Monthly Archives: March 2012

The Good Stuff

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We only have so much time in our lives. I’m not just talking about big picture, total heartbeats in your life type of stuff. I’m also talking about the fact that there are only 24 hours today.

There’s only so much time that we have. And are very busy people. There’s so much we have to do. So many places we have to be. So many things we have to be about.

We can feel overwhelmed, tired, and give out sometimes. We can feel so give out that we want to give up. We can feel so worn out that we don’t know what to do next.

We can feel tired, hungry, and broke. Both physically and spiritually.

Listen to what Isaiah 55:1-3 says today:

“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.

Today you don’t have to “work” for real life. You don’t have to “labor” for real water and real food.

Are you thirsty? Come drink.

Are you hungry? Come eat.

Are you tired? Come rest.

Today, don’t waste your time, your effort, your money, on that which isn’t life-giving. Come get the good stuff. And the good stuff is free.

It’s not found anything in life, but in Jesus. He is our water. He is our food. He is rest. He is our life.

Today, our life will not found in our labors, in work, in our money, in anything else. It will be found in Him. Today, find your life in Him.

If you are hungry. Angry. Lonely. Tired. Exhausted. Give out. Giving up. Beat up. Worn out. Hopeless. Cynical. Weary.

Come. Drink. Eat. Rest. Find life. Find it in Him. Don’t waste your precious time on that which is not life. Find life in Him.

He is the good stuff our heart desires. Today, may we find our all in Him.

Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.

Something to Hold on To

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In life, we all need something to hold onto. We all need something to cling to. We all need something that, when the waters are rough and the times are hard.

We need something in out lives to hold on to.  Listen to what Psalm 63:5-8 says this morning:

My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.

Did you hear what the Psalmist says about God today in this passage? My soul will be satisfied when he remembers God. God has been his help in hard times before.

So, because of that, his soul clings on to God now.

God has been our friend, our rock, our shield, our help, our defender, our protector. He will not leave or forsakes us. He loves us more than we can ever imagine.

He love us. And He will hold on to us.

We can hold on to Him. No matter what is happening in your life today, no matter what is going on, no matter what you are struggling with today, you can hold on to Him.

He is there.

He loves you.

He cares for you.

He will not leave you.

Today, and each day, you can hold on to Him.

Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.

Confidence

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In this passage, we see Stephen seized by folks that lying against him. He is preaching about Jesus and doing everything in his power to be faithful to God and God’s calling upon his life.  Listent to this story in Acts 6:13-15:

and they set up false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law, for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.” And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

And in the course of doing this, he is arrested, he is hauled into court, and it is going to eventually be put to death for his faith.

And so, we look at him here in court, and what do we see? We see that they saw his face was like an angel. Bad stuff was happening to him and fixing to happen to him. But here, at this moment, what do we see? We see his face shining like and angel.

Why?

Confidence. He knew that God had this. He knew that God had it under control. He knew that God had this one. He probably had no idea what was to come, but he knew that God was in control anda God would take care of it.

He trusted in God more than he was afraid of his situation. He had confidence in God, God’s plan, God’s will, and God’s grace. He trusted in Him.

Today, so can we. God’s got this. Even in the tough situations, even in the times of trial, even in the times of worry, even in the times of stress.

We can have confidence. God’s got this. Trust. Hope. Have peace. He’s got this. And if we trust, even in those tough times, we will find that His grace is enough.

Today, and each day. Today, we can trust. Today, we can have confidence.

Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.

Where Life is Found

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In John’s Gospel in particular, Jesus says over and over that if we love Him and follow Him, we will obey His commandments.

Ok, that we know what we are supposed to do. So, then, what are we supposed to do? He tells us today in this passage.  Listen to what He says in John 15:12-13, 17:

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. These things I command you, so that you will love one another.

Love. Greater love has this than you lay down your life for your friends. That’s what He did for us. Through the cross, He laid down His life for us so that we can live.

He laid down His life for you. He loved you enough to choose the cross for you sake and for my sake. Because of His action, we can live, we can love, we can know the power of life.

And He tells us to do the same. As He loved us and laid down His life for us. We are to love each other.

Ok, well, what do that mean? We talk about a lot, but what does it mean? To do the same as Jesus. Place others ahead of ourselves. Value each other. Humble yourself. Put others ahead of ourselves.

That’s love. To serve. To care. To place others needs of ourselves. Jesus loved us enough that He sought to serve and to save.

And in doing this – this is where life is found.

