“Though many of us have seen pictures of a huge eagle’s nest high in the branches of a tree or in the crag of a cliff, few of us have gotten a glimpse inside. When a mother eagle builds her nest she starts with thorns, broken branches, sharp rocks, and a number of other items that seem entirely unsuitable for the project. But then she lines the nest with a thick padding of wool, feathers, and fur from animals she has killed, making it soft and comfortable for the eggs.

“By the time the growing birds reach flying age, the comfort of the nest and the luxury of free meals makes them quite reluctant to leave. That’s when the mother eagle begins stirring up the nest. With her strong talons she begins pulling up the thick carpet of fur and feathers, bringing the sharp rocks and branches to the surface. As more of the bedding gets plucked up, the nest becomes more uncomfortable for the young eagles. Eventually, this and other urgings prompt the growing eagles to leave their once-comfortable abode and move on to more mature behavior.”²

Yesterday we implied that motivation comes from within—that only we can motivate ourselves. When it comes to growth, however, there is another motivator to help get us motivated—and that is pain that is either caused or allowed by God. Like the mother eagle “motivating” her eaglets to launch out to grow towards their full potential, pain and troubles in our life can be “God’s wake-up call” to “stir up our nest,” to motivate us to move us out of our comfort zone, and grow towards our God-given potential to become all that he envisioned for us to be and to do all that he wants us to do.

However, it’s best to get smart. If we choose to move “out of our comfort zone nest” and become motivated about and involved in God’s work, we may avoid some prickly thorns that God may need to send into our life to stir us out of our nest.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, in all the trials and troubles You allow to come into my life, please help me use these as an opportunity to grow so that I will become ‘strong in character and ready for anything.’ Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. James 1:2-4 (NLT).

2. Today in the Word, June 11, 1989

We live in and are all a part of this world that has been broken by sin. Consequently, having a sin nature from birth, nobody escapes temptation. It always starts in the mind, and can be triggered by something we see on TV, hear on the radio, listening to a degrading pop song, seeing a photo, by an unmet need, by idle thinking, or any one of numerous possibilities. Because of our sinful nature, temptation is always lurking around the corner and ready to knock on the door of our mind.

However, as today’s Scripture reminds us, “each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” Once we are enticed, we have already taken the bait, and then we start thinking about what we want or would like to do. The more we think about it, the stronger the temptation grows, and if we don’t “nip it in the bud” right away, we are setting ourselves up for a fall.

However, realize that God’s Word also points out that there is always a way of escape. “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”²

So what’s the way of escape? As temptation starts in the mind that’s where the battle rages, and that’s where it is won or lost. Speaking personally, the greatest help I have found when temptation is knocking on the door of my mind, is to say and pray over and over in my mind the following: “Jesus Christ is Lord. Jesus Christ is the Son of the Living God. Jesus Christ is the Messiah who died to pay the penalty for all my sins. Jesus Christ is my Lord, my God, and My Savior.” Satan, the author of all temptation, absolutely hates these proclamations and in no time will leave tempting us as long as we keep repeating these words. He will, however, keep returning in his attempt to cause us to fall, but as long as we keep concentrating on and repeating these eternal truths, the temptation will be dissipated and, thanks to God, we will remain victorious.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank You for making a way of escape for when I am tempted. Please give me the desire to never give in to temptation remembering that You have provided a way of escape. Help me always to focus my thoughts on the fact that Jesus Christ is Lord, and that He is Lord of my life, until the temptation is dissipated and has left me. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. James 1:13-15 (NKJV).

2. 1 Corinthians 10:12-13 (NIV).

P.S. It also always helps to get legitimate needs met in legitimate ways.

Today’s Daily Encounter Lego illustration is by Steve Klusmeyer who writes:

“Life might be less complicated for all of us if we each received our own LEGO kit at birth. Yes, I realize there is a choking hazard for children under three. But when you are old enough, you can learn a lot from LEGOs. I have learned that:

“Size doesn’t matter. When stepped on in the dark, a 2X2 LEGO brick causes the same amount of pain as a 2X8 brick.

