Tag Archives: nature

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Intimacy With God

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Isaiah 6:1-4

The length of a relationship is not always an accurate gauge of intimacy. You can spend a lifetime with someone yet never really know him or her. What’s required for an intimate relationship is mutual willingness to open up and reveal ourselves.

This same truth applies to our relationship with God. For His part, the Lord already knows everything about us: our thoughts, desires, ways, values, and priorities. He has also provided everything necessary for us to truly know Him—through His Son. But are we responding to His self-revelation, or have we settled for superficial knowledge of Him?

The prophet Isaiah had his understanding of the Lord dramatically deepened when God suddenly revealed Himself “sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple” (Isa. 6:1). Isaiah’s mind was awestruck with the knowledge that He was in the presence of the majestic King. His ears resounded with cries of the seraphim calling out, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts” (Isa. 6:3). Nothing was ever the same for Isaiah after that. He was willing to do anything God said to do—no matter where he had to go, no matter what the task involved. (See Isa. 6:8.)

Although it’s unlikely that we will ever have such a vivid vision of the Lord, we hold in our hands something no less authentic—the Word of God. If we’ll submerge ourselves in His Word, spending time focused solely on Him and absorbing the truths He reveals about Himself, our intimacy with Him will increase. The result will be a mind and spirit attuned to God’s voice, sensitivity to His continual presence, and unrestrained obedience.

Bible in One Year: Joshua 4-6

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Like a Little Child

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Read: Mark 10:13–16 | Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 1–2; Mark 10:1–31

Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them. Mark 10:14

The little girl moved joyfully and gracefully to the music of praise. She was the only one in the aisle but that didn’t keep her from spinning and waving her arms and lifting her feet to the music. Her mother, a smile on her lips, didn’t try to stop her.

My heart lifted as I watched, and I longed to join her—but didn’t. I’d long ago lost the unselfconscious expression of joy and wonder of my childhood. Even though we are meant to grow and mature and put childish ways behind us, we were never meant to lose the joy and wonder, especially in our relationship with God.

How can you be more like a child in the presence of Jesus?

When Jesus lived on Earth, He welcomed little children to Him and often referred to them in His teaching (Matthew 11:25; 18:3; 21:16). On one occasion, He rebuked His disciples for attempting to keep parents from bringing their children to Him for a blessing, saying, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Mark 10:14). Jesus was referring to the childlike characteristics that ready us to receive Christ—joy and wonder, but also simplicity, dependence, trust, and humility.

Childlike wonder and joy (and more) open our hearts to be more receptive to Him. He is waiting for us to run into His arms.

 

Abba (Daddy), Father, help us to be more childlike in our relationship with You. We long to be filled with wonder at all You have done.

Faith shines brightest in a childlike heart.

By Alyson Kieda

INSIGHT

The wonder of what we see in Mark 10:13–16 becomes more stunning when we understand the connection with what follows in Mark’s gospel. One phrase that links the two sections is “the kingdom of God”—the rule of God in our hearts (see Mark 10:14–15). God’s kingdom (which includes eternal life) is the possession of those who are childlike in their dependence on God. They are the ones who are welcomed by Jesus (v. 16).

On the other hand, we see a full-grown man running unhindered to Jesus, but he ends up leaving Him “because he had great wealth” (v. 22). Three times the phrase “the kingdom of God” is used in verses 17–27. “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” (v. 23); “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God” (vv. 24–25, emphasis added). Simple, childlike trust in Jesus is better than “adultlike” independence and trust in lesser things.

How can you be more like a child in the presence of Jesus?

 

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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – Slow Walk to Salvation

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The Semana Santa, or Holy Week in Spain, is a week-long series of parades and festivities that culminate on Easter Sunday. Particularly notable in Sevilla, Spain (though held throughout the country and in many other parts of the world) the entire city converges. In fact, Semana Santa week is so vibrant and extraordinary in Sevilla that tourists from around the world often come to partake in these festival days.

One of the notable aspects of these celebrations is the parade floats of Jesus and his mother, Mary. Depicting the events of the last days of Jesus’s life, the statues are the main display of every float that traverses the parade route through the city. The statues themselves are from the seventeenth century and are housed in area churches. I was able to see two of these statues in the historic Church of the Savior on a recent visit to Spain.

