Starting the New Year

...choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve...
Joshua 24:15b NKJV

New Year's Day marks the anniversary of the first Promise for Today that I emailed to a handful of friends and family members in 1996. When I first started the Promise, I used other people's devotions from books I had and then later, I purchased more. We went through quite a few over the years. Sometimes, I'd take them directly from a book, but I always let people know what book we were using. And sometimes I would elaborate and add my own comments. Those of you who know me know that written words are my passion... but this started with the works of others.

Then in 2007, my beloved former pastor, Doc (Dr. Howard O. Jameson) challenged me to step up, to make it personal and write from my heart about how God's Word affects me, rather than from someone else's heart and perspective. It has been the most challenged commitment of my life.

The Promise for Today started with the following excerpt from Max Lucado's book, When God Whispers Your Name. Every year, I send it out as the first Promise of the New Year to remind us of our choices and the decisions we must make.

Max Lucado writes:

It's quiet. It's early. The coffee is hot. The sky is still black. The world is still asleep. The day is coming. In a few moments the day will arrive. It will roar down the track with the rising of the sun. The stillness of the dawn will be exchanged for the noise of the day. The calm of solitude will be replaced by the pounding pace of the human race. The refuge of the early morning will be invaded by decisions to be made and deadlines to be met.

For the next twelve hours I will be exposed to the day's demands. It is now that I must make a choice. Because of Calvary, I am free to choose. And so I choose.

I Choose Love... No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness. I choose love. Today I will love God and what God loves.

I Choose Joy... I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical... the tool of the lazy thinker. I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings, created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God.

I Choose Peace... I will live forgiven. I will forgive so that I may live.

I Choose Patience... I will overlook the inconveniences of the world. Instead of cursing the one who takes my place, I'll invite him to do so. Rather than complain that the wait is too long, I will thank God for a moment to pray. Instead of clenching my fist at new assignments, I will face them with joy and courage.

I Choose Kindness... I will be kind to the poor, for they are alone. Kind to the rich, for they are afraid. And kind to the unkind, for such is how God has treated me.

I Choose Goodness... I will go without a dollar before I take a dishonest one. I will be overlooked before I will boast. I will confess before I will accuse. I choose goodness.

I Choose Faithfulness... Today I will keep my promises. My debtors will not regret their trust. My associates will not question my word. My wife will not question my love. And my children will never fear that their father will not come home.

I Choose Gentleness... Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice may it be only in praise. If I clench my fist, may it be only in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself.

I Choose Self-Control... I am a spiritual being... After this body is dead, my spirit will soar. I refuse to let what will rot, rule the eternal. I choose self-control. I will be drunk only by joy. I will be impassioned only by my faith. I will be influenced only by God. I will be taught only by Christ. I choose self-control.

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. To these I commit my day. If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek his grace. And then, when this day is done, I will place my head on my pillow and rest.

Prayer:

Father,
           We choose You. Thank You for the power of Your Word to change our lives and our choices for how we live the life You have given us. Give us the courage to walk in the conviction of Your Word. Father, we ask that You guide us in EACH step of life. I pray Your provision and protection over those You have allowed me to touch with Your Word. Let us be ever mindful of You, Lord, the Author and Finisher of our faith. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

* Supply and Demand

[Jesus speaking] "So don't worry about these things, saying, 'What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?' These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need."

Matthew 6:31-33

I'm going back to one of my landmarks to give God praise yet again, to testify to you who I know God to be, and to remind myself of what I know. 

I had a bill come in that was totally unexpected. I was not happy. I talked about it to several of my friends. You know, complaining, Oh Woe is me... Wah Wah! Call the Wah-mbulance... 

Then God talked to ME about it.

I don't mean physically came down and talked to me. I mean Scripture that I've read popped into my head or I was reminded by something I heard or read elsewhere. Till finally, I asked God to forgive me for not trusting Him in all things. I'm ashamed about how quickly I'd forgotten His provision for me. I slapped myself like a V-8 commercial and said aloud, "God, You are my Provider. You have always been and You always will be. I choose You. I don't know  how You will, but I know You and I know You will."

The next day, in going through some files at the office, I found an expense report that was six months old. It had no marking that it had been processed, so I called and asked about it. It had not been processed. It was a little less than one-third of the unexpected bill, but I thanked God for it. Unexpected provision. Then I got a check in the mail from the insurance company that had paid me disability while I was off work for those months. Two days prior to that, I'd gotten a letter stating that it had been 60 days since I returned to work and my case was officially closed. I thought the check was a mistake somehow. I called to let them know that I'd received another check. The agent informed me that in closing the case, they discovered they had underpaid me by this amount... the amount that, combined with the expense report, paid in full the unexpected bill.

...but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs... I'm not talking about prosperity or a Gimme God. He's not a good luck charm. He knows what we NEED. It's as true today as it was then.

What do you need? You need a Savior? You need peace? You need wisdom? You need healing? His Word promises that He will give us everything we need. Maybe it's not always the way we plan or think, but when we go to Him, when we trust Him, God supplies what we need for the demands on our lives. 

Prayer:

Father,

          You are all I need. Thank You for always being there for me in spite of myself. Help me to get me out of the way of what You want to do in my life. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen