Foursquare Gospel Church Igbosere (Chapel of Blessing)

OUR DAILY BREAD June 21, SUNDAY THE MAN IN SEAT 2D Kirsten HOLMBERG Be rich in good deeds, and [be] generous and willing to share.  1 Timothy 6:18 1 Timothy 6:17–19 Esther 3–5; Acts 5:22–42 Kelsey navigated the narrow airplane aisle with her eleven-month-old daughter, Lucy, and Lucy’s oxygen machine. They were traveling to seek treatment for her baby’s chronic lung disease. Shortly after settling into their shared seat, a flight attendant approached Kelsey, saying a passenger in first class wanted to switch seats with her. With tears of gratitude streaming down her face, Kelsey made her way back up the aisle to the more spacious seat, while the benevolent stranger made his way toward hers. Kelsey’s benefactor embodied the kind of generosity Paul encourages in his letter to Timothy. Paul told Timothy to instruct those in his care with the command to “do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share” (1 Timothy 6:18). It’s tempting, Paul says, to become arro...

OUR DAILY BREAD June 20, Saturday IS GOD THERE? Leslie Koh I will wait for the  Lord  . . . . I will put my trust in him.  Isaiah 8:17 Isaiah 8:16–18 Esther 1–2; Acts 5:1–21 Lela was dying of cancer, and her husband, Timothy, couldn’t understand why a loving God would let his wife suffer. She had served Him faithfully as a Bible teacher and mentor to many. “Why did You let this happen?” he cried. Yet Timothy continued to be faithful in his walk with God. “So why do you still believe in God?” I asked him frankly. “What keeps you from turning away from Him?” “Because of what has happened before,” Timothy replied. While he couldn’t “see” God now, he recalled the times when God had helped and protected him. These were signs that God was still there caring for his family. “I know the God I believe in will come through in His own way,” he said. Timothy’s words echo Isaiah’s expression of trust in Isaiah 8:17. Even when he couldn’t feel God’s presence as his people braced for tr...

OUR DAILY BREAD June 19, Friday  LIFE TO THE FULL Remi Oyedele I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. I am the good shepherd. John 10:10–11 John 10:7–11 Nehemiah 12–13; Acts 4:23–37 Seventeenth-century philosopher Thomas Hobbes famously wrote that human life in its natural state is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” Hobbes argued that our instincts tend toward war in a bid to attain dominance over others; thus the establishment of government would be necessary to maintain law and order. The bleak view of humanity sounds like the state of affairs that Jesus described when He said, “All who have come before me are thieves and robbers” (John 10:8). But Jesus offers hope in the midst of despair. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy,” but then the good news: “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (v. 10). Psalm 23 paints a refreshing portrait of the life our Shepherd gives us. In Him, we “lack nothing” (v. 1) and ar...

OUR DAILY BREAD June 18, Thursday STRAIGHT AHEAD John Blase He did what was right in the eyes of the L ord  . . . , not turning aside to the right or to the left.  2 Kings 22:2 2 Kings 22:1–2, 8–13 Nehemiah 10–11; Acts 4:1–22 It used to take the steady eye and the firm hand of a farmer to drive a tractor or combine down straight rows. But even the best eyes would overlap rows, and by end of day even the strongest hands would be fatigued. But now there’s autosteer—a GPS-based technology that allows for accuracy to within one inch when planting, cultivating, and spraying. It’s incredibly efficient and hands-free. Just imagine sitting in a mammoth combine and instead of gripping the wheel, you’re gripping a roast beef sandwich. An amazing tool to keep you moving straight ahead. You may recall the name Josiah. He was crowned king when he was only “eight years old” (2 Kings 22:1). Years later, in his mid-twenties, Hilkiah the high priest found “the Book of the Law” in the temp...

OUR DAILY BREAD June 17, Wednesday DANCING BEFORE THE LORD David H. Roper Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume?”  Mark 14:4 Mark 14:1–9 Nehemiah 7–9; Acts 3 A number of years ago, my wife and I visited a small church where during the worship service a woman began to dance in the aisle. She was soon joined by others. Carolyn and I looked at each other and an unspoken agreement passed between us: “Not me!” We come from church traditions that favor a serious liturgy, and this other form of worship was well beyond our comfort zone. But if Mark’s story of Mary’s “waste” means anything at all, it suggests that our love for Jesus may express itself in ways that others find uncomfortable (Mark 14:1–9). A year’s wages were involved in Mary’s anointing. It was an “unwise” act that invited the disciples’ scorn. The word Mark uses to describe their reaction means “to snort” and suggests disdain and mockery. Mary may have cringed, fe...

OUR DAILY BREAD June 16, Tuesday JUST-IN-CASE IDOLS Mike Wittmer They have followed other gods to serve them.  Jeremiah 11:10 Jeremiah 11:9–13 Nehemiah 4–6; Acts 2:22–47 Sam checks his retirement account twice each day. He saved for thirty years, and with the boost of a rising stock market, finally has enough to retire. As long as stocks don’t plunge. This fear keeps Sam worrying about his balance. Jeremiah warned about this: “You, Judah, have as many gods as you have towns; and the altars you have set up to burn incense to that shameful god Baal are as many as the streets of Jerusalem” (11:13). Judah’s idolatry is remarkable. They knew the Lord was God. How could they worship anyone else? They were hedging their bets. They needed the Lord for the afterlife, because only the true God could raise them from the dead. But what about now? Pagan gods promised health, wealth, and fertility, so why not pray to them too, just in case? Can you see how Judah’s idolatry is also...

OUR DAILY BREAD . June 15, Monday  HOW TO REBUILD Dave Branon They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work.  Nehemiah 2:18 Nehemiah 2:11–18 Nehemiah 1–3; Acts 2:1–21 It was nighttime when the leader set out by horseback to inspect the work that lay ahead. As he toured the destruction all around him, he saw city walls that had been destroyed and gates that had been burned. In some areas, the vast debris made it tough for his horse to get through. Saddened, the rider turned toward home. When it came time to report the damage to the officials of the city, he began by saying, “You see the trouble we are in” (Nehemiah 2:17). He reported that the city was in ruins, and the protecting city wall had been rendered useless. But then he made a statement that energized the troubled citizens: “I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me.” Immediately, the people replied, “Let us start rebuilding” (v. 18). And they  did . With faith in God and all-...