Stand Firm Day by Day

[Anja]

Prepare for Takeoff

Be strengthened by the Lord and by His vast strength. (Eph. 6:10)

Launching Out
By the time a space mission takes place, astronauts have gone through hundreds of simulated launches and landings and virtually everything else in between. Ron Garan, who flew into space on the shuttle Discovery, says that because so many things can go wrong during launch, most of their training—as much as 90 percent—is focused around that one phase of the flight.

That’s an interesting ratio, especially when it appears on the first page of a new devotional book, whether you’re starting out on New Year’s Day or at any new beginning point during any season on the calendar of your life. Starting right is way more than half the battle.
Gearing Up

So as you prepare for the 365 days that stretch out ahead of you, take this opportunity to look at more than just your quiet-time habits. Do you need to forgive anybody? Is your schedule set up to allow some space for both necessary rest and unexpected intrusions? Are you withholding anything from God’s reach—a particular habit or attitude or some other treasured entitlement?

Is your heart as open and ready as it can possibly be, expecting this to be the most positive, most powerful year of change and spiritual growth you’ve experienced in a long time?

Ephesians 6:13 says to “take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having prepared everything, to take your stand.” If you’re serious about starting right, there’s a good chance you’re going places.

Bottom Line
This is more than just a new day. It’s the start of something special in your life.


Stand Firm Day by Day: Let Nothing Move You

 

[Anja]

Responding to Hurt

As the One who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct. (1 Pet. 1:15)

A Worldly Response
Have you ever been hurt? A friend betrays you. A coach cuts you. A company fires you. A girlfriend rejects you. Your wife walks out on you. Those closest to us can hurt us the deepest.

What is your typical response to these kinds of rejections? Do you want to hurt them back? Physically attack them? Seek revenge? See them in court? If no one could possibly know you were behind it, would you key their car? Slash their tires? Send incriminating letters to their boss and friends? Take measures to reveal their sins publicly? The prevailing thought in the world system around us is to get even, to hit back, to make those pay who hurt us.

A Christian’s Response
The Christians living in ancient Rome knew hurt. They were enduring the wrath of Emperor Nero, who accused the Christian community of starting a fire in Rome that they didn’t start. They were on the receiving end of some extremely painful abuse, and they likely wanted to attack their attackers, persecute their persecutors, and hurt the ones hurting them.

But the apostle Peter told them (and us) that Christians don’t respond that way. He says we are “to be holy in all [our] conduct.” The word holy means “distinct, separate, not the same, out of the ordinary, unusual.”

When the hurts come, and they will, a Christian responds with love, grace, humility, and forgiveness. In this way we reflect the nature of Jesus. In this way we are different.

Bottom Line
Believers in Christ have been commanded to live lives of holiness even when people hurt us. Is your response different?


Stand Firm Day by Day: Let Nothing Move You

 

[Anja]

Snow Days

A Sabbath rest remains for God’s people. For the person who has entered His rest has rested from his own works, just as God did from His. (Heb. 4:9–10)

The Consequences
Several catastrophic accidents in recent century—Three Mile Island, the fatal navigational error of Korean Air Lines 007, Chernobyl, Exxon Valdez—each occurred in the middle of the night with fatigue-stressed operators. That’s probably not just a coincidence.
When we ignore our need for rest, we do so at the peril of others and ourselves. When we don’t rest, we lose our way. We miss the compass points that show us where to go. We make faulty judgments. We miss the solitude that gives us wisdom. Consequently, our lives become endangered. Failure to take time to rest can be costly.

The Benefits
Rest is not optional. Rest was never meant to be a luxury but rather a necessity for growth, maturity, and health. We don’t rest because our work is done; we rest because God created our physical, emotional, and spiritual components with a need for breaks.
When you were a child and woke up to a large, overnight snowfall, you probably hopped out of bed and immediately turned on the radio or TV to see if school was called off. When it was canceled, you rejoiced. You had a free day, completely unplanned, in which you could do anything you wanted. It was a gift. The gift of rest.

Determine to plan your own snow days, a weekly time off from your responsibilities, to rest your body and to recharge your soul.

Bottom Line
Rest is not optional. God graciously commands it.


