Be Encouraged with my Utmost for His Highest (July 2024)

31 July 2024

Becoming entirely His

Oswald Chambers

Today in your business and life, are you careless in some areas, such as your impulsive nature or being impatient or idle or wandering in your thinking, or maybe you are too independent, and your self-interests could be the problem?

"Let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing."

James 1:4

Many of us appear to be all right in general, but there are still some areas in which we are careless and lazy; it is not a matter of sin, but the remnants of our carnal life that tend to make us wild.

Carelessness is an insult to the Holy Spirit. We should have no carelessness about ourselves, either in the way we worship God or even in the way we eat and drink.

Our relationship with God and its outward expression must be correct.

Ultimately, God will allow nothing to escape; every detail of our lives is under His scrutiny.

God will bring us back in countless ways to the same point over and over again.

I am encouraged by how hard this particular lesson is in my personal life—learning how to become entirely His in every area of my life.

For example, growing up, I was not too fond of Math. Being a Type A personality, and a people person, I did enough to get by, until God shone the spotlight to call me out. When I took the Florida General Contractor (GC) Exam, I failed six times and wanted to quit on myself.

But God would not allow me to quit the calling to help Black women and girls in construction reach the next level.

Eventually, I passed by one point, thanks to my husband (my then boyfriend) Daniel McNeill tutoring me in Math. I had to go back to the basics to solve the complex shoring problems.

But once I finally passed, I helped three people pass on their exams.

God never tries to bring us back to that one point until we learn the lesson because His purpose is to produce the finished product.

It may be a problem arising from our impulsive nature, but God has repeatedly brought us back to that one particular point with the most persistent patience. The problem may be our idle and wandering thinking or our independent nature and self-interest.

Through this process, God is trying to impress upon us the one thing that is not entirely right in our lives.

Be encouraged to learn that we have been having a wonderful time studying the revealed truth of God's redemption and that our hearts are perfect toward Him.

And His excellent work in us makes us know that we are right with Him. "Let patience have its perfect work

The Holy Spirit, speaking through James, said, "Now let your patience become a finished product." Beware of becoming careless over the small details of life and saying, "Oh, that will have to do for now.'"

Whatever it may be, God will persistently point it out until we become entirely His.

Are you willing to become entirely His?

Are you careless in some areas, such as your impulsive nature, impatience, idleness, or wandering thoughts?

This is your question today.

30 July 2024

The teaching of disillusionment

Oswald Chambers

Today in your business and life, do you demand total perfection and righteousness from a person, and when you do not get it, you become cruel and vindictive yet demanding of a human being something they cannot possibly give?

"Jesus did not commit Himself to them . . . for He knew what was in man" John 2:24-25).

Disillusionment means having no more misconceptions, false impressions, and false judgments in life: it means being free from these deceptions.

Be encouraged. However, though no longer deceived, our experience of disillusionment may leave us cynical and overly critical in our judgment of others.

But the disillusionment that comes from God brings us to the point where we see people as they are, without any cynicism or stinging and bitter criticism.

Many things in life that inflict the greatest injury, grief, or pain stem from the fact that we suffer from illusions.

We are not true to one another as facts, seeing each other as we are; we are only true to our misconceived ideas of one another.

According to our thinking, everything is delightful, good or evil, malicious, and cowardly.

Refusing to be disillusioned is the cause of much of human suffering.

This is how suffering happens if we love someone but do not love God. We demand total perfection and righteousness from that person, and when we do not get it, we become cruel and vindictive. Yet we are demanding of a human being something they cannot possibly give.

I am encouraged to review my past to acknowledge my problems of expecting and demanding from humans, which they can not give. This gave me freedom from looking for love in all the wrong places in my youth.

Be encouraged to learn there is only one Being who can completely satisfy the absolute depth of the hurting human heart: the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our Lord is so obviously uncompromising concerning every human relationship because He knows that every relationship that is not based on faithfulness to Himself will end in disaster.

Our Lord trusted no one and never placed His faith in people, yet He was never suspicious or bitter.

Our Lord's confidence in God and in what God's grace could do for anyone was so perfect that He never despaired, never giving up hope for anyone.

If our trust is placed in human beings, we will end up despairing of everyone.

Do you demand total perfection and righteousness from a person, and when you do not get it, you become cruel and vindictive while demanding something from a human being that they cannot possibly give?

That is your question today.

29 July

DO YOU SEE JESUS IN THE CLOUDS?

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and your life, do you see Jesus in the clouds?

"Behold, He is coming with clouds (Revelation 1:7).

In the Bible, clouds are always connected with God. Clouds are those sorrows, sufferings, or twists of providence that seem to challenge his rule.

Seen apart from God, clouds look like accidents. But by these clouds, the Spirit of God teaches us how to walk by faith.

Without clouds, we would not need faith. “Look, he is coming with the clouds.”

Clouds are nothing more than the dust of our Father’s feet; they sign that he is here.

Be encouraged. God never comes in clear shining. What a revelation it is to know that sadness, bereavement, and suffering are the clouds that come along with God!

It isn’t true that God wants us to learn something in our trials.

Through every cloud he brings, he wants us to unlearn the things keeping us from a simple relationship with him.

Sometimes, we have to abandon certain forms of religious activity and testimony until our relationship with God is simplified—until we have learned to turn to God, not to other people, for all our needs.

The thought I should have is, “God and my soul; other people are shadows.”

Until other people become shadows, clouds, and darkness will be mine now and again.

Is my relationship with God getting simpler than it ever has been?

There is a connection between the strange providences of God and what we know of him.

Be encouraged. We must learn to interpret the mysteries of life in light of our knowledge of God.

Unless we can look the darkest, most atrocious fact in the face without questioning God’s character, we do not yet know him. “They were afraid as they entered the cloud” (Luke 9:34).

Is there anyone besides Jesus in your cloud? If so, it will only get darker. You must get to the place where there is no one besides Him.

Your question today in business and life is, do you see Jesus in the clouds?

That is your question today.

28 July

GOD'S PURPOSE OR MINE?

Today, in business and life, can you stay calm and perplexed amid turmoil?

Shortly before dawn, he went to them, walking on the lake. —Mark 6:48

We tend to imagine that if we obey Jesus Christ, He will lead us to great success.

We must never confuse our dreams of success with God’s purpose for us.

Be encouraged. God’s purpose may be precisely the opposite of our dreams. We may think He is leading us to a specific end, a desired goal, but He isn’t.

To God, achieving a goal is incidental. What we consider training and preparation, God considers the end. It is the process, not the goal, that glorifies Him.

What is my dream of God’s purpose? His purpose is that I depend on him and his power, and I rely on them now.

If I can stay calm and unperplexed in the middle of turmoil, I’ve already reached the end of God’s purpose.

