Tag Archives: religion

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Football coach “died a hero” protecting students at Florida shooting

Leave a comment

“The kids in this community loved him. They adored him. He was one of the most phenomenal people I knew. He was a phenomenal man.” That’s how Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel described Aaron Feis, an assistant football coach and security guard who was fatally shot trying to protect students during Wednesday’s mass shooting.

The school issued its own statement, noting that Feis “died a hero and he will forever be in our hearts and memories.” Coach Feis leaves behind his wife and a daughter.

In addition, geography teacher Scott Beigel reportedly shielded his students and paid with his life. Another victim, athletic director Chris Hixon, was also killed while protecting students.

As a father and grandfather, I cannot begin to imagine the gratitude I would feel for someone who died defending my family. But their sacrifice leads me to ask what you and I can do to protect our children and their schools.

Let’s assess the challenge before us, then consider a way every Christian in America can respond today.

How can we protect 140,000 schools? Continue reading Denison Forum – Football coach “died a hero” protecting students at Florida shooting →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Avoiding Confusion About Salvation

Leave a comment

 

1 John 5:11-15

God never intends to trick or puzzle believers. He wants us to be confident about our salvation and has clearly laid out the plan. So if uncertainty should arise in your mind, realize the problem isn’t with the Lord.

Someone else, however, does want us confused: Satan knows that doubts will make us less effective as Christians. Here are four major tactics he uses:

  1. Sin When we give in to temptation, our enemy piles on feelings of guilt so we’ll think, How can I be saved when I’m living like this? But Scripture assures us there’s no condemnation for believers in Christ (Rom. 8:1).
  2. Ignorance Unless we’re immersed in God’s Word, it’s easy to have just a hazy notion of what transpired when we came to faith. But if we’re well grounded, we’re less likely to question our salvation in tough times.
  3. Feelings Once we are saved, nothing can snatch us out of the Father’s hand (John 10:28-29). And yet sorrow and shame can make us want to hide instead of confessing and keeping lines of communication with God clear. (See Gen. 3:8; 1 John 1:9.) Be aware that feelings have nothing to do with the truth of our salvation.
  4. Harassment Sometimes the devil comes at us like a roaring lion, other times like an angel of light (1 Peter 5:8; 2 Corinthians 11:14). Whatever his approach, he wants to take our eyes off Jesus. Scripture, however, promises that no weapon formed against believers will prosper (Isa. 54:17).

Spending time in God’s Word will help you to stand securely in your salvation. Then you’ll be better prepared to resist Satan’s strategies.

Bible in One Year: Numbers 20-22

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Following Where He Leads

Leave a comment

Read: 1 Kings 19:19–21

Bible in a Year: Leviticus 17–18; Matthew 27:27–50

Then [Elisha] set out to follow Elijah and became his servant.—1 Kings 19:21

As a child, I looked forward to our church’s Sunday evening services. They were exciting. Sunday night often meant we got to hear from missionaries and other guest speakers. Their messages inspired me because of their willingness to leave family and friends—and at times, homes, possessions, and careers—to go off to strange, unfamiliar, and sometimes dangerous places to serve God.

Like those missionaries, Elisha left many things behind to follow God (1 Kings 19:19-21). Before God called him into service through Elijah, we don’t know much about Elisha—except that he was a farmer. When the prophet Elijah met him in the field where he was plowing, he threw his cloak over Elisha’s shoulders (the symbol of his role as prophet) and called him to follow. With only a request to kiss his mother and father goodbye, Elisha immediately sacrificed his oxen, burned his plowing equipment, said good-bye to his parents—and followed Elijah.

Though not many of us are called to leave family and friends behind to serve God as fulltime missionaries, God wants all of us to follow Him and to “live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to [us], just as God has called [us]” (1 Corinthians 7:17). As I’ve often experienced, serving God can be thrilling and challenging no matter where we are—even if we never leave home. —Alyson Kieda

Dear Lord, equip us to be Your missionaries wherever You have placed us—near or far, at home or abroad.

God will show us how to serve Him wherever we are.

