Tag: Inspiration

Verse of the Day – Let’s not let generosity and concern for those less fortunate be a once a year thing!

VERSE:
When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf,
do not go back to get it. Leave it for the alien, the fatherless
and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the
work of your hands.
— Deuteronomy 24:19
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Deuteronomy+24:19

THOUGHT:
This is clearly a passage old Scrooge hadn’t seen! God has
always set aside a provision for the poor. In this time of the year
when many people the world over take special time to look after those
who are less fortunate, let’s open our date books and schedule a
week to dedicate time for special generosity in May and in August
to go with a heart committed to be generous all the time. Let’s not
let generosity and concern for those less fortunate be a once a
year thing!

PRAYER:
For all of your wonderful gifts of kindness and grace, I thank
you, dear Father and God. Please stir my heart to care for others
as you do. Please help me keep that spirit of concern alive all
year long and not just around Christmas time. In Jesus’ name I ask
this. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111213

Daily Promise – December 13 – God is for you, not against you and He will go before you and fight your battles on your behalf

Deuteronomy 1:30 KJV

The LORD your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you,
according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes;  
 
Promise #347: I will go before you and fight your battles. 

I love this photo of lightning that is the backdrop of today’s promise. Such power released from heaven in such a short time. May this image be a reminder of the incredible power of our God and Father for He is the biggest Dad and the strongest Dad in the universe!

In Exodus 14:14, the Lord makes this promise to Israel… “The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” NIV Today’s promise is yet another reminder that God has committed Himself to fight for you. In Romans 8:31 Paul reminds us that if God is for us, who can be against us?

We know from Ephesians 6 that our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the dark powers and rulers of this world. In Ephesians 6:10 we are called to be strong in the Lord and His mighty power and to take on the full armor of God. It is His armor, not ours.

If you are feeling overwhelmed today with the things that are opposing you, may this promise bring great comfort to your heart. My prayer is that each and every one of us would live in the safety and security that is described in Psalm 91, knowing that we live in the secret place of the Most High, and we dwell under the shadow of the Almighty. …God is for you, not against you and He will go before you and fight your battles on your behalf.

AuthorBarry Adams |

Settling the Score

Do not try to punish others
when they wrong you, but wait for God
to punish them with his anger.
Romans 12:19

In the western movies the bounty hunter always travels alone.

It’s not hard to see why.

Who wants to hang out with a guy who settles scores for a living?

Who wants to risk getting on his bad side?

More than once I’ve heard a person spew his anger.

He thought I was listening, when really I was thinking, I hope I never get on his list.

Cantankerous sorts, these bounty hunters.

Best leave them alone.

Hang out with the angry and you might catch a stray bullet.

If you’re out to settle the score, you’ll never rest.

How can you?

Romans 12:19 reminds us,

“Do not try to punish others when they wrong you,

but wait for God to punish them with his anger.” 

As justified as you are in your quest for vengeance,

you may never get justice.

And if you do, will it make a difference?

~ Max Lucado

What Friends Do

“A friend loves you all the time.” 

Proverbs 17:17

One gets the impression that to John, Jesus was above all a loyal companion.  Messiah?  Yes.  Son of God?  Indeed.  Miracle worker? 

That, too. 

But more than anything Jesus was a pal. 

Someone you could go camping with or bowling with or count the stars with…

Now what do you do with a friend? 

(Well, that’s rather simple too.)  You stick by him.

Maybe that is why John is the only one of the twelve who was at the cross. 

He came to say good-bye. 

By his own admission he hadn’t quite put the pieces together yet. 

But that didn’t really matter. 

As far as he was concerned, his closest friend was in trouble and he came to help.

“Can you take care of my mother?”

Of course.  That’s what friends are for.

~ Max Lucado

Verse of the Day – November 30

I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with
thanksgiving.
    — Psalm 69:30
       http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Psalm+69:30

THOUGHT:
   When was the last time you sang praises to God outside a church
or devotional service? Why not open up the Psalms and find several
verses that reflect your own praise and thanks to God and give them
a tune — your own tune! God doesn’t care if your spiritual gift is
music or not; he’s just listening for your heart to be full of joy
as you share your praise and thanksgiving with him.

PRAYER:
   O gracious Father, giver of every good and perfect gift, forgive
me for relegating my thanksgiving and praise to special days and
special places. I praise you for creating your human children with
the capacity to celebrate goodness, to rejoice in your creation,
and to have the capacity for praise and thanksgiving. Thank you for
making our world so full of reasons to offer thanks to you, our
Abba Father and Creator. As you continually fill me with your
Spirit, may my heart overflow with songs of praise and words of
thanksgiving. In Jesus’ holy name I pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111130

Grace Makes All the Difference

 

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—

and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.

Ephesians 2:8

If life is “because I have to”—

where’s the joy in that?

Too often I hear folks rejecting Christ because they think the Christian life

is all about rules and regulations—

all about stifling, suffocating ritual.

It happens when we confuse Christ with legalism.

Legalism is joyless because it’s endless.

There is always another class to attend,

another person to teach,

another mouth to feed.

Grace!

It makes all the difference.

I like this quote:

Gone are the exertions of law-keeping,

gone the disciplines of legalism,

gone the anxiety that having done everything

we might not have done enough.

We reach the goal

not by the stairs but by the lift . . .

God pledges his promised righteousness to those

who will stop trying to save themselves.

Grace offers rest.

Legalism?

Never.

~ Max Lucado

How do you respond to those who seek to hurt you?

 

“Love your enemies! Do good to them! Lend to them! And don’t be concerned that they might not repay. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to the unthankful and to those who are wicked! You must be compassionate, just as the Father is compassionate.”

Luke 6:35-36 NLT

The sign of a loving heart

“Our enemies are out to hurt us. They want to steal from us, cheat us, and do evil against us. Yet Jesus says we are to be kind to them. What is his point? We reflect — or should reflect — God to the world, and God is kind — even to the unkind, the ungrateful, and those whom we consider to be “hopeless” cases. Kindness is based on the love we have for others, not the love others deserve.

Kindness is the sign of a loving heart, one of the greatest of all virtues. A kind person is pleasant, good, gracious — always appreciated. There’s a lot of talk these days about “random acts of kindness.” Maybe this is because we live in a society starved for good deeds. God is our model for kindness. The kindest act ever committed was God’s sending his own Son, Jesus, to die for our sins so that we might live forever in heaven. God also showers us with kindness each day, sending sunshine and rain, food and friends, comfort and encouragement, boundless love and wisdom.

from the TouchPoint Bible commentaries by Ron Beers and Gilbert Beers (Tyndale) pp 889, 1221-22

Daily Promise – November 29 – He has prepared an everlasting city for us to enjoy!

Hebrews 11:16 KJV

But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God
is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.


Promise #333: An everlasting city awaits you, for I am not ashamed to be called your God. 
Our God and Father has prepared a city for you and I that will last forever. He has done this because He is not ashamed to be called our God. In the last half of this verse in the Amplified Bible, it says this… For that reason God is not ashamed to be called their God [even to be surnamed their God–the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob], for He has prepared a city for them. AMPI love the thought that we have taken on God’s surname because He is so happy that we are His children. In Ephesians 3:14-15, the Apostle Paul says that all the Father’s family in heaven and earth derives its name directly from Him. We belong to Him and He is not ashamed of us! In Hebrews 2:11 the writer of Hebrews says that Jesus is not ashamed to call us His brothers too!

What an amazing family that we have been called into! Because of God’s great love for us, He has prepared an everlasting city for us to enjoy!

Photo by Steve Taylor

AuthorBarry Adams

Verse of the Day – November 28 – Do everything without complaining or arguing

VERSE:
Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may
become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a
crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in
the universe.
— Philippians 2:14-15
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Philippians+2:14-15

THOUGHT:
“Don’t complain or argue!” We don’t normally associate these
things with purity and blamelessness. Paul was extraordinarily
close to the Philippians and knew them well. He knew their
weaknesses and shortcomings. He also knew the destructive power
that complaining and arguing have on the life of an otherwise
vibrant community of Christians. Let’s heed his warning today, as
we see church after church taken under by the negative and cynical
spirit that pervades modern culture.

PRAYER:
Forgive me and cleanse me, O God, from my argumentative spirit.
Please empower me with your Spirit to use my speech only to bless
and to build up, never to tear down or discourage. In Jesus’ name I
pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111128

Daily Promise – November 28 – The eternal glory that is in store for you far surpasses your present troubles

2 Corinthians 4:17 KJV

For our light affliction, which is but for a moment,
worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;

Promise #332: The eternal glory that is in store for you far surpasses your present troubles.  
I find it interesting that Paul refers to his own struggles a ‘light affliction’. This is a man who was stoned, shipwrecked and beaten nearly to death on a number of occasions. Yet he had the ability to see his sufferings through an eternal perspective. Because God gave him the ability to see with the eyes of faith, he could endure the hardships of life knowing what was yet to come.

