Daily Devotions and More for Thursday, October 10, 2019
MerkV814
Thursday, October 10, 2019
* The bravest people are the ones who don’t mind looking like cowards. -- T.H. White
* What a man is contributes much more to his happiness than what he has, or how he is regarded by others. -- Arthur Schopenhauer
* Until one is committed, there is always hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one element of truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans - that moment one commits oneself, then providence moves all. -- Johann von Goethe (1749-1832) German Poet and Dramatist
* To dream of the person you would like to be is to waste the person you are.
* Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of. -- Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American Statesman and Scientist
* The greatest wonder of all is to realize that the God who created all things can be known by each of us in a personal way. We can know Him, not just as God the Creator, but as our Father and our friend. -- Roy Lessin
Sacrifice
Scripture Reading — Genesis 22:1-19
Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. — John 15:13
Sacrifice has almost disappeared from people’s understanding in our Western culture today. Some glimpses of it can be found in war stories, as when a soldier puts himself in harm’s way to save the lives of others.
In the ancient world, it was common in many religions to sacrifice an animal for the sake of a person, and even human sacrifice was widespread. We shudder to think of it. Archaeologists have found that young men were buried alive in Irish peat bogs as an offering to the people’s gods. And young maidens, in ceremonial dress, were led high into the Andes in South America and left to starve and freeze as an offering to the gods of the mountains.
The worship of God was different. But one day God told Abraham to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. This was a test to see if Abraham really trusted God. Along the way Abraham told Isaac, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering.” And when the time for sacrifice came, God provided a ram in place of Isaac.
This shocking story points to the ultimate sacrifice God was planning for the future, when he would send his only Son, Jesus, to be born as a descendant of Abraham and to give up his own perfect life to atone for human sin. Jesus, the Lamb of God, laid down his life for us all, showing how deeply God loves us, so that we can have life with God forever.
Prayer: Lord, in this selfish world, where we are often tempted to take advantage of others, we remember Jesus’ selfless sacrifice. Thank you for such amazing love! Amen.
George Young
email: to...@thisistoday.net
TODAY is copyright © 2017, the BTGH
Jenna's Story
From
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teens Talk Middle School
By Kelsey Johnson
A friend hears the song in my heart and sings it to me when my memory fails. -- Anonymous
As a teenager, nothing really matters to you except your plans for the weekend, your latest crush, or what you're wearing to school tomorrow. That's how I was until the summer I met someone I will remember forever.
My family goes to Orlando every July for a weeklong vacation. We were nearing the end of our vacation when I saw some kids playing tag in the pool. I wasn't doing anything, so I asked if I could play tag with them. The boy I asked, Brandon, said okay. (Keep reading)
Reprinted by permission of Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing, LLC. In order to protect the rights of the copyright holder, no portion of this publication may be reproduced without prior written consent. All rights reserved.
Strength in Joy
Read: Nehemiah 8:1-12
This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength! (Nehemiah 8:10).
On a trip to England, Horatio G. Spafford’s four daughters lost their lives when their ship was struck by another vessel, leaving their mother as one of the few survivors. As Spafford later sailed to meet his wife, he penned the hymn “It Is Well with My Soul.” More than a century later, worship leader Darlene Zschech wrote “Shout to the Lord” during a family crisis. In moments of deep pain, both Spafford and Zschech drew strength from the joy of knowing God was present and for them.
The Jewish people who returned to Judah after exile in Babylon also knew times of great struggle. With Nehemiah’s help, they’d managed to rebuild Jerusalem’s wall, “but the population was small, and none of the houses had been rebuilt” (Nehemiah 7:4). As they tried to plan for their future, “all the people assembled with a unified purpose [and] asked Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses. [So Ezra] read aloud to everyone who could understand. All the people listened closely to the Book of the Law” (Nehemiah 8:1-3).
While the people listened and had the words explained by the priests, they began to weep (Nehemiah 8:9), likely with a fresh conviction of how they had strayed from God’s commands. In that moment, Nehemiah called out, “Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). “So the people went away . . . to celebrate with great joy because they had heard God’s words and understood them” (Nehemiah 8:12).
