Psalm 10, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: God's Protection

Can you look back over your life and see instances of God's protection? My junior year of college I was fascinated by a movement of Christians. Some of my friends decided to spend the summer at the movement's largest church and be discipled. When I tried to do the same every door closed. A second opportunity surfaced, which was spending the summer in Brazil. In this case every door swung open. Decades later I saw how God protected me. The movement became a dangerous and oppressive cult. The time in Brazil introduced me to grace-freeing and joyful.
And you? Did God keep you from a bad relationship? Or protect you from the wrong job? In 2 Thessalonians 3:3 Paul promises, "He will strengthen and protect you." And Psalm 91:11 reminds us, "He will command his angels to guard you." God protects you with a cloak of love!
From A Love Worth Giving

Psalm 10

Why, Lord, do you stand far off?
    Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak,
    who are caught in the schemes he devises.
3 He boasts about the cravings of his heart;
    he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.
4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek him;
    in all his thoughts there is no room for God.
5 His ways are always prosperous;
    your laws are rejected by[b] him;
    he sneers at all his enemies.
6 He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.”
    He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.”
7 His mouth is full of lies and threats;
    trouble and evil are under his tongue.
8 He lies in wait near the villages;
    from ambush he murders the innocent.
His eyes watch in secret for his victims;
9     like a lion in cover he lies in wait.
He lies in wait to catch the helpless;
    he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.
10 His victims are crushed, they collapse;
    they fall under his strength.
11 He says to himself, “God will never notice;
    he covers his face and never sees.”
12 Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God.
    Do not forget the helpless.
13 Why does the wicked man revile God?
    Why does he say to himself,
    “He won’t call me to account”?
14 But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted;
    you consider their grief and take it in hand.
The victims commit themselves to you;
    you are the helper of the fatherless.
15 Break the arm of the wicked man;
    call the evildoer to account for his wickedness
    that would not otherwise be found out.
16 The Lord is King for ever and ever;
    the nations will perish from his land.
17 You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted;
    you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,
18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed,
    so that mere earthly mortals
    will never again strike terror.
Footnotes:
Psalm 10:1 Psalms 9 and 10 may originally have been a single acrostic poem in which alternating lines began with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In the Septuagint they constitute one psalm.
Psalm 10:5 See Septuagint; Hebrew / they are haughty, and your laws are far from

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Read: Luke 2:21-35

Jesus Is Presented in the Temple

Eight days later, when the baby was circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel even before he was conceived.

22 Then it was time for their purification offering, as required by the law of Moses after the birth of a child; so his parents took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. 23 The law of the Lord says, “If a woman’s first child is a boy, he must be dedicated to the Lord.”[a] 24 So they offered the sacrifice required in the law of the Lord—“either a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”[b]

The Prophecy of Simeon
25 At that time there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon. He was righteous and devout and was eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him 26 and had revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 That day the Spirit led him to the Temple. So when Mary and Joseph came to present the baby Jesus to the Lord as the law required, 28 Simeon was there. He took the child in his arms and praised God, saying,

29 “Sovereign Lord, now let your servant die in peace,
    as you have promised.
30 I have seen your salvation,
31     which you have prepared for all people.
32 He is a light to reveal God to the nations,
    and he is the glory of your people Israel!”
33 Jesus’ parents were amazed at what was being said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them, and he said to Mary, the baby’s mother, “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, but he will be a joy to many others. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him. 35 As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your very soul.”

Footnotes:
2:23 Exod 13:2.
2:24 Lev 12:8.

INSIGHT:
In this passage the Jewishness of Jesus takes center stage. But the encounter with Simeon at the temple was marked by an announcement that would make circumcision, ritual cleansing, and animal sacrifices obsolete (Ex. 13:2, 12; Lev. 12:8). The Messiah has come (Luke 2:29–32).

The Forward Look
By David McCasland

Simeon . . . was righteous and devout . . . and the Holy Spirit was on him. Luke 2:25

When the great Dutch painter Rembrandt died unexpectedly at age 63, an unfinished painting was found on his easel. It focuses on Simeon’s emotion in holding the baby Jesus when He was brought to the temple in Jerusalem, 40 days after His birth. Yet the background and normal detail remain unfinished. Some art experts believe that Rembrandt knew the end of his life was near and—like Simeon—was ready to “be dismissed” (Luke 2:29).

Simeon’s Song of Praise

The Holy Spirit was upon Simeon (v. 25), so it was no coincidence that he was in the temple when Mary and Joseph presented their firstborn son to God. Simeon, who had been looking for the promised Messiah, took the baby in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel” (vv. 29-32).

We can look forward in life because we know that one day we will see the Lord.
Simeon was not longing for the glory days of Israel’s history, but was looking ahead for the promised Messiah, who would come to redeem all nations.

Like Simeon, we can have an expectant, forward look in life because we know that one day we will see the Lord.

Father, may we, like Simeon, be always looking ahead for the appearing of Jesus our Lord.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus! Revelation 22:2

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
The Delight of Sacrifice

I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls… —2 Corinthians 12:15

 
Once “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit,” we deliberately begin to identify ourselves with Jesus Christ’s interests and purposes in others’ lives (Romans 5:5). And Jesus has an interest in every individual person. We have no right in Christian service to be guided by our own interests and desires. In fact, this is one of the greatest tests of our relationship with Jesus Christ. The delight of sacrifice is that I lay down my life for my Friend, Jesus (see John 15:13). I don’t throw my life away, but I willingly and deliberately lay it down for Him and His interests in other people. And I do this for no cause or purpose of my own. Paul spent his life for only one purpose— that he might win people to Jesus Christ. Paul always attracted people to his Lord, but never to himself. He said, “I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22).

When someone thinks that to develop a holy life he must always be alone with God, he is no longer of any use to others. This is like putting himself on a pedestal and isolating himself from the rest of society. Paul was a holy person, but wherever he went Jesus Christ was always allowed to help Himself to his life. Many of us are interested only in our own goals, and Jesus cannot help Himself to our lives. But if we are totally surrendered to Him, we have no goals of our own to serve. Paul said that he knew how to be a “doormat” without resenting it, because the motivation of his life was devotion to Jesus. We tend to be devoted, not to Jesus Christ, but to the things which allow us more spiritual freedom than total surrender to Him would allow. Freedom was not Paul’s motive at all. In fact, he stated, “I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren…” (Romans 9:3). Had Paul lost his ability to reason? Not at all! For someone who is in love, this is not an overstatement. And Paul was in love with Jesus Christ.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Jesus Christ reveals, not an embarrassed God, not a confused God, not a God who stands apart from the problems, but One who stands in the thick of the whole thing with man.  Disciples Indeed, 388 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
No Rescue Without Risk - #7598

Jenny was a counselor with a student group we had taken to a youth organization conference at the New Jersey Shore. She was walking along the Boardwalk enjoying all the attractions, when suddenly she heard what she thought was a scream. It seemed to be coming from the ocean. But it was night and it was, of course, too dark to see out there. So Jenny ran down the steps, across the beach, and to the water's edge.

This time it was clear that the screams were coming from somewhere out there in the water. Jenny paused for a moment, because she said, "There are few things more frightening than going into the ocean in pitch darkness." That's true. But Jenny's hesitation was only for a moment. She forgot about her own safety, she threw off her shoes, and she plunged in to save what turned out to be a drowning girl. Moments later, others jumped in to help too. Later, Jenny said, "I had to do it. Someone was dying out there!"

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "No Rescue Without Risk."

A life was saved that night because of the courageous, selfless choice of a young woman who was in a position to make a difference; the position to make a difference. She was scared, she knew it was risky, but she was the one who was there. She was the one who could do something and she did. Someone's dying condition became more important to her than her own comfort and safety.

But that's how it always is when there's a rescue. A drowning person; a person trapped in a burning building or the unstable rubble of an earthquake. There's no such thing as rescuing someone while staying in your comfortable spot. There's no rescue without risk. This includes the most critical rescue of all: the rescue of someone who is dying spiritually because they do not know Jesus – the only One who can rescue a person from the death penalty of their sin.

Jesus knows there's no rescue without risk. Boy, does He know it! He said in Mark 10:45 that He came "to give His life as a ransom for many." Later He said to His followers, "As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you" (John 20:21). Jesus was sent to lay down His life so others could live. And now He's sending you and me, He said, on the same rescue mission He died for, to do whatever it takes to try and bring some people you know to heaven with you. Jesus left His comfortable spot, the most comfortable spot in the universe to rescue you and me. He's asking you now to leave your comfort zone to rescue someone you care about.

