Max Lucado Daily: Just for You
I'm about to tell you something you may find hard to believe. You don't have to agree with me, but I'd like you to consider it with me. Here it is. If you were the only person on earth, the earth would look exactly the same. The Himalayas would still have their drama and the Caribbean its charm. The sun would still nestle behind the Rockies in the evenings and spray light on the desert in the mornings. If you were the sole pilgrim on this globe, God would not diminish its beauty one degree.
Because He did it all for you. And He's waiting for you to discover His gift, for your eyes to pop, your heart to stop. He's waiting for the moment between the dropping of the jaw and the leap of the heart. For in that silence He whispers, I did it just for you.
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 31
Pharaoh as a Felled Cedar of Lebanon
In the eleventh year, in the third month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes:
“‘Who can be compared with you in majesty?
3 Consider Assyria, once a cedar in Lebanon,
with beautiful branches overshadowing the forest;
it towered on high,
its top above the thick foliage.
4 The waters nourished it,
deep springs made it grow tall;
their streams flowed
all around its base
and sent their channels
to all the trees of the field.
5 So it towered higher
than all the trees of the field;
its boughs increased
and its branches grew long,
spreading because of abundant waters.
6 All the birds of the sky
nested in its boughs,
all the animals of the wild
gave birth under its branches;
all the great nations
lived in its shade.
7 It was majestic in beauty,
with its spreading boughs,
for its roots went down
to abundant waters.
8 The cedars in the garden of God
could not rival it,
nor could the junipers
equal its boughs,
nor could the plane trees
compare with its branches—
no tree in the garden of God
could match its beauty.
9 I made it beautiful
with abundant branches,
the envy of all the trees of Eden
in the garden of God.
10 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because the great cedar towered over the thick foliage, and because it was proud of its height, 11 I gave it into the hands of the ruler of the nations, for him to deal with according to its wickedness. I cast it aside, 12 and the most ruthless of foreign nations cut it down and left it. Its boughs fell on the mountains and in all the valleys; its branches lay broken in all the ravines of the land. All the nations of the earth came out from under its shade and left it. 13 All the birds settled on the fallen tree, and all the wild animals lived among its branches. 14 Therefore no other trees by the waters are ever to tower proudly on high, lifting their tops above the thick foliage. No other trees so well-watered are ever to reach such a height; they are all destined for death, for the earth below, among mortals who go down to the realm of the dead.
15 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On the day it was brought down to the realm of the dead I covered the deep springs with mourning for it; I held back its streams, and its abundant waters were restrained. Because of it I clothed Lebanon with gloom, and all the trees of the field withered away. 16 I made the nations tremble at the sound of its fall when I brought it down to the realm of the dead to be with those who go down to the pit. Then all the trees of Eden, the choicest and best of Lebanon, the well-watered trees, were consoled in the earth below. 17 They too, like the great cedar, had gone down to the realm of the dead, to those killed by the sword, along with the armed men who lived in its shade among the nations.
18 “‘Which of the trees of Eden can be compared with you in splendor and majesty? Yet you, too, will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth below; you will lie among the uncircumcised, with those killed by the sword.
“‘This is Pharaoh and all his hordes, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Lamentations 3:19-33
I remember my affliction and my wandering,
the bitterness and the gall.
20 I well remember them,
and my soul is downcast within me.
21 Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:
22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”
25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;
26 it is good to wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
27 It is good for a man to bear the yoke
while he is young.
28 Let him sit alone in silence,
for the Lord has laid it on him.
29 Let him bury his face in the dust—
there may yet be hope.
30 Let him offer his cheek to one who would strike him,
and let him be filled with disgrace.
31 For no one is cast off
by the Lord forever.
32 Though he brings grief, he will show compassion,
so great is his unfailing love.
33 For he does not willingly bring affliction
or grief to anyone.
Disaster Diaries
November 11, 2013 — by Dennis Fisher
His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. —Lamentations 3:22-23
Yves Congar was just 10 years old when World War I began and the French town where he lived was invaded by the German army. His mother encouraged him to keep a diary, and what resulted was a lucid description of a military occupation, complete with written narrative and colored sketches. His diary recorded a disaster from a child’s perspective. What he witnessed had such a profound effect on him that he felt called to bring others the hope of Christ.
Centuries earlier the prophet Jeremiah was an eyewitness to the invasion of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. He wrote down his observations in his “diary”—the book of Lamentations. Despite these distressing times, the prophet found hope in the heart of God. He wrote: “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness” (3:22-23).
At various times, we may experience or witness disasters that feel like hostile forces entering our lives. But these times of trouble do not last forever. And, like Jeremiah, our most sustaining hope is to reflect upon the faithfulness and provision of our heavenly Father. The Lord’s compassions are new every morning, and His faithfulness is great!
The best reason for hope is God’s faithfulness.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 11, 2013
The Supreme Climb
He said, ’Take now your son . . .’ —Genesis 22:2
God’s command is, “Take now,” not later. It is incredible how we debate! We know something is right, but we try to find excuses for not doing it immediately. If we are to climb to the height God reveals, it can never be done later— it must be done now. And the sacrifice must be worked through our will before we actually perform it.
“So Abraham rose early in the morning . . . and went to the place of which God had told him” (Genesis 22:3). Oh, the wonderful simplicity of Abraham! When God spoke, he did not “confer with flesh and blood” (Galatians 1:16). Beware when you want to “confer with flesh and blood” or even your own thoughts, insights, or understandings— anything that is not based on your personal relationship with God. These are all things that compete with and hinder obedience to God.
Abraham did not choose what the sacrifice would be. Always guard against self-chosen service for God. Self-sacrifice may be a disease that impairs your service. If God has made your cup sweet, drink it with grace; or even if He has made it bitter, drink it in communion with Him. If the providential will of God means a hard and difficult time for you, go through it. But never decide the place of your own martyrdom, as if to say, “I will only go to there, but no farther.” God chose the test for Abraham, and Abraham neither delayed nor protested, but steadily obeyed. If you are not living in touch with God, it is easy to blame Him or pass judgment on Him. You must go through the trial before you have any right to pronounce a verdict, because by going through the trial you learn to know God better. God is working in us to reach His highest goals until His purpose and our purpose become one.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Fixing What Almost Sank You - #7001
Monday, November 11, 2013
A friend told me an amazing true story about his father, Joe, who was a submariner in WWII on the torpedo crew. Now unfortunately, a lot of torpedoes apparently malfunctioned during the war, including some that almost cost Joe and his shipmates their lives. The battleship that those torpedoes missed went after Joe's submarine with depth charges. And they suddenly dived to the bottom; shut off everything that sonar could detect, and they had to sit there for a whole day. Their oxygen was almost gone, and they barely survived.
Well, Joe vowed that if he ever got out of that predicament he was going to help build a torpedo that would not fail. And that's exactly what he did. Later Joe learned that one out of three torpedoes was defective. So he went to night school, he studied to be an electrician and a machinist. He eventually ended up with a major role and a highly respected reputation with the Defense Department. Yes, he helped develop the better weapon that he promised he would.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Fixing What Almost Sank You."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Peter 1:18-19 . God says, "You know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ; a Lamb without blemish or defect." See, what Christ did on the cross has the power to rescue us from what the Bible calls "the empty ways of life handed down to us by our forefathers."
We all got handed down some empty ways of doing things from our parents, because all of us were raised by sinners; there are no perfect parents. Our parents passed on to us some good things, but part of our heritage is what I call "family germs" or "family sins." We've all got some destructive or selfish ways that probably wounded us as we were growing up around those ways. You say, "I'll never talk like that." "I'll never treat people like that." "I'll never act that way." Guess what? We do. "Oh, no! I sound like my Father; I'm acting like my Mother."
See, chances are your parents grew up around parents with the same weakness they had. And if we could go back in a Time Machine we might be amazed to find out how many generations have been marked by that family sin, which brings us to torpedo Joe. He saw what had almost sunk him, and he determined he was going to fix it so it wouldn't sink anyone else.
In the same way, we can see the traits in our growing up family that almost sank us. And we can decide it does not have to touch another generation. It doesn't have to mark the people we love. We can decide that only because there's a Savior who redeems us from those empty ways of life. Think about the family sins in your background. What is it? Is it a negative, critical mouth, untruthfulness, unfaithfulness? Maybe there's an addiction in the family tree, or a perfectionism that almost drove you crazy, maybe some manipulative ways of getting your way. Is there some selfishness there, impatience, workaholism? Whatever it is, it can stop in your generation.
That begins when you come to Jesus Christ and say, "Lord, it's going to stop here. I give this dark part of me, this dark part of my family to You. Believing there is power in Your blood, the blood of Christ shed on a cross for those sins to break the power of this sin."
It may be that you've never opened up your life to this awesome sin-forgiving, sin-changing, death-reversing Savior, Jesus Christ. Boy, this would be the time to do that and begin to be able to have the power to say, "The dark stuff stops here." If you want to begin a relationship with Him, I hope you'll meet me at our website and let me show you how to do that. Go to ANewStory.com.
This is such great news! You don't have to settle for the failures in your past that almost sank you. You can face it. You can fight it. You can beat it in Jesus' name. And you can begin to win the battle, not only for yourself but for all those who will follow.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Ezekiel 30, bible reading and devotionals.
Max Lucado Daily: Pray!
Anyone who is having troubles
should pray. Anyone who is happy
should sing praises.
James 5:13
When a believing person prays—great things happen.
If you want to deepen your prayer life—pray. Don’t prepare to pray. Just pray. Don’t read about prayer. Just pray. Don’t attend a lecture on prayer or engage in discussion about prayer. Just pray.
James 5:13 says anyone who’s having troubles should pray. Anyone who’s happy should sing praises.
Posture, tone, and place are personal matters. Do what works for you. Just don’t overthink it. In other words, don’t be so concerned about wrapping the gift that you never give it. Better to pray awkwardly than not at all.
And if you feel you should only pray when you’re inspired, that’s okay. Just see to it that you are inspired every day.
Ezekiel 30
A Lament Over Egypt
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Wail and say,
“Alas for that day!”
3 For the day is near,
the day of the Lord is near—
a day of clouds,
a time of doom for the nations.
4 A sword will come against Egypt,
and anguish will come upon Cush.[a]
When the slain fall in Egypt,
her wealth will be carried away
and her foundations torn down.
5 Cush and Libya, Lydia and all Arabia, Kub and the people of the covenant land will fall by the sword along with Egypt.
6 “‘This is what the Lord says:
“‘The allies of Egypt will fall
and her proud strength will fail.
From Migdol to Aswan
they will fall by the sword within her,
declares the Sovereign Lord.
7 “‘They will be desolate
among desolate lands,
and their cities will lie
among ruined cities.
8 Then they will know that I am the Lord,
when I set fire to Egypt
and all her helpers are crushed.
9 “‘On that day messengers will go out from me in ships to frighten Cush out of her complacency. Anguish will take hold of them on the day of Egypt’s doom, for it is sure to come.
10 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt
by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
11 He and his army—the most ruthless of nations—
will be brought in to destroy the land.
They will draw their swords against Egypt
and fill the land with the slain.
12 I will dry up the waters of the Nile
and sell the land to an evil nation;
by the hand of foreigners
I will lay waste the land and everything in it.
I the Lord have spoken.
13 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I will destroy the idols
and put an end to the images in Memphis.
No longer will there be a prince in Egypt,
and I will spread fear throughout the land.
14 I will lay waste Upper Egypt,
set fire to Zoan
and inflict punishment on Thebes.
15 I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium,
the stronghold of Egypt,
and wipe out the hordes of Thebes.
16 I will set fire to Egypt;
Pelusium will writhe in agony.
Thebes will be taken by storm;
Memphis will be in constant distress.
17 The young men of Heliopolis and Bubastis
will fall by the sword,
and the cities themselves will go into captivity.
18 Dark will be the day at Tahpanhes
when I break the yoke of Egypt;
there her proud strength will come to an end.
She will be covered with clouds,
and her villages will go into captivity.
19 So I will inflict punishment on Egypt,
and they will know that I am the Lord.’”
Pharaoh’s Arms Are Broken
20 In the eleventh year, in the first month on the seventh day, the word of the Lord came to me: 21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt. It has not been bound up to be healed or put in a splint so that it may become strong enough to hold a sword. 22 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt. I will break both his arms, the good arm as well as the broken one, and make the sword fall from his hand. 23 I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries. 24 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan before him like a mortally wounded man. 25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh will fall limp. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon and he brandishes it against Egypt. 26 I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Psalm 119:89-93
Lamedh
89 Your word, Lord, is eternal;
it stands firm in the heavens.
90 Your faithfulness continues through all generations;
you established the earth, and it endures.
91 Your laws endure to this day,
for all things serve you.
92 If your law had not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have preserved my life.
Remembering Our Father’s Words
November 10, 2013 — by Marvin Williams
I will never forget Your precepts, for by them You have given me life. —Psalm 119:93
Jim Davidson was climbing down Mount Rainier when he fell through a snow bridge and into a crevasse (a pitch-black, ice-walled crack in a glacier). As Jim stood bloodied and bruised in that dark ice cave, he reflected on his childhood and recalled how his father had repeatedly reminded him that he could accomplish great things if he pressed through adversity. Those words helped to sustain Jim as he spent the next 5 hours climbing out of that dark ice cave to safety with very little gear and under extremely difficult circumstances.
The psalmist seemed to climb out of his own crevasse of affliction and pain by recalling his heavenly Father’s words. He admitted that if God and His Word had not sustained him with joy, he would have died in his misery (Ps. 119:92). He expressed full confidence in the Lord’s eternal Word (v.89) and in the faithfulness of His character (v.90). As a result of God’s faithfulness, the psalmist made a commitment never to forget God’s words to him because they had a central part in rescuing his life and bringing him strength.
In our darkest caves and moments of affliction, our souls can be revived by our Father in heaven when we recall and fill our minds with His encouraging words.
Thinking It Over
What crevasse of discouragement are you currently in?
How can you use this time as an occasion to revive your
soul by filling your mind and heart with God’s Word?
Remembering God’s words revives our soul.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 10, 2013
Fellowship in the Gospel
. . . fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ . . . —1 Thessalonians 3:2
After sanctification, it is difficult to state what your purpose in life is, because God has moved you into His purpose through the Holy Spirit. He is using you now for His purposes throughout the world as He used His Son for the purpose of our salvation. If you seek great things for yourself, thinking, “God has called me for this and for that,” you barricade God from using you. As long as you maintain your own personal interests and ambitions, you cannot be completely aligned or identified with God’s interests. This can only be accomplished by giving up all of your personal plans once and for all, and by allowing God to take you directly into His purpose for the world. Your understanding of your ways must also be surrendered, because they are now the ways of the Lord.
