Tag Archives: Joy

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Don’t Stick Your Fingers in All the Chocolates

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If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. John 15:10

Have you ever struggled with fully obeying God? I have. I once sensed the Lord nudging me toward obedience. It was as if He was telling me to let go of some potential opportunities because I was giving them too much importance in my life; they were edging in on the place in my heart reserved just for Him. These opportunities were like a box of chocolates.

It was as if God was saying, “Wait! Don’t eat those. I have something better for you.” But, because I didn’t fully trust God I didn’t listen, so I gave into temptation and I “stuck my fingers” in all of the “chocolates of opportunity.” I still wanted to check out the possibilities because I doubted God would show up. I wanted a back-up. So, I hedged the line of disobedience without completely disobeying. And, because I hadn’t completely submitted to Him, I didn’t have peace, so panic ruled my life instead.

“This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: ‘In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it”’ (Isaiah 30:15).

Have you ever been there? Remember, we may partially obey God, but it’s still disobedience. Even if we are only “partially sinning,” we won’t experience peace because it’s only where God rules that peace reigns. We may partially obey God in a small matter like purchasing a car, or in something bigger like getting married, or following Him into a new calling. If God says to wait, or if he chooses another option for us, maybe we think, “Well, it’s not really a big deal if I change things up just a little, right?” We must be careful not to deceive ourselves. We will reap what we sow (Galatians 6:7).

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Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Precious Promises

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Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

2 Peter 3:13

Recommended Reading

Peter 1:2-4

Perhaps the most important lesson children learn growing up is trust—the promises of a parent: “I’ll be there at three o’clock to pick you up.” “Yes, you can go to summer camp this year.” Despite best intentions, sometimes life intervenes and promises aren’t kept. But if children learn that promises are a pathway through problems, they will learn to trust God’s promises, too.

God has made lots of promises to His people, beginning with promises to Noah after the Flood (Genesis 9:8-11) and later to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3). Throughout the ages, God’s bedrock promise has been of a “new heavens and a new earth.” When life on this earth gets difficult, as it is bound to do (Job 5:7), we have the promise that something better is coming. That promise may not dull the immediate pain of the present, but it gives us hope. We know that God has not forgotten us. We have His “great and precious promises” to depend on (2 Peter 1:4). And, unlike human promises, God’s promises never fail.

Make a habit of noting God’s promises when you read the Bible. They are a lifeline that pulls us through the bumps in this world to the bliss of the next.

The whole covenant is a bundle of promises.

Thomas Brooks

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Haggai 1 – 2

 

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Try Some Shrug Therapy

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Do not be quick in spirit to be angry or vexed, for anger and vexation lodge in the bosom of fools. – Ecclesiastes 7:9

There are some things you can control in life—who your friends are, what you eat, and when you go to bed, for example. There are other things you can’t control, such as what other people say or the flat tire you got last night. The way you respond to things you can’t control helps determine your stress level and your quality of life and health. I have two suggestions about dealing with things you can’t control. First, if you can’t control them, don’t take responsibility for them. And second, I like to say, “Do your best, pray, and let God do the rest!”

People who regularly get upset over small things suffer in many ways. People who shrug them off do much better. Shrugging off certain things doesn’t mean you are indifferent; it simply means you’ve accepted the fact that you can’t do anything to change them at that time. The flat tire has already happened. Calling someone to come fix it makes sense; throwing a tantrum and kicking the tire does not. We need to deal appropriately with each stressor as it arises so that we don’t end up exploding in frustration over the unavoidable bumps on the road of life.

God works in mysterious ways. You never know when He may use some inconvenience or frustration for your good. He is in control, and if you trust Him to work things out, you’ll be able to ride the ups and downs of life with peace, joy, and strength.

Love Yourself Today: Refuse to live in frustration. Take life one day at a time, and when things happen that you don’t like, say, “It is what it is and God is still in control.”

From the book Love Out Loud by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Girlfriends in God

Girlfriends in God – The Miracle is On Its Way

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Today’s Truth

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.

Colossians 4:2

Friend to Friend

Christmas morning is serious business at the Southerland home. The sequence of events does not vary. First come the stockings. Everyone has a bulging stocking spilling over with small gifts.

And I am not talking about just any old stocking stuffers. I listen and question and watch our children and grandchildren all year long to see what makes their eyes sparkle and their faces light up.

