Max Lucado Daily: Your Story Indwells God’s Story
Everything changes when you know the rest of your story! In 2 Samuel 22:25 David says, “God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes.”
But what is the text of our lives? Self-help gurus and magazine headlines urge you to find your narrative. “Look inside yourself,” they say. But the promise of self-discovery falls short.
Your story indwells God’s. “It is in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eyes on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone” (Ephesians 1:11-12).
In His story, you’ll find there’s more to your story!
From More to Your Story
Psalm 147
Praise the Lord!
How good to sing praises to our God!
How delightful and how fitting!
2 The Lord is rebuilding Jerusalem
and bringing the exiles back to Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted
and bandages their wounds.
4 He counts the stars
and calls them all by name.
5 How great is our Lord! His power is absolute!
His understanding is beyond comprehension!
6 The Lord supports the humble,
but he brings the wicked down into the dust.
7 Sing out your thanks to the Lord;
sing praises to our God with a harp.
8 He covers the heavens with clouds,
provides rain for the earth,
and makes the grass grow in mountain pastures.
9 He gives food to the wild animals
and feeds the young ravens when they cry.
10He takes no pleasure in the strength of a horse
or in human might.
11No, the Lord’s delight is in those who fear him,
those who put their hope in his unfailing love.
12Glorify the Lord, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
13For he has strengthened the bars of your gates
and blessed your children within your walls.
14He sends peace across your nation
and satisfies your hunger with the finest wheat.
15He sends his orders to the world—
how swiftly his word flies!
16He sends the snow like white wool;
he scatters frost upon the ground like ashes.
17He hurls the hail like stones.[a]
Who can stand against his freezing cold?
18 Then, at his command, it all melts.
He sends his winds, and the ice thaws.
19 He has revealed his words to Jacob,
his decrees and regulations to Israel.
20 He has not done this for any other nation;
they do not know his regulations.
Praise the Lord!
Footnotes: 147:17 Hebrew like bread crumbs.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, May 03, 2016
Read: 2 Corinthians 1:3-7
God Offers Comfort to All
3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. 4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. 5 For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. 6 Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. 7 We are confident that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in the comfort God gives us.
INSIGHT:
Today’s reading gives special attention to how believers are to serve one another in humility. During our Lord’s time on earth He provided the ultimate example of ministering to others. Now the Holy Spirit indwells believers and gives us the power to show that kind of self-sacrifice to the body of Christ.
Just What I Need
By Dave Branon
We can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 2 Corinthians 1:4
As I stood in the back of the room at a senior citizens’ center in Palmer, Alaska, listening to my daughter’s high school choir sing “It Is Well with My Soul,” I wondered why she, the choir director, had chosen that song. It had been played at her sister Melissa’s funeral, and Lisa knew it was always tough for me to hear it without having an emotional response.
My musings were interrupted when a man sidled up next to me and said, “This is just what I need to hear.” I introduced myself and then asked why he needed this song. “I lost my son Cameron last week in a motorcycle accident,” he said.
Lord, help me to see where help is needed.
Wow! I was so focused on myself that I never considered the needs of others, and God was busy using that song exactly where He wanted it to be used. I took my new friend Mac, who worked at the center, aside, and we talked about God’s care in this toughest time in his life.
All around us are people in need, and sometimes we have to set aside our own feelings and agendas to help them. One way we can do that is to remember how God has comforted us in our trials and troubles “so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Cor. 1:4). How easy it is to be engrossed in our own concerns and forget that someone right next to us might need a prayer, a word of comfort, a hug, or gift of mercy in Jesus’ name.
Lord, help me to see where help is needed, and help me to provide that help. Thank You for the comfort You give; help me to share it.
Comfort received should be comfort shared.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, May 03, 2016
Vital Intercession
…praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit… —Ephesians 6:18
As we continue on in our intercession for others, we may find that our obedience to God in interceding is going to cost those for whom we intercede more than we ever thought. The danger in this is that we begin to intercede in sympathy with those whom God was gradually lifting up to a totally different level in direct answer to our prayers. Whenever we step back from our close identification with God’s interest and concern for others and step into having emotional sympathy with them, the vital connection with God is gone. We have then put our sympathy and concern for them in the way, and this is a deliberate rebuke to God.
It is impossible for us to have living and vital intercession unless we are perfectly and completely sure of God. And the greatest destroyer of that confident relationship to God, so necessary for intercession, is our own personal sympathy and preconceived bias. Identification with God is the key to intercession, and whenever we stop being identified with Him it is because of our sympathy with others, not because of sin. It is not likely that sin will interfere with our intercessory relationship with God, but sympathy will. It is sympathy with ourselves or with others that makes us say, “I will not allow that thing to happen.” And instantly we are out of that vital connection with God.
Vital intercession leaves you with neither the time nor the inclination to pray for your own “sad and pitiful self.” You do not have to struggle to keep thoughts of yourself out, because they are not even there to be kept out of your thinking. You are completely and entirely identified with God’s interests and concerns in other lives. God gives us discernment in the lives of others to call us to intercession for them, never so that we may find fault with them.
Wisdom From Oswald Chambers
It is not what a man does that is of final importance, but what he is in what he does. The atmosphere produced by a man, much more than his activities, has the lasting influence. Baffled to Fight Better, 51 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, May 03, 2016
The Killer Tide - #7647
You remember that massive tsunami that hit South Asia right after Christmas in 2004? I immediately flashed back when I heard about that to a real life lesson I had about tsunamis prior to that. I was in Kodiak, Alaska, with our On Eagles' Wings team of young Native Americans. They had just finished a string of grueling days of outreach, so we took them to a special spot on the ocean for a few hours off. Many of us were fascinated with these beautiful formations we saw just under the water near the shore. That's when our host told me about what happened after a major quake in Anchorage some years earlier. Folks who were at this same shore area watched the ocean suddenly recede dramatically, and that left all those beautiful underwater formations and shells totally exposed. They're like, "Whoa! Look at this!" So they seized this unusual opportunity to go in and collect all these treasures of the sea – not realizing that the sudden disappearance of the water was the first sign of an impending tsunami. Moments later, that monster wave suddenly enveloped everything in sight, including the people who literally had run right into its path.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Killer Tide."
Many people lost their lives that day because they ran to what they should have been running from. That's the kind of moral mistake that has cost so many so much. It may well be that someone listening right now is checking out something that looks good, looks inviting, and looks exciting – not knowing or just ignoring the fact that there is a tide coming that will carry you where you never wanted to go and take from you what you don't want to lose.
Because God doesn't want that to happen to any of us, He has issued this tsunami warning for our lives in James 1:14-15, our word for today from the Word of God. "Each one is tempted, it says, when by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death."
First, you see something that's wrong but it looks good. You really want it. A little excitement in a movie, or a Website, or a magazine with some sexually explicit stuff. The relief that getting drunk or getting high might give you for a little while. The thrill, the release, or even the love you might find in a physical relationship with someone who is not your marriage partner. Sin looks good. Satan isn't stupid.
So the desire conceives and it moves from wanting it to doing it. It says, "it gives birth to sin." You've plunged into the thing that looks so inviting. And just like those folks who were enjoying what they experienced in that oceanless sea bed. Sin may feel good and it may even feel right for a little while – until the tsunami hits, which it always does. Because "when sin is full-grown, it gives birth to death." Sin always kills. Get that! Sin always kills! The tsunami tide of sin's consequences can sweep away a marriage, the trust people had in you, your position, your reputation, your self-respect, your closeness to God. When you plunge into that attractive opportunity, you have no idea of the shame, and guilt, and the hurt that's going to follow.
God says, "Flee the evil desires..." (2 Timothy 2:22). Then He says, "Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness" (Ephesians 5:11). And, by the way, when the Bible says that sin always ends in death, it underscores that by saying, "The wages of sin is death." And the ultimate killer tide is the judgment that we all deserved for that sin that we've done against a God who put us here in the first place.
The good news about that is that the Bible says, "But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Let me just end with some great news today, that Jesus stood and took the killer tide of the judgment for our sin when He died on the cross. And He's alive, because He walked out of His grave. He's ready to walk into your life today so you never have to face that judgment.
I hope you'll tell Him, "Jesus, I'm yours" today. Go to our website and let me show you there how to begin a relationship with Him. That's ANewStory.com. Remember, sin is a killer tide. Run from it. Make sure that you have taken for yourself the gift of forgiveness that Jesus alone died to give you.
Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Monday, May 2, 2016
1 Corinthians 4, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: The Headline Story
We love to know where we came from. We need to know where we came from. Knowing connects us, links us to something greater than we are.
That is why God wants you to know his story. Framed photos hang in his house and lively talks await you at his table. A scrapbook sits in his living room brimming with stories– stories about Bethlehem beginnings and manger miracles; enemy warfare in the wilderness and fishermen friends in Galilee. The stumbles of Peter and the stubbornness of Paul are all part of the story, but they are subplots to the central message of the headline story! John 3:16. . .“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life!”
God saves his people! God’s story. And we are a part of it!
From More to Your Story
1 Corinthians 4
Paul’s Relationship with the Corinthians
So look at Apollos and me as mere servants of Christ who have been put in charge of explaining God’s mysteries. 2 Now, a person who is put in charge as a manager must be faithful. 3 As for me, it matters very little how I might be evaluated by you or by any human authority. I don’t even trust my own judgment on this point. 4 My conscience is clear, but that doesn’t prove I’m right. It is the Lord himself who will examine me and decide.
5 So don’t make judgments about anyone ahead of time—before the Lord returns. For he will bring our darkest secrets to light and will reveal our private motives. Then God will give to each one whatever praise is due.
6 Dear brothers and sisters,[a] I have used Apollos and myself to illustrate what I’ve been saying. If you pay attention to what I have quoted from the Scriptures,[b] you won’t be proud of one of your leaders at the expense of another. 7 For what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?
8 You think you already have everything you need. You think you are already rich. You have begun to reign in God’s kingdom without us! I wish you really were reigning already, for then we would be reigning with you. 9 Instead, I sometimes think God has put us apostles on display, like prisoners of war at the end of a victor’s parade, condemned to die. We have become a spectacle to the entire world—to people and angels alike.
10 Our dedication to Christ makes us look like fools, but you claim to be so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are so powerful! You are honored, but we are ridiculed. 11 Even now we go hungry and thirsty, and we don’t have enough clothes to keep warm. We are often beaten and have no home. 12 We work wearily with our own hands to earn our living. We bless those who curse us. We are patient with those who abuse us. 13 We appeal gently when evil things are said about us. Yet we are treated like the world’s garbage, like everybody’s trash—right up to the present moment.
14 I am not writing these things to shame you, but to warn you as my beloved children. 15 For even if you had ten thousand others to teach you about Christ, you have only one spiritual father. For I became your father in Christ Jesus when I preached the Good News to you. 16 So I urge you to imitate me.
17 That’s why I have sent Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you of how I follow Christ Jesus, just as I teach in all the churches wherever I go.
18 Some of you have become arrogant, thinking I will not visit you again. 19 But I will come—and soon—if the Lord lets me, and then I’ll find out whether these arrogant people just give pretentious speeches or whether they really have God’s power. 20 For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is living by God’s power. 21 Which do you choose? Should I come with a rod to punish you, or should I come with love and a gentle spirit?
Footnotes:
4:6a Greek Brothers.
4:6b Or If you learn not to go beyond “what is written.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, May 02, 2016
Read: Matthew 5:13-16
Teaching about Salt and Light
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.
14 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
INSIGHT:
In John’s gospel we see that Jesus often refers to Himself as “light.” In John 8:12 and 9:5 He calls Himself “the light of the world.” He also uses this light language to talk about the kingdom of God He came to establish. In John 3:19 Jesus tells Nicodemus, “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.” When Jesus tells believers that they are the light of the world (Matt. 5:14), He is in a sense issuing an invitation to Christlikeness. As followers of Jesus we have been given the opportunity to shine the light of His love into the dark and dying world.
Shine Through
By Keila Ochoa
Let your light shine before others. Matthew 5:16
A little girl wondered what a saint might be. One day her mother took her to a great cathedral to see the gorgeous stained-glass windows with scenes from the Bible. When she saw the beauty of it all she cried out loud, “Now I know what saints are. They are people who let the light shine through!”
Some of us might think that saints are people of the past who lived perfect lives and did Jesus-like miracles. But when a translation of Scripture uses the word saint, it is actually referring to anyone who belongs to God through faith in Christ. In other words, saints are people like us who have the high calling of serving God while reflecting our relationship with Him wherever we are and in whatever we do. That is why the apostle Paul prayed that the eyes and understanding of his readers would be opened to think of themselves as the treasured inheritance of Christ and saints of God (Eph. 1:18).
Cleanse me today so that I may let Your light shine through.
So what then do we see in the mirror? No halos or stained glass. But if we are fulfilling our calling, we will look like people who, maybe even without realizing it, are letting the rich colors of the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control of God shine through.
Lord, You are the light of the world. Thank You for wanting to shine that light in our lives. Cleanse me today so that I may let Your light shine through.
Saints are people through whom God’s light shines.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, May 02, 2016
The Patience To Wait for the Vision
Though it tarries, wait for it… —Habakkuk 2:3
Patience is not the same as indifference; patience conveys the idea of someone who is tremendously strong and able to withstand all assaults. Having the vision of God is the source of patience because it gives us God’s true and proper inspiration. Moses endured, not because of his devotion to his principles of what was right, nor because of his sense of duty to God, but because he had a vision of God. “…he endured as seeing Him who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27). A person who has the vision of God is not devoted to a cause or to any particular issue— he is devoted to God Himself. You always know when the vision is of God because of the inspiration that comes with it. Things come to you with greatness and add vitality to your life because everything is energized by God. He may give you a time spiritually, with no word from Himself at all, just as His Son experienced during His time of temptation in the wilderness. When God does that, simply endure, and the power to endure will be there because you see God.
“Though it tarries, wait for it….” The proof that we have the vision is that we are reaching out for more than we have already grasped. It is a bad thing to be satisfied spiritually. The psalmist said, “What shall I render to the Lord…? I will take up the cup of salvation…” (Psalm 116:12-13). We are apt to look for satisfaction within ourselves and say, “Now I’ve got it! Now I am completely sanctified. Now I can endure.” Instantly we are on the road to ruin. Our reach must exceed our grasp. Paul said, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on…” (Philippians 3:12). If we have only what we have experienced, we have nothing. But if we have the inspiration of the vision of God, we have more than we can experience. Beware of the danger of spiritual relaxation.
Wisdom From Oswald Chambers
We never enter into the Kingdom of God by having our head questions answered, but only by commitment. The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption, 565 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, May 02, 2016
The Purpose-Driven Day - #7646
Your fortieth birthday! I understand it's one of those milestone birthdays, especially for women who don't necessarily welcome it I guess. They dread hitting that forty mark. That's what I understand. Now, when my wife hit her fortieth, no big deal, man. She was cool. No trauma, no counseling, no plastic surgery, no sobbing. I just hope I can handle my fortieth birthday that well. (It's a good thing I'm not talking about integrity today.) Well, it was our son who threw the curve ball. Yeah, he was about 12, and a few weeks after Mom's big 4-0, he announced a calculation that he had, for some reason, just concocted. He said, "Hey Ma, did you know you've been alive for 14,686 days?" What! Forty years? She could handle that, but 14,686 days? That sounds prehistoric!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Purpose-Driven Day."
Our son's announcement actually reminded both of us of a perspective that kids have almost instinctively and which many of us adults need to remember. This big thing we call life is really days. We don't live a life. We live a day. Right now, for example, we're trying to do a Monday. We're designed to cut this massive assignment called life into bite-size chunks called days. Jesus said we should pray about our daily bread (Luke 6:11); take up our cross daily (Luke 9:23). The 23rd Psalm says, "Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life." God says, "Your strength will equal your days" (Deuteronomy 33:25).
