Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 7
God Gives Rest
The teaching I ask you to accept is easy; the load I give you to carry is light.
Matthew 11:30 (NCV)
Paul had an interesting observation about the way we treat people. He said it about marriage, but the principle applies in any relationship. "The man who loves his wife loves himself" (Eph. 5:28). There is a correlation between the way you feel about yourself and the way you feel about others. If you are at peace with yourself--if you like yourself--you will get along with others.
The converse is also true. If you don't like yourself, if you are ashamed, embarrassed, or angry, other people are going to know it....
Which takes us to the question, "How does a person get relief?"...
1 Samuel 18
Saul's Jealousy of David
1 After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself. 2 From that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return to his father's house. 3 And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. 4 Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt.
5 Whatever Saul sent him to do, David did it so successfully [m] that Saul gave him a high rank in the army. This pleased all the people, and Saul's officers as well.
6 When the men were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs and with tambourines and lutes. 7 As they danced, they sang:
"Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his tens of thousands."
8 Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him. "They have credited David with tens of thousands," he thought, "but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?" 9 And from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David.
10 The next day an evil [n] spirit from God came forcefully upon Saul. He was prophesying in his house, while David was playing the harp, as he usually did. Saul had a spear in his hand 11 and he hurled it, saying to himself, "I'll pin David to the wall." But David eluded him twice.
12 Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with David but had left Saul. 13 So he sent David away from him and gave him command over a thousand men, and David led the troops in their campaigns. 14 In everything he did he had great success, [o] because the LORD was with him. 15 When Saul saw how successful [p] he was, he was afraid of him. 16 But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he led them in their campaigns.
17 Saul said to David, "Here is my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you in marriage; only serve me bravely and fight the battles of the LORD." For Saul said to himself, "I will not raise a hand against him. Let the Philistines do that!"
18 But David said to Saul, "Who am I, and what is my family or my father's clan in Israel, that I should become the king's son-in-law?" 19 So [q] when the time came for Merab, Saul's daughter, to be given to David, she was given in marriage to Adriel of Meholah.
20 Now Saul's daughter Michal was in love with David, and when they told Saul about it, he was pleased. 21 "I will give her to him," he thought, "so that she may be a snare to him and so that the hand of the Philistines may be against him." So Saul said to David, "Now you have a second opportunity to become my son-in-law."
22 Then Saul ordered his attendants: "Speak to David privately and say, 'Look, the king is pleased with you, and his attendants all like you; now become his son-in-law.' "
23 They repeated these words to David. But David said, "Do you think it is a small matter to become the king's son-in-law? I'm only a poor man and little known."
24 When Saul's servants told him what David had said, 25 Saul replied, "Say to David, 'The king wants no other price for the bride than a hundred Philistine foreskins, to take revenge on his enemies.' " Saul's plan was to have David fall by the hands of the Philistines.
26 When the attendants told David these things, he was pleased to become the king's son-in-law. So before the allotted time elapsed, 27 David and his men went out and killed two hundred Philistines. He brought their foreskins and presented the full number to the king so that he might become the king's son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal in marriage.
28 When Saul realized that the LORD was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David, 29 Saul became still more afraid of him, and he remained his enemy the rest of his days.
30 The Philistine commanders continued to go out to battle, and as often as they did, David met with more success [r] than the rest of Saul's officers, and his name became well known.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Genesis 18:22-33 (New International Version)
22 The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the LORD. [a] 23 Then Abraham approached him and said: "Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare [b] the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge [c] of all the earth do right?"
26 The LORD said, "If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake."
27 Then Abraham spoke up again: "Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, 28 what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city because of five people?"
"If I find forty-five there," he said, "I will not destroy it."
29 Once again he spoke to him, "What if only forty are found there?"
He said, "For the sake of forty, I will not do it."
30 Then he said, "May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?"
He answered, "I will not do it if I find thirty there."
31 Abraham said, "Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?"
He said, "For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it."
32 Then he said, "May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?"
He answered, "For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it."
33 When the LORD had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home.
January 7, 2009
The Innocent Man
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READ: Genesis 18:22-33
Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? —Genesis 18:25
John Grisham is well known for his courtroom novels—fast-paced tales of lawyers and victims, authorities and wrongdoers. However, his book The Innocent Man is not fiction. It is a real-life story of injustice. It tells of the brutal murder of a young woman and the two men who, though innocent, were convicted and sentenced to death for the crime. Only with the advent of DNA testing were they proven innocent and spared from execution after 17 years of suffering wrongly. At long last, justice prevailed.
Everyone desires justice. But we must recognize that our human frailty makes it challenging to mete out true justice. And we can be bent toward revenge, making a casualty out of the pursuit of it.
It’s helpful to remember that perfect justice can be found only in God. Abraham described Him with the rhetorical question, “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Gen. 18:25). The necessary answer is yes. But even more, His courtroom is the one and only place where we can be certain that justice will prevail.
In a world filled with injustice, we can take the wrongs done to us, submit them to the Judge of all the earth, and trust Him for ultimate justice. — Bill Crowder
The best of judges on this earth
Aren’t always right or fair;
But God, the Righteous Judge of all,
Wrongs no one in His care. —Egner
Life is not always fair, but God is always faithful.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 7, 2009
Intimate With Jesus
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Jesus said to him, ’Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?’ —John 14:9
These words were not spoken as a rebuke, nor even with surprise; Jesus was encouraging Philip to draw closer. Yet the last person we get intimate with is Jesus. Before Pentecost the disciples knew Jesus as the One who gave them power to conquer demons and to bring about a revival (see Luke 10:18-20). It was a wonderful intimacy, but there was a much closer intimacy to come: ". . . I have called you friends . . ." (John 15:15). True friendship is rare on earth. It means identifying with someone in thought, heart, and spirit. The whole experience of life is designed to enable us to enter into this closest relationship with Jesus Christ. We receive His blessings and know His Word, but do we really know Him?
Jesus said, "It is to your advantage that I go away . . ." (John 16:7). He left that relationship to lead them even closer. It is a joy to Jesus when a disciple takes time to walk more intimately with Him. The bearing of fruit is always shown in Scripture to be the visible result of an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ (see John 15:1-4).
Once we get intimate with Jesus we are never lonely and we never lack for understanding or compassion. We can continually pour out our hearts to Him without being perceived as overly emotional or pitiful. The Christian who is truly intimate with Jesus will never draw attention to himself but will only show the evidence of a life where Jesus is completely in control. This is the outcome of allowing Jesus to satisfy every area of life to its depth. The picture resulting from such a life is that of the strong, calm balance that our Lord gives to those who are intimate with Him.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Serving But Starving - #5738 - January 7, 2009
Category: Your Relationships
Wednesday, December 7, 2009
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One day I was talking with the owner of a local pizza restaurant; a place where I am known all too well. I was there at the tail end of their rush hour, and let me tell you, this place is a zoo for about 90 minutes around noon. It was slowing down and the owner finally was able to stop to talk with me. When he asked me how I was doing, I said, "Well, I'm doing a lot better now. I had lunch!" The owner said, "I know what you mean. If I wait very late to eat lunch, I start to get shaky." I told him, "Well, I guess you're in a good place then." Actually, he corrected me. He said, "Sometimes we are so busy serving it that we don't have time to eat it ourselves!"
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Serving But Starving."
A lot of us have experienced what my restaurant owner friend was talking about - being so busy serving that we don't have any time to get fed ourselves - spiritually, that is. Hey, it happened to Martha, didn't it? It's happened to me way too often, and probably to you, too.
Martha's experience is described in Luke 10:38, our word for today from the Word of God. "Jesus came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to Him. She had a sister called Mary who sat at the Lord's feet, listening to what He said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. 'Martha, Martha,' the Lord answered, 'you are worried and upset about many things, but one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.'"
Now, Martha's busy serving Jesus. Mary is sitting at Jesus' feet, listening to Him. Which is better? Most of us make-it-happen, get-it-done types would instinctively gravitate to the doing stuff rather than the being stuff. But Jesus says, "Mary has chosen what is better." I think we've all been Martha-ed...maybe you are right now. You get so busy serving Jesus that you have no time to be with Jesus. It's like my pizza friend. We're so busy serving spiritual food to others that we're actually eating less of it ourselves.
Now that's backwards! The more people are looking to you, the more you have to be with the Lord yourself. But, frankly, it's easy to let your spiritual health become a victim of ministry. In fact, serving God's Word without experiencing God yourself is a prescription for burnout.
There's a danger in studying God's truth only to prepare lessons, Bible studies, sermons and missing the purpose of studying it, which is to have your life changed through applying it to your everyday life. There's a danger of becoming someone who leads others to experience the Lord while you're slowly becoming a spectator yourself. And you can so fill your life with Christian meetings, Christian positions, and Christian activity that it feels like knowing the Lord. But, in fact, those activities have slowly crowded out that precious private time with Jesus. And that time is the fuel for any valid ministry!
So you may be serving others while starving yourself. Soon that's going to lead to a Martha Meltdown. Ministry is supposed to be the overflow of your own time with the Lord, not a righteous substitute for it. So if you feel yourself growing weak and tired, frustrated, and negative while you're serving your Lord, don't blame the work and don't blame the customers. You probably have not taken time to feed yourself spiritually - to really be with Jesus. You don't want to lose your closeness to Jesus in the middle of serving Jesus.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
1 Samuel 17, daily readings and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 6
Why Worship?
With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.
Psalm 89:1 (NKJV)
During our summer vacation I took advantage of the occasion to solicit a sailing lesson. Ever puzzled by the difference in leeward, starboard, and stern, I asked the crew a few questions. After a while the captain offered, “Would you like to sail us home?”…He assured me I would have no trouble. “Target that cliff,” he instructed. “Set you eyes and the boat on it.”
I found the instruction hard to follow. Other sights invited my attention: the rich mahogany of the deck, rich foam cresting on the waves. I wanted to look at it all. But look too long and risk losing the course. The boat stayed on target as long as I set my eyes beyond the vessel.
Worship helps us do this in life. It lifts our eyes off the boat with its toys and passengers and sets them “on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power” (Col. 3:1 NLT).
1 Samuel 17
David and Goliath
1 Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Socoh in Judah. They pitched camp at Ephes Dammim, between Socoh and Azekah. 2 Saul and the Israelites assembled and camped in the Valley of Elah and drew up their battle line to meet the Philistines. 3 The Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley between them.
4 A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. He was over nine feet [f] tall. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels [g] ; 6 on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. 7 His spear shaft was like a weaver's rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. [h] His shield bearer went ahead of him.
8 Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, "Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us." 10 Then the Philistine said, "This day I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other." 11 On hearing the Philistine's words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified.
12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite named Jesse, who was from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and in Saul's time he was old and well advanced in years. 13 Jesse's three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war: The firstborn was Eliab; the second, Abinadab; and the third, Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. The three oldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father's sheep at Bethlehem.
16 For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand.
17 Now Jesse said to his son David, "Take this ephah [i] of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18 Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. [j] See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance [k] from them. 19 They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines."
20 Early in the morning David left the flock with a shepherd, loaded up and set out, as Jesse had directed. He reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions, shouting the war cry. 21 Israel and the Philistines were drawing up their lines facing each other. 22 David left his things with the keeper of supplies, ran to the battle lines and greeted his brothers. 23 As he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it. 24 When the Israelites saw the man, they all ran from him in great fear.
25 Now the Israelites had been saying, "Do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage and will exempt his father's family from taxes in Israel."
26 David asked the men standing near him, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?"
27 They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, "This is what will be done for the man who kills him."
28 When Eliab, David's oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, "Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the desert? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle."
29 "Now what have I done?" said David. "Can't I even speak?" 30 He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before. 31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.
32 David said to Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him."
33 Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth."
34 But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."
Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you."
38 Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. 39 David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.
"I cannot go in these," he said to Saul, "because I am not used to them." So he took them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.
41 Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. 42 He looked David over and saw that he was only a boy, ruddy and handsome, and he despised him. 43 He said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?" And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 "Come here," he said, "and I'll give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!"
45 David said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the LORD will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. 47 All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give all of you into our hands."
48 As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. 49 Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.
50 So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.
51 David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the scabbard. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword.
When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. 52 Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath [l] and to the gates of Ekron. Their dead were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and Ekron. 53 When the Israelites returned from chasing the Philistines, they plundered their camp. 54 David took the Philistine's head and brought it to Jerusalem, and he put the Philistine's weapons in his own tent.
55 As Saul watched David going out to meet the Philistine, he said to Abner, commander of the army, "Abner, whose son is that young man?"
Abner replied, "As surely as you live, O king, I don't know."
56 The king said, "Find out whose son this young man is."
57 As soon as David returned from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul, with David still holding the Philistine's head.
58 "Whose son are you, young man?" Saul asked him.
David said, "I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 18
The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven
1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.
January 6, 2009
Faith Of A Child
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READ: Matthew 18:1-5
Unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. —Matthew 18:3
One Sunday I heard Mike talk about his relationship with his two fathers—the one who raised him as a child, and his Father in heaven.
First he described his childhood trust toward his earthly father as “simple and uncomplicated.” He expected his dad to fix broken things and to give advice. He dreaded displeasing him, however, because he often forgot that his father’s love and forgiveness always followed.
Mike continued, “Some years ago I made a mess of things and hurt a lot of people. Because of my guilt, I ended a happy, simple relationship with my heavenly Father. I forgot that I could ask Him to fix what I had broken and seek His advice.”
Years passed. Eventually Mike became desperate for God, yet he wondered what to do. His pastor said simply, “Say you’re sorry to God, and mean it!”
Instead, Mike asked complicated questions, like: “How does this work?” and “What if . . .?”
Finally his pastor prayed, “Please, God, give Mike the faith of a child!” Mike later testified joyfully, “The Lord did!”
