Tuesday, June 30

Jeremiah 31:21 (HCSB)
Set up road markers for yourself; establish
signposts! Keep the highway in mind, the way you have traveled. Return,
Virgin Israel! Return to these cities of yours.

The Hebrews have been unfaithful to God. Time and time again God calls them to repent of their idolatry and return to Him. Israel steadfastly refused to turn around. God disciplined them by sending into captivity in Babylon for 70 years. But here God is saying: “Remember the way home, because I will call you home again.”

Notice the name by which God refers to Israel: “Virgin Israel.” Calling Israel a virgin is like calling Heidi Fleiss a virgin! The reason why God shipped her off to Babylon was because of her spiritual infidelities. But God calls her back to Himself as “Virgin Israel.” How does He do that? You cannot unscramble eggs!

Man can’t. God can!

This is a picture of us. Before we came to Christ we were as unfaithful to God as Israel. We worshipped at the altars of numerous Baals. We prostituted ourselves with unholy living. We were anything but pure and chaste.

Then one day we heard the Gospel and we opened our hearts to Jesus. When He came into us He not only forgave us but He also washed us in His blood and made us clean. He made us a virgin again. God can do that… and He did! In His eyes you are as pure as a virgin, never once stained by any sin!

How does it feel to be clean?

Sunday, June 28

Jeremiah 28:9 (HCSB)

“As for the prophet who prophesies peace—only when the word of the prophet comes true will the prophet be recognized as one whom the LORD has truly sent.”

 

Call this “The Prophet Test.” It is a simple test to give anyone who claims to be a prophet. Here it is: Does his prophecy come true?

 

There have always been those who claim to prophesy “in the name of the Lord.” Some are the real deal. Some are blatantly liars. Some, you just can’t tell. They sound true enough. But there is still just that smidgen of doubt.

 

Well, this test will help.

 

A genuine prophet does not mind being put to the test. In fact, he probably expects it!

 

So ask him to prophesy something you can see. Give him the test.

 

If his prophecy comes true he speaks for the Lord—listen to him!

 

If it does not he speaks for himself—shun him! 

Saturday, June 27

Jeremiah 26:20–24 (HCSB)

Another man was also prophesying in the name of the LORD—Uriah son of Shemaiah from Kiriath-jearim. He prophesied against this city and against this land in words like all those of Jeremiah.

King Jehoiakim, all his warriors, and all the officials heard his words, and the king tried to put him to death. When Uriah heard, he fled in fear and went to Egypt. But King Jehoiakim sent men to Egypt: Elnathan son of Achbor and ‹certain other› men with him ‹went› to Egypt. They brought Uriah out of Egypt and took him to King Jehoiakim, who executed him with the sword and threw his corpse into the burial place of the common people.

But Ahikam son of Shaphan supported Jeremiah, so he was not handed over to the people to be put to death.

 

Uriah and Jeremiah both prophesied the word of the Lord. Uriah was killed. Jeremiah was delivered. Uriah fled in fear to Egypt. I can only imagine the fear he felt when he was captured.

 

What can we say about these things? Both men obeyed God. When paid the ultimate price for his obedience. The other doubtless suffered great things, but he still survived.

 

There are no guarantees when we obey God. God’s plan for one of His servants is completely different then the plan He has for all the other of His servants.

 

Which will we be: the servant who survives or the one who dies? We don’t know and we cannot know. I can only say three things:

 

First, we must obey God regardless. We don’t obey God for what we get out of it. We obey God because that is what we must do.

 

Second, we must trust that God will give us what we need to fulfill His will. Uriah fled in fear, but I want to believe that he came back under guard with God’s peace in his heart.

 

Third, both prophets received a reward. I do not know what that reward was, and I know we do not serve God for rewards. But God does reward His servants. It is not was though we have nothing to look forward to. We have a lot to look forward to.

 

It will all be worth it when we see Jesus! So keep obeying Him.

 

Thursday, June 25

Jeremiah 25:11-12 (HCSB)
This whole land will become a desolate ruin, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon for 70 years. When the 70 years are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation’—[this is] the Lord’s declaration—‘the land of the Chaldeans, for their guilt, and I will make it a ruin forever.

I read this prophecy in Jeremiah 25 and I thought of Daniel chapter 9:

In the first year of Darius, who was the son of Ahasuerus, was a Mede by birth, and was ruler over the kingdom of the Chaldeans—in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the books according to the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet that the number of years for the desolation of Jerusalem would be 70. So I turned my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and petitions, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes (verses 1-3).

