Tag Archives: Prayer

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – When You’ve Got That Empty Feeling

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Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Matthew 22:37

If you and I could sit down over a cup of coffee and I asked you, “How would you describe an idol or a lesser love?” You might say an idol is anything we believe can take God’s place in our lives—it is a lie, a false god, a seduction, or a deception. But would you describe it as emptiness? According to my New Testament Word Study Bible, the word “idol” means this very thing. I find this definition interesting, because we don’t usually believe our idols are emptiness. Otherwise we wouldn’t cling to them. Instead, we believe they’re something-ness. We may even think, “Sure, my idol doesn’t really satisfy me, but at least it has some value.”

God has a different idea.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD” (Isaiah 55:8).

If something is empty, it’s empty. It’s not partially empty or sort of empty or a little bit empty—it’s just empty! This means that idols can’t bring lasting peace or satisfaction to anyone’s life, so allowing anything or anyone but God to top your list of dreams, hopes, or desires is a waste of time and life. If we think that we can run from God and embrace idols to find love, satisfaction, peace, or any kind of lasting fulfillment, we’re only fooling ourselves. Maybe you’re thinking, “Wait a minute! How can this be? My idol is desirable. It makes me feel good, so how can it be bad? I can’t believe it’s empty!” Granted, at first, idols may give the impression that they’ll satisfy. But they never deliver. Idols lure us in with great promise, but once we embrace them to save us, they mock us.

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Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Too Many Neighbors

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By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.

John 13:35

Recommended Reading

Luke 10:25-37

When the pictures, problems, and questions of hundreds of people scroll across our social media accounts, it is difficult to discern when and where to lend a hand. The man questioning Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?” was hoping for a boundary that would allow him to write off a group of people as undeserving of his love. As Christians who have experienced the generosity of God, the story of the Good Samaritan invites us to ask Him, “Who are You calling me to love?”

Instead of feeling inadequate or scared that God may call us to a grandiose gesture on behalf of a stranger, we can confidently await His guidance. Small acts of kindness build momentum in our own lives and in the lives of those we serve. A mustard seed becomes a towering tree. As we practice giving and receiving, our capacity for both expands. Although our gifts and impact may seem small, God delights in expanding them. Just as Jesus multiplied the fish and loaves after asking the disciples to feed the hungry crowd, He will provide all you need to do what He calls you to.

Do not waste time bothering whether you “love” your neighbor; act as if you did.

  1. S. Lewis

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Matthew 7 – 9

 

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Shine On!

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The Lord make His face to shine upon and enlighten you and be gracious (kind, merciful, and giving favor) to you,— Numbers 6:25

As you go through your day, ask the Lord to make His face shine upon you. Ask Him to lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace. Ask Him to shine His glory upon you, as He did with Moses. Then let that light so shine before others that they may see it and glorify your heavenly Father (see Matthew 5:16 KJV).

Letting your light shine can be as simple as putting a smile on your face. Practice smiling at others and you will find most of them smiling back. The light of God’s glory is in you, but if you never show it outwardly, people won’t be blessed. It is amazing what will happen if you will just be thankful, smile, and be nice to people. Show favor as often as you can to as many as you can. By so doing, you will receive favor, because we are told that whatever we sow is what we will reap (see Galatians 6:7).

Prayer of Thanks: I thank You, Father, for the opportunity I have to be a light in a dark world. Let Your light and Your life shine through me for others to see. I am grateful that with Your help, my life can be a blessing to others.

From the book The Power of Being Thankful by Joyce Meyer.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Girlfriends in God

Girlfriends in God – Help For a Heart That Worries

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Today’s Truth

When I am afraid, I will put my trust in you.

Psalm 56:3

Friend to Friend

The prophet Isaiah said, “Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor is his ear to dull to hear.” (Isaiah 59:1) Though I know in my heart this is true, I still sometimes go back and forth between doubt and worry as if God’s arms are short and his ears are dull. My friend Erica does too.

She came to my door with a package to deliver and a story to share. I signed for the package and we began to catch up. Her kids are grown. Mine are teens. Her daughter just got married. My oldest just went to college. Mama to mama we shared and cared.

