In step

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Rougher - but more secure
For reading & meditation: Deuteronomy 32:28-38
"If only they were wise and would understand this and discern what their end will be!" (v.29)

We have been seeing that in the sanctuary the psalmist was reminded of the things he had forgotten, and thus his thinking was straightened out. There can be no real change in our personalities until there is a change in our thinking. Counselling that focuses only on changing behaviour and fails to emphasise the importance of changed thinking is partial and incomplete.

We may experience some change when we change our behaviour, but we experience the greatest change, as our text for today suggests, when we change our thinking. In the sanctuary the psalmist's thinking was put right about the ungodly: "Then I understood their end" (Psa. 73:17, NKJ). The next verses indicate how his thinking was also put right about God Himself: "Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors" (Psa. 73:18-19).

The psalmist's problem, you remember, was not so much that the ungodly prospered, as that God had arranged it that way. Had it happened by mere chance, he might not have had any difficulties, but the fact that the great Designer had planned it like this filled him with perplexity. Now, however, he sees that the divine hand had purposely placed these men in prosperous and eminent circumstances so that they could fulfil the Creator's purposes: "You" - note the You - "You place them on slippery ground." Note, too, the phrase "slippery ground": their position was dangerous. Therefore God did not set His loved ones in that place, but chose instead a rougher but more secure standing for their feet.

Prayer:
O God, I am grateful that You have set my feet in a secure place and not on slippery ground. Why I have been chosen to be a recipient of such grace and favour I do not know. Yet it is so. I am deeply, deeply thankful. Amen.

 

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God's Methods

"I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one."1

Down through the ages since the beginning of time whenever God has a job to do, he has always chosen and started with a single individual. Think of Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Daniel, Mary, John the Baptist, Peter, and Paul for example.

Robert C. Stone shared how, "In 1872, Dwight L. Moody attended an early morning meeting in a hay mow (the place they store hay) in Ireland. At the meeting he heard a man quietly say, 'The world has yet to see what God can do with, and for, and through, and in, the man who is fully and wholly consecrated to God's will.'

"Years later, Moody was seated high up in Charles Spurgeon's tabernacle in London, and Spurgeon used those same words in his message. Moody bowed his head and prayed, 'By the power of the Holy Spirit, I will be that man.'"

Moody was greatly used of God to win multiplied thousands to Christ and founded the world-famous Moody Bible Institute (MBI) in Chicago, a school that has trained many thousands for Christian service around the world. (By way of interest, I am a graduate of MBI.)

E M. Bounds said, "Men are looking for better methods. God is looking for better men [and women]." God will use every single person who makes him/herself available for Him to use, and he is still looking for dedicated people to stand in the gap today. Will you, too, in the words of D. L. Moody, say, "By the power of the Holy Spirit, I will be that man/woman?"

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, thank you that your methods are people. By and through your power I want you to use me to stand in the gap to be what you want me to be and to do what you want me to do. Please use me to be a shining light in a dark world so that people, seeing Jesus in me, will want you for themselves. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

 

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He never leaves the helm
For reading & meditation: Psalms 76
"Surely your wrath against men brings you praise '" (v.10)

We touched yesterday on the truth that the reason why the ungodly are set in eminent places is because God arranges it. The psalmist goes on to say that not only does God raise up the ungodly, but He also brings them down: "You cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed '" (Psa. 73:18-19). The hand that led them up to the top of the slope is the hand that also casts them down.

Why does God act in this strange and mysterious manner? One reason is that God is able to demonstrate how unreliable and insecure are the ways of those who choose not to walk with Him. This explains why we so frequently read of some prominent godless person, such as a film star whom everyone is acclaiming, being suddenly removed from the face of the earth. The feet of such people were set in slippery places. Some reading these lines will remember how everyone stood in dread of Adolph Hitler. He had the whole world frightened, but now he is gone and almost forgotten.

