NO WORRIES IN A YEAR OF DROUGHT

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream…It has no worries in a year of drought…” Jeremiah 17:7-8c

Trees were not plentiful in Israel and most grew by sources of water like an oasis or a stream. Jeremiah’s simile indicates a person with confidence in the Lord is like a deep-rooted tree by the stream which has nothing to worry about even when a whole year goes by with no rain.

A young Christian boy in Iraq shares this insight after the bombing of his church in late 2010:

Replace Your Fears With Faith

by Jon Walker

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22–23 (NIV)

God supplies more and more and more of his love today, tomorrow, and forever. The prophet Jeremiah says God’s merciful love never fails. His love is like a bottomless cup of coffee served fresh every morning.

Since God’s compassion starts fresh every morning, you will never reach a point where his love runs out. This means you can never blow it so bad that God will abandon you. He is the God-of-second-chances. If you’re uncertain that God can (or has) forgiven you for things you did in the past, ask him to help you replace your fears with faith.

Firmly Fixed : Great is his faithfulness

Written by Kristi Huseby

Do you feel like your dreams are lost? Come pray with a mentor.

“He shall not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is firmly fixed, trusting (leaning on and being confident) in the Lord.” (Psalm 112:7, Amplified Bible)

What does it mean for my heart to be “firmly fixed”? I confess, my heart has a tendency to live by its feelings. I hear a scary news broadcast and I immediately begin to worry about the future. I don’t see God answering my prayers the way I think He should and then doubt that He is good. I have a difficult conversation with my husband and immediately go to the long laundry list of things he’s done wrong over the years. I begin my day with God but then don’t give Him another thought. I see a beautiful jacket at the store and impulsively buy it even though we don’t have the money.

Why do I live by my feelings? Why is my heart not “firmly fixed” on God alone? I want to live that way but find my heart to be capricious. Could it be that I don’t really trust God the way I say I do? Have I taken my eyes off of what is true and focused on my feelings instead?

WILL CHRISTIANS WHO COMMIT SUICIDE GO TO HEAVEN?

Serge Roux-Levrat

As the number of suicide increases dramatically in the developed countries, both in the traditional sense, as well as in assisted suicide, many Christians are wondering what happens to believers who take their lives. As always, theologians are divided on this key question. However, if we look at it from the only angle we can – that of love and hope – we will find out that the answer is much more obvious than we think.

Golgotha: Were You There?

Dr. Ray Pritchard

“They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull)" (Mark 15:22).

It’s Friday morning, 9 A.M. Killing time in Jerusalem.

Outside the Damascus Gate is a road and on the other side of the road is a flat area near the spot where the prophet Jeremiah is buried. Up above you can see a rocky outcropping that, if studied at a certain angle, looks like a skull. Eroded into the limestone are two sockets for the eyes, a place for the nose and maybe a place for the mouth.

Skull Hill, they called it. Golgotha.

Consider these three words from Mark 15:25, “They crucified him.” The word “they” speaks of the people who crucified our Lord. The “they” included the Romans, the Jews, and it includes you and me. We all had our share in the death of Jesus.

The word “crucified” speaks of the painful death he suffered. Crucifixion was the ultimate punishment in that day. It represented the final judgment of the world on Jesus: “This man deserves to die.” Though he had done no wrong, They crucified him anyway.

The word “him” speaks of the person who died that day. This was no ordinary man. As the centurion cried out when Jesus died, “Surely, this was the Son of God!”

I heard a story recently about a man who visited Golgotha and the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem. Overwhelmed, he began to weep. “Have you ever been here before?” someone asked. “Oh, yes,” he replied. “I was here 2000 years ago.”

The song Were You There? asks a question we ought to ponder today:

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Where you there when they crucified my Lord?
Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

Lord Jesus, we tremble to think of what you endured for our salvation. May we never be ashamed of Jesus or what he did for us so long ago. Amen.

  

You can reach the author at ray@keepbelieving.com. Click here to sign up for the free email sermon.

About Dr. Ray Pritchard

Dr. Ray Pritchard is the president of Keep Believing Ministries, in Internet-based ministry serving Christians in 225 countries. He is the author of 27 books, including Stealth Attack, Fire and Rain, Credo, The Healing Power of Forgiveness, An Anchor for the Soul and Why Did This Happen to Me? Ray and Marlene, his wife of 37 years, have three sons-Josh, Mark and Nick, two daughters-in-law--Leah and Vanessa, and two grandsons--Knox and Eli. His hobbies include biking, surfing the Internet, and anything related to the Civil War.