Jeremiah, 24 of 66

One of my Bible profs in college used to call Jeremiah the “wailing prophet”.  He spoke early and often and he message was never good.  In fact, quite frankly, Jeremiah’s whole life didn’t seem to go well.  Every time he spoke people got mad at him, every time he pronounced judgment on Israel, the people scorned him and wished him dead.  He actually got thrown in a pit in the stocks and people came by and through rotten food at him.  All because Jeremiah conveyed the message of God to a stiff-necked and perverse people.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does — James 1:22-25

Can I summarize this passage for you?  “Put up, or shut up!”

In I Peter 4:7-11 we come across another one of those ‘since/then’ statements.  One of the bible writers tells us that ‘since’ one thing is true, ‘then’ we are to act a certain way.  In 1 Peter four, Peter reminds us that “the end is near” and he follows this with several key commands.  One of them is the command to keep using our gifts to serve others:

The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray.  Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.  Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.  Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.  If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Every once in a while it seems like God makes the Christian life pretty simple.  I’m not making matters easy, believe me, just sometimes it’s simple:  Simple and easy ARE NOT the same thing.

For today’s Tenth Dot, would you take out a piece of paper and use it to answer questions after each page?  Take some time to really think through your answers and answer the question(s) on one page before moving to the next.  Don’t worry, there’s just a few pages but your answers will help you make real application to your life.  Pull out that paper, or journal, or word processing document and then get started!

Many of us talk about “walking by faith” but I’m afraid few of us ever actually live by the faith we profess.  After fourteen years of pastoral ministry I’ve come to see that many Christians define faith as a step we take with minimal risks…faith has become riskless.

Yes, God gave us minds and He expects us to use our brains to make thoughtful decisions.  But in our Western culture that’s become an excuse for not stepping out until all reasonable risk has been eliminated.  Once we’re sure things are relatively safe, we’re all-too-happy to step out “in faith” and see what God has in store.  Our faith is small and I think we see that in the fact that the results are in proportion to the trust.

Have you ever been pushed to the limit with your faith?  I don’t necessarily mean your faith in God, I mean just your faith in anyone/thing at any time?  Have you been pushed to place where you really had to check yourself and see what you believed or more importantly, how hard you believed?

Acts seven is a powerful chapter on what it really means to stand up for God — even to the point of death!  Stephen was the first to "stand and deliver" the powerful message of the Gospel to a totally hostile crowd making sure all the glory went to God.  This bold presentation of God’s truth led to Stephen’s death and the first martyr of the early church.

PROGRESS:  Living for today, planning for tomorrow

Day 10 of 28 (start at day 1 by clicking HERE)

The Joseph Mindset:  Day 3

What you need to know about the past is that no matter what has happened, it has all worked together to bring you to this very moment.  And this is the moment you can choose to make everything new.  Right now.  ~Author Unknown

PROGRESS:  Living for today, planning for tomorrow

Day 9 of 28 (start at day 1 by clicking HERE)

The Joseph Mindset:  Day 2

The past is our definition.  We may strive, with good reason, to escape it, or to escape what is bad in it, but we will escape it only by adding something better to it.  ~Wendell Berry

I have one life and one chance to make it count for something . . . I’m free to choose what that something is, and the something I’ve chosen is my faith. Now, my faith goes beyond theology and religion and requires considerable work and effort. My faith demands — this is not optional — my faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can with whatever I have to try to make a difference.

-Jimmy Carter

God’s first promise of a coming Savior is found in Genesis 3.  The second major promise comes in Genesis 12.  Look at these amazing words:

And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

What are you known for?  Take a moment to read Colossians 1:3-4 and note what the people of Colosse where known for:

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints— Colossians 1:3-4

For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. — Psalm 57:10

 Understanding the Fruit of faithfulness, I believe, requires us to understand the faithfulness of God.  Since it is God who produces the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives, understanding His faithful nature will help us to better understand what He desires to produce in us.

*This is part 8 of a 10 part series on the Fruit of the Spirit that started on November 23, 2009.  You can access past material by using the calendar archive button on the right side of the screen.

How do you define success? God measures our success by our obedience, our faithfulness, and our love for Him. Successfulness by the world’s standards has to do with our personal gain, but God is concerned with our personal sacrifice for Him and His Kingdom. He is in complete control of our success or lack there of. Our success is not based on possessions but on position. Being positioned in God’s presence changes everything. When we are obedient to Him, God puts us in a position for success.

Examine your heart as you ponder these verses…

These are words that we long to hear.

Well done, good and faithful servant!

- Matthew 25:21

Lamentations 3:22-24

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness.

I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;

therefore I will wait for him.”

One of the dangers of following Jesus is becoming complacent: Grace becomes ordinary. Jesus’ sacrifice becomes familiar. God’s love becomes normal. The power of the Spirit becomes something we teach about but never experience. Prayer becomes boring. Life becomes mere existence.

The faith we are a part of is no less than extraordinary. Unless we constantly remind ourselves of the enormous lengths of God’s everlasting love, we will miss out on the life that God designed for us.

Today as you ponder these verses, your life, and God Almighty, let God remind you of the deep and remarkable life He has for you.

Words inspire us. They motivate us. They shape our culture. Today I want us to think about a very specific word, a wonderful word. It’s such a fun word. It’s used in a variety of ways. The word is- whatever. Here are a few "whatevers" from God’s Word.

How do you determine what to do today? What steps to take? Who to call? What to say yes to and what to say no to? Do I go this way or that way? Which direction does God want me to go?

These are deep questions that we have on an ongoing basis. Today, I want us to think deeply about some verses, and ponder the implications of these passages on our lives.

May the God of HOPE fill you

with all joy and peace AS you trust in HIM,

so that you may overflow with hope 

by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

- Romans 15:13

In this passage, we get to glimpse into a conversation with Jesus and a woman going out to draw water from a well. If you pay close attention, you can hear Jesus’ love, passion, and challenge to this woman. Stop when you get to the part where Jesus says, "Believe Me". Ponder the significance of those words and the implication of those words for our life.

THINK about this passage. Take time to allow God to speak to you through His Word. Let it sink from your thoughts into your HEART.