Every Day with Jesus (34 page)

Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance.

Peter’s time on earth was limited. This was possibly his last exhortation to the people he loved so much. Yet, instead of imparting one more piece of information, he reminded them of what they already knew. He used the power of their memories to stir them up.

Memory is a powerful thing. One sight, sound, or smell can trigger emotions and actions we may not have experienced in years, all because it causes us to remember. Memory is a function of our minds. Peter said, “I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance” (2 Peter 3:1). We must think to remember. It takes effort, but it’s worth it.

One of the ways the Lord told us to remember is through setting aside special days to commemorate special events. This was one of the main purposes of the Sabbath (Deut. 5:15) and feast days of the Old Covenant. (Deut. 16:3.) They served as constant reminders of the Lord’s blessings. This is also the purpose of the American holiday Thanksgiving. It was established specifically for reminding us of our meager beginnings and that without God’s aid, the United States of America would not exist.

Regardless of your nationality, thanksgiving should be a regular activity in your life. You need to “forget not all his benefits” (Ps. 103:2). The reason the Lord told you not to forget is because remembering His benefits keeps your faith in Him strong and effective. Also, you will forget if you don’t put forth some effort. Use this holiday to remember all the goodness of God toward you.

November 25: It’s Good to Give Thanks

Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.

The American Thanksgiving holiday is rich in godly tradition. Of course, most people have heard of the original Thanksgiving, where the pilgrims gave thanks to God and the Indians for helping them survive their first winter in the New World. Many early presidents of the United States had celebrations commemorating this original event. However, it was in the midst of the U.S. Civil War, in 1863, that President Lincoln issued a proclamation making Thanksgiving an official holiday.

The original proclamation was actually written by William H. Seward, the Secretary of State. President Lincoln expressed similar sentiments when he called for a national day of prayer that same year. Here’s an excerpt from that proclamation:

We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious Hand, which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.

These are profound words that are even more true today than when they were first written. Use this holiday season to humble yourself and remember the God who’s blessed you in so many ways.

November 26: Be Thankful Always

Romans 1:16-25

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Romans 1:21

Once we know God, we must remain thankful. Why is this important?

A thankful person acknowledges what someone else has done for them. They realize the contribution of another. Therefore, a thankful person is a humble person. Humility is a must in the kingdom of God. One of the strongest ploys of the enemy is to try to get us to believe that we can make it on our own. Thankfulness constantly reminds us that God is our Source. We aren’t self-made men and women; the Lord gave us life, health, talents, and opportunities. We should be thankful!

People who aren’t thankful become vain in their imaginations. They lose the perspective of God as their Source and begin to imagine that it’s some virtue of their own that promoted them. They move off the foundation of faith in the Lord, and as they continue to build, they’re destined to fall.

Thankful people think of and appreciate others and what they do for them. In relation to God, a thankful person knows that “promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another” (Ps. 75:6,7).

Who is your source? You can know this by who or what you are grateful for. Make it a habit to begin and end every day by thanking God for all He has done, all He is doing, and all He is going to do for you. Then you will never be deceived into thinking you are on your own in life.

November 27: God Has a Plan for You

Jeremiah 1:4-10

Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

Jeremiah 1:5

The Lord spoke to Jeremiah that he was called, sanctified, and ordained before he was born. But this wasn’t unique to Jeremiah. John the Baptist (Luke 1:15,16), Jesus (Is. 49:1-5), and Paul (Gal. 1:15) were the same—and so are you!

Psalm 139:13-16 reveals how God knew you in your mother’s womb. He knew exactly what you would look like before you were even born. Before you were formed, your life was written in His book. You didn’t just happen. You didn’t evolve from apes. You were created by a loving God, who has a specific purpose for you. He created you with special gifts to fulfill His purposes in this life. God has a plan for you.

Your greatest opportunity for happiness and success is in fulfilling God’s purposes for your life. You may be able to use His talents to accomplish other things, but you won’t experience His anointing and blessing on those other efforts as you would by devoting those abilities to Him and His work.

You may wonder, How do I know what God wants me to do? The answer comes in giving yourself completely to Him. When you make a total surrender to God, He begins working circumstances in a manner that leads you into His perfect plan. Your part is to surrender; His part is to reveal. If you do your part, He’ll do His. Then you will experience a new fulfillment and joy that only those in the center of His will can know.

November 28: What’s Your Excuse?

Jeremiah 1:4-10

Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.

Jeremiah 1:6

God had just revealed to Jeremiah that He had created him for a specific purpose. He had sanctified and ordained him to be a prophet to the nation of Israel. What wonderful news! How awesome to know that God had a special purpose when He created him. He was not an accident. He was created to accomplish a work for the Lord.

However, Jeremiah wasn’t blessed by this news—he was intimidated. He wanted out of God’s plan for his life. He thought the call was too great for him, but the truth is, if what you feel called to do isn’t greater than what you think you can do, then it’s probably not God. God is a big God and He calls us to big things. We think small. God thinks big. Thank God, He is the one who empowers us and enables us to do what He calls us to do.

Jeremiah protested that he was only a child and couldn’t speak. In truth, he was a grown man at this time. He was referring to his belief that he was inadequate for the task. Moses tried this same line on God. (Ex. 4:10.) We’ve all tried it. But the Lord commanded Jeremiah never again to say he was incompetent.

None of us are capable of accomplishing God’s will on our own, but none of us are on our own when we are submitted to God’s will. He gives us special anointings and gifts to accomplish His will. All we have to do is yield to Him, and He will do the rest.

Do you know what God’s will is for your life? Are you lacking what it takes to get it done? You’re in good company. Don’t try to fulfill the task in your own strength, and never again refer to your weakness. Instead, just yield to Him and move forward.

