Turning Point with David Jeremiah

[Judy Harder]

Friday, February 15

The Gift of Enjoyment

As for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, and given him power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor -- this is the gift of God.
Ecclesiastes 5:19

Recommended Reading
Ecclesiastes 5:13-17 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=%20Ecclesiastes%205:13-17&version=NKJV )

Everyone knows that hearses aren't equipped with luggage racks or trailers, meaning, of course, "You can't take it with you." That well-known phrase comes from the pen of the world's richest man in his day, Solomon. While many agree with Solomon that we can't take our wealth with us, they ignore Solomon's other lesson about money: there is no guarantee that it will satisfy even in life.

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Solomon's wealth certainly didn't satisfy him. He concluded that not only was wealth itself a gift from God, the ability to enjoy it was a gift as well. Just having money is no guarantee of happiness. If it were, all rich people would be happy and all poor people would be miserable. But not only do we read of some wealthy people living unhappy lives, we also read of people with modest means being happy and content. The blessing of God -- peace, joy, contentment, and happiness -- is not tied to money. Rather, it comes as a gift to those who trust in Him.

Regardless of your material condition, let your joy and happiness today be found in God rather than in material things.

The things that we love tell us what we are.
Thomas Aquinas

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Numbers 19-21 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%2019-21&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Weekend, February 16 & 17

Words from the Wise: Daniel

Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are His.
Daniel 2:20

Recommended Reading
Daniel 2:20-23 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Daniel%202:20-23&version=NKJV )

Check out these book titles: Blind Spots: Why Smart People Do Dumb Things ... Why Smart People Do Stupid Things with Money ... Everyday Survival: Why Smart People Do Stupid Things ... Why Smart People Can Be So Stupid ... Why Smart Companies Do Dumb Things ... Why Smart People Make Dumb Choices .... I guess there are so many books with similar titles because we identify with the subject. We like to think we're smart, but sometimes we all do and say dumb things.

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Skip the aforementioned books and spend time instead in the Book of Daniel, and discover one of the wisest men of Scripture. His insights are as fresh today as when first penned. His understanding of the times is more relevant than ever.

Daniel trusted God for wisdom and always gave God the credit. As we study God's Word -- including oft-neglected books like Daniel -- we'll grow in wisdom, be less likely to do foolish things, and God will be increasingly glorified in our lives.

Daniel gave all the glory to God; he took none of it for himself. There is no limit to what God will do for the believer who will let God have all the glory.
Warren W. Wiersbe

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Numbers 22-24, Numbers 25-26 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%2022-24,%20Numbers%2025-26&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Monday, February 18

A Mind That Loves God

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind.
Luke 10:27

Recommended Reading
Luke 10:25-28 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2010:25-28&version=NKJV )

In his book,  Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God,  John Piper wrote, "The main reason God has given us minds is that we might seek out and find all the reasons that exist for treasuring Him  in  all things and  above  all things. He created the world so that  through  it and  above  it we might treasure Him. ... Thinking is a God-given means to that end." 1

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The Bible constantly refers to keeping our minds sound and sharp for Christ, of having the mind of Christ, of being transformed by the renewing of our minds, and of having our thoughts stayed on God and fixed on Jesus.

Evil thoughts grow in our minds like weeds, but we can cultivate wholesome thoughts with Bible meditation and judicious reading. Choose a healthy diet for your mind. Replace evil thoughts with memorized Scripture. True Christianity is never anti-intellectual; and growing Christians don't idle their minds in neutral. Love the Lord your God with all your mind.

Loving God with the mind means that our thinking is wholly engaged to do all it can to awaken and express the heartfelt fullness of treasuring God above all things.
John Piper

1 John Piper,  Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God,  (Wheaton: Crossway, 2010), 15, 20.

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Numbers 27-29 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%2027-29&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Tuesday, February 19

A Word from the Wise

It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools.
Ecclesiastes 7:5

Recommended Reading
Psalm 141:5 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20141:5&version=NKJV )

Perhaps the greatest example in history of a person failing to heed the "rebuke of the wise" happened nearly 2,000 years ago. While Pontius Pilate was examining Jesus of Nazareth, his wife came to him and warned him not to condemn Jesus (Matthew 27:19). Pilate ignored his wife's warning. Instead of heeding the words of the wise, he listened to the song (words) of a foolish, angry crowd.

