2 Samuel 3 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Receive God’s Great Promises - August 4, 2022

According to Peter, God’s promises aren’t just great, they are “very great.” They aren’t just valuable; they are “precious” (2 Peter 1:4 NIV). It is God’s great and precious promises that lead us into a new reality, a holy environment. They are direction signs intended to guide us away from the toxic swampland and into the clean air of heaven. They are strong boulders that form the bridge over which we walk from our sin to salvation. Promises that are the stitching in the spine of the Bible.

Receive them. Allow them to soak you like a spring shower. Let’s be what we were intended to be—people of the Promise. Fill your heart with hope, and let the devil himself hear you declare your belief in God’s goodness.

Because God’s promises are unbreakable our hope is unshakable!

2 Samuel 3

 The war between the house of Saul and the house of David dragged on and on. The longer it went on the stronger David became, with the house of Saul getting weaker.

* * *

2-5 During the Hebron years, sons were born to David:

Amnon, born of Ahinoam of Jezreel—the firstborn;

Kileab, born of Abigail of Carmel, Nabal’s widow—his second;

Absalom, born of Maacah, daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur—the third;

Adonijah, born of Haggith—the fourth;

Shephatiah, born of Abital—the fifth;

Ithream, born of Eglah—the sixth.

These six sons of David were born in Hebron.

* * *

6-7 Abner took advantage of the continuing war between the house of Saul and the house of David to gain power for himself. Saul had had a concubine, Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah. One day Ish-Bosheth confronted Abner: “What business do you have sleeping with my father’s concubine?”

8-10 Abner lost his temper with Ish-Bosheth, “Treat me like a dog, will you! Is this the thanks I get for sticking by the house of your father, Saul, and all his family and friends? I personally saved you from certain capture by David, and you make an issue out of my going to bed with a woman! What God promised David, I’ll help accomplish—transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and make David ruler over the whole country, both Israel and Judah, from Dan to Beersheba. If not, may God do his worst to me.”

11 Ish-Bosheth, cowed by Abner’s outburst, couldn’t say another word.

12 Abner went ahead and sent personal messengers to David: “Make a deal with me and I’ll help bring the whole country of Israel over to you.”

13 “Great,” said David. “It’s a deal. But only on one condition: You’re not welcome here unless you bring Michal, Saul’s daughter, with you when you come to meet me.”

14 David then sent messengers to Ish-Bosheth son of Saul: “Give me back Michal, whom I won as my wife at the cost of a hundred Philistine foreskins.”

15-16 Ish-Bosheth ordered that she be taken from her husband Paltiel son of Laish. But Paltiel followed her, weeping all the way, to Bahurim. There Abner told him, “Go home.” And he went home.

17-18 Abner got the elders of Israel together and said, “Only yesterday, it seems, you were looking for a way to make David your king. So do it—now! For God has given the go-ahead on David: ‘By my servant David’s hand, I’ll save my people Israel from the oppression of the Philistines and all their other enemies.’”

19 Abner took the Benjaminites aside and spoke to them. Then he went to Hebron for a private talk with David, telling him everything that Israel in general and Benjamin in particular were planning to do.

20 When Abner and the twenty men who were with him met with David in Hebron, David laid out a feast for them.

21 Abner then said, “I’m ready. Let me go now to rally everyone in Israel for my master, the king. They’ll make a treaty with you, authorizing you to rule them however you see fit.” Abner was sent off with David’s blessing.

22-23 Soon after that, David’s men, led by Joab, came back from a field assignment. Abner was no longer in Hebron with David, having just been dismissed with David’s blessing. As Joab and his raiding party arrived, they were told that Abner the son of Ner had been there with David and had been sent off with David’s blessing.

24-25 Joab went straight to the king: “What’s this you’ve done? Abner shows up, and you let him walk away scot-free? You know Abner son of Ner better than that. This was no friendly visit. He was here to spy on you, figure out your comings and goings, find out what you’re up to.”

26-27 Joab left David and went into action. He sent messengers after Abner; they caught up with him at the well at Sirah and brought him back. David knew nothing of all this. When Abner got back to Hebron, Joab steered him aside at the gate for a personal word with him. There he stabbed him in the belly, killed him in cold blood for the murder of his brother Asahel.

28-30 Later on, when David heard what happened, he said, “Before God I and my kingdom are totally innocent of this murder of Abner son of Ner. Joab and his entire family will always be under the curse of this bloodguilt. May they forever be victims of crippling diseases, violence, and famine.” (Joab and his brother, Abishai, murdered Abner because he had killed their brother Asahel at the battle of Gibeon.)

31-32 David ordered Joab and all the men under him, “Rip your cloaks into rags! Wear mourning clothes! Lead Abner’s funeral procession with loud lament!” King David followed the coffin. They buried Abner in Hebron. The king’s voice was loud in lament as he wept at the side of Abner’s grave. All the people wept, too.

33-34 Then the king sang this tribute to Abner:

Can this be? Abner dead like a nameless bum?
You were a free man, free to go and do as you wished—
Yet you fell as a victim in a street brawl.

And all the people wept—a crescendo of crying!

35-37 They all came then to David, trying to get him to eat something before dark. But David solemnly swore, “I’ll not so much as taste a piece of bread, or anything else for that matter, before sunset, so help me God!” Everyone at the funeral took notice—and liked what they saw. In fact everything the king did was applauded by the people. It was clear to everyone that day, including all Israel, that the king had nothing to do with the death of Abner son of Ner.

38-39 The king spoke to his servants: “You realize, don’t you, that today a prince and hero fell victim of foul play in Israel? And I, though anointed king, was helpless to do anything about it. These sons of Zeruiah are too much for me. God, requite the criminal for his crime!”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Thursday, August 04, 2022

Today's Scripture
Genesis 1:20–21, 24–28

God spoke: “Swarm, Ocean, with fish and all sea life!

Birds, fly through the sky over Earth!”

God created the huge whales,

all the swarm of life in the waters,

And every kind and species of flying birds.

God saw that it was good.

God spoke: “Earth, generate life! Every sort and kind:

cattle and reptiles and wild animals—all kinds.”

And there it was:

wild animals of every kind,

Cattle of all kinds, every sort of reptile and bug.

God saw that it was good.

26–28     God spoke: “Let us make human beings in our image, make them

reflecting our nature

So they can be responsible for the fish in the sea,

the birds in the air, the cattle,

And, yes, Earth itself,

and every animal that moves on the face of Earth.”

God created human beings;

he created them godlike,

Reflecting God’s nature.

He created them male and female.

God blessed them:

“Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take charge!

Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air,

for every living thing that moves on the face of Earth.”

Insight

In Genesis 1:28, God commissioned human beings with the task of caring for His creation. But we’ve turned away from worshiping the Creator and have worshiped the creation instead. The apostle Paul noted that even though humanity “knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened” (Romans 1:21). As a result, they worshiped images of humans and animals instead of God (vv. 22–23). Stewardship of creation is ordained by God. Worship of that creation instead of the Creator is an affront to Him. By: Tim Gustafson

The Privilege of Stewardship

Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.
Genesis 1:28

While on vacation, my husband and I walked along the beach and noticed a large, square patch of sand blocked off by a makeshift fence. A young man explained that he worked around the clock with a team of volunteers committed to guarding the eggs in each sea turtle’s nest. Once the hatchlings emerge from their nest, the presence of both animals and humans threaten and decrease their chance of survival. “Even with all our efforts,” he said, “scientists estimate that only one out of every five thousand hatchlings reach adulthood.” These bleak numbers didn’t discourage this young man, however. His passion for selflessly serving the hatchlings deepened my desire for respecting and protecting sea turtles. Now I wear a sea turtle pendant that reminds me of my God-given responsibility to care for the creatures He’s made.

When God created the world, He provided a habitat in which each creature could live and thrive (Genesis 1:20–25). When He created His image-bearers, God intended for us to “rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground” (v. 26). He helps us serve Him as responsible stewards who use our God-given authority to care for His vast creation.

Reflect & Pray

In what ways have you cared for God’s creation? How can you become a better steward of it this week?

Loving Creator and Sustainer of all, please show me tangible ways I can fulfill my responsibility as a steward of Your creation and inspire others to care for the world You’ve entrusted to us.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, August 04, 2022

The Brave Friendship of God

He took the twelve aside… —Luke 18:31

Oh, the bravery of God in trusting us! Do you say, “But He has been unwise to choose me, because there is nothing good in me and I have no value”? That is exactly why He chose you. As long as you think that you are of value to Him He cannot choose you, because you have purposes of your own to serve. But if you will allow Him to take you to the end of your own self-sufficiency, then He can choose you to go with Him “to Jerusalem” (Luke 18:31). And that will mean the fulfillment of purposes which He does not discuss with you.

We tend to say that because a person has natural ability, he will make a good Christian. It is not a matter of our equipment, but a matter of our poverty; not of what we bring with us, but of what God puts into us; not a matter of natural virtues, of strength of character, of knowledge, or of experience— all of that is of no avail in this concern. The only thing of value is being taken into the compelling purpose of God and being made His friends (see 1 Corinthians 1:26-31). God’s friendship is with people who know their poverty. He can accomplish nothing with the person who thinks that he is of use to God. As Christians we are not here for our own purpose at all— we are here for the purpose of God, and the two are not the same. We do not know what God’s compelling purpose is, but whatever happens, we must maintain our relationship with Him. We must never allow anything to damage our relationship with God, but if something does damage it, we must take the time to make it right again. The most important aspect of Christianity is not the work we do, but the relationship we maintain and the surrounding influence and qualities produced by that relationship. That is all God asks us to give our attention to, and it is the one thing that is continually under attack.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

We should always choose our books as God chooses our friends, just a bit beyond us, so that we have to do our level best to keep up with them. Shade of His Hand, 1216 L

Bible in a Year: Psalms 66-67; Romans 7

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, August 04, 2022
Mama and Daddy Can't Get You to Heaven - #9279

Albert Einstein's great-grandson doing a commercial? Yeah, he did a few years ago. This particular auto manufacturer was showing that a new generation of drivers was choosing their make of car; not just their fathers and grandfathers. And he would go, "This is not my father's ___." Now, I'm not going to name the car. They've got to pay for that. No, wait, we don't have commercials here.

