Do It Now! by Oswald Chambers

Do It Now! Agree with your adversary quickly…  MATTHEW 5:25 In this verse, Jesus Christ laid down a very important principle by saying, “Do what you know you must do— now. Do it quickly. If you don’t, an inevitable process will begin to work ‘till you have paid the last penny’ (Matthew 5:26) in pain, agony, and distress.” God’s laws are unchangeable and there is no escape from them. The teachings of Jesus always penetrate right to the heart of our being. Wanting to make sure that my adversary gives me all my rights is a natural thing. But Jesus says that it is a matter of inescapable and eternal importance to me that I pay my adversary what I owe him. From our Lord’s standpoint it doesn’t matter whether I am cheated or not, but what does matter is that I don’t cheat someone else. Am I insisting on having my own rights, or am I paying what I owe from Jesus Christ’s standpoint? Do it quickly— bring yourself to judgment now. In moral and spiritual matters, you must act immediately. If you don’t, the inevitable, relentless process will begin to work. God is determined to have His child as pure, clean, and white as driven snow, and as long as there is disobedience in any point of His teaching, He will allow His Spirit to use whatever process it may take to bring us to obedience. The fact that we insist on proving that we are right is almost always a clear indication that we have some point of disobedience. No wonder the Spirit of God so strongly urges us to stay steadfastly in the light! (see John 3:19-21). “Agree with your adversary quickly….” Have you suddenly reached a certain place in your relationship with someone, only to find that you have anger in your heart? Confess it quickly— make it right before God. Be reconciled to that person— do it now! From My Utmost for His Highest Updated Edition

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS Seeing is never believing: we interpret what we see in the light of what we believe. Faith is confidence in God before you see God emerging; therefore the nature of faith is that it must be tried.

The New Testament Church by Charles Stanley

Matthew 16:13-18

Today the word church is often used differently than the way Scripture defines it. We tend to think of a building with a steeple, a morning or evening service, or even a potluck get-together. In the Bible, however, “church” means a body of believers under the authority of their leader, Jesus Christ (Col. 1:18). And according to God’s Word, the church has three purposes: worship of the Lord, ministry to believers, and outreach to an unbelieving world. 

When we exalt the living God and glorify His name, we show our Father that we love Him. Psalm 100:2-4 encourages us to “come before Him with joyful singing” and to “enter His gates with thanksgiving and ... praise.” Christians should be both personally and corporately devoted to God. Teaching and encouraging brothers and sisters produces spiritual fruit in them (Heb. 10:24-25; Col. 3:16). Then they can spread the good news in their own sphere of influence—that through God’s Son, there is not only forgiveness of sin but also life eternal. 

Christians meet together regularly to worship, encourage, instruct, and reach those who don’t know Him. In your local fellowship, are you working toward these goals?

What do you usually pray about? by Adrian Rogers

What do you usually pray about?

For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. Luke 19:10

Do you know what the most frequent prayer request is about? Physical healing.

“Pray for my aunt who’s a Christian—she’s about to die.” “Pray for my uncle. He’s saved, but he’s having heart surgery.”

But how many prayer meetings have you been to where people asked for prayer for their lost neighbor who is going to hell?

More often than not, we’re more interested in keeping the saints out of heaven than keeping the lost out of hell.

It’s not wrong to pray for our saved loved ones facing a crisis, but how much more urgent to pray for those who, if they died today, would go out into a dark, Christ-less eternity?

It’s not a tragedy to die and go to heaven. It is a tragedy to die and go to hell.

Friend, it’s time we elevated our prayers outside the physical realm of life into the spiritual realm.

Take a look at your prayer list today—where are the lost who need to be saved? What are you doing to help them find their way?

Navigating Life’s Rapids by Adam R. Holz

Navigating Life’s Rapids

Adam R. Holz

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. Psalm 32:8

Psalm 32:5–11

“Everybody on the left, give me three strong forward strokes!” our whitewater raft guide shouted. Those on the left dug in, pulling our raft away from a churning vortex. For several hours, we’d learned the importance of listening to our guide’s instructions. His steady voice enabled six people with little rafting experience to work together to plot the safest course down a raging river.