Perhaps more notable than the floats themselves is the way in which they are carried through the city streets. Every afternoon during the week, these floats are paraded through the streets for hours and hours. The pace is slow and deliberate, sometimes barely moving inches at a time, even as they are gently moving to the sonorous and doleful tones of the accompanying music. The point of the slow pace, which for the uninitiated seems almost ridiculous, is out of reverence for this historic tradition and the events represented in the life of Jesus.

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Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Don’t Let Yourself Snap

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Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. — Psalm 62:1-2 (NIV)

Has this ever happened to you: You break a rubber band while trying to stretch it around something. You can’t find another one, so you try to fix the broken one by tying the ends together.

Sometimes in our daily lives, we stretch ourselves beyond our capacity, and we snap like the rubber band. We think we’ve fixed the problem by simply tying the ends back together. But soon we fall into the same behavior that caused us to break down in the first place.

Over time with repeated exposure to stress, our lives begin to resemble that worn-out rubber band. It can completely deplete us.

Ignoring God’s laws and His ordained limits for our lives will ultimately cause burnout. You simply can’t continue to overwork your mind, emotions and body without eventually paying the price. But that’s not how God wants you to live.

Adjust your perspective to match God’s. Seek His peace and His pace for your life. Respect your body. Treat good health as a priceless gift. Don’t waste the energy God has given you on stress. Save it for living and enjoying life!

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – How Dearly God Loves Us

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“…we are able to hold our heads high no matter what happens and know that all is well, for we know how dearly God loves us, and we feel this warm love everywhere within us because God has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love” (Romans 5:5).

For years I had often spoken on the subject of love – the greatest privilege and power known to man. But, as in the case of most sermons on love, something was missing.

Then many years ago, in an early hour of the morning, I was awakened from a deep sleep. I knew that God had something to say to me. I felt impressed to get up, open my Bible and kneel to read and pray.

What I discovered during the next two hours has since enriched my life and the lives of tens of thousands of others. I learned how to love. With this discovery, God gave me the command to share this wonderful truth with Christians around the world.

There are five things every person needs to know about love.

First, God loves us with an unconditional love. The love that God has for us is without measure and will continue forever.

Second, we are commanded to love. “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment,” (Matthew 22:37,38). We are commanded to love our neighbors as ourselves and we are even to love our enemies.

Third, we cannot love in our own strength.

Fourth, we can love with God’s love. It was God’s love that brought us to Christ.

Fifth, we love by faith. Everything about the Christian life is based on faith. We love by faith just as we received Christ by faith, just as we are filled with the Holy Spirit by faith and just as we walk by faith.

In 1 John 5:14,15, we read: “And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything 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” (KJV).

Bible Reading:Romans 8:14-17

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  I will make a list of everyone I do not like. Then, on the basis of God’s command to love all men, I will claim the promise of 1 John 5:14,15 and begin to love others by faith as a way of life.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Jesus Prepares the Perfect Place

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

Several years ago I spent a week speaking at a church in California—and had incredible hosts. All my meals were at a different house. But after a few meals I noticed all we ate was salad! No meat, no dessert—just salad. At first I thought it was a ‘California thing.’ But when I finally asked, the answer was, “We were told you eat nothing but salads!” Well, I quickly corrected them! The hosts meant well, but their information was bad! I’m happy to say we corrected the problem and enjoyed some good meat!

I’m even happier to say Jesus won’t make the same mistake with you! He is preparing the perfect place, the perfect meal! He says, “I have prepared a place for you!” (John 14:2). Trust the promises of Christ! He knows exactly what you need.

From When Christ Comes

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

 

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – A description of grace your soul needs today

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We live in a culture that separates everyone into two categories: winners and losers.

There were twenty-four winners in Sunday night’s Academy Awards. Conversely, there were ninety-eight losers.

But at least they received nominations. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 249,607 actors and other professionals in the motion picture and video production industry; almost all were excluded from the Oscars.

And yet, each of them is a winner in a way. They have a job in the film industry, unlike the multitudes who would like to work in the movies but don’t.

Meanwhile, odds are being calculated for college basketball’s “March Madness” tournament. As baseball’s spring training continues, analysts are debating who is likely to win this year’s World Series.

The underlying message is clear: if you win, you’re a winner; if you lose, you’re a loser.

“The smell of rain is grace”

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Developing Discernment

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Hebrews 5:12-14

We live in a fast-paced culture that demands instant results. For many people, waiting has become a lost art. But God’s way of maturing us in our faith is different from how the world works. The character qualities He values take time to develop.

