Would you consider being a part of our STAND IN THE GAP campaign for 2014?  Our goal is 1,000 people that will partner with us for January, February, and March, which are some of our toughest financial months. Each STAND IN THE GAP partner will make one $25 gift each month for 3 months in addition to their normal giving.  This will bring in $75,000 towards our first quarter expenses.  This is perfect for partners that already give or for people that would like to give but cannot make a long term commitment.  Sign up today at http://www.americaskeswick.org/706332.ihtml . Thank you in advance for your partnership.  Come STAND IN THE GAP WITH US.

Will You Be Salt and Light Today?

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8: 12 NIV)

Is your testimony for Jesus in your circle of influence sprinkling salt & radiating light? In Matthew 5: 13, we read: “You are the salt of the earth…” And in vs. 14, “You are the light of the world… Then in vs. 16 … let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (NIV).

What does it mean to be the salt of the earth? To influence others for God, to be an example for God, and to share the love of God.

If you fill a pitcher with water and put an egg in it, the egg will settle in the bottom of the pitcher. Now remove the egg and add a lot of kosher salt to the same water in the pitcher. Place the egg in the water seasoned with salt. The egg will now float. Is that the way your life and my life are on a daily basis when it comes to being salt for Jesus? Do we come to the top? Is our testimony alive for Christ? Do we stand out for Him? Our love for Jesus is the salt that will cause us to rise to the top for Him.

Do you remember the chorus, “This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine”? How brightly do our lights shine in our circle of influence? Are there bushels that we hide our light under so that no one really knows that we have Jesus in our hearts and lives? In John 12: 36, we read, “Put your trust in the light while you have it so that you may become sons of light…” (NIV). In Ephesians 5: 8 … but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light… In verse 11, our instructions are, Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness , but rather expose them.

We must be the children of light as Jesus is the Light of the world because we are His followers, God’s children. Our light (witness) must continue to glow for all to see that we have become children of God by trusting in Jesus’ bloodshed on the cross for our redemption.

Have you lost your saltiness and glow for God? Ask Him to forgive you and restore the salt and light. Victory in Jesus will once again replace defeat. Chaplain Stan Marsh is on the full-time addiction recovery team at America’s Keswick

Keswick, America’s  (2012-12-13). Real Victory for Real Life Volume 2 (Kindle Locations 11436-11463).  . Kindle Edition.

Daily Bible Reading: Joshua 7-9; Luke 15:11-32

Quote of the day: With dreadful reciprocity of influence, the less one trusts, the more he disobeys; the more he disobeys, the less he trusts. Alexander MacLaren

Verse to Memorize: “Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or the left; turn away your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:26-27 ESV

 

It Began With Water

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” Genesis 1:1-2 (ESV)

For a great many of us the first two verses of the Bible are absolute. They are a satisfying and useful account of the origin of the earth and the heavens. When we look at Romans 1:20, “For His invisible attributes, namely, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made” we understand the power of a great Creator better than most learned and scholarly men which, by the way, are without excuse. They make me wonder if they can envision the awesomeness of YHVH hovering over the face of deep waters, let alone the deep spiritual meaning of water when it is discussed in Kingdom terms.

Let’s look at 2Peter 3:5-6…“For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished.” It wasn’t unusual for New Testament writers (or Jesus for that matter) to use Old Testament history to make a point. Peter goes way back to Genesis to tell his readers that the false teachers of his day are forgetting the beginning…deliberately. I like how John MacArthur puts it. He wrote, “As a result of their self-induced blindness, the false teachers discounted two monumental events in history…”

The first one that was missed then and still is now is the earth was divinely formed out of the water. It’s the third day and God say’s “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” I guess that sounds too absolute for people and in Peter’s times using the phrase “existed long ago” didn’t mean the billions of years we’ve tacked on to it. It might have been then, like it is today, that if we make the absolutes of God sound too far-fetched to be then we can make being held accountable to Him just as far-fetched. And for an example of that we can reference Genesis 3:1b, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”

The second one that was missed then and has some trying to re-write the event is The Flood. Now in Peter’s time water was something Rome had a major say in after all they built aqueducts to provide water. But as time has gone by, the story has eroded (just as water does to land) and now some think they have a better idea of “A” flood story that is shared by many cultures. It’s not “THE” flood story but some think it was isolated to one part of the world and it was caused by a giant ice cube left over from one of the many “Ice Ages” we’ve been through. Uh…yeah.