I must learn that the purpose of my life belongs to God, not me. God is using me from His great personal perspective, and all He asks of me is that I trust Him. I should never say, “Lord, this causes me such heartache.” To talk that way makes me a stumbling block. When I stop telling God what I want, He can freely work His will in me without any hindrance. He can crush me, exalt me, or do anything else He chooses. He simply asks me to have absolute faith in Him and His goodness. Self-pity is of the devil, and if I wallow in it I cannot be used by God for His purpose in the world. Doing this creates for me my own cozy “world within the world,” and God will not be allowed to move me from it because of my fear of being “frost-bitten.”
Anyone who is having troubles
should pray. Anyone who is happy
should sing praises.
James 5:13
When a believing person prays—great things happen.
If you want to deepen your prayer life—pray. Don’t prepare to pray. Just pray. Don’t read about prayer. Just pray. Don’t attend a lecture on prayer or engage in discussion about prayer. Just pray.
James 5:13 says anyone who’s having troubles should pray. Anyone who’s happy should sing praises.
Posture, tone, and place are personal matters. Do what works for you. Just don’t overthink it. In other words, don’t be so concerned about wrapping the gift that you never give it. Better to pray awkwardly than not at all.
And if you feel you should only pray when you’re inspired, that’s okay. Just see to it that you are inspired every day.
Ezekiel 30
A Lament Over Egypt
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Wail and say,
“Alas for that day!”
3 For the day is near,
the day of the Lord is near—
a day of clouds,
a time of doom for the nations.
4 A sword will come against Egypt,
and anguish will come upon Cush.[a]
When the slain fall in Egypt,
her wealth will be carried away
and her foundations torn down.
5 Cush and Libya, Lydia and all Arabia, Kub and the people of the covenant land will fall by the sword along with Egypt.
6 “‘This is what the Lord says:
“‘The allies of Egypt will fall
and her proud strength will fail.
From Migdol to Aswan
they will fall by the sword within her,
declares the Sovereign Lord.
7 “‘They will be desolate
among desolate lands,
and their cities will lie
among ruined cities.
8 Then they will know that I am the Lord,
when I set fire to Egypt
and all her helpers are crushed.
9 “‘On that day messengers will go out from me in ships to frighten Cush out of her complacency. Anguish will take hold of them on the day of Egypt’s doom, for it is sure to come.
10 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt
by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
11 He and his army—the most ruthless of nations—
will be brought in to destroy the land.
They will draw their swords against Egypt
and fill the land with the slain.
12 I will dry up the waters of the Nile
and sell the land to an evil nation;
by the hand of foreigners
I will lay waste the land and everything in it.
I the Lord have spoken.
13 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I will destroy the idols
and put an end to the images in Memphis.
No longer will there be a prince in Egypt,
and I will spread fear throughout the land.
14 I will lay waste Upper Egypt,
set fire to Zoan
and inflict punishment on Thebes.
15 I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium,
the stronghold of Egypt,
and wipe out the hordes of Thebes.
16 I will set fire to Egypt;
Pelusium will writhe in agony.
Thebes will be taken by storm;
Memphis will be in constant distress.
17 The young men of Heliopolis and Bubastis
will fall by the sword,
and the cities themselves will go into captivity.
18 Dark will be the day at Tahpanhes
when I break the yoke of Egypt;
there her proud strength will come to an end.
She will be covered with clouds,
and her villages will go into captivity.
19 So I will inflict punishment on Egypt,
and they will know that I am the Lord.’”
Pharaoh’s Arms Are Broken
20 In the eleventh year, in the first month on the seventh day, the word of the Lord came to me: 21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt. It has not been bound up to be healed or put in a splint so that it may become strong enough to hold a sword. 22 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt. I will break both his arms, the good arm as well as the broken one, and make the sword fall from his hand. 23 I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries. 24 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan before him like a mortally wounded man. 25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh will fall limp. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon and he brandishes it against Egypt. 26 I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Psalm 119:89-93
Lamedh
89 Your word, Lord, is eternal;
it stands firm in the heavens.
90 Your faithfulness continues through all generations;
you established the earth, and it endures.
91 Your laws endure to this day,
for all things serve you.
92 If your law had not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have preserved my life.
Remembering Our Father’s Words
November 10, 2013 — by Marvin Williams
I will never forget Your precepts, for by them You have given me life. —Psalm 119:93
Jim Davidson was climbing down Mount Rainier when he fell through a snow bridge and into a crevasse (a pitch-black, ice-walled crack in a glacier). As Jim stood bloodied and bruised in that dark ice cave, he reflected on his childhood and recalled how his father had repeatedly reminded him that he could accomplish great things if he pressed through adversity. Those words helped to sustain Jim as he spent the next 5 hours climbing out of that dark ice cave to safety with very little gear and under extremely difficult circumstances.
The psalmist seemed to climb out of his own crevasse of affliction and pain by recalling his heavenly Father’s words. He admitted that if God and His Word had not sustained him with joy, he would have died in his misery (Ps. 119:92). He expressed full confidence in the Lord’s eternal Word (v.89) and in the faithfulness of His character (v.90). As a result of God’s faithfulness, the psalmist made a commitment never to forget God’s words to him because they had a central part in rescuing his life and bringing him strength.
In our darkest caves and moments of affliction, our souls can be revived by our Father in heaven when we recall and fill our minds with His encouraging words.
Thinking It Over
What crevasse of discouragement are you currently in?
How can you use this time as an occasion to revive your
soul by filling your mind and heart with God’s Word?
Remembering God’s words revives our soul.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 10, 2013
Fellowship in the Gospel
. . . fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ . . . —1 Thessalonians 3:2
After sanctification, it is difficult to state what your purpose in life is, because God has moved you into His purpose through the Holy Spirit. He is using you now for His purposes throughout the world as He used His Son for the purpose of our salvation. If you seek great things for yourself, thinking, “God has called me for this and for that,” you barricade God from using you. As long as you maintain your own personal interests and ambitions, you cannot be completely aligned or identified with God’s interests. This can only be accomplished by giving up all of your personal plans once and for all, and by allowing God to take you directly into His purpose for the world. Your understanding of your ways must also be surrendered, because they are now the ways of the Lord.
I must learn that the purpose of my life belongs to God, not me. God is using me from His great personal perspective, and all He asks of me is that I trust Him. I should never say, “Lord, this causes me such heartache.” To talk that way makes me a stumbling block. When I stop telling God what I want, He can freely work His will in me without any hindrance. He can crush me, exalt me, or do anything else He chooses. He simply asks me to have absolute faith in Him and His goodness. Self-pity is of the devil, and if I wallow in it I cannot be used by God for His purpose in the world. Doing this creates for me my own cozy “world within the world,” and God will not be allowed to move me from it because of my fear of being “frost-bitten.”
Saturday, November 9, 2013
1 Peter 3,bible reading and devotionals.
MaxLucado.com: A New Birth
God is often more patient with us than we are with ourselves. We assume if we fall, we aren’t born again. If we have the old desires, we must not be a new creation.
If you’re anxious please remember what Paul said in Philippians 1:6, “God began doing a good work in you, and I am sure he will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again.”
In many ways your new birth is like your first. In your new birth God provides what you need; someone else feels the pain, and someone else does the work. And just as parents are patient with their newborn, so God is patient with you. But there’s one difference. The first time you had no choice about being born. This time you do.
The power is God’s. The effort is God’s. The pain is God’s. But the choice is yours.
From A Gentle Thunder
1 Peter 3
New International Version (NIV)
3 Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives. 3 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. 4 Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. 5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, 6 like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.
7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.
Suffering for Doing Good
8 Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 10 For,
“Whoever would love life
and see good days
must keep their tongue from evil
and their lips from deceitful speech.
11 They must turn from evil and do good;
they must seek peace and pursue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”[a]
13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats[b]; do not be frightened.”[c] 15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 17 For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. 19 After being made alive,[d] he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits— 20 to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, 21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God.[e] It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.
Footnotes:
1 Peter 3:12 Psalm 34:12-16
1 Peter 3:14 Or fear what they fear
1 Peter 3:14 Isaiah 8:12
1 Peter 3:19 Or but made alive in the spirit, 19 in which also
1 Peter 3:21 Or but an appeal to God for a clear conscience
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 7:24-27
The Wise and Foolish Builders
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
Ephesians 2:18-22
New International Version (NIV)
18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
The Rock
November 9, 2013 — by Cindy Hess Kasper
Jesus Christ Himself [is] the chief cornerstone. —Ephesians 2:20
On a trip to Massachusetts, my husband and I visited Plymouth Rock, an iconic symbol in the United States. It is traditionally thought to be the place where the Pilgrims, who traveled to America on the Mayflower in 1620, first set foot. While we enjoyed learning about its significance, we were surprised and disappointed that it is so small. We learned that due to erosion and people chipping off pieces, it is now just one-third its original size.
The Bible refers to Jesus as a Rock (1 Cor. 10:4), who never changes (Heb. 13:8). He is the solid Rock on which we can build our lives. The church (the body of believers) is built on a foundation with “Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone.” In Him all believers are joined together (Eph. 2:20-22).
Jesus is the solid Rock we can cling to when the storms of life blow and beat against us (Matt. 7:25). Writer Madeleine L’Engle said: “It’s a good thing to have all the props pulled out from under us occasionally. It gives us some sense of what is rock under our feet and what is sand.”
Plymouth Rock is an interesting mass of minerals with an intriguing historical significance. But Jesus is a precious cornerstone, and those who trust in Him will always have a solid Rock to depend upon.
O build on the Rock, forever sure,
The firm and true foundation,
Its hope is the hope which shall endure—
The hope of our salvation. —Belden
Christ, the Rock, is our sure hope.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 9, 2013
Sacred Service
I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ . . . —Colossians 1:24
The Christian worker has to be a sacred “go-between.” He must be so closely identified with his Lord and the reality of His redemption that Christ can continually bring His creating life through him. I am not referring to the strength of one individual’s personality being superimposed on another, but the real presence of Christ coming through every aspect of the worker’s life. When we preach the historical facts of the life and death of our Lord as they are conveyed in the New Testament, our words are made sacred. God uses these words, on the basis of His redemption, to create something in those who listen which otherwise could never have been created. If we simply preach the effects of redemption in the human life instead of the revealed, divine truth regarding Jesus Himself, the result is not new birth in those who listen. The result is a refined religious lifestyle, and the Spirit of God cannot witness to it because such preaching is in a realm other than His. We must make sure that we are living in such harmony with God that as we proclaim His truth He can create in others those things which He alone can do.
When we say, “What a wonderful personality, what a fascinating person, and what wonderful insight!” then what opportunity does the gospel of God have through all of that? It cannot get through, because the attraction is to the messenger and not the message. If a person attracts through his personality, that becomes his appeal. If, however, he is identified with the Lord Himself, then the appeal becomes what Jesus Christ can do. The danger is to glory in men, yet Jesus says we are to lift up only Him (see John 12:32).
God is often more patient with us than we are with ourselves. We assume if we fall, we aren’t born again. If we have the old desires, we must not be a new creation.
If you’re anxious please remember what Paul said in Philippians 1:6, “God began doing a good work in you, and I am sure he will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again.”
In many ways your new birth is like your first. In your new birth God provides what you need; someone else feels the pain, and someone else does the work. And just as parents are patient with their newborn, so God is patient with you. But there’s one difference. The first time you had no choice about being born. This time you do.
The power is God’s. The effort is God’s. The pain is God’s. But the choice is yours.
From A Gentle Thunder
1 Peter 3
New International Version (NIV)
3 Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives. 3 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. 4 Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. 5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, 6 like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.
7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.
Suffering for Doing Good
8 Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 10 For,
“Whoever would love life
and see good days
must keep their tongue from evil
and their lips from deceitful speech.
11 They must turn from evil and do good;
they must seek peace and pursue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”[a]
13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats[b]; do not be frightened.”[c] 15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 17 For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. 19 After being made alive,[d] he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits— 20 to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, 21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God.[e] It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.
Footnotes:
1 Peter 3:12 Psalm 34:12-16
1 Peter 3:14 Or fear what they fear
1 Peter 3:14 Isaiah 8:12
1 Peter 3:19 Or but made alive in the spirit, 19 in which also
1 Peter 3:21 Or but an appeal to God for a clear conscience
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 7:24-27
The Wise and Foolish Builders
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
Ephesians 2:18-22
New International Version (NIV)
18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
The Rock
November 9, 2013 — by Cindy Hess Kasper
Jesus Christ Himself [is] the chief cornerstone. —Ephesians 2:20
On a trip to Massachusetts, my husband and I visited Plymouth Rock, an iconic symbol in the United States. It is traditionally thought to be the place where the Pilgrims, who traveled to America on the Mayflower in 1620, first set foot. While we enjoyed learning about its significance, we were surprised and disappointed that it is so small. We learned that due to erosion and people chipping off pieces, it is now just one-third its original size.
The Bible refers to Jesus as a Rock (1 Cor. 10:4), who never changes (Heb. 13:8). He is the solid Rock on which we can build our lives. The church (the body of believers) is built on a foundation with “Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone.” In Him all believers are joined together (Eph. 2:20-22).
Jesus is the solid Rock we can cling to when the storms of life blow and beat against us (Matt. 7:25). Writer Madeleine L’Engle said: “It’s a good thing to have all the props pulled out from under us occasionally. It gives us some sense of what is rock under our feet and what is sand.”
Plymouth Rock is an interesting mass of minerals with an intriguing historical significance. But Jesus is a precious cornerstone, and those who trust in Him will always have a solid Rock to depend upon.
O build on the Rock, forever sure,
The firm and true foundation,
Its hope is the hope which shall endure—
The hope of our salvation. —Belden
Christ, the Rock, is our sure hope.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 9, 2013
Sacred Service
I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ . . . —Colossians 1:24
The Christian worker has to be a sacred “go-between.” He must be so closely identified with his Lord and the reality of His redemption that Christ can continually bring His creating life through him. I am not referring to the strength of one individual’s personality being superimposed on another, but the real presence of Christ coming through every aspect of the worker’s life. When we preach the historical facts of the life and death of our Lord as they are conveyed in the New Testament, our words are made sacred. God uses these words, on the basis of His redemption, to create something in those who listen which otherwise could never have been created. If we simply preach the effects of redemption in the human life instead of the revealed, divine truth regarding Jesus Himself, the result is not new birth in those who listen. The result is a refined religious lifestyle, and the Spirit of God cannot witness to it because such preaching is in a realm other than His. We must make sure that we are living in such harmony with God that as we proclaim His truth He can create in others those things which He alone can do.
When we say, “What a wonderful personality, what a fascinating person, and what wonderful insight!” then what opportunity does the gospel of God have through all of that? It cannot get through, because the attraction is to the messenger and not the message. If a person attracts through his personality, that becomes his appeal. If, however, he is identified with the Lord Himself, then the appeal becomes what Jesus Christ can do. The danger is to glory in men, yet Jesus says we are to lift up only Him (see John 12:32).
Friday, November 8, 2013
Ezekiel 29, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Kindness
They sat on opposite sides of the room, a man and a woman, bidding on an adorable puppy at a school auction. Others dropped off, but not this duo. Back and forth until they'd one-upped the bid to several thousand dollars.
