DEVOTION - THURSDAY, MARCH 1,2012

DEVOTION –  THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2012

“BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS”

BY

REV G. MEL DUNN

BRIDGEPORT AND CENTRE SQUARE UNITED METHODIST CHURCHES

     

   

MOUNT OF BEATITUDES LOOKING OVER A MISTY SEA OF GALILEE”

“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

How peaceful the lake looked – how beautiful the mount from which the Lord spoke.  It is hard to believe that we who had the opportunity to stand and gaze at the beauty of the scene have been back in our churches for over a month now.

We are back to reality.  But I hope never to forget the feeling I had standing where Jesus taught us to be peacemakers – Where he blessed the humble and “Poor in Spirit.”  I pray for that as each day brings us into an angry and war torn world.

I pray for the “Peace of Jerusalem” where the news reports anger and rocks and tear gas.   I pray for peace for those caught around the world in theaters of war.   I pray for peace for the young men women who are giving up their lives for us.  And, I pray for peace for their families who wait and worry.

The prophet Isaiah says, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who announces peace, who brings good news, who announces salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns."

“Dear Lord,   Help us to ever be humble messengers of the Prince of Peace.    Amen”

“OUR GOD REIGNS”

DEVOTION - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2012

DEVOTION –  WEDNESDAY,  FEBRUARY 29, 2012

SALT IN THE WATER”

BY  REV. G. MEL DUNN

 

“The Spring healed by Elisha in the middle of Jericho”

II KINGS

2Ki 2:19  And the men of the city said to Elisha, Behold, please, the location of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees. But the waters are bad, and the ground is barren.

2Ki 2:20  And he said, Bring me a new jar and put salt in it. And they brought to him.

2Ki 2:21  And he went forth to the spring of the waters and threw the salt in there, and said, So says Jehovah, I have healed these waters. There shall not be any more death or barrenness from there.

2Ki 2:22  And the waters were healed to this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spoke.

Elisha had returned from Jordan, after receiving the power and cloak of Elijah and found the city of Jericho in trouble.   The water had turned brackish and the ground would not produce crops to sustain the people.   The people of Jericho turned to the prophet who took a jar of salt and tossed it into the water and the water was healed.

As I stood by the spring,  I wondered at how salt, which should have made the water unusable,  made it pure.   How great is the  wonder working power of God.

Jesus  told us,  in   Matthew  5:13  “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt has lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of.”

Oh that in this Lenten season,  might we be a healing salt in the earth.

“Oh Lord,  never let us not lose our savor,  our joy in serving Jesus, and allow us to be a healing presence in this brackish and troubled world.    Amen”

DEVOTION - TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2012

DEVOTION – TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2012

THESE LENTEN DEVOTIONS ARE A REVIEW OF MY TRIP TO ISRAEL - 2010                                           

  “SUNSET – SUNRISE”

AND THEN CAME THE MORNING 

                                                                                                                            

            Sunset and Sunrise in Tiberius on the shores of the Lake.

By Mel Dunn

John 21:2-4

“Simon Peter, and Thomas called the Twin, and Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together.

Simon Peter said to them, I am going out to fish. They said to him, We will go with you also. They went out and entered into a boat immediately. And that night they caught nothing.

But when the morning had come, Jesus stood on the shore. But the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.”

There was that sunset in Jerusalem – the cross, the tomb, they knew He was dead.   How much darker could a sunset be than at sunset to see the one you loved – the who held such hope for you – placed behind the stone in the garden.

But,  then Mary came running  with the news.  He’s alive.  And,  Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go tell My brothers that they should go into Galilee, and there they will see Me.”

Not in Jerusalem where death had reigned – In “Galilee of the Gentiles”  where He had ministered day after day and had done more miracles that any other place.  The invitation was for breakfast in Galilee.

They didn’t realize it but they were going to have breakfast on the shores of the Lake – the most joyous meal they would ever have.

Our trip was winding down and at sunset we arrived in Tiberius and saw the Sea of Galilee for the first time as the sun was setting.  Then we rested for on Monday we were going to have breakfast in Galilee and ride across the Sea of Galilee and walk where Jesus walked and meditate were Jesus preached the Kingdom and fed the hungry and healed the sick and raised the dead.