Jerusalem was still in ruins, but the revelation of God’s Word brought great joy. And so the people received strength anew to continue serving God and to keep on rebuilding. No matter our situation, may we also draw strength from the joy of knowing and abiding in our Savior.
By Remi Oyedele
Read James 1:2-4 and consider James’ perspective on joy in trials.
What’s your definition of joy? Does it match up with the Bible’s definition? How can you experience deep, abiding joy in Jesus?
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Today’s Video: 'Always Been You' - Sarah Reeves
'I can feel it in the wind
Like a breeze against my skin
Taking me to oceans deep
It kept pushing me, pushing me
I didn't recognize it
There's no way I could fight it
You opened up my eyes and, oh-ooh
I can see it now
It's always been You’
Even when we may feel distant or far from the Lord, remember that He always remains by our side. God is with us each and every step of the way and that’s such an incredible feeling. We all go through dark times in our lives where our relationship with the Lord may be tested, but hold fast in the truth that He will always see us through and be the light at the end of the tunnel. You are sure to be reminded of this as you listen to the incredible lyrics of ‘Always Been You’ from Sarah Reeves.
Sarah always pours her heart and soul into every worship song and this one is no different. You can truly feel her passion for the Lord and she knows just the right words to give praise and thanks to His name. God has given us so many blessings in this life and He continues to shine His light down on us.
I just love that we can use this beautiful tune to spread His amazing message of hope to others. My heart truly needed to hear this today and I’m so glad that Sarah is leading us in such beautiful worship. Who else is singing along right now?
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Today’s Verse: Acts 26:28-29 ... 28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?” 29 Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”
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Proverb of the Day: Proverbs 11:18 ... 18 A wicked person earns deceptive wages, but the one who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward.
Our Daily Journey with God
Wings over the Mountains of Life
A MountainWings Moment
Focus On What's In Front Of You Today
Direct link: www.CoachB.tv/0401
Getting Over It
"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.
verse of the day
So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! -- 2 Corinthians 5:17
voice of the day
Rest in your God-breathed worth. Stop holding your breath, hiding your gifts, ducking your head, dulling your roar, distracting your soul, stilling your hands, quieting your voice, and satiating your hunger with the lesser things of this world. -- Sarah Bessey
prayer of the day
Lord God, cleanse our spirits of anxiety, worry, and insecurity. Embolden us to live as you command. For in you, we are made new. Amen.
Great Possibilities
You will see what you want to see. So what do you want to see?
You will experience what you expect to experience. So what exactly are your expectations?
Reality is the way it is. Yet the reality of your life depends on the way you filter and interpret and respond to what is.
When you sincerely expect life to be rich, beautiful and fulfilling, you will absolutely find a way to live it as such. When you truly seek to see and experience life at its best, that’s what you’ll end up doing.
No, you can’t magically make things appear just by expecting them to do so. What you can do, however, is open yourself to the great possibilities and realities that most certainly are already here.
Life’s great possibilities are here now for you to fulfill. Expect them, open yourself to them, see them and live them fully.
Copyright Ralph S. Marston, Jr. Used by permission. From The Daily Motivator® at www.dailymotivator.com
EYES
Daddy and I have spent a king’s ransom through the years on flashlights ...
Maybe it’s a guy thing, but between the two of us, we have purchased just about every kind of light-emitting device the market has produced—pocket-sized, incandescent, LED, Xenon, Krypton, Halogen, fluorescent, phosphorescent, radiant, manual (crank or shake) powered, multi-mode, tactical, penlight, floodlight, key-ring, glove compartment, camping lantern, rechargeable, and headlamp.
Only Batman himself has access to more illumination.
Our wives have never been able to conceptualize why men need a specialized flashlight for every occasion.
We need one to help us get into the deer woods early in the morning. We need one for when we’re rummaging around in the attic. We need one for the car. We need one for when the power goes out. We need one for night fishing expeditions. And of course, we need one for when another flashlight doesn’t work. Guys need flashlights.
