God of All Comfort.....By: Amanda Idleman

 God of All Comfort (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

By: Amanda Idleman

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. - 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Our God is with us when we experience pain, loss, regret, sadness, and all manner of pain. He is not only with us but promises to bring us the comfort we need when we face troubles. He is with us through all things.

“God of Comfort” can also be translated as “God of Compassion.” To have compassion is to have concern for the sufferings of others. This first shows us that God recognizes our need to be seen, to receive the empathy and care of others. God is interested in what we are going through. He does not dismiss our current circumstances or minimize our daily stressors as insignificant. He cares about and is there for each and every up and down that we face.

It’s easy for many of us to think our heartbreak doesn’t count because others have gone through worse. While we should realize the ways we are blessed, that does not mean God doesn’t see your pain as “minimal” compared to others. Compassion and comfort from Jesus are available whenever we need them! God’s grace is not reserved for our hardest moments; it's available to us on a day-by-day and even moment-by-moment basis!

We can call on God’s powerful Holy Spirit when we need comfort because we are having trouble resolving a conflict with those closest to us, when plans have to be scrapped due to unforeseen circumstances, or when disappointment attempts to steal our joy. God comforts us when we face job losses, unmet goals, loneliness, grief, illness, separation, depression, anxiety, relational strife; whatever we face we must remember that we can have confidence in the power of God to help us through the trials in our lives.

The beautiful thing is that God offers us his peace not just to carry us through our own circumstances but so we can also “comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” In God’s economy, nothing is wasted! His power is multiplied through us. His grace overflows from our lives and spills into the lives of those around us.

God gives purpose to our hard places. Genesis 50:20 says, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.” From the beginning, God has re-written the stories of people's lives for His glory. Joseph, who utters the words from Genesis about God’s grace over this life, endured many hardships that began when his brothers sold him into slavery due to jealousy. Rather than letting bitterness steal his future, he relied on God’s comforting strength to help change the narrative of his life. There is no circumstance that God can’t heal and then use as a blessing to others.

When you face difficulties remember God’s Holy Spirit is always at your disposal. While we suffer God comforts. As we heal God mercifully uses our lives to bless others who need a listening ear, wise counsel, or a love-filled embrace. Praise our God for He is a God of all Comfort!

God’s Grace Brings Purpose.....Craig Denison Ministries

 God’s Grace Brings Purpose

Craig Denison Ministries

Weekly Overview:

Grace is a gift most of us don’t know how to receive. We’ve been so inundated with the earthly systems of give-and-get and work-and-earn that grace is a concept few ever fully grasp. Yet it’s grace alone that has the power to transform lives. Grace alone has the power to bring freedom to the captives. By grace alone we are saved. There could be no better use of our time than consistently and passionately pursuing a greater revelation of God’s grace.

Scripture:“[God] saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began

Devotional:    

One of the greatest gifts we’ve been given by God is purpose. From the time of Adam, God has always made clear the purposes we were created for. In Genesis 1:28 God says, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Throughout time our purposes have changed, but God has made it clear that we all are to have lives that are valuable and effective. Have you lived days where you’re simply going through the motions? Have you had days where you feel as if what you do doesn’t matter? Those days in my life are my absolute worst. I would rather go through trial and persecution with purpose than live a meaningless day. It’s in purpose we find satisfaction. In purpose we find out our lives matter. And in purpose we discover the reason we were created.

2 Timothy 1:9 says, “[God] saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began.” Because of God’s grace and purpose we have been called to a life of wonderful and satisfying works. The Bible teaches us a truth in opposition to the teachings of the world. The world says to work enough to live a life of comfort and ease. Work is done for the purpose of relaxation and comfort. God says that we are created for a life of eternal value in which everything we do is to have purpose higher than our own comfort and relaxation.God has placed value and worth on your life to an extent you have yet to discover. He has a plan and purpose for your life that he’s assigned to no one else. Your life is meant to make an eternal impact for his kingdom which will reign for all time. But in his grace he has also given you control of your own life. You can choose to live your life according to his purposes or your own. And you can choose to pursue comfort and meaningless relaxation or a life of true rest and satisfaction that comes only from living entirely for God. My hope is that in looking at two purposes God has for your life, you will choose to live your life completely with and for your heavenly Father. And in doing so, you will discover the incredible joy and passion the Spirit longs to birth in you.

