Max Lucado Daily: WHAT MAN DARED NOT DREAM - August 18, 2023
God did what we wouldn’t dare dream. He did what we couldn’t imagine. He became a man so we could trust him. He became a sacrifice so we could know him. And he defeated death so we could follow him.
It defies logic. It’s a divine insanity. A holy incredibility. Only a God beyond systems and common sense could create a plan as absurd as this. Yet, it’s the very impossibility of it all that makes it possible. It’s the wildness of the story that is its strongest witness. For only a God could create a plan this mad. Only a Creator beyond the fence of logic could offer a gift, such a gift of love. What man cannot do, God does.
When it comes to eternity, forgiveness, purpose, and truth, go to the manger, kneel with the shepherds. Worship the God who dared to do what man dared not dream!
Psalm 73
An Asaph Psalm
1–5 73 No doubt about it! God is good—
good to good people, good to the good-hearted.
But I nearly missed it,
missed seeing his goodness.
I was looking the other way,
looking up to the people
At the top,
envying the wicked who have it made,
Who have nothing to worry about,
not a care in the whole wide world.
6–10 Pretentious with arrogance,
they wear the latest fashions in violence,
Pampered and overfed,
decked out in silk bows of silliness.
They jeer, using words to kill;
they bully their way with words.
They’re full of hot air,
loudmouths disturbing the peace.
People actually listen to them—can you believe it?
Like thirsty puppies, they lap up their words.
11–14 What’s going on here? Is God out to lunch?
Nobody’s tending the store.
The wicked get by with everything;
they have it made, piling up riches.
I’ve been stupid to play by the rules;
what has it gotten me?
A long run of bad luck, that’s what—
a slap in the face every time I walk out the door.
15–20 If I’d have given in and talked like this,
I would have betrayed your dear children.
Still, when I tried to figure it out,
all I got was a splitting headache …
Until I entered the sanctuary of God.
Then I saw the whole picture:
The slippery road you’ve put them on,
with a final crash in a ditch of delusions.
In the blink of an eye, disaster!
A blind curve in the dark, and—nightmare!
We wake up and rub our eyes.… Nothing.
There’s nothing to them. And there never was.
21–24 When I was beleaguered and bitter,
totally consumed by envy,
I was totally ignorant, a dumb ox
in your very presence.
I’m still in your presence,
but you’ve taken my hand.
You wisely and tenderly lead me,
and then you bless me.
25–28 You’re all I want in heaven!
You’re all I want on earth!
When my skin sags and my bones get brittle,
God is rock-firm and faithful.
Look! Those who left you are falling apart!
Deserters, they’ll never be heard from again.
But I’m in the very presence of God—
oh, how refreshing it is!
I’ve made Lord God my home.
God, I’m telling the world what you do!
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, August 18, 2023
Today's Scripture
Deuteronomy 16:9–16
Starting from the day you put the sickle to the ripe grain, count out seven weeks. Celebrate the Feast-of-Weeks to God, your God, by bringing your Freewill-Offering—give as generously as God, your God, has blessed you. Rejoice in the Presence of God, your God: you, your son, your daughter, your servant, your maid, the Levite who lives in your neighborhood, the foreigner, the orphan and widow among you; rejoice at the place God, your God, will set aside to be worshiped.
12 Don’t forget that you were once a slave in Egypt. So be diligent in observing these regulations.
13–15 Observe the Feast-of-Booths for seven days when you gather the harvest from your threshing-floor and your wine-vat. Rejoice at your festival: you, your son, your daughter, your servant, your maid, the Levite, the foreigner, and the orphans and widows who live in your neighborhood. Celebrate the Feast to God, your God, for seven days at the place God designates. God, your God, has been blessing you in your harvest and in all your work, so make a day of it—really celebrate!
16–17 All your men must appear before God, your God, three times each year at the place he designates: at the Feast-of-Unraised-Bread (Passover), at the Feast-of-Weeks, and at the Feast-of-Booths. No one is to show up in the Presence of God empty-handed;
Insight
Each of the festivals in Deuteronomy 16 celebrated an event in Israel’s recent history. The Festival of Weeks, also known as Pentecost, reminded the people of their time at Sinai when they received the Law (vv. 9–12). The Festival of Tabernacles (vv. 13–16) recalled God’s provision in the wilderness. But the first festival was Passover (vv. 1–8) and observed the event in which He preserved the firstborn son in homes that were covered by the blood of a spotless lamb. Together these festivals were a timeless reminder of God’s providential rescue of His people and pointed to ultimate rescue through the Messiah—Jesus. By: Tim Gustafson
Festivals of Worship
Rejoice before the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name. Deuteronomy 16:11
Attending a large event might change you in a surprising way. After interacting with more than 1,200 people at multiday gatherings in the UK and US, researcher Daniel Yudkin and his colleagues learned that large festivals can impact our moral compass and even affect our willingness to share resources with others. Their research found that 63 percent of attendees had a “transformative” experience at the festival that also left them feeling more connected to humanity and more generous toward friends, family, and even complete strangers.
When we gather with others to worship God, however, we can experience more than merely the social “transformation” of a secular festival; we commune with God Himself. God’s people undoubtedly experienced that connection to Him when they gathered in Jerusalem in ancient times for their sacred festivals throughout the year. They traveled—without modern conveniences—to be present at the temple three times a year for “the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks and the Festival of Tabernacles” (Deuteronomy 16:16). These gatherings were times of solemn remembrance, worship, and rejoicing “before the Lord” with family, servants, foreigners, and others (v. 11).