In the light of eternity, our lives will be a moment, a twinkling of an eye, so to speak. In James 4:4, our lives are described this way… 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. NIV

No matter what you are struggling with today, be encouraged that the glory of God that will be revealed in you far outweighs your present circumstances. May our God and Father give you His peace so that you can take heart in this promise today as you continue to fix your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith.

Photo by Steve Taylor

AuthorBarry Adams |

We ‘ought to’ stop saying ‘ought to’

Posted: 27 Nov 2011 11:00 PM PST

By Jon Walker

Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity . . . . Hebrews 6:1 (NIV)

Although God does the heavy lifting in our transformation to Christ-likeness, we still bear the responsibility to keep discipline part of discipleship.

Therefore, we no longer run aimlessly; we have the sizeable objective of becoming just like Jesus. And so, as Paul describes it, we beat our bodies into submission as we press on toward our objective (1 Corinthians 9:26–27).

But, as we’re beating discipline into our thoughts and behavior, we too often slip into beating ourselves up over the inability to do the things we ought to do (Romans 7:16–25).

Here’s the thing, becoming like Jesus is difficult enough without this “Try harder!” mentality we tell ourselves. It sucks us into a cycle of I must, I ought, and I should that leaves us feeling defeated. And that only fuels our cycle to try harder.

This shifts our focus on how we can’t do it—instead of keeping our focus on Christ-in-us, who, having begun a good work in us, “will carry it on to completion” until we see Jesus face-to-face (Philippians 1:6 NIV).

Paul, ever the exhorter, says we’re to push toward the ideal, but his standards are never imperative ought-to statements demanding immediate perfection from us. Perhaps more than any other student yoked to Jesus, Paul understands our desperate need for God’s grace.

We make it our objective to make every effort to mature into believers who think and act just like Jesus. We may slip, we may fail horribly, but we press on to take hold of the abundant life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Philippians 3:12). 

We ‘ought to’ stop saying ‘ought to’ is a post from: GraceCreates Jon Walker is the author of Costly Grace: A Contemporary View of Bonhoeffer’s ‘The Cost of Discipleship’ and Growing with Purpose. He has served on staff at Saddleback Church and Purpose Driven Ministries and is currently the managing editor of Rick Warren’s Daily Devotionals and the Ministry Toolbox. Contact him at questions@gracecreates.com. This article is copyrighted 2011 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.

Facebook: GraceCreates with Jon Walker. Twitter: http://twitter.com/Grace_Creates

Daily Promise – November 13 – He is expecting, looking and longing to be gracious to us

Isaiah 30:18 KJV

And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you,
and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you:
for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

Promise #317: I will wait for opportunities to show you My compassion.

The Amplified version of the Bible says the first part of Isaiah 30:18 this way… And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. AMP

What a beautiful picture of the longing that God has for you and I. He is always in a posture of waiting for every opportunity to show us His compassion. I love the Amplified translation that says that He is expecting, looking and longing to be gracious to us.

This Bible verse reminds of the father in the Prodigal Son story in Luke 15 who was waiting for his rebellious son to find his way home. In this story, Jesus tells us that the father saw the son when he was still a long way off and started running toward his boy. I think in the same way, our God and Father is waiting and watching for every opportunity to run to us so that He might pour out His love and mercy all over us. May we always be mindful of this amazing truth!
Photo by Barry Adams

AuthorBarry Adams |

Taking No Chances

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,
Nor will the flame burn you.
For I am the Lord your God.
Isa. 43:2–3 NASB

With God—chance is eliminated.

God knows what is best.

No struggle will come your way apart from his purpose, his presence, and his permission.

Isaiah 43:2 says,

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you and through the rivers,

they will not overflow you.”

What encouragement!

You are never the victim of nature or the prey of fate.

Chance is eliminated.

You are more than a weather vane whipped about by the winds of fortune.

Would God truly abandon you to the whims of drug-crazed thieves, greedy corporate raiders,

or evil leaders?

Perish the thought!

You live beneath the protective palm of a sovereign King

who superintends every circumstance of your life, and delights in doing you good.

Remember this.

Nothing comes your way that has not first passed through the filter of God’s love.

~ Max Lucado

Note: Read Romans 8:28

Daily Promise – November 11 – Go to that place in our Father’s heart where we have free access to enter as His beloved little ones

Hebrews 4:16 KJV

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy,
and find grace to help in time of need.

Promise #315: Come boldly to My throne when you need to find mercy and grace.

You and I have an invitation from our God and Father to come boldly before His throne of grace today. In the book of Revelation, we read a little bit about what God’s throne room is like in chapter 4… Angels crying holy, holy holy, flashes of lightning, 24 elders bowing down, a sea of glass, and so much more! It is a holy place where angels fear to tread, but a place in our Father’s heart where we have free access to enter as His beloved little ones.

You can come into His presence right now if you like. His royal doors are always open to you, anytime, day or night. God wants each one of us to come to Him boldly, not timidly. He loves it when we climb up on His lap just as a little child would jump into his dad’s arms. He is always there for us ready to provide the mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.

There is no way that we can fathom the privilege that God has extended to us by inviting us to His throne of grace. It is an honor that could have only been purchased by the highest price possible…the shed blood of the Lamb of God. Thank you Jesus for making the way for us to become part of your family so that we could come boldly before our Father’s throne of grace 24/7! ~ Barry Adams

The Opposite of Fear is Faith

By Jon Walker

We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it. Numbers 13:30b

When the Israelites first approached the borders of Canaan, Moses sent scouts into the Promised Land to assess the situation. Ten of the scouts came back with reports that focused on the giants in the land, men so big and powerful the scouts feared they could not be defeated.

However, two of the scouts focused on the promise from God that he would hand the land over to the Israelites. One of those scouts, Caleb, silenced the others when he said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it” (Num. 13:30).

Caleb trusted God instead of trusting his own fear. The opposite of fear is faith, the belief that Jesus is capable of handling anything we may face in life. But operating out of faith means we must rely on Jesus, remaining dependent on him to see us through any issue.

He brings us to a choice: Will we trust God or will we trust our own fears?

The Bible says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Prov. 9:10a). In other words, we hold God in reverence, recognizing his sovereignty, authority, and omnipotence—his ability to protect us in any situation.

And we reach that level of trust by knowing the Father and understanding his character: “[K]nowledge of the Holy One is understanding” (Prov. 9:10b). We know and understand the Father by following Jesus.

“To see me is to see the Father,” says Jesus. “Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you aren’t mere words. I don’t just make them up on my own. The Father who resides in me crafts each word into a divine act” (John 14:9b–10 msg).

Your fear simply reveals a place where you aren’t yet trusting in Jesus. Don’t stay stuck in your fear, and don’t receive condemnation for your lack of faith. Jesus wants to move you past that into a place where your fears are replaced by faith. Follow him and learn to trust.

Contentment

I have learned to be satisfied
with the things I have and with
everything that happens.
Philippians 4:11

What if God’s only gift to you were his grace to save you?

Would you be content?

You beg him to save the life of your child.

You plead with him to keep your business afloat.

You implore him to remove the cancer from your body.

What if his answer is, “My grace is enough.”

Would you be content?

From heaven’s perspective, grace is enough.

If God did nothing more than save us from hell, could anyone complain?

Having been given eternal life, dare we grumble at an aching body?

Having been given heavenly riches, dare we moan about what we don’t have?

~ Max Lucado

Daily Promise – November 10 – There is no greater gift that He could have given to us, than the gift of His own life

Romans 8:15 KJV

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear;
but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

Promise #314: I have given you the Spirit of adoption so you can call Me Father.

The most precious gift that God could give us is Himself. The Holy Spirit, which is called the Spirit of adoption or the Spirit of sonship, is the very Spirit of God Himself. The third person in the trinity is also referred to as the Spirit of the Father and the Spirit of the Son. The Bible says that we have received the Holy Spirit as a deposit to guarantee our inheritance. (2 Corinthians 1:22)

His very presence in our lives is the sign that we belong to God. We have now been born again and are God’s children and part of His amazing family. The very Spirit of the living God resides in us and bears witness with our own spirit that we are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesus. The only appropriate response that we could possible have is to cry out from the core of our being the words ‘Abba, Father!’.

‘Abba’ is an Aramaic word which was the common language that Jesus spoke to the people in. It is the most simplest way that a child can call our to their father. In English terms, it would be like a like us calling out to our papa or daddy. Romans 8:15 tells us that because we have the spirit of sonship living in our hearts, we can call Almighty God our papa! There is no greater gift that He could have given to us, than the gift of His own life that now lives right in the center of our being.
Photo by Barry Adams

Verse of the Day – November 10, 2011

VERSE:
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the
dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my
blessing on your descendants.
— Isaiah 44:3
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Isaiah+44:3

THOUGHT:
Growing up in West Texas in part of my early years, I certainly
know what “thirsty land” truly is. The black dirt shrinks, leaving
deep cracks in the ground. All the grass turns yellow, then brown,
and then dies. A wisp of breeze stirs swirls of dust over the
barren land. When the downpour finally comes, the “thirsty land”
swallows voluminous amounts of water as the rain runs off the wet
surface and finds its way into the deep cracks left from the
drought. The ground swells, the grass comes back to life, and life
is replenished. In a barren spiritual wasteland, God’s Holy Spirit
pours out his blessing, brings times of refreshment, and
replenishes our thirsty hearts.

