The Rewards of Patience..... Dr. Charles Stanley

 The Rewards of Patience

Dr. Charles Stanley

Psalms 40

The Scriptures contain many stories of people who waited years or even decades before the Lord's promises came to pass. What modern believers can learn from the patience of biblical saints like Abraham, Joseph, David, and Paul is that waiting upon the Lord has eternal rewards.

Today let's look at Israel's most memorable monarch. David was the chosen heir to Israel's throne, but he spent years dodging King Saul's wrathful pursuit. Despite having two different opportunities for vengeance, David resisted the temptation and spared Saul's life. He chose to adhere to God's timetable for his coronation instead of dishonoring the Lord by killing the divinely anointed king. David's psalms reveal his intimate awareness of Yahweh's work in his life. The shepherd king not only achieved his objective through patience; he also observed that God's way was always best.

David left behind an incredible testimony of God's faithfulness for each of us to read and meditate upon. He was committed to waiting upon the Lord, and as a result, he had the Father's approval and blessing. We cannot underestimate the reward of living in divine favor. That isn't a special state reserved for "giants of the faith" like David. All who obediently endure until the Lord acts on their behalf abide in His favor.

David didn't receive his blessings because he was special; he was honored among men because he honored the Lord above all. And since he trusted in God's faithfulness, he endured hardship with patience. We, too, can expect to be blessed when we wait upon the Lord.

Our Forgiveness in Jesus..... Craig Denison

 Our Forgiveness in Jesus

Craig Denison

Weekly Overview:

Offering forgiveness to others is one of the most difficult and important aspects of the Christian life. The Bible clearly commands us to forgive others. God longs to fashion us into his likeness that we might model the love we’ve been shown to a world with no concept of mercy. He longs for us to offer grace and forgiveness to the undeserving as we have been offered grace and forgiveness when we were undeserving. May you be filled with courage and boldness to offer forgiveness to those in desperate need of grace. And may God’s love shine through as you enter into your calling as a minister of reconciliation.

Scripture:“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” >Ephesians 4:32

Devotional:

Before we have the ability to live a lifestyle of forgiveness, we must discover the depth of forgiveness we have received in Jesus. God’s love is the foundation for our own love. His forgiveness is the foundation for our own forgiveness. In order to love to greater depths, we must continuously reflect on the nature of our own sin and God’s overwhelming mercy.

In Luke 7:44-47 Jesus reveals an important spiritual principle about forgiveness, sacrifice, and love. A sinful woman has just come and ministered to Jesus, cleaning his feet with her own tears, hair, and alabaster ointment. When Simon, a Pharisee, saw the incredible act of love, he judged the woman and Jesus in his heart. Knowing Simon’s thoughts, Jesus says to him,

Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.

“He who is forgiven little, loves little.” Allow Jesus’ words to settle into your heart for a minute. God turns our greatest sins into his greatest triumphs. He takes our greatest transgressions, offers us mercy for them all, and transforms them into life-giving rivers of love and forgiveness. Until you and I understand the depth to which we were enslaved to sin, we will never love to our greatest potential. Until we understand how vast the chasm was that separated us from God and compare it to our new position seated with Christ in the heavenly places, we will never forgive others to the depth God calls us to.

While we were by nature wholly unworthy, God called us out from darkness and brought us into the light. While we were unable to pursue righteousness, God saved us and gave us a new identity as his sons and daughters made righteous and pure. Before the forgiveness offered you through Christ, you had no access to true relationship with your heavenly Father. You had no access to the fruit of the Spirit. You had no way to know and experience the depths of God’s love. Your life was rooted in destruction with no way out. Yet God saw fit to forgive every transgression you have ever committed and will commit. The Father so longed for your restoration to him that he paid the highest price of Jesus’ death.

Take time today to truly reflect on the depravity to which you once belonged and on the new nature, portion, and depth of relationship available to you by the forgiveness of God. Allow the Lord to forgive any present failures that are robbing you of the abundant life Jesus died to give you. And allow the Spirit to fill you with compassion and mercy for others that you might forgive them in response to the forgiveness you have received.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on your life before salvation and your life after salvation. Allow God’s word to paint a picture of just how powerful and merciful God’s forgiveness is.

“Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” >Isaiah 59:1-2

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” >Romans 6:23

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.” >Ephesians 1:3-4

2. What sin would the Lord have you confess today? Where do you need forgiveness?

3. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you with compassion for others today. Ask him to make you quick to forgive in light of the forgiveness you’ve been shown. Ask him to help you keep no record of wrongs so that you can love others with his love.