But they also had the sons and daughters of famous people peeling out in their - shall we call it their new car X - sometimes with their father as a passenger. This is not my father's car X. Obviously some advertiser thought that they needed to develop a new market among the sons and daughters of the older generations who had bought that car. The next generation has to make their choice of how they're going to travel.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Mama and Daddy Can't Get You to Heaven."

Our word for today from the Word of God is in 2 Timothy 1:5. Paul was writing to his spiritual son in the faith, Timothy. He says, "I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother, Lois, and in your mother, Eunice, and I am persuaded now lives in you also." Okay, here's a guy with a great heritage. He has a godly grandmother who has chosen Christ. He has a godly mother who knows Christ. And now, it says, "It's reached to you, Timothy. I remember your sincere faith." Even though Timothy had a great spiritual family, a great heritage, a great environment, that wasn't enough. It took his own, personal, sincere faith in Christ to bring it into his life. He couldn't hitchhike on a godly grandmother. He couldn't hitchhike on a godly mother.

That word sincere in Latin, it means "without wax." They used it to describe plates that you'd buy at the market, or pottery that had not been patched up with wax by the merchant. So, you know, he tried to use that to cover up the cracks. When you held it up to the sunlight, really it was what it appeared to be. It was cynacera; sincere - without wax. Well, God is saying here, "Timothy, I know about your sincere, un-fake, first-hand stand-the-test faith.

See, you need to have a personal visit to the cross. You can't get by on somebody else's. You might be able to rewrite the commercial and say, "This is not my mother's Christian faith. This is not my father's Christian faith." Possibly you've been trying to get by on a "me too" faith. Maybe you wonder why your efforts to live the Christian life keep collapsing. Maybe there's no foundation. Could it be that you've never begun a relationship with Christ yourself? You've sort of been coasting on your Christian environment instead of really digging into Jesus for yourself. That's why it's so hollow.

See, a "me too" faith won't make it in a world that's running away from God. You've got to have a faith that's skin like part of you, not like clothes that you change for every different occasion. Maybe it's time for you to step out of the false security of a nice Christian environment. You need Christ in you, not just around you. You don't need to rebel against your parent's commitment just to prove your individuality. You've got to find your own commitment to Christ...personal, powerful, and stronger than your parent's.

Second Corinthians 13:5, "Examine yourselves to see whether or not you are in the faith." You're not going to be able to get to heaven on your family's faith or your church's faith. Can you look at your commitment and say, "This is not my parent's Christian life, it's not my church's." Because you're going to crash if you try to drive someone else's faith. It's time for you to say, "Jesus, you loved me. You died for me. I'm making you my Savior, my Rescuer from my sin."

If you've never done that, tell Him, "Today is the day, Jesus, I'm Yours." Go to our website. Make sure you know that you belong to Him. It's ANewStory.com. See, then choose how you're going to travel and go from "me too" to "my personal Savior."

Luke 24:36-53 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Plunge into the Promise - August 3, 2022

It’s a shaky world out there. Could you use some unshakable hope?

We live in a day of despair. The suicide rate in America has increased 24 percent since 1999. How do we explain the increase? We’ve never been more educated. We’re saturated with entertainment and recreation. Yet more people than ever are orchestrating their own deaths. How could this be?

Among the answers must be that people are dying for lack of hope. Secularism reduces the world to a few decades between birth and hearse. Many believe this world is as good as it gets. But people of the Promise have an advantage. They are like Abraham who “didn’t ask skeptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong” (Romans 4:20 MSG).

Because God’s promises are unbreakable our hope is unshakable.

Luke 24:36-53

 While they were saying all this, Jesus appeared to them and said, “Peace be with you.” They thought they were seeing a ghost and were scared half to death. He continued with them, “Don’t be upset, and don’t let all these doubting questions take over. Look at my hands; look at my feet—it’s really me. Touch me. Look me over from head to toe. A ghost doesn’t have muscle and bone like this.” As he said this, he showed them his hands and feet. They still couldn’t believe what they were seeing. It was too much; it seemed too good to be true.

41-43 He asked, “Do you have any food here?” They gave him a piece of leftover fish they had cooked. He took it and ate it right before their eyes.
You’re the Witnesses

44 Then he said, “Everything I told you while I was with you comes to this: All the things written about me in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets, and in the Psalms have to be fulfilled.”

45-49 He went on to open their understanding of the Word of God, showing them how to read their Bibles this way. He said, “You can see now how it is written that the Messiah suffers, rises from the dead on the third day, and then a total life-change through the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed in his name to all nations—starting from here, from Jerusalem! You’re the first to hear and see it. You’re the witnesses. What comes next is very important: I am sending what my Father promised to you, so stay here in the city until he arrives, until you’re equipped with power from on high.”

50-51 He then led them out of the city over to Bethany. Raising his hands he blessed them, and while blessing them, made his exit, being carried up to heaven.

52-53 And they were on their knees, worshiping him. They returned to Jerusalem bursting with joy. They spent all their time in the Temple praising God. Yes.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Wednesday, August 03, 2022
Today's Scripture
Revelation 8:1–6

When the Lamb ripped off the seventh seal, Heaven fell quiet—complete silence for about half an hour.

Blowing the Trumpets

2–4     I saw the Seven Angels who are always in readiness before God handed seven trumpets. Then another Angel, carrying a gold censer, came and stood at the Altar. He was given a great quantity of incense so that he could offer up the prayers of all the holy people of God on the Golden Altar before the Throne. Smoke billowed up from the incense-laced prayers of the holy ones, rose before God from the hand of the Angel.

5     Then the Angel filled the censer with fire from the Altar and heaved it to earth. It set off thunders, voices, lightnings, and an earthquake.

6–7     The Seven Angels with the trumpets got ready to blow them.

Insight

Exiled on the island of Patmos, the apostle John wrote of his prophetic visions about God’s future program, which he called “the revelation [apokalypsis] from Jesus Christ” (Revelation 1:1–4). As apocalyptic writing, Revelation uses symbolic, figurative, and metaphoric language to describe God’s end-time events. John wrote of His severe judgment being poured out on the earth in the seven sealed scrolls (ch. 6), trumpets (ch. 8), and bowls (ch. 16). In the interlude between the judgment of the sealed scrolls and trumpets, he wrote of “incense” offered to God (8:3). In the Bible, incense symbolically denotes “the prayers of all God’s people” (8:3; see 5:8; Psalm 141:2; Luke 1:10). We’re not told what these prayers were, but earlier, the Christian martyrs had prayed for divine justice and vindication (Revelation 6:9–11). John tells us that “the prayers of God’s people, went up before God” (8:4). Scholars say these prayers are answered in 15:7–8; 16:5–6; and 19:2. By: K. T. Sim

When Prayer Shakes the Earth

The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of God’s people, went up before God.
Revelation 8:4

Dr. Gary Greenberg has magnified and photographed sand from beaches around the world, often revealing surprising, vibrant splashes of color from the minerals, shell, and coral fragments contained within.

He’s discovered there’s more to sand than meets the eye. In arenology (the study of sand), the microscopic analysis of sand’s mineral content can reveal much about erosion, shore currents, and their potential effects on coastlines. Even a little sand can yield information of great worth!

A single prayer, like a grain of sand, can be a weighty thing. Scripture indicates prayer’s powerful role in the coming of God’s kingdom. In Revelation 8, John sees an angel standing at the altar before His throne holding a golden censer containing “the prayers of all God’s people.” “Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake” (vv. 3, 5).

Immediately after the angel hurled the censer filled with fire and prayer, seven angels with seven trumpets “prepared to sound them” (v. 6), heralding this old earth’s last days and Christ’s return.

Sometimes we may not feel like our prayers add up to much, but God doesn’t miss one. He so values them that they somehow even play a role in the consummation of His kingdom. What may seem like the smallest prayer to us can have earth-shaking weight with Him! By:  James Banks

Reflect & Pray

Why do you think Jesus wants us to pray for God’s kingdom to come (Matthew 6:10)? In what ways can you stay faithful in prayer today?

Heavenly Father, please help me to be faithful in prayer today.

Learn more about the act of prayer.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, August 03, 2022 
The Compelling Purpose of God

He…said to them, "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem…" —Luke 18:31

Jerusalem, in the life of our Lord, represents the place where He reached the culmination of His Father’s will. Jesus said, “I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me” (John 5:30). Seeking to do “the will of the Father” was the one dominating concern throughout our Lord’s life. And whatever He encountered along the way, whether joy or sorrow, success or failure, He was never deterred from that purpose. “…He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem…” (Luke 9:51).

The greatest thing for us to remember is that we go up to Jerusalem to fulfill God’s purpose, not our own. In the natural life our ambitions are our own, but in the Christian life we have no goals of our own. We talk so much today about our decisions for Christ, our determination to be Christians, and our decisions for this and that, but in the New Testament the only aspect that is brought out is the compelling purpose of God. “You did not choose Me, but I chose you…” (John 15:16).

We are not taken into a conscious agreement with God’s purpose— we are taken into God’s purpose with no awareness of it at all. We have no idea what God’s goal may be; as we continue, His purpose becomes even more and more vague. God’s aim appears to have missed the mark, because we are too nearsighted to see the target at which He is aiming. At the beginning of the Christian life, we have our own ideas as to what God’s purpose is. We say, “God means for me to go over there,” and, “God has called me to do this special work.” We do what we think is right, and yet the compelling purpose of God remains upon us. The work we do is of no account when compared with the compelling purpose of God. It is simply the scaffolding surrounding His work and His plan. “He took the twelve aside…” (Luke 18:31). God takes us aside all the time. We have not yet understood all there is to know of the compelling purpose of God.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

Is He going to help Himself to your life, or are you taken up with your conception of what you are going to do? God is responsible for our lives, and the one great keynote is reckless reliance upon Him. Approved Unto God, 10 R

Bible in a Year: Psalms 63-65; Romans 6

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Wednesday, August 03, 2022

Surprise! You've Got Something God Can Use - #9278

Brian's a Youth Pastor, and Earl? His most unlikely volunteer. See, Earl wasn't the right age to help out with teenagers. A pretty simple guy, not very well educated. He had one of those faces that looked like it had been lived in for a long time. And he didn't think he had any abilities that would help. In fact, that's what he told Brian. He said, "You know, Brian, I can't do anything. But I really have a heart for the kids." So Brian said, "Well, do you make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?" Earl said, "Well, sure! I can do that!" Well, that began a series of events that changed a life; well, really two lives forever.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Surprise! You've Got Something God Can Use."

