Tag Archives: human-rights

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – A Servant Like This

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For his fluency with words and unrivaled poetic voice, Isaiah has been called the “Shakespeare of the prophets.” His words are assuredly lyrical; they were also political and prophetic, enduring well beyond his life.

The 53rd chapter of the book of Isaiah offers the image of a servant who embodies a severe faithfulness despite unjust opposition. “He was oppressed and he was afflicted,” writes Isaiah, “but he did not open his mouth” (53:7a). The prophet describes a sufferer of flint-like submission in the face of extreme violence. “He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth” (v.7b). He describes a servant who is crushed and anguished, stricken, and yet somehow satisfied. “As a result of the anguish of his soul,” writes Isaiah, “he will see it and be satisfied; by his knowledge the righteous one, my servant, will justify the many, and he will bear their iniquities” (v.11). Whether Isaiah had in mind someone who fit the description or merely longed to see God’s words come to fruition, the prophet offers an image of one who changes all the rules.

Isaiah utters words abundantly verified in Jesus Christ. Almost 700 years after Isaiah’s description of the suffering servant, Jesus was carrying sorrows and curing infirmities; he was suffering rejection, hatred, and affliction (v.4). He was despised and brushed aside without regard (v.3). He was taken away by a perversion of justice (v.8). He was assigned a grave with the wicked (v.9). Yet he set his face “like a flint” upon the will of God (Isaiah 50:7, Luke 9:51). He was cut off from the land of the living, so that many would live (Isaiah 53:8b).

Whether you hear it as an exile in ancient Israel, a tax collector in 1st century Jerusalem, or cultural observer in contemporary times, Isaiah’s description of the suffering servant is one that warrants contemplation. Even Isaiah, out of whose mouth the description emerged, was compelled to ask with bewilderment: “Who shall consider it?” Who can imagine a man in such circumstances? Who knows what to do with a servant like this? “Who has considered that he was cut off from the land of the living for the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?” (v.8a). So asks the prophet who would not live to see the suffering servant he described. How much more so should we who see the face of the prophecy consider this description of Christ?

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Just for Today

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If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one. — Mother Teresa of Calcutta

I don’t have to tell you that the world is full of problems. Hunger, disease, poverty, the oppression of women, and the exploitation of children are taking place in every country on earth right this minute. Heartbreaking stories are unfolding while you and I drink our morning coffee. I’ve seen so much of the world’s anguish in my ministry travels, and it is truly overwhelming. I have also committed to do whatever I can do to relieve suffering and make the world a better place in any way I can. I challenge you today to do the same.

You may be thinking, Joyce, what I can do won’t even make a dent in the problems we have in the world. I know how you feel, because I once felt the same way. But if we all think that way, nobody will do anything and nothing will change. Although our individual efforts may not solve the problems, together we can make a major difference. God won’t hold us accountable for what we could not do, but He will hold us accountable for the things we could have done.

I realize that you can’t do everything; I don’t question that at all. You must say no to some things or your life will be filled with stress. I think the question each of us must answer is, “What am I doing to make someone else’s life better?” And perhaps a better question is, “What have I done today to make someone else’s life better?”

Nothing good ever happens accidentally. If we want to make the world a better place, each of us must say: Change begins with me!

Loving Others Today: Go ahead and say it: “Change begins with me!”

From the book Love Out Loud by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – According to Your Faith

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“Then touched He their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you” (Matthew 9:29, KJV).

A poor heathen woman, after receiving Christ as her Savior, was remarkable for her simple faith. She decided to take Him literally at His word.

A few months after her conversion her little child became ill, and recovery was doubtful. Ice was needed for the little one, but in that tropical country, away from the world’s large cities, such a thing was not to be had.

“I’m going to ask God to send ice,” the mother said to a missionary.

“Oh,” came the quick reply, “but you can’t expect that He will do that.”

“Why not?” asked the simple-hearted believer. “He has all the power, and He loves us. You told us so. I’ll ask Him, and I believe He’ll send it.”

