Our Daily Bread -- When the Water Blushed March 20, 2016

Read: John 1:1-14 Bible in a Year: Joshua 4-6; Luke 1:1-20 In the beginning was the Word . . . . Through him all things were made. —John 1:1, 3 Why did Jesus come to Earth before the invention of photography and video? Couldn’t He have reached more people if everyone could see Him? After all, a picture is worth a thousand words. “No,” says Ravi Zacharias, who asserts that a word can be worth “a thousand pictures.” As evidence, he quotes poet Richard Crashaw’s magnificent line, “The conscious water saw its Master and blushed.” In one simple line, Crashaw captures the essence of Jesus’ first miracle (John 2:1-11). Creation itself recognizes Jesus as the Creator. No mere carpenter could turn water to wine. Another time, when Christ calmed a storm with the words, “Quiet! Be still,” His stunned disciples asked, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” (Mark 4:39, 41). Later, Jesus told the Pharisees that if the crowd did not praise Him, “the stones will cry out” (Luke 19:40). Even the rocks know who He is. John tells us, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen His glory” (John 1:14). Out of that eyewitness experience John also wrote, “We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. . . . He is the Word of life” (1 John 1:1 nlt). Like John, we can use our words to introduce others to Jesus whom wind and water obey. —Tim Gustafson Jesus, we acknowledge You as the Creator who knows and loves His creation. Yet You wait for us to invite You into every aspect of our lives. Forgive us for those times we keep You at a safe distance. Today we choose to risk knowing You more completely. The written Word reveals the Living Word. INSIGHT: Andrew (Simon Peter’s brother) and an unnamed disciple—who most scholars believe to be John, the son of Zebedee and the author of the fourth gospel—were already followers of John the Baptist when Jesus arrived in Bethany (John 1:28, 35). After John the Baptist declared Christ to be “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (v. 29), he nudged his two young followers to instead take their place as followers of Jesus (v. 37). A consistent feature in John’s gospel record is that he doesn’t name himself. This is one of the reasons many believe he was the disciple who joined Andrew in following Christ. Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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Day 141 - Why Remarry?

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 Why Remarry? Day 141 Do you need this new relationship to feel whole? If you answered "Yes" to the above question, then you are not ready for the potential of remarriage. If you answered "No," then spend some time thinking carefully about why you want to remarry. Gretchen advises, "To those people who hurry into marriage and feel like they cannot get by without having a partner, I would say above everything else, 'Just get on your hands and knees and pray to the Lord.' If He doesn't send the person there, you might as well hang it up. It's not going to work out. If it's not from the Lord, I'd rather stay single." Don't rush into remarriage to deaden the pain of your grief; you will simply bring that pain into the new relationship. New relationships must be built on one foundation. "But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete" (Luke 6:49). Strong Father, may the building blocks of this relationship come only from You. 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. 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 -- Ignore No More March 19, 2016

Read: Philippians 1:27-30 Bible in a Year: Joshua 1-3; Mark 16 The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. —Psalm 19:8 I don’t know how these people find me, but I keep getting more and more flyers in the mail from folks asking me to show up at their events so they can teach me about retirement benefits. It started several years ago when I began getting invitations to join an organization that works on behalf of retirees. These reminders all serve to say: “You’re getting older. Get ready!” I have ignored them all along, but soon enough I’m going to have to break down and go to one of their meetings. I really should be taking action on their suggestions. Sometimes I hear a similar reminder in the wisdom of Scripture. We know that what the passage says is true about us, but we are just not ready to respond. Maybe it’s a passage like Romans 14:13 that says, “Let us stop passing judgment on one another.” Or the reminder in 2 Corinthians 9:6, which tells us, “Whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” Or this reminder in Philippians 1: “Stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened” (vv. 27-28). As we read God’s Word, we get vital reminders. Let’s take these seriously as from the heart of the Father who knows what honors Him and is best for us. —Dave Branon Thank You, Lord, for Your gentle reminders. We know that the things You tell us to do in Your Word are for our good and for Your glory. Help us to step up and do the things that bring honor to Your name. Holiness is simply Christ in us fulfilling the will and commands of the Father. INSIGHT: The apostle Paul was concerned that believers in the Roman colony of Philippi live exemplary and holy lives. He prayed for their spiritual growth and maturity (Phil. 1:9-11) and exhorted them to “conduct [themselves] in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ” (v. 27). This was a constant reminder and refrain in Paul’s letters (Eph. 4:1; Col. 1:10; 1 Thess. 2:12). The life “worthy of the gospel of Christ” is characterized by steadfastness, unity, harmony, humility, and a willingness to suffer. Suffering for Christ is a gift and a privilege for the believer (Acts 5:41; Phil. 1:29; 1 Peter 2:21; 3:14; 4:16). Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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Day 140 - Don't Rush into Remarriage

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 Don’t Rush into Remarriage Day 140 Dr. Jim Conway says, "In the early days of losing Sally, it was a desperateness, 'What am I going to do for all of the holes that have been left by her death?' And so the logical thing, you think, is to find somebody else who can help you in all of these areas of life. She was not just a wife. We wrote books together; we traveled together; we stood side by side as we did seminars; we managed the office together; we did the counseling together. We were just totally intertwined. "In the early days of panic there's this urgency to try to replace that, but it's the worst time to do this because you're just under so much other stress. The choices you make would be panic choices instead of choices that are best for you." You are only ready for the potential of remarriage when you no longer need that relationship to feel whole. Let God fill your gaping holes, and trust Him to direct the paths of your future relationships. Your relationship with God must be your primary concern. "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit" (Romans 15:13). Holy Spirit, I trust in You to fill me and to guide me. Give me Your hope that overflows. 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. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. 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 -- When to Walk Away March 18, 2016

Read: Genesis 39:1-12 Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 32-34; Mark 15:26-47 God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. —1 Corinthians 10:13 When my father became a Christian in his old age, he fascinated me with his plan for overcoming temptation. Sometimes he just walked away! For example, whenever a disagreement between him and a neighbor began to degenerate into a quarrel, my father just walked away for a time rather than be tempted to advance the quarrel. One day he met with some friends who ordered pito (a locally brewed alcoholic beer). My father had formerly struggled with alcohol and had decided he was better off without it. So he simply stood up, said his goodbyes, and left the gathering of old friends for another day. In Genesis, we read how Potiphar’s wife tempted Joseph. He immediately recognized that giving in would cause him to “sin against God,” so he fled (Gen. 39:9-12). Temptation knocks often at our door. Sometimes it comes from our own desires, other times through the situations and people we encounter. As Paul told the Corinthians, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind.” But he also wrote, “God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it” (1 Cor. 10:13). The “way out” may include removing the objects of temptation or fleeing from them. Our best course of action may be to simply walk away. —Lawrence Darmani Lord, please give me the wisdom and strength to know when to walk away from situations and people that tempt me to do wrong. Every temptation is an opportunity to flee to God. Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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Our mission is to make the life-changing wisdom of the Bible understandable and accessible to all. Our vision is to see people of all nations experiencing a personal relationship with Christ, growing to be more like Him, and serving in a local body of His family. To read today's Our Daily Bread online visit www.odb.org. Copyright © 2016, Our Daily Bread Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI 49555 USA. Written permission must be obtained from Our Daily Bread Ministries for any further posting or distribution. Scriptures taken from Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved.   Our Daily Bread Ministries | 3000 Kraft Ave | Grand Rapids, MI 49512 Manage Your Subscription.