I keep an ever-evolving Christmas list. No one knows where I keep it. And no one ever will if I can help it. I begin buying stocking stuffers and gifts each summer, and I stash them in secret hiding places around the house. I told you … serious business!

After the stockings are opened, we take a break to clean up and eat breakfast. Dan then reads the Christmas story and talks about the miracle of Jesus’ birth.

It is then time to open gifts. We try to follow the rule of taking turns so everyone can enjoy the process. It works pretty well with the adults, but not so much with the kids. The adults usually end up waiting to open gifts until the kids have opened all of theirs. Watching the children really is my favorite part of the day.

One Christmas, God used our oldest grandson to teach me an important lesson. He was six years old at the time and desperately wanted a red remote control Corvette for Christmas. All year long I had heard about this amazing car, so when I found it during a Christmas in July sale, I quickly bought it and stashed it in one of my secret spots.

Continue reading Girlfriends in God – The Miracle is On Its Way →

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Ask What You Will

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“If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you” (John 15:7, KJV).

When Campus Crusade for Christ began at the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1951, our first act was to organize a 24-hour prayer chain. Around the clock, scores of men and women interceded for UCLA students and faculty. God answered prayer in a remarkable way, as His Spirit touched the entire campus.

Thirty-one years later, more than 16,000 full-time and associate staff members of Campus Crusade for Christ in more than 150 countries and protectorates are teaching millions of others the importance of prayer, with revolutionary spiritual results and many millions receiving Christ.

Prayer has always been the breathe, life, vitality, strength and power of the Christian. Beginning with our Lord, who spent much time in prayer, and continuing with the disciples and fruitful, Spirit-filled Christians through the centuries, prayer remains a major emphasis in the life of every believer.

History records no mighty men or women of God whose lives were not characterized by prayer, nor any great spiritual movements, awakenings or revivals that were not preceded by prayer. James 4:2 reminds us, “Ye have not, because ye ask not.”

It is not enough to pray, we must pray according to the Word and will of God. For that reason, understanding and obeying our Scripture assignment for today is crucial. We must abide in Christ and allow His Word to abide in us before we are qualified to pray. God’s Word reminds us, “And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us; And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.” (1 John 5:14,15, KJV).

Bible Reading: Matthew 7:7-11

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: From this day forth I will seek, through the enabling of the Holy Spirit, to abide in Christ and have His Word abide in me. As I discover God’s Will through the diligent study of His Word and the leading of His Holy Spirit, I will pray more intelligently and thus can expect answers to my prayers.

 

http://www.cru.org

Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – All Things

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Read: Romans 8:26-28

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:26-28

Never separate these verses. The Spirit prays according to the mind of God, and the Father answers by bringing into our lives and working through the experiences that we need. He sends into our life the experiences that we need, no matter what they may be.

Now, that means that even the trials and tragedies that happen to us are an answer from the Father to the praying of the Spirit, doesn’t it? You may be in an automobile accident today. Someone may steal your purse. You may find your house is on fire. There are a thousand and one possibilities. What we need to understand is that these things do not happen by accident. They happen because the Spirit which is in you prayed and asked that the Father allow them to happen — because you or someone close to you needs what God will accomplish in them. These are the results of the praying of the Spirit.

The joys, the unexpected blessings, and the unusual things that happen to you are also the result of the Spirit’s praying. The Spirit is praying that these things will happen, he is voicing the deep concern of God himself for your needs and mine. Out of this grows the assurance that no matter what happens, God will work it together for good. This verse does not tell us that everything that happens to us is good. It does say that whether the situation is bad or good, it will work together for good for you if you are one who is loved and called by God. What a difference that makes as we wait for the coming of the glory! God is working out his purposes within us.

Paul is telling us here that we can wait with patience because nature testifies of his glorious coming, and our own experience confirms it as well. We are being prepared for something — we can’t really tell what it is, specifically, but we are getting ready for something. One of these days, at the end of our lives, if not before, we will step out of time into an incredible experience of glory, something that begs description — a glory that Christ himself shares, and that we all shall share with him.

