Love Worth Finding

[Judy Harder]

January 31

Him—Just Him

"For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day." 2 Timothy 1:12

I heard of a lady who memorized so many verses of Scripture, that she quoted them back to the Lord in praise to His name. When she grew old and began to lose her memory, she could only remember one verse, "For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day." She would quote it over and over.

Soon her memory deteriorated more, and all she could remember was just the phrase "committed unto Him." It brought her much comfort. Finally she came to a place where all she could say was "Him."

You can distill the Bible down to that one word, "Him." Can you tune all of your life to that one note of praise? Him.

[Judy Harder]

February 1

Prioritizing Your Work and Rest

"It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so He giveth His beloved sleep."  Psalm 127:2

In the book of Jonah, we learn that Jonah reached a place of physical despondency (see Jonah 4:3 and . He wanted God to kill him.

Have you ever reached a place of despair and thought that everything and everyone was against you and you didn't know what to do? Maybe you just needed to lie down and get some sleep.

Now, that may not sound like the most spiritual thing to do, but we cannot abuse our bodies without suffering the consequences. And being a child of God does not make you immune to physical exhaustion.

Have you ever heard of burn out? Where do you think we got that phrase? There is enough time in the day to gracefully do everything God wants us to do. We must determine what that is—and isn't. Begin each day with the prayer: "Father, what do You have for me today?  Help me to focus on that, and not the distractions."

[Judy Harder]

February 2

After "Fighting the Good Fight"

"Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses." 1 Timothy 6:12

Some of the greatest spiritual defeats you will ever have will follow some of your highest spiritual victories. Jonah, Moses, and Elijah – all these men learned this. Why does this happen?

Because we are tired and feel we can just coast awhile. We think,"Didn't God bless and give us a great victory?"  But what we forget is that the devil is clever. He knows just when to pull the rug out from under us.

Let me give you a little advice: Although the residual effects of yesterday's blessings will bless you, you cannot coast on yesterday's blessings. God has made you so that you cannot live by experiences. You must live by Jesus Christ one day at a time.

Every time you experience victory, be on your guard. "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." (1 Peter 5: This is the time to be "on alert," and more submitted than ever to Jesus as Lord.

[Judy Harder]

February 3

How to Stay the Course and Finish Well

"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith." 2 Timothy 4:7

Do you know the way to finish the course? Keep looking to Jesus.

I've been preaching the Gospel for over 50 years, and God knows I have my faults and sins. He also knows I have repented and aim to get right with Him each and every day. I am far from perfect, but I can say that this same God has kept me on course. He has kept me preaching the Gospel.

Finishing the course that God has planned for us is never easy. It takes discipline and hard work. It takes picking ourselves up, dusting ourselves off, and starting over. One of these days you are going to have to look back on your life. And I hope you will be able to say that you fought as a warrior and finished as an athlete.

"Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..." (Hebrews 12:1b-2a). Keep short accounts with God. Confess quickly. Get back on the track.

[Judy Harder]

February 4

Keeping the Faith

"...Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?" Luke 18:8

I believe with all my heart that the call needs to go out today more clearly than ever before for Christians to keep the faith.

William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, said, "The chief danger of the 20th century will be religion without the Holy Ghost, Christianity without Christ, forgiveness without repentance, salvation without regeneration, politics without God, and Heaven without Hell."

We are but one generation away from paganism. If this generation doesn't keep the faith and pass it to the next, there will be no faith.

Are you passing the faith to the next generation? Here is your commission from the Lord: "Therefore shall ye lay up these My words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates." Deuteronomy 11:18-20

[Judy Harder]

February 5

It Is Yours, Lord—Everything

"Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." Matthew 16:24

Very early in our marriage, Joyce and I got on our knees and made a solemn vow before God that all we had would belong to Jesus Christ. We would not really own title to anything.

Now, we might hold title as far as men were concerned, but everything we owned would belong to the Lord. If He wanted it, He could have it. If He wanted to use it, if He wanted to destroy it, if He wanted to give it away, if He wanted to give more, that was His business.

