Our action speak

Even a child makes himself known by his acts, by whether his conduct is pure and upright.
Proverb 20:11 ESV

One night a clergy man was walking to church when a thief pulled a gun on him and demanded his money or his life. When he reached in his pocket to hand over his wallets, the robber saw his clerical collar and said: "I see you are a priest. Never mind. You can go." The clergyman, surprised by the robber's unexpected act of piety. Offered him a candy bar. The robber said, "No thank you. I don't eat candy during Lent."
    The man had given up candy as a supposed sacrifice for Lent, but his lifestyle of stealing showed his real character! According to the writer of proverbs, conduct is the best indicator of character. If someone says he is a godly person, his words can only be proven by consistent actions (20:11). This was true of the religious leaders in Jesus day as well. He condemned the Pharisees and exposed their shame for professing godliness but denying that professions with sin their lives (Matt  23:13-36). Appearances and words are deceiving: behavior is the best judges of Character. This applies to all of us.
    As follower of Jesus, we demonstrate our love for Him by what we do, not just by what we say: May our devotion to God, because of his love for us, be revealed in our actions today.

HE Has Set The Right Time

For you yourselves know that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.
1 Thessalonians 5:2

In the scripture, the exhortation to prepare for the day of the Lord is usually given to God's people, rather than to unbeliever. Christians must be prepared for Christ's return, so that they can properly respond to Him. The most important thing about the day of the Lord is clear. It comes unexpectedly.
   In Scripture, there are several references to the day of the Lord. Often this refers to Jesus' first coming or His second coming, but it can also refer to any time God comes to His people, either in salvation or judgement (Is a.13:6; Joel2:11; Mal.3:2). Amos had predicted that the day of the Lord would be far different from what the people expected (Amos 5:18). The people of his day thought it would come with joy and singing, yet Amos said there would be grieving and judgement of sin. When Jesus came the first time, His coming caught people by surprise. Because they were expecting the Messiah to come in a different way, many did not recognize Him.
    The final day of the Lord will be at Christ second coming. Meanwhile, there will be times God will come to you, your family, and friends. You need to be watching for the signs of God's convicting work in your children, your friends, and your coworkers. You take notice when God begins to do a special work in the lives of His people in your church. It may be that you have an unusual sense of God's presence in a worship service and you begin to intercede for those who are present. Prepare yourself now and pay attention to what is happening in the lives of His people around you. You may discover that the day of the Lord is at hand.

Daily devotion

Practice these things, devote yourself to them, so that all may see your progress.
1 Timothy 4:15 ESV

Two brothers were out walking on their father's vast acreage when they came upon a peach tree, its branches heavy with fruit. Each brother ate several juicy tree-ripened peaches.
    When they started toward the house, one brother gathered enough peaches for a delicious peaches cobbler and several harms jam The second brother cut a limb from the tree to Start a new peach tree. When he got home he carefully tended the tree-cutting until he could plant it outdoors. The branch took root and eventually produced healthy crops of peaches for him to enjoy your after year.
     The Bible is like the fruit-bearing tree. Hearing the word of God is like the first brother. He gathers fruit from hearing the Word and had enough to take home with him to eat later. But that doesn't compare with having your own peach tree in the backyard Memorizing the Word is like having the fruit tree in your backyard. It is there to nourish you all the time.
     Scripture memorization is often considered a dull, burdensome task. But we could get highly motivated if we were given one hundred dollar for evert Bible verse we memorized! The rewards of Scripture memory may not always be monetary, but they are a far better treasure for life.
     One of the greatest values if Scripture is that it keeps us from sin. In Psalm 119:11 (ESV) the psalmist wrote: "Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You."
    For many people, the morning is the best time to memorize Scripture because one"s mind is fresh, alert, and free from distractions.  There are many different ways to memorize Scripture. Find the one that works best for you and begin hiding God's Word in your heart so it may bring continual life nourishment to you. This will produce fruit in your life which you can share with others.

