Love Worth Finding

[Judy Harder]

DECEMBER 26

Anticipation of an Even Greater Day

"And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." - John 14:3

It's the day after Christmas. The glow on the tree is just a little dimmer because the anticipation of the day is now past. Ever feel that way about your walk with the Lord? Well, let me give you some good news, my friend. The best is yet to be!

That's right. Christmas Day is past, but Resurrection Day is coming soon, and I don't mean Easter. I mean the Second Coming of Our Lord is imminently on the horizon.

He is coming again. And that's not just a nice thing; that's a rock-ribbed truth! Jesus is coming again!

Write down John 14:3 on a little note, and as you say goodbye to family and friends, give them this note of encouragement.

[Judy Harder]

DECEMBER 28

Random Acts of Kindness

"But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great." - Luke 6:35

I've seen bumper stickers that exhort us to "show random acts of kindness." I think that's a good thing. And what is kindness? It's love in the little things.

A woman came down the aisle of a church to give her heart to Christ, and the preacher wanted to know what had impacted her life for Christ.

She said, "You did."

The pastor said, "Well, I'd be interested to know what it was that I said that brought you to Christ."

She said, "It was nothing you said. It was something you did. I was standing nearby when somebody criticized you very unfairly. I saw the kindness with which you responded, and I knew that your faith was real."

What random act of kindness can you do today that will demonstrate that your faith is real?

[Judy Harder]

DECEMBER 29

Be an Encourager

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;  Who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." - 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Someone has well said that discouragement is a darkroom where the negatives of fear and failure are developed.

Some people are encouragers and others are discouragers. Have you ever met a discourager? They're like a drink of water to a drowning man. They can brighten up a room by leaving it. They leave you drained and depressed.

But an encourager leaves you full and refreshed. God has cornered the market on encouragement. All encouragement comes from God. You're never more like God than when you're encouraging people and never more like the devil than when you are discouraging people.

Find a needy person and enrich him; a lonely person and include him; a misunderstood person and affirm him; an undiscovered person and develop him; a failing person and restore him.

[Judy Harder]

DECEMBER 30

Eternity . . .

"That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." - John 3:16

Your soul, made in the image of God, will exist forever. I think Billy Sunday, the evangelist, said it this way: "Imagine a little bird taking a grain of sand and flying to a distant planet. It would take him a million years to fly to that distant planet. Then he would drop that grain of sand. Then the little bird would fly back to the earth taking another million years. He gets another grain of sand and flies back to the distant planet.

"Back and forth, back and forth it goes. When he will have transplanted every speck of earth to that distant planet, it will only be breakfast time in eternity."

Your soul will go on, and on, and on.

Where do you plan on spending eternity? Where do your loved ones plan on spending it? If you don't know, ask them today and get their salvation on the right side of eternity.

[Judy Harder]

DECEMBER 31

Moving Forward Into the New Year

"Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: His going forth is prepared as the morning; and He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth." - Hosea 6:3

On this New Year's Eve, you may be wondering what is going to happen. Years ago, some men were on a leaky old ship in the middle of a rough and stormy sea. One of them asked the captain, "Are we safe?"  He said, "Well, the boilers are weak and may explode at any moment. The ship is taking on water. To be very honest with you, we may go up, or we may go down, but at any rate, we are going on."

And that's the way we are as we face this new year. Jesus may come; we may go up. We may die, and go down and then up, but at any rate, we are going on.

Reflecting on this past year, allow the Holy Spirit to invade your heart, convicting and drawing you to Himself. Ask for wisdom, courage, and faith to continue on, whatever happens this next year!

[Judy Harder]

JANUARY 1

A New Year Without Fear

BIBLE MEDITATION:

"...for 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." - Hebrews 13:5-6


DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

I heard of some men years ago who were on a leaky old ship in the middle of a rough and stormy sea, fearful for their lives. They didn't know whether they were going to sink or not. So one of them went to see the captain and said, "Captain, are we safe?" He answered, "Well, I'll put it to you this way. The boilers on this ship are very weak and may explode at any moment. Also, the ship is very old and she's taking on water. To be honest with you, we may have an explosion or we may sink. "We may go up or we may go down. But," he continued, "at any rate, we're going on."

And that's the way we are, as we face this new year. Jesus may come—we may go up. We may die—we'll go down and then go up. But at any rate, we're going on...even though we don't know what it's going to bring.

