Turning Point with David Jeremiah

[Judy Harder]

Tuesday, November 8
The God Who Hears and Heals

O LORD my God, I cried out to You, and You healed me.
Psalm 30:2

Recommended Reading
Matthew 20:29-34
We are used to associating the biblical word "healing" with cures for physical conditions. But in Psalm 30, David declares praise to the Lord for three different reasons: deliverance from his enemies, healing from an unspecified situation, and being spared from divine judgment and the grave (Psalm 30:1-3). In other words, regardless of the kind of trouble David was in--attacks by others, physical problems, or divine discipline--he trusted that God would hear and heal him.

Listen to Today's
Radio Message
That seems almost contradictory given the troubles David experienced. How could he have ultimate confidence in God yet continue to live a life filled with challenges? It seems to be his awareness of a bigger picture--something larger than the immediate crisis he faced. His confidence was not only in God's ability to solve an immediate problem, but in God's sovereign providence and protection over his entire life.

Our lives are like David's--filled with challenges of all sorts. And our faith should be like David's as well: No problem escapes the attention of the God who heals and delivers us now and for eternity.

Sometimes Christ sees that we need the sickness for the good of our souls more than the healing for the ease of our bodies.
Matthew Henry


Read-Thru-the-Bible
Romans 8:1-10:21

[Judy Harder]

Wednesday, November 9
Break Thou the Bread of Life

Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down...
John 6:11

Recommended Reading
John 6:10-14
Newspapers in South Carolina recently carried the story of a couple who claimed that a dark gray mark on a Walmart receipt was the image of Christ. They had purchased pictures, and when they got home the receipt fell on the kitchen floor. Picking it up, they noticed it had acquired a stain of some kind. They were struck with how the stained image resembled the face of the Lord, and the local media picked up their story.

Listen to Today's
Radio Message
Well, we can see Jesus on the printed page all right--but only by looking into the pages of the Bible. Someone once said that the Bible is simply "Jesus in print." In times of mental or physical suffering, we can open the Word, find His promises, fellowship with Him there, and see His face. He knows our burdens and He ministers rest and peace to our hearts. He gives a Scripture for every situation and a promise for every problem.

In times of illness, loneliness, or low spirits, seek Him in His Word and rest in His promises.

Beyond the sacred page I seek Thee, Lord. My Spirit pants for Thee, O Living Word.
Mary Lathbury


Read-Thru-the-Bible
Romans 11:1-14:23

[Judy Harder]

 
Thursday, November 10
Falling Apart at the Seams

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
John 13:34

Recommended Reading
John 13:31-35
After Jennifer Lopez ended her marriage to the Latin singer Marc Anthony, fans studied her newest album looking for signs that her marriage had been troubled. They found hints everywhere. In one song, Jennifer Lopez sang, "He's all right / He's all wrong. / He's a player / He's a dog." And she admitted her dreams about her marriage were "falling apart at the seams." The rich and famous are often threadbare when it comes to love. All the romantic songs and fabulous mansions in the world can't build a happy home without Christ. Romantic love is portrayed as the ideal love, when in reality our relationships must be based on the love Jesus displayed toward the Church.

Listen to Today's
Radio Message
The apostle Paul told husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church (Ephesians 5:25). In John 13:34, Jesus extended the truth to us all: "As I have loved you...also love one another." When romantic love falters, turn to the real love of Jesus; and remember that if your world falls apart at the seams, His love can be the mending thread.

The more intimate acquaintance we have with Christ's love to us, the more our love will be drawn out to Him, and to those who are His, for His sake.
Matthew Henry


Read-Thru-the-Bible
Romans 15:1-1 Corinthians 1:31

[Judy Harder]

Friday, November 11
Sinners in the Hands of a Loving God

Above all things have fervent love for one another, for "love will cover a multitude of sins."
1 Peter 4:8

Recommended Reading
1 Peter 4:7-11
America's colonial preacher, Jonathan Edwards, is famous for his sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," which fueled the Great Awakening. But he also often spoke of God's love. In his Christian Love as Manifested in the Heart and Life, Edwards wrote, "Such was the love of Christ to us that He did, as it were, spend Himself for our sakes. His love did not rest in mere feeling nor in light efforts and small sacrifices; but though we were enemies, yet He so loved us that He had a heart to deny Himself and undertake the greatest efforts and undergo the greatest sufferings for our sakes. He gave up His own ease and comfort and interest and honor and wealth, and became poor and outcast and despised... and all for us!"