The psalmist's words "You cast them down ' how suddenly are they destroyed" are really an exclamation of godly wonder at the suddenness and completeness of the sinner's overthrow. God makes a spectacle of those who persist in rejecting His love and grace. They make a splash for the moment of their lives, but after that they are gone and soon forgotten. Keep that fact before you as you look out upon the world. It may sometimes seem as if God is not in control, but in actual fact His hand is ever upon the helm of human affairs.

Prayer: Gracious and loving Father, my heart bows in silent wonder as I contemplate the awesomeness of Your ways. Open my eyes that I might see that You are at work all around me and that Your face is constantly set against evil. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

 

[RiverOL]

When the Helper Needs Help

"And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner.'"1

King Duncan tells about the story of a manager of a ten-story office building who was informed that a man was trapped in an elevator between the second and third floors. The manager rushed to the grill work under the stalled car and called to the passenger, "Keep cool, sir; we'll have you out soon. I've phoned for the elevator mechanic."

There was a brief pause and a tense voice replied, "I am the elevator mechanic."2

Many of us, especially we men, even when we are trapped find it very difficult to say, "I have a problem. I need help." As a result, we pay a high price for our stubborn independence.

When it comes to our spiritual wellbeing and life beyond the grave, many, if not most, people figure that if they have done enough good things to outweigh the bad things they have done, that this will qualify them for entering God's heaven. In other words we want to save ourselves, which is akin to a drowning man trying to save himself by picking himself up out of the water.

Vance Havner used to say how the world's a goner. It's a sinking ship. God's goal isn't to save the world but to save lost sinners from the sinking ship that is drowning in an ocean of sin and degradation. Only the ones who admit that they are a lost sinner and cry for God to save them can be saved for all eternity.

We simply cannot save ourselves. That's why Jesus came to die on the cross in our place—to pay the penalty for all our sins so we could be freely forgiven and given God's gift of eternal life. The prayer God loves to hear is, "God be merciful to me a sinner!"

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, I acknowledge that I am a sinner and cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that he died on the cross for my sins. Have mercy on me and save me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

 

[RiverOL]

Hang him on it!
For reading & meditation: Proverbs 24:15-22
"' for the evil man has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out." (v.20)

Today we look at another reason why God allows the ungodly to flourish - to illustrate by contrast the horror of an eternity without God. Spurgeon commented: "Eternal punishment will be all the more terrible in contrast with the former prosperity of those who are ripening for it." The seeming joy and splendour of the prosperous ungodly actually renders the effect of being cast aside by God more awful, just as vivid lightning does not brighten but intensifies the thick darkness around. You will no doubt remember the story of Haman, who prepared a gallows for Mordecai but finished up by being hanged upon it himself.

The ascent to the gallows was an essential ingredient in the terror of the sentence: "Hang him on it!" (Esth. 7:9). The wicked are raised high so that all might see how great is their fall. A preacher tells how he read the story of the rich man and Lazarus, in Luke 16, to a group of young people who were hearing it for the first time. He stopped at the part where Lazarus lay at the gate, the dogs licking his sores, while the rich man ate in splendour in his house, and said: "Which would you rather be, the rich man or Lazarus?" With one voice the young people shouted: "The rich man." He then read on, and after telling the story of how both died and the rich man was in torment while Lazarus was carried to Abraham's side, he asked: "Now which would you rather be?" This time they responded more quietly and soberly "Lazarus." That is the truth the psalmist saw as he sat quietly in the sanctuary of God.
Prayer:
Father, the more I see the whole picture and realise what I have been saved from, the more I feel like flinging myself at Your feet in adoring worship and praise. Thank You for saving me, dear Lord. Words cannot fully express my gratitude. Amen.

 

[RiverOL]

When the Helper Needs Help
"And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner.'"1

King Duncan tells about the story of a manager of a ten-story office building who was informed that a man was trapped in an elevator between the second and third floors. The manager rushed to the grill work under the stalled car and called to the passenger, "Keep cool, sir; we'll have you out soon. I've phoned for the elevator mechanic."

