God's writing on our minds and hearts

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Jeremiah 31:23-37

TO CHEW ON: "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord; I will put my law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God and they shall be my people." Jeremiah 31:33

If you've ever raised kids you'll know how much easier it is to get their cooperation and compliance if they are motivated from within by love, respect, and a desire to please. Such inner motivation is more effective than the threat of punishment.

Here God tells the people of a day when the nation will be in such an inner-motivated state spiritually. The drive to obey will come from within. Pleasing God will be so uppermost that it will be as if His laws are written on their minds and hearts.

Interestingly, the writer of Hebrews quotes this very passage in Hebrews 8:8-12 and again in 10:16,17. He tells us this compliant state comes about as a result of the "new covenant."

This new covenant came about through Jesus. His death in our stead, paying the penalty for our sins, is the transaction with God that brings this it into effect.

How are our minds and hears so radically changed under it? Through the Holy Spirit living inside us. An endnote to my Bible's Hebrew's 8 passage says:

"Jesus' ministry is performed under the covenant of God's grace, wrought within the minds and hearts of believers by the power of the Holy Spirit. Thus God established a new personal covenant relationship with His people, based not on a compelling force from without, but on an impelling power from within." New Spirit Filled Life Bible, p. 1738 (emphasis added).

This is all well and good on paper. But how does it work in practical everyday living? We still have the choice to resist the Holy Spirit or yield to Him (1 Thessalonians 5:19). Even under this new covenant God never takes over life's controls against my will or yours. But He does promise to come to each of us and live in us if we let Him. His presence is that inner drive toward obedience and compliance, stronger than the threat of punishment, proving us His children (Galatians 5:18; Romans 8:14).

PRAYER: Dear God, I love the picture of Your principles and ways written on my mind and heart — so much a part of me that it's easier to obey than not. May it be so. Amen.

MORE: Holy Spirit: more than a guest

The Holy Spirit cannot be located as a Guest in a house, He invades everything. When once I decide that my "old man" (i.e., the heredity of sin) should be identified with the death of Jesus, then the Holy Spirit invades me. He takes charge of everything, my part is to walk in the light and to obey all that He reveals.- Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, April 11 reading.

(From the archives)

Watery test

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Hebrews 4:14-5:10

TO CHEW ON: "For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:15,16

I am, at the time of writing this (February 9, 2012), going through a "temptation."

[Tempted - peirazo: To explore, test, try, assay, examine, prove, attempt, tempt. The word describes the testing of the believer's loyalty, strength, opinions, disposition, condition, faith, patience, and character. Peirazo determines which way one is going and what one is made of" - Dick Mills, "Word Wealth," New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1820.] (Emphasis added.)

You see, yesterday the water main that supplies water to our townhouse complex burst at a point right beside our unit. By the time we noticed it, water was already pouring into our storage area and the downstairs den.

Today we are using precious water from a store-bought jug to take sponge baths and make coffee while waiting for the plumbers to do something about the water and a restoration company to cart away our stuff so they can rip up wrecked flooring, decontaminate, and fix. Life won't be back to normal for weeks. It doesn't help that this is the second time this has happened.

My default is to feel sorry for myself and whine, even though I know that in the scheme of things, this is peanuts. People are losing their houses due to floods, fires, storms and accidents all the time and generally facing far worse in the "test" department.

And so it is a comfort to read that Jesus was "tempted" in all the ways that we are - Hebrews 4:15. Whether the temptation/test is little or big Hebrews 4:16, is also significant. Because it tells us that because Jesus was tempted/tested as we are, we can count on His understanding us in our temptation. It follows ("Therefore...") that we can "come boldly to the throne of grace" for help."

"Come boldly," writes my Bible's commenter, "literally means 'without reservation, with frankness, with full and open speech.' We approach a throne of grace obtaining mercy for the past and grace for the present and future" - Guy P. Duffield commentary on Hebrews, New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1734.

I love that invitation to come "without reservation and with full and open speech." No request is too big or too small. God is big enough for me to pound His chest in my frustration over my relatively small problem.

