Tag Archives: christianity

The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Obeying God’s Voice

Leave a comment

Today’s Scripture: 2 Chronicles 33-36

So he gave them what they asked for, but sent a wasting disease upon them. – Psalm 106:15

Reading the story of the people of God is often like reading the biography of a yo-yo. Finally the string of the yo-yo breaks, and we watch the nation plunge to the bottom and stay there.

Second Chronicles 36 tells us that Zedekiah was twenty-one when he became king, and he did evil in the sight of the Lord. He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against the Lord God of Israel. And the people and the priests followed his leadership. The record says they transgressed after all the abominations of the heathen and defiled the house of the Lord. When God continued to call them back to Himself, they mocked His messengers and despised His words till there was no remedy. And so we see the destruction of the kingdom of Judah and the city of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans.

If Zedekiah had simply made the Lord his friend, he could have prevented the ruin and saved the land. Because he would not humble himself and make himself the servant of God, he became the slave of his enemies. Multitudes were put to the sword, even in the sanctuary where they fled for refuge. But the sanctuary was ransacked, its treasures seized and carried to Babylon. The temple was burned, the walls of Jerusalem were demolished, and the stately palaces lay in ashes. The people who survived were carried to Babylon, enslaved, impoverished, insulted, and exposed to much misery in the enemy’s land.

What a picture of the person whose heart becomes hard and unyielding toward God. By the Lord’s grace, may we respond to His voice today, break out of the yo-yo syndrome, and walk with Him in daily discipleship.

Prayer

Lord, speak to me today and I will listen to Your voice and obey it. Amen.

To Ponder

The Lord calls to us through His Word, through our conscience, and through providential circumstances. What might He be saying to you today?

 

https://www.navigators.org/Home

Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – GRACE AND FAVORITISM

Leave a comment

Read Genesis 25:19–34

In his book Everybody’s Normal Till You Get to Know Them, John Ortberg writes about the tendency we have to exclude other people. He uses the example of the different ways an airline will treat the people in first class compared

to those in coach: “The first-class passengers were served gourmet food on china and crystal by their own flight attendants; those of us in coach ate snacks served in paper bags with plastic wrappers,” Ortberg writes. “The first- class passengers had room to stretch and sleep; those of us in coach were sitting with a proximity usually reserved for engaged couples in the back row of a movie.” Preferential treatment is a common feature of human behavior.

What about God? In today’s passage we learn that God’s plan for Jacob differed from His plan for Esau. Both would become the father of a nation, but the younger brother was to have supremacy. This plan violated cultural norms. In Isaac’s day, the right of inheritance was reserved for the firstborn.

What is the difference between grace and favoritism? The chief difference is that favoritism is based on some perceived advantage inherent in the one who is treated differently. It may be wealth, social status, or simply the fact that the one who is treated as a favorite is part of the same club. Grace is not bestowed on the basis of personal worth. Jacob did not deserve the primary place in God’s plan. Isaac and Rebekah demonstrated favoritism in their attitude toward their sons, preferring the child who shared their own interests. God does not show favoritism, but neither does He treat everyone the same. We are not all granted the same abilities, resources, or opportunities. God showed grace in His promise to Jacob, who had done nothing to deserve it, because of His own plans for His people.

APPLY THE WORD

Favoritism is rooted in selfishness and motivated by self-interest. We play favorites because we derive some benefit from the relationship. Grace is rooted in God’s character and motivated by mercy. It is a blessing bestowed upon the unworthy. In what way can you bless someone who can give you nothing in return as an act of worship for God?

http://www.todayintheword.org

Streams in the Desert

Streams in the Desert for Kids – Heavenly Music

Leave a comment

Heavenly Music

Revelation 15:3

We cannot even begin to understand what God is going to do in the future. The book of Revelation gives us a tiny peek into that time. People who are believers will stand beside a sea that looks like glass mixed with fire. These believers will be singing praises to God.

Here is the praise song that they will sing:

Great and marvelous are your deeds,
Lord God Almighty.
Just and true are your ways,
King of the nations.
Who will not fear you, Lord,
and bring glory to your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
and worship before you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.
Revelation 15:3–4

On earth and in heaven we get to trust and praise God for who he is and what he has done for us. During good days or bad, peaceful times or stormy ones, God is always good, always in control, always with us.