Life has its share of whitewater rapids, doesn’t it? One moment, it’s smooth sailing. Then, in a flash, we’re paddling like mad to avoid suddenly swirling whirlpools. Those tense moments make us keenly aware of our need for a skilled guide, a trusted voice to help us navigate turbulent times.

In Psalm 32, God promises to be that voice: “I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go” (v. 8). Backing up, we see that confessing our sins (v. 5) and prayerfully seeking Him (v. 6) play a role in hearing Him too. Still, I take comfort in the fact that God promises, “I will counsel you with my loving eye on you” (v. 8), a reminder that His guidance flows from His love. Near the end of the chapter, the psalmist concludes, “The Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts him” (v. 10). And as we trust Him, we can rest in His promise to guide us through life’s rockiest passages.

What circumstances in your life right now feel like whitewater rapids? How might you seek God’s guiding voice about how to respond?

Father, thank You for Your promise to be my Guide. Help me to seek You and listen to You as You direct the course of my life.

Prayer Is a Conversation by Billy Graham

Prayer Is a Conversation

Prayer is a two-way conversation; it is our talking to God, and His talking to us. As a Christian, you have a heavenly Father who hears and answers prayer. Jesus said, “All things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” Every man or woman whose life has counted for the church and the Kingdom of God has been a person of prayer. You cannot afford to be too busy to pray. A prayerless Christian is a powerless Christian. Jesus Christ spent many hours in prayer. Sometimes He spent the night on a mountaintop in solitary communion with God the Father. If He felt that He had to pray, how much more do we need to pray!

Daily Prayer

There is inexpressible joy as I come to You in prayer, my heavenly Father.

“You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.””

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭21:22‬ ‭NLT‬‬

June 30 / Streams in the Desert

"There was silence, and I heard a still voice" (Job 4:16, margin).

A score of years ago, a friend placed in my hand a book called True Peace. It was an old mediaeval message, and it had but one thought--that God was waiting in the depths of my being to talk to me if I would only get still enough to hear His voice.

I thought this would be a very easy matter, and so began to get still. But I had no sooner commenced than a perfect pandemonium of voices reached my ears, a thousand clamoring notes from without and within, until I could hear nothing but their noise and din. Some were my own voices, my own questions, some my very prayers. Others were suggestions of the tempter and the voices from the world's turmoil.

In every direction I was pulled and pushed and greeted with noisy acclamations and unspeakable unrest. It seemed necessary for me to listen to some of them and to answer some of them; but God said, "Be still, and know that I am God." Then came the conflict of thoughts for tomorrow, and its duties and cares; but God said, "Be still."

And as I listened, and slowly learned to obey, and shut my ears to every sound, I found after a while that when the other voices ceased, or I ceased to hear them, there was a still small voice in the depths of my being that began to speak with an inexpressible tenderness, power and comfort.

As I listened, it became to me the voice of prayer, the voice of wisdom, the voice of duty, and I did not need to think so hard, or pray so hard, or trust so hard; but that "still small voice" of the Holy Spirit in my heart was God's prayer in my secret soul, was God's answer to all my questions, was God's life and strength for soul and body, and became the substance of all knowledge, and all prayer and all blessing: for it was the living GOD Himself as my life, my all.

It is thus that our spirit drinks in the life of our risen Lord, and we go forth to life's conflicts and duties like a flower that has drunk in, through the shades of night, the cool and crystal drops of dew. But as dew never falls on a stormy night, go the dews of His grace never come to the restless soul.
--A. B. Simpson

Last Days Living by Greg Laurie

Last Days Living

“When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am” (John 14:3 nlt).

