In The Morning

Read: Psalm 5

Key Verse:“In the morning, O Lord, You hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before You and wait in expectation.” - Psalm 5:3

How do usually start your day? There is nothing wrong with having some coffee, reading the news, and checking your messages. It is a very popular way to start each morning. Does your morning include feeding and nourishing your soul? Is there any spiritual hunger to meet with God?

David gives us a glimpse into the start of his day. 1) In the morning: God is David’s first thought, not an after thought. Connect with your Creator before you take on all of creation. 2) You hear my voice: It is fine to mentally plan, create a checklist, and analyze situations but those activities should lead to prayer. Saying your prayer out loud helps you remain focused on God. 3) Wait in expectation: When you are sincerely seeking God, you can expect a reward (Hebrews 11:1-6). Time with the Lord bears fruit and faith looks forward to what God will do during the day!

For more from Pastor Jesse Bradley and Activate Media Ministries, visit www.activatelife.org

The True and the False

For reading & meditation: 2 Timothy 1 " ... our Savior, Christ Jesus ... has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light ..." (v. 10)
 

Several of the world's religions, when faced with the perplexing issue of Christ's return from the dead, explain it in terms of reincarnation. A proponent of one of the Eastern religions says: "Christ's resurrection was really a reincarnation - another soul in another body." I once heard a Christian minister declare that Paul's reference to Christ as the firstborn from among the dead (Col. 1:18) was a clear allusion to reincarnation. There is no doubt that our Lord came from a virgin womb and a virgin tomb, but the body that emerged from the sepulchre was not fashioned in the tomb as it had been when He was an infant in Mary's womb. The body was the same one as before. Others try to explain Christ's resurrection as living on in the recollection of others. "To live in the minds and hearts of those we love," goes a well-known saying often heard at funerals, "is not to die." It has to be acknowledged that some live so vibrantly that it is hard to think of them as dead even after one has attended their funeral. But when we talk about Christ's resurrection, we are not saying He survives in our memories. Recollection is not resurrection. The body which died upon the cross and was laid in the cool tomb on the evening of the first Good Friday was miraculously infused with life once again early in the morning of the first Easter Day. It is as literal and as factual as that. This - nothing less and nothing else - is what we mean by the resurrection of our Lord from the dead.

Prayer:

Father, I am so thankful that in bringing Your Son back to life You brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. I know this to be true for in You there cannot be such a thing as death. Life is so sure - as sure as You are. Amen.

What to Do When You Mess Up

So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. - (Romans 5:21)

There is a game I like to play with my granddaughters that I call Squiggles. I will tell them, “Just put down anything you want on a piece of paper. Make any line—just a little drawing. I don’t want it to be anything.”

So they will draw some crazy little lines. Then I will take their squiggles, their lines on paper with no rhyme or reason, and I will turn them into something. Usually it’s a funny face or a character.

In a much greater way, God can do the same for you. Maybe you have messed up. Maybe you have made a mistake and have done a wrong thing. Guess what? We serve the God of second chances. So you can come to Him and say, “Lord, I have really messed up. Can you help?”

His answer is yes. God will come and redeem the mistakes we have made.

Even Christians can wander away from the Lord. Even Christians can make bad decisions and do really bad things. We are effectively capable of doing anything, even as followers of Jesus, because we still have free wills and old natures. However, if you are a true Christian, even when you have blown it or gone astray, you always will come home again.

Hopefully you will learn from your mistakes. Hopefully you will not go and repeat them again. Hopefully you can fail forward, which means learning from your mistakes, determining to live a more godly life, and helping others not to fall in the same area.

The good news is that God can forgive you and give you a second chance. He will complete the work that He has begun in you (see Philippians 1:6). So even if you have messed up, God still can turn it around.

Social Media: God can turn around any mess you make, if you surrender yourself completely to Him! He is the God of second chances.

For more relevant and biblical teaching from Pastor Greg Laurie, go to www.harvest.org

You Can Count on Him

by Max Lucado

I was seven years old. I’d had enough of my father’s rules and decided I could make it on my own, thank you very much. I got to the end of the alley and remembered I was hungry, so I went back home! Did Dad know of my insurrection? I suspect he did. Was I still his son? Apparently so. No one else was sitting in my place at the table.

Suppose someone had asked my father, “Mr. Lucado, your son says he has no need of a father. Do you still consider him your son?” What do you think my dad would have said? He considered himself my father even when I didn’t consider myself his son. His commitment to me was greater than my commitment to him. So is God’s. I can count on him to be in my corner no matter what! And you can too!

From Max on Life

You Cannot Save Yourself

by Max Lucado

You work hard, pay your dues, and “zap”—your account with God is paid in full. Jesus says, “No way.”

What you want costs far more than you can pay. You don’t need a system of payment, you need a Savior. You don’t need a resume, you need a Redeemer.

The Bible says, “For what is impossible with men is possible with God” (Luke 18:27).  Don’t miss the thrust of this verse.  You cannot save yourself. Not through the right rituals. The right doctrine.  Not through the right goose bumps. Jesus’ point is crystal clear. It is impossible for human beings to save themselves.

