Thursday, April 26, 2012
Song of Songs 4, Bible reading and Devotionals
Click to listen to God's teaching.
Max Lucado Daily: Whoever Includes You
“For God so loved the world He gave His only Son that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16”
Whoever! A word that is God’s wonderful word of welcome.
I love to hear my wife say, “whoever!” Especially when I detect my favorite frangrance wafting from the kitchen: strawberry cake! I follow that smell like a bird dog follows a trail, until I’m standing over the just-baked pan of pure pleasure! Yet, I’ve learned to still my fork until Denalyn gives clearance.
“Who is it for?” I ask. She might break my heart. “It’s for a birthday party, Max, don’t touch it!” Or “it’s for a friend. Stay away!”
Or she might throw open the door of delight and say, “Whoever!” And since I qualify as a ‘whoever,” I say, “yes!”
I so hope you will too. Not ‘yes’ to cake, but to God. However. Whenever. Wherever. Whoever includes you—forever!
Song of Songs 4
He
1 How beautiful you are, my darling!
Oh, how beautiful!
Your eyes behind your veil are doves.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
descending from the hills of Gilead.
2 Your teeth are like a flock of sheep just shorn,
coming up from the washing.
Each has its twin;
not one of them is alone.
3 Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon;
your mouth is lovely.
Your temples behind your veil
are like the halves of a pomegranate.
4 Your neck is like the tower of David,
built with courses of stone[a];
on it hang a thousand shields,
all of them shields of warriors.
5 Your breasts are like two fawns,
like twin fawns of a gazelle
that browse among the lilies.
6 Until the day breaks
and the shadows flee,
I will go to the mountain of myrrh
and to the hill of incense.
7 You are altogether beautiful, my darling;
there is no flaw in you.
8 Come with me from Lebanon, my bride,
come with me from Lebanon.
Descend from the crest of Amana,
from the top of Senir, the summit of Hermon,
from the lions’ dens
and the mountain haunts of leopards.
9 You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride;
you have stolen my heart
with one glance of your eyes,
with one jewel of your necklace.
10 How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride!
How much more pleasing is your love than wine,
and the fragrance of your perfume
more than any spice!
11 Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb, my bride;
milk and honey are under your tongue.
The fragrance of your garments
is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
12 You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride;
you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain.
13 Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates
with choice fruits,
with henna and nard,
14 nard and saffron,
calamus and cinnamon,
with every kind of incense tree,
with myrrh and aloes
and all the finest spices.
15 You are[b] a garden fountain,
a well of flowing water
streaming down from Lebanon.
She
16 Awake, north wind,
and come, south wind!
Blow on my garden,
that its fragrance may spread everywhere.
Let my beloved come into his garden
and taste its choice fruits.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: James 1:19-27
Listening and Doing
19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.
26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
True Religion
April 26, 2012 — by Bill Crowder
Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. —James 1:27
I recently saw an ad for a brand of clothing geared toward youth. It consists of blue jeans and all the accessories designed to go with them. There is nothing novel about that. What got my attention, however, was the name of this clothing line. It is called “True Religion.” That caused me to stop and think. Why was that name chosen? Am I missing some deeper significance? What is the connection between a brand of jeans and true religion? What do they mean by it? My musings left me with questions for which I had no answers.
I am thankful that the book of James is clear when describing true religion or true faith: “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” (1:27). That is refreshing. “True religion”—genuine faith—is an expression of how we relate to our God. One evidence of our new identity in Christ is the way we care for one another—reaching to the most frail and vulnerable among us, to those most in need of help.
True religion is not a garment to be taken on and off. It is a lofty challenge about how we live before a holy God and others.
True religion is to know
The love that Christ imparts;
True religion is to show
His love to burdened hearts. —D. De Haan
You don’t advertise your religion by wearing a label—
you do it by living a life.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 26, 2012
The Supreme Climb
Take now your son . . . and offer him . . . as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you —Genesis 22:2
A person’s character determines how he interprets God’s will (see Psalm 18:25-26). Abraham interpreted God’s command to mean that he had to kill his son, and he could only leave this traditional belief behind through the pain of a tremendous ordeal. God could purify his faith in no other way. If we obey what God says according to our sincere belief, God will break us from those traditional beliefs that misrepresent Him. There are many such beliefs which must be removed-for example, that God removes a child because his mother loves him too much. That is the devil’s lie and a travesty on the true nature of God! If the devil can hinder us from taking the supreme climb and getting rid of our wrong traditional beliefs about God, he will do so. But if we will stay true to God, God will take us through an ordeal that will serve to bring us into a better knowledge of Himself.
The great lesson to be learned from Abraham’s faith in God is that he was prepared to do anything for God. He was there to obey God, no matter what contrary belief of his might be violated by his obedience. Abraham was not devoted to his own convictions or else he would have slain Isaac and said that the voice of the angel was actually the voice of the devil. That is the attitude of a fanatic. If you will remain true to God, God will lead you directly through every barrier and right into the inner chamber of the knowledge of Himself. But you must always be willing to come to the point of giving up your own convictions and traditional beliefs. Don’t ask God to test you. Never declare as Peter did that you are willing to do anything, even “to go . . . both to prison and to death” (Luke 22:33). Abraham did not make any such statement— he simply remained true to God, and God purified his faith.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Hurricane Heroes - #6599
Thursday, April 26, 2012
As Hurricane Irene took aim on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, I flashed back to an old white frame building there. And to the story I heard there that has followed me ever since.
Our family vacation took us to those beautiful Hatteras beaches and to the Chicamacomico Life-Saving Station. That's where I heard about, and saw demonstrated by re-enactors, the heroism of the United States Life-Saving Service.
They call that stretch of shoreline the "Graveyard of the Atlantic." Hundreds of ships have gone down there, victims of that Cape's violent storms; it's treacherous shoals. But many who would have been buried in that "graveyard" made it out alive. Those people survived, because of the men of the Life-Saving Service. They call them the "surf men." They risk their lives again and again, heading into deadly storms in these little boats, to do whatever it took to save the people on a sinking ship.
The motto of the Life-Saving Service is tattooed on my soul: "You have to go out. You don't have to come back."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Hurricane Heroes."
Those guys have shown me the meaning of rescue - the life mission of my Jesus, because He came "to seek and to save what was lost" (Luke 19:10) He said. And in our word for today from the Word of God, John 20:20, Jesus says, "As the Father has sent Me, so I am sending you." So, if you belong to Jesus, He is sending you into the surf and the storm to do what He did; to risk whatever you must to save a life.
The life-saving station is a great place to get strong for the rescue; to bring people back to when they've been rescued. But, you know, never in the history of the Life-Saving Service did anyone ever knock on the door and say, "I'm drowning. Could you please come and save me?" No! No, in every case, the rescuers had to leave the comfort of the life-saving station and go where the dying people were. Just like our Jesus. He left the greatest Comfort Zone in the universe to come to our "graveyard" to die.
So how can I, for whom He sacrificed so much, let my comfort and my fears decide what I will do? He has commanded me in Proverbs 24, to "rescue those who are being led away to death" (Proverbs 24:11).
And how much longer can we, as His Church, just keep waiting for the dying people to come to us? They're not. We have to take the life-saving Gospel of Jesus outside the walls of the life-saving station; to the street, to the office, to the plant, to the campus, the neighborhood, our service club, that nursing home, take it to the jail, take it to the gym. How can we be content any longer to sit inside our stained glass cocoon while just outside so many are dying in the storm?
We have to go out. We don't have to come back.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Acts 6, Bible reading and Devotionals.
Click to listen to God's teaching.
Max Lucado Daily: Missing the Target
“Happy is the person whose sins are forgiven, whose wrongs are pardoned. Psalm 32:1”
One year my brother got a BB gun for Christmas. We spent the afternoon shooting at an archery target. When he decided to try it looking over his shoulder, he missed. He also missed the storehouse behind the target and the fence behind the storehouse. We had no idea where that BB went.
Our neighbor across the alley knew! He was at our back fence asking who’d shot the BB gun and who was going to pay for his sliding glass door. I disowned my brother, changed my last name and claimed to be a visitor from Canada. My father, more noble than I, said, “Yes, these are my children and I’ll pay for their mistakes.”
Christ says the same about you. He knows you miss the target. He knows you can’t pay for your mistakes. But he can.
And since he loves you—he did!
Acts 6
The Choosing of the Seven
1 In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews[a] among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. 2 So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3 Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
5 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. 6 They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.
7 So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.
Stephen Seized
8 Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. 9 Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. 10 But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke.
11 Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.”
12 So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. 13 They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. 14 For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”
15 All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Joel 2:18-27
The LORD’s Answer
18 Then the LORD was jealous for his land
and took pity on his people.
19 The LORD replied[a] to them:
“I am sending you grain, new wine and olive oil,
enough to satisfy you fully;
never again will I make you
an object of scorn to the nations.
20 “I will drive the northern horde far from you,
pushing it into a parched and barren land;
its eastern ranks will drown in the Dead Sea
and its western ranks in the Mediterranean Sea.
And its stench will go up;
its smell will rise.”
Surely he has done great things!
21 Do not be afraid, land of Judah;
be glad and rejoice.
Surely the LORD has done great things!
22 Do not be afraid, you wild animals,
for the pastures in the wilderness are becoming green.
The trees are bearing their fruit;
the fig tree and the vine yield their riches.
23 Be glad, people of Zion,
rejoice in the LORD your God,
for he has given you the autumn rains
because he is faithful.
He sends you abundant showers,
both autumn and spring rains, as before.
24 The threshing floors will be filled with grain;
the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
25 “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm[b]—
my great army that I sent among you.
26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
never again will my people be shamed.
27 Then you will know that I am in Israel,
that I am the LORD your God,
and that there is no other;
never again will my people be shamed.
Everything Is Beautiful
April 25, 2012 — by Julie Ackerman Link
I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten. —Joel 2:25
The beauty of the black lacy design against the pastel purple and orange background grabbed my attention. The intricacy of the fragile pattern led me to assume that it had been created by a skilled artist. As I looked more closely at the photo, however, I saw the artist admiring his work from a corner of the photo. The “artist” was a worm, and its work of art was a partially eaten leaf.
What made the image beautiful was not the destruction of the leaf but the light glowing through the holes. As I gazed at the photo, I began thinking about lives that have been eaten by the “worms” of sin. The effects are ravaging. Sin eats away at us as we suffer the consequences of our own bad choices or those of others. We are all its victims.
But the photo also reminded me of the hope we have in God. Through the prophet Joel, God said to Israel, “I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten” (Joel 2:25). And from Isaiah we learn that the Lord appointed him to “console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes” (Isa. 61:3).
Satan does everything he can to make us ugly, but the Light of the World can make us beautiful—despite Satan’s best efforts.
Sin ravages a fruitful life
When it is not addressed;
But God restores and makes us right
Once sin has been confessed. —Sper
God doesn’t remove all of our imperfections,
but He makes us beautiful by shining through them.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 25, 2012
"Ready in Season"
Be ready in season and out of season —2 Timothy 4:2
Many of us suffer from the unbalanced tendency to “be ready” only “out of season.” The season does not refer to time; it refers to us. This verse says, “Preach the Word! Be ready in season and out of season.” In other words, we should “be ready” whether we feel like it or not. If we do only what we feel inclined to do, some of us would never do anything. There are some people who are totally unemployable in the spiritual realm. They are spiritually feeble and weak, and they refuse to do anything unless they are supernaturally inspired. The proof that our relationship is right with God is that we do our best whether we feel inspired or not.
