Monthly Archives: August 2014

No Greater Love

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“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”1

Maxwell Maltz tells the story of a man who’d been severely injured while attempting to rescue his parents from a fire. His heroic efforts proved to be in vain, though. His mom and dad died in the burning house.

During his rescue attempt the fire badly scorched his face and disfigured it. He was so ashamed of his appearance that he refused to allow anyone—including his wife—to see his face.

For help, his wife went to Maltz, a plastic surgeon. “Not to worry,” he assured her, “I can restore his face.”

Despite the good news, the wife still felt disheartened. Her husband had always refused any medical treatment. Assuming he wouldn’t change his mind, she said to Maltz, “I want you to disfigure my face so I can be like him! If I can share in his pain, then maybe he will let me back into his life.”

Maltz tried to mask his horror at the request. He refused to perform the operation, but was so moved by this woman’s love for her husband that he went to visit her husband. Through closed door, he yelled, “I’m a plastic surgeon. I want you to know that I can restore your face.”

No reply.

“Please, won’t you come out? At least let me see your face. At least talk to me.”

Silence.

Still speaking through a door, Maltz told the man of his wife’s request. “She wants me to mutilate her face in order to make her face like yours. She hopes that you will then let her back into your life. That’s how much she loves you.”

Ever so slowly the doorknob turned.2

True, it must be extremely painful to be disfigured and feel that no one will ever accept you. May God help all of us, including me, to love and accept those who suffer so.

At the same time it is important that each of us realizes how totally repulsive our sinfulness is to God because he is a God of absolute holiness. In spite of this he loves and accepts us unconditionally. God also hates our sin because it is totally destructive of those whom he loves—us. But because of his great love for us, God gave his Son, Jesus, to die on the cross to pay the penalty for all our sin so we can be totally “healed from sin’s deathly disfigurement,” and be freely forgiven and saved from sin’s deadly consequences—eternal separation from God, the author of all love and life.

If you have never accepted God’s love and forgiveness, I urge you to do that today. For help read “How to Find and Know God” at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank You that, in spite of the ugliness of my sinfulness, You love and accept me totally and unconditionally. Help me to truly appreciate what You have done for me and live a life that will bring honor to Your name. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. John 15:13 (NIV).

2. Maxie Dunnam, ‘This Is Christianity‘ (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994), pp. 60-61, http://isbn.nu/0687084105. Cited on WITandWISDOM, www.witandwisdom.org.

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On Ducks and Eagles

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“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’”1

Jim Rohn said, “The first rule of management is this: Don’t send your ducks to eagle school. Why? Because it won’t work. Good people are found not changed. They can change themselves, but you can’t change them. You want good people, you have to find them. If you want motivated people, you have to find them, not motivate them.

“I picked up a magazine not long ago in New York that had a full-page ad in it for a hotel chain. The first line of the ad read, “We do not teach our people to be nice.” Now that got my attention. The second line said, “We hire nice people.” I thought, “What a clever shortcut!”2

In spite of the spin of the daily news—emphasizing mostly bad news in the world around us while neglecting most of the good news—God is at work in today’s world. He does have a plan and is looking for motivated people to do his work here on earth—to stand in the gap to “proclaim salvation” and save lost souls—for it is only motivated people who get God’s work done. The half-hearted never make it.

Motivation comes from within—from people who are genuinely committed to Christ and desire to see God’s work on earth done—and get involved in doing it.

You, too, can have a vital role in what God is doing in the world today—the world in which you live. There is no greater privilege on earth … no greater reward in heaven … and no greater way to invest your life for time and eternity—than to be a part of God’s plan and what he is doing in your world today. Sometimes it takes involvement to get motivated.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank You that you use ordinary people to do Your work on earth. I’m available to stand in the gap where I live. Please use me to be a part of Your plan and help me to be ‘as Jesus’ in some way to every life I touch—every day. Thank You for this wonderful privilege, and thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Isaiah 52:7 (NIV).