We had witnessed the darkest sunset and now we would see the most beautiful sunrise.

Morning had come.

“Dear Lord,  help us to walk with you through the dark sunset and rejoice with you when the morning comes.   Let this be our Lenten Journey.  Amen and Amen”

DEVOTION - MONDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2012

DEVOTION –  MONDAY,  FEBRUARY 27, 2012

“Take Up Your Cross”

BY

ALISTAIR BEGG

Luke 9:23

You do not make your own cross, although unbelief is a master carpenter at cross-making; neither are you permitted to choose your own cross, although self-will wants to be lord and master. But your cross is prepared and appointed for you by divine love, and you must cheerfully accept it; you are to take up the cross as your chosen badge and burden, and not to stand complaining.

This night Jesus bids you submit your shoulder to His easy yoke. Do not kick at it in petulance, or trample on it in pride, or fall under it in despair, or run away from it in fear, but take it up like a true follower of Jesus.

Jesus was a cross-bearer; He leads the way in the path of sorrow. Surely you could not desire a better guide! And if He carried a cross, what nobler burden would you desire? The Via Crucis is the way of safety; fear not to tread its thorny paths. Beloved, the cross is not made of feathers or lined with velvet; it is heavy and galling to disobedient shoulders; but it is not an iron cross, though your fears have painted it with iron colors; it is a wooden cross, and a man can carry it, for the Man of Sorrows tried the load.

Take up your cross, and by the power of the Spirit of God you will soon be so in love with it that like Moses you would not exchange the reproach of Christ for all the treasures of Egypt. Remember that Jesus carried it; remember that it will soon be followed by the crown, and the thought of the coming weight of glory will greatly lighten the present heaviness of trouble.

May the Lord help you bow your spirit in submission to the divine will before you fall asleep tonight, so that waking with tomorrow's sun, you may go forth to the day's cross with the holy and submissive spirit that is fitting for a follower of the Crucified.

DEVOTION - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2012

DEVOTION –  SATURDAY,  FEBRUARY 25, 2012

“The Obstacle of Conflict”

BY

JAMES MACDONALD

Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message. At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them! But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. —2 Timothy 4:14-16

The apostle Paul was no stranger to conflict. It came looking for him almost everywhere he went! He persevered in the face of human resistance. And he didn’t let conflict derail his development of endurance. In his second letter to Timothy, he gave his son in the faith a father’s heads up.

Notice it says, “Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm” (v.14). In the waning days of his life, Paul was thinking about this guy. We don’t know which Alexander this is. I Timothy 1:20 talks about a particular Alexander whom Paul had turned over to Satan so that he might learn not to blaspheme. Here he mentions “Alexander the coppersmith.” So maybe it’s a different guy; we don’t know. But he sure had hurt Paul in his ministry. Yet notice Paul’s not taking matters into his own hands: “The Lord will repay him according to his deeds” (v.14).

In the life of every person who commits themselves wholeheartedly to Jesus Christ, people will step up and step in to oppose you. There will be conflict. Jesus said in Luke 6:26a, “Woe to you, when all people speak well of you.”If you’re standing for Christ, but it’s not producing any opposition, hardship, or struggle, then you need to check and see if you are really standing. Maybe you’re actually retreating. Paul knew what this was all about. Because of his commitment to persevere, conflict had come into his life. But he was leaving it with God.

Paul continued, “Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message”(v.15). We’ve learned over the years with people who set themselves in opposition to biblical ministry, that almost without exception when you stand up to them, they leave the church and do the very same thing somewhere else. Paul was saying, “Don’t let that happen to you. Watch your back.”

If you are experiencing conflict because of your commitment to persevere, take heart. Jesus said, “Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven(Luke 6:22-23).

DEVOTION - FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2012

DEVOTION –  FRIDAY,  FEBRUARY 24, 2012

“Community: What Does It Look Like?”

BY

RON MOORE

Acts 2:46-47 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

The Crucifixion. The Resurrection. The Ascension. Now the new community is off and running. Today’s passage gives four ingredients for healthy community.

