...know

While in a large East Coast city on business, Dan had spent the evening drinking in the hotel bar. Having sworn that this trip would be different, he was feeling pretty disgusted with himself the next morning. He decided a long walk might clear his head and his mood, so he struck out and soon found himself on a narrow residential street.

The houses were small but clean and well kept, and Dan sensed that he'd chosen a good direction. About halfway down the block an elderly gentleman looked up from his chore of raking leaves and greeting Dan warmly. "Good morning to you," he smiled. "Looks like the Lord has put together another beautiful day, doesn't it?"

"I guess," Dan shrugged, staring down at his shoes.The old man looked at Dan's bleary eyes and rumpled clothes. "You know, son, Jesus Christ could make this the best day of your life if you'll let Him." He reached into his pocket and handed Dan a small tract. "Why don't you look this over and stop by and see me again?"

Dan half-heartedly thanked his benefactor, stuck the tract into his jacket pocket and went on his way. He didn't read the tract, but somehow he never quite managed to throw it away.

A year later, on another business trip, Dan found himself frantically pacing his hotel room. He was at the end of his rope spiritually, financially, emotionally, and physically.  By habit he threw on his jacket and started for the door. But as he shoved one hand into the pocket, that persistent little tract touched his fingers. He pulled it out, went to his bed and read through its entirety. He opened his nightstand and found his room's Gideon Bible and carefully researched the verses the tract had referenced. He fell to his knees and, at that very moment, ended his old life and began a brand new one in Christ.

The following years of Dan's life were a whirlwind of joy and struggle. He became a minister of the Gospel and was invited to city after city, country after country to share his love for the Lord and the miraculous way in which the Lord had changed him. Time after time as Dan shared his message people would come to him and say, "That's amazing! You know, I was in that same city, took a wrong turn, and stopped in front of a house to ask directions. An old man was working in a flower bed and he gave me a Gospel tract."

Each story was different, and yet each story told how people from all over the globe, people who had for many different reasons come to that city, had found themselves drawn to a narrow residential street where an old man worked in his yard.

Some time later Dan returned to the city where his new life had begun. But this time he was there to preach a revival in a local church. Remembering the old man who had given him the tract he made his way to the tiny white house. Seeing no one outside, he knocked on the door. A slow shuffle of feet could be heard, and finally the door cracked open.

"Sir, you probably don't remember me," Dan began, "but you gave me a Gospel tract several years ago and I wanted you to know that it's because of your faithful witness that I now stand here as a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ."The old man swung the door open wide, revealing a metal walker before his bent and feeble body. "Come in, come in," he told Dan as the tears streamed down both their faces.

Dan followed him into a tiny living room."Praise God! Praise God!" the elderly gentleman's voice shook with age and emotion. "All these years I wondered if I was making a difference. You see, my wife - she's gone now - was an invalid and I couldn't get out except to work in the yard. For her last eighteen years I had to be here all the time, so I prayed every day for the Lord to send me people who needed to hear the Word. What a blessing to know about you, son."

"Oh, sir," Dan told him, moving to his side and taking his hand, "I've heard about you all over the world." And as Dan told of the many people who'd come to know the Lord through the witness of this silver-haired believer, the man wept uncontrollably.

"Thank you, Jesus," the faithful old witness kept repeating. 

"I never knew. I just wanted to be faithful to my Lord."

stuck

"Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have" (1 Peter 3:15).

Talk about a captive audience! When Jenny signed up for evangelism training last December, she didn't know she'd get such immediate practical experience. Her unexpected opportunity came when she was trapped in an elevator in the hotel where the conference was being held.

She was confined in the small space with ten other people (including Ashley and Jessica from her youth group and one of their sponsors). Jenny, who was standing next to an airline pilot from South Africa, began to talk with him about her faith in God.

When he had a question, Ashley and Jessica showed him Bible verses. Before the doors of the elevator opened 90 minutes later, the man had prayed to accept Jesus as his Savior.

The young women didn't see him again, but left a Bible and a note for him at the front desk of the hotel. When Jenny got home from the conference, she found an e-mail from the pilot. He wrote that the young women who had chosen to share with him would never know how much he needed to receive Jesus.

Opportunities to share our faith are not always planned out.  In fact, most times they are not. They're unexpected, orchestrated by God. The person you sit next to in class. An old friend who sends you an e-mail. A relative you see once a year at a family reunion. Or even a stranger on an airplane, in a store ... or stuck in an elevator.

