Weekly Devotional

Psalms 9:10 – Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you

Mother’s Day . . . . domestically speaking, and deservedly so, there is no other day in our society that is more revered. From the minute we are brought into this world our Mothers provide for us in so many ways. When asked who do you trust more than anyone else? most people answer, “my Mother”. This is no surprise, as most of us have a deep personal relationship with our Mothers.

Believe it or not, Jesus knows who you are and wants to have the same kind of relationship with you, that you have experienced with your Mother. In the same way that your Mother has been there for you, Jesus can be there too. He can provide, comfort in times of despair; . . . . assurance, when there seems to be no reason for any; . . . . sound advice, if you’ll only ask; . . . . and greater joy than you have ever experienced. Other than baking cookies, he can be all that your Mother is, and so much more.

It’s only natural that we trust our Mothers, for they brought us into this world. So why is it that we can’t or won’t trust Jesus? For many, it’s hard to trust someone that you don’t know. The good news is that you can know Him today and he is waiting for you right now.  A relationship with Jesus will do wonders for every aspect of your life. Your Mother has undoubtedly come to your rescue one or twice, but I urge you to take some time to get to know the only one that can truly SAVE you, Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 66:13 - As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you;

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 – Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

Last week while getting ready to work out (which I do during my lunch hour) I was approached by a man whom I did not know. It didn’t take long for me to figure out that he was mentally impaired. Anyway, he asked me if I liked the Rangers and we had a small conversation about how well they had been doing. Then he held up his finger as to ask me to wait a minute. He came back and handed me a folded piece of paper. Without looking at it, I put it in my locker and proceeded to work out. As I ran I continued to think about what had transpired. When I finished I went to my locker and opened up the folded paper. It was a very simple pencil drawing of some flowers, the sun and a bird flying that he had made in his group’s activities. I looked around and found that his group was still there. I thanked him for the picture and learned that we shared the same first name. I was really moved by our brief encounter and the joy that it brought me.

I’ve had a lot on my plate at work, too much to expand on here. However, the comfort that I received from that encounter led me to see how even “the least of these” can offer comfort. I can’t pretend to know if there was any motivation by my new friend to comfort me, but God knows what we need and when we need it most. This enables us to offer the same to others when we know they need it most. Adam Clarke once said, “Even spiritual comforts are not given us for our use alone; they, like all the gifts of God, are given that they may be distributed, or become instruments of help to others.” I certainly received a gift of comfort that day.

There’s no question that by our standards my new friend is afflicted, but like He has done so many times with the unlikely, God used this man to give me comfort and perspective. I pray that we all can find comfort in our afflictions, knowing that God loves us. Moreover, that we return that comfort in His name, unashamedly, to those around us.

2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 – Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

Romans 5:15 – But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many.

When I was a kid I loved going to the grocery store because back then there were some great toys to be found inside cereal boxes. What a great deal, you could procure your favorite cereal (Quisp or Captain Crunch for me) PLUS you got a FREE toy inside!! I have fond memories of those trinkets, many of which I have collected in my adult life. It was the cereal that kept me going, but the free toy got me fired up!

In my quite time during this Holy week I correlated this childhood memory with Jesus’ sacrifice for you and me. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection and by our proclaiming Him to be our Lord and Savior we receive the promise of an eternal life in His Kingdom. Romans 10:9 -If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. This is the cereal.

Above and beyond the greatest thing he could ever give us, he not only provides the grace and mercy that sustain us every day of our lives, but also the gift of Peace. John 14:27 -“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. This is the Free toy inside!

Through our committed relationship with Jesus we receive Peace, that when cultivated leads to wisdom, which leads to a life of Joy that we can share with others!!

So open your ”box” of Salvation today and see what else you’ll find inside, It’s FREE and it WILL surely set YOU FREE!

James 3:17 – But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

Psalms 147:4 – He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.

Lately I have noticed a lot of people posting their Horoscopes Facebook. I assume we have all looked at our Horoscope at one point in our life but when you think about it, what can something like that really offer you? What are some other things of this world that people look to for guidance in their lives? Tarot cards, Fortune Cookies, Tea leaves and Psychics to name a few. Most of these are no different than flipping a coin, the results are random and once in a while they seem to give the correct advice. Psychics aren’t much different . . . and they’re a dime a dozen with some change left over.

Do the stars have significance? Certainly! They are mentioned over 50 times in the Bible. They are revered as one of God’s most wonderful creations. They were and still are to some degree, used by man to navigate from one place to another. However, God did not create them to navigate our lives. He has given us the greatest book ever written to do that, The Bible.

