ODJ: waiting for rain
Rejoice, you people of Jerusalem! Rejoice in the Lord your God! For the rain He sends demonstrates His faithfulness. Once more the autumn rains will come, as well as the rains of spring (v.23). READ: Joel 2:18-32 Competing against the thwap-thwap sound of the windshield wipers, the rain beat a rhythmic pattern against the car. Driving [...]
ODJ: into temptation
[Jesus] was tempted by the devil for forty days (v.2).
READ: Luke 4:1-13
One of the most distressing portions of Scripture is the part of Luke’s gospel that tells us Jesus “was led by the Spirit in the wilderness” to be tempted by the devil (4:1). The Spirit took Jesus into the dark wilderness? We think of God as the One who keeps danger at bay, not One who invites us to face difficulties. But God never promises to steer us clear of temptation or intense difficulty. Far better, the Spirit promises to go with us into the mouth of the dragon. God went through the tumultuous waters of the Red Sea with Israel (Isaiah 43), and God was present with the young Hebrew men in the fiery furnace (Daniel 3). God was present with Jesus, and God will be with us. In the wilderness, Satan’s temptation was a multistep ploy to get Jesus to go on His own, separating Himself from the very One who was with Him there. Satan tempted Jesus to: • turn stone to bread (providing for Himself rather than trusting God, v.3). • worship Satan and gain all Satan’s domain (grabbing His own kingdom rather than remaining under God’s rule, v.5). • hurl Himself off the temple’s pinnacle (taking life into His own hands rather than simply trusting God’s goodness, v.9). With each temptation, however, Jesus answered Satan with Scripture—rebuking Satan’s words with God’s words. Jesus knew the truth, and He knew God was with Him even in that vile place. I have a friend who’s angry at God for not averting suffering and pain at a particular moment in his life. I believe Jesus was with my friend, however, even in his pain. If he would trust God’s kind presence, he would discover something far better than release from his painful circumstances. —Winn Collier
Read each temptation in Luke 4. What would be your equivalent temptation of turning stone to bread, worshiping the devil, and testing God by leaping off the temple? How would you handle each temptation?
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Loading ...ODJ: presence and protection
The Lord Himself watches over you! (Psalm 121:5).
READ: Psalm 121
A pastor gathered his wife and children together for a time of prayer, just prior to his departure for an overseas missions trip. He prayed, “Dear Lord, please protect my wife and the children while I’m gone.” When he finished, his wife asked him: “Who do you think protects us while you’re here?” Good question! Sometimes we take God’s protection for granted and think of it only when we’re faced with an emergency or events like traveling overseas. During our daily commute from home to the office, we hardly think of God’s protection over us.
Known also as the “Traveler’s Psalm,” Psalm 121 is the second of 15 “songs of ascents” (Psalms 120-134), sung by pilgrims as they made their way up to Jerusalem to celebrate the annual feasts (Deuteronomy 16:16). Just as in ancient times, when we or our loved ones leave home for a journey, safety is on our mind. Although the travel hazards are different today, we have a similar need for protection. Psalm 121 reminds us that God is our Helper (vv.1-3) and Protector (vv.4-8).
As our Helper, the Creator of the universe (v.2) helps us as we journey through life, giving us the security and stability that we need (v.3). As our Protector, God is the vigilant watchman, fully aware of the events of our lives because He never sleeps (v.4). That reality allows us to rest in safety and serenity (Ps. 3:5; 4:8; Proverbs 3:24).
The Hebrew word for “protective shade” (121:5) can also be rendered as “protective shadow.” If God is our shadow (Psalm 17:8; 57:1; 63:7), then He is present with us. Five times in Psalm 121 (vv.3,4,5,7,8) we’re reminded that He “watches over” us. Because of His protective presence, we can say: “He alone is my . . . place of safety; He is my God, and I trust Him” (91:2). —K.T. Sim
How have you taken God’s protection for granted? As you commute from your home to workplace, spend some time acknowledging His presence and protection.
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(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...ODJ: a different Christmas
He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever (v.4).
READ: Revelation 21:1-7
With gifts wrapped and under the tree, Christmas Eve came to a close. God’s goodness had been evident, but this year was different. Unfolding blankets and sheets, my husband and I created beds of the two couches in our family room. My husband’s parents, who live in town, were using our bedroom upstairs. Three months earlier, their oldest son—and only other child—had ended his life. Keeping them close, we wanted to remind them of what they still had as they continued to grieve what had been lost.
Christmas can be complicated. While parties, gifts, and family reunions are certainly blessings, they can’t take away the pain of broken relationships, absent loved ones, or unmet expectations. Without question, God is the Unchanging One who is the giver of all good gifts (James 1:17). But He is also a God who is well-acquainted with our suffering (Isaiah 53:3). Even the humble beauty of the nativity remains incomplete without the cross.
