Tag Archives: Devotional

September 7, 2015 · 5:30 AM

Loving Your Neighbor

Recently, the news has been covering stories of people who have devalued the lives of others. I’ve watched as people have cheered when another human was murdered because of the color of their skin or for their profession, and I’m heartbroken. Whether a person is guilty of a crime or work in a profession that others don’t like, they have a soul that will spend eternity somewhere. In the end, we are all guilty of breaking God’s laws, and we are all in need of grace. Please don’t misunderstand me, I believe people should receive justice for their wrongdoings, but I won’t cheer when a life is taken, whether deserved or not.

These recent stories in the news remind me of the parable of the Good Samaritan. A man, who was looking for a loophole in the second greatest commandment, which is to love your neighbor as yourself, asked Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?” He was looking for Jesus to cut out certain people groups that he didn’t like. He was trying to get Jesus to say that some races or lives mattered more than others, but Jesus didn’t take the bait.

Jesus told him the story of a Jewish man who was robbed and beaten while traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho. Luckily, a fellow Jew who was also a priest came walking down the road where he was. When the priest saw the hurt man lying there, he crossed the street to walk past him from a distance. He didn’t want to get involved and run the risk of getting hurt. After he passed, a Levite scholar came by who was also Jewish. He avoided the hurt man as well.

Then Jesus added a twist to the story. He said a Samaritan came by. The Jews didn’t value the lives of the Samaritans so they expected him to walk by, but Jesus used him to help the injured Jew. He was driving home the point that our neighbor isn’t just someone with our nationality, heritage, or with the same political persuasion. Our neighbor is any other human and God expects us to love them as much as we love ourselves because He created us all as His children.

If you believe that Jesus died for our sins, then you must believe that His grace is strong enough to save even the worst among us. Instead of putting down those we don’t agree with or calling for their death, we should be showing them love, caring for their wounds, and being a neighbor. If our neighbor, according to Jesus, includes those we have a deep conflict with, then it’s time to stop tearing them down, avoiding them, and to start loving them like we love ourselves. It’s time to value the lives of others as much as we value our own life.

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September 4, 2015 · 5:30 AM

Labor Day Verses

Since Labor Day is coming up, I thought it would be good to explore what the Bible says about work. I believe work means something different to each one of us. I want you to think of what you do or consider as your work as you read each of these verses. Think of them in a personal light and let God speak directly to you through them.

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1.  I have glorified You down here on the earth by completing the work that You gave Me to do.

John 17:4 AMP

2.   Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

Ephesians 6:7 NLT

3.   The diligent find freedom in their work; the lazy are oppressed by work.

Proverbs 12:24 MSG

4.   Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

Colossians 3:23 NLT

5.   Do all your work in love.

1 Corinthians 16:14 GNB

6.   Even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “Those unwilling to work will not get to eat.”

2 Thessalonians 3:10 NLT

7.   You have six days in which to do your work, but the seventh day is a day of rest dedicated to me. On that day no one is to work — neither you, your children, your slaves, your animals, nor the foreigners who live in your country.

Exodus 20:9-10 GNB

8.   Put GOD in charge of your work, then what you’ve planned will take place.

Proverbs 16:3 MSG

9.   Slack habits and sloppy work are as bad as vandalism.

Proverbs 18:9 MSG

10.   So I saw that there is nothing better for people than to be happy in their work. That is our lot in life. And no one can bring us back to see what happens after we die.

Ecclesiastes 3:22 NLT

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September 2, 2015 · 5:30 AM

When God Says No

For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so my ways are higher than your ways
and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:9 (NLT)

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September 1, 2015 · 5:30 AM

Reaping In Joy

One of my favorite quotes is, “I don’t measure my day by the harvest I bring in, but by the seeds that I plant. For in planting seeds, I ensure a future harvest.” So many people measure their success by what they bring in each day, but their future is not guaranteed. Only by planting seeds can we make sure we will receive something in the future. In order to have seeds to plant, we have to save seeds from our current harvest. We can’t use everything we have now if we are going to be able to reap later.

Psalm 126:5-6 really stands out to me when I think about this principle. It says, “They who sow in tears shall reap in joy and singing. He who goes forth bearing seed and weeping [at needing his precious supply of grain for sowing] shall doubtless come again with rejoicing , bringing his sheaves with him” (AMP). It’s a verse we’ve heard all our lives, but in this version it really hits home. They’re weeping because they’re having to go hungry now in order to be able to eat later.

It reminds me of when the Pilgrims first arrived. Their corn ration was a few kernels a day. They needed to plant the rest so they could survive later. They sacrificed in the now in order to have abundance later. This concept is so opposite of our world today. We want abundance without the sacrifice. We want to reap when we haven’t planted, and that’s not the system God set up for us. I like how Dave Ramsey says, “Live like no one else now so you can live like no one else later.”

