Devotional for the day

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals May 31, 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.

Speeding Ticket

READ: Romans 3:9-20
There is none righteous, no, not one. -Romans 3:10
I had been driving in Singapore for 34 years when I received my first summons for speeding! It was not the first time I had exceeded the speed limit, but it was the first time I had been fined for doing so.

My first reaction was one of disgust. But as I contemplated the spiritual lesson, I realized that no matter how long I had been driving without a ticket, I was still accountable.

If I can break such a clearly defined law as a speed limit, think how easy it is to break God's perfect law, which covers every aspect of life. No one, no matter how moral or religiously fervent, can keep it perfectly.

Paul wrote, "By the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin" (Rom. 3:20). Keeping the law can't save us; rather, through the law we become aware of our sin (3:7-12). That's why God sent His Son to save us. We need the righteousness of Jesus, because we can't be justified through our good deeds. Paul concluded, we are "justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law" (v.28).

If you have put your faith in Christ, you can say with Paul, "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin" (Rom. 4:7-8).

  - C. P. Hia

And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior's blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain?
For me, who Him to death pursued? -Wesley

God's law shows us a need that only God's grace can supply.

God's Stars by Woodrow Kroll

Daniel 12:3

Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.

God's Stars

We are enamored with stars. When Robert Redford was in Santa Fe making a movie, a woman encountered him in an ice cream parlor on Canyon Street. Overcome with awe on the inside, she tried to stay calm on the outside. After leaving the ice cream parlor, however, she realized that she didn't have the ice cream cone she had paid for. Hurriedly she returned to the shop to ask for it. Redford, overhearing the conversation, quietly said, "Madam, you'll probably find it where you put it, in your purse."

God also has stars, but they seldom get the reactions that people like Robert Redford do, at least in this world. Yet God's messenger told Daniel that those "who turn many to righteousness" will shine like the stars for all of eternity. Earthly stars from stage and screen fade away and are forgotten by later generations, but God's stars are eternal.

Righteousness in its simplest form is having a "right relationship" with God. Those who have that right relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ, and share with others how they may have such a relationship are God's brightest stars. It's not a matter of being rich or famous. It's not necessary to be on television or in the movies. You don't even have to have a well-known name. All you need to do is share Jesus Christ with others.

Do you want to be a star for God? Do you want to shine forever? Then commit yourself to sharing Christ with others. Find a Gospel tract and become familiar enough with it that you can share it with someone else. Write the story of how you came to know Christ. Ask God to give you the opportunity to share that testimony with others. Let your light shine, and God will make you a star.

Earthly fame is fleeting; God's stars shine forever.

Your Enemy is Deceitful

There is an underhanded way to sell products called the bait-and-switch method. Here is how it works: A retailer entices a person to purchase an item. Yet when the consumer gets ready to buy the product, he is told that there are no more in inventory.

Immediately, the deceptive retailer tries to sell the consumer another product that is inferior to the one first offered. If the consumer buys it, the retailer makes a handsome profit, while the customer is swindled.

In the same way, false teachers use biblical words to capture attention and gain the trust of someone seeking Jesus Christ. They use trusted terms to lure people away from the salvation message of Jesus Christ. Essentially, they are the masters of the bait-and-switch method.

Deception is a principal tool used by the enemy. Names such as devil and Satan are significant words because they mean "deceiver" and "slanderer."

Like the false teachers in the New Testament, those who seek to deceive us through misguided religious interpretation have one goal, and that is to keep us from establishing an intimate relationship with the Lord. Satan directs them because he wants to deceive us into believing there is another way to know God other than the one God has given us through Jesus Christ.

It has been said that Satan is not fighting churches, he is joining them! He can do more harm by sowing tares than by pulling up wheat. How do you become spiritually "in tune" to God? Ask Him to make you sensitive to His voice. Refuse to listen to or to spend time with ideologies that do not line up with the Word of God.

Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name (Luke 21:.

Everybody wants to have good friends... but what kind of a friend are you? Michael Youssef explores this topic in our free resource-"Building on the Right Foundation." Download it today.

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GOD FIRST
By Oswald Chambers
 
Put God First in Trust. "Jesus did not commit Himself unto them . . . for He knew what was in man."  John 2:24-25

Our Lord trusted no man; yet He was never suspicious, never bitter, never in despair about any man, because He put God first in trust; He trusted absolutely in what God's grace could do for any man. If I put my trust in human beings first, I will end in despairing of everyone; I will become bitter, because I have insisted on man being what no man ever can be - absolutely right. Never trust anything but the grace of God in yourself or in anyone else.

Put God's Needs First. "Lo, I come to do Thy will, 0 God."  Hebrews 10:9

A man's obedience is to what he sees to be a need; Our Lord's obedience was to the will of His Father. The cry to-day is - "We must get some work to do; the heathen are dying without God; we must go and tell them of Him." We have to see first of all that God's needs in us personally are being met. "Tarry ye until. . . ." The purpose of this College is to get us rightly related to the needs of God. When God's needs in us have been met, then He will open the way for us to realize His needs elsewhere.

Put God's Trust First. "And whoso receiveth one such little child in my name receiveth Me."  Matthew 18:5

God's trust is that He gives me Himself as a babe. God expects my personal life to be a "Bethlehem." Am I allowing my natural life to be slowly transfigured by the indwelling life of the Son of God? God's ultimate purpose is that His Son might be manifested in my mortal flesh.

God Bless

[Judy Harder]

Sorry this is late. Got a late start with the rain and storms in the area. God's blessing to you! Judy

Daily Devotionals June 1, 2008

Chums

READ: Colossians 1:3-8
We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you. -Colossians 1:3
In 19th-century England, debtors' prison housed those unfortunate souls who couldn't pay their bills. New prisoners were escorted to the "chummage," a prison dormitory. Since the people were not there for violent crimes, a spirit of trust and camaraderie soon developed. They played games together and had plenty to eat. Some were even allowed private rooms.

In time, the prisoners began to refer to each other as "chums." Later, the word caught on outside the prison walls and took on the meaning of "a cordial friend."

Deep bonds of friendship also take place in Christian ministry. Those who worked alongside Paul were not strangers to persecution and imprisonment. But a common mission created a deep sense of connectedness. In his letter to the believers in Colosse, Paul called Epaphras a "fellow servant" (1:7). The term can be paraphrased as "together slave" or "one who serves the same master with another."

When believers live under the lordship of Christ, they can see their lives intertwined in service. By serving as slaves to Christ, a spiritual camaraderie results that transcends being "chums." And that special relationship will continue on into eternity!
  - Dennis Fisher

Working together with others,
Serving the Lord day or night,
Telling the story of Jesus
Promises endless delight. -Hess

Christians stand strong when they stand together.

The Trouble Within by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 1:18
"Come now, and let us reason together," says the Lord, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool."

The Trouble Within

A pastor discovered that the clock at the back of the sanctuary was unable to keep the correct time. Repeatedly he set the hands to the appropriate hour and minute only to find by the next week that it was either too fast or too slow. Finally he gave up and hung a sign above the clock that read, "Don't blame my hands. The trouble lies deeper."

That is where the trouble lies with us when we do wrong. We can blame our environment, our education, or even our parents, but the real trouble lies deep within our own hearts. Jesus said, "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies" (Matt. 15:19).

Fortunately, God has provided a solution for that heart problem, the blood of Jesus Christ. Even the most crimson sin is washed away when the blood of Calvary's cross is applied. The apostle John wrote, "If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin" (1 John 1:7). And the writer of Hebrews says, "For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (Heb. 9:13-14).

God assures you that no matter how colorful your sins may be, they can be washed white like snow. If you're still struggling with how to be cleansed from your sin and forgiven by God, accept what the Bible says as true. Confess your sins, ask for your heavenly Father's forgiveness and begin to live with a pure heart and a clear conscience. The difference is as striking as crimson and white.

