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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

God has placed you where He wants you
21 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘You were made queen for just such a time as this.’
Esther 4:14 NLT
The story of Esther teaches us two important truths:

1) You need mentors to guide you. Because she was willing to listen to Mordecai, Esther discovered that her calling wasn’t just to be a queen but a deliverer of her people. So, who is your Mordecai? Who knows you well enough to clarify and confirm your calling in life? Who loves you enough to challenge you when you get off track or strengthen and encourage you when you want to give up and run? Where we have blind spots, we need people with 20/20 vision to speak into our lives. Joshua listened to Moses. Timothy listened to Paul. Ruth listened to Naomi. Who are you listening to?

2) You need to know you’re in the place God wants you to be. Mordecai, Esther’s cousin, challenged her and changed her life by saying, ‘Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?’ Esther didn’t set out to be queen. But once she was, she had to decide between her comfort and her calling. It’s a choice you must make too. You say, ‘What’s my calling?’ It could involve your job, your marriage, your tasks as a parent, your friendships. It could involve the neighbourhood where you live or volunteering at your church. One thing is certain: when God calls, it’s your ‘time’. You may be tempted to think you’re just treading water right now, waiting for some other time or more important opportunity. No, you don’t get to choose your time; God does that! The psalmist said, ‘My times are in thy hand’ (Psalm 31:15 KJV).

Isaiah 34-36, Ephesians 5:17-33

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

You belong to God
22 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here.’
Ephesians 2:19 MSG

‘He created a new kind of human being, a fresh start for everybody. Christ brought us together through his death on the Cross. The Cross got us to embrace, and that was the end of the hostility. Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father. That’s plain enough, isn’t it? You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all – irrespective of how we got here – in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day’ (vv. 15-21 MSG).

If your children stood outside your house pleading to get in, what would you think? Wouldn’t you say, ‘Come in, you’re my flesh and blood. I love you, you don’t need to beg’? God is building a house, and you’re part of it. You can come before Him at any time with any need, knowing you will be received with love. God is the father you always hoped for, and you’re the child He always wanted. If you have any doubts about that, look at the cross; that’s how much God loves you. Today you belong to God!

Isaiah 37-38, Ephesians 6

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Feed your mind good stuff
23 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘I have taught you in the way of wisdom.’
Proverbs 4:11 NKJV


Sometimes we feed our pets bad things – things they shouldn’t be fed. And when bad things go into a pet, bad things come out of a pet. We know that about our pets but forget it when it comes to our minds. Every day we are bombarded with messages from the media, employers, co-workers, people we date, books, music – and from our own thoughts. Satan works in two ways. First, he tries to feed you with stuff like temptation, depression, and worry. Second, he tries to keep you from noticing what you’re putting into your mind.

A healthy mind feeds on healthy thoughts. Jesus said He came to give us ‘life more abundantly’ (see John 10:10). Instead of constantly striving for self-worth, peace of mind, joy and happiness, your mind can overflow with these things. But first you must pay attention to what your mind is focused on. Jeremiah said, ‘When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight’ (Jeremiah 15:16 NIV). One of the greatest gifts God has given us is Scripture – but we frequently turn it into a burden. ‘Do I have to read the Bible every day?’ That’s the wrong question. You need to ask, ‘What can I feed my mind on today so that it will flourish?’

The psalmist said that when you delight in God’s Word, you will prosper in whatever you do (see Psalm 1:1-3). In order to have what successful people enjoy, you must first do what successful people do. And according to the psalmist, successful people delight in the Word of God day and night.

Isaiah 39-40, Philippians 1

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Seek God’s approval, not people’s
24 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘Fearing people is a dangerous trap.’
Proverbs 29:25 NLT


If your life’s goal is to have the approval of people, you will never really feel secure. Why is that? Because the time will come when you do something they disapprove of; then what? The Bible says, ‘Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety’ (v. 25 NLT). A trap is just another word for a prison.

If someone other than God can determine your worth as a person, that someone can make you feel like a prisoner anytime they decide to. When a critic’s opinion becomes your own opinion, you’re living in a prison of your own making. Face it: some of the people you’re trying so hard to impress will never be impressed. And you must accept this: from God’s perspective, it doesn’t matter. Knowing that enables you to work alongside people without allowing yourself to be controlled by their moods and governed by their opinions.