Daniel was probably reading Jeremiah 25. Just think: we are reading the same thing that Daniel was reading 2500 years ago! He began to count up the number of years they had been in Babylon…the seventy were almost complete. He knew something was about to happen. He became very excited and his prayers intensified. “Lord, what are You about to do?”

Can you imagine what it must have been like to be in his place?

What does this say to us?

First, God fulfills His Word. His prophecies came true in the past, and they are coming true now. We can trust God to keep His Word.

Second, we should do what Daniel did and be a student of the Word and an observer of our times. This requires discipline. The only way to know the Bible is to spend lots of time in the Bible!

Third, I believe that we will experience the same feeling Daniel did. I believe that prophecy is unfolding before us right now. Significant things are unfolding on the world stage. We need to pay attention. We need to be prepared. We will soon be saying as Peter 2000 years ago, “Brethren, this is that which was spoken by the prophet….”

Don’t read another book on prophecy this year. Just read the Bible!

Wednesday, June 24

Jeremiah 23:18 (HCSB)

      For who has stood in the council of the LORD

      to see and hear His word?

      Who has paid attention to His word and obeyed?

 

To hear a word from the Lord requires some things. First, it takes time. You have to wait—to stand—before the Lord. This is hard for us. We want things fast—microwave fast. But hearing from God takes time. We have to be willing to sit and listen…patiently.

 

Second, it requires humility. We do not come to God’s Word to find what He says to someone else. We come to hear what He has to say to us. What is His council to me? I have to be willing to allow God to speak to me, to challenge me, to correct me. If we stand in the council of the Lord that means we are seeking God’s council for our own life first.

 

Third, we have to pay attention. We must be focused. We must concentrate on God’s Word. We must read and reread and reread again. Sometimes it helps to read a verse in more than one translation. We need to really listen to what the text is saying, and what God is saying through it. Sometimes we are not listening to what God says, but we are trying to hear what we want God to say.

 

Fourth, we must obey. Whatever God says to anyone else through me He says to me first. Am I obeying His Word? If I am not obeying He is not speaking to anyone else through me. In fact, it is the height of arrogance to think that I could have a word from God for anyone else if I am not obeying His word in my own life.

 

Want to hear from God? Those are the requisites. 

Tuesday, June 23

Jeremiah 23:1–4 (HCSB)

"Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!"  ‹This is› the LORD’s declaration.

"Therefore, this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the shepherds who shepherd My people: You have scattered My flock, banished them, and have not attended to them.  I will attend to you because of your evil acts"—the LORD’s declaration. "I will gather the remnant of My flock from all the lands where I have banished them, and I will return them to their grazing land. They will become fruitful and numerous.  I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them. They will no longer be afraid or dismayed, nor will any be missing." ‹This is› the LORD’s declaration.

 

This prophecy is for national Israel. But it can also have application for the church. Right now God’s people are scattered. We are scattered throughout many denominations, many different churches, wearing a plethora of labels. But this will not always be. One day all God’s people will be one. I welcome that day! We allow far too much to divide us. We are divided over inconsequential nomenclature—things that don’t matter a hill of beans! Just because one shepherd does not say it exactly like we do we think we have to take our flock and go graze in another pasture. Even the “non-corral” shepherds cannot get along with each other!

 

Now I am not advocating the demolition of all denominations. The Bible tells us that the next one-world religion will be a false religion headed by the false prophet.

 

But when the Lord of the Church returns we will all be united under Him. Until then we ought to do our dead level best to get along with each other! We should remember that no one of us has a corner on the truth market. We are all fallible. We suffer from way too much ego. If we were humble we would realize that we could be wrong. We would listen more and argue less. We would realize that there is a lot more that unites us than divides us, and a lot more we agree on than disagree on.

 

The fact is that if you have Christ living in your heart and I have Christ living in my heart we share a kinship that is stronger than blood. I know there will be preferences on things like worship style and modes of baptism. You might hit a two-handed backstroke and I may hit a one-handed backstroke—and some showoff might be ambidextrous and swing only forehands—but we can still play doubles! We don’t have to join a separate club! We need each other… and we need what each of us can bring to the table. We desperately need to love each other and start getting along. I think this would do more to advance the cause of Christ today than we could imagine.

Monday, June 22

Jeremiah 22:15–16 (HCSB)

Are you a king because you excel in cedar?

Your own father, did he not eat and drink? He administered justice and righteousness, then it went well with him.