Be encouraged. Amid life’s storms, Jesus wants me to see him walking on the water, with no shore in sight, no finish line, no promise of success, and to have the absolute certainty that all is well, simply because I see Him walking.

God is training us to obey Him in the present moment and to ignore all other considerations.

We have no control over what happens after we obey; we go wrong when we start dwelling on the “afterward.”

God wants us to see that He can walk on the chaos of our lives right now. If we have a further goal, we are not paying enough attention to the present.

But if we make obedience the goal, we will find that each moment as it comes is precious.

Do you know God can walk on the storms in your life right now?

That is your question today.

27 July

THE WAY TO KNOWLEDGE

Today, do you know how to gain knowledge in business and life?

Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out . . . John 7:17

The key to spiritual understanding isn’t intellect; it’s obedience. If I want scientific knowledge, intellectual curiosity is my guide.

But if I want insight into Jesus Christ's teachings, I can only gain it through obedience.

If what Jesus taught is dark to me, I can be sure that there is something I will not do.

Intellectual darkness comes through ignorance.

Spiritual darkness comes because there is something I don’t intend to obey.

No one ever receives a message from God without instantly being put to the test. We fail the test by disobeying and then wonder why we haven’t progressed spiritually.

“If you are offering your gift at the altar,” Jesus said, “and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, . . . first go and be reconciled to them” (Matthew 5:23–24).

Be encouraged. Our Lord’s teaching hits us where we live. We can’t stand before Jesus for a second without our hypocrisy being revealed.

His Spirit lays bare the spirit of self-justification that resides within us.

He educates us down to the scruple, making us sensitive to things we never thought of before.

Be encouraged. When Jesus brings something home to you through his teaching, don’t shrug it off. If you do, you’ll become a religious hypocrite.

Examine the things you’re shrugging off now, and you’ll know why you aren’t progressing spiritually.

Obey what God tells you to do, even if others might call you passionate, and you will gain the understanding you seek. When God says go, go.

Do you know the way to knowledge?

That is your question today.

25 July

THE WAY TO PURITY

Oswald Chambers

Today, in business and life, do you resent what HE reveals?

"Those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart . . . . Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man . . ." (Matthew 15:18-20)

Initially, we trust in our ignorance, calling it innocence, and next, we trust our innocence, calling it purity.

When we hear our Lord's strong statements, we shrink back, saying, "But I never felt any of those awful things in my heart."

We resent what He reveals. Jesus Christ is the supreme authority on the human heart or is not worth paying attention to.

Am I prepared to trust the penetration of His Word into my heart, or would I prefer to trust my own "innocent ignorance"?

Suppose I look honestly at myself, becoming fully aware of my so-called innocence and putting it to the test. In that case, I am very likely to have a rude awakening that what Jesus Christ said is true, and I will be appalled at the possibilities of the evil and the wrong within me.

But as long as I remain under the false security of my own "innocence," I live in a fool's paradise.

If I have never been openly rude and abusive, the only reason is my cowardice and the sense of protection I receive from living a civilized life.

But when I am open and completely exposed before God, I find that Jesus Christ is right in His diagnosis of me.

The only thing that genuinely provides protection is the redemption of Jesus Christ.

If I hand myself over to Him, I will never experience the terrible possibilities within my heart.

Purity is something far too profound for me to arrive at naturally. But when the Holy Spirit comes into me, He brings into the center of my personal life the very Spirit exhibited in the life of Jesus Christ, namely, the Holy Spirit, which is absolute, unblemished purity.

Be encouraged and understand that those things which proceed out of the mouth are from the heart. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts. But we never felt any of those awful things in our hearts.

Be encouraged, for you may be appalled at the possibilities of evil and wrong within you. Are you living in a fool’s paradise in those thoughts?

On your way to purity, remember for out of the heart proceed, evil thoughts, murderers, adulterers, fortifications, thefts, false witnesses, and blasphemous.

Do you resent what He reveals?

That is your question today.

24 July 2024

His nature and our motive

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, can you stand in the eternal light of God and have nothing for Him to rebuke?

“Unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom.” (Matthew 5:20)

The characteristics of a disciple are not that he does good things but that he is good in motives, having been made good by the supernatural grace of God.

Be encouraged to learn that the only thing that exceeds right-doing is right-being. Jesus Christ came to place within anyone who would let Him a new heredity that would have a righteousness exceeding that of the scribes and Pharisees.

Jesus says, "If you are My disciple, you must be right not only in your actions but also in your motives, your aspirations, and in the deep recesses of your thoughts."

Be encouraged. Your motives must be so pure that God Almighty can see nothing to rebuke. Who can stand in the eternal light of God and have nothing for Him to rebuke?

Only the Son of God and Jesus Christ claim that through His redemption, He can place His nature within anyone and make that person as pure and simple as a child.

The purity that God demands is impossible unless I can be remade within, and that is precisely what Jesus has undertaken to do through His redemption.

No one can make himself pure by obeying laws. Jesus Christ does not give us rules and regulations- He gives us His teachings, truths that can only be interpreted by His nature, which He places within us.

The great wonder of Jesus Christ's salvation is that He changes our heredity. He does not change human nature- He changes its source and, thereby, its motives.

I am encouraged by these words:

Martin Luther described the righteousness Christians enjoy through faith in Jesus:?“Lord Jesus, You are my righteousness, I am Your sin.?You took on you what was mine, yet set on me what was Yours.?You became what You were not that I might become what I was not.”??

Can you stand in the eternal light of God and have nothing for Him to rebuke?

That is your question today.

23 July 2024

Sanctification

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business, Is sanctification a mystery to you?

"But of Him, you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us .. sanctification" (1 Corinthians 1:30).

The mystery of sanctification is that the perfect qualities of Jesus Christ are imparted as a gift to me, not gradually, but instantly once I enter by faith into the realization that He "became formed. . . sanctification ...

Be encouraged. Sanctification means nothing less than the holiness of Jesus becoming mine and being exhibited in my life.

The most beautiful secret of living a holy life does not lie in imitating Jesus but in letting the perfect qualities of Jesus exhibit themselves in your human flesh.

Sanctification is "Christ in you. “ (Colossians 1:27).

His extraordinary life is imparted to me in sanctification – imparted by faith as a sovereign gift of God's grace.

Am I willing for God to make sanctification as accurate in me as in His Word?

Sanctification means imparting the holy qualities of Jesus Christ to me. The gift of His patience, love, holiness, faith, purity, and godliness is exhibited in and through every sanctified soul.

Sanctification is not drawing from Jesus the power to be holy; it is drawing from Jesus the holiness exhibited in Him and that He now shows in me.