She did ask Him, and strange things began to happen. Soon there came up a heavy thunderstorm, accompanied by hail. The woman was able to gather a large quantity of hailstones. The cold application was just what the child needed. Recovery of the sick child soon followed. In our sophistication and intellectualism we, like the missionary and most other Christians, would tend to question the audacity of such a prayer.

Faith as a little child always brings the desired answer. “According to your faith be it unto you.” And where does such faith originate? “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”

Bible Reading: Matthew 9:27-31

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  If my storehouse of faith proves insufficient to enable me to live supernaturally or to believe God for a specific need, I will spend time in His Word to build up that storehouse of faith.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – What is Worship?

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Exactly what is worship?  I like King David’s definition: “O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together” (Psalm 34:3 NASB). Worship is the act of magnifying God. Enlarging our vision of him.  As we draw nearer, he seems larger. Isn’t that what we need? A big view of God? Don’t we have big problems, big worries, big questions? Of course we do. Hence we need a big view of God. Worship offers that. How can we sing “Holy, Holy, Holy” and not have our vision expanded?

A vibrant, shining face is the mark of one who has stood in God’s presence. After speaking to God, Moses had to cover his face with a veil (Exodus 34:33-35). After seeing heaven, Stephen’s face glowed like that of an angel (Acts 6:15; 7:55-56). God is in the business of changing the face of the world!

From Just Like Jesus

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – The health care controversy: 3 biblical priorities

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House Republicans are set to vote this morning on legislation that would replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA). They hoped to vote on their bill yesterday, but too many conservatives and moderates opposed it. Even if they prevail, their legislation faces an uphill battle in the Senate.

Why is this issue so complicated and divisive?

As one medical ethicist explains, we insist on four values that are difficult to reconcile: high quality of care, freedom of choice, affordability, and a system in which everyone shares both costs and benefits.

Contrast our social values with those of other countries. Nearly all the world’s highly industrialized nations—including Canada, Japan, Australia, and western European countries—have health care systems that provide universal access at significantly less cost than in the US. However, to pay for their health care, these societies typically limit insurance options. The UK also restricts the adoption of high-cost medical innovations. And these nations generally impose limits on fees providers can charge and on pharmaceutical prices.

For many Americans, the system prior to the ACA worked well. It offered a wide range of medical options and excellent care at a price they considered affordable. However, this system was too expensive for many others. As costs escalated, the gap between those with coverage and those without health care continued to grow.

The ACA sought to balance our four priorities, ostensibly providing choice and care while driving down costs and expanding coverage. However, opponents claim that it restricted choice, limited care options, and expanded coverage by imposing a financial model that was unfair and untenable. Now critics of Republicans’ attempt to repeal and replace ObamaCare are making similar allegations against their legislation.
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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Turning Inadequacy Into Victory

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Philippians 2:13

In every life, a sense of insufficiency will surface from time to time, but through the Holy Spirit, we have the power to combat it. Like the many insufficient but willing saints who have gone before us, we can turn inadequacy into victory.

  1. Acknowledge your weakness. Suppose a neighbor walks across the yard and tells you about his sister’s life-threatening illness. He is upset and scared, wondering what comes after death. You clearly sense God speaking in your heart, urging you to explain His saving grace to the man, but inadequacy nearly drowns out the prompting. Feeling unsure is a normal human reaction, and following God’s directive requires that we acknowledge our fear—for example, by praying, “Lord, I don’t feel capable of witnessing to my neighbor.”
  2. Pray for strength. Say to God, “Father, I know this is what You want me to do, so I am trusting You to be true to Your Word. You said You would make me adequate in Christ Jesus.” The Lord assumes responsibility for enabling you to know what to say, how to say it, and the spirit in which to deliver His message.
  3. Step out in faith. Do something that propels you into the God-given opportunity, allowing Him to prove His power and your ability when you rely upon Him.

Let the Lord turn your inadequacy into victory—He delights in proving Himself in His children’s lives. The key is to look beyond our limitations to Jesus Christ’s total sufficiency. Only then can we live joyfully and confidently, even when we are painfully aware of our personal shortcomings.