Scarlet sins are no match for Christ's blood.

Open Arms
by Max Lucado

If you ever wonder how in the world God could use you to change the world, look at the people God used to change history. A ragbag of ne'er-do-wells and has-beens who found hope, not in their performance, but in God's proverbially open arms.

Abraham- God took what was good and forgave what was bad and used "old forked tongue" to start a nation. Moses- would you call upon a fugitive to carry the Ten Commandments? God did. David- his track record left little to be desired, but his repentant spirit was unquestionable. Jonah- God put him in a whale's belly to bring him back to his senses. But even the whale couldn't stomach this missionary for too long.

On and on the stories go: Elijah, the prophet who pouted; Solomon, the king who knew too much; Jacob, the wheeler-dealer; Gomer, the prostitute; Sarah, the woman who giggled at God. One story after another of God using man's best and overcoming man's worst.

The reassuring lesson is clear. God used (and uses!) people to change the world. People! Not saints or superhumans or geniuses, but people. Crooks, creeps, lovers, and liars-he uses them all. And what they may lack in perfection, God makes up for in love.

Jesus later summarized God's stubborn love with a parable. He told about a teenager who decided that life at the farm was too slow for his tastes. So with pockets full of inheritance money, he set out to find the big time. What he found instead were hangovers, fair-weather friends, and long unemployment lines. When he had had just about as much of the pig's life as he could take, he swallowed his pride, dug his hands deep into his empty pockets, and began the long walk home; all the while rehearsing a speech that he planned to give to his father.

He never used it. Just when he got to the top of the hill, his father, who'd been waiting at the gate, saw him. The boy's words of apology were quickly muffled by the father's words of forgiveness. And the boy's weary body fell into his father's opened arms.

The same open arms welcomed him that had welcomed Abraham, Moses, David, and Jonah. No wagging fingers. No clenched fists. No "I told you so!" slaps or "Where have you been?" interrogations. No crossed arms. No black eyes or fat lips. No. Only sweet, open arms. If you ever wonder how God can use you to make a difference in your world, just look at those he has already used and take heart. Look at the forgiveness found in those open arms and take courage.

And, by the way, never were those arms opened so wide as they were on the Roman cross. One arm extending back into history and the other reaching into the future. An embrace of forgiveness offered for anyone who'll come. A hen gathering her chicks. A father receiving his own. A redeemer redeeming the world.

No wonder they call him the Savior.

From No Wonder They Call Him the Savior
© (W Publishing Group, 1986, 2004) Max Lucado

THE STAGGERING QUESTION
By Oswald Chambers
 
"Son of man, can these bones live?" Ezekiel 37:3

Can that sinner be turned into a saint? Can that twisted life be put right? There is only one answer: "O Lord, Thou knowest, I don't." Never trample in with religious common sense and say - "Oh, yes, with a little more Bible reading and devotion and prayer, I see how it can be done."

It is much easier to do something than to trust in God; we mistake panic for inspiration. That is why there are so few fellow workers with God and so many workers for Him. We would far rather work for God than believe in Him. Am I quite sure that God will do what I cannot do? I despair of men in the degree in which I have never realized that God has done anything for me. Is my experience such a wonderful realization of God's power and might that I can never despair of anyone I see? Have I had any spiritual work done in me at all? The degree of panic is the degree of the lack of personal spiritual experience.

"Behold, O my people, I will open your graves." When God wants to show you what human nature is like apart from Himself, He has to show it you in yourself. If the Spirit of God has given you a vision of what you are apart from the grace of God (and He only does it when His Spirit is at work), you know there is no criminal who is half so bad in actuality as you know yourself to be in possibility. My "grave" has been opened by God and "I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing." God's Spirit continually reveals what human nature is like apart from His grace.
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God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals June 2, 2008

Risky Business

READ: Matthew 8:23-27
He said to them, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?" Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. -Matthew 8:26
Denis Boyles knew it would be challenging to interview a man on a roller coaster-especially when the interview took place during an attempt to set a world's record for continuous riding. After several times around the track, Denis was so overcome with fear he could hardly talk.

Then the man showed him how to use his body and feet to lean into the loops, twists, and turns. Writing in AARP Magazine, Boyles explained how that took away the terror. It also taught him a lesson about risk and fear. The roller coaster felt risky though it was quite safe. But driving his car to the amusement park posed a far greater risk of injury. Risk and fear are easily confused.

As Jesus and His disciples crossed the Sea of Galilee, a storm came up and waves swept over their boat. Incredibly, Jesus was asleep. The disciples woke Him and said, "Lord, save us! We are perishing!" (Matt. 8:25). In a gentle rebuke, Jesus asked, "'Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?' Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm" (v.26).

Like the disciples, the more we learn about Jesus, the more we trust Him. Our greatest risk is failing to depend on Him when life seems out of control.
  - David C. McCasland

But we see Jesus! Oh, what peace!
What balm for troubled heart!
His very name brings rest and calm
And bids the fears depart! -Adams

Keep your eyes on Jesus and you'll soon lose sight of your fears.

A Great Day Coming by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 2:4
He shall judge between the nations, and shall rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nations shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.

A Great Day Coming

Peace has always been an elusive prospect. The Columbia Dispatch reported in 1993 that cable TV mogul Ted Turner funded a competition to find a book that gave a workable plan for world peace. Turner said he wanted to see if anybody had a real vision of a future world at peace and harmony. His quest ended in disappointment. He told an Atlanta gathering of news contributors to his Cable News Network's "World Report" that, "With 10,000 manuscripts, we did not have one plausible treatise on how we could get to a sustainable, peaceful future."

Apparently no one thought to check the Book of Isaiah. Here, God reveals that there is a day coming when wars will cease. This will not be the result of any plan proposed by the wisdom of man; it will come, instead, through the direct intervention of the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation 20:1-3 foretells the imprisonment of Satan so that he "should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished" (v. 3). During that time, the world will finally experience the peace it desperately needs. True peace can only come when the Prince of Peace brings it (Isa. 9:6).

We don't have to wait that long, however, to experience personal peace. That's available to you right now. When you trust Jesus Christ as Savior, you can have peace with God in your life immediately. The Bible says, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:1).

World peace is a wonderful goal and it will be a great day when it happens, but personal peace right now is even greater. Peace among all the nations of the world will last only while Satan is imprisoned (Rev. 20:7-8). Our peace with God, on the other hand, will last forever (Ps. 16:11; 1 Thess. 4:17).

There has to be peace in the heart before there can be peace in the world.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
" For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her." Ephesians 5:25 NLT (Also read Ephesians 5:22-33, 1 Peter 3:7, Colossians 3:19)

Thoughts for Today
In God's design for the family, each family member has a role to fulfill. The analogy of Christ and the church helps us understand God's plan for the husband in the marriage and family relationship. Christ's role as head of the church is the guideline for the husband's role and responsibility to his wife. The husband's primary responsibility to his wife is love, not dictatorship.

Through the years teaching about the husband's role has sometimes been distorted, giving him the right to rule with no apparent responsibility. Jesus loved the church (all of us) enough to die for us. The husband's love for his wife should be giving and sacrificial. His role of love and leadership provides the framework for family relationships-it is so important that he follow Christ's example of love and giving in fulfilling this awesome responsibility.

Consider this
This week we will be taking a look at some of the things the Bible has to say about family roles. Understanding these scriptures can help us be better marriage partners-and parents. It can also help us stay on an even keel when popularized teaching on Christian marriage gets out of balance.

