Saturday, November 29, 2014

Day 33 - Go Forward with God


Through a Season of Grief
365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process



Grief support groups:
Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page.

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Go Forward with God
Day 33

When it’s hard to look forward and it’s painful to look back, you need a new perspective, a new focus. Look to the Father and keep your eyes on Him. Every time your thoughts drift away from Him, repeat these words, “Focused on You, Jesus. Focused on You.”

If you keep yourself centered in God, you will be able to move forward again. Cindy offers a suggestion from her own experience. She says, “What is at the center of your life? Just for an hour or two hours, put God at the center of your life and see what happens. Then do it for half a day. Then do it for a day, and see what happens. I think you’ll start feeling that you’re going to be okay, that you can trust God, and that you can do the things you need to do.”

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day…. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16, 18).

Thank you, God, that I don’t have to strive in my journey, because You have already provided the grace I need to make it. Amen.



Grieving with Hope
This GriefShare-based book contains short, topical chapters addressing issues that grieving people face but are often hesitant to mention to others; it gently guides people to determine whether they're grieving in a way that leads to hope and ultimate healing. Look for Grieving with Hope by Samuel Hodges and Kathy Leonard at a local or online bookstore or at griefshare.org/hope.




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All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative.



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Our Daily Bread -- For Sale As Is

If you are having trouble reading the Our Daily Bread devotional click here for the online version.
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Our Daily Bread -- For Sale— “As Is”

November 30, 2014

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Our Daily Bread is hosted by Les Lamborn

READ: Revelation 5:1-12

For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood. —Revelation 5:9

A house listed for sale “As Is” usually means the seller is unable or unwilling to spend any money to repair it or make it attractive. Any necessary repairs or desired improvements are the responsibility of the buyer after the purchase is complete. “As Is” on a real estate listing is equivalent to saying, “Buyer beware. Home may require significant further investment.”

How remarkable that when Jesus died, He paid the highest price for each of us, regardless of our condition. Revelation 5 describes a scene in heaven where only “The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David” is found worthy to open and read a sealed scroll (vv.3-5). He appears as a Lamb and becomes the object of praise in a new song, “For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth” (vv.9-10).

Jesus Christ willingly purchased us for God with His blood. We were bought “as is,” faults, defects, needed renovation included. By faith we are now under His ownership, in the process of remodeling for God’s glory. How wonderful that God knew us, loved us, and bought us just as we are. —David McCasland

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe.
Sin had left a crimson stain;
He washed it white as snow. —Hall

God knows us inside and out. No renovation project is too big for Him.

Bible in a year: Ezekiel 37-39; 2 Peter 2

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Copyright © 2014, RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI 49555 USA. Written permission must be obtained from RBC Ministries for any further posting or distribution.

RBC Ministries produces a variety of Bible resources, which are available for the asking. Many people, making even the smallest of donations, enable RBC Ministries to reach others with the life-changing wisdom of the Bible. We are not funded or endowed by any group or denomination. Write rbc@rbc.org for more information.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

 

RBC Ministries | 3000 Kraft Ave | Grand Rapids, MI 49512

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Friday, November 28, 2014

Day 32 - You Can't Stay Here


Through a Season of Grief
365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process



Grief support groups:
Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page.

Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here


You Can’t Stay Here
Day 32

The journey of grief is one that you must ultimately decide to complete. You cannot remain where you are right now. Time moves forward, and so must you.

“You can’t stay here because God’s Word is always going forward,” says Dr. Ray Pritchard.

In Philippians 3:14 Paul says that he moved forward toward “the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (NASB). The Christian life is not static. It is a walk with God that moves you forward into a larger life with God.

The Lord’s plan for your life is pure and simple during this time of grief: “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8 NASB).

Lord, may I simply walk with You. Take my hand and guide me through every moment of this day. Amen.



Through a Season of Grief
The daily email messages you are receiving are also available in a book format. Purchase as a gift for a friend or buy a print copy for yourself. Through a Season of Grief by Bill Dunn and Kathy Leonard is available at online and local bookstores or at griefshare.org/devotional.




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GriefShare For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here.



All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative.



You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER.

To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet.

If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org.

GriefShare
250 S. Allen Rd.
Wake Forest, NC 27587
(800) 395-5755

Our Daily Bread -- Happy Ending

If you are having trouble reading the Our Daily Bread devotional click here for the online version.
About Our Daily Bread     |      RBC Ministries     |      Donate

Our Daily Bread -- Happy Ending

November 29, 2014

Play MP3
Our Daily Bread is hosted by Les Lamborn

READ: Revelation 21:1-7

I saw a new heaven and a new earth. —Revelation 21:1

In its “plot,” the story of the Bible ends up very much where it began. The broken relationship between God and human beings has healed over at last, and the curse of Genesis 3 is lifted. Borrowing images from Eden, Revelation pictures a river and a tree of life (Rev. 22:1-2). But this time a great city replaces the garden setting—a city filled with worshipers of God. No death or sadness will ever darken that scene. When we awake in the new heaven and new earth, we will have at last a happy ending.

Heaven is not an afterthought or an optional belief. It is the final justification of all creation. The Bible never belittles human tragedy and disappointment—is any book more painfully honest?—but it does add one key word: temporary. What we feel now, we will not always feel. The time for re-creation will come.