One of the worst traps a Christian worker can fall into is to become obsessed with his own exceptional moments of inspiration. When the Spirit of God gives you a time of inspiration and insight, you tend to say, “Now that I’ve experienced this moment, I will always be like this for God.” No, you will not, and God will make sure of that. Those times are entirely the gift of God. You cannot give them to yourself when you choose. If you say you will only be at your best for God, as during those exceptional times, you actually become an intolerable burden on Him. You will never do anything unless God keeps you consciously aware of His inspiration to you at all times. If you make a god out of your best moments, you will find that God will fade out of your life, never to return until you are obedient in the work He has placed closest to you, and until you have learned not to be obsessed with those exceptional moments He has given you.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Splitter-Upper - #6598
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
When you have three children, of course only one can be the first, and that one becomes to the others the measuring stick for all privileges, all fairness, and all comparisons.
Now, in our family, our daughter is the oldest. The three kids would be getting along perfectly one day, and then suddenly the boys would learn about something their big sister got. Then I would hear the march of determined feet to my desk, and then those words, "How come she gets to...?"
Then the rest would be whatever they were comparing. They would discuss whatever blessing she had gotten that they had not. Actually knowing that kind of question was coming helped me make better decisions. It could help you too.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Splitter-Upper."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Genesis 27:45. We're reading about Rebekah, the mother of two boys - Jacob and Esau. Those two boys are very much against each other at this point. The older, Esau, has a tremendous grudge and even an urge to kill his younger brother, Jacob. And now Rebekah says to her younger son, "When your brother is no longer angry with you and forgets what you did to him, I'll send word for you to come back." He's going to have to be sent many miles away. "Why should I lose both of you in one day?"
Man! She says, "I'm losing both of my sons." She's sending Jacob away for his own safety; Esau wants to kill him. How did they get in this mess? Well, Jacob's Mom and he have tricked Father, Isaac, into giving Jacob Esau's blessing. How did this family end up with all this hatred and conflict, deceit between a husband and wife, and a mother who's physically losing one son and emotionally losing the other?
The answer: the splitter-upper. In Genesis 25 it says at the boys' early ages, "The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was a quiet man, staying among the tents. Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob."
Did you get it? Here are two godly people who fell into the trap that divides parents from children, children from parents, employees and employers, spiritual leaders and the people they're trying to lead. It's the word partiality. It's the great splitter-upper. When my sons were asking, "How come she gets to...?" they were forcing me to take a partiality check. "Am I showing favoritism here?" It inevitably leads to conflict, bitterness, getting even, and loss of respect for the person who's been partial.
If you're a parent, you just can't afford to choose between your children. If you're a son or a daughter, you can't afford to pick one parent to be close to and the other one to kind of freeze out or ignore. In spiritual leadership you can't afford to get close to one person over another. If people work for you, you've got to treat them the same.
There's a natural attraction - a natural compatibility - sometimes between one or the other, but it can never be the basis for relationships. Rebekah lost both the insider and the outsider in her love game. You'll lose too if you fall into the favoritism trap. It's just way too expensive!
Partiality? It's the great splitter-upper.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Song of Songs 3, and Devotionals
Click to listen to God's teaching.
Max Lucado Daily: Surprise!
“No one has ever seen this, and no one has ever heard about it. No one has ever imagined what God has prepared for those who love him. Isaiah 64:4”
For my birthday recently, Denalyn planned a surprise family evening at a restaurant. I knew about the restaurant part, but not about the half dozen families joining us.
It had been a lazy day and I wasn’t all that eager to go out, so I suggested we postpone dinner. Boy, was I surprised! My family made it clear. We were going out to eat. Not only that, we were leaving on time.
My attitude was “why hurry?” My daughters’ attitude was “hurry up!” Why the big deal? Only when we arrived did it all make sense.
Surprise!
They knew what I hadn’t. They knew about the party—and they did everything necessary to make sure I didn’t miss it.
Jesus does the same for us. He knows about the party. Jesus is happiest when the lost are found. For him, no moment is greater than the moment of salvation!
Song of Songs 3
1 All night long on my bed
I looked for the one my heart loves;
I looked for him but did not find him.
2 I will get up now and go about the city,
through its streets and squares;
I will search for the one my heart loves.
So I looked for him but did not find him.
3 The watchmen found me
as they made their rounds in the city.
“Have you seen the one my heart loves?”
4 Scarcely had I passed them
when I found the one my heart loves.
I held him and would not let him go
till I had brought him to my mother’s house,
to the room of the one who conceived me.
5 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you
by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until it so desires.
6 Who is this coming up from the wilderness
like a column of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh and incense
made from all the spices of the merchant?
7 Look! It is Solomon’s carriage,
escorted by sixty warriors,
the noblest of Israel,
8 all of them wearing the sword,
all experienced in battle,
each with his sword at his side,
prepared for the terrors of the night.
9 King Solomon made for himself the carriage;
he made it of wood from Lebanon.
10 Its posts he made of silver,
its base of gold.
Its seat was upholstered with purple,
its interior inlaid with love.
Daughters of Jerusalem, 11 come out,
and look, you daughters of Zion.
Look[h] on King Solomon wearing a crown,
the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
the day his heart rejoiced.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Proverbs 4:1-7
Get Wisdom at Any Cost
1 Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction;
pay attention and gain understanding.
2 I give you sound learning,
so do not forsake my teaching.
3 For I too was a son to my father,
still tender, and cherished by my mother.
4 Then he taught me, and he said to me,
“Take hold of my words with all your heart;
keep my commands, and you will live.
5 Get wisdom, get understanding;
do not forget my words or turn away from them.
6 Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you;
love her, and she will watch over you.
7 The beginning of wisdom is this: Get[a] wisdom.
Though it cost all you have,[b] get understanding.
Cutting A Trail
April 24, 2012 — by David C. Egner
Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, and give attention to know understanding. —Proverbs 4:1
The Native Americans of Michigan were the state’s first highway route engineers. With few exceptions, Michigan’s major highways follow the trails they cut through the wilderness hundreds of years before the white man came. A trail was 12-18 inches wide, and for safety the people followed single file. Then pack horses followed these trails, widening them. Later came wagons, and the trails became dirt roads and then highways.
In a similar way, Solomon followed the trail of his father and in turn paved the way for his sons and grandsons. He did this by encouraging his sons to heed his instructions just as he had followed the sound teaching of his father (Prov. 4:4-5). So this father, giving his sons good practical and spiritual counsel, was passing on what he had learned from the boys’ grandfather, David, who was called a “man after [God’s] own heart” (1 Sam. 13:14; Acts 13:22). The younger generation of believers often learns best about God from the family.
Our physical and spiritual children watch the path we’re taking. As God’s men and women, let’s make certain we cut a righteous, wise, and clear trail. Then if ongoing generations choose to follow, the trail can become a highway—an ongoing legacy to God’s glory.
Lord, as I walk my path of life,
Help my feet step straight and true;
That those who follow after me,
Will be tracking straight with You. —Egner
When we follow God, we blaze a trail
for those who would follow.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 24, 2012
The Warning Against Desiring Spiritual Success
Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you . . . —Luke 10:20
Worldliness is not the trap that most endangers us as Christian workers; nor is it sin. The trap we fall into is extravagantly desiring spiritual success; that is, success measured by, and patterned after, the form set by this religious age in which we now live. Never seek after anything other than the approval of God, and always be willing to go “outside the camp, bearing His reproach” (Hebrews 13:13). In Luke 10:20 , Jesus told the disciples not to rejoice in successful service, and yet this seems to be the one thing in which most of us do rejoice. We have a commercialized view— we count how many souls have been saved and sanctified, we thank God, and then we think everything is all right. Yet our work only begins where God’s grace has laid the foundation. Our work is not to save souls, but to disciple them. Salvation and sanctification are the work of God’s sovereign grace, and our work as His disciples is to disciple others’ lives until they are totally yielded to God. One life totally devoted to God is of more value to Him than one hundred lives which have been simply awakened by His Spirit. As workers for God, we must reproduce our own kind spiritually, and those lives will be God’s testimony to us as His workers. God brings us up to a standard of life through His grace, and we are responsible for reproducing that same standard in others.
Unless the worker lives a life that “is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3), he is apt to become an irritating dictator to others, instead of an active, living disciple. Many of us are dictators, dictating our desires to individuals and to groups. But Jesus never dictates to us in that way. Whenever our Lord talked about discipleship, He always prefaced His words with an “if,” never with the forceful or dogmatic statement— “You must.” Discipleship carries with it an option.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
The Two-Word Tranquilizer - #6597
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Some people have wall-to-wall carpet. Me? I have a wall-to-wall schedule. Maybe you do too. It was like that even when I had to take my daughter to college years ago. She had just returned from a missions trip to Manila and so had I. We had one day to get her to Chicago for college. Not only did we have to get her to school that day, but on that particular Friday, I had to produce some of these radio programs.
So I had to produce radio, deliver a daughter, I mean everything was perfectly timed. No room for anything to go wrong. And then we landed at O'Hare Airport to learn that there had been nine inches of rain over night. It closed the airport totally, flooded it closed. O'Hare was Camp O'Hare, an island for a day.
So, here were the five Hutchcrafts in a mountain of moving to college with luggage all around us. Well, my plans said I had to be at that radio studio. Uh... No, I didn't! My plan said my daughter had to be at college that day. Uh... No! In fact, thousands of people were fighting over telephones there (before cell phones) to change their plans. Every one of them probably had to be somewhere that day. No, they didn't! There are lots of days like that.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Two-Word Tranquilizer."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from James 4 - I'll begin at verse 13. "Now listen, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to this city or that city, spend a year there, carry on business, make money.'" Or take your daughter to college, do radio programs. You know. "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, 'If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.'"
Now, I have a confession to make. For years I have been a little turned off by the people who just, you know, kind of clichéishly say, "Lord willing" every other sentence. I said that was a confession; I do confess that. You know what? I'm actually beginning to understand the peace-giving power of those two words, "Lord willing."
James says here, "When you make your plans say, "If the Lord wills, we will." See, now, I'm a planner. I want to make every time, space, and every segment of my life count. So I schedule very well, and you should. Psalm 90:12 says, "Lord, teach us to number our days aright so we may apply our hearts to wisdom." But in our wall-to-wall schedules, we rule out God's right to re-schedule our day, to interrupt, to slow us down, to cancel, and He often does.
I began to realize how much of my own stress I create by not saying, "Lord, here's my list, here's my goal, here's my plan, here's my schedule. Now, Lord, you have every right to change it, and I'll assume if it changes, the changes are from you." There is so much frustration when car trouble wrecks the plan, or illness, or a tragedy you have to respond to, or a flooded airport. But I can avoid so much frustration if I allow the God of heaven to be the Lord of my almighty, untouchable schedule. And I do that with two words, "Lord willing" spoken or unspoken, but consciously recognizing the sovereignty of Almighty God.
You can actually relax if you'll turn over the schedules and the lists of your life to Him. "Lord willing." It is for us stress filled planners a powerful two-word tranquilizer.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Song of Songs 2, Bible reading and devotionals
Click to listen to Gods teaching
Max Lucado Daily: God is For You
“I have written your name on my hand! Isaiah 49:16”
Romans 8:31 asks, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”
Indulge me a moment. Four words in this verse deserve your attention. God is for us.
Say it out loud. God is for us.
Repeat it, emphasizing each word. Come on, you’re not in that big of a hurry.
