Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Incorruptibility (Featured Daily Devotion)

Day 12

Saturday

Incorruptibility

1 Corinthians 15:53

For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

I Henry Lyte’s classic hymn, “Abide with Me,” he wrote: “Change and decay in all around I see; o Thou who changest not, abide with me.” How right he was! Most of us first learned the word “decay” as children visiting the dentist and hearing about tooth decay. Engineers warn of the decay of our infrastructure, roads, and bridges. City planners talk of urban decay. Philosophers warn of moral decay. The worst decay is what happens to our own bodies. As Job 13:28 puts it, “Man decays like a rotten thing, like a garment that is moth-eaten.”

But the Bible teaches that one day our bodies will be clothed with the incorruptibility of eternal life. The body is sown in corruption, but raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor but raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, but raised in power. One day we’ll put on new bodies and enjoy the glories of resurrection life in the new heavens and new earth. But until then, we’ll abide in Him and be inwardly renewed day to day.

Recommended Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:50-58

Quote

Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee; in life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

Henry Lyte

From: “Turning Points” Magazine and Devotional

Turning Points

Faithilistic versus Fatalistic (Featured Daily Devotion)

Day 11

Friday

Faithilistic versus Fatalistic

Genesis 50:20

But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.

If you are on the streets of Paris, you might hear someone say, “C’est la vie!” If you are in other places you might hear the Spanish-sounding (but not grammatically accurate) phrase, “Que sera, sera!” Or if you are on the streets of Anytown, U.S.A., you might hear, “Whatever!” or “What are you ‘gonna do?” All these phrases express a fatalistic view of life.

The Bible suggests a much different way to view that happens in life, Joseph being a perfect example. He was sold into slavery in Egypt by his brothers and falsely imprisoned before finally rising to a position of great authority. He used his power to provide, decades later, a safe harbor for his father’s family who were fleeing a famine in Canaan. Only then did Joseph realize why God had sent him ahead of his family to Egypt: “to save many people alive.” Genesis 50:20 is the Old Testament version of Romans 8:28---the truth that God has a purpose in the things His children experience.

If you are in a hard place today, take a “faithilistic,” not a “fatalistic” view of your circumstances. God, not “life,” is in control.

Recommended Reading: Romans *:28-29

Quote

Let us learn to trust [God] for who He is.

Elisabeth Elliot

From: “Turning Points” Magazine and Devotional

Turning Points

A Forgiving Spirit (Featured Daily Devotion)

Day 10

Thursday

A Forgiving Spirit

Genesis 50:19-21

Joseph said…, “Now therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.

The Christian spirit, wrote Jonathan Edwards, is “a forgiving spirit or a disposition to overlook and forgive injuries… Without it the apostle tells us… we are a sounding brass or… tinkling cymbal. There is no one virtue or disposition of the mind that is so often and so expressly insisted on in the marks that are laid down in the New Testament, whereby to know true Christians.” [1]

Few men were more abused than Joseph at the hands of his brothers. He was kidnapped, torn from his father, nearly killed, stripped, sold into slavery, accused of sexual assault, entombed in an Egyptian prison, and held in bondage form age 17 to 30. Yet afterward he comforted his brothers, spoke kindly to them, and cared for their needs.

Have you spoken kindly to someone who has hurt you? It’s only possible by the grace of the Lord Jesus, who forgives us and asks us to forgive others. Release those feelings of bitterness. Nail them to the cross. And extend the grace you received to someone who needs it today.

Recommended Reading: Matthew 18:21-35

Quote

Nothing can be invented that is a greater absurdity than a morose, hard, close, high spirited, spiteful true Christian.

Jonathan Edwards

From: “Turning Points,” Magazine and Devotional

[1] Jonathan Edwards, Religious Affections (Philadelphia: James Crissy, 1821), 309-312

Friday, October 12, 2012

Moms in Heaven

   I'm sorry for not posting sooner, but my Mom went to be with the Lord Jesus Monday, October 8, 2012.  This has kept me busy and will keep me busy for a few more days.  Thank you for understanding.  I've lost my best friend when she went home, but I have a "Friend that sticks closer than a brother."  She will always be in my heart and mind.