For me Jesus is clear when He says all whoever believes in Him shall never thirst. He knew it all begins with water. It is a fact that we need it to live in the physical sense so why deny that we need it in our spiritual sense as well? Even in the sense of refining gold to remove dross, the idea is to have a pure fluid is there. How many of us want to drink dirty water? In reality no-one does and even science has proved that dirty water does us no good, so why deny the absolutes that make up the Christian life? Sadly for some of us it is because we’ve turned them into burdens that are heavy but if we are drinking the water that Jesus provides, we could understand that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. So drink up and be refreshed, Amen?

Daily Bible Reading: Joshua 4-6; Luke 15:1-10

Quote of the day: “The false teachers of Peter’s time refused to view world history properly. Due to their self-centered hedonism, they provide a classic example of willful ignorance. Like today’s revisionist historians, the false teachers deliberately denied both the creation story and the Flood—the two catastrophic events that easily disprove their uniformitarian views.”—John MacArthur

Verse to Memorize: “Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or the left; turn away your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:26-27 ESV

 

Would you consider being a part of our STAND IN THE GAP campaign for 2014?  Our goal is 1,000 people that will partner with us for January, February, and March, which are some of our toughest financial months. Each STAND IN THE GAP partner will make one $25 gift each month for 3 months in addition to their normal giving.  This will bring in $75,000 towards our first quarter expenses.  This is perfect for partners that already give or for people that would like to give but cannot make a long term commitment.  Sign up today at http://www.americaskeswick.org/706332.ihtml . Thank you in advance for your partnership.  Come STAND IN THE GAP WITH US.

The Look

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go, I will guide you with My eye.”Psalm 32:8

Have you ever gotten “The Look”? You know, that moment when the person you’re with has this “don’t you dare” expression on their face.

In this psalm, David is suggesting that there is an opportunity for us to have such a close relationship with God that we could imagine what the look on His face will be if we take that next step.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could read God’s word as if He was sitting right there next to us and we could get the full expression of importance when it comes to certain scriptures.

I believe that’s the difference between meditating and reading. I am all for reading plans of going through the Bible in a year, but I truly believe that it’s those time when we “digest” and “contemplate” His word so that we are nourished and able to grasp the heart of God.

There was a time when my dog was a puppy that he wouldn’t leave my side. It wasn’t until a near fatal occurrence with the busy road that I realized he had gotten to the point of chasing those things that dogs chase and forget about it. For now on it’s “The leash”.

The psalm goes on to say in verse 9

“Do not be like the horse or like the mule, (or dog), which have no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you.”

The Psalm begins with the writer talking about being in a place that is troublesome and is where we end up when we are not under the watchful eye of God.

So let’s make sure that we are so in tune to the God of the universe that we could be able to see “The Look” on His face before we take the next step. – Rob Russomano is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and serves full-time at America’ Keswick

Daily Bible Reading: Joshua 1-3; Luke 14:25-35

Quote of the day: To advance further along the spiritual road, we must surrender control, become receptive and have the humility to be led. Albert Haase

Verse to Memorize: “Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or the left; turn away your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:26-27 ESV

 

Would you consider being a part of our STAND IN THE GAP campaign for 2014?  Our goal is 1,000 people that will partner with us for January, February, and March, which are some of our toughest financial months. Each STAND IN THE GAP partner will make one $25 gift each month for 3 months in addition to their normal giving.  This will bring in $75,000 towards our first quarter expenses.  This is perfect for partners that already give or for people that would like to give but cannot make a long term commitment.  Sign up today at http://www.americaskeswick.org/706332.ihtml . Thank you in advance for your partnership.  Come STAND IN THE GAP WITH US

No Mistakes

Have you ever wondered why Jesus did/does certain things? First, I guess we need to consider that Jesus never did something with no purpose in mind. He didn’t live His life on earth in a haphazard manner.

Look at John 11 and the death of Lazarus. From a human perspective, what Jesus does here makes no sense. Mary  Martha & their brother Lazarus were all loved very much by Jesus.