Nong Yousui doesn’t need our vast array of flashlights though. He’s quite the enigma. According to news reports, the youngster from Dahua, China has “cat eyes.” He can see in extremely low-light conditions.
Reporters recently took the bright blue-eyed youth (unusual for his ethnicity) into a dark room. They then gave him a questionnaire. To their dismay, Nong was not only able to read in the shroud of the quarters, but he was also able to correctly fill out the fill-in-the-blank form.
Today, he’s something of a world celebrity. Nong can see where other folks can’t. He’s “cat eyes.”
Daddy and I experience a certain amount of eye-envy. We could have saved a small fortune over time if we had been blessed with Nong’s night-vision acuity.
It occurs to me that there is yet another individual who can see where normal folks can’t—the Lord. His eyes can penetrate even the darkest caverns of the soul.
Consider but a few excerpts from Scripture:
“For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth…” (2 Chronicles 16:9).
“For the eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good” (Proverbs 15:3).
“Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy” (Psalm 33:18).
“For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous…” (1 Peter 3:12a).
Yes, the Lord sees where we can’t. He sees not only what we do, but why we engage in a particular act. He sees beyond the overt and down into the heart (cf. 1 Samuel 16:7; Matthew 12:25; Luke 6:8; John 2:25). He sees motive; He sees intent (cf. 1 Corinthians 4:5).
We need to remember this important truth.
Brethren who struggle with integrity need to remember that Jesus can see what happens in secret (Job 11:11). His sight can pierce the thickest wall.
“And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13).
Then too, brethren who are faithful need to recall the Lord’s vision (cf. Genesis 5:7-8). When they are misunderstood, and their words or actions are taken out of context, Jesus sees what they’re really trying to say and do (cf. Psalm 139:1-6).
The Lord doesn’t judge based upon appearance. He looks beyond the external façade and reads the heart. Nothing escapes His gaze.
“The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men” (Job 34:21; cf. Proverbs 5:21).
He’s the REAL “cat eyes.”
By the way, has anybody seen an extra flashlight? I’m missing one ...
As seen in KneEmail
I'M GOING THERE
© Jac Judy A. Campbell
Published: August 2016
I'm going where the rainbows glow
And the clouds will never cry.
The sun will sit upon the Earth
To warm the heavens with its shine.
Where the sweetest scent of the roses
Will be carried with the breeze
To mingle with the garden fruits.
The butterflies and the bees,
The birds will sing together,
And the nights will all be day.
The stars will forever twinkle
And the flowers will never fade.
So this is where you will find me
When my time on Earth is done.
I'll go to be in this great heaven
With all of God's chosen ones.
For Our Family
Lord Jesus, we would thank you that you have blessed our home with the gift of young life, for we know that through our children you will remind us of God.
We do resolve, by your help, to honor you in all our relationships – in our home, so that it may be your temple; in our hearts, where you do love to swell; in our place of business, that it may become an adventure in living our faith.
And now, Lord, we place every member of our family in your care and keeping. We think of ____________ and __________________ and _____________________. Bless them every one. Be with us this day – in our work and in our play. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
-- Peter Marshall
Ignore the Crowd: Head to Your Gate
Read: Matthew 7:13-14
Enter by the narrow gate. (v. 13)
If everyone jumped off a bridge, would you? Some say, “No.” Others say, “It depends.” Unless you encounter extreme circumstances, you probably would not jump off. But all of us have probably agreed to be a part of something without knowing all the details or without weighing the consequences. We didn’t want to be unpopular or stand out like a sore thumb. So we did what everyone else was doing. In his book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, Robert Cialdini calls this follow-the-crowd phenomenon “social proof.” This consensus-seeking principle involves looking to others first before deciding what to do.
When it comes to where we will spend eternity, we may want to think twice about following the crowd. Jesus explains that the crowd is headed to a wide gate, and the road to that gate is easy. It’s smooth and free of debris, so it’s no wonder it’s a popular road. The road to the narrow gate is rough and rocky with only a few traveling on it. When the roads end and both gates swing open, the crowd will be in a place of destruction and the few will find life.
