[APRIL 6] For This I Have Jesus

Read: Psalm 66:1-15

"I will never leave you nor forsake you." 

--Hebrews 13:5

In an evangelistic meeting in Ireland, the speaker was explaining what it means to abide in Christ and to trust Him completely in every trial. Concluding his message, he repeated several times, “It means that in every circumstance you can keep on saying, ‘For this I have Jesus.’ ”

The meeting was then opened for testimonies. One young woman said, “Just a few minutes ago I was handed this telegram. It reads, ‘Mother is very ill; take train home immediately.’ When I saw those words, I knew that tonight’s message was meant just for me. My heart looked up and said, ‘For this I have Jesus.’ Instantly a peace and strength flooded my soul.”

Three or four weeks later the evangelist received a letter from this woman. It read, “Thank you again for the message you gave that day. Life has become an uninterrupted psalm of victory, for I have come to realize that no matter what life brings, for this I have Jesus.”

That believer in Christ had found in her Savior the One who would be with her “through fire and through water,” and who would bring her “out to rich fulfillment” (Ps. 66:12).

If you are enduring a great trial of affliction, remember—for this you have Jesus! --Henry G. Bosch

I've found  refuge from life's care in Jesus,

I am hiding in His love divine;

He fully understands my soul's deep longing,

And He whispers softly, "Thou art Mine." --Christiansen

 

REFLECT ON THIS:

If every circumstance finds us abiding in Christ, we will find Christ abiding with us in every circumstance.

[MARCH 18] Who are You?

Read: Matthew 4:18-25

"Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men."

--Matthew 4:19

If someone were to ask, "Who are you?" my guess is that you would tell a little thing about yourself and what you do--"I'm an electrician" or "I'm a nurse." But that's not really who your are--it's what you do. Which leads to the question, If what you do is who you are, who will you be when you stop doing what you're doing?!

Who you are is found in your relationship to Jesus. And this sense of identity will drive your behavior. Take Matthew, for example. As a tax collector during the reign of the Roman empire, his life was driven with greed. But everything changed the day Jesus showed up and invited Matthew to follow Him (Matt. 9:9). Suddenly Matthew had a whole new identity as a follower of Christ! And he wasn't the only one. we also read about the fishermen in Matthew 4:18-25, Peter, Andrew, James, and John, who left their nets to follow Him.

Jesus is a compelling Person, and He is still looking for followers. He wants to make something of your life by giving you the indetity of a follower of Jesus. It doesn't mean giving up your career, but it does mean that you will do your work--and all of life--according to His will and ways.

So next time someone asks, "Who are you?" I hope you'll answer, "I'm a follower of Jesus"! --Joe Stowell

Lord, as I follow You by faith,

Help me each day to learn

That pleasing You in all I do

Must be my main concern. --Fitzhugh

REFLECT ON THIS:

If you are a follower of Jesus, that's all the identity you need.

[MARCH 4] What Brings Happiness?

Read: Ecclesiastes 2:1-11

"All was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun" 

--Ecclesiastes 2:11

After studying the effect of the post-World War II economic boom in Japan, Richard Easterlin concluded that monetary growth does not always bring more satisfaction. More recently, economists Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers conducted surveys in more than 100 nations and concluded that life satisfaction is highest in the richest countries.

So who’s right? Let’s check with the writer of Ecclesiastes. He should know! He was a truly rich man (2:8). He had the means to try everything in this world—and he did! He gave himself to pleasure (vv.1-3), grand projects (vv.4-8), entertainment (v.8), and hard work (vv.10-11). But he concluded that it was all “vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun” (v.11).

Lasting satisfaction doesn’t come from possessing tangible things like savings accounts and material goods. Recent events have shown that these things can suddenly lose value. To find true happiness, we have to find it in Someone who is not from “under the sun.” And that is our Savior, Jesus.

