Monthly Archives: January 2018

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – A Passionate Faith

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Romans 6:5-14

Paul served the Lord enthusiastically. The apostle’s zeal was motivated by three things: gratitude for the amazing but undeserved gift of salvation; conviction that the gospel message was true; and the realization that through the cross, sin’s power over him had been broken.

Before salvation, we were slaves to sin and unable to break free. But now, having been united with Christ in His death and resurrection (Rom. 6:5-6), we have received the power to say no to temptation and can choose God’s way instead. Paul knew his old selfish nature had been crucified with Christ; sin no longer had control over him. This knowledge fueled his passion to follow Jesus and live for Him (Gal. 2:20).

Guided by his commission from Christ, Paul expressed his zeal through obedience to the Lord’s direction. Our heavenly Father wants us to focus our passion on carrying out His plan (Matt. 28:19-20).

Like Paul, we are called to live a crucified life—one in which we make the Lord first in our thinking, attitudes, and actions. Such a life includes learning how to walk by faith and stand firm against temptation. While we are unable to do this in our own strength, it is possible through the Holy Spirit. He empowers us to let go of self-centered ways and replace them with godly ones.

Paul’s faith and commitment to the Lord were integral parts of his thinking, conversation, and work. His passionate faith kept him moving forward, even in times of great adversity. The apostle knew that salvation brought forgiveness of the past and a way to live victoriously in the future.

Bible in One Year: Leviticus 5-7

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — White as Snow

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Read: Isaiah 1:16–20

Bible in a Year: Exodus 25–26; Matthew 20:17–34

Though yours sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.—Isaiah 1:18

Last December, my family and I went to the mountains. We had lived in a tropical climate all our lives, so it was the first time we could see snow in all its magnificence. As we contemplated the white mantle covering the fields, my husband quoted Isaiah, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” (Isaiah 1:18).

After asking about the meaning of scarlet, our three-year-old daughter asked, “Is the color red bad?” She knows sins are things God dislikes, but this verse is not talking about colors. The prophet was describing the bright red dye obtained from the eggs of a small insect. Clothes would be double-dyed in this bright red so the color became fixed. Neither rain nor washing would remove it. Sin is like that. No human effort can take it away. It’s rooted in the heart.

Only God can cleanse a heart from sin. And as we looked at the mountains, we admired the pure whiteness that scrubbing and bleaching a piece of cloth dyed in scarlet red can’t achieve. When we follow Peter’s teaching, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out” (Acts 3:19), God forgives us and gives us a new life. Only through Jesus’s sacrifice can we receive what no one else can give—a pure heart. What a wonderful gift! —Keila Ochoa

Father, thank You for forgiving our sins and wiping them clean.

When God forgives, He purifies us too.

INSIGHT: Sometimes we believe that once we’ve gone down a certain path in our lives, there’s no turning back. And, obviously, if it’s too late to go back, we think we might as well keep going that way. It’s easy to think this way about sin. We may believe we’ll always suffer for our sin, that nothing can heal us from its effects. If we believe this, we may sink even deeper into patterns of destructive behavior, thinking it’s too late to come back to a life of joy and peace with God.

In Isaiah 1:16-20, it’s as if God, through the prophet Isaiah, tells His people Israel, “You can go back.” The Israelites were suffering terribly because of their sin (vv. 4-5), but Isaiah pleaded with them to repent, promising them that if they turned from their sin and lived justly (vv. 16-17), God would cleanse and restore them, no matter how impossibly deep the stain of their transgression (v. 18). God makes truly new beginnings possible, not just once, but every day. His forgiving love is “new every morning” (Lamentations 3:22-23).

How does God’s promise of new beginnings give you hope today?             Monica Brands

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Presence and Absence

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The deep-seated impression of a parent in the life of a child is a subject well traversed. From pop psychology to history to anthropology, the giant place parents occupy from birth to death is as plain as the life they initiated. Of course, the massive giant which occupies this place may well be the absence of that person, inasmuch as the person him or herself. “It doesn’t matter who my father was,” Anne Sexton once wrote, “it matters who I remember he was.”(1) The looming memory of an absent parent is every bit as big as a present one, maybe bigger. For me, it was a spiritual revelation: Absence itself can become something of a presence.