Sanctification is an impartation, not an imitation. Imitation is something altogether different. The perfection of everything is in Jesus Christ, and the mystery of sanctification is that all the perfect qualities of Jesus are at my disposal.

Be encouraged to know that. Consequently, you will slowly but surely begin to live a life of inexpressible order, soundness, and holiness “… kept by the power of God:.." (1 Peter 1:5).

Is sanctification a mystery to you?

That is your question today.

22 July 2024

Sanctification

Oswald Chambers

Today, in business and life, do you find something within you pushing with resentment against Christ's demands?

"This is the will of God, your sanctification." (1 Thessalonians 4:3).

In sanctification, God has to deal with us on both the death side and the life side.

Be encouraged to learn that sanctification requires us to come to the place of death, but many of us spend so much time there that we become morbid.

There is always a tremendous battle before sanctification is realized, something within us pushing with resentment against the demand of Christ.

The struggle starts immediately when the Holy Spirit begins to show us what sanctification means.

Jesus said, "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate. His own life.

...he cannot be My disciple* (Luke 14:26)

In sanctification, the Spirit of Gal will strip me down until nothing is left but myself, which is the place of death.

Am I willing to be myself and nothing more?

Am I willing to have no friends, no father, no brother, and no self-interest- to be ready for death?

That is the condition required for sanctification. No wonder Jesus said, "I did not come to bring peace but a sword" (Matthew 10:34).

This is where the battle comes and where so many of us falter.

We refuse to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ on this point. We say, "But this is so strict. Surely He does not require that of me." Our Lord is strict, and He does require that of us.

Am I willing to reduce myself down to simply "me?”

Am I determined enough to strip myself of all that my friends think of me and all that I feel about myself?

Am I willing and determined to hand my simple naked self to God?

Be encouraged. Once you are, He will immediately sanctify you wholly, and your life will be free from being determined and persistent toward anything except God (see 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).

When I pray, "Lord, show me what sanctification means." He will show me. It means being made one with Jesus.

Sanctification is not something Jesus puts in me; it is Himself in me (see I Corinthians 1:30)

Are you willing to reduce yourself down to simply you and hand yourself naked over to God?

This is your question today.

21 July 2024

The doorway to the kingdom

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, did you know that the doorway to the kingdom as the first principle in the kingdom of God is, “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” not the rich in possessions?

"Blessed are the poor in spirit..." (Matthew 5:3)

Beware of thinking of the Lord as only a teacher because this may frustrate you to set standards you cannot achieve.

What is the point of presenting me with such a lofty ideal if I cannot possibly come close to reaching it?

I would be happier if I never knew it. What good is there in telling me to be what I can never be: be "pure in heart" (5:8), to do more than my duty, or to be utterly devoted to God?

I must know Jesus Christ as my Savior before His teaching has any meaning other than a lofty ideal that only leads to despair.

But when I am born again by the Spirit of God, I know that Jesus Christ did not come only to teach. He came to make me what He teaches I should be.

Be encouraged. Redemption means that Jesus Christ can place within anyone the exact nature that ruled His own life, and all the standards God gives us are based on that nature.

The teaching of the Sermon on the Mount produces a sense of despair in the natural man, which is precisely what Jesus means for it to do.

Be encouraged to learn. As long as we have some self-righteous idea that we can carry out our Lord's teaching,

God will allow us to continue until we expose our ignorance by stumbling over some obstacle. This is entering the doorway to the kingdom.

Only then are we willing to come to Him as paupers and receive from Him. "Blessed are the poor in spirit.”

For example, I slowly recognize my spiritual poverty as an example of the poor in spirit and my increasing need for God’s guidance in all aspects. Growing rich makes us stronger in all areas.

This is the first principle in the kingdom of God. The underlying foundation of Jesus Christ's kingdom is poverty, not possessions; not making decisions for Jesus, but having such a sense of absolute futility that we finally admit, "Lord, I cannot even begin to do it."

Then Jesus says, "Blessed are you.." (5:11).

This is the doorway to the kingdom, yet it takes us so long to believe we are poor!

Knowing our poverty brings us to the proper place where Jesus Christ accomplishes His work.

Do you know that the doorway to the kingdom is the first principle in the kingdom of God is, “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” not the rich in possessions?

This is your question today.

20 July 2024

Dependant on God's presence

Oswald Chambers

Today in business and life, are you willing to depend on God’s presence and recognize that He is always there with you, but will you stretch and wait for the direction of the Lord?

Those who hope in the Lord . . . will walk and not be faint. —Isaiah?40:31

To “walk and not be faint” is the greatest test of our ability to endure, requiring us to remain steadfast in the face of difficulty. In the Bible, the word walk is used to reveal character. John the Baptist, “looking upon Jesus as he walked,” said, “Behold the Lamb of God!” (John 1:36 KJV).

The Bible is never abstract. It is always vivid and real. God doesn’t give us vague instructions like “Be spiritual.” He says, “Walk before me faithfully” (Genesis 17:1).

Walking does not thrill us. However, when we are in an unhealthy state, either physically or emotionally, we always want thrills.

In our emotional lives, thrill-seeking leads to inordinate affection and the destruction of morality. In our spiritual lives, if we insist on seeking out mountaintop experiences, it destroys our spirituality.

When we walk faithfully before God, we walk securely, knowing he is with us.

Be encouraged. We know that the reality of His presence doesn’t depend on place, time, or how we’re feeling; no matter what, He is here.

When we refuse to believe this, our problems begin; we stop walking and go rushing about, trying to find Him.

Once we are founded on the reality of his presence, we will know the experience the psalmist describes: “Therefore we will not fear, though the earth gives way” (Psalm 46:2).

At critical moments in our lives, we must ask the Lord for guidance, but it should be unnecessary always to say, “Oh, Lord, tell me what to do.”

Be encouraged. Of course, He will tell you! That is what the reality of His presence means: God is always there, guiding. If you walk faithfully before Him, He will alert you whenever your common-sense decisions do not follow His will.

Whenever this happens, be quiet and continue your walk, trusting in His presence.

Are you willing to depend on God’s presence and recognize that He is always there with you? Will you stretch and wait for the Lord's direction?

These are your questions today.

19 July 2024

Authority over the believer

Oswald Chambers

Today in your business and life, when you meet people who are more righteous than you, are you willing to recognize their worthiness and obey what comes through them?

You call me “Teacher” and “Lord,” rightly so, for that is what I am. —John?13:13

Our Lord never insists on having authority. He never says, “You must.”

He leaves us perfectly free. So free that we can spit in His face, as people did, so free that we can put Him to death, as people did, and He will never say a word.

But when His redemption created His life inside me, I instantly recognized his right to absolute authority over me.

Be encouraged. It is a moral domination: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory, honor, and power” (Revelation 4:11).