No longer about a puppy, but about victory. This was the Wimbledon finals, and neither player was backing off the net. Finally the fellow gave in and didn't return the bid. Going once, going twice…going three times. Sold!
You know what she did? Amidst the applause, she walked across the room and presented the puppy to the competition. Suppose you did that with your competition. With your enemy. Suppose you surprised them with kindness? Not easy?
No, it's not. But mercy is the deepest gesture of kindness. Paul equates the two in Ephesians 4:32, "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 29
A Prophecy Against Egypt
Judgment on Pharaoh
In the tenth year, in the tenth month on the twelfth day, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt and prophesy against him and against all Egypt. 3 Speak to him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt,
you great monster lying among your streams.
You say, “The Nile belongs to me;
I made it for myself.”
4 But I will put hooks in your jaws
and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales.
I will pull you out from among your streams,
with all the fish sticking to your scales.
5 I will leave you in the desert,
you and all the fish of your streams.
You will fall on the open field
and not be gathered or picked up.
I will give you as food
to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the sky.
6 Then all who live in Egypt will know that I am the Lord.
“‘You have been a staff of reed for the people of Israel. 7 When they grasped you with their hands, you splintered and you tore open their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke and their backs were wrenched.[i]
8 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will bring a sword against you and kill both man and beast. 9 Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
“‘Because you said, “The Nile is mine; I made it,” 10 therefore I am against you and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt a ruin and a desolate waste from Migdol to Aswan, as far as the border of Cush.[j] 11 The foot of neither man nor beast will pass through it; no one will live there for forty years. 12 I will make the land of Egypt desolate among devastated lands, and her cities will lie desolate forty years among ruined cities. And I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.
13 “‘Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the nations where they were scattered. 14 I will bring them back from captivity and return them to Upper Egypt, the land of their ancestry. There they will be a lowly kingdom. 15 It will be the lowliest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself above the other nations. I will make it so weak that it will never again rule over the nations. 16 Egypt will no longer be a source of confidence for the people of Israel but will be a reminder of their sin in turning to her for help. Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.’”
Nebuchadnezzar’s Reward
17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon drove his army in a hard campaign against Tyre; every head was rubbed bare and every shoulder made raw. Yet he and his army got no reward from the campaign he led against Tyre. 19 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will carry off its wealth. He will loot and plunder the land as pay for his army. 20 I have given him Egypt as a reward for his efforts because he and his army did it for me, declares the Sovereign Lord.
21 “On that day I will make a horn[k] grow for the Israelites, and I will open your mouth among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
i.Ezekiel 29:7 Syriac (see also Septuagint and Vulgate); Hebrew and you caused their backs to stand
j.Ezekiel 29:10 That is, the upper Nile region
k.Ezekiel 29:21 Horn here symbolizes strength.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Mark 12:38-44
Warning Against the Teachers of the Law
38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”
The Widow’s Offering41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.
43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”
The Blessing Of Giving
November 8, 2013 — by Philip Yancey
It is more blessed to give than to receive. —Acts 20:35
It made no sense for a widow to donate her last few coins to a corrupt institution in Jerusalem, where scribes who were dependent on those gifts “devour[ed] widows’ houses” (Mark 12:40). But in that woman’s act, Jesus saw a moving display of the proper attitude toward money (vv.41-44).
Gordon Cosby, while serving as pastor of the Church of the Saviour in Washington, DC, tells of a widow whose income was barely adequate to feed and clothe her six children. Yet every week she faithfully placed $4 in the offering plate. A deacon suggested that Cosby go to her and assure her that she could use the money instead for her family’s benefit.
Cosby followed the deacon’s advice—to his regret. “You are trying to take away the last thing that gives me dignity and meaning,” she said. She had learned a key to giving: It can benefit the giver more than the receiver. Yes, those in poverty need financial help. But the need to give may be as important as the need to receive.
The act of giving reminds us that we live by the grace of God—like the birds and the flowers. Those creations don’t worry about their future; neither should we. Giving offers us a way to express our confidence that God will care for us just as He cares for the sparrow and lily (Matt. 6:25-34).
Whatever, Lord, we lend to Thee,Repaid a thousand-fold will be;Then gladly will we give to Thee,Who givest all—who givest all. —WordsworthWe disarm the power of money by giving it away.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 8, 2013
The Unrivaled Power of Prayer
We do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered —Romans 8:26
We realize that we are energized by the Holy Spirit for prayer; and we know what it is to pray in accordance with the Spirit; but we don’t often realize that the Holy Spirit Himself prays prayers in us which we cannot utter ourselves. When we are born again of God and are indwelt by the Spirit of God, He expresses for us the unutterable.
“He,” the Holy Spirit in you, “makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:27). And God searches your heart, not to know what your conscious prayers are, but to find out what the prayer of the Holy Spirit is.
The Spirit of God uses the nature of the believer as a temple in which to offer His prayers of intercession. “. . . your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit . . .” (1 Corinthians 6:19). When Jesus Christ cleansed the temple, “. . . He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple” (Mark 11:16). The Spirit of God will not allow you to use your body for your own convenience. Jesus ruthlessly cast out everyone who bought and sold in the temple, and said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer . . . . But you have made it a ’den of thieves’ ” (Mark 11:17).
Have we come to realize that our “body is the temple of the Holy Spirit”? If so, we must be careful to keep it undefiled for Him. We have to remember that our conscious life, even though only a small part of our total person, is to be regarded by us as a “temple of the Holy Spirit.” He will be responsible for the unconscious part which we don’t know, but we must pay careful attention to and guard the conscious part for which we are responsible.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
No Sweat - #7000
Friday, November 8, 2013
It was one a record-breaking pre-summer day in Denver - 99 degrees. I was there. I know. And after I finished speaking in the afternoon I went out for a vigorous 45-minute walk - Mr. Fitness. After I put a few blocks behind me, I was asking myself one question, "How come I'm not sweating much?" If I was home, man, I'd be wet all over. Denver doesn't have the kind of heat that I'm used to. They don't have the humidity. Oh, but a couple of days later, I was in Chicago. I took three steps and soaked my shirt. It's the same when I went home to New Jersey, where according to a meteorologist a 100-degree day actually felt like 126 degrees because the air was saturated. Isn't it nice to be in a place where it's hot but you don't have to perspire as much?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "No Sweat."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 5 , and I'm going to read verses 1 and 2 so I can read you verse 3, so you know how hot it is where David is, I mean in terms of the stress temperature. He says, "Give ears to my words, O Lord. Consider my sighing. Listen to my cry for help, my King, my God, for to You I pray." Okay, it's hot. He's sighing; he's crying for help.
And then he gives the secret of not sweating as much when it's hot all around you. Verse 3, "In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice. In the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation." That's beautiful! He lays his day in front of the Lord and leaves the house with a sense of expectancy rather than dread, knowing this is going to be a day the Lord has made.
The difference between a hot place and a hot, sweaty place is whether or not the air is clear; whether there's somewhere for the moisture to go. In a sense, what God through David is recommending here is that you clear out the air before you head into the heat of your day. Empty out those concerns that are just clogging the atmosphere around you and maybe inside you. Do that at the beginning of your day.
Begin your day with praying through that day before you ever enter into it. So reserve some early time to specifically pray through what your morning, your afternoon, your evening are going to hold as far as you know. Put it all in front of God. Walk through the next 16 hours or so with Jesus. Mentally take Him into each part of that day and consciously make it His not yours. Picture the difference He's going to make in the job you've got to finish, the calls you have to make, the assignments you'll be working on. Turn over to Jesus the major conversations, the major people you expect to be around this day.
Give Him the financial challenges of the day; the things you're looking forward to and the things you're dreading. Let Him take away some of that fear and worry, some of the anger, some of the tension. You're releasing the details of your day from your hand and you're putting them into the hands that rule the galaxies; to the One whose hands are nail-scarred because of how much He loves you.
When you bowed your head or got on your knees, you may have been overwhelmed by this day, but when you open your eyes you should be a lot lighter because you've given it to the King of all kings. And you should be expecting God to make a difference in it. And I'll tell you I am very grateful for the people who pray for us regularly; for this ministry regularly. I can't tell you the difference you're making and the power that's providing. We just live the answers to your prayers.
You've probably had enough overheated days, right? And you can't do much to lower the temperature around you, but you can clear the air by anticipating that day with Jesus and then you'll have room for the heat of the day. And when people ask, "How are you doing?", you can say with new enthusiasm, "No sweat!"
They sat on opposite sides of the room, a man and a woman, bidding on an adorable puppy at a school auction. Others dropped off, but not this duo. Back and forth until they'd one-upped the bid to several thousand dollars.
No longer about a puppy, but about victory. This was the Wimbledon finals, and neither player was backing off the net. Finally the fellow gave in and didn't return the bid. Going once, going twice…going three times. Sold!
You know what she did? Amidst the applause, she walked across the room and presented the puppy to the competition. Suppose you did that with your competition. With your enemy. Suppose you surprised them with kindness? Not easy?
No, it's not. But mercy is the deepest gesture of kindness. Paul equates the two in Ephesians 4:32, "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 29
A Prophecy Against Egypt
Judgment on Pharaoh
In the tenth year, in the tenth month on the twelfth day, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt and prophesy against him and against all Egypt. 3 Speak to him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt,
you great monster lying among your streams.
You say, “The Nile belongs to me;
I made it for myself.”
4 But I will put hooks in your jaws
and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales.
I will pull you out from among your streams,
with all the fish sticking to your scales.
5 I will leave you in the desert,
you and all the fish of your streams.
You will fall on the open field
and not be gathered or picked up.
I will give you as food
to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the sky.
6 Then all who live in Egypt will know that I am the Lord.
“‘You have been a staff of reed for the people of Israel. 7 When they grasped you with their hands, you splintered and you tore open their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke and their backs were wrenched.[i]
8 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will bring a sword against you and kill both man and beast. 9 Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
“‘Because you said, “The Nile is mine; I made it,” 10 therefore I am against you and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt a ruin and a desolate waste from Migdol to Aswan, as far as the border of Cush.[j] 11 The foot of neither man nor beast will pass through it; no one will live there for forty years. 12 I will make the land of Egypt desolate among devastated lands, and her cities will lie desolate forty years among ruined cities. And I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them through the countries.
13 “‘Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the nations where they were scattered. 14 I will bring them back from captivity and return them to Upper Egypt, the land of their ancestry. There they will be a lowly kingdom. 15 It will be the lowliest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself above the other nations. I will make it so weak that it will never again rule over the nations. 16 Egypt will no longer be a source of confidence for the people of Israel but will be a reminder of their sin in turning to her for help. Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.’”
Nebuchadnezzar’s Reward
17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon drove his army in a hard campaign against Tyre; every head was rubbed bare and every shoulder made raw. Yet he and his army got no reward from the campaign he led against Tyre. 19 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will carry off its wealth. He will loot and plunder the land as pay for his army. 20 I have given him Egypt as a reward for his efforts because he and his army did it for me, declares the Sovereign Lord.
21 “On that day I will make a horn[k] grow for the Israelites, and I will open your mouth among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
i.Ezekiel 29:7 Syriac (see also Septuagint and Vulgate); Hebrew and you caused their backs to stand
j.Ezekiel 29:10 That is, the upper Nile region
k.Ezekiel 29:21 Horn here symbolizes strength.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Mark 12:38-44
Warning Against the Teachers of the Law
38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”
The Widow’s Offering41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.
43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”
The Blessing Of Giving
November 8, 2013 — by Philip Yancey
It is more blessed to give than to receive. —Acts 20:35
It made no sense for a widow to donate her last few coins to a corrupt institution in Jerusalem, where scribes who were dependent on those gifts “devour[ed] widows’ houses” (Mark 12:40). But in that woman’s act, Jesus saw a moving display of the proper attitude toward money (vv.41-44).
Gordon Cosby, while serving as pastor of the Church of the Saviour in Washington, DC, tells of a widow whose income was barely adequate to feed and clothe her six children. Yet every week she faithfully placed $4 in the offering plate. A deacon suggested that Cosby go to her and assure her that she could use the money instead for her family’s benefit.
Cosby followed the deacon’s advice—to his regret. “You are trying to take away the last thing that gives me dignity and meaning,” she said. She had learned a key to giving: It can benefit the giver more than the receiver. Yes, those in poverty need financial help. But the need to give may be as important as the need to receive.
The act of giving reminds us that we live by the grace of God—like the birds and the flowers. Those creations don’t worry about their future; neither should we. Giving offers us a way to express our confidence that God will care for us just as He cares for the sparrow and lily (Matt. 6:25-34).
Whatever, Lord, we lend to Thee,Repaid a thousand-fold will be;Then gladly will we give to Thee,Who givest all—who givest all. —WordsworthWe disarm the power of money by giving it away.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 8, 2013
The Unrivaled Power of Prayer
We do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered —Romans 8:26
We realize that we are energized by the Holy Spirit for prayer; and we know what it is to pray in accordance with the Spirit; but we don’t often realize that the Holy Spirit Himself prays prayers in us which we cannot utter ourselves. When we are born again of God and are indwelt by the Spirit of God, He expresses for us the unutterable.
“He,” the Holy Spirit in you, “makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:27). And God searches your heart, not to know what your conscious prayers are, but to find out what the prayer of the Holy Spirit is.
The Spirit of God uses the nature of the believer as a temple in which to offer His prayers of intercession. “. . . your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit . . .” (1 Corinthians 6:19). When Jesus Christ cleansed the temple, “. . . He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple” (Mark 11:16). The Spirit of God will not allow you to use your body for your own convenience. Jesus ruthlessly cast out everyone who bought and sold in the temple, and said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer . . . . But you have made it a ’den of thieves’ ” (Mark 11:17).
Have we come to realize that our “body is the temple of the Holy Spirit”? If so, we must be careful to keep it undefiled for Him. We have to remember that our conscious life, even though only a small part of our total person, is to be regarded by us as a “temple of the Holy Spirit.” He will be responsible for the unconscious part which we don’t know, but we must pay careful attention to and guard the conscious part for which we are responsible.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
No Sweat - #7000
Friday, November 8, 2013
It was one a record-breaking pre-summer day in Denver - 99 degrees. I was there. I know. And after I finished speaking in the afternoon I went out for a vigorous 45-minute walk - Mr. Fitness. After I put a few blocks behind me, I was asking myself one question, "How come I'm not sweating much?" If I was home, man, I'd be wet all over. Denver doesn't have the kind of heat that I'm used to. They don't have the humidity. Oh, but a couple of days later, I was in Chicago. I took three steps and soaked my shirt. It's the same when I went home to New Jersey, where according to a meteorologist a 100-degree day actually felt like 126 degrees because the air was saturated. Isn't it nice to be in a place where it's hot but you don't have to perspire as much?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "No Sweat."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 5 , and I'm going to read verses 1 and 2 so I can read you verse 3, so you know how hot it is where David is, I mean in terms of the stress temperature. He says, "Give ears to my words, O Lord. Consider my sighing. Listen to my cry for help, my King, my God, for to You I pray." Okay, it's hot. He's sighing; he's crying for help.
