2018-04-14
2 Thessalonians 1:12 NIV
Bach composed 256 cantatas. Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring may be his most famous. Nearly four centuries later, it’s still one of the most popular soundtracks as the bride walks down the aisle to meet her groom. The reason his music touches your soul is because it came from his soul. But did you know his cantatas didn’t originate as music, and that they were prayers before they were songs? Before he started scoring a sheet of music he would scrawl JJ – Jesu, Juya – at the very top. It means “Jesus, help me.” Then at the bottom of every composition he inscribed three letters: SDG. They stand for Soli Deo Gloria – “to the glory of God alone.” His life was a unique translation of that singular motive. So is yours. No one can glorify God like you, or for you, because your life is an original score. Soli Deo Gloria is living for an audience of one; it’s doing the right thing for the right reason. It’s living for the applause of the nail-scarred hands. It’s declaring that Jesus Christ is your all in all. Just Jesus. Nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Paul bottom-lines it: “We constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God” (vv. 11-12 NIV).
Soul food: Jer 51-52; Mark 2:23-28; Ps 50:16-23; Prov 10:11-13
2018-04-13
Zechariah 8:23 NKJV
The prophet Zechariah writes, “Many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord…saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you'” (vv. 22-23 NKJV). When people see God at work in your life, they’ll be drawn to you. It happened to a short-order cook named Nicholas Herman. Dissatisfied with his life, he worried constantly about whether or not he was even saved. Then one day as he studied a tree, he was struck by the truth in Psalm 1:3: that the secret to growing spiritually lies in being rooted and grounded in God. So he decided to make his life an experiment in what he termed “the habitual, silent, secret conversation of the soul with God.” Today he’s better known as Brother Lawrence, the name his friends gave him. Chances are, you’ve heard of him and his writings. Although he spent his life in obscurity working in a monastery kitchen, how he interacted with God caused people from around the world to long to know God like he did. His friends said he “found God everywhere…as much while repairing shoes as…praying with the community.” And after he died they compiled a book of his letters and conversations called The Practice of the Presence of God. It’s one of the most widely read books of the last four centuries. Jesus said, “If I am lifted up…will draw all peoples to Myself” (John 12:32 NKJV). The more you cultivate the presence of God in your life, the more others will be attracted to Him. So, let others see God in you!
Soul food: Jer 49-50; Mark 2:18-22; Ps 50:1-15; Prov 10:8-10
2018-04-12
Matthew 25:32 NKJV
The Bible says: “All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom'” (vv. 32-34 NKJV). But here’s what happens to those on the left hand: “He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me'” (v. 41 NKJV). What determines His choice? How does He separate people? Is it based on the fact that one group was highly moral while the other was loose-living? Is it based on the fact that one group was doctrinally correct while the other went astray theologically? No. Jesus said the destiny of all present will be based on one thing: showing compassion to those in need. You object: “We are saved by faith alone!” Yes. But as Martin Luther pointed out, “The faith that saves us is never alone!” The Bible says that faith without works is dead (See James 2:26). Jesus said that this was the standard by which we’ll be evaluated and rewarded: “I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me” (Matthew 25:36 NKJV). Then He personalized it in these words: “Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me” (v. 40 NKJV). That means you must open your heart and respond to the needs around you.
Soul food: Jer 45-48; Mark 2:13-17; Ps 25:16-22; Prov 10:4-7
2018-04-11
Psalm 5:12 NIV
When you ask someone for a favor, you’re generally asking for something they don’t owe you. The Bible says of God: “You bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor.” This word “righteous” doesn’t mean flawless, otherwise none of us would qualify! It means to be clothed in “the righteousness of God,” thereby making us acceptable before God and qualifying us for His favor (2 Corinthians 5:21). And that’s a truth you need to grasp and hold on to! Why? Because when you have God’s favor, people start favoring you too – often for reasons they themselves can’t explain! The favor of God made it possible for people in the Bible who otherwise wouldn’t have amounted to much, to do great things. God called a teenager named Esther to save the Jewish people. So she stepped out in faith, approached the king uninvited, even though it violated protocol, and “obtained favor in his sight” (Esther 5:2 AMPC). God made a way for her to do the job He’d given her. Without the favor of God, Ruth, a Gentile, wouldn’t have been accepted by the Jews. But because God had a plan for her life and her heart was open to Him, she ended up marrying Boaz, “a man of great wealth” (Ruth 2:1 NKJV). And from that union descended King David, and ultimately our blessed Lord Jesus. What favor! The Bible says, “A good man will obtain favor from the Lord” (Proverbs 12:2 NAS). And a single moment of God’s favor will do more for you than a lifetime of striving. So pray for the favor of God today – and start looking for it!
Soul food: Jer 41-44; Mark 2:1-12; Ps 25:8-15; Prov 10:1-3
2018-04-10
Proverbs 12:15 NLT
Positioning yourself to receive – makes all the difference! For example, as you read this, if you position yourself to receive by saying to the Lord, “I will take action on what You show me,” you’ll benefit more than if you read it just to be motivated or inspired. To resist or to receive – that’s a choice you make every day. Nothing dies quicker than a new idea in a closed mind. It’s impossible to learn, if you think you already know it all. One of the reasons Jesus reacted so strongly to the Pharisees was because they refused to receive what He had to say. A wrongly positioned mind is like a microscope that magnifies trifling things but can’t receive great ones. Every situation, properly viewed, is an opportunity. But opportunities can only “drop into your lap” if you position your lap where opportunities drop. When you don’t position yourself to receive, it’s like asking for a bushel while you’re holding a cup. Too often our minds are locked on one track. We’re looking for red so we overlook blue; we’re thinking “tomorrow” and God is saying “now.” We’re looking everywhere, and the answer is right under our nose. When a person is positioned correctly, he or she is ready to receive all God has for them. The Bible often uses the word simple. The original term means “thick, dull, and sluggish,” and it describes those who are insensitive and unreceptive to the thoughts of others. God will speak to you through people, but unless you listen you won’t hear what He has to say. So today position yourself to receive.
Soul food: Jer 36:27-40:16; Mark 1:40-45; Ps 25:1-7; Prov 9:17-18
2018-04-09
Hebrews 1:3 NIV
Are you so focused on your troubles that you’ve forgotten what God’s Word says: “Goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life”? (Psalm 23:6 KJV). We know about Job’s troubles, but we tend to forget they were just for a short season in an otherwise very blessed life. The time Joseph spent in prison was eclipsed by the years of influence and privilege he enjoyed as the number-two man in Pharaoh’s palace. Are you having difficulty enjoying your blessings because you are afraid they won’t last? Maybe you’re so accustomed to trouble that you’re continually braced for it, like sitting in a comfortable recliner and not being able to relax. It’s time you stopped worrying and started believing God’s promises to you! He hasn’t brought you this far to abandon you. No, He has “appointed you to bring forth fruit that will last.” Lasting joy and success – that’s God’s plan for you! The Bible says, “The Son is…sustaining all things by his powerful word.” God doesn’t speak something over your life, then let it fall apart. He said, “My word…will…achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11 NIV). In Genesis chapter one verse fourteen, God said, “Let there be lights in the…heaven to divide the day from the night.” And guess what? That same sun shines today because of the word that brought it into being – and it’ll shine again tomorrow. Now, if God will do that for an inanimate object like the sun, don’t you think He’ll take care of you too? Come on, believe that you’re called and chosen by God!
Soul food: Jer 33:1-36:26; Mark 1:35-39; Ps 32; Prov 9:10-16