Let’s say, for the sake of a point, that we knew Jesus was coming back tomorrow at 3:00 PM. Of course, we know this couldn’t be the case because Jesus said no one knows the day or the hour of His return. But, for the sake of a point, let’s say that’s when we knew Jesus was coming for us.

What do you think we’d be doing at 2:45 PM tomorrow? I think we’d have multiple Bibles opened in front of us. We’d be praying, singing worship songs, and sharing the gospel all at the same time.

Well, we don’t know when Christ will return, but we should live every day as though it were our last day because one day it will be. We should live every day as though it were the day that Christ could come back because one day He will.

The Bible is very clear in pointing out that Jesus Christ is returning, and He’s coming for His people. So, what are we supposed to do in light of this fact?

In 1 Corinthians, the apostle Paul addressed these words to believers living in the last days (and I believe that’s us): “If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure” (10:12–13 nlt).

We all get tempted. We all face trials, especially these days. This passage reminds us that we’re not alone in our struggles. Sometimes suffering and hardship can seem random and pointless, but it never is. God has His purposes for allowing these things to happen in our lives.

An Impossible Promise by Alistair Begg

An Impossible Promise 

Ah, Lord God! It is you who has made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.

Jeremiah 32:17

At the very time when the Chaldeans surrounded Jerusalem, and when the sword, famine, and pestilence had desolated the land, Jeremiah was commanded by God to purchase a field and have the deed of transfer legally sealed and witnessed. This was a strange purchase for a rational man to make. Caution could not justify it, for it was buying with hardly a probability that the purchaser would ever enjoy the possession. But it was enough for Jeremiah that his God had instructed him, for he knew with certainty that God will be justified of all His children. He reasoned thus: "Lord God, You can make this plot of ground useful to me; You can rid this land of these oppressors; You can make me sit under my vine and my fig-tree in the heritage that I have bought; for You made the heavens and the earth, and there is nothing too hard for You." There was a majesty in the early saints, who dared to do at God's command things that human reason would condemn.

Whether it be a Noah who is to build a ship on dry land, an Abraham who is to offer up his only son, a Moses who is to despise the treasures of Egypt, or a Joshua who is to besiege Jericho for seven days, using no weapons but the blasts of trumpets, they all act upon God's command, contrary to the dictates of human reason; and the Lord gives them a rich reward as the result of their obedient faith. Would to God we had in contemporary Christianity a more potent infusion of this heroic faith in God. If we would venture more upon the naked promise of God, we would enter a world of wonders to which as yet we are strangers. May Jeremiah's place of confidence become ours—nothing is too hard for the God that created the heavens and the earth.

How to Learn Scripture with the Right Motives / Senior Living

How to Learn Scripture with the Right Motives

I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. - Psalms 119:11

A story is told of a village church in Kalonovka, Russia, where attendance at Sunday school picked up after the priest started handing out candy to the peasant children. One of the most faithful was a pug-nosed, pugnacious lad who recited his Scriptures with proper piety, pocketed his reward, then fled into the fields to munch on it.

The priest took a liking to the boy and persuaded him to attend church school by offering other incentives. There, the priest managed to teach the boy the four Gospels. In fact, this little boy won a special prize for learning all four by heart and reciting them nonstop in church!

Fast forward 60 years, and the boy still loved to recite Scriptures, but in a context that would horrify the old priest. For the prized pupil who memorized so much of the Bible is Nikita Khrushchev, the former Communist czar. The same little lad who nimbly mouthed God’s Word as a child later declared God to be nonexistent.

Khrushchev memorized the Scripture for the rewards rather than for the meaning it had for his life. Artificial motivation will produce artificial results. So as you learn the Word of God, keep your motives pure and make it an exercise of both your heart and your mind!

Prayer Challenge

Ask God to keep your motives pure when it comes to learning His Word. Pray that He would help you absorb it into your heart as well as your mind!

June 30 / Wisdom from the Psalms

Psalms 81:2
Take a psalm, and bring hither the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery.