It’s not the possessions—it’s the pomp that hinders us. It’s a different path. Admission of failure isn’t usually admission into joy. Complete confession isn’t commonly followed by total pardon. But then again, God has never been governed by what’s common!

From The Applause of Heaven

The Fine Line

Listen to Me, you stubborn-hearted, who are far from righteousness: I bring My righteousness near, it shall not be far off. Isaiah 46:12-13

Recommended Reading
Isaiah 46
Are you stubborn? If so, is your stubbornness a good quality or a bad one? When stubbornness means dogged determination to do the will of God, it's good. Perhaps a better term would be perseverance -- a quality the Bible upholds as the core of character (Romans 5:4). But when stubbornness is another word for self-will, it's a destructive force. The Bible says, "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry" (1 Samuel 15:23).


There's a fine line between stubborn self-will and godly perseverance; and often the Lord uses crises in our lives to move us from one to the other. Take the patriarch Jacob for example. His story in the book of Genesis is filled with selfish and stubborn choices, which caused pain to himself and others. But by the end of the story, God had used a series of crises in his life to turn his stubbornness into sanctified perseverance.

We can't avoid pressure in life, but we should always remember that whatever crisis we face is God's way of reshaping our stubborn hearts into models of perseverance and character.

Satan tests us at our weakness, so that he might destroy us; but God tests us at our strengths, so that He might employ us.
David Jeremiah

3 Ways to Press Through Unanswered Prayer

Lysa Terkeurst

"You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." Genesis 50:20 (NIV)

I opened the anonymous letter and my heart sank. It was from another mom who wanted to make sure I had a list of all the ways one of my daughters was falling short. There in black and white she listed my daughter's mistakes, shortcomings and frailties.

And then just to make sure I took her nameless letter seriously, she informed me she'd be sending a copy to my pastor.

My initial reaction was figure out who sent this so I could call her. Talk this through face-to-face. Assure her my husband and I were not only aware of some struggles my daughter was having but also working diligently to help her course-correct.

But as I reread the letter, I discerned it wasn't sent from a place of love for my family or a heart that wanted to help.

From the language she used and the fact that there wasn't a way to contact her, it was obvious she didn't send it because she wanted the best for my daughter.

I sat on the edge of my bed and cried.

It's so hard to have someone attack you in an area that's already rubbed raw with hardship. Her letter was like a bullet straight to my heart.

However, it was also a wake-up call to get more intentional in praying for my daughter. I thought about her struggles a lot. I talked about her struggles. I worried about her struggles.

But thinking about, talking about and worrying about something is not the same as praying about it.

I determined to turn this letter that felt like a bullet into a blessing by using it as a catalyst to ramp up my prayer life.

Through my tears I cried out to the Lord, "I will not sacrifice Your grace for my child on the altar of people's opinions. Of course I want my daughter to walk the straight and narrow path of great choices. But I trust You Lord to write her testimony. My main goal for her is not behavior modification but total heart transformation. I want her to want You, Lord, and Your best for her life. Give me the courage to not just pray about my daughter, but to pray her all the way through this."

Praying her through the ups and downs wasn't easy. There were days I wondered if God was even hearing my prayers.

It's tough to pray someone all the way through a messy, hard, complicated situation and not see answers. Maybe you've been there. Maybe you are there now.

Can I speak hope into your heart with 3 ways to press through unanswered prayers?

1. Know with confidence God hears your prayers.

1 John 5:14 reminds us, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us" (NIV).

2. Trust that prayer makes a difference, even when you don't see the difference.

It may take a while for you to see God answer your prayers. But don't miss an "in the meantime answer" you can receive right away. Philippians 4: 6-7 reminds us of the immediate answer to every prayer: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (NIV)

Did you catch it? It's the peace of God that will guard your heart and mind in the process while you're waiting for God to reveal His answer to your request. When you pray, you can trust you are doing your part and God will certainly do His part.

3. Tell fear it has no place in this conversation.

These prayers are your gateway to feel an assurance you don't see yet. But fear will beg you to focus on the problem more than God's promises. Isaiah 41:10 says, "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand" (NIV).

It's been a year and a half since I got that hard letter that prompted more frequent prayers for my daughter ... that bullet that turned into a blessing. I recently visited her at college and could hardly believe my eyes.

She's a completely different girl.

At one point during our time together, I asked her, "What finally made following Jesus wholeheartedly click for you?" She said, "Mom, I've made friends who love Jesus. I saw a joy in them that I wanted. So, I started doing what they do even when I didn't want to. At first I thought getting up to do devotions was unrealistic, prayer meetings were boring, and listening to praise music, excessive. But as I kept doing these things, the Lord started changing my thought patterns. And when I started thinking about life from the standpoint of truth, I had so much more joy."

She then paused and said words I've longed to hear and prayed to hear for so long, "Mom, I've just completely fallen in love with Jesus."

I can hardly type those words without crying.

I pray this infuses your heart with hope to keep praying. I pray you believe God can take the things others intended to harm you or the ones you love, and use them for good to accomplish His purposes as today's key verse reminds us.

Dear Lord, only You can turn what was meant for evil into good. I thank You in advance for all that You're going to do in my life. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Stop and Pray

Wendy Pope

"Then I prayed to the God of heaven ..." Nehemiah 2:4b (NIV)

We were always in the car going to this counselor or that doctor. Regardless of the interventions, my son's grades continued to slip. Every weekly report said the same thing: disorganized, unfocused and unable to follow class rules.

