A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. <Previous Message · Easy read/print edition Thursday, November 8, 2007  Produce stand in rural Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (Click on photo to enlarge or use as desktop)  Click here to listen to this message on your audio player."Thoroughly Tested Promises" "Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them" (Psalm 119:140). An aspect of this ministry that warms our hearts is hearing from readers all over the world, particularly the notes we receive from believers in countries where there is persecution and oppression. A believer wrote to us from such a closed country and shared that the encouragement messages are "roaming around in this very strict country as far as religion is concerned." Now that's a neat source of ministry fulfillment! (If I were to name the country many of you would recognize it as among the most oppressive on earth.) What a joy to share a message of hope with such a fellow believer this day and hopefully it will do some "roaming" to encourage others. The daily verse is indeed packed with encouragement! Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible and virtually every verse extols some aspect of God's Word. The Psalmist David seems to be in a crescendo of deep appreciation for God's Word and yet the "Bible" he had would have been essentially the first five books of our present Bible, perhaps along with some of the historical books (hardly among our favorite sources of promises!) "Your promises have been thoroughly tested." Dr. Herbert Lockyer's book titled "All the Promises In The Bible" lists over 8,000 promises. These promises are definite, explicit declarations God has made that we can rely on. His promises are "thoroughly tested." The actual Hebrew words convey a poker constantly in the fire in the refining process of gold. The Amplified Bible states "tried and well refined." Consider how these promises that David reckoned as "thoroughly tested" have been around an additional three thousand years since his writing! And now we have the entire Bible as a source of revelation from God and a great mine from which to glean His promises. Late in the New Testament Peter writes of God's "exceeding great and precious promises" (2 Peter 1:4). We certainly are blessed aren't we! The Psalmist continues by expressing his attitude toward God's promises, "your servant loves them." Believing friend, you can depend on God's promises as you trust Him for your present circumstances. His promises have been thoroughly tested again and again. May God give each of us a great love for them and increase our faith as we see them fulfilled in our lifetime. It will also help us to hold out for the promises to yet be fulfilled. Bible teacher James Montgomery Boice has noted, "The God of the Bible is not weak; He is strong. He is all-mighty. Nothing happens without His permission or apart from His purposes -- even evil. Nothing disturbs or puzzles Him. His purposes are always accomplished. Therefore those who know Him rightly act with boldness, assured that God is with them to accomplish His own desirable purposes in their lives." Friend of God, may His purposes be accomplished in your life as you hold onto His thoroughly tested promises. Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily prayer: Father, help us to meditate upon Your promises so that our faith is increased and our hope is renewed. When obstacles cloud our view that discourage or sway our trust in You, knowing Your thoroughly tested promises helps us to look beyond the natural and trust You for the supernatural. Here's information about the book I alluded to in today's message:  All the Promises of the Bible By Herbert Lockyer / Zondervan Throughout the Bible are scattered hundreds of definite, explicit promises that form the category Peter calls "the exceeding great and precious promises." In this book the noted evangelical and expository writer, Dr. Herbert Lockyer, undeniably achieves his goal of marshalling "a comprehensive and representative number of the promises" in Scripture. Dr. Lockyer leaves no theological stone unturned in his chapter-by-chapter exegesis of: the substance, simplicity, stipulation, surety, source, security, and scope of the promises. 351 pages. Softcover. Bible Study. About the author: Dr. Herbert Lockyer carried on an extensive Bible lecturing ministry for 10 years with the Moody Bible Institute. He then became a freelance Bible conference speaker in the United States and Canada for over 15 years. Herbert Lockyer has earned a lasting place in evangelical literature, which is well deserved. More information or to order. Sunday is a special day of prayer for the persecuted church. International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church Voice of the Martyrs Today's suggested music: "Promise" (Audio) "No Need To Fear" (Audio) "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" (Video) "Blessed Assurance" (Video) "What A Day It Will Be" (Audio) |
Administration Information  Stephen and Brooksyne "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update We share our hearts with you as we go forth in this online ministry.  Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. Would you please consider a financial offering to support us in this encouragement ministry? Thanks! See here for details.Join: To receive these free "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. You can also subscribe to the rss feed. Cancel: To remove your address from this mailing list merely use the link placed by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each message. Weekly Version: The weekly version is designed for those who do not check their email regularly. It is merely the Friday message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Please feel free to pass this message on! Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com (Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD!) Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity." How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; and the King James Version. "A Little Foolishness" - We invite daily encouragement readers to visit our new blog which is a collection of humorous and satirical stories drawn mostly from our years of ministry, as well as my sometimes fertile imagination. We also welcome submissions from readers. © Copyright 2007 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved  |
