Relationships Are Worth the Effort
Excellence in every area of life means relationships, too! Most of us know that excellence doesn’t come through shortcuts or along the path of least resistance. By its nature, quality requires exacting standards and attention to detail. So premium products cost more. More has been invested in them, so their value goes up. You understand that about your company and the product or service. Do you understand the same is true with relationships? A friendship maintained over time is costly. Not only does it take effort just to keep up with someone when both of you are moving around in your first few years of your careers but it also requires even more to deal with personality quirks, misunderstandings, and slights. Lacking the willingness to pay attention and to invest emotional energy, friends become mere acquaintances – and eventually become strangers all over again. Ever wonder why Scripture represents the church as the family of God? Why it pictures its members as sisters and brothers to one another? Maybe your cynical response is to say it is because we are so much like children fussing in the back seat in the family car. Granting that, the deeper truth is that we belong to one another in a significant way and are expected to look out for one another in a pinch, to take up for one another when the neighborhood bully (i.e., Satan) comes calling with the sinister intent of doing real harm to one of us. The most intimate of human relationships is the one between husbands and wives in our marital covenants. With sociologists telling us that about half of all first marriages are failing, something must be wrong with our thinking. Where is the “excellence” we are building into our roles as mates and parents? Research tells us that “till death do us part” has been laid aside as an archaic convention in wedding ceremonies of late. In its place are things like “for as long as our love shall last” or “until our time together is over.” How’s that for being open-ended? For leaving a way out? For some people, what they call “love” doesn’t last into the third month. Their “time together is hardly enough to unpack. “Make it easy on yourself” seems to be the rule of thumb for too many of us. So we are shallow in our faith, careless about our character, and weak in our commitments. We betray our spiritual potential. We abandon the ethical path. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive the one who offends you. Since the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive each other. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts (Colossians 3:13-15 NLT). Don’t forsake your highest ideals. True enough, you might still fall short of some worthy goals. But you will never achieve them on the path of minimal effort. About the author: Rubel Shelly preached for decades, been a professor of medical ethics, Bible, and philosophy at multiple universities and a med school. He is currently Professor of Philosophy & Religion at Lipscomb University. He is the author of more than 30 books and hundreds of inspirational articles.
The Expertise and Artistry of God’s Grace
Grace is the mercy and love of God freely shared with us. Grace is also the style, the way in which God shares this mercy and love For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:8-10). Throughout the Bible, the Holy Spirit teaches us that God’s grace has a definite rhythm. God pours out his grace freely on us, and then we respond by living to bless others out of that grace. God’s grace always comes first; our actions are our response to what he has already given us (1 John 4:10). But, what is grace? Grace is the mercy and love of God freely shared with us. Grace is also the style, the way in which God shares this mercy and love. A ballerina displays both an artistic expertise mixed with an emotional flair of performance to bring us a gift of grace. Similarly, but on a grander scale, God gives us what only he can supply (his expertise of grace, mercy, and love), yet he also offers this grace with an emotional flair and beauty that is breathtaking – his beautiful rhythm of grace is both the gift and how he presents it to us. This combination of love and mercy first, then our response, along with both the expertise and the artistry of grace, make up God’s incredible rhythm of grace. This rhythm is displayed first in his creation, yet throughout human history, he re-displays this rhythm again and again. Listen to how James describes it in today’s video message: If you can’t see the video, and you sure don’t want to miss it, view it online. For additional ideas to consider and some things to discuss with others, we encourage you to look at the Study Guide. The environment where each of us was raised impacts our approach to grace. However, we must not define ourselves by our problematic pasts, our previous painful relationships, or our current difficult circumstances. We must choose to let God define grace for us. We must allow God to deliver grace with his expertise as he pours mercy and overflows love into our lives. We must allow God to display his artistry in grace as he reveals his beauty in creation, his word, his people, and especially, in his Son. When we allow God to exercise both his expertise and artistry in grace, our lives can be re-written, begun fresh, and re-defined by his beautiful rhythm of grace. But, what does that mean for us? Can we actually discover this rhythm? Is God’s grace accessible to us personally? Can mercy, love, and beauty re-write our story? Can the rhythm of grace add depth and meaning to the beauty already woven into our lives? We certainly believe so. We hope you will choose to join us in seeking and celebrating this grace together! Until next time, let’s stay the course and keep seeking lasting truth about God, life, and the meaning of our journey! About the author: In this series, James Nored and Phil Ware partner two pioneering ministries providing resources to reach coming generations. James is a minister, Executive Director of Next Generation for Christ, and author of the Story of Redemption Film Series, filmed in the Israel, U.S., and around the world. This series is designed to lead seekers to faith and strengthen the faith of believers. Divided into 5-6 minute video segments, it is great to use with social media, small groups, sermon series, families, and friends. Phil is President of Heartlight, Inc., a preacher for 40 years, author of five books along with hundreds of articles & 11 years of daily devotionals, coach for churches in transition, and a resource for missionary renewal. Phil’s verseoftheday.com devotionals are read by hundreds of thousands every day.