ACTION POINT:

Face this new year by squaring your shoulders, lifting your head, and saying "The Lord is my helper, I will not fear." The greatest thing you could do to begin, if you have not done it yet, would be to give your heart to Jesus Christ. This would be the beginning of a brand new life. This can be the first day of an eternal life.  Are you willing to openly and publicly acknowledge Christ as your personal Savior?

[Judy Harder]

JANUARY 2

Starting from a Secure Position

BIBLE MEDITATION:

"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved." - Acts 16:31



DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

If you are not saved, your first step in this new year must be giving your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ. If I had a thousand lives to live, I'd give Him every one of them. I really would.

I came to Jesus Christ as a teen. If I had understood it sooner, I would have come sooner. I don't care how young you are or how old you are, if you are reading this, you can be saved. I don't care how good you are or how bad you are, there's no one so good they don't need to be saved and no one so bad they can't be saved.

The Bible says, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ." That doesn't mean mere intellectual belief or just accepting some facts about Him.  It means trust. You can believe an airplane can fly; you don't trust it until you get on it. Come to Jesus and I promise you, on the authority of the Word of God, He will save you instantly. He will be with you continually. He will keep your eternally.

ACTION POINT:

Commit your life to Jesus. Believe on Him. Trust Him and a transformation will take place. He will save you. He will satisfy you. He will secure you if you trust Him.

[Judy Harder]

JANUARY 3

The Lord Will Be My Helper—I Will Not Fear

BIBLE MEDITATION:

So that we may boldly say, "The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me." - Hebrews 13:6

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

If you are going to face this year with steadfast resolve, you must find your contentment, your companionship, and your confidence in Christ. And then you'll find your comfort in Christ. Then you may boldly say, "The Lord is my helper; I will not fear what man shall do unto me."

I'm not trying to tell you life's going to be all honey and no bees. No, the Christians in the book of Hebrews faced heartaches and trials. They had opposition from family, friends and foes alike. They faced mockery and brutality. Yet they could boldly say, "The Lord is my helper."

Friend, this coming year may be difficult for you. But I am telling you that you can stand upon the promises of the Word of God.

ACTION POINT:

We don't know what the coming year will bring—sickness, heartache, or trouble. But I do know that you can boldly say, "The Lord will be my helper. I will not fear what man shall do to me." Find your contentment, your companionship, and your confidence in Jesus. In Him you will find your comfort and your courage.

[Judy Harder]

JANUARY 4

The Danger of Drifting

BIBLE MEDITATION:

"Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip." - Hebrews 2:1

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Life is like an ocean...a trackless ocean with winds, currents and waves. We'll meet ships we never knew were on that ocean and we'll have all kinds of opportunities, heartaches, tears and fears as we sail into a new year on an uncharted sea.

Scholars tell us Hebrews 2:1 refers to the sea—the writer is using a nautical term. He must have spent time at sea, because the phrase "giving more earnest heed" and the word "slip" refer to bringing a ship into the harbor, a difficult and sometimes dangerous task. A ship never just drifts into the harbor. The most skillful part of being a sea pilot is bringing the ship into the harbor. "Let them slip" literally means drift away. You have to be careful when you enter the harbor that you don't end up on the rocks or drift past the harbor.

The worst thing that could happen to us this year is that we just drift through it—live an aimless life—letting this year "happen" to us rather than charting a course and getting into God's appointed harbor. The winds of worldliness, the tides of circumstance, and the currents of the old nature are determined to cause you to drift.

ACTION POINT:

You will drift unless you decide not to drift. You must have an anchor. You need a fixed direction. It's important, because drifting is one of the easiest things in the world to do.

[Judy Harder]

JANUARY 5

Jesus Meets the Heart's Deepest Need

BIBLE MEDITATION:

"Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.  I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need." - Philippians 4:11-12

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

When Paul wrote this he was in prison. But he said, "I've learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content."

The word "content" literally means "self-contained." We're hearing a lot today about the "r" word, recession. Back in 1929 and 1930 when the stock market crashed, there were men who jumped out of skyscrapers, committing suicide. Why? Because the things they were trying to satisfy their heart with, they lost. That's where their security was. Friend, you'd better have your security, sufficiency and satisfaction in something that can't be tampered with.

ACTION POINT:

Paul continues, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." That literally means, I can do all things through Christ who is pouring His life into me. Learn a life of contentment. Have the contentment of His provision—Christ Himself. The deepest need of your heart can be met in the Lord Jesus Christ.