Good Deeds



Text: Job 31:24-32

Key Verse: “The stranger did not lodge in the street: but I opened my doors to the traveller” (Job 31:32)


In all ages, men and women had obtained God’s favour through their good deeds unto others. Abraham and Sarah got the son of promise by entertaining holy angels. Rahab and her household were saved by Israel’s army because she protected the spies sent to Jericho, and many other instances in the Bible.

Job was a righteous man who went through trying times. This was because God allowed Satan to afflict him to try his faith. God’s testimony concerning Job was that “there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?” (Job 1:8).

In his trials, Job’s commitment was confronted by his wife. His friends, who came to comfort him also passed as miserable counselors. He remained faithful to God and maintained his integrity.

Job remained conscious of the truth that God will judge every sin, and so he was always ready to be examined. In the passage above, Job drew attention to some issues of personal attitude to wealth and his fellow men. He addressed them by five “ifs” as part of the 21 “ifs” in the whole chapter.

Friend, as you look at yourself today and consider your life, how do you stand before these ‘ifs’ of Job? Job spoke of his integrity and righteousness, opened himself to God’s examination and acknowledged that punishment from the Judge awaited him if he had done wrong.

God takes pleasure in righteousness and punishes evil. If we judge ourselves, God will not judge us (1 Corinthians 11:31). How is your relationship with God? What is your attitude to wealth - silver, gold, houses, etc.? What is your attitude to your fellowmen, especially those that have offended you?

Job was adjudged righteous because he loved God, feared Him, walked uprightly and avoided evil. If you will please God, you should follow the steps of Job.

Thought For You: One good turn deserves many others.


THE TRUTH MEDIA
...building the body of Christ

Quiet Spaces






In these quiet spaces,
I become temporarily deaf
to the meaningless noises
that seek to define me.

In these quiet spaces,
my soul is nourished;
surrounded by silence,
my spirit soars upward.

In these quiet spaces,
my focus turns inward,
knowing that His Presence
is co-mingled with mine.

In these quiet spaces,
the renewing of my mind
occurs as my life, is…
humbled before Him.

In these quiet spaces,
His divine, sacred wind
envelops my frail essence
with indescribable peace. 

In these quiet spaces,
consumed by His Presence,
I sense undeniable power
of God’s authentic Love.


Author Notes
Inspired by:
Matt 6:1,6; Rom 12:1-2; Jam 4:8;
Heb 13:15-16; Psa 46:10; Phil 4:7


Learn more about me and my poetry at:
http://amzn.to/1ffo9YZ

By Joseph J. Breunig 3rd, © 2014, All rights reserved
--
Joseph Breunig, Author/poet
Reaching Towards His Unbounded Glory



THE TRUTH MEDIA
...building the body of Christ.

God's Word In Our Hearts



TEXT: PSALM 119:9-16
 

The success of any believer in his work with and service for the Lord is inseparably linked to his closeness to the word of God. Examples in the Scriptures confirm this cornerstone of our relationship with God. The children of Israel were expressly commanded by God. “As these words which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart …” (Deuteronomy 6:6). Joshua was also told: “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth … and then thou shall have good success” (Joshua 1:8). Our strength and security will be realized when the word of God dwells in us. It is for this purpose every believer must meditate upon the word of God daily. The busy Christian who cannot spend time with God’s word will soon be entrapped by the cunning devices of the enemy.

The more time we spend in God’s word, the more the word stays in our heart. God’s word in our heart will control our actions and thoughts. It will lead us in His perfect way and strengthen us to carry out His will daily. It endears our hearts to the things of God and gives us victory over sin. God’s word in our hearts is our arsenal when the devil comes with his temptations. Our Lord Jesus Christ used this weapon against the devil in His temptation in the wilderness. With no Bible around us, we can defeat the devil as we quote to him the word of God abiding in us.

To have the word of God dwell in our hearts, first, we must hear the word. Every opportunity we have to listen to the word of God at the church services, crusades, retreats, seminars, etc., must be profitably used. Whatever will cause distractions at such times must be done away with.

Second, we must give ourselves to studying and reading the Word. Time must be created for this. True believers treasure the word of God and will endeavor to have at all times a good complete Bible and not just a portion of it. It is a priceless treasure.

Third, we must endeavor to understand what we read. God has given us in the church, leaders who can explain to us any difficult passage. We also have opportunity to ask questions during the Search the Scripture sessions and at House Fellowship. A good Bible dictionary and concordance are also helpful in understanding the Scripture.

Fourth, we must meditate on the word. We must try to find out what the Lord is teaching us about Himself and concerning our life. The application of the Scripture should not be transferred to someone else but to our very life.

Fifth, we must practice or observe to do what we know in the word of God and regulate everything we do by the word of God. This is the evidence that the word of God is dwelling in us and that we are controlled by His word.

Every day, we hear the confusing deceptive words of men; false prophets who speak words that lead people astray. Satan himself is ever busy whispering his lies into the hearts of saints and unstable souls. If we are to overcome all these adversaries, the word of God must abide in our hearts.

I hope you were blessed by this. May the grace and peace of the Lord be with you. Feel free to share and leave your comments. God bless you!


THE TRUTH MEDIA
…building the body of Christ.

To Do Or To Seek





I was speaking to a neighbour recently, a lady who is not a Christian and who has endured overwhelming trials during her 93 years; yet she still looks 20 years younger than she is, choosing not to dwell on her problems but to just keep on keeping on as long as she’s still here. It’s a philosophy that sounds good on the surface, but the downside is the obvious fact that she is deeply wounded, has no peace, and all of her self-effort has resulted in a nice outward appearance that is nothing more than a mask. In our conversation she repeated the advice, often heard from believers and non-believers alike, “God helps those who help themselves.”  What a lie of the devil!!!

