Max Lucado Daily: He Knows What You Need
How did Jesus endure the terror of the crucifixion? He went first to the Father with his fears. He modeled the words of Psalm 56:3, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in You.”
Do the same with yours! And be specific. Jesus was. “Take this cup,” He prayed. Give God the number of the flight. Tell Him the length of the speech. Share the details of the job transfer. He has plenty of time. He also has plenty of compassion. He won’t tell you to “buck up” or “get tough.” He has been where you are. He knows how you feel. And He knows what you need.
That’s why we punctuate our prayers as Jesus did. “If you are willing. . .” Was God willing? Yes and no. He didn’t take away the cross, but he took away the fear. Who’s to say He won’t do the same for you?
From Traveling Light
Job 35
Then Elihu said:
2 “Do you think this is just?
You say, ‘I am in the right, not God.’
3 Yet you ask him, ‘What profit is it to me,[b]
and what do I gain by not sinning?’
4 “I would like to reply to you
and to your friends with you.
5 Look up at the heavens and see;
gaze at the clouds so high above you.
6 If you sin, how does that affect him?
If your sins are many, what does that do to him?
7 If you are righteous, what do you give to him,
or what does he receive from your hand?
8 Your wickedness only affects humans like yourself,
and your righteousness only other people.
9 “People cry out under a load of oppression;
they plead for relief from the arm of the powerful.
10 But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker,
who gives songs in the night,
11 who teaches us more than he teaches[c] the beasts of the earth
and makes us wiser than[d] the birds in the sky?’
12 He does not answer when people cry out
because of the arrogance of the wicked.
13 Indeed, God does not listen to their empty plea;
the Almighty pays no attention to it.
14 How much less, then, will he listen
when you say that you do not see him,
that your case is before him
and you must wait for him,
15 and further, that his anger never punishes
and he does not take the least notice of wickedness.[e]
16 So Job opens his mouth with empty talk;
without knowledge he multiplies words.”
Job 35:3 Or you
Job 35:11 Or night, / 11 who teaches us by
Job 35:11 Or us wise by
Job 35:15 Symmachus, Theodotion and Vulgate; the meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Corinthians 1:3-11
Praise to the God of All Comfort
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.
8 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters,[a] about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, 11 as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
Footnotes:
2 Corinthians 1:8 The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God’s family; also in 8:1; 13:11.
Insight
So often we ask why God allows a hurtful experience to come our way. Today’s reading provides us with at least one very plausible reason for the pain. We are comforted in our afflictions so that we might comfort others in theirs (v.4). Hearing of the faithfulness of God in trials uplifts others who suffer.
A Call To Comfort
By David C. McCasland
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort. —2 Corinthians 1:3
In their book Dear Mrs. Kennedy, Jay Mulvaney and Paul De Angelis note that during the weeks following the assassination of US President John Kennedy, his widow, Jacqueline, received nearly one million letters from people in every part of the world. Some came from heads of state, celebrities, and close friends. Others were sent by ordinary people who addressed them to “Madame Kennedy, Washington” and “Mrs. President, America.” All wrote to express their grief and sympathy for her great loss.
When people suffer and we long to help, it’s good to recall Paul’s word-picture of “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” as “the Father of mercies and God of all comfort” (2 Cor. 1:3). Our heavenly Father is the ultimate source of every tender mercy, kind word, and helpful act that brings encouragement and healing. Bible scholar W. E. Vine says that paraklesis—the Greek word translated “comfort”—means “a calling to one’s side.” The words comfort and consolation appear repeatedly in today’s Bible reading as a reminder that the Lord holds us close and invites us to cling to Him.
As the Lord wraps His loving arms around us, we are able to embrace others “with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (v.4).
Father, thank You for letting us share with You
our worries and cares. We’re grateful that You
stand beside us to comfort and guide. Help us
to console others as You look out for Your own.
God comforts us so that we can comfort others.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, May 26, 2014
Thinking of Prayer as Jesus Taught
Pray without ceasing . . . —1 Thessalonians 5:17
Our thinking about prayer, whether right or wrong, is based on our own mental conception of it. The correct concept is to think of prayer as the breath in our lungs and the blood from our hearts. Our blood flows and our breathing continues “without ceasing”; we are not even conscious of it, but it never stops. And we are not always conscious of Jesus keeping us in perfect oneness with God, but if we are obeying Him, He always is. Prayer is not an exercise, it is the life of the saint. Beware of anything that stops the offering up of prayer. “Pray without ceasing . . .”— maintain the childlike habit of offering up prayer in your heart to God all the time.
Jesus never mentioned unanswered prayer. He had the unlimited certainty of knowing that prayer is always answered. Do we have through the Spirit of God that inexpressible certainty that Jesus had about prayer, or do we think of the times when it seemed that God did not answer our prayer? Jesus said, “. . . everyone who asks receives . . .” (Matthew 7:8). Yet we say, “But . . . , but . . . .” God answers prayer in the best way— not just sometimes, but every time. However, the evidence of the answer in the area we want it may not always immediately follow. Do we expect God to answer prayer?
The danger we have is that we want to water down what Jesus said to make it mean something that aligns with our common sense. But if it were only common sense, what He said would not even be worthwhile. The things Jesus taught about prayer are supernatural truths He reveals to us.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
God's A's - #7141
Monday, May 26, 2014
The day grades come out - that's usually an exciting day in most homes. There are a few kids who come home proudly waving their A's and B's. There are more kids who take their time coming home that day. They hope no one remembers. And then there are some kids who just don't come home at all that day. Of course there are the inevitable discussions about, "Why did you get this grade?" And, "Are you doing your best?" And, "What happens next?" And, "Well, you know what we're going to have to do, don't you?" And then we hear a list of very creative excuses as to why the grades are what they are. The problem is, I'm not sure we're always grading the right things. But I am sure that God does.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "God's A's."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Corinthians 4 , and I'm going to read verse 2. "Now it is required to those who have been given a trust..." Let's stop for a minute. That's all of us; we've been trusted with gifts and influence and opportunities. It says, "...those who have been given a trust must prove faithful." Did you notice what it doesn't say? It does not say, "You must prove successful."
Now, the western idea is to grade the result. That's how we are in the western world. We grade whatever the result is. It's the bottom line that counts, right, whatever it takes to get to the bottom line? What are your final grades? Did you win the game or not? Are you a winner? Did you get the award? Did we make a profit? Did you get the prize? In our estimation, winning is always based on the result, but not with God.
No, God says, "I'm looking at faithful." In fact we're told that when we stand before Jesus, the words He will say to those He calls a success are, (And if you know them, say them with me.) "Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many." Not, "Well done good and successful servant."
Winning in God's estimation is based on the effort, not the result. Did you do all that you could do? Did you do it with all your heart? Did you treat people lovingly in the process? Did you do it in a way that Jesus would be proud of and not ashamed of? Have you hung in there when you felt like quitting? Have you gone back into the ring for another round when you were beaten and bruised? That's success - whether you won, whether you got the championship or not.
Now, if that's what God looks for, shouldn't we? I mean, let our kids know, let each other know that our expectations have to do with doing your best, not being the best-doing your best. Now, God's kids, because they are princes and princesses in His kingdom should always aim for excellence. But the ultimate issue is 100% effort; being that "count-on-able" person, faithful in your witness for Christ, faithful in your service to Christ. God's surprising heroes!
It's very possible that the world might even consider you a loser. But surprise! Wow! God thinks you are a champion, because His A's are for faithfulness, not success.
Monday, May 26, 2014
Sunday, May 25, 2014
Job 34 Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Follow Me
“‘Follow Me,’” [Jesus] told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.” Matthew 2:9, NIV
You gotta wonder what Jesus saw in Matthew . . .
Whatever it was, it must’ve been something. Matthew heard the call and never went back. He spent the rest of his life convincing folks that the carpenter was the King. Jesus gave the call and never took it back. He spent his life dying for people like Matthew, convincing a lot of us that if he had a place for Matthew, he just might have a place for us.
Job 34
Then Elihu said:
2 “Hear my words, you wise men;
listen to me, you men of learning.
3 For the ear tests words
as the tongue tastes food.
4 Let us discern for ourselves what is right;
let us learn together what is good.
5 “Job says, ‘I am innocent,
but God denies me justice.
6 Although I am right,
I am considered a liar;
although I am guiltless,
his arrow inflicts an incurable wound.’
7 Is there anyone like Job,
who drinks scorn like water?
8 He keeps company with evildoers;
he associates with the wicked.
9 For he says, ‘There is no profit
in trying to please God.’
10 “So listen to me, you men of understanding.
Far be it from God to do evil,
from the Almighty to do wrong.
11 He repays everyone for what they have done;
he brings on them what their conduct deserves.
12 It is unthinkable that God would do wrong,
that the Almighty would pervert justice.
13 Who appointed him over the earth?
Who put him in charge of the whole world?
14 If it were his intention
and he withdrew his spirit[a] and breath,
15 all humanity would perish together
and mankind would return to the dust.
16 “If you have understanding, hear this;
listen to what I say.
17 Can someone who hates justice govern?
Will you condemn the just and mighty One?
18 Is he not the One who says to kings, ‘You are worthless,’
and to nobles, ‘You are wicked,’
19 who shows no partiality to princes
and does not favor the rich over the poor,
for they are all the work of his hands?
20 They die in an instant, in the middle of the night;
the people are shaken and they pass away;
the mighty are removed without human hand.
21 “His eyes are on the ways of mortals;
he sees their every step.
22 There is no deep shadow, no utter darkness,
where evildoers can hide.
23 God has no need to examine people further,
that they should come before him for judgment.
24 Without inquiry he shatters the mighty
and sets up others in their place.
25 Because he takes note of their deeds,
he overthrows them in the night and they are crushed.
26 He punishes them for their wickedness
where everyone can see them,
27 because they turned from following him
and had no regard for any of his ways.
28 They caused the cry of the poor to come before him,
so that he heard the cry of the needy.
29 But if he remains silent, who can condemn him?
If he hides his face, who can see him?
Yet he is over individual and nation alike,
30 to keep the godless from ruling,
from laying snares for the people.
31 “Suppose someone says to God,
‘I am guilty but will offend no more.
32 Teach me what I cannot see;
if I have done wrong, I will not do so again.’
33 Should God then reward you on your terms,
when you refuse to repent?
You must decide, not I;
so tell me what you know.
34 “Men of understanding declare,
wise men who hear me say to me,
35 ‘Job speaks without knowledge;
his words lack insight.’
36 Oh, that Job might be tested to the utmost
for answering like a wicked man!
37 To his sin he adds rebellion;
scornfully he claps his hands among us
and multiplies his words against God.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Mark 6:30-36
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
30 The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. 31 Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”
32 So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place. 33 But many who saw them leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. 34 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.
35 By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. “This is a remote place,” they said, “and it’s already very late. 36 Send the people away so that they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”
Insight
When Jesus asked His disciples to go to a deserted place and rest (Mark 6:31), He was telling them to do something that He had often done with them. Jesus had withdrawn with His disciples to the sea (2:13; 3:7) or up on the mountain (3:13). Jesus was also in the habit of withdrawing from the crowds to a solitary place to rest and to spend time talking with His Father (Matt. 14:13,23; 26:36; Mark 1:35; 6:46; Luke 4:42; 6:12; John 6:15). “So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed” (Luke 5:16).
Pace Yourself
By Dennis Fisher
Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while. —Mark 6:31
Not long ago I developed a physical problem. My left shoulder and arm were aching, I had a painful rash on my forearm and thumb, and I struggled daily with fatigue. When I finally went to the doctor, I learned that I had a case of shingles. The doctor put me on antiviral medication and said it would take several weeks for the disease to run its course.
Because of this illness, I had to force myself into a new routine. A short nap in the morning and one in the afternoon were necessary to give me the strength to be productive. Until I recovered, I had to learn to pace myself.
At one point when Jesus sent His representatives out to teach in His name, they were so excited with all they were doing that they neglected to take time to eat and rest properly. When they returned, Christ told them: “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31).
Everyone needs rest, and if we go too long without it, we will suffer physically and emotionally. We also will be unable to carry out our responsibilities as well as we should. Is the Lord encouraging you to “come aside . . . and rest a while”? Sometimes a few more rest stops with Him may be necessary.
I come aside from the world of strife,
With its burdens, trials, and the cares of life
To a beautiful, quiet, restful place
Where I commune with my Jesus face to face. —Brandt
To avoid a breakdown, take a break for rest and prayer.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, May 25, 2014
The Good or The Best?
If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left —Genesis 13:9
As soon as you begin to live the life of faith in God, fascinating and physically gratifying possibilities will open up before you. These things are yours by right, but if you are living the life of faith you will exercise your right to waive your rights, and let God make your choice for you. God sometimes allows you to get into a place of testing where your own welfare would be the appropriate thing to consider, if you were not living the life of faith. But if you are, you will joyfully waive your right and allow God to make your choice for you. This is the discipline God uses to transform the natural into the spiritual through obedience to His voice.
Whenever our right becomes the guiding factor of our lives, it dulls our spiritual insight. The greatest enemy of the life of faith in God is not sin, but good choices which are not quite good enough. The good is always the enemy of the best. In this passage, it would seem that the wisest thing in the world for Abram to do would be to choose. It was his right, and the people around him would consider him to be a fool for not choosing.
Many of us do not continue to grow spiritually because we prefer to choose on the basis of our rights, instead of relying on God to make the choice for us. We have to learn to walk according to the standard which has its eyes focused on God. And God says to us, as He did to Abram, “. . . walk before Me. . .” (Genesis 17:1).
“‘Follow Me,’” [Jesus] told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.” Matthew 2:9, NIV
You gotta wonder what Jesus saw in Matthew . . .
Whatever it was, it must’ve been something. Matthew heard the call and never went back. He spent the rest of his life convincing folks that the carpenter was the King. Jesus gave the call and never took it back. He spent his life dying for people like Matthew, convincing a lot of us that if he had a place for Matthew, he just might have a place for us.
Job 34
Then Elihu said:
2 “Hear my words, you wise men;
listen to me, you men of learning.
3 For the ear tests words
as the tongue tastes food.
4 Let us discern for ourselves what is right;
let us learn together what is good.
5 “Job says, ‘I am innocent,
but God denies me justice.
6 Although I am right,
I am considered a liar;
although I am guiltless,
his arrow inflicts an incurable wound.’
7 Is there anyone like Job,
who drinks scorn like water?
8 He keeps company with evildoers;
he associates with the wicked.
9 For he says, ‘There is no profit
in trying to please God.’
10 “So listen to me, you men of understanding.
Far be it from God to do evil,
from the Almighty to do wrong.