PRAYER:
Generous and loving Father, thank you for so many blessings you
have poured into my life. Most of all, dear Father, thank you for
the blessing of your presence, your strength, your grace, and your
refreshment given to me through your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name I
thank you. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111110

Bad Memories « Broken Believers

Bad Memories « Broken Believers.

Again, Bryan has given us a visual of what it is like to carry guilt, or sin, around our necks. Constantly trying to sling it off, but having the stench hang on. Even after obtaining forgiveness, we must immediately drag those self-deprecating memories to the feet and arms of our Lord and Savior. He will lovingly, willingly, pick them up, throw them out to the farthest point, and lift us up. Holding us, taking away our pain. Letting us rest from the weight of it all. Always, Jesus is the only one who can truly set us free.

Verse of the Day – November 9

VERSE:
God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways; he does great things
beyond our understanding.
— Job 37:5
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Job+37:5

THOUGHT:
How does God help us know his will? Clearly God has given us the
Scriptures and the Holy Spirit to help us understand the
Scriptures. What about more subtle and less defined ways? Most of
us have had a “cluster of divine coincidences” (several events in
close proximity to prayer): a friend calls/writes at just the right
time; we read an article or hear a sermon that has a comment or two
directed at just the area of our concern or confusion; several
songs in worship convict us in the area on which we are seeking the
Lord’s guidance; or we simply feel a pull on our conscience that
helps us discern right from wrong in a difficult situation. God
really means it when he says that if we will pray for wisdom
without doubting he’ll give it to us and that if we are truly
seeking him we will find him. His voice does thunder in marvelous
ways!

PRAYER:
Holy God, please help me discern your will about several
important matters in my life. I don’t want to make my decisions
based on my limited human wisdom. Please lead me by your Spirit in
the direction you want me to go and use me to bring you glory and
praise. Thank you for caring about my life enough to show me your
way more clearly. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Excellent post « Women’s Window

Excellent post « Women’s Window.

I just have to “Post, and Press this Forward”. And, I must say, I’m going to push the “Follow this blog” button. Not only does this author capture our hearts through excellent writing, but these words pull us into the reality of how we actually may be living our lives. Either positively, or negatively.

I personally needed to be brought back into focus today. To reevaluate what is really important.

Be blessed as you read, and digest these thoughts.

Daily Promise – November 4 – He understands what makes you tick

Psalm 139:1-3 KJV

1 O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me.
2 Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
3 Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.

Promise #308: I know everything about you and am mindful of all your ways.

Have you ever walked into a room full of people yet felt completely alone? I believe that we can be surrounded by many people in our day to day lives yet still carry a sense of loneliness in the depths of our soul. I think the reason that this is the case because we are all looking for a deeper, more profound interaction with people where we really get to know each other.

A professional counselor can get to ‘know’ a lot of people in their practice, yet still not be known by anyone themselves. I believe the cry of the human heart is that someone would know us through and through yet still accept us the way we are. In today’s promise from Psalm 139:1-3, King David makes the declaration that God knows everything about him and is familiar with all his ways.

God knows everything about you. He has even numbered each hair on your head. He understands what makes you tick and as a loving father is filled with compassion towards his children… so His heart is moved with compassion toward you! (Psalm 103:13-14) You are never alone because God is with you. He is close to you and understands you more than you understand yourself.

May this revelation go deep into each one of our hearts today so that we will never, ever feel alone again. He knows everything about us and yet He still loves us with all His heart!

~ Barry Adams

Verse of the Day – We so easily forget to give thanks when things are going well

VERSE:
But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the
ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he
swore to your forefathers, as it is today.
— Deuteronomy 8:18
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Deuteronomy+8:18

THOUGHT:
As we enter the month often associated in the USA with giving
thanks, this reminder from Moses is an important one! We so easily
forget to give thanks when things are going well. It’s easy for us
to whine and ask God to help us when we are in trouble, but we
often feel like we “deserve” the good things that happen to us. God
reminds us that what we have is simply a confirmation of his grace
and his faithfulness to do what he has said. We need to remind
ourselves, and each other, that the blessings we have come from his
hand and not because we deserved them more than someone else.

PRAYER:
Generous Father, forgive me for my forgetfulness. Deep down I
know I don’t deserve all the good things you have poured into my
life, yet I sometimes find myself thinking that I’ve earned them.
Use your Spirit to forge in me a heart like Jesus’ heart, who did
deserve everything good and yet gave it all up to come to earth and
give me the greatest gift imaginable — the gift of your salvation!
Thank you so much for this gift of grace and the many other
undeserved gifts that you have lavished on me. In Jesus’ name I
thank you. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111104

How deep are His thoughts!

Lord, you have done such great things! How deep are your thoughts! 

Psalm 92:5

God’s thoughts are not our thoughts—

we aren’t even in the same neighborhood.

Psalm 92:5 sets the standard.

“Lord, you have done such great things.

How deep are your thoughts.”

When we’re thinking, Preserve the body;

God’s thinking, Save the soul.

We dream of a pay raise.

He dreams of raising the dead.

We avoid pain and seek peace.

God uses pain to bring peace.

“I’m going to live before I die,” we resolve.

“Die, so you can live,” he instructs.

We love what rusts.

He loves what endures.

We rejoice at our successes.

He rejoices at our confessions.

We show our children the Nike star with the million-dollar smile and say,

“Be like him.”

God points to the crucified carpenter with bloody lips and a torn side and says,

“Be like Christ.”

Thinking God’s thoughts.

~ Max Lucado

Verse of the Day – God longs to give us a truly great and wonderful gift: his presence in us through his Holy Spirit

VERSE:
For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him
who knocks, the door will be opened.
— Luke 11:10
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Luke+11:10

THOUGHT:
God answers prayers! Recent research in the recovery of surgery
patients for whom others prayed seems to validate this. Our
experience suggests it is true. The Bible promises us that it is
so. But Luke emphasizes one specific answer to prayer that
God-seekers receive. God longs to give us a truly great and
wonderful gift: his presence in us through his Holy Spirit (vs.
13). Because of the indwelling Spirit, God can do unimaginable
things for us and through us.

PRAYER:
Loving Father, the sacrifice of your Son for my sins is a truly
incredible gift. The blessing of salvation through Jesus is more
wonderful than words. The gracious gift of your presence in me
through your Holy Spirit is comforting and empowering. Thank you
for your assurance that as I seek you, you are eager to bless me.
In Jesus’ name I thank and praise you. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111103

Revamped Expectations

The ways of God are without fault.

Psalm 18:30

It’s not easy when God doesn’t do what we want, is it?

Never has been.

Never will be.

But faith is the conviction that God knows more than we do about this life

and He will get us through it.

Remember, disappointment is cured by revamped expectations.

I like the story about the fellow who went to the pet store in search of a singing parakeet.

Seems he was a bachelor and his house was too quiet.

The store owner had just the bird for him, so the man bought it.

The next day the bachelor came home from work to a house full of music.

He went to the cage to feed the bird and noticed for the first time that the parakeet had only one leg.

He felt cheated.

So he called and complained.

“What do you want,” the store owner responded,

“a bird who can sing or a bird who can dance?”

Good question for times of disappointment.

~ Max Lucado

Daily Promise – November 3 – We have been grafted into the vine

Deuteronomy 7:6 KJV

For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God:
the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself,
above all people that are upon the face of the earth.

Promise #307: I have chosen you to be My own treasured possession.

This declaration of love was spoken over the nation of Israel. God had set them apart for Himself and chosen them to be His own treasured possession. The ESV Bible says Deuteronomy 7:6 this way… “For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. NIV

We know that as Christians, we have been grafted into the vine (Romans 11:16-18) and now share in the spiritual blessings from Abraham. We too are a special people that God has chosen for Himself, His treasured possession. Ephesians 1:3-6 tells us how God lovingly chose us before the creation of the world to be adopted as His beloved children in Christ.

Do you feel the astronomical value that God has placed on your life today? If not, ask the Holy Spirit to show you how much you are treasured by your heavenly Father and I believe He will be faithful to show you just how much you are loved by God.
Photo by Barry Adams

Never

The Lord said, “I have loved you.” 

Malachi 1:2

Father, your love never ceases.  Never.

Though we spurn you, ignore you, disobey you, you will not change. 

Our evil cannot diminish your love. 

Our goodness cannot increase it. 

Our faith does not earn it anymore than our stupidity jeopardizes it. 

You don’t love us less if we fail. 

You don’t love us more if we succeed.

Your love never ceases.

