Our Greatest Need

If our greatest need had been information,
God would have sent us an educator.

If our greatest need had been technology,
God would have sent us a scientist.

If our greatest need had been money,
God would have sent us an economist.

If our greatest need had been pleasure,
God would have sent us an entertainer.

But our greatest need was forgiveness,
so God sent us a Saviour.

-Roy Lessin

Not Finished Yet

We need a new button, t-shirt, bumper sticker, or cap that reads...NFY! It stands for Not Finished Yet!

Regardless of the label people put on you (senior, baby-boomer, retired person), regardless of the number of birthdays you've celebrated, you are still here. And as long as you are here, you are not there, and as long as you are not there, it means God still has a purpose for you here.

When Jesus was on the cross, the last thing He said was, "It is finished." After He made that statement He died. When is God's purpose for you on this earth finished? It is finished when you die... until then, you are not finished yet! NFY!

Does the thought of getting older discourage you or make you fearful? Consider these words the Lord spoke to Isaiah: I will be your God throughout your lifetime--until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you. Isaiah 46:4 NLT

By Roy Lessin, DaySpring co-founder and writer.

Just Think

Just Think,
You’re not here by chance,
but by God’s choosing.
His hand formed you
and made you the person you are.
He compares you to no one else
– you are one of a kind.
You lack nothing that His grace can’t give you.
He has allowed you to be here at this time in history
to fulfill His special purpose for this generation.

By Roy Lessin

Courage

I eagerly expect and hope
that I will in no way be ashamed,
but will have sufficient courage
so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body,
whether by life or by death.
Philippians 1:20

Amazing God Indescribable... Amazing God... All Powerful... The awesome God who created the universe also cares about every detail of your life! God's love is meteoric, His loyalty astronomic. Psalm 36:5 The Message

THE BRICK

A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighbourhood
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 then 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,' He pleaded. 'I threw the brick because
no one else would stop...' With tears dripping down his face and off
his chin, 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 up for words, the man simply 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
very 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!' God whispers in our souls and speaks to
our hearts. Sometimes when we don't have time to listen, He has to
throw a brick at us. It's our choice to listen or
not.

_Thought for the Day:_

If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.
If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it.
He sends you flowers every spring.
He sends you a sunrise every morning.
Face it, friend – He’s crazy about you!

Send this to every 'beautiful person' you wish to bless.

God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow,
sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day,
comfort for the tears, and light for the way.

Read this line very slowly and let it sink in...

The Message of the Rooster

The rooster is dependable.
He is persistent.
He is not protesting the fact
that he has to do the same thing every day
of his life.
He has a good message to proclaim,
"A new day has dawned,
and with it come opportunities and
responsibilities."

Money Buys a House

Money buys clothes, but not character,
Money buys a house, but not a home,
Money buys medicine, but not health and life.
Money buys company, but not friends,
Money buys beauty aids, but not beauty,
Money buys entertainment, but not happiness.
Money buys respect, but not an entrance to heaven.

Is God Enough?

Is God Enough?

Melissa Taylor

"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19 (NIV)

Is God enough? It's a question that my life circumstances force me to keep going back to. What I've concluded is that not only is God enough, but He has to be enough. I've also concluded that it takes effort on my part to keep myself aware of this.

As a young child, I didn't realize my need for God, but I did realize that I had a need that was not fulfilled. I was sexually abused when I was seven years old. My dad left our family when I was eleven. Both circumstances left me devastated, and I didn't understand how God could bring healing at that time. I spent many years trying to heal myself and make myself feel better. Nothing worked.

As I grew older and began to move from being a Christian who simply believed to a Christian who was actively involved with Jesus, my life began to change. Because I was having conversations with Him directly and reading His Word consistently, my life was challenged. I learned that when the hard knocks came, and they would, I needed to ask myself one question in order to move on. "Is God enough?"

When a friend betrays me, is God enough? When I need to forgive someone for something that seems unforgivable, is God enough?

When my child is having issues that are out of my control, is God enough? When my marriage is on the brink of destruction, is God enough?

When I am not forgiven by another person, is God enough?

When my mother is dying of cancer, is God enough?

When others don't recognize my value, is God enough?

When I am struggling professionally, is God enough?

When someone I love uses words to hurt me, is God enough?

When I am in debt and don't know how I'll pay my bills, is God enough?

When I am reminded of something I did in the past, is God enough?

When the world is in turmoil, is God enough?

When my health is declining, is God enough?

When I am let down and disappointed in my life, is God enough?

Just last night, I sat in my room crying. Here I was again asking, "Is God enough?" I opened a box full of personalized Bible verses that someone very special gave to me. I began reading them out loud to myself. Verse by verse, I began combating the thoughts that were paralyzing me with self doubt. What I discovered is the conclusion I always come to when I ask myself "Is God enough?" Yes He is.

I could lose everything in life. There's not anything I have here on earth that is guaranteed. If I lost it all though, I'd be okay because no one can take away my identity in Christ. Whether I live in a mansion on a hill or a shack in the swamp, I have my Jesus. Whether the world is for me or against me, I have my Jesus. When I am knocked down, I get on my knees and there I find my Jesus. His Word is planted deep in my heart and I believe it all.

When life becomes more than you think you can handle, don't quit. And certainly don't believe the lies you may be entertaining in your head. Instead, ask yourself, "Is God enough for me?" The answer could change everything.

Dear Lord, help me to realize that the secret to being content in all circumstances is You. Help me to be aware of Your presence in my life at all times. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Jesus Is the Treasure
Day 362

"When it comes to heaven itself," says Dr. Richard Bewes, "all eyes will be on the throne."

All the benefits of heaven that you have read about so far are awesome, but they pale in insignificance to the real treasure in heaven, which is Jesus Christ himself.

