28 September 2007 Devotion for Today "Pure in One's Own Eyes" Proverbs 16:2

28 September 2007 Devotion for Today  "Pure in One's Own Eyes" Proverbs 16:2

Have you ever seen the laundry detergent commercial on television that

does the "before and after" routine.  It will show a segment with a

white garment that is soiled by grease and dirt.  The demonstrator then

takes the garment, throws it into a large glass bowl with the brand

of laundry detergent, he stirs it around with a spoon, and then, voila!

The white garment is pulled out just as white and clean as it can be.

This makes for an interesting commercial and to be certain it has 

generated sales.  But each time I view this commercial (I don't any

more, for we are presently removed from American television), I think

about how we all try to do this with ourselves, our motives, and our

own version of what we believe to be true.  

The writer of Proverbs comments upon this briefly, but pointedly in

Proverbs 16:2: "All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but

the Lord weighs the spirits."  What does this mean?  It simply means

that we naturally try to justify everything that we do. The things that

we do that are right we take credit for them because of the principles

we hold.  And even the things that we do that are wrong we genuinely

believe we did them for the right reasons- even when they did turned

out badly.  We cannot do right by doing the wrong thing-but very often

we believe that we can.  This, of course, would be true if man were the

common denominator of truth, but he isn't.  The reason is because there

are presently 6 Billion of them on the planet-and they cannot all be

right.  This is why God, "the One who weighs the spirits" is the ultimate

measure of truth.  He weighs what is right and what is wrong.  He sees

not only what we do but also why we do them.  

Your ways are good or bad not in comparison with somebody else, but 

weighed out according to God's standard.  Do you see yourself pure in

your own eyes, or under the purity of the righteousness of Jesus Christ?

 

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

Devotion for Today "Hunger and Thirst" Matthew 5:6

Devotion for Today  "Hunger and Thirst" Matthew 5:6

You know that you have a boy who is approaching his teen years when

you begin to hear this constant declaration, "I'm hungry!"  Very soon

after supper time (and most every meal) I hear this.  I first thought

that perhaps I am not feeding him enough.  He eats every thing on his

plate, even greater helpings than I eat myself. So I give him more, and

still he wants to eat. I found him downstairs in the middle of the night.

I asked him, "What are you doing up so late?"  He says to me, "I'm hungry."

I find myself thinking about how I am going to finance our increasing 

grocery bill.  Should I ask for a raise.  Perhaps my wife can find a 

better-paying job.  Then his younger brother is not too far behind him.

How will we survive? Should we grow a garden?  Then I am comforted by a

book by Dr. James Dobson, who says that the hunger pangs will begin to 

subside after the growth spurts are finished- in about eight to ten 

years!

Hunger, along with thirst, are those basic appetites that God gives us

so that we will eat enough to survive.  The world hungers for many other

things besides food.  But the Christian ought to be hungering for more

important things.  Jesus declares in the beatitude, "Blessed are they 

which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled."

What is this righteousness for which we are to thirst?  It is the kind

of life that God desires and that which is pleasing to Him.  One could 

also say, a godly life.  I'm not speaking of a false, or self-righteousness.

There is no joy in that, nor is that pleasing to the Lord and it is

repugnant to others.  It is a lifestyle and commitment that will attract

others to Christ through you.  It emanates love and kindness, joy and

mercy.  And when we have this appetite in us, we find that we will have

as much of it as we want.

Do you have this godly life?  Do you hunger and thirst after righteous-

ness?  Know that it is the mark of a believer, just as hungering for

food and thirsting for water makes us human.  Have a blessed day!

righteousness that 

 

(17 August 2001)

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

22 September 2007 Devotion for Today "A Higher Level" Proverbs 15:1

22 September 2007  Devotion for Today  “A Higher Level”  Proverbs 15:1

 

            A father I heard about recently, who was also a psychologist, was trying to get his young daughter, who was six, ready for school while his wife was away for a couple of weeks.  But for the first 2 days it was a nightmare for him.  She dawdled and would not cooperate or get ready.  He was beginning to feel exasperated at her defiance, and one morning he had had enough of her behavior because it was making them both late.  He was on his way up the stairs to punish her when it struck him, “If my daughter were one of my clients, what would I do?” So he set out to find out what was causing this behavior.  He about it for a moment, and then he had it. 