Have you done that? Have you transferred everything to Christ? It's not your fame, it's your faith. It's not your ability, it's your availability. It's not your scholarship, it's your sacrifice.

Stop now this moment and think about what you have. Are you willing to "transfer the title"? Tell the Lord Jesus Christ that He is the true owner of all you have—including your abilities.



February 6

Seeing the Unseen—Moving Beyond Your Five Senses

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33

Many Christians are so materialistic that they never look past the physical world to the transcendent Christ above. They only experience what their five senses (touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing) bring to them.

When a problem arises, it blows out every candle in their souls, knocks the sun out of their sky, and they can't enjoy the daily bread of life that Jesus promises.

For some reading this, you have a gigantic problem that to the world has "disaster" written all over it. If you are seeking first His righteousness, God will give you all that you need. You have God on your side—the King of kings, the Lord of lords. And don't you forget it.

[Judy Harder]

February 7

His Searchlight Upon Our Hearts

"Shall not God search this out? For He knoweth the secrets of the heart." Psalm 44:21

Christian author and speaker S. D. Gordon said, "In every man's life there is a throne. And when self is on the throne, Christ is on the cross. But when Christ is on the throne, self is on the cross."

There is something you hold to be the highest good that captivates your attention and controls your life. Your decisions are made in light of whatever this thing is. Is it Christ? Or something else?

God's plan is not that Christ have "a place" in your life or that He have prominence in your life. Jesus Christ deserves and even demands preeminence in your life. That means there is no rebuttal, no refusal, and no rival.

Ask God to reveal to you if there is anything is your life that is controlling your decisions, apart from the Lord Jesus Christ. Give Him permission to reveal that today.

[Judy Harder]

February 9

There Is A Crowd—Cheering You On

"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith." Hebrews 12:1-2

There are a lot of athletes with natural ability, but what is it that turns a mediocre athlete into a gold medal champion? One athlete is willing to hurt more than the other. When you can't take another step, your muscles are sore, your body is aching—this is what it means to be running the race with perseverance, as mentioned in Hebrews 12:1. You are bearing up under tremendous pressure. You are running to build endurance.

Today you may be hurting because a family member, coworker, or classmate has been unfair to you. A spouse has left. A friend walked away. Perhaps you were passed over for a promotion. Run with patience. Look to Jesus. Building a faith that will go the distance takes both patience and time.

[Judy Harder]

Releasing the Old—Taking Hold of the Best

"I will love Thee, O Lord, my strength." Psalm 18:1

Have you ever tried to get a bone away from a dog? It's not too easy, unless you have something better for him. Try offering a T-bone steak, and that dog will drop his bone like a bad habit.

In the same way, the writer of Hebrews tried to encourage the Jewish Christians, new believers who had a tendency to cling to the old customs of the Old Testament, to leave the dry bones of ceremonies and feast upon the delights of the Lord Jesus Christ.

It's a lesson we all must appropriate in our lives. It can become comfortable for us to hold to our traditions, rather than try something new. But friend, there is no one and nothing that can compare with Jesus. You may learn to love Jesus better, but you can never love anything better than Jesus. Ask God to begin showing you the delights of a close relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

[Judy Harder]

February 11

Our Only Answer

"Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord." Psalm 31:24

The world wants to know what we should do about the problems of the world. What about the overcrowded prisons? Poverty? Rape? Murder? Do you know why we never solve the problems? Because we don't see the real problem.

The sociologist says it is just a cultural lag. The psychologist calls it an emotional disturbance. The philosopher calls it irrational behavior. The communist calls it the human class struggle. The humanist calls it human weakness. The criminologist calls it anti-human conduct. The Bible calls it sin.

And the only answer for sin is Jesus, Who executes the will of God, expresses the love of God, and expounds the mind of God.

The problems of our world are beyond solution—apart from the Lord Jesus Christ. God moves in answer to our prayers. Your effectual, fervent prayer "availeth much." (James 5:16)