Truth Shall Make You Free

And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
John 8:32

God's truth never restricts you; it always sets you free! Are you discourage? Is there a sense of bondages in a particular area of your life? A lack of victory over a certain sin? A harmful addiction? It is possible that you do not yet understand  a truth about God that can release you.
    If you feel powerless to meet the challenges before you, take encouragement from the promise of Philippians 4:13: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." "If you are defeated by circumstance, hold on to the truth of Romans 8:28 that God can work your most difficult situation into His good. If you are enslave to a particular sin, work the truth of 1 John 1:9 into your life, which promises that if you confess your sin, God is faithful to cleans you from all unrighteousness. All of these truths awaits the Holy Spirit's implementation into your life.
    It is one thing to know about the truth. It is yet another thing to experience the truth of God being worked out in your life God's truth will have no effect upon you unless you accept it and believe it. Perhaps you have already read and heard accounts of God working mightily in the lives of others. But have you allowed God to implement those truths into your life? What truth about God would you like to be experiencing in your life? Ask Him to implement the truth into your life today.
   

An adventure and a Mystery

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
GALATIANS 2:20

This is the most powerful mystery of the faith-life: when you trust Jesus as your Savior, you crucify your old self. All of the bad habits, the negative thinking the low motives, and the gutter thoughts are put to death.
     You don't have to impress anybody with who you are, because you are dead! Then who is walking around in your skin? It's Jesus in you, making Jesus-choices, thinking. Jesus-thoughts, and bringing His life-giving force into everyday situation! Tell that old you that he's a dead duck, and you're living as a Christ container now, what an advantage! The Lord in you.

No Digging Allowed

As far as the east from the west, so far has he removed our transgression front us.
PSALM 103:12
IN HER BOOK HOPE LIVES HERE. Janet Bly tells about driving through a desolate area of country road where she read, encountered a sign that warned, "No digging Allowed!" She wondered, "Why was the sign posted?" Were cables underneath, Or were there ancient graves nearby?
     I'd like a few of these "No digging Allowed" sign planted in the memory bank if some people I know. I'm thinking of the pastor whose wife confided to him that before she became a Christian and married him, she had been been sexually involved with young man. Her husband, instead of closing the door on something that happened years before, kept prodding to know more. With tear she said, "I'ved told everything and its running our marriage."
     I know many who live with past failures. They took the wrong turn in life and their failures keeps them from moving ahead. They are constantly confronted by memories that obscure their vision of the future. If you are like one of those people, at some point you have to let it go your past. But how can you do this?
      Based in who God is, there's Good New friend. Healing begins when you understand that God forgives your failures, He tramples on then and out a "No Digging A!lowed" sign over them.
     When God says, " No Digging Allowed," it is not to faked your curiosity but to give you warning that what lies beneath, buried in the soil of forgiveness, should never again see sunlight.

"THANK YOU LORD"

I thank my God every time I remember you. It is right for me to feel this way about all if you, since I have you in my heart."
Philippians 1:3,7

When it comes to different style of writing, the apostle Paul was a versatile author. When writing to the Galatians, sounded fighting mad as he told them in no uncertain terms they were off track. When he wrote to the Romans, he came off sounding like a theology professor. When he addressed Christians in the book of Thessalonians, Paul sounded like a youth leader.
    But Paul's letter to the Philippians is different from the rest. Philippians is not a theology lesson or a manual on how to solve problems. Philippians is a thank you letter and, because of that, Paul doesn't watch HIs words but writes stream of joyful remembrances and encouragements. You can tell that he had fun with his pen and paper.
     How poignantly Paul writes his thank-you letter from a dark, stinking prison cell. That he can say "be anxious about nothing" and "I've learned to be content" while in bruising chains makes the book of Philippians all the more joyful.
     You may not be in an actual prison, but like apostle, you may feel chained to a few unpleasant circumstances. If so, are you still able to writes a thank-you letter to God. This is it! take time to flip open to the book Philippians and peruse the finest thank you letter ever written and make a prayer request this day be a relentless and keep advancing.
     Lord I want to thank You for every good and perfect gift with which You"be blessed my life. For friends and family. . .  for miles cool and sunny days. . . for your grace, which gives joy and peace. . . and run the race that set before us and You are with us That i can say Thank You Lord!!
    