Beth was different when she was singing. Somehow the pressures of the world disappeared when the music filled her head and heart. Her whole life felt somehow lighter, brighter, when she lifted her voice in praise through song. Music was the best expression of who she was and what she believed. Music made God real to Beth.

 

Music is a universal language. Every culture has its music, and it is revered as one of the finest arts. Music brings people together and can move us closer to God. God loves music and the spirit from which music springs. The quality is not nearly as important as the intention of the heart. Sing out to God, and He will bless you richly.

 

Prayer: Music touches my heart in a special way, Lord. Speak to me through the beauty of music. Touch me day by day. Amen.

Two Kinds of Prayer by David Jeremiah

Two Kinds of Prayer Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” Mark 9:24 Christians who attend liturgical church services—services where prayers and creeds are written out and repeated each Sunday—find security in the repetition of time-honored words. Christians who attend non-liturgical services find comfort in the opposite—praying and professing in a different, spontaneous way each week. Not only is there room for both in Christendom, there is room for both in each Christian’s life.

Recommended Reading: Matthew 6:9-13

Jesus taught His disciples a prayer to pray—word for word—that has been repeated in church services for nearly two thousand years (Matthew 6:9-13). But the Bible is also filled with instances of spontaneous prayers—prayers that only make sense in the moment. Like the father who sought relief for his demonized son: “Lord . . . help my unbelief!” Prayers prayed by memory allow us time to pray meditatively, thinking about God rather than searching for words. Spontaneous prayers call up passion and devotion and shameless dependence on the only One who can help. As you pray, include both practiced prayers and pressured prayers. And enjoy the blessings that come from each. Prayer does not change God, but it changes him who prays.  Soren Kierkegaard

The Strictest Discipline by Oswald Chambers

The Strictest Discipline If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.  MATTHEW 5:30 Jesus did not say that everyone must cut off his right hand, but that “if your right hand causes you to sin” in your walk with Him, then it is better to “cut it off.” There are many things that are perfectly legitimate, but if you are going to concentrate on God you cannot do them. Your right hand is one of the best things you have, but Jesus says that if it hinders you in following His precepts, then “cut it off.” The principle taught here is the strictest discipline or lesson that ever hit humankind. When God changes you through regeneration, giving you new life through spiritual rebirth, your life initially has the characteristic of being maimed. There are a hundred and one things that you dare not do— things that would be sin for you, and would be recognized as sin by those who really know you. But the unspiritual people around you will say, “What’s so wrong with doing that? How absurd you are!” There has never yet been a saint who has not lived a maimed life initially. Yet it is better to enter into life maimed but lovely in God’s sight than to appear lovely to man’s eyes but lame to God’s. At first, Jesus Christ through His Spirit has to restrain you from doing a great many things that may be perfectly right for everyone else but not right for you. Yet, see that you don’t use your restrictions to criticize someone else. The Christian life is a maimed life initially, but in Matthew 5:48 Jesus gave us the picture of a perfectly well-rounded life— “You shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” From My Utmost for His Highest Updated Edition

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS The great point of Abraham’s faith in God was that he was prepared to do anything for God. from Not Knowing Whither

Are You Tired of Waiting on God? by Adrian Rogers

Are You Tired of Waiting on God?

Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord! Psalm 27:14

Do you know the story of Joshua and how the wall of Jericho fell down? Some people haven’t heard the whole story. They think the Israelites just marched up to it, gave a shout, and “the walls came a-tumblin’ down.” Not at all.

Following God’s orders to Joshua, the Israelites marched around it once a day for six days. Then on the seventh day, they marched around it seven times before they gave the shout. Then the wall collapsed!

Now, why not just walk around Jericho one time? Why would God make them go around it for seven days?  I think it was because God was testing their faith.

God was teaching them that waiting time is not wasted time. Isaiah 28:16b says, “He that believeth shall not make haste.” God is never in a hurry, like we are. We get upset when we miss a section in a revolving door! God is also never late. He knows what He is doing.