Bible in One Year: 1 Samuel 1-3

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Cradled in Comfort

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Read: Isaiah 66:12–16

Bible in a Year: Joshua 13–15; Luke 1:57–80

As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you.—Isaiah 66:13

My friend entrusted me with the privilege of holding her precious, four-day-old daughter. Not long after I took the baby into my arms, she started to fuss. I hugged her closer, my cheek pressed against her head, and began to sway and hum in a gentle rhythm to soothe her. Despite these earnest attempts, and my decade and a half of parenting experience, I couldn’t pacify her. She became increasingly upset until I placed her back into the crook of her mother’s eager arm. Peace washed over her almost instantaneously; her cries subsided and her newborn frame relaxed into the safety she already trusted. My friend knew precisely how to hold and pat her daughter to alleviate her distress.

God extends comfort to His children like a mother: tender, trustworthy, and diligent in her efforts to calm her child. When we are weary or upset, He carries us affectionately in His arms. As our Father and Creator, He knows us intimately. He “will keep in perfect peace all who trust in [him], all whose thoughts are fixed on [him]” (Isa. 26:3 nlt).

When the troubles of this world weigh heavy on our hearts, we can find comfort in the knowledge that He protects and fights for us, His children, as a loving parent. —Kirsten Holmberg

Lord, help me to look to You for my comfort in times of distress.

God’s comfort soothes us perfectly.

INSIGHT: In reflecting on the exile of Israel under divine discipline, the prophet Isaiah offers hope and comfort. He sees very clearly that “the Holy One of Israel” and the Creator of all things in heaven and earth are connected. Israel had a wayward heart that is characteristic of the human race. Yet the ultimate goal of Israel’s discipline was to secure their repentance and therefore a future blessing in the eternal covenant established with His people. Certainly God’s plan for Israel’s redemption included an unexpected impulse of divine grace extended to all the peoples of the world—from every tribe, tongue, and nation: “After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb” (Rev. 7:9). Dennis Fisher

 

http://www.odb.org

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Stay Balanced

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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. —1 Peter 5:8

Listening to the Holy Spirit will keep us balanced in every area of our lives. The Spirit will tell us when we’re spending too much money or not spending enough, when we’re talking too much or not talking enough, or even when we’re resting too much or not resting enough. Any time we are doing too much or too little of something, we are out of balance.

The verse for today states that we are to be well-balanced so Satan cannot take advantage of us. For years, he took advantage of me because I was not balanced in my approach to work. I felt that my whole life should be arranged around work. As long as I was working and accomplishing something, I didn’t feel the guilt that the devil used against me. But that urge to work all the time was not from God; it did not push me toward godly balance in my life. Work is a good thing, but I also needed to rest and have enjoyment.

Each day as you seek to hear from God, ask Him to show you any area in your life that is out of balance and work with Him to make adjustments. We have many things in life to juggle and therefore it is easy to get out of balance, but God is always available to help us in this area. Simply ask Him if you are doing too much or too little of anything and make the changes He recommends.

From the book Hearing from God Each Morning: 365 Daily Devotions by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Loving and Kind

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“But His joy is in those who reverence Him, those who expect Him to be loving and kind” (Psalm 147:11).

Can you imagine an intelligent person saying no to Christ if he fully understood how much God loves him and if he realized that when he receives Christ his sins are all forgiven and he is given eternal life together with new meaning and purpose for his present life?

The non-believer who does not know all these things continues to live in disobedience, rejecting God’s love and forgiveness. Why? Simply because he does not understand; he lacks information.

It is difficult to imagine a person saying no to such a wonderful life of challenge and adventure with the risen Christ if that person knows all the facts about who Christ is and why He came to this world. It is the same with the Christian who is living in spiritual poverty. He often continues to live a frustrated, fruitless life, simply because he just does not understand who the Holy Spirit is and what the supernatural life is all about. But lack of knowledge is not the only obstacle to enjoying the supernatural life.

