A Place to Grow

A Place to Grow

March 6

Read:  Matthew 6:1 - 18

Your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. – Matthew 6:18

The Bible In One year

Joshua 22 – 24

I’m limited,” you say. You are frustrated by the cramping restrictions of age, illness, a difficult child, or an uncooperative spouse. Perhaps you are housebound or bedridden and feel you have no place to serve.

Your limited place need not limit you. Embrace it as a place to grow. Don’t worry about what people around you may think. God sees what is done “in secret” and He will reward you in due time (Matt. 6:18)

In fact, our restriction are part of God’s plan to mature us – to draw us away from our preoccupation with being seen and heard by others. if we pray, give, or fast to increase other estimation of us, we will miss God’s blessing. If we are concerned about enhancing our reputation, we lose the good that God has promised to give us.

God always rewards hidden spirituality. he hears every private prayer; He recognizes every secret gift; He notes and richly rewards each unseen act of devotion. You will be strengthened, and the Lord will make you all that He want you to be.

The bottom line is this: the things that are done for God’s eyes are the things that matter. So, settle into that secret place where God alone sees and knows. – David Roper.

Jesus has called me to be at my best,

Living for Him when at work or at play;

He knows my heart, and in that I can rest –

Why should I worry what others may say? – Hess

To know that God sees us brings both conviction and comfort

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Reservation Guaranteed

Reservation Guaranteed

March 5

Read:  John 14:1 - 6

I go to prepare a place for you. – John 14:2

The Bible In One year

Joshua 19 – 21

Because my daughter is a flight attendant, I am blessed with a parent’s pass for my personal use. For a small service charge, I may fly wherever the airline flies. There’s one drawback, however. I must be on “standby.” That means I’m allowed on board only if there’s space available. Until then, my luggage is set aside and labeled “Status Pending.” While the paying passengers board, I must wait, wondering if my name will be called. I can never be certain of a seat because available space isn’t guaranteed.

It’s a far different situation on our journey to heaven, which begins when we trust Christ for our salvation. Because of His death and resurrection, our passage to heaven is absolutely guaranteed. Our status is not pending; there is space available; our names will be called. These priceless privileges have been paid for in full by the sacrificial death of Jesus.

If, like Thomas in John 14:5, you sometimes wonder if and how Jesus will get you to heaven, trust in His promise, “I go to prepare a place for you… And I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (vv.2-3). That’s His unfailing word. You can count on it! – Joanie Yoder

There is a place reserved in heaven

For all of us who have received

Forgiveness and eternal life

From Christ, in whom we have believed. – Sper

Faith in Christ is the only ticket to heaven

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What Cancer Can’t do

What Cancer Can’t do

March 4

Read:  1 Cor. 15:35 - 49

Thanks be to God, who give us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. – 1 Corinthians 15:57

The Bible In One year

Joshua 16 – 18

One of the most dreaded sentence a patient can hear is, “You have cancer.” These words bring a chill to the heart. Although great progress is being made in treating this disease recovery can be long and painful, and many people do not survive.

An enthusiastic believer in Christ, Dan Richardson, lost his battle with cancer, But his life demonstrated that even though the physical body may be destroyed by disease, the spirit can remain triumphant. This poem was distributed at his memorial service.

Cancer is so limited

It cannot cripple love,

It cannot shatter hope,

It cannot corrode faith,

It cannot eat away peace,

It cannot destroy confidence,

It cannot kill friendship,

It cannot shut out memories

It cannot silence courage,

It cannot invade the soul,

It cannot reduce eternal life,

It cannot quench the Spirit,

It cannot lessen the power of the resurrection.

If an incurable disease has invaded your life, refuse to let it touch your spirit. Your body can be severely afflicted, and you may have a great struggle. But if you keep trusting God’s love, your spirit will remain strong. – Dave Egner

Our greatest enemy is not disease but despair. 

Joshua, March, What Cancer Can’t do 12:42 AM No comments

Pardon Me!

Pardon Me!

