The lesson of God

BIBLE MEDITATION:
Matthew 6:10 - "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Some time ago I was invited to speak at a college in another state, and my schedule was such that I could not come. When they offered to send a private plane, I agreed. As we flew over Arkansas, the pilot asked me if I wanted to try my hands at flying the plane. I said, "Yes." Of course, he was sitting right next to me. He could fly it without me, but I couldn't fly it without him. He had his hands on the controls with me. He allowed me to participate with him. That's the way prayer is. God can do it without you, but God enables you to have fellowship with Him and teaches you a dependency upon Him.

ACTION POINT:
Kneel before Him. Meditate on 1 Chronicles 16:23-36. Glory in His presence.

Why....?

BIBLE MEDITATION:
1 Chronicles 29:11 - "Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine."

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Have you ever wondered why God doesn’t obliterate the devil and eradicate all sin? If God destroyed evil, God would destroy every opportunity of choice. And if God were to destroy every opportunity for choice, then God would destroy every opportunity for love. Therefore, God would destroy the highest good. For God to destroy evil would be evil. God doesn't destroy evil; instead God defeats evil. How? Through Calvary and the resurrection. God turns every hurt into a hallelujah. Every defeat into victory!

ACTION POINT:
Spend some time today thinking about heaven and the glorious reunion you're going to have with Him one day.

In Jesus name...

The Cross of Jesus Bridges the Great Divide from the messages of Adrian Rogers

BIBLE MEDITATION: Ephesians 2:16 - "And that He might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby." DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT: Up in heaven is the holy God; down below is the sinful man. And sin is the dividing rod that separates. Man has an empty void, so man is constantly trying to reach God. But he keeps rebounding off the sin barrier. Then God, moved in mercy by the pitiful plight of sinful man, said, “I will do something.” God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to make a way. And upon the rough hewn timbers of a cross, Jesus gave His life so you and I could live forever and live forgiven. Jesus built a bridge between man and God. It’s a bridge man could never build and a bridge that man can never take away. God made a way that we couldn’t make — for you and for me. ACTION POINT: Since Jesus built a bridge of love for you to be reconciled to God, it's your turn to build a bridge of love to someone who is lost and searching.

praying....

Matthew 6:7 - "But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking."

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
It was a very long, tiring day. I had preached three sermons and dictated a stack of letters. And at the close of each letter I ended it, “In Jesus’ name, Adrian Rogers.” A man came to me at the end of a service and said, “I must see you. I have a severe problem.” I was bone weary but I said, “Very well, come on back and let’s talk.” He talked and I listened. My heart was moved with compassion. I said, “Let me pray for you.” And when I finished I said, “In Jesus’ name, Adrian Rogers.” And then I thought, “Oh my! Did I say that? Did he hear me say that?” How easy we slip and rattle off our prayers.

ACTION POINT:
Do you find yourself using repetitive phrases in your prayer life? Today, just talk with God. Don’t think too much about your words. Follow your heart

To have courage...

Spiritual Causes of Discouragement
1 Chronicles 28:20

Even when we pay attention to the external causes of discouragement, such as relationships, its more subtle intrusions into our lives can take us by surprise. So let's look at some spiritual causes.

1. Satan: a primary instigator. The Enemy's purpose is to cause us to lose heart, think poorly of ourselves, and focus only on the negative.

2. An area of weakness in which Satan has a stronghold--like a tenacious bad habit. This can be especially discouraging because it feels as if we cannot escape the Devil's grip, regardless of what we do.

3. Unanswered prayer. When a prayer is answered "no" or "not now," we can lose hope. Sadly, some quit praying altogether.

4. Prayerlessness. Failing to understand God's sovereignty and timing can lead to this tragic result. When He answers prayer in an unexpected way, some believers get so surprised or irritated that they give up on praying altogether. However, cutting off communication with the Lord is a sure way to move into deeper discouragement.

5. The feeling that you can't please God. This is a tragic consequence of a works-based faith, wherein we believe the Lord's favor is tied to our good works. What a misguided error! Our Father's love is based on His own grace, not our deeds.

It certainly isn't easy to face all the spiritual situations that drain our joy and energy. However, it's crucial that we identify these causes, no matter how painful the process may be. Once we can clearly see the problems, we can begin to learn how to avoid or correct these trouble areas.

The King...

UNMET SPIRITUAL NEEDS

1 John 2:17
The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God abides forever

Over the last three decades, people in the West have begun to sense that there is more to life than science has revealed and their senses have experienced--and, of course, they're right. On the surface this new hunger may sound encouraging to those of us with a Christian worldview, but in fact the same people who are disillusioned with the materialistic world are also disillusioned with established religion. Instead of turning to Christ and His church, they are filling their spiritual void with old-fashioned occultism dressed in the modern garb of parapsychology, holistic health, Eastern mysticism and numerous cults marching under the banner of the New Age Movement.

Attempting to meet spiritual needs apart from God is nothing new. Christ encountered a secularized form of Judaism during His earthly ministry which was bound to its traditions instead of to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The religious leaders of the day didn't recognize the Messiah as their spiritual deliverer. They perceived the oppressor to be Rome, not Satan, the god of this world. But Jesus came to undo the works of Satan (1 John 3:8), not Caesar.

Satan's ultimate lie is that you are capable of being the god of your own life, and his ultimate bondage is getting you to live as though his lie is true. Satan is out to usurp God's place in your life. And whenever you live independently of God, focusing on yourself instead of the cross, preferring material and temporal values to spiritual and eternal values, he has succeeded. The world's solution to this conflict of identity is to inflate the ego while denying God the opportunity to take His rightful place as Lord. Satan couldn't be more pleased--that was his plan from the beginning.

Prayer:

Mighty God, I renounce any inclination within me that I am capable of being the god of my life. You alone are Lord and King