Enrich Your Time With the Lord

May 12, 2023

Friday

Infinite Goodness

Psalm 7: 9-10

¹⁰ My defence is of God, which saveth the upright in heart.”

Psalm 7:10

In 1849, Asiatic cholera spread through America. During the outbreak approximately 4,500 people died in St. Louis, 3,000 in New Orleans, and 5,000 in New York City, where many of them were buried in a mass grave on Randall’s Island. President Zachary Taylor proclaimed a National Day of Fasting, calling Americans to “humble themselves before His throne, and, while acknowledging past transgressions, ask a continuance of the Divine mercy.” He urged them “to acknowledge the Infinite Goodness which has watched over our existence as a nation, and so long crowned us with manifold blessings, and to implore the Almighty in His own good time to stay the destroying hand.”

On Friday, August 3, 1849, Americans filed into churches to unite in humility and prayer; and by the end of the month the death toll “dropped suddenly” and the plague abated.

Our world is stained by sin, filled with suffering, and subject to plagues. But there’s never a time we can’t humble ourselves before God’s throne, acknowledge our sins, and ask for a continuance of divine mercy. His all-powerful hand can preserve and protect us, and His infinite wisdom can direct our affairs. His sovereignty is the source of our strength and stability.

A point to ponder…

Things work out in our lives, not somehow, but sovereignly.

David Jeremiah

Read the Bible through in a year

2 Chronicles 6-8

I love you!!!

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich

May 11, 2023

Thursday

Chapter Eights: Esther 8—New Grace

Esther 8: 15-17

¹⁶ The Jews had light, and gladness, and joy, and honour.”

Esther 8:16

The book of Esther describes how the Jewish people faced possible annihilation in the Persian Empire. An evil mastermind named Haman forged a plan to kill the Hebrews, but God placed Esther, herself a Jew, in the palace as queen. She and her kinsman Mordecai, with God’s help outwitted Haman, and the Jews were delivered.

Esther 8 describes the joy that flooded the Jews across the empire as they heard the news. They could defend themselves, and Mordecai, their leader, was appointed prime minister of the land. The Bible says, “And in every province and city, wherever the king’s command and decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a holiday” (Esther 8:17).

None of us want to endure seasons of anxious stress or tense uncertainty. But after we’ve passed through the test, our sense of release and relief is like opening the windows to fresh air. We can breathe again. By God’s providence, every trial somehow returns a blessing in His time and way. Think of some of the deliverances God has given you, and let your heart be full of light and gladness, joy and honor.

A point to ponder…

When you have been through the fight, there is the wondrous joy and triumph of the feast.
Oswald Chambers

Read the Bible through in a year

2 Chronicles 2-5

I love you!!!

© 2000-2021 B. Michael Goerlich

May 10, 2023

Wednesday

Victory in Him

2 Corinthians 2: 14-15

⁵⁷ But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

1 Corinthians 15:57

To first-century leaders in the Roman world, the imagery was familiar: A victorious Roman general returning from battle leading his soldiers and their captives into the city. Citizens lined the streets applauding while the aroma of celebratory incense filled the air. Paul uses that image to say that Christ leads His followers in a victory procession through every difficulty in life (2 Corinthians 2:14-15).

The Christian’s victory is through Christ. The victory over the world, the flesh, the devil, and sin was won by the Cross and the empty tomb. He did for us what we cannot do for ourselves. We have victory now and for eternity only because of the victory Christ won for us. Therefore, if we are to experience victory in this life, it will come only as we depend on Him. As Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20, the life we now live is the life of Christ in us as we keep our faith in Him.

If you need a victory in your life, begin every day by renewing your faith in Christ in whom all our victories are to be realized.

A point to ponder…

The spiritual battle, the loss of victory, is always in the thought-world.

Francis Schaeffer

Read the Bible through in a year

1 Chronicles 28- 2 Chronicles 1

I love you!!!

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich

May 9, 2023

Tuesday

Confidence in Prayer

Luke 11: 5-8

¹⁶ Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Hebrews 4:16

The country music star Vince Gill once gave a small concert in a high school gymnasium. While he was onstage performing, a small girl made her way up onto the stage where she ran over to her daddy—Vince Gill—who scooped her up in his arms.