Do you know what our problem is? We’ve been around Jericho six times and we’re ready to quit. Don’t do it. Stay the course. Say with the psalmist: “My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from Him” (Psalm 62:5).

Knowing the Father Through the Son by Charles Stanley

John 1:9-18

How do you know who God is? Many people today have arrived at their own perception of Him, based on their personal ideas, reasoning, and desires. And some don’t want anyone interfering with their preconceived notions of God. This is nothing new—it was true in the first century, just as it is today. 

Jesus came to His own people, the Jews. But despite the testimony of John the Baptist—that Christ was someone who surpassed him in rank and existed long before arriving on earth—they didn’t want Him. Our Savior came to die in order to save those who would believe in Him, but He also came to explain the Father. Jesus has both the knowledge and the authority to do this, because He is God the Son and the only one who has seen and fully knows God the Father. 

Therefore, if you want to know and understand who God is, look at Jesus—not just in the Gospel accounts of His earthly life but in the entire New Testament. This is the best way to make sure that you are not deceived in your understanding of Him. Being confronted with the truth now is much better than discovering too late that you are following the wrong god.

Simply Ask by Patricia Raybon

Simply Ask

Patricia Raybon

Before they call I will answer. Isaiah 65:24

2 Kings 5:9–14

Her doctor said her detached retinas couldn’t be repaired. But after living without sight for fifteen years—learning Braille, and using a cane and service dog—a Montana woman’s life changed when her husband asked another eye doctor a simple question: could she be helped? The answer was yes. As the doctor discovered, the woman had a common eye condition, cataracts, which the doctor removed from her right eye. When the eye patch came off the next day, her vision was 20/20. A second surgery for her left eye met with equal success.

A simple question also changed the life of Naaman, a powerful military man with leprosy. But Naaman raged arrogantly at the prophet Elisha’s instructions to “wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored” (2 Kings 5:10). Naaman’s servants, however, asked the military leader a simple question: “If the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it?” (v. 13). Persuaded, Naaman washed “and his flesh was restored and became clean” (v. 14).

In our lives, sometimes we struggle with a problem because we won’t ask God. Will You help? Should I go? Will You lead? He doesn’t require complicated questions from us to help. “Before they call I will answer,” God promised His people (Isaiah 65:24). So today, simply ask Him.

How complex are your prayer requests? What life problem can you offer to God in a simple prayer?

Dear heavenly Father, when life feels complicated and difficult, thank You for Your promise to hear even my simple prayers.

The Hands of Jesus by Billy Graham

The Hands of Jesus

During the war a church in Strasburg, Germany, was totally destroyed; but a statue of Christ which stood by the altar was almost unharmed. Only the hands of the statue were missing. When the church was rebuilt, a famous sculptor offered to make new hands; but, after considering the matter, the members decided to let it stand as it was—without hands. “For,” they said, “Christ has no hands but our hands to do His work on earth. If we don’t feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, entertain the stranger, visit the imprisoned, and clothe the naked, who will?” Christ is depending on us to do the very things which He did while upon earth. My friend, if the gospel we preach does not have a social application, if it will not work effectively in the work-a-day world, then it is not the Gospel of Christ.

Daily Prayer

I look at my hands, Lord Jesus, and ask You to use them this day. Make me conscious of the needs of those who hurt.

“For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭25:35‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Destroyed or Restored? by Greg Laurie

Destroyed or Restored?

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10 nkjv).

Some time ago I was at Disneyland with two of my grandchildren, and I discovered something: All varieties of roller coaster rides now nauseate me.

In 1977 I was on the inaugural ride of Space Mountain. I remember thinking, “This isn’t even scary at all.”

But this time, I was thinking, “When can I get off this ride?” It actually made me sick to my stomach.

Then we went on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and that nauseated me too. Everything nauseated me except the corn dog I had. That was the highlight of the day, no question about it.

