A Christian Devotional

[Shammu]

Where are your nails?

Proverbs 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

A friend sent us this powerful story.

There once was a boy who had a very bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that from now on, each time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into their beautiful white picket fence. The first day the boy drove in thirty-seven nails.

Over the next few weeks, he learned to control his anger -- the number of nails he hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to go outside and drive those nails into the fence. When he told his father about this, he suggested that the boy now start pulling out a nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. Finally, the day came when the young boy was able to tell his father that all the nails were gone.

That evening, he took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "Son, you have done well but look at the holes you've made here. Our beautiful fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger to the people you love, they leave deep, ugly holes just like these. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound will still be there".

I think this is a good reminder for us today. Our tongue is a powerful force! With it, we need to be bringing words of life and encouragement to those around us!

[Shammu]

Would you like fries with that?

Mark 10:44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all.

Some time ago, a friend was helping us do a couple of things around the house. When I asked him if he would mind doing one additional thing before he left, he jokingly responded, “and would you like fries with that”? Hmmm. A wise man was once asked, “How can I know if I have a servant’s attitude?” The wise man responded, “By how you act when you are treated like one!”

The word for servant in the above scripture is “doulos”, which literally means “bondslave” in the Greek. Thankfully, Jesus doesn’t treat us as such but like it or not, we are the Lord’s bondslaves and we are called to serve our Master’s every desire and respond immediately to his call at any given time.

Lord forgive us for the times we fall short of this high calling! We humble ourselves before you and recommit our mind, body and will, fully to you once again today. It is a priviledge and an honor to serve you. We love you and bless you and thank you for your infinite mercy. There is none like You. We pray in Jesus precious Name.

[Shammu]

Strapped for cash?

2 Corinthians 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

Living by faith financially can be a wonderful thing. Back in Jesus' day, people didn't have savings and money market accounts, mutual funds, and IRA's. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that those things are bad to have. What I'm saying is that those of us who live without them have an opportunity -- an opportunity to see God provide in miraculous ways!

One month when we first came to Israel, we had reached the end of our finances on a consecutive number of unexpected crises. Now we had to pay our rent and our bank account was almost totally depleated and we were getting a little nervous. "Lord!" we cried. "We came here to Israel to be a light and to do your work, what's going on?! We need a miracle!"

I kid you not. The next day, our phone rang. Someone who didn't know a thing about our ministry called to let us know that while he had been travelling in Europe he met a woman who found out he was coming to the Land soon and gave him an envelope to give us as soon as he could. Wouldn't you know it, that money was the exact figure we needed and it came just in time to pay our rent.

It wasn't long before we realized that living by faith would become a way of life for us. After a few miracles like this one, we stopped getting nervous. We knew that God would always come through.

John Guest said that "It is remarkable to think that God has given us a partnership with him in directing the course of human events. It is extraordinary to realize that our prayer can change events and circumstances in the world around us. But what is just as remarkable is that when we pray, we change. More often than not we become the answer to our own prayers as we open up ourselves to God in prayer.

If you're struggling today, struggle no longer! God is faithful! Let's ask the Lord to help us begin to see our needs as opportunities to see His miracle working power!

[Shammu]

Go away!

Psalms 23:2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

Leonardo da Vinci, who excelled at many things -- as a painter, sculptor, poet, architect, engineer, city planner, scientist, inventor, anatomist, military genius, and philosopher said a wise thing:

"Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer, since to remain constantly at work will cause you to lose power of judgment... Go some distance away because then the work appears smaller, and more of it can be taken in at a glance, and lack of harmony or proportion is more readily seen."

Have you found this to be the truth? We have! Any time we step back from a situation or project and take some time away, we undoubtedly gain new perspective and insight about it. Now, I know not all of us can take a week-long vacation at a luxurious resort to take time away from our difficulties, but we can, and must take a retreat with the Lord (which by the way, can be much more restful)! The Word says He makes me to lie down and green pastures -- It doesn't say He'd like us to, if we could try to take some time from our busy schedules -- it says He makes us!

It's time to take a rest from all the things that make us weary today -- ministry work included. Let's take some time out with the Lord and get quiet before Him. He has so many things He wants to reveal, if we would only give Him a chance to show us! He's has so many ways He wants to refresh us and refill our empty places, if we would only be obedient to His call!

