Friday, February 28, 2014

Big Spring by Bill Crowder (Our Daily Bread)

The water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. —John 4:14 (Our Daily Bread)

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John 4:7-14

New International Version (NIV)

⁷When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” ⁸(His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)
⁹The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.^[a])
¹⁰Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”
¹¹“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? ¹²Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”
¹³Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, ¹⁴but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

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Big Spring

By Bill Crowder

from: http://odb.org/

In Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is a remarkable natural wonder—a pool about 40 feet deep and 300 feet across that Native Americans called “Kitch-iti-kipi,” or “the big cold water.” Today it is known as The Big Spring. It is fed by underground springs that push more than 10,000 gallons of water a minute through the rocks below and up to the surface. Additionally, the water keeps a constant temperature of 45 degrees Fahrenheit, meaning that even in the brutally cold winters of the Upper Peninsula the pool never freezes. Tourists can enjoy viewing the waters of Big Spring during any season of the year.

When Jesus encountered a woman at Jacob’s well, He talked to her about another source of water that would always satisfy. But He did not speak of a fountain, spring, river, or lake. He said, “Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:14).

Far greater than any natural spring is the refreshment we have been offered in Christ Himself. We can be satisfied, for Jesus alone, the Water of Life, can quench our thirst. Praise God, for Jesus is the source that never runs dry.

Father, it seems that I drink far too often from the
waters of the world that cannot satisfy. Forgive me,
and teach me to find in Christ the water than can
quench the thirst of my heart and draw me ever closer to You.

The only real thirst-quencher is Jesus— the living water.

Bible Reading

Consider The Lilies by Julie Ackerman Link (Our Daily Bread)

The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. —Psalm 19:1 (Our Daily Bread)

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Psalm 19:1-6

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 19^[a]

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

¹The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
²Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
³They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them.
⁴Yet their voice^[b] goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
⁵    It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
    like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
⁶It rises at one end of the heavens
    and makes its circuit to the other;
    nothing is deprived of its warmth.

New International Version (NIV)

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Consider The Lilies

By Julie Ackerman Link

from: http://odb.org/

I enjoy nature and giving praise to its Creator, but I sometimes wrongly feel guilty for admiring it too much. Then I remember that Jesus used nature as a teaching tool. To encourage people not to worry, He used simple wildflowers as an example. “Consider the lilies,” He said, and then reminded people that even though flowers do no work at all, God dresses them in splendor. His conclusion? If God clothes something temporary in such glory, He surely will do much more for us (Matt. 6:28-34).

Other portions of Scripture indicate that creation is one of the ways God uses to tell us about Himself:
“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork,” wrote David. “Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge” (Ps. 19:1-2).

“Let the heavens declare His righteousness, for God Himself is Judge,” Asaph said (50:6).

And Paul wrote, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse” (Rom. 1:20).

God so loves us and wants us to know Him that He put evidence of Himself everywhere we look.

Father, Your love is overwhelmingly evident, yet
so often we miss it. Thank You for the unfailing
reminders of Your grace, love, and mercy. Give
us eyes to see Your beauty in Your creation.

In God’s pattern book of nature we can trace many valuable lessons.

Bible Reading

The Power of Love by David C. McCasland (Our Daily Bread)

In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the [atoning sacrifice] for our sins. —1 John 4:10 (Our Daily Bread)

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1 John 4:7-10

New International Version (NIV)

God’s Love and Ours

⁷Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. ⁸Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. ⁹This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. ¹⁰This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

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The Power Of Love

By David C. McCasland

from: http://odb.org/

Books on leadership often appear on best-seller lists. Most of them tell how to become a powerful and effective leader. But Henri Nouwen’s book In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership is written from a different perspective. The former university professor who spent many years serving in a community of developmentally disabled adults says: “The question is not: How many people take you seriously? How much are you going to accomplish? Can you show some results? But: Are you in love with Jesus? . . . In our world of loneliness and despair, there is an enormous need for men and women who know the heart of God, a heart that forgives, that cares, that reaches out and wants to heal.”

John wrote, “In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the [atoning sacrifice] for our sins” (1 John 4:9-10).

“The Christian leader of the future,” writes Nouwen, “is the one who truly knows the heart of God as it has become flesh . . . in Jesus.” In Him, we discover and experience God’s unconditional, unlimited love.