11 He repays everyone for what they have done;
he brings on them what their conduct deserves.
12 It is unthinkable that God would do wrong,
that the Almighty would pervert justice.
13 Who appointed him over the earth?
Who put him in charge of the whole world?
14 If it were his intention
and he withdrew his spirit[a] and breath,
15 all humanity would perish together
and mankind would return to the dust.
16 “If you have understanding, hear this;
listen to what I say.
17 Can someone who hates justice govern?
Will you condemn the just and mighty One?
18 Is he not the One who says to kings, ‘You are worthless,’
and to nobles, ‘You are wicked,’
19 who shows no partiality to princes
and does not favor the rich over the poor,
for they are all the work of his hands?
20 They die in an instant, in the middle of the night;
the people are shaken and they pass away;
the mighty are removed without human hand.
21 “His eyes are on the ways of mortals;
he sees their every step.
22 There is no deep shadow, no utter darkness,
where evildoers can hide.
23 God has no need to examine people further,
that they should come before him for judgment.
24 Without inquiry he shatters the mighty
and sets up others in their place.
25 Because he takes note of their deeds,
he overthrows them in the night and they are crushed.
26 He punishes them for their wickedness
where everyone can see them,
27 because they turned from following him
and had no regard for any of his ways.
28 They caused the cry of the poor to come before him,
so that he heard the cry of the needy.
29 But if he remains silent, who can condemn him?
If he hides his face, who can see him?
Yet he is over individual and nation alike,
30 to keep the godless from ruling,
from laying snares for the people.
31 “Suppose someone says to God,
‘I am guilty but will offend no more.
32 Teach me what I cannot see;
if I have done wrong, I will not do so again.’
33 Should God then reward you on your terms,
when you refuse to repent?
You must decide, not I;
so tell me what you know.
34 “Men of understanding declare,
wise men who hear me say to me,
35 ‘Job speaks without knowledge;
his words lack insight.’
36 Oh, that Job might be tested to the utmost
for answering like a wicked man!
37 To his sin he adds rebellion;
scornfully he claps his hands among us
and multiplies his words against God.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Mark 6:30-36
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
30 The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. 31 Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”
32 So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place. 33 But many who saw them leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. 34 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.
35 By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. “This is a remote place,” they said, “and it’s already very late. 36 Send the people away so that they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”
Insight
When Jesus asked His disciples to go to a deserted place and rest (Mark 6:31), He was telling them to do something that He had often done with them. Jesus had withdrawn with His disciples to the sea (2:13; 3:7) or up on the mountain (3:13). Jesus was also in the habit of withdrawing from the crowds to a solitary place to rest and to spend time talking with His Father (Matt. 14:13,23; 26:36; Mark 1:35; 6:46; Luke 4:42; 6:12; John 6:15). “So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed” (Luke 5:16).
Pace Yourself
By Dennis Fisher
Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while. —Mark 6:31
Not long ago I developed a physical problem. My left shoulder and arm were aching, I had a painful rash on my forearm and thumb, and I struggled daily with fatigue. When I finally went to the doctor, I learned that I had a case of shingles. The doctor put me on antiviral medication and said it would take several weeks for the disease to run its course.
Because of this illness, I had to force myself into a new routine. A short nap in the morning and one in the afternoon were necessary to give me the strength to be productive. Until I recovered, I had to learn to pace myself.
At one point when Jesus sent His representatives out to teach in His name, they were so excited with all they were doing that they neglected to take time to eat and rest properly. When they returned, Christ told them: “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31).
Everyone needs rest, and if we go too long without it, we will suffer physically and emotionally. We also will be unable to carry out our responsibilities as well as we should. Is the Lord encouraging you to “come aside . . . and rest a while”? Sometimes a few more rest stops with Him may be necessary.
I come aside from the world of strife,
With its burdens, trials, and the cares of life
To a beautiful, quiet, restful place
Where I commune with my Jesus face to face. —Brandt
To avoid a breakdown, take a break for rest and prayer.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, May 25, 2014
The Good or The Best?
If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left —Genesis 13:9
As soon as you begin to live the life of faith in God, fascinating and physically gratifying possibilities will open up before you. These things are yours by right, but if you are living the life of faith you will exercise your right to waive your rights, and let God make your choice for you. God sometimes allows you to get into a place of testing where your own welfare would be the appropriate thing to consider, if you were not living the life of faith. But if you are, you will joyfully waive your right and allow God to make your choice for you. This is the discipline God uses to transform the natural into the spiritual through obedience to His voice.
Whenever our right becomes the guiding factor of our lives, it dulls our spiritual insight. The greatest enemy of the life of faith in God is not sin, but good choices which are not quite good enough. The good is always the enemy of the best. In this passage, it would seem that the wisest thing in the world for Abram to do would be to choose. It was his right, and the people around him would consider him to be a fool for not choosing.
Many of us do not continue to grow spiritually because we prefer to choose on the basis of our rights, instead of relying on God to make the choice for us. We have to learn to walk according to the standard which has its eyes focused on God. And God says to us, as He did to Abram, “. . . walk before Me. . .” (Genesis 17:1).
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Matthew 14:1-21, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: At Once, Man and God
Christ—at once, man and God. Colossians 2:9 says, “For in Christ there is all of God in a human body.” Jesus was not a godlike man, nor a manlike God. He was God-man. What do we do with such a person? One thing is certain, we can’t ignore Him. He is the single most significant person who ever lived. Forget MVP; He is the entire league. The head of the parade? Hardly. No one else shares the street.
Dismiss Him? We can’t. Resist Him? Equally difficult.
Don’t we need a God-man Savior? A just-God Jesus could make us but not understand us. A just-man Jesus could love us but never save us. But a God-man Jesus? Near enough to touch. Strong enough to trust. A Savior found by millions to be irresistible.
As the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 3:8, nothing compares to “the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”
from Next Door Savior
Matthew 14:1-21
New International Version (NIV)
John the Baptist Beheaded
14 At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the reports about Jesus, 2 and he said to his attendants, “This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead! That is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”
3 Now Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, 4 for John had been saying to him: “It is not lawful for you to have her.” 5 Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the people, because they considered John a prophet.
6 On Herod’s birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for the guests and pleased Herod so much 7 that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8 Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” 9 The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted 10 and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother. 12 John’s disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”
16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 1:18-25
Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son
18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about[a]: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet[b] did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[c] because he will save his people from their sins.”
22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”[d] (which means “God with us”).
24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
Footnotes:
Matthew 1:18 Or The origin of Jesus the Messiah was like this
Matthew 1:19 Or was a righteous man and
Matthew 1:21 Jesus is the Greek form of Joshua, which means the Lord saves.
Matthew 1:23 Isaiah 7:14
Insight
In his book Miracles, C. S. Lewis answers the argument against the virgin birth that suggests first-century people did not understand natural law. To this, Lewis responds that the whole motive for Joseph considering breaking the engagement was that he understood where babies come from (v.19). It took an angel in a dream to point to the supernatural source of Mary’s conception. First-century people, like believers today, understood that for a virgin to give birth would require a miracle.
An Appropriate Name
By Bill Crowder
You shall call His name Jesus. —Matthew 1:21
The name of the southeastern Asian nation of Indonesia is formed by combining two Greek words which together mean “island.” That name is appropriate because Indonesia is made up of more than 17,500 islands spanning nearly 750,000 square miles. Indonesia—an appropriate name for a nation of islands.
In the Bible, we find that people were often given names—sometimes at birth, sometimes later—that made a statement about them or their character. Barnabas, whose name means “son of encouragement,” continually encouraged those he encountered. Jacob, whose name means “schemer,” repeatedly manipulated people and situations for his own selfish ends.
And no one has ever been more appropriately named than Jesus. When the angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph about Mary’s soon-to-be-born Son, he told Joseph, “You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21).
Jesus means “the Lord saves” and defines both who Jesus is and why He came. He was also called Immanuel, which means “God with us” (1:23). His name reveals our eternal hope!
How sweet the Name of Jesus sounds
In a believer’s ear!
It soothes his sorrow, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear. —Newton
The name of Jesus is at the heart of our faith and our hope.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, May 24, 2014
The Delight of Despair
When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead —Revelation 1:17
It may be that, like the apostle John, you know Jesus Christ intimately. Yet when He suddenly appears to you with totally unfamiliar characteristics, the only thing you can do is fall “at His feet as dead.” There are times when God cannot reveal Himself in any other way than in His majesty, and it is the awesomeness of the vision which brings you to the delight of despair. You experience this joy in hopelessness, realizing that if you are ever to be raised up it must be by the hand of God.
“He laid His right hand on me . . .” (Revelation 1:17). In the midst of the awesomeness, a touch comes, and you know it is the right hand of Jesus Christ. You know it is not the hand of restraint, correction, nor chastisement, but the right hand of the Everlasting Father. Whenever His hand is laid upon you, it gives inexpressible peace and comfort, and the sense that “underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deuteronomy 33:27), full of support, provision, comfort, and strength. And once His touch comes, nothing at all can throw you into fear again. In the midst of all His ascended glory, the Lord Jesus comes to speak to an insignificant disciple, saying, “Do not be afraid” (Revelation 1:17). His tenderness is inexpressibly sweet. Do I know Him like that?
Take a look at some of the things that cause despair. There is despair which has no delight, no limits whatsoever, and no hope of anything brighter. But the delight of despair comes when “I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells . . .” (Romans 7:18). I delight in knowing that there is something in me which must fall prostrate before God when He reveals Himself to me, and also in knowing that if I am ever to be raised up it must be by the hand of God. God can do nothing for me until I recognize the limits of what is humanly possible, allowing Him to do the impossible.
Christ—at once, man and God. Colossians 2:9 says, “For in Christ there is all of God in a human body.” Jesus was not a godlike man, nor a manlike God. He was God-man. What do we do with such a person? One thing is certain, we can’t ignore Him. He is the single most significant person who ever lived. Forget MVP; He is the entire league. The head of the parade? Hardly. No one else shares the street.
Dismiss Him? We can’t. Resist Him? Equally difficult.
Don’t we need a God-man Savior? A just-God Jesus could make us but not understand us. A just-man Jesus could love us but never save us. But a God-man Jesus? Near enough to touch. Strong enough to trust. A Savior found by millions to be irresistible.
As the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 3:8, nothing compares to “the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”
from Next Door Savior
Matthew 14:1-21
New International Version (NIV)
John the Baptist Beheaded
14 At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the reports about Jesus, 2 and he said to his attendants, “This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead! That is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”
3 Now Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, 4 for John had been saying to him: “It is not lawful for you to have her.” 5 Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the people, because they considered John a prophet.
6 On Herod’s birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for the guests and pleased Herod so much 7 that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8 Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” 9 The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted 10 and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother. 12 John’s disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”
16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 1:18-25
Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son
18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about[a]: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet[b] did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[c] because he will save his people from their sins.”
22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”[d] (which means “God with us”).
24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
Footnotes:
Matthew 1:18 Or The origin of Jesus the Messiah was like this
Matthew 1:19 Or was a righteous man and
Matthew 1:21 Jesus is the Greek form of Joshua, which means the Lord saves.
Matthew 1:23 Isaiah 7:14
Insight
In his book Miracles, C. S. Lewis answers the argument against the virgin birth that suggests first-century people did not understand natural law. To this, Lewis responds that the whole motive for Joseph considering breaking the engagement was that he understood where babies come from (v.19). It took an angel in a dream to point to the supernatural source of Mary’s conception. First-century people, like believers today, understood that for a virgin to give birth would require a miracle.
An Appropriate Name
By Bill Crowder
You shall call His name Jesus. —Matthew 1:21
The name of the southeastern Asian nation of Indonesia is formed by combining two Greek words which together mean “island.” That name is appropriate because Indonesia is made up of more than 17,500 islands spanning nearly 750,000 square miles. Indonesia—an appropriate name for a nation of islands.
In the Bible, we find that people were often given names—sometimes at birth, sometimes later—that made a statement about them or their character. Barnabas, whose name means “son of encouragement,” continually encouraged those he encountered. Jacob, whose name means “schemer,” repeatedly manipulated people and situations for his own selfish ends.
And no one has ever been more appropriately named than Jesus. When the angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph about Mary’s soon-to-be-born Son, he told Joseph, “You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21).
Jesus means “the Lord saves” and defines both who Jesus is and why He came. He was also called Immanuel, which means “God with us” (1:23). His name reveals our eternal hope!
How sweet the Name of Jesus sounds
In a believer’s ear!
It soothes his sorrow, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear. —Newton
The name of Jesus is at the heart of our faith and our hope.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, May 24, 2014
The Delight of Despair
When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead —Revelation 1:17
It may be that, like the apostle John, you know Jesus Christ intimately. Yet when He suddenly appears to you with totally unfamiliar characteristics, the only thing you can do is fall “at His feet as dead.” There are times when God cannot reveal Himself in any other way than in His majesty, and it is the awesomeness of the vision which brings you to the delight of despair. You experience this joy in hopelessness, realizing that if you are ever to be raised up it must be by the hand of God.
“He laid His right hand on me . . .” (Revelation 1:17). In the midst of the awesomeness, a touch comes, and you know it is the right hand of Jesus Christ. You know it is not the hand of restraint, correction, nor chastisement, but the right hand of the Everlasting Father. Whenever His hand is laid upon you, it gives inexpressible peace and comfort, and the sense that “underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deuteronomy 33:27), full of support, provision, comfort, and strength. And once His touch comes, nothing at all can throw you into fear again. In the midst of all His ascended glory, the Lord Jesus comes to speak to an insignificant disciple, saying, “Do not be afraid” (Revelation 1:17). His tenderness is inexpressibly sweet. Do I know Him like that?
Take a look at some of the things that cause despair. There is despair which has no delight, no limits whatsoever, and no hope of anything brighter. But the delight of despair comes when “I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells . . .” (Romans 7:18). I delight in knowing that there is something in me which must fall prostrate before God when He reveals Himself to me, and also in knowing that if I am ever to be raised up it must be by the hand of God. God can do nothing for me until I recognize the limits of what is humanly possible, allowing Him to do the impossible.
Friday, May 23, 2014
Job 33, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Anger Lives in Sorrow's House
Why does grief linger? Because you're dealing with more than memories-you're dealing with unlived tomorrows. You're battling disappointment. You're also battling-anger!
It may be a flame. It may be a blowtorch. But anger lives in sorrow's house. Anger at self. Anger at life. Anger at the military or the hospital or the highway system. But most of all, anger at God. Anger that takes the form of the three-letter question-why? Why him? Why her? Why now? Why us? You and I both know I cannot answer that question. Only God knows the reasons behind His actions.
