GRACE: A MANY SPLENDORED THING

by Charles R. Swindoll

Psalm 84:11

We use grace to describe many things in life:

• A well-coordinated athlete or dancer
• Good manners and being considerate of others
• Beautiful, well-chosen words
• Consideration and care for other people
• Various expressions of kindness and mercy

Those statements remind me of Christ. What a perfect illustration of grace! Think of several examples with me. He stood alongside a woman caught in adultery. The Law clearly stated, "Stone her." The grace killers who set her up demanded the same. Yet He said to those self-righteous Pharisees, "He who is without sin, let him cast the first stone." What grace! Under the Law they had every legal right to bury her beneath the rocks in their hands . . . and they were ready. There they stood with self-righteous fire in their eyes, but He intervened in grace.

When His friend Lazarus died, Martha met Him on the road and Mary later faced Him in the house. Both blamed Him for not coming earlier: "If You had been here, my brother would not have died!" There is strong accusation in those words. He took them in grace. With the turn of His hand, He could have sent them to eternity; but He refused to answer them back in argument. That is grace.

When He told stories, grace was a favorite theme. He employed a gracious style in handling children. He spoke of the prodigal son in grace. As He told stories of people who were caught in helpless situations, grace abounded . . . as with the good Samaritan. And instead of extolling the religious official who spoke of how proud God must be to have him in His family, Christ smiled with favor on the unnamed sinner who said, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner." Even from the cross He refused to be angry toward His enemies. Remember His prayer? "Father, forgive them . . . " No resentment, no bitterness. Amazing, this grace! Remarkable, the freedom and release it brought. And it came in full force from the only One on earth who had unlimited power, the Son of God.

Immanuel - Christ in You

John 14:16-20

When Jesus Christ was born, God in human flesh dwelt among mankind. The long-awaited Messiah had come into the world. Immanuel was here.

The news was given first to the shepherds, who hurried to see this God-man for themselves. From there, they spread the word that a Savior has been born (Luke 2:20). What a momentous day! God had sent His Son into the world to live among the people.

For 30 years, Jesus lived in obscurity—till the Father’s appointed time for Him to begin His work. Then for three years, He ministered among Jews and Gentiles, teaching and preaching to whoever would listen. In the end, His message and His person were rejected; He was crucified on a cross and buried in a tomb. It appeared that Immanuel was gone.

However, the resurrection proved that was wrong. And then on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was given to all believers (Acts 2:1, 4) just as Jesus had promised. The Lord’s Spirit would now live within them forever, guiding them into all truth and leading them in the way they were to go. The promise was not just for the disciples but for every person who chooses to trust in Jesus.

If you’ve acknowledged that you are a sinner and accepted Christ’s payment for the penalty you owe, the Spirit now lives in you. Through Him, you have an intimate connection with God. Take time to dwell on the divine mystery of Christ in you. Let the knowledge of His constant presence transform loneliness into comfort, fear into faith, and weakness into strength.

Becoming Real

December 22, 2008

Becoming Real
by Sarah Jennings, Crosswalk.com Family Editor

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel" (which means, God with us).” Matthew 1: 18-24


The story is about a toy rabbit given to a boy for Christmas. The rabbit befriends one of the oldest, wisest toys in the nursery – The Skin Horse. One day, he asks the Skin Horse what it takes to become a real rabbit instead of sawdust-filled bunny. Here is an excerpt of their conversation from Margery Williams’ classic tale, The Velveteen Rabbit:

"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"

"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."

My stepmother, a family counselor, would smile at the Skin Horse’s words to his young friend. She approaches her calling as more than patching up broken lives, but helping each person become what she calls “real.” A “real” person is one who has shed all that is false and embraced what is true and pure. A theological word for becoming “real” would be sanctification.

I am often tempted to approach Christmas similar to the way I’d like to approach sanctification – as something that happened all at once and can now be relegated to a box from the past, marked “done.” Yet this Christmas, I am struck with how the first Christmas is very closely tied to our ongoing journey towards “realness.”

That’s because Christmas is the day God became Real. Oh, sure God’s always been real, but on that day, he became real to us in a special way. He entered the world as a baby that could be cuddled and held by people like you and me.

Theologians have a fancy word for God becoming Real: the Incarnation.

What is so amazing about the Incarnation is that God didn’t merely become similar to us -- He wasn’t like an angel who experimented with a few human experiences. No, God became fully human, through and through. And he didn’t just become human to empathize with us (although He certainly does), but to quite literally transform us, through and through. You see, if God hadn’t become Real, you and I would have no hope of becoming real.

St. Athanasius, a great defender of the doctrine of Incarnation explained it like this:

“He sanctified the body by being in it … Just as the sun is not defiled by the contact of its rays with earthly objects, but rather enlightens and purifies them, so He Who made the sun is not defiled by being made known in a body, but rather the body is cleansed and quickened by His indwelling.”

Even before the Cross, Jesus’ birth began the reversal of the divorce between creation and the Divine caused by Adam and Eve’s fall from grace. By becoming man, God didn’t merely descend to our human level but lifted humanity up, preparing us share in God's kingdom. Sin and its effects on the body and soul met their match in the mere existence of this Child.

The miracle of the Incarnation not only changes humanity’s relationship with God, but also with each other. After the Fall, Adam and Eve hid from one another. Family life was splintered, tainted by our first parents. Now, can you imagine the first Christmas? Mary and Joseph, husband and wife, held God Incarnate in their arms. This humble couple peered into the Face of the very same God who, in the Old Testament scriptures, could not be directly looked upon or touched. The same God from whom their first mother and father fled in shame. Jesus’ quiet birth to Mary and Joseph elevated marriage and family life beyond its natural and legal purposes to a calling that glorifies God and unites us with each other.

“Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. (Luke 2:9) On the first Christmas, Jesus, Mary and Joseph still had a journey ahead of them. You and I also have a journey ahead of us – we are not finished products yet. As we walk life’s road, shedding the old for the new along the way, let’s imitate Mary by “treasuring up” the miracle of the Incarnation in our hearts. Meditate on the fact that Our God became Man so that all that was once lost could be restored, and we as His people, could share in His glory. That’s as real as it gets.

Intersecting Faith & Life: The words of the Skin Horse are a reminder to me that the path to holiness in Christ can be a humbling road, but well worth it. Do you have any "sharp edges" or fragile tendencies hindering your journey? Ask God what sins, habits, or attitudes you need to discard this Christmas to make room for His sanctifying grace in your life.

Further Reading

Colossians 3: 17 – 20
Luke 1: 26-38
Luke 2: 22 - 40

The Passion - Something to be Passionate About

The Passion - Something to be Passionate About
by Ed Young

Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. Romans 12:4-5

The church has been called a "body" of believers with Christ at the head. And just like our human bodies, the body of Christ has many parts. But what are these parts? What does this body consist of? Is it the church building, the classrooms, the landscape, and the parking lot? No. The body of Christ consists of much more profound and important parts than physical locations or buildings.
The parts of the body of Christ are you and me.

Without each of its parts, a body will not function the way that it is designed. If your nose were missing, your body would not function to its full potential. Without your shoulder, your arm would not be as useful. For the church to function as the vehicle to spread God's message of truth, hope and love, all of the parts of the body must be present.

But there is one more thing necessary for the body to reach its potential. The parts of the body must be functioning - they have to work. If you have ever broken your arm or leg, then you know how useless that broken limb is until it is working again. That is true with the church too. Just showing up for one hour a week to worship corporately is not enough to keep the body healthy and working. God wants each of us to use our gifts for his glory and to use those gifts to serve in the church.

Too many of us, though, put church and service at church on the back burners of our lives. We cram our schedules full of events and activities until there is no longer room for everything. And too often church is what gets pushed aside. But that is not what Christ intended. He wants us to live our lives with the church - to do life with church as a priority. And nothing should take priority over living the life that Christ wants for each of us.

This week, remember that you are a vital part of the body of Christ. Remember that you are needed in order for that body to reach its potential. Use the gifts that you have to help spread God's message. Remember, the church is one thing that Christ was passionate about. It is something that you should be passionate about too.

