2018-09-24
Colossians 3:10 NLT
Lasting change happens gradually on the inside, often before there’s any outward evidence of it. Pastor Jim Penner says: “A friend of mine recently went through hip-replacement surgery…the joint had worn to the point where he walked with a limp and had to use a crutch. Thanks to the skill of a modern-day surgeon he was quickly up and around again. Yet for months after the surgery his limp remained…I ran into him this morning and the limp was gone. Where did it go? It had been there the day before. Had it vanished in the night? ‘You’re walking great,’ I said. ‘What happened?’ His response was priceless. ‘My physical therapist told me I had to retrain my brain.’ His brain had been trained to expect pain so he limped in anticipation. Even when he didn’t feel the pain his brain said, ‘Hang on. It’s coming!’ The Bible says in Christ you become ‘a new creature: old things are passed away…all things are become new’ (2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV). But you have to change your thinking by believing, accepting, and acting on it. Christ has already done the restoration ‘surgery.’ Just like my friend was given a new hip, God has given you a new life. The old one is gone along with all the bad things you’ve done, thought, or said. You’re a brand-new creation. But you have to retrain your brain to accept God’s forgiveness and the restorative work Jesus has done in your life.” So: Retrain your brain.
Soul food: Zech 1-4; Luke 22:63-71; Ps 3; Prov 24:23-25
2018-09-23
2 Corinthians 12:10 NLT
When you’re insulted, you can retaliate with a stinging comeback or see it as a growth opportunity. David said, “It is good… that I have been afflicted, that I might learn Your statutes” (Psalm 119:71 NKJV). Psychologist Dr. Brenda Shoshanna says: “The person who insults us is a teacher…come to help us reduce our ego, develop patience and compassion, practice unconditional forgiveness, and teach us about life and relationships. If you don’t perceive an insult as an insult, but as a teaching or a gift, it loses its power to hurt you. On a practical level, if you’re insulted, say nothing. Give yourself time. Much harm is created by lashing back, escalating the situation, and saying things you may not mean. Recognize it’s your ego – that false sense of pride acting up – and don’t go along with it.” Paul reached a place where he actually took “pleasure in…insults.” Most of us aren’t quite there yet, but with time and practice it can happen. Speaking of Judas, one author writes: “God sometimes manipulates the actions of our enemies to make them work as friends in order to accomplish His will in our lives. He can bless you through the worst relationships, ones that are painful or negative. The time, effort, and pain we invest in them aren’t wasted because God knows how to make adversity feed destiny into your life. I can’t stop hurts from coming, or promise that everyone who sits at your table will be loyal. But the sufferings of success give us direction, build character, and in the end you find grace to re-evaluate your enemies and realize that like Judas, they are friends in disguise.”
Soul food: 1 Kings 17:1-6; 1 Kings 18:16-39; 1 Kings 19:9-18; 2 Kings 2:1-12
2018-09-22
Acts 6:1 NLT
The Bible says: “As the believers rapidly multiplied, there were rumblings of discontent. The Greek-speaking believers complained about the Hebrew-speaking believers, saying that their widows were being discriminated against in the daily distribution of food.” Why? Because they were outsiders. These women didn’t grow up in Judea or Galilee. They hailed from the distant lands of Greece, Rome, and Syria. If they spoke Aramaic at all, they did so with an accent. Consequently, they were “neglected” (NKJV). The manager of the food pantry gave Hebrew women the first pick. The food bank director separated requests into two stacks: locals and immigrants. How did the church respond? “The Twelve [apostles] called a meeting of all the believers” (v. 2 NLT). Have you ever been to a meeting of “believers” called to deal with those who are “being discriminated against”? Why did the apostles call such a meeting? Because of the example Jesus set from the very outset of His ministry: “And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written…” (Luke 4:17 KJV). That day He announced the six things that God had sent Him to do: (1) Preach the gospel to the poor. (2) Heal the broken-hearted. (3) Proclaim liberty to the captives. (4) Proclaim recovery of sight to the blind. (5) Set at liberty those who are oppressed. (6) Proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. That was the year of Jubilee when all prisoners were set free, all debts forgiven, and all that was taken from you was restored. Jesus meets every need: body, soul, and spirit. And that’s the message you’ve been called to share with others.