But a key truth on which we can stand is this-our God is a good God! Psalm 34:8 says, "Taste and see that the LORD is good." God is a good God. We must begin here. Though we don't understand His actions, we can trust His heart!
From Traveling Light
Job 33
“But now, Job, listen to my words;
pay attention to everything I say.
2 I am about to open my mouth;
my words are on the tip of my tongue.
3 My words come from an upright heart;
my lips sincerely speak what I know.
4 The Spirit of God has made me;
the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
5 Answer me then, if you can;
stand up and argue your case before me.
6 I am the same as you in God’s sight;
I too am a piece of clay.
7 No fear of me should alarm you,
nor should my hand be heavy on you.
8 “But you have said in my hearing—
I heard the very words—
9 ‘I am pure, I have done no wrong;
I am clean and free from sin.
10 Yet God has found fault with me;
he considers me his enemy.
11 He fastens my feet in shackles;
he keeps close watch on all my paths.’
12 “But I tell you, in this you are not right,
for God is greater than any mortal.
13 Why do you complain to him
that he responds to no one’s words[d]?
14 For God does speak—now one way, now another—
though no one perceives it.
15 In a dream, in a vision of the night,
when deep sleep falls on people
as they slumber in their beds,
16 he may speak in their ears
and terrify them with warnings,
17 to turn them from wrongdoing
and keep them from pride,
18 to preserve them from the pit,
their lives from perishing by the sword.[e]
19 “Or someone may be chastened on a bed of pain
with constant distress in their bones,
20 so that their body finds food repulsive
and their soul loathes the choicest meal.
21 Their flesh wastes away to nothing,
and their bones, once hidden, now stick out.
22 They draw near to the pit,
and their life to the messengers of death.[f]
23 Yet if there is an angel at their side,
a messenger, one out of a thousand,
sent to tell them how to be upright,
24 and he is gracious to that person and says to God,
‘Spare them from going down to the pit;
I have found a ransom for them—
25 let their flesh be renewed like a child’s;
let them be restored as in the days of their youth’—
26 then that person can pray to God and find favor with him,
they will see God’s face and shout for joy;
he will restore them to full well-being.
27 And they will go to others and say,
‘I have sinned, I have perverted what is right,
but I did not get what I deserved.
28 God has delivered me from going down to the pit,
and I shall live to enjoy the light of life.’
29 “God does all these things to a person—
twice, even three times—
30 to turn them back from the pit,
that the light of life may shine on them.
31 “Pay attention, Job, and listen to me;
be silent, and I will speak.
32 If you have anything to say, answer me;
speak up, for I want to vindicate you.
33 But if not, then listen to me;
be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”
Job 33:13 Or that he does not answer for any of his actions
Job 33:18 Or from crossing the river
Job 33:22 Or to the place of the dead
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Psalm 103:6-18
The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
14 for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
15 The life of mortals is like grass,
they flourish like a flower of the field;
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.
17 But from everlasting to everlasting
the Lord’s love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children’s children—
18 with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts.
Insight
Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote eloquently of Psalm 103: “[This psalm of David] is in his own style when at its best, and we should attribute it to his later years when he had a higher sense of the preciousness of pardon, because [of] a keener sense of sin, than in his younger days. His clear sense of the frailty of life indicates his weaker years, as also does the very [fullness] of his praiseful gratitude.”
More Than We Deserve
By Joe Stowell
He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. —Psalm 103:10
Sometimes when people ask how I’m doing, I reply, “Better than I deserve.” I remember a well-meaning person responding, “Oh no, Joe, you deserve a lot,” to which I replied, “Not really.” I was thinking about what I truly deserve—God’s judgment.
We easily forget how sinful we are at the core of our being. Thinking of ourselves more highly than we should diminishes our sense of deep indebtedness to God for His grace. It discounts the price He paid to rescue us.
Time for a reality check! As the psalmist reminds us, God “has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities” (Ps. 103:10). Considering who we are in light of a holy and just God, the only thing we truly deserve is hell. And heaven is an absolute impossibility—except for the gift of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. If God never does anything more than redeem us, He has already done far more than we deserve. No wonder the psalmist says, “As the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him” (v.11).
Knowing ourselves for what we are, we can’t help but say, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound!” He gives us so much more than we deserve.
Lord, thank You for not dealing with me according
to my sins. I am indebted to You for the love and
grace that You demonstrated on the cross to
purchase my pardon and forgiveness—far beyond what I deserve!
If God never does anything more than redeem us, He has already done far more than we deserve.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, May 23, 2014
Our Careful Unbelief
. . . do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on —Matthew 6:25
Jesus summed up commonsense carefulness in the life of a disciple as unbelief. If we have received the Spirit of God, He will squeeze right through our lives, as if to ask, “Now where do I come into this relationship, this vacation you have planned, or these new books you want to read?” And He always presses the point until we learn to make Him our first consideration. Whenever we put other things first, there is confusion.
“. . . do not worry about your life . . . .” Don’t take the pressure of your provision upon yourself. It is not only wrong to worry, it is unbelief; worrying means we do not believe that God can look after the practical details of our lives, and it is never anything but those details that worry us. Have you ever noticed what Jesus said would choke the Word He puts in us? Is it the devil? No— “the cares of this world” (Matthew 13:22). It is always our little worries. We say, “I will not trust when I cannot see”— and that is where unbelief begins. The only cure for unbelief is obedience to the Spirit.
The greatest word of Jesus to His disciples is abandon.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The 'Not Ready' Nightmare - #7140
Friday, May 23, 2014
I used to think I didn't dream much. But I guess that's scientifically inaccurate. We all dream a lot, but some of us like me don't remember them. Now, my wife? She dreams in these Technicolor epics! I mean, I'm lucky if I remember a black and white short subject. Once in a while, though, I do remember a bad dream I've had. Not usually about monsters or murderers. I think you're going to laugh when I tell you about what a lot of my nightmares are about. Not being ready. Yeah, you know, stepping up to a microphone totally unprepared; having a huge audience waiting for me to speak in an auditorium and I'm backstage. They push me to go out. I'm being introduced. I have nothing ready to say.
I heard my pastor say the same thing actually. His nightmares are also about not being ready. He dreams that he's up there on a Sunday morning and there's no sermon. Some women have told me they have had nightmares about not being ready for a date. Others have told me about their nightmare about not being ready for a meeting of a board of directors where they have to give an important report.
You know what? If our dreams reflect our fears, then there must be this fear deep down inside of many of us that we won't be ready when an important moment comes.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The 'Not Ready' Nightmare."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from the Old Testament prophet Amos. It's a pretty simple, straightforward sentence. Amos 4:12, "Prepare to meet your God." Now, if not being ready is nightmare stuff, then not being ready to meet God must be the ultimate nightmare. I mean, meeting Him is the surest date you have.
Hebrews 9:27 in the Bible says, "It is appointed to man once to die, and after this the judgment." The moment you take your last breath, there's God. Earth appointments? They can be postponed. They can be canceled, but God has this one in indelible ink in His calendar. The One who gave you your life is the One you will meet at the end of your life. The question the Bible raises is, "Are you prepared?" You say, "Well, yeah, I'm a good person." Unfortunately, that doesn't answer the question.
Romans 3:20 says this, no one will be justified by observing the law. "No one will be declared righteous in God's sight by observing the law." Not protestant good things, not Catholic good things, not Jewish good things. Unfortunately no one is ready to meet God as long as he or she is still carrying around sin.
You say, "Well, we've all got sin we're carrying around." Yes, that's what Romans 3:23 says in that same chapter. "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." If sin were something you could repay, maybe you could work it off with a lifetime of good deeds. But it's got to be removed! No matter how many times I keep the speed limit on our nearby Interstate, it doesn't erase the penalty I get for breaking the speed limit.
The penalty for sin is a death penalty; separation from God eternally. And it cannot be paid in good deeds. Somebody's got to die for a death penalty, and I deserve to. But the same place where it says "all of us have fallen short of the glory of God" says, "And we are justified (That means made right.) with God, freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Somebody did die for your sins and mine; the One who didn't deserve to. The only One who could-God's Son.
Now, how do you prepare to meet your God? Romans 3:25 says, "He was a sacrifice of atonement (that is to pay for your sin; to cover our sin) through faith in His blood." Faith in Jesus' dying for us. See, you open your heart to the One who paid your bill with God. "Lord, I put all my hope in Jesus Christ's work on the cross; my only hope that will bring me to You." Once you've told God that, then you're totally trusting in what Christ did and your nightmare is over. With your sins erased, you're ready.
If you say, "I'm not sure I am. How do I get started with this relationship with Jesus? How can I have my sins forgiven?" Would you go to our website? I'll do my best to help you find Him. It's ANewStory.com.
You've got an appointment with God. Are you ready? Going into eternity without Christ is the ultimate nightmare. If you're not sure, please don't risk another day without Jesus."
Why does grief linger? Because you're dealing with more than memories-you're dealing with unlived tomorrows. You're battling disappointment. You're also battling-anger!
It may be a flame. It may be a blowtorch. But anger lives in sorrow's house. Anger at self. Anger at life. Anger at the military or the hospital or the highway system. But most of all, anger at God. Anger that takes the form of the three-letter question-why? Why him? Why her? Why now? Why us? You and I both know I cannot answer that question. Only God knows the reasons behind His actions.
But a key truth on which we can stand is this-our God is a good God! Psalm 34:8 says, "Taste and see that the LORD is good." God is a good God. We must begin here. Though we don't understand His actions, we can trust His heart!
From Traveling Light
Job 33
“But now, Job, listen to my words;
pay attention to everything I say.
2 I am about to open my mouth;
my words are on the tip of my tongue.
3 My words come from an upright heart;
my lips sincerely speak what I know.
4 The Spirit of God has made me;
the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
5 Answer me then, if you can;
stand up and argue your case before me.
6 I am the same as you in God’s sight;
I too am a piece of clay.
7 No fear of me should alarm you,
nor should my hand be heavy on you.
8 “But you have said in my hearing—
I heard the very words—
9 ‘I am pure, I have done no wrong;
I am clean and free from sin.
10 Yet God has found fault with me;
he considers me his enemy.
11 He fastens my feet in shackles;
he keeps close watch on all my paths.’
12 “But I tell you, in this you are not right,
for God is greater than any mortal.
13 Why do you complain to him
that he responds to no one’s words[d]?
14 For God does speak—now one way, now another—
though no one perceives it.
15 In a dream, in a vision of the night,
when deep sleep falls on people
as they slumber in their beds,
16 he may speak in their ears
and terrify them with warnings,
17 to turn them from wrongdoing
and keep them from pride,
18 to preserve them from the pit,
their lives from perishing by the sword.[e]
19 “Or someone may be chastened on a bed of pain
with constant distress in their bones,
20 so that their body finds food repulsive
and their soul loathes the choicest meal.
21 Their flesh wastes away to nothing,
and their bones, once hidden, now stick out.
22 They draw near to the pit,
and their life to the messengers of death.[f]
23 Yet if there is an angel at their side,
a messenger, one out of a thousand,
sent to tell them how to be upright,
24 and he is gracious to that person and says to God,
‘Spare them from going down to the pit;
I have found a ransom for them—
25 let their flesh be renewed like a child’s;
let them be restored as in the days of their youth’—
26 then that person can pray to God and find favor with him,
they will see God’s face and shout for joy;
he will restore them to full well-being.
27 And they will go to others and say,
‘I have sinned, I have perverted what is right,
but I did not get what I deserved.
28 God has delivered me from going down to the pit,
and I shall live to enjoy the light of life.’
29 “God does all these things to a person—
twice, even three times—
30 to turn them back from the pit,
that the light of life may shine on them.
31 “Pay attention, Job, and listen to me;
be silent, and I will speak.
32 If you have anything to say, answer me;
speak up, for I want to vindicate you.
33 But if not, then listen to me;
be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”
Job 33:13 Or that he does not answer for any of his actions
Job 33:18 Or from crossing the river
Job 33:22 Or to the place of the dead
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Psalm 103:6-18
The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
14 for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
15 The life of mortals is like grass,
they flourish like a flower of the field;
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.
17 But from everlasting to everlasting
the Lord’s love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children’s children—
18 with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts.
Insight
Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote eloquently of Psalm 103: “[This psalm of David] is in his own style when at its best, and we should attribute it to his later years when he had a higher sense of the preciousness of pardon, because [of] a keener sense of sin, than in his younger days. His clear sense of the frailty of life indicates his weaker years, as also does the very [fullness] of his praiseful gratitude.”
More Than We Deserve
By Joe Stowell
He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. —Psalm 103:10
Sometimes when people ask how I’m doing, I reply, “Better than I deserve.” I remember a well-meaning person responding, “Oh no, Joe, you deserve a lot,” to which I replied, “Not really.” I was thinking about what I truly deserve—God’s judgment.
We easily forget how sinful we are at the core of our being. Thinking of ourselves more highly than we should diminishes our sense of deep indebtedness to God for His grace. It discounts the price He paid to rescue us.
Time for a reality check! As the psalmist reminds us, God “has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities” (Ps. 103:10). Considering who we are in light of a holy and just God, the only thing we truly deserve is hell. And heaven is an absolute impossibility—except for the gift of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. If God never does anything more than redeem us, He has already done far more than we deserve. No wonder the psalmist says, “As the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him” (v.11).
Knowing ourselves for what we are, we can’t help but say, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound!” He gives us so much more than we deserve.
Lord, thank You for not dealing with me according
to my sins. I am indebted to You for the love and
grace that You demonstrated on the cross to
purchase my pardon and forgiveness—far beyond what I deserve!
If God never does anything more than redeem us, He has already done far more than we deserve.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, May 23, 2014
Our Careful Unbelief
. . . do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on —Matthew 6:25
Jesus summed up commonsense carefulness in the life of a disciple as unbelief. If we have received the Spirit of God, He will squeeze right through our lives, as if to ask, “Now where do I come into this relationship, this vacation you have planned, or these new books you want to read?” And He always presses the point until we learn to make Him our first consideration. Whenever we put other things first, there is confusion.
“. . . do not worry about your life . . . .” Don’t take the pressure of your provision upon yourself. It is not only wrong to worry, it is unbelief; worrying means we do not believe that God can look after the practical details of our lives, and it is never anything but those details that worry us. Have you ever noticed what Jesus said would choke the Word He puts in us? Is it the devil? No— “the cares of this world” (Matthew 13:22). It is always our little worries. We say, “I will not trust when I cannot see”— and that is where unbelief begins. The only cure for unbelief is obedience to the Spirit.
