Bubble Trouble

Daily Devotional, January 14, 2011

Bubble Trouble

read›
2 Timothy 3:10-17
All Scripture is inspired
by God and is useful to
teach us what is true and
to make us realize what
is wrong in our lives
(v.16).

The new eco-friendly dish detergent was superconcentrated,
so I squirted much less than usual
into the dishwasher. I cranked the knob and walked
away. Minutes later, I heard a gurgling noise. Suds were
bubbling out of the dishwasher and cascading onto the
floor. After sopping up the mess, I read the label on
the container: “Not for use with automatic dishwashers.
Hand-wash only.” Ugh . . .

Sadly, my approach to life is often the same as my
approach to washing the dishes—I jump right in without
reading the directions. But God’s Word contains the
instructions we need (Leviticus 18:5).

Paul pointed out that the Bible “teaches us to do what
is right” (2 Timothy 3:16). In another letter, he outlined
some of the basics: “Live peacefully with each other.
. . . Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care
of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. . . .
Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all
circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:13-16).

The Bible also makes us “realize what is wrong in our
lives” (2 Timothy 3:16). Since “the Word of God is alive
and powerful” (Hebrews 4:12), it speaks to us when
we’re drooling over the neighbor’s new car . . . you
must not covet. It whispers, you must not steal, when we
could easily exaggerate business expenses. God’s Word
shows us our sin (Romans 7:7).

When I become blind to my sin and when I “forget” how God wants me to
live, His Word reminds me. The more I read the Bible, the more Scripture soaks
into my soul, where it can cleanse my conduct. This is how as Christians we
become “[equipped] . . . to do every good work” (2 Timothy 3:17).
—Jennifer Benson Schuldt

more›
Read Psalm 119:97-104
to see the benefits of
reading God’s Word.
Read Deuteronomy
8:11-14 to learn why it’s
important to read and
remember God’s Word.

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Four Hearts

Daily Devotional, January 13, 2011

Four Hearts

read›
Mark 4:1-20
Still other seeds fell on
fertile soil, and they
sprouted, grew, and
produced a crop that
was thirty, sixty, and
even a hundred times
as much as had been
planted! (v.8).

Theologian C. H. Dodd described Jesus’ parables as
stories that tease us into thought. They provoke us—
shock us even—into deep soul-searching.
The first parable in Mark 4 is a good example. Jesus
compared His preaching mission to a farmer sowing
seed that fell on different types of soil. Jesus’ missional
success depended not on His message (the “seed”), but
on how receptive hearts were to receive it (the “soil”). He
categorized His audience into four heart types:
• The hard heart, where the seed can’t penetrate (Mark
4:4,15). I once asked an author if he would ever consider
Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah. His reply was that there
was nothing that would sway him from his religion. In this
case, Jesus’ message couldn’t even get a hearing.
• The shallow heart, where initial faith is abandoned
because of hardship (vv.5-6,16-17). I knew a girl who
needed to decide whether Jesus or her boyfriend would
be her priority. She returned to her boyfriend, to the
demise of her faith. Her faith wasn’t yet deep enough to
face the costs of discipleship.
• The distracted heart, where the worries, riches, and
pleasures of life compete for our attention (vv.7,18-19).
At one time, this was me. When I came to faith, my life
changed but my old lifestyle of nightclubs and music vied
for allegiance. I gave in and my faith began to wither.
• The attentive heart, where the message is received
and pursued for life (vv.8,20). This heart produces a miraculous harvest of fruit!
Jesus invited His audience to wrestle with this parable and wring out its
meaning (v.9). Failure to do so would prove there was little interest in Him and His
forgiveness (v.12). Jesus’ invitation extends to us today. How open is our heart to
His voice and message? How open is our heart to Him? —Sheridan Voysey

more›
Read Isaiah 53:1.
It seems that God’s
prophets have always
had a hard time being
heard. Read Revelation
3:20 to hear Jesus’
response to an open
heart.

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Temptation

Daily Devotional, January 12, 2011

Into Temptation

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Luke 4:1-13
[Jesus] was tempted by
the devil for forty days
(v.2).

One of the most distressing portions of Scripture is
the part of Luke’s gospel that tells us Jesus “was
led by the Spirit in the wilderness” to be tempted
by the devil (4:1). The Spirit took Jesus into the dark
wilderness? We think of God as the One who keeps
danger at bay, not One who invites us to face difficulties.
But God never promises to steer us clear of temptation
or intense difficulty. Far better, the Spirit promises to go
with us into the mouth of the dragon. God went through
the tumultuous waters of the Red Sea with Israel (Isaiah
43), and God was present with the young Hebrew men
in the fiery furnace (Daniel 3). God was present with
Jesus, and God will be with us.