There was a brief pause and a tense voice replied, "I am the elevator mechanic."2

Many of us, especially we men, even when we are trapped find it very difficult to say, "I have a problem. I need help." As a result, we pay a high price for our stubborn independence.

When it comes to our spiritual wellbeing and life beyond the grave, many, if not most, people figure that if they have done enough good things to outweigh the bad things they have done, that this will qualify them for entering God's heaven. In other words we want to save ourselves, which is akin to a drowning man trying to save himself by picking himself up out of the water.

Vance Havner used to say how the world's a goner. It's a sinking ship. God's goal isn't to save the world but to save lost sinners from the sinking ship that is drowning in an ocean of sin and degradation. Only the ones who admit that they are a lost sinner and cry for God to save them can be saved for all eternity.

We simply cannot save ourselves. That's why Jesus came to die on the cross in our place—to pay the penalty for all our sins so we could be freely forgiven and given God's gift of eternal life. The prayer God loves to hear is, "God be merciful to me a sinner!"

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, I acknowledge that I am a sinner and cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that he died on the cross for my sins. Have mercy on me and save me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

 

[RiverOL]

Alexander the Great
For reading & meditation: Isaiah 40:12-17
"Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket '" (v.15)

Now we come to look at a section of the psalm which suggests that the reason why the ungodly continue to prosper as they do is because God is asleep. Listen to the psalmist's exact words: "As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies" (Psa. 73:20). The truth is, of course, that God does not sleep, but the psalmist has used a figure of speech which pictures our limited human perception of God's actions. God does not sleep, but at times He appears to do so. But what happens when God stirs from His apparent sleep?

The ungodly man, who has seemed so eminent and prosperous, vanishes as a dream. It is as if he had been a phantom or an illusion. The passage before us today puts this whole matter in context when it tells us that the nations are but "a drop in a bucket" to the Creator. Now they may look powerful and mighty, with their stockpiles of nuclear weapons, but when God arises they are as "grasshoppers". Do you remember being told in your history class at school about Alexander the Great? He was one of the greatest generals of all time and conquered almost the entire known world.

Did you know that he is referred to in the Bible? You will not see his name written in the Scriptures, but reference to him can be found in Daniel. Look at what the Bible calls him - a "goat" (Dan. 8:5-8). Walter Luthi puts it like this: "He who to the world is Alexander the Great, is to God nothing more than a he-goat." When God arises, the great become nothing.
Prayer: Father, thank You for reminding me over these past few days of Your greatness and eternal power. I so easily forget that I am linked to a God who is not just powerful but all-powerful. Let the wonder of that fact sink deep into my soul today. Amen.

 

[RiverOL]

Security Amidst Never Ending Change
"I the Lord do not change."1

While some things never change, we can't say that about life in the last century. I read that if we were to put the entire world's knowledge from the beginning of time until 1845 on a graph it would measure only 1 inch tall. From 1845 to 1945—just 100 years—the graph would measure 3 inches tall. But from 1945 until today the graph would be as tall as or even taller than the Washington monument.

Change, rapid change—some for good and some for bad—has become the order of the day. They say that today's average worker will need to be retrained at least three times during his working career to keep up with all the changes. Changes in technology, our manner of living, relationships, beliefs, philosophy, morals, and so on are happening so fast it is difficult to keep up with it all. It can leave us reeling and stressed to the max.

And while we have learned how to put a man on the moon and talk to him while he is there, we hardly know how to communicate to one another in a meaningful manner when we are in the same room! Much of our modern education (with access to almost unlimited knowledge) has taught us how to make a living but has failed miserably in teaching us how to live.

And without an anchor for the soul we can be left floating on a restless changing sea of uncertainty and insecurity. But for those who have faith in God, of this one thing we can be absolutely sure: God changes not! His love is from everlasting to everlasting and he is still in control of the world and universe no matter what.

In the U.S. we have engraved on our coins, "In God we trust." But until that is engraved on our hearts and we genuinely trust in the God who changes not, we will have no lasting security.

