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1 Peter 5:8-9
Commentary Thoughts
Days after the tragedy of 9/11 struck our nation’s soul, members of the special forces known as the Green Beret were asked to pack their bags, leave their families and head straight into the heart of warfare. While each of us back home struggled to come to grips with the devastation that came about so suddenly, these men set out to do something about it.
They flew there with one goal in mind: Stop the enemy before the enemy could make another attack on innocent lives.
The special forces knew that if they could get to the root of the attack in a limited amount of time, they could win the immediate war of protecting citizens on America’s soil. They could protect individuals, families, churches and communities but only by letting go of what they once knew concerning conventional warfare and embracing a strategy that would work.
One man, Mark Nutsch, was chosen to lead the twelve men into battle. Despite having no combat experience, his confidence and ability to think outside of normative approaches during the vetting process won him the assignment. Little did the military leaders know at the time of choosing him that Mark’s experience growing up on his family’s ranch, working as a ranch hand in college and riding horses in rodeos would be one of his greatest assets.
After all, this wasn’t a war fought with militaries lined up and facing each other on opposite sides. Nor was it even a war fought in the trenches. Rather, to excel in this war, combatants would need to battle the elements, ride horses over rough and dangerous terrain, and outwit an opponent who knew the landscape like the back of their own hands.
To win this battle, Mark and his team of eleven other brave men would have to fight according to the rules of the enemy themselves.
Their campaign was supposed to take six weeks but due to weather, they sought to complete it in three. It was supposed to take multiple teams of Green Beret but due to the elements, topography, and lack of entrance points, they were given only one team of twelve men. It was supposed to rack up a high level of casualties on the American side due to the risks involved, they walked away with none.
Because these men chose to adapt to the environment and allies surrounding them and work within the strategies at hand, they accomplished what few, if any, thought they even could. On horseback, they battled tanks and troops armed with missiles.
And won.
Maybe it was Mark’s lack of previous combat experience which opened him up to adapting his strategy to the battle at hand more so than someone else possibly could have. We’ll never know for sure. But one thing we do know is that it was his willingness to set aside logic, convention and what had been recorded over time on paper that allowed him to approach this battle in a way unlike any other that had been fought in the history of our nation.
It also allowed him to lead his team of twelve into the quickest, most decisive victory in the history of our nation.
2000 years ago, another team of twelve followed another unconventional leader. He didn’t ride a horse, but He rode a donkey. It didn’t take him three weeks, but it took Him three days. He didn’t fight for a nation, but He fought for a kingdom.
And won.
In doing so, He secured for each of us the victory which is ours to claim.
Yet only as we are willing to follow Him by laying down our own logic, our own perspective, our own approach and our own understanding of how to fight this war will we discover the fullness and effects of that victory in every area of our lives.
It is in following Christ as our Captain that we can win this war. It is in studying His battle plan that we can discover how to carry out our own. It is in conforming our hearts and transforming our minds to His that we will gain the strategic insights we need to live out the victory He has already secured for us.
See, this battle is unlike any other battles before.
This battle has already been decided. The outcome has already been secured. Jesus Christ gained the victory through His death, burial, and resurrection. But in order for us to experience the manifestation of that victory in our own lives, we will need to learn how to maneuver through the mines left behind from an enemy still bent on making our lives miserable along the way.1 -
Psalm 56
Key Verses: 22
Cast thy burden on the Lord
And He shall sustain you
He shall never permit the righteous to be moved
Commentary Thoughts
My feet are planted on the solid ground
The solid ground of Christ Jesus my Lord
Bottom line Jesus meets all my needs, providing for me, just what I need!1 -
Matthew 19: 26
Commentary Thoughts
Nature is God’s workshop. The sky is his resume. The universe is his calling card. You want to know who God is? See what he has done. You want to know his power? Take a look at his creation. Curious about his strength? Pay a visit to his home address: 1 Billion Starry Sky Avenue.
He is untainted by the atmosphere of sin, unbridled by the time line of history, unhindered by the weariness of the body.
What controls you doesn’t control him. What troubles you doesn’t trouble him. What fatigues you doesn’t fatigue him. Is an eagle disturbed by traffic? No, he rises above it. Is the whale perturbed by a hurricane? Of course not, he plunges beneath it. Is the lion flustered by the mouse standing directly in his way? No, he steps over it.
How much more is God able to soar above, plunge beneath, and step over the troubles of the earth!
from The Great House of God0 -
Matthew 25
Verse 15 is Key Verse
Commentary Thoughts
Uniquely You
Da Vinci painted one Mona Lisa. Beethoven composed one Fifth Symphony. And God made one version of you. He custom designed you for a one-of-a-kind assignment. Mine like a gold digger the unique-to-you nuggets from your life . . .
