Daily Devotions

[Berean]

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Here is the Daily Devotional

A TIME TO LAUGH

The world record for someone continuously laughing is held by Belachew Girma from Ethiopia. He laughed without taking a break for three hours and six minutes. Ethiopia is often not a country filled with lots of laughter and smiles. It has been plagued by drought and poverty. Belachew suffered from his own disasters as well. He was a drug addict and an alcoholic. His life spiraled downward until he was ready to commit suicide.

What turned him around was finding a Bible and also a book that encouraged laughter as a form of therapy. Mr. Girma used to laugh while under the influence of drugs. But now his infectious chuckling from joy has so changed his life that he has actually opened Girma’s School of Laughter to teach others how to laugh.

Did you know there are websites that teach you how to fake a laugh? First you are supposed to get into the spirit by reading some jokes. Then you practice laughing, whether you feel like it or not. You can cover your mouth, which is supposed to help. And, of course, if you are caught laughing when you don’t really mean it, you should just change the subject.
Why do people laugh when they don’t really mean it? It’s probably because we don’t want to hurt other people’s feelings. If someone tells a joke and you don’t think it’s funny, you might laugh just to be polite. What’s sad is how well it works. Many people think they’re funny or smart when the truth is that others are simply not honest about what they are thinking.

Not all laughter is healing. Some people who laugh on the outside are not genuinely happy at all. There are shallow and cheap forms of entertainment, jokes that are crude, and gossip that makes fun of others that will cause some people to laugh. But in the end, hearts might still be empty and hurting. The Bible teaches us that there are times for laughter and times for crying (Ecclesiastes 3:4).

Solomon tells us that not all laughter is genuine. Sometimes when we hear other people laugh, we might assume everything is okay, but deep down inside a person might be in distress. Other times people laugh as a way to avoid facing a difficulty in their life. Turning away from certain problems, like an addiction or other sinful habit, will eventually increase our sorrow and grief. Wisdom knows the difference in our laughing.

Additional reading: Proverbs 14:1–19
KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness. Proverbs 14:13 

God bless

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[Berean]

God bless

[Berean]

Hi to all

 

Here is the Daily Devotional

 

SAND TIGER SHARKS

Sand tiger sharks, also known as ragged-tooth sharks, have a deceivingly ferocious look. They are large-bodied sharks up to 10 feet long that display a menacing mouthful of razor-sharp teeth that protrude in all directions, even when their mouth is shut.

Despite their fierce appearance they are a docile, non-aggressive species, only attacking humans in self-defense. Sand tiger sharks have another unique feature. We have all seen the ominous picture of a shark dorsal fin cutting the surface when on the prowl. Sand tiger sharks actually have a second large dorsal fin on their backs.

From a distance, some who thought they spotted two sharks really saw one sand tiger shark. They also possess another highly unusual feature in sharks—a rudimentary swim bladder. This enables them to have exquisite control over their buoyancy compared with other sharks. When hunting they will swim to the surface, gulping and burping air that they store in their stomachs until they achieve neutral buoyancy. This behavior allows the sand tiger shark to hover nearly motionless in the water as they hunt for prey.
The most bizarre feature of these ragged-tooth sharks is how they are born. Although a dozen eggs might develop after mating, during the 9- to 12-month gestation period the two strongest pups will kill and feed on their remaining siblings, while still within the mother! This grisly process is called “intrauterine cannibalism.” At birth, the surviving pups are already more than three feet long, and you could accurately say they are born killers!

Did you know the Bible talks about a breed of professed Christians who bite and devour their own siblings? “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!” (Galatians 5:14, 15). Jealousy and anger led Cain to destroy his own brother. Murder truly is the end result of all selfishness and sin.
KEY BIBLE TEXTS
And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. Genesis 4:8 

God bless

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[Berean]

 

Hi to all

 

Here is the Daily Devotional

JOHN WESLEY  

 

In 1703, John Wesley was born into the “family business.” Rev. Samuel Wesley was the rector (administrator) of the Anglican church in Epworth, England. John and his younger brother Charles were raised to go into the ministry just as their father had.

For John, that career path almost didn’t happen. In 1709, when John was still five years old, the rectory where his family lived caught fire and the lad was trapped in an upper bedroom. A parishioner, standing on another man’s shoulders, rescued John from the fire. Later, Wesley would refer to himself as “a brand plucked out of the fire,” quoting Zechariah 3:2.

