Integrity Upheld

As for me, You uphold me in my integrity, And set me before Your face forever. (Psalms 41:12)

Joseph was a righteous man who had cultivated a reputation for godliness in his community. Then word spread across the community that Mary, the woman to whom he was engaged, was expecting a child. There would be many who would assume the worst of this apparently scandalous situation. Joseph probably experienced gossip from some, ostracism from others. Yet he was a man of integrity, aware that God knew the truth of his relationship with Mary.

At times, God will be the only witness to your righteous behavior. Sometimes God is the only one who will understand your motives. Sometimes you will do all you know God has asked you to do, only to face ridicule from others. At such times all you can do is maintain your integrity, trusting that God always keeps His eyes on you. God looks favorably upon those who walk with integrity, doing_what they know is right, regardless of how others perceive_their actions.

The most important thing is not that people know the truth. The most important thing is that you are a person of integrity before God. When no one seems to understand why you have done something or when others question whether you have done all you should have done, your confidence should not be in the hope of vindication in the eyes of others. It should be in the knowledge that God keeps you in His sight. If you have this confidence, it will be enough to sustain you.

God Forgets

God Forgets

Grace for the Moment: Volume 2 by Max Lucado
July 14

"Bless the LORD,…who forgives all your iniquities."

PSALM 103:1-2 NKJV

“God doesn’t remember the past.  But I do, you do.  You still remember.  You’re like me.  You still remember what you did before you changed.  In the cellar of your heart lurk the ghosts of yesterday’s sins.  Sins you’ve confessed; errors of which you’ve repented; damage you’ve done your best to repair…

“That horrid lie.

“The time you exploded in anger.

“Now, honestly.  Do you think God was exaggerating when he said he would cast our sins as far as the east is from the west?  Do you actually believe he would make a statement like “I will not hold their iniquities against them” and then rub our noses in them whenever we ask for help?

“Of course you don’t.  You and I just need an occasional reminder of God’s nature, his forgetful nature.

from

God Came Near

http://www.maxlucado.net/shopping6.00/shopquery.asp?catalogid=23403

-=- by Max Lucado -=-

Enough for Today

Enough for Today 

Grace for the Moment: Volume 2 by Max Lucado
July 4

“I will cause food to fall like rain from the sky for all of you.  Every day the people must go out and gather what they need for that day.”

Exodus 16:4

God liberated his children from slavery and created a path through the sea.  He gave them a cloud to follow in the day and fire to see at night.  And he gave them food.  He gave them their most basic need: He filled their bellies.

Each morning the manna came.  Each evening the quail appeared.  “Trust me.  Trust me and I will give you what you need.”  The people were told to take just enough for one day.  Their needs would be met, one day at a time.

“Just take enough for today,” was God’s message.  “Let me worry about tomorrow.”

The Father wanted the people to trust him.

from

And the Angels Were Silent

http://www.maxlucado.net/shopping6.00/shopquery.asp?catalogid=23410

-=- by Max Lucado -=-

A List of Our Sins

A List of Our Sins 

Grace for the Moment: Volume 2 by Max Lucado
July 3

“He canceled the record that contained the charges against us.  He…destroyed it by nailing it to Christ’s cross.”
Colossians 2:14 NLT

Come with me to the hill of Calvary…Watch as the soldiers shove the Carpenter to the ground and stretch his arms against the beams.  One presses a knee against a forearm and a spike against a hand.  Jesus turns his face toward the nail just as the soldier lifts the hammer to strike it.

The crowd at the cross concluded that the purpose of the pounding was to skewer the hands of Christ to a beam.  But they were only half-right.  We can’t fault them for missing the other half.  They couldn’t see it…

Between his hand and the wood there was a list.  A long list.  A list of our mistakes: our lusts and lies, greedy moments and prodigal years.  A list of our sins.

The list, however, cannot be read.  The words can’t be deciphered.  The mistakes are covered.  The sins are hidden.  Those at the top are hidden by his hand; those down the list are covered by his blood.

from

He Chose the Nails

http://www.maxlucado.net/shopping6.00/shopquery.asp?catalogid=25316

-=- by Max Lucado -=-

Go First to God

Go First to God

Grace for the Moment: Volume 2 by Max Lucado
June 29

“This is my commitment to my people: removal of their sins.”
Romans 11:27 MSG

God does more than forgive our mistakes; he removes them!  We simply have to take them to him.

He not only wants the mistakes we’ve made.  He wants the ones we are making!  Are you making some?  Are you drinking too much?  Are you cheating at work or cheating at marriage?  Are you mismanaging money?  Are you mismanaging your life?

If so, don’t pretend nothing is wrong.  Don’t pretend you don’t fall.  Don’t try to get back in the game.  Go first to God.  The first step after a stumble must be in the direction of the cross.

from

He Chose the Nails

http://www.maxlucado.net/shopping6.00/shopquery.asp?catalogid=25316

-=- by Max Lucado -=-