Wednesday Morning Devotional

The Worm that Got Saved

But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by everyone, despised by the people. – Psalm 22:6

When I’m not playing on the worship team, I spend my Sunday mornings before church quite differently. I love to get up, pray, read the Word (not for the sermon, just for myself), review my sermon, and what I call “walk the loop.” Where I live, there is a nice .6 (yes, that is point six) mile loop near my house that is just a beautiful walk. Normally, I talk with the Lord and just really get filled up with more and more of His Spirit with every step I take. Today, however, was little different.

I saw worms scattered all over the road. There were hundreds, maybe thousands, of worms. Most had dried up on the asphalt and had been flattened by cars. Some were barely hanging on to life while others seemed very fresh, energetic, and happy to begin their journey of death. I could tell that as soon as the sun hit the pavement, many more were doomed.

I thought about was how those worms were a perfect representation of the people of this world. Those worms are on the wrong road. The road they are on leads to death. Every person is born on the road that leads to destruction. We didn’t ask for it, it just happens to be the nearest road and we are on it. There is a narrow road, but we must find it. We cannot find it without God’s help. “Narrow is the road that leads to life, and few there be that find it.” (Matt 7:14)

Towards the end of my walk, I found a worm that was just beginning his journey across the road of destruction. I picked him up carefully, carried him to my home and released him in some rich soil. Of all those thousands of worms, he was saved.

Out of all the people in this world, I am in awe that the Lord Jesus Christ picked me up and placed me in His kingdom. What did I do to deserve such a great salvation?

Absolutely nothing!

Alas and did my Savior bleed

And did my Sovereign die?

Would he devote that sacred head

For such a worm as I?

Salvation is only found at the cross.

Thank You Lord, for picking me up and placing me in Your Kingdom. I am forever grateful and forever yours.

Later

Adam

Hollywood Studios

“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” — Matthew 20:16

So we were at Hollywood Studios in Disney World. We had arrived 15 minutes before the gates opened and my little chick and I were hoping to jump on Aerosmith’s Rockin’ Roller Coaster before the line got long. After that, our plan was to ride the Hollywood Tower Hotel. Our plan worked perfectly.

The reason I write this is because of a conversation Caroline and I had on the way to the Rockin’ Roller Coaster. People were absolutely in a dead sprint trying to be first in line. Caroline wanted to do the same. In all honesty, I did too. However, I thought this was a great teaching moment. I brought up the verse for today and asked her what she thought it meant. She made a couple of decent attempts at it.

We talked about patience and how God wants us to be patient. I told her if people can’t bring themselves to wait for a couple of extra minutes for a silly amusement park ride, they probably won’t be able to wait for more important things in life. They will probably marry the first available person instead of waiting on God to prepare their own heart and lead them to the right relationship. They probably spend money they don’t have on things they don’t need instead of being financially responsible. People who race to be first are just more likely to have a “mine” attitude and a “give it to me now” way of thinking. They certainly don’t put others before themselves.

Caroline went on to tell me things that let me know that she understood that patience and putting others before her would be qualities that God would desire in Heaven. Here on Earth, the “me firsts” seem to prosper. Their attitude might bring great short-term gain as well as temporary satisfaction. But, in the end, it will cost them because God will send the person with that attitude to the back of the line. The first shall be last.

As we approached the ride, I was feeling pretty good about myself. I felt that I had just planted a new seed of faith and fostered new understanding in my young daughter. Then, she looked up at me with disdain as another couple ran by us and said, “Daddy, look at those selfish people who don’t know how to be patient!”

(Sigh)

I guess that’s another lesson for another time.

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. – Philippians 2:3-4

Later

Adam

Isaiah 53:5

But he was wounded for our transgressions,

Wounds are visible. Transgressions, sins, are visible. It is easy to see transgressions. Jesus took visible wounds so that my visible transgressions could be forgiven. I have done a lot of stuff I am not proud of. One look at the wounds of my Savior and I have nothing but thankfulness and appreciation for the one who took the nails for me.

He was bruised for our iniquities;

Bruising takes place on the inside. The blood never gets past the skin. The bleeding takes place on the inside and forms what we know as a bruise. Iniquity is the source of all transgressions and takes place on the inside. It is not easy to see iniquity in a man’s heart. Iniquity is present at birth in all people. Invisible iniquity leads to visible transgression. I have things that can well up inside my heart that I’m so glad people don’t know about. Just like Cain, sin desires to have me. Just like Cain, I must master it. Unlike Cain, the perfect sacrifice has been made for me. Jesus was bruised for my iniquity.

The chastisement that brought us peace was upon Him.