 

            He walked into his daughter’s room, stooped down, and with his hands on her shoulders, looked her right I the eye.  The little girl expected her daddy to scold her, but then he said, “You miss your mommy, don’t you?”  Instantly she fell into his arms and began sobbing.  She could not even talk, so he did. “Yes, honey, I know,” he said, “I miss her too.  It is hard having mommy away, isn’t it?”  And after crying in his arms for a moment, she suddenly jumped back by saying, “Come on Daddy!  Its late!  We have to get to school now!”

 

            You see what that wise parent did?  His empathy and love had taken her to a higher level.  Had he followed his first impulse and punished his daughter, her behavior would have taken him down to her level of immaturity.   Instead, his love, his tenderness, his softness put her need ahead of his and melted her heart to a better place. 

 

Solomon tells us that “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger!”  (Proverbs 15:1).

 

            To take the little girl to a higher level, the father had to get past himself, and what he wanted.  You see, not giving others what they deserve is a big part of not playing fair.  To give them better than they deserve is what the Bible calls grace.  The word means unmerited favor, and describes exactly how God treats us. We are never more like God than when we don’t play fair, because as you know, God is not fair.  He is more than fair.  As the Bible says, “For when we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  Romans 5:6

 

            How do you get people to that higher level? If you have a coworker who is not getting something done- blasting them for not doing their job is not going to help.  But the successful manger will go in, close the door, and ask, “Is everything okay?  It looks like you might be getting a little overwhelmed or behind in your work.”  Instead of riding or nagging a teenager for his or her non-performance, the successful mom or dad will ask, “So how are things going?”  Now usually what you will get is a grunt.  When your husband gets short-tempered or barks at his wife, instead of barking back, the mature Christian wife is going to walk over, give him a hug and say, “A little overwhelmed today, aren’t you, dear?”  The barking is answered with kindness.   Take him to a higher level.  It may not work every time, or in the way you want it to at first, but it’s the Christlike thing to do.

            Have a blessed day!

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

24 September 2007 Devotion for Today "How NOT to Play Fair" Luke 6:32-35

24 September 2007  Devotion for Today  “How NOT to Play Fair”  Luke 6:32-35

 

            The story is told of two young boys who were sent to bed for fighting.  After a while, the parents came upstairs to counsel them on their behavior, to get them to forgive each other, to have them say their prayers and to tuck them in to bed for the night.  First, Bobby said his prayers, “Now I lay me down to sleep, etc.”  Then Jimmy said his prayers.  Then Dad said, “Jimmy, you still look mad.  You are supposed to forgive your brother.  Is there anything else you need to say?”  Jimmy says “Yeah!  If I don’t die before I wake, Bobby had better watch out in the morning!”

           

            We’ve been taught all our lives to play fair, to play by the rules, to give back what other people give you.  In fact justice operates on the principle of retribution.  The Old Testament taught that the punishment ought to fit the crime- an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.  We even teach our children to stand up for themselves and not to let anybody push them around, and if somebody shoves them in the hallway, then shove them back- just as long as the teacher doesn’t catch you doing it because that will cancel out everything!  But then we go to church and we learn from Jesus that people who succeed in life do not go around settling scores. In fact, they do not even keep score.  Instead, what they do is “run up the score” by doing good to others, even when the others do not deserve it- especially so.  They give them better than they are given.  As a result, they often bring the other person up to their level instead of being brought down to the level of the other.  They are the ones who change things for the better.  They are the ones who give back so much better than they are given.  This morning, we’re going to look at how not to play fair in Luke 6:32-36

           

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them. 33And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' do that. 34And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full. 35But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” Luke 6:32-36

           

Jesus’ words to us simply describe the truth of what we see in the world.  Pretty much everyone loves those who love back.  Most people do good to those who do good to them.  But to do good to people who do not deserve it is an altogether different animal.  That animal is bred from the law of love.  It has the power to improve relationships that are hurting.  It has the power to turn them around.  It has the power to give them a hug when you feel like wringing their neck!   Instead of lowering yourself to their level, you elevate them to yours.  This is the only way that good relationships continue and the only way that problem relationships get better.