Your mission is graphically portrayed in our word for today from the Word of God in Proverbs 24:11, "Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter." Telling people about your Savior is life-or-death business! Like Jenny on the beach that dark and dangerous night, you won't take the risks unless you realize that if you don't do it, that person may very well die without hope.

God's Word says that the people you know are without Christ "will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord" (2 Thessalonians 1:9). Not because Jesus wants that. He died so they don't have to, but because they haven't reached for the rescuer; maybe because they don't know what He did for them. They need to hear about Him from you!

It's time for you to do what you need to do to build a relationship with that lost person you know. Spend some time with them. Write a letter about Jesus to them. Pray for some natural opportunities to share life's most important relationship. Win the right to be heard and take them to the cross where God loved them enough to pour out His love by dying for them.

Don't wait for a professional lifeguard to come along. Like that woman on the beach, you're the one that's in the position to be someone's rescuer. You're there! If you know it's life-or-death, and it is, you'll know what you have to do. You can't just stand on the beach and let them die.

Psalm 2, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: GOD’S AGAPE LOVE

Paul reminded the church at Corinth the kind of love Christ offers to us– Agape love that “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.” Don’t we need the same prescription today? Don’t groups still fight with each other? Don’t we flirt with those we shouldn’t? Aren’t we sometimes quiet when we should speak?

Someday there will be a community where everyone behaves and no one complains. But it won’t be this side of heaven. So till then we reason, we confront, and we teach. But most of all we love. Such love isn’t easy. Not even for Jesus. Listen to his frustration in Mark 9:19: “You people have no faith. How long must I stay with you? How long must I put up with you? How long? Until it kills me!  Jesus bore all things, believed all things, hoped all things, and endured all things! Even the cross.

From A Love Worth Giving

Psalm 2
Why do the nations conspire[a]
    and the peoples plot in vain?
2 The kings of the earth rise up
    and the rulers band together
    against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,
3 “Let us break their chains
    and throw off their shackles.”
4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
    the Lord scoffs at them.
5 He rebukes them in his anger
    and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
6 “I have installed my king
    on Zion, my holy mountain.”
7 I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:

He said to me, “You are my son;
    today I have become your father.
8 Ask me,
    and I will make the nations your inheritance,
    the ends of the earth your possession.
9 You will break them with a rod of iron[b];
    you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;
    be warned, you rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with fear
    and celebrate his rule with trembling.
12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry
    and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
Footnotes:
Psalm 2:1 Hebrew; Septuagint rage
Psalm 2:9 Or will rule them with an iron scepter (see Septuagint and Syriac)

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Read: Luke 19:1-10

Jesus and Zacchaeus

Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”

6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.

8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”

9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man[a] came to seek and save those who are lost.”

Footnotes:
19:10 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself.

INSIGHT:
Luke 19:1–3 tells us five things about a man named Zacchaeus. He lived in Jericho, he was a chief tax collector, he was wealthy, he was short, and he wanted to see Jesus. Most people know he was short, but that may be the least important fact of the five. Zacchaeus was likely the superintendent of customs for Jericho—an important and lucrative post. Jericho exported a great deal of balsam wood and was situated on a major trade route connecting Jerusalem to the East. Both of these facts—Zacchaeus’s residence in Jericho and his vocation—would account for his wealth. But ultimately wealth cannot provide the salvation and satisfaction that only Jesus can give.

A Better View
By Jennifer Benson Schuldt

Because he was short he could not see over the crowd. Luke 19:3

As a child, I loved to climb trees. The higher I climbed, the more I could see. Occasionally, in search of a better view, I might inch out along a branch until I felt it bend under my weight. Not surprisingly, my tree-climbing days are over. I suppose it isn’t very safe—or dignified.

Zacchaeus, a wealthy man, set aside his dignity (and perhaps ignored his safety) when he climbed a tree one day in Jericho. Jesus was traveling through the city, and Zacchaeus wanted to get a look at Him. However, “because he was short he could not see over the crowd” (Luke 19:3). Fortunately, those things did not stop him from seeing and even talking with Christ. Zacchaeus’s plan worked! And when he met Jesus, his life was changed forever. “Salvation has come to this house,” Jesus said (v. 9).

God rewards people who earnestly seek him (Heb. 11:6).
We too can be prevented from seeing Jesus. Pride can blind us from seeing Him as the Wonderful Counselor. Anxiety keeps us from knowing Him as the Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:6). Hunger for status and stuff can prevent us from seeing Him as the true source of satisfaction—the Bread of Life (John 6:48).

What are you willing to do to get a better view of Jesus? Any sincere effort to get closer to Him will have a good result. God rewards people who earnestly seek Him (Heb. 11:6).

Thank You Jesus for all that You are. Show me more of Yourself as I read the Bible and pray. Help me to pursue You with all of my heart and mind.

To strengthen your faith in God, seek the face of God.
 

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve… —Matthew 20:28

Jesus also said, “Yet I am among you as the One who serves” (Luke 22:27). Paul’s idea of service was the same as our Lord’s— “…ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Corinthians 4:5). We somehow have the idea that a person called to the ministry is called to be different and above other people. But according to Jesus Christ, he is called to be a “doormat” for others— called to be their spiritual leader, but never their superior. Paul said, “I know how to be abased…” (Philippians 4:12). Paul’s idea of service was to pour his life out to the last drop for others. And whether he received praise or blame made no difference. As long as there was one human being who did not know Jesus, Paul felt a debt of service to that person until he did come to know Him. But the chief motivation behind Paul’s service was not love for others but love for his Lord. If our devotion is to the cause of humanity, we will be quickly defeated and broken-hearted, since we will often be confronted with a great deal of ingratitude from other people. But if we are motivated by our love for God, no amount of ingratitude will be able to hinder us from serving one another.

Paul’s understanding of how Christ had dealt with him is the secret behind his determination to serve others. “I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man…” (1 Timothy 1:13). In other words, no matter how badly others may have treated Paul, they could never have treated him with the same degree of spite and hatred with which he had treated Jesus Christ. Once we realize that Jesus has served us even to the depths of our meagerness, our selfishness, and our sin, nothing we encounter from others will be able to exhaust our determination to serve others for His sake.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Both nations and individuals have tried Christianity and abandoned it, because it has been found too difficult; but no man has ever gone through the crisis of deliberately making Jesus Lord and found Him to be a failure. The Love of God—The Making of a Christian, 680 R


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
A Single Break - A Lot of Ripples - #7597

Here's what my airline ticket said: Friday afternoon Ron will fly from Newark to Houston. An hour later, he will take a connecting flight from Houston to Guadalajara, Mexico. So much for what the ticket said. I was on my way to be with the Director of our radio outreach to Latin American young people. But little did I know that my flight would be delayed for a last-minute repair. Many passengers were concerned because they, too, had connecting flights in Houston and then on to various destinations in Mexico.

The good news is that they finished the repair in enough time for most of us to still have a shot at making our connections. That was the good news. Then the pilot said, "But we do have another problem. The copilot's seat just broke." Right! Now listen, I have flown a lot, but I have never heard of a seat breaking in the cockpit. Apparently they don't have a spare copilot's seat at the gate, just in case. It took quite a while to get another one. I got off to make a phone call and, sure enough, there was a dead seat lying face down in the jet way.

By the time we finally took off, those of us with connecting flights were doomed and we knew we were doomed! When we finally arrived in Houston, we were greeted with a piece of paper that told us where we would be spending the night. On the other side of the paper was a list of all the new flights for those who had missed their connection. Twenty-eight flights had been affected by that one broken seat, and who knows how many people!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Single Break - A Lot of Ripples."

It's amazing how one broken thing can produce so many ripples isn't it! Especially when what's broken is a relationship. If we could see the list of people who are affected when one relationship is breaking or broken, we would be stunned at the extent of the damage.

A struggling couple who is thinking about divorce is probably not beginning to estimate the collateral damage from that choice. Children, friends, fellow believers, others with marital struggles, even future generations will feel the effects of one canceled marriage. Or church members, allowing issues that seem so important to divide them. They have no idea of what they're doing to children who are watching, young people who are watching, relatives, leaders. If they could see a list of the people who are being scarred and confused and spiritually disillusioned, I wonder if winning that issue would seem worth all that damage.

That long night I spent trying to get to Houston, I knew I was being affected by one thing broken. And the people who were to meet me on the other end were affected, too. But I could never have dreamed how many passengers and loved ones and meetings and commitments would be affected until I saw that list of disruptions.

It's because relationships are so fragile, because they do so much damage when they're broken, that God gives us this relationship insurance in our word for today from the Word of God, Ephesians 4:26-27, "In your anger, do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry. And do not give the devil a foothold."