Dear Lord, It is wonderful to know that we don’t have to wait for heaven or even for good days to sing songs of praise to you. Thank you for saving us. Amen.

Bible Gateway

C.S. Lewis

C.S. Lewis  – Today’s Reading – On joy

Leave a comment

In speaking of this desire for our own far-off country, which we find in ourselves even now, I feel a certain shyness. I am almost committing an indecency. I am trying to rip open the inconsolable secret in each one of you—the secret which hurts so much that you take your revenge on it by calling it names like Nostalgia and Romanticism and Adolescence: the secret also which pierces with such sweetness that when, in very intimate conversation, the mention of it becomes imminent, we grow awkward and affect to laugh at ourselves: the secret we cannot hide and cannot tell, though we desire to do both. We cannot tell it because it is a desire for something that has never actually appeared in our experience. We cannot hide it because our experience is constantly suggesting it, and we betray ourselves like lovers at the mention of a name. Our commonest expedient is to call it beauty and behave as if that had settled the matter. Wordsworth’s expedient was to identify it with certain moments in his own past. But all this is a cheat. If Wordsworth had gone back to those moments in the past, he would not have found the thing itself, but only the reminder of it; what he remembered would turn out to be itself a remembering. The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them; it was not in them, it only came through them, and what came through them was longing. These things—the beauty, the memory of our own past—are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited. . . .

Apparently, then, our lifelong nostalgia, our longing to be re- united with something in the universe from which we now feel cut off, to be on the inside of some door which we have always seen from the outside, is no mere neurotic fancy, but the truest index of our real situation. And to be at last summoned inside would be both glory and honour beyond all our merits and also the healing of that old ache. . . . The whole man is to drink joy from the fountain of joy.

From The Weight of Glory

Compiled in Words to Live By

BibleGateway

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Victory Over Weakness

Leave a comment

Judges 16:1-31

Parents often try to give their children every advantage in the hope that they’ll become successful adults. As Christians, we especially want to help our kids increase in knowledge of God and His Word, love for Jesus, appreciation for the body of Christ, and the desire to serve the Lord. Children frequently have great enthusiasm for the things of the Lord. But as they grow older, we sometimes see them falling away from the faith.

Samson is an example of such unfortunate drifting. Despite his godly upbringing, sexual temptations eventually became overly attractive to him.

Scripture reveals several occasions where Samson gave in to his lust. For instance, he desired a pagan woman from Timnah, and despite his parents’ warning, he broke God’s command by marrying her (Judg. 14:1-3). A second incident nearly led to his death; he survived only because of his supernatural strength. (Judg. 14:12-20.) Perhaps the most tragic example was his betrayal by Delilah, the ungodly woman he loved. Lust prevented him from seeing her true nature. As a result, Samson was captured and blinded by the Philistines.

Left unchecked, sin will permeate and dominate our lives, while affecting others with its repercussions. The first step toward success is to become aware of our weaknesses. Next, we must admit helplessness to overcome them on our own. Finally, it’s important to acknowledge God’s sufficiency to rescue us. In the end, Samson recognized his need for God and prayed for strength to strike back at the Philistines (Judg. 16:28). If we share Samson’s perspective, we will be able to obey God’s commands and gain victory.

Bible in a Year: Job 39-42

 

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread – Our New Name

Leave a comment

Read: Revelation 2:12–17 | Bible in a Year: 2 Chronicles 34–36; John 19:1–22

I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it. Revelation 2:17

She called herself a worrier, but when her child was hurt in an accident, she learned how to escape that restricting label. As her child was recovering, she met each week with friends to talk and pray, asking God for help and healing. Through the months as she turned her fears and concerns into prayer, she realized that she was changing from being a worrier to a prayer warrior. She sensed that the Lord was giving her a new name. Her identity in Christ was deepening through the struggle of unwanted heartache.

In Jesus’s letter to the church at Pergamum, the Lord promises to give to the faithful a white stone with a new name on it (Rev. 2:17). Biblical commentators have debated over the meaning, but most agree that this white stone points to our freedom in Christ. In biblical times, juries in a court of law used a white stone for a not-guilty verdict and a black stone for guilty. A white stone also gained the bearer entrance into such events as banquets; likewise, those who receive God’s white stone are welcomed to the heavenly feast. Jesus’s death brings us freedom and new life—and a new name.

