Monthly Archives: February 2016

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – It’s Time to Pray

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Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises.—James 5:13

Have you ever been in what appeared to be an impossible situation with no way out? Have you ever desperately needed or wanted something, but it seemed as though there was no way you would ever have it? Or, have you ever thought there was no future for you? If so, you need to know about the power of God that can take place through prayer.

One thing that comes out very clearly in the pages of God’s Word is that prayer can dramatically change situations, people, and sometimes even the very course of nature.

But what prayer actually changes the most is you. You change when you pray. The objective of prayer is not to change God or to get Him to do something differently. The objective of prayer is to align yourself with the will and purposes of God.

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Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Has Not Given You a Spirit of Fear

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“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (II Timothy 1:7).

One day when Kelly was in second grade, she flipped a few pages ahead in her math book and saw little clocks all over the pages. She was going to have to learn how to tell time—on non-digital clocks! She was terrified. She was sure that she would never be able to learn that. From that moment on, she worried and worried and worried about the clock lesson.

When the day came to learn about telling time, Kelly was so worried and fearful that she could not even concentrate on the lesson. Just as she had feared, when she got her clock paper back, there were checkmarks next to almost every problem and a sad face at the top of the page! Her fear about that math lesson had taken over her mind and kept her from understanding.

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Wrath Revealed

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Today’s Scripture: Romans 1:18, NIV

“The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men.”

Some people like to think that although the wrath of God is a reality in the Old Testament era, it disappears in the teaching of Jesus, where God’s love and mercy become the only expressions of his attitude toward his creatures. Jesus clearly refuted that notion: “Whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” (John 3:36, NIV). And he frequently referred to hell as the ultimate, eternal expression of God’s wrath. (See, for example, Matthew 5:22; 18:9; Mark 9:47; Luke 12:5.)

In the inspired letters of Paul, we read of God’s wrath being “stored up” for the day of judgment (Romans 2:5) and that God’s wrath is coming because of sin (Colossians 3:6). And the whole tenor of Revelation warns us of the wrath to come.

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – To Love Is to Give

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Today’s Scripture: John 17:25-26

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. – Ephesians 5:25

I greeted our youngest boy with, “Son, what did you do in school today?” To my utter surprise, he said the teacher had them write a definition of love.

That sounded more like an assignment for a college-level sociology or philosophy class than a bunch of eight-year-olds. But I controlled my surprise and said, “What did you write?”

“Well, it sure could have been better.”

“But what did you say?”

“Well,” he replied, “it sure could have been longer.”

Continue reading The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – To Love Is to Give →

BreakPoint

BreakPoint – Zika and Abortion, a Tale of Two Viruses

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On February 1, the World Health Organization declared a “global emergency” over the spread of the Zika virus.

The WHO estimates there could be as many as 4 million cases of Zika in the Americas over the next twelve months. The Centers for Disease Control, while saying that Zika is unlikely to cause a widespread problem here in the U.S., is cautioning pregnant women to postpone travel to areas affected by the virus.

While Zika is rarely, if ever, life-threatening, concern about the illness could prove fatal for one vulnerable population: the unborn.

The Zika virus is a member of the same family of viruses as the ones that cause dengue and yellow fevers. Unlike these cousins, however, Zika’s affects, with one notable exception, are usually mild: headaches, fever, joint pains, and some rashes. Most of these symptoms go away within a few days.

The exception, which was first identified in French Polynesia three years ago, is that pregnant women infected with the virus are at a much greater risk of giving birth to children with microcephaly, a “neurodevelopmental disorder” characterized by significantly smaller head size.

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Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – REST WRECKERS: SLOTH

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Read Matthew 25:14-30

In September 2014, Brooklyn postal worker Joseph Brucato admitted that for nine years he had been hiding mail that he was supposed to deliver to residents of Flatbush. His supervisor became suspicious when he noticed that Brucato’s personal car was filled with letters. The undelivered mail weighed more than a ton.

The servant in today’s parable was entrusted with one talent, and he failed to perform his duty. Instead of acting in his master’s interest, he buried the money entrusted to his care. One talent might not sound like much, but the value of a talent in Jesus’ day was roughly equivalent to twenty years’ wages for an ordinary worker. This fiscal conservatism angered the master, who accused him of dereliction of duty and called him a wicked, lazy servant (vv. 26–27).

This servant’s behavior is a good example of sloth. Although sloth sounds like it might be an extreme form of rest, it is really the opposite. While rest refreshes, sloth drains our vitality and depletes our energy. Rest is a remedy but sloth is injurious, a sin of omission. Sloth fails to do what is right, required, or good. Sloth seems like it will make life easier for us, but Scripture describes it as a path blocked with thorns (Prov. 15:19).

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – AMAZON IS PREPARING FOR ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE

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If zombies take over the world, Amazon is ready. The company has written software that will run heart-lung machines and autonomous vehicles if the U.S. Centers for Disease Control declares a zombie apocalypse. The provision is buried within the Terms and Conditions of Amazon’s newly-released video-game development software. As a result, people are talking about a software service most would have ignored.

