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Today'sGoodNews-Archive
Jack Stevens
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Today's Good News-July '99
Ps. 145:18 "The Lord is close to all who call on Him." NLT 7/1/99 Romans 6: 15-16 When we come into the Family of God, we are responsible to choose our lifestyle. I can become as much like Jesus as I want. In Christ, I am no longer a slave to the flesh. In Christ I can grow in likeness to Him. I choose not the evil one. I am the one that is responsible for the way that I live. 7/2/99 Galatians 5:1 Never forget that the easy way is most often the wrong way. When I am confronted with the choices of life, I must choose how I will respond. Each point of choice requires me to evaluate the type of response I will make. Christ calls me to do the right thing. The flesh wants me to respond mindlessly to people and live a self centered life. It is my choice. 7/3/99 James 1:25 God created me to obey Him. In Christ, I have perfect freedom to obey God. My obedience to God creates a successful lifestyle and a Godly life. God wants me to succeed. The only way I can do that is by a lifestyle of obedience. 7/4/99 Psalms 33:12 God is completely trustworthy. I am disappointed in myself when I respond to life with inconsistency. Sometimes I am surprised by the way that I respond. God never surprises us with uncertainty. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. The Eternal Living God is worthy of all of our devotion and obedience. He is trustworthy. 7/5/99 Psalm 11: 5 – 7 God’s tests for some are a refining fire. Someone outside of God’s control in the same circumstances will find the same test an incinerator of destruction. Our tests are not an indication of our value. The way we respond to the test is the key indicator. Our responsibility is to do the next right thing. Bless the Lord for He is in control. 7/6/99 Proverbs 13:2 Our heart is the rudder for the works of our hands. A child of God acts like a child of God. A child of Satan acts like Satan. We must pay careful attention to the way that we act. Our actions may be the only New Testament that a lost person ever reads. Jesus died that all might be saved. 7/7/99 Ezekiel 8:17-18 The wrath of God is a terrible thing to contemplate. The admonition by Ezekiel warns us that what we think about God by the way we live is an indicator of our relationship with God. Going to church, God-talk, and religious trappings don’t save us. Christ said that He was the way, the truth and the life. He also said that He, Jesus, was the only way we could be saved. There is salvation in no one else. 7/8/99 Jonah 3:7-10 Change. Look at the way you are living and change. The best of us too easily establish lifestyles that alienate us from God. Plow up the hard ground of your heart and change. Before it is too late, change. God wants each one of us to be constantly changing into the likeness of Jesus. Change. 7/09/99 Psalm 72:12-14 God says that He loves that bedraggled homeless person you saw on the street. God says that that poor needy soul is precious to Him. What did you think? What was your evaluation? God says that He takes a personal interest, a special interest in the poor and needy. What kind of interest are you taking? 7/10/99 Psalm 34:14 The next time you find yourself caught up in evil, turn away from and immediately do something good. It really is simple for God’s children to survive and overcome the evil one. Don’t wring your hands about the power of sin. Don’t cry for God to intervene. Stop doing evil and do good. This is a simple way that we can claim the power of God and defeat sins hold on us. Do it. 7/11/99 Psalm 37: 37-38 God is on my side. I am sincerely striving to live a Christ like life and some days fail miserably. When I stop and go to the Lord, He reminds me that He is on my side. 7/12/99 Isaiah 52: 7 Everyone needs the Lord. Many that we come into contact with on a daily basis are dead in their trespasses and sin. We have good news about their peace and eternal security. Ask the Lord to give you a heart of love for everyone that you come into contact with. When you love them you will be able to share the Good News of Christ with them. 7/13/99 Matthew 5:9 Peace requires hard work. It doesn’t come to those that simply breeze through life. Peace is developed in a growing relationship with Jesus. It is one of the benefits of a Godly lifestyle. As we deal with our speech, and build the ways of the Lord into our lives we pursue peace. 7/14/99 Romans12: 17-18 Forgiveness is mandatory for the followers of Christ. We are not called to evaluate others actions but simply to forgive them. The issue is never what they have done but whether or not I will follow the Lord. Christ forgives us. 7/15/99 Romans 12: 19-21 The only defense we have against evil is to do good. When we do good, we are exhibiting our confidence and trust in the Lord. We are to pray for those that curse us. These are hard words and separate the Children of God from the children of Satan. 