Devotional for the day

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 5, 2008

Words Of Life

READ: John 6:60-71
Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. -John 6:68
In his book Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business, Neil Postman warns us of the danger of a world of information overload. He reminds us of a chilling futuristic vision-Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, which describes a world thoroughly flooded with information. But that data is manipulated so that none of it has any significance.

A glance at the Internet or a magazine rack hints that we are living in just such a culture. We're drowning in a sea of information often marketed by the unscrupulous. We need discernment to choose wisely whom we will listen to.

In John 6, Jesus delivered His "I am the bread of life" message (v.35). It was a sermon so controversial that, at its conclusion, many of His followers went away and stopped following Him (v.66). They chose to stop listening to the voice of Christ. When Jesus challenged His disciples as to whether they would also walk away, Peter wisely responded, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (v.68).

In a world swamped with confusing and contradictory information, we can, like Peter, turn to Christ for wisdom. He cuts through the words of confusion with words of life.  - Bill Crowder

There's so much wisdom to be learned,
So many ways for me to grow,
Lord, I would listen like a child,
And learn what You would have me know. -K. De Haan

If you want to be wise, listen to Jesus.

Thy Lovingkindness by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 1:8

And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go, return each to her mother's house. The Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me."

Thy Lovingkindness

The great American novelist Henry James, in saying good-bye to his nephew, Willie, said something the boy never forgot. As they parted, he put his hand on the young man's shoulders and remarked, "Willie, there are three things that are important in human life. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. The third is to be kind."

Naomi's daughters-in-law, Orpah and Ruth, apparently had learned that lesson well. As she prepared to part from them, Naomi praised them both for their kindness. They had been kind to her sons, their husbands. And even after they were widowed and no longer had family obligations to their mother-in-law, they continued to show kindness to her. In the midst of a pagan land that practiced a cruel form of worship,even sacrificing little children,God had so moved on the hearts of these two women that their spirit of kindness set them apart from their fellow Moabites.

Kindness should be one of the distinguishing marks of a Christian as well. Frederick W. Faber observed, "Kind words are the music of the world. They have a power that seems to be beyond natural causes, as if they were some angel's song that had lost its way and come to earth. It seems as if they could almost do what in reality God alone can do,soften the hard and angry hearts of men. No one was ever corrected by a sarcasm,crushed, perhaps, if the sarcasm was clever enough, but drawn nearer to God, never." We must never forget that more people have been won to Christ through kindness than fiery sermons or learned arguments.

Who needs to feel the warmth of your kindness today? Do you know someone who has a special need that you can meet? Let your life be set apart by your deeds of kindness. Identify a need. Picture a face. And show your kindness to that person today.

Kindness is love in work clothes.

Week of April 4

He's Been There
by Max Lucado

". . . shall not perish but have eternal life . . ."

On a trip to China, I rode past Tiananmen Square in a bus full of Westerners. We tried to recollect the causes and consequences of the revolt. Our knowledge of history was embarrassing. One gave one date; another gave a different one. One person remembered a certain death toll; someone else disagreed. All this time our translator remained silent.

Finally one of us asked her, "Do you remember anything about the Tiananmen Square revolt?"

Her answer was solemn. "Yes, I was a part of it."

We quickly grew quiet as she gave firsthand recollections of the bloodshed and oppression. We listened, because she'd been there.

We who follow Christ do so for the same reason. He's been there . . .

He's been to Bethlehem, wearing barn rags and hearing sheep crunch. Suckling milk and shivering against the cold. All of divinity content to cocoon itself in an eight-pound body and to sleep on a cow's supper. Millions who face the chill of empty pockets or the fears of sudden change turn to Christ. Why?

Because he's been there.

He's been to Nazareth, where he made deadlines and paid bills; to Galilee, where he recruited direct reports and separated fighters; to Jerusalem, where he stared down critics and stood up against cynics.

We have our Nazareths as well-demands and due dates. Jesus wasn't the last to build a team; accusers didn't disappear with Jerusalem's temple. Why seek Jesus's help with your challenges? Because he's been there. To Nazareth, to Galilee, to Jerusalem.

But most of all, he's been to the grave. Not as a visitor, but as a corpse. Buried amidst the cadavers. Numbered among the dead. Heart silent and lungs vacant. Body wrapped and grave sealed. The cemetery. He's been buried there.

You haven't yet. But you will be. And since you will, don't you need someone who knows the way out?

From 3:16, The Numbers of Hope
Copyright (Thomas Nelson, Inc, 2007) Max Lucado

HIS AGONY AND OUR FELLOWSHIP
by Oswald Chambers
   
"Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, tarry ye here, and watch with Me." Matthew 26:36, 38

We can never fathom the agony in Gethsemane, but at least we need not misunderstand it. It is the agony of God and Man in one, face to face with sin. We know nothing about Gethsemane in personal experience. Gethsemane and Calvary stand for something unique; they are the gateway into Life for us.

It was not the death on the cross that Jesus feared in Gethsemane; He stated most emphatically that He came on purpose to die. In Gethsemane He feared lest He might not get through as Son of Man. He would get through as Son of God - Satan could not touch Him there; but Satan's onslaught was that He would get through as an isolated Figure only; and that would mean that He could be no Saviour. Read the record of the agony in the light of the temptation: "Then the devil leaveth Him for a season." In Gethsemane Satan came back and was again overthrown. Satan's final onslaught against our Lord as Son of Man is in Gethsemane.

The agony in Gethsemane is the agony of the Son of God in fulfilling His destiny as the Saviour of the world. The veil is drawn aside to reveal all it cost Him to make it possible for us to become sons of God. His agony is the basis of the simplicity of our salvation. The Cross of Christ is a triumph for the Son of Man. It was not only a sign that Our Lord had triumphed, but that He had triumphed to save the human race. Every human being can get through into the presence of God now because of what the Son of Man went through.

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 6, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world. All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin here.

Nest In The Greatness


READ: Genesis 2:1-15
The Lord God . . . put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. -Genesis 2:15
In his historical novel Chesapeake, James Michener tells the story of multiple generations living near a marsh. One character, Chris Pflaum, is introduced as a restless 13-year-old sitting in class waiting for summer break. But when the teacher reads a poem by Sidney Lanier, the boy's heart is stirred.

As the marsh-hen secretly builds on the watery sod,

Behold I will build me a nest on the greatness of God:

I will fly in the greatness of God as the marsh-hen flies

In the freedom that fills all the space 'twixt the marsh and the skies.

When Chris grew up, this poem motivated him to work tirelessly to preserve the precious wetlands and the wildlife he loved.

The poem's words stir the heart because they use nature as a springboard of praise to the Creator. But, unfortunately, our living planet can be neglected and exploited. God's mandate to Adam has been passed on to all believers. "The Lord God . . . put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it" (Gen. 2:15). The words tend and keep mean "to cultivate as servants."

We are to care for and guard God's creation as responsible stewards.  - Dennis Fisher

The natural world that God has made
Must not be used at whim;
We serve as stewards of His earth,
Responsible to Him. -D. De Haan


To mistreat God's creation is to offend the Creator.

So Right, Yet So Wrong by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 1:11

But Naomi said, "Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?"

So Right, Yet So Wrong

When Egypt first conquered a land called Nubia, a regiment of soldiers was sent across the desert with an Arab guide. The men suffered extreme thirst. Suddenly, they saw a lake in the distance. It seemed logical to head right for the lake. Although their guide assured them the lake was not real, the soldiers were convinced that it was. It had to be; they could see it. The soldiers decided to kill the guide and then set out to reach the lake. But to their dismay, the water turned out to be only a mirage. Every soldier perished.

