Category: Strength for Today

Luke 6:38
“Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”

Most people are stingy from their childhood. You often see children not sharing their toys. When a child is given a couple pieces of candy they often become very stingy and won’t give the other piece away because of the desire of the flesh to keep everything for itself. Giving is not a natural desire of the flesh.

Most of the time when we hear about giving we think it has to do with money. When a pastor turns to the verse above, many listeners immediately tune him out because they don’t want to hear him talk about giving their money. Yet, the verse above shows us several principles about giving that if one would apply they would find that it wouldn’t be so hard to give.

First, the giving principle is not just for giving money. This is one of the most quoted verses used in sermons on giving money, but this verse applies to more than money. This verse implies that the giving principle is for any type of giving. No matter what you choose to give, whether good or bad, the giving principle applies.

Second, giving always has a return. Whatever you give, you can expect it to come back to you. If you give something good, then you can expect good to come back. If you give something evil, then you can expect to receive evil. The giving principle teaches that if you give, you will receive.

Third, giving has compounded interest. In other words, you will always receive more than what you gave. This can be scary if your giving is hurtful or evil. This can be a blessing if you are giving the right things. You must always remember that you will receive more than what you gave, so you must always ask yourself if you want more of what you are giving to come back to you.

Fourth, your reward of return is determined by your measure of giving. If you choose to give a small amount, then you will have small returns. If you choose to give larger amounts, then you will have larger returns. God uses your measuring cup to pour the blessing back to you.

I have pointed these four principles of giving out because I want you to understand that whatever you are lacking in life, you must give it to receive it. If you need friendship, then you must be a friend first. If you need love, then you must first give love. If you need kindness, then you must first give kindness. Giving is more than just giving money, it is also giving of the graces of life.

You will never have the returns in life that you want if you don’t start giving. Stop complaining about others not giving you what you need if you are not first doing it. The first step is always up to you. Many people have the mentality that once they have it then they will give it. God says that if you want something then you must give it first. Giving is a test of your faith. It is a test of faith to see if you will give what little you have so God can give more in return. The widow woman first gave of her meal and oil to Elijah, then God returned the food she gave with compounded interest. We could show illustration after illustration from the Scriptures about this principle. The key is your willingness to give.

I challenge you to determine what you want in life then start giving it. Don’t wait until you have it first, but take the little that you do have and give it to others. When you start giving to others, you will find the return is far greater than your giving.

Mark 15:20
“And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him.”

Every Christian must bear a cross if they are going to follow Jesus. Jesus was our example and He had to bear the cross. When you look at the whole experience of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, you will soon realize what the cross of Christianity means.

First, the cross of Christianity means there will be times when you are misunderstood. When reading the trial of Jesus and the accusations against Him, you will see many people misunderstood what He said. They oftentimes took what He said completely out of context. When you decide to carry the cross of Christianity, you must understand that you will be misunderstood. There will be family who will misunderstand your dedication to Christ. There will be friends who will misunderstand the things that you have said. When these things happen, you must not get angry with people for they just don’t understand everything Christ did for you.

Second, the cross of Christianity means there will be times of criticism and mocking. The criticism and mocking Jesus took was unwarranted. These people said things about Jesus that weren’t true, but He kept on going. You will be criticized if you choose to carry the cross of Christianity. If you can’t take criticism, then you will not carry the cross very long. You will find fellow Christians will criticize you, but you must continue to carry your cross. You will hear criticism from those who are supposed to be on the same team with you, but you must continue to carry the cross.

Third, the cross of Christianity means there will be personal attacks. The personal attacks against Jesus were deeply personal and were meant to destroy His credibility and ministry, but they did not succeed. When you carry the cross of Christianity, you will be personally attacked, but you must not quit. People will say hateful and hurtful things about you that have no scent of truth, but that is part of carrying the cross. They will try to destroy your credibility and ministry, but you must realize that God has a way of using the criticism to build you and the ministry in which He has placed you.

Fourth, the cross of Christianity means there will be temptation. Jesus was offered wine mingled with myrrh, which was a sedative in those days, but He would not take it because He had to completely suffer our Hell so that we could go to Heaven. I’m sure drinking this wine was tempting because of the pain He was enduring, but He would not allow temptation to destroy Him. Friend, when you carry the cross of Christianity, you will face temptation like never before. That is why you must be yielded to the Spirit of God and not succumb to temptation. The Devil would love to see you destroy God’s will for your life with sin, but you must continually ask God to help you overcome temptation and to lead you away from the moment of temptation.