2. Jim Rohn, excerpted from ‘Leading an Inspired Life,’ Cited on From the Masters www.beliefnet.com

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Life Has an Expiration Date

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“It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.”1

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”1

“Life Has an Expiration Date” was a statement that I read on somebody else’s email but I don’t know who to credit it for it. However, it is an excellent reminder that life is short and we only have one life to live and invest.

I would like to again quote one of my many favorite one-liners from William Penn, the 18/19th-century French/American religious leader who said, “I expect to pass through the world but once. Any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness I can show to any creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer it, for I shall not pass this way again.”

Penn’s words bring to mind one of my good friends who died at age 44 from cancer. I was with Graham shortly before he passed away and asked him how he felt being only 44 and given only a matter of a few months at best to live. One of the unforgettable things he spoke about was how difficult it was for him when some friends who visited him in the hospital rattled on with empty words, or said “the right thing” but without feeling or heart. He was dying and to him their words were empty, meaningless clichés. He wanted to talk about life, death, and being ready to meet God face to face—and issues that mattered.

He also said how angry he was because there were so many things he didn’t get done and still wanted to do—but his time was up and he would never get them done. This was one of his big regrets. But his main regret was that he felt he hadn’t spent enough time with his kids and family.

Graham’s words remind me how temporal life is. None of us has any guarantee of tomorrow, so (not being fanatical about it) we do need to live every day with eternal values in mind.

So, do you have any unfinished business? Any impaired relationships that you can and need to resolve? Anyone you need to let know how much you love them? May I kindly suggest that you do it today! And, above all, do you need to get right with God? This I urge upon you to do today—now.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to remember the words of the poet who said, ‘Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last,’ and live life to the fullest—but with eternal values uppermost in my mind. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

NOTE: To be sure your life is right with God read, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian” at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9

1. Matthew 6:19-21 (NIV).

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Did I Make a Difference—Did You?

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“Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.”1

On a recent Saturday night Joy and I were relaxing at home listening to gospel music and heard the Oakridge Boys singing; “Did I Make a Difference?” The words were very inspiring and challenging. Following are some of the lyrics:

“I’m caught up in the push and shove,

The daily grind, burning time, spinning wheels,

I wonder what I’m doing here,

Day to day, year to year, standing still.

Somewhere there’s a teacher with a heart that never
quits,

Staying after school to help some inner city kids,
A mother who’s a volunteer, a soldier in the fight,

I can’t help but ask myself when I lay down at
night.

“Did I make a difference in somebody’s life?

What hurts did I heal? What wrongs did I right?

Did I raise my voice in defense of the truth?

Did I lend my hand to the destitute?

When my race is run, when my song is sung,

Will I have to wonder, did I make a difference?

Did I make a difference?”2

Dear reader, when your race of life is run and you come to the end of life’s journey and look back on your life, will you be able to say that you have made a difference in somebody’s life, and in the world in which you lived? Or when you stand before the Master, Jesus, to give an account of your life,* will you be able to say with confidence that you made a difference with your life? And will I? Let’s make absolutely certain that you and I will truly be able to say, “Yes, by the grace of God, we did make a difference.”

The good news is that if you want to make a difference, you can. Just make yourself available to God every day to use you as He pleases!

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, again today I surrender my heart and life to You. Please help me to so live today and every day in such a way—to be ‘as Jesus’ in some way to every life I touch—so that my life will make a difference in somebody’s life, and also in the world in which I live. And please grant that by Your grace when I stand before Your judgment seat to give an account of my life, I will not be empty handed, but will hear Youe welcoming words, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant, your life made a difference in many people’s lives, enter into the joy of your Lord.’ Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

*“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”3

1. Isaiah 1:16-17 (NLT).

2. http://tinyurl.com/kxac9je

3. 2 Corinthians 5:10 (NKJV).

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The Weakness of the “Strong”

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“Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.”1

It happens in clubs, churches, at work, on committees, and pretty much wherever people are involved in any kind of work or planning group. Often there is at least one so-called strong person who has a need to be in control—and “lord it” over the others.

