What would motivate you to invest more of your resources in G.o.d's work?

"Success is doing the very best I can every chance I get with what I have for a purpose that is bigger than I am and that will outlive me."-IKE REIGHARD

JULY 19.

G.o.d'S WILL FOR EVERY MOMENT

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of G.o.d in Christ Jesus for you.

1 THESSALONIANS 5:16-18.

SOME OF US are more emotional than others. We ride a roller coaster of highs and lows in our hopes and expectations. When we're up, we're on top of the world, but when we're down, we're a step away from being suicidal! Other people are more consistent in their emotional composition, but they miss out on the thrill of experiencing true joy. Whatever our personality and emotional makeup, however, G.o.d's will for all of us is to focus our hearts so completely on Him that we constantly and consistently rejoice, pray, and thank Him. To experience true joy, some of us need to avoid letting our emotions rule our lives, but others need to add a little s.p.u.n.k to their emotions.

The moods of most people around us each day are heavily influenced-if not completely dictated-by the circ.u.mstances of life. Christians, though, are different. The grace of G.o.d and His mercy, love, and strength can dominate our minds and hearts so completely that circ.u.mstances don't dominate us. Even when life seems totally unfair, we focus on G.o.d's kindness and forgiveness and we find genuine contentment. Instead of focusing on our problems and trying to fix them ourselves, we turn to G.o.d, casting all our cares on Him (see 1 Peter 5:7), and we remember to pray for others who need G.o.d's help.

In every situation, good or bad, we give thanks-not for the problems we face, but for G.o.d's presence with us in the midst of those problems and for the hope that G.o.d will use them somehow to accomplish good things.

G.o.d's will isn't too complicated. First and foremost, it's looking to Him and letting His character fill our minds and our hearts every moment of every day.

Rate yourself on a scale of zero (zip) to ten (doing great, thank you!) in focusing on G.o.d during difficult times in your life.

What are some situations you face today in which you need to rejoice, pray, and give thanks? What difference will it make?

"The Bible does say, 'Pray without ceasing,' but I don't see where it says you have to stop working in order to pray. As a matter of fact, I believe that anybody who can walk and chew gum at the same time can work and pray at the same time."-ZIG ZIGLAR

JULY 20.

GOLDEN RULE.

Whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

MATTHEW 7:12.

EVERY MAJOR RELIGION has its own version of the Golden Rule. Does this fact minimize its importance? Not at all. It shows that G.o.d has put it in the hearts of people everywhere to realize this foundational principle of life: If we want to be treated with respect and love, we need to treat others that way first.

The principle seems so simple, but we see it violated every day. All of us long to be accepted-it's the first and foremost desire of every human heart-but we make a sport of behaviors that tear down, rip apart, crush, ignore, and ridicule people around us. Most of us don't actually abuse others. We're too sophisticated for that. Instead, we use gossip, sarcasm, and silence to insert the knife when people don't suspect anything. If we're caught, we say, "Hey, I was just kidding!"

Living by the Golden Rule involves a series of conscious choices to initiate kindness, respect, honor, words of affirmation, and patience to proclaim to someone, "You matter to me!" If we make radical acceptance of others a central value in our lives, amazing things will happen. First, some of the people who know us best will need to recover from shock, but after a short while, they'll realize they don't have to protect themselves from us anymore, and they'll relax. Then, slowly but surely, they'll begin to give back the acceptance they've received from us. That's how it works. It's not all that hard, really.

Who is the person you know who most lives by the Golden Rule?

What can you do today to take steps to implement it for yourself? Be specific.

"Man must cease attributing his problems to his environment, and learn again to exercise his will-his personal responsibility in the realm of faith and morals."-ALBERT SCHWEITZER

JULY 21.

ETERNAL PATIENCE.

The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

2 PETER 3:9.

WHEN WE READ about Christ's coming back to earth, the power and majesty of the scene boggles our minds. We envision Him on a cloud with trumpets blaring and believers, dead and alive, defying gravity to join Him in the air. We imagine Him returning to earth as the Warrior who slays His enemies, and we can see Him taking the throne in Jerusalem to rule on earth. During Christ's thousand-year rule, amazing things will happen. Nature will be turned upside down-the lion will lie down with the lamb.

"Come on back!" we plead. However, we may be ready, but others aren't. One of the reasons Christ postpones His return is to give more people an opportunity to respond to the message of grace. We care about the lost people we know in our families and neighborhoods, but G.o.d longs for every heart around the world to turn to Him. He is saying, "Not yet. I'm not ready to come because there are still more people who haven't heard, and more who haven't trusted in Me. Not now. Not yet. But it won't be long."

When Christ returns, wrongs will be made right, and G.o.d's faithful people will be honored. Our hearts long for G.o.d's justice and grace to rule throughout the world, but G.o.d has a higher priority. He delays judgment for sinners and honor for saints so that more lost people can be found. The delay we endure is a small price to pay for an eternity of forgiveness, peace, and joy for even one more person. And we suspect it'll be a lot more than one who responds.