    

Work of Grace

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, preserving in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and curse not. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never pay back evil For evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men.
Roman: 12:9-17

Located in one of the great doctrinal books of the Bible is a series of command that, if obeyed, would turn us into some of the most affirming people imaginable. In a nutshell, these words represent the essence of authentic Christianity. But why don't we live authentic lives? Why do we love with such hypocrisy? What keeps us from being devoted to one another, from honoring one another from contributing to each other's need?
    The inescapable fact is that, more often than not, we nullify grace rather than magnify it. We resist it more often than we release it. What is it within us that hindering an attitude of free-flowing grace? Most of us fall short if letting others be themselves because of two Strong and very human tendencies: We compare ourselves with others, which lead us to criticize or compete with them, and we attempt to control others, which results in our manipulating and intimidating them. Let's dissect and examine both if these tendencies that keep grace from awakening in our lives.
    Most people tend to prefer sameness, predictability, and common interests. As a result, if someone thinks differently, prefers differently entertainment, wears different clothes, or enjoys a different lifestyles, we get a little nervous.
     Our problem is one of eyesight. We tend to see things only on the surface, and therefore, we put too much weight on externals. We judge by appearance rather than actualities.
     But the problem is deeper than that. If goes beyond the need for an eye exam. We need an attitude adjustment because comparison knocks our attitude out of alignment. It makes us prejudiced people. And it counteracts and opposes the work of grace8
    God never meant for the church to be a religious industry designed to chum out cookie-cutter Christian and paper-doll saints. On the contrary, His church is supposed to be celebration of diversity (see 1 Cor.12).
    Unsure of this? Look at the in the Bible. They are as different as Rahab and Esther, the one an ex-prostitute and the other an exquisite queen.
    Variety honors God Uniformity bores Him. Consider how variegated are the threads woven through the genealogy of God's Son in Matthew. Cup your ears in the marble hallway of faith in Hebrews11 and hear the echoes of diversity. Page through church history and read about the great differences in the men and women who shaped the world.
    Legalism requires that we all be alike, unified in convictions and uniform in appearance. Grace finds pleasure in our diversity, encourages individuality, and leaves for differences of opinion. But before we will be able to demonstrate sufficient grace to let other be who they are, we'll have to get rid of this legalistic tendency to compare.

You Can't Get There from Here

You're have made known to me the path of life, you will fill me with joy in your presence. . .
PSALM 16:11

RICHARD BAXTER, an English churchman and theologian of the 1600s, expected to die before his 36th birthday. He had had a total collapse which confined him to his bed. That's when he began to do some serious thinking about his future, "to mediate on heaven's joys as part of his preparation  for leaving this world," as J.I Packer put it. Baxter then spent 30 minutes a day in meditation. In his book, The Saints' Everlasting Rest, Baxter wrote, "I thou wouldst have light and heat, why art thou no more in the sunshine?"
    We want the light and the heat without taking time to bask in the sunshine! And when it comes to the presence of the Almighty there is no substitute. You can get an artificial sustain by lying under a heat lamp and you can have heat today without generating fire. But when it comes to our relationship with God, there is nothing in the entire world which serve as an adequate substitute.
    If you want light and heat, find time to be in the sunshine. Baxter said you need 30 minutes a day, and a person may well have been able to find 30 minutes in 17th century England, but few can squeeze in that amount of time today.
     I'm working on this discipline as I have fought for moments to be in the presence of the Almighty and have enough sanity when I get there to say focused on Him for the duration of even five minutes. But as you and I are discovering, the rewards are well worth the effort. Keep on communing with Him each day. Keep advancing forward.