What seems logical isn't necessarily right. Naomi presented a very logical argument. It was not possible for her to bear sons to replace Mahlon and Chilion; and even if she could, Orpah and Ruth would not want to wait until these boys were old enough to marry. The obvious conclusion was that her daughters-in-law should return to their Moabite families. That sounded reasonable, so Orpah did. As a result, though, she eventually perished without knowing the God of Israel. Ruth, on the other hand, rejected the logical argument and ultimately found herself drawn into the family of God.

God often doesn't follow the dictates of human logic. That doesn't mean He's illogical, but that His logic transcends ours. The way God does things is not always the way we do things (Isa. 55:8-9). While we are limited in knowledge and power, God is omniscient and omnipotent. While we are trapped in time and space, God is eternal and omnipresent. Our logic reflects our limitations; God's logic reflects His unlimited ability.

Take care when following human reasoning,it may seem right at the time, but "its end is the way of death" (Prov. 14:12). Always trust God's logic; it's the way of life. To know God's logic you must know His will, and to know God's will you must read His Word. That's where you must begin today.

Logic is only as good as its source.

'I Am the Way and the Truth and the Life'

Our world is filled with empty promises; anyone can claim anything. But only Jesus Christ delivered on His claim to be the divine Son of God. The disciples had left everything to follow Jesus of Nazareth, who claimed to be the anointed Son of God. They were excited and thrilled with the miracles they witnessed. They were impressed by His exercise of spiritual authority. His teaching encouraged them. And now Jesus was telling them of His death, and that one of them would betray Him.

Jesus knew the disciples were confused and discouraged. Therefore, He comforted them with these words, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me" (John 14:1).

If you feel that the frenzy of the world is consuming you, remember that you have a Savior who loves you and who will fight for you. Don't become worried and anxious. Jesus is near to you. He has promised never to leave you, no matter how dark life seems to be. Don't let sorrows and suffering take joy from you. Jesus has a place for you with your name written over it. "In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2).

No matter how many times you see the hand of God working in your life or experience His provision, it is easy to lose sight of God's love and faithfulness. If you only focus on your current difficulty or discouragement, you may lose sight of His blessings and promises.

Don't become discouraged. Despondency says things are hopeless, and life is aimless. Jesus says there is hope beyond suffering and the grave. There is a way out of all difficulties. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He will never let you down. He will not forsake you.


The fear of the Lord leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble (Proverbs 19:23).

In a world gone mad with relativism and political correctness... What can we do to ignite spiritual renewal in our lives and in our churches? Read the passion Michael Youssef has for this subject in our free resource-"We Preach Christ." Download it today.

By Passionately Proclaiming Uncompromising Truth, Leading The Way is revolutionizing lives at home and around the world. Discover more at www.leadingtheway.org.

THE COLLISION OF GOD AND SIN
By Oswald Chambers
 
"Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree." 1 Peter 2:24

The Cross of Jesus is the revelation of God's judgment on sin. Never tolerate the idea of martyrdom about the Cross of Jesus Christ. The Cross was a superb triumph in which the foundations of hell were shaken. There is nothing more certain in Time or Eternity than what Jesus Christ did on the Cross: He switched the whole of the human race back into a right relationship with God. He made Redemption the basis of human life, that is, He made a way for every son of man to get into communion with God.

The Cross did not happen to Jesus: He came on purpose for it. He is "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." The whole meaning of the Incarnation is the Cross. Beware of separating God manifest in the flesh from the Son becoming sin. The Incarnation was for the purpose of Redemption. God became incarnate for the purpose of putting away sin; not for the purpose of Self-realization. The Cross is the centre of Time and of Eternity, the answer to the enigmas of both.

The Cross is not the cross of a man but the Cross of God, and the Cross of God can never be realized in human experience. The Cross is the exhibition of the nature of God, the gateway whereby any individual of the human race can enter into union with God. When we get to the Cross, we do not go through it; we abide in the life to which the Cross is the gateway.

The centre of salvation is the Cross of Jesus, and the reason it is so easy to obtain salvation is because it cost God so much. The Cross is the point where God and sinful man merge with a crash and the way to life is opened - but the crash is on the heart of God.

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 7, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world. All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin here.

Why? Why? Oh, Why?

READ: Proverbs 3:1-12
If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons. -Hebrews 12:7
Why must I suffer disappointment, sorrow, and tribulation? What have I done that God should send me trials? Is He displeased with me? These questions are constantly asked by God's dear children.

Much of this fear and questioning is due to our misunderstanding of God's dealings with His own. He has His good reasons. And one of those reasons is for our spiritual discipline. We should be far more afraid of being left alone than of God's chastening, for He wastes no time on worthless objects that give no promise of fruitfulness.

On the shores of Lake Michigan are great barren sand dunes that have never felt the point of a plow. But in the rich lowlands beyond them, the farmer is constantly cultivating the soil. The farmer knows what he is doing, so he keeps on breaking up the soil. The deeper the plow works and the more the sharp harrow, the more precious the crop will be when harvest time comes.

God's plow goes deep, but it is only that in the end we may forget the plowing and rejoice in the blessing of bearing much fruit for Him. "No chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it" (Heb. 12:11).  - M.R. De Haan

When blades of distress cut deep in the soul,
Breaking up ground that was untouched before,
The Lord is preparing soil to bear fruit
Fit for the harvest to feed many more. -Hess

All sunshine and no rain make a desert.

Super-glued by Woodrow Kroll


Ruth 1:14

Then they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

Super-glued

A number of years ago a new glue, characterized by an unusually strong holding power, was introduced on the market and sold under a variety of names. Advertisements for this product showed such unusual feats as a car being lifted with a crane while attached only by means of this glue. On another occasion, a full-grown elephant was lifted into the air after having its harness glued to a hoist. The message came through clearly: this super glue bonds in an extraordinary way.

That's the way Ruth bonded to Naomi. Certainly her old life had a pull on Ruth's heart. She was not insensitive to her old customs, her familiar haunts or her Moabite family. But the glue that bound her spirit to Naomi was even stronger. It simply would not let go. She "clung" to her mother-in-law with the tenacity of a super glue. Ruth was committed to a whole new life, not just a change of jobs or a change of scenery. Turning back and separating herself from Naomi was not an option.

This same bonding takes place when we receive Christ as our Savior. The Bible says that there is One who "sticks closer than a brother" (Prov. 18:24). The apostle Paul asks, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?" (Rom 8:35). He answers his question a few verses later: "For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 8:38-39).

If you are feeling abandoned today, at loose ends with everything around you, rest in the assurance that Jesus sticks with you. Christ will cling to you with a tenacity that would put even a super glue to shame. He will never let you go.

When you're glued to Christ, you're glued for good.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"Moses built an altar there and named it Yahweh-nissi (which means 'the LORD is my banner')." Exodus 17:15 NLT

Thoughts for Today
In Exodus 17 we learn that while at Rephidim, the Israelites were attacked by the Amalekites. Moses instructed Joshua to select men for battle and then went to the top of the hill with the staff of God in his hand. As long as his hands were raised, the Israelites experienced victory, but when his hands were lowered, they suffered loss. Aaron and Hur helped Moses by holding his hands up when he tired. After the Israelites had defeated the Amalekites, Moses built an altar and called it Jehovah-nissiThe Lord is my Banner." The Israelites had won the battle with the Lord as their Banner.

And so we can win the battles we face in life if we will always remember that the Lord is our banner. Just as Moses did, we must persistently surrender all that we are to the Lord and recognize our dependence on him. When we want to represent a country, school, organization or cause, we adopt its flag/mission/standards as our banner representing our motivation, goals, standards, allegiance. As Christians, God is our banner, representing all that he is. Love, power, grace, compassion, light, protection  and so much more. When we are willing to stay focused on him and to recognize him as our source, he will bring victory in our lives.

