My Utmost for His Highest

My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers – Impulse

Leave a comment

 

Building yourselves up in your most holy faith . . . — Jude 1:20

There was nothing impulsive and nothing cold-blooded about our Lord, just a calm strength that never got into a panic. Most of us develop our Christianity along the line of our own impulses rather than along the line of God. Impulsiveness is a natural human trait, but our Lord always ignores it, because it hinders the development of the life of a disciple.

Watch how the Spirit of God checks our impulses. His checks bring a rush of self-consciousness that instantly makes us want to vindicate ourselves. Impulsiveness is fine in a child but disastrous in a man or a woman; an impulsive adult is always a petulant adult. Impulsiveness has to be trained into intuition by discipline.

Discipleship has no impulsiveness in it; it is built entirely on the supernatural grace of God. Walking on water is easy in an impulsive burst of courage, but walking on dry land as a disciple of Jesus Christ is a different thing. Peter walked on the water to go to Jesus (Matthew 14:29)—but he also walked far with Jesus on the land. We don’t need the supernatural grace of God in order to weather crises; human nature and pride are sufficient for that. But we do need his grace in order to live twenty-four hours of every day as a saint, to go through drudgery as a child of God, to live an ordinary, unobserved, ignored existence as a disciple of Jesus Christ. We think that we have to do exceptional things for God, but this isn’t true. We have to be exceptional in ordinary things, to be holy in mean streets, and this isn’t learned in five minutes.

Isaiah 62-64; 1 Timothy 1

Wisdom from Oswald

There is no condition of life in which we cannot abide in Jesus.
We have to learn to abide in Him wherever we are placed.

 

 

https://utmost.org/

Billy Graham

Billy Graham – A Need for God

Leave a comment

 

Christ in your hearts is your only hope of glory.
—Colossians 1:27 (TLB)

The age-old issue, “Can man save himself, or does he need God?” is still raging across the world as furiously as ever. As long as the world goes on, people will build towers of Babel, fashion their graven images, and invent their own ideologies. Now, as in every period of history, people think they can manage without God.

Economically, they may manage; intellectually, they may manage; socially, they may get by. But down underneath the surface of rational man is a vacuum-a void that can be met only through Jesus Christ. The most astounding fact of all history is that the great and almighty God of heaven can live in your heart. It makes no difference who you are.

Does God live in your heart? Fill the void in your life and commit yourself to Jesus. 

Lea este devocional en español en es.billygraham.org.

Prayer for the day

You fill the emptiness and longing of my soul. I need the presence of Your Spirit, dear Lord.

 

Home

GuidePosts

Guideposts – Devotions for Women – Glory to His Name

Leave a comment

 

Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake.—Romans 1:5 (NIV)

The message in the above verse is a reminder of the power of obedience when being called to share the Gospel with those around you. Ask God to strengthen you to reflect the love and grace of Christ so that others may see your faith and be drawn to Him.

Heavenly Father, I pray my life brings glory to Your name.

 

 

https://guideposts.org/daily-devotions/devotions-for-women/devotions-for-faith-prayer-devotions-for-women/

Every Man Ministry

Every Man Ministry – Kenny Luck -Less Straw, More Bricks? (Part 1)

Leave a comment

You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”   ––Matthew 15:7-8

My friend KC spent more than 35 years in the corporate world. He talks about his experience of working for one Christian company: “The company was, shall we say, very careful with raises, but talked a lot about how we were doing God’s work. Unfortunately, their words often didn’t line up with my understanding of biblical stewardship. The owners and executives all drove very nice cars while the worker bees rode the bus or drove beater cars. But, they’d constantly tell us that what we were doing was ministry, thus low salaries. It was, essentially, a ‘less straw, more bricks’ scenario.”

KC’s reference is found in Exodus, where the Egyptian pharaoh who honored Joseph is dead, and Moses is now in the limelight.

That same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and overseers in charge of the people: “You are no longer to supply the people with straw for making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. But require them to make the same number of bricks as before; don’t reduce the quota. ––Exodus 5:6-8

Can you relate? Maybe you’ve been in a one-sided relationship where you felt you were the one doing all the work; or perhaps, like KC, you’ve worked for an employer who drove you really hard but rewarded poorly. They said the right things, but the actions didn’t produce. Whatever your “less straw, more bricks” situation, here’s the common denominator: it’s no fun, and it’s discouraging.

In my own personal “less straw” work situation, I finally had to leave that organization. It was a tough decision, but eventually the Lord made it clear that he had a new chapter for me. My prayer is that if you are currently in this type of situation, that God would make your next move crystal clear, and knock down any barriers for you to do His will in your next chapter.

In the key verse for today’s reading, Jesus quotes Isaiah to drive home the point that hypocrisy—saying one thing and doing another—is nothing new. For you and me in our twenty-first century world, it seems that this type of hypocrisy is only getting worse, not better. The danger for God’s man, when caught in a “less straw” scenario, is to become bitter and offended. That’s how our emotions typically flow when people say one thing but do another. But we are not called to flow the way the world flows—we are called to flow against the grain, so to speak, as God’s kingdom looks nothing like the world’s.

So in those situations where “less straw” is being given to you to produce the same amount of bricks, keen discernment is needed. What is your role in the situation? What are the controllables vs. the uncontrollables? This is a very good time to invoke the opinions of trusted, godly friends, and to turn to the Holy Spirit for precise direction.