Continue reading Ray Stedman – All Things →

Words of Hope

Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Church-Bells Beyond the Stars

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Read: Isaiah 33:17-20

The king in his beauty . . . a land of far distances. (v. 17)

“Church-bells beyond the stars heard”: here is a remarkable phrase. This is picture language, of course, but perhaps the strangest of all these metaphors for prayer. And here is light on it from another English poet, this time only one century ago! A. E. Housman wrote “Bredon Hill,” a notable viewpoint in the west of England: “In summertime on Bredon / The bells they sound so clear; / Round both the shires they ring them, / In steeples far and near.” We hear much less bell ringing in my country nowadays. But for Herbert in the 17th century, as for Housman in the early 20th, it was “a happy noise to hear.” Familiar, regular, a universal call to focus afresh on God and his gospel: “Good people, come and pray,” sang the bells.

But notice the background to today’s title. In the previous line of his sonnet the older poet has been stargazing, looking out at the vastness of the universe, to somewhere even beyond the Milky Way, where God the Creator-King sits enthroned. Truly his creation is “a land of far distances” (v. 17). Yet as Herbert’s mind struggles to take in this immensity, what happens? “Beyond the stars” he hears “church bells.” Good people, come and pray, sing the chiming steeples around Bredon. These gatherings of humble village folk, “summoned by bells,” are likely to be encounters with God even more real, and of greater significance, than what an astronomer might find at the far end of the universe.

Here is the poem in its entirety:

Continue reading Words of Hope – Daily Devotional – Church-Bells Beyond the Stars →

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Perfect Peace

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You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.—Isaiah 26:3

I remember asking Billy Graham a number of years ago about what he experienced when he gave the invitation for people to come to Christ at a crusade. He said, “When I am preaching and giving the invitation, I feel like power is draining out of me.” I understand that, because it is a spiritual battle that rages on. When we are serving the Lord, it can be draining in many ways. It can even be draining spiritually.

Jesus, who was fully God, also was fully man. That means He was human just like you and me. He felt pain. He felt sorrow. He felt hunger. And He could feel weary from a hard day’s work. In Matthew 8, we read that Jesus, tired after a day of ministry, was sleeping soundly. He and the disciples were on a very primitive wooden boat, being tossed back and forth like a cork in the ocean.

How do you sleep in a storm like that? You can sleep in a storm when you’re confident in the will of God. In other words, you know you’re doing what you should be doing. Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”

Sometimes the worries and pressures of life keep us awake at night. When this happens to me, I’ll pray about it and say, “Lord, I can’t worry about this for a while, so I’m going to let You worry about it. I’m going to get some shut-eye.” I’m being humorous, of course, because I know God isn’t going to worry about it. But I’m entrusting the matter to Him. That is what we need to do when we’re tired and overwhelmed by worry. We need to cry out to God.

 

Harvest.org | Greg Laurie

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – God Sanctifies Us

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“They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.” (John 17:16-19)

What does it mean to “sanctify” something? “Sanctify” means to clean up something, to set something apart as special or for special use, to make it appropriate for a special purpose. The word “sanctify” has the idea of making something holy, purifying it, setting it apart for a special spiritual purpose.

Have you ever been in a stable? It is not especially clean, is it? There are animals in stables, and all the things that go along with animals – their food, the way they smell, the dirt that they get on them. Stables, even when they have been cleaned out, are not exactly clean! But they are clean enough for their purpose – to be a house for animals like cows and horses.

Have you ever been to the mother-baby floor of a hospital? There is a very special nursery room for the newborn babies there. It is a room set apart for them, and it is always kept 100% spic-and-span clean. Why? Because babies pick up germs and sicknesses very easily. It is important to keep germs away from them until they grow strong and healthy enough to fight off sicknesses. This room is so set apart that normal people (non-nurses and non-babies) have to wear special robes to go in there and sit with the babies. Sometimes they have to wear masks. Normal people would look funny wearing masks and robes in a supermarket or at the library – but in a hospital nursery, we do not think it is strange. It is appropriate and right to be careful around babies in a hospital nursery. That room is set apart just for them.

Now, even though Jesus was born in a stable, we would probably never dream of putting a newborn baby in a stable under normal circumstances. Even the cleanest of stables will still have germs and weird smells – and no nurses or masks or robes! So what made the stable where Jesus was born a good enough stable for His birth to happen in? Well, that stable was special because God, in His sovereign wisdom and power, had prepared it and set it apart for the birth of His Son. By itself, that stable would have been just as dirty and smelly – and as inappropriate for a nursery – as any other dirty and smelly stable. But because God chose it and “sanctified” it, it was a good enough place for Jesus’ birth.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God Sanctifies Us →

The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – The Reign of Christ

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Today’s Scripture: Matthew 11:27

“All things have been handed over to me by my Father.”