“All LEGO men are created equal (1.5625 inches tall). What they become is limited only by imagination.

“There is strength in numbers. When the bricks stick together, great things can be accomplished.

“Playtime is important. Sometimes it doesn’t matter what you are building, as long as you’re having fun.

“Disaster happens. But the pieces can be put back together again.

“Every brick has a purpose. Some are made for a specific spot—most can adapt almost anywhere—but every one will fit somewhere.

“Color doesn’t matter. A blue brick will fit in the same space as a red brick.

“No one is indispensable. If one brick is unavailable, another can take its place.

“It doesn’t always turn out as planned. Sometimes it turns out better. If it doesn’t, you can always try again.”²

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to remember that I have a part to play in Your body, the Church, and that I am not any more or less important than any other member. Help me to know where I fit best, and play my part faithfully so that my life will bring honor and glory to Your name. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. 1 Corinthians 12:14-17 (NIV).

2. Steve Klusmeyer. Web site no longer available.

Codependency comes in many forms. One aspect is doing for others what they should and need to do for themselves. It may make the other person feel good for the moment, and us important, but it keeps them over-dependent on us. This kind of a relationship is extremely unhealthy.

Another aspect of codependency is rescuing people from the logical consequences of their negative behavior. This, too, keeps them immature and over-dependent on us. Furthermore, as long as we’re covering for them, why do they need to take care of themselves, resolve their problems and recover? They don’t. As Solomon indicated, if we keep rescuing someone from their problems, we’ll have to keep doing it.

For every alcoholic (or other addict), who is already over-dependent on his alcohol, they say there are four codependent enablers supporting him and his addiction. As long as they keep doing this, he never sees his need to get better.

If he refuses to acknowledge his problem, get into a recovery program, and resolve his problem, there comes a time when those who are enabling him need to say enough is enough! They need to exercise tough love, quit protecting him or her, get out of the way and let him crash! This is the most loving thing they can do after they have tried every other avenue of tough love and found that none of it has worked.

The bottom line of codependency is that need is mistaken for love. The codependent needs to feel needed in order to feel loved. But it’s not love. It’s need. It may look like love and it may look very Christian, but it’s neither. Furthermore, the codependent person wants to fix others to avoid facing his own issues. He is addicted to the addict and is doing what he is doing for himself. Always! His motive is awry.

Besides, when we allow people to stay over-dependent on us, they never learn to become self-reliant, mature, or dependent on God.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, help me to know what my motives are when I am helping others and not be a people-fixer in order to avoid facing my own unresolved issues, nor to confuse need with love. Help me to accept full responsibility for my issues and quit trying to rescue others who need to face their issues. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Proverbs 19:19 (NIV).

What do you do when you get mad? Do you explode and “blow your top”—or try to hide how you are truly feeling? Do you deny being angry altogether, or just say you are upset, or do you go quiet and withdraw, or act in a phony saccharine sweet manner? Or do you handle your anger in a healthy and creative way?

Anger, for many of us, isn’t easy to handle, but when we deny it, try to hide it, or repress it, it comes out in many self-destructive ways such as a negative and critical attitude, nagging, sarcasm, personal or marriage conflicts, or many physical symptoms such as ulcers, asthma, arthritis, heart ailments or any of a score of others.

There is nothing of itself wrong with anger. It is a God-given legitimate and needed emotion. For instance, we ought to get angry at evil and at actions that destroy people. Recall how Jesus dealt with the money changers who misused God’s temple. He drove them out with a whip.² It’s what we do with our anger and how we handle it that counts. It isn’t helpful or right to lash out and hurt others. Neither is it helpful or right to nurse our anger (grudges). As today’s Scripture reminds us, it is important that we resolve anger (and all negative emotions) as quickly as possible.