Bad things are going to happen to us, and it’s up to us how we will react. It doesn’t mean we pretend that negative things aren’t happening, but that we deal with them through a Kingdom lens light on offense and heavy on thoughtful discernment.

Father, help me walk through my negative circumstances and also, may my words always match my actions, and vice versa.

 

 

Every Man Ministries

News and Info

Have Lukewarm Churches And Secularism Created The Perfect Storm For America’s Decline?

Leave a comment

 

Twenty years ago, when I lived in southern California, a guest speaker gave a sermon at the church we were attending at the time. He was describing the condition of America, the apathy of too many professing believers, and the moral decline that had been gradually increasing since the 1960s.

I thought of the reputation we used to have around the world as a great Christian nation and beacon of religious freedom. And even though our country has been tremendously blessed as God shed His grace on us for over 200 years, it did not last. It rarely does. More on this in a moment.

While churches in the West are becoming lukewarm, fading, or spiritually insignificant, there are thriving churches in countries where persecution is quite common. The speaker was discussing missions and said something I will never forget:

“There are Christians from Asia and nations where the gospel is restricted who are sending missionaries to America. They are flying into LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) with the goal of evangelizing the decadent West.”

We need to be evangelized! A recent guest on my show, Worldview Matters, also said that if you want to be a missionary, go to church, meaning – get them saved. What happened to the morality and influence of born-again believers? Where is the light of Christ and the preserving influence of Christians on American culture?

Sadly, the United States is a top exporter of abortion, demonic entertainment, pornography, the prosperity gospel, drugs, and more. We are full of pride and perversion. Abraham Lincoln, in the late 1860s, said we have become too proud to pray to the God who created us and blessed this land. We’ve become apathetic, comfortable, distracted, and divided. Tragically, the Church is no longer leading the way.

Let’s look at how Jesus rebuked the lukewarm church in Asia Minor.

Revelation 3:15-22 reads, “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten.Therefore be [c]zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” 

Notice that this is a message from Jesus (through the Holy Spirit) to Christians in one of the early churches in Asia Minor. He is standing outside the door of His church!

How about today? Is Jesus knocking on the door of churches claiming to worship Him?

Is the state of today’s church any indication of the morality, stability, and strength of America? There’s an expression many believe to be accurate: as the church goes so goes America.

You may have heard about the concept of a ‘Life Cycle of Nations,’ put forth by Scottish historian, Alexander Tyler at the time of the American Revolution. Nations generally follow this pattern:

From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage;

 

From courage to liberty; From liberty to abundance.

 

From abundance to selfishness; From selfishness to apathy;

 

From apathy to dependence; From dependence back into bondage.

As we consider Bible prophecy and current events, let’s also be reminded that though the biblical worldview is on life support, God is not shocked and His sovereignty still rules over all.

Contrary to the left, the media, secular government, the K-12 education system, and Marxist universities, America’s greatness was undergirded from the beginning by our Judeo-Christian moral foundation.

In November 1620, Pilgrims and Puritans created the first social contract in the New World. The Mayflower Compact set a precedent for religious freedom and became a guide for later charters of self-government in North America. It’s vital to understand the Compact declares profound religious commitment while organizing a civil government.

The second sentence states their purpose:

“…Having undertaken for the Glory of God and advancement of the Christian Faith and Honour of our King and Country, a Voyage to plant the First Colony…”

At the time of the American Revolution, historian from France, Alexis de Tocqueville attributed America’s greatness to what he described as American pulpits “aflame with righteousness.” We would have had no American Revolution without the black robed regiment; pastors speaking the whole counsel of God’s Truth and standing up to tyranny.

In order to have a strong, stable nation, we needed a healthy, vibrant, influential church committed to preaching the gospel of repentance and being counter-culture – refusing to conform to this world.

Sadly, there are millions of people who go to church every Sunday and are not even saved. They profess to believe Jesus is the only way and claim to trust the Bible, but they are better classified as unconverted or ‘so-called Christians.’

In light of a huge national election coming up in a few weeks, how could someone claim to be a Christian and support the Democrat Party? How do they justify supporting things like abortion, homosexuality, drag queens, transgender surgeries, open borders, socialism, and do not support Israel?

They don’t know or haven’t read the Bible.

You’ve heard it said politics are downstream from culture meaning culture influences government. Ideally, as in the early church and the earliest days in America, biblical Christianity influenced the land. A vibrant faith and religion should be shaping culture and politics today but I’m afraid it’s the other way around.

George Barna was my guest on Worldview Matters a few weeks ago and shared some tragic news about the alarming decline in biblical worldview among pastors and church leaders. A majority (62%) do not even believe the Bible they preach from on Sunday mornings. How’s this possible?

It just takes one generation. Worldly pulpits have led to Syncretism; a merging of – or a combination of conflicting and differing religions, beliefs, or practices. Barna estimates that a staggering 92 percent of Americans fall into the category of syncretism!

People can’t decide on just one, so they mix a patchwork of beliefs such as Buddhism, Christianity, the New Age, works righteousness, and worldviews such as: Islam (everything must submit) Postmodernism (everything is about power) and Marxism (everything advances revolution, oppressed vs oppressor).

