The Upside-Down Kingdom#RTTBROS #Nightlight

The Upside-Down Kingdom

#RTTBROS #Nightlight

"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." - Matthew 5:3 (KJV)

Arnold Harvey was just a garbage collector in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Every morning at 3 a.m., he'd collect trash in wealthy neighborhoods, invisible to most residents—just another guy doing a dirty job. But Arnold had a secret. Before each route, he prayed over every household he served. When he learned a family was struggling, he'd tape an encouraging note to their trash can so they'd know a Christian was praying for them.

When Hurricane Katrina hit, Arnold used his life savings to rebuild homes for elderly residents who'd lost everything. At his funeral in 2020, over 2,000 people came—senators, CEOs, single mothers—all united by one humble man who understood something most of us miss: greatness in God's kingdom looks nothing like greatness in this world.

Jesus sat on that mountainside by the Sea of Galilee and taught His disciples a truth that turned their world upside down—or maybe, right side up. He said the poor in spirit would inherit the kingdom. The meek would inherit the earth. Those who mourn would be comforted.

This wasn't evangelism. This was discipleship. Jesus was showing His followers what real Christianity looks like so they could tell the difference between the authentic and the counterfeit.

Think about it like this: your attitude determines your action, your belief determines your behavior, your character determines your conduct. God works from the inside out, not the outside in. He doesn't start with how you wash your hands or how you sit in church. He starts with what's happening in your heart.

"Blessed are the poor in spirit." That's where it begins. Not financial poverty—spiritual poverty. Coming to God understanding you're morally bankrupt. That apart from Jesus Christ, you'd be lost. Whatever goodness exists in your life was authored by God and given to you by grace.

The danger for long-time believers is thinking, "Well, I don't drink, don't cuss, don't cheat—I'm doing pretty good." My grandma would say you're getting "the big head." But the truth is, the way to rise in God's kingdom is to sink in yourself.

Andrew Carnegie, one of the world's richest men, spent his final years giving away his fortune. He said, "The man who dies rich dies disgraced." He understood that merely accumulating wealth wasn't the point. God intended something larger.

You could be someone in a homeless shelter who just came off alcohol and got saved, and in God's eyes, you're richer than the richest person on earth—if you come with the right spirit. Poor in spirit.

Jesus is looking for people who understand they can't fix themselves. Who know the standard for heaven is absolute perfection, and only Jesus meets that standard. Who grasp that it's Christ's righteousness applied to their lives that makes them acceptable to a holy God.

That garbage collector understood it. While CEOs climbed corporate ladders, Arnold Harvey prayed over trash cans at 3 a.m. One of those CEOs said at Arnold's funeral, "I thought I was successful in my corner office with my six-figure salary, but then I met Arnold who finds joy in serving others at 3 a.m. in the rain. He made me question everything I thought about success."

The last became first. The garbage collector became a saint.

Are you poor in spirit today? Do you understand your absolute need for Jesus? That's where the kingdom begins. Not with your strength, but with His. Not with your righteousness, but with His righteousness covering you.

Prayer:

Father, help us to come before You poor in spirit, understanding our complete dependence on Your grace. Strip away our pride and self-sufficiency. Teach us what it means to live right-side up in this upside-down world. May we find our greatness not in what we accomplish, but in surrender to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

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Fullness with Less #RTTBROS #Nightligjt

Finding Fullness in Less #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"But godliness with contentment is great gain." — 1 Timothy 6:6

You know, I came across something recently that really got me thinking. Arthur Brooks, a professor who studies happiness, makes a fascinating observation. He says when a Westerner thinks of creating art, they picture a blank canvas, something that needs more added to it. More paint, more color, more brushstrokes. But when someone from Asia looks at art, they see a block of jade. The masterpiece is already inside, you just have to chip away what doesn't belong.

That difference in perspective hit me right between the eyes. Because most of us are living like we're staring at that blank canvas, aren't we? We think happiness is just one more thing away. One more promotion, one more zero in the bank account, one more achievement. We keep adding and adding, wondering why we still feel empty.

But what if happiness doesn't come from more, but from less? From being content with what we already have?

The Apostle Paul understood this. He wrote to Timothy, "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out" (1 Timothy 6:6-7).

Paul wasn't saying we shouldn't have goals. He was saying that chasing "more" as our source of happiness is a trap. True gain comes when we pair godliness with contentment. When we stop thinking our lives are blank canvases that need more added and start seeing them as that block of jade, already containing something beautiful if we'll just chip away the stuff that doesn't belong.

What needs to be chipped away? Maybe it's comparison. Maybe it's envy. Maybe it's the endless scroll through other people's highlight reels. Maybe it's expectations that were never meant to be there.

I'm too soon old and too late smart on this, but I've learned that contentment isn't about settling. It's about recognizing that God has already placed something beautiful in your life, right where you are. The art is already there.

So here's my challenge: what if you stopped adding and started subtracting? What if you chipped away just one thing keeping you from seeing the beauty that's already in your life?

Let's pray: Father, help us see our lives the way You see them. Teach us contentment. Teach us to find our joy in You, not in the endless chase for more. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Contentment #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #TrustGod #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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trust for the tangible #humility #RTTBROS #Nightlight #Trust #Belief

 Trusting God for Today's Needs #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"Your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things." — Matthew 6:32

You know, A.B. Simpson once said something that's stuck with me for years. He said Christ makes no less of our trust for temporal things than He does for spiritual things. Now, at first, that might sound a little odd. We tend to think spiritual trust is the higher, nobler thing. But Simpson understood something profound: it's actually harder to trust God for material needs than spiritual ones.

Here's why. In spiritual matters, we can fool ourselves. We can say we're trusting God for things that are way off in the distance, things we can't see or measure. But you can't fake trust when it comes to rent and food and the needs of your body. They either come or they don't. Your faith gets tested in the everyday stuff, in the tangible, right now needs.

When the sun is shining and everything's going well, it's easy to say we trust God. But let something come along that irritates and rasps and frets us, let the bills pile up or the pantry get low, and we find out real quick whether our trust is genuine or just religious talk.

I think about the children of Israel in the wilderness. God fed them with manna every single day. Not once a month, not a year's supply dropped off at their tent. Every day. That wasn't cruel, that was kind. God was teaching them to trust Him one day at a time. Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 6:34, "Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself."

The things of everyday life, the rent check, the grocery bill, the car repair, these are tests of our real faith in God. And honestly, I'm too soon old and too late smart on this, but I've learned that God often puts us where we have to trust Him for tangible matters precisely because that's where our faith becomes real instead of theoretical.

