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Psalm 51:7

BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow."
Psalm 51:7

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
I heard of a missionary whose wife was very fastidious. They moved into a small hut, and soon she noticed that the floor was filthy. The first thing the wife wanted to do was to scrub that floor, so she scrubbed and scrubbed but to no avail. She began to wonder if she would ever get the floor clean. Finally, somebody told her the problem. It was a dirt floor! The more she scrubbed the more dirt she scrubbed up. In the same way, we can never scrub off our sinful nature. All we do is reveal more of what is there. I hate to tell you this, but we're rotten to the core. Jesus said, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3).

ACTION POINT:
How dirty are you this morning? How clean must you be before you can talk with your heavenly Father? Claim the blood of Jesus and commune freely with your Father who loves you.

John 3:3

BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
John 3:3

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Nicodemus was so impressed with the miracles Jesus had done that he wanted to find out more. He asked Jesus about miracles, and Jesus began to talk to him about births. It's as if Jesus was saying, "Nicodemus, if you want to understand miracles, you're going to have to become a miracle." Now Nicodemus was an intelligent man. He was a ruler of the Jews and a Sanhedrin, and yet, with all of his learning, Jesus said to him, "Except you are born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God." People simply can't understand spiritual things until the Holy Spirit of God turns the light on in their souls.

ACTION POINT:
Do you know someone who has a lot of education, but no salvation? I challenge you to share this same Good News with him or her today.

Isaiah 1:18a

BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow . . ."
Isaiah 1:18a

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
I heard of a man giving his testimony at a Salvation Army meeting. There was a heckler in the crowd shouting, "Would you shut up? You're just dreaming!" The heckler felt a tug at his coattail and a little girl said, "That's my daddy up there. He used to be a drunkard and beat up my mommy. We didn't have enough food to eat. But then he got saved, and my daddy's life is changed. See that woman over there? See how happy she is? That's my mommy. Mister, if my daddy's dreaming, don't wake him up!" What a Savior who can take a poor lost sinner and wash him, save him, and make him new. Hallelujah!

ACTION POINT:
When was the last time you shared Christ with a homeless person? Avail yourself and allow God to use you to shine His light in that direction.

Exodus 20:3

BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Thou shalt have no other gods before Me."
Exodus 20:3

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
What is an idol and how does it come to be? An idol is created when a man takes his own ideas and puts them into the work of his hands and begins to worship that. What he is really worshiping is himself. You may say, "Well, I'm not guilty of idolatry." Let's just see. Is there anything you love more than God? Is there anything you fear more than God? Is there anything you serve more than God? Is there anything you trust more than God? Am I getting hot? You say, "Well, I give God a place in my life." God doesn't want a place in your life. Then, you say, "Well, I give God prominence in my life." God despises prominence in your life. God demands preeminence in your life. He will take nothing less.

ACTION POINT:
Is there anyone or anything in your life that takes precedence over God? Confess it and repent of it. Now, put on the throne the rightful Master - the Lord Jesus!

Psalm 126:6

BIBLE MEDITATION:
Psalm 126:6 - "He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him."

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Do you know what you're doing in the morning when you have a quiet time? Weeding your garden. You're weeding the garden of your mind, so that the good seed of the Word of God can multiply. Now, the next step is to plant the seed and cultivate His harvest. And when you go out to win souls, water the crop with your tears. Read how the Lord's heart broke over the people He longed to embrace and love unto Himself (see John 17). Learn this same sort of compassion in the garden God has given you to harvest for His kingdom.

ACTION POINT:
Ask God to put you into His fields of service today. Ask Him to make you bold, yet compassionate and wise to share His Good News.

John 14:18

BIBLE MEDITATION:
John 14:18 - "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you."

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
The late, great Christian psychiatrist from Switzerland, Dr. Paul Tournier, wrote that loneliness is the most devastating malady of this age. What is loneliness? Many confuse it with being alone. But you can be alone and not lonely. Your loneliness does not have to overwhelm you. After all is said and done, truly your only solace is found in Jesus. Why? Because He understands. John 1:10-11 tells us that the world neither received Him nor knew Him. In many respects He lived a life of loneliness. "But," you may say, "I need somebody real." Jesus is real. He is closer to you than anyone else can be or ever will be. What a friend we have in Jesus! We will never be separated from Him!

ACTION POINT:
Are you lonely? Chances are someone you know is, too. Why don't you give someone a call right now and invite them to do something?

Malachi 4:2a

BIBLE MEDITATION:
"But unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in His wings. . ."
Malachi 4:2a

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Since Jesus is the S-O-N of God, He is also the S-U-N of righteousness. Let me tell you something about the sunrise. The sunrise never comes ahead of time, and it is never late. Isn't that right? The sunrise operates according to the power of God and the authority of God. You can't hurry it up, and you can't stop it! That's the way the Second Coming of Jesus is. He is coming at a time known only to God. You can't hurry it up, and you can't stop it. One day the Lord Jesus Christ shall come with trumpet sound. He will pull back the shade of the night and pin it with a star. Then He'll open the door of the glorious morning of His millennial reign and flood the world with light.

ACTION POINT:
Tomorrow morning, get up with the sunrise and praise God that His timing is perfect and that He is coming again!

BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee."
Exodus 20:12

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Whether you are young or old, you can honor your parents. How? By showing respect. Leviticus 19:3 says, "Ye shall fear every man his mother, and his father, and keep my Sabbaths: I am the LORD your God." Now that word "fear" doesn't mean to quake in the presence of your parents. That is, you are to have a holy respect for your father and your mother. You may say, "But, my parents are not worthy of respect." With all due respect, you aren't either. None of us are worthy. Only perfect children can demand perfect parents, and no children are perfect. Our parents are imperfect. We are imperfect. But God is holy, and He says that we are to respect our parents.

ACTION POINT:
What's your relationship like with your parents? If you've been showing less than the type of biblical respect that God requires, then begin today to turn that around for His glory!

1 Chronicles 16:8

BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Give thanks unto the Lord, call upon His name, make known His deeds among the people."
1 Chronicles 16:8

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
If you are a child of God, you ought to be able to thank God every moment of every day no matter what happens to you. Have you ever stopped to thank God for the water that you drink? Did you know that in some third world countries the majority of the population doesn't have reasonably pure drinking water? Millions of people die annually just from water-related diseases. If you wear a hearing aide, do you ever thank God for that? Some people wish they had a hearing aide. If you are a student in the midst of final exams, do you thank God that you have an exam to take? There are many who wish they could afford college. Do you thank God for your next breath?

ACTION POINT:
Take whatever it is that looks like a trial in your life today and thank God for it! Thank Him every time the thought enters your mind to grumble or complain.

Matthew 19:6

BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder."
Matthew 19:6

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Do you know what is wrong with many marriages? Husbands treat their wives like a new car. When it's new, he shows it off; and then when it gets old and the paint fades a little bit, he trades her in for a new model. Are you a married man? Then you are to satisfy her needs and share your life with her. That means all that you are and all that you have is for her! God's arithmetic is one plus one equals one! There's no part of our lives that we do not share. Are you the strong, independent type? Then you're not like Jesus, who shared unconditionally and sacrificially with you.

ACTION POINT:
This week, make it a priority to give something sacrificially to your wife. It may be your time. It may be a possession. It may be a word of encouragement that she needs.