Philippians 3, Bible Reading and Daily

Max Lucado Daily: One Step Enough for Me

Arthur Hays Sulzberger was the publisher of the New York Times during the second World War. Because of the world conflict, he found it almost impossible to sleep. He was never able to get worries from his mind until he adopted as his motto these five words:  "One step enough for me" . . .taken from the old hymn, "Lead Kindly Light."

"Lead, kindly Light. . .

Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see

The distant scene; one step enough for me."

God isn't going to let you see the distant scene either. So you might as well quit looking for it. He promises a lamp to our feet, not a crystal ball into the future. We don't need to know what will happen tomorrow. We only need to know He leads us.  As Hebrews 4:16 promises, "we will find grace to help us when we need it."

From Traveling Light

Philippians 3

To Know Him Personally

 And that’s about it, friends. Be glad in God!

I don’t mind repeating what I have written in earlier letters, and I hope you don’t mind hearing it again. Better safe than sorry—so here goes.

2-6 Steer clear of the barking dogs, those religious busybodies, all bark and no bite. All they’re interested in is appearances—knife-happy circumcisers, I call them. The real believers are the ones the Spirit of God leads to work away at this ministry, filling the air with Christ’s praise as we do it. We couldn’t carry this off by our own efforts, and we know it—even though we can list what many might think are impressive credentials. You know my pedigree: a legitimate birth, circumcised on the eighth day; an Israelite from the elite tribe of Benjamin; a strict and devout adherent to God’s law; a fiery defender of the purity of my religion, even to the point of persecuting the church; a meticulous observer of everything set down in God’s law Book.

7-9 The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness.

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

Focused on the Goal

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

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

17-19 Stick with me, friends. Keep track of those you see running this same course, headed for this same goal. There are many out there taking other paths, choosing other goals, and trying to get you to go along with them. I’ve warned you of them many times; sadly, I’m having to do it again. All they want is easy street. They hate Christ’s Cross. But easy street is a dead-end street. Those who live there make their bellies their gods; belches are their praise; all they can think of is their appetites.

20-21 But there’s far more to life for us. We’re citizens of high heaven! We’re waiting the arrival of the Savior, the Master, Jesus Christ, who will transform our earthy bodies into glorious bodies like his own. He’ll make us beautiful and whole with the same powerful skill by which he is putting everything as it should be, under and around him.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Today's Scripture

1 Thessalonians 2:7–12

Even though we had some standing as Christ’s apostles, we never threw our weight around or tried to come across as important, with you or anyone else. We weren’t standoffish with you. We took you just as you were. We were never patronizing, never condescending, but we cared for you the way a mother cares for her children. We loved you dearly. Not content to just pass on the Message, we wanted to give you our hearts. And we did.

9-12 You remember us in those days, friends, working our fingers to the bone, up half the night, moonlighting so you wouldn’t have the burden of supporting us while we proclaimed God’s Message to you. You saw with your own eyes how discreet and courteous we were among you, with keen sensitivity to you as fellow believers. And God knows we weren’t freeloaders! You experienced it all firsthand. With each of you we were like a father with his child, holding your hand, whispering encouragement, showing you step-by-step how to live well before God, who called us into his own kingdom, into this delightful life.

Insight

As both a Jew and a Roman citizen, Paul understood how to live in different cultural environments, taking the message of Jesus to as many people as possible. In 1 Thessalonians, he mentioned how careful he and his partners in ministry were to avoid becoming entangled in cultural obligations that might hurt their ministry or the fledgling church. They didn’t take advantage of the people by putting the new believers in an awkward debt to Paul (2:3–5). But neither did they ask the congregation to financially support them (v. 9), which, in those days, would have put the burden of debt on Paul instead.

In both situations, Paul made every effort to preserve the freedom of the new church to grow unhindered while also preserving his own freedom in ministry. Likewise, we do well to focus our efforts—personally and corporately—on the expansion of Jesus’ mission. By: Jed Ostoich

Loving Leadership

We dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children. 1 Thessalonians 2:11

A viral video of a mama bear trying to get her four energetic little cubs across a busy street brought a knowing smile to my face. It was delightfully relatable to watch her pick up her cubs one-by-one and carry them across the road—only to have the cubs wander back to the other side. After many seemingly frustrating attempts, the mama bear finally corralled all four of her cubs, and they made it safely across the road.

The tireless work of parenting symbolized in the video matches imagery used by Paul to describe his care for the people in the church of Thessalonica. Instead of emphasizing his authority, the apostle compared his work among them to a mother and father caring for young children (1 Thessalonians 2:7, 11). It was deep love for the Thessalonians (v. 8) that motivated Paul’s ongoing efforts to encourage, comfort, and urge them “to live lives worthy of God” (v. 12). This impassioned call to godly living was borne out of his loving desire to see them honor God in all areas of their lives.

Paul’s example can serve as a guide for us in all our leadership opportunities—especially when the responsibilities make us weary. Empowered by God’s Spirit, we can gently and persistently love those under our care as we encourage and guide them toward Jesus. By:  Lisa M. Samra

Reflect & Pray

How have you experienced leadership motivated by love? How might you encourage those under your care?

Heavenly Father, help me to extend to others the loving care You graciously show to me.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Sunday, May 14, 2023

The Habit of Enjoying Adversity

…that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. —2 Corinthians 4:10

We have to develop godly habits to express what God’s grace has done in us. It is not just a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved so that “the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.” And it is adversity that makes us exhibit His life in our mortal flesh. Is my life exhibiting the essence of the sweetness of the Son of God, or just the basic irritation of “myself” that I would have apart from Him? The only thing that will enable me to enjoy adversity is the acute sense of eagerness of allowing the life of the Son of God to evidence itself in me. No matter how difficult something may be, I must say, “Lord, I am delighted to obey You in this.” Instantly, the Son of God will move to the forefront of my life, and will manifest in my body that which glorifies Him.

You must not debate. The moment you obey the light of God, His Son shines through you in that very adversity; but if you debate with God, you grieve His Spirit (see Ephesians 4:30). You must keep yourself in the proper condition to allow the life of the Son of God to be manifested in you, and you cannot keep yourself fit if you give way to self-pity. Our circumstances are the means God uses to exhibit just how wonderfully perfect and extraordinarily pure His Son is. Discovering a new way of manifesting the Son of God should make our heart beat with renewed excitement. It is one thing to choose adversity, and quite another to enter into adversity through the orchestrating of our circumstances by God’s sovereignty. And if God puts you into adversity, He is adequately sufficient to “supply all your need” (Philippians 4:19).

Keep your soul properly conditioned to manifest the life of the Son of God. Never live on your memories of past experiences, but let the Word of God always be living and active in you.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Awe is the condition of a man’s spirit realizing Who God is and what He has done for him personally. Our Lord emphasizes the attitude of a child; no attitude can express such solemn awe and familiarity as that of a child.  Not Knowing Whither, 882 L

Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 19-21; John 4:1-30

Psalm 92, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: He Leads Us

How can a person deal with anxiety? One fellow decided to hire someone to do his worrying for him. He found a man who agreed to do so for a salary of $200,000 a year. After the man accepted the job, his first question to his boss was, "Where are you going to get $200,000 per year?" To which the man responded, "That's your worry!" Worrying is one job you can't farm out-but you can overcome it.

David declares in Psalm 23:2, "He leads me beside the still waters." He leads me! God isn't behind me, yelling, "Go!" He's ahead of me bidding, "Come!" He leads us. He tells us what we need to know when we need to know it. Hebrews 4:16 says, "We will find grace to help us when we need it!"

God leads us. God will do the right thing at the right time. What a difference that makes!

From Traveling Light

Psalm 92

What a beautiful thing, God, to give thanks,

    to sing an anthem to you, the High God!

To announce your love each daybreak,

    sing your faithful presence all through the night,

Accompanied by dulcimer and harp,

    the full-bodied music of strings.

4-9 You made me so happy, God.

    I saw your work and I shouted for joy.

How magnificent your work, God!

    How profound your thoughts!

Dullards never notice what you do;

    fools never do get it.

When the wicked popped up like weeds

    and all the evil men and women took over,

You mowed them down,

    finished them off once and for all.

You, God, are High and Eternal.

    Look at your enemies, God!

Look at your enemies—ruined!