A weak American church combined with secularism have now produced some awful consequences. Only one percent (1%) of 18–29-year-olds have a biblical worldview today. We desperately need repentance and revival!

Barna concluded:

“It certainly seems that if America is going to experience a spiritual revival, that awakening is needed just as desperately in our pulpits as in the pews; …This [research] is another strong piece of evidence that the culture is influencing the American church more than Christian churches are influencing the culture”

Too many pastors are unwilling to teach the whole counsel of God, equip the saints, address Bible prophecy, politics, and expose darkness. They will answer to God one day.

Moreover, a Gallup Poll last year had this headline revealing a big part of the problem: “Belief in the Inerrancy of Scripture Rapidly Declining”

Just 20% – a record low of Americans think the Bible is actually and literally God’s Word. This is the first time in history more Americans do NOT view the Bible as divinely inspired. In addition, almost 30% of Americans now think the Bible is merely a collection of “fables, legends, history, and moral precepts recorded by man.”

Abandoning inerrancy is the first downward step to apostasy, accommodating sin, and post-modernism.

In his 1998 book, The God Who Is There, Dr. Francis Schaeffer warned about the danger of compromise and what happens when we stop believing in the inspiration of Scripture:

“Here is the great evangelical disaster – the failure of the evangelical world to stand for truth. There is only one word for this, namely accommodation: the evangelical church has accommodated the spirit of this age. First, there has been accommodation of Scripture, so that many who call themselves evangelicals hold a weakened view of the Bible and no longer affirm the truth of all that it teaches – truth not only in religious matters but in matters of science, history, and morality.”

He was spot on!

We need to acknowledge how we got here, understand the signs of the times, and also know how to respond. Doing nothing, not warning people, keeping our faith to ourselves must not be options. The Bible warns about falling away, heresy, and rebellion against God. Let’s see if any of these predictions sound familiar.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 states: “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

Things will get worse. The question is this: What will we do about it? How are we responding today to blatant evil and perpetrators of demonic agendas? If you are a believer in Christ and you are silent in the face of evil, whose approval are you more concerned about, God’s or man’s?

2 Timothy 3:12-13 further states, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.”

Those who truly believe and live out their faith will be persecuted. In other words, when people know you by your fruit and bold witness, they will hate you.

Some speculate America is ripe for judgment. Others say we’re in the early stages. Too many don’t seem to care, and many Christians seem unconvinced the time is short.

Why does all this matter?

Sadly, too many professing Christians are ineffective or unproductive as salt and light; many are clueless about how late the hour is and it seems we’d rather be busy, be entertained, and of course, comfortable. This is cruise ship Christianity.

The truth is we’re on a battleship and Satan is pulling out all the stops. We know our struggle is not against flesh and blood – but we also know the enemy uses people, flesh and blood, to do his work on the earth. We must discern and respond.

Writer of “Amazing Grace,” John Newton, once said, “If I might read only one book beside the Bible, I would choose The Christian in Complete Armour,” by William Gurnall, an English scholar, preacher, and puritan. Born in the 1600s, he wrote much about spiritual warfare and the duty of believers. He stated:

“It is the image of God reflected in you that so enrages hell; it is this at which the demons hurl their mightiest weapons; …God himself underwrites your battle and has appointed His own Son ‘the captain of [your] salvation’ (Hebrews 2:10)… The soldier is summoned to a life of active duty, and so is the Christian. The very nature of the calling precludes a life of ease.”

You don’t see much about pursuing comfort and leisure in the pages of the Bible.

Daily news and headlines clearly prove the dark and dramatic moral decline. Some topics include abortion, antisemitism, transgender ideology, environmental extremism, population control, AI, hyper-sexuality, LGBTQ, globalism, Marxism, medical tyranny, communist policy in America, delusion, persecution, evil called good, increasing crime, and violence.

These are just a handful of indicators that the return of the Lord must be getting close.

Judgment is coming, and it’s not going to be pretty. Do you think there’s chaos and disorder and turmoil on the earth now? We ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Imagine the darkness when the church is removed.

How many pastors today are warning people of the judgment to come and teaching about the holiness of a God who is described as a consuming fire?

Like Noah’s day, many people will not understand until it’s too late; they are busy, preoccupied, and carrying on with life. Nonetheless, we are called to share the good news because we’re messengers of a righteous, worthy, Mighty God.

The Apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:20, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”

We represent King Jesus! Furthermore, we have the Holy Spirit in us and are not left without armor or help. 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 states: “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

We are overcomers, and if God is for us, who can be against us?

It’s good to be informed, encouraged, and to enjoy fellowship. For those of us who attend solid Bible-teaching churches, we’re well fed and equipped. But what about Monday through Saturday? Are we using the knowledge, gifts, and talents God gave us to bless and minister to others?

We need discernment, we need to be obedient, and we need to be ready. Preach the truth that “whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Rom. 10:13).

Romans 10:8-10 states: “But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Speak up, stand in faith, pray for wisdom, love your neighbors, and watch for our Blessed Hope. Even when things feel like they’re spinning out of control, the Lord of History has not lost His power, remains on the throne, and is faithful forever.

David Fiorazo is an author, ordained pastor, host of Worldview Matters, and media contributor for Harbinger’s Daily and Freedom Project.