Lord, Change Us. Change Me!
Has God really grabbed your heart enough to change your life? God said, “I will also put a new spirit in you and change your way of thinking. I will take out the heart of stone from your body and give you a tender, human heart. (Ezekiel 36:26 ERV) Lord, change us. Change me. How can I remain the same when I’ve seen what I’ve seen and heard what I’ve heard and experienced what I’ve experienced. I cannot remain the same. I am not the same person. You have changed me. You are working in me and around me to make me more like You. Lord, change us. Change me. I have heard about children being neglected, abused, kidnapped, ignored, aborted and discarded. Because I have heard these stories I must change. I scan the channels on my television, and I see the faces of children starving to death in a land far away. I hear of programs designed to help these children, your children, and help is being given. I want to do what I can to make sure they are not forgotten. Because I have seen and heard these stories, I have been changed. Lord, change us. Change me. I heard that crime continues to rise. Robberies. Home invasions. Abductions. Murders. Rapes. Some are considered almost acceptable. Some crimes are too horrendous to mention. Because I know these things I am not the same. I know that families are falling apart. A husband walks away from his wife and his children. A wife tells her children, “I just don’t love your daddy any more.” Somehow that is supposed to help them understand why she does not come home at night. Because I know these things happen, because I know some of these people, I have been changed. Because I have stood with my brothers and sisters and poured out my heart in praise and honor to You, I am not the same. Because I have publicly committed my life to You, I am not the same. Because I have surrendered my heart to You, I have been changed. I am not the same. Lord, change us. Change me. Continue to put these truths in my mind. Put these experiences in my path. Put Your people in my life. Show me what it means to worship You. Continue to convict me that I must continue to change so that I can become more like Your Son. Help us to continue to change until we fully become Your people. Lord, change us. Change me. About the author: Tom Norvell is the author of “A Norvell Note” — Thoughts and reflections on God, life, people, and living as a follower of Jesus. He has ministered with followers of Jesus for four decades and loves Jesus, his family, and those seeking Jesus, passionately.