And then he gives the secret of not sweating as much when it's hot all around you. Verse 3, "In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice. In the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation." That's beautiful! He lays his day in front of the Lord and leaves the house with a sense of expectancy rather than dread, knowing this is going to be a day the Lord has made.
The difference between a hot place and a hot, sweaty place is whether or not the air is clear; whether there's somewhere for the moisture to go. In a sense, what God through David is recommending here is that you clear out the air before you head into the heat of your day. Empty out those concerns that are just clogging the atmosphere around you and maybe inside you. Do that at the beginning of your day.
Begin your day with praying through that day before you ever enter into it. So reserve some early time to specifically pray through what your morning, your afternoon, your evening are going to hold as far as you know. Put it all in front of God. Walk through the next 16 hours or so with Jesus. Mentally take Him into each part of that day and consciously make it His not yours. Picture the difference He's going to make in the job you've got to finish, the calls you have to make, the assignments you'll be working on. Turn over to Jesus the major conversations, the major people you expect to be around this day.
Give Him the financial challenges of the day; the things you're looking forward to and the things you're dreading. Let Him take away some of that fear and worry, some of the anger, some of the tension. You're releasing the details of your day from your hand and you're putting them into the hands that rule the galaxies; to the One whose hands are nail-scarred because of how much He loves you.
When you bowed your head or got on your knees, you may have been overwhelmed by this day, but when you open your eyes you should be a lot lighter because you've given it to the King of all kings. And you should be expecting God to make a difference in it. And I'll tell you I am very grateful for the people who pray for us regularly; for this ministry regularly. I can't tell you the difference you're making and the power that's providing. We just live the answers to your prayers.
You've probably had enough overheated days, right? And you can't do much to lower the temperature around you, but you can clear the air by anticipating that day with Jesus and then you'll have room for the heat of the day. And when people ask, "How are you doing?", you can say with new enthusiasm, "No sweat!"
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Ezekiel 28, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Jesus Came to Serve
God's cure for the common life includes a strong dose of servanthood. It's a timely reminder. As you celebrate your unique design, be careful. Don't so focus on what you love to do that you neglect what needs to be done.
A 3:00 AM diaper change fits in very few sweet spots. Visiting your sick neighbor might not come naturally to you. Still the sick need to be encouraged, and diapers need changing.
The world needs servants. People like Jesus who did not come to be served, but to serve. He chose remote Nazareth over the center-stage in Jerusalem, his dad's carpentry shop over a marble-columned palace, and three decades of anonymity over a life of popularity.
He selected prayer over sleep, the wilderness over the Jordan, feisty apostles over obedient angels. I'd have gone with the angels, given the choice.
Not Jesus. He picked the people. He came to serve! May we do the same.
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 28
A Prophecy Against the King of Tyre
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, say to the ruler of Tyre, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘In the pride of your heart
you say, “I am a god;
I sit on the throne of a god
in the heart of the seas.”
But you are a mere mortal and not a god,
though you think you are as wise as a god.
3 Are you wiser than Daniel[f]?
Is no secret hidden from you?
4 By your wisdom and understanding
you have gained wealth for yourself
and amassed gold and silver
in your treasuries.
5 By your great skill in trading
you have increased your wealth,
and because of your wealth
your heart has grown proud.
6 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Because you think you are wise,
as wise as a god,
7 I am going to bring foreigners against you,
the most ruthless of nations;
they will draw their swords against your beauty and wisdom
and pierce your shining splendor.
8 They will bring you down to the pit,
and you will die a violent death
in the heart of the seas.
9 Will you then say, “I am a god,”
in the presence of those who kill you?
You will be but a mortal, not a god,
in the hands of those who slay you.
10 You will die the death of the uncircumcised
at the hands of foreigners.
I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”
11 The word of the Lord came to me: 12 “Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘You were the seal of perfection,
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You were in Eden,
the garden of God;
every precious stone adorned you:
carnelian, chrysolite and emerald,
topaz, onyx and jasper,
lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl.[g]
Your settings and mountings[h] were made of gold;
on the day you were created they were prepared.
14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub,
for so I ordained you.
You were on the holy mount of God;
you walked among the fiery stones.
15 You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created
till wickedness was found in you.
16 Through your widespread trade
you were filled with violence,
and you sinned.
So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God,
and I expelled you, guardian cherub,
from among the fiery stones.
17 Your heart became proud
on account of your beauty,
and you corrupted your wisdom
because of your splendor.
So I threw you to the earth;
I made a spectacle of you before kings.
18 By your many sins and dishonest trade
you have desecrated your sanctuaries.
So I made a fire come out from you,
and it consumed you,
and I reduced you to ashes on the ground
in the sight of all who were watching.
19 All the nations who knew you
are appalled at you;
you have come to a horrible end
and will be no more.’”
A Prophecy Against Sidon
20 The word of the Lord came to me: 21 “Son of man, set your face against Sidon; prophesy against her 22 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I am against you, Sidon,
and among you I will display my glory.
You will know that I am the Lord,
when I inflict punishment on you
and within you am proved to be holy.
23 I will send a plague upon you
and make blood flow in your streets.
The slain will fall within you,
with the sword against you on every side.
Then you will know that I am the Lord.
24 “‘No longer will the people of Israel have malicious neighbors who are painful briers and sharp thorns. Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.
25 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I gather the people of Israel from the nations where they have been scattered, I will be proved holy through them in the sight of the nations. Then they will live in their own land, which I gave to my servant Jacob. 26 They will live there in safety and will build houses and plant vineyards; they will live in safety when I inflict punishment on all their neighbors who maligned them. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.’”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Samuel 5:17-25
David Defeats the Philistines
17 When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, they went up in full force to search for him, but David heard about it and went down to the stronghold. 18 Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim; 19 so David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I go and attack the Philistines? Will you deliver them into my hands?”
The Lord answered him, “Go, for I will surely deliver the Philistines into your hands.”
20 So David went to Baal Perazim, and there he defeated them. He said, “As waters break out, the Lord has broken out against my enemies before me.” So that place was called Baal Perazim.[a] 21 The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his men carried them off.
22 Once more the Philistines came up and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim; 23 so David inquired of the Lord, and he answered, “Do not go straight up, but circle around behind them and attack them in front of the poplar trees. 24 As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the poplar trees, move quickly, because that will mean the Lord has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army.” 25 So David did as the Lord commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Gibeon[b] to Gezer.
Footnotes:
2 Samuel 5:20 Baal Perazim means the lord who breaks out.
2 Samuel 5:25 Septuagint (see also 1 Chron. 14:16); Hebrew Geba
David inquired of the Lord. —2 Samuel 5:19
King David was up against a familiar foe. Years before as a young shepherd boy, he had faced down Goliath, the top Philistine warrior, by killing him with a well-placed stone (1 Sam. 17). Now David was king of Israel, and here come the Philistines again! They heard he was king, and they decided to attack (2 Sam. 5:17).
What do we do first when trouble is on the way? We could panic. We could plan. Or we could first do what David did—pray. “David inquired of the Lord” (v.19), and God guided the king.
David had to fight two battles with the Philistines—one at Baal Perazim and one at the Valley of Rephaim. It was a good thing he consulted God, because in these two battles there were two different strategies. In the first one, God won the battle with His power alone: “The Lord has broken through,” David recorded (v.20). For the next one, God gave David an action plan, and when he carried it out, the Israelites won (vv.23-25).
Each day we face many challenges. Although there is no one-size-fits-all answer, our first action should always be to consult God. As He guides us, we can have confidence in Him. Then, whether the victory comes through His miraculous intervention or through His guidance, all the glory goes to God.
Not to the strong is the battle,
Not to the swift is the race;
Yet to the true and the faithful
Victory is promised through grace. —Crosby
To stand up to any challenge, spend time on your knees.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 7, 2013
The Undetected Sacredness of Circumstances
We know that all things work together for good to those who love God . . . —Romans 8:28
The circumstances of a saint’s life are ordained of God. In the life of a saint there is no such thing as chance. God by His providence brings you into circumstances that you can’t understand at all, but the Spirit of God understands. God brings you to places, among people, and into certain conditions to accomplish a definite purpose through the intercession of the Spirit in you. Never put yourself in front of your circumstances and say, “I’m going to be my own providence here; I will watch this closely, or protect myself from that.” All your circumstances are in the hand of God, and therefore you don’t ever have to think they are unnatural or unique. Your part in intercessory prayer is not to agonize over how to intercede, but to use the everyday circumstances and people God puts around you by His providence to bring them before His throne, and to allow the Spirit in you the opportunity to intercede for them. In this way God is going to touch the whole world with His saints.
Am I making the Holy Spirit’s work difficult by being vague and unsure, or by trying to do His work for Him? I must do the human side of intercession— utilizing the circumstances in which I find myself and the people who surround me. I must keep my conscious life as a sacred place for the Holy Spirit. Then as I lift different ones to God through prayer, the Holy Spirit intercedes for them.
Your intercessions can never be mine, and my intercessions can never be yours, “. . . but the Spirit Himself makes intercession” in each of our lives (Romans 8:26). And without that intercession, the lives of others would be left in poverty and in ruin.
Your Permanent Record - #6999
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Schools and teachers frequently run into what we might call a motivational challenge; how to motivate a student to do the right thing or stop doing the wrong thing. Now, they used to hit students on the hand or even spank them in the old days. Of course, not any more. Disciplinary actions have gotten less and less as parents have been willing to even sue if a school violates their son's or daughter's rights. A teacher can still threaten a zero, or a detention, or a trip to the principal's office, and the principal can even threaten a suspension. But there are two words that can strike terror into many a student's heart, "This will go on your permanent record."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your Permanent Record."
If your school years are a distant memory, you're probably glad you don't have to be concerned about your permanent record any more, right? Well, as a matter of fact, we all have one in heaven. King David was concerned about his, and back in the 51st Psalm he said, "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love. According to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions." He was afraid of his record with God. In verse 9 he says, "Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities." Don't you wish you could have erased the record of all the times that you've done things, thought things, said things that were out of God's bounds? Well, the Bible has a word for that - sin. Any time I run my life instead of God running it.
See, God's tape recorder has been running during every conversation of your life and mine. His recorder has been picking up everything you've ever done, even the things no one else knew about. And David said in another Psalm, "If I say surely the darkness will hide me, even the darkness will not be dark to You, God." If we have to face that permanent record when it's our time to appear before God, we don't stand a chance. The good we've done is not going to cancel out a lifetime record of doing things my way.
Thank God your permanent record doesn't have to be permanent. Our word for today from the Word of God in Colossians chapter 2, verse 13. Listen to this good news: "You were dead in your sins, but He forgave us all our sin having canceled the written code that was against us. He took it away, nailing it to His cross." In other words, because of what Jesus did when He died, it's possible to trade in punishment for forgiveness; a death penalty that I deserve, I can trade for eternal life I could never deserve.
We might want to argue over some of the entries in our permanent record in heaven and say, "Hey, I don't think that's sin. Our society doesn't think it's sin." Well, if God thinks it's sin, it is and it's on your record. But because Jesus Christ died to make possible the erasing of our sin record, God can make this promise recorded in Hebrews 8:12 in the Bible, "I will forgive their wickedness and I will remember their sins no more." Wow! Wouldn't it be liberating to know that your eternal record with God is clear; that you'll never have to face that record in God's presence some day and the judgment that goes with it?
Freedom and forgiveness - they're yours when you surrender your life to Jesus Christ. And the moment you put all your faith in Him you get a new permanent record in heaven. It's talked about in Luke 10:20 . It says, "Rejoice that your names are written in heaven." Today your name could be entered in what God calls His Book of Life. That's His permanent record of all those whose sins are forgiven because they have invited Jesus Christ to be their own Savior from their own sin.
If you've never done that, if you want to know how, if you want to be sure you have, I want to invite you to meet me at our website, ANewStory.com and find out how every sin of your life could be erased from God's Book today by beginning that relationship with Jesus.
That Book of Life in heaven? That's a permanent record you want your name on. It's a reservation for heaven written in God's indelible ink.
God's cure for the common life includes a strong dose of servanthood. It's a timely reminder. As you celebrate your unique design, be careful. Don't so focus on what you love to do that you neglect what needs to be done.
A 3:00 AM diaper change fits in very few sweet spots. Visiting your sick neighbor might not come naturally to you. Still the sick need to be encouraged, and diapers need changing.
The world needs servants. People like Jesus who did not come to be served, but to serve. He chose remote Nazareth over the center-stage in Jerusalem, his dad's carpentry shop over a marble-columned palace, and three decades of anonymity over a life of popularity.
He selected prayer over sleep, the wilderness over the Jordan, feisty apostles over obedient angels. I'd have gone with the angels, given the choice.
Not Jesus. He picked the people. He came to serve! May we do the same.
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 28
A Prophecy Against the King of Tyre
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, say to the ruler of Tyre, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘In the pride of your heart
you say, “I am a god;
I sit on the throne of a god
in the heart of the seas.”
But you are a mere mortal and not a god,
though you think you are as wise as a god.
3 Are you wiser than Daniel[f]?
Is no secret hidden from you?
4 By your wisdom and understanding
you have gained wealth for yourself
and amassed gold and silver
in your treasuries.
5 By your great skill in trading
you have increased your wealth,
and because of your wealth
your heart has grown proud.
6 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Because you think you are wise,
as wise as a god,
7 I am going to bring foreigners against you,
the most ruthless of nations;
they will draw their swords against your beauty and wisdom
and pierce your shining splendor.
8 They will bring you down to the pit,
and you will die a violent death
in the heart of the seas.
9 Will you then say, “I am a god,”
in the presence of those who kill you?
You will be but a mortal, not a god,
in the hands of those who slay you.
10 You will die the death of the uncircumcised
at the hands of foreigners.
I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”
11 The word of the Lord came to me: 12 “Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘You were the seal of perfection,
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You were in Eden,
the garden of God;
every precious stone adorned you:
carnelian, chrysolite and emerald,
topaz, onyx and jasper,
lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl.[g]
Your settings and mountings[h] were made of gold;
on the day you were created they were prepared.
14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub,
for so I ordained you.
You were on the holy mount of God;
you walked among the fiery stones.
15 You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created
till wickedness was found in you.
16 Through your widespread trade
you were filled with violence,
and you sinned.
So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God,
and I expelled you, guardian cherub,
from among the fiery stones.
17 Your heart became proud
on account of your beauty,
and you corrupted your wisdom
because of your splendor.
So I threw you to the earth;
I made a spectacle of you before kings.
18 By your many sins and dishonest trade
you have desecrated your sanctuaries.
So I made a fire come out from you,
and it consumed you,
and I reduced you to ashes on the ground
in the sight of all who were watching.
19 All the nations who knew you
are appalled at you;
you have come to a horrible end
and will be no more.’”
A Prophecy Against Sidon
20 The word of the Lord came to me: 21 “Son of man, set your face against Sidon; prophesy against her 22 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘I am against you, Sidon,
and among you I will display my glory.