The greatest word of Jesus to His disciples is abandon.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The 'Not Ready' Nightmare - #7140
Friday, May 23, 2014
I used to think I didn't dream much. But I guess that's scientifically inaccurate. We all dream a lot, but some of us like me don't remember them. Now, my wife? She dreams in these Technicolor epics! I mean, I'm lucky if I remember a black and white short subject. Once in a while, though, I do remember a bad dream I've had. Not usually about monsters or murderers. I think you're going to laugh when I tell you about what a lot of my nightmares are about. Not being ready. Yeah, you know, stepping up to a microphone totally unprepared; having a huge audience waiting for me to speak in an auditorium and I'm backstage. They push me to go out. I'm being introduced. I have nothing ready to say.
I heard my pastor say the same thing actually. His nightmares are also about not being ready. He dreams that he's up there on a Sunday morning and there's no sermon. Some women have told me they have had nightmares about not being ready for a date. Others have told me about their nightmare about not being ready for a meeting of a board of directors where they have to give an important report.
You know what? If our dreams reflect our fears, then there must be this fear deep down inside of many of us that we won't be ready when an important moment comes.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The 'Not Ready' Nightmare."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from the Old Testament prophet Amos. It's a pretty simple, straightforward sentence. Amos 4:12, "Prepare to meet your God." Now, if not being ready is nightmare stuff, then not being ready to meet God must be the ultimate nightmare. I mean, meeting Him is the surest date you have.
Hebrews 9:27 in the Bible says, "It is appointed to man once to die, and after this the judgment." The moment you take your last breath, there's God. Earth appointments? They can be postponed. They can be canceled, but God has this one in indelible ink in His calendar. The One who gave you your life is the One you will meet at the end of your life. The question the Bible raises is, "Are you prepared?" You say, "Well, yeah, I'm a good person." Unfortunately, that doesn't answer the question.
Romans 3:20 says this, no one will be justified by observing the law. "No one will be declared righteous in God's sight by observing the law." Not protestant good things, not Catholic good things, not Jewish good things. Unfortunately no one is ready to meet God as long as he or she is still carrying around sin.
You say, "Well, we've all got sin we're carrying around." Yes, that's what Romans 3:23 says in that same chapter. "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." If sin were something you could repay, maybe you could work it off with a lifetime of good deeds. But it's got to be removed! No matter how many times I keep the speed limit on our nearby Interstate, it doesn't erase the penalty I get for breaking the speed limit.
The penalty for sin is a death penalty; separation from God eternally. And it cannot be paid in good deeds. Somebody's got to die for a death penalty, and I deserve to. But the same place where it says "all of us have fallen short of the glory of God" says, "And we are justified (That means made right.) with God, freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Somebody did die for your sins and mine; the One who didn't deserve to. The only One who could-God's Son.
Now, how do you prepare to meet your God? Romans 3:25 says, "He was a sacrifice of atonement (that is to pay for your sin; to cover our sin) through faith in His blood." Faith in Jesus' dying for us. See, you open your heart to the One who paid your bill with God. "Lord, I put all my hope in Jesus Christ's work on the cross; my only hope that will bring me to You." Once you've told God that, then you're totally trusting in what Christ did and your nightmare is over. With your sins erased, you're ready.
If you say, "I'm not sure I am. How do I get started with this relationship with Jesus? How can I have my sins forgiven?" Would you go to our website? I'll do my best to help you find Him. It's ANewStory.com.
You've got an appointment with God. Are you ready? Going into eternity without Christ is the ultimate nightmare. If you're not sure, please don't risk another day without Jesus."
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Job 32, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: He Will Give You Rest
When my daughters were young, I didn’t want them to be afraid of the deep end of the pool, so with each I played Shamu, the whale. My daughter would be the trainer. She would pinch her nose, and put her arm around my neck, then down we’d go. Deep, deep, deep until we could touch the bottom of the pool. Then up we’d explode, breaking the surface. After several plunges they realized they had nothing to fear. Why? Because I was with them.
And when God calls us into the deep valley of death, dare we think He’d abandon us in that moment? Would a father force his child to swim the deep alone? Would God require his child to journey to eternity alone? Absolutely not! He is with you! In Exodus 33:14 God said to Moses, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest!”
From Traveling Light
Job 32
Elihu
So these three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. 2 But Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became very angry with Job for justifying himself rather than God. 3 He was also angry with the three friends, because they had found no way to refute Job, and yet had condemned him.[a] 4 Now Elihu had waited before speaking to Job because they were older than he. 5 But when he saw that the three men had nothing more to say, his anger was aroused.
6 So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite said:
“I am young in years,
and you are old;
that is why I was fearful,
not daring to tell you what I know.
7 I thought, ‘Age should speak;
advanced years should teach wisdom.’
8 But it is the spirit[b] in a person,
the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding.
9 It is not only the old[c] who are wise,
not only the aged who understand what is right.
10 “Therefore I say: Listen to me;
I too will tell you what I know.
11 I waited while you spoke,
I listened to your reasoning;
while you were searching for words,
12 I gave you my full attention.
But not one of you has proved Job wrong;
none of you has answered his arguments.
13 Do not say, ‘We have found wisdom;
let God, not a man, refute him.’
14 But Job has not marshaled his words against me,
and I will not answer him with your arguments.
15 “They are dismayed and have no more to say;
words have failed them.
16 Must I wait, now that they are silent,
now that they stand there with no reply?
17 I too will have my say;
I too will tell what I know.
18 For I am full of words,
and the spirit within me compels me;
19 inside I am like bottled-up wine,
like new wineskins ready to burst.
20 I must speak and find relief;
I must open my lips and reply.
21 I will show no partiality,
nor will I flatter anyone;
22 for if I were skilled in flattery,
my Maker would soon take me away.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Job 2:11-13
When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite, heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him. 12 When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads. 13 Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.
Insight
Job was in financial ruin, had just lost all 10 of his children (Job 1:13-19), and had suddenly taken ill (2:7). As a result, three of Job’s friends did what normal good friends would do in the face of life’s pain: they traveled long distances to be with Job in order to comfort him (vv.11-12). Participating in Job’s grief and pain (v.12), “they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights” (v.13). This was the normal duration for grieving the loss of a loved one in the ancient Near East (Gen. 50:10; 1 Sam. 31:13). And sitting on the ground was their way of showing deep sorrow (Isa. 3:26; Lam. 2:10; Jonah 3:6). Yet, despite his friends’ initial good start, the majority of the counseling they gave him was unhelpful or wrong.
Listening
By David H. Roper
Oh, that I had one to hear me! —Job 31:35
In her book Listening to Others, Joyce Huggett writes about the importance of learning to listen and respond effectively to those in difficult situations. As she relates some of her own experiences of listening to suffering people, she mentions that they often thank her for all she’s done for them. “On many occasions,” she writes, “I have not ‘done’ anything. I have ‘just listened.’ I quickly came to the conclusion that ‘just listening’ was indeed an effective way of helping others.”
This was the help Job sought from his friends. While it is true that they sat with him for 7 days in silence, “for they saw that his grief was very great” (2:13), they didn’t listen when Job started talking. Instead, they talked and talked but failed to comfort him (16:2). “Oh, that I had one to hear me!” Job cried (31:35).
Listening says, “What matters to you matters to me.” Sometimes people do want advice. But often they just want to be listened to by someone who loves and cares about them.
Listening is hard work, and it takes time. It takes time to listen long enough to hear the other person’s true heart, so that if we do speak, we speak with gentle wisdom.
Oh, Lord, give us a loving heart and a listening ear.
I cried, and from His holy hill
He bowed a listening ear;
I called my Father, and my God,
And He subdued my fear. —Watts
When I’m thinking about an answer while others are talking—I’m not listening.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, May 22, 2014
The Explanation For Our Difficulties
. . . that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us . . . —John 17:21
If you are going through a time of isolation, seemingly all alone, read John 17 . It will explain exactly why you are where you are— because Jesus has prayed that you “may be one” with the Father as He is. Are you helping God to answer that prayer, or do you have some other goal for your life? Since you became a disciple, you cannot be as independent as you used to be.
God reveals in John 17 that His purpose is not just to answer our prayers, but that through prayer we might come to discern His mind. Yet there is one prayer which God must answer, and that is the prayer of Jesus— “. . . that they may be one just as We are one . . .” (John 17:22). Are we as close to Jesus Christ as that?
God is not concerned about our plans; He doesn’t ask, “Do you want to go through this loss of a loved one, this difficulty, or this defeat?” No, He allows these things for His own purpose. The things we are going through are either making us sweeter, better, and nobler men and women, or they are making us more critical and fault-finding, and more insistent on our own way. The things that happen either make us evil, or they make us more saintly, depending entirely on our relationship with God and its level of intimacy. If we will pray, regarding our own lives, “Your will be done” (Matthew 26:42), then we will be encouraged and comforted by John 17, knowing that our Father is working according to His own wisdom, accomplishing what is best. When we understand God’s purpose, we will not become small-minded and cynical. Jesus prayed nothing less for us than absolute oneness with Himself, just as He was one with the Father. Some of us are far from this oneness; yet God will not leave us alone until we are one with Him— because Jesus prayed, “. . . that they all may be one . . . .”
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Lifetime Programming - #7139
Thursday, May 22, 2014
It's 1:00 A.M....the telephone rings. I mumble in my pillow. It was our daughter. See, all through college, if the phone rang when it was late at night, then it was a good guess that it was our daughter. That's even true now. She's a night person. And my wife always reminds me, "Well, it's your fault." See, when our daughter was born I was a director for a youth organization and most nights I'd get home about 10:30.
My wife had a decision to make. She could follow the conventional mother wisdom that you put the baby to bed early. Right? In which case that little girl would seldom see her Daddy. Or she could let her stay up. Well, guess what she decided to do. Yes, I'd come home. There's my little girl waiting. It was play time! I'd crawl around with her, and goof off with her, and swirl her around in the air. I had no idea I was programming her for life.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Lifetime Programming."
Our word for today from the Word of God is a familiar statement from the Bible, It's Galatians 6:7. But I want you to think about it today in terms of parenting. "A man reaps what he sows." Isn't that interesting? That little phrase "A man reaps what he sows." Now, that verse is primarily speaking of spiritual consequences, but it is a principle that really applies to parenting. Our children are going to reproduce the rest of their lives the relationship they have with us; the positives, the negatives. And we're going to reap from them what we sow in them. Like sowing a night person and getting one who calls you late at night. That's it. You know.
The Bible challenges parents to really get serious about what they're sowing. For example, "Train a child in the way he should go..." That's sowing. "...and when he is old, he will not turn from it." That's reaping. (Proverbs 22:6) Or "Discipline your son..." That's sowing. "...and he will give you peace. He will bring delight to your soul." That's reaping. (Proverbs 29:17)
In Colossians 3:21, "Fathers, do not embitter your children." That's what you sow. "...or they will become discouraged." That's what you reap. A mom or dad is doing lifetime programming of a child without even realizing it, and neither does the child. It might be interesting to try to role play your son or daughter and fill in the blank in the following sentence as you think they would fill it in honestly.
"Most of the time I feel _____ by my Mom or Dad." Fill in the blank. Possible answers: "I feel criticized. I'm not good enough." Well, if that's how they feel, you're going to reap a child with a little sense of worth and they will make choices that show they don't feel like they're worth much. "I feel neglected." Okay, you're going to reap a child who's not sure they're loved, and they're going to go looking for love in all the wrong places.
There are other answers that can produce a heart-breaking crop. Like, "I feel pressured by my parents. I feel not trusted. I feel manipulated." Let's get back from the trees of every day with our family and look at the forest for a minute, the kind of person that we're building with our everyday words and actions. Work on making sure the sentence would say, "I feel loved no matter what. I feel respected by my Mom or Dad. I feel cared for, listened to. I feel included, trusted, encouraged." They're never too young or never too old for you to start on this.
What about the destructive seed that maybe you've already sown in the past? Will you tell your son or daughter that you're sorry? Would you apologize? Would you ask for their forgiveness? It will tear down walls. It will start building bridges.
I didn't know what I was doing when I programmed my daughter to be a lifelong night person. That's only cost me a little sleep. But every parent is doing lifetime programming one day at a time, and a negative program can cost a lot later on. God has trusted you with a precious life to shape. Sow seed that makes that child feel valuable, important, loved and trusted, because it's worth it later when the crop comes in.
When my daughters were young, I didn’t want them to be afraid of the deep end of the pool, so with each I played Shamu, the whale. My daughter would be the trainer. She would pinch her nose, and put her arm around my neck, then down we’d go. Deep, deep, deep until we could touch the bottom of the pool. Then up we’d explode, breaking the surface. After several plunges they realized they had nothing to fear. Why? Because I was with them.
And when God calls us into the deep valley of death, dare we think He’d abandon us in that moment? Would a father force his child to swim the deep alone? Would God require his child to journey to eternity alone? Absolutely not! He is with you! In Exodus 33:14 God said to Moses, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest!”
From Traveling Light
Job 32
Elihu
So these three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. 2 But Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became very angry with Job for justifying himself rather than God. 3 He was also angry with the three friends, because they had found no way to refute Job, and yet had condemned him.[a] 4 Now Elihu had waited before speaking to Job because they were older than he. 5 But when he saw that the three men had nothing more to say, his anger was aroused.
6 So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite said:
“I am young in years,
and you are old;
that is why I was fearful,
not daring to tell you what I know.
7 I thought, ‘Age should speak;
advanced years should teach wisdom.’
8 But it is the spirit[b] in a person,
the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding.
9 It is not only the old[c] who are wise,
not only the aged who understand what is right.
10 “Therefore I say: Listen to me;
I too will tell you what I know.
11 I waited while you spoke,
I listened to your reasoning;
while you were searching for words,
12 I gave you my full attention.
But not one of you has proved Job wrong;
none of you has answered his arguments.
13 Do not say, ‘We have found wisdom;
let God, not a man, refute him.’
14 But Job has not marshaled his words against me,
and I will not answer him with your arguments.
15 “They are dismayed and have no more to say;
words have failed them.
16 Must I wait, now that they are silent,
now that they stand there with no reply?
17 I too will have my say;
I too will tell what I know.
18 For I am full of words,
and the spirit within me compels me;
19 inside I am like bottled-up wine,
like new wineskins ready to burst.
20 I must speak and find relief;
I must open my lips and reply.
21 I will show no partiality,
nor will I flatter anyone;
22 for if I were skilled in flattery,
my Maker would soon take me away.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Job 2:11-13
When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite, heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him. 12 When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads. 13 Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.