“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” >Ephesians 4:32

“Then Peter came up and said to him, ‘Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.’” >Matthew 18:21-22

May Psalm 103:10-14 fill you with love for your heavenly Father and compassion for others today:

He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.

Extended Reading: Luke 7

Don’t Give Up on Church..... By: Betsy St. Amant Haddox

 Don’t Give Up on Church (Hebrews 10:24-25)

By: Betsy St. Amant Haddox

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. - Hebrews 10:24-25 (ESV)

There seems to be a growing view from professing believers today that church attendance is not that important. It appears the contagious thought is something akin to “I don’t need church—I have my own relationship with God.” This viewpoint is still forgetting one important fact: the church needs you!

Growing up in the Bible belt in the 80’s and 90’s, church membership was a big deal. People didn’t just “break up” with their church and search for another over every little issue like they do today. And trust me, there were issues, from debates over worship styles to carpet color preferences and beyond! But people took the concept of a church membership seriously, and like with every good and healthy relationship, they worked through their differences and hung in there. There was a sense of loyalty that’s lacking in churches today, and the body is suffering for it.

Don’t get me wrong—if you find yourself a member of a church that’s not preaching the Word or adhering to sound Biblical doctrine, you should absolutely leave. But don’t leave to the end of having “church” by yourself in bed on Sunday mornings. Find a Bible-preaching church with sound doctrine (remember they won’t be perfect, because none are!) and plug in. Get involved. Use your gifts. Encourage, and be encouraged.

The Bible doesn’t give the command in Hebrews 10 to not forsake the assembly as an arbitrary rule, but one for our own good, and for the good of fellow believers. Instead of focusing on what your church gives you, ask yourself how your gifts would benefit the body. Maybe you have admin skills your church office could really benefit from. Maybe you have the gift of prophecy or edification. Maybe you’re a fantastic teacher, or a natural with babies and little children. Whatever your gifts are, there’s a place for you and a role for you to fill.

Church hurt is a real thing, and maybe in the past, you’ve been burned by a pastor, a Sunday School leader, or a church member. We’ve all been there, and it’s hard. It’s legit. But don’t shy away permanently from the body because of one bad experience (or two). If you’re an arm, you’re not going to thrive without the rest of the body of Christ supporting you—and the body needs that arm of yours!

Another big blessing of church community is spelled out in Hebrews 10—stirring one another up to love and good works. I don’t know about you, but I’m much more motivated by teamwork and fellowship. I can be feeling down or moody on the way to church, but once I get there, I’m immediately refreshed by worship, fellowship, and a solid sermon. It’s a reset that I need every week—and you do too.

Don’t give up on finding a church home—and don’t forsake the assembly. You’re needed.

Strangely Dim..... by John UpChurch

 Strangely Dim

by John UpChurch

Four crumbling stairs leading up the hill from the rock-encrusted sidewalk—that’s all that’s left. If you drove by today, you wouldn’t know that I once smashed honey bees on the driveway with a shovel, or that I did so barefooted until one got a squishy revenge. You also wouldn’t know about the loft in the garage where my brothers would hide away or the window in my room that thieves peeked through before they stole our bikes. You’d never see the stairs leading out the back door where my mom would sit while we brought her giant grasshoppers to examine or plums from the fruit trees.

You see, I had this idea that one day, when I got the chance, I’d take my wife and girls to Marion, Alabama. I’d show them the house where I spent the first five years of my life, regaling them with stories about the giant heating grate in the middle of the hall that my brother used as a bathroom while sleepwalking, and the stove fire that sent my dad to the hospital, and the small square pond with goldfish that our landlady’s cat loved to eat.

But I can’t—at least, not the way I intended. My oldest brother dashed this plan by posting a Google Street View image. The two neighboring houses still stand. Ours is gone. Completely. Considering the size of the trees that now play the stand-in role, I’m guessing the house disappeared years ago (given our experience with electrical issues there, probably in a blaze of glory).

I’ve been told by movies and books that I can’t go home again, and this sad image of an empty lot does make a pretty good case for that. But that house—no matter the memories of watching PBS in the living room or music blaring from my brothers’ stereo—that house was never my home, not really. Nor is the house where I spent most of my youth, nor is the place I live now.