Oh, how the enemy must whoop and holler when we fall for that one—when we succumb to our to-do lists and the multitude of responsibilities that we never should have shouldered in the first place; when we think we have to fix circumstances or other people; when we fall into the trap of doing things just because nobody else will—all without first asking the Lord if we’re supposed to proceed.

In our continuing efforts to be self-sufficient and successful, how often we skim over Jesus’ instruction to “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.”  We may think we’re seeking after Him, but is He really FIRST on our agenda? Or, is our ministry, job or family our number one priority?  Does our relationship with Him infuse every aspect of our life? Do we pursue intimacy with God with as much fervour as we pursue all of the other things that we think we have to do?  Not likely.

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
“And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

“Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.  Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:25-34).

== Written by: Barbara Parker (Standing In Faith Ministries) ==

I hope you were blessed. May the grace and peace of the Lord be with you and your family. Feel free to share and leave your comments. We would love to hear from you.


 THE TRUTH MEDIA
...building the body of Christ.

Down In The Valley




Though I find myself walking,
Through this dark period of life,
I will not fear the enemy about,
For my Lord and His Word speaks
To my inner man, removing doubts

That seek to haunt my spirit.
I’m comforted and content today,
Knowing His divine righteousness
Consumes my wearied existence;
Therefore, I will firmly confess

My adoration of Christ, my King.
He lovingly accompanies my journey,
As I traverse the green pastures
Laid before me; He anoints my life
As I divinely seek to grow and mature

Under His sacred, Biblical precepts.
His ways and standard are set high,
So that… I’m continually dependent
On Him for all aspects of my life.
To His reign, I’ve given my consent.

The eternal promises, of His supply
To meet my earthly needs, are true.
In Him alone, I have placed my trust!
Going forward, I rejoice from knowing…
That His ways are righteous and just!



Author Notes
Loosely based on:
Psalm 23,118:137,145:17-18; Isa 55:8-9; 1 John 1:9
Learn more about me and my poetry at:
http://amzn.to/1ffo9YZ

By Joseph J. Breunig 3rd, © 2014, All rights reserved.

Joseph Breunig, Author/poet
Reaching Towards His Unbounded Glory


THE TRUTH MEDIA
...building the body of Christ.

Two Possibilities



Text: Romans 8:5-8

"Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires." Romans 8:5


There are two possibilities as Christians that will determine if we manifest the righteousness of God, depending on whether we walk according to the Spirit or according to the flesh. The difference is what you set your mind on, i.e., what you are thinking about all through the day, what is important to you. Is it the viewpoint of the flesh, which governs the thinking of the world? Or is it the viewpoint of the Spirit — God's viewpoint — on life? That is the determining factor — what you do with your thinking. Where you set your mind is going to make the difference.

What is the mind set of the person who lives according to the flesh? You only have to look around to see what that is. It is the natural viewpoint of life. People want to make money, because money provides comfort and conveniences that we would like to have. People want to have fun. People want pleasure, money and fame. People will give their right arm to gain influence and prestige. People desire to fulfill themselves. They want to manifest every capability that is within them. That is what the world lives for. And it wants it all now, not later. That is the natural point of view.

You say, "What's wrong with that?" There really is nothing wrong with that, unless that is all you want. If that is all you want, then it is very wrong. This is what the Scriptures help us to see — that there is another point of view, which is life viewed according to the Spirit. "Ah," you say, "I know what that means! That means you have to forget about making money and having fun and fulfilling yourself. All you do is go around memorizing Scripture and thinking about God all day long. You go around reciting Scripture verses and telling people what is wrong with their lives."

Many people think that is what we are talking about when we say that we are to have our minds set on the things of the Spirit. But, of course, if you see people like that, you soon discover that kind of life does not produce the results this passage tells us should be there. That is really nothing but another form of being run by the flesh — it's a religious form of it, but it is the same thing.

What does it mean, then, to have your mind set on the Spirit? It means that, in the midst of making money, having fun, gaining fame and fulfilling yourself, you are primarily concerned with showing love, helping others, speaking truth, and, above all, loving God and seeking his glory. The trouble with the world is that it is content with just making money, having fun, and fulfilling itself — that is all it wants. But the mind set on the Spirit desires that God be glorified in all these things. When your mind is set on the Spirit you look at the events of life from God's point of view, not from the world's. Your value system is changed and it touches everything you do. The important thing in seeking to fulfill your needs, is that God be glorified. That is what makes the difference. That is the mind set on the Spirit. It does not remove you from life — it puts you right back into it. But it does it with a different point of view.

I hope you are blessed. May the grace of the Lord be with you. Feel free to share and leave your comments.

Copyright © Ray Stedman Ministries | www.raystedman.org.


THE TRUTH MEDIA
...building the body of Christ.

O Lord, How Happy Should We Be?





O Lord, how happy should we be
If we could cast our cares on Thee,
If we from self could rest,
And feel at heart that One above,
In perfect wisdom, perfect love
Is working for the best.

How far from this our daily life,
Ever disturbed by anxious strife,
By sudden wild alarms.
O could we but relinquish all
Our earthly props, and simply fall
On Thy almighty arms.

Could we but kneel and cast our load,
E’en while we pray, upon our God,
Then rise with lightened cheer,
Sure that the Father, who is nigh
To still the famished raven’s cry,
Will hear, in that we fear.

Lord, makes this faithless hearts of ours
Thy lessons learn from birds and flowers:
Make them from self to cease,
Leave all things to a Father’s will,
And taste, before His lying still,
E’en in affliction, peace.


THE TRUTH MEDIA
...building the body of Christ.