Monthly Archives: March 2016

Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – God at Work

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Read: Philippians 2:12-13

…continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Phil 2:12b-13

Work out your own salvation does not mean by your own effort, as some have interpreted it. The apostle is saying, now that I am no longer present with you, you don’t need to rely on my insights and counsel. Begin to walk without my assistance, for you have God in you, and that is all you need. In other words, stop leaning on me. Start applying these things yourselves. This is a necessary stage in Christian growth.

I recall teaching my oldest daughter how to drive. She had a learner’s permit that required that I be with her in the front seat of the car. As we were driving she would sometimes give me a questioning look as a driver pulled out in the road or something developed ahead of us. Then I’d say do this or that. She was relying on me, but the time would come when I moved out of the front seat and in faith committed her to what she had learned. From then on she had to work out her own salvation with fear and trembling, even with me right there with her in the back seat!

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Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – The Raising Of Lazarus

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Read: John 11:38-46

He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” (v. 43)

The raising of Lazarus is the masterpiece of Jesus’ miracles, and by far the most expensive—it cost him his life. At the outset of his ministry Jesus made wine flow from water, and now he makes blood run warm again in a man dead in a tomb. Death had met its match, and that was the last straw for some of the mourners as they left to tattle to the authorities. “So from that day on they made plans to put him to death” (John 11:53).

Many New Testament miracles show people cooperating with Jesus, so to speak. That is, they have faith, they trust, they take up their mat and walk, they go show themselves to the priests, they fish from the other side of the boat. But Lazarus does nothing to cooperate. He is inert, a corpse. So much for God needing our cooperation. On that day in Bethany God acts alone, intervening in human affairs, doing what only God can do—raise the dead.

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Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; G.C. – Endings

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Eschatology – it is the exploration of “end things” taken from two Greek words meaning “last” and “study,” whether the end of a life or the end of an age or the end of the world. Christian eschatology is the study of the end of the Kingdom of God on Earth. Maybe you’ve noticed many people today are almost obsessed with figuring out what happens at the end.

Yet I will leave some of you alive…when you are scattered through the countries.

Ezekiel 6:8

Scripture is clear that however long God’s people are alive on Earth, whether they are together or scattered about, they will encounter trials, persecutions and trouble of every kind. Through those difficulties, God somehow refines His followers and accomplishes His purposes in the watching world. Instead of ease and deliverance, God offers His presence as the sustaining power for enduring suffering during hard times.

Don’t get caught up in nit picking about God’s plan for ending time. Dedicate yourself to bearing the testimony of Jesus Christ today, in the circumstances of your present life. Pray for courageous leaders to rise up across America with a resolve to uphold the name of Jesus regardless of the cost, remaining alive and faithful to the end…whenever that may be.

Recommended Reading: Matthew 24:3-13

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Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Is God Trying to Get Your Attention?

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“The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all.”—Psalm 34:19

God will sometimes allow suffering and sickness to get our attention!

reluctant prophet Jonah. Psalm 119:67 says, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word” (NIV). So the Lord may allow a hard situation to wake us up to our real need—even something as tragic as the death of a child.

One person wrote me whose child died, saying,

“A person expects to lose a parent, maybe even a brother, sister, aunt, or uncle; but never a child. My son would have been 16 years old this year. It has been 15 years since his death. He was the person who brought me to the Lord. Because of his death, I received my salvation. The comfort I found when I fell into God’s hands . . . God knows my pain; He lost a son too!

“Fifteen years later . . . I still cry at Christmas; that’s when I remember his life and my loss. I still cry at Easter; that’s when I am assured I will see him again. I know I will never get over it because I don’t want to get over it. The intensity is less; but, like the joy of life takes the pain of birth away, I have found salvation through God’s Son because of the loss of mine!”

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Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – Jesus Made Room for Us

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“In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” (John 14:2)

Before Jesus went to the cross, He spent an evening talking with His eleven closest followers, preparing them for what was about to happen. John 14 records part of what Jesus said that evening. A well-known part of that conversation is John 14:2: “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2).

There are two things that we need to understand about what Jesus said that night. First, the word “mansion” doesn’t mean “big house,” which is the way we use the word today. “Mansion” in John 14:2 means “room” or “place to live.” The point that Jesus was making is this: Don’t worry; there’s plenty of room for all my followers to live with the Father. I’m not going back to live there alone.