Hymnwriter Floyd Hawkins wrote: “I’ve discovered the way of gladness, I’ve discovered the way of joy, I’ve discovered relief from sadness... When I found Jesus, my Lord.” Only He can give joy that is full (John 15:11). --C. P. Hia

Take the world, but give me Jesus,

All its joys are but a name;

But His love abideth never;

Through eternal years the same. --Crosby

REFLECT ON THIS:
To know happiness, get to know Jesus.

[FEBRUARY 22] Short-Timers

Read: Romans 5:1-5

"Hope does not disappoint." 

--Romans 5:5

I served in the Armed Forces many years ago and have always been thankful that I was able to give those years to my country. I must say, however, that my most memorable time in the service was the brief interval when I was a “short-timer.”

Short-timers are soldiers who have but a few weeks before discharge. They spend their last days “mustering out”—visiting the commissary and the quartermaster’s office to clear accounts and return equipment. What I remember most about that period was my jaunty pace and the happy, carefree spirit with which I carried out my tasks. I had duties but few worries, for I knew I was going home.

Now that I’m an “old-timer,” once again I’m a short-timer. It won’t be long before I’m discharged from my duty here. Again, my pace is jaunty and my spirit is light for I know that very soon I’ll be going home. That’s the outlook that Jesus and His apostles called “hope” (Acts 24:15; Rom. 5:2,5).

Hope, in the biblical sense, means certainty and assurance. It is the firm, unshakable, indomitable belief that we will be raised from the dead (as Jesus was) and will be welcomed into our eternal home. That’s enough to put joy in our heart and a spring in our step this day! --David Roper

God has given us a life abundant
As we serve Him in this world below;
Though our time on earth is surely fleeting,
Hope of heaven makes our pathway glow. --Hess

REFLECT ON THIS:
The risen Christ will come from heaven to take His own to heaven.

[FEBRUARY 21] Running in the Right Direction

Read: John 6:53-69

"Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" 

--John 6:68

One of the most difficult experiences in my years as a pastor was telling a member of our church that her husband, her son, and her father-in-law had all drowned in a boating accident. I knew the news would shatter her life.

In the days following their tragic loss, I was amazed as she and her family responded with unusual faith. Sure, there was deep brokenness, haunting doubt, and confusion. But when nothing else made sense, they still had Jesus. Rather than deserting Him in the midst of their desperately difficult days, they ran to Him as the only source of hope and confidence.

This reminds me of the reaction of the disciples to Jesus. After some of them “went back and walked with Him no more” because He was hard to understand (John 6:66), Jesus turned to His inner circle, and asked, “Do you also want to go away?” (v.67). Peter got it right when he responded, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (v.68).

Whatever you face today, be encouraged by the words of Peter and by the example of a family who went through the fire with their faith intact. As long as you’re running in the right direction—to Jesus—you’ll find the grace and strength you will need. --Joe Stowell

Jesus is the One to run to
When our lives bring grief and pain;
He provides His strength and guidance
With a peace we can't explain. --Sper

 

REFLECT ON THIS:
When all is lost, remember that you haven’t lost Jesus. Run to Him.

[FEBRUARY 12] Send the Light

Read: Philippians 2:12-18

 

"Become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world" 

--Philippians 2:15

American businessman Mark Bent has spent $250,000 to develop and manufacture an affordable solar-powered flashlight. Thousands have been distributed free or at low cost to people living in African refugee camps. One daily solar charge provides 7 hours of life-giving illumination for people in homes, schools, and medical clinics where darkness had encouraged crime and violence.

The contrast between darkness and light is a prominent image in the Bible’s presentation of Jesus the Messiah. “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined” (Isa. 9:2). “In [Jesus] was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:4-5).

It’s our privilege as followers of Jesus to be His light-bearers today. Paul urged the Christians in Philippi to become “blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world” (Phil. 2:15).

Instead of being afraid or oppressed by the spiritual darkness around us, we can rely on the grace that God gives His children to shine for Him. --David McCasland

Lord, may I be a shining light

For all the world to see
You goodness and Your love displayed
As You reach out through me. --Sper

REFLECT ON THIS:

Jesus came to give light to a dark world.