When word comes that Lazarus is very ill, (John 11:6) Jesus delays 2 more days rather than going to see or heal His friend. When He is ready to go, His disciples remind Him that the Jews in that town had just tried to stone him—not a friendly neighborhood.  Before they leave, Jesus tells them, “Lazarus has died and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe.” What does He mean?

When Jesus finally arrives, he finds that Lazarus has been dead for 4 days—not 1 or 2—not even 3 but 4. Keep in mind, nothing goes on in Gods economy for no reason.

In 11:31, the Jews who were with Mary follow her to meet Jesus and then move on to the tomb. By the time they arrive at the tomb, there are quite a few people there. When Jesus commands that the stone be rolled away, Martha reminds Him that it will stink—Lazarus has been dead for 4 days now.  Once it is moved, Jesus commands Lazarus to come out—and he does! Jesus has done more than just raise the dead, he has destroyed the opportunity for Jewish tradition to interfere with His miracle .

“According to various Jewish intellectual sources and folk traditions up through the medieval period, there is a gradual transition from physical death to an afterlife in which the body and spirit remain connected to one another in some way either through resurrection or immortality of the soul. According to early rabbinic folklore, the transition from death to life actually begins three days after death when the soul is believed to hover over the grave hoping to be restored to the body.”

Jewish tradition believed that 3 days after death, a spirit would linger around the body—that’s why Jesus delayed and allowed Lazarus to lay dead for 4 days—to stop the chance of “superstition” to take away from His miraculous act as the Son of God.  The Jews who had followed could not deny that what they saw was beyond their superstitions and had to be an act of God.

So, what is happening in your life today that makes no sense, that seems to be out of control? Do you think God has forgotten you or has left you to “die” alone or do you have a peace based on the knowledge that our Savior knows exactly what we need and when we need it?

John 11:35  Jesus wept.  Not because things were out of His control, but because He loves us so much, it breaks His heart to see us in pain. We serve an awesome God! –Steve Schmidt serves on the staff of America’s Keswick and is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy

Daily Bible Reading: Haggai 1-2; Luke 14:1-24

Quote of the day: There was never a sinner half as big as Christ is as a Savior. —C.H. Spurgeon

Verse to Memorize: “Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or the left; turn away your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:26-27 ESV

Would you consider being a part of our STAND IN THE GAP campaign for 2014?  Our goal is 1,000 people that will partner with us for January, February, and March, which are some of our toughest financial months. Each STAND IN THE GAP partner will make one $25 gift each month for 3 months in addition to their normal giving.  This will bring in $75,000 towards our first quarter expenses.  This is perfect for partners that already give or for people that would like to give but cannot make a long term commitment.  Sign up today at http://www.americaskeswick.org/706332.ihtml . Thank you in advance for your partnership.  Come STAND IN THE GAP WITH US.

Watch Your Walk

Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or the left; turn away your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:26-27 ESV

A number of years ago while in Bermuda, my daughter and Julie I were returning the moped we had rented for the week. We were waiting for our nephew and after a long wait, we decided to head back up the road to make sure everything was ok.

While heading back, he passed us, so we turned around and ended up slipping hitting a curb, flying off the moped and landing in a bush. The problem was the moped landed on my leg and I ended up with a broken leg.

Ever since breaking my leg, I have found myself really noticing broken walkways, uneven terrain, and have even found myself being much more careful when going up and down stairs. My fall made me much more cognizant of how and where I walk.

Scripture has much to say about our walk. Solomon encourages us to really take notice of the path of our feet. How easy it is for us to get off the right path, to go places we shouldn’t go, to walk in the wrong direction that could lead to a major stumble.

Throughout the next several chapters Solomon will warn us about our walk especially in regards to our sexual purity. It’s important enough that he addresses this topic in great detail in Proverbs 4-7. That’s 113 verses!!!

Please make two observations about the verses at the top of the devotional. You and I do the pondering of our paths and we are the ones that choose where we will walk.

Temptation is alive and well. And the good news is that Paul reminds us:
“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God IS faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:17)

You and I will be faced with temptation. You can count on it. And if we are honest, when those temptations come, have we not as men always seen a clear way of escape – a way uniquely crafted for you by our loving Father?