“My daughter and her new husband might be moving to Chicago. I have to be honest, Gwen,” she said seriously, “I’m not doing well trusting God with this. I’m struggling with anxiousness and worry.” I listened and nodded with understanding, knowing full well the strain of worry and anxiety.

Then she perked up and shared a story that went something like this…

God impressed a message on my heart this morning that challenged and convicted me! I just have to tell you about it. I ride motorcycles. Have for years. I love the feeling of being out in the open air. It’s exciting and invigorating. When I ride, I feel vulnerable and alert. It’s risky and requires balance, it’s much more difficult than driving my car, but I ride because it energizes me and makes me feel alive.

Continue reading Girlfriends in God – Help For a Heart That Worries →

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – He Gives Special Abilities

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“Now God gives us many kinds of special abilities, but it is the same Holy Spirit who is the source of them all. ” (1 Corinthians 12:4).

The late Dr. William Evans, famous Bible teacher and pulpit orator, was one of the most eloquent preachers I have ever heard. He serves as an example of a person who developed his spiritual gift.

Dr. Evans shared with me how he believed as a young man that he had been called of God to be a preacher. But he spoke in a high, squeaky, English cockney accent that was not particularly pleasant to the ear and certainly not conducive to preaching the most “joyful news ever announced.”

So when young Evans told Dwight L. Moody (under whose ministry he had been influenced for Christ) about his calling to be a preacher. Moody unhesitatingly advised him, “Forget it! You don’t have the ability to speak, and no one would listen to you.”

But William Evans determined that he would become a great preacher for the glory of God. So, like Demosthenes of old, he began to practice speaking with pebbles in his mouth and to practice deep diaphragmatic breathing.

After several years, he developed a deep, resonant, bass voice – one of the most beautiful speaking voices I have ever heard. Wherever he went, congregations would pack the pews to hear him preach.

William Evans was an example of Philippians 2:13 in action. Did he have the spiritual gift of preaching? Of course he did! But it did not come to him overnight. He had to work long and hard, by faith and in the power of the Holy Spirit, to develop his spiritual gift.

Philippians 2:13 reminds us that whatever God calls us to do He will enable us to do. Be assured that you do not need to depend on your own abilities to serve Him.

Bible Reading: I Corinthians 12:5-11

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Instead of spending fruitless time searching for my spiritual gifts, I will depend on the Holy Spirit to guide me, apply myself diligently to excel in whatever He leads me to do and trust God for a fruitful life and witness.

 

http://www.cru.org

Ray Stedman

Ray Stedman – Not Many

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Read: 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things — and the things that are not — to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. 1 Corinthians 1:26-29

The apostle is dealing with the wisdom of the world versus the inscrutable, marvelous wisdom of God. These believers who were living in ancient Corinth were exalting the wisdom of the world. The Greek custom of philosophizing about everything had penetrated the church and they were dividing into various factions, following certain men, quarreling, boasting, dividing, glorying in men’s ability and men’s power, men’s insight and men’s wisdom.

To deal with this the apostle shows us how God works. He sets it in very simple contrast and he uses these Corinthians themselves as his Exhibit A. He says, Look at yourselves, consider your own call, look what has happened in your own life. He then points out two rather obvious, but very important, facts they were evidently overlooking in their thinking. First, he says, There are not many mighty among you, are there? Fortunately, Paul did not say any mighty. Lady Hamilton, who was an evangelical believer among the English nobility in the early part of this century, used to say she was saved by an m, because if it had said not any mighty or any noble, she would not have made it, but the m changed it all and let her in. There in Corinth there were a few who had some standing in the community, but not many. Many of them were slaves, perhaps, unknown people, plain, ordinary people, like you and me.

Some of them were weak, the apostle says, i.e., they had no political or military clout; they were not men of influence; they had no in at city hall. They were without power, apparently, to affect life around them, but God chose them. They were made up of what we would call the working classes — artisans, tradesmen, the little people of the world. So, if you are feeling that nobody recognizes you, you ought to rejoice that you are a Christian because power and influence are not necessary to be greatly used of God. God delights in setting aside the impressive things of men.