God is for us! GOD IS FOR YOU.
Your parents may have forgotten you, your teachers may have neglected you, your siblings may be ashamed of you; but within reach of your prayers is the maker of the oceans. God!
God is for you! If he had a calendar, your birthday would be circled. If there’s a tree in heaven, he’s carved your name in the bark.
Isaiah 49:16 says, “I have written your name on my hand!” No one can defeat you. You are protected. God is for you!
Song of Songs 2
She[d]
1 I am a rose[e] of Sharon,
a lily of the valleys.
He
2 Like a lily among thorns
is my darling among the young women.
She
3 Like an apple[f] tree among the trees of the forest
is my beloved among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
4 Let him lead me to the banquet hall,
and let his banner over me be love.
5 Strengthen me with raisins,
refresh me with apples,
for I am faint with love.
6 His left arm is under my head,
and his right arm embraces me.
7 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you
by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until it so desires.
8 Listen! My beloved!
Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
9 My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag.
Look! There he stands behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
peering through the lattice.
10 My beloved spoke and said to me,
“Arise, my darling,
my beautiful one, come with me.
11 See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.
12 Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree forms its early fruit;
the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
my beautiful one, come with me.”
He
14 My dove in the clefts of the rock,
in the hiding places on the mountainside,
show me your face,
let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet,
and your face is lovely.
15 Catch for us the foxes,
the little foxes
that ruin the vineyards,
our vineyards that are in bloom.
She
16 My beloved is mine and I am his;
he browses among the lilies.
17 Until the day breaks
and the shadows flee,
turn, my beloved,
and be like a gazelle
or like a young stag
on the rugged hills.[g]
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Thessalonians 5:12-18
Final Instructions
12 Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. 13 Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. 14 And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 15 Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
All Day With God
April 23, 2012 — by Dennis Fisher
Pray without ceasing. —1 Thessalonians 5:17
Brother Lawrence (1614–1691) felt intimately close to God as he humbly scrubbed pots and pans in the monastery kitchen. Certainly Brother Lawrence practiced specific times of devotional prayer. But what he found more life-transforming was prayer during the workday. In his devotional classic Practicing the Presence of God, he says, “It is a great delusion to think our times of prayer ought to differ from other times. We are as strictly obliged to cleave to God by action in the time of action as by prayer in the season of prayer.” In short, he advocated that we “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17).
That’s a helpful reminder, because sometimes we tend to compartmentalize our lives. Perhaps we pray only during church worship, small-group Bible study, family devotions, and personal quiet times. But what about during our workday? To pray on the job does not mean we have to fall to our knees with clasped hands and pray aloud. But it does mean that work decisions and relationships can be brought to God throughout the day.
Wherever we are and whatever we’re doing, God wants to be a part of it. When prayer enters every aspect of our lives, who knows what God might do for His glory!
Let’s always keep the prayer lines open,
Knowing God is always there;
For we upon His name may call
Anytime and anywhere. —D. De Haan
True prayer is a way of life, not an emergency detour!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 23, 2012
Do You Worship The Work?
We are God’s fellow workers . . . —1 Corinthians 3:9
Beware of any work for God that causes or allows you to avoid concentrating on Him. A great number of Christian workers worship their work. The only concern of Christian workers should be their concentration on God. This will mean that all the other boundaries of life, whether they are mental, moral, or spiritual limits, are completely free with the freedom God gives His child; that is, a worshiping child, not a wayward one. A worker who lacks this serious controlling emphasis of concentration on God is apt to become overly burdened by his work. He is a slave to his own limits, having no freedom of his body, mind, or spirit. Consequently, he becomes burned out and defeated. There is no freedom and no delight in life at all. His nerves, mind, and heart are so overwhelmed that God’s blessing cannot rest on him.
But the opposite case is equally true–once our concentration is on God, all the limits of our life are free and under the control and mastery of God alone. There is no longer any responsibility on you for the work. The only responsibility you have is to stay in living constant touch with God, and to see that you allow nothing to hinder your cooperation with Him. The freedom that comes after sanctification is the freedom of a child, and the things that used to hold your life down are gone. But be careful to remember that you have been freed for only one thing–to be absolutely devoted to your co-Worker.
We have no right to decide where we should be placed, or to have preconceived ideas as to what God is preparing us to do. God engineers everything; and wherever He places us, our one supreme goal should be to pour out our lives in wholehearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might . . .” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Beautiful But Broken - #6596
Monday, April 23, 2012
Well, it's another sad story from the "entertainment capital of the world." There's a lot of it behind all that Hollywood hype.
The sadness behind the stardom hit me again when I read about something that happened to a woman who at times, has been the highest paid actress in Hollywood. She's been married to two of Hollywood's biggest actors; she's been a cover girl on national magazines. But recently she was the subject of a friend's urgent 911 call. She was rushed to the hospital for her reaction to the dangerous drugs she was using.
Her own words in a recent interview reveal the hurting heart behind the glamour. "What scares me is that I'm going to ultimately find out at the end of my life that I'm really not loveable; that I'm not worthy of being loved. That there's something fundamentally wrong with me." And sadly, a lot of us non-celebrity types hear those words and think, "I know the feeling."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Beautiful But Broken."
We've all had disappointing relationships; people who've made us feel like we weren't "worth loving." Experiences that have caused us to conclude that there's "something wrong with me." We know the ugliness behind our smiling facade. I know all too well the things about me that are anything but loveable.
But we're made to be loved. Literally, made by God to be loved. Loved by Him. Love with two words attached that give our lonely hearts a safe harbor - unconditional, and unloseable.
God doesn't care how unloveable we are. His love isn't "I love you if..." or "I love you because..." It's just, "I love you." His love for me is all about Him and nothing about me. How do I know? Because He says in His Book, "God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were yet sinners." That's our word for today from the Word of God, Romans 5:8.
God initiated the greatest act of love in the history of this planet when He sent His Son to die an unspeakable death on a cross. Not because I was so loveable, but because I was so lost. I'm a rebel against God. I defy the One who runs the universe by refusing to let Him run me. According to the Bible, we're all rebels, pushing God to the margins, dissing His laws, acting like we're God, and breaking the heart of God.
But still He loves us. He offered up His Son to do the dying for my rebellion. As the Bible says, "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son..." (John 3:16). Love without conditions; love that has nothing to do with your performance or your loveableness. It's a love like no other.
And since it's all about Him and not about you or me, it's unloseable love. If God was ever going to turn His back on me, it would have been when His Son was hanging on that cross. But He turned His back on His Son, who was carrying our sin, so He would never have to turn His back on us. So, in the Bible's words, "nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:39).
His is the only love in the world that will never disappoint you, never divorce you, never die on you. It is a love that you can finally begin to experience for yourself beginning this very day if you will respond to that love and say, "Jesus, nobody loves me like You do. You died on a cross for me. You're powerful enough to walk out of Your grave and into my life, and I want You to do that today. I'm Yours starting today."
At our website I've tried to lay out there as simply and briefly as I can how to be sure you know Jesus for yourself. Let me urge you to go there; it's YoursForLife.net.
I think of the mistakes we make and the hurt we experience looking for this love anywhere else. The little kids singing their little church song, they "get" it: "Jesus loves me, this I know." You know that when you finally open your heart to His love. And your lifetime search for love ends in His welcoming arms.
Max Lucado Daily: God is For You
“I have written your name on my hand! Isaiah 49:16”
Romans 8:31 asks, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”
Indulge me a moment. Four words in this verse deserve your attention. God is for us.
Say it out loud. God is for us.
Repeat it, emphasizing each word. Come on, you’re not in that big of a hurry.
God is for us! GOD IS FOR YOU.
Your parents may have forgotten you, your teachers may have neglected you, your siblings may be ashamed of you; but within reach of your prayers is the maker of the oceans. God!
God is for you! If he had a calendar, your birthday would be circled. If there’s a tree in heaven, he’s carved your name in the bark.
Isaiah 49:16 says, “I have written your name on my hand!” No one can defeat you. You are protected. God is for you!
Song of Songs 2
She[d]
1 I am a rose[e] of Sharon,
a lily of the valleys.
He
2 Like a lily among thorns
is my darling among the young women.
She
3 Like an apple[f] tree among the trees of the forest
is my beloved among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.
4 Let him lead me to the banquet hall,
and let his banner over me be love.
5 Strengthen me with raisins,
refresh me with apples,
for I am faint with love.
6 His left arm is under my head,
and his right arm embraces me.
7 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you
by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until it so desires.
8 Listen! My beloved!
Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
9 My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag.
Look! There he stands behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
peering through the lattice.
10 My beloved spoke and said to me,
“Arise, my darling,
my beautiful one, come with me.
11 See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.
12 Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree forms its early fruit;
the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
my beautiful one, come with me.”
He
14 My dove in the clefts of the rock,
in the hiding places on the mountainside,
show me your face,
let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet,
and your face is lovely.
15 Catch for us the foxes,
the little foxes
that ruin the vineyards,
our vineyards that are in bloom.
She
16 My beloved is mine and I am his;
he browses among the lilies.
17 Until the day breaks
and the shadows flee,
turn, my beloved,
and be like a gazelle
or like a young stag
on the rugged hills.[g]
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 1 Thessalonians 5:12-18
Final Instructions
12 Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. 13 Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. 14 And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 15 Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
All Day With God
April 23, 2012 — by Dennis Fisher
Pray without ceasing. —1 Thessalonians 5:17
Brother Lawrence (1614–1691) felt intimately close to God as he humbly scrubbed pots and pans in the monastery kitchen. Certainly Brother Lawrence practiced specific times of devotional prayer. But what he found more life-transforming was prayer during the workday. In his devotional classic Practicing the Presence of God, he says, “It is a great delusion to think our times of prayer ought to differ from other times. We are as strictly obliged to cleave to God by action in the time of action as by prayer in the season of prayer.” In short, he advocated that we “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17).That’s a helpful reminder, because sometimes we tend to compartmentalize our lives. Perhaps we pray only during church worship, small-group Bible study, family devotions, and personal quiet times. But what about during our workday? To pray on the job does not mean we have to fall to our knees with clasped hands and pray aloud. But it does mean that work decisions and relationships can be brought to God throughout the day.
Wherever we are and whatever we’re doing, God wants to be a part of it. When prayer enters every aspect of our lives, who knows what God might do for His glory!
Let’s always keep the prayer lines open,
Knowing God is always there;
For we upon His name may call
Anytime and anywhere. —D. De Haan
True prayer is a way of life, not an emergency detour!
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 23, 2012
Do You Worship The Work?
We are God’s fellow workers . . . —1 Corinthians 3:9
Beware of any work for God that causes or allows you to avoid concentrating on Him. A great number of Christian workers worship their work. The only concern of Christian workers should be their concentration on God. This will mean that all the other boundaries of life, whether they are mental, moral, or spiritual limits, are completely free with the freedom God gives His child; that is, a worshiping child, not a wayward one. A worker who lacks this serious controlling emphasis of concentration on God is apt to become overly burdened by his work. He is a slave to his own limits, having no freedom of his body, mind, or spirit. Consequently, he becomes burned out and defeated. There is no freedom and no delight in life at all. His nerves, mind, and heart are so overwhelmed that God’s blessing cannot rest on him.
But the opposite case is equally true–once our concentration is on God, all the limits of our life are free and under the control and mastery of God alone. There is no longer any responsibility on you for the work. The only responsibility you have is to stay in living constant touch with God, and to see that you allow nothing to hinder your cooperation with Him. The freedom that comes after sanctification is the freedom of a child, and the things that used to hold your life down are gone. But be careful to remember that you have been freed for only one thing–to be absolutely devoted to your co-Worker.
