Psalm 136, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: PRAY WITHOUT CEASING - July 7, 2023

Sound burdensome? Are you wondering, My business needs attention, my children need dinner, my bills need paying. How can I stay in a place of prayer? Well do this: change your definition of prayer. Think of prayer less as an activity for God and more as an awareness of God. Seek to live in uninterrupted awareness.

Acknowledge his presence everywhere you go. In the grocery as you shop. Your presence, my King, I welcome. As you wash the dishes, worship your Maker. God loves the sound of your voice. Always. He doesn’t hide when you call. He hears your prayers.

For that reason, “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6 NKJV).

Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Read more Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Psalm 136

Thank God! He deserves your thanks.

    His love never quits.

Thank the God of all gods,

    His love never quits.

Thank the Lord of all lords.

    His love never quits.

4-22 Thank the miracle-working God,

    His love never quits.

The God whose skill formed the cosmos,

    His love never quits.

The God who laid out earth on ocean foundations,

    His love never quits.

The God who filled the skies with light,

    His love never quits.

The sun to watch over the day,

    His love never quits.

Moon and stars as guardians of the night,

    His love never quits.

The God who struck down the Egyptian firstborn,

    His love never quits.

And rescued Israel from Egypt’s oppression,

    His love never quits.

Took Israel in hand with his powerful hand,

    His love never quits.

Split the Red Sea right in half,

    His love never quits.

Led Israel right through the middle,

    His love never quits.

Dumped Pharaoh and his army in the sea,

    His love never quits.

The God who marched his people through the desert,

    His love never quits.

Smashed huge kingdoms right and left,

    His love never quits.

Struck down the famous kings,

    His love never quits.

Struck Sihon the Amorite king,

    His love never quits.

Struck Og the Bashanite king,

    His love never quits.

Then distributed their land as booty,

    His love never quits.

Handed the land over to Israel.

    His love never quits.

23-26 God remembered us when we were down,

    His love never quits.

Rescued us from the trampling boot,

    His love never quits.

Takes care of everyone in time of need.

    His love never quits.

Thank God, who did it all!

    His love never quits!

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Friday, July 07, 2023

Today's Scripture

Exodus 16:4-7, 13–17

4-5 God said to Moses, “I’m going to rain bread down from the skies for you. The people will go out and gather each day’s ration. I’m going to test them to see if they’ll live according to my Teaching or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they have gathered, it will turn out to be twice as much as their daily ration.”

6-7 Moses and Aaron told the People of Israel, “This evening you will know that it is God who brought you out of Egypt; and in the morning you will see the Glory of God. Yes, he’s listened to your complaints against him. You haven’t been complaining against us, you know, but against God.”

13-15 That evening quail flew in and covered the camp and in the morning there was a layer of dew all over the camp. When the layer of dew had lifted, there on the wilderness ground was a fine flaky something, fine as frost on the ground. The Israelites took one look and said to one another, man-hu (What is it?). They had no idea what it was.

15-16 So Moses told them, “It’s the bread God has given you to eat. And these are God’s instructions: ‘Gather enough for each person, about two quarts per person; gather enough for everyone in your tent.’”

17-18 The People of Israel went to work and started gathering, some more, some less, but when they measured out what they had gathered, those who gathered more had no extra and those who gathered less weren’t short—each person had gathered as much as was needed.

Insight

Having crossed the Red Sea, which was the final act of their liberation from Egypt, the Israelites transitioned on to Sinai. The elements of the transition include a season of worship at the Red Sea (15:1–21), cleansing the bitter waters at Marah (vv. 22–27), God’s provision of manna and quail (ch. 16) and water from the rock (17:1–7), a battle against the Amalekites (vv. 8–16), a leadership summit with Jethro (ch. 18), and their arrival at Sinai (ch. 19). At Sinai, God reintroduced Himself to His chosen people, and Israel further transitioned from being a massive extended family to becoming a nation with laws. By: Bill Crowder

Chocolate Snowflakes

Moses said to them, “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat.” Exodus 16:15

Residents of Olten, Switzerland, were surprised by a shower of chocolate shavings covering the entire town. The ventilation system at a nearby chocolate factory had malfunctioned, sending cocoa into the air and dusting the area with confectionary goodness. The chocolate coating sounds like a dream come true for chocoholics!

While chocolate doesn’t adequately provide for one’s nutritional needs, God supplied the Israelites with heavenly showers that did. As they traveled through the desert, they began to grumble about the variety of food they’d left behind in Egypt. In response, God said He would “rain down bread from heaven” to sustain them (Exodus 16:4). When the morning dew dried up each day, a thin flake of food remained. Approximately two million Israelites were instructed to gather as much as they needed that day. For forty years of their desert wanderings, they were nourished by God’s supernatural provision in manna.

We know little about manna except that it was “white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey” (v. 31). Though manna may not sound as appealing as a steady diet of chocolate, the sweetness of God’s provision for His people is clear. Manna points us to Jesus who described Himself as the “bread of life” (John 6:48) that sustains us daily and assures us of life eternal (v. 51). By:  Kirsten Holmberg

Reflect & Pray

How has God provided for you? How does Jesus being the “bread of life” encourage you to trust Him?

Father God, thank You for providing for my deepest need in Jesus and sustaining me every day.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, July 07, 2023

All Efforts of Worth and Excellence Are Difficult

Enter by the narrow gate….Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life…. —Matthew 7:13-14

If we are going to live as disciples of Jesus, we have to remember that all efforts of worth and excellence are difficult.  The Christian life is gloriously difficult, but its difficulty does not make us faint and cave in— it stirs us up to overcome.  Do we appreciate the miraculous salvation of Jesus Christ enough to be our utmost for His highest— our best for His glory?

God saves people by His sovereign grace through the atonement of Jesus, and “it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). But we have to “work out” that salvation in our everyday, practical living (Philippians 2:12). If we will only start on the basis of His redemption to do what He commands, then we will find that we can do it. If we fail, it is because we have not yet put into practice what God has placed within us. But a crisis will reveal whether or not we have been putting it into practice. If we will obey the Spirit of God and practice in our physical life what God has placed within us by His Spirit, then when a crisis does come we will find that our own nature, as well as the grace of God, will stand by us.

Thank God that He does give us difficult things to do! His salvation is a joyous thing, but it is also something that requires bravery, courage, and holiness. It tests us for all we are worth. Jesus is “bringing many sons to glory” (Hebrews 2:10), and God will not shield us from the requirements of sonship. God’s grace produces men and women with a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, not pampered, spoiled weaklings. It takes a tremendous amount of discipline to live the worthy and excellent life of a disciple of Jesus in the realities of life. And it is always necessary for us to make an effort to live a life of worth and excellence.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

There is no allowance whatever in the New Testament for the man who says he is saved by grace but who does not produce the graceful goods. Jesus Christ by His Redemption can make our actual life in keeping with our religious profession. Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, 1465 R

Bible in a Year: Job 34-35; Acts 15:1-21

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Friday, July 07, 2023

How to Get God's Best - #9520

Okay, babies don't always know what's good for them. That may be why some prehistoric parents invented the airplane idea. A baby should eat the food that he has in his bowl, but he doesn't want to. So, you put the food on the spoon, and you make like an airplane. "See the airplane (airplane sound)! Now your mouth is the hangar! Open the hangar so the airplane can go in!" I always hated it when the mouth opened, the plane approached, and suddenly the hangar door closed, leaving the airplane's cargo all over the baby's face. "Hey baby! I have what you need. But you won't open your mouth."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Get God's Best."

Our word for today from the Word of God. We're in Psalm 81:10. Here's what God says: "I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it. But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices. If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways, how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes. But you would be fed with the finest of wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you."

God seems to be saying here to His people in olden times in the Old Testament, and to us today, "You are under-living. There's so much more I want to give you. There's much more I want to do for you." I think there's a voice inside a lot of us that might be saying, "There's got to be something more in this relationship with Christ, in this Christianity stuff." Well, this isn't necessarily to make you materially prosperous, but He does have a lot more power, a lot more peace, a lot more love to put into your life, a lot more significance to open up your life to really making a difference. The problem is you can't get your mouth open.

Made me think about a baby being fed. God wants you to have His best for your life. That's opening your mouth. He wants you to expect the supernatural, to act as if the supernatural is coming. See, you've got this awesomely big God! Remember it says in the Bible, "In His own hometown, Nazareth, Jesus could do no mighty work because of their unbelief." He did miracles everywhere but there, and the people who knew the most about Jesus saw the least supernatural because they weren't expecting anything. They didn't open their mouths.