The concept of Christ’s reign is stated most explicitly in the words of Jesus commonly known as the Great Commission: “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).

Here Jesus first asserts his universal authority, then commands his disciples to go and make disciples—to bring people of all nations under the sway of his authority. Whatever other meanings we may include in the word disciple, it must capture this idea of coming under the reign and rule of Jesus Christ.

The reign of Christ among all nations is a parallel goal to that of bringing the blessing of Christ to all nations. The goal of Christ’s universal blessing focuses on people’s needs. They desperately need to be rescued from God’s coming wrath, and to be redeemed from their futile, destructive ways of life.

The goal of Christ’s reign focuses on his authority in the hearts of those people. Jesus came “to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:14). This speaks of the rule and reign of Christ in the heart of every individual believer.

Both these goals—the blessing and the reign of Christ—are accomplished through the successful proclamation of the Gospel among all nations, or to the ends of the earth.

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Till All Have Heard

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Today’s Scripture: Revelation 7-9

Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. – Romans 1:5-6

In 1983, I was privileged to attend the International Conference for Itinerant Evangelists in Amsterdam, Holland. That week of study, fellowship, and worship with thousands of traveling evangelists from around the world was an experience I will never forget.

Most of the delegates had been won to Christ by devoted messengers of the Cross, who left their homelands and brought their families to disease-ridden locales among suspicious, even hostile, people throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America, India, and China. Many of their converts became missionaries to their own people and to those in other countries around the world. Seeing those people in Amsterdam, united in Christ, was like a preview of heaven.

In Revelation 7:9-10, the apostle John gives us a glimpse of a magnificent event in the future: “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 in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.’”

What a picture! Here are the fruits of the labors of consecrated men and women of God. But, Christian, the work isn’t done. What contribution are you making to world evangelization? Have you prayed about going for a short-term mission or for an extended time? Your skill may open a door to an effective ministry.

Prayer

Lord, use me in whatever way You choose, to bring people to Yourself. Amen.

To Ponder

The Lord is searching for people who will be willing to do whatever He requires for the Great Commission–to give, to pray, or to go.

 

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BreakPoint

BreakPoint – Saving the Children: The Story of Irena Sendler

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This past week, PBS premiered the latest film by Ken Burns. His subject was Waitstill Sharp, a Unitarian minister and his wife Martha, who, during World War II, helped smuggled at least 150 Jews out of Nazi-controlled areas, operating first in Prague and then in Lisbon.

It’s a remarkable story that is worth telling and hearing.

And there’s another story involving the rescue of as many as 2,500 Jews that Glenn Sunshine recently brought to our attention. And I promise, it’s a story that’s also worthy of your attention.

The protagonist of this story was a 29-year-old Polish social worker named Irena Sendler. Her responsibilities included taking care of countless people who had been dispossessed by the German occupation of her country.

The most vulnerable and most dispossessed were Warsaw’s Jews. Four hundred thousand of them were crowded into a three-and-one-half square mile area. At great personal risk, Sendler found a way to enter the Ghetto, which was off-limits to non-Jewish Poles, to see how she could help relieve the appalling conditions.

As her biographer wrote “Irena knew she had to help the sick and starving Jews who were imprisoned in the Warsaw Ghetto. She began by smuggling food, clothing, and medicine into the ghetto.”

But in the fall of 1942, half of the Ghetto’s inhabitants were deported to the Treblinka death camp, where they were immediately gassed upon arrival.

This barbarity led Sendler and her co-conspirators to declare war on Hitler and to redouble their efforts. Working in concert with Catholic orphanages, especially the Family of Mary orphanage in Warsaw, Sendler, code-named “Jolanta,” and her co-conspirators helped smuggle out an estimated 2,500 Jewish children by whatever means possible: hiding them in coffins, potato sacks, even in a tool box.

Continue reading BreakPoint – Saving the Children: The Story of Irena Sendler →

Moody Global Ministries

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – CELEBRATION IN THE KINGDOM

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Read ESTHER 9:16–19

The book of Ecclesiastes declares that for everything there is a season: “a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance” (3:4). In the city of Susa and throughout the Persian kingdom, the Jewish people had reason to celebrate. They had been vindicated; the enemy had been vanquished.