Small Things Are Not Despised

For who has despised the day of small things?
Zechariah 4:10

The world Loves the spectacular God has proven that He is was certainly capable of the extraordinary, but He often choose to work through the ordinary and seemingly insignificant. In this way He demonstrates He love and His power.
  Throughout history, God's answer to a critical time was to send a baby, Isaac, Moses, Samuel, John the Baptist, and Jesus were all born as answer to a time of need. When God Delivered the Israelites from the Midianites' oppression, He intentionally used an army of merely three hundred men to defeat a vastly larger army. He had more soldier s available, but He preferred to demonstrates His power in the way He accomplished His purposed. When Jesus selected His first disciples He could have enlisted a multitudes to follow Him, but He chose twelve. It was not the number of disciples but the quality of their walk with him that would determine how they affected their world. When Jesus fed a multitudes, five loaves of bread and two fish from a boy's lunch were sufficient in the hands of the Lord
     Jesus compared the kingdom of God to a mustard seed (Matt.13:31-32). The mustard seed was the smallest seed known to the Jews, yet it grew into enormous tree.the also likened God's kingdom to leaven that is hardly noticrables but raises the entirely batch of dough (Matt. 13:33). When children came to Jesus, His disciples assumed they were an annoyance and chased them away (Matt. 19:13-15). But  Jesus said that in order to enter His Kingdom, peoples must approach God as a child.
    Christian often accept the adage  "the bigger the better." We measure success by the number of peoples involved in the ministry.
We seek spectacular display of God' power. We must learn to view success as God is interested in the heart is pleased with obedience.

FIND YOURSELF IN ME

If your first concern is to look after yourself, you'll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you'll find both yourself and me.
Matthew 10:39

My Kingdom is not always logical, but it is always true. It would seem logical that if you wanted to find yourself you'd go looking for all the things that would make you happy, whether it hurt someone else or not. But My way is exactly opposite.
To find yourself, forget about yourself. Take your mind totally off of you and look to Me instead. Care for others more than yourself.
Let Me lead you along all the surprising trails and across the uncharted oceans of My love. Keep your heart tuned into My channel, and you'll be shocked one day to look up and realize that not only have you found Me, but you have found yourself the one you were created to be!

His Indescribable gift

Every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures not the field are mine. . .  the world is mine, and all that is in it.
Psalm 50:10-12

The earth is mine, and I created everything in it. I personally made every single atom in the universe! And I own everything even things you think you own.
    The reason I ask you to give your time and money to Me is that it proves to both of us that you love Me more than you love what I can give you. I know what your priorities are by how you spent your time and money. Do you know what comes first in your life?
    The good news for you is that I love you, and I will take care of you. You don't need to worry about going broke. Your Father owns everything!
   Christ's gift of salvation tells us that joyful giving involves more than smile on the face. Real joy is deeper that. It involves the pleasure of doing God's will and its delights in the success of another. Real joy can accompany any circumstances no matter how difficult.
    Though our redemption came at such painful price, God was pleased to arrange it. And Christ accomplished it with joy. How can we, who have received so much from Christ, be anything  but cheerful givers?
      For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich. Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! (2 Cor. 8:9;9:15).

I WANT YOU TO MEET MY FRIENDS

If one fails down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!
ecclesiastes 4:18

Just a word of advice makes good friends. I've designed human to need each other. No one is strong enough to succeed on his own. Even professional athletes have managers and agents. Needing friends doesn't make you weak; it just makes you human.
    You can tell good friends by how they treat you when you fail down to life. Do your present friends ditch you in bad times? Then you need new friends.
    A church is a a place where My family comes together to love Me and to love each other. A person who truly loves Me will stick with you when you run into tough times. In fact, I have some incredible new friends I want you to meet. And they need you just as much as you need them! Come and got a new friend. Believing in grace is one thing, Living it is another.

" LIVING SACRIFICE "

  "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer 

your bodies as living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God this is 

your spiritual act of worship."                     Roman 12:1

   What immediately comes to mind when you hear the word "sacrifice"? Article in National Geographic magazine about bloody offerings in Aztec temples? The screaming run red with lamb's outside the temple of Jerusalem? Whatever comes to mind, it's probably not a pretty picture. But sacrifice is what God asking of us. "living sacrifice." Now that tickles my imagination. I picture myself on an altar, and as soon God strikes the match to light the flames of some fiery ordeal, I do what any living sacrifice would do. I crawl off the altar! That is exactly the delimma Christian face. First, we are to present our bodies, that is, gives them in the Lord's service as a freewill offering. And because our sacrifice is a living one, it involves a choice. The gift of salvation dies not require us to become a living one, it involve a choice. The gift of salvation does not require us become a living sacrifice we are not forced into the altar we are not coerced to stay on that altar. It is a choice we make out of love. Speaking of Love this valentines day. Have you ever notice how  newlyweds can't do enough for each other. He bring her flowers she gives him loving cards, this take the necessary time to express their love fir each other. Do you feel that this way still work about in your relationship with God?

