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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Fellowship with Jesus

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Read: Philippians 3:7–14 | Bible in a Year: Esther 6–8; Acts 6

I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Philippians 3:8

I’ll never forget the time I had the privilege of sitting next to Billy Graham at a dinner. I was honored but also somewhat nervous about what would be appropriate to say. I thought it would be an interesting conversation starter to ask what he loved most about his years of ministry. Then I awkwardly started to suggest possible answers. Was it knowing presidents, kings, and queens? Or preaching the gospel to millions of people around the world?

Before I had finished offering suggestions, Rev. Graham stopped me. Without hesitation he said, “It has been my fellowship with Jesus. To sense His presence, to glean His wisdom, to have Him guide and direct me—that has been my greatest joy.” I was instantly convicted and challenged. Convicted because I’m not sure that his answer would have been my answer, and challenged because I wanted it to be.

That’s what Paul had in mind when he counted his greatest achievements to be of no worth compared to the “surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:8). Think of how rich life would be if Jesus and our fellowship with Him was our highest pursuit.

Lord, forgive me for chasing after things that matter far less than my fellowship with You. Thank You that You stand ready to enrich my life with Your presence and power.

To remain faithful where God has placed you, give Christ first place in your heart.

By Joe Stowell

INSIGHT

The apostle Paul’s passion to know Christ and to make Him known to others should guide our lives as well. In Philippians 3:1–14, we see how growing in our knowledge of Christ is mixed with both joy and pain: “I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings” (v. 10). Jesus told us, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). As we grow in our relationship with Christ we can expect both joy and suffering.

How has both joy and suffering deepened your fellowship with Christ?

Dennis Fisher

 

 

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Ravi Zacharias Ministry – At the Table

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When summer comes and city corners are full again of kids with bikes and basketballs, my mind returns to a particular playground. For several summers I worked at a church with an outdoor recreation ministry, whose intent was to serve the neighborhood, meeting the kids and building relationships. We played games, read stories, jumped rope, and organized basketball tournaments. One year a volunteer artist came and helped the kids make pottery, so we commissioned them to create some new communion plates and chalices for the church to celebrate the Lord’s Supper.

Most of these kids had never taken communion before; many had never heard of the Lord’s Supper or been told the story of Jesus and his disciples in the upper room. So with muddied hands we told the story, and together that summer several sets of communion plates and cups were fashioned by kids eager to see them in use. I have never seen more colorful, misshapen objects grace the altar of a church, and I have never seen so many wide-eyed children (and adults!) come to life at the communion table. The elders held the lopsided plates and cups, inviting the church community to come and remember the one who shapes us. The children had a physical sign of their place at the table, and the church was reminded again that we are all children being nourished by the Son of God.

When Christians confess the Incarnation, the coming of God into the world as a child, they are proclaiming the gift of a God who comes so near his creation that he joins it. The Lord’s Supper is another gift marking a God who comes so noticeably near as to join us.  The table is a place, like the manager in Bethlehem or the cross of Calvary, where we are welcomed—rather, summoned—to his side, to come forward as we are: the sick to a kind physician, the outcast to one who was rejected himself, clay into the very hands of its creator. Jesus left this sign and seal specifically with human beings in mind. When he left his followers with the command to take the bread and the cup in remembrance of his presence among them, he gave them a sign of this presence both visible and physical. Fourth century preacher John Chrysostom wrote of this physical gift as a vital reminder both because we ourselves are physical and Christ as well: “Were we incorporeal, he would give us these things in a naked and incorporeal form. Now because our souls are implanted in bodies, he delivers spiritual things under things visible.” At the table, Jesus offers not merely a place of welcome, but something real for real bodies to hold, a taste of his nearness that nourishes body, mind, and soul. We are given collectively the assurance of a real, present, and nourishing Christ that feeds us in this rich company and then turns us out into the streets and the down the hedges with the great news of an invitation: Taste and see that God is good, and remember I am with you always even unto the ends of the earth.

