Quiet Walk
When we are obedient to God, nothing can touch us that does not come from God Himself.
Exodus 14
The Lord parts the Red Sea for the children of Israel.
INSIGHT
When we are obedient to God, nothing can touch us that does not come from God Himself. The armies of Egypt, symbolic of the armies of Satan, are no match for a God jealous to care for His beloved people. Resting in God's full protection in spiritual warfare, we may put on His full armor and stand firm, knowing that we will triumph in Him.
· Offer this psalm of praise to our forgiving God:
The Lord is righteous in all His ways,
Gracious in all His works,
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He also will hear their cry and save them.
My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord;
And all flesh shall bless His holy name
Forever and ever
(Psalms 145:17-19).
· Now pray this confession to the Lord to keep your life free from sin and in fellowship with Him:
Out of the depths I have cried to You, O Lord;
Lord, hear my voice!
Let Your ears be attentive
To the voice of my supplications.
If You, Lord, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
But there is forgiveness with You,
That You may be feared
(Psalms 130:1-4).
· Voice your affirmation of God's Word:
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart,
All you who hope in the Lord
(Psalms 31:24).
Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous;
And shout for joy, all you upright in heart!
(Psalms 32:11).
· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:
· greater commitment to the Lord,
· the hungry around the world,
· your prayer list.
· Now offer this prayer of worship to the Lord:
The Lord will command His
lovingkindness in the daytime,
And in the night His song shall be with me-
A prayer to the God of my life
(Psalms 42:8).
Source: Crosswalk
Blessed Repentance
For the next thirty years, the man who didn’t think he’d live to see forty lived and served God as a changed believer in Jesus. His license plates changed too—from “BROKE” to “REPENT.”
“BROKE” was the street name Grady answered to and those five letters were proudly emblazoned on his license plates. Though not intended in a spiritual sense, the moniker fit the middle-aged gambler, adulterer, and deceiver. He was broken, bankrupt, and far from God. However, all that changed one evening when he was convicted by God’s Spirit in a hotel room. He told his wife, “I think I’m getting saved!” That evening he confessed sins he thought he’d take with him to the grave and came to Jesus for forgiveness. For the next thirty years, the man who didn’t think he’d live to see forty lived and served God as a changed believer in Jesus. His license plates changed too—from “BROKE” to “REPENT.”
Repent. That’s what Grady did and that’s what God called Israel to do in Hosea 14:1–2. “Return, Israel, to the Lord your God. . . . Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him: ‘Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously.’ ” Big or small, few or many, our sins separate us from God. But the gap can be closed by turning from sin to God and receiving the forgiveness He’s graciously provided through the death of Jesus. Whether you’re a struggling believer in Christ or one whose life looks like Grady’s did, your forgiveness is only a prayer away.
Written By: Arthur Jackson
Source: Our Daily Bread
The Resurrection of Jesus and Watergate
“In Watergate 12 of the most powerful men in the world couldn’t keep a lie for three weeks! (but) 12 apostles could keep a lie for 40 years? Absolutely impossible!”
Christians claim the resurrection actually happened. While other religions are based on untestable spiritual claims independent of history, the claim to a historical resurrection opens Christianity up to scrutiny. “If this did not happen,” says Paul in 1 Corinthians 15, “the whole thing is false and we are pathetic… “(that’s my paraphrase).
The most likely alternative to the resurrection story is the disciples invented it, but that doesn’t make sense. If you’re making up a story like that, you’d make it a spiritual resurrection not a bodily one! And, it would’ve been easy to produce a body and end the whole charade.
And finally, as Chuck Colson learned from his Watergate experience, “12 men testified they’d seen Jesus raised from the dead, proclaimed that for 40 years, never once denying it,” despite beatings and torture. “In Watergate 12 of the most powerful men in the world couldn’t keep a lie for three weeks! (but) 12 apostles could keep a lie for 40 years? Absolutely impossible!”
That’s because they were telling the truth.
Written By: John Stonestreet
Really Alive
Is He really going to raise us from the dead? Is He really going to keep all His promises?
Since it was the week after Easter, our five-year-old son, Wyatt, had heard plenty of resurrection talk. He always had questions—usually real stumpers. I was driving, and he was buckled into his seat behind me. Wyatt peered out the window, deep in thought. “Daddy,” he said, pausing and preparing to ask me a tough one. “When Jesus brings us back to life, are we going to be really alive—or just alive in our heads?”
