Daily Archives: August 19, 2017

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Staying in the Light

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1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:1-2

John used the metaphor of darkness and light to describe a life of sin versus a life in Christ (1 John 1:7). God is pure and perfect light (v. 5) shining through an obedient person. However, when we invite darkness—sin—into our life, there is immediate conflict. Darkness and light cannot mix.

The way to keep a pure spirit in this world is to confess sin. We are made clean by Jesus Christ’s work on the cross, and nothing can change a redeemed believer’s identity as God’s holy child. However, wrongdoing does interfere with the fellowship between us and the Lord (Isa. 59:2). Left unchecked, sin can so thoroughly choke our spirit that only thin shafts of the light of Christ can squeeze through.

What breaks the stranglehold is confession, which simply means we agree with God that our actions, thoughts, or words are in violation of His law or will. While it is tempting to confess in a general sort of way—“I’m sorry if I’ve sinned against You”—that isn’t a helpful method for chasing darkness out of our life. We must be specific about our wrongs. The Holy Spirit isn’t general in His conviction; He points to the exact problem. And God expects us to deal with sin promptly so we are neither tarnished by it nor tempted to continue on that path.

Believers who honestly acknowledge their sin and take responsibility for it stay in right relationship with the Lord. John’s letter confirms God’s desire to cast out darkness and keep us fully in the light of His love. Our job is to deal promptly with the dirt that Satan throws at us.

Bible in One Year: Jeremiah 33-36

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — From Grief to Joy

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Read: John 16:16–22

Bible in a Year: Psalms 103–104; 1 Corinthians 2

You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.—John 16:20

Kelly’s pregnancy brought complications, and doctors were concerned. During her long labor, they decided to whisk her away for a Cesarean section. But despite the ordeal, Kelly quickly forgot her pain when she held her newborn son. Joy had replaced anguish.

Scripture affirms this truth: “A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world” (John 16:21). Jesus used this illustration with His disciples to emphasize that though they would grieve because He would be leaving soon, that grief would turn to joy when they saw Him again (vv. 20–22).

Jesus was referring to His death and resurrection—and what followed. After His resurrection, to the disciples’ joy, Jesus spent another forty days walking with and teaching them before ascending and leaving them once again (Acts 1:3). Yet Jesus did not leave them grief-stricken. The Holy Spirit would fill them with joy (John 16:7–15; Acts 13:52).

Though we have never seen Jesus face to face, as believers we have the assurance that one day we will. In that day, the anguish we face in this earth will be forgotten. But until then, the Lord has not left us without joy—He has given us His Spirit (Rom. 15:13; 1 Peter 1:8–9). —Alyson Kieda

Dear Lord, we long to be in Your presence, especially when we face pain and sorrow. Yet You have not left us on our own. The Holy Spirit lives within us—and gives us joy.

One day our sorrow will be turned to joy!

INSIGHT: After Jesus told His disciples about His coming betrayal and death (John 13), they were discouraged (14:1, 27). Jesus comforted them with the promise of heaven and the coming Holy Spirit (14:1-21; 15:26-16:15). Like the pain a woman experiences in childbirth, their suffering was temporary (16:21). The baby that causes the pain also provides the occasion for celebration. Bible teacher Warren Wiersbe writes in The Bible Exposition Commentary: “God brings joy to our lives, not by substitution, but by transformation. In birth, God does not substitute something else to relieve the mother’s pain. Instead, He uses what is there already but transforms it.”

How has Jesus transformed your pain into peace, joy, and victory? Sim Kay Tee

 

http://www.odb.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Careless Commitments 

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Or if a person thoughtlessly takes an oath to do anything, whether good or evil—in any matter one might carelessly swear about—even though he is unaware of it, in any case when he learns of it, he will be guilty.   Leviticus 5:4

Be careful with your commitments. Kept commitments give you credibility, but without credibility, you are a mere shell of sincerity. Unfulfilled commitments come from complex living, but simplicity facilitates follow through. Simple living creates margin, which helps you to fulfill commitments. With margin in your life, you can calculate your commitments prayerfully and practically. Does the Lord want me to be part of this initiative, organization, or relationship?

A pause to pray protects you from over-committing. Commitments need to be entered into prayerfully and practically. Does this commitment align with your purpose, calendar, and budget? If it crowds out a priority on your calendar or blows up the budget, it is not necessary. Don’t become overly influenced by the capacity of others. They may be overcommitted as well or their season of life may offer them additional margin for added opportunities.

Forgotten commitments cause us the most frustration. Forgetfulness may be a reason, but it is not an excuse. These commitments may be the worst kind because if you don’t even know you have let someone down, there is no opportunity for restitution. Foolish is a man or woman who continues to commit with a debt of unexecuted obligations mounting up on their credit card of commitment. Therefore, stop the crazy cycle of commitments before your word becomes bankrupt. Go to those who are still waiting in confused silence, and ask them for more time or ask them to let you out of the commitment. Ignoring them is not an option.

Above all else, make sure you keep your commitments to Christ. He does not take commitments cavalierly. A commitment to Christ is bound by heaven, so it is never to be entered into carelessly. All other commitments flow out of your submission to your Savior. Your ”yes” to Jesus is not sentimental, but sincere and even sacrificial. His Spirit leads your conscience to commit. It may be a big thing like salvation, for at conversion you committed to believe in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, but your commitment to Christ goes way beyond conversion, to our growth and maturity.