We have no right to decide where we should be placed, or to have preconceived ideas as to what God is preparing us to do. God engineers everything; and wherever He places us, our one supreme goal should be to pour out our lives in wholehearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might . . .” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Beautiful But Broken - #6596
Monday, April 23, 2012
Well, it's another sad story from the "entertainment capital of the world." There's a lot of it behind all that Hollywood hype.
The sadness behind the stardom hit me again when I read about something that happened to a woman who at times, has been the highest paid actress in Hollywood. She's been married to two of Hollywood's biggest actors; she's been a cover girl on national magazines. But recently she was the subject of a friend's urgent 911 call. She was rushed to the hospital for her reaction to the dangerous drugs she was using.
Her own words in a recent interview reveal the hurting heart behind the glamour. "What scares me is that I'm going to ultimately find out at the end of my life that I'm really not loveable; that I'm not worthy of being loved. That there's something fundamentally wrong with me." And sadly, a lot of us non-celebrity types hear those words and think, "I know the feeling."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Beautiful But Broken."
We've all had disappointing relationships; people who've made us feel like we weren't "worth loving." Experiences that have caused us to conclude that there's "something wrong with me." We know the ugliness behind our smiling facade. I know all too well the things about me that are anything but loveable.
But we're made to be loved. Literally, made by God to be loved. Loved by Him. Love with two words attached that give our lonely hearts a safe harbor - unconditional, and unloseable.
God doesn't care how unloveable we are. His love isn't "I love you if..." or "I love you because..." It's just, "I love you." His love for me is all about Him and nothing about me. How do I know? Because He says in His Book, "God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were yet sinners." That's our word for today from the Word of God, Romans 5:8.
God initiated the greatest act of love in the history of this planet when He sent His Son to die an unspeakable death on a cross. Not because I was so loveable, but because I was so lost. I'm a rebel against God. I defy the One who runs the universe by refusing to let Him run me. According to the Bible, we're all rebels, pushing God to the margins, dissing His laws, acting like we're God, and breaking the heart of God.
But still He loves us. He offered up His Son to do the dying for my rebellion. As the Bible says, "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son..." (John 3:16). Love without conditions; love that has nothing to do with your performance or your loveableness. It's a love like no other.
And since it's all about Him and not about you or me, it's unloseable love. If God was ever going to turn His back on me, it would have been when His Son was hanging on that cross. But He turned His back on His Son, who was carrying our sin, so He would never have to turn His back on us. So, in the Bible's words, "nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:39).
His is the only love in the world that will never disappoint you, never divorce you, never die on you. It is a love that you can finally begin to experience for yourself beginning this very day if you will respond to that love and say, "Jesus, nobody loves me like You do. You died on a cross for me. You're powerful enough to walk out of Your grave and into my life, and I want You to do that today. I'm Yours starting today."
At our website I've tried to lay out there as simply and briefly as I can how to be sure you know Jesus for yourself. Let me urge you to go there; it's YoursForLife.net.
I think of the mistakes we make and the hurt we experience looking for this love anywhere else. The little kids singing their little church song, they "get" it: "Jesus loves me, this I know." You know that when you finally open your heart to His love. And your lifetime search for love ends in His welcoming arms.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Song of Songs 1, Bible reading and Devotionals
Click to listen to God's teachings.
Max Lucado Daily: His Public Offer
“All of us became part of Christ when we were baptized.” Romans 6:3
We owe God a perfect life. Perfect obedience to every command. Not just the command of baptism, but the commands of humility, honesty, integrity. We can’t deliver. Might as well charge us for the property of Manhattan. But Christ can and he did. His plunge into the Jordan is a picture of his plunge into our sin. His baptism announces, “Let me pay.”
Your baptism responds, “You bet I will.” He publicly offers. We publicly accept.
Song of Songs 1
1 Solomon’s Song of Songs.
She[a]
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—
for your love is more delightful than wine.
3 Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes;
your name is like perfume poured out.
No wonder the young women love you!
4 Take me away with you—let us hurry!
Let the king bring me into his chambers.
Friends
We rejoice and delight in you[b];
we will praise your love more than wine.
She
How right they are to adore you!
5 Dark am I, yet lovely,
daughters of Jerusalem,
dark like the tents of Kedar,
like the tent curtains of Solomon.[c]
6 Do not stare at me because I am dark,
because I am darkened by the sun.
My mother’s sons were angry with me
and made me take care of the vineyards;
my own vineyard I had to neglect.
7 Tell me, you whom I love,
where you graze your flock
and where you rest your sheep at midday.
Why should I be like a veiled woman
beside the flocks of your friends?
Friends
8 If you do not know, most beautiful of women,
follow the tracks of the sheep
and graze your young goats
by the tents of the shepherds.
He
9 I liken you, my darling, to a mare
among Pharaoh’s chariot horses.
10 Your cheeks are beautiful with earrings,
your neck with strings of jewels.
11 We will make you earrings of gold,
studded with silver.
She
12 While the king was at his table,
my perfume spread its fragrance.
13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh
resting between my breasts.
14 My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
from the vineyards of En Gedi.
He
15 How beautiful you are, my darling!
Oh, how beautiful!
Your eyes are doves.
She
16 How handsome you are, my beloved!
Oh, how charming!
And our bed is verdant.
He
17 The beams of our house are cedars;
our rafters are firs.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Timothy 3:14-17
14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God[a] may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Undiscovered Country
April 22, 2012 — by Cindy Hess Kasper
The Word of God is living and powerful. —Hebrews 4:12
I studied the map as my husband and I drove up the east coast of Virginia. We were looking for any road that would take us to the seashore. Finally, I found one and we turned toward the sun.
In only a few minutes, we were laughing in delight when—just before the seashore—we happened upon a national wildlife refuge. All around us were dunes and marsh and beach grasses and an abundance of gulls, egrets, and blue herons. It was active and loud and wonderful! We had arrived at Chincoteague and Assateague Islands—famous for the annual pony swim from one island to the other. Others had realized its value and beauty long before, but to us it was undiscovered country.
The Scriptures are like “undiscovered country” to many. They have never discovered the valuable treasures found in the eternal words of the Bible. The Bible is alive and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, exposing our innermost thoughts and desires (Heb. 4:12). It is like a lamp to illuminate our path (Ps. 119:105), and it has been given to equip us for God’s purposes (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
Open the Bible and read it so you can find these treasures. It’s time . . . to discover!
Exhaustless store of treasured gems
Within this Book I hold;
And as I read, it comes alive,
New treasures to unfold. —Mortenson
Rich treasures of God’s truth
are waiting to be discovered by you.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 22, 2012
The Light That Never Fails
We all, with unveiled face, beholding . . . the glory of the Lord . . . —2 Corinthians 3:18
A servant of God must stand so very much alone that he never realizes he is alone. In the early stages of the Christian life, disappointments will come— people who used to be lights will flicker out, and those who used to stand with us will turn away. We have to get so used to it that we will not even realize we are standing alone. Paul said, “. . . no one stood with me, but all forsook me . . . . But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me . . .” (2 Timothy 4:16-17). We must build our faith not on fading lights but on the Light that never fails. When “important” individuals go away we are sad, until we see that they are meant to go, so that only one thing is left for us to do— to look into the face of God for ourselves.
Allow nothing to keep you from looking with strong determination into the face of God regarding yourself and your doctrine. And every time you preach make sure you look God in the face about the message first, then the glory will remain through all of it. A Christian servant is one who perpetually looks into the face of God and then goes forth to talk to others. The ministry of Christ is characterized by an abiding glory of which the servant is totally unaware— “. . . Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone while he talked with Him” (Exodus 34:29).
We are never called on to display our doubts openly or to express the hidden joys and delights of our life with God. The secret of the servant’s life is that he stays in tune with God all the time.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Acts 5, Bible readings and devotionals
Click to listen to God's love letter to you.
Max Lucado Daily: Back From The Dead
“Thomas said, ‘I will not believe it until I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were.’” John 20:25
Jesus gave Thomas exactly what he requested. He extended his hands one more time. And was Thomas ever surprised. He did a double take, fell flat on his face, and cried, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).
Jesus must have smiled. He knew he had a winner in Thomas . . . Legend has him hopping a freighter to India where they had to kill him to get him to quit talking about his friend who came back from the dead.
Acts 5:22-42
New International Version (NIV)
22 But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there. So they went back and reported, 23 “We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside.” 24 On hearing this report, the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests were at a loss, wondering what this might lead to.
25 Then someone came and said, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.” 26 At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them.
27 The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. 28 “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”
29 Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! 30 The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. 31 God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. 32 We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
33 When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death. 34 But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. 35 Then he addressed the Sanhedrin: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. 36 Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. 37 After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. 38 Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39 But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”
40 His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
41 The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. 42 Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Peter 1:1-11
1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:
2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
Confirming One’s Calling and Election
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters,[a] make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Investment Advice
April 21, 2012 — by Anne Cetas
If these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. —2 Peter 1:8
“I want to help you invest wisely in your future.” That’s what the financial advisor said as he began his talk about investing in 401(k)s and retirement funds. He wanted his listeners to continue putting money in the stock market during all the ups and downs of the economy because historically a good return will eventually occur.
God wants us to invest wisely in our spiritual future as well. Through the ups and downs of life’s circumstances we should continually invest in a “spiritual account”: our character. The apostle Peter tells us to be diligent about character development (2 Peter 1:5-11). After we trust in Christ for salvation, we are to invest these qualities into our character: faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.
The future returns on our investment in character will be godliness (vv.5-7), fruitfulness in the knowledge of Jesus Christ (v.8), assurance of our calling (v.9), and victory over sin (v.10).
Investing money in retirement funds can be profitable, but investing in our spiritual lives offers the best kind of return for our future!
Let us grow up into Christ,
Claiming His life and its powers—
The triumphs of grace in the heavenly place
That our conquering Lord has made ours. —Flint
Now is the time to invest in eternity.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 21, 2012
Don’t Hurt the Lord
Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? —John 14:9
Our Lord must be repeatedly astounded at us-astounded at how “un-simple” we are. It is our own opinions that make us dense and slow to understand, but when we are simple we are never dense; we have discernment all the time. Philip expected the future revelation of a tremendous mystery, but not in Jesus, the Person he thought he already knew. The mystery of God is not in what is going to be-it is now, though we look for it to be revealed in the future in some overwhelming, momentous event. We have no reluctance to obey Jesus, but it is highly probable that we are hurting Him by what we ask-”Lord, show us the Father . . .” (John 14:8). His response immediately comes back to us as He says, “Can’t you see Him? He is always right here or He is nowhere to be found.” We look for God to exhibit Himself to His children, but God only exhibits Himself in His children. And while others see the evidence, the child of God does not. We want to be fully aware of what God is doing in us, but we cannot have complete awareness and expect to remain reasonable or balanced in our expectations of Him. If all we are asking God to give us is experiences, and the awareness of those experiences is blocking our way, we hurt the Lord. The very questions we ask hurt Jesus, because they are not the questions of a child.
“Let not your heart be troubled . . .” (14:1, 27). Am I then hurting Jesus by allowing my heart to be troubled? . If I believe in Jesus and His attributes, am I living up to my belief? Am I allowing anything to disturb my heart, or am I allowing any questions to come in which are unsound or unbalanced? I have to get to the point of the absolute and unquestionable relationship that takes everything exactly as it comes from Him. God never guides us at some time in the future, but always here and now. Realize that the Lord is here now, and the freedom you receive is immediate.
