#030126

God, Your timing is perfect. Thank You for being so patient and gracious with me. You alone are my source of strength, joy, and peace. Today, I repent of focusing on momentary things instead of placing You first in my life. Draw me close to You. And as I wait on You to return, please use me to love and encourage this broken world. in Jesus' name, Amen.

DAILY BIBLE READING: NUMBERS 23-25 MARK 7:14-37 BALAAM BLESSES ISRAEL Balaam replied, “I will speak only the message that the Lord puts in my mouth.” BALAAM'S SECOND MESSAGE 9God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Listen, I received a command to bless; God has blessed, and I cannot reverse it! No misfortune is in his plan for Jacob; no trouble is in store for Israel. For the Lord their God is with them; he has been proclaimed their king. BALAAM'S THIRD MESSAGE He devours all the nations that oppose him, breaking their bones in pieces, shooting them with arrows. 9Like a lion, Israel crouches and lies down; like a lioness, who dares to arouse her? Blessed is everyone who blesses you, O Israel, and cursed is everyone who curses you.” BALAAM'S FINAL MESSAGES MOAB SEDUCES ISRAEL JESUS TEACHES ABOUT INNER PURITY “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand. 15It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.” Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.) THE FAITH OF A GENTILE WOMAN She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even the dogs under the table are allowed to eat the scraps from the children’s plates.” 29 “Good answer!” he said. “Now go home, for the demon has left your daughter.” 30And when she arrived home, she found her little girl lying quietly in bed, and the demon was gone. JESUS HEALS A DEAF MAN Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the man’s tongue. 34Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened!” 35Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!

ROMAN 10:12-15 SALVATION IS FOR EVERYONE 2Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. 13For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” 14But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? 15And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!” INSIGHT Romans 9-11 have presented a challenge to Bible scholars, as these chapters don’t seem to fit into the flow of Paul’s argument for the gospel of God’s grace. The Bible Knowledge Commentary offers helpful insight on the apostle’s purpose in writing this section: “Paul here discussed God’s sovereign choice because of a practical problem. The Jews gloried in the fact that as Israelites they were God’s Chosen People. But now in God’s program of salvation in the church, Jewish involvement was decreasing while Gentile participation was becoming dominant. Had God, then, abandoned the Jewish people?” The apostle answers this question directly in chapter 11: “I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means!” (v. 1). Romans 9-11 celebrate God’s sovereignty and perfect wisdom, concluding with the doxology in chapter 11 (vv. 33-36). We may not always understand God’s ways, but we can join in His purposes by sharing the gospel with others and looking for ways to show them God’s love.

GO AND TELL OF JESUS As our bus traveled higher and higher on the narrow road along the Andes Mountains, my teammates were busy laughing and singing. I was staring out my window—aghast that there weren’t any guardrails between us and the abyss to our right. I was feeling a bit fearful and anxious as we kept going up and up and up, and I started to wonder why our short-term mission team had come to this remote part of Ecuador. Then it dawned on me: God must really love these people if He would send His own Son to die for them. Surely I could get through a scary bus ride to express that love with them.

It ended up being such a joy to do short Bible lessons, share our testimonies, and pray with the people who welcomed us in the various towns we visited each day.

The apostle Paul was committed to telling others about Jesus so they too could put their trust in Him. In Romans 10:13 he says that all who call on Jesus “will be saved.” But “how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent?” (Romans 10:14-15).

There are people all around us who don’t know Christ. Let’s ask God for the courage to share the good news of Jesus with others, pray with them, and invite them to a church service or activity.

By: Nancy Gavilanes

REFLECT AND PRAY How can you share the message of Christ with those who don’t know Him? What tangible things can you do this week to show someone that you care?

Dear God, please help me to share Jesus. In Jesus' name, Amen.

DARING TO IMAGINE

Because you can’t see God, you have to use imagination to practice your faith. Hebrews 11 is the great chapter of heroes of the faith. In Hebrews 11 we have God’s Hall of Fame. You know there’s a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a Baseball Hall of Fame. God’s Hall of Fame lists all the people who are the real heroes in God’s book. People like Abraham, Moses, Joseph, Rahab, and Gideon stepped out in faith to confidently follow the vision God gave them.

Hebrews 11 begins by defining faith as the “confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see” (Hebrews 11:1 NLT).

Faith is a way of seeing. God says whatever you hope for — whatever you think might happen — when you believe that it will actually happen, that’s faith. It’s the evidence, or confidence, of things we cannot yet see.

God gave you two ways of seeing. First, you can see through your physical eyes. And second, you can see through the imagination in your mind. You can picture things in your mind, you dream them, you visualize them. When you can’t see something physically you can imagine it in your mind.

The Bible says you need to focus on the things that will last — those things that you can’t actually see with your eyes. In order to do that you have to imagine them. Imagination shapes your life and is essential to living by faith.

PRAY: Dear God, help me to practice my faith by using my imagination. I want my thoughts to reflect the confident assurance I have that what I hope for is going to happen. I set my eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen. Help me in my unbelief. I choose to hope in your promises for me. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

HEBREWS 11:1 1Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.