Video Bible Lesson - Run the Race by ARLENE PELLICANE

 Run the Race 

by ARLENE PELLICANE

1/2 Hour of God’s Power with Scott Ralls

Special Edition

1/30/2020

01/30/2020

Run the Race
ARLENE PELLICANE

“Praise the LORD, my soul, and forget not all his benefits — who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Psalm 103:2-5 (NIV)
When I go for what I call a “run” — jogging around my neighborhood for about 10 minutes — I often take my large Goldendoodle dog named Winston with me (whose favorite pastime happens to be napping).
Unlike some dogs, Winston doesn’t just run right alongside me or in front of me. He needs a little motivation. So I grab a doggie biscuit and hold it like a baton in front of him. He sniffs with excitement and follows me, usually trailing for the first four houses before catching up. He loves getting his biscuit treat after our exercise!
With the reward in sight, he runs onward.
The Christian life is compared to a race in the Bible many times:
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?” (1 Corinthians 9:24a, NIV)
“You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth?” (Galatians 5:7, NIV)
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race” (2 Timothy 4:7a, b, NIV).
“And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Hebrews 12:1c, NIV).
Running a race takes discipline, consistency, effort and movement in the same direction. When we have a reward in sight, like Winston and his dog biscuit, it keeps us motivated, helping us to persevere through difficulty or fatigue. We certainly run for the prize of heaven and rewards like the crown of life (James 1:12) and a crown that will last forever. (1 Corinthians 9:25) But there are rewards and benefits to enjoy right now in your race!
Our key verse written by David, highlights the benefits of serving God: “Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits — who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s” (Psalm 103:2-5).
David is talking to himself in these verses. He’s encouraging his own heart. He’s reminding himself of the benefits of following God’s commands. He’s giving a “locker room talk” to an audience of one — like a rousing speech coaches give to sports teams before playing a big game.
He’s stirring up praise in the inward man.
He’s remembering what God has done for him that no one can take away.
He’s grateful to be forgiven.
He’s recognizing it is God who satisfies with good things.
This is a glimpse into David’s inner life of praise. It reveals his motivation and what kept him running so strong that he was called a man after God’s own heart. How can we keep running the race faithfully every day after the heart of God?
There are many sinful distractions along the way that trip us up. There’s also a very subtle snare — the trap of forgetfulness. We don’t go off on an evil path. We just slow down and stop remembering all that God has done. We become forgetful, then unthankful. We forget the awesomeness of God. We forget how God has delivered us. We forget why we made the commitment to run the race as a disciple in the first place.
It’s time to awake our souls to remember our God who is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in love. When we remember who He is, we have the power to keep running, jogging, walking in the right direction. So what keeps us running the race? Remembering the benefits of following God. Let’s not forget He forgives, heals, redeems, crowns and satisfies!
Heavenly Father, thank You for being my redeemer and for saving my soul. I remember Your goodness today. You do not treat me as my sins deserve or repay me according to my iniquities. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is Your love for me. I take time now to remember Your greatness. Thank You for having compassion on me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Acts 20:24, “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me — the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.” (NIV)
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24, “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.” (NIV)

#Jesus, #Christian, #Bible, #Salvation, #Heaven, #God, #HolySpirit

Life Giving Dew

Life Giving Dew

I will be as the dew unto Israel (Hosea 14:5).

The dew is a source of freshness. It is nature's provision for renewing the face of the earth. It falls at night, and without it the vegetation would die. It is this great value of the dew which is so often recognized in the Scriptures. It is used as the symbol of spiritual refreshing. Just as nature is bathed in dew, so the Lord renews His people. In Titus 3:5 the same thought of spiritual refreshing is connected with the ministry of the Holy Ghost--"renewing of the Holy Ghost."

Many Christian workers do not recognize the importance of the heavenly dew in their lives, and as a result they lack freshness and vigor. Their spirits are drooping for lack of dew.

