Press the arrow to listen to to “Here I Am to Worship” from Hillsong Church.
Scripture …Present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. Romans 6:13
Prayer Hello God, I’m back from the dead. I’m alive, thanks to you. The coffin cover is opened. I have pushed through the soil and sod. The rigor mortis is out of my body. Life energizes my system. Resurrecting power tingles inside of me. My mind is alert; my body is poised. I’m ready for action. I am reporting in today for service in the army of the resurrected ones. You have things for me to do today. Let’s get going. Let everything be used this day for the benefit of Christ.
Observation
I love the crispness of the thought to present myself as one alive from the dead. I need to come to him fully alive ready to act. I must never underestimate what has been given to me. It all must be used for him.
Application
I’m going to let this thought linger into action today. I’m alive and reporting for duty. Amen.
Press the arrow to worship while you read today’s entry.
Mercy Me God With UsÂ
Scripture “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Luke 24:5-6
Observation
Angels see life very differently from humans. The heavenly sentry at the tomb blurted out, “Why are you looking for among the dead for someone who is alive?” It’s an obvious question if you are an angel and see human life from heaven’s point of view.
But it is not an obvious question if one is a human. Cemeteries seem very logical places to look for the living when someone has died. It’s hard to understand until someone close to you has be placed into a coffin and dropped into the ground. Not an old aunt or old high school friend, but someone so close it is difficult to imagine life without them. The graveside can feel like the closest place to them.
Of course it doesn’t have to be death, it can be the loss of anything in life. It can be the loss of a friend, children, homes, income, reputation, position, relationships. When we lose something there will be some place of sadness that we connect with the loss. In our minds we think that if we can but return to that place something will change. But in fact we feel even sadder.
Application
There are times we need to be counseled by angels to see our lives from heaven’s point of view. If it is hope we are looking for we cannot find it by going back to the place of loss. Hope will be found among the living and not the dead. When we have a loss and want to retract back, we must force ourselves into the mainstream of life. There we will find the Lord. One thing is clear in the resurrection stories: the more they gathered together the more they found Jesus. If we are to find hope we must stop returning to what has been lost and plunge ourselves into the flow of human life. There we will find the Lord in the land of the living.
Prayer Father, today I take the counsel of the angels. I want to see my life from heaven’s point of view. Show me where the living are so that there I may find Jesus who is truly alive. Amen.
Scripture Now we live with great expectation… 1 Peter 1:3
Observation
How can a person live with great expectation? This sound bite from Peter’s letter is alluring. But what makes it even more remarkable is that it was addressed to people caught in the pincers of persecution. Life was level 10 pain for them, but nonetheless they could live with expectation.
What was their secret?
Peter secures this priceless valuable with some packing material.
The first step to living with great expectation requires us to close our eyes. Once closed we need to imagine the jolt of spiritual power that raised Jesus out of the tomb, then follow that lightning bolt up to heaven to see how it has unfolded the radiant beauty of Jesus who fills all of heaven with his light. Once we’ve grasped that enormous picture we need to scale the picture down and insert it into our hearts. That resurrection power is at work in us. Just think on it! Let that thought take you over. It is quite overwhelming.
The second step to living with great expectation is to go to the place where we keep what is valuable to us: it may be a cash drawer, a sock drawer, a trophy shelf or under the bed. Then we are to clear that space and put there what is priceless to the Lord: faith. Faith is more valuable than gold. That is a remarkable concept, for we value gold very much. But faith to God is what an ingot is to a burglar; he greatly desires our faith. Instead of sizing up every event of life by how much money we got out of it, Peter asked us to consider how much faith grew in our heart. That faith is like gold in a vault which should make us feel incredibly valuable.
We have resurrection power and the wealth of faith so it is no wonder we live in expectation. We should close our eyes and reflect on all that is in us and will be given to us in the days and eternity to come.
Application
If I am not living in great expectation that means either that I’m not processing my troubles well or that I don’t value what matters to God. If I see life from his point of view I will radiate more the darker it becomes.
Prayer Father today I choose to treasure what you value and to live in great expectation.
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.
