Daily Archives: March 4, 2017

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley –How to Handle Our Fear

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Isaiah 41:10-13

A believer is captive to fear when he or she chooses to be. Some people actually organize their life (or at least portions of it) around avoiding anxiety-producing ideas or situations. But Christians do not have to live in that kind of bondage, because trust in God is the key to our shackles.

At some time or other, apprehension enters the life of every believer, but it need not remain long. To confront our fear and overcome it, we must first acknowledge its presence. If we ignore anxiety or try to work around it, we will likely step out of God’s will.

After we have admitted to being afraid, the next thing we must do is identify the nature of our fear. Sometimes we feel anxious without knowing exactly why, but the Holy Spirit can reveal what is holding us captive.

The third step is to begin the process of defeating fear’s hold on our life. And there’s no better tool for breaking chains than the “sword of the Spirit”—the Bible (Eph. 6:17). God’s Word speaks to our individual fears. Use a concordance to find specific practical help. Or, for more general encouragement, turn to Isaiah 41:10. This is a very important promise and, therefore, a helpful verse to memorize.

When I feel anxious, I take Isaiah 41:10 back to God by praying, “Here’s what You said, and I believe You because You never lie. So I will trust You, Lord, to work in this situation.” Trusting God is the only way to be free from fear. So decide whether you are going to believe Him and His promises or be shackled by your emotions.

Bible in One Year: Deuteronomy 33-34

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Of Love and Old Shoes

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Read: Psalm 139:1–12

Bible in a Year: Numbers 31–33; Mark 9:1–29

Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.—Psalm 139:4

Sometimes my wife and I finish each other’s sentences. In over thirty years of marriage we’ve become increasingly familiar with the way the other thinks and speaks. We may not even have to finish a sentence at all; just a word or a glance is enough to express a thought.

There’s comfort in that—like an old pair of shoes you continue to wear because they fit so well. Sometimes we even refer to each other affectionately as “my old shoe”—a compliment that might be difficult to understand if you didn’t know us well! Through the years our relationship has developed a language of its own, with expressions that are the result of decades of love and trust.

It’s comforting to know that God loves us with a deep familiarity. David wrote, “Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely” (Ps. 139:4). Imagine having a quiet conversation with Jesus where you’re telling Him the deepest matters of your heart. Just when you’re struggling to get the words out, He gives you a knowing smile and expresses exactly what you couldn’t quite say. How good it is to know that we don’t have to get our words just right to talk to God! He loves us and knows us well enough to understand. —James Banks

You know all about me, Lord, and You love me. Thank You for understanding me completely! Please help me to love You and follow You today.

God looks past our words to our hearts.

INSIGHT: Psalm 139 contains insight into the nature and character of God. In verses 1-6 we see that God is omniscient, which means He is “all knowing.” This knowledge is “wonderful” and too high to attain to. In verses 7-12 we are challenged to consider the omnipresence of God—that He is always everywhere. This God deserves the worship of a creation bound by the limitations of time and space. In verses 13-18 the song teaches of God’s omnipotence—that He is all-powerful. His power is seen in His ability to create us (v. 13), His sovereign rule over creation (v. 16), and His constant care (vv. 17-18). Since God is fully aware of everything in your life, what about that makes you thankful? What causes concern? Do you feel comforted or threatened by God’s never-leaving presence? What impact does God’s all-powerful character have on how you view life’s challenges? Bill Crowder

 

http://www.odb.org

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Self-Control

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And in [exercising] knowledge [develop] self-control, and in [exercising] self-control [develop] steadfastness (patience, endurance), and in [exercising] steadfastness [develop] godliness (piety). —2 Peter 1:6

As believers in Jesus Christ, God has given us a new nature, but at the same time, we also have to deal with the old nature. When we allow the old nature to rule, we will follow our feelings instead of operating in self-control. Self-control is a fruit of our new nature, and all we need to do is develop it. We can develop self-control by using it, just as we can develop muscles by using them.

Exercising self-control is a form of freedom. You don’t have to do what you feel like doing. You’re free to do what you know is wise. Discipline and self-control will help you be the person you want to be. Don’t ever say, “I just don’t have any self-control,” because the truth is that you do have it, but it needs to be exercised in order to be strong.

Power Thought: I exercise self-control.

From the book the book Power Thoughts Devotional by Joyce Meyer

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Love Means Obedience

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“The one who obeys Me is the one who loves Me; and because he loves Me, My Father will love him; and I will too, and I will reveal myself to him” (John 14:21).

A Campus Crusade staff member handed me a copy of Sports Illustrated with a cover picture of the Heisman Trophy winner.

Proudly, he said, “I would like to introduce you to your great-grandson.”

When I asked him what he meant, he explained, “You led Jim to Christ, Jim led me to Christ, and I led Steve [the Heisman Trophy winner] to Christ.”

What a joy to see God’s wonder-working power in this chain reaction of spiritual multiplication.

There is something exciting and wonderfully rewarding about seeing one whom you have discipled grow and mature, and lead others to Christ and disciple them, generation after generation. Such an experience often brings even more fulfillment than you derive from your own personal ministry of introducing others to the Lord Jesus.