It is little wonder that the deepest struggle many of us have with faith is in the absence of God. We learn early that absence is a characteristic connected to despair, wrought from disconnectedness, or born of devastation. We do not see our experience of God’s absence as a subject for lament—like the psalmist’s “Rise up, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand; do not forget the oppressed”—but as a sign of doubt. And so, we often do not know how to reconcile the God who appears in burning bushes and dirty stables, who descends ladders and rends the heavens, but whose crushing silence feels every bit as profound. We don’t know what to do with the ruinous sensation of neglect when God comes so close to some but remains far off from others. We hold in mind the one who came near to the rejected Samaritan woman, but we uncomfortably suspect that we might have been given something else, or worse, that God has for some reason simply withdrawn. The sting of abandonment is overwhelming; with Gerard Manley Hopkins, our prayers seem “lost in desert ways/ Our hymn in the vast silence dies.”

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Presence and Absence →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Take Challenges One Day at a Time

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Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated), for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”— Joshua 1:9

I strongly urge you to face your challenges one day at a time. Looking too far down the road only tends to overwhelm us. Trusting God requires that we believe He gives us our “daily bread”; that is, we receive what we need as we need it and usually not before.

Sometimes challenges can seem impossible and overwhelming, but God is always with us. We just need to be courageous and receive the strength He gives us. Remember that God will give you the grace to do what you need to do today, so it’s important to focus on living in the moment, rather than worrying about tomorrow.

This principle applies to many other areas of life—getting out of debt, cleaning and organizing your house, solving marriage problems, disciplining your children, being on time for work or completing a project. Whatever you need to do in life, you can do it.

Philippians 4:13 says you are ready for anything and equal to anything because God gives you strength. Nothing is too much for you when He is on your side.

 

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Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – God’s Secret Plan for You

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“God has told us His secret reason for sending Christ, a plan He decided on in mercy long ago; and this was His purpose: that when the time is ripe He will gather us together from wherever we are – in heaven or on earth – to be with Him in Christ, forever” (Ephesians 1:9,10).

One day a distinguished scientist questioned Michael Faraday, chemist, electrician and philosopher.

“Have you conceived to yourself what will be your occupation in the next world?” he asked.

Hesitating a moment or two, Faraday replied, “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things that God hath prepared for them that love Him.” And then he added, in his own words, “I shall be with Christ, and that is enough.”

Although nearly two thousand years have passed since He walked this earth, Jesus still stands as the ultimate expression of ethics and morality. Whatever one might think about Christians or the church, he will find no blemishes in the character of Jesus.

Perhaps the greatest testimony that can be given regarding the character of Jesus’ teachings is that they are still changing men and nations throughout the world today. Now, as before, those who listen to Him inevitably say “No man ever spoke like this man!” (John 7:46, RSV).

God’s Word tells us that Jesus had the same temptations we do, though He never once gave way to them and sinned (Hebrews 4:15). Our Lord thus stands out as the supreme example of one who practiced the things that He taught to others and that He expects of His followers.

We still stand today in the shadow of God’s sure promise: “For God has allowed us to know the secret of His plan, and it is this: He purposes in His sovereign will that all human history shall be consummated in Christ, that everything that exists in heaven or earth shall find its perfection and fulfillment in Him. And here is the staggering thing that in all which will belong to Christ we have been promised a share” (Ephesians 1:9-11, Phillips).

Bible Reading: Ephesians 1:11-14

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will meditate upon the fact that I am a child of God, and heir of God and joint-heir with Christ; and upon the startling, incredible fact that I am related to Him and share with Him in all of this indescribable privilege and blessing. As a result I will claim His supernatural love and power and will speak more freely to others of my relationship with Him.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Love That Casts Out Fear

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

Have you ever gone to the grocery on an empty stomach? You’re a sitting duck when you do. You buy everything you don’t need. Doesn’t matter if it’s good for you—you just want to fill your tummy!

When you’re lonely, you do the same in life–pulling stuff off the shelf, not because you need it, but because you’re hungry for love. Why do we do it? Because we fear facing life alone. For fear of not fitting in, we take the drugs. For fear of standing out, we wear the clothes. For fear of appearing small, we go into debt and buy the house. For fear of sleeping alone, we sleep with anyone. For fear of not being loved, we search for love in all the wrong places.