Continue reading Ray Stedman – Not Many →

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Leaving and Cleaving

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Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.—Genesis 2:24

The objective God has in bringing a man and a woman together can be captured in two very important words: leave and cleave. These come from Genesis 2:24 (KJV), which says, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” The word “cleave” means to glue or to cling. So to leave and cleave is to sever and bond, to loosen and secure, or to depart from and attach to.

A successful marriage begins with leaving. In effect, you leave all other relationships. The closest relationship outside of marriage is specified in Genesis 2:24, implying that if it is necessary to leave your father and mother, then certainly all lesser ties must be broken, changed, or left behind.

This doesn’t mean that when you get married, you are no longer a son or a daughter or a sibling. But what it does mean is that you have a new, primary responsibility, and that is to your spouse. You must still honor your mother and father, but leaving has taken place.

Leaving implies giving other relationships a lesser degree of importance. You still can have friends, but your best friend should be your spouse. Having members of the opposite sex as friends can be problematic at best and potentially destructive at worst. Most adultery happens through close contact and relationship, not mere sexual attraction. So be very careful. Your best friend should be your husband or your wife.

In Malachi 2:14, God said of the relationship between a husband and his wife, “Yet she is your companion and your wife by covenant.” The word “companion” used here means someone united with another in thoughts, goals, plans, and efforts.

Are you united with your spouse in this way?

 

Harvest.org | Greg Laurie

Kids 4 Truth

Kids 4 Truth International – We Cannot Run Away from God

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“Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.” (Psalm 139:7-10)

If you like to play hide-and-seek, it is probably fun for you to think about hiding places. Maybe when you visit a new place or go to someone else’s house, you scout out all the best places to hide. If you’re good at finding hiding places, the “seeker” probably has to spend a long time looking for you. There may even have been times when you’ve hidden so well that he’s given up looking for you!

In Psalm 139, David was thinking about hiding places, but not because he wanted to play a game. He was thinking about how impossible it is to run away and hide from God. In the first part of the psalm, he wrote about God’s very personal knowledge of His creatures. He thought about how God knows every move we make, every word we say, and even the thoughts that go through our minds! When we think about a God who knows us so deeply and personally, we might feel like we want to get away and hide from Him – especially when we consider that we’re sinners and He is holy.

David considered several places he might go. Perhaps he could go up into the sky – even into outer space. Or maybe he could go to the world beyond the grave – the world where people go after they die. Perhaps he could go as far east as the sunrise, or to the farthest reaches of the sea. Do those sound like good hiding places? The problem is, none of those are places a person can hide from God. God’s presence fills the earth and the sky. He is there, no matter where we go, no matter how much we might want to run away from Him.

In verse 10, David thinks about the fact that God is loving. His gentle, strong hand is actually leading us when we try to run from Him, and wherever we end up, His hand takes hold of us there. We can never run away or hide from Him.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – We Cannot Run Away from God →

The Navigators

The Navigators – Jerry Bridges – Holiness Day by Day Devotional – Our Response

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Today’s Scripture: Psalm 72:17

“May people be blessed in him, all nations call him blessed!”

If God has promised that all nations will be blessed and that “all the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord” (Psalm 22:27), how should we respond? I maintain that our response should begin with prayer. We should boldly and persistently plead in prayer the promises of God.

Daniel, one of the Bible’s great men, is our example. He lived during the Babylonian captivity of Judah. He understood, from reading Jeremiah 29:10, that the captivity would last seventy years. So he took God at his word and began to pray that he would fulfill his promise to restore the Jews to their home (Daniel 9:1-19). He pleaded the promise of God. This is what we should do in response to God’s promises of the success of the Gospel. We should earnestly pray over such Scriptures as Genesis 22:18 and Psalm 22:27-28, asking God to fulfill his promises.

I’m dismayed at how little we Christians pray for the success of the Gospel among the nations. If we honestly examine our prayers, we find that we give the greatest priority to our own earthly needs. Perhaps we even pray about our own or our loved ones’ spiritual needs. But how many are praying about the spread of the Gospel to the ends of the earth? How many are pleading the promises of God?