Today’s Verse – Psalm 86:5
You are forgiving and good, O LORD, abounding in love to all who call on you. —Psalm 86:5 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… Forgiveness is such a sweet blessing. But God does more than forgive! Jesus cleanses and purifies us, then presents us to God as “holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation” (Colossians 1:21-22). God does not grudgingly meter out his love. He does not ration out his forgiveness. He lavishly pours his love upon us, and into us, as we genuinely seek him as our Father (Romans 5:5; 1 John 3:1). So, let’s cry out and ask for God’s forgiveness as we praise the mighty and holy name of The Almighty, confidently knowing that our Father longs to bless us with his overflowing goodness, mercy, and love. My Prayer… O Precious Father, I call to you, wanting you to know how important your love and forgiveness are in my life. Thank you for sending Jesus to show your love for me and pay the debt of my sin. Please help me to live today as your child, shaped to be like Jesus, and may others see my joy and my passion for you as I seek to live for your glory. In the name of my Savior, Jesus, I pray. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
The ARC of My Grace
Note from Jesus Dear Child of God, Many people in your world view My ministry as little more than a traveling miracle show. Many people during My time on earth viewed it in the same way. Nevertheless, I refused to be a traveling miracle show. I refused to do things simply to impress people or just to prove to them how powerful I am. If you remember My temptations by Satan in the wilderness, I refused to do miracles for My own good, for My own reputation, or for proof of God’s approval and presence in My ministry. I refused these shortcuts to winning people’s hearts. Instead, I chose to win the hearts of people through My earthly ministry to them and My going to the cross for them — and that includes you! If you look at most of My miracles for people, they follow a similar pattern. You can call it the ARC of grace: Acceptance of the person with his or her needs. Relationship established with that person through kind words or physical touch. Community restored to that person so she or he could re-enter life that is full and good. Remember yesterday? We looked at the time when I cast many demons out of Battalion. Now compare how I did that miracle with the miracles I do in the verses below. Sure, you can talk about My great power if that is your focus. I have power over demons. I have power over disease. I have power over death. And yes, you can focus on My power — but that is only part of the point I want you to grasp today. Today’s point is as simple as it is personal; My love and My power are personal. I have the power to restore you! Yes, people — the crowd, the many, the lost — all matter to Me. Each person matters to Me — the hopeless and uncontrollable man called Battalion, the good and influential man named Jairus, and the outcast woman who was considered unclean. Each — let your heart settle on that word — each matters to Me! Each! So My miracle for each of these people follows this ARC of My grace. Notice how the woman was healed in the verses below. She was physically healed as soon as she touched Me. She could have left with her miracle for her physical condition, but how would she have known she was loved and accepted — that she mattered to God even when she was still sick? How would she have known that what she did was no cause for her to be ashamed and no offense to God? How would the community around her have known she was healed and should be welcomed back into daily fellowship in the neighborhood, the market, and the synagogue? She needed the full ARC of my grace — acceptance, relationship, and community — to fully restore her in every way. Now notice Jairus and his dying daughter. Here was a moment for Me to capture the goodwill of many people, especially people of position and influence. Jairus, unlike the woman, had many people surrounding him and supporting him. A miracle for his daughter could have raised My standing in the community. But remember, I didn’t do miracles for Me! I did them because people needed to experience the ARC of My grace! So notice carefully what I did. When Jairus was told that his daughter was dead, I encouraged him to believe. Then I did something that seems crazy to folks who want to make My ministry into a traveling miracle show. I put everyone out of the house so I could go inside and personally minister to Jairus, his wife, and his dead daughter. Notice how personal I was with what I did. I took the girl’s hand — I was willing to become ceremonially unclean when I touched her. I wanted there to be more than just acceptance of Jairus and his family even though he represented a group largely opposed to Me. I wanted to establish physical contact, build a true relationship, with this girl and her family. Finally, after instructing her to get up, I gave the simple command that seems so strangely ordinary: give her something to eat. Let’s have table fellowship and re-establish community and restore the life of this family which was now whole. Dear child of God, please understand something very important. Miracles are only for a moment. Sooner or later each person on earth will run out of miracles to keep their bodies whole and alive! Yes, miracles are very important to you. I get that. But please understand something even more significant: you are more important to Me than miracles. I want you to experience the ARC of My grace and to pass it along to others: Accept others where they are in their messes, agonies, and problems, but don’t leave them there. Establish relationship by being personally involved with them — don’t just throw money at their problems and abandon them. Connect with them through talk and touch to help them know they are loved. Help restore them to community — help them reconnect to life with other people who will walk beside them and include them in the life of My family. As much as you may want a miracle, I can assure you that a miracle is for just a moment in the grand scheme of time. The ARC of grace gives people true life — life that matters now and life that lasts long after miracles no longer matter. Verses to Live Read through this story several times while seeing yourself as different people in the story. Notice how My grace impacts each person in a different way. Now try to share that ARC of grace with others! When Jesus and His disciples crossed the lake, another crowd was waiting to welcome Him. A man made his way through the crowd.