What had I done wrong? I should have read to him more. I should have waited one more year to start him in school. Too many questions and not enough answers. Mentally and physically, I was exhausted.

One day faded into the next. I was tired of moving forward only to run into another obstacle impeding my progress. I was tired of expelling my energies trying to make a difference.

During these difficult days, my friends directed me to Scripture. They prayed for me. They reminded me to pray. However, when I bowed my head to pray, the weight of my circumstances was heavy. I was just too tired. Maybe you can relate.

I remembered a man in the Bible who faced challenging circumstances. His name was Nehemiah and he ran into one obstacle after another. He expelled all his energy each day trying to make a difference, but regardless of his efforts, he still faced opposition. Unlike me, this man was not too tired to pray.

Nehemiah accompanied God's people, the Israelites, back to Jerusalem after they'd been held captivity in Babylon. He was motivated to help his people rebuild the ancient Jewish capital that had been destroyed (2 Chronicles 36:15-21).

Having the favor of the king and God's presence on his side, one would assume the assignment would have been easier. However, two government officials made it their personal business to undermine the rebuilding progress. Nehemiah responded to each insult and obstacle the same way: He prayed.

In order to revive their spirits, restore their energy and continue building, Nehemiah and the Israelites found they needed to stop and pray often! When the insults began, they prayed. When their enemies placed an obstacle in front of them, they prayed. Yes, through powerful and persistent prayer, Nehemiah and company defeated their enemies by rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem in record time.

Let's sum up Nehemiah's prayer with a simple, easy to remember acronym: SAP (Stop And Pray). Interestingly enough, this acronym is found in the dictionary and when used as a noun can be defined as energy and vitality. For greater impact, we can unpack the word further. Just as the sap of a tree brings health, sap means the power to live and grow.

Nehemiah had the right idea. By making prayer his priority, he discovered it was enough to revive his spirit and restore the mental and physical energy needed to overcome every challenge he faced.

Are you facing a challenge? Do you feel too tired to pray? Let's allow the power of prayer to revive our spirits, and restore our physical and mental vigor. No matter what the obstacle, SAP. Each time an insult comes your way, SAP. You will have the energy needed to defeat your enemy and persevere with greater strength than you ever thought possible.

Dear Lord, through the power of prayer, today's challenge can be tomorrow's victory. Help me SAP when adversity comes my way. Thank You for prayer and the power I receive when I turn to You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

The Ultimate Father-Son Relationship

John 5:19-20

God is called by a variety of names in the Bible, and each one sheds light on an aspect of His nature. Jesus' favourite title for Him was Father. Surprisingly, this name for God is used only 15 times in the Old Testament, but in the New Testament, it's recorded 245 times!

Many of God's names speak of His majestic and lofty attributes that separate Him from mankind, but Father conveys intimacy. Jesus used this name not only because He was God's Son, but also to help people realize that Jehovah isn't some unapproachable Deity gazing down on them from a distance. Rather, He is their loving heavenly Father, who cares about them and wants to be involved in their everyday lives.

Throughout His time on earth, Christ revealed by example what this kind of love relationship was like. He depended completely on His Father for daily direction, power, and provision and obediently carried out every instruction. He often left the demands of ministry just to find a secluded place to be alone with Jehovah. We know Jesus successfully conveyed the riches of this relationship to His disciples, because in John 14:8, Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father"—he wanted to know Him the way Christ did.

Do you long for that kind of intimacy with God?  He wants to relate to you as a Father to His child, and He's given you the privilege of drawing near to Him. In fact, He chose you before the foundation of the world and waits with open arms for you to enter His loving embrace.

GRACE

(Author Unknown)

The boy stood with back arched, head cocked back and hands clenched defiantly. "Go ahead, give it to me." The principal looked down at the young rebel. "How many times have you been here?" The child sneered rebelliously, "Apparently not enough."

The principal gave the boy a strange look. "And you have been punished each time have you not?" "Yeah, I been punished, if that's what you want to call it." He threw out his small chest, "Go ahead I can take whatever you dish out. I always have." "And no thought of your punishment enters your head the next time you decide to break the rules does it?" "Nope, I do whatever I want to do. Ain't nothin you people gonna do to stop me either."

The principal looked over at the teacher who stood nearby. "What did he do this time?" "Fighting. He took little Tommy and shoved his face into the sandbox." The principal turned to look at the boy, "Why? What did little Tommy do to you?" "Nothin, I didn't like the way he was lookin at me, just like I don't like the way your lookin at me! And if I thought I could do it, I'd shove your face into something."

The teacher stiffened and started to rise but a quick look from the principal stopped him. He contemplated the child for a moment and then quietly said, "Today my young student, is the day you learn about grace." "Grace? Isn't that what you old people do before you sit down to eat? I don't need none of your stinkin grace." "Oh but you do." The principal studied the young man's face and whispered. "Oh yes, you truly do..."