When God gives an assignment, he also gives the skill. Study your skills, then, to reveal your assignment.
Look at you. Your uncanny ease with numbers. Your quenchless curiosity about chemistry. Others stare at blueprints and yawn; you read them and drool. “I was made to do this,” you say.
Our Maker gives assignments to people, to each according to each one’s unique ability. As he calls, he equips. Look back over your life. What have you consistently done well? What have you loved to do? Stand at the intersection of your affections and successes and find your uniqueness.
from Cure for the Common Life1 -
Mark 10
Key verse 45
Commentary Thoughts
Christ’s Ultimate Aim
One of the incredible abilities of Jesus was to stay on target. His life never got off track . . . He kept his life on course.
As Jesus looked across the horizon of his future, he could see many targets. Many flags were flapping in the wind, each of which he could have pursued. He could have been a political revolutionary . . .
He could have been content to be a teacher and educate minds . . . But in the end he chose to be a Savior and save souls.
Anyone near Christ for any length of time heard it from Jesus himself. “The Son of Man came to find lost people and save them” (Luke 19:10) . . .
The heart of Christ was relentlessly focused on one task. The day he left the carpentry shop of Nazareth he had one ultimate aim—the Cross of Calvary.
from Just Like Jesus1 -
Mark 16:10
Commentary Thoughts
Go WIth Your Heart
Tears represent the heart, the spirit, and the soul of a person. To put a lock and key on your emotions is to bury part of your Christlikeness!
Especially when you come to Calvary.
You can’t go to the Cross with just your head and not your heart. It doesn’t work that way. Calvary is not a mental trip. It’s not an intellectual exercise.
It’s not a divine calculation or a cold theological principle.
It’s a heart-splitting hour of emotion.
Don’t walk away from it dry-eyed and unstirred.
Don’t just straighten your tie and clear your throat.
Don’t allow yourself to descend Calvary cool and collected.
Please . . . pause. Look again.
Those are nails in those hands. That’s God on that cross. It’s us who put him there.
from No Wonder They Call Him the Savior0 -
Proverbs 15
Key Verse 9
Commentary Thoughts
A Broken Heart?
Perhaps the wound is old. A parent abused you. A teacher slighted you. A mate betrayed you . . . And you are angry.
Or perhaps the wound is fresh. The friend who owes you money just drove by in a new car. The boss who hired you with promises of promotions has forgotten how to pronounce your name . . . And you are hurt.
Part of you is broken, and the other part is bitter. Part of you wants to cry, and part of you wants to fight . . . There is a fire burning in your heart. It’s the fire of anger . . .
And you are left with a decision. “Do I put the fire out or heat it up? Do I get over it or get even? Do I release it or resent it? Do I let my hurts heal, or do I let hurt turn into hate?” . . .
Unfaithfulness is wrong. Revenge is bad. But the worst part of all is that, without forgiveness, bitterness is all that is left.
from The Applause of Heaven1 -
Psalms 78:38
Commentary Thoughts
Submerged in Mercy
Do you really think you haven’t done things that hurt Christ?
Have you ever been dishonest with his money? That’s cheating.
Ever gone to church to be seen rather than to see him? Hypocrite.
Ever broken a promise you’ve made to God?
Don’t you deserve to be punished? And yet, here you are. Reading this book. Breathing. Still witnessing sunsets and hearing babies gurgle. Still watching the seasons change.
There are no lashes on your back or hooks in your nose or shackles on your feet. Apparently God hasn’t kept a list of your wrongs.
Listen. You have not been sprinkled with forgiveness. You have not been spattered with grace. You have not been dusted with kindness.
You have been immersed in it. You are submerged in mercy. You are a minnow in the ocean of his mercy. Let it change you!
from A Love Worth Giving0 -
Psalm 79:8
Commentary Thoughts
A Plea for Mercy
God does not want anyone to be lost, but he wants all people to change their hearts and lives” (2 Peter 3:9).
What of those who die with no faith?
My husband never prayed. My grandpa never worshiped. My mother never opened a Bible, much less her heart. What about the one who never believed?
How do we know he didn’t?
Who among us is privy to a person’s final thoughts? Who among us knows what transpires in those final moments? Are you sure no prayer was offered? Eternity can bend the proudest knees. Could a person stare into the yawning canyon of death without whispering a plea for mercy? And could our God, who is partial to the humble, resist it?
He couldn’t on Calvary. The confession of the thief on the cross was both a first and final one. But Christ heard it. Christ received it. Maybe you never heard your loved one Christ, but who’s to say Christ didn’t?
from Traveling Light0 -
Isaiah 57:1-2
Proverbs 22:19
God Knows What’s Best
The problem with this world is that it doesn’t fit. Oh, it will do for now, but it isn’t tailor-made. We were made to live with God, but on earth we live by faith. We were made to live forever, but on this earth we live but for a moment . . .
