Just Before Dawn
August 28, 2007 on 5:00 pm | In devotionals | No CommentsNow in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. -Matthew 14:25
In Matthew 14, we read about the disciples being tossed by the wind and waves in their boat on the Sea of Galilee. Then Jesus came, walking on the water, at the fourth watch of the night. The fourth watch was the last part of the night, just before dawn. This means the disciples had been at sea for at least nine hours in this fierce storm. So we see that Jesus came to them at the last conceivable moment. This reminds us that God’s delays are not necessarily His denials. Jesus knew what He was doing all along. Why did He wait so long before He intervened? Probably because it took a long time for them to exhaust their resources and completely trust in Him. Lifeguards will tell you that often the hardest person to save is the one who is panicking. But when an individual is exhausted, when he or she has no energy left, the lifeguard can pull that person back in to safety. In the same way, sometimes God will allow us to get to the end of our rope, to the end of our resources, so we will finally cling to Him. The disciples were exhausted and afraid. “[Jesus] said to them, ‘It is I; do not be afraid.’ Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going” (John 6:20-21). For many of us, that is what Jesus is waiting for. He is waiting for us to say, “Come on board.” He will come on board if you will invite Him. He will take control of your storm-tossed boat, even in the darkest night, just before dawn.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
The Day’s Curriculum
August 27, 2007 on 11:40 am | In devotionals | No CommentsImmediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. -Matthew 14:22
Although He knew that a storm was coming, Jesus said to His disciples, “Go to the other side” (see Matthew 14:22-24). Jesus sent them out on the Sea of Galilee because He knew there was a lesson for them to learn. He knew they would make it safely to the other side, so He allowed His disciples to go through the storm. You might say the storm was a part of the day’s curriculum for the disciples. Life is like that too. We don’t always know when a storm is coming. We don’t know when a tragedy will strike. We don’t know when a crisis is going to hit. We don’t know when a hardship may come up in our lives. But God does, and He knows when we are ready to face these things. Now here is the question: How will we face life’s storms? It has been said that into every life some rain must fall. To put it biblically, the rain falls on the just and the unjust (see Mark 6:45). Hard times happen to everyone, but as Christians, we have this promise: “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). Whatever we are going through, in His wonderful providence, God will turn it around for our good. Courageous people are a lot like tea bags. We don’t know their strength until they are in hot water. It takes courage to face your trials. It takes courage to say, “I’ve made a commitment to follow Jesus. I’m not going to give up. I’m going over to the other side.”
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
No Approval Necessary
August 18, 2007 on 10:50 pm | In devotionals | No CommentsHaving predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. -Ephesians 1:5-6
I remember thinking as a young Christian that the reason God was blessing me was because of my disciplined and regular Bible study. I would get up before school every morning and study the Bible for about an hour, and then I would pray for an hour or more (I know I prayed for an hour or more because I kept checking my watch). I thought when I got to school that God would use me that day because I had done so much for Him. Then one morning, my alarm didn’t go off. I woke up very late. I didn’t have time to pray or read my Bible. That day, God allowed me the privilege of leading someone to Christ. Some people think, just as I did as a young believer, that they must do certain things to earn the approval of God. They think they have to somehow appease Him. But God’s righteous demands were satisfied at the cross of Calvary. We don’t have to do things like read the Bible, pray, or go to church to find God’s approval. We should do these things because we want to and because we are pleased with the opportunity to do them. God blesses us, and it is out of that blessing that we should want to do these things. We should want to serve Him, not to earn His approval, but because we already have it. The Bible tells us that God has “made us accepted in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:6). This means that when we put our faith in Christ, God has put His righteousness into our account. He loves us when we do well. But He also loves us when we don’t.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
Eyes on Him
August 17, 2007 on 11:25 pm | In devotionals | No CommentsTherefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. -Hebrews 12:1-2
Holocaust survivor Corrie ten Boom once said, “Look within and be depressed. Look without and be distressed. Look at Jesus and be at rest.” Looking without, she had reason to be distressed. She lived in a concentration camp. She saw her sister and father die. She saw others die. Looking within, she felt depressed as she saw the darkness of her own heart. But seeing the example of her godly sister Betsy, who saw the bright side of everything and was always trusting God, she concluded, “Look at Jesus and be at rest.” The Bible says that Abraham “did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform” (Romans 4:20-21). The word “waver” used in this verse could also be translated “stagger.” It would imply that this unwavering walk of Abraham took place with his eyes fixed on the promise of God. Hebrews 12:1-2 urges us to “lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.” As we walk with God, people will let us down. People will disappoint us. Circumstances will be hard. The enemy will hassle us. This is when we need to remember why we started to walk with God in the first place. It was because of Jesus. So keep your eyes fixed on Him. That will keep you moving forward, because the only way we will make it as Christians is by keeping our eyes on Jesus Christ.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
Just Getting Started
August 16, 2007 on 5:13 pm | In devotionals | No CommentsYet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. -Ecclesiastes 3:11