In 1720, Wesley became a student at Christ Church college in Oxford, graduating in 1724. He was ordained the following year and eventually served as a parish priest in London. He went to America in 1735, along with Charles, to serve the new settlement in what is today’s state of Georgia, returning two years later. Throughout this period, Wesley often just went through the motions of his religion. He saw the Moravians, German pietists, during his voyage to America and marveled at their faith and dedication. He could preach and see people come to faith in Christ, but he lacked assurance of his own salvation.
On the evening of May 24, 1738, John Wesley’s life was to change forever. That morning, he’d read the words in 2 Peter 1:4 and noticed similar phrases elsewhere in Scripture. That evening, Wesley attended a meeting in the Aldersgate. At about 8:45 p.m., as the speaker read from Luther’s treatise on the book of Romans, God’s love broke through: “While he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death.”

Wesley’s pastoral career took a different direction after Aldersgate. He preached personal holiness, brought forward the Arminian teaching that a saved person could be lost, and attracted followers who in turn preached the Wesleyan message throughout England and beyond. The lad literally “plucked out of the fire” lived a life that God used to change the world.

Reflect: How has the desire for holiness affected your life and approach to faith? Find a “great and precious promise” from the Bible and memorize it today.

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 2 Peter 1:4

God bless

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[Berean]

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Here is the Daily Devotional

NATHANAEL SEE FOR YOURSELF

According to Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, this disciple brought the gospel to the entire country of India before being martyred by crucifixion. Also known as Bartholomew, Nathanael was one of Jesus’ 12 apostles. But before he became an apostle, Nathanael was a Jew who fervently believed in the Scriptures. Like many, he had expectations of the promised Messiah. The Anointed One was to be their Savior and their King—mighty, majestic, magnificent. What pomp and circumstance would herald Him? What glorious victories would trail Him?

When his friend Philip told him that the Messiah was none other than Jesus of Nazareth, Nathanael was skeptical. The promised Messiah—from an insignificant village not more than a few miles from his own hometown of Cana? “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46) he replied scornfully.

But Philip did not try to convince him with reason or debate. He merely pointed straight to the source by bidding him, “Come and see.” At this point Nathanael could have dismissed Philip’s news as a waste of time. But he did not. His faith outweighed his prejudice. He followed his friend.
As they arrived, Jesus, knowing full well what Nathanael had said to Philip, called to him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit” (v. 47). Nathanael was stunned. He did not know this Man; how could this Man know him? But Jesus knew Nathanael intimately. He knew that Nathanael earnestly desired to follow His Savior. As truly as God counts each hair on our heads, Jesus had seen Nathanael under the fig tree (v. 48). Instantly, Nathanael believed. He had experienced Jesus personally. Nathanael knew from that moment on that Jesus, though He could not have looked less like a king (Isaiah 53:2), was “the Son of God” (John 1:49).

And Jesus, in turn, affirmed his faith, giving to Nathanael a clear illustration of His purpose on earth: “Hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man” (v. 51). And Nathanael ended up giving his life that others might believe in that truth—in Jesus Christ our mediator, our ladder (Genesis 28:12), our only way between earth and heaven (John 14:6).

Reflect: Do you tell rather than show? Nathanael was converted when he saw for himself who the Messiah was. A firsthand experience is more convicting than the most eloquent argument for God.

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. Psalm 34:8 

 

God bless

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[Berean]

Hi to all

Here is the Daily Devotional

 

GLOWING HUMANS

Did you know that as you are reading this right now you are glowing? That’s right; it has recently been discovered that human bodies emit a visible light in extremely small quantities at levels that rise and fall through the day. Research has shown that this light is about 1,000 times fainter than the levels we can see with our naked eyes.

In fact, virtually all living creatures emit varying amounts of weak light, which is thought to be a byproduct of biochemical reactions involving free radicals. This light is different from the red glow of body heat captured by infrared cameras. In fact, infrared cameras show some of the hottest body parts give off very little light.

To learn more about this light, scientists in Japan used extremely sensitive cameras capable of detecting a single photon, the smallest unit of light. For three days, five healthy young men were placed bare-chested in front of the cameras. They sat in perfectly dark, light-proof rooms for 20 minutes every three hours from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The researchers found the body glow of the men rose and fell over the day, with its lowest point at 10 a.m. and its peak at 4 p.m.

To learn more about this light, scientists in Japan used extremely sensitive cameras capable of detecting a single photon, the smallest unit of light. For three days, five healthy young men were placed bare-chested in front of the cameras. They sat in perfectly dark, light-proof rooms for 20 minutes every three hours from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The researchers found the body glow of the men rose and fell over the day, with its lowest point at 10 a.m. and its peak at 4 p.m.