 

Have a blessed day!

 

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

20 September 2007 Devotion for Today "A Cup of Cold Wa =?us-ascii?Q?ter=22___ Matthew_10:42?=

20 September 2007  Devotion for Today  “A Cup of Cold Water”          Matthew 10:42

 

            Some years ago at a Resort Area along the East Coast, a small community was having an open town meeting about some financial problems that they were facing.

Among the two dozen or so people was one man no one seemed to know who was apparently visiting in that area and had just dropped in on the meeting. He started to make a comment once as various projects were considered, but he was interrupted; so for the rest of the time, he kept still, and he left early. Just as he went out someone arriving late came in, and said breathlessly, “What was he doing here? Is he going to help us?”

The rest of them said, “Who are you talking about? Who was that man?” The person who had just arrived said, “You mean you don’t know? That was John D. Rockefeller, Jr!.

His yacht is in our harbor. Didn’t you get his help?” In despair someone said, “No, we didn’t get his help; we didn’t know who he was!”

            Have you ever kicked yourself in the Seat of the Pants, because you missed a golden opportunity? I think all of us can relate here!  Think of the opportunities that we have missed out on, because we were too busy thinking about our problems or preoccupied with ourselves, that we missed the solution that God would have given if we had only kept our eyes open!

1. We missed an opportunity to make a Positive Difference in Someone’s Life.

2. We missed an opportunity to be a Blessing to Someone who was Hurting.

3. We missed an opportunity to Witness to a Lost Friend.

4. We missed an opportunity to get a certain job because we weren’t prepared.

5. We missed an opportunity to Minister to our Spouse or Children because we were too preoccupied.

6. We missed an opportunity to make an Eternal Difference in a person’s life because we didn’t seize the opportunity.

Has an opportunity ever knocked on your door and you were so caught up in other things that it slipped through your fingers?

            I’m convinced that it has happened to all of us! But I pray that we would wake up to the opportunities around us!

            Jesus says in Matthew 10: 42 “And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.” 

            Think about the implications of this statement.  A little one- Jesus is thinking here about children, or it could be an insignificant one, someone little regarded by society in general.   They could be the people who are a nuisance to have around, the “not-like-us” people that we see, those for whom we don’t go out of our way.   Every neighborhood, every town, every church has such people.   “A cup of cold water” is that which provides refreshment for the most basic need-thirst.   There is cold water versus tap water- tap water doesn’t take too much trouble to draw for someone.  But cold water means going to the refrigerator (and in Jesus’ case, going to the cold spring), taking out a jug of water and filling it in a glass, and getting a few ice cubes to go in it, and then presenting that cold glass of water to that thirsty person in need. 

            “He shall by no means lose his reward”- that statement Jesus refers back to the lowly individual who was given the cup of cold water.  Some would consider this either as time wasted, or time “written off”.  Nothing could be expected from this encounter except for the warm feeling that one helped someone else in need.  The little people and the acts done for them might be discounted and overlooked by others, but acts like these never go unnoticed by the Lord.  One never knows the opportunities such a simple act of refreshment will bring about, especially when it is done in the name of the Lord.

            When you go out of your way to refresh the “little ones”, you go out of your way to refresh the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

            Have a blessed day!