Simpson asked a piercing question: Are you trusting God for everything? Not just the big spiritual things, the eternal salvation, but the everyday needs? Because your heavenly Father knows what you need. He's not surprised by your bills. He's not caught off guard by your circumstances.

So here's the challenge: if you're not trusting God wholly in these everyday matters, you'll break down when the real tests come. But when you learn to trust Him for today's bread, for this week's needs, for the practical answers that must come, your faith becomes the kind that weathers any storm.

Let's pray: Father, forgive us for thinking some needs are too small for Your attention or too big for Your provision. Teach us to trust You not just for heaven someday, but for our daily bread today. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Trust #Provision #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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A Matter of Heart #RTTBROS #Nightlight

  A Matter of Heart #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ." — Colossians 2:5

You know, we live in a world where we expect instant everything. FaceTime someone across the planet, watch news unfold in real time, send a text and get annoyed if there's no response in thirty seconds. We've gotten spoiled.

But when Paul was writing his letters to the churches, it could take weeks, even months, for those words to reach their destination. Here's a story that drives this home: Andrew Jackson fought the Battle of New Orleans in January 1815, a victory that made him a national hero. The thing is, that battle was fought two full weeks after the peace treaty ending the War of 1812 had already been signed in Europe. The news just hadn't reached him yet.

But here's what gets me about Paul. Despite all those delays, despite never even visiting the church at Colosse, his heart was completely invested in those people. He's with them in spirit, rejoicing over their faith, praying for folks he's never met face to face.

That tells me something important. The depth of our love for people isn't measured by how close we are physically. It's a matter of the heart.

Paul says in Philippians, "For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state" (Philippians 2:20). He's talking about Timothy, a young man who genuinely cared about people from the heart.

What makes someone effective for God isn't their talent or their gifts. It's their heart. Do they genuinely care about people? I think about folks in my own life who've made the biggest difference. It wasn't the most talented or the most gifted. It was the ones who cared, who checked in, who prayed when I didn't even know I needed prayer.

That's what God is looking for. Not the most talented people, but people with hearts that care, hearts willing to be invested in others even when it costs something.

So who has God put on your heart lately? Don't ignore that. That might be the Holy Spirit prompting you to pray, to reach out, to care. We can be physically distant but spiritually close. And that kind of caring, that's what changes the world.

Let's pray: Father, give us hearts that genuinely care about people. Help us invest in lives because we want to. Make us people who naturally care for others. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Love #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #Caring #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Finding Joy Right Now #RTTBROS #Nightlight

 Finding Joy Right Now #RTTBROS #Nightlight

Finding Joy Right Now #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

You know, I've noticed something about human nature, and I'm as guilty of this as anyone. We spend Monday wishing it was Friday. We spend winter dreaming of summer, and come July, we're already longing for fall. We're always living in the next season, as if joy is just around the corner, waiting for us to arrive.

Here's what I've learned, and I'm too soon old and too late smart on this: joy isn't a destination we reach when circumstances align perfectly. Joy is a choice we make right now, in the middle of whatever we're facing.

There's a simple formula that really changed how I think about this. Joy equals your current circumstances minus your expectations. When we load up our today with expectations about how things should be, we rob ourselves of the joy that's available in how things actually are.

The Apostle Paul understood this. Sitting in a Roman prison, chained to a guard, he wrote these words: "Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice" (Philippians 4:4). How could a man in chains write about constant rejoicing? Because Paul had discovered that joy isn't found in perfect circumstances. It's found in the presence of a perfect God, right here, right now.

Most of us are standing in the middle of blessings we prayed for last year, but we can't see them because we're too busy looking ahead to next year's wishes. We're so focused on where we're going that we miss where we are.

Jesus said, "Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself" (Matthew 6:34). Today has enough in it to concern ourselves with, and hidden in that truth is this: today also has enough joy in it if we'll stop demanding it look different than it does.

So here's my challenge to you. What if we stopped waiting for Friday and found something to be grateful for on Tuesday? What if we stopped postponing joy until retirement, or until the kids are grown, or until we get that promotion? What if we looked at our current circumstances, released our grip on how we think things should be, and asked God to show us the joy that's available right now?

God made this day. Not yesterday, not tomorrow, but this one right here. Don't wait for someday to be joyful. Someday has a way of never quite arriving.

Let's pray: Father, forgive us for postponing joy. Help us release our expectations and open our eyes to the blessings You've placed in this very moment. Teach us to rejoice in the day You've made, just as it is. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Joy #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #TrustGod #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Finding Vs. Being #RTTBROS #Nightlight #humility #leadership #Building

 Finding vs. Building: The Truth About Becoming #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." — 2 Corinthians 5:17

You know, I keep hearing this phrase everywhere I turn: "You need to find yourself." It's become the mantra of our age, plastered across Instagram posts, repeated in self-help books, preached from stages. The message is clear, just look inward long enough, dig deep enough, and somewhere buried inside you'll discover your "true self" waiting to be unearthed.

But here's the problem with that whole idea. It turns life into an endless archaeological dig, always excavating, always searching, never building anything. People spend years, even decades, looking inward, asking "Who am I?" while life passes them by. And the irony? The more you stare at yourself in the mirror of introspection, the blurrier the image becomes.

The Bible has a completely different approach. It doesn't tell us to find ourselves, it tells us we're lost and need to be found by God. It doesn't say there's some perfect version of you buried inside waiting to emerge. Instead, it says something far more radical: "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."

Did you catch that? A new creature. Not a discovered creature, a new one. God isn't interested in helping you excavate some hidden self. He's in the construction business, not the archaeology business.

Think about it this way. When Nehemiah saw the broken walls of Jerusalem, he didn't sit around trying to "find" the walls. They were rubble. Instead, he said, "Come, and let us build" (Nehemiah 2:17). That's the pattern God uses. He takes what's broken, what's incomplete, what's lost, and He builds something new.

Here's the truth our culture doesn't want you to know: looking inward is exhausting because you were never meant to be your own reference point. But when you stop the endless navel-gazing and start moving forward with God, everything changes. You and God together begin constructing who you're meant to be. He's the master builder, you're the willing worker. He provides the blueprint in His Word, the power through His Spirit, and the purpose that makes it all worthwhile.

Paul understood this. He wrote, "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14). Notice he didn't say "I dig inward." He said "I press forward." That's movement, that's construction, that's building something.

Stop wasting your life trying to find yourself. You're not lost in some internal maze. You're right here, right now, and God is saying, "Let's build something together. Let's construct the person I created you to become."