We must trust God. We must trust not only that he does what is best but that he knows is ahead.
Ponder the words of Isaiah 57:1–2: “Those who are right with God may die, but no one pays attention. Good people are taken away, but no one understands. Those who do right are being taken away from evil and are given peace. Those who live as God wants find rest in death.”
My, what a thought. God is taking them away from the evil days ahead. Could death be God’s grace? Could the funeral wreath be God’s safety ring? As horrible as the grave may be, could it be God’s protection from the future?
Trust in God, Jesus urges, and trust in me.
from A Gentle Thunder0 -
Romans 15:13
Commentary Thoughts
God Gives Hope
Heaven’s hope does for your world what the sunlight did for my grandmother’s cellar. I owe my love of peach preserves to her. She canned her own and stored them in an underground cellar near her West Texas house. It was a deep hole with wooden steps, plywood walls, and a musty smell. As a youngster I used to climb in, close the door, and see how long I could last in the darkness
. . . I would sit silently, listening to my breath and heartbeats, until I couldn’t take it anymore and then would race up the stairs and throw open the door. Light would avalanche into the cellar. What a change! Moments before I couldn’t see anything—all of a sudden I could see everything.
Just as light poured into the cellar, God’s hope pours into your world. Upon the sick, he shines the ray of healing. To the bereaved, he gives the promise of reunion. To the confused, he offers the light of Scripture.
from Traveling Light1 -
Ephesians 1
Key Verse: 7
Commentary and Thoughts:
Governed by Love
Jesus spoke of freedom, but he spoke of a different kind of freedom: the type of freedom that comes not through power but through submission. Not through control but through surrender. Not through possessions but through open hands.
God wants to emancipate his people; he wants to set them free. He wants his people to be not slaves but sons. He wants them governed not by law but by love.
We have been liberated from our own guilt and our own legalism. We have the freedom to pray and the freedom to love the God of our heart. And we have been forgiven by the who could condemn us. We are truly free!
from Walking with the Savior0 -
Colossians 1
Key Verse: Verse 16
Commentary Thoughts
God Created All Things
What a phenomenal list! Things in heaven and earth. Seen and unseen. Powers, lords, rulers, and authorities. No thing, place, or person omitted. The scale on the sea urchin. The hair on the elephant hide. The hurricane that wrecks the coast, the rain that nourishes the desert, the infant’s first heartbeat, the elderly person’s final breath—all can be traced back to the hand of Christ, the firstborn of creation.
Firstborn in Paul’s vernacular has nothing to do with birth order. Firstborn refers to order of rank. “He ranks higher than everything that has been made” (Colossians 1:15). Find an exception.
Peter’s mother-in-law has a fever; Jesus rebukes it. A tax needs to be paid; Jesus pays it by sending first a coin and then a fisherman’s hook into the mouth of a fish. Jesus . . . bats an eyelash, and nature jumps.
from Next Door Savior1 -
My favorite Scripture which God directed to me 18 years ago when I was told I had cancer
Psalm 94:17-18 If the Lord had not been my help my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence. When I thought, 'My foot slips,' your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up.
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Psalm 79:13
Psalms 23
Commentary Thoughts
God Knows Us By Name
Sheep aren’t smart. They tend to wander into running creeks for water, then their wool grows heavy and they drown. They need a shepherd to lead them to “calm water” (Psalm 23:2). They have no natural defense—no claws, no horns, no fangs. They are helpless. Sheep need a shepherd with a “rod and shepherd’s staff” (Psalm 23:4) to protect them. They have no sense of direction. They need someone to lead them “on paths that are right” (Psalm 23:3).
So do we. We, too, tend to be swept away by waters we should have avoided. We have no defense against the evil lion who prowls about seeking whom he might devour. We, too, get lost.
We need a shepherd. We need a shepherd to care for us and to guide us. And we have one.
One who knows us by name.
from A Gentle Thunder0 -
Colossians 4
Commentary Thoughts
Courteous Conduct
Those who don’t believe in Jesus note what we do. They make decisions about Christ by watching us. When we are kind, they assume Christ is kind.
When we are gracious, they assume Christ is gracious. But if we are brash, what will people think about our King? When we are dishonest, what assumption will an observer make about our Master?
No wonder Paul says, “Be wise in the way you act with people who are not believers, making the most of every opportunity. When you talk, you should always be kind and pleasant so you will be able to answer everyone in the way you should” (Colossians 4:5–6). Courteous conduct honors Christ.