INSIGHT: Elisha followed Elijah in ministry to his generation, and that pattern was not unique. In the final moments of the exodus, Moses—the leader and lawgiver of Israel—was succeeded by Joshua, who had been at his side for forty years. Centuries later, Jesus would follow John the Baptist (the second “Elijah” of Malachi 4:5 and Matthew 11:14) in proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom. These patterns of forerunners and followers are tied together by one of the most significant indicators in Scripture—names. The names of the three who followed Moses, Elijah, and John in ministry—Joshua, Elisha, and Jesus—all mean the same thing: “the Lord saves.” Throughout the years, this has been the confidence of the people of God. God saves us by His grace and then empowers us by His Spirit to follow Him and serve others where He places us.

Where has God called you to serve? Bill Crowder

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – An Experimental Fellowship

Leave a comment

“The Bible was not given for our information, but for our transformation.” —D. L. Moody

The Bible may be one of the best-selling books of all time, but it is a resource that polarises opinion. Some atheists are strongly opposed to it, as they maintain that scripture contains unhelpful, ill-informed, and incorrect teaching that is positively harmful for today’s society. Others take a more disinterested view of it, as they see it as a largely irrelevant piece of literature from a more primitive time, which inevitably contains an eclectic mixture of both good and bad instruction. By contrast, Christians believe the Bible is not only the word of God, but it is completely indispensable for all of humanity.

In truth, of course, many believers find parts of scripture difficult. Some of it is hard to understand or relate to, and the teaching doesn’t always have a lasting or deep impact. One obvious reason for this is that people have busy lives and whilst they often invest a great deal of energy developing their professional skills or taking part in hobbies or leisure activities, they simply don’t spend much time reading the Bible. Another reason is that often Christians only engage with scripture in a fairly surface-level way, like a sportsperson preparing for a contest by training in a manner that provides only limited improvement.

RZIM Chaplain, Tom Tarrants, suggests that people should look to the example of George Müller (1805-1898) for guidance in this area. The latter was an evangelist who achieved fame not only for helping hundreds of thousands of British children in his orphanages and schools, but also for his steadfast faith that the providence of God would meet the considerable needs of his many ventures. Yet he is less known for the life-changing discovery he made in 1841, which lay behind the deep joy and faith that defined and drove his ministry.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – An Experimental Fellowship →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Let the Holy Spirit Take You from “Doing” to “Being”

Leave a comment

 

But you will receive power and ability when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be My witnesses [to tell people about Me] both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth.” — Acts 1:8

I remember when I was a born-again Christian who was actively involved in church life, but I was not getting victory over my problems. I thought that if I acted like a Christian and looked like I had my act together, I would be happy. But doing the right thing wasn’t enough. I needed a change on the inside.

Acts 1:8 speaks of receiving God’s power to be His witnesses. Notice it does not say to do witnessing but to be witnesses. Doing is a different thing than being. I had my outside polished up, but my inner life was a wreck. Quite often the inner turmoil exploded, and then everybody could see I wasn’t quite what I appeared to be.

Thankfully, I came to the point where I was desperate for a move of God in my life and knew there had to be more than what I had experienced in my relationship with Him. As I cried out to Him in prayer for help, He touched my life in a powerful way, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit gave me a real love for God and His Word like never before. Now, I was no longer faking it.

I encourage you to receive this same Holy Spirit power. Let Him take you from “doing” to “being.”

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Reap in Joy

Leave a comment

“They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him” (Psalm 126:5,6 KJV).

How long has it been since you have shed tears of compassion over those who do not know our Savior as you pray for their salvation? Is God using you to introduce others to Christ? Is your church a center of spiritual harvest? If not, it is likely that you and other members of your church are shedding few tears over the lost.

It is a promise of God that when we go forth with a burdened heart sharing the precious seed of the Word of God, proclaiming that most joyful news ever announced, we can be absolutely assured – beyond a shadow of doubt – that we shall reap the harvests and, in the process, experience the supernatural joy that comes to those who are obedient to God.

It is a divine formula. But where does that burden and compassion for the souls of men originate? In the heart of God. And it is only as men are controlled and impowered by the Holy Spirit of God that there can be that compassion. It is not something that we can work up, not something that we can create in the energy of the flesh, but it is a result of walking in the fullness and power of the Holy Spirit, with minds and hearts saturated with the Word of God.

The Old Testament references to sowing are often accompanied by sorrow and anxiety, evidenced by the tears to which the psalmist refers. As a result, the time of reaping is one of inexpressible joy.

