Entries by YMI

ODB: Treasures in Heaven

Oct 16, 2015 in , /by

October 16, 2015 

READ: Matthew 6:19-24 

Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. —nkjv Matthew 6:20

 

Poorly installed electric wiring caused a fire that burned down our newly built home. The flames leveled our house within an hour, leaving nothing but rubble. Another time, we returned home from church one Sunday to find our house had been broken into and some of our possessions stolen.

In our imperfect world, loss of material wealth is all too common—vehicles are stolen or crashed, ships sink, buildings crumble, homes are flooded, and personal belongings are stolen. This makes Jesus’ admonition not to put our trust in earthly wealth very meaningful (Matt. 6:19).

Jesus told a story of a man who accumulated abundant treasures and decided to store up everything for himself (Luke 12:16-21). “Take life easy,” the man told himself; “eat, drink and be merry” (v. 19). But that night he lost everything, including his life. In conclusion, Jesus said, “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God” (v. 21).

Material wealth is temporary. Nothing lasts forever—except what our God enables us to do for others. Giving of our time and resources to spread the good news, visiting those who are lonely, and helping those in need are just some of the many ways to store up treasure in heaven (Matt. 6:20).

— Lawrence Darmani

In what ways are you storing up treasures in heaven? How might you change and grow in this area of your life?

Our real wealth is what we invest for eternity.  

ODJ: rest assured

Oct 15, 2015 in , /by

October 15, 2015 

READ: John 8:31-51 

I tell you the truth, anyone who obeys my teaching will never die! (v.51).

A Japanese composer was hailed for a time as a “modern Beethoven”. He was credited with creating hits such as “Symphony No. 1, Hiroshima”. Despite being deaf, the man once said, “If you trust your inner sense of sound, you create something that is truer. It is like communicating from the heart.” After his hearing-impaired status came into question, however, he confessed that another musician wrote his most famous music.

We can’t always trust people. What we see is not always what we get. Thankfully God does not wear a mask. He’s stable and knowable; He always tells the truth. “God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind” (Numbers 23:19). Because of God’s steady, honest nature, we can be sure that He’ll give us strength and provide for our needs. And ultimately, we’ll be with Him in paradise if we trust in His Son for our salvation (John 8:51).

In contrast, Satan is totally unreliable. He passed off lies as truth to Adam and Eve. Today, he suggests ideas that appear credible but actually chip away at the core of the biblical truth. God’s Word says that the devil hates “the truth because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies” (v.44).

Satan is two-faced and treacherous, but God is honest and authentic. When we listen to Him, we won’t experience the emotional whiplash that comes with betrayal. We can rest assured that He loves us, He’s with us and He has heaven waiting for us. So, “let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise” (Hebrews 10:23).

—Jennifer Benson Schuldt

365-day-plan: Acts 6:1-15

MORE
Read Titus 1:1-3 to see the connection between God’s character and His promise of eternal life. Look up Acts 20:29-31 for a warning about people who tamper with God’s truth. 
NEXT
In what ways do you think the devil might be tricking you today? Ask God to expose the lies and replace them with the truth of His Word. 

(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)

ODB: God’s Direction

Oct 15, 2015 in , /by

October 15, 2015 

READ: Proverbs 3:1–8 

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. —nkjv Proverbs 3:6

 

A century ago, 41-year-old Oswald Chambers arrived in Egypt to serve as a YMCA chaplain to British Commonwealth troops during World War I. He was assigned to a camp at Zeitoun, six miles north of Cairo. On his first night there, October 27, 1915, Chambers wrote in his diary, “This [area] is absolutely desert in the very heart of the troops and a glorious opportunity for men. It is all immensely unlike anything I have been used to, and I am watching with interest the new things God will do and engineer.”

Chambers believed and practiced the words of Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Prov. 3:5-6 nkjv).

This is both a comfort and a challenge. There is security in knowing that the Lord will lead us each day, but we must not become so attached to our plans that we resist God’s redirection or His timing.

“We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for,” said Chambers. “God engineers everything. Wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work.”

— David McCasland

Lord, may I love and serve You with all my heart where You have placed me today.

Read more of Oswald Chambers’ work at utmost.org

ODJ: brutal betrayal

Oct 14, 2015 in , /by

October 14, 2015 

READ: Luke 22:47-53 

Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss? (v.48).

In October 2014, Italian authorities arrested a woman for the murder of as many as 38 victims. Most shocking was the revelation that she was the victims’ nurse. Police first charged the woman with the murder of a 78 year old hospital patient. Later, however, they suspected her involvement in a string of suspicious deaths. News outlets posted a disturbing photo seized by police: a selfie the nurse took of herself (in her hospital scrubs) standing near the body of a recently deceased patient while smiling and making a thumbs-up gesture.

The local prosecutor was aghast at the horrific nature of the evidence. “In all my professional years of seeing shocking photos, there were few such as these,” he said.

Of course, what was most appalling about this arrest was the betrayal—how the very person who was trusted to provide the most intimate care was the person who (it appears) brutally ended lives.

In the story of Jesus’ passion, Judas’ betrayal shows us a shocking reality about Jesus’ final days. How could the man who for years travelled the countryside with Him, shared meals with Him and heard Him proclaim the truths of the kingdom of God be the same man who handed Jesus over to His crucifixion? Luke tells us that the angry mob that approached Jesus was “led by Judas” (v.47). This 3 word phrase reverberates with shock. Why would Judas do such a thing? Jesus said, “My friend . . . do what you have come for” (Matthew 26:50).