God uses Scripture to change people's lives. Romans 10:17 tells us that "faith comes from hearing the message."  Your responsibility is to share what the Bible says, then stand back. Let the Holy Spirit do the convincing and convicting.

Here are some questions to ask yourself:

 - Have I ever found myself in an unplanned situation in which I was able to speak to someone about my faith? Do I think that was just a coincidence?

 - If I were in such a situation, would I be ready to share what Christ has done for me? (1 Peter 3:15)   How can I prepare myself?

 - Have I ever prayed that God would bring across my path someone who needs him? Am I willing to offer that prayer?

-cup o'cheer

leap

"The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms."  Deuteronomy 33:27

Brennan Manning in his book, The Ragamuffin Gospel, tells about a child caught on the second floor of his house when it was on fire. The family members were all running out of the house when the smallest boy panicked and ran back upstairs.  Terrified, he screamed from a smoke-filled window. Below, his father could see him and cried out, "Jump, son, jump! I'll catch you."

"But daddy, I can't see you," the boy cried.   "I know," the father called, "but I can see you."

The father could see the son and that's all that really mattered.   Many a time in our lives we are in difficult situations and we panic and long for God to help us.   But not being able to see him or sense his presence we don't know what to do. Let us always remember that God is there regardless of our feelings. He can see us.  And when we call to him and choose to put our trust in him, he will help us. He is our refuge.  Underneath us are his everlasting arms.  And he loves us with an everlasting love.

"And that may be all we need to know!"

-dick innes

midst...

"Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd" (Matthew 14:22).

Matthew 14:22-33

We can be smack in the center of God's will and still go through terrible storms. Christ loved the disciples with all His heart, yet He "made" them get into the boat when He knew a storm was coming. They were exactly where they were supposed to be and still experienced frightening turbulence.

Can you relate to the disciples? Have you experienced a time when you knew you were where God wanted you to be, but the storms were overwhelming? Not all the storms in life result from either sin or warfare. Some occur like clockwork to purposely rock our boats. However, if Christ has appointed our place in the story, you can be sure He purposes a show. But, we must be looking past our own boat to see Him.

One of my family's worst storms occurred when Michael, the child we raised for seven years, left our home to return to his birth mother. We received countless cards and letters which were a great comfort to us. Many of them attributed our loss to Satan and our storm to spiritual warfare. We understood the assumption because it was clearly the easiest explanation, albeit not necessarily an accurate one.

I am so thankful God was clear in His message to us during those days. We knew without a shadow of a doubt that Michael's return to his birth mother was the expressed will of God. We had no idea why nor do we have many answers now, but we were certain God was directing the events.

Christ calls us to walk by faith through our storms. It seems like a big requirement until we realize Christ does far more than that. He walks on the water during our storms. God has placed all things under Christ's feet, including the waves that break relentlessly against us. He is in charge. He is right there.

Please don't miss an important element in this story: Christ walked on the water before He calmed the storm. If He had simply calmed the storm, the disciples would have missed His majesty. And what a shame. His majesty was the whole point. We want Christ to hurry and calm the storm. He wants us to find Him in the midst of it first.

-beth moore

unhurried...

"Their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law they meditate day and night". Psalm 1:2

A real Christian stands out in the crowd!

    their character is deeper,

    their ideas fresher,

    their spirit softer,

    their courage greater,

    their leadership better,

    their concerns wider,

    their compassion more genuine,

    their convictions more concrete.

They're joyful in spite of difficult circumstances and show wisdom far beyond their years. And they're full of surprises.  You think you have them boxed in, but they turn out to be unpredictable. When you're around them you feel slightly off balance because you don't know what to expect next. Over time, you learn that their unexpected ideas and actions can be trusted.

Why? Because these people have a strong relationship with the Lord - one that's renewed day by day. David said: "Their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law they meditate day and night."

They have a spiritual root system that reaches down to streams of living water. Consequently, what they put their hand to prospers. Too few of us ever reach this level. How come?

Because we're just too busy!

The arch-enemy of spiritual growth is business, which is closely tied to something the Bible calls "worldliness" - getting caught up with society's agenda, to the neglect of walking with God.

Anyway you cut it, a key ingredient in real Christianity is - time.

    Not left over time, not throw away time, but quality time.

        Time for contemplation.

        Time for meditation.   

        Time for reflection.

Unhurried, uninterrupted time with God.

don't

"Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil" (Ephesians 5:15-16).

