Fire and Gold

Take some time and pray, just for a few minutes. Ask God to reveal himself to you through His Word. Open your hearts to what God wants to say to you

1 Peter 5:22-25 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for

“All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.”

And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

Let's talk about gold, gold is one of the most expensive materials on the planet. But gold is not pure in its natural state. It needs to be purified... Through fire. When gold is heated to extreme temperatures it melts and the impurities float to the top. The that impure stuff is skimmed off the top. I'm sure all of us have been burned at least once in our lives. Fire is really hot and getting burnt really hurts!

Jeff talked last week about how the Word of God is like a scalpel. I'm sure we've all had some kind of surgery or have been cut before, getting cut hurts! But surgery helps us heal and fixes our bodies. Being cut by a sharp knife is necessary to our bodies for healing sometimes.

Being pure is going to require heat and cutting. We can't live our lives wanting to be pure while wanting to hold on to the impure things in our lives. In order for us to be pure we need to let God apply heat to our lives and cut us. Becoming pure will hurt. It will require us to allow God to take control of our lives. God will decide cut off. It may be painful, but gold is purified by fire and bodies are fixed through surgery. Our spiritual bodies need surgery too.

Verse 22 "Having purified your souls by your obedience" purification requires obedience to God. To let Him control your life. To trust Him as he holds the flame to you and performs surgery on you.

Questions:

1. What are things in your life that need to be skimmed off or cut off to make you pure?

2. How can God make you pure?

3. Think about this through the rest of your day and really consider what it means and what it takes to be pure.

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Written by Max Davis

Porkchops and Applesauce

1 Peter 5:17-21 And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

Once upon a time there was this little boy on a farm, working hard and melting in the sun on this hot July day. All he could think about was what he saw in town the day before when they brought all the corn to the town and sold it at the market. He saw people celebrating, cooking food, playing ball, and fireworks - he especially loved the fireworks.

Well, the boy had to work for his families farm, money was tight and they couldn't afford to take the holiday off when so many people would pay top dollar for their fresh corn for their BB’Q’s. He said to his friends Duck, Pig, Cow, and Rooster “I would love to know what it’s like to have a bar-b-q like that someday and just taste all that delicious food”.

His friends told him (because animals talk in this story) they said “we will pull together all the money we have and we will make you a great party like we usually do with Roasted Corn and Sweet Potatoes and enough apples to sink a battleship” ... the boy smiled and thanked his friends and said “thanks, guys, i appreciate that you would do that for me, but it’s just not the same... that how we always celebrate”

Then Pig got an idea, he pulled the other animals around and shared his plan... “are you sure?” they asked him.. “absolutely”.

Hours later Duck, Cow, and Rooster came to the boy with the most delicious smelling bar-b-q you could imagine... there was smoked ribs, pulled pork, ham sandwiches, and enough bacon to choke a camel. The boy was so excited!!

He couldn't wait to taste it and share with his friends, and then he asked “wait, where’s Pig?”

You see the Bible says that we were bought with a price... sure it would have been impressive if those animals gave all their money for a vegetarian bbq. That would be the same as paying gold and silver for a ransom... but this bbq was different... Pig paid a greater price for the boy to be happy.

Our relationship with God is like that plus some! He didn’t just buy us with silver and gold... he paid our ransom with his Son’s blood.

Do you think that the boy would have taken that meal for granted ? Why is it that we often take for granted our relationship with Christ and the forgiveness that he offers?

Questions:

1. Are you sure that you have a relationship with Christ?

2. How do you know that you have a relationship with Jesus?

3. What does it do to you to know that God paid your ransom with the blood of His own Son?!

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Written by Jeff Harkins

Comfy Cozy

1 Peter 5:13-16 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

When I read this verse I think of it telling us two things. In your Christian lives you can either...

1)   Be tempted to do something unholy, that you’ve probably done before, but this time you decide not to do it. This can be going to a party you know will have alcohol. It could be participating in gossiping. Or, going too far with a guy or a girl.

2)   Step out of your comfort zone to do something beneficial to God’s kingdom. This could be going on a mission’s trip and participating wholeheartedly, or standing up for someone getting bullied at school. Maybe even giving up of your time, money or possessions to help someone in need.