He took up the case of the poor and needy, then it went well.

Is this not what it means to know Me?

‹This is› the LORD’s declaration.

 

The first question was, “Does living in a big ‘ol house make you somebody special?” We would say today, “You are what you drive” or “The clothes make the man.”  There are people who think what they drive, what they wear, or what they live in. the Bible says, “Lizards are easy to catch, but they live in even in kings’ palaces.” (Proverbs 31:28). A reptile can live in a palace—does that make it a prince? There are good people who live in project housing, and there are vile people who live in gated communities. What you live in, what you drive, or what you wear does not determine who you are—especially in God’s eyes.

 

So what does it take to be someone special in God’s eyes? It requires living right and treating other people with deference. We should take up the cause of those who cannot defend themselves. We should do the right thing by others. We do not do this to earn entrance into heaven, but this is how we should live if we are people headed to heaven.

 

So today, in the words of that eminent theologian Spike Lee, go out and “Do the right thing.” 

Sunday, June 21

Jeremiah 20:7 (HCSB)

      You deceived me, LORD, and I was deceived.

      You seized me and prevailed.

      I am a laughingstock all the time;

      everyone ridicules me.

 

Ever felt this way? Ever felt that God had deceived you… maybe tricked you into doing something you really didn’t want to do? Don’t you wish you had Jeremiah’s email address? He felt that way too!

 

God had called Jeremiah to preach, but he had no idea how tough it was going to be! He had become the most despised man in all of Judea. He was God’s spokesman, and he was hated for his message. There was no way for him to win. This was not what Jeremiah had expected when he signed on… not what he expected at all!

 

And yet he could not help but fulfill his calling. He wanted to walk away, but he couldn’t. God’s call had a grasp on him, and He would not let go. Jeremiah couldn’t quit even when he wanted to.  He described God’s message as a “fire in his bones.” It was burning inside of him. He grew tired trying to hold it in. Finally he had to let it go—he had to proclaim it. But the results were always the same—nothing changed.

 

I heard an old, wise preacher say, “Don’t preach unless you can’t help it.” Another preacher put it like this: “If you can do anything else and be happy—do it!” Only preach if you have no other choice!

 

When God has truly called you to do something there are no options. 

Saturday, June 20

Jeremiah 18:6b

 

“Just like clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, house of Israel.”

 

We sing a chorus that goes:

 Beautiful Lord, Wonderful Saviour

I know for sure, all of my days are held in your hands,

Crafted into your perfect plan

You gently call me into your presence guiding me by Your Holy Spirit

Teach me dear Lord to live all of my life through Your eyes

I'm captured by Your holy calling

Set me apart, I know you're drawing me to yourself

Lead me Lord I pray

 

Take me, Mould me, use me, fill me

I give my life to the Potter's hand

Call me, guide me, lead me, walk beside me

I give my life to the Potter's hand

 

The clay is completely at the disposal of the potter. He can do whatever he wishes with it.

 

Our Heavenly Father has a plan for our lives. He knows exactly what He created us to be. So He applies a little pressure here. He bends the clay there. He shapes it skillfully and carefully. Finally it begins to take the shape of what He designed it to be.

 

We are all in process. None of us is finished. There is no sense in complaining about the product before it is done.

 

Here is an important point: there is no sense in complaining about the product even after it is done.  We may not like what our life is becoming. We look at others and wonder why we could not be more like them—used more, admired more, seemingly adjusted better than we are, etc. But that is not our business. Our business is simply to be yielded to the Potter.

 

We should be grateful that the Potter keeps working! Get this: He is focusing just as much attention on you as He is any of His other vessels.

Friday, June 19

Jeremiah 16:19-21 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)

 

LORD, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge in a time of distress, the nations will come to You from the ends of the earth, and they will say, "Our fathers inherited only lies, worthless idols of no benefit at all." Can one make gods for himself? But they are not gods. "Therefore, I am about to inform them, and this time I will make them know My power and My might; then they will know that My name is Yahweh."

 

Here is an astounding prophecy: “the nations will come to You from the ends of he earth.” This has been happening for two thousand years. It is happening now, but it is not complete. The Bible says that one day there will be standing before His throne some from “every nation, tongue, tribe and people.” Some of those have not come yet because they have not heard yet. This is why Jesus commanded us to “go to the ends of the earth and preach the Gospel.”