• Meeting Regularly: True believers meet regularly for worship, teaching, prayer, and encouragement. They don’t have to; they get to.
• Fellowship: From the required Old Testament feasts to the events in the life of Jesus that took place at a meal, there is something about coming together around food that enhances fellowship.
• Praise: Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “The more genuine and the deeper our community, the more will everything else between us recede, the more clearly and purely will Jesus Christ and his work become the one and only thing that is vital between us” (Life Together, 26).
• Growth: Church growth is not about special events and clever advertising. God is looking for genuine, healthy communities to place the lost.

Father, may we not settle for anything less than vibrant, genuine, and healthy communities. May we meet the needs of those around us with Jesus. In his name we pray. Amen.

DEVOTION - THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2012

DEVOTION –  THURSDAY,  FEBRUARY 23, 2012

“What New Believers Need”

BY

GREG LAURIE

And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 9:17)

After Saul’s conversion, there was great doubt among the first-century believers as to whether he had really become a Christian. They thought it was some kind of a trick to infiltrate their ranks. It is hard for us to understand how notorious Saul of Tarsus was. He was the Christian killer. He hunted down followers of Jesus, tortured them, and even put some to death.

It would be like hearing that one of the most renowned atheists of our day had put his or her faith in Christ. It wouldn’t make sense. Is it possible? Sure it is. With God, all things are possible. So when Christians heard that Saul was a believer, many of them were essentially saying, “We are not buying this, okay? It’s a trick.”

But God led a man named Ananias to go to Saul, pray for him, and help him in that very critical, transitional moment after his commitment to Christ. And then later, God brought a man named Barnabas to introduce Saul around to other believers and help him get on his feet. This all resulted in Saul’s changing his name and becoming the beloved apostle Paul.

New believers need fellowship. You see, some things are taught, and some things are caught. There is only so much I or any other pastor can do from a pulpit. New believers need to see a living example of what a Christian is. What do Christians do in their free time? How do Christians treat each another? New believers need to be out there in the real world with you, seeing how this all plays out.

A lot of us would like to be a Paul, but are we willing to be an Ananias? Or a Barnabas? Are you willing to be a friend to a new believer?

DEVOTION - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2012

DEVOTION –  WEDNESDAY,  FEBRUARY 22, 2012

“Holding Back—Nothing!’

BY ADRIAN ROGERS

“She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint My body to the burying.” Mark 14:8

Mary loved Jesus so much that she gave all she had. She didn’t just pour out a little perfume to anoint Him, she gave it all (see Mark 14:3-9). She couldn’t put that perfume back in the bottle. She had broken it! Maybe it was her inheritance or hope chest. She didn’t hold back any for a rainy day or her retirement.

Most of us would have said, “Lord, I would like to give You a little of this perfume. It cost me a year in wages, so I can’t give it all to You. But I want You to have some of it to show You how much I love You.”

Does this speak to your heart as much as it does mine? Confess, “Lord, I’m not willing to break the alabaster box. Forgive me. Enable me to give my all. Here I am. Take all of me.”

DEVOTION - TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2012

DEVOTION –  TUESDAY,  FEBRUARY 21, 2012

“The ark's architect “

BY

PASTOR BOB COY

By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household... (Hebrews 11:7 NKJV)

It's something most of us can't even remember hearing for the first time. It's an account buried so deep down in our minds that we've literally grown up with it. It's a story that even non-Christians are well acquainted with. It's the remarkable record of Noah and the ark.

Whenever we come to something as familiar as this, we run the risk of being a bit immune to it. We already know how the story goes and so we kind of close ourselves off to any fresh insights about it. But if we're willing to look closely, we find something interesting that plays into our study on faith.

Notice that Noah's faith was at the back of his immortal exploits. He was a man who simply heard the warning of God, accepted it as true, and then set out to do something about it. There was an activity that accompanied Noah's faith, and the same can be said of any genuine trust in the Lord.

Faith is not a spectator sport. It doesn't isolate or remove itself from responsibility. Just the opposite is true. Faith is actually the fuel that leads a person to pick up the hammer, to gather the materials, and to summon the physical strength needed to build the ark. Apart from genuine faith, God's warning goes unheeded, the ark never gets built, and the human race perishes. But with faith came the activity that God wanted and humanity needed. Faith was the ark's architect.