To handle anger creatively—that’s the key. For help be sure to read the article, “Taming Your Anger” at: www.actsweb.org/articles/article.php?i=61&d=1&c=5&p=1.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that you have created me with many emotions all of which are needed for healthy and creative living. Whenever I am hurt or angry, deliver me from the sin of denial, and please help me to be honest about my feelings, admit what I am truly feeling, and learn how to handle them in a creative, loving and healthy manner all for your glory. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Ephesians 4:26 (TLB) (NIV).

2. John 2:15.

Imagine yourself in a wide-open field being chased by a tiger. Your brain gets the message and your adrenal gland starts pumping furiously, preparing you for instant flight. You run for your life. While you are breaking the world record for five hundred meters, you burn up all that excess adrenalin.

But what happens if you’re living all the time in a state of fear, worry, or anxiety? You become stressed out. This upsets the chemical balance in your body which, in turn, eventually causes you to pay for it through some kind of sickness or a physical breakdown. Stress is a killer. We need to learn how to keep it under control. To do this the following five “positive don’ts” will help:

1. Don’t ignore your well-being. Discipline yourself to live a well-balanced life. Be sure to see the “Balanced Life” wheel and article at: https://learning.actsweb.org/balanced.php.

2. Don’t bottle up (repress) your feelings. Learn how to share them with a trusted friend. And remember when it comes to negative emotions, what we fail to talk out creatively, we end up acting out destructively in one way or another.

3. Don’t ignore your physical health. Follow a healthy and well-balanced diet, and be sure to get plenty of vigorous physical exercise which, among many other benefits, helps burn up excess adrenalin.

4. Don’t ignore your social needs. We were created to be in relationships with others. Remember, too, when Jesus was on earth, almost all of his ministry was in relationship with the twelve disciples. And with three of these, Peter, James and John, he had a close relationship, as he did with his friends, Mary and Martha.

5. Don’t ignore your spiritual life. Learn to trust God with every area of your life, and live in harmony with God’s will and follow Christ’s example: “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.“² That is, when on earth Jesus developed intellectually, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. A very healthy example and model to follow.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to trust my life and way to you every day, and be sure to get all of my legitimate needs met in healthy ways, so that I will always resolve every problem in my life, and experience your peace no matter in what circumstances I find myself. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT).

2. Luke 2:52 (NIV).

“Worry, like a rocking chair,” said Vance Havner, “will give you something to do, but it won’t get you anywhere.” Or as somebody else has said, “Worry is the advance interest you pay on troubles that seldom come.”

According to Ken Anderson, nine times out of ten, the worrying about something does more damage to the one who worries than the thing he or she is worrying about.

Anderson continues, “Modern medical research has proved that worry breaks down resistance to disease. More than that, it diseases the nervous system—particularly that of the digestive organs and of the heart.” Concern is needed to keep us on track with our responsibilities, but worry, like stress, is a killer.

An examination of 500 patients in a British clinic showed that more than one-third of their visual problems were caused by emotional tension. And a survey of some 5,000 university students showed that worriers get the lowest grades.

The word “worry” comes from an old Anglo-Saxon word meaning to strangle or to choke. While we need to be attentive to life’s concerns, worrying about them “chokes” the joy out of life. “Worrying is like driving a car with one foot on the accelerator and the other foot on the brake.”

One antidote for worry is trust and trust is a choice. When things aren’t going well and I am prone to worry, I keep praying until the storm passes: “Dear God, I choose to trust you in this situation no matter how I feel.” In time my feelings catch up with my choice and the worry gives way to calm. Meaningful worship, supportive relationships, sharing my feelings with a trusted friend, physical exercise, proper diet, deep breathing relaxation exercises and sufficient rest all help—plus learning to pray about the causes of my worry and not just the symptoms is a major key in learning to win over worry.