Consider this
Is God truly the banner that represents every area of your life? Are you living for him first and foremost? Or is he sometimes replaced by your devotion to other people or things, self  relationships, ambition, doctrine, peace at any cost. This week we are going to reflect on some of the things that may replace God as our banner, and remind ourselves to refocus on Him.

Prayer
Lord, I thank you that you are my banner. Sometimes I choose not to walk under your banner  I put my faith in myself or other people  or things  instead of you. I put my desires above yours. Please forgive me and help me stay under your banner. In Jesus' name 

These thoughts were drawn from
Knowing God My Father: Applying the names of God to my personal life by Jimmy Ray Lee, D.Min. This curriculum is designed to help people strengthen their relationship with their heavenly Father by applying His names to their personal life. Along with helping Christians know God better, it can serve as an evangelistic tool by giving a true picture of God to people who may have a distorted view of Him because of an absent or abusive earthly father who did not or does not provide for them. This group can also help men who want to be better fathers. Suggested uses include home bible studies, cell groups, Sunday school classes, support groups and personal enrichment.   

PO Box 22127 ~ Chattanooga, Tennessee 37421 ~ 423-899-4770
© Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending e-mail to info@LivingFree.org.

WHY ARE WE NOT TOLD PLAINLY? By Oswald Chambers

"He charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead." Mark 9:9

Say nothing until the Son of man is risen in you - until the life of the risen Christ so dominates you that you understand what the historic Christ taught. When you get to the right state on the inside, the word which Jesus has spoken is so plain that you are amazed you did not see it before. You could not understand it before, you were not in the place in disposition where it could be borne.

Our Lord does not hide these things; they are unbearable until we get into a fit condition of spiritual life. "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now." There must be communion with His risen life before a particular word can be borne by us. Do we know anything about the impartation of the risen life of Jesus? The evidence that we do is that His word is becoming interpretable to us. God cannot reveal anything to us if we have not His Spirit. An obstinate outlook will effectually hinder God from revealing anything to us. If we have made up our minds about a doctrine, the light of God will come no more to us on that line, we cannot get it. This obtuse stage will end immediately [when] His resurrection life has its way with us.

"Tell no man . . " - so many do tell what they saw on the mount of transfiguration. They have had the vision and they testify to it, but the life does not tally with it, the Son of man is not yet risen in them. I wonder when He is going to be formed in you and in me?

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 8, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world? All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin now.

Integrity-Is It Possible?

READ: Psalm 119:121-128

Give me understanding, that I may know Your testimonies. -Psalm 119:125
Samuel DiPiazza, CEO of a major public accounting firm, co-authored a book on building trust in the business world. The book proposes a spirit of transparency, a culture of accountability, and a people of integrity. But in an interview in Singapore, he noted there is one thing the book cannot teach-integrity. "Either you have it or you don't," he said.

Is he right? In our world of shifting standards, can integrity be acquired by those who don't have it? The answer is found in our unchanging standard-God's Word, the Bible.

David the psalmist did not head a multinational corporation. But he did rule over a kingdom, and he was serious about doing what was right. He recognized how easy it is to slide down the slippery path of unethical behavior simply because it seems advantageous.

So David asked God, "Teach me Your statutes" (Ps. 119:124). "Give me understanding," he said, "that I may know Your testimonies" (v.125). David hated "every false way," and based his life on the principle that "all Your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right" (v.128).

No one is born with godly character. But by studying God's Word and listening to His Holy Spirit, we can learn to hate falsehood and love integrity.  - C. P. Hia

For Further Study
How can faith flourish in a hostile work environment? Read Daniel: Spiritual Living In A Secular Culture on the Web at www.discoveryseries.org/q0724

The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out. -Macauley

Follow Me by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 1:15

And she said, "Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law."

Follow Me

Husbands are notorious for not asking directions. One wife said that her husband and she left a wedding to go to the reception. Not knowing how to find the reception hall, her husband chose to follow one of the other wedding guests rather than ask directions. After numerous twists and turns, the car ahead of them finally pulled into the driveway of their own home. As it turned out, these guests had not planned to attend the reception.

Where a person is going should influence whether or not we want to follow him. Naomi urged her daughter-in-law Ruth to follow the way Orpha, her sister-in-law, had taken. But Orpha was headed in the wrong direction. She was going back to her people and her gods. Orpha had been exposed to the God of Israel while she was a part of Elimelech's family, but when the final decision had to be made, she chose to return to her old way of life. Fortunately, Ruth chose not to accompany her.

Many people are seeking others to follow them, but they're headed in the wrong direction. When we cut through all their assurances and promises, we discover that what they're really offering is to lead us back to enslavement to the world. The apostle Paul urged the Corinthians, "Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ" (1 Cor. 11:1). The same applies to us today. Choose to follow only those who have chosen to follow Christ.

Be careful whom you allow to be your leader. Take time today to make sure you're following someone who honors the Lord. Anyone who is not headed in the same direction as Christ is not headed in a direction you want to go.

Before you follow, know where you're being led.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"Commit your way to the Lord [roll and repose each care of your load on Him]; trust (lean on, rely on, and be confident) also in Him and He will bring it to pass." Psalm 37:5 AMP

Thoughts for Today
The Lord is our Banner. He wants us to stay under his banner-to trust in him and his plan for our lives, to depend on him and trust him as our source of strength, as our protection. But so often we either get in an "I can do it myself mode" or determine that "I want to do it my way." When we do this, we step out from under God's banner of love and protection. Just as the Israelites began to experience failure every time Moses' arms dropped, so we will struggle needlessly when we choose to step out from under his banner.

Being under God's banner does not mean we won't have problems-the Israelites still had to fight their battle. But it does mean that we don't have to face things alone-and that God will work all things together for good and bring ultimate victory.

Consider this
Is there some area in your life that you have determined you want to handle by yourself-and do it your way? Perhaps you don't think that God cares about r completely understands-your struggle. Or maybe you are determined to do it your way, even knowing that your way does not line up with God's plan.

The truth is  God does care. He does understand. And his way, even if our desires conflict, is always the best way. Step back under his banner of love and protection  Submit to his plan. Let him help you. You will be glad you did.

Prayer
Father, I thank you that you are my banner. Help me to walk under your banner and not succumb to self-will and pride, choosing my way over yours. Thank you for your love and protection and forgiveness. In Jesus' name

These thoughts were drawn fromKnowing God My Father: Applying the names of God to my personal life by Jimmy Ray Lee, D.Min. This curriculum is designed to help people strengthen their relationship with their heavenly Father by applying His names to their personal life. Along with helping Christians know God better, it can serve as an evangelistic tool by giving a true picture of God to people who may have a distorted view of Him because of an absent or abusive earthly father who did not or does not provide for them. This group can also help men who want to be better fathers. Suggested uses include home bible studies, cell groups, Sunday school classes, support groups, and personal enrichment.   

PO Box 22127 ~ Chattanooga, Tennessee 37421 ~ 423-899-4770
© Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending e-mail to info@LivingFree.org.
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HIS RESURRECTION DESTINY
By Oswald Chambers 

"Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory?" Luke 24:26


Our Lord's Cross is the gateway into His life: His Resurrection means that He has power now to convey His life to me. When I am born again from above, I receive from the Risen Lord His very life.