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

19 September 2007 Devotion for Today "Walking in the Light" John 3:19-21

19 September 2007  Devotion for Today "Walking in the Light"  John 3:19-21

 

            You may have been to a restaurant where the lights have been really dim. At first you can hardly see anything around you. You’re afraid to put anything in your mouth until you’re sure what it is. It is case of eating by faith and not by sight. I took a mission trip to Russia back in 1993, and we sat down to eat at a cafeteria in Moscow at the place we were staying. Its not that it was fancy, it was because all those folks to afford was to put one light bulb to light up a large room. You had to strike a match to read the menu-which didn’t do most of us any good because we couldn’t read it even if we could see it.  But I was hungry, and the first course was served, from what I could see, it looked just like orange jello.  I grabbed a spoonful and shoved it in my mouth.  But then my taste buds did a complete double take as I gagged on slimy, fishy tasting little orange pellets swimming around in this gelatin concoction. I looked around, and the only thing to drink was a bottle of water but the cap was not off of it yet.  By this time I was groping desperately for something to wash it down, and grabbed a container filled with what they call “kvass.”  I couldn’t see what was in it, but filled my cup up with it and began to drink that. What the Russians didn’t tell me was the beverage consisted of a mixture of moldy fermented rye bread and water.  My mouth began to send a message to my eyes, saying, “you guys up there are killing us up there, so you better start getting it together.” But before long, I begin to see better. Not because someone turned on more light, but because my eyes became more accustomed to the darkness.  I can’t say I enjoyed my meal better, but at least I could see enough not to eat what I could not identify.

 

            Today I believe we find ourselves as a Christian community in very much  the same situation. We have become so accustomed to the dark, that we begin to notice it less and less, and in fact even become more comfortable with it. We like it.  That’s just what Jesus said about it in John 3:19-21

            This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."

            God wants us to have more light but the problem is, we won’t budge out of the darkness because we love the pleasures of sin. Don’t think that sin isn’t fun or can’t be pleasurable. If it wasn’t fun, nobody would be doing it! If it didn’t feel good, we would shun it.  If people didn’t like sin, guys like me would be out of a job!          Ephesians 5:13 "But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light." The light of God’s Word shines upon us, revealing our faults, and sin. Wherever light shines, we can see more clearly.

            You can walk through your home in the dark and stumble over everything, but just turn on the light, and you can see more clearly, what obstacles are there, how to get around them, and what to do to get to your destination safely.

            When the light of the gospel is turned on, we can see the way to Heaven more clearly. God then turns on the heat to make us change our walk and avoid some of the obstacles, and overcome the rest, so that we can make it to Heaven safely.

How do we know we have that light?   God has foreordained that whatever produced light would also produce heat. Why? To give you a very simplified answer, reactions that produce heat will cause a release of energy that is often transformed into a light. Brighter intensity also means more heat!

            Pick up a string of 7 volt Christmas lights and hold them in your hand while they are burning. While they may be hot, or at least warm, you can usually hold them for a few minutes before they will burn too much. But, if you pick up a 100 watt bulb that is burning, you won’t hold it but a split second before it will leave a mark. There are some projector bulbs that will burn as high as 800 degrees and more. Of course, the ultimate source of natural light, the sun, burns at a temperature that has been estimated at 11,000 degrees Fahrenheit on the surface and 27,000,000 degrees Fahrenheit near its center.

The more we allow the heat of conviction to work in our hearts, the greater the light will shine in us, and we are brought into a closer relationship and a greater knowledge of Christ.

            The point is this: If we really want the light then we need to be prepared for some heat also.

God is going to turn up the heat of conviction in your life so that you will know what is not pleasing to God. He will turn up the heat of conviction in your life so that you will have to respond by either falling on your face seeking His will, or you will have to turn and walk away to avoid feeling uncomfortable all the time.

            Every time you come to church, the preacher will preach a message that turns up the heat and reveals a little more of what we need to work on. The light will get a little brighter, the Word of God will become a little clearer.  And when His light is in our life, we are also giving off some heat as well, and people are going to be warming up to us, because they feel the warmth of God’s love coming out of us.  They want to get warm.  There will be some folks, though, that don’t like that, though.  Just remember that’s a good thing, and know that its not you, it’s the light!

 

 

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

18 September 2007 Devotion for Today "Memories of Isabel" Luke 8:25

18 September 2007  Devotion for Today  “Memories of Isabel”  Luke 8:25

 

It was four years ago today that a major hurricane struck the North Carolina Coast with fierce winds and rain.  Granted, it was not nearly the scale of Katrina or Andrew, but for us, it was enough.  Hurricane Isabel claimed at least one life and did millions of dollars of property damage with wind gusts up to 110 miles per hour.   The electricity went off and stayed off for about a week as we spent that time cleaning up debris, removing fallen trees and limbs, and trying to get back to normal.  We had just moved to Elizabeth City two months before, but during Isabel, we got to know our neighbors perhaps much better than we would have otherwise.  They even issued a T-shirt (I never got one, for some reason) with the phrase emblazoned on the front “I Survived Isabel!”

