Tag Archives: christianity

Night Light - James & Shirley Dobson

Night Light for Couples –Error Or Opportunity?

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“An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.” Proverbs 12:25

Many years ago, at what was then Standard Oil Company, an executive’s mistake cost the firm more than two million dollars. On the day the news leaked, the firm’s employees feared the wrath of the powerful head of the company—John D. Rockefeller—and found various ways to avoid him. One partner, however, kept his previously scheduled appointment. When he walked into the president’s office, he saw Rockefeller writing on a pad of paper.

“Oh, it’s you, Bedford,” Rockefeller said calmly. “I suppose you’ve heard about our loss?” The partner said that he had. “I’ve been thinking it over,” Rockefeller said, “and before I ask the man to discuss the matter, I’ve been making some notes.” Across the top of the page was written, “Points in favor of Mr. ________.” There followed a long list of the man’s virtues, including a description of how the executive had helped the firm make the right decision on three separate occasions. Since the earnings from these decisions had added up to many times the cost of the recent error, Rockefeller told Bedford that he had decided to seize the opportunity to encourage the executive instead of censure him.

The next time your spouse fails you, you could cut him or her down in a torrent of angry words… or you could see a golden opportunity to encourage.

Just between us…

  • When was I most encouraging to you during a crisis?
  • Is there a particular Scripture verse you cling to during tough times?

Lord, we so often underestimate how much influence our words can have. We ask for wisdom to speak encouragement—especially when criticism might be expected. Amen.

From Night Light For Couples, by Dr. James & Shirley Dobson

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – The Danger of Laziness

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2 Thessalonians 3:7-10

The Lord has appointed believers to be His ambassadors to a lost and hurting world. As His followers, we are to represent Him in our character, conduct, and conversation whenever we interact with family, friends, neighbors, or coworkers.

God expects us to be diligent in our work and faithful to complete it. However, in our self-absorbed, pleasure-seeking culture, it’s very easy to get sidetracked into laziness. This sin is dangerous in a Christian’s life because of the potential harm that can result—it can hurt our witness for Christ, damage our relationships with others, and waste both the time and the gifts the Lord has given us. Another negative result of such a lifestyle is a character marked as unreliable and untrustworthy.

Laziness frequently shows up as procrastination. We procrastinate when we tell someone we will take action and then repeatedly delay the start time. Or we may begin a project and yet find reasons not to finish it. Surely, if a believer is known as an unreliable person, it damages his or her testimony. We’re also a poor example if we make an attempt to carry out responsibilities but do so in a haphazard or incomplete way. Nor should we be neglectful about the needs of others or relationships with loved ones.

Irresponsible behavior doesn’t fit who we are in Christ. If you realize you’ve been careless in some area in your life, pray, “Lord, I have not lived as I should, and I ask You to forgive me. I choose to turn away from my lazy and neglectful attitudes. Please help me to follow through and become someone who is industrious for You.”

Bible in One Year: Matthew 27-28

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Not My Worry

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Read: Isaiah 40:25-31

Bible in a Year: Isaiah 39-40; Colossians 4

Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you. —Psalm 55:22

A man worried constantly about everything. Then one day his friends heard him whistling happily and looking noticeably relaxed. “What happened?” they asked him in astonishment.

He said, “I’m paying a man to do my worrying for me.”

“How much do you pay him?” they asked.

“Two thousand dollars a week,” he replied.

“Wow! How can you afford that?”

“I can’t,” he said, “but that’s his worry.”

While this humorous way to handle stress doesn’t work in real life, as God’s children we can turn our worries over to Someone who has everything perfectly under control even—especially—when we feel it is not.

The prophet Isaiah reminds us that God brings out the stars and calls them all by name (40:25-26). Because of “his great power and mighty strength” not one of them is missing (v. 26). And just as God knows the stars by name, He knows us individually and personally. We are each under His watchful care (v. 27).

