Love Worth Finding

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 7

Get Some Sleep

"Behold, He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep." - Psalm 121:4

I heard about a man who was in a crisis and couldn't sleep. He thought about this verse of Scripture, "He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep." He said, "Well, Lord, there's no need for both of us to stay up all night. Good night, Lord. I'm going to sleep while you stay awake."

The Bible says, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee because he trusteth in Thee." Isaiah 26:3

It may sound like a paradox: on one hand, pray earnestly. On the other, get some sleep. But Philippians 4:6-7 tells us, "Be careful for nothing" (that means don't worry about anything) "but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God" (listen to it) "the peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

Friend, turn your problem over to Him. Roll it on the Lord. I don't care how big it is. When you obey Philippians 4:6-7, God's peace will have the mastery over your panic.

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 9

You're Going to Live

"And whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die..." - John 11:26

I heard a story about a boy who was dying on a battlefield. The chaplain was there, cradling this boy's head tenderly in his hands. The boy looked up and said, "Chaplain, am I going to live?" The chaplain looked down at that grievous wound and saw the life's blood ebbing out, and he knew that in just a matter of minutes the boy would be dead. He said to the boy, "Son, are you a Christian?" The boy gave a weak smile and said, "Sir, the happiest day in my life was when I gave my heart to Jesus Christ. Yes, I'm a Christian." The chaplain said, "Then, son, you'll live!" And indeed he will!

"And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent" (John 17:3).  As the hymn says, "Have you been to Jesus for the cleansing power? Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb? Are you fully trusting in His grace this hour? Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?"

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 10

It's Confession

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." - 1 John 1:9

Psychologists are always talking about getting rid of your guilt complexes. They say man has all of these desires within him, and he's been held in by blocked memories, and they squeeze him in. They say if he represses himself, he will come up with a neurosis and a psychosis. And so they say, "Express yourself. Live it up! Do your thing."

They claim the opposite of repression is expression. No friend, let me tell you, it is not repression, and it is not expression — it is confession.

The Bible says in 1 John 1:7, "... the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." And Romans 5:20 says, "... but where sin abounded, grace did much more abound."

The Bible says that if you will confess with your mouth and Lord Jesus Christ and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Here is how the Amplified Bible explains it: "If you acknowledge and confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and in your heart believe (adhere to, trust in, and rely on the truth) that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes (adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Christ) and so is justified (declared righteous, acceptable to God), and with the mouth he confesses (declares openly and speaks out freely his faith) and confirms his salvation."

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 11

Never Been More Alive!

"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." - 1 John 5:12

If you are a child of God and this moment were to have a stroke or a heart attack or something fall on your head, and some doctor were to say, "I have an announcement to make: he/she is dead," he'd be "dead" wrong! You'd never be more alive!

Physical death is the separation of the soul from the body; spiritual death is the separation of the spirit from God. I can never die in that sense because I can never be separated from God. Neither can you. Paul said there is nothing that can "separate us (the child of God, the Christian) from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

There are a lot of dead people who will go to work tomorrow. They have existence, but they don't have life. But if you know Christ, you have life and will never die! Do you have Jesus, dear friend? Are you "washed in the blood of the Lamb"?

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 12

Is the Choice You're Making Questionable?

"... for whatsoever is not of faith is sin." - Romans 14:23

A man was in the back bedroom getting dressed. His wife was out in the living room talking with a friend. He yelled out, "Is this shirt clean enough for me to wear?" Without hesitation, she said "no" and went on talking.

After a while, he came out, buttoning up another shirt. He asked, "How did you know that shirt wasn't clean without looking at it?" She said, "If you had to ask, it wasn't."

So many times we wonder whether a course of action is right or wrong. We're not quite sure, so since we don't know absolutely that it's wrong, we do it anyway. But if we think it may be wrong, we should leave it alone until we're sure that it's right.