Bible Reading: Proverbs 11:27-31

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will ask the Holy Spirit of God who dwells within me to give me a greater burden of the souls of those around me, so that I may indeed weep genuine tears of compassion as I go forth sowing precious seed. I know that I shall reap abundantly and, in the process, experience the joy which comes to those who obey God by weeping, sowing and reaping.

 

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Pray Honestly

Leave a comment

 

Listen to Today’s Devotion

Prayer really is simple. Resist the urge to complicate it. Don’t take pride in well-crafted prayers. Don’t apologize for incoherent prayers. No games. No cover-ups. Just be honest—honest to God.

Climb into His lap. Tell Him everything that is on your heart or tell Him nothing at all. Just lift your heart to heaven and declare, Father…Daddy!  We have stress…fear…guilt…grief, and demands on all sides; sometimes all we can summon is a plaintive, “Oh, Father!” If so, that’s enough. Your heavenly Father will wrap you in His arms!

Here’s my prayer challenge for you. Every day for 4 weeks, pray 4 minutes.  I think you’ll find yourself connecting with God like never before!

Before Amen

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

 

Home

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – School shooting in Florida: “It’s supposed to be a safe place”

Leave a comment

The image is one I’ll never forget: a woman with an Ash Wednesday cross on her forehead holding another woman as they grieve together. The picture was taken on one of the holiest days of the year for many Christians. It shows that, no matter how sincere our faith, none of us is immune from tragedy in this broken world.

Here’s what we know this morning: a shooter opened fire yesterday afternoon at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, fifty miles north of Miami. At least seventeen people have died; fourteen others were wounded, five of whom suffered life-threatening injuries.

The suspected gunman, nineteen-year-old Nikolas Cruz, began shooting outside the school, then barged inside. According to Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, he “set off the fire alarm so the kids would come pouring out of the classrooms into the hall. And there the carnage began.”

Cruz was taken into custody nearly two hours after the shooting was reported. He is a former student who had been expelled from the school for disciplinary reasons.

Continue reading Denison Forum – School shooting in Florida: “It’s supposed to be a safe place” →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – The Power of Love

Leave a comment

 

Luke 15:11-24

The limitations of the English language at times diminish our understanding of scriptural concepts. For instance, there is only one word for love in English, but the New Testament uses two different Greek words. One of them, phileo, refers to brotherly concern and affection, but the more powerful term agape signifies a sacrificial commitment to another’s satisfaction, security, and development. This is the kind of love that God has for us—and that the Holy Spirit produces in and through believers.

Perhaps the best way to understand agape is to see what it looks like. In His parable of the prodigal son, Jesus describes a father’s sacrificial love for his wayward son. When the young man demanded an early inheritance, the father didn’t deny his request, though he knew it would lead only to bitterness. So despite personal and financial sacrifice, he gave the son his share. Then the father waited patiently while the prodigal learned a difficult lesson.

No doubt that was a trying time for the father because a good dad wants to protect his children from mistakes and the resulting consequences. But a wise man also knows that some hard truths must be learned through painful experience. At times the best thing we can do is trust the Lord to reach defiant hearts.

But agape love doesn’t just let go; it also forgives and restores. When the prodigal son returned home humbled and contrite, his father reached out to receive him and restore him to the family—just our heavenly Father does for us.

Bible in One Year: Numbers 17-19

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — The Advance Team

Leave a comment

Read: John 14:1–14

Bible in a Year: Leviticus 15–16; Matthew 27:1–26

My Father’s house has many rooms; . . . I am going there to prepare a place for you.—John 14:2

A friend recently prepared to relocate to a city more than 1,000 miles from her current hometown. She and her husband divided the labor of moving to accommodate a short timeline. He secured new living arrangements, while she packed their belongings. I was astounded by her ability to move without previewing the area or participating in the house hunt, and asked how she could do so. She acknowledged the challenge but said she knew she could trust her husband because of his attention to her preferences and needs over their years together.

In the upper room, Jesus spoke with His disciples of His coming betrayal and death. The darkest hours of Jesus’s earthly life, and that of the disciples as well, lay ahead. He comforted them with the assurance that He would prepare a place for them in heaven, just as my friend’s husband prepared a new home for their family. When the disciples questioned Jesus, He pointed them to their mutual history and the miracles they’d witnessed Him perform. Though they would grieve Jesus’s death and absence, He reminded them He could be counted on to do as He’d said.