Our Lord's Resurrection destiny is to bring "many sons unto glory." The fulfilling of His destiny gives Him the right to make us sons and daughters of God. We are never in the relationship to God that the Son of God is in; but we are brought by the Son into the relation of sonship. When Our Lord rose from the dead, He rose to an absolutely new life, to a life He did not live before He was incarnate. He rose to a life that had never been before; and His resurrection means for us that we are raised to His risen life, not to our old life. One day we shall have a body like unto His glorious body, but we can know now the efficacy of His resurrection and walk in newness of life. "I would know Him in the power of His resurrection."

"As Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Him." "Holy Spirit" is the experimental name for Eternal Life working in human beings here and now. The Holy Spirit is the Deity in proceeding power Who applies the Atonement to our experience. Thank God it is gloriously and majestically true that the Holy Ghost can work in us the very nature of Jesus if we will obey Him.

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 9, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world. All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin here.

The Oyster Man

READ: 2 Corinthians 4:1-7

That the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. -2 Corinthians 4:7
In the days of John Wesley, lay preachers with limited education would sometimes conduct the church services. One man used Luke 19:21 as his text: "Lord, I feared Thee, because Thou art an austere man" (KJV). Not knowing the word austere, he thought the text spoke of "an oyster man."

He explained how a diver must grope in dark, freezing water to retrieve oysters. In his attempt, he cuts his hands on the sharp edges of the shells. After he obtains an oyster, he rises to the surface, clutching it "in his torn and bleeding hands." The preacher added, "Christ descended from the glory of heaven into . . . sinful human society, in order to retrieve humans and bring them back up with Him to the glory of heaven. His torn and bleeding hands are a sign of the value He has placed on the object of His quest."

Afterward, 12 men received Christ. Later that night someone came to Wesley to complain about unschooled preachers who were too ignorant even to know the meaning of the texts they were preaching on. The Oxford-educated Wesley simply said, "Never mind. The Lord got a dozen oysters tonight."

Our best may not always measure up to the standards of others. But God takes our inadequacies and humble efforts and uses them for His glory.  - Cindy Hess Kasper

The Master can use what you have to offer,
Though you may consider it small;
His work here on earth is done through His children,
So give Him your best, give your all. -Hess

Do what you can where you are with what you have.

Important Choices by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 1:16-17

But Ruth said: "Entreat me not to leave you, or to turn back from following after you; for wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts you and me."

Important Choices

A sign on the door of a classroom in a junior high school in Kansas declares, "We are not born losers, we are born choosers." How very true. Each day we are faced with choices, some of which have the potential of changing our lives forever.

Ruth faced such choices. She had to choose whether to return to her people with her sister-in-law, Orpha, or to follow Naomi, her mother-in-law. She chose her mother-in-law. She had to choose whether to identify herself as a pagan Moabite or throw her lot in with the people of Israel. She chose the people of Israel. She had to choose to worship the idol Chemosh, which involved the sacrifice of children, or to put her trust in the living God, who gives life instead of taking it. She chose Jehovah. These were important choices, and she made them with a determination that changed her life.

Like Ruth, we are all born outside of God's family. But God graciously gives us the opportunity to make choices that can give us eternal life. Instead of continuing in Satan's kingdom of darkness, you can choose to change your allegiance to the kingdom of His beloved Son (Col. 1:13). You can choose to continue in the deeds of darkness or walk in the light (Eph. 5:7-10). You can choose to search for fulfillment in the world or place your trust in Jesus, who has promised to meet your every need (Phil. 4:19). Like Ruth's, these are crucial decisions and, when made with determination, can change your life.

What decisions have you made? Choose rightly. Choose life. Choose Jesus Christ as your Savior. This is the most important decision of your life.

You always choose best when you choose God.

Living Free Every Day®

Today's Scripture
"People may be pure in their own eyes, but the LORD examines their motives." Proverbs 16:2 NLT

Thoughts for Today
The Bible tells us that God is our Banner. Are we giving allegiance to him as our banner? Are we motivated in life by him and all he represents?

What is the driving force in your life? Your personal relationship with Christ? Or perhaps you are motivated by a desire for success. Success in business, career, accumulating wealth. Success in relationships, popularity, being influential. Or even success in ministry.

These kinds of successes can be good-as long as a desire for success is not what motivates us. God examines our motives. Our first desire should be to please God to grow in our personal relationship with him to discover his purpose for our journey and to desire that above all else.

Consider this
Think about your goals. Perhaps they are good, positive goals. But consider your motivation. Are you seeking to accomplish those goals so that you will feel good about yourself? So that others will honor and respect you? Or is your primary motivation to please God and accomplish what he is calling you to do?

Sometimes we start out with the right motives, but with success a subtle shift in motive begins to take place. We listen to the praise. We look at the numbers. And we want more. Our focus turns to the accomplishments, rather than the One who enables us to succeed.

It's good for all of us to have a reality check from time to time. Why are we doing what we are doing? If the banner flying over us has become success rather than Jehovah Nissi-God our Banner-we need to step back and regroup.

Prayer
Father, help me to focus my allegiance on you, my Banner, rather than on a banner of success. Forgive me for those times I've done the right thing for the wrong reasons. In Jesus' name 

These thoughts were drawn from
Knowing God My Father: Applying the names of God to my personal life by Jimmy Ray Lee, D.Min. This curriculum is designed to help people strengthen their relationship with their heavenly Father by applying His names to their personal life. Along with helping Christians know God better, it can serve as an evangelistic tool by giving a true picture of God to people who may have a distorted view of Him because of an absent or abusive earthly father who did not or does not provide for them. This group can also help men who want to be better fathers. Suggested uses include home bible studies, cell groups, Sunday school classes, support groups, and personal enrichment.   

PO Box 22127 ~ Chattanooga, Tennessee 37421 ~ 423-899-4770
© Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending e-mail to info@LivingFree.org.

HAVE I SEEN HIM?
By Oswald Chambers
 
"After that He appeared in another form unto two of them." Mark 16:12

Being saved and seeing Jesus are not the same thing. Many are partakers of God's grace who have never seen Jesus. When once you have seen Jesus, you can never be the same, other things do not appeal as they used to do.

Always distinguish between what you see Jesus to be, and what He has done for you. If you only know what He has done for you, you have not a big enough God; but if you have had a vision of Jesus as He is, experiences can come and go, you will endure "as seeing Him Who is invisible." The man blind from his birth did not know Who Jesus was until He appeared and revealed Himself to him. Jesus appears to those for whom He has done something; but we cannot dictate when He will come. Suddenly at any turn He may come. "Now I see Him!"

Jesus must appear to your friend as well as to you, no one can see Jesus with your eyes. Severance takes place where one and not the other has seen Jesus. You cannot bring your friend unless God brings him. Have you seen Jesus? Then you will want others to see Him too. "And they went and told it unto the residue, neither believed they them." You must tell, although they do not believe.

"O could I tell, ye surely would believe it!
O could I only say what I have seen!
How should I tell or how can ye receive it,
How, till He bringeth you where I have been?"

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 10, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world. All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin here.

The Challenge Of Forgiveness

READ: Genesis 45:1-15

If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. -Matthew 6:14
In the heat of an argument, my wife came up with an acute theological insight. We were discussing my shortcomings in a rather spirited way when she said, "I think it's pretty amazing that I forgive you for some of the dastardly things you've done!"

What struck me about her comment was its sharp perception into the nature of forgiveness. It is not a sweet platonic ideal to be dispersed in the world like air-freshener sprayed from a can. Forgiveness is achingly difficult, and long after you've forgiven, the wound lives on in memory. Forgiveness is an unnatural act, and my wife was protesting its blatant unfairness.