Today, I have peace in my heart. Today, I treasure my relationship with Jesus above all else. It is only because of Him that I have peace. It is only because He was chastised, He was punished, that I am free. He took the punishment that I deserve.

And with His stripes, I am healed.

Healed. No longer bound by the things of this world. No longer bound by immorality. No longer gravitating towards sin. No longer having to act on my sinful impulses. No longer on the wide road that leads to destruction.

This Easter, I look closely once more at those stripes. I look once more at the life He lived. He healed all those people. He even healed me. He gave me new life. I can’t imagine how far I’d be from the life I have now had he not healed me. All good things really do come from Him.

Consider this verse this Holy Week. How has he changed you? How different are you now because He came into your life? Where would you be had He left you completely alone? There is power in the name above all names, the name of Jesus! Spend time alone with Him and fall in love with Him all over again today.

There is none like Him!

Happy Easter

Adam

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.  – Psalm 34:18

“God loves everybody!”  I’ve heard it my whole life, but that never ceases to amaze me.  For years and years, I saw so many people that I just considered “beyond repair.”  To me, they were so messed up that there was no way God could change them.  Besides, they didn’t want to be changed, so how could He?

A girl sang a song in church this Sunday about God loving “the broken ones.”  As she sang, I was reminded of a story that I had forgotten about, but remember profoundly changed my life at the time.  I believe it is a story that helps the lost understand His love for them.  There are several versions of this story on the Internet, this one just happens to be my version based on all the versions that I have read and heard. 

The story is about a girl named Mary Ann Bird.  She was born in 1837 in Brettenham, England.  She was born with so many birth defects that she was just not a “normal” looking kid.  She had a cleft palate, a crooked nose, and was deaf in one ear just to name a few.  This, of course, led to her being tormented by the other kids in the primary grades.  It was said that she told other students that she fell and cut her lip on a piece of glass.  This was much easier for her to deal with emotionally than to say that she was simply born this way.

Mary Ann had a teacher named Miss Leonard.  Miss Leonard was the most popular teacher in the school.  All the students loved her and wanted to be her “pet.”  One day they were having the annual hearing test.  Back then, the teacher did the test and would simply have the students cover one ear, and would whisper words softly for the students to repeat.  Mary Ann would always “cheat” by cupping her hand over her good hear so she wouldn’t “fail” yet another test and hear that something else was wrong with her.  Usually the teacher would say something like “the sky is blue” or something general like that.  On this particular day, Miss Leonard said seven words that absolutely changed Mary Ann’s life.  She whispered, “I wish you were my little girl.”  This acceptance by her teacher changed her life.  To be accepted by someone despite her deformities made all the difference in the world.

So it is with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Maybe you are all messed up.  Maybe you are letting the wrong voices define who you are.  You may be one of the broken people nobody seems to want.  You may think there is nobody out there that could ever love you and accept you just as you are.  Yet, there is a God who is constantly calling out to every breathing person saying five little words that could change their lives.

“I wish you were mine.”

He will always love the broken ones.

Later

Adam

Slaying Sin

And I went out after him (the lion or the bear), and smote him, and delivered it (the lamb) out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. – 1 Samuel 17:35

David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.“ – 1 Samuel 17:37

So which is it? Did David grab the lion and the bear by the beard and slay them? Or, did the Lord deliver David out of the paw of the lion and bear?

The answer is both. David did his part and God did His part. The question we must ask ourselves today is “Am I doing my part?”

Today, most people who say they are of God are very casual with the enemy. Just as the lion or bear was after one of David’s lambs, Satan is after you and me. Remember what God told Cain? “Sin desires to have you, but you must master it.” (Genesis 4:7) Cain did not master it. I don’t see in Cain’s story that he made any kind of effort at all. He ended up smiting his brother instead of his enemy.

It is amazing how so many Christians expect deliverance to come in the form of God waving some sort of magic wand and fixing everything. They will quit cussing, drinking, smoking, womanizing, fighting, drug using, being lazy, and whatever other behaviors that they justify when God “delivers” them. They may say something like “I’ll stop when God delivers me”, or “He just hasn’t delivered me.” By “deliver,” they mean wave some sort of wand and magically take it away.

What if David had done that? What if he had watched the wild animal come in and take one of his lambs and said “God, if you want to, you can make the lion spit out the lamb and walk away. If you don’t want to, I guess it was your will for that lamb to be destroyed.”

No! I bet the prayer was offered as he ran towards the enemy. He must have said something like “God, fill me with your strength! No lamb will be taken on my watch!”

