Tag Archives: human-rights

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Facing a Wall of Fear?

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

Perhaps standing before you is a wall of fear.  Brick upon brick of anxiety and dread. Haunting you are the kings of confusion.  Thanks to them, you’ve struggled with your identity and destiny. You’ve bought the lie that life has no purpose…that life has no absolutes. As a child of God, it comes down to a simple decision to believe and receive your position as an heir of God and coheir with Christ.

The Scriptures say in 1 John 4:17, “In this world we are like Jesus.”  Our inheritance is every bit as abundant as that of Jesus himself. What he receives, we receive. What message are you carving on that wall of fear?  What words are you writing? Choose hope, not despair. Choose life, not death. Choose God’s promises. You are a new person. Live like one! Because God’s promises are unbreakable, our hope is unshakable!

Read more Unshakable Hope

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Plane makes emergency landing with no front wheels

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A plane landed without front wheels after gear failure. Flames ignited on contact. However, the pilot was able to bring the plane safely to a stop. All fifty-nine passengers and five crew members were unharmed.

This incident last Sunday in Peru underscores the intrinsic value of human beings. If the plane had been a test drone, its emergency landing would have generated little interest. But when a passenger plane nearly kills scores of humans, other humans instinctively take notice.

Meanwhile, the body of twenty-year-old missing Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts was discovered yesterday. An illegal immigrant has confessed to killing her. We grieve viscerally the tragic death of one so young.

In other news, Paul Manafort was found guilty yesterday on eight counts in his fraud trial. Whatever we think of the verdict, we should note that a system of jury trial by our peers reflects an intrinsic belief in the value of our peers.

“America’s birth certificate”

Each summer, my wife and I try to visit an area with a unique history. This year, we chose Philadelphia.

We visited the Liberty Bell and noted its iconic message from Leviticus 25:10, “Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof.” We stood inside Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence and US Constitution were ratified.

We visited the home of Betsy Ross and museums dedicated to aspects of colonial history. We stood at the grave of Benjamin Franklin, one of the most brilliant of a generation of truly brilliant men and women.

But the most moving experience for me personally was one few tourists shared with us.

We made our way to Declaration House, where we climbed the stairs to the second floor. There we stood outside the parlor that Thomas Jefferson rented in 1776. It was here that he wrote the Declaration of Independence.

This iconic document has been called “America’s birth certificate.”

“The only nation founded on a creed”

Jefferson declared: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” As a result, he added, governments “are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

Continue reading Denison Forum – Plane makes emergency landing with no front wheels →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – What Disciples Need

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Colossians 1:25-29

We’re all familiar with Jesus’ last instructions to His followers: Matthew 28:19 says to make disciples and baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But the next verse contains a second aspect of the directive: “Teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.” The Great Commission is usually associated with world evangelism, but baptism and obedience to Christ are also important because they are outward signs of a disciple’s inward faith.

In today’s passage, Paul explains the reason for proclaiming Christ and admonishing and teaching believers: “That we may present every man complete in Christ” (Col. 1:28). To simply lead someone to salvation without teaching him God’s Word is equivalent to leaving a newborn baby to fend for himself. Salvation begins the lifelong process of learning obedience and growing into spiritual maturity.

Furthermore, we can’t limit the task of teaching to pastors and missionaries any more than we can say that they alone are called to evangelize the lost. The entire church is given the assignment of making disciples and teaching them to obey the Lord. Instead of simply sitting in church services, Sunday schools, and Bible studies to soak up more truth for our own benefit, let’s pass on to others what we have learned.

Teaching isn’t the exclusive role of those who stand at podiums in front of large groups. It’s something that can be done one-on-one over coffee. Think about all that you have learned since you were saved. What can you share with someone else that will help him or her grow in Christ?

Bible in One Year: Jeremiah 41-45

 

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — A Prayer to Point Us Home

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Read: Luke 23:44–48 | Bible in a Year: Psalms 107–109; 1 Corinthians 4

Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12

One of the first prayers I learned as a little boy was “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep . . .” It was a prayer I learned from my parents, and I taught it to my son and daughter when they were little. As a child, I found great comfort in placing myself in God’s hands with those words before I fell asleep.