Stand Firm Day by Day: Let Nothing Move You

 

[Anja]

Tight Turns

If you respond to my warning, then I will pour out my spirit on you and teach you my words. (Prov. 1:23)

Turning From
Have you ever been challenged by the sharp turn of an unexpected curve in the highway? Were you daydreaming or driving a little above the speed limit? Were you on your cell phone or taking a sip of coffee? Was it a close call? Did your reflexes jerk the steering wheel too far? Whatever the circumstances, we’ve all been shocked by the hairpin curves of country highways or the sharp curves that life can throw at us sometimes.

Pete Seeger’s number-one hit song of the 1960s was “Turn, Turn, Turn,” based on the opening verses of Ecclesiastes 3. Turning is a common biblical principle. We usually think of it as turning from something—from sin, from temptation, from selfishness, from idolatry, from laziness. This turning away is what Jesus means when He tells sinners they must repent (see Luke 13:3).

Turning To
We might first think of turning as a turning away from something, but we also need to focus on the positive side of turning. When we turn away from one thing, we’re always turning toward another. So when we turn away from sin (when we repent), we’re also turning toward Jesus. When we turn away from selfishness, we turn and start serving others. God wants us to replace the old way of sin and self with the new way of righteousness and love. This is always a turning away, as well as a turning to.

Bottom Line
See if there’s something you need to turn away from, then concentrate on the positive side of what you’re turning toward.

Stand Firm Day by Day: Let Nothing Move You

 

[Anja]

Can You Be Bothered?

When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for a number of days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven. (Neh. 1:4)

The Reaction to the Problem
Nobody likes to hear bad news, but it often comes rushing in like an unexpected downpour. Nehemiah experienced that. In short order he was told that the walls of Jerusalem were crumbling, the holy city was a wreck, and the people were suffering from a severe lack of leadership.
When he heard this dismal report, Nehemiah had two choices. One, he could toss up his hands in despair and say, “What can I do? I’m only one guy!” Or two, he could allow the news to move him to action. As we know, Nehemiah chose option two and led the people to rebuild the walls. The fact that countless books have been written and numerous sermons preached lauding Nehemiah’s leadership skills suggests he made the right choice.

The Response to the Problem
Nehemiah’s choice is our choice, too. We can choose to ignore problems and harden our hearts to the things of most importance to God, or we can choose to make ourselves available for whatever role He would have us play in making things better. It’s all about our hearts. A calloused heart builds up an immunity to suffering and avoids inconvenient problems. A tender heart, on the other hand, not only sees the need but surrenders with compassion to the will of God, becoming an active solution to the problem. Which kind of heart do you have?

Bottom Line
God has put you in a position to help meet some of the needs of our world. Are you making yourself available to Him?


Stand Firm Day by Day: Let Nothing Move You

 

[Anja]

Singing Her Praises

Let her works praise her at the city gates. (Prov. 31:31)

Just Say It

The final chapter of Proverbs extols the virtues of a wife and mother who is a woman of character and whose truest and deepest beauty lasts. Her deeds are to be praised “at the city gates”—that is, people will openly talk about what a blessing she is to her husband and family.
Well, let the praise start with you. Take time today to mentally enumerate the many things your wife does that are worthy of praise. Then speak of those things often. Point them out to your kids within earshot of your wife. Verbalize that you appreciate who she is and what she does. Don’t just assume she knows it. Even if she does, she needs to keep hearing it from you.

Words Have Power

Ongoing affirmation is vital to the health of your marriage. Even if you don’t consider yourself the verbal type, your wife really needs to hear words of praise coming from you. Sometimes guys feel the feelings but forget to say the words. Make it a point to tell your wife, out of the blue, something you appreciate about her. Say it in terms of who she is as well as what she does. And brag on her to others. One big way guys can honor their wives is by speaking to others of her qualities.

Honest praise enriches marriage. When a man publicly and sincerely tells others, “I have the most incredible wife,” he is touching her heart and bolstering the strength of his marriage.

Bottom Line
Words of praise should water your marriage like the rain regularly waters the earth.


Stand Firm Day by Day: Let Nothing Move You