Craig's Living H2O

August 31st - "Knowing Him"

"This is what the LORD says: 'Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,' declares the LORD."   Jeremiah 9:23-24

 

You can succeed at everything else in life, but if you fail to "know Christ," you have failed. Those who know Him, love Him deeply. Once the Apostle Paul encountered Christ, it altered the entire course of his life and his sole ambition became, "I want to know Christ." Those who know Him best, seek Him the most.

 

"I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death."   Philippians 3:10

August 30th - "Friendship"

"And Jonathan had David reaffirm his oath out of love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself."
1 Samuel 20:17

Have you discovered the value of being a true friend? One who sticks with the other through thick and thin? Have you been on the receiving end of a friend being there for you, when others would surely have forsaken you? Oh the marvelous value of a true friend! Jonathan and David's story is an excellent example of how far friends will go for one another. If you want to get inspired to be a better friend, read or reread their story.

"After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself."   1 Samuel 18:1

August 29th - "The Road Less Traveled"

"Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man whose strength is in You, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. Passing through the Valley of Weeping (Baca), they make it a place of springs; the early rain also fills [the pools] with blessings. They go from strength to strength [increasing in victorious power]; each of them appears before God in Zion.    Psalm 84:5-7  The Amplified Bible

 

God wants to establish the "roads to Zion" in our heart. These roads allow us easy access into the Presence of God, easy access into Spirit-led intercession and prayer, easy access for "help in the time of need." Along these roads God turns our tears into "pools of blessings." That doesn't mean that the bad things that happen to us are somehow made good; but He turns "what is meant for evil, for our good." Those who will travel these roads, without going back, will "go from strength to strength (increasing in victorious power)." May we all be under construction, with more and improved roads to Zion being established in our lives. May God build a super-highway in each of us.

August 28th - "Mercy"

"For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment."    James 2:13

 

Are you one of those people who has set yourself up as a self-appointed deputy on God's police force? One of those who seem to believe that their function in the body of Christ is to judge everything and everybody. Well, I am telling you now, I am not signing up for that job! One thing I have learned about this life is that all of us need great amounts of mercy extended to us. If we are to receive it, we must be generously dispensing it. "Judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy." Who wants to sign up for that? These "deputies" say with their attitudes, "Well, if you ever become as mature in the Lord as I am, and if you ever get to my level - seeing what I see; you would never put up with this! I am too pure for this. My family is too pure for this." They have got it all wrong. They think their judgment triumphs over mercy, but mercy will always come out on top. "Mercy triumphs over judgment."  Mercy trumps judgment every time! This means that you can't go wrong with mercy. Even when a judgment must be rendered, it should be driven by mercy. All those who see themselves as "strong and mature in the Lord," have an "obligation" to extend mercy and not judgment. They have a debt to pay for all the mercy that they have received:

"We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves."    Romans 15:1

 

The game is not about the strong anymore! It is about the "weak." Why can't churches and individuals get this? This truth is not cloaked in difficult language, but it is right out there for us see. Once you are mature and in the kingdom, you are one of the "ninety-nine," and the lost "one" takes the precedence. "The first becomes last, and the last becomes first." So try mercy. You will like its boomerang effect.

August 27th - "Keep Doing the Right Things"

"Thus says the Lord: 'Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon My salvation will come, and My deliverance be revealed.:"   Isaiah 56:1

 

Have you been waiting a long time for your deliverance? Has your waiting caused your heart to faint? Hear the Word of the Lord today, 'Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon My salvation will come, and My deliverance be revealed." God is saying, "Keep on doing the right things that you are doing. Don't stop. Hold steady for soon My salvation will come." Our God does not abandon us in our hour of need, but rather, He draws closer:

"I called on Your name, O  Lord, from the depths of the pit; You heard my plea, 'Do not close Your ear to my cry for help!' You came near when I called on You; You said, 'Do not fear!'"   Lamentations 3:55-57

 

August 26th - "Picking the Wrong Fight"

"But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken Him... for we keep the charge of the Lord our God... Now behold, God is with us at our head ... do not fight against the Lord God of your fathers, for you will not succeed."    2 Chronicles 13:10-12

You fight with us, you fight with God. We should always keep ourselves in this position by keeping the "charge of the Lord." When we "keep His charge," God fights our battles. Poor devil! When we take care of His business, He takes care of ours. Battle confidence exudes from proven daily obedience and faithfulness to His voice. May our war cry be, "Oh Lord, show Your right arm of strength and rout the enemy!"

"Watch the path of your feet and all your ways will be established. Do not turn to the right nor to the left; turn your foot from evil."   Proverbs 4:26-27

August 25th - "Gaining Wisdom"

“Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90:12 

You can count tomorrow’s days because you don’t know how many of them you will have. You can only count today and days past. Our future is built upon the decisions we are making today and the actions we have safely deposited into the past. 

“Be happy, young man, while you are young,  
       and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth.  
       Follow the ways of your heart  
       and whatever your eyes see,  
       but know that for all these things  
       God will bring you to judgment.” Ecclesiastes 11:9

August 24th - "Poured Out"

"Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear."   Acts 2:33

When God pours His Holy Spirit over you, people will "both see and hear" it! Your life will radically change. Others will not be left to wonder if something has happened to you, they will know it. Are you acting like someone who is under the spout of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit? Are you burning with the fire of God, with the zeal of the Lord? If not, you can be so full of His Spirit that people will see and hear it - IF you stay under the Niagara of His Spirit. If you are parched by this world and it's lust, simply forsake it, NOW, and run back under the waterfall of His Spirit.

August 23rd - "Our Portion"

"The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup: You support my lot."   Psalm 16:5

He is my portion! What an abundant portion! As the youngest of four sons, often the portion I was served, by necessity, was less than what my bigger brothers received. But God has no such limitations! He is my portion. There is no lack in Christ.

August 22nd - "Take the Plunge"

"Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus."   Acts 4:13

 

"Jesus is the difference maker! Hallelujah! He makes an immediate preposterous impact in the lives of all who will forsake their old lives to follow Him. Only Jesus can make this kind of immediate radical change in a life! These uneducated fishermen were suddenly confident articulate speakers who were brimming with confidence. Their words were suddenly words that carried a tangible authority and truth rang through them. No self-help program, formal education, or meditation technique can make this kind of immediate change. You must be born again, born anew, born the second time to experience it. You will be "recognized as having been with Jesus," when you are filled with the Holy Spirit of God and overflowing with His power and life. Then, in just a short time, when you reflect back on the person you use to be, it will seem as though that person must have surely been someone else. JESUS IS THE DIFFERENCE MAKER! If you have not experience this kind of radical change in your Christian journey, it is because you are only partially in. You haven't really jumped all the way in, with an all or nothing commitment. Don't delay another moment. PLUNGE IN and become a totally sold-out radical follower of Jesus Christ. Cry out from your heart, "Jesus, I give you my all - my past, my present, my future, everything is now under Your control. There is no turning back."