Followers of Christ have a brand-new identity.

What new name do you think God might give to you?

May I live out my new identity, sharing Your love and joy. Show me how You have made me into a new creation.

INSIGHT:

In the book of Revelation, the Lord Jesus is referred to as having a “sharp, double-edged sword” (1:16; 2:12). In chapter one, John described this sword as coming out of Jesus’s mouth (v. 16). In today’s passage, Jesus is seen using this sword to fight against and slay His enemies (2:16). In a later vision, John saw Jesus as the “Faithful and True” rider of a white horse (19:11), whose name is “the Word of God,” using the “sharp sword” to conquer the nations (vv. 13–15). Christ, the Word of God (John 1:1–4), will come again to judge this world and will rule it “with an iron scepter” (Rev. 19:11–15).

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Whence Came the Wish

Leave a comment

To fully understand C.S. Lewis’ love for the imaginary—indeed, to understand the man himself—something must be said about the distinctively English world Faery. The world of Faery, which has its roots in Celtic culture, is not so easily categorized. It is not at all the land of delicate fairies that Walt Disney would have us imagine. Nor is it simply imaginary, a story altogether detached and unrelated to the world before us. Faery is, first, a place. It is lush and green like gentle British landscapes and ancient English forests, but forests untamed, willful, and enchanted—”a world, that sometimes overlaps with Britain but is fundamentally Other than it.”(1) Biographer Alan Jacobs hints at the importance of Faery on the imagination of Lewis, and in particular, this “old idea that Faery overlaps our world—that one can, unwillingly and unwittingly, pass from one into the other.”(2) Faery is both beautiful and dangerous, its boundaries unclear. The encounter with Faery and its tales, the “horns of Elfland faintly blowing,” was one that haunted Lewis throughout much of his life.(3)

For Lewis, “the horns of Elfland” were heard and followed and dear, like arrows of Joy shot at him from childhood—through the death of his mother at the fragile age of nine, through the horrid years at boarding school, through the doubt and dismissal of faith and God, through the metaphysical pessimism and the deep layers of secular ice, through a dejected and reluctant conversion, to Narnia, and to the Joy itself.

Of course, this is not to say that the imaginative world in which Lewis lived was one fueled in any sense by Christianity or faith; nor were the imaginary worlds he loved anything one might necessarily call Christian. But it was an imagination nonetheless that shaped the way he viewed the world—until he saw fit to abandon it all. Among other reasons for the distancing of his imagination, a new intellectual movement in psychology was becoming increasingly influential. As Lewis writes, “What we were most concerned about was ‘Fantasy’ or ‘wishful thinking.’… [W]hat, I asked myself, were all my delectable mountains and western gardens but sheer Fantasies?… With the confidence of a boy I decided I had done with all that… And I was never going to be taken in again.”(4) For a long line of atheists like Lewis at this time, the Christian imagination’s possession of beauty and hope could be explained only as wish fulfillment, which lied at the very heart of the Christian religion—even if it was, as some contended, a beautiful, imaginative delusion.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Whence Came the Wish →

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – Integrity Proves God’s Faithfulness

Leave a comment

“Then at the end of the days which the king had specified for presenting them, the commander of the officials presented them before Nebuchadnezzar. And the king talked with them, and out of them all not one was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s personal service. And as for every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and conjurers who were in all his realm” (Daniel 1:18-20).

God always equips you for the tasks He requires of you.

Daniel and the other young men deported in 606 B.C. received three years of intense training under the watchful eye of the commander of King Nebuchadnezzar’s officials. At the conclusion of their training, they were presented to the king for his personal evaluation. The results were impressive indeed. Of all those who were trained, none compared to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Beyond that, they were found to be ten times better than all the wise men in the entire kingdom of Babylon! Consequently, at the age of only seventeen or eighteen, they were made the king’s personal servants.

Why were these young men so superior to their peers? It wasn’t simply their training, because each man had received the same education. The difference was their character and the faithful provisions of their God, who granted them special knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom (v. 17). They were so righteous and wise that even those who did not believe in their God were compelled to acknowledge the quality of their lives. That’s the impact every believer should have on those around them!