Let’s gather with others for worship to help one another to continue to enjoy Him and trust in His faithfulness. By: Kirsten Holmberg
Reflect & Pray
How have you experienced a sense of connection with God when gathering with others for worship? How has the presence of others helped?
Thank You, God, for inviting Your people to worship You together.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, August 18, 2023
Have You Ever Been Speechless with Sorrow?
When he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich. —Luke 18:23
The rich young ruler went away from Jesus speechless with sorrow, having nothing to say in response to Jesus’ words. He had no doubt about what Jesus had said or what it meant, and it produced in him a sorrow with no words with which to respond. Have you ever been there? Has God’s Word ever come to you, pointing out an area of your life, requiring you to yield it to Him? Maybe He has pointed out certain personal qualities, desires, and interests, or possibly relationships of your heart and mind. If so, then you have often been speechless with sorrow. The Lord will not go after you, and He will not plead with you. But every time He meets you at the place where He has pointed, He will simply repeat His words, saying, “If you really mean what you say, these are the conditions.”
“Sell all that you have…” (Luke 18:22). In other words, rid yourself before God of everything that might be considered a possession until you are a mere conscious human being standing before Him, and then give God that. That is where the battle is truly fought— in the realm of your will before God. Are you more devoted to your idea of what Jesus wants than to Jesus Himself? If so, you are likely to hear one of His harsh and unyielding statements that will produce sorrow in you. What Jesus says is difficult— it is only easy when it is heard by those who have His nature in them. Beware of allowing anything to soften the hard words of Jesus Christ.
I can be so rich in my own poverty, or in the awareness of the fact that I am nobody, that I will never be a disciple of Jesus. Or I can be so rich in the awareness that I am somebody that I will never be a disciple. Am I willing to be destitute and poor even in my sense of awareness of my destitution and poverty? If not, that is why I become discouraged. Discouragement is disillusioned self-love, and self-love may be love for my devotion to Jesus— not love for Jesus Himself.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Jesus Christ is always unyielding to my claim to my right to myself. The one essential element in all our Lord’s teaching about discipleship is abandon, no calculation, no trace of self-interest. Disciples Indeed, 395 L
Bible in a Year: Psalms 100-102; 1 Corinthians 1
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, August 18, 2023
How the Captain Can Sink a Family - #9550
It was one of those scenes in the news that's hard to forget. It was the image of a Korean ferry just rolling into the sea with all the passengers disappearing with it beneath the waves. It was heartbreaking to look at all those loved ones on the dock grieving inconsolably over children who would never come home again. What was outrageous was that the captain was one of the first to abandon ship. They charged him with negligence of duty and abandoning people in need. Sadly, there are a lot of captains that can be charged with crimes like that.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How the Captain Can Sink a Family."
See, I'm talking about being the captain of your family. The ship starts to drift...the crew gets confused...the vessel is in danger of a fatal turn when Dad keeps "abandoning the ship."
When the cruise ship Costa Concordia shipwrecked off the coast of Italy, again it was the captain who was charged. A maritime lawyer said at that time: "The captain is the master of the vessel. Every crew member looks to the captain for guidance and leadership. It's the captain's responsibility to know the waters and avoid coming close to any shoals and reefs."
Sad to say, I've sometimes gotten too busy to know the waters that our family ship was navigating; when this captain was "below decks" at a critical point. We know there's a devastating epidemic of fatherlessness in families these days. But it isn't just dads who are physically absent. You can be emotionally absent, and that may be even more damaging; around your family but not with your family. There, but not really there. "Abandoning people in need."
A daughter, missing her father's love, ends up looking for that love in all the wrong places. A son who can't get his father's approval or attention, growing angrier by the day. A wife who's left to run things alone. In many ways, that ferry disaster mirrors the family disaster caused by a "captain's" three tragic mistakes.
Number one - leaving the wheel. It appears that the ferry captain left the ship in the hands of a third mate at a decisive turning point. How many of us husbands have forfeited leadership when the going got rough, when finances were turbulent, when discipline was needed, when hard choices had to be made? Criminal negligence.
Our word for today from the Word of God, Proverbs 27:23-24. Here's what they say: "Be sure you know the condition of your flocks." (May I say your family.) "Give careful attention to your herds. For riches do not endure forever and a crown is not secure for all generations." Translation: Take care of it or risk losing it all.
There's a second way a captain can sink his family ship - looking out for me. Apparently, that ferry captain was so concerned about himself that he left his passengers to fend for themselves. "Me first" while those he was responsible for were going down. Consumed with our personal pursuits, our work, our recreation, our sports, our hobby, our toys; effectively oblivious to the leadership that we're abandoning.
And then there's a third way that any captain can sink his ship. There are rocks to avoid. There are crises requiring direction. And a husband - a father - cannot be AWOL when a steady hand at the wheel is needed. Along with a wise, reassuring guide when the water is rising.
I have to confess this to you. I don't know how in the world to be a dad today without the power of Jesus Christ. If I didn't have Jesus as my Savior, being a dad would have driven me to my knees to find Him. Being a dad is when you find out you are not enough by yourself. You're not in control. You're not in charge. You need a Savior.
Today if you're a dad, and maybe the ship is not going the right direction, let this be the day your family gets a new dad, as you turn that dad over to Jesus Christ. Want to know how? Would you go to our website, and boy, we can help you know that - how you can be sure you belong to Him. It's ANewStory.com.
For the beginning of your new story could be the beginning of a new story for the people you love too.