Even in the midst of our own dark hours, we can trust Him to lead us forward to a place of goodness. As we walk with Him, we too will learn to trust increasingly in His faithfulness. —Kirsten Holmberg

Help me, Lord, to lean on You when my life feels uncertain and hard. You are trustworthy and good.

We can trust God to lead us through difficult times.

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Journey of Dust

Leave a comment

The sun bore down on my neck as I walked through neatly laid stones, each row like another line in a massive book. My eyes strained to take in all of the information—name, age, rank, country—and perhaps also death itself, the fragility of life, the harsh reality of war. In that field of graves, a war memorial for men lost as prisoners of war, slaves laboring to construct the Burma-Siam railway, I felt as the psalmist: “laid low in the dust.” Or like Job, sitting among the dust and ashes of a great tragedy. Then one stone stopped my wandering and said what I could not. On an epitaph in the middle of the cemetery was written: “There shall be in that great earth, a richer dust concealed.”(1)

It is helpful, I think, to be reminded that we are dust. We are material; when we die, we  remain material. It is a reminder to hold as we move through life—through successes, disappointments, questions, and  answers. For the Christian, it is also a truth to help us approach the vast and terrible circumstances leading up to the crucifixion of the human son of God. Beginning with the ashes of Ash Wednesday, the journey through Lent into the light and darkness of Holy Week is for those made in dust who will return to dust, those willing to trace the breath that began all of life to the place where Christ breathed his last. It is a journey that expends everything within us.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – The Journey of Dust →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – The Best Way to Start the Day

Leave a comment

 

I anticipated the dawning of the morning and cried [in childlike prayer]; I hoped in Your word.— Psalm 119:147 (AMPC)

How do you start your day? Do you hurriedly get out of bed and barely make it out the door on time? Do you turn on the TV? Do you exercise? Whatever your morning routine may be, the most important question you need to ask yourself is, What role does God play when I start my day?

It took me a lot of years to figure this out, but I now know that the very best way to start my day is by giving thanks to God for what He’s done for me and asking Him how I can be a blessing to other people.

I encourage you to spend time each morning focusing on the good things God has done in your life. Think about the dangers and difficulties He’s brought you through, the ways He’s healed you and changed you, and how good it is to know He cares for you and hears your prayers.

When you learn to set your mind on God each morning, He’ll give you all the peace and joy you need to live for Him as you go about the rest of your day.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – Deliverance from Fears

Leave a comment

 

“I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears” (Psalm 34:4, KJV).

Susie seemed outwardly to be a well-poised, lovely young wife and mother with everything under control. She was active in her church and attended other Christian gatherings during the week. But secretly she was filled with fear from which psychologists and psychiatrists with whom she consulted were unable to set her free.

She became very discouraged and depressed. “What can I do?” she asked through her tears. “I have everything to live for and no real reason to be afraid, but my days are consumed with worry and dread and fear, as I anticipate all kinds of evil things happening to me, to my husband , to my children.”

“Do you believe that God in heaven has the power to remove your fears, Susie?” I asked.

“Yes, of course,” she replied.

“Do you believe He loves you?”

“Yes, I believe that.”

“Do you believe He wants to remove that fear from you?” And I read her the above passage.

We turned together to 1 John 5:14, 15: “If we ask anything according to God’s will, He hears and answers.” This is the promise that every believer can claim whenever there is a command or another promise. I asked her if she would like to join with me in a prayer of faith that God would deliver her according to this promise.

Together we prayed, and though there was no immediate, dramatic deliverance, with the passing of days God set her free. Day after day she claimed by faith this and other promises from God’s holy, inspired Word.

Are you plagued with fears? Are your days consumed with worry? Saturate your mind with God’s truth — God’s supernatural promises – and begin to claim by faith this supernatural life which is your heritage in Christ.

Bible Reading: Psalm 34:1-7

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: At the first sign of a fear in my life, I will commit it to the Lord and trust Him for deliverance, and I will seek to help others whose hearts are filled with fear. I will seek to introduce them to the Prince of Peace – the God of all comfort.

 

http://www.cru.org

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Be Like Little Children

Leave a comment

 

Listen to Today’s Devotion

We prayer wimps fear mis-praying. What is the expected etiquette and dress code for prayer? What if we kneel instead of stand? Jesus answers in Matthew 18:3 when He says, “Become as little children.” Carefree…joy-filled…playful…trusting… and curious. Trust more—strut less.