Prayer Father, help me to understand my role in marriage and to be a better marriage partner. (men) Help me to love my wife in a totally unselfish way and to be wise in my family leadership role. In Jesus' name 

These thoughts were drawn from
Committed Couples: God's Plan for Marriage & the Family by Dr. Jimmy Ray Lee. Whether in a private or group setting, couples will be encouraged spiritually and romantically as they research biblical principles that affirm their vows. It can help every married couple grow spiritually and emotionally in their relationship. It is also a great help for engaged-to-be-married couples.   

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.

WHAT ARE YOU HAUNTED BY?
By Oswald Chambers
 
What man is he that feareth the Lord?" Psalm 25:12

What are you haunted by? You will say - By nothing, but we are all haunted by something, generally by ourselves, or, if we are Christians, by our experience. The Psalmist says we are to be haunted by God. The abiding consciousness of the life is to be God, not thinking about Him. The whole of our life inside and out is to be absolutely haunted by the presence of God. A child's consciousness is so mother-haunted that although the child is not consciously thinking of its mother, yet when calamity arises, the relationship that abides is that of the mother. So we are to live and move and have our being in God, to look at everything in relation to God, because the abiding consciousness of God pushes itself to the front all the time.

If we are haunted by God, nothing else can get in, no cares, no tribulation, no anxieties. We see now why Our Lord so emphasized the sin of worry. How can we dare be so utterly unbelieving when God is round about us? To be haunted by God is to have an effective barricade against all the onslaughts of the enemy.

"His soul shall dwell at ease." In tribulation, misunderstanding, slander, in the midst of all these things, if our life is hid with Christ in God, He will keep us at ease. We rob ourselves of the marvellous revelation of this abiding companionship of God. "God is our Refuge" - nothing can come through that shelter.
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God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals June 3, 2008

The Search For Justice

READ: Ecclesiastes 3:14-22
I saw under the sun: In the place of judgment, wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, iniquity was there. -Ecclesiastes 3:16
A trial has just ended, and the reactions to the verdict could not be more different. The family of the alleged murderer celebrates the declaration of a mistrial due to a legal technicality. Meanwhile, the grieving parents whose daughter has died wonder about a justice system that would allow such a decision. As they stand weeping before a mass of microphones and cameras, they exclaim: "Where is the justice in this? Where is the justice?"

We've seen this scenario played out in the news or on TV crime dramas. We instinctively long for justice but cannot seem to find it. The wisest man of his day, Solomon, faced a similar frustration and disappointment. He saw that imperfect human beings could never administer perfect justice. He wrote: "I saw under the sun: In the place of judgment, wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, iniquity was there" (Eccl. 3:16).

If all we trusted in were imperfect people, we would lose all hope. But Solomon wisely added in verse 17: "God shall judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work."

The search for justice can be satisfied only by trusting the God who is always just.
  - Bill Crowder

Though sin seems to triumph and wrong conquers right,
Though lies can put justice to flight,
God's truth is eternal, His Word shows His might,
And He will bring justice to light. -Gustafson

Someday the scales of justice will be perfectly balanced.

Tampering With The Contents by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 5:20
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Tampering With the Contents

On February 8, 1986, a Peekskill, New York, woman took a Tylenol capsule she had purchased at the local supermarket. Unknown to her, the bottle had been tampered with and the contents were contaminated with a lethal dose of potassium cyanide. Instead of helping her as she expected, the medicine took her life. Johnson and Johnson, the manufacturers of Tylenol, responded by removing the product from store shelves and reissuing the drug in caplet form contained in tamper-resistant bottles. These actions, however, could not alleviate the pain and grief of this woman's loved ones.

Millions of people have turned to the Bible to find relief from the pain of sin. Some, unfortunately, have not found the relief they sought. Instead they discover that people and churches have tampered with the words of Scripture, changing and adding to their meaning?even making what God says is evil appear to be good. For example, homosexuality is not a sin (Rom. 1:24-27), they claim, but an alternate lifestyle. Abortion is not murder (Ex. 21:22-25); it's a choice. What the Bible calls adultery, these people refer to euphemistically as "having an affair." Fornication is passed over as "living together." What is called drunkenness in God's Word is called the "disease of alcoholism" by a society bent on calling evil good and good evil. Obedience, on the other hand, is labeled as legalism, and zeal for the Lord is rejected as fanaticism.

Don't be fooled by this truth twisting. What God calls evil will never be made acceptable simply by using another word. Make sure that your beliefs are based on the solid foundation of God's Word. To keep your faith "tamper-proof," compare everything you hear with the Bible and see what God has to say. The Gospel is life-giving, but these additives and contradictions can be fatal.

Truth can't be improved with additives.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of his body, the church. As the church submits to Christ, so you wives should submit to your husbands in everything." Ephesians 5:22-24 NLT (Also read Proverbs 31, 1 Peter 3:1-6)

Thoughts for Today
As we continue our brief look at God's design for each family member, we now turn to the wife. The analogy of Christ and the church helps us understand God's plan for the wife in the marriage and family relationship. The role of the church in submission to Christ is the guideline for the wife's role and responsibility to her husband. The wife's primary responsibility is to submit voluntarily to her husband's leadership role as the spiritual leader of the family.

These scriptures in Ephesians 5:22-33 describe a check and balance. Wives are to submit to their husbands and husbands are to love their wives as Christ loved the church-he gave his life for the church.

Consider this
Submission and obedience are two different things. In fact, it is quite possible to obey without being submissive. Submission is more of a heart and attitude thing. Obedience is action.

It is also possible to be submissive without obeying. If a husband asks his wife to do something directly contrary to God's word, she must decline. Her first devotion should always be to God. However, she can maintain a respectful and submissive attitude even though she must decline to obey in that particular instance.

While we tend to think of submission as obeying, it is so much more. A wife should submit to her husband by showing respect by sharing her ideas, insights and wisdom and by partnering with him in praying for each other and for their family and demonstrating godly character in their relationship.

Prayer
Father, help me to understand my role in marriage and to be a better marriage partner. May your love and peace abound in our home. (women) Help me to submit to my husband as to the Lord. In Jesus' name 

These thoughts were drawn from
Committed Couples: God's Plan for Marriage & the Family by Dr. Jimmy Ray Lee. Whether in a private or group setting, couples will be encouraged spiritually and romantically as they research biblical principles that affirm their vows. It can help every married couple grow spiritually and emotionally in their relationship. It is also a great help for engaged-to-be-married couples.   

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.

THE SECRET OF THE LORD
By Oswald Chambers
 
"The secret (friendship R.V.) of the Lord is with them that fear Him." Psalm 25:14

What is the sign of a friend? That he tells you secret Sorrows? No, that he tells you secret joys. Many will confide to you their secret sorrows, but the last mark of intimacy is to confide secret joys. Have we ever let God tell us any of His joys, or are we telling God our secrets so continually that we leave no room for Him to talk to us? At the beginning of our Christian life we are full of requests to God, then we find that God wants to get us into relationship with Himself, to get us in touch with His purposes. Are we so wedded to Jesus Christ's idea of prayer - "Thy will be done" - that we catch the secrets of God? The things that make God dear to us are not so much His great big blessings as the tiny things, because they show His amazing intimacy with us; He knows every detail of our individual lives.

". . . him shall He teach in the way that He shall choose." At first we want the consciousness of being guided by God, then as we go on we live so much in the consciousness of God that we do not need to ask what His will is, because the thought of choosing any other will never occur to us. If we are saved and sanctified God guides us by our ordinary choices, and if we are going to choose what He does not want, He will check, and we must heed. Whenever there is doubt, Stop at once. Never reason it out and say - "I wonder why I shouldn't?" God instructs us in what we choose, that is, He guides our common sense, and we no longer hinder His Spirit by continually saying - "Now, Lord, what is Thy will?"
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God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals June 4, 2008

Don't Go Down There

READ: John 14:15-24
This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. -2 John 1:6
In his book Lessons Learned Early, Jerry Jenkins tells a story about his freshman year in college. It was 1968, a year of tremendous political and social upheaval in the US.