I don’t know if there is a lion or a bear of personal sin that you are dealing with right now. If there is, take it by the beard and “smite” it. While you are at it, ask God to give you the strength to overcome. When these two forces are working together, victory is inevitable.

I hear man after man confess to me that they “struggle” with pornography. At one time, I did too . . . for far longer that I care to admit. For years, I prayed for God to help. He never magically made me stop. I finally got sick of it. I laid my Bible on my computer, prayed out loud, and swore to God I would absolutely destroy my computer on the day I go searching for that poison again. I knew I would have some explaining to do to my wife if that day came, but I also knew she would not care if it set me free. The only way to deal with that trash is to take it by the beard and kill it.

Right now, I’m struggling with my eating. After a 21 day fast in January, I quickly went back to eating horribly. It has affected my energy and my attitude greatly. I believe it also opened the door for me to get sick, which I have not been in two years. What do I do? Pray for the magic wand? Or, should I grab it by the beard and strike it down? I’m only a few days into it, but I’ve already been through the withdrawals and am already beginning to feel much better. With God’s help, I will win.

Goliath is coming. The much bigger battle is on the horizon. If I can’t conquer the foods I put into my stomach, what else could Satan slowly entice me to put into my body? If I can’t control what my eyes see on the computer, what other spiritual poisons could be poured in to what is supposed to be a pure mind and heart? A serious Christian should think of these battles as the battles you win in private. David didn’t have anyone else around when the lion and bear attacked, but he won. These battles gave him all the confidence he needed to fight and defeat Goliath in public.

We had better learn to win against these lesser enemies known as the lion and the bear. These victories will give you confidence to fight the greater battle while everyone else stands around paralyzed with fear waiting for God to wave the magic wand. Winning your battle just may be the catalyst someone else needs to smite and kill his or her own sin.

What do you think it means to have the power of God on your life?

It means you have the power to overcome!

Later

Adam

Choosing the Right Fight

Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger was aroused against David, and he said, “Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the insolence of your heart, for you have come down here to see the battle.” — 1 Samuel 17:28

Just before the battle with Goliath, David’s oldest brother picked a fight with him. David was simply inquiring about what would be done for the person who killed Goliath. King Saul had said that he would give the man who slew Goliath great wealth, one of his daughters, and an exemption from paying taxes (v.25). This sounded to David like a fight worth fighting.

I can’t help but think about how many of us would have engaged in the wrong fight. David and Eliab were brothers. They could have come together and at least talked battle plans and stayed focused on the real enemy. Instead, Eliab focused on his brother. Why? Because it is easier to point out faults with your brother than it is to actually fight the enemy looking to destroy you!

Now, obviously David could have won a fight with his brother. If he went on to kill Goliath, he could have probably killed his brother. However, David, even as a teenager, was much wiser than most adults today. He saw that there was no reward for winning a fight against his brother. Why waste time fighting against your own people?

Isn’t it interesting that the people who say they are children of God end up fighting each other more often than the enemy? I mean there are so many disagreements among denominations and among churches of different sizes. The big churches find ways to belittle the small churches and the small churches believe the big churches are just a bunch of heretics. The arguments seem endless. I know because I used to participate in them a lot more than I care to admit.

I thought of this devotional one day while teaching math class. You see, when you teach middle school, you are constantly going to battle. Kids, for the most part, do not want to work. Teachers, on the other hand, want them to work. Therefore, day after day, we fight to put knowledge in those young minds while they fight against us. One day, the thought hit me, “Why aren’t we fighting together?” I can only imagine how unbelievable a year would be if the students and I were unified in fighting as a team instead of fighting individually against each other’s will. We would all be winners in the end.

Though my school example may never come to fruition, I believe the church example can. If we are all believers saved by the same blood of Jesus Christ and filled with the same Holy Spirit, we can and should be unified. We must quit fighting trivial battles amongst our own brethren and start focusing on the real enemy.

I believe it comes with simply following David’s example. Two verses later it says, “Then he turned from him (Eliab) . . .” Why waste a whole bunch of time arguing amongst each other when there is a real enemy, really defying God, and really looking to enslave all of us?

No matter what our denomination is. No matter what the size of our church is. No matter what our insignificant differences may be, let’s fight the real enemy. If you feel a fellow “Christian” is more interested in attacking you than the enemy, walk away from them and go fight alone. Fight the real battle. David teaches us that God can bring about a great victory through a person with a heart after Him.

Lord, may we all have the right heart to do your will. Open our eyes that we may clearly see. Give us wisdom and discernment to only fight the real enemy.