    Scattered to the winds, all those hirelings of evil!

10-14 But you’ve made me strong as a charging bison,

    you’ve honored me with a festive parade.

The sight of my critics going down is still fresh,

    the rout of my malicious detractors.

My ears are filled with the sounds of promise:

    “Good people will prosper like palm trees,

Grow tall like Lebanon cedars;

    transplanted to God’s courtyard,

They’ll grow tall in the presence of God,

    lithe and green, virile still in old age.”

15 Such witnesses to upright God!

    My Mountain, my huge, holy Mountain!

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Saturday, May 13, 2023

Today's Scripture

Romans 12:9–18

 Love from the center of who you are; don’t fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.

11-13 Don’t burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don’t quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality.

14-16 Bless your enemies; no cursing under your breath. Laugh with your happy friends when they’re happy; share tears when they’re down. Get along with each other; don’t be stuck-up. Make friends with nobodies; don’t be the great somebody.

17-19 Don’t hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll take care of it.”

Insight

In many of Paul’s letters, he follows a simple pattern. He begins with a section of doctrine or teaching, then finishes with a section of application. We see this in Ephesians, where chapters 1–3 provide doctrine (what we believe) and chapters 4–6 offer practical ideas for living out that truth (how we behave). In Romans, chapters 1–11 offer a robust defense and explanation of the gospel of God’s grace and chapters 12–16 provide application for living gospel-based lives. Romans 12:9–18 is a classic example of this practical counsel. It’s noteworthy that most of this counsel pertains to how we treat one another as humans, both inside and outside the family of faith (vv. 10–18), for we live out the gospel in relationship with others. By: Bill Crowder

For Love’s Sake

Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Romans 12:10

Running a marathon is about pushing yourself, physically and mentally. For one high school runner, however, competing in a cross-country race is all about pushing someone else. In every practice and meet, fourteen-year-old Susan Bergeman pushes older brother, Jeffrey, in his wheelchair. When Jeffrey was twenty-two months old, he went into cardiac arrest—leaving him with severe brain damage and cerebral palsy. Today, Susan sacrifices personal running goals so Jeffrey might compete with her. What love and sacrifice!

The apostle Paul had love and sacrifice in mind when he encouraged his readers to be “devoted to one another” (Romans 12:10). He knew that the believers in Rome were struggling with jealousy, anger, and sharp disagreements (v. 18). So, he encouraged them to let divine love rule their hearts. This kind of love, rooted in Christ’s love, would fight for the highest possible good of others. It would be sincere, and it would lead to generous sharing (v. 13). Those who love this way are eager to consider others more worthy of honor than themselves (v. 16).

As believers in Jesus, we’re running a race of love while helping others finish the race too. Though it can be difficult, it brings honor to Jesus. So, for love’s sake, let’s rely on Him to empower us to love and serve others. By:  Marvin Williams

Reflect & Pray

What does it mean for you to love others as God loves them? How does Jesus reveal that love is more than emotion?

God of love, for love’s sake and Your glory, help me to consider others before I consider myself.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Saturday, May 13, 2023

The Habit of Keeping a Clear Conscience

…strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men. —Acts 24:16

God’s commands to us are actually given to the life of His Son in us. Consequently, to our human nature in which God’s Son has been formed (see Galatians 4:19), His commands are difficult. But they become divinely easy once we obey.

Conscience is that ability within me that attaches itself to the highest standard I know, and then continually reminds me of what that standard demands that I do. It is the eye of the soul which looks out either toward God or toward what we regard as the highest standard. This explains why conscience is different in different people. If I am in the habit of continually holding God’s standard in front of me, my conscience will always direct me to God’s perfect law and indicate what I should do. The question is, will I obey? I have to make an effort to keep my conscience so sensitive that I can live without any offense toward anyone. I should be living in such perfect harmony with God’s Son that the spirit of my mind is being renewed through every circumstance of life, and that I may be able to quickly “prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2 ; also see Ephesians 4:23).

God always instructs us down to the last detail. Is my ear sensitive enough to hear even the softest whisper of the Spirit, so that I know what I should do? “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God…” (Ephesians 4:30). He does not speak with a voice like thunder— His voice is so gentle that it is easy for us to ignore. And the only thing that keeps our conscience sensitive to Him is the habit of being open to God on the inside. When you begin to debate, stop immediately. Don’t ask, “Why can’t I do this?” You are on the wrong track. There is no debating possible once your conscience speaks. Whatever it is— drop it, and see that you keep your inner vision clear.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The great thing about faith in God is that it keeps a man undisturbed in the midst of disturbance. Notes on Isaiah, 1376 R

Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 17-18; John 3:19-38

Psalm 89, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: CAN’T SLEEP - May 12, 2023

Millions of Americans have trouble sleeping, and you may be one of them. Only one other living creature has as much trouble resting as we do. They are woolly, simple-minded, and slow – sheep! Sheep can’t sleep.

For sheep to sleep, everything must be just right. No predators, no tension in the flock. Everything just so. Sheep need help. They need a shepherd to “lead them”and help them “lie down in green pastures.” Without a shepherd, they cannot rest.

Without a shepherd, neither can we. Psalm 23:2 says, “He, (speaking of the Shepherd) makes me to lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside the still waters.” Note he makes me, he leads me. Who’s the active one? Who’s in charge? The Shepherd is.

Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Read more Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Psalm 89

 Your love, God, is my song, and I’ll sing it!

    I’m forever telling everyone how faithful you are.

I’ll never quit telling the story of your love—

    how you built the cosmos

    and guaranteed everything in it.

Your love has always been our lives’ foundation,

    your fidelity has been the roof over our world.

You once said, “I joined forces with my chosen leader,

    I pledged my word to my servant, David, saying,

‘Everyone descending from you is guaranteed life;

    I’ll make your rule as solid and lasting as rock.’”

5-18 God! Let the cosmos praise your wonderful ways,

    the choir of holy angels sing anthems to your faithful ways!

Search high and low, scan skies and land,

    you’ll find nothing and no one quite like God.

The holy angels are in awe before him;

    he looms immense and august over everyone around him.

God-of-the-Angel-Armies, who is like you,

    powerful and faithful from every angle?

You put the arrogant ocean in its place

    and calm its waves when they turn unruly.

You gave that old hag Egypt the back of your hand,

    you brushed off your enemies with a flick of your wrist.

You own the cosmos—you made everything in it,

    everything from atom to archangel.

You positioned the North and South Poles;

    the mountains Tabor and Hermon sing duets to you.

With your well-muscled arm and your grip of steel—

    nobody messes with you!

The Right and Justice are the roots of your rule;

    Love and Truth are its fruits.

Blessed are the people who know the passwords of praise,

    who shout on parade in the bright presence of God.

Delighted, they dance all day long; they know

    who you are, what you do—they can’t keep it quiet!

Your vibrant beauty has gotten inside us—

    you’ve been so good to us! We’re walking on air!

All we are and have we owe to God,

    Holy God of Israel, our King!

19-37 A long time ago you spoke in a vision,

    you spoke to your faithful beloved:

“I’ve crowned a hero,

    I chose the best I could find;

I found David, my servant,

    poured holy oil on his head,

And I’ll keep my hand steadily on him,

    yes, I’ll stick with him through thick and thin.

No enemy will get the best of him,

    no scoundrel will do him in.

I’ll weed out all who oppose him,

    I’ll clean out all who hate him.

I’m with him for good and I’ll love him forever;

    I’ve set him on high—he’s riding high!

I’ve put Ocean in his one hand, River in the other;

    he’ll call out, ‘Oh, my Father—my God, my Rock of Salvation!’

Yes, I’m setting him apart as the First of the royal line,

    High King over all of earth’s kings.

I’ll preserve him eternally in my love,

    I’ll faithfully do all I so solemnly promised.

I’ll guarantee his family tree

    and underwrite his rule.

If his children refuse to do what I tell them,

    if they refuse to walk in the way I show them,

If they spit on the directions I give them

    and tear up the rules I post for them—

I’ll rub their faces in the dirt of their rebellion

    and make them face the music.

But I’ll never throw them out,

    never abandon or disown them.

Do you think I’d withdraw my holy promise?

    or take back words I’d already spoken?

I’ve given my word, my whole and holy word;

    do you think I would lie to David?