As a personal application of this challenge, I keep a small world map with my morning devotional material. I try to pray “around the world” over the course of a week, putting my finger on specific countries, especially those more resistant to Christianity, and asking God to bless them with a significant penetration of the Gospel, so his name will be glorified among them. (Excerpt taken from The Gospel for Real Life)

 

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The Navigators

The Navigators – Leroy Eims – Daily Discipleship Devotional – Coming in Glory

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Today’s Scripture: Zechariah 9-11

God exalted him…that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. – Philippians 2:9,10-11

Zechariah gives us two starkly contrasting pictures of the Lord Jesus Christ. The first comes from Zechariah 9:9: “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

When I was a kid, I read Flash Gordon comic books. His archenemy was Ming the merciless. Ming had piercing eyes, lips that curled in a sneer, a coat that sparkled, and shoulders that stuck way out. He was the picture of power and authority.

One would think God would look something like Ming the merciless–dazzling clothing, huge shoulders, piercing eyes, an imposing, frightening figure. But no! God lay in a manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes. And when He entered Jerusalem at the height of His public ministry, He entered on a donkey, the animal symbolizing servanthood.

On the heels of this picture in Zechariah, we have the second portrait in chapter 9, verses 10-11: “He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth. As for you, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will free your prisoners from the waterless pit.”

Here we see the King of kings and Lord of lords making His entrance into this world as its deliverer and ruler. He is the absolute ruler of the kingdom of God.

Two beautiful pictures of the same wonderful Lord.

Prayer

Lord, I can’t comprehend the vastness of Your love, but I bow before You in gratitude to be the recipient of it. Amen.

To Ponder

Jesus is the King to whom all power has been given in heaven and on earth.

 

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BreakPoint

BreakPoint – LGBT is Not a Color: Stop Hijacking Civil Rights

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I just saw a commercial during a football game that inspired me, and then irked me. A young black girl is shown growing up in the Civil Rights era, watching the achievements of African American athletes, political activists, and religious leaders. Believing she can become anything if she sets her mind to it, she fights for acceptance in financial firms, eventually graduates with an MBA, and becomes a Wall Street executive. “You may trod me in the very dirt,” she says, “but still, like dust, I rise.”

It’s a great message. But halfway through this ad for the University of Phoenix, alumna Gail Marquis is shown marching hand-in-hand with LGBT activists and waving a rainbow flag. The implication is crystal clear: The fight of African-Americans for equal rights is the same one LGBT Americans are fighting today.

Unbelievably, this conflation between skin color and sexual orientation surfaced during the recent unrest in Charlotte, North Carolina. In an interview with historian Brenda Tindal, Public Radio International’s John Hockenberry suggested that protesters and rioters who took to the street following the police shooting of Lamont Scott were actually angry about—get this—the new transgender bathroom law! Are you kidding me?

This kind of race-exploitation has infected even the highest levels of government. Back in May, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch filed a lawsuit against North Carolina to force accommodation on the transgender bathroom issue. “It was not so very long ago,” she then lectured the nation, “that states, including North Carolina, had other signs above restrooms, water fountains and public accommodations, keeping people out based on a distinction without a difference.”

It’s a line that has won the LGBT movement virtually endless mileage. Nobody wants to be on the wrong side of today’s equivalent of the Civil Rights struggle, or to be viewed like racists by future generations.

But the fact remains, the two issues are just not the same. And black leaders—many of whom fought for the right to be treated as equal human beings decades ago—keep telling us this.

Writing at the Charlotte Observer last summer, Clarence Henderson, the chairman of the North Carolina Martin Luther King, Jr., Commission, called it “insulting to liken African Americans’ continuing struggle for equality” to the LGBT movement.

Continue reading BreakPoint – LGBT is Not a Color: Stop Hijacking Civil Rights →

Today in the Word

Moody Global Ministries – Today in the Word – SALVATION RELATIONSHIPS: OBEDIENT CHILDREN

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Read 1 PETER 1:13–16

When Kate Middleton was preparing to marry Prince William, heir to the British throne, she reportedly had to undergo what the press dubbed “princess training.” She was instructed on how to greet royalty and other dignitaries, to put on and remove her coat, and to conduct formal banquets. She would be royalty and was expected to act in a way that reflected her new identity.

Peter has begun this letter by describ- ing the way that salvation forms our new identity. We are now followers of Christ, not this world, and although we experience suffering and trials, we know that God has promised us an eternal inheritance. With the reality of our new life established, Peter offers us “Christian training.”

