UCB Word For Today

God never gives a person responsibility without giving the ability to respond. So you can look in the mirror today and say with confidence, ‘God, You’ve given me this responsibility and the ability to respond to it.’ In the Bible, when God called regular people to do great things, they usually responded with a sense of inadequacy. When God charged Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian bondage: ‘Moses pleaded, “O Lord, I’m just not a good speaker. I never have been, and I’m not now, even after you have spoken to me…I have a speech impediment”’ (Exodus 4:10 TLB). God wouldn’t hear of it, and He told Moses, ‘Go ahead and do as I tell you, for I will help you to speak well, and…tell you what to say’ (Exodus 4:12 TLB). When God told Gideon to lead the Israelites to victory against the powerful forces of Midian, we read: ‘“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” The LORD answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive”’ (Judges 6:15-16 NIV). Gideon conquered an army of 135,000 with only 300 soldiers – plus God. That’s a ratio of 450 to 1! So next time Satan reminds you that you are inadequate, say: ‘You’re correct! But I’m connected to a God who is all-powerful, all-knowing, and always present. Through Him I can do all things!’ (see Philippians 4:13).

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

It doesn’t take many people to bring about change. In fact, too many people can get in the way. Gideon took 32,000 to fight, but God needed only 300. He doesn’t care how many can be counted – He cares only about how many can be counted on. The truth is that your life could be messed up because too many people are telling you what to do. Hang up the phone. Shut the door. Turn off the TV. Get down before God and ask Him to speak to you. He will give you the word you need (see Isaiah 50:4). God doesn’t need a crowd; He just needs one who will listen and obey. If He wants to start a nation, He’ll give hope and vision to an Abraham. If He wants to bring down an Egyptian Pharaoh, He’ll reach into the bulrushes and pull out a Moses. When He wants a lineage for His Son, He’ll go to the ‘red light district’ and find a Rahab. He’s just looking for a willing heart. Listen again: ‘Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you.’ Ethel Waters, who sang with the Billy Graham crusades, loved to say, ‘God don’t sponsor no flops.’ Her grammar was slightly off, but her theology was ‘right on’. Don’t spend your life trying to be ordinary. Don’t pour your life into the mould of someone else’s expectations. God has an agenda for you. The reason He’s brought you through so much is that He has a higher plan and purpose for your life. Get into His presence today and ask Him about it.

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

An observant Jew says a minimum of one hundred blessing prayers each day, beginning with the Hebrew formula: Baruch Atah Adonai. Practising Jews bless God when they see or experience something for the first time. They bless God for smells and tastes. And if something is pleasurable, they bless God. If you enjoy something without saying a blessing, according to the Talmud, it’s as if you had stolen it. ‘All these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you.’ Note the words ‘come upon’ and ‘overtake’. You never know how or when His blessings will overtake you. But unlike His goodness and mercy, which ‘follow’ us all the days of our lives (see Psalm 23:6), the blessings of God are tracking you down like a heat-seeking missile. They’re hot on your trail. And one day they’re going to overtake you. Now God doesn’t bless us so we can raise our standard of living; He blesses us so we can raise our standard of giving. The greatest blessing is the ability to bless others. Have you been blessed? That’s where you need to flip the blessing. Where has God shown you favour? That’s where you need to return the favour. There is no greater joy than being on the giving end of a gift. Isn’t that what Jesus said? ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’ (Acts 20:35 NIV). There are hundreds of blessings in Scripture, each with your name on it. If you are in Christ, the blessings belong to you. ‘No matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ’ (2 Corinthians 1:20 NIV). So, count your blessings.

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

Live with one ear towards heaven: ‘Is this opportunity from you, God?’ ‘Are you in this venture, God?’ ‘Should I take this road, God?’ One time Joshua failed to do this and paid for it. Here’s the story. A group of strangers entered the camp of Israel saying, ‘From a very far country your servants have come’ (v. 9 NKJV). Evidently, they knew God’s law had made special provisions for cities outside of Canaan (see Deuteronomy 20:10-12). Any city that agreed to make peace with Israel would be spared. So, being afraid, they resorted to deception. Three days passed before Joshua realised he had been lied to. These people were not from a distant land; they were from Gibeon, only a day’s walk away. As a result, Joshua entered into an alliance with the enemy because he didn’t seek the counsel of God. We do well to learn from his mistake. Our enemy enters our camp in disguise as well: ‘Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light’ (2 Corinthians 11:14 NIV). He’s crafty. That’s why it’s essential that we consult God in everything. In every decision and at each crossroad, acknowledge Him, heed Him, and ask Him: ‘Do I turn right or left?’ David said that God’s Word is a ‘lamp unto our feet’ (Psalm 119:105 KJV), not a spotlight into the future. He gives enough light to take the next step. When we pray, He speaks to our hearts: ‘Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, “This is the way you should go,” whether to the right or to the left’ (Isaiah 30:21 NLT). So consult God in everything.

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

If you are serious about having a truly interactive relationship with the Lord in which you speak to one another and hear from one another, you will need to spend quality, uninterrupted time opening your heart to Him. When Samuel finally prayed, ‘Speak, for Your servant hears,’ the Bible says, ‘Then the LORD said to Samuel.’ All too often, our prayer is ‘Listen, God, for Your servant is speaking.’ Listening to God can involve a variety of practices: reading His Word, spending time in solitude and silence, and hearing from God just like a seasoned friend you trust. Here’s an example: ‘As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us.” And he went on. “But you stand here awhile, that I may announce to you the word of God”’ (1 Samuel 9:27 NKJV). One of the most effective ways of hearing from God is through meditating on His Word. You might say, ‘But I don’t know how to meditate.’ If you know how to worry, you know how to meditate. In both worry and meditation, your thoughts and focus are given to a certain thing. When you meditate on God’s Word, you’re focusing your thoughts on the right thing! God told Joshua: ‘This Book…shall not depart from your mouth [speak it regularly], but you shall mediate [focus] in it day and night, that you may observe to do [act on it] according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success’ (Joshua 1:8 NKJV).

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