The Gathering Place Where Family Matters

“Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God” (Romans 6:11-12).

Joe had a reputation in town, and it was not a good one. Everyone knew him. No one trusted him. Frankly, no one really wanted him around. His mouth was poor. He often was not sober. “Old Joe,” as he was called, had no friends. No friends, that was, until the new preacher arrived in town. One afternoon the pastor was out in the neighborhood, knocking on doors and introducing himself. He came to Joe’s door (as you can tell, this was pre-COVID-19). To make a long story short, “Old Joe” invited the preacher in, and that started an amazing conversation. The very next Sunday, to the astonishment of the church family, Joe showed up for church and sat right down front! I’ll tell you tomorrow what happened that Sunday. But for now, think of our verses today. If you know Christ as your Savior, the changed life ought to be real and easily spotted by others.

For today: Ask the Lord to help you live out Romans 6 through His power. What a blessing you will be.

“The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16).

Maggie loved the Lord. Every afternoon she would pull out her prayer journal and spend time praying for missionaries, church families, her own family, and many people whose names she collected over the years to bring them before the Lord. One of the names on her prayer list was that of her neighbor, Martha. Maggie and Martha lived next to each other for almost 20 years. There was seldom a day that went by but what Maggie brought Martha before the Lord. One day as Maggie was praying, she said to the Lord, “Father, I don’t know what else to ask. I have asked for opportunities to share the gospel with Martha. I have sent cards to her, shared with her, witnessed to her to the point where I was fearful she may not talk with me again, and yet she still has not asked Jesus to be her Savior. What is it going to take, Lord, to get through to that dear neighbor of mine?” Just then the phone rang. It startled Maggie to hear Martha’s voice. “Maggie, I’ve been thinking. I don’t know where I’m going to go after I die. May I come over and talk with you?” Needless to say, Maggie was thrilled that she hadn’t given up praying for her dear neighbor. What are you praying about, and for whom are you praying? Don’t give up!

For today: Keep praying and be watching for the ways the Lord will bring opportunities to you!

“Unto Thee, oh Lord, do I lift up my soul. Oh my God, I trust in Thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. Yea, let none that wait on Thee be ashamed” (Psalm 25:1-3).

Kathy had really been making it a matter of prayer. Two of the ladies at work with whom she had been eating lunch were growing bolder in their vulgarities. The inappropriateness of their jokes grew stronger as time wore on. On previous occasions Kathy had shared with them that she did not find that kind of sense of humor to be appropriate in the workplace nor anywhere else as far as that goes. She was becoming the brunt of their jokes, and things were even beginning to grow hostile. In her prayers she pled with the Lord to give her a real open door. She asked the Lord to really help her to be a great witness and not to have to take the situation to management. Then the day came. One of the other coworkers experienced a distressing phone call from home. Her mother had been taken to the emergency room. Over the next several days Kathy had the opportunity to really minister to this coworker and share with her in this emergency. It was amazing. What a change took place because Kathy was not ashamed of the Lord, nor was she embarrassed to be one of His servants! The entire atmosphere in the lunch room changed because of Kathy’s willingness to wait on the Lord, to trust in Him, and not be ashamed. Certainly, going to management may be the only way to resolve some of our problems. On the other hand, there are dozens of opportunities for us to be gracious and yet bold for the Lord.

For today: Let’s ask the Lord to help us to be gracious and yet to take a good stand for Him. We must never be ashamed of the gospel.

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5).

Grandma and Grandpa and all the family were going to get McKenzie’s favorite pizza as a surprise for her. It would be supper time in about twenty minutes, and her daddy would be home with her big surprise. Five-year-old McKenzie was having a great day with her grandparents in town and visiting for the week. It was so much fun baking cookies with her grandmother. About five or ten minutes before her dad and the pizza would arrive home, McKenzie got the “great idea” that it would be fun to have cookies and milk. You know that the answer was “no!” Even when Grandma said, “Honey, it is almost time for supper and you wouldn’t have room for it if we had cookies right now!” No amount of gentle persuasion worked. Finally McKenzie’s mother stepped in and said, “McKenzie Marie, the answer is no. Trust me.” Later that night the grown-ups were talking about the wonderful day. Grandpa mentioned that there are times he is just like McKenzie. “I’m sure that I think I know best, when the Lord actually is telling me, ‘Trust me!’” Little did they think at the start of the day that five-year-old McKenzie Marie was going to remind them of such a good lesson.

For today: How about you? Are you still learning what it means to trust in the Lord? Take a good reminder from little McKenzie Marie!

All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that you may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the Lord swear unto your fathers” (Deuteronomy 8:1).

Moses is speaking to the second generation of the children of Israel who came out of Egypt. They would be entering the Promised Land. The great leader, Moses, pleads with the people to pay attention to what God has said and commanded. He used the word shamar which means “to guard, to keep, to pay attention to.” The problem was not that God withheld His commandments. The problem was not that God’s commandments were unreasonable. The problem clearly was that the children of Israel did not pay attention to them. It reminds me of a terrible situation. Sam, Gary, Tim, and Marcia will never forget that warm summer afternoon two years ago. They were the first responders who arrived at the intersection just outside of Centerville Village. A precious family was heading north out of town and had the right-of-way. A distracted driver who was texting headed west. She flew through the stop sign, causing the horrible, horrible crash. The problem wasn’t a lack of laws on the books. The problem was that this driver chose to ignore them. Moses reminded the second generation that they needed to observe God’s commandments or there would be serious repercussions. May God help us and our beloved country to “observe” what He has commanded.

For today: Don’t forget to pay attention to God’s Word today. You’ll be glad you did!