The Gathering Place Where Family Matters

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

Dr. Jack loved the Lord and deeply respected Him. It was such a great joy and delight to the surgeon that he knew the Lord Jesus as his personal Savior. His relationship with the Lord became even dearer one day as a great spiritual truth impacted his life. It started out to be a routine day as he walked down the hospital corridor. Several people walked ahead of him. One of the ladies held the hand of a young child. As they approached the waiting area, the child read aloud the words on the door ahead of him, “Absolutely no admittance. Authorized Surgical Personnel Only.” Jack stepped on past them, swiped his card in the slot, walked through the automatic doors that opened for him, and heard the voice of the surgical receptionist say, “Good Morning, Dr. Cramer.” At that very moment he visualized it. He had earned the privilege of coming boldly to a place in the hospital that was off limits to others. However, it was different with the Lord. He could come before the Lord not because he had earned it, but as a matter of grace it was given to him! He didn’t deserve the privilege, nor could He earn it. Isn’t it wonderful to belong to the Lord and to enjoy the special privilege of coming before His throne with boldness?

For today: If you know the Lord as your Savior, you can come to Him boldly. He is waiting to greet you.

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15).

Alex knew better. He understood that it was illegal as well as unwise to be texting as he was driving. He was sure just this one time that he could safely text as well as drive on a very familiar road. It was a straightaway, and he had traveled it many, many times. It would be a short text with a sudden interruption as the wheels of Alex’s car went off the edge of the road and into the steep ditch. The car rolled over several times and came to rest on its top. Alex had lost the focus of keeping his eyes on the road. His telephone and his text temporarily captured his attention, and it resulted in disaster. Likewise, it is disastrous when we believers lose our focus and begin loving the world. It never leads to good things! We should know better.

For today: Keep the focus of your love on the Lord Jesus Christ, not on the world.

“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not” (1 John 3:1).

It was something that Monica would never forget. Her twelve-year-old son Ricky came down and met her in the kitchen. It was early morning, and only Monica and Ricky were up. “I had a strange but really good thing happen last night, Mom” he said. “A little after I went to bed, Jeffrey came into my room and up to me. Before I knew it, he hopped on top of the covers and looked me in the face. He said to me that you and Dad had to love me because I was born to you. But you loved him because you and Dad adopted him and wanted to love him. He then thanked me for letting him be part of our family, and before I could say a word, he shot out of bed, turned my overhead light on, blinding me, and giggled all the way to his room!” Ricky continued. “It made me think that that is the exact same way with God. He loves me because He wants to. That’s pretty awesome, isn’t it, Mom?” Ricky asked quietly. How about you? Does it strike you often that God loves you just because He wants to?

For today: Rejoice in His awesome love. He wants you to.

“And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full” (1 John 1:4).

Marshall grew up in warm weather climates. He and his family could not believe it when the Lord clearly directed them to accept a very small pastorate in a rural county up in the very cold Northeast. Though Marshall loved the new church family, he knew it was going to be a struggle for him to adjust to the dropping temperatures of September. Listening to the weather forecast, he could not believe his ears. The meteorologist said, “The perfect set up for heavy lake effect snow will develop tomorrow, and I am expecting that some places could easily see a foot or more of snow. This is coming very early, and I’m afraid it will catch some folks by surprise.” Sitting at his table in the little parsonage kitchen, he could see that it was beginning to snow outside. Looking at his dear wife he said jokingly, “I surely wish I hadn’t preached about our joy being full on Wednesday night! Now I can’t complain about this snow!” How about you? How will your joy be expressed today?

For today: There is a big difference between happiness and joy. Happiness depends on things going the way I want them to go. Joy depends upon my relationship with our precious Lord Jesus.

“If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you: on their part He is evil spoken of, but on your part He is glorified” (1 Peter 4:14).

Peter knew what it was like to be reproached for the name of Christ. There are two ways to be reproached. The first way would be when someone lives miserably and really has it coming! The second way would be when a believer genuinely lives for Christ, is gracious in his or her stand for Christ and is reproached for it. That’s what Peter wrote about and what happened to Frank at work. He graciously declined the invitations to go to questionable places with the guys in his department. He didn’t appreciate dirty jokes, and from time-to-time he would speak briefly of the joy of belonging to his Savior. The sinful men who surrounded him at work made life difficult at times for Frank. But it was in those difficult times that Frank discovered a deep-seated joy that the Lord gave him. How about you? Has this taken place in your life at your work or even within your family?

For today: If someone is going to be mad at me, I hope it is because of my love for Christ!