Our word for today from the Word of God, we are in Matthew 20:6-7, where Jesus is telling one of His parables. It's about a man with a vineyard. He's gone out many times to get people to help him reap his crop, and as he gets to the end of the day he still needs more help. And here's what it says, "About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?' 'Because no one has hired us' they answered. He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard.'"

Now, we're looking here at people who did not know that the Master had work for them. But the Master's got work for everybody, including you; including Earl. Earl went to work in that Coffee House that the youth ministry had going... you guessed it, he was making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Right!

One night this hard, rough and tumble biker - pretty intimidating guy - he came in. And he angrily walked up after he heard Christ presented and he went to Brian and said, "I don't buy any of this! Show me one reason why I should!" Earl heard this, put his peanut butter knife down, and he started to cry in the corner. Brian pointed over and said to that biker, "You see that man over there? You see his tears? Those are for you man. He's praying for you." Suddenly that biker was soft for the first time that night, and he said, "That old guy's praying for me? He's crying for me?" Brian said, "Yeah, Jesus loves you, man." And that biker came to Christ that night.

There are a lot of Earls; maybe you're one of them. Maybe you think you don't have any outstanding abilities. You're like those people who said, "Well, no one hired me. No one has asked me to do anything." Would you be willing to say, "Lord, I don't know what I can do for You, but I want to make a difference with whatever time I have left. So, here am I. Send me."

You never know what God's going to use. Maybe your smile, your driving. Maybe he'll use your abilities as a preparer of home-cooked meals, or your ability to bake mouth watering cookies and cakes to reach hurting, lonely people. Maybe He's going to use your listening. Or your tears, like Earl's tears. Maybe He'll use your letter writing, your background; the pain of your background that really could connect you to some other people with the same kind of background. Or maybe, He'll have you make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

But would you let God lay some needy group of people, some ministry, some work for Him on your heart? And then tell someone that you have that burden, that you're willing to do anything. And trust God. He knows you intimately and He will put you some place to minister. You are that unique person that could make a unique difference for Him. Even if you can't imagine it, Jesus is saying to you right now, "You also go and work in my vineyard."

Earl? His peanut butter and jelly sandwiches put him at the right place at the right time. His heart, and his tears, brought a seemingly unreachable man to Jesus Christ. Changed a biker's life and changed Earl's. Jesus needs you, to be one of His surprising heroes.

2 Samuel 2 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: We Can Depend on God - August 2, 2022

From the first chapter of Scripture, the Bible makes a case for the dependability of God. Without exception, when God spoke something wonderful happened. By divine fiat there was light, land, beaches, and creatures. God consulted no advisers. He needed no assistance. “For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm” (Psalm 33:9 NIV).

The same power is seen in Jesus. He is unchanging. He’s never caught off guard by the unexpected. “God never changes or casts a shifting shadow” (James 1:17 NLT). God is strong. He does not overpromise and under deliver. “God is able to do whatever he promises” (Romans 4:21 NLT). “It is impossible for God to lie” (Hebrews 6:18 NLT).

God will keep his promises. It must happen because of who God is. And because God’s promises are unbreakable, our hope is unshakable.

2 Samuel 2

After all this, David prayed. He asked God, “Shall I move to one of the cities of Judah?”

God said, “Yes, move.”

“And to which city?”

“To Hebron.”

2-3 So David moved to Hebron, along with his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel. David’s men, along with their families, also went with him and made their home in and around Hebron.

4-7 The citizens of Judah came to Hebron, and then and there made David king over the clans of Judah.

A report was brought to David that the men of Jabesh Gilead had given Saul a decent burial. David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead: “God bless you for this—for honoring your master, Saul, with a funeral. God honor you and be true to you—and I’ll do the same, matching your generous act of goodness. Strengthen your resolve and do what must be done. Your master, Saul, is dead. The citizens of Judah have made me their king.”

* * *

8-11 In the meantime, Abner son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, had taken Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth to Mahanaim and made him king over Gilead, over Asher, over Jezreel, over Ephraim, over Benjamin—king, as it turns out, over all Israel. Ish-Bosheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when he was made king over Israel. He lasted only two years. But the people of Judah stuck with David. David ruled the people of Judah from Hebron for seven and a half years.

12-13 One day Abner son of Ner set out from Mahanaim with the soldiers of Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, headed for Gibeon. Joab son of Zeruiah, with David’s soldiers, also set out. They met at the Pool of Gibeon, Abner’s group on one side, Joab’s on the other.

14 Abner challenged Joab, “Put up your best fighters. Let’s see them do their stuff.”

Joab said, “Good! Let them go at it!”

15-16 So they lined up for the fight, twelve Benjaminites from the side of Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, and twelve soldiers from David’s side. The men from each side grabbed their opponents’ heads and stabbed them with their daggers. They all fell dead—the whole bunch together. So, they called the place Slaughter Park. It’s right there at Gibeon.

17-19 The fighting went from bad to worse throughout the day. Abner and the men of Israel were beaten to a pulp by David’s men. The three sons of Zeruiah were present: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel, as fast as a wild antelope on the open plain, chased Abner, staying hard on his heels.

20 Abner turned and said, “Is that you, Asahel?”

“It surely is,” he said.

21 Abner said, “Let up on me. Pick on someone you have a chance of beating and be content with those spoils!” But Asahel wouldn’t let up.

22 Abner tried again, “Turn back. Don’t force me to kill you. How would I face your brother Joab?”

23-25 When he refused to quit, Abner struck him in the belly with the blunt end of his spear so hard that it came out his back. Asahel fell to the ground and died at once. Everyone who arrived at the spot where Asahel fell and died stood and gaped—Asahel dead! But Joab and Abishai kept up the chase after Abner. As the sun began to set, they came to the hill of Ammah that faced Giah on the road to the backcountry of Gibeon. The Benjaminites had taken their stand with Abner there, deployed strategically on a hill.

26 Abner called out to Joab, “Are we going to keep killing each other till doomsday? Don’t you know that nothing but bitterness will come from this? How long before you call off your men from chasing their brothers?”

27-28 “As God lives,” said Joab, “if you hadn’t spoken up, we’d have kept up the chase until morning!” Then he blew the ram’s horn trumpet and the whole army of Judah stopped in its tracks. They quit chasing Israel and called off the fighting.

29 Abner and his soldiers marched all that night up the Arabah Valley. They crossed the Jordan and, after a long morning’s march, arrived at Mahanaim.

30-32 After Joab returned from chasing Abner, he took a head count of the army. Nineteen of David’s men (besides Asahel) were missing. David’s men had cut down 360 of Abner’s men, all Benjaminites—all dead. They brought Asahel and buried him in the family tomb in Bethlehem. Joab and his men then marched all night, arriving in Hebron as the dawn broke.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Tuesday, August 02, 2022
Today's Scripture
Proverbs 15:31–33

Listen to good advice if you want to live well,

an honored guest among wise men and women.

32     An undisciplined, self-willed life is puny;

an obedient, God-willed life is spacious.

33     Fear-of-God is a school in skilled living—

first you learn humility, then you experience glory.

Insight

In the book of Proverbs, the wise are the righteous who obey God and live according to the Scriptures (15:31; see 2:20; 9:9; 10:8). The fool, on the other hand, despises His instructions (1:7; 2:12–15; 10:23; see Psalm 14:1). Solomon contrasted the attitudes, actions, and words of the wise and the foolish (primarily in Proverbs 10:1–15:33). Proverbs 15 describes a godly person as one who is discerning (v. 21), seeks godly counsel (v. 22), speaks graciously (v. 23), lives cautiously (v. 24), and shows humility (v. 25). The righteous are pure in heart (v. 26), honest (v. 27), self-controlled (v. 28), prayerful (v. 29), joyful (v. 30), teachable (vv. 31–32), and fear God (v. 33). The imperative for such a God-honoring life is stated in Proverbs 1:7 and again in 9:10: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”

To learn more about the book of Proverbs, visit https://odbu.org/courses/ot021/?utm_source=August+2+ODB+Insight+&utm_medium=email%2C+app%2C+web&utm_campaign=Reading+the+Proverbs+ODBU-ODB+. By: K. T. Sim

Life-Giving Correction

Whoever heeds life-giving correction will be at home among the wise.
Proverbs 15:31

“Unfortunately, we had a pretty hard conversation recently,” said Shellie. “I don’t think either of us enjoyed it, but I really felt her attitude and actions needed to be addressed in order to keep from hurting those around her.” Shellie was talking about the young woman she mentors. Although uncomfortable, their conversation was fruitful and actually strengthened their relationship. Just a few weeks later, the two women led a church-wide prayer time with the theme of humility.

Even outside of a formal mentoring relationship, we’ll face a tough conversation or two with a brother or sister in Christ. In Proverbs, a book full of timeless wisdom, the importance of humility in giving and receiving correction is a repeated theme. In fact, constructive criticism is called “life-giving” and leads to true wisdom (Proverbs 15:31). Proverbs 15:5 says a fool spurns discipline, while those who heed correction show good judgment. Put plainly, “the one who hates correction will die” (v. 10). As Shellie witnessed, truth spoken in love can bring new life to a relationship.

Is there someone in your life to whom a word of loving, life-giving correction should be spoken? Or perhaps you have recently received wise admonition and been tempted to respond with anger or indifference. To disregard discipline is to despise oneself, but to heed correction is to gain understanding (v. 32). Let’s ask God to help us give and receive correction with humility today. By:  Karen Pimpo

Reflect & Pray

How do you handle constructive criticism? What does humility look like?

Dear God, I seek Your wisdom. Please give me a humble heart, ready to receive life-giving correction.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Tuesday, August 02, 2022
  
The Teaching of Adversity

In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. —John 16:33

The typical view of the Christian life is that it means being delivered from all adversity. But it actually means being delivered in adversity, which is something very different. “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling…” (Psalm 91:1,10)— the place where you are at one with God.

If you are a child of God, you will certainly encounter adversities, but Jesus says you should not be surprised when they come. “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” He is saying, “There is nothing for you to fear.” The same people who refused to talk about their adversities before they were saved often complain and worry after being born again because they have the wrong idea of what it means to live the life of a saint.