  In Roman 12 Pual instruct the believer to becomes so inlove with Jesus Christ that they walk about as. Living Sacrifice dedicated to him. In the book of revelation there is a warning to the believer at Ephesus they were falling in short in their passion for him. But when christ gives diagnose, he also provide a prescription. He tells the Ephesian to remember when they were excited and devoted to him. He exhort them to repent and return to their first love. Worshipping and serving him as they did in the beginning.

    A day of love, a married couple who has lost the feeling of their first love can rekindle their passion by spending quality of time reading books from Amazon.com  telling story, sharing their goals, talking anout feeling or praying together, you can rekindle the spark of intimacy of love. By daily spending time with him. And for me i rekindle my intimacy playing guitar and we sing together to the Lord.

   If presenting yourself as a living sacrifice seems downright distasteful, if you find youself trying to devise away of serving God that seems more agreeable to your comforts, remember this Jesus sacrifice evrything for you. Please don't argue with the Lord about how heavily we strokes the fire of your trial. Just get back up on the altar. It's your spiritual worship! Here's my written composition a song 

Title:      "A living Sacrifice"

 Chorus :

 A Living Sacrifice we must be holy and unblemished acceptable to him the perfect will of God.(3x)

 Verse 1:

 As we lift our hand heart together

 all hands is up

we surrender our life entirely to him

no partial sacrifice

 in our live our offering shall be whole hearted

Bridge: 

 Our God the redeemer the son of man

 Its the Lord and loving mercy that we are not consume!

 Verse 2:

 Our strength and hope comes from you 

 it was no longer of my own in him i belong I lay down all my life

 as a living sacrifice

        

Believing God's Love

And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in God, and God in Him.
1 JOHN 4:16

THE GREATEST TRUTH IN ALL OF SCRIPTURE IS THIS: God is Love. Understanding this in its full dimensions will set you free to enjoy all that is yours as a Christian. But  you must accept that God loves you. If you grew up experiencing unconditional love in your family, this may not be difficult for you. However, if your early year were void of love, this truth may be hard to accept. God loves you, not because you deserve His love, but because His nature is love. The only way He will ever relate to you is in love. His love for you hives you an inherent worth that nothing can diminish.
    If you cannot accept the truth that God loves you you will be limited in how you can relate to Him. When He discipline you, you will not take it as an expression of his His love. Rather, you may resent Him. When God says no to a request that is less than His best for you, you will conclude that He doesn't care about you. Without a clear understanding and acceptance of God's love for you, you will be disoriented to Him and to what He wants to Robin your life. If you will accept God's love, however, you will be able to return love to God as well as to others (1John 4: 19).
     Are you experiencing the profound sense of joy and security that comes from knowing you are clearly loved by God? Being assured if God's love for you sets you free to enjoy the numerous expressions of love He showers upon each day.

LOVE: Putting Your Brother First

Let no one seek his own, but each one the other's well-being.
1 Corinthians 19:24

As a Christian you are obliged to view your action in light of how they will affect other Christian. You will discover God's will for your life when you consider His activity in the lives of others. This goes contrary to worldly thinking. The world encourages  you to live your own life, taking care of your own needs and wants first. Sin promotes independence. It isolates you from other and separate you from those you could help or who could encourage you. Gos design you for interdependence
    Whenever you meet another Christian. You come face to face with Christ (John 13:20). There ought to be a deep respect within you as you encounter other lives guided by the Holy Spirit. Do not live as if you no responsibility toward your Christian brother or sister. God hold you accountable for how you relate to them. Don't revel in your "freedom in Christ"' to the point that you neglect your responsibility toward others (Rom.14:15). Paul celebrated his freedom in Christ, but he keenly sensitive  to what might cause other Christian harm (1Cor.8:13). He was aware that his sin could not take place in isolation but could bring pain to many others (1 Cor. 5:6).
     You have a responsibility to live in such a way that you to not hurt others. You must deny yourself and allow the Holy Spirit to put to death your natural inclination to be self-centered. As long as you focus on yourself,byou will be oblivious to the needs of others. Ask God to free you from selfishness so that your life is free to bless others.