The old adage "When in doubt, don't" is often a good course to follow. When faced with a choice, ask: "Will this gladden the heart of God or grieve Him? Pray today: "Lord, I want my heart to be grieved by those things that grieve Your heart and be gladdened with the things that give You joy."

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 13

Things of Value

"Glory and honor are in His presence; strength and gladness are in His place." - 1 Chronicles 16:27

I heard about a little girl who loved her daddy so much she wanted to do something special for him for Christmas. She decided to make him some slippers. She went up to her bedroom every evening and worked. The times that she used to sit in her father's lap and talk disappeared. For days she worked alone. Finally, she came down on Christmas Day and presented the slippers to her father.

He was appreciative of her nice gift. But he thought to himself, "How much more I would have valued her time just sitting in my lap and being with me than I value these slippers."

Are you occupied elsewhere doing things "for" God, rather than spending time with Him? Jesus values the time you spend with Him far more than the things you do for Him.

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 14

Faithful in Your Words

"But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation." – James 5:12

In June we take time to focus on fathers, and I've discovered in talking with teenagers that many of them harbor bitterness and resentment. Much of that resentment is directed toward their fathers over the serious matter of broken promises.

If you're a dad who wants to restore your relationship with your teenager, one of the best things you can do is to remember those broken promises. Then go to them with a remorseful spirit and say, "I've asked God to forgive me, and I want you to forgive me." Ask this question, "Have I ever made a promise to you that I've failed to keep? If so, I want you to tell me because I want to repent. I want you to believe that your dad is a faithful man."

Are you a man of your word? If not, start fresh today and make a commitment that you will stand behind your word.

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 16

New Labels on Old Bottles

"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us ... If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us." - 1 John 1:8, 10

Today we've almost done away with the idea of sin. Our culture rejects sin as old-fashioned, so we've taken away the word sin and replaced it with new words in our vocabulary.

Some of these high‑sounding phrases are: error, mistake, misjudgment, weakness, psychological maladjustment, glandular malfunction, and a stumble upward—anything but sin.

We've gone through the medicine cabinet and put new labels on old bottles of poison. So we have new terminology. We've tried to change things, but they've not really been changed at all. We have some egg-headed people—with all of their learnedness and intelligence—who have said "sin" is out of date. But nothing's changed except how we see ourselves. We're lying to ourselves and to a holy God.

Take inventory. Are you seeing your sin and dealing with it humbly and honestly before the Lord? Do you remember the father and the Prodigal Son? Our Father is full of mercy, long-suffering and ready to embrace you. He loves you.

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 17

Sin is the Cause; Christ is the Cure!

"Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." - Romans 5:12

Some would say that man is but the sum total of his environment and his body chemistry. If he does wrong, it's because he's like a computer that has been programmed wrongly. If he was raised in a bad neighborhood, he shouldn't be blamed for breaking into stores or smoking dope. Or if he has a vile temper, perhaps he had an overbearing mother.

According to psychologists, these unfortunate souls may be pitied but not blamed. They may be sick, but they're not sinful. They may be weak but not wicked. They need guidance but not salvation. But these social evaluators are wrong!

Are you blaming others? Or taking responsibility and coming to the Cross? Let me sum it up this way: life is short; death is sure; sin is the cause; and Christ is the cure.

[Judy Harder]

JUNE 23

Practical Atheists

"Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the Lord would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof." - 2 Kings 7:2

This man, this government official, acted like he believed in God, but he was a practical atheist. He spoke of God but doubted His power. To me the biggest fool is not the man who says there is no God, but the man who says there is a God and then doesn't live like it. Here was a man who had a sterile religion. He believed in God in a way. He had a form of godliness, but he denied the power thereof. And he was the loser. He was robbed by the thief of unbelief. I want you to see what the man of God said to him. "Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not eat thereof."

Unbelief always withholds God's blessings from us. When we say we believe but act as though God is not in the equation—we are practical atheists. "...for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him." (Hebrews 11:6)