Devotional for the day

[Judy Harder]

July 20, 2011

Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 

Dependent on God's Presence
Those who wait on the Lord . . . shall walk and not faint -Isaiah 40:31


There is no thrill for us in walking, yet it is the test for all of our steady and enduring qualities. To "walk and not faint" is the highest stretch possible as a measure of strength. The word walk is used in the Bible to express the character of a person- ". . . John . . . looking at Jesus as He walked. . . said, 'Behold the Lamb of God!' " (John 1:35-36). There is nothing abstract or obscure in the Bible; everything is vivid and real. God does not say, "Be spiritual," but He says, "Walk before Me. . ." (Genesis 17:1).

When we are in an unhealthy condition either physically or emotionally, we always look for thrills in life. In our physical life this leads to our efforts to counterfeit the work of the Holy Spirit; in our emotional life it leads to obsessions and to the destruction of our morality; and in our spiritual life, if we insist on pursuing only thrills, on mounting up "with wings like eagles" (Isaiah 40:31), it will result in the destruction of our spirituality.

Having the reality of God's presence is not dependent on our being in a particular circumstance or place, but is only dependent on our determination to keep the Lord before us continually. Our problems arise when we refuse to place our trust in the reality of His presence. The experience the psalmist speaks of- "We will not fear, even though . . ." (Psalm 46:2)- will be ours once we are grounded on the truth of the reality of God's presence, not just a simple awareness of it, but an understanding of the reality of it. Then we will exclaim, "He has been here all the time!" At critical moments in our lives it is necessary to ask God for guidance, but it should be unnecessary to be constantly saying, "Oh, Lord, direct me in this, and in that." Of course He will, and in fact, He is doing it already! If our everyday decisions are not according to His will, He will press through them, bringing restraint to our spirit. Then we must be quiet and wait for the direction of His presence.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lightening the Load

When we get into the storms of life, it is often difficult to know what to do.  It can feel like the noise of our troubles drowns out everything else.

In Acts 27 we find the apostle Paul caught in the midst of a horrible storm.  The ship was being tossed all over the place, and the situation was becoming quite serious.

Embedded in this story is a spiritual truth that can guide you and me when we get caught in the storms of life.  It is found in verses 18-19,

And because we were exceedingly tempest-tossed, the next day they lightened the ship.  On the third day we threw the ship's tackle overboard with our own hands.

Notice that when the storm got bad and threatened to capsize the ship, they lightened the load.

Sometimes in a storm you need to throw some things overboard.  In fact, it is a great time to evaluate any baggage that you are carrying in your life.  There are some things that may not be a sin to you, but they are a weight to you.

One of the things you need to carefully evaluate is your relationships.  There are some relationships you need to cut loose because they are hanging you up, holding you back, and they are hindering you from getting to where God wants you to go.

Or maybe it's something as simple as too much TV.  Watching TV may not be a sin, but it can sure be a weight!  It can sure be a hindrance to you hearing from God, especially when you are in a time of crisis.

If you really want to hear from God and get yourself unstuck, lighten your ship.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Filled with the Holy Spirit

In His Presence: Psalm 63:1

"Do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord"(Ephesians 5:18-19).

Jesus tells His disciples that the Holy Spirit "abides with you and will be in you" (John 14:17). But how do we engage this personal Helper? How does His power become real for us? We are to become filled with the Spirit; another way to express this is to be full of Him. When a person drinks too much liquor, they become intoxicated. When a person is drunk, they are under the influence of the drink. The alcohol dictates the agenda. They don't get drunk by looking at the liquor or talking about it. They drink it. The more they drink, the more drunk they get.

God tells us that it is like that with the Holy Spirit. To see the Helper develop us, He must have control. We must come under the influence of the Holy Spirit. We must become full of Him. So how do we drink the Holy Spirit? Remember, the Holy Spirit is a spirit, not a being we can see. He functions in the spiritual world, so that's what we drink-spiritual worship. The Holy Spirit fills up the environment that is filled with worship-songs, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with our hearts to the Lord.

One Minute Please
Worship fuels us with the Holy Spirit's presence, operating in us to engage the new nature.


God bless
 

[Judy Harder]

July 21, 2011

Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 

The Doorway to the Kingdom
Blessed are the poor in spirit . . . -Matthew 5:3


Beware of thinking of our Lord as only a teacher. If Jesus Christ is only a teacher, then all He can do is frustrate me by setting a standard before me I cannot attain. What is the point of presenting me with such a lofty ideal if I cannot possibly come close to reaching it? I would be happier if I never knew it. What good is there in telling me to be what I can never be- to be "pure in heart" (Matthew 5:, to do more than my duty, or to be completely devoted to God? I must know Jesus Christ as my Savior before His teaching has any meaning for me other than that of a lofty ideal which only leads to despair. But when I am born again by the Spirit of God, I know that Jesus Christ did not come only to teach- He came to make me what He teaches I should be. The redemption means that Jesus Christ can place within anyone the same nature that ruled His own life, and all the standards God gives us are based on that nature.

