Daily Archives: March 16, 2014

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – What can I do when my feelings go from discouraged to hopeless?

1 Comment

Charles Stanley

Habakkuk 3:17-19

If you feel hopeless, helpless, or powerless—unable to deal with people or problems and on the verge of exhaustion—take heart in the prophet Habakkuk’s stirring conclusion to his short book.

Knowing that a savage army of Babylonians would soon plunder his homeland, Habakkuk was discouraged. Surely, the coming destruction would be absolutely unbearable. Yet despite the disheartening scenario, Habakkuk penned an amazing response: “I will rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Lord GOD is my strength, and He has made my feet like hinds’ feet, and makes me walk on my high places” (3:18, 19). Even if the crops all failed, the livestock died, and everything he had learned to depend on was ruined, Habakkuk would still trust the Lord (3:17).

Where did the prophet find such hope in the face of such terrible calamity? For one thing, he had been strengthened by God’s Word. His expression of faith closely echoes the words of David, uttered centuries before: “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies” (Ps. 18:2, 3).

Also, Habakkuk had spent a great deal of time alone with the Lord. In fact, the book that bears his name is a record of his extended conversation with God concerning His ways and plans. While Habakkuk did not understand (or particularly like) what he heard from God, he acknowledged the fact that His ways are best. He trusted the Lord for the future of Israel and for his own life. Regardless of the circumstances, the prophet knew that the Lord was at work and would bring good out of what seemed to be horrendous circumstances. That is God’s promise to us. He is always at work in our lives to bring good out of the darkest of situations (Rom. 8:28).

When the outlook looks grim, Christ is your strength. When the circumstances seem volatile, Christ is your stability. When the future appears foreboding, Christ remains your hope. The strength of Christ is both inexhaustible and immeasurable—and it is yours to receive.

God delights in upholding the weary and reviving the fainthearted (Is. 40:29–31). Your reservoir of emotional and physical energy may feel nearly drained, but God’s supply of spiritual stamina never runs out. Come to Him and His Word for the strength to carry on, and He will supply the power you need to traverse the rough terrain ahead. That’s His promise, and God always keeps His promises.

Adapted from “The Charles F. Stanley’s Life Principles Bible,” 2008.

 

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Heart Food

Leave a comment

Our Daily Bread

Jeremiah 15:15-21

Your words were found, and I ate them. —Jeremiah 15:16

I love food! I love to see it beautifully presented, and I love to savor the taste. If it were up to me, I would eat more often than I should—although it wouldn’t help my waistline! So, it’s a good thing my wife, Martie, knows when to lovingly remind me to eat healthful foods in the right amount.

Reading Jeremiah’s interesting thought—that when he found the words of God (even the words of God’s judgment) he “ate them” (Jer. 15:16)—makes me wonder if I ingest God’s Word as eagerly, as lovingly, and as often.

Clearly, Jeremiah did not actually eat God’s Word. It was his way of saying that he read and savored it in his innermost being. And that’s exactly where God’s Word is intended to go. The Word is heart food! When we ingest it, the Holy Spirit provides the power to help us grow to be more like Jesus. His Word transforms how we think about God, money, enemies, careers, and family. In other words, it’s really good for us.

So, “eat” God’s Word to your heart’s content! No doubt you will find yourself agreeing with the prophet Jeremiah when he said: “Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart” (15:16). —Joe Stowell

Lord, cultivate in me an appetite for Your Word. Thank

You that the Bible is food for my soul. Lead me to read

it, to savor it, to ingest it, and to know the strength

that Your words can give to my often-failing heart.

The more you feast on God’s Word, the healthier you will become.

Bible in a year: Deuteronomy 28-29; Mark 14:54-72

Insight

Righteous living will eventually meet with opposition and persecution. Indeed, “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12). In Jeremiah 15, we see how Jeremiah lamented the unjust treatment he experienced as a true prophet of God. Yet in his anguish he received the assurance that God would stand by him.

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – Keep Me Back from Sin

Leave a comment

Alistair Begg

Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins.