Riots had broken out in many major cities. From the rooftop of his dorm in Chicago, Jerry heard sirens and saw fires burning. Students had been told to stay on campus, but Jerry wanted to see what was happening.

As he ran toward a store that was blazing a few blocks away, a police car pulled up beside him. "Don't go down there," the officer warned.

Jerry waited till the car pulled away and then kept walking. The officer returned. This time he made it more clear as he repeated, "Don't go down there"-and leveled a shotgun out the window.

Our rebellious or willful streaks often lead to unhappy outcomes. In anger, Moses struck the rock to get water rather than just speak to it as God had commanded. He forfeited the privilege of entering the Promised Land with his people (Num. 20:7-12). Jonah disobeyed an order to go to Nineveh and was given 3 days to think about his choice-inside a big fish (Jonah 1).

What does it take for us to obey Him? Will we obey simply because we love Him? (John 14:15,21).
  - Cindy Hess Kasper

Nothing between, like worldly pleasure:
Habits of life, though harmless they seem,
Must not my heart from Him ever sever-
He is my all! There's nothing between. -Tindley
© 1968 by Singspiration, Inc.

Obedience is another word for love and loyalty.

In the Presence of Holiness by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 6:2-3
Above [the throne] stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!"

In the Presence of Holiness

Dr. Bob Cook, president of the former King's College, New York, once mentioned that he had been at a gathering in Washington. While there he spoke with then-Vice President George Bush. Two hours later he chatted briefly with President Ronald Reagan. Smiling broadly, Dr. Cook added, "But that's nothing! Today I talked to God!"

Every Christian has the privilege of entering into the presence of God and speaking to the Sovereign Ruler of the universe. When we bow in prayer, the portals of heaven open and we have access to Him who sits on heaven's throne.

Isaiah's vision gives us some idea of what God's throne room must be like. It is a place permeated with the holiness of God. The seraphim standing above the throne cry out, "Holy, holy, holy." This thrice-repeated exclamation serves to emphasize the depths to which God's holiness exists. When we come before our Creator, we enter the intimate presence of a Holy God.

Is that how you approach God in prayer? Do you do so with the same sense of awe these seraphim have? They cover their face because God is too awesome and splendid to look upon. Even the highest of the angelic orders cover their feet before God in a gesture of humility. We must come into His presence with that same reverence. But like the seraphim, wings ready to fly at His command, you and I should also be prepared to proclaim His glory throughout the world. We come before Him with a sense of reverence, awe and obedience to serve. When we bow with these attitudes, we rise as more than conquerors (Rom. 8:37).

Holy praying requires a wholly prepared pray-er.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do." Ephesians 6:1 NLT (Also read Ephesians 6:2-3, Colossians 3:20, Proverbs 4:1-4)

"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." Proverbs 22:6 NIV (Also read Deuteronomy 4:9, 11:18-19, Proverbs 29:17, Psalm 127:3, Ephesians 6:4, Timothy 3:4)

Thoughts for Today
God not only has a plan for the husband and wife, but also for children. Today's scriptures deal with children still living at home. God's plan includes instruction to the children-and to their parents.

It is important to remember that God's plan is for the ideal Christian family. Although most of us fall short of this ideal, we must never lose sight of our goal or give up moving toward it. We should always reach toward God's best for the home.

Consider this
God's plan moves from two directions. He instructs children to obey their parents and honor them. In so doing, they will please the Lord.

On the other hand, he gives parents the awesome responsibility of teaching their children what they are supposed to do-and how. Parents are to encourage-not frustrate. Parents are to correct their children when they do wrong. Teach them God's Word-by reading it, explaining it and living it. Pray for them. Love them.

What a challenge! Parents cannot do this alone. They must rely on God's help and strength. Sometimes it's easier to just give in than to stand firm. Sometimes it might be easier to look the other way than to correct. Sometimes it seems there just isn't enough time to have family devotions

. But this is God's perfect plan.

All of us as parents will make mistakes along the way, but it is vital that we don't give up. God has placed our children in our care. If we are to enjoy the blessing of parenthood, we must embrace the responsibility of parenthood.

Prayer
Father, thank you for my children. Help me to be a better parent to train them in the way they should go. Forgive me for the mistakes I have made. Sometimes the task is overwhelming, but I know I can do all things through you. In Jesus' name   

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.

THE NEVER-FAILING GOD
By Oswald Chambers
 
"For He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Hebrews 13:5

What line does my thought take? Does it turn to what God says or to what I fear? Am I learning to say not what God says, but to say something after I have heard what He says? "He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."

"I will in no wise fail thee" - not for all my sin and selfishness and stubbornness and waywardness. Have I really let God say to me that He will never fail me? If I have listened to this say-so of God's, then let me listen again.

"Neither will I in any wise forsake thee." Sometimes it is not difficulty that makes me think God will forsake me, but drudgery. There is no Hill Difficulty to climb, no vision given, nothing wonderful or beautiful, just the commonplace day in and day out - can I hear God's say-so in these things?

We have the idea that God is going to do some exceptional thing, that He is preparing and fitting us for some extraordinary thing by and bye, but as we go on in grace we find that God is glorifying Himself here and now, in the present minute. If we have God's say-so behind us, the most amazing strength comes, and we learn to sing in the ordinary days and ways.
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God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals June 5, 2008

A Graduation Wish

READ: Psalm 42
Why are you cast down, O my soul? . . . Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him. -Psalm 42:5
The high school commencement speaker was the president of a large corporation. He was chosen for the occasion because of his success. Yet his speech came with a most unusual wish for the graduates.

The speaker told the students sitting before him in their graduation gowns, "If I could have one hope for you as you go out into the world, it would be this: I hope you fail. I hope that you fail at something that is important to you." He went on to say how his own early life had been one failure after another, until he learned to see failure as an effective teacher.

Many of the songs of Israel were born in seasons of failure. Out of desperation came the cry, "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God" (Ps. 42:1-2).

Sometimes we are not ready to see the wonder of God's wisdom and strength until we are gasping for breath in the exhaustion of our own strength.

A recurring story of the Bible is that mountains of faith rise from the valleys of failure. Before discovering the high ground we are looking for, we may need to see the failure of the dreams we hold in our hearts and trust instead in the love, wisdom, and guidance of our God.
  - Mart De Haan

The lessons we learn from our failures
Are lessons that help us succeed,
And if we are wise and we heed them,
Then failure is just what we need. -D. De Haan

Learn from your failures, or you will fail to learn.

Don't Be a Nobody by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 6:8
Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: "Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me."

Don't Be a Nobody

Once upon a time there were four men named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was asked to do it. But Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it. But Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about it, because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought that Anybody could do it, and Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody and Nobody did the job that Anybody could have done in the first place.

Nobody is still alive and well in our churches. When the pastor pleads for someone to teach Sunday school, Nobody is the most likely one to respond. When clean-up day rolls around, Nobody reports for duty. When there is a need to provide housing for a visiting college chorale, Nobody is first in line. How refreshing it must be for God to hear Somebody say, "Here am I! Send me."

When Isaiah envisioned the Holy God and the spiritual need of the unholy world, he was energized to respond to the Lord's calling (Isa. 6:1-8). When he was released from the burden of his sin, he found a new enthusiasm for serving God. And so will you.

When you hear the summons to duty, don't avoid the opportunity, or Nobody will end up doing it. Instead of a Nobody, be the Somebody who is willing to respond enthusiastically to the opportunities of service to God. Instead of making excuses and letting others do the work, find the joy of being God's instrument to accomplish His will in the world.

