Daily Treasure

And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:” (Matt. 13:4).

We as Christians are blessed to hear and read God’s word at almost anytime we desire. We have so many options available to us. We do not live in countries where we are not allowed to have His Word. We have the freedom to go to church and listen to the minister preach. We have computers, MP3 players, radio, and TV to listen to scripture and devotionals on. We are truly blessed.

Sometimes, if we’re not careful, we let all of this become routine and we don’t really listen. I am guilty of letting my mind wonder while sitting in the church pew. Sad to say, there have been times I really couldn’t tell you what the message was about at that service. I don’t want the “fowls to devour” the precious word God has sent my way. I want to apply it to my life, so I may live pleasing unto Him. I am truly blessed to be able to listen to or read God’s Word. I pray I will take it and use it for His glory.

PRAY TOGETHER: Pray as missionaries make follow up contacts after Christmas programs.

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

People, as a rule, know so little about the happenings and events, people and places, or customs and commandments of the Bible. Attempting to use some biblical person or event as an illustration in normal conversation tends to create a “communication gap.” We can see further proof of this on TV game shows or quizzes. (Is it any wonder so many accept as right so much that is sin, seeing they know so little of what God said?)

It would be well enough were we describing non-Christians or unbelievers. Yet, when the same holds true among professed Christians of many years, this gap seems a disgrace.

Ask people about Balaam and the donkey and you are apt to receive blank stares. Yet ask about B.J. and the Bear, and you are soon involved in an animated conversation. The same goes for the Ten Commandments versus the TV Guide listings, the names of the disciples versus the names of players on a favorite ball team, or the books of the Bible versus the yearly sports scores. Compare the desire for daily Bible reading versus the interest in the daily installment of a favorite soap opera.

The Bible says “out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh.” Wouldn’t it also be true that what our minds and eyes desire to see and be involved in, reveal our hearts’ concerns? If so, what do our interests, likes and dislikes tell others? What really is of utmost importance in our hearts and lives? It’s often quoted; we are the only Bible some persons will ever read. Will we point them to Christ or to the world?

“Who knowing the Judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them”(Romans 1:32).

PRAY TOGETHER: Pray for unity among Executive Committee members as they make final selection and recommendation for WNAC Executive Secretary-Treasurer.

“Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved,” (Psalm 55:22).

If someone handed you a 200 lb. sack of potatoes, what would you do? You might carry it a few steps, but chances are it wouldn’t be long before you dropped it. On the other hand, what would you do if someone gave you a can of Crisco to carry? No problem? Suppose you had to carry it around for a very long time. Soon you would weary of carrying it, even though it isn’t as heavy as a 200 lb. sack of potatoes. Before long, you would probably get so annoyed you would throw it down.

Spiritual burdens are no different. When you have a heavy burden on your heart, you never hesitate to take it to the Lord. But what about the “Crisco can” variety? You might feel, “Well, I can carry this one.” But soon, you would find what was once ‘light’ will weight you down.

The Lord cares for His own. He wants to take every burden. He alone is able to carry the weight of our souls. “In his neck remaineth strength, and sorrow is turned into joy before him” (Job 41:22).

If you have a “Crisco Can” you’re still toting around, then stop. Pray it away. Leave it with Jesus. He will give a peace and joy you cannot know when your arms are full.

“Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee” (Psalm 84:5).

PRAY TOGETHER: Pray for Together in the Word writers as they complete and submit Bible studies for 2009.

“And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.”
Matthew 23:12

“Look at me. Aren’t I beautiful?” I smiled as I watched my little five-year-old friend waltz around the room in her fru-frued dress and frilly matching socks. I assured her that yes, she was beautiful–always, not just in her new outfit.

We’ve all made them. The look at me statements. Some are more obvious and blatant than others, but all of us seek approval and all of us want praise. Fishing for compliments may be cute when we’re five, but not when we’re twenty-five or fifty-five. God calls us to humility. He wants us to find our wholeness, our self-worth in Him. He calls us to labor oftentimes unnoticed and unrewarded. He calls us to seek humility—not so we can be praised. We are simply to seek humility. Period.

What does humility look like? It’s best described by exploring its opposites: pride, conceit, self-absorption, selfishness, stingyness, one-up-manship. We know these things.