If we are inclined to worry, we can turn that worry over to the Lord. He is never too weary or too tired to pay attention to us. He has all wisdom and all power, and He loves to use it on our behalf. The Holy One who directs the stars has His loving arms around us. —Poh Fang Chia

Lord, You know there are times when I get really scared. And I forget that You have promised that You will never leave me to face difficulty or loss alone. Help me to trust.

Worry ends where faith begins.

INSIGHT: The title “the Holy One” or “the Holy One of Israel” is the common designation for God in Isaiah, occurring about 26 times. This title is often accompanied by other names, such as “the Lord Almighty” (5:24; 47:4), “the Light of Israel” (10:17), “the Mighty God” (10:21), “Maker” (17:7; 45:11; 54:5), “the Sovereign Lord” (30:15), “Savior” (43:3), “Israel’s Creator, your King” (43:15), and “the God of all the earth” (54:5). In calling God “the Holy One of Israel,” Isaiah extols His complete holiness. Yet within the same breath Isaiah speaks of God as the “Redeemer,” celebrating His tender mercy and compassion (41:14; 54:5; 59:20; 60:16). Sim Kay Tee

 

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – Ponder the Things of God

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I will meditate on your precepts. Psalm 119:15

There are times when solitude is better than company, and silence is wiser than speech. We would be better Christians if we were alone more often, waiting on God and gathering through meditation on His Word spiritual strength for service in His kingdom. We ought to ponder the things of God, because that is how we get the real nutriment out of them.

Truth is something like the cluster of the vine: In order to have wine from it, we must bruise it; we must press and squeeze it many times. The bruiser’s feet must come down joyfully on the bunches or else the juice will not flow; and the grapes must be properly tread or else much of the precious liquid will be wasted. So we must, by meditation, tread the clusters of truth if we desire the wine of consolation from them.

Our bodies are not supported by merely taking food into the mouth, but the process that really supplies the muscle and the nerve and the sinew and the bone is the process of digestion. It is by digestion that the outward food becomes assimilated with the inner life. Our souls are not nourished merely by listening for a while to this and then to that and then to the other part of divine truth. Hearing, reading, marking, and learning all require inward digesting to complete their usefulness, and the inward digesting of the truth lies mainly in meditating upon it.

Why is it that some Christians, although they hear many sermons, make only slow advances in the Christian life? Because they neglect their closets and do not thoughtfully meditate on God’s Word. They love the wheat, but they do not grind it; they want the corn, but they will not go out into the fields to gather it; the fruit hangs on the tree, but they will not pluck it; the water flows at their feet, but they will not stoop to drink it.

Deliver us, O Lord, from such folly, and may this be our resolve this morning: “I will meditate on your precepts.”

The Family Bible Reading Plan

  • 1 Kings 15
  • Colossians 2

Devotional material is taken from “Morning and Evening,” written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg.

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Special thanksgiving to the Father

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“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear son.” Colossians 1:12,13

Suggested Further Reading: Luke 11:14-22

What an achievement was that, when, with their flocks and their herds, the whole host of Israel went out of Egypt, crossed the Jordan, and came into Canaan! My dear brethren, the whole of it was not equal to the achievement of God’s powerful grace, when he brings one poor sinner out of the region of sin into the kingdom of holiness and peace. It was easier for God to bring Israel out of Egypt, to split the Red Sea, to make a highway through the pathless wilderness, to drop manna from heaven, to send the whirlwind to drive out the kings; it was easier for Omnipotence to do all this, than to translate a man from the power of darkness into the kingdom of his dear Son. This is the grandest achievement of Omnipotence. The sustenance of the whole universe, I do believe, is even less than this—the changing of a bad heart, the subduing of an iron will. But thanks be unto the Father, he has done all that for you and for me. He has brought us out of darkness; he has translated us, taken up the old tree that has struck its roots ever so deep—taken it up, blessed be God, roots and all, and planted it in a goodly soil. He had to cut the top off, it is true—the high branches of our pride; but the tree has grown better in the new soil than it ever did before. Who ever heard of moving so huge a plant as a man who has grown fifty years old in sin? Oh! What wonders hath our Father done for us!

For meditation: “Our Father…Thy kingdom come” (Luke 11:2). Pray for the spoiling of Satan, the salvation of sinners, the sanctification of saints, the second coming of the Sovereign.

