UCB Word For Today

Nicholas Herman was a cook in a monastery. He worried about whether or not he was truly saved. One day while looking at a tree, he realised the truth of the psalmist’s words – that it had to be rooted in something other and deeper than itself (see Psalm 1:1-3). That day, he decided to make his life an experiment in what he called a ‘habitual, silent, secret conversation of the soul with God’. He’s known today by the new name given to him by his friends: Brother Lawrence. He remained obscure throughout his life and spent the rest of his days in the monastery kitchen. But the people around him found that rivers of living water flowed out of him that made them want to know God the way he did. ‘The good brother found God everywhere,’ one of them wrote, ‘as much while he was repairing shoes as while he was praying with the community.’ After Brother Lawrence died, his friends put together a book of his letters and conversations. It is called The Practice of the Presence of God, and it is thought to be one of the most widely read books of the last four centuries. This short-order cook has outsold many popular contemporary novelists, and his book is still on best-seller lists. Brother Lawrence said: ‘The most holy and necessary practice in our spiritual life is the presence of God. That means finding constant pleasure in His divine company, speaking humbly and lovingly with Him in all seasons, at every moment, without limiting the conversation in any way.’

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

When it comes to Christ’s return, five questions arise: 1) What is the Lord’s coming? It’s the fulfilment of His promise: ‘In My Father’s house are many mansions…I go to prepare a place for you. And…I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also’ (John 14:2-3 NKJV). 2) Whose coming is it? Christ’s! When He ascended back to heaven, an angel announced: ‘This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven’ (Acts 1:11 NKJV). 3) Why is Jesus coming back? His first coming was as the suffering servant who died on the cross for our sins. His second coming is to usher in a time of peace on earth and an eternity in His presence. His first coming, He dwelt with us for a while. At His second coming, He will take us to dwell with Him forever. 4) Where is His coming? ‘The Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air’ (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 NKJV). 5) When is He coming? Jesus said, ‘Of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only’ (Matthew 24:36 NKJV). If you’re wise, you’ll live each day as if Christ could return at any moment – because He could!

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Here are some confidence-building Scriptures you should read, memorise, pray, and stand on each day: 1) ‘His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness’ (2 Peter 1:3 NIV). 2) ‘This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us – whatever we ask – we know that we have what we asked of him’ (1 John 5:14-15 NIV). 3) ‘The eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him’ (2 Chronicles 16:9 NIV). 4) ‘Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit’ (Jeremiah 17:7-8 NIV). 5) ‘Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need’ (Hebrews 4:16 NIV). 6) ‘We say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”’ (Hebrews 13:6 NIV). 7) ‘Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus’ (Philippians 1:6 NIV).

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Around the turn of the nineteenth century, a Russian physician named Ivan Pavlov won a Nobel Prize for his experiments with dogs. All of them had one thing in common – they salivated around food. But Pavlov wanted to find out if salivation could be caused by another stimulus, so he conditioned the dogs by ringing a bell before feeding them. Eventually the dinner bell caused salivation, even if the food wasn’t served. Pavlov referred to this learned relationship as a conditioned reflex. We have all been consciously or subconsciously conditioned our entire lives. Much of our behaviour was dictated by those conditioned reflexes. Some conditioned reflexes are as normal and natural as a blush. Others are as destructive as drinking to drown your sorrows. But conscious or subconscious, harmless or harmful, one thing is certain: we are far more conditioned than we realise. And one dimension of our spiritual growth is being reconditioned by the grace of God. Jesus said, ‘You have heard that it was said…But I say to you.’ Jesus uses this couplet repeatedly. What was He doing? He was uninstalling Old Testament applications and reinstalling New Testament truths. It was no longer ‘An eye for an eye.’ Jesus upgraded it to ‘Turn to them the other cheek,’ which required reconditioned reflexes (see Matthew 5:38-39 NIV). Sometimes it’s much easier to act like a Christian than to react like one. How does this change in our reactions take place? By the Holy Spirit. ‘We are being changed to be like him [Jesus]. This change…comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit’ (2 Corinthians 3:18 NCV).

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Do you find yourself wondering if Jesus is willing to heal you? Let’s look at the ministry of Jesus Christ, whom the Bible says is ‘the same yesterday, today, and forever’ (Hebrews 13:8 NKJV). That means if He did it before, He will do it again. As you read about the many healings and miracles Jesus performed on a continual basis, it will cause your faith to grow and your expectation to rise. ‘Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God’ (Romans 10:17 KJV). Throughout the gospels, people with various sicknesses went to Jesus for healing. Some were near death, and some were actually dead. There were people with strong faith, and others who struggled to believe. All the people Jesus healed were unsaved, as Jesus had not yet purchased salvation on the cross. The keys to every one of these miracles are: 1) Those who were sick made sure they were in the presence of Jesus; 2) They willingly received His word and acted on it. Read about some of the miracles Jesus performed: 1) Simon’s mother-in-law healed of a fever (see Matthew 8:14-15); 2) The resurrection of Jairus’s daughter (see Mark 5:21-24, 35-43); 3) Healing of the woman with the issue of blood (see Mark 5:25-34); 4) A deaf man healed (see Mark 7:32-37); 5) A severed ear restored (see Luke 22:47-51); 6) A blind man healed (see John 9:1-41). Jesus never said no to a cry for help and healing: ‘Great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all’ (Matthew 12:15 KJV). And what He did for them, He can do for you if you pray and believe His Word.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.