RSS

Monthly Archives: August 2013

You don’t need book smarts

18 Aug

You don’t need book smarts

1 Corinthians 2:1-5    And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 3 I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. 4 And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

When I look back at my life, well what I can remember of it, I was never studious. I usually did only what it took to get by, and my mind always seemed to be elsewhere. I now look back and wonder if the recognized problem that haunts me today, haunted me in childhood; I can never retain what I read. I can understand complexities, but I cannot recount them after the fact. I now find myself in school again, loving the learning, but deeply struggling with the requirements. I have somewhat jokingly said that I live in the “present tense”. It does keep a hunger in me now for God in a childlike way; seemingly finding what I am looking for in God’s Word brings great joy. When I need it most, and the Holy Spirit brings it to remembrance, most do not understand the inner joy I receive in that blessing.

Paul was a highly educated man. He likely knew how to persuade a crowd with his speech down any path he might want. He could have easily impressed with eloquent words and the proof of the wisdom he had gained in his earlier years. He chose to draw glory to God, and not himself, in the simplifying of his preaching. He preached only Christ and Him crucified alone. It is in that power of the gospel that Salvation is found. It is in that simplicity that Grace is found. We have continued to put our works into our faith, and works does not save us; faith produces works, but works to not produce faith. Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

You can do this; you can share your faith with anyone and everyone. You can share the peace, hope, and love, that you have found in the security of your Salvation. You can share the bad news that everyone will have to stand before God one day and give an answer for their lives. We all are sinners and fall short of the requirements of a Holy God. UNLESS, we have been covered by the blood of the Atonement that Christ gave us at the Cross. All one must do is to repent of their sins to be saved. It is answering that tug on their heart that God places there. It is not becoming a better person first; it is coming to Him to become a better person. That Gospel is available to all, and preach-able by all without any necessary edjumication.

 
1 Comment

Posted by on August 18, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

Rest=Vigor

17 Aug

Rest=Vigor

Psalm 63:1 A Psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water.

I stepped away from this ministry for the longest time since it’s birth the past week. I had a great load on me building up to a family vacation; alone time and writing time with God are extremely difficult during vacation. I truly believe and understood that God knew I needed rest. I got that much needed rest, (yes sleeping late for those that know me), and some great family time at the beach. But something began to yearn in me yesterday for God. A deep welling inside me for what I find here early every day in my favorite chair in the peace of the early morning. My favorite Bible, a working computer, and the peace of prayer with God. On this rainy Saturday morning at home, my heart is at peace here with what my Lord has given me in the past days; He supplied just what I needed all week long, rest.

That rest has brought a renewed vigor for time with Him. My soul, as David’s cried out and thirsts for God. I truly long for these intimate moments in God’s Word that I experience in my “secret place”. Do you have that secret place that you spend time with God? Do you know that it is where you will here from God when you do? Matthew 6:6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. A quiet place, a quiet time, a sacred time that God sees and responds to your heart for Him there. He sees you getting up early, staying up late, truly seeking just Him in his Word and prayer alone; he sees how much you desire to hear from him, and he gives you those encouraging words in his written Word. If you are not spending alone time with God, you will never hear from God.

What word, what event, what pressing on your heart will it take for you to seek God every day? Has He not put circumstances in your life to draw you to Him? Has He not put these events in your life to reveal himself to you; to show you his presence, to show you his power, his sovereignty? Wait…..have you not recognized them? If you haven’t been spending time in the Word, you will never see and understand all that He is doing around you. The passage in Matthew speaks of what God shows you in secret; reveals to you in prayer through his Word. He is condemning those people that pray openly to show off their supposed religiosity; they pray just to be heard. That is their reward Christ says; your reward for the humble heart seeking him is hearing from Him, not him hearing from you. He knew what you were gonna say anyway. Don’t you want to hear what He has to say?

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on August 17, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

Living water

08 Aug

Living water

John 7: 37-39    On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” 39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

What do you feel inside
Is the Spirit yearning to get out?
Is your hearts desire
To share what life is truly about?

Are you so close to Christ
That His proofs from you show?
Living the Great Commission
In faith you will go.

When He dwells in you
Your hope you cannot contain;
Peace and security are found
For in you He will remain.

He brings light to scripture
He opens your mind through your heart;
He brings scripture to memory
His words never depart.

He gives you hope to share
He gives you life they do see;
He uses you to draw
Them closer to Thee.

He brings comfort like none other
He dwells in you to teach;
His greatest work is found
In humble hearts as they preach.

Living water is inside you
Eternal life it will bring;
Open your mouth and share
From it He will spring.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on August 8, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

His power is all the explanation you need

07 Aug

His power is all the explanation you need

Mark 5:15-17    Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. 16 And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine. 17 Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.

How do you explain the un-explainable? How can you put into words something that has left you in awe? Something that you witnessed, or experienced, for which you cannot explain, but yet you know it to be true. The event most likely is personal, and most likely could be defined as a miracle in many cases. But in every case, it is and should be used to draw you to God. If you have no reason for it, if you have no way to explain it, it should point you to the power of God in your life. You have witnessed, and can attest to the evident power of God in that event. When those events are recognized as such, they take on special meaning to you. They move you to a deeper level of awe for the power of His Majesty.