Max Lucado Daily: Back From The Dead
“Thomas said, ‘I will not believe it until I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were.’” John 20:25
Jesus gave Thomas exactly what he requested. He extended his hands one more time. And was Thomas ever surprised. He did a double take, fell flat on his face, and cried, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).
Jesus must have smiled. He knew he had a winner in Thomas . . . Legend has him hopping a freighter to India where they had to kill him to get him to quit talking about his friend who came back from the dead.
Acts 5:22-42
New International Version (NIV)
22 But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there. So they went back and reported, 23 “We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside.” 24 On hearing this report, the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests were at a loss, wondering what this might lead to.
25 Then someone came and said, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.” 26 At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them.
27 The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. 28 “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”
29 Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! 30 The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. 31 God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. 32 We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
33 When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death. 34 But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. 35 Then he addressed the Sanhedrin: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. 36 Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. 37 After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. 38 Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39 But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”
40 His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
41 The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. 42 Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: 2 Peter 1:1-11
1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:
2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
Confirming One’s Calling and Election
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters,[a] make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Investment Advice
April 21, 2012 — by Anne Cetas
If these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. —2 Peter 1:8
“I want to help you invest wisely in your future.” That’s what the financial advisor said as he began his talk about investing in 401(k)s and retirement funds. He wanted his listeners to continue putting money in the stock market during all the ups and downs of the economy because historically a good return will eventually occur.
God wants us to invest wisely in our spiritual future as well. Through the ups and downs of life’s circumstances we should continually invest in a “spiritual account”: our character. The apostle Peter tells us to be diligent about character development (2 Peter 1:5-11). After we trust in Christ for salvation, we are to invest these qualities into our character: faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.
The future returns on our investment in character will be godliness (vv.5-7), fruitfulness in the knowledge of Jesus Christ (v.8), assurance of our calling (v.9), and victory over sin (v.10).
Investing money in retirement funds can be profitable, but investing in our spiritual lives offers the best kind of return for our future!
Let us grow up into Christ,
Claiming His life and its powers—
The triumphs of grace in the heavenly place
That our conquering Lord has made ours. —Flint
Now is the time to invest in eternity.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 21, 2012
Don’t Hurt the Lord
Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? —John 14:9
Our Lord must be repeatedly astounded at us-astounded at how “un-simple” we are. It is our own opinions that make us dense and slow to understand, but when we are simple we are never dense; we have discernment all the time. Philip expected the future revelation of a tremendous mystery, but not in Jesus, the Person he thought he already knew. The mystery of God is not in what is going to be-it is now, though we look for it to be revealed in the future in some overwhelming, momentous event. We have no reluctance to obey Jesus, but it is highly probable that we are hurting Him by what we ask-”Lord, show us the Father . . .” (John 14:8). His response immediately comes back to us as He says, “Can’t you see Him? He is always right here or He is nowhere to be found.” We look for God to exhibit Himself to His children, but God only exhibits Himself in His children. And while others see the evidence, the child of God does not. We want to be fully aware of what God is doing in us, but we cannot have complete awareness and expect to remain reasonable or balanced in our expectations of Him. If all we are asking God to give us is experiences, and the awareness of those experiences is blocking our way, we hurt the Lord. The very questions we ask hurt Jesus, because they are not the questions of a child.
“Let not your heart be troubled . . .” (14:1, 27). Am I then hurting Jesus by allowing my heart to be troubled? . If I believe in Jesus and His attributes, am I living up to my belief? Am I allowing anything to disturb my heart, or am I allowing any questions to come in which are unsound or unbalanced? I have to get to the point of the absolute and unquestionable relationship that takes everything exactly as it comes from Him. God never guides us at some time in the future, but always here and now. Realize that the Lord is here now, and the freedom you receive is immediate.
Friday, April 20, 2012
Proverbs 31, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals
Max Lucado Daily: God is Always the Same
“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”
God will always be the same! No one else will.
Lovers call you today and scorn you tomorrow. Companies follow pay raises with pink slips. Friends applaud you when you drive a classic and dismiss you when you drive a dud.
Not God. God is always the same. James 1:17 says, “With God, there is no variation or shadow due to change.”
Catch God in a bad mood? Won’t happen. Can your fear exhaust his grace? A sardine will swallow the Atlantic first. Do you think he’s given up on you? Wrong! Did he not make a promise to you? What he says he will do, he does. What he promises, he makes come true. God is not a human being, and he will not lie.
God is never sullen or sour, sulking or stressed. His strength, truth, ways, and love never change. He is the same yesterday and today and forever!
Proverbs 31
Sayings of King Lemuel
1 The sayings of King Lemuel—an inspired utterance his mother taught him.
2 Listen, my son! Listen, son of my womb!
Listen, my son, the answer to my prayers!
3 Do not spend your strength[c] on women,
your vigor on those who ruin kings.
4 It is not for kings, Lemuel—
it is not for kings to drink wine,
not for rulers to crave beer,
5 lest they drink and forget what has been decreed,
and deprive all the oppressed of their rights.
6 Let beer be for those who are perishing,
wine for those who are in anguish!
7 Let them drink and forget their poverty
and remember their misery no more.
8 Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
9 Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy.
Epilogue: The Wife of Noble Character
10 [d]A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.
11 Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.
12 She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.
13 She selects wool and flax
and works with eager hands.
14 She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from afar.
15 She gets up while it is still night;
she provides food for her family
and portions for her female servants.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.
17 She sets about her work vigorously;
her arms are strong for her tasks.
18 She sees that her trading is profitable,
and her lamp does not go out at night.
19 In her hand she holds the distaff
and grasps the spindle with her fingers.
20 She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.
21 When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.
22 She makes coverings for her bed;
she is clothed in fine linen and purple.
23 Her husband is respected at the city gate,
where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.
24 She makes linen garments and sells them,
and supplies the merchants with sashes.
25 She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.
26 She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.
27 She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all.”
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
31 Honor her for all that her hands have done,
and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: John 1:35-42
John’s Disciples Follow Jesus
35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”
So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.
40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter[a]).
Called By A New Name
April 20, 2012 — by Marvin Williams
When Jesus looked at him, He said, “. . . you shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone). —John 1:42
In the article “Leading by Naming,” Mark Labberton wrote about the power of a name. He said: “I can still feel the impact of a musical friend who one day called me ‘musical.’ No one had ever called me that. I didn’t really play an instrument. I was no soloist. Yet . . . I instantly felt known and loved. . . . [He] noticed, validated, and appreciated something deeply true about me.”
Perhaps this is what Simon felt when Jesus renamed him. After Andrew was convinced that Jesus was the Messiah, he immediately found his brother Simon and brought him to Jesus (John 1:41-42). Jesus peered into his soul and validated and appreciated something deeply true about Simon. Yes, Jesus saw the failure and impetuous nature that would get him into trouble. But more than that He saw the potential of Simon to become a leader in the church. Jesus named him Cephas—Aramaic for Peter—a rock (John 1:42; see Matt. 16:18).
And so it is with us. God sees our pride, anger, and lack of love for others, but He also knows who we are in Christ. He calls us justified and reconciled (Rom. 5:9-10); forgiven, holy, and beloved (Col. 2:13; 3:12); chosen and faithful (Rev. 17:14). Remember how God sees you and seek to let that define who you are.
I am so glad for the day that I came
Seeking relief for my soul;
Jesus the Savior gave me my new name;
Now by His grace I’m made whole. —Hess
No one can steal your identity in Christ.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 20, 2012
Can a Saint Falsely Accuse God?
All the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen . . . —2 Corinthians 1:20
Jesus’ parable of the talents recorded in Matthew 25:14-30 was a warning that it is possible for us to misjudge our capacities. This parable has nothing to do with natural gifts and abilities, but relates to the gift of the Holy Spirit as He was first given at Pentecost. We must never measure our spiritual capacity on the basis of our education or our intellect; our capacity in spiritual things is measured on the basis of the promises of God. If we get less than God wants us to have, we will falsely accuse Him as the servant falsely accused his master when he said, “You expect more of me than you gave me the power to do. You demand too much of me, and I cannot stand true to you here where you have placed me.” When it is a question of God’s Almighty Spirit, never say, “I can’t.” Never allow the limitation of your own natural ability to enter into the matter. If we have received the Holy Spirit, God expects the work of the Holy Spirit to be exhibited in us.
The servant justified himself, while condemning his lord on every point, as if to say, “Your demand on me is way out of proportion to what you gave to me.” Have we been falsely accusing God by daring to worry after He has said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you”? (Matthew 6:33). Worrying means exactly what this servant implied— “I know your intent is to leave me unprotected and vulnerable.” A person who is lazy in the natural realm is always critical, saying, “I haven’t had a decent chance,” and someone who is lazy in the spiritual realm is critical of God. Lazy people always strike out at others in an independent way.
Never forget that our capacity and capability in spiritual matters is measured by, and based on, the promises of God. Is God able to fulfill His promises? Our answer depends on whether or not we have received the Holy Spirit.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Girls Come With Instructions - #6595
Friday, April 20, 2012
When my son was a teenager he used to read the Sunday cartoons, and I heard him laughing out loud one day. He called out to me, "Hey, Dad, come here. They got this one right!" He could really relate to this particular cartoon, and knowing that this was something that would help my intellectual development, he let me read it.
There's a young man standing at his locker in school and he says, "Could it be? I'm almost certain that she did! I'm sure that new girl, Angie, smiled at me when I passed her in the hall just now!" See, my guys could relate to this. Then this guy says, "Then again, maybe she's just friendly and smiles at everyone like that." Then he says, "Or maybe she was smiling at someone else and not at me at all." And then the final panel he says, "(Sigh)...I wish girls came with instructions." They do.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Girls Come With Instructions."
Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Timothy 5:2. It's part of a passage that gives us instructions on how a Christian man should treat various groups. And then, we get to how he should treat the women; especially the younger women. Here's what it says, "Treat the younger women as sisters with absolute purity."
Well, what do you know? Girls do come with instructions. And the instructions are, "Treat them as sisters with absolute purity." I'll tell you, that's a pretty revolutionary concept for modern male/female relationships. We men are raised to treat women as conquests, not sisters; as someone to know mostly on a physical level, not as a person in a family kind of relationship.
Interesting! Sometimes you'll hear someone describing something that's relatively unexciting in this way, "Oh, it's sort of like kissing your sister." You know, a relationship with your sister is not primarily physical; it's a family deal. The point of what Paul is saying is, "That's what we ought to be seeking as men in our relationships with women."
The bonds between a brother and sister aren't based on a physical relationship; it's a friendship - a bonding based on something much deeper, shared experiences, laughing together, crying together, shopping, eating, arguing, and celebrating.
Relationships between men and women become much more complicated, much more tense, much more unnatural, when they're dominated by a romantic agenda or a sexual agenda. If only we could turn in our hunting license and quit looking for girlfriends, and start looking for girls who are friends.
One characteristic of a brother's love is protection. Man, I'll tell you, a brother won't let anything happen to his sister. Well, you know, it's time we men start to protect every woman around us from being used, from being cheapened by physical involvement, to begin to give them the royal treatment and the loyal treatment that a sister deserves. And it's time women begin to tell men that they want real relationships that are centered in Christ and committed to purity; to tell them that by the way they dress, and the way they move, and the way they talk.