Sermon no. 319

12 October (Preached 15 January 1860)

 

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Modern-Day Revelations

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“Contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3, emphasis added).

Scripture contains everything you need to know for godly living.

For many years I’ve watched with deep concern as a significant number of Christians have drifted from a thoughtful, biblical, God- centered theology to one that is increasingly mystical, non- biblical, and man-centered. One of the most disturbing indicators of this trend is the proliferation of extrabiblical revelations that certain people are claiming to receive directly from God.

Such claims are alarming because they dilute the uniqueness and centrality of the Bible and cause people to lean on man’s word rather than God’s. They imply that Scripture is insufficient for Christian living and that we need additional revelation to fill the gap.

But God’s Word contains everything you need to know for spiritual life and godly living. It is inspired and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness so that you may be fully equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16). What more is necessary?

When the apostle John died, apostolic revelation came to an end. But that written legacy remains as the standard by which we are to test every teacher and teaching that claims to be from God (1 Thess. 5:21; 1 John 4:1). If a teaching doesn’t conform to Scripture, it must be rejected. If it does conform, it isn’t a new revelation. In either case, additional revelation is unnecessary.

God went to great lengths to record and preserve His revelation, and He jealously guards it from corruption of any kind. From Moses, the first known recipient of divine revelation, to the apostle John, the final recipient, His charge remained the same: “You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you” (Deut. 4:2; cf., Rev. 22:18-19).

Don’t be swayed by supposed new revelations. Devote yourself to what has already been revealed.

Suggestions for Prayer

Ask God to guard your heart from confusion and help you to keep your attention firmly fixed on His Word.

For Further Study

According to 2 Timothy 4:1-4, why must we preach and uphold God’s Word?

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Receive His Grace

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According to the grace (the special endowment for my task) of God bestowed on me, like a skillful architect and master builder I laid [the] foundation, and now another [man] is building upon it. —1 Corinthians 3:10

Grace is the power of the Holy Spirit coming to us freely, enabling us to do with ease what we could never do on our own. You might find other definitions describing grace as God’s divine favor, and that is certainly true, but His grace is also the power you need to live in victory. Grace can be received only through faith, and that is one of the main reasons we must resist fear. When we allow fear to rule us, we unwittingly receive what Satan has planned for our lives. But when we live by faith through grace, God is able to work His divine plan in us. Whatever you need to do today, lean on God and let Him empower you to be successful.

Power Thought: By God’s grace I have the skills to do all He asks of me with ease.

From the book the book Power Thoughts Devotional by Joyce Meyer.

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – He Has Not Deserted Me

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“And He who sent Me is with Me – He has not deserted Me – for I always do those things that are pleasing to Him” (John 8:29).

If we have a conscience free of offense, and if we have evidence that we please God, it matters little if men oppose us or what others may think of us. “Enoch, before his translation, had this testimony – that he pleased God.”

It would not be fair for you or me to profess ignorance in this matter of pleasing God. If we had never known before, we know now that it comes from doing always those things He commands – which of course are the things that please Him.

Jesus is saying here, among other things, that God is with Him in the working of miracles. Though men had forsaken and rejected Him, yet God stayed by Him and worked in and through Him.

In the same way, God has made it possible for us to please Him by giving us His Holy Spirit to indwell, enable and empower us for service. With the available enablement, we are without excuse in the matter of doing the “greater things” He has promised for those who love and serve Him.

What better goal for today, tomorrow and all our coming days than to seek to please Him?

Bible Reading: John 8:25-28

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: So that Christ might be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death, I will seek to do only those things today which please Him.

 

Alistair Begg

Presidential Prayer Team; C.H. – No Bubblegum Faith

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The first gumball machines were introduced in the United States around 1907 – a gumball for a penny. While the price and style has changed in a hundred years, one can still find machines that vend gum and candy very similar to the original ones.

Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.