Pride: Pride, which is an exaltation of self instead of God, is the root cause of all sin. This defeating aspect of our human nature has kept many Christians from living supernaturally. Pride is not the same as a God-given healthy love and acceptance of oneself.

Fear of man: Peer pressure keeps many Christians from living the supernatural life. “The fear of man brings a snare” (Proverbs 29:25, NAS).

Many are afraid to be different, or are ashamed to witness for Jesus Christ who loved us and gave Himself for us. “But His joy is in those who reverence Him, those who expect Him to be loving and kind.”

Bible Reading: Psalm 147:5-10

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  I will claim the enabling power of the Holy Spirit to overcome pride and fear of man, I will reverence the Lord and expect Him to be loving and kind as He promised.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Give God Your Whispering Thoughts

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In the 19th century an anonymous Russian monk set out to live in unceasing communion with God. In a book entitled, “The Way of the Pilgrim,” he tells of having one prayer constantly in his mind: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” The prayer became so internalized he constantly prayed it.

Perhaps you and I should take note. By the time your life is over, you will have spent six months at stoplights, a year and a half looking for lost stuff (double that number in my case) and a whopping five years standing in lines. Why don’t we give these moments to God? Simple phrases like, “Thank you, Father.” “Be sovereign in this hour, O Lord.” “You are my resting place, Jesus.” Just pray where you are. Let the kitchen or the office became a cathedral or the classroom a chapel. Give God your whispering thoughts!

From Just Like Jesus

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Denison Forum – Seven arrested in London terrorist attack

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The world has witnessed what British Prime Minister Theresa May is calling “a sick and depraved terrorist attack.” CNN reports this morning that authorities have now arrested seven people in connection with the deadliest terror attack in central London in twelve years.

Just before 2:45 PM GMT yesterday, while the House of Commons was debating a proposal regarding Scottish independence, a silver Hyundai 4×4 veered from the roadway of Westminster Bridge. The narrow sidewalk where the Thames flows under the “Big Ben” clock tower was crowded with tourists and office workers. The terrorist drove into the crowd; witnesses reported that the impact threw two bodies into the Thames.

The driver then smashed into the iron railings near the base of the clock tower and got out of the vehicle carrying a large knife. He repeatedly stabbed police officer Keith Palmer, killing him. An armed policeman then shot and killed the attacker.

A woman from Spain and a man in his mid-fifties were killed. Twenty-nine people were hospitalized; seven are in critical condition. Among the injured was a group of French schoolchildren.

The attack came on the one-year anniversary of the Brussels bombings that killed thirty-two people. Police say they know the assailant but have not released information about him as of this morning. They believe, however, that he was “inspired by international terrorism.”

We can now add London to the recent list of vehicular attacks, along with Nice, France; Berlin, Germany; Ohio State University; and Jerusalem. ISIS and al Qaeda have called on their followers to use trucks and weapons to “mow down the enemies of Allah.”

Why do jihadists see tourists on a London sidewalk as their enemies?
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C.S. Lewis

C.S. Lewis Daily – Today’s Reading

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TO MARY WILLIS SHELBURNE: On disagreeable, nasty people; and on avoiding obsessing about their bullying.

10 March 1954

I am sorry things are not better. I am very puzzled by people like your Committee Secretary, people who are just nasty. I find it easier to understand the great crimes, for the raw material of them exists in us all; the mere disagreeableness which seems to spring from no recognisable passion is mysterious. (Like the total stranger in a train of whom I once asked ‘Do you know when we get to Liverpool’ and who replied ‘I’m not paid to answer your questions: ask the guard’). I have found it more among boys than anyone else. That makes me think it really comes from inner insecurity—a dim sense that one is Nobody, a strong determination to be Somebody, and a belief that this can be achieved by arrogance. Probably you, who can’t hit back, come in for a good deal of resentful arrogance aroused by others on whom she doesn’t vent it, because they can. (A bully in an Elizabethan play, having been sat on by a man he dare not fight, says ‘I’ll go home and beat all my servants’). But I mustn’t encourage you to go on thinking about her: that, after all, is almost the greatest evil nasty people can do us—to become an obsession, to haunt our minds. A brief prayer for them, and then away to other subjects, is the thing, if one can only stick to it. I hope the other job will materialise. . . .

