Daily Archives: August 28, 2017

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley –Measuring Our Spiritual Growth

Leave a comment

 

2 Peter 3:17-18

All around the world, people go to church, bow their heads to pray, and hear sermons, but many are not growing spiritually.

It is all too common for believers to assume that these actions fulfill Christian obligations. They may complete a checklist but have an idle relationship with Jesus. Do you see evidence in your own life that you’re maturing in your walk with the Lord?

To blossom spiritually, we must be saved. This happens the moment God makes us new, cleansing us of unrighteousness and adopting us as His own children. Then, we can begin to grow. However, even with this new life, we can be stagnant.

There are several indicators that reveal the quality of our Christian journey. Today, let’s explore a few of them. First, growing believers should sense a deepening hunger for Christ. As we experience more of Jesus, who is the bread of life (John 6:35), our desire for Him will increase. Second, believers dwelling closely with the Savior will notice that their discernment of sin sharpens. Faulty teaching and thinking become more obvious as we accumulate truth within our spirit. Third, our sphere of love should continuously expand. In time, the Holy Spirit enables us to care for people who previously were either unnoticed or difficult to accept.

Do you have a hunger for God and an increasing awareness of sin? Is your love available only for those who match your personal standard of performance—or do you find yourself caring about even difficult people? These are important questions to ask when evaluating your spiritual growth.

Bible in One Year: Ezekiel 4-6

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Paying Attention

Leave a comment

Read: Psalm 41:1–3

Bible in a Year: Psalms 123–125; 1 Corinthians 10:1–18

Blessed is he who considers the poor.—Psalm 41:1 NKJV

John Newton wrote, “If, as I go home, a child has dropped a halfpenny, and if, by giving it another, I can wipe away its tears, I feel I have done something. I should be glad to do greater things; but I will not neglect this.”

These days, it’s not hard to find someone in need of comfort: A care-worn cashier in a grocery store working a second job to make ends meet; a refugee longing for home; a single mother whose flood of worries has washed away her hope; a lonely old man who fears he has outlived his usefulness.

But what are we to do? “Blessed is he who considers the poor,” wrote David (Ps. 41:1 NKJV). Even if we can’t alleviate the poverty of those we meet along the way we can consider them—a verb that means “to pay attention.”

We can let people know we care. We can treat them with courtesy and respect, though they may be testy or tiresome. We can listen with interest to their stories. And we can pray for them or with them—the most helpful and healing act of all.

Remember the old paradox Jesus gave us when He said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). Paying attention pays off, for we’re happiest when we give ourselves away. Consider the poor. —David H. Roper

Father, as we go through our day, show us the everyday folks who need our attention. Grant us the love and the patience to truly consider them, as You have so patiently loved us.

Only a life given away for love’s sake is worth living. Frederick Buechner

INSIGHT: This psalm is a touching reminder of God’s heart for the suffering and an invitation for His people to share in His compassion. Many have speculated about the details of the psalm. Some suggest the scheming and painful betrayal detailed in verses 5-9 fit with the period of David’s life when his son Absalom attempted to steal the throne, a rebellion supported by David’s counselor Ahithophel. In the New Testament, Jesus applied the psalm to Himself in reference to Judas’s betrayal (see John 13:18).

The psalm’s opening verses introduce the foundation for compassion—God’s own heart, which is so focused on the poor and suffering that His blessing rests on those who care about them (vv. 1-3). The word weak or poor (v. 1) includes connotations of poverty, weakness, and helplessness. When we “consider” (v. 1 NKJV) the poor, we follow the example of Jesus—who had such compassion that He Himself became poor for us, leaving heaven to live among us as a human (2 Cor. 8:9).

How does this psalm offer hope to those feeling betrayed and alone? How can we share Jesus’s compassion for all who are suffering? Monica Brands

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Present and Extraordinary

Leave a comment

Despite our coping mechanisms of choice, fear and weariness are often common sentiments across much of the globe, laden with a sense of uncertainty. People deal en mass with losses of all kinds and the turbulent emotions that come with losing ground. For many in the affluent West who have lived with mindsets of comfort and feasts of resources, economic downturn is a sudden and disorienting shift. For others, hard times simply get much harder.

Writing in a century with its own fears and famines, Blaise Pascal took note of the human capacity for a dangerous kind of escapism when fears loom large and hope remains distant. He saw a general disassociation with the present, a perpetual anticipation of the future or recollection of the past, which kept life itself at bay. “So imprudent are we that we wander in the times which are not ours and do not think of the only one which belongs to us,” he wrote. “And so idle are we that we dream of those times which are no more and thoughtlessly overlook that which alone exists. For the present is generally painful to us. We conceal it from our sight, because it troubles us… So we never live, but we hope to live.”(1)

Of course, whether in times of scarcity or in times of plenty, the temptation to mentally dismiss ourselves from the present moment is quite real. It is always possible to live with eyes intent on something better in the future or with a nostalgic gaze on the past and all that once was. But in times of discomfort, crisis, or shortage, the choice to wander in times other than the present strikes us more as self-preservation or necessity than temptation, an essential coping mechanism in the midst of pain—and so we dismiss ourselves from the present all the more freely. Whether to daydream of better times or to look fearfully into the future, we leave the harrowing realities of the present to hope for something more, to escape from the weariness of now, to remember something better. But no matter our reason, when the future alone is our end and life is preoccupied with what once was or what might be, it is something less than living. It is to embrace despair.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Present and Extraordinary →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Catch it Early

Leave a comment

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.- 1 Peter 5:8-9

In the United States, there is an over-the-counter medication advertised as the medicine to take at the first indication of a cold, to keep it from getting worse and becoming full-blown. I take a lot of vitamin C if I have a scratchy throat or a runny nose because it often keeps me from getting worse. Catching something before it goes too far is wisdom.