There's a lot to be said for taking life, not just as years or months or even weeks, but as a day-one 24-hour assignment from God at a time. That's the perspective that Moses gives actually in our word for today from the Word of God in Psalm 90. He starts the psalm with the big picture when he says, "Lord, You have been our dwelling place for all generations...from everlasting to everlasting, You are God." God's the One who's got the whole life perspective-the generation to generation perspective. So how should we live so we line up our life with His great eternal purpose? Well, it says, "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom."
If you want to live smart, you do life as purpose-driven days. Rick Warren's book, The Purpose-Driven Life, was a giant bestseller and touched millions of lives. But it's important to remember that the way to have a purpose-driven life is to have a purpose-driven day today. God takes all those days lived His way and then He weaves them into an awesome life! You do the day. God does the life. That makes life manageable instead of overwhelming. It makes it doable instead of undoable.
None of us knows how many days we have left. Psalm 139 assures us that "all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be." But we don't know when those days are going to run out. So there's not a day to waste. My goal needs to be to make this day count for the things that matter to God. A purpose-driven day begins in the personal presence of God as you spend non-negotiable time with Him in His Word, the Bible, looking for His direction and experiencing His love.
Each day, start with Jesus. Each day, look for people who need you, not people who can meet your needs. Each day, confess and renounce the sin that may have brought you down yesterday. Each day, give each member of your family all of you, even if it's only for a short time. Each day, you pray for God to give you an opportunity to tell someone about your relationship with Jesus. Each day, make some progress on your long "to do" list, putting the most important ones first. And each day, at the end, sign off with God, crowning Jesus the Lord of what you didn't get done today.
Some years ago, Billy Graham was asked by a reporter what the biggest surprise in his life had been. He said, "The brevity of it." He's right. Every day needs to count. This day needs to count. And one day you'll be able to stand before Jesus and lay at His feet a whole life lived for Him-one good day at a time!
We love to know where we came from. We need to know where we came from. Knowing connects us, links us to something greater than we are.
That is why God wants you to know his story. Framed photos hang in his house and lively talks await you at his table. A scrapbook sits in his living room brimming with stories– stories about Bethlehem beginnings and manger miracles; enemy warfare in the wilderness and fishermen friends in Galilee. The stumbles of Peter and the stubbornness of Paul are all part of the story, but they are subplots to the central message of the headline story! John 3:16. . .“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life!”
God saves his people! God’s story. And we are a part of it!
From More to Your Story
1 Corinthians 4
Paul’s Relationship with the Corinthians
So look at Apollos and me as mere servants of Christ who have been put in charge of explaining God’s mysteries. 2 Now, a person who is put in charge as a manager must be faithful. 3 As for me, it matters very little how I might be evaluated by you or by any human authority. I don’t even trust my own judgment on this point. 4 My conscience is clear, but that doesn’t prove I’m right. It is the Lord himself who will examine me and decide.
5 So don’t make judgments about anyone ahead of time—before the Lord returns. For he will bring our darkest secrets to light and will reveal our private motives. Then God will give to each one whatever praise is due.
6 Dear brothers and sisters,[a] I have used Apollos and myself to illustrate what I’ve been saying. If you pay attention to what I have quoted from the Scriptures,[b] you won’t be proud of one of your leaders at the expense of another. 7 For what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?
8 You think you already have everything you need. You think you are already rich. You have begun to reign in God’s kingdom without us! I wish you really were reigning already, for then we would be reigning with you. 9 Instead, I sometimes think God has put us apostles on display, like prisoners of war at the end of a victor’s parade, condemned to die. We have become a spectacle to the entire world—to people and angels alike.
10 Our dedication to Christ makes us look like fools, but you claim to be so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are so powerful! You are honored, but we are ridiculed. 11 Even now we go hungry and thirsty, and we don’t have enough clothes to keep warm. We are often beaten and have no home. 12 We work wearily with our own hands to earn our living. We bless those who curse us. We are patient with those who abuse us. 13 We appeal gently when evil things are said about us. Yet we are treated like the world’s garbage, like everybody’s trash—right up to the present moment.
14 I am not writing these things to shame you, but to warn you as my beloved children. 15 For even if you had ten thousand others to teach you about Christ, you have only one spiritual father. For I became your father in Christ Jesus when I preached the Good News to you. 16 So I urge you to imitate me.
17 That’s why I have sent Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you of how I follow Christ Jesus, just as I teach in all the churches wherever I go.
18 Some of you have become arrogant, thinking I will not visit you again. 19 But I will come—and soon—if the Lord lets me, and then I’ll find out whether these arrogant people just give pretentious speeches or whether they really have God’s power. 20 For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is living by God’s power. 21 Which do you choose? Should I come with a rod to punish you, or should I come with love and a gentle spirit?
Footnotes:
4:6a Greek Brothers.
4:6b Or If you learn not to go beyond “what is written.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, May 02, 2016
Read: Matthew 5:13-16
Teaching about Salt and Light
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.
14 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
INSIGHT:
In John’s gospel we see that Jesus often refers to Himself as “light.” In John 8:12 and 9:5 He calls Himself “the light of the world.” He also uses this light language to talk about the kingdom of God He came to establish. In John 3:19 Jesus tells Nicodemus, “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.” When Jesus tells believers that they are the light of the world (Matt. 5:14), He is in a sense issuing an invitation to Christlikeness. As followers of Jesus we have been given the opportunity to shine the light of His love into the dark and dying world.
Shine Through
By Keila Ochoa
Let your light shine before others. Matthew 5:16
A little girl wondered what a saint might be. One day her mother took her to a great cathedral to see the gorgeous stained-glass windows with scenes from the Bible. When she saw the beauty of it all she cried out loud, “Now I know what saints are. They are people who let the light shine through!”
Some of us might think that saints are people of the past who lived perfect lives and did Jesus-like miracles. But when a translation of Scripture uses the word saint, it is actually referring to anyone who belongs to God through faith in Christ. In other words, saints are people like us who have the high calling of serving God while reflecting our relationship with Him wherever we are and in whatever we do. That is why the apostle Paul prayed that the eyes and understanding of his readers would be opened to think of themselves as the treasured inheritance of Christ and saints of God (Eph. 1:18).
Cleanse me today so that I may let Your light shine through.
So what then do we see in the mirror? No halos or stained glass. But if we are fulfilling our calling, we will look like people who, maybe even without realizing it, are letting the rich colors of the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control of God shine through.
Lord, You are the light of the world. Thank You for wanting to shine that light in our lives. Cleanse me today so that I may let Your light shine through.
Saints are people through whom God’s light shines.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, May 02, 2016
The Patience To Wait for the Vision
Though it tarries, wait for it… —Habakkuk 2:3
Patience is not the same as indifference; patience conveys the idea of someone who is tremendously strong and able to withstand all assaults. Having the vision of God is the source of patience because it gives us God’s true and proper inspiration. Moses endured, not because of his devotion to his principles of what was right, nor because of his sense of duty to God, but because he had a vision of God. “…he endured as seeing Him who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27). A person who has the vision of God is not devoted to a cause or to any particular issue— he is devoted to God Himself. You always know when the vision is of God because of the inspiration that comes with it. Things come to you with greatness and add vitality to your life because everything is energized by God. He may give you a time spiritually, with no word from Himself at all, just as His Son experienced during His time of temptation in the wilderness. When God does that, simply endure, and the power to endure will be there because you see God.
“Though it tarries, wait for it….” The proof that we have the vision is that we are reaching out for more than we have already grasped. It is a bad thing to be satisfied spiritually. The psalmist said, “What shall I render to the Lord…? I will take up the cup of salvation…” (Psalm 116:12-13). We are apt to look for satisfaction within ourselves and say, “Now I’ve got it! Now I am completely sanctified. Now I can endure.” Instantly we are on the road to ruin. Our reach must exceed our grasp. Paul said, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on…” (Philippians 3:12). If we have only what we have experienced, we have nothing. But if we have the inspiration of the vision of God, we have more than we can experience. Beware of the danger of spiritual relaxation.
Wisdom From Oswald Chambers
We never enter into the Kingdom of God by having our head questions answered, but only by commitment. The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption, 565 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, May 02, 2016
The Purpose-Driven Day - #7646
Your fortieth birthday! I understand it's one of those milestone birthdays, especially for women who don't necessarily welcome it I guess. They dread hitting that forty mark. That's what I understand. Now, when my wife hit her fortieth, no big deal, man. She was cool. No trauma, no counseling, no plastic surgery, no sobbing. I just hope I can handle my fortieth birthday that well. (It's a good thing I'm not talking about integrity today.) Well, it was our son who threw the curve ball. Yeah, he was about 12, and a few weeks after Mom's big 4-0, he announced a calculation that he had, for some reason, just concocted. He said, "Hey Ma, did you know you've been alive for 14,686 days?" What! Forty years? She could handle that, but 14,686 days? That sounds prehistoric!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Purpose-Driven Day."
Our son's announcement actually reminded both of us of a perspective that kids have almost instinctively and which many of us adults need to remember. This big thing we call life is really days. We don't live a life. We live a day. Right now, for example, we're trying to do a Monday. We're designed to cut this massive assignment called life into bite-size chunks called days. Jesus said we should pray about our daily bread (Luke 6:11); take up our cross daily (Luke 9:23). The 23rd Psalm says, "Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life." God says, "Your strength will equal your days" (Deuteronomy 33:25).
There's a lot to be said for taking life, not just as years or months or even weeks, but as a day-one 24-hour assignment from God at a time. That's the perspective that Moses gives actually in our word for today from the Word of God in Psalm 90. He starts the psalm with the big picture when he says, "Lord, You have been our dwelling place for all generations...from everlasting to everlasting, You are God." God's the One who's got the whole life perspective-the generation to generation perspective. So how should we live so we line up our life with His great eternal purpose? Well, it says, "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom."
If you want to live smart, you do life as purpose-driven days. Rick Warren's book, The Purpose-Driven Life, was a giant bestseller and touched millions of lives. But it's important to remember that the way to have a purpose-driven life is to have a purpose-driven day today. God takes all those days lived His way and then He weaves them into an awesome life! You do the day. God does the life. That makes life manageable instead of overwhelming. It makes it doable instead of undoable.
None of us knows how many days we have left. Psalm 139 assures us that "all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be." But we don't know when those days are going to run out. So there's not a day to waste. My goal needs to be to make this day count for the things that matter to God. A purpose-driven day begins in the personal presence of God as you spend non-negotiable time with Him in His Word, the Bible, looking for His direction and experiencing His love.
Each day, start with Jesus. Each day, look for people who need you, not people who can meet your needs. Each day, confess and renounce the sin that may have brought you down yesterday. Each day, give each member of your family all of you, even if it's only for a short time. Each day, you pray for God to give you an opportunity to tell someone about your relationship with Jesus. Each day, make some progress on your long "to do" list, putting the most important ones first. And each day, at the end, sign off with God, crowning Jesus the Lord of what you didn't get done today.
Some years ago, Billy Graham was asked by a reporter what the biggest surprise in his life had been. He said, "The brevity of it." He's right. Every day needs to count. This day needs to count. And one day you'll be able to stand before Jesus and lay at His feet a whole life lived for Him-one good day at a time!
Sunday, May 1, 2016
1 Corinthians 3 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: Letting God's Spirit Lead
In Acts 8:26-27, an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Go to that chariot of the Ethiopian and stay near it. So Philip ran toward the chariot." The two have a Bible study in the chariot. It's so convincing that the Ethiopian is baptized that day. Philip teaches, the Ethiopian obeys, and the gospel is sent to Africa.
Romans 8:14 says, "the true children of God are those who let God's Spirit lead them." You invite a couple over for coffee. Nothing heroic. Just a nice evening with friends. But from the moment they enter, you feel led to inquire, you feel a concern that won't be silent. So you ask. You catch a glimpse of what it means to be led by the Spirit. Has it occurred to you? You have the same Spirit working within you that Philip did! Think about that.
From When God Whispers Your Name
1 Corinthians 3
Paul and Apollos, Servants of Christ
Dear brothers and sisters,[a] when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people.[b] I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in Christ. 2 I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. And you still aren’t ready, 3 for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world? 4 When one of you says, “I am a follower of Paul,” and another says, “I follow Apollos,” aren’t you acting just like people of the world?
5 After all, who is Apollos? Who is Paul? We are only God’s servants through whom you believed the Good News. Each of us did the work the Lord gave us. 6 I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. 7 It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work. 9 For we are both God’s workers. And you are God’s field. You are God’s building.
10 Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.
12 Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. 13 But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. 14 If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. 15 But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.
16 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in[c] you? 17 God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.
18 Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As the Scriptures say,
“He traps the wise
in the snare of their own cleverness.”[d]
20 And again,
“The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise;
he knows they are worthless.”[e]
21 So don’t boast about following a particular human leader. For everything belongs to you— 22 whether Paul or Apollos or Peter,[f] or the world, or life and death, or the present and the future. Everything belongs to you, 23 and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.
Footnotes:
3:1a Greek Brothers.
3:1b Or to people who have the Spirit.
3:16 Or among.
3:19 Job 5:13.
3:20 Ps 94:11.
3:22 Greek Cephas.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, May 01, 2016
Read: Philippians 3:1-8
The Priceless Value of Knowing Christ
Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters,[a] rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith.
2 Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved. 3 For we who worship by the Spirit of God[b] are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us. We put no confidence in human effort, 4 though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more!
5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.
7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ
Footnotes:
3:1 Greek brothers; also in 3:13, 17.
3:3 Some manuscripts read worship God in spirit; one early manuscript reads worship in spirit.
INSIGHT:
The change Paul experienced as a result of his encounter with Christ on the Damascus Road is evidenced in today’s Bible passage. Paul warns believers about enemies of the faith who seek to impose on them the old legalism he used to champion before he encountered the grace of God in Christ. Paul understood that physical circumcision in the tradition of Judaism can do nothing to redeem the human heart. Instead, redemption comes through Christ: “For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh” (v. 3).
The Restoration Business
By Dennis Fisher
I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ. —nkjv Philippians 3:8
Adam Minter is in the junk business. The son of a junkyard owner, he circles the globe researching junk. In his book Junkyard Planet, he chronicles the multibillion-dollar industry of waste recycling. He notes that entrepreneurs around the world devote themselves to locating discarded materials such as copper wire, dirty rags, and plastics and repurposing them to make something new and useful.
After the apostle Paul turned his life over to the Savior, he realized his own achievements and abilities amounted to little more than trash. But Jesus transformed it all into something new and useful. Paul said, “Whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ” (Phil. 3:7-8). Having been trained in Jewish religious law, he had been an angry and violent man toward those who followed Christ (Acts 9:1-2). After being transformed by Christ, the tangled wreckage of his angry past was transformed into the love of Christ for others (2 Cor. 5:14-17).
When we turn our lives over to Him, He makes us into something new
If you feel that your life is just an accumulation of junk, remember that God has always been in the restoration business. When we turn our lives over to Him, He makes us into something new and useful for Him and others.
Are you wondering how to become a new person? Romans 3:23 and 6:23 tell us that when we admit we are sinners and ask for God’s forgiveness, He gives us the free gift of eternal life that was paid for by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Talk to Him now about your need.
Christ makes all things new.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, May 01, 2016
Faith— Not Emotion
We walk by faith, not by sight. —2 Corinthians 5:7
For a while, we are fully aware of God’s concern for us. But then, when God begins to use us in His work, we begin to take on a pitiful look and talk only of our trials and difficulties. And all the while God is trying to make us do our work as hidden people who are not in the spotlight. None of us would be hidden spiritually if we could help it. Can we do our work when it seems that God has sealed up heaven? Some of us always want to be brightly illuminated saints with golden halos and with the continual glow of inspiration, and to have other saints of God dealing with us all the time. A self-assured saint is of no value to God. He is abnormal, unfit for daily life, and completely unlike God. We are here, not as immature angels, but as men and women, to do the work of this world. And we are to do it with an infinitely greater power to withstand the struggle because we have been born from above.