Discernment is one such trait. Far from being a ready-made skill, it is cultivated by saturating the heart and mind with Scripture. The transcendent Lord of the universe wants to share His thinking with us through His Word. What could be more important or valuable in life than having the capacity to know the mind of God?

Our lives are filled with situations that require discernment. Sometimes we can be so busy trying to determine God’s will and direction for our next step that we fail to hear His voice. He is calling us to come and spend some quiet, unhurried time absorbing the truth of His Word and listening to Him.

After listening to the Lord, we can begin applying what we have learned. Only as we put His Word into practice in our lives will we have our “senses trained to discern good and evil” (Heb. 5:14). The Scriptures open our eyes to see all of our experiences from God’s perspective so that we are able to make wise choices.

Our challenge for today and every day is to make it a priority to spend time with the Lord in His Word. We may have to reorganize our schedule or wake up earlier. But it’s well worth the effort—discernment and wisdom await us if we put into practice the truths we absorb daily.

Bible in One Year: Joshua 1-3

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Grass or Grace

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Read: Genesis 13:1–18 | Bible in a Year: Numbers 34–36; Mark 9:30–50Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan. Genesis 13:11

My friend Archie came home from vacation to find his neighbor had erected a wooden fence five feet inside his property line. Several weeks went by during which Archie tried to work with his neighbor to remove the fence. He offered to help and to split the cost of the work, but to no avail. Archie could have appealed to civil authorities, but he chose to forgo that right in this instance and allow the fence to stand—to show his neighbor something of the grace of God.

“Archie is a wimp!” you say. No, he was man of towering strength, but he chose grace over a patch of grass.

Lord, help me to show Your love and grace to others.

I think of Abraham and Lot, who fell into conflict because their flocks and herds overwhelmed the land. “Quarreling arose between Abram’s herders and Lot’s. The Canaanites and the Perizzites [the unbelieving community] were also living in the land at that time” (Genesis 13:7). Lot chose the best of the land and lost everything in the end. Abraham took what was left over and gained the promised land (vv. 12–17).

We do have rights and we can claim them, especially when other’s rights are involved. And sometimes we should insist on them. Paul did when the Sanhedrin acted unlawfully (see Acts 23:1–3). But we can choose to set them aside to show the world a better way. This is what the Bible calls “meekness”—not weakness. Strength under God’s control.

Dear Lord, I am prone to look out for myself. Give me wisdom to know when giving up my rights would best demonstrate Your love and grace to others.

My life helps paint my neighbor’s picture of God.

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Decomposition of God

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“God is dead,” declares Nietzsche’s madman in his oft-quoted passage from The Gay Science. Though not the first to make the declaration, Nietzsche’s philosophical candor and desperate rhetoric unquestionably attribute to its familiarity. In graphic brushstrokes, the parable describes a crime scene:

“The madman jumped into their midst and pierced them with his eyes. ‘Whither is God,’ he cried; ‘I will tell you. We have killed him—you and I! All of us are his murderers…Do we not feel the breath of empty space? Has it not become colder?…Do we smell nothing as yet of the divine decomposition? Gods, too, decompose. God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him.”(1)

Nietzsche’s atheism, unlike many contemporary atheistic mantras, was not simply rhetoric and angry words. He recognized that the death of God, even if only the death of an idol, introduced a significant crisis. He understood the critical role of the Christian story to the very underpinnings of European philosophy, history, and culture, and so understood that God’s death meant that a total—and painful—transformation of reality must occur. If God has died, if God is dead in the sense that God is no longer of use to us, then ours is a world in peril, he reasoned, for everything must change. Our typical means of thought and life no longer make sense; the very structures for evaluating everything have become unhinged. For Nietzsche, a world that considers itself free from God is a world that must suffer the disruptive effects of that iconoclasm.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Decomposition of God →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – When Good Things Happen to People Who Have Hurt You

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But I say to you, love [that is, unselfishly seek the best or higher good for] your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may [show yourselves to] be the children of your Father who is in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on those who are evil and on those who are good, and makes the rain fall on the righteous [those who are morally upright] and the unrighteous [the unrepentant, those who oppose Him]. — Matthew 5:44-45

Have you ever seen someone receive a blessing from God and felt like they didn’t deserve it? Have you seen good things happen to someone who has hurt you?

When a person who offended you gets a blessing, it can grate on you…at least it did for me until I learned how to forgive.

