues. It is the saddest thing to see people who are trying to serve God depending on that which the grace of God never gave them. They are depending solely on what they have by virtue of heredity. God does not take our natural virtues and transform them, because our natural virtues could never even come close to what Jesus Christ wants. No natural love, no natural patience, no natural purity can ever come up to His demands. But as we bring every part of our natural bodily life into harmony with the new life God has placed within us, He will exhibit in us the virtues that were characteristic of the Lord Jesus.
And every virtue we possess
Is His alone.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
I have no right to say I believe in God unless I order my life as under His all-seeing Eye. Disciples Indeed, 385 L
A Word With You by Ron Hutchcraft
THE ANSWER IN THE MIRROR - #9385
You know, occasionally I see something enlightening in a little comic strip called "Family Circus." For example, there was this one where the house is a total disaster, and Mom walks in. The look on her face tells you that Mt. Vesuvius is about to blow. She has only one question, "Who did this?" Dad and the children are all innocent, of course. Apparently, the house must have just exploded and made itself a mess. But when Mom presses her question for who should be held responsible, one of the kids cleverly responds: "It was the ghost of 'not me'!"
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Answer in the Mirror."
That ghost of "not me"? He really gets around. There are a lot of folks who see almost every problem, every conflict, or every mistake that way. Whoever is at fault, it certainly isn't me. Sadly, those folks continue to be the common denominator in one problem after another because they simply can't see, or admit, their blame for anything. That's what destroys marriages, and children, and friendships, working relationships, churches - you name it. Mature people, on the other hand, are those who can look in the mirror and honestly see their part of the blame.
Our word for today from the Word of God - Proverbs 16:2 - provides this insight: "All a man's ways seem innocent to him..." Boy, is that true! "They" did it! They caused the problem. I'm a victim! It's their fault." Never me - always them. We have this amazing, and perverted, ability to see ourselves as usually being in the right, of bearing little or no blame for the problem, of seeing our own complete innocence and someone else's complete guilt. If you are to any degree like that, I could almost guarantee you are leaving behind you your own personal "trail of tears."
That verse in Proverbs 16 says, "All a man's ways seem" (notice the word "seem") "innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the Lord." See, when God looks at the situation, He sees what's really going on inside us and holding us responsible for the part that we've done wrong. I'm happy to repent for other people's sins. I just need to be quick to repent of my sins.
Sadly, those who tend to see the fault as being in the other person find themselves trapped in a repetitious life-cycle of friction, unhappiness, self-pity, negativity, destructive talk, anger, hurt, and a constant state of what I would call "un-peace." You live that way until you finally see the trail of brokenness behind you, and you realize you were a common denominator in all or most of that unhappiness.
That's when you stop blaming others and you finally experience what Jesus promised, "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32). And the truth is, the man or woman in the mirror has been wrong, has shared the blame, and has apologies to give, as well as some forgiving to do.
I saw a simple, but profound little sentence on a church sign recently. It said, "God, I have a problem. It's me." That kind of prayer is the only place some of us are ever going to find any healing, any happiness, or any peace. Not "I have a problem - it's them," but "it's me." That admission can save a marriage, a relationship with a child. It could save the unity of a church or a ministry, or a relationship that's too valuable to lose.
It's not my brother, not my sister, but it really is me, O Lord, standin' in the need of prayer! The answer is in the mirror...and then on your knees.