How Did God Get In Your Life?

The new pastor wanted to get to know the members of his congregation. One evening at a church dinner he asked Mark how he came to know the Lord as his Savior.

To his surprise Mark replied, “Well pastor, I believe God is at work in our family.”

One thing is for certain: If our faith is real and at work, it will be real and at work in our homes. Family relationships always seem to be “on the edge.” There are so many different individual wants and needs, so many competing priorities and interests that relationships always seem to be stressed to the point of breaking.

The letter to Ephesians has some sound advice for families. It very clearly states that children are to obey their parents as long as parents act in the will and way of God. Parents have every right to have expectations of their children that are in keeping with His Word. Ideally, parents will act with thoughtfulness, gentleness and love. While this may seem difficult, if family members act in accordance with the teachings of God’s Word, each will put the other’s interests ahead of their own and selfishness will be replaced with selflessness because the real Father is the head of the home and worshiping Him will come first.

Fathers are also advised to “Bring up your children with the discipline and instruction approved by the Lord.”

Prayer:  We pray, Father, for families that are struggling to survive, dealing with overwhelming problems that leave them helpless. Give them hope through Christ to be victors. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today:  Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord,  for this is the right thing to do. “Honor your father and mother.” Ephesians 6:1-4

Going But Not Doing

While waiting for a bus to take me to the hotel at the end of the day, I watched as several of them passed by my waiting area. As they sped to their destination there was a sign in each of them that read, “Out of Service.”

Jesus, when speaking about the responsibilities of His disciples, said, “Look around you! Vast fields are ripening all around us and are ready now for the harvest.”

Our Lord clearly addressed a pressing need in His day and a need that we, as His followers, face today: There are many in front us, to the side of us and behind us that are waiting to be brought into the Kingdom of God. It is not that He is unconcerned about them or that they are not willing to listen to His offer of salvation, it is because we, His followers, are out of service.

Sometimes we excuse ourselves from being His witnesses and “harvesters” by saying that our family members and friends are not ready to believe. Jesus, however, made it very clear that we are surrounded by an opportunity to be involved in a constant and continual harvest waiting to be reaped.

Each day we must remind ourselves that He will return and find us doing “something.” What will it be? Will He find us involved in taking the Good News of the Gospel to those around us? When He appears will we be doing what He has called us to do or find us out of service?

Prayer:  Lord, You have called us to labor with You in the “great harvest” by witnessing and winning the lost around us. Convict us of our lack of concern for the lost. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today:        You know the saying, “Four months between planting and harvest.” But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest. John 4:34-38

GIVING IN OR GROWING IN HIM?

We all have had days filled with discouragement and disappointments. Perhaps more than we care to recall. Often they can be used by the devil to defeat and destroy us.

Think about discouragement. It comes from being dissatisfied with things in the past, a distaste of the present or quite possibly a distrust of the future. When we allow ourselves to become discouraged, we are surrendering our courage to what we have allowed to overcome us.  Discouragement is a signal from God that the devil is trying to take away the hope He has given us in Christ. When we feel discouraged we need to take away the “d” and replace it with an “H” and call for “His-courage” to enable us to be victorious.

We also need to realize that our disappointments are, in fact, His-appointments! Nothing enters our life by chance - only by and through Christ. Often when things do not go as we intended them to go, we consider them to be one of life’s disappointments. However, what we need to realize is that God Himself is intervening in our life. He is attempting to get our attention. He wants us to make an adjustment to what we are doing with our lives that is not in line with the plans He has for us.

Not everything that happens to us can be considered “good” - but everything will eventually be “good” for us.

Prayer:  Help us, Heavenly Father, to believe that You love us too much to abandon us, care for us too much to harm us and too gracious to keep what we need from us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today:        And we know that God causes everything to work together[a] for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28 

GET UP AND GO ON

Little Lola was having a hard time learning to skate. Every time she got up and started to skate, she fell down. The bruises were multiplying and covering all of the available space on her knees and elbows.

A neighbor passing by watched her try and try again. Finally, he approached her and asked, “Why don’t you give up?”

“Because,” she cried with tears streaming down her face, “my father didn’t give me these skates to give up with but to go on with.”

Our Lord gives us His gracious favor and wonder working power to “go on with.” A good example of this is the Apostle Paul. God did not remove His affliction. He promised, however, to demonstrate His grace and power in and through all that he did and wherever he went.

God wants to display His grace and power in our lives through what we believe to be our weaknesses. He wants to give us courage and hope, strength and victory. When we willingly admit our weaknesses and limitations, we are forced to depend upon God for our effectiveness and accomplishments. Surrendering to Him when we need His help forces us to admit our inabilities and His abilities. Admitting our limitations enables us to develop our Christ-likeness, deepen our respect for God’s presence and power in our lives and encourages us to a deeper sense of worship.

Prayer:  Father, we truly need Your involvement in our lives. When we are weak - give us Your strength, when we are down - raise us with Your power. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today:       Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

FINDING LIFE’S SECRETS

Charlie Brown was having a serious conversation with Lucy in one of the “Peanuts” cartoons. Said Charlie Brown, “I’ve made a giant step forward in unraveling the mysteries of the Old Testament, Lucy!”

“What’s that?” asked Lucy, bursting with interest.

“I started reading it,” he replied.

Many people view the Bible as a collection of fables, myths or tales and unintelligent stories about a god who hides himself in deep, unfathomable messages. Some claim it is a book beyond the ability of humans to understand its truth. True, it is a book written by humans, but it is not a “human book.” It is the story of God making Himself known through Himself, through words and “The Word,” and His beloved Son. It is not beyond the ability of humans to understand its contents. God Himself will make its message clear when people ask Him to speak to them through His Holy Spirit.

Through the Holy Spirit, God revealed His Person and plan of redemption and reconciliation - the Gospel Message. The authors of God’s revelation in Scripture were inspired by His Spirit to speak on His behalf. God wanted to make Himself known because He wants us to know Him, to love Him and to trust Him.

If we want to know and understand God we need, as Charlie Brown did, to “start reading” His Word.

Prayer:  You have spoken to us, Lord, through Your Word. If we seek Your truth and want to know You and please You with our lives, Your Word will show us how. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today:       All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 2 Timothy 3:16-17