The Bible says that good and bad things happen to both the righteous and the unrighteous. When someone who’s hurt you receives a blessing, it makes it even harder to forgive them, but you are still called to pray for them.

I want to encourage you today to bless the people who have hurt you by praying for them, even though you may feel hurt and irritated by them. When you pray for people who have hurt you, it’s a choice you make. And forgiveness is based on your decision – not a feeling. But there’s healing in that for you.

A forgiving lifestyle helps you become more like Christ. As you learn the importance of forgiveness and begin to pray for blessings for those who have hurt you, your heart will heal from bitterness, and your personal growth will lead you to the blessings God has planned for you.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – No Longer Under Law

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“So there is now no condemnation awaiting those who belong to Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

What an exciting fact! We are no longer under the law. We have been liberated from the bondage of trying to please God through our self-effort.

What is our motivation under grace? Under law our motivation was fear, and desire for reward and blessing; under grace, our basic motivation is an expression of gratitude – an inward appreciation and response to God’s love and grace.

Why do we do what we do as Christians? We should respond because we, like the apostle Paul, are constrained by the love of Christ. We live for the glory of God. You will remember that the apostle Paul had been beaten, imprisoned, shipwrecked, starved, buffeted, criticized and condemned, yet he said, “The love of Christ constrains me.”

Even if there were no rewards for those who live godly lives and obey our Savior, the reward of knowing Him as our God and Father, being forgiven of sin and cleansed from all guilt, is more than just enough; it is unfathomable. We can know Him, love Him, worship Him and serve Him by faith – here and now!

A young man I know is writing a book on how to become rich in the kingdom of God. He is basing his theme on the rewards that will be his by winning souls. “I want to be rich in heaven,” he says.

That may be a worthwhile goal, but it is not mine. Mine is gratitude and love. I love Him because He first loved me – died for me, liberated me, set me free.

Bible Reading:Romans 8:2-6

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  I will sing praises and give thanks in my heart to the Lord upon every remembrance of the liberty and grace that is mine in Christ Jesus, and I will tell everyone who will listen that we are no longer in bondage to sin, for Christ has set us free.

 

http://www.cru.org

Uncategorized

Max Lucado – Jesus Has Ample Room

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Listen to Today’s Devotion

Some of the saddest words on earth are: We don’t have room for you!  Sorry, I don’t have room for you on the team. I don’t have room for you in my heart. We don’t have room for your type here.

Jesus was still in Mary’s womb when the innkeeper said, We don’t have room for you. When the religious leaders accused him of blasphemy saying, We don’t have room for a self-proclaimed Messiah! Even today Jesus goes from heart to heart, asking if he might enter. But more often than not he hears the words of the Bethlehem innkeeper…. sorry, too crowded. I don’t have room for you.

But Jesus says I have ample space for you!  “Trust in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms” (John 14:2). We make room for him in our hearts, and he makes room for us in his house!

From When Christ Comes

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Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Who hold the title for most Oscars lost?

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The Shape of Water won last night’s Academy Award for Best Picture. Gary Oldman, Frances McDormand, Sam Rockwall, and Allison Janney won the acting Oscars. Their victories were predicted by many.

But who has lost the most Oscars? The answers may surprise you.

Meryl Streep was nominated for Best Actress for her role as Katharine Graham in The Post. This marked her twenty-first Oscar nomination. She has won three while losing eighteen.

She is nowhere near John Williams, however. The iconic composer of musical scores for E.T., Jaws, and the Indiana Jones and Star Wars series has been nominated an amazing fifty-one times, including last night for Star Wars: The Last Jedi. But he holds the record for the most Oscars lost, with forty-six.

Meryl Streep and John Williams have clearly enjoyed astounding artistic success. But their perseverance has been as important to their careers as their talent.

No attribute is more essential for Christians who wish to serve Jesus in a culture like ours.

Mike Huckabee a “shameful choice” for CMA Foundation

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Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – The Importance of Discernment

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Matthew 3:1-12

Who couldn’t use a little discernment? We desperately need the Lord’s help to determine truth and reality in a world filled with confusing gray areas and evil deceptions.

John the Baptist was a man of tremendous discernment. This rough and rugged preacher came thundering onto the scene of staid orthodox Judaism, and he brought a message to the entire Jewish nation. John’s job was to prepare the way for the Messiah’s arrival. What he had to say was simple: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:2).

