My Life’s in Good Hands

Luke 12:6-7
“Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”


Who rules your life?

Have you ever seen those bumper stickers that say, “God is my co-pilot?” If you want God to be in total control of your life, how can he just be the “co” pilot? Shouldn’t he be the Pilot? Watch lava sometime on T.V. As it flows it oozes into the smallest cracks and crevices of the earth. That’s the way our lives should be with God. Surrendering every crack and crevice of our life to God is hard, but that is what he asks us to do.

God knows you better than you know yourself. In Psalm 139:2-3 it says “You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar…you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word comes out of my mouth, you know it completely.” Yep! God can read your mind! And He isn’t even a fortuneteller with a crystal ball!

Consider these words from Psalm 139:6-7: “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.” God knows everywhere you go and everything you feel! God is closer than your shadow!

Look at Joseph in Genesis 37-47. He was just a teenager when his brothers sold him into slavery. In Egypt, one bad thing after another happened to him, but he continued to trust God because he understood that God was in control of his life. Eventually, he became the second most powerful man in Egypt. Check out how God blessed Joseph for trusting in Him!

Give God every crevice in your life: your friends, your music, the movies you watch, the books and magazines you read, your parents, the places you hang out, and your future. In Psalm 139:13 it says that he knit you together in your mother’s womb and his eyes saw your unformed body. Doesn’t it make sense to let the person that made you and intricately knows you have control of your destiny?

The truth is, even if we don’t yield our lives to him, he’s in control anyway. You might as well give up, wave your white flag and throw your arms in the air. Don’t fool yourself. God controls your life, no matter what you think. Comfort yourself with this reality. Life will be much easier when you quit trying to swim upstream away from God and instead swim along side him! It’s mighty exhausting swimming away from Almighty God!


Today’s Prayer:

Dear Father, I praise you for breathing life into my unformed body. I thank you Lord for caring about the number of sparrows, and for caring so much more about me. If You, O God, can raise people from the dead, then you can certainly take care of me. God, I give you complete control of my life. Help me to walk in your ways. Please accomplish your purpose in my life. Amen.



From: New Wine Skin - Written by Anne Parker

The Awareness of the Call

. . . for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel! — 1 Corinthians 9:16


We are inclined to forget the deeply spiritual and supernatural touch of God. If you are able to tell exactly where you were when you received the call of God and can explain all about it, I question whether you have truly been called. The call of God does not come like that; it is much more supernatural. The realization of the call in a person’s life may come like a clap of thunder or it may dawn gradually. But however quickly or slowly this awareness comes, it is always accompanied with an undercurrent of the supernatural— something that is inexpressible and produces a "glow." At any moment the sudden awareness of this incalculable, supernatural, surprising call that has taken hold of your life may break through— "I chose you . . ." ( John 15:16 ). The call of God has nothing to do with salvation and sanctification. You are not called to preach the gospel because you are sanctified; the call to preach the gospel is infinitely different. Paul describes it as a compulsion that was placed upon him.

If you have ignored, and thereby removed, the great supernatural call of God in your life, take a review of your circumstances. See where you have put your own ideas of service or your particular abilities ahead of the call of God. Paul said, ". . . woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!" He had become aware of the call of God, and his compulsion to "preach the gospel" was so strong that nothing else was any longer even a competitor for his strength.

If a man or woman is called of God, it doesn’t matter how difficult the circumstances may be. God orchestrates every force at work for His purpose in the end. If you will agree with God’s purpose, He will bring not only your conscious level but also all the deeper levels of your life, which you yourself cannot reach, into perfect harmony.



From: RBC - Utmost For His Highest

Six Hours One Friday

“He really was the Son of God!”
Matthew 27:54

To the casual observer the six hours are mundane…

God is on a cross. The creator of the universe is being executed.

Spit and blood are caked on his cheeks, and his lips are cracked and swollen. Thorns rip his scalp. His lungs scream with pain. His legs knot with cramps. Taut nerves threaten to snap as pain twangs her morbid melody. Yet, death is not ready. And there is no one to save him, for he is sacrificing himself.

It is no normal six hours…it is no normal Friday.

Let me ask you a question: What do you do with this day in history? What do you do with its claims?

If it really happened…if God did commandeer his own crucifixion…if he did turn his back on his own son…those six hours were no normal six hours. They were the most critical hours is history.



From: Max Lucado

How Many Angels Can Stand on the Head of a Pin?

And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man."
John 1: 51

Today is a little-known feast day on the Christian calendar: the feast of the Archangels. This feast day originated in eastern Christendom before making its way onto the western calendar. This points to a commonly cited difference between East and West: eastern Christians often focus on the unseen supernatural or mystical aspects of the faith more so than their western brothers and sisters.

Modern westerners, immersed in a culture that prizes concrete, scientific observation, are often uncomfortable with talk of angels or miracles. Some modern scholars are so uncomfortable with the spiritual events in the Bible they’ve dedicated their careers to seeking a practical explanation for every single verse. (They’ve yet to succeed).

Of course, being “spiritual” doesn’t necessarily mean you are wiser or holier. There are plenty of misguided individuals in the world who claim to tap into the spiritual realm. In Finding Calcutta, Professor Mary Poplin echoes Paul’s words to the Ephesians when she points out “spiritual is not synonymous with good; spiritual forces may be good or evil, healthy or destructive.”

So what can God’s Word, our most trusted source, teach us about angels and the spiritual realm? While we can’t cover everything here, let’s take a closer look at two angels specifically named in Scripture: Michael and Gabriel

Michael: The name “Michael” means “Who is like God?” We first meet Michael in the Old Testament book of Daniel where he is called “one of the chief princes” (Dan 10: 13) and is identified as a protector of God’s people (Dan. 12: 1). Some scholars believe Michael was the angel who stood between the Israelites and the Egyptians in the parting of the Red Sea. We later see him in the book of Revelation as a warrior who commands an angelic army in battle against Satan and other evil spirits (Revelation 12: 7-9). Michael’s mightiness mirrors God’s strength and justice.