God isn't going to tell us to build an ark. But He will warn us about certain situations that will arise in our lives. The big question is whether we have the faith to heed his warning and then act accordingly. It's a question we need to ask ourselves, and it's a question that our actions will ultimately answer for us.

DEVOTION - MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

DEVOTION –  MONDAY,  FEBRUARY 20, 2012

“THE WINNING WALK”

By

Ed Young

“But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.” - Matthew 24:13

“I was prepared to eat bitterness when I went to China, but not to eat loss,” said Mabel Williamson. “Eating bitterness” symbolized suffering and hardship. “Eating loss” meant giving up the right to one’s self. Jesus warns that following Him is risky living by worldly standards. Real discipleship means “eating loss,” taking up your cross, dying to self. This is the secret to endurance. Mabel Williamson, Hudson Taylor and many other nameless “China hands” found the secret, endured to the “end”—which means “purpose”—and saw the promise of God. The Gospel is spreading so fast in China now that it could become the center of global Christianity!

DEVOTION - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2012

DEVOTION –  SATURDAY,  FEBRUARY 18, 2012

“The Great Omission”

BY

GREG LAURIE

Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin. (James 4:17)

As Jesus was getting ready to ascend to heaven, He gathered the disciples together and said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18–20).

This is what is known as the Great Commission. In the original language, these words are a command. That is why we call this the Great Commission and not the Great Suggestion. And I believe that to fail to do this actually could be a sin. “A sin?” you might say. “Well, maybe we should do more, but it is not a sin if I don’t share the gospel.”

But I think it could be, because James 4:17 says, “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” This is called the sin of omission, which is not doing what you are supposed to do.

These words were given to every follower of Jesus. If I am His disciple, I am commanded to go and make disciples of others. On the other hand, if I am not making disciples of others, then I am not being the disciple God wants me to be.

For many of us, the Great Commission has instead become the Great Omission. So how are you doing with your part in fulfilling the Great Commission? Are you going into all of your world? The commission is not to wait for the world to come to us; it is to go into all of world.

DEVOTION - FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2012

DEVOTION –  FRIDAY,  FEBRUARY 17, 2012

“Real Treasure ‘

BY

BAYLESS CONLEY

Proverbs 15:6 says,

In the house of the righteous there is much treasure, but in the revenue of the wicked is trouble.

Notice that this verse does not just declare there is treasure in the house of the righteous. It says there is much treasure in the house of the righteous.

You can also find treasure in the house of the wicked, but Solomon says it is laced with trouble. The income of the wicked has a bunch of trouble with it.

But the same is not true for those who are right with God. When the treasure is found in their house, it does not have the same trouble that it does when it is found in the house of the wicked.

If you read on, the Lord shares two things that must accompany this treasure if it is going to be enjoyed. First, you must have a right relationship with God. Proverbs 15:16 says, Better is a little with the fear of the LORD, than great treasure with trouble.

It is better to have almost nothing and have a right relationship with God than to have everything money can buy and not have a relationship with God. We must get our priorities right.

The second thing we need to have is a right relationship with people, lest the treasure become hollow and become a curse. Proverbs 15:17 says, Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a fatted calf with hatred.

Some people have more prosperity than they know what to do with, but all of their relationships fail. They do not have love. Consequently, there is a vacuum they can never fill with things, that they can never fill by accumulating more possessions.

Pursue your relationship with God, and a right relationship with people. Then you will enjoy the treasure God gives you!

DEVOTION - THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2012

DEVOTION – THURSDAY,  FEBRUARY 16, 2012

“Here’s My Heart—O Take and Seal It”

BY

ADRIAN ROGERS

“With my whole heart have I sought Thee: O let me not wander from Thy commandments.” Psalm 119:10

In 1758 Robert Robinson wrote a hymn that echoes in my heart from time to time:

“Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.”

Do you ever wander from God? Then you know how it feels and how hard it is to return. If you feel far from God today, I implore you with all that I am to return to Him with all your heart.

Make Psalm 86:11-13 your prayer today, “Teach me Thy way, O Lord; I will walk in Thy truth: unite my heart to fear Thy name. I will praise Thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify Thy name for evermore. For great is Thy mercy toward me: and Thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.”