His family tree is here for good,

    his sovereignty as sure as the sun,

Dependable as the phases of the moon,

    inescapable as weather.”

38-52 But God, you did walk off and leave us,

    you lost your temper with the one you anointed.

You tore up the promise you made to your servant,

    you stomped his crown in the mud.

You blasted his home to kingdom come,

    reduced his city to a pile of rubble

Picked clean by wayfaring strangers,

    a joke to all the neighbors.

You declared a holiday for all his enemies,

    and they’re celebrating for all they’re worth.

Angry, you opposed him in battle,

    refused to fight on his side;

You robbed him of his splendor, humiliated this warrior,

    ground his kingly honor in the dirt.

You took the best years of his life

    and left him an impotent, ruined husk.

How long do we put up with this, God?

    Are you gone for good? Will you hold this grudge forever?

Remember my sorrow and how short life is.

    Did you create men and women for nothing but this?

We’ll see death soon enough. Everyone does.

    And there’s no back door out of hell.

So where is the love you’re so famous for, Lord?

    What happened to your promise to David?

Take a good look at your servant, dear Lord;

    I’m the butt of the jokes of all nations,

The taunting jokes of your enemies, God,

    as they dog the steps of your dear anointed.

        Blessed be God forever and always!

            Yes. Oh, yes.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Friday, May 12, 2023

Today's Scripture

James 1:19–26

Act on What You Hear

19-21 Post this at all the intersections, dear friends: Lead with your ears, follow up with your tongue, and let anger straggle along in the rear. God’s righteousness doesn’t grow from human anger. So throw all spoiled virtue and cancerous evil in the garbage. In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life.

22-24 Don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don’t act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like.

25 But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God—the free life!—even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. That person will find delight and affirmation in the action.

26-27 Anyone who sets himself up as “religious” by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world.

Insight

The book of James is deeply concerned about justice, especially in the relationships between the rich and poor (2:6; 5:1–6). In fact, the Greek word often translated “righteousness” in James 1:20 (dikaiosyne) can also be translated “justice,” a plausible translation of this verse in the context. Because strained and unjust relationships between rich and poor is such a core issue in this book, some scholars have suggested that in 1:19–20 the author feels the need to urgently emphasize that human anger won’t result in the justice the poor long for. Instead, James emphasizes being “quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” In James 4:1–2, the author again warns against allowing unmet desires to turn into anger and even violence. Believers in Jesus are called to live in humble dependence on God (1:21) and to be devoted to serving others (v. 27). By: Monica La Rose

How’s My Driving?

Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. James 1:19–20

“ARRRGH!” I yelled as the repair truck cut in front of me.

That’s when I saw the message: “How’s My Driving?” And a phone number. I picked up my phone and dialed. A woman asked me why I was calling, and I vented my frustration. She took down the truck’s number. Then she said, wearily, “You know, you can always call to report someone who’s driving nicely.”

Ouch. Her tired words instantly punctured my smug self-righteousness. Embarrassment flooded me. In my zeal for “justice,” I hadn’t paused to consider how my rage-filled tone could affect this woman in her difficult job. The disconnect between my faith and my fruitfulness—in that moment—was devastating.

The gap between our actions and our convictions is what the book of James focuses on. In James 1:19–20, we read, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” Later, he adds, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (v. 22).

None of us is perfect. Sometimes our “driving” in life needs help, the kind that starts with confession and asks for God’s help—trusting Him to keep filing the rough edges of our character. By:  Adam Holz

Reflect & Pray

Why can words spoken quickly and in anger be problematic? How can you better live out what you truly believe?

Father, sometimes my anger wins out and I say hurtful things. Please help me to grow in this area.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, May 12, 2023

The Habit of Having No Habits

If these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful… —2 Peter 1:8

When we first begin to form a habit, we are fully aware of it. There are times when we are aware of becoming virtuous and godly, but this awareness should only be a stage we quickly pass through as we grow spiritually. If we stop at this stage, we will develop a sense of spiritual pride. The right thing to do with godly habits is to immerse them in the life of the Lord until they become such a spontaneous expression of our lives that we are no longer aware of them. Our spiritual life continually causes us to focus our attention inwardly for the determined purpose of self-examination, because each of us has some qualities we have not yet added to our lives.

Your god may be your little Christian habit— the habit of prayer or Bible reading at certain times of your day. Watch how your Father will upset your schedule if you begin to worship your habit instead of what the habit symbolizes. We say, “I can’t do that right now; this is my time alone with God.” No, this is your time alone with your habit. There is a quality that is still lacking in you. Identify your shortcoming and then look for opportunities to work into your life that missing quality.

Love means that there are no visible habits— that your habits are so immersed in the Lord that you practice them without realizing it. If you are consciously aware of your own holiness, you place limitations on yourself from doing certain things— things God is not restricting you from at all. This means there is a missing quality that needs to be added to your life. The only supernatural life is the life the Lord Jesus lived, and He was at home with God anywhere. Is there someplace where you are not at home with God? Then allow God to work through whatever that particular circumstance may be until you increase in Him, adding His qualities. Your life will then become the simple life of a child.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end. Not Knowing Whither, 901 R

Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 15-16; John 3:1-18

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Friday, May 12, 2023

A PARENT'S BEST CLASSROOM - #9480

There's nothing quite as boring as listening to information you've heard before, presented the same way you've heard it presented before. Since I used to fly quite a bit, I heard the flight attendant's announcements many, many times. To be honest, I got to the point where I didn't pay a lot of attention, because, you know, it was predictable...usually.

But there was this one flight - we had a flight attendant who kept throwing in humorous surprises and fresh ways of saying things. Everyone was listening to him. Like he said, "Now, we're preparing for landing and you need to put your seats in the upright and most uncomfortable position." We all laughed. And then I liked the part where he said, "The captain has turned on the seat belt sign, which is an indication he has finally found the airport." I love it! It sounds unpredictable. You know? This man knew something about communication. If you have important information to communicate, don't be so predictable.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Parent's Best Classroom."

God has given moms and dads some really important announcements for them to make to their children. He actually talks about them in Deuteronomy 6, and I'll begin reading at verse 5: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Then impress them on your children."

Well, we try to do that. I mean, if you're a Christian parent, I'm sure you try to impress the ways of God; the teachings of God; the boundaries of God on your children. But sometimes our children respond with the same kind of, well, disinterest that I did to those predictable airline announcements. They know what you're going to say before you say it. So maybe it isn't enough that we teach our children about the Lord. We need to do it in ways and in places where it's not so predictable, so maybe we'll have their full attention.

In the rest of Deuteronomy 6:7, Moses tells how to do that, "Talk about them (that's God's commandments) when you sit at home, when you walk along the road, when you lie down, and when you get up." See, sometimes we get immune to hearing a Biblical truth the way it's always been presented; in a place we always hear it. We kind of have practiced responses to a sermon, or to family devotions. We know what to expect. We know how we're supposed to act. It's predictable.

But there's something disarming about God-talk in the middle of everyday activity - the classroom of everyday life. See, the best place for your son, or daughter, or grandchild to see God at work might be on the baseball field. Or on the way to the store with you. Suddenly some question comes up that gives you a teachable moment. Grab that! Maybe it's debriefing their day over a Big Mac, or maybe it's in those mellow bedtime moments, or riding along with you at all the places you chauffeur them. That's the classroom of everyday life, the best place to learn about the God that I hope, as the Bible says, "you love with all your heart."

Don't just depend on formal settings to get the job done; not when you want to introduce God to your child. They may shut down for the formal announcements. But look for God together in the ordinary, the relaxed, the everyday, "God sightings." As a parent, you have the blessed responsibility of passing on God's announcements to kids that He has trusted to you. "If anyone is in Christ, he's a new creation." Listen, if you're a parent and you're doing it without that relationship with God, and you know your kids have shown you. You see enough of you in them to know that you need a Savior for your needs.

Well, this might be what exactly your starting point is today. Say, "Jesus, I am yours. You died for my self-centeredness, my sin. I need You. My family needs me to know You." Tell Him today, "I'm yours." Check out our website today, would you - ANewStory.com.

Jesus comes into you. And when He does, He comes into your family, and things are never the same.

Philippians 2, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: WHAT MATTERS - May 11, 2023

A man once went to a minister for counseling. “I’ve lost everything!” he bemoaned.

