Our Framework for Giving
“The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your need in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame.”
Isaiah 58:11
I have written much about how God will satisfy our needs, but how do we distinguish between our true needs and our wants and desires? This is where we each have to establish our philosophy about generosity and giving to others, and make sure this is the same philosophy that God desires for us. There are two things that we need to understand in order to determine if we are following God’s will in this regard. The first is that we must understand that everything we own is not ours but is God’s. We don’t have anything that God has not given us, as all our possessions are His. He promises that He will provide our needs, but our wants and desires is another thing. God tells us that He will grant our wants and desires, but only after we have gotten our life in order about our generosity to others We need as much as will make us fit-spiritually, physically and mentally-for the purposes of God, but what we have beyond this belongs to the needs of others. The second is that we must begin to give generously to others, not for the good feelings that giving brings, but because we are supposed to be a blessing to them. We should give generously not with the idea of getting a blessing for ourselves, but to give a blessing to others. When we have our philosophy on giving aligned with God’s philosophy, we will have real freedom from the temptation to let material possessions and wealth control our life, and become our God. I would encourage each of you to look at your life and your philosophy about giving and align it with God’s philosophy. It is important to follow God’s commands in this regard, as God loves a cheerful giver, and thinking about others needs is to love others as we love ourselves.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
My Daily Devotional
Have You Been Transformed
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
Romans 12:2
This scripture is my second most favorite scripture in the Bible, followed only by Isaiah 26:3. What is so important about this verse is that it tells me that when Jesus came into my heart that my life changed, and I became no longer a part of this world, but was transformed into a new me. My son in law is a programmer and I believe our lives before Christ was programmed into us. The world that we were exposed to had taken over our lives, and thus we became the people we were. The influences of our family, our friends and peers, our teachers, our jobs and all the experiences we were surrounded with made us what we had been. If we grew up in a Christian environment this was programmed into us, and if we grew up in a non Christian environment we developed a philosophy of how to survive and cope and succeed in the world apart from God. But my scripture tells me that when I became a Christian my sins were washed away, and I was reprogrammed and transformed into a new person. I cast aside all the influences and experiences that had made me what I was, and was transformed into a new being, and now became influenced by new people in Christ, new friends in Christ, new peers in Christ and new surroundings, the House of God. But the most important thing in my scripture is that my mind was reprogrammed and transformed from the things of the world, to the things of Jesus Christ. God designed us to live in fellowship with God and to fulfill His purpose and His plan for our lives, but we were born physically alive but spiritually dead in a sin filled world. We had to be born again, and be transformed and reprogrammed into the person that God wanted us to become.
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
Romans 12:2
This scripture is my second most favorite scripture in the Bible, followed only by Isaiah 26:3. What is so important about this verse is that it tells me that when Jesus came into my heart that my life changed, and I became no longer a part of this world, but was transformed into a new me. My son in law is a programmer and I believe our lives before Christ was programmed into us. The world that we were exposed to had taken over our lives, and thus we became the people we were. The influences of our family, our friends and peers, our teachers, our jobs and all the experiences we were surrounded with made us what we had been. If we grew up in a Christian environment this was programmed into us, and if we grew up in a non Christian environment we developed a philosophy of how to survive and cope and succeed in the world apart from God. But my scripture tells me that when I became a Christian my sins were washed away, and I was reprogrammed and transformed into a new person. I cast aside all the influences and experiences that had made me what I was, and was transformed into a new being, and now became influenced by new people in Christ, new friends in Christ, new peers in Christ and new surroundings, the House of God. But the most important thing in my scripture is that my mind was reprogrammed and transformed from the things of the world, to the things of Jesus Christ. God designed us to live in fellowship with God and to fulfill His purpose and His plan for our lives, but we were born physically alive but spiritually dead in a sin filled world. We had to be born again, and be transformed and reprogrammed into the person that God wanted us to become.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
My Daily Devotional
Serve Others
“Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Mark 10:43-45
In looking back on my life, I realize that I spent the majority of my life in a career where I was always in charge, and always the boss and not the servant. I wanted things to be done my way, and demanded my employees to follow my instructions. I now realize that so many times throughout my career, I missed the true meaning of what the above scripture really tells us. Although I always fulfilled my duties as a manager, and got the job done well, there were so many missed opportunities I had to put the welfare of others ahead of my own, but did not do so. Jesus is telling us to be a servant in everything we do, to put others first, to think about others instead of ourselves. Most of the things we do in life impact other people, and we need to remember that by putting them first, we are doing what Jesus wants us to do. I know that during these last few years as I have become more of a servant, Jesus has blessed my life, and has provided me a peace and joy that I have not experienced before. During the last part of my business career, I had the attitude of being a servant to my employees. I wanted to know what I could do to help them perform their jobs better. As I began to follow this method I realized that this is the way that all of us should live our lives. All of us need to be servants in all that we do, as when we have the attitude of being a servant we are fulfilling what God really wants us to become. God has blessed me when I began to be a servant, and I will continue to serve others for the rest of my days.
“Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Mark 10:43-45
In looking back on my life, I realize that I spent the majority of my life in a career where I was always in charge, and always the boss and not the servant. I wanted things to be done my way, and demanded my employees to follow my instructions. I now realize that so many times throughout my career, I missed the true meaning of what the above scripture really tells us. Although I always fulfilled my duties as a manager, and got the job done well, there were so many missed opportunities I had to put the welfare of others ahead of my own, but did not do so. Jesus is telling us to be a servant in everything we do, to put others first, to think about others instead of ourselves. Most of the things we do in life impact other people, and we need to remember that by putting them first, we are doing what Jesus wants us to do. I know that during these last few years as I have become more of a servant, Jesus has blessed my life, and has provided me a peace and joy that I have not experienced before. During the last part of my business career, I had the attitude of being a servant to my employees. I wanted to know what I could do to help them perform their jobs better. As I began to follow this method I realized that this is the way that all of us should live our lives. All of us need to be servants in all that we do, as when we have the attitude of being a servant we are fulfilling what God really wants us to become. God has blessed me when I began to be a servant, and I will continue to serve others for the rest of my days.
Friday, January 28, 2011
My Daily Devotional
My Personal Peace
“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.”
Isaiah 23:3
When I began to follow the plan that Jesus called me to do, the scripture above was one that I accepted as my own personal scripture. I have had this scripture placed on the cover of all of my books, and is one that I have found to be so true. Prior to God’s call in my life I depended on myself for all things, as I had the confidence in myself and in my own abilities to do what I needed to do in my business career, and did it very successfully for over 45 years. However there was something seriously missing, and that was the peace; as even though I was successful in all my endeavors, my world was filled with stress, un-fulfillment, worry about what the future held, material things and my own personal ambitions and desires. I knew all about Jesus, or so I thought, as all throughout my life I went through the motions of going to church, reading my Bible occasionally, and praying when I encountered problems in my life. However, this all changed when I heard Jesus calling me, and although I resisted for several years, when I actually committed myself to following Him and giving my life fully to Him, my stress, my un-fulfillment, my worries about the future, my need for material things and my own personal ambitions and desires all disappeared. Peace entered my life and I have never been the same. The peace and contentment that Jesus can bring into your life is indescribable, when you turn everything over to Him. There is nothing in this world that is like having Jesus in your heart. Your whole world begins to revolve around Him and wanting to do His commands. You can’t get enough of Him and you want more. You want to read more of His Holy Word, and when you study the Bible the scriptures leap off the pages at you, and they come to life, and have meanings that you never saw and comprehended before. All of the commands of God leap out at you, and your thoughts and actions want to obey and follow all of them. Things that seemed acceptable before now suddenly are not acceptable, and you turn away from these and seek to follow the things of God, things that He is placing on your heart and in your mind. Your thoughts are solely concentrating on doing things that would be pleasing to God. You want to become a servant to others, and help meet the needs of less fortunate people around you. Their welfare becomes more important than your welfare, and your thoughts are about how to make their lives better. The material possessions that you have accumulated do not seem important anymore, as these have no meaning as you realize that they are only temporary, but you now begin to thank God for these as you realize that it is not by your power that you have them, but it is by God’s power that He has allowed you to have them. The world around you is suddenly changed, as you can begin to see God in everything you do. You begin to appreciate all the beauty and majesty that God has created. During this time God began to give me words that I have been compelled to write down in my books and in my daily devotionals. These words are not my words, but God’s words as He gives me these words, as He places them on my heart, and gives me the wisdom and the ability to discern what His scriptures mean. God’s plan for my life has changed me completely, and my desire is to serve Him with all my heart, mind, soul and strength. The peace that I now have is my reward, and as I go through the rest of my days on this earth, I pray that God will use me in whatever capacity that He desires. I hear God each and every day as He talks to me in gentle whispers, and gives me direction in my life. My life is now at total peace, and it is all because that God is my Lord and my Savior. My future is now secure because I know that God is by my side and that I will serve Him always. Thank you Jesus for saving my soul and being in my life as you are each day. I will serve you forever.
“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.”
Isaiah 23:3
When I began to follow the plan that Jesus called me to do, the scripture above was one that I accepted as my own personal scripture. I have had this scripture placed on the cover of all of my books, and is one that I have found to be so true. Prior to God’s call in my life I depended on myself for all things, as I had the confidence in myself and in my own abilities to do what I needed to do in my business career, and did it very successfully for over 45 years. However there was something seriously missing, and that was the peace; as even though I was successful in all my endeavors, my world was filled with stress, un-fulfillment, worry about what the future held, material things and my own personal ambitions and desires. I knew all about Jesus, or so I thought, as all throughout my life I went through the motions of going to church, reading my Bible occasionally, and praying when I encountered problems in my life. However, this all changed when I heard Jesus calling me, and although I resisted for several years, when I actually committed myself to following Him and giving my life fully to Him, my stress, my un-fulfillment, my worries about the future, my need for material things and my own personal ambitions and desires all disappeared. Peace entered my life and I have never been the same. The peace and contentment that Jesus can bring into your life is indescribable, when you turn everything over to Him. There is nothing in this world that is like having Jesus in your heart. Your whole world begins to revolve around Him and wanting to do His commands. You can’t get enough of Him and you want more. You want to read more of His Holy Word, and when you study the Bible the scriptures leap off the pages at you, and they come to life, and have meanings that you never saw and comprehended before. All of the commands of God leap out at you, and your thoughts and actions want to obey and follow all of them. Things that seemed acceptable before now suddenly are not acceptable, and you turn away from these and seek to follow the things of God, things that He is placing on your heart and in your mind. Your thoughts are solely concentrating on doing things that would be pleasing to God. You want to become a servant to others, and help meet the needs of less fortunate people around you. Their welfare becomes more important than your welfare, and your thoughts are about how to make their lives better. The material possessions that you have accumulated do not seem important anymore, as these have no meaning as you realize that they are only temporary, but you now begin to thank God for these as you realize that it is not by your power that you have them, but it is by God’s power that He has allowed you to have them. The world around you is suddenly changed, as you can begin to see God in everything you do. You begin to appreciate all the beauty and majesty that God has created. During this time God began to give me words that I have been compelled to write down in my books and in my daily devotionals. These words are not my words, but God’s words as He gives me these words, as He places them on my heart, and gives me the wisdom and the ability to discern what His scriptures mean. God’s plan for my life has changed me completely, and my desire is to serve Him with all my heart, mind, soul and strength. The peace that I now have is my reward, and as I go through the rest of my days on this earth, I pray that God will use me in whatever capacity that He desires. I hear God each and every day as He talks to me in gentle whispers, and gives me direction in my life. My life is now at total peace, and it is all because that God is my Lord and my Savior. My future is now secure because I know that God is by my side and that I will serve Him always. Thank you Jesus for saving my soul and being in my life as you are each day. I will serve you forever.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
My Daily Devotional
God’s Plan is Perfect
“After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before. All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted him and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of silver, and a gold ring. The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first.