T.O. Chisholm wrote:

Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not,
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

"Suggested prayer: "Dear God, thank you for your faithfulness and unchanging nature. Help me to trust in you no matter what, knowing that you are in control and hold the world in your hands. Please hold my life in your hands, too, as I yield the control of it to you. Gratefully in Jesus' name. Amen."

 

[RiverOL]

Take an inside look
For reading & meditation: 1 Corinthians 11:27-34
"A man ought to examine himself '" (v.28)

From what we have seen over the past few days, it is clear that the psalmist has come to the place where his views have changed. He sees that God is ruling over human affairs and that the ungodly are not in such an enviable situation after all. We come now to see that he was not only put right in his thinking about the ungodly and about God, but he was also put right about himself: "When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant: I was a brute beast before you" (Psa. 73:21-22).

What a different view he has of himself now compared to previously, when he so evidently felt very sorry for himself: "Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence" (v.13). Outside the sanctuary, he felt full of self-pity; inside the sanctuary, he had an entirely different view of himself. This is a moment when the psalmist honestly faces himself - something that is very difficult to do.

Most of us don't mind working our way through our problems, but the moment we get relief, we want to stop right there. We do not go on to face up to what caused us to come to the wrong conclusions in the first place. This is why we keep going through the same problems over and over again - we fail to take an inside look. A schoolteacher claimed to have twenty-five years of experience, but her head teacher said of her: "She has just one year of experience twenty-five times." She worked long but learned little.
Prayer:
Father, I see why it is that so often I go through the same problems over and over again - I stop short of learning why they happened in the first place. Help me today to think through why it is that I get so tied up. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen.

 

[RiverOL]

Boundaries: What Part of NO Don't You Understand?
"Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves."1

A Daily Encounter reader writes in response to one of our messages on being peacemakers: "As you know, meaningful relationships require boundaries. Sometimes this means letting the other person know you are offended even if they do not react the way you might wish. At times keeping your boundaries may even mean terminating an unhealthy relationship.

"But what about when the relationship is one you cannot terminate, say with a parent, spouse, or other family member who is also a Christian? I am not speaking of blatant abuse situations but the gray areas in which a lot of people, including myself, often find ourselves. What about when parents have deep unresolved anger and hurt which they will not confront and resolve, so they wind up projecting it onto their children—including their adult children?

"So where is the line? How do you honor your parents and keep your boundaries?"

True, the Bible does say we are to honor and obey our parents, but it never says that we are to accept everything they, or anybody else, do to us, or ask us to do.

Meekness isn't weakness. Jesus, of course, is the prime example of one who had healthy boundaries. He didn't allow anyone to do anything to him without his permission, nor did he always meet the expectations of his parents. And he always confronted evil and wrongdoing.

So, while we are also told in the Bible to obey our parents and our leaders, when they, or anyone else, are abusive, evil, or do wrong, the higher law for us to follow is the law of God—and that is always to do the right thing. At times this will require tough love and saying "no" to anyone who would mistreat or abuse us, and who are being boundary busters with us.

When Peter and the other apostles were commanded by the religious leaders not to preach about Jesus, Peter said, "We ought to obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). And they kept preaching.

And think how Jesus handled the religious Pharisees and those who abused the house of God (the temple) and were ripping off the poor. He drove them out of the temple with a whip and called them a brood of vipers!

If we ask ourselves the question, "What would Jesus do?" in every situation in which we find ourselves and could discern the correct answer, we would know what to do. And then we would need to ask him for the courage to help us to do it.

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, thank you for Jesus who is the prime example for us to follow in every situation . . . whether warm and compassionate or angry at evil. Please help me to know what you would do in every confusing situation in which I find myself—and please give me the courage to do that without being controlled by false guilt or what others might think of me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

 

[RiverOL]

Far too 'healthy' spiritually
For reading & meditation: Psalms 139:17-24
"Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts." (v.23)

We said yesterday that the task of honestly facing ourselves in self-examination is often the hardest thing for us to do. We are all very prone to pass quickly over this point. We are quite happy to hear how God has set the ungodly in slippery places but we are not happy to be invited to take a look at ourselves and uncover the things within us that cause us to go astray. It must be said, however, that two dangers arise whenever the question of self-examination is considered.