"In December, 1775, an American colonist (believed by many scholars to be Benjamin Franklin), noticed the increasing use of a symbol throughout the colonies, stamped onto barrels and other items, depicting a coiled rattlesnake with the words 'Don't Tread On Me' written below the snake. He wondered about how the symbol of a rattlesnake could be a symbol of the American desire for freedom?

He wrote the following words: 'The Rattle-Snake is found in no other quarter of the world besides America. She never begins an attack, nor, when once engaged, never surrenders: She is therefore an emblem of magnanimity and true courage. She never wounds 'till she has generously given notice, even to her enemy, and cautioned him against the danger of treading on her.'"

I've been hiking in the mountains and heard the warning sign of a rattler and was extremely thankful for that. In the Bible, Satan is depicted as a serpent - a serpent who not only doesn't warn about his lethal bite, but appears in alluring disguises promising great rewards of pleasure ready and waiting to devour his every victim.

How different from God (although I don't want to compare him to a rattler) but over and over he warns us in his Word, the Bible, to avoid sin at all costs for it will destroy us.  He, too, has generously given notice even to his enemies to "flee from the wrath to come" and to turn to Christ the Savior of the world.

-steve blair

alive

Fifty years ago this week, I was working as a lifeguard at Gulfshore Baptist Assembly in Pass Christian, MS.  We had received warnings of a hurricane developing in the Gulf of Mexico, and by Thursday, we sent all the campers home early.  We then worked the rest of the weekend boarding up the entire camp and moving anything of value to second floor.

When we finished on Sunday afternoon, August 17th, I called my mom and dad. I told them that we were staying in the Crow’s nest, the highest point of the administration building of the camp, so we’d be safe. I told them not to worry, because the people who lived here had been through many hurricanes before and they told me that there was nothing to worry about.

Later that night, just before midnight, Hurricane Camille slammed into Pass Christian. Before Katrina in 2005, Hurricane Camille was the strongest and most powerful hurricane to ever hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast, devastated everything in her path, including Gulfshore Baptist Assembly. A 26 foot tidal surge - a 26 foot wall of water hit the administration building and the Crow’s Nest. There was nothing left. The next morning, a News helicopter flew over Pass Christian. It showed what little was left of Gulfshore Baptist Assembly.  

My mom and dad feared the worst, but they had faith that God was watching over me and protecting me. They didn’t know we had moved inland in the last few hours before the hurricane hit. They didn’t know we had made it safely through the night because the phones had been dead all Sunday afternoon. All my mother knew was that somehow, she had to try to reach me. That was all that mattered to her. She called the operator for help.

The operator told my mother that calls were not going through and that trying to call was useless. My mother prayed and then she dialed the only number that the operator would give her out of 18 possible numbers.

Never doubt the power of a mother’s prayer for her son. My mother’s call was one of only a very, very few non-emergency calls that went through on that Monday afternoon. We were outside the house cleaning up and I was the closest person to the phone. When I answered the phone, all I could hear was my mother screaming my name. 

When my mother got off the phone, she called everybody she knew and told them the good news."He’s Alive - He’s Alive!  She wanted to drive all over town and tell everyone she knew, "He’s Alive. My son is alive."   That day, my mother and father wanted everyone to know that their son was alive. 

Two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and our Heavenly Father wanted the whole world to know that His Son was risen from the dead and that "He's Alive!".  Two thousand years later, The Heavenly Father still wants everyone, everywhere to know...   "He's Alive!  He's Alive!  Jesus Christ has defeated sin and death and He is risen from the dead.   He offers eternal life to everyone who will trust in him for salvation and forgiveness of sins to those who will confess them." (John 3:16; 1 John 1:9)   God wants everyone, everywhere to know that one day soon, His Son is coming back for all of those who have placed their faith and trust in Him. 

What about you? Have you told everyone you know? Have you told everybody Good News?   Have you told everyone, everywhere that...  "He’s Alive.  Jesus is Alive!  He is risen from the dead and He's Alive!" 

"He's Alive!"

-david langerfeld

tamer

A first grade teacher seated her students in a circle. She asked them what they wanted to be when they grew up. One by one, each child got up and announced, “I’d like to be a nurse like my mother,” or “I want to be a banker like my father,” or “I want to be a teacher like you, Miss Smith.”

The last child to speak was the most shy and timid little boy in the class. He said, “When I get big, I’m going to be a lion tamer in the circus. I’m going to face those animals with my whip and chair and make them leap through hoops of fire and obey all of my commands.”

