Month: June 2017

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 13:1-33; Isaiah 9:8-10:4; Luke 24:36-53

Then spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do remember my faults this day. Genesis 41:9

Never underestimate the timing of God. Two years before, Joseph had met Pharaoh’s butler for the first time in prison. Joseph hoped this man would be the means of his escape, but for two years the butler forgot him. Then at just the right time and in just the right place, the butler remembered Joseph. The Lord’s timing is perfect. Into the mind of the butler rushed the memory of Joseph’s interpretation of his dreams, and in a moment Joseph’s long night of trial was over. The same could happen for you today. —Shane Johnson

Through all the changing scenes of life, in trouble and in joy,
The praises of my God shall still, my heart and tongue employ. —Tate and Brady

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 11:1-12:24; Isaiah 8:5-9:7; Luke 24:13-35

And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord, that he did for Israel. Judges 2:7

Yesterday’s blessings are good to ponder and learn from—but we need faith that demonstrates a living hope for the future too. Teaching and essential. But challenging them to seek God and experience Him personally is even more critical. Faith that is based on ancestry will grow cold and sterile. Faith that is based on one’s own relationship with God will be alive. Which faith are you living today? Which faith
will be your children’s experience? —Deborah Manera

I do not want merely to possess a faith,
I want a faith that possesses me. —Charles Kingsley

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 10:1-43; Isaiah 7:1-8:4; Luke 23:47-24:12

And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. Acts 8:26

Following a prolific time of blessing while preaching in the crowded city of Samaria, Philip the evangelist was obedient to Divine direction which took him to a desert wasteland. His time in that place resulted in one soul being saved and baptised. If, in glory, we were to ask Philip, “Was it really worth being in the desert for that experience of being used of God?”, I’m sure the response would be, “I’d have willingly spent all my life in the desert to win one soul!” Do we have the same passion? —Dan Coulson

O teach me what it cost Thee to make a sinner whole,
And teach me Saviour, teach me, the value of one soul. —Lucy Bennett

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 9:1-27; Isaiah 6:1-13; Luke 23:13-46

For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.  Mark 11:23

Mountains are barriers to progress and must be seen here metaphorically as obstacles to the will of God. Whenever we try to make forward progress with the gospel, all sorts of barriers seem to hinder. The only way to remove them is through believing prayer. So our daily challenge is to seriously pray for God’s work to prosper. —Paul Young

Peter, though confined and chained, prayer prevailed and brought him out;
When Elijah prayed, it rained, after three long years of drought. —Newton

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 8:1-35; Isaiah 5:1-30; Luke 22:54-23:12

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. John 14:1

Believing is a matter of one’s heart. The inner part of belief is love. As we view what He has done for us, we love the Lord and believe in Him. The outer part of belief is obedience. If we love the Lord we will obey Him. When we love and obey Him, He abides in us and we experience growth and joy. —Ken Gunnell

When we walk with the Lord, in the light of His Word;
What a glory He sheds on our way! While we do His good will;
He abides with us still, and with all who will trust and obey! —John Henry Sammis

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 7:1-26; Isaiah 3:1-4:6; Luke 22:31-53

But Jesus said, Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. John 12:7 (NKJV)

Mary anointed the Lord’s feet with a costly ointment. Some objected to the waste. Yet, the Lord commended her selfless act of understanding. With the Sabbath approaching she knew there would be no opportunity to prepare His body for burial later. Lazarus and the disciples sat with the Lord and Martha served, but Mary worshipped. All had the same revelation and the same Saviour, but only Mary showed her appreciation. She teaches us that fellowship, service, and knowing God’s Word are not the same as worship fostered in self-abasing love. —W. A. H.

I love Thee, I love Thee Lord, as Thou dost know;
But how much I love Thee, my actions will show. —Author Unknown

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 5:13-6:27; Isaiah 2:1-22; Luke 22:1-30

I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you. Jude 2:1

Albania was once ruled by a notorious dictator. His name, Enver, was set in whitewashed letters, 100 meters high, into a mountainside near Albania’s oldest town. After his death, a disgruntled farmer, angered at a catalogue of broken promises, changed the first two letters around to change the word from “Enver” to “Never”—a message that bad times must never return. How thankful we should be that God’s promises can never be broken. —Brian Powlesland

His oath, His covenant, and blood, support me in the ‘whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way, He then is all my hope and stay. —Edward Mote

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 4:1-5:12; Isaiah 1:1-31; Luke 21:5-38

And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. Exodus 4:2

Moses had been commissioned by God for a daunting task, and immediately began to make excuses. God silenced Moses by asking him: “What is that in your hand?” Moses saw an ordinary shepherd’s staff, but, empowered by God it accomplished mighty acts as the “rod of God”. What ordinary things are you overlooking in your life? In God’s hands, the ordinary has the potential to do the extraordinary! —E. V.

Give of your best to the Master,
Give Him first place in your heart;
Give Him first place in your service,
Consecrate every part. —Howard B. Grose

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 3:1-17; Hosea 11:12-14:9; Luke 20:20-21:4

Beware of the scribes, which desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the markets, and the highest seats in the synagogues, and the chief rooms at feasts; Which devour widows’ houses, and for a shew make long prayers. Luke 20:46-47 

The religious leaders wore long robes, offered long prayers, sounded loud trumpets, sat in high seats and demanded the chief rooms. They did all this because they loved to be seen. Yet, what people saw was not what they really were. They were hypocrites. It was all for a show. The Lord Jesus warned, beware. Beware indeed, for there’s a little Pharisee in all of us. —Rex Trogdon

May the mind of Christ, my Saviour, live in me from day to day,
By His love and pow’r controlling all I do and say. —Kate B. Wilkinson

DAILY READINGS: Joshua 2:1-24; Hosea 10:1-11:11; Luke 20:1-19

And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. Genesis 1:31
And all flesh died. Genesis 7:21
 
God created all things and declared it good. For Him to destroy that which had given Him pleasure shows us His hatred of sin. Then He provided a Saviour, the Lamb of God. The glorious end of the story is this: “And every creature…heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever” (Rev. 5:13). —M. Robins

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing,
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in:
That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin. —Stuart K. Hine