I believe many of us don’t see the harvest we expect because we don’t sacrifice in the sowing. Abundance will cost you. If you aren’t willing to give up your current desires for your future successes, there’s no guarantee you’ll be bringing in sheaves. God has always asked us to sacrifice now for a future blessing. The more you are willing to sacrifice, the more of God’s blessing you can count on in the future. The choice is yours, but you have to act today for tomorrow’s gain.  

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April 29, 2015 · 6:27 AM

Thinking Problem

  

The Bible talks a lot about what we think because God understands the power of our thoughts. Proverbs 23:7 says, “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” Our thoughts determine who we are and how we act. Proverbs 4:23 tells us, “Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts. (GNB)” Another version wrote that same verse, “More than anything you guard, protect your mind. (CEB)” Solomon understood the importance of our thoughts and wanted those who read his writings to understand it as well.

Brian Tracy’s Law of Concentration states that whatever you dwell upon grows. If you worry a lot, then those thoughts will snowball and continue to grow. The things you think the most about take the center stage in your life. They control your schedule, your mood, your attitude, your actions and so much more. We often let our minds dwell on something for so long that it grows into an obsession. There was a time when I couldn’t get enough of the news. At home, I had my 24 hour news channel on and in my car, I had new radio. When I realized it was controlling my actions and mood, I had to break free.

Brian Tracy also teaches the Law of Substitution that says, “The conscious mind can only hold one thought at a time.” It can be a positive thought or a negative thought. I am the one who chooses what I think about. I am the gatekeeper. As Solomon said, I have to be careful of how I think. I cannot allow thoughts of worry overrun my mind. I cannot permit thoughts that are detrimental to my faith and family to stay in my mind. I cannot entertain thoughts and ideas that are contrary to God’s Word. I must consciously substitute those thoughts for the thoughts that lead me down God’s paths.

Philippians 4:8 tells us, “Fill your mind with things that are good and deserve praise: things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely and honorable. (GNB)” The way I fill my mind with those things is to force myself to think about them when the other thoughts come in. I must protect my mind if I’m going to protect my actions. I have to constantly watch each and every thought that enters my mind and learn how to push out the thoughts that are detrimental to who I am in Christ and to replace them with the thoughts that feed who I am in Him. According to that first scripture I shared, I become what I think about. 

Food for thought: Who do you want to be? What thoughts are detrimental to being that person? What thoughts can you replace them with? You can change who you are by changing what you think.

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April 14, 2015 · 5:45 AM

Fully Submitted

I once had the opportunity to sit down and have a conversation with a man who counsels kings, queens, presidents and corporate CEO’s. He said, “I want to start off our conversation with a question. ‘If you woke up tomorrow morning with $10 Million in your bank account, how would that change your life?'” That amount of money would certainly change most of our lives. You can’t come into that much money and not live differently than before. It’s the same when we give our lives to Jesus. You can’t invite him into your life and not be changed.

The message of John the Baptist, Jesus, Peter and Paul was “Repent.” It wasn’t, “Say a prayer and you’re a Christian.” The word repent in its original form means “A change of mind.” God asks us to change our mind from how we were living to a new way of thinking that in turns changes how we live. You can’t change your behavior unless you change your mind. The call to repentance was and is about changing how you live.

Jesus put it another way. He said, “If any man wants to follow me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” I love how the Amplified version takes Luke 9:23 and really explains what Jesus said there. It puts it, “If any person wills to come after me, let him deny himself [disown himself, forget, lose sight of himself and his own interests, refuse and give up himself] and take up his cross daily and follow me [cleave steadfastly to me, conform wholly to my example in living and, if need be, in dying also].” When Jesus said repent and follow Him, He wasn’t asking you to say a prayer. He was asking you to give up yourself and how you want to live.

There’s a missionary in Haiti I’ve met several times. He moved there over twenty years ago and never went back to his home country. He is involved in pastor get a church, orphan care, running a school, feeding the helpless, running a bakery and water purification shop, helping deaf girls learn sign language and so many other things. When asked why he does so much and how could he never go back home, he responded with, “My life is not my own. When I said, ‘Yes’ to Jesus, I gave up my life.” Those words should challenge us in how we live.

He understands what it means to follow Jesus by taking up his cross and denying himself. You may not be called to leave your home country and live in a third world country the rest of your life, but you have been called to change how and why you live. The call to repentance is a call to change your reason for living. It’s a call to give up what you want for what God wants. Philippians 2:5-6 says we need to have the mind of Christ who gave up what He wanted for what the Father wanted. He was and is our example of daily taking up our cross. He showed us how to submit to what God wants.