Job 42:10-16
This account of Job’s life is the perfect example of someone using the true meaning of patience in their life. With all the afflictions Job suffered he weathered the storms of life and all the pain and suffering. He lost everything but kept his faith in God and did not give in. He had the patience to endure the hardships of life, as he had a promise that if he would keep his faith he would be rewarded many times over with God’s blessings. This is the way God wants each of us to be in dealing with all of the pain and suffering that we have in our own lives. He knows ahead of time what impact many of these things will have on our lives. My father’s death in World War II was an instance in my own life that has always been very difficult for me to understand why this was allowed to happen to me. I am now beginning to understand why God allowed this to happen, as I can see how his death has influenced my life, and also my children’s lives. It has been difficult for me to be patient all these years living with this, but I now realize some of the reasons why God may have allowed this to happen. I probably will never understand the full story, as this is only a small piece of a large puzzle, but just realizing and seeing only a small piece of the big puzzle has satisfied me and given me peace and joy in my life. I believe God’s plan is a perfect plan.
(Many of my readers have asked if my Daily Devotionals have been published and if they could purchase them. The Devotionals I am posting are from My Daily Devotional Volume III which was published in 2009 and can be purchased at amazon.com or from me at robbrock@comcast.net
“After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before. All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted him and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of silver, and a gold ring. The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first.
Job 42:10-16
This account of Job’s life is the perfect example of someone using the true meaning of patience in their life. With all the afflictions Job suffered he weathered the storms of life and all the pain and suffering. He lost everything but kept his faith in God and did not give in. He had the patience to endure the hardships of life, as he had a promise that if he would keep his faith he would be rewarded many times over with God’s blessings. This is the way God wants each of us to be in dealing with all of the pain and suffering that we have in our own lives. He knows ahead of time what impact many of these things will have on our lives. My father’s death in World War II was an instance in my own life that has always been very difficult for me to understand why this was allowed to happen to me. I am now beginning to understand why God allowed this to happen, as I can see how his death has influenced my life, and also my children’s lives. It has been difficult for me to be patient all these years living with this, but I now realize some of the reasons why God may have allowed this to happen. I probably will never understand the full story, as this is only a small piece of a large puzzle, but just realizing and seeing only a small piece of the big puzzle has satisfied me and given me peace and joy in my life. I believe God’s plan is a perfect plan.
(Many of my readers have asked if my Daily Devotionals have been published and if they could purchase them. The Devotionals I am posting are from My Daily Devotional Volume III which was published in 2009 and can be purchased at amazon.com or from me at robbrock@comcast.net
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
My Daily Devotional
God is Patient With Us
“Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation.”
2nd Peter 3:15
Just last week when I was in the grocery store picking up a few things, I noticed a woman in front of me with a small boy about 4 years old. This young boy was running all around his mother, and it was obvious that he had enough energy to wear all of us down. His mother tried and tried to get him to slow down, but nothing she did kept him from continuing to run, jump and have a good time. The mother finally said if you don’t calm down I am going to count to ten, and began counting very slowly, One---Two---Three. This incident reminded me of my children when we would take them to the beach in Florida, and when they were getting too far out in the waves Margaret would hold one finger up and then another, and by the time she held three fingers up our children knew that it was time for them to begin coming closer to the shore. I believe God is like this with us as He is also very slow in pulling us in. Hs is a very patient, kind and loving God, and waits on us and counts to ten, and gives us every opportunity to respond to His gentle voice. I believe He gives us the opportunity in many ways, throughout our lives, to come to Him on our own, but He has plans for our lives, and if we don’t come on our own He will begin counting very slowly. I know that I have heard people say that the Lord is just waiting for us to mess up so He can let us have it with some bad things in our life. I don’t believe God is like that as He counts to ten real slow. He states in: Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you; they are plans for good, and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” We all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God, but God is merciful and patient with us, and wants to fulfill His plan for us.
“Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation.”