But all that changes when we discover God’s perfect love. 1 John 4:18 says, “Perfect love casts out fear.” You are not alone!

Read more Traveling Light

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – President Trump’s “new American moment”: 3 biblical responses

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President Trump delivered his first State of the Union address last night. The president described this time in our history as a “new American moment” and added, “There has never been a better time to start living the American dream.”

The purpose of my article today is to offer not political analysis but a biblical response. The president stated, “We know that faith and family, not government and bureaucracy, are the center of the American life. Our motto is ‘in God we trust.'”

How can we make our motto our daily reality?

If I could offer a Spiritual State of the Union to our country, I would point to Psalm 30 and three principles that teach us how to maximize this moment in our history.

Live in the present for the eternal.

Continue reading Denison Forum – President Trump’s “new American moment”: 3 biblical responses →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Called to Ministry

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Colossians 4:7-18

The last chapter of Colossians contains a long list of people who served alongside Paul. What’s not highlighted in these verses is these individuals’ talents, skills, abilities, wealth, or position in society. Instead, Paul focuses their character, their service for Christ, and his love and appreciation for each one.

We are each called to ministry in one form or another. Although we tend to think of ministry as something that’s done inside a church, in reality it encompasses everything we do all week long, no matter where we are. In God’s eyes, there’s no division between sacred and secular activities.

For example, while Luke was a physician by profession, he was also an evangelist, a missionary, and a divinely inspired writer of Scripture. His career was not his primary source of purpose and self-fulfillment; rather, it was a means through which he served Christ by ministering to others. A faithful friend and traveling companion to Paul, Luke offered him encouragement and comfort until the day of the apostle’s execution (2 Tim. 4:11).

Luke was perfectly suited for the work the Lord planned for him. He had an analytical, detailed mind which made him a skilled doctor. It also served him in carefully investigating and writing an accurate account of Jesus’ life (the gospel of Luke) and the events of the early church (the book of Acts).

Each of us has been created and fitted by God to fulfill the particular ministry He’s chosen specifically for us. We have been placed on this earth not simply to enjoy ourselves, accumulate wealth, and achieve prominence but to serve the Lord. Our responsibility is to respond with obedience to His call.

Bible in One Year: Leviticus 1-4

 

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Able and Available

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Read: Psalm 46

Bible in a Year: Exodus 23–24; Matthew 20:1–16

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.—Psalm 46:1

My husband was at work when I received news about my mom’s cancer diagnosis. I left him a message and reached out to friends and family. None were available. Covering my face with trembling hands, I sobbed. “Help me, Lord.” A resulting assurance that God was with me comforted me through those moments when I felt utterly alone.

I thanked the Lord when my husband came home and support from friends and family trickled in. Still, the calming awareness of God’s presence I sensed in those first few hours of lonely grieving affirmed that God is readily and faithfully available wherever and whenever I need help.

In Psalm 46, the psalmist proclaims God is our sanctuary, strength, and steadfast supporter (v. 1). When it feels as if we’re surrounded by chaos or everything we thought was stable crashes down around us, we don’t have to fear (vv. 2-3). God doesn’t falter (vv. 4-7). His power is evident and effective (vv. 8-9). Our eternal Sustainer gives us confidence in His unchanging character (v. 10). The Lord, our secure stronghold, remains with us forever (v. 11).

God created His followers to prayerfully support and encourage one another. But He also affirms He is always able and available. When we call on God, we can trust Him to keep His promises to provide for us. He will comfort us through His people as well as through His personal presence. —Xochitl Dixon

Lord, thank You for assuring us You’re always accessible because You’re always with us.

God is always able and available to help us.

INSIGHT: Being a member of the kingdom of God brings a sense of personal security. In Psalm 46, God’s sovereignty is eloquently compared to a mighty fortress against which the waters of chaos and death can do no harm (vv. 1-3). This brings a response of worship in a troubled world (vv. 4-9). What relief it is to follow the admonition “Be still, and know that I am God,” for God “will be exalted among the nations, [He] will be exalted in the earth” (v. 11). God’s power and presence give an inner stability to the believer that nothing else can. Our righteous God of grace is ready and available wherever and whenever we need help.