The difference between finding and building? Finding looks backward and inward. Building looks forward and upward. Finding asks, "Who was I meant to be?" Building says, "Who will I become with God?"

So today, stop digging. Start building. Partner with God in the construction of the person He's calling you to be. Because history is just His story, and you get to be part of what He's building in this world.

Let's pray: Father, forgive us for wasting time trying to find ourselves when You've been waiting to build us into something new. Help us stop looking inward and start moving forward with You. Give us the courage to partner with You in becoming who You created us to be. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Identity #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #NewCreation #BiblicalTruth #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Pivoting in Faith #RTTBROS #Nightlight

Pivoting in Faith #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." — Romans 8:28

You know, I've been thinking lately about something we don't talk about enough in the Christian life, and that's the art of pivoting. Not giving up, mind you, but pivoting. There's a world of difference between the two.

I was watching a basketball game the other day, and I noticed something. When a player gets trapped or blocked, they don't just stand there or throw the ball away. They pivot. They keep one foot planted and swing around looking for a new opening, a better angle, a different opportunity. That one foot stays anchored while the rest of them adjusts to find the way forward.

That's exactly what faith looks like when life throws us a curveball.

Think about Joseph for a minute. This young man had dreams, literally God-given dreams about his future. But what happened? His brothers threw him in a pit. Did he give up? No, he pivoted. He ended up as a slave in Potiphar's house and made the best of it. Then he got falsely accused and thrown in prison. Did he quit? No, he pivoted again. Every seeming dead end became a stepping stone to something greater. That pit led to a palace, but not in a straight line.

Or consider Paul. He had his heart set on going to Rome. But God gave him a vision of a man from Macedonia saying, "Come over and help us" (Acts 16:9). Paul didn't dig in his heels. He pivoted, went to Macedonia instead, and that pivot changed the course of history.

Here's what I've learned, and I'm too soon old and too late smart on this: the key to pivoting isn't losing your foundation, it's keeping one foot planted in faith while you adjust everything else. When you pivot, you stay anchored in God's character, His promises, His Word. You're not abandoning the journey, you're just taking a different route.

Giving up says, "God isn't working." But pivoting says, "God is working differently than I expected, and I trust Him enough to adjust."

Maybe you're in a season right now where everything you planned has fallen apart. Don't give up. Pivot. Keep one foot firmly planted in your faith in God's goodness, and look around for where He might be opening a different door.

Because here's the truth, history is just His story, and sometimes the detours are where the best chapters get written.

Let's pray: Father, when life doesn't go according to our plans, help us not to give up but to pivot in faith. Teach us to stay anchored in You while we adjust to Your better way. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Trust #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #Perseverance #GodsPlans #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Ordinary To Extraordinary #RTTBROS #nightlight #humility #discipline #mission

Building Tomorrow Through Today's Tasks #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men." — Colossians 3:23

You know, as a dad to nine kids and a foster parent to many more over the years, I've watched this pattern play out more times than I can count. Kids rolling their eyes at chores, convinced it's just meaningless busy work. But here's what I've learned, and I'm too soon old and too late smart on this one: the way we do the things we have to do prepares us for the things we want to do later.

There's a beautiful story about a young missionary named Jim Elliot. Before he went to Ecuador to reach the Auca Indians, before he became known worldwide for his martyrdom, he was just a college student. His roommates remembered him as the guy who made his bed with military precision every single morning, who kept his side of the room spotless, who showed up early to everything. One friend asked him why he was so particular about such small things. Jim's answer was simple: "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."

You see, Jim understood something profound. Those mundane morning routines weren't just about a tidy room. They were training ground for discipline, faithfulness in small things, doing what needed to be done whether he felt like it or not. When he stood before those Auca warriors years later, the character that held him steady in that moment had been forged in a hundred ordinary mornings of making his bed when he'd rather have slept in.

The Apostle Paul put it this way: "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men" (Colossians 3:23). Notice he didn't say "whatever great things you do" or "whatever ministry tasks you accomplish." He said whatsoever, whatever you do. That includes the dishes, the laundry, the homework, the job you don't particularly like, the task that feels beneath you.

Here's the thing we miss: God uses the ordinary to prepare us for the extraordinary. David wasn't fighting bears in the wilderness for fun, he was protecting his father's sheep. But every time he defended those sheep, he was developing the courage and faith he'd need to face Goliath. Joseph wasn't trying to become prime minister of Egypt when he faithfully managed Potiphar's household, but God was preparing him for exactly that.

The skills you develop in doing well what you have to do today become the foundation for what you'll want to do tomorrow. So whatever's in front of you today, whatever task feels mundane or meaningless, do it heartily, as unto the Lord. Because history is just His story, and He's writing your character in the margins of ordinary days.

Let's pray: Father, help us see today's tasks not as interruptions but as training ground. Give us the grace to be faithful in small things, knowing You're preparing us for greater things. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Character #DailyDevotion #ChristianLiving #Faithfulness #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Adulting In Grace #rttbros #nightlight

 Adulting in Grace #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ." — 1 Corinthians 3:1

You know, I saw something the other day that made me laugh and then made me think. They're selling these "I Adulted" calendars now, complete with stickers you can stick on different days to celebrate your grown-up achievements. Things like "I paid a bill on time" or "I cooked a meal" or my personal favorite, "I matched my socks." 

Now, for most of us who've been around the block a time or two, that seems pretty funny. We've been doing those things for so long we don't even think about them anymore. But here's what got me thinking: how many of us are doing the spiritual equivalent of celebrating that we matched our socks?

Paul had to write to the Corinthian church and basically say, "Look, you've been Christians long enough that you should be teaching others by now, but I still have to feed you with a bottle like babies." That had to sting. But if we're honest, how often do we find ourselves in the same spot?

The writer of Hebrews puts it this way: "For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat" (Hebrews 5:12). 

Here's what I've learned, and I'm too soon old and too late smart on this: spiritual growth doesn't happen by accident. You don't accidentally become mature in Christ. It takes intentionality. It takes time in the Word. It takes prayer. It takes wrestling with hard truths and letting God change you from the inside out.

Our world is desperate for grown-up Christians right now. Not perfect Christians, but mature ones. People who can stand firm when the winds blow. People who can speak truth with grace. But we can't do any of that if we're still celebrating that we showed up to church this week like we deserve a sticker for it.

So let me ask you: where are you today? Are you still on milk, or have you graduated to the meat of God's Word? Because friend, God has so much more for you than where you're sitting right now. When we devote ourselves to His Word and to prayer, not out of duty but out of hunger, that's when real growth happens.