Mike found closeness with his heavenly Father. The key for him and for us is to practice the simple and uncomplicated faith of a child. — Joanie Yoder
Have you noticed that the childlike faith
Of a little girl or boy
Has so often shown to older folks
How to know salvation’s joy? —Branon
Faith shines brightest in a childlike heart.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 6, 2009
Worship
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He moved from there to the mountain east of Bethel, and he pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; there he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord —Genesis 12:8
Worship is giving God the best that He has given you. Be careful what you do with the best you have. Whenever you get a blessing from God, give it back to Him as a love-gift. Take time to meditate before God and offer the blessing back to Him in a deliberate act of worship. If you hoard it for yourself, it will turn into spiritual dry rot, as the manna did when it was hoarded (see Exodus 16:20 ). God will never allow you to keep a spiritual blessing completely for yourself. It must be given back to Him so that He can make it a blessing to others.
Bethel is the symbol of fellowship with God; Ai is the symbol of the world. Abram "pitched his tent" between the two. The lasting value of our public service for God is measured by the depth of the intimacy of our private times of fellowship and oneness with Him. Rushing in and out of worship is wrong every time— there is always plenty of time to worship God. Days set apart for quiet can be a trap, detracting from the need to have daily quiet time with God. That is why we must "pitch our tents" where we will always have quiet times with Him, however noisy our times with the world may be. There are not three levels of spiritual life— worship, waiting, and work. Yet some of us seem to jump like spiritual frogs from worship to waiting, and from waiting to work. God’s idea is that the three should go together as one. They were always together in the life of our Lord and in perfect harmony. It is a discipline that must be developed; it will not happen overnight.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Living Proof - #5737
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
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We were adding onto our little house, and we were getting some help from good old Chuck. He's been a part of adding to our house; actually, he did most of the work. He's a wonderful Christian brother. He's a skilled builder and handyman. He's like an everyday genius - which I am not. Now the days were pretty long and we'd been leaving the house earlier than Chuck got there and returning home after dark. So, I didn't get to see him much. But every day that front porch was noticeably farther along than it was when we left that morning. I actually did get to talk to Chuck on the phone one day, and I told him that, in a way, he reminded me of the Lord. I don't actually see him, but I see the difference he's made!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Living Proof."
As the song says, "People need the Lord." That's people you're around all the time. But they can't physically see Him, of course, to realize how real, how loving, and how powerful He is. God's plan for introducing Himself to them is that, much like our friend's building work, they see the difference God makes in you.
In 1 Peter 2:12, our word for today from the Word of God, Peter says, "Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they may accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God..." Here are people who may even be hostile toward you and toward your Lord. But they see such impressive living proof of the Jesus-difference in your everyday life - in your "good deeds" - that they end up glorifying God!
Jesus made this same point in the Sermon on the Mount when He said, "Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16). There it is again. They can't see your Lord, but they can see your good deeds that are there because of His life in you. And that living proof can turn them to Him. Especially in a world that's more skeptical than ever of religious pitches, religious systems, or religious pitchmen.
Notice, God doesn't say they'll be impressed with your arguments or your persuasive words. It will be your persuasive life. The random acts of kindness, the words of encouragement, your temper under control, the cleaned up mouth, the way you treat and talk about your mate, or your children, or your parents, your unselfishness, or the way you just put others ahead of yourself. One clarification: You can't just show them the Jesus-difference. You do have to tell them Who is making the difference! They're not going to guess that Jesus is the difference unless you tell them! The business of taking people to heaven with you is actually, well like first grade - show and tell.
That's why Peter says, right before his statement about them seeing your good deeds, that you are "belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness and into His wonderful light." They need to see it, but then you need to tell them. They'll never guess Jesus died on the cross for them unless you tell them.
Our friend is a carpenter that I may not actually see, but I can see each day the difference he makes. You belong to a carpenter named Jesus, and whether or not the people around you will ever know Him may depend on whether or not they can see the difference that Jesus is making in you!
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 6
Why Worship?
With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.
Psalm 89:1 (NKJV)
During our summer vacation I took advantage of the occasion to solicit a sailing lesson. Ever puzzled by the difference in leeward, starboard, and stern, I asked the crew a few questions. After a while the captain offered, “Would you like to sail us home?”…He assured me I would have no trouble. “Target that cliff,” he instructed. “Set you eyes and the boat on it.”
I found the instruction hard to follow. Other sights invited my attention: the rich mahogany of the deck, rich foam cresting on the waves. I wanted to look at it all. But look too long and risk losing the course. The boat stayed on target as long as I set my eyes beyond the vessel.
Worship helps us do this in life. It lifts our eyes off the boat with its toys and passengers and sets them “on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power” (Col. 3:1 NLT).
1 Samuel 17
David and Goliath
1 Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Socoh in Judah. They pitched camp at Ephes Dammim, between Socoh and Azekah. 2 Saul and the Israelites assembled and camped in the Valley of Elah and drew up their battle line to meet the Philistines. 3 The Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley between them.
4 A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. He was over nine feet [f] tall. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels [g] ; 6 on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. 7 His spear shaft was like a weaver's rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. [h] His shield bearer went ahead of him.
8 Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, "Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us." 10 Then the Philistine said, "This day I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other." 11 On hearing the Philistine's words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified.
12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite named Jesse, who was from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and in Saul's time he was old and well advanced in years. 13 Jesse's three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war: The firstborn was Eliab; the second, Abinadab; and the third, Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. The three oldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father's sheep at Bethlehem.
16 For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand.
17 Now Jesse said to his son David, "Take this ephah [i] of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18 Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. [j] See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance [k] from them. 19 They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines."
20 Early in the morning David left the flock with a shepherd, loaded up and set out, as Jesse had directed. He reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions, shouting the war cry. 21 Israel and the Philistines were drawing up their lines facing each other. 22 David left his things with the keeper of supplies, ran to the battle lines and greeted his brothers. 23 As he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it. 24 When the Israelites saw the man, they all ran from him in great fear.
25 Now the Israelites had been saying, "Do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage and will exempt his father's family from taxes in Israel."
26 David asked the men standing near him, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?"
27 They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, "This is what will be done for the man who kills him."
28 When Eliab, David's oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, "Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the desert? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle."
29 "Now what have I done?" said David. "Can't I even speak?" 30 He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before. 31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.
32 David said to Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him."
33 Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth."
34 But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."
Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you."
38 Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. 39 David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.
"I cannot go in these," he said to Saul, "because I am not used to them." So he took them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.
41 Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. 42 He looked David over and saw that he was only a boy, ruddy and handsome, and he despised him. 43 He said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?" And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 "Come here," he said, "and I'll give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!"
45 David said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the LORD will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. 47 All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give all of you into our hands."
48 As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. 49 Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.
50 So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.
51 David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the scabbard. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword.
When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. 52 Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath [l] and to the gates of Ekron. Their dead were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and Ekron. 53 When the Israelites returned from chasing the Philistines, they plundered their camp. 54 David took the Philistine's head and brought it to Jerusalem, and he put the Philistine's weapons in his own tent.
55 As Saul watched David going out to meet the Philistine, he said to Abner, commander of the army, "Abner, whose son is that young man?"
Abner replied, "As surely as you live, O king, I don't know."
56 The king said, "Find out whose son this young man is."
57 As soon as David returned from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul, with David still holding the Philistine's head.
58 "Whose son are you, young man?" Saul asked him.
David said, "I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Matthew 18
The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven
1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.
January 6, 2009
Faith Of A Child
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READ: Matthew 18:1-5
Unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. —Matthew 18:3
One Sunday I heard Mike talk about his relationship with his two fathers—the one who raised him as a child, and his Father in heaven.
First he described his childhood trust toward his earthly father as “simple and uncomplicated.” He expected his dad to fix broken things and to give advice. He dreaded displeasing him, however, because he often forgot that his father’s love and forgiveness always followed.
Mike continued, “Some years ago I made a mess of things and hurt a lot of people. Because of my guilt, I ended a happy, simple relationship with my heavenly Father. I forgot that I could ask Him to fix what I had broken and seek His advice.”
Years passed. Eventually Mike became desperate for God, yet he wondered what to do. His pastor said simply, “Say you’re sorry to God, and mean it!”
Instead, Mike asked complicated questions, like: “How does this work?” and “What if . . .?”
Finally his pastor prayed, “Please, God, give Mike the faith of a child!” Mike later testified joyfully, “The Lord did!”
Mike found closeness with his heavenly Father. The key for him and for us is to practice the simple and uncomplicated faith of a child. — Joanie Yoder
Have you noticed that the childlike faith
Of a little girl or boy
Has so often shown to older folks
How to know salvation’s joy? —Branon
Faith shines brightest in a childlike heart.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 6, 2009
Worship
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He moved from there to the mountain east of Bethel, and he pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; there he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord —Genesis 12:8
Worship is giving God the best that He has given you. Be careful what you do with the best you have. Whenever you get a blessing from God, give it back to Him as a love-gift. Take time to meditate before God and offer the blessing back to Him in a deliberate act of worship. If you hoard it for yourself, it will turn into spiritual dry rot, as the manna did when it was hoarded (see Exodus 16:20 ). God will never allow you to keep a spiritual blessing completely for yourself. It must be given back to Him so that He can make it a blessing to others.
Bethel is the symbol of fellowship with God; Ai is the symbol of the world. Abram "pitched his tent" between the two. The lasting value of our public service for God is measured by the depth of the intimacy of our private times of fellowship and oneness with Him. Rushing in and out of worship is wrong every time— there is always plenty of time to worship God. Days set apart for quiet can be a trap, detracting from the need to have daily quiet time with God. That is why we must "pitch our tents" where we will always have quiet times with Him, however noisy our times with the world may be. There are not three levels of spiritual life— worship, waiting, and work. Yet some of us seem to jump like spiritual frogs from worship to waiting, and from waiting to work. God’s idea is that the three should go together as one. They were always together in the life of our Lord and in perfect harmony. It is a discipline that must be developed; it will not happen overnight.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Living Proof - #5737
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
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We were adding onto our little house, and we were getting some help from good old Chuck. He's been a part of adding to our house; actually, he did most of the work. He's a wonderful Christian brother. He's a skilled builder and handyman. He's like an everyday genius - which I am not. Now the days were pretty long and we'd been leaving the house earlier than Chuck got there and returning home after dark. So, I didn't get to see him much. But every day that front porch was noticeably farther along than it was when we left that morning. I actually did get to talk to Chuck on the phone one day, and I told him that, in a way, he reminded me of the Lord. I don't actually see him, but I see the difference he's made!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Living Proof."
As the song says, "People need the Lord." That's people you're around all the time. But they can't physically see Him, of course, to realize how real, how loving, and how powerful He is. God's plan for introducing Himself to them is that, much like our friend's building work, they see the difference God makes in you.
In 1 Peter 2:12, our word for today from the Word of God, Peter says, "Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they may accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God..." Here are people who may even be hostile toward you and toward your Lord. But they see such impressive living proof of the Jesus-difference in your everyday life - in your "good deeds" - that they end up glorifying God!
Jesus made this same point in the Sermon on the Mount when He said, "Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16). There it is again. They can't see your Lord, but they can see your good deeds that are there because of His life in you. And that living proof can turn them to Him. Especially in a world that's more skeptical than ever of religious pitches, religious systems, or religious pitchmen.
Notice, God doesn't say they'll be impressed with your arguments or your persuasive words. It will be your persuasive life. The random acts of kindness, the words of encouragement, your temper under control, the cleaned up mouth, the way you treat and talk about your mate, or your children, or your parents, your unselfishness, or the way you just put others ahead of yourself. One clarification: You can't just show them the Jesus-difference. You do have to tell them Who is making the difference! They're not going to guess that Jesus is the difference unless you tell them! The business of taking people to heaven with you is actually, well like first grade - show and tell.
That's why Peter says, right before his statement about them seeing your good deeds, that you are "belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness and into His wonderful light." They need to see it, but then you need to tell them. They'll never guess Jesus died on the cross for them unless you tell them.
Our friend is a carpenter that I may not actually see, but I can see each day the difference he makes. You belong to a carpenter named Jesus, and whether or not the people around you will ever know Him may depend on whether or not they can see the difference that Jesus is making in you!
Monday, January 5, 2009
1 Samuel 16, daily readings and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 5
Do Something
Faith that does nothing is dead!
James 2:26 (NCV)
Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. Faith is the belief that God will do what is right. God is always near and always available. Just waiting for your touch. So let him know. Demonstrate your devotion:
Write a letter.
Ask forgiveness.
Be baptized.
Feed a hungry person.
Pray.
Teach.
Go.
Do something that demonstrates faith. For faith with no effort is no faith at all. God will respond. He has never rejected a genuine gesture of faith. Never.
1 Samuel 16
Samuel Anoints David
1 The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king."
2 But Samuel said, "How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me."
The LORD said, "Take a heifer with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.' 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate."
4 Samuel did what the LORD said. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town trembled when they met him. They asked, "Do you come in peace?"
5 Samuel replied, "Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me." Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed stands here before the LORD."
7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, "The LORD has not chosen this one either." 9 Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, "Nor has the LORD chosen this one." 10 Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, "The LORD has not chosen these." 11 So he asked Jesse, "Are these all the sons you have?"
"There is still the youngest," Jesse answered, "but he is tending the sheep."
Samuel said, "Send for him; we will not sit down [d] until he arrives."
12 So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features.
Then the LORD said, "Rise and anoint him; he is the one."
13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power. Samuel then went to Ramah.
David in Saul's Service
14 Now the Spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil [e] spirit from the LORD tormented him.
15 Saul's attendants said to him, "See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. 16 Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the harp. He will play when the evil spirit from God comes upon you, and you will feel better."
17 So Saul said to his attendants, "Find someone who plays well and bring him to me."
18 One of the servants answered, "I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the harp. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the LORD is with him."
19 Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, "Send me your son David, who is with the sheep." 20 So Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them with his son David to Saul.