Be God's Somebody; don't let Nobody get all the credit.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." Ephesians 5:21 NIV (Also read Ephesians 5:18-6:4, Galatians 5:13)

Thoughts for Today
In God's plan for the family, each family member has a role to fulfill. God's divine revelation for the family is mutual submission. Each family member is first a child of God. Children of God are to submit to each other out of reverence for Christ. Each family member is called to submit to and respect the other family members' God-given roles. This attitude of mutual respect can pass from generation to generation.

Important lessons about marriage are taught by the parents to the children through verbal and nonverbal communication. These lessons can have a tremendous influence-good or bad-on children. For example, if a husband loves and respects his wife, his son will probably love and respect his wife. And so on through the generations.

Consider this
God does not view the various family positions in a hierarchy of superior to inferior. Each is given a different, but equally important, role to play. As each one carries out his or her role in the way God has designed, everyone will benefit.

The husband is to honor and submit to his wife's role. To listen to her insights and the special wisdom God has given her. The wife is called to submit to and honor her husband as the spiritual leader of the home. Children are to honor and obey their parents. Parents are to submit to and honor their children-listening to the simple wisdom that God has blessed them with  respecting their God-given talents and gifts and giving room and encouragement for the child to grow in those areas respecting the child's unique traits and helping them grow into the person God has designed them to be.

Mutual submission-out of reverence for Christ.

Prayer
Father, thank you for your perfect design for the family. Help our family members to understand and fulfill our roles according to your plan. Teach us to respect and submit to each other out of reverence for Christ. In His name 

These thoughts were drawn from
Committed Couples: God's Plan for Marriage & the Family by Dr. Jimmy Ray Lee. Whether in a private or group setting, couples will be encouraged spiritually and romantically as they research biblical principles that affirm their vows. It can help every married couple grow spiritually and emotionally in their relationship. It is also a great help for engaged-to-be-married couples.   

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.

THE NEVER-FAILING GOD
By Oswald Chambers
 
"For He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Hebrews 13:5

What line does my thought take? Does it turn to what God says or to what I fear? Am I learning to say not what God says, but to say something after I have heard what He says? "He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."

"I will in no wise fail thee" - not for all my sin and selfishness and stubbornness and waywardness. Have I really let God say to me that He will never fail me? If I have listened to this say-so of God's, then let me listen again.

"Neither will I in any wise forsake thee." Sometimes it is not difficulty that makes me think God will forsake me, but drudgery. There is no Hill Difficulty to climb, no vision given, nothing wonderful or beautiful, just the commonplace day in and day out - can I hear God's say-so in these things?

We have the idea that God is going to do some exceptional thing, that He is preparing and fitting us for some extraordinary thing by and bye, but as we go on in grace we find that God is glorifying Himself here and now, in the present minute. If we have God's say-so behind us, the most amazing strength comes, and we learn to sing in the ordinary days and ways.
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God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals June 6, 2008

Linked Hearts

READ: 1 John 4:7-14
Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. -1 John 4:11
Each new day, it seems, brings new ways our family sees the body of Christ at work. One demonstration of the fellowship of Christians sits on my desk as I write.

It's a basket overflowing with letters from people I have never met. Since the time Our Daily Bread readers first learned of the car accident that ushered our daughter Melissa into heaven 6 years ago, we've received hundreds of messages from our brothers and sisters in the faith.

They've said things such as: "I grieve with you, my brother, and I will keep you and your family in my prayers." "I weep at your loss." "I hurt with you." Many recommended books to read. Others sent poems or articles of comfort and hope. Some shared their own stories of bereavement as we discovered new partners on the path of pain. They demonstrate the principle of love among the family of God that's commanded in 1 John 4:11.

Each of those gracious notes is different from the others, but they contain a common thread: Because of our shared faith in Christ, I find my heart joined to the hearts of the writers of these messages.

Hearts linked by Jesus create a chain of love that can encourage even the most grieving heart.
  - Dave Branon

Bearing people's heavy burdens,
Shouldering their pain and grief,
Shows the love of Christ to others,
Bringing them His sure relief. -Sper

Our hearts are linked through the love of Christ.

The God of the Impossible by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

The God of the Impossible

Maybe you have seen the sign that says, "The difficult is done immediately; the impossible takes a little longer." Those who display such an advertisement are only engaging in wishful thinking. But for God, doing the impossible is a reality.

As Isaiah surrendered himself to be a messenger for God (Isa. 6:1-8), he was given an amazing prophecy. As a sign for his own day, it was given as an encouragement for Ahaz, king of Judah. Faced with threats from the king of Syria and the king of Israel (2 Kings 16:5), Ahaz was fearful. But through the Isaiah, God reassured him, saying, "Don't be afraid. A child will be born and before this child is old enough to tell right from wrong, these enemies will be destroyed." And they were. That child was born in 734 B.C. and was about two years old when Rezin, king of Syria, was killed by the Assyrians (2 Kings 16:9) and Pekah, king of Israel, was assassinated by Hoshea (2 Kings 15:30).

Yet an even more amazing fulfillment lay ahead. The prophecy had a near and far fulfillment. As Isaiah looked down the annals of history, he foresaw a day when God would do something that was truly amazing. Out of the womb of a virgin would come a child fathered by the Holy Spirit. Furthermore, He would be called Immanuel, which means "God with us" because He would be God, the second Person of the Trinity, and He would dwell with men and women. In a way that exceeds human understanding, God would compact Himself into the body of a baby and grow up to become a man. That man was Jesus Christ, God the Son, who would die for our sins.

In the same way, God can deal with the challenges of your life, whether they be merely difficult or totally impossible. He who brought forth His Son, born of a virgin, is more than adequate for anything that may be facing you.

Only God can take the "im" out of impossible.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"As the Scriptures say, 'A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.'" Ephesians 5:31 NLT (Also read Matthew 19:5-6)

Thoughts for Today
Becoming one in Christ is God's plan for husbands and wives. This spiritual and physical union is a special miracle of God. Each partner has a responsibility to the other in commitment, love, acceptance and respect toward this miracle of God.

Today's scripture states that a man leaves his father and mother to be joined to his wife. The "leaving behind" is often difficult for both the man and the woman when it comes to baggage like unhealthy behavior patterns, neglect, abuse and lack of role models. In many cases, individuals bring this kind of baggage to the marriage, counting on their new relationship to "fix" the hurt. In actuality, bringing this kind of baggage to the marriage can hurt the relationship and hinder the process of truly becoming one.

Consider this
We all need to turn to Jesus for healing from these kinds of problems. Are there areas of baggage that you need to allow God to help you with in the process of "becoming one"? Are you ready to let him help?

Prayer
Father, I know I brought some things into my marriage that I should have dealt with before getting married. I guess I really did think that this marriage-and my spouse-would change everything. But I realize now that my answer can only be found in Jesus. Forgive me for waiting until now to turn to you. Thank you for loving me. Help me through this process of healing. Help my spouse and me to grow in our relationship and to be truly one in Christ. In His name 

These thoughts were drawn from
Committed Couples: God's Plan for Marriage & the Family by Dr. Jimmy Ray Lee. Whether in a private or group setting, couples will be encouraged spiritually and romantically as they research biblical principles that affirm their vows. It can help every married couple grow spiritually and emotionally in their relationship. It is also a great help for engaged-to-be-married couples.   