One is over-emphasis and the other is under-emphasis. Some engage in it too much and become unhealthily introspective, while others fail to look at themselves at all and thus live on the surface. The important thing to remember is this - self-examination should always be carried out in the presence of God. If this is not adhered to, then the exercise can become harmful and counter-productive.

I meet many Christians who strongly oppose the idea of self- examination. They say: "the moment you see that you have sinned and then put your sin 'under the blood' you are all right. To stop and think about it is an indication that you are not spiritually healthy and that you lack faith." Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones once said: "The trouble with most of us is that we are far too 'healthy' spiritually." He meant by that that we are much too glib and much too superficial. Nothing is more characteristic of a true Christian than a willingness to examine himself; not too much, not too little, but in an appropriate and balanced way.

Prayer:
O Father, the reason I am afraid to examine myself is because I might find something I do not like. However, help me be honest no matter what the cost - honest with You and honest with myself. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen.

 

[RiverOL]

Confessing Other's Sins

"Therefore confess your sins [and faults] to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."1

Michael Josephson of Character Counts was addressing a group of journalists regarding journalistic ethics. He "posed the question, 'When is it proper for a journalist to report about the private life of a public official?'

"Jack Anderson, a well-known investigative columnist, replied: 'I don't think we should report on the private behavior of a politician unless it's relevant to his job.' Then he added, 'but we don't always follow our own tests.'

"I asked him to explain and he said: 'A few years ago, a woman came into my office and gave me an airtight affidavit that the mayor of Tucson had bit her on the thigh. Now, I didn't think this was too relevant to his job, but some stories are too good to pass up.'"2

In this political mayhem going on in the U.S. at this time, between competing politicians attacking each other, and considerable biased media, there are many times when I feel like throwing up. One wonders if there are any ethics.

I think there ought to be a strict rule that governs all media that says, "No politician or journalist (or anybody else) is allowed to confess anybody else's sins and failures publicly, before confessing his or her own publicly." Zero chance of this ever happening.

Sad to say, far too many of those who call ourselves Christians don't do too much better. We can be quick to confess others' sins while hiding our own. The Bible tells us to confess our sins to each other . . . not to confess others' sins to each other. There's another name for this. It's gossip. The Bible condemns it.

When it comes to Christian growth groups, rule number one is, "Confess nobody's sins but your own. Period." True, in life there are times when a leader's behavior needs to be confronted, but before we do it, let's make sure our own life is squeaky clean, that our own sins are confessed and resolved, and that our life is right with God.

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please deliver me from the sin of gossip. Help me to see my own sins and faults, confess these to a trusted friend and to you, and with your help overcome these. And help me always to live and abide by Christian ethics. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

 

[RiverOL]

The Word to the Rescue
For reading & meditation - Psalms 119:1-16
"I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." (v. 11)

Another important principle to follow in developing a plan to overcome oppressive and evil thoughts is this: Store up the Word of God in your mind so that it becomes readily available in times of need. This is one of the most powerful and successful principles of Christian living.

Sometimes people write to me and say: "Your practical suggestions are very interesting and intriguing, but do they work?" I have one answer: try them and see! They most certainly work for me, and I am absolutely sure that if you apply them in the way I am suggesting, they will work for you, too.

A minister who was away from home on a preaching visit was provided by the church with accommodations in one of the city's large hotels. One night, while going up in the elevator, a woman accosted him and suggested that they should spend the night together. "This was more than an evil thought," said the minister, "it was an evil thought clad in the most beautiful and attractive woman I have seen for a long time.

I was lonely and she was available." He went on, "But do you know what immediately flashed into my mind? Not my wife and four children - at least not at first. Not even my position and reputation. No, and not even the thought that I might be found out. The thing that immediately rose up within me was an instant visual replay of Romans 6:11-12, 'Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.'" The memorized verse came to the rescue - right on time.