Let's pray: Father, forgive us for being content with spiritual infancy when You've called us to maturity. Give us a hunger for Your Word and a desire to grow in our faith. Help us move beyond the basics and into the deep things You want to teach us. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #SpiritualGrowth #ChristianMaturity #DailyDevotion #BiblicalWisdom #ChristianLiving #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Leading by the String #RTTBROS #Nightlight

Leading by the String #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant." — Matthew 20:27

You know, I love simple lessons that pack a powerful punch. General Dwight D. Eisenhower used to teach leadership in a way that stuck with people for the rest of their lives. He'd hand someone a piece of string and tell them to push it into a straight line. They'd try and try, but that string would just bunch up and go nowhere. Then he'd pick up one end and gently pull it, and that string would follow wherever he led it, smooth as could be.

Then came the application: "Leaders lead from the front by example, not by pushing from behind."

I've been thinking about that lately, and here's what strikes me. Too often, we try to push people into doing what we want. Parents push their kids. Bosses push their employees. Even in the church, sometimes we push people toward spiritual growth. But all that pushing does is create resistance, frustration, and a tangled mess.

Jesus knew this. When His disciples were arguing about who would be the greatest in the kingdom, He didn't push them into humility. He showed them. "For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45). He led by example.

Here's what I'm too soon old and too late smart about: people don't follow what we say nearly as much as they follow what we do. If I want my kids to love God's Word, they need to see me in it. If I want my team at work to show up on time and give their best effort, I better be doing the same thing. If I want people around me to walk in grace and forgiveness, I need to be living it out myself.

The beautiful thing about pulling that string is it goes wherever you lead it, turn by turn. But there's responsibility in that too. We can pull too hard and drag people off their feet. We can pull inconsistently and lose their trust. Or we can forget we're supposed to be leading and let the team pull us in whatever direction feels comfortable.

The question isn't whether people are watching us. They are. The question is: what are they seeing? Are we pushing from behind, demanding they go where we won't? Or are we out front, showing them the way, inviting them to follow?

Jesus didn't stay in heaven and shout instructions down at us. He came down, walked among us, and said, "Follow me." And because He led by example, even to the cross, people have been following Him for over two thousand years.

Let's pray: Father, help us to lead like Jesus, not by pushing others but by pulling them forward through our example. Give us the integrity to walk the path before we ask others to follow. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Leadership #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #LeadByExample #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Building Together #RTTBROS #MorningGlory #Nightlight

 Building Together #RTTBROS #MorningGlory

"Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work." Nehemiah 2:18

Henry Ford once said, "Coming together is a beginning; staying together is progress; working together is success." He was really just echoing a principle that's been true since the beginning of time. God's work has always required God's people to join hands together.

Let me tell you about Nehemiah. His heart was absolutely broken when he heard how Jerusalem lay in ruins, the walls torn down, the gates burned with fire. The people he loved were defenseless, vulnerable, living in reproach. So he got permission from the king and headed back home, but here's the thing, he didn't go back thinking he was going to rebuild that wall all by himself.

When Nehemiah arrived, he gathered the people together and said, "Ye see the distress that we are in... come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem." Did you catch that? "Let us." Not "let me." Let us.

And here's what gets me every time: the people's response. They didn't make excuses. They said, "Let us rise up and build." And together, working hand in hand, they finished that wall in fifty-two days. That's not a miracle of one man's effort, that's the power of God's people working together.

There's this principle in business called the 80/20 rule. It says that in most projects, 20 percent of the people do 80 percent of the work. Friends, that should never be true of God's church. Every single one of us has a part to play in God's work.

You might think, "I don't have much to offer." But remember, it wasn't talented builders who finished Nehemiah's wall, it was regular people who strengthened their hands for the good work.

Here's what I've learned, and I'm too soon old and too late smart on this: God doesn't need our ability as much as He needs our availability. He's looking for willing hands, not perfect hands.

So let me ask you today: what's your part in God's work? Don't sit on the sidelines. Strengthen your hands for the good work.

Let's pray: Father, thank You for the privilege of being part of Your work. Help us not to wait for someone else to do what You've called us to do. Give us willing hearts and strengthened hands to build up Your kingdom. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #ChurchLife #ServingGod #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #MorningGlory

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The Man Who Wouldn't Give Up #RTTBROS #Nightlight

The Man Who Wouldn't Give Up #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." — Galatians 6:9

I want to tell you about a man named William Carey, and I promise you, his story will encourage you if you're feeling like giving up on something God's called you to do.

Back in the late 1700s, Carey felt called to be a missionary to India. Now, you have to understand, this was a radical idea at the time. The church leadership told him, "If God wants to save the heathen, He'll do it without your help." But Carey couldn't shake the calling.

He finally made it to India in 1793, and here's where it gets interesting. He worked for seven years, seven long years, before he saw his first convert. Can you imagine that? Seven years of learning the language, translating Scripture, preaching, teaching, and not one single person came to Christ. Most of us would've packed our bags and headed home, convinced we'd missed God's voice.

But Carey had a motto that kept him going: "Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God." He didn't let the wait discourage him from the work. And by the time his ministry ended, he'd translated the Bible into over forty different languages and dialects, founded a college, and seen thousands come to faith in Christ.

Here's what strikes me about Carey's story, and I'm too soon old and too late smart on this one: faithfulness isn't measured by immediate results. It's measured by obedience over time.

We live in a world of instant everything. Instant coffee, instant messages, instant results. But God's kingdom doesn't usually work that way. Sometimes He calls us to plant seeds we won't see grow. Sometimes He asks us to be faithful in the waiting, in the season when nothing seems to be happening.

Paul tells us, "And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not" (Galatians 6:9). Notice he says "in due season," not "in our preferred timeline."

Maybe you're in a season right now where you've been faithful, you've been obedient, but you're not seeing the fruit you expected. Don't quit. Don't grow weary. Your seven years might be preparing you for a harvest you can't even imagine yet.

Let's pray: Lord, give us the endurance to be faithful even when we can't see the fruit. Help us trust Your timing and keep doing what You've called us to do. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Perseverance #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #TrustGod #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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The Power of Patience #RTTBROS #Nightlight

 

 The Power of Patience #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass." — Psalm 37:7

You know, I came across a story recently that stopped me in my tracks. It's about a man named George Washington Carver, and I think it'll speak to something we all struggle with.

Now, most of us know Carver as the brilliant scientist who revolutionized agriculture in the South. But here's what most people don't know: when Carver applied to Highland College in Kansas, he was accepted based on his exceptional academic record. But when he showed up to enroll, they took one look at him and turned him away because he was Black. Can you imagine? You've worked so hard, you've been accepted, and then the door slams in your face.