Our verses today address the way our perspective and our relationship have changed through Jesus. First, rather than be distracted by uncontrolled passions of the world, we have an eternal perspective of hope (v. 13). We are no longer limited to thinking that this life is all there is, so we’d better eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we’ll die. Instead, we can exercise self- control as we anticipate the return of Christ (see Gal. 5:22–23).

Second, we are the children of God. He loves us and claims us. He has called us (v. 15). Our growth in holiness does not come out of our own efforts to impress others or to prove that we’re good enough for God to love us. He has already shown His love for us through Jesus, and we become more like Him when we focus on who He is and what He has done and will do. Our holiness results from our relationship to God as His beloved children who are sanctified by the Spirit (vv. 2, 16).

APPLY THE WORD

Peter’s first readers lived under a regime that actively persecuted Christians; our culture prioritizes personal passions over self-control and holiness. Prayerfully consider if there’s an area of life where you need more restraint. How can focusing on the return of Jesus and your identity as a child of God help you grow in holiness?

 

http://www.todayintheword.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – MAN ACCIDENTALLY MARRIES HIS GRANDDAUGHTER

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A sixty-eight-year-old man in Florida and his twenty-four-year-old wife were looking through his photo albums three months after they got married. To her shock, she recognized one of her husband’s children from his first marriage. That child was her estranged father, who expelled her from their house when she became pregnant as a teenager.

Her new husband was equally shocked. He explained that his first wife left him many years earlier, taking their children and moving to an undisclosed location. He was never able to find them. He eventually remarried but was divorced again. Years later, he met his current wife through a dating agency.

Though they were surprised to learn they are related, the couple vows to stay together. The wife explains: “Every couple is different and special in their own ways.”

This is not the last story we’ll read about unconventional marriages. According to Gallup, 123,000 same-sex weddings took place across the US in the year after the Supreme Court legalized such marriages. Organized movements are seeking to advance polygamy in our country. Zoophilia (sexual relations between people and animals) is becoming more accepted. It’s easy to think that the culture is sliding into a moral abyss from which there is no return and for which there is no hope.

But it’s always too soon to give up on God.

Continue reading Denison Forum – MAN ACCIDENTALLY MARRIES HIS GRANDDAUGHTER →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – What Is the Spirit-Filled Life?

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Ephesians 5:18-21

Although God wants every believer to be filled with the Spirit, many Christians are not sure what this means or what it looks like. To help us understand that whatever fills us controls us, Paul cites drunkenness as a negative example of “filling” and tells us to avoid it. Every believer is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, but the extent of His rule is determined by the Christian’s freedom to comply.

Think of this as a voluntary choice to surrender your life to the Spirit’s control—in other words, to be sensitive to His leadership and guidance, obedient to His promptings, and dependent upon His strength. The evidence of the Holy Spirit’s control is revealed in a person’s character. Those who have yielded their lives to Christ’s leadership are continually being transformed into His likeness. The degree of surrender determines the level of transformation.

Even though good works and faithful service are a result of being filled with the Holy Spirit, they are not necessarily signs of being yielded to Him. Remember, we are talking primarily about character rather than actions. It’s easier to serve the Lord in some manner than to love the unlovable or be patient with difficult people. But when the Spirit is in charge of our lives, He does through us what we cannot do for ourselves.

All believers decide who rules their life, by either actively surrendering to Christ or deliberately going their own way. Even those who try to avoid the issue by making no choice at all unknowingly opt for self-rule. The fullness of the Spirit and godly character await those who choose God over self.

Bible in One Year: Matthew 1-4

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — No Outsiders

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Read: Deuteronomy 10:12-22

Bible in a Year: Isaiah 17-19; Ephesians 5:17-33

What does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him.—Deuteronomy 10:12

In the remote region of Ghana where I lived as a boy, “Chop time, no friend” was a common proverb. Locals considered it impolite to visit at “chop time” (mealtime) because food was often scarce. The maxim applied to neighbors and outsiders alike.

But in the Philippines, where I also lived for a time, even if you visit unannounced at mealtime, your hosts will insist on sharing with you regardless of whether they have enough for themselves. Cultures differ for their own good reasons.