[Shammu]

God has something special in store for you!

1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

When we were in the womb we had eyes, but there was little to focus on. Our eyes had rods and cones to distinguish shapes and colors, yet there were no shades or colors to see. We were in total darkness. But we had eyes that were meant to see light. Our eyes were the evidence that beyond the womb was a whole other world, still yet to be seen.

As we dwell in this world, our hearts cannot be satisfied by the things they see here. Deep inside, we know there is more... and we long for it. This life is Heaven's womb.

No matter what this world gives us, it can never satisfy what the eyes of our hearts long to see. It is here that we are being formed, and prepared to enter the realm of the Heavenly. Don't be discouraged that this this life can't give us all we want. It is a reminder of our inheritance yet to come.

Let's give our desires to the Lord once again. He wants to prepare us to rule with Him!

[Shammu]

Let it go!

Matthew 6:19-21 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

My wife has had an interesting life. Here, she shares a small portion of her past:

I was born in Israel. My parents divorced when I was a toddler and my mother met and married a hippie American tourist who was searching his roots in Israel at the time. Later, we went back to the States with him. Little did we realize that he was heavily addicted to drugs and this among other things made for a very unhappy family and little on which to live.

Every once in a while my father in Israel would send money for my mother to buy an airline ticket for me to visit him and the rest of my family. One particular year when I about eleven or twelve, he gave me a nice chunk of spending money for the duration of my trip, the equivalence of two hundred and fifty dollars or so. When my time in Israel that summer was coming to an end and I realized I had hardly touched that money, I decided keep it and not tell him or anyone else. "I mean, my dad had assumed I'd spent it, right? No one would have to know," I reasoned. "I'd take it back with me and have lots of money to spend when I returned to Israel the next time."

When I got back to America, I put that stash away in a little jewelry box on my dresser. No matter how poor we were, I always secretly felt rich knowing that stash was there. The next summer, my father sent for me again. Before I left, I was sure not to forget to put my saved shekels deep in my pocket, as not to lose them. I was the richest girl in the world!

But when I reached Israel this time, my father gave me money unlike the kind I had in my pocket. It looked funny -- not at all like my long-awaited spending stash. It was different in color and had a different design. "That's strange," I thought, "How could this be?"

To my great dismay, the currency had changed to the New Israeli Shekel while I was away. The money I had was absolutely worthless now. I was sick to my stomach.

What a waste! And worse, I couldn't even tell my dad.

A wise man once said, "Greed is the logical result of the belief that there is no life after death. We grab what we can while we can however we can and then hold on to it hard."

Our Father has given us some spending money, hasn't He? And sadly, it is our tendency as human beings to want to keep it to ourselves. Let's not hoard what He has freely given us. Let's freely bless people around us in need, whether it is with our finances, our possessions, our time and energy or comfort. There is a lot more where those came from. And we can't take it with us anyway -- the currency is different in heaven!

[Shammu]

You're a millionaire!

James 5:16b The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Ever wonder what someone who's never seen the modern world thinks of us approaching a wall, pressing a few buttons and out comes lot's of money? Cash machines -- they're everywhere -- and if you've got cash in your account, you can just go and make a withdrawal!

Imagine having a cash card that you could use to withdraw as much as your heart desires anytime you want -- with no limit.

We, who believe, have a card like that! We have direct access to the riches of God's grace. We have unlimited access to love, mercy, joy and all the good things of the Lord, and we can access it anytime, anyplace and in any circumstance. The strange thing is that we don't use it nearly as much as we could!

We need to tap into God's wonderful bank of unlimited riches today! May the righteous use their spiritual bankcards to withdraw much!

[Shammu]

Find the secret of stability!

Isaiah 33:6 And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure.

Have you ever felt uneasy, unsettled or unstable? Or maybe a better question is -- who hasn’t? How do we overcome these feelings? This is what George Muller wrote in His diary on May 9, 1841:

"Now, I saw that the most important thing I had to do was to give myself to the reading of the Word of God, and to meditation on it, that thus my heart might be comforted, encouraged, warned, reproved, instructed...by breakfast time, with rare exceptions, I am in a peaceful if not happy state of heart."