A story from Genesis captures much the same sentiment. The brothers that Joseph struggled to forgive were the very ones who had bullied him, had cooked up schemes to murder him, had sold him into slavery. Though he went on to triumph over adversity and though with all his heart he now wanted to forgive these brothers, he could not bring himself to that point-not yet.

I view Genesis 42-45 as Joseph's way of saying, "I think it's pretty amazing that I forgive you for the dastardly things you've done!" When grace finally broke through, the sound of Joseph's grief and love echoed through the palace. What was that wail? It was the sound of a man forgiving.  - Philip Yancey

For Further Study
The heart of true forgiveness is so much richer than we realize. Read What Is True Forgiveness? at www.discoveryseries.org/hp071

We can stop forgiving others when Christ stops forgiving us.

Angry at God by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 1:20-21

So she said to them, "Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?"

Angry at God

A growing problem in the United States is "road rage." Between January 1, 1990, and September 1, 1996, the American Automobile Association counted at least 10,037 incidents of road rage resulting in 218 deaths. An additional 12,610 people were injured. This is a terrible price to pay for foolishly venting one's anger. Yet it's far more foolish when we become angry at God.

When Naomi returned to her homeland, it was obvious she was angry with God for the losses in her life. When her friends called her Naomi (which means "sweetness" or "pleasantness"), she in-structed them instead to call her Mara (which means "bitterness"), because "the Almighty has afflicted me." She lamented that she left Bethlehem with a husband and two sons, but returned "empty." She was angry at God because of what He had allowed.

In God's plan, however, Naomi was actually at the beginning of the most fulfilling time of her life. Soon Ruth would meet and marry Boaz and bear his child. That baby, Obed, would become the grandfather to Israel's greatest king, David, who would establish the lineage of the Messiah, Jesus. What God had allowed to be taken away from Naomi would be replaced with blessings beyond her wildest imagination.

When you experience the grief of losing a loved one,a husband, a wife, a child,it's easy to become bitter and lash out at God. You think it's all His fault. He allowed it to happen. Yet the God who loves you is also the God who sees the end from the beginning. He knows what He is doing. Trust Him. What has begun as a heartache for you will ultimately result in overwhelming blessings.

Sorrow is the garden in which God grows our blessings.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"Repeat these basic essentials over and over to God's people. Warn them before God against pious nitpicking, which chips away at the faith. It just wears everyone out. Concentrate on doing your best for God, work you won't be ashamed of, laying out the truth plain and simple." 2 Timothy 2:14-15 MSG

Thoughts for Today
The Bible tells us that God is our Banner. God, not doctrine. And yet how often do we as Christians focus on doctrinal opinions and differences, instead of our Creator?

The basic doctrines of the Gospel cannot be compromised. But we tend to take it so much further and focus on the "dos and don'ts" presented in the Bible. In doing this we often become unbalanced in our teaching. We take isolated scriptures out of context and build entire doctrines on them. And then we wave these doctrines, instead of Jesus and his love, as our banner.

This kind of "nitpicking" brings division to the body of Christ. It often causes confusion for unbelievers and even builds a wall of aversion to their receiving the truths of the Gospel. In the words of today's scripture, it "chips away at the faith" and "just wears everyone out."

When Jesus walked on earth, the Pharisees and Sadducees carried their banner-waving rules and regulations so far that most of them failed to recognize Jesus as their long-awaited Messiah.

Consider this
When we focus more on our doctrinal differences than on the Living Word, we miss Jesus as well. We miss his direction for our lives. We miss his love. We miss his strength. And we can cause unbelievers to miss him altogether.

Let's focus on Jesus. Let's join together with other believers with the love of Jesus agreeing on the truths of the Gospel and agreeing to disagree on the rest and carry Jesus' banner of love and forgiveness to a lost world.

Prayer
Father, help me to join with other believers, no matter what their denomination, in forming a united body to carry the Gospel to people around the world. Help us to focus on you and the truth of salvation and refuse to let our differences divide us. In my personal walk with you, help me to grow in my understanding of the Scriptures and to concentrate on doing my best for you, work I won't be ashamed of, laying out the truth plain and simple. In Jesus' name

These thoughts were drawn from
Knowing God My Father: Applying the names of God to my personal life by Jimmy Ray Lee, D.Min. This curriculum is designed to help people strengthen their relationship with their heavenly Father by applying His names to their personal life. Along with helping Christians know God better, it can serve as an evangelistic tool by giving a true picture of God to people who may have a distorted view of Him because of an absent or abusive earthly father who did not or does not provide for them. This group can also help men who want to be better fathers. Suggested uses include home bible studies, cell groups, Sunday school classes, support groups, and personal enrichment.   

MORAL DECISION ABOUT SIN
By Oswald Chambers
 
"Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." Romans 6:6

Co-Crucifixion. Have I made this decision about sin - that it must be killed right out in me? It takes a long time to come to a moral decision about sin, but it is the great moment in my life when I do decide that just as Jesus Christ died for the sin of the world, so sin must die out in me, not be curbed or suppressed or counteracted, but crucified. No one can bring anyone else to this decision. We may be earnestly convinced, and religiously convinced, but what we need to do is to come to the decision which Paul forces here.

Haul yourself up, take a time alone with God, make the moral decision and say - "Lord, identify me with Thy death until I know that sin is dead in me." Make the moral decision that sin in you must be put to death.

It was not a divine anticipation on the part of Paul, but a very radical and definite experience. Am I prepared to let the Spirit of God search me until I know what the disposition of sin is - the thing that lusts against the Spirit of God in me? Then if so, will I agree with God's verdict on that disposition of sin - that it should be identified with the death of Jesus? I cannot reckon myself "dead indeed unto sin" unless I have been through this radical issue of will before God.

Have I entered into the glorious privilege of being crucified with Christ until all that is left is the life of Christ in my flesh and blood? "I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me."

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 11, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world. All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin here.

Listen To His Promptings

READ: Acts 16:6-10

After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them. -Acts 16:7
On Friday, my day of rest as a pastor, the Holy Spirit prompted me to call a young single mother in our faith community to see if her car had been repaired. I had some reservations about making the call, but I obeyed.

Little did I know that my obedience would help save her life. She said later: "Friday at work I was planning on taking my life; but in a time of need, I believe God was there for me. He had Pastor Williams call me, and just by listening to his voice, I knew that God loved me."

The apostle Paul must have had reservations when the Holy Spirit prompted him and his team not to go into the provinces of Asia and Bithynia. Instead, they felt the Spirit's call to go into Macedonia to preach the good news. In each situation, they obeyed the Spirit's promptings. As a result, Paul and his team were instrumental in giving birth to a new faith community in Philippi (Acts 16:11-15).

As believers in Christ who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:22), our desire should be to please Him. May we not grieve the Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:30) by ignoring His gentle promptings. When we obey Him, we might be used by God to lead someone to Christ, to disciple new believers-or even to help save somebody's life.  - Marvin Williams

Holy Spirit, we would hear
Your inner promptings, soft and clear;
And help us know Your still, small voice
So we may make God's will our choice. -D. De Haan


Make the right choice: Obey the Spirit's voice.

Just in Time by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 1:22

So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess her daughter-in-law with her, who returned from the country of Moab. Now they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of barley harvest.

Just in Time

According to Business Week, time technicians at the National Institute of Standards & Technology recently switched to an atomic clock based on the vibrations of cesium atoms. It will take 300,000 years to gain or lose a single second. But NIST scientists are working on an even better model: a single mercury ion will be trapped in a vacuum by laser beams and cooled to its lowest possible energy level. The atom's oscillations will then be so stable that the new timepiece should be accurate to within one second in ten billion years.