21 David came to Saul and entered his service. Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers. 22 Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, "Allow David to remain in my service, for I am pleased with him."
23 Whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would take his harp and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Proverbs 10:11-21 (New International Version)
11 The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,
but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.
12 Hatred stirs up dissension,
but love covers over all wrongs.
13 Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning,
but a rod is for the back of him who lacks judgment.
14 Wise men store up knowledge,
but the mouth of a fool invites ruin.
15 The wealth of the rich is their fortified city,
but poverty is the ruin of the poor.
16 The wages of the righteous bring them life,
but the income of the wicked brings them punishment.
17 He who heeds discipline shows the way to life,
but whoever ignores correction leads others astray.
18 He who conceals his hatred has lying lips,
and whoever spreads slander is a fool.
19 When words are many, sin is not absent,
but he who holds his tongue is wise.
20 The tongue of the righteous is choice silver,
but the heart of the wicked is of little value.
21 The lips of the righteous nourish many,
but fools die for lack of judgment.
January 5, 2009
A Lot To Remember
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READ: Proverbs 10:11-21
He who restrains his lips is wise. —Proverbs 10:19
Thanks a lot,” the man behind the postal counter said to the person in front of me. The clerk, Jon, had seen me in line and was hoping I would overhear him. When it was my turn, I said hello to Jon, who had been a student of mine when I taught high school in the 1980s.
“Did you notice what I said to her?” Jon asked. “I told her, ‘Thanks a lot.’” Sensing that I was missing his point, he explained, “Remember what you told us about the term a lot? You said a lot was a piece of land, not a phrase to use instead of much.”
Astounding! An English lesson from a quarter-century before had stuck with Jon through all those years. That speaks clearly to us of the importance of what we say to others. It also backs up one of my favorite lines by poet Emily Dickinson: “A word is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that day.”
The words we say may have long-term consequences. Our comments, our compliments, and even our harsh criticisms may stick with the hearer for decades.
No wonder Scripture says, “He who restrains his lips is wise” (Prov. 10:19). The words we speak today live on. Let’s make sure they come from “the tongue of the righteous” (v.20). — Dave Branon
Father, help me live today
With thoughtfulness in what I say,
Confronting wrong with truth and fact,
Expressing gentleness and tact. —Hess
The tongue is a small organ that creates either discord or harmony.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 5, 2009
The Life of Power to Follow
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Jesus answered him, ’Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward’ —John 13:36
"And when He had spoken this, He said to him, ’Follow Me’ " (John 21:19). Three years earlier Jesus had said, "Follow Me" (Matthew 4:19), and Peter followed with no hesitation. The irresistible attraction of Jesus was upon him and he did not need the Holy Spirit to help him do it. Later he came to the place where he denied Jesus, and his heart broke. Then he received the Holy Spirit and Jesus said again, "Follow Me" (John 21:19). Now no one is in front of Peter except the Lord Jesus Christ. The first "Follow Me" was nothing mysterious; it was an external following. Jesus is now asking for an internal sacrifice and yielding (see John 21:18 ).
Between these two times Peter denied Jesus with oaths and curses (see Matthew 26:69-75). But then he came completely to the end of himself and all of his self-sufficiency. There was no part of himself he would ever rely on again. In his state of destitution, he was finally ready to receive all that the risen Lord had for him. ". . . He breathed on them, and said to them, ’Receive the Holy Spirit’ " (John 20:22 ). No matter what changes God has performed in you, never rely on them. Build only on a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and on the Spirit He gives.
All our promises and resolutions end in denial because we have no power to accomplish them. When we come to the end of ourselves, not just mentally but completely, we are able to "receive the Holy Spirit." "Receive the Holy Spirit "— the idea is that of invasion. There is now only One who directs the course of your life, the Lord Jesus Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Nothing to Pay With - #5736 - January 5, 2009
Category: Your Most Important Relationship
Monday, January 5, 2009
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Our three-year-old grandson had found something he really liked in the Christian bookstore. He brought it to his Daddy and he told him he really wanted it. Our son-in-law said, "Well, do you have any money?" Sadly, our grandson said, "No." But his disappointment was quickly replaced with determination as he went over to this display area where they have this fake money you can buy. He marched up to the cash register with the prize he wanted and the "money" to pay for it. Dad re-entered the scene at that point and said, "Is that really money?" Finally, our grandson faced the sad reality. He said, "No. It's not really money."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Nothing to Pay With."
All our grandson was able to come up with was woefully inadequate to pay the price, which is a problem lots of folks have with God that is - with trying to get their sins and their mistakes forgiven, with trying to be good enough to get into God's heaven when they die. But it's "not really money." As sincere as many of us may be, we don't have the only thing that will get us to heaven - a way to pay for all the sins of our life. Because the Bible makes it clear that the price for our sins is a spiritual death penalty; being cut off forever from the God we've disobeyed and neglected.
There's only one payment that God can accept and He will accept. And it's clearly spelled out in our word for today from the Word of God in Hebrews 9:22. He says plainly, "Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." It should be my blood; it should be my eternal death that pays for my sin. But I will thank God forever that He made another way with the greatest proof of His love for me and you that we could ever conceive. He sent His one and only Son, Jesus, to die so we don't have to! He paid for what I did. He paid for what you did.
Here's how God describes the payment He has made available. It's in that same section of the Bible. It says Christ came "to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself" (Hebrews 9:26). And here's the miracle Jesus' sacrifice makes possible: "We have been made holy." (That means our sins have been forgiven; they've been forgotten by God! We're right with God.) "We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." There's no way you can be forgiven without the shedding of blood; without your death penalty being paid. And Jesus died for that.
But we come to God with our handful of religion, of being a good person, of Christian beliefs and rituals and activities. And we say, "Here, God. Can I be forgiven and go to heaven now?" And God says, "You can't use that to pay for your sin. The only way to pay a death penalty is that someone has to die." That someone was the Son of God for you.
So the life-or-death, heaven-or-hell issue isn't how good you are, how religious you are, how long you've been doing Christian things. It's this: has there ever been a time when you told Jesus Christ you were going to depend on Him and Him alone, to have your sins forgiven and to go to heaven when you die? You can't say, as many do, "Well, I've always been a Christian." No one has always been a Christian. You may have always been in a Christian church or family, but you don't belong to Jesus until you consciously grab Him to save you like a drowning person would grab a lifeguard.
And that breakthrough moment could come for you this very day - even this very moment, as you tell Jesus with all your heart, "I am all Yours, Lord. I can't contribute a thing to being rescued from the penalty for my sin. You did it all, and I am all Yours, beginning right here and beginning right now." If that's what you want, let me invite you to pay a visit right away today to our website. It's where a lot of people have found help in beginning their personal relationship with Him. It's YoursForLife.net. I hope you'll go there as soon as you can today.
My grandson got the prize he hoped for that day, but only because someone else - his Daddy - paid for it. That's the only way you'll ever get the forgiveness and the heaven you hope for. What you have can never pay for it, and this is your day to claim what He paid for.
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 5
Do Something
Faith that does nothing is dead!
James 2:26 (NCV)
Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. Faith is the belief that God will do what is right. God is always near and always available. Just waiting for your touch. So let him know. Demonstrate your devotion:
Write a letter.
Ask forgiveness.
Be baptized.
Feed a hungry person.
Pray.
Teach.
Go.
Do something that demonstrates faith. For faith with no effort is no faith at all. God will respond. He has never rejected a genuine gesture of faith. Never.
1 Samuel 16
Samuel Anoints David
1 The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king."
2 But Samuel said, "How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me."
The LORD said, "Take a heifer with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.' 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate."
4 Samuel did what the LORD said. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town trembled when they met him. They asked, "Do you come in peace?"
5 Samuel replied, "Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me." Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed stands here before the LORD."
7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, "The LORD has not chosen this one either." 9 Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, "Nor has the LORD chosen this one." 10 Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, "The LORD has not chosen these." 11 So he asked Jesse, "Are these all the sons you have?"
"There is still the youngest," Jesse answered, "but he is tending the sheep."
Samuel said, "Send for him; we will not sit down [d] until he arrives."
12 So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features.
Then the LORD said, "Rise and anoint him; he is the one."
13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power. Samuel then went to Ramah.
David in Saul's Service
14 Now the Spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil [e] spirit from the LORD tormented him.
15 Saul's attendants said to him, "See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. 16 Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the harp. He will play when the evil spirit from God comes upon you, and you will feel better."
17 So Saul said to his attendants, "Find someone who plays well and bring him to me."
18 One of the servants answered, "I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the harp. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the LORD is with him."
19 Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, "Send me your son David, who is with the sheep." 20 So Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them with his son David to Saul.
21 David came to Saul and entered his service. Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers. 22 Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, "Allow David to remain in my service, for I am pleased with him."
23 Whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would take his harp and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Proverbs 10:11-21 (New International Version)
11 The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,
but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.
12 Hatred stirs up dissension,
but love covers over all wrongs.
13 Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning,
but a rod is for the back of him who lacks judgment.
14 Wise men store up knowledge,
but the mouth of a fool invites ruin.
15 The wealth of the rich is their fortified city,
but poverty is the ruin of the poor.
16 The wages of the righteous bring them life,
but the income of the wicked brings them punishment.
17 He who heeds discipline shows the way to life,
but whoever ignores correction leads others astray.
18 He who conceals his hatred has lying lips,
and whoever spreads slander is a fool.
19 When words are many, sin is not absent,
but he who holds his tongue is wise.
20 The tongue of the righteous is choice silver,
but the heart of the wicked is of little value.
21 The lips of the righteous nourish many,
but fools die for lack of judgment.
January 5, 2009
A Lot To Remember
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Proverbs 10:11-21
He who restrains his lips is wise. —Proverbs 10:19
Thanks a lot,” the man behind the postal counter said to the person in front of me. The clerk, Jon, had seen me in line and was hoping I would overhear him. When it was my turn, I said hello to Jon, who had been a student of mine when I taught high school in the 1980s.
“Did you notice what I said to her?” Jon asked. “I told her, ‘Thanks a lot.’” Sensing that I was missing his point, he explained, “Remember what you told us about the term a lot? You said a lot was a piece of land, not a phrase to use instead of much.”
Astounding! An English lesson from a quarter-century before had stuck with Jon through all those years. That speaks clearly to us of the importance of what we say to others. It also backs up one of my favorite lines by poet Emily Dickinson: “A word is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that day.”
The words we say may have long-term consequences. Our comments, our compliments, and even our harsh criticisms may stick with the hearer for decades.
No wonder Scripture says, “He who restrains his lips is wise” (Prov. 10:19). The words we speak today live on. Let’s make sure they come from “the tongue of the righteous” (v.20). — Dave Branon
Father, help me live today
With thoughtfulness in what I say,
Confronting wrong with truth and fact,
Expressing gentleness and tact. —Hess
The tongue is a small organ that creates either discord or harmony.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 5, 2009
The Life of Power to Follow
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Jesus answered him, ’Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward’ —John 13:36
"And when He had spoken this, He said to him, ’Follow Me’ " (John 21:19). Three years earlier Jesus had said, "Follow Me" (Matthew 4:19), and Peter followed with no hesitation. The irresistible attraction of Jesus was upon him and he did not need the Holy Spirit to help him do it. Later he came to the place where he denied Jesus, and his heart broke. Then he received the Holy Spirit and Jesus said again, "Follow Me" (John 21:19). Now no one is in front of Peter except the Lord Jesus Christ. The first "Follow Me" was nothing mysterious; it was an external following. Jesus is now asking for an internal sacrifice and yielding (see John 21:18 ).
Between these two times Peter denied Jesus with oaths and curses (see Matthew 26:69-75). But then he came completely to the end of himself and all of his self-sufficiency. There was no part of himself he would ever rely on again. In his state of destitution, he was finally ready to receive all that the risen Lord had for him. ". . . He breathed on them, and said to them, ’Receive the Holy Spirit’ " (John 20:22 ). No matter what changes God has performed in you, never rely on them. Build only on a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and on the Spirit He gives.
All our promises and resolutions end in denial because we have no power to accomplish them. When we come to the end of ourselves, not just mentally but completely, we are able to "receive the Holy Spirit." "Receive the Holy Spirit "— the idea is that of invasion. There is now only One who directs the course of your life, the Lord Jesus Christ.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Nothing to Pay With - #5736 - January 5, 2009
Category: Your Most Important Relationship
Monday, January 5, 2009
Download MP3 (right click to save)
Our three-year-old grandson had found something he really liked in the Christian bookstore. He brought it to his Daddy and he told him he really wanted it. Our son-in-law said, "Well, do you have any money?" Sadly, our grandson said, "No." But his disappointment was quickly replaced with determination as he went over to this display area where they have this fake money you can buy. He marched up to the cash register with the prize he wanted and the "money" to pay for it. Dad re-entered the scene at that point and said, "Is that really money?" Finally, our grandson faced the sad reality. He said, "No. It's not really money."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Nothing to Pay With."
All our grandson was able to come up with was woefully inadequate to pay the price, which is a problem lots of folks have with God that is - with trying to get their sins and their mistakes forgiven, with trying to be good enough to get into God's heaven when they die. But it's "not really money." As sincere as many of us may be, we don't have the only thing that will get us to heaven - a way to pay for all the sins of our life. Because the Bible makes it clear that the price for our sins is a spiritual death penalty; being cut off forever from the God we've disobeyed and neglected.
There's only one payment that God can accept and He will accept. And it's clearly spelled out in our word for today from the Word of God in Hebrews 9:22. He says plainly, "Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." It should be my blood; it should be my eternal death that pays for my sin. But I will thank God forever that He made another way with the greatest proof of His love for me and you that we could ever conceive. He sent His one and only Son, Jesus, to die so we don't have to! He paid for what I did. He paid for what you did.
