Serving God with Our Prayers December 11, 2016

Read: 1 Kings 18:41–45 Bible in a Year: Hosea 5–8; Revelation 2 The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.—James 5:16 nlt God often chooses to move through our prayers to accomplish His work. We see this when God told the prophet Elijah, “I will send rain on the land,” promising to end a drought in Israel that had lasted three and a half years (James 5:17). Even though God had promised rain, a short time later “Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees”—praying intently for the rain to come (1 Kings 18:42). Then, while he continued to pray, Elijah sent his servant to go and look out over the ocean “seven times,” scanning the horizon for any sign of rain (v. 43). Elijah understood that God wants us to join in His work through humble, persistent prayer. Regardless of our human limitations, God may choose to move through our praying in amazing ways. That’s why the letter of James tells us that “the earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results,” all the while reminding us that “Elijah was as human as we are” (James 5:16-17 nlt). When we make it our aim to serve God through praying faithfully as Elijah did, we’re taking part in a beautiful privilege—where at any moment we may be given a front-row seat to a miracle! —James Banks How can I serve You through my prayers today, Father? Submit your prayer request or pray for others at yourdailybread.org Great expectation on our part honors God. INSIGHT: Elijah was human just as we are, but God responded to his persistent prayer. We also see the idea of persistent prayer in the New Testament. To encourage Jesus’s disciples to persist and persevere in prayer, He told them two parables. In Luke 11:5-13, a host persistently knocked on his neighbor’s door until his friend gave him food for his guest (vv. 8-9). In Luke 18:1-8, the widow was dealing with an unjust judge who had no compassion or concern for her. But he gave in and consented to help her to stop her pestering! In both parables, perseverance bore fruit. The question is not if God will answer prayer, for He most certainly will (Luke 18:8). The question is whether we will be found faithful in persistent and persevering prayer (v. 8; Rom. 12:12). Sim Kay Tee Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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Day 24 - Uncontrollable Emotions

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 Uncontrollable Emotions Day 24 Fear, depression, anger, loneliness, despair—these emotions come and go with dizzying unpredictability. Your life is like a roller-coaster ride that you can't get off. Stay on the ride. You cannot hurry the grieving process. Each time one of these emotions comes flooding back, it is a sign that you are recovering. "All the feelings, thoughts, and emotions rush back into my life. It's uncontrollable," says Dr. Norman Peart. But God is always in control. He is a solid rock, unmoving and unchanging. Build your life's foundation on Him. "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock" (Matthew 7:24-25). Lord, I am hanging on for the endurance of the ride. You are a constant presence through my ups and downs. 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

Wounds from a Friend December 10, 2016

Read: Proverbs 27:5–10 Bible in a Year: Hosea 1–4; Revelation 1  Wounds from a friend can be trusted. — Proverbs 27:6 Charles Lowery complained to his friend about lower back pain. He was seeking a sympathetic ear, but what he got was an honest assessment. His friend told him, “I don’t think your back pain is your problem; it’s your stomach. Your stomach is so big it’s pulling on your back.” In his column for REV! Magazine, Charles shared that he resisted the temptation to be offended. He lost the weight and his back problem went away. Charles recognized that “Better is open rebuke than hidden love. Wounds from a friend can be trusted” (Prov. 27:5-6). The trouble is that so often we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism, for truth hurts. It bruises our ego, makes us uncomfortable, and calls for change. True friends don’t find pleasure in hurting us. Rather, they love us too much to deceive us. They are people who, with loving courage, point out what we may already know but find hard to truly accept and live by. They tell us not only what we like to hear but also what we need to hear. Solomon honored such friendship in his proverbs. Jesus went further—He endured the wounds of our rejection not only to tell us the truth about ourselves but to show us how much we are loved. —Poh Fang Chia Think of a time when a friend said something honest that caused you pain. Did it benefit you? Is it wise to accept everything our friends tell us?    A friend is one who can tell you the truth in love. INSIGHT: Ephesians 4:15 is a New Testament counterpart of Proverbs 27:6. It refers to two virtues that we must learn to keep in balance—“speaking the truth” and “love.” The word “speaking” is actually not an explicit part of the original Greek text, but is translated from a single verb. Some translators have suggested that the verb might better be rendered “truthing it” or “truthifying it in love.” The verb, when joined with “in love,” implies a lifestyle of integrity where truth is united with love. If we emphasize truth without love, then we can brutally hurt another person. On the other hand, if we express love at the expense of truth, we can fail to caringly confront some sin or problem that genuinely needs to be faced. Jim Townsend Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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Day 23 - Rock Bottom

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 Rock Bottom Day 23 Your visitors have left and gone home. The house is quiet. The adrenaline that you've been living on has stopped. According to Dr. E. V. Hill, "Initially, you can expect great strength to do what you have to do. But then you can expect great sorrow. It will start coming in when the phones are no longer ringing and the people are no longer visiting. "Then you can expect the visit of the devil. He is a booger. He knows when to come and what to say to make you feel even worse." When your emotions have hit rock bottom, there is only one path to travel, and that is the path to God. "Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you, I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you" (Isaiah 46:4). Lord, in my weakness and the failing of my limbs, lift me into the palm of Your everlasting hand. You alone are my strength and my champion. 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

The Gift of Encouragement December 9, 2016

Read: Acts 4:32–37; 9:26–27 Bible in a Year: Daniel 11–12; Jude Joseph . . . whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.—Acts 4:36–37 An old Merle Haggard song, “If We Make It Through December,” tells the story of a man laid off from his factory job with no money to buy Christmas gifts for his little girl. Although December is supposed to be a happy time of year, his life seems dark and cold. Discouragement is not unique to December, but it can be amplified then. Our expectations may be higher, our sadness deeper. A little encouragement can go a long way. Joseph, a man from Cyprus, was among the early followers of Jesus. The apostles called him Barnabas, which means “son of encouragement.” We meet him in Acts 4:36-37 when he sold a piece of property and donated the money to help other believers in need. Later, we read that the disciples were afraid of Saul (Acts 9:26). “But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles” (v. 27). Saul, later called Paul, had formerly been trying to kill the believers, but Barnabas defended him as a man transformed by Christ. All around us are people longing to be encouraged. A timely word, a phone call, or a prayer can bolster their faith in Jesus. The generosity and support of Barnabas demonstrate what it means to be a son or daughter of encouragement. That may be the greatest gift we can give to others this Christmas. —David McCasland Thank You, Lord, for the gift of encouragement. May we encourage others as they have encouraged us. Encouragement may be the greatest gift we give this Christmas. INSIGHT: When Saul of Tarsus met the Lord Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus, he was transformed into an apostle of Christ. Needless to say, the Christian community was fearful and skeptical about Paul’s apparent change of spiritual loyalties. It is in this context that Barnabas provided a wonderful service of bridge-building. Barnabas was central to Paul’s acceptance by supporting Paul’s conversion story and accepting him as a brother in Christ. Here we see Barnabas showing a spirit of generosity and encouragement. How can you plan to be a blessing to others through an intentional act of encouragement? Dennis Fisher Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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