To understand the second important part, we have to remember what Jesus was about to do: He was about to go to the Father. His path to the Father was difficult: He had to die, be buried, and be raised from the dead. Then He would go up in the clouds. So when Jesus said, “I’m going to prepare a place for you,” He didn’t mean, I’m going to heaven to start a building project. He actually meant, I’m about to die. You’ll be upset, but you shouldn’t be. The reason I’m dying is to make a place for you where my Father lives.

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Uncategorized

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – The Promises of God

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Today’s Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:20

“Through him . . . we utter our Amen to God for his glory.”

The Bible is full of God’s promises—to provide for us spiritually and materially, to never forsake us, to give us peace in times of difficult circumstances, to cause all circumstances to work together for our good, and to bring us safely home to glory. Not one of those promises is dependent upon our performance. They’re all dependent on the grace of God given to us through Jesus Christ.

Paul wrote, “For all the promises of God find their yes in him” (2 Corinthians 1:20). What did Paul mean by this?

First of all, Christ in his messianic mission is the personal fulfillment of all the promises in the Old Testament regarding a savior and coming king. As Philip Hughes wrote, “In Christ is the yes, the grand consummating affirmative, to all God’s promises. In him all things ‘which are written in the law of Moses, and the prophets, and the psalms’ achieve their fulfillment (Luke 24:44).”

Beyond the actual fulfillment of all the promises made about him, Christ is also the meritorious basis upon which all of God’s other promises depend. John Calvin wrote in his comments on 2 Corinthians 1:20, “all God’s promises depend upon Christ alone. This is a notable assertion and one of the main articles of our faith. It depends in turn upon another principle—that it is only in Christ that God the Father is graciously inclined towards us. His promises are the testimonies of his fatherly goodwill towards us. Thus it follows that they are fulfilled only in Christ. secondly, we are incapable of possessing God’s promises till we have received the remission of our sins and that comes to us through Christ.” (Excerpt taken from Transforming Grace)

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Prayer

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Today’s Scripture: Job 23

“My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” – Matthew 26:39

The woman was scared out of her wits. Here she was, on a lonely road, in the middle of nowhere, with a car that wouldn’t run, and night coming on. She began to pray that God would send an angel to help her. She scanned the road in both directions, but there was no sign of anyone.

She closed her eyes and prayed some more. “Lord, please send an angel who can help me.” Again she scanned both ways and saw a speck way down the road, coming toward her. She took heart and began to pray even more fervently. As the speck grew larger, she saw the biggest, burliest, long-haired, bearded man she had ever seen–a rough, tough, mean-looking guy on a motorcycle, wearing the leather jacket of the Hell’s Angels.

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Our Daily Bread

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – JESUS, OUR BROTHER

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Read Luke 8

At a tennis tournament in Cincinnati in the summer of 2015, top-ranked tennis star Andy Murray donned a disguise and served ice cream to the crowds. “Are you Andy Murray?” a number of people asked. “Do I look like him?” Murray responded coyly, agreeing to pose for pictures.

“Who is this?” the disciples asked one another when they saw Jesus’ astonishing display of authority over the winds and waves (v. 25). Despite having witnessed Jesus heal the sick, deliver the demon-possessed, and forgive sins, the disciples struggled to grasp the nature of Jesus’ identity. The mystery was unfolding before them, and they didn’t immediately understand the cosmic implications of Jesus’ claim to power. As we will later learn, it’s not until days after Jesus’ crucifixion that they make sense of the embodied good news of God’s kingdom. Initially, they were among those about whom Isaiah prophesied—people who see but don’t perceive, who hear but don’t understand (v. 10; Isa. 6:9).

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Praising the Lamb of God

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 Revelation 5:1-14

In today’s reading, John’s revelation of heaven’s throne room is a striking picture of true praise. The place explodes with worship and adoration for Jesus Christ. Those present—the elders and “myriads of myriads” of angels (Rev. 5:11)—are motivated to sing of their love for Christ, because they know who He is. He is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (Rev. 5:9; Rev. 5:12; John 1:29). And He is the Lion of Judah (Rev. 5:5), the only one worthy to judge the earth and bring forth its renewal. Jesus is wonderful, and these men and celestial beings cannot resist saying so.

What motivates you to worship? Shouldn’t the reason for lifting our hands and voices be to praise our Savior for who He is? To do that, we must take the time to know Him. Opening the Scriptures only on Sundays and praying sporadically are not enough. We have to commit ourselves to discovering Him through regular Bible study, prayer less focused on self, and service to His kingdom.

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Don’t Quit!