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley –Inadequacy as a Blessing

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2 Corinthians 3:1-6

Inadequacy can be a roadblock to doing the Lord’s will—it can deter us from stepping out in faith to accomplish what God calls us to do. It’s no sin to feel insufficient, but we can transgress by not attempting to overcome that attitude. In contrast, a right response to shortcomings can turn inadequacy to blessing.

Even the apostle Paul felt inadequate, but he didn’t allow his feelings to hold him prisoner and prevent his sharing the gospel. (See 1 Tim. 1:15-16.) Instead, he allowed recognition of his limitations to drive him closer to God. For believers, the correct reaction is more prayer and biblical meditation so that our reliance upon the Lord strengthens. As we shed the burden of relying on our own strength, we become motivated to work in the power of the Holy Spirit.

God’s Spirit enables us to achieve whatever it is we are called to do. The disciples followed Jesus for years, but His final instructions left no doubt concerning their limitations: Go and tell the world about Me after you have received the Spirit’s power (Acts 1:4-8). Jesus’ disciples were inadequate, too.

But our inadequacy enables God to demonstrate the great things He can do with so little. Remember that Moses and David were mere shepherds, and Gideon was least among Israel’s men (Judg. 6:15), yet the Lord accomplished amazing feats through them.

Our inadequacy can turn out to be a blessing by driving us into a stronger relationship with God. We can say with Paul, “I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me” (2 Cor. 12:9).

Bible in One Year: Ruth 3-4

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — What Are You Known For?

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Read: Hebrews 11:23–28

Bible in a Year: Joshua 10–12; Luke 1:39–56

[Moses] regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.—Hebrews 11:26

A memorial stone stands in the grounds of a former Japanese prison camp in China where a man died in 1945. It reads, “Eric Liddell was born in Tianjin of Scottish parents in 1902. His career reached its peak with his gold medal victory in the 400 metres event at the 1924 Olympic Games. He returned to China to work in Tianjin as a teacher. . . . His whole life was spent encouraging young people to make their best contributions to the betterment of mankind.”

In the eyes of many, Eric’s greatest achievement was on the sports field. But he is also remembered for his contribution to the youth of Tianjin in China, the country where he was born and that he loved. He lived and served by faith.

What will we be remembered for? Our academic achievements, job position, or financial success may get us recognized by others. But it is the quiet work we do in the lives of people that will live long after we are gone.

Moses is remembered in the faith chapter of the Bible, Hebrews 11, as someone who chose to align himself with the people of God instead of enjoying the treasures of Egypt (v. 26). He led and served God’s people by faith. —C. P. Hia

Ask God to show you how you can make a difference in the lives of others. For what would you like to be remembered?

Faithfulness to God is true success.

INSIGHT: Hebrews 11 remembers a group of men and women who were a lot like us. They all had their flaws. Yet all of them are referred to as people of faith who eventually were made “perfect”—“together with us” (v. 40). Why would the author of Hebrews remember people like Moses, Rahab, and David as being people of faith who became perfect together with us? Part of the answer is that the letter to the Hebrews sees Jesus as the Savior who offers sinners like us perfect (complete, full, and restored) relationship and total forgiveness and reconciliation with God. In other words, Jesus offers His own perfect standing with the Father to all who put their faith in Him. A deeply flawed Moses is remembered for his faith in the God who gives us a heart for others by showing how much we are loved. Mart DeHaan

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Gaining Consciousness

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The line between real and imagined is sometimes a little blurry. At least this is the conclusion of one report on the business of cyberspace, where thousands of people have imaginary lives and quite a few are actually making a living at it. The creators of several popular online role-playing games completed a year-long study of the very real transactions that are taking place in their imaginary worlds. The results portray a flourishing economy that is rapidly grabbing advertisers’ attention. The sellers are role players who have taken the time to find marketable goods in their virtual worlds—and they are clearly putting in the time. In one popular game, a gnome is sold with a basic skill set for $214; in another, a virtual cherry dining set for a virtual home runs about 250 actual dollars. Between June 2005 and June 2006, 9,042 role players spent $1.87 million dollars on virtual goods from swords to special powers. According to analyst estimates for 2015, U.S. virtual goods revenue alone will top $1 billion and could even rake in over $2 billion.