Not your typical Advent passage, Revelation 21 reminds us that we will one day experience a new heaven and new earth. The purpose in Christ putting on flesh was to restore what had been lost. God with us (Matthew 1:23). He not only comforts us in our sorrows, but He has promised that “He will live with [us], and [we] will be His people. God Himself will be with [us]” (v.3). The turmoil present in the world reminds us, “All creation has been groaning . . . . And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us . . . for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering” (Romans 8:22-23). Anxiously awaiting Jesus’ return, we are to celebrate His hope as He holds us in both our joy and our pain. —Regina Franklin
Are there aspects of this Christmas season that have been difficult for you? Why must hope be something we choose and not a feeling we wait to experience?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODJ: what i need
Seek the kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need (Matthew 6:33).
READ: Genesis 21:8-20
Diane was devastated. Despite her husband’s absence for nearly half their 8-year marriage, she had faithfully supported him in his military career. Then, abruptly, he announced that he was leaving her and their children for another woman. Now she sat in a clinic awaiting test results that would let her know if he had left her with any “parting gifts”—STDs.
An elderly woman seated across from Diane noticed her telltale red eyes. “Are you all right?” she gently inquired. With nothing to lose, the younger woman decided to share her plight. As providence would have it, this woman had also been divorced after 8 years of marriage—more than 5 decades earlier! And she, like Diane, was a follower of Jesus. She knew exactly what this young mother was going through. As her new friend quietly prayed for her in the waiting room, Diane knew that somehow God would bring her and her children through this difficult season. It was enough grace for the moment, at just the right moment.
In Genesis, we read of another woman who knew rejection and abandonment. Hagar, a servant to Sarah, had been sent into the arid wilderness by her owner (Genesis 21:8-14). Having run out of water, she put her son in the shade some distance away so she wouldn’t have to watch him die (v.16). But the angel of the Lord met her there and provided for their needs.
In Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, He spoke of meeting our basic physical needs (Matthew 6:25-33). But He also provides what we need for the vast array of experiences that life throws at us. For some of our biggest needs are emotional.
Life is hard. But we have Someone who knows what we’re going through. He will never abandon us. He’s within reach of our next heartfelt prayer. —Tim Gustafson
What are your needs? How are these distinct from your wants? How are the things that you want pleasing or not pleasing to God?
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(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...ODJ: spiritual pursuit
God is Spirit, so those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth (v.24).
READ: John 4:4-24
On this day in 1963, the world was shocked by the news that John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, had been killed by an assassin’s bullet. Though it’s not as well known or remembered, Christian author C. S. Lewis passed away the very same day. Even fewer will remember that Aldous Huxley, author of the book Brave New World, died from cancer during those same 24 hours.
In 1954, Huxley published a lesser-known book titled The Doors of Perception, which described his experimental use of the mind-altering drug mescaline. Huxley was one of the first to write about using hallucinogens to pursue spirituality. His book inspired the popular rock band The Doors, known for their use of LSD, to name their group after Huxley’s book.
Granted, Huxley and his admirers were looking in all the wrong places, but they were on an important pursuit. God made us in such a way that we’re naturally drawn to spirituality (Job 32:8). And there is no greater spiritual pursuit than worshiping God.
A Samaritan woman once asked Jesus to settle an ancient dispute about the best place to worship God (John 4:19-20). Samaritans contended it was on the top of Mount Gerizim, while the Jews said it was on the temple mount in Jerusalem. Jesus told her that a day was coming where people could worship God anywhere they wanted to as long as they worshiped “in spirit and in truth” (vv.21-24).
There’s no denying that people can get high on LSD or some other mind-altering drug, but they will never enter the heights of true spirituality by taking that path—not to mention the devastating effects it can have on the mind and body. It’s only by worshiping God wholeheartedly—on the basis of who Jesus is—that we experience His life-altering power and presence. —Jeff Olson
How have you tried to explore spirituality outside of God and His Word? Why can only He satisfy us?
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(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...ODJ: Jesus heals
I baptize you with water, but someone is coming soon who is greater than I am (v.16).
READ: Luke 3:15-22
By 2:00 a.m., as reports streamed in from the earthquake in Haiti, Craig Miller knew he had to go. Miller, director of the relief organization Thirst No More, had been able to have two Facebook chats with a medical contact working amid the rubble. The team’s news was dire: They had seen five children die, and they couldn’t provide adequate care for the survivors because they had no medical supplies. Immediately, Miller went into action—leaving for Haiti within hours. He didn’t know if he would be able to get to them in time; but “If I didn’t try,” he said, “I knew for sure they wouldn’t have the supplies they needed.”
Often, the best we can do for others who are in distress is to simply be with them in their trouble. Jesus came to be present with us, to walk amidst our pain, and to experience the fear and sorrows we face. He “faced all the same testings we do, yet He did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15).
This truth jumps to the fore in Jesus’ baptism, a pivotal time in His public ministry. The other Gospels add details to the story, but Luke narrates with sparse prose. “When all the people were being baptized,” Luke writes, “Jesus was baptized too” (3:21 NIV). Jesus, who had no sin and needed no forgiveness, showed His identity with all people as He went into the water.