God does not give us overcoming life— He gives us life as we overcome. The strain of life is what builds our strength. If there is no strain, there will be no strength. Are you asking God to give you life, liberty, and joy? He cannot, unless you are willing to accept the strain. And once you face the strain, you will immediately get the strength. Overcome your own timidity and take the first step. Then God will give you nourishment— “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life…” (Revelation 2:7). If you completely give of yourself physically, you become exhausted. But when you give of yourself spiritually, you get more strength. God never gives us strength for tomorrow, or for the next hour, but only for the strain of the moment. Our temptation is to face adversities from the standpoint of our own common sense. But a saint can “be of good cheer” even when seemingly defeated by adversities, because victory is absurdly impossible to everyone, except God.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

Sincerity means that the appearance and the reality are exactly the same.
Studies in the Sermon on the Mount

Bible in a Year: Psalms 60-62; Romans 5

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Tuesday, August 02, 2022

The Real You And The Wannabe You - #9277

I thought "catfishing" sounded like a Friday night feast in Mississippi. Until the absolutely weird news story came out about Notre Dame's All-American football star, reportedly falling in love with a girl who wasn't there. To be sure, his moving story of the death of the woman he loved on the eve of a critical late-season game raised tons of questions. He claimed that she turned out to be only an Internet invention. And that's why "catfishing" was suddenly in the news.

I found out that "catfishing" is defined as "building a fake online person and trapping others." And apparently, I guess it's happening more and more. Sounds crazy, doesn't it? Convincingly portraying a "person" that isn't really there at all. That's actually not all that new. Humans have been doing that for a long time.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Real You And The Wannabe You."

We date and sell ourselves as someone we're not - which is why so many people are shocked to discover they unknowingly married a stranger. We write, shall we say, "creative" resumes to get a job. We put on a great "church me," concealing the truth that it's more like "Sunday saint, Monday ain't." Happy-go-lucky on the outside, bleeding on the inside. All friendly to their face; all backstabbing when they're not around. Claiming to love the person you married while your eyes and your passions are on roam. Or acting like you've got it all together when inside you are falling apart.

Most of us are pretty good at giving folks the person they want us to be. Teenagers fool their parents, employees fool their boss, students con their teacher, husbands deceive their wife and wives their husband, guys and gals scam each other with lies to land a catch. Yeah, there are a lot of people out there who don't really exist. Like the sets for Hollywood movies; you know, impressive on the outside, but really only a front. There's nothing on the inside.

And then there are the people with integrity. They're rare. Therefore, they're really valuable. In math class, we learned that an "integer" is one whole number. Right? Well integrity means you are one whole person. There's only one you. You're the same person at home, at work, at the gym, at the store, in the classroom, in public, and when you're all alone. Real all the way through. A light in a sea of fake.

Unfortunately, we get so used to being great pretenders that we're prone to a truly deadly mistake; thinking we'll make it with God if we look good on the outside. But none of our spiritual masks fool God for a second. The Bible says, "Do not be deceived, God cannot be mocked. A man sows what he reaps" (Galatians 6:7).

Our word for today from the Word of God in Hebrews 4:13 tells us that the Judge we will all stand before says (listen to this), "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account" (Hebrews 4:13).

In preparation for that day, God tells church folks in the Bible, "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you - unless, of course, you fail the test?" (2 Corinthians 13:5). That's because it's possible to have tons of Christianity and somehow miss Christ, which sets the stage for this chilling Judgment Day verdict from Jesus in Matthew 7:23, "I never knew you."

Jesus on the outside won't cut it with God; only Jesus on the inside, in your heart, for real. If you're not sure you belong to Jesus, and you want to be sure, would you say, "Jesus, I'm yours today."

Join me at our website and let me help you be sure you belong to Him. We'll walk you through very simply how to make sure. Because it's time to find the road that will finally get you all the way home.

2 Samuel 1, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: We Are Heirs of the Promise - August 1, 2022

Heroes in the Bible came from all walks of life—rulers, servants, teachers, doctors, male, female, single, and married. Yet one common denominator united them: they built their lives on the promises of God. Noah believed in rain before rain was a word. Joshua led two million people into enemy territory. One writer went so far as to call such saints “heirs of the promise” (Hebrews 6:17 NASB).

As God prepared the Israelites to face a new land, he made a promise to them. “Before all your people I will do wonders never before done in any nation in all the world. The people you live among will see how awesome is the work that I, the LORD, will do for you” (Exodus 34:10). God’s promises are unbreakable; our hope is unshakable!

2 Samuel 1

Shortly after Saul died, David returned to Ziklag from his rout of the Amalekites. Three days later a man showed up unannounced from Saul’s army camp.

2-3 Disheveled and obviously in mourning, he fell to his knees in respect before David. David asked, “What brings you here?”

He answered, “I’ve just escaped from the camp of Israel.”

4 “So what happened?” said David. “What’s the news?”

He said, “The Israelites have fled the battlefield, leaving a lot of their dead comrades behind. And Saul and his son Jonathan are dead.”

5 David pressed the young soldier for details: “How do you know for sure that Saul and Jonathan are dead?”

6-8 “I just happened by Mount Gilboa and came on Saul, badly wounded and leaning on his spear, with enemy chariots and horsemen bearing down hard on him. He looked behind him, saw me, and called me to him. ‘Yes sir,’ I said, ‘at your service.’ He asked me who I was, and I told him, ‘I’m an Amalekite.’”

9 “Come here,” he said, “and put me out of my misery. I’m nearly dead already, but my life hangs on.”

10 “So I did what he asked—I killed him. I knew he wouldn’t last much longer anyway. I removed his royal headband and bracelet, and have brought them to my master. Here they are.”

11-12 In lament, David ripped his clothes to ribbons. All the men with him did the same. They wept and fasted the rest of the day, grieving the death of Saul and his son Jonathan, and also the army of God and the nation Israel, victims in a failed battle.

13 Then David spoke to the young soldier who had brought the report: “Who are you, anyway?”

“I’m from an immigrant family—an Amalekite.”

14-15 “Do you mean to say,” said David, “that you weren’t afraid to up and kill God’s anointed king?” Right then he ordered one of his soldiers, “Strike him dead!” The soldier struck him, and he died.

16 “You asked for it,” David told him. “You sealed your death sentence when you said you killed God’s anointed king.”

17-18 Then David sang this lament over Saul and his son Jonathan, and gave orders that everyone in Judah learn it by heart. Yes, it’s even inscribed in The Book of Jashar.

19-21
Oh, oh, Gazelles of Israel, struck down on your hills,
    the mighty warriors—fallen, fallen!
Don’t announce it in the city of Gath,
    don’t post the news in the streets of Ashkelon.
Don’t give those coarse Philistine girls
    one more excuse for a drunken party!
No more dew or rain for you, hills of Gilboa,
    and not a drop from springs and wells,
For there the warriors’ shields were dragged through the mud,
    Saul’s shield left there to rot.

22
Jonathan’s bow was bold—
    the bigger they were the harder they fell.
Saul’s sword was fearless—
    once out of the scabbard, nothing could stop it.

23
Saul and Jonathan—beloved, beautiful!
    Together in life, together in death.
Swifter than plummeting eagles,
    stronger than proud lions.

24-25
Women of Israel, weep for Saul.
    He dressed you in finest cottons and silks,
    spared no expense in making you elegant.
The mighty warriors—fallen, fallen
    in the middle of the fight!
    Jonathan—struck down on your hills!

26
O my dear brother Jonathan,
    I’m crushed by your death.
Your friendship was a miracle-wonder,
    love far exceeding anything I’ve known—
    or ever hope to know.

27
The mighty warriors—fallen, fallen.
    And the arms of war broken to bits.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Monday, August 01, 2022
Today's Scripture
2 Timothy 4:9–22

Get here as fast as you can. Demas, chasing fads, went off to Thessalonica and left me here. Crescens is in Galatia province, Titus in Dalmatia. Luke is the only one here with me. Bring Mark with you; he’ll be my right-hand man since I’m sending Tychicus to Ephesus. Bring the winter coat I left in Troas with Carpus; also the books and parchment notebooks.

14–15     Watch out for Alexander the coppersmith. Fiercely opposed to our Message, he caused no end of trouble. God will give him what he’s got coming.

16–18     At my preliminary hearing no one stood by me. They all ran like scared rabbits. But it doesn’t matter—the Master stood by me and helped me spread the Message loud and clear to those who had never heard it. I was snatched from the jaws of the lion! God’s looking after me, keeping me safe in the kingdom of heaven. All praise to him, praise forever! Oh, yes!

19–20     Say hello to Priscilla and Aquila; also, the family of Onesiphorus. Erastus stayed behind in Corinth. I had to leave Trophimus sick in Miletus.

21     Try hard to get here before winter.

Eubulus, Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all your friends here send greetings.

22     God be with you. Grace be with you.

Insight

Second Timothy, Paul’s final letter, was written from prison (2 Timothy 2:9). While we don’t know the specific details of his imprisonment, the apostle’s situation was severe—he seemed to believe his death was imminent (4:6–7). This context contributes to the urgent tone throughout this letter. Paul felt deeply the need to communicate to his protégé Timothy a clear vision of faithfulness to Jesus and the gospel amid suffering—and to warn against abandoning the gospel for the world’s comforts (v. 10). Paul hoped he would see Timothy again (v. 21), perhaps for the last time. By: Monica La Rose

In This Together

At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me.
2 Timothy 4:16

Kelly was battling brain cancer when the COVID-19 crisis hit. Then fluid developed around her heart and lungs, and she had to be hospitalized again. Her family couldn’t visit because of the pandemic. Her husband, Dave, vowed to do something.

Gathering loved ones together, Dave asked them to make large signs with messages. They did. Wearing masks, twenty people stood on the street outside the hospital holding signs: “Best Mom!” “Love You.” “We are with u.” With the help of a nurse, Kelly made her way to a fourth-floor window. “All we could see was a facemask and a waving hand,” her husband posted on social media, “but it was a beautiful facemask and waving hand.”