Yet God's timing is even more accurate than that. He brought Naomi and Ruth back from Moab just as the barley harvest was beginning. This had a twofold significance. By God's good timing, they returned at a season when food would be available for a destitute widow and her daughter-in-law. The law of gleaning (Lev. 19:9; 23:22) allowed the poor to follow the harvesters and gather any stray stalks of grain. In fact, the corners of the field were to be left deliberately unharvested so the less fortunate would be provided for. But it was also perfect timing because, most likely, it was only during the harvest season that Boaz regularly visited his fields. This provided an occasion for Ruth and Boaz to meet and develop a relationship.

God's timing is never off. We may get in a hurry or lag behind, but God is the Master of time. His plans always take place in the "fullness of the time" (Gal. 4:4). Never a moment too soon or a second too late, but at the appropriate time He brings about His perfect will.

Trust your time to God. He is a billion times better than an atomic clock. At the right time, He will open the way for you.

God is never in a hurry because He is in control of time.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"But that's no life for you. You learned Christ! My assumption is that you have paid careful attention to him, been well instructed in the truth precisely as we have it in Jesus. Since, then, we do not have the excuse of ignorance, everything and I do mean everything connected with that old way of life has to go. It's rotten through and through. Get rid of it! And then take on an entirely new way of life a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you." Ephesians 4:20-24 MSG

Thoughts for Today
If we are truly living under the banner of God, his character should be increasingly evident in our lives.

We live in a world that waves a banner of compromise. Compromise can be a good thing-but not when it comes to compromising our integrity, compromising our obedience to God, compromising our devotion to him.

All of us face choices every day. "Where do I draw the line on what television shows or movies I will watch?" "Do I respond in anger-or in love-to the person who has hurt me?" "Will I lie for my boss?" "Just how honest should I be with this client about what we can and cannot do for him?" "She will be angry if I admit I started that terrible gossip about her. Should I tell the truth and risk losing her as a friend?"

Each choice we make forms a building block in our character development. Will we choose the world's way or God's way? Will we live under the banner of compromise or under the banner of God?

Consider this
Are you compromising in some area of your life? Compromising your integrity or your commitment to God? Ask God to reveal these areas of compromise and to help you do the right thing-even if it's the difficult thing.

Even though doing what you know Is right in God's eyes might seem difficult right now, his way is always the best way. Sometimes growing in his character requires difficult decisions. The good news is that we don't have to be alone. As we fully commit to Jesus, he will be with us every step of the way-guiding us and enabling us to choose his way, to walk under his banner.

Prayer
Father, help me to live a "God-fashioned life." Renew me from the inside out, reproducing your character in me. I know this is a lifetime process, but help me continually move in that direction. Help me not to compromise, but to choose your way in every situation. In Jesus' name 

These thoughts were drawn from
Knowing God My Father: Applying the names of God to my personal life by Jimmy Ray Lee, D.Min. This curriculum is designed to help people strengthen their relationship with their heavenly Father by applying His names to their personal life. Along with helping Christians know God better, it can serve as an evangelistic tool by giving a true picture of God to people who may have a distorted view of Him because of an absent or abusive earthly father who did not or does not provide for them. This group can also help men who want to be better fathers. Suggested uses include home bible studies, cell groups, Sunday school classes, support groups, and personal enrichment.   

PO Box 22127 ~ Chattanooga, Tennessee 37421 ~ 423-899-4770
© Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending e-mail to info@LivingFree.org.

MORAL DIVINITY
By
Oswald Chambers

"For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection." Romans 6:5

Co-Resurrection. The proof that I have been through crucifixion with Jesus is that I have a decided likeness to Him. The incoming of the Spirit of Jesus into me readjusts my personal life to God. The resurrection of Jesus has given Him authority to impart the life of God to me, and my experimental life must be constructed on the basis of His life. I can have the resurrection life of Jesus now, and it will show itself in holiness.

The idea all through the apostle Paul's writings is that after the moral decision to be identified with Jesus in His death has been made, the resurrection life of Jesus invades every bit of my human nature. It takes omnipotence to live the life of the Son of God in mortal flesh. The Holy Spirit cannot be located as a Guest in a house, He invades everything. When once I decide that my "old man" (i.e., the heredity of sin) should be identified with the death of Jesus, then the Holy Spirit invades me. He takes charge of everything, my part is to walk in the light and to obey all that He reveals. When I have made the moral decision about sin, it is easy to reckon actually that I am dead unto sin, because I find the life of Jesus there all the time. Just as there is only one stamp of humanity, so there is only one stamp of holiness, the holiness of Jesus, and it is His holiness that is gifted to me. God puts the holiness of His Son into me, and I belong to a new order spiritually.

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 12, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world. All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin here.

What Did He Say?

READ: Psalm 19:7-14

Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart. -Jeremiah 15:16
Because our son Steve spent most of his teen years connected to a cell phone, it was a bit of a shock for us when we couldn't talk with him for long periods of time after he joined the US Navy. First at boot camp and later while he trained as a hospital corpsman, we endured long periods of time without any communication. So it was a treat whenever we finally did hear from him.

After one of us would get his call, the first question from the other was always, "What did he say?" We hung on every word to hear how he was doing, what he was thinking, and what the Navy was planning for him.

It's natural to respond like this to the words of those who are important to us. We eagerly anticipate hearing from them.

Are we like that with the Word of God? Are we eager to communicate with Him-to look carefully into His Book to ask, "What did He say?" Unlike the infrequent calls from a son in the military, God's words of encouragement and guidance are always available to us. We just have to listen.

The prophet Jeremiah prayed, "Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart" (Jer. 15:16). Do you have that same longing to hear God speak to you through His Word?  - Dave Branon

Thy Word is a lamp to my feet,
A light to my path alway
To guide and to save me from sin
And show me the heavenly way. -Anon.

We cannot know the heart of God unless we have a heart for God.

Real Riches by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 2:1

And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a man of great wealth, of the family of Elimelech; his name was Boaz.

Real Riches

John Jacob Astor, one of the world's richest men, was a passenger on the ill-fated maiden voyage of the Titanic. When the ship hit the iceberg and it turned out that there was a shortage of lifeboats, the multimillionaire gave up his chance for safety and went down with the ship. His body was eventually found dressed in a blue suit, with $2,500 in his pocket. But on that fateful night, as he faced eternity, it mattered little what he possessed.

God provided a rich relative for Ruth who had more than possessions; Boaz had honor as well. The word translated "wealth" in Ruth 2:1 is often translated "might" or "valor" in the Bible. It reflects Boaz's strength of character as much as his financial portfolio. He not only had land and houses, but he also was a man of spiritual valor, a mighty man of integrity, an upright man who had placed his trust in God.

God wants all His children to be rich?but not necessarily in material possessions. When the apostle Paul reached the end of his life, all he owned was an extra cloak and some books (2 Tim. 4:13). Barnabas sold his land and gave the money to the needy (Acts 4:34-37). But these men weren't really paupers. In their poverty, they had a richness of peace and joy that many who are wealthy only dream about.

What keeps you up at night? Worry over your stocks and bonds, or agonizing over the souls of those who are lost? What are you striving for? Material wealth that will one day be left behind, or a spiritual wealth that will last for eternity? Make the right choice and then set the right priorities.

If all you have is money, then you have nothing at all.

The Blacksmith's Shop
by Max Lucado

In the shop of a blacksmith, there are three types of tools. There are tools on the junk pile:
outdated, broken, dull, rusty.

They sit in the cobwebbed corner, useless to their master, oblivious to their calling.

There are tools on the anvil:
melted down, molten hot, moldable, changeable.

They lie on the anvil, being shaped by their master, accepting their calling.