Father, please show the wonder of Your great love
through me to others today so that they might know
they need not walk through life alone. Let my heart
personally experience and display Your care.

God’s love in our heart gives us a heart for others.

Bible Reading

Lie Down by Cindy Hess Kasper (Our Daily Bread)

He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul. —Psalm 23:2-3 (Our Daily Bread)

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Exodus 20:8-11

New International Version (NIV)

⁸“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. ⁹Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. ¹¹For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

New International Version (NIV)

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“Lie Down”

By Cindy Hess Kasper

from: http://odb.org/

Our golden retriever can get so overly excited that he will go into a seizure. To prevent that from happening, we try to calm him. We stroke him, speak to him in a soothing voice, and tell him to lie down. But when he hears “lie down,” he avoids eye contact with us and starts complaining. Finally, with a dramatic sigh of resignation, he gives in and plops to the floor.

Sometimes we too need to be reminded to lie down. In Psalm 23, we learn that our Good Shepherd makes us “lie down in green pastures” and leads us “beside the still waters.” He knows that we need the calm and rest that these provide, even when we don’t realize it ourselves.

Our bodies are designed to have regular rest. God Himself rested on the seventh day after His work of creation (Gen. 2:2-3; Ex. 20:9-11). Jesus knew there was a time to minister to the crowds and a time to rest. He instructed His disciples to “come aside . . . and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). When we rest, we refocus and are refreshed. When we are filling every hour with activity—even with worthwhile things—God often gets our attention by making us “lie down.”

Rest is a gift—a good gift from our Creator who knows exactly what we need. Praise Him that He sometimes makes us “lie down in green pastures.”

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your
care for our well-being in every area
of our lives. Help us to be rested
and refreshed in You.

If we don’t come apart and rest awhile, we may just plain come apart! —Havner

Bible Reading

Empty Fort Strategy by Poh Fang Chia (Our Daily Bread)

Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me? —Jeremiah 32:27 (Our Daily Bread)

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Judges 7:2-8

New International Version (NIV)

²The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, or Israel would boast against me, ‘My own strength has saved me.’ ³Now announce to the army, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.

⁴But the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will thin them out for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
⁵So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the Lord told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues as a dog laps from those who kneel down to drink.” ⁶Three hundred of them drank from cupped hands, lapping like dogs. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.
⁷The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the others go home.” ⁸So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites home but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.
Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley.

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Empty Fort Strategy

By Poh Fang chia

from: http://odb.org/

In the Chinese historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, author Luo Guanzhong describes the “Empty Fort Strategy,” a use of reverse psychology to deceive the enemy. When 150,000 troops from the Wei Kingdom reached Xicheng, which had less than 2,500 soldiers, they found the city gate wide open and the famous military tactician Zhuge Liang calmly playing the zither with two children beside him. The Wei general, baffled by the scene and believing it was an ambush, ordered a full retreat.

The Bible offers another example of a bewildering battle strategy. In Judges 7, God had Gideon use 300 men, horns, jars, and blazing torches against armies that were “as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number” (v.12).

Could Israel defeat such a formidable foe? It was humanly impossible! They had neither the manpower nor the military hardware. But they had one thing that worked for them and that was all they needed. They had God’s promise: “With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory” (v.7 nlt). The result? Victory!

Are you facing a formidable challenge? The Lord has said, “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?” (Jer. 32:27).

With God, all things are possible.

Bible Reading

Limitless Love by Joe Stowell (Our Daily Bread)

Your mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. —Psalm 36:5 (Our Daily Bread)

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Psalm 36

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 36^[a]

For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord.

¹I have a message from God in my heart
concerning the sinfulness of the wicked:^[b]
There is no fear of God
before their eyes.

²In their own eyes they flatter themselves
    too much to detect or hate their sin.
³The words of their mouths are wicked and deceitful;
    they fail to act wisely or do good.
⁴Even on their beds they plot evil;
    they commit themselves to a sinful course
    and do not reject what is wrong.

⁵Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the skies.
⁶Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
    your justice like the great deep.
    You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.
⁷How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
    People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
⁸They feast on the abundance of your house;
    you give them drink from your river of delights.
⁹For with you is the fountain of life;
    in your light we see light.

