Press the arrow to listen to a heart-changing song from JesusCulture.org as you read today’s devotion on fire.
Scripture
Flaming fire His ministers. Psalm 104
Observation
It is from verses like this one that John Wesley explained the attraction of his ministry, “Set yourself on fire and people wll watch you burn.”
Some pastors excell at chopping and stacking wood. With laborious exegesis they saw and split cords of firewood but there is no fire. Other preachers are like boxes of matches. There is not a depth of knowing that comes from the word of God. With spit and shout they ignight like a box of match heads all at once the flame is bright but it does not last.
A preacher needs firewood and the fire. He needs both careful study as well as burning prayer.
Application
Next weekend I’m speaking to some of my favourite folks at Peninusla City Church in Frankston, Victoria in Australia. I want to bring the wood as God sends the fire!
Press the arrow to listen to Kari Jobe sing “Cry Out” while reading today’s devotion about a single purpose.
Scripture Unite my heart to fear Your name. Psalm 86:11
Observation
Thin strips of veneer are as flimsy as cardboard. But laminated together they become plywood, strong and stable. My heart is often like cardboard. It knows what it should want to do, but it cannot manage the strength to do it. And yet, when empowered, my human will can be greatly used by the Lord to choose the right and leave undone the wrong.
My only hope is lamination. The very weakness that works against me, when bonded together by the Holy Spirit, can empower me.
The message is not that God must peel and discard layers of our heart that are ineffective. Instead, he takes the very part that won’t cooperate and uses it to do his will.
Application
I had lunch yesterday with a man who has run between 3 to 6 miles a day for 31 years. I eyed his sixty-five-year-old lithe body and wanted to put my dessert back. What would keep a man running every day for 31 years? I can scrape together about 6 weeks of willpower to do anything and then my will becomes as flimsy as wallpaper.
Prayer Father, I am full of weakness. But the superglue of your power can somehow blend with my ineptness and create resilience. I need give you my flimsy heart and ask you to bring it together to fear you. Let my first question and my only aim be to do the thing that pleases you most. Amen.
Press the arrow to listen to JesusCulture.org sing “Where You Go I Go” as you read today’s devotion about money.
Scripture But by the twenty-third year of Joash’s rule, the priests hadn’t done one thing—The Temple was as dilapidated as ever.
King Joash called Jehoiada the priest and the company of priests and said, “Why haven’t you renovated this sorry-looking Temple? You are forbidden to take any more money for Temple repairs—from now on, hand over everything you get.” 2 Kings 12:6-7 [The Message]
Observation
God’s house was dilapidated not because there wasn’t enough money but because the priests put their own needs first. Before the house was fixed they first wanted to be paid. After all they had house payments, kids to feed and put through school. It all seemed reasonable.
But it was not acceptable. Before the workers could be paid, God’s need first had to be met. It took a leader like the King to see the problem clearly.
Application
I’ve tried to keep the principle throughout life that first the expenses of the church should be met and then my own salary as a pastor. There have been times I’ve gone without pay because of that decision. We need leaders like King Joash who see priorities clearly. May I see those priorities today. This principle is easier to remember when church planting, but when the church becomes more established it becomes fuzzy.
Prayer Father keep my perspective clear. The church does not exist to support me, but I am here as a leader to serve the church. Thank you for the gift of income you have for me to use. I don’t take it for granted. Amen.
Press the arrow to listen to Gateway Worship sing “God of My Days” as you read today’s devotion about children.
Scripture And they placed the king upon the royal throne. 2 Chron 23:20
Observation
The king’s name was Joash and his feet did not touch the floor. He was just eight years old and already he was king. The great chair swallowed him up as his little legs dangled.
King Joash shows us the value of one little child. God had promised his grandfather David a line to last forever. But all of the heirs to the throne had been murdered. Just one tiny baby was left. The hefty rope was now reduced to just one thread. But because of that single fibre named Joash we have Jesus, salvation and the church today. That’s how valuable one child is.
Dwight Moody came home one night from preaching. His wife asked how many had come to the Lord. Moody replied, “Two and a half people.”
Mrs. Moody smiled and said, “You mean two adults and a child, don’t you.”
“No,” replied Moody. “Two children and one adult. The man has already used up half of his life to serve God, but the children have all of their life yet to live.”
Application
When I am blase about children I need to look and see the man inside of their eyes and the woman inside of their smile. I must anticipate their potential.
Prayer Father, help me to get it as you make it. Help me to see that the kingdom is about being a child. Help me to look under the feet of the power play and see the children at play. That’s where the power lies. Help me to see it like you see it. Amen.
Scripture Now a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD; and the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.” Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” And she said, “Your maidservant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” Then he said, “Go, borrow vessels at large for yourself from all your neighbors, even empty vessels; do not get a few. And you shall go in and shut the door behind you and your sons, and pour out into all these vessels, and you shall set aside what is full.” 2 Kings 4:1-4
Observation
Before reading on, first a disclaimer. I am not a thrill-seeking, miracle junkie who believes that every day holds a miracle. I think miracles are miracles because they are unusual. A true miracle is when God sets aside his normal mode of operating that appears to us to break the laws of nature. Actually, God isn’t breaking any laws, he’s just acting like himself. This surprises us and we call it a miracle. But God is quite relaxed about the whole process. After all, he is God. We are surprised, after all we are human.
Here’s the uncomfortable part for me. Elijah and Elisha get my curiosity aroused. I would be far more at ease to leave them in children’s picture books. But their lives draw me to the risky edge of the miraculous. These were ordinary men, just like us, yet their lives were filled with surprising events. What did these men do that made room for the miraculous? I could easily hydroplane over these stories and consider them history. But they are reality, written to stretch me to be more open to the miraculous. Here’s a pattern I can see in their miracles of how I can be more of a conduit of the miracle working power of God.