I Kings 17:24

The widow in today’s passage provided for Elijah although she didn’t have much to offer. Even though she honored God, her son fell ill and died. The woman was angry with God and Elijah. She put in her coin of obedience. Shouldn’t she get a gumball or good fortune? Elijah felt the widow’s concern and took his doubts to the Lord. “O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow…by killing her son?” (I Kings 17:20) Through Elijah, God raised her son from the dead.

Do you sometimes feel like you put in your penny but didn’t receive your gumball? True faith doesn’t work that way. God can do even greater things when you trust completely. Ask Him to increase your faith, the faith of your national leaders, and the faith of all believers in America.

Recommended Reading: I Kings 17:17-24

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – God Has a Place for You

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Jericho’s shady lady found God—or better worded, God found Rahab the harlot. He spotted a tender heart in the hard city of Jericho and reached out to save her. He would have saved the entire city, but no one else made the request. Then again, Rahab the harlot had an advantage. She had nothing to lose. She was at the bottom of the rung. She had already lost her reputation. She was at the bottom of the pit.

Perhaps that’s where you are as well. You may or may not sell your body, but you’ve sold your allegiance, affection, attention, and talents. You’ve sold out. Glory days? Perhaps for him or for her. But not for me. I’m too soiled, dirty. I’ve sinned too much. No Glory Days for me!

God’s one-word reply for such doubt? Rahab! God has a place for the Rahabs of the world! He has a place for you!

From Glory Days

Night Light - James & Shirley Dobson

Night Light for Couples – Sticks and Stones

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“The poison of vipers is on their lips.” Psalm 140:3

The old adage “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me” simply isn’t true. Anyone who has felt the stinging barb of criticism knows that words can deeply wound. Lewis Yablonsky, author of Fathers and Sons, observed the effect such negative comments had on his own father. At the dinner table, Lewis’s mother would say things like, “Look at your father! His shoulders are bent down; he’s a failure.

He doesn’t have the courage to get a better job or make more money. He’s a beaten man.” Yablonsky’s father never defended himself. He just kept staring at his plate.

Psychologist and author Abraham Maslow once said, “It takes nine affirming comments to make up for each critical comment we give to our children.” Adults aren’t immune to criticism and put‐downs either. Let’s focus on the positive traits our partner brings to our marriage. Why not list them? Then point them out—daily and lovingly—to our mate.

Just between us…

  • Is there a negative comment from your childhood that stays with you? How did it make you feel?
  • Do we need to be more affirming and less critical? How can we improve?
  • How did Jesus affirm others? (For examples, look at Matthew 16:17–19; 26:6–13; Luke 7:44–48; and John 1:47–48.)
  • In what areas of your life are you discouraged? How can I lift you up?

Dear Father, we’re deeply sorry for any harmful words we’ve aimed at each other lately. Please forgive us, and help us to forgive each other. We long to do better at using only words that build, heal, encourage, and affirm. Help us, we pray. Amen.

From Night Light For Couples, by Dr. James & Shirley Dobson

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Listening Through Restlessness

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Esther 6:1-11

When we’re too preoccupied to hear God’s voice, He will often get our attention by giving us a restless spirit. The book of Esther gives us a wonderful example of this. In the sixth chapter, we see that King Ahasuerus “could not sleep so he gave an order to bring the book of records, the chronicles, and they were read before the king” (v. 1). As a result, the king became aware of an assassination plot against him that had been foiled by a man named Mordecai. Filled with gratitude for this act of service and loyalty, the ruler made plans to honor him.

What the king could not have known, though, is that Haman, one of his royal advisors, had targeted the hero Ahasuerus wanted to celebrate. Not only had Haman plotted to hang Mordecai the Jew (5:14); he was also planning to exterminate the entire Jewish population. As a result of Esther’s request, the king intervened, and Mordecai and all the other Jews were saved.

Now, what started this process? It was a restless night. The king did not know why he couldn’t sleep, but we know—he had insomnia because God was trying to get his attention. The Lord had something important to say to Ahasuerus, and His way of getting through to him was an unpleasant night of sleeplessness.