Psalms 19:13

Such was the prayer of the “man after God’s own heart.” Did holy David need to pray like this? How needful, then, such a prayer must be for us babes in grace! It is as if he said, “Keep me back, or I shall rush headlong over the precipice of sin.” Our evil nature, like an ill-tempered horse, is apt to run away. May the grace of God put the bridle upon it and hold it in, that it rush not into mischief.

What would the best of us do if it were not for the checks that the Lord sets upon us both in providence and in grace! The psalmist’s prayer is directed against the worst form of sin–that which is done with deliberation and willfulness. Even the holiest need to be “kept back” from the vilest transgressions. It is a solemn thing to find the apostle Paul warning saints against the most loathsome sins: “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”1

What! Do saints really need to be warned against such sins as these? Yes, they do. The whitest robes, unless their purity be preserved by divine grace, will be defiled by the blackest spots.

Experienced Christian, do not boast in your experience; you will trip if you look away from Him who is able to keep you from falling. You whose love is fervent, whose faith is constant, whose hopes are bright, do not say, “We shall never sin,” but rather cry, “Lead us not into temptation.” There is enough kindling in the heart of the best of men to light a fire that shall burn to the lowest hell, unless God shall quench the sparks as they fall. Who would have dreamed that righteous Lot could be found drunk and committing immorality? Hazael said, “Is Your servant a dog, that he should do this thing?” and we are very apt to use the same self-righteous question. May infinite wisdom cure us of the madness of self-confidence.

1 Colossians 3:5

The family reading plan for March 16, 2014  Proverbs 3 | Galatians 2

 

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Good works

Leave a comment

CharlesSpurgeon

“Zealous of good works” Titus 2:14

Suggested Further Reading: 1 Timothy 2:8-15

It would be a good thing, perhaps, if we went back to Wesley’s rule, to come out from the world in our apparel, and to dress as plainly and neatly as the Quakers, though alas! they have sadly gone from their primitive simplicity. I am obliged to depart a little sometimes, from what we call the high things of the gospel; for really the children of God cannot now be told by outward appearance from the children of the devil, and they really ought to be; there should be some distinction between the one and the other; and although religion allows distinction of rank and dress, yet everything in the Bible cries out against our arraying ourselves, and making ourselves proud, by reason of the goodliness of our apparel. Some will say, “I wish you would leave that alone!” Of course you do, because it applies to yourself. But we let nothing alone which we believe to be in the Scriptures; and while I would not spare any man’s soul, honesty to every man’s conscience, and honesty to myself, demands that I should always speak of that which I see to be an evil breaking out in the Church. We should always take care that in everything we keep as near as possible to the written Word. If you want ornaments here they are. Here are jewels, rings, dresses, and all kinds of ornament; men and women, you may dress yourselves up till you shine like angels. How can you do it? By dressing yourselves out in benevolence, in love to the saints, in honesty and integrity, in uprightness, in godliness, in brotherly-kindness, in charity. These are the ornaments which angels themselves admire, and which even the world will admire; for men must give admiration to the man or the woman who is arrayed in the jewels of a holy life and godly conversation. I beseech you, brethren, “adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things.”

For meditation: Isaiah 3:16-23: God is concerned about our outward appearance and our attitude to it. He wants spirituality, not showing off (1 Peter 3:3-4).

Sermon no. 70

16 March (1856)

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Hallowing God’s Name

1 Comment

John MacArthur

“Hallowed be Thy name” (Matt. 6:9).

To most people the word hallowed elicits thoughts of Halloween, ivy-covered walls, or starchy religious traditions. But those are all far from its biblical meaning. “Hallowed” in Matthew 6:9 translates a Greek word that means “holy.” When Christ said, “Hallowed be Thy name,” He was saying in effect, “May Your name be regarded as holy.” When you hallow God’s name, you set it apart from everything common and give Him the place He deserves in your life.

Throughout Scripture, holiness is attributed to persons or things that are consecrated to God’s service. The Sabbath day, for example, was to be kept holy–set apart from the other days (Ex. 20:8). The Israelite priests were to be considered holy because they rendered special service to the Lord (Lev. 21:8). As believers in Christ we are to be holy because we belong to God (1 Pet. 1:15).

