Good Words for Today
There are no interruptions in life. There are merely divine appointments God didn’t tell you about in advance.
Don't get angry at the lost. You were lost once too.
“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8 NLT). The devil is hungry, and you're on the menu!
Jesus is not one among many ways to heaven. He is the way to heaven, the source of all truth, and the only one who can give us eternal life. Don't water it down. Don't apologize for it. It's the good news the whole world needs to hear. God has made a way for anyone, anywhere to be saved through Christ.
"When everything is going well in your life, beware! You are a prime candidate for a satanic attack.”
We never question the Lord's compassion when things are going well. But God's compassion is not measured by our circumstances. God cares just as much when the tempest is raging as when the seas are calm and the sun is shining.
Here's a prayer based on 2 Thessalonians 3:1. Insert the name of your town, your village, your neighborhood, or your city. “Lord, let your Word run through_______________. Let it run through the schools and the government, the banks and the stores. Unleash your Word in all the churches. May homes be filled with your Holy Word, beginning with ours. O Lord, turn your Word loose and let it run from _____________to the ends of the earth. Amen!”
Creator of the universe, give me eyes to see your handiwork, ears to hear your voice, and lips to proclaim your greatness. Amen.
All too often we conclude that something can’t be done so we don’t bother trying to do it. If Moses had taken that attitude, the Jews would still be in Egypt. If Joshua had felt that way, the walls of Jericho would still be standing. If David had adopted that opinion, Goliath would still be terrorizing the Jews. You never know in advance what God may do so don’t rule out the possibility of a mighty miracle coming your way.
Do not despair if you feel like you are alone. Trust in God and take the next step. If your current situation seems hard, remember that you are not home yet. God writes the last chapter.
When you are discouraged, remember God’s faithfulness. Quote the great promises. Remember how God has answered your prayers. Reflect on his mighty deeds. Consider who it is who fights for you. Then pick up five smooth stones and get ready to defeat the giant.
Now that Jesus has died, no other sacrifice is necessary. None will be accepted. None is possible. It’s Jesus only and only Jesus. Without his death, there is no forgiveness, no salvation, and no hope of heaven.
Isaiah 55:7 contains a wonderful invitation to those who feel their sin is too great to be forgiven: “Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.” The King James translates the last phrase as "he will abundantly pardon." I like that because that’s precisely what I need. When I stray, when I fall, when I make a mess of my life, I need a God who will “abundantly” pardon me. With God there is always the possibility of a new beginning.
Do not doubt in the darkness what God has shown you in the light. Wait on the Lord. And while you wait, obey as much as you know. When the time comes, God will speak to you again. You can’t rush God. In his time, you will hear his voice once again. Until that day comes, stay faithful. Do your duty. There is no reason to stay in bed and mope. Get up and do what must be done.
Nowhere does God say, “I will never send a storm again.” Nowhere does God promise that life will be free of trials, troubles, and difficulties. Most rainbows appear only after the storm has come and gone. If there were no storms, there would be very few rainbows.
What does it mean to believe in Jesus? I like how Lewis Sperry Chafer put it: Believing in Jesus means trusting him so much that if he can’t take me to heaven, I’m not going to go there. I like that because I don’t have a Plan B when it comes to salvation. Jesus is my Plan A, and he’s all I need.
All my days were written in God’s book before one of them came to be (Psalm 139:16). That means a Christian is immortal until his work on earth is done.
Impatience is easy because you’re giving in to your emotions. You're rude or mean, or you throw a fit, or you tell someone off because it makes you feel better. It takes no courage to be impatient. It’s a sign of spiritual cowardice. Telling someone off is taking the easy way out. It takes courage to wait on the Lord. That leads me to a simple question: Are you willing to wait for God? Until the answer is yes, you aren’t ready to fulfill God’s plan for your life.
Don’t pin your hopes on the world system. It’s going to crumble and fall. If you live for this world, you will end up with nothing but dust. If you have some money, invest it for God. If you have some time, spend it with the hurting. If you have some good news, share it with the lost. God is giving us an unshakeable kingdom. It’s ours. Guaranteed. Don't waste your one and only life. This dying world can never match what God has promised to his children.
Oh, precious is the flow, That makes me white as snow. No other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Jesus came because we made such a mess of things. God said, “I will not leave you alone. I will not let you destroy yourself, each other, and the world I have made. I love you too much to leave you alone.” After we had trashed everything, God said, “I’m coming down there so you’ll know once and for all how much I love you.” We didn’t pay any attention; it didn’t even make sense to us. How could God visit us? But he did—and he came to the world in a very strange way. He entered a virgin’s womb and came out as a baby, born in Bethlehem, a baby named Jesus, born to save us from our sins.
Lord Jesus, when we are provoked today–as we surely will be!–may we be slow to anger and quick to forgive. Amen.
Perhaps we should add a verse to Hebrews 11: "By faith, Noah built the ark; by faith, Noah entered the Ark; by faith, Noah left the ark." Which was harder? To enter the ark or to leave it? Both can be very difficult. Some of us are stuck because we know it’s time to move forward, but we are afraid to take the first step. God bless Noah, who knew when to get on the big boat and when to get off!
Don't despair when you feel like your service for Christ doesn't matter. Remember Elijah and the 7000. You aren't in a good position to judge your own effectiveness. If you think you hit a home run, better let the Lord make the call. If you think you just struck out, leave that call with him also. In heaven we’ll discover that our Christian testimony touched people we didn’t even know about.
Jesus did not come to add to our condemnation. He came because we were “condemned already” (see John 3:18). He came to offer us life instead of death, hope instead of despair, and light instead of darkness. He says, “All who are weary, come to me, and I will give you rest.” Horatius Bonar wrote these words in 1846: I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Come unto Me and rest; Lay down, thou weary one, lay down Thy head upon My breast.” I came to Jesus as I was, Weary and worn and sad; I found in Him a resting place, And He has made me glad.
So many people live in defeat because they can’t climb the steep mountain before them. Just remember this: You don’t have to climb the mountain. You just have to take the next step with God. He’ll take care of the rest.
God invites the whole world to be saved. That’s the Good News of the gospel. But the invitation has a condition. Salvation is only through Christ. You cannot rewrite the invitation to read “through good works” or “through being nice” or “through being religious” or even “through church attendance.” God offers salvation through Christ and only through Christ.
In the midst of judgment, God always remembers mercy. He remembers those who suffer, and he keeps his eyes on them. Though they suffer long and often feel forgotten, the Almighty will not abandon them. There is no trial that can separate us from the God who loves us.
God often delays his mercies in order that we should properly thank him when they finally appear.
Spirit of God, I pray for the gift of sanctified brevity. Amen.