The fact is that some of the people we call strong; that is, domineering and controlling people, are anything but strong. They are control freaks because they are immature and insecure. The only way they feel secure is when they are in control. They are difficult to work with, to plan with, and even more so to live with.

Jesus gives us the perfect example on how to live and lead. He always spoke with authority but was never authoritarian or controlling. He had true strength, which never has a need to control or lord it over others.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please deliver me from the sin of controlling and seeking to ‘lord it over others.’ If I should ever do this, help me to see that this is not a sign of strength but a symptom of weakness and insecurity, and then get the help I need to overcome my problem. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. 1 Peter 5:2-3 (NIV).

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Come and See

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“Philip went to look for Nathanael and told him, ‘We have found the very person Moses and the prophets wrote about! His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth.’ ‘Nazareth!’ exclaimed Nathanael. ‘Can anything good come from Nazareth?’ ‘Come and see for yourself,’ Philip replied.”1

“A Mercedes TV commercial a few years ago showed a Mercedes crashing into a concrete wall during a safety test. An engineer in a white lab coat walks over after the crash and kneels down to examine the damage, which is minimal. A reporter then asks the engineer about Mercedes’ energy absorbing car body. After the engineer tells all about the unique design, the reporter asks him why Mercedes doesn’t enforce their patent on the design, a design evidently copied by several other companies because of its success.

“The engineer then replied matter-of-factly, ‘Because some things in life are too important not to share.’

“How true this is. There are many things in life that fall into this ‘too important not to share category.’ Advances in science, in medicine, in technology. But all of these pale in importance to that of sharing the gospel.”2

As Billy Graham said, “I am convinced the greatest act of love we can ever perform for people is to tell them about God’s love for them in Christ.”

Whenever I eat at a restaurant, I always leave one of my business witness cards, “Thank you for your friendly service,” with the tip, and whenever the opportunity arrives (without being pushy), I ask the person I am visiting with if I may give him or her one of my cards—one that is suitable as we have a variety. Each card has a link to a website that has many articles that address the felt needs of the average person and a link to the clear gospel message, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian—without having to be religious.”

The only person who has ever refused to accept one of my cards was, of all people, a man at my church! Most people thank me very much for the card that I give to them, especially the card, “Thank you for your friendly service.”

Giving one of these cards is a very easy, attractive, and non-offensive way to be a witness for Jesus Christ. It is a tactful way to basically say, “Come and see what Jesus Christ can do for you!”

It is true, the gospel message of Jesus Christ is far too important not to share. I encourage you to send for a package of 50 of the ACTS business witness cards to give to your friends and contacts.

You can see the available cards at: https://actscom.com/wcards_store.php and order the one that best meets your needs from this same page. They come in packages of 50. We charge only enough to cover our printing and postage costs.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, with all of my fears and weaknesses, I am available. Please use me to be an effective witness for Jesus, and help me today to be ‘as Jesus’ in some way to every life I touch. And as the opportunity arises, please give me the courage to also invite others to ‘come and see’ what Jesus can do for them either verbally or by giving them an attractive and suitable business witness card. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. John 1:45-47 (NLT).

2. Rev. Steve Jackson, Sermon: “Come and See.”

P.S. If you have never met Jesus and accepted His forgiveness for all your sins, and received His gift of eternal life, I encourage you to also “come and see” by reading the article, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian” at: www.actsweb.org/christian.

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The Big IF

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This edition is for professing Christians.

“If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done. Keep on sowing your seed, for you never know which will grow—perhaps it all will.”1

And as Jesus said to His followers, “But you will receive power when the Holy [God's] Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”2

Recently in a Sunday morning worship service our church congregation was singing with great enthusiasm the old hymn: “Go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born,” while the reality is that far too many of us don’t even “go tell it” across the street. We have excellent community services, but we mostly don’t even make any helpful gospel literature available.

I remember reading years ago the tongue-in-cheek comment of a fellow Christian who in a take off on the hymn, “Onward Christian Soldiers marching as to war,” said we should really be singing, “Like a mighty tortoise moves the church of God, brothers we are treading where we’ve always trod.”

