Today's Good News- March 00

Ps. 145:18 "The Lord is close to all who call on Him." NLT

March 1, 2000 2Pe 1:7
Godliness leads to love for other Christians, and finally you will grow to have genuine love for everyone.

The folks I come into contact with are the folks God calls me to love. I am not to conjure up an emotion of love for folks I can’t see, my charge is to treat the people I am with like God treats me. Love my neighbor.

March 2, 2000 Lu 6:32
"Do you think you deserve credit merely for loving those who love you? Even the sinners do that!

It is a difficult task to love the unlovely. Especially when they mistreat us. God’s love is committed love that reaches across our actions and responds to our need. We need to respond to the needs of those around us.

March 3, 2000 Jos 23:11
So be very careful to love the LORD your God.

If I love the Lord, I will obey Him. Obedience is more important than sacrifice.

March 4, 2000 De 7:12
"If you listen to these regulations and obey them faithfully, the LORD your God will keep his covenant of unfailing love with you, as he solemnly promised your ancestors.

We are accountable for the way that we act. There is God’s way and our way. We make the choice.

March 5, 2000 Job 10:12
You gave me life and showed me your unfailing love. My life was preserved by your care.

Our relationship with the Lord is a daily relationship. We choose to have all of God that we want. My daily choices either bring me closer to the Lord or move me further away.

March 6, 2000 Ps 5:7
Because of your unfailing love, I can enter your house; with deepest awe I will worship at your Temple.

God is our most faithful friend. No matter how bad life gets or how wrong we are we can still pray. He will hear us. He will listen to our pleas. The Lord is our friend.

March 7, 2000 Ps 5:11
But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them sing joyful praises forever. Protect them, so all who love your name may be filled with joy.

Sometimes things happen that really get me down. I don’t seem to be able to find the right solution or dispose of the heavy feeling. I turn to the Lord and ask Him to help me refocus my cares and concerns from my inadequacy to His loving strength. Often within minutes the power of God reaches deep within my soul to comfort me. His love fills me with peace and joy.

March 8, 2000 1Jo 4:11
Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.

I want to have friends. Life gets quicker as I get older. I find old friendships getting left behind. Not on purpose just the hurry of life. Three months pass, then six months and I haven’t spoken to my dear friend. Then suddenly it’s a year, then two. I have fond memories of life long ago now overrun by cares and woe. Time passes too fast. I live under the tyranny of the urgent. But God calls me to care for my friends. Care enough to discipline my time. Care enough to get rid of the junk and focus on the joy of friendships.

March 9, 2000 Ex 20:6
But I lavish my love on those who love me and obey my commands, even for a thousand generations.

I know a family that has 10 generations of preachers. They have the same problems I do but they seem to have a deep love for each other and all around them. I want to build my life in such a way that the Lord will lavish his love on my family for 10 generations. God tells me in His Word that when I obey Him I am expressing my love for Him.

March 10, 2000 1Jo 4:10
This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

Do you ever think about doing something extra good so that God will be favorable to your needs? I must confess that I sometimes mistakenly do this. When I do, Jesus reminds me that the Father already loves me more than I can comprehend. God wants the very best for my life. The Father is always ready to help me if I will just let Him.

March 11, 2000 Ex 34:6
He passed in front of Moses and said, "I am the LORD, I am the LORD, the merciful and gracious God. I am slow to anger and rich in unfailing love and faithfulness.

I hide my sin from God. I smile and do my thing all the while knowing that there is an un-confessed sin in my closet. My thinking is that the Lord doesn’t want to talk about that sin. God can’t help me with that sin. The Father knows all things and expects me to bring all of my sin to Him for forgiveness. He awaits my willingness to confess. I have all of God that I want.

March 12, 2000 1Jo 3:10
So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the Devil. Anyone who does not obey God's commands and does not love other Christians does not belong to God.

Too many people want to live a dual life. At work, play and home they do what they must to survive. At church they act like God’s child. Ever wonder why when things get rough at church so many people act so awful? Does it surprise you that at your church so few people tithe? It’s because they belong to their father, Satan and they were only acting at church.

March 13, 2000 Ps 17:7
Show me your unfailing love in wonderful ways. You save with your strength those who seek refuge from their enemies.

I need your help Lord. I really need your help. Things just don’t work out like they should. When I should keep my mouth shut, I talk. When I want to help, I get my feelings hurt. Help me to stand in the moment of spiritual attack. Give me courage to be the person you created me to be. Father I believe, help my unbelief.

March 14, 2000 1Jo 4:12
No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love has been brought to full expression through us.

The best way to prove your love for the Lord is real is to love everyone you come into contact with. This is how you will know you are becoming more Christ-like, if you are beginning to love others, especially the un-loveable.

March 15, 2000 De 10:18
He gives justice to orphans and widows. He shows love to the foreigners living among you and gives them food and clothing.

I can minister to Jesus when I help the helpless. The helpless include widows, orphans, unborn children, the mothers of unborn children, the aged, the poor, those in prison and the homeless.

March 16, 2000 Nu 14:19
Please pardon the sins of this people because of your magnificent, unfailing love, just as you have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt."

My sin burns a hole in my heart. I ache at the way that I sin against a loving Father. My lifestyle, even though carefully developed falls far short of glorifying Him. His love for me is greater than my sin. His watch care over me is more thorough than my own care. Thank you Father for your far-reaching forgiveness.