~ Max Lucado

Verse of the Day – Let’s support one another in our faith

VERSE:
They preached the good news in that city and won a large number
of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch,
strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to
the faith.
— Acts 14:21-22
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Acts+14:21-22

THOUGHT:
Do you know a new Christian? Paul and Barnabas remind us that it
is difficult becoming a Christian; there are hard times for new
Christians! So let’s make sure we don’t just share the Gospel with
them. Let’s also stand by them, check on them, strengthen them, and
encourage them.

PRAYER:
Loving Father, please be with the new Christians in our church.
Use me to be a source of encouragement to them and strength for
them. May my life always be a positive influence on them and other
new Christians as well. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111030

Daily Promise – October 30 – May we be reminded of who we are and who we belong to

Hebrews 12:28 KJV

Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace,
whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

Hebrews 12:28

New King James Version (NKJV)

28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we mayserve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

Promise #303: I am giving you a kingdom that can never be shaken.
Even the most rock solid mountains on this planet can be shaken. The highest mountain can crumble at the blast of our Father’s nostrils. Wars, rumors of wars, economic recessions, global strife, and many other things can cause even the strongest of men to tremble. Such is the kingdom of this world. It is here today and gone tomorrow.

But the author of Hebrews is speaking of another kingdom that cannot be moved that is our inheritance. It is a kingdom that cannot be shaken. It is a kingdom that is safe and secure and beyond the influence of fallen men. It is a kingdom where the greatest will be the servant of all and its citizens, little children.

We are receiving a kingdom right now that cannot be shaken. Jesus taught us to pray in the Lord’s prayer (Matthew 6:9-11) …your kingdom come, your will be done as it is in heaven. May we never take this kingdom lightly. May the fear of the Lord fill us with an ever increasing awareness of this unshakeable kingdom that we are receiving NOW!

May we be reminded of who we are and who we belong to as we read this Scripture passage that just precedes today’s promise in Hebrews 12: 22-23 (a)… But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. NIV   ~ Barry Adams

God speaks

“Speak, Lord.  I am your servant and I am listening.” 

I Samuel 3:9

We expect God to speak through peace,

but sometimes he speaks through pain…

We think we hear him in the sunrise,

but he is also heard in the darkness.

We listen for him in triumph,

but he speaks even more distinctly through tragedy.

~ Max Lucado

God will conquer death (What is real?)

(My note: What a perfectly timed message that ministers to my heart, and hopefully yours, especially as we celebrate the life of our beloved friend, Lori.)

What is real?

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

1 Corinthians 15:55 NLT

Redemptive Reality

“Roberto Benigni, who wrote, directed, and starred in Life is Beautiful, is a comic genius who has been called the Italian Charlie Chaplin. But the subject of his 1997 film, the Holocaust, is anything but funny.

Benigni’s character, a sad-sack waiter named Guido, courts the affections of a local schoolteacher and through various hilarious adventures wins her heart. They marry and have a son.

Then things take a dark turn: Father and son, who are Jewish, are sent to a concentration camp. To shield his son from the horrors they’re going through, Guido concocts a wild story, telling the boy that the whole experience is really just an elaborate game.

How did Benigni dare to use humor in a film about a great moral evil? He did it by expressing the Christian idea that there’s more to life than what we see. In the scene in which the father is being led away to be killed, he spots his son and makes a funny face. The message is that there is something that triumphs over even death, some transcendent reality that, even in this ultimate moment of gravity, enables Guido to make his son laugh.

Most of our cultural leaders operate from a purely naturalistic perspective, but Scripture teaches that there are eternal things. Life is Beautiful is not the gospel story, but it does point to the gospel because it’s about how God’s redemptive reality trumps the very worst this world has to offer.”

adapted from How Now Shall We Live? Devotional by Charles Colson (Tyndale) pp 581-82

Content is derived from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation and other publications of Tyndale Publishing House

Update regarding our friend, Lori Kennedy

Thank you all for your wonderful sentiments, prayers, and love.

Here is the latest update:

The service for our friend, Lori Kennedy, will be at 3:00 pm Thursday at the Parent-Sorenson Mortuary, 850 Keokuk St, Petaluma, CA. Phone number is (707) 763-4131 in case you want more specific information. The service will be in the Chapel, with a non-denominational pastor saying a few words, with a total of +/- 30minutes. Her friends and neighbors here at her apartment complex at The Commons on Enterprise Dr in Rohnert Park will have an additional gathering in honor of Lori at a later date to be announced. The coroner is supposed to do the autopsy tonight. If it is an obvious cause of death, then the family will let us know as soon as they know. If they have to do a more involved autopsy, the results may not be available for a few months. We do know that she died between 7:00 pm Friday night, October 21 and 11:30 a.m. Saturday morning. Neighbors and friends had not seen her per her usual routine and called the police, who contacted our apartment complex manager, who let the sheriff into Lori’s apartment, at which time they found her lying on her face in the hallway between the bedroom, bathroom, and living room areas. She had an emergency necklace which she wore constantly, even in the shower. The police or 911 operators had not received any indication from her pushing the button on her necklace. Therefore, we, at this time, assume she died so quickly that she didn’t have time to push the button for help. The family came today and all of us supported them in any way they needed help. Some of the furniture and pictures were removed from her apartment today and given to anyone who expressed an interest in having a memory attached to any of those items. The family will come back tomorrow, Thursday, and Friday at which time we will all wait in the wings for their instruction on how everyone can help. Several people have brought flowers, pumpkins (since she loved pumpkins so much), and a candle and placed them outside Lori’s apartment door. We have all met together quite a few times, including about a 12-hour sitting together on Saturday. We talk our feelings out. I express to them who from her facebook and personal friends are seeking information and sending condolences and tell them about how much each of you cared for Lori. I will continue to update any of you as I get any new information. There will be an announcement of services in the Press-Democrat Newspaper. Do not hesitate to contact me if we can help answer any of your questions or be of help in any other way. We know this is a particularly hard time for all of you who cannot be here personally. I know that your heartfelt expressions of love is appreciated by Lori. God bless each of you. Sharon

Related article:

https://sharinhislove.wordpress.com/2011/10/23/we-just-lost-one-of-our-best-friends/

You are Unique

Each of us is an original. 

Galatians 5:26, The Message

There are certain things you can do that no one else can. 

Perhaps it is parenting,

or constructing houses,

or encouraging the discouraged. 

There are things that only you can do,

and you are alive to do them. 

In the great orchestra we call life,

you have an instrument and a song,

and you owe it to God to play them both

sublimely.

~ Max Lucado

Daily Promise – October 21 – He will meet all our needs

2 Corinthians 9:8 KJV

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye,
always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

Promise #294: I will meet all your needs so you can overflow with good works.

It is by grace that you are saved, it is God’s gift to us so that we won’t be able to boast about it. (Ephesians 2:8) It is this same grace that abounds to us and meets all of our needs so that we will overflow in every good work. The NIV Bible says 2 Corinthians 9:8 this way… And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. NIV

This Bible verse really speaks of the principle of abundance. God wants us to overflow with His grace at all times and in every situation. I believe the key to this principle of abundance is found in Matthew 10:8. This is where Jesus is sending out His disciples to proclaim the good news of the gospel. His charge is simply this…  ‘freely you have received, freely give‘.

One of the things that I am learning in my walk with God is that I need to be in a place of receiving first before I can have anything to give to others. I am convinced that it is out of the overflow of His love and grace in my own life that others are touched.

So my simple encouragement today is for you to learn to receive all the grace that God wants to give you today. As you receive the abundant, never ending supply that flows from heaven, it will overflow in your life so that you will have all that you need to do every good work that He has planned for you.
Photo by Martin Smith

Who shares your umbrella?

Hello Friend!

The other day an afternoon thunderstorm blew in, cracking and laughing over the autumn-colored hills. I watched the clouds gather and then release raindrops from the hands that spattered the sidewalk.

From a few houses down, two children emerged under an umbrella. They hurried along with smiles on their faces. Each one holding the handle in the middle of them. It wasn’t a storm to be avoided in their lives but an experience to be shared.

That’s how it’s supposed to be, I thought. None of use are meant to walk through the rain alone. 

A gentle thunder send them scurrying inside a house but I lingered at the window and wondered…

Why is it so hard for us to go through life’s storms together?

It seems we either tend to carry the umbrella only for ourselves. We become scared or bitter and we’re afraid to let anyone close. It’s hard for us to give.

Or we are happy to offer our umbrella to others while we become soaked. We’re afraid that if we don’t sacrifice so much then we won’t be loved. It’s hard for us to receive.

But Jesus calls us to that middle place. He asks us to take hold of that handle. “Love one another,” he says. One another–that’s two people under the umbrella, giving and receiving.

Ah, yes. 

My thoughts clear.

The sky does too.

The children reappear and jump in puddles. Shared joy after the rain too. 