Here's how God describes the payment He has made available. It's in that same section of the Bible. It says Christ came "to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself" (Hebrews 9:26). And here's the miracle Jesus' sacrifice makes possible: "We have been made holy." (That means our sins have been forgiven; they've been forgotten by God! We're right with God.) "We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." There's no way you can be forgiven without the shedding of blood; without your death penalty being paid. And Jesus died for that.
But we come to God with our handful of religion, of being a good person, of Christian beliefs and rituals and activities. And we say, "Here, God. Can I be forgiven and go to heaven now?" And God says, "You can't use that to pay for your sin. The only way to pay a death penalty is that someone has to die." That someone was the Son of God for you.
So the life-or-death, heaven-or-hell issue isn't how good you are, how religious you are, how long you've been doing Christian things. It's this: has there ever been a time when you told Jesus Christ you were going to depend on Him and Him alone, to have your sins forgiven and to go to heaven when you die? You can't say, as many do, "Well, I've always been a Christian." No one has always been a Christian. You may have always been in a Christian church or family, but you don't belong to Jesus until you consciously grab Him to save you like a drowning person would grab a lifeguard.
And that breakthrough moment could come for you this very day - even this very moment, as you tell Jesus with all your heart, "I am all Yours, Lord. I can't contribute a thing to being rescued from the penalty for my sin. You did it all, and I am all Yours, beginning right here and beginning right now." If that's what you want, let me invite you to pay a visit right away today to our website. It's where a lot of people have found help in beginning their personal relationship with Him. It's YoursForLife.net. I hope you'll go there as soon as you can today.
My grandson got the prize he hoped for that day, but only because someone else - his Daddy - paid for it. That's the only way you'll ever get the forgiveness and the heaven you hope for. What you have can never pay for it, and this is your day to claim what He paid for.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
1 Samuel 15, daily readings and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 4
As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so continue to live in him.
Colossians 2:6 (NCV)
Struggling with life's difficulties makes us a little wiser, a little more capable, enabling us to comfort others who experience pain.
Any difficulties we face in life are short-lived; all rewards are eternal. A divine inheritance will be our reward for faithfulness to our heavenly Father.
1 Samuel 15
The LORD Rejects Saul as King
1 Samuel said to Saul, "I am the one the LORD sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the LORD. 2 This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. 3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy [a] everything that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.' "
4 So Saul summoned the men and mustered them at Telaim—two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand men from Judah. 5 Saul went to the city of Amalek and set an ambush in the ravine. 6 Then he said to the Kenites, "Go away, leave the Amalekites so that I do not destroy you along with them; for you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt." So the Kenites moved away from the Amalekites.
7 Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, to the east of Egypt. 8 He took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. 9 But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves [b] and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed.
10 Then the word of the LORD came to Samuel: 11 "I am grieved that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions." Samuel was troubled, and he cried out to the LORD all that night.
12 Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, "Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor and has turned and gone on down to Gilgal."
13 When Samuel reached him, Saul said, "The LORD bless you! I have carried out the LORD's instructions."
14 But Samuel said, "What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?"
15 Saul answered, "The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the LORD your God, but we totally destroyed the rest."
16 "Stop!" Samuel said to Saul. "Let me tell you what the LORD said to me last night."
"Tell me," Saul replied.
17 Samuel said, "Although you were once small in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? The LORD anointed you king over Israel. 18 And he sent you on a mission, saying, 'Go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites; make war on them until you have wiped them out.' 19 Why did you not obey the LORD ? Why did you pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of the LORD ?"
20 "But I did obey the LORD," Saul said. "I went on the mission the LORD assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. 21 The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the LORD your God at Gilgal."
22 But Samuel replied:
"Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD ?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
he has rejected you as king."
24 Then Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned. I violated the LORD's command and your instructions. I was afraid of the people and so I gave in to them. 25 Now I beg you, forgive my sin and come back with me, so that I may worship the LORD."
26 But Samuel said to him, "I will not go back with you. You have rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD has rejected you as king over Israel!"
27 As Samuel turned to leave, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe, and it tore. 28 Samuel said to him, "The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your neighbors—to one better than you. 29 He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a man, that he should change his mind."
30 Saul replied, "I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship the LORD your God." 31 So Samuel went back with Saul, and Saul worshiped the LORD.
32 Then Samuel said, "Bring me Agag king of the Amalekites."
Agag came to him confidently, [c] thinking, "Surely the bitterness of death is past."
33 But Samuel said,
"As your sword has made women childless,
so will your mother be childless among women."
And Samuel put Agag to death before the LORD at Gilgal.
34 Then Samuel left for Ramah, but Saul went up to his home in Gibeah of Saul. 35 Until the day Samuel died, he did not go to see Saul again, though Samuel mourned for him. And the LORD was grieved that he had made Saul king over Israel.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
2 Timothy 3:10-17 (New International Version)
Paul's Charge to Timothy
10You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 12In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
January 4, 2009
Living Deceptively
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: 2 Timothy 3:10-17
You have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. —2 Timothy 3:15
The year 2007 was labeled the “Year of Living Deceptively” for South Korea, because of the country’s numerous scandals involving fake academics and corrupt politicians. A survey of 340 professors selected the Chinese phrase “ja-gi-gi-in” (deceiving yourself and others) to sum up the year.
It should not surprise us to hear of deception like that. The apostle Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 3:13, “Evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.” To deceive is to make others believe falsehood as truth and accept wrong as right.
Our defense against deception is to know God’s Word, for “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (v.16). Correction is to set right what is wrong, and instruction is to make known what is right. God’s Word not only makes us aware of wrongs, it also prompts and teaches us to do what is right.
Is your New Year’s resolution to walk rightly before God and others and to be “thoroughly equipped for every good work”? (v.17). Then read and apply God’s Word, asking the Lord to make you a person of integrity. — Albert Lee
When reading God’s Word, take special care
To find the rich treasures hidden there;
Give thought to each truth, each precept hear,
Then practice it well with godly fear. —Anon.
The more we meditate on Scripture, the more readily we’ll detect error.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 4, 2009
Why Can I Not Follow You Now?
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Peter said to Him, ’Lord, why can I not follow You now?’ —John 13:37
There are times when you can’t understand why you cannot do what you want to do. When God brings a time of waiting, and appears to be unresponsive, don’t fill it with busyness, just wait. The time of waiting may come to teach you the meaning of sanctification— to be set apart from sin and made holy— or it may come after the process of sanctification has begun to teach you what service means. Never run before God gives you His direction. If you have the slightest doubt, then He is not guiding. Whenever there is doubt— wait.
At first you may see clearly what God’s will is— the severance of a friendship, the breaking off of a business relationship, or something else you feel is distinctly God’s will for you to do. But never act on the impulse of that feeling. If you do, you will cause difficult situations to arise which will take years to untangle. Wait for God’s timing and He will do it without any heartache or disappointment. When it is a question of the providential will of God, wait for God to move.
Peter did not wait for God. He predicted in his own mind where the test would come, and it came where he did not expect it. "I will lay down my life for Your sake." Peter’s statement was honest but ignorant. "Jesus answered him, ’ . . . the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times’ " (John 13:38). This was said with a deeper knowledge of Peter than Peter had of himself. He could not follow Jesus because he did not know himself or his own capabilities well enough. Natural devotion may be enough to attract us to Jesus, to make us feel His irresistible charm, but it will never make us disciples. Natural devotion will deny Jesus, always falling short of what it means to truly follow Him.
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 4
As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so continue to live in him.
Colossians 2:6 (NCV)
Struggling with life's difficulties makes us a little wiser, a little more capable, enabling us to comfort others who experience pain.
Any difficulties we face in life are short-lived; all rewards are eternal. A divine inheritance will be our reward for faithfulness to our heavenly Father.
1 Samuel 15
The LORD Rejects Saul as King
1 Samuel said to Saul, "I am the one the LORD sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the LORD. 2 This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. 3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy [a] everything that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.' "
4 So Saul summoned the men and mustered them at Telaim—two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand men from Judah. 5 Saul went to the city of Amalek and set an ambush in the ravine. 6 Then he said to the Kenites, "Go away, leave the Amalekites so that I do not destroy you along with them; for you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt." So the Kenites moved away from the Amalekites.
7 Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, to the east of Egypt. 8 He took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. 9 But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves [b] and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed.
10 Then the word of the LORD came to Samuel: 11 "I am grieved that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions." Samuel was troubled, and he cried out to the LORD all that night.
12 Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, "Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor and has turned and gone on down to Gilgal."
13 When Samuel reached him, Saul said, "The LORD bless you! I have carried out the LORD's instructions."
14 But Samuel said, "What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?"
15 Saul answered, "The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the LORD your God, but we totally destroyed the rest."
16 "Stop!" Samuel said to Saul. "Let me tell you what the LORD said to me last night."
"Tell me," Saul replied.
17 Samuel said, "Although you were once small in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? The LORD anointed you king over Israel. 18 And he sent you on a mission, saying, 'Go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites; make war on them until you have wiped them out.' 19 Why did you not obey the LORD ? Why did you pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of the LORD ?"
20 "But I did obey the LORD," Saul said. "I went on the mission the LORD assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. 21 The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the LORD your God at Gilgal."
22 But Samuel replied:
"Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD ?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
he has rejected you as king."
24 Then Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned. I violated the LORD's command and your instructions. I was afraid of the people and so I gave in to them. 25 Now I beg you, forgive my sin and come back with me, so that I may worship the LORD."
26 But Samuel said to him, "I will not go back with you. You have rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD has rejected you as king over Israel!"
27 As Samuel turned to leave, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe, and it tore. 28 Samuel said to him, "The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your neighbors—to one better than you. 29 He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a man, that he should change his mind."
30 Saul replied, "I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship the LORD your God." 31 So Samuel went back with Saul, and Saul worshiped the LORD.
32 Then Samuel said, "Bring me Agag king of the Amalekites."
Agag came to him confidently, [c] thinking, "Surely the bitterness of death is past."
33 But Samuel said,
"As your sword has made women childless,
so will your mother be childless among women."
And Samuel put Agag to death before the LORD at Gilgal.
34 Then Samuel left for Ramah, but Saul went up to his home in Gibeah of Saul. 35 Until the day Samuel died, he did not go to see Saul again, though Samuel mourned for him. And the LORD was grieved that he had made Saul king over Israel.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
2 Timothy 3:10-17 (New International Version)
Paul's Charge to Timothy
10You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 12In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
January 4, 2009
Living Deceptively
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: 2 Timothy 3:10-17
You have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. —2 Timothy 3:15
The year 2007 was labeled the “Year of Living Deceptively” for South Korea, because of the country’s numerous scandals involving fake academics and corrupt politicians. A survey of 340 professors selected the Chinese phrase “ja-gi-gi-in” (deceiving yourself and others) to sum up the year.
It should not surprise us to hear of deception like that. The apostle Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 3:13, “Evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.” To deceive is to make others believe falsehood as truth and accept wrong as right.
Our defense against deception is to know God’s Word, for “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (v.16). Correction is to set right what is wrong, and instruction is to make known what is right. God’s Word not only makes us aware of wrongs, it also prompts and teaches us to do what is right.
Is your New Year’s resolution to walk rightly before God and others and to be “thoroughly equipped for every good work”? (v.17). Then read and apply God’s Word, asking the Lord to make you a person of integrity. — Albert Lee
When reading God’s Word, take special care
To find the rich treasures hidden there;
Give thought to each truth, each precept hear,
Then practice it well with godly fear. —Anon.
The more we meditate on Scripture, the more readily we’ll detect error.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 4, 2009
Why Can I Not Follow You Now?
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Peter said to Him, ’Lord, why can I not follow You now?’ —John 13:37
There are times when you can’t understand why you cannot do what you want to do. When God brings a time of waiting, and appears to be unresponsive, don’t fill it with busyness, just wait. The time of waiting may come to teach you the meaning of sanctification— to be set apart from sin and made holy— or it may come after the process of sanctification has begun to teach you what service means. Never run before God gives you His direction. If you have the slightest doubt, then He is not guiding. Whenever there is doubt— wait.
At first you may see clearly what God’s will is— the severance of a friendship, the breaking off of a business relationship, or something else you feel is distinctly God’s will for you to do. But never act on the impulse of that feeling. If you do, you will cause difficult situations to arise which will take years to untangle. Wait for God’s timing and He will do it without any heartache or disappointment. When it is a question of the providential will of God, wait for God to move.
Peter did not wait for God. He predicted in his own mind where the test would come, and it came where he did not expect it. "I will lay down my life for Your sake." Peter’s statement was honest but ignorant. "Jesus answered him, ’ . . . the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times’ " (John 13:38). This was said with a deeper knowledge of Peter than Peter had of himself. He could not follow Jesus because he did not know himself or his own capabilities well enough. Natural devotion may be enough to attract us to Jesus, to make us feel His irresistible charm, but it will never make us disciples. Natural devotion will deny Jesus, always falling short of what it means to truly follow Him.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
1 Samuel 12, daily readings and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 3
He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Philippians 1:6 (NIV)
Religious rule-keeping can sap your strength. It's endless.
There is always another class to attend. Sabbath to obey, Ramadan to observe. No prison is as endless as the prison of perfection.
Her inmates find work but never find peace. How could they? They never know when they are finished
Christ...fulfilled the law for you. Bid farewell to the burden of religion....God pledges to help those who stop trying to help themselves.
1 Samuel 12
Samuel's Farewell Speech
1 Samuel said to all Israel, "I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. 2 Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. 3 Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the LORD and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these, I will make it right."
4 "You have not cheated or oppressed us," they replied. "You have not taken anything from anyone's hand."
5 Samuel said to them, "The LORD is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand."
"He is witness," they said.
6 Then Samuel said to the people, "It is the LORD who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your forefathers up out of Egypt. 7 Now then, stand here, because I am going to confront you with evidence before the LORD as to all the righteous acts performed by the LORD for you and your fathers.