If we continually try to bring back those exceptional moments of inspiration, it is a sign that it is not God we want. We are becoming obsessed with the moments when God did come and speak with us, and we are insisting that He do it again. But what God wants us to do is to “walk by faith.” How many of us have set ourselves aside as if to say, “I cannot do anything else until God appears to me”? He will never do it. We will have to get up on our own, without any inspiration and without any sudden touch from God. Then comes our surprise and we find ourselves exclaiming, “Why, He was there all the time, and I never knew it!” Never live for those exceptional moments— they are surprises. God will give us His touches of inspiration only when He sees that we are not in danger of being led away by them. We must never consider our moments of inspiration as the standard way of life— our work is our standard.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Am I getting nobler, better, more helpful, more humble, as I get older? Am I exhibiting the life that men take knowledge of as having been with Jesus, or am I getting more self-assertive, more deliberately determined to have my own way? It is a great thing to tell yourself the truth. The Place of Help, 1005 R
In Acts 8:26-27, an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Go to that chariot of the Ethiopian and stay near it. So Philip ran toward the chariot." The two have a Bible study in the chariot. It's so convincing that the Ethiopian is baptized that day. Philip teaches, the Ethiopian obeys, and the gospel is sent to Africa.
Romans 8:14 says, "the true children of God are those who let God's Spirit lead them." You invite a couple over for coffee. Nothing heroic. Just a nice evening with friends. But from the moment they enter, you feel led to inquire, you feel a concern that won't be silent. So you ask. You catch a glimpse of what it means to be led by the Spirit. Has it occurred to you? You have the same Spirit working within you that Philip did! Think about that.
From When God Whispers Your Name
1 Corinthians 3
Paul and Apollos, Servants of Christ
Dear brothers and sisters,[a] when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people.[b] I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in Christ. 2 I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. And you still aren’t ready, 3 for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world? 4 When one of you says, “I am a follower of Paul,” and another says, “I follow Apollos,” aren’t you acting just like people of the world?
5 After all, who is Apollos? Who is Paul? We are only God’s servants through whom you believed the Good News. Each of us did the work the Lord gave us. 6 I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. 7 It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work. 9 For we are both God’s workers. And you are God’s field. You are God’s building.
10 Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.
12 Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. 13 But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. 14 If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. 15 But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.
16 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in[c] you? 17 God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.
18 Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As the Scriptures say,
“He traps the wise
in the snare of their own cleverness.”[d]
20 And again,
“The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise;
he knows they are worthless.”[e]
21 So don’t boast about following a particular human leader. For everything belongs to you— 22 whether Paul or Apollos or Peter,[f] or the world, or life and death, or the present and the future. Everything belongs to you, 23 and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.
Footnotes:
3:1a Greek Brothers.
3:1b Or to people who have the Spirit.
3:16 Or among.
3:19 Job 5:13.
3:20 Ps 94:11.
3:22 Greek Cephas.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Sunday, May 01, 2016
Read: Philippians 3:1-8
The Priceless Value of Knowing Christ
Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters,[a] rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith.
2 Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved. 3 For we who worship by the Spirit of God[b] are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us. We put no confidence in human effort, 4 though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more!
5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.
7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ
Footnotes:
3:1 Greek brothers; also in 3:13, 17.
3:3 Some manuscripts read worship God in spirit; one early manuscript reads worship in spirit.
INSIGHT:
The change Paul experienced as a result of his encounter with Christ on the Damascus Road is evidenced in today’s Bible passage. Paul warns believers about enemies of the faith who seek to impose on them the old legalism he used to champion before he encountered the grace of God in Christ. Paul understood that physical circumcision in the tradition of Judaism can do nothing to redeem the human heart. Instead, redemption comes through Christ: “For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh” (v. 3).
The Restoration Business
By Dennis Fisher
I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ. —nkjv Philippians 3:8
Adam Minter is in the junk business. The son of a junkyard owner, he circles the globe researching junk. In his book Junkyard Planet, he chronicles the multibillion-dollar industry of waste recycling. He notes that entrepreneurs around the world devote themselves to locating discarded materials such as copper wire, dirty rags, and plastics and repurposing them to make something new and useful.
After the apostle Paul turned his life over to the Savior, he realized his own achievements and abilities amounted to little more than trash. But Jesus transformed it all into something new and useful. Paul said, “Whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ” (Phil. 3:7-8). Having been trained in Jewish religious law, he had been an angry and violent man toward those who followed Christ (Acts 9:1-2). After being transformed by Christ, the tangled wreckage of his angry past was transformed into the love of Christ for others (2 Cor. 5:14-17).
When we turn our lives over to Him, He makes us into something new
If you feel that your life is just an accumulation of junk, remember that God has always been in the restoration business. When we turn our lives over to Him, He makes us into something new and useful for Him and others.
Are you wondering how to become a new person? Romans 3:23 and 6:23 tell us that when we admit we are sinners and ask for God’s forgiveness, He gives us the free gift of eternal life that was paid for by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Talk to Him now about your need.
Christ makes all things new.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, May 01, 2016
Faith— Not Emotion
We walk by faith, not by sight. —2 Corinthians 5:7
For a while, we are fully aware of God’s concern for us. But then, when God begins to use us in His work, we begin to take on a pitiful look and talk only of our trials and difficulties. And all the while God is trying to make us do our work as hidden people who are not in the spotlight. None of us would be hidden spiritually if we could help it. Can we do our work when it seems that God has sealed up heaven? Some of us always want to be brightly illuminated saints with golden halos and with the continual glow of inspiration, and to have other saints of God dealing with us all the time. A self-assured saint is of no value to God. He is abnormal, unfit for daily life, and completely unlike God. We are here, not as immature angels, but as men and women, to do the work of this world. And we are to do it with an infinitely greater power to withstand the struggle because we have been born from above.
If we continually try to bring back those exceptional moments of inspiration, it is a sign that it is not God we want. We are becoming obsessed with the moments when God did come and speak with us, and we are insisting that He do it again. But what God wants us to do is to “walk by faith.” How many of us have set ourselves aside as if to say, “I cannot do anything else until God appears to me”? He will never do it. We will have to get up on our own, without any inspiration and without any sudden touch from God. Then comes our surprise and we find ourselves exclaiming, “Why, He was there all the time, and I never knew it!” Never live for those exceptional moments— they are surprises. God will give us His touches of inspiration only when He sees that we are not in danger of being led away by them. We must never consider our moments of inspiration as the standard way of life— our work is our standard.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Am I getting nobler, better, more helpful, more humble, as I get older? Am I exhibiting the life that men take knowledge of as having been with Jesus, or am I getting more self-assertive, more deliberately determined to have my own way? It is a great thing to tell yourself the truth. The Place of Help, 1005 R
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Psalm 146 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: A Trashy World
We live in a trashy world. Unwanted garbage comes our way on a regular basis. Haven't you been handed a trash sack of mishaps and heartaches? Surely you have. What are you going to do with it?
You have several options. You could take the trash bag and cram it under your coat and pretend it isn't there. But you and I know you won't fool anyone. Besides, sooner or later it'll start to stink. Or you could disguise it. Paint it green, put it on the front lawn and tell everyone it's a tree. Again, no one will be fooled. So what will you do?
If you follow the example of Christ, you'll learn to see tough times differently. God loves you the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to have a hope-filled heart-just like Jesus!
From Just Like Jesus
Psalm 146
1 Praise the Lord!
Let all that I am praise the Lord.
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.
3 Don’t put your confidence in powerful people;
there is no help for you there.
4 When they breathe their last, they return to the earth,
and all their plans die with them.
5 But joyful are those who have the God of Israel[a] as their helper,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
6 He made heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them.
He keeps every promise forever.
7 He gives justice to the oppressed
and food to the hungry.
The Lord frees the prisoners.
8 The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down.
The Lord loves the godly.
9 The Lord protects the foreigners among us.
He cares for the orphans and widows,
but he frustrates the plans of the wicked.
10 The Lord will reign forever.
He will be your God, O Jerusalem,[b] throughout the generations.
Praise the Lord!
Footnotes:
146:5 Hebrew of Jacob. See note on 44:4.
146:10 Hebrew Zion.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Read: 2 Kings 12:1-15
Joash Repairs the Temple
12 [a]Joash[b] began to rule over Judah in the seventh year of King Jehu’s reign in Israel. He reigned in Jerusalem forty years. His mother was Zibiah from Beersheba. 2 All his life Joash did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight because Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 3 Yet even so, he did not destroy the pagan shrines, and the people still offered sacrifices and burned incense there.
4 One day King Joash said to the priests, “Collect all the money brought as a sacred offering to the Lord’s Temple, whether it is a regular assessment, a payment of vows, or a voluntary gift. 5 Let the priests take some of that money to pay for whatever repairs are needed at the Temple.”
6 But by the twenty-third year of Joash’s reign, the priests still had not repaired the Temple. 7 So King Joash called for Jehoiada and the other priests and asked them, “Why haven’t you repaired the Temple? Don’t use any more money for your own needs. From now on, it must all be spent on Temple repairs.” 8 So the priests agreed not to accept any more money from the people, and they also agreed to let others take responsibility for repairing the Temple.
9 Then Jehoiada the priest bored a hole in the lid of a large chest and set it on the right-hand side of the altar at the entrance of the Temple of the Lord. The priests guarding the entrance put all of the people’s contributions into the chest. 10 Whenever the chest became full, the court secretary and the high priest counted the money that had been brought to the Lord’s Temple and put it into bags. 11 Then they gave the money to the construction supervisors, who used it to pay the people working on the Lord’s Temple—the carpenters, the builders, 12 the masons, and the stonecutters. They also used the money to buy the timber and the finished stone needed for repairing the Lord’s Temple, and they paid any other expenses related to the Temple’s restoration.
13 The money brought to the Temple was not used for making silver bowls, lamp snuffers, basins, trumpets, or other articles of gold or silver for the Temple of the Lord. 14 It was paid to the workmen, who used it for the Temple repairs. 15 No accounting of this money was required from the construction supervisors, because they were honest and trustworthy men.
Footnotes:
12:1a Verses 12:1-21 are numbered 12:2-22 in Hebrew text.
12:1b Hebrew Jehoash, a variant spelling of Joash; also in 12:2, 4, 6, 7, 18.
INSIGHT:
When a rival attempted to exterminate the royal family, Joash (whose name means “Yahweh has helped”) was rescued and protected by the high priest Jehoiada (whose name means “Yahweh knows”). Jehoiada would later see Joash installed as king (2 Kings 11:1–16). Joash was the eighth king of Judah, and he became king when he was only seven years old. Dennis Moles
Doing Right in God’s Sight
By Amy Boucher Pye
Joash did what was right . . . all the years Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 2 Kings 12:2
“Cowboy builders” is a term many British homeowners use for tradespeople who do shoddy construction work. The term is bandied about with fear or regret, often because of bad experiences.
No doubt there were rogue carpenters, masons, and stonecutters in biblical times, but tucked away in the story of King Joash repairing the temple is a line about the complete honesty of those who oversaw and did the work (2 Kings 12:15).
However, King Joash “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord” (v. 2) only when Jehoiada the priest instructed him. As we see in 2 Chronicles 24:17-27, after Jehoiada died Joash turned from the Lord and was persuaded to worship other gods.
The mixed legacy of a king who enjoyed a season of fruitfulness only while under the spiritual counsel of a godly priest makes me stop and think. What will our legacies be? Will we continue to grow and develop in our faith throughout our lives, producing good fruit? Or will we become distracted by the things of this world and turn to modern-day idols—such as comfort, materialism, and self-promotion?
Go deeper: How does this passage compare with Jesus’ letter to the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2? How do these passages apply to your life?
For help in understanding and applying the Bible, read A Message for All Time from Discovery Series.
Living well and doing right require perseverance and spiritual direction.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Spontaneous Love
Love suffers long and is kind… —1 Corinthians 13:4
Love is not premeditated– it is spontaneous; that is, it bursts forth in extraordinary ways. There is nothing of precise certainty in Paul’s description of love. We cannot predetermine our thoughts and actions by saying, “Now I will never think any evil thoughts, and I will believe everything that Jesus would have me to believe.” No, the characteristic of love is spontaneity. We don’t deliberately set the statements of Jesus before us as our standard, but when His Spirit is having His way with us, we live according to His standard without even realizing it. And when we look back, we are amazed at how unconcerned we have been over our emotions, which is the very evidence that real spontaneous love was there. The nature of everything involved in the life of God in us is only discerned when we have been through it and it is in our past.
The fountains from which love flows are in God, not in us. It is absurd to think that the love of God is naturally in our hearts, as a result of our own nature. His love is there only because it “has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit…” (Romans 5:5).
If we try to prove to God how much we love Him, it is a sure sign that we really don’t love Him. The evidence of our love for Him is the absolute spontaneity of our love, which flows naturally from His nature within us. And when we look back, we will not be able to determine why we did certain things, but we can know that we did them according to the spontaneous nature of His love in us. The life of God exhibits itself in this spontaneous way because the fountains of His love are in the Holy Spirit.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
It is perilously possible to make our conceptions of God like molten lead poured into a specially designed mould, and when it is cold and hard we fling it at the heads of the religious people who don’t agree with us. Disciples Indeed, 388 R
We live in a trashy world. Unwanted garbage comes our way on a regular basis. Haven't you been handed a trash sack of mishaps and heartaches? Surely you have. What are you going to do with it?
You have several options. You could take the trash bag and cram it under your coat and pretend it isn't there. But you and I know you won't fool anyone. Besides, sooner or later it'll start to stink. Or you could disguise it. Paint it green, put it on the front lawn and tell everyone it's a tree. Again, no one will be fooled. So what will you do?
If you follow the example of Christ, you'll learn to see tough times differently. God loves you the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to have a hope-filled heart-just like Jesus!
From Just Like Jesus
Psalm 146
1 Praise the Lord!
Let all that I am praise the Lord.
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.
3 Don’t put your confidence in powerful people;
there is no help for you there.
4 When they breathe their last, they return to the earth,
and all their plans die with them.
5 But joyful are those who have the God of Israel[a] as their helper,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
6 He made heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them.
He keeps every promise forever.
7 He gives justice to the oppressed
and food to the hungry.
The Lord frees the prisoners.
8 The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down.
The Lord loves the godly.
9 The Lord protects the foreigners among us.
He cares for the orphans and widows,
but he frustrates the plans of the wicked.
10 The Lord will reign forever.
He will be your God, O Jerusalem,[b] throughout the generations.
Praise the Lord!
Footnotes:
146:5 Hebrew of Jacob. See note on 44:4.
146:10 Hebrew Zion.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Read: 2 Kings 12:1-15
Joash Repairs the Temple
12 [a]Joash[b] began to rule over Judah in the seventh year of King Jehu’s reign in Israel. He reigned in Jerusalem forty years. His mother was Zibiah from Beersheba. 2 All his life Joash did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight because Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 3 Yet even so, he did not destroy the pagan shrines, and the people still offered sacrifices and burned incense there.
4 One day King Joash said to the priests, “Collect all the money brought as a sacred offering to the Lord’s Temple, whether it is a regular assessment, a payment of vows, or a voluntary gift. 5 Let the priests take some of that money to pay for whatever repairs are needed at the Temple.”
6 But by the twenty-third year of Joash’s reign, the priests still had not repaired the Temple. 7 So King Joash called for Jehoiada and the other priests and asked them, “Why haven’t you repaired the Temple? Don’t use any more money for your own needs. From now on, it must all be spent on Temple repairs.” 8 So the priests agreed not to accept any more money from the people, and they also agreed to let others take responsibility for repairing the Temple.
9 Then Jehoiada the priest bored a hole in the lid of a large chest and set it on the right-hand side of the altar at the entrance of the Temple of the Lord. The priests guarding the entrance put all of the people’s contributions into the chest. 10 Whenever the chest became full, the court secretary and the high priest counted the money that had been brought to the Lord’s Temple and put it into bags. 11 Then they gave the money to the construction supervisors, who used it to pay the people working on the Lord’s Temple—the carpenters, the builders, 12 the masons, and the stonecutters. They also used the money to buy the timber and the finished stone needed for repairing the Lord’s Temple, and they paid any other expenses related to the Temple’s restoration.