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King Solomon had more to say about hearing and heeding wise rebukes than any other biblical writer. Maybe he remembered the lesson of his father, David, who received the rebuke of Nathan the prophet (2 Samuel 12). The Book of Proverbs contains many reasons for humbly accepting sound rebukes: They are the way to life (6:23), honor (13:18), the company of the wise (15:31), and understanding (15:32). Indeed, they are like an "ornament of fine gold" (25:12). The person who rejects rebukes experiences just the opposite.

If you are fortunate enough to receive a word of warning from a wise friend, open your heart to what God may want you to do or learn.

I had rather that true and faithful teachers should rebuke and condemn me, and reprove my ways, than that hypocrites should flatter me and applaud me as a saint.
Martin Luther

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Numbers 30-32 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%2030-32&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Wednesday, February 20

The Unusual Path to Maturity

It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes.
Psalm 119:71

Recommended Reading
2 Corinthians 12:7-10 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Corinthians%2012:7-10&version=NKJV )

A man who heard someone refer to a "pair of docks" had to be corrected -- the discussion was not about two identical places to tie up boats. But a  paradox  does involve two ideas that seem to be contradictory when contained in the same sentence. And the Bible is filled with them: We receive by giving, we become great by becoming small, we live by dying, and more.

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One particularly unsettling paradox is that we learn more from adversity than from prosperity. A person who wants to grow deep and wise in spiritual things puts himself in the position of welcoming trouble into his life. The contradiction is that prosperity provides peace and calm -- surely we can focus on spiritual growth better in such an environment. But the essence of spiritual growth is growing in faith, learning to walk by faith instead of by sight. And we do that best when things are hard. If Jesus "learned obedience by the things which He suffered" (Hebrews 5:, it is likely that we will, too.

Don't create or look for adversity. But when it comes, embrace it as an opportunity to deepen your walk with Christ.

There is a certain kind of maturity that can be attained only through the discipline of suffering.
D. A. Carson

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Numbers 33-36 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%2033-36&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Thursday, February 21

Confident Dependence

I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
John 15:5

Recommended Reading
Philippians 4:13  ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians%204:13%20&version=NKJV )

Part of every parent's task is finding the balance between letting a young child struggle to accomplish a task -- tying a shoe, unscrewing a jar lid, putting together a new toy -- versus stepping in to do the task for the child. Children learn there are some things that simply cannot be done by themselves.

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It is God's design that we learn to be totally dependent on His power in us. Unlike children, who eventually grow up to accomplish life's tasks on their own, Christians remain dependent on God for all their lives. But wait -- don't we make our way through the day on our own? So what is it that we are so dependent on God for? Christlikeness. There is nothing in our human ability that allows us to bear the fruit of Christlikeness. That fruit -- the character of Christ outlined in part by Paul in Galatians 5:22-23 -- can only be borne in us by the Holy Spirit.

The Christian life is a fine-line balance between confidence and dependence. When we realize that our confidence is in Christ alone, confidence and dependence become one and the same. Confess your confident dependence on Him today.

The Christian should resemble a fruit tree, not a Christmas tree!
John R. W. Stott

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Deuteronomy 1-2 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%201-2&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Friday, February 22

The Skill of Living

How much better to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.
Proverbs 16:16

Recommended Reading
Proverbs 8:1-11  ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%208:1-11&version=NKJV )

When we marvel at the work of an artisan or craftsman ... when we are amazed at the performance of an athlete ... when we are astounded at the performance of a musician ... in every case we applaud their skill. Talent is involved, but skill is the result of talent refined through years of practice.

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In the Old Testament, such performers would have been described as wise, not skillful. That is because the Hebrew word for wisdom -- hokmah -- is actually the word for skill. We think of wisdom as being intangible, a hard-to-define quality that is mysteriously attained. In fact, wisdom is simply skill -- the kind of skill needed to make the high priest's garments (Exodus 28:3), the fabrics for the tabernacle (Exodus 35:35), an idol (Isaiah 40:19), or to pilot a ship (Ezekiel 27:. So what kind of skill does the Book of Proverbs talk about more than 100 times? Wisdom is the skill of living life from God's perspective, a skill that is acquired by humility and reverence before Him (Proverbs 1:7; 9:10).