Stubborn Independence

December 15, 2008
STUBBORN INDEPENDENCEby Charles R. Swindoll
Read Acts 9:28--31
Rather than considering yourself (even secretly) indispensable, remind yourself often, It's the Lord's work to be done the Lord's way. I first heard that principle from Francis Schaeffer while attending one of his lectures. There he stood in knickers and a turtleneck sweater, delivering this very message to a group of young, idealistic listeners---many of us struggling to find our way. I heard him say this again and again: "The Lord's work must be done the Lord's way. The Lord's work must be done the Lord's way. The Lord's work must be done the Lord's way."
If you're in a hurry, you can make it work your way. It may have all the marks of promotion, but it won't be the Lord's way. Stop and realize that. It may be time for you to be let down off your wall in a basket to learn that in your life.

John Pollock, in his splendid book The Apostle, states, "The irony was not lost on him that the mighty Paul, who had originally approached Damascus with all the panoply of the high priest's representative, should make his last exit in a fish basket, helped by the very people he had come to hurt."
That about says it all, doesn't it?

Just to set the record straight, our lives are not caught "in the fell clutch of circumstance." Our heads are not to be "bloodied, but unbowed." You and I are neither the "masters of our fate" nor are we the "captains of our souls."* We are to be wholly, continually, and completely dependent on the mercy of God, if we want to do the Lord's work the Lord's way. Paul had to learn that.

My question is: Are you learning that? If not, today would be a good day to start. Now is the time to humble yourself under His mighty hand. If you don't, eventually He will do it for you. And it will hurt. In His time, in His way, He will conquer your stubborn independence.

God is never pleased with a spiritually independent spirit.

The Easiest Thing To Do Is Nothing

Galatians 6:9 "Let us not lose heart in doing good."


It's no secret that America is in the midst of a spiritual and moral crisis. Polls today indicate that most Americans are deeply concerned about the direction our nation is heading. The real problem is a critical shortage of people who care enough to get off the sidelines and are determined to make a difference. Sometimes it only takes one person to turn the flow from negative to positive.


Take, for instance, Babe Ruth, the most famous baseball player of all time. The Babe finished his career in a slump, and according to one legendary story, he was jeered mercilessly one day in Cincinnati. As he made his customary trot off the field to the dugout, the fans began to yell obscenities at him. The booing intensified until a little boy jumped a fence and ran to his hero's side.


The child threw his arms around Babe's legs, crying as he fiercely hugged him. Moved by the young lad's display of affection and emotion, Ruth gently swept the boy upwards and into his arms. As they walked off the field, the man and boy cried together.


Suddenly, the hoots, howls and curses ceased. And the eerie silence was replaced by a thunderous ovation. Fans of all ages now began to weep. One small boy's courageous actions had changed the behavior of thousands of people.


I can't help but wonder how long the boy sat there listening to the cursing, angry crowd before he did something. Probably not very long.


And today, how much worse must our nation become before individuals are moved by compassion and conviction to get out of their seats and decide to make a difference?


As I pray for our nation and its families, I continue to sense that the battle will be won by laymen and women like you. As Paul says in Galatians 6:9, "Let us not lose heart in doing good."


Prayer: That God would burden your heart with the need to be involved in the battle.


Discuss: In what ways are you concerned about the direction our country is headed?

The Real Santa Claus

The Real Santa Claus by Sarah Jennings, Crosswalk.com Family Editor
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. Romans 1:16 NIV
His eyes-how they twinkled! His dimples how merry!His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.~ "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" by Clement Clarke Moore (1823)
My dad used to take my sisters and me down to Miller & Rhodes for a visit with the "Real Santa Claus." The trip made for some my favorite childhood memories. This Santa wasn't some ordinary mall Santa. The "Real Santa" arrived via reindeer-pulled sleigh and -- you bet – slid down a chimney. His full, white beard was genuine, and his beautiful friend, the Snow Queen, glittered as she greeted each awe-struck child.
But the real clincher occurred when, after waiting for hours in a sea of overexcited children, Santa called my siblings and me by name to join him on his big, comfy lap.
Of course, come adulthood, I discovered the beloved "Real Santa" was actually a local man with a local legacy -- a kind-hearted, Christian grandfather who delighted in bringing joy to children like me. (And, if you're wondering, the friendly Snow Queen was wired so "Santa" could hear our names as we approached).
I suppose we all have to step off the Polar Express at some point and accept that Santa is just mythological figure. Or is he? As it turns out, there really was a Santa Claus. He went by the less marketable title Bishop Nicholas of Myra. While he never wore a red suit, smoked a pipe, or slid down chimneys, his story actually has a lot to do with the true meaning of Christmas.
Stories of the Real St. Nick
Researching the life of St. Nicholas presents a challenge – he seems destined to be obscured by legend, even in the history books. But even if the facts are a bit murky, there are some things we know with relative certainty.
We first encounter Nicholas as a compassionate young man in 4th century Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). Both of his parents had passed away, leaving the grief-stricken youth a substantial inheritance. Nicholas decided the money would go to charity.
It wasn't long after this decision that he encountered a family in need. The father had lost his daughters' dowries, and in those days this meant the three women had no hope for marriage. As a last resort, the father decided to sell them into prostitution.
When Nicholas heard of the family's plight, and the father's horrific solution, he did something very much in the spirit of Santa Claus: He secretly visited their home by night, throwing a bag of gold coins through the family's window. He repeated his covert act of charity three times, resulting in the marriages of all three sisters. During his third visit, the father discovered his identity and expressed deep gratitude for his kindness.
St. Nicholas went on to assist many others, often anonymously. His generous and creative commitment to the needy gave rise to many unconfirmed legends and miracles over the centuries, but one fact is known for certain: his virtue resulted in his appointment as Bishop of Myra.
Defender of the Faith
Though less magical sounding, Nicholas' role as Bishop gives us even greater reason to associate this Saint with Christmas.
That's because Nicholas' life unfolded during a pivotal era of Christendom. After years of terrible persecution, the rise of Roman Emperor Constantine in 313 A.D. brought legal acceptance of Christianity. Legend has it that Bishop Nicholas was among the many Christians who endured imprisonment and torture for the faith until Constantine freed him.
But the joys of freedom were short-lived because the Church faced a threat from within: A heresy called Arianism was spreading confusion among the faithful.
Arianism, named after its promoter Arius, denied Christianity's central doctrine of the Trinity by claiming that while Jesus was the Son of God, the Son was not one (united in essence, nature, or substance) with the Father. In other words, Arius claimed Jesus Christ was not the eternal Word made flesh (John 1: 14), relegating Him to a lesser status -- a sort of "secondary god."
St. Nicholas was one of the defenders of the true Gospel, clarifying Jesus' identity against Arius' confusing teachings. Some stories even claim Bishop Nicholas boldly confronted Arius at the historic Council of Nicea (although there are no official records of Nicholas' presence at the Council.)
Thanks to the devotion of Christians like St. Nicholas, St. Athanasius, and St. Gregory of Nyssa, Arianism eventually died out. But had it prevailed, we could not celebrate the true miracle of Christmas: the Incarnation, the Word made Flesh, realized in the birth of Jesus Christ. And without fully understanding Christmas we ultimately would have lost the meaning of the Cross, too.
When Did St. Nick become "Santa Claus"?
When did St. Nick trade in the Bishop's miter for a fuzzy, red hat? Not for a long time. Bishop Nicholas' generosity and devotion endeared him to the masses. After his death, churches were named after him, and artists portrayed him in their works, spreading his popularity throughout the Mediterranean, Europe and Asia. Over time, St. Nick's legacy was associated with love of children and gift-giving, but the widespread lore kept much of the original Christian context for centuries.
"Santa Claus" is actually a very modern and very American version of the Saint. It wasn't until Dutch and German settlers brought their magical tales of Sankt Niklaus (German) and Sinterklaas (Dutch) to the New World that St. Nick began to look a little like Santa. From there, St. Nicholas still didn't take on his plump, elfin appearance or slide down chimney's until the early 1800's thanks to a satirical work called Knickerbocker's History of New York by Washington Irving.
In 1823, the red-suited image of an elf transported by flying reindeer finally solidified thanks to the poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" (later renamed "'Twas the Night Before Christmas") penned by New Yorker, Clement Clark Moore. Popular culture and marketing by companies like Coca-Cola further ingrained the icon into American tradition.
While 4th century Christians would not recognize the modern Santa, it's hard to imagine a better candidate for the job than a man who helped preserve the real meaning of Christmas. Bishop Nicholas exemplified the Christian life by giving his all to Christ and to those in need. Hopefully, in the midst of all the glittery commercialism surrounding our modern holiday celebrations, we'll be able to prepare for Christmas '08 in a way that genuinely reflects the spirit of (the real) St. Nick.
Intersecting Faith & Life: : St. Nicholas' legacy demonstrates a balance often difficult to achieve: a life steeped in both truth and love. What ways can you show the love of Christ more effectively during the holidays? What ways can you stand up for the truth of the Gospel more effectively?
Further Reading
Is 40:1-5, 9-11Ps 85:9-10-11-12, 13-142 Pt 3:8-14Mk 1:1-8The Real St. Nick - Dr. Warren Throckmorton

BIBLICAL VALUES

But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his.”
--2 Timothy 2:19

There’s a lot of talk about American values today. But have you ever wondered what that means?