Soul food: 2 Tim 1-4; Luke 22:54-62; Ps 19; Prov 24:19-22
2018-09-21
Mark 4:14 NLT
In Jesus’ parable of the sower, the seed landed on four types of ground, producing four different results. “The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message, only to have Satan come at once and take it away. The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced. And the seed that fell on good soil represents those who hear and accept God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted” (vv. 15-20 NLT). The seed of God’s Word cannot fail: “It always produces fruit” (Isaiah 55:11 NLT). So if God’s promises aren’t being fulfilled in your life, ask yourself, “What kind of soil am I?” Are you a surface person – thin-skinned and easily offended? A shallow person with no spiritual root system? Are you thorny ground? Are “the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things” choking the spiritual life out of you? Or are you rich, fertile ground that produces results? Check the soil of your heart.
Soul food: Mic 5-7; Luke 22:39-53; Ps 24; Prov 24:15-18
2018-09-20
Deuteronomy 28:2 NIV
In a survey hundreds of people were asked, “What’s the best thing that’s happened to you in the last five years?” Amazingly, many answered, “Nothing.” God’s Word promises us daily bread, daily benefits, and daily blessings, yet these people couldn’t even think of one good thing that happened to them in half a decade! What a sad way to live! Author John Mason observes: “We typically see things not as they are, but as we are. By how we position ourselves, we’ll see the evidence of God everywhere or nowhere. Too often our minds are locked on one track. We’re looking for red, so we overlook blue; we’re thinking tomorrow and God’s saying now. We’re looking everywhere, and the answer is under our nose. When a person is positioned correctly, he’s ready to receive all God has for him.” The Bible says, “All these blessings will come upon you…if you obey the Lord your God: You will be blessed in the city and…in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed…You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated…They will come at you from one direction but flee…in seven…The Lord will grant you abundant prosperity…The Lord will make you the head, not the tail” (vv. 2-13 NIV). Notice the words, “if you obey the Lord.” God’s love is guaranteed and unconditional. But His blessings require cooperation on your part. So today, walk in obedience.
Soul food: Lev 16; Lev 23:26-32; Heb 9:1-14; Heb 13:11-16
2018-09-19
Matthew 18:14 NIV
Philip Bray founded an Atlanta street ministry called SafeHouse Outreach. He writes: “One day a little boy made a hand gesture at me, the kind male prostitutes make. So I stopped my car and lectured him, thinking he didn’t understand. But he said, ‘I’m just taking care of business. I live here in Cabbagetown, and my brother taught me the trade.’ I asked, ‘What’s your name? How old are you?’ He replied, ‘Billy Bob, and I’m eight.’ In shock, I said, ‘Surely you wouldn’t have many customers?’ He said, ‘The younger you are the more money you get. I make two hundred a trick; my thirteen-year-old brother only gets twenty dollars because he has AIDS.’ I pleaded with him to let me help him start a new life, but he said, ‘I can’t. I’m my family’s ticket out of the ghetto.’ For weeks I kept trying to reach him. Then one day the police found his mutilated body in a dumpster, murdered by one of his customers. In street ministry not every story has a happy ending. Sometimes the pain and despair is just too much.” Then Philip adds, “But there’s hope! Jesus died for the Billy Bobs of this world, just like he died for the Billy Grahams. That’s why I’m out here working in the streets.” Jesus said, “Your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.” That means you are called to leave your comfort zone and reach out to a hurting world with the love of Jesus!
Soul food: Mic 1-4; Luke 22:24-38; Ps 78:65-72; Prov 24:11-14
