Night Light for Couples - Side By Side

“Encourage one another daily.” Hebrews 3:13

The Greek translation for the word encouragement is parakletos, which literally means “called alongside to help.” It brings to mind the scriptural image of two people yoked side by side, as when Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me…. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:29–30). This kind of encouragement includes offering an uplifting word, but it is more than that. It is standing by your husband and keeping an attitude of good cheer when he is laid off his job. It is pitching in to finish the dishes when your wife is too tired to stand. It’s crouching down to a four‐year‐old’s eye level and listening sympathetically as she tearfully tells you about her skinned knee.

The act of encouraging doesn’t include instructing your partner on what to do about a problem. It doesn’t include giving advice, offering tips for improving in the future, or uttering hollow words such as “You really should have known better than to make that foolish mistake” or “Get over it.” Instead, encouragement is a participation game. When you stand alongside your mate and share his or her troubles, you’ve become a practitioner of parakletos and an exceptional source of courage, hope, and happiness.

Just between us…

• Do you know anyone who always makes you feel good about yourself?
• How do they do it? Why is it often so difficult to think about the other person first? • How has God used me to “come alongside” you?
• How can I do better?

Lord Jesus, thank You that You put it within our power to encourage others. May we grow in that ministry. May we become experts at it—starting in our marriage. Amen.
Encourage one another daily.

• From Night Light For Couples, by Dr. James & Shirley Dobson
  Copyright © 2000 by James Dobson, Inc. All rights reserved.

The Daily Readings for October 9, 2016 - 21th Sunday after Pentecost

2 Kings 5:1-3, 5:7-15
Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favor with his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Aram. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. Now the Arameans on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman's wife. She said to her mistress, "If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy." When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, "Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me." But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, "Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel." So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha's house. Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, "Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean." But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, "I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?" He turned and went away in a rage. But his servants approached and said to him, "Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, 'Wash, and be clean'?" So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean. Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company; he came and stood before him and said, "Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel; please accept a present from your servant."

Psalm 111 Confitebor tibi
1   Hallelujah! I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, in the congregation.
2   Great are the deeds of the LORD! they are studied by all who delight in them.
3   His work is full of majesty and splendor, and his righteousness endures for ever.
4   He makes his marvelous works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and full of compassion.
5   He gives food to those who fear him; he is ever mindful of his covenant.
6   He has shown his people the power of his works in giving them the lands of the nations.
7   The works of his hands are faithfulness and justice; all his commandments are sure.
8   They stand fast for ever and ever, because they are done in truth and equity.
9   He sent redemption to his people; he commanded his covenant for ever; holy and awesome is his Name.
10   The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; those who act accordingly have a good understanding; his praise endures for ever.

2 Timothy 2:8-15
Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, a descendant of David-- that is my gospel, for which I suffer hardship, even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But the word of God is not chained. Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, so that they may also obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory. The saying is sure: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful-- for he cannot deny himself. Remind them of this, and warn them before God that they are to avoid wrangling over words, which does no good but only ruins those who are listening. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth.

Luke 17:11-19
On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" When he saw them, he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were made clean. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus asked, "Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well."

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The New Revised Standard Version Bible may be quoted and/or reprinted up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided the verses quoted do not amount to a complete book of the Bible or account for fifty percent (50%) of the total work in which they are quoted.

The Sunday Sermon for October 9, 2016 - 21th Sunday after Pentecost

"Lord Have Mercy"

On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" When he saw them, he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were made clean. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus asked, "Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well." (Luke 17:11-19)

Grace and Peace to you from our Lord and Saviour, Jesus who is the Christ. Amen

 Traveling one day along the border between Galilee and Samaria, on His way to Jerusalem, the Lord Jesus approached a village where ten seriously ill men came out to meet Him. Ten lepers met Jesus, ten men afflicted by the worst disease imaginable in Jesus’ day. Leprosy was incurable, leprosy was disgusting, leprosy was revolting. Leprosy was considered proof that you were the vilest kind of sinner. God was really punishing you for something really bad. If you had leprosy, you actually watched your body rot away. Your fingers, your ears, your nose dropped off. You died a slow and painful death, cut off from society, cut off from family and the only friendships you had were others like you. Nine others in this case that kept reminding you as you looked at them how really bad you were. Ten lepers, ten dying, decaying, stinking wretches met Jesus and cried, "Jesus Master Have mercy on Us."

