A Moment Away

March 29

Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing murderous threats against the

Lord’s disciples.

Acts 9:1

Ben had lived a rough life. As a matter of fact, he was still living a rough life.

Six feet two inches tall, two hundred forty pounds of solid muscle, Ben

was an oil-field roustabout, making his living wrestling thirty-foot joints of

steel pipe and pumping oil wells in the dead middle of winter. He was strong

and seasoned. He was also opinionated as far as things related to the God of

the Bible. Quick witted, he always made a derogatory comment when anyone

mentioned God or Jesus, saying things like, “God is an excuse for weak people

who can’t make it on their own!”

A friend once asked Ben what he thought he might say to God when he

found himself standing before him on the day of his death. He contemptuously

answered, “Why, I’m gonna ask Him, ‘Where’s the best fishin’ hole?’” Continu-

ing to pray, this friend never gave up on Ben. He constantly spoke to Ben about

God’s love, praying God would draw him into a saving relationship, perhaps on

his own road to Damascus, like Saul. And after thirty years of witnessing, and

interceding on Ben’s behalf, on a warm summer’s morning Ben invited Jesus

into his heart!

h

At times we may be tempted to give up on those who seem to have too rough

an exterior toward the things of God. Tired of their rhetoric, we’re tempted to

distance ourselves from their unseemly actions.

Saul’s story gives us hope. One moment he was cursing the kingdom, the

next he was serving the King. Not everyone who rails against God, breathing

murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples, will be changed. But we are

not to give up on them. They might be a moment away from nearing their

Damascus.

Do you know someone like Ben? If so, ask God for another measure of the

grace you were saved by and then extend it to the Ben God placed in your life.

Prayer

“God of grace, give us strength. Show us what the hard cases of

life look like to You. Grant us wisdom to know what to say and

then give us the courage to speak in love. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 T.J.’s Windmill

March 28

Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction; pay attention and gain

understanding.

Proverbs 4:1

T.J. was a Massey-Ferguson man himself. But he didn’t seem to mind his new

six-foot windmill being John Deere green and yellow. The colors were a good

contrast as it stood beside the American flag he displayed every day.

When his grandson erected the windmill, placing it where T.J. could catch

sight of it from his recliner in the living room, no one had any idea of the effect

it would have on people’s lives.

T.J.’s house was situated in the bottom of a river valley running east to west,

allowing the predominant westerly winds unbidden access to the windmill.

Windy days were an event; not because watching the windmill itself was so

interesting, but because something about that spinning windmill stirred T.J.’s

memories, causing him to talk about the past. His ninety plus years spanned

countless changes in our nation’s history. You never knew if you were going

cotton picking in Mississippi, drilling oil wells in the hills of Ohio, or crossing

Germany and France as a medical battalion aide during World War II. As a

matter of fact, you could never be sure of what you were in for when the wind

blew. But if you listened closely, there was wisdom, experience, and instruction

to be gained.

h

Listening is an art form. Listening to the elderly is priceless. Unfortunately, many

of our elderly are discarded as senile and troublesome, despite the fact that their

very presence proclaims they have yet to complete their final earthly purpose.

There is an untapped wealth of knowledge and experience stored within

the memories of our elder statesmen and women.

Solomon instructs us to gain wisdom at our fathers’ knees, not view them

as spent and of little use.

By refusing to listen to them, we forfeit invaluable assistance and under-

standing. We label them of no value. This is foolish at best and at worst is

complete arrogance.

They are not meant to merely mark off each day until they die. We should

avail ourselves of such knowledge before it fades.

Prayer

“Teach us to respect our elders, Lord. Help us recognize

the value of their memories and appreciate their minds.

Show us how to treat them with the reverence they deserve

and the respect You decree. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 Spiritual Grit

March 27

Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are

you who weep now, for you will laugh.

Luke 6:21

Jenny had given her life to Jesus two years ago in a prison cell and had

learned to trust Him for almost everything—almost. She’d been out three

months now and was still unemployed. She was living out of a homeless shelter,

spending most of each day walking or taking the bus to area employers, seek-

ing work. Her prison record kept her from getting a decent job, and she didn’t

know what to do next. Temporary jobs provided just enough to survive. But she

was tired of just surviving.

On her knees in prayer tonight, she was asking God to direct her to where

she needed to be. She was still learning this praying and listening thing. Jenny

had never cared much about life before knowing Jesus. She’d always gotten

what she’d needed by hustling tricks. This honest living stuff was difficult.

