Daily Archives: May 13, 2017

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Overcoming Swaying Faith

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Matthew 14:22-32

The Lord wants to do far more in believers’ lives and through their witness than most are willing to allow. We believe He can do great things, but the problem is that we are not sure He will act on our behalf. Consequently, we hesitate to trust Him fully for specific answers regarding our personal situations.

Vacillating between faith and doubt like a boat in a squall makes for a sick and tired Christian. If we desire to calm the sea of faith, we must first decide to act out of obedience rather than simply make choices according to feelings or sight. Peter walked on water because he chose to proceed by trust instead of by reason. As believers, we will not become stable in our faith until we recognize that believing God is a choice.

The second action of a faithful believer is to focus attention on God. When we look at our circumstances, we are restricted to our own limited view of the situation. As long as Peter was staring at Jesus, his feet stayed on the water’s surface, but the moment he looked at the wind-whipped waves, he began to sink.

Finally, we are to maintain our focus on the Lord by keeping our mind in the Word. We cannot trust our sight, reason, or knowledge to steer us through a storm of doubt. But we can truly depend upon Scripture.

Choose to believe that the Lord will work on your behalf. Then focus your attention on Him, and claim a promise from Scripture that applies to the situation. When those three actions regularly become a part of your life, you will stop swaying. The heavenly Father will honor your steadfast faith.

Bible in One Year: 2 Chronicles 8-10

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Camping Psalms

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Read: Psalm 8:1–9

Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 17–18; John 3:19–36

Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!—Psalm 8:1

When my husband and I go for nature walks, we bring our cameras and take close-ups of the plants at our feet, which are like microcosms of the world. What amazing variety and beauty we see, even in the fungi that spring up overnight and dot the woods with splashes of bright orange, red, and yellow!

The snapshots of life that surround us inspire me to lift my eyes to the Maker who created not only mushrooms but also the stars in the heavens. He designed a world of infinite scope and variety. And He made you and me and placed us in the very middle of this beauty to enjoy and to rule over it (Gen. 1:27-28; Ps. 8:6-8).

My thoughts turn to one of our family’s “camping psalms”—psalms we read as we sit around the fire. “Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens. . . . When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?” (Ps. 8:1-4).

How amazing that the great God who created the world in all its splendor cares for you and me! —Alyson Kieda

O Lord, our majestic Maker, our hearts turn toward praise when we see snapshots of Your beautiful world. Thank You for creating us! Help us to rule Your world with wisdom.

A God wise enough to create me and the world I live in is wise enough to watch out for me.  Philip Yancey

INSIGHT: The power God displayed in creation (Ps. 8) is not limited to creation alone. God also expressed His power when He raised Jesus from the dead, proving that Christ was (and is) the Son of God (Rom. 1:4). We also have the assurance that His power is available to work in and through us to carry us during the challenges of life. In fact, our weakness is the perfect platform to exhibit His power. Paul wrote, “[The Lord] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me” (2 Cor. 12:9).Are you struggling with weakness? Reflect on the expansiveness of God’s power and then ask Him to help you discover that power in your situation. Bill Crowder

 

http://www.odb.org

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – The Condition of Our Minds

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…But we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart. —1 Corinthians 2:16

I reached the curb in front of the airport, where my friend would pick me up. I was calm and relaxed and thought of the great conversation we would have. To my surprise, she wasn’t there yet. That was odd because she’s the kind of person who is never late for anything. I remained calm and peaceful. I spotted what I thought was her car and took a step forward, but the car went past me, and there was a stranger in it.

Not more than three minutes had passed, but I realized I was anxious and worried. What had happened to her? Had she been in an accident? Did she forget me? From calmness to anxiety in less than three minutes, and nothing had changed—nothing except my mind. Worried thoughts struggled inside me.

I pulled out my cell phone and started to dial, when I heard a car honking, as she pulled up to the curb. My mind shifted once again to calmness, even joyfulness. How quickly my emotions had shifted in that short period of time.

My mind had quickly changed when my circumstances did. Sometimes I find it easy to hear God speak . . . and to believe without any difficulty. Yet at other times, worry and anxiety push their way into my mind. The Bible says we are to walk by faith and not by sight, but that day at the airport, I was definitely being led by what I saw. When we worry, we are not walking in faith and trusting God.

