Monthly Archives: August 2012

Who Am I?

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The God of creation loves you.

The very God that spoke all things into creation, the very sovereign Lord of the Ages, the very God that is the King of all the universe, the Almighty God.

He loves you.

Really.

He gave His son for your sake, and for mine. He made you, He formed you, and He longs for a relationship with you.

He desires to see your salvation and completion redemption in heaven. He desires for you to be the person that He has created you to be.

Really. He does.

And what you, or me, or any of us done for this? Nothing. Who am I, that God almighty would feel this way. Or who are any of us that God would feel that way?

Yeah, it’s humbling. But we aren’t the only ones to feel that way. Listen to what David says today in 2 Samuel 7:18-19:

Then King David went in and sat before the Lord and said, “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O Lord God. You have spoken also of your servant’s house for a great while to come, and this is instruction for mankind, O Lord God!

Who am I? Who are you? Who are any of us?

This is who we are. We are the beloved children of God, loved for no reason other than the fact that God loves us. He formed us, He made us, and He loves us.

No matter where you are, what you are doing, or what is going on, you are loved. Yes, you are. You are His beloved child.

Remember that. As the old saying goes, remember who you are. And remember whose you are. You are God’s. You belong to Him.

He loves you. No matter what.

Who are you? You are a beloved child of God.

Today, live like the beloved child that you are.

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.

The Unknown

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Sometimes in life, we don’t know what the future holds. Well, actually, at all times in life, we don’t know what the future holds.

None of us have an understanding of what is in store for us in the days to come. We may have an idea. We may have a notion. But none of us are sure as to what the future may hold.

And that can be scary. That can worrisome. I may not like what the future holds. It may be something that I’m unsure of.

Even if I’m in a situation that I may not like. Even if I know I’m somewhere that I don’t need to be.

Sometimes the fear of the unknown is greater than the fear or the pain of where we may be.

Sometimes we are afraid to jump because we don’t know where we will land.

Listen to what happens to the people of God today in Exodus 16:2-3:

And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

They didn’t like slavery. But, they were now afraid of the future. And as much as they didn’t like being slaves, they were afraid of the future and afraid of the unknown. And they were willing to go back to slavery, instead of jumping to the unknown.

Today, I don’t know the future. I don’t know all the details of what will happen. I’m unsure of the future. There are many, many things that I don’t know. That are unknown.

But, there is this that is known. God. He is good. He loves us. He will not forsake us. We are His. He will not leave.

So, even in the unknown, trust what is known. God.

Today, even if you are afraid, and don’t know what the future holds, know who holds that future. God.

Trust in Him, even in the unknown.

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.

Some Monday Encouragement

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Ugh, Monday! Who likes them? I mean, really, who wanted to get out of bed this morning.

Some weeks, some Mondays we need a little (or a lot) or encouragement to get going. That little extra kick. That little extra cup (or five) of coffee in the morning.

Sometimes, we need a little extra Monday encouragement.

Well, here you go. And from a surprising place. Deuteronomy.  Listen Deuteronomy 7:6-8:

For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

Listen to what we are told today. God has chosen you as His treasured possession, out of all the earth.

He has chosen you! He loves you! You are His prize this morning. You have a worth to God this morning great than you can even imagine. You are more valuable to the king of eternity than anything else in all of creation!

Wow!

The God that made everything, both seen and unseen, has chosen to love you, know you, save you!

But, you think, I haven’t earned that.

Exactly, that’s what makes it even better. He hasn’t chosen us because of anything we’ve done. He loves us because of who He is! He loves us because of what He’s done.

So, bring it on Monday. You can’t touch us. We have been chosen and loved by a Holy God. He has freed us, loves us, and will never leave us.

Nothing can stop that. Even Monday!

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.

Who Will God Speak Through Today?

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The people that God will use may look very different than you may expect.

Today, who do you expect God to use? You may have in your mind an image of the person that God will use.

It may be your preacher. Your small group leader. Your youth pastor. Someone that works for the church. Someone that’s in full time missions.

We all have an idea of who God will use.

And, we all have an idea who God won’t use. He will use the good, the holy, the “sanctified.”

He won’t use the hypocrites, the sinful, the imperfect. He only uses the worth.

Right? That’s what we are tempted to think sometimes.

But, that isn’t the case. Look at what we hear in Judges 4:4-5:

And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time. And she dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in mount Ephraim: and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.

We see God raise up Deborah. We see Him use here in amazing ways in this book. She leads the people of God to a victory. She frees them. She helps restore them to freedom and helps them to return to the correct worship of God.

And she was not who we would expected God to use. We didn’t expect God to raise her up. And He did. He used someone that we normally wouldn’t have expected God to use.

He uses unexpected people to accomplish His plan and His purpose.

So, today, who do you expect God to use? Who do you think that God will use to speak to you today?

Where do you expect God to speak to you from?

Are you sure about that?

May our eyes be open to all the various ways and places and people that God can speak through. May we be looking. May we be listening.

Today, look for God. Listen for God. Seek Him. And don’t be surprised if He speaks to you in a way that you weren’t expecting.

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.

Personal Not Private

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One of my professors in seminary, Dr. Knick, once said something in class that at first left you scratching your head saying – what?

He said this – your faith is personal, but it is not private. When he said it, we were all quiet, because we knew he had just said something pretty deep.

Which just didn’t know what he meant!

He went on to explain it this way. Faith is a personal thing. We are called to have a deeply personal faith. Your faith is your faith. Your faith forms you and it shapes you.

It makes you who you are.

And it needs to be your faith. We each need our own faith. My faith is not sufficient for you. You need your own living faith for yourself.

This faith is personal.

But it is not private. This faith is to be lived out publicly. It has public effects. It is not to kept in the dark. It is not to be kept away from how live, how we serve, how we live our lives.

Our faith is personal, in that it is deeply ours. But our faith is never private. It much change the way that we live.

Look at what the writer of Hebrews says today in Hebrews 10:24-25:

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Do not neglect meeting together. Encourage one another. Effect one another.

Have a personal faith that deeply molds you. But, never let that faith be private. Let is also mold other people.

So, today, in your life, chase after God with all that you are. Seek to live your life by His calling and His Word.

And like that faith affect every part of your life today. May that faith affect your words, your actions your life.

May our faith be personal. But never private!

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