They must have known this was their only chance to escape the awful consequences of their disease. If Jesus did nothing for them, surely their lives would end in a slow painful death.

"Jesus, Master, have mercy on us " Can you imagine that air was filled with tension as the ten lepers, as ten lives hung on the words or actions of the Man of Galilee.

"Jesus, Master, Have Mercy on Us".

He didn’t touch them.

"Jesus Master, Have mercy on us".

He didn’t wash them.

"Jesus, Master have mercy on us."

He didn’t even pray for them.

Finally, finally after what seemed to be an eternity for these desperate men, Jesus spoke: "Go, show yourselves to the priests." In other words, Jesus was saying, go to the priests for certificates of cleansing. They weren’t healthy--but they were to go and get a health certificate to proclaim they were healed. Jesus said, "Go get a physical examination."

Can you imagine their situation. They must have stood and looked at each other and then started to debate this command. They might have said, "But we have already been there and they couldn’t do anything for us. You have got to be kidding.

Go show ourselves to the priests. They had surely expected something more, something else. Something of their desperation, and their growing, but doubting faith and confidence led these ten men to turn and start walking toward the priests. Something about this man of Galilee led them to obey, to go, to do what they had done before, but this time Jesus had told them to go.

Then it happened. At some point, some instant--quite by surprise---those ten outcast lepers were changed. Every diseased cell in their bodies were changed. Every cell suddenly sprang into full health signaled by an unseen force. A force of events which began in a twinkle of an eye, in a flash of excitement as one of the ten noticed his body becoming healthy.

Who was the first to notice? We don’t know, but with tremendous swiftness the reaction must have sped through the group. In amazement, they stopped, looked at their hands, their feet, at each others ears, they were whole, they had been changed, Jesus had done it again. His reputation was true. Ten suffering human beings had been touched by the Son of God. Ten suffering men had encountered the touch of a loving God. Ten suffering men had been touched by the creating hand of God that was still very much at work in his world.

Can you picture them bounding down the road to the priest, now running, now leaping, now dancing, wondering how the priest would react... anticipating the glee, the excitement of their families as they would return home--healthy, alive, with a health certificate proclaiming to all what had happened. All ten men caught up in the joy, the excitement of the moment.

But one of them halts in his tracks. He stops, he smiles, he turns, now walking, now running...back to the Master, back to this man of Galilee, back to this one who touched him with this mysterious force. He comes back, "shouting, laughing, proclaiming glory to God with a joyful and thankful heart." He runs back to Jesus, falls at his feet and gives the Son of God thanks for the great healing that had been done.

Only one of the ten who were touched by the love of this man of Galilee had seen beyond the miracle of healing to the one who had dared to risk for him. He saw Jesus for who he was? One who cared, one who loved, one who wanted a relationship with everyone on the face of the earth.

He saw the Son of God as a man of love, a builder of relationships, he saw the miracle as Jesus’ way of building a bridge between the fallen creation, the brokenness of disease and the loving hand of God who wants to reach into that brokenness with his creating and redeeming power, He saw Jesus.

Then notice Jesus response. "Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine?" Only one in ten came back to give thanks. Only one in ten. Why, Jesus is asking, why only one in ten?

By dwelling on the fact that only one in ten came back, Jesus is telling us very plainly he wanted the thanks. He wanted them to see beyond the miracle to the miracle worker. He wanted them to come into a relationship with him.

What is the ratio for us today? Is it the same, one in ten. Let us try to examine in the next few moments why these nine cleansed men wandered in the valley of ingratitude when they should have been by the mountain of the one from who all blessings flow.

Perhaps one reason they walked in the valley of ingratitude was they suffered from a lack of sensitivity and imagination. They never stopped and reflected on what happened. They didn’t think about who, or how this happened. They just took it for granted. They were healed. Their lives could go on, they had a lot of catching up to do, so they thought better be about it. They couldn’t see beyond the gift of the miracle of healing to the one who gave it to them. They never saw the giver.