When I was in youth group I didn’t do the mission’s trips. I didn’t like to be in vulnerable, unpredictable situations. I’m still not a fan of those situations but over the last few years I really felt led to go on an oversees mission’s trip. Shortly after becoming a youth leader there was the opportunity to go to Ecuador. I knew it was just something I had to do. Was I nervous? Yes! Was I scared? Of course. But, like this verse says, “Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then.”

I “toughed” it out and had a great time! It was amazing to see God move in another country and in another language. I would have missed seeing this if I slipped back into my old ways. I wouldn’t have seen teens in a small village give their lives to Christ. Sometimes, living for God puts you in vulnerable situations. What brings me comfort is knowing that God is there in those situations.

So, stay strong. Step out of your comfort zone when God prompts you to share His love. Or, stay out of those places that will tempt you into going back into your old lifestyle. God is always with you!

1. What is one way you have seen other people go out of their comfort zone and do something that ended up serving God?

2. When is the last time you went out of your comfort zone to do the right thing or to do something that would make an impact for God?

3. Who is a Christian friend that you need to challenge to get out of their comfort zone and so something for God?

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Written by Melissa McKechnie

It's my party, I can cry if I want to

Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look. (1 Peter 1:10-12 ESV)

Entitled. Spoiled. Ungrateful. Lazy. These are words often used to describe young adults and teenagers. Our parents have often worked hard to provide great things for us and we expect good things. Right?

I love watching Survivor. One of the last episodes I watched, it was Rodney's birthday. Rodney hasn't won a reward challenge all season. 30 days in and everyone else who is left has won a food reward or some cool experience. But not Rodney. So a few people had told him that if they won, they'd pick him to go on the reward with them.

When they get to the reward challenge, it's a team challenge, not an individual one. Rodney's team loses, so he then begs the three winners to give up their reward so he can go. He feels like they owe it to him to celebrate his birthday. No one is willing to do so. (and I don't blame them – they've all been eating a scoop of rice a day for 30 days! Plus, they were going to an orphanage to give the kids toys and school supplies… No one wants to turn that down!)
Anyway, Rodney and the others on the losing team go back to the beach, where Rodney has a major temper tantrum. He's so ticked off that no one would give up the reward to make his birthday special. He complained that it was the worst birthday ever. One of the women said to the camera, "he's on Survivor - millions of people would think that's a pretty great birthday."

It seems funny to see a grown man acting that way, but we do the same sort of thing.

Christ has come – we know who the Messiah is. We have the complete Bible and it's easily accessible to us – you probably have more than one Bible as well as access to all different versions on your phone or computer. Beyond your Bible, you can attend church and Bible studies, free of persecution. You can buy a plethora of books – commentaries, Bible studies, any resource you can imagine – to help you learn the Bible and apply it to your life.

These verses talk about the prophets who proclaimed grace and salvation – for us! They earnestly, carefully, diligently searched and inquired of the details of the coming Messiah for us. Yet, like Rodney, we feel entitled and complain over things we don't have rather than recognizing the blessings we do have.

Recognize the incredible blessings you've received. Make the good news that has been given to you real in your life.

1) We have so many tools for learning God's word at our fingertips. Which of those tools are you most thankful for?

2) The prophets "were not serving themselves, but you." And others "have preaches the good news to you." How are you doing these things for others?

3) Do you feel like the words used at the beginning of this devotional describe you – entitled, spoiled, ungrateful, lazy? If so, what can you do to change that?

4) Take sometime and journal about this passage.

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Written by Amber Carter

Make me a sword!

1 Peter 5:6-9 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Upon several occasions, I have had the opportunity to visit working blacksmiths shops and have learned some interesting facts. If a blacksmith wants to make a sword, for example, he must place the piece of metal in a forge, heat it to 1700-2000 degrees Fahrenheit, and then hammer it. This process is repeated until the sword is the correct shape. Next, the blacksmith hardens the sword by heating to a very high temperature and then plunging it into a pool of cold water. Finally, he must temper the sword. This is done by heating it and putting it in cold water over and over to make it hard, but flexible.

The book of 1 Peter addresses this refinement. It was written to churches who were being religiously persecuted and says that we should rejoice even though we experience trials. It says that these trials happen in order to prove the genuineness of our faith and result in praise, glory, and honor to Jesus.