That little girl was not intimidated by her father’s fame, the bright lights, or the adoring crowd. She had every confidence that she was more important to her father than anything else. And she was right! That earthly illustration helps us understand the words of Hebrews 4:16—we are exhorted to come boldly, with confidence, to God’s throne of grace in prayer to “obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” It might be easy to be intimidated by the glory of God. But He is our Father who welcomes us, His children, into His presence.

If there is a need you’re reluctant to ask God to meet, go into His presence with confidence. His mercy and grace are there for the asking.

A point to ponder…

God’s sovereignty does not negate our responsibility to pray, but rather makes it possible for us to pray with confidence.

Jerry Bridges

Read the Bible through in a year

1 Chronicles 25-27

I love you!!!

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich

May 8, 2023

Monday

Standing

Acts 7:54-60

⁵⁶ And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.”

Acts 7:56

The non-profit organization Open Doors published their findings about the persecuted Church from the past year. In the top fifty oppressive countries, 245 million Christians experienced high levels of persecution, and 4,136 believers were slain for their faith—an average of eleven people per day. More than 1,200 Christian buildings were attacked, and 2,625 Christians were detained without trial.¹

In the book of Acts, Stephen became the first believer to be murdered for his stand for Christ; and as he died, he gazed into heaven and saw Jesus standing at the right hand of the throne of God. Since Jesus is typically described as sitting on the throne, it makes us wonder if He stands every time the soul of a martyr ascends to glory. If so, it would appear He has stood up eleven times in the past 24 hours.

God gives the grace we need whenever we’re pressured because of our faith—whether we’re living for Him or dying for Him. Christians are God’s ambassadors in a hostile world. Take courage, be faithful, and stand for Jesus!

A point to ponder…

Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of a readiness to die.

G. K. Chesterton

Read the Bible through in a year

1 Chronicles 22-24

I love you!!!

¹https://www.opendoorsusa.org/christian-persecution/stories/christian-persecution-by-the-numbers

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich

Weekend Wisdom

May 6 – May 7, 2023

Confident Hope

¹³ Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

1 Peter 1:13

It doesn’t take much to see that the whole world has gone crazy.

In the midst of so much chaos, where can we stake our hope? Exhorting us to endurance, the Apostle Peter urged us to prepare “your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

The energy to live the Christian life is found in one place—in our focused, conscious choice to put our hope in Jesus. Hope is the confident expectation that something better is coming tomorrow.

As you look to the future:

Don’t set your hope on your physical health—set your hope on Jesus. “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day”(2 Corinthians 4:16).

Don’t set your hope on your stuff—set your hope on Jesus. “And [Jesus] said to them, ‘Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions’”(Luke 12:15).

Don’t set your hope on people—set your hope on Jesus. “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God”(Psalm 146:3, 5).

No leader, pastor, family member, friend, or spouse can be everything that we hope and dream he will be. People, places, and positions always let us down. Only Jesus is worthy of all our hopes and all our confidence. Maybe you find yourself a little down today. Like Peter standing on the water, the moment you take your eyes off the Lord you start to sink (Matthew 14:22–33). Lift up your eyes; set your hope fully on Jesus.

Our confident expectation is in God, who sees, knows, and will ultimately turn an upside-down world right-side up at the appearing of our Lord. Every righteous decision will be rewarded. Every wrong choice will be judged. Every motive will be revealed.

Is your faith faltering as you look at the world coming unhinged around you? Are you struggling to carry on? Do you need hope that will endure?

Set your hope fully on Jesus.

Points to ponder…

• On what might you be tempted to set your hope—your physical health, your talents, your stuff, other people?
• How can you tell if your hope is in anything other than Jesus?

Saturday’s Reading

1 Chronicles 15-17

Sunday’s Reading

1 Chronicles 18-21

I love you!!!

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich

May 5, 2023

Friday

Maze Daze

Psalm 102:18-22

⁴⁹ Mine eye trickleth down, and ceaseth not, without any intermission.

⁵⁰ Till the Lord look down, and behold from heaven.”