When I look back on my life at the things God has allowed me to do and the opportunities He has opened up, I can see the wisdom of His perfect timing. Our tendency is to rush things. But just because something hasn’t happened in your life today doesn’t mean it won’t happen tomorrow. Just because it doesn’t happen tomorrow doesn’t mean it won’t happen a month from now or a year from now. Maybe one phase of your life is ending and another is beginning. Maybe everything that has happened to you up to this point in your life has been preparation for what is still ahead. Moses didn’t get going until he was 80. Then there was Caleb, another Israelite who left Egypt in the Exodus. Along with Joshua, Caleb came back full of optimism and belief when they were sent to spy out the Promised Land. But when the Israelites believed the pessimistic report of the ten other spies, God was so displeased that He refused to allow them to enter the land. Years later, when Joshua led a new generation of Israelites into the Promised Land, Caleb was among them. And at 80 years old, he said to Joshua, “So give me the hill country that the Lord promised me. You will remember that as scouts we found the descendants of Anak living there. . . But if the Lord is with me, I will drive them out of the land, just as the Lord said” (Joshua 14:12). Joshua gave him his little segment of land as was promised, and Caleb drove out all of its inhabitants. Caleb believed God’s promises, and God was faithful. We need to do the same.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
When Christians Stumble
August 13, 2007 on 6:43 pm | In devotionals | No CommentsFor what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” -Romans 4:3
Contrary to what some might believe, the Bible doesn’t teach that if you are a Christian, you will never stumble. It doesn’t teach that if you are a true believer, you will not periodically make a mistake or fall short. But it does teach that if you are a true believer and have had a lapse or a stumble, you will always get up and move forward. That is the way to truly determine whether someone is a real believer. Although Abraham was a friend of God, which Scripture specifically mentions three times, it is also clear that he had his lapses of faith. Yet the Bible says that “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness” (Romans 4:3). Does this mean that Abraham was declared righteous because of the good things he did? Did God justify Abraham because he lived such a holy, pure, and flawless life? Hardly. Any honest look at the life of Abraham would clearly show that he was a flawed man. Having said that, it is also important to point out that although Abraham deviated occasionally from the straight and narrow, he always came back. If someone says he or she is a Christian but falls away and never returns to the faith, then he or she was not a believer. As 1 John 2:19 says, “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.” True believers will be miserable in their sin and will eventually beat a quick path back to the cross of Calvary.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
Looking Up?
August 11, 2007 on 7:42 pm | In devotionals | No CommentsAnd await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love. -Jude 1:21
There is a lot of disagreement in the church as a whole over what we call “eschatology,” or prophetic events. Most often, it seems, the differences lie in the order of events. Some don’t believe Christ could return at any time. Some believe that we will go through the Tribulation. The bottom line is this: you need to believe that Jesus could come back at any time. This is an emphasis of the New Testament, and it can have a purifying effect on your life. As 1 John 3:3 says, “And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.” A literal translation of this verse would be, “Whoever has this hope continually set on Him is constantly purifying himself.” If I live my life in a sense of expectation that Christ could come back at any time, then it will purify me. Children who are prone to get into trouble will be on their best behavior if they know their parents might walk into the room at any moment. Likewise, if we know that Christ could come back at any time, it should affect the way we live. In contrast to disobedient children who dread the arrival of their parents, we should look forward with great excitement to the return of our Lord. Like John, we should be able to say, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20). If you cannot say this, it would be an indication that something is not right spiritually. I enjoy life and the opportunities God sets before me. But if tonight were the night for Christ’s return, I would say, “Bring it on!” Wouldn’t you? That is the way to live.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
Friendship with Jesus
August 4, 2007 on 6:34 pm | In devotionals | No CommentsYou are My friends if you do whatever I command you. -John 15
How do we show our friendship for Jesus? How do we show our love for Him? In John 15:14, Jesus points out three things we can do to show our friendship with God. First, true friends of Jesus will obey Him. Quite simply, we will do what He says. If we don’t, then we have no right to call ourselves His friends. Next, this friendship with Jesus, this obedience that results from it, is an active obedience. Some people think it’s enough if they avoid what He forbids. And certainly being a Christian means ceasing to do certain things. But it also means starting to do certain things. It is not merely avoiding the wrong, but it is doing the right. How do we find out what God wants us to do? By reading the Bible, by becoming familiar with its content. The more we know of this Book, the more we will know of God. The more we know of this Book, the more we will know about what He requires of us and what friendship with Him actually is. Lastly, true friends of Jesus obey Him continually. In other words, we are constantly obedient–not perfect, but trying. And if we fail, then we repent and get up and try again. This obedience should not be too hard because of whom we are obedient to. This is Jesus asking for our obedience. That changes everything, because we love Him. When we are in love with God, obedience will not be a duty; it will be a delight. And if our Christian life has become drudgery, merely consisting of rules and regulations, then we are missing out on what friendship with God is all about.
C4W Devotions are used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie P.O. Box 4000 Riverside CA 92514
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