There’s a similar prayer neatly tucked away in the “prayer book” of the Bible, the Psalms. Some biblical scholars suggest that the phrase “Into your hands I commit my spirit” (Psalm 31:5) was a “bedtime” prayer taught to children in Jesus’s day.

You may recognize that prayer as Jesus’s final cry from the cross. But Jesus added one more word to it: Father (Luke 23:46). By praying that word in the moments before His death, Jesus demonstrated His intimate relationship with the Father and pointed believers toward their home with Him (John 14:3).

Jesus died on the cross so we could live in the wonder of a relationship with God as our heavenly Father. How comforting it is to know that because of Jesus’s sacrificial love for us, we can rest in God’s care as His children! We can close our eyes without fear because our Father watches over us and has promised to wake us up to life with Him (1 Thessalonians 4:14).

Lord Jesus, I receive the gift of forgiveness You offer me through the cross. Help me to turn from my sins and follow You, all the way home.

A bright new morning awaits us in Jesus.

By James Banks

INSIGHT

In Luke’s account of Christ’s death, we see several dramatic events. A seemingly inexplicable darkness was present over the entire earth—not just over Jerusalem where the crucifixion took place (vv. 44–45). Inside the temple in Jerusalem the curtain that separated worshipers from the holy of holies was torn in two, symbolizing that through Christ our access to God has been opened (v. 45). After Christ died, a Roman soldier who had participated in His execution declared, “Surely this was a righteous man” (v. 47). And others watching lamented and beat their breasts (v. 48).

The witness in the sky, within the temple, and by people at the foot of the cross demonstrate that this was no ordinary death. It was the death of the loving God-Man who shed His blood to redeem all who would believe in Him.

For further study, see The Passion of Christ at discoveryseries.org/q0210.

Dennis Fisher

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Black Swan

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Actuarial science is the discipline that applies statistical methods to assess risk of disability, morbidity, mortality, fertility, and other life-contingencies. Generally, actuaries are employed by insurance companies or risk management firms to calculate the “risks” associated with insuring individuals against life’s catastrophes. Actuarial science offers accurate and razor-sharp predictive power in order to prevent capital loss for those very companies.

There are always exceptions, of course, that confound even actuaries. These “outlier” events come unannounced. So rare are these exceptions that a theory was developed to explain their occurrence. The Black Swan Theory developed by Nassim Nicolas Taleb suggests that surprise events have major and long-lasting impact.(1) The 2001 terrorist attacks; the Pacific tsunami in 2004; the stock-market crash of 1987; not even a seasoned actuary could have predicted these events with any level of confidence.

The result of the unexpected can be a deep and pervading fear. In my own life, for example, I have come to fear airplane travel—particularly, I fear the worst possible scenarios regarding airplane travel—despite the fact that the odds are much higher for my getting in a car accident when I go to the grocery store. When I swim in the ocean, I fear a shark-attack more than I fear the more likely event of drowning. These are the “black swan” events that haunt me. They are rare and infrequent outliers but their impact on me is as significant as the potential sighting of a real black swan in my front yard, an unlikely but extraordinary occurrence, indeed.

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – A Natural Expression of Thanksgiving

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Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! — Psalm 107:1

Adapted from the resource The Power of Being Thankful Devotional – by Joyce Meyer

Thanksgiving can be a part of who we are deep down in our hearts; it is a type of prayer and it should flow out of us in a natural way that is simple and genuine.

Being thankful does not mean merely sitting down at the end of a day, trying to remember everything we need to be thankful for because we think we have to thank God in order to make Him happy, or to satisfy some spiritual requirement, or try to get Him to do something else for us.

Instead, it means having a heart that is sensitive to God’s presence in our everyday lives, and just breathing out grateful prayers of thanksgiving every time we see Him working in our lives or blessing us.