The teaching of the Sermon on the Mount produces a sense of despair in the natural man- exactly what Jesus means for it to do. As long as we have some self-righteous idea that we can carry out our Lord's teaching, God will allow us to continue until we expose our own ignorance by stumbling over some obstacle in our way. Only then are we willing to come to Him as paupers and receive from Him. "Blessed are the poor in spirit . . . ." This is the first principle in the kingdom of God. The underlying foundation of Jesus Christ's kingdom is poverty, not possessions; not making decisions for Jesus, but having such a sense of absolute futility that we finally admit, "Lord, I cannot even begin to do it." Then Jesus says, "Blessed are you . . ." (Matthew 5:11). This is the doorway to the kingdom, and yet it takes us so long to believe that we are actually poor! The knowledge of our own poverty is what brings us to the proper place where Jesus Christ accomplishes His work.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Rest

In the last several devotionals, we have looked at how we respond to the storms of life.  Today and tomorrow we will look at two more principles for handling life when the storms hit.

Today, I want to go back to the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19.  In verses 5-6 we read,

Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, "Arise and eat."  Then he looked, and there by his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water.  So he ate and drank, and lay down again.

Notice that in the midst of his crisis, Elijah rested and ate.  He took care of his body.

Some of the crises you experience come because you are sleep deprived and you don't eat right.  And you know what?  Your body, your soul, and your spirit are all tied together.  What you do to one affects the other two.  It affects the whole.

We are intricately woven together.  And the wisest thing you can do when you get into a crisis is just give your body a rest, because it affects every other part of your life.

When you are exhausted and physically weak, it is easy for everything to be blown out of proportion.  When you are tired, it can look like your whole world is falling apart when it really is not.  It is like Mark Twain said, "I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened."

You and I do need to rest.  If you are in the midst of a storm today, make sure not to neglect the rest you need.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Keep Your Tank Full

In His Presence: Psalm 27:14

"Come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand"(Psalm 95:6-7).

Most Christians view worship as an event instead of a lifestyle. But our day of worship is not supposed to replace our weekday and weekend worship. Sunday is supposed to launch us into our week of worship. Worship is meant to be a lifestyle, not an event.

To be filled with the Holy Spirit and with a heart full of worship for our great God and King, we must be like a car pulling up to a filling station to receive a full tank of gasoline. Once we are filled up, do we park our vehicle and sit there the rest of the week? No, we go to a filling station to get what we need to leave the station. We have a destination and need full tanks to get there.

A problem occurs when we leave the station. As soon as we walk out of our Sunday worship, people begin to burn up that fuel inside them. Our mates, children, and work burn it up. When we leave our church, we are full of God's presence and glory from our time in corporate worship. But Satan's job is to burn up that fuel. The worst thing we can do is to wait until next Sunday to worship. We need to drink continually to stay filled.

One Minute Please

What we do on Sunday must become a way of life to remain filled with the Holy Spirit.

God bless

[Judy Harder]

July 22, 2011

Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 

Sanctification (1)
This is the will of God, your sanctification. . . -1 Thessalonians 4:3


The Death Side. In sanctification God has to deal with us on the death side as well as on the life side. Sanctification requires our coming to the place of death, but many of us spend so much time there that we become morbid. There is always a tremendous battle before sanctification is realized- something within us pushing with resentment against the demands of Christ. When the Holy Spirit begins to show us what sanctification means, the struggle starts immediately. Jesus said, "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate . . . his own life . . . he cannot be My disciple" (Luke 14:26).

In the process of sanctification, the Spirit of God will strip me down until there is nothing left but myself, and that is the place of death. Am I willing to be myself and nothing more? Am I willing to have no friends, no father, no brother, and no self-interest- simply to be ready for death? That is the condition required for sanctification. No wonder Jesus said, "I did not come to bring peace but a sword" (Matthew 10:34). This is where the battle comes, and where so many of us falter. We refuse to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ on this point. We say, "But this is so strict. Surely He does not require that of me." Our Lord is strict, and He does require that of us.

Am I willing to reduce myself down to simply "me"? Am I determined enough to strip myself of all that my friends think of me, and all that I think of myself? Am I willing and determined to hand over my simple naked self to God? Once I am, He will immediately sanctify me completely, and my life will be free from being determined and persistent toward anything except God (see 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).