Do you remember the Aesop fable, Androcles and the lion.?? "Androcles was a young boy who wandered off into the forest one day. Suddenly he came upon a lion which was groaning in pain. Androcles turned to run away as fast as he could, and as he glanced over his shoulder to see how close that lion was, he noticed the lion had not run after him. So Androcles, sloped, turned back to the lion to see what was the matter. He saw that the lion had a huge throne in his paw. Androcles pulled it out and helped the lion to his den where the lion was healed.

A few days later, Androcles and the lion were captured. Androcles because he was a Christian and the emperor wanted some fun watching Christians being eaten in the theater, and the lion, because they needed one to do this deed. Androcles was pushed out into the big arena and the lion came charging from the cage on the other side. Androcles fell to his knees waiting for the huge mouth of the lion to devour him, but to his amazement, the lion stopped dead in his tracks, laid down and crawled towards Androcles , and began to lick his face and play with him. It was the same lion who Androcles had helped, the one who had the thorn removed. The lion saw beyond the act of help to the helper, and responded in likeness when the opportunity rose. Aesop always has a moral tacked on at the end of his fables, this one being: "Gratitude is the sign of noble souls."

Can you see the giver? Can you see beyond the gifts, the blessings, the love, the touch of grace in your life to the giver? Do you see redeemer, the Son of God as you experience his touch in your life?

Maybe another reason that only one of ten returned to the healer, is the fact the other nine lacked humility. They saw in this act of healing something they were due. Human beings can develop such an inflated sense of their own importance that we take everything good that comes our way as if it were our due. We tend to take for granted as our due all those things that we have worked so hard for. We say we have paid our dues in life, now, now we can reap the rewards. And as we tend to take things for granted, as we tend to look only to ourselves as the foundation for living, we become more and more possessive, more and more greedy, more and more wanting only the best, the biggest.

In I Timothy 6:6 it says, "There is great gain in godliness with contentment." When a person views the world as owning him or her everything, then contentment is never achieved. In our contentment with the great gifts God has granted to us, we can see beyond the gifts to the giver. But if we always focus on the gifts, we never see the giver, if we never look beyond our selfishness for more, if we cannot see beyond the need for the best, then contentment with life will never be achieved.

In one of my church I was talking to a farmer one day during the beginning months of the summer. It had been a late spring, with more than the usual amount of rain, so there were some good wet spots in the fields. The crops were all planted and as far and my untrained eye could see, I thought they were doing well. So, I asked him how his crops were. He said," Those few wet spots I have aren’t doing very well at all. "Then I said, "But those wet spots aren’t your whole fields are they?’ He said, "No!!" thank goodness." Then I asked, "How is the rest of your crop doing, those not in the few wet spots?" He looked at me, smiled and said, "It is the best crop I have ever seen on my land." As the harvest came, he was right. He had a record harvest and even the wet spots did better than he expected.

But, that attitude of starting with the negative, starting with the point that I have a few bad acres, when the majority of the land was doing great shows a lack of humility, shows a lack of gratitude, shows the thinking that many have, they want it all, all or nothing.

The ten lepers got it all. A new life, a clean bill of health, a return to family and friends. But only one could see the greatness, only one could see the magnitude of the gift, only one could see the blessing. We are all blessed by God in different ways, at different times with different blessings. Jesus is asking us to see beyond the gifts, beyond our own need of those things, to the giver. To be humble and accept with a grateful heart what we have. And in that attitude a peace, a contentment about living will come. We will see our blessings, our talents, our resources coming from God and then an amazing thing will happen. God will continue to bless us, a usually more and more. He will lead us in ways that we would have never dared to go, ways that we can risk for our selves and others.

When God blesses us there is a double blessings. The one leper was doubly blessed. His body was made whole, but he saw beyond the healing to the healer and became for the church a symbol of the church’s outreach to the whole world. The healing of the ten lepers and the thankfulness of the one showed the world what the kingdom of God would be like. God would liberate us from as Luther says, "sin, death and the power of evil," and in that liberation we have a freedom to live, a sense of joy in our relationship with a loving God, and an adventuresome attitude about life that lets us dare to risk, that dares us to reach out because we know that God and I walking through life are a majority one.

With God’s blessings, and our willingness to surrender our selfishness and pride to live in his grace with a peace of contentment, life can truly be exciting, fulfilling and a creative adventure for everyone.