God says, "If there's a problem between you, fix it fast. When you don't, you've just given the devil a place to get in." See, relationships don't have to become broken if we will just get to that person quickly and do whatever it takes to deal with the problem. Today it's small. By tomorrow, the break will be bigger and the feelings will be harder.

So whether it's a relationship in your family, or your church, or in a romance, maybe between friends, or at work; wherever there's a break, don't let it go any longer, don't let it grow any bigger. You're only giving Satan himself a weapon with which to wound you and more people than you could ever imagine.

That night at the airport I saw the long list of what got messed up because of one broken thing. Please don't let a list like that start to grow because you didn't sacrifice a little to fix one broken relationship. You can't see it from where you're sitting right now, but the damage from that break could reach so far and it could hurt so many.

Psalm 1, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Love Bears All Things

Wouldn't it be great if love were like a cafeteria line? It would be easier. It would be neater. It would be painless and peaceful. But you know what? It wouldn't be love. Love doesn't accept just a few things. Love is willing to accept all things!
In 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Paul says, "Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." I envision the leathery-faced saint pausing in his dictation. Checking off his fingers, he reviews his list. Let's see…patience, kindness, envy, arrogance. We've mentioned rudeness, selfishness, and anger; forgiveness, evil, and truth. Have I covered all things? Ah, that's it-all things! Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Every single one!
From A Love Worth Giving

Psalm 1

Blessed is the one
    who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
    or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
    whatever they do prospers.
4 Not so the wicked!
    They are like chaff
    that the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
    nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
    but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.


Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, February 22, 2016

Read: Psalm 46

For the choir director: A song of the descendants of Korah, to be sung by soprano voices.[a]

1 God is our refuge and strength,
    always ready to help in times of trouble.
2 So we will not fear when earthquakes come
    and the mountains crumble into the sea.
3 Let the oceans roar and foam.
    Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge! Interlude
4 A river brings joy to the city of our God,
    the sacred home of the Most High.
5 God dwells in that city; it cannot be destroyed.
    From the very break of day, God will protect it.
6 The nations are in chaos,
    and their kingdoms crumble!
God’s voice thunders,
    and the earth melts!
7 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is here among us;
    the God of Israel[b] is our fortress. Interlude
8 Come, see the glorious works of the Lord:
    See how he brings destruction upon the world.
9 He causes wars to end throughout the earth.
    He breaks the bow and snaps the spear;
    he burns the shields with fire.
10 “Be still, and know that I am God!
    I will be honored by every nation.
    I will be honored throughout the world.”
11 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is here among us;
    the God of Israel is our fortress. Interlude
Footnotes:
46:Title Hebrew according to alamoth.
46:7 Hebrew of Jacob; also in 46:11. See note on 44:4.

INSIGHT:
Today’s Scripture passage ends with one of the most well-known and beloved phrases in the Bible: “Be still, and know that I am God” (v. 10). The Hebrew word translated “be still” can also be translated “become helpless,” “collapse,” “cease,” “fall limp,” and “relax.” The sense is to stop striving. So Psalm 46 could be translated, “Relax, and know that I am God.” Transformation, deliverance, and resurrection are all works of God; we just need to relax and acknowledge who He is.

Be Still
By Philip Yancey

Be still, and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10

Years ago I responded to letters within a couple of weeks and kept my correspondents happy. Then came the fax machine, and they seemed content with receiving a response within a couple of days. Today, with email, instant messaging, and mobile phones, a response is expected the same day!

“Be still, and know that I am God.” In this familiar verse from Psalm 46 I read two commands of equal importance. First, we must be still, something that modern life conspires against. In this hectic, buzzing world, even a few moments of quiet do not come naturally to us. And stillness prepares us for the second command: “Know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” In the midst of a world that colludes to suppress, not exalt, God, how do I carve out time and allow Him to nourish my inner life?

In prayer, God can quiet our minds.
“Prayer,” writes Patricia Hampl, “is a habit of attention brought to bear on all that is.” Ah, prayer . . . a habit of attention. Be still and know. The first step in prayer is to acknowledge or to “know” that God is God. And in that attention, that focus, all else comes into focus. Prayer allows us to admit our failures, weaknesses, and limitations to the One who responds to human vulnerability with infinite mercy.

Dear Lord, help me to be still. Nourish my soul as I spend time with You in prayer.

In prayer, God can quiet our minds.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, February 22, 2016

The Discipline of Spiritual Perseverance

Be still, and know that I am God… —Psalm 46:10

 
Perseverance is more than endurance. It is endurance combined with absolute assurance and certainty that what we are looking for is going to happen. Perseverance means more than just hanging on, which may be only exposing our fear of letting go and falling. Perseverance is our supreme effort of refusing to believe that our hero is going to be conquered. Our greatest fear is not that we will be damned, but that somehow Jesus Christ will be defeated. Also, our fear is that the very things our Lord stood for— love, justice, forgiveness, and kindness among men— will not win out in the end and will represent an unattainable goal for us. Then there is the call to spiritual perseverance. A call not to hang on and do nothing, but to work deliberately, knowing with certainty that God will never be defeated.

If our hopes seem to be experiencing disappointment right now, it simply means that they are being purified. Every hope or dream of the human mind will be fulfilled if it is noble and of God. But one of the greatest stresses in life is the stress of waiting for God. He brings fulfillment, “because you have kept My command to persevere…” (Revelation 3:10).

Continue to persevere spiritually.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

For the past three hundred years men have been pointing out how similar Jesus Christ’s teachings are to other good teachings. We have to remember that Christianity, if it is not a supernatural miracle, is a sham.  The Highest Good, 548 L


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, February 22, 2016
Three Questions to Ask When the News is Ugly - #7596

I can't let my grandchildren watch the news. It's too gruesome: another brutal execution, the slaughter of captured soldiers, an act of terrorism, more bloody battles in more places than the news can possibly cover. It used to be that there were intelligence reports of an increased terror chatter, for example, when any major holiday or when the September 11th anniversary approaches. Now we get those reports it seems like every day. Some months ago, the Secretary of Defense said, "The world is exploding all over."

I guess we could run around like Chicken Little, clucking that "the sky is falling". Or we can play the proverbial ostrich with our head in the sand. I don't think either one of those is a good idea. Yes, I do need to know that the world is getting more dangerous and the future less secure. No, I don't need to live in fear. When I see ominous clouds in the sky, I know I can't stop the storm, but I can get ready in case it turns nasty.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Three Questions to Ask When the News is Ugly."

There are three questions about the world that I have some control over; my personal world. Number one, does my family feel safe in my love? Years ago, I realized that I needed to give each member of my family all of me at least once a day. We're talking focused love here. Sometimes it just takes two minutes of laser focus attention. Other times it takes two hours. But knowing I'm the family thermostat, I know they need daily evidence that they are secure in my love.

And these days we live in are a great time to do whatever it takes to make each one feel safe and valued, heard, and understood. So everybody knows that once they come in this house, they are safe; this is not another battlefield.

Number two, am I living to make a difference? I saw it a lot after the wake-up call of 9/11. And again in '08 when the economy collapsed, seemingly overnight. Suddenly, lots of folks were asking questions they didn't usually ask about what really matters and what really doesn't.

Many concluded that it's not making money or making a nest or making an impression that matters – it's making a difference. Investing in what will last, like people. Finding a need we can do something about and doing it, from the homeless to the hungry, to that hurting person at work or school, children without dads, wounded warriors, lonely seniors, exploited women, kids in need of mentors. I can't change the world. But I might be able to change a life.

Number three, am I safe, no matter what happens? See, we live with regular reminders of how quickly things can change, how suddenly it can all be gone. But it's not a time for fear or anxiety. It's time for hope. Time to be sure I'm anchored to a hope that is disaster-proof, terror-proof, tragedy-proof, and death-proof.

Three days after the 9/11 attacks shook us all, the President of the United States spoke at a national prayer service, and he concluded by quoting a statement from the Bible. It's our word for today from the Word of God in Romans 8:38-39, "Neither death nor life...neither anything in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Listen, that's my anchor. That's my unloseable; a love that would not turn His back on me even when He was dying on a cross to pay for all the garbage of my life, of my sin. I found what for me is the one safe place in a world that is "falling apart." It's Jesus. The only One who ever walked out of His grave under His own power. I've found Him to be what the Bible says He will be – "an anchor for the soul, firm and secure" (Hebrews 6:19).

Don't you need that anchor? In a world of so much uncertainty, this is your day to grab His outstretched hand with nail prints in them because He died for you and say, "Jesus, I'm yours." Go to our website and be sure that you belong to Him by the information you'll find there. It's ANewStory.com.

Belonging to Him; that's my safe harbor, whatever the storm.