Late in his life, the apostle Paul felt alone as he languished in a Roman prison. He wrote to Timothy, “Do your best to get here before winter” (2 Timothy 4:21). Yet Paul wasn’t totally alone. “The Lord stood at my side and gave me strength,” he said (v. 17). And it’s also apparent that he had some encouraging contact with other believers. “Eubulus greets you,” he said to Timothy, “and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers and sisters” (v. 21).

We’re created for community, and we feel that most keenly when we’re in crisis. What might you do for someone who may feel entirely alone today?  

Reflect & Pray

When have you felt most alone? How have you sensed God’s presence during times of separation from loved ones?

Thank You, dear Father, for the gift of Your Spirit’s comfort, and for the community of believers You’ve brought into my life.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Monday, August 01, 2022

Learning About His Ways

When Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples…He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities. —Matthew 11:1

He comes where He commands us to leave. If you stayed home when God told you to go because you were so concerned about your own people there, then you actually robbed them of the teaching of Jesus Christ Himself. When you obeyed and left all the consequences to God, the Lord went into your city to teach, but as long as you were disobedient, you blocked His way. Watch where you begin to debate with Him and put what you call your duty into competition with His commands. If you say, “I know that He told me to go, but my duty is here,” it simply means that you do not believe that Jesus means what He says.

He teaches where He instructs us not to teach. “Master…let us make three tabernacles…” (Luke 9:33).

Are we playing the part of an amateur providence, trying to play God’s role in the lives of others? Are we so noisy in our instruction of other people that God cannot get near them? We must learn to keep our mouths shut and our spirits alert. God wants to instruct us regarding His Son, and He wants to turn our times of prayer into mounts of transfiguration. When we become certain that God is going to work in a particular way, He will never work in that way again.

He works where He sends us to wait. “…tarry…until…” (Luke 24:49). “Wait on the Lord” and He will work (Psalm 37:34). But don’t wait sulking spiritually and feeling sorry for yourself, just because you can’t see one inch in front of you! Are we detached enough from our own spiritual fits of emotion to “wait patiently for Him”? (Psalm 37:7). Waiting is not sitting with folded hands doing nothing, but it is learning to do what we are told.

These are some of the facets of His ways that we rarely recognize.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

Wherever the providence of God may dump us down, in a slum, in a shop, in the desert, we have to labour along the line of His direction. Never allow this thought—“I am of no use where I am,” because you certainly can be of no use where you are not! Wherever He has engineered your circumstances, pray. So Send I You, 1325 L

Bible in a Year: Psalms 57-59; Romans 4

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Monday, August 01, 2022

Step-By-Step - The Road to God's Will - #9276

If you're not a "Trekkie" you might know someone who is. A Trekkie, of course, is a rabid fan of Star Trek. I guess there's seldom been a TV series in American television history that so captured people's imaginations like Star Trek did and has, and in new form still is. Then there were the movies: Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, the Starship Enterprise. Really part of America's sort of fantasy memory bank.

There's one part of Star Trek I wish wasn't fantasy. Scotty, who's the Enterprise's chief engineer, mans a device called The Transporter. And if you ever saw Star Trek, you know that The Transporter does this molecular magic that allows the transportee to stand under this beam and to be beamed down to a planet, or beamed up to the ship in just a matter of seconds. Now, that maneuver has given birth to a very familiar refrain, "Scotty, beam me up." Don't you wish you could be immediately transported to your destination sometimes? (Are we there, yet?) Well, Scotty can't do it because he's not real, and the only One who could do it, well...

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Step-By-Step - The Road to God's Will."

Our word for today from the Word of God - Psalm 84. It's a blueprint for how God gets us to our destination. Listen to what He says, "Blessed are those whose strength is in You (referring to the Lord) who have set their hearts on pilgrimage." Verse 7 says, "They go from strength to strength till each appears before God in Zion."

I was caught by these words, "Blessed are those who have set their hearts on pilgrimage, who go from strength to strength." These are people who realize that there's a regular, day-by-day, strength-to-strength journey involved in getting us to our destination in God's will. It's referring to people who realize that following the Lord is a step at a time process, not some spiritual transporter that takes you instantly to spiritual maturity. It's more like, "Take a step, see a step. Take a step, see another step." It's not, "Lord, beam me up to spiritual maturity."

He says, "No, I bless those who are committed to that step-by-step process." You say, "Well, I know that! I know it's a process; it's not just a zap you get." But the problem is we don't live like we really believe it's a day-by-day process. We tend to live from spiritual high to spiritual high, "Lord, I'm going to make this great spiritual commitment. Now, beam me up to where I ought to be." So we make our annual, or semi-annual, or whatever decision it is to dedicate our life or re-dedicate or re-re-dedicate our life.

We want some experience to be a spiritual transporter; to give us instant arrival in Christ. But God says, "I bless pilgrimage." He talks about our walk. It's a daily choice to let Christ be the Lord of your life that day. You wake up in the morning to discover "today's journey," "today's turnover to Him." What am I going to turn over to the Lord today? What am I going to give Him today to consciously let Him be Lord of that part of me today? You make Christ the Lord of this 24-hour chunk of time, 24-hour strength for a 24-hour commitment. "Your strength will equal your days," the Bible says. "Take up your cross daily" Jesus said. That's pilgrimage.

It's pretty liberating to know that we're not failing if we haven't suddenly been transported to spiritual perfection. The question is, are you committed to the journey? Are you crowning Christ Lord each 24 hours?

Really knowing Christ is a million little victories. Then you're exactly where you should be if that's where your mindset is. No, God won't beam you up, but He will walk with you every day until you see Him.

Luke 24:1-35 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Growth of the Christian

Imagine you're selecting your food from a cafeteria line. You pick your salad, you choose your entrée, but when you get to the vegetables, you see a pan of something that turns your stomach.
"Yuck!  What's that?" you ask, pointing.
"Oh you don't want to know," replies an embarrassed server.
"Yes, I do."
"Well if you must.  It's a pan of pre-chewed food."
"What?"
"Some people prefer to swallow what others have chewed."
Repulsive? You bet. But widespread. More so than you might imagine. Not with cafeteria food, but with God's Word. Such Christians mean well. They listen well. But they discern little. They are content to swallow whatever they are told. No wonder they stop growing!
Are you learning to learn? Growth is the goal of the Christian. Maturity is mandatory. Hebrews 6:1 says, "Let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity."
From When God Whispers Your Name

Luke 24:1-35

Looking for the Living One in a Cemetery

At the crack of dawn on Sunday, the women came to the tomb carrying the burial spices they had prepared. They found the entrance stone rolled back from the tomb, so they walked in. But once inside, they couldn’t find the body of the Master Jesus.

4-8 They were puzzled, wondering what to make of this. Then, out of nowhere it seemed, two men, light cascading over them, stood there. The women were awestruck and bowed down in worship. The men said, “Why are you looking for the Living One in a cemetery? He is not here, but raised up. Remember how he told you when you were still back in Galilee that he had to be handed over to sinners, be killed on a cross, and in three days rise up?” Then they remembered Jesus’ words.

9-11 They left the tomb and broke the news of all this to the Eleven and the rest. Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them kept telling these things to the apostles, but the apostles didn’t believe a word of it, thought they were making it all up.

12 But Peter jumped to his feet and ran to the tomb. He stooped to look in and saw a few grave clothes, that’s all. He walked away puzzled, shaking his head.
The Road to Emmaus

13-16 That same day two of them were walking to the village Emmaus, about seven miles out of Jerusalem. They were deep in conversation, going over all these things that had happened. In the middle of their talk and questions, Jesus came up and walked along with them. But they were not able to recognize who he was.

17-18 He asked, “What’s this you’re discussing so intently as you walk along?”

They just stood there, long-faced, like they had lost their best friend. Then one of them, his name was Cleopas, said, “Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard what’s happened during the last few days?”

19-24 He said, “What has happened?”

They said, “The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene. He was a man of God, a prophet, dynamic in work and word, blessed by both God and all the people. Then our high priests and leaders betrayed him, got him sentenced to death, and crucified him. And we had our hopes up that he was the One, the One about to deliver Israel. And it is now the third day since it happened. But now some of our women have completely confused us. Early this morning they were at the tomb and couldn’t find his body. They came back with the story that they had seen a vision of angels who said he was alive. Some of our friends went off to the tomb to check and found it empty just as the women said, but they didn’t see Jesus.”

25-27 Then he said to them, “So thick-headed! So slow-hearted! Why can’t you simply believe all that the prophets said? Don’t you see that these things had to happen, that the Messiah had to suffer and only then enter into his glory?” Then he started at the beginning, with the Books of Moses, and went on through all the Prophets, pointing out everything in the Scriptures that referred to him.

28-31 They came to the edge of the village where they were headed. He acted as if he were going on but they pressed him: “Stay and have supper with us. It’s nearly evening; the day is done.” So he went in with them. And here is what happened: He sat down at the table with them. Taking the bread, he blessed and broke and gave it to them. At that moment, open-eyed, wide-eyed, they recognized him. And then he disappeared.

32 Back and forth they talked. “Didn’t we feel on fire as he conversed with us on the road, as he opened up the Scriptures for us?”
A Ghost Doesn’t Have Muscle and Bone

33-34 They didn’t waste a minute. They were up and on their way back to Jerusalem. They found the Eleven and their friends gathered together, talking away: “It’s really happened! The Master has been raised up—Simon saw him!”

35 Then the two went over everything that happened on the road and how they recognized him when he broke the bread.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Sunday, July 31, 2022

Today's Scripture
Philippians 3:7–16

The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness.

10–11     I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it.

Focused on the Goal

12–14     I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.

15–16     So let’s keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you’ll see it yet! Now that we’re on the right track, let’s stay on it.

Insight

Tutored by Gamaliel, a leading authority in the Sanhedrin, and “thoroughly trained in the law of [Israel’s] ancestors” (Acts 22:3), Paul was a Pharisee par excellence, whose knowledge of Judaism was unrivaled by his peers (Philippians 3:4–6). Yet after knowing Jesus, Paul considered everything he’d taken pride in as garbage. For the apostle, the life of faith was simply “knowing Christ Jesus” (v. 8). Jesus Himself said that eternal life is to “know . . . the only true God, and Jesus Christ” (John 17:3). That’s why Paul persistently prayed for believers to grow in their knowledge of God and Jesus (Ephesians 1:16–18; Colossians 1:9–10). By: K. T. Sim

“Make It Your Own, Dawg!”

