Devotions for Dieters

Lamentations 3:55-56
I called upon they name, O Lord, out of the low dungeon. Thou hast heard my voice: hide not thine ear at my breathing, at my cry.

The dream was so real. Lew was standing in front of an old house where he could hear a witch cackling in the distance. He knew she was after him, but there was no place to hide. She flew around the corner of the house and touched his arm. At once he began to gain weight. Pound by pound mounted up, until he was a blob of flesh. He couldn't move, and the weight just kept coming. He became a prisoner within a mountainous body. He cried for help, and the clouds parted. A shaft of light came down, and the flesh began to melt. A gentle breeze blew, and Lew knew everything would be all right. When morning came, Lew vowed to lose the pounds he'd unnecessarily put on lately.

Today's thought: From my fleshy prison, I have arisen!

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Bible Study

Did you know that you have all the help you need to live the Christian life? When you put your faith and trust in Christ, when you are in an intimate relationship with Him, you have the Holy Spirit as your ally--a limitless resource for living.

What Does God Say?

First John 3:24 tells us, "Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us" (ESV). The Holy Spirit is not just present in your life like a shadow looking over your shoulder, but He is your power source for every need and your ally for every battle.

Paul addresses the power issue in his prayer in Ephesians 3:16, "That according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being" (ESV). The Holy Spirit powers you up; He gives you strength. You don't have to do it on your own.

The Spirit helps us in other ways, too. Look at Romans 8:26-27, "The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will." (NLT) He helps us pray, and He intercedes for us even when we don't know what to pray.

In John 14:26, the Spirit is our teacher: "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you" (ESV). And He gives us the words to speak up for God, "For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say" (Luke 12:12, ESV).

My Thoughts

Jesus introduces the coming of the Holy Spirit to His disciples in John 15:26, "But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me" (ESV).

How does He describe the Holy Spirit?

What is the mission of the Spirit?

Where does He come from or get His authority from?

Later in John 16, Jesus explains more about the ministry of the Holy Spirit or the Helper. Take a look at John 16:7-15, with these questions in mind:

What will the Helper come to do to the world?

What is the advantage of having this Helper?

How will the Helper assist those who belong to Christ?

What is the relationship between the Helper and the Father?

If you have time, read through John 14-17 to see what else Jesus says about the Holy Spirit and what He does for you.

My Part

For most of us, the Holy Spirit is the forgotten factor for living the Christian life. Where do you most need His help? Are you trying to "do it all" in your own strength or have you learned to tap into His power? Do you struggle to know how and what to pray about? Are you looking for comfort in things or other people instead of leaning on the Spirit? When you open your Bible, do you ask for His help and guidance to make it understandable and to live out what you learn?

These are the areas where the Holy Spirit proves to be our best ally. Take a few moments today to evaluate your life and to seek His assistance as you abide in Christ.

Bible Study from Back to the Bible Copyright © 1996-2008 The Good News Broadcasting Association, Inc. All rights reserved. http://www.bibleminute.org/

Tongue in Check

Ezekiel 16-17, James 3
Key Verse: James 3:2

Among the most difficult sins to remove from our lives are those we commit with our words. James makes this so clear when he writes, "If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check" (3:2).

The word translated "perfect" does not mean "totally without fault or sin." As it is used here, it speaks of the Christian's maturity. The mature believer will control what he says. The implication plainly is that if one does not control his tongue, he is not mature.

A second important truth in this verse relates to the rest of our character. Since the tongue is so hard to reign in, the believer who can control the tongue gains control of himself in all other areas of life also. It's like in a war: when major cities are captured, the rest of the country is as well. So when we are able to keep our tongue in check, we have developed the discipline and maturity to keep other aspects of our life in line as well.

God wants us to be mature believers, not spiritual infants in our thinking and actions. Control of the tongue is a crucial component of spiritual maturity. It is not impossible, just supernatural. You cannot do it on your own, but you can do it with God's help.

2 Samuel 12:13

So David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord." And Nathan said to David, "The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die."

Confess Your Sins

Early in 1993 British police accused two ten-year-old boys of the brutal murder of two-year-old James Bulger. The two boys pleaded their innocence. During the two-week trial the young defendants responded to questioning with noticeable inconsistencies. The climax of the trial came when the parents of one of the boys assured him that they would always love him. Bolstered by the realization that he would not lose his parents�?love, the boy confessed in a soft voice, "I killed James."

David realized that he, too, was caught red-handed in his crimes. What he had been able to hide from his friends and family was revealed to the all-seeing eyes of an all-knowing God. David would face humiliation and sorrow. His family would be afflicted and the whole nation would suffer because of his sins. Yet what sustained him through the whole ordeal was the assurance that he had not lost God’s love. He would face consequences, but upon confession he was forgiven and received back into fellowship with his Heavenly Father again.

The most amazing truth about God’s love is that He knows how wicked we are, yet He loves us (Rom. 5:8). We can confess our most evil deeds to Him and still be confident that His love will not diminish. That does not mean that confession should be viewed as an "easy out" for our sins. It’s not a safety net that gives us the liberty to sin with abandon. Confession removes the guilt of sin, but it doesn’t remove sin’s consequences. It’s a comfort to know, however, that when we’ve "blown it," God still loves us.

If you’re buried beneath a load of sin, perhaps you feel that God’s love is beyond you. Satan may even have you convinced that God has turned His back on you. But that simply isn’t so. After adultery and murder, God still forgave David, and He will forgive you as well. Confess your sins and receive God’s love today.

The Blessings of Fear

We don't hear much these days about the fear of the Lord. All too often the Lord is looked upon only as a heavenly friend, someone who walks with us and smiles on us constantly. But verse 1 says, "Blessed is every one who fears the Lord."

