No Longer I, But Christ

From: InTouch ministries

Galatians 2:20

Hudson Taylor was a missionary in China during the mid-1800s. At one point, he felt overwhelmed with financial concerns, the responsibilities of running a mission, and the ever-increasing pile of mail awaiting his attention. All the letters he wrote to friends and family were filled with defeat and discouragement.

Seeing his need, a missionary friend wrote back to him, asking, “Hudson, when you think about Jesus, does He have a furrowed brow? Is He worried and anxious because He doesn’t know what’s going to happen next or if there will be enough money?” Then he added, “When your life becomes Jesus’ life, there’s no need to worry, because it will no longer be Hudson who bears the burdens but Jesus, and He’ll never be swamped by problems.”

God changed Hudson Taylor in that moment. His circumstances were the same; in fact, the problems became greater, but there was a difference in Taylor’s response. Whereas before he was fretting and wrestling, now he was resting in the Lord and trusting with a calm, quiet, and peaceful spirit. Those who knew him could discern the dramatic change.

Sometimes we think that being crucified with Christ is all about what we give up—practicing self-denial and saying no to sin, temptations, and worldly pleasures. But it also includes living in the power of His resurrected life. Jesus Christ makes His abode in us, empowering us to overcome sin and live righteously. But He also carries our burdens and encourages our spirits to trust Him. Just as we are saved by faith, so also we live by faith, trusting the Lord day by day with all our needs and concerns.

The Key to My Heart

By: Martha Noebel, cbn.com

Who has the key to your heart? There are many who would say, “I have the key to your heart. I want to come in.” If we allow that, we could entertain wrong thoughts and actions. God wants to be the sole owner of the key to our hearts.

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory (Colossians 3:1-4).

How wonderful that is to know! When He has the key to our hearts, we are giving Him the place of honor and power. We then begin to allow Him, and no one else, to fill our thoughts, making Him our ‘real life.’ Praise God! It is then that we can hear God speak His love to us. We can hear Him say, “She (or he) is my delight.”

That word was spoken to me at a time I really needed to hear it. We try so hard to work for God, to please Him, and yet we can become so busy with the work that we forget to love the Lord of the work. I want to stay in a place of feeling God’s love for me. I may be frustrated with all that’s going on around me and be too caught up with things. God wants my attention. He wants my love, and He wants to love me the way I need to be loved.

We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed and broken. We are perplexed, but we don’t give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going. Through suffering, these bodies of ours constantly share in the death of Jesus so that the life Jesus may also be seen in our bodies (2 Corinthians 4:8-10).

I want the life of Christ to be seen in me. I don’t want it said that when things don’t go my way that I continue to force the issues. I want to be able to say, “God has another plan” and let go of it. I want to be able to release the problems so I can be healed and made strong through it all. I want the ‘Lover of my soul’ to be able to speak to me His songs of love without any hindrances.

Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use His words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts (Colossians 3:16).

That’s the attitude I want. I need to let Christ live large in me and make me wise. I want to be able to be a blessing to others and to always have a song to God in my heart. What joy is mine when I refuse to give the distractions a key to my heart! What rejoicing I can have if I don’t let the cares of this world have a key to my heart!

The choice is yours and mine. You and I have to make the decision. Who has the key to your heart?

God, You have the key to my heart!

What the Power of Praise Can Do

By: Debbie McDaniel, crosswalk,com

We have so much to praise God for, there’s great power in giving honor to Him. And many of you live that truth out, every single day of your lives. The Bible is filled with examples of praise when we see His power released – life-changing miracles, dramatic stories of the enemy being halted or defeated, hearts being changed and drawn closer to Him.

Yet reality is that way too often, daily struggles or constant life demands can crowd out our praise to God.  We might check the worship box at church and somehow think we’re good for the week.  And all the while, with souls distant and cold, we sing words, we listen to music, then we go home.