So why are we so quick to look to worldly sources to help us make decisions? Why would you consult the local paper’s Horoscope before you open Proverbs? Why would you place your fate on a deck of cards before you sought God’s will for your situation? I think the main reason is that WE want to control our destiny, thus we seek answers via things that make us feel good about what we are doing. When we seek God’s will, we’re apt to be convicted and the answer can become very different than our worldly heart desires.

God loves us all so much that he sent his son to die for us. Just like he knows all the stars in heaven, he knows the number of hairs on YOUR head (Luke 12:7). Do you know him intimately? That question can be answered with where do you go for advice first? Your Bible or Today’s Horoscope?

Jeremiah 29:11 – For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

1 Timothy 6:12 – Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

Our church recently celebrated the life of one of our founders (All Dillon). He was 83 yrs old. I did not know this man personally but here’s what I do know. He and the other founders of our church initially met at Mrs. Sheaffer’s school in Arlington, TX. There were approximately 40 people who attended services. Let me just fast forward to today . . . . Our church has a membership of over 4000 and growing every week, Our church supports several missions throughout the world, Our church is debt free and promotes the same amongst its membership, our church has an Upwards Sports program that has hundreds of children participating and bringing their parents to church. All that aside it’s the following that is number one at Crossroads Christian Church, Bringing people to Jesus! Thanks to its founders, that has always been and will always be the primary purpose of our church.

Again, I did not know this man personally but because of his dedication, I and countless others know Jesus today . . . . What a legacy! and an example of how one should live their life in service of Jesus. There’s no question that Mr. Dillon certainly had a “Mass” Effect on many people . . . .

Mathew 26:21 – His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.”

Song of Solomon 2:12 - Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land. (NIV)

All be it a little early, I think spring has sprung. I think for most people, this season really gets us moving. There’s so much going on. With all that goes on at one point you’ll stop to admire the flowers. In Texas everyone’s attention turns to the Bluebonnet. Our fields and roadsides are covered with them. We see people stopping to take pictures in the massive blankets of Bluebonnets. What a testimony for God’s purposeful creation.

It’s this time of year when I often admire God’s creation the most. What was just a lifeless looking landscape a short time ago, is now thriving with new vegetation and beautiful flowers. Many of us plant gardens of flowers and/or vegetables. We carefully prepare the soil, plant seeds or seedlings and then we watch over them. We give them the necessary nutrients and water that are essential for their growth. In a few weeks we can admire and or devour what we have watched grow. Now on a few occasions someone may plant a garden and then neglect to take care of it. Without proper care a garden will be filled with weeds, the plants we be malnourished and thus will not produce flowers or fruit. If storms or harsh heat come these plants will usually die.

Just like these plants we are also God’s creation. If we do not feed ourselves spiritually we will be much like a neglected garden. Our lives will be full of “weeds”, we won’t be producing any fruit and when a “storm” comes we’re not going to be prepared to deal with it. This is no coincidence. If we take care of our plants God will bless us and his creations. He requires the same care for each and every one of his children and thus if we feed ourselves spiritually on a regular basis we will produce much “fruit” and be eternally blessed!

John 15:4 – Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

1 Kings 2:2 – “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man,

These words were spoken to Solomon as King David knew his time was coming to an end. He realized through his own life some of the challenges that Solomon would be facing and he prefaced his departing words with this “warning”.

As men we face a myriad of challenges, some of them are exterior but a great deal of them are interior. The temptations we face on a day to day basis are as minor as “do I eat that donut?”, or as serious as “do I go to “THAT” website?” In the end, it’s these decisions that that shape not only our lives, but those of our families and friends. How can we be leaders of our families and communities if we can’t control our own earthly desires?

David knew this well but he also faced a great deal of outside adversity. As he awaited his rule, King Saul, having doubt about David’s ability to rule, put a bounty on his head. It is here that David really began asking the tough questions of life. Alone in the dark or on the run through enemy territory, David opened-up and honestly shared his thoughts, struggles, and fears. David was frustrated with God’s plan for his life, and he wrote about it in his prayer journals. Although Saul stopped at nothing to kill David, David never followed through on his opportunities to kill Saul. David’s years alone with God forged his exemplary character and unflinching faith. Through loneliness and struggle, David learned to be fully dependent on God.

The lesson here is we can’t become the leaders that we’re called to be if we’re not ready to be honest with ourselves or truly honest with God, and in actuality, . . . .  they’re pretty much one and the same.