How often has this happened to you? You go about your career and activities, but restlessness seems to hang over you, often causing sleepless nights. In such moments, dare to bow and pray, “Lord, what is it that You want to tell me?” You’ll discover that God can and will speak in your unrest.

Bible in One Year: Matthew 25-26

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Spiritual Checkup

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Read: Colossians 3:1-14

Bible in a Year: Isaiah 37-38; Colossians 3

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. —Mark 12:30

To detect health problems before they become serious, doctors recommend a routine physical exam. We can do the same for our spiritual health by asking a few questions rooted in the great commandment (Mark 12:30) Jesus referred to.

Do I love God with all my heart because He first loved me? Which is stronger, my desire for earthly gain or the treasures that are mine in Christ? (Col. 3:1). He desires that His peace rule our hearts.

Do I love God with all my soul? Do I listen to God telling me who I am? Am I moving away from self-centered desires? (v. 5). Am I becoming more compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, and patient? (v. 12).

Do I love God with all my mind? Do I focus on my relationship with His Son or do I let my mind wander wherever it wants to go? (v. 2). Do my thoughts lead to problems or solutions? To unity or division? Forgiveness or revenge? (v. 13).

Do I love God with all my strength? Am I willing to be seen as weak so that God can show His strength on my behalf? (v. 17). Am I relying on His grace to be strong in His Spirit?

As we let “the message of Christ dwell among [us] richly . . . with all wisdom” (v. 16), He will equip us to build each other up as we become spiritually fit and useful to Him. —Julie Ackerman Link

Heavenly Father, when I rely on anything other than love in my efforts to initiate change in people, I am neglecting to love You with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. I choose today to exchange my strength for Yours.

To be spiritually fit, feed on God’s Word and exercise your faith.

INSIGHT: We may find it difficult at times to motivate ourselves in Christian living and service to God and others. However, Paul reminds the church in Colossae that the reason we are to focus on God and serve Him well is that we have been “raised with Christ” (3:1). Because of what Jesus accomplished for us, we are to serve Him faithfully. J.R. Hudberg

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon – Instability

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“Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel.” Genesis 49:4

Suggested Further Reading: 2 Peter 3:14-18

Who are these unstable ones? When they were boys they could never complete a game; they must always be having something fresh; and now they are just as childish as when they were children. Look at them in doctrine: you never know where to find them. You meet them one day, and they are very full of some super doctrine; they have been to some strong Calvinist place, and nothing will suit them except the very highest doctrine, and that must be spiced with a little of the gall of bitterness, or they cannot think it is the genuine thing. Very likely next week they will be Arminians; they will give up all idea of a fixed fate, and talk of free-will, and man’s responsibility like the most earnest Primitive Methodist. Then they steer another way. “Nothing is right but the Church of England. Is it not established by law? Ought not every Christian to go to his parish church?” Let them alone; they will be at the most schismatical shop in the metropolis before long. Or if they do not change their denomination they are always changing their minister. A new minister starts up; there is no one, since the apostles, like him; they take a seat and join the church; he is everything to them. In three months they have done with him; another minister rises up some distance off, and these people are not particular how far they walk; so they go to hear him. He is the great man of the age; he will see every man’s candle out, and his will burn on. But a little trouble comes on the church, and they leave him. They have no attachment to anything; they are merely feathers in the wind, or corks on the wave.

For meditation: Do you recognise yourself here? If not, guard your own stability carefully. But if you do, realise that we are not supposed to remain babes in Christ, but are to grow up (Ephesians 4:14,15). Perhaps you are not sure whether Spurgeon is describing you; one question may help you decide—who has the rule over you? (Hebrews 13:7,17).

Sermon no. 158

11 October (1857)

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – God’s Self-Disclosure

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“God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son” (Heb. 1:1-2).

Scripture is the storehouse of divine revelation.

For decades liberal theologians have misrepresented the Bible as merely a collection of man’s religious thoughts and aspirations. But Scripture is much more than that. It is in fact divine revelation—God’s self disclosure through His Spirit to the human authors. Man could never know God’s identity, attributes, perspectives, or commands if God hadn’t revealed them to him. Nor could man know his own origin, purpose, or destiny.