The boy continued to glare as the principal continued, "Grace, in its short definition is unmerited favor. You can not earn it, it is a gift and is always freely given. It means that you will not be getting what you so richly deserve." The boy looked puzzled. "Your not gonna whup me? You just gonna let me walk?"

The principal looked down at the unyielding child. "Yes, I am going to let you walk." The boy studied the face of the principal, "No punishment at all? Even though I socked Tommy and shoved his face into the sandbox?" "Oh, there has to be punishment. What you did was wrong and there are always consequences to our actions. There will be punishment. Grace is not an excuse for doing wrong."

"I knew it," sneered the boy as he held out his hands. "Let's get on with it." The principal nodded toward the teacher. "Bring me the belt." The teacher presented the belt to the principal.

He carefully folded it in two and then handed it back to the teacher. He looked at the child and said. "I want you to count the blows." He slid out from behind his desk and walked over to stand directly in front of the young man. He gently reached out and folded the child's outstretched, expectant hands together and then turned to face the teacher with his own hands outstretched.

One quiet word came forth from his mouth. "Begin." The belt whipped down on the outstretched hands of the principal.

Crack! The young man jumped ten feet in the air. Shock registered across his face, "One" he whispered. Crack! "Two." His voice raised an octave. Crack! "Three..." He couldn't believe this. Crack! "Four." Big tears welled up in the eyes of the rebel. "OK stop! That's enough. Stop!" Crack! Came the belt down on the callused hands of the principal.

Crack! The child flinched with each blow, tears beginning to stream down his face. Crack! Crack! "No please", the former rebel begged, "Stop, I did it, I'm the one who deserves it. Stop! Please. Stop..." Still the blows came, Crack! Crack! One after another. Finally it was over.

The principal stood with sweat glistening across his forehead and beads trickling down his face. Slowly he knelt down. He studied the young man for a second and then his swollen hands reached out to cradle the face of the weeping child.

"Grace..."

Before You Say "Yes" to One More Thing

by Lysa Terkeurst

"Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the LORD means safety." Proverbs 29:25 (NLT)

I want people to like me. I want to please others and pretend I can do all things for all people.

But I can get myself and my schedule into a mess because of it.

And in an effort to please others, it's those closest to me who get the worst of me when I'm overscheduled.

When my oldest daughter, Hope, was about 4 years old she decided it was too boring to take her afternoon nap. Instead, while I was downstairs preparing for guests, she was busy doing something else.

Please understand I'm not very talented in the kitchen. I do okay with preparing simple food for my people. But I get completely twisted up in a knot when preparing food for other people.

My timing is off. The veggies are stone cold by the time the meat is done. I forget the bread that's still frozen in the oven. And I also forget that making the salad the day before is a bad idea when you mix the dressing and croutons in it. Which, I've learned, turns it all into one big, soggy mess.

My emotions are also off. The pressure of my timing issues mixed with my desire to have everything just so with the house, isn't a pretty combination.

But when my Bible study leader asked for someone to host the year-end dinner and my friends all looked at me, I said, "Oh yes, of course. I'd love to do it."

Visions of home décor magazine covers started dancing in my head. Recipes and flower arrangements and perfectly set tables swirled about, intoxicating me with the thrill of seriously impressing my friends. Then some greatly deceived part of me quipped, "And no need for y'all to bring anything. I'd love to prepare a really nice meal for us."

Would somebody get a wooden spoon and knock some sense into me?

My inner people-pleaser blinded me ... until the day of the dinner party. Then the full-on reality of what I'd committed to made me want to crawl in a hole and hide. I was overwhelmed and underprepared.

I desperately needed my little people to give me full cooperation with naptime that day.

But Hope had no intention of fully cooperating. So when I saw puffs of something white coming through the air vents downstairs, my heart sank.

I dashed upstairs to find that Hope had emptied a large container of baby powder all over her room, herself and every air vent she could find. And now, that powder was filling the downstairs with a layer of white residue that made it look like I hadn't dusted in decades.

Fury rose from some deep, unbridled part of my already-pushed-to-the-max-self. Every bit of my frustration about the dinner party was now also Hope's fault. I screamed, "What were you thinking? Why do you always mess stuff up?!"

Instantly, I felt a cloud of shame descend on me thicker than the baby powder ever could.

And then the strangling effects of condemnation gripped me when her little voice replied back, "I was trying to make it look like heaven, Mommy. I thought you would love it."

Ouch.

The jarring reality of this incident started me on a journey of realizing that the ill effects of people pleasing spread. And make me the opposite of the kind of woman God made me to be.

Saying yes all the time won't make me Wonder Woman. It will make me a worn out woman. This isn't pleasing to anyone. Not my family. Not my friends. Not the people I'm trying to impress. And certainly not God.

If I know this, I can start to see people pleasing for what it really is ... a trap. Even the Bible calls it this in our key verse, Proverbs 29:25, "Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the LORD means safety." (NLT)

Yes, being so focused on pleasing people is a vicious trap that ensnares us and those who do life with us.

So, here's what we need to do today:
• Look for the trap.
• Unlock the trap.

To unlock the trap, we must use the word "no." This should be handled delicately and appropriately, but it should be used.

Back to the baby powder situation. I wound up apologizing to Hope after I had a good cry about my poor reaction. We took pictures of her "heaven." (Pictures that now, 16 years later, are complete treasures to me.)

