Pastor Chris -
Psalm 73:28 -
"But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all your works."
God loves it when we tell the good things he's done for us. God loves it because it's a way that God's made for us to speak life into one another. Here are two replies from Day of Praise readers this past week. Notice how both their replies encourage you, even when you probably don't even know them. That's the power of telling of God's works. So, read these, and then go tell someone what God's done for you. (Ben is my dear brother. Bob has been a dear friend for 23 years. Then Kristen's devotion follows.)
Ben DeGreen, Jr. -
Interesting to think about some of those Biblical heroes mentioned in Hebrews, many of them not only internalized fear, but also showed it outwardly, sometimes one on one with God and other times with an additional audience. For example, after striking down an Egyptian, Moses ran for the wilderness and was a forgotten man for 40 years. God wanted him to go back to Egypt, not only to lead His people out of bondage, but also for him to face his fear of what he left behind and most importantly to trust in Him, the Great I AM. When confronted by God in the burning bush, he didn't want to go, saying, "Lord, choose someone else, someone who can speak more eloquently." God gave Moses a couple of security blankets: his brother, Aaron, and a staff. Even with Moses' past failure and doubt, God still loved Moses and had a deeper relationship with him than any man that ever walked the face of the earth, other than Jesus Christ. Consider God's great love for Moses, even after death, by remembering how Christ was transfigured on the Mount of Olives with two men: Moses was one of those two, the other Elijah. And there is a great story about him, about doubt and fear as well, but that will wait until another time.
The point to all of that is, even after we are crippled by fear and unbelief, God can still use us as he did Moses, Elijah, Jonah, Peter, and countless others. We just need to dust ourselves off and move forward.
Bob Kasper, Jr. -
Zip lines over water for a man who fears
heights and doesn't swim. Certainly illustrates how far we are willing to go
for our daughters/children/grand children.
I have a tablet and store a number of pictures on it, there is an app that
plays these pictures in the background. There are pictures of all 4, I can
be in a foul mood, angry, depressed, fearful, and a picture of one of them
will rotate on to the screen, and my heart is instantly changed, the reaction sometimes so strong as to be physical. Sometimes I have been lost in my concerns for the world, and one or the other of them at different times will climb into my lap, physically grab my face and turn it to look at them and what they are doing. And my heart is lifted. It is as if God is saying, "hey dummy look over here this is what is important this is where your focus should be."
Joseph is a very sensitive young man and very close to me, even when I am
trying hard not to let them see when I am struggling with something. He will
quietly come over, put a hand on me, look into my eyes, and ask, "Grandpa, are
you OK? Is there anything I can do for you?" He is 9! Melts my heart, reminds
me where my heart and mind should be. Such a precious blessing and special
gift. "And a child shall lead them..." indeed!
Kristen -
"For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former things will not be remembered or come to mind." – Isaiah 65:17
Pain, sorrow, grief, torment, sin; physical limitations and spiritual limitations are all cast aside when God, through Christ Jesus, intervenes in our world and brings us into a new and better one. Restoration to our original state, before sin, before guilt, and before death, no longer cast out, but brought in.
When people ask us "what's so great about your God?", we tell them that He has power to do what no other can, namely, to create and to recreate, to renew and to restore, to do the unthinkable and the unbelievable – and yet we believe. Longing for what no other can give to us, a new life in which the old life is forgotten, pray for that day and proclaim your hope in it to those that you know and meet.
Praise God!
Pastor Chris
"The gospel is the story of Jesus [what God's only Son has done for us that we can't do for ourselves], spoken as a promise." - Robert Jenson
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