Month: November 2017

Live Loved

But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”

[Matthew 14:27]

God’s Call to Courage

God’s call to courage is not a call to naïveté or ignorance. We aren’t to be oblivious to the overwhelming challenges that life brings. We’re to counterbalance them with long looks at God’s accomplishments. “We must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it” (Hebrews 2:1 nasb). Do whatever it takes to keep your gaze on Jesus.

When a friend of mine spent several days in the hospital at the bedside of her husband, she relied on hymns to keep her spirits up. Every few minutes, she stepped into the restroom and sang a few verses of “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” Do likewise! Memorize scripture. Read biographies of great lives. Ponder the testimonies of faithful Christians. Make the deliberate decision to set your hope on him. Courage is always a possibility…

As followers of God, you and I have a huge asset. We know everything is going to turn out all right. Christ hasn’t budged from his throne, and Romans 8:28 hasn’t evaporated from the Bible. Our problems have always been his possibilities. The kidnapping of Joseph resulted in the preservation of his family. The persecution of Daniel led to a cabinet position. Christ entered the world by a surprise pregnancy and redeemed it through his unjust murder. Dare we believe what the Bible teaches? That no disaster is ultimately fatal?

Feed your fears, and your faith will starve.

Feed your faith, and your fears will.

[Fearless]

Holy Father,

You call us to courage. Your Word assures that nothing comes our way that you have not allowed. The Bible teaches that our problems are your possibilities. Help us remember to feed our faith by reading your Word. We set our hope on you,

Amen.

“Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Amen.

[Matthew 28:20]

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
[Romans 8:38-39]
My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.
[1 John 3:18]

~ Max Lucado ~

0 CommentsLeave a comment

🙏 Evening Prayer 🙏

DO NOT BE QUICK TO JUDGE

[Matthew 7:1-5]

In Jesus’ Name, I Pray God’s Will for You Tonight

Praise God, our righteous Judge, for He is just, yet loving and merciful. May you follow His example by first seeing the good in others. May you not judge others, so that you will not be judged, for with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Instead, may you search your heart for anything that may displease the Lord. May you see others the way God sees them and have compassion for them. I pray that you will live a righteous life, so that you may set an example and win many to the Lord.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

0 CommentsLeave a comment

Jesus Today

Sometimes My Sovereign Hand

SOMETIMES MY SOVEREIGN HAND—MY CONTROL over your life—places you in humbling circumstances. You feel held down, held back, and powerless to change things. You long to break free and feel in control of your life once again. Although this is an uncomfortable position, it is actually a good place to be. Your discomfort awakens you from the slumber of routine and reminds you that I am in charge of your life. It also presents you with an important choice: You can lash out at your circumstances—resenting My ways with you—or you can draw closer to Me.

When you are suffering, your need for Me is greater than ever. The more you choose to come near Me, affirming your trust in Me, the more you can find hope in My unfailing Love. You can even learn to be joyful in hope while waiting in My Presence—where Joy abounds. Persevere in trusting Me, and I will eventually lift you up. Meanwhile, cast all your anxiety on Me, knowing that I care for you affectionately and am watching over you continually.

Many are the woes of the wicked, but the LORD's unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him.

[Psalm 32:10]

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

[Romans 12:12]

You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

[Psalm 16:11]

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

[1 Peter 5:6–7]

~ Sarah Young ~

0 CommentsLeave a comment

You Can’t Keep What You Get

Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is my portion, that I not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?”

[Proverbs 30:8-9]

You don’t get to keep what you get in life. To drive home that truth, Jesus told this story in Luke 12: “The land of a rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’” (vv. 16-17). This man had too much. He didn’t know what to do with the excess. If he were alive today, he would say, “I am 60 years old, my 401k plan is fully funded, my mortgage is paid off, my kids are grown, and now I have all this excess income–what shall I do?” He could have given some money to his kids or to the synagogue. Instead, he said, “I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry’” (vv. 18-19).

Why was this man so intent on stockpiling his wealth rather than giving it? First, he wanted to have enough money so he would never have to depend on anyone, including God, for his future well-being. Second, he wanted to have enough money so he could quit work and live a life of pleasure. Both of those motivations violate the will of God.

God does not want you to have so much money that you think you have no need of Him. In Proverbs 30:8, Solomon wrote, “Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is my portion, that I not be full and deny You and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’” No amount of money can protect you from every adversity. And no amount of money can protect you from your death.

This man said, “I want to have so much money that I can quit work and live a life of ease.” Some of you are working and saving up all this money, and you are not giving to God’s work like you could because you have to get to a number so you can retire. God’s will for your life is not that you spend the last 30 years waking up every morning with no greater thought than, “What am I going to do to entertain myself today?” That is a prescription for moral and spiritual disaster.

This man had everything he thought he needed for pleasure and protection. He had planned it all out, but there is one thing he didn’t plan for: his own death. “God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’” (Luke 12:20). This man thought he had everything mapped out, but God had a different plan.

Do you realize the time is coming in your life when you are going to leave everything behind? Imagine the disappointment this rich man felt when he realized that he was about to leave behind everything he had worked and sacrificed for. Jesus said, “So is the man who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God” (v. 21).

~ Dr. Robert Jeffress ~

0 CommentsLeave a comment