Our walk is important. Look straight ahead – don’t serve to the right or to the left. Walk God’s way. In the end, you’ll be glad you took the right path. Our decisions determine our destiny.

Are you walking in the wrong direction? It’s not too late to get back on the right path! Take some time to read through Proverbs 4-7 noting the different ways Solomon talks about our path. Underline it. Highlight it. Memorize it. It will be worth it.

Running the race with joy,

Bill Welte
President/CEO America’s Keswick

Daily Bible Reading: Esther 9-10; Luke 13:23-35

Quote of the day: We should not be entertained by the sins for which Christ died. —John MacArthur

Verse to Memorize: “Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or the left; turn away your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:26-27 ESV

Living in the Truth

This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God. ~ from 1 Corinthians 4

Oh beloved, it is true.  We rail against anything, anything that rubs up against our comfort. The impulses of flesh and early childhood scream out like the cries of a stubborn infant refusing to sleep.  We know that if we leave the child safely in its bed, it will eventually drop off to sleep, and learn to trust that life is OK, even if they have to wait a few minutes for something. But as the screams continue, we often fall to the temptation to give the baby what it wants. And in indulging the flesh, it screams all the louder the next opportunity it gets.

And what often rubs us the wrong way is other people.

And in getting rubbed the wrong way the first impulse is to judge that person as wrong, bad or even evil.  Somehow, we place ourselves squarely in the center of our tiny little world and grow angry at the perceived wrongs inflicted by others like some soldier who becomes angry when the enemy is really shooting at him.

How dare they!

Don’t they understand?

I don’t like it when he does that!

We somehow go from resting in belief, to full battle stations, faster than we can even comprehend.  And in leaping back up onto the throne of our life, we rip the scepter of authority back from the One who has given us the Life we now live.  Something tells us that we are about to do something really stupid – yet still we scramble up – even as the bitter taste in the throat of our soul rises like bad bile and undigested food.

“But they hurt my feelings!  They deserve to be corrected!” we say,  And we launch into some campaign to recover some honor or position we never really had in the first place; further driven by our fears that the person who spoke – might actually be right.

However, what we do is silly.  And we know it.  For when we launch into some sort of judge-and-attack mode, it is a bit like going into a restaurant and ordering a meal.  However, in having the meal served to us, we don’t like the taste.  And instead of working with the server to find a better selection, we pick up the entree and throw it back at his head.

Crazy.  What to do?  We beloved, are to simply live as the person we really are.

Can we see it? We are Love-slaves of Jesus, and stewards of the unfathomable mysteries of His Grace.  Slaves and stewards do not judge. Not ever. And while slaves and stewards of a throne may act in authority, they are ever-subordinated to the direction and judgments of the One who rightly sits on the Dias in power and authority.

And so, when conflict comes (and it will), we need to have already decided to believe the truth which is now true in our lives.  Our lives are not our own.  They have been bought – as a bride at a price – by One who judged us worth the very blood of His own Son for the dowry. We are now so identified with the true Judge in this transaction, that to usurp the rights of our Groom is actually an act of spiritual adultery.

Now, of one other thing we can be sure.  This One who Loves us so deeply will indeed defend us.  He will not allow any unnecessary hurt or wounding to happen to his beloved.  This is simply true.  And if we understand this truth, it frees us even more to live as we truly are. We are Loved with an everlasting and infinitely powerful Love, which frees us – even further – to simply and profoundly Love everyone around us, even if they hate us and want to hurt us.

What if we simply accepted the truth?  What if we left all the judgment to G_d, and just lived in Love with Him – and then let that same Love pour out on those around us?

Let Him beloved.  Let Him be who He is, that you might become fully who you are already.

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” ~ Jesus, King of the universe, in John 8

Makala Doulos is a school teacher and a graduate of the Colony of Mercy

Daily Bible Reading: Esther 1-2; Luke 12:1-31

Quote of the day: It is not the strength of your faith but the object of your faith that actually saves you. —Tim Keller

Verse to Memorize: “Put away your crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.” Proverbs 4:24-25 ESV

Humility

Acts 12:1-17

Robert Hayes told me Carter, his 5 year old son, asked Joyce, “mom, why did God create His worst enemy”?  Now there’s a question for you. And from a 5 year old!