When I pray, "Lord, show me what sanctification means for me," He will show me. It means being made one with Jesus. Sanctification is not something Jesus puts in me- it is Himself in me (see 1 Corinthians 1:30).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Still Small Voice

In the last three devotionals, we have looked at principles on how we should respond when our life is in crisis.  The last principle is found in 1 Kings 19:11-12,

Then He said, "Go out, and stand on the mountain before the LORD."  And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.

If your life is in crisis today, you need to remind yourself how God leads.  Do not look for it in outward, powerful manifestations-the strong wind, an earthquake, or fire.

Rather, listen for that "still small voice."

That is how Jesus speaks to us today.  Read carefully the words of John 16:13,

"However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come."

God has given you and me His Holy Spirit to lead and guide us.  And, friend, when God leads you, it is going to be through the still small whisper of the Spirit in your heart.

Yet many people want more than that.  Some people think, "I'm in a desperate situation.  I need something more!"  You and I need nothing more, because through the indwelling Holy Spirit, we have God on the inside.

So if God is going to guide you, He is going to do it from within...through that still small voice.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Raging Battle

In His Presence: Psalm 37:4

"I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please"(Galatians 5:16-17).

The very Spirit of God has taken up residence in our lives if we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior. God wants to express His mind, His thoughts, His desires, and His will through our mortal bodies. But for us to see this happen, we need to be under the Holy Spirit's control. While this is taking place, we are going to experience conflict within ourselves. This is one way we can know we are Christians. If we have no battles raging within, we are probably not saved. There is no opposition within us. God says the flesh and the Spirit are total opposites; they are not going to get along with each other at all.

How do we know the difference between the flesh and the Holy Spirit within us? The Spirit will want to please God, and the flesh will want to please ourselves. That's why the war going on inside of us is good, not bad. Most of us feel guilty about having such a battle. Of course, we may not like the feeling, but the two laws operating in our bodies should give us occasion to praise God.

One Minute Please

If a battle is being waged within you, that's a good thing because it indicates that the Spirit is active.


God bless
 

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotional

July 25, 2011
 
Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 

Am I Blessed Like This?
Blessed are . . . -Matthew 5:3-11


When we first read the statements of Jesus, they seem wonderfully simple and unstartling, and they sink unnoticed into our subconscious minds. For instance, the Beatitudes initially seem to be merely soothing and beautiful precepts for overly spiritual and seemingly useless people, but of very little practical use in the rigid, fast-paced workdays of the world in which we live. We soon find, however, that the Beatitudes contain the "dynamite" of the Holy Spirit. And they "explode" when the circumstances of our lives cause them to do so. When the Holy Spirit brings to our remembrance one of the Beatitudes, we say, "What a startling statement that is!" Then we must decide whether or not we will accept the tremendous spiritual upheaval that will be produced in our circumstances if we obey His words. That is the way the Spirit of God works. We do not need to be born again to apply the Sermon on the Mount literally. The literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount is as easy as child's play. But the interpretation by the Spirit of God as He applies our Lord's statements to our circumstances is the strict and difficult work of a saint.

The teachings of Jesus are all out of proportion when compared to our natural way of looking at things, and they come to us initially with astonishing discomfort. We gradually have to conform our walk and conversation to the precepts of Jesus Christ as the Holy Spirit applies them to our circumstances. The Sermon on the Mount is not a set of rules and regulations- it is a picture of the life we will live when the Holy Spirit is having His unhindered way with us.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ASK: Effective Prayer

Today I want to show you the very important step of asking.

Repentance is searching your own heart and asking God to put the spotlight on it, and then repenting of anything that He shows you.  When your heart is clean, you can have confidence before God when you ask.  As           1 John 3:21-22 says,

Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God.  And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.

In Matthew 7:7-11, Jesus tells us,

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!"

Pretty clear, isn't it?  God loves you and wants the very best for you.  Be careful not to water down the words of Jesus, or somehow try and explain them away or complicate them.  He meant just what He said.

But there are some conditions.  And tomorrow we will look at those conditions for receiving what you ask God for.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Walking in the Spirit

In His Presence: Proverbs 9:10

"We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us"(1 John 3:24).

Since we all live in the flesh, we will struggle with the desires of the flesh until we get to heaven. But we can bring these desires under the Holy Spirit's influence. "I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh" (Galatians 5:16). Notice that the apostle Paul doesn't say we won't have the desires of the flesh when we walk in the Spirit, but that we won't carry out those desires.