Let me give you a quick look at some of the biblical principles our nation was founded upon.

Sanctity of life. America was built upon the value of a person and the dignity of the human life. If we believe that all men are created equal by God, then when God gives life, we should treat it with sanctity.

Home and family. The biblical model of a family is where a mother and father are committed to one another, love their children, and serve God.

Common decency. There used to be a time when you could walk down the street without hearing obscenities and vulgarities. Now pornography is a $4 billion business and what used to slink down the back alleys of our cities now struts down Main Street.

Work Ethic. The Bible is clear about the dignity and value of work. Any welfare system that strips an individual of the value and fulfillment of work is wrong.

God-centered education. God has been cut out of our education system. Creation is out and condoms are in. Prayer has been abandoned and the Bible run off campuses.

Church. God established the church. And as the church goes, so goes the nation. I don’t think there is much wrong in America that couldn’t be settled in the churches if we had men and women who would stand as salt and light in this generation.
Let us pray that America will return to the biblical values it was established upon!

HOW CAN YOU GET INVOLVED IN YOUR COMMUNITY TO HELP RESTORE BIBLICAL VALUES IN OUR COUNTRY?

Mabel

Did you read the email I sent yesterday? If so, any comments??

Persecuted But Not Abandoned!

This one is from gsiano from daily dose, thanks!!!

II Corinthians 4:8-9 “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”

Paul is encouraging believers to not lose heart and reminding us all, that we have the treasure of Christ living in us, but we serve Him in clay-like vessels that can easily be broken at any point and time. He is reminding all of us that even though our current circumstances may make it appear like we are losing the battle, that in Christ the battle is already won!

In the verses 1-7, Paul reminds us all that we simply present the truth of Christ to a lost and dying world that is blinded by Satan, the god of this world, and then we allow the power of God to save and heal. In this way, we decrease, and God increases.

“1Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. 2 Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. 3And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness, “made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”

While you may currently be going through a great time of despair, as we all will at times, do not allow the enemy to make you think that God does not love or care about you. As we are aware, God loved David very much, but read Psalm 88 and see if you think David was feeling God’s love when he penned this one! Now read Psalm 89 and you will see David singing a totally different tune! “I will sing of the LORD's great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. 2 I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself”.

It will be the same for each of us, as the Lord’s mercy is a fresh and new every morning Lamentations 3:22-24.What currently may be a painful season, will always give birth to something new and wonderful spiritually, if we will simply seek and trust Him with all of our heart and not lean on our own understanding Proverbs 3:5. And while His compassion and mercy is not based upon anything we do, He is pleased when we hold fast to our faith, persevere and endure during the tough times!
James 1:12 1 Peter 2:20

Lord, please draw us all closer to You. Help us to run to You in times of trouble and learn to rely on Your faithfulness to us. Help us to truly believe that the plans You have for us are not to harm us, but to prosper us. In Jesus name we pray, Amen

“The Problems with Prayer.”

For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
--Romans 8:26

If I were to title this devotion, I would call it “The Problems with Prayer.”
As believers, you and I know that we are commanded and called to prayer. Ephesians 6:18 tells us that we should pray “at all times in the Spirit.”

But because of our flesh, there are several “problems” that stand in the way of effective and empowering prayer… problems that the Holy Spirit can help us overcome if we but ask.

First, we lack concern. As humans, lethargy and even laziness battle our desire to pray. We don’t feel the need or urgency to pray. The flesh really doesn’t want to pray. But the Spirit gives us the concern and prompts us to pray.

Second, we perceive distance between God and ourselves. Many people don’t pray because they feel like they’re either talking to themselves or to someone who is absent. They cannot sense the presence of God in prayer. That’s where the Holy Spirit comes in. We have access by the Holy Spirit to the Father.

According to Galatians 4:6, “Because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, Abba! Father!”

We have the Spirit of God living within us to make God real and to make God ever present. The Holy Spirit helps us connect with God the Father.

THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL HELP YOU OVERCOME THE “PROBLEMS WITH PRAYER” IF YOU WILL BUT ASK.

THE CAREFUL BUILDER

OK, this is not our typical devotional today. Last night I was watching the 2 football games that were on and at the half, Lou Holtz was on and he recited this poem. So, I went and found it on the internet to see exactly what it said and I tought it woul make a pretty good devotional. It reminded of James 3.



THE CAREFUL BUILDER

I saw them tearing a building down - a gang of men, in my hometown.

With a heave, and a ho, and a 'yes, yes!' yell They swung a beam, and a sidewall fell.

I said to the foreman, "Are these men skilled? Like the ones you'd use if you had to build?"

He laughed and said, "Oh, no! Indeed! The most common labor's all I need. Because I can destroy, in a day or two, what it takes a builder ten years to do."

And I thought to myself, as I went my way - Which of these roles am I willing to play?

Am I one, who's tearing down, as I carelessly make my way around?

Or am I one who builds with care? So my family, my community, is just a little better, because I was there.



So, I think we should read James 3 it and meditate on it.

James 3

Taming the Tongue

1Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.

3When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

7All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, 8but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

9With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. 10Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. 11Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

Empty Me

I've had just enough of the spotlight when it burns bright
To see how it gets in the blood.
And I've tasted my share of the sweet life and the wild ride
And found a little is not quite enough.
I know how I can stray
And how fast my heart could change.

Empty me of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition and the poison of my pride
And any foolish thing my heart holds to
Lord empty me of me so I can be filled with you.

I've seen just enough of the quick buys of the best lies
To know how prodigals can be drawn away.
I know how I can stray
And how fast my heart could change.

Empty me of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition and the poison of my pride
And any foolish thing my heart holds to
Lord empty me of me so I can be filled with you.

Cause everything is a lesser thing
Compared to you, compared to you.
Cause everything is a lesser thing
Compared to you so why surrender all?

Empty me of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition and the poison of my pride
Empty me of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition and the poison of my pride
And any foolish thing my heart holds to
Lord empty me of me so I can be
Lord empty me of me so I can be filled with you.
Oh, filled with you.
Empty me.

by Chris Sligh

How can you be confident in your future?

And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you.
--Psalm 39:7

If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, you have a hope that is grounded in God. And there is nothing stronger, truer, surer, more reliable, more just, or more powerful than Him!

So how is this confident hope made real in your own life?

Hope is made real through the Scriptures. If you want to increase your hope, study the Scriptures. “In his word I hope” (Psalm 130:5). God, who cannot lie, has given us a guarantee, a sure promise in His Word. The revelation of His word is that you and I have a future and a hope.

Hope is also made real by the resurrection. Because Jesus Christ lives, we shall live also. Because He conquered sin, the grave, death, and hell, we are conquerors through Him (Romans 8:37).

And hope is made real by faith. Faith and hope are inseparably linked. Faith is the root, hope is the fruit. Faith produces hope! “For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness” (Galatians 5:5).

MAKE YOUR HOPE REAL BY BUILDING YOUR LIFE UPON THE WORD OF GOD.

Where Have You Pitched Your Tent?

Genesis 13:12 (KJV) says,
Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.

Notice that Lot pitched his tent toward Sodom. Every day his attention was placed on that city. Here is what the Bible says about those that lived there.

But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly (Genesis 13:13, KJV).

What we focus our attention on will influence us. It will try to draw us in like a magnet. The next time we read about Lot he is living in Sodom.

And they took Lot, Abram's brother's son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed (Genesis 14:12, KJV).

Next we find him even further entrenched among the people of Sodom. Genesis 19:1 declares that Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom.

In Eastern cities, the “gate” was a place devoted to business transactions, the administration of justice, and the enjoyment of social discourse and amusement. Lot was right “in the thick of things”—but it happened by degrees. It was a process.

What you view and listen to, and the company you keep, will influence you—sometimes in very subtle ways—and will play a role in shaping your values and character.

So be careful where you pitch your tent!

