We are not equipped to handle all the problems we face, but God is. That's why He told us to give them all to Him - to "cast your burden on the Lord" (Ps.55:22). Walking with Jesus doesn't depend on our legs. It depends on our heart.
"Dave Branon"
I don't worry o'er the future,
For I know what Jesus said;
And today I'll walk beside Him,
For He knows what is ahead.
"Stanphill"
That, He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man.
Esphesains 3:16
We can walk through the darkest trials when we walk with God in the light.
"Our Daily Bread" - Nov 3/07
"all my desire is before You," David wrote in the midst of a deep personal crisis, "and my sighing is not hidden from You" (Ps.38:0). David understood that we can cast all our cares on the Lord, even if no one else prays for us. He confidently concluded, "In the day of my trouble I will call upon You, for You will answer me" (86:7).
"David Roper"
God has given you His promise
That He hears and answers prayer;
He will heed your supplication
If you cast on Him your care.
"Bernstecher"
In the day of my trouble I will call upon You, for You will answer me.
Psalm 86:7
Jesus hears our faintest cry.
"Our Daily Bread" - Nov 2/07
The insights of Jesus in Matthew 22 helped His followers think clearly about their civic duty in the world. The Jews were required to pay taxes to the Roman government. They hated this taxation because the money went directly into Caesar's treasury, where some of it supported the pagan temples and decadent lifestyle of the Roman aristocracy. They may have questioned whether they even had a civic responsibility to Caesar. Jesus reminded them, however, that they had dual citizenship. They lived in a world with two kingdoms - Caesar's kingdom (human authority) and God's kingdom (spiritual authority). They had responsibilities to both, but their greater responsibility was to God and His kingdom (Acts 5:28-29).
As followers of Christ, we are commanded to cooperate with our rulers, but we are called to give God our ultimate obedience and commitment.
"Marvin Williams"
We live today as citizens of two worlds,
And this demands a duty to fulfill;
But greater far should be our heart's desire
To honor Christ and always do His will.
"Hess"
Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are Gods.
Matthew 22:21
Government has authority, but God has ultimate authority.
"Our Daily Bread" - Nov 1/07
For believers in Christ, death is not an end but a beginning. It means leaving this old world behind and getting to a better place, completing the purpose for which we were made. It's a time for joy and excitement and a hearty "Bon Voyage!"
Al voyages, however, are fraught with uncertainty, specially those that pass through waters never sailed before. We don't fear death so much as we do the passage. Who knows what dangers lie ahead?
But the journey is not uncharted. One has taken it before us, and He has returned to bring us safely through. Although we pass through the valley of the shadow of death, God is with us all the way (Ps. 23:4). His hands are on the helm as He guides us to the heavenly haven He has prepared for us (John 14:1-3).
"David Roper"
Say not it's a dreadful journey
When the Savior leads the way:
It's but passing through the shadow
To the land of endless day!
"Bosch"
The time of my departure is at hand.
2 Timothy 4
Those who fear God need not fear death.
"Our Daily Bread" - Oct 30/07
When trouble comes into our lives, we sometimes feel as if we’ve been hit broadside. We fell desperation and then we wonder. Why is this happening to me ?
One possibility is that God is using a painful experience to get our attention. In Psalm 119:71, David wrote, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes.” And Hebrews 12:11 says that chastening “yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness.”
Is God using pain in your life to lovingly persuade you to change? The season of trouble may not be easy, but if we let ourselves be trained by it, new growth will result as we become more like His Son (Phil. 3:10).
“Cindy Hess Kasper”
We shrink from the purging and pruning,
Forgetting the Gardener knows
The deeper the cutting and paring
The richer the cluster that grows.
“Anon”
No chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but...it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Hebrews 12:11
Affliction for God’s people can be the pruning knife to prepare us for greater fruitfulness.
“Our Daily Bread” - Oct 25.07
Have you ever faced an unwanted chore and felt as if it were the last thing on earth you wanted to do? Mowing the awn, doing the wash, cleaning the house, or even preparing a Sunday school lesson after an exhausting week can make us feel like procrastinating.
When this happens, my wife and I have a motto we repeat to each other: "I don't feel like it - but I'm going to do it anyway." There is something about recognizing our lack of motivation and then choosing to be responsible that helps us follow through.
God's value on faith and obedience can be seen in the parables of Jesus. Christ spoke about two sons who were asked to work in the vineyard. The first said no, but "afterward he regretted it and went" (Matt. 21:29). The second said yes, but did not follow through. The the Lord asked His listeners, "Which of the two did the will of his father?" (v.31). The obvious answer is the one who finished the task.
Our Lord's illustration underscores a key spiritual principle. God is interested in our faith and obedience - not just our good intentions. Next time you are tempted to shirk your duties, why not say, "I don't feel like it," and then ask God for the grace to do it anyway.
"Dennis Fisher"
O help us, Lord, to heed your Word,
Its precepts to obey;
And give us strength to quench the urge
To do things our own way.