 

When you go through a storm, whether it be a hurricane, a divorce, a death in the family, or any other kind of loss, you are never alone.  The devastation and pain that you feel hurts, and it is intensely personal.  But you must always remember that there are millions of people who are feeling the hurt that you feel.   Above them all is God Himself.

He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. "Where is your faith?" he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, "Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him."  Luke 8:25

 

            God feels your pain, and He feels your hurt.  Now the obvious point any detractor may wish to make here is, “If God can feel my hurt, why did He allow the storm in the first place?”  I wish I could answer that one.  I know He has a purpose for the storm, even though it may not make much sense to me.  But what does make sense is that I have a personal God who loves me and cares about me, and is concerned when I hurt and draws His loving arms around me.  He is a God who gives me the strength to pick up the pieces of my life and start over again.  He is a God who speaks to me in the midst of the storm to comfort me and tell me, “You are going to get through this!”   He is a God who is going to give me a future, in one form or another, even if the storm takes my life.   There are those who ask, “What kind of a God would cause a storm to bring untold suffering to millions of innocent people?”    I would rather live with a God who caused the storm, who considers my plight and life in it, than to go through a storm without a God who caused it and without a God who cares for me after it.   I would rather have a God who caused the storm who knows how to calm the storm as well.

            Have a blessed day

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

Devotion for Today "For Whom the Bells Toll"

Devotion for Today "For Whom the Bells Toll"  

Lamentations 2:11   (from 14 Sept ’01)

"My eyes fail with tears, my heart is troubled; my bile is poured out

on the ground because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.,

because the children and the infants faint in the streets of the city."

Yesterday my wife and I ventured out from the confines of our home

to visit with church members.  Our hearts are still heavy after this

horrible series of incidents in the United States and we are still

in a great deal of grief.  Yet as we approached the military community

of Gelnhausen, my eyes flooded with tears as I watched German nationals

getting out by the carload and carrying flowers, candles, and gifts to

lay at the front gate of the compound.  In my ears, were the ringing

of church bells throughout the city in memory of the thousands of 

people- many citizens of other nations-including Germany.  It reminded

me of the somber words of Ernest Hemmingway: "You may ask, 'for whom

the bell tolls...It tolls for thee."  

Stirring in my heart was the resounding ring of God saying to me, "I am still in

control, I am still on My throne!"  But the affection and outpouring of

love from the German people has been wonderful.  There may have been 

times when the two cultures clash and get on one another's nerves, but

a situation like this demonstrates who stands with you and who does not.

May God bless the German people, and other peoples of the world-even peoples

of the Arab and Muslim world, who have stood with my country in deep

consulation and have loved us in our time of grief.

As others stand with you in this time of tragedy and grief, may you 

also draw from the Lord His strength to stand with others who are in

similiar need.  Have a blessed day.

 

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

13 September 2007 Devotion for Today "Why Do the Nations Rage?" Psalm 2

13 September 2007 Devotion for Today  "Why Do the Nations Rage?"  Psalm 2

 

            The story is told of a newly elected politician who was

visiting Washington, D.C. to get acquainted.  He was visiting in the

home of one of the ranking senators who was trying to interpret the

bizarre wonder of the capital.  As they stood looking out over the

Potomac River, an old, rotten, deteriorating log floated by on the river.

The old-timer said, "This city is like that log out there."  The

fledgling politician asked, "How's that?"  The senator replied, "Well,

there are probably over 100,000 grubs, ants, bugs, and critters on that

old log as it floats down the river.  And I imagine every one of them

thinks that he's steering it!"