There are tools of usefulness:
sharpened, primed, defined, mobile.

They lie ready in the blacksmith's tool chest, available to their master, fulfilling their calling.

Some people lie useless:
lives broken, talents wasting, fires quenched, dreams dashed.

They are tossed in with the scrap iron, in desperate need of repair, with no notion of purpose.

Others lie on the anvil:
hearts open, hungry to change, wounds healing, visions clearing.

They welcome the painful pounding of the blacksmith's hammer, longing to be rebuilt, begging to be called.

Others lie in their Master's hands:
well tuned, uncompromising, polished, productive.

They respond to their Master's forearm, demanding nothing, surrendering all.

We are all somewhere in the blacksmith's shop. We are either on the scrap pile, in the Master's hands on the anvil, or in the tool chest. (Some of us have been in all three.)

From the shelves to the workbench, from the water to the fire I'm sure that somewhere you will see yourself.

Paul spoke of becoming "an instrument for noble purposes." And what a becoming it is! The rubbish pile of broken tools, the anvil of recasting, the hands of the Master- it's a simultaneously joyful and painful voyage.

And for you who make the journey-who leave the heap and enter the fire, dare to be pounded on God's anvil, and doggedly seek to discover your own purpose-take courage, for you await the privilege of being called "God's chosen instruments."

From On the Anvil:
Stories On Being Shaped Into God's Image

This is a new edition of Max's first book.
It contains an updated forward, written by him, as well as thoughtful questions for each chapter.

© (Tyndale House, 1985, 2008) Max Lucado

MORAL DOMINION
by
Oswald Chambers
 
"Death hath no more dominion over Him . . . in that He liveth, He liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God." Romans 6:9-11

Co-Eternal Life. Eternal life was the life which Jesus Christ exhibited on the human plane, and it is the same life, not a copy of it, which is manifested in our mortal flesh when we are born of God. Eternal life is not a gift from God, eternal life is the gift of God. The energy and the power which was manifested in Jesus will be manifested in us by the sheer sovereign grace of God when once we have made the moral decision about sin.

"Ye shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost" - not power as a gift from the Holy Ghost; the power is the Holy Ghost, not something which He imparts. The life that was in Jesus is made ours by means of His Cross when once we make the decision to be identified with Him. If it is difficult to get right with God, it is because we will not decide definitely about sin. Immediately we do decide, the full life of God comes in. Jesus came to give us endless supplies of life: "that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God." Eternal Life has nothing to do with Time, it is the life which Jesus lived when He was down here. The only source of Life is the Lord Jesus Christ.

The weakest saint can experience the power of the Deity of the Son of God if once he is willing to "let go." Any strand of our own energy will blur the life of Jesus. We have to keep letting go, and slowly and surely the great full life of God will invade us in every part, and men will take knowledge of us that we have been with Jesus.

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 13, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world. All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin here.

Cheering Each Other On

READ: Hebrews 10:19-25

Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works. -Hebrews 10:24
A mile from the finish line of the London Marathon, thousands of onlookers holding signs lined the route. When spectators spotted a family member or friend coming into view, they shouted the person's name, waved, and yelled encouragement: "Just a little farther! Keep going! You're almost there." After running 25 miles, many competitors were barely walking and ready to quit. It was amazing to watch exhausted runners brighten and pick up the pace when they saw someone they knew or heard their name called out.

Encouragement! We all need it, especially in our walk of faith. The book of Hebrews tells us to keep urging each other on. "Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, . . . but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching" (10:24-25).

The New Testament is filled with the certainty that Christ will return soon. "The Lord is at hand" (Phil. 4:5). "The coming of the Lord is at hand" (James 5:. "Behold, I am coming quickly" (Rev. 22:12).

As we "see the Day approaching," let's keep cheering each other on in the faith. "Keep going! You're almost there! The finish line is in sight."  - David C. McCasland

Help me, Lord, to reassure and strengthen
Others by the words I speak today;
I would always try to be affirming,
As our pathways cross along life's way. -Hess

Even if you have nothing else to give, you can give encouragement.

Finding Favor by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 2:2

So Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, "Please let me go to the field, and glean heads of grain after him in whose sight I may find favor." And she said to her, "Go, my daughter."

Finding Favor

Sometimes we try to buy people's favor, and even God's favor. We're like the little girl who won five dollars for her memory work in Sunday school. Later when the pastor's wife congratulated her, the girl proudly announced, "And I put it all in the morning's offering!" "My, how wonderful!" the pastor's wife exclaimed. "I'm sure God will be pleased." "Yes," the child replied, "now maybe He will let me do some of the things I want to do!" This little girl was looking for the wrong kind of favor in the wrong place.

Ruth was also looking for favor, but not the kind you buy with money or flattery. She wanted to come by her favor honestly. She trusted God to bring her to someone's field who would accept her as she was. Even though she wasn't an Israelite, she hoped someone would allow her to glean what was left in the fields. The favor she sought would be the result of the gleaner's grace, not Ruth's glory.

This is the kind of favor God offers. Nothing we possess or do can influence Him to look with favor on us. We cannot buy His favor or manipulate Him by our behavior. His favor comes because He loves us, even while we are yet sinners (Rom. 5:. Through His Son, Jesus Christ, God has made it possible for our sins to be forgiven (Eph. 1:7). God's favor is given because of who He is, not because of who we are.

Have you found favor in God's sight? You can, right now, right where you are, by confessing that you are a sinner and asking Jesus Christ to be your Savior.

God's favor can be neither bought nor sold, but it can be enjoyed.

'I Am the Living Water'

I doubt whether there is any person who would not understand the importance of water for survival. In fact, next to air, water is the most important substance for life.

The Bible teaches that while Jesus is God incarnate, He also was human and experienced the same feelings and temptations that we encounter each day. However, He never succumbed to even one temptation.

In John 4:4-8, we read how the Savior became tired and stopped to rest beside the well of Jacob. While His disciples were buying food in a nearby town, a Samaritan woman arrived at the well to draw water. Jesus, being thirsty, asked her for a drink of the well's water. Immediately, she protested and reminded him that she was a Samaritan, and He was a Jew.

Jews believed the Samaritans were unclean. Another fact to consider is that this woman was at the well alone at high noon. More than likely, she also was considered unclean and came to the well at a time when no one else would see her.

We know her story. She had been married many times and was in need of a Savior, and Jesus met her need. He told her:

Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life (John 4:13-14).

Christ confronted the deepest need of this woman and offered her a chance to begin life anew. The more you drink from the world's water, the worse your thirst will become.

Are you restless and discontent? Just as He offered living water to the woman at the well, He offers it to you. When you drink of Him, you will thirst no more.

He will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes (Revelation 7:17).

What do you do when you've been hurt real bad? In this month's free resource, Michael Youssef provides biblical insight for bringing happiness out of conflict and disappointment. Download your copy of "Allowing Sorrow to be the Back Door of Happiness."

By Passionately Proclaiming Uncompromising Truth, Leading The Way is revolutionizing lives at home and around the world. Discover more at www.leadingtheway.org.

WHAT TO DO UNDER THE CONDITIONS
By
Oswald Chambers 

"Cast thy burden upon the Lord." Psalm 55:22

We must distinguish between the burden-bearing that is right and the burden-bearing that is wrong. We ought never to bear the burden of sin or of doubt, but there are burdens placed on us by God which He does not intend to lift off, He wants us to roll them back on Him. "Cast that He hath given thee upon the Lord." (R.V. marg.) If we undertake work for God and get out of touch with Him, the sense of responsibility will be overwhelmingly crushing; but if we roll back on God that which He has put upon us, He takes away the sense of responsibility by bringing in the realization of Himself.

