The Parable of the Lamp on a Stand..Craig Denison Ministries

The Parable of the Lamp on a Stand

Craig Denison Ministries

Weekly Overview:

Jesus loved to use stories to illustrate profound, life-transforming concepts. He loved to use real and genuine settings, characters, and ideas that apply to all of us to reveal God’s heart of pursuit and love. This week we’re going to spend time allowing the parables of Jesus to speak directly to our situations, mindsets, and core beliefs about who God is. Open your heart and mind to be transformed by the powerful and captivating stories of Jesus.

Scripture:“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.” Matthew 5:14-15

Devotional:

Reading Matthew 5:14-15 used to stress me out. Jesus says, “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.” How can we with all our mistakes, misgivings, and failures be “the light of the world?” How could God in all his wisdom choose to use us to reveal Jesus, the only hope of eternal salvation, to a lost and dying world?

As I grow in my knowledge of God’s heart, I grow in the revelation of his desire to use me. Passages like Matthew 5:14-15 used to focus my attention on my own sin and darkness rather than God’s grace and love. But faithfully in his love, he guides my thoughts to what matters: the overwhelming reality of the Holy Spirit transforming me into the image of the God who created me.Today, let’s allow the Spirit and the word to transform the way we view ourselves and how God in his infinite wisdom would use us to change the world.

Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are [God’s] workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” At salvation your identity changed. You are now “created in Christ Jesus.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 says it this way: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” You are a new creation not by your own doing, but by the powerful finished work of Christ Jesus on the cross. At salvation your sins were wiped away, cast off as far as the east is from the west. Such was the transformation that took place in your heart at salvation that you could be filled with God himself. Jesus says in John 14:16-17, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” God himself “dwells with you” and through salvation now lives inside you.

Passages like the parable of the lamp on a stand used to stress me out because I didn’t understand what God wanted to reveal through me to the world. I used to think God wanted to reveal perfection in me, that I had to act perfectly to demonstrate Christ. What I didn’t realize is that the greatest revelation I could give a broken and needy world is that God, through the immeasurable depth of his love, meets me in my brokenness and continually makes me whole. I realized that God, only by his grace, is taking what was lost, weak, selfish, and lonely and is filling me with unimaginable love and security through restored relationship with him. God doesn’t want you to reveal perfection. He wants to reveal the fact that in your imperfection he has loved you from the beginning with an everlasting love.

Because you are weak and in need of God, you are the absolute best person to lead others to Jesus. If you act like you have everything together, as if nothing is wrong, then those distant from God will have no reason to believe God desires relationship with them. But in revealing your imperfection, in being honest and real with those around you, you will offer hope to a world that has none. You will reveal the core of the gospel: that God has incredible works prepared for those who simply come to him in need and cry out for his help. In your imperfection you are a perfect example of Jesus’ love that comes only by grace.

God desires to shine the light of his love through you today in powerful ways. He longs to reveal to others how deeply he has loved you in his grace. He has incredible plans in store for you if you will simply be real with a world that desperately needs relationship with their Creator. Have the courage to be yourself and to be honest and vulnerable. Honesty is all your heavenly Father asks of you. In your honesty, God will reveal a greater love than this world has ever known. In the reality of who you are, God will shine forth hope, guiding those who are lost to the safe shores of restored relationship with him. May you find peace in the fact that God longs to use you exactly as you are. May you find purpose in the works he has set before you to do. And may you find joy in the revelation of God’s immeasurable love poured out on you through his grace.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on the depth of God’s love for you. In your sin and need of him he continually shows you grace, gives you his presence, and offers you joy for your mourning.

“In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:10

“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11

“You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness.” Psalm 30:11

2. Now ask the Spirit to reveal God’s desire to use you today. Allow God to shift the way you see yourself. Allow him to ignite in you a passion to see those who are distant from God come to the revelation of his grace and love for them.

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.” Matthew 5:14-15

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10

3. Ask God to fill you with the grace to be courageous and honest. Ask for the strength to be real and vulnerable with others.

“But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’” James 4:6

One of the most transformative parts of living in relationship with our heavenly Father is the freedom from having to act around others. You are fully loved, liked, and enjoyed just as you are. So great was God’s desire for relationship with you that he sent his only Son to die for you. There is a new peace available to you as you live in the freedom to be fully yourself. Rest in the fact that the Creator of the universe loves and likes you. You have no reason to act. May you find security today as the love of your heavenly Father lays a sure foundation for you to live honestly and courageously.