Men and women? Well, they're always going to be a mystery to each other, but we've made it much more confusing than it needs to be. Start looking for sisters to build up, not lovers to conquer; people to minister to.
That's how we were created to be with each other. I know that, because I've read God's manufacturer's book, and girls do come with instructions.
click to listen
click to listen
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Proverbs 30, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals (Click to listen to God’s teaching)
Max Lucado Daily: The Fire That Consumes You
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10”
What is the fire that consumes you? Write it down: Jesus comes to set you on fire!
He walks as a torch from heart to heart, warming the cold and thawing the chilled and stirring the ashes.
Do you have a passion to sing? Then sing.
Are you stirred to manage? Then manage.
Do you ache for the ill? Then treat them.
Do you hurt for the lost? Then teach them.
The fire of your heart is the light of your path. Disregard it at your own expense! Blow it. Stir it. Nourish it. Cynics will doubt it. Those without it will mock it! Those who know it, those who know Him, will understand it.
To meet the Savior is to be set aflame. To discover the flame is to discover his will. To discover his will is to access a world like none you’ve ever seen.
Proverbs 30
Sayings of Agur
1 The sayings of Agur son of Jakeh—an inspired utterance.
This man’s utterance to Ithiel:
“I am weary, God,
but I can prevail.[a]
2 Surely I am only a brute, not a man;
I do not have human understanding.
3 I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I attained to the knowledge of the Holy One.
4 Who has gone up to heaven and come down?
Whose hands have gathered up the wind?
Who has wrapped up the waters in a cloak?
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is his name, and what is the name of his son?
Surely you know!
5 “Every word of God is flawless;
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
6 Do not add to his words,
or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.
7 “Two things I ask of you, LORD;
do not refuse me before I die:
8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.
9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God.
10 “Do not slander a servant to their master,
or they will curse you, and you will pay for it.
11 “There are those who curse their fathers
and do not bless their mothers;
12 those who are pure in their own eyes
and yet are not cleansed of their filth;
13 those whose eyes are ever so haughty,
whose glances are so disdainful;
14 those whose teeth are swords
and whose jaws are set with knives
to devour the poor from the earth
and the needy from among mankind.
15 “The leech has two daughters.
‘Give! Give!’ they cry.
“There are three things that are never satisfied,
four that never say, ‘Enough!’:
16 the grave, the barren womb,
land, which is never satisfied with water,
and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!’
17 “The eye that mocks a father,
that scorns an aged mother,
will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley,
will be eaten by the vultures.
18 “There are three things that are too amazing for me,
four that I do not understand:
19 the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a snake on a rock,
the way of a ship on the high seas,
and the way of a man with a young woman.
20 “This is the way of an adulterous woman:
She eats and wipes her mouth
and says, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong.’
21 “Under three things the earth trembles,
under four it cannot bear up:
22 a servant who becomes king,
a godless fool who gets plenty to eat,
23 a contemptible woman who gets married,
and a servant who displaces her mistress.
24 “Four things on earth are small,
yet they are extremely wise:
25 Ants are creatures of little strength,
yet they store up their food in the summer;
26 hyraxes are creatures of little power,
yet they make their home in the crags;
27 locusts have no king,
yet they advance together in ranks;
28 a lizard can be caught with the hand,
yet it is found in kings’ palaces.
29 “There are three things that are stately in their stride,
four that move with stately bearing:
30 a lion, mighty among beasts,
who retreats before nothing;
31 a strutting rooster, a he-goat,
and a king secure against revolt.[b]
32 “If you play the fool and exalt yourself,
or if you plan evil,
clap your hand over your mouth!
33 For as churning cream produces butter,
and as twisting the nose produces blood,
so stirring up anger produces strife.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Hosea 10:9-15
9 The Lord says, “O Israel, ever since Gibeah,
there has been only sin and more sin!
You have made no progress whatsoever.
Was it not right that the wicked men of Gibeah were attacked?
10 Now whenever it fits my plan,
I will attack you, too.
I will call out the armies of the nations
to punish you for your multiplied sins.
11 “Israel[a] is like a trained heifer treading out the grain—
an easy job she loves.
But I will put a heavy yoke on her tender neck.
I will force Judah to pull the plow
and Israel[b] to break up the hard ground.
12 I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness,
and you will harvest a crop of love.
Plow up the hard ground of your hearts,
for now is the time to seek the Lord,
that he may come
and shower righteousness upon you.’
13 “But you have cultivated wickedness
and harvested a thriving crop of sins.
You have eaten the fruit of lies—
trusting in your military might,
believing that great armies
could make your nation safe.
14 Now the terrors of war
will rise among your people.
All your fortifications will fall,
just as when Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel.
Even mothers and children
were dashed to death there.
15 You will share that fate, Bethel,
because of your great wickedness.
When the day of judgment dawns,
the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.
God’s Unfailing Love
April 19, 2012 — by David C. McCasland
Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; . . . for it is time to seek the Lord. —Hosea 10:12
The Old Testament book of Hosea is the story of God’s faithful love for His unfaithful people. In what seems strange to us, the Lord commanded Hosea to marry a woman who would break her marriage vows and bring grief to him (Hosea 1:2-3). After she deserted Hosea for other men, the Lord told him to take her back—a picture of “the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods” (3:1).
Later, Hosea was called upon to tell the Israelites that because of their rebellion against the Lord, they would be carried away into captivity by a foreign power. “Tumult shall arise among your people, and all your fortresses shall be plundered” (10:14).
Yet in the midst of their sin and punishment, the grace of God toward His people was never exhausted. In a grace-filled exhortation, He said: “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you” (10:12).
Even when we have “plowed wickedness” and “reaped iniquity” (10:13), God does not stop loving us. Whatever our situation today, we can turn to the Lord and find forgiveness to make a new start. His love never fails!
The Lord bestows unfailing love,
Forgiving when we fall
And then repent and turn to Him,
Responding to His call. —Sper
No force is greater than the power of God’s love.
The Old Testament book of Hosea is the story of God’s faithful love for His unfaithful people. In what seems strange to us, the Lord commanded Hosea to marry a woman who would break her marriage vows and bring grief to him (Hosea 1:2-3). After she deserted Hosea for other men, the Lord told him to take her back—a picture of “the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods” (3:1).
Later, Hosea was called upon to tell the Israelites that because of their rebellion against the Lord, they would be carried away into captivity by a foreign power. “Tumult shall arise among your people, and all your fortresses shall be plundered” (10:14).
Yet in the midst of their sin and punishment, the grace of God toward His people was never exhausted. In a grace-filled exhortation, He said: “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you” (10:12).
Even when we have “plowed wickedness” and “reaped iniquity” (10:13), God does not stop loving us. Whatever our situation today, we can turn to the Lord and find forgiveness to make a new start. His love never fails!
The Lord bestows unfailing love,
Forgiving when we fall
And then repent and turn to Him,
Responding to His call. —Sper
No force is greater than the power of God’s love.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 19, 2012
Beware of the Least Likely Temptation
Joab had defected to Adonijah, though he had not defected to Absalom —1 Kings 2:28
Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis, but now be alert about the things that may appear to be the least likely to tempt you. Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall.
We are apt to say, “It is not at all likely that having been through the greatest crisis of my life I would now turn back to the things of the world.” Do not try to predict where the temptation will come; it is the least likely thing that is the real danger. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual event that the least likely things begin to have an effect. They may not be forceful and dominant, but they are there. And if you are not careful to be forewarned, they will trip you. You have remained true to God under great and intense trials— now beware of the undercurrent. Do not be abnormally examining your inner self, looking forward with dread, but stay alert; keep your memory sharp before God. Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.
“. . . kept by the power of God . . .”— that is the only safety. (1 Peter 1:5).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Leave Your Garbage at the Door - #6594
Thursday, April 19, 2012
The passenger across the aisle from me wasn't very happy. He was complaining to his seat mate on the plane about everything and complaining with a lot of profanity inserted, oh I'd say maybe like every third word. The man next to him was mostly listening as this shall we say colorfully spoken speaker cussed out his favorite baseball team, then the service on the plane and the clients he was working with.
In fact, I thought he might be religious from the number of times he mentioned the Lord, but well it wasn't really in the right context. He stopped to ask - more like demand I guess - a coffee refill from the flight attendant. And then as the attendant left, he said to his fellow passenger, "By the way, what do you do?" He was going to finally give him a chance to speak. What do you know? And his fellow passenger said, "Oh, I'm a minister."
Well, the expression on that man's face was a priceless combination of surprise and embarrassment, but he bounced back pretty quickly. The flight attendant returned right at that moment with his coffee, and this man said with an angelic smile, "God bless you!" Well, it was pretty put on, but it illustrated how quickly we change when we think we're in holy company.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Leave Your Garbage at the Door."
Our word for today from the Word of God, well, it gives us familiar words from Matthew 6:9, reading out of the NIV. "This then is how you should pray, 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.'"
Now, you notice here that Jesus, in teaching us to pray, says that the point of entry into prayer is to say to God, "hallowed is Your Name." Hallowed is not an everyday idea to us; probably you've not heard anybody talk about hallowed things today. I looked it up in the Greek language that the Bible was written in, and the word hallowed is "hagiaso" in the Greek. It's used for objects that were reserved for sacred purposes in the Bible. For example, let's say there was a lamp that they designated just to be used in the temple, just for sacred ceremonies, only for holy purposes. That was hagiaso.
Whatever is hagiasoed (is that a word?) is elevated; it's treated with reverence. It's treated as if it's highly special. So, basically, we're supposed to begin praying by recognizing the specialness of God like this, "Father, there's no one in your category. There's no one like you, and I really am in the presence of absolute purity." Prayer begins by recognizing who you're talking to, not what you're asking for. And people clean up their act just because there's a minister around, like the guy on the plane.
Well, what about when you're in God's presence? You can't realize who God is without cleaning up your act. The first order of business is to go back over the last 24 hours in your prayer and expose those places where you've disappointed God; where you've disobeyed Him and confess it. Express your sadness over that sin.
All through the Bible we see this. In Nehemiah 1, his great prayer, he says, "Oh, great and awesome God, I confess our sins." Daniel 9 - another great prayer - he says, "Oh, great and awesome God, we have sinned." This prayer says, "hallowed be Your Name." And then very shortly after that it says, "Forgive us."
Maybe your prayers have become a little flat and powerless. Maybe there's a request without repentance, and there's praise without purity. See, we need to be saying to God, "Father, I know I'm in holy company. I can't be around You with this garbage."
click to listenYou have an open invitation to God's Throne Room to call the King, your Father. But before you rush to petition the King, please leave your garbage at the door.
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10”
What is the fire that consumes you? Write it down: Jesus comes to set you on fire!
He walks as a torch from heart to heart, warming the cold and thawing the chilled and stirring the ashes.
Do you have a passion to sing? Then sing.
Are you stirred to manage? Then manage.
Do you ache for the ill? Then treat them.
Do you hurt for the lost? Then teach them.
The fire of your heart is the light of your path. Disregard it at your own expense! Blow it. Stir it. Nourish it. Cynics will doubt it. Those without it will mock it! Those who know it, those who know Him, will understand it.
To meet the Savior is to be set aflame. To discover the flame is to discover his will. To discover his will is to access a world like none you’ve ever seen.
Proverbs 30
Sayings of Agur
1 The sayings of Agur son of Jakeh—an inspired utterance.
This man’s utterance to Ithiel:
“I am weary, God,
but I can prevail.[a]
2 Surely I am only a brute, not a man;
I do not have human understanding.