Insight
Job was in financial ruin, had just lost all 10 of his children (Job 1:13-19), and had suddenly taken ill (2:7). As a result, three of Job’s friends did what normal good friends would do in the face of life’s pain: they traveled long distances to be with Job in order to comfort him (vv.11-12). Participating in Job’s grief and pain (v.12), “they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights” (v.13). This was the normal duration for grieving the loss of a loved one in the ancient Near East (Gen. 50:10; 1 Sam. 31:13). And sitting on the ground was their way of showing deep sorrow (Isa. 3:26; Lam. 2:10; Jonah 3:6). Yet, despite his friends’ initial good start, the majority of the counseling they gave him was unhelpful or wrong.
Listening
By David H. Roper
Oh, that I had one to hear me! —Job 31:35
In her book Listening to Others, Joyce Huggett writes about the importance of learning to listen and respond effectively to those in difficult situations. As she relates some of her own experiences of listening to suffering people, she mentions that they often thank her for all she’s done for them. “On many occasions,” she writes, “I have not ‘done’ anything. I have ‘just listened.’ I quickly came to the conclusion that ‘just listening’ was indeed an effective way of helping others.”
This was the help Job sought from his friends. While it is true that they sat with him for 7 days in silence, “for they saw that his grief was very great” (2:13), they didn’t listen when Job started talking. Instead, they talked and talked but failed to comfort him (16:2). “Oh, that I had one to hear me!” Job cried (31:35).
Listening says, “What matters to you matters to me.” Sometimes people do want advice. But often they just want to be listened to by someone who loves and cares about them.
Listening is hard work, and it takes time. It takes time to listen long enough to hear the other person’s true heart, so that if we do speak, we speak with gentle wisdom.
Oh, Lord, give us a loving heart and a listening ear.
I cried, and from His holy hill
He bowed a listening ear;
I called my Father, and my God,
And He subdued my fear. —Watts
When I’m thinking about an answer while others are talking—I’m not listening.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, May 22, 2014
The Explanation For Our Difficulties
. . . that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us . . . —John 17:21
If you are going through a time of isolation, seemingly all alone, read John 17 . It will explain exactly why you are where you are— because Jesus has prayed that you “may be one” with the Father as He is. Are you helping God to answer that prayer, or do you have some other goal for your life? Since you became a disciple, you cannot be as independent as you used to be.
God reveals in John 17 that His purpose is not just to answer our prayers, but that through prayer we might come to discern His mind. Yet there is one prayer which God must answer, and that is the prayer of Jesus— “. . . that they may be one just as We are one . . .” (John 17:22). Are we as close to Jesus Christ as that?
God is not concerned about our plans; He doesn’t ask, “Do you want to go through this loss of a loved one, this difficulty, or this defeat?” No, He allows these things for His own purpose. The things we are going through are either making us sweeter, better, and nobler men and women, or they are making us more critical and fault-finding, and more insistent on our own way. The things that happen either make us evil, or they make us more saintly, depending entirely on our relationship with God and its level of intimacy. If we will pray, regarding our own lives, “Your will be done” (Matthew 26:42), then we will be encouraged and comforted by John 17, knowing that our Father is working according to His own wisdom, accomplishing what is best. When we understand God’s purpose, we will not become small-minded and cynical. Jesus prayed nothing less for us than absolute oneness with Himself, just as He was one with the Father. Some of us are far from this oneness; yet God will not leave us alone until we are one with Him— because Jesus prayed, “. . . that they all may be one . . . .”
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Lifetime Programming - #7139
Thursday, May 22, 2014
It's 1:00 A.M....the telephone rings. I mumble in my pillow. It was our daughter. See, all through college, if the phone rang when it was late at night, then it was a good guess that it was our daughter. That's even true now. She's a night person. And my wife always reminds me, "Well, it's your fault." See, when our daughter was born I was a director for a youth organization and most nights I'd get home about 10:30.
My wife had a decision to make. She could follow the conventional mother wisdom that you put the baby to bed early. Right? In which case that little girl would seldom see her Daddy. Or she could let her stay up. Well, guess what she decided to do. Yes, I'd come home. There's my little girl waiting. It was play time! I'd crawl around with her, and goof off with her, and swirl her around in the air. I had no idea I was programming her for life.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Lifetime Programming."
Our word for today from the Word of God is a familiar statement from the Bible, It's Galatians 6:7. But I want you to think about it today in terms of parenting. "A man reaps what he sows." Isn't that interesting? That little phrase "A man reaps what he sows." Now, that verse is primarily speaking of spiritual consequences, but it is a principle that really applies to parenting. Our children are going to reproduce the rest of their lives the relationship they have with us; the positives, the negatives. And we're going to reap from them what we sow in them. Like sowing a night person and getting one who calls you late at night. That's it. You know.
The Bible challenges parents to really get serious about what they're sowing. For example, "Train a child in the way he should go..." That's sowing. "...and when he is old, he will not turn from it." That's reaping. (Proverbs 22:6) Or "Discipline your son..." That's sowing. "...and he will give you peace. He will bring delight to your soul." That's reaping. (Proverbs 29:17)
In Colossians 3:21, "Fathers, do not embitter your children." That's what you sow. "...or they will become discouraged." That's what you reap. A mom or dad is doing lifetime programming of a child without even realizing it, and neither does the child. It might be interesting to try to role play your son or daughter and fill in the blank in the following sentence as you think they would fill it in honestly.
"Most of the time I feel _____ by my Mom or Dad." Fill in the blank. Possible answers: "I feel criticized. I'm not good enough." Well, if that's how they feel, you're going to reap a child with a little sense of worth and they will make choices that show they don't feel like they're worth much. "I feel neglected." Okay, you're going to reap a child who's not sure they're loved, and they're going to go looking for love in all the wrong places.
There are other answers that can produce a heart-breaking crop. Like, "I feel pressured by my parents. I feel not trusted. I feel manipulated." Let's get back from the trees of every day with our family and look at the forest for a minute, the kind of person that we're building with our everyday words and actions. Work on making sure the sentence would say, "I feel loved no matter what. I feel respected by my Mom or Dad. I feel cared for, listened to. I feel included, trusted, encouraged." They're never too young or never too old for you to start on this.
What about the destructive seed that maybe you've already sown in the past? Will you tell your son or daughter that you're sorry? Would you apologize? Would you ask for their forgiveness? It will tear down walls. It will start building bridges.
I didn't know what I was doing when I programmed my daughter to be a lifelong night person. That's only cost me a little sleep. But every parent is doing lifetime programming one day at a time, and a negative program can cost a lot later on. God has trusted you with a precious life to shape. Sow seed that makes that child feel valuable, important, loved and trusted, because it's worth it later when the crop comes in.
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Matthew 13:31-58, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: God Loves Humility
God loves humility! The Jesus who said, "I am gentle and humble in heart," loves those who are gentle and humble in heart. And Paul reminds us in Romans 12:3, "Don't cherish exaggerated ideas of yourself or your importance, but try to have a sane estimate of your capabilities by the light of faith that God has given to you."
Humility isn't the same as low self-esteem. Being humble doesn't mean you think you have nothing to offer; it means you know exactly what you have to offer and no more.
An elementary-age boy came home from the tryouts for the school play. "Mommy, Mommy," he announced, "I got a part. I've been chosen to sit in the audience and clap and cheer."
When you have a chance to clap and cheer, do you take it? If you do-then your head is starting to fit your hat size!
From Traveling Light
Matthew 13:31-58
New International Version (NIV)
The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast
31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”
33 He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds[a] of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
34 Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35 So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:
“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”[b]
The Parable of the Weeds Explained
36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.
The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
The Parable of the Net
47 “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51 “Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked.
“Yes,” they replied.
52 He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
A Prophet Without Honor
53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. 54 Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. 55 “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? 56 Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”
58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
Footnotes:
Matthew 13:33 Or about 27 kilograms
Matthew 13:35 Psalm 78:2
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Joshua 1:1-9
Joshua Installed as Leader
After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. 3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. 4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. 5 No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.
7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Insight
In today’s reading, God encourages Joshua who has recently replaced his predecessor, Moses. God’s past faithfulness to Moses must have brought great comfort to Joshua: “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you” (v.5). For us as well, God’s faithfulness in the past brings courage for the future.
Anchors In The Storm
By Anne Cetas
The Lord your God is with you wherever you go. —Joshua 1:9
When Matt and Jessica tried to navigate their sailboat into a Florida inlet during Hurricane Sandy, the craft ran aground. As the waves crashed around them, they quickly dropped anchor. It held the sailboat in place until they could be rescued. They said that if they had not put down the anchor, “We would have lost our boat for sure.” Without the anchor, the relentless waves would have smashed the vessel onto the shore.
We need anchors that hold us secure in our spiritual lives as well. When God called Joshua to lead His people after Moses’ death, He gave him anchors of promise he could rely on in troubled times. The Lord said to him, “I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. . . . The Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Josh. 1:5,9). God also gave Joshua and His people the “Book of the Law” to study and observe (vv.7-8). That, and God’s presence, were anchors the Israelites could rely on as they faced many challenges.
When we’re in the middle of suffering or when doubts start threatening our faith, what are our anchors? We could start with Joshua 1:5. Although our faith may feel weak, if it’s anchored in God’s promises and presence, He will safely hold us.
We have an anchor that keeps the soul
Steadfast and sure while the billows roll,
Fastened to the Rock which cannot move,
Grounded firm and deep in the Savior’s love. —Owens
When we feel the stress of the storm we learn the strength of the anchor.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Having God’s “Unreasonable” Faith
Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you —Matthew 6:33
When we look at these words of Jesus, we immediately find them to be the most revolutionary that human ears have ever heard. “. . . seek first the kingdom of God . . . .” Even the most spiritually-minded of us argue the exact opposite, saying, “But I must live; I must make a certain amount of money; I must be clothed; I must be fed.” The great concern of our lives is not the kingdom of God but how we are going to take care of ourselves to live. Jesus reversed the order by telling us to get the right relationship with God first, maintaining it as the primary concern of our lives, and never to place our concern on taking care of the other things of life.
“. . . do not worry about your life. . .” (Matthew 6:25). Our Lord pointed out that from His standpoint it is absolutely unreasonable for us to be anxious, worrying about how we will live. Jesus did not say that the person who takes no thought for anything in his life is blessed— no, that person is a fool. But Jesus did teach that His disciple must make his relationship with God the dominating focus of his life, and to be cautiously carefree about everything else in comparison to that. In essence, Jesus was saying, “Don’t make food and drink the controlling factor of your life, but be focused absolutely on God.” Some people are careless about what they eat and drink, and they suffer for it; they are careless about what they wear, having no business looking the way they do; they are careless with their earthly matters, and God holds them responsible. Jesus is saying that the greatest concern of life is to place our relationship with God first, and everything else second.
It is one of the most difficult, yet critical, disciplines of the Christian life to allow the Holy Spirit to bring us into absolute harmony with the teaching of Jesus in these verses.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Driving Too Long - #7138
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
It was one of the dumbest things I'd done in a while. I know you find that hard to believe! I was involved in this intense ministry on Native American reservations. That wasn't dumb, but I was missing a lot of sleep and I decided to drive. That was dumb.
One day we had our longest drive; seven hours to an Apache Reservation. Now, my wife, knowing how tired I was, said, "Would you like me to drive?" "No, of course not! Let me drive." (I'm a guy!) See, I hate to ride. I like to drive. She kept offering; I kept declining.
I realized I was getting real warm in the car, and the next thing I remember was my wife yelling, "Ron!" I had dozed off at the wheel. I was running off the road on a gravel shoulder in a jeep that could have easily rolled over. Well, I thank God she woke me up in time. But I made an almost fatal mistake. I held onto the wheel too long.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Driving Too Long."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Corinthians 1:8-9. You might find some of these phrases applicable to your life right now: hardship, under great pressure, beyond our ability, despairing of life. Sound familiar? Well, those were the words used by the great Apostle Paul during a difficult time in his life. He found out the why as he tells us in these verses. "We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death."
It's like he's saying, "I thought we were going to die." Maybe you'd like to find out why the pressure, why the pain, why the problems right now. "What's going on here, God?" Well the answer Paul found might turn out to be yours as well. He says, "But this happened (here we go) that we might not rely on ourselves but on God."
In modern terms Paul might be saying, "God was trying to get my hands off the wheel." Could that be what He's trying to do with you? See, most of us want to drive our lives; we want to control everything. We don't like to ride while someone else drives. Oh, we believe in God. We love God. We maybe serve God. We give to God, but we maintain the real control of certain cherished parts of our life and we won't relinquish the wheel until we're running off the road and about to crash...or maybe even after we've crashed.
See, we were created to live God-dependent. We keep trying to live independent. I mean, you think about it. We don't take our next breath without Him. The Bible says, "In Him we live, and move, and have our being." But we want to make it happen. We don't want to watch God make it happen. We want our outcome, not His. We want God to bless it but not to run it. If we can depend on anything other than God we will. So our Lord lovingly turns up the heat.
Maybe you're there right now. You're stubbornly holding onto the wheel. You're insisting on driving your family, or your mate, or your child, or your ministry. Maybe you have to drive your finances, or your business, your relationships, your future, and God is politely asking to drive and that didn't work. You won't let go. And now things are crashing.
Listen to Paul, "This is happening that you might rely on God and not on yourself." When you finally let go and surrender control to Jesus, you'll receive power you could never have when you were driving; resurrection power available to those who have quit depending on their own power.
The ultimate disaster is when we think somehow we can do something to get ourselves to heaven, when the Bible clearly says, "It is not of works, so no man can boast. It is by grace (undeserved love of God) when Christ died on the cross to do for us what we could never do for ourselves; to pay sin's death penalty. And today He waits to walk into your life, to do for you what only He could do. But first, you must surrender control.
You say, "Ron, I don't know how to do this." Would you go to our website today ANewStory.com? Haven't you been driving long enough? You're wearing out, the pressure's almost unbearable, and you're about to make some fatal mistakes. Listen to Jesus, "Let Me drive. Unwrap those fingers that you so tightly wrapped around that wheel."
God loves humility! The Jesus who said, "I am gentle and humble in heart," loves those who are gentle and humble in heart. And Paul reminds us in Romans 12:3, "Don't cherish exaggerated ideas of yourself or your importance, but try to have a sane estimate of your capabilities by the light of faith that God has given to you."
Humility isn't the same as low self-esteem. Being humble doesn't mean you think you have nothing to offer; it means you know exactly what you have to offer and no more.
An elementary-age boy came home from the tryouts for the school play. "Mommy, Mommy," he announced, "I got a part. I've been chosen to sit in the audience and clap and cheer."
When you have a chance to clap and cheer, do you take it? If you do-then your head is starting to fit your hat size!
From Traveling Light
Matthew 13:31-58
New International Version (NIV)
The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast
31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”
33 He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds[a] of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
34 Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35 So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:
“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”[b]
The Parable of the Weeds Explained
36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.
