Tag Archives: Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Remembering Our Father’s Words

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Our Daily Bread

Psalm 119:89-93

I will never forget Your precepts, for by them You have given me life. —Psalm 119:93

Jim Davidson was climbing down Mount Rainier when he fell through a snow bridge and into a crevasse (a pitch-black, ice-walled crack in a glacier). As Jim stood bloodied and bruised in that dark ice cave, he reflected on his childhood and recalled how his father had repeatedly reminded him that he could accomplish great things if he pressed through adversity. Those words helped to sustain Jim as he spent the next 5 hours climbing out of that dark ice cave to safety with very little gear and under extremely difficult circumstances.

The psalmist seemed to climb out of his own crevasse of affliction and pain by recalling his heavenly Father’s words. He admitted that if God and His Word had not sustained him with joy, he would have died in his misery (Ps. 119:92). He expressed full confidence in the Lord’s eternal Word (v.89) and in the faithfulness of His character (v.90). As a result of God’s faithfulness, the psalmist made a commitment never to forget God’s words to him because they had a central part in rescuing his life and bringing him strength.

In our darkest caves and moments of affliction, our souls can be revived by our Father in heaven when we recall and fill our minds with His encouraging words. —Marvin Williams

THINKING IT OVER

What crevasse of discouragement are you currently in?

How can you use this time as an occasion to revive your

soul by filling your mind and heart with God’s Word?

Remembering God’s words revives our soul.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 48-49; Hebrews 7

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — The Rock

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Our Daily Bread

Matthew 7:24-27; Ephesians 2:18-22

Jesus Christ Himself [is] the chief cornerstone. —Ephesians 2:20

On a trip to Massachusetts, my husband and I visited Plymouth Rock, an iconic symbol in the United States. It is traditionally thought to be the place where the Pilgrims, who traveled to America on the Mayflower in 1620, first set foot. While we enjoyed learning about its significance, we were surprised and disappointed that it is so small. We learned that due to erosion and people chipping off pieces, it is now just one-third its original size.

The Bible refers to Jesus as a Rock (1 Cor. 10:4), who never changes (Heb. 13:8). He is the solid Rock on which we can build our lives. The church (the body of believers) is built on a foundation with “Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone.” In Him all believers are joined together (Eph. 2:20-22).

Jesus is the solid Rock we can cling to when the storms of life blow and beat against us (Matt. 7:25). Writer Madeleine L’Engle said: “It’s a good thing to have all the props pulled out from under us occasionally. It gives us some sense of what is rock under our feet and what is sand.”

Plymouth Rock is an interesting mass of minerals with an intriguing historical significance. But Jesus is a precious cornerstone, and those who trust in Him will always have a solid Rock to depend upon. —Cindy Hess Kasper

O build on the Rock, forever sure,

The firm and true foundation,

Its hope is the hope which shall endure—

The hope of our salvation. —Belden

Christ, the Rock, is our sure hope.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 46-47; Hebrews 6

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — The Blessing Of Giving

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Our Daily Bread

Mark 12:38-44

It is more blessed to give than to receive. —Acts 20:35

It made no sense for a widow to donate her last few coins to a corrupt institution in Jerusalem, where scribes who were dependent on those gifts “devour[ed] widows’ houses” (Mark 12:40). But in that woman’s act, Jesus saw a moving display of the proper attitude toward money (vv.41-44).

Gordon Cosby, while serving as pastor of the Church of the Saviour in Washington, DC, tells of a widow whose income was barely adequate to feed and clothe her six children. Yet every week she faithfully placed $4 in the offering plate. A deacon suggested that Cosby go to her and assure her that she could use the money instead for her family’s benefit.

Cosby followed the deacon’s advice—to his regret. “You are trying to take away the last thing that gives me dignity and meaning,” she said. She had learned a key to giving: It can benefit the giver more than the receiver. Yes, those in poverty need financial help. But the need to give may be as important as the need to receive.

The act of giving reminds us that we live by the grace of God—like the birds and the flowers. Those creations don’t worry about their future; neither should we. Giving offers us a way to express our confidence that God will care for us just as He cares for the sparrow and lily (Matt. 6:25-34). —Philip Yancey

Whatever, Lord, we lend to Thee,

Repaid a thousand-fold will be;

Then gladly will we give to Thee,

Who givest all—who givest all. —Wordsworth

We disarm the power of money by giving it away.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 43-45; Hebrews 5

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Two Victories

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Our Daily Bread

2 Samuel 5:17-25

David inquired of the LORD. —2 Samuel 5:19

King David was up against a familiar foe. Years before as a young shepherd boy, he had faced down Goliath, the top Philistine warrior, by killing him with a well-placed stone (1 Sam. 17). Now David was king of Israel, and here come the Philistines again! They heard he was king, and they decided to attack (2 Sam. 5:17).