In the wilderness, Satan’s temptation was a multistep
ploy to get Jesus to go on His own, separating Himself
from the very One who was with Him there. Satan
tempted Jesus to:
• turn stone to bread (providing for Himself rather
than trusting God, v.3).
• worship Satan and gain all Satan’s domain
(grabbing His own kingdom rather than remaining
under God’s rule, v.5).
• hurl Himself off the temple’s pinnacle (taking life
into His own hands rather than simply trusting God’s
goodness, v.9).

With each temptation, however, Jesus answered Satan
with Scripture—rebuking Satan’s words with God’s words. Jesus knew the truth,
and He knew God was with Him even in that vile place.

I have a friend who’s angry at God for not averting suffering and pain at a
particular moment in his life. I believe Jesus was with my friend, however, even
in his pain. If he would trust God’s kind presence, he would discover something
far better than release from his painful circumstances. —Winn Collier

more›
• Psalm 23:3
• 1 Corinthians 10:13
• James 5:11

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Healthy, Wealthy & Wise

Daily Devotional, January 11, 2011

A Healthy Lifestyle

read›
Proverbs 4:20–5:2
So be careful how you
live. Don’t live like fools,
but like those who are
wise (Ephesians 5:15).

Recently, I attended a presentation on heart attack
prevention. The speaker reminded us to make
healthy lifestyle choices that help reduce the risks
of having a heart attack. We were told that not smoking,
eating the right foods, maintaining a proper weight,
reducing and managing stress, and participating in
physical activities can contribute to a healthy heart.
In Proverbs we find some instruction can make us
spiritually healthy (4:23):

Keep your mouth right (Proverbs 4:24). Our Lord
says, “Whatever is in your heart determines what you
say” (Matthew 12:34-37). Our words should be godly (2
Timothy 2:16), wholesome and encouraging (Ephesians
4:29), gracious and attractive (Colossians 4:6). This
means speaking the truth in love (Eph. 4:15).

Keep your eyes right (Proverbs 4:25). The eyes are the
most influential parts of the body. What the eyes see,
the heart wants (Genesis 3:6; Matthew 5:28). Keeping
our eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2) will overcome our
“craving for everything we see” (1 John 2:16).

Keep your ears right (Proverbs 4:20-22, 5:1-2). Listen
carefully to God’s Word. Let God’s Word penetrate deep
into your heart (v.21), and you will live (Proverbs 4:4).
For God’s words are “life to those who find them and
health to a man’s whole body” (v.22 NIV; John 6:68).
Keep your feet right (Proverbs 4:26-27). Be careful
where you walk (Proverbs 4:11-15), with whom you walk (Proverbs 2:20), and
how you walk (Jeremiah 6:16). Walk as Jesus did (1 Peter 2:21; 1 John 2:6), led
by His Spirit (Galatians 5:16,25), in light (1 John 1:7), in love, in obedience (2
John 1:6), and in truth (3 John 1:3-4).

Choose to avoid the risks that lead to spiritual sickness. Use your mouth, eyes,
ears, and feet to pursue a healthy lifestyle in Jesus today. —K.T. Sim

more›
Give me an eagerness
for Your laws rather
than a love for money!
Turn my eyes from
worthless things,
and give me life
through Your Word
(Psalm 119:36-37).

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Good Company

Daily Devotional, January 10, 2011

Good Company

read›
1 John 3:16-19
We think of your faithful
work, your loving deeds
(1 Thessalonians 1:3).

One of the highlights of living in East Africa is
meeting men and women from around
the world who come through the region to
participate in short or long-term missions. Today, for
example, while sitting in a Kampala, Uganda, coffee
shop, I met a young married couple from Charleston,
South Carolina. Amanda and Michael recently moved
to Uganda to help their church build a medical center in
one of the country’s most impoverished areas.

I enjoyed learning about the couple’s work and how
the Lord had led them to leave home and serve in Africa.
Our conversation reminded me that whether in our own
neighborhood or abroad, it’s inspiring to hear about and
spend time with people who have experienced God’s
love and are in turn sharing it with others.
Such individuals strive to live out the essence of
1 John 3 by enthusiastically . . .
• Giving up their lives and comforts in behalf of their
brothers and sisters around the world (v.16).
• Demonstrating God’s love by sharing their money
and resources with the poor—showing compassion to
brothers and sisters in need (v.17).
• Demonstrating love through their actions rather than
merely professing love to others (v.18).
• Letting their behavior convey God’s truth (v.19).