The passage says that our faith is refined by fire. And just like that sword, we must go though trial after trial to become strong and flexible enough. We have each had and will always have our own challenges and it is these struggles and how we deal with them that make us unique. Even though at the time we may not know what to do, every challenge we conquer will make us a better person and give us new insight into life and our faith and we will be able to use this knowledge to relate to others and help them.

The second part of this passage addresses the fact that even though we do not see God we still love Him and have faith in Him, and this faith produces an inexpressible and glorious joy. It is this belief that leads to our Salvation and although we cannot see God now, we will eventually be able to spend eternity with Him.

Questions:

1.What trials have you been though that have helped to make you a better person?

2. Are you trusting is God the way that you should be and experiencing the joy this passage talks about?

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Written by Hannah Pergolizzi

Pass the popcorn

You know how we sometimes do those popcorn praise prayers at youth group? That's basically what Peter does after his introduction. Reading it, I can't help but get excited. Take your time as you read today's passage.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. (1 Peter 1:3-5 ESV)

"Blessed be" is also translated at "praise be." So Peter is saying praise God and is about to tell us why.
Also, I like that Peter specifies that God is the father of Jesus Christ. Remember, these letters are being written to the early church. Comments like this reinforce the authority of Jesus' life and teaching.

"According to his great mercy" This makes me excited because I know I need mercy and not only does God have some, it's great! It's powerful and abundant. And I find myself wanting to keep reading to see what his mercy will compel Him to do.

As we continue reading verse 3, we see what it is He has done. "Born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ" this should blow your mind. But this is such common knowledge to us, you probably didn't give it much thought. Read it again: "Born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ" wow!

In both John and Romans, we're told it's because of love that God sent Jesus to be born, live a sinless life, to be that perfect sacrifice who would die on the cross for our sins. But it would be in vain if that's where the story ended. Jesus Christ rise from the grave! Not Walking Dead style - He became fully alive, defeating death and Satan! That's awesome!

Because of this, we can be born again. And not just to some boring life. We have "living hope," which is explained more in verse 4.

In heaven, we, who are born again, will receive an inheritance that is...
1) imperishable- unlike the Promised land which was the Israelites inheritance, this will last FOREVER! It has no end.
2) undefiled- it is not obtained dishonestly or corruptly. Nor will it have any intrusions, or sin, or any impurities.
3) unfading- unlike the flowers and grass mentioned in verse 24, this will keep its beauty and never stop blooming.

Verse 5 is exciting and a little confusing.
"God's power" is unmatchable, all-sufficient, unending, uncontainable, unstoppable - if our God is for us, who can stand against us? That's a rhetorical question because obviously the answer is no one or nothing. That should get you excited for being in God's side!!

So by God's power, we, who are born again, are being guarded through faith.
This part seems a little confusing--what are we being guarded from? I don't think it means pain or safety or death. I've been hurt, been in car accidents, had friends and family die. All over the world we see all sorts of persecution and injustices happening to believers.

What I think Peter is referring to here is that once we have been born again and have this living hope and inheritance, satan can't take that from us--that's what we are being guarded from... Woohoo! God's got me covered and He does you too, if you're born again! Saran can come at us anyway he wants, like he did to Job, and although it may be difficult and painful to endure, we still get heaven!! That's awesome!!

Peter's last comment about salvation to be revealed is a little confusing. But it makes me think of when Paul talks about seeing things now dimly but it will be revealed to us eventually. There's so much more that God is doing than we realize. Eventually we will understand more and more.

Questions:
1) I mentioned more than once that this passage get me excited. What about God gets you excited?

2) Are you born again? Do you have that living hope Peter referred to?

3) According to his great ______________, he has caused us to be  ______________to a living hope through the ______________ of Jesus Christ from the dead,

4) Take some time to pray and journal about this passage.

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Written by Amber Carter

You Reading my mail?

1 Peter 5:1-2    Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

The Bible is not written to us, but for us. We cannot personally take this passage and apply it to our lives, be we can glean from what has been given to these people and see what God is giving us: The foreigners have been chosen to obey Christ and be saved by His blood (Ephesians 1:7 In whom we have our redemption through his blood....) because God knew them and chose them, even before they were born, by the work of the Spirit. (Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.")