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Read: Hebrews 12:1-11

Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 14-16; Mark 12:28-44

Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. —Hebrews 12:1-2

In 1952 Florence Chadwick attempted to swim 26 miles from the coast of California to Catalina Island. After 15 hours, a heavy fog began to block her view, she became disoriented, and she gave up. To her chagrin, Chadwick learned that she had quit just 1 mile short of her destination.

Two months later Chadwick tried a second time to swim to Catalina Island from the coast. Again a thick fog settled in, but this time she reached her destination, becoming the first woman to swim the Catalina Channel. Chadwick said she kept an image of the shoreline in her mind even when she couldn’t see it.

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – An Ordinary Cross

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“The cross,” someone once said, “has become so ordinary that we hardly see it anymore.” The thought struck me as I walked through a shop with items to buy stashed in every crevice: frog-shaped garden statues, multi-colored curios, inventive décor made from soda cans, beach glass, and refurbished car parts. Occasionally surfacing through blanketed floors and ornamented walls were cross-shaped or cross-adorned objects, so ordinary in a shop so out-of-the-ordinary, they were almost hard to notice at all. The cross has become so ordinary that we hardly see it anymore. The thought altered the remainder of my browsing. How can this be true? How can an image once shameful enough to bow the proudest heads become ordinary? Could the gallows ever be innocuous? Would the death sentence of someone near us ever fail to get our attention, much less blend in beside earthenware and figurines?

Theodore Prescott is a sculptor who has spent a great deal of time thinking about the cross. In the 1980’s he began working on a series of crosses using different materials, forms, and processes hoping to reconstitute the cultural and scriptural imagery of the Roman cross. In a sense, Prescott attempts to portray the incongruous. The Roman cross was a loathsome manner of execution that inflicted an anguished death; the Cross of Christ held a man who went willingly—and without guilt. Though a reflection of beauty and sacrifice, the cross is also an image of physical torture, inseparable from flesh and blood. There was a body on these beams. Its image bears both startling realities—the presence of outstretched limbs and the mystery of a now vacant cross. These contrasts alone are replete with a peculiar depth. Yet, our daily intake of the cross “precludes contemplation,” notes Prescott. The cross has indeed become so ordinary that we hardly see it anymore.

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John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – Understanding Who We Are

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“Walk . . . with all humility” (Ephesians 4:1-2).

The first step to humility is understanding our sinfulness.

I’ll never forget a meeting I had at my house with some seminary students. One student asked me, very seriously, “John, how did you finally overcome pride?” I said jokingly, “Well, it was two years ago when I finally licked it, and it’s never been a problem since then. It’s so wonderful to be constantly humble.” Of course, I have not completely overcome pride; it’s a battle I face every day. Satan makes sure we always struggle with it.

Overcoming pride in even one area is difficult, but Ephesians 4:2 requires “all humility.” Having some humility isn’t enough. We must have total, complete humility in every relationship, every attitude, and every act.

So we all have a lot of work to do. But where do we start? How can we become humble?

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Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Songs of Deliverance 

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And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name. They held harps given them by God and sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb: “Great and marvelous are our deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are you ways, King of the ages.” Revelation 15:2-3

No Longer Slaves by Bethel has become my favorite praise and worship song. They reference  John 8 and Romans 7 where Jesus and Paul describe our freedom from sin and our sonship in Christ. Toward the end of the song the chorus grabs my heart, “You split the seas so I could walk right through it. You drowned my fears in perfect love. You rescued me so I will stand and say I am a child of God.” As followers of Jesus, we can sing a song of deliverance—for the Lord has liberated us by His love, freed us from fear and adopted us as His beloved child!

John describes with striking imagery the defeated beast who represents our fleshly (beastly) desires and our foe—whom the Lamb defeated with His sacrifice on the cross. Ultimately, we who worship the Lamb will celebrate at the seashore of our salvation—our final deliverance over the beast. We will sing the song of Moses, with lyrics from the Lord who freed His children from the bondage of the beast—Pharaoh. The Red Sea swallowed up the Egyptian army. Any adversaries of Almighty God are destined to defeat. We worship here anticipating our victory party there!

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Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Nothing Done for Christ Is Small

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And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

Galatians 6:9

Recommended Reading

Galatians 6:6-10

We aren’t called to greatness, but to faithfulness. Most of our work is unheralded, and we’re often faced with thankless tasks known only to God. No one sees when we wrestle in prayer for a grandchild, when we place our tithes and offerings in the basket at church, when we rake the leaves for an elderly neighbor, or leave a New Testament at the bedside of a hospitalized friend. Even when we stand before others, the group we’re addressing has no idea how much time and prayer went into our preparation.