Seeing the disbelieving looks on the faces of his classmates that he could ever act so boldly or bravely, he was quick to reassure them,

“Well, of course, I’ll have my mother with me.”

We are sometimes shy and timid about standing up for Christ in the midst of an immoral society. We keep quiet when we ought to speak up. We cower when we ought to take a stand. Where do we get the inner strength to be bold and brave? Only through the assurance that we have Christ by our side.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Phil. 4:13).

With that knowledge, take courage today to do something for God that you’ve been hesitant to do. In His strength, there’s nothing you can’t do!

priority

There is a wonderful anagram for learning the basic parts of prayer using the word "ACTS".

A = Adoration

C = Confession

T = Thanksgiving

S = Supplication

Although supplication (intercession for others) comes at the end of this anagram, supplication, intercession and petition for others should be one of our top priorities when we pray. Paul said, "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone..." (I Timothy 2:1)

There is a wonderful parable about a ship that was wrecked during a storm at sea. Only two of the men who were on it were able to swim to a small island. The two survivors, not knowing what else to do, agreed that they had no other recourse but to pray to God. However, to find out whose prayer was more powerful, they agreed to divide the territory between them and stay on opposite sides of the island. The first thing they prayed for was food.

The next morning, the first man saw a fruit-bearing tree on his side of the land, and he was able to eat its fruit. The other man's parcel of land remained barren.

After some days, the first man was lonely and he decided to pray for a wife. The next day, another ship was wrecked, and the only survivor was a woman who swam to his side of the island. On the other side of the island, the second man had nothing. Soon the first man prayed for a house, clothes, and more food. The next day, all of these were given to him. However, the second man still had nothing.

Finally, the first man prayed for a ship, so that he and his wife could leave the island. In the morning, he found a ship docked at his side on the island. The first man boarded the ship with his wife and decided to leave the second man on the island. He considered the other man unworthy to receive God's blessings, since none of his prayers had been answered.

As the ship was about to leave, the first man heard a voice from heaven booming: "Why are you leaving your companion on the island?"

"My blessings are mine alone, since I was the one who prayed for them," the first man replied. "His prayers were all unanswered and so he does not deserve anything."

"You are mistaken," the voice rebuked him. "He had only one prayer, which I answered."

"Tell me," the first man asked the voice, "what did he pray for that I should owe him anything?"

"He prayed that all your prayers be answered."

It is so easy to come to God with our fist-full of petitions and forget about the needs of others. We should pray for all of our needs and lay them at the feet of Jesus. However, we should also remember the words of Paul... "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone..." (I Timothy 2:1,)  

10

1. God is truly in control.

If God is God, then nothing happens apart from His knowledge and permission. While it is difficult to imagine why God allows some painful things to happen, His character, revealed in the Bible and through the testing of generations, leads us to the conclusion that He is willing and able to sustain you during the worst of times. "We were crushed and completely overwhelmed, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die. But as a result, we learned not to rely on ourselves, but on God who can raise the dead." (2 Corinthians 1:8,9)

2. There is an eternal life to come.

"Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the Glory He will give us later." (Romans 8:18) "He will keep you strong right up to the end, and He will keep you free from all blame on the great day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns." (1 Corinthians 1:8)

3. The story isn't finished yet.

Time after time, the Bible records hopeless situations that ultimately ended in victory. Think of Job's sickness, Joseph's betrayal by his brothers, David's adultery and the many who were healed in mind, body and spirit. "But Joseph told them, 'Don't be afraid of me. Am I God, to judge and punish you? As far as I am concerned, God turned into good what you meant for evil. He brought me to the high position I have today so I could save the lives of many people.'" (Genesis 50:19,20)

4. God has not given up on you! Don't give up on him.

"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." (Jeremiah 29:11)

5. There is likely purpose in your pain.

Ask God to reveal His purpose in allowing this difficulty in your life. That's a legitimate question to ask. Often, the answer comes in the process of dealing with your circumstance. "Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. For when Your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for When your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything." (James 1:2-4)

6. You are loved!

Even the most unlovable person in the world is actually loved so much by God, that He let His Son die a terrible death to restore their relationship. God does love you! He sees your pain and weeps with you. "He has sent Me to comfort the brokenhearted and to announce that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. He has sent Me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord's favor has come, and with it, the day of God's anger against their enemies. To all who mourn in Israel, He will give beauty for ashes, joy instead of mourning, praise instead of despair. For the Lord has planted them like strong and graceful oaks for His own glory." (Isaiah 61:1-3)