March 3

Read:  1 John 1:5  -  2:10

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. – 1 John 1:9

The Bible In One year

Joshua 13 – 15

Hijackers terrorized the passengers aboard an Indian Airlines jet for 8 days. Then, on December 31, 1999, the gunmen issued a final demand before releasing their hostages. “Sorry, but everyone has to say that I am forgiven,” said the hijacker codename “Burger.” When the disbelieving passengers stared back at him, he ordered them to say, “I forgive you.” After hearing the words, the hijackers disappeared into the desert.

Not many of us would be so arrogant as to insist that someone forgive us. And we certainly wouldn’t demand that of God. Why? Because most people sense that His mercy and pardon can be received only by a humble, sincere, and repentant heart.

The apostle John wrote. “If we sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). The word translated “confess” means “to speak the same thing or agree with.” When we confess our sins to God, we agree with Him about our sin, our need to be cleansed, and our need to forgive others who have wronged us (Matt. 6:15). We cry out, “Pardon me!”

None of us is truly free without forgiveness. We need God’s, and other need ours. – David McCasland

Forgive me, O Lord, for all of  my sin,

Please make my heart pure and cleanse me within;

Confessing to You what I have done wrong,

Restore now my joy – to You I belong, - Fitzhugh

Confession is the key that open the door to forgiveness.

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Time Off

Time Off

March 2

Read:  1 John 1:1 - 7

Truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. – 1 John 1:3

The Bible In One year

Joshua 10 – 12

Is there such a thing as a superstar Christian who is so close to God or so godly that he can take time off in his relationship with God?

The idea sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? It’s absorb to think that our walk with God is anything but continual, everyday, all the time. But in reality, don’t we sometimes go our own way and neglect our fellowship with Him?

This principle has a parallel in the world of sports. Grant Hill, a superstar professional basketball player, made this comment about his off – season practice schedule: “I just didn’t feel that I could take a week off. When I take one day off, I feel like I’m lacking a bit.”

If we as Christians “take time off” from our relationship with God, we too will be “lacking a bit.” We will miss the guidance of His Word and the fellowship we experience in prayer. We will be more likely to forget our priorities and drift into forbidden areas that could lead to our downfall.

No matter how long you’ve been a child of God through faith in Christ, you need to guard your relationship with Him. It’s not just about going to church or having daily devotions. It’s a continual relationship. Taking time off will seriously weaken your walk. – Dave Branon

The time we spend in fellowship

With God each day in prayer

Will strengthen us to stand against

Temptation’s evil snare. – sper

To keep spiritually fit, walk daily with Christ. 

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You’re Afraid of Whom?

You’re Afraid of Whom?

March 1

Read:  Num. 13:30 – 14:10

The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe. – Proverbs 29:25

The Bible In One year

Joshua 7 – 9

Mrs. Ima Terror chased her husband through the crowds at the zoo, waving her umbrella and unleashing insults like invisible missile. Her perspiring and winded husband, seeing that the lock on the lion’s cage had not quite close, yanked it open, jumped into the cage, slammed the door, pushed the astonished lion hard against the bars, and peered over its shoulder. His frustrated wife shook her umbrella, stuttered in anger, and finally managed to explode, “Ralph, come out of there, you coward!”

Ralph, in this fictitious story, is like the people of Israel that we read about in the book of Numbers. They were confused about whom they should really fear. They saw themselves as grasshoppers when compared to the giants in the land where God wanted them to go (13:32 – 33).

If we are so afraid of people that we stop following the Lord, we’re not trusting Him. It shows that we have doubted His plan, His power, and His promises. We have failed to recognize that He, above all others, is the One to be feared – which means that He is to be reverenced, trusted, loved, and obeyed.

Father, forgive us for fearing what we should not be afraid of, and for not fearing and trusting You. – Mart De Haan

Our love for God should always move

Our hearts to do what’s good and right;

Love also fears His judgments true

And stands in awe of His great might. – D. De Haan.

Fear God, and you’ll have nothing else to fear.