3 I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I attained to the knowledge of the Holy One.
4 Who has gone up to heaven and come down?
Whose hands have gathered up the wind?
Who has wrapped up the waters in a cloak?
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is his name, and what is the name of his son?
Surely you know!
5 “Every word of God is flawless;
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
6 Do not add to his words,
or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.
7 “Two things I ask of you, LORD;
do not refuse me before I die:
8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.
9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God.
10 “Do not slander a servant to their master,
or they will curse you, and you will pay for it.
11 “There are those who curse their fathers
and do not bless their mothers;
12 those who are pure in their own eyes
and yet are not cleansed of their filth;
13 those whose eyes are ever so haughty,
whose glances are so disdainful;
14 those whose teeth are swords
and whose jaws are set with knives
to devour the poor from the earth
and the needy from among mankind.
15 “The leech has two daughters.
‘Give! Give!’ they cry.
“There are three things that are never satisfied,
four that never say, ‘Enough!’:
16 the grave, the barren womb,
land, which is never satisfied with water,
and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!’
17 “The eye that mocks a father,
that scorns an aged mother,
will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley,
will be eaten by the vultures.
18 “There are three things that are too amazing for me,
four that I do not understand:
19 the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a snake on a rock,
the way of a ship on the high seas,
and the way of a man with a young woman.
20 “This is the way of an adulterous woman:
She eats and wipes her mouth
and says, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong.’
21 “Under three things the earth trembles,
under four it cannot bear up:
22 a servant who becomes king,
a godless fool who gets plenty to eat,
23 a contemptible woman who gets married,
and a servant who displaces her mistress.
24 “Four things on earth are small,
yet they are extremely wise:
25 Ants are creatures of little strength,
yet they store up their food in the summer;
26 hyraxes are creatures of little power,
yet they make their home in the crags;
27 locusts have no king,
yet they advance together in ranks;
28 a lizard can be caught with the hand,
yet it is found in kings’ palaces.
29 “There are three things that are stately in their stride,
four that move with stately bearing:
30 a lion, mighty among beasts,
who retreats before nothing;
31 a strutting rooster, a he-goat,
and a king secure against revolt.[b]
32 “If you play the fool and exalt yourself,
or if you plan evil,
clap your hand over your mouth!
33 For as churning cream produces butter,
and as twisting the nose produces blood,
so stirring up anger produces strife.”
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Hosea 10:9-15
9 The Lord says, “O Israel, ever since Gibeah,
there has been only sin and more sin!
You have made no progress whatsoever.
Was it not right that the wicked men of Gibeah were attacked?
10 Now whenever it fits my plan,
I will attack you, too.
I will call out the armies of the nations
to punish you for your multiplied sins.
11 “Israel[a] is like a trained heifer treading out the grain—
an easy job she loves.
But I will put a heavy yoke on her tender neck.
I will force Judah to pull the plow
and Israel[b] to break up the hard ground.
12 I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness,
and you will harvest a crop of love.
Plow up the hard ground of your hearts,
for now is the time to seek the Lord,
that he may come
and shower righteousness upon you.’
13 “But you have cultivated wickedness
and harvested a thriving crop of sins.
You have eaten the fruit of lies—
trusting in your military might,
believing that great armies
could make your nation safe.
14 Now the terrors of war
will rise among your people.
All your fortifications will fall,
just as when Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel.
Even mothers and children
were dashed to death there.
15 You will share that fate, Bethel,
because of your great wickedness.
When the day of judgment dawns,
the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.
God’s Unfailing Love
April 19, 2012 — by David C. McCasland
Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; . . . for it is time to seek the Lord. —Hosea 10:12
The Old Testament book of Hosea is the story of God’s faithful love for His unfaithful people. In what seems strange to us, the Lord commanded Hosea to marry a woman who would break her marriage vows and bring grief to him (Hosea 1:2-3). After she deserted Hosea for other men, the Lord told him to take her back—a picture of “the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods” (3:1).
Later, Hosea was called upon to tell the Israelites that because of their rebellion against the Lord, they would be carried away into captivity by a foreign power. “Tumult shall arise among your people, and all your fortresses shall be plundered” (10:14).
Yet in the midst of their sin and punishment, the grace of God toward His people was never exhausted. In a grace-filled exhortation, He said: “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you” (10:12).
Even when we have “plowed wickedness” and “reaped iniquity” (10:13), God does not stop loving us. Whatever our situation today, we can turn to the Lord and find forgiveness to make a new start. His love never fails!
The Lord bestows unfailing love,
Forgiving when we fall
And then repent and turn to Him,
Responding to His call. —Sper
No force is greater than the power of God’s love.
The Old Testament book of Hosea is the story of God’s faithful love for His unfaithful people. In what seems strange to us, the Lord commanded Hosea to marry a woman who would break her marriage vows and bring grief to him (Hosea 1:2-3). After she deserted Hosea for other men, the Lord told him to take her back—a picture of “the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods” (3:1).
Later, Hosea was called upon to tell the Israelites that because of their rebellion against the Lord, they would be carried away into captivity by a foreign power. “Tumult shall arise among your people, and all your fortresses shall be plundered” (10:14).
Yet in the midst of their sin and punishment, the grace of God toward His people was never exhausted. In a grace-filled exhortation, He said: “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you” (10:12).
Even when we have “plowed wickedness” and “reaped iniquity” (10:13), God does not stop loving us. Whatever our situation today, we can turn to the Lord and find forgiveness to make a new start. His love never fails!
The Lord bestows unfailing love,
Forgiving when we fall
And then repent and turn to Him,
Responding to His call. —Sper
No force is greater than the power of God’s love.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 19, 2012
Beware of the Least Likely Temptation
Joab had defected to Adonijah, though he had not defected to Absalom —1 Kings 2:28
Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis, but now be alert about the things that may appear to be the least likely to tempt you. Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall.
We are apt to say, “It is not at all likely that having been through the greatest crisis of my life I would now turn back to the things of the world.” Do not try to predict where the temptation will come; it is the least likely thing that is the real danger. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual event that the least likely things begin to have an effect. They may not be forceful and dominant, but they are there. And if you are not careful to be forewarned, they will trip you. You have remained true to God under great and intense trials— now beware of the undercurrent. Do not be abnormally examining your inner self, looking forward with dread, but stay alert; keep your memory sharp before God. Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.
“. . . kept by the power of God . . .”— that is the only safety. (1 Peter 1:5).
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Leave Your Garbage at the Door - #6594
Thursday, April 19, 2012
The passenger across the aisle from me wasn't very happy. He was complaining to his seat mate on the plane about everything and complaining with a lot of profanity inserted, oh I'd say maybe like every third word. The man next to him was mostly listening as this shall we say colorfully spoken speaker cussed out his favorite baseball team, then the service on the plane and the clients he was working with.
In fact, I thought he might be religious from the number of times he mentioned the Lord, but well it wasn't really in the right context. He stopped to ask - more like demand I guess - a coffee refill from the flight attendant. And then as the attendant left, he said to his fellow passenger, "By the way, what do you do?" He was going to finally give him a chance to speak. What do you know? And his fellow passenger said, "Oh, I'm a minister."
Well, the expression on that man's face was a priceless combination of surprise and embarrassment, but he bounced back pretty quickly. The flight attendant returned right at that moment with his coffee, and this man said with an angelic smile, "God bless you!" Well, it was pretty put on, but it illustrated how quickly we change when we think we're in holy company.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Leave Your Garbage at the Door."
Our word for today from the Word of God, well, it gives us familiar words from Matthew 6:9, reading out of the NIV. "This then is how you should pray, 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.'"
Now, you notice here that Jesus, in teaching us to pray, says that the point of entry into prayer is to say to God, "hallowed is Your Name." Hallowed is not an everyday idea to us; probably you've not heard anybody talk about hallowed things today. I looked it up in the Greek language that the Bible was written in, and the word hallowed is "hagiaso" in the Greek. It's used for objects that were reserved for sacred purposes in the Bible. For example, let's say there was a lamp that they designated just to be used in the temple, just for sacred ceremonies, only for holy purposes. That was hagiaso.
Whatever is hagiasoed (is that a word?) is elevated; it's treated with reverence. It's treated as if it's highly special. So, basically, we're supposed to begin praying by recognizing the specialness of God like this, "Father, there's no one in your category. There's no one like you, and I really am in the presence of absolute purity." Prayer begins by recognizing who you're talking to, not what you're asking for. And people clean up their act just because there's a minister around, like the guy on the plane.
Well, what about when you're in God's presence? You can't realize who God is without cleaning up your act. The first order of business is to go back over the last 24 hours in your prayer and expose those places where you've disappointed God; where you've disobeyed Him and confess it. Express your sadness over that sin.
All through the Bible we see this. In Nehemiah 1, his great prayer, he says, "Oh, great and awesome God, I confess our sins." Daniel 9 - another great prayer - he says, "Oh, great and awesome God, we have sinned." This prayer says, "hallowed be Your Name." And then very shortly after that it says, "Forgive us."
Maybe your prayers have become a little flat and powerless. Maybe there's a request without repentance, and there's praise without purity. See, we need to be saying to God, "Father, I know I'm in holy company. I can't be around You with this garbage."
click to listenYou have an open invitation to God's Throne Room to call the King, your Father. But before you rush to petition the King, please leave your garbage at the door.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Acts 5, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals (Click to listen to God’s teaching)
Max Lucado Daily: An Uncommon Call
“For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Philippians 2:13”
God doesn’t call the qualified. He qualifies the called!
Don’t let Satan convince you otherwise. He’ll try. He’ll tell you God has an IQ requirement or an entry fee. He’ll tell you God employs only specialists and experts. When Satan whispers such lies, dismiss him with this truth: God stampeded the first century society with swaybacks, not thoroughbreds.
Before Jesus came along, the disciples were loading trucks, coaching soccer, and selling Slurpee drinks at the convenience store. Their collars were blue and their hands calloused. There’s no evidence that Jesus chose them because they were smarter or nicer than the guy next door.
What about you? As God calls, he equips. Our maker gives assignments to people. What have you done well? What have you loved to do? Stand at the intersection of your affections and successes and find your uniqueness.
You have one. An uncommon call to an uncommon life.
Acts 5
Ananias and Sapphira
1 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. 2 With his wife’s full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles’ feet.
3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? 4 Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”
5 When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened. 6 Then some young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
7 About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 Peter asked her, “Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?”
“Yes,” she said, “that is the price.”
9 Peter said to her, “How could you conspire to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.”
10 At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband. 11 Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events.
The Apostles Heal Many
12 The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. 13 No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14 Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15 As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. 16 Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.
The Apostles Persecuted
17 Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. 18 They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. 20 “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life.”
21 At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people.
When the high priest and his associates arrived, they called together the Sanhedrin—the full assembly of the elders of Israel—and sent to the jail for the apostles.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Luke 7:36-49
Jesus Anointed by a Sinful Woman
36 When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 38 As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”
40 Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
41 “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[a] and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
49 The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
Beautiful Scars
April 18, 2012 — by David H. Roper
Her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. —Luke 7:47
A number of years ago I was hiking along the Salmon River and came across a grove of pine trees that had been partially stripped of their bark. I knew from a friend who is a forester that the Native Americans who hunted this area long ago had peeled the outer bark and harvested the underlying layer for chewing gum. Some of the scars were disfiguring, but others, filled with crystallized sap and burnished by wind and weather, had been transformed into patterns of rare beauty.
So it is with our transgressions. We may be scarred by the sins of the past. But those sins, repented of and brought to Jesus for His forgiveness, can leave behind marks of beauty.