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Three Things that Help Me Forgive

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And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him and let it drop (leave it, let it go), in order that your Father Who is in heaven may also forgive you your [own] failings and shortcomings and let them drop. — Mark 11:25 (AMPC)

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

The first thing that really helps me forgive is to remember this: God forgives me for much more than I will ever have to forgive others for. We may not do what others have done to us, but then again we may do things that are worse. In God’s Kingdom sin does not come in sizes like small, medium, and large; sin is just sin! Do yourself a favor and forgive quickly and freely (without expectation or stipulation). The longer you hold a grudge, the more difficult it is to let it go.

The second thing that helps me forgive is to think of God’s mercy. Mercy is the most beautiful gift we can give or receive. It cannot be earned and is not deserved—otherwise, it wouldn’t be mercy. I like to think of mercy as looking beyond what was done wrong and on to why it was done. Many times people do a hurtful thing and don’t know why they are doing it, or they may not even realize they are doing it. I was hurt so badly in my childhood that I in turn frequently hurt others with my harsh words and attitudes. But I did not realize I was being harsh; because life had been so hard and painful for me, that harshness had become part of me.

The third thing that helps me forgive others is to remember that if I stay angry, I am giving Satan a foothold in my life (see Eph. 4:26–27). When I forgive, I am keeping Satan from gaining an advantage over me (see 2 Cor. 2:10–11). If I don’t forgive, I am poisoning my own soul with bitterness that will surely work its way out in some kind of bad behavior or attitude. One of the most valuable things I have learned is that I am doing myself a favor when I forgive.

Prayer Starter: Thank You, Father, for Your mercy and forgiveness. Help me, in turn, to forgive those who have hurt me and release any bitterness and resentment. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

 

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Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Cleansing From Sin

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“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9, KJV).

Henry was experiencing difficulty in communicating with God. “It seems as though He is far away from me,” he said, “and no matter what I do I am not able to make contact with Him.”

Henry was weighted down with problems and concerns that robbed him of his joy, his radiance and even his physical strength. He was a Christian and wanted to be a man of God but had become careless in his walk with Christ, and in the process had lost his first love.

If that condition describes you as well, it is quite likely that you have allowed sin to short-circuit your relationship with God. The mighty overflow of His power has been cut off, and you are no longer walking in the light as God is in the light. This is expressed in this great epistle of 1 John.

King David knew that experience because he had disobeyed God and, as recorded in Psalm 32, would not admit that he had sinned. As a result, his dishonesty made him miserable and filled his days with frustration.

If the light has gone out in your life and you are conscious of the same kind of experience to which King David refers, may I encourage you to take a sheet of paper, make a list of everything you know is wrong in your life, as the Holy Spirit directs you, and confess your sins to God.

As you make your list, claim the promise of 1 John 1:9. The word confess means “to agree with,” “to say along with.” You are saying to God, “I acknowledge that what I am doing is wrong. I know Christ’s death on the cross paid the penalty for these sins. I repent.” To repent means genuinely to change your mind, which results in a change of action.

As a result of this change, you no longer do those things that grieve or quench the Spirit, and you desire to honor Him every moment of every day of your life through faith and obedience. Then, whenever sin enters your life, you engage in spiritual breathing.

Bible Reading:Proverbs 28:10-14

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will make a list of everything the Holy Spirit calls to my mind that is short-circuiting His power in my life, and I will genuinely confess them before God.

 

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Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Well Done Good & Faithful Servant

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

God gives gifts, not miserly, but abundantly! And he doesn’t give gifts randomly, but carefully– “to each according to each one’s unique ability” (Matthew 25:15). Remember, no one else has our talents. No one. God elevates you from common-hood by matching your unique abilities to custom-made assignments.