 

            That is fairly close to God's perspective of prideful man in

the world in which we live when the Psalmist says, "Why do the nations

rage, and the peoples plot in vain.  The kings of the earth take their

stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against His

Anointed One.  Let us break their chains," they say, "and throw off

their fetters." Psalm 2:1-3.  Yet it says that "The One enthroned in

heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them." v. 4.  God must have contempt

for a lot of things that we do, especially when we do not acknowledge

Him, or even worse, when we try to deny God's power and authority over

the course of this world.  Like at the Tower of Babel, all of our grand

efforts are thrown into confusion when we start believing that we can

do anything without God's help. 

 

            However, know that God does not have contempt for the people;

just the things that people do.  And He says, "Ask of me, and I will make

the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession." v.8.

It is not wrong to make plans and set goals as long as we remember to

consult God, and include Him in them, and follow His leading.  He sees

and knows the way so much better than we do. 

 

            Do you have a plan today?  Make certain that it has His approval,

and know that if you need anything, all you ever need to do is ask.

 

            Have a blessed day!

 

 

25 April 2000

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

Devotion for Today "Who Shall Separate?" Romans 8:35-39

Note:  this was the devotional I sent out dated 13 September 2001- which was the first day I could get a devotional out that week after the 9-11 tragedy.  We were in Germany at the time, and I was corresponding with a distant cousin who was at that time

An Army Lt. Col stationed at the Pentagon.

 

Devotion for Today "Who Shall Separate?" Romans 8:35-39

Yesterday I received an email from a distant cousin, Mr. David Lamp,

of Falls Church, Virginia, relating to his email mailing list that he

was all right.  He worked at the Pentagon in the building right next

to the one that was destroyed by the hijacked aircraft.  In his narrow

brush with death, he recognized that not all were as fortunate as he.

Since this tragedy started on Tuesday, I have fought back tears (not

always very successfully) for those whose interviewed accounts by the

media revealed that they had loved ones in the World Trade Towers and

could not find them.  They fear the worst as they go from hospital to

hospital and not finding them.  Several on the hijacked aircraft made

calls to their loved ones on the ground telling them that they loved

them, and would not see them again.  The horror of this is unimaginable.

But the sense of separation and anxiety of not knowing what has happened

to a family member is a feeling too awful to be put into words.

As I read the Scriptures, there is some comfort in that while we may

lose many people and things of this world, there is One whom we will

never lose no matter what may try to dislocate us.  The Apostle Paul

tells us in Romans 8:35-39- "Who shall separate us from the love of

Christ?  Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine,

or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written: 'For your sake

we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.'

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved

us.  For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor

principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor

height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to 

separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Many are pouring over lists of people this week wondering if they will

be separated by this tragedy.  This may even have happened to you.  If

it has, I'll not want to minimize the pain that you feel.  But as the

shock wears away and the hurt and the grief come in overwhelming waves,

God is still there, and He promises never to be separated from you.  He

knows what you are feeling, and as His Son, Jesus Christ, allowed 

Himself to be hijacked and sent to the Cross, and separated from the 

Father's love, He emerged from the tomb alive that we may never know 

that kind of separation from God again.

In some small way, may you all be comforted and blessed by the promises

of God's Word.

Jeff Russell

Devotion for Today

Friendship Baptist Church,

Langenselbold, Germany

 

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

10 September 2007 Devotion for Today The Bitter Root Hebrews 12:14-15

10 September 2007  Devotion for Today    The Bitter Root    Hebrews 12:14-15

Some years ago we were entertaining a Nigerian pastor by the name of Raaji in our

home.  Raaji was a very interesting individual and dynamic Christian;  having been saved in an Islamic background he endured much persecution in his native land.  He had many stories to tell about how God overcame many potentially dangerous situations on behalf of himself and his family.  During the course of his visit, he handed me a curious looking object: a rough, twisted,round thing that he called “the Friendship root” or “Friendship nut.”  What are you supposed to do with it?” I asked.  

“Ah, saah,” he said with his thick accent, “You suppose to put it into yah mouth and taste

de Friendship nut.  It very good for you!”