Isn’t it crazy to think that you have been specifically chosen by God? That He has a distinct role for you to do here on earth, and determines your every step? (Proverbs 16:9 We can make our plans but the Lord determines our steps) You are not here to do nothing and mess around your whole life, you’re here for a purpose, and that purpose is to obey Jesus Christ. We have been cleansed by His blood, (the blood He shed while dying for your sins) -Romans 4:25 He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God. His Spirit has made us holy; praise the God who is in ultimate power and who loves us so much!!

Questions:

1. What are you going to do with the life God has given you? (use it to glorify Him, or glorify yourself?)

2. What does Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection mean to you?

3. Why is it important that we should actively be living for Christ/ obeying Him?

4. What areas in your life do you need to give up so that you can give more time and effort into the man who has given up His life for you?

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Written by Sarah Davis

Go Play in Traffic

James 4:13-17

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

A while ago I was picking up my kids from daycare. When it is warm out they play outside on a playground and the parents pull up and park and get their kids.  You open the fence, it has a lock thing on it, you close the fence, replace the lock, go get your kid, sign them out, have them say goodbye to the teacher, then back through the locked fence and replace the lock and then off you go. 

Well this one time I got there and I was walking toward the gate from my car and I notice that the gate was left open…  some parent forgot to do their job. Then I noticed something worse, a kid had gotten past the first line of defense and was headed for that gate. Now that is the daycare workers job to take care of that… but no one was, this kid was headed right out the gate and right into the parking lot filled with parents that are in a rush and barely paying attention. The kid makes it past the gate and right to the parking lot… what should I have done?

Seriously, it’s not my job… why do I need to be grabbing the kid? Plus if I do grab the kid, what if I scare the kid… then some creeper guy is grabbing kids near the playground -great. The parent should've closed that gate, they should be the one going to get this kid….   or this kids parent should be there…  they should be grabbing their own kid… right?  

No, since I see the kid and I can reach him then I need to be the one to run over there and pick up the kid and bring him back to the playground! It’s just that simple, it’s the right thing to do.  Sometimes you look at a situation and its just so easy to see what is the right thing to do. When those situations pop up you need to act.

To know what is the right thing to do and then not do it - that is sin. It’s just like that with God…  You will see situations where you know what the right thing to do is - then its your choice if you will obey or not.  Your friends are laughing at the wrong kind of jokes, do you laugh along?  Bullies are picking on the special needs kid at school. do you say something? The cool kids are picking on that girl over instagram, is there anything you can do?

I believe that God makes the right choice very visible…  its not always easy, in fact its usually hard, but it is still up to us to make good decisions.

Questions:

1.   What is a situation that you knew instantly what was the right thing to do?

2. Talk about a situation that you knew it was the right thing to do but then didn’t do it. How’d that feel later?

3. Take a minute and journal about this topic.

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Written by Jeff Harkins

Don't Do It!

James 4:11-12

 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. ¹² There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?

So I am driving into work today and all the talk on the radio is about how one football player is calling a coach a racist. Now there is one thing I have learn about public speaking and speaking on the topic of racism …  Don't Do It! You are bound to either hurt someone’s feelings or start some conversation that will hurt someone’s feelings…  so the easy thing to do would be to change the subject, but I am going to embrace this one because it illustrates this passage so well today.

So the Eagles coach (Chip Kelly) cut or traded a handful of players that were really good. Some of those players happened to be black and one of those players has been on the news recently claiming that it was because of racism that the white coach cut the black players.

Please understand: I know that racism exists and is a terrible thing, and many people have to live under a cloud of racial injustice their entire lives and that offends God and it is simply wrong.

Maybe the coach is a racist and this player has some experience that he hasn't shared with anyone…  but as of right now the only thing they are going on is that he cut a few black players from the team. No other evidence.

Then, when you take 2 seconds and look at the situation, you realize that he also cut white players, and this one black player that was traded was then replaced with 3 black players…   now, again, maybe there is some racism that we have not heard about, but for now all that this guy is saying is that the coach is racist because he traded him for more black players. It’s a silly argument. The player looks foolish making these unfounded claims.

So many times we choose to speak evil against someone else without getting to know them or getting to understand them. There is a difference between not understanding a person and choosing to make evil stuff up about them.

As a Christian, even when you know you are right, you need to always think about what you are saying and remember to demonstrate “Love” in everything you do.

1)         We know we shouldn't judge people because we know it hurts us. Tell about a time that you got hurt by someone judging you.