Love, Assumes the Best

Love. . .  bear all things believes all things, hopes all things, endure all thing.
1 CORINTHIANS 13:7

Love has no limits. Love never says, "You've gone too far I can't love you now." All things" means everything is included. Christlike love leaves no doubts in the mind of another that you will continue to love steadfastly. Do those close to you know that they can fail and do foolish things, yet you will not fatter in your love for them, holding nothing against them?
    Love assumes the best about others. If someone inadvertently offends you, choose to believe the offense was unintentionally. If a positive light can be shed on a difficult encounter, you grasp it. If someone continually provokes you, you "endure all things." You never lose hope in the ones you love. You practice the same unconditional love toward others that Christ gives to you.
    Paul said that he was nothing if he had the faith to move mountains, the tongue of an Angel, and the gift of prophecy to understand all mysteries, yet did not have God's love. It is unacceptable to say, "Well, I just can't love people that way!" When God loves people through you, this is the only kind of love He has! Read 1 Corinthians 13 with gratitude that God has already expressed this complete and selfless love to you. Pray and ask Him to express it through you now, to others.

MY SON'S LOVE IS A LIFEBOAT

I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life.
JOHN 6:47

Long ago, a huge British ship called the Titanic was hit by an iceberg on its voyage. The Titanic was considered man's unsinkable masterpiece, and yet it sank. Hundred of lives were lost, drowned  in the icy sea, because the ship was not prepared for the emergency. There were not enough life jackets or lifeboats for everyone aboard.
Everyone will face death sometimes, but I have a life jacket for you. It is My truth. I have a lifeboat for you it is the mercy and love of Jesus Christ. I will not make you put on the life jacket. I will not make you climb into the boat. But I have prepared them for you.
If you will wear the life jacket of My truth and climb into the lifeboat of My Son's mercy, you will live come on. Get into the boat!

OUT OF SLIMY PIT

He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and more; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.
PSALM 40:2

Long Ago David Said that God lifted him out a of slimy pit and set his feet on a solid rock. Do you think David was speaking figuratively or did God actually lift him out of it? In Israel you still find a few areas where there are slimy pit, usually composed of petroleum mixed with unstable soil.
    The prophet Jeremiah had his own pit experience when he was thrown into by King Zedekiah. There he was left to die a slow death until a servant of the king rescued him. A similar pit, which was a teardrop-escape shape-proof prison, existed at the House of Caiaphas in Jerusalem. Prisoners were lowered into this pit by ropes and could never get out.
     The pit that David reffered to could be metaphorical pit. We say someone is in the "pit of depression. " Some of the things that drive us into the pit are not because of our doing. We may suffer from an illness, lose our jobs, or be deserted by our spouse.
     And sometimes we figure the pit ourselves. Drug, alcohol, or sexual addictions can become prisons that can hold anyone as fast as any maximum security prison in the world can.
    But ultimately, it doesn't matter how you got in the pit as much as who can get you out of it. Where is God? No matter how deep your pit, His hand can reach down to lift you up. No dungeon or pit is deep enough to shut out the presence of God. No darkness can overwhelm the light of His presence.
     Sometimes God let's you wait until you can call on him for deliverance so that you know it was Him not your ingenuity,or connection that freed you. When you know where you have been and who delivered you from the dsrkness you can appreciate your wonderful Rescuer and Savior.

