God chose me before the foundation of the world.  He chose that I be a part of His family and represent him on earth at this point in space and time.  God chose you before the foundation of the world.  He appointed you to be His representative on earth at this point in space and time.   God chose each one of us to be his and provided that we could enter His family by faith in Jesus Christ.  My responsibility and your responsibility is to think of and act towards each person the way that God has acted towards us.  Love them. 

July 9, 2000                 Ps 100:5
For the LORD is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.

I love my children.  I am disappointed with them at times but I still love them.   How wonderful that we have a loving father who loves each one of us.  Thru thick and thin He is faithful and loving.  This comforts me when I bend before my Father in confession and receive His forgiveness.

July 10, 2000               Ps 86:5
O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask your aid.

Sometimes my pain is so great all I can do is cry out to the Lord and ask Him to help me.  He has.  He does.  He will.  I am not required to meet some formulaic requisite to receive God’s help.  When help is needed I am often not able to do anything but cry out.  

July 11, 2000               Lu 11:42
“But how terrible it will be for you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest part of your income, but you completely forget about justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but you should not leave undone the more important things.

I consider myself a religious person.  Maybe even what you might call a religious leader.  The only people Jesus criticized were religious leaders.  This causes me to evaluate how I look at others and how I handle myself.  The question I ask myself when confronting others about morality and righteousness is how would God deal with me if I had done this.  My charge is to never lower the standard but always lift up the person.   

July 12, 2000               Ps 86:15
But you, O Lord, are a merciful and gracious God, slow to get angry, full of unfailing love and truth.

I still get aggravated with the way other folks drive.  It can be very irritating, even maddening.  Biblical truth is timeless.  There were no cars when this verse was written.  In the heart of the Lord, He knew that I would need reminding about his actions toward me so that I could survive driving on today’s highways.  Timeless truth cures momentary lapses in judgment.

July 13, 2000              Lu 11:43
“How terrible it will be for you Pharisees! For how you love the seats of honor in the synagogues and the respectful greetings from everyone as you walk through the markets!

Many people struggle with low self-esteem.  I know that I do.   Low self-esteem pushes us to do odd things.   It sometimes causes us to want recognition whether it is warranted or not.  Some people that deal with the invisible Lord as a vocation need recognition from people.  They have not developed their relationship with the Lord.   Jesus loves me, this I know.  I know it by His Word, by the work of the Holy Spirit in my heart and by the testimony of His work in my life.

July 14, 2000               Ps 89:2
Your unfailing love will last forever. Your faithfulness is as enduring as the heavens.

God is bigger than any of my problems.  My problems will only last a lifetime.  God is eternal.   God’s love and faithfulness is forever.   I can sing and rejoice.  The Lord is good and His mercy is everlasting.  Praise the Lord. 

July 15, 2000               Joh 1:17
For the law was given through Moses; God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ.

The eternal Lord came into my world and destroyed sin.  He is my savior from all of the forces that seek to destroy me.  Bless the Lord, oh my soul and all that is with me. 

July 16, 2000               Joh 14:21
Those who obey my commandments are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them, and I will love them. And I will reveal myself to each one of them.”

God alone knows the future.  I am charged with the responsibility of preparing for what will come soon.  When I live by God’s standard, my life will be different.  I will love those that I am in the world with.  I will care for the weak and downtrodden.  I will seek justice for the helpless.  God knows what will happen.  I must trust Him with my future.  Lord help me to do this day by day. 

July 17, 2000               Ps 89:14
Your throne is founded on two strong pillars – righteousness and justice. Unfailing love and truth walk before you as attendants.

Whatever problem I face, God is able.  He is strong enough to save me.  He is equipped to deal with all my sin.  My weakness is not a surprise to Him.  My unfaithfulness does not diminish His strength.  God’s power, majesty, and ability is founded upon Himself.  God is able. 

July 18, 2000               Joh 8:42
Jesus told them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, because I have come to you from God. I am not here on my own, but he sent me.

My actions reveal who I am.  Any surprise that people are suffering as they are in America.   If I conduct my life under the authority and power of God, I am His child.  If I choose to go my own way I will suffer the consequences.