I recommend that anytime you even begin to feel fearful about anything that you immediately begin to pray and confess, “I will not live in fear.” You will see amazing results. When we pray, God hears and answers. When we confess His Word, we renew our own minds and come into agreement with His plans for us. No matter what God wants to do for us, we must agree with Him in order to receive and enjoy it (see Amos 3:3). We must learn to think like God thinks and talk like He talks—and none of His thoughts or words are fearful.

This thought—I will not live in fear—will help you become courageous rather than fearful. Call it to mind the instant you begin to feel fear, and meditate on it even during the times when you are not afraid.

By doing this you will be even more prepared to stand against fear when it does come. Remember that it will take time; be committed to stick with it until you see change. I still say, “I will not live in fear.” Say it as soon as you feel fearful about anything, and you will be able to keep fear from controlling you. You may still feel fear, but you can move beyond it by realizing that it is merely the devil’s attempt to prevent you from enjoying life or making any kind of progress. Do what you believe you are supposed to do even if you have to “do it afraid.”

Trust in Him: What can you do to “catch it early” and not let fear control you? Trust that God does not want you to live a life of fear.

From the book Trusting God Day by Day by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – To Be Approved

Leave a comment

“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15, KJV).

Most of all of my adult life has been centered around the university world – as a student, a teacher, and one who works with students, professors and administrators in the intellectual realm. I count many of the leading scholars of our time as beloved friends, yet if I had to choose between a Ph.D. from the most prestigious university in the world and a thorough knowledge of and comprehension of the Word of God, I would gladly choose the latter. Fortunately, it is not necessary to choose because one can have both academic training and a knowledge of God’s Word.

A recommendation which I have made to our two sons and to thousands of our staff and students with whom we work is that degrees are very important in today’s world, but they will not only be meaningless and worthless in terms of eternity, but can contribute to one’s moral and spiritual disintegration unless at the same time one is studying to show himself approved unto God. In all of our academic pursuits and in our commitment to excellence in the business and professional realms, we must be careful to give God and His Holy inspired Word their rightful place in our daily schedule. Ultimately, it is our knowledge of God learned through the study of Scripture and our response to Him that makes all the difference in our life-style. It makes the difference in the choosing of our mate, in the rearing of our children, in the choosing of our friends, our business or professional career, in all of our attitudes and actions and in the contribution which we make to society. Let us give priority to priorities, the highest of which is to seek after God through the diligent study of His holy revelation to man and to encourage others to join with us in rightly dividing the word of truth.

Bible Reading: II Timothy 2:19-25

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: With God’s help I will seek not only to be a student of God’s Word but also to acquire the ability to teach His word to others.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Until We Get Home

Leave a comment

Beware of those who urge you to find happiness here in this life. You won’t find it! Guard against the false physicians who promise that joy is only a diet away, a marriage away, or a job away. The prophet denounced people like this, “They tried to heal my people’s serious injuries as if they were small wounds. They said, ‘It’s all right, it’s all right.’ But really, it is not all right!” (Jeremiah 6:14).

We won’t be all right until we get home. The Bible says, “No one has ever imagined what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). What a breathtaking verse! Anything you imagine is inadequate. Anything anyone imagines is inadequate. No one comes close. No one! All the songs about heaven, all the artists’ portrayals, all the lessons preached, poems written, chapters drafted—when it comes to describing heaven, we are all happy failures. It is beyond us!

Read more When God Whispers Your Name

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

Home

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – ‘A storm that the United States has not seen yet’

Leave a comment

“This disaster is going to be a landmark event.” That’s how the head of FEMA describes the devastation of Hurricane Harvey. “This is a storm that the United States has not seen yet,” he adds.

I was born and raised in Houston, Texas. Except for four years when Janet and I pastored a church in Atlanta, Georgia, I have lived my entire life in Texas. Never have I seen such destruction in my home state as we are witnessing in these days.

This morning, a local official called the flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey “an 800-year event.” The National Weather Service describes the damage as “unprecedented” and “beyond anything experienced.” According to the Insurance Information Institute, flood damage may equal that of Hurricane Katrina, the costliest natural disaster in United States history.

Our nation’s fourth-largest city is predicted to get as much as fifty inches of rain, the highest amount ever recorded in Texas. Thirteen million people are under flood watches stretching from Corpus Christi to New Orleans. A FEMA spokesman warns that “the recovery effort is going to be going on for weeks, months, and probably even years.”

It is only natural to ask what difference faith makes in the face of such devastation. Didn’t the God we worship make this broken world? The Bible explains that human sin corrupted our planet so that “the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now” (Romans 8:22). But did God then abandon us to the consequences of our Fall?

In fact, the opposite is true.

Continue reading Denison Forum – ‘A storm that the United States has not seen yet’ →