Our Resource.. God's Word!THE FOOLISH HEART DENIES AND DISOBEYS GOD. Bible Reading of the Day: Read Psalm 14:1-5. Verse of the Day: “God is with those who obey him” (Psalm 14:5). Wendy could tell that Josh was up to no good. She saw him enter her backyard through the gate. He walked fast and looked around as he approached her. “Hi, Josh,” she said. She and Josh played together sometimes, and they had even built a crude clubhouse in the woods behind her house. “Guess what,” Josh said in a whisper. He continued without waiting for her to answer. “Somebody left a new mountain bike in the alley behind Papa’s Pizza.” A new mountain bike sure sounded tempting. Wendy shrugged. “It’s got to belong to somebody.” “Well, duh!” Josh answered. “But whoever left it there didn’t lock it up.” “So?” “So, we could go take it and keep it in our clubhouse. That way it could belong to both of us.” Wendy flashed Josh an exasperated look, as if she couldn’t believe he would suggest such a thing. “Josh, that would be stealing!” “Well, duh!” he said again. “But how do we know the person it belongs to didn’t steal it too?” Wendy’s face wrinkled in an expression of confusion. “What difference does that make? Besides,” she said, “God says not to steal.” It was Josh’s turn to look confused. “Oh, come on, Wendy,” he said. “I don’t believe in all that God-and-Sunday-school stuff anyway. Are you going to help me or not?” Wendy flashed Josh a disgusted look. “Not!” she said emphatically. “Oh, you’re such a wimp!” he said as he stomped away. Wendy was glad to see Josh leave. She played by herself for a while, then walked around to the front yard when she heard dogs barking down the street. Her mouth dropped open as she saw a police car in front of Josh’s house. A police officer walked Josh up the steps of his front porch. She remembered her earlier conversation with Josh and instantly knew what had happened. She prayed without closing her eyes. “I’m sorry Josh is in trouble,” she said, “but I’m really glad I obeyed you.” TO DISCUSS: Why was Wendy able to make the decision that she did? Have you ever faced a similar situation? What did you do? TO PRAY: “Heavenly Father, please help us remember that it is foolish to deny you or disobey you. We need your help to make right choices, Father. Please help us choose right and stay away from evil, because we know that you are with all those who obey you.” © 2016 Josh McDowell Ministry. All rights reserved. No part of these Materials may be changed in any way or reproduced in any form without written permission from Josh McDowell Ministry, 2001 West Plano Parkway, Suite 2400, Plano, TX 75075. www.Josh.org.+1 972 907 1000. Used by Permission Word Come to life. The Sound!
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The Resource...The Word!Out with Bad Thoughts, in with Good Thoughts Bible Reading: Ephesians 4:17-24 Throw off your old evil nature and your former way of life, which is rotten through and through, full of lust and deception. Instead, there must be a spiritual renewal of your thoughts and attitudes. Ephesians 4:22-23 HERE’S A QUIZ from chemistry class: What’s the best way to force gas out of a test tube? If you answered, “Pour liquid into the test tube,” you’re right. You get gas out by pouring liquid in. It’s called displacement. One element pushes out the other because they can’t both occupy the same space. Here’s a similar principle for dealing with lustful thoughts: Get rid of them with pure thoughts. You can inject in pure thoughts in many ways. Turn on a Christian CD and focus on the music and lyrics. Open a Christian magazine or book, turn on a Christian video, or call up a Christian friend for a clean conversation. But the most effective way to displace bad thoughts is by memorizing and meditating on Scripture. Here’s a pattern you can follow:
REFLECT: Do you have trouble with impure thoughts? What are you going to do to cram your brain full of God’s pure thoughts? PRAY: Ask God to purify your mind through the Scriptures you memorize and meditate on. © 2016 Josh McDowell Ministry. All rights reserved. No part of these Materials may be changed in any way or reproduced in any form without written permission from Josh McDowell Ministry, 2001 West Plano Parkway, Suite 2400, Plano, TX 75075. www.Josh.org.+1 972 907 1000. Used by Permission
The Conversation...