Walking in the Spirit is similar to the concept of being filled with the Holy Spirit. To walk implies that the Spirit is going somewhere-there's a destination. He always goes to the same place, to that which brings God glory. In contrast, the flesh is always moving to that which will please itself. Walking is continuous, so not only do we have to pay attention to our destination, but our walking also involves dedication. Like the filling of the Holy Spirit, walking in the Spirit is ongoing. A third aspect of walking includes dependency. The act of walking is taking one step after another.

The key to walking in the Spirit is to look to Him to give us the ability to do what we know we can't do on our own. The moment we try to do it on our own, we reject the work of the Spirit. The Spirit doesn't need our help; we need His.

One Minute Please

When we walk in the Spirit, the flesh will lose its ability to have the last word.


God bless
 

[Judy Harder]

July 26, 2011

Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 

The Way to Purity
Those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart . . . . For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man . . . -Matthew 15:18-20


Initially we trust in our ignorance, calling it innocence, and next we trust our innocence, calling it purity. Then when we hear these strong statements from our Lord, we shrink back, saying, "But I never felt any of those awful things in my heart." We resent what He reveals. Either Jesus Christ is the supreme authority on the human heart, or He is not worth paying any attention to. Am I prepared to trust the penetration of His Word into my heart, or would I prefer to trust my own "innocent ignorance"? If I will take an honest look at myself, becoming fully aware of my so-called innocence and putting it to the test, I am very likely to have a rude awakening that what Jesus Christ said is true, and I will be appalled at the possibilities of the evil and the wrong within me. But as long as I remain under the false security of my own "innocence," I am living in a fool's paradise. If I have never been an openly rude and abusive person, the only reason is my own cowardice coupled with the sense of protection I receive from living a civilized life. But when I am open and completely exposed before God, I find that Jesus Christ is right in His diagnosis of me.

The only thing that truly provides protection is the redemption of Jesus Christ. If I will simply hand myself over to Him, I will never have to experience the terrible possibilities that lie within my heart. Purity is something far too deep for me to arrive at naturally. But when the Holy Spirit comes into me, He brings into the center of my personal life the very Spirit that was exhibited in the life of Jesus Christ, namely, the Holy Spirit, which is absolute unblemished purity.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Conditions for Answered Prayer

Yesterday we talked about the "A" in the acronym P-R-A-Y, which is our way of understanding the steps in effective prayer.  That "A" stands for ask, and I have come to believe that too many Christians don't believe that God wants them to ask.

God wants you to ask.  He really does.  But there are some conditions He gives in order to answer your requests.  In John chapters 14-16 we find a number of these conditions.

We need to remember that these are Jesus' last hours with the disciples; and He wants them to understand how prayer really works.  Over and over He emphasizes the need to ask, but His answers will be based on three conditions.

First, in John 14:13, Jesus says your request must glorify God,

"And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If you ask anything in My name, I will do it."

Second, in John 15:7, He says your request must be consistent and in harmony with His Word,

"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you."

And finally, in John 16:23-24, Jesus sets the condition that your request bring you joy,

"And in that day you will ask Me nothing.  Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.  Until now you have asked nothing in My name.  Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full."

Over and over, Jesus commands you to ask.  But when you ask, make sure your request will glorify God, that it is consistent with His Word, and that it will bring you joy.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Remarkable Fruit

In His Presence: Matthew 11:29

"[God] made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life"(2 Corinthians 3:6).

The Holy Spirit within us makes life real; life comes alive. When we have accepted Jesus as our Savior and Redeemer, life is no longer theology. It's all right to have theology in our heads, just as long as it becomes real in our lives when we grow closer to God through the Holy Spirit.

When the Holy Spirit takes over, we begin to grow. The Holy Spirit becomes our power source behind this growth so that eventually it will become evident. "The deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law" (Galatians 5:19-23).

The Holy Spirit is the divine enabler who produces growth in us. Every time we try to grow independently of God, we are working against Him. Many of us spend much of our time shutting God out. We are trying to produce those fruits on our own. However, God does not need our help to grow us.

One Minute Please
When the Holy Spirit takes over our spiritual growth, He will produce remarkable fruit in us.


God bless
 

[Judy Harder]

July 27, 2011

Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 

The Way to Knowledge
If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine . . . -John 7:17


The golden rule to follow to obtain spiritual understanding is not one of intellectual pursuit, but one of obedience. If a person wants scientific knowledge, then intellectual curiosity must be his guide. But if he desires knowledge and insight into the teachings of Jesus Christ, he can only obtain it through obedience. If spiritual things seem dark and hidden to me, then I can be sure that there is a point of disobedience somewhere in my life. Intellectual darkness is the result of ignorance, but spiritual darkness is the result of something that I do not intend to obey.