Lamentations 3:49-50

Cool Patch Pumpkins in Dixon, California, has the largest corn maze in the world—about sixty acres of winding paths between towering stalks of corn. Every year during maze season authorities brace for 911 calls. After wandering for hours, visitors panic. “I don’t know what to do anymore,” one caller said. “We’ve been in here like four hours.” Another said, “We’re stuck, and they close at 10. We’re very worried, and we can’t find a way out.”

What a parable of life! We all encounter twists and turns, dead ends and puzzling circumstances. But if you took a helicopter over the maze, you would see a distinct route. In fact, the maze often spells out words when viewed from above. The maze is actually amazing.

If you feel lost in your circumstances, remember that God is looking down from above and it all makes perfect sense to Him. His handwriting has spelled out a perfect plan for you. Even when we don’t understand our circumstances, we can be confident in God’s grace and guidance.

A point to ponder…

We do not always understand Thy care, our Father, but Thy great hand of love always covers us. Show us Thy signature, now and then, that we may know that we are on the right road.

John Wanamaker

Read the Bible through in a year

1 Chronicles 12-14

I love you!!!

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich

May 4, 2023

Thursday

Genesis 8—New Beginnings

Genesis 8: 15-22

²² While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.”

Genesis 8:22

It’s fun to explore the Bible. Have you ever inspected all the 3:16s in Scripture? Have you noticed the sevens in the book of Revelation? Well, for our weekend devotions this month, let’s focus on some great chapter eights of Scripture, starting with Genesis 8, a story of new beginnings. Here the waters of the great Flood receded, and Noah led his family and animals onto dry land. He worshiped God, and the Lord gave him a promise: The natural order of creation, the cycles of day and night, winter and summer, seedtime and harvest, would remain stable as long as the earth endures.

Scientists marvel at the fine-tuning that allows life to function on earth. Everything about the laws of science on our planet—the atmospheric conditions and terrestrial nature—is designed to bless us. The sun rises every morning, making every day a fresh start. Look up into the sky and praise Him for His faithfulness.

A point to ponder…

Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest, sun, moon, and stars in their courses above, join with all nature in manifold witness to Thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.
Thomas Chisholm, in his hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”

Read the Bible through in a year

1 Chronicles 9-11

I love you!!!

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich

May 3, 2023

Wednesday

Ready and Willing

1 Timothy 2: 3-4

⁹ The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

2 Peter 3:9

A leper approached Jesus and said, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” Jesus touched the man, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed”—and he was healed (Mark 1:40-42).

That event is a beautiful example of the willingness of God. In fact, there are no instances of Jesus being asked to help or heal and Him answering, “I am not willing.” There is a place where the Bible says God is “not willing,” and that is 2 Peter 3:9. In writing about the timing of the Day of the Lord (the end of the age), Peter says God is waiting for all who will be saved to come to Him. He is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” Said another way, God is willing for any who want to be saved to come to Him (John 6:37; 7:37). The question is never whether God is willing but whether man is willing.

Have you responded to God’s willing invitation to come to Him?

A point to ponder…

God is far more willing to save sinners than sinners are to be saved.

J. C. Ryle

Read the Bible through in a year

1 Chronicles 7-8

I love you!!!

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich

May 2, 2023

Tuesday

Never Alone

Matthew 28:19-20

⁵ Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

Hebrews 13:5

Technology now exists that allows us to track the location of a particular smartphone. Let’s say parents are concerned about their daughter driving alone back to college, in stormy weather, after a visit. Via their phone, the parents can track their daughter’s journey until she arrives safely. In case of car trouble, they know her exact location. “I’ll be there with you all the way” takes on new meaning in the digital age.

In the Old Testament, that security was expressed another way: “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” That was God’s promise to the Israelites as they prepared to cross the Jordan River and move into Canaan—and face the Canaanite tribes that occupied their land (Deuteronomy 31:6). God’s presence was one of protection. But in the New Testament, the same promise of God was applied to provision. The writer of Hebrews told his readers not to be covetous but to be content with what they had. Why? Because God would be their provision. He would be with them and never leave them.

Whether you need protection, provision, or something else—you have it in the God who has promised to always be with you.

A point to ponder…

The best of all is God is with us.

John Wesley

Read the Bible through in a year

1 Chronicles 6

I love you!!!

© 2000-2023 B. Michael Goerlich