We are to do the same. Let’s love each other. Let’s serve. Let’s care. Let’s live. In loving, serving, caring, and forgiving, we find life.

Today, let’s really find life. Let’s follow Jesus’ command for us. Let’s love each other. In that we show that we are His disciples. And in that we show the power of His love to the world.

Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.

You Matter

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One of the things I think we all struggle with is that for most of us, we know that we’ve got it pretty good. We know that our troubles, as real as they are, aren’t the worst in all the world.

And so, that makes us feel bad when we pray for the things in our own lives. Why should we pray about the things in our lives; there are so many others that have it so much worse off than we do. I mean, it’s not that. We shouldn’t bother God with our problems.

We all feel that way sometimes. We feel as though the things going on in our lives can be a bother to God.

Listen to what Jesus says today in Matthew 10:30-32:

But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven,

You matter. You are important. You matter to God. He knows you. He loves you. He even knows the number of hairs upon you head.

If something maters to you, then it matters to God. If it’s a source of pain in your life, then it matters to God. If something is causing you worry, then it matters to God.

These things matter to God, because you matter to God. Don’t ever feel bad about taking these things to God. Don’t ever feel bad about giving your real worries and problems to God. Don’t ever feel like you aren’t important to God. You are. You matter.

Now, we should keep things in perspective in life. Yes, for each of us, there is someone who has it worse than we do. And we should always be in prayer for them. We should always keep our sense of perspective.

But today, and each day, take you concerns to God. He care about them, and about you. Today, you matter to God.

Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.

An Example

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Jesus Christ is Lord of all. He is the very Son of God. The Bible tells us in Colossians that everything in all of creation was made by Him and through Him. He holds everything together. He is the source of life, the source of strength, the source of everything that is good in life.

He sets the example for us. The word Christian means a follower of Christ, or sometimes “little Christ.” As Christians, we are commanded and called to live as Christ would have us to live.

And, lucky for us, Jesus set the example for us. He showed us what we are supposed to do. Look at what we see in John 13:12-15 today:

When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.

What did Jesus do? He served. He served in the must humiliating, demeaning fashion. He served His disciples. He washed their feet. He set an example.

Today, our command as Christians is not to walk around beating our chests. It’s not to act like we are better than others. It’s not to look down our noses at others. It’s not beat other people up.

It’s to serve. Our calling today is to serve others. Our calling today is to follow the example of Jesus and place others ahead of ourselves and serve them, serve their needs, love them.

In loving them, we show them Jesus’ love for them. In serving them, we show them their worth. In serving them, we follow the example set by our Lord.

We will not be able to argue someone into the kingdom of heaven. But, we can love them in. We can serve them in. Jesus showed us that example. He showed us what we are to do. He served His disciples.

And He calls us to serve each other. Today, in your life, find a way to serve someone. And in doing that, you will be showing Jesus example of love. And in that, He will be glorified, and folks will know His love.

Today, he set an example for us. Today, may we follow.

Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.

It’s All Worth It

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Christianity doesn’t promise the moon and the stars. It doesn’t promise that everything will be perfect. It doesn’t promise that everything will be great.

Paul says today that we will toil, we struggle we work. There are and there will be tough times in our faith and in our lives.

That’s simply reality. It’s what you and I know, it’s what you and I deal with. Being a Christian doesn’t make those tough times disappear.

But you know what? It’s worth it. It’s worth it all. Why?

Listen to what Paul writes in Colossians 1:27-29 today:

To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

Paul tells us today that we have the beauty of the mystery of God, Christ in us. That’s the hope of glory.

Our hope doesn’t like in jobs or careers or relationships or hobby or reputations or anything upon the earth.

Our hope is in this. Christ, the very Word and Truth of God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, lives within. Our hope is not found in anything other than that. That is our rock, our hope, our faith.

That is the greatest thing we can can ever know. That’s the greatest thing we can possess. That’s the greatest thing that our minds, our hearts, our lives can know.

Christ in us, that’s the hope. That’s the rock. That’s the foundation. Christ in you.

That’s what all of life comes down to. As I’ve said before, everything in our lives comes back to our walk with Christ. Everything. Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Today, if you are in Christ, if He is your hope, it’s all worth. Every trouble. Every slight. Every worry. Every defeat. Every pain. Every tear. Every broken heart. Everything.

Christ in you. The hope of glory. That’s what it’s all about.

Today, may we keep that the main thing in our lives. And may we know that it’s all worth it.

Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.