This is the question so many of us carry, whether or not we have the courage to speak it aloud. Is God really going to heal us? Is He really going to raise us from the dead? Is He really going to keep all His promises?
The apostle John describes our certain future as “a new heaven and a new earth” (Revelation 21:1). In that holy city, “God himself will be with [us] and be [our] God” (v. 3). Because of Christ’s victory, we’re promised a future where there’s no more tears, no evil arrayed against God and His people. In this good future, “There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (v. 4).
In other words, in the future God promises, we’ll be really alive. We’ll be so alive that our life now will seem a mere shadow.
Source: Our Daily Bread
Written By: Winn Collier
The Tomb Was Empty
The women knew Jesus was dead. Some of them had seen Him die. And they were sure His body was in the tomb; it had been there since Friday. But when they went to anoint the body on that Sunday morning, the tomb was empty!
Today's Truth
He is not here; He has risen! (Luke 24:6, NIV).
Friend to Friend
The boys and girls in Mrs. Stephens’ fourth grade Sunday school class entered the room and quickly found their seats. The girls were dressed in frills and lace and chatting excitedly about the candy-filled baskets they had received that morning. The boys pulled at the unfamiliar ties around their necks and quickly discarded the sports coats they had obviously been forced to wear. The room was filled with excitement – for good reason. It was Easter Sunday.
Mrs. Stephens wanted to help her students understand that there is so much more to the Easter holiday than new clothes, chocolate bunnies, and egg hunts. Easter is more than family gatherings and tables filled with luscious food. Easter is about life. Easter celebrates the certainty of Jesus’ death on the cross, the fact that He was buried, and that He came out of a burial tomb to conquer death so that we can live now and eternally.
Mrs. Stephens came up with a plan. After sharing the Bible story of Jesus’ resurrection, she gave each one of her students an empty plastic egg and said, “We are going to take a walk outside, and I want each one of you to find one sign of life and put it in your plastic egg.”
As the children filed out of the room, Mrs. Stephens noticed Danny, a little boy with Down syndrome who had been coming to her class for some time. His bright smile and sunny disposition had immediately won her heart. In fact, when it came to Danny, she often thought he had taught her so much more about the unconditional love of God and the joy of simply being a child of God than she could ever teach him. When she heard the other children make fun of him, it broke her heart. She always corrected the children and tried to help them see just how special Danny was, but Danny seemed oblivious to their hurtful words, and thought of each child as his “buddy.”
The children soon returned from their walk, depositing their eggs on the teacher’s desk as they made their way to their seats. Inside one student's egg was a lady bug. In another was an ant. Others had collected flowers, twigs, blades of grass and leaves to fill their eggs. But one egg had nothing in it. Everyone knew whose egg it was. Mrs. Stephens silenced the giggles with a look of warning. When she asked Danny why he had not put anything inside his egg to show signs of life, his face broke into a huge grin as he responded, "Because the tomb was empty."
Danny got it. He truly understood the profound truth of Easter. The empty tomb is the ultimate sign of life and a miracle like none other.
Jesus Christ had risen from the dead. The women knew Jesus was dead. Some of them had seen Him die. And they were sure His body was in the tomb; it had been there since Friday. But when they went to anoint the body on that Sunday morning, the tomb was empty! The body could not have been stolen. Nobody was playing tricks on them. They were not merely fooling themselves. The miracle was real. They could see the empty tomb with their own eyes. Jesus Christ really had risen from the dead!
I would love to have been there that morning when the women went to the tomb – expecting to deal with death and instead found life, wouldn’t you? You may be dealing with death in your own life – the loss of a loved one – the death of a dream – the pain of a broken body. Just as Jesus Christ rose from the dead, He can breathe new life into your heart and mind. Right now, quietly turn to Jesus. He is waiting for you – healing and restoration and new life are in His hands.
Let’s Pray
Father, Thank You for the miracle of life – abundant life here, and eternal life with You in Heaven. Help me celebrate that life every day as I seek You and follow Your plan for my life. Today, I say with the Apostle Paul, “Where, O death is your victory? Where, O death is your sting?”
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
Consider this truth: Satan has no answer for the empty tomb. What does the resurrection of Jesus Christ really mean to you?
Set aside time today to remember what Christ has done for you through His death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead. Read Luke 24 and celebrate the life only He can give.
Source: Crosswalk
Written By: Mary Southerland