2)         We all know and say that it’s wrong to judge others, yet we are all guilty of it often…  where do you have a problem judging people?

3)         “Do not speak _________ against one another, ___________.”

4)         Take a minute and journal about this.

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Written by Jeffery Harkins

As Easy As Picking On Kids in a Park

James 4:11-12

 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. ¹² There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?

-The Mosaic Law consisted of 365 negative commands and 248 positive for a total of 613 commands. It was the Law God gave to Israel from Moses.

-The issue James is confronting here in 4:11-12 is judging others. If they are speaking evil (gossiping) and judging about one another they are speaking evil of and judging God’s Law. (vs. 11) Only God who is the judge has the freedom to judge. (vs. 12) If He wanted us to judge He would have made us the judge, hence the reason why we are not the judge.

Things are different in our days; we aren’t living by the law anymore, we are living by God and His Word. If you speak harshly of, are rude to, gossip against, or verbally harass someone you are doing the exact same thing to God. We are taking the creators’ creation and assuming we have the right to judge it (whoever or whatever it may be). I was at a park one day and saw someone else’s misbehaving child; he was throwing sand at the slide, so I went up to him and started yelling at him. I told him mean things, I was judging him, I was being rude, I wanted him to feel bad for what he was doing, and then I went home and gossiped about what he had done. I did not have the right to jump into this child’s life and beat him up like that or go home and talk bad about him, I was not his mother, it was a sin to use those harsh words, and it was not my place. Now if this story was true, and his parents were watching, I probably would have gotten into some kind of trouble. But this is what James is getting at; we do not have the freedom to treat others like that (whether they are close friends, family, boyfriend/girlfriend, or strangers). It is not our place to be mean, gossip against, or judge others. God is the only one who can and will judge someone, and it might be you if you are trying to take God’s role and judge someone. 

Questions:

1.   Can you think of someone you have spoken harshly to or about? Is there some way you can apologize to them? Or maybe you need to bring it up before God first, and then figure out how to make it right with that person.

2.   Do you feel bad for gossiping? If yes, why? If no, then ask God to help you feel compassion for His people and to break your heart for what breaks His.

3.   What verses could you start memorizing to help you fight the battle against gossip? ( Example: Ephesians 4:29, Matthew 12:36, Psalm 101:5, Proverbs 16:28)

4.   Challenge: The next time you start to judge someone, examine your own heart before you judge theirs. Ask yourself how you could be an encouragement to them instead of an abuser and try praying for them.

Matthew 7:2-4 "For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. 3"Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4"Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' and behold, the log is in your own eye?…”

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Written by Sarah Davis

Get your running shoes on!

James 4:5-10

Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

The girls’ retreat was this past weekend and it was a lot of fun! The main focus was on how tricky satan can be... how he can fill our lives with lies that we believe, that are totally opposite of the truths God clearly says in scripture.

Some examples of the lies we can get trapped in are:

-I’m not good enough

-People don’t like me

-I can handle everything on my own

-I don’t have to change to be a Christian

-My past determines my worth

-The things I do now are not important

There are literally SO many lies we can believe. The longer we believe them, the more they start showing in our lives.

These verses tell us to...RESIST the devil. This means we need to FLEE and GET THE HECK AWAY FROM HIM! Read verse 7-8 again:

7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.

It seems simple... humble yourself (realize you have a problem) then resist the devil and he will flee from you. God’s got your back... whenever you are ready to flee from the lies satan has instilled in you, God will help you. It won’t be easy – it will take daily effort, but the result will be liberating!

The closer we get to God, the closer He will feel to you. When the lies creep back: read your Bible, pray, memorize scripture, etc... Get away from satan and closer to God.

People typically don’t root for two sports teams simultaneously... they have a favorite. We need to be careful not to divide our loyalty between God and the things of this world (vs. 8). We need God because this world is a scary place without Him. When you feel like your life is out of control with lies, draw near to Him.

Psalm 56:3: When I am afraid, I put my trust in you

Joshua 1:9: Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go

Isaiah 41:10: Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous hand..

Questions:

1. What are 3 things that you have believed about yourself that you know are lies?

2. What can you do to remind yourself that these things are not from God but actually from Satan and not true about you?

3. How can you encourage others that are believing lies about themselves?

4. Take a minute to journal about this topic.

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Written by Melissa

Only on Pay-per-view

Take 5 minutes to pray to God. Ask Him to open our minds and hearts to what He has to say through His Word.