That’s how sin can be. What used to be fun now makes us sick. Maybe we used to do things that were fun at first. Then they were not as fun. And then they were a little bit miserable. Ultimately, they became completely depressing, and we can’t believe that we wasted our lives doing those things.

The Bible talks about the pleasures of sin for a season. For instance, Hebrews tells us, “It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin” (11:24–25 nlt).

For Moses, it basically came down to the simple recognition that the worst God had to offer was better than the best the world had to offer.

People will let you down. Circumstances will let you down. But Jesus never will let you down. He said, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10 nkjv).

You have a choice: Death or life. Be destroyed or be restored. It’s really up to you.

June 29 / Streams in the Desert

"There we saw the Giants" (Num. 13:33).

Yes, they saw the giants, but Caleb and Joshua saw God! Those who doubt say, "We be not able to go up." Those who believe say, "Let us go up at once and possess it, for we are well able."

Giants stand for great difficulties; and giants are stalking everywhere. They are in our families, in our churches, in our social life, in our own hearts; and we must overcome them or they will eat us up, as these men of old said of the giants of Canaan. The men of faith said, "They are bread for us; we will eat them up." In other words, "We will be stronger by overcoming them than if there had been no giants to overcome."

Now the fact is, unless we have the overcoming faith we shall be eaten up, consumed by the giants in our path. Let us have the spirit of faith that these men of faith had, and see God, and He will take care of the difficulties.
--Selected

It is when we are in the way of duty that we find giants. It was when Israel was going forward that the, giants appeared. When they turned back into the wilderness they found none.

There is a prevalent idea that the power of God in a human life should lift us above all trials and conflicts. The fact is, the power of God always brings a conflict and a struggle. One would have thought that on his great missionary journey to Rome, Paul would have been carried by some mighty providence above the power of storms and tempests and enemies. But, on the contrary, it was one long, hard fight with persecuting Jews, with wild tempests, with venomous vipers and all the powers of earth and hell, and at last he was saved, as it seemed, by the narrowest margin, and had to swim ashore at Malta on a piece of wreckage and barely escape a watery grave.

Was that like a God of infinite power? Yes, just like Him. And so Paul tells us that when he took the Lord Jesus Christ as the life of his body, a severe conflict immediately came; indeed, a conflict that never ended, a pressure that was persistent, but out of which he always emerged victorious through the strength of Jesus Christ.

The language in which he describes this is most graphic. "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be manifested in our body."

What a ceaseless, strenuous struggle! It is impossible to express in English the forcible language of the original. There are five pictures in succession. In the first, the idea is crowding enemies pressing in from every side, and yet not crushing him because the police of heaven cleared the way just wide enough for him to get through. The literal translation would be, "We are crowded on every side, but not crushed."

The second picture is that of one whose way seems utterly closed and yet he has pressed through; there is light enough to show him the next step. The Revised Version translates it, "Perplexed but not unto despair." Rotherham still more literally renders it, "Without a way, but not without a by-way."

The third figure is that of an enemy in hot pursuit while the divine Defender still stands by, and he is not left alone. Again we adopt the fine rendering of Rotherham, "Pursued but not abandoned."

The fourth figure is still more vivid and dramatic. The enemy has overtaken him, has struck him, has knocked him down. But it is not a fatal blow; he is able to rise again. It might be translated, "Overthrown but not overcome."

Once more the figure advances, and now it seems to be even death itself, "Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus." But he does not die, for "the life also of Jesus" now comes to his aid and he lives in the life of another until his life work is done.

The reason so many fail in this experience of divine healing is because they expect to have it all without a struggle, and when the conflict comes and the battle wages long, they become discouraged and surrender. God has nothing worth having that is easy. There are no cheap goods in the heavenly market. Our redemption cost all that God had to give, and everything worth having is expensive. Hard places are the very school of faith and character, and if we are to rise over mere human strength and prove the power of life divine in these mortal bodies, it must be through a process of conflict that may well be called the birth travail of a new life. It is the old figure of the bush that burned, but was not consumed, or of the Vision in the house of the Interpreter of the flame that would not expire, notwithstanding the fact that the demon ceaselessly poured water on it, because in the background stood an angel ever pouring oil and keeping the flame aglow.