DEVOTION - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2012

DEVOTION – WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2012

“Faith-based’

BY

PASTOR BOB COY

I will lift up my eyes to the hills; from whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. Psalms 121:1-2 (NKJV)

Have you ever noticed how faith-based prayer is? Think about it, you're in a room all by yourself, your head is bowed, maybe your knees are bent, and you're facedown on the floor. You're lips are moving as you're expressing and articulating what's on your heart. By all outward appearances this seems futile, even foolish.

And that would be true—if you took faith out of the equation. But faith, the firm conviction that there are spiritual realities that transcend the world we can see, changes everything. Faith grabs hold of prayer and wields it like a mighty, life-changing weapon. Isn't it interesting that when it comes to one of the most important practices in the Christian life, so much of it depends on faith?

There's a reason for this. There's a reason God has set prayer up to be such a faith-based activity. It's so we can become more and more familiar with the lifestyle of faith. Each time we decide to pray, we declare that we believe in something that's not of this world. We proclaim that our trust is invested in things that are beyond the limitations of earth.

Perhaps that's a new concept for some of us. Maybe we've even fallen into the trap of devaluing prayer because it is so dependent on faith. It's easy for us to slip into that way of thinking because let's face it, it's easier to present your requests to someone standing right in front of you instead of lifting your eyes up to the hills and trusting that there's Someone who hears and is willing to respond.

But God is wise enough to know that when we pray to Him, when we press through the urge to focus on what we can see, we grow and mature as people of faith.

DEVOTION - TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2012

DEVOTION – TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2012

“WINNING WALK“

BY

DR ED YOUNG

Who is the man who fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the way he should choose. - Psalm 25:12

A mother cat, kitten on her back, tried crossing New York City’s intersection of 42^nd Street and Broadway. Storms of traffic filled the crossroads with chaos. The mother cat repeatedly started across, then retreated after a couple of steps. A policeman suddenly stepped into the maelstrom, and made New York City stand still as the cat and her kitten crossed. The animals had no idea that all the authority of that huge metropolis—symbolized in the officer’s badge—had been mobilized on their behalf. God’s promise to instruct us in the way we should choose means He mobilizes Heaven’s authority and resources to help us in life’s wild intersections.

DEVOTION - MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2012

DEVOTION – MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2012

“An Unraveled Life “

BY

JAMES MACDONALD

Psalm 25:11 For your name's sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great.

Second Samuel 11:1-4 records, incredibly, that while everyone else was out at battle and David stayed home, he saw Bathsheba. Verses 2-4 say, "He saw from the roof a woman bathing. . . . [He] sent and inquired about the woman. . . . [He] sent messengers and took her." You're like, "Who can do that?" The king can do that! And nobody contradicted him! That is until God began to use his friend Nathan and his son Absalom to absolutely crush David. Consequences began to unravel David's life.

As the next several years unfolded, Absalom murdered his brother Amnon because he raped his sister, Tamar. David did nothing about it. He lost Absalom's respect because he was so passive late in life. Absalom led a revolt against his father. He was trying to take over the kingdom. David's authority and power had blinded him to his own sin.

The word guilt in today's verse means literally to bend, to twist, to distort, to warp, to pervert, or to ruin. The word means sin. David in effect said, "For Your name's sake, O Lord, pardon my bent-ness; pardon my twistedness, God. Pardon my distorted, warped, perverted way of thinking, God. Pardon my ruin, what I've done with myself." It's an incredible statement of personal admission. David's prayer flowed from humility born of adversity. "I'm wrong, God! My actions are wrong! My words are wrong! My motives are wrong! I am wrong!"

When was the last time you were undone? When was the last time your life was unraveled by your own shortcomings? How quickly we are worked up about the shortcomings of others. When was the last time you were taken apart by yourself? Not by what your spouse needs to learn. Not by what your mom's doing wrong. Not by the shortcomings of the leaders in your church or where you work, but by yourself. That's the moment that God's trying to bring about. That's where all this is headed. Not that you should observe the shortcomings of others, but that you should have a better understanding of yourself and where you're failing. That's what God is always going for in your life.
—James MacDonald