Do you long for Christ's return? Why or why not?

From your perspective, is the delay reasonable and fair?

"When you turn to G.o.d, you discover He has been facing you all the time."-ZIG ZIGLAR

JULY 22.

HAVING THE WISDOM TO ASK FOR WISDOM.

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of G.o.d, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

JAMES 1:5.

CORPORATIONS HIRE CONSULTANTS for any and all management needs, and executive coaches a.s.sist leaders to take steps forward in their personal lives and careers. In the business world, we readily recognize the need for outside a.s.sistance. We want feedback, we want the infusion of new ideas, and we want accountability. These are exactly what G.o.d promises if we'll just ask Him for them.

Why is it that G.o.d and the Scriptures are the last places some of us look for wisdom? When a problem comes along, we read books, call friends, and scour the Internet for articles related to our need. We expect this approach from those who don't know Christ, but Christians have the greatest resource the universe has ever known: G.o.d Himself.

Certainly, we can learn a lot from seminars and books, from marriage and family workshops, and from fitness experts. But our first, most important, and most powerful source of wisdom is G.o.d. He is just waiting for us to turn (finally) to Him, to express our need, to search the Scriptures to find out what He has already said about an issue, and to invite His Spirit to guide us.

When we hire a consultant, we receive a promise for services to be rendered. G.o.d's promise is that He will pour out His wisdom "liberally" when we ask, and "without reproach," that is, without condemning us for getting into trouble in the first place. Can it get any better than that?

How is G.o.d's promise to give us wisdom like and unlike hiring a consultant or coach?

How do you need G.o.d's wisdom to guide you today? Ask Him for it.

"Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom."-CHARLES HADDON SPURGEON "G.o.d sees everything at once and knows what you are called to do. Our part is not to play G.o.d, but to trust G.o.d-to believe that our single, solitary life can make a difference."-ZIG ZIGLAR

JULY 23.

THE LAW OF RECIPROCITY.

The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters will also be watered himself.

PROVERBS 11:25.

THERE ARE PLENTY OF TIMES when life confuses us, but G.o.d has orchestrated the world so that many things are amazingly predictable. The laws of nature include cycles of weather and rhythms of planting and harvest. In human relationships, too, we find easily identifiable principles at work. One of these principles is the law of reciprocity: People get back what they give out.

The book of Proverbs contains a number of examples of this law. Anger expressed results in angry replies, and kindness offered is rewarded with kindness received. The way we handle our resources, too, produces reciprocal responses. Here and in other pa.s.sages in the Old and New Testaments, we find the remarkable principle that generosity will be rewarded in kind. To make the point crystal clear, Solomon, in the verse above, says the same thing in two different ways.

To guard against a selfish, mechanistic approach, Solomon includes the small but crucial element: "The generous soul will be made rich." G.o.d wants his people to be generous at the deepest level of their hearts, caring for people and His Kingdom instead of looking for a great return on an investment. A great return is promised, but only for those who give with willing, gracious, full hearts of thankfulness. Those who give generously and gladly don't care as much about the promise of return. They are far more interested in using their resources to make a difference. If the return takes a while, they aren't fl.u.s.tered, and if G.o.d takes them through a time of difficulty, they accept, like Job, both blessing and adversity.

The law of reciprocity is a principle G.o.d inst.i.tuted to bless us, but He's more interested in the att.i.tude of our hearts than the numbers on a check.

Why is it important for our hearts to be right when we give generously?

How is the law of reciprocity working out for you? Any changes needed?

"Goodness is the only investment that never fails."-HENRY DAVID Th.o.r.eAU

JULY 24.

TAKE A REALLY GOOD LOOK.

Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first."

JOHN 8:6-7.

THE MOMENT WAS FULL of equal parts drama and comedy. A woman had been caught in the act of adultery, and the crowd wanted Jesus to condemn her. They had stones in hand, ready to execute the death sentence. They glared at Jesus to see what He would do, and suddenly, He stooped to the ground and began doodling in the dirt! What in the world was He doing?

They were confused and outraged, but the ones in the front near Jesus were the first to notice what He was writing in the dirt. Nudges and whispers made their way through the crowd as men probably saw something they never expected to see that day: their own sins written in plain sight on the ground. But the men wouldn't quit. They still wanted to see the woman die for her sins. Then Jesus stood up, looked at the men, and said, "Sure, stone her, but let the one without sin throw the first stone."

In our lives, we often want people who sin against us to pay for what they've done. We hold stones of condemnation and gossip in our hands, and we can't wait to let them sail! Sometimes, though, Jesus writes in the dirt of our souls, "Do you remember when you were so selfish? It's no different from what that person did to you. Now, do you still want to blast away to get revenge?"

When we take a good look inside ourselves, we realize that we're guilty too. So maybe we should put our rocks down and walk away.

Is there anyone you'd like to stone today?