Paul said, “‘Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.’ For to us God revealed them through the Spirit” (1 Cor. 2:9-10). In 2 Timothy 3:16 he adds, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” God inspired every word of Scripture and speaks on every page.

Hebrews 1 speaks of two general means by which God revealed Himself: Old Testament revelation (“long ago,” v. 1) and New Testament revelation (“in His Son,” v. 2). First He spoke to the Jewish fathers through the Old Testament prophets “in many portions.” That refers to all the books of the Old Testament. “In many ways” speaks of the specific means by which He communicated: visions, prophecies, parables, types, symbols, ceremonies, theophanies, and audible voice.

From the close of the Old Testament to the arrival of John the Baptist, there were approximately 400 years during which God was silent. But that silence was shattered when John announced the coming of Christ. From that time on, God spoke through His Son. The gospels record His life and teachings, the book of Acts shows the propagation of His teachings through the apostles and early church, the epistles apply His teachings to everyday life, and Revelation tells of His triumphant return and the consummation of divine revelation.

Isn’t it wonderful to know God’s perspective on life and history?

Suggestions for Prayer

Thank God that His Word is a lamp to your feet and a light to your path (Ps. 119:105).

For Further Study

According to Deuteronomy 29:29, what is the purpose of divine revelation?

 

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Don’t Put It Off

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Do not say to your neighbor, Go and come again; and tomorrow I will give it. —Proverbs 3:28

Many people struggle with procrastination. As we see in the verse for today, we can easily say, “I’ll do it tomorrow.” We can have the best intentions, but if we don’t act on them we will still be disobedient. Procrastination is very deceptive. We don’t see it as disobedience because we intend to obey God; it’s just that we are going to do it when—when we have more money, when we are not so busy, when Christmas is over, or when the children go back to school.

There is no point in saying, “I will be a giver when I have more money or more possessions to give away.” If you aren’t giving out of what you already have, you’re not likely to do it when you have more.

Dave and I tithed from the beginning of our life together, but it never occurred to us to “live to give,” to excel in giving. But, the closer we got to God, the more we wanted to give. We learned that true giving often means sacrificing something that we really would like to keep. We were not in a financial position to give more money than our 10 percent tithe, but strong desire caused us to search for ways to give more. So we gave away personal possessions, extra clothes, household items, and an old car we decided to pass on to a needy friend.

In the process of giving, we discovered that we did not have to have money to be a blessing to others. We could start with what we did have, and as we did God increased us and enabled us to give even more.

Love Others Today: What acts of love or kindness have you been putting off? Do them today.

From the book Love Out Loud by Joyce Meyer.

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – You Will Be Different

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“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17, KJV).

A prominent businessman, elder in a prestigious church, was impatient with “narrow-minded, born-again Christians.” “I am a Christian,” he said, “but I have never been born again, and frankly I’m not interested. We emphasize more important issues in my church.”

When I read the third chapter of John with him and explained that there is only one kind of biblical Christian, the one who is “born-again,” and that no other kind of “Christian” can enter into the kingdom of God according to the words of Jesus, the light suddenly went on. With this new insight he readily received Christ as his Savior and Lord.

A caterpillar is an ugly, hairy, earthbound worm – until it weaves a cocoon about its body. Then an amazing transformation takes place. Out of that cocoon emerges a beautiful butterfly – a new creature, able to live on another plane, to soar in to the heavens. So it is with man.

John 3 records Jesus’ explanation of how one becomes a new creature. Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews who tried to adhere meticulously to every detail of the law, had come to Jesus for counsel.

“‘Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.’ Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:2,3, NAS).

Puzzled, Nicodemus asked, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?” (John 3:4, NAS). Then Jesus explained that physical birth alone does not qualify anyone to enter the kingdom of God. Since His is a spiritual kingdom, we must experience spiritual birth.

Bible Reading: Romans 6:4-14

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: I will read John’s gospel, chapter three, meditating especially on the first eight verses, and will consider again my relationship with the Lord. If I should die today, I want to be sure I would go to heaven, and through the enabling of the Holy Spirit I want to begin living the supernatural life.