The first purpose for which you were created is relationship with God. Jesus says in Mark 12:30, “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” The Westminster Shorter Catechism says it this way: “The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.”Loving God is your highest calling, and in loving God you will experience the fullest joy and satisfaction available. When you stand before God in judgment, he will not look for possessions, promotions, or social status, but rather at the fervor with which you loved him. You will be rewarded for acts of love, not self-seeking glorification. And this chief purpose of loving God is the only path to the abundant life he has in store for you here.

The second purpose for which you were created is loving others in response to your love for God. Mark 12:31 says, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Ephesians 5:1-2 says, “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Acts 26:16 says,“But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you.” We are called to love others out of the amazing love we’ve been shown. As our hearts are filled with love for God through encountering him in the secret place, we will be filled with a longing to see his desires for others around us come to fruition. God’s greatest longing is for relationship with his crown of creation, and he wants to use us to guide others to himself. In loving others we will discover the incredible satisfaction of seeing the lost and hurting be found and healed. Incredible passion and joy comes from seeing a life transformed through the Spirit working in us.

How incredible is the grace of our God that his purposes would be entirely rooted in love. We are called to simply love him and others with the very love we’ve been shown. He’s like a father who gives his children money to buy him a present. He fills us with the love and enjoyment he feels for us, and then in response we can love him and others. He fills you with the breath of life and then patiently waits for you to live your life as a beautiful song of worship to him. May you experience today all that God’s grace has afforded you. May you choose to live your life with purpose and passion that only comes from loving him and others.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on God’s desire to lead you to a life of abundant purpose.

“[God] saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began.” 2 Timothy 1:9

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide.” John 15:16

2. Reflect on your own life. Where have you been living with the purposes of the world rather than God? In what areas are you living for yourself rather than him and others? And in what areas of your life do you feel meaningless and passionless?

3. Receive the rejuvenation that comes from living with his purposes as your chief goals. Allow God to revive relationships that seem tired and passionless. Allow God to fill you with desire for your work, friendships, or marriage. Ask for the Spirit to reveal specific ways he desires to use you today.

The passion and purpose God has for you never ceases. There will be days or seasons he leads you to rest for the purpose of renewing, loving, and filling you. There will be times of work and striving in which he purposes to mold, shape, and use you. Wherever God is leading you today, trust that he absolutely has the best plan for you. Choose to live your life with his purposes in your heart and experience the passion that can only be found in living for God.

Extended Reading: Mark 12

God’s Wild Love for You.....LISA BEVERE

 God’s Wild Love for You

LISA BEVERE 

Lee en español

“Be here—the king is wild for you. Since he’s your lord, adore him.” Psalm 45:11 (MSG)

Before I knew Christ, I’d chosen a path of destruction that would have ground to dust every dream and hope I dared to harbor.

I still remember the tangible sense of relief I felt that night when I first heard that God actually loved me and wasn’t angry with me.

But the good news did not stop there. I learned that, on the cross, Jesus blotted out the record of each and every sin I’d ever committed. I felt immediately lighter. My breathing became deeper, and my jaw unclenched. The heavy shroud that sin and shame had layered upon my frame was stripped away, and a mantle of Christ’s righteousness took its place.

God is the only One capable of keeping an exacting record of our sins, and yet He refuses to. Rather than itemize our sins, He plunges any recollection of their taint and violations into oblivion, as Micah 7:19 says:

“He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea” (ESV).

I love the imagery captured in this verse. Out of compassion, God crushes the very things that threaten to crush us. Our evil actions and vices crumble under the weight of His step. And once those idols of sin and shame are ground into unrecognizable fragments, He hurls them into the sea, where they sink to its cold, shadowed depths, never to rise again.

This is an invitation to tremble in awe and wild wonder of the Most High God, who knows all and yet loves us so well. In fact, it’s time for us to challenge the way we think God thinks about us.