We don’t know why Judas betrayed Jesus, but the treachery isn’t hard to imagine. We’re tempted at every turn—tested for whether we’ll stay true to the truths we believe and to the ones we love. May God’s love compel us to do what’s right.

—Winn Collier

365-day-plan: Acts 5:17-42

MORE
Read Luke 22:47-50 again. Place yourself in the story. How do you imagine Judas felt? How do you imagine Jesus felt? 
NEXT
When are you most tempted to betray those you love or what you believe? Why do you think this temptation is so strong? 

(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)

ODB: All Safe! All Well!

Oct 14, 2015 in , /by

October 14, 2015 

READ: Hebrews 11:8-16 

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1

 

In January 1915, the ship Endurance was trapped and crushed in the ice off the coast of Antarctica. The group of polar explorers, led by Ernest Shackleton, survived and managed to reach Elephant Island in three small lifeboats. Trapped on this uninhabited island, far from normal shipping lanes, they had one hope. On April 24, 1916, 22 men watched as Shackleton and five comrades set out in a tiny lifeboat for South Georgia, an island 800 miles away. The odds seemed impossible, and if they failed, they would all certainly die. What joy, then, when more than four months later a boat appeared on the horizon with Shackleton on its bow shouting, “Are you all well?” And the call came back, “All safe! All well!”

What held those men together and kept them alive over those months? Faith and hope placed in one man. They believed that Shackleton would find a way to save them.

This human example of faith and hope echoes the faith of the heroes listed in Hebrews 11. Their faith in the “substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” kept them going through great difficulties and trials (Heb. 11:1 nkjv).

As we look out upon the horizon of our own problems, may we not despair. May we have hope through the certainty of our faith in the One Man—Jesus, our God and Savior.

— Randy Kilgore

Thank You, Father, for the promise of forgiveness made possible by Jesus. May that promise lighten the darkest of our days.

The hope of Jesus shines brightly even on our darkest day.  

ODJ: mistakes and grace

Oct 13, 2015 in , /by

October 13, 2015 

READ: 2 Kings 4:38-41 

The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives (Psalm 37:23).

We took one last look at the church hall. It had been full of food and activity just an hour before, but now it was spotlessly clean. So we turned off the lights and left.

But in the quietness of the night, a tiny life form was breeding. You see, somehow we missed one small detail. We’d failed to empty the water in the contraption below the rice cooker lid. To our horror, the following week we discovered maggots in it!

Human beings aren’t infallible—no matter how hard we try. We desperately need grace, from God and from one another.

In 2 Kings 4 we find a young man who did his best to gather food for a group of prophets in a time of famine. But he mistook a poisonous ingredient as part of the recipe (v.39). It was an innocent mistake; nonetheless, many people were affected. Evidently, the group had to go to bed hungry that night (v.40).

As we look back on our lives, all of us can identify with this anonymous servant. We have all made mistakes and missteps—sometimes out of good intentions, sometimes out of sinful impulses. And it affected not only us but also the people around us.

What was to be done in the case of the bad stew? Elisha instructed someone to bring him some flour. He threw it into the pot and then instructed that the meal be served. The mistake became an opportunity used by God to authenticate Elisha as His servant (v.41).

—Poh Fang Chia

365-day-plan: Acts 5:1-16

MORE
Read Romans 8:28 and contemplate the wonderful truth that God is able to take our mistakes and bring good from them. 
NEXT
What’s the difference between mistakes and sins? How does God want you to deal with each of them? 

(Check out Our Daily Journey website!)

ODB: Burning Questions

Oct 13, 2015 in , /by

October 13, 2015 

READ: Exodus 3:1-6,10-14 

“I am who I am” Exodus 3:14

 

An old Native American story tells of a young boy who was sent into the woods alone on an autumn night to prove his courage. Soon the sky darkened and the sounds of night filled the air. Trees creaked and groaned, an owl screeched, and a coyote howled. Even though he was frightened, the boy remained in the woods all night, as the test of courage required. Finally morning came, and he saw a solitary figure nearby. It was his grandfather, who had been watching over him all night long.

When Moses went deep into the desert, he saw a burning bush that didn’t burn up. Then God began talking to him from the bush, commissioning him to go back to Egypt and lead the Israelites out of cruel slavery to freedom. A reluctant Moses began to ask questions: “Who am I that I should go?”

God simply answered, “I will be with you.”

“Suppose I . . . say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”

God replied, “I am who I am. . . . [Say to them,] I am has sent me to you’ ” (Ex. 3:11-14). The phrase “I am who I am” can be interpreted, “I will be who I will be” and reveals God’s eternal and all-sufficient character.

God has promised always to be present with those who believe in Jesus. No matter how dark the night, the unseen God is ready to respond appropriately to our need.

— David Egner

Dear Father, thank You for Your never-changing character.

God is always present and at work.  

Mine

Oct 12, 2015 /0 Comments/in , , /by

Title: Mine Materials: Original Song by Peter Tonna Description: This song is about the real price Jesus paid for us. All the pain and torture he went through would have been on us if he didn’t step into our place and take the punishment on himself.— Peter   MINE VERSE The lashing would’ve torn my strength to shreds […]