James 4:5-10

Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

In the world of sports, a huge event that just occurred was a boxing match between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquaio. Even though the fight was disappointing (nothing really happened), Mayweather won the fight and remains undefeated. Not only did he won the fight, but he won $100 million to go with the championship belt. And he was already the highest paid athlete before this big payday. Like he really needed that money!

Let's get one thing straight... I don't like Floyd Mayweather. He is a criminal, he's violent, and he's proud. He has the mindset that he can do whatever he wants. But life seems to be going well for him right?

Here's a scary thought! "God opposes the proud." When we are proud we try to make ourselves feel like we're better than everyone else. We might think we can do anything we want, that no one can tell us what we can't do. Pride is a big deal, God opposes the proud. When we are proud we are forgetting that the most powerful being ever is bigger than is by a lot.

James then tells us how to not be opposed by God. How to not be prideful. "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you." That's our answer to pride. To submit ourselves to the real heavyweight champion, God.

Keep in mind the song by Chris Tomlin, "Our God." In the bridge he sings "and if our God is for us then who could ever stop us." Do you really want that God that cannot be stopped opposing you? Think about what we're doing when we are proud..

Questions:

1. How are you proud?

2. What do you need to do to submit to God?

3. Put that into practice, strive to submit to God this week. 

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Written by Max Davis

and that's the way the cookie crumbles...

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. (James 4:1-4 ESV)

Do you ever get frustrated because you feel like God doesn't answer your prayers? I know I do!

Have you ever watched the movie, Bruce Almighty? Bruce takes over as God for a few days and he can do miracles and answer prayers. Bruce opens up the Yahweh prayer mail and reads a few prayers and it seems like the people are asking for good things, so he says "yes" to them. In one of deleted scenes, God shows Bruce what His plan was and how that is now altered. For example, chubby Philbert is getting picked on in gym, and prays, “Oh, God, please help me.” Bruce replies, “Don’t worry Philbert. Help is on the way,” then gives him supernatural power to climb the gym rope faster than anyone. Next, we see a lady named Esther about to go bankrupt. Bruce causes her to slip on milk in the grocery store and a lawyer happens to be right there to assist her. These certainly seem like the answers they wanted.

However, God shows Bruce what his plan would have been for them if the answers had been "no."

Bruce: There were so many…I just gave them all what they wanted.

God: Yeah. Since when does anyone have a clue about what they want. Remember Philbert?

(Scene cuts to Philbert beating another kid up on the playground.)

Bruce: Yeah, Philbert…what’s gotten into him?

God: Brilliant young man. He was gonna be a great poet. The soul of his work would’ve been built around his childhood pain. Now he’s headed for a career as a professional wrestler. He will eventually test positive for steroids and end up managing a muffin shop.

Bruce: Wow, that’s a disappointment.

God: He got what he prayed for. Esther Maha…(scene cuts to Esther’s living room). I love Esther. Esther was bankrupt. She was gonna have to eat her pride and call her sister. That would’ve gotten the two of them together again. Instead she bought a condo in South Florida.

James talks about how we don't ask so we don't receive, and when we do ask, we ask with wrong motives, so we still don't receive. God won't give us the things we seek for selfish or worldly reasons.

So when you don't study and then pray for God to help you pass a test... or when you speed and pray you don't get a ticket... or for the calories in this cupcake not to go to your hips… these prayers are most likely going to be answered with a "no" because your sin earned you some bad consequences.

However, when we pray for God to help us be more kind, patient, loving or godly, those are prayers He'll answer with a yes. When we pray with honorable, godly intentions, we will receive it.

Answer This:

1) Do you ever feel like God doesn't answer your prayers? Is there something you've prayed for something for a long time and God hasn't done it?

2) You do not have, because you do not _______________. You ask and do not receive, because you ask _______________, to spend it on your passions.

3) Give an example of a time you prayed for something and in hindsight you are glad God said no.

4) Spend time praying and ask God to reveal to you any selfish desires or passions you may have. Ask Him to help you seek after Him and not after friendship with the world.

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Written by Amber

PS. The first person to read this and send me a text saying so will get a prize.