Sometimes it really is a sacrifice to offer praise.  We may not feel like it.  We’re struggling.  We’re weary.  Or maybe, we feel like He let us down. We think God seems distant, like he’s far away, or doesn’t really care about what’s troubling us. Painful life blows and losses might have recently sent us spiraling.

Here’s what can make a lasting difference.  When we make that decision to fix our eyes on Him, and daily give Him praise, no matter what’s staring us straight in the face, we suddenly realize that God has already begun to release the grip those struggles can have over us.

There’s power in our acknowledgement that He is worthy, above all else, of our worship and praise.

His Spirit urges us onward, to press in close to him. Doesn’t matter how good or “not so good” we feel like we can sing, doesn’t matter if we like upbeat worship, more reflective songs, or traditional hymns. Doesn’t matter if we’re alone, with a few, or in a big group. Doesn’t even matter whether we “feel” like it or not.  What matters is this – our hearts in tune with our Creator and King.

What the Power of Praise Can Do – 8 Things:

1.  Praise gets our focus off ourselves and back on God.  In our often “selfie” focused world, we need this constant reminder – life is not all about us.  We may know that in our heads, but yet our hearts think differently so often. We’re prone to selfishness, He desires our eyes be set firmly on Him, because that’s where our true hope is found.  He is worthy of our praise, no matter what we face from day to day.

“Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness!”  Psa. 150:2

“And my tongue shall speak of your righteousness and of your praise all the day long.” Psa. 35:28

2.  Praise brings us to a place of humility.  We remember our dependency on God, as we acknowledge our need for Him.  As we praise Him as Creator and King of this world, we admit and recognize that we’re not in control, but He is.  He is above all.

“Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.”  Psa. 95:2-3

 “I will give you thanks in the great congregation: I will praise you among much people.” Psa. 35:18

3.  Praise makes the enemy flee.  It pushes back the darkness the surrounds, and blocks the attacks and hissing lies over us.  Evil will not stick around if we’re praising our God, who will fight our battles for us.  In the story of Jehoshaphat, we see God miraculously defeat the enemy, because of the people’s obedience to praise Him.

“As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated”  2 Chron. 20:22

4.  Praise leaves no room for complaining and negativity.  Sometimes even within our prayers, we can tend to complain about our problems.  God knows our hearts.  And He cares about all that concerns us.  But through praise, we’re focused on Him, no longer allowing too much attention to be centered around the struggles.  We’re reminded of what He has already done in our lives.  We’re reminded that He knows what concerns us, and is capable of taking care of all that burdens us.

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy.” Psa. 103:2-4

“By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” Heb. 13:15

5.  Praise makes room for God’s blessings over our lives.  He will not hold back His goodness, praise opens the gateway of blessing as we come into the Presence of our King.

“Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!”  Psa. 100:4

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:” Eph. 1:3

6.  Praise invites His presence.  God dwells close to us when we praise Him.  He lives there.  He looks for it.

“He inhabits the praises of His people.”  Psa. 22:3

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light;” 1 Pet. 2:9

7.  Our spirits are refreshed and renewed in His presence.  We’re strengthened by His peace and refueled by His joy.  Through a heart of praise, we realize that God doesn’t just change our situations and work through our problems, He changes our hearts.

“In His presence, there is fullness of joy.”  Psa. 16:11

“Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.” Psa. 63:3-4

8.  It paves the way for God’s power to be displayed, miracles ​happen.  People’s lives are affected and changed.  God shakes things up through praise.  As Paul and Silas sat in prison, shackled, and chained, they kept right on praising God.  And God sent an earthquake that shook the cells and broke the chains.  The jailer and all his family came to know Christ that very night.

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened.”  Acts 16:25-26

We have a choice every day in this life.  To live absorbed in worry and stress, on the fast track of busy, focused only on what surrounds us, tuned into the roar of the world.

Or, we can ask God to help us take our eyes off all that may be swirling around, our problems and mess, or the voices of others. And we can look up…to Him, the One who holds it all together, and who holds us in his hands.