Only the unworthy thing in me refuses to bow down to what is worthy.

When I meet more righteous people than me, I must recognize their worthiness and obey what comes through them.

If I don’t, it reveals my unworthiness. God educates us through people who are a little better than we are—not intellectually better, but “holily” better.

Be encouraged. He does this until we come under the rule of the Lord Himself. When we are under His rule, the attitude of our entire life is one of obedience to him.

The way I understand obedience reveals my growth in grace. We use the word obedience to the submission of an inferior to a superior.

Our Lord used the word to describe a relationship of equals, that of a Son and a Father: “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30).

Jesus obeyed his Father not because he had no choice in the matter but because He loved him. “I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me” (14:31).

When we truly see our Lord, we cannot help but recognize his moral authority over us. We obey Him instantly, eager to show our love for Him: “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me” (v. 21).

When you meet people who are more righteous than you, are you willing to recognize their worthiness and obey what comes through them?

That is your question today.

18 July 2024

The mystery of believing

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and your life, did you know It is not what a man does that is of final importance, but what he is in what he does?

"He said, 'Who are You, Lord?" Saul asked (Acts 9:5).

Through the miracle of redemption, Saul of Tarsus was instantly changed from a strong. willed and forceful Pharisee into a humble and devoted bondservant of the Lord Jesus.

There is nothing miraculous or mysterious about the things we can explain.

We control what we can explain, so it is natural to seek an explanation for everything.

Be encouraged. It is not natural to obey, yet it is not necessarily sinful to disobey. There can be no real disobedience nor moral virtue in obedience unless a person recognizes the higher authority of the one giving the orders.

If this recognition does not exist, even the one giving the orders may view the other person's disobedience as freedom.

If one rules another by saying, "You must do this," and, "You will do that," he breaks the human spirit and makes him unfit for God.

A person is simply an enslaved person for obeying unless behind his obedience is the recognition of a holy God.

Be encouraged to know that many people begin coming to God once they stop being religious because there is only one master of the human heart –Jesus Christ – not religion. But "Woe is me" if after seeing Him I still will not obey (Isaiah 6:5, also see verse 1).

Jesus will never insist that I obey, but if I don't, I have already begun to sign the death certificate of the Son of God in my soul.

When I stand face to face with Jesus Christ and say, "I will not obey," He will never insist.

But when I do this, I am backing away from the recreating power of His redemption.

The atmosphere a man produces, much more than his activities, has a lasting influence.?

What a man does is not of final importance, but what he is in what he does?

Did you know the mystery of believing is whether you will obey?

This is your question today.

17 July 2024

The miracle of belief

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and your life, did you know that the creative power of redemption comes through gospel preaching but never because of the person's personality?

"My speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom . . ." (1 Corinthians 2:4).

Paul was a scholar and an orator of the highest degree; he was not speaking here out of a deep sense of humility but was saying that when he preached the gospel, he would veil the power of God if he impressed people with the excellency of his speech.

Belief in Jesus is a miracle produced only by the effectiveness of redemption, not by impressive speech, wooing, and persuading, but only by the sheer unaided power of God.

Be encouraged to learn that the creative power of redemption comes through gospel preaching, but never because of your personality.

Honest and effective fasting by a preacher is not fasting from food but from eloquence, impressive diction, and everything else that might hinder the gospel of God being presented.

The preacher is there as the representative of God-_" .. as though God were pleading through us ..." (2 Corinthians 5:20).

He is there to present the gospel of God. If people desire to be better only because of my preaching, they will never get close to Jesus Christ.

Anything that flatters me in my preaching of the gospel will result in making me a traitor to Jesus, and I prevent the creative power of His redemption from doing its work

"And I, if I am lifted us will draw all peoples to Myself" (John 12:32).

Did you know that the most significant thing you can do for those suffering is not to talk platitudes, not to ask questions, but to get into contact with God, and the “greater works” will be done by prayer?

This is your question today.

16 July 2024

The concept of divine control

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, when you are under divine control, why would you worry?

Ask, and it will be given to you. . . . How much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him! —Matthew 7:7, 11

The concept of divine control is when you know God urges you to keep your mind filled with God’s control over everything. This means that as a disciple, you must maintain an attitude of perfect trust and eagerness to ask and to seek.

Sometimes, God cannot lift the darkness from you, but you must trust Him.

Sometimes, God appears like an unkind friend, but you must trust Him; He is not.

He will appear like an unnatural father, but you must trust Him. He is not.

He will appear like an unjust judge, but you must trust Him. He is not.

Being encouraged when you fill your mind with the thought that God is there, He loves you, He is your Heavenly Father, and you can never think of anything that He will forget, so why should you worry?

Sometimes, God can not lift the darkness from you, but will you trust Him?

This is your question today

15 July 2024

Life's spiritual honor and duty

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, are you willing to quit praying about yourself and spend your life for the sake of others?

"I am a debtor to Greeks and barbarians . ." (Romans 1:14).

Paul was overwhelmed with a sense of indebtedness to Jesus Christ, and he spent his life expressing this.

Be encouraged. Paul's greatest inspiration was his view of Jesus Christ as his spiritual creditor.

Do I feel that same indebtedness to Christ regarding every unsaved soul?

As a saint, my life's spiritual honor and duty is to fulfill my debt to Christ concerning these lost souls. Every tiny bit of my life that has value I owe to the redemption of Jesus Christ.

Am I doing anything to enable Him to bring His redemption into evident reality in the lives of others?

I can only do this as the Spirit of God works this sense of indebtedness into me.

I am not superior to other people; I am a bondservant of the Lord Jesus. Paul said. “…You

are not your own . .. you were bought at a price (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

Be encouraged. Paul sold himself to Jesus Christ, and he said, in effect, "I am a debtor to everyone on the face of the earth because of the gospel of Jesus; I am free only to be an absolute bondservant of His."

Once this level of spiritual honor and duty becomes real, that is the characteristic of a Christian's life.

Be encouraged, and quit praying about yourself. Spend your life for the sake of others as the bondservant of Jesus.

That is the true meaning of broken bread and poured-out wine in real life.

Are you willing to quit praying about yourself and spend your life for the sake of others?

These are your questions today.

14 July 2024

Suffering afflictions and going the extra mile

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and your life, when you are insulted, do you take that opportunity to go the extra mile, turn the other cheek to exhibit the Son of God in your life, or strike back?

"I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also." (Matthew 5:39).

This verse reveals the humiliation of being a Christian. In the natural realm, if a person does not hit back, he is a coward.

For example, I am encouraged, challenged, and amazed every time I practice this, which is like a game I play with myself to shift my mindset to the positive. I desire to glorify God and look for the sugar to turn the other cheek to make lemonade.