“Oh,” the preacher said, “I’m so sorry to hear you’ve lost your faith.”

“No,” the man corrected him, “I haven’t lost my faith.”

“Oh well then,” the minister said, “I’m sad to hear you’ve lost your character.”

“I didn’t say that,” the man corrected. “I still have my character.”

“Then I’m so sorry to hear you’ve lost your salvation.”

“That’s not what I said,” the man objected, beginning to lose his patience.

The preacher explained, “You have your faith, your character, your salvation. Seems to me, you’ve lost none of the things that really matter.”

We haven’t either. You and I could pray like the Puritan who sat down to a meal of bread and water. He bowed his head and declared, “All this and Jesus too?”

Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Read more Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Philippians 2

He Took on the Status of a Slave

If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care—then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.

5-8 Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.

9-11 Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything, ever, so that all created beings in heaven and on earth—even those long ago dead and buried—will bow in worship before this Jesus Christ, and call out in praise that he is the Master of all, to the glorious honor of God the Father.

Rejoicing Together

12-13 What I’m getting at, friends, is that you should simply keep on doing what you’ve done from the beginning. When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience. Now that I’m separated from you, keep it up. Better yet, redouble your efforts. Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God’s energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.

14-16 Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into the night so I’ll have good cause to be proud of you on the day that Christ returns. You’ll be living proof that I didn’t go to all this work for nothing.

17-18 Even if I am executed here and now, I’ll rejoice in being an element in the offering of your faith that you make on Christ’s altar, a part of your rejoicing. But turnabout’s fair play—you must join me in my rejoicing. Whatever you do, don’t feel sorry for me.

19-24 I plan (according to Jesus’ plan) to send Timothy to you very soon so he can bring back all the news of you he can gather. Oh, how that will do my heart good! I have no one quite like Timothy. He is loyal, and genuinely concerned for you. Most people around here are looking out for themselves, with little concern for the things of Jesus. But you know yourselves that Timothy’s the real thing. He’s been a devoted son to me as together we’ve delivered the Message. As soon as I see how things are going to fall out for me here, I plan to send him off. And then I’m hoping and praying to be right on his heels.

25-27 But for right now, I’m dispatching Epaphroditus, my good friend and companion in my work. You sent him to help me out; now I’m sending him to help you out. He has been wanting in the worst way to get back with you. Especially since recovering from the illness you heard about, he’s been wanting to get back and reassure you that he is just fine. He nearly died, as you know, but God had mercy on him. And not only on him—he had mercy on me, too. His death would have been one huge grief piled on top of all the others.

28-30 So you can see why I’m so delighted to send him on to you. When you see him again, strong and strapping, how you’ll rejoice and how relieved I’ll be. Give him a grand welcome, a joyful embrace! People like him deserve the best you can give. Remember the ministry to me that you started but weren’t able to complete? Well, in the process of finishing up that work, he put his life on the line and nearly died doing it.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Thursday, May 11, 2023

Today's Scripture

Psalm 147:1–5

Hallelujah!

It’s a good thing to sing praise to our God;

    praise is beautiful, praise is fitting.

2-6 God’s the one who rebuilds Jerusalem,

    who regathers Israel’s scattered exiles.

He heals the heartbroken

    and bandages their wounds.

He counts the stars

    and assigns each a name.

Our Lord is great, with limitless strength;

    we’ll never comprehend what he knows and does.

God puts the fallen on their feet again

    and pushes the wicked into the ditch.

Insight

Psalm 147, near the end of the Hebrew psalter, is toward the end of Book Five—in a set of psalms focused on giving praise to God. Psalm 147 fits well into this group, as it both begins and ends with the words “Praise the Lord” (Hebrew, halelu-yah). Some scholars speculate that these psalms were assembled to celebrate the rebuilding of Jerusalem following the Babylonian captivity of the southern tribe of Judah (see v. 2). But the praise for God isn’t limited to that expression of gratitude. There’s also celebration for God’s creation (vv. 4, 8), care for the weak (v. 6), provision of rain (v. 8), and provision of food (v. 14). Additionally, the people of God are to praise Him for the provision of His Word (vv. 19–20). No wonder the psalmist says that it’s both “pleasant and fitting to praise him!” (v. 1). By: Bill Crowder

God Sees, Understands, and Cares

Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit. Psalm 147:5

Sometimes, living with chronic pain and fatigue leads to being isolated at home and feeling alone. I’ve often felt unseen by God and others. During an early morning prayer-walk with my service dog, I struggled with these feelings. I noticed a hot-air balloon in the distance. The people in its basket could enjoy a bird’s-eye view of our quiet neighborhood, but they couldn’t really see me. As I continued walking past my neighbors’ houses, I sighed. How many people behind those closed doors feel unseen and insignificant? As I finished my walk, I asked God to give me opportunities to let my neighbors know that I see them and care for them, and so does He.

God determined the exact number of stars that He spoke into existence. He identified each star with a name (Psalm 147:4), an intimate act that demonstrates His attention to the smallest details. His strength—insight, discernment, and knowledge—have “no limit” in the past, present, or future (v. 5).

God hears each desperate cry and sees each silent tear as clearly as He notices each sigh of contentment and belly laugh. He sees when we’re stumbling and when we’re standing in triumph. He understands our deepest fears, our innermost thoughts, and our wildest dreams. He knows where we’ve been and where we’re going. As God helps us see, hear, and love our neighbors, we can trust Him to see, understand, and care for us. By:  Xochitl Dixon

Reflect & Pray

How have your neighbors loved you? How can you love others today?

God, please help me see, hear, and love others in practical ways.

For further study, read Loving Our Neighbors.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Thursday, May 11, 2023

“Love One Another”

…add to your…brotherly kindness love. —2 Peter 1:5, 7

Love is an indefinite thing to most of us; we don’t know what we mean when we talk about love. Love is the loftiest preference of one person for another, and spiritually Jesus demands that this sovereign preference be for Himself (see Luke 14:26). Initially, when “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit” (Romans 5:5), it is easy to put Jesus first. But then we must practice the things mentioned in 2 Peter 1 to see them worked out in our lives.

The first thing God does is forcibly remove any insincerity, pride, and vanity from my life. And the Holy Spirit reveals to me that God loved me not because I was lovable, but because it was His nature to do so. Now He commands me to show the same love to others by saying, “…love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12). He is saying, “I will bring a number of people around you whom you cannot respect, but you must exhibit My love to them, just as I have exhibited it to you.” This kind of love is not a patronizing love for the unlovable— it is His love, and it will not be evidenced in us overnight. Some of us may have tried to force it, but we were soon tired and frustrated.

“The Lord…is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish…” (2 Peter 3:9). I should look within and remember how wonderfully He has dealt with me. The knowledge that God has loved me beyond all limits will compel me to go into the world to love others in the same way. I may get irritated because I have to live with an unusually difficult person. But just think how disagreeable I have been with God! Am I prepared to be identified so closely with the Lord Jesus that His life and His sweetness will be continually poured out through Me? Neither natural love nor God’s divine love will remain and grow in me unless it is nurtured. Love is spontaneous, but it has to be maintained through discipline.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Always keep in contact with those books and those people that enlarge your horizon and make it possible for you to stretch yourself mentally. The Moral Foundations of Life, 721 R

Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 13-14; John 2

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Thursday, May 11, 2023

LIVING FOR THINGS YOU CANNOT LOSE - #9479

I've stood on a lot of beaches in my lifetime. There's one beach I'll never forget. It wasn't at some exotic resort location believe me. It was in the middle of the jungle along the Curaray River in Ecuador. I'd been flown there by a missionary pilot to record an important radio program there - to tell a new generation perhaps the most amazing missionary story of the 20th Century. It's the story of the five gifted and successful young Americans on whose hearts God had laid a deep burden for an Indian tribe who lived in the jungles that I was now visiting. They were called the Aucas back then - today we know them by the name Waoranis. They were described as living like people might have lived in the Stone Age. Jim Elliott, pilot Nate Saint, and three other outstanding young men were determined that these people would have a chance to hear about Jesus for the very first time - even though the tribe was known as savage killers.

After months of communication through gifts that they lowered by a cable from their plane, they finally landed on that beach to make that risky personal contact. With their American sense of humor, they called the desolate beach Palm Beach - although there was little about it that would make you think of a famous resort beach. Within days, all five of these brave ambassadors for Christ were dead with Auca lances in their bodies.