Verses 16 through 18 summarize what took place on these two days of the month of Adar. When thousands of people attempted to attack the Jews in the provinces, they were killed— some 75,000 (v. 16). The Jews in Susa took two days to complete their triumph over their enemies. Notice that their deliverance required their participation—God had made a way of salvation, but they still had to take up arms to seize the victory.

At last, they had been given “relief from their enemies” (v. 16). Considering all the prior months filled with terror, weeping, and grief, this victory in battle brought long-anticipated calm and then an overwhelming spirit of joy.

This was a time to celebrate. Evil had been thwarted. God was in control. Two different days were named times for “joy and feasting.” In both cases, they observed the day by giving presents to one another. They had lived through a significant period of hardship, but they had also witnessed God’s provision in a miraculous way. He had been generous to them, so they now would be generous with one another (v. 19).

God created His people for times of work, times of rest, and times of celebration. In Exodus 10:9, Moses instructed the Israelites to “celebrate a festival to the Lord.” In Exodus 12:17, they celebrated the Festival of Unleavened Bread. God’s provision for His people deserves to be honored and remembered. It is a time for great joy.

APPLY THE WORD

God wants us to have time for work and time for rest and rejoicing. Be sure you observe a day of celebration in your regular routine. Whether a special meal or another meaningful observance, thank God for His provision and remember how He has worked in your life. We should rejoice, for we serve a good and generous God.

 

http://www.todayintheword.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – WHAT WOULD GOD SAY ABOUT LAST NIGHT’S DEBATE?

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There’s much debate this morning over the results of last night’s presidential debate. Since undecided voters will likely decide the race, today’s Wall Street Journal is focusing especially on their response. And CNN is fact-checking the debate and discussing its implications for the race.

My question is different: How does God view the debate and what it says about America? I think he would respond in at least two ways.

One: He is grieved by the divisiveness of our culture.

Today’s New York Times actually understates the tone of the event: “Trump and Clinton Press Pointed Attacks in Debate.” From the email scandal to the birther issue, the candidates spent a great deal of time attacking each other. In this sense, they represented the nation they hope to lead.

Lee Drutman noted in a recent New York Times article: “Rather than being one two-party nation, we are becoming two one-party nations.” Drutman explains: most large cities, college towns, the Northeast and the West Coast are what he calls “deep-blue Democratic.” The South, the Great Plains, the Mountain States and suburban and rural areas in between are “ruby-red Republican strongholds.”

Neither “nation” is changing anytime soon.

“Confirmation bias” has been defined as “a tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms one’s preconceptions.” We do this when we read and listen only to news sources with which we agree. Or when we watch a debate hoping our candidate will win rather than seeking to learn how each candidate would govern.

By contrast, God calls us to “have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind” (1 Peter 3:8). How much were these traits on display last night?

The Spirit wants to draw us to the Father that we might find unity in community with our Savior. As you discuss last night’s debate and the ongoing campaign, will you be a force for division or a voice for Jesus? For more on ways we can respond to the divisiveness of our culture, please see my latest website article, Why Are We So Divided?

Continue reading Denison Forum – WHAT WOULD GOD SAY ABOUT LAST NIGHT’S DEBATE? →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – God Meets Our Needs

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Philippians 4:19

Our heavenly Father has promised to provide everything we need. Let’s consider some of the good gifts that are ours in Christ Jesus.

One universal human need is love. Through faith in Jesus, we’ve been adopted as the heavenly Father’s beloved children. But before this could take place, God’s justice had to be satisfied. You see, we were all born with a sinful nature that is bent away from the Lord. Because of the Father’s great love, He sent Jesus to take our place and experience judgment for our sin. Out of deep compassion for us, Jesus willingly suffered and died so we might become part of God’s family and experience His rich affection for us (John 3:16). Through our relationship with Him, this need for love is fully met.

In fact, by means of salvation, our Father also provided for two other basic needs—companionship and security. When we accept God’s offer of forgiveness, the Holy Spirit comes to live within us, fulfilling Jesus’ promise never to leave us (Heb. 13:5). This new relationship is permanent. What Jesus accomplished on the cross was fully accepted by God as payment for our sin debt. Furthermore, Christ Himself promised that no one can ever snatch us out of His hand (John 10:28). Therefore, we can rest in the knowledge that we are God’s children forever. That is true security.

