June 30
We don’t have to seek out things to trip us up. We generally stumble upon them. That’s why they’re called ‘pitfalls.’ The things we’re looking for, the problems we anticipate, are, for the most part, the ones that never happen. We don’t even realize we avoided them because they weren’t on our radar screen.
However, we do need to be cautious as we venture through life in order that we may avoid unnecessary hardship to ourselves. One area in which we might easily become entangled is in the realm of finances. If we are impulsive, we may squander our resources on items we don’t really need or want.
If we don’t guard our eyes from the tempting things that could allure us into expenditures that we can’t really afford, we will find ourselves crushed under a mountain of debt. One thing that will compel us into the bad habit of buying expensive things we don’t need is the jealousy that can well up within us because other people already have them.
Jesus Himself cautioned His followers to guard against the greed that can undo them. In Luke 12:15 He said, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed! A man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” If we think our value is the sum total of what we possess, the Lord says we are on the wrong track.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Someone On Whom To Depend
June 29
Man wants someone, something, upon whom or which he can depend. When he establishes a friendship, it is with the hope that it will be an abiding one. The old saying is that new friendships are silver; old ones are gold. When he makes a purchase—a car or a home or a refrigerator—he expects that he’s acquiring something of lasting quality.
Some of the major disappointments in life spring out of the reality that many of life’s trappings fall into the category of the corruptible. The purchase of equipment is with the understanding that as soon as the warranty expires, ‘programmed obsolescence’ will kick in.
Relationships, too, sometimes have an expiration date. The boyfriend or girlfriend who seemed like ‘the one’ at first meeting, who stood far above all others by comparison, who shined like the sun of the smitten one’s existence begins, with time, to diminish, to lack the radiance that once seemed to exude from every pore.
Yet the search continues—but the object of man’s diligent quest will not come until he finds the longing of his heart in Jesus. Of Him Paul says in II Thessalonians 3:3, “The Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” Man may depend upon Him and on His strength and protection. His keeping power is everlasting!
Man wants someone, something, upon whom or which he can depend. When he establishes a friendship, it is with the hope that it will be an abiding one. The old saying is that new friendships are silver; old ones are gold. When he makes a purchase—a car or a home or a refrigerator—he expects that he’s acquiring something of lasting quality.
Some of the major disappointments in life spring out of the reality that many of life’s trappings fall into the category of the corruptible. The purchase of equipment is with the understanding that as soon as the warranty expires, ‘programmed obsolescence’ will kick in.
Relationships, too, sometimes have an expiration date. The boyfriend or girlfriend who seemed like ‘the one’ at first meeting, who stood far above all others by comparison, who shined like the sun of the smitten one’s existence begins, with time, to diminish, to lack the radiance that once seemed to exude from every pore.
Yet the search continues—but the object of man’s diligent quest will not come until he finds the longing of his heart in Jesus. Of Him Paul says in II Thessalonians 3:3, “The Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” Man may depend upon Him and on His strength and protection. His keeping power is everlasting!
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Superlatives
June 28
We tend to speak of the things we value—as well of the things we disdain—in superlatives. ‘I just love Aunt Alice’s salad dressing.’ ‘That’s the worst example of umpiring a game that I’ve ever seen—kill the umpire!’ We give high praise to things we like or enjoy. (What salad dressing deserves our ‘love’? What mere, fallible mortal deserves death for missing a call at a sports event?)
We exaggerate the importance of little things to the degree that words don’t mean what they were originally intended to convey. We have used them in this way for so long that nobody thinks of them as they were originally intended. By our misuse of words, we have changed their meanings. Language, therefore, evolves.
Because it does, we may not be impacted by such truth as stated in John 3:16, “For God so loves the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” If we equate ‘love’ to our favorite salad dressing, what can God’s unfathomable love possibly mean to us? It is indeed just that, unfathomable!
So, in His Word, God speaks to us of His love in graphic terms, painting a word picture for us that, if we will allow it to do so, can convey to us some understanding of the depth of that wonderful feeling the Majesty on High holds out to us. One such example is in Psalm 108:4 which says, “Great is Your love, higher than the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.” The Lord’s love is so great, it is beyond our scope.
We tend to speak of the things we value—as well of the things we disdain—in superlatives. ‘I just love Aunt Alice’s salad dressing.’ ‘That’s the worst example of umpiring a game that I’ve ever seen—kill the umpire!’ We give high praise to things we like or enjoy. (What salad dressing deserves our ‘love’? What mere, fallible mortal deserves death for missing a call at a sports event?)
We exaggerate the importance of little things to the degree that words don’t mean what they were originally intended to convey. We have used them in this way for so long that nobody thinks of them as they were originally intended. By our misuse of words, we have changed their meanings. Language, therefore, evolves.