This story in Mark is captivating; the story of the super-human demon possessed man; who naked lived in the caves, howling day and night, and cutting himself in his torment. He likely held the town in fear, for he was able to break the chains and shackles that when they were brave enough, they tried to subdue him. He was tormented by a legion of demons, and their motive was to torment him and all that feared him; then Jesus showed up on the seashore that day. From afar, they (he) saw Christ and ran and bowed at His feet and worshiped Him. The demons feared and recognized Him. Mark 5:7 And he cried out with a loud voice and said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.”  They knew the power Christ held over them; they plead for their lives. In seeing the herd of pigs on the hillside, they asked to be allowed to enter the pigs, an escape from Christ as they might have saw it. 12 So all the demons begged Him, saying, “Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.” 13 And at once Jesus gave them permission. Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.  A miracle had happened before many; the demon possessed man had been freed. He now was clothed and sat a Christ’s feet in his right mind.

The witnesses ran to town, and told everyone to come see what they could not explain. This miracle had cost the owners of the herd great money, they were likely upset at their loss. They likely gathered support, and they together asked Christ to leave them. What a sad event that happened that day; they had witnessed the power of God before them, and they asked God to leave them. Do you turn your back on God when you can’t explain the un-explainable? Does it strengthen your faith, or do you turn your back on it? A hardened heart in the face of God’s work is a heart that is far from Him. If He chooses to do his work before you to attest and draw you to him, do not dare turn away. Use that testimony to share your growing faith, to the evident power of God in your life. Christ left the once demon-possessed man behind with that exact command; 19″Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you.”

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on August 7, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

Ultimate Design

06 Aug

Ultimate Design

Jeremiah 29:11-13   For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

This passage is some of the most comforting words in the Bible in my humble opinion. God spoke to, and through, the prophet Jeremiah when the leaders and people of Judah were being exiled and held captive. They, in truth, were suffering the punishment from God for their idolatry; they had bowed before idols in good times and bad. Jeremiah had told them of this coming 70 years they must suffer. But in the midst of it, was a promise in it; God was with them and would bless them in their exile if they would seek Him. They were told to keep their eyes on God and to make the best of a bad situation; a situation that was designed by God. God’s Sovereignty is shown all throughout Jeremiah’s prophecies in this book.

Can you see and feel the comfort of this passage to all of us? Can you see how much of the power of God’s design and heart for you that is wrapped up in these words of Jeremiah to those that understand He is in control; to those that seek him and his will for their lives in all of it? When you are in the middle of the trial, your eyes may become blurred from the pain and tears of it; but in it is His Will for your life. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Grasping a small bit of the understanding of his sovereignty, allows you to grasp a portion of that peace of which He describes. I can’t help but think of the disciples in the boat during the great storm at sea, the fear they had for their lives, their lack of faith. Mark 4:37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. 38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. 40 But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”

When you get to the other side of His design, you are able to look back at it, and see where he was in it all along. He will take you down roads you would not dare to travel. He will take you through pains to mold you in ways you would not take at any cost. He will alter your life’s path that you had desired, all to put you on the path he desired. When you come to understand this, peace comes in the fire. Cool waters fill your heart in the midst of the heat of the storm. When you look back and learn, carry that knowledge in your heart for the next trial that He brings your way. You will be stronger, your faith will be greater, and your relationship with your Father will be closer; which is His ultimate design.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on August 6, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

Not the thief you thought

05 Aug

Not the thief you thought

John 10:1-10    “Let me set this before you as plainly as I can. If a person climbs over or through the fence of a sheep pen instead of going through the gate, you know he’s up to no good – a sheep rustler! 2 The shepherd walks right up to the gate. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. 5 They won’t follow a stranger’s voice but will scatter because they aren’t used to the sound of it.” 6 Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. 7 So he tried again. “I’ll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. 8 All those others are up to no good – sheep stealers, every one of them. But the sheep didn’t listen to them. 9 I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for – will freely go in and out, and find pasture. 10 A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of. (The Message)

The Message translation of the Bible is almost a commentary. Full of plain English, with adjectives, emphasis, and context that many times we can understand. In the King James version of this, John 10 starts out with, 1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold , but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. There is great emphasis with the Verily, Verily that Christ speaks here. Matthew Henry’s commentary emphasizes the importance; “The preface to this discourse is solemn: Verily, verily, I say unto you,—Amen, amen. This vehement asseveration intimates the certainty and weight of what he said; we find amen doubled in the church’s praises and prayers, Ps. 41:13 Ps. 72:19 Ps. 89:52 . If we would have our amens accepted in heaven, let Christ’s amens be prevailing on earth; his repeated amens.” Therefore, there is great weight in the analogy of The Good Shepard.