7. Your prayers are heard.

"You parents - if your children ask you for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! If you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask Him?" (Matt. 7:9,10)

8. You are not facing this alone.

"For God himself has said, 'I will never fail you. I will never forsake you.' That is why we can say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper, so I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?'" (Hebrews 13:5,6)

9. Others have made it through - you can too.

Try to connect with others who have gone through similar situations. You will find hope, strength and encouragement. "A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken." (Ecclesiastes 4:12)

10. Reach out to someone else who's struggling.

Place your focus on someone else and invest your life in him or her. You may discover that your peace of mind is found in being a source of hope for another. "All praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the source of every mercy and the God who comforts us. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us." (2 Corinthians 1:3,4)

-steve arterburn and mike marino

 

shake

The more I've learned about eagles, the more amazing I find them to be. They mate for life, they build nests that will last a lifetime, and they ride the storm instead of hiding from the storm. There's really only one enemy that is a serious danger to the eagle - a snake. That snake will attempt to climb wherever the eagle nest is and attack the inhabitants - especially the little eaglets. But pity the poor snake that gets caught by Mama or Papa Eagle. They will show the serpent no mercy. They may pick it up with their beak and violently shake it to death. Or, better yet, they will pick it up in their talons, take off high into the air, and drop that snake to its death on the rocks below. They are not about to let that serpent have what he came for.

It's no wonder the Bible encourages us to take note of "the way of an eagle" (Proverbs 30:19). The eagle shows the serpent no mercy and makes that serpent sorry he ever attacked you. Like that eagle, we have a serpent that's trying to strike out at us. The devil's first appearance to humans came in the form of a snake in the Garden of Eden. In the last book of the Bible God still calls him "that ancient serpent called the devil" (Revelation 11:9). 

You may or not believe in the devil, but either way he's actively trying to ruin your life. In fact, he likes it better when you don't believe in him. You won't fight an enemy you don't even know is there. But those who anchor their life to the Word of God have no excuse for being blind to what this evil prince is up to. 1 Peter 5:8 describes him as "a roaring lion" who "prowls around ... looking for someone to devour." Then it tells us what to do with him: "Resist him!"

Unfortunately, we're not always as smart as those eagles. If that old serpent pushes the right buttons - the same old buttons he's always pushed to bring you down - we actually go along with him! So much of the hurt, and the heartache, and shame of your life and mine is because we've given into his subtle promptings and to his sinful opportunities. But if you belong to Jesus Christ, you belong to the One the Bible says came "to destroy the devil's work"

(1 John 3:8).

So show him no mercy when he comes crawling toward you; when he comes crawling toward your nest. In the words of Ephesians 6:13, "Put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand." Remember, Satan has no power over you except what you let him have. And every temptation the devil brings into your life is to do one of three things. Jesus said that "thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy" (John 10:10). Why in the world would you go along with that?

The next time the serpent comes your way, the Bible says, "Resist him." "I know who this is. I'm not falling for this again!" That's how you stand up to him. You claim the victory Jesus Christ won over him when He died on the cross. Take your stand! Go to your Savior and unleash Jesus on that serpent. No compromise. No giving in. No accommodation.

Like the eagle, make that old serpent sorry he ever got close to your nest!

-ron hutchcraft

den

Daniel and the Lion's Den

"So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lion's den. The king said to Daniel, 'May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!'" (Daniel 6:16)

No question, Daniel got a rough deal. He was set up by jealous lesser men who wanted him out of the way. It seemed like they succeeded except for one thing they overlooked: Daniel's trust in God.

The interesting thing, however, about Daniel being thrown into the den of lions is that God didn't deliver him out of the den before Daniel found deliverance in it.

Imagine if Daniel had fought against being thrown into the den (which he would have been justified in doing) and gone into the den fighting against it every inch of the way, chances are the lions would have torn him to shreds before he hit the bottom. But Daniel didn't. He accepted his lot and trusted his life to God who shut the lion's mouths.

On more than one occasion I have asked God that if I am not going to be delivered out of my "lion's den" (naming the frustrating situation I'm in), would he please deliver me in it.

Sometimes, like Daniel, God has a lesson for us to learn in our present difficult situation and before he delivers us out of it, like Daniel, we need to find deliverance in it.

-dick inez

attitude

Nick Herman started his first career in the army and later got a position as a dishwasher. It turned out to be the only job he would keep for many years of his life. Washing dishes for 14 hours a day, the ho-hum of pots and pans, he endured the noise of shouting cooks and being the least important of all the workers.