You will know that I am the Lord,
when I inflict punishment on you
and within you am proved to be holy.
23 I will send a plague upon you
and make blood flow in your streets.
The slain will fall within you,
with the sword against you on every side.
Then you will know that I am the Lord.
24 “‘No longer will the people of Israel have malicious neighbors who are painful briers and sharp thorns. Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.
25 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I gather the people of Israel from the nations where they have been scattered, I will be proved holy through them in the sight of the nations. Then they will live in their own land, which I gave to my servant Jacob. 26 They will live there in safety and will build houses and plant vineyards; they will live in safety when I inflict punishment on all their neighbors who maligned them. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.’”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Samuel 5:17-25
David Defeats the Philistines
17 When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, they went up in full force to search for him, but David heard about it and went down to the stronghold. 18 Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim; 19 so David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I go and attack the Philistines? Will you deliver them into my hands?”
The Lord answered him, “Go, for I will surely deliver the Philistines into your hands.”
20 So David went to Baal Perazim, and there he defeated them. He said, “As waters break out, the Lord has broken out against my enemies before me.” So that place was called Baal Perazim.[a] 21 The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his men carried them off.
22 Once more the Philistines came up and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim; 23 so David inquired of the Lord, and he answered, “Do not go straight up, but circle around behind them and attack them in front of the poplar trees. 24 As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the poplar trees, move quickly, because that will mean the Lord has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army.” 25 So David did as the Lord commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Gibeon[b] to Gezer.
Footnotes:
2 Samuel 5:20 Baal Perazim means the lord who breaks out.
2 Samuel 5:25 Septuagint (see also 1 Chron. 14:16); Hebrew Geba
David inquired of the Lord. —2 Samuel 5:19
King David was up against a familiar foe. Years before as a young shepherd boy, he had faced down Goliath, the top Philistine warrior, by killing him with a well-placed stone (1 Sam. 17). Now David was king of Israel, and here come the Philistines again! They heard he was king, and they decided to attack (2 Sam. 5:17).
What do we do first when trouble is on the way? We could panic. We could plan. Or we could first do what David did—pray. “David inquired of the Lord” (v.19), and God guided the king.
David had to fight two battles with the Philistines—one at Baal Perazim and one at the Valley of Rephaim. It was a good thing he consulted God, because in these two battles there were two different strategies. In the first one, God won the battle with His power alone: “The Lord has broken through,” David recorded (v.20). For the next one, God gave David an action plan, and when he carried it out, the Israelites won (vv.23-25).
Each day we face many challenges. Although there is no one-size-fits-all answer, our first action should always be to consult God. As He guides us, we can have confidence in Him. Then, whether the victory comes through His miraculous intervention or through His guidance, all the glory goes to God.
Not to the strong is the battle,
Not to the swift is the race;
Yet to the true and the faithful
Victory is promised through grace. —Crosby
To stand up to any challenge, spend time on your knees.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 7, 2013
The Undetected Sacredness of Circumstances
We know that all things work together for good to those who love God . . . —Romans 8:28
The circumstances of a saint’s life are ordained of God. In the life of a saint there is no such thing as chance. God by His providence brings you into circumstances that you can’t understand at all, but the Spirit of God understands. God brings you to places, among people, and into certain conditions to accomplish a definite purpose through the intercession of the Spirit in you. Never put yourself in front of your circumstances and say, “I’m going to be my own providence here; I will watch this closely, or protect myself from that.” All your circumstances are in the hand of God, and therefore you don’t ever have to think they are unnatural or unique. Your part in intercessory prayer is not to agonize over how to intercede, but to use the everyday circumstances and people God puts around you by His providence to bring them before His throne, and to allow the Spirit in you the opportunity to intercede for them. In this way God is going to touch the whole world with His saints.
Am I making the Holy Spirit’s work difficult by being vague and unsure, or by trying to do His work for Him? I must do the human side of intercession— utilizing the circumstances in which I find myself and the people who surround me. I must keep my conscious life as a sacred place for the Holy Spirit. Then as I lift different ones to God through prayer, the Holy Spirit intercedes for them.
Your intercessions can never be mine, and my intercessions can never be yours, “. . . but the Spirit Himself makes intercession” in each of our lives (Romans 8:26). And without that intercession, the lives of others would be left in poverty and in ruin.
Your Permanent Record - #6999
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Schools and teachers frequently run into what we might call a motivational challenge; how to motivate a student to do the right thing or stop doing the wrong thing. Now, they used to hit students on the hand or even spank them in the old days. Of course, not any more. Disciplinary actions have gotten less and less as parents have been willing to even sue if a school violates their son's or daughter's rights. A teacher can still threaten a zero, or a detention, or a trip to the principal's office, and the principal can even threaten a suspension. But there are two words that can strike terror into many a student's heart, "This will go on your permanent record."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your Permanent Record."
If your school years are a distant memory, you're probably glad you don't have to be concerned about your permanent record any more, right? Well, as a matter of fact, we all have one in heaven. King David was concerned about his, and back in the 51st Psalm he said, "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love. According to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions." He was afraid of his record with God. In verse 9 he says, "Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities." Don't you wish you could have erased the record of all the times that you've done things, thought things, said things that were out of God's bounds? Well, the Bible has a word for that - sin. Any time I run my life instead of God running it.
See, God's tape recorder has been running during every conversation of your life and mine. His recorder has been picking up everything you've ever done, even the things no one else knew about. And David said in another Psalm, "If I say surely the darkness will hide me, even the darkness will not be dark to You, God." If we have to face that permanent record when it's our time to appear before God, we don't stand a chance. The good we've done is not going to cancel out a lifetime record of doing things my way.
Thank God your permanent record doesn't have to be permanent. Our word for today from the Word of God in Colossians chapter 2, verse 13. Listen to this good news: "You were dead in your sins, but He forgave us all our sin having canceled the written code that was against us. He took it away, nailing it to His cross." In other words, because of what Jesus did when He died, it's possible to trade in punishment for forgiveness; a death penalty that I deserve, I can trade for eternal life I could never deserve.
We might want to argue over some of the entries in our permanent record in heaven and say, "Hey, I don't think that's sin. Our society doesn't think it's sin." Well, if God thinks it's sin, it is and it's on your record. But because Jesus Christ died to make possible the erasing of our sin record, God can make this promise recorded in Hebrews 8:12 in the Bible, "I will forgive their wickedness and I will remember their sins no more." Wow! Wouldn't it be liberating to know that your eternal record with God is clear; that you'll never have to face that record in God's presence some day and the judgment that goes with it?
Freedom and forgiveness - they're yours when you surrender your life to Jesus Christ. And the moment you put all your faith in Him you get a new permanent record in heaven. It's talked about in Luke 10:20 . It says, "Rejoice that your names are written in heaven." Today your name could be entered in what God calls His Book of Life. That's His permanent record of all those whose sins are forgiven because they have invited Jesus Christ to be their own Savior from their own sin.
If you've never done that, if you want to know how, if you want to be sure you have, I want to invite you to meet me at our website, ANewStory.com and find out how every sin of your life could be erased from God's Book today by beginning that relationship with Jesus.
That Book of Life in heaven? That's a permanent record you want your name on. It's a reservation for heaven written in God's indelible ink.
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Ezekiel 27, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Every Life is Long Enough
We speak of a short life, but compared to eternity, who has a long one? A person's days on earth may seem like a thimbleful. But compared to the Pacific of eternity, even the years of Methuselah filled no more than a glass. James was not speaking just to the young when he said, "Your life is like a mist. You can see it for a short time, but then it goes away." (James 4:4 NCV).
In God's plan every life is long enough and every death is timely. And though you and I might wish for a longer life, God knows better.
And this is important. Though you and I may wish a longer life for our loved ones who have gone on before us, they don't. Ironically, the first to accept God's decision of death is the one who dies.
While we're mourning at a grave, they're marveling at heaven. While we're questioning God, they're praising Him!
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 27
A Lament Over Tyre
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, take up a lament concerning Tyre. 3 Say to Tyre, situated at the gateway to the sea, merchant of peoples on many coasts, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘You say, Tyre,
“I am perfect in beauty.”
4 Your domain was on the high seas;
your builders brought your beauty to perfection.
5 They made all your timbers
of juniper from Senir[a];
they took a cedar from Lebanon
to make a mast for you.
6 Of oaks from Bashan
they made your oars;
of cypress wood[b] from the coasts of Cyprus
they made your deck, adorned with ivory.
7 Fine embroidered linen from Egypt was your sail
and served as your banner;
your awnings were of blue and purple
from the coasts of Elishah.
8 Men of Sidon and Arvad were your oarsmen;
your skilled men, Tyre, were aboard as your sailors.
9 Veteran craftsmen of Byblos were on board
as shipwrights to caulk your seams.
All the ships of the sea and their sailors
came alongside to trade for your wares.
10 “‘Men of Persia, Lydia and Put
served as soldiers in your army.
They hung their shields and helmets on your walls,
bringing you splendor.
11 Men of Arvad and Helek
guarded your walls on every side;
men of Gammad
were in your towers.
They hung their shields around your walls;
they brought your beauty to perfection.
12 “‘Tarshish did business with you because of your great wealth of goods; they exchanged silver, iron, tin and lead for your merchandise.
13 “‘Greece, Tubal and Meshek did business with you; they traded human beings and articles of bronze for your wares.
14 “‘Men of Beth Togarmah exchanged chariot horses, cavalry horses and mules for your merchandise.
15 “‘The men of Rhodes[c] traded with you, and many coastlands were your customers; they paid you with ivory tusks and ebony.
16 “‘Aram[d] did business with you because of your many products; they exchanged turquoise, purple fabric, embroidered work, fine linen, coral and rubies for your merchandise.
17 “‘Judah and Israel traded with you; they exchanged wheat from Minnith and confections,[e] honey, olive oil and balm for your wares.
18 “‘Damascus did business with you because of your many products and great wealth of goods. They offered wine from Helbon, wool from Zahar 19 and casks of wine from Izal in exchange for your wares: wrought iron, cassia and calamus.
20 “‘Dedan traded in saddle blankets with you.
21 “‘Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your customers; they did business with you in lambs, rams and goats.
22 “‘The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; for your merchandise they exchanged the finest of all kinds of spices and precious stones, and gold.
23 “‘Harran, Kanneh and Eden and merchants of Sheba, Ashur and Kilmad traded with you. 24 In your marketplace they traded with you beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered work and multicolored rugs with cords twisted and tightly knotted.
25 “‘The ships of Tarshish serve
as carriers for your wares.
You are filled with heavy cargo
as you sail the sea.
26 Your oarsmen take you
out to the high seas.
But the east wind will break you to pieces
far out at sea.
27 Your wealth, merchandise and wares,
your mariners, sailors and shipwrights,
your merchants and all your soldiers,
and everyone else on board
will sink into the heart of the sea
on the day of your shipwreck.
28 The shorelands will quake
when your sailors cry out.
29 All who handle the oars
will abandon their ships;
the mariners and all the sailors
will stand on the shore.
30 They will raise their voice
and cry bitterly over you;
they will sprinkle dust on their heads
and roll in ashes.
31 They will shave their heads because of you
and will put on sackcloth.
They will weep over you with anguish of soul
and with bitter mourning.
32 As they wail and mourn over you,
they will take up a lament concerning you:
“Who was ever silenced like Tyre,
surrounded by the sea?”
33 When your merchandise went out on the seas,
you satisfied many nations;
with your great wealth and your wares
you enriched the kings of the earth.
34 Now you are shattered by the sea
in the depths of the waters;
your wares and all your company
have gone down with you.
35 All who live in the coastlands
are appalled at you;
their kings shudder with horror
and their faces are distorted with fear.
36 The merchants among the nations scoff at you;
you have come to a horrible end
and will be no more.’”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
A Time for Everything
3 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
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 from embracing,
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.
A Season For Everything
November 6, 2013 — by Jennifer Benson Schuldt
To everything there is a season. —Ecclesiastes 3:1
In the 1960s, the folk-rock band The Byrds popularized the song “Turn! Turn! Turn!” It climbed to the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and gained worldwide popularity. People seemed captivated by the lyrics. Interestingly, though, except for the last line, those lyrics are from the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes.
“To everything there is a season,” proclaims the writer of Ecclesiastes, “a time for every purpose under heaven” (3:1). He then lists some of the seasons in human experience: birth and death, gain and loss, tears and laughter, mourning and dancing. Just as the seasons in nature change, so do the seasons in our lives. Our circumstances never stay the same for long.
Sometimes we welcome change in our lives. But often it is difficult, especially when it involves sorrow and loss. Yet even then we can be thankful that God does not change. “I am the Lord,” He said through the prophet Malachi, “I do not change” (Mal. 3:6).
Because God remains the same, we can rely on Him through the shifting seasons of life. His presence is always with us (Ps. 46:1), His peace has the power to guard our hearts (Phil. 4:7), and His love provides security for our souls (Rom. 8:39).
A mighty fortress is our God,
A bulwark never failing;
Our helper He amid the flood
Of mortal ills prevailing. —Luther
God’s unchanging nature is our security during seasons of change.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 6, 2013
Intimate Theology
Do you believe this? —John 11:26
Martha believed in the power available to Jesus Christ; she believed that if He had been there He could have healed her brother; she also believed that Jesus had a special intimacy with God, and that whatever He asked of God, God would do. But— she needed a closer personal intimacy with Jesus. Martha’s theology had its fulfillment in the future. But Jesus continued to attract and draw her in until her belief became an intimate possession. It then slowly emerged into a personal inheritance— “Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ . . .” (John 11:27).
Is the Lord dealing with you in the same way? Is Jesus teaching you to have a personal intimacy with Himself? Allow Him to drive His question home to you— “Do you believe this?” Are you facing an area of doubt in your life? Have you come, like Martha, to a crossroads of overwhelming circumstances where your theology is about to become a very personal belief? This happens only when a personal problem brings the awareness of our personal need.
To believe is to commit. In the area of intellectual learning I commit myself mentally, and reject anything not related to that belief. In the realm of personal belief I commit myself morally to my convictions and refuse to compromise. But in intimate personal belief I commit myself spiritually to Jesus Christ and make a determination to be dominated by Him alone.
Then, when I stand face to face with Jesus Christ and He says to me, “Do you believe this?” I find that faith is as natural as breathing. And I am staggered when I think how foolish I have been in not trusting Him earlier
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
One-Way Calls - #6998
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
I'm on the road a lot, and the phone in my room is still a very important tool (especially when I'm in those areas when I don't have cell signal). But years ago, even before cell phones, it was even more frustrating. I was staying in this campus guest room provided by the school where I was ministering. I appreciated the room; I just didn't appreciate the phone. See, I couldn't call out, even collect or with a credit card. The school had programmed the phone so it blocked any outgoing calls, because I guess they didn't want to get stuck with long distance bills.