As the Israelites left Egypt, God provided specific instructions to govern their culture. But rules—even God’s rules—can never change hearts. So Moses said, “Change your hearts and stop being stubborn” (Deut. 10:16 nlt). Interestingly, right after issuing that challenge Moses took up the topic of Israel’s treatment of outsiders. God “loves the foreigner residing among you,” he said, “giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt” (vv. 18-19).

Israel served the “God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome” (v. 17). One powerful way they were to show their identification with God was by loving foreigners—those from outside their culture.

What might this small picture of God’s character mean for us today? How can we show His love to the marginalized and the needy in our world? —Tim Gustafson

Heavenly Father, help us bless others today by showing Your love in some small way.

In Christ, there are no outsiders.

INSIGHT: God commanded His people to allow the poor to feed on their lands (Lev. 19:9-10; 23:22; Deut. 24:19-21). “When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner” (Lev. 19:9-10; 23:22). Sim Kay Tee

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Opposite of Presence

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In a poem titled “Moments of Joy,” Denise Levertov tells the story of an old scholar who takes a room on the next street down from his grown children—”the better to concentrate on his unending work, his word, his world.” And though he comes and goes while they sleep, his children feel bereft. They want him nearer. But at times it happens that a son or daughter wakes in the dark and finds him sitting at the foot of the bed, or in the old rocker—”sleepless in his old coat, gazing into invisible distance, but clearly there to protect as he had always done.” The child springs up and flings her arms about him, pressing a cheek to his temple and taking him by surprise: “Abba!” the child exclaims, and Levertov concludes:

“And the old scholar, the father,

is deeply glad to be found.

That’s how it is, Lord, sometimes;

You seek, and I find.”(1)

Though many would like to say that the majority of our lives have been spent searching for God, perhaps it is more accurate to say that we have been sought. Even so, like the children in Levertov’s poem, time and again I know I find myself bereft of God’s presence. Sometimes it just feels like I am sitting in the dark.

One of my seminary professors once told me that God’s presence is not the opposite of God’s absence. At first glance this didn’t seem the least bit encouraging. And yet, maybe I have seen this notion lived out after all. For even when I am most stirred by God’s nearness—when God’s presence seems an undeniable truth—am I not also simultaneously stung by the ache of longing to be nearer or the reality of not quite yet being at home? Even in our best encounters with God, presence and absence remain intertwined. What might this then mean for the moments when I am feeling tormented by God’s absence?

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Opposite of Presence →

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Strength for Today – The Importance of Confession

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“If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:10).

Confession is the first step toward defeating sin.

It is often true that the hardest part of dealing with a problem is admitting that you have one. Beginning with Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:11-13), people have denied responsibility for their sins, and our generation is no exception. To acknowledge that one is a sinner, guilty of breaking God’s holy law, is not popular. People call sin by a myriad of other names, futilely hoping to define it out of existence. They do so, motivated by their innate awareness that there is a moral law and that there are consequences for violating it (Rom. 1:32).

But God’s people have always recognized the necessity of confession. After committing the terrible sins of adultery and murder, David acknowledged to Nathan the prophet, “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Sam. 12:13). Later he cried out to God, “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against Thee, Thee only, I have sinned, and done what is evil in Thy sight” (Ps. 51:3-4). Faced with a vision of the awesome majesty and holiness of God, Isaiah declared, “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips” (Isa. 6:5). Daniel was a man of unparalleled integrity, yet part of his prayer life involved confessing his sin (Dan. 9:20). Peter, the acknowledged leader of the apostles, said to Jesus, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” (Luke 5:8). The apostle Paul, the godliest man who ever lived (except for Jesus Christ), wrote this about himself: “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all” (1 Tim. 1:15).

The examples of those godly men illustrate a fundamental biblical truth: constant confession of sin characterizes true Christians (1 John 1:9). Those who claim to be believers but refuse to confess their sins deceive themselves (1 John 1:8) and make God a liar (1 John 1:10).

Suggestions for Prayer

Confess and forsake your sins today, and experience the blessedness of God’s forgiveness (Prov. 28:13).

For Further Study

Read and meditate on Nehemiah’s masterful prayer of confession in Nehemiah 1.