For people who feel trapped in pain or in a broken home, in economic misery or in fear—for all of us—heaven promises a timeless future of health and wholeness and pleasure and peace. The Bible begins with the promise of a Redeemer in the book of Genesis (3:15) and ends with that same promise (Rev. 21:1-7)—a guarantee of future reality. The end will be the beginning. —Philip Yancey

Beyond earth’s sorrows, the joys of heaven;
Eternal blessings with Christ my Lord;
Earth’s weeping ended, earth’s trials over,
Sweet rest in Jesus, O blest reward! —Gilmore

The gains of heaven will more than compensate us for the losses of earth.

Bible in a year: Ezekiel 35-36; 2 Peter 1

Insight

The reality of a new heaven and a new earth (Rev. 21:1) is not a New Testament idea that begins with or is exclusive to the apostle John. Peter also spoke of this new heaven and earth as a world filled with God’s righteousness (2 Peter 3:13). And the Old Testament prophet Isaiah described the “new heavens and a new earth” (Isa. 65:17-25; 66:22) 700 years before the birth of Christ.

Share your comments on today’s devotional at odb.org.

 

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Copyright © 2014, RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI 49555 USA. Written permission must be obtained from RBC Ministries for any further posting or distribution.

RBC Ministries produces a variety of Bible resources, which are available for the asking. Many people, making even the smallest of donations, enable RBC Ministries to reach others with the life-changing wisdom of the Bible. We are not funded or endowed by any group or denomination. Write rbc@rbc.org for more information.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

 

RBC Ministries | 3000 Kraft Ave | Grand Rapids, MI 49512

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Thursday, November 27, 2014

Day 31 - You Cannot Go Back


Through a Season of Grief
365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process



Grief support groups:
Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page.

Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here


You Cannot Go Back
Day 31

Remember the good times; cherish the memories, but live each day moving forward. Focus your thoughts on what is before you and how you are going to get there.

“I often tell people that there are three stages you need to think about: You can’t go back. You can’t stay here. You must go forward,” says Dr. Ray Pritchard. “There may be some good things in the past that you wish you could go back to, but in the end you have to let those go.”

God’s Word speaks to you clearly: “I have set before you life … now choose life” (Deuteronomy 30:19).

Yes, Lord, I do choose life. Amen.



Grieving with Hope
This GriefShare-based book contains short, topical chapters addressing issues that grieving people face but are often hesitant to mention to others; it gently guides people to determine whether they're grieving in a way that leads to hope and ultimate healing. Look for Grieving with Hope by Samuel Hodges and Kathy Leonard at a local or online bookstore or at griefshare.org/hope.




If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share.



GriefShare For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here.



All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative.



You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER.

To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet.

If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org.

GriefShare
250 S. Allen Rd.
Wake Forest, NC 27587
(800) 395-5755

Our Daily Bread -- Amani

If you are having trouble reading the Our Daily Bread devotional click here for the online version.
About Our Daily Bread     |      RBC Ministries     |      Donate

Our Daily Bread -- Amani

November 28, 2014

Play MP3
Our Daily Bread is hosted by Les Lamborn

READ: 1 Samuel 16:14-23

God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. —2 Timothy 1:7

Amani, which means “peace” in Swahili, is the name of a Labrador retriever pup that has some special friends. Amani lives with two young cheetahs at the Dallas Zoo. Zoologists placed the animals together so the cheetahs could learn Amani’s relaxed ways. Since dogs are generally at ease in public settings, the experts predict that Amani will be a “calming influence” in the cheetahs’ lives as they grow up together.

David was a soothing influence in King Saul’s life when a “distressing spirit” troubled him (1 Sam. 16:14). When Saul’s servants learned of his problem, they thought music might ease his affliction. One servant summoned David, who was a skilled harpist. Whenever the king became troubled, David would play the harp. “Then Saul would become refreshed and well” (v.23).

We crave refreshment and well-being when we are plagued by anger, fear, or sadness. The God of the Bible is a “God of peace” (Heb. 13:20-21), One who gives His Holy Spirit to everyone who believes in Him. When we’re agitated or anxious, we can remember that God’s Spirit produces power, love, and self-control (2 Tim. 1:7). God’s influence in our lives can create a calming effect—one that leads to comfort and wholeness. —Jennifer Benson Schuldt

We’re grateful, Father, for the peace that You
offer for our hearts. Nothing has the power
to take that away. Thank You that Your
peace has come to stay.

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.” —Jesus

Bible in a year: Ezekiel 33-34; 1 Peter 5

Share your comments on today’s devotional at odb.org.

 

You can make a difference. Even the smallest donation helps reach people around the world with the life-changing wisdom of the Bible.

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Add us to your circle
RSS
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To read today's Our Daily Bread online visit www.odb.org.

Copyright © 2014, RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI 49555 USA. Written permission must be obtained from RBC Ministries for any further posting or distribution.

RBC Ministries produces a variety of Bible resources, which are available for the asking. Many people, making even the smallest of donations, enable RBC Ministries to reach others with the life-changing wisdom of the Bible. We are not funded or endowed by any group or denomination. Write rbc@rbc.org for more information.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

 

RBC Ministries | 3000 Kraft Ave | Grand Rapids, MI 49512

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