I also served pizza to my Bible study group that night. In the midst of baby powder dust. And ... we all lived to tell about it.

Dear Lord, help me identify and overcome the traps of people pleasing today. I fully place my trust in You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

The Story of the Running Father

by Sherri Gragg

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1 (NIV)

Everything was quiet. I sat very still with my Bible and journal on my lap by my front window in a picture of perfect peace. But my heart was heavy with familiar grief.

I had been in church my whole life. "Amazing Grace" was as familiar to me as the lullabies my mother sang over my crib, yet somehow my image of God was less of a kind and gracious Father and more of an angry, distant judge. How could a holy God ever accept me, one so flawed?

I bowed my head and began to weep and pray with the kind of honesty that only comes when we are at the end of all our strength.

I know the Bible says there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, but I just can't seem to believe it. Every time I turn to You, my first impulse is fear!

I give up. I can't do this on my own. Will You please heal my heart?

Over the next year, God did for me what I had been utterly helpless to do on my own. He revolutionized my image of Him.

One of the stories that meant the most to me on my journey was the story many of us know by the title, The Prodigal Son, found in Luke 15:11-32. I discovered that in the Middle Eastern Church the story goes by another name: The Story of the Running Father. The difference in the title reflects important cultural knowledge that the people to whom Jesus spoke would have known.

In the biblical story, the son demands his share of the family's wealth, leaves home and breaks his father's heart in the process. Eventually the young man finds himself destitute in a foreign land and determines to return to his father's house with the hope of working as a servant.

Scripture tells us the father sees his son a long way off and runs to him. It's the image of this running father that was so powerful to the hearers of Jesus' story.

First, it was considered extremely undignified for a Middle Eastern man to run anywhere. Running was for children. Also, running required men to hike up their robes and expose their legs, which was considered humiliating and disgraceful.

The reason he was running was even more significant. It was a very serious matter for a Jewish young man to lose his family's inheritance in a foreign land. If he did, and he had the gall to actually return to his village, his entire community would then bring him to justice through a custom called the Kezazah. Once the community discovered the money was lost, they would surround him and break a pot at his feet. Then they would announce that from that moment on he was cut off from his family and community ... as if he were dead.

But this young man's father had been watching, and even though his son had broken his heart, he had been hoping for his return. He knew all too well what would happen when the villagers saw his boy. His son would be shamed and then the pot would fall, break, and his son would be lost. So, the father did what no first-century Middle Eastern man would do: he hiked up his robe and ran.

He ran through the village streets as his neighbors stared in horror. He ran as young boys began running along behind, shouting and mocking him in his shame. He ran ahead of the crowd as they moved toward his guilty, filthy son. He ran ahead of all that was reasonable and fair. He ran ahead of justice, taking his boy's shame upon himself.

When he reached the boy, the father quickly gathered his son into his arms, kissed him on each cheek and called for a banquet in his honor.

This, Jesus tells us, is what God is like.

For too long my image of God was one of a tyrant, or a cold and callous judge. But now whenever I think of God, I see Him running toward me, gathering up my shame in His wake, to redeem me with His costly love.

My Father, thank You so much for running toward me. Help me rest in Your grace and trust Your great love. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

The Popularity Trap

by Author Unknown, Provided by Student Discipleship Ministries, TX

A man who lives in a wooded area found that his home was overrun with mice. Since there was no way he could kill all of them with traps, he bought several boxes of D-Con and spread the poison around the house, including under his bed. That night he couldn't believe his ears. Below him was a feeding frenzy as the mice fed on the deadly granules. In the morning he checked the box and found it had been licked clean. Just to make sure his plan worked, he bought another box and once again placed the poison under his bed. That night the mice again went for the stuff like they hadn't eaten in a week! In the days that followed, the house grew quiet at night - the poison had done its work.

Just because something is popular doesn't mean it's good for us. On the contrary, something may be very popular and at the same time very deadly.

Proverbs 1:8-19 says:

"Listen, my son, to your father's instruction and do not forsake your mother's teaching. They will be a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck. My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them. If they say, "Come along with us; let's lie in wait for someone's blood, let's waylay some harmless soul; let's swallow them alive, like the grave, and whole, like those who go down to the pit; we will get all sorts of valuable things and fill our houses with plunder; throw in your lot with us, and we will share a common purse"--my son, do not go along with them, do not set foot on their paths; for their feet rush into sin, they are swift to shed blood. How useless to spread a net in full view of all the birds! These men lie in wait for their own blood; they waylay only themselves! Such is the end of all who go after ill-gotten gain; it takes away the lives of those who get it."

How can you apply this passage to temptations you may face this week? How should you respond to those who want you to do something that may be popular but in God's eyes is wrong and harmful.

Thought for Today

"The world didn't creep into the church, the church flung the doors wide open and invited the world in!" - Unknown

Have You Been Using Fig Leaves?

by Rev. Eric McGrath

    The story of the fall in the Garden of Eden is pretty well known by most people. Most people know how Satan tempted Eve and she and Adam sinned by disobeying God.

    There is one little portion of the story that is often overlooked and it is unfortunate because it is really very important.