For a long period of my life, I had a critical, suspicious, and judgmental mind. That may seem normal for many nonbelievers, but I was a Christian. I was going along with the same thinking and mindset that I had known for years. It was normal to me—it was just the way I was. For years, I had no awareness that my wrong thinking was causing any problems.

Because no one had taught me, I didn’t know I could do anything to change my thought life. It simply had not occurred to me. No one had taught me about the proper condition for the believer’s mind. God offers us a new way to think and a new way to live.

God has called us to renew our minds (see Romans 12:2). For most of us, it is an ongoing process. We don’t control our thinking all at one time.

One day I read 1 Corinthians 2:16, where Paul says we have the mind of Christ. What could he have meant? I pondered that verse for days. I concluded that for us to have the mind of Christ doesn’t mean we’re sinless or perfect. It does mean we begin to think the way Christ thinks. If we have His mind, we think on those things that are good and honorable and loving.

I confessed to God how many times my mind had focused on the ugly, the mean, and the harsh.

In 1 Corinthians 2:14, Paul wrote, But the natural, nonspiritual man does not accept or welcome or admit into his heart the gifts and teachings and revelations of the Spirit of God, for they are folly (meaningless nonsense) to him . . . because they are spiritually discerned and estimated and appreciated. Yes, I thought, that’s exactly how it works. The natural mind—even that of the Christians whose minds are tampered with by Satan—doesn’t grasp what God is doing. Those things seem foolish.

We must remind ourselves that we have Christ’s mind—we have the ability to think loving and caring thoughts. We can defeat Satan’s attacks.

Holy God, I want to live with the mind of Christ. I ask You to enable me to think positive, loving, caring thoughts about myself and about others. Help me to see and think on the good things in life and not the bad. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

From the book Battlefield of the Mind Devotional by Joyce Meyer

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – He Will Take Care of Us

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“He will take care of the helpless and poor when they cry to Him; for they have no one else to defend them” (Psalm 72:12). 

Some time ago, a French tourist set out to cross St. Bernard’s Pass by himself. When he got caught in the fog near the top, he sat on a rock and waited for one of the famous St. Bernard dogs, which have rescued thousands of lost travelers, to come and attend to him. But none came.

When the fog cleared away, he managed to reach the hospice. There he let it be known that he thought the dog a rather overrated animal.

“There I was,” he said, “for at least six hours, and not one came near me.” “But why,” exclaimed one of the monks, “did you not ring us up on the telephone?”

Then he explained to the astonished tourist that the whole of the pass is provided with shelters at short distances from each other – all in direct phone communication with the hospice. When the bell rings, the monks send off a dog loaded with bread, wine and other comforts.

The dog goes straight to the proper shelter. The system saves the hounds their former duty of patrolling the pass on the chance of a stray traveler being found, and as the pass is under deep snow for about eight months of the year, this entailed hard and often fruitless labor.

Many people in need of spiritual help have not yet realized there is One who will hear and answer directly the troubled cries for help.

Bible Reading: Psalm 72:13-19

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Remembering that we “have not because we ask not,” I’ll remember to call on a kind heavenly Father today and whenever I have a need.

 

http://www.cru.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Honor Mom 

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When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” John 2:3

Jesus honored His mom though He had the power and prerogative to delay her request. She saw His newly recruited disciples and realized her little boy was now a man of God. She reflected on her Holy Spirit conception and the joy of bringing her son and Savior into the world. So, she asked her Lord for a miracle for the sake of someone else. He honored her by allowing the wedding celebration to continue without the disruption of running out of refreshments. Love is honorable.

Our moms are needy and they need us. They cared for our needs for many years. As an infant, they fed us, comforted us, and woke up in the middle of the night to calm our cries. As a child they taught us, disciplined us, and laughed at and with us. As a teenager, if they prayed, they prayed even more for our protection from ourselves. As an adult they want us to pray for them, keep up with them and honor them. Mothers filled with God remind us of His unselfish love.

“As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you” (Isaiah 66:13).

Has your mother made a direct or indirect request of you? Has she implied a need, but not come right out and verbalized it? Perhaps the Lord is calling you to honor her by helping her, or by helping someone she is concerned about. Some moms have the admirable quality of always looking out for others, even if it requires giving up something themselves. When your mom senses your undivided attention and authentic concern, she’ll open up about her cares. Honor listens.

If your wife is a mom, how can you support her dreams and desires? How can you better partner with her in parenting? It honors your wife when you pray with her for your children. It honors her when you listen to her fears and support her in her stress. Being a mom is oh so fulfilling, but it is hard. You honor her by being with her to laugh and cry over the children. You honor her when you offer emotional support. Yes, you honor your mom most, when you live honorably before God.