As the multitudes flocked to hear this unique prophet and repent of their sins, John discerned that some of them were frauds. The Pharisees and Sadducees had come to check him out, not to repent. They were hiding reality behind a religious exterior.

A discerning spirit is one that is in tune with the Spirit of God. As John lived in submission to the Lord, he gained insight beyond anything that could have originated from his own mind.

He saw the situation from God’s perspective and delivered a strong rebuke to that “brood of vipers” (Matt. 3:7). Although we may never be as forthright as John, there will be times when a discerning spirit will lead to confrontation.

The Father wants His children to develop spiritual discernment in order to guard against deception. We must know how to recognize invalid philosophies as well as false doctrines that sneak into the church. What’s more, divine insight can also protect us in our relationships and even helps us see the truth about ourselves.

Bible in One Year: Deuteronomy 33-34

 

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Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — When God Fills Us

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Read: Psalm 16:5–11 | Bible in a Year: Numbers 31–33; Mark 9:1–29

You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.  Psalm 16:11

“What had I done?” It should have been one of the most exciting times of my life. Instead, it was one of the loneliest. I’d just gotten my first “real” job after college, in a city hundreds of miles from where I grew up. But the thrill of that big step quickly faded. I had a tiny apartment. No furniture. I didn’t know the city. I didn’t know anyone. The job was interesting, but the loneliness felt crushing.

One night, I sat at home with my back against the wall. I opened my Bible and stumbled onto Psalm 16, where verse 11 promises God will fill us. “Lord,” I prayed, “I thought this job was the right thing, but I feel so alone. Please fill me with a sense of Your nearness.” I offered variants of that plaintive plea for weeks. Some nights, my sense of loneliness eased, and I had a deep experience of God’s presence. Other nights, I still felt achingly isolated.

My heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure. Psalm 16:9

But as I returned to that verse, anchoring my heart in it night by night, God gradually deepened my faith. I experienced His faithfulness in a way I never had before. And I learned that my job was simply to pour out my heart to Him . . . and humbly await His faithful response, trusting His promise to fill us with His Spirit.

Lord, we can feel so empty at times. But You’ve made known the path of life. You long for us to trust You. Help us to cling to Your promise to fill us in our desperate moments.

Anchor your heart in God.

By Adam Holz

INSIGHT

David faced many enemies and encountered numerous dangers. Those experiences proved the faithfulness of God to him. In Psalm 16 David sings of finding his joy and guidance in the Lord alone: “I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken” (v. 8).

 

Earlier in Israel’s story, Moses had pleaded for the presence of God to accompany the people in the wilderness (Exodus 33:15–16). God promised to go with them and to give them rest (vv. 14, 17).

We too can find our help in the God of Moses and David. The night before His crucifixion, Jesus promised us the gift of the Holy Spirit. He told His disciples, “If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth” (John 14:15–17). The God of David and Moses is the God who tells us, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). His Holy Spirit lives in us.

Do you sense His presence today? Give your desperate circumstances to Him. He promises to guide you.

 

http://www.odb.org

Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Four Burning Questions—If God Is for Us…

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If God is for us, who can be against us?
Romans 8:31

Some days we awaken to sunny skies. Other days are darker, and we’re gripped by pain. Whether the pain is physical or emotional, it can make us question God’s love and care for us.

Recommended Reading: Romans 8:31-39

But God counters our questions with some of His own—rhetorical questions—to remind us of His active involvement in our care. We find glorious sets of questions at the end of Job, in Isaiah 40, and scattered throughout the Lord’s ministry. But few passages exceed the interrogation of Romans 8, as Paul draws to a close in his theological instruction about justification by grace through faith.

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?… How shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect … Who is he who condemns?… Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

If your spirits are low today, answer the questions God sets forth. Who can be against you? No one! What can separate you from His love? Nothing!

God’s burning questions have glowing answers that bring heavenly sunshine.

When Jesus shows His smiling face, there is sunshine in my soul.
Eliza Hewitt

Read-Thru-the-Bible: Deuteronomy 30 – 34

 

 

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – You’re Not Built for Guilt

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Therefore there is now no condemnation [no guilty verdict, no punishment] for those who are in Christ Jesus [who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior]. — Romans 8:1

When I ask large audiences how many people spend their lives feeling guilty, my guess is that at least 80 percent of the people raise their hands. I was part of that 80 percent until I decided that I was not built for guilt, and I was not going to continue to allow a renegade feeling to rule my life.