The word of their deaths flashed around the world and reached even a boy like me. Poor Jim Elliott. Poor Jim Elliott and his friends. So much potential - and by most earth measures, they wasted their lives. Or did they? No, they invested their lives. Jim Elliott's widow and Nate Saint's sister went to those tribal people, lived among them, and gave them Jesus. Ten years later, Nate Saint, the pilot, his 16-year-old son wanted to be baptized - in the Curaray River where his Dad's body had been found. And he was baptized - by one of the men who had killed his father - a man who was now one of the pastors of the Waorani church. The killers came to Jesus. Much of the tribe came to Jesus.

And as the example of those missionary martyrs reached a world of Christian young people, thousands surrendered their lives to the service of Jesus Christ. One was my wife. One was me. Today, their living legacy is telling about Jesus around the world. Which underscores in blazing color how Jim Elliott summed up his view of life. He said, "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.'

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Living For Things You Cannot Lose."

Years ago, through the example of a yielded life, God called me to give what I could not keep, to gain what I could not lose. Today, He may be calling you. Listen to this word for today from the Word of God in 1 John 2, beginning with verse 15, "Do not love the world or anything in the world...The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever." Could it be it's time in your life for an honest evaluation of what you're really living for; what's getting the best of your energy, your abilities, your time? Is it something you can't lose - or something you will never lose?

God's been stirring your heart before you heard this, hasn't He? And it's because He wants you to make a far greater difference with the rest of your life than you've made until now. It will probably require releasing some of the earth-stuff and the earth-plans that have filled so much of your life. That's called, in the Bible's words, loving this world.

But this world is the Titanic. It's going down. But the person who devotes their life to the eternal things they were created for, they'll see their years on this planet count for all eternity. It's not cheap, but it's worth it. Just ask Jim Elliott. Just ask Jesus. Some will think what you're doing is foolish. But then, he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.

Psalm 71, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: YOU HAVE EVERYTHING YOU NEED - May 10, 2023

When one of the wealthiest men in history, John D. Rockefeller, died, his accountant was asked, “How much did John D. leave?” His reply? “All of it!” No one takes anything with him. Think about the things you own—all your stuff—then let me remind you: your stuff isn’t yours.

And you know what else? Your stuff isn’t you. Jesus said in Luke 12:15 life is not defined by what you have, even when you have a lot. Contentment comes when we can honestly say with Paul, “I have learned to be satisfied with the things I have. I know how to live when I’m poor, and I know how to live when I have plenty” (Philippians 4:12).

You have so much. You have a God who hears you, the power of his love behind you, the Holy Spirit within you, and all of heaven ahead of you. You have everything you need.

Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Read more Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Psalm 71

 I run for dear life to God,

    I’ll never live to regret it.

Do what you do so well:

    get me out of this mess and up on my feet.

Put your ear to the ground and listen,

    give me space for salvation.

Be a guest room where I can retreat;

    you said your door was always open!

You’re my salvation—my vast, granite fortress.

4-7 My God, free me from the grip of Wicked,

    from the clutch of Bad and Bully.

You keep me going when times are tough—

    my bedrock, God, since my childhood.

I’ve hung on you from the day of my birth,

    the day you took me from the cradle;

    I’ll never run out of praise.

Many gasp in alarm when they see me,

    but you take me in stride.

8-11 Just as each day brims with your beauty,

    my mouth brims with praise.

But don’t turn me out to pasture when I’m old

    or put me on the shelf when I can’t pull my weight.

My enemies are talking behind my back,

    watching for their chance to knife me.

The gossip is: “God has abandoned him.

    Pounce on him now; no one will help him.”

12-16 God, don’t just watch from the sidelines.

    Come on! Run to my side!

My accusers—make them lose face.

    Those out to get me—make them look

Like idiots, while I stretch out, reaching for you,

    and daily add praise to praise.

I’ll write the book on your righteousness,

    talk up your salvation all the day long,

    never run out of good things to write or say.

I come in the power of the Lord God,

    I post signs marking his right-of-way.

17-24 You got me when I was an unformed youth,

    God, and taught me everything I know.

Now I’m telling the world your wonders;

    I’ll keep at it until I’m old and gray.

God, don’t walk off and leave me

    until I get out the news

Of your strong right arm to this world,

    news of your power to the world yet to come,

Your famous and righteous

    ways, O God.

God, you’ve done it all!

    Who is quite like you?

You, who made me stare trouble in the face,

    Turn me around;

Now let me look life in the face.

    I’ve been to the bottom;

Bring me up, streaming with honors;

    turn to me, be tender to me,

And I’ll take up the lute and thank you

    to the tune of your faithfulness, God.

I’ll make music for you on a harp,

    Holy One of Israel.

When I open up in song to you,

    I let out lungsful of praise,

    my rescued life a song.

All day long I’m chanting

    about you and your righteous ways,

While those who tried to do me in

    slink off looking ashamed.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Today's Scripture

Genesis 31:19–21; 32:22–30

 Laban was off shearing sheep. Rachel stole her father’s household gods. And Jacob had concealed his plans so well that Laban the Aramean had no idea what was going on—he was totally in the dark. Jacob got away with everything he had and was soon across the Euphrates headed for the hill country of Gilead.

 But during the night he got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants, and his eleven children and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. He got them safely across the brook along with all his possessions.

24-25 But Jacob stayed behind by himself, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he couldn’t get the best of Jacob as they wrestled, he deliberately threw Jacob’s hip out of joint.

26 The man said, “Let me go; it’s daybreak.”

Jacob said, “I’m not letting you go ’til you bless me.”

27 The man said, “What’s your name?”

He answered, “Jacob.”

28 The man said, “But no longer. Your name is no longer Jacob. From now on it’s Israel (God-Wrestler); you’ve wrestled with God and you’ve come through.”

29 Jacob asked, “And what’s your name?”

The man said, “Why do you want to know my name?” And then, right then and there, he blessed him.

30 Jacob named the place Peniel (God’s Face) because, he said, “I saw God face-to-face and lived to tell the story!”

Insight

Rachel stole her father’s “household gods” (Genesis 31:19). The Hebrew word used here is teraphim. This word is used several times in the Old Testament (see Judges 17:5; 18:14; 1 Samuel 15:23; 2 Kings 23:24), but scholars are uncertain about what such household gods or idols were used for. It’s possible they were used in everything from divination practices to status symbols denoting who was the rightful heir of the household. It’s further unclear why Rachel stole them from her father, as these idols aren’t mentioned again in the rest of the story of Jacob or his offspring. By: J.R. Hudberg

Stolen Gods

You have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome. Genesis 32:28

A carved wooden figure—a household god—had been stolen from a woman named Ekuwa, so she reported it to the authorities. Believing they had found the idol, law enforcement officials invited her to identify it. “Is this your god?” they asked. She said sadly, “No, my god is much larger and more beautiful than that.”

People have long tried to give shape to their concept of deity, hoping for a handmade god to protect them. Perhaps that’s why Jacob’s wife Rachel “stole her father’s household gods” as they fled from Laban (Genesis 31:19). But God had His hand on Jacob, despite the idols hidden in his camp (v. 34).

Later, on that same journey, Jacob wrestled all night with “a man” (32:24). He must have understood this opponent was no mere human, because at daybreak Jacob insisted, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (v. 26). The man renamed him Israel (“God fights”) and then blessed him (vv. 28–29). Jacob called the spot Peniel (“face of God”), “because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared” (v. 30).

This God—the one true God—is infinitely larger and more beautiful than anything Ekuwa could have ever imagined. He can’t be carved, stolen, or hidden. Yet, as Jacob learned that night, we can approach Him! Jesus taught His disciples to call this God “our Father in heaven” (Matthew 6:9). By:  Tim Gustafson

Reflect & Pray

How would you describe God? How might your ideas of Him be too limited?