Faith is acting as if God will keep His promise, as if He will do something God-sized. God says here, "I tried to and they wouldn't listen. They wouldn't follow my ways." Is there a part of your life where you've been doing your own thing and going your own way? Maybe it's at home, at work, at church. How about your finances, your relationships? You're missing God's best because you're going your own way.

He says, "I've let them follow their own devices." Well, you're on your own in that part of your life. You're settling for crumbs when He wants to serve you a banquet. In fact Jesus said, "I have come that you might have life and that you might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). There's so much Jesus wants to do for you.

But maybe you have never opened up your life to this Savior, the One who gave His life on a cross for you. And everything He wants to bring into your life includes the love you were made for. He wants to bring eternal life that only He can bring, because only He conquered death.

And above all, He wants to erase every sin of your life from God's book. And the only reason you will miss Him in all of this is because you didn't open up to Him. He says, "If you will open the door, I will come in" (Revelation 3:20). I hope you will say to Him, "Jesus, I'm Yours." I think we can help you know you belong to Him for sure. Would you go to our website? It's what it's there for. It's ANewStory.com.

He's holding out His hand with the supernatural stuff that you need right now. Like He said, "Open your mouth" and let Him fill it.

1 Corinthians 2, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: YOU CAN TRUST GOD - July 6, 2023

God has never rendered a wrong decision, experienced the wrong attitude, taken the wrong path, said the wrong thing, or acted the wrong way. He has always been and always will be right. He is righteous. And he has complete sovereignty over his creation. Sovereignty is how the Bible describes God’s perfect control and management of the universe. He is continually involved with all created things, especially the lives of his beloved children.

Anxiety is often the consequence of perceived chaos. But God’s righteousness, combined with his sovereignty, add up to this fact:  we can trust him, his decisions, and his ability to see us through our fears. Remember this: “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you” (Psalm 9:10 NIV).

Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Read more Calm Moments for Anxious Days

1 Corinthians 2

 You’ll remember, friends, that when I first came to you to let you in on God’s sheer genius, I didn’t try to impress you with polished speeches and the latest philosophy. I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified.

3-5 I was unsure of how to go about this, and felt totally inadequate—I was scared to death, if you want the truth of it—and so nothing I said could have impressed you or anyone else. But the Message came through anyway. God’s Spirit and God’s power did it, which made it clear that your life of faith is a response to God’s power, not to some fancy mental or emotional footwork by me or anyone else.

6-10 We, of course, have plenty of wisdom to pass on to you once you get your feet on firm spiritual ground, but it’s not popular wisdom, the fashionable wisdom of high-priced experts that will be out-of-date in a year or so. God’s wisdom is something mysterious that goes deep into the interior of his purposes. You don’t find it lying around on the surface. It’s not the latest message, but more like the oldest—what God determined as the way to bring out his best in us, long before we ever arrived on the scene. The experts of our day haven’t a clue about what this eternal plan is. If they had, they wouldn’t have killed the Master of the God-designed life on a cross. That’s why we have this Scripture text:

No one’s ever seen or heard anything like this,

Never so much as imagined anything quite like it—

What God has arranged for those who love him.

But you’ve seen and heard it because God by his Spirit has brought it all out into the open before you.

10-13 The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you’re thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he’s thinking, but he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us. We don’t have to rely on the world’s guesses and opinions. We didn’t learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we’re passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way.

14-16 The unspiritual self, just as it is by nature, can’t receive the gifts of God’s Spirit. There’s no capacity for them. They seem like so much silliness. Spirit can be known only by spirit—God’s Spirit and our spirits in open communion. Spiritually alive, we have access to everything God’s Spirit is doing, and can’t be judged by unspiritual critics. Isaiah’s question, “Is there anyone around who knows God’s Spirit, anyone who knows what he is doing?” has been answered: Christ knows, and we have Christ’s Spirit.

* * *

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Thursday, July 06, 2023

Today's Scripture

Numbers 20:2-12

There was no water there for the community, so they ganged up on Moses and Aaron. They attacked Moses: “We wish we’d died when the rest of our brothers died before God. Why did you haul this congregation of God out here into this wilderness to die, people and cattle alike? And why did you take us out of Egypt in the first place, dragging us into this miserable country? No grain, no figs, no grapevines, no pomegranates—and now not even any water!”

6 Moses and Aaron walked from the assembled congregation to the Tent of Meeting and threw themselves facedown on the ground. And they saw the Glory of God.

7-8 God spoke to Moses: “Take the staff. Assemble the community, you and your brother Aaron. Speak to that rock that’s right in front of them and it will give water. You will bring water out of the rock for them; congregation and cattle will both drink.”

9-10 Moses took the staff away from God’s presence, as commanded. He and Aaron rounded up the whole congregation in front of the rock. Moses spoke: “Listen, rebels! Do we have to bring water out of this rock for you?”

11 With that Moses raised his arm and slammed his staff against the rock—once, twice. Water poured out. Congregation and cattle drank.

12 God said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you didn’t trust me, didn’t treat me with holy reverence in front of the People of Israel, you two aren’t going to lead this company into the land that I am giving them.”

Insight

Numbers 20 begins with the death of Moses’ sister Miriam (v. 1) and ends with the death of his brother Aaron (vv. 28–29). In the intervening verses, the people lament their lack of water—again. Forty years earlier, the people had been poised to enter the land God promised to them. Their refusal to trust God then caused Him to declare that every adult aged “twenty years old or more” (14:29), except for Caleb and Joshua (v. 30), would die in the wilderness. Moses and Aaron were prohibited from entering the land because of their sin at Kadesh-Meribah (20:12-13; Deuteronomy 34:1–4). By: Tim Gustafson

Hope Beyond Consequences

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

Have you ever done something in anger you later regretted? When my son was wrestling with drug addiction, I said some harsh things in reaction to his choices. My anger only discouraged him more. But eventually he encountered believers who spoke life and hope to him, and in time he was set free.

Even someone as exemplary in faith as Moses did something he later regretted. When the people of Israel were in the desert and water was scarce, they complained bitterly. So God gave Moses and Aaron specific instructions: “Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water” (Numbers 20:8). But Moses reacted in anger, giving himself and Aaron credit for the miracle instead of God: “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” (v. 10). Then he disobeyed God directly and “raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff” (v. 11).

Even though water flowed, there were tragic consequences. Neither Moses nor Aaron was allowed to enter the land God promised His people. But He was still merciful, allowing Moses to see it from afar (27:12–13).

As with Moses, God still mercifully meets us in the desert of our disobedience to Him. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, He kindly offers us forgiveness and hope. No matter where we’ve been or what we’ve done, if we turn to Him, He’ll lead us into life. By:  James Banks

Reflect & Pray

What undeserved kindnesses has God shown you? How can you share His kindness with someone today?

Thank You, loving Father, that despite difficult consequences, You give me eternal hope.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Thursday, July 06, 2023

Visions Becoming Reality

The parched ground shall become a pool… —Isaiah 35:7

We always have a vision of something before it actually becomes real to us. When we realize that the vision is real, but is not yet real in us, Satan comes to us with his temptations, and we are inclined to say that there is no point in even trying to continue. Instead of the vision becoming real to us, we have entered into a valley of humiliation.

Life is not as idle ore,

But iron dug from central gloom,

And battered by the shocks of doom

To shape and use.

God gives us a vision, and then He takes us down to the valley to batter us into the shape of that vision. It is in the valley that so many of us give up and faint. Every God-given vision will become real if we will only have patience. Just think of the enormous amount of free time God has! He is never in a hurry. Yet we are always in such a frantic hurry. While still in the light of the glory of the vision, we go right out to do things, but the vision is not yet real in us. God has to take us into the valley and put us through fires and floods to batter us into shape, until we get to the point where He can trust us with the reality of the vision. Ever since God gave us the vision, He has been at work. He is getting us into the shape of the goal He has for us, and yet over and over again we try to escape from the Sculptor’s hand in an effort to batter ourselves into the shape of our own goal.