This isn’t the first time a company has used zombies for publicity. In 2011, the CDC issued preparations for natural disasters and diseases, but their announcements weren’t getting traction. So they released “Preparedness 101: Zombie Apocalypse” and that got our attention. Now zombies have taken over Jane Austen’s acclaimed work; for more, see Nick Pitts’s review of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.

Zombies are one of the few problems we don’t face these days. Zika-linked birth defects are now known to cause significant brain abnormalities. Boko Haram suicide bombers recently killed fifty-eight at a Nigerian camp. Los Angeles will spend $1.9 billion to tackle the escalating homelessness crisis in the city.

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – A True Servant

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Read | John 13:1-15

Do you equate success with wealth, acclaim, and power? If we measured by these standards, then Jesus, who was rejected by His community and didn’t even own a house, was a failure. But, of course, we know that’s not the case. So God must use something other than these worldly goals to define success. In fact, Scripture is clear that Jesus is our example—we should strive to be like Him.

So, what exactly was our Savior’s mission? In today’s passage, we see the answer through His actions: He came to serve. Jesus performed the task of the lowliest servant when He took off His outer garment and washed the dirty feet of His followers—the very followers He knew would betray and deny Him. The next day, almighty God was crucified by His own creation. In allowing this, He offered salvation to all—even those who nailed Him to a cross.

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Turn Off the Scoreboard

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Read: Ephesians 4:25-32

Bible in a Year: Leviticus 11-12; Matthew 26:1-25

Forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. —Ephesians 4:32

At his son’s wedding reception, my friend Bob offered advice and encouragement to the newlyweds. In his speech he told of a football coach in a nearby town who, when his team lost a game, kept the losing score on the scoreboard all week to remind the team of their failure. While that may be a good football strategy, Bob wisely advised, it’s a terrible strategy in marriage. When your spouse upsets you or fails you in some way, don’t keep drawing attention to the failure. Turn off the scoreboard.

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Acknowledging Creatureliness

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We don’t need the movies to show us how much of a disparity there is between truth and lies, though the twists in plot and suspense often remind us. We all hold certain values, and if we’re honest, we might admit how often we fail to honor them. And yet, there is something peculiar about how our minds work. We can so easily bracket our own lives from an acknowledgment of how consistently we miss the mark. It is like a built-in avoidance mechanism.

The issues of self-deception and denial are more serious than we care to admit. Tendencies toward self-pity, self-preoccupation, self-righteousness, and self-aggrandizement are intense and dangerous. Or as Christian theologian Reinhold Niebuhr describes it: “Sin is thus the unwillingness of man to acknowledge his creatureliness and dependence upon God and his effort to make his own life independent and secure.”(1)

One of the most helpful insights I know toward sorting through truth, lies, and deception is in Scripture’s calling us out of ourselves and always towards God. We are reminded often that the human heart is more deceitful than anything else. “Who can fathom it?” asks Jeremiah. “God alone, who searches the heart and tests inner motivation.”(2)

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John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – God Is Always with Us

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“The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth” (Psalm 145:18).

Understanding God’s omnipresence should encourage us in times of distress and keep us from sinning.

It is a great comfort as a Christian to know that God is always present in me both essentially and relationally. No matter what the trial, He is there. Sometimes He might seem faraway, but He’s really no further away than He’s ever been. His promise to us is, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you” (Heb. 13:5).

God is always with us to support our service to Him. When God called Moses to proclaim His message and lead Israel out of slavery, Moses protested because of his lack of speaking abilities (Ex. 4:10). But God said, “I . . . will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say” (v. 12). Jesus commands us, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations . . . and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:19-20). If you doubt you have the power to witness, remember that you have the same resource as any evangelist—the presence and power of God!

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Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – More Than a Feeling 

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See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. Deuteronomy 30:15-16

In Christian circles, we talk a great deal about our love for the Lord. We sing songs of praise that proclaim our affection and desire for Him. We join our hearts with the words of Scripture and declare our devotion to Christ and His Kingdom. Yet, like any relationship, for this love to be true, for this love to be genuine, it must be more than lip service and good intentions. Our love for God must be more than a warm feeling or emotional response that has no connection to the concrete realities of our lives.

When we love someone, we live our lives in ways that show our affection to be true and genuine. We are especially attentive to the needs, concerns, and desires of the one we love. We learn to receive love and love in return, not simply by words of affection but through tangible acts of love, self-sacrifice, and faithfulness.

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Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Be Still

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In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.

Isaiah 30:15

Recommended Reading

Matthew 16:24-28

Psychologists are warning we’re losing some basic skills of life by our reliance on mobile devices. People no longer add or subtract, they use the calculators on their phones. We no longer type or keyboard; we punch icons with our thumbs. We don’t worry about memorizing anything; our devices have become our brains. We don’t even think as much because we plug in our earphones and listen to podcasts and music.