Heavenly Father, forgive me for seeing You as smaller than You really are. Help me embrace the reality of who You truly are.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Take the Initiative

…add to your faith virtue… —2 Peter 1:5

Add means that we have to do something. We are in danger of forgetting that we cannot do what God does, and that God will not do what we can do. We cannot save nor sanctify ourselves— God does that. But God will not give us good habits or character, and He will not force us to walk correctly before Him. We have to do all that ourselves. We must “work out” our “own salvation” which God has worked in us (Philippians 2:12). Add means that we must get into the habit of doing things, and in the initial stages that is difficult. To take the initiative is to make a beginning— to instruct yourself in the way you must go.

Beware of the tendency to ask the way when you know it perfectly well. Take the initiative— stop hesitating— take the first step. Be determined to act immediately in faith on what God says to you when He speaks, and never reconsider or change your initial decisions. If you hesitate when God tells you to do something, you are being careless, spurning the grace in which you stand. Take the initiative yourself, make a decision of your will right now, and make it impossible to go back. Burn your bridges behind you, saying, “I will write that letter,” or “I will pay that debt”; and then do it! Make it irrevocable.

We have to get into the habit of carefully listening to God about everything, forming the habit of finding out what He says and heeding it. If, when a crisis comes, we instinctively turn to God, we will know that the habit has been formed in us. We have to take the initiative where we are, not where we have not yet been.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

We never enter into the Kingdom of God by having our head questions answered, but only by commitment.

The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption

Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 10-12; John 1:29-51

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wednesday, May 10, 2023

WHY YOU ARE WHERE YOU ARE - #9478

A pastor I heard of was meeting one of the ladies from his large church one day, and he asked her, "What do you do?" Her answer was classic. She said, "Well, Pastor, I'm a disciple of Jesus Christ cleverly disguised as a machine operator!" I love that!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Why You Are Where You Are."

Now that lady is a Christian who knows who she is and why she is where she is. She's there to be Jesus' personal representative to other machine operators! I mean, who is a lost machine operator most likely to listen to about a relationship with Jesus? Right, another machine operator! A lost mom is most likely to listen to another mom, a student, well they'll listen to a student, a computer programmer to another computer programmer, a cancer survivor to a cancer survivor, a guy at the gym to another guy at the gym. Everybody's got a tribe. People listen to somebody from their tribe.

This strategy of sending someone who lives where the unreached people live is at least 2,000 years old. In our word for today from the Word of God in John 4, Jesus is on a mission to reach the people of Samaria. So, how does He go about it? They didn't really like Jewish guys there; a lot of walls there to tear down.

Well, He reaches one of their own. He reaches a Samaritan woman at the well, who is notorious in her village, apparently, for her promiscuity. By the end of Jesus' visit, the Bible says, "Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in Him." Why? Ready for the answer? It says, "Because of the woman's testimony." (John 4:39). It doesn't say it was because of Jesus' sermon, but because of the testimony of a new disciple of Jesus Christ, cleverly disguised as their neighbor.

It's one reason why Jesus came into your life one day; to send you back to your neighborhood, your workplace, your school, your tribe, to introduce people like you to Him. You're His chosen link between the people in your world and Him. So, how are you doing at bringing those folks together with Jesus?

The best person to tell folks who do what you do, live where you live, and face what you face about Jesus is you. In a post-Christian culture like ours, most lost people don't ever plan to go to a religious meeting to hear a religious speaker talk on a religious subject in a religious place. They will probably only be rescued spiritually if someone takes the Good News about Jesus to where they are! And who is already where they are? You are.

The woman Jesus sent back to her village could have said, as you may, "Oh, man! My past! I'm so messed up. I'm so far from perfect." Isn't it something that Jesus sends flawed ambassadors to be living examples of His great grace? This woman could have said, as you may, "Oh, but I'm not trained." Training is good. Our ministry is constantly in the business of equipping someone like you to represent Him. But your ultimate credentials are what Jesus has done in your life and your love for that lost person.

Your message is the same as part of the Samaritan woman's. She simply said to her fellow villagers, "Come, see a Man!" (John 4:29). Not a religion - a man. Your message is a person; not your religion, not your church, not your beliefs, not your rules. It's all about Jesus! Aren't you glad? You're taking someone you know in one hand. You're taking Jesus in the other hand, and prayerfully you are bringing them together forever!

What a place God has entrusted to you, divinely positioned so you can take someone to heaven with you. Where you live, what you do, well that's all just your clever disguise!

Psalm 67, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: THE PRISON OF WANT - May 9, 2023

Come with me to the most populated prison in the world. It’s name is WANT – the prison of want.

You’ve seen her prisoners. They want something bigger. Nicer. Faster. Thinner. They want a new job. A new house. A new spouse. If you feel better when you have more and worse when you have less, you’re in the prison of want. If your happiness comes from something you deposit, drive, drink, or digest, then face it – you’re in the prison of want.

The good news is, you have a visitor: the psalmist David. “I have a secret to tell you,” he whispers, “the secret of satisfaction.” From Psalm 23:1, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” David found a place where discontent goes to die. It’s as if he’s saying, “What I have in God is greater than what I don’t have in this life.” Think you and I could learn to say the same?

Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Read more Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Psalm 67

God, mark us with grace

    and blessing! Smile!

The whole country will see how you work,

    all the godless nations see how you save.

God! Let people thank and enjoy you.

    Let all people thank and enjoy you.

Let all far-flung people become happy

    and shout their happiness because

You judge them fair and square,

    you tend the far-flung peoples.

God! Let people thank and enjoy you.

    Let all people thank and enjoy you.

Earth, display your exuberance!

    You mark us with blessing, O God, our God.

You mark us with blessing, O God.

    Earth’s four corners—honor him!

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Tuesday, May 09, 2023

Today's Scripture

John 20:11–18

But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. As she wept, she knelt to look into the tomb and saw two angels sitting there, dressed in white, one at the head, the other at the foot of where Jesus’ body had been laid. They said to her, “Woman, why do you weep?”

13-14 “They took my Master,” she said, “and I don’t know where they put him.” After she said this, she turned away and saw Jesus standing there. But she didn’t recognize him.

15 Jesus spoke to her, “Woman, why do you weep? Who are you looking for?”

She, thinking that he was the gardener, said, “Sir, if you took him, tell me where you put him so I can care for him.”

16 Jesus said, “Mary.”

Turning to face him, she said in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” meaning “Teacher!”

17 Jesus said, “Don’t cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I ascend to my Father and your Father, my God and your God.’”

18 Mary Magdalene went, telling the news to the disciples: “I saw the Master!” And she told them everything he said to her.

Insight

When Jesus called Mary’s name (John 20:16), He spoke to her in Aramaic, which was the native tongue of Jesus and the people of His day. In speaking to Mary, He addressed her as Miriam. Commentator William Hendriksen notes: “When Mary hears this word—her own name in her own language—spoken in that familiar way as only one person could ever pronounce it, she quickly turns away from the tomb and toward the speaker.” The term by which Mary addressed Jesus is Rabboni, which John interpreted for those less familiar with the Aramaic term (see 19:13, 17 where other Aramaic terms are explained). The term, akin to rabbi, means “my master” or “my teacher” and was one of respect, so honorable that it was given to just a few Jewish rabbis. By: Arthur Jackson

Known by God

[Mary] turned toward him and cried out . . . “Rabboni!” John 20:16

After two brothers were separated by adoption, a DNA test helped to reunite them almost twenty years later. When Kieron texted Vincent, the man he believed was his brother, Vincent thought, Who is this stranger? When Kieron asked him what name he’d been given at birth, he immediately answered, “Tyler.” Then he knew they were brothers. He was recognized by his name!

Consider how a name plays a key role in the Easter story. As it unfolds, Mary Magdalene comes to Christ’s tomb, and she weeps when she finds His body missing. “Woman, why are you crying?” Jesus asks (John 20:15). She didn’t recognize Him, however, until He spoke her name: “Mary” (v. 16).

Hearing Him say it, she “cried out in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’ (Which means ‘Teacher’)” (v. 16). Her reaction expresses the joy believers in Jesus feel on Easter morning, recognizing that our risen Christ conquered death for all, knowing each of us as His children. As He told Mary, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God” (v. 17).

In Georgia, two reunited brothers bonded by name, vowed to take “this relationship to the next level.” On Easter, we praise Jesus for already taking the utmost step to rise in sacrificial love for those He knows as His own. For you and me, indeed, He’s alive! By:  Patricia Raybon

Reflect & Pray

How does it feel knowing that Jesus rose again and knows you by name? How can you know Him better?