What do we do first when trouble is on the way? We could panic. We could plan. Or we could first do what David did—pray. “David inquired of the LORD” (v.19), and God guided the king.

David had to fight two battles with the Philistines—one at Baal Perazim and one at the Valley of Rephaim. It was a good thing he consulted God, because in these two battles there were two different strategies. In the first one, God won the battle with His power alone: “The LORD has broken through,” David recorded (v.20). For the next one, God gave David an action plan, and when he carried it out, the Israelites won (vv.23-25).

Each day we face many challenges. Although there is no one-size-fits-all answer, our first action should always be to consult God. As He guides us, we can have confidence in Him. Then, whether the victory comes through His miraculous intervention or through His guidance, all the glory goes to God. —Dave Branon

Not to the strong is the battle,

Not to the swift is the race;

Yet to the true and the faithful

Victory is promised through grace. —Crosby

To stand up to any challenge, spend time on your knees.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 40-42; Hebrews 4

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — A Season For Everything

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Our Daily Bread

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

To everything there is a season. —Ecclesiastes 3:1

In the 1960s, the folk-rock band The Byrds popularized the song “Turn! Turn! Turn!” It climbed to the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and gained worldwide popularity. People seemed captivated by the lyrics. Interestingly, though, except for the last line, those lyrics are from the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes.

“To everything there is a season,” proclaims the writer of Ecclesiastes, “a time for every purpose under heaven” (3:1). He then lists some of the seasons in human experience: birth and death, gain and loss, tears and laughter, mourning and dancing. Just as the seasons in nature change, so do the seasons in our lives. Our circumstances never stay the same for long.

Sometimes we welcome change in our lives. But often it is difficult, especially when it involves sorrow and loss. Yet even then we can be thankful that God does not change. “I am the LORD,” He said through the prophet Malachi, “I do not change” (Mal. 3:6).

Because God remains the same, we can rely on Him through the shifting seasons of life. His presence is always with us (Ps. 46:1), His peace has the power to guard our hearts (Phil. 4:7), and His love provides security for our souls (Rom. 8:39). —Jennifer Benson Schuldt

A mighty fortress is our God,

A bulwark never failing;

Our helper He amid the flood

Of mortal ills prevailing. —Luther

God’s unchanging nature is our security during seasons of change.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 37-39; Hebrews 3

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Good-Behavior Rewards

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Our Daily Bread

2 Corinthians 5:1-11

We make it our aim . . . to be well pleasing to [God]. —2 Corinthians 5:9

In a children’s ministry in my church, we hand out cards to the kids when we notice their good behavior. They collect the cards and receive prizes for the good choices they’ve made. We are trying to reinforce good behavior rather than focusing on bad behavior.

When one leader handed a card to 11-year-old Tyree, he responded, “No, thanks. I don’t need one; I want to behave well, and I don’t need a reward for that.” For him, doing the right thing was its own reward. He definitely has good values ingrained in him, and he wants to live them out—prize or not.

As believers in Jesus, we will receive rewards one day. Second Corinthians 5:10 says that everyone will “receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” But to get a reward should not be our motivation for right living. Neither is it to earn salvation. Living out of love for God and pleasing Him should be our heart’s desire.

When we love God, we make it our aim to please Him who first loved us (1 John 4:19) and to serve Him with pure motives (Prov. 16:2; 1 Cor. 4:5). The best reward will be to be with Him! —Anne Cetas

In all I think and say and do,

I long, O God, to honor You;

But may my highest motive be

To love the Christ who died for me. —D. DeHaan

Our desire to please God is our highest motive for obeying Him.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 34-36; Hebrews 2

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Leap The Wall

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Our Daily Bread

Romans 12:14-21

If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. —Proverbs 25:21

Sgt. Richard Kirkland was a Confederate soldier in the US Civil War (1861–1865). When the Union’s failed charge at Marye’s Heights during the Battle of Fredericksburg left wounded soldiers abandoned in no-man’s land, Kirkland got permission to help them. Collecting canteens, he leaped the stone wall and bent over the first soldier to lend assistance. At great personal risk, the “Angel of Marye’s Heights” extended the mercy of Christ to enemy soldiers.

