July 30 / Streams in the Desert by L.B. Cowman

A cup of cold water only  (Matthew 10:42). What am I to do? I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good work, therefore, any kindness, or any service I can render to any soul of man or animal let me do it now. Let me not neglect or defer it, for I shall not pass this way again. --An Old Quaker Saying It isn't the thing you do, dear, It's the thing you leave undone, Which gives you the bitter heartache At the setting of the sun; The tender word unspoken, The letter you did not write, The flower you might have sent, dear, Are your haunting ghosts at night. The stone you might have lifted Out of your brother's way, The bit of heartsome counsel You were hurried too much to say; The loving touch of the hand, dear, The gentle and winsome tone, That you had no time or thought for, With troubles enough of your own. These little acts of kindness, So easily out of mind, These chances to be angels, Which even mortals find They come in night and silence, Each chill reproachful wraith, When hope is faint and flagging, And a blight has dropped on faith. For life is all too short, dear. And sorrow is all too great, To suffer our slow compassion That tarries until too late. And it's not the thing you do, dear, It's the thing you leave undone, Which gives you the bitter heartache, At the setting of the sun.--Adelaide Proctor Give what you have; to someone it may be better than you dare to think. --Longfellow

Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright! by David Jeremiah

Monday, July 30 Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright!    The lazy man says, “There is a lion outside! I shall be slain in the streets!” Proverbs 22:13    This past April, a neighborhood in New York City went into lockdown over reports of a tiger in the streets. The police got the call about 8:30 a.m., and the news swept through the area. People brought in their children and locked their doors as authorities mounted an intensive search. It turns out there was no tiger. It was a raccoon.

Recommended Reading: 2 Timothy 1:3-7

When our faith gets lazy and we aren’t trusting God as we should, every raccoon looks like a tiger. But when we’re walking with God and are confident in His promises, everything returns to its proper perspective. Proverbs 28:1 says, “The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” If you’re worried about something happening around you, turn to God in faith and respond to Him in righteousness. No one can lay hands on God’s anointed unless he is given permission to do so. God is ever present with us, just as He was with Elijah. Faith, which is trust, and fear are opposite poles. If a man has the one, he can scarcely have the other in vigorous operation. He that has his trust set upon God does not need to dread anything except the weakening or the paralyzing of that trust. Alexander Maclaren

A Permanent Promise by Alistair Begg

DAILY DEVOTIONAL JULY 30, 2018 A Permanent Promise Whoever comes to me I will never cast out. John 6:37 There is no expiration date on this promise. It does not merely say, "I will not cast out a sinner at his first coming," but "I will never cast him out." The original reads, "I will not, not cast out," or "I will never, never cast out." The text means that Christ will not at first reject a believer, and that as He will not do it at first, so He will not to the last. But suppose the believer sins after coming? "If anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."1 But suppose that believers backslide? "I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them."2 But believers may fall under temptation! "God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it."3 But the believer may fall into sin as David did! Yes, but He will "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow."4 Once in Christ, in Christ forever, Nothing from His love can sever. Jesus said, "I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand."5 What do you say to this, O trembling, feeble mind? This is a precious mercy. Coming to Christ, you do not come to One who will treat you well for a little while and then send you about your business, but He will receive you and make you His bride, and you shall be His forever! Live no longer in the spirit of bondage to fear, but in the spirit of adoption, which cries, "Abba, Father!" Oh, the grace of these words: "I will never cast out." 1) 1 John 2:1  2) Hosea 14:4 3) 1 Corinthians 10:13 4) Psalm 51:7 5) John 10:28