God prefers this greeting, God, you are my Daddy, and I am your child! It’s hard to show off and call God Daddy at the same time. It’s impossible, in fact. Remember that prayer doesn’t depend on how you pray. The power of prayer depends on the One who hears the prayer!

Here’s my simple prayer challenge for you: Every day for 4 weeks, pray 4 minutes. And just be honest—honest to God. You will experience prayer like never before.

Before Amen

For more inspirational messages please visit Max Lucado.

Home

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – You can order a hamburger with an engagement ring

Leave a comment

For $3,000, you can order a hamburger that comes with an engagement ring on the side.

Pauli’s, in Boston’s North End, will sell you a Big Boy burger with a 7/8 carat Neil Lane ring nestled in the bun. The ring is framed with round diamonds and a fourteen-carat gold band.

You’ve missed Valentine’s Day, however-the restaurant requires forty-eight hours’ notice.

Today’s holiday didn’t start with St. Valentine. Many historians think the tradition began more than two thousand years ago with an ancient Roman festival called Lupercalia. This holiday in turn inherited some of its traditions from an earlier festival called Februa, from which we get the name of “February.”

Lupercalia began each year when a pagan priest sacrificed goats and dogs to the goddess Juno. The hides of the animals were cut into strips by the priests. Women were then struck by these hides as they ran counterclockwise around Palatine Hill in Rome. This was supposed to make them more likely to have children.

Continue reading Denison Forum – You can order a hamburger with an engagement ring →

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Acceptable Worship and Service

Leave a comment

 

Malachi 2:1-9

Malachi delivered a hard message to the priests of Israel. Many years earlier the Lord had chosen the descendants of Levi to have charge of the temple service and to instruct the people. This sacred duty was an honor—it should have caused them to stand in awe of the Lord and serve Him with fear and reverence. But in Malachi’s day the priests had dishonored Him with their attitudes and actions.

At first glance, it may seem that this Old Testament passage has nothing to do with us, but as believers in Christ, we are a holy priesthood who offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God (1 Peter 2:5). This truth should cause us to pause and consider whether we are fulfilling this sacred duty with the right attitudes and actions. The failures of the priests in Malachi 2 warn us of attitudes that will lead us down the path of irreverence and disobedience.

  • First, the priests dishonored God’s name by serving Him in a careless manner and offering unacceptable sacrifices. (See Mal. 2:1-3.)
  • Second, they were ungrateful for God’s covenant, which gave them close access to Him through their priestly service. (See Mal. 2:4-6.)
  • Third, they didn’t preserve knowledge of God’s Word but led people astray with their instructions. (See Mal. 2:7-9.)

Since we are now God’s holy priesthood, we must ask ourselves if we have dishonored His name with careless worship, ingratitude, or a failure to uphold His truth as revealed in Scripture. Salvation is a marvelous blessing, but it comes with responsibilities. Our worship and service are acceptable only if they are offered according to God’s desires and standards—not ours.

Bible in One Year: Numbers 14-16

 

http://www.intouch.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — A Blessing Bowl

Leave a comment

 

Read: Romans 1:1–10

Bible in a Year: Leviticus 14; Matthew 26:51–75

I thank my God every time I remember you.—Philippians 1:3

The familiar bing of an arriving email caught my attention while I wrote at my computer. Usually I try to resist the temptation to check every email but the subject line was too enticing: “You are a blessing.”

Eagerly, I opened it to discover a faraway friend telling me she was praying for my family. Each week, she displays one Christmas card photo in her kitchen table “Blessing Bowl” and prays for that family. She wrote, “I thank my God every time I remember you” (Philippians 1:3) and then highlighted our efforts to share God’s love with others—our “partnership” in the gospel.

Through my friend’s intentional gesture, the apostle Paul’s words to the Philippians came trickling into my inbox, creating the same joy in my heart I suspect readers received from his first-century thank-you note. It seems Paul made it a habit to speak his gratitude to those who worked alongside him. A similar phrase opens many of his letters: “I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world” (Romans 1:8).

In the first century, Paul blessed his co-laborers with a thank-you note of prayerfulness. In the twenty-first century, my friend used a Blessing Bowl to bring joy into my day. How might we thank those who serve in the mission of God with us today? —Elisa Morgan

Father, help us to intentionally bless those who serve alongside us.

Who can you thank today?