God desires our whole heart.  He waits for us to return.  He longs for us to know the power of His presence over our lives.  He desires to bless us more than we could imagine. His Spirit urges us onward, calling us closer.

May He help us to look up…open our mouths…and sing.

Jesus Turns the Tables

Article by

Jonathan Parnell, desiring god.org

He entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. (Mark 11:15)

This particular Monday may have felt like the proverbial Monday morning in the modern Western world — a time to reengage the grind and get back to work. Jesus, indeed, walked into Jerusalem to take care of business.

The meek and mild Jesus of progressive “tolerance” that so many of our contemporaries have come to prefer was nowhere to be found when he made a mess of the money-changers. There was nothing soft and tender on display when Jesus, in Jeremiah-like fashion, pronounced a resounding judgment on Israel.

In no uncertain terms, his rebuke fell on their worship.

Pigeons! Get Your Pigeons!

The Christian tradition in which I was raised regularly had visiting musical groups play concerts. As you can imagine, these groups would have their albums and other merchandise to promote on the circuit, but at our local church, they weren’t allowed to sell them — at least not in the church foyer where most attenders entered. The rationale came from Mark 11:15–19 when Jesus cleansed the temple. Jesus clearly didn’t like it when folks hawked their wares around the temple, and therefore we shouldn’t sell stuff around the sanctuary.

To be sure, the place of worship in first-century Judaism and the auditorium of a rural Baptist church in America don’t exactly correspond, but true to Jesus’s words, my home church didn’t want the place of worship to be co-opted as a place of commerce. And that much is right.

So this is one temple problem going on in Jesus’s day. If you can imagine, the city would have been packed with pilgrims because of Passover. They would have come to the temple to offer sacrifices and, seizing an opportunity, pigeon-vendors set up shop. It might not have been too different from a sporting event today when sweaty salesmen walk the aisles and herald their popcorn — except these were sacrificial birds, their motive was sinister, and the prices were probably jacked even higher. “Pigeons! Get your pigeons!” they would have hollered.

Without doubt, this is a far cry from what the place of worship should have been, and Jesus wouldn’t have it. Turning heads by his claim of authority, Jesus spoke for God and turned over tables. And central to it all was what he quoted from the Old Testament, from Isaiah and Jeremiah:

“Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? [Isaiah 56:7–8] But you have made it a den of robbers [Jeremiah 7:11].”

Out of Sync

The co-op for commerce was a problem, but that wasn’t the only thing, or even the main thing, that Jesus was addressing. The real fiasco was how out of sync Israel’s worship was with the great end-times vision Isaiah had prophesied — the new age that Jesus had come to inaugurate.

Jesus quotes a portion of that vision from Isaiah 56: “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations.”

The context of Isaiah 56 tells us more. According to Isaiah’s vision, eunuchs would keep God’s covenant (Isaiah 56:4), and foreigners would join themselves to him (Isaiah 56:6), and the outcasts would be gathered with his people (Isaiah 56:8). But Jesus approached a temple pulsing with buying and selling. The court of the Gentiles, the place designed all along for foreigners to congregate, for the nations to seek the Lord, was overrun with opportunists trying to turn a profit. And the Jewish leaders had let this happen.

Their economic drive, and their false security in the temple as an emblem of blessing (Jeremiah 7:3–11), had crowded out space for the nations to draw near, and therefore Jesus was driving them out. The great sadness of this scene wasn’t so much the rows of product and price-gouging, but that all this left no room for the Gentiles and outcasts to come to God. This place of worship should have prefigured the hope of God’s restored creation — a day when “all the nations shall flow to it, and many peoples shall come, and say: ‘Come, let us go to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob’” (Isaiah 2:2–3).

In other words, the ultimate vision of God’s people in God’s place would look a little more motley than it did when Jesus stepped foot into Jerusalem. And because their worship was so far removed from this vision, Jesus had enough. The worship of God’s people was so out of line with God’s purposes that zeal consumed God’s messiah. It had to stop.

