A daily, Bible-based message of hope and encouragement.
 A daily, Bible-based message of hope, encouragement and exhortation. Click here to support our ministry.The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber. <Previous Message · Archive edition Wednesday, February 20, 2013  Russell Stover Mansion Mission Hills, Kansas  Listen to this message on your audio player."Recognizing Worthless Things" "Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word" (Psalm 119:37). "But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith" (Philippians 3:7-9).  My dad was born February 17, 1919 and has been with the Lord for nearly 15 years. So, this week I've been doing some reminiscing about my childhood. We were a middle class family though by today's American living standards, I suppose we were poor. Vacations, except for a few trips outside the Midwest, were visits to see grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins who either lived in Missouri or an adjacent state such as Oklahoma, Nebraska or Iowa. One of my childhood memories surfaced when Brooksyne brought home a heart-shaped box of Russell Stover Candies Monday. (She usually buys one box of clearance candy the week following Valentine's Day. She can't justify the calories but it makes her feel good about the bargain price!) When I was a kid my dad just loved to load up the family in the car and head out to wherever he felt like going. I recall Sunday afternoons when we would drive throughout the Kansas City area and I especially recall driving by the Russell Stover mansion. It's a large mansion right across the Kansas line. (The Kansas City metro area straddles the state line between Missouri and Kansas with most of the population on the Missouri side.) As we slowly drove past the Russell Stover home my little sister and I imagined aloud what it would be like living in such a place. There was a certain mystique about the name since Russell Stover candies were just too pricey for our home! Not having much travel experience this was the standard for what wealth was in our eyes. That was nearly fifty years ago and now we have seen lots of nice homes, including the mansions of Newport, Rhode Island and Lake Geneva Wisconsin. There are many huge homes right here in Lancaster County, including the Cameron Estate Mansion at the end of our walking trail (photo below).   We feel blessed by the home we live in and it is a mansion compared to how most of the world's people live. We especially enjoy our location out in the country. To borrow a line many of you have heard or said, "We are doing much better than we deserve."Our home and other possessions are a blessing but we need to keep a perspective on their value. Consider the first daily verse as a personal prayer: "Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word." It is found in the midst of the longest chapter in the entire Bible. Sometimes when reading through a longer section of the Bible we can easily miss some spiritual nuggets. We don't necessarily ponder each phrase and thoughtfully consider the meaning. I have a good minister friend who did a verse by verse study on this long chapter which reminded me of the importance of chewing on each precious morsel of God's Word. When viewed through spiritual eyes all the neat stuff that is so visually appealing is worthless in comparison to that which really matters from an eternal perspective. That's what we need to constantly remember. I wonder what "worthless things" the Psalmist was referring to? I suppose they are similar to that spoken by Isaac Watts in his classic hymn, "When I survey the wondrous cross" where he states, "All the vain things that charm me most...." I have a feeling these worthless and vain things are at least as prominent in our day as they were three thousand years ago or three hundred years ago. In our generation we are exposed to a whole lot more worthless things and a much greater variety! The Psalmist was wise in identifying this truth and making it a request. Do you see these worthless things surrounding us today? Many are not necessarily bad, some are a blessing and we will make use of them, but compared to those things that matter most they are indeed "worthless." Consider the Apostle Paul's perspective on this matter: "But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith." Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber  Daily prayer: Father, many people spend their entire lives accumulating that which perishes at the end of our lives. We, too, as believers get caught up in earthly possessions as they require a great deal of our time and often tug at our heart strings for misplaced value in this life. But our possessions on this side pale in comparison to knowing You and Your great love for us. Turn our eyes from that which is worthless and toward that which is preserved for us in heaven. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.There's another lesson in this memory: My Mom and Dad's attitudes were shaped in their childhood years during the Great Depression. I don't recall any sense of resentment toward those who had more of this world's goods or their whining about life's unfairness. My mom was a homemaker and my dad was a pipefitter and worked at many jobs. He always adapted to do whatever he had to do to take care of his family. They seemed to feel blessed by what they had and didn't focus on what they didn't have.  