 The Resource... The WordTrail of BalloonsGOD’S WORD AND HIS COMMANDS ARE INTENDED TO LEAD US TO A RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM. Bible Reading of the Day: Read Isaiah 55:6-7. Verse of the Day: “Seek the Lord while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near” (Isaiah 55:6). “Can I carry some of the balloons, Daddy?” Valerie asked. Dad carefully separated the strings that tied the bundle of balloons together and handed five to his daughter. “Don’t let go of them, OK?” he warned. Valerie nodded and tightened her fist around the strings as they walked out the front door of their house and down the sidewalk. Valerie watched as Dad tied five balloons to the mailbox in front of their house. Then Dad took Valerie’s free hand in his, and they turned down the sidewalk and walked toward the next intersection. At the end of the block, Dad tied his last five balloons to the street sign at the corner. “Daddy,” Valerie asked, “why do we have to leave the balloons here? Why can’t we just keep them and play with them?” Dad grunted from the effort of tying the strings high on the street sign. “Well, because the balloons will help people find our house. You don’t want your new friends to get lost coming to your birthday party, do you?” “How will they know how to get here?” Valerie asked, suddenly worried. “Because when I told all their parents how to get to our new house, I told them to look for the balloons.” Valerie looked at the balloons in her hand. “What are these balloons for?” she asked. Dad leaned over and touched her lightly on the nose. “Those are for you!” That night, after a very successful-and tiring-birthday party, Dad read to Valerie from the book of Isaiah in the Bible. He read the words “Seek the Lord while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near.” As he finished reading, Valerie said, “Maybe God needs some of our balloons!” “Why do you say that?” Dad asked. “So people can find him, like they found my birthday party.” Dad thought for a few moments. Finally, he said, “You know what, Valerie? I think you’re right. But I think God uses his Word instead of balloons. He gave commands to his people to show them how to find and follow him. That’s why he wants us to read his Word and follow his commands-so we can find him and stay close to him.” “The Bible is like a trail of birthday balloons?” Valerie asked. Dad nodded. “A little bit. If we follow it, we’ll become closer and closer to God.” TO DO: Tie or tape a balloon to your family Bible today to remind you to seek the Lord by reading and obeying his Word. TO PRAY: “Lord, you tell us that if we seek you, you will be found by us. We want to seek you today and always.” © 2016 Josh McDowell Ministry. All rights reserved. No part of these Materials may be changed in any way or reproduced in any form without written permission from Josh McDowell Ministry, 2001 West Plano Parkway, Suite 2400, Plano, TX 75075. www.Josh.org.+1 972 907 1000. Used by Permission. The SoundThe Conversation...Lord, we thank you for this day. We thank you for each day of life. God, help us learn to cast our cares on you and focus on how much you love us in life. God give us direction on what ways to go and let us follow that direction without hesitation, God, provide us insight into our day and give us hope and reassurance that we can handle anything that comes our way. God, we thank you for loving on us and giving us peace of mind each day. Continue to protect us and cover us with you blood. In Jesus name we pray , Amen. The Affirmation... I will trust God. He has give me his word and Holy Spirit as my guide. 'Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. ' Proverbs 3:5-6 https://www.bible.com/bible/111/PRO.3.5-6  The Resource...The Word!To the Death Bible Reading: Philippians 3:7 -11 I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I may have Christ and become one with him. Philippians 3:8-9 HERE’S HOW you get to know the facts of any event in history: You dig into the testimony of eyewitnesses. And the most enlightening testimony regarding the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the life of the early Christians. You have to wonder what made them go everywhere telling the message of the risen Christ. Ponder this: Were there any benefits to be gained from their efforts-things like prestige, wealth, increased social status, or material benefits-that might account for their wholehearted and total allegiance to this “risen Christ”? Not unless you consider getting beaten, stoned to death, thrown to lions, tortured, and crucified to be opportunities for career advancement. These early Christians didn’t react like you would expect. They didn’t fight back. They forced their beliefs on no one. Instead, they laid down their lives as the ultimate proof of their total confidence in the truth of their message. It’s important to remember that at first even the disciples didn’t believe in Christ’s resurrection. But once they were convinced-in spite of their doubts-they never again doubted that Christ was raised from the dead. Can you imagine the odds of the twelve disciples and dozens more of Christ’s followers, all knowing the Resurrection was a lie, not crumbling under