While few of us will face an enemy on the battlefield, those who suffer can be found all around us—people struggling against loneliness, loss, health issues, and sin. Their cries, muted by our many distractions, plead for mercy and comfort, for hope and help.

Kirkland’s example of Christlike compassion put action to Jesus’ command to “love your enemies” (Matt. 5:44). Paul expanded on that theme when he quotes Proverbs 25:21, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink” (Rom. 12:20). “Do not be overcome by evil,” he instructed us, “but overcome evil with good” (v.21).

Paul’s challenge compels us to emulate Sgt. Kirkland. Today is the day for us to “leap the wall” of safety to lend comfort from God to those in need. —Randy Kilgore

Father, give me the courage to reach out to those

I may not want to reach. Show Your love

through me in ways that will bring glory to You

and true peace in my corner of the world.

Kindness is in our power even when fondness is not. —Samuel Johnson

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 32-33; Hebrews 1

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Be Still

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Our Daily Bread

Psalm 46

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! —Psalm 46:10

Eric Liddell, memorialized in the film Chariots of Fire, won a gold medal in the 1924 Paris Olympics before going to China as a missionary. Some years later, with the outbreak of World War II, Liddell sent his family to safety in Canada, but he remained in China. Soon Liddell and other foreign missionaries were interned in a Japanese detainment camp. After months of captivity, he developed what doctors feared was a brain tumor.

Every Sunday afternoon a band would play near the hospital, so one day Liddell requested they play the hymn “Be Still, My Soul.” As he listened, I wonder if Eric pondered these words from the song: Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on / When we shall be forever with the Lord. / When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone, / Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored. / Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past / All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

That beautiful hymn, so comforting to Eric as he faced an illness that led to his death 3 days later, expresses a great reality of Scripture. In Psalm 46:10, David wrote, “Be still, and know that I am God.” In our darkest moments, we can rest, for our Lord conquered death on our behalf. Be still, and allow Him to calm your greatest fears. —Bill Crowder

Teach me, Lord, to still my soul before You. Help

me to bear patiently the trials I face, and to

leave everything to You to direct and provide.

I know that You will always remain faithful.

God’s whisper of comfort quiets the noise of our trials.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 30-31; Philemon

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Who’s Telling The Truth?

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Our Daily Bread

John 8:31-47

Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? —John 8:46

During the 2012 US presidential campaign, television coverage of speeches and debates often included “fact checking” by analysts who compared the candidates’ statements with their actual records. Were they telling the truth or manipulating the facts to their advantage?

The apostle John recorded a debate between Jesus and a group of people who believed He was making false claims about Himself. Jesus told them, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32). They told Him that they had never been in bondage to anyone and asked, “How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?” (v.33).

As the debate continued, Jesus kept saying that He was telling them the truth (vv.34,40,45-46,51). Some believed Him, but others remained angry at Him and unconvinced.

In a sense, that debate goes on today. Those who oppose Jesus seek to discredit His statements and twist them into lies. Jesus says, “I am telling you the truth,” and promises that He will give us a freedom we can find nowhere else.

The Bible record of Jesus’ life is worth “fact checking” as we determine who we will follow. All of us have a choice to make. —David McCasland

Faith is believing, the promise is true,

Trusting in Jesus your strength to renew;

Resting so sweetly, secure on His Word,

Shielded from danger with Jesus the Lord. —Teasley

God’s truth stands any test.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 27-29; Titus 3

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Loved To Love

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Our Daily Bread

Deuteronomy 10:12-22

What does the LORD your God require of you, but . . . to walk in all His ways and to love Him. —Deuteronomy 10:12

“A heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others.” I saw this quotation, attributed to the Wizard of Oz, on a wall plaque in a gift shop.

The Wizard of Oz may be a good story, but it’s not a reliable source of spiritual information. God said something quite different. According to Him, the greatest commandment is to love—to love Him first and then others (Mark 12:29-31). Scripture says nothing about expecting to be loved in return. In fact, Jesus stated the opposite in His most famous sermon: “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven” (Matt. 5:11-12).

When it comes to love, the important thing we need to know is this: All love starts with God (1 John 4:19). As Moses told the Israelites, God delighted in them to love them (Deut. 10:15), and because of that they were to love others, even strangers (v.19). God’s intent is that the people who receive His love will become the conduit of His love to others.