8 "After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the LORD for help, and the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your forefathers out of Egypt and settled them in this place.
9 "But they forgot the LORD their God; so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them. 10 They cried out to the LORD and said, 'We have sinned; we have forsaken the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.' 11 Then the LORD sent Jerub-Baal, [a] Barak, [b] Jephthah and Samuel, [c] and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies on every side, so that you lived securely.
12 "But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, 'No, we want a king to rule over us'-even though the LORD your God was your king. 13 Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the LORD has set a king over you. 14 If you fear the LORD and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the LORD your God-good! 15 But if you do not obey the LORD, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your fathers.
16 "Now then, stand still and see this great thing the LORD is about to do before your eyes! 17 Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call upon the LORD to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the LORD when you asked for a king."
18 Then Samuel called upon the LORD, and that same day the LORD sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the LORD and of Samuel.
19 The people all said to Samuel, "Pray to the LORD your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king."
20 "Do not be afraid," Samuel replied. "You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. 21 Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 22 For the sake of his great name the LORD will not reject his people, because the LORD was pleased to make you his own. 23 As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. 24 But be sure to fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. 25 Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will be swept away."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Genesis 2:8-17 (New International Version)
8 Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin [a] and onyx are also there.) 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. [b] 14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Asshur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
January 3, 2009
Eating As Worship
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Genesis 2:8-17
Have you found honey? Eat only as much as you need. —Proverbs 25:16
When you walk into the bookstore and see a table filled with books on dieting, you know it must be January. After several weeks of overeating all kinds of holiday foods, people in many cultures turn their attention to not eating.
Food plays an important role in Scripture. God uses it not only to bless us but also to teach us. Our misuse of food keeps us from knowing God in ways He wants to be known.
In the Old Testament, God gave instructions to Adam as to what to eat and what not to eat (Gen. 2:16-17). Later He gave the Israelites manna to convince them that He was God and to test them to find out if they believed Him (Ex. 16:12; Deut. 8:16). In the New Testament, the apostle Paul stated the proper attitude for everything we do, including eating: “Whether you eat or drink, . . . do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).
When we think of food as a friend that comforts us or an enemy that makes us fat, we miss the wonder of receiving with gratitude a splendid gift from God. Obsessive eating or not eating indicates that we are focused on the gift rather than on the Giver, which is a form of idolatry.
When eating becomes a true act of worship, we will no longer worship food. — Julie Ackerman Link
You alone are worthy, Lord,
To be worshiped and adored;
We to You our tribute bring
As our hearts rejoice and sing. —Hess
When food becomes our god, our appetite for the Bread of Life is diminished.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 3, 2009
Clouds and Darkness
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Clouds and darkness surround Him . . . —Psalm 97:2
A person who has not been born again by the Spirit of God will tell you that the teachings of Jesus are simple. But when he is baptized by the Holy Spirit, he finds that "clouds and darkness surround Him . . . ." When we come into close contact with the teachings of Jesus Christ we have our first realization of this. The only possible way to have full understanding of the teachings of Jesus is through the light of the Spirit of God shining inside us. If we have never had the experience of taking our casual, religious shoes off our casual, religious feet— getting rid of all the excessive informality with which we approach God— it is questionable whether we have ever stood in His presence. The people who are flippant and disrespectful in their approach to God are those who have never been introduced to Jesus Christ. Only after the amazing delight and liberty of realizing what Jesus Christ does, comes the impenetrable "darkness" of realizing who He is.
Jesus said, "The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life" (John 6:63). Once, the Bible was just so many words to us — "clouds and darkness"— then, suddenly, the words become spirit and life because Jesus re-speaks them to us when our circumstances make the words new. That is the way God speaks to us; not by visions and dreams, but by words. When a man gets to God, it is by the most simple way— words.
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 3
He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Philippians 1:6 (NIV)
Religious rule-keeping can sap your strength. It's endless.
There is always another class to attend. Sabbath to obey, Ramadan to observe. No prison is as endless as the prison of perfection.
Her inmates find work but never find peace. How could they? They never know when they are finished
Christ...fulfilled the law for you. Bid farewell to the burden of religion....God pledges to help those who stop trying to help themselves.
1 Samuel 12
Samuel's Farewell Speech
1 Samuel said to all Israel, "I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. 2 Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. 3 Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the LORD and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these, I will make it right."
4 "You have not cheated or oppressed us," they replied. "You have not taken anything from anyone's hand."
5 Samuel said to them, "The LORD is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand."
"He is witness," they said.
6 Then Samuel said to the people, "It is the LORD who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your forefathers up out of Egypt. 7 Now then, stand here, because I am going to confront you with evidence before the LORD as to all the righteous acts performed by the LORD for you and your fathers.
8 "After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the LORD for help, and the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your forefathers out of Egypt and settled them in this place.
9 "But they forgot the LORD their God; so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them. 10 They cried out to the LORD and said, 'We have sinned; we have forsaken the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.' 11 Then the LORD sent Jerub-Baal, [a] Barak, [b] Jephthah and Samuel, [c] and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies on every side, so that you lived securely.
12 "But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, 'No, we want a king to rule over us'-even though the LORD your God was your king. 13 Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the LORD has set a king over you. 14 If you fear the LORD and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the LORD your God-good! 15 But if you do not obey the LORD, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your fathers.
16 "Now then, stand still and see this great thing the LORD is about to do before your eyes! 17 Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call upon the LORD to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the LORD when you asked for a king."
18 Then Samuel called upon the LORD, and that same day the LORD sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the LORD and of Samuel.
19 The people all said to Samuel, "Pray to the LORD your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king."
20 "Do not be afraid," Samuel replied. "You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. 21 Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 22 For the sake of his great name the LORD will not reject his people, because the LORD was pleased to make you his own. 23 As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. 24 But be sure to fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. 25 Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will be swept away."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Genesis 2:8-17 (New International Version)
8 Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin [a] and onyx are also there.) 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. [b] 14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Asshur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
January 3, 2009
Eating As Worship
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Genesis 2:8-17
Have you found honey? Eat only as much as you need. —Proverbs 25:16
When you walk into the bookstore and see a table filled with books on dieting, you know it must be January. After several weeks of overeating all kinds of holiday foods, people in many cultures turn their attention to not eating.
Food plays an important role in Scripture. God uses it not only to bless us but also to teach us. Our misuse of food keeps us from knowing God in ways He wants to be known.
In the Old Testament, God gave instructions to Adam as to what to eat and what not to eat (Gen. 2:16-17). Later He gave the Israelites manna to convince them that He was God and to test them to find out if they believed Him (Ex. 16:12; Deut. 8:16). In the New Testament, the apostle Paul stated the proper attitude for everything we do, including eating: “Whether you eat or drink, . . . do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).
When we think of food as a friend that comforts us or an enemy that makes us fat, we miss the wonder of receiving with gratitude a splendid gift from God. Obsessive eating or not eating indicates that we are focused on the gift rather than on the Giver, which is a form of idolatry.
When eating becomes a true act of worship, we will no longer worship food. — Julie Ackerman Link
You alone are worthy, Lord,
To be worshiped and adored;
We to You our tribute bring
As our hearts rejoice and sing. —Hess
When food becomes our god, our appetite for the Bread of Life is diminished.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 3, 2009
Clouds and Darkness
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
Clouds and darkness surround Him . . . —Psalm 97:2
A person who has not been born again by the Spirit of God will tell you that the teachings of Jesus are simple. But when he is baptized by the Holy Spirit, he finds that "clouds and darkness surround Him . . . ." When we come into close contact with the teachings of Jesus Christ we have our first realization of this. The only possible way to have full understanding of the teachings of Jesus is through the light of the Spirit of God shining inside us. If we have never had the experience of taking our casual, religious shoes off our casual, religious feet— getting rid of all the excessive informality with which we approach God— it is questionable whether we have ever stood in His presence. The people who are flippant and disrespectful in their approach to God are those who have never been introduced to Jesus Christ. Only after the amazing delight and liberty of realizing what Jesus Christ does, comes the impenetrable "darkness" of realizing who He is.
Jesus said, "The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life" (John 6:63). Once, the Bible was just so many words to us — "clouds and darkness"— then, suddenly, the words become spirit and life because Jesus re-speaks them to us when our circumstances make the words new. That is the way God speaks to us; not by visions and dreams, but by words. When a man gets to God, it is by the most simple way— words.
Friday, January 2, 2009
1 Samuel 10, daily readings and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
January 2
All God's Children
If they could be made God's people by what they did, God's gift of grace would not really be a gift.
Romans 11:6 (NCV)
To whom does God offer his gift? To the brightest? The most beautiful or the most charming? No. His gift is for us all--beggars and bankers, clergy and clerks, judges and janitors. All God's children.
And he wants us so badly, he'll take us in any condition--"as is" reads the tag on our collars. He's not about to wait for us to reach perfection (he knows we'll never get there!). Do you think he's waiting for us to overcome all temptations? Hardly. When we master the Christian walk? Far from it. Remember, Christ died for us when we were still sinners. His sacrifice, then, was not dependent on our performance.
He wants us now.
1 Samuel 10
1 Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on Saul's head and kissed him, saying, "Has not the LORD anointed you leader over his inheritance? [f] 2 When you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel's tomb, at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They will say to you, 'The donkeys you set out to look for have been found. And now your father has stopped thinking about them and is worried about you. He is asking, "What shall I do about my son?" '
3 "Then you will go on from there until you reach the great tree of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there. One will be carrying three young goats, another three loaves of bread, and another a skin of wine. 4 They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from them.
5 "After that you will go to Gibeah of God, where there is a Philistine outpost. As you approach the town, you will meet a procession of prophets coming down from the high place with lyres, tambourines, flutes and harps being played before them, and they will be prophesying. 6 The Spirit of the LORD will come upon you in power, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. 7 Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.
8 "Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, [g] but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do."
Saul Made King
9 As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul's heart, and all these signs were fulfilled that day. 10 When they arrived at Gibeah, a procession of prophets met him; the Spirit of God came upon him in power, and he joined in their prophesying. 11 When all those who had formerly known him saw him prophesying with the prophets, they asked each other, "What is this that has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?"
12 A man who lived there answered, "And who is their father?" So it became a saying: "Is Saul also among the prophets?" 13 After Saul stopped prophesying, he went to the high place.
14 Now Saul's uncle asked him and his servant, "Where have you been?"
"Looking for the donkeys," he said. "But when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel."
15 Saul's uncle said, "Tell me what Samuel said to you."
16 Saul replied, "He assured us that the donkeys had been found." But he did not tell his uncle what Samuel had said about the kingship.
17 Samuel summoned the people of Israel to the LORD at Mizpah 18 and said to them, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'I brought Israel up out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the power of Egypt and all the kingdoms that oppressed you.' 19 But you have now rejected your God, who saves you out of all your calamities and distresses. And you have said, 'No, set a king over us.' So now present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and clans."
20 When Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. 21 Then he brought forward the tribe of Benjamin, clan by clan, and Matri's clan was chosen. Finally Saul son of Kish was chosen. But when they looked for him, he was not to be found. 22 So they inquired further of the LORD, "Has the man come here yet?"
And the LORD said, "Yes, he has hidden himself among the baggage."
23 They ran and brought him out, and as he stood among the people he was a head taller than any of the others. 24 Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see the man the LORD has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people."
Then the people shouted, "Long live the king!"
25 Samuel explained to the people the regulations of the kingship. He wrote them down on a scroll and deposited it before the LORD. Then Samuel dismissed the people, each to his own home.
26 Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, accompanied by valiant men whose hearts God had touched. 27 But some troublemakers said, "How can this fellow save us?" They despised him and brought him no gifts. But Saul kept silent.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Genesis 2
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested [a] from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Adam and Eve
4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.
When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens- 5 and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth [b] and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth [c] and there was no man to work the ground, 6 but streams [d] came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground- the LORD God formed the man The Hebrew for man (adam) sounds like and may be related to the Hebrew for ground (adamah) it is also the name Adam (see Gen. 2:20). from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
January 2, 2009
Don't Waste Your Breath
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Genesis 2:1-7
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. -Psalm 150:6
If I were to scoop up a handful of dirt and blow into it, all I would get is a dirty face. When God did it, He got a living, breathing human being capable of thinking, feeling, dreaming, loving, reproducing, and living forever.
As one of these human beings, I speak of "catching" my breath, "holding" my breath, or "saving" my breath, but these are idioms of language. I cannot save my breath for use at a later time. If I don't use the one I have now, I'll lose it, and I may even lose consciousness.
When God breathed into Adam, He gave more than life; He gave a reason to live: Worship! As the psalmist said, "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord" (Ps. 150:6).
This means that we waste our breath when we use it for something that doesn't honor the One in whom "we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28).
Although we cannot blow life into a handful of dirt, we can use our breath to speak words of comfort, to sing songs of praise, and to run to help the sick and oppressed. When we use our breath to honor our Creator with our unique combination of talents, abilities, and opportunities, we will never be wasting it. - Julie Ackerman Link
Breathe on me, Breath of God,
Fill me with life anew,
That I may love what Thou dost love,
And do what Thou wouldst do. -Hatch
All that I am and have I owe to Jesus.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 2, 2009
Will You Go Out Without Knowing?
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READ:
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.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Magnet In That Old Hunk of Wood - #5735 - January 2, 2009
Category: Your Hard Times
Friday, January 2, 2009
Download MP3 (right click to save)
It started out as a family adventure; it ended as a family tragedy. James Reddick took his 12-year-old son and his 11-year-old daughter on a hiking expedition up on Mount Rainier in Washington State. All of a sudden, a freak snowstorm arose. It created instant blizzard conditions and hurricane force winds. With a blinding 'white out' around them, they could not go any further. Dad knew they had to create some kind of shelter. All he could do was to cut out a large hole in the ground; he used a cup from their cooking kit to do it, and then he put his children in that hole and he covered it with a tarp. But the fierce winds just kept blowing the tarp away, and that left the children exposed to that deadly storm. The father tried everything he could find to hold down the tarp, but nothing worked. Finally, in one last desperate attempt to save his children, he actually lay across that hole himself to keep the snow from blowing in. Two days later, a search party noticed the edge of a backpack. They uncovered the hole and they found the two children alive and well. But first they uncovered their father who froze to death, protecting the ones he loved.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Magnet In That Old Hunk of Wood."