 

We have His guarantee that we will be successful in this campaign. If some from every tongue must stand before His throne then we know that some will be saved. They are just waiting for someone to go and tell them. They will forsake their worthless idols and bow before the Lord God. He will demonstrate to them His power and might. This is the only way to get through to those who are embedded in idolatry. They must realize that our God is greater than theirs.

 

The Lord will reveal Himself to them just as He has to us. They will be formally introduced to Him as “Jehovah God.”  

 

The only thing that is now keeping this from happening is that we are too comfortable where we are to go. Well, we have a choice. We can obey God’s Word and go or He can make it unbearable for us not to go. He did it with the Jews two thousand years ago. He can do it again today.

 

I don’t know about you but I’d rather have a comfortable place to come back to after I’ve been. 

Thursday, June 18

Jeremiah 15:19-20 (NIV)

 

Therefore this is what the LORD says: "If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me; if you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be my spokesman. Let this people turn to you, but you must not turn to them.  I will make you a wall to this people, a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you to rescue and save you," declares the LORD.

 

Repentance is not only for lost people. Repentance is for Christians, even the best of Believers. We all wander from the Lord; our hearts are programmed to stray from God. Our tendency is to doubt and not believe; to fear and not trust; to look to men for answers and not to God. Been there? Have you repented?

 

Repentance means, “to turn around.” For a Christian this means we turn from doubting God to trusting God; we turn from looking to men for deliverance or answers to looking to God; from relying on our own wits to get us through to relying on the Holy Spirit. This goes against our carnal nature. This is a conscious choice we make. We must say, “Lord, I repent of (name it) and I choose to (name it).” 

 

Jeremiah bears his heart to us. He was a prophet speaking “worthless words.” What good is a prophet who speaks worthless words? He was probably speaking to men before he listened to God, or maybe he watered down the message to make it more palatable. God said, “These people must turn to you....” Maybe he was trying too hard to buddy up with his audience and be “one of the guys.” He was losing the holy flavor from his life and, consequently, his razor edge.

 

God has called us to be a distinctive people. Are we losing that? If so it is time to repent! He has not called us to catch the spirit of our culture but to change the spirit of our culture. We are not to fear the criticisms and reprisals of men but to stand up for God and His truth whatever the reaction. God says, “I will make you a fortified wall of bronze” and “they will… not overcome you, for I am with you to save and deliver you.”

 

Let’s take God at this word today. 

Wednesday, June 17

Jeremiah 15:16 (NIV)

 

When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart's delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty.

 

Is God’s Word a delight to your heart? Are they sweet to you? Do you eat them?

 

I have one vitamin Deborah makes me take every day. I hate it! It’s as big as a softball and it tastes like chalk. I almost gag to look it. But she says it’s good for me (I hope), so I obediently, although reluctantly, shallow the thing.

 

Some people must feel that way about God’s Word. They do anything to avoid it. They either avoid reading the Bible entirely or consciously neglect reading the parts they don’t have a taste for (i.e. Old Testament). They do these little “bread basket devotions” that are quick and easy to shallow. They avoid preaching and Bible study—they are too busy for that sort of thing. They’ll occasionally tune in their favorite Bible teacher on the satellite radio—but it’s just noise to help pass the lonely time in traffic. They’re like a man “listening” to his wife while he watches the game on TV.

 

I’m not opposed to those things—if they are supplements to your spiritual diet, not the main course.

 

You don’t just need to taste God’s Word—you need to shallow it. Meaning this: you don’t just read it or listen to it—you obey it! God does not intend for His Word to be praised but to be practiced. We don’t just admire it; we apply it!

 

Your TAG time (Time Alone with God) should be your favorite meal of the day. 

just a word to those who have become followers of this blog: thank you!!

this is a new venture for me. I sincerely want it to be a blessing. 

i hope you will tell your friends to read it. 

again, thank you!  

Bro. George

Tuesday, June 16

And I replied, "Oh no, Lord GOD! The prophets are telling them, 'You won't see sword or suffer famine. I will certainly give you true peace in this place.' " But the LORD said to me, "These prophets are prophesying a lie in My name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a false vision, worthless divination, the deceit of their own minds.

Jeremiah 14:13-14

Since I am a preacher these verses are particularly stinging to me. The ministry has always received it’s share of criticism. And, to a degree, it is deserved. Lying preachers are out there. They have always been around.

They speak without hearing from God. They do not take the time to listen. They are too busy with other things—too distracted. Nothing is more important to a man who declares God’s message than time he spends alone with God. He must wait quietly before the Lord. He must read God’s Word and pray. It is easy to take short cuts. “I’m too busy; I don’t have time to study—so I get my sermons off the internet.” We are hearing from other preachers instead of hearing from God! It takes time to hear from God. It takes discipline.