Apart from God—who Himself is love—none of us could truly love or be loved (1 John 4:7-8). —Julie Ackerman Link

“Love seeketh not her own,” and so

He did not stay as God above,

But chose a manger and a cross

To show that He was Love. —Wilmshurst

He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. —1 John 4:8

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 24-26; Titus 2

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Eyes Of Love

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Our Daily Bread

Mark 10:17-27

Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him. —Mark 10:21

Many people who come to Marc Salem’s stage shows think he can read minds. But he makes no such claim, saying he is not a psychic or magician, but a close observer of people. He told writer Jennifer Mulson, “We live in a world that’s mostly invisible to us because we’re not paying attention to things . . . . I’m very sensitive to what people give off” (The Gazette, Colorado Springs).

It’s interesting to note what Jesus saw as He met people. His encounter with a wealthy young man seeking eternal life is recorded in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Mark includes this telling detail, “Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him” (Mark 10:21). Some people may have seen this young man as an arrogant person (vv.19-20) while others might have envied his wealth, but Jesus looked at him with love.

We often focus on the man’s sad departure and apparent unwillingness to give up his riches and follow Jesus (v.22). When the disciples wondered aloud about the difficulty of a rich man entering the kingdom of God (v.26), “Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible’” (v.27).

Today, Jesus sees us through eyes of love and invites us to follow Him. —David McCasland

Down from His splendor in glory He came,

Into a world of woe;

Took on Himself all my guilt and my shame,

Why should He love me so? —Roth

God has both an all-seeing eye and all-forgiving heart.

Bible in a year: eremiah 22-23; Titus 1

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — The Last Chapter

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Our Daily Bread

Revelation 22:6-20

Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. —Philippians 4:5

I have a friend who reads the last chapter first when she starts a new thriller. “Takes the anxiety out of reading,” she claims. So with Christians: Because we know the end of the story, we can be centers of peace in the midst of utter chaos, calm in the face of disaster.

The apostle Paul calls this attitude “moderation” in Philippians 4:5 (KJV). It’s a term that implies “peace under pressure.” It refers to the calm and deliberate strength with which we meet the disquieting circumstances of our days. Kingdoms may fall, friends may falter, churches may fold, oceans may rise, and mountains may crumble, but we can be at peace.

How do we maintain such composure? By remembering that “the Lord is at hand” (Phil. 4:5); He is near. Our Lord is standing just outside the door ready to burst through and turn everything that’s wrong right-side up. Then this world and all its troubles will become the kingdom of our Lord, and “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Hab. 2:14).

Jesus said, “Surely I am coming quickly” (Rev. 22:20). Today could be the day! It’s the very last thing He said in the very last chapter of His book. —David Roper

Lord, thank You for dispelling the fear from our lives

by letting us know the end of the story. We can rest

in the assurance that as Your followers we will one

day be with You in Your glorious, eternal kingdom.

No doctrine is more closely linked to practical daily living than that of the Lord’s return.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 20-21; 2 Timothy 4

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Wonderful!

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Our Daily Bread

Job 42:1-6

I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. —Job 42:3

As our plane began its descent, the flight attendant read the long list of arrival information as if she were reading it for the thousandth time that day—no emotion or interest as she droned on about our impending arrival. Then, with the same tired, disinterested voice, she finished by saying, “Have a wonderful day.” The dryness of her tone contrasted with her words. She said “wonderful” but in a manner completely absent of any sense of wonder.

Sometimes I fear that we approach our relationship with God in the same way: Routine. Bored. Apathetic. Disinterested. Through Christ, we have the privilege of being adopted into the family of the living God, yet often there seems to be little of the sense of wonder that should accompany that remarkable reality.

Job questioned God about his suffering, but when challenged by Him, Job was humbled by the wonder of his Creator and His creation. Job replied, “You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know” (Job 42:3).

I long for the wonder of God to take hold of my heart. Adopted by God—what a wonderful reality! —Bill Crowder

How marvelous! How wonderful!

And my song shall ever be:

How marvelous! How wonderful

Is my Savior’s love for me! —Gabriel

Nothing can fill our hearts more than the wonder of our God and His love.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 18-19; 2 Timothy 3

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Wait On The Lord

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Our Daily Bread

Psalm 27

I waited patiently for the LORD; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. —Psalm 40:1

With so many instantaneous forms of communication today, our impatience with hearing a reply from others is sometimes laughable. Someone I know sent an e-mail to his wife and then called her by cell phone because he couldn’t wait for a reply!