Overcoming Challenges / Our Daily Bread

Overcoming Challenges July 30, 2018

Read: Nehemiah 6:1–9, 15 Bible in a Year: Psalms 51–53; Romans 2 So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days.—Nehemiah 6:15 We gathered monthly to hold one another accountable to our individual goals. My friend Mary wanted to reupholster the seats of her dining room chairs before the year’s end. At our November meeting she wittily reported her progress from October: “It took ten months and two hours to recover my chairs.” After months of not being able to obtain the materials required, or find the quiet hours away from her demanding job and her toddler’s needs, the project took merely two hours of committed work to finish. The Lord called Nehemiah to a far greater project: to bring restoration to Jerusalem after its walls had lain in ruin for 150 years (Nehemiah 2:3-5, 12). As he led the people in the labor, they experienced mockery, attacks, distraction, and temptation to sin (4:3, 8; 6:10-12). Yet God equipped them to stand firm—resolute in their efforts—completing a daunting task in just fifty-two days. Overcoming such challenges requires much more than a personal desire or goal; Nehemiah was driven by an understanding that God appointed him to the task. His sense of purpose invigorated the people to follow his leadership despite incredible opposition. When God charges us with a task—whether to repair a relationship or share what He’s done in our lives—He gives us whatever skills and strength are necessary to continue in our effort to do what He’s asked, no matter what challenges come our way. —Kirsten Holmberg Lord, please equip me with Your strength to persevere and finish the tasks You’ve given me. May my labors bring You glory. God equips us to overcome obstacles and complete the tasks He’s given us to do. INSIGHT: What kinds of challenges have you faced? How has God helped you to overcome them?

Do You See Jesus in Your Clouds? by Oswald Chambers

Do You See Jesus in Your Clouds? Behold, He is coming with clouds…  REVELATION 1:7 In the Bible clouds are always associated with God. Clouds are the sorrows, sufferings, or providential circumstances, within or without our personal lives, which actually seem to contradict the sovereignty of God. Yet it is through these very clouds that the Spirit of God is teaching us how to walk by faith. If there were never any clouds in our lives, we would have no faith. “The clouds are the dust of His feet” (Nahum 1:3). They are a sign that God is there. What a revelation it is to know that sorrow, bereavement, and suffering are actually the clouds that come along with God! God cannot come near us without clouds— He does not come in clear-shining brightness. It is not true to say that God wants to teach us something in our trials. Through every cloud He brings our way, He wants us to unlearnsomething. His purpose in using the cloud is to simplify our beliefs until our relationship with Him is exactly like that of a child— a relationship simply between God and our own souls, and where other people are but shadows. Until other people become shadows to us, clouds and darkness will be ours every once in a while. Is our relationship with God becoming more simple than it has ever been? There is a connection between the strange providential circumstances allowed by God and what we know of Him, and we have to learn to interpret the mysteries of life in the light of our knowledge of God. Until we can come face to face with the deepest, darkest fact of life without damaging our view of God’s character, we do not yet know Him. “…they were fearful as they entered the cloud” (Luke 9:34). Is there anyone except Jesus in your cloud? If so, it will only get darker until you get to the place where there is “no one anymore, but only Jesus …” (Mark 9:8; also see Mark 2:7). From My Utmost for His Highest Updated Edition

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS The remarkable thing about fearing God is that when you fear God you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God you fear everything else. “Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord”;… from The Highest Good—The Pilgrim’s Song Book, 537 L

How to Cry Out to God by Charles Stanley

Matthew 14:29-30

The phone rings, and you answer. A sullen voice informs you of a tragedy. Your heart is so heavy that you feel paralyzed by anguish. What do you do?

Bad news, danger, and pain all cause us to seek assistance. As believers, we lean on the almighty God, who is more than able to help, no matter what has befallen us. At those moments when we are sideswiped by life’s circumstances, we should cry out to Him.

In the Bible, crying out refers to speaking audibly with great emotion concerning an urgent need. God invites us to use this form of prayer to communicate that we desperately need His mercy.

It takes both faith and humility to share our heart’s concern aloud. Crying out, then, is a way for God’s children to express trust in the Lord’s ability and willingness to help. By calling upon Him with such urgency, we also lay down our pride and any attitude of self-sufficiency.

The Word of God assures us that our Father hears our cries and responds. In Psalm 3:4, for example, David wrote, “I was crying to the Lord with my voice, and He answered me from His holy mountain.” When we call aloud for help in Jesus’ name, we invite His power into the situation. Remember that there is strength in just speaking His name.