The sad reality is that, according to the highly respected Barna Research Group, the church in the U.S.A. today is in decline. Furthermore, according to an adjunct professor from Fuller Seminary, “The fastest growing church in America today is the church of none.” That is, more and more people are dropping out of the organized church.

Jesus commissioned His followers saying that they were to “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone,”3 and again, Jesus said, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”4 Thus, if we are not actively involved in fishing for lost souls, are we truly following Jesus?

Some years ago I prayed and in my prayer I said to God, “I hate witnessing and I’m quitting because I am too scared. However, God, if you want to use me, I’m available, but You’ll have to do it through me because I’m too afraid.”

A few hours after that, I was traveling on an airplane, sitting alone reading Hal Lindsay’s book, ‘The Late Great Planet Earth.’ At one point a fellow passenger got out of his seat, sat down in the empty seat beside me and, after introducing himself, asked me about the book I was reading.

I told him it was a book about the return of Christ to earth coming for all His true followers. He asked, “Do you believe that Christ will return to earth?”

When I told him I did, he said, “Will you please tell me all about it?”

Now I love to witness like that and it all happened because I admitted to God that I was afraid to witness, but that I was available for God to use me to share the gospel message with others—and I’ve been sharing the gospel with mega thousands of people ever since, primarily through the printed page, e-Mail and the Internet.

After all these many years I still pray the following prayer every morning and plan to keep doing so for the rest of my life. I encourage you to do the same:

“Dear God I am available again today. Please make me usable and use me to be an effective witness for Jesus today, and please help me to be ‘as Jesus’ in some way to every life I touch. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

NOTE: for practical tips, helps and tools to easily keep on sowing the seed of the gospel and be an effective witness for Jesus go to: https://learning.actsweb.org/people_power02.php

1. Ecclesiastes 12: 4, 6 (TLB).

2. Acts 1:8 (NIV).

3. Mark 16:15 (NLT).

4. Matthew 4:19 (NKJV).

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Overcoming Alcoholism

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“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”1

June (name changed), A Daily Encounter reader, writes, “My daughter has been suffering from mental illness (schizophrenia) since she was 20. She has been on medication for 7 years. Because of her illness I took to drinking so I could get to sleep at night. Now I’m addicted to alcohol and can’t break the habit. I’ve been trying for two years to overcome but to no avail. Can you please help?”

Unfortunately this anguished mother is not alone. In a survey report from George Barna: “One out of every eight (12%) noted that they are ‘dealing with an addiction’ that personally haunts them.”2

Following is what I suggested to June: Giving up any addiction is never easy and you need to realize that you can’t overcome this kind of struggle in your own strength or by going it alone. We’re not meant to do this. The Bible teaches us to “bear one another’s burdens.” This is why you need the support of understanding “fellow strugglers” such as those in an AA (Alcohol Anonymous) support group—as well as God’s help.

Oftentimes, too, there is a deeper hidden cause behind addictions. So I suggest that you ask God if there is a deeper cause that he will reveal this to you. Also ask God to lead you to the help you need to resolve this cause as well as overcome your addiction.

I also urge you to join an AA twelve-step support group as this can be a vital part of your recovery. For Alcoholic Anonymous (and other addictive) Groups your pastor, doctor or the social services in your area should be able to tell you how to find and contact a local AA group. Or you can get information from the AA web site at http://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org/. For additional counseling resources go to: https://learning.actsweb.org/counseling_resources.php

Whatever you do, don’t try to go it alone. We all need understanding and support at times like this. You have taken the first step by saying, “I have a problem—I need help.” The second step (if you haven’t already done this) is to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior* so you can be honest with God and pray for his help. The third step is to join an AA twelve-step support group. The Fourth step is to find and join a loving, understanding and accepting church that has support groups for struggling members. And, if necessary, the fifth step may be to seek the help of a qualified, well-trained professional counselor.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, whatever problem I have, please give me the courage to admit that I have this problem (name it) and that I need help. And please lead me to the help I need to overcome so my life will bring glory to Your name. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