But here's where the story gets interesting. Carver didn't give up. He didn't get bitter. He waited. He worked odd jobs. He kept learning. Years later, Iowa State University not only accepted him, they made him their first Black student. And it was there that he developed his groundbreaking agricultural research.

But wait, there's more to this story. Remember that college that rejected him? Highland College? Years later, they realized their mistake and tried to make amends. But by then, Carver had become so accomplished that he graciously declined their belated offer. God's timing had proven perfect.

I've been thinking about this because we live in such an instant world. We want the microwave answer, the overnight success, the immediate breakthrough. But God, He works on a different timetable. And I'm too soon old and too late smart on this one, but I've learned that His delays are not His denials.

The psalmist tells us to "rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him." Notice those words: rest and wait. They're not passive words, they're trust words. When you're resting in God, you're not fretting, you're not scheming, you're not trying to force doors open that God has closed for your protection.

Carver could have become bitter. He could have given up on education altogether. But he kept his hands open and his heart soft, and God used that rejection to position him exactly where he needed to be to change the world.

Maybe you're facing a closed door today. Maybe you've been waiting so long you're starting to wonder if God's forgotten about you. He hasn't. Sometimes He's protecting you from something that looks good but isn't best. Sometimes He's preparing you for something bigger than you can imagine. And sometimes, like with Carver, He's proving that His plans are always better than ours.

History is just HIS story, friend, and you're an important part of it. Trust His timing.

Let's pray: Father, help us to rest in You when doors close and dreams get delayed. Teach us to wait patiently, knowing that Your timing is perfect and Your plans are always good. Give us the faith to trust You, even when we can't see what You're doing. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Trust #GodsTimimg #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #Patience #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Hue and Cry

Hue and Cry #RTTBROS #Nightlight

Ephesians 5:11 - "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them."

In twelfth century England, they didn't have police departments like we do today. When a crime was committed, the whole community was responsible for dealing with it. If you witnessed a robbery or an assault, you couldn't just walk away and mind your own business. The law required you to raise what they called "hue and cry."

"Hue" comes from the Old French word meaning "to shout out," and that's exactly what you were supposed to do. You'd yell and make as much noise as possible to alert everyone in the area that something was wrong. Then the whole community would come running to help catch the criminal and deal with the situation. It was their early warning system, and it only worked if people were willing to speak up when they saw evil happening.

Now, I know we live in different times, and we've got law enforcement to handle most of these situations today. But I can't help thinking about how this old medieval law applies to our spiritual lives. As Christians, we're part of a community, and we have a responsibility to each other when we see spiritual danger approaching.

Too often, we see a brother or sister heading down a destructive path, and we just stay quiet. We don't want to be judgmental, we don't want to interfere, we don't want to make waves. But Paul tells us we're not supposed to have fellowship with works of darkness, we're supposed to reprove them. Sometimes love requires us to raise a holy "hue and cry."

Now, I'm not talking about being self-righteous or gossipy. I'm not talking about pointing fingers at every little fault we notice in others. But when someone we care about is in real spiritual danger, when they're making choices that could destroy their testimony or their family or their walk with God, sometimes the most loving thing we can do is raise our voice.

It takes courage to speak up. It's risky to get involved. But in medieval England, if you saw a crime and didn't raise hue and cry, you could be held partly responsible for the consequences. Friend, I wonder if the same principle applies to us when we see spiritual crime taking place and stay silent.

The goal isn't to embarrass anyone or tear them down. The goal is to alert the community so help can come, so restoration can happen, so the damage can be stopped before it spreads.

Prayer: Lord, give me wisdom to know when to speak up and courage to do it in love when I see spiritual danger threatening those I care about. Amen

#Faith #Wisdom #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #Learning #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Life's Classroom #rttbros #Nightlight

 Learning from Life's Classroom #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels." — Proverbs 1:5

You know, I've been thinking about something Will Rogers once said. That old cowboy philosopher had a knack for seeing truth in simple ways, and one thing he loved to point out was that he'd never met a man he couldn't learn something from. Now, that's a pretty remarkable statement when you think about it. Every person, a teacher. Every encounter, a classroom.

I was visiting with a friend the I made today, and we got to talking about mistakes, those hard teachers we all seem to meet along life's journey. She said something that really stuck with me: "If you're smart, you learn from your own mistakes. But if you're wise, you learn from other people's mistakes." That's when it hit me, wisdom isn't just about collecting your own scars and learning from them. It's about paying attention to the scars of those around you and letting their experiences compound your understanding.

The Bible has a lot to say about this. Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, wrote in Proverbs 13:20, "He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed." See, wisdom is contagious. So is foolishness. The people we surround ourselves with, the stories we listen to, the experiences we pay attention to, they all shape how we navigate this life.

Now, I'm too soon old and too late smart on this one, but I spent a lot of years thinking I had to figure everything out on my own. I had to touch the hot stove myself before I'd believe it was hot. But somewhere along the way, I realized that God puts people in our lives for a reason. Their victories can encourage us. Their mistakes can warn us. Their wisdom can guide us.

Think about it this way: if you only learned from your own mistakes, you'd have to live ten thousand lifetimes to gain the wisdom that's available to you right now by simply paying attention to the lives of others. That's why the older folks in the church matter so much. They've been down roads we haven't traveled yet. They've made mistakes we can avoid. They've found paths through dark valleys that we're just now entering.

But here's the thing, you have to be humble enough to listen. You have to be wise enough to recognize that everybody you meet knows something you don't. That grumpy old timer at church? He might know something about perseverance that could change your life. That young person full of questions? They might see something fresh about God's Word that you've overlooked for years.

History is just HIS story, and God has been teaching His people through each other since the beginning. When we learn from one another, we're participating in something beautiful, we're letting God's wisdom flow through the Body of Christ, from generation to generation, from experience to experience.

So let me ask you: who's God put in your path that you might be overlooking as a teacher? What lessons are available to you right now if you'd just open your ears and humble your heart? Because wisdom, real wisdom, doesn't just come from the school of hard knocks. It comes from paying attention to everyone who's been there before you.

Let's pray: Father, give us humble hearts to learn from those You've placed in our lives. Help us see that every person we meet can teach us something if we're wise enough to listen. Thank You for the gift of wisdom that comes through Your people. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Wisdom #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #Learning #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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The Joy Dealer #RTTBROS #Nightlight

The Joy Dealer #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones." — Proverbs 17:22

You know, I got an email the other day that hit me right between the eyes. It said something I needed to hear: "Your wife doesn't need another burden to manage. She needs a joy dealer." And friend, I sat there staring at that line because it convicted me in the best possible way.