A double-duty of such tests is the way they show us (me, at least) how far we still have to go to reach maturity. It's easy to talk about trusting God and having a good attitude when things are going well, but quite another thing to live these things when life goes sideways.

I need mercy for the way I've reacted to this and other tests, and grace to be sweet and unruffled today as I trust God in my present circumstances, and tomorrow, for whatever that will bring.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for understanding me and for inviting me to bring the stresses of life to You. I bring to You the situation in my home. I need grace for whatever this day holds. Amen.

MORE: Whatever Comes - Brian Doerksen

Bore deep into God

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 89:1-14

TO CHEW ON: "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;

Mercy and truth go before Your face." Psalm 89:14

Who of us hasn't set some person on a pedestal only to find, when we get to know them better (or if they are a historical figure, we read about them), there are, running through the strata of their lives, veins of unrighteousness, injustice, falsehood, selfishness, or other failings? We will never experience such disillusionment with God!

God is righteous and justice at the deepest level: "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne" is expressed in the Message as, "The Right and Justice are the roots of your rule."

The result and evidence of His rule is love and truth: "Mercy and truth go before Your face" (NKJV) is translated "Unfailing love and truth walk before You as attendants" - NLT, and "Love and truth are its fruits" - Message.

Psalm 89:18 uses the adjective "holy" to encapsulate all God's good, sinless, peerless, authentic, above reproach qualities. He is called "The Holy One of Israel."

[holy - qudosh: set apart, dedicated to sacred purposes; holy, sacred, clean, morally or ceremonially pure...Holiness is separation from everything profane and defiling; and at the same time dedication to everything holy and pure" - New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 155.]

A commentary note in my Bible gives some ways to work the holiness of God, into our lives:

"Holiness is understood and learned by going directly to its source, the Holy One of Israel.

• Search the scriptures to learn the truth of God's holiness.

• Spend time worshiping God to be transformed by His holiness (2 Corinthians 3:18).

• Ask the Holy Spirit to enable you to walk in holiness (1 Peter 1:13-19) - New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 756.

PRAYER: Dear God, I am so glad that You are holy through and through, that in You there is no hint of injustice or unrighteousness, no whiff of hatred or lies. I revel in Your name (vs. 16) — Your essence and reputation. Amen.

MORE: Thoughts on knowing God

"What were we made for? To know God. What aim should we set ourselves in life? To know God. What is the 'eternal life' that Jesus gives? Knowledge of God (John 17:3). What is the best thing in life, bringing more joy, delight, and contentment, than anything else? Knowledge of God (Jeremiah 9:23 ff). What of all the states God ever sees man in, gives Him most pleasure? Knowledge of God (Hosea 6:6).


In these few sentences we have said a very great deal.... What we have said provides at once a foundation, shape, and goal for our lives, plus a principle of priorities and a scale of values. Once you become aware that the main business that you are here for is to know God, most of life's problems fall into place of their own accord" - J. I. Packer, Knowing God, p. 31.

(From the archives)

Color trouble good

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Psalm 107:1-22

TO CHEW ON: “Oh that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness,

And for His wonderful works to the children of men.” Psalm 107:8,15,21

When we take today’s verse (a refrain that is occurs three times in this psalm) out of its context, we could assume the psalmist is drawing our attention to God’s general character of goodness and His amazing creation. But when we pay attention to the verses around we see the writer is looking at quite a different side of God’s goodness. Each repetition of the refrain comes after the memory of a nasty situation.

1. A time of loss and homeless (Psalm 107:2-7)
The Israelites wandered around in the wilderness after Egypt, hungry, discouraged, lost and homeless. But this bad scene became good when it caused them to look to God for direction. Then He settled them in a land they could call home.

2. A time of rebellion (Psalm 107:10-14)
Israel was often in a state of rebellion. God’s remedy – hard labor – didn’t look like a blessing on the surface. But it was, because it sent them running back to God for help.

3. A time of foolishness (Psalm 107:17-20)
The picture here is of trouble brought on oneself because of dissipation, addiction, or any kind of self-destructive behavior. Not a good thing. But again it is, when such a thing draws us to God.