Each time Paul went to another town, people were meeting and hearing him for the first time. Some of them liked him, and some didn’t. He writes, ‘For some say, “Paul’s letters are demanding and forceful, but in person he is weak, and his speeches are worthless!”’ (2 Corinthians 10:10 NLT). So how did Paul handle this? He writes, ‘Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant’ (Galatians 1:10 NLT).

In order to feel secure in life and fulfilled in what you’re doing, you must reach the place where you can look in the mirror and say, ‘I’m loved and approved by God, and that’s what matters!’

Isaiah 41-42, Philippians 2

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

How to keep a good attitude
25 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘I will praise you seven times a day.’
Psalm 119:164 TLB

A bad attitude is like a flat tyre; you won’t get anywhere until you change it. Few things in life are more important than your attitude, and here are four ways you can keep a good one:

1) Realise your attitude needs to be constantly adjusted. Anything you don’t maintain eventually deteriorates. The stronger your natural inclination is towards doubt and negativity, the more you will have to work at it. So begin each day with an attitude check, and throughout the day, look for red flags signalling that you’re not doing so well.

2) Pray because you will need God’s help to maintain a good attitude. The Bible says: ‘Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you’ (Psalm 37:3-5 NLT).

3) Look for what’s good, and you will find it. Mother Teresa required two things from those who worked with her in the Calcutta slums: a desire to work, and a joyful attitude. Think: if she could be joyful amongst the dying and destitute, surely you can too!

4) Look for people with faith and spend time with them. Where are they? You will find them soaring above the doubters like eagles. If you’re having a bad day, get close and ‘draft’ behind them the way racers do. If they’re having difficulty, you be the one to get out in front and make things easier. Seven times a day David paused to praise God. Can you imagine what that would do for your attitude?

Luke 18:18-43, Psalms 100-102

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

‘Whatever’
26 SEPTEMBER 2022
‘If anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.’
Philippians 4:8 NIV

To instruct us about how to feed our minds, the apostle Paul writes: ‘Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.’

John Ortberg writes: ‘The striking word in that command is whatever. Our minds are being shaped all the time, but we have great freedom to pursue minds that flourish. As a bee that can find nectar in all kinds of flowers, we are now free – even commanded – to feed our mind on noble thoughts wherever we find them. The Bible itself commands us to look beyond just the Bible to feed our minds. Let us meditate for a moment on that phrase “whatever is lovely”. Think of something that is “lovely” to you. A sunset. A favourite novel…The face of someone you love. Music that makes you dance. Let your mind dwell there for a moment. Give it directed mental focus. You just obeyed the Bible. That “counts”. You just opened your mind a bit to the flow of the Holy Spirit…

'The Holy Spirit’s goal is not to get you really good at suppressing angry behaviour. It is for you to have a mind characterised by an ever-increasing flow of Spirit-guided, truth-based, life-producing thoughts and feelings. When we read about what is noble, when we see something praiseworthy, we experience what psychologist Jonathan Haidt called “elevation”. We actually feel a slight expansion in our chest; we feel lighter in our bodies. Our emotions are inspired, and we want to become more excellent ourselves. That counts as obedience to Scripture. That is spiritual.’

Isaiah 43-44, Philippians 3

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Cultivating a taste for God’s Word
27 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!’
Psalm 119:103 NIV

The fact that we now enjoy the vegetables we hated as children indicates that as we mature, we can cultivate a taste for healthy, life-giving food. And since the Bible is soul food, you can cultivate a taste for that too.

Eugene Peterson writes: ‘Christians feed on Scripture. Holy Scripture nurtures the holy community as food nurtures the human body. Christians don’t simply learn or study or use Scripture; we assimilate it, take it into our lives in…a way that it gets metabolised into acts of love.’

Consumer research indicates the average Bible owner has nine Bibles and is looking for more. What’s wrong with this picture? The unexpressed secret is that many people find the Bible boring. This is quite a recent problem – and a serious one. Ancient Greek, the language of the New Testament, has no word for boredom. The word didn’t acquire its current meaning in English until the last few centuries. When we consider the ancient world – no television, internet, movies, and virtually no books – we’re inclined to think how boring it must have been. But the ancients weren’t bored. We’re the generation that gets bored, because capacity to focus our attention and delight our minds in prolonged thought has been diminished by dependency on external stimuli. We have too many tempting alternatives. That’s why becoming a faithful Bible reader begins as a discipline, continues as a duty, and finally becomes a delight.

