May 30

Posted on May 30, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

a fine day to take that first step.

“So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia and from there they sailed to Cyprus.”  Acts 13:4 NASB

From the time Paul first left the Port of Seleucia, his three missionary journeys and his final trip to Rome covered a span of over 13 years. The journeys traveled thousands of miles and Paul passed through some of the most rugged country on earth. He encountered numerous setbacks, harsh weather, resistance – including violence – to his message, and generally unfavorable traveling conditions.

After returning to the safety of home the first time, one would think he might have decided to stay there. But he left again, two more times on even longer trips – and then again for a final time to travel to Rome. Paul was a well-traveled individual at a time when travel was slow, unpleasant, and dangerous.

But Paul’s focus was on the task before him, and no matter how long and difficult the journeys proved to be, each one began by taking that first step.

Each one of us has journeys that lay before us.

In all likelihood, none of our journeys will come close to the reality of even the shortest of Paul’s. But that doesn’t give us comfort when we look at the long road that stretches before us. We may be facing divorce; the death of a loved one; financial difficulties; legal problems – the list of possibilities is endless and each one takes on the enormity of a thousand mile walk over mountains and through the blazing desert. Sometimes we are terrified of what lays before us and we may have a tendency to become immobilized with fear.

Whenever we find ourselves afraid of the journey before us, we must listen to God.

“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with My victorious right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10 NLT).

There is no greater assurance available to us than that promise.

“I will strengthen you and help you.”

With these words, God has promised to be with us every step of the way.

Now it is up to us to take the first step.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 29

Posted on May 29, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the day to understand that nothing is hopeless with God.

“From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God.”  Jonah 2:1 NIV

It would be difficult to imagine anyone with a better reason to view a situation as hopeless more so than Jonah when he suddenly found himself inside a great fish.

Jonah was like many of us. God wanted him to do something, but Jonah had a different idea. Disobeying God did not work out so well for Jonah, as is usually the case in our lives today. But when Jonah was in what many would consider to be a hopeless situation, what did he do?

He turned to God for help.

“As my life was slipping away, I remembered the Lord. And my earnest prayer went out to You in Your holy Temple.” (Jonah 2:7 NLT).

Imagine that.

When Jonah thought the situation was hopeless he turned to the One he had turned away from in the first place. And what happened? Did God turn away from Jonah? Did God say, “Tough luck, buddy. You made your bed, now sleep in it.”?

Of course not. God doesn’t work that way, and that is very good news for those of us who seem to think we know better than God what we should do, how we should live, and how we should act.

The truth is, if God were as quick to reject us as we are to reject Him, the human race would have ended long, long ago.

But God is so full of love for us that He will allow us to be disobedient; He will allow us to get ourselves in bad situations; He will allow us to ignore His commandments. And when we suddenly look around and realize what a mess we have made of things, He is standing right there waiting for us to call out for help.

Obviously, all situations in our lives that we may view as hopeless are not of our own doing. Sickness and tragedy; disease and death; dilemmas brought on by the actions of others – all of these things can create situations that we may feel are hopeless.

We only need to remember Jonah and do what he did.

Turn to God.

For with God, nothing is hopeless.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 27

Posted on May 27, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

a great day to stop, look, and listen.

“When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over.”  John 2:9 NLT

Coming upon railroad crossings that do not have signals, it is always a good idea to stop, look, and listen. Failure to do so could cause us to fail to see or hear a train coming, and that would have disastrous consequences.

Being alert to what is going on around us and paying close attention to the things that are influencing our decisions and driving our actions is always a good idea. Many of us ask the Lord for help in our lives through prayer, but then fail to do the important part: we fail to stop, look, and listen for the answer. Failure to do this could result in negative consequences in our lives. They may not be as disastrous as not seeing that train, but if we miss God’s instruction, then we are left only with our own ability to direct our lives.

Why is it important to stop, look, and listen?

Because God sometimes provides us with the answers we are looking for in ways that might not be immediately apparent. It is not as if He makes an announcement or taps us on the shoulder each time He fulfills a request.

Just as evidenced at the wedding, many times the work of the Lord is done quietly and without fanfare.

If we examine all of the things that are taking place around us, we can tell which things are results of God’s influence. It requires patience and concentrated effort, but many of us would probably be surprised how many times we have missed the message because we did not heed the warning and, “Stop, look, and listen.”

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 26

Posted on May 26, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the day to accept that which we cannot comprehend.

“Look up into the heavens. Who created the stars? He brings them out like an army, one after another, calling each by its name. Because of His great power and incomparable strength, not a single one is missing.”  Isaiah 40:26 NLT

Those who have grown up in the large cities of the world cannot fully appreciate the obvious presence of God that is displayed each night as the stars are marched out and lined up across the infinite expanse of the sky. The lights, the buildings, and the pollution combine to negate much of the awesome beauty and power that stretches out before us.

But if we were to take someone from the city and place them in the middle of the desert, far from any source of man-made light; if we were to blindfold them until that moment when God had finished closing the shade to block out the sun; if we were to wait until He had marched out all of the stars and prepared His show; if we were to remove the blindfold at that moment, the look on the face of the person whose eyes were finally opened would be the look of a person who suddenly has seen the incredible power, majesty, and beauty of God.