God wants you to live the kind of life that silences those who would seek to malign you or your God (1 Peter 2:15), and He has provided every spiritual resource for you to do so (2 Peter 1:3). Therefore, when you live with integrity, you prove to others that God really does accomplish His work in those who love Him.

Suggestions for Prayer

Make a list of spiritual resources that are yours in Christ, then praise Him for each of them.

For Further Study

Read Psalm 119:97-104.

  • What are the psalmist’s attitudes toward God’s Word (His “law”)?
  • What steps did he take to ensure that godliness would be evident in his life?

 

http://www.gty.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – A Wise Process Protects From Poor Performance

Leave a comment

Then the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So they brought a sword for the king. He then gave an order: “Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other.” 1 Kings 3:24-25

A wise process protects. It protects life; it protects relationships; it protects resources; it protects commitments. The process, on the surface, may not seem smart, but time wins you over with its wisdom. It is tempting to bypass the process. After all, you know what needs to be done, or so you think. It is tempting to barrel ahead into activity because the need is so great and the time seems so short.

But even if you are confident of the needed outcome, continue to trust the process. At the very least, it will involve others who need the process for understanding requirements and support of a new role. For example, your work may require a new position to be filled. Will you fill this role with the first interested warm body or will there be a defined process for the protection of the company and the protection of the one being interviewed? The rule of three is normally a wise process to employ. Interview three legitimate and good candidates with the purpose of selecting one.

During the interview process, you may discover new issues related to what the job really requires. You may even rewrite the job description. Perhaps this process of employee selection needs to include four or five other interviewers. Their perspective and wisdom is invaluable, as you seek to discern the most qualified person for the position. These “people” processes need not be rushed so that everyone is protected from unwise decision-making. Opportunity evokes emotion. Process channels positive energy into better options.

Continue reading Wisdom Hunters – A Wise Process Protects From Poor Performance →

Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Don’t Lose the Joy

Leave a comment

Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.

Psalm 51:12

Recommended Reading

Psalm 51

Joy is one of the greatest gifts accompanying our salvation. Professor Lewis Smedes wrote, “You and I were created for joy, and if we miss it, we miss the reason for our existence! Moreover, the reason Jesus Christ lived and died on earth was to restore to us the joy we have lost…. His Spirit comes to us with the power to believe that joy is our birthright because the Lord has made this day for us.”1

The Bible calls it “joy unspeakable and full of glory” (1 Peter 1:8, KJV).

When we allow disobedience to fester in our lives, it depresses our joy. When David sinned against God, he spent a year without joy before confessing his failure and asking for a restoration of joy.

Don’t wait as long as David. The joy of our salvation is too precious to allow sin to rob it away. Confess your wrongdoing; turn from it now with God’s help. He will restore your joy and uphold you with His generous Spirit.

You can be joyful again today!

Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be all right, and the determined choice to praise God in all things.

Kay Warren

1Kay Warren, Choose Joy (Grand Rapids: Revell, 2012).

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Psalms 28 – 33

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Guard Your Reactions

Leave a comment

He who rebukes a scorner heaps upon himself abuse, and he who reproves a wicked man gets for himself bruises. Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man and he will be yet wiser….—Proverbs 9:7-9 AMPC

It has been statistically proven that 10 percent of people will never like you, so stop trying to have a perfect record with everyone and start celebrating who you are. A person who knows how to live independently does not allow the moods of other people to alter hers.

A story is told of a Quaker man who knew how to live independently as the valued person God had created Him to be. One night as he was walking down the street with a friend, he stopped at a newsstand to purchase an evening paper. The storekeeper was very sour, rude, and unfriendly. The Quaker man treated him with respect and was quite kind in his dealing with him. He paid for his paper, and he and his friend continued to walk down the street. The friend said to the Quaker, “How could you be so cordial to him with the terrible way he was treating you?” The Quaker man replied, “Oh, he is always that way. Why should I let him determine how I am going to act?”

Lord, help me to not allow others to steal my joy and peace by the things they say and do. I want to be kind and cordial, but I won’t let my mood to be controlled. Amen.

From the book The Confident Woman Devotional: 365 Daily Devotions by Joyce Meyer.