Perhaps you’ve entertained beliefs like I once had that God is angry and displeased with you. I encourage you to apply what the psalmist suggests in Psalm 45:11: “Be here—the king is wild for you … adore him.” Adoration results from revelation of His wild love for you!

The God who is Truth cannot lie. He is wild about you!

As daughters and sons of our Lord, we are under His rule, and His rule is love. One way we can honor His lordship is by choosing to accept how He feels about us. His love for us is not subject to how we feel about ourselves, no matter what we’ve done or how tempted we are to dwell on the past.

His love is selfless. He is love. His love is independent of how we look, feel or act. We might as well surrender to this love that is beyond our comprehension.

This revelation — that God, who is love, loves us — is exciting. If we are bored with the idea that God loves us, it could be because we’ve heard it but never experienced it. This realization that He constantly thinks of us is thrilling and should awaken a fresh enthusiasm in every aspect of our walk with the Father.

He means what He has said about us. His heart is set on us, and nothing we do or say can remove His seal of love from us. In Christ, His love is forever settled.

It is now time for us to settle it for ourselves.

Dear Father, You have promised to love me with a wild and fierce love. Show me how to fully believe that truth and to walk with You in excitement and with a fresh sense of expectation for how You’re working in my life. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

How to Serve the Church.....Dr. Charles Stanley

 How to Serve the Church

Dr. Charles Stanley

1 Corinthians 12:18-26

When I talk about serving the church with God-given talents and gifts, people oftentimes think too small. They picture the choir singer or the Sunday school teacher. But if they don't happen to be naturallly adept at singing or teaching, they give up.

It's time we stop thinking in terms of a "Sunday only" establishment. The church is not a place or a time; it is a body of believers, each one uniquely gifted by God to guide, help, challenge, and support the rest. In fact, most service to the Lord doesn't take place inside the church building. It happens out in the world, where we do all the things that Scripture commands.

Most believers are not in a position to influence a lot of people. When we act or speak, only those closest to us notice, but a chain reaction ripples outward to affect an entire community. Paul's metaphor of body parts working together harmoniously is a helpful description of how one small action can have a widespread impact. Consider the way tensing your big toe keeps your foot stable and thereby steadies your whole body. In the same way, a gentle rebuke, a listening ear, or a loving deed benefits the church by strengthening one brother or sister, who then supports another...

We are on this earth to serve the kingdom of God and His church. And we do that by ministering to each other in small ways that steady the whole body as we give extra support to one member. In talking about such service, I am challenging you to find a need that God can meet through you.

Lean In.....by Annie Yorty

 Lean In

 by Annie Yorty

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (James 4:8a NASB1995).

Jake’s massive weight almost knocked me over. The gentle giant, an English mastiff, pressed hard against my legs as I stood talking with his owner. “He’s really taken a shine to you,” she remarked as I stumbled back, trying to counterbalance the two-hundred-plus pounds pushing against me.

I’ve noticed the same interesting behavior in my furry beast labradoodle. When I rise in the morning, Misha prances to my side, pressing the length of his body against my legs dangling off the bed. As I sit at the table for lunch, he sidles up, inclining his long warm body against my thigh. If I’m standing at the front door chatting with visitors, he leans in hard against my hip. Thankfully, Misha weighs only fifty pounds.

Comfortable with the contact, Misha simply leans, looking ahead, waiting. If I fail to notice him within a moment or two, he twists his head around to implore me with round poodle eyes charmingly obscured by bushy black eyebrows. Inevitably, my hand will drift down to him, tousling soft floppy ears or scratching his skinny poodle rump. His satisfaction palpable, Misha leans in harder. 

Canine experts say dogs press against their humans for a variety of reasons. Anxious dogs come close to feel more protected and secure. Playful pups lean in to reciprocate love when receiving treats or attention. But most dogs simply crave human nearness. They revel in the touch of their master. I believe we may have something to learn from our furry friends.

Are we most like the anxious dog, waiting until we’re at our wit’s end before we turn to God? Do we try to withstand the stress of life by reliance on ourselves? Eventually, the pressure drives us to lean into Him for help, security, and provision. Of course, we can and should sprint to God during times of struggle the moment we realize our need. The Bible is clear that God stands ready to supply anyone who cries out to Him. “He gives strength to the weary, and to the one who lacks might He increases power” (Isaiah 40:29 NASB1995).

