Daily Archives: March 10, 2017

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley –The Effectiveness of Prayer

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James 5:16-18

When you face a problem, is prayer your first response, or do you spring into action mode? God works powerfully through prayer, yet too often we look at it as a last resort: After we are at the end of our rope, then we start praying.

Using the example of Elijah, James reminds us what the effective prayer of a righteous person can accomplish. In today’s passage, the subject is healing, but that’s not the only prayer God will answer. Every aspect of life can be impacted by the power of prayer.

Temptation. Jesus told His disciples, “Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation” (Mark 14:38).

Praise. After being beaten and thrown into prison, Paul and Silas prayed and praised God, even in the midst of their pain (Acts 16:25).

Spiritual Warfare. Paul teaches us to access God’s power by “pray[ing] without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17).

Anxiety. We aren’t at the mercy of fear if we pray about everything (Phil. 4:6).

Transformation. When we pray according to God’s desires, He transforms our mind, attitudes, character, and actions (Col. 1:9-12).

Witness. Through prayer, we ask that the Lord open doors for us to spread His Word (2 Thess. 3:1).

Protection. God is faithful to answer requests that He strengthen and protect us from the evil one (2 Thess. 3:2-3).

The next time you face a challenging situation, remember that prayer is more powerful than all your self-efforts. Pray, and watch God work.

Bible in One Year: Joshua 16-19

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Home

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Read: Ephesians 2:11–22

Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 11–13; Mark 12:1–27

You are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people.—Ephesians 2:19

A young African refugee who goes by the name of Steven is a man without a country. He thinks he may have been born in Mozambique or Zimbabwe. But he never knew his father and lost his mother. She fled civil war, traveling country to country as a street vendor. Without ID and unable to prove his place of birth, Steven walked into a British police station, asking to be arrested. Jail seemed better to Steven than trying to exist on the streets without the rights and benefits of citizenship.

The plight of living without a country was on Paul’s mind as he wrote his letter to the Ephesians. His non-Jewish readers knew what it was like to live as aliens and outsiders (2:12). Only since finding life and hope in Christ (1:13) had they discovered what it meant to belong to the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 5:3). In Jesus, they learned what it means to be known and cared for by the Father He came to reveal (Matt. 6:31-33).

Paul realized, however, that as the past fades from view, a short memory can cause us to forget that, while hope is the new norm, despair was the old reality.

May our God help us to live in security—to know each day the belonging that we have as members of His family is by faith in Jesus Christ and to understand the rights and benefits of having our home in Him. —Mart DeHaan

Lord, as we remember how hopeless we were before You found us, please help us not to forget those who are still on the street.

Hope means the most to those who have lived without it.

INSIGHT: It’s easy to feel lost. The apostle Paul knew some of his readers felt that way. In his letter to the Ephesians, he wrote to them about being part of God’s family. They were no longer “foreigners” and “excluded” (2:12) but were “fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household” (v. 19). How does knowing you are part of God’s family help when you feel lost and alone? J.R. Hudberg

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Anatomy of a Journey

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The lections of the Christian celebration of Lent are full of God’s love of journeys: crossings from darkness into light, blindness to vision, the familiar to the unexpected, thirst to a place of provision. We find journeys beside still waters, through dark valleys and green pastures to a table prepared in the presence of enemies, pathways from Tyre through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee to a valley of dry bones, the tomb of a friend, and a well in Samaria.(1) Along the way, we are given constant reminders to keep watch and be alert. We hear in these stories that whatever journey on which we find ourselves, there are surely signs of God stirring, a kingdom emerging, the possibility of unexpected hope rising to life. “[T]he hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live,” says Jesus in John 5:25. God loves the very anatomy of a journey, not for the sake of perpetual motion, but for the sake of guidance and restoration the Spirit brings along the way.

The story of Philip in Acts chapter 8 formally introduces us to a word God exemplifies throughout the journey-stories of Scripture. Heeding the command of the Spirit to get up and head toward the south, Philip encounters an Ethiopian man on his way home from worship in Jerusalem. The man was reading from the book of Isaiah, so Philip asked him, “Do you understand what you are reading?” The man replies, “‘How can I, unless someone guides me?’ And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him.”(2) The words chosen by the Ethiopian in this exchange are absolutely crucial. He invited Philip not to spell things out for him but to guide him. Eugene Peterson explains, “The Greek words for ‘explain’ and ‘guide’ share the same verbal root, ‘to lead,’ and have a common orientation in and concern for the [scriptural] text. But the explainer, the exegete, leads the meaning out of the text; the guide, the hodegete, leads you in the way (hodos) of the text.”(3) Philip was given an invitation to do far more than explain an ancient text. He was invited to join the journey, to climb into the chariot, spend some time on a similar path, and show the Ethiopian how to walk in it. Philip answered the invitation by coming nearer and sitting down beside the one who asked. How much more does God do so for humanity.