The vision that God gives is not some unattainable castle in the sky, but a vision of what God wants you to be down here. Allow the Potter to put you on His wheel and whirl you around as He desires. Then as surely as God is God, and you are you, you will turn out as an exact likeness of the vision. But don’t lose heart in the process. If you have ever had a vision from God, you may try as you will to be satisfied on a lower level, but God will never allow it.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

It is perilously possible to make our conceptions of God like molten lead poured into a specially designed mould, and when it is cold and hard we fling it at the heads of the religious people who don’t agree with us. Disciples Indeed, 388 R

Bible in a Year: Job 32-33; Acts 14

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Thursday, July 06, 2023

Why the Easy Road is So Hard - #9519

We know some folks who own one of those convenience stores. The ones you can go to any time of the night or day - the ones that are open on the days when you can't get into anybody else's store. We've all been there. Went and checked them out on those days. And there's a time you've needed them. Maybe time and again. And they work very long hours to make a living, but we do tease them. See, I know that will come as a surprise that I tease my friends. But yes, I have to confess, I occasionally do. I know it's hard to imagine, but we tease these guys about a lot of the prices in their store. Yeah, we kid them about this exorbitant half gallon of milk,or you know, the multi-dollar boxes of cookies, and the several dollar candy bars.

Of course it's not really that bad, but you do pay noticeably more at their store. Well, that's what the profit factor is all about. They're open at times and on the days when other stores are closed. Now our friends, the store owners, they're kind of quick to defend their prices. They give me a very simple fact of life. They just look me in the eye and they say, "Ron, convenience costs more." They're right! They're very right.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Why the Easy Road is So Hard."

Now, our word for today from the Word of God, Matthew 7:13-14. This was before convenience stores, but I think it adds up the expense of convenience pretty well. Here we go, "Enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate, broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it."

Now, that's a pretty simple equation isn't it? There's an easy road that leads to destruction. There's a narrow road - a little tougher - that leads to life. Translation: convenience costs more. If you make your choices based on what will be the most convenient, what will take the least time, what will be the easiest, oh, it will cost you more. That's a life principle. That's one of the laws of the universe - convenience costs more.

Now, if you goof off in school and say, "I'm not gonna do my homework." Fine! That will give you a good time today, but it's ultimately sure going to limit your future. And that's been true from school on. We want to do, no matter what age we are, whatever's easiest, and whatever's fastest.

Now, right now, my guess is that you're facing some choices...oh, I don't know, maybe about a relationship, or about your future, even your marriage, maybe about a financial situation. And you've got a choice that would be easy and a choice that could be tough and hard.

Maybe you're tempted to give up right now, because that would be the easy thing to do. Maybe there's a temptation in front of you - it's tugging and it would be real easy to go for it wouldn't it? Maybe you need money, and it would be easy to go for quick money or a dishonest means of getting it, or just sink into debt to get it. But convenience always costs. It's like a funnel. It's kind of easy up front at the wide end, but slowly it leads to this big, painful squeeze.

Now, you could choose the road that will take longer, that requires more discipline. more sacrifice, and maybe it would cost you something in the short run. But it will open up like that funnel on the other end into something broad and it will give you more choices and it will give you long-range happiness, and it will not lead to destruction. It's the no regrets choice.

The least-expensive choice is almost surely the one that will take longer, require more risks and more faith. Don't fall for the lure of what's easy right now. It's probably pulling real hard, but you can't afford the price tag. The narrow road leads to life. The destination is what counts.

Remember, in all the things that really matter in life. Yep, convenience costs more.

Psalm 135, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: HERE IS GOD - July 5, 2023

When ancient sailors sketched maps of the oceans, they disclosed their fears.  On the vast unexplored waters, cartographers wrote words such as these: “Here be dragons.” “Here be demons.” “Here be sirens.” Were a map drawn of your world, would we read such phrases?

If so, take heart from the example of Sir John Franklin. He was a master mariner in the days of King Henry V. Unlike his colleagues, Sir Franklin was a man of faith. He had crossed out the phrases “Here be dragons,” “Here be demons,” “Here be sirens,”  and in their place he wrote, “Here is God.”

Mark it down – you will never go where God is not. “I am with you always,” Jesus promised in Matthew 28:20. Don’t be afraid; just believe.

Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Read more Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Psalm 135

Hallelujah!

Praise the name of God,

    praise the works of God.

All you priests on duty in God’s temple,

    serving in the sacred halls of our God,

Shout “Hallelujah!” because God’s so good,

    sing anthems to his beautiful name.

And why? Because God chose Jacob,

    embraced Israel as a prize possession.

5-12 I, too, give witness to the greatness of God,

    our Lord, high above all other gods.

He does just as he pleases—

    however, wherever, whenever.

He makes the weather—clouds and thunder,

    lightning and rain, wind pouring out of the north.

He struck down the Egyptian firstborn,

    both human and animal firstborn.

He made Egypt sit up and take notice,

    confronted Pharaoh and his servants with miracles.

Yes, he struck down great nations,

    he slew mighty kings—

Sihon king of the Amorites, also Og of Bashan—

    every last one of the Canaanite kings!

Then he turned their land over to Israel,

    a gift of good land to his people.

13-18 God, your name is eternal,

    God, you’ll never be out-of-date.

God stands up for his people,

    God holds the hands of his people.

The gods of the godless nations are mere trinkets,

    made for quick sale in the markets:

Chiseled mouths that can’t talk,

    painted eyes that can’t see,

Carved ears that can’t hear—

    dead wood! cold metal!

Those who make and trust them

    become like them.

19-21 Family of Israel, bless God!

    Family of Aaron, bless God!

Family of Levi, bless God!

    You who fear God, bless God!

Oh, blessed be God of Zion,

    First Citizen of Jerusalem!

Hallelujah!

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Wednesday, July 05, 2023

Today's Scripture

Romans 12:1-8

Place Your Life Before God

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

3 I’m speaking to you out of deep gratitude for all that God has given me, and especially as I have responsibilities in relation to you. Living then, as every one of you does, in pure grace, it’s important that you not misinterpret yourselves as people who are bringing this goodness to God. No, God brings it all to you. The only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is and by what he does for us, not by what we are and what we do for him.

4-6 In this way we are like the various parts of a human body. Each part gets its meaning from the body as a whole, not the other way around. The body we’re talking about is Christ’s body of chosen people. Each of us finds our meaning and function as a part of his body. But as a chopped-off finger or cut-off toe we wouldn’t amount to much, would we? So since we find ourselves fashioned into all these excellently formed and marvelously functioning parts in Christ’s body, let’s just go ahead and be what we were made to be, without enviously or pridefully comparing ourselves with each other, or trying to be something we aren’t.

6-8 If you preach, just preach God’s Message, nothing else; if you help, just help, don’t take over; if you teach, stick to your teaching; if you give encouraging guidance, be careful that you don’t get bossy; if you’re put in charge, don’t manipulate; if you’re called to give aid to people in distress, keep your eyes open and be quick to respond; if you work with the disadvantaged, don’t let yourself get irritated with them or depressed by them. Keep a smile on your face.

Insight

The Greek word translated “renewing” (Romans 12:2), anakainosis, is used sparsely in the New Testament. It means “a renewal, renovation, complete change for the better.” Rather than surrendering to the normal patterns of this world—“the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life” (1 John 2:16)—believers in Jesus are to constantly undergo “adjustment of moral and spiritual vision and thinking to the mind of God.” How so? By the Holy Spirit’s renewal (see Titus 3:5), which “is not a fresh bestowment of the Spirit but a revival of His power, developing the Christian life” (Vine's Expository Dictionary). By: Arthur Jackson

Mimic Jesus

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Romans 12:2

A “master of disguise” lives in the waters of Indonesia and in the Great Barrier Reef. The mimic octopus, like other octopuses, can change its skin pigment to blend in with its surroundings. This intelligent creature also changes its shape, movement pattern, and behavior when threatened to mimic such creatures as the venomous lionfish and even deadly sea snakes.

Unlike the mimic octopus, believers in Jesus are meant to stand out in the world that surrounds us. We may feel threatened by those who disagree with us and become tempted to blend in so we won’t be recognized as followers of Christ. The apostle Paul, however, urges us to offer our bodies as a “living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God” (Romans 12:1), representing Jesus in every aspect of our lives.

Friends or family members may try to pressure us to conform to the “pattern of this world” (v. 2). But we can show who we serve by aligning our lives with what we say we believe as God’s children. When we obey the Scriptures and reflect His loving character, our lives can demonstrate that the rewards of obedience are always greater than any loss. How will you mimic Jesus today? By:  Xochitl Dixon

Reflect & Pray

When have you been tempted to become an unrecognizable believer in Jesus? When have you become alienated from family members or friends because you chose to represent Jesus through your words and actions?