Prayer Starter: Father, I am thankful that prayer is not some ritual or formula that I am required to follow. I am grateful that prayer is a comfortable, ongoing conversation with You based on an intimate relationship with You. I love You, Father, and I am excited to give You thanks all day long. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – His Ways Will Satisfy 

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“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but be a new and different person with a fresh newness in all you do and think. Then you will learn from your own experience how His ways will really satisfy you” (Romans 12:2).

“The trouble with living sacrifices,” someone has well said, “is that they keep crawling off the altar.” That may be true. We “crawl off the altar” when we sin, and the only way to put ourselves back on the altar is to breathe spiritually – confess our known sins in accordance with the promise of 1 John 1:9 and appropriate the fullness of the Holy Spirit as we are commanded to do by faith (Ephesians 5:18).

When we do this, we will be living supernaturally and our lives will produce the fruit of the Spirit in great abundance.

Only by being filled with the Spirit, and thus realizing the fruit of the Spirit, can spiritual gifts be effectively utilized in witnessing and building up the Body of Christ.

We begin by totally yielding ourselves by faith to Christ in a full irrevocable surrender to His lordship.

“He died once for all to end sin’s power, but now He lives forever in unbroken fellowship with God. So look upon your old sin-nature as dead and unresponsive to sin, and instead be alive to God, alert to Him, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

“Do not let sin control your puny body any longer; do not give in to its sinful desires. Do not let any part of your bodies become tools of wickedness, to be used for sinning; but give yourselves completely to God – every part of you -for you are back from death and you want to be tools in the hands of God, to be used for His good purposes” (Romans 6:10-13).

Bible Reading:Romans 12:3-18

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Knowing that God’s ways will really satisfy me, I will seek first His kingdom, resist the devil at his every appearance and watch with joy as he flees.

 

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Choose Your Inheritance

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

One of the most famous stories in the Bible has to do with inheritance.  The Hebrews had just been delivered from Egyptian captivity.  God led them and Moses to the edge of the promised land and made this offer.  “Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each ancestral tribe send one of its leaders” (Numbers 13:1-2).

God didn’t tell the Israelites to conquer, invade, or secure the land.  He told them he was giving it to them.  Their choice was clear:  promises or circumstances?  The circumstances said, No way.  Stay out. There are giants in the land. God’s promise said, The land is yours. The victory is yours.  Take it.

Circumstances say, cower to your fears.  Your inheritance says otherwise:  You are a child of the King.  And because God’s promises are unbreakable, our hope is unshakable!

Read more Unshakable Hope

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

 

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Denison Forum – Is All the News Fake?

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Last week it was reported that Malaysia repealed its “fake news” law.

This Asian nation is one of the first countries in the world to reconsider how to control this societal nemesis. But, aren’t you already wondering whether that story is also fake news?

Since Missourians live in the Show-Me State, I wonder how they’re dealing with this dilemma. Is seeing believing?

There’s a scam going around currently where people are called by someone claiming to be an official with the IRS. That “official” claims that the victim owes a bogus tax bill. Often, the victim is conned into sending cash through wire transfers or prepaid debit cards to settle a fake debt. The IRS has told the public time and again that they will not use this kind of tactic.

In an age when pictures are photoshopped, stories are spun, and anonymous slander is rampant, who or what can you believe?

Last week I received a notice by email that a well-known bank had sent over $1,000 out of my account to a named payee. The email asked me to verify the transaction by replying to the email.

Trouble is, I don’t have any accounts at that particular bank. Upon closer inspection of the email, the bank’s logo was not authentic, and the email address of the sender was in no way connected to that bank.

Now, more than ever, caveat emptor: buyer beware. Fake news is everywhere.

Fake news is not new

But, fake news is NOT new. In 1981, Janet Leslie Cooke won a Pulitzer Prize for an article titled “Jimmy’s World” written for the Washington Post. It was later discovered to be fake. After admitting she had fabricated the story, she returned the prize.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Is All the News Fake? →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Hope Amidst Suffering

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2 Corinthians 12:7-10

We all go through distressing times in life. These seasons of suffering may be brought about by relational difficulties, financial hardships, or other trials. But as God’s children, we can take heart in knowing that our pain is not wasted.

