Daily Inspiration: Elijah the Prophet 1
Elijah the Prophet
1Kings 17:1
Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab
Thought for Today
Do you know what your name means? Eric means “eternal ruler.” It is unlikely that my parents named me Eric because of regal infant deportment. Nor is it likely a prophetic name, though one can hope. We name our children things because we like the way they sound or because they were the name of someone we hold in high regard. This was not the case in Elijah’s day. Parents gave children important or prophetic names. They tried to make a statement by what they named their children. Elijah’s parents lived in a time when the rulers of Israel were increasingly hostile to the LORD God of Israel. In the midst of that hostility they named their child “The LORD is my God.” This tells us the kind of faithful family that Elijah grew up in. It also begins to explain why he was so open to God’s leading in his life and how courageously he defended God’s honor. His parents raised him in the fear and love of the Lord in a world that opposed God. The way you raise your children or impact your grandchildren for God matters. God can use them to bring a whole nation back into His love.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, help my children (grandchildren) to see how much I love You, and let that love impact their lives. Amen.
Devotional Quote
To have found God and still to pursue Him is the soul’s paradox of love. ― A.W. Tozer
Quote of the Day
Never's the word God listens for when he needs a laugh. ― Stephen King
Daily Inspiration: A New Commandment 5
A New Commandment
Genesis 22:2
He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
Thought for Today
I was curious to know the first time the word “love” appeared in Scripture. What a surprise to discover it was all the way in Genesis 22. Here God acknowledges that the son Abraham is to sacrifice is the one he loves! Or is it so surprising? God places this incredible test in Abraham’s life to help him, and all of us who will come after him, understand what God is like. In the end, God will stop Abraham’s hand, because the beloved child to be sacrificed is not Abraham’s son Isaac, but God’s Son, Jesus. It is the very nature of God’s love to sacrifice for the sake of others. The very first time the bible uses the word “love” we see one it its most powerful and memorable depictions. How have you experienced God’s sacrificial love?
Prayer
Loving Father, I cannot fathom a love that offers up the Son of God to death so that the sons of men might live, and yet this is exactly what You have done for me. Help me to live a life of gratitude for Your incredible sacrifice. Amen.
Devotional Quote
If you don't believe God has forgiven you, you are actually saying that God needs to do more for your forgiveness, and that Jesus' sacrifice was not enough. — Jud Wilhite
Quote of the Day
“Sometimes when you sacrifice something precious, you're not really losing it. You're just passing it on to someone else.” ― Mitch Albom
Daily Inspiration: A New Commandment 4
A New Commandment
Romans 5: 8
“ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Thought for Today
- people believe that God chooses people to be His children based on their performance. They think that the people who have lived lives devoted to God, accomplishing incredible things in His name, are the ones that God chooses. Today’s verse tells us the astonishing truth, “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” The reason that Jesus came was so that people who were utterly unworthy of God could be made worthy. He died to make you worthy of God’s love and calling. The truth is that God looked at you at your very worst moment, when you were unfaithful, hurtful, spiteful, and wicked. And seeing you in that moment was so in love with you that He sent His Son, Jesus, to make you everything you were not. God demonstrated just how much He loves you by making you worthy and calling you to Himself.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, I confess that I cannot get my mind around a love so great that it send another to die for me. Thank you for making me worthy of Your love and calling. Help me to grow daily into the person that You already think I am. Amen.
Devotional Quote
“Guilt and shame are now, indeed, powerless by the cross of Jesus Christ. Our only proper response is one of praise back to our Redeemer.” – Matt Conner
Quote of the Day
When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. –Lao Tzu