Loving Jesus, please give me courage and confidence to reflect You to others.

Learn more about how you have been created to serve God.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Wednesday, July 05, 2023

Don’t Plan Without God

Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. —Psalm 37:5

Don’t plan without God. God seems to have a delightful way of upsetting the plans we have made, when we have not taken Him into account. We get ourselves into circumstances that were not chosen by God, and suddenly we realize that we have been making our plans without Him— that we have not even considered Him to be a vital, living factor in the planning of our lives. And yet the only thing that will keep us from even the possibility of worrying is to bring God in as the greatest factor in all of our planning.

In spiritual issues it is customary for us to put God first, but we tend to think that it is inappropriate and unnecessary to put Him first in the practical, everyday issues of our lives. If we have the idea that we have to put on our “spiritual face” before we can come near to God, then we will never come near to Him. We must come as we are.

Don’t plan with a concern for evil in mind. Does God really mean for us to plan without taking the evil around us into account? “Love…thinks no evil” (1 Corinthians 13:4-5). Love is not ignorant of the existence of evil, but it does not take it into account as a factor in planning. When we were apart from God, we did take evil into account, doing all of our planning with it in mind, and we tried to reason out all of our work from its standpoint.

Don’t plan with a rainy day in mind. You cannot hoard things for a rainy day if you are truly trusting Christ. Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled…” (John 14:1). God will not keep your heart from being troubled. It is a command— “Let not….” To do it, continually pick yourself up, even if you fall a hundred and one times a day, until you get into the habit of putting God first and planning with Him in mind.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

To those who have had no agony Jesus says, “I have nothing for you; stand on your own feet, square your own shoulders. I have come for the man who knows he has a bigger handful than he can cope with, who knows there are forces he cannot touch; I will do everything for him if he will let Me. Only let a man grant he needs it, and I will do it for him.” The Shadow of an Agony, 1166 R

Bible in a Year: Job 30-31; Acts 13:26-52

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wednesday, July 05, 2023

The Prayer That Can Change an Eternity - #9518

When our sons were playing high school football, their job was to run their body into other guys' bodies. Yeah, they were linemen - they blocked. Of course, one of their great rewards for all this body slamming was when they could stop or deflect an opposing lineman - thus opening up a hole through which their teammate could run with the ball. And the good ball carriers knew what they had to do: spot the opening and go through it as fast as they could!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Prayer That Can Change an Eternity."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Mark 2:2-4. There are four guys, and they're here with a friend who needed to get to Jesus. They looked for an opening to get this friend to Jesus, and they actually created an opening to do it.

Here's what it says: "So many gathered (to hear Jesus) that there was no room left, not even outside the door. Some men came bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, 'Son, your sins are forgiven." Well, later Jesus healed him and gave him the power to walk. These four 'find an opening' men not only got their friend to Jesus, but a lot more than they could have ever imagined.

In your life, there is probably someone you would like to get to Jesus - someone who needs what only the Savior can do for them - someone you want to take to heaven with you. The stakes are a lot higher than any football game. We're talking eternity here, life or death. But like a player trying to get to the goal, you have to be determined to find an opening - to look for some natural opportunity to bring up Jesus. Most of us miss those openings because we're not consciously praying for them, looking for them, and hoping for them.

Paul gives us what I call the three-open prayer. You can't be around me too long and not heat this. It's a prayer you should be praying daily about the people you want to bring to Jesus. It's in Colossians 4:3-4 - "Pray for us, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ...Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should." The three-open prayer, pray with the name of a lost person you care about, "Lord, please open a door." What's a door? Well, that's a natural opportunity to tell him or her about You, Jesus. Secondly, "Open their heart." In other words, "Lord make them ready to hear about You." And then the third open, "Open my mouth when You open the door." Good news here, you don't have to add to your prayer, "if it be Your will." It is.

You won't find many openings to just dump your beliefs about Jesus on your friend. No. What you need to do is to be ready to share the difference Jesus makes in real life for you. That's what they want to know. Your "hope story." They don't necessarily want to know what all the beliefs are, what meetings you go to. They want to know, "What does Jesus change? What difference does having a Savior make for you in your lonely times, or your depressing times? How are you different as a parent or a husband or a wife? How about when there's not enough money? Or how does Jesus affect meeting the challenges of being single, or tragedy, or pain, in times of big decisions? What difference does He make at the funeral? Those kinds of things come up all the time. Are you ready to tell how Jesus has made the difference for you in times like these? And then to move from that into how the sin-wall comes down so you can have this kind of a life-changing relationship with Jesus.

Is there someone you want to take to heaven with you? pray for an opening to bring up Jesus, look for an opening, or like those determined friends tearing up the roof - make an opening! "Lord, open a door. Lord, open their heart. Lord, open my mouth." Do you follow the blocking of the Holy Spirit of God? You go through that opening with the life-saving news of a personal relationship with the Son of God.

Psalm 134, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: THE LORD IS WITH ME - July 4, 2023

Yes, you Lord, rule the universe. But yes, yes, yes, you are with me. The Lord is with me. The Creator is with me. Yahweh is with me. Do not assume that God is watching your life from a distance. Choose to be the person who clutches the presence of God with both hands.

When the cares of this world rush at us, it’s easy to forget that the Lord is with us. We get caught up in hurries and demands. Our thoughts run away with worries, leaving us anxious and exhausted. In those moments, let’s remember Isaiah 41:10 (NIV): “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Read more Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Psalm 134

 Come, bless God,

    all you servants of God!

You priests of God, posted to the nightwatch

    in God’s shrine,

Lift your praising hands to the Holy Place,

    and bless God.

In turn, may God of Zion bless you—

    God who made heaven and earth!

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Tuesday, July 04, 2023

Today's Scripture

James 1:2-8, 12–18

Faith Under Pressure

2-4 Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.

5-8 If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You’ll get his help, and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who “worry their prayers” are like wind-whipped waves. Don’t think you’re going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.

Insight

The letter of James is written to “the twelve tribes scattered among the nations” (James 1:1). “Twelve tribes” alerts the reader that the recipients are Jewish. Everything we know about ancient Israelite culture, society, and identity applies to the readers. “Scattered among the nations,” identifies them as immigrants who were dispersed because of persecution. Perhaps forced, perhaps not. They were living in a place and among a people that were not their own. They were the minority group, culturally and religiously. Phrases like “trials of many kinds” (v. 2) take on new significance when we think about the kinds of trials an ethnic and religious minority might face. By: J.R. Hudberg

Unchanging God

God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. James 1:12 nlt

An iconic photo shows the tread of a boot against a gray background. It’s astronaut Buzz Aldrin’s footprint, which he left on the moon in 1969. Scientists say that footprint is likely still there, unchanged after all these years. Without wind or water, nothing on the moon gets eroded, so what happens on the lunar landscape stays there.

It’s even more awesome to reflect on the constant presence of God Himself. James writes, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17). The apostle puts this in the context of our own struggles: “When troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy” (v. 2 nlt). Why? Because we’re loved by a great and unchanging God!

In times of trouble, we need to remember God’s constant provision. Perhaps we might recall the words of the great hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”: “There is no shadow of turning with thee; / thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not; / as thou hast been thou forever wilt be.” Yes, our God has left His permanent footprint on our world. He will always be there for us. Great is His faithfulness.

By:  Kenneth Petersen

Reflect & Pray

What kind of troubles are you facing today? How does understanding God’s unchanging presence help you in your struggles?

Dear God, I’m discouraged because of these hardships of late. I worry about how things will turn out. Yet I know You’re there and will provide. Help me to rest in that assurance.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Tuesday, July 04, 2023

One of God’s Great “Don’ts”

Do not fret— it only causes harm. —Psalm 37:8

Fretting means getting ourselves “out of joint” mentally or spiritually. It is one thing to say, “Do not fret,” but something very different to have such a nature that you find yourself unable to fret. It’s easy to say, “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him” (Psalm 37:7) until our own little world is turned upside down and we are forced to live in confusion and agony like so many other people. Is it possible to “rest in the Lord” then? If this “Do not” doesn’t work there, then it will not work anywhere. This “Do not” must work during our days of difficulty and uncertainty, as well as our peaceful days, or it will never work. And if it will not work in your particular case, it will not work for anyone else. Resting in the Lord is not dependent on your external circumstances at all, but on your relationship with God Himself.

