April 5, 2023 · 5:48 AM

Handcrafted

Do you know what’s the difference between a Ford and a Rolls Royce? Ok, so there’s a lot of them! You can buy a Ford for around $40,000. A Rolls Royce will cost you more than $400,000. What about the difference between a Timex watch and a Patel Philippe? You can get a Timex for about $30. The most expensive watch ever sold was a Patel Philippe for just under $24,000,000, but you can get a cheap one in the six figure range. I could go on, but you want to know what the real difference is between these? One is handcrafted by master artisans. They don’t skimp on the details and each piece is carefully put together to create a masterpiece. That’s what gives each of these such great value.

In Genesis 1 -2, we read the story of creation. The earth was formless and void when God spoke, “Let there be light.” Boom, there was light! “Let there be land.” It rose up out of the seas. “Let there be planets and stars, animals, fish, trees, plants and everything else.” Boom! Boom! Boom! There they were. Then Genesis 2:7 says, “Then the Lord God took some soil from the ground and formed a man out of it; he breathed life-giving breath into his nostrils and the man began to live” (GNT). He spoke almost everything into existence, and all of creation has great value, but He handcrafted people. He reached down, got some ordinary dirt and formed Adam, leaving His fingerprints all over us. Then He breathed into us.

Psalm 139:13-14 says, “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well” (ESV). He didn’t just form Adam and Eve. He formed you as well. You are fearfully and wonderfully handcrafted. Ephesians 2:10 says we are His workmanship. All His handcrafted works are wonderful, including you. There are a lot of voices out there that will try to tell you otherwise. They’ll try to pin your value on your past instead of on the fingerprints you carry. When you look in the mirror and hear those voices, push back! Say the truth that you are a priceless work of art. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Say it until your soul knows it very well.

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April 4, 2023 · 5:52 AM

Don’t Run

My son once asked me, “If you had been with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, what would you have done?” I know what he was after and what he was thinking, so I answered, “I would have ran like the rest of them.” He replied, “I would have stayed.” I then explained that it was a nice sentiment, but he would have ran too. I told him that you can’t take today’s knowledge and apply it to what you would have done yesterday. However, I also explained that he can take today’s knowledge and pre-apply it to what he will do tomorrow. There will be plenty of times in his life, and ours, where things look bad, and the opposite of what we hoped would happen will come true. There will be times where we’re tempted to blame God and deny Him, but if we decide now how we will handle it, we improve our chances of staying with Him.

Job is a tough book to read. It’s hard to imagine what it would be like to lose everything in a day, including your children. It’s hard to imagine how we might respond when insult is added to injury when we then become too sick to do anything about it. I love that this book pulls back the curtains of what is often happening. Job 1:10-11 has Satan going to God against Job saying, “You have always put a wall of protection around him and his home and his property. You have made him prosper in everything he does. Look how rich he is! But reach out and take away everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face!” (NLT) Satan accuses us by saying we will run from God when bad things happen, but God knows that like Job, if you will predetermine how you will respond, you can endure anything and still worship Him.

Ephesians 6:13 says, “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm” (ESV). We know that troubles don’t come from God, but He allows them and uses them to test us and grow us. Job had to endure a long time with no response from God as to why everything happened. God grew his endurance and his faith in the end because he didn’t run when bad things happened. He stood firm. We must remain in Him and stand firm during the most difficult times. He is our protection, our source of strength and our hope when all is else is lost. The more difficult your situation is, the more your endurance has the ability to grow. Don’t allow today’s circumstances cause you to run. God had a plan and was working things out behind the scenes for Jesus, the disciples and Job. He’s doing the same for you even though you can’t see it. Don’t run.

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April 3, 2023 · 5:46 AM

Energizing Your Gifts

A few weeks ago my wife said, “If Pricilla Shirer ever comes to Houston m I want to see her.” I got out my phone and found out she was going to be in Houston within the month. We bought tickets to the event and then went. It wasn’t just her though. It was her dad, Dr. Tony Evans and her siblings too. There was a lot of great content throughout the event, but one of the incredible things to me was seeing the different members of this family operating in their gifts. Anthony Evans led us all in worship. Dr. Tony Evans preached. Chrystal Evans Hurst, who has a podcast, shared like it was just the two of you in the room. The youngest, John, shared the story of when they found out their mom had been diagnosed with cancer. Then Pricilla taught from 1 John. Every one of them used their giftings effectively and communicated the Gospel.