Authentic biblical Christianity is not always popular. To the crowd, it’s a religion of restrictions. To Christians, it’s a faith built on a relationship with Jesus. And those of us who follow him will not be popular with the crowd.
Prayer: Lord, please remind us that the rough road to the narrow gate leads to an abundant life with you.
—Ericka Loynes; Words of Hope
Here’s to Your Health
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Eat more to weigh less!
If you want to lose weight permanently, eating several small meals throughout the day to help you with this. Try to eat a small meal consisting of protein, fat, and complex carbohydrate. An example would be; for breakfast 1 hardboiled egg, and an orange, at 10am have a can of tuna on toast, for lunch a Chicken breast and any vegetable, at 2pm have a protein shake, for dinner a chicken breast and vegetable, in the evening have some celery and peanut butter. You get the idea. Avoid sugar, bread, pasta, salt, but not fat.
Today’s Recipe …
BABY BACK RIBS WITH BROWN SUGAR SPICE DRY RUB
Bake/Cook time: 2:10 to 2:40
Yield :6 - 8 servings
Pork Dry Rub
2 Tbsp Dixie Crystals Dark Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp paprika
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
Ribs
2 slabs (about 2 1/2 lbs. each) baby back ribs
1 bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce
Preheat oven to 325F.
Line a shallow baking pan with heavy duty foil.
Combine sugar, paprika, chili powder, salt, cinnamon, black pepper and cayenne pepper.
Sprinkle both sides of ribs with dry rub. Place on baking pan. Bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until ribs are fork tender. Brush with barbecue sauce; continue heating for 20 minutes.
Grilling: Preheat grill. Grill ribs over low setting for 20 minutes. Brush with barbecue sauce during last 10 minutes.
What’s on the Web?
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iMom Espresso Minute … Why the Best Parents are Farmer Parents {5 Traits Worth Embracing}
Farmer parents exist in an entirely different space from
helicopter parents. They’re not bare minimum parents or hands-off parents,
either. Farmer parents are the best parents. They are nurturing, patient, and
practical. They allow their children to grow at their own pace because they
understand that growth cannot be forced or hurried.
Farmer parenting is not exclusive to farmers. But their way
of life has traits worth embracing. Here are five.
Pillow Talk: Ask your kids,
“What goals do you have for your life?”
Word of the Day: Curmudgeon
kər-ˈmə-jən
Part of speech: noun
Origin: Unknown, 16th century
1 A cranky and unpleasant figure, usually an old man
2 A miserly person unwilling to share
Examples of Curmudgeon in a sentence
"The curmudgeon next door banged on his wall anytime he heard my footsteps."
"I don't want to be a curmudgeon, but would pick up after your dog?"
THE ROBOCALL KING MEETS THE FCC
He scammed millions with illegal robocalls. That’s when the FCC and TripAdvisor® joined forces to take him down.
Want to Increase Your Fitness? Walk This Way
Healthy Eating … Are Meat, Sugar and other ‘Dietary Villians’ Really So Bad?
5 Ways to Change the Way You See Yourself
Become the person you were born to be.
English as a Second Language … English as a Second Language
What to Say When You Need to Be Kind of Vague
Sometimes, you need to be a little vague, like when you're providing imprecise information. For example: "There are about 600 people working in this company."
How to Teach Your Teens to Put on the Full Armor of God
Dolores Smyth
The full armor of God is made up of spiritual “reinforcements” we can use to stand our ground and resist temptations to sin. We can encourage our teens to “suit up” for battle against peer pressure by teaching them about the purpose behind each piece of God’s armor.
The MountainWings Power Minute
60 Seconds of Living Power
Love That Never Fades Or
Fails
http://www.powerminute.com/p/pm2019-08-12.mp3
Did you miss any of these recent podcasts?
• Embracing Change and Getting Out of Your Rut — Two Inspirational Tales
• Saying Yes to New Connections — Great Ideas for Making New Friends
• FRIEND FRIDAY – Randy Collins Is in His Forties But Plays Lacrosse for USC — His Story
Compiled by Marilyn L. Van Driesen
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