13 The money brought to the Temple was not used for making silver bowls, lamp snuffers, basins, trumpets, or other articles of gold or silver for the Temple of the Lord. 14 It was paid to the workmen, who used it for the Temple repairs. 15 No accounting of this money was required from the construction supervisors, because they were honest and trustworthy men.
Footnotes:
12:1a Verses 12:1-21 are numbered 12:2-22 in Hebrew text.
12:1b Hebrew Jehoash, a variant spelling of Joash; also in 12:2, 4, 6, 7, 18.
INSIGHT:
When a rival attempted to exterminate the royal family, Joash (whose name means “Yahweh has helped”) was rescued and protected by the high priest Jehoiada (whose name means “Yahweh knows”). Jehoiada would later see Joash installed as king (2 Kings 11:1–16). Joash was the eighth king of Judah, and he became king when he was only seven years old. Dennis Moles
Doing Right in God’s Sight
By Amy Boucher Pye
Joash did what was right . . . all the years Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 2 Kings 12:2
“Cowboy builders” is a term many British homeowners use for tradespeople who do shoddy construction work. The term is bandied about with fear or regret, often because of bad experiences.
No doubt there were rogue carpenters, masons, and stonecutters in biblical times, but tucked away in the story of King Joash repairing the temple is a line about the complete honesty of those who oversaw and did the work (2 Kings 12:15).
However, King Joash “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord” (v. 2) only when Jehoiada the priest instructed him. As we see in 2 Chronicles 24:17-27, after Jehoiada died Joash turned from the Lord and was persuaded to worship other gods.
The mixed legacy of a king who enjoyed a season of fruitfulness only while under the spiritual counsel of a godly priest makes me stop and think. What will our legacies be? Will we continue to grow and develop in our faith throughout our lives, producing good fruit? Or will we become distracted by the things of this world and turn to modern-day idols—such as comfort, materialism, and self-promotion?
Go deeper: How does this passage compare with Jesus’ letter to the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2? How do these passages apply to your life?
For help in understanding and applying the Bible, read A Message for All Time from Discovery Series.
Living well and doing right require perseverance and spiritual direction.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Spontaneous Love
Love suffers long and is kind… —1 Corinthians 13:4
Love is not premeditated– it is spontaneous; that is, it bursts forth in extraordinary ways. There is nothing of precise certainty in Paul’s description of love. We cannot predetermine our thoughts and actions by saying, “Now I will never think any evil thoughts, and I will believe everything that Jesus would have me to believe.” No, the characteristic of love is spontaneity. We don’t deliberately set the statements of Jesus before us as our standard, but when His Spirit is having His way with us, we live according to His standard without even realizing it. And when we look back, we are amazed at how unconcerned we have been over our emotions, which is the very evidence that real spontaneous love was there. The nature of everything involved in the life of God in us is only discerned when we have been through it and it is in our past.
The fountains from which love flows are in God, not in us. It is absurd to think that the love of God is naturally in our hearts, as a result of our own nature. His love is there only because it “has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit…” (Romans 5:5).
If we try to prove to God how much we love Him, it is a sure sign that we really don’t love Him. The evidence of our love for Him is the absolute spontaneity of our love, which flows naturally from His nature within us. And when we look back, we will not be able to determine why we did certain things, but we can know that we did them according to the spontaneous nature of His love in us. The life of God exhibits itself in this spontaneous way because the fountains of His love are in the Holy Spirit.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
It is perilously possible to make our conceptions of God like molten lead poured into a specially designed mould, and when it is cold and hard we fling it at the heads of the religious people who don’t agree with us. Disciples Indeed, 388 R
Friday, April 29, 2016
Psalm 136, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: A Scrapbook of Jesus' Life
The story of Jesus reads a bit like a scrapbook. Headline clippings; Jesus' favorite stories and lesson outlines; and Luke's snapshot of Jesus riding in Peter's boat. Matthew took the group photo when the seventy followers met for a party after the first mission trip. John pasted a wedding napkin from Cana in the book as well as a funeral program from Bethany.
There are so many other things Jesus did. In fact, in his gospel record, John says if they were all written down, each of them…I can't imagine a world big enough to hold such a library of books. (John 21:25)
Who was this man, Jesus Christ? No question matters more. Consider reading the entire story from the Bethlehem manger to the vacated tomb. Keep in mind that the final entries of the story are yet to come, including the snapshot of you and your Savior at heaven's gateway!
From 3:16
Psalm 136
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.
2 Give thanks to the God of gods.
His faithful love endures forever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords.
His faithful love endures forever.
4 Give thanks to him who alone does mighty miracles.
His faithful love endures forever.
5 Give thanks to him who made the heavens so skillfully.
His faithful love endures forever.
6 Give thanks to him who placed the earth among the waters.
His faithful love endures forever.
7 Give thanks to him who made the heavenly lights—
His faithful love endures forever.
8 the sun to rule the day,
His faithful love endures forever.
9 and the moon and stars to rule the night.
His faithful love endures forever.
10 Give thanks to him who killed the firstborn of Egypt.
His faithful love endures forever.
11 He brought Israel out of Egypt.
His faithful love endures forever.
12 He acted with a strong hand and powerful arm.
His faithful love endures forever.
13 Give thanks to him who parted the Red Sea.[a]
His faithful love endures forever.
14 He led Israel safely through,
His faithful love endures forever.
15 but he hurled Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea.
His faithful love endures forever.
16 Give thanks to him who led his people through the wilderness.
His faithful love endures forever.
17 Give thanks to him who struck down mighty kings.
His faithful love endures forever.
18 He killed powerful kings—
His faithful love endures forever.
19 Sihon king of the Amorites,
His faithful love endures forever.
20 and Og king of Bashan.
His faithful love endures forever.
21 God gave the land of these kings as an inheritance—
His faithful love endures forever.
22 a special possession to his servant Israel.
His faithful love endures forever.
23 He remembered us in our weakness.
His faithful love endures forever.
24 He saved us from our enemies.
His faithful love endures forever.
25 He gives food to every living thing.
His faithful love endures forever.
26 Give thanks to the God of heaven.
His faithful love endures forever.
Footnotes: 136:13 Hebrew sea of reeds; also in 136:15.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, April 29, 2016
Read: 2 Corinthians 2:14-17
Ministers of the New Covenant
But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession. Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume. 15 Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God. But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being saved and by those who are perishing. 16 To those who are perishing, we are a dreadful smell of death and doom. But to those who are being saved, we are a life-giving perfume. And who is adequate for such a task as this?
17 You see, we are not like the many hucksters[a] who preach for personal profit. We preach the word of God with sincerity and with Christ’s authority, knowing that God is watching us.
Footnotes:
2:17 Some manuscripts read the rest of the hucksters.
INSIGHT:
The imagery of a pleasing aroma coming up before the Lord appears in several different ways in Scripture. In the Old Testament, one of the pieces of furniture in the tabernacle was the altar for burning incense (Ex. 30:1). Along with the lampstand and the table for the bread of the Presence, the incense altar was in the holy place—just outside the Holy of Holies. In Revelation 8:3–4 incense is offered on the altar in heaven. This incense is connected to the prayers of the people of God. We see that not only can our lives be a pleasing aroma to God, but our prayers can be as well. Bill Crowder
The Fragrance of Christ
By Marion Stroud
We are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ. 2 Corinthians 2:15
Which of the five senses brings back your memories most sharply? For me it is definitely the sense of smell. A certain kind of sun oil takes me instantly to a French beach. The smell of chicken mash brings back childhood visits to my grandmother. A hint of pine says “Christmas,” and a certain kind of aftershave reminds me of my son’s teenage years.
Paul reminded the Corinthians that they were the aroma of Christ: “For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ” (2 Cor. 2:15). He may have been referring to Roman victory parades. The Romans made sure everyone knew they had been victorious by burning incense on altars throughout the city. For the victors, the aroma was pleasing; for the prisoners it meant certain slavery or death. So as believers, we are victorious soldiers. And when the gospel of Christ is preached, it is a pleasing fragrance to God.
When we walk with God, people will notice.
As the aroma of Christ, what perfumes do Christians bring with them as they walk into a room? It’s not something that can be bought in a bottle or a jar. When we spend a lot of time with someone, we begin to think and act like that person. Spending time with Jesus will help us spread a pleasing fragrance to those around us.
Lord, please shape my thoughts and actions so people may sense that I have been with You.
When we walk with God, people will notice.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, April 29, 2016
Gracious Uncertainty
…it has not yet been revealed what we shall be… —1 John 3:2
Our natural inclination is to be so precise– trying always to forecast accurately what will happen next– that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing. We think that we must reach some predetermined goal, but that is not the nature of the spiritual life. The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty. Consequently, we do not put down roots. Our common sense says, “Well, what if I were in that circumstance?” We cannot presume to see ourselves in any circumstance in which we have never been.
Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life– gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life. To be certain of God means that we are uncertain in all our ways, not knowing what tomorrow may bring. This is generally expressed with a sigh of sadness, but it should be an expression of breathless expectation. We are uncertain of the next step, but we are certain of God. As soon as we abandon ourselves to God and do the task He has placed closest to us, He begins to fill our lives with surprises. When we become simply a promoter or a defender of a particular belief, something within us dies. That is not believing God– it is only believing our belief about Him. Jesus said, “…unless you…become as little children…” (Matthew 18:3). The spiritual life is the life of a child. We are not uncertain of God, just uncertain of what He is going to do next. If our certainty is only in our beliefs, we develop a sense of self-righteousness, become overly critical, and are limited by the view that our beliefs are complete and settled. But when we have the right relationship with God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy. Jesus said, “…believe also in Me” (John 14:1), not, “Believe certain things about Me”. Leave everything to Him and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in– but you can be certain that He will come. Remain faithful to Him.
Wisdom From Oswald Chambers
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.
Not Knowing Whither
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, April 29, 2016
Rubbing It In - #7645
Okay, it's Wild Kingdom trivia quiz time. What is an emu? If you guessed a big old Australian bird that can't fly, you're right. They can't fly, but they can produce oil. Yeah! Boy, my wife, she was glad they do. She had been having some severe pain in her back and arm. We decided to go ahead with our plans to spend a few days away with our family. The place we were staying at had bottles of emu oil for sale, of all things, at the cash register. I'd never heard of emu oil. And I wasn't jumping up and down to buy some, actually. But the owners said it might help give my wife a little relief. So, "Hello, emu oil." Now it wasn't a miracle cure, but we do think it helped. I would just put a blob of it on her back and gently rub it into her back and arm. Actually, that blob of emu oil wouldn't have done much good just sitting on her back. You had to rub it in for it to really help.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Rubbing It In."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Luke 6:46-49. It's about rubbing it in. Jesus said, "Why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord' and do not do what I say?" Key words here: "do not do." It reminds me of James 1:22 - "Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." In other words, just having a big blob of Bible information in your brain won't do anything but make you think you're doing fine spiritually when you're not. You have to rub it in!
Let's continue with Luke 6:47. "I will show you what he is like who comes to Me and hears My words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it because it was well built." (Now we have a flashback from Sunday School, "The wise man built his house on the rock and the rains came tumbling down..." But that's not your problem. That's mine.)
The Bible is really what makes a difference in a person's life when a storm hits. Then you're storm proof. "But the one," it says, "who hears My words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete."
Notice - it isn't knowing His words that make the difference. It's putting them into practice; he who puts them into practice and he who doesn't. Which one are you? This means every time you read God's words, you should be coming away with a "do" because of what God said. "Lord, what did I read today and what do I 'do' differently because of what I read? I'll take this action, I'll make this change."
Just having that emu oil didn't help my wife's situation. Just getting into it didn't do anything. It had to be rubbed in; it had to become a part of her. The Bible is like that. Just getting into the Bible isn't what transforms your life. It's getting the Bible into you, into some specific application in today's experience; something that changes part of you that day. It could be you know a lot of verses, you have some great outlines from some great speakers. Maybe you listen to a lot of broadcasts like this. Maybe even you're a real student of the Bible; you're getting Biblically smarter. You know some of the big words to call things now. Your spiritual vocabulary is growing, but somehow you're not really becoming more and more like Jesus, which is the point of it all. There are blobs of Bible, but you just haven't been rubbing it into your soul, your personality, your relationships, your priorities and your everyday life.
It's not enough to read God's words just to know what He says to analyze it, or even to understand what He says, though that's important. Ultimately, I have to read God's words to let them change me in some specific way! So each new day, are you opening up to the transforming oil of God's Word and are you letting God rub it in?
Getting into His words is enlightening; getting His words into you is transforming!
Thursday, April 28, 2016
1 Corinthians 2, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: GIVE GOD YOUR ANSWER
John 3:16! Millions quote it. Only a handful trust it! “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Wary of a catch perhaps? Cautioned by guarded friends? Desperation heightens our interest. When he asks for a divorce or she says, “It’s over.” When the coroner calls, the kids rebel, or the finances collapse. When desperation typhoons into your world, God’s offer of a free flight home demands a second look. John 3:16 morphs from a nice verse to a life vest.
Some of you are wearing it. For you, the passage comforts like your favorite blanket. Don’t walk away from it! Give God your answer. Ephesians 3:17 promises, “Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in!”
From 3:16
1 Corinthians 2
Paul’s Message of Wisdom
When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters,[a] I didn’t use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan.[b] 2 For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God.
6 Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. 7 No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God[c]—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. 8 But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. 9 That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
for those who love him.”[d]
10 But[e] it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.
13 When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths.[f] 14 But people who aren’t spiritual[g] can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 15 Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. 16 For,
“Who can know the Lord’s thoughts?
Who knows enough to teach him?”[h]
But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.
Footnotes:
2:1a Greek brothers.
2:1b Greek God’s mystery; other manuscripts read God’s testimony.
2:7 Greek But we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery.
2:9 Isa 64:4.
2:10 Some manuscripts read For.
2:13 Or explaining spiritual truths in spiritual language, or explaining spiritual truths to spiritual people.
2:14 Or who don’t have the Spirit; or who have only physical life.
2:16 Isa 40:13 (Greek version).
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Read: Malachi 1:1-10; 4:5-6
This is the message[a] that the Lord gave to Israel through the prophet Malachi.[b]
The Lord’s Love for Israel
2 “I have always loved you,” says the Lord.
But you retort, “Really? How have you loved us?”
And the Lord replies, “This is how I showed my love for you: I loved your ancestor Jacob, 3 but I rejected his brother, Esau, and devastated his hill country. I turned Esau’s inheritance into a desert for jackals.”
4 Esau’s descendants in Edom may say, “We have been shattered, but we will rebuild the ruins.”
But the Lord of Heaven’s Armies replies, “They may try to rebuild, but I will demolish them again. Their country will be known as ‘The Land of Wickedness,’ and their people will be called ‘The People with Whom the Lord Is Forever Angry.’ 5 When you see the destruction for yourselves, you will say, ‘Truly, the Lord’s greatness reaches far beyond Israel’s borders!’”
Unworthy Sacrifices
6 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to the priests: “A son honors his father, and a servant respects his master. If I am your father and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve? You have shown contempt for my name!
“But you ask, ‘How have we ever shown contempt for your name?’
7 “You have shown contempt by offering defiled sacrifices on my altar.
“Then you ask, ‘How have we defiled the sacrifices?[c]’
“You defile them by saying the altar of the Lord deserves no respect. 8 When you give blind animals as sacrifices, isn’t that wrong? And isn’t it wrong to offer animals that are crippled and diseased? Try giving gifts like that to your governor, and see how pleased he is!” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
9 “Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you! But when you bring that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
10 “How I wish one of you would shut the Temple doors so that these worthless sacrifices could not be offered! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and I will not accept your offerings.
Footnotes:
1:1a Hebrew An Oracle: The message.
1:1b Malachi means “my messenger.”
1:7 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads defiled you?
Malachi 4:5-6New Living Translation (NLT)
5 “Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord arrives. 6 His preaching will turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise I will come and strike the land with a curse.”