It also honors his children. When you surrender a parking place to someone, you honor him. When you return a borrowed book, you honor the lender. When you make an effort to greet everyone in the room, especially the ones others may have overlooked, you honor God’s children.
from A Love Worth Giving0 -
2 Thessalonians chapter 2
Key Verses: Verses 6 and 7
Commentary Thoughts
Don't Forget
Are you still in love with Jesus? Before you remember anything, remember him. If you forget anything, don’t forget him.
Oh, but how quickly we forget. So much happens through the years. So many changes within. So many alterations without. And, somewhere, back there, we leave him. We don’t turn away from him . . . we just don’t take him with us. Assignments come. Promotions come. Budgets are made. Kids are born, and the Christ . . . the Christ is forgotten.
Has it been a while since you stared at the heavens in speechless amazement? Has it been a while since you realized God’s divinity and your carnality?
If it has, then you need to know something. He is still there. He hasn’t left.
from Six Hours One Friday0 -
Ephesians 6:12
2 Corinthians 12:2
Job 38:7
Ephesians 1:3
Commentary & Thoughts
Key Verse
Ephesians 1:3
This verse tells us that God resides in the heavenly places, and so do all of our spiritual blessings.
This is important because if you are engaged in a spiritual battle and need help to win, the help you need is with God the Father, who is in the heavenly places.
But if you don't know how to access the heavenly places, you won't know how to access the heavenly help you need to win the battle in earthly places.1 -
2 Corinthians 10
Key verses; 3-5
Commentary Thoughts
Satan knows not only where to get at us, but also how to get at us. That’s why we need to understand the method he uses to defeat and imprison us.
In 2 Corinthians 10:3–5, Paul reveals the devil’s primary battle strategy:
Though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
What Paul wants us to know first is that we can’t use secular or fleshly weapons to fight spiritual battles. The reason so many Christians are losing the battle is that they are trying to beat the devil using the world’s weapons. They’re looking to the secular world to help them with their spiritual need. If your problem, your struggle, your need is induced and orchestrated by your spiritual enemy, your flesh can’t win the fight. Unless you choose a spiritual response, all the time, effort, and resources you spend trying to fix the problem will ultimately be a waste of time, a Band-Aid on the situation.
Paul says our methods are not of the flesh because our enemy is not of the flesh. Some of us have been wrestling with things day in and day out for years. Those are battles, no matter what other names we may give to them. And if God speaks to it, it is a spiritual battle. And if your battle is spiritual, it needs a spiritual cure. You don’t fight cancer with skin lotion. You don’t fight a brain tumor by taking aspirin and lying down. Those kinds of problems demand another kind of help. So do spiritual problems.
The text we cited above tells us that Satan targets his attacks on our minds because Paul talks about “speculations,” “the knowledge of God,” and “taking every thought captive” (2 Cor. 10:5). Where do speculations come from? The mind. Where is knowledge rooted? In the mind.
Where do thoughts come from? The mind. It is all in the mind. So, the Christian who wants to trade his or her spiritual POW status for freedom must learn to think differently.
When Satan attacks a Christian’s mind, he starts building what Paul calls “fortresses” (“strongholds,” niv and kjv). The devil builds a place from which he can operate, and he means for that fortress to be permanent. He plans to take up residence there.
Satan makes himself at home, in other words, and he gets a grip on the mind until people begin thinking there is no way to overcome this problem, no way to save this marriage, no way to unify this church, no way to make a difference in our world. Whenever you hear a Christian saying,“No way. It can’t be done. I’ve tried everything, and it just doesn’t work."
A fortress or stronghold is a mindset that holds you hostage. It makes you believe that you are hopelessly locked in a situation, that you are powerless to change. That’s when you hear people saying, “I can’t, I can’t, I can’t.” The only reason you say, “I can’t,” when God says, “You can,” is that Satan has made himself at home in your head.0 -
Psalms 3:5-6
Proverbs 3:5-6
Commentary Thoughts:
How could I remain hopeful after God did not answer one of the biggest prayers of my life—to heal my wife? How can I possibly continue to encourage others to hold on to hope? This is the challenge I had to face.
Hope is our expectation for the future. I had hope that my wife, Lois, would be completely healed and restored. We had goals, dreams of the future, great things we wanted to do together for the Lord and with each other.
God chose not to answer my prayer in the way I had hoped. So, I had to hold on to a hope that God, in His wisdom, had a greater purpose and plan that could only be fulfilled in this way. Hope for strength, for courage, for help in finding a way to move forward. Hope that God would take all the pain and confusion and reveal a deeper experience of His love than ever before.
In the face of loss, we must let go and trust in His sovereignty and kindness. “Lord, it’s not my will,” I told Him, “But your will be done.” That was an act of surrender, and I won’t pretend it was an easy thing to do. Every believer will face a moment when they have to yield to His final decision and say “yes” to God about a “no” He has said to them.
What experiences have you had with God saying “no”? What was the result?1