The word faith in Hebrew is “emunah” (em-oo-nah). But interestingly, in our Hebrew Bible, the word stability in the verse above is written “emunah”! Faith and stability are linked one to another. How do we become more stable and settled despite the circumstances surrounding our lives? By gaining faith! "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God."

When we search for wisdom and knowledge in His word, we become more stable in our walk! Let’s aim to spend more time in the Word and gain more stability in our lives.

[Shammu]

Whose report will you believe?

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

You may recall a few months ago we sent out an unspoken prayer request on behalf of the ministry without giving any details. At the time, among many other things going on, we went in for an ultrasound and the doctor told us that he wasn't able to see a nose bone. He went on to say that this was a likely indication that the baby had Downs Syndrome and strongly suggested we get some tests done. When Rivka politely told him that we wouldn't need any tests and that even if the baby did have Downs, he is a gift from God and there was no way we would abort him, the doctor was taken aback. He insisted that we would be causing an injustice to allow a baby to be born with a defect such as this. And believe it or not, two other doctors agreed.

This was clearly an attack of the enemy on our little one's life.... and we can only imagine why. His full name is Obadiah Ahmi (Servant of God to My Nation), a name the Lord gave us for this child before we even knew he was a boy. He has a high a calling to serve Israel and his God.

Baby Obi was born on October 15th, a week late, perfectly healthy -- truly a gift from God!

Our God loves to confound the wisdom of this world with His great power. Let's be sure that the decisions we make today are made with the assurance of faith in a God who loves us and wants to do awesome things in our midst!

[Shammu]

Don't be chicken!

Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

While walking through the forest one day, a farmer found a young eagle who had apparently fallen out of his nest. He took it home and put it in his barnyard with his chickens and there it stayed for years. It wasn't long before the little eagle learned to eat and behave like the chickens.

One day a naturalist passed by the farm and saw the eagle confined in the barnyard with the chickens. When he inquired about this strange sight, the farmer told the man his story. "Unfortunately," said the farmer, "the poor little guy just never learned to fly." "Still," the naturalist sighed, "he has the heart of an eagle and can surely be taught. Will you allow me to work with him?" The farmer agreed, but with much disbelief.

The naturalist picked up the eagle and lifted him toward the sky and said, "You belong to the sky and not to the earth. Stretch forth your wings and fly." The eagle, however, was confused. He did not know who he was, and seeing the chickens eating their food, he jumped down to be with them again. The naturalist took the bird to the roof of the house and urged him again, saying, "You are an eagle. Stretch forth your wings and fly." But the eagle was afraid and jumped down once again to be with his chicken friends. Finally the naturalist took the eagle out of the barnyard to a high mountain. There he held the king of the birds high above him and encouraged him again, saying, "You are an eagle. You belong to the sky. Stretch forth your wings and fly!" The eagle looked around, back towards the barnyard and then up to the sky. Slowly, he stretched his wings, and with a triumphant cry, he soared away into the heavens.

Somewhere along the line, we like this poor young eagle, were put in a lowly barn with the chickens of the world around us. We learned to live and eat from the ground and grew up believing that there was not much more to do than sit and cluck all day.

But the reality is that we are eagles! We were created to fly and even soar! God has great purpose for our lives! If we would only realize who we are in Him!

Let's remember who we are today and stop acting like chickens! We are the head and not the tail! We are Kings and Priests! We have great things to do for the Kingdom!

[Shammu]

It's time to cut down the trees!

Col 3:13-14 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity (agape), which is the bond of perfectness.

After the Civil War, Robert E. Lee visited a Kentucky lady who took him to the remains of a once beautiful old tree in front of her house. There she bitterly cried that its limbs and trunk had been destroyed by Federal artillery fire. She looked to Lee for a word condemning the North or at least sympathizing with her loss. After a brief silence, Lee said, "Cut it down, my dear Madam, and forget it."

The enemy is constantly attacking the body of Messiah. Some of his most effective tactics are anger, bitterness and unforgiveness. Paul wrote that we should never be ignorant of the enemy’s schemes (2 Cor. 2:11), and our lives should be marked with love one for another….and above all things, to put on charity. The word charity in Greek is the word agape!