 

Source: Have Lukewarm Churches And Secularism Created The Perfect Storm For America’s Decline? – Harbinger’s Daily

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread – Scraped Butter

Leave a comment

 

Bible in a Year :

I have had enough, Lord . . . . Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.

1 Kings 19:4

Today’s Scripture & Insight :

1 Kings 19:1-8

In J. R. R. Tolkien’s book The Fellowship of the Ring, Bilbo Baggins starts showing the effects of carrying, for six decades, a magical ring with dark powers. Weighed down by its slowly corrosive nature, he says to the wizard Gandalf, “Why, I feel all thin, sort of stretched, if you know what I mean: like butter that has been scraped over too much bread.” He decides to leave his home in search of rest, somewhere “in peace and quiet, without a lot of relatives prying around.”

This aspect of Tolkien’s story reminds me of an Old Testament prophet’s experience. On the run from Jezebel and wrung out after his battle with false prophets, Elijah badly needed some rest. Feeling depleted, he asked God to let him die, saying, “I have had enough, Lord” (1 Kings 19:4). After he fell asleep, God’s angel woke him so he could eat and drink. He slept again, and then ate more of the food provided by the angel. Revitalized, he had enough energy for the forty-day walk to the mountain of God.

When we feel scraped thin, we too can look to God for true refreshment. We might need to care for our bodies while we also ask Him to fill us with His hope, peace, and rest. Even as the angel tended to Elijah, we can trust that God will impart His refreshing presence on us (see Matthew 11:28).

By:  Amy Boucher Pye

Reflect & Pray

When you’re wrung out and exhausted, what actions tempt you? How can you put your trust in God when you’re tired and overwhelmed?

Strengthening God, I look to You for true rest. Please help me put my hope in You and fill me with Your presence.

 

 

http://www.odb.org

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – A Peaceful Home Base

Leave a comment

When you enter a house, first say, “Peace to this house.” If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.

Luke 10:5-7 (NIV)

During Jesus’ earthly ministry, He sent some of His followers out two by two to do His kingdom work.

He said to them, basically, “Go and find a house and say, “Peace be unto you.” And if your peace settles on that house, then you can stay there. If it doesn’t, shake the dust off your feet and go on” (Matthew 10:12–14; Luke 10:5–11).

At one time in my life, I felt repeatedly drawn to these scriptures, and I didn’t know why. I finally realized that God was trying to help me understand what Jesus was saying to His disciples in today’s scripture. I needed to learn that in order to minister with His anointing (the grace and power of the Holy Spirit in me), I needed to live in peace.

As I continued to study and meditate on these verses, I realized that in order to serve Him most effectively, all of us need a peaceful base of operations, a place from which we can go out and to which we can go back. For most of us, this place is our home. If our homes aren’t peaceful, we need to do whatever we can to gain and maintain a calm, peaceful atmosphere, because strife and confusion adversely affect the anointing of God that rests on our lives. Even if you can’t have peace in your home because the other people refuse to be peaceful, you can remain peaceful in your heart.

Let me encourage you to do all you can do to ensure peace in your “home base.” That way, everyone who lives and works from that place will do so with God’s grace and peace—and they will have success.

Prayer of the Day: Lord, show me anything I need to do to establish and maintain peace in my home, and help me create a peaceful atmosphere for all who live there, including myself.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar killed in Gaza

Leave a comment

 

News broke Thursday that the Israeli military has killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in a southern Gaza raid. Sinwar was the mastermind of the October 7 attacks and had served as the driver of Hamas’ position in the largely fruitless cease-fire talks that followed.

Israeli and American officials had been hunting for Sinwar since those attacks and had gotten close to capturing or killing him on multiple occasions prior to this week. In January, they missed him by a matter of days after raiding a tunnel where he’d been hiding. Though he escaped, they still came away with key documents and roughly $1 million worth of Israeli shekels that Sinwar was forced to leave behind.

Given the magnitude of Sinwar’s death, Israeli officials took quite a while to confirm that the Hamas leader had, in fact, been killed. They took his body back to a laboratory in Israel to compare DNA samples, along with fingerprints and dental records, with their records from when Sinwar was their prisoner for more than two decades. He’d previously been released while serving four life sentences as part of a prisoner exchange in 2011.

Given that Sinwar had largely insisted upon conditions that were beyond the pale of Israeli consideration in any cease-fire negotiations, his death has raised hopes among some that an end to the war could be possible. Most seem skeptical of that outcome—and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Israelies, “The war, my dear ones, is not over yet”—but there are fewer obstacles to peace now than at the start of the week. And, given the reports of rapidly deteriorating conditions in Gaza, a quick end could indeed prove to be a blessing.

Will the US continue to support Israel?

Earlier this week, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken sent a letter to Yoav Gallant—Israel’s Minister of Defense—in which they threatened to cut off future military aid unless Israel allowed more humanitarian aid into Gaza in the next thirty days. They defined “more aid” as:

  • At least 350 aid trucks per day through all four major crossings.
  • The opening of a fifth additional crossing.
  • Allowing people in the humanitarian zone on the coast to move inland before winter.
  • Humanitarian pauses across Gaza to allow for greater access to vaccinations and medical treatments.
  • A new channel of communication between Israel and the US to “raise and discuss civilian harm incidents.”