It is entertainment I don’t claim to fully understand. But it is fascinating (and maybe worrisome) to see how seamless the real and the virtual can become. Of course, this is a reality that runs through far more than worlds of online gaming. The imagination is always at work in the way we see the world itself; this is both instinctive and instructive. Moreover, to note that something is imaginary is not to dismiss it as void of truth or reality. Fans of Bill Watterson’s Calvin and Hobbes cartoon remember significant lines of truth coming from a stuffed tiger. Yet, there are also times that what is not real can become so intertwined with what is real that we scarcely notice a difference. That is, until something real reminds us otherwise—like a jolt of consciousness, an outsider’s perspective, or a credit card receipt.

The Hebrew prophet Jonah was a prophet by profession. He knew the liturgy and worship of the people of Israel by heart. So it is not unreasonable that as his life was ebbing away in the depths of the sea, Jonah would cry out with the words of a psalm he had heard countless times before. And yet, the words no doubt had a depth of meaning for him unlike anything he had known before. As he was losing consciousness—literally in Hebrew, “in the feebleness of his person,”—Jonah not only remembered God by name, but in some ways was seeing God for the first time. Like one awakened to enmeshed worlds both real and unreal, Jonah quickly clung to what was real.

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Joyce Meyer
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Joyce Meyer – Building Bridges, Not Walls

For He is [Himself] our peace (our bond of unity and harmony). He has made us both [Jew and Gentile] one [body], and has broken down (destroyed, abolished) the hostile dividing wall between us.- Ephesians 2:14

One day while I was praying, the Holy Spirit showed me that my life had become a bridge for others to pass over and find their place in God. For many years, I erected only walls in my life; but now where there were walls, there are bridges instead. All the difficult and unfair things that have happened to me have been turned into highways over which others can pass to find the same liberty that I have found. I have learned to build bridges instead of walls.

In Hebrews 5:9 Jesus is referred to as “the Author and Source of eternal salvation.” He pioneered a pathway to God for us. He became a highway for us to pass over. It is as though He faced a giant forest and went in ahead of us so that when we came along we could drive right through it without having to fight all the elements and the density of the forest. He sacrificed Himself for us; and now that we are benefiting from His sacrifice, He is giving us a chance to sacrifice for others so they can reap the same benefits we enjoy.

Hebrews 12:2 says that Jesus endured the cross for the joy of obtaining the prize that was set before Him. I like to remind myself of that fact when the way seems hard. I tell myself, Keep pressing on, Joyce. There is joy ahead.

Make a decision to tear down your walls and build bridges. There are many, many people who are lost in their messes and need someone to go before them and show them the way. Why not be that person for them? Walls or bridges? The choice is yours.

From the book New Day, New You by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – How to Gain Understanding

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“For ever, O Lord, Thy Word is settled in heaven. Thy faithfulness is unto all generations” (Psalm 119:89,90, KJV).

A story is told of a young woman who had been informed about a famous novel. She was interested in reading it, but as she began to read the novel, she found it dry and uninteresting. She would put it down to read something else, and then she would come back and try to read it again because her friends said it was an excellent book.

Even with the high recommendations of her friends, the book just did not captivate her. Then one day she met the author. He was very handsome and personable. They became interested in each other, and she fell in love with him.

Now she could hardly wait to read the novel. It was the most exciting book she had ever read, for she had fallen in love with the author.

This is what happens with the Scriptures when we love the Author, the Lord Jesus Christ.

During my years of skepticism and agnosticism, I found the Bible very dry and difficult to read and I believed it was filled with “all kinds of errors and inconsistencies.” Then after becoming a Christian I began to read the Bible again. It was a completely different book, filled with exciting, life-changing truth. All the “errors and contradictions” were gone.