When you look at the disciples that Jesus chose, it wasn’t a group that anyone would choose for students. However, Jesus didn’t choose them for their family name or their grades in school. He choose normal, every day people with different gifts to be able to turn the world upside down with the Gospel. Peter had the gift of leading and preaching. John had the gift of being a friend and teaching. Matthew was very logical and accurate which shaped the way he recorded the works of Jesus and wrote his gospel. I could go through the list one by one, but just know that they all had their strength and used them effectively to spread the Gospel. Those that heard them were amazed because they didn’t expect much from them based on who they were. However, when we operate in our God given gifts, everything changes.

1 Corinthians 12:6 says, “The same God distributes different kinds of miracles that accomplish different results through each believer’s gift and ministry as he energizes and activates them” (TPT). God has given you gifts from His Holy Spirit that need to be activated, energized and developed for His purposes. The disciples were people like you and me. They spent time with Jesus who stirred up those gifts in them. We stir ours up the same way. We energize them by using them when given the opportunity. However, they must be developed and honed. God’s gifts to us are usually raw and it’s up to us to mold them, shape them and make them better. Don’t wait on someone else to take charge of your gifts. Seek out your pastor, ministry leader or someone else to help you develop and use what God has given you. The world needs your gifts and the Holy Spirit is ready to empower you to accomplish what God created you to do.

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March 31, 2023 · 5:34 AM

Serve One Another

In our world, the more you have, the more you’re served. I’ve been to people’s houses where they have a group who serves them and their guests. You can be sitting in the living room and they will bring you drinks and snacks. It feels pretty good to be honest. You can sit there and think, “This is the life!” However, that attitude is opposite of what we are to have. We are called to humble ourselves before God and others. We’re to have the attitude Jesus had which is to serve rather than to be served. The greatest in God’s Kingdom are the ones who make it a priority to serve their fellow man.

Here are some Bible verses on serving others.

1. Be free from pride-filled opinions, for they will only harm your cherished unity. Don’t allow self-promotion to hide in your hearts, but in authentic humility put others first and view others as more important than yourselves.

Philippians 2:3 TPT

2. Take advantage of every opportunity to be a blessing to others, especially to our brothers and sisters in the family of faith!”

Galatians 6:10 TPT

3. For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

Galatians 5:13 ESV

4. God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.

1 Peter 4:10 NLT

5. But this is not your calling. You will lead by a different model. The greatest one among you will live as one called to serve others without honor. The greatest honor and authority is reserved for the one who has a servant heart.

Luke 22:26 TPT

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March 30, 2023 · 5:30 AM

The Monopoly Mindset

One of my favorite games as a kid was Monopoly. We could sit up for hours playing it. The goal was to buy as much property as you could, and if possible, to buy Boardwalk and Park Place. One of the underlying things that game teaches you is if you buy enough things, you’ll win. That reminds me of a guy who lived in my town. He had a customized truck that I thought was awesome. It had a sticker on the back windshield that read, “He who has the most toys wins!” It’s that same attitude of owning things equals winning.

When our identity and self image is tied to things we own, it’s a pretty hard fall when we lose them. It’s not bad to own things; it’s bad to be owned by things. To discover which type of person we are, we have to ask ourselves about the motivating factor in having them. Is it a want or a deep seated need in us to own them? When we feel we need them in order to feel a certain way or to project a certain image, owning things can be a problem.

In Luke 12:15, Jesus said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own” (NLT). That’s the opposite of our Monopoly mindset. We associate winning with owning things and God associates winning with having a relationship with Him. Can you have both? Of course. I know plenty of people who are blessed beyond measure because they give tithes, offerings, and more to meet the needs of others. They’ve recognized that their identity is in God, and all they have is His, so it’s not hard to give away what they have.

We can’t afford to sacrifice our relationship with God in order to own things or to build our wealth. As Jesus said in Luke 12:21, “A person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.” Are you spending your quality time building your portfolio or your relationship with God? You can win at life, but lose at eternity. Invest in building a relationship with God. You will find that once you seek Him first, all these other things will be added to you. It’s a matter of priorities and God wants to be first in your life.