“Well done, good and faithful servant,” Jesus will say to some (Matthew 25:23). Maybe your dad never praised you or your teachers always criticized you, but God will applaud you. And to have him call you good… well, when he does, it counts! Only he can make bad sinners good. And only he can make the frail faithful. “Well done, good and faithful…” The point? Use your uniqueness to take great risks for God! The only mistake is not to risk making one!

Read more Cure for the Common Life

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

 

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Denison Forum – Las Vegas advertises lesbian wedding on TV

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My wife and I are still talking about an ad we saw on television this week. Titled “Now and Then,” it depicts a lesbian couple visiting Las Vegas. One says to the other, “Let’s get married.” The other says, “My parents would never forgive me.”

They walk into a room where friends are waiting for them, along with parents who smile and nod their approval. The tagline then appears: “Destiny Happens Here.”

Children’s show feature drag queens

In other news, two new animated television shows about drag queens are set to debut in America. One is called “Drag Tots!”, a show about toddler drag queens featuring transgender model RuPaul. It begins airing next week.

The other is a Netflix show called “Super Drags.” The preview says, “By night, they tighten up their corsets and transform into the baddest SUPER DRAGS in town, ready to combat shade and rescue the world’s glitter from the evil villains.”

In other news, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that a Christian university cannot accredit its law school, since the university’s code of conduct includes abstinence from sex outside of heterosexual marriage.

According to Andrew Bennett, director of a religious freedom institute, the ruling affects more than Trinity Western University. It suggests that freedom of religion and conscience are only to be exercised privately. And it could have broader implications for other professions and for other religious schools.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Las Vegas advertises lesbian wedding on TV →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – The Key to Enduring Hardship

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Genesis 50:15-21

God has given us many amazing promises in His Word. Yet, though we are assured of His steadfast love (Rom. 8:38-39), provision (2 Corinthians 9:8), and guidance (Prov. 16:9), He has not promised us an easy, trouble-free life. What we can count on, however, is that the Lord will work everything—including adversity—for our good (Rom. 8:28).

Long before Paul wrote this word of encouragement to the church at Rome, Joseph learned the same principle by experiencing its truth. His affirmation of it, however, came several years after his unfair suffering had ended. In the midst of his difficulties, it’s doubtful that he understood what God was doing in his life.

The same is true for us. When our hearts and minds are agitated because of turbulent events, it’s hard not to stare at circumstances in horror or confusion. But we must decide to believe what the Bible says about God’s character, activity, and purposes. That choice forces our attention off the storm and onto the One responsible for ushering us safely through.

In His presence, fears dwindle and doubts dissolve; peace and a sense of oneness with the Lord will take their place. Our responsibility is to keep our eyes on God and trust His Holy Spirit to provide strength, wisdom, and courage.

Turning to the Lord will not necessarily bring an end to the hardship, but He will help us see that we are exactly where He wants us. He has a reason for the discomfort and desires that we grow in Christ through it. Whatever the situation, the safest place in the world is the center of His will.

Bible in One Year: Psalm 55-59

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Telling Time

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Read: Psalm 90:9–17 | Bible in a Year: Esther 3–5; Acts 5:22–42

[Make] the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Ephesians 5:16

“Westerners have watches. Africans have time.” So said Os Guinness, quoting an African proverb in his book Impossible People. That caused me to ponder the times I have responded to a request with, “I don’t have time.” I thought about the tyranny of the urgent and how schedules and deadlines dominate my life.

Moses prayed in Psalm 90, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (v. 12). And Paul wrote, “Be very careful, then, how you live . . . making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15–16).

I suspect that Paul and Moses would agree that our wise use of time isn’t just a matter of clock-watching. The situation may call for us to keep a tight schedule—or it may compel us to give someone an extended gift of our time.

We have but a brief moment to make a difference for Christ in our world, and we need to maximize that opportunity. That may mean ignoring our watches and planners for a while as we show Christ’s patient love to those He brings into our lives.

As we live in the strength and grace of the timeless Christ, we impact our time for eternity.

Father, You have given us all the time we need to accomplish what You have given us to do. May we use our time in ways that honor You.