Don’t touch the rabid Squirrels and Raccoons

James 3:17-18- 

17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 

18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

That title got your attention, I bet. What about it though caught your attention? Did I have you at hello? Or was it the obvious danger factor implied by rabid squirrels and raccoons? Hopefully, you realize that if you were ever to see said rodents, you would know better than go out and touch, pet or adopt these creatures. That would be something we theologians call “unwise”.  It is just an illustration, but go with it for now.

            The verses in James 3 are just full of wisdom and such, even though it may say “thou shall not touch rabbit rodentia”.  It does, however, talk about controlling your tongue, wisdom and other things (it is a really short chapter. Go read it again).  Verses 17 and 18 are in a way the conclusion of James’ spiel on wisdom. 

            “But the wisdom that comes from Heaven is first of all, pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.” That there, would be a good closing thesis (at least I, a high school student think so) to a paper titled “Why you should be Wise”. I am not sure how exactly one could take a different spin off of what this is saying, so, here is James 3:17-18 in a nutshell – Be wise. That means be pure. Be Peace-loving. Be considerate, submissive and full of good mercy. Be impartial and sincere. This, as Jesus said, will bear “good fruit” (yet another thing wisdom is).

            So, while you are reading this, pray for God to help you live wisely; to show compassion and mercy, to be peace-loving and considerate.  Pray that God will show you (and help you) how to live as one who has wisdom – Go reread those verses, pray and avoid all rabid rodents. 

Answer This:

1. Tell your own recent "rabid animal" story - something you did that was just so dumb and unwise that you're embarrassed to even tell people about it.

2. How do you define "wisdom".

3. Where is the best place to find wisdom.

4. What do I mean if I say that "wisdom is not just knowing the right thing to do" ?

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Written by Caleb Cleck

going viral

James 3:15 – 16

15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.

Who do you like on TV? Who do you see on TV or any entertainment that you think : that is cool person, I want to hang out with them. For me: Morgan Freeman, Denzel Washington, Bono, Zoey Deschanel, Neil Patrick Harris, Ron Hextall… these are some people I would love to have coffee with. They seem like “down to earth people”, we always say that about actors or performers who make us feel safe and trusting. How many times though, do those people seem so “real” and “down to earth”, but then you hear someone who actually had the chance to meet them and you find out they really are just acting – in real life they are a jerk.

This week during a Draft week interview on live tv a reporter was asking a big named ESPN analyst questions in an interview. He asks one question and the guy being interviewed turned into a complete jerk, “you can’t ask me questions that we didn’t go over ahead of time, what kind of…” he treated this reporter like junk and made it sound like he himself was so important and the other guy was nothing. Just a jerk. He did it because he thought they were taping this interview, he didn’t know it was live! Seriously, when the other guy mentioned that they are live the jerk froze, “live? Uh, can we start over”. No you can’t start over!

See sometimes we put on a front and we pretend to be this kind and gentle person when people are watching (when we are “live”) but then when its back to normal then we are a jerk. This passage here is referencing the verses before that say You might be a wise person, but if you have “jelousy and selfish ambition in your hearts” … you are being false to the truth. You can be a good person, you can be very wise…  but if you are doing it for yourself and not for God, it’s just not gonna last. One day the whole fake charade will come crumbling down and it will hurt, or even worse sometimes we convince ourselves that we are wise and have pure hearts but in reality we are all about ourselves… and sometimes one by one everyone else around us starts to notice it. Getting caught on live camera and going viral lets everyone know at once, but if that wasn’t life and that guy just mistreated the reporter off the air, still that reporter would know that he was fake… and one by one the people around him would realize how fake he really was. Is it like that for you? The more that people spend time with you do they come to realize that you are the real deal or that you are a fake?

1. We are all flawed, we all have areas that we are fake in, and hopefully we are working on that. What is some area that you struggle with?

2. How can you take small steps to making your life real in public and in private?

3. “This is not the _______ that comes down from above, but is _______, unspiritual, demonic.”