    Genesis 3:8-21, we read of how Adam and Eve hid from God initially, but then later appeared before God when He called for them. They had sewn fig leaves together to try make themselves acceptable before God.

    In the end, God provided them with coats of skin for them to wear.

    Now what is the significance of these verses? This is very important because it sets a standard that is consistent all the way through the Bible. The leaves sewn together were Adam and Eve's attempt to appear acceptable before God - in other words to appear righteous before God. They thought they could do something to be made acceptable in God's sight.

    But God established the principle that is carried all the way through the Bible at this point. That principle is this "Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin". Man tried to make himself acceptable with fig leaves, but they needed to be made acceptable through the provision that God gave them, which involved the shedding of blood - the animal's blood in this case.

    In verse 15 of Genesis 3, we are first introduced to the fact that God was going to provide a Saviour through the seed of the woman - that was the first reference to Jesus Christ. The big word for this is protoevangelium. Jesus Christ would come to earth and shed His blood and he would once and for all be the sacrifice for man's sin. Only through personal and explicit faith in Jesus Christ as our Saviour, will we find right standing or righteousness before God.

    And yet today men still try and appear acceptable to God by putting together their fig leaves. They try through the fig leaves of being religious - fig leaves of being moral - fig leaves of being a good person - fig leaves of "church-ianity" - fig leaves of denominationalism, and so on. All of these amount to fig leaves of self-righteousness.

    It is interesting that in Isaiah 64:6, God says that all of these "fig leaves" that we can produce, thinking they will be found acceptable with God - are seen only as "dirty rags" by God.

    And all they end of doing is seeking to cover sinful hearts - hearts, like Adam and Eve's which would not and will not submit to and be obedient to God's will.

    "Garments of righteousness" (Isaiah 61:10) can only be provided by God Himself, just as He provided coats of skins for Adam and Eve.

    And this He has accomplished through Jesus Christ and His death at Calvary, where He shed His blood for us.

    What kinds of "fig leaves" are you sewing together to cover your sinful heart?

    Why not accept the "clothing of righteousness" that God makes available to you in His Son the Lord Jesus Christ?

    "The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:23).

    Our "fig leaves" fall short of the righteousness required by God. Jesus Christ is the only sufficient "skin" we can wear. When we accept Him as our Saviour, His righteousness is transferred to us and then we are found acceptable in God's sight.

    Are you accepted in the beloved, my friend? You can be with certainty. 

Thoughts for Today
 "Our failure is that preachers ignore the Cross, and veil Christ with sapless sermons and superfine language." - D. L. Moody

"O Lord, save us from 'sapless sermons and superfine language,' and help us to focus only on Christ, and Him crucified!" - Rocky Henriques
 

Eternal Life

Titus 3:7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

The concept of “eternal life”, or never dying, has been around forever. Many people have searched for the “fountain of youth” and never found it. Women today try to find that special cream that will keep them looking younger. 

 

I have news for you neighbor. We all have eternal life. We all will live some where forever. GOD created man to live forever, and ,we will.

 

WHERE we live forever is our free choice.

 

Do nothing and you will spend eternity with the Devil and his demons.

 

Accept the finished work of Jesus who died on the cross for your sin, and, you can live with Jesus and other saved folks.

Look at this verse close. First, we see grace, then heirs,and, then hope. PRAISE GOD!!! 

 

Will you Preachers take this and run with it??

 

God Bless;
Walter D. Hill D. Min.

Tired of Trying to Measure Up

by Alicia Bruxvoort

" ... The LORD doesn't see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7b (NLT)

When my youngest son was a toddler, he accessorized every outfit with a bulky silver tape measure. Clipped to his waistband or hooked through a belt loop, the tool was handy for appraising just about anything — toy tractors, popsicles or skateboards.

Although the calculations were useless to a 3-year-old with no grasp of numbers, Joshua spent much of his day wielding that tape measure.

"Would you like cereal for breakfast?" I'd ask my little boy when he awoke.

"Maybe, if it's seventy-seven," he'd reply as he aligned his ruler along the side of a Cheerios box.

"Milk or juice?"

"The one that's fifty-sixteen," my boy would answer.

Eventually, Joshua's quirky obsession tried my patience. One night after he'd insisted on measuring every blanket on his bed before lights out, I complained to God: Could You make him forget about that silly measuring tape, Lord?

The next morning when I frowned at myself in the mirror and harrumphed over my daunting to-do list, my Heavenly Father finally responded: Maybe your little boy will drop his measuring tape when you get rid of yours.

At first, I ignored the conviction I felt when Joshua reached for his silver ruler. But in time, I realized I carried my own measuring systems. Only mine didn't decorate my belt loop; they adorned my mind.

Here are a few of the faulty rulers I found:

The ruler of productivity. This measuring stick assesses my value by my accomplishments: Did I read to my preschooler, fold the laundry or clean the fridge? It assigns value to completed tasks but fails to calculate the worth of immeasurable investments like cuddling my children or listening to a friend. When I rely on the ruler of productivity to establish my worth, time becomes a slave master rather than a gift.

