God’s Reminders October 2, 2016

Read: Mark 8:11-21 Bible in a Year: Isaiah 14-16; Ephesians 5:1-16 He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”—Mark 8:21 My friend Bob Horner refers to Jesus as “the Master Reminder.” And that is good, because we are so doubting and forgetful. No matter how often Jesus met the needs of the people who came to Him when He was here on earth, His first disciples feared they would somehow be left in need. After witnessing miracles, they failed to understand the greater meaning the Lord wanted them to remember. On a journey across the Sea of Galilee, the disciples realized they had forgotten to bring bread and were talking about it. Jesus asked them, “Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don’t you remember?” (Mark 8:17-18). Then He reminded them that when He fed five thousand people with five loaves, the disciples had collected twelve basketfuls of leftover pieces. And when He fed four thousand with seven loaves, they filled seven baskets with leftovers. Then “He said to them, ‘Do you still not understand?’” (v. 21). The Lord’s miraculous provision for people’s physical needs pointed to the greater truth—that He was the Bread of Life and that His body would be “broken” for them and for us. Every time we eat the bread and drink the cup during the Lord’s Supper, we are reminded of our Lord’s great love and provision for us. —David McCasland In the Lord’s Supper, Jesus left us a great reminder of His sacrifice. Read about it in Matthew 26:17–30; Luke 22:14–20; 1 Corinthians 11:23–26. Communion is the Lord’s reminder to us of His love and provision. INSIGHT: In Mark 7-8, Mark records three stories that highlight Jesus’s ability to meet the needs of His followers: the exorcism of a demon-possessed girl (Mark 7:24-30), the healing of a deaf and mute man (7:31-37), and the feeding of four thousand people with seven simple loaves of bread (8:1-10). Mark tells these three stories in quick succession, underscoring Jesus’s ability to meet the needs of people in a variety of situations. The apostle John calls the miracles Jesus performed “signs.” Like all signs, they point to something. In the case of Jesus’s miracles, they point to His true identity. J.R. Hudberg 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.

Day 337 - Words of Comfort

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 Words of Comfort Day 337 When sharing with someone else who is grieving, words often fail you. Do talk. That person needs to hear from you, but let your words be few and specific. Emy, who lost her husband, advises, "People shouldn't say, 'How are you?' They should ask about a specific area: 'Is your health better?' or 'Are you getting out more?', something like that rather than making an open-ended question." Don't just offer empty words of encouragement. Find out what is really going on in another person's life, and keep track of how he or she is progressing through the struggle. Comforting another person with the love of Christ is necessary for your own healing as you begin to better understand the strength and peace found in a life lived for Jesus. "For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows" (2 Corinthians 1:5). Holy Jesus, may my words be few, but focused and sincere, as I seek to comfort another grieving person with Your love. 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

Hold On October 1, 2016

Read: Philippians 3:12-4:1 Bible in a Year: Isaiah 11-13; Ephesians 4 Stand firm in the Lord.—Philippians 4:1 Tianmen Mountain in Zhangjiajie, China, is considered one of the most beautiful mountains in the world. To view its towering cliffs in all their glorious splendor, you must take the Tianmen Shan cable car, which covers a distance of 7,455 meters (4.5 miles). It’s amazing how this cable car can travel such long distances and scale such steep mountains without any motor on the car itself. Yet it moves safely up these spectacular heights by keeping a strong grip on a cable that is moved by a powerful motor. In our journey of faith, how can we finish the race well and “press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called [us] heavenward in Christ Jesus”? (Phil. 3:14). Like the cable car, we keep a strong grip on Christ, which is what Paul meant when he said “stand firm in the Lord” (4:1). We have no resources of our own. We depend fully on Christ to keep us moving forward. He will take us through the greatest challenges and lead us safely home. Toward the end of his earthly life, the apostle Paul declared, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7). You can too. Simply keep a strong grip on Christ. —Albert Lee We’re grateful, Lord, that while we aim to keep a strong grip on You, You always keep a strong grip on us! You are working in us and giving us what we need to continue trusting You on our faith journey. Keeping the faith means trusting God to faithfully keep you. INSIGHT: Philippians is a testimony to Paul’s joy in Christ. What is this joy? It is a sense of complete contentment in Christ that is dependent upon His presence in our lives. Our relationship with the Savior is the foundation for our joy, and we can have confidence He will bring us to this joy as we yield our hearts and lives to Him.  Bill Crowder Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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Day 336 - Give Permission to Grieve

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 Give Permission to Grieve Day 336 An important ministry you have to other people is to validate their individual losses. You will not tend to trivialize their losses by giving quick, easy answers. Rather, you know it is better to stand alongside them and feel what they are going through. By doing this, you give them permission to grieve. Dr. Robert Jeffress states, "Christians need to be given permission to grieve. They do not need to feel like they've fallen if they are grieving. They need to be reminded that what they are experiencing is normal. "I believe the Bible, the Word of God is alive; it's active; it's sharper than any two-edged sword. But grieving people do not need to be bombarded with Bible verses. I think sometimes the best thing to do for grieving Christians is just to be there, to be silent, and when the time is right, to share a truth that might help them." You have suffered and are still suffering. Many people around you are suffering as well. Sometimes it is hard to notice because in today's culture, hiding true feelings is common and often expected. The Bible tells you to share in your sufferings. It also says to share in your comfort. "Our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort" (2 Corinthians 1:7). Lord God, someone around me needs to grieve. He or she may be holding it back and suffering even more because of that. I want to help that person understand it is okay and necessary to grieve. 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

Bad Faith, Good Faith September 30, 2016

Read: Romans 4:18-25 Bible in a Year: Isaiah 9-10; Ephesians 3 [Abraham] did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God.—Romans 4:20 “You gotta have faith,” people say. But what does that mean? Is any faith good faith? “Believe in yourself and all that you are,” wrote one positive thinker a century ago. “Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle.” As nice as that may sound, it falls to pieces when it crashes into reality. We need a faith in something bigger than ourselves. God promised Abram he would have a multitude of descendants (Gen. 15:4-5), so he faced a huge obstacle—he was old and childless. When he and Sarah got tired of waiting for God to make good on His promise, they tried to overcome that obstacle on their own. As a result, they fractured their family and created a lot of unnecessary dissension (see Gen. 16 and 21:8-21). Nothing Abraham did in his own strength worked. But ultimately he became known as a man of tremendous faith. Paul wrote of him, “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be’” (Rom. 4:18). This faith, said Paul, “was credited to him as righteousness” (v. 22). Abraham’s faith was in something far bigger than himself—the one and only God. It’s the object of our faith that makes all the difference. —Tim Gustafson Lord, I want a strong faith in You, not just faith in myself or my abilities or in others. I am nothing without You. Our faith is good if it’s in the right Person. INSIGHT: The central theme of Romans is that humanity cannot save itself and that God justifies the sinner by grace through faith in Jesus alone (Rom. 1:16-17). Paul reveals that all people—Jews and Gentiles—are sinners. All have sinned. All stand condemned before our holy God (3:23). Sinners are saved, not by obeying the law, but by God’s actions of justifying the sinner through faith in Jesus (3:22-26). We are justified (declared righteous and made right with God) by grace alone (sola gratia), through faith alone (sola fide) and in Christ alone (solus Christus). Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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