At that moment, she felt God speak to her heart. “You let Me embrace you

in prison, Jenny. Will you embrace Me now?” She crawled into bed, thanking

God that tomorrow would bring her another day closer to Him. She felt peace

descend just as sleep overtook her.

h

There is a misconception that the Christian life should be easy, a life devoid of

misery and pain. But it’s not—and for good reason. If it were, the whole world

would become followers of Jesus. Christianity would be a wholesale religion; it

would have no power or meaning.

God is a rewarder of those who show spiritual grit. He honors those com-

mitments because He knows what following His Son has cost each of us. Fall-

ing down does not make us failures, nor is it fatal. Get up! The bumps we

acquire over our spiritual journey will be put to use for the kingdom. There is

nothing that rivals the satisfaction of a clear conscience and the knowledge we

are following the King. No pain is so great that it can shadow the truth.

Prayer

“Lord, when we weep, catch our tears. When we

laugh, hear our joy; when we fall, take our hand; as

we grow, show us more. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 The Black-Eyed Gospel

March 26

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of

love and of self-discipline.

2 Timothy 1:7

One of the elders of an inner-city church showed up sporting a black eye.

When asked how he got it, he stated, “I did not get it; I earned it!” and went on

to relate his story.

As he was on his way home the prior night, two young men jumped him

meaning to rob him. When they knocked him down, he could tell they were

amateurs. Moved by the power of the Holy Spirit, he began to chide them

for doing such a bungling job of it. He railed them, saying, “When I was in

this business, we didn’t just knock people down and make demands of them;

we knocked them out and took what we wanted!” 

Seeing he had their attention, he began to share with them the Jesus who had changed his life. By the time he was done, they had heard the good news of the gospel. Although they couldn’t have said why, both young men thanked him for sharing, returned his cell phone, apologized, and left.

h

I am not encouraging you to risk your life unless guided by the Holy Spirit! I

am encouraging you to take a stand against the wiles of the devil. Though not

everyone has a story like the elder in today’s scenario, we all have the ability to

refuse to be bullied by Satan.

Paul admonished Timothy not to bend to the enemy’s attack just because

he growls loud or brings something sensuous our way. We are not namby-

pamby, spineless children of a powerless god. We were bought at a price we

cannot comprehend. And the Father asks us to remember that when opposi-

tion comes our way. He has invested great power in us and asks us to discipline

ourselves in love. We shall be battered and bruised in this life. Wouldn’t it be

good if our suffering were attributed to the cause of Christ?

Prayer

“This world holds fears and temptation for us, Lord.

We need Your power to rise up in us when we face

opposition. Be near, O Lord, and show us how to stand

as children of the King! In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 God’s Long Arm and the Blind Man

March 25

Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are

well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.”

John 5:14

There was a blind man who walked into an American pastor’s church in

Ukraine a few years ago. He came forward that night to receive Jesus Christ as

his Lord and Savior. When the pastor prayed for his salvation, he was instantly

saved and healed of his blindness! But, as it sometimes goes, temptation was

too great for him, and he once again found himself living a life of sin.

As in the story with the cripple Jesus healed at the pool of Bethesda, the

man was confronted with his return to a life of sin and told he might suf-

fer something worse if he continued. Realizing the truth of the statement,

he returned to this church, where he repented once again, this time with new

understanding, and began a new walk with the Lord. God’s righteous right

hand had sought him out. Thank God!

h

We have a tendency to believe that once we are saved, we should be

through with sin. Yes, we have a desire to stop sinning; no, it isn’t automatic.

It is a process by which the Holy Spirit guides us into righteousness, which

translates to right living, not perfection.

Once we have accepted Jesus’ sacrifice, we are clothed in His righteous-

ness and are seen by the Father through Christ. It does not, however, remove

our free will by which we make choices. The longer and deeper we walk with

God, the closer we get and the less sin-filled life appeals to us. But, as with the

blind man, we are still capable of sinning. The danger at this point is that we

have already been forgiven our sins. By blatantly disregarding this, we open

ourselves up to a more extreme onslaught by the enemy, hence Jesus’ warning

to the man at Bethesda.

“God’s arm is not too short that it cannot save.” But sinning is not sup-

posed to be an option, despite the inevitable forgiveness we will receive from

our Creator.

Prayer

“Abba, almost all sin feels good for a while. Please lead

me into the truth of where that life leads and how it

separates me from You. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”