They tell the people what they want to hear. We are tempted to fall into the “popularity” trap. We all want to be loved, but we must remember God’s call. When God spoke to us He did not say, “I want you to be popular and loved.” He said, “I want You to preach My Word.”

Preaching God’s Word is serious business. It requires, not so much a higher level of education, but a higher level of commitment.

Lord, give us men who will pay the price to hear You speak!

Monday, June 15

“Why are you like a helpless man, like a warrior unable to save? Yet You are among us, LORD, and we are called by Your name.”
Jeremiah 14:9 (CSV)

Have you ever been frustrated with God? Be honest! I don’t doubt that you are more spiritual than me, but are you more spiritual than Jeremiah? He got “put out” with God!

We all have our times when God mystifies us. He is all-powerful, but He seems to be impotent. He is our loving heavenly Father, but there are times when He seems to treat us like strangers.

I don’t know the secret to this. God’s ways will continue to be a mystery to me. But this much is true: God must have a purpose. If God chooses not to intervene on our behalf or to answer our prayers there must be a good reason. We have to accept the fact that God knows things we don’t know. There are mysteries that will continue to be mysteries to us.

This much we know: God is still with us. He may choose at this present time not to answer us, but He will never abandon us. He may allow us to stay in the stew, but He will swim in the stew with us. And as long as He is with us we will be okay.

Sunday, June 14

Jeremiah 12:5
"If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan? (NIV)

In other words, if we can’t keep up with the field now when things are slow and easy, how are we going to do it when the competition gets tougher? If we stumble in the good times, how are we going to do in the bad times? Answer is: not good! If we can’t keep up now we’ll fall hopelessly behind then. If we stumble now we’ll be exhausted from picking ourselves up then!

Let’s make a spiritual application.

If at the present time while things are at a slow gait and the ground is flat and smooth, we are stumbling along barely able to catch our spiritual breath, how are we going to keep up when the pace quickens and the obstacles to faith get more challenging? Those times are going to come—I guarantee it.

Let me give you an example. Let’s say that in this present economic climate we are running around like a chicken with its head cut off. We’ve essentially thrown our faith out the window because we can’t see where it has done us any good. We’re not reading our Bibles or praying. We’ve dropped out of church, or we’ve become spasmodic. We’ve stopped witnessing and telling our neighbors about Jesus. We’ve stopped being faithful with our spiritual gifts and our material resources. In a word, we are backslidden. We’ve wimped out now in this little 5K fun run. What if tomorrow the North Koreans decided to drop a nuke? Suddenly we find ourselves in World War III, allies with the South Koreans and the Japanese against the Chinese? Then Ahmadinejab and Chavez see their opportunity to strike us and the Israelis. Our food and gas are being rationed and the government comes and takes all your savings to help fund the war. What are you going to do then? Cry out to God? You won’t know how!

To be prepared then we need to train now. Tough times will come—it’s guaranteed. Discipline yourself in the Word of God and prayer. Don’t allow yourself an excuse. Train yourself how to walk with God so that, when the floods come, you’ll be able to swim in the Spirit.

Saturday, June 13

Jeremiah 12:1, 5
You are always righteous, O LORD, when I bring a case before you. Yet I would speak with you about your justice: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease?

Jeremiah was offering the same complaint we have: “Why do the righteous suffer and the wicked prosper?” He must have had someone in particular in mind, because the wicked do not all prosper, and good people do not all suffer. There are bad people who fall on hard times. There are good people who do quite well.

Faith in Christ does not come with a guarantee. We are not guaranteed that everything will be “rosy” from here on. In fact, the opposite is true. We are promised that following Christ will be hard.

Jesus said, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head” (Luke 9:58, NIV). He also said, “In this world you will have trouble” (John 16:33, NIV).

There’s your guarantee!

If bad people were the only people suffering and Christians were the only people prospering we’d have folks standing in line to get saved.

So why be a Christian? What is the advantage?

All people suffer, but the advantage Believers have is this: Jesus is with us! He gives our lives meaning. And we know that this life is not all there is. One day we’ll cross that river; we’ll fight life’s final war with pain; then as death gives way to victory we’ll see the lights of glory and we’ll be home! Then it will all be worth it!

Friday, June 12

Jeremiah 11:2
"Remind the people of Judah and Jerusalem about the terms of their covenant with me. (NLT)

What were the terms of his covenant?