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Girlfriends in God

Girlfriends in God – Grudge, Be Gone

Leave a comment

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Ephesians 4:32

We hope you are enjoying the Girlfriends in God daily devotions. We (Mary, Sharon, and Gwen) would like to introduce you to some of our special friends. From time-to-time, the Friday devotions will be written by one of our friends in ministry. We call them our Friday Friends. So grab your Bible and a fresh cup of coffee and drink in the words from our Friday Friend, Arlene Pellicane.

Friend to Friend

When my husband James and I were newlyweds, our first fight revolved around teriyaki chicken and broccoli. I was not a good cook. When James got home and asked if he could invite the new neighbor over, I said definitely not. I didn’t have enough food and was nervous enough about the meal without a dinner guest.

Imagine my surprise, irritation, and anger when my new husband invited the neighbor over after I had said no. When the doorbell rang, all angst was forgotten. I was a nice host. But when our guest left, I fussed and fumed, slamming cabinets for dramatic effect. James tackled me like Tigger. Putting his face right up to mine, he smiled and said, “I’m sorry!”

What would you have done? How do you usually respond when a friend or family member does you wrong?

Continue reading Girlfriends in God – Grudge, Be Gone →

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – You’ve Already Won

Leave a comment

“Dear young friends, you belong to God and have already won your fight with those who are against Christ, because there is someone in your hearts who is stronger than any evil teacher in this wicked world” (1 John 4:4).

“I am afraid of Satan,” a young minister once told me.

“You should be afraid of Satan,” I responded, “if you insist on controlling your own life. But not if you are willing to let Christ control your life. The Bible says, ‘Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.'”

My friend lived in a city where one of the largest zoos in the world was located.

“What do you do with lions in your city?” I asked.

“We keep them in cages,” he replied.

“You can visit the lion in its cage at the zoo,” I explained, “and it cannot hurt you, even if you are close to the cage. But stay out of that cage, or the lion will make mincemeat out of you.”

Satan is in a “cage.” He was defeated 2,000 years ago when Christ died on the cross for our sins. Victory is now ours. We do not look forward to victory, but we move from victory, the victory of the cross.

Satan has no power except that which God allows him to have. Do not be afraid of him, but do stay away from him. Avoid his every effort to tempt and mislead you. Remember, that choice is up to you.

Bible Reading: I John 2:1-6

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: I will with God’s help, stay out of Satan’s “cage,” choosing rather to enlist God’s indwelling Holy Spirit to fight for me in the supernatural battle against the satanic forces which surround me.

 

http://www.cru.org

Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – Ask, Seek, Knock

Leave a comment

Read: Luke 11:5-13

So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Luke 11:9-10

Take careful note of what Jesus says, for he suggests that there are three levels of prayer: ask, seek, and knock. You can remember them, incidentally, if you will take note of the fact that the initial letters spell the word ask, a ask, s seek, k knock. There you have a little formula for prayer. Now mark these three different levels. The circumstances of each are vastly different, but the answer is the same.

The simplest and easiest level, of course, is ask. What he means is that there are certain needs which require a mere asking to be immediately and invariably met, and the range of these needs is far wider than we usually give credit for. For instance, reading through the New Testament, it becomes clear that our need for Christlike attributes lies in this category. If we need love, courage, wisdom, power, patience, they all lie in this realm. Simply ask, that is all, ask, and immediately the answer is given. Is that not what James says, If any man lack wisdom. What? Let him ask of God who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not, (James 1:5 KJV). And what? It shall be given. That is all, it shall be given. Let him ask and it shall be given.

A second level of prayer is denoted by this word seek. You cannot think of what it means to seek without seeing that our Lord injects here an element of time. Seeking is not a simple act, it is a process, a series of acts. Jesus says there are areas of life that require more than asking; there must be seeking, searching. Something is lost, hidden from us, and prayer then becomes a search, a plea for insight, for understanding, for an unraveling of the mystery with which we are confronted. Again, the answer is absolutely certain. Seek, and you will find!

Continue reading Ray Stedman – Ask, Seek, Knock →

Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Inseparable

Leave a comment

Read: Romans 8:38-39

Neither death nor life . . . will be able to separate us from the love of God. (vv. 38-39)

It’s likely that you’ve heard this passage read at a funeral or memorial service. I remember reciting it aloud in unison with more than a dozen of my cousins at the service for one of my grandfathers. In some ways it felt like our presence and our voices were living proof that death could not separate us from our grandpa; his life and legacy reverberated as our lives continued on. The pain of his death was real, but we were and are still mysteriously bound to him by the God from whose love we can never be severed, neither in life nor in death.