Prayer: Gracious Father, help me to have Your Word so deeply hidden in my heart that it triggers an automatic reaction within me whenever I am threatened by evil. For Jesus' sake. Amen

​

 

[RiverOL]

Be Angry—Sin Not

"In your anger do not sin."1

I recall teaching a group where I said that it was okay to be angry. One lady was absolutely amazed. She told me that she had been taught all her life that Christians never get angry. So she had reasoned in her mind: "Christians never get angry. I'm always angry. Therefore I can never be a Christian!"

That night she was freed from 20 years of anguish and received assurance of her salvation. She was indeed a Christian because she had received Jesus as her Savior.

Anger is amoral; that is, of itself it is neither right nor wrong. It's what we do with it and how we handle it that matters. The Bible actually says, "In your anger do not sin,"1 or as an older translation says, "Be angry—sin not."

Anger itself (not rage, hostility or bitterness) is a God-given emotion. Its purpose is to fight evil and right wrongs. This is how Florence Nightingale used her anger. She was angry at the way wounded soldiers were being badly mistreated, so she did something about it. We, too, are meant to use our anger in creative ways.

The reality is that everybody gets angry at some time or another. Some people bury and deny theirs, while others lash out and hurt others. Neither of these is healthy nor Christian.

When expressing anger we need to own it as our own, and remember that the biblical principle is to speak the truth in love. One way to do this is to say something like, "I know my feelings are my responsibility, but I feel angry and need to talk to you about such and such."

Never say to a person, "You make me angry." This is because nobody can make us angry without our permission. All they do is trigger our anger but the anger is always ours.

Unfortunately, when we have a lot of bottled up anger or anger from the past that has never been resolved, our anger button can get triggered real easy and we overreact. As I've said many times, what the other person does to me is their issue. How I feel and react is always my responsibility—but to the degree that I overreact, that is totally my problem.

For healthy, intimate relationships it is imperative that we learn to identify our feelings—positive and negative—to be honest about them, and learn how to handle them in creative, rather than destructive, ways.

As the Bible teaches, "If you are angry, don't sin by nursing your grudge. Don't let the sun go down with you still angry—get over it quickly, for when you are angry [and don't resolve it] you give a mighty foothold to the devil."2

For more information on anger and how to handling it creatively, click on "Taming Your Anger" at: http://tinyurI.com/tame-anger.

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, thank you for the gift of feelings. Please help me to be in touch with all of mine, be honest with them and, when expressing them, help me to always speak the truth in love. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

 

[RiverOL]

The Last Thought at Night
For reading & meditation - Psalms 4
"I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety." (v. 8)

Let your last thought at night be a thought about your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The last thoughts that lie on our minds at night are powerful and determinative, for the door into the subconscious is opening and they drop in to work good or evil.

It's bad enough struggling with evil thoughts while you are awake; don't let them take control while you are asleep. Your conscious mind may be inactive while you are asleep, not so the subconscious.

The last thoughts lying in your mind as you go to sleep usually become the "playthings" of the subconscious, and it works on these during the hours you are asleep. If it is true that your mind is active while you are asleep - and there certainly seems to be plenty of evidence to support this theory, then make your mind work in a positive and not a negative way.

Satan delights in dropping an evil thought into your mind during the moments immediately prior to sleep, because he knows that it will work destructively all through the night, influencing your attitudes and most likely preventing you from enjoying a peaceful night's sleep.

Then when you wake, you find that not only do you have to face the problems of another day, but you also have to face them without having drawn fully on the resources available to you through sleep. Thus begins a recurring pattern which cannot help but drag you down. So learn to elbow out any evil thought that enters your mind just before sleep, and let your last thought be a thought of Christ.

Prayer: Father, if it is true that my mind works when I am asleep, then help me to make it work for good and not for evil. Teach me the art of holding a thought about You on my mind immediately prior to going to sleep. I shall begin tonight, Lord. Amen.

​

 

[RiverOL]

Want to Get Stronger?

