Hello!
I hope you had a great weekend.
My fourth book is going very well. I've organized most of it into chapters and I'm looking forward to the finished, printed product. Please pray for this endeavor. We are still looking for people who wish to donate toward this project and we're trying to raise $650 for our initial print run in September. Click here for how you can help or click here for the book's web site.
JCSM won't host a fantasy football league this year. However, I have joined an existing league and you can join this league, too. Click here if you'd like to play. Our draft is Monday, August 13, at 1pm PST. It's free as usual and should be a fun challenge.
Today is my 33rd birthday. A special thanks goes to my family and friends for their love and kindness. Please pray that God continues to bless me, my family, JCSM, and my endeavors. I know I'm very blessed, so I'm very thankful for all I have and all of God's promises to me.
Welcome to the new readers of this message! Here is your Devotion, A Moment of Introspection, JCSM's Challenge, the Word of the Week, a faith-builder from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained," and the Quotes of the Week. Have a fantastic week and God bless you!
Love in Christ,
Jason Gastrich, Ph.D.
Contact Us: http://jcsm.org/contact.php
JCSM's Weekly Devotions (click here to listen!)
Psalm 42:1 "As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God."
Psalm 84:2 "My soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the LORD; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God."
Matthew 9:27-31 "When Jesus departed from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out and saying, 'Son of David, have mercy on us!' And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. And Jesus said to them, 'Do you believe that I am able to do this?' They said to Him, 'Yes, Lord.' Then He touched their eyes, saying, 'According to your faith let it be to you.' And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, 'See that no one knows it.' But when they had departed, they spread the news about Him in all that country."
1 Thessalonians 4:13, 14 "But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus."
Hebrews 4:16 "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need."
Insight: We are all desperate for God. When we recognize it, we can humble ourselves and be blessed by Him. Have faith and boldly approach God, so He can meet your needs.
Prayer: "Dear Lord, bless us and make us like You, Lord. Help us to boldly approach You to meet our needs. Forgive our sins and remove our shame. Help us to see You as You really are. Thank you that we are desperate for You, yet You are available and willing to help and fill us. Praise You for your goodness and grace. In Jesus' name, Amen."
There is no new quote this week, but we'll have a new one next week. We have numerous quotes on our web site, so if you'd like to see quotes from those who framed and founded America, please click here: http://jcsm.org/AmericasFounders/.
In the Old Testament, nobody ever gave sight to the blind. However, Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah would and He did.
Recognize how you are desperate for God. Seek Him daily and ask Him to bless you. Let His ways amaze you. Allow His spirit to fill you. Pray and obey and see all that God can do through and with you.
God bless you as you meet this week's challenge!
chalah (Hebrew, see Jeremiah 10:19): to be or become weak, be or become sick, be or become diseased, be or become grieved, be or become sorry
The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained
"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible" claims:
Exodus 23:15 - How long are we supposed to eat unleavened bread on the Passover? Six or seven days?
"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained" responds:
This scripture says seven days and it correlates with other passages of scripture. When the Israelites left Egypt, they were told how to celebrate Passover. They eat unleavened bread, on their own, for six days. On the seventh day, they go to the assembly and eat it together.
(This explanation came from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained", by Dr. Jason Gastrich. This book is on CD and gives over 4,000 answers to alleged Bible errors, regarding the entire Bible at http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.org. There is also a 300 question workbook that accompanies the CD-ROM.)
We live in a desperate society.
Only God can meet our most desperate needs.
Jesus understands the depth of our desperation.
If you want to grow in faith, spend time with believers. If you don't care about your faith, become intimate friends with unbelievers.
It's impossible to be quiet after your life has been changed by Jesus Christ.
When you're desperate, God will meet your need.
Keep pursuing the Lord and He will meet your need. It may not be in your time or in your way, but He'll meet your need.
God allows things to happen for His glory.
Peter was so ashamed for denying Christ that he didn't attend His crucifixion.
If you'd like to read more quotes, you'll want a copy of Dr. Gastrich's book called, "10,000 Wise Quotes and Spiritual Sayings"! It's the largest collection of Bible-based quotations in the world.
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Jason Gastrich, Ph.D.
Executive Director
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