It was frustrating! Especially early in the morning or late at night when I wasn't dressed and I couldn't easily get down to the public phone seven floors down in the "good old days." One morning we were in the middle of something that required daily communication with my office, and I literally prayed that someone from our team would call and deliver me from my one-way telephone prison. And God answered the prayer - they did call. Then they called the people that I needed to hear from. Oh, I could get calls; I just couldn't initiate them. So I was stuck being able to talk only when someone wanted to talk to me. Too bad if I wanted to talk to them.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "One-Way Calls."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Samuel 3:8-9. It's right at the beginning of Samuel's life as he is a young man staying with the priest, Eli. And it says, "The Lord called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, 'Here am I. You called me.'" This had happened twice before that same night. "Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, 'Go and lie down, and if He calls you say, "Speak Lord, for your servant is listening." So Samuel went and lay down in his place." And that's exactly what happened. The Lord did come and that's what Samuel said, "Speak for your servant is listening."
See, God wanted to talk to Samuel, and He had a little difficulty getting the call through. He had to dial three times. God has some things He'd like to say to you about your future, your pain, your questions, the decisions you need to make, maybe the struggle you're going through. But maybe there's just a one-way phone most of the time. Oh, you're calling God whenever you feel like it. You're talking about whatever is on your mind. But maybe you're not allowing much opportunity for God to whisper something to your soul. He wants prayer to be dialogue, not monologue.
The problem is we rewrite this verse. We say, "Listen Lord. Your servant is speaking." Oh, and He does. He listens. We initiate a call to God, we say what we want to say and hang up. But we miss so much when we don't allow God to call us with important things that He wants to show us.
What happens when you have a two-way phone system from earth to heaven and heaven to earth? Well, verse 11, God said to him, "See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears it tingle." I mean, exciting news! God wants to show you some amazing things, but you have to stop talking to hear them. It says, "Samuel went and laid down in his place and the Lord came and stood there." David said, "Be still and know that I am God."
So when you pray about something, allow some silent time at the beginning and at the end. Allow a space where God could call you. You probably won't hear an audible voice like Samuel; that's not needed so much today when God lives inside His children through the Holy Spirit. But He'll speak to you as you meditate on a verse of Scripture. He'll light up your situation suddenly with a personal application of those words or maybe as you're praying. I tend to trust the ideas or the insights that come into my mind while I'm talking to God about an issue, when I've turned off everything else, not looking at my cell phone, not looking at texts, not listening to the radio, no TV, nothing else around, and I'm just listening to God solo - to let Him say something to my soul. I can trust pretty much what I hear then.
I know the frustration of just receiving information without being able to send any, and so does God. If your heaven-link phone has only been calling out, why not try Samuel's prayer every new day, "Speak Lord. Your servant is listening." It's important that God receives calls from you; it's much more important that you get those calls from God.
We speak of a short life, but compared to eternity, who has a long one? A person's days on earth may seem like a thimbleful. But compared to the Pacific of eternity, even the years of Methuselah filled no more than a glass. James was not speaking just to the young when he said, "Your life is like a mist. You can see it for a short time, but then it goes away." (James 4:4 NCV).
In God's plan every life is long enough and every death is timely. And though you and I might wish for a longer life, God knows better.
And this is important. Though you and I may wish a longer life for our loved ones who have gone on before us, they don't. Ironically, the first to accept God's decision of death is the one who dies.
While we're mourning at a grave, they're marveling at heaven. While we're questioning God, they're praising Him!
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 27
A Lament Over Tyre
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, take up a lament concerning Tyre. 3 Say to Tyre, situated at the gateway to the sea, merchant of peoples on many coasts, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘You say, Tyre,
“I am perfect in beauty.”
4 Your domain was on the high seas;
your builders brought your beauty to perfection.
5 They made all your timbers
of juniper from Senir[a];
they took a cedar from Lebanon
to make a mast for you.
6 Of oaks from Bashan
they made your oars;
of cypress wood[b] from the coasts of Cyprus
they made your deck, adorned with ivory.
7 Fine embroidered linen from Egypt was your sail
and served as your banner;
your awnings were of blue and purple
from the coasts of Elishah.
8 Men of Sidon and Arvad were your oarsmen;
your skilled men, Tyre, were aboard as your sailors.
9 Veteran craftsmen of Byblos were on board
as shipwrights to caulk your seams.
All the ships of the sea and their sailors
came alongside to trade for your wares.
10 “‘Men of Persia, Lydia and Put
served as soldiers in your army.
They hung their shields and helmets on your walls,
bringing you splendor.
11 Men of Arvad and Helek
guarded your walls on every side;
men of Gammad
were in your towers.
They hung their shields around your walls;
they brought your beauty to perfection.
12 “‘Tarshish did business with you because of your great wealth of goods; they exchanged silver, iron, tin and lead for your merchandise.
13 “‘Greece, Tubal and Meshek did business with you; they traded human beings and articles of bronze for your wares.
14 “‘Men of Beth Togarmah exchanged chariot horses, cavalry horses and mules for your merchandise.
15 “‘The men of Rhodes[c] traded with you, and many coastlands were your customers; they paid you with ivory tusks and ebony.
16 “‘Aram[d] did business with you because of your many products; they exchanged turquoise, purple fabric, embroidered work, fine linen, coral and rubies for your merchandise.
17 “‘Judah and Israel traded with you; they exchanged wheat from Minnith and confections,[e] honey, olive oil and balm for your wares.
18 “‘Damascus did business with you because of your many products and great wealth of goods. They offered wine from Helbon, wool from Zahar 19 and casks of wine from Izal in exchange for your wares: wrought iron, cassia and calamus.
20 “‘Dedan traded in saddle blankets with you.
21 “‘Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your customers; they did business with you in lambs, rams and goats.
22 “‘The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; for your merchandise they exchanged the finest of all kinds of spices and precious stones, and gold.
23 “‘Harran, Kanneh and Eden and merchants of Sheba, Ashur and Kilmad traded with you. 24 In your marketplace they traded with you beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered work and multicolored rugs with cords twisted and tightly knotted.
25 “‘The ships of Tarshish serve
as carriers for your wares.
You are filled with heavy cargo
as you sail the sea.
26 Your oarsmen take you
out to the high seas.
But the east wind will break you to pieces
far out at sea.
27 Your wealth, merchandise and wares,
your mariners, sailors and shipwrights,
your merchants and all your soldiers,
and everyone else on board
will sink into the heart of the sea
on the day of your shipwreck.
28 The shorelands will quake
when your sailors cry out.
29 All who handle the oars
will abandon their ships;
the mariners and all the sailors
will stand on the shore.
30 They will raise their voice
and cry bitterly over you;
they will sprinkle dust on their heads
and roll in ashes.
31 They will shave their heads because of you
and will put on sackcloth.
They will weep over you with anguish of soul
and with bitter mourning.
32 As they wail and mourn over you,
they will take up a lament concerning you:
“Who was ever silenced like Tyre,
surrounded by the sea?”
33 When your merchandise went out on the seas,
you satisfied many nations;
with your great wealth and your wares
you enriched the kings of the earth.
34 Now you are shattered by the sea
in the depths of the waters;
your wares and all your company
have gone down with you.
35 All who live in the coastlands
are appalled at you;
their kings shudder with horror
and their faces are distorted with fear.
36 The merchants among the nations scoff at you;
you have come to a horrible end
and will be no more.’”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
A Time for Everything
3 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
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 from embracing,
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.
A Season For Everything
November 6, 2013 — by Jennifer Benson Schuldt
To everything there is a season. —Ecclesiastes 3:1
In the 1960s, the folk-rock band The Byrds popularized the song “Turn! Turn! Turn!” It climbed to the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and gained worldwide popularity. People seemed captivated by the lyrics. Interestingly, though, except for the last line, those lyrics are from the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes.
“To everything there is a season,” proclaims the writer of Ecclesiastes, “a time for every purpose under heaven” (3:1). He then lists some of the seasons in human experience: birth and death, gain and loss, tears and laughter, mourning and dancing. Just as the seasons in nature change, so do the seasons in our lives. Our circumstances never stay the same for long.
Sometimes we welcome change in our lives. But often it is difficult, especially when it involves sorrow and loss. Yet even then we can be thankful that God does not change. “I am the Lord,” He said through the prophet Malachi, “I do not change” (Mal. 3:6).
Because God remains the same, we can rely on Him through the shifting seasons of life. His presence is always with us (Ps. 46:1), His peace has the power to guard our hearts (Phil. 4:7), and His love provides security for our souls (Rom. 8:39).
A mighty fortress is our God,
A bulwark never failing;
Our helper He amid the flood
Of mortal ills prevailing. —Luther
God’s unchanging nature is our security during seasons of change.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 6, 2013
Intimate Theology
Do you believe this? —John 11:26
Martha believed in the power available to Jesus Christ; she believed that if He had been there He could have healed her brother; she also believed that Jesus had a special intimacy with God, and that whatever He asked of God, God would do. But— she needed a closer personal intimacy with Jesus. Martha’s theology had its fulfillment in the future. But Jesus continued to attract and draw her in until her belief became an intimate possession. It then slowly emerged into a personal inheritance— “Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ . . .” (John 11:27).
Is the Lord dealing with you in the same way? Is Jesus teaching you to have a personal intimacy with Himself? Allow Him to drive His question home to you— “Do you believe this?” Are you facing an area of doubt in your life? Have you come, like Martha, to a crossroads of overwhelming circumstances where your theology is about to become a very personal belief? This happens only when a personal problem brings the awareness of our personal need.
To believe is to commit. In the area of intellectual learning I commit myself mentally, and reject anything not related to that belief. In the realm of personal belief I commit myself morally to my convictions and refuse to compromise. But in intimate personal belief I commit myself spiritually to Jesus Christ and make a determination to be dominated by Him alone.
Then, when I stand face to face with Jesus Christ and He says to me, “Do you believe this?” I find that faith is as natural as breathing. And I am staggered when I think how foolish I have been in not trusting Him earlier
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
One-Way Calls - #6998
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
I'm on the road a lot, and the phone in my room is still a very important tool (especially when I'm in those areas when I don't have cell signal). But years ago, even before cell phones, it was even more frustrating. I was staying in this campus guest room provided by the school where I was ministering. I appreciated the room; I just didn't appreciate the phone. See, I couldn't call out, even collect or with a credit card. The school had programmed the phone so it blocked any outgoing calls, because I guess they didn't want to get stuck with long distance bills.
It was frustrating! Especially early in the morning or late at night when I wasn't dressed and I couldn't easily get down to the public phone seven floors down in the "good old days." One morning we were in the middle of something that required daily communication with my office, and I literally prayed that someone from our team would call and deliver me from my one-way telephone prison. And God answered the prayer - they did call. Then they called the people that I needed to hear from. Oh, I could get calls; I just couldn't initiate them. So I was stuck being able to talk only when someone wanted to talk to me. Too bad if I wanted to talk to them.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "One-Way Calls."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Samuel 3:8-9. It's right at the beginning of Samuel's life as he is a young man staying with the priest, Eli. And it says, "The Lord called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, 'Here am I. You called me.'" This had happened twice before that same night. "Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, 'Go and lie down, and if He calls you say, "Speak Lord, for your servant is listening." So Samuel went and lay down in his place." And that's exactly what happened. The Lord did come and that's what Samuel said, "Speak for your servant is listening."
See, God wanted to talk to Samuel, and He had a little difficulty getting the call through. He had to dial three times. God has some things He'd like to say to you about your future, your pain, your questions, the decisions you need to make, maybe the struggle you're going through. But maybe there's just a one-way phone most of the time. Oh, you're calling God whenever you feel like it. You're talking about whatever is on your mind. But maybe you're not allowing much opportunity for God to whisper something to your soul. He wants prayer to be dialogue, not monologue.
The problem is we rewrite this verse. We say, "Listen Lord. Your servant is speaking." Oh, and He does. He listens. We initiate a call to God, we say what we want to say and hang up. But we miss so much when we don't allow God to call us with important things that He wants to show us.
What happens when you have a two-way phone system from earth to heaven and heaven to earth? Well, verse 11, God said to him, "See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears it tingle." I mean, exciting news! God wants to show you some amazing things, but you have to stop talking to hear them. It says, "Samuel went and laid down in his place and the Lord came and stood there." David said, "Be still and know that I am God."
So when you pray about something, allow some silent time at the beginning and at the end. Allow a space where God could call you. You probably won't hear an audible voice like Samuel; that's not needed so much today when God lives inside His children through the Holy Spirit. But He'll speak to you as you meditate on a verse of Scripture. He'll light up your situation suddenly with a personal application of those words or maybe as you're praying. I tend to trust the ideas or the insights that come into my mind while I'm talking to God about an issue, when I've turned off everything else, not looking at my cell phone, not looking at texts, not listening to the radio, no TV, nothing else around, and I'm just listening to God solo - to let Him say something to my soul. I can trust pretty much what I hear then.
I know the frustration of just receiving information without being able to send any, and so does God. If your heaven-link phone has only been calling out, why not try Samuel's prayer every new day, "Speak Lord. Your servant is listening." It's important that God receives calls from you; it's much more important that you get those calls from God.
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
1 Peter 2, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Jesus Knows How You Feel
Remember when you sought a night's rest and got a colicky baby? Remember when you sought to catch up at the office and got even further behind? And you can add to the list of interruptions sorrow, excitement, and bedlam. Sound familiar?
Take comfort-it happened to Jesus too. You may have trouble believing that. You probably believe Jesus knows what it means to endure heavy-duty tragedies. You're no doubt convinced Jesus is acquainted with sorrow and has wrestled with fear. Most people accept that. But can God relate to the hassles and headaches of my life? Of your life?
For some reason this is harder to believe. But Jesus knows how you feel. His eyes have grown weary. His heart has grown heavy. He has had to climb out of bed with a sore throat. He has been kept awake late and has gotten up early.
Jesus knows how you feel!
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
1 Peter 2
New International Version (NIV)
2 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. 2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
The Living Stone and a Chosen People
4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house[a] to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For in Scripture it says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”[b]
7 Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,
“The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone,”[c]
8 and,
“A stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.”[d]
They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.
9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Living Godly Lives in a Pagan Society
11 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. 16 Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. 17 Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.
18 Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. 19 For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. 20 But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. 21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
22 “He committed no sin,
and no deceit was found in his mouth.”[e]
23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” 25 For “you were like sheep going astray,”[f] but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Footnotes:
1 Peter 2:5 Or into a temple of the Spirit
1 Peter 2:6 Isaiah 28:16
1 Peter 2:7 Psalm 118:22
1 Peter 2:8 Isaiah 8:14
1 Peter 2:22 Isaiah 53:9
1 Peter 2:25 Isaiah 53:4,5,6 (see Septuagint)
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Corinthians 5:1-11
Awaiting the New Body
5 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2 Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, 3 because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4 For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
6 Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7 For we live by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
The Ministry of Reconciliation
11 Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.
Good-Behavior Rewards
November 5, 2013 — by Anne Cetas
We make it our aim . . . to be well pleasing to [God]. —2 Corinthians 5:9
In a children’s ministry in my church, we hand out cards to the kids when we notice their good behavior. They collect the cards and receive prizes for the good choices they’ve made. We are trying to reinforce good behavior rather than focusing on bad behavior.