The God Who Believes in You
Where do we turn when no one believes in us… including us? I didn’t like the preacher I sat by on the plane. I know, I know. You’re supposed to like everyone, but this fellow… To begin with, he took the seat next to me. I’d hoped it would stay vacant. The plane was crowded. It was a Sunday afternoon, and I was tired from Sunday morning services. I was speaking that evening in Atlanta and had planned on taking a nap on the flight. But this fellow had other ideas. Though he had been assigned another seat, he took the one next to me since it was closer to the front. And when he took it, he took every inch of it – and then some. Forgive me, but I get a bit territorial about armrests. This guy staked his claim on the one between us and never relinquished his position. Knowing I couldn’t sleep, I figured I’d review my thoughts for the evening lesson, so I opened my Bible. “What ya’ studying there, buddy?” I told him, but he never heard. “The church is lost,” he declared. “Hellbound and heartsick.” Turns out he is an evangelist. He speaks in a different church every weekend. “I wake ’em up,” he growled. “Christians are asleep. They don’t pray. They don’t love. They don’t care.” With that pronouncement, he took on his preaching tone and cadence and started listing all the woes and weaknesses of the church, “Too lazy-uh, too rich-uh, too spoiled-uh, too fat-uh…” The folks around were beginning to listen, and my face was beginning to redden. I shouldn’t have let it bug me, but it did. I’m one of those fellows who never knows what to say at the time but then spends the next week thinking, I wish I’d thought to say that. Well, I’ve spent the last few days thinking about it, and here is what I wish I’d said to the bad news preacher: God’s faithfulness has never depended on the faithfulness of his children. He is faithful even when we aren’t. When we lack courage, he doesn’t. He has made a history out of using people in spite of people. Need an example? The feeding of the five thousand. It’s the only miracle, aside from those of the final week, recorded in all four Gospels. Why did all four writers think it worth repeating? Maybe they knew some preachers like the one I sat next to. Perhaps they wanted to show how God doesn’t give up even when his people do. The day begins with the news of the death of John the Baptist. It continues with the return of the disciples from a short-term missionary journey. Following the disciples are five thousand men and their families. Jesus tries to get away from the crowd by crossing the sea, only to find the crowd waiting for him on the other side. He wanted to mourn in solitude, but instead he was surrounded by people. He wanted to spend time with just the disciples, but instead he got a crowd. He wanted time to think, but instead he had people to face. He spends time teaching them, and then he turns to Philip and inquires, “Where can we buy enough bread for all these people to eat?” (John 6:5). Keep in mind that Philip has been forcing out demons and healing the sick (Mark 6:13). We’d expect him to be optimistic. A bit of faith would be appropriate. After all, he’s just spent several weeks seeing the impossible happen. But how does Philip respond? He sounds like the preacher I met on the plane. He knows the problem, but he has no clue as to the solution. “We would all have to work a month to buy enough food for each person to have only a little piece” (John 6:7). He can cite the stats, but he can’t see how to help. He can crunch the numbers, but he can’t construct the answer. And though the answer to prayer is standing next to him, he doesn’t even pray. Equally disturbing is the silence of the other disciples. Are they optimistic? Read their words, and see for yourself. “No one lives in this place and it is already very late. Send the people away so they can go to the countryside and towns around here to buy themselves something to eat” (Mark 6:35-36). Come on, guys. How about a little faith? “You can feed them, Jesus. No challenge is too great for you. We’ve seen you heal the sick and raise the dead; we know you can feed the crowd.” But that’s not what they said. If faith is a candle, those fellows were in the dark. It never occurred to the disciples to turn the problem over to Jesus. Only Andrew had such a thought, but even his faith was small. “Here is a boy with five loaves of barley bread and two little fish, but that is not enough for so many people” (John 6:9). Andrew, at least, comes to Jesus with an idea. But he doesn’t come with much faith. In fact, one would be hard-pressed to find much faith on the hill that day. Philip was cynical. Andrew was doubtful. The other disciples were negative. The preacher I met on the flight would’ve felt right at home with these guys. Look at them: They aren’t praying, they aren’t believing, they aren’t even seeking a solution. If they are doing anything, they are telling Christ what to do! “Send the people away” (Mark 6:36). A bit bossy, don’t you think? Looks like the disciples are “hell-bound and heartsick.” Looks like they are “too lazy-uh, to rich-uh, too spoiled-uh, too fat-uh.” Let me be clear. I agree with the preacher that the church is weak. When he bemoans the condition of the saints, I could sing the second verse. When he laments the health of many churches, I don’t argue. But when he