Our deep need for love, security, and companionship is satisfied in an intimate relationship with the Lord. Have you trusted Christ so you could be permanently adopted into God’s family?

Bible in One Year: Nahum 1-3

 

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Calming Your Soul

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Read: Matthew 11:25-30

Bible in a Year: Isaiah 1-2; Galatians 5

Be still, and know that I am God.—Psalm 46:10

While attending a concert, my mind detoured to a troublesome issue that insisted on my attention. Thankfully, the distraction was short-lived as the words of a beautiful hymn began to reach deep into my being. A men’s a capella group was singing “Be Still, My Soul.” Tears welled up as I listened to the words and contemplated the restful peace that only God can give:

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side! Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain; leave to thy God to order and provide; in every change He faithful will remain.

When Jesus was denouncing the unrepentant towns where He had done most of His miracles (Matt. 11:20-24), He still had words of comfort for those who would come to Him. He said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened . . . . learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (vv. 28-29).

This statement is striking! Immediately following His strong words for those who were rejecting Him, Jesus extended an invitation to all to draw near to Him to find the peace we all yearn for. Jesus is the only one who can calm our restless, weary souls. —Joe Stowell

I come to You now, Lord, in need of rest for my heart. Help me to trust You and be confident in Your love.

For further study, read The Lord Is My Shepherd at discoveryseries.org/hp952.

When we keep our minds on Jesus, He keeps our minds at peace.

INSIGHT: Our passage today comes on the heels of Jesus denouncing the cities where most of His miracles were performed (Matt. 11:20-24). Bethsaida, one of the denounced cities, literally means “fisherman’s house.” It was a village on the north side of the Sea of Galilee and could have been the birthplace of three of the disciples: Andrew, Peter, and Philip.

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Consider the Lilies

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Wendell Berry has written a poem that haunts me frequently. As a creative writer, the act of paying attention is both a spiritual and professional discipline. But far too often my aspirations for paying quality attention to everything dissolves into something more like attention deficit disorder. As it turns out, it is quite possible to see and not really see, to hear and not really hear. And this is all the more ironic when my very attempts to capture what I am seeing and hearing are the thing that prevent me from truly being present. Berry’s poem is about a man on holiday, who, trying to seize the sights and sounds of his vacation by video camera, manages to miss the entire thing.

…he stood with his camera

preserving his vacation even as he was having it

so that after he had had it he would still

have it. It would be there. With a flick

of a switch, there it would be. But he

would not be in it. He would never be in it.(1)

I sometimes wonder if one of the most quoted sayings of Jesus is not often employed with a similar irony. “Consider the lilies,” Jesus said, “how they grow; they neither toil nor spin. Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field…will he not much more clothe you? Therefore, do not worry.“(2) Typically, Jesus is quoted here as giving a helpful word against worry. And he is. But worry is not the only command he articulates. Consider the lilies, he said. We hear the first instruction peripherally, hurriedly, as mere set up for the final instruction of the saying. And in so doing, we miss something great, perhaps even something vital, both in the means and in the end. With our rationalistic sensibilities, we gloss over consideration of the lilies; ironically, in an attempt to consider the real work Jesus is asking us to do.

But what if considering the lilies is the work, the antidote to anxious, preoccupied lives? What if attending to this short-lived beauty, to the fleeting details of a distracted world is a command Jesus wants us to take seriously in and of itself?

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Consider the Lilies →

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – The Spirit Brings Understanding

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“‘These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; an hour is coming when I will speak no more to you in figurative language, but will tell you plainly of the Father’” (John 16:25).

We understand truth thanks to the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Scripture makes it clear that the disciples and all subsequent believers would need additional divine assistance to understand all of God’s teachings. Jesus Himself knew that, as we saw in yesterday’s lesson. And the apostle Paul alludes to that fact in 1 Corinthians 2:9: “Just as it is written, ‘Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.’” Our human minds and senses by themselves can’t give us an understanding of God’s truth. That’s why we need the Holy Spirit.