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Christlikeness

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For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the firstborn among many brethren.—Romans 8:29

The best goal a Christian can have is Christlikeness. Jesus is the express image of the Father, and we are called to follow in His footsteps. He came as the Pioneer of our faith to show us by example how we can live. We have the chance to behave with people the way Jesus did. Our goal is not to see how successful we can be in business or how famous we can be. It is not prosperity, popularity, or even building a big ministry, but to be transformed into the image of Jesus Christ.

Spiritual maturity or Christlikeness cannot be obtained without “dying to self.” That simply means saying yes to God and no to ourselves when our will and God’s are in opposition. Jesus told His disciples that if they wanted to follow Him, they would need to take up their cross daily.

To follow Christ and become like Him, we choose to forget about what we want—our plans, having our own way—and instead trust Him to show us what His will is for us. His will always leads to deep joy and satisfaction.

You are God’s Ambassador—represent Him well!

From the book Closer to God Each Day by Joyce Meyer

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – His Power to Change

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“But our homeland is in heaven, where our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ is; and we are looking forward to His return from there. When He comes back He will take these dying bodies of ours and change them into glorious bodies like His own, using the same mighty power that He will use to conquer all else everywhere” (Philippians 3:20,21).

George Gallup, Jr., a deeply religious and dear personal friend, has just completed a very important survey asking people, in face-to-face, in-depth interviews, key questions about heaven and hell and other aspects about life beyond death.

One result indicated that two-thirds of all American adults – or 100 million people – believe in an after-life. But what was surprising, said Gallup, was that about 15 percent of those surveyed in one poll indicated they had had an unusual near-death experience – seeing figures or objects that beckoned them to a world beyond life on earth.

Dwight L. Moody caught a glimpse of the glory awaiting him a few hours before leaving this earth for his heavenly mansion.

“Earth recedes, heaven opens before me,” he said, awakening from a sleep. “If this is death, it is sweet. There is no valley here. God is calling me, and I must go.”

A son stood by his bedside. “No, no, father,” he said, “you are dreaming.”

“No,” said Moody, “I am not dreaming. I have been within the gates. I have seen the children’s faces.”

A short time passed, then followed what his family thought to be the death struggle. “This is my triumph,” Moody said. “This is my coronation day. It is glorious!”

Nothing in that true story contradicts Scripture in any way. One of God’s choice saints simply had a foretaste of his heavenly home, related for our joy and encouragement and edification.

Bible Reading: John 14:1-6

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  Realizing afresh that my homeland is in heaven with my Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and that the time of my departure from this earth is unknown but certain, I shall take advantage of every opportunity to encourage others to be ready for their time of departure, as I prepare for my own.

 

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Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Full of Years

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There’s an expression in the Bible that’s always fascinated me. When referring to someone’s death, it says he died “full of years.” It’s used to describe Abraham, Isaac, and Job. Abraham and Isaac lived two of our lifetimes. That’s a lot of years.

It could also express the idea that the years of their lives were full, busy with God’s packed agenda. I don’t want to live 180 years, but I want to live all the years of my life doing everything I can to make sure they fulfill all God wants me to do.

Getting old is inevitable. But are you going to hobble and groan your way to the grave—or race your rickety old wheelchair downhill to your funeral? We’re all going to end up the same way, but we can sure have fun getting there! I know what I want…what about you?

From Max on Life

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – How 2 families righted a 160-year-old wrong

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This Time magazine headline caught my eye: “How Descendants of a Slave and a Supreme Court Justice Righted a 160-Year-Old Wrong.” Here’s the story.

Dred Scott was born into slavery in 1795. His owner, Peter Blow, took him to Alabama and then to St. Louis. After Blow’s death, Scott was sold to army surgeon John Emerson. Emerson took Scott to Illinois and later to the Wisconsin territory, both of which were “free” (regions that prohibited slavery). While in Wisconsin, Scott met and married another slave, Harriet Robinson. Emerson eventually moved to St. Louis, where Scott and his wife joined them. After Emerson died, his widow’s brother, John Sanford, claimed ownership of the Scotts.

Scott sued Sanford for his freedom, claiming that since he had been transported to a “free” state and territory, he should no longer be considered a slave. Thus originated the Dred Scott v. Sanford case that became one of the most infamous Supreme Court decisions of all time.

Roger B. Taney was the US Supreme Court chief justice who authored the Dred Scott decision. On March 6, 1857, he ruled that Congress could not regulate slavery and that blacks could not be considered US citizens. This ruling galvanized the abolition movement and spurred Abraham Lincoln to speak out against slavery. The eventual result was Lincoln’s election as president and the ensuing Civil War.

This week, a great-great-great nephew of Justice Taney met with the great-great granddaughter of Mr. Scott. Charles Taney III stood in front of a crowd outside the Maryland State House and apologized to Lynne Jackson. She leads the Dred Scott Heritage Foundation, a nonprofit that seeks to educate the public about the Supreme Court case.

Taney said, “Apologizing to the Scotts for the Dred Scott decision is like bringing a Band-Aid to an amputation. It’s right and necessary to apologize, but what’s important now is what actions we can all take.” He’s right. Racial discrimination is not just illegal, it’s sinful.

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