Love Worth Finding

[Judy Harder]

September 3

Will God Be Enough...?

"And ye shall be hated of all men for My name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved." - Matthew 10:22

Have you ever read God's Hall of Fame in Hebrews chapter 11? These men and women of faith did miraculous things. "Who through faith subdued kingdoms." Hallelujah! "Wrought righteousness." Praise the Lord! "Obtained promises." Amen! "Stopped the mouths of lions." Glory!

And how did they do it? Faith.

"And others [men and women of faith] had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: They were stoned, they were sawn asunder..." (Hebrews 11:36-37). "And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise" (Hebrews 11:39).

Some had faith to escape; others had faith to endure. If it is God's will for you, faith to endure may be the kind of faith God wants you to have. Will God be enough if He lets you walk through the fiery furnace?

[Judy Harder]

September 4

Welcome! You are in the Priesthood

"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." - 1 Peter 2:9

Christians are a kingdom of priests, so in order to understand what that means, let's look at what someone had to do to become a priest in the Old Testament.

The first thing the priest did was bathe from head to toe. This symbolized that he was saved (see Titus 3:5). When we are saved, we are bathed from head to toe in Christ's cleansing blood.
After his bath, the priest received a linen garment, which symbolized the righteousness that is provided by our Lord.
Then he was anointed with oil, which is symbolic of the Holy Spirit.
How encouraging to discover God's Word flowing from the Old to the New Testament to describe such essential details of the believer.

Have you been bathed in the cleansing blood? Are you aware you're wearing a robe (the righteousness of Christ)? The Holy Spirit lives within you. As you go through your day today, be ever mindful: you are a priest—chosen, royal, holy, set apart for Him.

[Judy Harder]

September 5

Is Courtesy a Way of Life for You?

"Thou hast also given me the shield of Thy salvation: and Thy right hand hath holden me up, and Thy gentleness hath made me great." - Psalm 18:35

Do you know what our churches could use a little bit more of? Courtesy among the brethren—love in the little things, love that says "please" and "thank you," love that steps back and gives the other person first place. The gentleness of our Lord.

It never ceases to amaze me how people so quickly lose their religion when they leave church on Sunday morning. They go to their cars in the parking lot, then cut people off in traffic. And don't ever take someone's "regular" seat in church. You're seen as stealing their "rightful" place in the worship service!

May God cleanse our churches of self-righteousness and pride. May He purify us from anything that seeks to elevate self over others.

[Judy Harder]

September 6

Ready to Make an Honest 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

What does it mean to "confess your sins"? It doesn't mean to simply admit your sin. There are a lot of people who have admitted their sins, who have never confessed their sins.

I've spoken to people many times and asked, "Do you know that you're a sinner?" And they respond, "Yes, I know. We've all sinned." But those people aren't confessing; all they're doing is admitting. There is a difference.

The word "confess" is a compilation of two words, "con" and "fess," which mean "to agree with." To confess your sins is "to say with" God what God says about them.

As you go before the Lord in prayer today, rather than just admitting you've sinned, agree with God about your sin.  Then ask for His grace to overcome.

[Judy Harder]

September 8

Learning to Love, Learning to Hate

"Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: He preserveth the souls of His saints; He delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked." - Psalm 97:10

This may come as a surprise to you, but just because you're a Christian doesn't mean you're supposed to love everything.

Now, we hear that Christians are to be a people of love, and that is true. But did you know that if you're a Christian, not only must you learn to love, but you also must learn to hate?

If you love God, then you are to hate what God hates. It is true in every realm. If you love flowers, you hate weeds. If you love health, you hate germs. If you love God, you hate evil. It is just that plain.

Romans 12:9 tells us in even stronger terms to "abhor that which is evil." A hypocrite, something none of us want to be, is someone who says he loves God, but then he doesn't hate sin.

Don't tell others you love God if you don't hate that which nailed His Son to the cross.

[Judy Harder]

September 9

On the Proving Ground

"Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; try my reins and my heart. For Thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in Thy truth." - Psalm 26:2-3

How do automobile manufacturers make sure their vehicles are safe for people to drive? They put their vehicles onto a proving ground. They're driven hundreds of miles over rough roads and through water and heat—screeching, turning, twisting, hitting the brakes, accelerating to top speeds. They want to see if that automobile will stand the test.

It is the same with our spiritual lives. God gives the test first and the lesson afterwards. Read throughout Scripture and you will find this to be true. Joseph was tested. David was tested. Moses was tested. Peter was tested.

When God gets ready to prove you, He is not going to test you in the good times because that is not a test. Anybody can serve God in the sunshine.

The test is not how you behave when there is victory all around; the test is how you behave when God brings you to the wilderness. He wants to know what is in your heart. Are you fully devoted to God?

[Judy Harder]

September 10

"Because I Said So"

"For I am the Lord that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy." - Leviticus 11:45

Are you a parent? Then, you've probably told your children to do something and they asked why. And what did you say? "Because I told you. Period."

I believe there are times when parents want their children to do things and they need to explain their rationale. It's important to teach principles for living instead of mere commands and rules. But sometimes children are not able to understand, so the answer I just mentioned is one that simply communicates parental authority to a child.

Leviticus is a book full of laws that no one understood logically. And yet did God stop to explain the law? No. He simply said, "I am the Lord your God." He is above our need for explanations and deserving of our full obedience.

[Judy Harder]

September 11

When Your Life Caves In

"And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory." - Mark 13:26

When we come to a place where we don't understand what's happening...when everything seems to be caving in, there is Jesus. We always have the forgiveness of the cross, the victory of the empty tomb, and the hope of Christ's imminent return.

When we go to the doctor and he tells us we have a malignancy. When we hear that we as a couple are infertile and cannot bear a child. When we have to declare bankruptcy. When we are laid off work. When we read a note that our spouse has left. When a loved one dies because of a terrorist act.

We have a Savior...and we have a choice to believe or not to believe! At that time we can begin to murmur, criticize, grumble, or despair. Or we can yield to the Savior and hear Him say, "My child, no matter what is happening, this is how much I love you. Look to the cross. Look to the empty tomb. Look for Me. I'm coming again."

[Judy Harder]

September 12

Redeem the Time!

"Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." - James 4:17

Procrastination. Just seeing the word makes me want to put off saying anything else. Are you under conviction in that area? One fellow said, "I started to procrastinate, then decided to put it off."

Procrastination is a form of disobedience. When God tells us to do something and we don't do it, we can label our actions with all kinds of fancy words, but the bottom line is, it's sin. The days are passing and time cannot be stopped. You can't call a "time out" in life. And time can't be stored like money in the bank.  Really, the only thing you can do with time is use it or lose it.

Someone has said, "Lost: One golden hour, studded with sixty diamond minutes. No reward offered, for it is lost forever." Redeem the time.

[Judy Harder]

September 13

Wholehearted or Halfhearted?

"The light of the body is the eye: Therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness." - Luke 11:34

Joshua chapter fourteen tells us something very interesting about a man named Caleb. Three times the Holy Spirit says Caleb "wholly followed the Lord God" (vv. 8, 9, 14). Every ounce of Caleb was given to the Lord.

This is the kind of heart you and I should have if we call ourselves Christians. The devil is going to intimidate a fainthearted man. And there's only one way to stand against the devil. That is to give everything to Jesus Christ.  Indeed, God does not accept half-hearted religion.

It would be better for you to say that there is no God than for you to say that He doesn't mean that much to you, He doesn't make a difference in your life, He doesn't stir your heart to love Him.

God is looking for wholeheartedness. "With my whole heart I have sought Thee." (Psalm 119:10) Can you say this to the Lord today?