Daily Bread

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 21st

"Perfection ignored?"

A man wearing jeans, a T-shirt, and a baseball cap positioned himself against a wall beside a trash can at the L’Enfant Plaza station in Washington, DC. He pulled out a violin and began to play. In the next 43 minutes, as he performed six classical pieces, 1,097 people passed by, ignoring him. No one knew it, but the man playing outside the Metro was Joshua Bell, one of the finest classical musicians in the world, playing some of the most elegant music ever written on a $3.5 million Stradivarius. But no crowd gathered for the virtuoso. “It was a strange feeling, that people were actually . . . ignoring me,” said Bell.

God also knows what it feels like to be ignored. The apostle Paul said that God has sovereignly planted evidence of His existence in the very nature of man. And creation delivers an unmistakable message about His creativity, beauty, power, and character. Although God has revealed His majesty, many refuse to acknowledge and thank Him. But God will hold everyone responsible for ignoring who He is and what He has revealed.

Since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen.

Romans 1:20

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 22nd

"Assaults on our faith and on the Scriptures come and go."

In his documentary The Lost Tomb of Jesus, Simcha Jacobovici claims archaeological evidence that disproves the resurrection of Christ. He says that the words “Jesus son of Joseph” found on a burial container near Jerusalem refer to Jesus of Nazareth. He also claims to have identified Jesus’ DNA. How valid are these conclusions? The Israel Antiquities Authority calls them “nonsense.”

There are strong arguments in favor of Jesus’ resurrection. Most compelling is the fact that every disciple except John died a martyr’s death. Central to their message was Jesus’ resurrection. If Christ had not been raised from the dead, why did the disciples choose to die rather than deny it? Assaults on our faith and on the Scriptures come and go. Don’t be shaken by these baseless attacks. Two thousand years ago, the disciples were eyewitnesses to the real tomb of Jesus. The angels told them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?"

He is not here, but is risen!

Luke 24:6

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

Easter Sunday 2008

"Christ has won the final victory!"

The grave has been "boasting" of its power since Eden. But now it has finally met its match. It wraps Jesus up at the Cross and "forbids him to rise," but our Champion, Jesus Christ, fought and won. Where is your sting now, O Death? Christ has won the final victory. We know that whatever boasting we do is not in ourselves, but in the power of Christ. He has won the victory, and now we're just soaring where Christ has led. We bask in the benefits of the Cross, and we look past the grave to our heavenly reunion with Him.

But the fact is that Christ has been raised from the dead. He has become the first of a great harvest of those who will be raised to life again.

1 Corinthians 15:20

Happy Easter Gang, God Bless!

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 24th

"Lost yet another one to materialism."

I have a hard time trying to comprehend why more people I know are are willing to sacrifice things like their word, honor, and their friendships when it comes to materialistic gain and vanity. So you can't keep up with the Joneses... SO WHAT? So you won't have a new car this year... WHO CARES? One of my co-workers went behind my back and lied to a client of mine to get a small contract from him. So for a couple of hundred bucks, he threw away a friendship and any possibility of working with me again.

This is the thanks I get for employing him for 18+months, and getting his wife a job with a friend of mine's company too?

Pisses me off it does!

Elijah's story from First Kings is the perfect example of what happens to people who lose sight of God and turn instead to worldly things. Vanity kills faith and undermines humility. Look to the Lord in all things, and you will never have to worry.

I have hated them that regard lying vanities: but I trust in the Lord.

Psalm 31:6

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 25th

"Forked tongue."

One day, everyone who speaks in order to hurt others will have to pay for what they say. So many things are said and done in the name of Christianity that are in no way Christian. Our law is the law of love and forgiveness, not judgment and narrow-mindedness. Ask the Lord to open your heart to those you disagree with and wonderful things will begin to happen.

Let the lying lips be put to silence; which speak grievous things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous.

Psalm 31:18

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 26th

"Take care of yourself."

We can only deny our sins so long before they catch up with us. You only have one body, take care of it! The Lord wants us to confess our sins, to repent of them, and to fill our lives with other things that will not do us harm.

When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long.

Psalm 32:3

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 27th

"The Fortress of your lives."

Who we are, what becomes of us in life, is in God's hands. We cannot purchase or achieve lasting honor for ourselves without his blessing. We cannot secure the future or our safety without his protection and blessing. The basis of all achievement and glory is dependent upon us placing our lives in his care.

My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge.

Psalm 62:7

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 28th

"Prayer."

Make sure that we take time out of this day to lift our voices to You in praise and worship. Fill our hearts with songs to Your glory. Remind us of all we should be thankful for. Amen.

Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.

Psalm 33:3

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 29th

"The breath of all life."

With a simple breath the Lord brought magnificence into creation. The stars planets that revolve through space came forth on the breath of the Lord. The host, heavenly and earthly, sprang from His mouth . Our world and every last thing in it came into being by His Word. How can the splendor and mystery of our God ever be denied? Our Lord is above all things, and there is nothing that is beyond His control. His breath is within us; the breath of all life.

By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.

Psalm 33:6

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 30th

"Ever act as if you don't need anyone else, but deep inside, you know that you do?"

Remember the prodigal son? He thought he was ready to set out on his own, and it almost led to his ruin. He squandered all his wealth and found he really couldn't make it by himself. He had to humble himself and return home, where his father awaited him with open arms. We never need lack for anything, because we are to take care of one another. The Lord provides for us through the love of sons and daughters. Growing up doesn't mean learning to do everything by yourself, but realizing how wonderful it is to need other people.

The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing.

Psalm 34:10

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

March 31st

"A sin-sick soul."

I don't know how Jesus could stand up under its weight. He had my sin, your sin, our sin, placed upon him so we would not have to bear the consequences of it. But in that sacrifice, as horrible as it was, we find ourselves healed, cured of the most awful disease a sin-sick soul. In its place, he has left us a transforming peace.

He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 53:5-6

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

April 1st

"There should be no joy in other people's pain."

Everyone likes to have fun, but fun should never hurt anyone. Fun at other people's expense is selfish and cruel. God wants us to reach out to one another in love, spreading happiness and joy through the good things we do, not the evil. If we will dedicate our lives to the happiness of others, then our fun will be fun that everyone can enjoy.

Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.

Psalm 34:14

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

April 2nd

"Don't let me give up, but deliver me."

It is folly to believe that God liberates us from all discomfort and affliction. What He does do is give us the will and determination to go on, even in the face of tough times. He works within us to give us peace and strength and courage; those things necessary to get through life. We can be sure that our trails will not come to an end, but the love of God will see that we get through anything that comes our way.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.

Psalm 34:19

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

April 3rd

"Fix our eyes on Jesus!"

"He drives where he looks, he drives where he looks!" That statement by a disgruntled elderly wife about her husband really spoke the truth. But then it's true of all of us. We "live like where we look" That's why it's important to fix our eyes on Jesus!

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 12:2

Heaven

[HeavenBesideYou]

April 4th

"Share your joy."

Our God shines forth His blessed light in order to destroy the darkness of anger and shame. As Christians, we should reach out in love, not only to those who care for us and build us up, but also to those who devise our unhappiness. They are the ones who need it most.

Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt.

Psalm 35:4

Heaven