Verse 4: “If you obey me and do whatever I command you, then you will be my people, and I will be your God.”

No small print. No obscure language hidden away in the back pages of a long and confusing document. They did not need a lawyer to explain it. There it was right in front of them, obvious to see and simple to understand.

What does God require of us? Obedience… that is all. And yet we struggle mightily with it.

Why is it so hard to obey God? We offer excuses: “How do I know what God wants me to do?” Ever heard of a Bible? God’s will is as plain as black and red ink on white paper.

“God asks us to do the impossible!” Really? Let me clear this up: He never asks us to do anything we cannot do. Granted, we need His help to pull it off—and that is exactly why He has put the Holy Spirit in us. Remember this: “I do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

“God does not ask the impossible, but He does ask us to do the difficult. If I surrender to His will I’ll end up in Africa or someplace sleeping on the floor of a mud hut and eating grubs.” That is possible. But what will you get in return? Joy. Significance. A sense of purpose. So where is the down side of that?

So what is the real reason obeying God is so hard? Because we don’t want to. It boils down to a very one-sided struggle: our will against God’s. God has revealed His will to us. His will is good for us. Yet something inside of us rises up and says, “Who is the Lord that I should obey?”

If you are truly a born again, Spirit-inhabited believer in Jesus the desire to obey Him is there in you. You may struggle with it, but that is your heart’s desire. And if you do it… if you surrender and obey… you will never regret it.

Thursday, June 11

I know, O LORD, that a man's life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps.

Jeremiah 10:23 (NIV)

If a man’s life does not belong to himself, then to whom does it belong?

It belongs to God!

God created us. We came from Him. We are going back to Him. The very air in our lungs belongs to God. Our next breath is His gift. We were created for His glory! We are God’s property.

This may make you feel a little nervous. “If I belong to God then He can do whatever He wants with me.” Yes, but consider who He is. He is not cruel, manipulative, or tyrannical. He is good and gracious and loving. He desires only the best for us.

If I belong to Him then I am His responsibility. And since He is fully capable of taking care of His own, He will take care of me. Whew, that’s a load off my back!

The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way.

Psalms 37:23 (NKJV)

God has a plan for the whole of my life. He has a plan for my life today. If I “shoot from the hip” in governing my steps today I will accomplish nothing of eternal significance. But if I will be sensitive to the Holy Spirit in my life—His promptings and nudging—He will point me in the right direction… and what a difference that will make!

God will direct my steps today to do His will and glorify Him—life’s ultimate adventure!

Holy Spirit, be my Guide.

I cannot wait to see where He leads me today!

Wednesday, June 10

The LORD said, "It is because they have forsaken my law, which I set before them; they have not obeyed me or followed my law. 14 Instead, they have followed the stubbornness of their hearts; they have followed the Baals, as their fathers taught them."

Jeremiah 9:13-14 (NIV)

Where did they learn to follow idols? They learned it at home—from watching their parents. Their fathers taught them by example to worship false gods.

Are we doing the same thing? What we do in moderation our children will do in excess. If we live nominally for God our children will live outright without God. Not always so… but many times.

One of the biggest mistakes we parents make is to tell our kids one thing but live another. Some parents say, "I'm not going to influence my children about God. When they grow up they can make up their own minds."

The problem is that, according to the Scripture, we are influencing our children about God whether we intend to or not-- we just influence them to the wrong god!

Another mistake we make is to tell our children that God is important, but then we live like He isn't. If values are more caught than taught-- and they are-- which message are they going to believe?

If God is important (and He is!) then we should live that message in front our children. What they see they will believe.

June 9, 2009

They offer superficial treatments for my people's mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when all is war.

Jeremiah 8:11 (NLT)

This is an indictment against the prophets. They were putting Band aids on gunshot wounds. The people were living in rebellion against God, but the prophets would not call them to repentance. They instead gave encouraging assurances that all was okay. Perhaps they did this because they were afraid of losing their comfortable positions. They were even guiltier than the people they preached to.

I cannot help but ask, “What kind of prophet am I?” I am right now sitting in a comfortable chair in a comfortable home writing this. I pastor a wonderful church with wonderful people. In a little while I will drive my comfortable car to my modern church where I’ll meet with my highly efficient staff. Twice a month I receive a paycheck that allows me to provide for my family.