For example, I have always taken special delight and pleasure whenever Vonette, our sons Zachary and Bradley, or many others whom I have discipled through the years, do something special for the Lord – much more than as though I were doing it personally.

By investing your life in helping others to receive Christ and grow in the Lord, you will in turn be helping still others to experience the abundant life which only true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ experience. Today’s verse equates love for Christ with obedience to His commands. Two of the most important commands our Lord has given to His followers, which will result in His revealing Himself to us, are “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 28:19, NAS). He is saying to us, “Teach the things that I have taught you.”

Bible Reading: John 14:22-26

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  Today I will seek to obey my Lord by telling others about Him and by seeking to disciple others who have already committed their lives to Christ. I have the assurance that my Lord will manifest Himself to me in special ways as I walk in faith and obedience.

 

http://www.cru.org

Today in the Word

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – UNDERSTOOD BY GOD

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Read Psalm 139:1-12

German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen discovered the X-ray in 1895, and the first X-ray image he created was of his wife’s hand on a photographic plate. His wife was startled by the image, and is quoted as saying, “I have seen my death.” Roentgen’s discovery captivated the world and transformed diagnosis and treatment in medicine. He was awarded the first Nobel Prize for physics in 1901.

Certainly doctors have the ability to know us in an intimate way, to look beneath our clothing and our skin to see what is happening to our hearts, lungs, and internal organs. But this passage declares that God, who designed us, knows us better than anyone else. He is not only acquainted with our physical being, He knows our actions (v. 3) and even the words we will speak (v. 4). Each step we take is known by God. There is nowhere we can go that will be out of His reach.

The psalmist, King David, declares that God not only knows us as individuals, He lays his hand upon us and “hems” us in from behind and before (v. 5). The word hem means to guard or to border us. So, not only does God go before us as we move through life, He is also behind us, no matter where our path might lead.

For David, realizing God’s omniscience and omnipresence meant knowing the actions He did would be seen by God. There was no hiding from the Almighty who chose David for who He was on the inside and then loved Him despite His failures.

It is impossible for us to hide from God. Just as Adam and Eve discovered in the Garden of Eden when they tried to escape God’s notice, God sees us completely (v. 7). We are exposed, naked before Him. Nothing we think, do, or say is hidden from God.

APPLY THE WORD

Take time to dwell on this amazing idea, and then read this psalm as part of your prayers to God today. The Lord knows what is in your mind and heart: the good, the bad, and the ugly. God knows what we need to confess to Him even before we say it. Therefore we can bring Him our praise, our confession, and our requests.

 

http://www.todayintheword.org

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – Jesus Has Conquered Death

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“As the children are partakers of flesh and blood, [Jesus] also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” (Hebrews 2:14-15)

Trent jerked up into a sitting position, suddenly wide awake. His heart pounded, and he was breathing hard and fast as if he had been running. “It was just a bad dream,” he told himself, rubbing his eyes. “Just another dream.”

Ever since his grandfather’s funeral last week, Trent had had a bad dream almost every night. He would wake up thinking about Grandpa lying so still and silent in that big box. He would think about the quiet cemetery where they had buried the big box in the ground. And then he would start to get scared. What if his mom or his dad died too? What if he died? What would it be like?

Have you ever felt like Trent? The Bible tells us that the fear of death is something all humans have in common. But the Bible also says that we do not have to be slaves to this fear.

Would you be afraid of something that had no power to hurt you–like a dead leaf or a falling snowflake? Of course not. Did you know that Jesus Christ has made death just as powerless as these things for the Christian? Hebrews 2 tells us that when Jesus died on the cross, He destroyed the power of death. He destroyed Satan’s ability to keep us living in the fear of death all of our lives. He died to deliver us, not only from slavery to sin, but also from slavery to fear.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – Jesus Has Conquered Death →

Streams in the Desert

Streams in the Desert for Kids – We Could Make Beautiful Music

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2 Corinthians 11:2

A young man carefully held his kora harp in his hands. “If I were marooned on a desert island, the one thing I’d want with me is this harp,” he said.

The kora harp is a West African instrument and has twenty-one strings. Each string is attached to a tuning peg on a long neck of the harp. The young man held the instrument between his knees and, with his hands on two handholds on either side of the neck, plucked the strings to make a beautiful sound. As he plucked the strings, he often stopped to tighten or loosen one of those twenty-one tuning pegs. He knew exactly which string was out of tune. Most who listened had no idea there was anything wrong with the string, but the young man who knows his instrument well, and who is a master at playing this instrument, knew the sound it made could be better than it was. He loved his harp. He understood it and he wanted its music to be perfect.

That’s the way God is with us. He loves us so much, just like the kora harpist loves his instrument. He knows all about us. He knows when we are living a true life and when we are faking it. He knows what our lives can be if we let him correct us and tune us so we make music that is harmonious with his will for our lives. And he will never leave us. He’ll be close by to help us, always.

Dear Lord, Help me to let you change me into who you want me to be. I want to make beautiful music with my life. Let my life be like a love song to you. Tune me up so no ugly or unkind words come from my mouth. Thank you, Father, for loving me so much. Amen.