Gabriel: The name Gabriel means “Strength of God.” Scriptures reveal him to be a messenger of God who consistently played a key role in announcing the coming of the Messiah. Like Michael, he first appears in the book of Daniel where he predicts the coming of Christ (Dan 8: 16 – 26). In the New Testament, Gabriel appears to the priest, Zechariah, informing him that he and Elizabeth will miraculously conceive John the Baptist. (Luke 1: 19). But his most famous appearance is to the young, virgin Mary of Nazareth to deliver one of the greatest messages in human history:

And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there will be no end. (Luke 1: 31 0 33)

Some theologians believe Gabriel was also the angel who visited Joseph in a dream, who brought ”glad tidings of great joy” to the shepherds on Christmas, and who later warned Mary and Joseph about Herod’s terrible decree.

Beyond these two special angels we read of countless unnamed angels throughout Scripture -- protecting the Israelites, singing on Christmas night, comforting Jesus before His agony, and accompanying our Lord on his return at the end of time.

What can we learn from these biblical accounts? Well, we’ll probably never have the answer to the century-old debate, “How many angels can stand on the head of a pin?” but we do know:

1. There is a spiritual realm, and much of God’s plans for heaven and earth unfold beyond our five senses. Truly, "no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" (1 Cor 2: 9).
2. God loves us so much that at certain times He employs his heavenly court to come to our aide.
3. Evil spiritual beings exist – some of them fallen angels like we read in Revelation - and we must be careful to focus our lives on God and His grace to avoid the influence of evil.

Intersecting Faith & Life: You and I are definitely not angels, but we are called to do God’s work here on earth. Be someone’s “Michael” this week by defending or protecting them. Be someone’s “Gabriel” by sharing the good news of the Gospel.




From: CrossWalk Devotionals

THE BROOK DRIED UP

“And it came to pass after a while, that the book dried up, because there had been no rain.” 1 Kings 17:7

I am continually amazed at the leading and working of the Holy Spirit from day to day. Elijah had just spoken to Ahab that there would be no dew or rain for years. Then the Lord told him to go to the brook Cherith, where he would have water from the brook, and ravens to feed him each morning and evening. This seems to be an unusual leading by God, but as Elijah obeyed, he saw the hand and provision of the Lord in it all.

How often God deals with us in a similar manner. It is in the “interlude of His leading” that He teaches us the providence of loss, and the mystery of failure. In the awareness of our emptiness see anew the faithfulness of His care and provision. We have all gone through these perplexing experiences, but how blessed to gain through loss and grow in grace as we dare to trust His hand, when we cannot see His way.

After awhile, the brook dried up. Was God failing him? No, He was ready to move Elijah to another place where God was to use him in the lives of two very needy people. Have you experienced the "drying up" of some earthly resource, that, unknown to you, was the “crutch” on which you were leaning for support and care? Suddenly, it dried up. What now? God wants us to realize as never before, our hope, our help, and our strength are in God who made heaven and earth…the ONE who said…“I will never leave you or forsake you.”

During this “quiet time of trusting God,” Elijah’s faith was strengthened, his concept of God was enlarged, and he was being prepared by God for greater things. When the time came, God said, “Go at once to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there. I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food.” But who was this woman? She was one who had but a handful of meal and a little oil in a cruse. She was going to use this meager food to prepare the last meal for her and her son, that they might eat it, and die. THIS is the woman that was to sustain Elijah! And what did Elijah ask of this destitute woman? “Bring me, please, a piece of bread.” If we would have been the woman, we probably would have said, “Are you kidding me? I have only one very small portion of food left for me and my son. We are going to eat that, and then we’re going to die!”

Elijah’s expectation was in God! When the woman obeyed Elijah and brought him the food, GOD multiplied her resources. “For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry.” GOD has resources that we know nothing of. We must learn the difference between “trusting in the gift” and “trusting in the GIVER.”

The widow’s son becomes ill and dies. Elijah takes him to his upper room and lays him on the bed, and cries out to the Lord. “The Lord heard Elijah’s cry, and the boy’s life returned unto him, and he lived.”

Shrink not from the “interlude of God’s leading.” He is preparing you for greater things for His glory. “Let Him do what seemeth to Him good,” that in “all things He will be magnified.”



From: Literature International Ministry - Ed Powell

Token Worship

The Lord has told us what is good. What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God.
-Micah 6:8 (TEV)

EACH day as I prepare for work, my routine is the same. In fact, I go through the motions with little thought. At times I can't remember performing individual tasks associated with getting ready. Likewise, though I attend church three times a week, tithe regularly, and serve in the church, I sometimes find myself going through the motions when it comes to worship.

In today's suggested reading, we see that God had a complaint against the people of Israel. They had rejected God's covenant and forgotten what God had done for them; they offered business-as-usual worship. They brought gifts and offerings with insincere and ungrateful hearts. But God is not honored by token worship.

Might God have a similar complaint against me? At times my prayers are shallow and repetitive, my mind is preoccupied with the events of the day, and my tithes and offerings are brought with an unappreciative heart. Am I guilty of token worship? After all, God is concerned with our hearts, our attitudes, and our living "in humble fellowship with our God."


Prayer
Dear God, forgive our shallow acts of worship. Help us to prepare our minds and hearts before we enter worship so that we come before you "in spirit and in truth." (See John 4:23.) Amen.



From: UpperRoom Devotionals - Terry Thomas Bowman