   Please pray for me and my family as we remember her for being the "Best Mom in the World."  I love you mom and always will.

Thank you and God Bless.

Louis

Life Map (Featured Daily Devotion)

Day 9

Wednesday

Life Map

Hebrews 11:27

By faith [Moses] forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible.

   Counselors and life-coaches will often have their clients construct a “life map”---a visual representation of the major periods and events in their life leading up to the present. A life map can also project into the future as a set of goals.

   No one could have constructed a more concise and balanced life map at the end of life than Moses. The hero of Israel died at the age of 120 after living through three periods of 40 years each. His first 40 years were spent being raised in royalty in Egypt. The second 40 years were spent in humility as a shepherd in Midian. And the last 40 years were spent shepherding Israel from Egypt to the Promised Land of Canaan. Moses’ life looked orderly in hindsight, but it probably didn’t feel that way to him while living it. His secret was to continue doing the next right thing that God revealed.

   Looking back, life looks like the front of a tapestry---a beautifully-woven image. In process, life can look like the back of the tapestry---knots, tie-offs, and dangling threads. The secret is to trust that the final image will make beautiful sense, just as it did in Moses’ life.

Recommended Reading Hebrews 11:23-28

Quote

Doubt breeds distress but trust means joy in the long run.

Charles Spurgeon

From: David Jeremiah’s “Turning Points” Magazine and Devotional

Turning Points

A Man From God (Featured Daily Devotion)

Day 8

Tuesday

A Man From God

2 Chronicles 30:16

They stood in their place according to their custom, according to the Law of Moses the man of God…

   The most famous work of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, the seventeenth-century Spanish novelist, is Don Quixote de La Mancha---the story of a knight from the La Mancha region of Spain. Since La Mancha was a geographical region, we could easily translate “man of La Mancha” as “man from La Mancha.” And the same is true when using the biblical phrase “man of God.”

   The easiest way to understand the meaning of “man of God’ is to think of it as “man from God.” The phrase occurs 78 times in the New King James Version of the Old Testament and most often refers to prophets---those who spoke words from God on His behalf. The prophets were men of God because they came from God to speak to the people. “Man of God” describes one man in the Old Testament more than any other: Moses. He was a man sent by God to speak the words of God to Pharaoh in Egypt. And later he spoke words for God to the people of Israel.

   The defining characteristic of a man or woman of God today is that they say what God says. Instead of putting words in God’s mouth, They put His Word in theirs.

Recommended Reading: Deuteronomy 34:10-12

Quote

It takes a lifetime to prepare a sermon because it takes a lifetime to prepare a man of God.

Arthur S. Wood

From: David Jeremiah’s “Turning Points” Magazine and Devotional.

Turning Points

Jehovah-Jireh (Featured Daily Devotion)

Day 7

Monday

Jehovah-Jireh



Genesis 22:14

And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide…

   Sometimes we use the phrase, “The Lord will provide,” to comfort someone in need. Perhaps no one in the history of mankind understood the Lord’s provision better than Abraham. His test of offering his son as a sacrifice to God rips into the heart of every one of us. Abraham knew in his head that God provided for him. But did his heart believe it? God wanted Abraham to know.

   Abraham continued to believe God, though he must have been in a state of complete bewilderment. At great cost to himself, this obedient servant chose to worship God by placing the situation completely in his Provider’s hands. Instead of breaking him, the test took this patriarch to the summit of his walk with God. “Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram [the substitute sacrifice]… And Abraham called the name of the place, The-LORD-Will Provide…” (Genesis 22:13-14). In Hebrew, this location is named Jehovah-Jireh.

   Maybe you’re needing to experience the Lord’s provision today---a longed for answer to prayer, a job, healing. Remember Abraham and his place of Jehovah-Jireh. And as you’re waiting, make sure you’ve surrendered your will to God by faithfully obeying Him. Now wait with expectation for His Provision!

Recommended Reading: Genesis 22:8-14

Quote

Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading.

