ODJ: so close, yet so far
“There is still one thing you haven’t done,” He told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me” (v.21). READ: Mark 10:17-31 The host of a TV quiz show said, “Come up with the missing word at the [...]
Sent to a Land of Rice
By Chaz Oswald, 22, USA Singapore “You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it” (Matthew 21:22). Months before my graduation, I was seeking the Lord’s will on what to do next. I sensed that He wants me to leave my homeland in Michigan, USA, for new terrain, but I [...]
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Loading ...ODB: different goals
September 17, 2010
READ: 1 Cor. 1:18-31
God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise. —1 Corinthians 1:27
In 1945, professional golfer Byron Nelson had an unimaginable season. Of the 30 tournaments he entered, he won an amazing 18 times—including 11 in a row. Had he chosen to, he could have continued his career and perhaps become the greatest of all time. But that was not his goal. His goal was to earn enough money playing golf to buy a ranch and spend his life doing what he really loved. So, instead of continuing on at the peak of his career, Nelson retired at age 34 to become a rancher. He had different goals.
The world may find that kind of thinking to be foolish. It doesn’t really understand the heart that looks beyond trying to gain more wealth or fame to real satisfaction and contentment. This is especially true when it comes to our choice to live for Christ. But it is in the world’s perception of our alleged foolishness that we might best represent the Master’s different goals to this world. Paul wrote, “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty” (1 Cor. 1:27).
A commitment to living according to kingdom values might brand us as foolish in the eyes of the world, but it can bring honor to our God. —Bill Crowder
Core values are of no value unless they reflect God’s values.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...ODJ: forgiven & forgiving
Forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us (v.12).
READ: Matthew 6:9-15
According to psychologist Abraham Maslow, man’s basic needs are physiological—oxygen to breathe and food to eat. According to Jesus, man’s basic needs are spiritual—to be forgiven and to forgive.
With the same tenacity and intensity that we ask for God’s provisions (Matthew 6:11), we must also seek His pardon. This means asking Him to forgive us of our sins and to enable us to forgive those who have sinned against us. “Forgive us our sins” is an explicit prayer for God’s forgiveness. “As we have forgiven those who sin against us” is an implicit prayer for a forgiving spirit (v.12).
Commenting on this, Bible teacher Haddon Robinson wrote, “Augustine labeled this request for forgiveness ‘the terrible petition,’ because if we harbor an unforgiving spirit while we pray to be forgiven in the same way as we forgive others, we are actually asking God not to forgive us.”
Perhaps that’s why Jesus, immediately after teaching His disciples this prayer, stated clearly what was at stake for those who pray it. In fact, this is the only request He elaborated on. He warned, “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins” (vv.14-15).
While our salvation is not based on our goodness in forgiving others (Ephesians 2:8-9), our personal fellowship and intimacy with God is dependent on the understanding that we have been forgiven much (Luke 7:40-47). And one who knows that he has been forgiven much will love much (v.47). Jesus is talking about family forgiveness. Just as the Father has forgiven us, we should forgive our brothers and sisters. For if we are truly forgiven, we will also be forgiving. —K.T. Sim
Why is it hard to forgive certain people? What will you do today to forgive someone based on God’s forgiveness of you?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODB: the wonder of nature
September 16, 2010
READ: Job 36:26-33
I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. —Job 42:5
Growing up around the woods and waters of Midwest America, I’ve been fascinated with natural wildlife native to our region. But on a recent trip to the California coast, I found myself staring in breathtaking wonder at snorting elephant seals, barking sea lions, and a forest of silent redwoods. I watched pelicans soar in formation, and I saw migrating whales spouting in the distance. Together they are just a sampling of the millions of species that make up the intricate and delicate balance of nature.
According to the Bible, the variety of the natural world is designed to do far more than inspire childlike wonder. The mysteries of nature can help us come to terms with a God who allows inexpressible, unexplainable pain and suffering.
We see this in the epic story of Job. While he was suffering, Job didn’t know that God had such a high regard for him that he allowed Satan to test his faith with a series of losses.
What emerges is this eventual, unavoidable conclusion: A Creator who has the wisdom and power to design the wonders of nature is great enough to be trusted with pain and suffering that are beyond our ability to understand. In awe, Job proclaimed, “I know that You can do everything” (42:2). We can trust that kind of God—no matter what. —Mart De Haan
It’s good to worship God in nature if it leads us to worship the God of nature.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODJ: spilled out
The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you (v.37).
READ: Matthew 12:30-37
As I was grading papers at school one day, I received a text from my husband that read, “we r all n.” When I responded “What?” he explained that he had spilled half a gallon of paint on the carpeting in our home office. Fortunately, the carpet was old, and we were planning on ripping it up anyhow. Now we were “all in” and there would be no turning back from the upcoming floor project. Meanwhile, until we could afford to remove the carpet, the colored, crusty spot was an ever-present reminder of what spilled paint can do.
Words matter. Whether written or spoken, they have the power to color our world with life or death (Proverbs 18:21). Because we live in a hyper-communicative society, our communication extends thousands of miles in a matter of seconds. From cell phones to Twitter, we have the power to influence others in an instant. Often, we text or e-mail what we refuse to say in person because we feel a measure of safety behind the inanimate keyboard beneath our fingers.