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Check Your Work

Check Your Work

February 29

Read:  Genesis 45:1 - 15

Do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves. – Genesis 45:5

The Bible In One year

Joshua 4 – 6

The memory of our sins can rob us of the joy of our salvation. Perhaps we have said, or heard others say, “if only I could forgive myself for what I have done!” some people become obsessed with guilt for their past sins.

When Joseph made himself known to his brothers who had sold him into slavery, they were speechless and “dismayed in his presence” (Gen. 45:3). Guilt and fear reminded them of the pain they had caused their aged father Jacob and their brother Joseph. Sensing this, Joseph immediately reassured them: “do not… be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life” (v.5).

When we have sinned and hurts others, we may find ourselves in a position similar to that of Joseph’s brother. But if we have confessed our sins, we can be assured that we have been forgiven. Nagging guilt and self blame are not the work of the Holy Spirit.

The Bible tells us to be “renewed in the spirit of [our] mind” (Eph. 4:23). We must focus our thinking on Jesus our Savior, not on our past sins. We need to concentrate on what He has done – His atoning sacrifice on the cross for our sins – not on what we have done. Because He has forgiven our sin, we can learn to “forget” our sin. – Dennis De Haan

Blessed be the name of Jesus!

I’m so glad He took me in;

He’s forgiven my transgressions,

He has cleansed my heart from sin. – Harris

Guilt is a burden our heavenly Father never intended His children to bear 

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Check Your Work

Check Your Work

February 28

Read:  Ephesians 5:1 - 16

See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise. – Ephesians 5:15

The Bible In One year

Joshua 4 – 6

I’m getting pretty good at math. That’s because every day my son Steve and I have a little math session. He does his 30 junior high math problem, and I help him check them over. Sometimes we even get them all right.

As I go over Steve’s math, I notice that he understands how to do his problems. In fact, in some areas he’s better at it than I am. But occasionally, despite knowing how to do the problem, he gets the wrong answer. He either gets a little sloppy in using the right formula or he just doesn’t check his answers carefully.

Aren’t we all a little like that in our Christian life? We have a good under standing of how to live the Christian life, but we get careless or lazy. We know better, but we fail.

For instance, we know we aren’t supposed to gossip. But before we know it, we’re roasting a fellow Christian. Or this: we know God wants us to keep our mind and heart pure, but we let down our guard and watch a TV program or movie we know is not edifying.

It’s true, isn’t it? We all get a little sloppy in how we live or God. Let’s be more careful and pay closer attention to our Christian walk (Eph. 5:15). Let’s make sure we’re doing quality work for our heavenly Father. – Dave Branon

Lord, help me to apply Your Word

And move it from my head

To actions that won’t shame your Name

But honor You instead. – Sper

Give your all for Jesus, he gave His all for you.

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True Self Denial

True Self Denial

February 27

Read:  Luke 9:18 - 25

If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. – Luke 9:23

The Bible In One year

Joshua 1 – 3

Lent is a period of 40 days prior to Easter (excluding Sundays) For many people it commemorates  Jesus’ fasting in the wilderness. They “give up something” for lent every year, like sweets or TV. This can yield spiritual benefits, but denying yourself things and denying yourself aren’t the same. In Luke 9:23, Jesus taught the latter.

This verse can be broken down into three parts in the statement “If any one desires to come after Me,” the word desires indicates that this is for sincere disciple only. In the phrase “let him deny himself imply a willingness to renounce one’s selfish will and ways. And in the statement “take up his cross daily,” the word daily emphasize a continual dying to self – will.

It’s easier to give things than to give ourselves. Yet Jesus gave Himself, and so must we. To those who deny themselves in obedient service, he has promised, “whoever loses his life for My sake will save it: (v.24). And to his question, “What profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed?” we are called to answer, “there is no profit!” we show that we believe this when we deny our selves and follow Christ. – Joanie Yoder.

To follow Christ we must let go

Of all that we hold dear;

And as we do deny ourselves,

Our gains become more clear. – Sper

By living for ourselves we die; by dying to ourselves we live.

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