‘How sweet are your words…sweeter than honey to my mouth!’ And that can be your experience, too, when it comes to reading God’s Word. You just need to get serious about it.

Isaiah 45-46, Philippians 4

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Knowing who belongs in your life
28 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘A friend loves at all times, and is born, as is a brother, for adversity.’
Proverbs 17:17 AMPC

Wherever you live and whatever your profession, ‘butcher, baker, or candlestick maker’, you will have to deal with these three kinds of people:

1) The critic. Let’s face it, most people are comfortable with the status quo. They not only fear change but will often attack it. So if you dare to be different, prepare to sail through some rough seas. The apostle Paul’s critics referred to him as a madman, a fool, and a babbler. So why would you expect the same crowd to treat you any better?

2) The cautious. These people won’t point an accusing finger, but neither will they extend a helping hand. When you get into trouble, they will distance themselves from you, fearing they may be tainted by your perceived liabilities. Basically, they will wait to see if you make it through the tunnel and come out the other side. Then they will wait to see who else accepts you and if you can be of benefit to them. Then they may reconnect with you. These people are users. They are not bad; they’re just self-serving. So love them, but don’t lean on them.

3) The committed. ‘A friend loves at all times, and is born, as is a brother, for adversity.’ Even when they hear the worst about you, the committed still believe the best about you. They value you for your strengths and show grace in handling your weaknesses. These people are priceless because they will love you ‘at all times’. So when God puts such a person into your life, protect and nurture your relationship with them.

Isaiah 47-49, Colossians 1

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

The blessing of repentance (1)
29 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘The kindness of God leads you to repentance.’
Romans 2:4 NASB

When you find yourself on the wrong road, repentance allows you to make a U-turn and head back in the right direction. What a blessing. Now, repenting doesn’t increase God’s desire to be with you; it just increases your capacity to be with Him. Sometimes we think we need to repent because God is mad at us and needs time to cool off. Or we think of repenting as a way of punishing ourselves so that God will be less severe with us. That’s not repentance, that’s low self-esteem!

Low self-esteem causes you to believe that you have so little worth that your response doesn’t matter. With repentance, however, you understand that because you’re worth so much to God, your response is important. Paul says, ‘The kindness of God leads you to repentance.’ When you love God, your greatest concern isn’t that God will hurt you, but that your actions will hurt Him.

When David murdered Uriah after having slept with his wife, he went a year without repenting. He had to force his mind not to think about it. What a miserable way to live. In his penitential prayer, he said, ‘My sin is always before me’ (Psalm 51:3 NIV). Then he cried, ‘Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow…Create in me a pure heart, O God…Restore to me the joy of your salvation’ (vv. 7, 10, 12 NIV). As a result, God forgave him and wiped his slate clean, and David went on to become Israel’s greatest king. You see, repentance isn’t merely for God’s benefit – it’s for yours!

Isaiah 50-52, Colossians 2

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™


The blessing of repentance (2)
30 SEPTEMBER 2022

‘Create in me a clean heart.’
Psalm 51:10 NKJV

A Christian author writes: ‘Sometimes people are afraid that if they don’t change fast enough, God will get impatient with them. They don’t generally use these words, but they wonder, “How much sin can there be in my life before I need to start worrying? Is there a level of sin that is acceptable for a Christian, and if you go beyond it, you’re in danger – like with the level of mercury in Lake Michigan? Is there a limit to impurity, such as the Food and Drug Administration has? Is the standard high like that for homogenised milk, or is it like the standard of purity required for hot dogs, with lots of room for junk? Is it possible to be a Christian and just never grow?” The issue is not whether God will get tired of forgiving our sins. Forgiving is always the right response to sincere repentance. God is not worried that He might be taken advantage of.’

The danger isn’t that God won’t respond to our honest repentance. The danger is that we might become so trapped in the dangerous thoughts sin inevitably produces that we become callous, complacent, and simply unable to repent! It’s because of this that sin must be taken seriously.

Missionary Frank Laubach preached the gospel to a tribe that had a lengthy history of bloodshed. The chief was so moved, he repented and accepted Christ on the spot. Then he turned to Laubach in appreciation and said, ‘This is wonderful! Who do you want me to kill for you?’ That was his beginning point. Only God knows what everyone’s beginning point is. What’s yours?

Isaiah 53-55, Colossians 3