Good morning,

We all will live an eternal life. It is our choice where we will spend it. There are only two choices, heaven and hell.

Heaven should be our choice. Here’s why.

Endless, sinless, sorrowless immortality!

(John MacDuff, a prayer)

“Weeping may endure for a night–but joy comes in the morning!” Psalm 30:5

Here, Lord, I have “no continuing city.” I would not desire to live here always.

Change is the portion of my earthly pilgrimage. Lord, wean me from this uncertain world! 

Bring me to live under the influence of eternal realities. I rejoice to think of the happy myriads already in glory–safe in the presence of the Master they love, with every tear drop wiped away. May the thought of that endless, sinless, sorrowless immortality reconcile me to all of earth’s severest discipline.

Let me not murmur under the heaviest cross—in the prospect of such a crown. Let me not refuse to pass cheerfully through the hottest furnace which is to refine and purify me for this exceeding and eternal weight of glory!  Allow me to bear with calm serenity, whatever cross You see fit to lay upon me.

“They will be His people–and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain–for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:3-4

~  ~  ~  ~

Choose heaven now.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

 

Good morning,

Psalm 107 speaks about God’s goodness.

“O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.” (1)

Verses 4-32 give four stories about God’s goodness. The people were in trouble and God helped them. The stories are made up of four components.

First, it describes the problem. A lack of a home, rebellion, fools, and ships being wind tossed.

Second, they cried out to the Lord. Each story has this exact phrase in it. “Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.” (6,13, 19, 28) God corrects the problem with specific help.

Third, they praised the Lord for God’s goodness. “Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” (8, 15, 21, 31) When God helps us, we should give thanks and praise Him.

Fourth, God does something or instructs the people. He filled the hungry, broke the gates of brass, allowed them to sacrifice, and let the people praise Him.

These should be the steps we take when we have a problem. Determine the problem, present it to the Lord and expect that will fix it, then praise Him when He does, and continue to serve.

God is good and we need to acknowledge that.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

How well do we listen to the Lord? One of the saddest chapters in the Bible is Jeremiah 6. God warns Benjamin and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to return to God. God tells them of their imminent destruction. He pleads with them to repent. Here is the response of the people.

Jeremiah 6:15-17 states, “Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore they shall fall among them that fall: at the time that I visit them they shall be cast down, saith the Lord.¹⁶ Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.¹⁷ Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken.”

God responds to the people’s decision. Jeremiah 6:18-19 states,

^“18 Therefore hear, ye nations, and know, O congregation, what is among them.¹⁹ Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it.”

Some of you might be thinking, the Jews were wicked and deserved what they got. They were always rebelling against God, his servants, prophets, and priests.

Although that is true, each of us must look in the mirror of Scripture and determine are we any better? Unfortunately, we are not. Our sins are just as wicked and grieves God just as much as His chosen people.

The question then is will we be obedient to the Scriptures or will we reject them. Will we hearken to the warnings God is giving us? If the revival we so desperately desire is to come, it will begin in the hearts and minds of God’s people.

We must affirm, obey, and live out Bible precepts. There must be a reason for the unsaved to come to Christ. We are God’s ambassadors here on earth. What kind of a job are we doing?

Let us be a generation that says we will follow God at all costs. Never, ever, reject Jesus, His word, or His commands to us.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

 

Good morning,

When things go wrong in our lives, does God really care? God sent His only son, Jesus, to answer that question.

The Sympathy of Christ!

(Francis Bourdillon)

“We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are” Hebrews 4:15

In all our infirmities and troubles of every kind–in pain and sickness, in poverty and need, in anxiety and grief–Jesus has a sympathetic heart for us. Is not this comforting? Does it not cheer us in a time of suffering, when some kind friend comes in and sits down beside us and shows most plainly that though he is unable to help us, he does sincerely feel for us? How much more cheering it is to know that Jesus in Heaven sympathizes with us in all our troubles here below! Does not this thought, this blessed truth–take the edge off the sharpest suffering, and lift us for the time above our sorrows?

Jesus Christ Himself was afflicted when He was on earth. He is called a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. No sorrows were ever equal to His. We know that He was tired and hungry and sad. He was besides, the poorest of the poor–He had nowhere to lay His head. He led what would be called a very hard life.

Our greatest sufferings are light when compared with His. He had some afflictions which we cannot fully understand, as when He prayed in the garden, “If it is possible, let this cup pass from Me!” And as when He cried upon the cross, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me!”

He can sympathize with the poor–because He was poor Himself.
He can sympathize with the sad–because He was a man of sorrows.
He can sympathize with all who suffer–because His own sufferings were so many and so great.

He was tempted; He was tried; He was afflicted; He went through what we have to go through–and much more. In this very world in which we live now–He lived and suffered; and therefore He can and does sympathize with His suffering people.

