- Tuesday, 8/27/19 Obadiah 15, For the day of the Lord is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head. Christian: rest easy and be faithful: God’s got our backs. Heathen: run scared (and get saved): payback is a’comin’. Jonah 4:10-11a, Then said the Lord, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night: and should not I spare Nineveh... We weep over our dogs or our money or our broken dreams; we labor night and day for cash that’ll be left at the Rapture; we run ourselves ragged over worthless pursuits and hobbies...when was the last time we wept for souls? For the lost co-worker? For the wayward child of a friend? Over our own sin? Lord have mercy on us...
- Wednesday, 8/28/19 Jonah 1:3, But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord... It’s relatively easy to flee from the task God has commanded us to do, but it’s impossible to flee from the Giver of the commandment, and almost as hard to flee from yourself. No one like a quitter, not even the quitter. Acts 17:27, That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us. Do you trust your feelings or the Word of God? He said He’s not far from any of, but you feel that He is from you...whom will you trust? Whom has a history of lying? “Feeling come and feelings go; but the Word of God is always so.” Act today like it’s true: cuz it is.
- Thursday, 8/29/19 Micah 7:8, Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me. Could you make this bold and affirmative of a proclamation? Is the word “quit” in your vocabulary? What about the word, “whine”? Psalm 129:2, Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth: yet they have not prevailed against me. Just a reminder that you’ve survived every single one of your previous “worst day evers,” so my guess is that you’ll survive what you’re going through now. And if not...if you don’t survive...Heaven’s not a bad consolation prize. You can take what is on your plate. Don’t whine; be faithful; and obey Him. Praise and worship; bear another’s burden; repent; take another step.
- Friday, 8/30/19 Proverbs 27:1b, ...thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. If this be true, wouldn’t it make sense to talk to God at the start of the day? To surrender ourselves to His will for the next 24 hours? To consume some Bible so as to be strong enough for what IS coming? Have you? Will you? You really STINK!! You totally REEK!! Mark 7:20, And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. Your heart is a living sewer, and so is mine. We are filled with filth. That is true now and will be true as long as we’re in this body. The question is, and the determining factor between being a “good Christian” and a “poor Christian” is: how tight is the seal over the sewer that is our heart? How disciplined are you and I at not letting the filth flow? And then, apologizing for the messes when it does? So, how stinky are you? Less than yesterday? Are there recent spills you need to clean up?
- Saturday, 8/31/19 Psalm 138:2b, Thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. God exalts His word above His name. We may THINK we know what Jesus is like, but we CAN READ what He said. Jesus does not exist apart from His Word. Therefore, doctrine is supreme. Doctrine is more important than our feelings; than church; than philosophies because doctrine is to determine all of those and so much more. Is the doctrine you profess (and therefore the life you actually live) TRULY Bible based, or more supposition, feelings, or family tradition based? Mark 7:24, And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid. Then, He wanted to be hidden, to be incognito but could not be. Now, He wants us to proclaim Him loudly, longly, and daily with our tongues and our lives...and we hide Him more completely than the gold in Ft. Knox. Shame on us. Invite someone today to come with you to church tomorrow. Call that buddy from work. Go across the street to the neighbor’s. Do it.
- Sunday, 9/1/19 Job 28:2-3, Iron is taken out of the earth, and brass is molten out of the stone. He setteth an end to darkness, and searcheth out all perfection. In context, this is referring to God going through the dirt and rock and ore until He finds the gold. He searches for our perfection, our maturation. Jeremiah 1:5, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. God made YOU, as you are. He ordained your exact DNA. You look like He wants; your brain is as He wants. Your tastes are as He wants. We sometimes believe this. But if He is sovereign, then it’s true. And if He truly is sovereign, then the million steps that led you to today were also ordained. Your situation is very much on His mind. He has a purpose for this season in your life. Perhaps its a season of growth: gentle showers and plenty of sunshine. Use it: sink deep roots, store up honey: winter’s coming. Perhaps it’s a season of howling winds and cold. Learn lessons: He’s the all-sufficient One; we’re never truly alone; we can take it. God wasn’t just on His throne in your parent’s lives; He wasn’t ruling just when you were young: He’s still on the throne today, and is still directing all of life today. Believe it and live it. Serve Him today whether you’re in the sunshine or the storm. Help another. Learn a lesson. Praise the Master.
- Monday, 9/2/19 Job 29:2, Oh that I were as in months past, as in the days when God preserved me. There is great danger in living on memories. What is done is done, and what is MUST be dealt with. Likewise, don’t dwell on tomorrow: it is a fantasy. Deal with what is on your plate. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. We need to learn from the mighty Job. Remember, he was destitute and sick and persecuted when he said this: Job 27:2-4, As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment; and the Almighty, who hath vexed my soul; all the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils; my lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit. He felt forsaken by God and, in fact, thought God was being unjust. Yet, he didn’t concern himself with what he couldn’t control, but was very aware of what he could control. Life is happening to us: we cannot choose that...but we can choose our reactions to what is happening. Choose righteously, my friend.
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