The findings suggest these light emissions are linked to our fluctuating metabolic rhythms. Since this faint light is linked with metabolism, these findings suggest that in the future special cameras that can spot a person’s light emissions may help identify medical conditions. It was also discovered that our faces glow more than the rest of the body, possibly because facial circulation is more dense and closer to the surface.

Did you know the Bible also speaks about a man with a glowing face? It says that when Moses came down from the mountain after speaking with God, “the skin of his face shone” (Exodus 34:30).

Spend time with God and you will emit a spiritual glow. With His help we can become lights in the darkness, reflecting the “true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world” (John 1:9).
KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Matthew 5:14-16  

Amen!

 

God bless 

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[Berean]

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Here Is the Daily Devotional

 

JERRY A NEW BEGINNING

Jerry was a third-generation member of a Sabbath-keeping church, but fell away from the faith in his teenage years after seeing the personal failings of some youth leaders. As many who run away from the Lord discover, life was not kind to Jerry.

“I became an alcoholic and started smoking,” he recalls. Later in life, he quit both of these habits. Though overcoming those addictions was admirable, Jerry was still addicted to his work. “I was a workaholic, working sometimes three jobs at a time,” he says. A neck injury resulted in surgery and eventually Jerry had to stop working due to his disability. “I became extremely depressed and at times blamed God for what happened in my life.” He compared himself to Job, the Bible figure whose family and fortune were upended by an attack of Satan.

Jerry says, “I hit rock bottom.” He attempted to harm his wife and older son, then later tried to end his own life. After eight days in a mental health facility, he asked for a pastor to visit. A Sabbath-keeping pastor answered his call. “God entered my life again at that point,” Jerry says. “With the pastor’s help I started studying the Bible again. I decided I wanted to live and get better.”
A key turning point was studying the Amazing Facts Bible Study Guides and watching the Landmarks of Prophecy series by Pastor Doug Batchelor. “Landmarks really opened my eyes and helped me to remember why we need to turn our eyes to God,” he explains. Jerry made a commitment to be re- baptized, dedicating his life to God and spreading His Word.

“Pastor Doug’s straightforward presentations also made an impression on me,” Jerry says. “He was honest, he didn’t preach brimstone and fire, and he read all the facts from the Bible. There were no opinions given, just facts.” Jerry was re-baptized and reconnected to God’s family with a new life and lifestyle. “I am now eating healthier. I have a very loving wife, and she has been right by my side through this whole ordeal.”

A man who once had problems at home and attempted to take his own life now has a higher calling. “I have dedicated my life to God, I spread God’s Word every chance I get,” Jerry says.

Reflect: Do you know someone who has turned from God? Don’t give up on them; there is hope for every person. Pray earnestly for them to return to the Lord.
KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17  

God bless
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[Berean]

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Here is the Daily Devotional

WYATT THE KID WHO BECAME A SATANIST, PART 1

It could be argued the deck was stacked against Wyatt virtually from the day he was born: two parents who’d soon split up, no discipline at either of the subsequent homes, practically no spiritual foundation.

Instead of seeking a way to surmount his circumstances, the young boy from Missouri channeled his insecurities into negative action: petty theft, small- scale vandalism, “acting out” whenever the opportunity presented itself, such as an early addiction to cigarette smoking, as well as adopting a “Goth” lifestyle of black clothing, face paint, black eyeshadow, and nail polish.

That soon escalated to drug use and more rebellion. Because he’d be up all night partying, he’d fall asleep in school, earning horrible grades. His dress, lifestyle, and demeanor further alienated young Wyatt from many of his peers, except for other “Goths” and the Satanists he eventually encountered and aligned with.

“I always felt judged by Christians and I never liked them. Even though my mom would send me to church occasionally, as a kid I never felt I belonged there,” Wyatt would later recall. “But among the Satanists and when I was involved in Wicca and witchcraft and the Goth group, I felt welcomed, I felt accepted. They didn’t judge me for my curly hair or my weirdness that I had or my music I listened to,” he added.
Eventually, Wyatt’s petty crimes and drug infractions escalated to a point where the legal system could no longer ignore him. He was sentenced to a drug rehabilitation program. Along with exercise, hikes, classes, and groups, one activity was designed to “scare straight” those in the program: a visit to a state prison. But it didn’t turn him around. Instead, Wyatt rebelled, stabbing a counselor seriously enough for him to be charged with first degree assault and armed criminal action. The sentence was 20 years in jail.

