Day 14 – Psalm 85

I find this morning that it is no coincidence that I received an E-mail yesterday from a friend regarding this very same topic.

We live in a country and a time when Romans 1:18-32 would appear to apply directly to us. As a country, we have created a god that suits our needs. We have traded the truth for the lie by twisting what people “think” it means in order to live in the flesh and burning with lust. There are people in this country that follow the teachings of men and women who are far from the truth and are teaching and preaching to itching ears.

Woe to this country if God doesn’t shed his grace on us. He is our only hope of revival. Even as much wickedness rules, there have been times past when the Lord has awakened this sleeping country and revived his people that are within.

Like in this Psalm, I pray that God would not remove his favor on this country. Instead I pray that He would grab it by the blue collar and shake it awake. Open eyes and ears because they will not see or hear unless He does. There is glory to be received from this people and a land that needs to be healed.

Day 13 - Acts 4:1-19

I got home from my trip to Minneapolis yesterday. Although I have traveled regularly for over 10 years, the routine of going out on the road has never settled in. Regardless of how much I like the area or how nice the hotel is, it isn’t home.

When an unbeliever hears the Gospel, no amount of words that we say could ever convince them of the truth. They will use anything they can to deny it. They can/will argue the points of scripture that we present. They can’t however explain/deny the testimony of a changed life; it could be when they see the shy behaving boldly in the name of God; the addict free from his addictions; the drunk now sober and functioning in society; the healed family of a once broken home; perhaps even the body of someone miraculously healed. As with all of these examples, there is no argument against a changed life.

When God enters our lives, there is a marked difference. We should be visibly set apart from the rest of the world. Perhaps they will even marvel at the change. Like John and Peter, people should be able to know that we have been with Jesus. When they ask why we are different, we should be ready with the answer. “There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”