Extended Reading: Psalm 30

Deliverance for Moms Battling Mental Disorder..Meg Bucher

 Deliverance for Moms Battling Mental Disorder

By Meg Bucher

“For I know that as you pray for me and the Spirit of Jesus Christ helps me, this will lead to my deliverance.” Philippians 1:19 NLT

Paul was writing to the Philippians about how excited he was about the spread of the gospel. Regardless of circumstance, that was always Paul’s focus. Christ lights the path of purpose in our lives, especially when surrounded by darkness we can’t seem to shake. It’s challenging to hold onto what is true despite the wars being waged in and outside our minds. Moms raise other people and untangle our messy minds to lead in the correct direction. The pressure of perfection adds to the pressure I put on myself to pull it together. Instead of piling on to the problem, I had to learn to let go of it and allow the Lord to fight for me.

It sounds cliché- this is how I fight my battles is part of a popular worship song and an anthem for many Christ followers. As a mother battling a mental disorder, it’s become a mantra that keeps my joy in check. It’s funny to me how hard this world is on people who are not perfect, yet Jesus was the only perfect person to walk the Earth. He was perfect because He was fully God and fully man. So moms in the battle for their minds, take heart. We are never alone in it and can embrace joy in the thick of the worst days.

1. Help from the Helper
The most important thing we can do in search of healing and comfort from mental illness is to reach out for help. Begin with a prayer like this:

God, please help me. I don’t know what to do or how to fix what’s wrong, but I know You are my Healer and Helper. I trust You to guide me. In Jesus’ Name, I praise You for the joy nothing can steal from me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Pray to the Healer, and then go where He leads. Start with a trusted physician, Christian counselor, pastor, friend, or peer. Prayerfully discern whom to talk to but talk to someone. God will guide us to those who can help us, pray over us, counsel us, and comfort us. We can find healing on this Earth, so pray for the miracle! If healing doesn’t happen here on Earth, it will happen in Heaven. And the Lord will walk with us all the way there.

2. You’re okay
It’s okay to admit we’re not okay. Who is okay on this side of Heaven? Nothing can steal our joy, but we all know life on this Earth comes with its fair share of trials and hurts. Mom, if mental illness is a burden you bare, it’s okay. It’s not your fault. You didn’t cause it, and it’s not your responsibility to explain why you suffer or heal it alone. Instead, fall into the arms of the One who can comfort and heal you. Rely on His guidance and encouragement to find healing on this side of Heaven, but never allow someone to steal the joy that is rightfully yours. Remember who you are—a child of God, fearfully and wonderfully made. I don’t know why mental health is such a stigma, but He can handle the weight of all we carry. Sickness doesn’t define who we are, He does. It’s a small part of the struggle we all wage in this war, and it can’t steal our identity.

3. Fight for Light

“We are the people he watches over, the flock under his care. If only you would listen to his voice today!” Psalm 95:7 NLT

Mental illness is unfair and unkind to the one carrying it around daily. But no matter how dark the day seems, the Light of the Lord is brighter. It’s our choice to fight to see it. There is light laced in every day. It’s hard, believe me, I know. Dark clouds have personally surrounded me. But, praise God, I have never stopped seeking out the Light. There is a place in my room I sit when things are crashing down on me, and He meets me there every time. I didn’t mean to sit so close to a window, but He did. Literal light. It’s hard, but He’s there. Amplify His voice over all others. He is for you, with you, and loves you for who you are …right now. He will give us what we need daily to be the mothers He has purposed us to be. When we are weak, He is strong. When we feel hopeless, He is faithful to remind us of our joy in Him.

Intersecting Faith and Life:
Motherhood is the best and most challenging …no matter what season we’re in or how we may struggle, God is not calling us to walk aimlessly or alone. So what can you do today to connect with the people He has placed in your life, to help heal you …and for you to help find healing?

Further Reading:
Psalm 95

3 Ways Scripture Teaches Us How We Can Increase Our Faith..Rebecca Barlow Jordan

 3 Ways Scripture Teaches Us How We Can Increase Our Faith

By Rebecca Barlow Jordan

So then, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.  - Romans 10:17 (NKJV)

How do you increase your faith? I used to struggle with this as a young Christian. But in time I’ve learned at least three simple ways to help build and increase our reliance on God.

1. Read the Word

Reading or hearing God’s Word is like planting a garden. If you want to grow or “build” a garden, you must first plant the seeds, or the actual plant or flower. God’s Word is the seed that grows the faith. Knowing His promises, what God says about you, about life, and about Jesus’ plan for eternal life won’t transplant themselves into your brain by osmosis. Become familiar with the Bible and what faith is all about by meditating on its contents. This will give you the basis for growing or increasing your faith.

2. Heed the Word

James 1:22-24 (NKJV) offers a second way to increase your faith: But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 

If we fail to heed what we’re reading and ignore what God is telling us, then our faith grows stagnant. It took faith for us to become children of God in the first place. Therefore, in order to grow and increase our faith, we need to use that “measure” of faith God gives to everyone and build on it.