God is the link of love that holds us across the distance of grief. We may not always feel that in convincing ways—there may be times when we feel utterly cut off from our loved ones and even from the sense of God’s love and care. It is in those difficult times that the body of Christ can enfold us, repairing the linkages through the bonds of community so that we might heal enough to experience God’s presence anew. Grief can be isolating and disorienting; thanks be to God that as members of the body of Christ we do not have to tread this path alone. Where in your life right now are there others who are struggling with the loss of loved ones, who might benefit from a simple expression of care?

Prayer:

Lord, assure us that nothing in all creation can separate us from your love.

Jessica Bratt Carle

https://woh.org/

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – How to Comfort the Suffering

Leave a comment

Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.” —Matthew 26:38

I wish you could have met me when I was twenty-one, because I knew everything then. I would have had an answer for any question you may have asked. But now that a few years have passed, I don’t know as much as I once did.

The fact is that I didn’t know as much as I thought I knew back then. And after more than forty years of ministry, I have found that one of the best things you can do for a hurting person is to just be there. Sometimes when we don’t know what to say, we simply don’t show up. That is wrong. Just being there means a lot to someone who is suffering.

When the time of Jesus’ crucifixion drew near, He went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. He knew exactly what was waiting for Him. He knew they would crucify Him. Worst of all, being God, He knew He would have to bear all the sins of the world. So Jesus went to Gethsemane and took Peter, James, and John along. Then He told them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me” (Matthew 26:38). Yes, Jesus is God. But He actually asked for His three friends to stay with Him and watch with Him during this time.

If you’re speaking to a grieving person, it’s often good to simply say something like “I love you” or “I am here” or “I am praying for you.” If they don’t want to talk, don’t talk. Don’t try to explain things, because explanations never heal a broken heart. Just sit there with them.

We have to avoid the easy answers and clichés when we’re trying to comfort the suffering, because if we aren’t careful, we may add to their pain.

Harvest.org | Greg Laurie

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Commands You To Tell Others About Jesus Christ (Part 1)

Leave a comment

“And He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” (Mark 16:15)

Imagine that you are playing outside in your yard when you start to smell smoke. You turn, and see a fire in your neighbor’s back kitchen. What do you do? Do you carry on playing like nothing is wrong? No; you run over to your neighbor’s house and start yelling, “Fire! Fire!”

Why would you do such a thing? Why would you warn your neighbor about the fire in his house? You do so because you know something he does not: that his house is on fire, and thus, you have the responsibility of warning him.

The Bible says that there is a fire that is never-ending. It is unlike any fire you have ever seen. Your neighbors and friends may not know about this fire because they do not see it; but it is real, and they are in danger of being caught in this fire forever. Yes, forever! This fire is the fire of hell, and it is where any person who does not believe in Jesus Christ will spend eternity. But there is Good News! Any person who trusts Jesus Christ as his personal Savior will not only be able to escape that fire of hell, but will also spend eternity with God in heaven!

In Mark 16:15, Christ commands His disciples to tell the world this Good News. But, this command is not only for the disciples in Jesus’ time. If you are a one of Jesus’ followers – if you have acknowledged that Jesus is Lord and believed that God has raised Him from the dead – then this command to tell the Good News is for you. You must go and tell others about the Good News of Jesus Christ! Just as you have the responsibility of warning your neighbor that his house is on fire, so you have the responsibility of telling him that Jesus Christ can save him.

God commands His people to tell others about Jesus Christ.

My Response:

» Whom do I know that does not know Jesus Christ?

» Have I obeyed God’s command to tell my friends and neighbors the Good News of Jesus Christ?

 

http://kids4truth.com/home.aspx

The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Experiential Sanctification

Leave a comment

Today’s Scripture: Titus 2:13-14

“Jesus Christ . . . gave himself for us . . . to purify for himself a people for his own.”

Holiness or sanctification is an actual conformity within us to the likeness of Christ begun at the time of our salvation and completed when we’re made perfect in his presence. This process of gradually conforming us to the likeness of Christ begins at the very moment of our salvation when the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us and to actually give us a new life in Christ. We call this gradual process progressive sanctification, or growing in holiness, because it truly is a growth process.