Then Nick made a decision, an attitude change. 

He chose to bring God into the kitchen! He began to wash dishes as a way to show love for the Lord.  Everything changed.  Nick said, “We ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed… All things are possible to him that believes.”

Nick worked 62 years serving others as a lay Carmelite monk in France, and died quietly at age 80. Millions know his spiritual name as Brother Lawrence.  

His book “The Practice of the Presence of God” is still in bookstores 400 years after his death! Brother Lawrence’s remarkable faith replaced drudgery with delight in the presence of a loving Lord.

-waylon b. moore

sponges

There are 5 sponges laying on your kitchen counter top. Each member of your family has been cleaning up different areas of your home, but all the sponges look the same. You are curious as to what was cleaned in your home, but you can't tell by looking... they all look the same... so what do you do?

You squeeze each sponge to see what comes out. As you squeeze the first sponge, you see that cola comes out, and so you decide that someone cleaned the kitchen with that one.

Upon squeezing the second sponge, you find tub and tile cleaner - that one was used to clean the bathroom.

Next, in the third sponge, you find motor oil - hubby was cleaning the garage!

In the fourth sponge, baby powder puffs out when it is squeezed - yep, the baby's nursery was done with that one!

And finally, in the last one, is floor wax - that was the one you used on the hall floor!

As you lay the last one down, you look again at their similarity - and they all look the same until they're squeezed. Christians are the same way. As life squeezes us, different things come out - anger from one, a need for revenge from another, tears from one, remorse from yet another - also greed, untruth, lust - and finally, from one saint, pours forth the love of Christ.

Just like the sponge, we can only squeeze out what is put in - stay in the Word daily, and be in continuous prayer, so that when life puts the squeeze on you (and it WILL), Jesus, and Jesus ALONE will shine forth from you!

discovery

Years ago, some prospectors were panning for gold when one of them found an unusual stone. Breaking it open, he saw that it contained gold. Working eagerly, the men soon discovered an abundance of the precious metal. With an unrestrained delight they shouted, "We've found it! We've found gold! We're rich!"

Before going into town for supplies, they agreed not to tell a soul about their find.  While in town, not one of them breathed a word about their discovery.  When they were about to return to camp, though, a group of men had gathered and were ready to follow them.  "You've found gold," the group said.

"Who told you?" asked the prospectors.

"No one," they replied. "Your faces showed it!"

It's much like that when a person discovers Christ. 
The joy of sins forgiven and a new relationship with Him show on that person's face and in His transformed life.

Those miners, of course, wanted to keep quiet about their find, but we as Christians should be eager to let people know about ours. 

Finding Christ is life's greatest discovery, and our joy increases when we share it with others. As believers, our highest delight is both in finding and telling.

waiting...

"Those who wait upon the Lord, will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like the eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."  (Isaiah 40:31)

"...for twelve years she had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse."  (Mark 5:25)

"While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. "Your daughter is dead," they said, "Why bother the teacher any more?"'  (Mark 5:35)

Parents waiting for children out past curfew know it. 

Couples having trouble conceiving a child know it. 

A family separated by overseas military service knows it. 

A person needing an organ transplant knows it. 

A candidate for law or medical school knows it. 

A pregnant mom 10 days past due knows it. 

A person struggling to be hired for a job knows it. 

In fact, at one time or another, most of us come to know this brooding beast. It's the long wait -- that drawn out time of fretful anticipation and extended longing.

"Those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength..."   Often, this is easier said than done. Before we get to "mount up on wings like eagles," we often have to obediently grind away through the brutal passage of agonizing time. Before we can "run and not grow weary," we have to trudge on as anticipation dims and hope's flickering flame fights against the winds of despair. Many times, we just have to keep walking and trust that some hidden grace will help us "not faint."

That's what makes this story of Jairus' daughter so compelling to me. Like you, I don't like to wait. In my mind, if there is any privilege for those with power and position, one should not have to wait! "They" surely don't have to wait like I do. "They" get to move to the head of line. "They" get to throw around their weight and get what they want when they want it. In this case, however, "they" (or more accurately, "he") didn't. (see Mark 5:21-43)

Instead, Jairus' humbling approach to Jesus, an approach that could cost him everything in sacred society, was interrupted by a desperate woman who had faced "the long wait" herself as she had hopelessly gone to every healer available to her, and no doubt prayed incessantly for her own cure. This woman, who could not go into the synagogue because of her uncleanness, derailed the hope parade of Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue.