No one ever receives a word from God without instantly being put to the test regarding it. We disobey and then wonder why we are not growing spiritually. Jesus said, "If you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift" (Matthew 5:23-24). He is saying, in essence, "Don't say another word to me; first be obedient by making things right." The teachings of Jesus hit us where we live. We cannot stand as impostors before Him for even one second. He instructs us down to the very last detail. The Spirit of God uncovers our spirit of self-vindication and makes us sensitive to things that we have never even thought of before.

When Jesus drives something home to you through His Word, don't try to evade it. If you do, you will become a religious impostor. Examine the things you tend simply to shrug your shoulders about, and where you have refused to be obedient, and you will know why you are not growing spiritually. As Jesus said, "First . . . go . . .." Even at the risk of being thought of as fanatical, you must obey what God tells you.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

YIELD: The Fourth Step in Effective Prayer

Psalm 37:4 provides us the "Y" in the acronym P-R-A-Y, the four elements to effective prayer we have been discussing over the last few devotionals.

Here is what Psalm 37:4 says,

Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Now the Hebrew word for delight in this verse literally means to become soft or pliable.  This means that "delighting" in the Lord is assuming a yielded posture before God.

So the "Y" in P-R-A-Y stands for yield.  The question is:  How do you practice yielding to God when you pray?  Yielding is when you stop talking, and  you wait, listen, and seek to hear from God.

In my own practice of prayer, I will often bow before God and ask Him, "God, is there anything You want to say to me?  Do You have any instructions for me?  Is there anything You want me to change?"

Then I silently wait for Him to speak to me.

As you assume this posture of being yielded and waiting quietly before Him, you will be surprised at some of the things that come to your attention: "You need to spend more time with your daughter," "Take your wife out on a date," "Bake your neighbor a pie and build a bridge over which the gospel can travel," "Spend more time praising Me," "Show your gratitude and appreciation for those who have been helping you in your life."

You will indeed hear from God if you ask Him to speak into your heart, and wait silently before Him. 

That is the last element of effective prayer:  praise, repent, ask, yield.  Your prayers can indeed be effective if you commit to these four principles.  That is how to  P-R-A-Y.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


What Are Carnal Christians?

In His Presence: 1 Timothy 2:1-4

What is a carnal Christian? Carnality is that spiritual state where a born-again Christian knowingly and persistently lives to please and serve self rather than Christ. Carnality is an issue with Christians only, because a carnal Christian is a genuine Christian. These people have placed their faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ alone, and have been born again a second time. It is possible for Christians to be on our way to heaven but be of no good to God on earth.

Christians are experiencing a crisis of carnality. Many men, women, and young people are only half-stepping with Christ. God has too many children who are not sure whose family we really want to be a part of. This indecision has led to untold agony, unanswered prayers, emotional weakness, physical weakness, loss of peace, loss of joy, and lack of stability. This does not mean that every time a Christian experiences a problem it implies that he or she is carnal. However, far too many of us are experiencing too many failures because we are, in fact, carnal and only half-stepping with the Gospel.

The apostle Paul addressed this issue with the church in Corinth: "I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly" (1 Corinthians 3:1-3).

One Minute Please

Do you want to be part of God's family or the world's family?



God bless
 

[Judy Harder]

July 28, 2011

Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 

God's Purpose or Mine?
He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side . . . -Mark 6:45


We tend to think that if Jesus Christ compels us to do something and we are obedient to Him, He will lead us to great success. We should never have the thought that our dreams of success are God's purpose for us. In fact, His purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have the idea that God is leading us toward a particular end or a desired goal, but He is not. The question of whether or not we arrive at a particular goal is of little importance, and reaching it becomes merely an episode along the way. What we see as only the process of reaching a particular end, God sees as the goal itself.

What is my vision of God's purpose for me? Whatever it may be, His purpose is for me to depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay calm, faithful, and unconfused while in the middle of the turmoil of life, the goal of the purpose of God is being accomplished in me. God is not working toward a particular finish- His purpose is the process itself. What He desires for me is that I see "Him walking on the sea" with no shore, no success, nor goal in sight, but simply having the absolute certainty that everything is all right because I see "Him walking on the sea" (Mark 6:49). It is the process, not the outcome, that is glorifying to God.

God's training is for now, not later. His purpose is for this very minute, not for sometime in the future. We have nothing to do with what will follow our obedience, and we are wrong to concern ourselves with it. What people call preparation, God sees as the goal itself.

God's purpose is to enable me to see that He can walk on the storms of my life right now. If we have a further goal in mind, we are not paying enough attention to the present time. However, if we realize that moment-by-moment obedience is the goal, then each moment as it comes is precious.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Pressing On 

In Philippians 3:12, Paul says,

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.