Later

Adam

The Tree in the Road

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.  – Philippians 2:3-4

A couple of weeks ago, Tonya and I took the kids to Hendersonville to do a little snow tubing.  Unfortunately, we didn’t actually get to go snow tubing, but that really doesn’t affect the story.

On the way back home, I was the first car to encounter a tree in the road.  I was quickly thankful that it didn’t wait just a minute or two later to fall; it might have landed on us! 

Anyway, traffic was getting backed up pretty quickly.  Immediately, two teenagers whipped around everyone, got out, and started moving debris. Everyone, including me, thought we were witnessing something heroic.  Faith in the youth of this generation was restored!

Then, as soon as they had done the minimum amount of work required to help themselves pull OFF the road and around the tree, the other guy hopped in the truck, and they went on their merry way.  I couldn’t help but laugh, but a few were visibly exasperated. 

Now, I know a blanket statement can’t be made about the entire youth of this generation.  There are some super great kids out there.  But, I have noticed an awful trend in the majority over the last 20 years.  People are becoming more and more about themselves with complete disregard for others.  In fact, I noticed in 2 Timothy 3 that Paul states that perilous times will come in the last days.  The first sign that he mentions is that “men will be lovers of themselves” (v.2)  

Surely, we are there.  I’m tempted to think that it has probably always been this way, but I really don’t think so.  A couple of months ago, our family went to the Titanic Museum in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.  We heard story after story of how heroic men willingly gave up their seats on those few lifeboats so others may live.  The stories were so powerful.  After all, “greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)

Today, I’m sitting here pondering:  Would anyone have lived if the Titanic sank today under the exact same conditions?  I think the answer is “no.”  Absolutely everyone would have drowned or frozen to death because the majority would have been fighting for their own best interest.

To make a dismal story a little bit brighter, people did come together after the teenagers made their way around.  About 8 of us got out of our vehicles and cleaned up ALL of the debris.  Another dude tied a big rope around the tree and pulled it out of the road with his Jeep.  Within about 15 minutes, everyone was back on track.

I guess I say all that to say this:  Today, think of others more highly than yourself.  Go out of your way to inconvenience yourself for the benefit of others.  You just might get asked, “Why would you do such a thing?” Then, you have the ultimate witnessing opportunity . . .

“The Lord, Jesus Christ, went out of His way for me!  The least I could do is the same for you.”

Later

Adam

Building the Sanctuary

They received from Moses all the offerings the Israelites had brought to carry out the work of constructing the sanctuary. And the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning. – Exodus 36:3

When it was time to build a sanctuary for God, the Israelites were super excited. They were so excited that they gave and they gave. In fact, they gave so much Moses had to tell them to stop. Check out verses 6 and 7:

Then Moses gave an order and they sent this word throughout the camp: “No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” And so the people were restrained from bringing more, because what they already had was more than enough to do all the work.

The reason I am writing this WMD is to ask you for help. As many of you know, I have been pastoring a church in addition to being a full-time schoolteacher for the past 14 months. It has been rough at times, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. The Lord has grown me so much in a year and His Presence has become more real than ever.

It is time for my church to build its sanctuary. I realize that most people who will read this do not attend my church. After much prayer and consideration, I would like to offer you a chance to help us out.

Now, I have been writing WMD’s for around six years now and have never asked for a single cent. I am not and pray that I will never be all about the money. I will continue to write WMD’s for as long as He gives me the wisdom to write them and I will post them publicly on the Internet.

Having said all that, will you prayerfully consider making a donation to our building fund? In one year, we have raised approximately one-third of what we need to renovate our property. That came from simply having a tight, simple budget and members of Lifeline Community Church freely giving to our weekly offering.

If nothing in you feels led to give, by all means, do not give and please continue to read WMD. Lord willing, they will resume normally next week absolutely free of charge. I just thought you might like to take a part in helping us set up our own Tabernacle of God in Fair Play, SC. In addition, please be praying that it will be a place where the Presence of God is made manifest. This has been my prayer from the beginning.

Please consider giving a one-time gift or even a monthly gift over these next 10 months as we hope to begin renovation at the start of 2016. Every little bit will help tremendously. If you would like to see our financial sheet, e-mail me or message me and I’ll be glad to share it with you. We have no secrets and you can see where every dollar goes.

You can give online here: http://www.lifelinecc.com/give.html. Just select the dropdown box “building fund.”

Or

You can make a check payable to Lifeline Community Church. Just put “Building Fund” in the “for” line and it will be designated specifically for that account.

Mail them to:

Lifeline Community Church

321 W Pine Grove Rd

Fair Play, SC 29643

Thanks for giving this some consideration, and thanks for faithfully reading WMD.