What does it mean to fear the Lord? It means to be in reverential awe of Him. It means we don't tempt Him. We don't jest with Him. We don't try to make Him do things He will not do. The Israelites did not fear the Lord. They tempted Him. They played with His Law and tried to see how close they could get to the world. So God had to discipline them.

God blesses us in three areas of our life when we truly fear Him. First, He will bless us in our walk. "Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways" (v. 1). This means that our conduct and our character become holy.

Second, God blesses us in our work. "When you eat the labor of your hands, you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you" (v. 2) Some people are unhappy in their work. But if we are obedient to God, we are doing His work no matter what our occupation is and therefore can rejoice in it. When we fear the Lord, we can go to work and be happy.

Third, God blesses us in our homes. "Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house, your children like olive plants all around your table" (v. 3). This does not mean that everybody is going to have a family, let alone a big family. It does mean that you'll be a blessing to your family. "Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord" (v. 4).

* * *

Never become so "familiar" with God that you lose your reverence for Him. He is your personal God, but He deserves your awe and respect. The fear of the Lord is the key to His blessings. Fear Him. Walk in His ways and receive His blessings.

Prices-or Values?

James 5:1-6

Christians can become so addicted to money and to achieving a higher level of living that they lose all perspective and forget what they are really here on earth to accomplish.

Those who live only for the pleasures of the moment stand under the condemnation of Paul's words of 1 Timothy 5:6: "She that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth."

Many Christians have had the vitality taken from their spiritual life because of their great concern for the things of the world. They are saved, but their lives do not reflect the glorious difference that Christ can make when a believer focuses his attention on eternal values instead of temporal ones.

An important question that every family needs to face is, How much money do we need in order to live in the comfort we prescribe for ourselves? We also need to ask, Have we set our standard of comfort too high?

Regrettably, many people have set their standard so high that they have to spend so much time obtaining an income for that level of life that they really have no time to live.

How sad to spend so much time earning a living that you do not have time to enjoy the living. I am not referring to those who must work long hours just to keep the family fed and clothed. I am referring to those who have become so addicted to the luxuries of life that they think the luxuries are essential.

Such an attitude greatly affects our spiritual priorities--spiritual things are bound to suffer and to take second place to the things of the world.

It is important then that we do some clear thinking about our attitude toward what this world has to offer. Although some have the attitude that money is the answer to everything, James 5:1-6 reveals that this belief is certainly not true.

"The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it" (Prov. 10:22).

Author: Woodrow Kroll
Source: Early in the Morning 2
Scripture Reference:

Web of Conspiracy

And it shall be, that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, thou shalt rise early, and set upon the city: and, behold, when he and the people that is with him come out against thee, then mayest thou do to them as thou shalt find occasion.

"Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive." Conspirators against those who are righteous are ultimately destroyed by their conspiracy. How this is evident in the tragic days following the triumph of Gideon and his 300 men!

Judges 8:33-35 records the failure of the Israelites to live after the defeat of the Midianites as they had during the battle. As a result of Israel's forgetting the God who delivered them, internal strife became more damaging than their external enemies. The royalty which Gideon had refused was coveted by Abimelech, his son by a handmaiden of Shechem. Attempting to trade on his father's reputation, Abimelech harangued the men of Shechem, claiming that it was far better to be ruled by one man, a Shechemite, than by all 70 of Gideon's sons. With money stolen from the sacred treasury of Baal-berith, Abimelech hired "vain and light persons," a band of desperadoes, to slay Gideon's other sons. Miraculously, however, one son, Jotham, escaped the conspiracy.

Abimelech reigned over a limited area in Israel for three years. But his reign did not go unchallenged by Jotham, who fled to Mount Gerizim, where he pronounced a curse on Abimelech and the men of Shechem. This curse came in the form of a parable about the tree that wished one of their number to rule over them. They asked the olive tree, fig tree, and vine in succession, only to be rebuffed each time. Then they turned to the worthless thorny bramble, which accepted their offer to rule over them.

The meaning of this parable was obvious to all. The trees, which are themselves producers, are more interested in fruit than in control; but the thorn, which has nothing to give, seeks to be the leader sheerly for personal gain. Abimelech was a thorn. Jotham cried, "Let fire come out from Abimelech and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech" (Judges 9:20).

Jotham's curse was not long in being fulfilled. After three years God sent an "evil spirit" between Abimelech and the men of Shechem. The Shechemites revolted and plotted against his life. But Zebul, the governor of the city and an Abimelech loyalist, informed Abimelech of the plot to dethrone him; and a counter plan was hatched. Zebul counseled Abimelech and his men to lie in wait for the Shechemites during the night in the fields before the city. "And it shall be, that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, thou shalt rise early and set upon the city"(Judges 9:33). Abimelech massacred the inhabitants of Shechem.

Having treacherously murdered his pseudo-subjects, Abimelech turned his attention to the neighboring city of Thebez. Some of the Shechemites, the men and women of Thebez, fled to a strong tower for safety. Again Abimelech prepared to burn them out, but a woman cast a piece of millstone out of the tower. In ironic reciprocation, the stone found its target the head of Abimelech and broke his skull. Jotham's prophecy was fulfilled.

Abimelech, the would-be-king conspirator, and the Shechemites, his would-be subjects, were caught in the middle of their web of conspiracy. Having destroyed the righteous, they were themselves destroyed by each other. Deception always brings destruction. How much better we are passively to accept the will of God as good, acceptable, and perfect (Romans 12:2) than to conspire self-promotion without the blessing of God.

MORNING HYMN
The God of Abraham praise,
Who reigns enthroned above,
Ancient of everlasting days
And God of love.
Jehovah, great I AM,
By earth and Heav'n confessed,
I bow and bless the sacred
Name forever blest.