“He was despised and rejected by men–a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces–He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows–yet we considered Him stricken by God, smitten by Him, and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace, was upon Him–and by His wounds we are healed.” Isaiah 53:3-5

~  ~  ~  ~

The answer to my question is a resounding YES. When we are being tried by the devil, we must allow Jesus to comfort us. He will.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

 

Good morning,

This devotional  helps us to see Christ in a new light. We know all these Scriptures. It is when they are brought together that we see the totality of what Christ did for us.

He became poor!

(William Dyer)

“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ: although He was rich, for your sake He became poor–so that by His poverty you might become rich!” 2 Corinthians 8:9

He who was so rich–became so poor!

He who was Lord of all–had nothing at all!

He who made Heaven and earth–had no home of His own!
As He was born in another man’s house–so He was buried in another man’s tomb!

He who gives crowns of glory to others–had only a crown of thorns for Himself!

The foxes and the fowls had more than Jesus! “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but I, the Son of Man, have no home of My own, not even a place to lay My head!” Matthew 8:20. The foxes had holes to lay their heads in–but Christ had not a place to lay His head on.

“He became poor!” Yes, poor indeed, and so poor that He had not a penny! You will say, that a man is very poor–who has not a penny! Truly such a one was Christ–he had not a penny to pay the tax until He got it out of the fish’s mouth!

Oh! admire and wonder at this! Is not Jesus . . .
the brightness of God,
the paradise of angels,
the beauty of Heaven,
the Redeemer of man,
the destroyer of death,
the King of saints!
And that He should become so poor for us–oh! this is astonishing to angels and men!

~  ~  ~  ~

I will not think about being poor in the same way ever again. He became poor so we could become rich.

What a blessing God has showered upon us.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

Christ knows His people by certain distinguishing marks

(J.R. Miller)

“I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own sheep–and they know Me!” John 10:14

The Jewish shepherds had certain marks by which they knew their own sheep. Even in this country, the farmers put “brands” on their sheep–their own initial, or an “ear-mark,” or some other particular sign by which they will know them anywhere. Christ knows His people by certain distinguishing marks.

He knows them by their faces. There is something in every true child of God, which shows to whom he belongs–some family likeness, some feature of the Divine image shining out. The prodigal’s father knew his son when he saw him a long way off. In his rags, in his beggary–the eye of love recognized the child. Just so, Christ knows His own people, however dim the likeness–by their faces. The crowds do not recognize heaven’s princes, in the humble Christians they meet; but Jesus does!

Not only does Christ know His own by their faces–but also by their voice. The mother knows her child’s voice anywhere, even in the darkness, and can distinguish it among a thousand voices. Christ knows the voices of His own people, wherever He hears them speak or cry.

He knows them also by their character. Even if the outside is rough and uncouth, it does not hide from His eye, the inner life–the spirit, the heart. He saw the future Peter with all his grandeur of character–in the crude Simon who was brought to Him.

He knows His friends by their obedience. He knows His disciples–by their following where He leads.

He also knows the white garments of righteousness which His redeemed one’s wear.

He knows the penitent heart–by the fragrance it puts forth. It is an altar of incense. It is a box of ointment broken open. Just as we find out the hiding-places of flowers by their fragrances–so God knows the home of the penitent heart by the sweetness that wafts up from it.

“I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own sheep–and they know Me!”

~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

Are you a citizen of Heaven?

Every true citizen of Heaven!

(Francis Bourdillon, 1864)

“They admitted that they were strangers and pilgrims on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country–a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them!” Hebrews 11:13-16

Every true citizen of Heaven not only has his home in Heaven, but his heart is there too. Not only does he look forward to dwelling there hereafter–but even now he seeks to be holy and heavenly in life and character. Thus he is known by all that he does and says–to be one who belongs to Heaven, and that more and more, as he gets nearer to his eternal home.

Those who live the life of faith, and love their Savior, and strive to serve God–are different in their whole conduct from men of the world. It is plain that they are not of this world. Their life shows it. Their citizenship is in Heaven.

There ought to be no mistaking a citizen of Heaven. But, alas! There is too much of worldliness and carelessness even in those who are in the narrow way. Too often it would be hard to know them as travelers towards Zion, seeking the heavenly country.

What! Shall those who are to live forever with God–have so little fellowship with Him now? Shall those whose treasure is in Heaven, where no rust nor moth can corrupt–care so much for the perishing things of this world? Shall those for whom Jesus has gone to prepare a place–fret against the little hardships and discomforts along the way? Thus the Christian should often remind himself of the heavenly home to which he belongs. It would help him to be heavenly in heart and life.

“Our citizenship is in Heaven–and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ!” Philippians 3:19-20

We look for Jesus–we expect Him–we are waiting for Him. He said that He would return, and told us to watch for His coming. He has told us to be ready, so that when He comes, we may receive Him with joy.

This is the position of the Christian on earth–waiting for his Lord and Savior!