Once “in the system,” Wyatt continued to rebel, spurning his mother’s pleas to read the Bible and turn his life around. Wyatt had the “Satanic Bible,” he reasoned, and the Christian stuff wasn’t true, anyway. But one day Wyatt picked up an actual Christian Bible and began to read. What happened next stunned Wyatt—and those around him.

Reflect: Wyatt’s rebellion landed him in serious trouble. Do you know someone in a similar situation, or have you experienced it yourself? The best next step is to pick up a Bible and start reading it.

KEY BIBLE TEXTS

Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished. Proverbs 16:5  

God bless
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[Berean]

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Here is the Daily Devotional

 

WYATT THE KID WHO BECAME A SATANIST, PART 2  

Do they have any Bibles there?” Wyatt’s mother asked her son during one of their brief phone conversations. He was in juvenile detention, charged with first degree assault and armed criminal action, facing the prospect of decades behind bars. “And, son, would you read it?” she added.

Convinced by his Satanist colleagues—and the Satanist “Bible” he read—that the Christian Bible was a book of lies, fables, and contradictions, Wyatt didn’t have the heart to tell his mother he wouldn’t comply. Instead, he uttered a non-committal, “We’ll see,” and left it at that.

Wyatt walked past the detention center’s bookshelf daily to and from the showers. He saw a Bible on the shelf and it irritated him. Finally, Wyatt grabbed a copy and took it back to his cell. He was determined to confirm his prejudices and prove these Scriptures a fraud, once and for all.

Something happened, however, that stunned Wyatt. As he read the real Bible, he found people to whom he could relate, stories that spoke to his heart. Of special interest was the story of David, anointed to be Israel’s next king, but still dealing with King Saul, who in madness sought to kill David. In 1 Samuel 24, Wyatt read how David spared Saul’s life, and that gesture touched him. In fact, Wyatt knelt and gave his heart to God that moment.

With a Bible and a small radio, Wyatt continued to search for truth. One day he “stumbled” across a program called Bible Answers Live while listening to his radio. It was hard to get good reception at first—the station was 500 miles away—so he would stand on his metal bunk and hold his portable radio over his head against the three-inch-thick window merely to hear the broadcast.

Since he could not call in to the program himself, Wyatt prayed his questions would be answered during the weekly broadcasts. Many times they were, but sometimes he learned new things that he had never heard before. Released from prison six years ahead of schedule, Wyatt Allen attended the Amazing Facts Center of Evangelism (AFCOE) program, became an evangelist, and now shares God’s truth with others. God is good, all the time!

Reflect: Wyatt went from a self-hating, face-painting teenager to a man with a transformed life. He and his wife Jenni are now parents and travel across the country, and it’s thanks to the power of God’s Word!

KEY BIBLE TEXTS

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23 

God bless 

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[Berean]

 

Hi to all.

 

Here is the Daily Devotional

 

THIRSTING FOR TRUTH  

 

An adult human body is made up of approximately 70 percent water. The recommended water intake is about eight cups per day, though a healthy person can drink up to three gallons depending on the environment and activity. By the time a person feels thirsty, more than one percent of the total amount of water in the body has been lost. It is very difficult to drink too much water.

Although you can be seriously harmed and even killed by drinking too much water too quickly, it is rare. Water intoxication occurs when the amount of water coming into your body dilutes the sodium levels in your bloodstream and causes an imbalance of water in your brain. This happens mostly during periods of intense athletic activity because of the rapid loss and replenishing of water.

Most people do not drink too much water; they drink too little. Everyone has been thirsty at one time or another, and many people in the world do not have enough fresh water to drink on a regular basis. Most people would love to never thirst again. This was the case with the woman at the well in Samaria.

Christ promised her a kind of water that would keep her from thirsting again. He told her that God the Father desires honest worship from the heart, not from a specific location like Jerusalem. All “true” worshipers, according to Jesus, worship “in spirit and truth.” Such worship will spring forth into everlasting life. When we have Jesus, we will never spiritually thirst again.

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. Revelation 22:17

God bless 
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[Berean]

Hi to all

Here is the daily devotional

 

The little boy sat in the pew, his feet dangling off the floor. His tousled little head could barely see the priest on the platform in front of him. He stared curiously and shifted toward his mother. He wanted to know so many things about what the priest was doing and saying, and the questions tumbled eagerly from his lips. But in one swift motion, his mother pulled him from his seat and took him out of the church. His mother’s grip was hard, like iron. As the blows fell on him, he was reminded repeatedly that he was to be absolutely silent during mass.