Looking back, do you see evidences of any of these things in your life? Did they draw you closer to God? Take a few minutes today to review how God has turned trouble into blessing in your life. You could personalize your thankfulness to God.

PRAYER: I thank You, God, for Your goodness in ___________(name the bad situation), and for Your wonderful works to me. Amen.

MORE: In “Man of the Tombs”  Bob Bennett writes of the Gadarene demoniac  – a man whose life was a mess because he was controlled by demon spirits. Even that was a blessing in disguise when his condition drew Jesus' attention and He delivered the man from those monsters. The line of Bennett’s song: “He…mistakes his freedom for being free” can be said of most of us before Jesus liberates us.

“Man of the Tombs” by Bob Bennett




(From the archives)

Apostolic prayers

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Ephesians 1:1-23

TO CHEW ON: “I… do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers.” Ephesians 1:15

Has anyone ever prayed over you things that you were inwardly longing for? Or perhaps someone prayed for you things you hadn’t thought of but when you heard them, something inside you responded ‘Yes!’

Ephesians 1:15-20 contains one of the great Apostolic Prayers of the Bible. These are prayers prayed by the Apostles (mostly Paul) over the early church. In his introduction to the chapter of Apostolic Prayers in his book Praying The Bible: The Book of Prayers, Wes Campbell describes Apostolic Prayers in general as fatherly, foundational, God-focused, positive and for the church. Elaborating on this last, Campbell says:

“This means that Apostolic Prayers are meant to be prayed with someone or someplace specifically in mind. These are not ‘God bless the whole wide world’ prayers! When praying these prayers for yourself, personalize them by changing the pronouns and ask that God would do these things in your own life. Then pray the exact same words over your friends and family, putting their names in the text.” – Wes Campbell, The Book of Prayers, pp. 190-191.

Let’s spend a minute unpacking the prayer in today’s reading.

1. Thanks
Paul begins by thanking God for the Ephesians. What a great thought – you and I can be the cause of gratitude. We can give thanks for others. Who in your life causes you to give thanks?

2. Wisdom, revelation, understanding
Paul prays that the church will understand who Jesus is. His request that the “eyes of your understanding be(ing) enlightened” implies that this understanding may come as an ‘aha’ moment, an epiphany, a sudden seeing of something we hadn’t grasped before.  Jack Hayford says of this ‘revelation’:

“Such ‘revelation’ refers to an unveiling of our hearts that we may receive insights into the way God’s word is intended to work in our lives. It may be used of teaching or preaching that is especially anointed in helping people see the glory of Christ and His purpose and power for them.” (Jack Hayford, “The Spirit of Revelation” in the New King James Version - NKJV - New Spirit Filled Life Bible, p. 1646).

3. Hope
This understanding mutates into Hope.Paul talks about the “hope of His calling.” My mind goes to some of the things we are called: children of God; joint heirs with Christ; the Bride of Christ.

This hope also has to do with being aware of “the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” I think of beauty and diversity of fellow Christians – a family that spans the centuries and the globe. I call to mind my own church family.

4. Power
Paul prays that the Ephesians will grasp the immensity of the power that’s available to them. This is no mere ten-points-on-the-Richter-scale earthquake power but the very power that conquered death. And it’s available to us.

Does this prayer resonate with you? Pray it over yourself, your family, and friends today.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for the people in my life. I pray that You, the God of my Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory will give me the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, that the eyes of my understanding being enlightened, I may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward me, who believes, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in heavenly places. Amen.

MORE: More Apostolic Prayers (titled by Wes Campbell):

“Revival Power” – Acts 4:24-31
“Outpouring of Divine Love” – Ephesians 3:14-21
“Just Say No!” – Titus 2:11-13
“A Prayer of Prosperity” – 3 John 2
“Jude’s Doxology” – Jude 24-25

(From the archives.)

Fireproof

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 1 Corinthians 3:10-23

TO CHEW ON: "Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is." 1 Corinthians 3:12-13

Who of us hasn't seen video clips on the evening news of people sifting through the charred remains and ashes of their burned homes? Each time I am chilled by their, "This was all I had. My whole life was here. I lost it all."

That's the scene these verses from 1 Corinthians bring to mind. And I just know I don't want that to be me on "the Day" (of Jesus' return). I'm sure you feel the same way. So how do we avoid this? How do we leave a life-legacy that doesn't go up in flames?

As I view the rubble of the scene, I think of the warning Jesus gave:

"Don't lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal" Matthew 6:20.

Expending our efforts on things that last beyond this life, pouring ourselves out for the well-being of peoples' souls instead of amassing physical stuff and building monuments to ourselves is certainly one aspect of this.

But it seems that Paul is talking about more. The implication is that these people are all busy in spiritual work, building on Jesus, the right foundation (1 Corinthians 3:11). We can conclude that even in that there is a right and wrong way to build, a way to build with lasting materials or flammable ones.

Read any book describing cults and you will, I think, be struck by how many start with Jesus. He is part of their foundation. But somewhere their leaders and/or followers have used other materials than the Word of God, or stressed one part of the Bible ignoring other parts, or compromised in their lifestyles necessitating rationalization with its accompanying potential for false teaching.

A footnote in my Bible says about these building materials:

"To build on the foundation a building of durable material (gold, silver, precious stones) is to teach sound doctrine and live a life of fidelity to the truth, thus leading converts to spiritual maturity. To build with perishable material (wood, hay, straw) is to provide inadequate or unsound teaching or to compromise the truth by demonstrating a lifestyle that contradicts or fails to model it" - New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1583.

So how do we make sure we "teach sound doctrine and live a life of fidelity to the truth"? I would submit it's by getting very familiar with the building supply depot — the Bible (all of it, not just the red-letter parts, or the gospels, or the epistles, or the Psalms...) and by giving the Holy Spirit permission to apply it to our lives, even when it wreaks a little havoc with our current building projects.

PRAYER: Dear God, I don't want to stand before You someday next to a pile of smoking rubble, having accomplished nothing that lasts. Help me live my life with today's warning in mind. Amen.

MORE: Learning about world religions

There are thousands of belief systems in the world, hundreds of which name Jesus as part of their foundation. One book that helps the layperson through this maze is James Beverley's Nelson's Illustrated Guide to Religions: A Comprehensive Introduction. A part of the book that makes it useful is Beverley's evaluation of how each belief systems relates to Christian orthodoxy. This book would be a valuable addition to any home library.

(My July 2009 review of Nelson's Illustrated Guild to Religions is here).

(From the archives)

The mysterious life

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 1 Corinthians 2:1-16

TO CHEW ON: "But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory." 1 Corinthians 2:7

Something I love about the Bible is the way it shows itself to be increasingly interrelated and consistent, richer and more satisfying the deeper I dig into it. No matter what Bible topic I study — light, water, fire, new life — the more I mine, the purer the treasure I find. That's probably because in the Bible we're dealing with what Paul calls the "wisdom of God," truth that comes from God's pure gold, IQ-off-the-charts mind.

Paul calls God's wisdom a mystery. A footnote article in my Bible explains:

"Mystery in the New Testament does not mean mysterious or difficult to understand, but denotes a truth hidden in God's mind until He chooses to disclose it. God had the plan of redemption in mind before the creation of the world, and it would have remained unknown had He not revealed it in Christ..." New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1582.

I love how the verse that follows our focus one (1 Corinthians 2:8) tells us that no human in charge at the time or even Satan (the "god of this age" - 2 Corinthians 4:4) or the demons of hell ("principalities and powers" Colossians 2:15) had any clue about God's plan or "they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." But they did so they are foiled!

The wonderful thing is that we can tap into God's "mystery" mind. How? Through the Holy Spirit:

"But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us" NLT vs. 10-12. 

It's as our little paragraph above finishes:

"...Believers live by a secret, the essence of which is Christ and His glorious purposes for the world" NSFLB, p. 1582.

I ask myself, am I living true to that "secret," that "mystery"? Do I set my priorities by it? Or do I let the din and clamour around me drown out that divine Pied-Piper song?

PRAYER: Dear Holy Spirit, please reveal the mind of Christ to me. I want my life to be part of Your mystery, lived in cooperation with Your plan that was "ordained before the ages." Amen.