July 19, 2000               Ps 89:28
I will love him and be kind to him forever; my covenant with him will never end.

Jesus was not an afterthought of our wonderful God.  Jesus was God.   I can be confident that as I live my life, Jesus will provide all of the resources that I need to live my life as a child of God.   I am a child of God, brother to the incarnate Word and heir of eternity.

July 20, 2000               Ps 90:14
Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives.

I am reminded that I must make time to be with the Lord.  Daily I must come before Him and quietly seek His guidance.  I can expect to receive grace, comfort, wisdom, mercy and His gentle involvement in my life.  When I ignore these daily times with Him, His involvement in my life is not so gently at times as He gets my attention.

July 21, 2000              Joh 8:44
For you are the children of your father the Devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning and has always hated the truth. There is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies.

Hatred of the truth, lying, and evil intent always aligns us with evil.  We cannot separate our attitudes from our actions.  If what we do is evil then we are being evil.  If we love God we will do the right thing.

July 22, 2000              Ps 91:14
The LORD says, “I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name.

God watches over us in time of great stress and fear.  He is a trustworthy Father.    When I am knee deep in life, I stop and ask the Lord to help me.  I believe the Lord.  He will rescue me.  The Father loves me so much that He never takes His eyes off of me. 

July 23, 2000              Joh 12:25
Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who despise their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

I am constantly battling my ego.  Inside of me there is a drive to be successful, to be recognized, and to have my way.  God has a purpose for my life.  He wants to have His way with me.  I am the only one that can surrender my way to His way.  If I do surrender than I win.  If I do not surrender then I lose.  God has first place or no place.

July 24, 2000              Ps 94:18
I cried out, “I’m slipping!” and your unfailing love, O LORD, supported me.

I am overwhelmed by God’s love.  Just the mention of need and my Lord responds.  Whenever I am down and out I know that my redeemer lives because He lives and resides in me.  He changes me from the inside out.  He comforts me in times of trouble.  My God meets my need. 

July 25, 2000              Joh 13:1
Before the Passover celebration, Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return to his Father. He now showed the disciples the full extent of his love.

I have a hard time comprehending the depth of the love of Christ.  He knew He would be betrayed and yet He still washed the Disciples feet.  I am a difficult person.  My defensiveness is often offensive.  I am asking the Lord to give me the wisdom and strength that I need to change the way I react to others.

July 26, 2000              Ps 97:10
You who love the LORD, hate evil! He protects the lives of his godly people and rescues them from the power of the wicked.

I can’t ignore God’s commands and love Him.  I cannot live like Satan and claim to be a Saint.  When I look at my life, all that I do must square with God’s Word or it is not of God.  All of us are special but no one has a “free day of sin” card!

July 27, 2000               Joh 13:1
Before the Passover celebration, Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return to his Father. He now showed the disciples the full extent of his love.

I am totally overwhelmed by God’s act of love.  He died for me.  He knows the sins I have committed and the sins I will commit and He died for me.  The question that nags at my soul is am I living for Him?  He died and I am called to live.  Help me Lord to become more like you. 

July 28, 2000               Ps 98:3
He has remembered his promise to love and be faithful to Israel. The whole earth has seen the salvation of our God.

The birth of Christ validates God’s love for me.  In His mercy He saw my need and sent a savior.  I was in great need of a savior and Christ made me a child of God.  No longer on the outside I am a child of the King and a member of His household.  His eye is always on me therefore I too can cry out Father as I face the daily grind of life.

July 29, 2000               Joh 13:34
So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.

Loving others was required in Leviticus 19:18.  The new requirement was to love as Jesus loved.  Lord give me the willingness to spend time each day searching the Scriptures to discover what you think about everything in my life.  Then Lord help me to take that information from my mind and put it in my heart so that I will change the way I act.

July 30, 2000               Joh 13:35
Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

I am discovering that people are a lot more concerned about how I act than what I think.  My doctrine may be pure but if my life or lifestyle is worldly I will turn many away from Jesus.

July 31, 2000               Joh 14:15
“If you love me, obey my commandments.