Paul's challenge in this verse is for you and me to press on, to keep growing.  I believe one of the greatest assets in life that you and I have is the capacity to grow and change.  We have the capacity to press on.

One of the first steps in pressing on is to realize that you have not yet arrived.  Even the apostle Paul acknowledged and recognized that he had not yet arrived.  He said, Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected.

Paul understood that he had a lot of room for growth.  And if he did, so do we.

If you have grown stagnant in your spiritual life, you need to ask the question, "Why?"  Why is your spiritual life stunted?  Why are you not growing?  Why are you stymied in your spiritual progress?  What are your barriers to growth?

I believe that if we are willing to admit that we need to grow, then identify the barriers that are keeping a lid on our spiritual lives, and finally, by the grace of God, deal with those barriers and remove them, we will begin to press on and grow.

If you were to take a catfish and put it in a small fish tank, that fish would only grow to be 12 inches long and it might weigh a quarter of a pound.  But if you took that identical catfish and placed it into a lake, it might grow to be three feet long and weigh 60 pounds.

What was the barrier to its growth?  The tank kept it contained.  It grew to the limit that the environment allowed.

Remove the barriers to your spiritual growth and press on!


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Biblical Saints Living in Carnality

In His Presence: Proverbs 24:14

It is possible to be a genuine Christian and be carnal. The Bible gives us several examples of such men and women. One of these examples is Saul, son of Kish, the first king of Israel. We know that he was redeemed because the Bible says: "God changed his heart" (1 Samuel 10:9). Yet here was a man who, because of his rebellion against God, eventually sought the counsel of witches and committed suicide.

King Solomon is another example of a king who was redeemed by God but turned away from Him. At first, he was a tremendous king. The Lord appeared to him in a dream one night and said to Solomon: "Ask what you wish me to give you" (1 Kings 3:5). King Solomon replied: "Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child . . . Give Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people to discern between good and evil" (vv. 7-9). Yet later in the same book it says: "King Solomon loved many foreign women" (1 Kings 11:1). When King Solomon entered the life of carnality, he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes, which is about the emptiness of life.

The sons of Jacob lived in carnality for 11 years after they sold Joseph into slavery. King David lived in a state of carnality when he committed adultery and murder. When David tried to hide his sin, he covered it up until Nathan the prophet confronted him.

One Minute Please

God gives us new life. It is up to us to make it meaningful.

God bless
 

[Judy Harder]

July 29, 2011


Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 
Do You See Jesus in Your Clouds?
Behold, He is coming with clouds . . . -Revelation 1:7


In the Bible clouds are always associated with God. Clouds are the sorrows, sufferings, or providential circumstances, within or without our personal lives, which actually seem to contradict the sovereignty of God. Yet it is through these very clouds that the Spirit of God is teaching us how to walk by faith. If there were never any clouds in our lives, we would have no faith. "The clouds are the dust of His feet" (Nahum 1:3). They are a sign that God is there. What a revelation it is to know that sorrow, bereavement, and suffering are actually the clouds that come along with God! God cannot come near us without clouds- He does not come in clear-shining brightness.

It is not true to say that God wants to teach us something in our trials. Through every cloud He brings our way, He wants us to unlearn something. His purpose in using the cloud is to simplify our beliefs until our relationship with Him is exactly like that of a child- a relationship simply between God and our own souls, and where other people are but shadows. Until other people become shadows to us, clouds and darkness will be ours every once in a while. Is our relationship with God becoming more simple than it has ever been?

There is a connection between the strange providential circumstances allowed by God and what we know of Him, and we have to learn to interpret the mysteries of life in the light of our knowledge of God. Until we can come face to face with the deepest, darkest fact of life without damaging our view of God's character, we do not yet know Him.

". . . they were fearful as they entered the cloud" (Luke 9:34). Is there anyone except Jesus in your cloud? If so, it will only get darker until you get to the place where there is "no one anymore, but only Jesus . . ." (Mark 9:8 ; also see Mark 2-7).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Growing Up

The Scripture says in Ephesians 4:15 that we should grow in all things.  In today's and tomorrow's devotionals, I want to give you ten areas in which the Bible teaches us we should grow.  I hope you will take time to read each passage and answer the question of whether you are growing as you should in each of these areas.

1.      In Colossians 1:10 we are told we should increase in the knowledge of God.  You ought to know more about God and His Kingdom this week than you did last week.

2.      Psalm 71:21 tells us we are to be growing in our influence.  I hope I have not reached the pinnacle in my life when it comes to the influence I have for good in the lives of others.  If you call yourself a leader and no one is following you, then you are not influencing them, you are just taking a walk.  You and I need to grow in influence.