"Sper"
Obedience is faith in action.
"Our Daily Bread" - Oct 28/07
God revealed to Israel’s prophets not only what was wrong but also what was right: “Cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow”
Isa. 1:1617
Instead of focusing on what is wrong, let’s obey the One who knows what is right.
“Julie Ackerman Link”
Lord, grant me grace throughout this day
To walk the straight and narrow way,
To do whatever in Thy sight
Is good and perfect, just and right.
“Huisman”
Cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor.
Isaiah 1:16-17
Like a compass, the Bible always points you in the right direction.
“Our Daily Bread” - Oct 21/07
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me”.
John 14:6
Are you trusting in Jesus? If not, you’re running for nothing.
“Dave Branon”
It’s not what I achieve that qualifies,
It matters not if I gain wealth or fame;
The only thing I must be certain of
Is “Have I put my trust in His Son’s name?”
“Hess”
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.
Acts 4:12
If we could earn our salvation, Christ would not have died to provide it.
“Our Daily Bread” - Oct 20/07
Hope in God -- it's the only solution for the deep traumas of the heart.
"Bill Crowder"
The Christian's hope is in the Lord,
We rest secure in His sure Word;
And though we're tempted to despair,
We do not doubt that God is there.
D. De Haan
Why are you cast down, O my sou?... Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.
Psalm 42:5
No one is hopeless whose hope is in God.
"Our Daily Bread" - Oct 26/07
A cheerful heart is vital in life. Proverbs 17:22 says, "A merry heart does good, like medicine." A happy heart affects our spirit and our physical health.
But there is a deeper, abiding joy for those who trust the Lord that is based on much more than frivolity and circumstances. It is joy based on God's salvation. He has provided forgiveness of sin and a restored relationship with Himself through His Son Jesus. That gives us a deep joy which circumstances cannot shake ( Ps. 126:2-3; Hab. 3:17-18; Phil. 4:7).
May you experience the joy of knowing Jesus Christ today!
"Marvin Williams"
To take a glimpse within the veil,
To know that God is mine,
Are springs of joy that never fail:
Unspeakable ! Divine !
"Newton"
A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.
Proverbs 17:22
Joy comes from the Lord who lives in us, not from that's happening around us.
"Our Daily Bread" - Oct 23/07
To him who is afflicted, kindness should be shown by his friend.
Job 6:14
Lord, give me sensitivityTo people in their grief and painTo weep with them and show Your loveIn ways mere words cannot attain."Sper"
When someone's grieving -- listen, don't lecture.
"Our Daily Bread" - Oct 18/07
When we believe a warning, it affects or behavior, It's true in every area of life, including our walk of faith. Paul wrote to the Christians in Thessalonica, reminding them that the day of the Lord would come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night (1 Thess. 5:2). His call to action urged them to avoid spiritual lethargy while remaining alert and self-controlled (v.6).
Paul's challenge echoed Jesus' own words urging His followers to be watchful and ready, "for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect" (Matt.24:44).
If we believe our Lord's word about His coming, how will it affect our thoughts and actions today ?
"David McCasland"
What would He find, should He come just now:
A faded leaf, or a fruitless bough;
A servant sleeping, an idle plow?
What would He find should He come just now ?
"Anon"
Therefore let us not sleep, as other do, but let us watch and be sober.
1 Thessalonians 5:6
Every Christian should be an expectant uplooker, not a sleepy onlooker !
"Our Daily Bread" - Oct 17/07
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants his footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower."
William Cowper “Acts International” - Oct 10/07
Getting into God's stride
Enoch walked with God.
Genesis 5:24
The test of a man's religious life and character is not what he does in the exceptional moments of life, but what he does in the ordinary times, when there is nothing tremendous or exciting on. The worth of a man is revealed in his attitude to ordinary things when he is not before the footlights
(cf. John 1:36). It is a painful business to get through into the stride of God, it means getting your second wind spiritually. In learning to walk with God there is always the difficulty of getting into His stride; but when we have got into it, the only characteristic that manifests itself is the life of God. The individual man is lost sight of in his personal union with God, and the stride and the power of God alone are manifested.
It is difficult to get into stride with God, because when we start walking with Him we find He has outstripped us before we have taken three steps. He has different ways of doing things, and we have to be trained and disciplined into His ways. It was said of Jesus - "He shall not fail nor be discouraged," because He never worked from His own individual standpoint but always from the standpoint of His Father, and we have to learn to do the same. Spiritual truth is learned by atmosphere, not by intellectual reasoning. God's Spirit alters the atmosphere of our way of looking at things, and things begin to be possible which never were possible before. Getting into the stride of God means nothing less than union with Himself. It takes a long time to get there, but keep at it. Don't give in because the pain is bad just now, get on with it, and before long you will find you have a new vision and a new purpose.
“Heartlight” - Oct 12/07