While aid shipments improved earlier this year, the latest reports claim that they have fallen by more than 50 percent from their peak. The UN humanitarian office claims that only one of its 54 efforts to get into Northern Gaza were approved earlier this month, and current projections are that nine in ten Gazans will face “acute food scarcity” in the coming months unless something changes.

For their part, COGAT—Israel’s Coordination of Government Activities and Territories task force—denied that any border crossings in the north have been closed and countered by noting that they have allowed the international community to bring 1,064,820 tons of humanitarian aid through its crossings since the start of the war, including roughly 824,078 tons of food. And much of that aid has been seized by Hamas rather than going to the Palestinian people.

Still, the present food crisis in Gaza is less about what Israel has done than what it is doing at the moment. And, in that regard, there is a dire need for improvement.

After all, no matter how you feel about the Gazan people, their response to Hamas, or the litany of other lenses through which this war can be seen, we must never forget that God loves them and calls us to do the same.

Serving Christ by serving others

In one of Christ’s final teachings before the crucifixion, he told his followers a parable about sheep, goats, and the final judgment (Matthew 25:31–46). His primary point in the story is that when God gathers all nations before his throne, how he will see us will hinge—at least in part—on how we had treated the “least of these.” Jesus goes so far as to say that the care we rendered to the poor, sick, and strangers in our midst was rendered to him as well.

As Russell Moore recently pointed out, our job in responding to this passage is not to parse out who belongs to the least of these but, rather, to simply serve the people God puts in our lives to serve. That responsibility should impact not only how we treat people but also how we see them.

While few of us will likely have the chance to serve those suffering in Gaza, knowing that Jesus would want us to care for them if we did should inform the way we see their suffering.

That doesn’t mean we should justify the actions of those who have sided with Hamas in their atrocities or that we should forget why this war started in the first place. But it does mean that we should not allow any such questions to block out the fact that every single individual fighting over bread or wondering if their home will be the next one destroyed as collateral damage is made in the image of God and loved by our heavenly Father.

And the same is true for the least of these whom the Lord has given you an opportunity to help.

So, when those chances come, what will you do?

How you answer will reveal quite a bit about where you stand with God today.

Friday news to know:

*Denison Forum does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in these stories.

Quote of the day:

“Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” — Jesus (Matthew 25:40)

 

Denison Forum

Days of Praise

Days of Praise – God Knows Me

Leave a comment

by Henry M. Morris, Ph.D.

“O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me.” (Psalm 139:1)

Perhaps the most frightening attribute of God is that He knows everything about us. Everything! He has “searched” (literally “penetrated”) us and “known” (“understood”) us. And since God is both omnipresent and omniscient, it obviously follows that nothing escapes His conscious knowledge about us. He observes our ordinary activities (v. 2) and our innermost thoughts. “Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways” (v. 3). The Hebrew word translated “compassest” suggests that He actually sees the formation of the words in our tongues before we begin to speak them (v. 4). That means that we are transparent to Him; we cannot deceive Him in any way. He knows what we are going to think; we cannot hide anything from Him. God knows what only we know about ourselves and those things we won’t even admit to ourselves.

Furthermore, He is everywhere around each one of us (vv. 7-10), wherever we are or could be. He fills all space, and there is no escape. We cannot hide from God. He is wherever we go. The apostle Paul once observed: “For in him we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17:28). This very intimate and complete knowledge about us is what makes God’s salvation such a marvelous matter. “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8). God loves us in spite of what we have become. Yet, since He knows what we could be, He gives us eternal life through His Son so that we will realize, one day, what He knows we shall be. HMM

 

 

https://www.icr.org/articles/type/6

My Utmost for His Highest

My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers – The Key to the Missionary’s Devotion

Leave a comment

 

It was for the sake of the Name that they went out. — 3 John 1:7

Our Lord has told us how our love for him should manifest itself: “Do you love me?” he asks. “Feed my sheep” (John 21:17). Our Lord is saying, “Identify yourself with my interests in other people,” not “Identify me with your interests in other people.” This kind of love has a specific character. It’s defined in 1 Corinthians 13:4–8: “Love is patient, love is kind . . .” It is the love of God expressing itself. Other expressions of love are merely sentimental. The love of God is able to stand up to the most practical tests.

“It was for the sake of the Name that they went out.” The Holy Spirit fills my heart with the love of God and sends that love through me to everyone I meet. It enables me to remain loyal to the Name, even though every commonsense fact declares that Jesus Christ has no more power than the morning mist. This loyalty is the supernatural work of redemption, worked in me by the Holy Spirit.

The key to the missionary’s devotion is being attached to nothing and no one except our Lord himself. This doesn’t mean being separated from the outside world; our Lord was always in the world, among ordinary people and things. His detachment was entirely on the inside, where he was attached only to God. Avoiding the world is often a sign of a secret, inner attachment to the very things we’re setting out to avoid. The missionary has no such attachments. His or her soul is kept concentratedly open to Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ alone. The men and women our Lord chooses to send out as his missionaries, though they are made of ordinary human stuff, have a dominating devotion to him, formed by the Holy Spirit.

