Good Days
This devotional was written by Jim Grams

Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.—Psalm 34:12-13

Yesterday was a good day. I won an important golf match and moved on to the next round in our President’s Cup tournament. I knew it was a good day because recently I lost a match and that was definitely not such a good day! I think most of us would like every day to be a good day. But, if every day was a good day…think about it…we wouldn’t ever experience “really good” days. It’s the bad days that help us appreciate the good ones.

Years ago, while we were living in South Africa, I had a long bout with hepatitis. I was very sick and it was during that time I learned to appreciate health. Difficult times help us appreciate the good times. Without some failure, we cannot fully appreciate success.

How often do we catch ourselves saying, “I’m having a bad day”? It is an amazing fact that our brains can convince our bodies they are sick. We’re like the little boy who creates a stomachache so he won’t have to go to school. And, we also have the ability to make every day pretty good. Waking up with a positive attitude, ready to face anything in the strength of the Lord just about guarantees a good day. The Psalmist adds to the verse above with these words: “Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” Good days are like mountain peaks. There is a journey, a struggle to get to the top of a mountain, but once there…the view is awesome and the climb worth it.

God wants to help us have good days. In fact, He promises to be with us for every event, every step, for every day. God gives us the confidence to find the good and to just be good! One of the best things about having a good day is that it affects everyone around us. Our good days make other people have better days. Our good days demonstrate the love of Jesus in us. And that is why we live!

99 Balloons
This devotional was written by Kelly McFadden

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. —1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

A father’s letter to his son, Elliot, has been circulating on YouTube*. Elliot was born with the genetic disorder Trisomy 18. Doctors did not believe this little boy would survive even to be born. Proving experts wrong, he was born and lived 99 days. The video chronicles the parents’ love and pride for their son.

These parents are an incredible example of what it means to love and be thankful for what we are given. Even though there was incredible pain in knowing their son would not live a full life, they took the time they had with their child to love unconditionally and be thankful each and every day for the time they got with him. The family practiced joy by celebrating their son. They continually prayed each day for healing and a miracle. In the end, when their prayer for healing was not answered, they were still able to give thanks for the time they had with their son.

The Apostle Paul commands us to be joyful, prayerful and thankful in all circumstances. In the best of times, the commands aren’t tremendously burdensome, but often go unheeded. When we undergo hardships in life, they go against our natural inclination. No one would have condemned Elliot’s parents for being angry and bitter for the circumstances they were in; however, instead, they made the difficult, but possible choice to be joyful, prayerful and thankful. And, they were the better for it. They were able to appreciate each day with their son and ultimately see God’s hand of grace and love in the gift they had been given.

Elliot died on what his parents called his 99th birthday. At Elliot’s funeral, 99 balloons were released in honor of each day his parents got to spend with him. The father’s letter closed with these words: “Today you went to be with Jesus. An underdeveloped lung, a heart with a hole in it, DNA that places faulty information in every cell in your body could not stop God from revealing Himself through a child who never uttered a word…God found great pleasure to take a lowly thing in the eyes of the world and show truth…”

Elliot’s parents demonstrated how valuable joy, prayer, and thankfulness can be in the midst of difficult circumstances. May we choose to do the same.

Downtime
This devotional was written by Dan Johnson

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he…—Proverbs 23:7a (KJV)

Susan Greenfield, neuroscientist and researcher at Oxford, says human identity could be facing an unprecedented crisis. She writes that we are “sleepwalking towards a future in which neuro-chip technology blurs the line between living and non-living machines and between our bodies and the outside world . . . our brains are under the influence of an ever-expanding world of new technology including video games, mp3 players and wireless networks.” In other words, we may be on the verge of becoming overwhelmed by the increasing role technology is playing in our lives, unable to draw clear lines in terms of how much to embrace and when to say enough is enough.

The good news is that the brain is an ever-changing organ. According to Greenfield, parts of the brain change in response to certain experiences and stimuli. This squares with the Bible’s teaching that we are what we think. It may not be easy, but we have the power to choose what we allow to have influence over us.

Technology has radically impacted our lives. Many of our conversations center around which new computer we just bought, what software we’re using, what’s on our high tech wish list. And yet parents are finding it difficult to communicate to teens that are more tuned in to a text message than a spoken one. It’s important to remember that technology is a tool – a means to an end, not and end in itself.

God speaks to the spirit of a man or woman; and the spirit can be easily overlooked or neglected. At eight o’clock in our home, the cell phones and iPods go on the charger (lately they’ve been going into the washer, but that’s another story). It’s time to find the natural rest that keeps us human and in touch with God who is Divine. When the phone rings at dinner time, it goes to the recorder. Unless someone is dying (call 911), it can wait. Phone calls are usually part of someone’s stream of consciousness and are not usually important enough to throw off our family rhythm.

The Bible says “the Spirit gives life.” Staying connected 24/7 and trackable through GPS has wonderful merits. I’m all for it. But feel free this week to get disconnected from distraction. Let the world of machines know who the boss is. The Maker of the airwaves knows where to reach you.