[JANUARY 21] A Mutual Friend

Read: John 15:9-17

"I have called you friends" 

--John 15:15

Imagine being a visitor in a foreign land, showing up unannounced at a gathering of people you have never met and who have never heard of you—and then being allowed to address that group just a few minutes later. That can happen only if something breaks down barriers— something like mutual friends.

It happened when I took a missions team to a church service in Discovery Bay, Jamaica. Before we left the US, my friend Dorant Brown, a Jamaican pastor, recommended a church to attend. So when we arrived at the church, and I mentioned Pastor Brown, we were not only welcomed, but I was also asked to speak briefly and our team was asked to sing.

While sharing Dorant’s name was vital, I really don’t think it was that mutual friend who got us such a warm welcome. I think it was our shared Friend and Savior Jesus who opened our Jamaican friends’ hearts to our visit.

Have you experienced a connection with someone you just met when you tell them you too know Jesus? He’s a friend who laid down His life for us (John 15:13), and He makes brothers and sisters of all who believe (1 Peter 2:17).

Jesus. Our Savior. Our mutual Friend. He joins hearts around the world under the banner of His love. --Dave Branon

Join hands, then, brothers of the faith,

Whate'er your race may be;

Who serves my Father as a son

Is surely kin to me. --Oxenham

REFLECT ON THIS:

Those who are drawn to Christ are drawn to each other.

[JANUARY 8] The Final Opening Ceremony

Read: Revelation 15

"All nations shall come and worship before You, for Your judgments have been manifested" 

--Revelation 15:4

Some words used to describe the opening ceremony of the 2008 summer Olympics were awesome, breathtaking, and extravagant. One commentator observed, “This shows what happens when you give an artist an unlimited budget.”

When I heard this, I thought, That’s what God did at creation! He held nothing back. The resulting universe is stunning in beauty, staggering in complexity, extravagant in all regards.

The Olympic ceremony was perfect in its precision; but if just one drummer or dancer had decided to alter the artist’s vision, the whole ceremony would have been flawed.

That’s what happened shortly after creation. Unlike the Olympic producer, God allowed free choice, and His work of art was marred by Adam and Eve’s idea of a better way. In Isaiah’s words, “We have turned, every one, to his own way” (53:6).

God’s solution to our waywardness was unimaginable: The Artist paid the price to recreate what we ruined. One day, there will be another opening ceremony, and everyone in heaven and on earth will bow at the name of Jesus (Phil. 2:10). And those from every nation who have accepted God’s plan in Christ will worship together in the flawless New Jerusalem (Rev. 15:4). --Julie Ackerman Link

Yes, God was so great in creation,

But greater much greater in grace!

For when man had sinned and had grieved Him,

He sent Christ in his place! --Bennard

REFLECT ON THIS:

We have all eternity to praise God—begin today.

[JANUARY 3] Widening your Perspective

Read: Matthew 28:16-20

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations" 

--Matthew 28:19

A missionary and I were invited to lunch with David, a man in his late seventies who generously supported the missionary’s ministry. David was not able to visit the missionary’s country, but as he gave thanks for the food, he prayed with complete ease for the people, places, and situations there. Having prayed regularly for that ministry, he had no trouble mentioning specifics. David had a perspective on missions that extended beyond his own country of Singapore.

Our Lord Jesus commanded us to have a worldwide perspective on missions. When He said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,... teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19-20), He was not asking us to buy an around-the-world ticket to do His bidding. We may not have the opportunity to travel much beyond our own birthplace, but we can be involved with what’s going on in the world without leaving our hometown.

But how? Is there an international student living near you? A family from another country who is trying to cope with life in a new country? Or just a lonely person whom you can cheer up? Sharing Jesus’ love with them is your way of crossing the oceans with the gospel. -- C.P. Hia

A Prayer: Lord, widen my world. 

I want to be a part of the work You are doing. 

Give me eyes to see as You see, hands to serve others, 

and a heart to share Your gospel. Amen.

REFLECT ON THIS:

If you look through the eyes of Jesus, you’ll see a needy world.