An Amazing Love
By Dave Branon
“I have loved you,” says the Lord. Malachi 1:2
The final major historic acts of the Old Testament are described in Ezra and Nehemiah as God allowed the people of Israel to return from exile and resettle in Jerusalem. The City of David was repopulated with Hebrew families, a new temple was built, and the wall was repaired.
And that brings us to Malachi. This prophet, who was most likely a contemporary of Nehemiah, brings the written portion of the Old Testament to a close. Notice the first thing he said to the people of Israel: “ ‘I have loved you,’ says the Lord.” And look at their response: “How have you loved us?” (1:2).
Those who put their trust in Jesus will have eternal life.
Amazing, isn’t it? Their history had proven God’s faithfulness, yet after hundreds of years in which God continually provided for His chosen people in both miraculous and mundane ways, they wondered how He had shown His love. As the book continues, Malachi reminds the people of their unfaithfulness (see vv. 6-8). They had a long historical pattern of God’s provision for them, followed by their disobedience, followed by God’s discipline.
It was time, soon, for a new way. The prophet hints at it in Malachi 4:5-6. The Messiah would be coming. There was hope ahead for a Savior who would show us His love and pay the penalty once and for all for our sin.
That Messiah indeed has come! Malachi’s hope is now a reality in Jesus.
Thank You, Father, for the story You told in Your Word of the people of Israel. It reminds us to be grateful for what You have done for us. Thank You for loving us so much You sent us Jesus.
Those who put their trust in Jesus will have eternal life.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, April 28, 2016
I will give your life to you as a prize in all places, wherever you go. —Jeremiah 45:5
This is the firm and immovable secret of the Lord to those who trust Him– “I will give your life to you….” What more does a man want than his life? It is the essential thing. “…your life…as a prize…” means that wherever you may go, even if it is into hell, you will come out with your life and nothing can harm it. So many of us are caught up in exhibiting things for others to see, not showing off property and possessions, but our blessings. All these things that we so proudly show have to go. But there is something greater that can never go– the life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).
Are you prepared to let God take you into total oneness with Himself, paying no more attention to what you call the great things of life? Are you prepared to surrender totally and let go? The true test of abandonment or surrender is in refusing to say, “Well, what about this?” Beware of your own ideas and speculations. The moment you allow yourself to think, “What about this?” you show that you have not surrendered and that you do not really trust God. But once you do surrender, you will no longer think about what God is going to do. Abandonment means to refuse yourself the luxury of asking any questions. If you totally abandon yourself to God, He immediately says to you, “I will give your life to you as a prize….” The reason people are tired of life is that God has not given them anything— they have not been given their life “as a prize.” The way to get out of that condition is to abandon yourself to God. And once you do get to the point of total surrender to Him, you will be the most surprised and delighted person on earth. God will have you absolutely, without any limitations, and He will have given you your life. If you are not there, it is either because of disobedience in your life or your refusal to be simple enough.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The sympathy which is reverent with what it cannot understand is worth its weight in gold. Baffled to Fight Better, 69 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, April 28, 2016
The Scary Truth About Grandchildren - #7644
There's no greater gift our daughter and son-in-law have ever given my wife and me than the little guy that was our first grandchild and the ones that have come since. From the night he was born, our hearts were all wrapped around that precious new life and they still are even though he's grown up. We would jump at the chance to babysit, and believe me; our rates were well below the market. But eventually, we took him home, and it was our turn to relax. That's the cycle of life. I had my chance to be the father of a child when my children were born. A grandchild is grand, but he's really not your child.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Scary Truth About Grandchildren."
Now, I love being a grandfather. God doesn't. Well, He loves being a Father, but the Bible reveals the startling, unsettling truth that God has no grandchildren. Lots of children, but no grandchildren.
There really is no more critical, life-or-death issue in our lives than whether or not we belong to God. Not whether we believe in Him; whether we belong to Him; whether or not we have a personal relationship with Him. So much in this life and everything after this life depends on whether we are in God's family.
Our word for today from the Word of God can really help us determine if we are or we're not. It's found in John 1:12. God says, speaking of Jesus, "To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God." Now, notice we're not automatically born a child of God. We're all His creation, but we're not all His children. There's got to be a spiritual birth for that to take place. And apparently a lot of people who know a lot about Jesus, who have been around Jesus a lot, who are in a religion about Jesus can miss Jesus. These verses tell us that Jesus "came to that which was His own, but His own did not recognize Him."
God makes it clear that you don't belong to Him unless you have personally been born into a relationship with Him as His child. He has no second-generation people in His family. You won't go to heaven because your mom or dad belongs to Jesus, or because your son or daughter does or your husband or wife. You're not God's child just because you've been around God's children your whole life, even if you've been acting like one of God's children.
My daughter is my daughter by one simple fact: there was a day she was born into my family. Without that birth, there's no relationship. Without a personal spiritual rebirth, there is no relationship between you and God, no forgiveness, no heaven. And God tells us exactly how and when you can be spiritually born. His children are those who it says, "received Him (Jesus)...those who believed." That means the day you reach out to Jesus in total trust and say, "Lord, You are my only hope of having my sins forgiven, of belonging to God, because You are the only One who died to pay for my sins, to pay the awful death penalty; to take my hell to go to Your heaven."
You may be surrounded by Christianity, but missing Christ. Well, today could be your day to change that. It could be your spiritual birthday forever. If you want to begin this incredible relationship with Jesus Christ that must have a definite beginning, let Him know that. Tell Him that right now, "Jesus, knowing about You is not enough for me. Having a religion about You is not enough. I know that it will never be enough to get me into heaven or You would have never died on that cross. But, Jesus, I see now how personal that was and that I must embrace You. I must grab You like a drowning person would grab a lifeguard. Jesus, You are my only hope. And beginning today, I'm yours."
I want you to go to our website because I've tried to put there in the simplest of terms the information you need to be sure you have anchored your life and your eternity to Jesus. It's ANewStory.com.
All these years beneath all the Christian words and Christian activities and maybe masks you've known in your heart that someone was missing, and it's been Jesus all along. But that's about to end if you'll give yourself to Him. Then when God opens His family album on Judgment Day – the one with no grandchildren – there you'll be: a child of God, born this very day.
John 3:16! Millions quote it. Only a handful trust it! “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Wary of a catch perhaps? Cautioned by guarded friends? Desperation heightens our interest. When he asks for a divorce or she says, “It’s over.” When the coroner calls, the kids rebel, or the finances collapse. When desperation typhoons into your world, God’s offer of a free flight home demands a second look. John 3:16 morphs from a nice verse to a life vest.
Some of you are wearing it. For you, the passage comforts like your favorite blanket. Don’t walk away from it! Give God your answer. Ephesians 3:17 promises, “Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in!”
From 3:16
1 Corinthians 2
Paul’s Message of Wisdom
When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters,[a] I didn’t use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan.[b] 2 For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God.
6 Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. 7 No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God[c]—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. 8 But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. 9 That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
for those who love him.”[d]
10 But[e] it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.
13 When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths.[f] 14 But people who aren’t spiritual[g] can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 15 Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. 16 For,
“Who can know the Lord’s thoughts?
Who knows enough to teach him?”[h]
But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.
Footnotes:
2:1a Greek brothers.
2:1b Greek God’s mystery; other manuscripts read God’s testimony.
2:7 Greek But we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery.
2:9 Isa 64:4.
2:10 Some manuscripts read For.
2:13 Or explaining spiritual truths in spiritual language, or explaining spiritual truths to spiritual people.
2:14 Or who don’t have the Spirit; or who have only physical life.
2:16 Isa 40:13 (Greek version).
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Read: Malachi 1:1-10; 4:5-6
This is the message[a] that the Lord gave to Israel through the prophet Malachi.[b]
The Lord’s Love for Israel
2 “I have always loved you,” says the Lord.
But you retort, “Really? How have you loved us?”
And the Lord replies, “This is how I showed my love for you: I loved your ancestor Jacob, 3 but I rejected his brother, Esau, and devastated his hill country. I turned Esau’s inheritance into a desert for jackals.”
4 Esau’s descendants in Edom may say, “We have been shattered, but we will rebuild the ruins.”
But the Lord of Heaven’s Armies replies, “They may try to rebuild, but I will demolish them again. Their country will be known as ‘The Land of Wickedness,’ and their people will be called ‘The People with Whom the Lord Is Forever Angry.’ 5 When you see the destruction for yourselves, you will say, ‘Truly, the Lord’s greatness reaches far beyond Israel’s borders!’”
Unworthy Sacrifices
6 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to the priests: “A son honors his father, and a servant respects his master. If I am your father and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve? You have shown contempt for my name!
“But you ask, ‘How have we ever shown contempt for your name?’
7 “You have shown contempt by offering defiled sacrifices on my altar.
“Then you ask, ‘How have we defiled the sacrifices?[c]’
“You defile them by saying the altar of the Lord deserves no respect. 8 When you give blind animals as sacrifices, isn’t that wrong? And isn’t it wrong to offer animals that are crippled and diseased? Try giving gifts like that to your governor, and see how pleased he is!” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
9 “Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you! But when you bring that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
10 “How I wish one of you would shut the Temple doors so that these worthless sacrifices could not be offered! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and I will not accept your offerings.
Footnotes:
1:1a Hebrew An Oracle: The message.
1:1b Malachi means “my messenger.”
1:7 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads defiled you?
Malachi 4:5-6New Living Translation (NLT)
5 “Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord arrives. 6 His preaching will turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise I will come and strike the land with a curse.”
An Amazing Love
By Dave Branon
“I have loved you,” says the Lord. Malachi 1:2
The final major historic acts of the Old Testament are described in Ezra and Nehemiah as God allowed the people of Israel to return from exile and resettle in Jerusalem. The City of David was repopulated with Hebrew families, a new temple was built, and the wall was repaired.
And that brings us to Malachi. This prophet, who was most likely a contemporary of Nehemiah, brings the written portion of the Old Testament to a close. Notice the first thing he said to the people of Israel: “ ‘I have loved you,’ says the Lord.” And look at their response: “How have you loved us?” (1:2).
Those who put their trust in Jesus will have eternal life.
Amazing, isn’t it? Their history had proven God’s faithfulness, yet after hundreds of years in which God continually provided for His chosen people in both miraculous and mundane ways, they wondered how He had shown His love. As the book continues, Malachi reminds the people of their unfaithfulness (see vv. 6-8). They had a long historical pattern of God’s provision for them, followed by their disobedience, followed by God’s discipline.
It was time, soon, for a new way. The prophet hints at it in Malachi 4:5-6. The Messiah would be coming. There was hope ahead for a Savior who would show us His love and pay the penalty once and for all for our sin.
That Messiah indeed has come! Malachi’s hope is now a reality in Jesus.
Thank You, Father, for the story You told in Your Word of the people of Israel. It reminds us to be grateful for what You have done for us. Thank You for loving us so much You sent us Jesus.
Those who put their trust in Jesus will have eternal life.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, April 28, 2016
I will give your life to you as a prize in all places, wherever you go. —Jeremiah 45:5
This is the firm and immovable secret of the Lord to those who trust Him– “I will give your life to you….” What more does a man want than his life? It is the essential thing. “…your life…as a prize…” means that wherever you may go, even if it is into hell, you will come out with your life and nothing can harm it. So many of us are caught up in exhibiting things for others to see, not showing off property and possessions, but our blessings. All these things that we so proudly show have to go. But there is something greater that can never go– the life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).
Are you prepared to let God take you into total oneness with Himself, paying no more attention to what you call the great things of life? Are you prepared to surrender totally and let go? The true test of abandonment or surrender is in refusing to say, “Well, what about this?” Beware of your own ideas and speculations. The moment you allow yourself to think, “What about this?” you show that you have not surrendered and that you do not really trust God. But once you do surrender, you will no longer think about what God is going to do. Abandonment means to refuse yourself the luxury of asking any questions. If you totally abandon yourself to God, He immediately says to you, “I will give your life to you as a prize….” The reason people are tired of life is that God has not given them anything— they have not been given their life “as a prize.” The way to get out of that condition is to abandon yourself to God. And once you do get to the point of total surrender to Him, you will be the most surprised and delighted person on earth. God will have you absolutely, without any limitations, and He will have given you your life. If you are not there, it is either because of disobedience in your life or your refusal to be simple enough.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The sympathy which is reverent with what it cannot understand is worth its weight in gold. Baffled to Fight Better, 69 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, April 28, 2016
The Scary Truth About Grandchildren - #7644
There's no greater gift our daughter and son-in-law have ever given my wife and me than the little guy that was our first grandchild and the ones that have come since. From the night he was born, our hearts were all wrapped around that precious new life and they still are even though he's grown up. We would jump at the chance to babysit, and believe me; our rates were well below the market. But eventually, we took him home, and it was our turn to relax. That's the cycle of life. I had my chance to be the father of a child when my children were born. A grandchild is grand, but he's really not your child.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Scary Truth About Grandchildren."
Now, I love being a grandfather. God doesn't. Well, He loves being a Father, but the Bible reveals the startling, unsettling truth that God has no grandchildren. Lots of children, but no grandchildren.
There really is no more critical, life-or-death issue in our lives than whether or not we belong to God. Not whether we believe in Him; whether we belong to Him; whether or not we have a personal relationship with Him. So much in this life and everything after this life depends on whether we are in God's family.
Our word for today from the Word of God can really help us determine if we are or we're not. It's found in John 1:12. God says, speaking of Jesus, "To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God." Now, notice we're not automatically born a child of God. We're all His creation, but we're not all His children. There's got to be a spiritual birth for that to take place. And apparently a lot of people who know a lot about Jesus, who have been around Jesus a lot, who are in a religion about Jesus can miss Jesus. These verses tell us that Jesus "came to that which was His own, but His own did not recognize Him."
God makes it clear that you don't belong to Him unless you have personally been born into a relationship with Him as His child. He has no second-generation people in His family. You won't go to heaven because your mom or dad belongs to Jesus, or because your son or daughter does or your husband or wife. You're not God's child just because you've been around God's children your whole life, even if you've been acting like one of God's children.
My daughter is my daughter by one simple fact: there was a day she was born into my family. Without that birth, there's no relationship. Without a personal spiritual rebirth, there is no relationship between you and God, no forgiveness, no heaven. And God tells us exactly how and when you can be spiritually born. His children are those who it says, "received Him (Jesus)...those who believed." That means the day you reach out to Jesus in total trust and say, "Lord, You are my only hope of having my sins forgiven, of belonging to God, because You are the only One who died to pay for my sins, to pay the awful death penalty; to take my hell to go to Your heaven."
You may be surrounded by Christianity, but missing Christ. Well, today could be your day to change that. It could be your spiritual birthday forever. If you want to begin this incredible relationship with Jesus Christ that must have a definite beginning, let Him know that. Tell Him that right now, "Jesus, knowing about You is not enough for me. Having a religion about You is not enough. I know that it will never be enough to get me into heaven or You would have never died on that cross. But, Jesus, I see now how personal that was and that I must embrace You. I must grab You like a drowning person would grab a lifeguard. Jesus, You are my only hope. And beginning today, I'm yours."
I want you to go to our website because I've tried to put there in the simplest of terms the information you need to be sure you have anchored your life and your eternity to Jesus. It's ANewStory.com.
All these years beneath all the Christian words and Christian activities and maybe masks you've known in your heart that someone was missing, and it's been Jesus all along. But that's about to end if you'll give yourself to Him. Then when God opens His family album on Judgment Day – the one with no grandchildren – there you'll be: a child of God, born this very day.
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
Psalm 135, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: OUR NAZARETHS
Millions facing the chill of empty pockets or the fears of sudden change turn to Christ. Why? Because he’s been there! He’s been to Nazareth where he made deadlines and paid bills and he’s been to Jerusalem where he stared down critics and stood up against cynics.
We have our Nazareths as well. Jesus wasn’t the last to build a team, and his accusers didn’t disappear with Jerusalem’s temple. Why seek Jesus’ help with your challenges? Because he’s been there.
