Month: August 2008

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom…

The trick to getting the old M60 machinegun to fire correctly was making sure the ammo was placed in the feed tray correctly. If you placed the belted ammo in just slightly off, you would turn your machinegun into a 21 pound sniper rifle (and not a very good one at that). A machinegun is designed to spit out a bunch of bullets not just one. You know, God kind of designed you like a machinegun. We put the Word of Christ in us and teachings and admonitions come spiting out. A properly loaded Christian just can’t help it; it’s what he or she was designed to do. But remember, spaying a lot of bullets doesn’t make a good gunner. Hitting the target makes a good gunner. Practice makes perfect. SP325

Application: Try this…write this verse on a 3×5 and begin to memorize it. Then ask a friend (Christian or non) to test you. You will be loading and firing in no time.

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com

Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands… (Isaiah 49:15,16)

Some of the most dreaded words heard in Ranger School. In the midst of struggling up the heavily forested mountain in the middle of the night, the words would be whispered up the line, Break in Contact! We have left a man behind. And since Rangers do not leave their own behind, that means you go all the way back and get them (no matter how hard it will be to recover the lost ground). And normally you would find your Ranger Buddy sweetly curled up next to a tree dreaming of sugar plums dancing in his head because he had drifted off to sleep during a halt (not a happy moment). As committed as a Ranger may be to his buddy, or a mother to her child, nothing compares to God’s commitment to His own children. SP324

Application: Knowing that Jesus is this committed to you, should move you to deep gratitude. Write down one way to express this gratitude to Christ for His commitment to you. (I will invite one of His children to dinner to encourage them.)

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com

Read John 4.39-42

and they were saying to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world.”
(John 4:42)

The Samaritan Woman had provided the initial data about Jesus and the people believed. But it is interesting that after hearing Jesus for themselves, they declare their independence. They no longer believe because of the testimony of the woman but it is Jesus’ own words that were most important to them. As a result, a stronger faith is forged and they announce “this One is indeed the Savior of the world.”

I was meeting with a young man for dinner and as I was getting to know him it became very evident that he had an extraordinary love for his father. Probing deeper, I wanted to turn this into a teaching opportunity. I said, “You have an unusually high admiration for your dad. What makes you love him so much?” Obviously proud that I had noticed he was bragging on his father he said, “well my dad and I spent a lot of time together. Occasionally he’d even take me out of school and we’d go fishing together. He made me a priority in his life.” This was my opportunity. I responded, “If I told you that I loved your dad as much as you do based on your story, would you believe me?” A bit thrown off by the question he replied, “No way!” “Of course not” I said, “because I haven’t been fishing with your dad.” I then proceeded to explain how to make the most of a daily devotional time with God.

You know most people are relating to the Father based on someone else’s fishing stories. They haven’t made the relationship personal by getting in the Word and praying on a regular basis to really own the relationship. Most of what they know about God has been related to them by another. In order to really own a personal relationship with the Father we need to spend consistent personal time with Him. Our job as disciplers is not to just tell others about our fishing trips with the Father, but to teach other how discover the joy of fishing with Dad for themselves. FJ38

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com

Read John 4.27-42

“Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done; this is not the Christ, is it?”
(John 4:29)

It’s so easy it’s brilliant. The Woman at the Well becomes the Evangelist of the Town by giving a simple invitation. Anyone who had a religious bone in their body showed up that afternoon to see if this “Messiah” was in fact the one they had heard about. They probably came for all kinds of reasons but the bottom line is they came and heard the words of Jesus. (Jn 4.41) The result was many believed and made the profession of faith, “we believe.” (Jn 4.42) All the woman had to do is issue the invitation.

I was standing in line at a local restaurant waiting to order. I commented to man in front of me that we had this great worship service and he ought to check it out. I mentioned the time and place and that was the end of the conversation. Low and behold, he showed up the next Sunday with his family in tow. He has been attending the service for four years and both he and his wife have committed their lives to Christ. This is not an isolated story that I chose because it has the best ending. Actually, we see dozens of men and women come to Christ through a very aggressive lifestyle of simple invitations. We have printed up some business cards with the time and place of our chapel and Bible study and hand them out like candy. With all the folks in the ministry doing this we invite hundreds of people a week. And they come. I usually have 4-8 non-Christians in my Bible study every week. But it doesn’t stop there. Once they get to the Bible study or chapel service we sit in the back pin pointing the new folks and form a community net for new fish now swimming in the our pool. We invite them to a meal or some fun activity. We ask them about their spiritual journey. We begin to find out how we can love and serve them. We invite them to study the Bible with us and discover who Jesus is. As they are swimming in this environment of grace and truth, we consistently see people surrender their lives to Jesus. And it all started with a simple invitation. Want to learn how to do this simple method of evangelism? Come and see. FJ37

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com

Read John 4.27-38

“Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.”
(John 4:36)

It must have been quite a sight. One woman’s testimony about Jesus brings a flood of Samaritans to the well where He had just confronted her with the good news. They wanted to see for themselves, this man, she claimed “told [her] all things she had done, this is not the Christ, is it?” (Jn 4.29) This inquisitive throng of people becomes Jesus’ object lesson for the disciples as He refers to them as the “fields white unto harvest.” (Jn 4.35) This was the fruit of eternal life. The saving work that had previously been done in the woman’s life was now being multiplied in others through her testimony and Jesus’ word. They believed and became the fruit for eternal life. (Jn 4.41-42)