Worrying always results in sin. We tend to think that a little anxiety and worry are simply an indication of how wise we really are, yet it is actually a much better indication of just how wicked we are. Fretting rises from our determination to have our own way. Our Lord never worried and was never anxious, because His purpose was never to accomplish His own plans but to fulfill God’s plans. Fretting is wickedness for a child of God.

Have you been propping up that foolish soul of yours with the idea that your circumstances are too much for God to handle? Set all your opinions and speculations aside and “abide under the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1). Deliberately tell God that you will not fret about whatever concerns you. All our fretting and worrying is caused by planning without God.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The fiery furnaces are there by God’s direct permission. It is misleading to imagine that we are developed in spite of our circumstances; we are developed because of them. It is mastery in circumstances that is needed, not mastery over them. The Love of God—The Message of Invincible Consolation, 674 R

Bible in a Year: Job 28-29; Acts 13:1-25

Psalm 133, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: SET FREE - July 3, 2023

Fear, it seems, has taken a hundred-year lease on the building next door and set up shop. Oversized and rude, unhealthy fear is unwilling to share the heart with happiness. Do you ever see the two together? Can one be happy and afraid at the same time? No. Fear herds us into a prison and slams the doors. Wouldn’t it be great to walk out?

What if faith, not fear, was your default reaction to threats? If you could hover a fear magnet over your heart and extract every last shaving of dread, insecurity, and doubt, what would remain? Can you imagine a life with no fear? “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1).

Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Read more Calm Moments for Anxious Days

Psalm 133

How wonderful, how beautiful,

    when brothers and sisters get along!

It’s like costly anointing oil

    flowing down head and beard,

Flowing down Aaron’s beard,

    flowing down the collar of his priestly robes.

It’s like the dew on Mount Hermon

    flowing down the slopes of Zion.

Yes, that’s where God commands the blessing,

    ordains eternal life.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Monday, July 03, 2023

Today's Scripture

Leviticus 19:9-18

“When you harvest your land, don’t harvest right up to the edges of your field or gather the gleanings from the harvest. Don’t strip your vineyard bare or go back and pick up the fallen grapes. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am God, your God.

11 “Don’t steal.

“Don’t lie.

“Don’t deceive anyone.

12 “Don’t swear falsely using my name, violating the name of your God. I am God.

13 “Don’t exploit your friend or rob him.

“Don’t hold back the wages of a hired hand overnight.

14 “Don’t curse the deaf; don’t put a stumbling block in front of the blind; fear your God. I am God.

15 “Don’t pervert justice. Don’t show favoritism to either the poor or the great. Judge on the basis of what is right.

16 “Don’t spread gossip and rumors.

“Don’t just stand by when your neighbor’s life is in danger. I am God.

17 “Don’t secretly hate your neighbor. If you have something against him, get it out into the open; otherwise you are an accomplice in his guilt.

18 “Don’t seek revenge or carry a grudge against any of your people.

“Love your neighbor as yourself. I am God.

Insight

Leviticus 19 contains the only Old Testament reference to “love your neighbor as yourself” (v. 18), a fundamental teaching in the Bible. In the New Testament, when an expert in the law asked, “Which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” (Matthew 22:36), Jesus replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” And He continued, “The second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (vv. 37–40). Paul said the commandments are “summed up in this one command” (Romans 13:9) and are “fulfilled in keeping [it]” (Galatians 5:14). Our love for God is evidenced in our loving treatment of our neighbors. By: Alyson Kieda

Love Your Neighbor

Love your neighbor as yourself. Leviticus 19:18

It was just a fun game at youth group, but it held a lesson for us: rather than switching neighbors, learn to love the ones you have. Everyone is seated in a large circle, except for one person who stands in the middle of the circle. The standing person asks someone sitting down, “Do you love your neighbor?” The seated person can answer the question in two ways: yes or no. He gets to decide if he would like to swap his neighbor with someone else. 

Don’t we wish we could choose our “neighbors” in real life too? Especially when we have a colleague whom we can’t get along with or a next-door neighbor who loves to mow the lawn at odd hours. More often than not, however, we have to learn to live with our difficult neighbors.

When the Israelites moved into the promised land, God gave them important instructions on how to live as people who belonged to Him. They’re told to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18), which includes not spreading gossip or rumors, not taking advantage of our neighbors, and confronting people directly if we have something against them (vv. 9–18).

While it’s difficult to love everyone, it’s possible to treat others in loving ways as Jesus works in and through us. God will supply the wisdom and ability to do so as we seek to live out our identity as His people. By:  Poh Fang Chia

Reflect & Pray

Who are the “neighbors” you find hard to get along with? How can you love them better?

Father, please help me to reflect Your love to those around me—even the difficult ones.

For further study, read Healing a Broken Relationship.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Monday, July 03, 2023

The Concentration of Personal Sin

Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips… —Isaiah 6:5

When I come into the very presence of God, I do not realize that I am a sinner in an indefinite sense, but I suddenly realize and the focus of my attention is directed toward the concentration of sin in a particular area of my life. A person will easily say, “Oh yes, I know I am a sinner,” but when he comes into the presence of God he cannot get away with such a broad and indefinite statement. Our conviction is focused on our specific sin, and we realize, as Isaiah did, what we really are. This is always the sign that a person is in the presence of God. There is never any vague sense of sin, but a focusing on the concentration of sin in some specific, personal area of life. God begins by convicting us of the very thing to which His Spirit has directed our mind’s attention. If we will surrender, submitting to His conviction of that particular sin, He will lead us down to where He can reveal the vast underlying nature of sin. That is the way God always deals with us when we are consciously aware of His presence.

This experience of our attention being directed to our concentration of personal sin is true in everyone’s life, from the greatest of saints to the worst of sinners. When a person first begins climbing the ladder of experience, he might say, “I don’t know where I’ve gone wrong,” but the Spirit of God will point out some definite and specific thing to him. The effect of Isaiah’s vision of the holiness of the Lord was the directing of his attention to the fact that he was “a man of unclean lips.” “He touched my mouth with it, and said: ‘Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged’ ” (Isaiah 6:7). The cleansing fire had to be applied where the sin had been concentrated.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The emphasis to-day is placed on the furtherance of an organization; the note is, “We must keep this thing going.” If we are in God’s order the thing will go; if we are not in His order, it won’t.  Conformed to His Image, 357 R

Bible in a Year: Job 25-27; Acts 12

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Monday, July 03, 2023

RUNNING HARD IN THE WRONG DIRECTION - #9516

I guess every athlete would like to do something immortal - you know, something that will be remembered for a long time. Well, Roy Riegels did it - in a way. He played center in the 1929 Rose Bowl game. I don't remember it, but it was in Pasadena, California. I was not there. But, the game was almost over, the score was really close, and both teams knew any score could well decide the game. And then on one play, Roy Riegels suddenly found himself with a ball in his hands. Now, centers only know what to do with the ball when they're snapping it to the quarterback. But Roy Riegels had it whether he liked it or not.

So he started running as fast as he could, or at least as fast as a center can go, right for the goal line. He glanced back over his shoulder. There was something very strange going on . He was being frantically pursued by his own teammates. See, his instincts told him to just keep running, and he did till he was tackled just short of the goal by one of his own teammates. See, Roy Riegels was running toward the other team's goal! Yeah, and shortly the other team went on to score and win the game. And he did achieve athletic immortality. He went down in football history as Wrong Way Riegels.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Running Hard In the Wrong Direction."

That was the center's mistake. He was running as hard as he could - it just didn't count. Someone listening right now might be making that same mistake. Our word for today from the Word of God is from Matthew 6:32-33. Jesus has just been talking about a lot of the concerns that occupy our everyday lives - having enough for our basic necessities, for our body, for our appearance, all the earth stuff. You know? And then He says, "The pagans run after all these things." Well, see, that's those who think that earth is all there is. Well, of course, they're chasing after all the earth stuff they can get. Right?

But He goes on to say, "And your Heavenly Father knows that you need them." Message: You don't need to pursue those things. You need to trust your Heavenly Father for them, because He'll take care of them. Then Jesus goes on to say, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given you as well."

Message: Put your best energy into the things that matter to God and the things that will matter in eternity - the interests, the agenda of the work of God on earth, a lifestyle that majors on doing the right thing.

Now, we're wired to be runners. We're wired to be people who run hard toward a goal, but it's supposed to be an eternal goal. The problem is some of us are running hard, but we're running in the wrong direction. After all our hard running is done, it will turn out to be for a goal that just didn't count.