3. Test the Word

There is a difference in “testing” God by “contesting” Him (seeing how far God’s patience will go with your own self will) and “testing,” or proving God’s Word is true.  Malachi 3:9-11  (NIV) offers one practical way God says we can prove Him faithful to His Word. This passage concerns tithing and being good stewards of the things He has given us:  Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”  As you “test” or act on what God says and experience God’s blessing, your faith grows.

The process of testing the measure of faith you have may involve trials and difficulties. How can you increase your faith in those circumstances? Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance (James 1:2-3, NIV).

My Prayer for You

Lord Jesus, increase our faith as we learn to depend on You and trust You more and more. Help us to crave Your Word: to read it, to heed it, and to test it, so it can truly become part of our lives. We long to be doers and not just hearers. Lord, we desperately need more of You and less of ourselves. Thank You for Your faithfulness in always keeping Your Word.

A Prayer for Pregnant Mothers..Emma Danzey

 A Prayer for Pregnant Mothers

By Emma Danzey

 “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.” - Jeremiah 1:5

Last year was my very first Mother’s Day. No, I hadn’t the faintest clue what my baby would look like, his gender, or what he felt like inside of my womb. I was two months pregnant. Motherhood begins long before the physical birth of a baby. Before entering the world, he was fearfully and wonderfully made, knit together, and created by God. I determined to claim the title mom when I found out I was pregnant. I was a mom of a baby in my womb. The Lord created that baby, the moment of conception leading to immediate life. Jeremiah 1:5 says before he formed Jeremiah in his mother’s womb, He set him apart as a prophet. God sees our unformed substance. (Psalm 139:16) My very first Mother’s Day, my family celebrated the baby and me so sweetly. It felt right. We acknowledged and celebrated his life and that God chose me to care for him, just as we did on Father’s Day for my husband. Today we are going to pray over pregnant mothers in this unique season of motherhood.

Let's Pray:
Lord,

Thank you so much for Your gift of new life. Thank You that You are the Creator of all things and that every person is made in Your image. Thank You for pregnant mothers chosen to carry the next generation. Thank You for being their Rock in the newness and unknowns of first-time moms. Thank You for being the strength of those who already have children who are carrying more while trying to care for the others in front of them. Thank You for comforting those who have lost children before but are walking in faith during this pregnancy. Thank You for those who are afraid to be moms. Thank You for those who had unplanned pregnancies but are choosing to be Your vessels for life, whether they raise the baby or place the baby up for adoption. We praise you for life. Thank You for our mothers who carried us for nine months and cared for us to be here.

Please help all women and the different types of pregnancies out there. Bless these women with “manna” for the day. Give them grace in the hard things and the trials along the way. Provide them with emotional, physical, and spiritual support during this time. Reveal to them more of who You are and help them to look to You as their role model of loving well and nurturing faithfully. We pray that their fears will rest and they will trust You whenever they are afraid. Give them freedom from the bondage of anxiety at appointments. Place them under excellent care. Show them You are with them every step of the way. Where adversities linger, give them the eyes to see Your refining powers and incredible comfort. Bless them with hearts of celebration and smiles over a new life. Keep their sicknesses at a minimum, give them confidence in their body image, and help them be in tune with their specific babies' needs in the womb.

Protect these beautiful new lives inside of them. We glorify You for bringing new people into the world. Help these newly created ones love You and learn of Your saving grace. We pray for a generation of believers. We pray for moms to begin praying over their children, singing worship over them, and telling them of Your great love now. May these mothers not wait to witness to their unborn children but begin evangelizing today. Bless them. To moms who have doubts about You, may this experience strengthen their faith to the utmost and give them a firmer foundation and understanding of You as God and their Savior. Amen.

The Comfortable Church..Dr. Charles Stanley

 The Comfortable Church

Dr. Charles Stanley

Matthew 28:16-20

I think it’s fairly evident that the society we live in is very self-centered, and this same characteristic can be present in a church. Whenever a local body of believers develops an inward focus, its fruitfulness in ministry begins to decrease, and each member’s Christian walk is hindered.

Many believers want their church to be cozy and comfortable. They come to listen to a nice sermon, fellowship with friends, and have their needs met. But Godnever intended for the gathering of His people to be like a country club; He calls us to join an army that will bring the gospel into enemy territory.

An effective church—one that poses a real threat to the Enemy—is a body of discipled people who have been taught the truth of Scripture, trained for service, and helped to mature spiritually. But all this is accomplished for the purpose of going out into the world, not for becoming a self-contained sanctuary of Christian comfort.

The urgency of the Lord’s command and the desperate condition of humanity should motivate us to leave the safety of our Christian fellowships and deliver the message of salvation through Jesus. To avoid this responsibility is to miss the Father’s plan for your life and the opportunity to help build His kingdom.

None of us want to waste time or energy on trivial things and thereby miss the exciting fulfillment of God’s will. He has called us, not to a life of comfortable tradition, but to an adventure of obedience. Answer His call—you’ll help fill His kingdom with people from every tribe and nation.