No. I’m not perfect, but I am learning to reject revenge and retaliation by using my imagination to seek God in everything while remembering that “nothing is either good or bad; it’s my thinking that makes it so” (according to Shakespeare).

Also, remember that all things work for our good; we must find the good in them.

This is the game of life as we learn how to play it. Watch: Exploring "The Game of Life & How to Play It" by Florence Scovel Shinn

But in the spiritual realm, it is the very evidence of the Son of God in him if he does not hit back. When you are insulted, you must not only not resent it but also make it an opportunity to exhibit the Son of God in your life.

And you cannot imitate the nature of Jesus-it is either in you or not. A personal insult becomes an opportunity for a saint to reveal the incredible sweetness of the Lord Jesus.

The teaching of the Sermon on the Mount is not, "Do your duty," but is, in effect, "Do what is not your duty."

It is not your duty to go the second mile or to turn the other cheek, but Jesus said that if we are His disciples, we will always do these things.

We will not say, "Oh well, I just can't do anymore, and I've been so misrepresented and misunderstood."

Every time I insist on having my rights, I hurt the Son of God, while I can prevent Jesus from being damaged if I take the blow myself.

That is the real meaning of filling "up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ.(Colossians 1:24).

Be encouraged to learn how a disciple realizes that his Lord's honor is at stake in his life, not his honor.

Be encouraged to never look for righteousness in the other person, but never cease to be righteous yourself.

We are always looking for justice, yet the essence of the teaching of the Sermon on the Mount is never to look for justice but never cease to give it.

When insulted, do you take that opportunity to go the extra mile, turn the other cheek to exhibit the Son of God in your life, or do you strike back?

This is your question today

13 July 2024

The price of the vision

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, are you willing to allow God to operate on you with his surgical procedure, which means external circumstances bring about internal purification?

"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord . . ." (Isaiah 6:1).

Our souls' personal histories with God often include accounts of the deaths of our heroes.

Over and over again, God has to remove our friends to put Himself in their place, and that is when we falter, fail, and become discouraged.

Let me think about this personally: when the person who represented me all that God was, did I give up on everything in life?

For example, when my mother passed 25 years ago, I never realized until her death that I had been worshiping my mother’s God. I never realized I went to her for prayer, not directly to God. I never realized she was my King Uzziah until she died.

I had to find Him for myself, and I still see Him on this journey.

Did I become ill or disheartened?

Or did I do as Isaiah did and see the Lord?

My vision of God is dependent upon the condition of my character. My character determines whether or not the truth can even be revealed to me.

Before I can say, "I saw the Lord," there must be something in my character that conforms to the likeness of God.

Until I am born again and begin to see the kingdom of God, I only see from the perspective of my own biases.

I need God's surgical procedure and His use of external circumstances to bring about internal purification.

Be encouraged that your priorities must be God first, God second, and God third until your life is continually face-to-face with God and no one else is considered.

Your prayer will then be, "In all the world, there is no one but You, dear God; there is no one but You."

Keep paying the price. Let God see that you are willing to live up to the vision.

Are you willing to allow God to operate on you with his surgical procedure, which means external circumstances bring about internal purification?

This is your question today.

#myutmostforhishighest #inspiration #mcneillism

12 July

The spiritually self-seeking church

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, are you building up the body of Christ, or are you only concerned about your personal development?

“... till we all come ... to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:13).

Reconciliation means restoring all the relationships between the human race and God, returning them to what God designed them to be.

This is what Jesus Christ did in redemption.

The church ceases to be spiritual when it becomes self-seeking and only interested in developing its organization. Reconciliation of the human race according to His plan means realizing Him not only in our lives individually but also collectively.

Jesus Christ sent apostles and teachers so that the corporate Person of Christ and His church, made up of many members, might be brought into being and made known.

We are not here to develop a spiritual life of our own or to enjoy a quiet spiritual retreat.

We are here to have the full realization of Jesus Christ to build His body.

Am I building up the body of Christ, or am I only concerned about my personal development?

My relationship with Jesus Christ is essential – "...that I may know Him." (Philippians 3:10).

Being encouraged to fulfill God's perfect design for you requires your total surrender- complete abandonment of myself to Him.

Whenever I only want things for myself, the relationship is distorted. And I will suffer great humiliation once I come to acknowledge and understand that I have not been concerned about realizing Jesus Christ Himself but only concerned with knowing what He has done for me.

“My goal is God Himself, not joy nor peace, nor even blessing, but Himself, My God.”

Are you measuring your life by this standard or by something less?

Are you building up the body of Christ, or are you only concerned about your personal development?

This is your question today.

11 July 2024

The spiritually vigorous saint

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, the aim of a spiritually vigorous saint is that you may know Him. Do you know Him where you are today?

"That I may know Him..." (Philippians 3:10)

Be encouraged that a spiritually vigorous saint never believes that his circumstances happen randomly, nor does he think of his life as divided into the secular and the sacred.

He sees every situation where he finds himself as the means of obtaining a more excellent knowledge of Jesus Christ, and he has an attitude of unrestrained abandon and total surrender.

The Holy Spirit is determined that we will have the realization of Jesus Christ in every area of our lives, and He will bring us back to the same point over and over again until we do.

Self-realization only leads to the glorification of good works, whereas a saint of God glorifies Jesus Christ through his good works.

Whatever we may be doing, even eating, drinking, or washing disciples' feet, we must realize and recognize Jesus Christ in it.

Every phase of our life has its counterpart in the life of Jesus. Our Lord realized His relationship to the Father even in the most menial task.

"Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God.. so he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet..." (John 13:3-5).

The aim of a spiritually vigorous saint is "that I may know Him.. " Do I know Him where I am today?

For example, It is difficult for me to admit that being conformed to His death is to live the way our Lord died. Despised, persecuted, and crucified in the flesh, it is the suffering for my family, friends, and myself.

If not, I am failing Him. I am not here for self-realization. But to know Jesus Christ.

Be encouraged. Christian work, initiative, and motivation are too often simply the result of realizing that there is work to be done and that we must do it.

Yet that is never the attitude of a spiritually vigorous saint. He aims to achieve the realization of Jesus Christ in every set of circumstances.

The aim of a spiritually vigorous saint is that you may know Him. Do you know Him where you are today?

This is your question today.

10 July 2024

The spiritually lazy saint

Today, in business and life, are you a spiritually lazy saint running away from injustice, degradation, ingratitude, and turmoil?

"Let us consider one another to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together . . ."(Hebrews 10:24-25)

We are all capable of being spiritually lazy saints.

We want to stay off the rough roads of life, and our primary objective is to secure a peaceful retreat from the world.

The ideas in these verses from Hebrews 10 are those of stirring up one another and keeping ourselves together.

