Entries by YMI

ODB: A Firm Place to Stand

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June 25, 2016 

READ: Psalm 40:1–5 

He lifted me out of the slimy pit; out of the mud and mire, he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. Psalm 40:2

 

The historic riverwalk area of Savannah, Georgia, is paved with mismatched cobblestones. Local residents say that centuries ago the stones provided ballast for ships as they crossed the Atlantic Ocean. When cargo was loaded in Georgia, the ballast stones were no longer needed, so they were used to pave the streets near the docks. Those stones had accomplished their primary job—stabilizing the ship through dangerous waters.

The days in which we live can feel as turbulent as the high seas. Like sailing ships of old, we need stability to help us navigate our way through the storms of life. David faced danger as well, and he celebrated the character of God for providing him with stability after he had endured a desperate time. He declared, “He lifted me out of the slimy pit; out of the mud and mire, he set my feet on a rock, and gave me a firm place to stand” (Ps. 40:2). David’s experience was one of conflict, personal failure, and family strife, yet God gave him a place to stand. So David sang “a hymn of praise to our God” (v. 3).

In times of difficulty, we too can look to our powerful God for the stability only He brings. His faithful care inspires us to say with David, “Many, Lord my God, are the wonders you have done, the things you planned for us” (v. 5). 

— Bill Crowder

My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’s blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’s name. On Christ, the solid rock, I stand—all other ground is sinking sand. Edward Mote

When the world around us is crumbling, Christ is the solid Rock on which we stand.  

ODJ: Genuine Love

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June 24, 2016 

READ: Romans 12:9-21 

Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them (v.9).

I doubt that any word gets tossed around in our world with such frequency and flippancy as love. It’s common for us to justify selfish behaviour or whitewash actions harmful to others all in the name of some weak notion of ‘love’. Too often our actions performed under the guise of love have nothing whatsoever to do with the reality of it.

The apostle Paul challenges all of us who follow Jesus to “let [our] love be genuine”—to let our love actually be love (Romans 12:9 rsv). And if we need to know specifics about what genuine love actually looks like, Paul is happy to provide them:
• Resist everything evil and cling to everything good (v.9).
• Try to outdo one another in showing love (v.10).
• Follow God’s way of love, and exhibit it with enthusiasm (v.11).
• Have great joy and confidence in the hope that love provides (v.12).
• Don’t fight suffering, but endure it with patience (v.12).
• Cling to the confidence that our loving God hears our prayers (v.12).
• Come to the aid of those who are in need (v.13).
• Bless those who seek your harm; don’t seek revenge (vv.14,19).
• Join others in grief as well as in joy (v.15).
• Practise peace with everyone, even difficult people (vv.16,18).
• Don’t think too highly of yourself (v.16).

In other words, for Paul, love wasn’t some vague, gooey, sentimental emotion. Rather, it was God’s energy in action. Love requires sacrifice. Love demands our commitment and requires that we lay down our own best interests for the wellbeing of others. God’s love helps us grasp the fullness of Jesus’ teaching and provides what we need to display His way of living in the world.

—Winn collier

365-day plan: Mark 1:16-39

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Compare the list in Romans 12 with Paul’s description of love in 1 Corinthians 13. What are the similarities? What’s different? 
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Look back over the list from Romans 12. Are there specific ways you sense the call to real, sacrificial love? How have you experienced the reality of God’s love? 

(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)

ODB: His Loving Presence

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June 24, 2016 

READ: Hebrews 13:1–6 

Never will I leave you. Hebrews 13:5

 

Our hearts sank when we learned that our good friend Cindy had been diagnosed with cancer. Cindy was a vibrant person whose life blessed all who crossed her path. My wife and I rejoiced when she went into remission, but a few months later her cancer returned with a vengeance. In our minds she was too young to die. Her husband told me about her last hours. When she was weak and hardly able to talk, Cindy whispered to him, “Just be with me.” What she wanted more than anything in those dark moments was his loving presence.

The writer to the Hebrews comforted his readers by quoting Deuteronomy 31:6, where God told His people: “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Heb. 13:5). In the darkest moments of life, the assurance of His loving presence gives us confidence that we are not alone. He gives us the grace to endure, the wisdom to know He is working, and the assurance that Christ can “empathize with our weaknesses” (4:15).