And I think I can just see a new bit of sunlight slipping unexpectedly into my day.

xoxo

Holley

p.s. Who shares the storms in your life? {Thanks for sharing mine–I’m so glad you’re here!}

Verse of the Day – Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did

VERSE:
This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him
must walk as Jesus did.
— 1 John 2:5-6
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=1+John+2:5-6

THOUGHT:
Do you want to know who walks with Jesus each day? Look for
folks whose lives look like his! Do you want to walk with Jesus?
Look at his life in the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John).
See how he treated people; then do the same! Notice how he defeated
Satan and overcame temptation. Trust that you can do the same! As
you do these things, you will find that Jesus is not only walking
with you, he is also working through you!

PRAYER:
Stir my spirit, O God, and empower me with your Spirit to live a
life of integrity and purity like Jesus. Please give me a heart for
people, dear Father, like your Son Jesus has. Help me to not only
see their needs and hear their cries, but to also respond with love
and compassion. In the name of my Savior Jesus, I pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111020

What about struggling?

As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so continue to live in him. 

Colossians 2:6

Struggling with life’s difficulties makes us a little wiser,

a little more capable,

enabling us to comfort others who experience pain.

Any difficulties we face in life are short-lived;

all rewards are eternal. 

A divine inheritance will be our reward for faithfulness

to our heavenly Father.

~ Max Lucado

Give all your worries to Him

Give all your worries to him, because he cares about you. 

1 Peter 5:7

Maybe you don’t want to trouble God with your hurts. 

After all, he’s got famines and pestilence and wars;

he won’t care about my little struggles, you think. 

Why don’t you let him decide that? 

He cared enough about a wedding to provide the wine. 

He cared enough about Peter’s tax payment to give him a coin. 

He cared enough about the woman at the well to give her answers.

~ Max Lucado

If God says we can, why do we say we can’t

by Jon Walker

Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem: “I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the desert, through a land not sown.” Jeremiah 2:2 (NIV)

The word devotion in Jeremiah 2:2 is a translation of the Hebrew word kesed, which is often translated as “loving mercy” or “loving kindness.” It is a love of relentless pursuit, and throughout the Bible, it shows up like mile-markers measuring God’s grace-chase after his prodigal sons and daughters, refusing to let them get away from the mercy of his love.

But something surprised me in these prophetic words from Jeremiah. In a sense, God says, “I remember the devoted, loyal love of your youth. You were like a new bride with love dancing in your eyes, and you’d follow me through the desert or into a desolate land.”

In a sense, God says, “I remember your youth, when you chased after me with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind.” If you once chased after God with every bit of your being, then it is possible to do it again.

God says we’re capable of giving him our whole love. If he says we can, why do we say we can’t?

If God says we can, why do we say we can’t? is a post from: GraceCreates Jon Walker is the author of Costly Grace: A Contemporary View of Bonhoeffer’s ‘The Cost of Discipleship’ and Growing with Purpose. He has served on staff at Saddleback Church and Purpose Driven Ministries and is currently the managing editor of Rick Warren’s Daily Devotionals and the Ministry Toolbox. Contact him at questions@gracecreates.com. This article is copyrighted 2011 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.

Facebook: GraceCreates with Jon Walker. Twitter: http://twitter.com/Grace_Creates

Friendship

I call you friends,

because I have made known to you

everything I heard from my Father. 

John 15:15

John is the only one of the twelve who was at the cross.  He came to say good-bye. 

By his own admission he hadn’t quite put the pieces together yet. 

But that didn’t really matter. 

As far as he was concerned,

his closest friend was in trouble and he came to help…

John teaches us that the…

greatest webs of loyalty are spun,

not with airtight theologies or foolproof philosophies,

but with friendships;

stubborn,

selfless,

joyful friendships.

~ Max Lucado

Verse of the Day – We can’t be right with God and be wrong with people

My note: I thought the author of this devotional hit it right on the head. I had never thought of it that way before. I hope that the message below stirs your heart, as it did mine, to use the filter “we can’t be right with God and be wrong with people” on a daily basis to make sure our attitudes are in keeping with the Word of God and His purpose for our lives.

~~~

VERSE:
This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Administer true justice;
show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow
or the fatherless, the alien or the poor. In your hearts do not
think evil of each other.”
— Zechariah 7:9-10
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Zechariah+7:9-10

THOUGHT:
Do you want a clear, simple, straightforward word from the Lord
today? That’s what Zechariah gives us.

He reminds us that God wants us to be

fair,

compassionate,

caring,

without prejudice, and

tenderhearted to those in need,

and to give each other the benefit of the doubt.

In other words, he wants us to treat each other like Christ treated people.

Why?

Because we can’t be right with God and be wrong with people!

PRAYER:
Loving Father, please forgive me for the times I’ve gotten
bogged down with hard-to-understand verses in Scripture and ignored
your clear teaching on how to live. Please give me the opportunity
this week to live like you have commanded me. In the future, when
my heart grows cold or my response to others is not what it should
be, please use your Spirit to bring to my remembrance this passage
so that I might live it to your glory. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111019

Daily Promise – October 19 – we are safe and secure in under the protection of our heavenly Dad’s wings

Psalm 91:4 KJV

He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust:
his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.


Promise #292: I will cover you with My feathers and protect you with My wings.

Psalm 91 is one of my favorite psalms that speaks of Almighty God’s protection and covering. I love the imagery of this verse in particular. Just imagine for a minute the imagery that the psalmist is portraying in this verse… The Most High God covers us with His feathers and protects us with His wings.

When I think of the imagery of this promise, I imagine God as a majestic eagle and we are His little chickadees who live in the shelter and safety of His magnificient wings. Nothing can harm us there. We are completely safe and secure. Another picture that comes to my mind when I think of this verse is that of a little child who seeks refuge under their dad’s raincoat in the midst of a storm, hanging tightly onto his leg, completely sheltered from the storm.

Both pictures bring me a sense of peace and safety and security knowing that God is my refuge and my safe place. This promise does not only paint a nice picture for us, but it declares a spiritual reality that you and I can live in all the days of our lives. The truth is that we are safe and secure in under the protection of our heavenly Dad’s wings… no matter how scary it is outside of His care! May the reality of this promise become more and more real to each and every one of us!

He has given us strength

The verse of the day reminds us why we have a ministry and the strength that the Holy Spirit gives us to serve.

The last few weeks have been extremely difficult because Erick and I have both been sick with some kind of bug.  We are still physically weak, which exacerbates all of our efforts. And, of course, it affects even our ability to post messages. Yesterday, I didn’t even come to the computer at all.  This too will pass, but in the meantime, it’s evident how much our strength comes from the Lord. Physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

Today, as I looked at our site stats, I was so humbled. Regardless of what we feel like doing, our Lord is bringing us here to be refreshed by His Word.

It is not us as people who increase, it is He who does the increase.

We are His servants. We simply obey.

Thanks for reading. Thanks for sharing. Thanks for your encouragement. And thanks to God, most of all, for bringing us all together.

~~~

VERSE:
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that
he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service.
— 1 Timothy 1:12
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=1+Timothy+1:12

THOUGHT:
We minister by grace. We are saved and made holy by God’s grace
given us in Jesus. We are declared holy and blameless before God
because of the grace of Jesus. We are given a gift to use in
ministry for the Church because of the grace of Jesus. We are given
strength from the Holy Spirit to persevere during difficult times
because of the grace of God in Jesus. So what ministry we find
ourselves capable of performing, what opportunities we have to
serve and make a difference in people’s lives, and what power we
have in fulfilling our ministry are all given to us. It is not
something to boast about. The Lord’s power is made perfect in
weakness as we offer ourselves to him to be used for his glory.

PRAYER:
Glorify your name, O God my Eternal Father. Thank you for Jesus
who has redeemed me, gifted me, strengthened me, led me, and
empowered me to serve. May you be glorified in all that I say and
do. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111018

Daily Promise – October 18 – Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 KJV

3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;


Promise #291: I will give you My power to destroy spiritual strongholds.

In yesterday’s promise from Exodus 14:14, I talked about the importance of us learning to be still and watch the Lord fight on our behalf. In today’s promise from 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, we are seeing a different facet to the same diamond. In this passage of Scripture, the Apostle Paul is exhorting us to learn how to partner with the Omniscient, Omnipresent and Omnipotent power that resides in us in order for us to demolish every spiritual stronghold in our lives.

Paul clearly reminds us that we do not wage warfare like the world does, but we have the power of the living God in us that is mighty to save and will bring into captivity every thought that opposes the knowledge of God. Just like I said yesterday, we need to understand that we cannot do this in our own strength for the battle is the Lord’s.

However, we are called in Romans 12:2 to not be conformed to this world, but rather transformed by the renewing of the mind. Our unredeemed thought life will never be in agreement with the mind of Christ. The only way to deal with an unredeemed thought is to take it captive to the obedience of Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit that lives within us.

So the next time that a negative, condemning, self-centered, unredeemed thought comes into your mind, be encouraged to know that God has given you power by His Spirit to take and apprehend that thought and make it come into submission to the Lordship of Christ. It is Christ in you that is the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27) and it is His plan that we all be transformed into His image with ever increasing glory as we behold His face one day at a time. (2 Corinthians 3:18)
Photo by Jeff Epp

Our lives and our times are in His hands

By Roy Lessin

Recently, someone reminded of an encouragement card I had written many years ago for DaySpring. The message on the card is for someone who is going through a difficult time or facing a situation with few answers. Today’s posting features that message with the hope that it might help encourage someone today.