Both require our willingness to take the first step toward Christ-realization, not the industry toward self-realization.

To live a distant, withdrawn, and secluded life is opposed to spirituality, as Jesus Christ taught it.

The actual test of our spirituality occurs when we come up against injustice, degradation, ingratitude, and turmoil, all of which tend to make us into spiritual sluggards.

Be encouraged. While being tested, we want to use prayer and Bible reading to find a quiet retreat.

Be encouraged. We use God only for the sake of getting peace and joy. We seek only our enjoyment of Jesus Christ, not an actual realization of Him.

This is the first step in the wrong direction. All these things we seek are simply effects, yet we try to make them causes.

"I think it right ... to stir you up by putting you in remembrance," Peter said. (2 Peter 1:13).

It is a most disturbing thing to be hit squarely in the stomach by someone being used by God to stir us up, someone who is full of spiritual activity.

Simple active work and spiritual activity are not the same thing. Busy work can be the counterfeit of spiritual activity.

Be encouraged to learn the danger of spiritual laziness is that we do not want to be stirred up. All we want to hear about is a spiritual retirement from the world.

For example, I attended church for years and did my church duties but was not stirred by a heavenly vision to be accountable to and for others. As the idea of serving grew, that spirit of laziness began to dissipate, not entirely but significantly.

Yet Jesus Christ never encourages the idea of retirement. He says, "Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me." (Matthew 28:10).

Are you a spiritually lazy saint running away from injustice, degradation, ingratitude, and turmoil?

This is your question today.

9 July 2024

Will you examine yourself?

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, will you examine yourself?

Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord. . . . He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins.” —

Do you even rely on anything or anyone other than God?

Is there a remnant of reliance left on any natural quality within you or any particular circumstances?

Are you relying on yourself in any manner regarding this new proposal or plan God has placed before you?

Will you examine yourself by asking these probing questions?

I am encouraged and reminded that it was not until I began the exercise to examine myself the way God examines me for the power of God to flow through me.

For example, annually, through our "Think and Grow Rich" International Mastermind Association, we utilize the #McNeillFactor Life Survey, which examines ten areas of your life to become all that God is calling you to be, to live a better quality of life.

It is true to say, "I cannot live a holy life," but you can let Jesus Christ make you holy.

"You cannot serve the Lord, but you can place yourself in the proper position where God's almighty power will flow through you.

Is your relationship with God sufficient to expect Him to exhibit His wonderful life in you?

"The people said to Joshua, 'No, but we will serve the LORD!" (24:21). This is not an impulsive action, but a deliberate commitment.

Be encouraged if you tend to say, "But God could never have called me to this. I'm too unworthy. It can't mean me." It does mean you, and the weaker you are, the better.

The person still relying upon and trusting in anything within himself is the last person to come close to saying, "I will serve the Lord."

We say. "Oh, if only I really could believe it!" The question is, "Will I believe?" No wonder Jesus Christ placed such emphasis on the sin of unbelief.

"He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief." (Matthew 13.58).

If we believed that God meant what He said, imagine what we would be like! Do you dare to let God be all He will be?

Will you examine yourself?

These are your questions today.

8 July 2024

Will to be faithful

Today, in business and life, will you choose this day to WILL to be faithful by putting your will to work when God gives you a vision of truth?

. . . choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve ...." (Joshua 24:15).

A person’s will is embodied in the actions of the whole person. I cannot give up my will; I must exercise and implement it. I must will to obey, and I must will to receive God's Spirit.

When God gives me a vision of truth, there is never a question of what He will do but only of what I will do.

The Lord has been placing some significant proposals and plans in front of us.

The best thing to do is to remember what you did before, when God touched you.

Recall the moment when you were saved, first recognized Jesus, or realized some truth.

It was easy then to yield your allegiance to God. Immediately recall those moments each time the Spirit of God brings some new proposal before you.

... choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve. . . ." Your choice must be a deliberate determination; it is not something you will automatically drift into.

And everything else in your life will be held in temporary suspension until you decide.

The proposal is between you and God- do not "confer with flesh and blood" about it (Galatians 1:16).

With every new proposal, the people around us seem to become more and more isolated, and that is where the tension develops. God allows the opinion of His other saints to matter to you, yet you become less and less specific so that others understand your step.

You have no business trying to find out where God is leading. The only thing God will explain to you is Himself.

Openly declare to Him, "I will be faithful." But remember that as soon as you choose to be faithful to Jesus Christ, "You are witnesses against yourselves. Joshua 24:22).

Be encouraged and don't consult with other Christians, but freely declare before Him, "I will serve You." I will be faithful and credit others for being loyal, too.

Will you choose this day to WILL to be faithful by putting your will to work when God gives you a vision of truth?

This is your question today.

7 July 2024

All efforts of worth and excellence are difficult

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, do you have the wisdom to count it all joy when you are in the trials of life while realizing that all efforts of worth and excellence are difficult?

Small is the gate, and narrow is the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. —Matthew?7:14

The Christian life is gloriously complex, but its difficulty does not make us faint and cave in; it stirs us up to overcome.

Do we appreciate the miraculous salvation of Jesus Christ enough to be our utmost for His highest – our best for His glory?

God saves people by His sovereign grace through the atonement of Jesus, and "it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13).

But we must "work out" that salvation in everyday, practical living (Philippians 2:12).

If we will only start based on His redemption to do what He commands, then we will find that we can do it.

Be encouraged to learn that a crisis will reveal whether or not we have been putting it into practice. If we obey the Spirit of God and practice in our physical life what God has placed within us by His Spirit, then when a crisis does come, we will find our nature and the grace of God. Will stand by us.

Be encouraged. Thank God that He does give us difficult things to do! His salvation is a joyous thing, but it also requires bravery, courage, and holiness. It tests us for all we are worth.

Jesus is "bringing many sons to glory" (Hebrews 2:10), and God will not shield us from the requirements of sonship. God's grace produces men and women with a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, not pampered, spoiled weaklings.

For example, I am reminded of a difficult experience in the beginning as I looked for God’s grace in my situation from 1997, and all efforts of worth and excellence are difficult. I gave my life savings ($15,000) to a person in an investment firm (I thought), only to learn I would never see the money again. Yes, it was a scam.

Yes, I got upset with the person, but I was more upset with myself for not knowing the signs. This revealed in me my lack of knowledge of investing.

This lack of knowledge led me to read, study, and learn about investing, starting by reading The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley.

This led me to the National Association of Investment Clubs (betterinvesting.org), where we started over 20 clubs. I became a volunteer to help others learn the benefits of investing only $20 a month. In July 2024, I was honored to receive the founder’s George A. Nicholson Jr. Distinguished Service Award.

Be encouraged that all efforts of excellence or worth are difficult.