When we cry out to God, He may remove the problem immediately, yet we often have to wait for His perfect timing. Harsh circumstances might even be allowed to remain for His good purposes. But we can always count on His comfort and presence, which enable us to live with joy and hope.

Draw Near / LOCKED UP IN ST. PETERSBURG

LOCKED UP IN ST. PETERSBURG

Some of the oldest manuscripts of the Bible are locked up in the library at St. Petersburg, Russia. Discovered many years ago, these Hebrew copies are said to have belonged to the Jews of the Dispersion. They show the meticulous care translators took in reproducing God's Word. According to the Talmud, one scribe wrote in the vowel-points; a third translator reviewed the work of the first two; and a fourth scribe carefully recorded the work of all three in the "Masorah." This system was designed to keep men from adding their own comments to the text.

Because they are unaware of how we got our Bible, many people ask, "How can we be sure that what we read is what the prophets wrote?" Even a casual study of the Bible will convince a person that great care has been taken to assure correct and literal translation. Recent discoveries of unknown manuscripts reinforce this premise. Translators understand how urgent it is to pass along correct copies since the Bible warns against distortion of the truth. Note that God exalts His Word above His name. John adds that Jesus became the fulfillment of that Word (John 1:14).

The Bible is not made up of the words of mere men: For prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). Because the Bible is a "holy" book, we must handle it carefully and make it a living guide for our lives. The Bible is not man's view of God. Rather, it is God speaking to man.

“I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭138:2‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Spiritual Amnesia by John MacArthur

STRENGTH FOR TODAY

Spiritual Amnesia  “For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins” (2 Peter 1:9). If you don’t practice spiritual virtues now, you’ll forget their significance later. Physical nearsightedness and mental amnesia both are unwanted conditions. Nearsightedness (myopia) causes people’s eyes to focus the parallel rays of light in front of the retina. They can clearly see things right in front of them, but the farther out they look, the more out of focus objects become. Amnesia, of course, is memory loss. Sometimes it’s selective, but usually it’s total—everything prior to a certain time or incident. It often causes people to forget their name, their family, and everything about their identity and background. Those two impairments should be even less welcome on the spiritual level. Professed believers who are unfruitful become spiritually nearsighted. They focus on temporal fads and passing earthly fashions. By the time they try to look ahead to eternity, it is so out of focus for them that they can’t see it. Those with spiritual amnesia, because they see no increase of spiritual virtue in their lives, forget they were supposed to be saved from their sinful lifestyles. They don’t remember the spiritual “purification” (catharsis) that should have occurred in their lives—a reference to a deep internal purging or cleansing. If you are not diligently pursuing spiritual virtue and moral excellence, you will have a very fuzzy view of your true condition. You may connect an outward action or emotional experience with the time you professed Christ, but you will not have a sense of assurance. Commentator Richard Bauckham explained it this way: “The ‘knowledge of Jesus Christ’ [v. 8], received at conversion, came as illumination to those who were blind in their pagan ignorance (2 Cor. 4:4), but Christians who do not carry through the moral implications of this knowledge have effectively become blind to it again.” Regarding 1 Peter 1:5-9, it all comes down to this: if you are seeing your life grow in moral virtue, you have proof of salvation and a reason for assurance. If you are not seeing your life grow in virtue, you have no proof of salvation and no reason for assurance. Be diligent to avoid spiritual myopia and amnesia in your life. Suggestions for Prayer Pray that you would have clear spiritual vision at all times. For Further Study Read Hebrews 6:1-12. How can this passage help you avoid spiritual amnesia?

Would you do better being poor than being rich? by Adrian Rogers

Would you do better being poor than being rich?

JULY 29

“Two things have I required of Thee; deny me them not before I die: Remove far from me vanity [falsehood] and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient [needful] for me: Lest I be full, and deny Thee, and say, Who is the Lord? Or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.” Proverbs 30: 7-9

To pass the test of life, one test you may have to pass is the test of poverty. If so, the Lord has some advice for you. See your poverty in the proper perspective. Because in the Lord Jesus Christ you are highly exalted, no matter how poor you are. Having Christ, you are richer than the richest man on earth without the Lord Jesus Christ. As a Christian, you have gone from rags to riches.

