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Max Lucado

Max Lucado – He is Not Far From Us

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Max Lucado

You will never go where God is not! Envision the next few hours—where will you be? In a school?  God indwells the classroom. On the highway?  His presence lingers among the traffic.  In the hospital operating room, the executive board-room, the in-laws’ living room?  God will be there.

Acts 17:27 says, “He is not far from each of us.”  Each of us.  God doesn’t play favorites. From the masses on city streets to isolated villagers in valleys and jungles, all people can enjoy God’s presence.

But many don’t! They plod through life as if there is no God to love them. As if the only strength is their own. As if the only solution will come from within, not above.  They live God-less lives.  The psalmist determined, “When I am afraid, I will trust in You, God.” (Psalm 56:3).  Put your hope in God. You will get through this!

 

From You’ll Get Through This

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – One More Revival

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“Sodom’s sins were pride, gluttony, and laziness, while the poor and needy suffered outside her door. She was proud and committed detestable sins, so I wiped her out, as you have seen.” —Ezekiel 16:49–50

Billy Graham recalls a time when his wife Ruth, commenting on the downward spiral of morality in our nation, exclaimed, “If God doesn’t punish America, He’ll have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.”

Sodom was once a great power in her day—a city-state, a dominant force. But God judged her. He identifies her sins in Jeremiah 23:14: “But now I see that the prophets of Jerusalem are even worse! They commit adultery and love dishonesty. They encourage those who are doing evil so that no one turns away from their sins. These prophets are as wicked as the people of Sodom and Gomorrah once were.”

They commit adultery and love dishonesty. They encourage those who are doing evil. . . . We live in a time in our nation when right is wrong and wrong is right. Everything is upside down.

God gives another assessment of the sins of Sodom in the book of Ezekiel: “Sodom’s sins were pride, gluttony, and laziness, while the poor and needy suffered outside her door” (16:49).

Pride . . . gluttony . . . laziness. . . . Think of our nation and the sense of entitlement. Everyone expects to be entertained. I am reminded of the famous statement by the Roman satirist Juvenal as he spoke of Rome and her decline: “The people that once bestowed commands, consulships, legions, and all else, now concerns itself no more, and longs eagerly for just two things—bread and circuses!”

It seems to me that is what America is like today: “Entertain us. It’s all about us.”

I believe that our nation has two choices before us: One is judgment. The other is revival. Judgment is coming, that is clear. But my prayer is there will be at least one more revival before this happens.

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – A Reason to Sit Tight

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Max Lucado

God knows more about life than we do! And aren’t we glad He does? Be honest. Are we glad He says “no” to what we want and “yes” to what we need? Not always. If we ask for a new marriage, and He says honor the one you’ve got, we aren’t happy. If we ask for healing, and He says learn through the pain, we aren’t happy.

When God doesn’t do what we want, it’s not easy.  Never has been.  Never will be. But faith is the conviction that God knows more than we do about this life and He will get us through it. We need to hear that God is in control. We need to hear it is not over until He says so. We need to hear life’s mishaps and tragedies are not a reason to bail out. They are simply a reason to—sit tight!

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – You Can Pass the Test

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Joyce meyer

Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well developed, not deficient in any way. —James 1:2-4 The Message

When life is filled with tests and trials, you sometimes feel like throwing in the towel. You are tempted to think God doesn’t know where you are and what you’re going through . . . or that He doesn’t care. But God permits tests in your life so He can bless you. And if you are faithful, you will see good results.

If you want to enjoy your Christian life and be used by God to help others, you must maintain a godly attitude during the time of testing. So cooperate with God and display an attitude of faith, and you will pass the test with flying colors!

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Joyce Meyer – Defeating Unbelief

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Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour. Withstand him; be firm in faith [against his onset—rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined], knowing that the same (identical) sufferings are appointed to your brotherhood (the whole body of Christians) throughout the world. —1 Peter 5:8–9

Sometimes we unintentionally give the wrong impression about spiritual warfare. We know that our enemy is the devil and that we must fight daily to win, but that’s not everything. If the Christian life were nothing but battles, it would be discouraging to fight every hour of every day.

I would feel that I could never relax because as soon as I did, Satan would sneak back again. That’s not the picture I want to present. The Christian life is one of joy and peace. God gives us a great sense of fulfillment, and we’re at rest because we know we honor Him by the way we live.

Peter wrote to Christians about their enemy—warning them and urging them to be vigilant, which is where we often put the emphasis. Just before he wrote those words, however, he said, “Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully” (v. 7). As we read that verse, it tells us that we must remind ourselves of God’s love for us—God cares. Because God cares, we can trust Him to take care of us.

We need that as part of our foundation. It’s not that we don’t have faith; it’s that Satan tries to destroy our faith with lies like: “If God really cared about you, would He make you go through this trial?” “If God truly loved you, would He treat you this way?”

Those questions that the devil throws at you are full of lies. If he can make you think you’re not loved or that God doesn’t have your best interests at heart, he can plant tiny seeds of unbelief. God wants you to remain strong and true like Abraham and other believers in the Bible.