2 Kings 25 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Made Right with God

How would you fill in this blank? A person is made right with God through_____.  Don't let its brevity fool you. How you complete it is critical; it reflects the nature of your faith.
One might say a person is made right with God through. . . being good.  Giving sandwiches to the poor. Some say Christian conduct is the secret.  Perhaps suffering is the answer.  Sleep on dirt floors. Malaria. Poverty. Bare feet. The greater the pain, the greater the saint. No, no, no, another contends.  The way to be made right with God?  It's doctrine. Air-tight theology which explains every mystery. Inspiration clarified.
Yet, how are we truly made right with God?  All the above are tried. All are demonstrated. But none are from God. Romans 3:28 says, "A person is made right with God through faith." Through faith in God's sacrifice on the cross.
It's not what you do, it's what He did.
From And the Angels Were Silent

2 Kings 25

The Fall of Jerusalem

Now Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

So in the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army. He encamped outside the city and built siege works all around it. 2 The city was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.

3 By the ninth day of the fourth[b] month the famine in the city had become so severe that there was no food for the people to eat. 4 Then the city wall was broken through, and the whole army fled at night through the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, though the Babylonians[c] were surrounding the city. They fled toward the Arabah,[d] 5 but the Babylonian[e] army pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his soldiers were separated from him and scattered, 6 and he was captured.

He was taken to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where sentence was pronounced on him. 7 They killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. Then they put out his eyes, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon.

8 On the seventh day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard, an official of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 9 He set fire to the temple of the Lord, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building he burned down. 10 The whole Babylonian army under the commander of the imperial guard broke down the walls around Jerusalem. 11 Nebuzaradan the commander of the guard carried into exile the people who remained in the city, along with the rest of the populace and those who had deserted to the king of Babylon. 12 But the commander left behind some of the poorest people of the land to work the vineyards and fields.

13 The Babylonians broke up the bronze pillars, the movable stands and the bronze Sea that were at the temple of the Lord and they carried the bronze to Babylon. 14 They also took away the pots, shovels, wick trimmers, dishes and all the bronze articles used in the temple service. 15 The commander of the imperial guard took away the censers and sprinkling bowls—all that were made of pure gold or silver.

16 The bronze from the two pillars, the Sea and the movable stands, which Solomon had made for the temple of the Lord, was more than could be weighed. 17 Each pillar was eighteen cubits[f] high. The bronze capital on top of one pillar was three cubits[g] high and was decorated with a network and pomegranates of bronze all around. The other pillar, with its network, was similar.

18 The commander of the guard took as prisoners Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest next in rank and the three doorkeepers. 19 Of those still in the city, he took the officer in charge of the fighting men, and five royal advisers. He also took the secretary who was chief officer in charge of conscripting the people of the land and sixty of the conscripts who were found in the city. 20 Nebuzaradan the commander took them all and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21 There at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, the king had them executed.

So Judah went into captivity, away from her land.

22 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, to be over the people he had left behind in Judah. 23 When all the army officers and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah as governor, they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah—Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, Jaazaniah the son of the Maakathite, and their men. 24 Gedaliah took an oath to reassure them and their men. “Do not be afraid of the Babylonian officials,” he said. “Settle down in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you.”

25 In the seventh month, however, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was of royal blood, came with ten men and assassinated Gedaliah and also the men of Judah and the Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah. 26 At this, all the people from the least to the greatest, together with the army officers, fled to Egypt for fear of the Babylonians.

Jehoiachin Released
27 In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the year Awel-Marduk became king of Babylon, he released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. He did this on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month. 28 He spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat of honor higher than those of the other kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put aside his prison clothes and for the rest of his life ate regularly at the king’s table. 30 Day by day the king gave Jehoiachin a regular allowance as long as he lived.

Footnotes:
2 Kings 25:3 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text (see Jer. 52:6); Masoretic Text does not have fourth.
2 Kings 25:4 Or Chaldeans; also in verses 13, 25 and 26
2 Kings 25:4 Or the Jordan Valley
2 Kings 25:5 Or Chaldean; also in verses 10 and 24
2 Kings 25:17 That is, about 27 feet or about 8.1 meters
2 Kings 25:17 That is, about 4 1/2 feet or about 1.4 meters

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, February 21, 2016

Read: Philippians 4:8-13

 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.

Paul’s Thanks for Their Gifts
10 How I praise the Lord that you are concerned about me again. I know you have always been concerned for me, but you didn’t have the chance to help me. 11 Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. 13 For I can do everything through Christ,[a] who gives me strength.

Footnotes:
4:13 Greek through the one.

INSIGHT:
Paul begins this section of his letter to the church at Philippi with the Greek word loipon (finally), signaling that this is his conclusion to the subject he’s been dealing with. In previous verses the apostle has been urging his readers to live lives that are free from anxiety and quarreling. Their interactions with one another are to be marked by prayer, thankfulness, gentleness, unity, and peace. But his final word in this section goes beyond outward behavior. It deals with attitudes of the heart and mind. Ponder heavenly things, he tells them. Think well and deeply about things that are noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy.

The View from the Mountain
By David Roper

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above. Colossians 3:1

Our valley in Idaho can be very cold in the winter. Clouds and fog roll in and blanket the ground, trapping frigid air under warmer layers above. But you can get above the valley. There’s a road nearby that winds up the flank of Shafer Butte, a 7,500-foot mountain that rises out of our valley. A few minutes of driving and you break out of the fog and emerge into the warmth and brilliance of a sunlit day. You can look down on the clouds that shroud the valley below and see it from a different point of view.

Life is like that at times. Circumstances seem to surround us with a fog that sunlight cannot penetrate. Yet faith is the way we get above the valley—the means by which we “set [our] hearts on things above” (Col. 3:1). As we do, the Lord enables us to rise above our circumstances and find courage and calmness for the day. As the apostle Paul wrote, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances” (Phil. 4:11).

The Lord enables us to rise above our circumstances and find courage and calmness.
We can climb out of our misery and gloom. We can sit for a time on the mountainside and through Christ who gives us strength (v. 13) we can gain a different perspective.

Although I can’t always see You or what You’re doing, Lord, I rest in Your love for me.

Share this prayer from our Facebook page. facebook.com/ourdailybread
Faith can lift you above your fears.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, February 21, 2016
Do You Really Love Him?

She has done a good work for Me. —Mark 14:6

If what we call love doesn’t take us beyond ourselves, it is not really love. If we have the idea that love is characterized as cautious, wise, sensible, shrewd, and never taken to extremes, we have missed the true meaning. This may describe affection and it may bring us a warm feeling, but it is not a true and accurate description of love.

Have you ever been driven to do something for God not because you felt that it was useful or your duty to do so, or that there was anything in it for you, but simply because you love Him? Have you ever realized that you can give things to God that are of value to Him? Or are you just sitting around daydreaming about the greatness of His redemption, while neglecting all the things you could be doing for Him? I’m not referring to works which could be regarded as divine and miraculous, but ordinary, simple human things— things which would be evidence to God that you are totally surrendered to Him. Have you ever created what Mary of Bethany created in the heart of the Lord Jesus? “She has done a good work for Me.”

There are times when it seems as if God watches to see if we will give Him even small gifts of surrender, just to show how genuine our love is for Him. To be surrendered to God is of more value than our personal holiness. Concern over our personal holiness causes us to focus our eyes on ourselves, and we become overly concerned about the way we walk and talk and look, out of fear of offending God. “…but perfect love casts out fear…” once we are surrendered to God (1 John 4:18). We should quit asking ourselves, “Am I of any use?” and accept the truth that we really are not of much use to Him. The issue is never of being of use, but of being of value to God Himself. Once we are totally surrendered to God, He will work through us all the time.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The Bible does not thrill; the Bible nourishes. Give time to the reading of the Bible and the recreating effect is as real as that of fresh air physically.  Disciples Indeed, 387 R

2 Kings 24, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Who Can Accuse You?

Romans 8:33 and 34 asks, "Who can accuse the people God has chosen? Who can say God's people are guilty?"
The answer is no one, because Christ Jesus died, he was raised from the dead, and now is on God's right side, appealing to God for us. The accusations of Satan sputter and fall like a deflated balloon.
Then why, pray tell, do we, as Christians, still feel guilt? God uses appropriate doses of guilt to awaken us to sin. His guilt brings enough regret to change us. Satan's guilt, on the other hand, brings enough regret to enslave us. Don't let him lock his shackles on you.
Remember, your life is hidden with Christ in God. Whenever God looks at you, he sees Jesus, the perfect Lamb of God covering you. So, whom do you trust…your Advocate or your Accuser?
From GRACE

2 Kings 24

During Jehoiakim’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded the land, and Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years. But then he turned against Nebuchadnezzar and rebelled. 2 The Lord sent Babylonian,[a] Aramean, Moabite and Ammonite raiders against him to destroy Judah, in accordance with the word of the Lord proclaimed by his servants the prophets. 3 Surely these things happened to Judah according to the Lord’s command, in order to remove them from his presence because of the sins of Manasseh and all he had done, 4 including the shedding of innocent blood. For he had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord was not willing to forgive.