Worship Is a Lifestyle
It’s not a Sunday morning deal we make with God! Worship is a Lifestyle, not just a once a week on Sunday deal we make with God! If you will not worship God seven days a week, you will not worship Him on one day a week (A.W. Tozer). To worship is to experience Reality, to touch life. It is to know, to feel to experience the resurrected Christ in the midst of the gathered community. … Worship is our response to the overtures of love from the heart of the Father (Richard Foster). The apostle Paul reminds us that worship is offering ourselves: Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your act of spiritual Worship” (Romans 12:1). Worship is the way we show our love and adoration to God for who God is and what God has done for us. The disciplines of study and prayer, along with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, reveals more of who God really is; thus, it leads to the desire to worship Him daily – not just on one morning a week. Worship is a lifestyle! We don’t start and stop worship to God; we live it daily – 24/7, 365 days a year, for a lifetime. The first Christians disciplined themselves to a daily, worshipful, lifestyle: They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer (Acts 2:42 emphasis added). 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 (Acts 2:46-47). Worship to God for the earliest Christians was a daily lifestyle. No short cuts. No time limits. No restraints. Worship is spiritual focus: Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things… (Colossians 3:2). Right thinking will lead to right focus. When the Word of Christ dwells in our lives, we are able to focus our minds upon God. We put to death all the things that rob our relationship and worship to God. When we focus on being spiritual, we will give attention to good works and worship to God (Matthew 5:16). Worship is praising God in song. The psalmists make clear that singing is an emotion that flows from the heart: Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation (Psalm 95:1). Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music… (Psalm 98:4). Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs (Psalm 100:1-2). Singing to God must not be a meaningless task, but rather an expression of joy that flows from the heart of gratitude toward a God who provides us with grace, mercy, forgiveness, and salvation. When the heart is filled with music that is focused on God, it opens up a worshipful spirit that is engaging and praising. Worship is praising God in prayer. The following is a song of adoration and thanksgiving to God that can be used as a prayer of praise: “Hallelujah! I give thanks to God with everything I’ve got (Psalm 111:1 MSG). This whole psalm (Psalm 111:1-10) is full of adoration and appreciation to God for all He has done and provided. God loves to hear our praise and love for Him. God shows His love to those who love Him (Exodus 20:6). Prayer is an avenue we can use to verbally worship God by telling Him how much we love and appreciate Him. “Prayer is an opportunity and a privilege rather than a burden” (Kenneth Boa). Praying isn’t confined to a Sunday church gathering. Praying is a daily conversation with the Father. Praying is an opportunity to worship a Father who is deeply in love with his children. We worship God and God only. After Jesus was baptized, he went into the desert to be tempted by the devil. This was a test of will, strength, and discipline. Jesus was alone, tired, and hungry. The entire world was put at his feet if he would just bow down to Satan. Without hesitation, Jesus said: Away from me Satan! For it is written: “Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only” (Matthew 4:10). God deserves our total and undivided worship. When God is first, houses, cars, vacations, money or jobs will not be as important and we can resist the idolatry of our age, greed (Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5). God is worthy of all of our adoration, praise, and attention. Each day, he provides us with all the amenities to sustain us in life. He opens up doors for us to experience joy and feel the presence of hope. He gave up his son so that we could have a relationship with him as Father. God is creative. God is generous. God is