It is my personal experience that when God gets us alone through suffering, heartbreak, temptation, debt, disappointment, sickness, thwarted desires, or a broken friendship. When He calls us alone, we are speechless, unable to ask even one question. He then begins to teach us.

I am encouraged by this quote by Benjamin Franklin: "Increase in me that wisdom which discovers my truest interest, strengthen my resolution to perform that which wisdom dictates".

Do you have the wisdom to count it all joy when you are in the trials of life while realizing that all efforts of worth and excellence are difficult?

This is your question today.

6 July 2024

Visions becoming reality

Oswald Chambers

Today, in business and life, will you wait for the vision to become reality?

"The parched ground shall become a pool ..." (Isaiah 35:7).

We always have a vision of something before it becomes natural to us.

When we realize that the vision is real but is not yet confirmed in us, Satan comes to us with his temptations, and we are inclined to say that there is no point in even trying to continue.

Instead of the vision becoming natural, we have entered a valley of humiliation.

Life is not as idle ore,

But iron dug from central gloom.

And battered by the shocks of doom

God gives us a vision, and then He takes us down to the valley to batter us into the shape of that vision.

In the valley, so many of us give up and faint. Every God-given vision will become real if we will only have patience.

Just think of the enormous amount of free time God has! He is never in a hurry.

Yet we are always in such a frantic hurry. While still in the light of the glory of the vision, we go right out to do things, but the vision is not yet confirmed in us.

God has to take us into the valley and put us through fires and floods to batter us into shape until we get to the point where He can trust us with the reality of the vision.

Ever since God gave us the vision, He has been at work. He is getting us into the shape of the goal He has for us, and yet, repeatedly, we try to escape from the Sculptor's hand to batter ourselves into the shape of our own goal.

God's vision is not some unattainable castle in the sky but a vision of what God wants you to be down here.

Allow the Potter to put you on His wheel and whirl you around as He desires. Then, as God is God, and you are you, you will turn out as an exact likeness of the vision.

For example, on 31 December 1979, when I first began to read Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, God placed a vision in my heart to become free from fears and financial failures through surrendering to a larger vision of myself as He sees me.

Over the years, this vision became real by associating with the Napoleon Hill Foundation and creating the International Mastermind Association based on the principles espoused in the book to help others become mentally and financially free.

Be encouraged, and don't lose heart in the process. If you have ever had a vision from God, you may try as you will be satisfied on a lower level, but God will never allow it

God will give you a vision, and then He takes you down to the demon-possessed valley to batter you into the shape of that vision.

Decide to have patience and never be in a hurry.

Decide to allow the vision to become real in you before running out in a frantic hurry. God has to take you to the valley of fires and floods until you reach the point of trusting him. Do not try to escape.

Decide to surrender.

Be encouraged when God gives you a vision on the mountaintop.

Will you give up your vision in the valley as God shapes and molds you, or will you stay on the wheel and allow God to whirl you around as He desires until the vision becomes a reality?

This is your question today.

5 July 2024

Don't plan without God

Today, in your business and life, will you put God first as you plan with Him in mind, or do you plan without God?

"Commit your way to the LORD, also trust in Him, and He shall bring it to pass" (Psalm 37:5).

Don't plan without God. God seems to have a delightful way of upsetting the plans we have made when we have not taken Him into account.

We get ourselves into circumstances that God did not choose, and suddenly, we realize that we have been making our plans without Him--that we have not even considered Him to be a vital, living factor in the planning of our lives.

And yet, the only thing that will keep us from even the possibility of worrying is to bring God in as the most significant factor in all of our planning.

In spiritual issues, it is customary for us to put God first, but we tend to think that it is inappropriate and unnecessary to put Him first in our lives practical, everyday issues.

If we have the idea that we have to put on our "spiritual face" before we can come near to God, then we will never come near to Him. We must go as we are.

Don't plan with a concern for evil in mind. Does God mean for us to plan without considering the evil around us?

"Love . . thinks no evil" ( Corinthians 13:4-5). Love is not ignorant of the existence of evil, but it does not consider it a factor in planning.

When we were apart from God, we took evil into account, planned with it in mind, and tried to reason out all of our work from its standpoint.

Don't plan with a rainy day in mind. You cannot hoard things for a rainy day if you truly trust Christ. Jesus said, "Let not your heart be troubled...John 14:1).

God will not keep your heart from being troubled. It is a command-"Let not. " To do it, continually pick yourself up, even if you fall a hundred and one times a day until you get into the habit of putting God first.

God seems to have a delightful way of upsetting our plans when we do not have Him in mind.

Be encouraged to know that sometimes we get ourselves into circumstances that God did not choose, and suddenly, we realize that we have been making plans without Him.

Be encouraged when you know what you desire, clearly define it with God in mind, make your plans, and then understand you can achieve whatever you think you can bring about.

For example, over 25 years ago, I desired to go to Africa on a trip with Dr. Leon Sullivan for the African African American Trade Summit In Senegal, but I did not have the money. I prayed and prayed, but I still did not have the money. Then, with the help of God, I put a plan in place to ask the organizers if I could send them $25 per week for two years. They agreed. I was blessed with a balance for myself and my six-year-old daughter, Ionnie. The trip was life-changing, learning how to plan with God. My lesson is to make plans with God.

Will you put God first as you plan with Him in mind, or do you plan without Him?

This is your question today.

4 July 2024

One of God's great "don'ts"

Oswald Chambers

Today in your business and life, when you worry, are you wise, wicked, or are you propping up that foolish soul of yours with the idea that your circumstances are too much for God to handle?

"Do not fret; it only causes harm" (Psalm 37:8).

Fretting means getting ourselves out of joint mentally or spiritually. It is one thing to say. "Do not fret." but something very different to have such a nature that you cannot fret.

Be encouraged to know concerning your affairs that it is easy to say, "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him' (37:7) until our little world is turned upside down and we are forced to live in confusion and agony like many others.

For example, for years, I fretted over the call of God on my life to build a pipeline into the construction industry by studying the best organizations in the industry. Still worrying about what they said, I realized there was no progress.

Oh, but when I surrendered and began to rest in the Lord, wait patiently for Him, and follow His Spirit by setting my opinions and the opinions of others aside, only then could I abide.

Nope, I am not perfect, so pray for me as I pray for you that we do not fret. Those little devils will still try to get on our last nerve.

Is it possible to "rest in the Lord" then? If this "Do not" doesn't work there, it will not work anywhere.

This "Do not" must work during our days of difficulty and uncertainty, as well as our peaceful days, or it will never work.

And if it does not work in your particular case, it will not work for anyone else.

Resting in the Lord depends not on your external circumstances but on your relationship with God.

