GENTLE LIGHTS
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Posted:Nov 10, 2015 5:41 am
Last Updated:Nov 11, 2015 6:43 am 18709 Views
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Read: 1 Peter 3:13-17
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 48–49; Hebrews 7
Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:16
Wang Xiaoying (pronounced Shao-ying) lives in a rural area of China’s Yunnan province. Due to health problems, her husband couldn’t find work in the fields, causing hardship for the family. Her mother-in-law attributed the trouble to Xiaoying’s faith in God. So she mistreated Xiaoying and urged her to go back to the traditional religion of her ancestors.
But because Xiaoying’s husband had observed her transformed life, he said, “Mother, it isn’t enough for Xiaoying alone to believe in God; we too should put our faith in God!” Because of the noticeable change in his wife, he is now considering the good news of Jesus.
People will watch our walk before listening to our talk. The best witness combines good behavior with appropriate words, reflecting the difference Christ makes in our lives.
This was the apostle Peter’s instruction to the first-century believers, and to us, on how we can introduce Jesus to a hostile world. He challenged his readers to be “eager to do good” (1 Peter 3:13), to live obediently in Christ, to have a good conscience, and to be prepared to explain to others why we have such hope (v. 15). If we do this, we have no reason to fear or be ashamed when people mistreat or slander us because of our beliefs.
Whatever our situation, let’s shine for Jesus where we are. He can provide the grace we need to reach even those who don’t agree with us.
Lord, we tend to react defensively when people shun us or attack us for our faith. Give us Your courage to offer wise and gentle responses when we are mistreated.
The more we live like Jesus, the more others will be drawn to Him.
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CHARITY ISLAND
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Posted:Nov 9, 2015 3:12 am
Last Updated:May 4, 2024 10:38 pm 18715 Views
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Read: Psalm 107:23–32
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 46–4; Hebrews 6
The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him.
Nahum 1.7
Charity Island is the largest island in Saginaw Bay in the Michigan waters of Lake Huron. For many years the island has provided a lighthouse for navigational aid and a safe harbor for those sailing these waters. The island received its name because sailors believed it was there “through the charity of God.”
Sometimes in life we have to navigate through seas of troubling circumstances. Like those sailors we need guidance and a place of safety; we might wish for our own Charity Island. The psalmist understood that God is the one who can bring tranquility to troubled waters and guide us to safe harbors. He wrote, “He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven” (Ps. 107:29-30).
While no one asks for the storms of life, they can multiply our appreciation for the guidance and refuge God provides. He offers the light of His Spirit and His Word to guide us. It is the safe harbor of His love that we long for. He alone can be our ultimate “Charity Island.”
Father, help me to seek Your light to guide me through the storms of life.
The living God will always be our shelter.
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HE TRAINS MY HANDS
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Posted:Nov 6, 2015 5:06 am
Last Updated:Nov 9, 2015 3:12 am 18913 Views
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Read: Exodus 4:10-17
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 37–39; Hebrews 3
Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.
Psalm 144:1
When former NBA player David Wood was playing for Taugrés de Baskonia, I was with him at a Spanish Basketball Cup final. Before one game, he read Psalm 144:1: “Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.” He turned to me and said, “You see? It’s as if God has written this verse just for me! He trains my hands to catch rebounds and my fingers to shoot!” David felt called to play basketball and had learned that God takes us as we are and enables us to do what He calls us to do.
We can easily dismiss ourselves as having little use to God because we feel we have nothing to offer. When God appeared to Moses and assigned him the task of telling the Israelites that He would deliver them from the Egyptians (Ex. 3:16-17), Moses felt inadequate. He said to the Lord, “I have never been eloquent . . . . I am slow of speech and tongue” (4:10). Perhaps Moses had some kind of speech impediment, or he was just afraid, but God overcame his inadequacy with His sufficiency. God said, “Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say”
(v. 12).
All God wants from us is to follow His plans.
All God wants from us is to follow His plans. He will sort out the rest. In His mighty hands, you can be a blessing to others.
Here I am, Lord, ready to serve You in whatever way You desire. Lead me.
God’s call to a task includes His strength to complete it.
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ANGRY PRAYERS
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Posted:Nov 5, 2015 4:04 am
Last Updated:Nov 6, 2015 5:06 am 18971 Views
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Read: Psalm 86:1-13
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 34–36; Hebrews 2
Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end.
Proverbs 29:11
The neighbors probably didn’t know what to think as they looked out their windows at me one wintry day. I was standing in the driveway with a garden shovel clutched in my hands, whacking wildly and angrily at a clump of ice that had formed beneath a corner gutter. With each smack, I was uttering prayers that were variations on one theme: “I can’t do this.” “You can’t expect me to do this.” “I don’t have the strength to do this.” As a caregiver, with a long list of responsibilities to handle, I now had this ice to deal with, and I had had enough!