Later

Adam

When God Speaks

When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.” – Exodus 20: 18-19

I wish I could describe what it is like to hear from God. I hear no audible voice, but it is like my mind is flooded in an instant with 10 pages worth of stuff I could write down if I were to take the time. Sometimes it is simpler and I just know what He wants me to do or say. It is awesome and it is amazing. There is no better feeling in the world.

There was a time when I was like the children of Israel in the verse above. I wanted God to speak through my favorite preachers. I wanted to be entertained and hear them speak a word from The Lord. However, looking back, I didn’t want Him to speak directly to me.

Why?

As long as it came from another person, obedience was optional. I remember strong Christian men telling me that the music I listened to dishonored the God I claimed had saved me. Do you know what I would say? “Who are you to judge me? There’s nothing wrong with it! It doesn’t affect me.”

It was a great plan. As long as The Word came through other people, that was God’s plan for them, not necessarily me. I hadn’t heard the words directly from God.

I remember hearing a preacher telling his congregation that we should avoid the sexually charged movies that so frequently take the Lord’s name in vain and use words that ought not be used. I didn’t obey. God didn’t tell me that!   That was that preacher’s opinion. Who really cares if he was speaking right from God’ s Word? That book was written thousands of years ago before they even had movies. This is a new day and age. I liked those movies. They didn’t affect me. Who was he to tell me what I can and can’t watch?

For the YEARS that I held this attitude, not ONE time did I ever feel the full on Presence of the Holy Spirit. He never engulfed me in what I know now as the greatest feeling in the world. Why? I had the stench and filth of sin all over me. How can one sit there and pour in music that glorifies the very things that God hates? How can one laugh at the sexual jokes, the taking of God’s Name in vain, and watch people repeatedly commit the immorality that He died on the cross to save them from?

I could do it because I was lost. It did not matter that I called myself a “Christian.” It did not matter that I had said a prayer of salvation. I was lost.

Eventually, sin took me further than I was willing to go. It kept me longer than I ever thought I’d stay. It made me pay way more than I ever thought I’d have to pay. When I didn’t like the place it brought me, I went straight to God. I finally wanted to hear directly from Him. “God, what would you have me do? ”His answer: “Stop pumping your head full of the world. Fill it with Me, My Word, and music that honors me.” Hmmm . . . The same thing those judgmental holy-rollers told me.   But, this time it came from the mouth of God. Should I shout out and say, “Who are YOU to judge ME?” I would say that is a bad idea. However, I do now have a choice to make.

I remember the day I turned the station from 93.3 the Planet to 89.3 His Radio. The first Christian song I ever heard was “The Best Thing” by The Big Tent Revival. I loved it. It was like light filling my dark soul.

It was a little longer, well; it was a lot longer before I gave up the movies. The Wedding Crashers was the last movie of its kind that I watched. For the first time I couldn’t laugh at the sexual immorality. I couldn’t laugh when the joke was laced with an F-bomb or a G.D. God made it clear to me: “Stop paying for this trash. Stop filling your heart and mind with it.” What do I do? This is not the preacher who told me the EXACT SAME THING years ago . . . This is the voice of God!

I obeyed.

The payoff has been unbelievable. I can honestly say that I do not believe for a second that I have missed out on anything by refusing Hollywood’s latest R-Rated blockbusters.

I say all that to say this: My heart broke when I saw that the line to watch 50 Shades of Grey looked like a ride at Six Flags on a Saturday. The theater had roped off a line and at least a hundred people were in line 45 minutes early. If you were in that line, I am not judging you one bit. Ten years ago, as a saved Christian, I would have been in line with you. Ten years ago, the year I saw Wedding Crashers, my last trashy R-rated flick, if you had told me it was wrong to go see it, I would have said, “who are you to judge me?”   Then, I would have talked about you behind your back for even suggesting you were holier than I was.

I am not telling you what you can and can’t watch. If I did, you’ d do what I did years ago. You would call me a judgmental, religious fanatic. However, I am asking you to make one big decision. Decide right now if you want God to speak to you directly. Or, would you rather listen to the “opinions” of other men and women?

If it is through people, then continue doing whatever you want to do. You are free to accept or reject based on your convenience and your preference. Who am I to judge you? Who is any other person to judge you?

If it is God . . .

Ask Him. One on one, just you and Him, ask Him. He has an unbelievable way of highlighting two very different paths.

One leads to destruction and has a whole bunch of people in line.

The other is very narrow and you may not even find someone else standing in that line. To be honest, even as I type this, I feel like I’m in a line all by myself. But, that’s okay.

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find It.” – Matthew 7:13-14

Later

Adam