Beloved fellow-worker, you recognize the folly of a laboring man attempting to do his day's work without eating. Do you recognize the folly of a servant of God attempting to minister without eating of the heavenly manna? Nor will it suffice to have spiritual nourishment occasionally. Every day you must receive the renewing of the Holy Ghost. You know when your whole being is pulsating with the vigor and freshness of Divine life and when you feel jaded and worn. Quietness and absorption bring the dew. At night when the leaf and blade are still, the vegetable pores are open to receive the refreshing and invigorating bath; so spiritual dew comes from quiet lingering in the Master's presence. Get still before Him. Haste will prevent your receiving the dew. Wait before God until you feel saturated with His presence; then go forth to your next duty with the conscious freshness and vigor of Christ.
--Dr. Pardington

Our Great Mission

Our Great Mission

Dr. Charles Stanley

Matthew 28:18-20

If you’re a believer, you are part of the awesome body of Christ, which is called to bring His light to the world both individually and corporately. Though many see the church as a social organization, that’s not what the Bible says it is. Sometimes we forget that our purpose isn’t simply to have fellowship, sing, preach, and worship. Jesus entrusted us with good news of the true life He offers to everyone. This calling isn’t just for foreign “missionaries”—it’s for every believer. Your mission field includes your family, friends, coworkers, and perhaps even a people group God puts on your heart, often right in your community.

Before returning to heaven, Jesus gave His disciples the Great Commission, in which He promised to be with believers to the end of the age. That pledge still stands. He doesn’t send us out to do His work on our own. Vowing never to leave us, He gave the assurance that all tasks He assigns will be achieved through us by His Holy Spirit.

What an honor to be included in the Lord’s redemptive plan for the world! He invites you to have a vital part in His kingdom work of transforming what is broken and giving new life. Everything you do in obedience is an opportunity for His Spirit to work powerfully through you!

He is still speaking His message of assurance to us: You’ll have Me as your companion, your captain, your victory. You’ll have Me as your resource, your energy, your anointing. Everything you need, you’ll find in Me. How does recognizing the greatness of your calling change the way you see your daily life?

church Is Meant to Be a Grace-Trip, Not a Guilt-Trip

church Is Meant to Be a Grace-Trip, Not a Guilt-Trip
STEPHANIE RAQUEL

“And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” Hebrews 10:25 (NLT)

Utterly exhausted. And way too tired to clean up after dinner or get ready for bed.

That defined my Saturday night as I conked out on the couch after getting five kiddos to sleep. This was followed by a miserable combination of 2 a.m. insomnia, finally falling back asleep at 4 a.m., only to be startled back awake by a small child, and then woken up again by my out-of-town-husband’s alarm clock blaring at 6 a.m.

I dozed back asleep, only to wake up right in time to leave for church, with a serious case of the Sunday morning blues.

Ugh.

Although we live only five minutes away, every fiber of my being wanted to stay home, snuggled in my PJs.

Please God, don’t make me do this. Can’t I just skip it today?

I tried to convince myself it didn’t matter if we showed up or not.

Ultimately, I decided to go, even if we were late … and by some miracle, we arrived mere minutes before the sermon began.

And the topic? The Prodigal Son.

Oh, isn’t that just like the enemy of this world to want me to forget how much God loves me when I feel like running away? Surely the enemy wants to leave me in a spiritually isolated place.

During the message, the Holy Spirit reminded me to keep praying for the prodigals in my life — several who used to be very close to the Lord — and also reminded me that just a few days prior, I’d gone to a counseling appointment with a dear friend, and we’d started talking again for the first time in more than five years!

Wouldn’t the enemy of our souls want me to forget that prodigals can still come home, that our God is still in the business of bringing dead things back to life, and He still abounds in grace?

No wonder the enemy worked overtime to keep me out of church that weekend. Thankfully, I felt enveloped in reminders of God’s grace instead.

Today’s key verse, Hebrews 10:25, is the antidote for days when we’d simply rather skip church. It says, “And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” To me, this says, let’s keep connecting with one another and encouraging each other — until Christ’s return.

Digging deeper into the preceding verses, we see that through Jesus, God orchestrated a new covenant for His people. Verse 18 explains, “And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices.”

For the Hebrew people addressed in this book, this was major news.

No more sacrifices? Christ’s death was enough, once and for all? This reminder was all about God’s infinite grace! And I’m fairly certain the world could benefit from us extending more grace to others!

Whether it’s the crazy driver who cuts me off in traffic, the friend who’s let me down, or even my own heart when I haven’t been the kindest toward the people in my home, spiritually isolating ourselves leads to all kinds of non-gracious activities. Why is that? Because we all benefit from walking in grace.

We live in a world that tempts us to abandon corporate worship and walk away from our faith. Hello, January.