As I watched him demonstrate with no ill effects, I popped the Friendship root into my

mouth.  I was not at all prepared for what happened next.  Instantly, it seemed, all of the saliva was evacuated from my mouth, my throat, my tongue, my eyeballs, etc.  I tried to cough, but I could not even do that.  Nor could I even so much as raise enough saliva to spit it out.  It had gripped hold of me.  I wanted to be gracious to my friend in this encounter.  I had heard how, in some foreign countries, that to reject the food or hospitality of someone was the ultimate insult. I did not want to do that.  I looked at Raaji, who by this time was laughing.

“What is so funny?” I asked, still gagging on the remnants of this Friendship root.  

“You now understand why this be called Friendship root?  Because when you put it in

your mouth and eat of it, de root never want to leave you!”  

“Thanks for the explanation,” I said as we both started to laugh.  

After that experience, I was very careful to look over what he gave me, especially when it

concerned consuming it.  And like all other experiences, this is especially important.  Hebrews 12: 14-15 tells us that this impacts our relationships with others.  “Make every effort to live in peace with all men, an to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.  See to it that no one misses the grace of God, and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”

Many people who have considered turning to Christ have gotten a bitter taste in their

mouths because of the way in which so-called “Christians” behaved toward one another.  May

we do all that we can to live in harmony and peace with one another today, lest others become

defiled by the result of our actions.

Have a blessed day! 

 

(From 08 Feb 2001)

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

Dr. D. James Kennedy

Dear Salem Church Family,

 

We have lost another great spiritual giant this year.  I read late last night that Dr. D. James Kennedy, pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church with a greatly acclaimed television ministry, went home to be with the Lord sometime yesterday.  He was 76 years old and had only recently retired from his church last month because of a grave heart condition.

 

Thought you might want to know this.  May the Lord raise up more prophets to take his place.

 

Your Servant in Christ,

 

Pastor Jeff

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

06 September 2007 Devotion for Today "Humility is Like Soap" James 4:6-10

06 September 2007  Devotion for Today  “Humility is Like Soap”  James 4:6-10

 

I recently read where a man made almost a billion dollars selling laundry soap in China.  He had never been to China before.  He did not know the language or the customs.  He knew only two things: 1)China has the most people in the world, and 2) People in China want to wash their clothes like everybody else.  The American knew, however, that virtually no one was marketing laundry soap in China, so he bought a plane ticket and arrived in China to find out why.  The first thing he did was to get a job in a rice paddy.  Admittedly, that job had nothing to do soap, but he found a way to observe and learn about the Chinese people and why there was no current market for laundry soap in that country.  He discovered that at the end of the week, all of the people working at the rice paddy took their clothes to be laundered at a special spring at the edge of the village.  It was not that the people did not have water in their own homes- they did, but only for drinking.  The problem was that the water in their homes, almost universally throughout the entire country, extremely hard.  Few suds would generate from the household water.  But at the spring, suds appeared like magic.  The American tested the water at the spring and found it to be soft.  Then he sent samples of the hard and soft water back to a laboratory in the US, which then produced a formula for creating suds in both soft and hard water.  With this formula, the American then produced laundry soap which could be used in the typical Chinese home without them having to travel to the village spring to find soft water to wash their clothes in.  What innovation?  No, it was not innovation that made the American a billionaire.  It was not even the soap, or the rice.  It was humility- the humility to get a job in a rice paddy so that he could learn the culture and habits of people he might not otherwise have known.

            The American teaches us what Christ teaches us everyday from Scripture- lessons that are usually ignored or lost because of our unceasing desire to feel like we have to be more than we are. 

            Humility is defined by Webster as “not proud or haughty: not arrogant or assertive; reflecting, expressing,or offerd in a spirit of deference or submission; ranking low in a hierarchy scale: insignificant, unpretentious.  Through these definitions we get an idea of what it means to be humble.   Up to now I have always known what the Bible says about humility and being humble, but I never really valued what I could get out of being humble until now.

            God’s Word says in James 4: “But He gives more grace.  Therefore He says, ‘God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.’..Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”  (James 4:6, 10)

            Where can you appropriate God’s grace in being humble today?  It may not make you a billion dollars, but in time people will value the humility that they see in you, and you will become to them a greater treasure than Bill Gates.