How does this passage bring a sense of calm to your situation?

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Call to Maladjustment

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What does it mean to be “maladjusted”? In much of psychological literature, maladjustment implies some level of psychopathology. A pathology implies an underlying illness or disease in the body. Psychopathology, therefore, implies mental illness. Unlike other diseases of the body that have biological markers, however, psychopathology does not have a biological test, like a blood test, for diagnosis. Instead, psychopathology is manifested in cognitions, emotions, and/or social behaviors that are considered maladaptive because they cause distress, danger, dysfunction, and disruption both to the individual and to those around her/him.

But are there any conditions under which it would be “abnormal” not to experience maladjustment? This is the question taken up by Martin Luther King, Jr. in his speech given at Western Michigan University in 1963, five years before he was assassinated. In this speech, he suggested that there are specific conditions when maladjustment is called for:

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Call to Maladjustment →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Pursue the Excellence of Daniel

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Then this Daniel was distinguished above the presidents and the satraps because an excellent spirit was in him, and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.— Daniel 6:3 (AMPC)

Daniel is a man in the Bible who is described as having an “excellent spirit.” He lived to glorify God with his life, no matter what it cost him.

Daniel loved God and was unwavering in his commitment to serve Him. As a result, God gave him favor with the king, which led to his promotion over the other leaders in the land. But his commitment to God was tested.

The leaders didn’t like that the king favored Daniel. So they manipulated the king to sign a decree that prohibited anyone from praying to any god other than the king for thirty days. Violating the decree meant being thrown into a den of lions.

Daniel didn’t cave in to this decree—he was more concerned about keeping his commitment to God. If you know the story, you know God protected him and was glorified in the end.

I want to encourage you to live with that same excellent spirit. Be determined to live for God in every area of your life. As you do, you’ll fulfill your true purpose and glorify God in everything you do, just like Daniel.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – He Knew His Future

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“Jesus answered and said unto them, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up'” (John 2:19, KJV).

A missionary in Turkey sought to teach the truth of the resurrection of Christ to a group of people.

“I am traveling, and I have reached a place where the road branches off in two ways,” he said. “I look for a guide, and find two men – one dead, and the other alive. Which of the two must I ask for direction – the dead or the living?”

“Oh, the living!” cried the people.

“Then,” said the missionary, “why send me to Mohammed, who is dead, instead of to Christ, who is alive?”

Jesus is the only person who has ever accurately predicted his own resurrection. He said He would be raised from the dead on the third day after dying on the cross for our sins, and He was!

Further, He was seen on many different occasions after His resurrection – once by as many as 500 people. He still lives today in the hearts of all who have placed their faith in Him, demonstrating His life of love and forgiveness through them.

Whenever men meet the living Christ, they are changed. The whole course of history has been changed because of Him.

“The gospel not only converts the individual, but it also changes society,” historian Philip Schaff wrote. “Everywhere the gospel has been preached, dramatic change has resulted. It has established standards of hygiene and purity, promoted industry, elevated womanhood, restrained antisocial customs, abolished human sacrifices, organized famine relief, checked tribal wars and changed the social structure of society.

“Born in a manger and crucified as a malefactor, He now controls the destinies of the civilized world and rules a spiritual empire which embraces one-third of the inhabitants of the globe.”

Bible Reading: John 2:20-25

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: I will reflect often today on the fact that the risen Christ of history is the same loving Savior who now lives within me, offering me His love, His peace, His comfort, His wisdom, His strength. I will claim by faith His resurrection life to enable me to live supernaturally each moment of every day.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Trust Like Jesus Did

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

How did Jesus endure the terror of the crucifixion? He went first to the Father with His fears. He modeled the words of Psalm 56:3, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” Do the same with your fears. Enter them—just don’t enter them alone. And while there, be honest. Pounding the ground is permitted and tears are allowed. “Take this cup,” Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemene.

Give God your fears. Give God the number of the flight. Share the details of the job transfer. He has plenty of time. He also has plenty of compassion. He won’t tell you to buck up or get tough. He knows how you feel. That’s why we punctuate our prayers as Jesus did with “Father, if you are willing. . .”  Was God willing?  Yes and no. He didn’t take away the cross from Christ, but He took away the fear. Who is to say He won’t do the same for you?