Worrying constantly results in sin. We tend to think that a bit of anxiety and worry indicate how wise we are, yet it is a much better indication of just how wicked we are.

Fretting rises from our determination to have our way. Our Lord never worried and was never anxious because His purpose was never to accomplish His plans but to fulfill God's plans.

Fretting is wickedness for a child of God.

Be encouraged, set aside your opinions and speculations, and "abide under the shadow of the Almighty" (Psalm 91:1).

Remember you are standing in the middle of your acres of diamonds if you fret not. Only then can you see them within.

I am reminded when I fret, I am also encouraged to learn what to do next by these words: “If you want a new outcome, you will have to break the habit of being yourself and reinvent a new self. ” – Joe Dispenza

Deliberately tell God that you will not fret about whatever concerns you. All our fretting and worrying are caused by planning without God.

Do you fret?

Have you been propping up that foolish soul of yours with the idea that your circumstances are too much for God to handle?

This is your question today.

3 July 2024

The concentration of personal sin

Oswald Chambers

Today, in business and life, have you ever said, “I do not know where I have gone wrong” and then the Spirit of God’s conviction of that particular sin led you to where He could reveal the underlying nature of your sin?

"Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips .. (Isaiah 6:5).

When I come into the very presence of God, I do not realize that I am a sinner in an indefinite sense. Still, I suddenly realize that the focus of my attention is directed toward the concentration of sin in a particular area of my life.

A person will quickly say, "Oh yes, I know I am a sinner." but when he comes into the presence of God, he cannot get away with such a broad and indefinite statement.

I am reminded that when we first come in contact with sin, we hate it, but the longer we are in the presence of sin. We can slowly begin to embrace it. Then, we eventually indulge intentionally.

Our conviction is focused on our specific sin, and we realize, as Isaiah did, what we are.

This is always the sign that a person is in the presence of God. There is never any vague sense of sin, but there is a focus on the concentration of sin in some specific, personal area of life.

Be encouraged as God begins by convicting us of what His Spirit has directed our mind's attention to.

Be encouraged. If we surrender, submitting to His conviction of that particular sin, He will lead us down to where He can reveal the vast underlying nature of sin.

That is the way God always deals with us when we are consciously aware of | His presence.

This experience of our attention being directed to our concentration on personal sin is true in everyone's life, from the greatest of saints to the worst of sinners.

When a person begins climbing the ladder of experience, he might say, "I don't know where I've gone wrong," but the Spirit of God will point out some definite and specific thing to him.

The effect of Isaiah's vision of the holiness of the Lord was directing his attention to the fact that he was "a man of unclean lips."

"He touched my mouth with it and said: "Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged'” (6:7).

Be encouraged. The cleansing fire had to be applied where the sin had been concentrated.

We are all discovering we come to God for wholeness. This prevents us from sinning because we are now made whole.

I am discovering that when we are whole, we can be happy with ourselves, and we are happy with others no matter what. When we love ourselves, we can love others.

But, if we continue in the sin, we may tend to be judgemental of others. When we are angry with ourselves, we tend to be angry with others.

Have you ever said, “I do not know where I have gone wrong,” and then the Spirit of God’s conviction of that particular sin led you to where He could reveal to you the underlying nature of your sin?

This is your question today.

2 July 2024

The conditions of discipleship

Oswald Chambers

Today, in your business and life, do you know the vast difference between devotion to a person and devotion to a principle or a cause?

“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also ...And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me ... So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciples (Luke 14:26-27, 33).

If the closest relationship of the disciple’s life conflicts with the claims of Jesus Christ, then our Lord requires instant obedience to Himself.

Discipleship means personal, passionate devotion to a Person- our Lord Jesus Christ.

A vast difference exists between devotion to a person and devotion to principles or a cause.

Be encouraged. Our Lord never proclaimed a cause; He proclaimed personal devotion to Himself.

To be a disciple is to be a devoted bondservant motivated by love for the Lord Jesus.

Many of us who call ourselves Christians are not truly devoted to Jesus Christ.

Be encouraged. No one on earth has this passionate love for the Lord Jesus unless the Holy Spirit has given it to him.

We may admire, respect, and revere Him, but we cannot love Him alone.

The only One who truly loves the Lord Jesus is the Holy Spirit, and it is He who has "poured out in our hearts" the very "love of God (Romans 5:5).

Be encouraged whenever the Holy Spirit sees an opportunity to glorify Jesus through you. He will take your entire being and set you ablaze with glowing devotion to Jesus Christ.

The Christian life is a life characterized by authentic and spontaneous creativity.

Consequently, a disciple is subject to the same charge leveled against Jesus Christ: the charge of inconsistency.

But Jesus Christ was always consistent in His relationship with God, and a Christian must be consistent in his relationship to the life of the Son of God in him, not compatible with strict, unyielding doctrines.

People pour themselves into their doctrines, and God has to blast them out of their preconceived ideas before they can become devoted to Jesus Christ.

Do you know there is a vast difference between devotion to a person and devotion to a principle or a cause?

This is your question today.

#myutmost #mcneillism #inspiration

1 July 2024

The inevitable penalty

Oswald Chambers

Today in your business and life, do you ever find yourself wondering, ”Why am I not growing spiritually with God?”? Ask yourself, ”Am I paying my debts from God's standpoint?”

"You will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny" (Matthew 5:26).

Heaven does not have a little corner of hell in it. God is determined to make you pure, holy, and right, and He will not allow you to escape from the scrutiny of the Holy Spirit for even one moment.

He urged you to come to judgment immediately when He convicted you, but you did not obey. Then, the inevitable process began to work, bringing its inevitable penalty.

Now you have been "thrown into prison, and ... you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny" (5:25-26).

Yet you ask, "Is this a God of mercy and love?"

From God's perspective, it is a glorious ministry of love.

Be encouraged to learn that God will bring you out pure, spotless, and undefiled, but He wants you to recognize that you were exhibiting the nature of demanding your right to yourself.

Be encouraged the moment you are willing for God to change your nature. His recreating forces will begin to work.

And the moment you realize that God's purpose is to get you into the right relationship with Himself and then with others, He will reach the very limits of the universe to help you take the right road.

Do it now, saying, "Yes, Lord, I will write that letter," or, "I will be reconciled to that person now."

These sermons of Jesus Christ are meant for your will and your conscience, not your head. If you dispute these verses from the Sermon on the Mount with your head, you will dull the appeal to your heart.

Do what you will have to do someday now. Every moral question or call comes with an "ought" behind it – the knowledge of knowing what to do.

Do something about your debt other than think about it all the time. Act now to develop a plan and do one small thing daily on that plan.

Do you ever wonder, ”Why am I not growing spiritually with God?” Ask yourself, ”Am I paying my debts from God's standpoint?”

This is your question today.