1. Spiritual father. Both Elijah and Elisha were spiritual fathers, who had endured tough times so that they could discern between want and real needs in the spiritual children around them. This enabled them to assess desperate situations to have a sense when God wanted to intervene with the miraculous.
2. Man of God. Both were men of God, whose hearts were closer to what God desires than to their own desires. They could be trusted by God to step beyond just asking in prayer, but declaring the desires of God.
3. Desperation. The miracles came only to needy people in desperate times clinging to the edge of hope. There was no other option left.
4. Creative words. As men of God and spiritual fathers, these prophets did more than pray, they discerned the will of God and spoke with confidence of God’s intentions. Their words inspired people to act in faith and became creative to make room for miracles.
5. Catalyst. There was often a catalyst, some material thing or unusual action, that would release the power of God into the situation.
6. Power. Something about the desperate need, confident faith and the willingness to risk appealed to God and released creative power to work a miracle.
Application
All of this stretches me far beyond where I feel comfortable to act. And yet there is something about these stories that keeps calling me back to reflect more. The big question is, was their style just an Old Testament, prophet thing, or is there any of this in the NT? So I go straight to Jesus. We find him doing some of the same. Instead of praying over the sick, he often speaks with words of confidence as if they were well. His words were creative words. Peter spoke with words that brought death to Ananias and Sapphira. Paul spoke and Elymus went blind. These were not everyday events, they were miracles. Jesus, Paul and Peter were not ordinary men. They were seasoned men of God and spiritual fathers. And yet their lives disturb me and draw me to live more than an ordinary life.
Prayer
Father, I’m processing still, not because I doubt, but because I know my limits. I’m not Elisha nor Elijah. But the masters motivate me to expect more. Jesus said “greater things than these.” So I lay the ordinariness of my life before you and ask you to do something quite surprising. And because I am so ordinary, if you choose to do something miraculous, anyone who hears of it will know it had nothing to do with me. Do surprising things through the people around me and even through me on occasion. Amen.
Press the arrow hear a great story of courage from Aaron Boyd of Bluetree about the writing of the song “God of This City”.
Scripture “But you, be strong and do not lose courage, for there is reward for your work.” 2 Chronicles 15:7
Observation
Courage is what makes the two point gap for a basketball team that wins in overtime. When teams are equal the choice to be courageous is the only advantage.
Courage is sweaty palms, short breath, butterfly stomach, dizzy head with waves of fear with the decision to try anyhow. Courage is knowing it won’t make any difference hoping that it just might. The courageous one knows that no one comes out alive except me.
We know what courage feels like but where does it come from? Courage comes from the hope of reward. I will push and stretch when I know there is something worth reaching for.
Application
If I am to be a courageous man, I must constantly remind myself of the rewards that can come from courage. I can imagine lives changed, leaders raised up and churches established. That is motivating for me.
Prayer Father, don’t let my waver. You may call me to be strong, but it is you who has the power. I look to you to be my energizing source to press on. Amen.
Press the arrow to listen to “Your Love Never Fails” with Chris Quilala from Jesusculture.org.
Scripture Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Philippians 4:5
Observation
Some people greet with sandpaper. Their life is gritty and abrasive that makes for friction. They start every relationship on the offense. They will hurt others before they can be hurt. Their lives are sprinkled with the grit of harshness, impatience, selfishness, exactness, inconsideration, unreasonableness. Rarely does one person have all of that abrasive sand stuck on one personality, but even just a grain or two can make it feel as if they are working against others rather than with them.
There are sandpaper days for all of us. Maybe we were irritated by someone else on the way in and so on the way out we rub others the wrong way. Or the grit can be more deeply imbedded into our personality. Some past season of hurt has left us with a rough surface that grinds at the worst possible moment.
How can we change? One simple thing: just remember that Jesus is watching and listening. That changes everything. I read about the president of a great company who was hiring new executives. He was intentionally late to test the applicants. One high-powered hot-shot, belittled the secretary in the front office no matter how kind she was to him. When the president later arrived and the interview was in full swing, the secretary stepped into the office and the boss introduced her. “Have you met my wife?” He didn’t hire the young man that day.
If some people greet with sandpaper, then others come with velvet. The “gentle spirit” described here is a rich word that takes a paragraph to explain. Here is the bullet-point list:
patient
unselfish
forbearing
reasonable
considerate
on the side of others
seeing life from their point of view
working with them and not against them
not enforcing rights
refraining and restraining
extending deadlines
stretching due dates
This gentleness implies more than being nice, it means taking another person’s side and making life fit them well.
Application
Meekness is a vulnerable way to live. It is not that we might be taken advantage of, we will be. But because the Lord is near there are rewards that no human being can ever give. When I want to wear a suit of sandpaper, may I dress in velvet. May others who brush up against me feel the softness of grace.
Prayer Jesus, you are gentle of heart and so others find rest for their souls near you. Let me be a rest-stop in a rush hour world. Wrap me up in velvet and turn me loose today. Amen.
I'm Phil McCallum, a husband, father and most of all one of the people Jesus loves. I'm privileged to serve Evergreen Community Church in Bothell, Washington as Senior Pastor where people love enough to believe "it's all about relationships." In 1982 I made a vow to read God's word daily and apply it to life. Each day I write out my reflections. Some days I post those on my blog. It's a little personal but it's my hope it will stir you to go deeper still. Learn how I do my devotions. These are my thoughts and not necessarily those of the ministry I serve. By the way check out the computer study Bible Glo. I highly recommend it.