It may be you've been running so hard that you haven't thought about whether the goal was really worth it. Maybe the goal that gets the most of you is job advancement, or more money, or it could be that you're running very hard to please a certain group of people, or to have some security, or to get a boyfriend or get a girlfriend, get a husband or get a wife, or maybe to own something you really want. But after all is said and done, it's earth stuff isn't it - stuff the Lord wants to give you if and when it's best for you. But could it be that some earth stuff has become the central pursuit of your life? See, that's not what you were created to pursue.

This might be a good gut-check time. You know? If, in fact, you're running for the things that will last. Right now Jesus is pursuing you. He's trying to intercept you maybe as you're running toward a goal that doesn't count. He's trying to get you turned around and running in the right direction to "seek first His kingdom."

He doesn't want the epitaph that goes with your name to be those two hollow words - wrong way.

1 Corinthians 1, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Your Name on God's Hand

When I see a flock of sheep I see exactly that, a flock. A rabble of wool. I don't see a sheep. I see sheep. All alike. None different. But not so with the Shepherd. To him every sheep is different. Every face has a story.  John 10:3 says, "The sheep listen to the voice of the shepherd. He calls his own sheep by name."

When we see a crowd, we see exactly that, a crowd. We see people, not persons. A herd of humans. But not so with the Shepherd. To him every face is different. Every face is a story. The Shepherd knows you. He knows your name. And he will never forget it.

God said in Isaiah 49:16, "I have written your name on my hand." Quite a thought isn't it? Your name on God's lips. My… could it be?

From When God Whispers Your Name

1 Corinthians 1

I, Paul, have been called and sent by Jesus, the Messiah, according to God’s plan, along with my friend Sosthenes. I send this letter to you in God’s church at Corinth, believers cleaned up by Jesus and set apart for a God-filled life. I include in my greeting all who call out to Jesus, wherever they live. He’s their Master as well as ours!

3 May all the gifts and benefits that come from God our Father, and the Master, Jesus Christ, be yours.

4-6 Every time I think of you—and I think of you often!—I thank God for your lives of free and open access to God, given by Jesus. There’s no end to what has happened in you—it’s beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives.

7-9 Just think—you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all! All God’s gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene for the Finale. And not only that, but God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that.

The Cross: The Irony of God’s Wisdom

10 I have a serious concern to bring up with you, my friends, using the authority of Jesus, our Master. I’ll put it as urgently as I can: You must get along with each other. You must learn to be considerate of one another, cultivating a life in common.

11-12 I bring this up because some from Chloe’s family brought a most disturbing report to my attention—that you’re fighting among yourselves! I’ll tell you exactly what I was told: You’re all picking sides, going around saying, “I’m on Paul’s side,” or “I’m for Apollos,” or “Peter is my man,” or “I’m in the Messiah group.”

13-16 I ask you, “Has the Messiah been chopped up in little pieces so we can each have a relic all our own? Was Paul crucified for you? Was a single one of you baptized in Paul’s name?” I was not involved with any of your baptisms—except for Crispus and Gaius—and on getting this report, I’m sure glad I wasn’t. At least no one can go around saying he was baptized in my name. (Come to think of it, I also baptized Stephanas’s family, but as far as I can recall, that’s it.)

17 God didn’t send me out to collect a following for myself, but to preach the Message of what he has done, collecting a following for him. And he didn’t send me to do it with a lot of fancy rhetoric of my own, lest the powerful action at the center—Christ on the Cross—be trivialized into mere words.

18-21 The Message that points to Christ on the Cross seems like sheer silliness to those hellbent on destruction, but for those on the way of salvation it makes perfect sense. This is the way God works, and most powerfully as it turns out. It’s written,

I’ll turn conventional wisdom on its head,

I’ll expose so-called experts as shams.

So where can you find someone truly wise, truly educated, truly intelligent in this day and age? Hasn’t God exposed it all as pretentious nonsense? Since the world in all its fancy wisdom never had a clue when it came to knowing God, God in his wisdom took delight in using what the world considered stupid—preaching, of all things!—to bring those who trust him into the way of salvation.

22-25 While Jews clamor for miraculous demonstrations and Greeks go in for philosophical wisdom, we go right on proclaiming Christ, the Crucified. Jews treat this like an anti-miracle—and Greeks pass it off as absurd. But to us who are personally called by God himself—both Jews and Greeks—Christ is God’s ultimate miracle and wisdom all wrapped up in one. Human wisdom is so cheap, so impotent, next to the seeming absurdity of God. Human strength can’t begin to compete with God’s “weakness.”

26-31 Take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. I don’t see many of “the brightest and the best” among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families. Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these “nobodies” to expose the hollow pretensions of the “somebodies”? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ. That’s why we have the saying, “If you’re going to blow a horn, blow a trumpet for God.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Sunday, July 02, 2023

Today's Scripture

Psalm 62:5-8

God, the one and only—

    I’ll wait as long as he says.

Everything I hope for comes from him,

    so why not?

He’s solid rock under my feet,

    breathing room for my soul,

An impregnable castle:

    I’m set for life.

7-8 My help and glory are in God

    —granite-strength and safe-harbor-God—

So trust him absolutely, people;

    lay your lives on the line for him.

    God is a safe place to be.

Insight

Many of David’s psalms came from a time of exile. Yahweh’s prophet Samuel had anointed him king over Israel (1 Samuel 16:13), but he waited years to experience many of the benefits. Later in life, he spent time on the run from his own son Absalom (2 Samuel 15).

David’s confidence in God as a rock, refuge, and fortress wasn’t new in those moments of his life. He understood in his debut battle with the Philistine warrior Goliath that Yahweh was a warrior-God. But back then, David could do something—he fought the giant on the field of battle.

However, Psalm 62 describes how he had to trust God when he couldn’t do something about his predicament. The psalm gives us a peek into David’s growing realization that even when he’s helpless, his God is not. By: Jed Ostoich

Our Refuge

God is our refuge. Psalm 62:8

A place where the buffalo roamed in North America. That’s truly what it was in the beginning. The Plains Indians followed bison there until settlers moved in with herds and crops. The land was later used as a chemical manufacturing site after Pearl Harbor during World War II, then even later for Cold War weapon demilitarization. But then one day a roost of bald eagles was discovered there, and soon the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge was born—a fifteen-thousand-acre expanse of prairie, wetland, and woodland habitat on the edges of the metropolis of Denver, Colorado. It’s now one of the largest urban refuges, or sanctuaries, in the country—a safe, protected home for more than three hundred species of animals, from black-footed ferrets to burrowing owls to bald eagles, and you guessed it: roaming buffalo.

The psalmist tells us that “God is our refuge” (62:8). Far greater than any earthly place of refuge, God is our true sanctuary, a safe, protected presence in whom “we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). He’s our refuge in whom we can place our trust “at all times” (Psalm 62:8). And He’s our sanctuary where we can boldly bring all our prayers, pouring out our hearts.

God is our refuge. That’s who He was in the beginning, who He is now, and who He always will be.   

By:  John Blase

Reflect & Pray

What does the phrase “God is our refuge” mean to you? What is one thing on your heart you’d like to pour out to Him?

Loving God, thank You for being my safe and protected dwelling place.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Sunday, July 02, 2023

The Conditions of Discipleship

If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also….And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me….So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple. —Luke 14:26-27, 33

If the closest relationships of a disciple’s life conflict with the claims of Jesus Christ, then our Lord requires instant obedience to Himself. Discipleship means personal, passionate devotion to a Person— our Lord Jesus Christ. There is a vast difference between devotion to a person and devotion to principles or to a cause. Our Lord never proclaimed a cause— He proclaimed personal devotion to Himself. To be a disciple is to be a devoted bondservant motivated by love for the Lord Jesus. Many of us who call ourselves Christians are not truly devoted to Jesus Christ. No one on earth has this passionate love for the Lord Jesus unless the Holy Spirit has given it to him. We may admire, respect, and revere Him, but we cannot love Him on our own. The only One who truly loves the Lord Jesus is the Holy Spirit, and it is He who has “poured out in our hearts” the very “love of God” (Romans 5:5). Whenever the Holy Spirit sees an opportunity to glorify Jesus through you, He will take your entire being and set you ablaze with glowing devotion to Jesus Christ.