Saved From Such Men

Psalms 17:14 O Lord, by Your hand save me from such men, from men of this world whose reward is in this life....



Whenever I travel over the ocean, I am always reminded of the seemingly insignificant time we have on this earth. I often imagine dropping a glass of water out the window of the jet into the huge body of water below. The Lord then reminds me that this is how my life is compared to eternity-a mere drop in the ocean.



Yet, every day millions of people will go to work seeking to gain that elusive thing called success. The rewards of this life continue to provide the incentive for 60-hour weeks or the extra weekend away from the family. Sometimes we get entrenched in the message of the world. This message is an appealing, seductive call to sell out eternity for the temporal.



As a Christian businessman, I fell for this for many years until the Lord allowed me to wake up. It took some severe wake-up calls, but they did their job. I'm so grateful the Lord cares enough to give us these wake-up calls. He knows what real life is about. We think we know what it is, only to learn once again that real life is only in what is built on eternity. How does this verse line up with where you are today? Are you building around a world whose reward is in this lifetime, or an eternal one? Do those with whom you associate live in such a way that they demonstrate their reward is not concerning this life? Jesus said to seek first His Kingdom and all these things will be added. Amen.

Your Word is a Lamp

Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

Thoughts on today's verse: God's promises, God's Scripture, help us find our way in a pluralistic world of competing voices and lights our path in these times so given to cynicism and despair. What great grace we have to know God's will in our own words!

Prayer: Loving Father, thank you for giving me your truth in Scripture. To know that you love me enough to communicate in language I can read is truly awe inspiring to me. Make my heart hunger for your truth revealed in your Word. I want to grow to be a righteous and gracious child in your family. With love through my older brother I pray. Amen.

Spiritual Strongholds

2 Corinthians 10:4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.

One of the great discoveries I made in later years in my walk with God has to do with living in victory over generational strongholds. The Bible speaks of punishing the children for the sins of the fathers to the third and fourth generations. (See Exodus 20:5.) The only way out of living under the curses of generational strongholds is to acknowledge them before the Father and repent of their reign in our lives. This breaks the curse's future effects.

A stronghold is a fortress of thoughts that controls and influences our attitudes. They color how we view certain situations, circumstances, or people. When these thoughts and activities become habitual, we allow a spiritual fortress to be built around us. We become so used to responding to the "voice" of that spirit, that its abode in us is secure. All of this happens on a subconscious level.

As a businessman, I discovered that I had been influenced by a generational stronghold of insecurity and fear that was manifested in control. This subconscious fear motivated me to become a workaholic, to seek recognition through activities, to control others' behavior to avoid failure, and to have a relationship with God that was activity-based instead of relationally-based. One day God brought about a number of catastrophic events that forced me to look at what was behind these events. I found that the influence of these strongholds was at the core of these symptoms. The Bible speaks of this war on our souls.

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete (2 Corinthians 10:3,5-6).

The steps to freedom for me came when someone shared that these were sins that I was harboring, and in order to walk free of their influence, I needed to repent of them. It was through the power of the cross that I no longer needed to be subjugated by their presence. Once I took this step, I began to walk free of their influences. Besides salvation, this became the most important discovery in my entire Christian walk. My relationship to Christ changed immediately. I began to hear God's voice. I began to trust Christ in areas I never thought possible. I could truly experience the love of Christ for the first time.

This knowledge helped me in business as well. One day I was in the middle of a contract negotiation with another Christian businessman. A lawyer had jumped in the middle of the negotiation. My friend began to surface many old feelings that were a source of pain from his past. When I perceived that a stronghold of insecurity and fear was at the core of his response, I interrupted his argumentative discussion with me and said with a very forceful tone, "I am no longer going to listen to the spirit of insecurity that is speaking through you right now! If you don't refrain from this, I am going to leave!" My friend was taken back. He looked at me quite startled. After a few moments, he agreed with my diagnosis. We talked through what he was feeling and completed our negotiation without further incident.

What are the true motivations of your heart? Have you ever looked deeply at these motivations? You might find that these subconscious motivations may be preventing you from experiencing the fullness of Christ in your life. Ask Him to reveal these and then repent of their influences.

Helplessly Relational

Helplessly Relational
By Scott Sauls

The movie Jerry Maguire includes perhaps one of the sappiest scenes in the history of film. Jerry, separated from his wife, suddenly comes to his senses—his life is not complete without his wife in it. So, he barges into his wife’s sister’s house (where his wife is staying at the time), and in the middle of a room filled with women who see men as “the enemy,” says to her, “You complete me.” He continues on with a long soliloquy about how he loves and needs her.

“Shut up. Shut up,” she responds, “You had me at hello. You had me at hello.”

OK…either you see this as one of the most moving scenes ever, or…it makes you want to gag. Either way, it accentuates the reality that human beings are helplessly relational. The image of the Lone Ranger or the Marlboro Man who are symbols of strength and independence—people who need no one else but themselves—is bogus. John Donne spoke truthfully when he coined the phrase, “No man is an island.” We are helplessly relational. We need connection or we will die.

Why is this so? It is because we are created in the image of God—and God is Himself intensely relational. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit co-exist as a perfect, mutually-loving, mutually-supportive, in-covenant community. What this means is that we, who are created in God’s image, cannot help but need relationship—without it our lives become distorted. This is why so many people, living in a culture where over 50% of marriages end in divorce, still ache for a “significant other.” This is why so many of us are still willing to take the risks involved with loving, even though it exposes us to the potential agony of rejection and betrayal.

Friendship means self-disclosure
Sartre once said that hell is to be looked at. Our fear of being known flows out of a fear of exposure, because exposure opens us up to potential rejection. Out of self-protection we therefore keep others at a distance. The intimacy we long for is also the intimacy we fear. We are reluctant to go deep.

But biblical friendship goes deep. It takes the risk because the unshakable favor and loyalty of Jesus provides us with a safety net. The Gospel gives us the emotional wealth for self-disclosure—a form of transparency that gives two people (or, even more ideal, a community of people) consistent access to each others’ dreams, fears, loves, hatreds, struggles and sins. The difficulty with self-disclosure, however, is that we are all afraid on a deep level of being looked at, of being truly known. We want it more than anything and we also fear it more than anything. What if he rejects me? What if she uses my struggles against me? Self-disclosure is indeed risky…yet any friendship or (especially) any marriage that doesn’t take the risk is a costly counterfeit to the real thing. As C.S. Lewis once said, “Love anything and your heart will be…broken…” If you want to protect yourself from the risks of love, “you must give (your heart) to no one…the only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers of love is Hell.”

Friendship means enduring loyalty
Rather than being deeply committed “’til death parts us,” most of us are “committed” to people only to the degree and duration that they are useful to us. As long as they are meeting our needs at a cost that is suitable to us—as long as we are getting from the relationship at least as much as we are investing into it—we will stay with the relationship. But when a relationship becomes costly to us, we withdraw. We get a new friend, a new roommate, a new job, a new church, or even a new spouse, when the cost/benefit ratio is no longer in our favor. Rather than sticking with each other “until death do us part,” we stick together “as long as our love shall last” or “as long as I’m getting something from this relationship—as long as my needs are met at an acceptable cost to me.”

This sounds like a cold assessment, but it is true for many of us if we take a deeper look at our motivations for many of our relationships. Yet the Bible calls for relational commitments that endure…flowing from the Gospel, from Jesus’ eagerness to “stick with us” even though having us as his friends cost Him everything.

Friendship means a vision for each other’s glory
Whereas “modern” friendship asks, “What can this person do to make my life better?” a Gospel-centered friendship asks, “What can I do to make this person’s life better? What can I do to ‘enhance her glory,’ to help her be and become all she can be, as the person God created her to be and to become?” When the Christian Gospel gets into our hearts, it changes our entire paradigm for our acquaintances, our friendships, and our marriages. When we understand that all of our deepest and truest needs have been met by Jesus, our hearts are freed to love—and to devote ourselves to the good of the other people in our lives. Modern friendship treats friendship as a negotiation (I’ll take care of you if you take care of me, I’ll serve you to the degree that you serve me), whereas Christian friendship treats it as a covenant (I will stick with you even if you become costly and high-maintenance to me). Modern friendship is devoted to receiving from the other person. In a covenant, Gospel-oriented friendship, the good of the other person and the relationship take priority over our own needs and wants. And this kind of “one anothering” becomes possible only to the degree that Jesus, who “one-anothered” us by giving himself to us all the way to the death, becomes our deepest and most significant other.