As disciples we are to bear much fruit because it glorifies God and it is the stamp of authentication that we truly are His followers. (Jn 15.8) But more often than not, I see Christians settling for the fruit of morality minus the fruit of ministry. Don’t get me wrong. Our conduct is a prime concern of Jesus (Lk 6.43-45, Gal 5.22-23) but He has commanded us to be involved in the disciple making process as well. Are we bearing the people fruit? Is our morality counting for more than just being “a good person?” Most Christians are not bearing the fruit for eternal life. Why? Maybe they don’t know that they are commanded to share Jesus with others? (Mt 28.18-20) Maybe they have tried the latest fad in evangelism and failed? (Lk 8.15) Or maybe they are only hanging out with the “sanctified” and never rubbing elbows with the lost? (Mk 2.17) If we want to become like Jesus, we need to start laboring in the “field that is white unto harvest.” Not sure how to get started or tried sharing Jesus with others and got discouraged with the results? Stay tuned for the next FJ devotional, “Come and See.” FJ36

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com

While Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You and the breasts at which You nursed.” But He said, “On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”
(Luke 11:27-28)

That’s a great idea Ranger, under normal circumstances, except for the fact that you are all ready poised to attack the enemy’s rear. To flank them in this situation, would be attacking their strongest point… Aggressive actions, poor judgment. So right but so wrong. Has that ever happened to you spiritually? Have you ever thought; surely God thinks this way or that. Only to discover, oops, I need to do a 180 on that one. (I remember as a baby Christian, praying that God would give me more iniquity until I discovered what the word meant.) The key is a constant, progressive, thorough reading of God’s Word so we can really get to know Him better. This could save us from some very embarrassing circumstances. SP323

Application: If you have trouble being consistent in your daily Bible reading, try this: Go to the shortest book in the New Testament, read one chapter daily (the shortest is only one chapter!) Then go to the next shortest and so on. When you finish the New Testament email me and I’ll give you a strategy for the Old Testament.

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com

“for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came forth from the Father.” (John 16:27)

““He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.””
(John 14.21)

The way to love the Father is to love the Son. And the way you love the Son is by doing His will. We need to be Jesus’ disciple and follow Him.

Are you a disciple of Jesus? I’m not asking if you prayed a prayer to invite Him into your life. I’m asking “Are you actively following Him, Obeying Him, Becoming like Him?” That’s what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. When Jesus ascended to the Father, He left this command with His disciples;

“And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”” (Matthew 28:18–20)

If you need help being His disciple, contact me at charleswood1@gmail.com

The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with lovingkindness.”( Jeremiah 31:3 )

Bunched up so one grenade could kill them all, it happened with out fail. As the Ranger Students would cross the objective during a cold winter’s raid, they would invariably end up some where near the fire. The OPFOR always had a fire on the objective to illuminate (makes it easier for the Rangers to find) and for warmth. Violating the principle of dispersion the light and heat was just too much for these frozen Hooahs to resist. Life is the same. It’s cold out there and it can be bitter to the bone sometimes. But the light and warmth of God’s love is irresistible. Come in out of the cold. SP322

Application: Share the love of God with one person this week. Invite them to church, Bible study, or a fellowship activity. Tell them what Jesus has done in your life. Or share a passage of encouraging scripture with them.

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com

“Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”
(Matthew 9:17)

I love new Privates. They come into your squad or platoon all bright eyed, anxious to learn, ready to be molded into a part of the team (I feel the same way about brand new LTs). They are raw, a blank slate just waiting for you to make that lasting impression. As we start the New Year, let’s present ourselves as new privates to God, ready and willing to learn new things, affectively integrating ourselves into a Kingdom oriented team, eager to follow the next command. SP321

Application: Pray that God will give you a fresh desire to love and serve Him.

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com

Read Mt 17.14-20, Mk 9.14-29, Lk 9.37-43

Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not drive it out?” And He *said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.
(Matthew 17:19-20)

The disciples were trying to cast a demon out of the young man and it wasn’t going so well. Jesus fresh off the mount of transfiguration asks “What’s up?” The father explains that the disciples had tried to cast out the demon and failed. Jesus’ immediate diagnosis for the situation is they lacked faith; “O unbelieving generation…”(Mk 9.19) But wait. The disciples were at least trying to cast this demon out. But apparently with too little faith. Even dad had to be confronted on in his lack of faith when he says, “If you can…” (Mk 9.23) Jesus mirrors his subpar statement back with His obvious disappointment; “If you can! All things are possible to him who believes.” (Mk 9.24)
At this point I’m hanging my head low with dad and the disciples. Yup, you caught me, I lack faith. And we say along with dad, “I do believe, help me in my unbelief!” Most of us are stuck in no man’s land. Between being a faithless hostile pagan who wouldn’t give Jesus the time of day and having enough faith to acquire God’s healing power. But being stuck in the middle is not good enough. Jesus is quite clear here, it was a lack of faith; “Because of the littleness of your faith…” (Mt 17.20)
Being like Jesus is a process. Jesus had the faith to successfully cast out the demon where the disciples did not. The disciples did not make excuses or change their theology. They kept exercising their faith until they were exercising demons. I know that God does not intend to rescue every person from their sickness or trials. I know that sometimes we are called to endure the suffering. (Heb 11.35-40) But to heal no one?! I’m going to stay in the fight for faith and continue to pray that Jesus would allow me help people the way He did. Lord I believe, help me in my unbelief.

For questions or comments drop me a line at charleswood1@gmail.com