Sometimes our pain is for the eternal benefit of others—God uses it to reveal the genuineness of our faith so that others might see it and be drawn to His Son (1 Peter 1:7). By the way we respond to adversity, our belief in Jesus becomes visible to those around us. Believers will be encouraged, and seekers will ask us questions about our faith.

At other times, God uses trials to teach us to obey—Hebrews 5:8 tells us that even our Savior learned obedience from the things He suffered. Another purpose of hardship is to broaden our ministry. The apostle Paul’s imprisonment let him minister among the guards, resulting in the salvation of many.

Difficulties can also be the Lord’s tool in preventing a problem from happening—such as the unidentified ailment that kept Paul from becoming prideful. When disobedience threatens our walk with God, He will take whatever steps are needed to draw us back to Him. He may allow a need to remain unmet or something cherished to be removed. His purpose is that we confess our sin and return to Him.

We may not know the reasons for our heartaches, but the wisest choice we can make is to trust the heavenly Father. After all, He who saved us through the sacrifice of His Son has promised to use our suffering to bring about good (Rom. 8:28).

Bible in One Year: Jeremiah 37-40

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — In Progress or Completed?

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Read: Hebrews 10:5–14 | Bible in a Year: Psalms 105–106; 1 Corinthians 3

For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. Hebrews 10:14

It’s satisfying to finish a job. Each month, for instance, one of my job responsibilities gets moved from one category to another, from “In Progress” to “Completed.” I love clicking that “Completed” button. But last month when I clicked it, I thought, If only I could overcome rough spots in my faith so easily! It can seem like the Christian life is always in progress, never completed.

Then I remembered Hebrews 10:14. It describes how Christ’s sacrifice redeems us totally. So in one important sense, that “completed button” has been pressed for us. Jesus’s death did for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves: He made us acceptable in God’s eyes when we place our faith in Him. It is finished, as Jesus Himself said (John 19:30). Paradoxically, even though His sacrifice is complete and total, we spend the rest of our lives living into that spiritual reality—“being made holy,” as Hebrews’ author writes.

The fact that Jesus has finished something that’s still being worked out in our lives is hard to understand. When I’m struggling spiritually, it’s encouraging to remember that Jesus’s sacrifice for me—and for you—is complete . . . even if our living it out in this life is still a work in progress. Nothing can stop His intended end from being achieved eventually: being transformed into His likeness (see 2 Corinthians 3:18).

Jesus, thank You for giving Your life for us. Help us trust You as we grow into followers whose lives look more and more like Yours, knowing that You are the one who makes us complete.

God is at work to make us who He intends us to be.

By Adam Holz

INSIGHT

The words “It’s finished!” can mean different things to different people. For the student, they might mean, “I’m finally graduating!” For the Jewish leaders at the time of Jesus, these words could mean they had succeeded in killing Jesus (John 11:53). For the Roman soldiers, it could describe the death penalty they had successfully carried out (19:16–18). For the disciples, these words could mean that their hopes of the Messiah delivering them from Roman bondage were dashed (Luke 24:19–21). But when Jesus uttered, “It is finished” (John 19:30), He was declaring He had completed the work the Father gave Him to do (17:4)—to be “an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:10).

For more about the death and resurrection of Jesus, check out our free online course at christianuniversity.org/CA206.

  1. T. Sim

 

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Right and Left

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A mother bowed before Jesus with a request. Her sons were under the tutelage of the rabbi who was stirring the city with words of another kingdom, and she wanted to assure them a place. Kneeling, she uttered, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”(1)

This exchange I remember well, and I confess, often with an air of superiority. What a silly concern. The overzealous mother, and the sons who seemed to be standing in the wing as she asked, were rightly told they didn’t quite get it. Jesus’s response seemed to be aimed at both mother and sons alike: “You don’t know what you are asking,” he essentially says to them. Christ had come to be a servant, humbling himself as a sacrifice. For a people who didn’t understand, he came to show the way. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” Jesus asked them. “We can,” they answered, still having no idea what was coming, much less what they had just agreed they could drink. The right and left seats were the least of their worries.