The more we fear (reverence) the Lord, the more skillful at life we become.

The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, and they that lack the beginning have neither middle nor end.
John Bunyan

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Deuteronomy 3-4 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%203-4&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Weekend, February 23 & 24

Words from the Wise: Agur

Give me neither poverty nor riches -- feed me with the food allotted to me; lest I be full and deny You ... or lest I be poor and steal, and profane the name of my God.
Proverbs 30:8-9

Recommended Reading
Proverbs 30:1-9 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%2030:1-9&version=NKJV )

Who was Agur son of Jakeh? His name means "Hireling," and he's not a biblical VIP. He's a minor character in Scripture who once scribbled some advice to two people named Ithiel and Ucal. Was Agur a king or a peasant? A Jew or a Gentile? Revered or persecuted? We don't know, but we do know he was highly respected for his wise thinking. Agur's wisdom rivaled that of Solomon, and his friendly advice was included in the Book of Proverbs as the thirtieth chapter.

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Here in verses 8-9, Agur gave us one of the wisest and most unusual prayers of the Bible. He asked God to keep him from both extreme poverty and extreme wealth. The safest life for the soul, he reasoned, was one of moderation and contentment.

Agur didn't have total obscurity (he's a biblical author) nor total fame (we know little of him). He didn't want total poverty or total wealth. His wisdom was in a balanced life, a contented heart, and a well-adjusted attitude. He's a man to emulate, and his prayer is a petition to echo.

I wonder how many financial advisors pray Agur's prayer ... ? It just seems so un-American to pray like this.
Steven James

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Deuteronomy 5-8, Deuteronomy 9-11 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%205-8,%20Deuteronomy%209-11&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Monday, February 25

Content or Contentious?

Having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.
1 Timothy 6:8

Recommended Reading
1 Timothy 6:6-11 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Timothy%206:6-11&version=NKJV )

Some people are contentious and others are content. Some strive and struggle to get more and more; others find joy in what they have, and most of all in Whom they serve.

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William Henry Channing, a nineteenth-century clergyman, summed up his philosophy of life like this: "To live content with small means; to see elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable; and wealthy, not rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common -- this is my symphony."

When we're walking with God and finding our sufficiency in Christ, contentment is the melody of the soul. All of life is a symphony. We may not have the latest sound system in our living room, but we have a choir of songbirds in the nearby park -- and they sing for free!

As the Bible says, "Godliness with contentment is great gain" (1 Timothy 6:6).

Contentment ... is the soul's enjoyment of that peace that passes all understanding.
Arthur Pink

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Deuteronomy 12-15 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2012-15&version=NKJV )

[Judy Harder]

Tuesday, February 26

God Is God

Therefore He says: "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble."
James 4:6b

Recommended Reading
Matthew 23:11-12 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2023:11-12&version=NKJV )

When you think of an immovable object, what comes to mind? Perhaps the massive Rock of Gibraltar on the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, or the Empire State Building in New York City? How about the Eiffel Tower in Paris or the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco? Some things have the ability to resist human effort; they are completely immovable by us.

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If created things are immovable, how about the Creator, God Himself? The Bible says that God resists the proud. For a prideful person to attempt to change or move God is as futile as a baby trying to move a building. There is great liberty found in the awareness that God is God and we are not, that God's ways are perfect and that He is unmoved by the prideful or disagreeable protests of man. While God is unmoved by pride, He is moved by humility. To the humble, God gives grace -- as He did to the apostle Paul who cried out three times concerning his thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).

If you are inclined to pridefully protest against God's decisions in your life, you will find Him unmoved. But humility in the face of His decisions and actions will result in the grace to let Him be God in your situation.

God assists the humble but resists the proud.
John Blanchard

Read-Thru-the-Bible
Deuteronomy 16-19 ( http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2016-19&version=NKJV )