The beauty barometer. This gauge creates comparison and self-scrutiny. It makes me worry about the extra skin around my middle and the faded highlights in my hair. It changes the way I view the woman in the mirror. Do I look more put-together than I feel? Where did those wrinkles come from? Will anyone notice the dark circles under my eyes? The beauty barometer appraises external appearance but fails to calculate the value of inner loveliness.

The happy homemaker meter. This measure prompts late-night baking sprees and glue-gun marathons. It propels me to create handmade Valentine's cards even though my daughter just wants store-bought Barbie cards. It produces guilt when I bring chips to the potluck instead of a hot casserole. The happy homemaker meter can twist fantastic ideas into exhausting must-dos and leaves me feeling more tired than inspired.

Tape measures may be entertaining in the hands of curious toddlers, but they stunt the growth of women like you and me.

Perhaps it's time to give up our mental measures, and let God grow us into the women He's dreamed us to be. His vision for us is refreshing and life-giving. Our key verse reminds us that, "The LORD doesn't see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7b).

Eventually, Joshua traded his shiny measuring stick for a plastic transparent tape dispenser. With a giggle, he applied tape to his favorite book, his baby sister's bruised forehead and his broken Matchbox car.

Rather than measuring, my son turned to mending. And that's just what God longs to do for us. He wants to destroy our tape measures and heal the wounded places in our hearts from constant comparisons and the failure to meet unreasonable expectations.

In fact, when we exchange our faulty rulers for Christ's timeless rule, we may discover that our Savior's measuring stick is actually a wooden cross ... that functions like a roll of cellophane tape.

So I'm abandoning my ridiculous rulers and metrics, in exchange for God's immeasurable grace and healing. Want to join me?

Sweet Savior, I am tired of carrying my own cache of faulty measures. I want to trade my ridiculous rulers for Your timeless stick of grace. Remind me that my worth is immeasurable in You. Restore my joy and increase my faith. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

When Prayer Seems Impractical

by Leslie Ludy

"I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing." John 15:5 (NASB)

A busy mom of six once told me, "I'm too busy NOT to pray!" Therein lies the secret to a life that really works.

Putting Jesus first and making prayer a priority is the key to finding the peace, strength and joy we all long for. And yet, many of us might admit we've got our thinking regarding busyness and prayer backward.

Let's be honest. As busy women, prayer often becomes that one project we'll "get to eventually," like cleaning the cobwebs from the ceiling or writing a cookbook.

With so many demands on our time and energy, most of us conclude the only real prayer life we can have are those short bursts of heavenly appeal (Help, Lord!) during the stressful moments of our day.

I've been there ... many times. The busier I am, the less practical prayer seems.

But I have come to realize when prayer seems the most unrealistic, that's when I need it the most. In fact, the "Too busy NOT to pray" principle has revolutionized my life.

Just a few years ago, our four children were all ages 4 and under. Three were in diapers, and the typical noise level in our house rivaled the Whos in Whoville on Christmas morning. Spending quality time with Christ each day felt next to impossible.

I reasoned, Surely Jesus understands how many important things I need to get done. He won't mind if I just whisper a few hurried prayers here and there as I'm scurrying around!

Yet in the busyness of my days, I continued to hear Jesus' gentle whisper, inviting me to come away from my hustle and bustle and be with Him.

So finally, I began to make room in my life for true prayer, even though it was far from convenient. I asked God to show me pockets of time during my day when I could steal away to be with Him. Such as when the children were napping or when my husband could take charge of things.

I asked God to equip me with the discipline to get up earlier and make my time with Christ a far higher priority than temporal distractions like social media and movies.

As I began to live by the "Too busy NOT to pray" principle, I was amazed at what happened. Suddenly, life became fruitful instead of frustrating. My responsibilities and demands didn't change. But instead of rushing around in a stressful frenzy, I had a supernatural strength to tackle my daily challenges calmly and joyfully. My defeated and overwhelmed perspective was replaced with a victorious, conquering one.

I was learning the truth of today's key verse, "... apart from Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5b). I have come to realize that I cannot truly thrive in any area of my life unless I'm spending purposeful time in God's presence on a regular basis.

I still have a tendency to put tasks above prayer. But now, when I start coming up with reasons why I cannot spend quality time with Christ, I remind myself that actually, I'm too busy NOT to pray. Nothing on my task list could ever be more important than making time with Jesus. He alone has everything I need for the battles I'm called to fight.

The busier our days are, the more important prayer is. So when prayer seems impractical, let's remember that the very best solution is to get on our knees.

Lord, help me never forget that spending time in Your presence is what will give me strength for everything else I'm called to do. Teach me to not just fit You into my life when it's convenient, but to truly build my life around You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Convicted but not Condemned

by Renee Swope

"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." John 3:17 (NIV)

Sometimes I wonder how I can go from being in such a good place with God ... feeling peaceful, loving and patient ... then something happens that sends me into an orbit of aggravation!

It happened just the other day. Things were going well. I'd had a lovely afternoon working from home, alone. Life was peachy.

Then school got out and my kids came home. Within 15 minutes, one of my boys did something and said something that was not so peachy. Then he did NOT do something I asked him to do, and let's just say ... I lost all my peace and patience right there in the middle of my kitchen.

I was not happy at all. And I told my precious boy in a not-so-nice kind of way. Then, I felt guilty and like the worst mom on the planet!