Sometimes we feel that God has let us down because He does not provide an immediate answer to a prayer. Often our attitude becomes, “Answer me speedily, O LORD; my spirit fails!” (Ps. 143:7).

But waiting for the Lord can transform us into a people of growing faith. King David spent many years waiting to be crowned king and fleeing from Saul’s wrath. David wrote, “Wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart” (Ps. 27:14). And in another psalm he encourages us with these words, “I waited patiently for the LORD; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He . . . set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps” (40:1-2). David grew into “a man after [God’s] own heart” by waiting on the Lord (Acts 13:22; see 1 Sam. 13:14).

When we become frustrated with God’s apparent delay in answering our prayer, it is good to remember that He is interested in developing faith and perseverance in our character (James 1:2-4). Wait on the Lord! —Dennis Fisher

Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer!

Thy wings shall my petition bear

To Him whose truth and faithfulness

Engage the waiting soul to bless. —Walford

God stretches our patience to enlarge our soul.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 15-17; 2 Timothy 2

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — God In The Storm

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Our Daily Bread

Job 37:14-24

He is excellent in power. —Job 37:23

Early one morning the wind began to blow and raindrops hit my house like small stones. I peered outside at the yellow-gray sky and watched as trees thrashed in the wind. Veins of lightning lit the sky accompanied by bone-rattling thunder. The power blinked on and off, and I wondered how long the bad weather would continue.

After the storm passed, I opened my Bible to begin my day with reading Scripture. I read a passage in Job that compared the Lord’s power to the atmospheric muscle of a storm. Job’s friend, Elihu said, “God thunders marvelously with His voice” (37:5). And, “He covers His hands with lightning, and commands it to strike” (36:32). Indeed, God is “excellent in power” (37:23).

Compared to God, we humans are feeble. We’re unable to help ourselves spiritually, heal our hearts, or fix the injustice we often endure. Fortunately, the God of the storm cares about weaklings like us; He “remembers that we are dust” (Ps. 103:14). What’s more, God “gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength” (Isa. 40:29). Because God is strong, He can help us in our weakness. —Jennifer Benson Schuldt

I sing the mighty power of God

That made the mountains rise,

That spread the flowing seas abroad

And built the lofty skies. —Watts

God is the source of our strength.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 12-14; 2 Timothy 1

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Healthy Ingredients

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Our Daily Bread

Proverbs 4:14-27

Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. —Proverbs 4:23

My wife, Martie, is a careful shopper when it comes to buying healthy and nutritious food. No matter how attractive the packaging looks, she checks the list of ingredients on the back of the box. Lots of difficult-to-pronounce words usually announce the presence of preservatives that work against good nutrition. She always puts those items back on the shelf and continues to look for labels with lists of natural food products that contribute to good health.

I’ve often thought that her shopping habits are a lot like what God is looking for in our lives: It’s what’s on the inside that counts, regardless of how attractive the outside might be. It’s no wonder that the wisdom-teller of Proverbs warns us to guard what goes into our hearts, “for out of it spring the issues of life” (Prov. 4:23). Wearing the right fashions and keeping ourselves looking young are of little importance if our hearts harbor greed, hatred, grumpiness, self-pity, and other counter-productive contents.

So, ask yourself: When others get past the packaging of my life, do they experience a heart full of healthy, Christ-honoring ingredients? By putting in grace, kindness, patience, and compassion, we’ll reflect the wonderful nature of Christ. —Joe Stowell

Lord, teach me to value my heart more than the

externals. Grant me the wisdom to cultivate internal

ingredients that will make my heart a wellspring of

life to those whom I come in contact with today.

The contents in your heart are more important than the outer packaging.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 9-11; 1 Timothy 6

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Loving And Knowing

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Our Daily Bread

Romans 5:6-11

God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. —Romans 5:8

In a novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, one of the characters, speaking of New York’s Empire State Building, said, “I know this building because I love this building.”

That statement caused me to think about the relationship between love and knowledge. Whenever we love something, we want to know everything about it. When we love a place, we want to explore every inch of it. When we love a person, we want to know every detail of his or her life. We want to know what he likes, how she spends her time, where he grew up, who her friends are, what he believes. The list is endless. But some of us want to be loved without allowing ourselves to be known. We’re afraid that we won’t be loved if we are truly known.