Do not love the world!

1 John 2:15-16 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world - the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes, and the boasting of what he has and does - comes not from the Father but from the world.

Thoughts on today's verse: Love for things, especially temporary ones, can sure get us in trouble. Even worse, we can begin to think they will make us happy or fill the empty places in our hearts. But if we really place our hopes and dreams in our Abba Father, we are attached to eternity, and what we need most is always with us!

Prayer: Give me wisdom, Holy God, to invest in you and things that matter. I confess to you that my eyes and my heart are often distracted by the glitzy stuff that is temporary. By your Spirit, O Father, stir my heart to yearn for you. Through Jesus I pray, amen.

Fellowship In The Gospel

“Fellow labourer in the gospel of Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 3:2

After sanctification it is difficult to state what your aim in life is, because God has taken you up into His purpose by the Holy Ghost; He is using you now for His purposes throughout the world as He used His Son for the purpose of our salvation. If you seek great things for yourself - God has called me for this and that; you are putting a barrier to God's use of you. As long as you have a personal interest in your own character, or any set ambition, you cannot get through into identification with God's interests. You can only get there by losing for ever any idea of yourself and by letting God take you right out into His purpose for the world, and because your goings are of the Lord, you can never understand your ways.

I have to learn that the aim in life is God's, not mine. God is using me from His great personal standpoint, and all He asks of me is that I trust Him, and never say - Lord, this gives me such heart-ache. To talk in that way makes me a clog. When I stop telling God what I want, He can catch me up for what He wants without let or hindrance. He can crumple me up or exalt me, He can do any thing He chooses. He simply asks me to have implicit faith in Himself and in His goodness. Self pity is of the devil, if I go off on that line I cannot be used by God for His purpose in the world. I have "a world within the world" in which I live, and God will never be able to get me outside it because I am afraid of being frost-bitten.

Brokenness: The Process

Romans 8:29-31 - 29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory. 31 What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?

How tempting it is to think we need very little improvement. Ask around, and you’ll hear many people concede they could probably use a bit of “maintenance” on one or two problem areas (preferably without being caused any discomfort). Yet most will add, “But I’m a good person.” Don’t be fooled—the Father refuses to settle for humanity’s meager vision of “good enough.”

God sees each believer as the person he or she will be when fully yielded to Jesus Christ. He then sets about achieving that complete renovation by transforming the individual’s present self into the image of His Son. We could say that God is our “interior designer.”

An essential step in remodeling involves removing whatever is unnecessary, damaged, or outmoded. In our case, what must go are the areas of self-will. I can tell you from experience that being a man under construction is uncomfortable! God targets habits, attitudes, and even relationships wherein we act independently of His purposes. Then He applies pressure to direct our attention there as well. The Lord takes hold of interests that are dear to our hearts in order to coax from us the rather humbling question, “What more would You have me submit to You?”

Conforming our will to God’s changes who we are. In the midst of our transformation, pain from His tools may temporarily obscure the beauty of His design. But nothing is more splendid to God than a committed, obey-at-all-costs follower

The Holy Spirit in You

I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD. Ezekiel 37:14

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we receive His Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a gift from God that allows us to have a relationship with the Lord. The Spirit of God intercedes for us in prayer as He uses words that enter into the throne room of God when we can only moan and groan. He is our Counselor, our Teacher, our Comfort and our Guide. But the most important eternal promise we receive when the Spirit of God is placed in us is the seal of our salvation as we come alive spiritually for eternity. Amazing!

Do you realize the power you have living inside you? That power raised Lazarus from the dead, healed all kinds of diseases and delivered souls from bondage. That same power is found in you through Jesus. Jesus shows us this power through His indwelling peace. When we receive the Spirit of God, we have peace with God, not peace as the world gives, but the peace of God that surpasses understanding. It is peace that "settles" you. No matter where you are or what you are struggling with, God has settled your soul to have peace with Him.

The peace of God is a promise for you today. Claim it, speak it and live in it. Throw off the distractions of illness, financial loss, negative comments, guilt, and self-condemnation. And let the peace of Christ dwell in you richly. Nothing can interfere with the love Christ has for you and the peace that is yours by knowing Him. All these things on earth will pass away, but your security for eternity is fixed. Fix your eyes on Jesus by reading His word. Get a verse today that you can claim as a promise and live beyond the struggles. Cast your cares upon the Lord for He cares for you.

Decision-making

Proverbs 3:5 - Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

This is one of the most quoted verses in the Bible related to gaining wisdom and direction from God. Yet I have never heard one teaching on this passage that teaches what I believe the psalmist is really saying. The first part is pretty easy; we are to trust with all our heart. But the next part is not so clear. We are not to lean on our own understanding. If we are not to lean on our own understanding, on whose understanding are we to lean? God's!

Throughout the Old Testament we find that God set up structures by which those in authority made decisions. God has always set a principle whereby we are to seek Him in all our decisions, that He might truly make our decisions. In the Old Testament, the priest made decisions based on which way the Urim and Thummim fell inside his breastplate. The casting of lots was another means of allowing a decision to be left with God. Proverbs says, "The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord" (Prov. 16:33). Another means of making a decision was through the agreement of two or three. No one could be guilty of any crime without the witness of two or three. This was a biblical way of confirming a matter. Still another means of making a decision is through a multitude of counselors.

Given all these scenarios, what are we to gain from these examples? We are told in Jeremiah 17:9a, "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure." So what really protects each of us from the deceit of our own heart? I believe it is the combination of all the above. When we get to a place with God that our decisions are accountable to others, whether that be a wife, a board, or a few close friends who are committed to the same godly ideals, this is when we are protected from the deceit of our own heart. This is one of the hardest things to yield to God-the right to make our own decisions. Yet, it is the most elementary principle God requires of us to receive His blessing in our lives.

This principle took a long time for me to appropriate. However, today I can tell you I would never make a major decision without the counsel of others who are close to me. Relational accountability has become lost in our culture due to our hunger for independence. I have experienced too often the hardship that results from making decisions that God isn't behind. Walking in obedience is the only real freedom in Christ.

Test Me, Control Me

When I was reading my bible on Sunday, I came across a couple of passages I thought I would share with you guys that really struck me. The first is from Psalms and is something we should pray daily: Ps 139:23-4 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. What a powerful prayer to start each day.

Another good verse to meditate on is found in Ps 141:3-4 Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips. Don’t let me drift toward evil or take part in acts of wickedness. Don’t let me share in the delicacies of those who do wrong.

FAITH

“Without faith it is impossible to please Him.” Hebrews 11:6

Faith in antagonism to common sense is fanaticism, and common sense in antagonism to faith is rationalism. The life of faith brings the two into a right relation. Common sense is not faith, and faith is not common sense; they stand in the relation of the natural and the spiritual; of impulse and inspiration. Nothing Jesus Christ ever said is common sense, it is revelation sense, and it reaches the shores where common sense fails. Faith must be tried before the reality of faith is actual. "We know that all things work together for good," then no matter what happens, the alchemy of God's providence transfigures the ideal faith into actual reality. Faith always works on the personal line, the whole purpose of God being to see that the ideal faith is made real in His children.

For every detail of the common-sense life, there is a revelation fact of God whereby we can prove in practical experience what we believe God to be. Faith is a tremendously active principle which always puts Jesus Christ first - Lord, Thou hast said so and so (e.g., Matthew 6:33), it looks mad, but I am going to venture on Thy word. To turn head faith into a personal possession is a fight always, not sometimes. God brings us into circumstances in order to educate our faith, because the nature of faith is to make its object real. Until we know Jesus, God is a mere abstraction, we can not have faith in Him; but immediately we hear Jesus say - "He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father," we have something that is real, and faith is boundless. Faith is the whole man rightly related to God by the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

Substitution

“He hath made Him to be sin for us … that we might be made the righteousness of God…”
2 Corinthians 5:21

The modern view of the death of Jesus is that He died for our sins out of sympathy. The New Testament view is that He bore our sin not by sympathy, but by identification. He was made to be sin. Our sins are removed because of the death of Jesus, and the explanation of His death is His obedience to His Father, not His sympathy with us. We are acceptable with God not because we have obeyed, or because we have promised to give up things, but because of the death of Christ, and in no other way. We say that Jesus Christ came to reveal the Fatherhood of God, the loving-kind ness of God; the New Testament says He came to bear away the sin of the world. The revelation of His Father is to those to whom He has been introduced as Saviour. Jesus Christ never spoke of Himself to the world as one Who revealed the Father, but as a stumbling block (see John 15:22- 24). John 14:9 was spoken to His disciples.