But this passage shows us God never designed church or corporate worship to be a guilt trip. Instead, church should be a grace trip — a reminder to keep gathering and encouraging, and continuing to show His infinite grace to everyone around us.

Because whatever excuses we have for not getting there, God has more than enough grace to go around.

Lord, thank You for Your grace. And thank You that it’s designed for the whole world. May we keep meeting together and encouraging one another until You return or draw us home. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Hebrews 10:19, 23 “And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus … Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.” (NLT)

2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.” (NLT)

A Prayer to Defeat Your Fear of Failure

A Prayer to Defeat Your Fear of FailureBy Rick Warren

“For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again, but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes.” – Proverbs 24:16

Satan’s favorite tool to diminish your faith is the fear of failure. But you cannot serve God and be constantly worried about what other people think. You have to move forward. Proverbs 29:25 says, “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe” (NIV).

So how do you get rid of the fear of failure?

One way is to redefine failure. What is failure? Failure is not failing to reach your goal. Failure is not having a goal. Failure is not failing to hit your target. Failure is not having a target. Failure is not falling down. Failure is refusing to get back up. You’re never a failure until you quit. So if you’re attempting something for the glory of God, that’s a good thing. Failure is not trying and not accomplishing anything. Failure is failing to try.

Another way to get rid of the fear of failure is to never compare yourself to anybody else. You’re always going to find somebody who’s doing a better job, and you get discouraged. And, you’re always going to find somebody who’s not doing as good a job as you are, and you become full of pride. Both of them will mess up your life. Discouragement and pride will keep you from serving God’s purpose for your life.

The Bible says in Galatians 6:4, “Each of you must examine your own actions. Then you can be proud of your own accomplishments without comparing yourself to others” (GW).

Did you notice that the Bible says there is a legitimate pride? There’s a good kind of pride and there’s a bad kind of pride. The bad kind of pride is comparing: “I’m better than so and so!” The good kind of pride is, “God, I’m proud of what you’re doing in my family, my business, my life, my walk of faith.” That’s the good kind of pride.

When you get to Heaven, God isn’t going to say, “Why weren’t you more like so and so?” He’s going to say, “Why weren’t you who I made you to be?”

Let go of your fear of failure, because anything you’re attempting for God in faith is a good thing, regardless of the results.

Lord, help me let go of my fear of failure. I know Satan wants to use my fears to hold me back from living boldly for You. Forgive me for not living in faith, and help me from this moment on to live with bold confidence in You. Lord, help me not compare myself to others around me. I pray instead that I can keep my eye on You and live a life that proclaims Your excellence. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen. 

Walking in Sustainable Faith

Walking in Sustainable Faith 
By Meg Bucher

“As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.” John 6:66 (NASB)

Can you picture the scene? After Jesus preached that He was the only way to the Father.

Earth-shattering and …in the minds of those who did not believe He was the Messiah, blasphemous speech. It was too much for many to wrap their minds around. And I believe that’s where they went wrong. Our minds will never be fully capable of comprehending Jesus.

Faith kicks in to cover what we cannot comprehend.

We are purposely not privy to all of the answers. But that doesn’t mean we can’t live a life full of the tremendous purpose God has intentionally placed upon all of our lives.

It’s all in how we walk. Where we walk. And Who we follow.

The original translation of walked in this verse is, peripateo, meaning to make one’s way, progress; to make due use of opportunities. (Strong’s.) 

We walk in the life of our steps.

“Jesus had already made clear what discipleship meant, and many were not ready to receive life in the way he taught.” NIV Study Bible Notes

There are many rounds of pain we are promised to go through in this life. Rounds of physical pain, mental pain, relational pain, and tests of our faith. God is not surprised by any of them. What will we chose to do in each round? Will we remember that He’s in our corner, and continue walking …continuing fighting on in faith with Him at our side. With the Son and the Spirit that He sent to help us and build a bridge into His arms everyday we are alive.

Or will we walk away from the fight? Will we turn around when it’s too much for us to understand …bear …or carry? Life is too heavy for our backs, but fits perfectly in His arms.

Father, 

Praise You for carrying us through pain. Thank You for Your faithfulness and compassion for us. Forgive us for walking away, making life in harder to bear. Remind us in the moments when life seems impossible …that it is. And that’s why You are the only One capable of carrying us through it. In

Jesus’ Name, 

Amen.