The good part about this whole story is that the harvest of the cross came on Sunday morning. Jesus rose from the dead and the suffering of the cross was worth it. You may wonder if the cross of Christianity is truly worth it, but let me remind you that the harvest of the cross will come if you will continue on. Christian, don’t quit when carrying your cross. Sunday is coming, and when it comes you will see the harvest of the cross is great. Lives will be changed, the influence of your ministry will increase and God will receive the glory. I encourage you today to keep carrying the cross of Christianity until you see the harvest of the cross.

Mark 2:14
“ And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him.”

Two of the most powerful words that Jesus said was, “Follow me.” I seriously doubt the disciples understood what following Jesus would do for their lives. Because they obeyed this simple command, their lives were turned upside down. They went from ordinary people to leaders in Christianity. They did not know who they were following at the time, but they knew there was something different about Him.

The same command to follow Jesus is still relevant today. The difference between the command that Jesus gave to the first disciples and today is that He has sent Christians out in His place and employed them to get others to follow. The greatest accomplishment of your life will be your ability to get people to follow you as you follow Christ. Nothing will really matter when life is all over other than if you got someone to follow you as you follow Christ. I find five observations that we must apply to our lives from the command, “Follow me.”

First, you must be following someone if you want someone to follow you. Everyone is following someone, but it is important that you follow the right person if you want others to follow you. The question you need to ask yourself is, are you following Christ? Are you following every step He takes? Just like a child puts their feet in the footprints of their parents pathway on a snowy day, you should be putting your feet where Jesus walks if you want others to follow you. If you are following someone, then you can lead others to the same place you are going.

Second, people won’t follow you unless you go ask them. Jesus had to ask the disciples to follow Him. They would not have followed Him if all He had done was walk by them. You will never get anyone to follow you if you don’t ask them. First, you need to ask them if they are saved. Second, you need to ask people to follow you to church and to soul winning. Unless you ask, they will not follow.

Third, people won’t follow you unless you have a purpose. The reason you should want people to follow you is so you can disciple them. Your desire should be to show them how to serve the LORD. If you have no reason for people to follow you, then they will have no reason to leave what they are doing to follow you. Adopt the Great Commission as your purpose for asking people to follow you. It is to show them how they can do what you are doing for Christ.

Fourth, don’t lead those who follow you astray. It is so important that you don’t break the trust of those who have chosen to follow you. When someone has chosen to follow you, they are depending upon you to lead them down the right pathway. Don’t disappoint them. The only way you won’t disappoint them is if you continue to follow the Scriptures.

Fifth, as they follow you, be sure to point them to follow Christ. Friend, you are not the focus. When someone begins to follow you, do your best to point them to Christ. Teach them to take their eyes off you and put them on Christ. You will disappoint them, and that will lead them to be disillusioned. If you train them to keep their eyes on Christ, then they will never be disillusioned with the person they follow.

The simple command to “Follow me” should be heeded by every Christian. My question for you is, who are you following? Are you following Christ? Until you follow Christ, you will have no reason to have others follow you. I challenge you today to keep your eyes on Christ, and go challenge others to follow you as you point them to eventually follow Christ.

Matthew 26:38
“Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.”

Jesus is coming to the final few hours before He would face the cross. He knew what He was about to face. He completely understood everything from the false accusations, beatings, mocking, to the humiliation and suffering of the cross. The sorrow that gripped his soul was so great that the Scriptures say that He was “exceeding sorrowful.”

Being exceeding sorrowful is more that just having a heart of sorrow, but it is the emotion that you are about ready to die under the load of the sorrow. It is such sorrow that you don’t know if you can make it under the load. Have you ever had that much sorrow? Have you ever had so much sorrow that your heart hurts and you are afraid that sorrow itself is about to take your life? That is the type of sorrow Jesus endured. Yet, when his soul was “exceeding sorrowful” He did not complain or run to His friends, instead He dealt with it in the only way you can deal with sorrow of such degree. Let me show you how Jesus dealt with this degree of sorrow.

First, He prayed. You can see Jesus trying to get away from His disciples as quickly as possible because He needed to go to His Father in prayer. He completely understood that the only comfort He would find with such degree of sorrow was in prayer. When your soul is dealing with an exceeding sorrow, your only hope and comfort will come through prayer. Many people have turned to vices to deal with such sorrow, but the vice will not quench such sorrow. Many have run to friends or authority with such sorrow, but as much as they want to help they cannot for only God can deal with such sorrow. When your soul is under such duress that you are exceeding sorrowful, the only answer for such sorrow is prayer. Prayer is the anesthesia to exceeding sorrow. The next time you experience such sorrow you need to pray.