When one leader handed a card to 11-year-old Tyree, he responded, “No, thanks. I don’t need one; I want to behave well, and I don’t need a reward for that.” For him, doing the right thing was its own reward. He definitely has good values ingrained in him, and he wants to live them out—prize or not.
As believers in Jesus, we will receive rewards one day. Second Corinthians 5:10 says that everyone will “receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” But to get a reward should not be our motivation for right living. Neither is it to earn salvation. Living out of love for God and pleasing Him should be our heart’s desire.
When we love God, we make it our aim to please Him who first loved us (1 John 4:19) and to serve Him with pure motives (Prov. 16:2; 1 Cor. 4:5). The best reward will be to be with Him!
In all I think and say and do,
I long, O God, to honor You;
But may my highest motive be
To love the Christ who died for me. —D. DeHaan
Our desire to please God is our highest motive for obeying Him.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 5, 2013
Partakers of His Suffering
. . . but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings . . . —1 Peter 4:13
If you are going to be used by God, He will take you through a number of experiences that are not meant for you personally at all. They are designed to make you useful in His hands, and to enable you to understand what takes place in the lives of others. Because of this process, you will never be surprised by what comes your way. You say, “Oh, I can’t deal with that person.” Why can’t you? God gave you sufficient opportunities to learn from Him about that problem; but you turned away, not heeding the lesson, because it seemed foolish to spend your time that way.
The sufferings of Christ were not those of ordinary people. He suffered “according to the will of God” (1 Peter 4:19), having a different point of view of suffering from ours. It is only through our relationship with Jesus Christ that we can understand what God is after in His dealings with us. When it comes to suffering, it is part of our Christian culture to want to know God’s purpose beforehand. In the history of the Christian church, the tendency has been to avoid being identified with the sufferings of Jesus Christ. People have sought to carry out God’s orders through a shortcut of their own. God’s way is always the way of suffering— the way of the “long road home.”
Are we partakers of Christ’s sufferings? Are we prepared for God to stamp out our personal ambitions? Are we prepared for God to destroy our individual decisions by supernaturally transforming them? It will mean not knowing why God is taking us that way, because knowing would make us spiritually proud. We never realize at the time what God is putting us through— we go through it more or less without understanding. Then suddenly we come to a place of enlightenment, and realize— “God has strengthened me and I didn’t even know it!”
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Miley, Hannah, and Our Kids
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
"She let us down." That's what one ten-year-old said about Miley Cyrus' more-than-suggestive performance at the MTV Awards. And that little girl nailed it.
Miley's romp - looking all "little girl" - actually became an obscene public display of stripper moves and sexual suggestion. Unfortunately, it popped up on many newscasts. She was once the innocent Disney girl, Hannah Montana. Somehow I guess she felt that shedding clothes would shed that image.
She was important to a lot of young girls, who she really did let down. Twitter and social networks erupted in a tsunami of comments - most fairly outraged. "She crossed a line" was a prevailing sentiment. Apparently, our jaded culture still believes there's a line.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Miley, Hannah and Our Kids."
You know, I'm most concerned about what that incident represented in terms of what this culture can do to any of our kids or grandkids; starting out innocent. Quickly poisoned and corrupted by a bombardment of sexual images. Flesh everywhere. Worth that comes from romance. Love and sex portrayed almost as synonyms. Little girls pushed to be big girls way too soon. Music that makes kids know about what they don't need to know about and want what they shouldn't be wanting.
And standing between this onrushing, innocence-robbing culture and our kids? A mom. A dad. Maybe a grandma or grandpa who will need courage to say "no" to what other parents are letting in. To the deafening drumbeat that seems to say, "Come on, everybody's doing it." Yes, that requires playing big-time defense against influences that are poison wrapped in beautiful packages.
God has no greater trust He can give a human than a life to shape. And, yes, you've got to play defense against the lies our culture buys. But, in the modern parent playbook, playing offense is at least as important as playing defense, which means teaching and showing our children what's really important. Like childhood. Let them be eight when they're eight, 10 when they're 10, 14 when they're 14. Have a childhood. You'll never be a kid again. You'll have the rest of your life to be grown up. Don't waste the years when you don't have to worry about mascara and image and who-likes-who.
Playing offense means showing them sex is created to be the special language of a love that lasts a lifetime. That your body is not bait. That clean is cool, not dirty. We prepare them for the minefield when we let them know that it matters what you watch, what you listen to, what you laugh at. As the Bible says, "Guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life" (Proverbs 4:23).
And we fortify them by loving them so obviously and unconditionally they don't have to go looking for love in all the wrong places. Letting them know that they are, as the Bible says, "God's workmanship" (Ephesians 2:10). That they get their worth from their Creator, not from a guy or girl. That - like collectibles - they're the most valuable when they keep themselves in "mint condition." They need to feel free to tell us anything without fear of shock or condemnation. So they can debrief the experiences - and honestly sometimes the garbage - of their day.
My wife and I have been so thankful that our kids - and now our grandkids - have never left home alone. Because they left with Somebody who loves them more than we ever could. The One the little children sing about in church - "Jesus loves me, this I know."
He died for them. And for us. So we know He'll keep His promise as it tells us in our word for today from the Word of God, Isaiah 40:11: "He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young."
If I hadn't put my life in Jesus' hands before, having kids in this kind of world would have driven me to Jesus. Yes, for my sake. But - maybe even more - for their sake. He's the Great Shepherd who never takes His eyes off His sheep.
A personal relationship with Jesus is within the reach of anyone who puts their life in His hands. If you'll go to ANewStory.com, I'd love to show you how you can get started with this Great Shepherd.
Remember when you sought a night's rest and got a colicky baby? Remember when you sought to catch up at the office and got even further behind? And you can add to the list of interruptions sorrow, excitement, and bedlam. Sound familiar?
Take comfort-it happened to Jesus too. You may have trouble believing that. You probably believe Jesus knows what it means to endure heavy-duty tragedies. You're no doubt convinced Jesus is acquainted with sorrow and has wrestled with fear. Most people accept that. But can God relate to the hassles and headaches of my life? Of your life?
For some reason this is harder to believe. But Jesus knows how you feel. His eyes have grown weary. His heart has grown heavy. He has had to climb out of bed with a sore throat. He has been kept awake late and has gotten up early.
Jesus knows how you feel!
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
1 Peter 2
New International Version (NIV)
2 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. 2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
The Living Stone and a Chosen People
4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house[a] to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For in Scripture it says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”[b]
7 Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,
“The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone,”[c]
8 and,
“A stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.”[d]
They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.
9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Living Godly Lives in a Pagan Society
11 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. 16 Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. 17 Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.
18 Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. 19 For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. 20 But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. 21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
22 “He committed no sin,
and no deceit was found in his mouth.”[e]
23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” 25 For “you were like sheep going astray,”[f] but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Footnotes:
1 Peter 2:5 Or into a temple of the Spirit
1 Peter 2:6 Isaiah 28:16
1 Peter 2:7 Psalm 118:22
1 Peter 2:8 Isaiah 8:14
1 Peter 2:22 Isaiah 53:9
1 Peter 2:25 Isaiah 53:4,5,6 (see Septuagint)
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Corinthians 5:1-11
Awaiting the New Body
5 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2 Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, 3 because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4 For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
6 Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7 For we live by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
The Ministry of Reconciliation
11 Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.
Good-Behavior Rewards
November 5, 2013 — by Anne Cetas
We make it our aim . . . to be well pleasing to [God]. —2 Corinthians 5:9
In a children’s ministry in my church, we hand out cards to the kids when we notice their good behavior. They collect the cards and receive prizes for the good choices they’ve made. We are trying to reinforce good behavior rather than focusing on bad behavior.
When one leader handed a card to 11-year-old Tyree, he responded, “No, thanks. I don’t need one; I want to behave well, and I don’t need a reward for that.” For him, doing the right thing was its own reward. He definitely has good values ingrained in him, and he wants to live them out—prize or not.
As believers in Jesus, we will receive rewards one day. Second Corinthians 5:10 says that everyone will “receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” But to get a reward should not be our motivation for right living. Neither is it to earn salvation. Living out of love for God and pleasing Him should be our heart’s desire.
When we love God, we make it our aim to please Him who first loved us (1 John 4:19) and to serve Him with pure motives (Prov. 16:2; 1 Cor. 4:5). The best reward will be to be with Him!
In all I think and say and do,
I long, O God, to honor You;
But may my highest motive be
To love the Christ who died for me. —D. DeHaan
Our desire to please God is our highest motive for obeying Him.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 5, 2013
Partakers of His Suffering
. . . but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings . . . —1 Peter 4:13
If you are going to be used by God, He will take you through a number of experiences that are not meant for you personally at all. They are designed to make you useful in His hands, and to enable you to understand what takes place in the lives of others. Because of this process, you will never be surprised by what comes your way. You say, “Oh, I can’t deal with that person.” Why can’t you? God gave you sufficient opportunities to learn from Him about that problem; but you turned away, not heeding the lesson, because it seemed foolish to spend your time that way.
The sufferings of Christ were not those of ordinary people. He suffered “according to the will of God” (1 Peter 4:19), having a different point of view of suffering from ours. It is only through our relationship with Jesus Christ that we can understand what God is after in His dealings with us. When it comes to suffering, it is part of our Christian culture to want to know God’s purpose beforehand. In the history of the Christian church, the tendency has been to avoid being identified with the sufferings of Jesus Christ. People have sought to carry out God’s orders through a shortcut of their own. God’s way is always the way of suffering— the way of the “long road home.”
Are we partakers of Christ’s sufferings? Are we prepared for God to stamp out our personal ambitions? Are we prepared for God to destroy our individual decisions by supernaturally transforming them? It will mean not knowing why God is taking us that way, because knowing would make us spiritually proud. We never realize at the time what God is putting us through— we go through it more or less without understanding. Then suddenly we come to a place of enlightenment, and realize— “God has strengthened me and I didn’t even know it!”
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Miley, Hannah, and Our Kids
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
"She let us down." That's what one ten-year-old said about Miley Cyrus' more-than-suggestive performance at the MTV Awards. And that little girl nailed it.
Miley's romp - looking all "little girl" - actually became an obscene public display of stripper moves and sexual suggestion. Unfortunately, it popped up on many newscasts. She was once the innocent Disney girl, Hannah Montana. Somehow I guess she felt that shedding clothes would shed that image.
She was important to a lot of young girls, who she really did let down. Twitter and social networks erupted in a tsunami of comments - most fairly outraged. "She crossed a line" was a prevailing sentiment. Apparently, our jaded culture still believes there's a line.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Miley, Hannah and Our Kids."
You know, I'm most concerned about what that incident represented in terms of what this culture can do to any of our kids or grandkids; starting out innocent. Quickly poisoned and corrupted by a bombardment of sexual images. Flesh everywhere. Worth that comes from romance. Love and sex portrayed almost as synonyms. Little girls pushed to be big girls way too soon. Music that makes kids know about what they don't need to know about and want what they shouldn't be wanting.
And standing between this onrushing, innocence-robbing culture and our kids? A mom. A dad. Maybe a grandma or grandpa who will need courage to say "no" to what other parents are letting in. To the deafening drumbeat that seems to say, "Come on, everybody's doing it." Yes, that requires playing big-time defense against influences that are poison wrapped in beautiful packages.
God has no greater trust He can give a human than a life to shape. And, yes, you've got to play defense against the lies our culture buys. But, in the modern parent playbook, playing offense is at least as important as playing defense, which means teaching and showing our children what's really important. Like childhood. Let them be eight when they're eight, 10 when they're 10, 14 when they're 14. Have a childhood. You'll never be a kid again. You'll have the rest of your life to be grown up. Don't waste the years when you don't have to worry about mascara and image and who-likes-who.
Playing offense means showing them sex is created to be the special language of a love that lasts a lifetime. That your body is not bait. That clean is cool, not dirty. We prepare them for the minefield when we let them know that it matters what you watch, what you listen to, what you laugh at. As the Bible says, "Guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life" (Proverbs 4:23).
And we fortify them by loving them so obviously and unconditionally they don't have to go looking for love in all the wrong places. Letting them know that they are, as the Bible says, "God's workmanship" (Ephesians 2:10). That they get their worth from their Creator, not from a guy or girl. That - like collectibles - they're the most valuable when they keep themselves in "mint condition." They need to feel free to tell us anything without fear of shock or condemnation. So they can debrief the experiences - and honestly sometimes the garbage - of their day.
My wife and I have been so thankful that our kids - and now our grandkids - have never left home alone. Because they left with Somebody who loves them more than we ever could. The One the little children sing about in church - "Jesus loves me, this I know."
He died for them. And for us. So we know He'll keep His promise as it tells us in our word for today from the Word of God, Isaiah 40:11: "He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young."
If I hadn't put my life in Jesus' hands before, having kids in this kind of world would have driven me to Jesus. Yes, for my sake. But - maybe even more - for their sake. He's the Great Shepherd who never takes His eyes off His sheep.
A personal relationship with Jesus is within the reach of anyone who puts their life in His hands. If you'll go to ANewStory.com, I'd love to show you how you can get started with this Great Shepherd.
Monday, November 4, 2013
Ezekiel 26, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
The church names we banter about? They don’t exist in heaven. Because it’s not the denomination that saves you. And I wonder, if there’re no denominations in heaven, why do we have denominations on earth?
I know this is a crazy thought—but what would happen if all the churches agreed, on a given day, to change their names simply to “church?” And then when people chose which church to attend, they wouldn’t do so by the sign outside, they’d do so by the hearts of the people inside.
And then, when people were asked what church they attended, their answer wouldn’t be a label but just a location. And then, we Christians wouldn’t be known for what divides us; instead we’d be known for what unites us—our common Father.
Crazy idea? Perhaps. But I think God would like it. It was His idea to begin with!
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 26
A Prophecy Against Tyre
In the eleventh month of the twelfth[b] year, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gate to the nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me; now that she lies in ruins I will prosper,’ 3 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Tyre, and I will bring many nations against you, like the sea casting up its waves. 4 They will destroy the walls of Tyre and pull down her towers; I will scrape away her rubble and make her a bare rock. 5 Out in the sea she will become a place to spread fishnets, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord. She will become plunder for the nations, 6 and her settlements on the mainland will be ravaged by the sword. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
7 “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: From the north I am going to bring against Tyre Nebuchadnezzar[c] king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, with horsemen and a great army. 8 He will ravage your settlements on the mainland with the sword; he will set up siege works against you, build a ramp up to your walls and raise his shields against you. 9 He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and demolish your towers with his weapons. 10 His horses will be so many that they will cover you with dust. Your walls will tremble at the noise of the warhorses, wagons and chariots when he enters your gates as men enter a city whose walls have been broken through. 11 The hooves of his horses will trample all your streets; he will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars will fall to the ground. 12 They will plunder your wealth and loot your merchandise; they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea. 13 I will put an end to your noisy songs, and the music of your harps will be heard no more. 14 I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread fishnets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.