They committed themselves
to the teaching of the apostles, the life together,
the common meal, and the prayers—Acts 2:42

Want to get stronger? Want to be tougher? Get connected. When we face trials and challenges, those to whom we’re connected can support us—help us find courage we’d not find on our own. When we experience pain and loss, they can comfort us—help us back from places we’d not return from, on our own. When we’re hit by fear and anxiety, they can give us perspective—help us see things in ways we’d not see on our own. When we need truth, they can teach us—help us discover and understand what we we’d not grasp on our own. When we get stuck, they can call us out, speak truth, push us forward—help us stop (or start) what we’d be unable to, on our own. When we face complicated questions, they can listen and counsel us—help us process through problems that are too difficult on our own. When we mess up, make mistakes, they can correct us and have mercy—help remind us we’re loved, despite flaws and failures, something that’s hard to remember on our own.

The Apostle Paul urged connectedness (Romans 12:15; 1 Thessalonians 5:11, Hebrews 3:13). The early Church demonstrated it—spending time together, knowing one another, eating, learning, and praying together. Why? Alone, we men are vulnerable; together, we’re stronger and more resilient toward the ups-and-downs of life (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). Connectedness ruggedizes us, restores us, fuels us for what’s ahead. And, brother, there’s important stuff ahead.

Go look at your weekly calendar. What are the major groupings, in terms of commitments and people? Work/Colleagues? Home/Family? Social/Friends? Others? Okay, now you need at least a couple people from each category who (1) know you, (2) understand the context too, and (3) who’ll make connectedness with you a priority.

 

[RiverOL]

Moving Together into Victory
For reading & meditation - 2 Peter 1:3-11
"... make every effort to add to your faith ... self-control ..." (vv. 5-6)

God is willing to do His part in helping you in this battle with evil thoughts - but you must be willing to do yours. There is a teaching in some Christian circles that if we discover a need for change in our lives, we should passively wait upon God until He accomplishes it. It sounds so spiritual, but actually it borders on profound error. A Christian man once said to me: "I would like to be free from a certain sin I am involved in, but I find I am powerless to break away from it." I asked him what he expected to happen in order for him to find deliverance. He said, "I expect God to take away the desire for this sin and thus set me free."

He was saying, in effect, "God is responsible for delivering me, and my task is to wait passively until He does so." That view is unbiblical - and what is more, it doesn't work. Although deliverance comes from God, we are the ones who carry it out. Let that sink in! The principle is this - you supply the willingness, and He will supply the power. Do you really want to win this battle against evil thoughts? If so, you can. Show God you mean business by putting the principles you have learned this week into practice, and you will pave the way for His miraculous power to work in and through you. Once you have done this, life's oppressive and evil thoughts will never be able to break you again. Here, too, you can become strong at the broken places.

Prayer: Gracious Father, thank You for reminding me that deliverance is a team effort. It involves the Holy Spirit and me. I supply the willingness: You supply the power. So let?s team up, Father, and move together into victory. Amen.

 

[RiverOL]

The Beautiful Ugly Duckling

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future".1

Most of us will be familiar with the children's fable of the ugly duckling how a mother hen had six beautiful golden yellow chicks and one ugly gray one. The ugly one was picked on by all the other chicks, rejected, made fun of, and made to feel terrible because he was so different. You can imagine how he felt. Some time later when all the chicks were grown, along came a flock of beautiful swans. How the ugly duckling adored them and lo and behold, he looked into the water and saw his own reflection and came to the profound realization that he wasn't an ugly duckling but a beautiful swan! His life was forever changed.

Did you ever feel like you were an "ugly duckling" misfit? Many of us have. Many still do. I've known beautiful people who felt and believed they were ugly. In younger days I had a "girl friend" who told me I was ugly. Tragically I believed her! She wasn't my girl friend very long but the image she planted in my mind took a long time to erase. When we define ourselves as ugly and believe it, it can be devastating to our self-image and behavior and how well we do in life.