See, somewhere along the journey, a lot of us Christian men got this idea that maturity means being serious all the time. Heavy. Intense. Always grinding, always stressed, always carrying the weight of the world on our shoulders. We think if we're not worried, we're not responsible. If we're not intense, we're not spiritual.

But that's not leadership, and it's not biblical manhood. That's just exhaustion with a spiritual veneer on it.

Think about Jesus for a minute. He was the strongest leader who ever walked this earth, yet people were drawn to Him. Children ran to Him. His disciples followed Him for years, and they didn't just endure His presence, they enjoyed it. He didn't repel people with heaviness. He attracted them with life.

I love what Nehemiah said: "The joy of the Lord is your strength" (Nehemiah 8:10). Did you catch that? Joy isn't some optional add-on to the Christian life. Joy IS strength. When God is first in your life, when your order is right, joy flows naturally because your peace doesn't depend on circumstances.

Here's what I'm learning, and I'm too soon old and too late smart on this one: rigid men repel, but joyful men attract. If your wife isn't drawn to you, if your kids seem to avoid you, maybe it's time to check your energy. Are you fun to be around? Do you bring life into the room, or do you suck it out with stress and intensity?

Paul tells us in Galatians 5:22 that joy is a fruit of the Spirit. It's not something we manufacture, it's something that flows when we're walking with God. A man filled with the Spirit doesn't need substances to relax or entertainment to unwind. He's enjoyable because God's joy lives in him.

Your family doesn't need another manager. They need a joy dealer. Someone who brings life, not drains it. Someone who's strong AND joyful. That's not weakness, friend. That's what it looks like when a man is anchored in the presence of God.

Let's pray: Father, forgive us for being exhausting instead of life-giving. Help us to find our joy in You so we can be joy dealers in our homes. Teach us that maturity isn't misery, and that following You should make us more enjoyable, not less. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #ChristianLiving #BiblicalManhood #Joy #Marriage #Family #DailyDevotion #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Adapt and Overcome #RTTBROS #Nightlight

Adapt and Overcome #RTTBROS #Nightlight. Adapt and Overcome #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." — Romans 8:28

I remember my old boss telling me something he learned during his military career. Three simple words that became his motto for life: Adapt and overcome. At first, I thought it was just another one of those tough-guy military sayings, you know? But the more I sat with it, the more I realized how deeply biblical that concept really is.

Life has this habit of not going according to our plans. The car breaks down when you can't afford the repair. The job you thought was secure disappears. And we're left standing there wondering what just happened.

Here's what I've learned: God isn't nearly as concerned with our comfort as He is with our character. He's not shocked when things go sideways. In fact, He's already working on Plan B while we're still trying to figure out what happened to Plan A.

Think about the Apostle Paul in Acts 16. He had big plans to preach the gospel, but he kept running into closed doors. The Spirit wouldn't let him preach in Asia. He couldn't go into Bithynia. But then he had a vision of a man from Macedonia saying, "Come over and help us." Paul adapted, changed direction, and ended up bringing the gospel to Europe for the first time. That one adaptation changed the entire course of Christian history.

Adapt and overcome isn't just about toughing it out. It's about trusting that God is redirecting, not rejecting. It's about being flexible enough to follow where He leads, even when it's not where we planned to go.

The military teaches adapt and overcome because in battle, nothing ever goes exactly according to plan. Well, friend, we're in a spiritual battle, and our enemy isn't going to make things easy. But here's the good news: we serve a God who specializes in taking our messes and making them into messages, our tests into testimonies, our trials into triumphs.

Romans 8:28 reminds us that all things work together for good to them that love God. Notice it doesn't say all things ARE good. It says they work together FOR good. That's adaptation. That's overcoming.

So whatever you're facing today, whatever has gone wrong, remember: God's not done yet. He's teaching you to adapt and overcome. And when you do, you'll look back and see that history really is just HIS story, and He was writing a better chapter than you could have imagined.

Let's pray: Father, when our plans fall apart, help us trust that You're not surprised. Give us the strength to adapt to what You're doing and the faith to overcome what stands in our way. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Resilience #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #TrustGod #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #OvercomingObstacles #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Leaving a Legacy of Faith #RTTBROS #Nightlight

Leaving a Legacy of Faith #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart." Deuteronomy 6:4-6

You know, I've been thinking about something lately that I think we all need to wrestle with. What are we leaving behind? Not just the stuff in our attics or the money in our bank accounts, but the faith we're passing down to the next generation. That's what Moses was getting at in Deuteronomy 6, right there on the threshold of the Promised Land, giving the people one last reminder before they went in.

I heard a story once about a grandma back in 1955 who only had a third-grade education and could barely read. But every single night, she'd pull her grandson up on her lap with a worn-out King James Bible in her hand. She'd tell him the stories, David and Goliath, the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace, Daniel in the lion's den. And as he got older, she'd have him read the Bible to her. That little boy grew up to have a national radio ministry that impacted millions of people around the world. All because one grandma faithfully read God's Word to her grandson.

Sometimes Satan will try to make you think you can't make any real difference in the kingdom of God. You're just one person. What does it matter? But friend, you don't know the impact of the choices you make today. You don't know what your children and grandchildren are going to do in this world. And if you can influence them for Christ, they can have exponential influence all around the world.

Now here's something I want you to understand about God's commandments. They're not some kind of moral handcuffs to keep you from having fun. The commandments of God are the guardrails of life. If you've ever been to the Snake River Canyon, you've seen those guardrails along the walking path that keep you safe from that massive, deep canyon. Those guardrails aren't there to ruin your view or limit your freedom. They're there to keep you from destroying yourself.

That's what God's Word does for us. It's not taking something from you, it's giving something to you. It provides structure, stability, a secure foundation for living. There's an old saying I love: a Bible that's falling apart is almost always owned by somebody whose life isn't falling apart. If you can use God's divine revelation as the blueprint for the life you live, as the roadmap giving you direction, you're going to find that you live a very stable, successful, good life.

But here's the thing Moses was really driving at in Deuteronomy 6. The love for God must be complete and comprehensive. "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might." This isn't just about knowing the right answers. This is about being completely sold out to God so that when you teach your children, they can see what you do, not just what you say.

Chuck Swindoll used to say, "Do not traffic in unlived truth." That hit me hard when I first heard it. We all learn more by seeing than by hearing. If we're going to pass down a legacy of faith, we've got to live it ourselves so our kids and grandkids can see it in action. Moses said these words should be written on our hearts. Not just stored on our phones or sitting on a shelf, but hidden deep in our hearts where we take them with us wherever we go.

