Good Words for Today

"God has never run an ad for an administrative assistant." Stephen Davey

Don't look back. It might make you want to go back. That's a bad idea. Remember Lot's wife.

Lord Jesus, when I am discouraged and want to go back to Egypt, keep my feet marching toward Canaan. Amen.

"The word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart’" (Jeremiah 1:5). God is at work in the womb and his fingerprints are everywhere. When you touch an unborn child, you touch the handiwork of God.

The hardest part of being thrown in a fiery furnace is deciding you'd rather go there than deny the Lord. Better to die in obedience than to live in shame.

“God doesn’t love some future version of you. He loves you now.” Matt Chandler

Desperation is not a bad thing if it leads you to Jesus.

"He forgives all your sin" (Psalm 103:3). Never be ashamed to ask for forgiveness. You cannot out-sin the grace of God. All means all.

“Your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Matthew 6:8). He knew your need before you bowed you head. That means we don’t have to use big words or pray long prayers. We don’t have to worry about getting all the details correct or throw in flowery language when we pray. Just pray. If you leave anything out, God can fill in the blanks because he remembers what you forget.

You can run from your problems, or you can take your problems and run to the Lord. Which way will you run today?

May the miracle of good preaching be joined with the miracle of good listening today.

Anxiety is the result of imagining the future without God.

When Christ comes in, he turns our fear upside down.

"Leaders are never remembered for what they compromised on, but what they stood FOR. Take your stand. History is never kind to cowards." Dorothy Burton

Lord, we pray for all those lost in the darkness of sin. May the light of Jesus shine in their hearts today. Amen.

"For my pardon, this I see, Nothing but the blood of Jesus; For my cleansing this my plea, Nothing but the blood of Jesus."

You'll never regret being kind. Try to remember that today.

"Hear my cry to you, Lord. Let your word help me understand." (Psalm 119:169 NCV). Since true understanding comes from the Lord alone  we should have the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other. The newspaper tells me what is happening in the world. The Bible tells me what it means.

"Even though America is just as wicked as Sodom and Gomorrah ever were, and as deserving of the judgment of God, God would spare us if we were earnestly praying, with hearts that had been cleansed and washed by the blood of Christ." Billy Graham

You can’t run away from the battle.  When you hear the sound of cannon fire, you’ve got to pick up your weapon and head for the front line.  It’s not enough to say, “I’m a Christian” when the battle is raging elsewhere.  You’ve got to stand and fight where the enemy is attacking.

"Don't let success go to your head. Don't let failure go to your heart." Tim Keller

“Arrows shot at random hit targets appointed by God.” Erwin Lutzer

"I am with you always!" (Matthew 28:20). Goals for 2018: Live like Jesus is living in you. Love like Jesus is loving through you. Walk like Jesus is walking with you.

A good prayer for the the new year: "Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be." You can sing along with Bart Millard's fine rendition of this song.

Rejoice . . . remember . . . repent. Finish well. The Lord is on your side.

"Here I raise my Ebenezer, Hither by Thy help I've come" These familiar words come from the second verse of "Come, Thou Fount," a hymn written by Robert Robinson in 1757. Back then a hymnwriter could pen something like "Here I raise my Ebenezer" and know that most of his readers would understand the reference. Today people think of Ebenezer Scrooge and wonder what that has to do with anything. The term "Ebenezer" means "stone of help" in Hebrew. After the Israelites won a great victory over the Philistines in 1 Samuel 7, Samuel set up a huge boulder as a marker of God's divine intervention. He called it "Ebenezer," meaning something like "God has helped us every step of the way, and this victory comes from his hand." To "raise an Ebenezer" means to remember God's goodness. There is no better time than the end of a year to declare what the Lord has done for you. Take a moment and look back over the last twelve months: How has the Lord helped you? When did he rescue you? What prayers did he answer? How has he helped your loved ones? When you stumbled, how did he pick you up? When you were grieving, how did he comfort you? Don't put 2017 to bed without thinking about the goodness of the Lord. Write it down. Share it on Facebook. Tell your friends. If you have seen God's hand at work, it's time to "raise an Ebenezer."

Lord, keep me far from temptation today because I am very weak. Increase my resolve to do right no matter what the cost. Amen. 

"This is God’s universe, and God does things his way. You may have a better way, but you don’t have a universe." J. Vernon McGee

Lord, fill my heart with so much grace that the devil must flee when he sees me coming. Amen.

"There will be a glorious climax to human history. There is more to Christmas than the birth and death of Christ. There is also the ultimate triumph of God's Kingdom. At his Birth he was laid in a manger. At his death he wore a crown of thorns. But when He comes again, it will be as the Commander-in Chief of the Armies of Heaven. He will take control of this war weary world and bring the permanent peace for which we yearn." Billy Graham

“For it is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child Himself.”  Charles Dickens

"O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray; cast out our sin, and enter in, be born in us today."

"In his name all oppression shall cease." We are not there yet, but we long for that day to come. We long for an end to shootings and bombings. We long to see hatred replaced with love and violence with peace. We long for our tears to be turned to joy. A light shines from Bethlehem that overcomes the darkness. Lord Jesus, you joined us in our sadness and pain. Shine your light in our hearts today and give us holy hope for better days to come. Amen.

"Hear the heart of heaven beating, Jesus saves Jesus saves And the hush of mercy breathing, Jesus saves Jesus saves Hear the host of angels sing, 'Glory to the Newborn King' And the sounding joy repeating, Jesus saves" Travis Cottrell

When God declared war at Bethlehem, he named a baby as his Commanding General. The babe became a lamb who is a lion. Victory is certain. Live undefeated today.

His kingdom will never end. Why would you follow anyone else?

This is a good day to remember the hurting, seek out the lonely, say a kind word, and sing a carol. Christmas is almost here!

"When the right time came, God sent his Son" (Gal 4:4). His time is not our time, but it's always the right time. That's how God works.

Joseph had to give up his own ideas about how things should be done. It's the same with us. We have to let go of our ideas and let God work his plan. Then the miracles happen.

"Child in the manger, Infant of Mary, Outcast and Stranger, Lord of all, Child Who inherits all our transgressions, All our demerits on Him fall."