The holiness we have in Christ is purely objective, outside of ourselves. It’s Christ’s perfect holiness imputed to us because of our union with him, and it affects our standing before God. God is pleased with us because he is pleased with Christ. Progressive sanctification is subjective or experiential and is the work of the Holy Spirit within us imparting to us the life and power of Christ, enabling us to respond in obedience to him.

Both aspects of sanctification are gifts of God’s grace. We deserve neither our holy standing before God nor the Spirit’s sanctifying work in our lives. Both come to us by his grace because of the merit of Jesus Christ.

Progressive sanctification begins in us with an instantaneous act of God at the time of our salvation. God always gives justification and this initial imparting of sanctification at the same time. The author of Hebrews described this truth in this way: “?his is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,’ then he adds, ‘I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more’” (Hebrews 10:16-17). (Excerpt taken from Transforming Grace)

https://www.navigators.org/Home

The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Angels in Disguise

Leave a comment

Today’s Scripture: Genesis 18:1-19

Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. – 1 Peter 4:9

Do you remember the fairy tale of the king who wanted to find out if his people really loved him? He traveled as a homeless beggar and was taken into homes and given food and lodging. But there were some who turned him away and would not show kindness and hospitality to this ragged old man. Later, when he returned to his throne, he summoned those who had shown compassion to him and publicly rewarded them for their deeds. Try to imagine the disappointment of those who suddenly realized they had been given the opportunity to entertain the king but had turned it down!

There’s a Bible verse that speaks clearly of this: “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it” (Hebrews 13:2). One such person was Abraham. He was sitting in his tent door when three men approached. His immediate response was to help them–to show kindness and hospitality to them.

Water was brought to wash their feet; they were given a morsel of bread with some butter and milk to satisfy their hunger, as well as a young calf. It was soon revealed to Abraham that these were not mere men but a visitation from the Lord. Abraham had the privilege of entertaining God’s holy angels!

Friend, hospitality is becoming a lost art. Our homes today have become a hiding place instead of a sharing place. Yet thousands of people have been launched on the road to salvation when they were invited into a Christian home and saw faith in action. Open your home today, and who knows, you might entertain an angel!

Prayer

Lord, help me to show loving hospitality to others so they can see Christ in me. Amen.

To Ponder

What keeps you from opening your home–and life–to others?

https://www.navigators.org/Home

BreakPoint

BreakPoint –  Does Film ‘Me Before You’ Promote Assisted Suicide?

Leave a comment

The culture of death is making major inroads this month. With a new California physician-assisted suicide law going into effect, the efforts of so-called “right to die” advocates like the late Brittany Maynard seem to have paid off. And now a new film targets our imagination by portraying suicide as merciful, dignified, even romantic.

“Me Before You,” adapted from the novel by Jojo Moyes, is about a rich young playboy who’s paralyzed from the neck down due to a motorcycle accident. While the film starts out on an encouraging note, its conclusion has left many disabled reviewers upset. And for good reason.

After his accident, businessman and heir Will Traynor (played by Sam Claflin), wants to end his life rather than face a lifetime paralyzed and stuck in a wheelchair. But Louisa Clark (played by Emilia Clarke), has other plans and attempts to change his mind. She spends six months taking him to concerts, horse races, and tropical getaways, hoping to show him that life as a quadriplegic is still worth living. Of course in the process, they fall in love—a fact that makes it especially hard when Will decides to go through with his plan to die.

This ham-fisted ending has the disabled community asking Hollywood: Why do you want us dead?

The marketing for “Me Before You” featured the hashtag #LiveBoldly. One Twitter user with disability retorted, “Do you really want us to #LiveBoldly, or…just…#DieQuickly?”

Wheelchair-bound actress and comedienne Liz Carr complained that Hollywood seems to have only one solution for people like her: “death.” “When non-disabled people talk of suicide,” she told The Guardian, “they’re discouraged and offered prevention…When a disabled person talks of it, though, suddenly the conversation is overtaken with words like ‘choice’ and ‘autonomy.’”

Continue reading BreakPoint –  Does Film ‘Me Before You’ Promote Assisted Suicide? →