For more, read Mary and Martha: Balancing Life’s Priorities.      

Time management is not about clock-watching, it’s about making the most of the time we have.

By Bill Crowder

INSIGHT

Psalm 90 is a worshipful conversation Moses has with God. The superscription reads, “A prayer of Moses, the man of God.” But even if we weren’t alerted that this psalm is a prayer, the language and tone clearly indicate the psalmist was talking to God. This prayer was spoken during a rough period in Israel’s history. It appears the people of God had experienced discipline (vv. 7–11, 15), which prompted Moses to talk to God about the brevity and fragility of human life in view of God’s eternal nature (vv. 1–6). The psalm includes many references to time, such as “generations” (v. 1), “years” (vv. 4, 9, 10, 15), “day(s)” (vv. 4, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15), “morning” and “evening” (v. 6).

Indeed, tough times can compel us to talk to the Lord about our brief time on earth and appeal to Him for His help (vv. 12–17). They can also cause us to ask who may need the gift of our time.

Arthur Jackson

 

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Transformative Power of Empathy

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In the hug felt ‘round the world in 1989, First Lady Barbara Bush began the slow process of de-stigmatizing the simple action of touching someone with HIV.(1) It was an unexpected act offered by an uninhibited grandmother who wanted to bring attention to a community in isolation. Such a move would hardly surprise anyone today, but thirty years ago, intentionally reaching out via physical touch to a member of an ostracized community was noteworthy.

“To hug or not to hug?” however, is a question not yet mainstream. To the contrary, ours is an increasingly remote, touchless society reaping its own gloomy consequences. A 2014 study at the University of Arizona examined those suffering from “affection deprivation” and found that people who did not have meaningful physical contact from others suffered from loneliness, depression, and anxiety disorders.(2) Clearly, a patient’s physical condition might very well be his most public problem, but it likely won’t be his deepest.

How could such a simple act of a hug merit so much attention? Why would the giver care enough? Why would the onlookers be required to reassess their opinion of such an event? The reason lies behind both the physical and the spiritual effects of such an act: that hug, though unable to bring physical healing, brought comfort while simultaneously erasing a border between the skeptical and the suffering.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Transformative Power of Empathy →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Prayer as the First Option, Not the Last Resort

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“For everyone who keeps on asking receives, and he who keeps on seeking finds, and to him who keeps on knocking, it will be opened.” — Matthew 7:8

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

One day I woke up with a throbbing headache. I walked around with that miserable headache almost all day, telling everybody I met about how terrible I felt—until I finally realized that I had complained most of the day and had never taken the time to simply pray and ask God to take the pain away.

Unfortunately, that response is rather typical for some of us. We complain about our problems and spend a majority of our time trying to figure out what we can do to solve them. We often do everything except the one thing we are told to do in the Word of God: ask, that we may receive and our joy may be full (see John 16:24 KJV).

Thankfully, God wants to provide for our every need. We have the awesome privilege of “asking and receiving,” and we should always pray as a first response to every situation.

Prayer Starter: Thank You, Father, that I can bring every single need to You. Help me to always view prayer as my first option, knowing You delight in taking care of me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

 

 

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Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – More Than We Could Hope For

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“Now glory be to God who by His mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes” (Ephesians 3:20).

Few verses describe the supernatural life better than does this powerful promise. On hundreds, if not thousands, of occasions I have meditated upon this truth and have been inspired to claim increasingly great and mighty things for the glory of God because of the inspiration contained in this Word. Think of it, the omnipotent Creator, God who created the heavens and the earth and the vastness of all the hundreds of millions of galaxies, has come to take up residence within us! Our bodies have become His temple. That omnipotnet, divine, supernatural, inexhaustible resource power dwells within every believer.

How much power? Far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of! Let your mind race, your prayers be without limit, and yet, whatever you believe, whatever you think, whatever you pray for, God’s power is infinitely beyond it all.