Now I'll be honest with you, I'm concerned that we're losing something vital in this technology age. We've outsourced our memory to our devices. You probably remember when you were a kid, you had to memorize twenty or thirty phone numbers. Now you probably struggle to remember your wife's phone number because you just tap her name on the screen. We're becoming dependent on technology to remember for us, and what we're losing is God's Word hidden in our hearts.

God didn't just want His Word written on stone tablets. He wanted it written in your heart. Because when it's in your heart, you can't leave it at home on the charger. It goes with you to work, to the grocery store, to that difficult conversation you didn't see coming. The psalmist said, "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee" (Psalm 119:11). That's not just a nice idea, friend, that's survival equipment for living in this fallen world.

So here's my challenge for you today, and I'm right there with you on this one because I'm too soon old and too late smart. Could you memorize just one verse a week? Just one. Read it ten times in the morning, ten times at lunch, ten times before bed. Do that for seven days and you'll have read it 210 times. You'll have it memorized. At the end of the year, you'll have 52 verses hidden in your heart. That's more than most people will ever memorize, and that's a legacy you can pass down to the next generation.

Let's pray: Father, help us to be faithful in hiding Your Word in our hearts. Give us the discipline to memorize Your truth and the courage to live it out so that our children and grandchildren can see real faith in action. May we leave a legacy that points them to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Legacy #Scripture #BiblicalWisdom #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Leaving a Legacy of Faith #RTTBROS #Nightlight

Leaving a Legacy of Faith #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart." Deuteronomy 6:4-6

You know, I've been thinking about something lately that I think we all need to wrestle with. What are we leaving behind? Not just the stuff in our attics or the money in our bank accounts, but the faith we're passing down to the next generation. That's what Moses was getting at in Deuteronomy 6, right there on the threshold of the Promised Land, giving the people one last reminder before they went in.

I heard a story once about a grandma back in 1955 who only had a third-grade education and could barely read. But every single night, she'd pull her grandson up on her lap with a worn-out King James Bible in her hand. She'd tell him the stories, David and Goliath, the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace, Daniel in the lion's den. And as he got older, she'd have him read the Bible to her. That little boy grew up to have a national radio ministry that impacted millions of people around the world. All because one grandma faithfully read God's Word to her grandson.

Sometimes Satan will try to make you think you can't make any real difference in the kingdom of God. You're just one person. What does it matter? But friend, you don't know the impact of the choices you make today. You don't know what your children and grandchildren are going to do in this world. And if you can influence them for Christ, they can have exponential influence all around the world.

Now here's something I want you to understand about God's commandments. They're not some kind of moral handcuffs to keep you from having fun. The commandments of God are the guardrails of life. If you've ever been to the Snake River Canyon, you've seen those guardrails along the walking path that keep you safe from that massive, deep canyon. Those guardrails aren't there to ruin your view or limit your freedom. They're there to keep you from destroying yourself.

That's what God's Word does for us. It's not taking something from you, it's giving something to you. It provides structure, stability, a secure foundation for living. There's an old saying I love: a Bible that's falling apart is almost always owned by somebody whose life isn't falling apart. If you can use God's divine revelation as the blueprint for the life you live, as the roadmap giving you direction, you're going to find that you live a very stable, successful, good life.

But here's the thing Moses was really driving at in Deuteronomy 6. The love for God must be complete and comprehensive. "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might." This isn't just about knowing the right answers. This is about being completely sold out to God so that when you teach your children, they can see what you do, not just what you say.

Chuck Swindoll used to say, "Do not traffic in unlived truth." That hit me hard when I first heard it. We all learn more by seeing than by hearing. If we're going to pass down a legacy of faith, we've got to live it ourselves so our kids and grandkids can see it in action. Moses said these words should be written on our hearts. Not just stored on our phones or sitting on a shelf, but hidden deep in our hearts where we take them with us wherever we go.

Now I'll be honest with you, I'm concerned that we're losing something vital in this technology age. We've outsourced our memory to our devices. You probably remember when you were a kid, you had to memorize twenty or thirty phone numbers. Now you probably struggle to remember your wife's phone number because you just tap her name on the screen. We're becoming dependent on technology to remember for us, and what we're losing is God's Word hidden in our hearts.

God didn't just want His Word written on stone tablets. He wanted it written in your heart. Because when it's in your heart, you can't leave it at home on the charger. It goes with you to work, to the grocery store, to that difficult conversation you didn't see coming. The psalmist said, "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee" (Psalm 119:11). That's not just a nice idea, friend, that's survival equipment for living in this fallen world.

So here's my challenge for you today, and I'm right there with you on this one because I'm too soon old and too late smart. Could you memorize just one verse a week? Just one. Read it ten times in the morning, ten times at lunch, ten times before bed. Do that for seven days and you'll have read it 210 times. You'll have it memorized. At the end of the year, you'll have 52 verses hidden in your heart. That's more than most people will ever memorize, and that's a legacy you can pass down to the next generation.

Let's pray: Father, help us to be faithful in hiding Your Word in our hearts. Give us the discipline to memorize Your truth and the courage to live it out so that our children and grandchildren can see real faith in action. May we leave a legacy that points them to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Legacy #Scripture #BiblicalWisdom #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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Taking Thoughts CaptiveThe Story of Martin Luther's Stand #RTTBROS #Nightlight

 Thoughts Captive

The Story of Martin Luther's Stand #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds)." — 2 Corinthians 10:3-4

Last night we talked about those automatic negative thoughts, those ANTs that swarm through our minds. Tonight, I want to tell you about a man who understood this battle better than most: Martin Luther.

Now, Luther was a monk who struggled terribly with his thoughts. He would spend hours in confession, sometimes confessing the same sins over and over because his mind kept telling him he wasn't truly forgiven, that he wasn't good enough, that God couldn't possibly love someone like him. His superior finally told him to stop coming to confession unless he had committed murder or blasphemy, something real to confess.

But here's where Luther's story gets interesting. When he finally discovered the truth of justification by faith, when he understood that we're made right with God through faith in Christ alone, not by our works, everything changed. He realized that those thoughts that kept condemning him were lies. They were real thoughts, yes, but they weren't true thoughts.

Luther used to say that you can't keep the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair. Sound familiar? He understood what Paul was teaching in 2 Corinthians 10, that we have weapons mighty through God for pulling down strongholds, for taking thoughts captive.