What do we do when we face challenges that make us wonder what’s ahead? The answers are not always easy, and the direction is not always clear. In these circumstances, our hope is in God alone. Our lives and our times are in His hands, and He assures us that He is the rock we can stand upon through the storm.

Today, may you continue to believe in the wisdom of His ways, in the goodness of His love, and in the assurance of His presence as He keeps you every step of the way.

From the end of the earth I will cry to You, When my heart is overwhelmed; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:2 KJV

 

Daily Promise – October 16 – He looks out for us

Luke 12:6-7 KJV

6 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God?
7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.


Promise #289: If I look after the sparrows, I will certainly look after you.

I love this passage of Scripture where Jesus tells us how important the sparrows are to God. Even though they do not have much value to us, He will not even forget one of them. In Matthew 10:29 Jesus tells us that not even one of them will fall to the ground apart from His Father’s will. This is the value He places on a single bird!

But then Jesus goes on to to tell us that we have a value to God worth more than many sparrows! So if God looks after and watches over these little birds, how much more will He watch over you and I! Our value to God far exceeds the birds of the air who neither sow or reap or store into barns (Matthew 6:25-34) so how much more will He take care of us!!!!!

The next time you are feeling anxious about the future, just take a moment and look at a bird, or squirrel, or a tree for that matter. God provides for all that He created because that is simply what fathers do. If He looks after even the most insignificant of His creation, will He not also look after you?  ~ Barry Adams

Verse of the Day – He longs to do great things through us

VERSE:
“`If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for him who
believes.”
— Mark 9:23
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Mark+9:23

THOUGHT:
Jesus is the ultimate one “who believes.” All things ARE
possible for him. Guess what? He longs to do great things through
us, too! In fact, he promised he would do even greater things
through us than he did himself because he is now at the Father’s
side helping us! (See John 14:12-14.) So isn’t it time that we quit
talking about what we can’t do, and start believing in the one who
can do great things? Paul put it this way: God can do “more than we
can ask or imagine by his power at work in us.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)

PRAYER:
Great Almighty God, Ruler of the nations, Creator of the
universe, and Lord of all things, please forgive me. Forgive me for
my wimpy and limited prayers. Forgive me for getting involved in
petty quarrels over mundane and irrelevant things. Forgive me for
my spiritual lack of vision. Please stir me by your Spirit. Please
open my eyes so that I can see what you long to do through me.
Please empower me to be a powerful witness to our world trapped in
darkness. Please give me incredible dreams for your Kingdom, then
astound me by doing far more than I ever imagined. In the name of
Jesus, and to your glory, I pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111016

Verse of the Day – Who is your greatest friend?

VERSE:
A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend
who sticks closer than a brother.
— Proverbs 18:24
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Proverbs+18:24

THOUGHT:
Who are your closest friends? Good friends are hard to come by
in a world of superficial acquaintances and shallow relationships.
“Hanging with the crowd” can give us a false sense of belonging,
but often leaves us wounded and alone in times of trouble. Open,
honest, supportive, and loving relationships don’t happen without
investment. Ask the Lord to lead you to close friends in his
family. Minister to and serve those around you. Listen to their
requests, faithfully upholding them in prayer. Spend time in
Christian service with other servant believers. Join yourself to a
Bible study or accountability group. As you do, trust that God will
give you that “stick-through-thick-and-thin-friend.” Companions are
easy to find, but can be unreliable. Development of Christian
friends is an investment of effort and time, but they are friends
with whom we will share forever.

PRAYER:
Precious God, I thank you for my friends (include the names of
friends). Please, dear Father, lead me into the life of someone
this week who needs me to be his or her friend. Bless all those who
read Today’s Verse with a Christian friend that will help them in
their walk with you. Thank you so much, dear Father, for my
greatest friend, Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111015

Daily Promise – October 15 – We make Him very, very happy!

Zephaniah 3:17 KJV

The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice
over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.


Promise #288: I love to sing over you with loud shouts of joy.

When I go to the ocean, I love to hear the continual roaring sound of the waves crashing on the seashore. I wonder if this is just one of the ways that our God and Father rejoices over all that He made with His singing? I love this verse in the Bible because it is so jammed packed full of promises. God is mighty to save us! He rejoices over us with great joy! He will quiet us in His love! And He sings over us! All of these powerful promises are contained in just one verse.

For time’s sake, I only want to focus on the part of this promise that says that God sings over us with loud shouts of joy. The context of this verse is that there is a glorious intensity in God doing this over us. We make Him very, very happy! I wonder how many of us really grasp the joy that the Lord because of us? I believe if this revelation became more of a reality to us… that our lives make Him smile, it would change how we see ourselves.

Often when we look in a mirror, we only see the imperfections. When God looks at us, it is as if His heart skips a beat because of the joy we bring to Him. My prayer today is that you and I would have the blinders taken off of our eyes so that we might truly see ourselves in the light of God’s love and begin to experience His joy over our lives.

In Nehemiah 8:10, the Bible says that ‘the joy of the Lord is our strength’. It is His joy over our lives that will give each one of us the power to live a full, free, joy-filled life. God loves you with all His heart and He rejoices over you with loud shouts of joy!
Photo by Jeff Epp

Daily Promise – October 14 – Ask Him to teach you how to receive love from Him

1 John 4:16 KJV

And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love;
and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.


Promise #287: If you make your home in love, you live in Me and I live in you.

The KJV Bible says that if we dwell in love, we live in God. We could also translate this to mean that if we make our home in love, we make our home in God for God is love. Think about this image for a second. Imagine if love were a house, and you were welcome to have the complete run of the place! You could go to the refrigerator any time you like…kick off your shoes in the living room and lie on the couch… etc.

If love were a house, God would want us to be comfortable living there. But my question is… Are we comfortable living in love? Are we comfortable with the intimacy and vulnerability that comes with living in love? For many of us, even the word ‘love’ might have a broken meaning. For us to learn to be comfortable living in love, God will have to redeem our understanding of what love is.

In 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, we read the Apostle Paul’s description of love…
4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  8Love never fails. NIV

For us to be able to comprehend the kind of love that comes directly from God Himself, we need to be comfortable on the receiving end of love. In 1 John 4:19, the Bible says that ‘we love because He first loved us’. If you want to learn how to be comfortable living in the house of God’s love, ask Him to teach you how to receive love from Him every day.

The more that we are able to receive our Father’s love, the more that we will be comfortable making our home living in love. As we live in the love that God has for us, others will see it’s impact on our lives and want to live there too!~ Barry Adams

Daily Promise – October 13 – He will take care of us and all of the dreams we have hidden in our heart

Psalm 138:8 KJV

The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD,
endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.


Promise #286: I will fulfill My purpose for your life because My mercy endures forever.

In this psalm, King David makes the declaration that God will fulfill His purpose for his life because God’s great love endures forever. David knows full well that God will not abandon Him or forsake the work of His hands. The NIV Bible says it this way… The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever— do not abandon the works of your hands. NIV

God has a purpose for your life. In His unending, eternal love, He formed you with His own hands and He promises never to ever leave you. It is reassuring to know that God has a unique plan for each of us that He has committed to fulfill. Sure there are many bumps and bruises on the road to our destiny, and at times we can get side-tracked.

But if we have entrusted our lives to the living, loving God, we can rest in His promise to take care of us and all of the dreams we have hidden in our heart. David was confident that the LORD would fulfill His life’s purpose because God’s mercy endures forever. May you and I have the same confidence in our God and Father today. God will fulfill His purpose for you for His love endures forever!

~ Barry Adams

Daily Promise – October 12 – He is the complete expression of every possible type of love

Isaiah 49:15 KJV

Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion
on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.


Promise #285: Even if your mother forgets you, I will never forget you.

The Bible tells us in 1 John 4:16 that God is love. He is the complete expression of every possible type of love. A father’s love, a friend’s love, the love of a bridegroom, etc., for 1 John 4 says that all love comes from God. In today’s promise, we see a feminine expression of the love of God that expresses His mother’s heart.

In this verse, God is posing a question… Can a mother forget the baby at her breast? Is it possible for her to not have compassion on the child that she has birthed? God goes on to say, even if she forgets you, I will not forget you! The following verse in Isaiah 49:16 continues as God tells us that He has engraved us on the palms of His hands.

What a promise that we have! No matter what happens in this life, no matter what form of rejection we receive… even from our parents, God will not reject us! He will never forget us because He loves us with a father’s love and He loves us with a mother’s love too!

May the love of God overwhelm us today with every love that we need. A father’s love, a mother’s love, the love of a friend, the love of a Savior… May we learn to live in this love (1 John 4:16) more and more for the rest of our lives.