That father had given the highest kind of love there is - the giving of his life so people he loved would not have to die. It is that kind of love that touches us in the deepest part of us; it's a compelling love. It's why I'm asking you to open your heart today to the One who has loved you like that.
It's Jesus who said those oft-quoted words: "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). Then, in John 10:11, our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus says, "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep." I'm one of those sheep that He laid down His life for, and so are you. And that's why it is so important that you make sure you belong to Him; that you've responded to Jesus. The Son of God put His body between you and the awful consequences of running your own life, eternal separation from God. When He died on the cross, Jesus took the storm of God's judgment on Himself. He died so you don't have to.
Malcolm Muggeridge was one of the most respected British journalists of the last century. His keen insights and his distinctive writings appeared regularly in some of England's most respected publications. For much of his life, he was an articulate unbeliever when it came to Jesus. But later in life, his perspective changed dramatically. He became a committed and outspoken follower of Jesus Christ. When he was asked what drew him to Christ, he simply said, "It is the cross, more than anything else, that has called me inexorably to Christ."
Not Christianity, not rituals, not beliefs, not even the great teachings and miracles of Jesus. It was His cross. See, there really is a magnet in that old hunk of wood; a magnet that draws us to the foot of that cross to see how very much He loves us. In your heart, would you allow yourself to walk up to that old skull-shaped hill, stand there at the foot of that cross and look at the agony of the Son of God, nailed to that cross. And listen as He looks your way and says, "Father, forgive him"..."Father, forgive her."
Put all the excuses aside, all your religion, your failures, those hypocrites you've known, those questions, and just let it finally overwhelm you. God's one and only Son loves me; He died for me! And then, bow down at that cross and give yourself to this One who cared more about your life than His own. Tell Him, "Jesus, I'm Yours!"
If you'd like to be sure you belong to Him, we would love to help you know how to begin a relationship with Him and where to go from here. If you'll just go to our website, that's really what it's there for. It's called YoursForLife.net. Would you visit us there as soon as you can today?
I can understand if you walk by Christians or even Christianity. But please, don't walk by the cross! That is a love you just dare not pass by. And it is your only hope of heaven.
"the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks"
January 2
All God's Children
If they could be made God's people by what they did, God's gift of grace would not really be a gift.
Romans 11:6 (NCV)
To whom does God offer his gift? To the brightest? The most beautiful or the most charming? No. His gift is for us all--beggars and bankers, clergy and clerks, judges and janitors. All God's children.
And he wants us so badly, he'll take us in any condition--"as is" reads the tag on our collars. He's not about to wait for us to reach perfection (he knows we'll never get there!). Do you think he's waiting for us to overcome all temptations? Hardly. When we master the Christian walk? Far from it. Remember, Christ died for us when we were still sinners. His sacrifice, then, was not dependent on our performance.
He wants us now.
1 Samuel 10
1 Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on Saul's head and kissed him, saying, "Has not the LORD anointed you leader over his inheritance? [f] 2 When you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel's tomb, at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They will say to you, 'The donkeys you set out to look for have been found. And now your father has stopped thinking about them and is worried about you. He is asking, "What shall I do about my son?" '
3 "Then you will go on from there until you reach the great tree of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there. One will be carrying three young goats, another three loaves of bread, and another a skin of wine. 4 They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from them.
5 "After that you will go to Gibeah of God, where there is a Philistine outpost. As you approach the town, you will meet a procession of prophets coming down from the high place with lyres, tambourines, flutes and harps being played before them, and they will be prophesying. 6 The Spirit of the LORD will come upon you in power, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. 7 Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.
8 "Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, [g] but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do."
Saul Made King
9 As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul's heart, and all these signs were fulfilled that day. 10 When they arrived at Gibeah, a procession of prophets met him; the Spirit of God came upon him in power, and he joined in their prophesying. 11 When all those who had formerly known him saw him prophesying with the prophets, they asked each other, "What is this that has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?"
12 A man who lived there answered, "And who is their father?" So it became a saying: "Is Saul also among the prophets?" 13 After Saul stopped prophesying, he went to the high place.
14 Now Saul's uncle asked him and his servant, "Where have you been?"
"Looking for the donkeys," he said. "But when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel."
15 Saul's uncle said, "Tell me what Samuel said to you."
16 Saul replied, "He assured us that the donkeys had been found." But he did not tell his uncle what Samuel had said about the kingship.
17 Samuel summoned the people of Israel to the LORD at Mizpah 18 and said to them, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'I brought Israel up out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the power of Egypt and all the kingdoms that oppressed you.' 19 But you have now rejected your God, who saves you out of all your calamities and distresses. And you have said, 'No, set a king over us.' So now present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and clans."
20 When Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. 21 Then he brought forward the tribe of Benjamin, clan by clan, and Matri's clan was chosen. Finally Saul son of Kish was chosen. But when they looked for him, he was not to be found. 22 So they inquired further of the LORD, "Has the man come here yet?"
And the LORD said, "Yes, he has hidden himself among the baggage."
23 They ran and brought him out, and as he stood among the people he was a head taller than any of the others. 24 Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see the man the LORD has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people."
Then the people shouted, "Long live the king!"
25 Samuel explained to the people the regulations of the kingship. He wrote them down on a scroll and deposited it before the LORD. Then Samuel dismissed the people, each to his own home.
26 Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, accompanied by valiant men whose hearts God had touched. 27 But some troublemakers said, "How can this fellow save us?" They despised him and brought him no gifts. But Saul kept silent.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Genesis 2
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested [a] from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Adam and Eve
4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.
When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens- 5 and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth [b] and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth [c] and there was no man to work the ground, 6 but streams [d] came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground- the LORD God formed the man The Hebrew for man (adam) sounds like and may be related to the Hebrew for ground (adamah) it is also the name Adam (see Gen. 2:20). from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
January 2, 2009
Don't Waste Your Breath
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Genesis 2:1-7
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. -Psalm 150:6
If I were to scoop up a handful of dirt and blow into it, all I would get is a dirty face. When God did it, He got a living, breathing human being capable of thinking, feeling, dreaming, loving, reproducing, and living forever.
As one of these human beings, I speak of "catching" my breath, "holding" my breath, or "saving" my breath, but these are idioms of language. I cannot save my breath for use at a later time. If I don't use the one I have now, I'll lose it, and I may even lose consciousness.
When God breathed into Adam, He gave more than life; He gave a reason to live: Worship! As the psalmist said, "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord" (Ps. 150:6).
This means that we waste our breath when we use it for something that doesn't honor the One in whom "we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28).
Although we cannot blow life into a handful of dirt, we can use our breath to speak words of comfort, to sing songs of praise, and to run to help the sick and oppressed. When we use our breath to honor our Creator with our unique combination of talents, abilities, and opportunities, we will never be wasting it. - Julie Ackerman Link
Breathe on me, Breath of God,
Fill me with life anew,
That I may love what Thou dost love,
And do what Thou wouldst do. -Hatch
All that I am and have I owe to Jesus.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 2, 2009
Will You Go Out Without Knowing?
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
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.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Magnet In That Old Hunk of Wood - #5735 - January 2, 2009
Category: Your Hard Times
Friday, January 2, 2009
Download MP3 (right click to save)
It started out as a family adventure; it ended as a family tragedy. James Reddick took his 12-year-old son and his 11-year-old daughter on a hiking expedition up on Mount Rainier in Washington State. All of a sudden, a freak snowstorm arose. It created instant blizzard conditions and hurricane force winds. With a blinding 'white out' around them, they could not go any further. Dad knew they had to create some kind of shelter. All he could do was to cut out a large hole in the ground; he used a cup from their cooking kit to do it, and then he put his children in that hole and he covered it with a tarp. But the fierce winds just kept blowing the tarp away, and that left the children exposed to that deadly storm. The father tried everything he could find to hold down the tarp, but nothing worked. Finally, in one last desperate attempt to save his children, he actually lay across that hole himself to keep the snow from blowing in. Two days later, a search party noticed the edge of a backpack. They uncovered the hole and they found the two children alive and well. But first they uncovered their father who froze to death, protecting the ones he loved.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Magnet In That Old Hunk of Wood."
That father had given the highest kind of love there is - the giving of his life so people he loved would not have to die. It is that kind of love that touches us in the deepest part of us; it's a compelling love. It's why I'm asking you to open your heart today to the One who has loved you like that.
It's Jesus who said those oft-quoted words: "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). Then, in John 10:11, our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus says, "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep." I'm one of those sheep that He laid down His life for, and so are you. And that's why it is so important that you make sure you belong to Him; that you've responded to Jesus. The Son of God put His body between you and the awful consequences of running your own life, eternal separation from God. When He died on the cross, Jesus took the storm of God's judgment on Himself. He died so you don't have to.
Malcolm Muggeridge was one of the most respected British journalists of the last century. His keen insights and his distinctive writings appeared regularly in some of England's most respected publications. For much of his life, he was an articulate unbeliever when it came to Jesus. But later in life, his perspective changed dramatically. He became a committed and outspoken follower of Jesus Christ. When he was asked what drew him to Christ, he simply said, "It is the cross, more than anything else, that has called me inexorably to Christ."
Not Christianity, not rituals, not beliefs, not even the great teachings and miracles of Jesus. It was His cross. See, there really is a magnet in that old hunk of wood; a magnet that draws us to the foot of that cross to see how very much He loves us. In your heart, would you allow yourself to walk up to that old skull-shaped hill, stand there at the foot of that cross and look at the agony of the Son of God, nailed to that cross. And listen as He looks your way and says, "Father, forgive him"..."Father, forgive her."
Put all the excuses aside, all your religion, your failures, those hypocrites you've known, those questions, and just let it finally overwhelm you. God's one and only Son loves me; He died for me! And then, bow down at that cross and give yourself to this One who cared more about your life than His own. Tell Him, "Jesus, I'm Yours!"
If you'd like to be sure you belong to Him, we would love to help you know how to begin a relationship with Him and where to go from here. If you'll just go to our website, that's really what it's there for. It's called YoursForLife.net. Would you visit us there as soon as you can today?
I can understand if you walk by Christians or even Christianity. But please, don't walk by the cross! That is a love you just dare not pass by. And it is your only hope of heaven.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
1 Samuel 9, daily readings and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 1
Assurance of Victory
This is the victory that conquers the world—our faith.
1 John 5:4 (NCV)
What is unique about the kingdom of God is that you are assured of victory. You have won! You are assured that you will someday stand before the face of God and see the King of kings. You are assured that someday you will enter a world where there will be no more pain, no more tears, no more sorrow.
If you have no faith in the future, then you have no power in the present. If you have no faith in the life beyond this life, then your present life is going to be powerless. But if you believe in the future and are assured of victory, then there should be a dance in your step and a smile on your face.
1 Samuel 9
Samuel Anoints Saul
1 There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin. 2 He had a son named Saul, an impressive young man without equal among the Israelites—a head taller than any of the others.
3 Now the donkeys belonging to Saul's father Kish were lost, and Kish said to his son Saul, "Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys." 4 So he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and through the area around Shalisha, but they did not find them. They went on into the district of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. Then he passed through the territory of Benjamin, but they did not find them.
5 When they reached the district of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, "Come, let's go back, or my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us."
6 But the servant replied, "Look, in this town there is a man of God; he is highly respected, and everything he says comes true. Let's go there now. Perhaps he will tell us what way to take."
7 Saul said to his servant, "If we go, what can we give the man? The food in our sacks is gone. We have no gift to take to the man of God. What do we have?"
8 The servant answered him again. "Look," he said, "I have a quarter of a shekel [e] of silver. I will give it to the man of God so that he will tell us what way to take." 9 (Formerly in Israel, if a man went to inquire of God, he would say, "Come, let us go to the seer," because the prophet of today used to be called a seer.)
10 "Good," Saul said to his servant. "Come, let's go." So they set out for the town where the man of God was.
11 As they were going up the hill to the town, they met some girls coming out to draw water, and they asked them, "Is the seer here?"
12 "He is," they answered. "He's ahead of you. Hurry now; he has just come to our town today, for the people have a sacrifice at the high place. 13 As soon as you enter the town, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not begin eating until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward, those who are invited will eat. Go up now; you should find him about this time."
14 They went up to the town, and as they were entering it, there was Samuel, coming toward them on his way up to the high place.
15 Now the day before Saul came, the LORD had revealed this to Samuel: 16 "About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him leader over my people Israel; he will deliver my people from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked upon my people, for their cry has reached me."
17 When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the LORD said to him, "This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people."
18 Saul approached Samuel in the gateway and asked, "Would you please tell me where the seer's house is?"
19 "I am the seer," Samuel replied. "Go up ahead of me to the high place, for today you are to eat with me, and in the morning I will let you go and will tell you all that is in your heart. 20 As for the donkeys you lost three days ago, do not worry about them; they have been found. And to whom is all the desire of Israel turned, if not to you and all your father's family?"
21 Saul answered, "But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?"
22 Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the hall and seated them at the head of those who were invited—about thirty in number. 23 Samuel said to the cook, "Bring the piece of meat I gave you, the one I told you to lay aside."
24 So the cook took up the leg with what was on it and set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, "Here is what has been kept for you. Eat, because it was set aside for you for this occasion, from the time I said, 'I have invited guests.' " And Saul dined with Samuel that day.