MORE: What the above may mean:

"Never choose to be a worker, but when God has put His call on you, woe be to you if you turn to the right hand or to the left. He will do with you what He never did with you before the call came. He will do with you what He is not doing with other people. Let Him have His way."
- Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest, October 25th reading.

"God breaks up the private life of His saints and makes it a thoroughfare for the world on one hand and for Himself on the other.... Let Him have His way; if you do not, instead of being of the slightest use to God in His redemptive work in the world, you will be a hindrance and a clog."
- Oswald Chambers, My Utmost, November 1 reading.

"It is one thing to go through a crisis grandly, but another thing to go through every day glorifying God when there is no witness, no limelight, no one paying the remotest attention to us....The test of the life of a saint is not success, but faithfulness in human life as it actually is."
- Oswald Chambers, My Utmost, November 16 reading.


(From the archives)

The foolish ones

Artist's rendering of David's sling.

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31

TO CHEW ON: "But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are." 1 Corinthians 1:27-28

The Bible is full of examples of God working through foolish, weak, base, despised things and people. Here are just a few of the many in the Bible:

• When God wanted to free the Israelites from Egyptian slavery, He used Moses's shepherd rod, also called  a staff (Exodus 4:2).

• When He was planning to defeat the Midianites, He chose a cautious leader (Gideon), and then instructed him on how to thin out his army to a mere 300 men. Their weapons consisted of trumpets, pitchers and torches (Judges 7:1-23).

• Samson killed 1000 Philistines with the jawbone of a donkey (Judges 15:15).

• Saul, Israel's first king, came from the small, insignificant tribe of Benjamin (1 Samuel 9:21).

• David killed full-armoured Goliath with a stone hurled from a primitive sling (1 Samuel 17:40).

• Jesus fed a multitude with five loaves and two fish (John 6:9).

Why does God use such un-intuitive means? Paul tells us in verse 29: "...that no flesh should glory in His presence." In other words, when God accomplishes things using people and methods that, according to human wisdom, should never be successful all the credit and glory go to Him.

We can respond in several ways:

1. With relief. There's hope for even us very ordinary, unexceptional folks. If we get out of the way and let God be in charge, He can use even us.

2. With self-searching, asking, is there within our desire to live a significant, contributing life any vestige of seeking after our own fame, our own credit, our own prominence? Perhaps within our answer lies the clue to why our efforts are so often ineffectual.

PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to leave my ego and its wisdom behind. Help me to be content to be one of Your foolish, weak, base, despised glory-bearers. Amen.

MORE: Foolish enough

"When looking back on the lives of men and women of God the tendency is to say - What wonderfully astute wisdom they had! How perfectly they understood all God wanted! The astute mind behind is the Mind of God, not human wisdom at all. We give credit to human wisdom when we should give credit to the Divine guidance of God through childlike people who were foolish enough to trust God's wisdom and the supernatural equipment of God."
- Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, October 26th reading.

(From the archives)

The danger of leader-worship

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 1 Corinthians 1:1-17


TO CHEW ON: "Now I say this, that each of you says, 'I am of Paul, or I am of Apollos,' or 'I am of Cephas,' or 'I am of Christ.' Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for You? or were you baptized in the name of Paul?" 1 Corinthians 1:12-13

Last year I read a biography of one of my spiritual heroes. I have always loved the writings of A. W. Tozer so when I discovered A Passion for God: The Spiritual Journey of A. W. Tozer by Lyle Dorsett, I snapped it up.

Reading it was not altogether pleasurable, however, for I discovered this man (Tozer) who came across through his writings as practically perfect had some very human qualities. My reaction illustrates what Paul is talking about in our passage today. When we put too much faith in human leaders we enter hazardous territory on several levels.

We may be setting ourselves up for disappointment (such as I felt when I read the Tozer biography). My disappointment was just over discovering some common human traits. When prominent leaders fall, as in exhibiting moral failure, their followers often find themselves in a crisis of trust. Many have abandoned faith in God as a result of disappointment in a revered leader.


We may be jeopardizing our own orthodoxy. Mindlessly following a charismatic leader (charismatic in the personality sense) has led to the development of more than one cult.