Isaiah 53-55; 2 Thessalonians 1

Wisdom from Oswald

There is no condition of life in which we cannot abide in Jesus. We have to learn to abide in Him wherever we are placed.Our Brilliant Heritage

 

 

https://utmost.org/

Billy Graham

Billy Graham – Blessed Are Peacemakers

Leave a comment

 

I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.
—Psalm 4:8

In a materialistic world which has tried to sever diplomatic relations with God, we have nowhere to retreat except within ourselves. We are like turtles in a traffic jam—the best we can do is to pull our heads into our shells and shut our eyes. But that’s a good way to get the life crushed out of us, as any dead turtle can attest.

Man’s conflict with man has been but an expression on the human level of his conflict with God. Until man finds an armistice with God, he cannot know peace with his fellowman. If we are to be peacemakers, we first must make our peace with God.

Hear Billy Graham’s message about what real peace is.

Lea este devocional en español en es.billygraham.org.

Prayer for the day

In Jesus’ name, I have found peace with You, Father. My soul praises Your holy name.

 

 

Home

GuidePosts

Guideposts – Devotions for Women – For Such a Time as This

Leave a comment

 

For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”—Esther 4:14 (NIV)

As you reflect on this verse, remember that you are called to be faithful to God’s plan for your life. Trust that He will use your gifts and talents for His glory and guide you toward fulfilling your purpose. Like Esther, you can be confident that God has placed you in your current position “for such a time as this.”

Dear Lord, please give me the courage to step out in faith, just as Esther did, and fulfill my purpose.

 

 

https://guideposts.org/daily-devotions/devotions-for-women/devotions-for-faith-prayer-devotions-for-women/

Every Man Ministry

Every Man Ministry – Kenny Luck -On the Shoulders of Giants

Leave a comment

 

Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.  ––Hebrews 12:2-3

We can’t look up at the Man on the cross and lose in our quest to throw spiritual caution and fear to the wind. In fact, the longer we look at Him up there, the more dangerous we become for the Kingdom. Imagine Jesus hanging on the cross. You are standing there. What emotions are you feeling?

We join the ranks of men who saw Him from a distance and risked, men who walked with Him up close, and men who through the centuries endangered their lives to demonstrate their love. In other words, you are not the first Christ-following man who has felt all the things you feel—lust, anger, fear, depression, hope, excitement, joy. That’s why I love to read the biographies of great Christian men who have gone before me.

A good friend of mine, KC, who works in Christian publishing, was able to work on a book with one of my heroes and his, John Wooden. KC and I are both UCLA alums and die-hard Bruin fans, and grew up watching Wooden’s UCLA basketball teams win national championships. Voted the Greatest Coach of the 21st Century by ESPN, “Coach,” or the Wizard of Westwood as many called him (a term, by the way, that he disliked), Wooden epitomized the attributes of a man who followed Christ and whose impact is still felt in all the men who played, coached, or studied under him.

KC told me that when you’d walk into Coach’s condominium in Encino, California, a bookshelf stood right before you in the foyer. On it were dozens of books about the life of Abraham Lincoln, one of Wooden’s heroes. Lincoln, a hero’s hero and one of the greatest Americans, was a big influence on Wooden when he formed his famous “Pyramid of Success.” In fact, This great teaching tool includes many of Lincoln’s attributes and character traits, as well as traits from the Word of God.

Like Coach, we study the good men who came before us, and ultimately, all those men—like us—look to our Master Model, Jesus Christ. If you are to bet at all, study the Man who risked it all.

Keep your eyes on Jesus who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how He did it.  Because He never lost sight of where He was headed – that exhilarating finish in and with God – he could put up with anything along the way; the cross, shame, whatever. Now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside the Father.  When we find ourselves flagging in our faith, go over the story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into our souls! Faith in this historical fact will bring us through.

Father, You have not held back on the gifts You have given me to do the things that will bless You, me and others. Thank You!

 

 

Every Man Ministries

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread – God’s Provision

Leave a comment

 

Bible in a Year :

Moses said to them, “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat.”

Exodus 16:15

Today’s Scripture & Insight :

Exodus 16:11-19

The world was amazed when four siblings ages one to thirteen were found alive in Colombia’s Amazon jungle in June 2023. The siblings had survived forty days in the jungle after a plane crash, which killed their mother. The children, who were familiar with the jungle’s harsh terrain, hid from wild animals in tree trunks, collected water from streams and rain in bottles, and ate food such as cassava flour from the wreckage. They also knew which wild fruits and seeds were safe to eat.

God sustained the siblings.

Their incredible story reminds me of how God miraculously sustained the Israelites in the desert for forty years, which is recorded in the books of Exodus and Numbers and mentioned throughout the Bible. He preserved their lives so that they would know He was their God.

God turned bitter spring water into drinkable water, provided water from a rock twice, and guided His people in a pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night. He also provided manna for them. “Moses said to them, ‘It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat. This is what the Lord has commanded: Everyone is to gather as much as they need’ ” (Exodus 16:15-16).

The same God provides us with “our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11). We can trust Him to provide for our needs “according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). What a mighty God we serve!

By:  Nancy Gavilanes

Reflect & Pray

How have you experienced God’s provision? What are you currently trusting Him for?

Dear God, thank You for providing for my every need.

 

 

http://www.odb.org

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Face the Truth

Leave a comment

 

Rather, let our lives lovingly express truth [in all things, speaking truly, dealing truly, living truly]….

Ephesians 4:15 (AMPC)

You and I live in a world filled with people who are living false lives, wearing masks of pretense, and hiding things they don’t want others to know. That is wrong. But the reason it happens is that people have not been taught to walk in truth. As believers, we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us; He is the Spirit of Truth, and He speaks the truth to us.