My anger was wrapped around a bundle of lies: “I deserve better than this.” “God isn’t enough after all.” “Nobody cares anyway.” But when we choose to cling to our anger, we become mired in the trap of bitterness, never moving forward. And the only cure for anger is truth.
The truth is that God does not give us what we deserve; He gives us mercy instead. “You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you” (Ps. 86:5). The truth is that God is more than enough, despite what we see. The truth is that His strength is sufficient
(2 Cor. 12:9). Yet before we can find such reassurance, we may need to step back, lay down the shovel of our own efforts, and take Jesus’ hand that’s extended to us in mercy and grace.
God is big enough to listen to our anger and loving enough to show us, in His time, the path forward.
Loving God, forgive me for my outbursts of anger. Today I choose to lay down my sinful anger and accept Your mercy and grace. Thank You for forgiveness and for truth that leads to wisdom.
Shelly Beach is the author of several books, including Precious Lord, Take My Hand: Meditations for Caregivers.
Grace: Getting what we don’t deserve.
Mercy: Not getting what we do deserve.
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OUR JEALOUS GOD
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Posted:Nov 4, 2015 2:33 am
Last Updated:May 4, 2024 10:38 pm 18954 Views
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Read: 2 Corinthians 11:1-4
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 32–33; Hebrews 1
The Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
Exodus 34:14
In 2014 a University of California researcher used a stuffed to show that animals are capable of jealousy. Professor Christine Harris asked owners to show affection for a stuffed animal in the presence of their pet. She found that three-fourths of the dogs responded with apparent envy. Some tried to get attention with touch or a gentle nudge. Others tried to push between their owner and the toy. A few went so far as to snap at their stuffed rival.
In a dog, jealousy seems heartwarming. In people, it can lead to less admirable results. Yet, as Moses and Paul remind us, there is also another jealousy—one that beautifully reflects the heart of God.
God made us & rescued us to know & enjoy Him forever.
When Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, he said he was “jealous for you with a godly jealousy” (2 Cor. 11:2). He didn’t want them to be “led astray from [their] sincere and pure devotion to Christ” (v. 3). Such jealousy reflects the heart of God, who told Moses in the Ten Commandments, “I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God” (Ex. 20:5).
God’s jealousy is not like our self-centered love. His heart expresses His protective zeal for those who are His by creation and salvation. He made us and rescued us to know and enjoy Him forever. How could we ask for anything more than a God who is so zealous—and jealous—for our happiness?
Father, help me shun anything that distracts me from You, so that I may always find enjoyment in who You are and in Your plan for me.
God loves every one of us as if there were but one of us to love. Augustine
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THE DAILY GRIND
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Posted:Nov 3, 2015 5:44 am
Last Updated:May 4, 2024 10:38 pm 18932 Views
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Read: Ephesians 6:5-9
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 30–31; Philemon
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters. Colossians 3:23
The high school I attended required 4 years of Latin instruction. I appreciate the value of that discipline now, but back then it was a grind. Our teacher believed in drill and repetition. “Repetitio est mater studiorum,” she intoned over us several times a day, which simply means, “Repetition is the mother of learning.” “Repetitio est absurdum,” we muttered under our breath. “Repetition is absurd.”
I realize now that most of life is simply that: repetition—a round of dull, uninspiring, lackluster things we must do again and again. “Repetition is both as ordinary and necessary as bread,” said Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. But he went on to say, “It is the bread that satisfies with benediction.”
Even the smallest tasks are done for God.
It’s a matter of taking up each duty, no matter how mundane, humble, or trivial, and asking God to bless it and put it to His intended purposes. In that way we take the drudgeries of life and turn them into holy work, filled with unseen, eternal consequence.
The poet Gerard Manley Hopkins said, “To lift up the hands in prayer gives God glory, but a man with a [pitchfork] in his hand, a woman with a slop pail, give Him glory, too. God is so great that all things give Him glory if you mean that they should.”
If whatever we do is done for Christ, we’ll be amazed at the joy and meaning we’ll find in even the most ordinary tasks.
Remind us today, Lord, that You are in the dull and ordinary tasks of life in a most extraordinary way. Let us not forget that we do even the smallest tasks for You.
A willing spirit changes the drudgery of duty into a labor of love.
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WORDS OF WISE
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Posted:Nov 2, 2015 2:57 am
Last Updated:May 4, 2024 10:38 pm 18937 Views
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Read: Ecclesiastes 9:13-18
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 27–29; Titus 3
Words of the wise, spoken quietly, should be heard.
Ecclesiastes 9:17
My niece’s husband recently wrote these words on a social media site: “I would say a lot more online if it weren’t for this little voice that prompts me not to. As a follower of Jesus, you might think that little voice is the Holy Spirit. It isn’t. It’s my wife, Heidi.”