Why the difference? The non-believer or disobedient Christian does not understand spiritual truth (1 Corinthians 2:14). The Spirit-filled believer is taught by the Holy Spirit, who illumines the truth which He revealed to the original authors as recorded in the Bible.

Bible Reading: Psalm 119:129-136

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  I will ask God to give me a love for His holy, inspired Word. Then things that happen in my life which I do not understand will be made clear as I go to the source of all true understanding, the Word of God.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Working With God

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It’s a wonderful day indeed when we stop working for God and begin working with God! For years I viewed God as a compassionate CEO and my role as his loyal sales representative. He had his office and I had my territory. I could contact him whenever I wished. He encouraged me, rallied behind me, and supported me, but he didn’t go with me. At least I didn’t think he did.

Then I read 2 Corinthians 6:1 that says, “We are God’s fellow-workers.” Fellow workers? Co-laborers? God and I work together? Rather than report to God, we work with God. Rather than check in with him and then leave, we check in with him and then follow. We are always in the presence of God. There is never a nonsacred moment! His presence never diminishes. Our awareness of his presence may falter, but the reality of his presence never changes!

From Just Like Jesus

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

 

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – One-legged wrestler seeks state title

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Today’s headlines are dominated by Judge Neil Gorsuch’s nomination hearings and the ongoing debate over health care. Meanwhile, an unusual high school wrestler interests me so much that I’d like to focus on his story this morning.

“He’s been very vocal about his goals: wrestling in a national championship, becoming an NCAA champ, not just a state champ.” That’s how Kobey Pritchard’s wrestling coach describes his protégé’s motivation in the Iowa state wrestling tournament. What makes Pritchard different from his competitors? He wrestles without a left leg.

Kobey was five years old when he was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma in his left femur. Doctors removed the leg when he was six. Now he’s ranked number four in the state in his weight class. His drive and determination are inspiring his teammates and his fellow competitors.

In other news, Norway has taken over the top spot in the World Happiness Report. This despite the fact that oil, a key part of its economy, has plummeted. What accounts for Norway’s happiness? The report’s lead author explains: “It’s the human things that matter. If the riches make it harder to have frequent and trustworthy relationship between people, is it worth it? The material can stand in the way of the human.”

Martin E. P. Seligman is a psychology professor at the University of Pennsylvania and author of the bestseller, Authentic Happiness. Dr. Seligman describes three kinds of “work orientation”: a job, a career, and a calling.

A job earns you a paycheck and nothing more. A career entails a deeper personal investment in your work. But a calling is a passionate commitment to work for its own sake. According to Dr. Seligman, finding your “calling” is the key to authentic happiness.

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley –Inadequacy as a Barrier

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Ephesians 3:14-21

Do you ever feel unequal to the task God has set in front of you? At times, all of us struggle with such feelings because certain responsibilities appear to be bigger than one human being is able to accomplish. Problems can develop when we wear inadequacy like a cloak in order to protect ourselves from doing the Lord’s work. We sometimes try to convince ourselves that a task is too great or that God expects too much.

When this is the case, we might be tempted to turn away from some tremendous God-given opportunities. For example, sometimes the Lord provides a situation that is just right for sharing the good news of Christ with a coworker, family member, or acquaintance. But how often do we back off and end up squandering such opportune moments because we’re afraid we won’t know what to say?

Inadequacy grows out of fear—specifically, fear of failure and of not meeting people’s expectations. No matter how unqualified we feel, apprehension is not an acceptable excuse for avoiding responsibility. The truth is, even if a Christian feels incapable of accomplishing some of the awesome tasks God calls him to do, the Holy Spirit is more than adequate! As believers, we do not have to possess perfect qualifications or skills; we need only to be willing.

What have you refused to do for the Lord because you feel inadequate? 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that God has given us a spirit of power, not one of timidity. All the believer has to do is step out in faith; the Holy Spirit’s strength and courage will be there to meet us.

Bible in One Year: Ruth 1-2

 

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