15 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Tyre: Will not the coastlands tremble at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan and the slaughter takes place in you? 16 Then all the princes of the coast will step down from their thrones and lay aside their robes and take off their embroidered garments. Clothed with terror, they will sit on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled at you. 17 Then they will take up a lament concerning you and say to you:
“‘How you are destroyed, city of renown,
peopled by men of the sea!
You were a power on the seas,
you and your citizens;
you put your terror
on all who lived there.
18 Now the coastlands tremble
on the day of your fall;
the islands in the sea
are terrified at your collapse.’
19 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I make you a desolate city, like cities no longer inhabited, and when I bring the ocean depths over you and its vast waters cover you, 20 then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of long ago. I will make you dwell in the earth below, as in ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, and you will not return or take your place[d] in the land of the living. 21 I will bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more. You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign Lord.”
Ezekiel 26:1 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text does not have month of the twelfth.
Ezekiel 26:7 Hebrew Nebuchadrezzar, of which Nebuchadnezzar is a variant; here and often in Ezekiel and Jeremiah
Ezekiel 26:20 Septuagint; Hebrew return, and I will give glory
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Romans 12:14-21
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[a] Do not be conceited.
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[b] says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”[c]
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Footnotes:
Romans 12:16 Or willing to do menial work
Romans 12:19 Deut. 32:35
Romans 12:20 Prov. 25:21,22
Leap The Wall
November 4, 2013 — by Randy Kilgore
If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. —Proverbs 25:21
Sgt. Richard Kirkland was a Confederate soldier in the US Civil War (1861–1865). When the Union’s failed charge at Marye’s Heights during the Battle of Fredericksburg left wounded soldiers abandoned in no-man’s land, Kirkland got permission to help them. Collecting canteens, he leaped the stone wall and bent over the first soldier to lend assistance. At great personal risk, the “Angel of Marye’s Heights” extended the mercy of Christ to enemy soldiers.
While few of us will face an enemy on the battlefield, those who suffer can be found all around us—people struggling against loneliness, loss, health issues, and sin. Their cries, muted by our many distractions, plead for mercy and comfort, for hope and help.
Kirkland’s example of Christlike compassion put action to Jesus’ command to “love your enemies” (Matt. 5:44). Paul expanded on that theme when he quotes Proverbs 25:21, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink” (Rom. 12:20). “Do not be overcome by evil,” he instructed us, “but overcome evil with good” (v.21).
Paul’s challenge compels us to emulate Sgt. Kirkland. Today is the day for us to “leap the wall” of safety to lend comfort from God to those in need.
Father, give me the courage to reach out to those
I may not want to reach. Show Your love
through me in ways that will bring glory to You
and true peace in my corner of the world.
Kindness is in our power even when fondness is not. —Samuel Johnson
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 4, 2013
The Authority of Truth
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you —James 4:8
It is essential that you give people the opportunity to act on the truth of God. The responsibility must be left with the individual— you cannot act for him. It must be his own deliberate act, but the evangelical message should always lead him to action. Refusing to act leaves a person paralyzed, exactly where he was previously. But once he acts, he is never the same. It is the apparent folly of the truth that stands in the way of hundreds who have been convicted by the Spirit of God. Once I press myself into action, I immediately begin to live. Anything less is merely existing. The moments I truly live are the moments when I act with my entire will.
When a truth of God is brought home to your soul, never allow it to pass without acting on it internally in your will, not necessarily externally in your physical life. Record it with ink and with blood— work it into your life. The weakest saint who transacts business with Jesus Christ is liberated the second he acts and God’s almighty power is available on his behalf. We come up to the truth of God, confess we are wrong, but go back again. Then we approach it again and turn back, until we finally learn we have no business going back. When we are confronted with such a word of truth from our redeeming Lord, we must move directly to transact business with Him. “Come to Me . . .” (Matthew 11:28). His word come means “to act.” Yet the last thing we want to do is come. But everyone who does come knows that, at that very moment, the supernatural power of the life of God invades him. The dominating power of the world, the flesh, and the devil is now paralyzed; not by your act, but because your act has joined you to God and tapped you in to His redemptive power.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Dealing With the Leaves of Life
Monday, November 4, 2013
One of the nice things about our yard there in New Jersey was the trees. One of the frustrating things about that yard was the trees. See, every fall we would take out about a hundred bags or more stuffed with the leaves that come from those trees. We appreciate those leaves most of the year, but there is a little month there where they're not much fun at all.
I think back to one afternoon, typical of many, when we conquered the backyard. My son and I, we tackled that backyard and we carried out lots of bags of leaves. Got up the next morning (man, did we ever feel it the next morning!). We got up and we discovered that the yard that had been totally clean the night before was covered with leaves once again! It was depressing! So, we got back out there with our rakes and went at it again. Of course, it should be no surprise. Leaves fall every day.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Dealing With the Leaves of Life."
Our word for today from the Word of God; we're in Psalm 4:4. David reflects on his own daily lifestyle and says, "In your anger, do not sin. When you are on your beds search your hearts and be silent." David here seems to be saying that at night - at the end of each day - just kind of lie there silently on your bed and evaluate what's happened during the day and listen to what the Lord wants to say about it. And then the next verse says, "Offer right sacrifices and trust in the Lord."
Psalm 139:23-24, we hear David with this familiar prayer, "Search me, O God, and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there's any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." I believe David's saying here that every day he deals on a 24-hour basis with the sin that may have fallen into his life that day. That's why at the end of the day he's searching his heart; he's listening to what God wants to say about his day, and he's asking God to regularly search him.
See, sin is like the leaves in our yard in the fall. More leaves fall every day, and they've got to be cleaned up shortly after they fall. Now, we like to clean up our lives in one great binge of spiritual raking. You know, "I went to the altar several years ago." "Well, I had a great spiritual experience several months ago and really got right with the Lord."
It's got to be a daily experience. David says here, "Every night I reflect on that day to see what happened."
Every day we have new ways that we miss God's mark. So how often do we need to confess our sin? Daily. How often do we need to repent? Daily. How often do we need to visit the cross? You know. Daily. God blesses purity. He blesses clean yards, and purity involves daily clean-up. It involves specific clean-up; reviewing this past 24 hours and laying it before the Holy Spirit. Letting Him show me where I have not been like Jesus.
Oftentimes we need to repent right at the moment when we know we've done the wrong thing, and then going to the cross with those specific transgressions and then getting clean again. So many of us, I think, live powerless lives because of all the leaves that we've allowed to accumulate. They choke out the life that comes from a life that's totally exposed to the sun - the Son of God.
When it comes to spiritual yard care, you'd be amazed how many leaves can fall in 24 hours. So clean up daily and start each new day with all the dead leaves of yesterday raked, and bagged, and left at the curb.
I know this is a crazy thought—but what would happen if all the churches agreed, on a given day, to change their names simply to “church?” And then when people chose which church to attend, they wouldn’t do so by the sign outside, they’d do so by the hearts of the people inside.
And then, when people were asked what church they attended, their answer wouldn’t be a label but just a location. And then, we Christians wouldn’t be known for what divides us; instead we’d be known for what unites us—our common Father.
Crazy idea? Perhaps. But I think God would like it. It was His idea to begin with!
from Lucado Inspirational Reader
Ezekiel 26
A Prophecy Against Tyre
In the eleventh month of the twelfth[b] year, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gate to the nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me; now that she lies in ruins I will prosper,’ 3 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Tyre, and I will bring many nations against you, like the sea casting up its waves. 4 They will destroy the walls of Tyre and pull down her towers; I will scrape away her rubble and make her a bare rock. 5 Out in the sea she will become a place to spread fishnets, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord. She will become plunder for the nations, 6 and her settlements on the mainland will be ravaged by the sword. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
7 “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: From the north I am going to bring against Tyre Nebuchadnezzar[c] king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, with horsemen and a great army. 8 He will ravage your settlements on the mainland with the sword; he will set up siege works against you, build a ramp up to your walls and raise his shields against you. 9 He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and demolish your towers with his weapons. 10 His horses will be so many that they will cover you with dust. Your walls will tremble at the noise of the warhorses, wagons and chariots when he enters your gates as men enter a city whose walls have been broken through. 11 The hooves of his horses will trample all your streets; he will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars will fall to the ground. 12 They will plunder your wealth and loot your merchandise; they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea. 13 I will put an end to your noisy songs, and the music of your harps will be heard no more. 14 I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread fishnets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.
15 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Tyre: Will not the coastlands tremble at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan and the slaughter takes place in you? 16 Then all the princes of the coast will step down from their thrones and lay aside their robes and take off their embroidered garments. Clothed with terror, they will sit on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled at you. 17 Then they will take up a lament concerning you and say to you:
“‘How you are destroyed, city of renown,
peopled by men of the sea!
You were a power on the seas,
you and your citizens;
you put your terror
on all who lived there.
18 Now the coastlands tremble
on the day of your fall;
the islands in the sea
are terrified at your collapse.’
19 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I make you a desolate city, like cities no longer inhabited, and when I bring the ocean depths over you and its vast waters cover you, 20 then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of long ago. I will make you dwell in the earth below, as in ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, and you will not return or take your place[d] in the land of the living. 21 I will bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more. You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign Lord.”
Ezekiel 26:1 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text does not have month of the twelfth.
Ezekiel 26:7 Hebrew Nebuchadrezzar, of which Nebuchadnezzar is a variant; here and often in Ezekiel and Jeremiah
Ezekiel 26:20 Septuagint; Hebrew return, and I will give glory
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Romans 12:14-21
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[a] Do not be conceited.
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[b] says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”[c]
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Footnotes:
Romans 12:16 Or willing to do menial work
Romans 12:19 Deut. 32:35
Romans 12:20 Prov. 25:21,22
Leap The Wall
November 4, 2013 — by Randy Kilgore
If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. —Proverbs 25:21
Sgt. Richard Kirkland was a Confederate soldier in the US Civil War (1861–1865). When the Union’s failed charge at Marye’s Heights during the Battle of Fredericksburg left wounded soldiers abandoned in no-man’s land, Kirkland got permission to help them. Collecting canteens, he leaped the stone wall and bent over the first soldier to lend assistance. At great personal risk, the “Angel of Marye’s Heights” extended the mercy of Christ to enemy soldiers.
While few of us will face an enemy on the battlefield, those who suffer can be found all around us—people struggling against loneliness, loss, health issues, and sin. Their cries, muted by our many distractions, plead for mercy and comfort, for hope and help.
Kirkland’s example of Christlike compassion put action to Jesus’ command to “love your enemies” (Matt. 5:44). Paul expanded on that theme when he quotes Proverbs 25:21, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink” (Rom. 12:20). “Do not be overcome by evil,” he instructed us, “but overcome evil with good” (v.21).
Paul’s challenge compels us to emulate Sgt. Kirkland. Today is the day for us to “leap the wall” of safety to lend comfort from God to those in need.
Father, give me the courage to reach out to those
I may not want to reach. Show Your love
through me in ways that will bring glory to You
and true peace in my corner of the world.
Kindness is in our power even when fondness is not. —Samuel Johnson
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
November 4, 2013
The Authority of Truth
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you —James 4:8
It is essential that you give people the opportunity to act on the truth of God. The responsibility must be left with the individual— you cannot act for him. It must be his own deliberate act, but the evangelical message should always lead him to action. Refusing to act leaves a person paralyzed, exactly where he was previously. But once he acts, he is never the same. It is the apparent folly of the truth that stands in the way of hundreds who have been convicted by the Spirit of God. Once I press myself into action, I immediately begin to live. Anything less is merely existing. The moments I truly live are the moments when I act with my entire will.
When a truth of God is brought home to your soul, never allow it to pass without acting on it internally in your will, not necessarily externally in your physical life. Record it with ink and with blood— work it into your life. The weakest saint who transacts business with Jesus Christ is liberated the second he acts and God’s almighty power is available on his behalf. We come up to the truth of God, confess we are wrong, but go back again. Then we approach it again and turn back, until we finally learn we have no business going back. When we are confronted with such a word of truth from our redeeming Lord, we must move directly to transact business with Him. “Come to Me . . .” (Matthew 11:28). His word come means “to act.” Yet the last thing we want to do is come. But everyone who does come knows that, at that very moment, the supernatural power of the life of God invades him. The dominating power of the world, the flesh, and the devil is now paralyzed; not by your act, but because your act has joined you to God and tapped you in to His redemptive power.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Dealing With the Leaves of Life
Monday, November 4, 2013
One of the nice things about our yard there in New Jersey was the trees. One of the frustrating things about that yard was the trees. See, every fall we would take out about a hundred bags or more stuffed with the leaves that come from those trees. We appreciate those leaves most of the year, but there is a little month there where they're not much fun at all.
I think back to one afternoon, typical of many, when we conquered the backyard. My son and I, we tackled that backyard and we carried out lots of bags of leaves. Got up the next morning (man, did we ever feel it the next morning!). We got up and we discovered that the yard that had been totally clean the night before was covered with leaves once again! It was depressing! So, we got back out there with our rakes and went at it again. Of course, it should be no surprise. Leaves fall every day.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Dealing With the Leaves of Life."
Our word for today from the Word of God; we're in Psalm 4:4. David reflects on his own daily lifestyle and says, "In your anger, do not sin. When you are on your beds search your hearts and be silent." David here seems to be saying that at night - at the end of each day - just kind of lie there silently on your bed and evaluate what's happened during the day and listen to what the Lord wants to say about it. And then the next verse says, "Offer right sacrifices and trust in the Lord."
Psalm 139:23-24, we hear David with this familiar prayer, "Search me, O God, and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there's any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." I believe David's saying here that every day he deals on a 24-hour basis with the sin that may have fallen into his life that day. That's why at the end of the day he's searching his heart; he's listening to what God wants to say about his day, and he's asking God to regularly search him.
See, sin is like the leaves in our yard in the fall. More leaves fall every day, and they've got to be cleaned up shortly after they fall. Now, we like to clean up our lives in one great binge of spiritual raking. You know, "I went to the altar several years ago." "Well, I had a great spiritual experience several months ago and really got right with the Lord."
It's got to be a daily experience. David says here, "Every night I reflect on that day to see what happened."
Every day we have new ways that we miss God's mark. So how often do we need to confess our sin? Daily. How often do we need to repent? Daily. How often do we need to visit the cross? You know. Daily. God blesses purity. He blesses clean yards, and purity involves daily clean-up. It involves specific clean-up; reviewing this past 24 hours and laying it before the Holy Spirit. Letting Him show me where I have not been like Jesus.
Oftentimes we need to repent right at the moment when we know we've done the wrong thing, and then going to the cross with those specific transgressions and then getting clean again. So many of us, I think, live powerless lives because of all the leaves that we've allowed to accumulate. They choke out the life that comes from a life that's totally exposed to the sun - the Son of God.
When it comes to spiritual yard care, you'd be amazed how many leaves can fall in 24 hours. So clean up daily and start each new day with all the dead leaves of yesterday raked, and bagged, and left at the curb.
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