If you think back to the $10 Million question earlier, just like you can’t come into that kind of money and not be changed, you can’t have a real encounter with Jesus and not be changed. When you say, “Yes” to Jesus, your whole life and way of thinking should change. I liked that question he asked, but I think the question you and I should think about today is, “If you woke up tomorrow morning and had fully surrendered your life to Jesus, how would your life change?” Think about it and then surrender your will to His. You’ll find there’s no better life to live than one that is fully submitted to Him. 

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February 5, 2015 · 7:15 AM

No Fear

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Fear is a funny thing. It can make a grown man scream like a child. It can make the strongest one among us look weak. It has the ability to paralyze the most able bodied person. When we see someone who is afraid of something we’re not afraid of, we tend to laugh and make fun. When we see someone stuck in a situation because of fear, we are rarely empathetic because we don’t take the time to put ourselves in their shoes.

I have a coworker who tells the story that he was riding in the car with someone going down the freeway. They were talking and having a good time until the driver freezes up and gets serious. He asked what was wrong and the driver motions with his head to look left. Confused, he asked, “What?!?” The driver whispered, “There’s a spider on the window.” He laughed and said, “Are you serious?” He then reached across the driver to swat it, but realized if he knocked it down, they’d have a wreck. He pinched it and threw it out the window. Immediately the driver went back to normal.

He laughs and so do others when he tells the story and does all the animation that goes with it. Then he tells how he asked the driver why he’s afraid of spiders. The driver said that when he was young, he was swimming in a pool and there was a spider on the water. As it came near to him, he tried to use waves to push it away. It kept coming though. He ended up taking his hand and slapped down on the water to kill it. When he hit it, immediately hundreds of baby spiders went everywhere. He was covered in them and couldn’t get away. Since then he’s been afraid.

It’s easy to make fun of someone’s fear until we understand it. Each one of us are afraid of something ourselves, so why don’t we encourage others who are afraid? There are people around us who are starting over in life and they’re afraid. There are people who have to move for work and are afraid they won’t find friendships like those they’re leaving behind. Some are having to go where God is calling them, but it’s taking more faith than they think they have. Each one of these needs empathy and encouragement.

When Jesus was walking on the water towards the boat full of disciples, they were terrified. Twelve grown men were screaming like little children. Then, one voice pierced through the storm and their screams. It said, “Take courage! I AM! Stop being afraid!” Jesus’ call to them goes out to us today. Whatever we’re facing, we can take courage through Him. He reminded them and us that He is God. And finally, he commands us to stop being afraid. We can have courage and know He is God and still be paralyzed by being afraid. Don’t let that happen. Stop being afraid and follow where God leads.

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October 14, 2014 · 7:52 AM

Reflections On Rebuilding

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My wife and I recently visited the World Trade Center Memorial and Freedom Tower. We stood around the cavernous memorial listening to the water fall and then drain into the hole in the middle. We read names of those who were killed on 9/11 and prayed for the families still grieving. It was an humbling experience to stand in the place where so much destruction and devastation took place. I remembered how I wanted to be near a TV at all times right after it happened so I could hear if they had found any survivors.

As I stared silently into the pool, I saw the reflection of Freedom Tower in the water. I did my best to take a photo of it (seen above). I flipped the picture to show the hole where the water drained as the foundation for the new building. The loss that once was so deep, so great can become the foundation to build again. It can be what drives us to move forward. So many times though, when we experience a great loss or destruction on our life, we do the opposite.

I was thinking about all the twisted metal that was once in that spot. I saw video on TV, photos on the internet and heard first hand accounts of the mess that was created when those two building fell. I’m sure there were days where people thought, “This will never get cleaned up. There’s just too much here.” For months and years, dump truck after dump truck left the site with the rubble. It wasn’t a quick process to clean it up, but it happened with consistent effort.

Once it was all cleaned up, the task of rebuilding came into question. Should we rebuild? How should we rebuild? What should we build? Now, when I see Freedom Tower standing tall in that iconic skyline, I’m reminded that we are to clean up the mess after a destruction happens in our lives. We are to rebuild bigger and better than before. Quitting is the simple solution. Letting the debris of destruction stay where it fell doesn’t require hard work. But that’s not what God says we are to do.

Proverbs 24:16 says, “No matter how often honest (righteous) people fall, they always get up again; but disaster destroys the wicked.” How we react after a major destruction happens in our life says a lot about our spirituality. Are we content to let it destroy us or are we willing to get back up no matter how often we fall? Disaster will happen in each of our lives. It’s part of life. Each time it happens, God wants us to get back up and rebuild. He doesn’t want us to stay down and take the easy road. He wants us to clean ourselves up, dust off and start to build again. What was once a big hole will now be your foundation for going forward.