One of the things I’ve learned from ministering to thousands of people is that the terrible and negative problems striking our lives are not what cause us to turn away from God. No, it’s our reaction to those situations that makes the difference. Think of Abraham again. When God promised to give him a son, he was an old man. He could have said, “How could that possibly be? I’m old and long past being able to father a child.” Instead, he said, “That’s wonderful! I believe.”

When struggles, trials, and hardships come your way—and they always do—you have a choice. You can heed Peter’s words and give God your cares, worries, and concerns. No matter how dark the night or how evil the situation, you must remind yourself that God is not only present with you in those situations, but He also loves you and will provide for you.

Your job is to be vigilant during those difficult times. You can rejoice in God’s love and blessings when all is going well—and that’s what God wants you to do. But in the dark moments, you need to remind yourself that the devil stalks you and wants to defeat you.

One more thing. Sometimes you may wonder why you have so many trials and problems. Is it possible that the devil may have singled you out because of God’s great plan for your life? The more faithful you are, the more you have to resist him and his lies of unbelief.

Dear heavenly Father, the enemy often tries to fill me with unbelief and make me deny Your powerful love for me. But like Abraham, I stand firm on Your promises. Thank You for the comfort I find in Your assurance that You’re always with me. Amen.

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Charles Stanley – Destined for the Cross

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Romans 6:8-11

When you saw the title for today’s devotion, I imagine that you thought it was about Jesus. If so, you’re half right. The cross is always about Jesus, but believers are also destined for sacrifice and death.

“Death to self” happens at the moment of salvation, when we are crucified with Christ (Rom. 6:6). The old self dies, and we are given a new nature as the Holy Spirit comes to live within us (John 14:17). At times it takes a bit longer to get to the sacrifice—the moment when we hand over to God everything we love and value.

God doesn’t stop at salvation; His purpose is to conform believers to the likeness of His Son (Rom. 8:29). So He gives us a new nature—then we can experience freedom because Jesus has triumphed over sin. But in order to live as God intends, we must be willing to give Christ the centermost position in our lives. As a result, the Lord calls us to the cross on a daily basis to lay down the things that might distract us from our purpose to serve and follow Him.

Don’t misunderstand what it means to be destined for the cross. God isn’t going to take away everything and leave us as lonely paupers. Putting our valuables on the cross—whether they are possessions, people, or dreams—frees us from the attachments of this world.

When we lay down worldly attachments, our self-esteem isn’t tied to “stuff” and our sense of acceptance doesn’t come from people. We are complete in the Lord. Or as Paul said, we are “alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 6:11). Enjoying a new life in Christ is worth a daily trip to the cross.

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The Power of Jesus’ Name – Charles Stanley

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John 14: 13

Praying in Jesus’ name states both our relationship with Christ and our right—through Him—to approach the Father directly. It also expresses our . . .

• Authority to petition God. The glorified Christ now sits at the right hand of God, where He intercedes for us and serves as our High Priest (Heb. 7:25). He has instructed us to come and ask for what we need. These words give us the authorization to enter the throne room of grace at any time and speak personally with the Father. To everyone who has received Jesus Christ as Savior, the Lord has granted the right to use His name.

• Agreement with God’s purposes. Based on our kinship with Jesus, we have access to the Father and can come with Christ’s authority to make requests. But to use the Savior’s name, we must also agree with God’s purposes. Praying in the name of Jesus means we’re asking in agreement with His character and will. As servants of God, we are to make it our priority to obey Him and His will, not our own. By allowing God’s Word to abide in us—to become part of our thinking and our standard for life—we will learn to pray in accordance with His plan.

• Assurance of an answer. “In Jesus’ name” is a phrase of confidence. It is a confession of certainty that our prayers will be heard and answered.

God doesn’t want prayer to become a rote exercise. So when praying “in Jesus’ name,” remember that those three words are not a formula. Instead, let them be powerful reminder of whose you are and the privilege of being involved in His work. Prayer is a mighty prerogative of the children of God.

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Taking Risks – Greg Laurie

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Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, “Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is desert.—Acts 8:26

When Philip was instructed to “arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza” (Acts 8:26), how easily he could have argued. He was having a productive ministry in Samaria, but God basically told him to go to the desert. It didn’t make any sense at all. But to Philip’s credit, he obeyed the Lord.

God was preparing both the listener and the speaker for what was about to happen. He was preparing a man from Ethiopia, who went to Jerusalem and did not find what he was looking for. And God was preparing Philip to go to the desert and be in place when that man arrived.

God doesn’t always give us a detailed blueprint of what He wants us to do. Instead, He will ask us to take steps of faith. There will be risks involved. The question is, are you willing to obey? God’s way becomes plain when we start walking in it. Obedience to revealed truth guarantees guidance in matters unrevealed.

Maybe God is waiting for you to take the first step before He shows you what the second one will be. Are you willing to just take a little risk? If you say, “No, I am not,” then God will find someone else to do take that step. But it would be great if it were you.

Many times when the Lord has opened up opportunities for me to share the gospel, I was just going about my day when I sensed a nudge from the Holy Spirit. Then God showed me what to do next, and I took the next step—and the next one.

If you want to share the gospel, then you need to be open and obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit.