Daily Archives: May 17, 2018

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – When Our Faith Wavers

Leave a comment

 

James 1:2-8

We all experience variation in the strength of our faith. If all is well, we feel confident that the Lord is trustworthy, because we see His blessings all around us. But when troubles increase, so do our doubts about God’s faithfulness. We start to wonder whether He will ever answer our prayers for deliverance. As hard as we try, we can’t see Him working in the situation. And as our trials drag on, we begin to lose hope in God and may start looking for more reasonable ways to resolve the matter ourselves.

James points us to a different perspective. Instead of thinking that the Lord has forgotten about us, he reminds us of God’s divine purposes for our hardships. They test our faith in order to produce endurance and maturity. Our Father isn’t trying to break us; rather, He wants to grow us and provide what is lacking in our spiritual life.

What we really need in our trials is wisdom, and that is exactly what James 1:5 tells us to request from Him. Instead of focusing on the circumstances and letting feelings overcome our faith, we must shift our thoughts to the Lord and confidently believe He’ll give us the wisdom we need, both to handle the situation and to grow from it.

Giving in to doubts is dangerous, as it could develop into a lifestyle of spiritual uncertainty in which we’re “driven and tossed by the wind” (James 1:6). When we handle our misgivings in this way, we’ll often make wrong decisions that are costly. How much better it would be to anchor ourselves to the Lord and His Word and ride out the storm in peaceful assurance.

Bible in One Year: 2 Chronicles 21-23

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Praising God’s Goodness

Leave a comment

 

Read: Psalm 136:1-15 | Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 1–3; John 5:25–47

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever. Psalm 136:1

Someone in our Bible-study group suggested, “Let’s write our own psalms!” Initially, some protested that they didn’t have the flair for writing, but after some encouragement everyone wrote a moving poetic song narrating how God had been working in their lives. Out of trials, protection, provision, and even pain and tears came enduring messages that gave our psalms fascinating themes. Like Psalm 136, each psalm revealed the truth that God’s love endures forever. 

We all have a story to tell about God’s love—whether we write or sing or tell it. For some, our experiences may be dramatic or intense—like the writer of Psalm 136 who recounted how God delivered His people from captivity and conquered His enemies (vv. 10–15). Others may simply describe God’s marvelous creation: “who by his understanding made the heavens . . . spread out the earth upon the waters . . . made the great lights— . . . the sun to govern the day . . . the moon and stars to govern the night” (vv. 5–9).

Lord, thank You for the world You made and for the blessings on my life.

Remembering who God is and what He has done brings out praise and thanksgiving that glorifies Him. We can then “[speak] to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:19) about the goodness of the Lord whose love endures forever! Turn your experience of God’s love into a praise song of your own and enjoy an overflow of His never-ending goodness.

Lord, thank You for the world You made and for the blessings on my life. Fill my heart with gratitude and put words in my mouth to acknowledge and appreciate You.

For all eternity, God’s love endures forever.

By Lawrence Darmani

INSIGHT

As with Psalm 136, many of the psalms encourage us to remember and praise God’s goodness. In Psalm 42, when the writer’s soul is “downcast” (v. 5), he remembers “by day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me” (v. 8). He puts his “hope in God,” and praises his Savior and God (v. 11). The psalmist David remembers God in the desert and is comforted: “On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night. Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings” (63:6–7). And in his distress the psalmist Asaph “[seeks] the Lord” and is prompted to “remember the deeds of the Lord; . . . [His] miracles of long ago . . . and meditate on all [His] mighty deeds” (77:2, 10–12).

What would you include in your psalm of remembrance?

Alyson Kieda

 

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – God’s Two Poems

Leave a comment

 

Typically, people think science and miracles are at odds. That’s what I once thought. But in fact, it’s only within the regularity of science that God can reveal Himself to us mirac¬ulously. It is science that makes miracles possible. It’s only because scientifically virgins don’t get pregnant that God can reveal Him¬self in a virgin birth. It’s only because scientifically people don’t rise from the dead that God can reveal Himself through a resurrection. And likewise, God can reveal Himself in each of our lives.

The more I talk with people, the more convinced I am that the experience of miracles is universal. I like asking people, even the most scientific of people, “Have you ever had an experience that made you think there might be a God?” Usually there is an awkward lull and then some nervous laughter, but, if you wait long enough, almost without fail the person will say, “Well, there was this one time when…” And then they will tell you a remarkable story that has God’s signature all over it!

Most of the people I speak to have amazing stories, but they’re worried that they are the only one. They’re worried that others will think they’re weird. They start to wonder if maybe it’s all just in their heads. We need to share our stories, and we need to invite others to share their stories as well.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – God’s Two Poems →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Seek God First and He Will Add Everything Else

Leave a comment

 

But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of being and doing right—the attitude and character of God], and all these things will be given to you also. — Matthew 6:33

Matthew 6:33 tells us that when we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, He will give us everything we need. It is a matter of putting God first in our lives. Simple? Yes. Easy? Not necessarily!