trustworthy. God is dependable. God is loyal. Our Lord is worthy of our praise (Revelation 5:12). So if we only make a Sunday morning church gathering the totality of our worship, we will set ourselves up to fail Monday through Saturday. God made each day, not just Sunday. Let’s give all our attention to the Inspiring Artist who paints the most beautiful sceneries each moment and provides for us all the resources we need to get us through each day. Praise God. Honor God. Respect God. Revere God. Bow before God. Live for God. About the author: Brian is preaching minister at Central Church in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. He is passionate about preaching the grace of God, the Lordship of Jesus and the indwelling Spirit. Most of all, he believes in preaching Jesus and blogging about practical things that will help believers
More than Falling Dominoes
Is the interconnectedness of our world really such bad news? Recently, a nearby office supply store had a major fire. Since this store was close to where I work, Donna and I had grown very dependent upon it for all of our office supply needs. Over the last few weeks, we’ve been learning just how dependent! On several “duh” occasions, we found ourselves in the parking lot of this store in a rush for a much needed item. We had driven there on “autopilot,” never really engaging our minds. After all, we knew the store was closed because of the fire. Frustrated at our own forgetfulness, angry at our waste of time, and irritated at our inconvenience, we had to stop and think about where we could go to get what we needed. On most of these “duh” visits, we didn’t have time to go to another place. Sitting in the parking lot, we found it way too easy to throw ourselves our own little pity party. Our only consolation was seeing others in the store parking lot with the same exasperated look on their faces as they realized the store was still closed. Meanwhile, the folks most seriously impacted by the fire, the employees, were lost to us in our self-centered perspective. Their loss of income caused them huge problems and then those effects rippled out to their families and to our community. Such is life in an interconnected world! At first glance, this seems to be bad news. However, if we look at this with Christian eyes, we should be greatly encouraged. Our world is interconnected so that one major event impacts whole webs of people. This is true of frustrating and damaging events as well as good and redemptive acts. Rather than cursing the interconnectedness of our world that makes us vulnerable to the bird flu as well as to economic changes thousands of miles away from us, we should rejoice and take strategic action to use this interconnectedness for the Kingdom of God. Our good deeds, our mercy shared with others, our sacrificial help for those in need, and our refusing to return unkindness with unkindness can have a profound impact in the world in which we live. Jesus didn’t have to “get it” – he is the ultimate example of this truth. However, he does want us to “get it”! Strategic redemptive acts can have a profound influence for good on the culture of our community and the people around us. Part of this power is Spirit driven. However, some this influence lies in the incredible power that a good and kind person can have on others. Jesus wants us to resist the cynical and retribution-hungry demons of our fleshly natures. The Lord wants us to live with conviction knowing that our actions matter – not just to him, but also to the world around us. He calls us to believe that we are put where we are to use our influence and our world’s interconnectedness for his goodness! He showed it with his life and said to us with these words: “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its taste, then it cannot be made salty again. Salt is good for nothing, if it loses its salty taste. It must be thrown out and people walk on it.“You are the light that gives light to the world. A city that is built on a hill cannot be hidden. And people don’t hide a light under a bowl. No. People put the light on a lamp table. Then the light shines for all the people in the house. In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that people will see the good things you do. Live so that people will praise your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:13-16 ERV) About the author: Phil Ware has authored 11 years of daily devotionals, including VerseoftheDay.com, read by 500,000 people a day. He works with churches in transition with Interim Ministry Partners and for the past 21+ years, he has been editor and president of HEARTLIGHT Magazine, author of VerseoftheDay.com, God’s Holy Fire (on the Holy Spirit), and aYearwithJesus.com. Phil has also authored four books, daily devotionals on each of the four gospels.