I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
Philippians 3:12

On June 11, 2002, the singing competition American Idol debuted. Each week, hopefuls performed their own versions of popular songs, and the viewing audience voted on who advanced to the next round of the competition.

As one of the panel judges on the show, Randy Jackson’s signature feedback was this zinger: “You made that song your own, dawg!” He lavished that praise when a singer took a familiar tune, learned it inside out, and then performed it in a new way that gave it a unique, personal spin. To “make it their own” was to own it completely and creatively, and then offer it to the world onstage.

Paul invites us to do something similar to own our faith and our expression of it, too. In Philippians 3, he rejects attempts to earn right standing before God (vv. 7–8). Instead, he teaches us to embrace “the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith” (v. 9). The gift of forgiveness and redemption transforms our motivation and goals: “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me” (v. 12).

Jesus has secured our victory. Our job? To take hold of that truth, internalizing God’s gospel gift and living it out amid our broken world. In other words, we’re to make our faith our own and in so doing “live up to what we have already attained” (v. 16). By:  Adam Holz

Reflect & Pray

What do you think it looks like for you to “press on” in your faith? What most encourages and sustains you to keep moving forward?

Jesus, thank You for Your saving gift of redemption and love on the cross. Help me to respond in gratitude each day, and to press on in my faith with thankfulness.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Sunday, July 31, 2022
Becoming Entirely His

Let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. —James 1:4

Many of us appear to be all right in general, but there are still some areas in which we are careless and lazy; it is not a matter of sin, but the remnants of our carnal life that tend to make us careless. Carelessness is an insult to the Holy Spirit. We should have no carelessness about us either in the way we worship God, or even in the way we eat and drink.

Not only must our relationship to God be right, but the outward expression of that relationship must also be right. Ultimately, God will allow nothing to escape; every detail of our lives is under His scrutiny. God will bring us back in countless ways to the same point over and over again. And He never tires of bringing us back to that one point until we learn the lesson, because His purpose is to produce the finished product. It may be a problem arising from our impulsive nature, but again and again, with the most persistent patience, God has brought us back to that one particular point. Or the problem may be our idle and wandering thinking, or our independent nature and self-interest. Through this process, God is trying to impress upon us the one thing that is not entirely right in our lives.

We have been having a wonderful time in our studies over the revealed truth of God’s redemption, and our hearts are perfect toward Him. And His wonderful work in us makes us know that overall we are right with Him. “Let patience have its perfect work….” The Holy Spirit speaking through James said, “Now let your patience become a finished product.” Beware of becoming careless over the small details of life and saying, “Oh, that will have to do for now.” Whatever it may be, God will point it out with persistence until we become entirely His.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

Is He going to help Himself to your life, or are you taken up with your conception of what you are going to do? God is responsible for our lives, and the one great keynote is reckless reliance upon Him. Approved Unto God, 10 R

Bible in a Year: Psalms 54-56; Romans 3

1 Samuel , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Growth of the Christian

Imagine you're selecting your food from a cafeteria line. You pick your salad, you choose your entrée, but when you get to the vegetables, you see a pan of something that turns your stomach.

"Yuck!  What's that?" you ask, pointing.

"Oh you don't want to know," replies an embarrassed server.

"Yes, I do."

"Well if you must.  It's a pan of pre-chewed food."

"What?"

"Some people prefer to swallow what others have chewed."

Repulsive? You bet. But widespread. More so than you might imagine. Not with cafeteria food, but with God's Word. Such Christians mean well. They listen well. But they discern little. They are content to swallow whatever they are told. No wonder they stop growing!

Are you learning to learn? Growth is the goal of the Christian. Maturity is mandatory. Hebrews 6:1 says, "Let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity."

From When God Whispers Your Name

1 Samuel  31 Saul and Jonathan, Dead on the Mountain

1-2 The Philistines made war on Israel. The men of Israel were in full retreat from the Philistines, falling left and right, wounded on Mount Gilboa. The Philistines caught up with Saul and his sons. They killed Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malki-Shua, Saul’s sons.

3-4 The battle was hot and heavy around Saul. The archers got his range and wounded him badly. Saul said to his weapon bearer, “Draw your sword and put me out of my misery, lest these pagan pigs come and make a game out of killing me.”

4-6 But his weapon bearer wouldn’t do it. He was terrified. So Saul took the sword himself and fell on it. When the weapon bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his sword and died with him. So Saul, his three sons, and his weapon bearer—the men closest to him—died together that day.

7 When the Israelites in the valley opposite and those on the other side of the Jordan saw that their army was in full retreat and that Saul and his sons were dead, they left their cities and ran for their lives. The Philistines moved in and occupied the sites.

8-10 The next day, when the Philistines came to rob the dead, they found Saul and his three sons dead on Mount Gilboa. They cut off Saul’s head and stripped off his armor. Then they spread the good news all through Philistine country in the shrines of their idols and among the people. They displayed his armor in the shrine of the Ashtoreth. They nailed his corpse to the wall at Beth Shan.

11-13 The people of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul. Their valiant men sprang into action. They traveled all night, took the corpses of Saul and his three sons from the wall at Beth Shan, and carried them back to Jabesh and burned off the flesh. They then buried the bones under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh and fasted in mourning for seven days.

Our Daily Bread

Today's Scripture:

John 1:1–5 

T he Word was first,

the Word present to God,

God present to the Word.

The Word was God,

in readiness for God from day one.

3–5  Everything was created through him;

nothing—not one thing!—

came into being without him.

What came into existence was Life,

and the Life was Light to live by.

The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness;

the darkness couldn’t put it out.

Insight

The first eighteen verses of John, known as the Prologue, are theologically rich and weighty. Verses 1–5 focus on the existence and activity of the Word before His entrance into the world as a human being (v. 14). Verse 1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” In a very succinct way, John noted that before anything came into being, the Word existed with God and as God. Verses 3–5 shift from the preexistence of the Word to the activity of the Word before the incarnation: “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made” (v. 3). The Word of God (see Genesis 1) is the source of life and light (John 1:4) and is credited with the creation of all things. By: Arthur Jackson

Puddles of Sunshine

On those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.

Matthew 4:16

It was a warm summer day and my four-year-old granddaughter Mollie and I were taking a break from playing ball. As we sat on the porch with our glasses of water, Mollie looked out at the yard and said, “Look at the puddles of sunshine.” The sunlight was filtering through the thick foliage to create a pattern of light amid the dark shadows.

Puddles of sunshine. Isn’t this a beautiful image for finding hope in dark days? In the midst of what can often be challenging times—when good news seems in short supply—instead of concentrating on the shadows, we can focus on the light.

The Light has a name—Jesus. Matthew quoted Isaiah to describe the brightness that came into the world when Jesus arrived: “The people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned” (Matthew 4:16; see also Isaiah 9:2). The effects of sin are all around us as we live in the “land of the shadow of death.” But shining through that shadow is Jesus, the grand and glorious light of the world (John 1:4–5).

The sunshine of Jesus’ love and compassion breaks through the shadow—giving us “puddles of sunshine” to illuminate our day and brighten our hearts with hope. By:  Dave Branon

Reflect & Pray

What darkness is clouding your day? How can you allow the light of Jesus’ presence and love to bring you joy and hope?

Jesus, while we struggle through a world full of trouble, I need Your presence. I need Your uplifting love to take me out of the shadows and help me stand in the light of Your magnificence.

Utmost for my Highest The Teaching of Disillusionment

By Oswald Chambers

Jesus did not commit Himself to them…, for He knew what was in man. —John 2:24-25

Disillusionment means having no more misconceptions, false impressions, and false judgments in life; it means being free from these deceptions. However, though no longer deceived, our experience of disillusionment may actually leave us cynical and overly critical in our judgment of others. But the disillusionment that comes from God brings us to the point where we see people as they really are, yet without any cynicism or any stinging and bitter criticism. Many of the things in life that inflict the greatest injury, grief, or pain, stem from the fact that we suffer from illusions. We are not true to one another as facts, seeing each other as we really are; we are only true to our misconceived ideas of one another. According to our thinking, everything is either delightful and good, or it is evil, malicious, and cowardly.

Refusing to be disillusioned is the cause of much of the suffering of human life. And this is how that suffering happens— if we love someone, but do not love God, we demand total perfection and righteousness from that person, and when we do not get it we become cruel and vindictive; yet we are demanding of a human being something which he or she cannot possibly give. There is only one Being who can completely satisfy to the absolute depth of the hurting human heart, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord is so obviously uncompromising with regard to every human relationship because He knows that every relationship that is not based on faithfulness to Himself will end in disaster. Our Lord trusted no one, and never placed His faith in people, yet He was never suspicious or bitter. Our Lord’s confidence in God, and in what God’s grace could do for anyone, was so perfect that He never despaired, never giving up hope for any person. If our trust is placed in human beings, we will end up despairing of everyone.

 WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

When you are joyful, be joyful; when you are sad, be sad. If God has given you a sweet cup, don’t make it bitter; and if He has given you a bitter cup, don’t try and make it sweet; take things as they come.  Shade of His Hand, 1226 L 

Bible in a Year: Psalms 51-53; Romans 2

1 Samuel 30, Our Daily Bread reading and Devotions

Max Lucado: PETER - July 29, 2022

Peter could not deny his denial. The empty tomb did not erase the crowing rooster. Christ had returned, but Peter must have wondered, After what I did, would he return for someone like me? Is Peter the only person to do the very thing he swore he’d never do? Oh, the volume of our boasting. Oh, the heartbreak of our shame. And the question whether Jesus has a place for folks like us. He answers that question – he invited Peter to breakfast.

What if Jesus did for you what he did for Peter? He has done exactly that. Jesus issues a tender reminder as he passes the cup: “Every one of you drink this…This blood is poured out for many to forgive their sins” (Matthew 26:27-28 NCV). “Every one of you drink this,” he said. It feels good to have a place at the table. 

1 Samuel 30

David’s Strength Was in His God

Three days later, David and his men arrived back in Ziklag. Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They tore Ziklag to pieces and then burned it down. They captured all the women, young and old. They didn’t kill anyone, but drove them like a herd of cattle. By the time David and his men entered the village, it had been burned to the ground, and their wives, sons, and daughters all taken prisoner.