That Christ died for me, therefore I go scot free, is never taught in the New Testament. What is taught in the New Testament is that "He died for all" (not - He died my death), and that by identification with His death I can be freed from sin, and have imparted to me His very righteousness. The substitution taught in the New Testament is twofold: "He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." It is not Christ for me unless I am determined to have Christ formed in me.

Keep Awake

Today's Scripture - "All of you must keep awake (give strict attention, be cautious and active) and watch and pray, that you may not come into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." Matthew 26:41 AMP


Thoughts for Today - Are you immune to the temptation of sexual sin? The truth is, we all have boundaries that, if crossed, can result in the loss of self-control.

The sin of proximity happens when we allow ourselves to be enticed to sin by not avoiding events, people, places, objects or anything else that we know will likely stir up lustful thoughts in our minds. Some would describe the sin of proximity as allowing ourselves to come into contact with the occasion for sin.

When we commit a sin of proximity, what we are doing is setting the stage for overt sin to occur. We are prone to lie to ourselves that what we are doing will not have consequences. We think we can play around the edges of sin without actually acting it out. This thinking is self-deceptive because sin has great power and, if entertained, can overwhelm us.

Consider this… Avoiding the people or events or things that may tempt us to sexual sin is vital to overcoming sexual addiction or to avoid entering into any kind of sexual sin. We must remember, however, that there is no "formula for success" in this path—otherwise we would trust the formula and not God.

The rules are only tools to enable us to better love Jesus. The real key is to stay in fellowship with Him—to "give strict attention, be cautious and active ... and watch and pray."

Prayer - Father, I know that only as I stay in close fellowship with you—through prayer and through your Word—will I be able to resist the temptations that come my way. I thank you for your love. Please give me the wisdom and strength to avoid situations and relationships that may entice me to sin. In Jesus' name …

Obedience

To God, obedience is a big deal. And one of the best ways to see just how importantly He regards it is to learn from those who disobeyed.

One of those is King Saul. When he was told by God to make an end of the Amalekites and to destroy all of their property, he did not do it.

Instead of obeying God, he saved the oxen and the sheep, along with some other things, and then claimed he had obeyed God. But when Samuel heard the oxen and the sheep, Saul knew he had been caught. So he changed his story. He said, “Well, these things are just a sacrifice to God.”

In response to this act of disobedience, this is what Samuel, the prophet, said. We find it in 1 Samuel 15:22,

So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams.”

God does not want religious lip service. He wants obedience. Obedience is better than sacrifice. One reason for that is because you cannot make up by sacrifice what you lose through disobedience.

Another reason why obedience is better than sacrifice is because it is preventative. In Saul’s day, sacrifices were made to cover sin, but if he had obeyed, there would have been no need for sacrifice. Obedience would have prevented his sin.

So do what God desires. Obey what He commands. It is always better.

Grant Her Honor

Guys, here is a link to a great devo for you married guys or dating

http://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/momentstogether/

Make sure and read todays......

Blessings,

cas

Praying for the Rain

For the past week we have been seeking to understand what causes a spiritual drought, and then how we can break that drought if indeed we are in one.

Here is what I want you to understand. Even if you earnestly seek God and repent of sin in your life, or you shift your focus and say, “God, I’m putting Your house first, and I’m going to put other people before myself,” or perhaps God leads you to do something of a personal nature, you still need to pray for the rain.

Do not just assume God’s blessing will automatically fall. You still need to ask for it. Zechariah 10:1 teaches us this truth,

Ask the LORD for rain In the time of the latter rain. The LORD will make flashing clouds; He will give them showers of rain, grass in the field for everyone.

I used to read that and wonder, “God, I don’t understand. If it is the time of the latter rain, if it is rainy season, why ask for rain? Won’t it just fall automatically?” If it is rainy season, why pray for rain?”

Because you cannot assume that it is automatically going to fall.

In James 5:17-18 there is a story about Elijah from 1 Kings 18. James gives us the very, very, very short version. But it tells us something significant,

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.

What caused the rain to stop? His prayer. What caused the rain to fall again? His prayer.

Ask God today for the blessing of His rain in your life!

The "Trap"

Today's Scripture - "And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude], And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God's image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness." Ephesians 4:23-24 AMP

Thoughts for Today - Some estimate that in the United States alone as many as 15 million adults are affected by major depression in any given year.

People experiencing severe depression may find it hard to believe, deep down, that there are good things about themselves. They are trapped between a rock and a hard place, between a deep desire to be affirmed as "good" and a deep feeling of not being very good at all.

The Apostle Paul declared that "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV But depression causes many of us to reject the free gift of God: a new identity as a good and righteous person.

Consider this… Astronomers tell us there are swirling whirlpools in the universe with a powerful magnetic pull that does not allow light to escape from within them. Black holes, therefore, cannot be seen, but their existence can be identified by the debris that revolves around them. In the same way, we cannot see into the heart of another person, but we can tell the condition of the heart by observing the things that revolve around that person's life. If we are suffering from depression, those revolving things might include feeling angry, helpless, hopeless, isolated and even suicidal. All of these revolve around a black hole, a self-identity of being worthless.

The "trap" occurs when we allow our attention to be distracted primarily by the things revolving around our heart rather than focusing on the condition of the heart itself. The path out of this trap is a process of learning a new identity, one based on the truth of God's Word rather than on a lie. A process of putting "on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God's image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness."

Prayer - Father, I see myself as worthless, but your Word tells me that as your child, I am clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Help me to accept my new identity as a good and righteous person … to see myself as you see me. In Jesus' name …

Just A Lump of Clay

This devotional was written by Jim Grams

That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Corinthians 12:10

Martin Luther once said, “God created the world out of nothing, and so long as we are nothing, He can make something out of us.” And yet, it is so very hard to be nothing. We like to think we’re somebody and when people tell us we’re wonderful, we want to believe every word. It is human nature to look at our successes and achievements.

I’m not saying we should dwell on our failures or live with constant self-criticism. I’m convinced that God doesn’t want that from us. But neither does He want us proud.

The very best way to be a servant of the Lord is to become a lump of clay in His hands. His design for our lives is perfect – Only He can take an ordinary lump of life and make it beautiful. I’m reminded of that wonderful chorus we used to sing. “Something beautiful, something good. All my confusion, He understood. All I had to offer Him was brokenness and strife, but He made something beautiful out of my life.”

God knows just what each of us needs to shape us perfectly. To become a lump of clay in God’s hands means total surrender on our part. The words He longs to hear from us are: “Here I am Lord, break me, mold me, and make me into whatever you want.”

We need to ask God to remind us that we are lumps of clay. Then we need to place our lives with their flaws and needs in His strong, creative hands. He will make us useful and we will bless others with a touch of His love.

Going Deeper:

1. Give God your life today….all of it. Just say, “Here I am Lord, I’m yours.”
2. Expect God to mold you into a vessel of beauty, honor and usefulness.
3. Thank God for making you what you are.

Further Reading - I Corinthians 1:20-25; Jeremiah 18:1-6

Do not Conform !

Romans 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is -- his good, pleasing, and perfect will.

Thoughts on today's verse: Don't be molded by the world. Wow, isn't that a tough one to obey? It's a reminder that what we think is one of the places of greatest spiritual warfare. Sloppy thinking is more than sloppy, it's dangerous because we are fed messages constantly that distort God's truth and holy values. But rather than being incensed by the world acting like the world, let's be transformed by renewing our minds and doing what Paul said he did -- take every thought, every word, captive for Christ. We often think a tithe is giving ten percent of our money, but an even more vital tithe is giving ten percent of our thought time totally to the things of God!

Prayer: O Lord, please guard my soul from pride, my heart from callousness, and my mind from too much focus on unimportant things and not enough on your things. Teach me in my heart what it means to be about my Father's business, especially in the world of my thoughts! Through Jesus, my greatest example of time spent with you. Amen.

Obedience-Based Decisions Versus Skill and Ability

1 Chronicles 14:15 As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, move out to battle.

The Philistines were attacking. David wanted to know how to respond. His first inquiry of God revealed that he was to attack the Philistines straightaway and God would give him victory. David followed God's instruction and gained victory. Shortly after, the Philistines mounted another attack. "So David inquired of God again, and God answered him, 'Do not go straight up, but circle around them and attack them in front of the balsam trees' " (1 Chron. 14:14).