The Christian life is a life characterized by true and spontaneous creativity. Consequently, a disciple is subject to the same charge that was leveled against Jesus Christ, namely, the charge of inconsistency. But Jesus Christ was always consistent in His relationship to God, and a Christian must be consistent in his relationship to the life of the Son of God in him, not consistent to strict, unyielding doctrines. People pour themselves into their own doctrines, and God has to blast them out of their preconceived ideas before they can become devoted to Jesus Christ.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

It is perilously possible to make our conceptions of God like molten lead poured into a specially designed mould, and when it is cold and hard we fling it at the heads of the religious people who don’t agree with us. Disciples Indeed, 388 R

Bible in a Year: Job 22-24; Acts 11

Psalm 132, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Bring Your Children to Jesus

Lamentations 2:19 says, "Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord.  Lift your hands toward Him for the life of your young children."

Dads- we can be loyal advocates, stubborn intercessors. We can take our parenting fears to Christ. In fact, if we don't, we'll take our fears out on our kids. Fear turns some parents into paranoid prison guards.

On the other hand, fear can also create permissive parents. High on hugs and low on discipline. Permissive parents. Paranoid parents. How can we avoid the extremes? We pray. Prayer is the saucer into which parental fears are poured to cool. When you send them off for the day, do so with a blessing. When you tell them good night, cover them in prayer. Pray that your children have a profound sense of place in this world and a heavenly place in the next.

From Dad Time

Psalm 132

O God, remember David,

    remember all his troubles!

And remember how he promised God,

    made a vow to the Strong God of Jacob,

“I’m not going home,

    and I’m not going to bed,

I’m not going to sleep,

    not even take time to rest,

Until I find a home for God,

    a house for the Strong God of Jacob.”

6-7 Remember how we got the news in Ephrathah,

    learned all about it at Jaar Meadows?

We shouted, “Let’s go to the shrine dedication!

    Let’s worship at God’s own footstool!”

8-10 Up, God, enjoy your new place of quiet repose,

    you and your mighty covenant ark;

Get your priests all dressed up in justice;

    prompt your worshipers to sing this prayer:

“Honor your servant David;

    don’t disdain your anointed one.”

11-18 God gave David his word,

    he won’t back out on this promise:

“One of your sons

    I will set on your throne;

If your sons stay true to my Covenant

    and learn to live the way I teach them,

Their sons will continue the line—

    always a son to sit on your throne.

Yes—I, God, chose Zion,

    the place I wanted for my shrine;

This will always be my home;

    this is what I want, and I’m here for good.

I’ll shower blessings on the pilgrims who come here,

    and give supper to those who arrive hungry;

I’ll dress my priests in salvation clothes;

    the holy people will sing their hearts out!

Oh, I’ll make the place radiant for David!

    I’ll fill it with light for my anointed!

I’ll dress his enemies in dirty rags,

    but I’ll make his crown sparkle with splendor.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Saturday, July 01, 2023

Today's Scripture

1 Thessalonians 1:4-5; 5:19

Convictions of Steel

2-5 Every time we think of you, we thank God for you. Day and night you’re in our prayers as we call to mind your work of faith, your labor of love, and your patience of hope in following our Master, Jesus Christ, before God our Father. It is clear to us, friends, that God not only loves you very much but also has put his hand on you for something special. When the Message we preached came to you, it wasn’t just words. Something happened in you. The Holy Spirit put steel in your convictions.

5-6 You paid careful attention to the way we lived among you, and determined to live that way yourselves. In imitating us, you imitated the Master. Although great trouble accompanied the Word, you were able to take great joy from the Holy Spirit!—taking the trouble with the joy, the joy with the trouble.

19-22 Don’t suppress the Spirit, and don’t stifle those who have a word from the Master. On the other hand, don’t be gullible. Check out everything, and keep only what’s good. Throw out anything tainted with evil.

Insight

In Paul’s time, Thessalonica was the capital city of the Roman second district of Macedonia. It was a center of heavy commerce and the place the apostle transitioned to after his arrest and beatings in Philippi (Acts 16). With his coworkers Silas and Timothy, the church was established there after the gospel had been preached in the synagogue for three consecutive Sabbath days (17:1–9). While the Jewish population turned against Paul and his team, some of the “God-fearing Greeks” (gentile proselytes to Judaism, v. 4) embraced the gospel, apparently becoming the core of the new church assembly there.

Most scholars are convinced that 1 Thessalonians was written by Paul in Corinth around the early 50s ad. Paul affectionately commended the believers in Jesus for their faithfulness and commitment to Christ (1:4–10). That commendation has caused some to refer to Thessalonica as the “ideal first-century church.” By: Bill Crowder

Connected to the Power Source

Do not quench the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19

Despite knowing that the electricity wasn’t working in our house after a strong storm (an inconveniently common occurrence in our neighborhood), I instinctively flipped on the light switch when I entered the room. Of course, nothing happened. I was still enveloped in darkness.

That experience—expecting light even when I knew the connection to the power source was broken—vividly reminded me of a spiritual truth. Too often we expect power even as we fail to rely on the Spirit.

In 1 Thessalonians, Paul wrote of the way God caused the gospel message to come “not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction” (1:5). And when we accept God’s forgiveness, believers too have immediate access to the power of His Spirit in our lives. That power cultivates in us characteristics such as love, joy, peace, and patience (Galatians 5:22–23) and it empowers us with gifts to serve the church, including teaching, helping, and guiding (1 Corinthians 12:28).

Paul warned his readers that it’s possible to “quench the spirit” (1 Thessalonians 5:19). We might restrict the power of the Spirit by ignoring God’s presence or rejecting His conviction (John 16:8). But we don’t have to live disconnected from Him. God’s power is always available to His children. By:  Lisa M. Samra

Reflect & Pray

When have you felt the Spirit’s power to be limited? How have you experienced the power of God’s Spirit?

Almighty God, help me experience the power of Your Spirit in my life.

For further study, read A Story of a Life Led by the Spirit.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Saturday, July 01, 2023

The Inevitable Penalty

You will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny. —Matthew 5:26

There is no heaven that has a little corner of hell in it. God is determined to make you pure, holy, and right, and He will not allow you to escape from the scrutiny of the Holy Spirit for even one moment. He urged you to come to judgment immediately when He convicted you, but you did not obey. Then the inevitable process began to work, bringing its inevitable penalty. Now you have been “thrown into prison, [and]…you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny” (Matthew 5:25-26). Yet you ask, “Is this a God of mercy and love?” When seen from God’s perspective, it is a glorious ministry of love. God is going to bring you out pure, spotless, and undefiled, but He wants you to recognize the nature you were exhibiting— the nature of demanding your right to yourself. The moment you are willing for God to change your nature, His recreating forces will begin to work. And the moment you realize that God’s purpose is to get you into the right relationship with Himself and then with others, He will reach to the very limits of the universe to help you take the right road. Decide to do it right now, saying, “Yes, Lord, I will write that letter,” or, “I will be reconciled to that person now.”

These sermons of Jesus Christ are meant for your will and your conscience, not for your head. If you dispute these verses from the Sermon on the Mount with your head, you will dull the appeal to your heart.

If you find yourself asking, “I wonder why I’m not growing spiritually with God?”— then ask yourself if you are paying your debts from God’s standpoint. Do now what you will have to do someday. Every moral question or call comes with an “ought” behind it— the knowledge of knowing what we ought to do.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Am I getting nobler, better, more helpful, more humble, as I get older? Am I exhibiting the life that men take knowledge of as having been with Jesus, or am I getting more self-assertive, more deliberately determined to have my own way? It is a great thing to tell yourself the truth.

The Place of Help

Bible in a Year: Job 20-21; Acts 10:24-48

Psalm 131, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: EVEN WHEN YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND - June 30, 2023

 “…an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit’” (Matthew 1:20 NIV).

You’ve stood where Joseph stood, caught between what God says and what makes sense. Each of us knows what it’s like to search the night for light. Perhaps outside an emergency room, on the gravel of a roadside, on the manicured grass of a cemetery. We’ve questioned God’s plan. Let me urge you to do what Joseph did – obey. Because Joseph obeyed, God used him to change the world.

God still looks for Josephs today. Common people who serve an uncommon God. Would you be that kind of person? Will you serve…even when you don’t understand? 

They Walked with God

Read more They Walked with God

Psalm 131

God, I’m not trying to rule the roost,

    I don’t want to be king of the mountain.

I haven’t meddled where I have no business

    or fantasized grandiose plans.

2 I’ve kept my feet on the ground,

    I’ve cultivated a quiet heart.