~ Barry Adams

Verse of the Day – I hunger for the day when I can see your splendor face to face

VERSE:
Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before
him, all the earth.
— Psalm 96:9
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Psalm+96:9

THOUGHT:
Don’t you really appreciate the phrase “the splendor of his
holiness” and long to behold that splendor? It conjures up
reminders of Isaiah’s encounter with God in Isaiah 6 or John’s
vision of Jesus in Revelation 1. God’s essence — known in the Old
Testament as his glory and his holiness — can be described only as
splendorous! Our only fitting response is to join the angels of
Isaiah 6 and the twenty-four elders around the throne in Revelation
and worship God and cry, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God
Almighty. The whole earth is full of his glory.”

PRAYER:
You are holy, majestic God, more than my mind can grasp or my
imagination can dream. I worship and praise you for your glory,
might, grace, and mercy. I hunger for the day when I can see your
splendor face to face and join the angels of heaven and the
twenty-four elders in never ending worship and praise. Through
Jesus I offer this praise and my life. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111011

Daily Promise – October 11 – The longing in your Father’s heart is that you would call Him ‘Father’

Jeremiah 3:19 KJV

But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? and I said,
Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from me.


Promise #284: I am happy to treat you as My child, and I hope you will call Me Father.

In the Old Testament, God is revealed by many names. There are actually over 300 different names that refer to God with the name ‘Father’ being one of them. I believe that this passage of Scripture truly reveals God’s amazing heart to be a Father to Israel.

The NIV Bible says it this way…
“I myself said, ” ‘How gladly would I treat you like sons and give you a desirable land, the most beautiful inheritance of any nation.’ I thought you would call me ‘Father’ and not turn away from following me. NIV

When I read this passage of Scripture, I feel the longing that God has to be a father to us. How happy He is to treat us like sons and how He hopes that we would call Him ‘Father’. Though God is revealed by many names in the Old Testament, Jesus primarily revealed God as Father in the New Testament.

Through Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection, we now have the opportunity to call Him our Father now! In John 20:17, after just coming out of the tomb, I believe that Jesus summarizes all the New Testament revelation into one statement … Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ “ NIV

The longing in your Father’s heart is that you would call Him ‘Father’. May today be the day when this revelation of His fathering nature goes deeper into your heart than ever before.   ~ Barry Adams

Daily Promise – October 10 – Because of Jesus, you are free from all condemnation

Romans 8:1 KJV

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus,
who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.


Promise #283: Because of Jesus, you are free from all condemnation.

This is a wonderful promise that we can all take to heart. There is therefore now NO condemnation! Many of us struggle with feelings of shame and condemnation every day. This Scripture tells us that because of what Jesus did, we do not have to live under condemnation any longer.

However, when you read the KJV Bible translation of Romans 8:1, it seems like there is a bit of a disclaimer to the statement ‘There is therefore now no condemnation…” The disclaimer is …for those who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For me, when I was a younger Christian and read this verse, I felt that if I somehow was walking after the flesh, then I would be subject to condemnation.

I truly believe that the heart of this verse is better translated in the ESV translation of the Bible which says in

Romans 8:1-2…
1There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
2For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. ESV

Notice that after the promise of no condemnation there is a period. The disclaimer (for those who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit) is not there. I truly believe that because of the finished work of Jesus Christ there is therefore now NO condemnation…period! The law of the Spirit of life has set us free from the law of sin and death. Hallelujah!
Photo by Barry Adams

Jesus is the ultimate model for every person

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. 

Philippians 2:5, NKJV

What does it mean to be just like Jesus? 

The world has never known a heart so pure, a character so flawless. 

His spiritual hearing was so keen

He never missed a heavenly whisper. 

His mercy so abundant

He never missed a chance to forgive. 

No lie left His lips,

no distraction marred His vision. 

He touched when others recoiled. 

He endured when others quit. 

Jesus is the ultimate model for every person.

~ Max Lucado

 

Daily Promise – October 9 – The Pathway to real Freedom

1 John 1:9 KJV

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Promise #282: If you confess your sins, I will be faithful to forgive and cleanse you.

God is faithful. God is just in all that He does. God promises to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. All that He requires is that we trust in His goodness and risk exposing our heart by confessing our shortcomings to Him. When we confess our sins, we are vulnerable and honest before our God and Father.

When we confess our sins to God, we openly declare that we are relying on His mercy to cleanse us from all unrighteousness and that we can’t do it ourselves. It takes faith and trust to live a transparent life before God, but that is the pathway to real freedom. When we keep things in the dark, those things have power over us and will keep us enslaved in one form or another. When we bring things into the light that lurk in the shadows of our heart, we experience new found freedom over those things.

The amazing thing is that God is not surprised by what we confess, for He knows us better than we knows ourselves. He does not judge us when we open our hearts to Him, but rather the opposite happens.

In Psalm 103:14-15 the NIV Bibles says…
13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; 14 for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.

When we are vulnerable and honest before God, compassion rises up in His heart towards us because He understands our frailities. Confession of our sins is for our benefit not God’s. He has already dealt with the issue of sin that once separated us through the shed blood of Jesus… once and for all!

He wants us to be completely free! Free from a guilty conscience and free from condemnation and the accusations from the enemy! So if there is anything that is keeping you from experiencing the intimacy of being with your Papa God, be assured in knowing that if we confess our sins to Him, He will be faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness! ~ Barry Adams

Daily Promise – October 8 – He exchanged His life for our life

John 1:16 KJV

And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.

Promise #281: I have blessed you in Christ with one outpouring of grace after another.

I love the Amplified version of this Bible verse…
For out of His fullness (abundance) we have all received [all had a share and we were all supplied with] one grace after another and spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing and even favor upon favor and gift [heaped] upon gift. AMP

In Jesus, God the Father has blessed us with grace upon grace, heaped favor upon favor on us and blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heaven (Ephesians 1:3). Words cannot express the wonderful, bountiful outpouring of love and blessings that God has given us through the free gift of His Son, Jesus Christ.

My prayer is that we would be able to tangibly grasp the unshakeable inheritance that is ours in Jesus Christ today. He exchanged His life for our life and made the way for us to be partakers of His divine nature and beneficiaries of all His blessings. Thank you God for your amazing grace and every good and perfect gift that comes from your hand (James 1:17)!

Verse of the Day – Sometimes the greatest of all wonders wrap their tiny fingers around our own and capture our hearts

VERSE:
Who among the gods is like you, O LORD? Who is like you —
majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?
— Exodus 15:11
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Exodus+15:11

THOUGHT:
With whom do you compare the incomparable? How do you grasp the
infinite with a finite mind? When the quintessence of majesty is
the God you contemplate, how can you ever speak of majesty about
anything else? God exhausts our superlatives. God’s glory bewilders
our imaginations. God’s greatness exceeds our wildest dreams. He is
beyond what we can know or believe. Yet the Wonder of all his
wonders is simply this: he limited himself to a baby, swaddled by
loving parents in strips of cloth, and placed in a feed trough
because there was no room for them in the inn. Sometimes the
greatest of all wonders are not the ones that require our biggest
and best words. Sometimes the greatest of all wonders wrap their
tiny fingers around our own and capture our hearts.

PRAYER:
I do not know how to understand your incredible love for us, yes
even for me. How could you enter our world in baby Jesus? Like the
Magi, I bow and worship you, Lord Jesus, and our Father who sent
you. Who is like you, O God? Nobody is even close. Yet for some
reason known only to your grace, you have brought us close. I
praise you for your majesty and I praise you for your manger. To
your glory, precious Jesus, and in your name, I offer this praise.
Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20111007

Daily Promise – October 7 – We are God’s Offspring

Acts 17:28 KJV

For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also
of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

Promise #280: Your life comes from Me because you are My offspring.

Today’s promise comes from a passage in the Bible where the Apostle Paul is debating with some Greek philosophers on Mars Hill about the existence of the one and only true God. In the midst of his conversation, Paul tells that God is so involved in their lives that they actually live and move and have their being in Him.In Colossians 1:15-17 it says this about Jesus…
 15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. NIV

Every neutron and electron, every strand of DNA, is held together by the very life of the living God. In Ephesians 4:4-6, it says that there is one God and Father of us all who is over all and in all and through all. No matter if all of mankind acknowledges this truth or not, it does not change the unshakeable fact that our God is the very fabric in which the universe is held together. There is no denying it.

I have always found it interesting that when Paul was speaking to the Greeks, he quoted one of their own poets that said that ‘we are all God’s offspring’. The truth is that God created every person who ever lived. He is the very author of life. Whether we realize it or not, we are all God’s offspring through creation and it is His eternal plan that every person on the planet would become His children through redemption by the free gift of Jesus Christ!

Related articles

How long?

“How long must I stay with you?” 

Mark 9:19

How long?

“Until the rooster sings and the sweat stings and the mallet rings . . .”

How long?

“Long enough for every sin to so soak my sinless soul that heaven will turn in horror until my swollen lips pronounce the final transaction:

‘It is finished.’”

Jesus bore all things,

believed all things,

hoped all things,

and endured all things.

Every single one.