Second, accept the sorrow. It is interesting that as Jesus prayed you see Him accepting the sorrow as His cup. Prayer is the only thing that will cause you to accept your sorrow. Certainly, we pray to remove the sorrow, but somewhere along the way you are going to have to accept the sorrow. Until you accept the sorrow, you will never find the solution to deal with it.

Third, accept the sorrow as God’s will for your life. Jesus understood that this was the Father’s will. Though it didn’t remove the pain that He would have to endure, it gave Him a peace inside that removed His sorrow of heart. Friend, you must accept your sorrow as God’s will for your life. Stop complaining about it and accept it. When you accept something as God’s will, then that is when it becomes a tool to use to help others.

Fourth, pray to change your will and not God’s will. It is very interesting that Jesus said in verse 39, “…nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” This is what prayer moved Jesus to do. It moved Him to the point where He wanted His will to be transformed into the Father’s will. The greatest desire you should have in prayer is that God changes your will to match His will. God’s will is what you should ultimately desire. When I go through times of exceeding sorrow, I often say to God, “Father, this is what I want, but if it is not what you want, then would you change my wanter to match your will?” When your will is changed into God’s will, then that is when the peace of God will comfort the sorrow you must endure.

What is the sorrow you are facing today? Let me encourage you to let these four steps be the steps that turns your will into God’s will. This is the only successful way you will deal with exceeding sorrow.

Matthew 6:1
“Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.”

The Pharisees were known for their acts before men. When they prayed, they prayed openly using swelling words to impress everyone with their spirituality. When they gave offerings, they would oftentimes fill their bag with coins and drop it into the temple treasury so everyone could hear the coins falling. The Pharisees were all about the Pharisees. They wanted to be sure that everyone knew how spiritual they were.

On the other hand, God commands us not to do our “alms before men.” God wants our purpose for giving not to be recognized by man, but to try and please God. He says that if we give to be seen of men, then our reward has been given which is the recognition of men; however, if we give in secret because it is the right thing to do, then God will openly reward us in this life and in the life to come. Several lessons can be learned from this admonition.

First, every act of giving has its rewards. To say that giving so people can see your acts doesn’t have its rewards is not true. God says it is true. Whether you give openly or secretly, there will always be a reward. God’s promise of giving and receiving does not stop because someone gives to be seen of men. The giving and receiving principle always works no matter the purpose one gave for giving.

Second, some acts of giving have no reward. This may seem to contradict the previous statement, but it does not. When one gives to be seen of man their reward is that man saw them, but they will never have the reward of the Father rewarding them for they already received their reward.

Third, unseen acts of giving have compound rewards. This is the type of reward every Christian should desire. When someone gives in secret, they get the compound reward of the Father being the giver of the reward and also the Father making sure everyone sees what you have done. Not only will you receive an open reward on Earth, but you will receive your rewards in Heaven as well.

Your purpose determines your reward. No matter what you give, if your purpose is to be seen of man, then you will receive your reward but you will receive no more than being seen of man. If your purpose of giving is to please God, then you will find that the compound reward gives immediate and eternal rewards. You will receive an immediate reward sometime on this Earth, but you will have the privilege of receiving a personal reward from the Father at the Judgment Seat.

Let me ask you, why do you give of your time to serve the LORD? Are you serving the LORD to be seen of man, or are you serving the LORD because it is right? Friend, serving the LORD is always the right thing to do, but there is no purpose of serving Him if you are only doing it to be seen of man. Stop soul winning, running your bus route, teaching a Sunday school class and performing any other ministry just so that you can be seen of man. Serving God for the recognition of man has a very short reward life. If you want rewards that last eternally, then serve the LORD because it’s right and He will reward you openly.

Giving tithes, offerings and your service to God always has rewards, but your purpose in doing these things will determine the degree of the reward. Let me encourage you to stop telling everyone what you are doing for God and let God tell everyone for you. He does a better job and it always gives validity to your actions when He does it.

Matthew 4:3
“And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.”

You will never get through life without having to face temptation. Temptation is the desire to perform an action that one may enjoy in the short term but will probably regret later. If Jesus faced temptation, then you will certainly face it.

Jesus had just finished a forty day fast when Satan came to tempt Him. Satan tempted the personal appetites of Jesus, but He overcame this temptation with the Word of God. Satan then took Jesus to the holy city to tempt Him, but He again overcame the temptation with the Word of God. The third time Satan took Jesus to an exceeding high mountain to tempt Him, but again the temptation failed when Jesus used the Word of God to fight the temptation. You will find four lessons in these three temptations regarding the tempter’s presence.