Read more Traveling Light

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Man accused of assault claims to be a boy trapped in an adult’s body

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“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair” (Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities).

The stock market has added $6.9 trillion to US wealth since the 2016 election. According to the New York Times, “Every major economy on earth is expanding at once, a synchronous wave of growth that is creating jobs, lifting fortunes and tempering fears of popular discontent.”

But while the economy is booming and prosperity is rising, another expansion is changing lives as well.

“The Gay Rights Movement Is Undoing Its Best Work”

Joseph Roman, age thirty-eight, has been charged with predatory criminal sexual assault. Prosecutors say he repeatedly attacked three girls who were six to eight years old at the time. During a hearing last week, prosecutors said Roman admitted to some of the attacks and told Chicago police “he is a 9-year-old trapped in an adult’s body.”

Continue reading Denison Forum – Man accused of assault claims to be a boy trapped in an adult’s body →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Resisting Compromise

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2 Timothy 3:14-17

Yesterday, we saw how King Solomon’s life illustrated the peril of compromise. Concession begins in a seemingly insignificant way. For instance, someone might want you to make a financial decision that you know in your heart is unwise. But you go along with the plan because you don’t want to hurt the other person’s feelings. You have compromised the message of the Holy Spirit, who warned you.

Small compromises lead to more serious ones. With each successive concession, our conscience is weakened. Ultimately, whenever we give way to evil—whether we let go of a doctrinal belief or simply listen to music that taints our thoughts—we always lose.

We compromise for a variety of reasons. Many do so from a fear of rejection or of being unappreciated. Some choose this route to avoid conflict. Still others may begin to doubt God’s trustworthiness or goodness; as a result, they give up on Him, compromising their basic beliefs and undermining their reason for assurance.

To be men and women who are strong enough to resist making concessions, we need to develop some essential armor. First, we must have strong convictions about the Bible and depend on it as a guide for daily living. Next, we need to have faith in God’s promise to supply all of our needs. Finally, we must find the courage to trust in Him, even when we are misunderstood, persecuted, or falsely accused. When we surrender our life to God, He replaces enslavement to compromise with security in Him.

Bible in One Year: Exodus 39-40

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Like a Little Child

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Read: Matthew 18:1–5; 19:13–14

Bible in a Year: Exodus 21–22; Matthew 19

Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.—Matthew 18:3

One evening many years ago, after saying a goodnight prayer with our two-year-old daughter, my wife was surprised by a question. “Mommy, where is Jesus?”

Luann replied, “Jesus is in heaven and He’s everywhere, right here with us. And He can be in your heart if you ask Him to come in.”

“I want Jesus to be in my heart.”

“One of these days you can ask Him.”

“I want to ask Him to be in my heart now.”

So our little girl said, “Jesus, please come into my heart and be with me.” And that started her faith journey with Him.

When Jesus’s disciples asked Him who was the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, He called a little child to come and join them (Matthew 18:1-2). “Unless you change and become like little children,” Jesus said, “you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. . . . And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me” (vv. 3-5).

Through the eyes of Jesus we can see a trusting child as our example of faith. And we are told to welcome all who open their hearts to Him. “Let the little children come to me,” Jesus said, “and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these” (19:14). —David C. McCasland

Lord Jesus, thank You for calling us to follow You with the confident faith of a child.

Help the children in your life come to know Jesus. Introduce them to Our Daily Bread for Kids at ourdailybreadforkids.org.

Our faith in Jesus is to be like that of a trusting child.

INSIGHT: Jesus likens greatness to childlikeness. Anyone coming to Him must come in childlike dependency, expectancy, receptivity, and humility (Matthew 18:2-4). While on earth, Jesus lovingly embraced His disciples as “my children” (John 13:33), and the apostle John affectionately addressed us as “dear children” (1 John 2:1, 12, 18, 28). Used negatively, however, children or “infants” denote weak or immature believers (1 Corinthians 3:1-3; Ephesians 4:13-14; Hebrews 5:13). “Don’t be childish,” Paul warned us (1 Corinthians 14:20 NLT). Christians are to be childlike, not childish (1 Corinthians 13:11).

