Daily Digest #168

Through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. —Lamentations 3:22

For me, there is nothing better to remedy pain or sorrow than having a different perspective. Not to the point of denying reality, but simply acknowledging the blessing that comes along with a bad situation. When one believes that there is a reason for everything, he/she is bound to see a bigger picture, instead of remaining confined to an idea of how things should or should not be. And I believe this is where God shows Himself, through the turn of events, where He unravels everything in all His glory.

For this, let us pray. May we not be disheartened by our misfortunes, but rather, find comfort and strength in Him. May we believe that He is always working out things for the best. May we learn to submit ourselves completely to God. May we never forget to count our blessings. May we grow a humble servant's heart. Pray always.

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“Come to Me”
Thursday, October 23, 2008
“Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest.” --Matthew 11:28

Come to me…The invitation is to come to him. Why him?

He offers the invitation as a penniless rabbi in an oppressed nation. He has no political office, no connections with the authorities in Rome. He hasn’t written a best-seller or earned a diploma.

Yet, he dares to look into the leathery faces of farmers and tired faces of housewives and offer rest. He looks into the disillusioned eyes of a preacher or two from Jerusalem. He gazes into the cynical stare of a banker and the hungry eyes of a bartender and makes this paradoxical promise: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matt. 11:29).

The people came. They came out of the cul-de-sacs and office complexes of their day. They brought him the burdens of their existence, and he gave them not religion, not doctrine, not systems, but rest.

Faith Is Active

2008/10/22

When will you ever learn that “believing” is useless without doing what God wants you to? Faith that does not result in good deeds is not real faith. James 2:20 (LB)

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Is faith simply a frame of mind? Some see it that way … a passive attribute of a Christian waiting to see what God has in store for you: a promotion, cancer, depression, betrayal, blessing, wealth, or injustice. They might say, “I’ll just wait to see what God is going to do for me and go with the flow.” That’s crazy talk.

Faith is active. It’s not passive. It’s a commitment. Look at your lifestyle and see what kinds of actions follow as a result of it. If you’ve got the real stuff, faith can be demonstrated.

When you were baptized you made a statement to God and the people around you. You said, “I’m in!” But it doesn’t stop at baptism – not by a long shot! What else do you do? You start following the pattern of Jesus. Faith is proven by how we live. Don’t misinterpret this. What you do – your walking around, everyday life – doesn’t get you into heaven. It doesn’t make you saved. It doesn’t mean you’re a Christian; it shows you are a Christian.

The next steps:

· Celebrate the lavish gift of grace. You were saved because Jesus is crazy about you and wants you to be with him in heaven. Revel in it!

· Show your faith. Wedding rings don’t make you married, but they say yes in a visible way. In the same way, baptism isn’t the thing that will get you into heaven but it’s an act of obedience. (Jesus commanded us to baptize and be baptized.)

· Share your faith with the people around you. If you are excited about what God has done in your life, then why not share it? There are lots of ways to do that. Get plugged into serving God. There are literally millions of possibilities. Point people to Jesus and love them like Jesus did. It’ll be something you will relish for eternity.