Brian was born into a Catholic family—to a father whom he rarely saw and a mother who regularly beat him and his siblings. And when the children reached the age of 15 or 16, they were considered adults and were expected to leave home. Brian also knew about alcohol and parties. His parents would drink and turn their home into a dancehall for themselves and their friends. “People were happy when they drank,” says Brian. So at 10 years old, Brian had his first drink. As a teenager, he smoked his first joint. Before he was 15, he had tried every drug he could find and was regularly smoking, drinking, and partying.

At 15, just like his other siblings had, he left home. He eventually married and had two children of his own. He began to verbally abuse his wife and continued in his addictions. And life went on this way, year after year, until Brian had become a middle-aged man. And life would have continued to go on this way had it not been for one long and lonely night—and a voice on the radio.

Brian was driving home from work one evening. There was nothing interesting on the radio at that time of night, just one bad song after another. He punched a button on his dashboard, automatically scanning through the stations. Bad song. Next station. Bad song. Next station. Then—“Do you want to hear an amazing fact?” called out a clear voice. “Yeah!” Brian said to his radio. And as he listened to the voice, it told a story he had never heard.

Reflect: Do you know someone who has a distorted picture of God? You might be a voice to share a true understanding of a loving heavenly Father who longs to redeem that person.

 

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:44

God bless

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[Berean]

Hi to all

Here is the Daily Devotional

BRIAN A VOICE ON THE RADIO, PART 2 

While driving home from work one evening, Brian stumbled onto a Christian radio program. As he listened to the voice, it told a story he had never heard. His hand stayed over the button on his dashboard. “You know there was another man who sacrificed everything for you?” the voice continued. Well, Brian had heard this story. This story meant terror and punishment and all things evil in the world. No thanks. “Jesus freak,” he thought to himself, and his finger reached for the button.

But then another voice came on. It had a cheery, lilting sort of accent. Brian hesitated. He realized the two voices were hosting some kind of call- in program about the Bible. The second voice gave out a phone number for people to ask their questions. People were calling about all kinds of questions— Bible verses, biblical concepts, God’s character, God’s actions, and passages they did not understand. Brian was stunned.

“Asking a question about God is a sin,” he thought. He once had the marks from his mother to prove it. But after every question, the first voice would answer the caller calmly, patiently, and always with more verses from the Bible. Sometimes the second voice would join in too. Brian listened, enrapt, to the full hour of Bible Answers Live—a program heard every week on radio stations all around the world.

“I learned more about God in that hour than I did in all the 12 years of Catholic school,” he shares. “I heard about a loving and caring God, even though I had turned my back on Him, He was ready to forgive me and help me redeem myself. I started to want not only to know Him, but I wanted a relationship with Him.”

From there, Brian began listening to more Amazing Facts programs. He downloaded the Amazing Facts app and read through all the Bible studies. He began studying the Bible for himself. He came to know those two voices— Pastor Doug Batchelor and Pastor Jëan Ross—very well. He has since dedicated his life to Jesus and has begun a journey with God that will last a lifetime and beyond, to eternity.

Reflect: Have you ever hesitated to ask a question about God? The Lord is open to any inquiry you may have, including your doubts or anger. Turn your heart heavenward and ask God anything. He will hear you.
KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not. Jeremiah 33:3

 

God bless

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[Berean]

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Here is the Daily Devotional

BIG EYES, SMALL BRAIN 

 

Ostriches once flourished throughout Africa; the majority now live in protected reserves on the continent’s east coast. Male African ostriches grow as high as nine feet tall and can weigh a hefty 345 pounds—making them the tallest and heaviest of all living birds. Ostriches live in family groups consisting of one male and several hens. During breeding season, each hen lays between two and 11 creamy white eggs in a communal nest, which is a hollowed-out crater in the ground about 10 feet across.

Eventually, these nests can contain up to 50 eggs each, but only about 20 can be successfully incubated. The eggs of the ostrich are the largest of any bird, measuring from six to eight inches long and weighing between two and four pounds. (The record is over five pounds!) An ostrich egg has the volume of about 24 chicken eggs, and though the shell is only 1.5 millimeters thick, it can hold the weight of a grown man.