Someone has comically said, ‘Humility is like underwear. We need it, but it’s shameful if we flaunt it.”

So how can we grow in humility? Determine that it’s not’s about us. Live like it’s all about Him. And let God be the initiator of the compliment, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”

Sarah Fletcher
Tennessee

 PRAY TOGETHER:  Our new WNAC president, Rebecca Pugh, should know we are praying for her daily.

“…but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.”
Matthew 20:26b,  27

My husband and I served for several years as caretakers of Camp Hope. Since I lived on the grounds of this FWB youth camp, and since I was certified in food preparation, practicality dictated that I should serve as food coordinator—planning menus, ordering and receiving wholesale items, and scheduling volunteer helpers. I loved it; this was my niche. And every week I served the Lord and others with joy and passion. With one exception.

The first day of camp, I realized there was a problem. It was a personality conflict. I’m not sure if this woman thought I was an upstart, trying to take over a position she’d once held, or if she considered me just a young, unqualified person, but the tension was real and mounting. It was obvious, there were too many cooks in the church camp kitchen.

Puzzled as to how to resolve this conflict not of my own making, I began praying. The words from one of my children’s praise cassettes, echoed through my mind. “Make me a servant, humble and meek, Lord, let me lift up those who are weak…Make me a servant today.” Every morning that camp week found me on my knees, asking God to make me a servant to this woman and to everyone I would encounter in the kitchen that day. He was faithful. Working together that week, I came to greatly appreciate and admire this older woman who’s now in Heaven.

God moved us from the camp in 1992, but countless times since then, I’ve prayed that same prayer. It’s my prayer today as I share with you.

Sarah Fletcher
Tennessee

PRAY TOGETHER:  Birthdays are important. Try praying for missionaries on their birthdays.

“So the last shall be first, and the first, last: for many be called, but few chosen.”
Matthew 20:16

Have you ever drawn straws? My mother was the best at fixing those broomstraws so we couldn’t predetermine the outcome. Sometimes she made all the straws appear the same length. Other times a short straw might appear longer, or a longer one look shorter. Still other times, the long-looking straw was truly the longest one. Only the draw would reveal and size-up the order—who went first in a game, who got first choice in chores or treats or who got special privileges.

Jesus’ words remind me of those childhood broomstraw draws. The teaching followed the incident with the Rich Young Ruler. The sad departure of this promising individual must have puzzled the disciples. Here was someone who avowed he’d kept the commandments–from his youth—yet he wouldn’t give up everything and follow Christ. Jesus assured His disciples that they would receive spiritual compensation for all they had left behind to follow him.

He then went on to share the story of the man who paid his eleventh hour hires the same amount as the all-day laborers. And Jesus again repeated the first, last and last, first phrase.

My mother’s broomstraws? She knew the true length of each one; she arranged them. God knows the called and the chosen. He’s known since the beginning. And yet He allows us to choose. He extends his hand of grace to all of us. Whether younger or older, late hire or long haul laborer, all who choose to follow Christ will enjoy the same heavenly pleasures. And unlike the broomstraw draw, first or last, no believer gets the short end of the stick.

 PRAY TOGETHER:  Look at your clothing. Pray for people in the country listed on the label. Most, if not all of these places are home to Christians facing persecution.

“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”
Matthew 16:26

Every night they appear on the television screen—a series of numbers. Numbers, which if chosen in right combination, will guarantee wealth and gain. Countless individuals somewhere sit on edge, waiting to see if they have hit the jackpot and won the lottery.

Not me. Besides the moral (and immoral) implications of gambling, the risks are too great. According to the Lottery Syndicate World, the chances of winning the lottery jackpot are roughtly 1 in 13, 983,816. The writer of Proverbs advises, “Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labour shall increase” (13:11) and “He that trusteth in his riches shall fall…” (11:28).

Robert S. Thomspon, president of Sage Financial Design, a Connecticut based company whose clients include instant millionaires uses this rule of thumb. “…Sudden wealth will ruin people in three to five years….At the end of five years, the money’s going to be gone or the human being is going to be gone. They either lose their money or themselves or both.”

Christ words still apply. What does it profit? Lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where riches are not instant, but eternal.

Sarah Fletcher
Tennessee

PRAY TOGETHER: Our country is at war, both physically and spiritually. Pray for our country daily.