25 After they came down from the high place to the town, Samuel talked with Saul on the roof of his house. 26 They rose about daybreak and Samuel called to Saul on the roof, "Get ready, and I will send you on your way." When Saul got ready, he and Samuel went outside together. 27 As they were going down to the edge of the town, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to go on ahead of us"-and the servant did so-"but you stay here awhile, so that I may give you a message from God."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Ezekiel 33:30-33 (New International Version)
30 "As for you, son of man, your countrymen are talking together about you by the walls and at the doors of the houses, saying to each other, 'Come and hear the message that has come from the LORD.' 31 My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to listen to your words, but they do not put them into practice. With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. 32 Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.
33 "When all this comes true—and it surely will—then they will know that a prophet has been among them."
January 1, 2009
Live It!
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Ezekiel 33:30-33
You are to them as a very lovely song . . . they hear your words, but they do not do them. —Ezekiel 33:32
Each year, one of my goals is to read the entire Bible. While listing it among my New Year’s resolutions, I noticed a bookmark on my desk. On one side was a brief appeal for people to take in foster children. On the other side were these words referring to that appeal: “Don’t read it. Live it. Real children. Real stories. Real life.” The people who produced the bookmark knew how easily we absorb information without acting on it. They wanted people to respond.
Regular intake of God’s Word is a worthy practice, but it’s not an end in itself. The prophet Ezekiel spoke to an audience who loved to listen but refused to act. The Lord said to Ezekiel: “Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them” (33:32).
Jesus said: “Whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock” (Matt. 7:24).
How will each of us read the Bible this year? Will we read it quickly to achieve the goal of getting through it? Or will we read it with the aim of doing what it says?
Don’t just read it. Live it! — David C. McCasland
The Bible gives us all we need
To live our lives for God each day;
But it won’t help if we don’t read
Then follow what its pages say. —Sper
The value of the Bible consists not only in knowing it but obeying it.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 1, 2009
Let Us Keep to the Point
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
". . . my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death" —Philippians 1:20
My Utmost for His Highest. ". . . my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed . . . ." We will all feel very much ashamed if we do not yield to Jesus the areas of our lives He has asked us to yield to Him. It’s as if Paul were saying, "My determined purpose is to be my utmost for His highest— my best for His glory." To reach that level of determination is a matter of the will, not of debate or of reasoning. It is absolute and irrevocable surrender of the will at that point. An undue amount of thought and consideration for ourselves is what keeps us from making that decision, although we cover it up with the pretense that it is others we are considering. When we think seriously about what it will cost others if we obey the call of Jesus, we tell God He doesn’t know what our obedience will mean. Keep to the point— He does know. Shut out every other thought and keep yourself before God in this one thing only— my utmost for His highest. I am determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him and Him alone.
My Unstoppable Determination for His Holiness. "Whether it means life or death-it makes no difference!" (see Philippians 1:21). Paul was determined that nothing would stop him from doing exactly what God wanted. But before we choose to follow God’s will, a crisis must develop in our lives. This happens because we tend to be unresponsive to God’s gentler nudges. He brings us to the place where He asks us to be our utmost for Him and we begin to debate. He then providentially produces a crisis where we have to decide— for or against. That moment becomes a great crossroads in our lives. If a crisis has come to you on any front, surrender your will to Jesus absolutely and irrevocably.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Getting Out of the Valley - #5734 - January 1, 2009
Category: Your Hindrances
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Download MP3 (right click to save)
My friend Andy used to pastor in West Virginia. The little town they lived in was situated in a long, narrow valley - a pretty dark valley, according to Andy. The sun didn't rise high enough to shine on that town until mid-morning, so it was dark for quite a while each day. My friend said that the town itself was kind of a dingy, dirty place. It's the kind of place where you often battle feeling down. But Andy used to love to go up on the mountain that overlooked the valley, and from up there, he said the view was beautiful. Even the town looked nice from up there!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Getting Out of the Valley."
When you can get above the valley, that panoramic view makes everything look different. If you're spending some time in your own valley right now, that may be something you need to remember. And there's a simple six-letter word that represents that view from the mountain that changes how everything looks.
It's found in our word for today from the Word of God in Psalm chapter 8 beginning in verse 1. "O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth. You have set Your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him?"
Did you catch the word that changes the view? Praise: That is focusing on the size of your God instead of the size of your problems, reminding yourself of the great things God is to you and the great things He has done for you, and celebrating who is really in charge in these circumstances. Praise actually has the power to "silence the foe and the avenger." If that refers to Satan, you need to know that Satan can't stand to be around you when you're praising your Lord. And praise takes away the negative attitudes and the discouragement that our enemy loves to work with.
Discouragement and depression, they themselves are "foes" and "avengers" in our lives. And the darkness of the valley often causes us to succumb to our dark side, to emotional paralysis, or to giving up, until we make the choice to climb up on the mountain that takes us above all that - Praise Mountain. You may not feel like praising God, you probably don't. That's when you need to praise God the most. It's a conscious choice to begin saying and singing God's praises instead of your complaints.
Start celebrating the many ways that God has worked over the months and the years. Look at the progress you've made - at how far you've come, not just how far you still have to go. Thank God for the things that didn't happen that could have happened. Praise Him for places you can see Him working in just the last 24 hours in spite of your difficulties. Start talking up the qualities you love about your Lord, the qualities that you're counting on to get you through right now.
The problem is that we get all focused on the sad situation right in front of us as if that's our whole life. It's only a small dot on a big canvas. Stand back and look at that big canvas and see the glorious things God has done in your life, many of which we can miss when we're all focused on the one thing we're battling right now.
When you're in the valley and you're looking only at what's right in front of you, you're just going to get overwhelmed and discouraged. But as you start to look at your valley from the mountain of praising God, everything is going to look different. And you can have that awesome view anytime you choose to go there.
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
January 1
Assurance of Victory
This is the victory that conquers the world—our faith.
1 John 5:4 (NCV)
What is unique about the kingdom of God is that you are assured of victory. You have won! You are assured that you will someday stand before the face of God and see the King of kings. You are assured that someday you will enter a world where there will be no more pain, no more tears, no more sorrow.
If you have no faith in the future, then you have no power in the present. If you have no faith in the life beyond this life, then your present life is going to be powerless. But if you believe in the future and are assured of victory, then there should be a dance in your step and a smile on your face.
1 Samuel 9
Samuel Anoints Saul
1 There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin. 2 He had a son named Saul, an impressive young man without equal among the Israelites—a head taller than any of the others.
3 Now the donkeys belonging to Saul's father Kish were lost, and Kish said to his son Saul, "Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys." 4 So he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and through the area around Shalisha, but they did not find them. They went on into the district of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. Then he passed through the territory of Benjamin, but they did not find them.
5 When they reached the district of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, "Come, let's go back, or my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us."
6 But the servant replied, "Look, in this town there is a man of God; he is highly respected, and everything he says comes true. Let's go there now. Perhaps he will tell us what way to take."
7 Saul said to his servant, "If we go, what can we give the man? The food in our sacks is gone. We have no gift to take to the man of God. What do we have?"
8 The servant answered him again. "Look," he said, "I have a quarter of a shekel [e] of silver. I will give it to the man of God so that he will tell us what way to take." 9 (Formerly in Israel, if a man went to inquire of God, he would say, "Come, let us go to the seer," because the prophet of today used to be called a seer.)
10 "Good," Saul said to his servant. "Come, let's go." So they set out for the town where the man of God was.
11 As they were going up the hill to the town, they met some girls coming out to draw water, and they asked them, "Is the seer here?"
12 "He is," they answered. "He's ahead of you. Hurry now; he has just come to our town today, for the people have a sacrifice at the high place. 13 As soon as you enter the town, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not begin eating until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward, those who are invited will eat. Go up now; you should find him about this time."
14 They went up to the town, and as they were entering it, there was Samuel, coming toward them on his way up to the high place.
15 Now the day before Saul came, the LORD had revealed this to Samuel: 16 "About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him leader over my people Israel; he will deliver my people from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked upon my people, for their cry has reached me."
17 When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the LORD said to him, "This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people."
18 Saul approached Samuel in the gateway and asked, "Would you please tell me where the seer's house is?"
19 "I am the seer," Samuel replied. "Go up ahead of me to the high place, for today you are to eat with me, and in the morning I will let you go and will tell you all that is in your heart. 20 As for the donkeys you lost three days ago, do not worry about them; they have been found. And to whom is all the desire of Israel turned, if not to you and all your father's family?"
21 Saul answered, "But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?"
22 Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the hall and seated them at the head of those who were invited—about thirty in number. 23 Samuel said to the cook, "Bring the piece of meat I gave you, the one I told you to lay aside."
24 So the cook took up the leg with what was on it and set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, "Here is what has been kept for you. Eat, because it was set aside for you for this occasion, from the time I said, 'I have invited guests.' " And Saul dined with Samuel that day.
25 After they came down from the high place to the town, Samuel talked with Saul on the roof of his house. 26 They rose about daybreak and Samuel called to Saul on the roof, "Get ready, and I will send you on your way." When Saul got ready, he and Samuel went outside together. 27 As they were going down to the edge of the town, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to go on ahead of us"-and the servant did so-"but you stay here awhile, so that I may give you a message from God."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Ezekiel 33:30-33 (New International Version)
30 "As for you, son of man, your countrymen are talking together about you by the walls and at the doors of the houses, saying to each other, 'Come and hear the message that has come from the LORD.' 31 My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to listen to your words, but they do not put them into practice. With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. 32 Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.
33 "When all this comes true—and it surely will—then they will know that a prophet has been among them."
January 1, 2009
Live It!
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Ezekiel 33:30-33
You are to them as a very lovely song . . . they hear your words, but they do not do them. —Ezekiel 33:32
Each year, one of my goals is to read the entire Bible. While listing it among my New Year’s resolutions, I noticed a bookmark on my desk. On one side was a brief appeal for people to take in foster children. On the other side were these words referring to that appeal: “Don’t read it. Live it. Real children. Real stories. Real life.” The people who produced the bookmark knew how easily we absorb information without acting on it. They wanted people to respond.
Regular intake of God’s Word is a worthy practice, but it’s not an end in itself. The prophet Ezekiel spoke to an audience who loved to listen but refused to act. The Lord said to Ezekiel: “Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them” (33:32).
Jesus said: “Whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock” (Matt. 7:24).
How will each of us read the Bible this year? Will we read it quickly to achieve the goal of getting through it? Or will we read it with the aim of doing what it says?
Don’t just read it. Live it! — David C. McCasland
The Bible gives us all we need
To live our lives for God each day;
But it won’t help if we don’t read
Then follow what its pages say. —Sper
The value of the Bible consists not only in knowing it but obeying it.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
January 1, 2009
Let Us Keep to the Point
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
". . . my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death" —Philippians 1:20
My Utmost for His Highest. ". . . my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed . . . ." We will all feel very much ashamed if we do not yield to Jesus the areas of our lives He has asked us to yield to Him. It’s as if Paul were saying, "My determined purpose is to be my utmost for His highest— my best for His glory." To reach that level of determination is a matter of the will, not of debate or of reasoning. It is absolute and irrevocable surrender of the will at that point. An undue amount of thought and consideration for ourselves is what keeps us from making that decision, although we cover it up with the pretense that it is others we are considering. When we think seriously about what it will cost others if we obey the call of Jesus, we tell God He doesn’t know what our obedience will mean. Keep to the point— He does know. Shut out every other thought and keep yourself before God in this one thing only— my utmost for His highest. I am determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him and Him alone.
My Unstoppable Determination for His Holiness. "Whether it means life or death-it makes no difference!" (see Philippians 1:21). Paul was determined that nothing would stop him from doing exactly what God wanted. But before we choose to follow God’s will, a crisis must develop in our lives. This happens because we tend to be unresponsive to God’s gentler nudges. He brings us to the place where He asks us to be our utmost for Him and we begin to debate. He then providentially produces a crisis where we have to decide— for or against. That moment becomes a great crossroads in our lives. If a crisis has come to you on any front, surrender your will to Jesus absolutely and irrevocably.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Getting Out of the Valley - #5734 - January 1, 2009
Category: Your Hindrances
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Download MP3 (right click to save)
My friend Andy used to pastor in West Virginia. The little town they lived in was situated in a long, narrow valley - a pretty dark valley, according to Andy. The sun didn't rise high enough to shine on that town until mid-morning, so it was dark for quite a while each day. My friend said that the town itself was kind of a dingy, dirty place. It's the kind of place where you often battle feeling down. But Andy used to love to go up on the mountain that overlooked the valley, and from up there, he said the view was beautiful. Even the town looked nice from up there!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Getting Out of the Valley."
When you can get above the valley, that panoramic view makes everything look different. If you're spending some time in your own valley right now, that may be something you need to remember. And there's a simple six-letter word that represents that view from the mountain that changes how everything looks.
It's found in our word for today from the Word of God in Psalm chapter 8 beginning in verse 1. "O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth. You have set Your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him?"
Did you catch the word that changes the view? Praise: That is focusing on the size of your God instead of the size of your problems, reminding yourself of the great things God is to you and the great things He has done for you, and celebrating who is really in charge in these circumstances. Praise actually has the power to "silence the foe and the avenger." If that refers to Satan, you need to know that Satan can't stand to be around you when you're praising your Lord. And praise takes away the negative attitudes and the discouragement that our enemy loves to work with.
Discouragement and depression, they themselves are "foes" and "avengers" in our lives. And the darkness of the valley often causes us to succumb to our dark side, to emotional paralysis, or to giving up, until we make the choice to climb up on the mountain that takes us above all that - Praise Mountain. You may not feel like praising God, you probably don't. That's when you need to praise God the most. It's a conscious choice to begin saying and singing God's praises instead of your complaints.