3.      In Proverbs 13:11 it says we are to be growing and increasing materially.  I don't know of many who couldn't grow in this area!

4.      Isaiah 29:19 speaks of increasing in joy.  From appearances, some people seem to grow more and more sour as the days go by and have less and less of a sense of humor.  Listen, the more you advance in age, the more your capacity to laugh at life's ups and downs should grow. 

5.      2 Thessalonians 1:3 teaches us that we should grow in faith.  Now faith certainly touches all areas of life; and, hopefully, today you don't freak out like you used to when you are faced with a trial, because your faith has grown and you have tasted and seen that the Lord is good.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Stagnant Christians

In His Presence: Colossians 4:2

The carnal Christian is a stagnant Christian. The apostle Paul told the church in Corinth: "Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly" (1 Corinthians 3:2-3). Even though a carnal Christian is saved, he has had little or no development over time. It is dismaying as a pastor to watch Christians who come to church week after week, month after month, year after year, making no progress even though they may be performing. They commit the same old sins the same way. They are not overcoming these sins that in time they should be mature enough to overcome. They refuse to think biblically.

What marks a stagnant Christian is their persistence in the milk of the word. We can call them the "A B C" Christians. "A B C" Christians are still learning how to read, while their peers are graduating from high school. The difference between the stagnant and growing Christian is that the stagnant Christian does not use the time since salvation to grow spiritually.

A carnal Christian is like a vehicle that has stalled because it has run out of gasoline. We are stalled if we still measure success in our spiritual lives purely by how much we were entertained in church. The Holy Spirit is there to provide the power, but your spiritual life needs gas. There's nothing wrong with the engine, but the gasoline needed for this car to run is our commitment to grow. It needs our persistence.

One Minute Please

We have to make a decision on our own to move from the milk of the Word to solid food.

God bless
 

[Judy Harder]

August 01, 2011

Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 
Learning About His Ways
When Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples . . . He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities -Matthew 11:1


He comes where He commands us to leave. If you stayed home when God told you to go because you were so concerned about your own people there, then you actually robbed them of the teaching of Jesus Christ Himself. When you obeyed and left all the consequences to God, the Lord went into your city to teach, but as long as you were disobedient, you blocked His way. Watch where you begin to debate with Him and put what you call your duty into competition with His commands. If you say, "I know that He told me to go, but my duty is here," it simply means that you do not believe that Jesus means what He says.

He teaches where He instructs us not to teach. "Master . . . let us make three tabernacles . . ." (Luke 9:33).

Are we playing the part of an amateur providence, trying to play God's role in the lives of others? Are we so noisy in our instruction of other people that God cannot get near them? We must learn to keep our mouths shut and our spirits alert. God wants to instruct us regarding His Son, and He wants to turn our times of prayer into mounts of transfiguration. When we become certain that God is going to work in a particular way, He will never work in that way again.

He works where He sends us to wait. ". . . tarry . . . until . . ." (Luke 24:49). "Wait on the Lord" and He will work (Psalm 37:34). But don't wait sulking spiritually and feeling sorry for yourself, just because you can't see one inch in front of you! Are we detached enough from our own spiritual fits of emotion to "wait patiently for Him"? (Psalm 37:7). Waiting is not sitting with folded hands doing nothing, but it is learning to do what we are told.

These are some of the facets of His ways that we rarely recognize.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Growing Up-Part 2

Friday we began a list of ten areas in which Scripture says we should be growing.  In today's devotional, I want to complete that list for you.

1.      1 Thessalonians 3:12 and 1 Thessalonians 4:9-10 teach us that we should grow in our love for others.  I would hate to think that I have plumbed the depths of love for my wife, for my children, for my friends, or for God.

2.      Ephesians 2:21 speaks to us of growing in unity.  You and I ought to grow better and better at getting along with other believers, especially those in our church.

3.      Luke 2:52 speaks of growing in wisdom.  God is so anxious to provide you and me with His wisdom, but it is something we need to seek.  Are you growing in wisdom?

4.      Luke 2:52 also speaks of growing in favor.  Are you obnoxious and hard to get along with?  Do you find it difficult to get along with others?  I challenge you, if that is true, to consider the model of Jesus for our lives.  He grew in favor with both God and men.

5.      2 Peter 3:18 says that we can grow in grace.  I don't know about you, but I am deeply grateful for God's grace in my life. And for those who extend me grace when I blow it.  Is grace a hallmark of your life?

According to Scripture, these ten areas-the five from yesterday and the five today-are vital areas in which you and I are to grow.  I challenge you to read each Scripture and take each area before the Lord and ask Him to reveal where you need to grow.