Even though we want God to help us, it is sometimes difficult to consistently put Him first. It may seem easy to trust Him with your life when you’re in church on Sunday morning, but on Monday you may be tempted to take control again. Seeking God and putting Him first requires building an intimate relationship with Him that will sustain you every day of the week. God knows what we need better than we do, and He longs to provide it, but He requires that we make Him top priority in our lives.

Many years ago, when I began my relationship with God, I wasn’t really serious about it. Like many other Christians, I put in my church time on Sunday. I was even on the church board, and my husband, Dave, was an elder. The problem was, when I was at home or at work, it was hard to tell the difference between an unbeliever and me. I had accepted Christ, I was on my way to heaven, and I loved God. But I didn’t love Him with my whole heart—there were many areas of my life that I had not yet surrendered to Him. As a result, I was frustrated, and my life lacked victory and joy.

Finally, I cried out to God for help, and thankfully, He heard and answered my prayer. He began to show me that I needed to let Him out of my “Sunday Morning Box” and allow Him to be first in every area of my life. Since I did that, I am continually amazed at the ways that God provides for everything else I need.

Prayer Starter: Father, I know my relationship with You is the key to having peace, joy, fulfillment and a great life. Help me to put You first and love You with my whole heart. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Freedom From Fear

Leave a comment

 

“He does not fear bad news, nor live in dread of what may happen. For he is settled in his mind that Jehovah will take care of him” (Psalm 112:7).

Sarah was a hypochondriac, a bundle of nerves, plagued by all kinds of fears – fears that she would become ill, fears that she would have an accident, fears that something would happen to her husband or children or that they would experience financial reverses. Her every conversation was negative. And of course, her attitude alienated her from others, and the more isolated she found herself, the more fearful she became.

Completely absorbed with her own problems, she was seriously thinking of committing suicide when a Christian couple moved in next door to her. They began to demonstrate the love of God and share the good news of His forgiveness in Jesus Christ. Few people had taken an interest in Sarah, but this godly, Christian couple, especially Mary, the wife, embraced her with understanding compassion and a loving heart.

Together they began to study the Bible and after a brief time, Sarah received Christ and began to grow as a Christian. She began to memorize Scripture and took great delight in hiding large quantities of the Word in her heart. Now her mind and her conversation were saturated with the things of God – His attributes, His holiness, His love – and His promises became a joyful reality to her.

A year had passed when one day she remarked to me with great enthusiasm, “I have been liberated. Christ has set me free. I seldom think of my own problems anymore, but find my mind absorbed with God and His truth, and how I might reach out in love and compassion to others as Mary reached out to me in my deepest need.”

Sarah was no longer afraid. The fears that had plagued her were gone, because it was settled in her mind that Jehovah would take care of her and her family. No matter what happened, she knew that she could trust a loving, gracious, holy, righteous God, who had become her very real heavenly Father. Jesus Christ had become more real to her than her own flesh and blood.

Bible Reading:Psalm 112:1-6

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: I will seek to know more and more about my Lord by hiding His Word in my heart and meditating upon His many attributes. For I am convinced that He will watch over me, protect and care for me so that nothing can happen to me that He does not allow for my good.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – What Love is Not

Leave a comment

 

Listen to Today’s Devotion

When Paul defined what love is not, he put rudeness on the list. Love is “not rude” (1 Corinthians 13:5). Some years ago an example of rudeness was taken before the courts in Minnesota. A man fell out of his canoe and lost his temper. Though the river was lined with vacationing families, he polluted the air with obscenities. Some of those families sued him. He said, “I have my rights!”

God calls us to a higher, more noble concern. Not, “What are my rights?” but “What is loving?” Do you have the right to pretend you don’t hear your wife speaking? Perhaps so, but is it loving?

Jesus always knocks before entering. He doesn’t have to. If anyone has the right to barge in, Christ does. But he doesn’t. That gentle tap you hear? It’s Christ…“Behold, I stand at the door and knock” (Revelation 3:20). And when you answer, he awaits your invitation to cross the threshold!

Read more A Love Worth Giving

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

Home

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – “Heroic” officer thwarts mass shooting at Illinois school

Leave a comment

“I could not be more proud of the police officer and the way he responded to the situation. With shots ringing out through the hallways of the school, he charged toward the suspect and confronted him head on. Because of his heroic action, countless lives were saved.”

This is how Steve Howell Jr., police chief of Dixon, Illinois, described the actions of Mark Dallas, a school resource officer who stopped a shooting yesterday. The suspect, a nineteen-year-old former student named Matthew Milby, opened fire inside Dixon High School. The officer then confronted him near the school gym, where seniors were gathering for a graduation rehearsal.

The gunman ran out of the building after Dallas approached him. When the officer gave chase, the suspect fired several rounds at him. The officer returned fire at the gunman, who suffered non-life-threatening injuries and is now in custody.

Mark Dallas is truly a hero. However, real heroes don’t generally see themselves that way. They say they were just doing their job or doing what anyone would do. The fact that they believe they’re not heroes is one of the reasons they are.

Continue reading Denison Forum – “Heroic” officer thwarts mass shooting at Illinois school →