Because it does, we may not be impacted by such truth as stated in John 3:16, “For God so loves the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” If we equate ‘love’ to our favorite salad dressing, what can God’s unfathomable love possibly mean to us? It is indeed just that, unfathomable!
So, in His Word, God speaks to us of His love in graphic terms, painting a word picture for us that, if we will allow it to do so, can convey to us some understanding of the depth of that wonderful feeling the Majesty on High holds out to us. One such example is in Psalm 108:4 which says, “Great is Your love, higher than the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.” The Lord’s love is so great, it is beyond our scope.
Monday, June 27, 2011
The Remarkable Metamorphosis
June 27
Sinning can be a nasty little habit that is difficult to overcome. We are born with a fallen nature. We have a proclivity to sin. It’s what we do. Watch children at play. Sweet, cherubic darlings that they are. See how long it takes until they are tugging on the same toy, shouting, “Mine!”
Notice school children in their little ‘clicks,’ whispering together about another child who has been shuttled aside, feeling quite rejected and forlorn. Children can be extremely unkind to one another—especially to one who seems insecure, to one who perhaps needs their kindness most.
As adults, we manifest the same tendencies we did as children. Yes, we camouflage them better now than we did then, but they’re still there. Apart from an experience with Christ, receiving Him into our heart and being guided by His Holy Spirit, we have virtually no genuine love or kindness within us. Upon receiving Jesus, however, we are transformed! We love as He loved. We desire to help others as He did.
How can this remarkable metamorphosis occur? The beloved apostle tells us in I John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and will purify us from all unrighteousness.” The ‘sin nature’ that was imposed upon us from birth is washed away in the shed blood of Jesus. When we ask to be forgiven, we are cleansed of all unrighteousness by the Righteous One whose blood removes sin’s stain from us.
Sinning can be a nasty little habit that is difficult to overcome. We are born with a fallen nature. We have a proclivity to sin. It’s what we do. Watch children at play. Sweet, cherubic darlings that they are. See how long it takes until they are tugging on the same toy, shouting, “Mine!”
Notice school children in their little ‘clicks,’ whispering together about another child who has been shuttled aside, feeling quite rejected and forlorn. Children can be extremely unkind to one another—especially to one who seems insecure, to one who perhaps needs their kindness most.
As adults, we manifest the same tendencies we did as children. Yes, we camouflage them better now than we did then, but they’re still there. Apart from an experience with Christ, receiving Him into our heart and being guided by His Holy Spirit, we have virtually no genuine love or kindness within us. Upon receiving Jesus, however, we are transformed! We love as He loved. We desire to help others as He did.
How can this remarkable metamorphosis occur? The beloved apostle tells us in I John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and will purify us from all unrighteousness.” The ‘sin nature’ that was imposed upon us from birth is washed away in the shed blood of Jesus. When we ask to be forgiven, we are cleansed of all unrighteousness by the Righteous One whose blood removes sin’s stain from us.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
To a Thousand Generations
June 26
There is a wondrous and up-lifting fact stated in Psalm 111:7-8 that says, “The works of His hands are faithful and just; all His precepts are trustworthy. They are steadfast for ever and ever. They are done in faithfulness and uprightness.” We can depend upon the God we serve. He is not fickle. In Him is, “…no shadow of turning” James 1:17.
Because we know His character, we may, as the Word admonishes in II Corinthians 5:7, “…walk by faith, not by sight.” We needn’t fear the unknown. We needn’t be intimidated by world conditions. We needn’t fret over matters of personal health or finance. We needn’t stress over anything for our God has assured that His promises will not fail. Jesus “will not leave or forsake you” Hebrews 13:5.
Does He know we might have moments of anxiety and doubt? Yes, He does; and He has given us a promise that encourages us to depend upon His faithfulness! In Deuteronomy 7:9 He says, “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God! He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands.”
His promises aren’t just for you! No! If you love Him and strive to walk faithfully beside Him, His promises are for you and your progeny—for a thousand generations! If the Lord Jesus Christ tarries His return, you and your children and their children into the future will be saved and blessed, will be living epistles of His steadfast love and power to a thousand generations! A thousand generations!
There is a wondrous and up-lifting fact stated in Psalm 111:7-8 that says, “The works of His hands are faithful and just; all His precepts are trustworthy. They are steadfast for ever and ever. They are done in faithfulness and uprightness.” We can depend upon the God we serve. He is not fickle. In Him is, “…no shadow of turning” James 1:17.
Because we know His character, we may, as the Word admonishes in II Corinthians 5:7, “…walk by faith, not by sight.” We needn’t fear the unknown. We needn’t be intimidated by world conditions. We needn’t fret over matters of personal health or finance. We needn’t stress over anything for our God has assured that His promises will not fail. Jesus “will not leave or forsake you” Hebrews 13:5.
