A daily, Bible-based message of hope and encouragement.
 The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. <Previous Message · Archives · Archive edition Tuesday, September 28, 2010  The harvest view we now see at the end of our road. After they harvest the corn they bale the remaining stalks for fodder, which is used for animal bedding.  Listen to this message on your audio player."Tasting The Kindness Of The Lord" "O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him" (Psalm 34:8). Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the Word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord" (1 Peter 2:1-3).  Last night I passed through our kitchen and decided to get a few animal crackers out of the cookie jar for an evening snack. I grabbed several not paying a lot of attention and stuck one in my mouth. Phew, it sure didn't taste like an animal cracker but rather it turned out to be a small dog biscuit! I headed for the door, stepped out on our deck, and spit it out on the ground immediately. Then I thoroughly washed my mouth out. It wasn't necessarily a terrible taste but it sure wasn't what I was expecting!Now in my defense we have two cookie jars on our counter and normally Brooksyne keeps one filled with cookies for human consumption. The doggie biscuits did look like an animal cracker in color and size, although if I would have examined more carefully I would have seen they were not in animal shapes! But the taste was all I needed for my palate to discern the difference between a tasty sweet animal cracker and a plain dog biscuit, which was not tasty at all. (At least to me!) Now as I am preparing this message Brooksyne is canning applesauce and she just brought me a bowl of freshly home-made cinnamon apple sauce made from apples in our neighborhood. I just tasted the sauce and it is good; delightful to my tastebuds! The Bible uses different words to encourage us to live for God. Today's text exhorts us to "taste and see that the LORD is good." Now I was able to quickly discern that I had not grabbed an animal cookie last night. In a much more important test of discernment many people have wrong assumptions about the goodness of God on the basis of what they have "tasted". Their taste may be based on a faulty teaching or unanswered prayer (as they saw it). Perhaps they've observed the hypocritical lifestyles of immature believers or had little exposure to the Bible or Christianity. Many see only the embarrassing antics of those on TV, the radio, and even in some local churches who claim to represent Christ. Some have refused to even taste, for they consider God to be a killjoy or One who disapproves of all activity that's deemed to be fun in life. And then there are those who have sampled but never actually filled their plate with all that the Lord has for those seek to follow Him with all their heart. Matthew Henry comments on Psalm 34:8 in this way: David would have us to join with him in kind and good thoughts of God. "O taste and see that the Lord is good." Peter enjoins us to discard those attitudes which lead to one's spiritual malnourishment (malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander). Instead we are to seek spiritual nourishment, "like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good" (I Peter 2:1-3). Some people feed on controversy, dissension, or juicy gossip. As believers, let us feed on the goodness of the Lord as we load up on His delightful provisions that He has invited us to taste and savor. Let us taste of God's goodness each day so that we are encouraged in the worst of times to trust in Him. Let us regularly feed on the kindness of the Lord and invite others to join us at the supper table of the Lamb! Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily Prayer: Father, whet our appetite for spiritual food that brings sustenance, growth and experience as we partake of the Bread of Life. May our hearts hunger for the wonderful promises, provisions, and principles revealed throughout Your Holy Scripture. As we regularly taste of these nourishing nuggets we will become mature and be strengthened so that we can trust You in times of famine. Keep us tasting and keep us trusting. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources Click on the link to open and play. (In some cases you may also need to click again to start the song.) "Kindness" Video Chris Tomlin |
  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 daily encouragement ministry? Donations are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy endorsing ministry. Thanks! See here for details.2010 YTD financial offerings as of 9/27/10 $11,183.00 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. This newsletter is never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed or as an email subscription through feedburner.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. 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! "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!) Last updated with the story of Mildred Swanson, who joyfully discovers her "spiritual gift" is sending forwarded emails! (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.  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, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2010 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 |
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