Many workers have gone out with high courage and fine impulses, but with no intimate fellowship with Jesus Christ, and before long they are crushed. They do not know what to do with the burden, it produces weariness, and people say - "What an embittered end to such a beginning!"

"Roll thy burden upon the Lord" - you have been bearing it all; deliberately put one end on the shoulders of God. "The government shall be upon His shoulder." Commit to God "that He hath given thee"; not fling it off, but put it over on to Him and yourself with it, and the burden is lightened by the sense of companionship. Never disassociate yourself from the burden.

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals April 14, 2008

A time for revival! Won't you join The Gospel Hiway as we pray daily for a time of great revival in this world. All we ask is that you pray, ask your friends, pastors, and churches to pray. Our world is in need of great revival and is has to start somewhere, let it begin here.

When In Doubt

READ:
Matthew 11:1-6

Are you the Coming One, or do we look for another? -Matthew 11:3
John the Baptist was languishing in prison and questioning his faith. He may well have wondered: Is Jesus the Messiah? Is His word true? Have I believed and labored in vain for my Master? Is this dark place my final reward for answering God's call?

Perhaps countless questions make their way through your mind as well: Is Jesus really the Savior? Have my sins been forgiven? Can I trust the Bible? Will I be raised from the dead? Does heaven lie ahead? Is all that I believe a cruel illusion?

Most of us ask questions like these from time to time. I do-especially on those dark days when circumstances bring sorrow and bitter disappointment, when it seems there's no storybook ending to our lives.

These questionings are not failures of faith but tests of faith and can be answered in John the Baptist's way: We must take our doubts to Jesus. In His time and in His own wise way He will restore the confidence our hearts desire.

Jesus didn't abandon John to his doubt. He sent word of the miracles He performed and the hope He preached (Matt. 11:4-6). As George MacDonald said of God's faithfulness: "You might as well say that a mother would go away from her little child lying moaning in the dark."  - David H. Roper

But in the dark my heart is strangely blest;
Yea, in the gloom my soul obtains its rest;
For, spite of night, I find that God on high
Is near the anguished soul, where'er it lie. -H. Frost

Never doubt in the dark what God has shown you in the light.

Not by Chance by Woodrow Kroll

Ruth 2:5-6
Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, "Whose young woman is this?" So the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered and said, "It is the young Moabite woman who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab."

Not by Chance

Nothing happens by chance. Take, for example, the blue whale. Longer than three dump trucks, heavier than 110 Honda Civics and with a heart the size of a Volkswagen Beetle, this magnificent creature requires four tons of krill a day (that's three million calories) for its sustenance. Even a baby blue whale can put away 100 gallons of milk every 24 hours. When a blue whale surfaces, it takes in the largest breath of air of any living thing on the planet. Its spray shoots higher into the air than the height of a telephone pole. How did such a creature come into existence? Not by chance, you can be sure, but by a sovereign Creator's plan.

Neither did Boaz by chance come to his fields just in time to meet Ruth. He certainly didn't come with any intentions of finding a wife, but that was God's plan. Ruth, too, was simply doing what she needed to do for survival. In fact, until she spoke with Naomi, she wasn't even aware of Boaz's relationship with the family she had married into (2:19-20). But in God's plans nothing happens by chance.

Sometimes our circumstances seem to come about by chance. We think, If I had made this decision instead of that decision, my life would be different. Or, If I'd been here instead of there, this wouldn't have happened. While we cannot use this as an excuse for making poor decisions, we can have the confidence that nothing happens by chance. Take care of your responsibilities in a way that honors God, and He will work out His plan through you.

If you are struggling with the "what ifs" of life, put them aside. Be assured that God is working out His plan for you, and it won't be by chance.

Since God is in charge, nothing is by chance.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
The fear of human opinion disables; trusting in God protects you from that. Proverbs 29:25 MSG

Thoughts for Today
Tammy Webb-Witholt, daughter of missionary parents and author of Living Free's curriculum Lessons Learned: Moving from Homosexuality to Holiness, was a people-pleaser: "By the time I went to boarding school at age seven, I was infected with a case of the please-like-me's.' Each year this desire intensified, and by the third grade I had a chronic need for approval. The kids I lived with were from other mission organizations and I was the clear outsider. They were determined to close me out of their tight-knit world. In response, I did everything in my power to earn their friendship. I even tried to buy their approval with the goodies I purchased with my weekly allowance. As the years passed, my methods of winning approval changed but my need stayed the same."

As a young adult, Tammy tried to fulfill her need for approval by embracing the culture of the gay world. Eventually she returned to her faith and to the church, but even then found herself trying to please people. "I had been a sincere follower of Christ for more than ten years when a friend helped me see how my fear of rejection had crippled my progress. When will this ever end? I thought. I had grown so much in my knowledge of God's power and grace. Good grief, I was even a credentialed minister! How could I have missed this issue that loomed so large in my life? In the months and years that followed, I addressed my responses to past events that had led to my need for approval. As I discovered my worth in Christ, I began to step out in total obedience to him, making my choices according to his will-not according to what other people thought."

Consider this
Where are you on the path toward learning to focus on pleasing Jesus rather than people?

This week we will be considering the importance of pleasing God, rather than men and perhaps discover more than ever before our worth in Christ.

Prayer
Father, I do want to please you but I know that in some areas of my life, I am still ruled by a need to please people. Please help me to recognize those areas more clearly and to move toward being completely motivated in all I do by a desire to please you. In Jesus' name 

These thoughts were drawn from Lessons Learned: Moving from Homosexuality to Holiness by Tammy Webb-Witholt. We live in a broken and fallen world; our brokenness extends to the depths of our emotions, our souls, and our sexuality. This small group curriculum by Tammy Webb-Witholt deals with moving from a homosexual lifestyle into a vital growing relationship with Jesus Christ. This study

·         Shows that the goal is not only to move from homosexuality into heterosexuality. The goal of our lives as followers of Christ is to come into His holiness.
·         Shows that our journey of faith in Christ, whatever the depth of our brokenness, sexual or otherwise, is not to merely stop being one thing in order to become another.
·         Shows that the goal of each day is to grow toward Christ. God by the power of His Holy Spirit and the truth of His Holy Word transforms us into a new creation.
·         Shows the holiness is used in the truest definition of the word holy meaning to be "set apart" for God.

Although this study is written primarily for people coming out of a homosexual lifestyle, it deals with biblical principles that can help each of us experience a deeper walk with Christ.   

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INSPIRED INVINCIBILITY
By
Oswald Chambers
 

"Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me." Matthew 11:29

"Whom the Lord loveth, He chasteneth." How petty our complaining is! Our Lord begins to bring us into the place where we can have communion with Him, and we groan and say - "O Lord, let me be like other people!" Jesus is asking us to take one end of the yoke - "My yoke is easy, get alongside Me and we will pull together." Are you identified with the Lord Jesus like that? If so, you will thank God for the pressure of His hand.

"To them that have no might He increaseth strength." God comes and takes us out of our sentimentality, and our complaining turns into a pæan of praise. The only way to know the strength of God is to take the yoke of Jesus upon us and learn of Him.

"The joy of the Lord is your strength." Where do the saints get their joy from? If we did not know some saints, we would say - "Oh, he, or she, has nothing to bear." Lift the veil. The fact that the peace and the light and the joy of God are there is proof that the burden is there too. The burden God places squeezes the grapes and out comes the wine; most of us see the wine only. No power on earth or in hell can conquer the Spirit of God in a human spirit, it is an inner unconquerableness.

If you have the whine in you, kick it out ruthlessly. It is a positive crime to be weak in God's strength

God bless