            Have a blessed day.

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday

 

05 September 2007 Devotion for Today "Locus Pocus" Philippians 2:12-13

05 September 2007  Devotion for Today  “Locus Pocus”  Philippians 2:12-13

 

            The other day I tried to take the Visitation out for a short cruise on the river and then get back in time for lunch.  I hoisted the sails and got everything ready- something that takes about an hour before I am ready to launch the boat.  I started up the “kicker” motor, a 3 ½ HP Suzuki.  She purred perfectly as I prepared to get underway.  I had an easterly breeze going at about 8 knots, which meant that the wind was blowing me inshore, and that I would have to fight the wind a little to get down the creek and out into the Pasquotank.   I revved up the motor and launched myself, but the next thing I knew, I was being blown inshore by a gust.  The motor was running, bubbling, revving just as fast as she would go.  The only problem, the motor was not pushing the boat at all.  I had no power and was defenseless now against the gust blowing me to the shoreline.  I tried my best to steer out of it with the rudder, but at this point the wind currents were taking over.  Thankfully, I thought, if I was going to have a problem, this is where I would want to end up- on a familiar shoreline belonging to the dock where I had set out.  But I had to get into my swimsuit and wade back to the dock, pulling on the Visitation to tie up again.  Since I was already in the water, I decided to wade back around to where the motor was.  Perhaps I sheered a pin, I thought as I made my way around.  I am always doing that.  Imagine my surprise, however, when I inspected the lower unit of the motor and discovering that there was no propeller!  I thought for a moment I might have sheered it off by hitting a piling on the dock, but I was very careful not to do that.  Upon closer examination, I found that someone had come sometime during the week and had stolen the prop right off the motor!

           

            With no propulsion system, I was not just dead in the water, I was out of control.  It could have ended up a lot worse- it could have ended in disaster.  How often does this happen to us?  Now a question- Are you controlled from the inside or from the outside?  People of faith will naturally say “outside” when they think of Jesus Christ.  However, He is supposed to be living within our heart and in control of our heart.  All too often, it seems, many people, including many Christians, allow elements outside their lives (children, family, relationships, jobs, circumstances) control them and/or their decision making.  Like the motor I was telling you about, many times we tend to rely on that outside “prop” for so long, we take it for granted that it is there- dictating to us, urging us, pressuring us, pushing or otherwise propelling us onward so often that we seldom look within our own resources of personality and faith to take control instead.  Sooner or later, however, our “locus of control” that circle we allow or have allowed to control us, goes out of control if it is directed from the outside.  Circumstances beyond our control take us off course.  Children dictate to parents what they want to do rather than parents guiding them where they need to be.  Jobs demanding and squeezing every precious drop of strength and time from us we don’t have time, or have the energy, to recharge our spiritual batteries, etc.  The outside factors will cause us to drift from one aimless destination to another.  The desire to please others, for example, is an outward focus of control.  We never know when we’ve done it and we never know where we are going to end up.   When that which we have allowed to control us for so long is gone, we are utterly defenseless against the changing winds and tides unless of course we are more skilful to take back control from these outside influences.

 

            The Apostle Paul tells us in Philippians 2:12-13 “To work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to act according to His good purpose.”  Working out your own salvation does not mean “to work in order to be saved.”  It simply means to take responsibility and personal ownership for your life and who is controlling it.   Christ did not call us to depend upon circumstances or allow other people to direct out lives or to please them.  If Christ is within our locus of control, He is directing us internally to please Him.  When we do that, we know where we are going and are safe and secure within Christ.

           

            I learned a very important lesson this week not only for sailing, but also for life.  Before I put out to sea, I need to see that all of my propulsion systems to get me to and from my destination are there, or else I am going to end up in trouble.  Before you set out today, ask yourself, who is guiding that locus, or center of control in your life?

           

            Have a blessed day!

 

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@embarqmail.com

jcrussell@liberty.edu

 

Church website:   http://25621.lifewaylink.com
Devotion Archives: http://www.msnusers.com/DevotionforToday