Thursday... But it stays clean.

The writer of Proverbs writes in 14:4 (NLT), "Without oxen a stable stays clean." Now staying clean is a good thing, isn't it? If no one lives in a house, then it says clean. If you never take your car out of the garage it stays clean. If you never let your kids go outside and play they will stay clean.

He goes on, "But you need a strong ox for a large harvest." But it's a good thing when you live in the house. It's a good thing when you go places, maybe work or church. It's a good thing for kids to play. Yes we may have many levels of desires but then there is always the greater ones that supersedes the lesser ones.

Over in Acts 26 Paul is in big trouble. He is a prisoner. Now if being free, if being back home in Jerusalem was his greatest desire then he wouldn't have been standing and sharing the Good News to King Agrippa and governor Festus. Verse 32 says, "And Agrippa said to Festus, 'He could have been set free if he hadn't appealed to Caesar." But being free wasn't his greatest desire. Something inside him said he was to go to Rome even if he was a prisoner. And there in prison Paul wrote a big portion of the New Testament. But if freedom was his greatest desire then he wouldn't have made such a difference in sharing the Good News to generation upon generation.

So what is driving you? Yes your stable could be clean "but you need a strong oxen for a large harvest." Make sure what you are living for will make the greatest difference. Proverbs 14:8 says, "The prudent understand where they are going but fools deceive themselves." Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

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Friday... We have this hope of expectancy.

Psalm 5:3 (NLT), "Listen to my voice in the morning Lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly." Friday... We have this hope of expectancy. Now David found a great way to start his day. He says in Psalm 5:1-3 (NLT), "O LORD, hear me as I pray." And that is a great place to start. It really is. Morning sunrise He goes on, "Listen to my cry for help, my King, my God, for I pray to no one but you." And that is so important. We don't try to pump ourselves up by ourself. No, we pray to no one but you, God, my LORD, my King. Now this relationship with God is so, so very important. And then David says, "Listen to my voice in the morning, LORD. Each morning I bring my requests to you" And that is so great. And then he says, "and wait expectantly." Yes, we have this hope of expectancy. We are experienced. That is what a relationship with God and a moment by moment connection does. It makes a difference in our daily wa...

Friday... Yes, we can know this to be true.

Psalm 12:6 (NLT), "The Lord's promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over." Friday... Yes, we can know this to be true. Maybe this is what you want to say in this day in which we live. Psalm 12:1-2 (MSG) says, "Quick, I need your helping hand! The last decent person just went down, all the friends I depend on gone. Everyone talks in lie language; lies slide off their oily lips. They doubletalk with forked tongues." Do you ever feel that way?" Have you found that to be true? Well David the writer of this Psalm continues and says in verse 6 something to encourage us, to lift us up, to give us hope. Psalm 12:6 (NLT) says, "The Lord's promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over." The Message Paraphrase says verses 6-8 this way, "God's words are pure words, pure silver words refined seven times in the fires of his word-kiln, pure on earth as well as in heaven, God, keep ...

Wednesday... It is amazing what we can see.

Psalm 3:3a (NLT), "But you, O LORD, are a shield around me." Wednesday... It is amazing what we can see. And what we see does make such a difference in our day. Now David, he writer of Psalm 3 starts this Psalm this way. He says in verse 1 (NLT), "O Lord, I have so many enemies; so many are against me." Yes, he is saying this to the LORD, the one he serves. Verse 2 says, "So many are saying, 'God will never rescue him!'" And that is so true with that outlook. So many of us get out of bed with that outlook every morning. It is amazing what we can see. Now I woke up this morning and eventually found myself outside on my couch with my Bible and I read this outlook in verses 1-2 from David. But I didn't stop there and neither did David. But that is an easy place to stop, isn't it? And it is true. Yes, David didn't stop there. Verses 3-4 says, "But you, O LORD, are a shield around me; you are my glory, the one who holds my head high. I...

Today's Beginning

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