There is an old story about two grasshoppers who fell into a bowl of cream. One of them complained and groaned over his plight, and he sank to the bottom and drowned. The other kept singing and cheerfully kicked his feet until the cream turned to butter and he hopped away to freedom.

Life can be that way. A Swedish proverb says: "Those who wish to sing can always find a song."

May God and you walk through life kicking and singing.

Amen

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The New Revised Standard Version Bible may be quoted and/or reprinted up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided the verses quoted do not amount to a complete book of the Bible or account for fifty percent (50%) of the total work in which they are quoted. Sermon shared by Pastor Tim Zingale October 2004. You may freely use this as is or in parts. Please somehow give credit if possible, thanks! Not for commercial use.

The Forward Day by Day Meditation for October 9, 2016

From Forward Day By Day
Written by Scott B. Hayashi

Luke 17:15-19 (NRSV) Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him…Then Jesus asked, “Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.”

Jesus tells the leper who thanks him that his faith has made him well. Ten men were healed of this terrible disease, but only one was pronounced well. To me, this means that being well is not just being physically healthy. Wellness is a spiritual condition of being in a thankful, dynamic relationship with God through Christ.

I have been with people who were terminally ill with cancer, their bodies wasted away. In the midst of their suffering, many of these brave souls have expressed a deep gratitude to God for their lives and find themselves looking forward to whatever comes next. They trust that God will be with them in their death, just as God has been with them in their earthly lives. Their bodies are in the process of dying, but they are well in their souls.

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Un Dia a la Vez - No me gusta el espejo

En cuanto a mí, veré tu rostro en justicia; estaré satisfecho cuando despierte a tu semejanza. Salmo 17:15, RV-60

Parece extraño, pero es verdad. Hay personas que no son muy amigas del espejo.

Un día iba en el auto con mi princesa Niki y me dijo: «No me gusta ese espejo». Se refería al espejo que está arriba del asiento del pasajero. Así que le pregunté: «¿Por qué dices eso, mami?». A lo que me contestó con sinceridad: «Porque me muestra todo lo que tengo». En esos días, había estado con una gripe terrible y tenía ojeras. De inmediato, saqué una hojita y escribí la idea, pues va más allá de lo que imaginamos, sobre todo en el ámbito espiritual.

El espejo se menciona en seis versículos de la Biblia y, a decir verdad, no sé si es bíblico o no, pero tiene sentido lo que he escuchado: «Los ojos son el espejo del alma».

Hay espejos en los que nos vemos de tamaño regular, pero hay otros que vienen con aumento y esos nos muestran los mínimos detalles de la cara. Esos no me gustan. Otros espejos distorsionan la imagen y, por lo general, los vemos en las ferias porque es divertido. Sin embargo, ¡qué importante es el espejo! Te muestra tal como eres y prevé cualquier molestia… ¡ya sabes a lo que me refiero!

Sé que a veces lo que vemos en el espejo puede determinar nuestro estado de ánimo. Quizá se trate de unas libras de más o de una pérdida de peso.

Pensemos, pues, que del mismo modo que el espejo nos muestra cómo somos, también nuestra vida debería ser un espejo para los demás. Es decir, que quienes nos vean quieran ser iguales a nosotros porque reflejemos a Jesucristo.

----------English Translation----------

One Day at a Time - I do not like the mirror
As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness; I will be satisfied when I awake, with thy likeness. Psalms 17:15, RV-60
It seems strange, but true. Some people are not very friendly mirror.
One day I was in the car with my princess Niki and said, "I do not like that mirror." He meant the mirror is above the passenger seat. So I asked, "Why do you say that, Mommy?". To which I answered honestly: "For showing me everything I have." In those days, he had been with a terrible flu and had dark circles. Immediately, I took a leaf and wrote the idea, because it goes beyond what we imagine, especially in the spiritual realm.
The mirror is mentioned in six verses of the Bible and, in fact, do not know if it is biblical or not, but it makes sense what I heard: "The eyes are the mirror of the soul".
There are mirrors in which we are regular size, but there are others that come with increased and these show us the smallest details of the face. I do not like those. Other mirrors distort the image and, usually, we see at fairs because it's fun. However, what is important is the mirror! It shows you as you are and provides any trouble ... you know what I mean!
I know sometimes what we see in the mirror can determine our mood. Maybe it a few extra pounds or weight loss.
Consider, then, that just as the mirror shows us how we, also our life should be a mirror for others. That is, those who want to see us be like us because we reflect Jesus Christ.