Did you know that many of you would do better being poor than being rich? Some people can stand almost anything but prosperity. This is what our passage in Proverbs is saying.

Actually, it’s very hard to be poor and it’s even harder to be rich. The rich man may have an easier time in life, but he has a harder time passing the test.

The Lord does not tell the rich man to renounce his riches.... just to properly assess his riches. It’s not wrong to have money. Some of God’s choicest of saints were extremely wealthy. Abraham is an example. But the rich man is to see his riches from a proper perspective.

July 29 / Streams in the Desert by L.B. Cowman

Hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, which I have reserved against the day of trouble? (Job 38:22-23).

Our trials are great opportunities. Too often we look on them as great obstacles. It would be a haven of rest and an inspiration of unspeakable power if each of us would henceforth recognize every difficult situation as one of God's chosen ways of proving to us His love and look around for the signals of His glorious manifestations; then, indeed, would every cloud become a rainbow, and every mountain a path of ascension and a scene of transfiguration.

If we will look back upon the past, many of us will find that the very time our Heavenly Father has chosen to do the kindest things for us, and given us the richest blessings, has been the time we were strained and shut in on every side.

God's jewels are often sent us in rough packages and by dark liveried servants, but within we find the very treasures of the King's palace and the Bridegroom's love.
--A. B. Simpson

Trust Him in the dark, honor Him with unwavering confidence even in the midst of mysterious dispensations, and the recompense of such faith will be like the moulting of the eagle's plumes, which was said to give them a new lease of youth and strength.
--J. R. Macduff

If we could see beyond today
As God can see;
If all the clouds should roll away,
The shadows flee;
O'er present griefs we would not fret.
Each sorrow we would soon forget,
For many joys are waiting yet
For you and me.
If we could know beyond today
As God doth know,
Why dearest treasures pass away
And tears must flow;
And why the darkness leads to light,
Why dreary paths will soon grow bright;
Some day life's wrongs will be made right,
Faith tells us so.
"If we could see, if we could know,"
We often say,
But God in love a veil doth throw
Across our way;
We cannot see what lies before,
And so we cling to Him the more,
He leads us till this life is o'er;
Trust and obey.

Belonging by Alistair Begg

DAILY DEVOTIONAL JULY 29, 2018 Belonging All that the Father gives me will come to me. John 6:37 This declaration involves the doctrine of election: There are some whom the Father gave to Christ. It involves the doctrine of effectual calling: These who are given must and shall come; however stoutly they may set themselves against it, yet they shall be brought out of darkness into God's marvelous light. It teaches us the indispensable necessity of faith, for even those who are given to Christ are not saved except they come to Jesus. Even they must come, for there is no other way to heaven but by the door, Christ Jesus. All that the Father gives to our Redeemer must come to Him; therefore none can come to heaven except when they come to Christ. Oh, the power and majesty that rest in the words "will come." He does not say they have power to come, nor that they may come if they will, but they "will come." The Lord Jesus by His messengers, His Word, and His Spirit sweetly and graciously compels men to come in, that they may eat of His marriage supper; and this He does not by any violation of the free agency of man, but by the power of His grace. I may exercise power over another man's will, and yet that other man's will may be perfectly free, because the constraint is exercised in a manner accordant with the laws of the human mind. Jehovah Jesus knows how by irresistible arguments addressed to the understanding, by mighty reasons appealing to the affections, and by the mysterious influence of His Holy Spirit operating upon all the powers and passions of the soul so to subdue the whole man, whereas he was once rebellious, that he yields cheerfully to His government, subdued by sovereign love. But how shall those be known whom God has chosen? By this result: that they do willingly and joyfully accept Christ and come to Him with simple and unfeigned faith, resting upon Him as all their salvation and all their desire. Reader, have you come to Jesus in this way?

