Thought for the day...

November 20, 2019
Verse of the Day
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;
James 1:13 NIV

 

Leaders call on God’s promises
By Pastor Mark Jeske
When you want to get somebody to do something for you, there are various tried-and-true strategies. You can recite all the things you’ve done lately for the person to justify your request. You can try flattery. You can nag and pester, hoping he or she will cave just to get rid of you. You can try to buy people’s goodwill, offering to trade something you’ve got that they might want. You can make promises of what you will do for them in the future.

But don’t try any of those things when you pray to the Lord, especially when you are acting as a leader of a Christian group. When your prayers are in alignment with God’s mission, you don’t need flattery, nagging, or self-justification. You can simply call on the promises that God has already made. Listen to Nehemiah: “They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great strength and your mighty hand” (Nehemiah 1:10).

Through your faith in Christ, God has declared himself to be your Father, and he accepts the obligations that come with Fatherhood. Call on them without fear or hesitation! He is waiting to be asked. He promises a listening ear, daily bread, angelic protection, the Spirit’s gifts, steady guidance, restoration when you are knocked down, and the free and full forgiveness of all your sins.

When he does what you ask, don’t forget to say thank you.

 

November 21, 2019
Verse of the Day
If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God.
1 John 4:15 NIV

 

November 22, 2019
Verse of the Day
Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.
3 John 1:2 NIV

 

Leaders dream big
By Pastor Mark Jeske
Have you ever seen (or used) the Twitter acronym GBGH? It’s used when someone wants to challenge another to up the game. It stands for “Go Big or Go Home.”

Good leaders dream big. When you are tackling a spiritual mission or project, the size and level of difficulty show what you think of your God. Nehemiah could not be accused of a small-time vision. In fact, his project drew the withering abuse of the governor of the neighboring province of Samaria: “When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews, and in the presence of his associates and the army of Samaria, he said, ‘What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble—burned as they are?’” (Nehemiah 4:1,2).

Sanballat preferred the status quo—Jerusalem weak and vulnerable. Nehemiah believed that the little band of Jews in Jerusalem could indeed rebuild its walls if they all worked together, if they all brought maximum effort, and if they all devoted their hearts to the Lord.

What are you and your congregation daring for the Great Commission? Jesus was apparently quite serious with his instructions to proclaim the gospel to all the world. Are you pushing yourself with goals worthy of that mighty mission? We’re running out of time.

GBGH

 

Leaders exhibit courage
By Pastor Mark Jeske
Good leaders assess risks. And not just the risks to their organizations’ reputation and financial health, but the personal risks that come with being out in front.

Nehemiah was informed by a man named Shemaiah that the wall-building project had aroused such hostility that there were death threats against him. Shemaiah counseled him to run to the temple and hide there, begging for mercy from the very altar steps. Nehemiah refused to wilt. “I said, ‘Should a man like me run away? Or should someone like me go into the temple to save his life? I will not go!’” (Nehemiah 6:11). It wasn’t that he was being reckless, carelessly throwing his life away. It’s that he refused to be intimidated. He kept praying and kept working.

Nehemiah had his workers keep their swords with them as they troweled mortar. He also organized armed patrols to watch for saboteurs and raiders. Because of his courage, the little band of Jews got their project done in an astonishing 52 days. What a boost for the morale of the city! What an ongoing source of pride as each family gazed on its stretch of completed wall. Even more—what a faith recharger! God had come through for them and rewarded their courage: “When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God” (Nehemiah 6:16)

 

November 23, 2019
Verse of the Day
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
Matthew 6:19 NIV

 

Is There Wi-Fi?
A few years ago, I brought a group of young people on a mission trip. As we neared our departure date, the most frequently asked question was, “Is there Wi-Fi?” So just imagine the wails and groans one night when the Wi-Fi was down! Many of us become anxious when we’re separated from our smartphones. And when we have our iPhones or Androids in our hands, we can be fixated on our screens.

Like all good things common to man, Wi-Fi and all that it allows us to access can become either a distraction or a blessing. It depends on what we do with it. In Proverbs we read, “A wise person is hungry for knowledge, while the fool feeds on trash” (15:14). In our daily food choices, a healthy diet takes discipline and may not be as sweet or as enticing as junk food. So it’s also important that we take care in what we feed on as we browse the web.