I have come to the conclusion, after many years of serving our wonderful Lord, that there is nothing too big for us to attempt for the glory of God. If our hearts and motives are pure, if what we do is according to the Word of God, He hears, and is able to do more than we ask or even think.

For example, is it God’s will that the Great Commission be fulfilled? Of course. It is His command. We read further in 2 Peter 3:9 that God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance and has, according to verse 15 of this chapter, delayed His return in order that more people might have a chance to hear.

Let your mind soar over the vastness of the earth, where there is a continuous population explosion, and each generation is faced with another billion or more souls to pray for. I challenge you to believe God for the entire world to be blanketed with His love and forgiveness.

I am presently praying for a billion souls to come to Christ before A.D. 2000, and on the basis of what we are now seeing, God is putting His plan together through many members of the Body of Christ cooperating under many umbrellas, including Here’s Life, World Changers, to see that prayer fulfilled.

Bible Reading:Ephesians 3:13-19

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will let my mind soar and my prayers expand. I will ask the Holy Spirit to give me the faith to comprehend the magnitude of God’s purpose in my life and never be satisfied with anything less than the reality of this great promise, Ephesians 3:20, in my life.

 

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Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Illustrate Christ

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

Tucked away in the cedar chest of my memory is a Sunday school teacher in a small West Texas church.  She gave each of us a can of crayons and a sketch of Jesus torn from a coloring book. We didn’t illustrate pictures of ourselves, we colored the Son of God.  We used what she gave us.  No blue crayon for the sky? Just make it purple. If Jesus’ hair is red, the teacher won’t mind. She taught us to paint Jesus with our own colors.

God made you to do likewise.  He made you unique so you could illustrate Christ.  Make a big deal out of him.  Don’t waste years embellishing your own image. Who needs to see your face? And who doesn’t need to see God’s? Besides, God promises no applause for self-promoters.  But great reward awaits God-promoters. “Good work!  You did your job well.”  (Matthew 25:23).

Read more Cure for the Common Life

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

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Denison Forum – My response to President Trump’s executive order on immigrant families

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President Trump signed an executive order Wednesday afternoon stating that families seeking asylum should be detained together when “appropriate and consistent with law and available resources.”

The order maintains the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy for illegal immigrants. It also instructs the Pentagon to make facilities available for the housing and care of immigrant families.

It directs the Attorney General to seek modification of the 1997 Flores Settlement Agreement to allow alien families to be kept together “throughout the pendency of criminal proceedings.” And it requires the Attorney General to “prioritize the adjudication of cases involving detained families.”

In related news, the House will vote today on an immigration bill that would end family separations as part of a larger overhaul. “We can enforce our immigration laws without breaking families apart,” said House Speaker Paul Ryan.

God is “Father of the fatherless”

As I noted on Tuesday, illegal immigration is an especially complicated theological issue.

We are charged by Scripture with obeying the government (Romans 13:1), but we are also to care for immigrants (Exodus 22:21; Hebrews 13:2) and children (Mark 10:14). It is difficult to devise a solution that satisfies law enforcement supporters as well as advocates for immigrants and their families.

I want to focus today on those at the center of the storm: the children. More than 2,300 have now been separated from parents seeking asylum or attempting to enter the US illegally.

Continue reading Denison Forum – My response to President Trump’s executive order on immigrant families →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley –Be Steadfast in Prayer

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Luke 18:1-8

While the Israelites engaged in physical combat, a spiritual battle was simultaneously being waged nearby. Scripture tells us that as Moses was praying, he grew weary in the midst of a critical situation (Ex. 17:12). If this can happen to one of God’s greatest leaders, it shouldn’t come as a surprise when we feel defeated or discouraged.

As battles loom, we oftentimes lose heart because our eyes are focused on the circumstances. We allow the enemy to skew our perspective of the conflict, which makes barriers before us seem unlikely to give way. Then it’s not uncommon to feel panicky and wonder, Lord, what am I going to do? We may even stop praying because it seems apparent there’s no solution, no way out, no hope of victory. We’re just too tired and disappointed.