How attached am I to these things? Am I so comfortable that I am not willing to preach an uncomfortable message? Am I afraid of offending people and losing my position? Would I hesitate to preach the truth, even if it is an unpopular message? Have I “climatized” to my surroundings?

If so then I am not where God wants me to be. I am first, foremost and forever God’s servant. I must go where He tells me to go, do what He tells me to do, and say what He commands me to say. My obedience to God is essential. Sometimes this requires hurting the patient in order to effect their healing.

God help me to be faithful, for only then can I be helpful.

Monday, June 8, 2009

"So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listen to you. Do you not see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough and make cakes of bread for the Queen of Heaven. They pour out drink offerings to other gods to provoke me to anger. But am I the one they are provoking? declares the LORD. Are they not rather harming themselves, to their own shame?
Jeremiah 7:16-19 (NIV)

God said, “You are not hurting Me, but you are hurting yourselves.” How were they hurting themselves?

There are two principles about worship that help us understand.

The first principle is this: We become like what we worship. We actually begin to resemble what we idolize.

The second principle is: We can never rise above what we worship. We cannot lift ourselves higher than the object of our worship. The object of our worship becomes a goal. But the best we can ever hope to be is deficient copy of the original.

This is why idolatry is so heinous: it does serious damage to the idolater. If we worship an idol the best we can ever hope to be is a poor facsimile of a deficient god. If man worships himself or that which he has made he will spiral downward into spiritual oblivion. If he ever hopes to rise to something higher then he must worship something higher than himself.

This leaves us with only one viable option: to worship God.

I urge you to spend some time worshipping Him today.

Sunday, June 7, 2009

So now the LORD says, "Stop right where you are! Look for the old, godly way, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, `No, that's not the road we want!'

Jeremiah 6:16 (NLT)

One of my favorite movies of all time is “O Brother Where Art Thou?” There is a scene where the outlaws are watching a river baptism, and the candidates are singing as they enter the water:

Lord show me the way
Help me change my ways
Before the judgment day
As I went down in the river to pray
Studying about that good old way
And who shall wear the starry crown
Good Lord, show me the way!

When Jeremiah speaks of the old ways he is not talking about “how we used to do it back in the good old days.” No, he calls it “the old, godly way….” That qualifies it. The old ways of the old days were not necessarily any more godly than the new ways of these days.

Jeremiah is here talking about the Lord’s ways.

The other day we bought a GPS navigator for one of our children (I won’t say which one but she could get lost on a one way street). It has probably already paid for itself in unwasted gasoline.

God has given us a GPS—it is “God’s Perfect Scripture.” His Word is our road map. When we follow it’s directions we find rest for our souls—that’s not just the destination, its God’s peace on the journey.

Please do not let this devotion become a substitute for your personal time in God’s Word. Open up the GPS right now and find God’s direction for your life today.

I love you.

Bro. George

Saturday, June 6, 2009

O LORD, do not your eyes look for truth? You struck them, but they felt no pain; you crushed them, but they refused correction. They made their faces harder than stone and refused to repent.

Jeremiah 5:3 (NIV)

What does the LORD look for?

Truth.

Where does He search for this truth?

In us.

They swore, “As surely as the LORD lives!” They said one thing, but they did another. Their lips gave a testimony to God, but their lives were not a testimony for God. So God searched for truth—for someone whose life matched their lips.

When our lives do not gee haw with our lips God calls us to repentance. If we do not repent there will be consequences.

This is not a scare tactic, but a warning given in love. God is not issuing a false threat. This is what He will do—and, historically speaking, what He actually did.

Do our lives match our lips? For instance, we call ourselves “Christians;” but do our lives match our profession?

God is still searching for honesty today.

Will He find it in us?

I love you.

Bro. George

Friday, June 5, 2009

"If you will return, O Israel, return to me," declares the LORD. "If you put your detestable idols out of my sight and no longer go astray, and if in a truthful, just and righteous way you swear, 'As surely as the LORD lives,' then the nations will be blessed by him and in him they will glory."

Jeremiah 4:1-2 (NIV)

Is your life a blessing?

I did not ask, “Are you blessed?”

That is not the question. If you are a Christian, a new creation, a child of God, washed in the blood of Christ, saved from the penalty of your sins, covered with His grace, indwelt with the Holy Spirit, a partaker of the divine nature, filled with His glory and destined for eternity in heaven, well… I’d say you are blessed!

But the question is not “Are you blessed?” but “Are you a blessing?”

There is nothing in the world more powerful than a God-blessed life. This blessing is not a life filled with “stuff,” but it is a life filled with peace, joy and meaning.