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Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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March 29, 2023 · 5:40 AM

The Comparison Game

Unfortunately one of the things I instinctively do when I walk into a room is to stack rank myself. I start trying to figure out the hierarchy of the people so I know my place and what’s expected of me. I once worked for a company whose culture was built on comparison. They pitted employee against employee, store against store, district against district and region against region. It may have been good for sales, but not for relationships. We were constantly looking down on others, talking trash and looking for ways to beat them. They preached unity from the top, but in the trenches is was every person for themselves. There were always reports going out with stack ranking. How you compared with others was clearly show. In black and white every day.

In the Early Church, there was a similar problem. People were comparing themselves to other Christians and churches compared themselves against other churches. It mattered who baptized you or who led you to Jesus in their eyes. When Paul got wind of it, he tried to put a stop to it. In 1 Corinthians 3:4 he addressed them, “When one of you says, ‘I am a follower of Paul,’ and another says, ‘I follow Apollos,’ aren’t you acting just like people of the world?” (NLT) He reminded them that he and Apollos were just men. To compare themselves to each other by who they followed was foolish because they were just people. It’s Jesus that we should be following.

In order to set them straight, a few verses later he wrote, “The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work.” We’re not in competition with one another. We’re co-laborers, not competitors. Yet we find ourselves in the same battles today that the Early Church did. We think our denomination is better than yours. Our pastor is better. I’m better. It’s all comparison against a people who are merely servants of God. When we compare ourselves against Him, it’s obvious we fall short. That’s why we go against others. It’s time we quit the comparison game and started working together as one body. Paul reminded us here that while we have different roles, it’s ultimately God who blesses our work and causes seeds to grow giving a harvest.

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March 28, 2023 · 5:55 AM

Catch The Foxes

Recently my wife and I were watching a documentary on Bernie Madoff. He ran one of the biggest Ponzi schemes in modern history cheating people out of an estimated $65 million. The ended it with him going to jail and how his family paid the price for his wrongs. My wife then said, “I wonder when it all began. What was the first decision that lead to all this?” Like so many others in history who are infamous for their failures, it started with one small decision. A little compromise on their core values. Once that happens, the line of those values moves, and from there it’s a slow change into someone they don’t even recognize in the mirror.

When God had Saul anointed king of Israel, he was described as being handsome, tall and wealthy. On his way home from being told he would be king, the Spirit of the Lord came over him and he prophesied with the prophets. God helped him to defeat their enemies in battle as well. However, he began to make small compromises. He made a sacrifice which one Samuel could make because he was more worried about people than God. He then let his fear keep him from going into battle while his son went to fight. After that, he didn’t obey all the instructions of the Lord to destroy the Amalekites. When confronted, he made excuses for the compromise. Instead of repenting, he continued to compromise for the rest of his life, and the kingdom went to David.

Song of Solomon 2:15 says, “Catch the foxes, the little foxes, before they ruin our vineyard in bloom” (GNT). One of the studies I read on this verse said that the foxes represent the compromises we have hidden in our heart and prevent our growth. We’re all faced with choices to compromise what we believe for the sake of convenience or culture. When we choose to make them, we slow our growth and can allow them to destroy the vineyard of our life where the fruits of the Spirit are to be growing. Our enemy always starts with little ones and he moves the line. If you find yourself in that position today, you can respond like Saul or David. Both made compromises, but only one was repentant. The kingdom was removed from one and restored to the other. God is forgiving and slow to anger. There’s no compromise He won’t forgive. Catch the small foxes before they destroy what He’s trying to build and grow in you.

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March 27, 2023 · 7:19 AM

Doing Your Assignment

In an attempt to make the automobile affordable for as many people as possible, Henry Ford developed the assembly line. Instead of a small team hand building the automobile from the ground up, a team of people would work together in separate parts to create it. Each person on the line had one assignment that they focused on. The overall goal for all people on the line was to make an affordable vehicle that ran well. Each person doing their assignment well is what made that happen. Each job was important because without it, the vehicle would be incomplete. It would be easy for any worker to think their work was insignificant, but nothing could be further from the truth.