Standing Strong Through the Storm - DOUBLE PORTION OF EVERLASTING JOY

Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours. Isaiah 61:7

Yesterday we looked at some outcomes from Christian women’s conferences in Central Asia. When deep issues are discussed and prayed for, and when barriers of shame and dishonor are broken through, there are usually many tears. One participant said, “In fact enough tears have been shed to make many trees grow that we won’t have any desert places left!”

As a result of God’s healing movement new initiatives are born to bring healing to abused and rejected women and children in society: ministry in orphanages, to street children and abused children; outreach projects to women in prostitution, safe havens for abused women; involvement in politics to stop legislation on polygamy; preventive health care; teaching on HIV/Aids and caring for patients; involvement in pastoral care, intercession and prayer ministries; ministry to people in prison, etc.

There is a desire to not only participate in a conference, but also to use what has been learned and to develop more skills. Three young Uzbek women who had been to a conference before wanted to come back to be part of the prayer team, so that they can learn, and take back the skills to minister to their own women!

Others shared that they want to minister to other women when they go back home. Some churches used to have women’s ministry but for some reasons it had stopped. After this training the women wanted to revitalize the women’s ministry in their churches.

A speaker at one of the conferences says:

“In other countries, we saw Priscilla’s—Christian wives who were standing beside their husbands in loving and serving the Lord. In Central Asia, we not only saw the Priscilla’s, we also saw Esther’s and Deborah’s—women who by themselves are standing strong in their faith and for God. Whether they are single or have an unbelieving husband does not stop them.

“The women we have met in that training seem to have Esther’s character: ‘If I perish, I perish.’ They stand up despite the clear warnings of their husbands, neighbors or the authorities. They know the cost. One knew very well that her husband might lose his government job if a family member would be found witnessing for Jesus. She was warned by her husband to tone down her evangelistic zeal. But she could not keep herself from speaking of Jesus. Two others have marriages about to fail if it were not for their enduring stand as wives to keep the family intact. These participants are capable to lead other women even after just the first training.

As the women penetrate the walls of shame and break the silence, God fulfills His promise of Isaiah 61:7. Instead of shame and dishonor you shall have a double portion of prosperity and everlasting joy!

RESPONSE: Today I want to receive a double portion of prosperity and everlasting joy from the Lord.

PRAYER: Thank You, Lord that You can turn shame and dishonor into everlasting joy!

Verse of the Day - October 09, 2016

Deuteronomy 13:4 (NIV) It is the Lord your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him.

Read all of Deuteronomy 13

Our Daily Bread - United in Christ

By Amy Boucher Pye

Read: Mark 3:13–19 | Bible in a Year: Isaiah 32–33; Colossians 1

He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach. Mark 3:14

When we come across a list of names in the Bible, we might be tempted to skip over it. But we can find treasures there, such as in the list of the twelve apostles whom Jesus called to serve in His name. Many are familiar—Simon whom Jesus called Peter, the rock. Brothers James and John, fishermen. Judas Iscariot, the betrayer. But we could easily overlook that Matthew the tax collector and Simon the Zealot must once have been enemies.

Matthew collected taxes for Rome, and therefore, in the eyes of his fellow Jews, collaborated with the enemy. Tax collectors were despised for their corrupt practices and for requiring the Jewish people to give money to an authority other than God. On the other hand, before Jesus’s call, Simon the Zealot was devoted to a group of Jewish nationalists who hated Rome and sought to overturn it, often through aggressive and violent means.

Although Matthew and Simon held opposing political beliefs, the Gospels don’t document them bickering or fighting about them. They must have had at least some success in leaving their previous allegiances behind as they followed Christ.

When we too fix our eyes on Jesus, the God who became Man, we can find increasing unity with our fellow believers through the bond of the Holy Spirit.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, You exist in perfect harmony. May Your Spirit dwell in us that the world might see You, and believe.

Our strongest allegiance is to Christ, who gives us unity with each other.

© 2016 Our Daily Bread Ministries