In Acts 12, Peter is in prison. Peter, petra, petros—rock. Matthew 16:18—”I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hell will not overpower it.”  A disciple of Jesus, 3 years under His teaching, saw His death, resurrection and ascension. Empowered by the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. This was a spiritually “powerful” man.

Now, he’s locked in Herods “super max” prison, chained and surrounded by 16 guards. Enter the Angel. How does he get Peters attention? With a poke in the side! Then he starts giving him instructions—like a little kid. Stand up—put on your shoes, get dressed, put on your coat, now follow me.

Wooooo! Don’t you know who I am?!?! I’m Peter! The one the Lord is going to build His church on!! Could you imagine if Peter actually responded like that? With such arrogance when in fact, he needed all the help he could get. You can’t? Why not? Most of us have acted exactly like that when God sends us His help for those “prisons” of sin we are stuck in. We think of ourselves as “above” being held accountable or helped by mere “people”. We look down our noses, we discredit their input, we find any excuse but to hear what they are saying and in that, we stay stuck in our prisons of sin.

God uses many incredible ways to get our attention and save us from “death” in our sin—He even used an ass in the Old Testament.  So why do we resist the very help he is sending? Pride! We won’t admit we need help and won’t accept it even when its all around us. Even a 5 year old like Carter can be used to ask such thought provoking questions that we have to take pause to consider, “where did that come from”?

If Peter can humble himself to accept the help that God would provide, what’s stopping us?

Before you leave the house, get on your knees and pray with me—Father, forgive me for being so full of pride that I would resist the very help you send to release me from the prison of my sin.

I pray in the powerful name of Jesus, Amen!  — Steve Schmidt blogs regularly for Freedom Fighter and is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. He serves on the full-time staff at America’s Keswick

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 34-36; Luke 11:29-54

Quote of the day: Let us not satisfy ourselves with a knowledge of God in the church service; a glance upon a picture never directs you to the discerning the worth and art of it.  Stephen Charnock

Verse to Memorize: “Put away your crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.” Proverbs 4:24-25 ESV

Sharin’ With Karen

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”                                                                                                               1 John 2:15-17 (ESV)

As being a father goes, I am blessed beyond measure. YHVH has given me the blessing of stewardship with two kids. I have a son who just recently walked his way into adulthood. Some of you may have met Kevin while he served at Keswick. And then there is my daughter, Karen. Some of you have met her while she served at Keswick and some of you have gotten to experience her personality. I am not too sure if my son exhibits any of my traits to anyone BUT with Karen it is a different story. We are two peas in a pod and it is an unusual thing to have to say I call her junior at times. Anyway…

 I graduated from The Colony of Mercy on Karen’s sixth birthday. I struggled with having some sort of gift to give her. Thanks to a guy named Tom P. (and if you’re reading this you know who you are) there was something there for her to open and once that was done it was time to head to Chapel. I was allowed to share a verse and what I was going to be doing so I shared 1 John 2:15-17 while video of my daughter making faces was being taken. Since that time I’ve continually shared the lesson that these verses are teaching with Karen and now I share them with you.

It really isn’t a terrible thing for the stuff in this world to be desired or possessed as long as they are used in the way YHVH intended them to be used and that would be by His grace. We need to understand that it is the world that wishes to draw our hearts away from YHVH and that as believers we must not seek or value possessions for those purposes to which sin abuses them in the way the world does. Because of what went on in The Garden stuff decays and to love the stuff that dies or rot’s is just plain foolishness. You waste the love you should be sharing with YHVH on a creation that has fallen due to its own selfish desire to be like YHVH.

And what does that selfish desire look like? Well we break it down into three categories per Matthew Henry…

1. The lust of the flesh, of the body: wrong desires of the heart, the appetite of indulging all things that excite and inflame sensual pleasures.

2. The lust of the eyes: the eyes are delighted with riches and rich possessions; this is the lust of covetousness.

3. The pride of life: a vain man craves the grandeur and pomp of a vain-glorious life; this includes thirst after honor and applause.