Jesus knew that we would at times feel fainthearted, which is why He told the parable of the persistent widow in today’s reading. The Lord wanted to encourage His followers to be tireless in prayer. This requires faith, without which it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6).

Let’s remember that the enemy rejoices when we give up, but defeat is never our only option! If we could see the situation through God’s eyes, we would see a completely different landscape. We may need to pray strenuously, as if we’re tunneling through a mountain, but when we do, our faith and perseverance will grow.

So keep praying, and let the Word of God encourage you personally. You’ll hear His assurance as He fights for you.

Bible in One Year: Psalm 50-54

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Every Moment Matters

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Read: Philippians 1:12–24 | Bible in a Year: Esther 1–2; Acts 5:1–21

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Philippians 1:21

When I met Ada, she had outlived her entire group of friends and family and was living in a nursing home. “It’s the hardest part of getting old,” she told me, “watching everyone else move on and leave you behind.” One day I asked Ada what kept her interest and how she spent her time. She answered me with a Scripture passage from the apostle Paul (Philippians 1:21): “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Then she said, “While I’m still around, I have work to do. On my good days, I get to talk to the people here about Jesus; on the hard days, I can still pray.”

Significantly, Paul wrote Philippians while in prison. And he acknowledged a reality many Christians understand as they face their mortality: Even though heaven seems so inviting, the time we have left on Earth matters to God.

Like Paul, Ada recognized that every breath she took was an opportunity to serve and glorify God. So Ada spent her days loving others and introducing them to her Savior.

Even in our darkest moments, Christians can hold on to the promise of permanent joy in the company of God. And while we live, we enjoy relationship with Him. He fills all our moments with significance.

Lord, grant me the strength to serve You with every breath I take, so that every moment of my remaining days matters to Your Kingdom.

Study more at christianuniversity.org/courses/spiritual-life-basics.

When God comes to call us home, may He find us serving Him.

By Randy Kilgore

INSIGHT

How can you use the days God has given you to love and serve others?

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – King of the Hill

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Public radio program This American Life ran a special report on a certain sub-culture of people whose prize possessions are their car stereos. They are called “decibel drag racers” and people flock across international borders to join them in competition. Like actual drag racing, cars line up across the track, except in this competition they will not be going anywhere. The winner is the owner of the car stereo that can play at the loudest possible decibel. Oddly enough (that is, more odd than the fact that these systems are too powerful to play music), most of the cars that win this competition are not even drivable. The world record holder at the time of this interview had 900 pounds of concrete poured into the floor of his van. Wind shields usually only make it through three competitions before cracking (and these are not normal windshields). Yet one competitor still seems to entirely miss the irony that there is no longer any room for himself in his car. “We need more batteries,” he laments. “But that’s all the room we have.”(1)

To anyone outside of this extreme audio sport world, “irony” is perhaps a generous word to describe the phenomenon. The TAL reporter was far more articulate: “Everybody wants to be the king of a hill,” he concluded. “But the number of aspiring kings always dwarfs the number of available hills, so in this country we build more hills.”(2)

I’m not sure there is a better way to describe it.

There is a word in Greek that captures my imagination as much as undrivable cars and manmade hills. Cheiropoietos is a combination of two other Greek words, the first meaning “hand” and the second “to make”—thus, the rough translation, “made with hands.” The word makes one of its first appearances in the Septuagint, the early Greek version of the Old Testament. In something like a satire, the prophet Isaiah questions the effectiveness of Bel and Nebo, the god of the Babylonians and the god of the Chaldeons. Isaiah describes a procession out of the city and into exile where Bel and Nebo only burden down donkeys. They “stoop and bow down together,” Isaiah writes “unable to rescue the burden, they themselves go off into captivity” (Isaiah 46:2). In calamity, the people who serve these gods are not bowing before them. Idols made with hands must be carried out of the city gates by the very hands that made them. Isaiah is perplexed by the irony they fail to notice:

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – King of the Hill →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Get in the Flow

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You cause them to drink of the stream of Your pleasures. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light do we see light. O continue Your loving-kindness to those who know You, Your righteousness (salvation) to the upright in heart. — Psalm 36:8–10 (AMPC)

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

I have never been much of a swimmer. I may not be the best at fighting the current, but I can float. It is wonderful just to trust the water to keep us up and go with the flow. We can trust God to keep us afloat through the rapids and lead us to still waters.