First, the tempter always tempts you when you are weaker. Jesus has just finished a forty day fast when He was approached by Satan. Jesus certainly had no weakness in His life, but He was weaker at that moment because of hunger. You will find there are times when you are tempted more than others. You will see that those times are usually when you are weaker. We often think that Satan only tempts us in our weak areas, and that is not true. He simply looks to find us in our weaker moments and then tempts us. You must be very careful about temptation in your vulnerable moments. Those moments may be in times of sorrow, after a great victory, after a great battle or after a spiritual conquest. Notice, the tempter always comes after something and not before. Always be extra careful after something happens in your life.

Second, the tempter will tempt your personal appetites. It is interesting that Satan simply wanted to give Jesus some bread. He was attacking the personal appetites of Jesus. Be careful about your personal appetites. Learn what they are and realize that Satan will use them against you. They may even be spiritual appetites, but don’t let him win. For instance, a person may have a spiritual appetite to see more people saved. There is nothing wrong with that, but if you must compromise your beliefs to do this then it would be wrong. Be careful about Satan’s temptation with spiritual and monetary appetites.

Third, the tempter will tempt your holy places. It is interesting that Satan tempted Jesus in the holy city. You have holy places in your life and you must be careful that Satan doesn’t destroy them. Those holy places are your prayer closet and the place where you walk with God. Satan would love to tempt you to keep you from those places. Never let anything keep you from your holy places. Those places will give you the strength to overcome temptation. Don’t let temptation pull you from them.

Fourth, the tempter will tempt your high mountains. I like to say these are the life-changing decisions of your life. Satan took Jesus to an exceeding high mountain, and he will come to you about your high mountains. Satan will tempt you and try to get you to deny those decisions. For instance, never second guess your call into the ministry. Satan will try to get you to second guess the sincerity of your life-changing decisions, but you must not succumb to those temptations.

The only way you can overcome all of these areas is with the Word of God. Stay in God’s Word. Let God’s Word be that spiritual meat that strengthens you in your weaker moments. Be aware of the tempter’s presence in these times and let God’s Word be the source you use to overcome any temptation Satan throws your way.

Psalm 121:8
“The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.”

If you have ever watched the President of the United States walk through a crowd, you will see some men dressed in suits surrounding him. These men are there to protect the president. Though they are protecting him, they are truly not watching him, but they are watching those around him to make sure nobody hurts him. What is interesting is that before he even arrives at a place, his personal security has already been everywhere that the president plans to be to scope out any dangers and remove them before the president arrives. The purpose of this is not only for the security of the president, but it is also so that he can go about his business without worrying about his own security.

Many Christians don’t understand that they also have their own personal security guard. Their security guard is not men who are capable of making mistakes, but it is God Who is omnipotent, omniscient and omni-present. When you read Psalm 121, you see that God is there to preserve your going out and coming in forever. He is there to make sure you don’t stumble as you walk along life’s way. He is there on your right hand to make sure you are protected from those around you. He is there in the day to protect you as you go throughout your daily business. He is there at night to protect you when you are asleep. He is there to protect you from “all evil.” As verse 4 says, the God Who protects you will “neither slumber nor sleep.” Christian, God is your personal bodyguard. Several things you should remember from this thought.

First, ask God to help you stay alert to His leading. Before you start your day, ask God to guide you and protect you. When you get that sick feeling inside that warns you not to do something, listen to it as God is trying to protect you. Keep an alert heart to the protecting hand of God.

Second, stop worrying and start trusting. I’m afraid too many Christians worry about how safe something is when God is at your side. You may not be able to see Him, but you can be assured that God is by you. He will not leave you, and He is very alert with everything going on around you.

Third, as long as you stay in God’s will, you are in the safest place. It always amazes me how God has protected me throughout the years as I have unknowingly been in harms way, but He was there to protect. Years ago my wife and I were standing on the sidewalk by a church when someone was murdered a few feet away from us. I truly believe God was there to protect us during that situation. Whenever you are in God’s will, you are in the safest place you can be. Don’t shy away from God’s will because it may seem dangerous, but realize that as long as you are doing His will, He will be there to protect you.

The purpose of God being your personal bodyguard is so that you can serve Him without the fear of what may happen. Remember that God has already been where you are going, and He is at your right hand to protect you as you serve Him. Stop worrying and fretting about everything, and simply enjoy life while serving Him. With God as your personal bodyguard, you have no reason to be afraid, so enjoy life!

Haggai 2:3
“Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?”