As Karen as recently turned sixteen I was surprised by the fact that she didn’t want all those worldly recognitions of a sweet sixteen party. If you were able to sit with her and talk with her you would hear a fun loving girl but it would be salted with the voice of a mature young woman in Christ. The night I came home from The Colony we gathered around her birthday cake and sang HAPPY BIRTHDAY to her and asked her what she wanted. She said, with an assurance “Daddy”. She knew then that she didn’t need the stuff of this world just daddy (in a sense, that’s me). Wouldn’t it be cool for us to realize all we need is ABBA Father…DADDY? – Chris Hughes is a weekly Freedom Fighter blogger and graduate from the Colony of Mercy

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 32-33; Luke 11:1-28

Quote of the day: “Unless this victory over the world is begun in the heart, a man has no root in himself, but will fall away, or at most remain an unfruitful professor. Yet these vanities are so alluring to the corruption in our hearts, that without constant watching and prayer, we cannot escape the world, or obtain victory over the god and prince of it.”—Matthew Henry

Verse to Memorize: “Put away your crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.” Proverbs 4:24-25 ESV

Who Me?

The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying:
“Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love;
Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you”. Jeremiah 31:3

I enjoy reading the Old Testament because of the nature of God and His love of the people of Israel is woven through out. In chapter 31 of Jeramiah, God takes a moment to remind His people of His “everlasting love”. This come at probably the darkest time in the history of Israel, just before the walls are coming crashing down and a time of judgment is at hand.

I know for me when I’m being hard pressed or perplexed I have to be reminded of the “everlasting love” of God. It’s this love that keeps me from being crushed or in despair.

I’m attend a men’s Bible study and we were reading in Genesis “In the Beginning”, when it says “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good” (Genesis 1:31a). This study suggested that the age old question that Adam and Eve were faced with is the same today, “Is God Good”? A question that can cause us, when we’re being hard pressed to either be crushed or trust, if we’re perplexed are we in despair or do we believe?  The group discussion question was “think back to a specific time you doubted the goodness of God”.

Needless to say it made for good discussion and helped us to be reminded that the answer is YES, God is good. All of the promises of God are “Yes and Amen”. The same God who has loved His nation Israel is also the same God who loves you and me. “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love, Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you”.

So to answer the question “Who, me? The answer is “Yes, You!” – Rob Russomano is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy is a full-time staff member at America’s Keswick

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 30-31; Luke 10:25-42

Quote of the day: We are not to make men converts of our opinions. But we are to make them disciples of Jesus.  Oswald Chambers

Verse to Memorize: “Put away your crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.” Proverbs 4:24-25 ESV

 

Guard Your Words

So set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. Psalm 141:3

I keep getting hammered about my words. Ugh! Maybe you have it all together. My associate, Jim Kennedy, our COO, forwarded this devotional to me from Pastor Harold Vaughn, who has been a speaker at America’s Keswick.

His devotional from Deep Fire – Daily Challenges for a Burning Heart for November 27^th is a collection of pithy quotes with a punch:

“When I get a blessing, I feel very quiet and still. I am dreadfully afraid of small talk. I have never yet been condemned by God for not talking more.” A. B. Simpson

“A sharp tongue is the only edged tool that grows keener with constant use.” Washington Irvin

“When you speak, remember God is one of your listeners.” Source Unknown

“We know metals by their tinkling and men by their talking.” Thomas Brooks

“Nothing is often a good thing to say.” Will Durant

“We may often do a great deal more by a silent look than by a volume of words.” Andrew Bonar

“The bone of contention is the jawbone.” Charles Spurgeon

“A loose tongue will often get you into a tight corner.” Source Unknown

“When you speak your peace, you lose your peace.” Source Unknown

“If God’s people would not talk for thirty days, we would have revival.” D. L. Moody

“The best way to save face is by keeping the lower half of it shut!” – Source Unknown

There’s really nothing else to say. Reread today’s verse at the top of this devotional and let’s make it our prayer for today. – Bill Welte is President/CEO of America’s Keswick

Daily Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 28-29; Luke 10:1-24

Quote of the day: Anyone who wants to go to heaven must first go to the cross. —Philip Ryken

Verses to Memorize: “Put away your crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.” Proverbs 4:24-25 ESV