For a few minutes, I was pretty sure that was exactly how God wanted me to feel. But before I convinced myself I was the worst mom who had no business serving in ministry, I remembered a pastor sharing about the difference between conviction and condemnation.

He explained that condemnation sweeps across our thoughts with generalized statements such as: You're such a failure. You're so hypocritical. You can never be counted on. That is the accuser. His tone is condemning, questioning and confusing. His accusations lead to guilt and shame.

In contrast, the Holy Spirit's conviction will be specific. He will reveal a sinful action or attitude and instruct us with a solution for what we need to do to right the wrong, such as restoring a broken relationship or returning something that isn't ours. He'll give us steps we need to take to change our behaviors or attitudes.

Instead of the lie: "You're such a failure as a [wife, mom, daughter, friend]," the Holy Spirit might say, "You were really critical the way you talked to So-and-so. You need to say you're sorry and ask for forgiveness. Then say something to build them up instead of tearing them down."

Instead of the accusing label: "You're so hypocritical!" The Holy Spirit might say, "You judge others for gossiping, but you're doing the same thing when you talk about your neighbor at work. Apologize for what you said today, and share a few things that are positive about her."

Instead of shaming words: "You can never be counted on!" The Holy Spirit might say, "You didn't keep your promise to go visit your mom. Call her to say you're sorry, and ask her out to lunch this weekend."

satan condemns us accusingly, to make us feel guilty. God convicts us lovingly, to lead our hearts to repentance.

Conviction draws us away from destructive behavior that hinders our relationship with God and others. Jesus' goal is to bring us out of a condemning place of sin and usher us into the freedom of forgiveness with the assurance of His love.

The next time we blow it, or lose our peace and patience right there in the middle of the kitchen or the office or 5 o'clock traffic, let's guard our hearts from condemnation and instead, listen only to God's conviction.

Then let's follow His lead toward restoration as we live in the security of today's truth: Jesus didn't come into the world — or into our lives — to condemn us, but to rescue us with His redeeming grace.

Lord, sometimes condemning thoughts become so familiar I don't realize how they contradict Your Word and Your ways. Please give me discernment to recognize the difference between conviction and condemnation, and courage to replace my mindset with Yours. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Turning Attitude Into Gratitude

by Liz Curtis Higgs

"They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the LORD." Psalm 112:7 (NIV)

Trusting God when good news arrives? No problem. I see His hand at work, His unconditional love in action and gratitude fills my heart.

But when bad news comes knocking, my gratitude can easily turn into attitude.

After a busy morning speaking at a weekend women's conference, I made my way back to the book table, glad to find two kind souls willing to handle all the details while I signed books.

When lunchtime arrived and the book table was quickly abandoned in favor of chicken salad and fudge brownies, one of my helpers touched my shoulder.

"Liz?" Her anguished expression should have warned me. "I don't know how to tell you this, but ... I lost your bank bag."

My heart sank. "With all the money in it?"

She nodded, chin trembling. "I carried it with me into the ladies' room for safekeeping. When I put it down to wash my hands, I started talking to someone, then forgot what I was doing and left without the bag." Her voice was strained to the breaking point. "I ran back in, but it was gone. I'm so sorry, Liz ..."

My first instinct? (Get ready: this is ugly.) I wanted to stomp my foot and say, "That was a lot of money! How could you be so careless?"

By God's grace, I didn't go there. The woman simply had made a mistake. Hadn't I made one or two (or 10 or 20) myself?

My second instinct was to flip my hand as if it didn't matter and say, "Whatever." I couldn't go that route, either. We were both concerned, and for good reason; it was foolish to pretend otherwise.

So, I took a deep breath, prayed for God's peace, then said, "Let's trust the Lord on this one and not worry about the money." Wait. Not worry about money, lots of which needed to go back to my publisher to pay for those sold books?! Clearly that easygoing attitude didn't come from me.

God alone managed to override the unkind words I might have said. He also tempered my anxious thoughts and toned down my conflicted emotions. The only thing on my mind at that moment was helping ease the woman's obvious distress.

Trust me, this was not Liz being a good girl. This was God being a great God.

With an utter sense of peace, I hugged her, then whispered, "Let it go." I felt her slowly relax. Then I surprised us both by announcing, "I believe the bag will turn up. How about we go to lunch and let God take care of things?"

Not worry? Not fret? Not obsess? So not my style. But that Saturday, by the power of His Spirit, I really did trust God with my whole heart. In fact, I couldn't wait to see what He might do to solve our problem.

Thirty minutes later the woman in charge came running up to our lunch table, her face shining. "We found your bank bag! Someone left it in the sanctuary."

Yes. I smiled broadly. Someone did.

Was I grateful to have the money back? Sure. But the lessons I learned about letting go and trusting God were far more valuable.

On the drive home I thanked Him over and over for stilling my tongue and calming my spirit. For keeping me from wounding a sister in Christ. For nudging whoever picked up the bag to do the right thing and leave it where it might be found. For changing my negative attitude into heartfelt gratitude.

Heavenly Father, even bad news is bearable with You by my side. When I'm tempted to worry, fret or obsess, remind me to pray, trust and let go. In Jesus' Name, Amen.