Together let’s embrace the blessing of His loving presence so we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid” (13:6).

— Joe Stowell

Lord, thank You for the promise that You will never leave me. May the reality of Your constant supporting presence fill my heart with comfort, confidence, and courage.

During hard times, tough questions often arise such as “Where

There is peace in the presence of God.  

ODJ: Straight Up

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June 23, 2016 

READ: Psalm 36:1-12  

Pour out your unfailing love on those who love you; give justice to those with honest hearts (v.10).

Carefully lifting each piece of paper, I sorted the stacks on my desk—again. I searched through file drawers, bookcases, computer folders and email messages while praying fervently that the missing item would be found. Disappointed and frustrated, I took a deep breath and informed my supervisor before emailing the originator of the document for another copy. My prayers were answered in an unexpected fashion when I received a message in reply letting me know that the item hadn’t yet been sent to me!

Few people enjoy failure, but even fewer relish admitting their deficiencies. Fear of punishment, or even distaste for disappointing others, can drive us to less-than-honest responses when we’ve missed the mark. In the moment, we wrongfully believe we can deflect the consequences by spinning the information. But practising deception only leads us into greater sin and eventual ruin. Thriving in hidden places, “Sin whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts” (Psalm 36:1). Instead of believing our circumstances are the litmus test for our behaviour, however, it’s vital we grasp that God is “the fountain of life, the light by which we see” (v.9).

The Lord’s presence and all-knowing ways call us to integrity, but not because we fear His finding out our every sin like a cosmic police officer. Instead, we can live out the reality of His good and “unfailing love” by His strength (vv.5-6,10). Because He’s a God who rewards and also desires to bless His people, “He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest. He is a shield to those who walk with integrity” (Proverbs 2:7). May we live ’straight-up’ lives for Him—empowered by His powerful and compassionate ways.

—Regina Franklin

365-day plan: Luke 4:16-30

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Read Proverbs 11:1-10 to see the contrast between the godly and those who rely on deception for their wellbeing. 
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Is there a current situation in your life where you’ve been less than honest? What will you do to rectify it? To what extent does our view of God affect whether or not we walk in integrity? 

(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)

ODB: Serving Christ

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June 23, 2016 

READ: Ephesians 6:5–9 

Obey [your earthly masters] . . . as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Ephesians 6:6

 

“I’m a secretary,” a friend told me. “When I tell people this, they sometimes look at me with a certain pity. But when they find out who I am secretary for, they open their eyes with admiration!” In other words, society often defines some jobs as less important than others, unless those jobs happen to relate in some way to rich or famous people.

For the child of God, however, any occupation, regardless of the earthly boss, can be held proudly because we serve the Lord Jesus.

In Ephesians 6, Paul talks to servants and masters. He reminds both groups that we serve one Master who is in heaven. So we need to do everything with sincerity of heart, integrity, and respect because we are serving and working for Christ Himself. As the apostle Paul reminds us, “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people” (Eph. 6:7).

What a privilege to serve God in everything we do, whether answering a phone or driving a car or doing housework or running a business. Let us work with a smile today, remembering that no matter what we are doing, we are serving God.

— Keila Ochoa

Lord Jesus, I want to serve You in everything I do. Help me, as I begin each day, to remember this.

 

Serving shows our love for God.  

ODJ: He Saw Something

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June 22, 2016 

READ: Acts 7:54-60 

He told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honour at God’s right hand!” (v.56).

It was with gut-wrenching horror that I watched the video of 21 Coptic Christians being forced to kneel on a Libyan beach before being beheaded by terrorists. Later, I learned that a relative of some of the men who were killed said that many of them cried out the name of Jesus with their dying breath—a testimony to their faith in Him. Though the terrorists had hoped for the opposite effect, they had actually strengthened the faith of the Coptic Church by proving that even imminent death couldn’t snatch away their brothers’ love for Christ!