No, dear suffering child of God, you cannot fail if only you dare to believe, to stand fast and refuse to be overcome.
--Tract

Trust in God Alone by Alistair Begg

Trust in God Alone 

And so in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the land, God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.

2 Chronicles 32:31

Hezekiah was growing so inwardly great and priding himself so much upon the favor of God that self-righteousness crept in, and because he trusted in himself, the grace of God was for a time, in its more active operations, withdrawn. If the grace of God were to leave the best Christian, there is enough sin in his heart to make him the worst of transgressors. If left to yourselves, you who are warmest for Christ would cool down like Laodicea into sickening lukewarmness: You who are sound in the faith would be white with the leprosy of false doctrine; you who now walk before the Lord in excellency and integrity would reel to and fro and stagger with a drunkenness of evil passion. Like the moon, we borrow our light; bright as we are when grace shines on us, we are darkness itself when the Sun of Righteousness withdraws Himself.

Therefore, let us cry to God to never leave us. "Take not Your Holy Spirit from me! Do not withdraw from us Your indwelling grace! Have You not said, 'I, the LORD, am its keeper; every moment I water it. Lest anyone punish it, I keep it night and day'?1Lord, keep us everywhere. Keep us when we're in the valley so that we do not grumble against Your humbling hand; keep us when we're on the mountain, so we do not lose our balance by being lifted up; keep us in youth, when our passions are strong; keep us in old age, when becoming conceited in our wisdom, we may therefore prove greater fools than those who are young and silly; keep us when we come to die, in case at the very end we should deny You! Keep us living, keep us dying, keep us working, keep us suffering, keep us fighting, keep us resting, keep us everywhere, for everywhere we need You, O our God!"

1) Isaiah 27:3

What does it mean to be free in Christ? / Senior Living

What does it mean to be free in Christ?

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. - Galatians 5:1

A little boy had fallen ill and stayed home from school one afternoon. His mother was concerned he’d get behind, so she taught him the lesson for the day at home. The subject was prepositions, and the mother told the boy that it’s never okay to end a sentence with a preposition.

After the lesson was over, the boy thought he’d have some fun with his mom. So he came up with a sentence that ended with not one, but five prepositions. He yelled downstairs to his mom, “Mom, what did you bring that book I didn't want to be read to out of up for?!”

Many people think of rules like grammar as hard and fast – things that can never and should never be broken. But the truth is that we break them all the time when we talk to one another. We just have subconsciously agreed with others that some grammar rules can be broken every now and then.

But when it comes to God’s laws, we’re bound. In fact, if we fail to keep them at just one point, the Bible says we’re guilty of breaking all of them (James 2:10)!

Then what is our hope? Christ. He took our sins upon Himself and gave us His righteousness. So when God looks at you, He doesn’t see where you’ve fallen short. He sees the goodness of Jesus through your faith in Him. Praise God that you can live in freedom, not under Law, because of Christ’s death for you!

Ask God to reaffirm in your heart the truth that you can live in freedom in Jesus Christ!

Questions for Thought:

Why do you think many people constantly slip back into the idea that they earn their salvation through their works?

How might your attitude change if you truly understood that God loves you not based on what you do, but who you are in Christ?

June 29 / Wisdom from the Psalms

Psalms 80:13
The boar out of the wood doth waste it, and the wild beast of the field doth devour it.

Betty loved her flowers and plants. She spent hours pruning, planting, and paring. Her garden was her pride and joy. Betty invested so much of herself into her plants. For that reason, Betty was at war with the woodland animals that made their way into her yard. They would always get through the fences somehow and mutilate her beautiful garden. To Betty, the plants were beauty and joy, but to the animals, they were nothing more than lunch.