When parents or peers repeatedly tell us we are ugly, clumsy, stupid or whatever, and we believe what they say and define ourselves that way, we tend to act accordingly because we always act consistently with what we believe deep down—no matter what we may profess.

I know it is easier said than done, but there is only one way to truly define ourselves, and that is how God sees us. And when we see ourselves this way, our life can be forever changed too!

Certainly God sees our wounded-ness, our brokenness, our sins, and our failures, but he separates our person from our actions and sees beyond these. He sees us as his creation and loves us with an everlasting love. He sees the person in us that he envisions us to be . . . our potential and what, with his help, we can become.

As Michelangelo said, "I saw the angel in the marble and chiseled until I set it free." That's how God sees you and me. He looks beyond the rugged exterior and sees the "angel" within each of us.

As God said to the ancient Israelites, he also says to you and me: "For I know the plans I have for you . . . plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

May God help each of us to see ourselves as God sees us, to see our God-given potential, and with God's help become that person. (If you haven't already done this, it begins with accepting God's Son, Jesus Christ, as your personal Lord and Savior. For help, click on the article, "How to Be Sure You're a Real Christian" at:http://tinyurI.com/real-christian.)

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, thank you that you know and see me exactly as I am—and love and accept me totally as I am. Thank you, too, that you have a wonderful plan and purpose for my life. Please help me to see this, believe it, and define myself as you see me—and with your help, become that person. Gratefully in Jesus' name. Amen."

 

[RiverOL]

Coming Back from Doubt
For reading & meditation - John 20:19-31
"Thomas said to him, 'My Lord and my God!'" (v. 28)

We consider another important place where some Christians are broken - the area of deep and disturbing doubts. Some men and women have received Christ as their Savior and Lord, but yet are afflicted with paralyzing doubts. Some of these people go through deep agony of soul as they wrestle inwardly with doubt, ending up spiritually exhausted. Someone like this told me that she was a scientist and had serious doubts about certain parts of the Scriptures.

"I'm afraid that one day I will wake up," she said, "and discover that science has disproved large chunks of Scripture." I could sympathize with her problem, but really her doubts were quite unfounded. Real science will never disprove Scripture, only confirm it. Half-baked science may appear to discredit the truth of God's Word, but real science can only validate it. I suppose the classic example of doubt is found in the disciple Thomas. We call him "doubting Thomas" - an unfair label if ever there was one. It's sad how we pick out a negative in a person and label him for that one thing. Thomas had his moment of doubt, but he came back from that place of weakness to become strong at the broken place. How strong?

Let history judge. A well-authenticated tradition has it that Thomas went to India and founded a church there. Even today there are Christians in India who call themselves by his name - the St. Thomas Christians. They are some of the finest Christians I have ever met. Thomas had his doubts allayed in one glorious moment of illumination - and then he went places. So can you!

Prayer: O my Father, just as You took Thomas and changed him from a doubter to a man of amazing faith and achievement - do the same for me. For Your own dear Name's sake I ask it. Amen.

 

[RiverOL]

We Do Have Choices

"Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care . . . not lording it over those entrusted to you."1

Em Griffin, author of The Mind Changers, tells about a good friend from the University of Michigan who went as a medical missionary to Bangladesh. When he arrived on the mission field, he was informed that he couldn't keep his four children with him, but that they would have to go away to boarding school. This was the policy of the mission and he didn't have a choice.

He responded, "Sure I have a choice! Our kids need us. Evangelization in the home first, then on the mission field." He then proceeded to raise more money, found a teacher, and established a mission school right on the hospital grounds.

Certainly we need to follow our God-given leaders. However, when they are in the wrong (as we/they sometimes are), it is important to confront them in Christian love where necessary, and to do what is right. As Peter pointed out, no leader has a right to control (lord it over) anybody else. When we do, we are playing the role of God and the Holy Spirit in their life.

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please give me the serenity to accept the leadership of your servants when what they say is in harmony with your will, the courage and grace to stand against them when they are not in your will, and the wisdom to know the difference. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus' name. Amen."