Bible League: Living His Word I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.There are times when our faith and trust in the promises of God can waver. We see the trials, troubles, and tribulations of life and we begin to falter and lose heart. Although we have experienced great victories of faith in the past, something about the present difficulties leaves us weak in the knees. Although we have overcome faintness of heart before, we find it hard to imagine that this time we can do the same. It's at times like these that we must dig in like a soldier on a battlefield and be strong and take heart. Faintness of heart is not a viable option. It doesn't solve anything and it doesn't get you anywhere. If we stop believing that the Lord will come through with help in our time of need, then all is lost. A good soldier does not retreat or give up. A good soldier stands his ground and fights. We must take up the shield of faith and fend off all the flaming arrows of the evil one that are designed to undermine and destroy our confidence (Ephesians 6:16). Since our weapon in the struggle is faith, we must look to the Lord for the solution to our problem rather than to ourselves. We must wait for the Lord. Since we are good soldiers of the Lord God, we do not move forward on the battlefield apart from His command. Charging into the fray apart from God is doomed to disaster. We must wait for the command of the Lord to move forward at the right time and in the right way. If we remain strong and take heart, we will have the confidence we need to believe that the battle can be won. We will have the confidence we need to believe that we will see the goodness of the Lord not only in the next life, but also in this life---the "land of the living." Faintness of heart attacks the best of us. If, however, we overcome the attack, we shall see the victory. Today, be strong and take heart. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingJoshua 19, 20 Joshua 19 -- Allotments for Simeon, Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, Dan, Joshua NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Joshua 20 -- Six Cities of Refuge Designated NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading Luke 5:17-39 Luke 5 -- Jesus Calls First Disciples, Heals the Leper and Paralytic, Calls Matthew, Questioned about Fasting NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion It is useless for you to work so hardfrom early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones. Insight God is not against human effort. Hard work honors God. But working to the exclusion of rest or to the neglect of family may be a cover-up for an inability to trust God to provide for our needs. We all need adequate rest and times of spiritual refreshment. On the other hand, this verse is not an excuse to be lazy. Challenge Be careful to maintain a balance: work while trusting God, and also rest while trusting him. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Matthew 15:27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.This woman gained comfort in her misery by thinking great thoughts of Christ . The Master had talked about the children's bread: "Now," argued she, "since thou art the Master of the table of grace, I know that thou art a generous housekeeper, and there is sure to be abundance of bread on thy table; there will be such an abundance for the children that there will be crumbs to throw on the floor for the dogs, and the children will fare none the worse because the dogs are fed." She thought him one who kept so good a table that all that she needed would only be a crumb in comparison; yet remember, what she wanted was to have the devil cast out of her daughter. It was a very great thing to her, but she had such a high esteem of Christ, that she said, "It is nothing to him, it is but a crumb for Christ to give." This is the royal road to comfort. Great thoughts of your sin alone will drive you to despair; but great thoughts of Christ will pilot you into the haven of peace. "My sins are many, but oh! it is nothing to Jesus to take them all away. The weight of my guilt presses me down as a giant's foot would crush a worm, but it is no more than a grain of dust to him, because he has already borne its curse in his own body on the tree. It will be but a small thing for him to give me full remission, although it will be an infinite blessing for me to receive it." The woman opens her soul's mouth very wide, expecting great things of Jesus, and he fills it with his love. Dear reader, do the same. She confessed what Christ laid at her door, but she laid fast hold upon him, and drew arguments even out of his hard words; she believed great things of him, and she thus overcame him. She won the victory by believing in Him . Her case is an instance of prevailing faith; and if we would conquer like her, we must imitate her tactics. Daily Light on the Daily Path 1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.Numbers 23:19 "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Hebrews 7:21 (for they indeed became priests without an oath, but He with an oath through the One who said to Him, "THE LORD HAS SWORN AND WILL NOT CHANGE HIS MIND, 'YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER '"); Hebrews 6:17,18 In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, • so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. 1 Peter 4:19 Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right. 2 Timothy 1:12 For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. 1 Thessalonians 5:24 Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass. 2 Corinthians 1:20 For as many as are the promises of God, in Him they are yes; therefore also through Him is our Amen to the glory of God through us. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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