ODJ: unproductive on purpose
Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath” (v.27). READ: Mark 2:23-27 I mowed my father’s lawn at 8:00 a.m. one Sunday morning. I wondered what the neighbors thought, as my father never cut the grass or did any [...]
ODB: love believes all things
September 26, 2009
READ: 1 Corinthians 13
[Love] believes all things, hopes all things. —1 Corinthians 13:7
It was 40 years ago or more that I observed a friend of mine showing great affection for someone I considered unworthy of love. I thought my friend was being taken in, and I was afraid he would be disillusioned and saddened in the end.
When I expressed my concern, he replied, “When I stand before my Lord, I hope He’ll say of me that I’ve loved too many, rather than too few.” I’ve never forgotten his words.
Paul insists that “[love] believes all things” (1 Cor. 13:7). Love “believes” in people. It can see the potential in them. It believes that God can take the most unattractive and unworthy individual and turn that person into a masterpiece of beauty and grace. If love errs, it must err in the way of trustfulness and hopefulness.
Certainly, we must be aware of danger when we see it coming, and become “as wise as serpents” (Matt. 10:16). Tough love may be the best response to irresponsible and foolish people, but we can be too guarded, too wary and distrustful.
It doesn’t do us any real harm to be hoodwinked and defrauded (Matt. 5:38-48). It’s better to believe in someone and have your heart broken than to have no heart at all. British poet Alfred Tennyson wrote, “ ’Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” I agree. — David H. Roper
Love looks beyond what people are to what they can become.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...ODJ: who are you?
The grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures (vv.11-12).
READ: Titus 2:11-14
Who are you? Who, who, who, who?” These opening lyrics of a classic pop song are more than just lines from a catchy tune. The lyrics actually raise a key question: Do you know who you really are?
It’s an important question. And answering it isn’t as simple as rattling off your name, where you live, and what you do for a living. You are more than the basic information found on your driver’s license—a lot more. To truly answer the question, you have to put away your driver’s license and pull out your Bible.
For starters, the opening pages of the Bible tell us that we bear the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). In fact, human beings are the only part of His creation to hold the distinct honor of being created in God’s likeness. Unlike a thundering herd of wild horses or a snow-capped mountain or a constellation of stars in the night sky, we carry around the dignity of being marked by the image of God.
The Bible also tells us that “we are [God’s] offspring” (Acts 17:28). In other words, we are precious children of the King of the universe. Amazing! Who we are is wrapped up in the truth that we are people created in His image, who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ. We can walk in the peace and the joy and the purpose of our new life in Him (2 Corinthians 5:17).
It’s important that these answers resonate with your own understanding of who you are in Jesus. Much is riding on how you answer the question at the start of this article. If you don’t know who you really are, you will continue to live in lesser ways than God intended for you.
So, who are you? —Jeff Olson
What wrong views of who you are have you been harboring? How does your view of God affect your view of yourself?
(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Kingdom Pieties: Praying
By Lydia Lee Growing up in church, my friends and I used to do the naughtiest things during service. We would time our pastor when he prayed, anticipating if he would break last week’s record! We even ranked those who prayed from the pulpit! And the reigning champion with a record of 9 minutes and [...]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODB: the teacher as a midwife
September 25, 2009
READ: Galatians 4:12-20
My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you. —Galatians 4:19
The mother of the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates was a midwife. So Socrates grew up observing that she assisted women in bringing new life into the world. This experience later influenced his teaching method. Socrates said, “My art of midwifery is in general like theirs; the only difference is that my patients are men, not women, and my concern is not with the body but with the soul that is in travail of birth.”
Instead of just passing information on to his students, Socrates used the sometimes painful process of asking probing questions to help them arrive at their own conclusions. Teaching them to think seemed at times like the travail of childbirth.
Paul expressed a similar idea in discipling believers in the faith when he said, “My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you” (Gal. 4:19). Paul was concerned that each believer grow to spiritual maturity in Christlikeness (Eph. 4:13).
Becoming like Christ is a lifelong experience; therefore, we need patience with others and ourselves. All of us will have challenges and disappointments along the way. But if we put our trust in Him, we’ll grow spiritually and have character qualities that will radiate new life. — Dennis Fisher
Conversion is the miracle of a moment; maturing takes a lifetime.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODJ: because you are here
Right now you have plenty and can help those who are in need. Later, they will have plenty and can share with you when you need it (v.14).
READ: 2 Corinthians 8:11-15
Have you ever been short of money when it really mattered? As a college student working on a post-graduate degree, Keith Taylor worked three jobs. When his car broke down, he had to decide: pay the rent, or repair the car? He fixed his Ford Escort and would have been evicted if it hadn’t been for a bighearted boss who handed him a gift of $525 so he could pay his landlord.
Keith now runs modestneeds.com, a Web site that helps people bridge small financial gaps. Amazingly, a whopping 70 percent of those who are helped go back to the site to donate.
Taylor’s program embodies Paul’s words to the Corinthians: “Right now you have plenty and can help those who are in need. Later, they will have plenty and can share with you when you need it” (v.14).