Seeing an empty lot reminded me how easily the things here on earth disappear. One moment you’re settling into a comfortable Alabama life; the next you’re suddenly uprooted for Tennessee. And when you look back, all that’s left is in your head.

Intersecting Faith & Life: When I saw the empty lot in Marion, it reminded me of an old song that I’ve never really liked. I know I’m supposed to because it’s a classic and all. But I don’t. I do admit that it makes a ton of sense:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

We can try to cling to all the stuff around us—our family, our house, our money—but it all disappears. That’s why our foundation is so important. Building on the Rock of Christ isn’t just a happy-happy phrase that we can post on our fridge and feel good about. It’s a necessity. If we build on anything else, even without realizing it, we might look down someday to find our foundation and discover it’s gone.

For Further Reading
Matthew 7
Luke 6

A Prayer for the Strength We Need to be Joyful..... By Meg Bucher

A Prayer for the Strength We Need to be Joyful
By Meg Bucher

“Be joyful always.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16 (GLT)

The Bible commands us to “be joyful always,” (1Thessalonians 5:16) but it takes strength to hold onto joy when life threatens to snatch it from our hands. How do we recognize a threat to our joy, employ a strategy to refute it, and come out stronger on the other side of it …still gripping our God-given joy?

“Be joyful always.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16 (GLT)

The Bible commands us to “be joyful always,” (1Thessalonians 5:16) but it takes strength to hold onto joy when life threatens to snatch it from our hands. How do we recognize a threat to our joy, employ a strategy to refute it, and come out stronger on the other side of it …still gripping our God-given joy?

Often, we think that Biblical joy should feel like happiness. However, even though “always” encompasses happy times and feelings of bliss, true Christian joy can endure through extreme hardship and pain. Happy feelings aren’t a requirement to be “cheerful no matter what,” as the Message paraphrase of 1 Thessalonians 5:16 reads.

“Be full of joy all of the time,” the New Life Version translates. “Always be joyful,” reads the New Living Translation. “Celebrate always,” the VOICE paraphrases, and“Rejoice always,” the New International Version states. Joy is an emotion of great delight. Praise expresses approval. Worship regards something as sacred. Celebration makes something known! (dictionary.com) Where do we find the strength to rejoice in the middle of trials, frustrations, and heartbreak …sickness, death, and despair …loneliness, fatigue, and unfairness? The NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible states that “rejoicing might be associated with praise.”

The strength we need is in Christ. Paul wrote, “I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13 NIV) Paul knew what it meant to suffer. We can look back at this verse and listen to a heart that had been war-torn through a life in service to His Savior. “I know what it is to be in need,” he said, “and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” (Phil 4:12 NIV)

Christ made Paul strong. Not in a one-time miraculous way, but with the continued presence of the Holy Spirit, and through Paul’s relationship with Him.

We become strong enough to grip joy as our personal relationship with Christ strengthens. There’s no shortcut to it, or quick fix for it. All we need to be forgiven is to proclaim Him as Savior, but to retain joy in this life, we need Him …all the time.

It’s His grace that provides strength. We cannot cure our sin, but we can look to Him to wipe the slate clean. “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses,” Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, “so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

When we walk in faith with Christ daily, we can begin to understand what Paul is talking about, and to recognize trials as growing pains. Our trust in God through the seasons that elude our understanding strengthens. Just as a marathon runner must train diligently over time, we must be all-in for this journey with Jesus in order to catch a glimpse of the wisdom that the pages of His Word contain.

We become stronger, the more we surrender to Him. One verse a day. 5 minutes each morning. Church every Sunday. With every step we take, we get to know Him more. And that makes us strong. He is the strength that allows us to hold onto joy.

A Prayer for Joy and Strength

Father,

Praise You for these lessons on strength and joy, and for Paul’s faithful life witness left behind for us to learn from. Father, You command us to be joyful always, but You do not expect us to be able to figure out how to attain or retain that joy ourselves.

You gave Your Son Jesus to light the way a joy-filled life. Through His earthly footsteps, we study the example He left for us to follow. Thank You for Scripture. As 2 Timothy 3:16 states, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.”

All of creation reminds us of You. The beauty of nature and marvel of the changing seasons. The uniqueness in all of us and the diversity in the daily horizon. Surround us with reminders of You often, through nature, the people you place in our lives, and the Bible. May the Holy Spirit help us to understand Your Word, and will for our lives. Bless our hearts with sustaining joy, and the strength to hold onto it no matter what.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.