Hope in Grief / Our Daily Bread

Hope in Grief July 29, 2018

Read: Luke 24:13–32 Bible in a Year: Psalms 49–50; Romans 1 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.—Luke 24:31 When I was nineteen, one of my close friends was killed in a car accident. In the following weeks and months, I walked each day in a tunnel of grief. The pain of losing someone so young and wonderful clouded my vision, and at times I even felt unaware of what was going on around me. I felt so blinded by pain and grief that I simply could not see God. In Luke 24, two disciples, confused and brokenhearted after Jesus’s death, didn’t realize they were walking with their resurrected Teacher Himself, even as He explained from Scripture why the promised Savior had to die and rise again. Only when He took bread and broke it was it revealed that this was Jesus (vv. 30-31). Although the followers of Jesus had faced death in all its horror when Jesus died, through His resurrection from the dead God showed them how to hope again. Like those disciples, we might feel weighed down with confusion or grief. But we can find hope and comfort in the reality that Jesus is alive and at work in the world—and in us. Although we still face heartache and pain, we can welcome Christ to walk with us in our tunnel of grief. As the Light of the world (John 8:12), He can bring rays of hope to brighten our fog. —Amy Boucher Pye Lord God, thank You for being the light in the darkness. Bring hope when I’m sad and confused, and help me to see Your glory. Though we grieve, we have hope in Jesus. Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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God’s Purpose or Mine? by Oswald Chambers

God’s Purpose or Mine? He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side…  MARK 6:45 We tend to think that if Jesus Christ compels us to do something and we are obedient to Him, He will lead us to great success. We should never have the thought that our dreams of success are God’s purpose for us. In fact, His purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have the idea that God is leading us toward a particular end or a desired goal, but He is not. The question of whether or not we arrive at a particular goal is of little importance, and reaching it becomes merely an episode along the way. What we see as only the process of reaching a particular end, God sees as the goal itself. What is my vision of God’s purpose for me? Whatever it may be, His purpose is for me to depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay calm, faithful, and unconfused while in the middle of the turmoil of life, the goal of the purpose of God is being accomplished in me. God is not working toward a particular finish— His purpose is the process itself. What He desires for me is that I see “Him walking on the sea” with no shore, no success, nor goal in sight, but simply having the absolute certainty that everything is all right because I see “Him walking on the sea” (Mark 6:49). It is the process, not the outcome, that is glorifying to God. God’s training is for now, not later. His purpose is for this very minute, not for sometime in the future. We have nothing to do with what will follow our obedience, and we are wrong to concern ourselves with it. What people call preparation, God sees as the goal itself. God’s purpose is to enable me to see that He can walk on the storms of my life right now. If we have a further goal in mind, we are not paying enough attention to the present time. However, if we realize that moment-by-moment obedience is the goal, then each moment as it comes is precious. From My Utmost for His Highest Updated Edition

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS There is no condition of life in which we cannot abide in Jesus. We have to learn to abide in Him wherever we are placed. from Our Brilliant Heritage

The Age of Accountability by Charles Stanley

Deuteronomy 11:18-20

I recall an interesting conversation I once had with a young first-time mom while she allowed me to hold her infant son. I commented, “It’s hard to believe that they are born with a sinful nature.” She protested, and I thought it best not to argue with her. But I would have liked to call her a couple of years later when the boy was a toddler to see if she thought any differently!

At one point or another, all of us have felt a tug to do something that we knew was wrong. As adults and believers, we’ve learned that giving in to temptation is a sin against God. But small children do exactly as their nature dictates. Mother says, “Don’t touch,” but they reach out anyway. Little ones do not yet see the wisdom of following a parent’s rules. Boys and girls must be taught to recognize the difference between good and evil before they can make the wise choice to do right.

In the early years, a child is in a state of innocence. He is neither righteous nor saved, but he is safe from God’s wrath—if he dies, he goes to heaven. We saw in yesterday’s devotion that this state of innocence is referenced in Scripture (Deuteronomy 1:39; Isa. 7:16), confirming that there is a period of time when children are not morally accountable for their conduct. 

The age when a child comes to understand moral responsibility is different for each one. As children grow, they develop the spiritual capacity to pursue righteousness or knowingly give in to evil. The years of innocence are the time for parents to impart sound biblical training and lessons on obedience so that when they’re older, they “will not depart from it” (Prov. 22:6).