Like a baby content in its mother’s arms,

    my soul is a baby content.

3 Wait, Israel, for God. Wait with hope.

    Hope now; hope always!

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Friday, June 30, 2023

Today's Scripture

1 Samuel 12:1,19-24

“Don’t Chase After Ghost-Gods”

 1-3 Samuel addressed all Israel: “I’ve listened to everything you’ve said to me, listened carefully to every word, and I’ve given you a king. See for yourself: Your king among you, leading you! But now look at me: I’m old and gray, and my sons are still here. I’ve led you faithfully from my youth until this very day. Look at me! Do you have any complaints to bring before God and his anointed? Have I ever stolen so much as an ox or a donkey? Have I ever taken advantage of you or exploited you? Have I ever taken a bribe or played fast and loose with the law? Bring your complaint and I’ll make it right.”

19 Then all the people begged Samuel, “Pray to your God for us, your servants. Pray that we won’t die! On top of all our other sins, we’ve piled on one more—asking for a king!”

20-22 Samuel said to them, “Don’t be fearful. It’s true that you have done something very wrong. All the same, don’t turn your back on God. Worship and serve him heart and soul! Don’t chase after ghost-gods. There’s nothing to them. They can’t help you. They’re nothing but ghost-gods! God, simply because of who he is, is not going to walk off and leave his people. God took delight in making you into his very own people.

23-25 “And neither will I walk off and leave you. That would be a sin against God! I’m staying right here at my post praying for you and teaching you the good and right way to live. But I beg of you, fear God and worship him honestly and heartily. You’ve seen how greatly he has worked among you! Be warned: If you live badly, both you and your king will be thrown out.”

Insight

When God freed the Israelites from Egyptian bondage to make them into “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6), He specifically commanded them not the follow the ways of her pagan neighbors or worship their gods (23:32; Deuteronomy 7:1–6). Israel was a theocratic monarchy—God was their Lawgiver and King (Isaiah 33:22; 43:15), and they were to live according to His law (Deuteronomy 26:16–19). God anticipated the day that Israel would ask for a king (17:14–19) so they’d be “like all the other nations” (1 Samuel 8:5, 20). Refusing to be God’s “holy nation” (Exodus 19:6), the Israelites rejected God’s ways and His rule over them to follow the ways of pagan nations and other gods (1 Samuel 8:7–8). God warned the Israelites of the consequences of asking for such a king (vv. 10–21). By: K. T. Sim

Parting Words

The Lord is not slow . . . . He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish. 2 Peter 3:9

As he neared the end of his life, John M. Perkins had a message for the people he would leave behind. Perkins, known for advocating racial reconciliation, said, “Repentance is the only way back to God. Unless you repent, you will all perish.”

These words mirror the language of Jesus and many other people in the Bible. Christ said, “Unless you repent, you too will all perish” (Luke 13:3). The apostle Peter said, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out” (Acts 3:19).

Much earlier in Scripture, we read the words of yet another person who desired that his people would turn to God. In his farewell address “to all Israel” (1 Samuel 12:1), the prophet, priest, and judge Samuel said, “Do not be afraid. You have done . . . evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart” (v. 20). This was his message of repentance—to turn from evil and follow God wholeheartedly.

We all sin and miss the mark of His standard. So we need to repent, which means to turn away from sin and turn to Jesus, who forgives us and empowers us to follow Him. Let’s heed the words of two men, John Perkins and Samuel, who recognized how God can use the power of repentance to change us into people He can use for His honor. By:  Dave Branon

Reflect & Pray

Why is it vital to turn from sin and ask Christ for forgiveness? What does it mean for you to follow God with all your heart?

Dear God, guide me to true repentance. Please help me to recognize my sin and put my total trust in the saving power of Jesus.

For further study, read Taking Sin Seriously.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, June 30, 2023

Do It Now!

Agree with your adversary quickly… —Matthew 5:25

In this verse, Jesus Christ laid down a very important principle by saying, “Do what you know you must do— now. Do it quickly. If you don’t, an inevitable process will begin to work ‘till you have paid the last penny’ (Matthew 5:26) in pain, agony, and distress.” God’s laws are unchangeable and there is no escape from them. The teachings of Jesus always penetrate right to the heart of our being.

Wanting to make sure that my adversary gives me all my rights is a natural thing. But Jesus says that it is a matter of inescapable and eternal importance to me that I pay my adversary what I owe him. From our Lord’s standpoint it doesn’t matter whether I am cheated or not, but what does matter is that I don’t cheat someone else. Am I insisting on having my own rights, or am I paying what I owe from Jesus Christ’s standpoint?

Do it quickly— bring yourself to judgment now. In moral and spiritual matters, you must act immediately. If you don’t, the inevitable, relentless process will begin to work. God is determined to have His child as pure, clean, and white as driven snow, and as long as there is disobedience in any point of His teaching, He will allow His Spirit to use whatever process it may take to bring us to obedience. The fact that we insist on proving that we are right is almost always a clear indication that we have some point of disobedience. No wonder the Spirit of God so strongly urges us to stay steadfastly in the light! (see John 3:19-21).

“Agree with your adversary quickly….” Have you suddenly reached a certain place in your relationship with someone, only to find that you have anger in your heart? Confess it quickly— make it right before God. Be reconciled to that person— do it now!

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

There is no allowance whatever in the New Testament for the man who says he is saved by grace but who does not produce the graceful goods. Jesus Christ by His Redemption can make our actual life in keeping with our religious profession.

Studies in the Sermon on the Mount

Bible in a Year: Job 17-19; Acts 10:1-23

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Friday, June 30, 2023

THE NEARSIGHTEDNESS OF PAIN - #9515

Okay, we're going to do a little experiment right now. If you're near something printed - and you're not driving - let's say a book, a newspaper, a magazine - would you just hold it in front of your eyes? Okay, now wait, if you're driving, remember you're excused from this.

But otherwise, you got that in front of your eyes. Okay? Now, hold it a foot or so from your eyes. Now, depending on what kind of shape your eyesight is in, it should be fairly clear what it says. Now, would you hold that printed piece so it's touching the end of your nose? I know you're feeling really stupid now. Blame it on me. Now, hopefully that's not a foot from your eyes. Okay. You got it up there? Well, how's the print look now? Blurry? Sort of running together? Unfocused? Things always look that way when you're too close.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Nearsightedness of Pain."

You're in a pressure situation right now, let's say, maybe a depressing situation, and you've been in it for a while. You think about it a lot, and maybe you spend a lot of time trying to analyze it, and you re-analyze it, and you think of possibilities, and you plan various responses. You remember that book against your nose thing? You can get so close that you can lose your perspective. In order to see that situation clearly, you need some distance. Well, now, how do you get some distance from a situation that you're totally immersed in?

Our word for today from the Word of God, Genesis 40, it tells a story of Joseph being in prison. He's in a bad situation. He's there and comes upon two former servants of the king, who've had dreams. Joseph has the gift of interrupting dreams. And it says in verse 6, "When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected. So, he asked Pharaoh's officials who were in custody with them in his master's house, 'Why are your faces so sad today?"'

Now, notice. Look, Joseph's life appears to be falling apart. Everything that looked like it was going his way have now collapsed. He's lost his job, he's in prison. But he's still unsinkable. How's he doing this? Well, he took responsibility and he's looking for people who need him. He says, "I see some people who are down today. 'Can I help you?' I see some people who need me here."

I talked not too long ago to a man whose wife had left him quite a while ago. She refuses to divorce him; she refuses to reconcile. And he's thought about that day and night for four years. Well, I listened, and then I gave him some unexpected advice. I said, "Mark, you need to get a place where you can serve the Lord and help some people. This has so occupied you, and understandably so. You haven't had time to serve. Find some boys you can work with at church, or something you can do with the teenagers at church, or a Bible study you can lead, or volunteer for something. Because as you serve, you'll be able to see this situation better, and you'll know what God wants." Mark said, "You know you're right. I've not served the Lord for a while because I've been so involved in this. I need to get busy for others and get some distance."

Well, that's what Joseph did. That's what you need to do. You see, pain tends to make us very self-focused and self-absorbed. Our eyes start to cross, and the situation starts to blur, and we start thinking in circles. Serving restores your perspective. Now, when you feel the least like doing it, is probably when you most need to do it, to get your perspective back.

Maybe your problem is too close to the end of your nose, and it's getting blurrier all the time. Listen, take a step back, think about others. You'll see it better.