This story of modern-day martyrs mirrors the story of early martyrs like Stephen. He bravely stood before the Sanhedrin (Acts 7:54)—men who wanted to kill him and who were directly responsible for the death of Jesus (Matthew 26:59). Stephen could have kept his mouth shut and maybe made it through with a beating or even a warning. But instead, he testified that he saw Christ standing at the “right hand” of the Father (Acts 7:56). Given how dangerous Stephen’s situation was, this suggests that he truly saw an amazing sight that day!

The story of Stephen is mirrored by the story of many other martyrs over the centuries who have chosen to die rather than renounce their faith in Christ. They, like Stephen, must have ‘seen something’ in Jesus and the Scriptures that led them to give up their lives. I’m encouraged by this fact: they felt so convinced of the Lord’s resurrection that they chose to die rather than recant.

But this challenges me as well: Have I ‘seen something’ worth living and dying for? Something that even in the face of death, I would never take back? I hope and pray that should that day come, the answer is a resounding yes!

—Peter Chin

365-day plan: John 4:43-54

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Read Hebrews 11:35-38 for a powerful description of prophets and martyrs who gave up their lives for their faith in God. 
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Have you ever been challenged to reject or at least be silent about your faith in Jesus? How did you respond? Have you seen something so true that you would be willing to live or die for it? 

(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)

ODB: A Remote Location

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June 22, 2016 

READ: Mark 8:1–13 

My God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

 

Tristan da Cunha Island is famous for its isolation. It is the most remote inhabited island in the world, thanks to the 288 people who call it home. The island is located in the South Atlantic Ocean, 1,750 miles from South Africa—the nearest mainland. Anyone who might want to drop by for a visit has to travel by boat for seven days because the island has no airstrip.

Jesus and His followers were in a somewhat remote area when He produced a miraculous meal for thousands of hungry people. Before His miracle, Jesus said to His disciples, “[These people] have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way” (Mark 8:2-3). Because they were in the countryside where food was not readily available, they had to depend fully on Jesus. They had nowhere else to turn.

Sometimes God allows us to end up in desolate places where He is our only source of help. His ability to provide for us is not necessarily linked with our circumstances. If He created the entire world out of nothing, God can certainly meet our needs—whatever our circumstances—out of the riches of His glory, in Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:19).

— Jennifer Benson Schuldt

Dear God, thank You for all that You have provided through Your Son, Jesus Christ. You know what my needs are. Please reassure me of Your care and power.

We can trust God to do what we cannot do.  

ODJ: Higher Law, Higher Love

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June 21, 2016 

READ: 1 Samuel 19:1-7 

We must obey God rather than any human authority (Acts 5:29).

A precocious school pupil asked a soldier visiting her class what he would do if he were ordered to do something wrong. Then she made it personal. “What if they told you to shoot innocent people?”
As the teacher held her breath and the students sat on the edge of their seats, the soldier calmly replied, “I’m duty-bound to obey the lawful orders of those appointed over me. And I’m just as duty-bound to disobey an unlawful order.” That serviceman understood the principle of a higher authority.

Long ago, King Saul grew envious of the young warrior David, so he instructed his servants and his son Jonathan to kill him. Jonathan wisely defied his father’s directive and got David out of harm’s way (1 Samuel 19:1-3). And “the next morning Jonathan spoke with his father about David, saying many good things about him” (v.4). Saul relented—at least for a while (v.6).

Few of us will encounter such an extreme situation, but we all face times when we’re asked to ignore our conscience and God’s instruction. The disciple Peter’s counsel to the authorities who arrested him shows us the courage we need. “We must obey God rather than human authority. ...God put [Jesus] in the place of honour at his right hand as Prince and Saviour,” Peter said, despite the fact that the council wanted to kill him (Acts 5:29,31,33).

Making the right choice might cost us very little, or it may cost us a lot. Some have even given their lives defying evil. Whatever we face, the scriptural pattern for us remains clear: show respect, make a reasoned argument and follow God— our ultimate authority. May we depend on Him and His power as we seek to do what’s right today.

—Tim Gustafson

365-day plan: John 4:1-42

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In the Acts 5:17-41 account that reveals Peter and John’s courage, who was the unlikely voice of reason? (see especially vv.33-40). 
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What choice of conscience faces you today? What response will truly honour God? 

(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)