 

We have the capacity to truly appreciate the beauty and splendor of God's creation. Why, then, do so many people trash God's gift as blindly as animals destroy a beautiful garden? Why don't we appreciate nature more, and respect it? The Lord gave us His ability to see the beauty in things. Let us use that gift, and protect and defend the wonders of the world in which we live.

 

Prayer: Do not let me stomp through life like some wild an imal. Help me to see all creation as You see it. Fill me with the beauty of this world. Amen.

Performance Under Pressure by David Jeremiah

Performance Under Pressure We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 Pro football fans talk about DVOA (Defense-adjusted Value Over Average) for teams and individual players. The team with the best DVOA ranking for the 2019 NFL season was the Baltimore Ravens. That means that out of all 32 teams in the NFL, the Ravens had the best team performance throughout the entire regular season (based on the DVOA formula).

Recommended Reading: 2 Corinthians 1:8-11

Pressure in sports is temporary; pressure in life is continual. The apostle Paul talked about the pressure he faced—hard-pressed, perplexed, persecuted, struck down—and how he continued to bear fruit. Jesus described the pruning process in the spiritual life that results in more fruit (John 15:1-8). And we have the promises of God that assure us no pressure will ever be more than we can endure (1 Corinthians 10:13). Indeed, like silver in the refiner’s fire, heat burns away the dross and reveals the true value of Christ in us (Galatians 2:20). How would you rate your performance under pressure in the spiritual life? The purpose is “that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in [your] mortal flesh” (2 Corinthians 4:11). While the fire is hot, keep conversing with the Refiner.  F. B. Meyer

Held by the Grip of God by nOswald Chambers

Held by the Grip of God I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.  PHILIPPIANS 3:12 Never choose to be a worker for God, but once God has placed His call on you, woe be to you if you “turn aside to the right hand or to the left” (Deuteronomy 5:32). We are not here to work for God because we have chosen to do so, but because God has “laid hold of” us. And once He has done so, we never have this thought, “Well, I’m really not suited for this.” What you are to preach is also determined by God, not by your own natural leanings or desires. Keep your soul steadfastly related to God, and remember that you are called not simply to convey your testimony but also to preach the gospel. Every Christian must testify to the truth of God, but when it comes to the call to preach, there must be the agonizing grip of God’s hand on you— your life is in the grip of God for that very purpose. How many of us are held like that? Never water down the Word of God, but preach it in its undiluted sternness. There must be unflinching faithfulness to the Word of God, but when you come to personal dealings with others, remember who you are— you are not some special being created in heaven, but a sinner saved by grace. “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do…I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14). From My Utmost for His Highest Updated Edition

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS Am I getting nobler, better, more helpful, more humble, as I get older? Am I exhibiting the life that men take knowledge of as having been with Jesus, or am I getting more self-assertive, more deliberately determined to have my own way? It is a great thing to tell yourself the truth. from The Place of Help, 1005 R

Sunday Reflection: The Promise of Justice by Charles Stanley

We frequently think of justice in a negative light—as punishment or vindication—but it’s also immensely positive. In fact, the Hebrew word mishpat, which is commonly translated as “judgment” or “justice,” conveys a sense of making things right or putting them in their proper place. This is evident in the heartfelt prayers of the psalmists, who cry out for the Lord’s justice and restoration.

In Psalm 9, we see both of these ideas come together as David prays longingly for God to show him mercy through judgment on his enemies (Psalm 9:13-20). And it’s because of the Lord’s justice that we can be assured “the needy will not always be forgotten” and that hope remains for those who are afflicted (Psalm 9:18). We can take great comfort in this, especially when things feel unfair. God promises He is just and merciful—and He desires to make things right for us.

Think about it
• How does justice help put things in their proper place? 

• In what ways do justice and mercy work together in your life—especially in your relationships with others?  

• Reread Psalm 9:1-20. Can you imagine how David was feeling? What helps you focus on God’s love and mercy during times of trial?