Proof that God is real is something that many people seek their entire lives. Much like the lights, buildings, and pollution of the city, skepticism, doubt, and even fear keep us from seeing the definitive proof that is all around us.

“Look up into the heavens,” Isaiah said.

“Who” – yes, who? – “created all the stars?”

God did, and He wants us all to see them and believe in Him. He gets frustrated and angry when we ignore Him, yet He waits – patiently – for each one of us to open our eyes and see.

The “proof” that some of us seek is right in front of us. We only need to open our eyes and look up to the heavens.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 25

Posted on May 25, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

an awesome day to think about the goodness of Christ.

“When the devil had finished tempting Jesus, he left Him until the next opportunity came.”  Luke 4:13 NLT

As Jesus lived His life, He was exposed to temptation time and time again, just as we are today. But at no time was the onslaught of temptation as intense as it was when He was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness north of the Dead Sea.

For 40 days, Jesus was tempted by satan. For 40 days Jesus ate nothing. Satan’s offers became increasingly more appealing. He offered Him food; he offered Him riches; he challenged His birthright and pressured Jesus to test God’s love. Jesus turned to God instead for strength to resist the temptations before Him during His time in the Judean wilderness and at the temple back in Jerusalem.

When the devil was finished – when he had given the temptation of Jesus his best shot – he left Him. But he would come back time and time again throughout Jesus’ life. And time after time, the goodness of Jesus would help Him to resist temptation.

Every time.

How many of us can make the same claim? The answer is simple: none of us has resisted temptation every time. There are most definitely those who are better at it than others, but we have all given in. The results of our giving in to temptation have probably not been as devastating as the results of Eve’s bite of the apple, but every time we give in to temptation, satan wins a little victory.

It is outside the scope of our power as human beings to deny satan every victory. But it is our responsibility as Christians to do our best and deny him as many times as we can. We must strive for the incredible goodness of Jesus and we must turn constantly to God for strength to fight back when we are attacked.

Only Christ is perfect.

The rest of us are sinners. Looking to the goodness that is Jesus can help us to deny victory to satan. It will never be easy, and sometimes denying victory to satan will require sacrifice on our part.

But through it all, God will help us stand strong, if we follow the example of Jesus and turn to Him when faced with temptation.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 24

Posted on May 24, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the right day to thank God for the storms in our lives.

“And it was only right that He should make Jesus, through His suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.”  Hebrews 2:10b NLT

The fact that Jesus had to experience the suffering that He did is a difficult concept for many people to comprehend. In fact, the whole issue of suffering is a major sticking point for some. The question is always asked, “How could God stand by and watch the suffering of His Own Son?” We all know that God did not stop it. What we spend so much time contemplating is “Why did He not stop it?”

The suffering of Christ was His final display of perfect obedience to the Father. His suffering made Him the complete sacrifice, earning salvation for the rest of the world. His suffering at the hands of those He came to save demonstrated to the rest of the world that storms enter the lives of even the very best of us. But out of those storms, things of beauty arise, just as Christ rose from the dead before ascending to heaven.

During storms, things around us often look harsh, dark, dangerous, and emit a sense of foreboding. But we usually see soon after that the storm has created new life and things of beauty. The suffering that we endure as a result of the storms in our lives will produce within us a greater understanding of the pain of another human being. It will enable us to be greater providers of comfort to others during the storms in their lives.

No one likes to suffer, and God does not enjoy watching us stand and face our storms. Obedience to God can lead us into stormy weather, but the Lord will lead us safely out again, and we quite possibly will be pleasantly surprised at what is revealed after the storm has passed.

Instead of questioning God’s intentions, we should thank Him for the storms in our lives and ask Him to reveal the beauty that can be produced as a result.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 23

Posted on May 23, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

a good day to get back on course.

“’My people have forgotten how to do right,’ says the Lord. ‘Their fortresses are filled with wealth taken by theft and violence.’”  Amos 3:10 NLT

God selected Amos, who was a shepherd in the southern part of Israel, to see a vision of the Lord’s judgment that was to be passed on the people in the northern part of the country. Amos proved he was a man of God by traveling to the north and warning them of what was to come if they didn’t correct their ways.

Many of the people Amos spoke to had been doing the wrong things for so long, they had forgotten what the right thing was.

In many ways, things are not so different now than they were those many centuries before the birth of Christ. Just as they grew complacent in their faith, so have many of us. For many, rather than look honestly at themselves, defensive walls go up and indignation sets in at the mere suggestion of complacency on their part. This is nothing to be embarrassed about, or to get defensive over. It happens to many people more often than we may think. In a world that moves faster and faster every day, it sometimes becomes easy to forget what the right thing is.

“Not for me!” many of us claim, and for some this may be true.

But far too many of us fall into patterns of behavior, or thought, that are in direct violation of the things that God teaches, and we do so with no evil intent and oftentimes no real purpose.

We just “drift off course.”

As a ship moves through the ocean, currents will pull at it and if the captain of the ship does not pay attention and make corrections as he goes along, he will find the ship winding up in a totally different place than originally intended even though it may appear as if the ship has always been pointed in the same direction.