In his bestselling book Today Matters, John C. Maxwell
writes, “It’s a fact that you become more like the people you spend time with.
If you desire to increase your faith, spend time with others who exercise theirs.
Learn from them. Find out how they think.” And, I might add, how they act.
As God nudges you to engage in service to others, be intentional about
building friendships with people who are already doing so and who can lead
you by their example. —Roxanne Robbins

more›
We wanted to give you
an example to follow
(2 Thessalonians 3:9).

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Daily Devotional, January 07, 2011

Dismembered

read›
Galatians 5:13-26
If you are always biting
and devouring one
another, watch out!
Beware of destroying
one another (v.15).

Because my husband and I live in the “Bible Belt”
(historically, the South and parts of the Midwest
of the US), we can drive for miles around town
with at least one church always in view. While the
variations of buildings and denominations can be seen
as a demonstration of the diversity within the body of
Christ, sadly we can also mark far too many of them
as divisions from another body. Having experienced a
major split in our own church almost 4 years ago, I’m still
trying to process the complexity of the situation and the
resulting hurt and disillusionment.

Scripture clearly indicates that there are times and
seasons when God works within the factions of man. In
the Old Testament, God specifically told Rehoboam and
his people not to pursue the tribes that were leaving to
follow Jeroboam, for their departure was “[the Lord’s]
doing” (1 Kings 12:24). Later in the New Testament,
irreconcilable differences brought Paul and Barnabas to
the point of separation (Acts 15:39).

However, in a world where human trafficking, slavery,
and destitution still exist and believers around the world
suffer death for the gospel, I often wonder what God thinks
of our church disagreements. When we enjoy prosperity,
we can forget that church is not really about us. While there
are justifiable reasons to rebuild and tear down (Eccl. 3:3),
we must realize the high level of accountability in such
decisions.

Ultimately, the justification should not be our comfort, but God’s Word.
Ephesians 6:12 reminds us that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but
against the sinister and divisive powers of the enemy. When our feelings are
hurt and our frustration level runs high, it’s a difficult truth to remember. May
we live watchful of the hour, so that we might be a pure bride ready for the
Bridegroom’s return and not a bride dismembered by factions. —Regina Franklin

more›
• John 13:34-35
• 1 Corinthians 1:10
• 2 Corinthians 12:20

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Daily Devotional, January 06, 2011

Long Commute

read›
1 Corinthians 7:1-7
The husband should fulfill
his wife’s sexual needs,
and the wife should fulfill
her husband’s needs
(v.3).

Michael Hanley traded an 8-minute commute to
work for an 8-hour one. When his autoworker
job in Wisconsin was phased out, he stayed
with the company and took the only position available—
in Kansas. His weekly round-trip commute is now
more than 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles). He’s gone
from his family each workweek, seeing them only on
the weekends. But he chose to stay with the company
because of the good wages, a retirement package he’s
working toward, and medical benefits. Being apart from
his wife, however, has been brutal.

The apostle Paul recognized how important it is
for husbands and wives to spend time together. He
knew that distance can make the heart wander—not
necessarily cause it to grow fonder. And so he told the
married believers in Corinth, “Do not deprive each other
of sexual relations” (1 Corinthians 7:5). He supported this
instruction with two points about sex: (1) Husbands and
wives should fulfill each other’s needs for intimacy (v.3);
(2) When the two wed, their bodies were no longer their
own—but were to be shared by their spouse (v.4). It’s
essential, however, that we live out these truths in gentle
and tender ways (Ephesians 5:28-29; 1 Peter 3:7). Sex
in marriage is meant to be selfless, not selfish.

Husbands and wives have the God-given gift of sex
as something to be enjoyed (Proverbs 5:18-19). But
sometimes we drift apart emotionally . . . and physically. It might not be a long
commute that keeps us apart, but things like the lack of loving communication,
being unhealthily busy, and not being affectionate throughout the day.

God desires for us to “remain faithful” to our spouses (Hebrews 13:4). To do
so requires that we keep the stuff of life from coming between us and them. If
we don’t, the results can be brutal. —Tom Felten

more›
Note that Paul also
lifts up singleness as a
God-glorifying way to
live (1 Cor. 7:7). Check
out verses 32 to 35 for
the unique ways the
single person can
glorify God.

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