I studied God’s Word about guilt and studied His character and nature until I was totally convinced that God is not the source of guilt.

I see guilt as an illegal alien that attacks our mind and conscience, attempting to prevent us from enjoying anything God has provided for us. Guilt has no legal right in our lives because Jesus has paid for our sins and misdeeds. If it is in us illegally, then we need to send it back where it came from—which is hell!

Refuse to let guilt steel your joy any longer. You must remember that you are not built for guilt. Deal with it aggressively anytime you experience it by receiving God’s love and grace.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Love Means Obedience

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“The one who obeys Me is the one who loves Me; and because he loves Me, My Father will love him; and I will too, and I will reveal myself to him” (John 14:21).

A Campus Crusade staff member handed me a copy of Sports Illustrated with a cover picture of the Heisman Trophy winner.

Proudly, he said, “I would like to introduce you to your great-grandson.”

When I asked him what he meant, he explained, “You led Jim to Christ, Jim led me to Christ, and I led Steve [the Heisman Trophy winner] to Christ.”

What a joy to see God’s wonder-working power in this chain reaction of spiritual multiplication.

There is something exciting and wonderfully rewarding about seeing one whom you have discipled grow and mature, and lead others to Christ and disciple them, generation after generation. Such an experience often brings even more fulfillment than you derive from your own personal ministry of introducing others to the Lord Jesus.

For example, I have always taken special delight and pleasure whenever Vonette, our sons Zachary and Bradley, or many others whom I have discipled through the years, do something special for the Lord – much more than as though I were doing it personally.

By investing your life in helping others to receive Christ and grow in the Lord, you will in turn be helping still others to experience the abundant life which only true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ experience. Today’s verse equates love for Christ with obedience to His commands. Two of the most important commands our Lord has given to His followers, which will result in His revealing Himself to us, are “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 28:19, NAS). He is saying to us, “Teach the things that I have taught you.”

Bible Reading:John 14:22-26

TODAY’S ACTION POINT:  Today I will seek to obey my Lord by telling others about Him and by seeking to disciple others who have already committed their lives to Christ. I have the assurance that my Lord will manifest Himself to me in special ways as I walk in faith and obedience.

 

http://www.cru.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – When In Doubt 

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When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples to ask him, “Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?” Matthew 11:2–3

Doubt seeks to destroy our faith. It is in our discouragement—even despair—that we begin to question God. “What did I do wrong?”, “Lord, did you call me to this place of confusion?”, “Where is my joy and hope?”, “Are you even real or just a figment of my imagination?” Left to its natural conclusion, doubt crushes our faith in Christ.

Fortunately, faith does not have to take a furlough when we are frustrated and fatigued. It is in your confinement that Christ wants to remind you of His great power. So cry out to Him in your confused circumstances, and He will earnestly listen in love. “In my distress I called to the LORD; I called out to my God. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came to his ears” (2 Samuel 22:7). He does not leave His loved ones alone and in doubt.

It is okay to be in doubt, but not to remain in doubt. What doubt challenges your faith in God? Is it His provision, His promises, His presence, His character, or His care? When these questions assault your confidence in Christ, take a step back and review His track record. The reality of your salvation sets you on the productive path of peace and forgiveness. Answered prayer over the years is proof enough of His love and concern.

Furthermore, use this temporary time of distrust to go deeper with Jesus. The pressure you feel on all sides is your Savior’s way of soliciting your attention. When in doubt, seek out the Lord, learn to love Him completely, and discern more fully His profound promises. Use doubt to dig deeper into the truth of Scripture; marinate your mind. “Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him” (Psalm 34:8).

When in doubt, stay steadfast in seeking your Savior. Wait on Him, especially when you wonder what is next. Where there is true faith there may be a mixture of unbelief; so remain faithful, even when questions manipulate your faith. Perseverance will one day free you as a stronger and more-committed follower of Christ. See Jesus for who He is. Doubt dissolves in His reassuring presence. Doubt starves to death when it is not fed.

“Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them—the LORD, who remains faithful forever” (Psalm 146:5–6).

Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me in my unbelief to believe You are all I need during this time of intense uncertainty, in Jesus’ name, amen.

Application: What doubts do I need to acknowledge and release to God? Is Christ trustworthy?

Related Readings: 2 Chronicles 33:12; Job 36:16–19; John 20:27; Jude 1:22

 

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