What might that look like? It can be as simple as reviewing who you follow on Instagram. Do the things they post bring “joy to those with no sense” or encourage sensible living? (v.21). Do your Facebook posts or Snapchat messages reflect “the heart of the godly [who think] carefully before speaking” or the “mouth of the wicked [that] overflows with evil words”? (v.28).

The words of Proverbs 15:14 make it plain: We are what we eat . . . and what we do and view online. Feed on wisdom, and you’re more likely to become wise. Feed on trash, and you’re headed for trouble.

As we yield to the work of the Holy Spirit, we can fill our minds and mobile device screens with things that are “true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable” (Philippians 4:8). By God’s wisdom, we can make good choices online and in all of life. —Poh Fang Chia

MORE: Read 1 Corinthians 10:23 and 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 and consider the wise counsel they provide for what we do and say online.

NEXT: Do your social media habits reveal a person who hungers for knowledge or feeds on trash? What are some ways to use social media wisely—to honor God?

 

Peace is a gift of God
By Pastor Mark Jeske
It is a pleasant fantasy of well-meaning people to want to believe that human nature deep down inside is good and kind, that conflict and violence are aberrations, and that we are evolving into a kinder and gentler human race. In fact we are corrupt from birth, selfish, me-oriented, and prone to conflict. Already in Genesis chapter 6, God sadly observed that the mind of man was only evil continually.

This side of heaven, warfare is the natural state. It’s the law of the jungle, but it’s also the law of the desert, prairie, and forest. Humanity isn’t growing more peaceful—the last century, the 20th, was the bloodiest in history. Thus when people experience a stretch of peacetime, it is time to lift up their eyes to heaven to show some gratitude.

King David knew nothing but conflict for most of his reign. He had to battle not only the warlike nations that surrounded Israel but also had to run for his life from his friend and mentor Saul and even from his own son Absalom. Finally at the end of his life, there was a stretch of peace, and he wanted the crown prince, Solomon, to appreciate where it came from: “He said to them, ‘Is not the LORD your God with you? And has he not granted you rest on every side?’” (1 Chronicles 22:18).

I hope you never get tired of praying for peace. I hope you never get tired of saying thank you for peace.

 

November 24, 2019
Verse of the Day
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.
1 John 3:16 NIV

 

The Greatest Love Story
In 2013, John and Ann Betar became the oldest known American married couple as they celebrated their 81st wedding anniversary. Their advice on staying happily married includes the following: “Don’t hold a grudge. Forgive each other. Live accordingly,” John advises. And Ann adds, “It is unconditional love and understanding. We have had that. We consider it a blessing.”

The longing in any marriage is in knowing that the affection of your spouse is directed solely toward you. The Song of Songs captures this active commitment with two lovers delighting in and yearning for each other (1:15-16, 3:1-3). They love and are loved in return (2:16, 7:10) and are satisfied and content in each other’s company (2:16, 4:9-11, 7:10). Surely this can be one of life’s greatest joys.

The earthly love between husband and wife, however, is an echo of the passionate love and fervent pursuit of Jesus for those who believe in Him—His bride. The powerful and deceptive lure of sin forced a chasm between God and man, turning our affections away from our first love and focusing our attention on the temporary things of this world—resulting in emptiness, death, and destruction (Isaiah 59:2; Romans 3:23).

But herein lies the greatest love story: “This is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). And, “God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8).

While it’s beautiful to see the love a man and woman can share for decades, it pales compared to the amazing love God extends to us for eternity. That’s the greatest love story! —Ruth O’Reilly-Smith

MORE: Read Romans 5:1-2 and consider how the broken relationship between God and us has been restored through Jesus.

NEXT: What marks a truly loving and beautiful marriage? How is God’s love for us even more beautiful?

 

November 25, 2019
Verse of the Day
Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.
Proverbs 13:20 NIV

 

November 26, 2019
Verse of the Day
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV

 

November 27, 2019
Verse of the Day
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
Psalms 100:4 NIV