¹⁰Continue your love to those who know you,
    your righteousness to the upright in heart.
¹¹May the foot of the proud not come against me,
    nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
¹²See how the evildoers lie fallen—
    thrown down, not able to rise!

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Limitless Love

By Joe Stowell

from: http://odb.org/

Recently, a friend sent me the history of a hymn that I often heard in church when I was a boy:
Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole
Though stretched from sky to sky.

These words are part of an ancient Jewish poem and were once found on the wall of a patient’s room in an insane asylum.

Also, Frederick M. Lehman was so moved by the poem that he desired to expand on it. In 1917, while seated on a lemon box during his lunch break from his job as a laborer, he added the words of the first two stanzas and the chorus, completing the song “The Love of God.”

The psalmist describes the comforting assurance of God’s love in Psalm 36: “Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens” (v.5 esv). Regardless of the circumstances of life—whether in a moment of sanity in a mind otherwise muddled with confusion or during a dark time of trial—God’s love is a beacon of hope, our ever-present, inexhaustible source of strength and confidence.

You are loved with everlasting love.

Bible Reading

Bolt On Blake by C.P. Hia (Our Daily Bread)

Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works. —Hebrews 10:24 (Our Daily Bread)

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Hebrews 10:19-25

New International Version (NIV)

A Call to Persevere in Faith

¹⁹Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, ²¹and since we have a great priest over the house of God, ²²let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. ²³Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. ²⁴And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, ²⁵not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

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Bolt On Blake

By C. P. Hia

from: http://odb.org/

Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake of Jamaica made history when they finished first and second respectively in both the men’s 100-meter and 200-meter race in the 2012 London Olympics. Despite their rivalry on the track, Bolt paid tribute to Blake as a training partner: “Over the years, Yohan has made me a better athlete. He really pushed me and kept me on my toes.” It’s clear that the two spurred each other on to greatness on the track.

As believers in Christ, we have the privilege and responsibility of encouraging one another in our faith. The writer of Hebrews said, “Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works” (Heb. 10:24).

The church is not just an institution or a mere social club. It is where we, who have been brought near to God and washed from sin, can help one another grow in Christlikeness. The purpose of meeting together as a corporate body is to exhort and encourage one another (vv.19-25).

No believer can function alone. To live as our Lord Jesus wants us to, we need the community of believers. As you meet with other believers, think of who you can come alongside and encourage by your words and actions to be more like the Christ we love and serve.

Before our Father’s throne
We pour our ardent prayers;
Our fears, our hopes, our aims are one,
Our comforts and our cares. —Fawcett

A healthy church is the best witness to a hurting world.

Bible Reading

The Pointer

Friday, February 28, 2014

Big Spring by Bill Crowder (Our Daily Bread)

John 4:7-14

Big Spring

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Consider The Lilies by Julie Ackerman Link (Our Daily Bread)

Psalm 19:1-6

Psalm 19^[a]

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

Consider The Lilies

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

The Power of Love by David C. McCasland (Our Daily Bread)

1 John 4:7-10

God’s Love and Ours

The Power Of Love

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Lie Down by Cindy Hess Kasper (Our Daily Bread)

Exodus 20:8-11

“Lie Down”

Monday, February 24, 2014

Empty Fort Strategy by Poh Fang Chia (Our Daily Bread)

Judges 7:2-8

Empty Fort Strategy

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Limitless Love by Joe Stowell (Our Daily Bread)

Psalm 36

Psalm 36^[a]

For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord.

Limitless Love

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Bolt On Blake by C.P. Hia (Our Daily Bread)

Hebrews 10:19-25

A Call to Persevere in Faith

Bolt On Blake

Friday, February 28, 2014

John 4:7-14

Big Spring

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Psalm 19:1-6

Psalm 19[a]

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

Consider The Lilies

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

1 John 4:7-10

God’s Love and Ours

The Power Of Love

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Exodus 20:8-11

“Lie Down”

Monday, February 24, 2014

Judges 7:2-8

Empty Fort Strategy

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Psalm 36

Psalm 36[a]

For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord.

Limitless Love

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Hebrews 10:19-25

A Call to Persevere in Faith

Bolt On Blake

Psalm 19^[a]

Psalm 36^[a]