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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WORK OUT WHAT GOD WORKS IN
Oswald Chambers
 
"Work out your own salvation." Philippians 2:12-13

Your will agrees with God, but in your flesh there is a disposition which renders you powerless to do what you know you ought to do. When the Lord is presented to the conscience, the first thing conscience does is to rouse the will, and the will always agrees with God. You say - "But I do not know whether my will is in agreement with God." Look to Jesus and you will find that your will and your conscience are in agreement with Him every time. The thing in you which makes you say "I shan't" is something less profound than your will; it is perversity, or obstinacy, and they are never in agreement with God. The profound thing in man is his will, not sin. Will is the essential element in God's creation of man: sin is a perverse disposition which entered into man. In a regenerated man the source of will is almighty. "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure." You have to work out with concentration and care what God works in; not work your own salvation, but work it out, while you base resolutely in unshaken faith on the complete and perfect Redemption of the Lord. As you do this, you do not bring an opposed will to God's will, God's will is your will, and your natural choices are along the line of God's will, and the life is as natural as breathing. God is the source of your will, therefore you are able to work out His will. Obstinacy is an unintelligent 'wadge' that refuses to be enlightened; the only thing is for it to be blown up with dynamite, and the dynamite is obedience to the Holy Spirit.

Do I believe that Almighty God is the source of my will? God not only expects me to do His will, but He is in me to do it.

God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals June 7, 2008

Serving Together

READ: Galatians 5:13-16
Through love serve one another. -Galatians 5:13
When Cristine Bouwkamp and Kyle Kramer got married in the spring of 2007, they did something most of us wouldn't think of doing. Instead of hosting a "sit-down dinner," they held a simple reception at the church and invited their guests to help distribute food to people in need.

They bought a truckload of food and had it delivered to the church parking lot. Then they and their wedding guests served the people of the neighborhood. Cristine and Kyle said the first thing they wished to do as a married couple was to serve others. Because God had changed their lives so radically, they wanted to "bless God for blessing us with each other."

The Kramers chose a great start for their new marriage-blessing God by serving others. The apostle Paul encouraged the Christians of Galatia: "Through love serve one another" (Gal. 5:13). Some of them believed that the ceremonial practices of the Old Testament were still binding on the church. So Paul wrote that salvation is by grace through faith. It is by faith we live out our new life in Christ. He reminded them that the law was fulfilled in this: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (v.14).

As followers of Jesus, we're here to serve Him out of love-to "bless God for blessing us."
  - Anne Cetas

O that my life may useful be
As I serve Jesus faithfully;
And may His love be seen in me-
This is my earnest prayer. -Hess

God blesses us so that we can be a blessing to others.

A Light in the Darkness by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 9:2
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined.

A Light in the Darkness

An artist created a painting of a wintry twilight. The trees were barren and laden with snow while a dreary-looking house stood desolate in the midst of the drifted field. It was a bleak and depressing picture. Then the artist took some yellow paint and with a few quick strokes painted a candle glowing in one of the windows of that home. The effect was almost magical. Just one little light and the entire scene was transformed into a vision of comfort and cheer.

The prophet Isaiah looked at his own country and recognized a need for comfort and cheer. He saw the spiritual darkness that enveloped many parts of his nation, especially in the north around the Sea of Galilee. This area had been conquered by the Syrian king Ben-Hadad (1 Kings 15:20) and became a melting pot of Jews and Gentiles. A mixture of Judaism and paganism became the dominant religion. The situation looked hopeless, but even into this stronghold of darkness and spiritual death, Isaiah saw a light break forth. Centuries later, when the apostles began to preach the resurrected Christ, this area became the center of a great revival (Acts 8:5-8). Indeed, the light of Christ's redemption shone brightly.

Whether it's your nation or your personal life, the light of Christ makes a difference. In the darkness of sin, you can find the light of His forgiveness. In the darkness of ignorance, His wisdom illumines the way. In the darkness of trials and trouble, His presence dispels the blackness. Whatever darkness threatens to overshadow your life, let Jesus be the light who drives it away. Jesus is the light of the world (John 9:5).

Wherever it is darkest, Christ shines the brightest.

Week of June 2

Your Enemy's Camouflage

One day, a famous English art critic took his daughter to the ocean. No matter how hard he tried, he could not persuade her to join him in the chilly waters of the Atlantic. He built a fire, heated a teakettle of water, and with a great flourish, poured the steaming water into the ocean. At that point and without further hesitation, the child ran gleefully into the icy waters.

This was a father's harmless trick. However, this is exactly what the enemy does with us. He mixes small amounts of truth into an ocean of falsehood, and people wade into the icy pool, not realizing that they have been deceived.

When Satan first came to Eve, he didn't come as a result of a whim or an "out of the blue" decision. He knew what he was doing. Also, understand that before the fall of man, the serpent was not a frightening creature. In fact, it was known for being wise and prudent.

In the Garden of Eden, Satan took on the form of prudence, wisdom, logic, common sense, social acceptability, and conformity. He uses this method with us today. When Eve stepped aside to listen to the enemy's lies, she made a horrifying mistake. She fell for the tempter's plan and took the first step toward repudiating God's authority.

Today, he tempts us to question God's plan and design for our lives. However, you do not have to be trapped by the snare of the enemy. Through Christ, who lives in you through the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, you can turn away from the tempter.

God's Word provides the perfect outline for dealing with the resources of the enemy. Apply its principles to your life, and you will walk in true freedom.

When [Satan] lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).

Are you spiritually alert? Can you recognize your real enemy? Michael Youssef explores this topic in our free resource-"Who is Your Real Enemy?" 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.

DON'T SLACK OFF
Oswald Chambers
 
"Whatsoever ye shalt ask in My name, that will I do." John 14:13

Am I fulfilling this ministry of the interior? There is no snare or any danger of infatuation or pride in intercession, it is a hidden ministry that brings forth fruit whereby the Father is glorified. Am I allowing my spiritual life to be frittered away, or am I bringing it all to one centre - the Atonement of my Lord? Is Jesus Christ more and more dominating every interest in my life? If the one central point, the great exerting influence in my life is the Atonement of the Lord, then every phase of my life will bear fruit for Him.

I must take time to realize what is the central point of power. Do I give one minute out of sixty to concentrate upon it? "If ye abide in Me" - continue to act and think and work from that centre - "ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." Am I abiding? Am I taking time to abide? What is the greatest factor of power in my life? Is it work, service, sacrifice for others, or trying to work for God? The thing that ought to exert the greatest power in my life is the Atonement of the Lord. It is not the thing we spend the most time on that moulds us most; the greatest element is the thing that exerts most power. We must determine to be limited and concentrate our affinities.

"Whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do." The disciple who abides in Jesus is the will of God, and his apparently free choices are God's fore-ordained decrees. Mysterious? Logically contradictory and absurd? Yes, but a glorious truth to a saint.
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God bless

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals June 8, 2008

Air Wars
READ: Proverbs 17:14-19,27-28 A man of understanding is of a calm spirit. -Proverbs 17:27
A spectacular air battle raged outside our window. Skilled, speedy flyers swarmed through the air, diving down from above, zooming in from left and right, climbing from underneath to knock the others out of the fight. The air was alive with sound as they attacked, eluded, hovered, and struck out at one another.

"Scrappy little things, aren't they?" my wife, Shirley, observed. Six hummingbirds filled the air with darting motion, hovering and whirring as they fought for the three positions on our red hummingbird feeder. "Why can't they just be patient?" she wondered.

Like so many disputes and quarrels that plague the church, these battles were totally unnecessary. The feeder held plenty of nectared water. We refilled it every day. Yet, for hours at a time, no hummers came near it-until they all wanted it. They seemed to prefer a good scrap.

Quarrels among believers in Jesus Christ bring dishonor to Him. They create wounds in our brothers and sisters, leaving scars. "It is honorable for a man to stop striving, since any fool can start a quarrel," says Proverbs 20:3. And "He who has knowledge spares his words" (17:27).