David was a well-trained warrior, a strategist. Yet, we find that David's dependence on God to direct his efforts was very great. In fact, after he won the first battle, he went right back to inquire again. This is the most important lesson we can learn from this story. God told David to attack, but only after he heard the marching in the balsam trees.
How many times have you or I operated in the marketplace based only on our skill and ability, without seeking to know the details of God's will in the matter? David could have simply assumed that since he had won the last battle, surely God would give him victory the same way. No. David had learned that communicating with the living God is the only sure way of victory. His skill was not enough. He had to have God's blessing.

How many times have we worked in our business life the same way each time only because it was the way we did it last time? What if God has a better way? What if God has a different plan than ours? "So David inquired of God..." These are the important words that we are to learn from. We must be in such relationship with God that we are constantly inquiring of His mind on every matter. When we do this, we can expect the same results that David achieved-success in our endeavor and recognition by God.

"So David's fame spread throughout every land, and the Lord made all the nations fear him" (1 Chron. 14:17). This is the reward of obedience to God. We don't have to build a name for ourselves. God will see to it that we are honored for our obedience. He wants to make known those servants who are willing to obey Him at all costs.

Ask Our Generous God

"If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking." James 1:5 NLT

Thoughts for Today - One vital key to controlling anger is to correctly identify the cause. Sort out what you did and what others did to produce the anger. Sometimes the incident that seems to trigger the anger is not actually the root cause.

For example, if you get angry because your car won't start, are you really angry that the car won't start … or are you afraid of being late and facing your boss's recriminations? Or maybe you are angry because if the car is broken, you will have additional financial sorry and stress.

Try to learn to accept responsibility for your anger and then to locate the true cause. A variety of needs such as insecurity, fear, pride, loneliness, inferiority and unrealistic expectations can create anger. You might get angry with a friend who is encouraging you to take on a challenging project. You accuse the friend of being pushy. In fact, the project may be something you'd like to do but are afraid to try—afraid of failure.

Consider this… Are you struggling with anger right now? Ask God to give you wisdom and insight. Ask him to help you identify the real source of your anger and then to deal with it appropriately.

Prayer - Lord, I need your help, your wisdom. Help me to understand my anger and to overcome it. In Jesus' name …

Anger

"Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry." James 1:19 NLT

Thoughts for Today - Anger is a God-given emotional energy designed for good. It can lead to sin, but doesn't have to. We can control our thoughts and actions. We can stop allowing anger to master us. The Bible teaches that we should not be quick-tempered.

We need to slow down and think about things before we respond in anger. We have all blurted out hurtful angry remarks and then wished we could take the words back. Slowing down can help us avoid these situations.

Consider this… The next time someone does or says something that you don't like—stop! Take a deep breath. Consider your response. You can avoid a lot of hurt and regret by making the right choices at this point.

"And 'don’t sin by letting anger control you.' Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry." Ephesians 4:26 NLT

Another Thought for Today - Above we looked at the importance of being slow to anger—to listen well and not react impulsively. But the Bible also tells us to deal with the anger appropriately. We shouldn't wait for days, weeks, months or even years to pass before we talk with someone we may have hurt or reacted to in anger. Delay could cause greater pain for everyone concerned. In fact, God's Word instructs us to deal with anger the same day it occurs. "Do not let the sun go down …"

Deal with your anger while there is opportunity to do so. Don't let it stockpile in a slush fund of repressed and denied angry feelings—feelings that may surface at unexpected times, causing you to hurt someone you care about. Lingering anger can develop into bitterness and resentment, leading to emotional, spiritual and even physical problems.

Consider this… When you are angry at someone, think about why you are angry. Ask God to help you understand your feelings and to express them appropriately. And then tell the other person(s) involved how you feel. If you have hurt them or treated them unfairly, ask for their forgiveness. And always be quick to forgive them.
Is there someone you should talk to today?

Prayer - Father, help me look beyond what people say and see their heart. Forgive me for the times I've responded too quickly—and foolishly—in anger. Teach me to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Lord, help me understand my feelings and learn to express them appropriately. Help me not to take offense easily, but when I am angry, help me to settle things quickly… and in love. Help me not to let the sun go down on my anger. In Jesus' name …

Don't Fret

"Do not begin to be anxious" (Phil. 4:6, PBV).

Not a few Christians live in a state of unbroken anxiety, and others fret and fume terribly. To be perfectly at peace amid the hurly-burly of daily life is a secret worth knowing. What is the use of worrying? It never made anybody strong; neverhelped anybody to do God's will; never made a way of escape for anyone out of perplexity. Worry spoils lives which would otherwise be useful and beautiful. Restlessness, anxiety, and care are absolutely forbidden by our Lord, who said: "Take no thought," that is, no anxious thought, "saying what shall we cat, or what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be clothed?" He does not mean that we are not to take forethought and that our life is to be without plan or method; but that we are not to worry about these things. People know you live in the realm of anxious care by the lines on your face, the tones of your voice, the minor key in your life, and the lack of joy in your spirit. Scale the heights of a life abandoned to God, then you will look down on the clouds beneath your feet. --Rev. Darlow Sargeant

It is always weakness to be fretting and worrying, questioning and mistrusting. Can we gain anything by it? Do we not unfit ourselves for action, and unhinge our minds for wise decision? We are sinking by our struggles when we might float by faith.

Oh, for grace to be quiet! Oh, to be still and know that Jehovah is God! The Holy One of Israel must defend and deliver His own. We may be sure that every word of His will stand, though the mountains should depart. He deserves to be confided in. Come, my soul, return unto thy rest, and lean thy head upon the bosom of the Lord Jesus. --Selected

Reconciliation

“For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”
2 Corinthians 5:21

Sin is a fundamental relationship; it is not wrong doing, it is wrong being, deliberate and emphatic independence of God. The Christian religion bases everything on the positive, radical nature of sin. Other religions deal with sins; the Bible alone deals with sin. The first thing Jesus Christ faced in men was the heredity of sin, and it is because we have ignored this in our presentation of the Gospel that the message of the Gospel has lost its sting and its blasting power.

The revelation of the Bible is not that Jesus Christ took upon Himself our fleshly sins, but that He took upon Himself the heredity of sin which no man can touch. God made His own Son to be sin that He might make the sinner a saint. All through the Bible it is revealed that Our Lord bore the sin of the world by identification, not by sympathy. He deliberately took upon His own shoulders, and bore in His own Person, the whole massed sin of the human race - "He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin," and by so doing He put the whole human race on the basis of Redemption. Jesus Christ rehabilitated the human race; He put it back to where God designed it to be, and anyone can enter into union with God on the ground of what Our Lord has done on the Cross.

A man cannot redeem himself; Redemption is God's "bit," it is absolutely finished and complete; its reference to individual men is a question of their individual action. A distinction must always be made between the revelation of Redemption and the conscious experience of salvation in a man's life.

The Bent Of Regeneration

“When it pleased God . . to reveal His Son in me.”
Galatians 1:15,16

If Jesus Christ is to regenerate me, what is the problem He is up against? I have a heredity I had no say in; I am not holy, nor likely to be; and if all Jesus Christ can do is to tell me I must he holy, His teaching plants despair. But if Jesus Christ is a Regenerator, One Who can put into me His own heredity of holiness, then I begin to see what He is driving at when He says that I have to be holy. Redemption means that Jesus Christ can put into any man the hereditary disposition that was in Himself, and all the standards He gives are based on that disposition: His teaching is for the life He puts in. The moral transaction on my part is agreement with God's verdict on sin in the Cross of Jesus Christ.

The New Testament teaching about regeneration is that when a man is struck by a sense of need, God will put the Holy Spirit into his spirit, and his personal spirit will be energized by the Spirit of the Son of God, "until Christ be formed in you." The moral miracle of Redemption is that God can put into me a new disposition whereby I can live a totally new life. When I reach the frontier of need and know my limitations, Jesus says - "Blessed are you." But I have to get there. God cannot put into me, a responsible moral being, the disposition that was in Jesus Christ unless I am conscious I need it.

Just as the disposition of sin entered into the human race by one man, so the Holy Spirit entered the human race by another Man; and Redemption means that I can be delivered from the heredity of sin and through Jesus Christ can receive an unsullied heredity, viz., the Holy Spirit.

From: My Utmost for His Highest
By: Oswald Chambers

How’s your “up-look”?