Sometimes Satan deceives us, but at other times we deceive ourselves. In other words, we fabricate lives we are comfortable with instead of facing life as it really is and dealing with issues with the help of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit speaks to me and confronts me with issues in my life frequently, and He has also taught me to be a confronter, not a coward. Cowards hide from the truth; they are afraid of it. You don’t have to be afraid of the truth. Jesus told His disciples that the Holy Spirit would lead them into truth, but He also told them they were not ready to hear certain things (see John 16:12), so He did not reveal those things at that time. The Holy Spirit will always speak truth to you, but He won’t speak certain truths to you until He knows you are ready to hear them.

If you are brave enough to welcome the Spirit of Truth into every area of your life and let Him speak to you about issues in your life, you are in for an unforgettable journey of freedom and power.

Prayer of the Day: Father God, help me to walk in Your truth and be guided solely by Your Spirit. Help me confront the areas in my life that need Your healing touch, amen.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – The brightest supermoon of the year, a new comet, and solar storms

Leave a comment

 

Embracing four often-overlooked biblical principles

Last night’s Hunter Moon was the brightest supermoon we’ll see all year. It comes at the same time a comet discovered only last year is visible after sunset. Meanwhile, strong storms on our Sun may temporarily disrupt power and communications on our planet and spacecraft in orbit.

From above us to below us: Scientists have discovered animals beneath the ocean floor. Since only 26.1 percent of the global seafloor has been mapped, who knows what else lies down there?

For those with eyes to see and minds to think, every dimension of our universe demonstrates our Creator’s magnificence and humanity’s finitude. Consider a few examples:

  • Around ten billion trillion people could fit inside the Earth.
  • Around 1,300,000 Earths could fit inside the Sun. (Our planet is about the size of an average sunspot.)
  • Our Sun is just one of two hundred billion trillion stars in the observable universe.
  • End to end, the blood vessels in your body would stretch more than twice the distance around the world.
  • One trillion atoms could fit into the period at the end of this sentence.

I could go on. And our God made all of that.

As we’re exploring the significance and urgency of biblical truth this week, consider this amazing fact: The omnipotent Creator of the universe wrote a book. And just as amazing: He wants us to be empowered and transformed by its truth.

What does this mean in practical terms? Consider four often-overlooked, interrelated principles.

The word leads to the Word

When I taught biblical interpretation as a seminary professor, I emphasized the “Christocentric” principle: The word of God ultimately exists to lead us to the Son of God. For example, John wrote his Gospel “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31).

If we read, teach, and preach the Bible as an end rather than as a means, we frustrate the Spirit’s purpose behind its inspiration, illumination, and application today. St. Ignatius, the second-century bishop of Antioch, wrote a letter in which he warned: “Be deaf when anyone preaches to you without mentioning Jesus Christ. … Flee from these preachers, these wicked offshoots that bear deadly fruit, one taste of which is fatal.”

If you do not experience Christ whenever you read the Bible, you have not fully read the Bible.

What happens to us must happen through us

For a variety of reasons, I believe the Bible to be the true, trustworthy, and authoritative word, as I explain here. But there’s a caveat: You and I must act biblically for the Bible to fulfill its transforming purpose in our lives.

The fifth-century Gallic monk Vincent of Lérins compared our spiritual growth to our physical growth: as our bodies mature, they are still our bodies. If they become something else, “the whole body would necessarily perish or become grotesque or at least be enfeebled.”

In the same way, he urged, “We should reap true doctrine from the growth of true teaching.” When we do, this doctrine changes our lives and our world.

The Bible is unique among the world’s books in that its intended purpose is only fully accomplished in us if it is accomplished through us. The person who hears God’s word “and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing” (James 1:25).

Will you be blessed in your “doing” today?

Breathe out to breathe in

A vital way to obey God’s word is by leading others to obey God’s word.

St. Gregory the Great, who served as pope from 590 to his death in 604, lamented that “compelled by the urgency of these barbarous times,” he and other Christian leaders “accept the duties of office, but by our actions, we show that we are attentive to other things.” For example, “Those who have been entrusted to us abandon God, and we are silent. They fall into sin, and we do not extend a hand of rebuke.”

Gregory then asks, “How can we who neglect ourselves be able to correct someone else? We are wrapped up in worldly concerns, and the more we devote ourselves to external things, the more insensitive we become in spirit.”

Obedience to Scripture requires us to help others obey Scripture (2 Timothy 3:16–17). We must breathe out to breathe in.

Light a candle that “shall never be put out”

In unbiblical times, biblical fidelity is dangerous (cf. John 15:20). In our post-Christian and even anti-Christian culture, we can measure the depth of our obedience to Scripture by its cost in our personal and public lives.

Yesterday marked the anniversary of the martyrdoms of Nicholas Ridley and Hugh Latimer. The Church of England bishops were burned at the stake in 1555 for refusing to renounce their commitment to the absolute authority of the Bible.

A third Protestant leader, Thomas Cranmer, recanted his faith, only to disavow his recantation and reaffirm his belief in the supremacy of Scripture. When he went to his death in 1556, he first held the hand with which he signed his false recantations into the flame until it was consumed.