But most of all he’s been to the grave. Not as a visitor, but as a corpse. Body wrapped and grave sealed. Buried. You haven’t yet, but you will be. And since you will…don’t you need someone who knows the way out? God has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead! A way to have life that cannot be destroyed!
From 3:16
Psalm 135
Praise the Lord!
Praise the name of the Lord!
Praise him, you who serve the Lord,
2 you who serve in the house of the Lord,
in the courts of the house of our God.
3 Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;
celebrate his lovely name with music.
4 For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself,
Israel for his own special treasure.
5 I know the greatness of the Lord—
that our Lord is greater than any other god.
6 The Lord does whatever pleases him
throughout all heaven and earth,
and on the seas and in their depths.
7 He causes the clouds to rise over the whole earth.
He sends the lightning with the rain
and releases the wind from his storehouses.
8 He destroyed the firstborn in each Egyptian home,
both people and animals.
9 He performed miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt
against Pharaoh and all his people.
10 He struck down great nations
and slaughtered mighty kings—
11 Sihon king of the Amorites,
Og king of Bashan,
and all the kings of Canaan.
12 He gave their land as an inheritance,
a special possession to his people Israel.
13 Your name, O Lord, endures forever;
your fame, O Lord, is known to every generation.
14 For the Lord will give justice to his people
and have compassion on his servants.
15 The idols of the nations are merely things of silver and gold,
shaped by human hands.
16 They have mouths but cannot speak,
and eyes but cannot see.
17 They have ears but cannot hear,
and mouths but cannot breathe.
18 And those who make idols are just like them,
as are all who trust in them.
19 O Israel, praise the Lord!
O priests—descendants of Aaron—praise the Lord!
20 O Levites, praise the Lord!
All you who fear the Lord, praise the Lord!
21 The Lord be praised from Zion,
for he lives here in Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
Read: Matthew 8:23-28
Jesus Calms the Storm
23 Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. 24 Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”
26 Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm.
27 The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!”
Jesus Heals Two Demon-Possessed Men
28 When Jesus arrived on the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gadarenes,[a] two men who were possessed by demons met him. They came out of the tombs and were so violent that no one could go through that area.
Footnotes:
8:28 Other manuscripts read Gerasenes; still others read Gergesenes. Compare Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26.
INSIGHT:
When sin came into the world, everything broke. The earth no longer functioned as it was supposed to. Our bodies and minds became susceptible to sickness, disease, and demonic oppression. And we found ourselves relationally separated from God and other humans. In Matthew 8 Jesus shows His authority over sin in all these areas. The kingdom of God is not just a place we go to when we die. It is a kingdom Jesus began during His time on earth. He manifested it every time He healed a sick person, drove out a demon, or calmed a storm. And it will be ultimately revealed when He returns to earth again and makes everything whole, perfect, and new. Dennis Moles
Storms on the Horizon
By David Roper
What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him! Matthew 8:27
Our son, Josh, is a commercial salmon fisherman in Kodiak, Alaska. Some time ago he sent me a photograph he took of a tiny vessel a few hundred yards ahead of his boat moving through a narrow pass. Ominous storm clouds loom on the horizon. But a rainbow, the sign of God’s providence and loving care, stretches from one side of the pass to the other, encircling the little boat.
The photograph reflects our earthly voyage: We sail into an uncertain future, but we are surrounded by the faithfulness of God!
We sail into the uncertain future surrounded by the faithfulness of God!
Jesus’ disciples were surrounded by a storm, and He used the experience to teach them about the power and faithfulness of God (Matt. 8:23-27). We seek answers for the uncertainties of life. We watch the future growing closer and wonder what will happen to us there. Puritan poet John Keble captured this in one of his poems in which he watched the future as it drew near. But as he watched he was “waiting to see what God will do.”
Whether young or old we all face uncertain futures. Heaven answers: God's love and goodness encircle us no matter what awaits us. We wait and see what God will do!
What do you need to trust God with today?
We sail into the uncertain future surrounded by the faithfulness of God!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
What Do You Want?
Do you seek great things for yourself? —Jeremiah 45:5
Are you seeking great things for yourself, instead of seeking to be a great person? God wants you to be in a much closer relationship with Himself than simply receiving His gifts— He wants you to get to know Him. Even some large thing we want is only incidental; it comes and it goes. But God never gives us anything incidental. There is nothing easier than getting into the right relationship with God, unless it is not God you seek, but only what He can give you.
If you have only come as far as asking God for things, you have never come to the point of understanding the least bit of what surrender really means. You have become a Christian based on your own terms. You protest, saying, “I asked God for the Holy Spirit, but He didn’t give me the rest and the peace I expected.” And instantly God puts His finger on the reason– you are not seeking the Lord at all; you are seeking something for yourself. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you…” (Matthew 7:7). Ask God for what you want and do not be concerned about asking for the wrong thing, because as you draw ever closer to Him, you will cease asking for things altogether. “Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him” (Matthew 6:8). Then why should you ask? So that you may get to know Him.
Are you seeking great things for yourself? Have you said, “Oh, Lord, completely fill me with your Holy Spirit”? If God does not, it is because you are not totally surrendered to Him; there is something you still refuse to do. Are you prepared to ask yourself what it is you want from God and why you want it? God always ignores your present level of completeness in favor of your ultimate future completeness. He is not concerned about making you blessed and happy right now, but He’s continually working out His ultimate perfection for you— “…that they may be one just as We are one…” (John 17:22).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.
Not Knowing Whither
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
A Bigger Purpose Than You Ever Dreamed - #7643
Ashley Smith was just getting her life back together. As a 26-year old single mom, she had had a pretty rough journey. A Christian upbringing but a youthful rebellion – brushes with the law, some drug issues, jobs found and lost – and finally marriage and a little girl. Four years earlier, her husband had died in her arms from stab wounds in a violent attack. On that night in March of 2005, she was just getting settled in the apartment she had moved into two days earlier. When she returned from her 2:00 A. M. run to the store, accused killer, Brian Nichols, forced his way into her apartment at gunpoint.
Nichols was the object of the largest manhunt in Georgia history after his deadly escape from a downtown courtroom where he left the judge and three others shot to death. Later, he shot another man. Initially, he bound and gagged Ashley. Eventually, he began to trust her enough to give her some freedom. For seven hours, she began to talk to the killer in her living room. She talked about the battles of her life, about the little daughter she was supposed to pick up the next morning, and about her newly reborn faith. With his permission, she read to him from the book she was reading, "The Purpose-Driven Life."
Ultimately, unbelievably, he allowed Ashley to leave – after she seemingly had persuaded him to consider ending the killing and to give up peacefully. After she called law enforcement – as he almost surely knew she would – they swarmed around that apartment only to see him come out and quietly surrender. Later, Ashley Smith recalled some extraordinary things that Brian Nichols had said to her. He told her he thought she was an angel sent from God, that he was lost and that God had led him right to her so she could tell him, from the well of her own hurt, how the people he had hurt were feeling.
She told him he was a child of God and that she wanted him to do God's will. Then she said, "I guess he began to want to." For days, the national media talked over and over again about those extraordinary seven hours and the incredible young woman who had helped end a bloodbath. She said it wasn't her at all. It was the God who was leading her now "purpose-driven life."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Bigger Purpose Than You Ever Dreamed."
Ashley Smith, unlikely hero for God, was on assignment from God that night. So are you. With her life on the line, she didn't miss the divine opportunity in front of her to save a life and maybe even a soul. Make sure you don't miss yours.
Because every one of us is like Esther in Bible days, who was chosen Queen of Persia so she would ultimately be in a position to save her people from the king's decree to destroy them. The challenge from the man who raised her is recorded in Esther 4:14, our word for today from the Word of God: "Who knows but that you have come into your royal position for such a time as this?"
Just like Esther, just like Ashley Smith, you have been divinely positioned to save the lives of people you live close to, you work with, and you go to school with. God does these life-saving divine match-ups as He did that amazing night in Ashley Smith's apartment. Who would have guessed? He puts you with people who can be reached by someone like you, however unqualified you may feel. But God knows that your background, your battles, your interests, even your failures, your abilities uniquely qualify you to rescue a particular lost person that He brings into your life.
Life suddenly becomes amazingly exciting when you live it assuming God is setting up divine match-ups – and using those match-ups so you can tell about your Jesus. Rescuing people that God has assigned to you becomes the eternal purpose that drives your life.
Wherever God puts you – whoever God puts you with – remember that purpose. And help the people He brings your way be in heaven with you someday!
Millions facing the chill of empty pockets or the fears of sudden change turn to Christ. Why? Because he’s been there! He’s been to Nazareth where he made deadlines and paid bills and he’s been to Jerusalem where he stared down critics and stood up against cynics.
We have our Nazareths as well. Jesus wasn’t the last to build a team, and his accusers didn’t disappear with Jerusalem’s temple. Why seek Jesus’ help with your challenges? Because he’s been there.
But most of all he’s been to the grave. Not as a visitor, but as a corpse. Body wrapped and grave sealed. Buried. You haven’t yet, but you will be. And since you will…don’t you need someone who knows the way out? God has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead! A way to have life that cannot be destroyed!
From 3:16
Psalm 135
Praise the Lord!
Praise the name of the Lord!
Praise him, you who serve the Lord,
2 you who serve in the house of the Lord,
in the courts of the house of our God.
3 Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;
celebrate his lovely name with music.
4 For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself,
Israel for his own special treasure.
5 I know the greatness of the Lord—
that our Lord is greater than any other god.
6 The Lord does whatever pleases him
throughout all heaven and earth,
and on the seas and in their depths.
7 He causes the clouds to rise over the whole earth.
He sends the lightning with the rain
and releases the wind from his storehouses.
8 He destroyed the firstborn in each Egyptian home,
both people and animals.
9 He performed miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt
against Pharaoh and all his people.
10 He struck down great nations
and slaughtered mighty kings—
11 Sihon king of the Amorites,
Og king of Bashan,
and all the kings of Canaan.
12 He gave their land as an inheritance,
a special possession to his people Israel.
13 Your name, O Lord, endures forever;
your fame, O Lord, is known to every generation.
14 For the Lord will give justice to his people
and have compassion on his servants.
15 The idols of the nations are merely things of silver and gold,
shaped by human hands.
16 They have mouths but cannot speak,
and eyes but cannot see.
17 They have ears but cannot hear,
and mouths but cannot breathe.
18 And those who make idols are just like them,
as are all who trust in them.
19 O Israel, praise the Lord!
O priests—descendants of Aaron—praise the Lord!
20 O Levites, praise the Lord!
All you who fear the Lord, praise the Lord!
21 The Lord be praised from Zion,
for he lives here in Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
Read: Matthew 8:23-28
Jesus Calms the Storm
23 Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. 24 Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”
26 Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm.
27 The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!”
Jesus Heals Two Demon-Possessed Men
28 When Jesus arrived on the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gadarenes,[a] two men who were possessed by demons met him. They came out of the tombs and were so violent that no one could go through that area.
Footnotes:
8:28 Other manuscripts read Gerasenes; still others read Gergesenes. Compare Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26.
INSIGHT:
When sin came into the world, everything broke. The earth no longer functioned as it was supposed to. Our bodies and minds became susceptible to sickness, disease, and demonic oppression. And we found ourselves relationally separated from God and other humans. In Matthew 8 Jesus shows His authority over sin in all these areas. The kingdom of God is not just a place we go to when we die. It is a kingdom Jesus began during His time on earth. He manifested it every time He healed a sick person, drove out a demon, or calmed a storm. And it will be ultimately revealed when He returns to earth again and makes everything whole, perfect, and new. Dennis Moles
Storms on the Horizon
By David Roper
What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him! Matthew 8:27
Our son, Josh, is a commercial salmon fisherman in Kodiak, Alaska. Some time ago he sent me a photograph he took of a tiny vessel a few hundred yards ahead of his boat moving through a narrow pass. Ominous storm clouds loom on the horizon. But a rainbow, the sign of God’s providence and loving care, stretches from one side of the pass to the other, encircling the little boat.
The photograph reflects our earthly voyage: We sail into an uncertain future, but we are surrounded by the faithfulness of God!
We sail into the uncertain future surrounded by the faithfulness of God!
Jesus’ disciples were surrounded by a storm, and He used the experience to teach them about the power and faithfulness of God (Matt. 8:23-27). We seek answers for the uncertainties of life. We watch the future growing closer and wonder what will happen to us there. Puritan poet John Keble captured this in one of his poems in which he watched the future as it drew near. But as he watched he was “waiting to see what God will do.”
Whether young or old we all face uncertain futures. Heaven answers: God's love and goodness encircle us no matter what awaits us. We wait and see what God will do!
What do you need to trust God with today?
We sail into the uncertain future surrounded by the faithfulness of God!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
What Do You Want?
Do you seek great things for yourself? —Jeremiah 45:5
Are you seeking great things for yourself, instead of seeking to be a great person? God wants you to be in a much closer relationship with Himself than simply receiving His gifts— He wants you to get to know Him. Even some large thing we want is only incidental; it comes and it goes. But God never gives us anything incidental. There is nothing easier than getting into the right relationship with God, unless it is not God you seek, but only what He can give you.
If you have only come as far as asking God for things, you have never come to the point of understanding the least bit of what surrender really means. You have become a Christian based on your own terms. You protest, saying, “I asked God for the Holy Spirit, but He didn’t give me the rest and the peace I expected.” And instantly God puts His finger on the reason– you are not seeking the Lord at all; you are seeking something for yourself. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you…” (Matthew 7:7). Ask God for what you want and do not be concerned about asking for the wrong thing, because as you draw ever closer to Him, you will cease asking for things altogether. “Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him” (Matthew 6:8). Then why should you ask? So that you may get to know Him.
Are you seeking great things for yourself? Have you said, “Oh, Lord, completely fill me with your Holy Spirit”? If God does not, it is because you are not totally surrendered to Him; there is something you still refuse to do. Are you prepared to ask yourself what it is you want from God and why you want it? God always ignores your present level of completeness in favor of your ultimate future completeness. He is not concerned about making you blessed and happy right now, but He’s continually working out His ultimate perfection for you— “…that they may be one just as We are one…” (John 17:22).
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.
Not Knowing Whither
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
A Bigger Purpose Than You Ever Dreamed - #7643
Ashley Smith was just getting her life back together. As a 26-year old single mom, she had had a pretty rough journey. A Christian upbringing but a youthful rebellion – brushes with the law, some drug issues, jobs found and lost – and finally marriage and a little girl. Four years earlier, her husband had died in her arms from stab wounds in a violent attack. On that night in March of 2005, she was just getting settled in the apartment she had moved into two days earlier. When she returned from her 2:00 A. M. run to the store, accused killer, Brian Nichols, forced his way into her apartment at gunpoint.
Nichols was the object of the largest manhunt in Georgia history after his deadly escape from a downtown courtroom where he left the judge and three others shot to death. Later, he shot another man. Initially, he bound and gagged Ashley. Eventually, he began to trust her enough to give her some freedom. For seven hours, she began to talk to the killer in her living room. She talked about the battles of her life, about the little daughter she was supposed to pick up the next morning, and about her newly reborn faith. With his permission, she read to him from the book she was reading, "The Purpose-Driven Life."
Ultimately, unbelievably, he allowed Ashley to leave – after she seemingly had persuaded him to consider ending the killing and to give up peacefully. After she called law enforcement – as he almost surely knew she would – they swarmed around that apartment only to see him come out and quietly surrender. Later, Ashley Smith recalled some extraordinary things that Brian Nichols had said to her. He told her he thought she was an angel sent from God, that he was lost and that God had led him right to her so she could tell him, from the well of her own hurt, how the people he had hurt were feeling.
She told him he was a child of God and that she wanted him to do God's will. Then she said, "I guess he began to want to." For days, the national media talked over and over again about those extraordinary seven hours and the incredible young woman who had helped end a bloodbath. She said it wasn't her at all. It was the God who was leading her now "purpose-driven life."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Bigger Purpose Than You Ever Dreamed."