Perhaps like the second dog, we only notice God when He gives a blessing. We flit through our days, distracted by busyness, not thinking much about God until He captures our attention with a “treat.” Finally, sensing His care, we move back in to offer thanks and express love to Him. 

But shouldn’t we be more like Misha, not waiting for a crisis to force us, or enticement to draw us, to our Master’s side? In Proverbs, God warns us what not to lean on—our own understanding. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6 NASB). Leaning on ourselves proves completely unreliable, throwing us constantly off balance. 

This verse also instructs us to lean on God in all our ways. Every day. Constantly. Not just when we run dry and need something. What if we pressed into God morning, noon, and night, sticking close to His side whenever He moves? So close that God’s presence, His touch, is unmistakable. Perhaps if we stayed near perpetually, we wouldn’t get so worn out and discouraged by the cares of life.

There’s something else we can learn from Misha. He doesn’t know the meaning of shame. Just a minute after gulping down one of my socks for the umpteenth time, he butts into my irritation with a cold, wet nose seeking my unconditional love. But when we have strayed into sin, we often distance ourselves from God. We wonder if He will forgive us, if He will still love us.

Like Misha, I crave my Master’s presence, His touch. When I draw near to Him, I feel His guidance, His strength, His love. His hand upon me, I am secure. God’s simple command, given through Jesus to His first disciples, is “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19 NASB). Stick close. Lean in. He is all we need. 

Intersecting faith and life:
What things or circumstances prevent you from staying close to God? How can you intentionally come into God’s presence?

Further reading:

• James 4:6-10

A Prayer to Be Brave Like Jesus.....By: Alisha Headley

 A Prayer to Be Brave Like Jesus

By: Alisha Headley

“If the world hated you, keep in mind that it hated me first.” - John 15:18

Most of our fears come from the enemy. He loves to instill fear into us so we will stay stuck, unable to move forward in the promises God has for us. Satan wants us to be unable to live out our calling. For our enemy roams the earth, “prowling around like a roaring lion just seeking someone to devour” (I Peter 5:8).

It takes bravery to recognize your fears and continue moving where God is leading you. Jesus was brave. He had to face adversity, accusation, and affliction as he shared the truth of the Gospel. He left his family to spread the good news of the Kingdom of God. He was brave when everyone around him hated him, leaving him and betraying him.

Today’s Bible verse reminds us that we will be hated as we are “set apart and chosen” (Deuteronomy 14:2) and as we are called to be his disciples. But Jesus shows us what bravery looks like. We can persevere through our fears, the attacks of the enemy, and opposition from anyone who hates us and denies us just, as Jesus persevered.

1 John 4:4 encourages with the truth of “greater is He who is in me, than he who is of the world.” The world may hate us. The world may spit on us for our faith, judge us for our values, and criticize us for our decisions in following Christ. But we know that a man in the flesh, our Savior was brave enough to walk this earth before us. And the same Spirit He had, we have inside us, so that us too, can be brave like Jesus.

Let’s step out, perhaps with fear on every corner, but trusting that God has gone before us. We can follow in His footsteps and be brave just as He was.

Dear God,

Thank you for leaving us with the Bible, which is “God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16) directly by you. Thank you that we have countless stories to read in the Bible of Jesus being brave. Thank you for sending your Son, who lead the way as our greatest example of what it means to advance the Kingdom even if we are hated for it.

We ask that you would give us courage to step out in faith in what you’ve called us to do. We ask that you would encourage us along this journey of being a chosen disciple for you. We ask that when those around us question us or discourage us, that you would give us confidence in you. Remind us that our strength comes from you, and your “power is made perfect in our weakness, that when we are weak, we are made strong through you.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

We need you and can’t do this without you. Thank you that we don’t have to be strong because that’s your job. Our job is to rely on your strength to get us from one task to the next. We ask for your guidance and direction and thank you for everlasting provision.

In Jesus’ Name,

Amen