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Uncategorized

Joyce Meyer – Don’t Miss the Miracle

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And she had a sister named Mary, who seated herself at the Lord’s feet and was listening to His teaching. —Luke 10:39

You will not enjoy the present moment and the gifts it contains if you don’t have a balanced attitude toward work. Luke 10:38-42 tells the story of Jesus’ visit to the home of two sisters, Mary and Martha. Martha was overly occupied and too busy (see Luke 10:40). But Mary sat down at Jesus’ feet and listened to what He had to say.

Jesus said Mary made the better choice. Jesus did not tell Martha not to work, but He did tell her not to be frustrated or have a bad attitude while she worked. Jesus wants you to work hard, but He also wants you to be wise enough to realize when you should stop all activity and not miss the miracle of the moment.

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Girlfriends in God

Girlfriends in God – Peace

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Jesus has the power of God, by which He has given us everything we need to live and to serve God. We have these things because we know Him.

2 Peter 1:3

Friend to Friend

I do not have a green thumb. In fact, friends and family members refuse to let me come within two feet of any living plant … but I keep trying. I once planted some flowers in our front yard. Actually, I just kind of stuck them in the ground, prayed over them, and hoped for a miracle. After a few days, they were still alive and looking good. I was so proud! Then a summer storm came through. I ventured outside to check on my flowers and discovered them lying on the ground, beaten to a pulp!

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Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Wait and He Will Help

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“Don’t be impatient. Wait for the Lord, and He will come and save you! Be brave, stouthearted and courageous. Yes, wait and He will help you” (Psalm 27:14).

Our surveys of hundreds of thousands of Christians throughout the world indicate that most Christians do not witness because of their fear. Even Timothy seems to have had the same problem.

His father in the faith, the apostle Paul, reminded him, as recorded in 2 Timothy 1:7, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (KJV). That is the reason our Lord promised, in Acts 1:8, “Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses” (KJV).

The Holy Spirit is the only one who can enable us to overcome fear. So, as we claim the promises of God and appropriate the fullness and power of His Holy Spirit, we can know that courage.

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Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – Line Upon Line

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Read: Isaiah 28:1-15

Whom will he teach knowledge, and to whom will he explain the message? Those who are weaned from the milk, those taken from the breast? For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little. (Isaiah 28:9-10 RSV)

That is a beautiful description of how the Bible is written. Unlike theological books, there is not a chapter on sin, another on heaven, another on angels, etc. The Bible mixes it all together, interspersing one truth with another, so that a balanced approach to life is given, precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little, there a little.

This verse sets forth the way to avoid being trapped by the seductive lure of the good life, characterized by Ephraim in verses 1-3. Study your Bible! Read what God says. Look at life as he sees it. See through the allurement of the television commercials! Do you sometimes catch yourself wanting more of the luxuries of life, thinking constantly of a new car, a new house, of climbing the corporate ladder?

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Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Blessed to Be a Blessing (Part 1)

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Read: Genesis 12:1-9

I will bless you . . . so that you will be a blessing. (v. 2)

So far we have learned that Christian spiritual formation is “the process of being conformed into the image of Christ, through a relationship of intimacy with God, by the power of the Spirit, in order to live a good and beautiful life of faith, hope, love, joy, and peace . . .” (emphasis added). The definition up to this point says that becoming like Jesus through an intimate relationship with God powered by the Holy Spirit leads to a grace-filled life.

However, the biblical story is not only about finding a good and beautiful life for ourselves but also about sharing that life with others. So we add the phrase “a life that will be a blessing to oneself and to others” to our definition. As God blessed Abraham to be a blessing, so our journey of spiritual formation is for the sake of others!

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Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; H.L.M. – Sing His Praise

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Fantasia Barrino Taylor sang her way to win the third season of American Idol in 2004. Now Fantasia has a new goal for 2016. She wants to focus on God and use her profession to glorify Him. “Bringing in my New Year with worship was everything to me,” said Fantasia. “When Yahweh, which is God, who sits high and looks low, speaks, I listen. What I’ve come to realize is my ministry is right there on that stage.”

My tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.

Psalm 51:14

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Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Trusting God’s Timing

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Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.—Revelation 5:8

Have you ever prayed for something that seemed to take a long time for God to answer? Or, have you ever prayed for something, and the answer came so quickly that it almost scared you? Sometimes we don’t believe our prayers can be answered so quickly.

In chapter 12 of the book of Acts, James the apostle had been beheaded, and Peter had been arrested by Herod. Then we read that “constant prayer was offered to God for [Peter] by the church” (verse 5). God immediately answered that prayer, sent an angel into the prison, and the doors literally opened for Peter to walk out of jail.

Then Peter went to the house where the church was presumably praying for his deliverance. Peter knocked at the door, a girl named Rhoda answered, and seeing it was the answer to their prayers, she went back to the men of God to tell them that Peter was at the door.

“Guys . . .”

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