Listen to Today's
Radio Message
Jesus commands us to love as He loved. His standard for dealing with a spouse or family member is based on the internal workings of the heart, not the day-to-day desire to have someone conforming to our ideals. No one is perfect. But Christ loves imperfect people. He calls us to love one another. And love covers a multitude of sins.

If this is our spirit, our love to others will not depend on their love to us, but we shall do as Christ did to us--love them.
Jonathan Edwards


Read-Thru-the-Bible
1 Corinthians 2:1-6:20

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

[Judy Harder]

The Thanksgiving Express: Phone Lines!


I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.

Philippians 1:3

Recommended Reading

Philippians 1:3-6

Almost 35,000 phone calls are made each second of every day, and that's just in the United States. Worldwide phone statistics are unknown. According to one estimate, hundreds of billions of phone calls are "dropped" each year around the world by carriers, resulting in inestimable lost dollars for consumers.


What if we could listen in to the world's conversations like the old-time telephone operators of an earlier era? We'd hear angry calls, business calls, deal-making calls, sales calls, complaint calls, love chats, and an occasional "Can you stop by the store and grab a gallon of milk?"


How many thanksgiving calls would we hear? Unfortunately most of those are dropped before they're ever made. Try calling someone today and saying: "Hey Cooper, I just wanted to thank you for helping out at the luncheon yesterday. You really saved the day for us." Or, "Miss Anderson. You may not remember me, but you were my fourth grade teacher and your lessons on science are why I'm a zoologist today."


Those calls should never be dropped.

A friendship can weather most things and thrive in thin soil; but it needs a little mulch of letters and phone calls and small, silly presents every so often - just to save it from drying out completely.

Pam Brown, Australian poet

Read-thru-the-Bible
1 Corinthians 7:1 -- 9:27

1 Corinthians 10:1 -- 12:31

[Judy Harder]

Single - for a Purpose


...He who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord - how he may please the Lord.

1 Corinthians 7:32b 

Recommended Reading

1 Corinthians 7:7-9

British researchers analyzed speed dating - meeting people by evaluating prospects at an event through a series of brief one-on-one meetings - to see if singles with a wide variety of potential dates had a higher chance of meeting a partner. The verdict: They didn't. 1 Catering to singles has opened up new multi-million-dollar enterprises from single bars to computerized dating.


But we're mistaken if we take our cues from society on singleness. God doesn't think we need to spend time and money trying to "fix" it. Three times in 1 Corinthians 7, the apostle Paul talks about the unmarried, and he uses the phrase: "It is good." If you're single, God wants you to accept it as one of His gifts to you. Use your singleness to grow and become content with His plan.


Perhaps you've heard - or even made - thoughtless comments like: "What's a sweet girl/guy like you doing single? Maybe your standards are too high for a mate. I prayed for my husband/wife." Respect the singles you encounter, and share God's view of singleness: It is good.

[A godly single] answers God's calling in his/her life while single, not waiting for marriage to give him/her happiness or purpose.

Richard D. Phillips and Sharon Phillips

                                                                                                                                             
Read-thru-the-Bible
1 Corinthians 13:1 -- 15:34

1 http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/03/02/ap/europe/main20038270.shtml (accessed 7/5/11).

[Judy Harder]

Activate His Calling


. . . that you may serve the Lord without distraction.

1 Corinthians 7:35

Recommended Reading

1 Corinthians 7:7-9

There have inevitably been times in each of our lives when we have felt overwhelmed with the busyness of our daily routine. And in that busyness, whether we are married or single, we can find it is challenging to discover the calling of God for our lives. Many famous Christians like Amy Carmichael, gifted author and missionary to India (1900s); David Brainerd, missionary to the American Indians during the Great Awakening; and John Stott, prolific author and influential leader in world evangelicalism, are examples of unmarried believers who found peace and satisfaction through their devotion to Christian service.