All the water in the world

However hard it tried,

Could never, never sink a ship

Unless it got inside.

All the hardships of this world,

Might wear you pretty thin,

But they won’t hurt you, one least bit

Unless you let them in.²

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, I choose to trust you no matter what. Please help me to always act responsibly, face and resolve any causes in my life that are at the root of my worrying, and leave the outcome to you of the many things in my life over which I have little or no control. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. 1 Peter 5:7.

2. Anonymous.

Xvxn though this typxwritxr is an old modxl, it works vxry wxll, xxcxpt for onx kxy. You’d think that with all thx othhxr kxys working, onx kxy would hardly bx noticxd. But just onx kxy out of whack sxxms to ruin thx wholx xffort.

Havx you xvxr said to yoursxlf, “I’m only onx pxrson. No onx will noticx if I don’t do my bxst.”

But it doxs makx a diffxrxncx, bxcausx to bx xffxctivx, a family, an organization, a church or a businxss nxxds complxtx participation by evxryonx to thx bxst of his or hxr ability.

So if you’rx having onx of thosx days whxn you think you just arxn’t vxry important, and you’rx txmptxd to slack off, rxmxmbxr this old typxwritxr. You arx a kxy pxrson, and whxn you don’t do your bxst, nothing xlsx around you works out thx way it is supposxd to.²

“Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that I am very important to you and that my life matters. Help me to feel your love for me and, in so doing, know in the depths of my heart that I am loved, needed and important. And please help me to do my part in being a part of what you are doing in the world today. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Ephesians 4:25 (NIV).

2. Author unknown. Cited on many websites (including on ACTS International).

According to a report in the John Hopkins Family Health report, “If you have a tendency to anger easily, you may be at increased risk for a heart attack or stroke—especially if you have heart disease or significant heart disease risk factors. Other tip-offs that anger may be undermining your health include being stubborn, impatient, or hotheaded, and habitually feeling like you want to hit someone or something.”

Anger, too, is a great destroyer of relationships. It’s no wonder that the Bible teaches us to resolve it quickly—the same day whenever possible. Being angry is not a sin. It’s what we do with it that counts. The Bible also teaches, “Be angry, sin not.”² One way to do this when we are feeling angry is to “speak the truth in love,” and not lash out and hurt the person with whom we are angry.

Some well-meaning people want to blame the devil or a “demon of anger.” Not so with me. My anger is my problem. But when I fail to resolve it (or any other pent-up negative emotion) I give a “foothold to the devil.” When I resolve my anger, the devil loses his foothold.

People who have a super-sensitive anger button usually have unresolved anger from the past with an “anger tank” that is filled to overflowing. The slightest offense can trigger an outburst of hurtful anger. They’ve been nursing grudges for a long time. This is what the Bible teaches us not to do. That is, “don’t sin by nursing your grudge.” Where this is an ongoing anger problem, very often qualified counseling is needed to help resolve it.

Unresolved anger is unhealthy physically, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually. This is why the Bible teaches, “Don’t let the sun go down on your anger. Resolve and get over it quickly.”

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to be honest about my anger, recognize and admit when I am overreacting and, if it is a serious problem, lead me to find the help I need to resolve it. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

Note: For the helpful article, “Taming Your Anger,” showing how to resolve anger click on: http://tinyurl.com/hkmjo.

1. Ephesians 4:26 (TLB)(NLT).

2. Ephesians 4:26 (KJV).

Leo Buscaglia, “professor of love,” once talked about a contest where he was asked to be a judge. “The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child. The winner was a four-year-old child whose next-door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman’s yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.

“When his mother asked him what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, ‘Nothing, I just helped him cry.’”

Rare is the friend who knows how to weep with those who weep! Such a friend we all need to have. But first of all, such a friend we need to be!

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please give me a loving, sensitive heart to feel my brother/sister’s pain, and learn how to weep with him/her in their time of sorrow and grief. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Romans 12:15.