The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
The Parable of the Net
47 “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51 “Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked.
“Yes,” they replied.
52 He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
A Prophet Without Honor
53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. 54 Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. 55 “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? 56 Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”
58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
Footnotes:
Matthew 13:33 Or about 27 kilograms
Matthew 13:35 Psalm 78:2
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Joshua 1:1-9
Joshua Installed as Leader
After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. 3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. 4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. 5 No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.
7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Insight
In today’s reading, God encourages Joshua who has recently replaced his predecessor, Moses. God’s past faithfulness to Moses must have brought great comfort to Joshua: “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you” (v.5). For us as well, God’s faithfulness in the past brings courage for the future.
Anchors In The Storm
By Anne Cetas
The Lord your God is with you wherever you go. —Joshua 1:9
When Matt and Jessica tried to navigate their sailboat into a Florida inlet during Hurricane Sandy, the craft ran aground. As the waves crashed around them, they quickly dropped anchor. It held the sailboat in place until they could be rescued. They said that if they had not put down the anchor, “We would have lost our boat for sure.” Without the anchor, the relentless waves would have smashed the vessel onto the shore.
We need anchors that hold us secure in our spiritual lives as well. When God called Joshua to lead His people after Moses’ death, He gave him anchors of promise he could rely on in troubled times. The Lord said to him, “I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. . . . The Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Josh. 1:5,9). God also gave Joshua and His people the “Book of the Law” to study and observe (vv.7-8). That, and God’s presence, were anchors the Israelites could rely on as they faced many challenges.
When we’re in the middle of suffering or when doubts start threatening our faith, what are our anchors? We could start with Joshua 1:5. Although our faith may feel weak, if it’s anchored in God’s promises and presence, He will safely hold us.
We have an anchor that keeps the soul
Steadfast and sure while the billows roll,
Fastened to the Rock which cannot move,
Grounded firm and deep in the Savior’s love. —Owens
When we feel the stress of the storm we learn the strength of the anchor.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Having God’s “Unreasonable” Faith
Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you —Matthew 6:33
When we look at these words of Jesus, we immediately find them to be the most revolutionary that human ears have ever heard. “. . . seek first the kingdom of God . . . .” Even the most spiritually-minded of us argue the exact opposite, saying, “But I must live; I must make a certain amount of money; I must be clothed; I must be fed.” The great concern of our lives is not the kingdom of God but how we are going to take care of ourselves to live. Jesus reversed the order by telling us to get the right relationship with God first, maintaining it as the primary concern of our lives, and never to place our concern on taking care of the other things of life.
“. . . do not worry about your life. . .” (Matthew 6:25). Our Lord pointed out that from His standpoint it is absolutely unreasonable for us to be anxious, worrying about how we will live. Jesus did not say that the person who takes no thought for anything in his life is blessed— no, that person is a fool. But Jesus did teach that His disciple must make his relationship with God the dominating focus of his life, and to be cautiously carefree about everything else in comparison to that. In essence, Jesus was saying, “Don’t make food and drink the controlling factor of your life, but be focused absolutely on God.” Some people are careless about what they eat and drink, and they suffer for it; they are careless about what they wear, having no business looking the way they do; they are careless with their earthly matters, and God holds them responsible. Jesus is saying that the greatest concern of life is to place our relationship with God first, and everything else second.
It is one of the most difficult, yet critical, disciplines of the Christian life to allow the Holy Spirit to bring us into absolute harmony with the teaching of Jesus in these verses.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Driving Too Long - #7138
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
It was one of the dumbest things I'd done in a while. I know you find that hard to believe! I was involved in this intense ministry on Native American reservations. That wasn't dumb, but I was missing a lot of sleep and I decided to drive. That was dumb.
One day we had our longest drive; seven hours to an Apache Reservation. Now, my wife, knowing how tired I was, said, "Would you like me to drive?" "No, of course not! Let me drive." (I'm a guy!) See, I hate to ride. I like to drive. She kept offering; I kept declining.
I realized I was getting real warm in the car, and the next thing I remember was my wife yelling, "Ron!" I had dozed off at the wheel. I was running off the road on a gravel shoulder in a jeep that could have easily rolled over. Well, I thank God she woke me up in time. But I made an almost fatal mistake. I held onto the wheel too long.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Driving Too Long."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Corinthians 1:8-9. You might find some of these phrases applicable to your life right now: hardship, under great pressure, beyond our ability, despairing of life. Sound familiar? Well, those were the words used by the great Apostle Paul during a difficult time in his life. He found out the why as he tells us in these verses. "We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death."
It's like he's saying, "I thought we were going to die." Maybe you'd like to find out why the pressure, why the pain, why the problems right now. "What's going on here, God?" Well the answer Paul found might turn out to be yours as well. He says, "But this happened (here we go) that we might not rely on ourselves but on God."
In modern terms Paul might be saying, "God was trying to get my hands off the wheel." Could that be what He's trying to do with you? See, most of us want to drive our lives; we want to control everything. We don't like to ride while someone else drives. Oh, we believe in God. We love God. We maybe serve God. We give to God, but we maintain the real control of certain cherished parts of our life and we won't relinquish the wheel until we're running off the road and about to crash...or maybe even after we've crashed.
See, we were created to live God-dependent. We keep trying to live independent. I mean, you think about it. We don't take our next breath without Him. The Bible says, "In Him we live, and move, and have our being." But we want to make it happen. We don't want to watch God make it happen. We want our outcome, not His. We want God to bless it but not to run it. If we can depend on anything other than God we will. So our Lord lovingly turns up the heat.
Maybe you're there right now. You're stubbornly holding onto the wheel. You're insisting on driving your family, or your mate, or your child, or your ministry. Maybe you have to drive your finances, or your business, your relationships, your future, and God is politely asking to drive and that didn't work. You won't let go. And now things are crashing.
Listen to Paul, "This is happening that you might rely on God and not on yourself." When you finally let go and surrender control to Jesus, you'll receive power you could never have when you were driving; resurrection power available to those who have quit depending on their own power.
The ultimate disaster is when we think somehow we can do something to get ourselves to heaven, when the Bible clearly says, "It is not of works, so no man can boast. It is by grace (undeserved love of God) when Christ died on the cross to do for us what we could never do for ourselves; to pay sin's death penalty. And today He waits to walk into your life, to do for you what only He could do. But first, you must surrender control.
You say, "Ron, I don't know how to do this." Would you go to our website today ANewStory.com? Haven't you been driving long enough? You're wearing out, the pressure's almost unbearable, and you're about to make some fatal mistakes. Listen to Jesus, "Let Me drive. Unwrap those fingers that you so tightly wrapped around that wheel."
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Job 31, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: The Only Reason for Bragging
A philosopher once asked, "Do you wish people to speak well of you? Then never speak well of yourself." In other words-get over yourself!
In Luke 14:10, Jesus said to His followers, "Go sit in a seat that's not important. When the host comes to you, he may say, 'Friend, move up here to a more important place.' Then all the other guests will respect you."
Paul said in Galatians 6:14, "The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is my only reason for bragging."
Do you feel a need for affirmation? Does your self-esteem need attention? You don't need to drop names or show off. You need only pause at the base of the cross and be reminded of this. The maker of the stars would rather die for you than live without you. And that's a fact. So if you need to brag-brag about that!
From Traveling Light
Job 31
“I made a covenant with my eyes
not to look lustfully at a young woman.
2 For what is our lot from God above,
our heritage from the Almighty on high?
3 Is it not ruin for the wicked,
disaster for those who do wrong?
4 Does he not see my ways
and count my every step?
5 “If I have walked with falsehood
or my foot has hurried after deceit—
6 let God weigh me in honest scales
and he will know that I am blameless—
7 if my steps have turned from the path,
if my heart has been led by my eyes,
or if my hands have been defiled,
8 then may others eat what I have sown,
and may my crops be uprooted.
9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman,
or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 then may my wife grind another man’s grain,
and may other men sleep with her.
11 For that would have been wicked,
a sin to be judged.
12 It is a fire that burns to Destruction[e];
it would have uprooted my harvest.
13 “If I have denied justice to any of my servants,
whether male or female,
when they had a grievance against me,
14 what will I do when God confronts me?
What will I answer when called to account?
15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them?
Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?
16 “If I have denied the desires of the poor
or let the eyes of the widow grow weary,
17 if I have kept my bread to myself,
not sharing it with the fatherless—
18 but from my youth I reared them as a father would,
and from my birth I guided the widow—
19 if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,
or the needy without garments,
20 and their hearts did not bless me
for warming them with the fleece from my sheep,
21 if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,
knowing that I had influence in court,
22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder,
let it be broken off at the joint.
23 For I dreaded destruction from God,
and for fear of his splendor I could not do such things.
24 “If I have put my trust in gold
or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’
25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,
the fortune my hands had gained,
26 if I have regarded the sun in its radiance
or the moon moving in splendor,
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed
and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,
28 then these also would be sins to be judged,
for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.
29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune
or gloated over the trouble that came to him—
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin
by invoking a curse against their life—
31 if those of my household have never said,
‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’—
32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,
for my door was always open to the traveler—
33 if I have concealed my sin as people do,[f]
by hiding my guilt in my heart
34 because I so feared the crowd
and so dreaded the contempt of the clans
that I kept silent and would not go outside—
35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!
I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;
let my accuser put his indictment in writing.
36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,
I would put it on like a crown.
37 I would give him an account of my every step;
I would present it to him as to a ruler.)—
38 “if my land cries out against me
and all its furrows are wet with tears,
39 if I have devoured its yield without payment
or broken the spirit of its tenants,
40 then let briers come up instead of wheat
and stinkweed instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.
Job 31:12 Hebrew Abaddon
Job 31:33 Or as Adam did
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 24:32-44
“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33 Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it[a] is near, right at the door. 34 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
The Day and Hour Unknown
36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,[b] but only the Father. 37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
Footnotes:
Matthew 24:33 Or he
Matthew 24:36 Some manuscripts do not have nor the Son.
Insight
In His teaching, Christ often used examples from nature, as He did here with the fig tree (Matt. 24:32). He communicated to His listeners with word-pictures that would be familiar to them. They were part of an agricultural society that mostly lived outdoors, so nature became the perfect vehicle for His presentation of spiritual truths.
Once Upon A Time
By Cindy Hess Kasper
The Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. —Jonah 1:17
Some people say that the Bible is just a collection of fairy tales. A boy slaying a giant. A man swallowed by a big fish. Noah’s boat-building experience. Even some religious people think that these events are just nice stories with a good moral.
Jesus Himself, however, spoke of Jonah and the giant fish, and Noah and the flood, as actual events: “As the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be” (Matt. 24:37-39). His return will happen when we’re not expecting it.
Jesus compared Jonah’s 3 days inside the big fish to the 3 days He would experience in the grave before His resurrection (Matt. 12:40). And Peter talked about Noah and the flood when he equated it to a future day when Jesus comes back (2 Peter 2:4-9).
God gave us His Word; it’s a book that is filled with truth—not fairy tales. And one day, we will live happily ever after with Him when Jesus comes again and receives His children to Himself.
We’re waiting for You, Lord, to come
And take us home to be with You;
Your promise to return for us
Gives hope because we know it’s true. —Sper
We have reason for optimism if we’re looking for Christ’s return.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Taking Possession of Our Own Soul
By your patience possess your souls —Luke 21:19
When a person is born again, there is a period of time when he does not have the same vitality in his thinking or reasoning that he previously had. We must learn to express this new life within us, which comes by forming the mind of Christ (see Philippians 2:5). Luke 21:19 means that we take possession of our souls through patience. But many of us prefer to stay at the entrance to the Christian life, instead of going on to create and build our soul in accordance with the new life God has placed within us. We fail because we are ignorant of the way God has made us, and we blame things on the devil that are actually the result of our own undisciplined natures. Just think what we could be when we are awakened to the truth!
There are certain things in life that we need not pray about— moods, for instance. We will never get rid of moodiness by praying, but we will by kicking it out of our lives. Moods nearly always are rooted in some physical circumstance, not in our true inner self. It is a continual struggle not to listen to the moods which arise as a result of our physical condition, but we must never submit to them for a second. We have to pick ourselves up by the back of the neck and shake ourselves; then we will find that we can do what we believed we were unable to do. The problem that most of us are cursed with is simply that we won’t. The Christian life is one of spiritual courage and determination lived out in our flesh.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Problem with Bible Clubs - #7137
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
A Bible is pretty versatile. I mean, it can be a file. Did you ever notice how much people stick in their Bible? I look at mine sometimes, and I find a number of things in there I don't want to lose. Unfortunately it does hurt the binding a little bit. Sometimes the Bible can be a record book. You see these Bibles where people put important dates, their family tree, weddings, deaths, and the autographs of people whose ministry they want to remember.
A Bible can be an antique. You can go into an antique store and drop quite a few bucks getting one of those old Bibles. And a Bible is a great gift. I've gotten several as a gift. A Bible can be your identification. I used to carry mine to school. My kids carried theirs to school; it sort of identifies you as a follower of Christ. At some times in my life the Bible's been a textbook. Oh yeah, there are a lot of ways you can use your Bible. There's one I hope you never use.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Problem with Bible Clubs."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Timothy 4:2. "Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction." This is a call, I think, to Bible balance. First of all, Paul is saying, "Use God's Word to help people know what's right; that's correct. To warn them about what they're doing wrong; that's rebuke. And to encourage them in what they're doing right. Use this book boldly to change people's lives. That's certainly part of it.
Here's the other part: Do it gently, do it patiently, do it carefully. Don't use the Bible as a club! You can use it for a lot of things, but not as a club to win an argument, or beat a person down, or shame them, or corner them. I know it's good to have some Bible clubs where kids meet to study the Bible around the school. I did that in high school. But don't use the Bible as a club. Too many people use the words of the Bible but lose the spirit of the Bible while they're doing it.
Ephesians 4:15 is the perfect balance, "Speaking the truth in love." The problem is often that the truth bearers leave out the love, and the lovers leave out the truth. It's important to be sure that you measure everything you believe and behave by God's Word. There is no room for, "Well, in my opinion..." Or, "I don't feel like it..." Or, "It doesn't seem right to me." "I just read this great Christian book and it says..." No, show me what the Bible says. God has spoken - final word.
It's important to remind each other of what the Bible says about how we're living. But it's important to be gentle, non-condemning and patient like God has been with you. We want to make sure that when we're communicating the truth, we're also communicating, "I care about you. That's why I'm doing this. That's why I'm giving you what the Bible says, to correct, or rebuke or encourage. I want God's best in your life. You're made for more. You're better than this." Not, "I'm sitting in judgment, and here are my verses."