4-6 David and his men burst out in loud wails—wept and wept until they were exhausted with weeping. David’s two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail widow of Nabal of Carmel, had been taken prisoner along with the rest. And suddenly David was in even worse trouble. There was talk among the men, bitter over the loss of their families, of stoning him.

6-7 David strengthened himself with trust in his God. He ordered Abiathar the priest, son of Ahimelech, “Bring me the Ephod so I can consult God.” Abiathar brought it to David.

8 Then David prayed to God, “Shall I go after these raiders? Can I catch them?”

The answer came, “Go after them! Yes, you’ll catch them! Yes, you’ll make the rescue!”

9-10 David went, he and the six hundred men with him. They arrived at the Brook Besor, where some of them dropped out. David and four hundred men kept up the pursuit, but two hundred of them were too fatigued to cross the Brook Besor, and stayed there.

11-12 Some who went on came across an Egyptian in a field and took him to David. They gave him bread and he ate. And he drank some water. They gave him a piece of fig cake and a couple of raisin muffins. Life began to revive in him. He hadn’t eaten or drunk a thing for three days and nights!

13-14 David said to him, “Who do you belong to? Where are you from?”

“I’m an Egyptian slave of an Amalekite,” he said. “My master walked off and left me when I got sick—that was three days ago. We had raided the Negev of the Kerethites, of Judah, and of Caleb. Ziklag we burned.”

15 David asked him, “Can you take us to the raiders?”

“Promise me by God,” he said, “that you won’t kill me or turn me over to my old master, and I’ll take you straight to the raiders.”

16 He led David to them. They were scattered all over the place, eating and drinking, gorging themselves on all the loot they had plundered from Philistia and Judah.

17-20 David pounced. He fought them from before sunrise until evening of the next day. None got away except for four hundred of the younger men who escaped by riding off on camels. David rescued everything the Amalekites had taken. And he rescued his two wives! Nothing and no one was missing—young or old, son or daughter, plunder or whatever. David recovered the whole lot. He herded the sheep and cattle before them, and they all shouted, “David’s plunder!”

21 Then David came to the two hundred who had been too tired to continue with him and had dropped out at the Brook Besor. They came out to welcome David and his band. As he came near he called out, “Success!”

22 But all the mean-spirited men who had marched with David, the rabble element, objected: “They didn’t help in the rescue, they don’t get any of the plunder we recovered. Each man can have his wife and children, but that’s it. Take them and go!”

23-25 “Families don’t do this sort of thing! Oh no, my brothers!” said David as he broke up the argument. “You can’t act this way with what God gave us! God kept us safe. He handed over the raiders who attacked us. Who would ever listen to this kind of talk? The share of the one who stays with the gear is the share of the one who fights—equal shares. Share and share alike!” From that day on, David made that the rule in Israel—and it still is.

26-31 On returning to Ziklag, David sent portions of the plunder to the elders of Judah, his neighbors, with a note saying, “A gift from the plunder of God’s enemies!” He sent them to the elders in Bethel, Ramoth Negev, Jattir, Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa, Racal, Jerahmeelite cities, Kenite cities, Hormah, Bor Ashan, Athach, and Hebron, along with a number of other places David and his men went to from time to time.

Our Daily Bread 

Today's Scripture:

Psalm 23 A psalm of David.

1 

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

2 

    He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,

3 

    he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.

4 

Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,[a]
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

5 

You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.

6 

Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

Insight

In Psalm 23, the psalmist David referred to God as his shepherd and by implication to himself as a sheep (v. 1). This wasn’t unusual. There are other references to this analogy between a deity and its followers in ancient Middle Eastern cultures. In ancient thought, a king was a shepherd. God as shepherd to His people is a familiar idea throughout the Bible beginning in Genesis, where Jacob called God “the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel” (49:24). In Psalm 28, David entreated God to “be [the people’s] shepherd and carry them forever” (v. 9). And the psalmist Asaph referred to God as the “Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock” (80:1). Other Old Testament references to God as a shepherd include Ecclesiastes 12:11; Isaiah 40:11; Micah 7:14; and Zechariah 13:7. In the New Testament, Jesus spoke of Himself as “the good shepherd [who] lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11). By: Alyson Kieda 

Followed by God’s Goodness

Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life.

Psalm 23:6

At my first job during my high school years, I worked at a women’s clothing store where a female security guard dressed as a shopper followed women she thought might steal the merchandise. Certain people fit profiles of those the store owners thought were suspicious. Others not considered a threat were left alone. I’ve been profiled in stores myself and followed, an interesting experience since I still recognize the tactic.

In sharp contrast, David declared he was followed by a divine blessing—God’s goodness and mercy. These two gifts always stay close, following him not with suspicion but real love. The “twin guardian angels,” as evangelist Charles Spurgeon described the pair, follow believers closely during both bleak days and bright. “The dreary days of winter as well as the bright days of summer. Goodness supplies our needs, and mercy blots out our sins.”

As a onetime shepherd, David understood this intentional pairing of goodness and mercy as it’s provided by God. Other things could follow believers—fear, worry, temptation, doubts. But “surely,” David declares with undoubting certainty, God’s kind goodness and loving mercy follow us always.

As David rejoiced, “Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23:6). What an amazing gift to follow us home! By:  Patricia Raybon

Reflect & Pray

How does being followed by God’s goodness and mercy bless your life? How can you become more aware of this?

Dear God, thank You for following me with good intentions and two beautiful blessings, Your goodness and mercy.

My Utmost for His Highest 

Do You See Jesus in Your Clouds?

By Oswald Chambers 

Behold, He is coming with clouds… —Revelation 1:7 In the Bible clouds are always associated with God. Clouds are the sorrows, sufferings, or providential circumstances, within or without our personal lives, which actually seem to contradict the sovereignty of God. Yet it is through these very clouds that the Spirit of God is teaching us how to walk by faith. If there were never any clouds in our lives, we would have no faith. “The clouds are the dust of His feet” (Nahum 1:3). They are a sign that God is there. What a revelation it is to know that sorrow, bereavement, and suffering are actually the clouds that come along with God! God cannot come near us without clouds— He does not come in clear-shining brightness.

It is not true to say that God wants to teach us something in our trials. Through every cloud He brings our way, He wants us to unlearn something. His purpose in using the cloud is to simplify our beliefs until our relationship with Him is exactly like that of a child— a relationship simply between God and our own souls, and where other people are but shadows. Until other people become shadows to us, clouds and darkness will be ours every once in a while. Is our relationship with God becoming more simple than it has ever been?

There is a connection between the strange providential circumstances allowed by God and what we know of Him, and we have to learn to interpret the mysteries of life in the light of our knowledge of God. Until we can come face to face with the deepest, darkest fact of life without damaging our view of God’s character, we do not yet know Him.

“…they were fearful as they entered the cloud” (Luke 9:34). Is there anyone except Jesus in your cloud? If so, it will only get darker until you get to the place where there is “no one anymore, but only Jesus …” (Mark 9:8; also see verses 2–7).

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Civilization is based on principles which imply that the passing moment is permanent. The only permanent thing is God, and if I put anything else as permanent, I become atheistic. I must build only on God (John 14:6). The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption, 565 L

A Word With You by Ron Hutchcraft

YOUR ATTITUDE AND YOUR ALTITUDE - #9275

I knew this guy who, several times a week, would suddenly make this announcement, "Attitude check!" That never meant much to me until I began to have some friends who are private pilots. Up to that point, the only pilot I knew was, you know, Pontius. But that word "attitude" can be a life-or-death word for a pilot. One of my friends described a plane's attitude to me as its position relative to the ground, and to the horizon - or, as he says, your angle of attack. After decades of flying, including landing on aircraft carriers, he summarized the importance of a plane's attitude this way, "Right attitude, you keep flying. Wrong attitude, you stop flying."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your Attitude and Your Altitude."

Every pilot knows if your attitude is incorrect, there'll be tragic results. Every person knows that, or at least we should. If your attitude is right, you can make it through almost anything. If your attitude is wrong, you're going to start losing altitude, tumbling, maybe eventually crashing. See, in life, we usually don't get to choose our circumstances, the kind of stuff we have to fly through. A lot of that is determined by forces or people beyond our control. But we can choose our attitude. And it will be our attitude, not our circumstances, that determine whether we stay up or go down.

Pilots tell me that when you're flying by your instruments, in those times when conditions won't let you fly visually, you adjust your attitude based on this instrument called your artificial horizon. It actually shows you where the real horizon is. But when you can't see any points of reference, your senses start playing tricks on you. One veteran pilot friend of mine said that even he has sometimes to fight his instincts and feelings that are telling him lies about whether he's going up or down. The only thing that's telling him the truth is his artificial horizon.

For us, the horizon is the Word of God. After the loss of the Shuttle Columbia and its crew, I heard an interview in which it was reported that Commander Rick Husband read a Scripture passage to his crew on the night before their launch. It's our word for today from the Word of God. Joshua 1, beginning with verse 7, "Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or the left...Do not let this book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful."

Every new day, we've got to reset our attitude based on quality time in God's Book; not just where we read the Bible, but where we let the Bible read us. For me, that means setting my attitude on "horizons" like these: "Jesus is Lord" over everything that's going to come up today. "Love covers a multitude of sins." If I love people, I'll overlook their mistakes today, not keep a record of them. That's a right attitude for the day.

Then, there's those Biblical words "Whatever you do, do it with all your heart" (Colossians 3:23). So, whatever I have to do today, whether I particularly like it or not, do it with all my heart. When you're setting your attitude, set it on this: "The battle is the Lord's" (2 Chronicles 20:14), every battle you're going to face today. And finally, "Fix your eyes on Jesus" (Hebrews 12:2). Don't let anything or anyone distract you from Jesus being your focus.

Set your attitude by the "horizon" of God's unchanging Word, even when your feelings and your surroundings are screaming to go another way. If your attitude is right, you'll hold your course, you'll fly steady as she goes, and you will complete your mission. So choose your attitude.