The Bible says God’s mercy and loving-kindness are new every morning (See Lamentations 3:22– 23). His mercy isn’t just there waiting for us; it is new, fresh, flowing, and powerful every new day. We need to get in the flow of God’s river of life early each day and learn to float on the power of His presence.

Prayer Starter: Lord, thank You for this new day. Help me to live this day with You, always mindful of Your presence. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

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Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Not in Vain

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“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58, KJV).

“Do not let your belief of these truths be shaken,” the apostle Paul was saying to the Corinthian believers. “They are most certain, and of the utmost importance.”

In the context, you will remember that Paul had just been talking about the resurrection, and now he wanted them to be steadfast believers of this great truth. The person who has no belief in the afterlife – the resurrection – is of all men most miserable. His motto is: “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.”

Paul also exhorts believers to be immovable in their expectation of being raised incorruptible and immortal. Christians should never lose sight of this hope of the gospel:

“The only condition is that you fully believe the Truth, standing in it steadfast and firm, strong in the Lord, convinced of the Good News that Jesus died for you, and never shifting from trusting Him to save you. This is the wonderful news that came to each of you and is now spreading all over the world. And I, Paul, have the joy of telling it to others” (Colossians 1:23).

Having determined to remain steadfast and unmovable for the rest of their lives, believers then are ready with God’s help to labor faithfully for the Lord, knowing that such labor is not in vain.

Bible Reading:I Corinthians 15:51-57

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Drawing by faith upon the supernatural resources of the Holy Spirit, I will keep my expectation and my hope steadfast and unmovable, continuing my service for the Lord with the confident assurance that it will not be in vain.

 

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Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Don’t Lose Your Purpose

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

For the love of more—you might lose your purpose! Just because someone gives you advice, a job, or a promotion, you don’t have to accept it.  Let your uniqueness define your path of life.  Isaiah prayed, “You, LORD, give perfect peace to those who keep their purpose firm and put their trust in you” (Isaiah 26:3).

Before you change your job title, examine your perspective toward life.  As the Japanese proverb says:  “Even if you sleep in a thousand-mat room, you can only sleep on one mat.” Success is not defined by position or pay scale but by this: Doing the most what you do the best.

Parents, give that counsel to your kids.  Tell them to do what they love to do so well that someone pays them to do it. “Don’t be obsessed with getting more material things. Be relaxed with what you have” (Hebrews 13:5).

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Denison Forum – Nine-year-old girl sent to rehab after wetting herself while playing video game

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A nine-year-old girl has been sent to rehab after she wet herself while refusing to stop playing the video game Fortnite.

“She was so hooked to the game she wouldn’t even go to the toilet,” her mother told a reporter. “My husband saw her light on in the night and found her sitting on a urine-soaked cushion playing the game.”

Fortnite has been played by 150 million people around the world this year.

The popularity of video games is so acute and addictive that the World Health Organization has now included “gaming disorder” in its classification of diseases. This disorder results in “significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning.”

Three reasons video games are so popular

In a recent study, 86 percent of video game players at least attended college. More than 8 percent completed graduate school. Video games are popular with every age demographic and with both men and women. They represent an $18 billion industry in the United States.

What does their popularity say about our culture? Why are they so alluring?

Obvious answers include the appeal of escaping real-life problems and the mental and emotional stimulation many gamers experience. But there’s more to the story.

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