So are you ready to ‘MAN UP” and lead your family and community?

1 Corinthians 16:13 – Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

Romans 7:13 (NLT) – I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.

I think we can agree that we all do things that we know are wrong. More times than not, we know this before we even do it. So the difference begins “after the fact”. Do you revel in, or even worse, are you complacent about the sins you commit? Or do you recognize your wrong doing and seek to correct the behavior? (i.e. Repent!)

Are you more apt to own your sin and strive for better living through God’s Grace via Jesus’ Sacrifice or are you so comfortable with your sin that you don’t give it a second thought? Sin is sin and in our weakness we look to justify the small things we do each day that are sins or eventually lead to sin. Think about it for a moment and if you’re honest with yourself, you already know what they are.

What about the good things we don’t do? We know its “good” to read our Bible but instead we watch 3 hours of TV. We know it’s good to volunteer to help others, instead we go shopping for ourselves. The problem here is self-centeredness. If we work to take the focus off of ourselves then the rest will take care of itself. Philippians 4:2 – Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

How do we avoid this age old dichotomy? If we could only see ourselves doing or not doing these things it would be easier to correct. Much like advising our children on the mistakes we committed when we were young. If we think it’s a good idea for our children to seek advice from us then as God’s children isn’t it a logical conclusion that we should seek advice from him? In doing so on a daily basis, we’ll be better prepared to manage the pitfalls that come our way.

Mathew 7:8 – For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened

Jeremiah 29:11 – For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

You know… You know what I’ve noticed? Nobody panics when things go “according to plan.” Even if the plan is horrifying! If, tomorrow, I tell the press that, like, a gang banger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will be blown up, nobody panics, because it’s all “part of the plan”. But when I say that one little old mayor will die, well then everyone loses their minds! – The Joker from The DARK KNIGHT

Ok, let me clarify that I do not seek spiritual advice from Homicidal Maniacs, even if they are fictional. However, I think this line says a lot about what we expect from everyday life. Expectations, . . . . boy what a trap. Can you count the times your “expectations” have not been met? Some of our expectations are rational, some are not. Expecting an oncoming car to stop on red is a pretty safe bet. Expecting God to solve all your problems is stretching it a bit. Life brings us many peaks and valleys, why do we only question God and His plan “in the valleys”. When was the last time you heard someone say “I just don’t know why God allowed me to get that new job”. The truth is we should be praising God in both situations.

Life does bring us many ups and downs but as believers we must know God’s plan, is the only plan. God’s plan is like fruit that must ripen on the vine, on its own time, not ours. The Faith we have in God will determine how we react to adversity. Mathew Henry said; When things are at the worst they will begin to mend; and he will give them to see the glorious perfection of their deliverance; for, as for God, his work is perfect. If His plan is perfect then how do we employ our faith to accept it? By spending time with God . . .

As reassuring as the above verse is I think it’s the subsequent versus that tie it all together. God does care for each and every one of us and all he wants is for us to seek Him.

Jeremiah 29: 12-14 – Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

Hebrews 10:25 – Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching

Can you remember a time when you were away from home? It could have been on a vacation or business trip. When you leave you’re excited about what lies ahead but as the days pass you begin to long for home and all that it means. Home is where we are grounded and in essence who we are. Home is comfort, home is belonging, home is discipline, home is learning, home is unconditional love and so much more, in fact, without a home we’re pretty much lost.  Of course there is a point when, if we’re gone too long, we begin to forget about some of those things that makes home so special. You’re not sure why, but you begin to feel empty inside, like a part of you is missing.

The same can be said for our Christian walk and in particular, Going to CHURCH. Just as we lose a part of ourselves when we’re not at home, we can’t be the same Christians when we’re not in church. Church is a way of regenerating ourselves after a long week of dealing with the world. Corporate worship is important. I know many people who believe they don’t have to go to church to believe. They’re right, but are you going to be the same student if you don’t attend school? I doubt it. I’ve heard lots of explanations as to why people don’t go to church and by and large it’s tied back to RELIGION, not church or God. If you’re one of those, find a Bible based church that brings the good news of the Gospel every week without a lot of ceremony, just good old Bible based sermons (the good & bad) and great worship music!

When we neglect the benefits of going to church then our relationship with God will soon become the victim. We are stronger in our faith when we share and experience it with others. When we bond with other believers we’re more likely to follow God on a daily basis, especially in dark times. In short, we grow in our relationship with God through experiencing worship with our fellow man. Rejoice in knowing that church is home, with a family ready to support you through your highest highs and the lowest lows.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 – Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.