How much better it is when we speak gentle words of peace, not angry words of strife!
  - David C. Egner

Like bullets flying through the air,
Our words can shatter peace;
The Spirit helps control the tongue,
And then the quarrels cease. -Egner

Two cannot quarrel when one will not.

Prince of Peace by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

What's in a Name?

Names are important. In fact, they are so important that the maker of Jelly Belly jelly beans puts the name of that candy on every little bean so consumers can distinguish them from "impostors." The chairman of the company said, "We want to guarantee consumers they are eating the best jelly beans on the market."

The same can be said for Jesus. There are many impostors who lay claim to the title of Christ. Billy Graham once noted that there are more than 2,000 people in the United States who claim to be a Messiah. Cult leaders such as Marshall Applewhite of Heaven's Gate and David Koresh of the Branch Davidians posed as Messianic figures, but led their followers to disaster.

Isaiah, however, says that the real Messiah will fulfill the roles of the Wonderful One, the Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father and the Prince of Peace. Only one person has fulfilled all those names, Jesus Christ. His counsel has been wonderful (Matt. 7:28-29; Mark 12:17). His power has been irresistible (Matt. 28:18). He has forever existed with the Father (John 1:1). And He alone is able to bring us peace (Rom. 5:1).

Don't be deceived by impostors. They may claim to be the Messiah, but they lack the obvious imprint of His names. They may appear to be genuine, but the apostle John warned, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world" (1 John 4:1). There is only one Messiah, the Lord Jesus.

Don't settle for less than the real thing, Jesus Christ.

Devotional 23

The Special Guide

"He leadeth me, O blessed thought...." "Guide me, O Thou Great Jehovah...."

In the church, we sing a lot of hymns about guidance. If we listen carefully to the way we sing, this business of getting God's guidance is a snap for us.

The simple formula, based on the Bible, takes only three steps:
1. Perceive a need for guidance.
2. Confess any sin that hinders the relationship.
3. Ask God to guide, believe, and receive.

I love it when God then whispers, "This is the way, take it," and then I go forward. However, there's one problem with the formula: It doesn't always work.

God guides us, but not like any guide I've ever known in my life. For instance, I've traveled several times to Europe with a group. In each country, and sometimes in each city, we have a tour guide who shows us the sights, explains the history and culture, and answers our questions. Those guides seem to know everything. Once in Munich, Germany, we had three days of activities planned and were falling behind. The guide decided not to take us to Dachau, one of Hitler's labor camps.

"That's one thing I don't want to miss," I said. "I'll drop out of something else, but I want to see Dachau."

She shrugged and said, "All right, we'll go to Dachau and cut out something else."

I like that kind of guidance: I know what I want, I ask for it, and I get it.

Then why doesn't God work on some simple, direct system like that? I don't know, but the more I ask for divine guidance, the more I realize it deviates from a simple mathematical law most of us learned before seventh grade: The shortest distance between two points is a straight line.

The law of math may be true, but God doesn't seem to work with straight lines when it comes to guidance. Through reflecting on my own experiences and those of other Christians, I've realized that the Lord actively leads us into side paths, detours, and circuitous trips. That is, God's will seldom seems to be a straight line from conversion to glory.

Think about a few biblical characters and their experiences with guidance. "I'm going to give you a son," God told Abraham," and he will have so many descendants that it would be easier to count the grains of sand than to number them."

Abraham was childless and seventy-five-years-old when he heard the wonderful news. He waited, and I'm sure he must have bombarded heaven with prayers. God did give him a son-when old Abe was one hundred.

When the Israelites prepared to leave Egypt for the Promised Land, God didn't send them by the most direct way: "God did not lead them by ways of the land of Philistines, although that was near...So God led the people around by way of the wilderness of the Red Sea" (Ex 13:17-18, NKJV). In this case, the Bible gives the reason: "For God said, 'Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt'" (v. 17).

What kind of guidance did God give poor Joseph by letting the brothers throw him into a pit? Was there guidance when he was sold into slavery? Or when he was unjustly imprisoned for two years?

Or take David's kingship. Samuel the prophet-priest secretly anointed David to be the next king because, "I have rejected Saul," God said. For the next thirty plus years, David ran from Saul's armies, fearing for his life. He lived in caves, hid in out-of-the-way cities, and still the king pursued him. Hmm, some guidance.

We can see this in the life of Jesus. He had been ministering around Jerusalem and then headed toward Cana of Galilee. John 4:4 (NIV) reads, "He had to pass through Samaria."

He did? Jesus could have followed the seacoast road without going to Samaria. Or he could have taken one that wound through Perea. Either road would have been shorter and more commonly used by Jews of his day. But Jesus took the long way because he "had to go." The King James Version says, even more strongly, "must needs go through."

Of course, all that leads up to a delightful story of Jesus meeting a fallen woman of Samaria at the well, his telling her about God, and her apparent conversion and witnessing that brought the whole town to hear him.

How does this work for people like us today? Asking God to guide is a recurring topic for most of us, and I never seem to get it straight. Dozens of times I've laid out a perfectly logical plan that leads me from A to B to C to D, and I tell God. Often, my Special Guide ignores all my efforts and plans, and takes me another way. Sometimes I reach point D. Sometimes I end up at point K.

How does our Special Guide lead us then? First, our Special Guide knows what's ahead. Sometimes what we want to see or do may not be as simple as it looks to us. We don't know that we can't cross a gorge up ahead because there's no bridge and we have to detour four miles. Sometimes God, aware of the temptations ahead, takes us on a different path because we're not strong enough to win the battle.

Second, our Special Guide has different purposes than we do. Intellectually and theologically, we know we're microscopic dots on the face of this great world. But we get confused and try to make ourselves the center of the universe. Our Special Guide doesn't indulge our fantasy, but takes us through humbling experiences to teach us reality. There are more needs to be met than our own.

Third, God never promised Abraham, Moses, Peter, or anyone else that guidance would function like a visit to a psychic. We don't go to God to get spiritual palm readings. We tend to think that if we conjure up plans and seek God's seal of approval (i.e., guidance), then voila! it comes to pass.

Is it possible we have it all wrong? Is it possible that we have no real sense of what's important for our good and our growth? Is it possible that God really knows the best plan for us and determines to fulfill it despite our resistance or arguments?

Maybe our Special Guide wants us to figure out that, through all those side roads, bypaths, and circuitous routes, God really has only a single purpose for us. That purpose is that we would be "conformed to the image of his Son" (see Rom 8:29). Actually, that's a theological way of saying God brings all these divergent forces into our lives to make us like Jesus.

We're all for the end product. Our problem is what it takes to get there.

When we talk, our Special Guide listens-maybe with a twinkle and a grin-especially when we've explained how to run the section of the universe that applies to us. Ever tactful and kind, the Special Guide whispers, "Be at peace. Everything is working together for your good and you're moving closer to my purpose in your life. I'm going to keep working with you so I can make you more and more like Jesus."

That tells me how to pray. We can ask our Special Guide to take us down the paths we need to follow so that when we get to the end of them, we'll be "conformed to the image of his Son."

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path. Accept, O LORD the willing praise of my mouth, and teach me your laws. Though I constantly take my life in my hands, I will not forget your law. --PSALMS 119:105, 108-109, NIV
     
      Divine Guide,
      forgive me when I try to tell you
      how to direct me on my pathway.
      I stumble a lot because I get too far away from your light,
      but thanks for grabbing me by the shoulders,
      hugging me,
      and saying gently,
      "Here, this is the way. Walk in it."
      Thanks, Guide of my life. Amen.


For more from Cec, please visit www.cecilmurphey.com .
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Cecil Murphey has written more than one hundred books on a variety of topics with an emphasis on Spiritual Growth, Christian Living, Caregiving, and Heaven. He enjoys preaching in churches and speaking and teaching at conferences around the world. To book Cec for your next event, please contact Twila Belk at 563-332-1622.