 

http://www.gty.org

Wisdom Hunters

Wisdom Hunters – Humility Values Others Above Itself 

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Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. Philippians 2:3-4

I work with a person who regularly asks me, “How can I pray for you?” Knowing they are genuine in their concern—I seek to share a vulnerable, heartfelt response about issues—both professionally and personally, that feed my anxieties. Invariably—my friend smiles—looks into my eyes, deep down into my soul and says, “Let me pray for you right now.” I stand delightfully amazed, but in my heart I kneel in humble gratitude to my heavenly Father. When a friend values my needs above their own—I feel the need to prayerfully do the same for other needy souls.

Since the Spirit has designed our hearts to put others above ourselves with acts of kindness, words of affirmation and gifts befitting the occasion, we are able to be comforted by love and to comfort in love. Just as bees instinctively swirl around the ripest fruit, so a life ripe with love encounters people (with a unique story) in need of care. This is not inherent to our natural operating system—for only a heart loved first by God can authentically and consistently esteem others above themselves. Fresh iterations of love must be downloaded and installed into our soul.

“Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:10).

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Turning Point

Today’s Turning Point with David Jeremiah – Better Than Feelings

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He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.

Psalm 23:3b

Recommended Reading

Psalm 19:7-11

Aleister Crowley was an early-twentieth-century British artist, novelist, and occultist. He founded a religion he called Thelema and saw himself as a prophet who would guide humanity into an age of self-realization. The Beatles were fans—Crowley was one of those appearing on the cover of the famous “Sgt. Pepper’s” album cover. Supposedly, the guiding rule of his religion was, “’Do what thou wilt’ shall be the whole of the Law.” Many people trace one of the guiding maxims of the 1960s—“If it feels good, do it”—back to Crowley.

“The Sixties” took that principle to heart and many today still do. How often do we hear people explain a decision by saying, “It just felt right”? But is “feeling good” enough of a guiding principle for life? Think about your own feelings: Today you feel good and tomorrow you don’t. The decision you make today, you wouldn’t make tomorrow. We need something more permanent, consistent, and dependable as a guiding principle for life. The psalmist trusted in God’s guidance (Psalm 23:3b) and in God’s Word (Psalm 19:7-11).

Don’t get caught up in the religion of “anything goes.” Establish your life on the guiding principles of God and His Word.

Men give advice; God gives guidance.

Leonard Ravenhill

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Matthew 5 – 6

 

http://www.davidjeremiah.org/

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Passing Judgment

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Do not judge and criticize and condemn others, so that you may not be judged and criticized and condemned yourselves. For just as you judge and criticize and condemn others, you will be judged and criticized and condemned, and in accordance with the measure you [use to] deal out to others, it will be dealt out again to you.— Matthew 7:1-2

I believe that pointing a finger at someone in judgment is often the way some people cover up their own weaknesses. Their theory seems to be, “Judge others before they have a chance to judge you.” I remember a girl in our neighborhood who constantly pointed to obese people and said terrible things about them. She was plump herself, and I often wondered if she criticized others in an effort to keep people from noticing her own weight.

I grew up in a family where judgment and criticism were a part of everyday life. So I became an expert at deciding how other people should live. The devil loves to keep us busy, mentally judging the faults of others. And the shortcomings in other people are often easy to see, especially when we’re looking for them.

There was a time when I enjoyed sitting in the mall, observing people as they walked by. I could usually find something wrong with every one of them. I could point out bad hairstyles, out-of-style clothes, and any number of other “problems.” When we choose to be judgmental, we will find that there is no end to the possibilities.

Notice I used the words “choose to be judgmental,” because that’s exactly what I did. If anyone had called me a judgmental or critical person, I would have denied it, because I wasn’t aware of my negative attitude. I thought I was just giving my innocent opinion. At that time, I wasn’t aware that I had a choice about my thoughts.

Another thing I didn’t think about then was the uselessness of my opinions. I didn’t help anyone by pointing out to my friends what I perceived to be other people’s shortcomings. I now know that we can choose the thoughts we want to focus on. We can’t always choose the thoughts that come to our minds, but we can decide to let them stay and fester or we can push them aside.

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