They are not the smartest birds, yet the notion that they bury their heads in the sand is actually a myth. Sadly, these tallest, fastest, and biggest of birds also cannot fly, so they are easily farmed throughout the world for meat, feathers, and leather.

God teaches Job that He is Creator over all things, including the ostrich. The description given is all too accurate: “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly, But are her wings and pinions like the kindly stork’s?” (Job 39:13). God decided that the ostrich would not fly and would lay her eggs on the ground. He also decided just how smart to make this bird: “Because God deprived her of wisdom, And did not endow her with understanding” (v. 17).

Interestingly, the Bible also teaches us that the greatest of the angels had his wings clipped because his eyes were too big. So let’s be sure to remain humble with all the talents that God has given us.

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God: Ezekiel 28:2

God bless

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[Berean]

Hi to all

 

Here is the Daily Devotional

 

THE JOY OF OBEYING

I long for Your salvation, O Lord! And Your law delights me. (Psalms 119:174)

The true Christian never complains that the yoke of Christ produces an irritation in his neck. He considers serving the Master to be the most genuine freedom. The law of God is his delight. Instead of trying to lower the standard of divine commandments to accommodate his own shortcomings, he constantly strives to raise his level of perfection.

This must be our experience if we are to be prepared for the day of God. Now, as the time of trial continues and the voice of mercy is still heard, we must forsake our sins…

God has made ample provision so that we can stand, perfect, by His grace, so that we may lack nothing as we wait for our Lord to return. Are you ready? Have you put on the wedding garment? This robe will never cover deceit, impurity, corruption or hypocrisy. God is watching you. He discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart. We can hide our sins from men, but we cannot hide anything from our Creator.

God did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him to death for our trespasses and raised Him up for our justification. Through Christ we can present our prayers before the throne of grace. Through Him we can, despite our unworthiness, obtain all spiritual blessings. Will we go to Him for life? (5T 220, 221).

The will of God is summed up in the precepts of His holy law whose principles govern heaven. The angels themselves have no dearer ambition than to know the will of God, and it is in accomplishing it that they most nobly exercise all their faculties.

In heaven obedience is spontaneous. Until the day when Satan rebelled against Jehovah, the angels did not realize that they were subject to a law; for they do not obey as servants, but as sons. A perfect harmony unites them to their Creator. For them, obedience is in no way painful because their love for God makes each of their acts an expression of joy. (Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, p. 110).

(Ellen G. White)

God bless

[Berean]

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Here is the Daily Devotional

 

BURIED ALIVE BY LAZINESS

On November 19, 1856, The New York Times ran a story on a man named Thomas Burns, who was semi-buried as a punishment for laziness. Burns was a prisoner at a penitentiary in New York City and was expected to work in the quarry. The article reports that Burns’ consistent refusal to work at anything but a snail’s pace so irritated the quarry-master that Burns was buried up to six inches above his knees and then left there for two days!

According to the deputy warden, Burns was so lazy that he had “tired out” the superintendents of all the prison work departments. It was reported that Burns seemed to enjoy the irritation of his supervisors, appeared in good health, and was quite active when it was mealtime. Burns himself admitted that he felt the world “owed him” food and lodging and that the only thing he owed in return was to wear the prison’s “striped pantaloons.” He’d been in and out of prison several times—his repeated crime was “vagrancy” or wandering idly. The article made no mention of whether the punishment had any effect on his work ethic.

As harsh and unconventional as this punishment might sound to our ears today, Solomon seems to understand the feeling of Burns’ supervisors: “As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, So is the lazy man to those who send him” (Proverbs 10:26). Proverbs even predicted Burns’ situation: “The hand of the diligent will rule, But the lazy man will be put to forced labor” (Proverbs 12:24).

Solomon presents to us the alternative to laziness—diligence. He says that those who are diligent in their work “shall have enough … for the food of [their] household” (Proverbs 27:27). How much better it is to be considered one of the diligent than one of the slothful!

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds. Proverbs 27:23For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation? Proverbs 27:24

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[Berean]

 

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PARALYTIC AT THE POOL OF BETHESDA 

 

For the first time in many years, a group of soccer players walked on two feet. These homeless refugees lost their legs from bomb blasts, shootings, and machete attacks in Liberia’s civil war. The men are members of an international soccer team for disabled players and have used crutches to play the game. In March 2016, thanks to the work of Christian charities, five men received free prosthetics.