POWER OF CONVICTION

"Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?""
Acts 2:37

The Christian is called to bear fruit, If there is to be fruit, seed must be sworn. For the practical christian life,  the seed is the word.
    First of all, the word must find its way into the hearts of men;' and only as man mediates upon the word will he find power for the practical christian life.
   "But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditates  day and night. And he shall be like trees planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper" (Psalm 1:2,3).
   These two versed describe the basis for a fruitful christian life meditation daily upon the word of God. Note the results.
First, a tree planted by the rivers of water will never dry up but will constantly be growing.
Second, as the season for fruit-bearing come, there will be fruit.
Third, "his leaf shall not wither" (the leaf is essential for further growth).
Fourth, there is the all-inclusive promise, "whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."
He lead us how to conduct personal devotions. As food for the physical body is essential for life and strength, so the Word is essential for spiritual vigor and conviction of sin, regeneration of soul, faith.
Psalm 62:11 says that all power belongs unto God, but as the children of God,we are. Heirs of God, joint heir with Christ, and have access to the power of God in our life. " Is not my word like as a fire? Saith the Lord; and like a hammer  that breaketh the rock in pieces?" (Jer.23:29), So then, it is through the Word of God that power is manifest.
Paul admonished Timothy to preach the Word, Men's words fail as so many burnt embers on the hearts of men. They do not bring conviction. But something almost mystical is seen about God's Word. For when it is given, men are convicted of sin God says in Romans 3:23. "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." In Romans 6:23 He says: "For the wages of sin us death." These words prick the hearts of men. Were I to say it in my own words, or as something coming from me, men would not be convicted.

EXPLANATIONS

"Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you, I will sustain you and I will rescue you."
Isaiah 46:4

Warren Wiesbe once said, "Nothing is harder to heal than a broken heart shattered by experiences  that seem so meaningless. But God's people live on His promises."
    A grocery list of biblical reasons explaining the why and wherefores behind suffering doesn't always help when you're hurting. What does help are the promises of God. Even though God's promises are usually devoid of standard explanation and don't always detail the blueprint behind His plan, they do point to the loving character of our good and kind Lord.
   Take Isaiah 46:4 Even for someone bent over with old age and arthritis, God's explanation is simple and powerful, "I am he, I am he who will sustain you." God wants us to understand  that He alone is the source of help and hope. God owes us no explanations. He did enough explaining on the cross to show that His love is sufficient to meet every need.
   Look again at our verse for the day. In one short sentence, God promises that He will rescue, carry, and sustain you. How? At least six times, God uses the personal pronoun to point to Himself His promises are signed, sealed, and delivered on the basis of who He is. And He is faithful. He is loving. He rescue you and carries you. It's a promise.
   Lord, I don't survive because You roll out in front of me the blueprint behind my painful experiences. I don't live on reasons why. I lean in Your loving faithfulness. This will be enough.

THE PERFECT PHOTOGRAPH OF MAN

those who serve must serve with strength that God gives them, so that in all things praise may be given to God through Jesus Christ, to whom belong glory and power forever and ever Amen.
1 Peter 4 : 11

History, biography, and fiction do not gives a true photograph of man; they are records of men as seen by their fellows, but the inner man is not fully made great strides in recent years, but the camera does not reveal "the hidden man of the heart." There are secret within which neither friend nor enemy can fully discover. In fact, man is not fully acquainted with himself. Only in the Bible does a man see himself with every secret thing exposed to the eyes of Omniscience. Nothing is hidden from the searchlight of the Bible. It brings the holiest of men to self-debasement. Great soul like Moses, David, Habakkuk, Daniel, John, and Paul are stripped of every vestige of self a righteousness in the presence of the revealing light of Scripture.
    In Bible photography nothing is touched up. Blemishes are not removed but revealed. The writer of the Bible do not escape the exposure of their own sins. The divine Photographer does not "touch up" these men and omit the records of their shortcomings. It is recorded of Noah that he got drunk, that Abraham told a lie, that Moses lost his temper, that David committed murder and adultery, that Peter and swore, and that Paul quarrelled with his best friend. Had men written the records of such lofty characters, their faults would not have been recorded.
     It is this supernatural power in the Bible that convicts men of sin, compelling them to cry out, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner." The sacred books of the ancient religious have no such power.