5 As for the other events of Jehoiakim’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? 6 Jehoiakim rested with his ancestors. And Jehoiachin his son succeeded him as king.

7 The king of Egypt did not march out from his own country again, because the king of Babylon had taken all his territory, from the Wadi of Egypt to the Euphrates River.

Jehoiachin King of Judah
8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother’s name was Nehushta daughter of Elnathan; she was from Jerusalem. 9 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father had done.

10 At that time the officers of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon advanced on Jerusalem and laid siege to it, 11 and Nebuchadnezzar himself came up to the city while his officers were besieging it. 12 Jehoiachin king of Judah, his mother, his attendants, his nobles and his officials all surrendered to him.

In the eighth year of the reign of the king of Babylon, he took Jehoiachin prisoner. 13 As the Lord had declared, Nebuchadnezzar removed the treasures from the temple of the Lord and from the royal palace, and cut up the gold articles that Solomon king of Israel had made for the temple of the Lord. 14 He carried all Jerusalem into exile: all the officers and fighting men, and all the skilled workers and artisans—a total of ten thousand. Only the poorest people of the land were left.

15 Nebuchadnezzar took Jehoiachin captive to Babylon. He also took from Jerusalem to Babylon the king’s mother, his wives, his officials and the prominent people of the land. 16 The king of Babylon also deported to Babylon the entire force of seven thousand fighting men, strong and fit for war, and a thousand skilled workers and artisans. 17 He made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place and changed his name to Zedekiah.

Zedekiah King of Judah
18 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah. 19 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as Jehoiakim had done. 20 It was because of the Lord’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end he thrust them from his presence.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, February 20, 2016

Read: Psalm 77:1-15 |

For Jeduthun, the choir director: A psalm of Asaph.

I cry out to God; yes, I shout.
    Oh, that God would listen to me!
2 When I was in deep trouble,
    I searched for the Lord.
All night long I prayed, with hands lifted toward heaven,
    but my soul was not comforted.
3 I think of God, and I moan,
    overwhelmed with longing for his help. Interlude
4 You don’t let me sleep.
    I am too distressed even to pray!
5 I think of the good old days,
    long since ended,
6 when my nights were filled with joyful songs.
    I search my soul and ponder the difference now.
7 Has the Lord rejected me forever?
    Will he never again be kind to me?
8 Is his unfailing love gone forever?
    Have his promises permanently failed?
9 Has God forgotten to be gracious?
    Has he slammed the door on his compassion? Interlude
10 And I said, “This is my fate;
    the Most High has turned his hand against me.”
11 But then I recall all you have done, O Lord;
    I remember your wonderful deeds of long ago.
12 They are constantly in my thoughts.
    I cannot stop thinking about your mighty works.
13 O God, your ways are holy.
    Is there any god as mighty as you?
14 You are the God of great wonders!
    You demonstrate your awesome power among the nations.
15 By your strong arm, you redeemed your people,
    the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. Interlude

INSIGHT:
Asaph, Jeduthun (or Ethan), and Heman were musicians who led temple worship (1 Chron. 16:42; 2 Chron. 5:12). The superscription to Psalm 77 says Asaph wrote this psalm for Jeduthun. Asaph writes of his sense of abandonment, distress, and anguish when God did not respond to his cries for deliverance from his trials and suffering (vv. 1–10). But when he remembered and recounted the mighty works God had done for His people in the past (vv. 11–12) and when he reflected and meditated on God’s holiness (v. 13), he was assured of God’s greatness, goodness, and guidance (vv. 14–20). Where God leads, He protects and provides (v. 20).

Four Ways to Look
By Anne Cetas

I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds. Psalm 77:12

Joan was struggling with some difficult issues with her children when she sat down for a worship service. Exhausted, she wanted to "resign" from motherhood. Then the speaker began to share encouragement for those who feel like quitting. These four thoughts that Joan heard that morning helped her to keep going:

Look up and pray. Asaph prayed all night long and even expressed feelings that God had forgotten and rejected him (Ps. 77:9-10). We can tell God everything and be honest about our feelings. We can ask Him anything. His answer may not come right away or in the form we want or expect, but He won't criticize us for asking.

God is the God of great wonders and can be trusted.
Look back and remember what God has done in the past for you and others. Asaph didn't talk to God only about the pain; he also recalled God's power and mighty works for him and God’s people. He wrote, "I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago" (v. 11).

Look forward. Think about the good that might come out of the situation. What might you learn? What might God want to do? What do you know He will do because His ways are perfect? (v.13).

Look again. This time look at your circumstances with eyes of faith. Remind yourself that He is the God of great wonders and can be trusted (v. 14).

May these ideas help us gain perspective and keep moving in our faith journey with Jesus.

Lord, I can’t help but see my problems. Help me not to be discouraged and weary, but to see You in the midst of them.

Our problems are opportunities to discover God’s solutions.


My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, February 20, 2016

Taking the Initiative Against Daydreaming

Arise, let us go from here. —John 14:31

Daydreaming about something in order to do it properly is right, but daydreaming about it when we should be doing it is wrong. In this passage, after having said these wonderful things to His disciples, we might have expected our Lord to tell them to go away and meditate over them all. But Jesus never allowed idle daydreaming. When our purpose is to seek God and to discover His will for us, daydreaming is right and acceptable. But when our inclination is to spend time daydreaming over what we have already been told to do, it is unacceptable and God’s blessing is never on it. God will take the initiative against this kind of daydreaming by prodding us to action. His instructions to us will be along the lines of this: “Don’t sit or stand there, just go!”

If we are quietly waiting before God after He has said to us, “Come aside by yourselves…” then that is meditation before Him to seek His will (Mark 6:31). Beware, however, of giving in to mere daydreaming once God has spoken. Allow Him to be the source of all your dreams, joys, and delights, and be careful to go and obey what He has said. If you are in love with someone, you don’t sit and daydream about that person all the time— you go and do something for him. That is what Jesus Christ expects us to do. Daydreaming after God has spoken is an indication that we do not trust Him.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

A fanatic is one who entrenches himself in invincible ignorance. Baffled to Fight Better, 59 R

Acts 16:1, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: LONG LISTS AND STINKY TRASH

Life has a way of unloading its rubbish on us. Your boss expects too much. Your kids whine too much. Trash. Load after load of anger; guilt; pessimism; bitterness; and anxiety. It all piles up! As a result, we must guard our thoughts. Today’s thoughts are tomorrow’s actions. Today’s jealousy is tomorrow’s hate crime. Could that be why Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:5, “Love keeps no record of wrongs”? Paul also says in 2 Corinthians 10:5 that we have a choice: “We capture every thought and make it give up and obey Christ.”

Selfishness, step back! Envy, get lost! Rather than store up the sour thoughts, store up the sweet ones.  Make a list of God’s mercies; the many times he has blessed you…the many times he has forgiven you. And you will find your thoughts resulting in happy days.

From A Love Worth Giving

Acts 16:1
Timothy Joins Paul and Silas

Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was Jewish and a believer but whose father was a Greek. 2 The believers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. 3 Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.

Paul’s Vision of the Man of Macedonia
6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Lydia’s Conversion in Philippi
11 From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day we went on to Neapolis. 12 From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district[a] of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days.

13 On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. 14 One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. 15 When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.

Paul and Silas in Prison
16 Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” 18 She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.

19 When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 20 They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar 21 by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.”

Footnotes:
Acts 16:12 The text and meaning of the Greek for the leading city of that district are uncertain.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, February 19, 2016

Read: Habakkuk 3:16-19

I trembled inside when I heard this;
    my lips quivered with fear.
My legs gave way beneath me,[a]
    and I shook in terror.
I will wait quietly for the coming day
    when disaster will strike the people who invade us.
17 Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,
    and there are no grapes on the vines;
even though the olive crop fails,
    and the fields lie empty and barren;
even though the flocks die in the fields,
    and the cattle barns are empty,
18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord!
    I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!
19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
    He makes me as surefooted as a deer,[b]
    able to tread upon the heights.
(For the choir director: This prayer is to be accompanied by stringed instruments.)

Footnotes:
3:16 Hebrew Decay entered my bones.
3:19 Or He gives me the speed of a deer.

