Guidelines For Living Devotional

Those Who Are Rich

Almost everyone understands that the words of Jesus, "Do to others what you would have them to do to you," are known as the Golden Rule (see Matthew 7:12); but in the real world the Golden Rule is, "He who has the gold has the rule."  "Money talks!" we say, and few would deny that money has power.  That thought was the reasoning behind the sign which reads, "Money is not everything in life, but it is way ahead of whatever is in second place."

God’s Will

For a moment suppose that God has a blueprint, a plan for your life.  Now if God has a plan for your life, would it not have to be a good one?  After all, He created you, and He knows you better than you know yourself.  He sees your life in the focus of all eternity while with our human limitations we simply see today.

Good News: Forgiveness

"To err is human; to forgive, divine," said the wise man long ago.  It's true, but of all the transactions which take place between people, none is more difficult than to seek and give forgiveness.  There's good news, however.  Forgiveness is the key to emotional and spiritual healing and the passport to your future happiness.  It's God's way of eliminating the cancer of hatred and anger which rips the fabric of relationships apart much as a little boy tears the wrapper off a candy bar.

Kill The Kings In The Cave

Five kings in a cave!  A rather strange place for royalty.  It happened years ago; in fact the event took place about 1400 B.C.  "That's ancient history," you might say, and I would agree; yet there is a contemporary application.  The five kings were enemies of Israel, and Joshua brought them out and executed them as a visual lesson as to what God would do to the rest of their enemies.

The Enemy Of Deception

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words.  Who knows, it may even be worth more than a thousand.  Joshua, the charismatic leader of God's people, centuries ago, certainly believed that.  When he did battle with five kings and the kings holed up in a cave, Joshua had them brought out one by one and had them kneel, putting his foot on their necks, and then killed them, as a picture of what God was going to do to the enemies of Israel.  There is one thing for sure:  there was no compromise in the way that Joshua dealt with the situation.  Those five never bothered Israel again.

Five Kings In A Cave

How would you answer this:  Is it all right for a husband to lie to his wife to protect her?  Or should he tell her how bad things really are?  Is honesty always the best policy?  What would you say?

Protecting For All You're Worth

Have you ever stood on the banks of two great rivers and watched them merge?  When two rivers come together, there is a great deal of turbulence before the waters flow smoothly.  That's the way it often is when two become one and forge a new family.

Protecting The Fragile Relationships Of Your Family

My son, Steve, is a rock climber, something that is much too much for me.  I'm like Sir Francis Chichester, who said, "I will lift mine eyes unto the hills but I will not take my carcass thither."  Anyway, Steve and two of his friends were climbing the highest peak in Switzerland when they stopped to catch their breath and noticed three climbers on the face of an incline a short distance from where they were.  As they watched, the lead climber suddenly lost his footing and fell. 

Dare To Be A David

"We took on Goliath!" advertises a small business whose product is overshadowed by a major manufacturer.  The David versus Goliath syndrome means the little guy goes against the giant.  There are times when the little guy goes against the big one and gets flattened like a steamroller does a stray cat.  But what's the real story behind the confrontation of David with Goliath long ago?

Your Integrity Is Showing!

A reporter from a Toronto newspaper was asked to do a story on garages which made unreasonable charges.  The reporter pulled a couple wires lose in the electrical system of his car and drove into garages asking for an estimate on repairs which varied from $25 to over $400.  After he got the estimates, he declined to have the work done, drove around the corner and hooked up the wires, and went on  to the next garage.  He pulled into the thirteenth garage and explained the problem‑‑a severe miss in the engine so Cecil Baynton poked around for a few minutes and spotted the problem, plugged in the wires, and the car was running like new.  "How much do I owe you?" asked the reporter.  "Oh, nothing at all!"  "Surely I must owe you something," countered the reporter (whose identity wasn't known to Cecil).  "Naw," he said, "I'm a Christian and run an honest shop!"  He refused payment.