"Eager Hearers"

 Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the nect day, spoke to them and Continued his message until midnight,"

 ACTs 20:7

     Today's passage may cover more than a year's time in Paul's ministry. We know he had intended to remain in Ephesus until pentecost. (1 Cor.16:8), probably of A.D. 55, though the unrest in Ephesus may have accelerated his departure. By the end of the passage, Pentecost of A.D. 56 is approaching (V.16). In summary form, Luke traces the apostle's travels around the Aegean, pausing only to recount in detail one remarkable incident that he himself witnessed. Realizing that his lengthy and fruitful ministry in Ephesus is at an end, Paul bids the church there a fond farewell. Then, following the Spirit's guidance (19:2), he travels to Troas (2 Cor.2:12); through Macedonia, where he encourages the believes but suffers "conflicts" and "fear" over sins in the corinthian church (2Cor.7:5-6); and finally on to Corinth, where he stays three months. But the Jews there have not forgotten Paul, and as he is about to sail for Jerusalem, he learn of a plot against him. Thus, he changes his plan and, with several companins for protection, returns through Macedonia, receiving gifts for the church in Jerusalem (2Cor.8:2-3). Paul and Luke remain in Philippi briefly, perhaps to observe Passover, while the others go ahead to troas. The party reunites there and stays seven days.

      Paul had not foundec the church at troas, but when the believers gather for wordhip on the first day of the week ( the first Nes Testament reference to sunday worship), he joins them and preaches long into the night. The christians rejoice at this "extraordinary opportunity to receive instruction from an apostle," according to Dr. Simon Kistemarker. Yet the hour is late and the many lamps in the room make for warm conditions. Thus a young man named Eutychus, sitting on a windowsill, dozes off and falls three stories to his death. Luke, a physician, can verify he is dead. But Paul, rushing to Eutychus' body, embraces him and proclaims him to be alive, which leaves the church "not a little comforted." Thus like Elijah, Elisha, Jesus, and peter before him, Paul is used by God to raise a person from death.

       Paul remains with the Christians of Trias through the night, celebrating the Lord's Supper with them and exhorting them till daybreak. Then he and his companion depart, they by ship and he, for unexplained reasons, by foot, to continue on toward Jerusalem.

      The belivers of Troas were willing to sit late into the night in a warm, crowded room to hear the preaching of the apostle Paul. Yet we often struggle to sit through a half-hour sermon, even in airconditioned comfort. Ask God to help you rejoice in the blessing of the Word preached. And pray that your pastor will preach it faithfully.

        

THE PLAN BEHIND THE CROSS

"Indeed Herod's and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen."
ACTS 4:27-28

Satan clearly played the leading role in instigating the Crucifixion. He entered the heart of Judas Iscariot, the betrayed of Jesus. Satan sponsored evil was working in the hearts of the Jewish mob who clamored for Jesus' crucifixion. The Devil puffed up Pilate with pride and intimidated him with fear so that he would condemn an innocent man in order to gain political popularity. Finally, Satan-sponsored sin provided the cruel soldiers to ridicule Jesus with spit and slap in the face.
      And how did the early Christian view it all? They praised God that the men responsible for Christ's death had only done what divine  power and will had decided beforehand should happen. In his most daring attempt to frustrate the plan of God, Satan cut his own throat and performed the deed that was God's provision for man's redemption.
     Suppose God the Father had taken the view many modern Christians take the view that days that anything Satan wants must be bad for God's people? It's the same view implies that if Satan wants one thing to happen, God must want the exact opposite to happen. The result? God would have canceled the Crucifixion. If God had done that, none of us would be saved!
      The truth is, Satan and God mat want the exact same event to take place but for different reasons. Satan's motive in Jesus'  crucifixion was rebellion; God's motive was love and mercy.
      Lord, I realize that although Satan was a secondary cause behind the Cross, it was the Father who ultimately willed it and allowed the Devil to carry it out. It's a mystery. . . and I praise You for Your mysterious ways. . . We have salvation because of them!