We must all avoid the “currents” of temptation that will attempt to pull us off course without our even being aware of it. We must avoid complacency and stay focused on our destination. Each one of us needs to take out our Bible, which is our ‘map,’ and see if we have drifted off course.

If we have, we need to take the steps required to correct it so that we arrive at the correct destination.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 22

Posted on May 22, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

a terrific day to pray for others.

“I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me.”  Romans 15:30 NIV

Prayer is a gift from God.

It is the ability to communicate directly with Him and seek comfort, ask for help, and – hopefully – to give thanks to the One who makes so much of value available to us.

It is an opportunity for reflection, and it is a way to ask for guidance and direction in our lives. Prayer is also the first place we should turn when we are confronted with temptation.

And we will be confronted with temptation.

But prayer is also a great way to fulfill the Lord’s instruction that we love one another and look out for one another. We can accomplish this by using prayer for the benefit of others.

Asking God to help us heal in times of great sadness or sorrow is perfectly alright, but asking God to help someone else find the strength to deal with a terrible loss or tragedy is a great way to help a friend, neighbor, or family member, at times when we may feel unable to do anything. God can get to places in a person’s heart that we cannot, and He loves to hear our voices imploring Him to help.

We also need to consider the many people throughout the world that we don’t even know who work tirelessly, sacrifice much, and risk their very lives to share the Word of God with others so that they may experience the joy of a life that has been changed by knowing, and accepting, Christ Jesus.

In their struggles to spread the Good News, these brave men and women need our prayers of support. Just as Paul reached out to others in his day to pray in support of his struggle, we should all pray for the many thousands who continue that struggle today.

There are many good reasons to pray. Our personal problems are among them.

But it is also a beautifully Christian thing to take time to pray for all who need God’s help, and today is a terrific day to do just that.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 21

Posted on May 21, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

a wonderful day to encourage young people.

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity.”  1 Timothy 4:12 NIV

God makes it clear that it is never too late to look to Him for the answers that we seek for our lives.

The well-known saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” simply does not apply when it comes to discovering the joy of salvation and eternal life with God that can be ours when we accept Jesus Christ as our savior.

This certainly is wonderful to hear for any of us who might be arriving late in life at the simple truth that our time on earth should be lived with God’s purpose for us in mind.

By the same token, while it is never too late to learn, it is also never too early.

For those among us who waited until later in life to find our way, we know how much richer and fuller our lives would have been if we had discovered the joys of knowing Christ at an earlier age. We know how much happier we would have been and we know how much good we could have done for those around us.

We must encourage those who are young to take advantage of their youth and to experience the love, grace, and blessings that are a part of knowing God.

Many young people already have found the Lord, accepted Christ, and live lives of service. Individuals like that must be encouraged to speak even if they may be reluctant because of their youth.

God has a use for each of us and we only need make ourselves available to Him to discover what that use is. It is easier for young people to council other young people that a relationship with God, and service to others on His behalf, is a much more rewarding way to live than to spend all of their time playing video games, watching television, or engaging in behaviors that can only lead to pain and suffering.

Reach out to those who are young and encourage them to reach out to others. Help others find what you have found, and show them how it can change their lives for good.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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May 20

Posted on May 20, 2022 by Tony Casson

TODAY IS…

the ideal day to heed God’s warnings.

“Noah did everything just as God commanded him.”  Genesis 6:22 NIV

Millions of people claim to have accepted Jesus Christ as their savior and further claim to believe that He is the light that will lead us to life everlasting if we follow simple rules of decency and morality.

And then we go on with our daily lives as if we never spent one minute reading the Word of God:

We approach a homeless person on the sidewalk or in our car and we cross the street or roll up the window so we don’t have to deal with them.

We search the internet for juicy tidbits of wrongdoing by someone we know and then gossip about them with others.

We hide secrets of sinful behavior from our friends, our families, and our spouses.

We ignore opportunities to do the right thing, we engage in inappropriate conversations, we sin in a lot of little ways, and maybe a few big ways.

But sin is sin and not heeding God’s admonishments to avoid sin is not wise.

Has it really become so difficult for us to live decent, moral, loving lives? Has the world become so decadent that immorality is the accepted norm? Do the repeated instructions issued by God fall on deaf ears?

Do we think God is making it up when He tells us that the final judgment He will pass, on the way each one of us lives our lives, is coming? Sometimes we act like we don’t believe that we will be judged, but God makes it very clear throughout the Bible that this will happen.

So why do we ignore His warning?

Are we so spiritually immature that we think God’s warnings apply to everyone but us?

Disobedience to God might be understandable in some way if God’s instructions to us were complicated or unreasonable. But how complicated is the instruction to love each other and treat each other as we would wish to be treated? And how unreasonable is it to ask people to exhibit maturity and decency in their words and their actions?

God instruction is neither unreasonable nor complicated. If there are complications in our lives, we probably put them there or invited them in.

Live happier, healthier lives with fewer complications and a lot more joy by heeding God’s warnings and following His instructions and today is the ideal day to start.

*******

Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson

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