Okay, so we know we’re supposed to “use [our] worldly resources to benefit others” (Luke 16:9), but I think God is more interested in our willingness than the amount of money we actually fork over. “God loves a person who gives cheerfully” (2 Corinthians 9:7), and He can use any amount to provide for others. Paul said, “Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly” (8:12).
Giving eagerly does not always mean donating until our bank accounts are empty. Paul reminded believers, “I don’t mean your giving should make life easy for others and hard for yourselves” (2 Corinthians 8:13). Rather, we’re to “give in proportion to what [we] have” (v.11).
God loves it when we’re generous with people. So here’s a challenge: Take a look at what God has given you. How much could you comfortably, willingly give away to help meet the needs of the people around you—modest or otherwise? —Jennifer Benson Schuldt
Do you know anyone who might benefit from a financial gift? What’s holding you back from giving? Do you find it more difficult to give willingly, or proportionally?
(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODB: contentment
September 24, 2009
READ: Matthew 6:24-34
No one can serve two masters. —Matthew 6:24
A gripping photograph of an old woman sitting in a pile of garbage made me ponder. She was smiling as she ate a packet of food she had foraged from the garbage dump. It took so little for the woman to be satisfied.
There is much talk about a struggling economy and the cost of living going higher. And many are getting increasingly anxious about their livelihood. Is it possible to heed our Lord Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 6:25, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on”?
Our Lord was not saying that we don’t need to work, that we don’t need to eat, or that we shouldn’t bother about how we dress. He was warning against those things becoming so important that we become slaves of money instead of trusting Him. “No one can serve two masters,” He said (v.24).
Seeking first “the kingdom of God and His righteousness” (v.33) is recognizing that no matter how much effort we expend to make a better life for ourselves and our families, ultimately it is the Lord who takes care of our needs. And since God is our heavenly Father, we will have enough. — C. P. Hia
Money serves us well if we receive it as God’s provision.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Song: Psalm 139
Lyrics: King David (Psalm 139 – NIV) Music: Asiri Fernando Psalm 139 is one of my favorite psalms. It paints a beautiful picture of how intimately God knows each and everyone of us—better than we even know ourselves! It amazes me that the Creator of the universe who was there from the beginning of time, [...]
(9 votes, average: 4.56 out of 5) Loading ...ODJ: dying for life
In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father (Matthew 5:16).
READ: Acts 9:36-42
Recently, I saw a poster with these words: “When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live your life in such a way so that when you die, the world cries and you rejoice.” —Indian (Cherokee) Proverb
The story of Tabitha (Dorcas in Greek) is a sad one. Tabitha was a devout follower of Christ. Not much else is said about her. But this one- sentence description says a lot: “She was always doing kind things for others and helping the poor” (Acts 5:36).
Tabitha was a good person. But, sadly, sometimes the good die early. Even so, it seemed so tragic, wasteful even, that a useful, beloved, kind, and untiring worker like her should die so suddenly and unexpectedly (v.37). It shows us that death can come suddenly, even in the midst of a fruitful ministry.
Up until that time, Peter had performed just a couple of healings (3:6 and 9:34), but he had not done anything so dramatic or difficult as raising the dead. So it was an act of faith on Peter’s part for him to respond and to go to Joppa to see Tabitha (vv.39-41).
Upon his arrival, we are told that “the room was filled with widows who were weeping and showing [Peter] the coats and other clothes Dorcas had made for them” (v.39). What a testimony of a life well lived. When Peter prayed and Tabitha came back to life, there must have been great rejoicing.
When you’re gone, will you be missed? Will there be many people who weep for you? What testimony of good works will you leave behind? Will there be coats and other clothes to show? When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. But when you die, will the world cry as you rejoice? —K.T. Sim
What good works have you done that will cause people to praise your heavenly Father? How will you establish a Christlike legacy for others to follow?
(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODB: julie’s prayer
September 23, 2009
READ: John 14:12-14
Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. —John 14:13
In 2008, the Day of Discovery film crew traveled to China on a special assignment—to retrace the life of missionary Eric Liddell, the 1924 Olympic gold medalist whose story was told in the movie Chariots of Fire. The crew took with them Eric’s three daughters, Patricia, Heather, and Maureen—allowing them to revisit some of the places where the two older sisters had lived in China. Also along on the trip was their elderly Aunt Louise.
On one occasion, after the entourage had arrived in Beijing, they had to walk quite a distance with their luggage. As they did, Aunt Louise grew short of breath. Julie Richardson, a Day of Discovery crew member, sat down beside her, put her hand on her knee, and prayed simply, “Dear Jesus, help Aunt Louise to breathe.” Immediately, she began to catch her breath.
Later, Heather retold the story and shared that Julie’s prayer had rekindled her faith. Julie’s simple act of faith reminded Heather of the continual connection we have with Jesus—a reality she had set aside in her life.
Sometimes we need reminders that God is near. When trials come and God seems far away, remember Julie’s prayer and the truth that we are just one prayer from connecting with the God of the universe (John 14:13). — Dave Branon
God delights in the earnest prayers of His people.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...