What the Rich, Young Ruler Didn’t Know

By: Liza Proch, crosswalk.com

The crowd’s murmuring stilled. Everyone stared in disbelief as the young man made his way toward the front of the circle of onlookers. His clothes were made of rich material and royal colors. His hair was cut in the latest fashion. His stride was confident. The rings on his fingers and jewels on his collar glistened in the sun’s rays.

He was not one to mingle with the common folk of the village. His time was spent with the highly educated and the prosperous. He was popular. He was religious. He was rich. He had everything that anybody would wish for. Or did he?

There was one thing missing. In his heart, this rich young man felt the need for something more. Something deeper. He had heard of a man called Jesus who offered what he was seeking. So he strapped on his richly embroidered camel skin sandals and started off to find this teacher. He found this carpenter called Jesus surrounded by a diverse crowd made up of tax collectors, merchants, housewives, children, and students. The rich young man asked Him a question.

“Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”

Jesus replied, “If you would enter life, keep the commandments.”

Surely there must be more to it that that! The man replied, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?”

Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”

You could have heard a pin drop. The young man stared at Jesus for a moment, then dropped his eyes to the ground as his heart sank. He could afford good deeds—a donation here, a loaf of bread to an orphan there. He avoided lying, stealing, and cheating. That cost him nothing.

But to give everything away? To sell all his stuff? Was Jesus crazy? How could He even say such a thing? What would people say?

His thoughts crashed around inside his head, and finally he raised his eyes, suddenly full of sorrow. There was sorrow in the eyes of the Teacher, too. Sorrow mixed with hope. But the rich young man stood for only a moment longer staring into those eyes, then turned away, moving slowly through the crowd, climbed into his dazzling chariot, and rode away, his rich red cloak flapping in the wind.

Keeping Eternity in Mind

The rich young man was so caught up in being happy and fulfilled in the moment that he missed the chance to be happy and fulfilled for eternity. The idea of letting go of his earthly treasure was so awful to him, he chose temporary pleasure instead of everlasting perfection.

It’s easy to look at this story and only see the rich young man—to convince ourselves it doesn’t have much to do with us. But let’s choose to slip into his camel-skinned sandals and walk a mile or two.

When we make a choice today (whether to listen to certain music, eat the fifth donut, or sign up for that class), it affects our future. What we do now makes a difference later on. Are the decisions we’re making eternity-focused or are they based on pleasure in the moment?

It’s easy to get caught up in the heat and pressure of the moment, but when we keep an eternal perspective, our choices won’t be based on the way we feel right now, but on the eternal view of things. So let’s learn from that rich young man. Let’s not get all tied up in the pleasures of the culture that we miss the opportunity to have happiness and fulfillment through Jesus for eternity.

One Thing You Lack

David Mathis, Author, desiringgod.org

Hey you, rich young ruler…

Maybe you’re old for pro football, but you’re young to the rest of the world. And rich. You’ve negotiated salary-cap-friendly deals with your team, but that still has you at a guaranteed $33 million over the next five seasons.

And as much as anyone in this generation, you have ruled the NFL — three Super Bowl rings, twice Super Bowl MVP, twice league MVP, eight Pro Bowls, and five Super Bowl appearances in ten seasons. You hold the record for most touchdown passes in a single regular season, have the highest career playoff win total in NFL history, and are the first quarterback to lead a team to ten division titles. The Associated Press even named you Male Athlete of the Year in 2007.

But as you admitted on 60 Minutes at age 30, you know all this isn’t enough. “Why do I have three Super Bowl rings and still think there’s something greater out there for me?… There has to be more than this.”

Many would say you have it all, but one thing you lack.

Real Achievement

What’s that? Another ruler, richer and younger?

Even though it meant a pay cut to take your talents to South Beach for a chance at a championship, $17.5 million a year is still mindboggling to most of us. They call you “King,” and you rule your sport as the one widely considered the best basketball player in the world today. You’re a three-time league MVP, nine-time All Star, and this past January, at age 28, you became the youngest player in NBA history to reach 20,000 career points. And you finally got your ring in 2012, and became Finals MVP in the process.