Hebrews 4:12 says, "The Bible penetrates between soul and spirit." It's a sword that does that; it judges. We don't judge, but God's Word judges. So let God's Word do the judging. Share it and then let it do its penetrating work.
Use God's Word to love people with the truth. Don't use it as a club.
A philosopher once asked, "Do you wish people to speak well of you? Then never speak well of yourself." In other words-get over yourself!
In Luke 14:10, Jesus said to His followers, "Go sit in a seat that's not important. When the host comes to you, he may say, 'Friend, move up here to a more important place.' Then all the other guests will respect you."
Paul said in Galatians 6:14, "The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is my only reason for bragging."
Do you feel a need for affirmation? Does your self-esteem need attention? You don't need to drop names or show off. You need only pause at the base of the cross and be reminded of this. The maker of the stars would rather die for you than live without you. And that's a fact. So if you need to brag-brag about that!
From Traveling Light
Job 31
“I made a covenant with my eyes
not to look lustfully at a young woman.
2 For what is our lot from God above,
our heritage from the Almighty on high?
3 Is it not ruin for the wicked,
disaster for those who do wrong?
4 Does he not see my ways
and count my every step?
5 “If I have walked with falsehood
or my foot has hurried after deceit—
6 let God weigh me in honest scales
and he will know that I am blameless—
7 if my steps have turned from the path,
if my heart has been led by my eyes,
or if my hands have been defiled,
8 then may others eat what I have sown,
and may my crops be uprooted.
9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman,
or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 then may my wife grind another man’s grain,
and may other men sleep with her.
11 For that would have been wicked,
a sin to be judged.
12 It is a fire that burns to Destruction[e];
it would have uprooted my harvest.
13 “If I have denied justice to any of my servants,
whether male or female,
when they had a grievance against me,
14 what will I do when God confronts me?
What will I answer when called to account?
15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them?
Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?
16 “If I have denied the desires of the poor
or let the eyes of the widow grow weary,
17 if I have kept my bread to myself,
not sharing it with the fatherless—
18 but from my youth I reared them as a father would,
and from my birth I guided the widow—
19 if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,
or the needy without garments,
20 and their hearts did not bless me
for warming them with the fleece from my sheep,
21 if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,
knowing that I had influence in court,
22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder,
let it be broken off at the joint.
23 For I dreaded destruction from God,
and for fear of his splendor I could not do such things.
24 “If I have put my trust in gold
or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’
25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,
the fortune my hands had gained,
26 if I have regarded the sun in its radiance
or the moon moving in splendor,
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed
and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,
28 then these also would be sins to be judged,
for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.
29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune
or gloated over the trouble that came to him—
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin
by invoking a curse against their life—
31 if those of my household have never said,
‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’—
32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,
for my door was always open to the traveler—
33 if I have concealed my sin as people do,[f]
by hiding my guilt in my heart
34 because I so feared the crowd
and so dreaded the contempt of the clans
that I kept silent and would not go outside—
35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!
I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;
let my accuser put his indictment in writing.
36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,
I would put it on like a crown.
37 I would give him an account of my every step;
I would present it to him as to a ruler.)—
38 “if my land cries out against me
and all its furrows are wet with tears,
39 if I have devoured its yield without payment
or broken the spirit of its tenants,
40 then let briers come up instead of wheat
and stinkweed instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.
Job 31:12 Hebrew Abaddon
Job 31:33 Or as Adam did
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 24:32-44
“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33 Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it[a] is near, right at the door. 34 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
The Day and Hour Unknown
36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,[b] but only the Father. 37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
Footnotes:
Matthew 24:33 Or he
Matthew 24:36 Some manuscripts do not have nor the Son.
Insight
In His teaching, Christ often used examples from nature, as He did here with the fig tree (Matt. 24:32). He communicated to His listeners with word-pictures that would be familiar to them. They were part of an agricultural society that mostly lived outdoors, so nature became the perfect vehicle for His presentation of spiritual truths.
Once Upon A Time
By Cindy Hess Kasper
The Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. —Jonah 1:17
Some people say that the Bible is just a collection of fairy tales. A boy slaying a giant. A man swallowed by a big fish. Noah’s boat-building experience. Even some religious people think that these events are just nice stories with a good moral.
Jesus Himself, however, spoke of Jonah and the giant fish, and Noah and the flood, as actual events: “As the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be” (Matt. 24:37-39). His return will happen when we’re not expecting it.
Jesus compared Jonah’s 3 days inside the big fish to the 3 days He would experience in the grave before His resurrection (Matt. 12:40). And Peter talked about Noah and the flood when he equated it to a future day when Jesus comes back (2 Peter 2:4-9).
God gave us His Word; it’s a book that is filled with truth—not fairy tales. And one day, we will live happily ever after with Him when Jesus comes again and receives His children to Himself.
We’re waiting for You, Lord, to come
And take us home to be with You;
Your promise to return for us
Gives hope because we know it’s true. —Sper
We have reason for optimism if we’re looking for Christ’s return.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Taking Possession of Our Own Soul
By your patience possess your souls —Luke 21:19
When a person is born again, there is a period of time when he does not have the same vitality in his thinking or reasoning that he previously had. We must learn to express this new life within us, which comes by forming the mind of Christ (see Philippians 2:5). Luke 21:19 means that we take possession of our souls through patience. But many of us prefer to stay at the entrance to the Christian life, instead of going on to create and build our soul in accordance with the new life God has placed within us. We fail because we are ignorant of the way God has made us, and we blame things on the devil that are actually the result of our own undisciplined natures. Just think what we could be when we are awakened to the truth!
There are certain things in life that we need not pray about— moods, for instance. We will never get rid of moodiness by praying, but we will by kicking it out of our lives. Moods nearly always are rooted in some physical circumstance, not in our true inner self. It is a continual struggle not to listen to the moods which arise as a result of our physical condition, but we must never submit to them for a second. We have to pick ourselves up by the back of the neck and shake ourselves; then we will find that we can do what we believed we were unable to do. The problem that most of us are cursed with is simply that we won’t. The Christian life is one of spiritual courage and determination lived out in our flesh.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Problem with Bible Clubs - #7137
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
A Bible is pretty versatile. I mean, it can be a file. Did you ever notice how much people stick in their Bible? I look at mine sometimes, and I find a number of things in there I don't want to lose. Unfortunately it does hurt the binding a little bit. Sometimes the Bible can be a record book. You see these Bibles where people put important dates, their family tree, weddings, deaths, and the autographs of people whose ministry they want to remember.
A Bible can be an antique. You can go into an antique store and drop quite a few bucks getting one of those old Bibles. And a Bible is a great gift. I've gotten several as a gift. A Bible can be your identification. I used to carry mine to school. My kids carried theirs to school; it sort of identifies you as a follower of Christ. At some times in my life the Bible's been a textbook. Oh yeah, there are a lot of ways you can use your Bible. There's one I hope you never use.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Problem with Bible Clubs."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Timothy 4:2. "Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction." This is a call, I think, to Bible balance. First of all, Paul is saying, "Use God's Word to help people know what's right; that's correct. To warn them about what they're doing wrong; that's rebuke. And to encourage them in what they're doing right. Use this book boldly to change people's lives. That's certainly part of it.
Here's the other part: Do it gently, do it patiently, do it carefully. Don't use the Bible as a club! You can use it for a lot of things, but not as a club to win an argument, or beat a person down, or shame them, or corner them. I know it's good to have some Bible clubs where kids meet to study the Bible around the school. I did that in high school. But don't use the Bible as a club. Too many people use the words of the Bible but lose the spirit of the Bible while they're doing it.
Ephesians 4:15 is the perfect balance, "Speaking the truth in love." The problem is often that the truth bearers leave out the love, and the lovers leave out the truth. It's important to be sure that you measure everything you believe and behave by God's Word. There is no room for, "Well, in my opinion..." Or, "I don't feel like it..." Or, "It doesn't seem right to me." "I just read this great Christian book and it says..." No, show me what the Bible says. God has spoken - final word.
It's important to remind each other of what the Bible says about how we're living. But it's important to be gentle, non-condemning and patient like God has been with you. We want to make sure that when we're communicating the truth, we're also communicating, "I care about you. That's why I'm doing this. That's why I'm giving you what the Bible says, to correct, or rebuke or encourage. I want God's best in your life. You're made for more. You're better than this." Not, "I'm sitting in judgment, and here are my verses."
Hebrews 4:12 says, "The Bible penetrates between soul and spirit." It's a sword that does that; it judges. We don't judge, but God's Word judges. So let God's Word do the judging. Share it and then let it do its penetrating work.
Use God's Word to love people with the truth. Don't use it as a club.
Monday, May 19, 2014
Job 30, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Who Did the Work?
Humility is such an elusive virtue. Once you think you have it, you don't, or you wouldn't think you did. You've heard the story of the boy who received the "Most Humble Badge" and had it taken away because he wore it?
God hates arrogance-because we haven't done anything to be arrogant about. Can you imagine a scalpel growing smug after a successful heart transplant? Of course not. It's only a tool, it gets no credit for the accomplishment.
The message of the 23rd Psalm is that we have nothing to be proud about either. We have rest, salvation, blessings,, and a home in heaven-and we did nothing to earn any of it! Who did? Who did the work? The Psalmist says the Lord, our Shepherd, leads His sheep-not for our names' sake but-for His name's sake!
This is all done for God's glory!
From Traveling Light
Job 30
“But now they mock me,
men younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
to put with my sheep dogs.
2 Of what use was the strength of their hands to me,
since their vigor had gone from them?
3 Haggard from want and hunger,
they roamed[a] the parched land
in desolate wastelands at night.
4 In the brush they gathered salt herbs,
and their food[b] was the root of the broom bush.
5 They were banished from human society,
shouted at as if they were thieves.
6 They were forced to live in the dry stream beds,
among the rocks and in holes in the ground.
7 They brayed among the bushes
and huddled in the undergrowth.
8 A base and nameless brood,
they were driven out of the land.
9 “And now those young men mock me in song;
I have become a byword among them.
10 They detest me and keep their distance;
they do not hesitate to spit in my face.
11 Now that God has unstrung my bow and afflicted me,
they throw off restraint in my presence.
12 On my right the tribe[c] attacks;
they lay snares for my feet,
they build their siege ramps against me.
13 They break up my road;
they succeed in destroying me.
‘No one can help him,’ they say.
14 They advance as through a gaping breach;
amid the ruins they come rolling in.
15 Terrors overwhelm me;
my dignity is driven away as by the wind,
my safety vanishes like a cloud.
16 “And now my life ebbs away;
days of suffering grip me.
17 Night pierces my bones;
my gnawing pains never rest.
18 In his great power God becomes like clothing to me[d];
he binds me like the neck of my garment.
19 He throws me into the mud,
and I am reduced to dust and ashes.
20 “I cry out to you, God, but you do not answer;
I stand up, but you merely look at me.
21 You turn on me ruthlessly;
with the might of your hand you attack me.
22 You snatch me up and drive me before the wind;
you toss me about in the storm.
23 I know you will bring me down to death,
to the place appointed for all the living.
24 “Surely no one lays a hand on a broken man
when he cries for help in his distress.
25 Have I not wept for those in trouble?
Has not my soul grieved for the poor?
26 Yet when I hoped for good, evil came;
when I looked for light, then came darkness.
27 The churning inside me never stops;
days of suffering confront me.
28 I go about blackened, but not by the sun;
I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.
29 I have become a brother of jackals,
a companion of owls.
30 My skin grows black and peels;
my body burns with fever.
31 My lyre is tuned to mourning,
and my pipe to the sound of wailing.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Mark 5:21-34
Jesus Raises a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman
When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. 22 Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. 23 He pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” 24 So Jesus went with him.
A large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
30 At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
31 “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”
32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
Insight
Jairus, as a “[ruler] of the synagogue” (Mark 5:22), was a lay leader responsible for organizing and supervising the affairs of the local synagogue. This included the conduct and teaching of the worship services.
Interruptions
By Poh Fang Chia
The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations. —Psalm 33:11
My sister and I were looking forward to our holiday in Taiwan. We had purchased our plane tickets and booked our hotel rooms. But 2 weeks before the trip, my sister learned she had to stay at home in Singapore to handle an emergency. We were disappointed that our plans were interrupted.
Jesus’ disciples were accompanying Him on an urgent mission when their trip was interrupted (Mark 5:21-42). The daughter of Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, was dying. Time was of the essence, and Jesus was on His way to their home. Then, suddenly, Jesus stopped and said, “Who touched My clothes?” (v.30).
The disciples seemed irritated by this and said, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” (v.31). But Jesus saw it as an opportunity to minister to a suffering woman. Her illness had made her ceremonially unclean and unable to participate in community life for 12 years! (see Lev. 15:25-27).
While Jesus was talking to this woman, Jairus’ daughter died. It was too late—or so it seemed. But the delay allowed Jairus to experience an even deeper knowledge of Jesus and His power—even power over death!
Sometimes our disappointment can be God’s appointment.
Disappointment—His appointment
No good thing will He withhold;
From denials oft we gather
Treasures of His love untold. —Young
Look for God’s purpose in your next interruption.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, May 19, 2014
Out of the Wreck I Rise
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? —Romans 8:35
God does not keep His child immune from trouble; He promises, “I will be with him in trouble . . .” (Psalm 91:15). It doesn’t matter how real or intense the adversities may be; nothing can ever separate him from his relationship to God. “In all these things we are more than conquerors . . .” (Romans 8:37). Paul was not referring here to imaginary things, but to things that are dangerously real. And he said we are “super-victors” in the midst of them, not because of our own ingenuity, nor because of our courage, but because none of them affects our essential relationship with God in Jesus Christ. I feel sorry for the Christian who doesn’t have something in the circumstances of his life that he wishes were not there.
“Shall tribulation . . . ?” Tribulation is never a grand, highly welcomed event; but whatever it may be— whether exhausting, irritating, or simply causing some weakness— it is not able to “separate us from the love of Christ.” Never allow tribulations or the “cares of this world” to separate you from remembering that God loves you (Matthew 13:22).
“Shall . . . distress . . . ?” Can God’s love continue to hold fast, even when everyone and everything around us seems to be saying that His love is a lie, and that there is no such thing as justice?
“Shall . . . famine . . . ?” Can we not only believe in the love of God but also be “more than conquerors,” even while we are being starved?
Either Jesus Christ is a deceiver, having deceived even Paul, or else some extraordinary thing happens to someone who holds on to the love of God when the odds are totally against him. Logic is silenced in the face of each of these things which come against him. Only one thing can account for it— the love of God in Christ Jesus. “Out of the wreck I rise” every time.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Intimidated Into Silence - #6876
I think I attended what they would have called a racially-troubled elementary school when I was in kindergarten and first grade. The only thing is the kids didn't know it; somebody forgot to tell us it was racially troubled. It was a changing neighborhood and I guess the adults were real tense about what was going on between the black and white kids. We just didn't know there was any difference between us.