Holiness also speaks of moral excellence and purity. God is called the “Holy One” (1 Pet. 1:15) not only because He is set apart from His creation, but also because He is pure and sinless in His character. That’s why Isaiah pronounced a curse on himself when he saw the Lord and heard the angels crying out, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory” (Isa. 6:3- 5). He was overcome with a sense of his own human sinfulness in the presence of a holy God.

Such a God deserves your highest respect and reverence. He is your gracious and loving Father, but He is also the sovereign, majestic God of the universe. Consequently, you must guard against thinking of Him as a buddy or addressing Him flippantly.

Additionally, He deserves your humble obedience. You hallow His name only when your life is marked by righteousness and moral excellence.

May that be true of you today, and may you seek to honor Him in all that you do!

Suggestions for Prayer:

Always approach God with a sense of respect and reverence.

Think of specific ways that you can hallow His name today. Ask Him for the grace to do so. For Further Study:

Read each of these verses, noting the specific ways you can glorify God:

Joshua 7:19, Psalm 50:23, John 15:8, Romans 15:5-6, 1 Corinthians 6:20, Philippians 2:9-11, and 2 Thessalonians 3:1.

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Focus on God’s Promises

Leave a comment

Joyce meyer

For I the Lord your God hold your right hand; I am the Lord, Who says to you, Fear not; I will help you! —Isaiah 41:13

The Lord says to you this morning the same thing He told Jacob in a dream: “I am with you and will keep (watch over you with care, take notice of) you wherever you may go, and I will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done all of which I have told you.” (Genesis 28:15). Keep your mind on this promise in spite of any news you may hear that tempts you to be afraid today.

God promises to be with you, watch over you with care, take notice of you wherever you may go, and bring you back again. He says He will not leave you, and He will complete all the promises He has made to you. This means that no weapon formed against you will prosper (See Isaiah 54:17).

 

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Tried in the Test Tube

Leave a comment

dr_bright

“These trials are only to test your faith, to see whether or not it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests gold and purifies it – and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold; so if your faith remains strong after being tried in the test tube of fiery trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day of His return” (1 Peter 1:7).

A friend of mine has experienced great tragedy in his life – at least ten major things that seem to have gone wrong.

“I see you as a man of God,” I have said to him during several counseling sessions. “I see you as a man who loves the Lord Jesus with all of your heart. In light of all the things that are happening to you, however, I am prompted to ask, ‘Is there any sin in your life? Are you doing anything to dishonor the Lord?'”

“Absolutely nothing,” he said. “My life is transparent before God. He can do anything He wants with me. I have turned my back on business success [he was an outstanding businessman], and I have given everything I have to the Lord.”

The beautiful thing about this whole experience is that this man is rejoicing in the Lord Jesus while enduring things that would break the average person. Every time he emerges from a crisis, his face seems to glow all the more. He is praising God all the more.

He blesses me every time I am with him. “Lord thank You,” I say. “Thank You for his example.”

Those who are mightily used of God often experience, like Job, some degree of adversity. Such adversity may be God’s discipline for disobedience and unconfessed sin, or it may be – as in the case of Job, and I believe in the case of my friend – God’s way of preparing you for a greater testimony for our Lord. “Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth.”

Bible Reading: James 1:2-5

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  I will look upon my trials as part of God’s way of strengthening my faith and my life to prepare me for a more powerful witness for His glory.

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; C.P. – Faith Perspective

Leave a comment

ppt_seal01

A new creation. That sounds good—a chance to start all over. But sometimes, where the Lord leads seems like the wrong direction: like Joseph in slavery, the Israelites in the wilderness, Daniel in the lion den, Mary in pre-marital pregnancy, Paul in prison. And as soon as Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit led Him to the wilderness to be tempted.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.

II Corinthians 5:17

God loves you and wants you to be successful in your Christian life, walk in His power, and carry His presence and glory. He graces you to overcome and be victorious, express Him in all you do and help others do the same. He is your greatest fan cheering you on. He wants you to walk as a new creation.

When you see the Heavenly Father as good and loving, your source, no matter what you’re going through; when you are yielded to Jesus in a loving relationship and your comfort is secondary; when you walk in faith and not by sight – you are behaving as a new creation. Today, pray God will strengthen your faith. And pray He will perform His purpose in this nation, no matter how it appears to the natural eye.

Recommended Reading: Romans 8:26-39