INSIGHT: Paul’s letter to the Romans is generally considered his most intensely theological letter. Yet it opens and closes with great warmth, revealing an unexpected affection. The opening shows this personal touch through gratitude, and the final chapter displays Paul’s care for the Romans in words of greetings—personally expressing his heart for more than twenty-five different people. Included in the list are ministry leaders (Priscilla, Aquila; 16:3), prisoners (Andronicus, Junia; v. 7), and both men and women—all considered fellow workers in the gospel. In the fellowship of the gospel, there is much to be thankful for, much to celebrate, and many co-laborers whom we can encourage with our gratitude.

 

http://www.odb.org

Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias Ministry – A Paradoxical Call

Leave a comment

For Christians around the world, the life and ministry of Jesus—his birth, his life and death, his resurrection and ascension—are enacted and re-told through the celebrations and seasons of the church year. The Christian church prepares for his coming during the season of Advent. Anticipation grows for the triumphant entry of God into the world in Jesus on Christmas Day, while the season of Epiphany, that follows Advent, invites all to see God at work in the life and ministry of Jesus. Each season of the church year is filled with expectation, discovery, and hope.

Ash Wednesday begins the season of Lent. And unlike the celebration of Christmas day or the expectation of the season of Epiphany, Lent is a solemn season for the Christian. As part of the Ash Wednesday worship service, ashes are imposed on one’s forehead in the pattern of a cross. The imposed ashes are the remains of the Palm Sunday fronds from the previous year—fronds reminiscent of those waved triumphantly as Jesus entered Jerusalem on his way to Golgotha—but that now serve as a reminder of death and mortality. The Jews of Jesus’s day believed he entered the city as the coming King; they could not see how his reign would be from a Roman cross.

Continue reading Ravi Zacharias Ministry – A Paradoxical Call →

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Take Responsibility for Your Happiness

Leave a comment

I know that there is nothing better for them than to be glad and to get and do good as long as they live.— Ecclesiastes 3:12 (AMPC)

One of the most important lessons I have learned is that I cannot count on someone else to make me happy. God has given us the ability to take responsibility for our own happiness.

A lot of people aren’t happy unless a certain person behaves a certain way, or a certain situation works out just the way they want it to. Every day we let our happiness depend on other people and situations, when in reality, God wants us to find our happiness in Him.

There was a time when I would feel sorry for myself if Dave went to play golf the day after one of our conferences. I wanted him to go shopping or watch a movie with me. But God showed me that we have different ways of relaxing and unwinding.

That’s just one example, but there are so many ways that we put unrealistic expectations on people and rely on them to keep us happy. God wants us to look to Him first and rely on Him for our happiness.

Prayer Starter: God, my happiness should only rely on You, not other people and situations. Help me to see any unrealistic expectations I have so I can take responsibility for my own happiness.

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – He Bears and He Gives

Leave a comment

“What a glorious Lord! He who daily bears our burdens also gives us our salvation” (Psalm 68:19).

Did it ever occur to you that you are disobeying God when you carry your own burdens, when you are worried, frustrated and confused over circumstances? That is exactly what God’s Word says.

In 1 Peter 5:7, God gives a specific command to His children, “Cast…all your cares upon Him; for He careth for you” (KJV). Not to cast all of one’s cares upon the Lord is to disobey Him and to deny oneself that supernatural walk with God among men.

Is it not logical to believe that He who loved us so much that He was willing to give His only begotten Son would also be faithful to keep His promise to bear our burdens daily?

As the psalmist so aptly states, the Lord bears our burdens on a daily basis for the believer, the day will never come when God fails to carry our load, to strengthen us, to impart power to us through His indwelling Holy Spirit – if we but ask.

Marvel of marvels, the psalmist points out, our heavenly Father not only is our great burden-bearer; He is also the very one who gives us our salvation and the assurance of eternal life. How could anyone ask for more!

With the sure knowledge that our sins are forgiven (salvation) and the assurance that He knows all about every burden we face – more important, He bears them for us – our lives should reflect honor and glory to Him by the way in which we share His blessings and the message of His great love with others.

Provision for the supernatural life is promised in the Old Testament as well as the New, as evidenced by this glorious promise in the Psalms.

Bible Reading: Psalm 68:15-18

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will take careful inventory of my burdens and my worries and be sure that I am casting them all on the Lord with the certain knowledge that He cares for me. I will also encourage those around me to cast their cares upon the Lord.

 

http://www.cru.org