Joni Eareckson Tada says, "So many people think of heaven as a place, but really it's a Person. Jesus, who is at the very center of heaven, is what makes it exciting to me. We have something like a homing detector in our hearts, and it's just not ringing for earth. It's ringing for Him in whom our deepest longings will be answered.

"So heaven is not just a place; it is a Person, that Individual for whom we were made. What makes heaven exciting to me is being with the Lord Jesus where I will be perfectly and utterly at home."

You will marvel at Jesus someday, and His very name will cause you to bow down on your knees in reverence and honor.

"On the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you" (2 Thessalonians 1:10).

"At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth" (Philippians 2:10).

Teach me to love You, Lord. Show me how to place You at the forefront of my life and my thoughts so that I may experience a touch of heaven. Amen

The Lord's Good Plan

Some favorite verses from Isaiah 53:
¹⁰ But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him
and cause him grief.
Yet when his life is made an offering for sin,
he will have many descendants.
He will enjoy a long life,
and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands.
¹¹ When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish,
he will be satisfied.
And because of his experience,
my righteous servant will make it possible
for many to be counted righteous,
for he will bear all their sins.

So thankful that God made it possible for us to be counted righteous
by coming to earth as a human to be made an offering for our sin.

A Promise Kept

"Ours is a day of passionate pursuit of self-fulfillment and the folk wisdom of 20th century America holds that fulfillment can only be found in freedom. So if some responsibility or commitment, some relationship or value shackle, you have a moral obligation to yourself to break free.

But it is a fantasy. That doorway to freedom and fulfillment may turn out to be the doorway to a stronger imprisonment. Only the one who says no to self-interest for Christ and the gospel cause can ever find the treasure of true life - freedom and fulfillment in Christ. but we don't get it."

This is from a book: "A Promise Kept" by Robert McQuilkin.

The Whisper of God Thought for the Day: "Sometimes we need to be broken down so we can be built back up again. It is during the times we feel we are being broken down that we need to trust that God will rebuild us into something more glorious than we could have ever imagined." Have a fantastic day today my friends!- Elmer Laydon

Memory and Pain

We arrived home yesterday from our family trip to Europe, minus three out of five pieces of our checked luggage. One night we stayed at a castle near Salzburg that used to be run by a Bible college. They still had quite a few books that they were selling at a reduced price. Two of them that I have started reading are "The Pursuit of God" by A. W. Tozer and "Prayers Plainly Spoken" by Stanley Hauerwas.

His prayers have a profound simplicity. He would agree with what Timothy Keller said that God understands the language of our pain. Hauerwas in the introduction to his book says, "I figured God could take it, because God did not need to be protected."

I'd like to share one of the prayers, "Memory and Pain".

Crucified Lord, your creation is full of pain. Our lives are filled with pain. We must appear happy, to be OK, to others and ourselves. After all, we know no likes to be around people in pain. So we cannot even be around ourselves. We refuse to remember because memory is just another name for pain - dull, meaningless pain that makes us numb. but you would have us be a passionate people, filled with the Spirit, possessed by memory. We fear that if we remember, the pain will return and kill our present. Give us courage, which is just another name for friends, to stare down the terror in our own and our neighbour's lives, that we may be your joyous people. Amen.

I also wanted to share some things from the message I listened to this morning.
The problem is not with the God of the universe, but with us.
If it was not for the grace and forgiveness of God, we could not survive.
He inflicts wounds that heal, wounds that are for our good and for his glory.
God can give us joy in our suffering.
This was from the series on the book of Habakkuk from www.redeemer.com.

The Whisper of God Thought for the Day: “We all start off like lumps of clay. Just like a potter, God kneads and molds us until we begin to take shape. Sometimes we lose the shape He tries to give us and He needs to start over. Nevertheless, God keeps working until we become one of His beautiful masterpieces.” Have a fantastic day today everyone! – Elmer Laydon

He Gives Himself

The following is from the daily grief/share emails that we have been getting for almost two years. After the first year was up, I signed up again. This one for Day 256 was really good. Yes, it seems like our life has been a nightmarish chaos and sometimes you wonder where the order and stability is, but I want to let God hold me and comfort me with His love, to let go of the shreds that my life is in. I repeat Psalm 23 to myself several times a day to remind me that my Shepherd wants to restore me.

Thanks to everybody for your prayers.


He Gives Himself
Day 256

Healing is not about doing better or being stronger or going to church more. It is about experiencing a love that will never let you go.

Joni Eareckson Tada says, "Your deepest need when you are hurting is to have God, like a Daddy, reach down and pick you up and hold you and reassure you that everything is going to be okay. He lets you know that your life is not in nightmarish chaos, your world is not splitting apart at the seams. Somehow and somewhere there is order and stability to it all. And that's why God never gives advice; He gives Himself."

Let go of the shreds of your life you have been hanging on to and embrace God.

"A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling" (Psalm 68:5).

"You hear, O Lord, the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry, defending the fatherless and the oppressed, in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more" (Psalm 10:17-18).

Heavenly Father, hold me in Your arms and comfort me. Reassure me that everything is going to be okay. Amen

^{Isaiah 49}

¹³ Shout for joy, O heavens;
rejoice, O earth;
burst into song, O mountains!
For the LORD comforts his people
and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.

¹⁴ But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me,
the Lord has forgotten me."

¹⁵ "Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!

¹⁶ See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are ever before me.

Renee, Renee, Renee

Oh, Renee, I love you so.....

It is just not right that I have survived you.

But I have survived two years now without you. Next week Friday, February 26 it will be two years.

How does one do it? This surviving? This going on without that precious daughter?
those precious sons? on top of all the other disasters and failures?

"O Lord, you alone can heal me..... you alone are my hope in the day of disaster."
Jeremiah 17: 14, 18