We do not know when He will come, and we do not know how He will come. He may come while yet we are living–or we may die before His coming; no one knows.

To be thus looking for the coming of the Lord . . .
must have a great effect on a man’s character and life,
must keep him from living in sin or in carelessness,
must make him watchful, diligent, and in earnest,
must tend greatly to a spiritual mind,
must lead him to draw off his affections from the world–and to fix them upon eternal realities!

Thinking of Him,
looking for Him,
wishing for Him,
doing His will,
engaged in His work–
this is what Jesus would have us to do and be.
Lord, make us so more and more!

~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

“Don’t worry, be happy” is a song by Bobby McFerrin. It has nothing to do with God. The song tells of many problems with no solutions.

God tells us not to worry. He tells us to take our worries to Him. He then deals with them, not us.

We all need to learn this lesson.

It will be a great benefit to us in every way, to learn this lesson

(J.R. Miller, “Morning Thoughts” 1906)

“Do not worry about anything–but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

Learning not to worry, is one of the lessons that every Christian should master.

Worry is a terribly wasteful experience:
it uses up the strength we need for our duty,
it unfits us for doing our work well,
it is dishonoring to God, for He has promised to care for us, if only we do His will faithfully,
it is utterly fruitless, for it does not take away the things that it frets over.

The Bible gives many lessons on the subject–but none that makes plainer just how we are to eliminate worrying from our life, than what Paul here tells us to do.

First of all, we are simply not to worry: “Do not worry about anything.”
There is no room for exceptions, special circumstances, and all that.
We are not to worry about anything.

What then shall we do with the matters that we are disposed to worry over? Put them into the hands of God in prayer–and leave them there! If we do this–then the peace of God will guard our hearts and thoughts from all anxiety. 

It will be a great benefit to us in every way, to learn this lesson.

~  ~  ~  ~

Our lives would be much calmer if we master this principle.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

Good morning,

Jesus was not a preacher in the conventional sense. He did not stand behind a pulpit and preach. He ministered as he lived life. He allowed everyday events to be his sermon material. People followed, watched, and ultimately trusted Jesus as Savior and Lord.

That is what today’s devotional challenges us to do.

We need more sermons in shoes!

(Theodore Cuyler)

“Live such good lives among the pagans, that . . . they may see your good deeds and glorify God!” 1 Peter 2:12

“Whoever says he abides in Him–ought to walk and conduct himself in the same way in which He walked and conducted Himself.” 1 John 2:6 (Amplified version)

We need more sermons in shoes–men and women going up and down the roads of life preaching Christianity by their imitation of Christ!

The demand of the day is for a higher standard and style of Christian life. Every follower of Christ must represent His religion purely, loftily, impressively–before that multitude of “Bible-readers” whose only Bible is the Christian!
“The true test of religion, is in the street. It lies in the common walks of life–even more than in the worship of the sanctuary. The test of our religion is not the regular manner in which we go to church, or the way in which we read our Bibles, or any elaborate religious ritual we perform. Its test is the kind of people it makes us–the kind of life it produces in us.”
“A fine illustration of the worth of Christian character was seen in a teacher of one of the government schools of Japan. His contract was that he was not to teach Christianity–and, so far as words were concerned, he kept it faithfully. But all the while his life was so blameless and beautiful–that it did the work without words. As evidence of this, forty of the students, without his knowledge, met in a grove secretly, and signed a covenant to forsake idolatry–for the religion of their teacher. Some of them are now preaching the gospel in their native land.”

“Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in Heaven!” Matthew 5:16

“That you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe!” Philippians 2:14-15

“So that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.” Titus 2:10

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love–just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us” Ephesians 5:1-2

~  ~  ~  ~

That is a tremendous challenge for each of us. Do our lives so radiate Jesus that people’s lives are changed? That should be our goal.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001

 

Good morning,

Our country is in need of wise counsel. The wisdom of the world seems insufficient for today’s complex problems. Who has the wisdom to lead us?

God does!

“The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.¹² Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.¹³ The Lord looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men.¹⁴ From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth.¹⁵ He fashioneth their hearts alike; he considereth all their works.¹⁶ There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength.” (Psalm 33:11-16)

King David knew where to put his trust. He relied on God’s counsel and humbled himself before the mighty throne of God.

“Our soul waiteth for the Lord: he is our help and our shield.²¹ For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name. ²² Let thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, according as we hope in thee.” (Psalm 33:20-22)

Maybe our country should humble ourselves before the God of heaven, repent of our sins, and allow God to lead us. We need to pray for revival in America and the world. We need to pray for the leadership, including our President.

“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;² For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.³ For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior;⁴ Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.⁵ For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;⁶ Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” (1 Timothy 2:1-6)

Pray for the salvation of leaders all over our world. Pray that God would bring a worldwide revival.  Pray for the lost.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001