What's Next To Do?
: If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them -John 13:17
Be determined to know more than others. If you yourself do not cut the lines that tie you to the dock, God will have to use a storm to sever them and to send you out to sea. Put everything in your life afloat upon God, going out to sea on the great swelling tide of His purpose, and your eyes will be opened. If you believe in Jesus, you are not to spend all your time in the calm waters just inside the harbor, full of joy, but always tied to the dock. You have to get out past the harbor into the great depths of God, and begin to know things for yourself- begin to have spiritual discernment.

When you know that you should do something and you do it, immediately you know more. Examine where you have become sluggish, where you began losing interest spiritually, and you will find that it goes back to a point where you did not do something you knew you should do. You did not do it because there seemed to be no immediate call to do it. But now you have no insight or discernment, and at a time of crisis you are spiritually distracted instead of spiritually self-controlled. It is a dangerous thing to refuse to continue learning and knowing more.

The counterfeit of obedience is a state of mind in which you create your own opportunities to sacrifice yourself, and your zeal and enthusiasm are mistaken for discernment. It is easier to sacrifice yourself than to fulfill your spiritual destiny, which is stated in Romans 12:1-2. It is much better to fulfill the purpose of God in your life by discerning His will than it is to perform great acts of self-sacrifice. "Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice . . ." ( 1 Samuel 15:22 ). Beware of paying attention or going back to what you once were, when God wants you to be something that you have never been. "If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know . . ." ( John 7:17  ).
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God bless 

[Judy Harder]

Daily Devotionals June 9, 2008

Liberating Truth

READ: Ephesians 1:3-10
He made us accepted in the Beloved. -Ephesians 1:6
An unmarried missionary had been disparaging herself. She was unhappy with her life in general, but she was especially displeased with what she felt was her low level of spiritual growth.

One morning she looked searchingly at herself in the mirror. Then, very slowly, she said, "God, I thank You that I am myself and can never be anybody else."

That was her moment of liberating self-acceptance. She realized that by God's design she was an absolutely unique person, a Christ-redeemed human being who could never be replaced or duplicated.

Do you condemn yourself because you aren't as spiritual as you think you ought to be? Do you see yourself as a second-rate disciple, lacking the gifts and graces possessed by fellow believers who seem to be models of prayer, witness, and service? We can rise above the mood of self-rejection and enjoy grateful self-acceptance when we put our lives into the nail-pierced hands of Jesus. "In Him we have redemption through His blood, [and] the forgiveness of sins" (Eph. 1:7). We are accepted and chosen by Him (vv.4-6).

If the Lord has accepted us, surely we can accept ourselves! That's the liberating truth.
  - Vernon C. Grounds

All praise to the Lamb, accepted I am,
Through faith in the Savior's adorable name;
In Him I confide, His blood is applied;
For me He hath suffered, for me He hath died. -Wesley

Accepting Jesus' free gift of salvation frees us to accept ourselves.

The Rod of Jesse by Woodrow Kroll

Isaiah 11:1-2
There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.

The Rod of Jesse

During World War II, Hitler's bombers rained destruction upon London from the skies. Over 15,000 people lost their lives and many parts of the city were reduced to rubble. Yet when spring came, an amazing thing happened. Beautiful wildflowers, many of them thought extinct, sprang up in the midst of the devastation. Botanists concluded that the seeds had laid dormant under buildings and other structures until the bomb blasts exposed them and gave them the opportunity to germinate.

Isaiah foresaw a day when Israel also would be devastated. The word for stem means a stump. David's lineage would be decimated. His mighty family tree would be chopped down to a stub.

Yet God would be faithful. Out of that "stump" would come the One who would be the Savior of the world. At a time when civilization lay devastated by the effects of sin, when the rubble of broken lives would be scattered over the countryside, a Branch from a tree long thought dead would appear with the promise of new life.

And so it happened. Paul declared, "But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons" (Gal. 4:4-5).

If the landscape of your life has been ravaged by discouragement and despair, look to Jesus, who is able to bring the hope of new life. Perhaps you have lost a loved one and life looks bleak. Maybe health problems have left you feeling like you're living in a war zone. Or family problems have created craters deep enough to swallow you whole. God will still be faithful to you. Give Him the "stump" of your life and watch Him grow a healthy and prosperous branch. Only the Rod of Jesse can give you such hope.

God can bring riches out of rubble.

Living Free Every Day®
Today's Scripture
"No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us." Philippians 3:13-14 NLT

Thoughts for Today
God loves us so much that he gives us the freedom to make choices. Some are of little consequence, but others are life-changing. This freedom of choice dates back to Adam and Eve. They made a bad choice and sin entered the realm of mankind.

The freedom to make choices brings responsibility. We have all made poor choices at times and have suffered the consequences of those bad choices. The good news is that no matter what poor choices we may have made in the past, there is always hope for a better future. God knew that we would make some bad choices, but he loves us so much that he sent Jesus to pay the price for our sin and to provide a way that our relationship to him can be restored.

Some people go through life carrying the load of some wrong choices they've made in the past. They believe they've messed up so badly that nothing good can ever come of their lives. Do you ever feel this way? Good news! If you want to be set free from the past, Jesus is the answer. He has already paid the price for your sin for every wrong choice you've ever made. Talk to him. Ask him to forgive you and to help you make better choices from now on. He's ready and he's more than able.

            If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us
            from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:8 NIV

Consider this
Remember, you are very special to God. He loves you no matter what you've done. He's there for you. He wants you to put the past behind so that you can become all that he has designed you to be. Ask God's forgiveness learn from your mistakes and look forward to a future filled with hope.

Prayer
Lord, thank you for forgiving my sins. I've made so many wrong choices. Help me now to put them behind and to look forward to the future you have planned for me one filled with hope.

These thoughts were drawn from
Free to Grow by Jimmy Ray Lee, D.Min. The purpose of this group study is to help people overcome disappointments and setbacks that have arrested or are presently hindering their emotional and spiritual development. The group will help participants understand how to be set free so that they can grow and become all that God has designed them to be. Note: This curriculum was written especially for small groups and we encourage people to use it that way. However, it can also be used effectively as a personal study for individuals or couples.   

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© 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.

THE NEXT BEST THING TO DO
Oswald Chambers
   
"For every one that asketh receiveth." Luke 11:10

There is nothing more difficult than to ask. We will long and desire and crave and suffer, but not until we are at the extreme limit will we ask. A sense of unreality makes us ask. Have you ever asked out of the depths of moral poverty? "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God . . . but be sure that you do lack wisdom. You cannot bring yourself up against Reality when you like. The next best thing to do if you are not spiritually real, is to ask God for the Holy Spirit on the word of Jesus Christ (see Luke 11:13). The Holy Spirit is the One Who makes real in you all that Jesus did for you.

"For every one that asketh receiveth." This does not mean you will not get if you do not ask (cf. Matt. 5:45), but until you get to the point of asking you won't receive from God. To receive means you have come into the relationship of a child of God, and now you perceive with intelligent and moral appreciation and spiritual understanding that these things come from God.

"If any of you lack wisdom . . ." If you realize you are lacking, it is because you have come in contact with spiritual reality; do not put your reasonable blinkers on again. People say - Preach us the simple gospel: don't tell us we have to be holy, because that produces a sense of abject poverty, and it is not nice to feel abjectly poor. "Ask" means beg. Some people are poor enough to be interested in their poverty, and some of us are like that spiritually. We will never receive if we ask with an end in view; if we ask, not out of our poverty but out of our lust. A pauper does not ask from any other reason than the abject panging condition of his poverty, he is not ashamed to beg. - Blessed are the paupers in spirit.

God bless