INSIGHT:
Habakkuk’s prayer in chapter three is the prophet’s response to a conversation he has been having with the Lord about justice—for Israel and the surrounding nations. After God responds to Habakkuk’s two complaints, the prophet launches into this song of praise for God’s righteous deeds and character. Habakkuk rehearses the great deeds of the Lord in protecting His people (vv. 1–15), but he also admits his fear when he sees the demonstration of God’s power and judgment (v. 16). But his fear does not control him, because God is his hope and strength (vv. 16–19).

The Voice of Faith
By Poh Fang Chia

Though the fig tree does not bud . . . yet I will rejoice in the Lord. Habakkuk 3:17-18

The news was numbing. The tears came so quickly that she couldn’t fight them. Her mind raced with questions, and fear threatened to overwhelm her. Life had been going along so well, when it was abruptly interrupted and forever changed without warning.

Tragedy can come in many forms—the loss of a loved one, an illness, the loss of wealth or our livelihood. And it can happen to anyone at any time.

Our God who has proven Himself faithful throughout the years is always with us.
Although the prophet Habakkuk knew that tragedy was coming, it still struck fear in his heart. As he waited for the day when Babylon would invade the kingdom of Judah, his heart pounded, his lips quivered, and his legs trembled (Hab. 3:16).

Fear is a legitimate emotion in the face of tragedy, but it doesn’t have to immobilize us. When we don’t understand the trials we are going through, we can recount how God has worked in history (vv. 3-15). That’s what Habakkuk did. It didn’t dispel his fear, but it gave him the courage to move on by choosing to praise the Lord (v. 18).

Our God who has proven Himself faithful throughout the years is always with us. Because His character doesn’t change, in our fear we can say with a confident voice of faith, “The Sovereign Lord is my strength!” (v. 19).

Dear Lord, when my world is turned upside down, help me to trust You. You have always been faithful to me.

We can learn the lesson of trust in the school of trial.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, February 19, 2016

Taking the Initiative Against Drudgery
Arise, shine… —Isaiah 60:1
 
When it comes to taking the initiative against drudgery, we have to take the first step as though there were no God. There is no point in waiting for God to help us— He will not. But once we arise, immediately we find He is there. Whenever God gives us His inspiration, suddenly taking the initiative becomes a moral issue— a matter of obedience. Then we must act to be obedient and not continue to lie down doing nothing. If we will arise and shine, drudgery will be divinely transformed.

Drudgery is one of the finest tests to determine the genuineness of our character. Drudgery is work that is far removed from anything we think of as ideal work. It is the utterly hard, menial, tiresome, and dirty work. And when we experience it, our spirituality is instantly tested and we will know whether or not we are spiritually genuine. Read John 13. In this chapter, we see the Incarnate God performing the greatest example of drudgery— washing fishermen’s feet. He then says to them, “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet” (John 13:14). The inspiration of God is required if drudgery is to shine with the light of God upon it. In some cases the way a person does a task makes that work sanctified and holy forever. It may be a very common everyday task, but after we have seen it done, it becomes different. When the Lord does something through us, He always transforms it. Our Lord takes our human flesh and transforms it, and now every believer’s body has become “the temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:19).

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Crises reveal character. When we are put to the test the hidden resources of our character are revealed exactly.  Disciples Indeed, 393 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, February 19, 2016
The Reason For the Test - #7595

When I was young, I hate to say it, so was television. Prehistoric guy you know! One of my television heroes was a space explorer called Captain Video. I wish I still had his decoder ring.

The day they took me to that children's hospital for those tests, they tried to pull a Captain Video scam on me. See, I'd been born with a heart murmur, so I was in the hospital to have a series of what was then state of the art tests to see how my heart was doing.

I remember they gave me this foul tasting liquid to drink. It was probably something they could trace as it moved through my system – if I could swallow it that is. The next thing I knew, I'm in a dark room, looking up at this guy with a white coat and goggles. He told me he was Captain Video. I don't think so! Captain Video would never make me drink something this gross! All I know is they really put me through it that day. I'm sure the question I had was "Why?" Well, there was a very good answer. And thank God that heart murmur disappeared when I was a kid.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Reason For the Test."

Now has that question crossed your mind lately? God, why are you putting me through this? Why are you doing this to me? Maybe you've been through some really hard things lately, and they're hard to understand. It could be that your family, or your ministry, or your church have been facing some painful trials and you feel like I did on that stressful day in the children's hospital. What's going on here? I imagine God's ancient people were asking that same thing as God took them through a harsh and hostile desert.

He answers the question "why" in our word for today from the Word of God. Deuteronomy 8:2-3 says, "Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these 40 years to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands. He humbled you causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna which neither you nor your fathers had known."

Now, God says He takes you through the desert first to humble you; to bring you to a place where your resources are useless. A place where your Lord is all you've got left to depend on. It could be that your loving Lord brought you into the desert to get you out of the way so He could be totally depended upon. So you can then experience His incredible power in ways you never dreamed of when you were still in control.

But let's focus on that second reason. He says, "I bring you through the desert to test you in order to know what was in your heart." That's why Captain Video and my parents and all those other people were putting me through my hospital ordeal. The test would show what was going on in my heart. The good times don't show what's really inside of you. It's pressure that does that, it's pain, it's temptation, it's unanswered questions, unexplained problems. That's what exposes what's in your heart. The desert, the testing time, exposes what our real motives are, exposes our deep down resentments, our messed up priorities, our counterfeit faith, our unrepented sin, and our neglected relationship with our God.

What the test shows could scare us, but it brings us to the place where we are finally humble and we're ready for Jesus to perform the spiritual surgery we have avoided way too long. The test can also show a healthy heart, by the way; one that trusts God even when He's silent, that puts other people first even when it's hurting, that testifies to all who will listen about the awesome grace of God, even in...especially in the desert times.

Yes, you may be wondering what I was wondering that day of testing. Why are you putting me through this? Well, there was for me then, and there is for you now a very good reason. Because it's the best way to show what your heart is really like.

Galatians 6, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: A REASON FOR JOY

As a believer in Christ—don’t focus on yourself; focus on all that you have in Christ!

“How’s life?” someone asks. And we who’ve been resurrected from the dead say things like…Well, things could be better…or, I couldn’t get a parking place… or, My parents won’t let me move to Hawaii.

Are you so focused on what you don’t have that you are blind to what you do? Paul asks in Philippians 2:1, “Have you received any encouragement? Any fellowship? Any consolation? Then don’t you have reason for joy?”  You are blood-bought and heaven-made—a child of God! So be grateful and joyful! For isn’t it true? What you don’t have is much less than what you do!  Don’t focus on yourself; focus on all you have in Christ!

From A Love Worth Giving

Galatians 6
Doing Good to All

Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. 2 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. 4 Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, 5 for each one should carry their own load. 6 Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor.

7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Not Circumcision but the New Creation
11 See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand!

12 Those who want to impress people by means of the flesh are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. 13 Not even those who are circumcised keep the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your circumcision in the flesh. 14 May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which[a] the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15 Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is the new creation. 16 Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule—to[b] the Israel of God.

17 From now on, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.

18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.

Footnotes:
Galatians 6:14 Or whom
Galatians 6:16 Or rule and to

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, February 18, 2016

Read: Luke 9:1-2,10-17

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Disciples

One day Jesus called together his twelve disciples[a] and gave them power and authority to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases. 2 Then he sent them out to tell everyone about the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

Footnotes:

9:1 Greek the Twelve; other manuscripts read the twelve apostles.

Luke 9:10-17

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand

When the apostles returned, they told Jesus everything they had done. Then he slipped quietly away with them toward the town of Bethsaida. 11 But the crowds found out where he was going, and they followed him. He welcomed them and taught them about the Kingdom of God, and he healed those who were sick.

12 Late in the afternoon the twelve disciples came to him and said, “Send the crowds away to the nearby villages and farms, so they can find food and lodging for the night. There is nothing to eat here in this remote place.”

13 But Jesus said, “You feed them.”

“But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. “Or are you expecting us to go and buy enough food for this whole crowd?” 14 For there were about 5,000 men there.

Jesus replied, “Tell them to sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 So the people all sat down. 16 Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread and fish to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people. 17 They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers!


INSIGHT:
The miracle of the feeding of the multitude is recorded in all four gospels (see Matt. 14:13–21; Mark 6:30–44; Luke 9:10–17; John 6:1–15). Each account provides specific details to help complete the story. Matthew tells us that the crowd numbered 5,000 men plus women and children. Mark tells us that the people sat in groups of 50 and 100. Luke informs us that this event is connected to the disciples’ report of their outreach trip. John’s account tells us that the food came from a young boy’s lunch.