the torture and pressure to admit their deception? That’s crazy! They wouldn’t suffer like that for a hoax, not all of them. Somebody would have cracked, spilled the truth, and blown their cover-up plot. It’s unbelievable that a deliberate cover-up-a plot to perpetuate a lie about the Resurrection-could have survived the violent persecution of the apostles and the atrocious purge of the first -century believers who were thrown by the thousands to the lions for refusing to renounce the lordship of Christ. If the Resurrection was a hoax, don’t you think at least one of the apostles would have renounced Christ before being beheaded or stoned to death or crucified? Wouldn’t someone have sold out to the authorities to spare his life and possibly gain a generous reward? Nothing less than the real deal-the undeniable appearance of the resurrected Christ-could have caused these people to maintain to their dying day that Jesus is alive and that he is Lord. The ultimate proof of Christ’s life and lordship is in a personal relationship with him. REFLECT: Do you think the disciples would have died for a lie? Why or why not? PRAY: Thank God that you can experience the ultimate proof of the Resurrection by having a personal relationship with Jesus. © 2016 Josh McDowell Ministry. All rights reserved. No part of these Materials may be changed in any way or reproduced in any form without written permission from Josh McDowell Ministry, 2001 West Plano Parkway, Suite 2400, Plano, TX 75075. www.Josh.org.+1 972 907 1000. Used by Permission. The Sound...The Conversation...God we thank you for this day. We thank you for your love and protection that you give us. We thank you for your grace, mercy, and loving kindness. We thank you for life, strength, and guidance that we receive each day. We thank you for showing us how to give to others by being an example of giving as well. God, we love you and praise you for all you are and you how you bless each and every day. In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen The Affirmation...I will give out of my heart, as it please God. 'And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased. ' Hebrews 13:16 https://www.bible.com/bible/111/HEB.13.16  The Resource...The Word!Give Till It Helps Bible Reading: Mark 12:41-44 They gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has. Mark 12:44 ESTHER WAS in her late fifties, single, and living alone in a tiny house. In public she was so painfully shy that she was often overlooked in a crowd. Yet she was a faithful Christian who rarely missed a service at her small church. Whenever the pastor or his wife or children had a birthday, Esther quietly presented them with a birthday card and a gift of money. And when the pastor’s family took a vacation, Esther always gave them another card with money enclosed. Years later the pastor learned that Esther had been living on a total of $150 per month-less than if she had been on welfare! One of the most generous people in the church had barely enough to buy the necessities of life. But she generously gave to others as if she were wealthy, just like the poor widow in Mark 12. The New Testament shows us just one overriding principle about giving. It’s not the tithe, although that’s a good place to start. (A “tithe” means ten percent.) Instead, everywhere you look in the New Testament you see the open-hand policy. Luke says it this way: “If you give, you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full measure, pressed down, shaken together to make room for more” (Luke 6:38). Put simply, the open-hand policy means first that the believer’s hands are open to give whatever he or she has to whoever needs it. For example, a member of your youth group is too broke to go to camp, so you open your wallet and give him the seven bucks you were saving for spending money. Or a family in the community loses all its possessions in a fire, so you give half your wardrobe to a girl in the family who’s your size. The open-hand policy also means getting ready to receive what God will give you as a result of your generous giving. “Oh, good,” you say, “I want to give more so I can get more.” That’s not exactly how Luke 6 explains the open-hand policy. Give without thought of return, and especially without planning on the return. Then it will be God’s good pleasure to surprise you by pouring his gift into your open hands. It doesn’t take a lot-of either money or stuff-to be an open-handed giver. It just takes a little practice. Why not start this week by pulling a dollar or two out of your pocket and asking God to show you where that dollar can do more good than in your possession? Then stand back and let God amaze you at how rewarding it can be to be an open-handed giver. REFLECT: How have you seen God’s generosity in your life? What are you doing to be an open-handed giver? PRAY: Ask God to help you be as generous with others as he has been with you. © 2016 Josh McDowell Ministry. All rights reserved. No part of these Materials may be changed in any way or reproduced in any form without written permission from Josh McDowell Ministry, 2001 West Plano Parkway, Suite 2400, Plano, TX 75075. www.Josh.org.+1 972 907 1000. Used by Permission. The Sound! |
