2018-06-16
2 Peter 3:18 NLT
Psychologist Henry Cloud does a lot of corporate consulting. Sometimes he asks executives this question: ‘When in your business training or education, did you ever take a course on how to lose well?’ Losing is an inevitable part of life. It gives us an invaluable window into the development of our character. How do we do when we’re part of a team that makes a decision that’s opposed? How do we handle it when the promotion we applied for, goes to somebody else? How do we do when our idea, proposal, or invitation for a date gets rejected? To live is to lose. But to lose badly, gracelessly, can be lethal. The president of an organisation has an agenda for change that is dead in the water. No one wants it. But he’s stubborn and won’t take no for an answer, so he gets malicious compliance instead. People don’t resist him openly, but they sabotage his agenda. He loses their respect and their loyalty. He could not stand to lose on his agenda; so instead, he loses what matters far more. A pastor wants his church to change in ways that the people don’t embrace. He wants it to look like his ideal of what a church should be. So he preaches angry sermons that chastise them for not following his leadership. He tries to pressure the elders. He threatens, he whines, he manipulates. Eventually the elders ask him to leave the church. Because he cannot learn from his losses, he loses everything. Peter, who was known for being bull-headed, had grown wiser and more mature, so he writes, ‘Grow in grace.’ When you don’t get what you want – be gracious!
Soul food: Ezek 34-36; Luke 1:1-10; Ps 80:12-19; Prov 15:15-17
2018-06-15
Philippians 3:20 NLT
Every year Pacific salmon, having lived five to six years in the ocean, suddenly get the urge to return to the headwaters of their birth river. Battling fishermen, bears, and giant hydroelectric dams, they fight their way upstream determined to reach their home. Scientists don’t know how the salmon make their way back to the exact river in which they were born after being in the ocean for several years. Some think it’s because they can taste or smell the fresh water from their river. Others think they may use the stars to navigate. Regardless of how they do it, we know they don’t use charts and compasses; their journey is intuitive. They have a longing for a particular river, and it can’t be satisfied until they find it. That’s exactly how it is with us. God created us for heaven, and nothing in this life will fully satisfy that longing (See Ecclesiastes 3:11). Just like those salmon – we’re in this world but we’re not of it. Yes, we find joy in fulfilling the assignment in life God has given us, but it’s nothing compared to the joy that awaits us in heaven. Paul puts it this way: “We are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control” (Philippians 3:20-21 NLT). And as your redeemed loved ones leave to go to heaven, your longing to join them will only increase.
Soul food: Ezek 31-33; Mark 16:1-20; Ps 80:1-11; Prov 15:11-14
2018-06-14
Colossians 4:6 NIV
Pray: “Lord, I join with the psalmist David and ask: ‘Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight’ (Psalm 19:14). I realize that the words I speak have tremendous power, both in my own life and in my relationships. Your Word says, ‘Death and life are in the power of the tongue’ (Proverbs 18:21). Teach me to always speak words that are true to Your Word and glorify You. Help me to be careful to speak words that build others up and not tear them down, that edify rather than criticize, that are spoken in love and truth and not twisted by my own desires and expectations, and that bring confidence and not discouragement. Where I have spoken words that are negative or harmful about anyone else, forgive me. Keep me from saying things that hurt or cut others down in any way. I want to be kind with my words and have the tongue of the wise that promotes healing and blessing (See Proverbs 12:18). Help me to have such faith in Your Lordship over my life that I can ‘do all things without murmurings and disputings’ (Philippians 2:14). Help me not to speak negative things about myself. And every time I start to say a critical word, help me to stop immediately and keep a lid on it. Your Word says, ‘Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt [in good taste], so that you may know how to answer everyone.’ Today let my words honor and glorify You. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.”
Soul food: Ezek 27:25-30:26; Mark 15:33-47; Ps 143; Prov 15:8-10
2018-06-13
2 Chronicles 26:4 NIV
The punch line in a cartoon reads, “No matter what we teach our children, they insist on behaving just like us!” We smile, but it’s a very serious matter. One expert says, “We teach what we know, but we reproduce what we are.” Your children may sometimes doubt what you say, but they will always believe what you do. So: (1) If you want them to have a quiet time with God, you have one. (2) If you want your children to be in church, take them, don’t send them. (3) If you don’t want your children using foul language, watch what comes out of your mouth. (4) If you don’t want your children to smoke, drink, or do drugs, you leave them alone. When you say one thing but do another your children may still love you, but eventually they’ll lose respect for you. And what’s worse, they’ll think, “If the principles you preach don’t work for you, why should I try them?” Your example will have more impact than all your exhortations. Read these two Scriptures carefully. The first is found in the Old Testament: “He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father…had done.” The second is found in the New Testament: “I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also” (2 Timothy 1:5 NIV). Thousands of years separate those two Scriptures, but the truth they teach is timeless: so set the right example!
Soul food: Ezek 24:1-27:24; Mark 15:21-32; Ps 132:11-18; Prov 15:5-7
2018-06-12
Isaiah 40:29 NKJV
We say things like “As long as there’s life there’s hope,” or “Hope is tying a knot in the rope and holding on,” believing that things will get better. But when hope seems delayed or denied, mental and emotional illness can cause some people to look for a way out. Is suicide wrong? Yes. It’s wrong because it excludes God. When you take your life there’s nothing more He can do for you. It’s wrong because it leaves a legacy of unresolved pain that will live on in the hearts of your loved ones. For generations Christian leaders have debated and disagreed on the question of suicide. But every one of them believes these words: “Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression” (Proverbs 12:25 NKJV). And depression, left undealt with, can end in self-destruction. It may not be the result of a bullet or a drug overdose; it may be a decision to stop eating, or overeat, or stop reaching for help because the help they’ve received has not worked. But the end result is the same. A national mental health organization estimates that women are twice as likely to get depressed as men. People in low-income families are reportedly less likely to be treated for this disorder because they cannot afford to get help. Does the Bible have an answer? Yes. “He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:29-31 NKJV).
Soul food: Ezek 22-23; Mark 15:1-20; Ps 132:1-10; Prov 15:1-4
2018-06-11
Proverbs 13:12 NKJV
Depression can cause you to give up on life. When the job got too big for Moses, he told God, “Kill me here and now…and do not let me see my wretchedness!” (Numbers 11:15 NKJV). Certain that Jezebel would make good on her threats to kill him, Elijah asked God to take his life. It’s said the book of Job covers a span of only nine months, but Job’s losses were so devastating that he said, “My soul loathes my life” (Job 10:1 NKJV). Solomon said, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.” Instead of arguing over the question, “Will a Christian who takes their own life go to heaven?” we need to ask God for wisdom to know when a loved one has become so hopeless or emotionally ill that they can’t take another day of it. Who are these people? Young people who cut themselves as a cry for help. War veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder who can’t escape the demons of war, and can’t expel them. Sexual abuse victims who overeat, drink, and drug themselves to death. Good people who struggle with sexual issues but are terrified to talk about it. Fifty-eight million Americans battle depression every day. They sleep in mansions and under bridges. Some of them are Christians with thoughts of suicide, who dread hearing that they’re weak and don’t have enough faith. A quick Scripture, a brief prayer, and sending them away with a “God bless you” only throws them to the wolves. Jesus said, “I am sending you,” because you have the Word, the Spirit, and the power to help them.
Soul food: Ezek 20-21; Mark 14:66-72; Ps 48; Prov 14:33-35