For several years I lived in the Chicagoland region. The area in which I lived was not far from a city that used to have a thriving economy. As you drove through the streets of that city, you would see homes that in their day were probably the homes of the wealthy. The ornate work on those homes was simply amazing. As you saw the homes in their remodeled condition, you saw homes that were not even close to their first glory, but people were still living in them. They would never be able to go back to their first glory though they were still being used by families.

Imagine if those homes were cast away because they would never reach the magnificence they once had. The children who lived in those homes would never have the memories that were being made. No, those homes were not as valuable as they used to be, but they were very valuable to those who lived in them. Yes, those homes had seen their better days, but that did not mean they were not useful.

The question was asked about the house of God, “Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now?…” The temple had been rebuilt, and those who saw the former house completely understood that it was not like the first temple. It is said about the first house in Ezra 3:12, “But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice…” Though the present house was of no comparison to the previous, it was still a place where they could go and worship the LORD. It was still a place where they could pray and get right with God. It was not as great as the first house, but it was still useful.

Friend, there are many people who once used to be greatly used of God who are now a shadow of what they used to be because of sin. Let me kindly remind you that though they are not like the first house, they are still a house that can be used of God. Just because sin crippled their life does not mean that God can’t use them again. I’m afraid that too often we cast those aside who fell into sin and say that they can never be used again, and that just is not true. If God has remodeled their life, then He still has a reason for them to be on this Earth.

You must be careful that you don’t focus on the scars of sin that you miss the usefulness that God has for them. They may have some great scars that sin has left, but don’t be so focused on what sin they committed that you won’t let them be used of God. Who are you to say that God can’t use them if He still allows them to live? It is only the grace of God that has kept you from falling into sin. You would be wise not to look down on them because you could be next. They may never be what they used to be, but you must allow them to be used to the degree that God wants to use them.

If you are the house that sin has scarred, let me remind you that God still wants to use you. Don’t let the Devil discourage you to the point where you don’t feel you can be used anymore. You may be a remodeled life, but God can still use the remodeled life to do something for Him. Let me encourage you to keep your eyes on God and yield to Him for that is the only way He can use you. There is someone whom you can help in your remodeled state. Don’t let the failure of your past keep you from being used by God today. You may not be like the first house, but you are still a house whom the Holy Spirit can still fill and use to be a blessing to those around you.

Proverbs 24:33-34
“Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.”

One of the most destructive little things a person never takes into account is the termite. Many times a termite will go unnoticed until they have destroyed part of the structure of the house. Only the trained eye can see the termite. The termite may not be real big, but the destruction they leave is tremendous and costly.

Just like the termite can leave great destruction, God shows us that the little things leads to poverty. This poverty is not just a financial poverty, but it is a poverty in many areas of life. Let me show you some areas where you need to be cautious about the little things that can destroy you.

First, a little sleep in time of work can lead to great poverty. I’m not against sleep, but I believe too many people use how tired they are as an excuse to sleep when they should be working. It is the few minutes every morning when you hit the snooze button that causes you not to have time to read the Scriptures and pray. It is the little slumbering during times when you have important tasks that need to get done that cause you not to accomplish things on time. You must be careful not to allow the little sleep habit to destroy the accomplishments and duties in your life.

Second, a little spending will lead to poverty. I fear that most of us are guilty in this area. The dollar spent here and there is what leads to the inability to have something later in life. People often complain about how they don’t have enough finances, but if they looked at all the little things they purchase that they don’t need, they would find that they do have the needed finances to meet their financial obligations. You must be careful that you don’t allow the little nagging cravings to cause you to spend a little money which leads to poverty.

Third, a little wasted time always leads to unfinished business. Many people waste so many minutes throughout the day that if they could somehow capture them, they would find they have more than enough time to accomplish everything they need to get done. Friend, you must be careful about wasting one or two minutes here and there. Those little wasted minutes add up to hours of unproductive time.

Fourth, a little problem in a relationship will often lead to greater problems. Oftentimes relationships are damaged by the little things that are not settled. If you want to keep healthy relationships, then you need to be sure to settle the little differences and don’t let them add up to greater problems.

Fifth, a little error in doctrine always leads to greater compromise. One of the things I have noticed in my lifetime is how people allow a little doctrinal error to go unchallenged. Friend, that is exactly how the Devil destroys pure doctrine. A person we respect and love teaches something that is not scripturally sound and is never challenged because we want to give them a break. Never let error in doctrine go unchallenged. Always bring it to ones attention at the beginning so that it doesn’t lead to greater compromise.

The little things of life are truly not so little. They will often become great when we don’t care for them. Be careful about the little things in your life. If you treat everything as important, then you will never allow the little things to destroy you.