This is what God intended for His people—that they would follow Him completely and experience His blessing. This would be their witness to the nations. The peoples of the world would see the favor of God on the Jews and say to them, “You have something I don’t have. How do I get it?” And they would witness to the grace of their God.

Listen, if we are living as God intended—experiencing His blessing and favor—we will have to backslide to keep from winning people to Jesus!

So, the question to my heart is: “Is my life a blessing?”

Only one thing can short-circuit this blessing: sin in my heart. Have I sanctified Jesus as Lord in my heart, or are their idols in my life? I must plow up my heart and allow the Holy Spirit to search me. When He puts His finger on something and says “This is sin,” I must repent without argument. When we repent the blessing returns—and the power.

Is your life a blessing to the nations?

Bro. George

Thursday, June 4, 2009

"Return, faithless people; I will cure you of backsliding."
"Yes, we will come to you, for you are the LORD our God.

Jeremiah 3:22 (NIV)

What if you caught your wife cheating—not with just one man but with several? Can you imagine such a thing? How do you think it would make you feel?

Would you take her back? Would you be able to forgive her? Tough questions!

God’s people were guilty of the most heinous of spiritual crimes: idolatry. They had forsaken the Lord and run off chasing false gods. They had committed spiritual adultery—countless times! And they were not just unfaithful, but they were shameless about it. They worshipped their false gods with reckless abandon.

But God calls His people back to Himself. He says, “Come back to Me and I will forgive you.”

What amazing love is this!

No matter what you’ve done… no matter how far you’ve wandered away… no matter how deep into sin and rebellion you have gone… no matter how grossly you have stained your testimony…. and no matter how long you have stayed away—God wants you back! He is ready to forgive you and cleanse you and cover you with His grace.

No… there is no argument! It does not matter what it is—He is waiting with arms open wide.

What are you waiting for?

He loves you!

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Scripture reading: Jeremiah 2

Jeremiah 2:13
"My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. (NIV)

What an indictment! God says that His people had done two really stupid things. First, they abandoned the spring for a canteen. Second, the canteen has a hole in it!

Why would you trade that which is unlimited for that which is limited? What if Bill Gates gave you a Visa card and said, “This card has unlimited credit. Whatever you spend I’ll pay for. Now, I dare you to bankrupt me.” What if you traded that card for a wooden nickel?

What they did made no sense. In fact, it was completely irrational. Where I come from they call it “Stupid!”

Are we any smarter?

Here is God. He offers to be in you a source of unlimited life. And you say, “Naw, I’d rather have my own life… just the few centimeters of oxygen in my lungs right now.”

We’d rather bungee jump without the bungee when God offers us wings!

Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life" (John 4:13-14, NIV).

Your choice today is simple: you can be your source or God can be your source.

I love you.

Bro. George

Monday, June 1, 2009

Scripture reading: Jeremiah 1

Jeremiah 1:14-16
The LORD said to me, "From the north disaster will be poured out on all who live in the land. I am about to summon all the peoples of the northern kingdoms," declares the LORD. "Their kings will come and set up their thrones in the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem; they will come against all her surrounding walls and against all the towns of Judah. I will pronounce my judgments on my people because of their wickedness in forsaking me, in burning incense to other gods and in worshiping what their hands have made. (NIV)

The year was about 600 BC. The northern kingdoms were the Assyrians and the Babylonians. The cities of Israel, the Northern Kingdom, were completely ransacked. Eventually Judah, the Southern Kingdom, and Jerusalem would fall. The Hebrews were taken as captives into the ancient lands of Iran and Iraq.

Why did all this take place? God had said:

"You shall have no other gods before me.” You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments (Exodus 20:3-6, NIV).

God takes this matter of idolatry seriously!

There is a principle of life that goes like this: We cannot rise above what we worship. We do not even rise to the level of what we worship. When that which we worship drops down, we drop down. The danger inherent in idolatry is this: our gods shrink and so do we. If we make a god in the image of a dog, for instance, we cannot even rise to the level of a dog. The best we can be is a flea.

When we worship that which we create ourselves we always dumb down. We descend below ourselves. We stoop below our potential. We become base. And it becomes impossible to achieve our Creator’s intention (see Romans 1).

This is why God is so serious about idolatry. The only way man will ever climb out of the morass we presently find ourselves in is to worship the One who is infinitely higher than ourselves.

Do yourself and your race a favor today: contemplate on God… and worship!

I love you.

Bro. George