At last, it may seem like you have it all. But one thing you lack.

Real Money

Oh, really? Another young ruler, but all the richer?

Pro athletes are poor compared to the chairman and chief executive of Facebook. They have their millions; you have your billions — with a net worth of $10 billion. You launched The Facebook from your lowly Harvard dorm room in 2004 and became a billionaire by age 23. A major motion picture chronicled your story in 2010. You rule the Internet with few rivals. All that, and you’re only 28.

You describe yourself as an atheist. One thing you lack.

Real Fame

But can you compare that with an Oscar for Best Actress at age 22?

In 2012, you ascended to your rule: awards from the Screen Actors Guild, Golden Globe, Independent Spirit, Satellite, and that Academy Award for Best Actress which made you the youngest person ever to be nominated for two Best Actress Oscars and the second youngest Best Actress winner. You achieved international success in The Hunger Games and became the highest-grossing action heroine of all time. Now you’re making $10 million for the sequel. Your work so far has experts calling you “the most talented young actress in America.”

You seem to have it all so soon. But one thing you lack.

Real Youth

But what about that honey-dipped voice with screaming tweens in the background?

You just turned 19, and already you have teens everywhere humming your songs and copying your haircut. You’re the first artist to have seven songs from your debut album break the top 100. You won Artist of the Year at both the 2010 and 2012 American Music Awards. With 35 million followers on Twitter, over $50 million per year income, and almost 20 million albums sold, you were named third-most-powerful celebrity in the world last year by Forbes magazine.

Perhaps you have Jesus. You claim to be a Christian, but say you don’t want to push him on others. We genuinely hope you already do have him. But if you don’t, one thing you lack.

What Really Matters

Achievement, money, fame, and youth — none evil in themselves. All can be used for good, and all fall desperately short of what really matters. Such seeming success may bring you worldwide acceptance. But what about acceptance with God?

There was a rich, young ruler once who stood face to face with God’s Son. Not only did he have his youth and money, but achievement. But he knew he was lacking something.

“Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“You know the commandments…”

“All these I have kept from my youth.”

“One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” (Luke 18:18–22)

A Shaft of Light in Darkness

By: Gene Markland, cbn.com

Storm clouds have gathered. Looking up, Annie sees a angry, dark, and foreboding sky. She says to herself, “Whatever is coming can’t be good.”

As she looks around for shelter, a shaft of light breaks through the darkest cloud and shines directly upon a natural cave, a cleft in the hillside.

Hurriedly she makes her way into it just as the rain begins. Lightning flashes and the peals of thunder causes her to recoil back into the cave. Carefully peering out, she sees torrents of rain coming down in wind blown sheets. With a deep sigh she quietly says to herself, “Thank God I’m safe. Thank God I saw this place.” Only then does she realize that she only saw it because of the shaft of light that broke through the clouds.

Have you, like Annie, found yourself surrounded by the dark foreboding clouds of life? Are you also seeking shelter from those storms of life? With the Lord there is always hope and a safe place.

In the Bible, a man named David wrote,

“The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection.
 He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.” (2 Samuel 22:2-3 NLT)

Also, in the New Testament of the Bible,

A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road.  When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus of Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked.

“My Rabbi,” the blind man said, “I want to see!”

And Jesus said to him, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus down the road. (Mark 10:46-47, 51-52 NLT)

Yes, in times of trouble and despair I too turn to God, and without fail, he always protects and saves me. Though the rain comes and the wind blows, with lightning striking nearby, I will not fear. For the Lord will never forsake me. He is with us through the storm, keeping us safe until it passes. And it does pass.

Jesus spoke these words,

“I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” (John 8:12 NLT)

So if you are like Annie and are looking straight into the storm clouds, look up for the shaft of light in the darkness. Jesus will guide you to safety. He will, and you will survive.