God has wonderful plans for your life

How does God lead?

"My sheep recognize my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish." John 10:27-28 NLT

Hearing His voiceAs our Good Shepherd, Jesus promises that we can hear and know His voice. This does not, however, have to be some mysterious, mystical process. In fact, you may be surprised to learn that God speaks to you quite often. I would venture to say He has spoken to you lately and may be speaking to you right now in some way. God speaks to us through His Word. God will never lead us contrary to His written Word. It is our litmus test, our bedrock, our absolute.

God speaks to us through circumstances. Those circumstances can include failure. Jonah certainly heard God through his mistake. God may even speak to us through tragedy or hardship. C. S. Lewis wrote that, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains. It is His megaphone to arouse a deaf world."

God speaks to us through His peace. When we live in God's will, we enjoy His peace. Do you need God to make a crucial call in your life? Then listen for His peace.

And once we have heard God's voice, what should we do? We must follow. Jesus calls, we respond. He whispers, we move. We follow-and then we keep on listening. Adapted from Breakfast with Jesus by Greg Laurie (Tyndale House) pp 243-45

Turn Turn Turn

For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.Ecclesiastes 3:1

The first few verses of Ecclesiastes 3 remind me of a song from my distant past. Long before I knew what it meant to have a personal relationship with the Lord, Turn, Turn, Turn by the Byrds was played at my high school graduation ceremony. The song begins by quoting a version of these words from Solomon. I liked the song, but I don't remember ever wondering what all the "turning" was about. I probably would have guessed it had to do with the seasons turning. I didn't know the source of the song. What I didn't realize then is that God is the source of all life (Num. 16:22). He makes everything perfect in its season. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them (Rom. 8:28).
When Solomon says in verse 1, "there is . . . a time," I appreciate just how fleeting that time is. He doesn't say, "there is time"; he tells us there is "a time." Psalm 102:11 points out that life passes as swiftly as the evening shadows. When the Scripture refers to "everything," I'm reminded there is nothing new under heaven. God has seen all that has happened, is happening, and will happen under heaven. Whatever our circumstances, they are not unique. It is also a comfort to think of our shameful, difficult, or unhealthy situations as lasting only a period of time or for a "season." Solomon writes later in chapter 3 that God has planted eternity in the human heart. Eternity cannot be found in life's cycles. The secret to peace with God is to determine, accept, and value God's perfect timing. We have to keep turning back to him. To doubt God's timing is to move ahead without his advice. All things apart from God are empty and pointless. Solomon affirms the value of knowledge, relationships, work, and pleasure, but only in their proper place. No joy or contentment is possible without God. We should strive to know and love God. He is the giver of wisdom, knowledge, and joy. Every moment and every season is another opportunity to turn, turn, turn back to him. Devotional by: Tyndale New Living Translation

Religion is still There

Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. Psalm 100:4

The other day, one of my associates was in a large law office in the Chicago area. Hearing a commotion in the corridor, he and the lawyer he was visiting went to see what was going on. It was a birthday celebration; and as the cake was brought into the room, everyone sang a rousing chorus of "Happy Birthday."
At the end of the song, the woman leading the celebration said, "Now, let's sing the second verse," and proceeded to lead everyone in "How old are you . . ." And everyone laughed when the woman whose birthday it was declined to reveal her age. Then the leader suggested singing the third verse and began to sing, "May God bless you." Politely, a coworker interrupted and objected: "I thought we're not supposed to bring religion into the workplace," he said.
The leader quickly responded, "Honey, religion comes in when I do!"
Later, I thought of how simple and yet how profound her answer was. Regardless of how people may talk about the division between sacred and secular and the separation of church and state, the fact is that God can never be removed or legislated away-he is present everywhere, and he enters specifically through the lives of those who trust him. I also thought of the countless discussions about how Christians can make a difference in the world, sharing the gospel and witnessing to their friends and neighbors. For example, I work with an organization called the Gathering of Men whose goal is to reach business executives for Christ. We are always thinking of evangelism approaches and strategies. But the truth is that the most effective witness is Christians, like that woman, living for Christ wherever they are and then gently and lovingly telling of their faith when the occasions arise.What about you and your office, store, factory, classroom, warehouse, restaurant-wherever you work? Does God come in when you do? Has God made a difference in your life that others can see? What do your coworkers know about God and faith because of the way you live?