Some people, having tasted the bitterness of sin, now loathe it. They hate evil and love righteousness. Theirs is the beauty of holiness.
Others, knowing how far they fall short (Rom. 3:23), have tender hearts toward others. They rise up with understanding, compassion, and kindness when others fail. Theirs is the beauty of humility.
Finally, when acts of sin are freely and thoroughly forgiven it leads to intimacy with the One who has shown mercy. Such sinners love much for much has been forgiven (Luke 7:47). Theirs is the beauty of love.
Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me—
All His wonderful passion and purity!
O Thou Spirit divine, all my nature refine,
Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me. —Orsborn
A forgiven heart is the fountain of beauty.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 18, 2012
Readiness
God called to him . . . . And he said, ’Here I am’ —Exodus 3:4
When God speaks, many of us are like people in a fog, and we give no answer. Moses’ reply to God revealed that he knew where he was and that he was ready. Readiness means having a right relationship to God and having the knowledge of where we are. We are so busy telling God where we would like to go. Yet the man or woman who is ready for God and His work is the one who receives the prize when the summons comes. We wait with the idea that some great opportunity or something sensational will be coming our way, and when it does come we are quick to cry out, “Here I am.” Whenever we sense that Jesus Christ is rising up to take authority over some great task, we are there, but we are not ready for some obscure duty.
Readiness for God means that we are prepared to do the smallest thing or the largest thing— it makes no difference. It means we have no choice in what we want to do, but that whatever God’s plans may be, we are there and ready. Whenever any duty presents itself, we hear God’s voice as our Lord heard His Father’s voice, and we are ready for it with the total readiness of our love for Him. Jesus Christ expects to do with us just as His Father did with Him. He can put us wherever He wants, in pleasant duties or in menial ones, because our union with Him is the same as His union with the Father. “. . . that they may be one just as We are one . . .” (John 17:22).
Be ready for the sudden surprise visits of God. A ready person never needs to get ready— he is ready. Think of the time we waste trying to get ready once God has called! The burning bush is a symbol of everything that surrounds the person who is ready, and it is on fire with the presence of God Himself.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Seldom a Lot, But Always Enough - #6593
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Over the years, when my kids were growing up and at home, they didn't carry a wallet full of money. And they did need some money along the way. They had to buy their lunch at school. They had to buy clothes when they outgrew them or wore them out; which happened frequently. They had to pay admission prices when they went to special attractions. They needed spending money for trips and vacations, and for cards and gifts.
But you know, they didn't worry much about having the money even though they didn't carry much with them or really have much. See, experience taught them that when they needed it, they had it from their Father. Now, of course, as they got older they went and earned it, and they could come up with their own. But in the days when they couldn't come up with it themselves, Dad was there. Maybe they didn't have the money in their pocket for next month's lunches, but they always had money for that days' lunch. Not only is that the way their Father operated, it's the way your Father operates too.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Seldom a Lot, But Always Enough."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Corinthians 12, and I'll begin at verse 7. Let me say that I believe these are very special words for people who are going through a storm right now. And maybe you are; maybe everything is just like up for grabs. Or maybe you are going through a desert right now where there just doesn't seem to be anything there for you. Well, listen to these words from the Word of God.
Paul says, "There was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on me."
You know, in these verses are the Christian answer to suffering and hardship in two words. Now, I can't buy a theology that says there won't be suffering and hardship in the life of a committed believer, because there was no one more committed than Paul, and look at his suffering that wouldn't leave him. But here is God's two-word answer to the storm, the desert, the pain you're in right now. Listen to these words: "Grace sufficient." Man, that lifts the load so much!
If you've got 20 pounds of grief, He's going to give you 20 pounds of grace. If you've got a 100 pounds of grief, He's going to give you 100 pounds of grace. You will never have more grief than grace. Do you get a year's supply of grace; a month's supply; some for next week? No. Just like my kids, you get what you need for today.
Deuteronomy 33:25 says, "Your strength will equal your days." Not your weeks, not your months, not your years - your days. That's why the child of God has nothing to fear. Your Father will always see that you have what you need. Maybe you're trying to run ahead of Him. You say, "Well, how am I going to handle it if my situation gets worse, or if I lose my job? Or maybe the business will go under, or my health will get worse. What if I lose this person I love?" There's something you're afraid of right now, and God's answer is, "Grace sufficient." You don't have it now because you don't need it now. You have enough for today's grief, for today's challenge, for today's need. No more, no less.
So, take your assignment from God in 24-hour chunks. Count on enough grace for each day. My kids knew that their Father would see that they had what they needed that day. God's kids know their Father is much better than that.
Listen to your Lord's loving answer today to the cry of your hurting, anxious heart. Grace sufficient!
“For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Philippians 2:13”
God doesn’t call the qualified. He qualifies the called!
Don’t let Satan convince you otherwise. He’ll try. He’ll tell you God has an IQ requirement or an entry fee. He’ll tell you God employs only specialists and experts. When Satan whispers such lies, dismiss him with this truth: God stampeded the first century society with swaybacks, not thoroughbreds.
Before Jesus came along, the disciples were loading trucks, coaching soccer, and selling Slurpee drinks at the convenience store. Their collars were blue and their hands calloused. There’s no evidence that Jesus chose them because they were smarter or nicer than the guy next door.
What about you? As God calls, he equips. Our maker gives assignments to people. What have you done well? What have you loved to do? Stand at the intersection of your affections and successes and find your uniqueness.
You have one. An uncommon call to an uncommon life.
Acts 5
Ananias and Sapphira
1 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. 2 With his wife’s full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles’ feet.
3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? 4 Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”
5 When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened. 6 Then some young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
7 About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 Peter asked her, “Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?”
“Yes,” she said, “that is the price.”
9 Peter said to her, “How could you conspire to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.”
10 At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband. 11 Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events.
The Apostles Heal Many
12 The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. 13 No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14 Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15 As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. 16 Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.
The Apostles Persecuted
17 Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. 18 They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. 20 “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life.”
21 At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people.
When the high priest and his associates arrived, they called together the Sanhedrin—the full assembly of the elders of Israel—and sent to the jail for the apostles.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Luke 7:36-49
Jesus Anointed by a Sinful Woman
36 When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 38 As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”
40 Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
41 “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[a] and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
49 The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
Beautiful Scars
April 18, 2012 — by David H. Roper
Her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. —Luke 7:47
A number of years ago I was hiking along the Salmon River and came across a grove of pine trees that had been partially stripped of their bark. I knew from a friend who is a forester that the Native Americans who hunted this area long ago had peeled the outer bark and harvested the underlying layer for chewing gum. Some of the scars were disfiguring, but others, filled with crystallized sap and burnished by wind and weather, had been transformed into patterns of rare beauty.
So it is with our transgressions. We may be scarred by the sins of the past. But those sins, repented of and brought to Jesus for His forgiveness, can leave behind marks of beauty.
Some people, having tasted the bitterness of sin, now loathe it. They hate evil and love righteousness. Theirs is the beauty of holiness.
Others, knowing how far they fall short (Rom. 3:23), have tender hearts toward others. They rise up with understanding, compassion, and kindness when others fail. Theirs is the beauty of humility.
Finally, when acts of sin are freely and thoroughly forgiven it leads to intimacy with the One who has shown mercy. Such sinners love much for much has been forgiven (Luke 7:47). Theirs is the beauty of love.
Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me—
All His wonderful passion and purity!
O Thou Spirit divine, all my nature refine,
Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me. —Orsborn
A forgiven heart is the fountain of beauty.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
April 18, 2012
Readiness
God called to him . . . . And he said, ’Here I am’ —Exodus 3:4
When God speaks, many of us are like people in a fog, and we give no answer. Moses’ reply to God revealed that he knew where he was and that he was ready. Readiness means having a right relationship to God and having the knowledge of where we are. We are so busy telling God where we would like to go. Yet the man or woman who is ready for God and His work is the one who receives the prize when the summons comes. We wait with the idea that some great opportunity or something sensational will be coming our way, and when it does come we are quick to cry out, “Here I am.” Whenever we sense that Jesus Christ is rising up to take authority over some great task, we are there, but we are not ready for some obscure duty.
Readiness for God means that we are prepared to do the smallest thing or the largest thing— it makes no difference. It means we have no choice in what we want to do, but that whatever God’s plans may be, we are there and ready. Whenever any duty presents itself, we hear God’s voice as our Lord heard His Father’s voice, and we are ready for it with the total readiness of our love for Him. Jesus Christ expects to do with us just as His Father did with Him. He can put us wherever He wants, in pleasant duties or in menial ones, because our union with Him is the same as His union with the Father. “. . . that they may be one just as We are one . . .” (John 17:22).
Be ready for the sudden surprise visits of God. A ready person never needs to get ready— he is ready. Think of the time we waste trying to get ready once God has called! The burning bush is a symbol of everything that surrounds the person who is ready, and it is on fire with the presence of God Himself.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Seldom a Lot, But Always Enough - #6593
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Over the years, when my kids were growing up and at home, they didn't carry a wallet full of money. And they did need some money along the way. They had to buy their lunch at school. They had to buy clothes when they outgrew them or wore them out; which happened frequently. They had to pay admission prices when they went to special attractions. They needed spending money for trips and vacations, and for cards and gifts.
But you know, they didn't worry much about having the money even though they didn't carry much with them or really have much. See, experience taught them that when they needed it, they had it from their Father. Now, of course, as they got older they went and earned it, and they could come up with their own. But in the days when they couldn't come up with it themselves, Dad was there. Maybe they didn't have the money in their pocket for next month's lunches, but they always had money for that days' lunch. Not only is that the way their Father operated, it's the way your Father operates too.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Seldom a Lot, But Always Enough."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Corinthians 12, and I'll begin at verse 7. Let me say that I believe these are very special words for people who are going through a storm right now. And maybe you are; maybe everything is just like up for grabs. Or maybe you are going through a desert right now where there just doesn't seem to be anything there for you. Well, listen to these words from the Word of God.
Paul says, "There was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on me."
You know, in these verses are the Christian answer to suffering and hardship in two words. Now, I can't buy a theology that says there won't be suffering and hardship in the life of a committed believer, because there was no one more committed than Paul, and look at his suffering that wouldn't leave him. But here is God's two-word answer to the storm, the desert, the pain you're in right now. Listen to these words: "Grace sufficient." Man, that lifts the load so much!
If you've got 20 pounds of grief, He's going to give you 20 pounds of grace. If you've got a 100 pounds of grief, He's going to give you 100 pounds of grace. You will never have more grief than grace. Do you get a year's supply of grace; a month's supply; some for next week? No. Just like my kids, you get what you need for today.
Deuteronomy 33:25 says, "Your strength will equal your days." Not your weeks, not your months, not your years - your days. That's why the child of God has nothing to fear. Your Father will always see that you have what you need. Maybe you're trying to run ahead of Him. You say, "Well, how am I going to handle it if my situation gets worse, or if I lose my job? Or maybe the business will go under, or my health will get worse. What if I lose this person I love?" There's something you're afraid of right now, and God's answer is, "Grace sufficient." You don't have it now because you don't need it now. You have enough for today's grief, for today's challenge, for today's need. No more, no less.
So, take your assignment from God in 24-hour chunks. Count on enough grace for each day. My kids knew that their Father would see that they had what they needed that day. God's kids know their Father is much better than that.
Listen to your Lord's loving answer today to the cry of your hurting, anxious heart. Grace sufficient!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)