Your knowledge of me is humbling, dear Jesus. Thank You for the sacrificial gift of Your knowing love.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Tuesday, May 09, 2023

Reaching Beyond Our Grasp

Where there is no revelation [or prophetic vision], the people cast off restraint… —Proverbs 29:18

There is a difference between holding on to a principle and having a vision. A principle does not come from moral inspiration, but a vision does. People who are totally consumed with idealistic principles rarely do anything. A person’s own idea of God and His attributes may actually be used to justify and rationalize his deliberate neglect of his duty. Jonah tried to excuse his disobedience by saying to God, “…I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm” (Jonah 4:2). I too may have the right idea of God and His attributes, but that may be the very reason why I do not do my duty. But wherever there is vision, there is also a life of honesty and integrity, because the vision gives me the moral incentive.

Our own idealistic principles may actually lull us into ruin. Examine yourself spiritually to see if you have vision, or only principles.

Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp,

Or what’s a heaven for?

“Where there is no revelation [or prophetic vision]….” Once we lose sight of God, we begin to be reckless. We cast off certain restraints from activities we know are wrong. We set prayer aside as well and cease having God’s vision in the little things of life. We simply begin to act on our own initiative. If we are eating only out of our own hand, and doing things solely on our own initiative without expecting God to come in, we are on a downward path. We have lost the vision. Is our attitude today an attitude that flows from our vision of God? Are we expecting God to do greater things than He has ever done before? Is there a freshness and a vitality in our spiritual outlook?

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

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

Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 7-9; John 1:1-28

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Tuesday, May 09, 2023

LIFE-SAVING PAIN - #9477

It was such a neat surprise to see our longtime friends, Bob and Marcy, at a conference where I was speaking. We hadn't seen them for several years, and we didn't know they were coming. After one session, my wife was talking with them in the hall outside the auditorium, and my observant honey noticed Bob's color suddenly turned pale. And within moments, he was crumpling to the floor. My first thought was, "Is that what my speaking does to people?" When Bob finally came around, he sat in a chair wondering what had hit him. His wife wanted to drive him six hours to their home, but others were really urging him to get to a local hospital...preferable in an ambulance. Men usually resist ideas like that, but Bob was wise enough, and maybe just concerned enough, to agree. And that was a good thing. His heart stopped once on the way to the hospital, and again in the emergency room. Within two days, he had a pacemaker implanted, and he left that hospital feeling great. Had he not had that scary incident in the lobby, he might not have made it.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Life-Saving Pain."

Things going wrong can be your friend if they show you a problem that could really hurt you and if it gets you to the help that you need. Now, that just might be what's happening in your life right now, and it may explain the real reason for what's going wrong. In short, God wants you back before some really damaging things happen because you're not where you're supposed to be with Him.

You'll better understand how He pursues those He loves when you hear our word for today from the Word of God. It's in Hosea 2, beginning with verse 5. God likens His spiritual wanderer to a woman loved by her husband who's been unfaithful to him. She says, "I will go after my lovers, who give me my food and my water." Okay, so when we get away from God when we turn to other people and other things to meet our needs. But God says, "I will block her path with thornbushes; I will wall her in so she cannot find her way. She will chase after her lovers but not catch them; she will look for them but not find them. Then she will say, 'I will go back to my husband as at first, for I was better off than now.'" Then God says, "She has not acknowledged that I was the one who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil, who lavished on her the silver and gold."

See, your best days were the days when you were closest to Jesus. But you've "pursued other lovers." You've forgotten He was the only one who ever loved you enough to die for you, and that sense of peace and worth you had when you were close to Him is not there now. God loves you too much to let you go, so He's been as the Bible says here, "blocking your path with thornbushes" and "walling you in." He's been making your sin more painful, more expensive, more disappointing. If that hasn't happened, it will. More and more you'll keep chasing what you're after, and you won't catch it because only God has it.

If someone you love is the one who's away from the Lord, you can pray in accordance with God's recovery plan here in Hosea 2. Pray for the thorn bushes and the walls and the frustrating pursuits that can cause someone you love to think about what they're doing and to remember the better days...the Jesus-days.

If you're the one who's away from Jesus right now, the one whose love you were made for, the one who died for you, and things are only going to get worse because He loves you. Things are going wrong, not to hurt you, not to destroy you, but to help you wake up to something far more serious that's going on in your soul. You've got a deadly heart condition, and you need to get to the doctor before it does serious damage. You need to get to Dr. Jesus. It stinks away from Him. The porch light is on, the door is open, and Jesus is coming down the road to welcome you home. And home? Home is where you belong.

Philippians 1, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: LIKE SHEEP - May 8, 2023

Isaiah 53:6 says, “We have all wandered away like sheep; each of us has gone his own way.”

You wouldn’t think sheep would be obstinate. Of all God’s animals, the sheep is the least able to take care of himself. Sheep are dumb. Have you ever met a sheep trainer? Ever seen sheep tricks? Know anyone who has taught his sheep to roll over? No, sheep are just too dumb.

When David said in Psalm 23, “The Lord is my Shepherd,” couldn’t he have come up with a better metaphor than a shepherd for sheep? When David, who was a warrior and ambassador for God, searched for an illustration of God he remembered his days as a shepherd. He remembered how he lavished attention on the sheep, how he watched over them. And David rejoiced to say, “The Lord is my Shepherd.” And in doing so he proudly declared, “I am his sheep!”

Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Read more Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Carry

Philippians 1

Paul and Timothy, both of us committed servants of Christ Jesus, write this letter to all the followers of Jesus in Philippi, pastors and ministers included. We greet you with the grace and peace that comes from God our Father and our Master, Jesus Christ.

A Love That Will Grow

3-6 Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God. Each exclamation is a trigger to prayer. I find myself praying for you with a glad heart. I am so pleased that you have continued on in this with us, believing and proclaiming God’s Message, from the day you heard it right up to the present. There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.

7-8 It’s not at all fanciful for me to think this way about you. My prayers and hopes have deep roots in reality. You have, after all, stuck with me all the way from the time I was thrown in jail, put on trial, and came out of it in one piece. All along you have experienced with me the most generous help from God. He knows how much I love and miss you these days. Sometimes I think I feel as strongly about you as Christ does!

9-11 So this is my prayer: that your love will flourish and that you will not only love much but well. Learn to love appropriately. You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush. Live a lover’s life, circumspect and exemplary, a life Jesus will be proud of: bountiful in fruits from the soul, making Jesus Christ attractive to all, getting everyone involved in the glory and praise of God.

They Can’t Imprison the Message

12-14 I want to report to you, friends, that my imprisonment here has had the opposite of its intended effect. Instead of being squelched, the Message has actually prospered. All the soldiers here, and everyone else, too, found out that I’m in jail because of this Messiah. That piqued their curiosity, and now they’ve learned all about him. Not only that, but most of the followers of Jesus here have become far more sure of themselves in the faith than ever, speaking out fearlessly about God, about the Messiah.

15-17 It’s true that some here preach Christ because with me out of the way, they think they’ll step right into the spotlight. But the others do it with the best heart in the world. One group is motivated by pure love, knowing that I am here defending the Message, wanting to help. The others, now that I’m out of the picture, are merely greedy, hoping to get something out of it for themselves. Their motives are bad. They see me as their competition, and so the worse it goes for me, the better—they think—for them.

18-21 So how am I to respond? I’ve decided that I really don’t care about their motives, whether mixed, bad, or indifferent. Every time one of them opens his mouth, Christ is proclaimed, so I just cheer them on!

And I’m going to keep that celebration going because I know how it’s going to turn out. Through your faithful prayers and the generous response of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, everything he wants to do in and through me will be done. I can hardly wait to continue on my course. I don’t expect to be embarrassed in the least. On the contrary, everything happening to me in this jail only serves to make Christ more accurately known, regardless of whether I live or die. They didn’t shut me up; they gave me a platform! Alive, I’m Christ’s messenger; dead, I’m his prize. Life versus even more life! I can’t lose.

22-26 As long as I’m alive in this body, there is good work for me to do. If I had to choose right now, I hardly know which I’d choose. Hard choice! The desire to break camp here and be with Christ is powerful. Some days I can think of nothing better. But most days, because of what you are going through, I am sure that it’s better for me to stick it out here. So I plan to be around awhile, companion to you as your growth and joy in this life of trusting God continues. You can start looking forward to a great reunion when I come visit you again. We’ll be praising Christ, enjoying each other.