November 29: None Are Insignificant

Acts 9:1-22

Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem.

Acts 9:13

Everyone knows about Saul of Tarsus, who later became the apostle Paul. God used him to write much of the New Testament, but do you know the courageous person God used to heal Saul’s blind eyes, minister the baptism of the Holy Spirit to him, and give him the prophecy he based his entire ministry on? We often forget the Anne Sullivans who reach the Helen Kellers of this world; but without these people who aren’t as famous as their disciples, we wouldn’t have people like the apostle Paul.

After this passage of Scripture, Ananias isn’t mentioned again. As far as we know from the biblical account, he never did any other great exploits. Certainly, he never did anything as earthshaking as his ministry to Saul of Tarsus. Nevertheless, Ananias had to have great faith in the Lord to even go near a man who was persecuting and killing Christians, and he was a vital link in the chain of events that brought us one of God’s greatest men.

In our modern day of distorted values, we have lost sight of the Ananiases of this world. We measure success by cold statistics that often overlook factors like loving parents who sacrificed so their children could succeed or teachers who took extra time and effort to make the difference in one pupil’s life. Because of this we fail to realize the potential of our own small acts.

Anyone can count the seeds in an apple, but only God can count the apples in a seed. Likewise, the potential of your deeds of love and faith to others are beyond your comprehension. Don’t pass up an opportunity to bless someone else today. You could be ministering to the next apostle Paul.

November 30: Where Are You?

Acts 9:10-22

And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord.

Acts 9:10

God called Ananias’ name, and he answered, “Behold, I am here Lord.” What would have happened if Ananias had not been there? What if he had been doing something else and was not listening to God? The Lord might have found somebody else to do His will, but we don’t know for sure. We can say this: Ananias would have missed the greatest opportunity of his life! How many people get to lead someone to the Lord who impacts the world like the apostle Paul did?

There is great significance in the fact that Ananias was there. He was in a place of communion with the Lord. He was listening and attentive to Him. This doesn’t come overnight. Certainly Ananias had spent much time in God’s presence. How many days, weeks, or years had Ananias spent seeking the Lord before this time? As far as we know, God hadn’t done anything before in his life that was as spectacular as what He was leading him to do at this time. However, Ananias remained faithful. He was there when the big opportunity came.

We often fail to recognize that we aren’t normally going to see angels or have visions during our times of fellowship with the Lord. We won’t always have goose bumps running up and down our spines. There is just the gentle peace and assurance of faith that God is with us. The spectacular comes only on occasion, but we must constantly practice waiting on the Lord. We must always be on call.

Do you think God has ever called you and you weren’t there? Don’t let that happen today. Make sure your antenna is up and your faith is switched on so that when the Lord calls your name, you’ll hear Him.

December

December 1: Kinds of Evangelism

Luke 24:45-48

And ye are witnesses of these things.

Luke 24:48

One of the great mistakes of the modern church is thinking that evangelism is something done within the four walls of the church building. Acts 8:1-4 makes it apparent that evangelism was not done by the pastor or clergy but by believers who went everywhere preaching the Word.

There are several methods of evangelism mentioned in the Scriptures:

1. House-to-house evangelism: “And in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ” (Acts 5:42).

2. Personal, one-on-one evangelism: Philip ministered to the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:26-38), Paul to Sergius Paulus (Acts 13:7), Jesus to Mary Magdalene, Nicodemus, the woman at the well, the thief on the cross, and others. There are about thirty-five such instances recorded in the Gospels alone.

3. Evangelism to large crowds: Peter ministered to the crowds in Jerusalem at Pentecost (Acts 2) and Paul at Lystra (Acts 14:8-18).

4. Evangelism to entire cities: “Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them” (Acts 8:5).

5. Public debate and preaching: Paul disputed in synagogues and market places (Acts 16:17); Peter and John preached in the temple (Acts 3:11-26); Paul declared, “And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shown you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house, Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:20-21).

6. Tract evangelism: The first tract evangelism with ink and pen are the Gospels. In his Gospel, John stated, “These are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name” (John 20:31).

Today, be wise in the way you speak and act with unbelievers. Make the most of every opportunity.

December 2: Proven Authority

Numbers 17:1-11

And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.

Numbers 17:8

God will always prove those He has set in authority by their fruit. Throughout His time on earth, Jesus proved His authority came from God not only because of all the signs, wonders, and miracles He performed but by the multitudes who followed Him and whose lives were dramatically changed by His teaching.

The religious Jews never accepted and submitted to the authority Jesus carried, but lack of respect for authority has always been one of the most common problems in our world. Today we see it in the home, in the church, and in the attitudes people have toward government. In this story in Numbers, the people of Israel questioned Moses’ and Aaron’s authority to govern the nation of Israel.

In Numbers 16, Korah slandered Moses’ character and authority, and the earth immediately swallowed him and all those associated with him. Then another fourteen thousand Israelites criticized Moses for the way he handled Korah and died by a plague of the Lord. Moses’ authority was under attack, and God was supernaturally proving him, but the people were still not accepting him.

To resolve the issue, the Lord had Moses command the leaders of each tribe to take their rods, which symbolized authority, and write their names on them. Then all the rods were placed in the Holy Place overnight. The next morning Aaron’s rod had budded, blossomed, and produced almonds. The other rods were still bare sticks. This forever settled the issue of whom God had chosen to rule the nation. The fruit made the difference!

You can always tell those who have God-given authority by the fruit they produce. (Matt. 7:20.) Although you must always honor and respect those in authority over you, some may not be producing fruit for the kingdom of God. Instead of judging them like Korah, pray for them. Be humble like Moses, and your own fruit will just naturally come forth.

December 3: Reconciled