March 17, 2000 Ps 18:1
I love you, LORD; you are my strength.

Lord you are my rock, my fortress, my shield, my stronghold and my salvation. There is no other but you. When I consider your love and care and I can truly confess that you are my strength and without you I can do nothing.

March 18, 2000 De 6:5
And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.

Lord I want to make everyday of my life a day that is focused on you. Help me Father to flee from sin. Help me Lord to be obedient in all things. Then Lord I will be the kind of child that will love You with all my heart, soul and strength.

March 19, 2000 1Jo 4:18
Such love has no fear because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of judgment, and this shows that his love has not been perfected in us.

Yes, there are times when I fear the Lord. His Word reminds me that He loves me. I bow in confession and ask Him to show me His love. As I meditate on His wondrous love for me, He gently quiets my heart and removes my fear.

March 20, 2000 De 7:9
Understand, therefore, that the LORD your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and constantly loves those who love him and obey his commands.

So often when good things happen to me I rejoice and immediately forget the Lord. My focus becomes me. I set about developing how I will enjoy the good things. Good things change so quickly. In the midst of the change I suddenly realize that I have forgotten the Lord. Help me Father to mature to the point where I will not forget about you even for a moment.

March 21, 2000 1Jo 4:17
And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we are like Christ here in this world.

Do you ever think about what will happen when you die? I do. As I get older I think about it more often. Death is a reality. I try to comprehend the things that the Word of God says about what happens when we die. All I really understand is that we will go to be with God because of what Jesus has done. A lot of other things I don’t understand but I know this, I am safe in Christ. He is my salvation.

March 22, 2000 Ps 36:5
Your unfailing love, O LORD, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.

Jesus loves me, this I know. I know it because His Word says it. I know it because the Holy Spirit bears testimony to His love for me. One day I will know it first hand for I will stand before God’s precious love, the Lord Jesus Christ. That will be a glorious day.

March 23, 2000 Ps 23:6
Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever.

A non-Christian friend asked me how I knew that God was concerned about my life. I told him that it was because of my faith in God’s Word and my own experience. Jesus said that He was concerned about my daily life, and the quality of my decisions. I believe that. As a result of His promise, I ask Him about everything I do. He has changed me from the inside out. My life is different and Jesus is the reason.

March 24, 2000 1Jo 4:16
We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in him. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.

I know God’s love because I have felt it in times of trial and tribulation. I know God’s love because I have felt it when I went to Him for forgiveness from a sin. Every time I experience God’s love I know Him better. His love equips me to love you.

March 25, 2000 Mt 5:43-44
"You have heard that the law of Moses says, 'Love your neighbor' and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!

Jesus presents a new paradigm here. Love my enemy is a hard saying. I am thinking of an enemy this very moment. Lord help me to change and love my enemy.

March 26, 2000 Mark 12:38-39
Here are some of the other things he taught them at this time: "Beware of these teachers of religious law! For they love to parade in flowing robes and to have everyone bow to them as they walk in the marketplaces. And how they love the seats of honor in the synagogues and at banquets.

My name is written in the Lamb’s book of life. I want to please the Father. Help me Father to take my eyes off the things of this world and keep them on you. I know that I must be corrected at times, Lord Jesus correct me. I need your strength to deal with my pitiful ego.

March 27, 2000 Mt 5:46
If you love only those who love you, what good is that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much.

Lord, I recognize that my righteousness is as filthy rags. Enable me not to focus on the evil of others but to be sensitive to and aware of the evil in me. Make me a usable vessel. Instruct me in your ways so that I will lead a life pleasing to you. Remind me again and again that how I act with those around me is an indication of how I really feel about you.

March 28, 2000 Ps 25:6
Remember, O LORD, your unfailing love and compassion, which you have shown from long ages past.

I really struggle with the pressure of the moment. In a trice I can go from gentle to irate. Why, I ask myself over and over as I go to the Father and the individual for forgiveness. The Father knew all my sins from forever and yet He loves me with a deep and abiding love that always seeks my best good. One of my big problems is that I always want my way. Because of my limited intelligence I don’t know what is best for me and in the rush of the moment seek to get my best by anger. Love conquers my anger.

March 29, 2000 Mt 6:5
"And now about prayer. When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I assure you, that is all the reward they will ever get.

Father help me to be as transparent with my praying as you are with your loving. Use me to encourage others and ask you to help them. Beyond that Lord stop me from ever praying for show.

March 30, 2000 Mt 24:12
Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold.

Everywhere I look I see the pervasiveness of sin. Satan is in his element in the world today. As I study history, today isn’t much different than it was in Jesus’ day. His love was real. It focused on the needy and they killed Him. I want to be more like Christ. Father, help me to prepare for the animosity and anger of the world. Keep my heart hot for Christ.

March 31, 2000 Mt 6:24
"No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

This verse says to me that God is interested in the way I deal with my money. I believe this and twenty-five years ago my wife and I committed to Jesus to tithe our money. This was a hard task. Quite frankly it has been hard every year but we have not veered from that commitment. I discovered twenty five years ago that if I couldn’t be trustworthy with what I had how could I expect the Lord to trust me with what He had.

This is Mike Clay reminding you that Jesus loves you.

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