There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.
--2 Timothy 4:8

Did you know that you can live with God’s protection and provision? You can live every single day in His love! How do you do that?

One way is to embrace your future by living for eternity. Or, as Steven R. Covey says, “Begin with the end in mind.” That’s how you and I are to live our lives as followers of Christ.

When everything around you is crumbling, when you’re facing danger and difficulties and deception of all kinds, your outlook on life will be determined by your “up-look.” And if your up-look is to love Christ’s return and to long for His appearing, knowing that at any moment He could come for you, then you are living in His love.

As today’s verse says, “There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.”

When we are daily embracing our future with God, that keeps us in His love!

WHEN EVERYTHING AROUND YOU IS CRUMBLING, WHEN YOU’RE FACING DANGER AND DIFFICULTIES AND DECEPTION OF ALL KINDS, YOUR OUTLOOK ON LIFE WILL BE DETERMINED BY YOUR "UP-LOOK."

The Sphere Of Humiliation

“If Thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.”
Mark 9:22

After every time of exaltation we are brought down with a sudden rush into things as they are where it is neither beautiful nor poetic nor thrilling. The height of the mountain top is measured by the drab drudgery of the valley; but it is in the valley that we have to live for the glory of God. We see His glory on the mount, but we never live for His glory there. It is in the sphere of humiliation that we find our true worth to God, that is where our faithfulness is revealed. Most of us can do things if we are always at the heroic pitch because of the natural selfishness of our hearts, but God wants us at the drab commonplace pitch, where we live in the valley according to our personal relationship to Him. Peter thought it would be a fine thing for them to remain on the mount, but Jesus Christ took the disciples down from the mount into the valley, the place where the meaning of the vision is explained.

"If Thou canst do any thing . . ." It takes the valley of humiliation to root the scepticism out of us. Look back at your own experience, and you will find that until you learned Who Jesus was, you were a cunning sceptic about His power. When you were on the mount, you could believe anything, but what about the time when you were up against facts in the valley? You may be able to give a testimony to sanctification, but what about the thing that is a humiliation to you just now? The last time you were on the mount with God, you saw that all power in heaven and in earth be longed to Jesus - will you be sceptical now in the valley of humiliation?

The Place of Exaltation

. . . Jesus took . . . them up on a high mountain apart by themselves . . . —Mark 9:2

We have all experienced times of exaltation on the mountain, when we have seen things from God’s perspective and have wanted to stay there. But God will never allow us to stay there. The true test of our spiritual life is in exhibiting the power to descend from the mountain. If we only have the power to go up, something is wrong. It is a wonderful thing to be on the mountain with God, but a person only gets there so that he may later go down and lift up the demon-possessed people in the valley (see Mark 9:14-18 ). We are not made for the mountains, for sunrises, or for the other beautiful attractions in life— those are simply intended to be moments of inspiration. We are made for the valley and the ordinary things of life, and that is where we have to prove our stamina and strength. Yet our spiritual selfishness always wants repeated moments on the mountain. We feel that we could talk and live like perfect angels, if we could only stay on the mountaintop. Those times of exaltation are exceptional and they have their meaning in our life with God, but we must beware to prevent our spiritual selfishness from wanting to make them the only time.

We are inclined to think that everything that happens is to be turned into useful teaching. In actual fact, it is to be turned into something even better than teaching, namely, character. The mountaintop is not meant to teach us anything, it is meant to make us something. There is a terrible trap in always asking, "What’s the use of this experience?" We can never measure spiritual matters in that way. The moments on the mountaintop are rare moments, and they are meant for something in God’s purpose.

Submitting to God

"Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean." The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean."
-Acts 10:14-15

Do you feel comfortable saying "no" to God? We might not have the ability to admit it but we each say "no" to God in some way. Sometimes we say "no" by choosing to not witness. Sometimes we say "no" by refusing to volunteer. Sometimes we say "no" by ignoring the prompting of our heart. But most of the time we say "no" because we refuse to accept His will for our lives.

In Matthew 16:13, Jesus asked His disciples, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" The disciples answered His question by stating what others think about Him. "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter is the only one who answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus acknowledges to Peter that God, Himself, has revealed this to him. I am sure that Peter had a large smile in his heart after that compliment. A few passages later, Jesus begins explaining that He will have to suffer. Peter again is the only one who speaks up as he disagrees with God's plan, taking the liberty to rebuke the Lord. Matthew 16:22-23 says, 'Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!" Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men." Peter has gone from a place of esteem to a place of rebuke. In Acts 10, we find Peter disagreeing with God again as he says, "Surely not, Lord."

We are flesh and our natural born nature rebels against the Lord at times. God can handle whatever position we take and He wants to reason with us on our position. Talk to Him and be honest. The problem comes when we place our thoughts and desires over God's, to a point of rebuking the Lord. We may not have the boldness to tell Him we think He is wrong, but our actions show the thoughts and intents of our hearts as we choose not to submit or yield or even listen to what He is trying to say. God's ways do not make sense to us and His thoughts are not our thoughts. That is why it is so important to have an open, honest relationship with Him based on His words. Peter was a man who had an honest relationship with God. His rebukes may not seem respectful but he kept himself in a position to keep listening until his will lined up with God's will.

• What is the Lord trying to tell you today?
  
• Are you going through a set of circumstances that you refuse to acknowledge is God's will for your life?
  
• Are you fighting or submitting?
  
• Are you willing to listen or are you running?
  

Let us all pray that we are on God's side. When it comes down to it, He is going to win. Don't you want to be on His team?

Don't Lose Sight of the Goal

This devotional was written by Jim Liebelt.

“I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:14

Numerous sources have told the story of Florence Chadwick, who on one foggy morning in July of 1952 waded into the waters off Catalina Island, intent on swimming across the channel to the Southern California mainland. This challenge was not too difficult for Chadwick as she had been the first woman ever to swim the English Channel in both directions.

However, on this day, having lost sight of the land because of the fog, Chadwick decided to give up. As it turned out, she had only been one-half mile from reaching her goal. She was not exhausted or cold. Rather the fog, having obscured her vision from the goal, was the reason she quit. Still, some two months later, on a clear day, Florence Chadwick attempted the same challenge – and this time succeeded, setting a new speed record, because she was able to keep her eye upon the goal.

As Christians, we have a goal: to follow Jesus, to become like Him, to love and serve Him with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. But, we often encounter the world’s fog, which can obscure our vision and keep us from seeing the goal clearly. I’m afraid too many of us have chosen to give up pursuing the goal because we become distracted by fog – the fog of busyness, of career, of material pursuits, of self-interest. We will all experience foggy days, spiritually speaking. Don’t quit. Persevere. Do your best to keep your eyes focused on Jesus who awaits with reward in hand, at the finish line.

I love the words of that old hymn written by H.H. Lemmel:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face;
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace.

Today, let the fresh breeze of the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life blow away the world’s fog. Fix your eyes upon Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.

GOING DEEPER:

1. What “fog” exists in your life that obscures your vision and hinders you from following Christ?
   
2. What actions can you take to regain your clear vision in order to pursue the goal of following Christ? Will you commit those actions to the Lord today?
   

FURTHER READING: Hebrews 12:2; 2 Timothy 4:7-8; Hebrews 10:36; James 1:12

Committed to Learn

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. —2 Timothy 2:15

Have you ever had one of those golden opportunities in life to share the gospel, and you found that you just weren’t prepared? Or have you had someone fire some really hard questions at you, and you were rendered speechless?

After I had been a Christian for two weeks, I felt I needed to get out and do something with my faith. I was walking down the street and who did I run into but my very close friend from elementary school. I started witnessing to him. He was listening, and he was open. It seemed as though I was making some progress. I was getting excited.

I didn’t notice, however, that someone else was eavesdropping on our conversation. He walked up to me and said, “I have a few questions for you.”

I thought, No problem. I have been a Christian for two weeks. I think I can grapple with most theological issues at this point. Fire away.

So he fired four or five pretty tough questions at me. I can’t even remember today what they were. All I remember is that I was dumbfounded. I didn’t even have a clue. I was ashamed. I was embarrassed. But worst of all, I felt that I had let the Lord down.

I made a commitment that day—a commitment to study the Bible so I would not be caught in that position again. I can’t say that I have the answer to every question now. Nor am I suggesting that I can resolve any difficulty any person has, because I can’t. But I did realize that I needed

For more relevant and biblical teaching from Pastor Greg Laurie, go to www.harvest.org