Does He know we might have moments of anxiety and doubt? Yes, He does; and He has given us a promise that encourages us to depend upon His faithfulness! In Deuteronomy 7:9 He says, “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God! He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands.”
His promises aren’t just for you! No! If you love Him and strive to walk faithfully beside Him, His promises are for you and your progeny—for a thousand generations! If the Lord Jesus Christ tarries His return, you and your children and their children into the future will be saved and blessed, will be living epistles of His steadfast love and power to a thousand generations! A thousand generations!
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Our Burden Bearer
June 25
Trials can weigh one down. Day after weary day goes by and the burden one is bearing becomes heavier each morning. It is not merely the weight of the problem itself that one bears; it is also the fact that thoughts of it burden the mind. Trials can engulf the thought life of an individual and render one virtually incapable of a good mindset.
But this is not how the Lord would have His people to be. Jesus has invited believers to, “Cast all your cares upon HIM (Jesus), for He cares for you” I Peter 5:7. Our Savior desires to be our Burden Bearer as well as our Healer, our Teacher, the Lover of our souls. He invites us to relinquish our burdens to Him and He will carry them.
This isn’t easy to do. We have been trained from an early age to handle our own responsibilities. Children are taught to tie their shoes and make their beds and do their own homework. Reliance on even Mom and Dad is expected to lessen in each child’s life until he is totally viable on his own. But Jesus says we don’t have to be on our own…He will carry our burdens for us! This is virtually too much for us to grasp!
But, when our burdens are heavy, we can know with certainty, “Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed. His compassions fail not; they are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness” Lamentations 3:22-23. When a new day arises with a lingering trial to bear, God’s own dear ones may know with certainty that Jesus is going to carry the burden for them again that day.
Trials can weigh one down. Day after weary day goes by and the burden one is bearing becomes heavier each morning. It is not merely the weight of the problem itself that one bears; it is also the fact that thoughts of it burden the mind. Trials can engulf the thought life of an individual and render one virtually incapable of a good mindset.
But this is not how the Lord would have His people to be. Jesus has invited believers to, “Cast all your cares upon HIM (Jesus), for He cares for you” I Peter 5:7. Our Savior desires to be our Burden Bearer as well as our Healer, our Teacher, the Lover of our souls. He invites us to relinquish our burdens to Him and He will carry them.
This isn’t easy to do. We have been trained from an early age to handle our own responsibilities. Children are taught to tie their shoes and make their beds and do their own homework. Reliance on even Mom and Dad is expected to lessen in each child’s life until he is totally viable on his own. But Jesus says we don’t have to be on our own…He will carry our burdens for us! This is virtually too much for us to grasp!
But, when our burdens are heavy, we can know with certainty, “Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed. His compassions fail not; they are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness” Lamentations 3:22-23. When a new day arises with a lingering trial to bear, God’s own dear ones may know with certainty that Jesus is going to carry the burden for them again that day.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Through the Rough Seasons
June 24
How strong is your faith? What would it take to shake it? Don’t be too hasty to respond. It’s easy to think you’re a pillar of steadfast commitment on whom the Lord can depend through thick and thin—until life’s fabric gets a little thin, until its threads start to unravel.
Then, how securely do you stand on the Word, stand on your faith, stand on the assurances that you thought were the underpinnings of your entire life? Perhaps, it’s at those times that your faith takes on its mightiest proportions.
Perhaps when the winds of adversity blow, you wrap your faith around you even more securely and go on with the Lord even closer by your side. Isaiah 54:10 gives us reason to believe your faith will intensify through the rough seasons of life. Here the prophet states some of the most encouraging words of scripture…
…”Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed…yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor My covenant of peace removed.” Because the Lord has great compassion for His people, because He knows your frame, He is resolute in His determination to manifest His unfailing love for you at your time of greatest need.
How strong is your faith? What would it take to shake it? Don’t be too hasty to respond. It’s easy to think you’re a pillar of steadfast commitment on whom the Lord can depend through thick and thin—until life’s fabric gets a little thin, until its threads start to unravel.
Then, how securely do you stand on the Word, stand on your faith, stand on the assurances that you thought were the underpinnings of your entire life? Perhaps, it’s at those times that your faith takes on its mightiest proportions.
Perhaps when the winds of adversity blow, you wrap your faith around you even more securely and go on with the Lord even closer by your side. Isaiah 54:10 gives us reason to believe your faith will intensify through the rough seasons of life. Here the prophet states some of the most encouraging words of scripture…
…”Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed…yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor My covenant of peace removed.” Because the Lord has great compassion for His people, because He knows your frame, He is resolute in His determination to manifest His unfailing love for you at your time of greatest need.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)