In John 16:25 Jesus says, “An hour is coming when I . . . will tell you plainly.” That reference is to the Day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured forth to permanently indwell the disciples and all other believers. Therefore, Jesus is saying that the Spirit will help us understand God’s truth, even the veiled mysteries and figurative statements in His Word.

We know and understand all that we do about God only because His Spirit is our teacher. The Holy Spirit is the one who knows the mind of God and teaches us the deep things of God from Scripture (1 Cor. 2:10-14). All the New Testament epistles were written to plainly explain Christ’s teachings to us. At times the Spirit teaches us directly through the Word, and other times He uses people to teach us and unveil what was previously a mystery. But it’s all His working, it’s reliable, and we can thank Him every day for granting us spiritual understanding.

Suggestions for Prayer

  • If there is a Scripture passage that has been unclear to you, pray that God would clarify it for you as you study it again, or that He would lead you to someone who can help you understand it.
  • Pray for an unbeliever who has been struggling with accepting God’s truth. Ask the Spirit to draw that person to the Lord and unlock Scripture’s truths.

For Further Study

Read Acts 8:26-38.

  • What does this passage teach about the importance of obeying the Spirit’s direction?
  • How did Philip and the Ethiopian exhibit different aspects of that obedience?

 

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Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Possessed by God 

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They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. Revelation 9:4

Sealed by our Savior Jesus is a picture of the Lord’s possession of believers and our relationship with Him. We are possessed by God and we have access to God. What a deal: we surrender ourselves and in exchange we know God and He holds title to us. What the Holy Spirit has, He preserves. He is our guarantee. Our inheritance is a secure life with Jesus now and forever. God’s rich grace gives us the commerce to build His kingdom. We are possessed by the Lord for His purposes.

John makes clear those who are sealed by God are kept and protected by God. The final days of judgment will pass over the people who have placed their faith in Christ, but those who have trusted in their own version of truth—will be found out—and will miss out on the rewards of a grace-based life. Unable to overcome the harm of hurtful forces—unbelievers will wish they had trusted and followed the promise of Jesus to possess His power that overcomes (Luke 10:18-20).

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you” (1 Peter 2:9).

What does it mean to be in relationship with the Lord? We have intimate access to Abba God. We seek our heavenly Father in faith and quiet confidence. He is a gracious dad who gives us grace and strength for life’s journey. We walk with our Savior Jesus. Like a compassionate big brother He forgives us, He cares for us and calls us friend. We follow the Holy Spirit’s lead away from temptation and into the Lord’s will. As a blessed child of God—we have all we need!

What does it mean to be possessed by the Lord? What God possesses He keeps. He keeps us as His own. He is jealous of other attractive suitors. He keeps us as His special people. He loves the world, but He loves with everlasting love those who trust His son Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. He keeps us for His praise and glory. When we sing to our great and majestic Almighty God, it is a holy and acceptable sacrifice to heaven. He protects and prizes His sealed possession.

“When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit…of those who are God’s possession” (Ephesians 1:13-14).

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your rich inheritance and for possessing my life.

Application: What area of my life do I need to surrender and allow the Lord to possess?

Related Readings: Deuteronomy 7:6; 1 Samuel 12:22; Titus 2:14; Romans 9:25-26

 

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Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Break the Cycle

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Therefore comfort one another with these words.

1 Thessalonians 4:18

Recommended Reading

Titus 2:11-14

Worry and discomfort can create a downward cycle of emotions. You receive some bad news—the death of a loved one, perhaps. In your discouraged state you find yourself unable to respond to additional troubling events, weakening you further. And the downward cycle continues until hope and relief is interjected by yourself or another.

The apostle Paul found the Thessalonian Christians in a troubled state of mind. They were deeply worried about never seeing their loved ones who had died before Christ’s return. And they were afraid that Christ had already returned and they had missed His appearing. Paul wrote to them words with which they could comfort one another. The subject of His words? The Rapture of the Church—the appearing of Christ in the heavens to gather His followers to Himself just prior to the seven-year Tribulation on earth. Taking the sting out of death would go a long way toward relieving any other earthly trouble.

Are you troubled? Don’t let the downward cycle begin. Comfort yourself with the truth of the any-moment appearing of Christ to gather you to Himself and take you to heaven. That blessed truth is enough to overcome any earthly travail.

Let thy hope of heaven master thy fear of death.

William Gurnall

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Zephaniah 1 – 3

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