Solitude and Service
By David McCasland

He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing.  Luke 9:11

Comedian Fred Allen said, “A celebrity is a person who works hard all his life to become well-known, then wears dark glasses to avoid being recognized.” Fame often brings loss of privacy along with a relentless frenzy of attention.

When Jesus began His public ministry of teaching and healing, He was catapulted into the public eye and thronged by people seeking help. Crowds followed Him wherever He went. But Jesus knew that having regular time alone with God was essential to maintaining strength and perspective.

Jesus balanced service and solitude by taking time for rest and prayer with His Father.
After Jesus’ twelve disciples returned from their successful mission “to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick,” He took them to a quiet place to rest (Luke 9:2,10). Soon, however, crowds of people found them and Jesus welcomed them. He “spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing” (v. 11). Instead of sending them away to find food, the Lord provided an outdoor picnic for 5,000! (vv. 12-17).

Jesus was not immune to the pressure of curious and hurting people, but He maintained the balance of public service and private solitude by taking time for rest and for prayer alone with His Father (Luke 5:16).

May we follow our Lord’s example as we serve others in His name.

Dear Father, as Jesus Your Son and our Savior honored You in solitude and service to others, may we follow His example in our lives.

Turning down the volume of life allows you to listen to God

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, February 18, 2016
Taking the Initiative Against Despair
Rise, let us be going. —Matthew 26:46
 
In the Garden of Gethsemane, the disciples went to sleep when they should have stayed awake, and once they realized what they had done it produced despair. The sense of having done something irreversible tends to make us despair. We say, “Well, it’s all over and ruined now; what’s the point in trying anymore.” If we think this kind of despair is an exception, we are mistaken. It is a very ordinary human experience. Whenever we realize we have not taken advantage of a magnificent opportunity, we are apt to sink into despair. But Jesus comes and lovingly says to us, in essence, “Sleep on now. That opportunity is lost forever and you can’t change that. But get up, and let’s go on to the next thing.” In other words, let the past sleep, but let it sleep in the sweet embrace of Christ, and let us go on into the invincible future with Him.

There will be experiences like this in each of our lives. We will have times of despair caused by real events in our lives, and we will be unable to lift ourselves out of them. The disciples, in this instance, had done a downright unthinkable thing— they had gone to sleep instead of watching with Jesus. But our Lord came to them taking the spiritual initiative against their despair and said, in effect, “Get up, and do the next thing.” If we are inspired by God, what is the next thing? It is to trust Him absolutely and to pray on the basis of His redemption.

Never let the sense of past failure defeat your next step.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The Bible does not thrill; the Bible nourishes. Give time to the reading of the Bible and the recreating effect is as real as that of fresh air physically.  Disciples Indeed, 387 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, February 18, 2016

Time For Sunrise - #7594

It was another one of our marathon drives. It was a 20-hour trip and my wife and I were alternating at the wheel, and I was doing the night shift. And since it was an early winter trip, the night was a long night. I did my behind-the-wheel calisthenics, I sampled different radio stations, I played stimulating music, kept the temperature at a refreshing level – all those fun things you do when it's you against the night.

Frankly, by 6:00 A.M., I was tired of the darkness. Then, in my rear view mirror, I saw a beautiful sight. In the eastern sky, I could see this bright orange ball peeking over the horizon. The long night was over! The sun was coming up! And I could make the rest of the trip!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Time for Sunrise."

Maybe it's been a long night for you. And, like me on that marathon drive, you're tired of driving in the dark. It's been lonely in your long night. You've gotten hurt in the dark, and sometimes you've gotten lost in the dark. Maybe you're wondering if you can make the rest of the trip like this. You're where I was that long night. You are ready for the sunrise, except you may need to change one letter from s-u-n rise to S-o-n Sonrise - that's Son, as in the Son of God.

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from John 9:25, the story of a man whose whole life had been a ride in the darkness. He was blind from birth. Then Jesus invaded his dark world and the sun came up. Jesus did what no one else could do. He healed that man's lifetime blindness. The religious leaders who had it in for Jesus put the man through this brutal interrogation, trying to nail Jesus for violating the Jewish Sabbath by healing him. They were trying to get the man to agree that the person who healed him was really a sinner.

I love this man's bold answer. "One thing I know. I was blind, but now I see." I was in an endless darkness until Jesus touched my life. And I've come into the light. The sun has come up because of Jesus.

What Jesus did for that man, that's what He's done for me and it's what He's done for millions. Not physically, but emotionally and spiritually, and it's what He wants to do for you. There's a spiritual condition that keeps us all from being able to get out of the long night. It's the cause of the long night. It's called sin. It's the running of our own lives instead of God running them. And only Jesus can bring the long night of sin to an end in your life. Like the world's most famous hymn "Amazing Grace" says, "I once was lost but now I'm found. Was blind, but now I see."

There's a reason that only Jesus can bring the sunrise. He descended deeper into the darkness of sin than anyone ever has. He went to a cross where, as He died, He absorbed all the guilt of your sin and mine, and all the punishment we deserve in a hell that has no exit. Because of that unspeakable sacrifice, the Bible says, "God has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves" (Colossians 1:13). How? It says "He made peace through His blood, shed on the cross" (Colossians 1:20).

God brought you and me together today, I believe, because He wants you to know that your long drive in the darkness is almost over if you will put your trust in His Son, Jesus, to be your Rescuer from the darkness of your sin.

You tired of the night? You ready to begin a personal relationship with Jesus, who is "the light of the world" the Bible says? Tell Him that, "Jesus, beginning right here and beginning right now, with all my heart I'm yours." I hope your next step will be to go to our website ANewStory.com so you can be sure you have begun your relationship with this singular One who can save you from your sin. ANewStory.com. I hope you'll check it out as soon as you can today.

The long, lonely night has lasted long enough. It's time for the Sonrise. It's time for Jesus.

2 Kings 23, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: The Cure for Selfishness

Forgive me for being the one to tell you-but you're infected! You are a diseased carrier. You have a case of-brace yourself-selfishness! Don't believe me? When you look at a group photo, where do you look? And if you look good, do you like the picture?
Do you suffer from clutching hands? Do your fingers ever wrap and close around possessions? How about heavy feet? When a car wants to cut in front of you, do you sense a sudden heaviness of foot on the accelerator?
Look in your eyes…into your pupils. Do you see a tiny figure? An image of a person? An image of you? The self-centered see everything through self. Their motto? It's all about me! What is the cure for selfishness? Get your self out of your eye by taking your eye off yourself. Quit staring at the little self, and focus on your great Savior!
From A Love Worth Giving

2 Kings 23
Josiah Renews the Covenant

Then the king called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. 2 He went up to the temple of the Lord with the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets—all the people from the least to the greatest. He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the temple of the Lord. 3 The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the Lord—to follow the Lord and keep his commands, statutes and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, thus confirming the words of the covenant written in this book. Then all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.

4 The king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the priests next in rank and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the Lord all the articles made for Baal and Asherah and all the starry hosts. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron Valley and took the ashes to Bethel. 5 He did away with the idolatrous priests appointed by the kings of Judah to burn incense on the high places of the towns of Judah and on those around Jerusalem—those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations and to all the starry hosts. 6 He took the Asherah pole from the temple of the Lord to the Kidron Valley outside Jerusalem and burned it there. He ground it to powder and scattered the dust over the graves of the common people. 7 He also tore down the quarters of the male shrine prostitutes that were in the temple of the Lord, the quarters where women did weaving for Asherah.

8 Josiah brought all the priests from the towns of Judah and desecrated the high places, from Geba to Beersheba, where the priests had burned incense. He broke down the gateway at the entrance of the Gate of Joshua, the city governor, which was on the left of the city gate. 9 Although the priests of the high places did not serve at the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem, they ate unleavened bread with their fellow priests.

10 He desecrated Topheth, which was in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, so no one could use it to sacrifice their son or daughter in the fire to Molek. 11 He removed from the entrance to the temple of the Lord the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. They were in the court[c] near the room of an official named Nathan-Melek. Josiah then burned the chariots dedicated to the sun.

12 He pulled down the altars the kings of Judah had erected on the roof near the upper room of Ahaz, and the altars Manasseh had built in the two courts of the temple of the Lord. He removed them from there, smashed them to pieces and threw the rubble into the Kidron Valley. 13 The king also desecrated the high places that were east of Jerusalem on the south of the Hill of Corruption—the ones Solomon king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the vile goddess of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the vile god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the people of Ammon. 14 Josiah smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles and covered the sites with human bones.

