Question for you. Are you righteous or are you a sinner?

In Matthew 9:13, Jesus says, “For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

It is not comfortable to say, “I am a sinner,” but it is only by saying that in our hearts that we can say, “I am saved.”

Dear Lord, what great joy it is to know that even though we are sinners, and precisely because we are sinners, we can accept your gift of salvation and be saved. Thank you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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Some personal development coaches talk about how the most important factor in making a change in your life is the decision. After making the decision with conviction, the rest is just follow through. For example, they would say, you can lose 10 pounds in a minute, it just takes weeks of follow-up to see the change occur.

Jesus describes a similar concept in John 6:47 where he says, “anyone who believes in me already has eternal life!” One step, believe. In this case the follow-through is not necessary for us to have eternal life, but the follow-through demonstrates that being saved is impacting our lives.

Dear Lord, thank you for the simple path to salvation. Believe in you and have eternal life. Help us live our lives knowing and sharing the joy that having eternal life can bring. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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God uses many people with troubled pasts to tell his story in the Bible, murderers, prostitutes, thieves, tax collectors, and others. This helps us all understand that God doesn’t require us to be “good,” to be saved; He can make us “right” with him no matter where we start. The moment we ask for forgiveness, God grants it. The important thing is that we ask.

Nathan, the prophet, comes to David, the King of Israel, in 2 Samuel 12, and tells David a story illustrating the terrible thing David did by having Bathsheba’s husband killed and taking Bathsheba as his wife. When David realized what a terrible thing he had done, he repents. His words are written in Psalm 51, and may sound familiar to those who attend traditional church services. Verses 10-12, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and uphold me with your free Spirit.”

The Living Bible writes verse 10, “Create in me a new, clean heart, O God, filled with clean thoughts and right desires.” and verse 12, “Restore to me again the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.”

We all fail in our resistance to temptation. God knows, He and is there waiting to forgive us. Let us give up our pride, and confess our faults, ask for God’s forgiveness, so that we can experience the joy that comes with a “clean heart.”

Dear Lord, we are sorry for our failure to follow your will. Forgive us and give us the desire to obey you. Thank you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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One of the amazing aspects of the Bible is how it uses specifics when describing certain events, providing a way to verify the validity of historic events.

For instance, Luke 3:1,2 describes the time John the Baptist was preaching in the wilderness, writing, “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene— during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.”

This verse clearly identifies for future readers when this event took place. As time has progressed, independent historical records and archeology have confirmed existence of these people, their roles and times they were present. The fact that as new information arises, it confirms rather than contradicts the details in the Bible, adds to the credibility and reliability of the entire Bible.

Dear Lord, what an incredible blessing we have in the Bible’s record, giving us additional strength for our faith. Help us read and believe your word in the Bible, with confidence, remembering as written in 2 Timothy 3:16,17, that “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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It has become pretty clear in recent medical studies, that stress is dangerous to our bodies. Not only does it raise our blood pressure, it causes other changes in our system that deteriorate our physical condition. It is interesting that this phenomenon was written about in Proverbs thousands of years ago.

Proverbs 14:30 says, “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” NIV So how do we eliminate stress in our lives? We can also find directions for this in the bible. Romans 8:6 says, “Following after the Holy Spirit leads to life and peace.” TLB

When we search for God’s guidance, and surrender ourselves to God’s will by following the Holy Spirit’s guidance, we can be at peace knowing that the one who controls everything is also helping us.

Dear Lord, help us surrender our concerns to your power, and follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance so that we may have peace. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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