You will be amazed at the change for good that will come about in your life!


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Carnality by Choice

In His Presence: Galatians 6:2

"Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called 'Today,' so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin"(Hebrews 3:12-13).

When God saved us, He saved us to serve Christ. Occasional lapses into sin do not imply carnality. Everyone sins. Carnality is the state where the person has the mindset of seeking to gratify themselves rather than please Christ.

No Christian has to be carnal. Being carnal is a decision of the will. Carnal Christians have grown up physically and should be able to feed themselves. But they can't. That is because a carnal Christian is a person who has developed a mindset of disobedience. They willfully live in sin, controlled by the old person they used to be. They are saved and the Holy Spirit is in them, but they are not allowing the Holy Spirit to grow them.

There is a difference between a baby Christian and a carnal Christian. Baby Christians are young in the Lord and do not yet have the capacity to eat on their own. Someone else has to feed them-to give them the Word. A young Christian desires the milk of the Word of God. "Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation" (1 Peter 2:2).

One Minute Please

Have you become hardened to sin in your life? Are you a carnal Christian?


God bless
 

[Judy Harder]

August 2, 2011

Daily Devotionals By Oswald Chambers     
 

The Teaching of Adversity
In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world -John 16:33


The typical view of the Christian life is that it means being delivered from all adversity. But it actually means being delivered in adversity, which is something very different. "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling . . ." (Psalm 91:1,10)- the place where you are at one with God.

If you are a child of God, you will certainly encounter adversities, but Jesus says you should not be surprised when they come. "In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." He is saying, "There is nothing for you to fear." The same people who refused to talk about their adversities before they were saved often complain and worry after being born again because they have the wrong idea of what it means to live the life of a saint.

God does not give us overcoming life- He gives us life as we overcome. The strain of life is what builds our strength. If there is no strain, there will be no strength. Are you asking God to give you life, liberty, and joy? He cannot, unless you are willing to accept the strain. And once you face the strain, you will immediately get the strength. Overcome your own timidity and take the first step. Then God will give you nourishment- "To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life . . ." (Revelation 2:7). If you completely give of yourself physically, you become exhausted. But when you give of yourself spiritually, you get more strength. God never gives us strength for tomorrow, or for the next hour, but only for the strain of the moment. Our temptation is to face adversities from the standpoint of our own common sense. But a saint can "be of good cheer" even when seemingly defeated by adversities, because victory is absurdly impossible to everyone, except God.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Running Inside the Lines

In Philippians 3:14, Paul provides a powerful insight into his passion.  Here is what he says,

I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Paul clearly had a goal in mind, a sense of his destiny.  And he was undaunted in seeking to reach it.

In fact, the phrase "I press toward the goal" could literally be translated from the Greek text this way,  "I run within the lines."  It paints the picture of a runner, running down a track, staying in his lane.

He is not overreaching his bounds, running in someone else's lane.  Rather, as he goes for the goal, he is running within the lines with the goal in mind.

In a little mission in Medford, Oregon, many years ago, there was a young man with a terrible drug and alcohol problem.  One night God got a hold of his life.  It was a truly dramatic conversion.

I was that young man.  And for several decades now, I have been seeking to lay hold of the reason for which He laid hold of me.  I knew that night that God had a destiny for my life.  And that is the goal I strive and press forward to achieve.

God has a destiny for your life, too.  God laid hold of your life just like He did mine, for a purpose.  If you have not already done so, you must understand and press forward to fulfill the destiny God has for your life.

If you don't know what that might be, then start asking God to reveal that to you.  Ask Him to show you the lane you are to run in.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Carnality by Choice

In His Presence: Galatians 6:2

"Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called 'Today,' so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin"(Hebrews 3:12-13).

When God saved us, He saved us to serve Christ. Occasional lapses into sin do not imply carnality. Everyone sins. Carnality is the state where the person has the mindset of seeking to gratify themselves rather than please Christ.

No Christian has to be carnal. Being carnal is a decision of the will. Carnal Christians have grown up physically and should be able to feed themselves. But they can't. That is because a carnal Christian is a person who has developed a mindset of disobedience. They willfully live in sin, controlled by the old person they used to be. They are saved and the Holy Spirit is in them, but they are not allowing the Holy Spirit to grow them.

There is a difference between a baby Christian and a carnal Christian. Baby Christians are young in the Lord and do not yet have the capacity to eat on their own. Someone else has to feed them-to give them the Word. A young Christian desires the milk of the Word of God. "Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation" (1 Peter 2:2).

One Minute Please

Have you become hardened to sin in your life? Are you a carnal Christian?

 
God bless