4. Take a minute and journal about this.

look at my wisdom

Ever watch White Wolves? For those of you that haven't had the privilege, a group of teens and their leader go on a backpacking trip, very much like the Wilderness Trip we do but with less canoeing. Their goal is to get to the top of Eagle Rock. They eventually make it to the top and disaster strikes! Their trip turns into a rescue mission. All throughout the movie, one of the teens, Scott, has camping experience and just seems to be wise in making decisions and knowing how to handle these scenarios that none of them have ever been in before. Towards the end of the movie, Benny decides to leave on his own and get help. He goes in the middle of the night without discussing it with the group. When Scott wakes up, he sees a note from Benny and is ticked off! He starts complaining about how they should've discussed this and they should've decided together. Adam looks at him and responds "no you mean you should have decided. Let's face it you're just angry because you're the one that has to sit here and wait, while he's the one that got to go." Scott angrily kicks some dirt because Adam's right. Scott tries to make it seem like his concern is the group when really he's mad because he's got some jealously and selfishness.

Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. (James 3:13-14 ESV)

In chapter 3, James has been talking about the tongue, and how it's so small yet powerful. He talks about how a spring or a fig tree can only produce what they are made to produce. After all that, he then starts talking about wisdom and good conduct.

If a fig tree produces really delicious figs, it doesn't have to brag about it and tell people. Its fruit speaks for it. Likewise, if you are wise and understanding, you don't need to brag about it; the way you act should demonstrate it. It's back to the whole idea of faith without works being dead.

If you are trying to be wise, but with selfish motives, you are being false to the truth. Eventually what is in your heart will be revealed.

The book of Proverbs spends a great deal of time talking about the difference between those who are full of wisdom and those who are full of folly. Here are just a few verses:

The wise of heart will receive commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin... The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence... The wise lay up knowledge, but the mouth of a fool brings ruin near. (Proverbs 10:8, 11, 14 ESV)

The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouths of fools pour out folly. (Proverbs 15:2 ESV)

Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, (Proverbs 3:13 ESV)

My son, do not lose sight of these— keep sound wisdom and discretion, and they will be life for your soul and adornment for your neck. (Proverbs 3:21-22 ESV)

The wise will inherit honor, but fools get disgrace. (Proverbs 3:35 ESV)

Answer This:

1) Be honest- are you truly wise and understanding or do you tend to be motivated by jealously and selfishness?

2) "Who is wise and understanding among you? By his _____________________ let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom."

3) How does your conduct relate to your wisdom/understanding?

4) Take some time to journal about this passage.

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Written by Amber

a wee little man

From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water. (James 3:10-12 ESV)

Based on my own life, the comments of some of the other devo writers and conversations with some of you guys, I know our speech is a big deal. It has been a stumbling block for many of us in the past or currently. Why is this even something worth talking about? Cursing, gossiping, sarcasm and what not don't seem like that big of a deal compared to stealing, lying or murder.

Normally we stick a personal story/example in here, but the example that came to mind was a Bible story:
And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” And he said, “All these I have kept from my youth.” When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” (Luke 18:18-25 ESV)

This guy did everything the Law asked of him, but Jesus said he lacked one thing; he needed to sell his stuff and give to the poor. He can't do it, his stuff is too important to him (Says so in Matt. 19:22). Now just to clarify, this isn't a command to all of us that we cannot be wealthy. In the next chapter, we read about Zacchaeus who was not required to give away his money but he did so because it was no longer important to him once he met Jesus.

Alright, so how does this story apply to James 3 and our mouths? The rich ruler did things right--he kept the commandments. However his one stumbling block was being greedy with his money. But that one issue stopped him from while-heartedly loving and serving God.

The same is true with us and our speech. We can do really well keeping all the commandments--we go to church, read our Bibles, pray, go to church. But we struggle with the words that come out of our mouths.

James says mouths shouldn't be both good and bad, the same way that a spring can't have both fresh and salt water or a tree can only produce its own kind of fruit.

Your speech can be a stumbling block that stops you from whole-heartedly loving God (just like the money did for the rich ruler). Our mouths are an indicator of what's in our hearts. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. (Luke 6:45 ESV)


Our speech should be used as a blessing, not a curse. Here's how you can do that: Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. (Ephesians 4:29 ESV)


If your speech is not what it should be, use this verse as a prayer: Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips! (Psalm 141:3 ESV)

Answer This:
1) do you struggle with your speech--cursing, gossiping, sarcasm, inappropriate jokes/stories?
2) what is a practical step you can take this week to improve your speech?
3) "From the same ________________ come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ________________ so."
4) take some time to journal about this passage.

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Written by Amber