Ashley Smith, unlikely hero for God, was on assignment from God that night. So are you. With her life on the line, she didn't miss the divine opportunity in front of her to save a life and maybe even a soul. Make sure you don't miss yours.
Because every one of us is like Esther in Bible days, who was chosen Queen of Persia so she would ultimately be in a position to save her people from the king's decree to destroy them. The challenge from the man who raised her is recorded in Esther 4:14, our word for today from the Word of God: "Who knows but that you have come into your royal position for such a time as this?"
Just like Esther, just like Ashley Smith, you have been divinely positioned to save the lives of people you live close to, you work with, and you go to school with. God does these life-saving divine match-ups as He did that amazing night in Ashley Smith's apartment. Who would have guessed? He puts you with people who can be reached by someone like you, however unqualified you may feel. But God knows that your background, your battles, your interests, even your failures, your abilities uniquely qualify you to rescue a particular lost person that He brings into your life.
Life suddenly becomes amazingly exciting when you live it assuming God is setting up divine match-ups – and using those match-ups so you can tell about your Jesus. Rescuing people that God has assigned to you becomes the eternal purpose that drives your life.
Wherever God puts you – whoever God puts you with – remember that purpose. And help the people He brings your way be in heaven with you someday!
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Psalm 134, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: THE FUTURE IS NOW
Something is awry—we feel disconnected. What we hope will bring life brings only limited amounts. We connect with a career and find meaning in family, yet long for something more. First a job, then a promotion. A wedding day, then a nursery…kids…grandkids. Around and around—is there anything else?
Jesus steps forth with a reconnection invitation in Ephesians 2:5, that though we be dead in our transgression and sins, and separated from the life of God, whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. Reborn! He breathes life into flat-lined lives. Others offer life, but no one offers to do what Jesus does—to reconnect us to—life!
1 Peter 1:3-4 says, “Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life. . .everything to live for, including a future in heaven.” And the future starts right now!
From 3:16
Psalm 134
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 Oh, praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
you who serve at night in the house of the Lord.
2 Lift your hands toward the sanctuary,
and praise the Lord.
3 May the Lord, who made heaven and earth,
bless you from Jerusalem.[a]
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Read: Romans 15:1-6
Living to Please Others
We who are strong must be considerate of those who are sensitive about things like this. We must not just please ourselves. 2 We should help others do what is right and build them up in the Lord. 3 For even Christ didn’t live to please himself. As the Scriptures say, “The insults of those who insult you, O God, have fallen on me.”[a] 4 Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.
5 May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. 6 Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Footnotes:
15:3 Greek who insult you have fallen on me. Ps 69:9.
INSIGHT:
One of the great truths of Scripture is that it is timeless. All of the stories and instructions of the past were written for our benefit. While this applies to all of the Old Testament, here in Romans it specifically applies to the example of Christ’s life. Verse four of today’s text tells us that what was written about Christ was written to teach us. J.R. Hudberg
Meant to Be Understood
By Bill Crowder
Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us. Romans 15:4
I enjoy visiting museums such as the National Gallery in London and the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. While most of the art is breathtaking, some of it confuses me. I look at seemingly random splashes of color on canvas and realize I have no idea what I am seeing—even though the artist is a master at his craft.
Sometimes we can feel the same way about the Scriptures. We wonder, Is it even possible to understand them? Where do I start? Perhaps Paul’s words can give us some help: “Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope” (Rom. 15:4).
God has given us the Scriptures for our instruction and encouragement.
God has given us the Scriptures for our instruction and encouragement. He has also given us His Spirit to help us to know His mind. Jesus said that He was sending the Spirit to “guide [us] into all the truth” (John 16:13). Paul affirms this in 1 Corinthians 2:12, saying, “What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.”
With the help of the Spirit, we can approach the Bible with confidence, knowing that through its pages God wants us to know Him and His ways.
Father, thank You for giving us Your Son to bring us into relationship with You. Thank You for giving us the Scriptures so that we can know You better. And thank You for giving us Your Spirit to guide us into the truth of what we need to know about You and Your great love.
Read the Bible to get to know its Author.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
The Supreme Climb
Take now your son…and offer him…as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you. —Genesis 22:2
A person’s character determines how he interprets God’s will (see Psalm 18:25-26). Abraham interpreted God’s command to mean that he had to kill his son, and he could only leave this traditional belief behind through the pain of a tremendous ordeal. God could purify his faith in no other way. If we obey what God says according to our sincere belief, God will break us from those traditional beliefs that misrepresent Him. There are many such beliefs which must be removed– for example, that God removes a child because his mother loves him too much. That is the devil’s lie and a travesty on the true nature of God! If the devil can hinder us from taking the supreme climb and getting rid of our wrong traditional beliefs about God, he will do so. But if we will stay true to God, God will take us through an ordeal that will serve to bring us into a better knowledge of Himself.
The great lesson to be learned from Abraham’s faith in God is that he was prepared to do anything for God. He was there to obey God, no matter what contrary belief of his might be violated by his obedience. Abraham was not devoted to his own convictions or else he would have slain Isaac and said that the voice of the angel was actually the voice of the devil. That is the attitude of a fanatic. If you will remain true to God, God will lead you directly through every barrier and right into the inner chamber of the knowledge of Himself. But you must always be willing to come to the point of giving up your own convictions and traditional beliefs. Don’t ask God to test you. Never declare as Peter did that you are willing to do anything, even “to go …both to prison and to death” (Luke 22:33). Abraham did not make any such statement— he simply remained true to God, and God purified his faith.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The vital relationship which the Christian has to the Bible is not that he worships the letter, but that the Holy Spirit makes the words of the Bible spirit and life to him. The Psychology of Redemption, 1066 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
How to Keep Your Fire Burning - #7642
The driver pulled up and dumped it in my driveway, but I was very happy to see it. It was my cord of wood; a winter of warm fires in our fireplace! See, we had ordered it during a special sale, which others apparently took advantage of big time. The driver told me some people had ordered five cords of wood. When I asked why, he said, "It's for their wood stoves. They're depending on it to keep their house warm this winter!" Well, no wonder they ordered a lot of wood for the winter. And when they run out of fuel, they run out of fire. When they run out of fire, it gets very cold.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Keep Your Fire Burning."
For somebody listening right now it's winter spiritually – maybe for you. What used to be a warm and passionate relationship with Jesus has turned cold, mechanical, and practiced. Your fire for the Lord and for His work is burning pretty low, or maybe there are just the embers of a fire that once blazed high. The problem isn't the fire; the problem is a shortage of fuel.
See, spiritual fire is like those fires in people's stoves or fireplaces: you've got to keep throwing another log on the fire. You can't just get it burning high and then expect it to stay that way indefinitely. Jesus obviously knew what to do to keep the fire going. He knew where the fuel was.
He demonstrates that in our word for today from the Word of God, beginning in Luke 4:40. "When the sun was setting, the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying His hands on each one, He healed them...He rebuked demons and would not allow them to speak. At daybreak Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for Him and when they came to where He was, they tried to keep Him from leaving them. But He said, 'I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.' And He kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea."
Now after a very full day and a very late night, Jesus gets up early to go to the spiritual woodpile – time with His Heavenly Father. He went for that spiritual fuel regularly. In Luke 6:12, we are told that "Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God." At another point, Luke tells us "Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." Notice in Luke 6 that Jesus comes back from His Father-time refueled for His work and refocused on what His work is supposed to be.
Now if the fire is burning low in your heart right now, it could very well be that you aren't spending the heart-to-heart time with God that you once did. That's where you find the logs to rekindle your fire because the flame of serving Christ has to be a deep love relationship with Him. It isn't all about Bible study, or church or theology or ministry or living the Christian life. It's all about Jesus! And the pressure and the stress of each crazy day make it so easy to forget that it's all about Jesus, it's all from Jesus, it's all for Jesus.
It could be that your time with Him has gotten more and more abbreviated, postponed or even canceled. You've got to get back to what fueled your fire in the first place – belonging to Jesus, being with Jesus, loving Jesus. Without that regular time, that sweet relationship is replaced with a stressful rat race.
When Jesus had Father-time, He came away knowing He couldn't just stay with the people who had already experienced Him. He had to move on to the unreached. So do you and I. Making your Father-time the anchor of your daily schedule will not only fuel your fire for the Lord, but for the lost people He died to rescue. And you'll feel again the excitement of joining Him in His eternal rescue mission.
Those who depend on a fire make sure that they have plenty of fuel and that they add logs to their fire regularly. For us to live as we were created to live, we need a blazing spiritual fire in our heart. So make sure your fuel supply is strong and consistent. Christian living and Christian service are all about Jesus! Staying in heart-to-heart contact with Him will give you all the logs you need for a fire that never goes out!
Something is awry—we feel disconnected. What we hope will bring life brings only limited amounts. We connect with a career and find meaning in family, yet long for something more. First a job, then a promotion. A wedding day, then a nursery…kids…grandkids. Around and around—is there anything else?
Jesus steps forth with a reconnection invitation in Ephesians 2:5, that though we be dead in our transgression and sins, and separated from the life of God, whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. Reborn! He breathes life into flat-lined lives. Others offer life, but no one offers to do what Jesus does—to reconnect us to—life!
1 Peter 1:3-4 says, “Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life. . .everything to live for, including a future in heaven.” And the future starts right now!
From 3:16
Psalm 134
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 Oh, praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
you who serve at night in the house of the Lord.
2 Lift your hands toward the sanctuary,
and praise the Lord.
3 May the Lord, who made heaven and earth,
bless you from Jerusalem.[a]
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Read: Romans 15:1-6
Living to Please Others
We who are strong must be considerate of those who are sensitive about things like this. We must not just please ourselves. 2 We should help others do what is right and build them up in the Lord. 3 For even Christ didn’t live to please himself. As the Scriptures say, “The insults of those who insult you, O God, have fallen on me.”[a] 4 Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.
5 May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. 6 Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Footnotes:
15:3 Greek who insult you have fallen on me. Ps 69:9.
INSIGHT:
One of the great truths of Scripture is that it is timeless. All of the stories and instructions of the past were written for our benefit. While this applies to all of the Old Testament, here in Romans it specifically applies to the example of Christ’s life. Verse four of today’s text tells us that what was written about Christ was written to teach us. J.R. Hudberg
Meant to Be Understood
By Bill Crowder
Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us. Romans 15:4
I enjoy visiting museums such as the National Gallery in London and the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. While most of the art is breathtaking, some of it confuses me. I look at seemingly random splashes of color on canvas and realize I have no idea what I am seeing—even though the artist is a master at his craft.
Sometimes we can feel the same way about the Scriptures. We wonder, Is it even possible to understand them? Where do I start? Perhaps Paul’s words can give us some help: “Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope” (Rom. 15:4).
God has given us the Scriptures for our instruction and encouragement.
God has given us the Scriptures for our instruction and encouragement. He has also given us His Spirit to help us to know His mind. Jesus said that He was sending the Spirit to “guide [us] into all the truth” (John 16:13). Paul affirms this in 1 Corinthians 2:12, saying, “What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.”
With the help of the Spirit, we can approach the Bible with confidence, knowing that through its pages God wants us to know Him and His ways.
Father, thank You for giving us Your Son to bring us into relationship with You. Thank You for giving us the Scriptures so that we can know You better. And thank You for giving us Your Spirit to guide us into the truth of what we need to know about You and Your great love.
Read the Bible to get to know its Author.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
The Supreme Climb
Take now your son…and offer him…as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you. —Genesis 22:2
A person’s character determines how he interprets God’s will (see Psalm 18:25-26). Abraham interpreted God’s command to mean that he had to kill his son, and he could only leave this traditional belief behind through the pain of a tremendous ordeal. God could purify his faith in no other way. If we obey what God says according to our sincere belief, God will break us from those traditional beliefs that misrepresent Him. There are many such beliefs which must be removed– for example, that God removes a child because his mother loves him too much. That is the devil’s lie and a travesty on the true nature of God! If the devil can hinder us from taking the supreme climb and getting rid of our wrong traditional beliefs about God, he will do so. But if we will stay true to God, God will take us through an ordeal that will serve to bring us into a better knowledge of Himself.
The great lesson to be learned from Abraham’s faith in God is that he was prepared to do anything for God. He was there to obey God, no matter what contrary belief of his might be violated by his obedience. Abraham was not devoted to his own convictions or else he would have slain Isaac and said that the voice of the angel was actually the voice of the devil. That is the attitude of a fanatic. If you will remain true to God, God will lead you directly through every barrier and right into the inner chamber of the knowledge of Himself. But you must always be willing to come to the point of giving up your own convictions and traditional beliefs. Don’t ask God to test you. Never declare as Peter did that you are willing to do anything, even “to go …both to prison and to death” (Luke 22:33). Abraham did not make any such statement— he simply remained true to God, and God purified his faith.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The vital relationship which the Christian has to the Bible is not that he worships the letter, but that the Holy Spirit makes the words of the Bible spirit and life to him. The Psychology of Redemption, 1066 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
How to Keep Your Fire Burning - #7642
The driver pulled up and dumped it in my driveway, but I was very happy to see it. It was my cord of wood; a winter of warm fires in our fireplace! See, we had ordered it during a special sale, which others apparently took advantage of big time. The driver told me some people had ordered five cords of wood. When I asked why, he said, "It's for their wood stoves. They're depending on it to keep their house warm this winter!" Well, no wonder they ordered a lot of wood for the winter. And when they run out of fuel, they run out of fire. When they run out of fire, it gets very cold.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Keep Your Fire Burning."
For somebody listening right now it's winter spiritually – maybe for you. What used to be a warm and passionate relationship with Jesus has turned cold, mechanical, and practiced. Your fire for the Lord and for His work is burning pretty low, or maybe there are just the embers of a fire that once blazed high. The problem isn't the fire; the problem is a shortage of fuel.
See, spiritual fire is like those fires in people's stoves or fireplaces: you've got to keep throwing another log on the fire. You can't just get it burning high and then expect it to stay that way indefinitely. Jesus obviously knew what to do to keep the fire going. He knew where the fuel was.
He demonstrates that in our word for today from the Word of God, beginning in Luke 4:40. "When the sun was setting, the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying His hands on each one, He healed them...He rebuked demons and would not allow them to speak. At daybreak Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for Him and when they came to where He was, they tried to keep Him from leaving them. But He said, 'I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.' And He kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea."
Now after a very full day and a very late night, Jesus gets up early to go to the spiritual woodpile – time with His Heavenly Father. He went for that spiritual fuel regularly. In Luke 6:12, we are told that "Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God." At another point, Luke tells us "Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." Notice in Luke 6 that Jesus comes back from His Father-time refueled for His work and refocused on what His work is supposed to be.
Now if the fire is burning low in your heart right now, it could very well be that you aren't spending the heart-to-heart time with God that you once did. That's where you find the logs to rekindle your fire because the flame of serving Christ has to be a deep love relationship with Him. It isn't all about Bible study, or church or theology or ministry or living the Christian life. It's all about Jesus! And the pressure and the stress of each crazy day make it so easy to forget that it's all about Jesus, it's all from Jesus, it's all for Jesus.
It could be that your time with Him has gotten more and more abbreviated, postponed or even canceled. You've got to get back to what fueled your fire in the first place – belonging to Jesus, being with Jesus, loving Jesus. Without that regular time, that sweet relationship is replaced with a stressful rat race.
When Jesus had Father-time, He came away knowing He couldn't just stay with the people who had already experienced Him. He had to move on to the unreached. So do you and I. Making your Father-time the anchor of your daily schedule will not only fuel your fire for the Lord, but for the lost people He died to rescue. And you'll feel again the excitement of joining Him in His eternal rescue mission.
Those who depend on a fire make sure that they have plenty of fuel and that they add logs to their fire regularly. For us to live as we were created to live, we need a blazing spiritual fire in our heart. So make sure your fuel supply is strong and consistent. Christian living and Christian service are all about Jesus! Staying in heart-to-heart contact with Him will give you all the logs you need for a fire that never goes out!