Samuel Eastman, who lost his leg when he was only fourteen years old, said, “It’s like a dream come true because we couldn’t afford it on our own.” One doctor commented, “These gentlemen are so appreciative of being able to have a leg. And then as you watch them and see them get up and moving, it’s more than heartwarming.”

One Sabbath, Jesus walked past a man who couldn’t walk. The paralytic had been disabled for thirty-eight years and hoped to be lifted into a nearby pool for healing. People believed an angel occasionally touched the waters and the first person in would be miraculously restored. When Christ asked the man, “Do you want to be made well?” he replied that no one was available to help him into the water.

But Jesus was not offering to help him into the pool; He was asking him to stand up and walk. It was an impossible request, but the paralytic’s faith latched onto the words of the Great Physician. He did not wait to feel healed; he simply obeyed the command of Jesus.

This heartwarming story was meant for you. Do you find your life disabled by sin, by discouragement, or by addiction? Are you hoping someone will help you up? Jesus stands next to you and says, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” Will you stand up on both feet for Him?

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. John 5:7

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[Berean]

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MOISHE ROSEN A “JEW FOR JESUS” IS BORN, PART 1

Martin Meyer Rosen, later known as Moishe, was a “secular Jew” who grew up in Denver. A young woman from Boston, Ceilia Starr, moved into the neighborhood and caught his eye: “She was the prettiest girl in the neighborhood,” he would later recall.

By the time she was 16, Ceilia Starr had, in her heart, declared herself an atheist, rebelling against her orthodox Jewish upbringing. Moishe was a self- described agnostic. The non-faith of young Rosen came as little surprise: he was the not-very-Jewish son of not-very-Jewish parents. A family sporting goods business was more important than activity in a local synagogue, he’d later recall.

The two dated and fell in love. By the time they were 18 years old, Martin Rosen and Ceilia Starr were married. A rabbi conducted the ceremony, even though the couple vowed to be “modern American Jews,” eschewing Sabbath rules, dietary restrictions, and other trappings.

Marriage changed things: “When Ceil was pregnant with our first child, she began to wonder about God. She knew there had to be more out there,” Rosen said.

Ceilia found answers in reading the New Testament, a book of Scripture generally regarded as “unneeded” by or “off limits” to Jewish people. Mrs. Rosen “discovered that the New Testament was also a Jewish book involving Jewish people, but most of all about the Jewish Messiah,” her husband said. Needing further help, Ceilia was visited by a woman from the American Board of Missions to the Jews after the young wife prayed for someone to help her understand the Bible.

This change provoked Martin to wrath. He argued against her, ridiculed the content of some tracts she’d given him, and generally resisted—until he could no longer. Reading the Bible, recalling earlier encounters with Christians who linked Jesus with the Messiah’s Jewish roots, Rosen became convinced: he, too, had to follow Christ.

This led to ostracism in their families, a difficult time (to say the least) at the sporting goods store where he worked, and finally a conviction: if Martin Meyer Rosen could find faith, how would other Jews discover the very Jewish prophet named Jesus?

That led to the next chapter of Rosen’s life, and it was one that would reshape American evangelism for decades.

Reflect: Have you—or someone you know—suffered in your family because of your faith? How did you respond to the hostility or estrangement?

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: Luke 24:19

 

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[Berean]

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MOISHE ROSEN A “JEW FOR JESUS” IS BORN, PART 2  

 

After his conversion, Moishe Rosen—then known as Martin—began witnessing to everyone in sight, with predictable consequences. His family essentially disowned him. Bosses and co-workers were hostile. And at the Baptist church he and his wife attended in Denver, various elements of the culture were, to say the least, unfamiliar. Jewish practices and 1950s-era Protestantism had few points of intersection.

Rosen felt a need to change things. He studied at a New Jersey Bible college, and then spent close to 20 years with the American Board of Missions to the Jews, the oldest such evangelistic group in the U.S., now known as Chosen People Ministries.

But long-established missionary groups, however laudable, can become hidebound by tradition. So Rosen struck out on his own, determined to bring the message of Jesus to a generation of young adult seekers—called “hippies” by many—who wouldn’t warm to a suit-and-tie presentation.

Rosen and his new missionaries struck out in jeans and t-shirts, the latter emblazoned with phrases such as “Jesus Made Me Kosher.” Instead of staid tracts bearing platitudes about heaven, Rosen created “broadsides,” informal pamphlets with Jewish jargon and a sense of humor. Finding Jesus wasn’t betrayal; it was logical and the search for truth could be fun!