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October 8, 2014 · 7:38 AM

The Hardest Thing To Do

One of the hardest things for us to do is to forgive someone who has wronged us. It’s also one of the most liberating things to do. The Bible is full of examples of people who forgave, people who didn’t and why we should. That doesn’t change the fact that it is difficult to do when it comes down to it. Letting go of a wrong seems unnatural. It seems like if I am wronged, I should hold it over their heads forever because of the pain they inflicted. The problem with that is that it becomes all we think about and we become bitter.

We’ve all prayed “The Lord’s Prayer”. We know the line that says, “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.” We’ve prayed that line in the King James Version all of our lives, but have we really meant it or understood it. The Amplified Version uses these words to enhance the word forgive: left, remitted, let go of the debts and have given up resentment against (our debtors). The last thing Jesus said there was that we were to give up the resentment we hold against those who have trespassed against us.

Immediately after saying amen in the prayer, Jesus started talking about the forgiveness He mentioned in the prayer. He knew that the rest of the prayer was relatively easy to say and live by. He understood that the one part of the prayer that was our responsibility was the hardest to swallow. So He attacked it straight on before anyone could speak. The Message writes it best. Jesus said in Matthew 6:14-15, “In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part.”

He put every bit of that on us. We can’t get forgiveness unless we forgive. We have the option to grant or refuse forgiveness. We just have to understand that when we refuse it, we are also refusing God’s forgiveness for our sins. That’s a bold way to approach the subject of forgiveness and how important it is to God. He used a gentler approach in a parable where a man owed a huge debt. He was thrown in prison for the rest of his life because he couldn’t pay it. He threw himself at the kings mercy and was granted forgiveness. He walked out of the prison and went to a guy who owed him a couple of dollars, and threw him in prison for not paying it.

When the man begged for mercy just like he had done with the King, he refused it. When the King heard that the same man who had been forgiven was treating someone else so poorly, he ordered that he be thrown into prison too. If he couldn’t show the same compassion and forgiveness he had received, he wasn’t worthy of it. Jesus again underscored the importance of us forgiving others and linked it to God forgiving us. We must let go of the resentment we’ve been holding onto in order to not cut ourselves off from God’s forgiveness. When you truly let it go, it will be one of the most liberating experiences of your life.

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September 29, 2014 · 7:49 AM

Mountains To Molehills

One of the songs we used to sing at church came from Zechariah 4:6-7. It went, “Not by might. Not by power, but by my spirit sayeth The Lord. This mountain shall be removed by my spirit sayeth The Lord.” I remember wondering what the deeper meaning of that scripture song was. As a child, I didn’t have the capacity to understand it, but I sang it with all of my heart. I had no idea those scripture songs would come back to life in my mind years later.

As I read those verses recently, I started reading them in different translations. An angel was showing Zechariah things in the spirit realm. One of the things he saw was a lamp stand made of gold with a bowl for oil and seven lights with spouts down to the bowl of oil. There were two olive trees on either side of the lamp stand where the bowl was getting its oil from. Zechariah asked the angel what it meant.

In the Message version, the angel replied, “You can’t force these things. They only come about through my Spirit. So, big mountain, who do you think you are? You’re nothing but a molehill.” In my own life, I’ve been known to force things to make them happen. I tell myself, “If things aren’t happening, make them happen.” I pride myself on my determination to get things done. If there’s a brick wall I can’t get over, I do what I can to knock it down. I don’t let it stand in my way. I’m learning that I can’t force things that God wants to do in His timing.

In the Amplified translation, the angel replied, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit of whom the oil is a symbol, says The Lord of Hosts. For who are you, O great mountain of human obstacles? You shall become a plain. A mere molehill.” Here I see that we have to stay plugged in to God’s Spirit. The oil feeds the lamp and keeps it burning. The bowl was connected to the olive trees so it wouldn’t run out. Our connection to God gives us the strength to get past the obstacles in our lives created by ourselves or others. It’s not by anything we do, but only through Him that we will succeed.

In the Good News Bible translation, the angel replied, “You will succeed, not by military might or by your own strength, but by my Spirit. Obstacles as great as mountains will disappear before you.” I like this one because when we face mountains in our lives, we wonder if we will ever get past them. Here, God reminds us that we will be successful and it won’t be dependent on anything we do. It’s through Him that we will be successful. When we realize that, the mountains in our lives will no longer look like mountains because of our perspective. A mountain is tiny in God’s eyes.

Whatever mountain stands in your way today, know that you will be successful in getting past it, but it won’t be because of your own strength. It won’t be because you forced your way through it. You will succeed because you are tapped into God’s Spirit and recognize His strength in your life. When you give up your strength and tactics to accept His, you will see those obstacles in your way disappear and become mere molehills. Trust in God today and get into His Word so you have oil in your lamp to see what He is about to do for you.

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