Monday, April 25, 2016
Psalm 133, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: WE MAKE THE CHOICE
Spend a lifetime telling God to be quiet, and he will do just that. In hell, God honors our request for silence. Hell is not a correctional facility or reform school. Its members hear no candid sermons. They do not hear the Spirit of God, or the voice of God, or the voice of God’s people.
In Ezekiel 33:11 God says, “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live.” It is not God’s will that any should perish, but the fact that some do highlights God’s justice. God must punish sin.
Thanks to Christ, this earth can be the nearest you come to hell. But apart from Christ, this earth is the nearest you’ll come to heaven. John 3:16 says “whoever believes in him shall not perish. . .” God makes the offer but we make the choice. What is your choice?
From 3:16
Psalm 133
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.
1 How wonderful and pleasant it is
when brothers live together in harmony!
2 For harmony is as precious as the anointing oil
that was poured over Aaron’s head,
that ran down his beard
and onto the border of his robe.
3 Harmony is as refreshing as the dew from Mount Hermon
that falls on the mountains of Zion.
And there the Lord has pronounced his blessing,
even life everlasting.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, April 25, 2016
Read: 2 Samuel 22:26-37
“To the faithful you show yourself faithful;
to those with integrity you show integrity.
27 To the pure you show yourself pure,
but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd.
28 You rescue the humble,
but your eyes watch the proud and humiliate them.
29 O Lord, you are my lamp.
The Lord lights up my darkness.
30 In your strength I can crush an army;
with my God I can scale any wall.
31 “God’s way is perfect.
All the Lord’s promises prove true.
He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.
32 For who is God except the Lord?
Who but our God is a solid rock?
33 God is my strong fortress,
and he makes my way perfect.
34 He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
enabling me to stand on mountain heights.
35 He trains my hands for battle;
he strengthens my arm to draw a bronze bow.
36 You have given me your shield of victory;
your help[a] has made me great.
37 You have made a wide path for my feet
to keep them from slipping.
Footnotes:
22:36 As in Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text reads your answering.
INSIGHT:
In 2 Samuel 22 David celebrates the faithfulness of God. Many of the same ideas and some of the same words are found in Psalm 18. The superscription to Psalm 18 says: For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord. He sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. These words were so important to David that he reflected on them often. Bill Crowder
Greater than the Mess
By David McCasland
You, Lord, are my lamp; the Lord turns my darkness into light. 2 Samuel 22:29
A major theme of the Old Testament book of 2 Samuel could easily be “Life is a mess!” It has all the elements of a blockbuster TV miniseries. As David sought to establish his rule as king of Israel, he faced military challenges, political intrigue, and betrayal by friends and family members. And David himself was certainly not without guilt as his relationship with Bathsheba clearly showed (chs. 11–12).
Yet near the end of 2 Samuel we find David’s song of praise to God for His mercy, love, and deliverance. “You, Lord, are my lamp; the Lord turns my darkness into light” (22:29).
Life is messy, but God is greater than the mess.
In many of his difficulties, David turned to the Lord. “With your help I can advance against a troop [run through a barricade]; with my God I can scale a wall” (v. 30).
Perhaps we identify with David’s struggles because he, like us, was far from perfect. Yet he knew that God was greater than the most chaotic parts of his life.
With David we can say, “As for God, his way is perfect: the Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him” (v. 31). And that includes us!
Life is messy, but God is greater than the mess.
Lord, we cannot read about the failures and difficulties of others without being reminded of our own. We bring them all to You, seeking forgiveness and Your power for a fresh start.
It’s not too late to make a fresh start with God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, April 25, 2016
“Ready in Season”
Be ready in season and out of season. —2 Timothy 4:2
Many of us suffer from the unbalanced tendency to “be ready” only “out of season.” The season does not refer to time; it refers to us. This verse says, “Preach the Word! Be ready in season and out of season.” In other words, we should “be ready” whether we feel like it or not. If we do only what we feel inclined to do, some of us would never do anything. There are some people who are totally unemployable in the spiritual realm. They are spiritually feeble and weak, and they refuse to do anything unless they are supernaturally inspired. The proof that our relationship is right with God is that we do our best whether we feel inspired or not.
One of the worst traps a Christian worker can fall into is to become obsessed with his own exceptional moments of inspiration. When the Spirit of God gives you a time of inspiration and insight, you tend to say, “Now that I’ve experienced this moment, I will always be like this for God.” No, you will not, and God will make sure of that. Those times are entirely the gift of God. You cannot give them to yourself when you choose. If you say you will only be at your best for God, as during those exceptional times, you actually become an intolerable burden on Him. You will never do anything unless God keeps you consciously aware of His inspiration to you at all times. If you make a god out of your best moments, you will find that God will fade out of your life, never to return until you are obedient in the work He has placed closest to you, and until you have learned not to be obsessed with those exceptional moments He has given you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The main characteristic which is the proof of the indwelling Spirit is an amazing tenderness in personal dealing, and a blazing truthfulness with regard to God’s Word. Disciples Indeed, 386 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, April 25, 2016
How to Build a Love that Lasts a Lifetime - #7641
Valentine's Day! That's the season when all of us think about the love we found, or the love we lost, or the love we're looking for. And, man, people are looking! Did you know there are over 5,000 dating websites, including Match.com, OKCupid, along with SeniorPeopleMeet, Farmers Only and DateACowboy.com?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Build a Love that Lasts a Lifetime."
Love is where we place our greatest hopes. It's where we experience our greatest fears and our greatest hurts, and make our greatest mistakes. It's a treasure, for sure, but it's a fragile treasure. Like a fragile plant, love has to be watered and protected with some basic love-nurturing steps.
Let me give you some. First of all, handing out goodies – emotional goodies that is. Love thrives on affirmation, encouragement, compliments, praise, "atta-boys." But love is torn down by critical words, angry words, sarcastic words; on our lips momentarily, in their memory forever. The Bible so wisely says, "The tongue has the power of life and death" and "reckless words pierce like a sword" (Proverbs 18:21; 12:18).
That's why the Bible's challenge to "encourage one another daily" (Hebrews 3:13) is glue for a love that lasts. Because everybody needs a cheerleader, and all of us need to be one.
Secondly, unpack your suitcase; the suitcase where we carry the junk from our past into the present. The abuse. The betrayal. The neglect. The injustice. And the anger and negativity and bitterness that go with it. Unless we face it, we can't fix it. And if we don't fix it, we'll spread it. The poison will spill into lives that don't even deserve it. And they will poison love.
That's why God tells us in Hebrews 12:15, "See to it that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many." If we harbor resentment and unforgiveness, it's just going to keep growing into a monster that invades every close relationship.
Unpacking this suitcase we've carried so long has a name. It's called forgiving, which sometimes seems like humanly impossible. But it's not supernaturally impossible, because the One who forgave His crucifiers will download His forgiveness into any struggling heart and He'll pour His healing into every broken heart.
Thirdly, relinquish the wheel, because controlling people hardens their heart and pushes them away. Control freaks are fixers. We're always trying to fix and change what we love. But when you hold onto something too tightly, you crush it – including love.
I've found a lot of freedom in five words John the Baptist spoke long ago, "I am not the Messiah." When you realize that it's your job to love people and it's God's job to change them, you can experience the wonderful freedom of releasing what you've been controlling.
I guess most importantly, to build a love that lasts a lifetime, anchor your heart. See, there's a problem with love. It's "loseable." Betrayal. Divorce. Death. No human love can truly anchor a human heart, a lonely heart. So how can that aching hole in our hearts ever be filled? How can we finally know that we're safe in a love we can't lose?
Our word for today from the Word of God in Romans 8:39, "Nothing can ever separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." That's God's ironclad guarantee to every person who belongs to His Son, who proved His love in blood poured out on a cross for the very sins you've done against Him.
This is love that comes looking for us all the way from heaven to the cross. And He's come looking for you today through our time together. So, let today be the day to let His love in. Let Jesus in and say, "Jesus, the life you died for, that you paid for with your life is yours beginning today. I am yours."
Our website is to help you get there – ANewStory.com. Would you go there? The love of a lifetime is within your reach right now.
Spend a lifetime telling God to be quiet, and he will do just that. In hell, God honors our request for silence. Hell is not a correctional facility or reform school. Its members hear no candid sermons. They do not hear the Spirit of God, or the voice of God, or the voice of God’s people.
In Ezekiel 33:11 God says, “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live.” It is not God’s will that any should perish, but the fact that some do highlights God’s justice. God must punish sin.
Thanks to Christ, this earth can be the nearest you come to hell. But apart from Christ, this earth is the nearest you’ll come to heaven. John 3:16 says “whoever believes in him shall not perish. . .” God makes the offer but we make the choice. What is your choice?
From 3:16
Psalm 133
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.
1 How wonderful and pleasant it is
when brothers live together in harmony!
2 For harmony is as precious as the anointing oil
that was poured over Aaron’s head,
that ran down his beard
and onto the border of his robe.
3 Harmony is as refreshing as the dew from Mount Hermon
that falls on the mountains of Zion.
And there the Lord has pronounced his blessing,
even life everlasting.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Monday, April 25, 2016
Read: 2 Samuel 22:26-37
“To the faithful you show yourself faithful;
to those with integrity you show integrity.
27 To the pure you show yourself pure,
but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd.
28 You rescue the humble,
but your eyes watch the proud and humiliate them.
29 O Lord, you are my lamp.
The Lord lights up my darkness.
30 In your strength I can crush an army;
with my God I can scale any wall.
31 “God’s way is perfect.
All the Lord’s promises prove true.
He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.
32 For who is God except the Lord?
Who but our God is a solid rock?
33 God is my strong fortress,
and he makes my way perfect.
34 He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
enabling me to stand on mountain heights.
35 He trains my hands for battle;
he strengthens my arm to draw a bronze bow.
36 You have given me your shield of victory;
your help[a] has made me great.
37 You have made a wide path for my feet
to keep them from slipping.
Footnotes:
22:36 As in Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text reads your answering.
INSIGHT:
In 2 Samuel 22 David celebrates the faithfulness of God. Many of the same ideas and some of the same words are found in Psalm 18. The superscription to Psalm 18 says: For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord. He sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. These words were so important to David that he reflected on them often. Bill Crowder
Greater than the Mess
By David McCasland
You, Lord, are my lamp; the Lord turns my darkness into light. 2 Samuel 22:29
A major theme of the Old Testament book of 2 Samuel could easily be “Life is a mess!” It has all the elements of a blockbuster TV miniseries. As David sought to establish his rule as king of Israel, he faced military challenges, political intrigue, and betrayal by friends and family members. And David himself was certainly not without guilt as his relationship with Bathsheba clearly showed (chs. 11–12).
Yet near the end of 2 Samuel we find David’s song of praise to God for His mercy, love, and deliverance. “You, Lord, are my lamp; the Lord turns my darkness into light” (22:29).
Life is messy, but God is greater than the mess.
In many of his difficulties, David turned to the Lord. “With your help I can advance against a troop [run through a barricade]; with my God I can scale a wall” (v. 30).
Perhaps we identify with David’s struggles because he, like us, was far from perfect. Yet he knew that God was greater than the most chaotic parts of his life.
With David we can say, “As for God, his way is perfect: the Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him” (v. 31). And that includes us!
Life is messy, but God is greater than the mess.
Lord, we cannot read about the failures and difficulties of others without being reminded of our own. We bring them all to You, seeking forgiveness and Your power for a fresh start.
It’s not too late to make a fresh start with God.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, April 25, 2016
“Ready in Season”
Be ready in season and out of season. —2 Timothy 4:2
Many of us suffer from the unbalanced tendency to “be ready” only “out of season.” The season does not refer to time; it refers to us. This verse says, “Preach the Word! Be ready in season and out of season.” In other words, we should “be ready” whether we feel like it or not. If we do only what we feel inclined to do, some of us would never do anything. There are some people who are totally unemployable in the spiritual realm. They are spiritually feeble and weak, and they refuse to do anything unless they are supernaturally inspired. The proof that our relationship is right with God is that we do our best whether we feel inspired or not.
One of the worst traps a Christian worker can fall into is to become obsessed with his own exceptional moments of inspiration. When the Spirit of God gives you a time of inspiration and insight, you tend to say, “Now that I’ve experienced this moment, I will always be like this for God.” No, you will not, and God will make sure of that. Those times are entirely the gift of God. You cannot give them to yourself when you choose. If you say you will only be at your best for God, as during those exceptional times, you actually become an intolerable burden on Him. You will never do anything unless God keeps you consciously aware of His inspiration to you at all times. If you make a god out of your best moments, you will find that God will fade out of your life, never to return until you are obedient in the work He has placed closest to you, and until you have learned not to be obsessed with those exceptional moments He has given you.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The main characteristic which is the proof of the indwelling Spirit is an amazing tenderness in personal dealing, and a blazing truthfulness with regard to God’s Word. Disciples Indeed, 386 R
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, April 25, 2016
How to Build a Love that Lasts a Lifetime - #7641
Valentine's Day! That's the season when all of us think about the love we found, or the love we lost, or the love we're looking for. And, man, people are looking! Did you know there are over 5,000 dating websites, including Match.com, OKCupid, along with SeniorPeopleMeet, Farmers Only and DateACowboy.com?
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Build a Love that Lasts a Lifetime."
Love is where we place our greatest hopes. It's where we experience our greatest fears and our greatest hurts, and make our greatest mistakes. It's a treasure, for sure, but it's a fragile treasure. Like a fragile plant, love has to be watered and protected with some basic love-nurturing steps.
Let me give you some. First of all, handing out goodies – emotional goodies that is. Love thrives on affirmation, encouragement, compliments, praise, "atta-boys." But love is torn down by critical words, angry words, sarcastic words; on our lips momentarily, in their memory forever. The Bible so wisely says, "The tongue has the power of life and death" and "reckless words pierce like a sword" (Proverbs 18:21; 12:18).
That's why the Bible's challenge to "encourage one another daily" (Hebrews 3:13) is glue for a love that lasts. Because everybody needs a cheerleader, and all of us need to be one.
Secondly, unpack your suitcase; the suitcase where we carry the junk from our past into the present. The abuse. The betrayal. The neglect. The injustice. And the anger and negativity and bitterness that go with it. Unless we face it, we can't fix it. And if we don't fix it, we'll spread it. The poison will spill into lives that don't even deserve it. And they will poison love.
That's why God tells us in Hebrews 12:15, "See to it that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many." If we harbor resentment and unforgiveness, it's just going to keep growing into a monster that invades every close relationship.
Unpacking this suitcase we've carried so long has a name. It's called forgiving, which sometimes seems like humanly impossible. But it's not supernaturally impossible, because the One who forgave His crucifiers will download His forgiveness into any struggling heart and He'll pour His healing into every broken heart.
Thirdly, relinquish the wheel, because controlling people hardens their heart and pushes them away. Control freaks are fixers. We're always trying to fix and change what we love. But when you hold onto something too tightly, you crush it – including love.
I've found a lot of freedom in five words John the Baptist spoke long ago, "I am not the Messiah." When you realize that it's your job to love people and it's God's job to change them, you can experience the wonderful freedom of releasing what you've been controlling.
I guess most importantly, to build a love that lasts a lifetime, anchor your heart. See, there's a problem with love. It's "loseable." Betrayal. Divorce. Death. No human love can truly anchor a human heart, a lonely heart. So how can that aching hole in our hearts ever be filled? How can we finally know that we're safe in a love we can't lose?
Our word for today from the Word of God in Romans 8:39, "Nothing can ever separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." That's God's ironclad guarantee to every person who belongs to His Son, who proved His love in blood poured out on a cross for the very sins you've done against Him.
This is love that comes looking for us all the way from heaven to the cross. And He's come looking for you today through our time together. So, let today be the day to let His love in. Let Jesus in and say, "Jesus, the life you died for, that you paid for with your life is yours beginning today. I am yours."
Our website is to help you get there – ANewStory.com. Would you go there? The love of a lifetime is within your reach right now.
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