2nd Peter 3:15
Just last week when I was in the grocery store picking up a few things, I noticed a woman in front of me with a small boy about 4 years old. This young boy was running all around his mother, and it was obvious that he had enough energy to wear all of us down. His mother tried and tried to get him to slow down, but nothing she did kept him from continuing to run, jump and have a good time. The mother finally said if you don’t calm down I am going to count to ten, and began counting very slowly, One---Two---Three. This incident reminded me of my children when we would take them to the beach in Florida, and when they were getting too far out in the waves Margaret would hold one finger up and then another, and by the time she held three fingers up our children knew that it was time for them to begin coming closer to the shore. I believe God is like this with us as He is also very slow in pulling us in. Hs is a very patient, kind and loving God, and waits on us and counts to ten, and gives us every opportunity to respond to His gentle voice. I believe He gives us the opportunity in many ways, throughout our lives, to come to Him on our own, but He has plans for our lives, and if we don’t come on our own He will begin counting very slowly. I know that I have heard people say that the Lord is just waiting for us to mess up so He can let us have it with some bad things in our life. I don’t believe God is like that as He counts to ten real slow. He states in: Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you; they are plans for good, and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” We all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God, but God is merciful and patient with us, and wants to fulfill His plan for us.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
My Daily Devotional
Seek God’s Plan
“Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.”
Habakkuk 2:2-3
The above scripture is not one that many pastors routinely mention in their messages; however it tells us that if God has given us a vision of what His plan for our life is to be we must be patient and wait for it to happen. I know that God has given me His plan for my life, and I can’t wait for all the things to happen that He has planned for me to do. I am so impatient and want to do all the things today and see them completed. The waiting turns from days to weeks to months and even years. I know however that the vision He has put in my heart and spirit, and know that He will bring it to pass in His timing. I am also learning that the waiting process is also not all bad, as in this process God is molding me and making me better equipped to fulfill the plans He wants me to do. There are things that I felt I should have done earlier that could have speeded up the process, but I resisted and trusted God that He would let me know when the time was right. In all of these instances God knew what was best as if I had gone on my own, and did these things they would not have worked as well. I do not believe we can rush God and His timing, as I am learning to trust Him more, regardless of the circumstances. Waiting is sometimes hard for us to comprehend, but God promises us that good things will come our way when we are patient and wait on Him. I would encourage each of you to seek God’s will for your life, then in God’s time you will have a peace that will make you alive and committed to do His perfect will.
(Many of my readers have asked if my Daily Devotionals have been published and if they could purchase them. The Devotionals I am posting are from My Daily Devotional Volume III which was published in 2009 and can be purchased at amazon.com or from me at robbrock@comcast.net)
“Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.”
Habakkuk 2:2-3
The above scripture is not one that many pastors routinely mention in their messages; however it tells us that if God has given us a vision of what His plan for our life is to be we must be patient and wait for it to happen. I know that God has given me His plan for my life, and I can’t wait for all the things to happen that He has planned for me to do. I am so impatient and want to do all the things today and see them completed. The waiting turns from days to weeks to months and even years. I know however that the vision He has put in my heart and spirit, and know that He will bring it to pass in His timing. I am also learning that the waiting process is also not all bad, as in this process God is molding me and making me better equipped to fulfill the plans He wants me to do. There are things that I felt I should have done earlier that could have speeded up the process, but I resisted and trusted God that He would let me know when the time was right. In all of these instances God knew what was best as if I had gone on my own, and did these things they would not have worked as well. I do not believe we can rush God and His timing, as I am learning to trust Him more, regardless of the circumstances. Waiting is sometimes hard for us to comprehend, but God promises us that good things will come our way when we are patient and wait on Him. I would encourage each of you to seek God’s will for your life, then in God’s time you will have a peace that will make you alive and committed to do His perfect will.
(Many of my readers have asked if my Daily Devotionals have been published and if they could purchase them. The Devotionals I am posting are from My Daily Devotional Volume III which was published in 2009 and can be purchased at amazon.com or from me at robbrock@comcast.net)
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