15 Even the altar at Bethel, the high place made by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin—even that altar and high place he demolished. He burned the high place and ground it to powder, and burned the Asherah pole also. 16 Then Josiah looked around, and when he saw the tombs that were there on the hillside, he had the bones removed from them and burned on the altar to defile it, in accordance with the word of the Lord proclaimed by the man of God who foretold these things.

17 The king asked, “What is that tombstone I see?”

The people of the city said, “It marks the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and pronounced against the altar of Bethel the very things you have done to it.”

18 “Leave it alone,” he said. “Don’t let anyone disturb his bones.” So they spared his bones and those of the prophet who had come from Samaria.

19 Just as he had done at Bethel, Josiah removed all the shrines at the high places that the kings of Israel had built in the towns of Samaria and that had aroused the Lord’s anger. 20 Josiah slaughtered all the priests of those high places on the altars and burned human bones on them. Then he went back to Jerusalem.

21 The king gave this order to all the people: “Celebrate the Passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant.” 22 Neither in the days of the judges who led Israel nor in the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah had any such Passover been observed. 23 But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, this Passover was celebrated to the Lord in Jerusalem.

24 Furthermore, Josiah got rid of the mediums and spiritists, the household gods, the idols and all the other detestable things seen in Judah and Jerusalem. This he did to fulfill the requirements of the law written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had discovered in the temple of the Lord. 25 Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the Lord as he did—with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses.

26 Nevertheless, the Lord did not turn away from the heat of his fierce anger, which burned against Judah because of all that Manasseh had done to arouse his anger. 27 So the Lord said, “I will remove Judah also from my presence as I removed Israel, and I will reject Jerusalem, the city I chose, and this temple, about which I said, ‘My Name shall be there.’[d]”

28 As for the other events of Josiah’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah?

29 While Josiah was king, Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went up to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to meet him in battle, but Necho faced him and killed him at Megiddo. 30 Josiah’s servants brought his body in a chariot from Megiddo to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah and anointed him and made him king in place of his father.

Jehoahaz King of Judah
31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah. 32 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as his predecessors had done. 33 Pharaoh Necho put him in chains at Riblah in the land of Hamath so that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and he imposed on Judah a levy of a hundred talents[e] of silver and a talent[f] of gold. 34 Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah and changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz and carried him off to Egypt, and there he died. 35 Jehoiakim paid Pharaoh Necho the silver and gold he demanded. In order to do so, he taxed the land and exacted the silver and gold from the people of the land according to their assessments.

Jehoiakim King of Judah
36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Zebidah daughter of Pedaiah; she was from Rumah. 37 And he did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as his predecessors had done.

Footnotes:
2 Kings 23:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
2 Kings 23:27 1 Kings 8:29
2 Kings 23:33 That is, about 3 3/4 tons or about 3.4 metric tons
2 Kings 23:33 That is, about 75 pounds or about 34 kilograms

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Read: Matthew 28:16-20
The Great Commission

Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him—but some of them doubted!

18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,[a] baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Footnotes:
28:19 Or all peoples.

INSIGHT:
In today’s passage Jesus gives what is known as the Great Commission: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19–20). We carry out this commission when we testify to the death and resurrection of Jesus, who offers forgiveness of sins, and when we teach Christ-followers to obey God’s Word (v. 20).

Opening Doors
By Bill Crowder

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations. Matthew 28:19

Charlie Sifford is an important name in American sports. He became the first African-American playing member of the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Tour, joining a sport that, until 1961, had a “whites only” clause in its by-laws. Enduring racial injustice and harassment, Sifford earned his place at the game’s highest level, won two tournaments, and in 2004 was the first African-American inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. Charlie Sifford opened the doors of professional golf for players of all ethnicities.

Opening doors is also a theme at the heart of the gospel mission. Jesus said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28:19-20).

Jesus' work on the cross opened the way to the Father for everyone.
The word nations (v. 19) is from the Greek word ethnos, which is also the source of the word ethnic. In other words, “Go and make disciples of all ethnicities.” Jesus’ work on the cross opened the way to the Father for everyone.

Now we have the privilege of caring for others as God has cared for us. We can open the door for someone who never dreamed they’d be welcomed personally into the house and family of God.

Lord, help me to be sensitive to others I meet today. Give me the words to tell others about You.

Jesus opened the doors of salvation to all who will believe.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Taking the Initiative Against Depression
Arise and eat. —1 Kings 19:5

 
The angel in this passage did not give Elijah a vision, or explain the Scriptures to him, or do anything remarkable. He simply told Elijah to do a very ordinary thing, that is, to get up and eat. If we were never depressed, we would not be alive— only material things don’t suffer depression. If human beings were not capable of depression, we would have no capacity for happiness and exaltation. There are things in life that are designed to depress us; for example, things that are associated with death. Whenever you examine yourself, always take into account your capacity for depression.

When the Spirit of God comes to us, He does not give us glorious visions, but He tells us to do the most ordinary things imaginable. Depression tends to turn us away from the everyday things of God’s creation. But whenever God steps in, His inspiration is to do the most natural, simple things— things we would never have imagined God was in, but as we do them we find Him there. The inspiration that comes to us in this way is an initiative against depression. But we must take the first step and do it in the inspiration of God. If, however, we do something simply to overcome our depression, we will only deepen it. But when the Spirit of God leads us instinctively to do something, the moment we do it the depression is gone. As soon as we arise and obey, we enter a higher plane of life.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

We begin our Christian life by believing what we are told to believe, then we have to go on to so assimilate our beliefs that they work out in a way that redounds to the glory of God. The danger is in multiplying the acceptation of beliefs we do not make our own. Conformed to His Image, 381 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
You're Nothing Without Your Prayer Cover - #7593

It used to be that two armies would line up, then they would plunge into combat, and the best army would win. It was simpler then. Today it isn't necessarily the fellas with the best army who win; it's the ones with the best air force. It happened in World War II, it happened in certain Vietnam engagements, and it happened dramatically in the Persian Gulf War. I mean, the air force went in, they immobilized Iraq's capacity to respond, and then they kind of softened up the opposing forces, and there was an air war before anybody moved on the ground. And then once the troops started to move, the planes provided that vital air cover for their operations. Saddam Hussein had a big army, but he lost because his air cover just didn't function.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "You're Nothing Without Your Prayer Cover."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Colossians 4:2. The great missionary, Paul, says, "Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should." Here's the greatest missionary of all time and he is virtually begging for people to pray for him. "Please pray for us!" And then he gives some specific requests; pray for open doors; pray for clarity as we present it.

In another passage, in Romans 15:30, writing to another group of believers he makes a similar appeal, "I urge you, brothers, by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. Pray that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea and that my service in all Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints there." Here again, specific requests. I think there's a message coming through loud and clear. In the writings of the Apostle Paul, he says to people who care about his ministry, "I'm counting on you, do you know that? And I feel really close to the people I'm counting on. Pray for me, guys."

Somewhere today there is a pastor, a missionary, a Christian leader, a guy you hear on the radio who's counting on you; on your prayer support. Faithful prayer support, fervent prayer support, specific prayer support. It's like that air cover in battle. Prayer is a Christian leader's "air cover." It's a missionary's "air cover." It's what God uses to immobilize the enemy.

As you pray you know you are tying the hands of the enemy and you're fighting his efforts to bring discouragement, to stop the resources from getting through, from attacking that worker's family? And you can bet, if that person's making a difference for the Lord, they are under attack. Your prayers make a difference; probably a decisive difference! And like that air cover, you're softening up the opposition and you're tearing down strongholds so it's easier for the Gospel to win. You're helping the advance of the ground troops with your "prayer cover."

Every summer I go with a Native American team to some of the hardest to reach places in North America on reservations. A team of Native Americans (about 60 of them), and when we go into battle in stronghold places, we say, "Oh, Lord, we just pray that those people who said they would pray for us are doing it now." We have found prayer is the decision maker. It literally is the game-changer.

You remember when Joshua was leading the troops of Israel in the Old Testament and Moses was on the hill praying with his arms uplifted? When he was praying they won, when he stopped praying they lost. The prayer person makes all the difference. Paul once said only Luke is with me. Maybe you're "Luke" for someone. Somewhere there is a Christian worker who says, "Well, I know that he or she is standing by me." When they get into a painful moment they know you're praying that day, 'cause you do every day.

Are you bonded to someone in God's work like that? Their safety, their opportunities, their results, their morale, are directly linked to your "air cover"; your prayer cover. Let God bond you to one of His servants. Be their "air cover" that goes ahead of them into their ministry and accomplishes things for them as they move forward for Christ.

Remember the "prayer cover." Prayer cover literally determines the outcome of the battle.