Here's the thing about taking thoughts captive: you can't do it by just trying harder to think positive. That's not what Paul is talking about. He's talking about confronting those automatic negative thoughts with the truth of God's Word. It's not about pretending the thoughts aren't there or trying to force yourself to feel differently. It's about recognizing a lie when you hear one and standing your ground with truth.

When that thought shows up telling you you're worthless, you don't have to argue with it or try to convince yourself otherwise. You just need to know what God says: "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people" (1 Peter 2:9). That's not positive thinking, that's truth thinking.

When that automatic thought tells you you're all alone and nobody cares, you don't have to try to talk yourself out of feeling lonely. You just need to remember what Jesus said: "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" (Hebrews 13:5). Again, not positive thinking, truth thinking.

Luther learned to fight his ANTs with Scripture. When those condemning thoughts would swarm, he would literally speak truth out loud. He'd say, "I am baptized. I am God's child. Christ died for me." Simple truths that cut through the lies like a sword.

You see, you can't control the first thought that pops into your head, but you can control what you do with it. You can take it captive. You can hold it up against God's Word and say, "Does this match what God says about me? Does this match what God says about my situation?" If it doesn't, then it's a lie dressed up as a thought, and it needs to be taken prisoner.

Tomorrow night, we'll talk about what to do for the long haul, because this isn't a one-time battle. But tonight, practice taking one thought captive. Just one. When that ANT shows up, grab hold of it with a truth from God's Word and don't let it run wild.

Let's pray: Father, give us courage to confront the lies in our minds with Your truth. Help us to be quick to recognize when our thoughts are not lining up with Your Word. Teach us to fight with the weapon of truth. In Jesus' name, Amen

The Real Thing #RTTBROS #Nightlight

 The Real Thing #RTTBROS #Nightlight

"Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the LORD your God, which he made with you, and

make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the LORD thy God hath forbidden thee. For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God." — Deuteronomy 4:23-24

You know, back in 2018, federal agents raided a warehouse in Los Angeles and discovered something shocking. Over ten million dollars worth of counterfeit items, fake Gucci bags, imitation Rolex watches, knockoff designer goods. People were paying good money for cheap substitutes, investing in things that looked like the real deal but were absolutely worthless. And it got me thinking about something we do in our spiritual lives all the time.

We settle for counterfeits when God is offering us the real thing.

I came across a story that really drives this home. Watchman Nee, that great Chinese Christian leader, told about an island where the people worshipped an idol named Ta Wang. 

Watchman Nee and his team went on a preaching mission to an island off the South China coast, where they found the local people deeply devoted to an idol called Ta Wang, or "Great King." The villagers believed Ta Wang was powerful because every year on his festival day, the weather was always perfect with no rain or clouds.

A young new convert in the team named Brother Wu asked the villagers when the idol's festival procession would be. When told it was set for January 11th at 8 in the morning, Brother Wu boldly promised that it would rain on that day, directly challenging the villagers' trust in their idol. The villagers reacted strongly, saying, "If it rains on the 11th, then your God is God!"

The team stopped preaching and committed themselves to prayer, asking God for a miracle. As the festival morning arrived, the day began with clear skies and the usual celebration with the idol being carried through the village. Suddenly, heavy rain began to fall, forcing a halt to the procession. The rain was so heavy that those carrying the idol's sedan chair stumbled and dropped it, causing the idol to break its jaw and left arm.

Despite makeshift repairs, the procession could not continue because of flooding and the villagers’ elders struggled amid the rain. The festival was officially postponed, and divination declared the wrong day had been chosen. The new festival day was set for January 14th.

On that new day, the team prayed again, asking for rain at the appointed hour. The weather was fine leading up to it, allowing the team to share the gospel and win several converts. At the designated time, heavy rain and flooding returned as foretold.

This event broke the villagers' confidence in Ta Wang as an effective god. Many, especially the younger generation, openly declared that the true God was real and that Ta Wang had lost his power. The spiritual hold of the idol was broken, and the gospel gained a foothold on the island.

Now, we might hear that story and think, "Well, I don't bow down to wooden statues. I'm good." But here's what I've learned, and I'm too soon old and too late smart on this one: idols today don't usually look like golden calves or carved images. They look like bank accounts, like celebrity worship, like social media followers, like that relationship we think will finally make us happy. They're anything, or anyone, that takes the place in our hearts that belongs only to God.

God warned the Israelites about this very thing in Deuteronomy. He told them, "Don't make images. Don't create substitutes. Don't worship creation instead of the Creator." And why was He so serious about it? Because God knows something we often forget: counterfeits never satisfy. They promise everything and deliver nothing. They take up space in our hearts that was designed for Him alone.

I think about this idea of hedonic adaptation. That's just a fancy way of saying we get used to good things real fast, and then we start looking for the next thing to fill us up. God blesses us, and instead of being grateful, we start thinking, "What's next? What else can make me happy?" Before we know it, we're chasing after substitutes, cheap knockoffs of the real joy that only comes from knowing God.

And here's the scary part: this pattern doesn't just affect us. It affects our kids, our grandkids, generations down the line. The first generation knows God personally. The second generation knows about God ritually. And the third generation? They don't know Him at all. That's why we have to keep telling the story, keep pointing people back to the real thing, keep reminding ourselves and our families that nothing, and I mean nothing, compares to Him.

God calls Himself a jealous God, and some people get uncomfortable with that. But think about it this way: if you're married and your spouse started giving someone else the attention and affection that belongs to you, you'd be jealous too. And rightly so. God isn't jealous because He's insecure. He's jealous because He loves us, and He knows that anything we put in His place will ultimately destroy us. He's a consuming fire because He will not tolerate rivals in our hearts.

So here's what I want you to think about tonight: What counterfeits are you settling for? What cheap substitutes have crept into your life and taken up space that belongs to God? Maybe it's not a carved image, but it's something just as dangerous. A job, a person, a dream, an expectation. Something that you've given the power to define your worth, your happiness, your purpose.

God is offering you the real thing. Not a knockoff. Not a substitute. The genuine, authentic, life-changing relationship with Him. He's not interested in competing for second place in your heart. He wants it all because He knows that's the only way you'll ever find what you're really looking for. So let's stop investing in counterfeits and start worshipping the One who is real, who is faithful, and who will never let us down.

Let's pray: Father, search our hearts tonight. Show us where we've settled for substitutes instead of seeking You. Help us to worship You alone, to reflect Your image to the world, and to pass down a faith that's real and living to the next generation. You are the real thing, and nothing else compares. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#Faith #Idolatry #ChristianLiving #DailyDevotion #TrustGod #BiblicalWisdom #SpiritualGrowth #RTTBROS #Nightlight

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