Start celebrating the many ways that God has worked over the months and the years. Look at the progress you've made - at how far you've come, not just how far you still have to go. Thank God for the things that didn't happen that could have happened. Praise Him for places you can see Him working in just the last 24 hours in spite of your difficulties. Start talking up the qualities you love about your Lord, the qualities that you're counting on to get you through right now.
The problem is that we get all focused on the sad situation right in front of us as if that's our whole life. It's only a small dot on a big canvas. Stand back and look at that big canvas and see the glorious things God has done in your life, many of which we can miss when we're all focused on the one thing we're battling right now.
When you're in the valley and you're looking only at what's right in front of you, you're just going to get overwhelmed and discouraged. But as you start to look at your valley from the mountain of praising God, everything is going to look different. And you can have that awesome view anytime you choose to go there.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
1 Samuel 8, daily readings and devotions
Daily Devotional by Max Lucado
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
December 31
Needed: One Great Savior
All have sinned and are not good enough for God's glory, and all need to be made right with God by his grace, which is a free gift.
Romans 3:23-24 (NCV)
The supreme force in salvation is God's grace. Not our works. Not our talents. Not our feelings. Not our strength.
Salvation is God's sudden, calming presence during the stormy seas of our lives. We hear his voice; we take the step.
We, like Paul, are aware of two things: We are great sinners and we need a great savior.
We, like Peter, are aware of two facts: We are going down and God is standing up. So we... leave behind the Titanic of self-righteousness and stand on the solid path of God's grace.
And, surprisingly, we are able to walk on water. Death is disarmed. Failures are forgivable. Life has real purpose. And God is not only within sight, he is within reach
1 Samuel 8
Israel Asks for a King
1 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges for Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. 3 But his sons did not walk in his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.
4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5 They said to him, "You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead [c] us, such as all the other nations have."
6 But when they said, "Give us a king to lead us," this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will do."
10 Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. 11 He said, "This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. 12 Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. 15 He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. 16 Your menservants and maidservants and the best of your cattle [d] and donkeys he will take for his own use. 17 He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. 18 When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, and the LORD will not answer you in that day."
19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We want a king over us. 20 Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles."
21 When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it before the LORD. 22 The LORD answered, "Listen to them and give them a king."
Then Samuel said to the men of Israel, "Everyone go back to his town."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Ecclesiastes 3
A Time for Everything
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
December 31, 2008
Times And Seasons
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven. —Ecclesiastes 3:1
The Rev. Gardner Taylor has been called “the dean of American preaching.” Born in Louisiana in 1918, the grandson of slaves, he overcame the segregation of his youth to become the pastor of a large New York congregation and a leader in the struggle for racial equality. For 6 decades he traveled the world as a much sought-after preacher.
But at age 89, Rev. Taylor’s health gave way and he could no longer accept speaking engagements. He told Rachel Zoll of the Associated Press: “I at first felt rather crestfallen.” But then he spoke of his belief that “there are seasons and eras, and we have to see what they are as best as we can, and to find what is positive in them.”
In an effort to face the challenges of life, we often turn to Solomon’s words: “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven” (Eccl. 3:1). But we readily admit that we would rather laugh than weep, dance than mourn, and gain than lose (vv.4,6).
Yet we know that as we embrace the lessons and opportunities of every season that comes to us, we find that “God is our refuge and strength” (Ps. 46:1).
Whatever season we’re in, it’s always the season to trust in Him. — David C. McCasland
Just as the winter turns to spring,
Our lives have changing seasons too;
So when a gloomy forecast comes,
Remember—God has plans for you. —Sper
Whatever the season of life, attitude makes all the difference.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 31, 2008
Yesterday
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
You shall not go out with haste, . . . for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard —Isaiah 52:12
Security from Yesterday. ". . . God requires an account of what is past" ( Ecclesiastes 3:15 ). At the end of the year we turn with eagerness to all that God has for the future, and yet anxiety is apt to arise when we remember our yesterdays. Our present enjoyment of God’s grace tends to be lessened by the memory of yesterday’s sins and blunders. But God is the God of our yesterdays, and He allows the memory of them to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual growth for our future. God reminds us of the past to protect us from a very shallow security in the present.
Security for Tomorrow. ". . . the Lord will go before you . . . ." This is a gracious revelation— that God will send His forces out where we have failed to do so. He will keep watch so that we will not be tripped up again by the same failures, as would undoubtedly happen if He were not our "rear guard." And God’s hand reaches back to the past, settling all the claims against our conscience.
Security for Today. "You shall not go out with haste . . . ." As we go forth into the coming year, let it not be in the haste of impetuous, forgetful delight, nor with the quickness of impulsive thoughtlessness. But let us go out with the patient power of knowing that the God of Israel will go before us. Our yesterdays hold broken and irreversible things for us. It is true that we have lost opportunities that will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Let the past rest, but let it rest in the sweet embrace of Christ.
Leave the broken, irreversible past in His hands, and step out into the invincible future with Him.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
A Big Platform For a Big Performance - #5733 - December 31, 2008
Category: Your Personal Power
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
It was the largest cooperative effort ever among the churches of this county where we were about to do our next community-wide outreaches. What we do is a full-scale mobilization of God's people in an area to reach lost people with what we call "non-religious" evangelism. One of the outreaches, the youth event, was especially targeted to reach lost young people. One main attraction was going to be a concert by one of America's best-known contemporary Christian bands. And the committee for that youth event was a little overwhelmed when they saw the size of the stage this group was going to need. But they went to work like beavers, and they busily rose to the challenge of constructing a very big stage for a very big event. When you walked into the gym the afternoon of the outreach, you might well ask, "What's all this for?" Answer: a big platform for a big event, which turned out to be the biggest youth event anyone could ever remember in that county! An event where, praise God, hundreds of young people met Jesus Christ!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Big Platform For a Big Performance."
God may be building a big platform in your life right now. Oh, it doesn't look like a platform. It looks like a big problem, a big threat, or a big pain! But actually it's a big platform on which God is about to give a big performance!
There's a great example of how that works in our word for today from the Word of God in 1 Kings 18:36-37. Elijah is up against something huge; he is confronting 450 prophets of the god Baal who much of his culture worships. It's a showdown with the odds 450 to 1. A sacrifice has been laid on the altar on Mt. Carmel and Elijah lays down a challenge to see whose God, Jehovah or Baal, will consume that sacrifice with fire from heaven. Then Elijah builds a bigger platform for God by drenching the sacrifice, the altar, and the whole area with water.
Then the Bible says, "At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: 'O Lord, let it be known today that you are God in Israel. Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so these people will know that You, O Lord, are God, and that You are turning their hearts back again.' Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and it also licked up the water in the trench."
Man! Here was something so big only God could do it, and this huge challenge provided a huge platform for God to show up with a huge performance of His power. That huge challenge you're facing right now - God didn't bring it or allow it to hurt you. It's there to provide a stage on which He can show up for you in a way that you and those who know you will never forget.
Elijah here shows us a powerful way to pray: that God will answer in whatever way will let everyone know that He is God. If you're facing a need so great that only God could meet it - a problem so impossible only God could solve it; something so big only God could do it - well, get ready for God to show up big-time! And pray as Elijah did - not just for the situation, but for God to do this in the way that will give Him the greatest glory and you and the people around you the biggest view of His greatness and His love.
The bigger the challenge becomes, the bigger the platform for your God to do His amazing thing - maybe something bigger than you have ever seen Him do before!
“the One who came still comes and the One who spoke still speaks”
December 31
Needed: One Great Savior
All have sinned and are not good enough for God's glory, and all need to be made right with God by his grace, which is a free gift.
Romans 3:23-24 (NCV)
The supreme force in salvation is God's grace. Not our works. Not our talents. Not our feelings. Not our strength.
Salvation is God's sudden, calming presence during the stormy seas of our lives. We hear his voice; we take the step.
We, like Paul, are aware of two things: We are great sinners and we need a great savior.
We, like Peter, are aware of two facts: We are going down and God is standing up. So we... leave behind the Titanic of self-righteousness and stand on the solid path of God's grace.
And, surprisingly, we are able to walk on water. Death is disarmed. Failures are forgivable. Life has real purpose. And God is not only within sight, he is within reach
1 Samuel 8
Israel Asks for a King
1 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges for Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. 3 But his sons did not walk in his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.
4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5 They said to him, "You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead [c] us, such as all the other nations have."
6 But when they said, "Give us a king to lead us," this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will do."
10 Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. 11 He said, "This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. 12 Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. 15 He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. 16 Your menservants and maidservants and the best of your cattle [d] and donkeys he will take for his own use. 17 He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. 18 When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, and the LORD will not answer you in that day."
19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We want a king over us. 20 Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles."
21 When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it before the LORD. 22 The LORD answered, "Listen to them and give them a king."
Then Samuel said to the men of Israel, "Everyone go back to his town."
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Ecclesiastes 3
A Time for Everything
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
December 31, 2008
Times And Seasons
ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven. —Ecclesiastes 3:1
The Rev. Gardner Taylor has been called “the dean of American preaching.” Born in Louisiana in 1918, the grandson of slaves, he overcame the segregation of his youth to become the pastor of a large New York congregation and a leader in the struggle for racial equality. For 6 decades he traveled the world as a much sought-after preacher.
But at age 89, Rev. Taylor’s health gave way and he could no longer accept speaking engagements. He told Rachel Zoll of the Associated Press: “I at first felt rather crestfallen.” But then he spoke of his belief that “there are seasons and eras, and we have to see what they are as best as we can, and to find what is positive in them.”
In an effort to face the challenges of life, we often turn to Solomon’s words: “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven” (Eccl. 3:1). But we readily admit that we would rather laugh than weep, dance than mourn, and gain than lose (vv.4,6).
Yet we know that as we embrace the lessons and opportunities of every season that comes to us, we find that “God is our refuge and strength” (Ps. 46:1).
Whatever season we’re in, it’s always the season to trust in Him. — David C. McCasland
Just as the winter turns to spring,
Our lives have changing seasons too;
So when a gloomy forecast comes,
Remember—God has plans for you. —Sper
Whatever the season of life, attitude makes all the difference.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
December 31, 2008
Yesterday
ODB RADIO: | Download
READ:
You shall not go out with haste, . . . for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard —Isaiah 52:12
Security from Yesterday. ". . . God requires an account of what is past" ( Ecclesiastes 3:15 ). At the end of the year we turn with eagerness to all that God has for the future, and yet anxiety is apt to arise when we remember our yesterdays. Our present enjoyment of God’s grace tends to be lessened by the memory of yesterday’s sins and blunders. But God is the God of our yesterdays, and He allows the memory of them to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual growth for our future. God reminds us of the past to protect us from a very shallow security in the present.
Security for Tomorrow. ". . . the Lord will go before you . . . ." This is a gracious revelation— that God will send His forces out where we have failed to do so. He will keep watch so that we will not be tripped up again by the same failures, as would undoubtedly happen if He were not our "rear guard." And God’s hand reaches back to the past, settling all the claims against our conscience.
Security for Today. "You shall not go out with haste . . . ." As we go forth into the coming year, let it not be in the haste of impetuous, forgetful delight, nor with the quickness of impulsive thoughtlessness. But let us go out with the patient power of knowing that the God of Israel will go before us. Our yesterdays hold broken and irreversible things for us. It is true that we have lost opportunities that will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Let the past rest, but let it rest in the sweet embrace of Christ.
Leave the broken, irreversible past in His hands, and step out into the invincible future with Him.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
A Big Platform For a Big Performance - #5733 - December 31, 2008
Category: Your Personal Power
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Download MP3 (right click to save)
It was the largest cooperative effort ever among the churches of this county where we were about to do our next community-wide outreaches. What we do is a full-scale mobilization of God's people in an area to reach lost people with what we call "non-religious" evangelism. One of the outreaches, the youth event, was especially targeted to reach lost young people. One main attraction was going to be a concert by one of America's best-known contemporary Christian bands. And the committee for that youth event was a little overwhelmed when they saw the size of the stage this group was going to need. But they went to work like beavers, and they busily rose to the challenge of constructing a very big stage for a very big event. When you walked into the gym the afternoon of the outreach, you might well ask, "What's all this for?" Answer: a big platform for a big event, which turned out to be the biggest youth event anyone could ever remember in that county! An event where, praise God, hundreds of young people met Jesus Christ!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Big Platform For a Big Performance."
God may be building a big platform in your life right now. Oh, it doesn't look like a platform. It looks like a big problem, a big threat, or a big pain! But actually it's a big platform on which God is about to give a big performance!
There's a great example of how that works in our word for today from the Word of God in 1 Kings 18:36-37. Elijah is up against something huge; he is confronting 450 prophets of the god Baal who much of his culture worships. It's a showdown with the odds 450 to 1. A sacrifice has been laid on the altar on Mt. Carmel and Elijah lays down a challenge to see whose God, Jehovah or Baal, will consume that sacrifice with fire from heaven. Then Elijah builds a bigger platform for God by drenching the sacrifice, the altar, and the whole area with water.
Then the Bible says, "At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: 'O Lord, let it be known today that you are God in Israel. Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so these people will know that You, O Lord, are God, and that You are turning their hearts back again.' Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and it also licked up the water in the trench."
Man! Here was something so big only God could do it, and this huge challenge provided a huge platform for God to show up with a huge performance of His power. That huge challenge you're facing right now - God didn't bring it or allow it to hurt you. It's there to provide a stage on which He can show up for you in a way that you and those who know you will never forget.
Elijah here shows us a powerful way to pray: that God will answer in whatever way will let everyone know that He is God. If you're facing a need so great that only God could meet it - a problem so impossible only God could solve it; something so big only God could do it - well, get ready for God to show up big-time! And pray as Elijah did - not just for the situation, but for God to do this in the way that will give Him the greatest glory and you and the people around you the biggest view of His greatness and His love.
The bigger the challenge becomes, the bigger the platform for your God to do His amazing thing - maybe something bigger than you have ever seen Him do before!
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