We may be fostering needless division in the church—the problem Paul is grappling with here.

We have one leader who will never let us down, however. We can always trust Jesus who, as Paul reminds us, is the One who died for us, whose life, death and resurrection is our gospel (good news), and to whom we have united ourselves in baptism.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, I easily put people on a pedestal. Help me to set You up on the highest place of my heart and view human leaders with realism—respect for sure, but not worship. Amen.

MORE: Follow with caution

In his Illustrated Guide to Religions, James Beverley has a chapter called Christian Sectarian Groups. He notes three common characteristics of such groups (which include Jehovah's Witness, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Unification Church, and others):

1."They usually adopt a non-Trinitarian perspective" (i.e. they don't believe in the Trinity).

2. "Each group retains the language of the Christian faith even if the substance is not retained on particular matters."

3."Last, and most important, each group has been shaped by an authoritarian and often narcissistic leadership, particularly at inception" (emphasis added).

- James Beverley, Illustrated Guide to Religions, p. 114.

The 'lost' life

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Mark 8:27-9:1


TO CHEW ON: "For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it." Mark 8:35

This is one of those little sayings of Jesus's that roll easily off the tongue, but are quite another thing to live.

By "whoever desires to save his life" Jesus surely isn't meaning we should obliterate our inborn instinct of physical self-preservation. But I believe He is referring to our as much inborn instinct of self-pleasing and self-serving in daily life.

Rather, we are to lose our lives for His sake as in willingly give Him the right to intervene in, interrupt, manipulate every aspect of life so that He can do what He wants through us. We hear it described as letting Him take the wheel of our lives (the car metaphor) or the rudder (the ship).

It sounds romantic, even preferable to doing life on our own, until we find ourselves in the hospital instead of the beach, confronted with the need for Sunday School teachers when our patience for kids has flown the coop with our own brood, or faced with a needy neighbour when all we want to do is take a nap.

The only way losing one's life to ourselves ever gets easier, I believe, is to make a lifestyle of it. In this regard I think of the Bible character Philip. When persecution drove the disciples out of Jerusalem, he preached in Samaria. Back in Jerusalem again, when an angel interrupted his routine with "Rise and go..." he rose and went without a question and soon came face to face with the very ripe-for-the-gospel Ethiopian eunuch. After Philip baptized him "...the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away..." and he "...found himself at Azotus" from where he carried on his preaching tour.

After living like that for a while, who would want to go back to the predictable routine of self-directed living?


PRAYER: Dear God, please teach me about losing my life for Your sake and the gospel's in my setting. Help me to experience the excitement of living at Your beck-and-call. Amen.


MORE: "The Gallows and the Gift of Life" - an allegory

"As the story begins, I was in the King's prison—the prison called 'conviction.' It was a very strange prison.

.... You might be wondering how I got there. I hadn't always been in this prison, of course. For years I had lived as far away from the palace of the King as I could. Everybody knows that if you stay far enough away, you can set up your own sort of kingdom. You can write your own laws, and pretty much run your own life. So that's what we did.
We thought of all kinds of ways to keep the King's light from bothering us. There were three rules:
1. First, stay as far away from it as you can....
2. Second, use imitation light....
3. Third, find substitute pleasures.."

Read all of "The Gallows and the Gift of Life" (based on Mark 8:34-38, Galatians 6:14 and Hebrews 13:12-14). By John Piper. © Desiring God. Website: desiringGod.org

Prayer for children

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Genesis 17:15-27

TO CHEW ON: "And Abraham said to God, 'Oh that Ishmael might live before You!' .... 'As for Ishmael, I have heard you.'" Genesis 17:18,20

Abraham, not daring to believe the promise that God would give him a son through Sarah, prays, "Oh that Ishmael would live before You."

I'm not sure I understand all that meant to Abraham. It probably meant that he desired Ishmael to acknowledge God as his God and honour Him as Abraham did. God also took it as Abraham requesting that the promises He had made for his not-yet-born son would be for Ishmael.