Much of the attention Rosen’s followers attracted came from these unconventional steps. Even the name Jews for Jesus was meant to startle. When the opposition got rough, Rosen’s troops often received lots of media coverage, which in turn generated questions from those who would be called “seekers.”

The public nature of Jews for Jesus’ evangelism took hold, particularly when the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that a county ordinance prohibiting witnessing at Los Angeles International Airport was unconstitutional. The ruling put Rosen’s movement in the history books.

Unlike some whose leadership of religious groups generate notoriety and public attention, Moishe Rosen didn’t attain great wealth. Jews for Jesus has been open and accountable about its finances, and when the time came for Rosen to step out of leadership, an orderly process was in place to find a successor.

Moishe Rosen led a career of preaching the message of Jesus that made an impact on his generation and far beyond.

Reflect: What ministries do you know that are reaching the world in a unique manner? What can you do to reach the world around your home?

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3:3 

 

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[Berean]

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BIRDS SONGS

 

You might have noticed that often the smallest birds have the most interesting songs. The various wrens, for example, are among the smallest birds in North America, but they have incredibly loud voices and many complex songs. On the other hand, while bald eagles are among the largest of all birds, their “song” and calls are unremarkable unless threatened by some predator. Eagles are indeed loud, but they have a limited vocabulary.

Have you ever noticed in early summer that the hills are alive with the sound of birds singing? These beautiful creatures made for our enjoyment actually sing for many different reasons. There are basically two categories of bird sounds: songs and calls. Singing primarily happens around mating and nesting season. Calls happen all the time and mainly communicate messages to other birds, often in shorter and clipped chirps. Songs are usually longer and more complex.

Birds sing to stake out their territory, defend their turf, identify themselves, attract the opposite sex, stimulate nest building, and encourage the female to incubate her eggs. Some studies also show that birds sing just because they like to sing! Biologists have also discovered that birds have accents; the same cardinal in Indiana might sound slightly different than one in Florida.

Paul writes, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Colossians 3:16). “Admonish” means to warn or notify. It can also mean to reprove gently or to counsel against wrong practices. Singing can be more than expressing thanks to the Lord, it can guide and instruct us as well.

Perhaps we can learn from the songs of the birds. When the enemy intrudes on our territory, we can sing to drive him away. When the devil tells us lies (“You are a no good, worthless person…”) we can identify ourselves in song as God’s beloved children. When a friend is discouraged, we can sing words to point them to Jesus.

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Matthew 6:26 

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[Berean]

 

Hi to all

 

Here is the Daily Devotional

 

JACOB DESHAZER PRISONER OF WAR, PART 1 

 

After the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, horror quickly translated to patriotism as Americans rallied around the war effort. On April 18, 1942, a small contingency of just over 200 army personnel launched the United States’ first significant attack against the Japanese in World War II. The Doolittle Raid, as it was commonly known, was an air strike on Tokyo and its surrounding regions; and its victory, while slim in physical damage, made all the difference for the soul and spirit of the Allied powers.

Among its bombardiers was 30-year-old Jacob DeShazer, a corporal hailing from Oregon. DeShazer had grown up in a devout Free Methodist family but had never truly pursued a personal relationship with God. During high school, his faith waned drastically. In 1940, he enlisted in the army. After Pearl Harbor, an infuriated DeShazer signed up for the Doolittle Raid. He wanted revenge.

In the early morning of April 18, DeShazer’s B-25, named “Bat Out of Hell,” was the last to launch from the USS Hornet. But as the sixteen bombers careened down upon the East Asia island, a Japanese boat radioed their arrival and the element of surprise was lost. As a consequence, the aircraft were forced to attack earlier than planned.

DeShazer’s bombs hit their intended target, Nagoya, a largely populous city in Japan, but the “Bat,” along with the majority of the other B-25s, ended up crashing after running out of fuel. As DeShazer and his four other crew members parachuted into enemy territory in China, a woman on the other side of the world jolted awake from her sleep.

She was Jacob DeShazer’s mother; and she was experiencing the uncanniest sensation—as though she were falling from a tall, tall height. Deeply agitated, she began to pray. She did not know that at that very moment she was experiencing the very same thing her son was; she did not know that it was he for whom she was praying. But God knew.

Throughout the next three years and four months, the time that her son spent in captivity, she, prompted by the Holy Spirit, continued to intercede for him.

Reflect: For whom do you prayerfully intercede? Do you know of anyone whose prayer for you was answered?

KEY BIBLE TEXTS
Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Romans 8:26 

God bless 

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