Today’s Verse – Ephesians 4:2
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. —Ephesians 4:2 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… “You mean I have to put up with all this from that person!?” There are those folks in life about whom the saying is true: “They are the grit out of which we are to fashion our pearls.” Our great example in this challenge – “To be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” – is Jesus. Jesus has fashioned many pearls from pretty bad grit. Think of what he had to put up with in his 12 disciples. Remember how the LORD’s patience and kindness helped transform them. His love persevered through so many of their failures, especially failures in his hardest and darkest moments. In the process, however, Jesus’ life of humbleness, gentleness, patience, and love transformed them. Can we dare to do less with those for whom Christ died? Video Commentary… ToGather Worship Guide | More ToGather Videos My Prayer… Please give me strength and patience, O God. I know the Holy Spirit can and will, so I ask for this help because I long to be as loving, gentle, and patient with others as Jesus was with people during his earthly ministry, and you have been with me. So, I pray this in the mighty name of Jesus, my LORD and hero, to become more JESUShaped and live like him. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
A Tale of Two Powers
Note from Jesus Dear Precious Child of God, Two powers — God and Satan — are at war over your eternal destiny. The story below illustrates the different goals of these two powers. No matter how alluring temptation may seem to you, the ultimate goal of the tempter — Satan, the evil deceiver, the devil, the evil one — and all the forces of hell can be seen from the condition of the man called Battalion. When you meet the man identified as Battalion, the forces of evil are literally hell-bent on his destruction. This devastation is Satan’s intent for you. However, the ultimate goal of your Father in heaven is for you to be in your right mind, for you to be learning from Me how to have purpose for your life, and for you to live out that purpose in your daily life. Notice the ways Battalion is described at the beginning of the events recorded in the verses below: He is isolated — actually driven into isolation by the demonic powers that control him. He is filled with destructive power. He is naked. He lives and sleeps in a cemetery — the place of the dead. He is uncontrollable. He has lost his sense of self-identity — he doesn’t even know his real name. He is aware of all of these problems in himself. However, as much as this man is in bondage to demonic powers, notice this one truth: he can still come to Me and fall at My feet despite the power of the demons in him wanting to be rid of Me! I AM more powerful than all of these demons. So notice what I do to bless this man despite the demons trying to use My identity to gain power over Me and send Me away. I deliver him from the demonic powers oppressing him. I return this man to a normal life and a right mind. I welcome the man into My fellowship and friendship. I send the man out on a mission to share his good news and My story of grace. Satan’s goal for you is clear: he wants to do with you what he did with Battalion. He wants to introduce hell on earth into your life. His temptations may look enticing. There may be no apparent signs of Satan’s destructive and evil intent in these temptations — at least not at first. But behind each temptation, there are traps designed to enslave you. I can help you break your bondage to these traps, although you are much better off if you avoid the traps all together! I have a goal for you. I want you to be My disciple. I want you to sit by Me and learn the way of true life from Me. I want to defeat the powers that desire to hold you in bondage and enslave you to self-destruction. I want you in your right mind — in control of your life and your decisions. I want you to find your purpose in Me. I want you to have a positive and influential relationship with your family and friends. But you have to choose Me… you must call out to Me for help… and you must ask Me to take control of your life and be willing for Me to do so! Not everyone will be happy if you choose Me. Some prefer to live out-of-control lives rather than to yield their lives to Me. In addition, the lure for you to go into a life under Satan’s control — to have that uncontrollable power at work in you — is just as destructive as it is strong. You must recognize that you cannot defeat the power of evil on your own. However, I can defeat it. In fact, I have defeated it through My death and resurrection. Do not despair in the face of great evil. Cry out to Me. Trust Me. Follow Me. Learn from Me. Share your story about Me with others. And when you do, you can know this: I will never leave you or forsake you. Verses to Live Notice how the “friends” of Battalion react when he is set free of the demonic spirits. They order Me to leave after I have liberated him and put him in his right mind. They cannot deal with Me. They don’t know what to do with a power they cannot control or understand. So rather than inviting Me into their small little world, they ask Me to leave. What about you? Will you ask Me into your world or order Me to leave? When they [Jesus and His disciples] get to the other side of the lake, in the Gerasene country opposite Galilee, a man from the city is waiting for Jesus when He steps out of the boat. The man is full of demonic spirits. He’s been running around for a long time stark naked, and he’s homeless, sleeping among the dead in a cemetery. This man has on many occasions been tied up and chained and kept under guard, but each time he has broken free and the demonic power has driven him back into remote places away from human contact. Jesus commands the demonic force to leave him. The man looks at Jesus and starts screaming. He falls down in front of Jesus. Possessed Man (shouting): Don’t torment me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God! Why are You here? Jesus (calmly and simply): What’s your name? Possessed Man: Battalion. He says this because an army of demons is inside of him. The demons start begging Jesus not to send them into the bottomless pit. They plead instead to enter into a herd of pigs feeding on a steep hillside near the shore. Jesus gives them permission to do so. Suddenly the man is liberated from the demons, but the pigs — they stampede, squealing down the hill and into the lake where they drown themselves. The