God's reply to Abraham was "No" to that last. For His covenant was to be with Sarah and her son Isaac. But then God added these reassuring words: "As for Ishmael, I have heard you," and He tells Abraham how he will answer prayer for Ishmael.

Isn't Abraham's prayer: "Oh that Ishmael would live before you" the prayer of every Christian parent for our sons and daughters? We want more than anything for our kids to acknowledge Him as Lord and Saviour and honour Him with their lifestyle and choices.

Let's not give up praying for them, knowing that just as God heard Abraham's prayer for Ishmael, God hears our prayers for the Ishmaels and the Isaacs in our lives.


PRAYER: Dear God, thank You that You hear my prayers for my children and grandchildren. Please bless them with Your favour. Amen.


MORE: Prayers for children

Praying scripture for and over children is powerful. "Praying for the Children" is a compilation of Bible verses (including references) we can use in prayer for our Isaacs and Ishmaels, Sarahs and Rebekahs.

Plot points in God's story

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Genesis 17:1-14

TO CHEW ON: "And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you." Genesis 17:11

You probably own a few things that signify watershed moments in your life — the Bible you were given at your baptism perhaps, a wedding ring, maybe the clothes your daughter wore when she was dedicated. As people we benefit from such tangible reminders of our history, the things we've experienced, and the promises we've made.

God has sealed His dealings with humanity with signs and markers too. We have the record of them in the Bible:

1. Rainbow — a sign marking God's promise to never again destroy all humanity by flood (Genesis 9:12-15).

2. Circumcision — "...an external sign which showed that Abraham and his descendants were God's covenant people" New Spirit Filled Life Bible, p.27.

3. Blood, painted on the lintel and door frames of the house — a sign that the death angel should pass over that house (Exodus 12:13).

4. Unleavened bread — to remind the Israelites that God had brought them out of Egypt (Exodus 13:6-10).

5. Sacrifice of firstborn animals —  a reminder of God sparing Israel's firstborn sons the night the death angel visited (Exodus 13:16).

6. Scarlet cord draped from the window of a house —  a sign that marked Rahab and her family for rescue from Jericho (Joshua 2:12, 17-18).

7. Altar of 12 stones — a sign to remind the Israelites of how God helped them cross the Jordan River to Canaan (Joshua 4:1-7).

8. Dove as the Holy Spirit, ascending and alighting on Jesus at His baptism — a sign of God's favour on Him (Matthew 3:16).

Henry Blackaby, in his book Experiencing God, says this about the way God works — the actions behind the list of signs, above:

"God works in sequence to accomplish His divine purpose. What He did in the past was accomplished with a kingdom purpose in mind. What He is doing in the present is in sequence with the past and with the same kingdom purpose. Every act of God builds on the past, with a view toward the future" Experiencing God Workbook, p. 124.

If you look back over the signs I've listed (and there are many more), can you see a thread? Are they not all part of God's history of salvation—from God's promise to never again destroy all humanity by flood, to His establishing His covenant of nationhood with Abraham, to His keeping of that nation through Egypt's slavery and their wilderness wanderings to, finally, the coming of Jesus, the lamb that would save us all?

God's message of love to us through these markers and signs is just another reason for awe and worship.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for Your plan of salvation and how you have threaded signs of it through the Bible story. Help me to be alert to the signs of Your working in my life. I pray, with David, "Show me a sign for good...." Amen.

MORE: Personal markers

It is good to reflect on the signs, objects or markers that tell the story of God at work in our lives. For me those include significant Bible verses, certain books, a special song...

If we read the accounts of God giving His people signs, one of the reasons He gave the sign, in almost every case, was to help parents explain God's ways their children and grandchildren.

Could you use the signs, objects or markers you recalled to tell to your children and grandchildren the story of how God has worked in your life?

(From the archives)

Irresistible temptation?

"Christ in the Desert" by Ivan Kramskoy - 1872

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Luke 4:1-13

TO CHEW ON: “’Therefore if you will worship me all will be yours’” – the Devil. Luke 4:7

Who of us can’t empathize with Jesus in His temptation? At the moment of His greatest vulnerability Satan came to Him, whispering--You need this. You deserve this. Here’s a way to prove how really great You are. 