Author Donald Miller remembers the moment he realized that the right and left seats beside Jesus were also the least of his own worries. He wittily explains how he never pictured himself as bothering with the seats of honor or the politics of the kingdom and considered himself the better for it. He admits he just wasn’t all that interested. The seats of honor could be given to someone else. He was happy to be off somewhere on a remote and rolling hillside, exploring, or fishing, maybe even napping. Miller eventually realized this might not be the best way to follow or participate.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Right and Left →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – You Were Made for Something More

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But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. — Isaiah 40:31

Adapted from the resource Trusting God Day by Day Devotional – by Joyce Meyer

Do you ever feel you are like an eagle in a chicken yard—grounded and pent up when you should be soaring? You know there is much more within you than you are experiencing and expressing in your life right now. You know God has a great purpose for your life—and you cannot escape or ignore the inner urge to “go for it.”

Know this: all eagles are uncomfortable in a barnyard; they all long for the clear, blue, open skies. When you are living in a place that keeps you from being who you were made to be and doing what you are meant to do, you will be uncomfortable, too. But also realize that people around you may not understand your desire to break out of the box. They may want to clip your wings.

When you hear their comments and questions, something inside of you may ask, “What is wrong with me? Why do I think as I think? Why do I feel this way? Why can’t I just settle down and live a normal life like everybody else?” The reason you cannot just settle down is that you are not a chicken; you are an eagle! You will never feel at home in that chicken yard, because you were made for something bigger, more beautiful, and more fulfilling.

I encourage you today to fan the flame inside of you. Fan it until it burns brightly. Never give up on the greatness for which you were created, never try to hide your uniqueness, and never feel you cannot do what you believe you were made to do. Realize that your hunger for adventure is God-given; wanting to try something new is a wonderful desire, and embracing life and aiming high is what you were made for. You are an eagle!

Prayer Starter: Father, thank You for the greatness You have placed inside of me—the desire to be more, do more, and soar higher. Help me to approach life with boldness and never settle for anything less than what You have for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

 

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – A New Creature 

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“As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one” (Romans 3:10-12, KJV).

At the conclusion of one of my messages at a pastor’s conference, a pastor stood to take issue with me concerning a statement that I had made. I had said that there is a great hunger for God throughout the world, and that more people are now hearing the gospel and receiving Christ than at any time since the Great Commission was given almost 2,000 years ago.

“How can you say that,” he objected, “when the Scripture clearly teaches that no man seeketh after God?”

“That is exactly what the Bible teaches,” I responded, “and I agree with the Word of God 100 percent, but do not forget that – though in his natural inclination man does not have a hunger for God – the Holy Spirit sends conviction and creates within the human heart a desire for the Savior.”

As Jesus put it, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me, draws him” (John 6:44, NAS). There are three things that we can learn about the human race from this passage. First, no one is righteous. Second, no one understands the things of God; and third, no one seeks God. What a contrast between what man is like in his natural state and what man becomes at spiritual birth when he is liberated from the darkness and gloom of Satan’s kingdom and ushered into the light of God’s glorious kingdom through Jesus Christ. That man becomes a new creature. Old things are passed away and behold all things become new.

What a contrast between the natural and the supernatural. The natural man must depend upon his own resources, his own wisdom, to find meaning and purpose in his life, inevitably resulting in a life of conflict, discord and frustration. But the one who trusts in God has the privilege of drawing upon the supernatural resources of God daily; resources of joy, peace, love; resources that provide meaning and purpose, assurance of eternal life.

Most people live lives of quiet desperation in self- imposed poverty because those of us who know the truth of the supernatural are strangely silent. God forgive us.