7/16/99 Luke 14:25-27 Cross bearing will never be a popular activity. The reason is because I must deal with myself to carry a cross. I always want to be first, have it easiest, get the most, or be the favorite. Christ calls me to put Him first. Cross bearing will never be popular or easy. 7/17/99 Matthew 10:38-39 Cross bearing is a daily activity. I must be willing to be who I am to bear my cross. Reality is the first step in cross bearing. God made me for a mission. Will I do what God has called me to do or will I always seek to go my own way? Obedience to the Lord is the difference in cross bearing, Christ honoring service. Anything else is only an imitation. Christ calls me to look beyond what the world works for and recognize the eternal nature of our service to Him. Our feet are to be firmly placed in this world but our heart is to be totally given to the Lord. 7/18/99 Matthew 16:26-27 God sees things differently than the world does. If we only evaluate ourselves by the world’s standards, we will only build with wood, hay and stubble. In the day of judgement, all that we have worked for and built will be destroyed. On the other hand, if we focus our life on the things of God, our work will stand. The choice is ours. God’s way or no way. 7/19/99 Matthew 19:29-30 Eternal rewards outweigh temporary benefits. Our life in Christ is to be based on eternal values. Jesus is Lord of all. Anytime my focus is on something other than Jesus, my service in the world will be misplaced. Only by the leadership of the Lord can I find the right focus for my life. 7/20/99 John 8:2 Christ will not let you stumble. The outlook may seem bleak. The battle may look lost. But, in Christ we have a victorious Lord who will lead us in His eternal triumph. 7/21/99 John 10:27-29 Jesus is God’s everything. In Christ we have every resource that we will need. Our strength is our faith. Our victory is His promise. In Christ the solid rock I stand. 7/22/99 John 13:16-18 Talk is cheap. People evaluate us not on what we say but on what we do. Christ has appointed us to represent him here on earth. We are called to serve the Lord, serve each other and to minister in the world as an emissary of Christ. Don’t forget that every person we come into contact with needs Jesus. Jesus is the only way. We may be the only Jesus that some people will ever meet. 7/23/99 Galatians 5:25-26 Everything we do comes under the scrutiny of God. We cannot compartmentalize our lives. All that we say and do is to be done as unto the Lord. We are to bear the Cross-of Christ every day, not just Sunday. 7/24/9 Ephesians 5:1-2 Self-sacrificing service is our goal. When we study God’s Word, it is to change our hearts, call us to repentance and equip us to serve others. Our end game is not winning. We are not to worry about honors or folks saying thank you. Our responsibility is to care for others in the same way that Christ cares for us. Our command is to go and be like Christ. 7/25/99 Philippians 2:12-13 God requires first place. He will empower us to live a Christian life. He will not empower us if we will not let Him. If we do not grow, it is not the Lord’s fault. First ask God to show you where you have gone wrong. Then, repent of self will and ask the Lord to help you change. When you trust the Lord He will give you the power to change. He will enable you to obey Him. God wants you to become like Jesus. 7/26/99 2 Timothy 2:5-7 You must know God’s rules to follow them. One of the requirements for the king in the Old Testament is that he make a personal handwritten copy of the Scriptures so that he would know God’s law. You too must know the rules. Ignorance of what God is calling you to do is no excuse. Study God’s Word diligently. Seek to understand what the Lord is saying to you about your life and work. Spend time in God’s Word! 7/27/99 2 Timothy 2:22 Stop sinning. It is as simple as that. God’s Word is clear, when you find yourself in a compromised position, run from it. If you are tempted to drink, stop going where drinking is going on. If you have bad friends, get new ones. You stop sinning. 7/28/99 2 Timothy 2:23-25 You cannot make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. We are to carefully present the Word of God in a respectful, loving way. Those that will not listen cannot be brow beaten. If you will care for them as the Word calls you to do, your actions will speak louder than your words. 7/29/99 Hebrews 6:11-12 Heaven will be a great place. We will get there sooner than we think. Right now in the midst of all of life’s problems, remember that time is short. You don’t have a lot of time left. Work hard. Serve fearlessly. Strive to grow. Heaven will be a great place. 7/30/99 Hebrews 13:8-9 Keep your eyes on Jesus. This world is always changing. Leaders come and leaders go. Jesus is always here and never changes. He loves you. He will enable you to serve Him. You are a child of God and never outside of Christ’s watchcare. 7/31/99 1 Peter 2:21-23 Christ never sinned. He suffered in life and died on the Cross-for me, so that a sinner like me could be saved. If I serve Christ, I will suffer. Those that I am trying to help will be the ones that hurt me. All who follow Jesus must be prepared to suffer. Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright© 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
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