Yet Jesus did more than simply appear beside us. He came to heal us. At Jesus’ baptism, John the Baptist proclaimed that He was the one who would baptize us “with the Holy Spirit and with fire,” symbols that promised total transformation (v.16). When Jesus has finished His work among us, we will be more than comforted. We will be changed. —Winn Collier
How have you experienced God’s presence even in your troubles? What does it mean for you to grasp that God wants not only to be with you, but also to heal you?
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(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...ODJ: déjà vu
Surely the Lord will strike Saul down someday, or he will die of old age or in battle (v.10).
READ: 1 Samuel 26
David was caught in a living nightmare. Once again, Saul was hot on his heels. The king had taken 3,000 of Israel’s elite troops and was hunting David down in the wilderness of Ziph. The events in 1 Samuel 26 have a sense of déjà vu about them—they’re remarkably similar to what took place in chapter 24.
In the first encounter, David was retreating as Saul was advancing. But in chapter 26, Saul’s soldiers are camped out and David is on the offensive. His scouts located Saul’s camp and David, accompanied by at least two men, goes to check it out. What’s he up to? we wonder. Surely, he won’t attempt to assassinate Saul, for he was conscience-stricken when he previously cut off a portion of Saul’s robe (24:5).
David had come for Saul’s spear and water container, and that was all. He commanded Abishai not to kill Saul for basically the same reason (v.9) he verbalized in 24:6,11. But David went beyond what he had said before, assuring Abishai, “Surely the Lord will strike Saul down someday, or he will die of old age or in battle” (26:10). After his experience with Nabal and Abigail (ch.25), David knew that God could accomplish His will in any number of ways. It’s important to note that David didn’t simply know that God defends His own. He believed it. His whole plan hung on it. He staked his life on it. We see from his example that faith and action go hand-in-hand. His plan was totally dependent on God for success.
In 1 Samuel 26, David dealt with a similar situation with greater confidence and wisdom than in chapter 24. Can that be said of us? How are we living out the wisdom He has taught us through previous life experiences? —Poh Fang Chia
Is there a particular experience that God is bringing you through over and over again? What lesson is he teaching you?
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(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...ODJ: when God arrives
Never again will you be called “The Forsaken City” or “The Desolate Land” (v.4).
READ: Isaiah 62:1-5
Last January, as Haiti reeled from a crushing earthquake, one tragic account told of a mother who had three daughters between the ages of four and nine. She had been cooking for her girls when the earthquake hit. Severely injured, the mom could not move or care for her children. When help arrived, the young girls had gone two days without food or water. The mom was convinced that her daughters would not survive. A reporter accompanying the relief workers asked, “When do you think this will end?”
“When God arrives,” the mother answered.
Eventually, we humans find ourselves facing trouble beyond our expertise to fix. Inevitably, high hopes of what we can accomplish and what we can make of our world always come crashing down.
Judah repeatedly came to this point. During one calamitous cycle, under Babylon’s rule and on the brink of national ruin, the prophet Isaiah prayed for his people. His heart, he said, “[could] not keep still” (Isaiah 62:1). Just as the Haitian images moved us to both sorrow and action, the devastation around Isaiah compelled him to pray for God’s mercy. His prayer continued, “I will not stop praying for [Judah], until her righteousness shines like the dawn” (v.1).
Isaiah’s hope for a new dawn was more than a naïve whim. He believed in God’s promise of redemption for His people (and ultimately for all of God’s people). Isaiah proclaimed God’s intentions that the people of Judah—currently wallowing in ruin—would discover that calamity was not their end. “The Lord will hold you in His hand for all to see—a splendid crown in the hand of God” (v.3).
Isaiah pointed to a day when God would appear and make the world right again. Our sorrows will not completely end until He arrives. —Winn Collier
How have you been tempted to believe that you can make life work on your own? Where in your life are you most in need for God to arrive?
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...ODB: God’s presence at church
November 7, 2010
READ: Colossians 1:9-14
Walk worthy of the Lord. —Colossians 1:10
I love reading church slogans. You know, the ones you see on the marquee in front of churches. Recently I noticed a slogan that said, “Come in and experience the presence of God.” That one caught my attention, primarily because it’s an important promise to make and sometimes a hard promise to keep. Hard, because if we’re not careful our churches might reflect the presence of its people more than the presence of our God.
So what would a church have to do to display the presence of God? Its people would have to live like Him! Dynamics like hospitality, the loving acceptance of all kinds of people, a quickness to serve, a tangible love for one another that makes people feel safe and included regardless of color or class, and a patient tolerance of one another’s weaknesses would all be a great way to start. Paul said we should walk in a manner “worthy of the Lord” (Col. 1:10). And he also said that being worthy means that we will be humble, gentle, bearing with one another in love, eagerly maintaining the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Eph. 4:2-3).
Let’s live in such a way that others will experience the presence of the God who lives in us—wherever we are, but especially at church. —Joe Stowell
Those who walk with Christ bring the presence of God to everyone around them.
Source: Our Daily Bread
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