“May your father and mother rejoice; may she who gave you birth be joyful” (Proverbs 23:25)!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, show me how to better honor my mom and the mother of our children.

Application: How can I honor Mom or the mother of my children in a way that makes her feel loved?

Related Readings: Deuteronomy 5:16; Psalm 35:14; Matthew 12:46; John 19:26-27

 

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Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – ISRAEL’S FAITHLESSNESS AND DISOBEDIENCE AT THE BORDER

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Read Numbers 14

Born in 1809, Kit Carson was one of the most famous scouts and frontiersmen in American history. He helped guide the westward journeys of explorers, fought on the Union side during the Civil War, and advocated for the creation of reservations, arguing they would save Native Americans from extinction. But he also fought against them, including brutally removing the Navajo people from their traditional lands.

Among the twelve scouts or spies sent into Canaan, Joshua and Caleb were the only ones who delivered their report in faith. The Israelites’ complaining and rebellious spirit had warped their perspective to the point where they seriously thought death in Egypt would have been preferable to entering Canaan and trusting God to keep His promises (v. 2). They even talked about picking a new leader and returning to the country that had enslaved them for four centuries (v. 4).

This was pathetic and sad and funny, but mainly tragic. Their words and actions insulted the Lord. Confounded by this incredible sin, Moses and Aaron fell facedown before God, once again interceding for the people. Joshua and Caleb tore their clothes in grief and tried again to persuade Israel to obey. In response, the nation doubled down on its sinful foolishness and suggested stoning the two of them (vv. 6–11).

In response, God righteously and angrily proposed wiping out Israel and starting fresh with Moses. But Moses passionately interceded, not on the basis of what the people deserved but on the basis of God’s character, “slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion” (v. 18). In the end, God spared the nation, punished the ten spies immediately, and decreed that the guilty generation would wander and die in the wilderness (vv. 32–38).

APPLY THE WORD

Moses and Daniel give us excellent biblical examples of interceding for one’s nation (Daniel 9). Many values, practices, and lifestyles are widely accepted in America today that Scripture calls wrong. Knowing how displeased God must be, are we daily interceding and repenting for the past and present sins of our nation?

 

http://www.todayintheword.org

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Is Patient

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“And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.” (Jonah 3:1-2)

When God told Jonah to go and preach in Nineveh, Jonah ran away. The Bible says that Jonah fled to the harbor and found a ship heading in the opposite direction of Nineveh. There was no way he was going to preach the Word of the Lord to the people of Nineveh.

The Ninevites were cruel people who tortured their enemies. Jonah wanted God to destroy the Ninevites. He knew that if he preached God’s Word, the Ninevites would probably repent from their wicked ways. So Jonah said “no” to God and ran the other way.

But God did not give up on Jonah. While Jonah was aboard the ship, God sent a raging storm. The sailors threw Jonah overboard because they thought he had caused the terrible storm. But God sent a big fish that swallowed Jonah whole. God heard Jonah’s prayer in the belly of the fish, and the fish spit Jonah up on dry land. Then the Word of the Lord came to Jonah again and told him to go to Nineveh and preach.

When Jonah said “no” the first time, God could have said, “Forget you, Jonah! I’ll just find someone else!” God can do anything He wants to do, and He could have found another prophet to preach to Nineveh. But God wanted Jonah to go. So God patiently waited on Jonah. He sent a raging storm to get Jonah’s attention, but Jonah did not repent. Instead of repenting, Jonah decided it would be better to die in the sea.

But God still wanted Jonah, so He sent a big fish to swallow Jonah. Finally, Jonah cried out to God, who sent him back to Nineveh to preach to the people. God wanted Jonah to learn a lesson. God wanted Jonah to obey Him, and He patiently waited for Jonah to obey.

God is patient. He wants you to follow Him and obey Him. When you say “no” to God, He doesn’t always punish you right away. He waits for you to obey. He is “a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness” (Jonah 4:2). Sometimes He might have to send a hard time to get your attention, as he sent a storm to Jonah. But He wants you to become more like Him, and He patiently waits for you to do so.

God is patiently waiting for you to follow Him.

My Response:

» What does God want me to do today?

» Am I following the commands He has given in His Word?

» Am I saying “no” to God?

 

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