Your Daily Crossroad
Thankfulness
Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.
Tomorrow, we will spend the day eating good things and hopefully, thanking the Lord for each morsel. As Christians, a day like Thanksgiving with its elaborate feasting is a merely a feeble preview of the feast that we will enjoy for eternity in Heaven. It’s a physical picture of the spiritual bounty that awaits us. At some point tomorrow, most of us will declare ourselves ‘stuffed!’ And while we Americans are familiar with physical fullness, there is always a hunger and thirst within us for spiritual fulfillment. We each have a deep desire for our hearts to feel fully valued, loved and loaded with holy purpose. That thirst will at long last be finally and forever satisfied in the person and presence of Jesus Christ.
For Christians, we have that purpose, value and love now, but struggle to fully feel and remember it while still living in this broken world. Our imperfect bodies, struggles with sin, and the suffering of this world drain our souls and send us into a battle to remember who we are and Whose we are. I was struggling to remember this the other day. I was driving along pondering the seemingly endless struggle over my physical insecurities and looked out my window at a gorgeous pink sunset the Lord had laid before me. His voice spoke to my heart and reminded me that I am more beautiful and more wonderfully made than that sunset. And for the moment, the eternal perspective won. But the battle began anew the next morning when I got up to get dressed. Our life here will be full of these small battles between acknowledging our brokenness and remembering our redemption. In heaven, the brokenness will be forever gone and all that will remain is to be filled to the brim with the glory of the Lord.
Don’t let your gratitude tomorrow be short-lived or superficial. Let it be a spiritual reset, putting your heart into a grateful posture so that your actions come out of thankfulness for what the Lord has done in you instead of focused on what remains to be sanctified. When we operate from a grateful heart, our perspective and battle posture will be much improved. If we thank the Lord for all the battles won in the past and for the war that He has already won, we are better prepared to fight discontentment and selfishness. Eat and fellowship tomorrow thanking the Lord for the good things He has laid before you now and the even better things that He has laid in store for you in eternity. He has indeed given us good things and He’s not through yet.
This brought tears to my eyes as I read it this morning. I felt I had to share every bit of it. My prayer today, going into tomorrow and every day after will be, don’t let my gratitude be short lived or superficial. Let it be a spiritual reset, putting my heart into a grateful posture so that my actions come out of thankfulness for what the Lord has done in me instead of focusing on what remains to be sanctified. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. Amen. (Psalm 136:1)
Have a wonderful day in The Lord!
Today’s Reading is Psalm 107
Fame and Humility
And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:8)
Many of us are obsessed with fame—either with being famous ourselves or with following every detail of famous people’s lives. International book or film tours. Late-night show appearances. Millions of followers on Twitter.
In a recent study in the US, researchers ranked the names of famous individuals using a specially developed algorithm that scoured the Internet. Jesus topped the list as the most famous person in history.
Yet Jesus was never concerned about obtaining celebrity status. When He was here on earth, He never sought fame (Matt. 9:30; John 6:15)—although fame found Him all the same as news about Him quickly traveled throughout the region of Galilee (Mark 1:28; Luke 4:37).
Wherever Jesus went, crowds soon gathered. The miracles He performed drew people to Him. But when they tried to make Him a king by force, He slipped away by Himself (John 6:15). United in purpose with His Father, He repeatedly deferred to the Father’s will and timing (4:34; 8:29; 12:23). “He humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8).
Fame was never Jesus’s goal. His purpose was simple. As the Son of God, He humbly, obediently, and voluntarily offered Himself as the sacrifice for our sins.
Today’s Reading is Philippians 2:1-11
Be Still
“Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth” (Psalm 46:10).
I recently read, we are being instructed in this verse to let go, to be quiet, and to be physically & mentally still. For most of us stillness, silence, and serenity are difficult to find. Even when we are able to find it externally, it can still be difficult to cultivate stillness internally. Life is busy and so are our minds!
It is not only tough to make the time to be still; it’s tough to create stillness in our mind and body. The idea of being still goes against what we naturally, and culturally, do. Our inclination is to step on the gas and go full speed ahead, believing that doing more, and having more, makes us more complete. Instead, God is telling us here to hit the brakes and be still. If we are busy being busy, God’s voice can be nearly impossible to hear, but the problem is that many times we view being still with God as inactivity. It is critical to our faith to realize that the more we are deliberately still:
* the better we recognize God’s activity,
* the smaller our issues seem,
* the bigger God appears,
When was the last time you released the pressing issues in your life to God? When was the last time you relaxed in the presence of God? Can you set aside just a few minutes today to “be still” before God, and to listen for His voice?
Have a wonderful day in The Lord!
Today’s Reading is Proverbs 3:5-6
Speak No Guile
For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile. (1 Peter 3:10)
I recently read, In the apostle Peter’s first letter, he told the followers of Jesus, “Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called. . . . For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile. Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it” (1 Peter 3:9–11).
The psalmist David wrote, “Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips” (Ps. 141:3). That’s a great prayer for the beginning of each day and in every situation when we want to strike back with words.
Lord, guard our words today so we may not harm others by what we say. Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. Amen.
May we start each day with this on our lips that we may live by example and lead others to Christ. Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof (Provers 18:21). Be mindful of what you say, you have the power to build up or tear down, what will you choose today.
Have a wonderful day in The Lord!
Today’s Reading is 1 Peter 3:8-12