The book of Nehemiah chronicles the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem. After living in captivity for a long time, many Jews had been permitted to return to their homeland. Some had returned to Babylon and Nehemiah asked them about Jerusalem. They explained that the people were defenseless because of the lack of walls. It was then that Nehemiah received his holy assignment from God to rebuild the walls. He went back and rallied the people to work together to rebuild the walls. Nehemiah 3 lists all the people who were working on the wall and their assignments. Side by side each person did their part while understanding their work was a benefit to the whole. No one spot on the wall was more important than another. Even though they were opposed by people, they kept at their work because the people had a heart for the work (Nehemiah 4:6).

1 Corinthians 12:22 says, “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ” (ESV). You and I have our own part and place in the Body of Christ. You may think your role is less significant than someone else’s, but it’s not. You are called by the same Lord to play a role in the whole of the Kingdom. Every part of the body has purpose and a place because the whole needs it. Wherever you are and whatever you’re called to do, do it with the best of your ability. The rest of the body is counting on you. God is counting on you. The work of the Kingdom is incomplete without you doing your part. Don’t let opposition or your feelings keep you from your assignment.

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March 24, 2023 · 6:30 AM

Trusting God’s Promises

From the time we’re little, we learned to ask the question, “Do you promise?” Why do we do that when someone tells us something? Because we want to make sure they follow through on their word. When I was a kid, you had to cross your heart and hope to die or stick a needle in your eye if you didn’t keep it. These guarantees gave validity to the other person that you were going to keep your word no matter what. You learned at an early age that if you go back on a promise, then others won’t trust anything you say. When you broke a promise, you had to either find new friends or find a way to rebuild the trust you had lost. Making and trusting promises are a character building part of growing up.

Merriam Webster defines promise as, “A legally binding declaration that gives the person to whom it is made a right to expect or to claim the performance of a specified act.” When I think of that combined with the promises of God, it builds my faith. I have a right to expect God to do what He promised in the Bible. In fact, I’ve read that there are over 3,000 promises from God in the Bible, and many are made to me and you. If God promised something to you and I, we can know and trust that He will do it no matter what. He has never broken a promise and He’s not going to start breaking them now. Hold onto them, trust them and build your life on them because you can count on them.

Here are some Bible verses on trusting God’s promises.

1. But the humble of heart will inherit every promise and enjoy abundant peace.

Psalms 37:11 TPT

2. The believer replied, “Every promise of God proves true; he protects everyone who runs to him for help. So don’t second-guess him; he might take you to task and show up your lies.”

Proverbs 30:5-6 MSG

3. Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous.

Romans 4:20-22 NLT

4. The words and promises of the LORD are pure words, Like silver refined in an earthen furnace, purified seven times.

PSALMS 12:6 AMP

5. Let your broken heart show your sorrow; tearing your clothes is not enough. Come back to the Lord your God. He is kind and full of mercy; he is patient and keeps his promise; he is always ready to forgive and not punish.

Joel 2:13 GNT

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March 23, 2023 · 6:30 AM

Praying Persistently

I’ve been known to be persistent. When I owned my own business, I had a government agency owe me a lot of money. They were taking their time to pay it, and it was making it difficult to pay my staff and bills. I started calling them once a day leaving messages. After a week, I decided to kick things into a different gear. I started calling every hour. I told them that I would keep calling every hour, and would even do it more frequently until they took my call and paid me. After I did that, they called me back and sent the check. 

I had to let them know I wasn’t going away and I was going to drive them nuts until they took care of my need. I took my inspiration from Luke 11 where Jesus told a parable of a person who had an unexpected guest show up in the night. He was out of food, so he went to his neighbor to ask for some. After the neighbor denied, he kept knocking until the neighbor gave in. Jesus then said we should be persistent like that in our prayers.

When it comes to prayer, I don’t ever want to be like a kid in a candy store throwing a tantrum for what he wants. They blindly throw themselves down, spin around, and make a scene until the parent gives in or disciplines them. I do, however, want to become persistent to the point that God knows that I’m not going away until He answers. Colossians 4:2 says, “Be persistent in prayer, and keep alert as you pray, giving thanks to God” (GNT).

I don’t know what you’re praying for today, but I know that you need to bombard Heaven with your request to the point that God knows you aren’t going away. Be thankful for all He has done in the past, and keep your mind focused on the need at hand. I can’t say that God has answered every prayer the way I’ve wanted Him to, but I can say that whatever His answer is, you an trust to be the right one. If you don’t have an answer yet, don’t stop praying; become more persistent in them.

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