My reminiscing created an interest in locating a photo of my boyhood home in Belton Missouri, which hasn't changed much since we moved from that area in 1970. This is from the Google street view. Many of you who live in America (and perhaps other countries as well) can do this with previous homes you lived in. Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources "When I Survey The Wondrous Cross" Video Kathryn Scott Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, Save in the death of Christ, my God; All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood. "Knowing You" Video Graham Kendrick "All The Way My Saviour Leads Me" Video Chris Tomlin For the curious here's an aerial view of the Russell Stover mansion in Mission Hills Kansas. (Russell Stover died the year I was born.)  These are articles we come across in the course of studying for these messages or just poking around the vast Internet. In most cases they are not necessarily related to the daily message but may be of interest to our readers. These articles will only be posted once and there will be new ones each post, assuming we come across material that we feel may be of interest. (To see previous links use the archive version.)"Mohler's 10 Books Every Preacher Should Read" from the Justin Taylor blog. I was especially intrigued by the description of the first book titled "The Juvenilization of American Christianity" "Pop worship music. Falling in love with Jesus. Mission trips. Wearing jeans and T-shirts to church. Spiritual searching and church hopping. Faith-based political activism. Seeker-sensitive outreach. These now-commonplace elements of American church life all began as innovative ways to reach young people, yet they have gradually become accepted as important parts of a spiritual ideal for all ages. What on earth has happened? In The Juvenilization of American Christianity Thomas Bergler traces the way in which, over seventy-five years, youth ministries have breathed new vitality into four major American church traditions -- African American, Evangelical, Mainline Protestant, and Roman Catholic. Bergler shows too how this "juvenilization" of churches has led to widespread spiritual immaturity, consumerism, and self-centeredness, popularizing a feel-good faith with neither intergenerational community nor theological literacy. Bergler's critique further offers constructive suggestions for taming juvenilization. |
 Stephen and Brooksyne Weber (Click on photo to enlarge) "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update (Revised 12/31/12)  Are our daily encouragement messages a blessing to you? Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. We ask you to consider an offering to Daily Encouragement Net so that we can continue to prepare and provide this daily resource which is accessed by believers and seekers all over the world. Daily Encouragement Net relies solely on the generosity and financial support of its readers and podcast listeners. See here for more information on supporting this ministry. Gifts are tax deductible. Click here to donate online.2013 YTD financial offerings to Daily Encouragement Net as of 2/19/13: $2,597.00. We express thanks to all who support our ministry! SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe to our email list. These messages are never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR it was forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or as an email subscription through Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.)Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If you no longer desire to receive these messages you can remove your address from the list by merely using the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Weekly Version: The weekly version is intended for those who may not check their email regularly or who may desire less frequent mailings. It is Friday's message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter:  The daily message and prayer on Facebook. The daily message and prayer on Twitter.Reader Survey: Please take a few minutes to assist us in improving our ministry effectiveness by filling out this online reader survey. To take the survey click here. Please feel free to pass these messages on! Our other blogs: "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. All of these songs are also available for download on the site. 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, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. Other versions are also occasionally used. © Copyright 2013 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us  Endorsed chaplain "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
Daily Encouragement is issued Monday-Friday. To make sure you continue to receive these e-mails in your Inbox (so they're not sent to a junk folder), please add scweber@dailyencouragement.net to your address book or safe sender list. You are receiving these recurring messages as a subscriber to Daily Encouragement Net because you signed up on our website or otherwise requested it unless someone forwarded the message to you. If you desire to unsubscribe use the link below. However, please do not use this link unless your address is the subscribed address below as you will otherwise unsubscribe the person who forwarded it to you!
| You are currently subscribed to dailyencouragement as: stephencweber.dailyencouragement@blogger.com Add scweber@dailyencouragement.net to your email address book to ensure delivery. Forward to a Friend | Manage Subscription | Subscribe | Unsubscribe |  |