We don’t have to worry about that with God. His love is far superior to ours: “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). Furthermore, He makes Himself known to us. Through creation, Scripture, and Christ, God reveals His character and His love. Because God loves us in spite of our imperfections, we can safely confess our faults to Him. With God, we need not fear being known. That’s why to know God is to love Him. —Julie Ackerman Link

Be still and know that He is God

For pathways steep and rough,

Not what He brings, but what He is

Will always be enough. —Anon.

There is no greater joy than to know that God loves us.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 6-8; 1 Timothy 5

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Re-Creation

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Our Daily Bread

2 Corinthians 5:12-21

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. —2 Corinthians 5:17

Chris Simpson’s life used to be consumed by hate. After he and his wife lost their first child, he was confused and angry. He directed that anger toward various ethnic groups and covered his body with hate-filled tattoos.

After listening to his son mimic his hatred, though, Simpson knew he needed to change. He watched a Christian movie about courage and began attending church. One month later he was baptized as a follower of Jesus Christ. Simpson is now a new person and is leaving the hate behind him, which includes the painful and expensive process of having his tattoos removed.

The apostle Paul knew something about this kind of deep transformation. He hated Jesus and persecuted His followers (Acts 22:4-5; 1 Cor. 15:9). But a personal encounter and spiritual union with Christ (Acts 9:1-20) changed all of that, causing him to reevaluate his life in light of what Jesus accomplished on the cross. This union with Christ made Paul a new person. The old order of sin, death, and selfishness was gone and a new beginning, a new covenant, a new perspective and way of living had come.

Following Jesus is not turning over a new leaf; it is beginning a new life under a new Master. —Marvin Williams

FOR FURTHER THOUGHT

What is the evidence that my union with Christ

has transformed my old humanity? Are there

indicators that I am not the me I used to be?

Being in Christ is not rehabilitation, it’s re-creation.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 3-5; 1 Timothy 4

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Losing And Finding Our Lives In Him

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Our Daily Bread

Luke 9:18-27

For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. —Luke 9:24

When Mother Teresa died in 1997, people marveled again at her example of humble service to Christ and to people in great need. She had spent 50 years ministering to the poor, sick, orphaned, and dying through the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India.

After extensive interviews with her, British journalist Malcolm Muggeridge wrote: “There is much talk today about discovering an identity, as though it were something to be looked for, like a winning number in a lottery; then, once found, to be hoarded and treasured. Actually, . . . the more it is spent the richer it becomes. So, with Mother Teresa, in effacing herself, she becomes herself. I never met anyone more memorable.”

I suspect that many of us may be afraid of what will happen if we obey Jesus’ words: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it” (Luke 9:23-24).

Our Savior reminded His followers that He came to give us life abundantly (John 10:10). We are called to lose our lives for Christ, and in so doing discover the fullness of life in Him. —David McCasland

“Take up thy cross and follow Me,”

I hear the blessed Savior call;

How can I make a lesser sacrifice

When Jesus gave His all? —Ackley

As we lose our lives for Christ, we find fullness of life in Him.

Bible in a year: Jeremiah 1-2; 1 Timothy 3

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — The Campaign

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Our Daily Bread

Romans 15:1-7

Let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. —Romans 14:19

Each year young people in our community participate in a “Be Nice” campaign spearheaded by a mental health organization. In one of the events in 2012, 6,000 students spelled out the words BE NICE with their bodies on their schools’ sports fields. One principal said, “We want students to come to school and learn without the distraction of fear or sadness or uneasiness around their peers. We are working hard to make sure students are lifting each other up, rather than tearing each other down.”

Paul desired that the people in the church at Rome would have an even higher standard of love. Both the strong and weak in the faith were judging and showing contempt for each other (Rom. 14:1-12). They despised one another as they argued about what foods were permissible to eat (vv.2-3) and what holidays they should observe (vv.5-6). Paul challenged them: “Let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another” (v.19). He reminded them that their hearts should be concerned with pleasing others, not pleasing themselves. He said, “Even Christ did not please Himself” (15:3); He served.

Join the campaign that loves others despite our differences—you’ll bring praise to God (v.7). —Anne Cetas

Dear Lord, I want to be a person who is

kind and loving to others. Please help me

to use words that will build others up

and bring praise and glory to Your name.

Kindness is simply love flowing out in little gentlenesses.

Bible in a year: Isaiah 65-66; 1 Timothy 2