I find two things amazing about both of them. First, neither complains about his or her wait. Not the woman, who has spent her fortune on false medical hopes, nor Jairus, who has spent his respect capital to associate himself with a suspicious teacher. Both wait for their Lord to act. Impatiently waiting? Probably! But, they waited and received their grace.

Second, they both received the personal attention of the Lord -- the man of power who could expect that attention and the woman on the fringes who, in her day, could not expect it. Jesus refused to let the woman have an anonymous miracle! He personally and specifically blessed her. Jairus' daughter would not be healed for the crowd, but only in the closed intimacy of Jesus' chosen few and Jairus' family. Both waited faithfully. Both received the personal attention of the Master! Each received his or her heart's greatest desire.

This is not a story about long ago and far away. It is a reminder that Jesus is there for those who wait. It is a renewal of the ancient hope that God will act for those who don't give up during the long wait. You see, the issue isn't the wait. Instead, it is all about refusing to give up hope when the journey seems so long (12 years for the woman) and the problems so insurmountable (a dead 12-year old daughter for Jairus).

Maybe you face the long wait right now. Maybe your heartbreak or shame or disappointment or loss seems insurmountable. If so, I want to encourage you to come back to this story of the powerless woman and the powerful man and remember the place their broken hearts met, the place their broken dreams were mended, and the place their long wait ended. Know that place is really a person, and his name is Jesus. 

5

God formed man,
Sin deformed him,
Education informs him,
Religion may reform him,
Only Jesus Christ can transform him.

JC

In GENESIS, Jesus is the Ram at Abraham's altar
In EXODUS, He's the Passover Lamb
In LEVITICUS, He's the High Priest
In NUMBERS, He's the Cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night
In DEUTERONOMY, He's the City of our Refuge
In JOSHUA, He's the Scarlet Thread out by Rahab's window
In JUDGES, He is our King
In RUTH, He is our Kinsman Redeemer
In 1st and 2nd SAMUEL, He's our Trusted Prophet
In KINGS and CHRONICLES, He's our Reigning King
In EZRA, He is our Faithful Scribe
In NEHEMIAH, He's the Rebuilder of everything that is broken
In ESTHER, He is the Mordecai sitting faithful at the gate
In JOB, He's our Redeemer that ever liveth
In PSALMS, He is my Shepherd
In PROVERBS and ECCLESIASTES, He's our Wisdom
In the SONG OF SOLOMON, He's the Beautiful Bridegroom
In ISAIAH, He's the Suffering Servant
In JEREMIAH and LAMENTATIONS, it is Jesus that is the Weeping Prophet
In EZEKIEL, He's the Wonderful Four-Faced Man
In DANIEL, He is the Fourth Man in the midst of a fiery furnace
In HOSEA, He is my Love that is forever faithful
In JOEL, He baptizes us with the Holy Spirit
In AMOS, He's our Burden Bearer
In OBADIAH, He's our Savior
In JONAH, He is the Great Foreign Missionary 
In MICAH, He is the Messenger with beautiful feet
In NAHUM, He is the Avenger
In HABAKKUK, He is the Watchman that is ever praying for revival
In ZEPHANIAH, He is the Lord mighty to save
In HAGGAI, He is the Restorer of our lost heritage
In ZECHARIAH, He is our Fountain
In MALACHI, He is the Son of Righteousness with healing in His wings
In MATTHEW, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God
In MARK, He's the Miracle Worker
In LUKE, He's the Son of Man
In JOHN, He is the door by which everyone of us must enter
In ACTS, He is the Shining Light that appears to Saul on the Damascus road
In ROMANS, He is our Justifier
In 1st CORINTHIANS, He is our Resurrection
In 2nd CORNITHIANS, He is our Sin Bearer
In GALATIANS, He redeems us from the law
In EPHESIANS, He is our Unsearchable Riches
In PHILIPPIANS, He supplies our every need
In COLOSSIANS, He's the Fullness of the Godhead Bodily
In 1st and 2nd THESSALONIANS, He is our Soon Coming King
In 1st and 2nd TIMOTHY, He is the Mediator between God and man
In TITUS, He is our Blessed Hope
In PHILEMON, He is a Friend that sticks closer than a brother
In HEBREWS, He's the Blood of the everlasting covenant
In JAMES, it is the Lord that heals the sick
In 1st and 2nd PETER, He is the Chief Shepherd
In 1st, 2nd, and 3rd JOHN, it is Jesus who has the tenderness of love
In JUDE, He is the Lord coming with 10,000 saints
And in REVELATION, He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!!!

eagles

Did you know that an eagle knows when a storm is approaching long before it breaks? The eagle will fly to some high spot and wait for the winds to come. When the storm hits, it sets its wings so that the wind will pick it up and lift it above the storm. While the storm rages below, the eagle is soaring above it. The eagle does not escape the storm. It simply uses the storm to lift it higher. It rises on the winds that bring the storm. 