You Are the Hands of Christ
This devotional was written by Jim Burns

You are the body of Christ, and each one
of you is a part of it.—1 Corinthians 12:27

If you are a Christian, then you are a part of the body of Christ on earth. It's your hands and legs and mouth that He uses to do His daily tasks in your world.

In Alexander Irvine's novel My Lady of the Chimney Corner, an old woman went to comfort a neighbor whose boy lay dead. She laid her hand on her friend's head and said, "Ah, woman, God isn't a printed book to be carried around by a man in fine clothes, not a cross dangling at the watch chain of a priest. God takes a hand wherever he can find it. Sometimes he takes a Bishop's hand and lays it on a child's head in benediction, the hand of a doctor to relieve pain, the hand of a mother to guide a child, and sometimes he takes the hand of a poor old woman like me to give comfort to a neighbor. But they're all hands touched by His Spirit, and His Spirit is everywhere looking for his hands to use."*

God's Spirit is looking for hands, bodies, and minds to use. But He seldom uses us without our permission. We, like Isaiah, have to first say, "Here I am, Lord - send me." That is precisely what God wants you to say in order to start your great adventure of service. Some people you know will spend their lives totally self-absorbed and will miss the greatest opportunity of life, which is to make a difference in our world.

Jesus Help Me and to God Be the Glory
This devotional was written by Jim Liebelt

"Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me.”—Psalm 54:4

Recently, I was searching on a website devoted to Johann Sebastian Bach Frequently Asked Questions (www.bachfaq.org), when I found something interesting. It seems that Bach often wrote the letters “JJ” at the beginning of his scores and the letters “SDG” at the end. What did these letters mean? JJ stood for the Latin Jesu Juva, which means “Help o Jesus”. So, it seems that at the beginning of creating his music, Bach was requesting Divine help. SDG stood for the Latin Soli Deo Gloria, which means, “To God alone glory”. It seems that at the end of creating his music, Bach gave thanks to God.

For myself, I know that I don’t have any talent on the level of Bach’s abilities to create musical compositions. Most likely this can be said for the vast majority of us. Still, Bach’s habit of asking for Jesus’ help as he began his work and then giving thanks to God when he was finished, plants within me the desire to be more intentional about including God in my day.

I would think that it would be easy for a person of Bach’s talent and giftedness to take God’s role in their life for granted – to begin to rely on self and to take some time to pat oneself on the back for a job well done! If a person of Bach’s talent and giftedness made it a habit to ask for God’s help and to give God thanks, how much more should we do the same?

In the end, it is to our benefit to be reminded that we are all dependent upon the Lord for everything. We really do need His help! We also benefit from giving thanks to God. It gives us needed perspective to understand that all we accomplish is from God’s gracious hand.

And the survey sample size was probably 100 people, all located in the heart of the bible belt.

Hmm. I suspect out of that 45%, maybe like 90% of it came when at the Sunday sermon, the pastor says "turn with me to xyz chapter 3 verse 5...."

Is he sure its not 45% of all American Christians read the Bible once a week? Bobkast, do your thang and get back to us!

Wow. 45% of all Americans read the bible once a week? Hmm. I'd be interested to know how exactly did George Barna arrive at this.

The Bible
This devotional was written by Leslie Snyder

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
—Hebrews 4:12-13

The story is told of an old man who lived on a farm in the mountains of eastern Kentucky with his young grandson. Each morning, Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen table reading from his old worn-out Bible. His grandson who wanted to be just like him tried to imitate him in any way he could. One day the grandson asked, “Papa, I try to read the Bible just like you but I don’t understand it, and what I do understand I forget as soon as I close the book. What good does reading the Bible do?” The Grandfather quietly turned from putting coal in the stove and said, “Take this coal basket down to the river and bring back a basket of water.” The boy did as he was told, even though all the water leaked out before he could get back to the house. The grandfather laughed and said, “You will have to move a little faster next time,” and sent him back to the river with the basket to try again. This time the boy ran faster, but again the basket was empty before he returned home. Out of breath, he told his grandfather that it was “impossible to carry water in a basket,” and he went to get a bucket instead. The old man said, “I don’t want a bucket of water; I want a basket of water. You can do this. You’re just not trying hard enough,” and he went out the door to watch the boy try again. At this point, the boy knew it was impossible, but he wanted to show his grandfather that even if he ran as fast as he could, the water would leak out before he got far at all. The boy scooped the water and ran hard, but when he reached his grandfather the basket was again empty. Out of breath, he said, “See Papa, it’s useless!” “So you think it is useless?” The old man said, “Look at the basket.” The boy looked at the basket and for the first time he realized that the basket looked different. Instead of a dirty old coal basket, it was clean. “Son, that’s what happens when you read the Bible. You might not understand or remember everything, but when you read it, it will change you from the inside out.”

Current statistics from pollster George Barna report that 45% of all Americans read the Bible at least once during the week. That is a hopeful statistic and one of the highest in recent times. How about you? Does the Bible take priority in your personal life outside of the church? How well do you know what it really says, or do you rely on someone else to tell you what it says? Are you allowing it to transform your life, like the dirty coal bucket in the above story?