With the smile comes a sobering thought. The cautions of a discerning friend can reflect the wisdom of God. Ecclesiastes 9 says that the “words of the wise, spoken quietly, should be heard” (v. 17
Scripture warns us not to be wise in our own eyes or proud (Prov. 3.7; Isa. 5:21;
Rom. 12:16). In other words, let’s not assume that we have all the answers! Proverbs 19:20 says, “Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise.” Whether it is a friend, a spouse, a pastor, or a co-worker, God can use others to teach us more of His wisdom.
“Wisdom reposes in the heart of the discerning,” declares the book of Proverbs (14:33). Part of recognizing the Spirit’s wisdom is discovering how to listen and learn from each other.
Dear Lord, thank You for Your Word that teaches me how to love You and others. Thank You also for the people You place in my life to remind me of Your truth.
True wisdom begins and ends with God.
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THE SORMS OF LIFE
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Posted:Oct 30, 2015 5:46 am
Last Updated:May 4, 2024 10:38 pm 19079 Views
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Read: Mark 4:35–5:1
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 20–21; 2 Timothy 4
You may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith . . . may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 1 Peter 1:6-7
In the book of Mark we read about a terrible storm. The disciples were with Jesus on a boat crossing the Sea of Galilee. When a “furious squall came up,” the disciples—among them some seasoned fishermen—were afraid for their lives (4:37-38. Did God not care? Weren’t they handpicked by Jesus and closest to Him? Weren’t they obeying Jesus who told them to “go over to the other side”? (v. 35). Why, then, were they going through such a turbulent time?
No one is exempt from the storms of life. But just as the disciples who initially feared the storm later came to revere Christ more, so the storms we face can bring us to a deeper knowledge of God. “Who is this,” the disciples pondered, “even the wind and the waves obey him!” (v. 41). Through our trials we can learn that no storm is big enough to prevent God from accomplishing His will (5:1).
While we may not understand why God allows trials to enter our lives, we thank Him that through them we can come to know who He is. We live to serve Him because He has preserved our lives.
Lord, I know I don’t need to fear the storms of life around me. Help me to be calm because I stand secure in You.
The storms of life prove the strength of our anchor.
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DON'T TOUCH THE FENCE
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Posted:Oct 29, 2015 3:06 am
Last Updated:Oct 29, 2015 3:10 am 19107 Views
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Read: Jeremiah 18:1-12
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 18–19; 2 Timothy 3
The Lord . . . sent word to them . . . again and again, because he had pity on his people.
2 Chronicles 36:15
As a young girl I went with my parents to visit my great-grandmother, who lived near a farm. Her yard was enclosed by an electric fence, which prevented cows from grazing on her grass. When I asked my parents if I could play outside, they consented, but explained that touching the fence would result in an electric shock.
Unfortunately I ignored their warning, put a finger to the barbed wire, and was zapped by an electrical current strong enough to teach a cow a lesson. I knew then that my parents had warned me because they loved me and didn’t want me to get hurt.
God's warnings are proof of His compassion for us.
When God saw the ancient Israelites in Jerusalem crafting and worshiping idols, He “sent word to them . . . again and again, because he had pity on his people” (2 Chron. 36:15). God spoke through the prophet Jeremiah, but the people said, “We will continue with our own plans”
(Jer. 18:12). Because of this, God allowed Nebuchadnezzar to destroy Jerusalem and capture most of its inhabitants.
Maybe God is warning you today about some sin in your life. If so, be encouraged. That is proof of His compassion for us (Heb. 12:5-6). He sees what’s ahead and wants us to avoid the problems that will come.
Lord, give me the ability to hear not just Your words but also Your heart. Help me to learn from the mistakes of those whose stories You have given us. Help me to honor You with my life.
God’s warnings are to protect us, not to punish us.
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WHERE IS MY FOCUS?
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Posted:Oct 28, 2015 4:07 am
Last Updated:Oct 29, 2015 3:06 am 18961 Views
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Read: Hebrews 10:32-39
Bible in a Year: Jeremiah 15–17; 2 Timothy 2
You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. Hebrews 10:34
Early in September 2011, a raging wildfire destroyed 600 homes in and around the city of Bastrop in central Texas. A few weeks later an article in the Austin American-Statesman newspaper carried this headline: “People who lost the most, focus on what wasn’t lost.” The article described the community’s outpouring of generosity and the realization of those who received help that neighbors, friends, and community were worth far more than anything they lost.
The writer of Hebrews reminded first-century followers of Jesus to recall how they had bravely endured persecution early in their life of faith. They stood their ground in the face of insults and oppression, standing side by side with other believers (Heb. 10:32-33). “You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions”
(v. 34). Their focus was not on what they had lost but on eternal things that could not be taken from them.
Jesus told His followers, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:21). As we focus on the Lord and all that we have in Him, even our most precious possessions can be held lightly.
Lord, open our eyes to see You and to embrace what is most important each day.
Where is your focus today?
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