When the storms of life come upon us...  and all of us will experience them...  we can rise above them by setting our minds and our belief toward Jesus. 

The storms do not have to overcome us. We can allow God's power to lift us above them. God enables us to ride the winds of the storm that bring sickness, tragedy, failure, and disappointment into our lives. We can soar above the storm. Remember, it is not the burdens of life that weigh us down, it is how we handle them.

"Those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles." Isaiah 40:31. 

rescuing

Lack of faith causes us to see only what our eyes can see. It prevents us from doing anything beyond the realm of immediate possibility.  Lack of faith causes us to sit dumbfounded in the boat, while others walk on water. 

Boat people see ghosts on the water. 

Water-walking people see Jesus walking across the very thing that frightens us. 

Boat people don’t do anything for the Kingdom of God except what they can logically accomplish in their own strength. 

Water-walking people have a desire to be closer to Jesus, and do what He says to do, even if it makes absolutely no sense from a human standpoint.  

Boat people say “The waves may be tossing us around, but it’s safer here than out there on the water.”

Water-walking people say “I’d rather be out there on the water acting out of obedience to what Jesus says than sitting in that little boat.”

The Church has far too many boat people, 

people whose fear and doubt cause them to sit still when Jesus says “Come!”

The Church has far too few water-walking people,

those who not only are willing to do what Jesus says, but even ask for the privilege.

When was the last time you prayed that God would stretch your faith where you could do something unheard of?

-rocky henriques

...handling

"…because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."  (Hebrews 13:5) 

"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." (1 Corinthians 10:13)

When a mother is preparing to feed her baby, she always tests the temperature of the milk before giving it to the baby. She may place a drop or two on her hand, she may feel the bottle itself, or even taste the milk herself. The mother simply wants to ensure that the bottle is just right for her baby. When the baby receives the bottle, the parent knows that he or she can handle it.

Many times, we find ourselves in places in life that seem unbearable. We often question whether we will be able to stand the test of time. We wonder if we will be able to handle the weight of the situation. We find ourselves in the very situations we never imagined ourselves being in. The situations that we looked at from afar and said, "I cannot handle that."  Many of us are dealing with situations that seem too hot too handle and we feel like throwing in the towel and giving up all together.

However, EVERY trial and tribulation has been tested by the Father before it is allowed to enter our lives. We must know and understand that God has not forgotten about us and He knows what we can bear better than ourselves. When we feel as though we can't go on, God knows what we’re going through, what we can handle and He will "never leave us or forsake us". 

-timothy jackson, jr.

joy

"You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.  (Psalm 16:11)

God is near me...

Am I tired?
   He is strength.

Am I upset?
   He is peace.

Am I weak-willed?
   He is a stay.

Am I worried?
   He is assurance.

Am I aimless?
   He is purpose.

He is present.
   He is joy.
      He makes me glad
           with the joy of His presence.

May these thoughts fill my mind today!!!.

...purpose

Josh McDowell tells about an executive "headhunter" who recruits corporate executives for large firms. This headhunter once told McDowell that when he interviews an executive, he likes to disarm him. "I offer him a coke or water," said the headhunter, "take off my coat, undo my tie, throw up my feet and talk about baseball, football, family, whatever, until he's all relaxed.

Then, when I think I've got him relaxed, I lean over, look him square in the eye and say, 

'What's your purpose in life?'  

It's amazing how top executives fall apart at that question."

Then he told about interviewing one fellow recently. He had him all disarmed, had his feet up on his desk, talking about football. Then the headhunter leaned over and said, "What's your purpose in life, Bob?" And the executive said, without blinking an eye, "To go to heaven and take as many people with me as I can."

"For the first time in my career," said the headhunter, "I was speechless." No wonder. He had encountered someone who was prepared.  He was ready.  His purpose, "To go to heaven and take as many people with me as I can."

     What is your purpose in life?

     What is your purpose today?

     Who needs to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ today?