Jesus has come and has forgiven us. We simply need to forgive others. We must base our relationships with others on the same criteria that God bases His relationship with us: love, acceptance and forgiveness. Our acts of forgiveness will set the captives free ... and at the end of it all, we may realize that we were the captives!

Let’s cut down the battered trees in our lives! Let’s seek to be forgivers and to put on agape love.

[Shammu]

Get some exercise!

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Yesterday was a big day for us, but especially for baby Obi. He was circumsized in the presence of our friends and family (many of them not believers) at our congregation in Tel Aviv. We had the chance to share about the false report we got concerning Obi's health and how the doctors told us to abort him early on. I tied in the faith that Abraham must have had, especially concerning circumcision. There may not have been a dry eye in the house. Thank you God!

Perhaps you're being tested in ways that you don't understand. While it's a good possibilty that we may not understand til we see the Lord, these tests are for our good! They are for the exercising of our faith -- and ultimately for our growth and blessing in the Lord!

Let's not despise the testing of our faith. The Lord is using it to prepare us for greater things ahead! And guess why?!

[Shammu]

What's that smell?

2 Corinthians 2:14-15 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:

Our little Elianna, now almost four, loves flowers. Every time she sees one, she has to get down and take a whiff. It's so adorable.

Did you know that back in the days of the Roman Empire fragrances were all the rage? They would celebrate their victories with huge parades and burn incense on the altars, which would fill the entire city with its sweet-scented aroma. Even those who could not be part of the celebration would smell the incense from afar and know their army had been victorious!

This is the very effect we should have on the world around us. Our lives should be burning the sweet smell of righteousness, holiness, love, and victory! Our fragrance should be so strong that people can smell it from afar and know that we are victorious in every circumstance through the atoning work God has already done!

Let's get on fire for Him again today! The world is hungry! Smelling that delicious aroma will get them motivated to grab a bite! I've said it before and I'll say it again

[Shammu]

Do it with a smile!

Psalms 70:4 Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: and let such as love thy salvation say continually, Let God be magnified.

I heard a story once, of a chaplain who was speaking to a loyal soldier in the hospital. "Bless you son, you saved a fellow soldier’s life -- and lost an arm in the great cause doing it," the chaplain said. "No," said the soldier with a smile. "I didn't lose it … I gave it.

We have so much. The Lord has blessed many of us with good health, the use of our eyes, ears, mouths, hands, feet and minds. He’s given us various talents of sorts. He’s blessed many of us with homes, cars and good paying jobs. Most importantly, He’s bestowed upon us the wonderful knowledge of His Son, Jesus.

We are all soldiers in God’s great army. In the same way this young soldier gave his arm to save a life, we should be offering our gifts toward God’s great cause of salvation for the world.

Let's make it a point to start giving consistently of the gifts God has given us, whatever they may be. After all, Jesus did not lose His life -- He gave it purposefully for us, no strings attached. And there’s so much work to be done!

[Shammu]

Feeling itchy?

1 Thes. 5:16-18 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

In her book “The Hiding Place” Corrie ten Boom relates an incident that taught her always to be thankful. She and her sister Betsy had just been transferred to the worst German prison camp they had seen yet, called Ravensbruck. The barracks were extremely overcrowded and horribly flea-infested.

After their scripture reading in 1st Thessalonians that morning, where the Lord reminded them to rejoice always, pray constantly, and give thanks in all circumstances.

Betsy suggested they stop and thank the Lord for every detail of their new living quarters. At first, Corrie was appalled by the idea. She flatly refused to give thanks for that smelly, dirty, flea-ridden place. But Betsy persisted -- and Corrie finally succumbed to her pleadings.

It was by a miracle of God that Corrie and Betsy were able to smuggle their Bible into the camp. If the guards found out that the women were holding nightly Bible studies in their barracks, they surely would have been punished harshly, maybe even killed. During the months they spent at that camp, however, no guard ever said one word.

It was not until several months later that they learned the reason why the guards would hardly ever come into their barracks. They wouldn't enter the barracks because of the fleas!!

Perhaps you're dealing with some difficult circumstances today. But who knows? There may be a purpose beyond our understanding! Let's choose trust the Lord and maintain an attitude of thankfulness in every situation.