Christ is in Jerusalem, and much of this is directed at the religious leaders of the day, the Scribes and Pharisee’s. They had been leading people into many false belief systems, many times elevating themselves and of religious works that earned their ways into heaven. Christ had come to condemn their religious teachings and show that He was the true way. John 10:10 is taken out of context many times, but it was directed at the religious leaders of the day. Christ was pointing his finger at them as thieves and robbers; “”The scribes, and Pharisees, and chief priests, all, even as many as have come before me, that have endeavoured to forestal my interest, and to prevent my gaining any room in the minds of people, by prepossessing them with prejudices against me, they are thieves and robbers, and steal those hearts which they have no title to, defrauding the right owner of his property.’’ (Matthew Henry commentary). The parable of the Good Shepard demands much study.

Satan is just as applicable to the context of the scripture of John 10:10. Satan is a thief and a robber that comes to steal your joy you find in Christ. But scripture must be studied and understood in the context it is written, for you can make anything say what you wish out of context. Christ was speaking of those that were elevating themselves in their religiosity; He was condemning their practices of religion and the leading astray of His flock. The thief was the one in the pulpit at that time. Anything or anyone who elevates themselves, or their system of religion is not of Christ, period.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on August 5, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

Peace is victorious over Pride & Worry

03 Aug

Peace is victorious over Pride & Worry

Proverbs 27:1 Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.

I think things to death. It is not really the problem with making a decision, I just seem to think through all the options, all the variables, look at all the outcomes, before making those decisions. Much of that is the DNA that God wired me with; much of that comes from running a service business for so many years. It is funny how even in my years of rebellion against God, I still lived for the moment; seeking the pleasure of the moment. Then God got ahold of my heart and placed eternity there, and I saw things through a different lens. I saw and felt what lie before me; it did not bring worry about tomorrow, but peace and security about it. I did not need to worry about it, for I was secure in it, and I could concentrate on today.

Christ taught directly on all these worries that take our peace away in Matthew 6:25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.(ESV) Satan will still come at you with the anxieties; he is here to steal, kill, and destroy all that you are with Christ; but he cannot! When those attacks come, and they will, go to God’s Word and prayer, for seeking Him and the strength found in them for the day. Concentrate on the day, for many times worry is centered around future events of which you have no control. But that peace is found in know HE is in control!

James spoke to the opposing side of worry, pride. Those times when in your power you make your plans, that may not be God’s plans for you. All throughout the Bible there are warnings about how much God hates the pride of life. James 4:13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; 14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” 16 But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.  So if we are not to worry, and we are not to be prideful in our planning, what are we to do? Concentrate on living this day in the center of God’s Will for you life just for the day. A heart that seeks Him, will find him, and understand the meaning of a daily life with him. It can start today when you spend time with him in prayer and his Word.

 
1 Comment

Posted by on August 3, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

The Way

02 Aug

The Way

Luke 14:26 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.

Your like is but a journey
Your time is limited here;
After this comes eternity
With Christ there lies no fear.

For the love the Father has for you
Through his grace He bestowed;
His Son was sacrificed to pay a debt
His blood covered the debt that was owed.

For your short time here
God has want one thing to do;
To conform you to His image
He wants to see Christ in you.

The closer you become like Him
The more you will obtain;
The ability to hear from God
You life will never be the same.

As Christ ascended into heaven
What would be the last words he would speak?
A call of self sacrifice to discipleship
A call not for the weak.

Would you forsake all for Him
Just as He did for you?
Would you put Him at the top of your list
Is there anything you wouldn’t do?

Discipleship is a journey
Sanctification is the key;
A heart that truly seeks him
Is the way it must be.

What an honor it will be one day
To bow at His feet and hear Him say;
Well done good and faithful servant
You truly understood the way.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on August 2, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

How far we are

01 Aug

How far we are

James Chapter 4

1 What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you. 11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? 13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”– 14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

Everything in the Bible should be taken in the context it is written. You can take anything that you want out of context, and make it say anything that you want. When you read James chapter four, what does the Spirit say to you? Most likely, He steps on your toes, just like mine. This chapter speaks into the society that God has placed me in; it speaks to those that live for this world and the pleasures found in it, and will pay for those mistakes eternally. I lived by the motto, “He who dies with the most toys wins” for most of my life. The T-shirt should have printed on the back, “He still dies”. When we live for whatever material gain, for whatever lustful pleasure, for the pursuit of wealth, for the countless ideals that turn into idols, we miss the simple joy of living our lives in the center of God’s Will, for relentless pursuit of them. We miss the pleasures of the day, for we are focused on the worry of tomorrow, or the pursuit of the stuff that takes our eyes off God today. We rest in our pride when we gained the new house, the car, the toy, the trophy, the accolade that feeds pride and temporal pleasure. Then we want more, for it never satisfies the soul. James even speaks to how we are as adulterers to God in our prayers for these selfish gains. As a society we need to repent, and mourn, and weep for hour far we have removed ourselves from God in these worldly pursuits.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on August 1, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Tags: , , , , ,

Newer posts →