Many times those that are single may feel that their opportunities for service are limited, but this is not true. The apostle Paul describes the unmarried person as one who "cares for the things of the Lord - how he may please the Lord" (1 Corinthians 7:32). And that he "may serve the Lord without distraction" (verse 35).


If you're single, you have the joy of giving yourself totally to God without the daily responsibility of a family. If you're married, find a ministry that you and your spouse can enjoy together. Each of us, whether married or single, has a calling to fulfill God's purpose without distraction.

Outside of Christ, I am empty; in Christ, I am full.

Watchman Nee


Read-thru-the-Bible
1 Corinthians 15:35 -- 2 Corinthians 2:17

[Judy Harder]

Alone . . . With God


But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me . . .

2 Timothy 4:17

Recommended Reading

John 14:1-21

Lonely. You may feel the word even as you read it. It's an ache inside, almost to the point of nausea. Some understand the anguish of loneliness more than others. But there's One who understands it more acutely than any of us.


Testimonies of men and women in Scripture like Job, Hagar, Moses, David, and Paul express the crushing weight of loneliness. Jesus faced separation from God as He hung on the Cross for our sins. Though He was the one who needed strengthening, Jesus comforted the lonely disciples as they feared His imminent departure, "Let not your heart be troubled . . . I go to prepare a place for you" (John 14:1-2).


The greatest news for believers is that Jesus is preparing a place for us, and He will return to take us there! The One who bore the loneliest moment in history promises: "I will never leave you nor forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5). Live in the assurance of His promise. See with the eyes of faith the One who listens to your heartfelt cries and cares for you.

Snuggle in God's arms. When you are hurting, when you feel lonely, left out... let Him cradle you, comfort you, reassure you of His all-sufficient power and love.

Kay Arthur


Read-thru-the-Bible
2 Corinthians 3:1 -- 7:16

[Judy Harder]

The Overseer


. . . though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, . . . You are with me . . .

Psalm 23:4

Recommended Reading

Psalm 23

Hagar was one of those behind-the-scenes people, thrown into jobs she didn't seek -- a servant girl asked to conceive her master's child and then treated harshly by her mistress. Fleeing to the wilderness, Hagar sat alone by a well in despair and isolation. It was there God made His presence known to her. An overjoyed Hagar named the well, Beerlahairoi, "You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees" (Genesis 16:13-14).


Abraham was the powerful man in the spotlight, everyone wanted to be his friend. But when God asked him to do the unthinkable -- raise a knife to slay his son and prove his love for God -- he answered with humility and trust, not ego. Obediently hiking up Mount Moriah, Abraham faced the task alone. And in the moment of Abraham's deepest need, God provided the substitute sacrifice of a ram. Abraham called the place, Jehovah-Jireh, "The-Lord-Will-Provide" (Genesis 22:14).


Maybe you're feeling rejected and alone like Hagar. Or perhaps God is asking you to take a stand in an area of your life that will require a big change -- like Abraham. Loneliness comes to all of us. Remember that God sees you, and He will provide.

When God seems absent from us, He is often doing His most important work in us.

Author Unknown

Read-thru-the-Bible
2 Corinthians 8:1 -- 11:33

[Judy Harder]

Gray Areas


The splendor of old men is their gray head.

Proverbs 20:29b

Recommended Reading

Psalm 71:17-24

Just when we're about to worry about old age, we find there's nothing to worry about. The Lord has taken care of it with a handful of verses sufficient for every passing year. He says, for example, in Deuteronomy 33:25b, "As your days, so shall your strength be."


In Isaiah 46:4a, He promises, "Even to your old age, I am He, and even to gray hairs I will carry you!"


Psalm 71:18 tells us to pray: "Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation..."


The apostle Paul said, "Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day" (2 Corinthians 4:16).


And Psalm 92 chimes in saying: "The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree... They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing, to declare that the LORD is upright" (verse 12-15).


So don't worry -- gray hairs are great hairs!

O gracious God, forsake me not, when I am old and gray, that unto those that follow me I may Thy might display.

The Psalter


Read-thru-the-Bible
2 Corinthians 12:1 -- Galatians 2:21