Devo Family Topics

Hope After ‘I Do’ – Art Fulks

A little girl recounted the story of Snow White to her mother. After telling how Prince Charming kissed Snow White, bringing her back to life, she asked, “Do you know what happened next?“ 

Her mom answered, “Sure, they lived happily ever after.”

The girl frowned, “No, they got married.”

Getting married and living happily ever after are not always synonymous. God created marriage to be happy, but sin disrupted it. Hope in Christ makes it possible again. 1 Peter was written to persecuted believers who faced great financial and cultural pressure. Yet he says there is hope in following God’s prescription for marriage.

Peter encourages wives to focus on their own actions, even if their spouse is unreasonable. By not preaching or nagging, God uses you to reach the heart of your husband. Ruth Graham once said, “My job is to love Billy. It’s God’s job to make him good.”

He also encourages wives to not merely focus on their appearance, but on character and attitudes. Physical beauty is quickly overshadowed by harshness or a quick temper. God places high value on spiritual fruit like gentleness and self-control. And healthy reverence for the husband’s God-given role allows His blessing and intervention even in difficulty.

Peter writes one very challenging verse directly to husbands, calling us to not simply coexist with our wives, but to do life with them. We often compete to have our needs met, but God calls and enables us to be completers of each other, to become a vivid picture of Christ.

He challenges men to intentionally work at knowing the intimate part of their wife’s heart, which takes a lifetime. Chuck Swindoll says, “Most wives who are walking with God won’t fight you for it, but they will long for it…some die longing for it.” Your pursuit of knowing her will make your wife long to be in your presence.

Finally, Peter prescribes granting wives a place of honor. She may not think like you, but she is an heir of God and He has honored you with the privilege of being her husband. No more tearing her down publicly or privately.

Taking God’s prescription is not always easy and cannot be applied only as a contingent to your spouse’s response. But you can trust God’s plan. Remember, God’s timing is not ours and He is at work.

There is hope after ‘I do’!

“You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered” (1 Peter 3:7 NASB).

Letting Go of the Wheel

By Candace McQuain –

Apprehension about the future, questioning the past and merely surviving the present, are all very exhausting and unproductive places to be. This is, unfortunately, the state of many of us right now. Our rush hour lives and society based, unrealistic goals and ambitions are a factor, but in truth we are our worst enemy.

We simply can’t let go of the wheel and let our Creator drive.

There is hope for us though. Whether we realize it or not, we are all driving one of those “student driver” cars and the Lord has got His foot hovering over the break and His hand firmly placed on the steering wheel.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV).

Now you may be thinking, “It’s so great that the Lord has got all these plans for me and that they will give me hope and a future, but can I please get a hint as to what these plans are and when they will be presented to me? I’m ready Lord!”

It can be so frustrating when we want something to move in our lives. When we really feel in our heart that we are heading towards something wonderful, something that we feel is so obviously blessed by the Lord, but in the end it all fizzles away. We then feel stuck again and ask, “Why?”

It’s because we are trying to make our plans, His plans and although our intentions are sincere, when we do this we are pushing an imaginary override button and delaying the Lord’s blessings and the correct path He wants us on.

It all comes down to trust. Our Father longs for us to feel secure in our faith and in the fact that He’s got everything under control. He wants us to let Him take the wheel, and allow Him put His “super” in our “natural.”

It’s a team effort though. A great example would be, asking the Lord to keep you healthy. Definitely a fair request, but you can’t sit around eating Ho-Ho’s and Twinkies while never taking any effort on your part to keep yourself healthy. Not only do we need Him to look after our health supernaturally, like only He can, He needs us to take care of our health in an earthly manner, like only we can.

The same can be applied to our jobs, our home and just about every other aspect of our life. Our Father needs us to be willing to do our part while He’s doing His. He’s not keeping secrets from us or playing Simon Says. He’s teaching us, preparing us and most importantly, He’s showing His love for us.

With a faithful and obedient heart, listen closely to the Lord, He’ll tell you what His plans are for you. Piece by piece, day by day you will get a better understanding of what He has in store for you and how He wants you to proceed. Just be sure you are an active listener and then get ready to move!

Living in Context

By Donna McCrary –

Forest Gump said, “My mama always says, ‘life is like a box of chocolates.’”

Renee Zellweger romantically confessed, “You complete me” in the movie, Jerry Maguire.

Martin Luther King shouted, “I have a dream!”

All of these famous quotes bring a smile to our face and an immediate reaction to the context in which they were stated. The context provides the punch. Many people claim, “I have a dream.” However, the context (position, person, and particular moment) of these spoken words are the cement that places them into the fabric of our culture. Same with the movie lines, it is the context (emotion, story line, and setting) that breeds recognition in the expressions.