Satan uses the same tactics with us. The Apostle John, in 1 John 2:16 puts easy-to-recognize labels on Satan's three most-used modes of temptation:

1. “The lust of the flesh.” Your physical self craves this. You’ve got to have it. Satan tried it on Eve in Eden (“the tree was good for food”–Genesis 3:15), and here on Jesus (“Command this stone to become bread”).

2. “The lust of the eyes.” You see, crave, and covet. Satan drew Eve’s attention to the forbidden fruit which was “pleasant to the eyes.” To Jesus the devil pointed out “all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.”

3. “The pride of life.” Here’s a way to realize or prove your human potential. To Eve it was “a tree desirable to make one wise.” Satan challenged Jesus: “throw yourself down from here.” The arrival of angels to rescue Him would prove His identity as the fulfillment of a prophecy about Messiah (Psalm 91:11-12).

When dealing with temptation, first we need to recognize it. Look for the satanic fingerprints of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life on temptations that come our way.

After recognizing temptation, we need to deal with it. To each temptation Jesus replied with truth–the Scripture. He knew that Satan’s stated or implied promises were only as good as their author–full of deceit and a pack of lies. There are other ways to respond. Sometimes we need to flee the situation (push away from the table, turn off the TV or computer). At other times we need to face the situation (you’ve just got to your car and realized there is a bag of flour, unnoticed and unpaid-for, on the bottom of your grocery cart, so you turn around and head back into the store).

I love 1 Corinthians 10:13–the classic dealing-with-temptation verse: “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”

Next time we recognize temptation, let's breathe an SOS prayer and then take the "way of escape" that God shows us.

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank You for Your example of how to deal with temptation. Help me to recognize temptation and discover Your way of escape. Amen.

MORE: Oswald Chambers on temptation:

"The word 'temptation' has come down in the world; we are apt to use it wrongly. Temptation is not sin, it is the thing we are bound to meet if we are men....


A man's disposition on the inside, i.e., what he possesses in his personality, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the nature of the one tempted, and reveals the possibilities of the nature. Every man has the setting of his own temptation, and the temptation will come along the line of the ruling disposition. " (From My Utmost For His Highest)

(From the archives)

Fear and friendship

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 25:1-22

TO CHEW ON: "Who is the man who fears the Lord? Him will he instruct in the way he should choose.... The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he will teach him in the way he chooses." PSALM 25:12,14 ESV

It's interesting that this psalm promises God's guidance and friendship to those who fear Him.

The word fear (yare') here doesn't only mean to be afraid in its usual English sense. It also means to "Stand in awe of, be awed, reverence, honour and respect." The Amplified translation includes those shades of meaning: "Who is the man who reverently fears and worships the Lord? ....The secret [of the sweet satisfying companionship] of the Lord have they who fear (revere and worship) Him and He will show them His covenant and reveal to them its [deep inner] meaning."

The words worship and revere imply that our relationship with God is not one of equals. It is similar in some ways to the relationship of subjects to a monarch. Even a king's son or daughter must treat him with special deference observing protocol, at least in public.

When we fear God we become good candidates for His instruction and guidance. It means we will pay attention to what pleases Him. We will accept His correction and discipline. We will obey Him when He tells us what to do and how to do it.

The wonderful thing is God is not some cold distant sovereign ordering us around, but a God who, in response to our fear (respect, reverence, worship), extends (amazing thought) "sweet, satisfying companionship" i.e. "friendship."

PRAYER: Dear God, when I think about You and all Your power, authority, wisdom, creativity, and compassion, the only appropriate response is fear.  I am amazed and incredibly grateful that in response to my fear, You offer friendship. Amen.

MORE: "The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom"

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Prov. 1:7). Happy the soul that has been awed by a view of God's majesty, that has had a vision of God's awful greatness, His ineffable holiness, His perfect righteousness, His irresistible power, His sovereign grace. Does someone say, "But it is only the unsaved, those outside of Christ, who need to fear God"? Then the sufficient answer is that the saved, those who are in Christ, are admonished to work out their own salvation with "fear and trembling" - by A. W. Pink. Read all of "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."

(From the archives)