27-30 Meanwhile, live in such a way that you are a credit to the Message of Christ. Let nothing in your conduct hang on whether I come or not. Your conduct must be the same whether I show up to see things for myself or hear of it from a distance. Stand united, singular in vision, contending for people’s trust in the Message, the good news, not flinching or dodging in the slightest before the opposition. Your courage and unity will show them what they’re up against: defeat for them, victory for you—and both because of God. There’s far more to this life than trusting in Christ. There’s also suffering for him. And the suffering is as much a gift as the trusting. You’re involved in the same kind of struggle you saw me go through, on which you are now getting an updated report in this letter.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Monday, May 08, 2023

Today's Scripture

Luke 1:1–4

So many others have tried their hand at putting together a story of the wonderful harvest of Scripture and history that took place among us, using reports handed down by the original eyewitnesses who served this Word with their very lives. Since I have investigated all the reports in close detail, starting from the story’s beginning, I decided to write it all out for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can know beyond the shadow of a doubt the reliability of what you were taught.

Insight

Why do we have four gospels? Basically, each one presents a unique perspective on Jesus, and having more than one account adds to their credibility. The Holy Spirit inspired the writers to pen their accounts. Though the four books have many similarities, each author emphasizes a different theme for an intended audience. Matthew wrote mainly for Jews, emphasizing that Jesus, the son of David, was the Messiah for whom they were waiting. That’s why he began with a genealogy and includes multiple references to Old Testament prophecies fulfilled in Jesus. Mark emphasizes Jesus as the Suffering Servant of God. This was especially relevant to believers in Jesus who were suffering for their faith. Luke was written to Theophilus, a gentile. Luke presents Jesus as the Son of Man and Savior of all people. John presents Christ as the Son of God and Creator of the world.  By: Alyson Kieda

Truth Seekers

[Having] carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you.  Luke 1:3

A woman once told me about a disagreement that was tearing her church apart. “What’s the disagreement about?” I asked. “Whether the earth is flat,” she said. A few months later, news broke of a Christian man who’d burst into a restaurant, armed, to rescue children supposedly being abused in its back room. There was no back room, and the man was arrested. In both cases, the people involved were acting on conspiracy theories they’d read on the internet.

Believers in Jesus are called to be good citizens (Romans 13:1–7), and good citizens don’t spread misinformation. In Luke’s day, numerous stories circulated about Jesus (Luke 1:1), some of them were inaccurate. Instead of passing on everything he heard, Luke essentially became an investigative journalist, talking to eyewitnesses (v. 2), researching “everything from the beginning” (v. 3), and writing his findings into a gospel that contains names, quotes, and historical facts based on people with firsthand knowledge, not unverified claims.

We can do the same. Since false information can split churches and put lives at risk, checking facts is an act of loving our neighbor (10:27). When a sensational story comes our way, we can verify its claims with qualified, accountable experts, being truth seekers—not error spreaders. Such an act brings credibility to the gospel. After all, we worship the One who’s full of truth (John 1:14). By:  Sheridan Voysey

Reflect & Pray

Why do you think conspiracy theories spread so quickly? How can you be a truth seeker?

Father, help me discern truth from error as Your Spirit guides me.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Monday, May 08, 2023

The Faith to Persevere

Because you have kept My command to persevere… —Revelation 3:10

Perseverance means more than endurance— more than simply holding on until the end. A saint’s life is in the hands of God like a bow and arrow in the hands of an archer. God is aiming at something the saint cannot see, but our Lord continues to stretch and strain, and every once in a while the saint says, “I can’t take any more.” Yet God pays no attention; He goes on stretching until His purpose is in sight, and then He lets the arrow fly. Entrust yourself to God’s hands. Is there something in your life for which you need perseverance right now? Maintain your intimate relationship with Jesus Christ through the perseverance of faith. Proclaim as Job did, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15).

Faith is not some weak and pitiful emotion, but is strong and vigorous confidence built on the fact that God is holy love. And even though you cannot see Him right now and cannot understand what He is doing, you know Him. Disaster occurs in your life when you lack the mental composure that comes from establishing yourself on the eternal truth that God is holy love. Faith is the supreme effort of your life— throwing yourself with abandon and total confidence upon God.

God ventured His all in Jesus Christ to save us, and now He wants us to venture our all with total abandoned confidence in Him. There are areas in our lives where that faith has not worked in us as yet— places still untouched by the life of God. There were none of those places in Jesus Christ’s life, and there are to be none in ours. Jesus prayed, “This is eternal life, that they may know You…” (John 17:3). The real meaning of eternal life is a life that can face anything it has to face without wavering. If we will take this view, life will become one great romance— a glorious opportunity of seeing wonderful things all the time. God is disciplining us to get us into this central place of power.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The Christian Church should not be a secret society of specialists, but a public manifestation of believers in Jesus.  Facing Reality, 34 R

Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 4-6; Luke 24:36-53

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Monday, May 08, 2023

WHICH WAY TO LOOK WHEN IT'S OVERWHELMING - #9476

It was a time I had the opportunity to be in London. I got to see some things that we don't see much of in America: the palace, the double-decker buses; buildings that represent up to 1,000 years of history. And there's one thing that was very new there for an American, and It could be dangerous. Yeah, the direction of traffic.

Cars drive on the left side, and it really messes up American drivers and in this case an American pedestrian. You step off a curb, looking to the left of course. We've been conditioned for a lifetime - look left. You do that in London, and you may not be using your return ticket. As in any city, there's busy traffic. But the British must know there will be confused Yanks there like me. So they paint these signs and arrows on the pavement that say "Look Right." They saved my life! It's very important. If you're not looking the right way, you can get run over.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Which Way to Look When It's Overwhelming"

Our word for today from the Word of God, Luke 9, and we're in the middle of that feeding of the 5,000 where the disciples have seen the size of the crowd and said, "Boy, they've got to eat, Jesus, and we'd better send them away." And Jesus said, "You give them something to eat." The disciples aren't quite sure what to do with that command. They answered, "We have only five loaves of bread and two fish - unless we go and buy food for all this crowd. But He said to His disciples, 'Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.' Taking the five loaves and two fish and looking up to heaven, He gave thanks and broke them. Then He gave them to the disciples to set before the people. They all ate and were satisfied."

Okay, Jesus and the disciples are facing an overwhelming need. Maybe like you are right now. Maybe you're looking at a financial need, or a family need, and it's like a Mission Impossible. See, that's when miracles happen. It's kind of like crossing streets in London. The outcome depends on which way you're looking.

There are three ways you can look when you're facing an overwhelming situation. First, you can look out at the need. That's what the disciples did. It's a huge crowd; a huge need. Secondly, you can look down at your resources. In John 6 that's what the disciples did. Andrew said, "Here's a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?" "Hey, our resources are no match for this need, Jesus!" Maybe that's how you feel right now. You just don't have the money, or the wisdom, the people, the strength, the help. Well, in both cases you're going to be paralyzed or you;re going to be panicky.

There's a third way to look, and that's what Jesus did. It says, "And looking up to heaven He gave thanks for the loaves." Jesus chose to look in the Lord's direction, not out at the need, not down at the resources, but where the resources are unlimited. The Bible says in Philippians 4:19, "God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus." So Jesus thanked God for what He did have, though it was nowhere near enough. And not enough was miraculously multiplied into more than enough.

Do you know that's exactly what happens when somebody puts their life into Jesus' hands? Jesus said, "I've come that you may have life and have it to the full." And we do as much as we can do with our lives, until one day we say, "Jesus, You died on the cross to pay for my sin. You walked out of your grave under your own power. It's time I took this life that I have thwarted and put it in the hands of the One who was meant to be controlling it all along."

That's your "Jesus day." It could be today. The One who loved you enough to die for you, You begin your relationship with Him. Say, "Jesus, I'm yours." You want to be sure you belong to Him, check out our website. It will help you. Go to ANewStory.com.

You know, if we hadn't looked the right way in heavy traffic, we would have been run over. But God has written in this feeding of the 5,000, clear direction. Don't look out at the need. Don't look down at the resources. Look up to heaven where the riches in glory in Christ Jesus are.