*NOTE. To accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and be sure you are a real Christian go to: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

1. Galatians 6:2 (NKJV).

2. Barna Research Group, http://tinyurl.com/j3p5f.

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When Your Prayers Don’t Get Answered

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“You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.”1

A Daily Encounter subscriber writes: “Devotions like this instill hope that God is, yet being the doubting Thomas that I am, I struggle with doubts. I see many things going wrong in my life but my prayers never seem to be answered. I feel that they fall on deaf ears, and I have come to the conclusion that if the power of prayer was effective today, there would be less death, sickness and turmoil. I struggle with it all.”

Dear James, thank you for sharing your struggles regarding prayer. I agree with you in that sometimes it can be difficult to understand why prayers for some people get answered, while for others they never seem to be answered.

The fact is that sometimes God answers, “Yes” to our requests. Sometimes he answers, “No,” and sometimes it’s, “Wait a while.” Other times our prayers don’t get answered because we are praying the wrong prayer. As today’s Scripture reminds us, sometimes we pray with the wrong motives.

Furthermore, some prayers don’t get answered because we may be focusing on the symptoms of our problems, rather than facing and dealing with the deeper cause or causes. For instance, there’s no point in praying for healing from ulcers if they are caused by an overload of stress caused by unresolved personal problems. Also, no point in praying for deliverance from alcoholism unless we face and deal with the deeper cause or causes. In most of these cases the ulcers and the alcoholism are symptoms of deeper problems—often in the subconscious mind.

When praying about any problem or situation, to ensure that our prayers will be heard and answered by God, we need, first of all, to pray in Jesus’ name, as it is only through him that we can come to God. Jesus Said, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”3

Second, we also need to pray “in truth.” God’s Word says that “The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”2 That is, we need to be ruthlessly honest, first with ourselves, and then with God asking him to confront us with the truth of what we may be contributing to the symptoms we are struggling with; to give us the courage to face and deal with any deeper cause/s; and to lead us to find the help we need to resolve the cause/s.

Third, we need to pray believing. Faith, too, is essential for effective prayer. As Jesus said, “All things, whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive,”4 and “according to your faith will it be done to you.”5

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank You for the wonderful privilege You have given to all mankind in that we can always come to You in prayer through Jesus Christ Your Son and our Lord. Please help me to always pray ‘in truth’ and always be honest with myself and with You, pray with pure motives, and always pray in harmony with Your Word and Your will, so that I will be sure that You will hear and answer my prayers. Thank You for hearing and answering this prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

NOTE: For further help see the article, “How to Get Prayer Answered.” It’s at: http://tinyurl.com/positive-praying. please take time to read it. I trust it will be of help.

1. James 4:3 (NKJV)

2. Psalm 145:18 (NIV).

3. John 14:13-15 (NIV).

4. Matthew 21:22 (NIV).

5. Matthew 9:29 (NIV).

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Love

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“There are three things that remain—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.”1

Many years ago, when I was a youth, I read the following poem that I have never forgotten. It was written by John Oxenham:

Love ever gives, forgives outlives,
And ever stands with open hands,
And while it lives, it gives.
For this is love’s prerogative–
to give, and give, and give.

As the Apostle Paul wrote in perhaps the greatest literary masterpiece on love ever written: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.”2

Love is much more than sentiment and even a feeling. It’s a commitment of one imperfect person to another. It’s a choice. It’s a byproduct of growth and maturity. It is a gift from God. It also needs to be learned. We learn it from loving people who know us totally—warts and all—and still love us. And we learn it from others who model it, the supreme example being the Lord Jesus.

And remember, we always need to do the loving thing—even when we don’t feel loving.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, in the words of John Powell, ‘Please don’t let me die without having fully lived and fully loved.’ Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Paul the Apostle (1 Corinthians 13:13, TLB).

2. 1 Corinthians13:1-3 (NIV).

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