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; C.P. – Prayer or Consequences

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In the early church, James had been recently martyred and Peter was imprisoned. Fearing the same thing could happen to Peter, Christians got together and prayed. When a servant girl Rhoda told them Peter was at the door, they thought she was crazy. She insisted – and they went to see the answer to their prayers for themselves.

So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.

Acts 12:5

Just before the crucifixion, Jesus said to Peter, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” (Luke 22:31-32). Can you imagine what would’ve happened if Jesus hadn’t prayed?

If you believe God answers prayers, make it a priority to intercede, believing that God’s ears are attentive to your prayers and will save, heal, protect, lead, and cause the gospel to be spread. Avoid unimportant arguments and inane distractions. Remain focused and humble. After all, so much depends on your prayers…including the welfare of this nation.

Recommended Reading: James 4:1-10

Night Light - James & Shirley Dobson

Night Light for Couples – Transforming Love

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“In all our distress and persecution we were encouraged…” 1 Thessalonians 3:7

When I (jcd) was thirteen, we adopted the most wonderful dog in the world. Penny, as we called him, was smart and obedient. He loved everybody, and everybody loved him. But when I went off to college and my parents moved, our family reluctantly decided to give Penny away to another family. After a while, Penny decided that my father wasn’t coming back. The dog began to grieve. In fact, he seemed to give up on life, and before long, arthritis and other problems left him paralyzed. When my father heard about

Penny’s sad state, he drove seven hundred miles to bring him home. He found our dog curled up in a little ball, unable to move. But Penny’s tiny stub of a tail thrashed wildly when he saw his master. Remarkably, with the love and attention my parents began to shower on him, Penny recovered. Within two weeks of returning home, he was running and jumping. He lived eleven more years without another sign of arthritis!

This story about our family dog reminds me that if even a mutt needs love and encouragement to stay alive, then so does every human being on the face of the earth. We are social beings, designed to depend on God and each other. Yet some of us are curled up in a pitiful little ball of discouragement. Every day we have the power to bring life by giving encouragement to others—or we can ignore their needs and think only of ourselves. The choice is ours.

Just between us…

  • Has my encouragement ever made you feel transformed or “healed”?
  • Who might be transformed by a little encouragement from us?

Lord, open our eyes to others’ need for attention, affection, and encouragement. May we never withhold what is our duty and privilege to give. Amen.

From Night Light For Couples, by Dr. James & Shirley Dobson

C.S. Lewis

C.S. Lewis Daily – Today’s Reading

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No Christian and, indeed, no historian could accept the epigram which defines religion as “what a man does with his solitude.” It was one of the Wesleys, I think, who said that the New Testament knows nothing of solitary religion. We are forbidden to neglect the assembling of our- selves together. Christianity is already institutional in the earliest of its documents. The Church is the Bride of Christ. We are members of one another.

In our own age the idea that religion belongs to our private life— that it is, in fact, an occupation for the individual’s hour of leisure—is at once paradoxical, dangerous, and natural. It is paradoxical because this exaltation of the individual in the religious field springs up in an age when collectivism is ruthlessly defeating the individual in every other field. . . . . There is a crowd of busybodies, self-appointed masters of ceremonies, whose life is devoted to destroying solitude wherever solitude still exists. They call it “taking the young people out of themselves,” or “waking them up,” or “overcoming their apathy.” If an Augustine, a Vaughan, a Traherne, or a Wordsworth should be born in the modern world, the leaders of a youth organization would soon cure him. If a really good home, such as the home of Alcinous and Arete in the Odyssey or the Rostovs in War and Peace or any of Charlotte M. Yonge’s families, existed today, it would be denounced as bourgeois and every engine of destruction would be levelled against it. And even where the planners fail and someone is left physically by himself, the wire- less has seen to it that he will be—in a sense not intended by Scipio— never less alone than when alone. We live, in fact, in a world starved for solitude, silence, and privacy, and therefore starved for meditation and true friendship.

From The Weight of Glory

Compiled in A Year with C.S. Lewis