Context is what gave new life to a powerful scripture for me. Context is what made it stand apart with a new and fresh perspective. “Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full” (John 16:24). Pull this out of context and it appears to say, “Ask for your wants, desires, dreams and all the things that will bring you temporary joy and I, Jesus, being in complete control will fill you with abundant joy just because you asked.” I must admit my prayers at times resemble this logic. However, after reading this in context of the setting, the Person, the emotion of the moment, I grasped a deeper understanding in Jesus’ Words.

In context, Jesus was speaking to His closest followers, His disciples; the people who walked away from normal to live radical. The people willing to forsake all they knew to exist daily trusting in Jesus to provide, teach, protect, and direct their steps. Jesus didn’t say these words to the miracle spectators. He said them to the dedicated men and women willing to walk by faith, take up their cross, and follow Him. In context, He proclaimed these words to the very people He called friends.

When I looked at the context of Jesus in my daily life, I had to ask myself some tough questions. Am I dedicated to living the radical life of a disciple? Do my actions resemble great miracles and mountain moving prayers? I know Jesus is true to His word! Will I put myself in the right context to experience His joy for me?

Are you living in the right context to experience joy in Christ?

PRAYER: Father, help me draw close to You and live my life in the context of Your plan for me.

“Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full”  (John 16:24 NIV).

 

Stop the World I Want To Get Off

By Marty Norman –

“Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

Sometimes I think the world is spinning so fast that at any moment I am in danger of being slung into outer space as centrifugal force lets go of the physical properties that keep me hanging on for dear life. At least that’s how the world hits me most of the time especially in May and December.

As I sit down to write this article I am reminded that God continually tells us to be still and know that He is God.  It’s in the quiet moments, in the silence that we hear the whisper of God. If we drive through life racing down the street, the radio blaring, we are more than likely going to miss his wisdom and guidance as he whispers in our ear.

The story “The Brick” is a great example of this principal. Recently sent to me by a friend I decided that I would print it, for I couldn’t have said it better myself. I think in this short reading you will definitely get the point. The question is, is this you? It certainly is me a lot of the time.

The Brick, Author Unknown 

A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighborhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. 

As his car passed no children appeared; instead, a brick smashed into the Jag’s side door. He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown.

The angry driver jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car, shouting, “What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing?  That’s a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?”

The young boy was apologetic. “Please, mister, please. I’m sorry but I didn’t know what else to do. I threw the brick because no one else would stop.”

With tears dripping down his face, the youth pointed to a spot just around a parked car. “It’s my brother,” he said. “He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair, and I can’t lift him up.”

Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, “Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me.”

Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts.  A quick look told him everything was going to be okay.

“Thank you and may God bless you,” the grateful child told the stranger.

Too shook for words, the man watched the boy push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home. It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was noticeable but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. He kept the dent there to remind him of this message:

Don’t go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention.

What a great message and reminder. For God is in the business of whispering in our souls and speaking to our hearts. Sometimes when we don’t have time to listen, he has to throw a brick at us to get our attention. What’s important is that it’s our choice to listen or not to listen.

I think of the words that my grandmother used to say to me when I got so busy I wouldn’t slow down. “My dear, surely you know that God is always trying to get our attention. First he whispers in our ear, then he taps on our shoulder. If we don’t slow down he throws a brick at us. If this doesn’t work he hits us up beside the head.”

I’ve been in all four places. And I know you have too. Wouldn’t it be easier to stop and listen the first time than to have to go through all that pain and worry.

The moral of the story: Stop, look and listen. If we would but slow our cars down, better yet if we would park them on the side of the road, we might learn how to look at the world through God’s eyes. If we stay extremely still, we’ll be able to listen with God’s ears.

If you don’t, don’t be surprised when a brick comes out of nowhere and hits you on your head or your car on the side as you speed through life.

 

God’s Lincoln Log

By Cheri Cowell –

During the summer, hours can be spent with a set of Lincoln Logs creating houses, forts, and castles. If you play with more than one set you can even build a whole town. Of course, the real challenge is to see how big you can make your building before it falls over. We learn quickly if we set that first block securely, then we have a better chance of having our building stand tall.

God also likes to play with building blocks, and He, too, knows about setting that first one just right.

Today’s verse is placed within a parable. Spoken to the Pharisees before His arrest, Jesus tells the story of God planting a vineyard (representing Israel), and providing well for it. He then sends many prophets to speak to them about His plans, but the Israelites ignore these prophets. So, He sends His Son, Jesus, to give His message. Jesus tells the Pharisees He knows about their plot to kill Him, but He also predicts His return by talking about the capstone. The capstone or cornerstone of the building is the foundation upon which all other stones are set. The message is clear, if we need to be careful in setting that first block when building our play forts, how much more careful should we be in choosing the capstone or cornerstone for the building of our lives?

PRAYER: Lord, please help me place all my building blocks upon You as my Capstone so my tower will still be standing when all others have fallen to the ground.

“Haven’t you read this passage of Scripture: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes?” (Mark 12:10 NIV)

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