When have you needed to trust Christ with childlike faith? Sim Kay Tee

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Cello in the Rush

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Dale Henderson gives cello concerts in New York City subway stations because he fears the day when classical music will be no more. He plays for free, focusing primarily on Bach Solo Cello Suites because their “power and beauty unfailingly inspire great appreciation, joy and deep emotion in those who hear them.”(1) Some commuters stop and stare, curious or captivated, many having never heard a cello or Bach concerto before. For Henderson, the music is an offering of something meaningful, seeds for future generations of classical music admirers who would not otherwise know it, beauty well worth lugging his heavy cello down into the subways to protect.

It is not always easy to talk about beauty without a minefield of objections or at best complicating list of qualifiers. Its modern place in the “eye of the beholder” gives it a tenuous feel at best. While Henderson describes a world without classical music as soul-less, others may not miss it so much. And yet it is hard not to talk about beauty in a broken and breaking world that makes its distinctive encounters increasingly stand out.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Cello in the Rush →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Godly Motives

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Search me [thoroughly], O God, and know my heart; Test me and know my anxious thoughts;— Psalm 139:23

Years ago, when we were struggling financially, I grew tired of believing for a breakthrough and broke down before the Lord. I cried about it for a while and then, by the grace of God, I made a decision and declared: “God, I am going to tithe and give offerings until the day I die, whether I ever see anything come from it or not!”

I believe with all my heart this was a test for me to see why I was really giving. The Lord wanted to reveal whether I had the right, godly motives. If I was just “giving to get,” I may have only selfishly given to get something from God.

There’s been a lot of teaching and preaching that says, “Do this and you’ll get that.” But what about having a pure heart that says, “I want to do the right thing just because it’s right and it glorifies God”?

I urge you to honestly examine your motives today and make sure they’re not self-centered. Make a wholehearted commitment to serve God for the right reasons.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – He Orders Your Steps

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“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and He delighteth in his way” (Psalm 37:23, KJV).

Miriam Booth – a beautiful, brilliant, cultured woman – daughter of the Salvation Army founder, began her Christian work with great promise. She had unusual success. Before long, however, disease struck her and brought her to the point of death. A friend visiting her one day said it seemed a pity that a woman so capable should be hindered by illness from doing the Lord’s work. “It is great to do the Lord’s work,” she replied with gentle grace, “but it is greater to do the Lord’s will.”

Are you looking for direction, for purpose, for meaning to your life?

The psalmist wanted to make it very plain that the person who is “good,” the one who is clothed with the righteousness, the goodness of Christ, can have the absolute assurance that His steps, one by one, moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day, are ordered by the Lord (planned and directed by Him).

That wonderful truth is made even more meaningful by the reminder that our “stops” as well are directed by the Lord. He knows when we need to slow down, to wait on Him. As a Christian leader once said, after several weeks of being bedridden: “I needed to be flat on my back so that the only way I could look was up.”

Finding the will of God has been difficult for many people – for most of us at one time or another. But the truth remains that He promises to give wisdom to any who ask, and we have that privilege when we belong to Him by virtue of having received the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Savior.

If you are facing a crossroad in your life, wait on Him and avoid the usual rush to a decision that might be disastrous. “He is faithful who promised.” Depend upon Him to make the way clear as you lay the decision prayerfully before Him.

Bible Reading: Isaiah 58:9-14

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: When I need wisdom for a specific decision today, I will breathe an earnest prayer for direction. Then I will thank God for the clear leading which He promises and for enabling me to continue living the supernatural life, as He directs my steps.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Cultivate Humility

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

God loves humility. Could that be the reason he offers so many tips on cultivating it? May I (…ahem) humbly articulate a few? If you want to be humble:

Assess yourself honestly

Don’t take success too seriously.

Celebrate the significance of others.

Don’t demand your own parking space.

Never announce your success before it occurs.

Speak humbly

One last thought to foster humility– Live at the foot of the cross

Paul said in Galatians 6:14, “The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is my only reason for bragging!” Do you feel a need for affirmation?  Does your self esteem need attention?  You don’t need to drop names or show off.  You need only to pause at the base of the cross and be reminded of this:  The Maker of the stars would rather die for you than live without you. And that’s a fact. So, if you need to brag… brag about that!

From Traveling Light

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

 

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