I will always remember my first visit to the Martyrs’ Memorial at Oxford University, where its three statues depict Ridley, Latimer, and Cranmer near the place of their deaths. Here I recalled Bishop Latimer’s last words:

“Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man. We shall this day light such a candle, by God’s grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out.”

When last did it cost you something significant to “light such a candle”?

What price will you pay to light another today?

Thursday news to know:

*Denison Forum does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in these stories.

Quote for the day:

“Many people do not want absolutes in doctrine and ethics, simply because absolute truths and standards demand absolute acceptance and obedience.” —John MacArthur

 

Denison Forum

Days of Praise

Days of Praise – The Amen

Leave a comment

 

by Henry M. Morris, Ph.D. “For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.” (2 Corinthians 1:20)

 

“Amen” is a most remarkable word. It is transliterated directly from the Hebrew into the Greek of the New Testament and then into Latin, English, and many other languages so that it is practically a universal word. It has been called the best-known word in human speech.

 

The word is directly related—in fact, almost identical—to the Hebrew word for “believe” (aman), or “faithful.” Thus, it came to mean “sure” or “truly,” an expression of absolute trust and confidence. When one believes God, he indicates his faith by an “amen.” When God makes a promise, the believer’s response is “amen”—“so it will be!” In the New Testament it is often translated “verily” or “truly.” When we pray according to His Word and His will, we know God will answer, so we close with an “amen,” and so also do we conclude a great hymn or anthem of praise and faith.

 

The word is even a title of Christ Himself. The last of His letters to the seven churches begins with a remarkable salutation by the glorified Lord: “These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God” (Revelation 3:14). We can be preeminently certain that His Word is always faithful and true because He is none other than the Creator of all things, and thus He is our eternal “Amen.”

 

As our text reminds us, every promise of God in Christ is “yea and amen,” as strong an affirmation of truth as can be expressed in the Greek language.

 

It is, therefore, profoundly meaningful that the entire Bible closes with an “amen.” “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen” (Revelation 22:21), assuring everyone who reads these words that the whole book is absolutely true and trustworthy. Amen! HMM

 

https://www.icr.org/articles/type/6

My Utmost for His Highest

My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers – Greater Works

Leave a comment

 

They will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. — John 14:12

Prayer doesn’t prepare us for the greater work; prayer is the greater work. We think of prayer as a commonsense exercise of our higher powers, as something that gets us ready to do God’s work. In the teaching of Jesus Christ, prayer is the miracle of the redemption at work in me—a miracle which, by the power of God, produces the miracle of the redemption in others: “I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last” (John 15:16). It’s true that my prayer produces lasting fruit, but I must remember that it is prayer based on the agony of the redemption, not on my agony.

Prayer doesn’t prepare us for battle; prayer is the battle. It doesn’t matter where we are nor how God has engineered our circumstances; our duty is to pray. Never allow the thought, “I’m of no use where I am.” You certainly can be of no use where you’re not. Wherever God has dumped you down, pray to him—pray all the time. Most of us won’t pray unless it gives us a thrill, which is the most intense form of spiritual selfishness. We have to work according to God’s direction; and he says, simply, pray.

“Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:38 kjv). There’s nothing thrilling about a laboring person’s work, but it is the laboring person who makes the conceptions of the genius possible. In the same way, the laboring disciple makes the conceptions of the Master possible. You may not see the fruits of your prayer immediately, but from God’s viewpoint there are results all the time. What an astonishment it will be to find, when the veil is lifted, how many souls have been reaped by you simply because you were in the habit of taking your orders from Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 50-52; 1 Thessalonians 5

Wisdom from Oswald

No one could have had a more sensitive love in human relationship than Jesus; and yet He says there are times when love to father and mother must be hatred in comparison to our love for Him.  So Send I You, 1301 L

 

 

https://utmost.org/

Billy Graham

Billy Graham – Searching for Peace?

Leave a comment

 

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee …
—Isaiah 26:3

Are you searching for peace? Are you longing for it? You thought you would find it if you made a lot of money, but you didn’t find it. You thought you would find it in getting and accumulating a lot of knowledge, so you got all the degrees you could, but you didn’t find it, this peace.

You’ve searched the religions of the world, but you haven’t found it. There are a thousand ways you’ve turned, trying to find peace, but you haven’t found it. When you come to Christ by an act of faith, He gives you the Holy Spirit who produces the fruit of the Spirit and gives you the peace that passes all understanding.

Experience the peace you are longing for. Make a decision for Christ today.

Listen to this testimony about finding peace through Jesus.

Lea este devocional en español en es.billygraham.org.

Prayer for the day

Your presence fills my mind with peace, Lord, bringing into perspective all that I need—You, my heavenly Father.

 

Home

GuidePosts

Guideposts – Devotions for Women – Sing a New Song

Leave a comment

 

Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.—Psalm 96:1 (NIV)

Worship is a clear way to joy. Actively open your heart and voice your willingness to be transformed by His love and grace. Sing a new song and rejoice and renew your commitment to follow Him.

Thank You, Father, for the privilege of singing a new song to You. May Your Holy Spirit fill me with joy and peace, and may my worship please You.

 

 

https://guideposts.org/daily-devotions/devotions-for-women/devotions-for-faith-prayer-devotions-for-women/

Scriptures, Lessons, News and Links to help you survive.