~ Max Lucado

Verse of the Day – Can you trust what you don’t see?

VERSE:
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you
do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an
inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of
your faith, the salvation of your souls.
— 1 Peter 1:8-9
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=1+Peter+1:8-9

THOUGHT:
Can you trust what you don’t see? Of course! What kind of
question is that? Our lives depend on what we cannot see — things
like gravity and the air we breathe, just to name two. Faith in
Jesus is as natural as faith in each of those things. The problem
is that our hearts are skeptical. We find it hard to believe that
anyone divine would love us so much. Our experience says, “If it
seems too good to be true, it is.” That skepticism is just the
twisted form of the response God longs to see from us:
“inexpressible and glorious joy.” I don’t know about you, but I’ve
tasted both. I prefer joy over skepticism!

PRAYER:
What joy fills my heart, Father, when I anticipate what it will
be like to be in your presence — to have you wipe each tear from
my eyes and to have you introduce me again to those I love and to
those I’ve only known by reputation. Please never let me outlive
that sense of anticipation and never let that hope dim in my heart,
no matter what else may happen in my life here. In Jesus’ name I
pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20110930

Back – but sick with the flu

Update as of 10-6-11:

We are back in town,  but both have the flu. Bear with us as we heal. Will be back posting as soon as possible. Be blessed. Sharon & Erick

======================================================

9-30-11

We will be away from the computer for a few days, so I posted the Daily Promises, without the devotionals attached, through October 3.

I will post the devotionals later.

Please browse through past messages for encouragement, strength, and inspiration.

Be blessed, and know that God loves you, and is just waiting with much excitement to give you a wonderful day, every day.

Sharon

Agape Love

“Love is patient and kind.”

1 Corinthians 13:4

Agape love cares for others because God has cared for us.

Agape love goes beyond sentiment and good wishes.

Because God loved first, agape love responds.

Because God was gracious, agape love

forgives the mistake when the offense is high.

Agape offers patience when stress is abundant

and extends kindness when kindness is rare.

Why?

Because God offered us both.

~ Max Lucado

Daily Promise – September 29 – You have an everlasting inheritance

1 Peter 1:3-4 KJV

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

Promise #272: You have an everlasting inheritance reserved in heaven for you.

There are many uncertain things in this world that we live in but our everlasting inheritance is NOT one of them. Our God and our Father has secured an inheritance for every one who has received the free of gift of His Son’s life that is incorruptible, undefiled and will never fade away.No matter how unstable things become around you, you can bank on this promise to be unshakeable! Because of the abundant mercy of the Triune God, we can hope in a special place in heaven that is reserved just for us! It is more certain than the ground that you are standing on right now.

Father, we thank you for your abundant mercy expressed through the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus! When times get tough and the near future looks bleak, may we lift up our eyes to see the amazing future that is in store for us and may we be filled with hope knowing that you really are a faithful Father!
Photo by Barry Adams

‘Honey, I love you in an abstract way’

By Jon Walker

This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other. (John 13:35 MSG)

True love is never in the abstract. ‘We’ll never carry out our mission of being witnesses to Christ from behind pulpits or within Bible studies. We’re commissioned to “go therefore” and fill the earth with the presence of Christ so others may “observe” what He commanded us — to love one another as He loves us (Matthew 28:19-20 NASB; John 13:34).

We are to take our unseen and eternal fellowship, our oneness with Him and each other, into the seen and temporal lives of others.

To “observe” something, it must be seen. As others observe us, watch us “being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, intent on one purpose; not merely looking out for our own personal interests, but also for each other’s interests (Philippians 2:3-4),” they will naturally wonder where such uncommon attitudes come from.

And we have opportunity to say, “This is the attitude that ‘is in Christ Jesus who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond servant, being made in the likeness of men’” (Philippians 2:5-7).

In a fallen and self-oriented world, both that attitude and practice are particularly uncommon and profoundly noticeable. The witness of the reality of Christ and His love through our authentic and loving relationships is a living testimony that the world must deal with. Jesus’ personal and sacrificial love creates a safe place, a refuge, an opportunity to “be” that every person needs.

This devotional is based on my book, Costly Grace: A Contemporary View of Bonhoeffer’s ‘The Cost of Discipleship’.

We now have free small group study guides posted for each chapter from Costly Grace. The study guides are available at http://www.gracecreates.com/free-stuff/.

‘Honey, I love you in an abstract way’ is a post from: GraceCreates Jon Walker is the author of Costly Grace: A Contemporary View of Bonhoeffer’s ‘The Cost of Discipleship’ and Growing with Purpose. He has served on staff at Saddleback Church and Purpose Driven Ministries and is currently the managing editor of Rick Warren’s Daily Devotionals and the Ministry Toolbox. Contact him at questions@gracecreates.com. This article is copyrighted 2011 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.

Jesus is the Center

For me to live is Christ [His life in me]

Philippians 1:21 AMP

Jesus is the way.

He is not only the Way to God, but He is the Way into all that God has for us.

He is the Way into our devotions,

to our Bible reading,

to our prayer life,

to our ministry,

and to all that we do for Him.

In reality, we do not do our work for Him,

but He does His work through us.

With Jesus in the center of our being,

we are no longer victims of our expectations,

circumstances,

and the things we can’t control.

We discover that it’s okay if people don’t meet our expectations,

because Jesus is our expectation.

Schedules may be good,

but they don’t produce life within us because

Jesus is our life.

–Don Lessin

Verse of the Day – Glory in His Holy Name

VERSE:
Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the
LORD rejoice.
— 1 Chronicles 16:10
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=1+Chronicles+16:10

THOUGHT:
What is your glory? Do you glory in your accomplishments, your
wealth, your status, your looks, your piety, your humility …? In
the old hymn “Beneath the Cross of Jesus,” we confess, “My glory,
all the Cross.” That’s what Christians mean when we “glory in God’s
holy name.” Our full understanding of God’s holy name has been
greatly expanded by Jesus. He taught us to not only reverence the
name of God, but also to call him Father. Any other cause of joy,
any other basis for boasting, is a passing illusion. For those
whose hearts seek the LORD, glory is found in reverencing the holy
name of the Father who gave up his precious Son so we could be his
children. He loves us that much. Incredible!

PRAYER:
You have blessed me in so many ways, Father. How can I ever
begin to thank you properly? I confess that I sometimes seek
notoriety and glory for myself even though I know it is fleeting
and often it is only the false flattery of those who want something
from me. But deep in my heart, dear God, I know that my true glory
is found in the adoption covenant you signed with your grace. Thank
you! Words cannot capture my appreciation, but please know that I
look forward to being eternally grateful for all that you have
done. May the glory be yours in heaven and throughout the earth,
both now and forevermore. In the name of Jesus I praise you. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20110929

Verse of the Day – Christ died for sins ONCE for ALL

VERSE:
For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the
unrighteous, to bring you to God.
— 1 Peter 3:18
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=1+Peter+3:18

THOUGHT:
It sounds so simple and straightforward, doesn’t it? Kinda like
the newspaper headline about someone dying we don’t know. Just
cold, hard facts! But we know differently. Underneath this
statement of grace lies the broken heart of God, the sacrifice of
heaven, the brutality of supposedly religious men, and the
searching love of our God who would not abandon us to the cruel
“Deathmaster.” For those who knew animal sacrifice, with its high
personal cost and animal sacrifices, this verse is more than a
headline: it is a “graceline.” Once for all — no more sacrifices
needed. Bring you to God — no more distance, no intermediaries
between God and us. Jesus is heaven’s open door and God’s open
heart saying, “Come home; we’ve been waiting for you.”

PRAYER:
What words, O gracious Father, can I use to express my
appreciation for your sacrifice and grace? I have none sufficient
to say what I feel. But even in this realization, I know the gift
of your Spirit ensures that you hear my words and my heart. Every
good and lasting thing I have comes from your grace. Please receive
my undying love and my heartfelt praise for all you are, for all
you have done, and for all that you will be. In Jesus’ precious
name I pray. Amen.

http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=20110928

Daily Promise – September 28 – We are more than conquerors through Him

Romans 16:20 KJV

And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

Promise #271: I will soon crush the evil one under your feet.

In the Lord’s prayer, Jesus taught us to ask our Father to ‘deliver us from evil’. Jesus wouldn’t have told us to pray this way unless He was certain that His Father would answer our prayer to be saved from evil.

We know that in this world, we will have trouble in life because we live in a fallen world. Hurting people hurt other people and the cause and effect of a fallen humanity causes many evil things to happen. However, that does not mean that we are in subjection to the prince of the power of air. In James 4:7, the Bible says, resist the devil and he will flee from you.

In Romans 8:37, Paul says that we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. As Paul continues to write the book of Romans, he goes on to say in today’s promise found in Romans 16:20, that the God of peace will soon crush the evil one beneath our feet. No matter what circumstances you are facing today, be encouraged that our God and Father will soon give us an eternal victory and crush the evil one beneath our feet! …So rest in this amazing promise and may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
Photo by Barry Adams