Luke 23:26-56 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Paul, a Hero - July 28, 2022

Paul was a Christian-killer before he was a Christian leader. In Romans 7:25 (NCV) he wrote: “I thank God for saving me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

One day Paul was preaching; the next he was in prison. Look at him in prison – what you see shuffling around the jail cell isn’t too much. But what I lean over and tell you is: “That man, that very man, will shape the course of history. Within two hundred years his thoughts will influence the teaching of every school on this continent. Those letters scribbled on parchment? They’ll be read in thousands of languages and impact every major creed and constitution of the future. Every major figure will read them.”

You know, we seldom see history in the making. We seldom recognize heroes. Which is just as well, for if we knew either we might mess up both.

Luke 23:26-56

Skull Hill

26-31 As they led him off, they made Simon, a man from Cyrene who happened to be coming in from the countryside, carry the cross behind Jesus. A huge crowd of people followed, along with women weeping and carrying on. At one point Jesus turned to the women and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, don’t cry for me. Cry for yourselves and for your children. The time is coming when they’ll say, ‘Lucky the women who never conceived! Lucky the wombs that never gave birth! Lucky the breasts that never gave milk!’ Then they’ll start calling to the mountains, ‘Fall down on us!’ calling to the hills, ‘Cover us up!’ If people do these things to a live, green tree, can you imagine what they’ll do with deadwood?”

32 Two others, both criminals, were taken along with him for execution.

33 When they got to the place called Skull Hill, they crucified him, along with the criminals, one on his right, the other on his left.

34-35 Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them; they don’t know what they’re doing.”

Dividing up his clothes, they threw dice for them. The people stood there staring at Jesus, and the ringleaders made faces, taunting, “He saved others. Let’s see him save himself! The Messiah of God—ha! The Chosen—ha!”

36-37 The soldiers also came up and poked fun at him, making a game of it. They toasted him with sour wine: “So you’re King of the Jews! Save yourself!”

38 Printed over him was a sign: this is the king of the jews.

39 One of the criminals hanging alongside cursed him: “Some Messiah you are! Save yourself! Save us!”

40-41 But the other one made him shut up: “Have you no fear of God? You’re getting the same as him. We deserve this, but not him—he did nothing to deserve this.”

42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you enter your kingdom.”

43 He said, “Don’t worry, I will. Today you will join me in paradise.”

44-46 By now it was noon. The whole earth became dark, the darkness lasting three hours—a total blackout. The Temple curtain split right down the middle. Jesus called loudly, “Father, I place my life in your hands!” Then he breathed his last.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion   
Thursday, July 28, 2022

Today's Scripture
Revelation 5:8–14

The moment he took the scroll, the Four Animals and Twenty-four Elders fell down and worshiped the Lamb. Each had a harp and each had a bowl, a gold bowl filled with incense, the prayers of God’s holy people. And they sang a new song:

Worthy! Take the scroll, open its seals.

Slain! Paying in blood, you bought men and women,

Bought them back from all over the earth,

Bought them back for God.

Then you made them a Kingdom, Priests for our God,

Priest-kings to rule over the earth.

11–14     I looked again. I heard a company of Angels around the Throne, the Animals, and the Elders—ten thousand times ten thousand their number, thousand after thousand after thousand in full song:

The slain Lamb is worthy!

Take the power, the wealth, the wisdom, the strength!

Take the honor, the glory, the blessing!

Then I heard every creature in Heaven and earth, in underworld and sea, join in, all voices in all places, singing:

To the One on the Throne! To the Lamb!

The blessing, the honor, the glory, the strength,

For age after age after age.

The Four Animals called out, “Oh, Yes!” The Elders fell to their knees and worshiped.

Insight

The central picture in Revelation 5 is the moving image of a slain yet living Lamb (v. 6) worshiped by all creation (v. 13). God’s people had long looked for the prophesied Messiah, the Lion of Judah (v. 5; Isaiah 11:1–9) to powerfully deliver them. Most assumed this Messiah, much like a lion, would conquer through force and vengeful violence. Instead, the Messiah, the Lion of Judah, was revealed to be a gentle Lamb, willing to give everything, even His own life, for the salvation of others. It’s only that Lamb who is found worthy to establish God’s justice and bring history to its long-awaited goal. By: Monica La Rose

When the Whole World Sings

They sang a new song, saying . . . with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.
Revelation 5:9

A commercial jingle of the 1970s inspired a generation. Created as part of Coca Cola’s “The Real Thing” ad campaign, a British group called The New Seekers eventually sang it as a full-length song that climbed to the top of music charts around the world. But many will never forget the original television version sung by young people on a hilltop outside of Rome. Whimsical as it was, with visions of honeybees and fruit trees, we resonated with a songwriter’s desire to teach the world to sing with the heart and harmony of love.

The apostle John describes something like that idealized dream, only vastly greater. He envisioned a song sung by “every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them” (Revelation 5:13). There’s nothing whimsical about this anthem. Nothing could be more realistic than the price paid by the One to whom this song is sung. Neither could there be anything more foreboding than the visions of war, death, and consequence that His sacrifice of love would have to overcome.

Yet this is what it took for the Lamb of God to bear our sin and defeat death, overcome our fear of death, and teach all heaven and earth to sing—in perfect harmony.

Reflect & Pray

What gives you cause to sing? What happens to your heart and mind when you embrace John’s vision of every created being singing in united praise of the Lamb and His love?

Father in heaven, please help me to sense the wonder of what You’ve done to give me a song that can be sung in joy by everyone and every living creature.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, July 28, 2022

God’s Purpose or Mine?

He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side… —Mark 6:45

We tend to think that if Jesus Christ compels us to do something and we are obedient to Him, He will lead us to great success. We should never have the thought that our dreams of success are God’s purpose for us. In fact, His purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have the idea that God is leading us toward a particular end or a desired goal, but He is not. The question of whether or not we arrive at a particular goal is of little importance, and reaching it becomes merely an episode along the way. What we see as only the process of reaching a particular end, God sees as the goal itself.

What is my vision of God’s purpose for me? Whatever it may be, His purpose is for me to depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay calm, faithful, and unconfused while in the middle of the turmoil of life, the goal of the purpose of God is being accomplished in me. God is not working toward a particular finish— His purpose is the process itself. What He desires for me is that I see “Him walking on the sea” with no shore, no success, nor goal in sight, but simply having the absolute certainty that everything is all right because I see “Him walking on the sea” (Mark 6:49). It is the process, not the outcome, that is glorifying to God.

God’s training is for now, not later. His purpose is for this very minute, not for sometime in the future. We have nothing to do with what will follow our obedience, and we are wrong to concern ourselves with it. What people call preparation, God sees as the goal itself.

God’s purpose is to enable me to see that He can walk on the storms of my life right now. If we have a further goal in mind, we are not paying enough attention to the present time. However, if we realize that moment-by-moment obedience is the goal, then each moment as it comes is precious.

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

The great word of Jesus to His disciples is Abandon. When God has brought us into the relationship of disciples, we have to venture on His word; trust entirely to Him and watch that when He brings us to the venture, we take it.
Studies in the Sermon on the Mount

Bible in a Year: Psalms 46-48; Acts 28

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, July 28, 2022

Peace That Stands the Test - #9274

I was on an airplane flight from Chicago to Newark, and suddenly the pilot came on and he said, "You may have noticed that we are not going East any more, we're headed North. We're going to have to make an emergency landing in Detroit."

Well, I want to tell you; those words didn't thrill everybody particularly. Not because there's anything wrong with Detroit. It's fine, but emergency landings aren't real exciting. No. He went on to say, "We're having a little problem with our hydraulic system." Then the next thing we knew, before the landing, the flight attendants came through and three times they checked to see how tight our seat belts were. Of course, everybody on the plane is starting to speculate about, "Do we have a problem with our wing flaps, or our landing gear?" This could be pretty serious!

Now, my immediate neighbor was a very sweet grandma. She was really anxious. The next guy down said, "You know what? I'll bet our wheels aren't down. This could be really bad." Oh, that helped! Thank you.

Now, we had a very shaky approach to the airport, but I've got to tell you, thank God we had a smooth landing. Then I saw the welcoming party; fire engines and emergency equipment all over!

Now, who knows how close a call it really was? But I'll tell you this, the possibility of a crash squeezed out the inner emotional contents from all the passengers. And it was a good test for me. You know, actually I tried to lighten up the grandma's anxiety with a little humor. I told her we were going to get a trip to Detroit for no extra charge, and I kind of kept on doing my work. I honestly felt pretty much as safe as if I would in my living room.

And that's when grandma asked the question, and I'll tell you what I told her.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Peace That Stands the Test."

Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from John 14:27. It's a good word for a man whose plane may have trouble landing. "Peace I leave with you." Now, can you think of a sweeter word? "My peace I give you" Jesus said. "I do not give you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid." You know what? I wasn't.

Grandma said to me, "You know, you were so calm. You were totally calm. I was glad I was sitting next to you. That other man didn't help very much, but I'm glad I was sitting next to you." And I said, "Well, can I tell you why I was calm?" She said, "Yeah, why?" I said, "It's because of Christ in my life. See, the peace doesn't come from what's going on around me. The peace comes from who is going on inside me."

Jesus said He doesn't give you peace like the world gives. World peace-the world's kind, you're okay if the surroundings are pleasant, the situation is stable, and if your life or security isn't in danger. That's external, therefore it's 'loseable'.

I know a couple and one is facing lymphatic cancer, the other, bypass surgery at the same time. And they're giving a simple testimony. The Lord has virtually said to them almost verbally, "I will never leave you or forsake you." And I said to them, "You are facing death and suffering with God's peace and it has stood the test." See, that's peace that nothing can take from you - a peace that you might desperately need right now.

Well, you know, peace is a person. The person is Jesus. He forgives your sin, He guarantees heaven, He promises His powerful care, He'll be the constant no matter what changes. That's peace! My life isn't in the hands of a pilot, or a surgeon, or an adversary. It's in my Savior's hands. When you make your peace with God, you have God's peace. The worst can happen, the best remains. What a rock solid calm you can have at the center of your soul if you'll make the Prince of Peace, your Prince.

If you've never opened your heart to this forgiver of sins, this giver of peace, this guarantee-er of heaven, Jesus Christ, let this be the day you say, "Lord, I stop running my life. You pilot my life from here on. I'm giving myself to the One who died for me."

There's more about this at our website. I encourage you to go there - ANewStory.com. Ask anyone who's been to the edge with Christ in their heart. This peace - His peace stands the test.