Frustrations are bound to arise when we live in relationship with others. Like paint soaking into carpeting, however, words cannot be gathered up and their effects held back. Crusting over hearts, harsh words continue to speak long after we’ve had our say—even in the shortest text, the quickest tweet. Wrongfully perceiving electronic communication to be benign, we are still accountable—maybe even more so—for what we write. Erasing our sent box takes only a moment; words we wrote last a lifetime.
We can say we’re just venting or even claim our arrows are well-deserved, but the fact remains: If we claim to be religious but don’t control our tongue, we’re just fooling ourselves, and our religion is worthless (James 1:26).
—Regina Franklin
Does the Holy Spirit or your flesh control your tongue? How should you respond to a person who has directed harsh words your way? How can you have conversations that are “gracious and attractive”? (Col. 4:6).
(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODB: it’s the real deal
September 15, 2010
READ: 1 Peter 1:3-12
I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God in which you stand. —1 Peter 5:12
One of the coolest things hanging on the wall in my home office is a Certificate of Authenticity.
It has on it the logo of US Space Shuttle flight 110, which was launched in April 2002. Aboard the Atlantis on that flight was Mission Specialist Rex Walheim, who took into outer space an article from Our Daily Bread titled “Seeing God’s Glory.” Lt. Col. Walheim sent me the certificate to prove that this devotional page actually left earth’s atmosphere.
Sometimes we need these kinds of things—documents that verify truth. If I were to show that article to someone and say, “This flew on the Space Shuttle,” I could be doubted because I would have no proof. But when Walheim sent me the Certificate of Authenticity, he gave me verification.
In 1 Peter, Simon Peter created a Certificate of Authenticity for his message about the grace of God. In chapter 5, he wrote, “I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this [letter] is the true grace of God” (v.12). Peter was assuring his readers that the many messages of 1 Peter—themes of hope and courage and even suffering—were all authentic and demonstrate the grace of God.
Looking for evidence of God’s grace? Read 1 Peter, and be confident that its teaching is the real deal. —Dave Branon
To trust God is to trust in His holy Word.
Source: Our Daily Bread
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODJ: keeping up appearances
At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (vv.10-11).
READ: Philippians 2:5-11
A young woman was living the high life in Beijing. She resided in a private villa, danced her weekends away, and had her own chauffeur. But she lost it all when new comrades rose to power and threw her father out of his government office. The young woman, however, was not exactly humbled. When friends offered to pay her rent or give her a ride, she would say, “Yes, I will allow you to purchase that for me” or “I grant you permission to do me this favor.”
Her feeble attempts to retain a charade of privilege annoyed her friends. They would have preferred a simple, “Thank you, I don’t know what I would do without you.” It’s easy to see that she needed a hefty helping of humble gratitude. But don’t you and I act similarly toward God when we say that we permit Jesus to be our Lord or we accept Him into our hearts?
We enter this world needy and rebellious—under the curse of sin and death and bound for hell (Romans 3:23, 6:23). When we learn that Jesus gave His life to save us (Philippians 2:8), we sometimes grudgingly announce that we will grant Him this privilege.
Theologian Karl Barth noticed this tendency and explained that our professed “openness” toward God may actually be a spiritual way of remaining closed. We concede that we need God’s help. But by granting permission for God to save us, we try to retain the power in our relationship. We refuse to admit that we are “this needy man,” and even in our poverty we strive to play “the rich man closed against God.”
Like the young woman from Beijing, we’re dying to be in control. That’s fitting, because our attempt to keep the upper hand is killing us. Salvation comes when we confess that Jesus is Lord, with or without our permission (v.11).
—Mike Wittmer
Can you think of other spiritual ways—such as prayer, offerings, and obedience—where you might be tempted to assert power over God? How have you sometimes used these good things to try to manipulate God into doing what you want?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODB: sparrow’s flight
September 14, 2010
READ: Matthew 10:27-33
Not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. —Matthew 10:29
After dinner one night, a tiny brown sparrow flew inside our house through the front door. A chase ensued. Each time my husband got near to it, the little intruder fluttered away in a desperate search for an exit. Before we could escort it safely outside, the bird toured the house so frantically that we could see its chest throbbing from its rapid heartbeat.
Sometimes we are like that little bird—anxious, frazzled, and afraid of what might happen next. It comforts me to think that “not one [sparrow] falls to the ground” without God knowing about it (Matt. 10:29). He sees and knows everything in our world.
“The eyes of the Lord are in every place” (Prov. 15:3), and nothing escapes His attention, including you and me. God understands and values the finest points of our being. Jesus said, “The very hairs of your head are all numbered” (Matt. 10:30).
It’s amazing that God keeps a tally of our personal trivia and is even aware of a bird’s misfortune. Since He knows about these small details, we can trust that He sees and cares about the big issues that ruffle our feathers. When we ask Him for help, God’s response is always informed by His perfect knowledge of us and our circumstances. Let’s trust Him with our anxious concerns. —Jennifer Benson Schuldt
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
Source: Our Daily Bread
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