I was out on the playground one day and we were playing dive bomber. It was winter and we all had hats and coats on. The idea was you're supposed to come in with your arm real low and knock off the other guy's hat. Well, in the process, I connected with the head of one of the black kids in our class. I'm a klutz; I missed. Up comes this big, sixth grade patrol boy on a power trip. We called them patrol boys, crossing guards, whatever...they looked huge to a little first grader. This patrol boy said, "Did you try to knock his hat off?" I said, "Yeah, I was just trying to knock his hat off!" I was so confused I just didn't know what to answer him.
He said, "Wait a minute! Did you say you were trying to knock his head off!?" Oh that isn't what I said. I said I was trying to knock his hat off. Did you know I was so intimidated by that crazy patrol boy I couldn't tell him what really happened. Then he said, "Then I'm taking you to the principal's office." That did it! You can't imagine how big that sixth grader looked to me, and then he's got the power of the principal behind him. I had something important to say, but he seemed just too big to say it to.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Intimidated Into Silence."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Proverbs 29:25. It says, "The fear of man will prove to be a snare. But whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe." I have a friend who has a very powerful, wealthy father who has shown a lot of Christian leaders generosity over the years. And, therefore, he's been approached by many of those people for contributions. They've spent hours on end developing his friendship. His re-born daughter said something that really made me sad. She said, "Ron, as far as I know, not one of them has ever shared the Gospel with my Dad." Oh, they went to him for financial support for the Lord's work, and I can understand they probably didn't want to offend him, but because this man is rich and powerful, people won't tell him about Jesus.
Is that what Proverbs is saying, "The fear of man trips you up," "It's a trap," "It's a snare." Let's bring it down to where we live. There's probably someone in your world who's powerful, maybe a supervisor, a strong relative, maybe someone whose favor you need for some reason. Have you ever tried to tell that person about Jesus or have you been intimidated into silence? No one should miss a chance at heaven because they're in a powerful position and they scare people away. I mean, I'm a child of the King of the universe. I don't need to fear or be intimidated by anyone. I know who I am. I'll be that forever; no one can take that away from me. That's my identity that you can't take.
Why don't you begin to pray that the Lord will help you see that intimidating person through God's eyes? What does God see? He sees someone lost, and lonely, hurting, a sinner needing the cross. Then pray for a natural opportunity - an easy way to get into a conversation. Our three-open prayer, "Lord, open a door. Lord, open their heart. Lord, open my mouth." Pray for the courage to take that opportunity. Pray for an approach that can begin with their need.
I once looked at a powerful patrol boy, and I had nothing to say to him. And I should have said something to him; I had something important to say. It looks dumb to me today. Now, today someone looks almost too big to you to tell the most important news of all. Don't look back one day and say, "Why didn't I tell them?" Because when it comes to the message of salvation, silence is not golden, it's fatal.
Humility is such an elusive virtue. Once you think you have it, you don't, or you wouldn't think you did. You've heard the story of the boy who received the "Most Humble Badge" and had it taken away because he wore it?
God hates arrogance-because we haven't done anything to be arrogant about. Can you imagine a scalpel growing smug after a successful heart transplant? Of course not. It's only a tool, it gets no credit for the accomplishment.
The message of the 23rd Psalm is that we have nothing to be proud about either. We have rest, salvation, blessings,, and a home in heaven-and we did nothing to earn any of it! Who did? Who did the work? The Psalmist says the Lord, our Shepherd, leads His sheep-not for our names' sake but-for His name's sake!
This is all done for God's glory!
From Traveling Light
Job 30
“But now they mock me,
men younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
to put with my sheep dogs.
2 Of what use was the strength of their hands to me,
since their vigor had gone from them?
3 Haggard from want and hunger,
they roamed[a] the parched land
in desolate wastelands at night.
4 In the brush they gathered salt herbs,
and their food[b] was the root of the broom bush.
5 They were banished from human society,
shouted at as if they were thieves.
6 They were forced to live in the dry stream beds,
among the rocks and in holes in the ground.
7 They brayed among the bushes
and huddled in the undergrowth.
8 A base and nameless brood,
they were driven out of the land.
9 “And now those young men mock me in song;
I have become a byword among them.
10 They detest me and keep their distance;
they do not hesitate to spit in my face.
11 Now that God has unstrung my bow and afflicted me,
they throw off restraint in my presence.
12 On my right the tribe[c] attacks;
they lay snares for my feet,
they build their siege ramps against me.
13 They break up my road;
they succeed in destroying me.
‘No one can help him,’ they say.
14 They advance as through a gaping breach;
amid the ruins they come rolling in.
15 Terrors overwhelm me;
my dignity is driven away as by the wind,
my safety vanishes like a cloud.
16 “And now my life ebbs away;
days of suffering grip me.
17 Night pierces my bones;
my gnawing pains never rest.
18 In his great power God becomes like clothing to me[d];
he binds me like the neck of my garment.
19 He throws me into the mud,
and I am reduced to dust and ashes.
20 “I cry out to you, God, but you do not answer;
I stand up, but you merely look at me.
21 You turn on me ruthlessly;
with the might of your hand you attack me.
22 You snatch me up and drive me before the wind;
you toss me about in the storm.
23 I know you will bring me down to death,
to the place appointed for all the living.
24 “Surely no one lays a hand on a broken man
when he cries for help in his distress.
25 Have I not wept for those in trouble?
Has not my soul grieved for the poor?
26 Yet when I hoped for good, evil came;
when I looked for light, then came darkness.
27 The churning inside me never stops;
days of suffering confront me.
28 I go about blackened, but not by the sun;
I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.
29 I have become a brother of jackals,
a companion of owls.
30 My skin grows black and peels;
my body burns with fever.
31 My lyre is tuned to mourning,
and my pipe to the sound of wailing.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Mark 5:21-34
Jesus Raises a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman
When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. 22 Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. 23 He pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” 24 So Jesus went with him.
A large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
30 At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
31 “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”
32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
Insight
Jairus, as a “[ruler] of the synagogue” (Mark 5:22), was a lay leader responsible for organizing and supervising the affairs of the local synagogue. This included the conduct and teaching of the worship services.
Interruptions
By Poh Fang Chia
The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations. —Psalm 33:11
My sister and I were looking forward to our holiday in Taiwan. We had purchased our plane tickets and booked our hotel rooms. But 2 weeks before the trip, my sister learned she had to stay at home in Singapore to handle an emergency. We were disappointed that our plans were interrupted.
Jesus’ disciples were accompanying Him on an urgent mission when their trip was interrupted (Mark 5:21-42). The daughter of Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, was dying. Time was of the essence, and Jesus was on His way to their home. Then, suddenly, Jesus stopped and said, “Who touched My clothes?” (v.30).
The disciples seemed irritated by this and said, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” (v.31). But Jesus saw it as an opportunity to minister to a suffering woman. Her illness had made her ceremonially unclean and unable to participate in community life for 12 years! (see Lev. 15:25-27).
While Jesus was talking to this woman, Jairus’ daughter died. It was too late—or so it seemed. But the delay allowed Jairus to experience an even deeper knowledge of Jesus and His power—even power over death!
Sometimes our disappointment can be God’s appointment.
Disappointment—His appointment
No good thing will He withhold;
From denials oft we gather
Treasures of His love untold. —Young
Look for God’s purpose in your next interruption.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, May 19, 2014
Out of the Wreck I Rise
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? —Romans 8:35
God does not keep His child immune from trouble; He promises, “I will be with him in trouble . . .” (Psalm 91:15). It doesn’t matter how real or intense the adversities may be; nothing can ever separate him from his relationship to God. “In all these things we are more than conquerors . . .” (Romans 8:37). Paul was not referring here to imaginary things, but to things that are dangerously real. And he said we are “super-victors” in the midst of them, not because of our own ingenuity, nor because of our courage, but because none of them affects our essential relationship with God in Jesus Christ. I feel sorry for the Christian who doesn’t have something in the circumstances of his life that he wishes were not there.
“Shall tribulation . . . ?” Tribulation is never a grand, highly welcomed event; but whatever it may be— whether exhausting, irritating, or simply causing some weakness— it is not able to “separate us from the love of Christ.” Never allow tribulations or the “cares of this world” to separate you from remembering that God loves you (Matthew 13:22).
“Shall . . . distress . . . ?” Can God’s love continue to hold fast, even when everyone and everything around us seems to be saying that His love is a lie, and that there is no such thing as justice?
“Shall . . . famine . . . ?” Can we not only believe in the love of God but also be “more than conquerors,” even while we are being starved?
Either Jesus Christ is a deceiver, having deceived even Paul, or else some extraordinary thing happens to someone who holds on to the love of God when the odds are totally against him. Logic is silenced in the face of each of these things which come against him. Only one thing can account for it— the love of God in Christ Jesus. “Out of the wreck I rise” every time.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Intimidated Into Silence - #6876
I think I attended what they would have called a racially-troubled elementary school when I was in kindergarten and first grade. The only thing is the kids didn't know it; somebody forgot to tell us it was racially troubled. It was a changing neighborhood and I guess the adults were real tense about what was going on between the black and white kids. We just didn't know there was any difference between us.
I was out on the playground one day and we were playing dive bomber. It was winter and we all had hats and coats on. The idea was you're supposed to come in with your arm real low and knock off the other guy's hat. Well, in the process, I connected with the head of one of the black kids in our class. I'm a klutz; I missed. Up comes this big, sixth grade patrol boy on a power trip. We called them patrol boys, crossing guards, whatever...they looked huge to a little first grader. This patrol boy said, "Did you try to knock his hat off?" I said, "Yeah, I was just trying to knock his hat off!" I was so confused I just didn't know what to answer him.
He said, "Wait a minute! Did you say you were trying to knock his head off!?" Oh that isn't what I said. I said I was trying to knock his hat off. Did you know I was so intimidated by that crazy patrol boy I couldn't tell him what really happened. Then he said, "Then I'm taking you to the principal's office." That did it! You can't imagine how big that sixth grader looked to me, and then he's got the power of the principal behind him. I had something important to say, but he seemed just too big to say it to.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Intimidated Into Silence."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Proverbs 29:25. It says, "The fear of man will prove to be a snare. But whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe." I have a friend who has a very powerful, wealthy father who has shown a lot of Christian leaders generosity over the years. And, therefore, he's been approached by many of those people for contributions. They've spent hours on end developing his friendship. His re-born daughter said something that really made me sad. She said, "Ron, as far as I know, not one of them has ever shared the Gospel with my Dad." Oh, they went to him for financial support for the Lord's work, and I can understand they probably didn't want to offend him, but because this man is rich and powerful, people won't tell him about Jesus.
Is that what Proverbs is saying, "The fear of man trips you up," "It's a trap," "It's a snare." Let's bring it down to where we live. There's probably someone in your world who's powerful, maybe a supervisor, a strong relative, maybe someone whose favor you need for some reason. Have you ever tried to tell that person about Jesus or have you been intimidated into silence? No one should miss a chance at heaven because they're in a powerful position and they scare people away. I mean, I'm a child of the King of the universe. I don't need to fear or be intimidated by anyone. I know who I am. I'll be that forever; no one can take that away from me. That's my identity that you can't take.
Why don't you begin to pray that the Lord will help you see that intimidating person through God's eyes? What does God see? He sees someone lost, and lonely, hurting, a sinner needing the cross. Then pray for a natural opportunity - an easy way to get into a conversation. Our three-open prayer, "Lord, open a door. Lord, open their heart. Lord, open my mouth." Pray for the courage to take that opportunity. Pray for an approach that can begin with their need.
I once looked at a powerful patrol boy, and I had nothing to say to him. And I should have said something to him; I had something important to say. It looks dumb to me today. Now, today someone looks almost too big to you to tell the most important news of all. Don't look back one day and say, "Why didn't I tell them?" Because when it comes to the message of salvation, silence is not golden, it's fatal.
| A Word With You - Your Hindrances |
Monday, May 19, 2014Download MP3 (right click to save) When you work in a ministry as I do, you're spending priorities are usually more on people than on things. For example, we have never invested real heavily in office furniture. We've sort of waited for what the Lord supplied, and God has really met our needs. Now, sometimes that gives our office sort of an eclectic look; it's not one style, but it's nice-it's functional. I remember when I once received a new guest chair for my office. It was a nice, black leather swivel chair, and it was a busy chair; a lot of people in and out of there. And it was always so interesting to watch people get in and out of it; especially out. It was relatively easy to plop down into this chair, but there was something about the height and the angle that made it a struggle to get out. You know, life has a lot of positions like that, doesn't it? I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Easy to get In, Hard to Get Out." Our word for today from the Word of God is from the first Psalm. There's a lot of Psalms, but this is the first one, and we're only going to read the first verse. It says this: "Blessed is the man who does not walk in the council of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat (Or there's the chair.) ... in the seat of mockers." This verse is really about how easy it is to get into the wrong thing and how hard it is to get out of it. Sounds like a chair I once met. Notice the three postures here. First, you walk. It says, "In the middle of some wrong things." Now, you're just flirting with it; you're just "walking in the counsel of the wicked." You're exposed briefly to it. You're kind of listening to what they have to say. You plan to move on; you're walking, you're in motion. Not a serious issue; it's just a little glimpse – just walking. Then it talks about "standing in the way of sinners." Oh-Oh! Slow down now! I'm spending more time around the wrong thing; I'm soaking up more wrong input. My resistance is eroding. It's starting to look a little more interesting than I thought it would. And you notice where the person ends up who was just walking, and then standing? They're sitting in the seat of mockers. Sitting in the middle of sin? I never planned to do this. Suddenly I'm in it. You may very well be in that sinking process right now without even knowing it and God directed you here today to point it out. You're walking with sin. You're not doing it; you're just letting yourself get close; flirt with it a little bit, a small lie, a few immoral fantasies, a little compromise of your honesty and integrity. You're not doing anything, you're just fantasizing. A little cheating, some media input that glamorizes what God hates, some dark thoughts. Or maybe you've come to the point where you're standing in the middle of what God hates. It's getting harder not to do it isn't it? You're on your way to the slavery stage. See, sin seduces you slowly...not to make you happy, but to take you prisoner. Would you please run before you're all the way in? Don't get hooked. Are you flirting with what you should be fleeing from? The devil will do everything necessary to make it easy for you to walk into his trap: good looks, good feelings, green lights, great promises, and then you will hear that cell door slam shut and he will lock you in. Just ask anyone who sat in that chair in my office. The easiest time to get out is before you get in. |
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