As followers of Jesus, you commit to follow Him in trust and obedience. You stay true to this commitment to follow Him even when it is not convenient, or when it may cost you something. You commit to church because it is the Bride of Christ. We commit where Christ commits. Are you engaged in His best or have your commitments become a snare to Kingdom productivity? Do not commit to any more than you have in time, money, and character. Make Christ-centered commitments your filter of choice.

The Bible says, “So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good” (1 Peter 4:19).

Prayer: Heavenly Father, protect me from over-commitment, so I can give my best for You, in Jesus’ name, amen.

Application: What commitment do I need to follow through with even though my heart is not engaged in the project, person or organization?

Related Readings: Isaiah 19:21; Jeremiah 44:25; Psalm 89:34; Matthew 5:37; 2 Peter 3:9

 

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Complete Your Work

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Jesus said to them, My food (nourishment) is to do the will (pleasure) of Him Who sent Me and to accomplish and completely finish His work.- John 4:34

I believe the Lord wants us to finish whatever He calls us to do, even when it requires patience, preservation and hard work. God wants us to grow roots and learn to endure until the fruit of His promise is manifested.

Be willing to endure patiently to see God’s plan take place in your life. If God has given you a vision of something He wants you to accomplish, keep doing whatever He has given you to do, even when the excitement for the work is over, and all the goose bumps are gone. If you don’t have a vision, ask God to show you something that you need to do, and then commit your work to the Lord until it is completed.

From the book Starting Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Guardian Angels 

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“For the angel of the Lord guards and rescues all who reverence Him” (Psalm 34:7).

For many years my travels have taken me from continent to continent, to scores of countries each year. I have traveled under all kinds of circumstances, not a few times faced with danger. But always there was peace in my heart that the Lord was with me and I was surrounded by His guardian angels to protect me.

In Pakistan, during a time of great political upheaval, I had finished a series of meetings in Lahore and was taken to the train station. Though I was unaware of what was happening, an angry crowd of thousands was marching on the station to destroy it with cocktail bombs.

The director of the railway line rushed us onto the train, put us in our compartments and told us not to open our doors under any circumstances – unless we knew that the one knocking was a friend. The train ride to Karachi would require more than 24 hours, which was just the time I needed to finish rewriting my book Come Help Change the World.

So I put on my pajamas, got in my berth and began to read and write. It was not until we arrived in Karachi some 28 hours later that I discovered how guardian angels had watched over us and protected us. The train in front of us had been burned when rioting students had lain on the track and refused to move. So the train ran over them and killed them. In retaliation, the mob burned the train and killed the officials.

Now we were the next train and they were prepared to do the same for us. But God miraculously went before us and there were no mishaps. We arrived in Karachi to discover that martial law had been declared and all was peaceful. A Red Cross van took us to the hotel and there God continued to protect us. When the violence subsided we were able to catch a plane out of Karachi for Europe.

Bible Reading: Isaiah 63:7-9

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will make a special point of expressing my gratitude to God for assigning guardian angels to watch over me, protect and help me in my time of trouble. I will not take for granted the protection that many times in the past I have overlooked, not recognizing God’s miraculous, divine intervention, enabling me to live a supernatural life.

 

http://www.cru.org

Streams in the Desert

Streams in the Desert for Kids – It’s All Good

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Romans 8:28

If ever there was a story of how God can take the worst stuff that happens to us and turn it to good, it is the biblical story of Joseph. Joseph was the second youngest son of Jacob. Jacob had twelve sons and when Joseph, the little guy, said that one day he would rule over his brothers, they got angry. They threw him in a pit then sold him to the first caravan of traders that came along.

Those rotten brothers told their father that Joseph had been eaten by wild animals. It broke Jacob’s heart. But Joseph was not dead. He was beginning a new life in Egypt. First, he was a lead servant in the household of Potiphar. Potiphar’s wife told lies about him, and he wound up in prison. Then through an amazing series of divine events, Joseph was taken from prison and made the ruler of the land. And it all happened just in time to save Egypt from a seven-year famine.

Oh, and those brothers who threw him in a pit? They came begging for food in Egypt. Joseph gave it to them twice before he told them that he was their little brother. They were really scared that he was going to have them all killed for what they had done to him. Instead, Joseph said, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (Genesis 50:20). Everything worked out for the best because God was watching over them.

Dear Lord, Help me to trust you. Everything bad that happened to Joseph turned out to be for the best. I know I belong to you and that everything that happens is part of your plan for me. Amen.

Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Strength to Rise Above Ridicule

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Read: Matthew 1:18-23;

Luke 1:26-38

And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:38)

Imagine you’re walking down the street, and everyone you pass is staring at you. Now imagine, that just by looking at you, they also know you broke the law. This is Hester Prynne’s predicament in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter. Hester has a child by a man who is not her husband and, in those days (17th-century Boston, Massachusetts), her action is punishable by law. She is ordered to wear a scarlet letter A (for adulterer) on her dress and has to suffer through public humiliation. This label is hard to shake.

In the Gospels, Mary, the mother of Jesus, faces the same fate. Few people will believe or even understand the events leading up to her miraculous conception. She knows that she will be ridiculed for getting pregnant before she and Joseph are married. Despite what people will say about her, she decides to yield to God’s plan and look to him for strength.

If we are serious about obeying God, we can expect persecution (Matt. 5:11-12). When people say hurtful things about us, whether they are true or not, we can’t let insults keep us down. Rising above them won’t always be easy for us, but we must get up. We can find the strength we need for any situation when we look to God. —Ericka Loynes

Prayer: Lord, help us to stand strong when we are being persecuted for your sake.

 

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