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Don’t Fret—Rejoice!

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Rejoice in the Lord always…again I say, Rejoice!…Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in…everything, by prayer and petition…with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God. —Philippians 4:4,6

Twice in this passage the apostle Paul tells us to rejoice. He urges us not to fret or have any anxiety about anything but to pray and give thanks to God in everything—not after everything is over.

If you wait until everything is perfect before rejoicing and giving thanks you won’t have much fun. Learning to enjoy life even in the midst of trying circumstances is one way to develop spiritual maturity.

Live in the fullness of the joy of the Lord by finding something to be glad about besides your current circumstances. You must learn to derive your happiness and joy from the Lord who lives inside you.

Decide you will not fret or have anxiety about anything but will give thanks and praise to God, rejoicing in Him always.

From the book Ending Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer

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Girlfriends in God

Girlfriends in God – Come and Rest in Him

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Jesus replied, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’

Matthew 22:37

Friend to Friend

From the moment of birth, we are taught that successful people never give up. Yet, I have discovered the paradoxical secret that true success can only be found in complete surrender.

Dr. Billy Graham tells the story of a little child who was playing with a very valuable vase. The child put his hand into the vase but could not pull it out. His father tried to free the little boy’s hand, but couldn’t. They were thinking of breaking the vase when the father said, “Son, let’s try one more time. Open your hand and hold your fingers out really straight and then pull.” The look of alarm on the boy’s face surprised the dad until the little boy explained, “Oh no, Dad. I can’t hold my fingers like that. If I did, I would drop my penny.”

Many of us are like that little boy – holding onto something that is keeping us from letting go and letting God have His way in our lives. It doesn’t really matter what that something is. If it is keeping us from surrendering to God, it is our jailer, and we are its prisoner.

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Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Thank Him for Answers

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“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs and don’t forget to thank Him for His answers. If you do this you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6,7).

Some years ago there was an occasion when my world was crumbling. All that my associates and I had worked and planned for in the ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ was hanging by a slender thread which was about to break.

Because of a series of unforeseen circumstances, we were facing a financial crisis which could bankrupt the movement and result in the loss of our beautiful facilities at Arrowhead Springs, California, acquired just a few years earlier.

Already thousands of students and laymen from all over the world were receiving training which would influence millions of lives for Christ. Now we were in danger of losing it all.

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Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – The Way To Peace

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A daily devotion for March 11th

From your friends at RayStedman.org

Read: Philippians 2:9-11

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name… Phil 2:9

Our Lord Jesus was given in his resurrection and ascension that name which is above every other name that has ever been given in heaven and on earth. It is the name we call Jehovah. It is translated Lord in our English versions of the New Testament. That is exactly what Paul says: and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Paul says Christ is the one who has won that position because he unhesitatingly and unreservedly committed himself to that attitude of his own heart that led him first to mortality, then to ignominy, and finally to unequalled glory.

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Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Get Out Of the Boat

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Read: Matthew 14:22-33

So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. (v. 29)

Ask yourself this question: “Where do I find myself in this sacred story?” Are you sitting in the boat, a place of safety and security? Are you striding boldly across the sea? Or maybe you’ve begun to sink, crying out, “Lord, save me!”

The most decisive moments of life happen when, trusting in Jesus, we step out of the boat. Perhaps you’ve been unhappy in your job for too long, and the time has come to step out of the security it offers and pursue the work you sense you were created to do. Perhaps you’ve avoided speaking up, afraid you might be rejected, or afraid to disagree with a powerful person, and the time has come to tell it like it is. Perhaps your church keeps declining, getting older, getting smaller, afraid to adapt, afraid to step out into the community, and you are beginning to realize that unless you change, you have no future.

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Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; J.R. – Focused on Forever

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Suppose you go for a checkup and your dentist makes this offer: “Your teeth are just fine,” he says, “but I have a dental student here today, and I would like her to perform a root canal on you so she can get some practice.” You’d surely jump out of the chair and be gone in a flash. But what if the dentist adds, “and we are going to reward you with one million dollars for this experience.” Suddenly, your thinking changes dramatically. Nobody wants a root canal, but for a million bucks? The pain would be short-lived – maybe a few days. But a million dollars would change your life for a long, long time.

For Christ also suffered once for sins…put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit.

I Peter 3:18

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