Foursquare Gospel Church Igbosere (Chapel of Blessing)

OUR DAILY BREAD August 4, Sunday ASK THE MAN WHO OWNS ONE Kirsten Holmberg Let me tell you what [God] has done for me.  Psalm 66:16 Psalm 66:1, 8–20 Psalms 66–67; Romans 7 In the early 1900s, the Packard Motor Car Company generated a slogan to entice buyers. “Ask the man who owns one” became a powerful tagline, one that contributed to the company’s reputation as manufacturing the dominant luxury vehicle in that era. What Packard seemed to understand is that personal testimony is compelling to the hearer: a friend’s satisfaction with a product is a powerful endorsement. Sharing with others our personal experiences of God’s goodness to us also makes an impact. God invites us to declare our gratitude and joy not only to Him but also to those around us (Psalm 66:1). The psalmist eagerly shared in his song the forgiveness God granted him when he turned from his sins (vv. 18–20). God has done amazing works in the course of history, such as parting the waters of the Red S...

OUR DAILY BREAD August 3, Saturday FOR LOVE OR MONEY Bill Crowder Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.  Luke 12:15 Luke 19:1–10 Psalms 63–65; Romans 6 Irish poet Oscar Wilde said, “When I was young I thought that money was the most important thing in life; now that I am old I know that it is.” His comment was made tongue-in-cheek; he lived only to age forty-six, so he never truly was “old.” Wilde fully understood that life is not about money. Money is temporary; it comes and it goes. So life must be about more than money and what it can buy. Jesus challenged the people of His generation—rich and poor alike—to a recalibrated value system. In Luke 12:15, Jesus said, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” In our culture, where there’s an abiding focus on  more ...

OUR DAILY BREAD August 2, Thursday FROM TRASH TO TREASURE Patricia Raybon We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.  2 Corinthians 4:7 2 Corinthians 4:5–7 Psalms 60–62; Romans 5 The trash man’s house sits atop a steep street in a poor Bogota neighborhood. Not one thing about it looks special. Yet the unassuming abode in Colombia’s capital is home to a free library of 25,000 books—discarded literature that Jose Alberto Gutierrez collected to share with poor children in his community. Local kids crowd into the house during weekend “library hours.” Prowling through every room, each packed with books, the children recognize the humble home as more than Señor Jose’s house—it’s a priceless treasury. The same is true for every follower of Christ. We’re made of humble clay—marred by cracks and easily broken. But we’re entrusted b...

OUR DAILY BREAD August 1, Thursday THE BULLDOG AND THE SPRINKLER Adam Holz I pray that you . . . may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.  Ephesians 3:17, 19 Ephesians 3:14–21 Psalms 57–59; Romans 4 Most summer mornings, a delightful drama plays out in the park behind our house. It involves a sprinkler. And a bulldog. About 6:30 or so, the sprinklers come on. Shortly thereafter, Fifi the bulldog (our family’s name for her) arrives. Fifi’s owner lets her off her leash. The bulldog sprints with all her might to the nearest sprinkler, attacking the stream of water as it douses her face. If Fifi could eat the sprinkler, I think she would. It’s a portrait of utter exuberance, of Fifi’s seemingly infinite desire to be drenched by the liquid she can never get enough of. There are no bulldogs in the Bible, or sprinklers. Yet, in a way, Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3 reminds me of Fifi. There, Paul prays that the Ephesian believers might be filled with God’s love an...

OUR DAILY BREAD July 31, Wednesday WHO WE ARE Peter Chin This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name.  Acts 9:15 Acts 9:13–16 Psalms 54–56; Romans 3 I’ll never forget the time I took my future wife to meet my family. With a twinkle in their eyes, my two elder siblings asked her, “What exactly do you see in this guy?” She smiled and assured them that by God’s grace I had grown to be the man she loved. I loved that clever reply because it also reflects how, in Christ, the Lord sees more than our past. In Acts 9, He directed Ananias to heal Saul, a known persecutor of the church whom God had blinded. Ananias was incredulous at receiving this mission, stating that Saul had been rounding up believers in Jesus for persecution and even execution. God told Ananias not to focus on who Saul had been but on who he had become: an evangelist who would bring the good news to all the known world, including to the gentiles (those who weren...

OUR DAILY BREAD July 30, Tuesday READY FOR RESTORATION Arthur Jackson Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?  Psalm 85:6 Psalm 85 Psalms 51–53; Romans 2 While stationed in Germany in the army I purchased a brand-new 1969 Volkswagen Beetle. The car was a beauty! The dark green exterior complemented the brown leatherette interior. But as the years took their toll, stuff began to happen, including an accident that ruined the running board and destroyed one of the doors. With more imagination, I could have thought, “My classic car was a perfect candidate for restoration!” And with more money, I could have pulled it off. But that didn’t happen. Thankfully the God of perfect vision and unlimited resources doesn’t give up so easily on battered and broken people. Psalm 85 describes people who were perfect candidates for restoration and the God who is able to restore. The setting is likely after the Israelites had returned...

OUR DAILY BREAD July 29, Monday ALL FOR NOTHING Mike Wittmer Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death.  Proverbs 7:27 Proverbs 7:10–27 Psalms 49–50; Romans 1 Heroin addiction is poignantly tragic. Users build tolerance, so larger hits are required for the same high. Soon the dosage they seek is more than enough to kill them. When addicts hear someone has died from an exceptionally strong batch, their first thought may not be fear but “Where can I get that?” C. S. Lewis warned of this downward spiral in  Screwtape Letters,  his imaginative look at a demon’s explanation of the art of temptation. Start with some pleasure—if possible one of God’s good pleasures—and offer it in a way God has forbidden. Once the person bites, give less of it while enticing him to want more. Provide “an ever increasing craving for an ever diminishing pleasure,” until finally we “get the...