Bible Reading:Romans 3:13-20

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: With God’s help I refuse to remain silent any longer, but will seek to proclaim “the most joyful news ever announced” (Luke 2:10-11), to all who will listen in order that others may join me in living the supernatural life.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – An Adventurously Expectant Life

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

As a child of God, “this resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life.  It’s adventurously expectant…greeting  God with a childlike, ‘What’s next, Papa?’  God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are.  We know who he is, and we know who we are:  Father and children.  And we know we are going to get an unbelievable inheritance!” (Romans 8:15-17 MSG).

God says, “Hey, Lucado.  You are an heir to the joy of Christ.  Why not ask Jesus to help you?”  “And you, Mr. Without-a-Clue.  Aren’t you an heir to God’s storehouse of wisdom?”  “Mrs. Worrywart, Why do you let fears steal your sleep?  Are you not a beneficiary of God’s trust fund?”  Approach God’s throne not as an interloper but as a child of the living and loving God!  Because God’s promises are unbreakable, our hope is unshakable.

Read more Unshakable Hope

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

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Denison Forum – Six-Year-Old Orders Almost $400 Worth of Toys

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Would you shop at Walmart in a “virtual showroom”?

The company recently applied for intellectual property patents that would allow VR headset owners to browse their store shelves via virtual reality. The experience may still be years away, but Walmart is working on this VR experience to woo consumers away from their chief rival, Amazon.

However, as Katelyn Lunt has proven, Amazon has achieved their preferred consumer status by making the shopping experience so simple a six-year-old can order almost $400 worth of toys from her mom’s account.

Of course, Katelyn wasn’t supposed to order that much.

She just wanted to check her mom’s computer for the delivery date of a Barbie her mom had ordered as a reward for doing chores. But how could Katelyn refuse the allure of Amazon presenting dozens of other Barbie-themed items to her?

Continue reading Denison Forum – Six-Year-Old Orders Almost $400 Worth of Toys →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley –God Uses Our Suffering

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Hebrews 12:10-11

Joseph’s life involved much suffering. The young man was betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, unjustly imprisoned, and forgotten. But when God’s plan was revealed, Joseph declared that it was good (Gen. 45:7-8).

Scripture tells us that the Lord has many purposes for the pain we experience. One is to develop personal righteousness in us. Desiring that we walk in holiness before Him, God utilizes discipline to direct us away from ungodliness and to increase our fruitfulness. He will use difficult people and circumstances to prune away any “deadwood”—attitudes, behaviors, and relationships that do not fit a child of God (Eph. 4:25; Eph. 4:29, Eph. 4:31). While such pruning is not a pleasant experience, it can effectively train us to lead a godly life.

God also uses suffering to manifest the life of Christ in us. For that to happen, we must learn to depend on Him for both our work and our words. If circumstances did not press in upon us, we would probably go our own way. But we are to be like Jesus, who relied on His Father no matter how easy or hard the situation became. As Christ’s ambassadors, we are to be living examples of His character. This may mean forgiving our enemies, bearing our burdens with patience, or finding joy in the midst of sorrow, just as He did. Our witness will not be a perfect one, but we should display a growing “family resemblance” to the Lord.

Life is full of trouble. But in the hands of a loving God, our suffering is being used for eternal purposes.

Bible in One Year: Jeremiah 33-36

 

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Marvelous Maker

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Read: Psalm 104:24–34 | Bible in a Year: Psalms 103–104; 1 Corinthians 2

How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. Psalm 104:24

As an amateur photographer, I enjoy capturing glimpses of God’s creativity with my camera. I see His fingerprints on each delicate flower petal, each vibrant sunrise and sunset, and each cloud-painted and star-speckled sky canvas.

My camera’s powerful zoom option allows me to take photos of the Lord’s creatures too. I’ve snapped shots of a chattering squirrel in a cherry blossom tree, a colorful butterfly flitting from bloom to bloom, and sea turtles sunning on a rocky, black beach. Each one-of-a-kind image prompted me to worship my marvelous Maker.

I’m not the first of God’s people to praise Him while admiring His unique creations. The writer of Psalm 104 sings of the Lord’s many works of art in nature (v. 24). He regards “the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number” (v. 25) and rejoices in God for providing constant and complete care for His masterpieces (vv. 27–31). Considering the majesty of the God-given life around him, the psalmist bursts with worshipful gratitude: “I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live” (v. 33).

While reflecting on the Lord’s magnificent and immense creation, we can look closely at His intentional creativity and attention to detail. And like the psalmist, we can sing to our Creator with thankful praise for how powerful, majestic, and loving He is and always will be. Hallelujah!

Share your favorite photo of God’s creation at Facebook.com/ourdailybread.

God’s works are marvelous, and so is He.

By Xochitl Dixon

INSIGHT

This remarkable psalm is like an orchestra proclaiming the different sights and sounds of creation. Land and sea; sky and clouds; animal and plant life; light and darkness all point to the ultimate reality of God. It’s easy for the reader to be reminded of the Genesis account of creation that describes the glory of God (Genesis 1–2). Psalm 104 doesn’t read like an objective and dispassionate record of what we see in nature, however. Instead, the psalmist finds in all of creation a marvelous symphony that exalts the Creator. Creation is the signpost pointing to the majesty of God: “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made” (Romans 1:20).

Be on the lookout today for something in creation for which you can express praise to God.

Dennis Fisher

 

http://www.odb.org

Today in the Word

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – Joseph and God’s Plan

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JUDAH ASSUMES LEADERSHIP

Genesis 43:1–15

Can people change? The answer has been debated for generations by philosophers, psychologists, and poets. Some argue we are born as blank slates to be shaped by our circumstances. Others claim we come into this world with our personalities and proclivities already determined. Christians believe that faith in God can transform anyone through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Joseph’s test of whether his brothers had changed from selfish vindictiveness ran into an obstacle. He would not provide any more food for the family unless they brought Benjamin with them—but Jacob refused to let him go. Reuben tried to convince his father by offering the lives of his own two sons as a guarantee that he would bring Benjamin back (42:37). Jacob would not listen.

Judah now stepped up to the challenge of leadership among his family. With food running out, Judah analyzed the situation and decides: “Send the boy along with me . . . so that we and you and our children may live and not die” (v. 8). Yes, it is a risk to send Benjamin. But if they do not take that risk, Benjamin will die of starvation.

Notice especially that Judah is no longer derailed by his father’s clear favoritism. As one commentator says, “Judah’s reference to Benjamin as ‘our brother’ (43:4) counters Jacob’s label (‘my son’) and the exclusivity (‘he alone is left’) with which he talks of Benjamin (42:38).”

Judah offered himself as a pledge of Benjamin’s safety (v. 9). The last time Judah offered a pledge, it was a foolish gift to a prostitute. The last time he made a convincing speech to his family, it was to sell Joseph to a traveling band of Ishmaelites. His priorities had been transformed.

APPLY THE WORD

Ephesians 2 says, “You were dead in your transgressions and sins . . . But God . . . made us alive with Christ.” When God transforms us, it becomes possible to restore broken relationships. Do you have relationships that need God’s healing? Rejoice today that we worship a God that allows for and enables radical change in people’s lives.

 

http://www.todayintheword.org

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Have a Glad Heart

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From the fruit of his words a man shall be satisfied with good, and the work of a man’s hands shall come back to him [as a harvest]. — Proverbs 12:14 (AMPC)

Adapted from the resource Starting Your Day Right Devotional – by Joyce Meyer

I used to live with an ongoing sense of dread until I asked God to show me what was wrong. He spoke the words “evil forebodings,” and then showed me His Word concerning this subject: “All the days of the desponding and afflicted are made evil [by anxious thoughts and forebodings], but he who has a glad heart has a continual feast [regardless of circumstances]” (Proverb 15:15 AMPC).

Anxious thoughts make the day evil. If you expect to have a dismal day, you will be unpleasant yourself. Evil forebodings ruin the day, but faith makes the heart glad and brings miraculous results. If you want to have a good day, raise your expectations to be in line with God’s Word.

Prayer Starter: Father, You have good things planned for my day. Help me to actively expect Your goodness in everything I do. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org