Oswald Chambers

From: David Jeremiah’s “Turning Points” Magazine and Devotional

Turning Points

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Armor (Featured Daily Devotional)

Day 6

Saturday

Armor

Ephesians 6:11

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

   The newest innovation in body armor for soldiers and police officers is liquid gel. Military developers have invented a new super gel that’s lighter to wear than traditional bulletproof vest, yet more effective. The fluid has special particles that collide and lock together when disturbed, forming a hard surface that absorbs and stops projectiles. It’s cooler and more flexible to wear, and soon coming to a police officer near you.

   The believer’s armor is flexible and strong; and in this hostile world it’s never safe for a Christian to leave home without it. As described in Ephesians 6, we need the utility belt of truth, the vest of righteousness, the shield of faith, the shoes of evangelism, the sword of Scripture, and the helmet of salvation.

   Just as we wouldn’t think of walking out the door unclothed, let’s not leave home without the protective covering of our armor. Consciously put on each piece daily, and guard against the devil’s wiles.

Recommended Reading: Ephesians 6:10-18

Quote

Soldiers of Jesus Christ, take up the arms which the Apostle has set before you, cover yourselves with them from head to foot, seize the sword of the Word of God, wield it courageously, and the victory will be assured, and after the victory the crown. (1)

Rev. Jeremias Bonomelli, Bishop of Cremona

(1) Jeremias Bonomelli, New Series of Homilie: Volume 4 (NY: Benzinger, 1909) 263-264



From: David Jeremiah’s “Turning Points” Magazine & Devotional

Turning Points

Flawed but Faithful (Featured Daily Devotional)

Day 5

Friday

Flawed but Faithful



Hebrews 11:6

But without faith it is impossible to please Him…

   Maybe you’ve experienced the “Why can’t you be like your brother or sister?” syndrome. Comparing is man’s way of trying to motivate and impress---not God’s.

   Throughout Scripture we find flawed people whom God chose to use in a glorious way. Men and women who struggled with weaknesses and imperfections, yet held onto their faith. They inspire us to ask God, “What can you do with me?” Understand the difference? God’s way of motivating doesn’t compare us to “perfect” people who intimidate us. He uses the lives of struggling, selfish, sinful people to demonstrate what He can do when we choose to trust Him.

   Take the life of Abraham. He lied sometimes and often took matters into his own hands when he felt God was taking too long. Yet God chose to make Abraham the “father of many nations”! Why? Because even amidst all his flaws, Abraham had a deep, unwavering faith.

   If you’re trying to impress God by self-promoting and comparing yourself to others, put away the effort. Come to Him with the faith and candor of a child. He’ll respond and work wonders in your life.

Recommended Reading: Genesis 6:1-12

Quote:

Faith as [Jesus] characterized it is nothing less than a complete exchange of all that we are for all that He is.(1)

(1) John MacArthur, The Gospel According to Jesus (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing, 1988) 135.


From: David Jeremiah’s “Turning Points” Magazine & Devotional

Turning Points

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Ark Thou a Replica? (Featured Daily Devotional)

Day 4

Thursday

Ark Thou a Replica?



Genesis 6:8

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

   People are fascinated by Noah’s ark. Toy stores sell ark play sets, which we sometimes use in telling Noah’s story in Sunday school classes. Adults seem as interested as children. A high-budget Hollywood movie is in the works; and in recent years a number of replicas of Noah’s ark have appeared around the world.

   Replicas of Noah’s ark are interesting, but what we really need are replicas of Noah himself. The Bible says: “Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time and he walked in close fellowship with God” (Genesis 6:9 NLT).

   We live in a world where values are reversed, evil is spoken of as good, and good is vilified as evil. That’s how it was in Noah’s day too. Yet he lived for God despite his culture, and so must we.

   In a corrupt world, we can be righteous. In a dark world, we can have fellowship with God. Let’s replicate the righteous convictions of Noah. Let’s follow the example of Him who was greater than Noah---our Lord Jesus.

Recommended reading: Genesis 6:1-12

Quote

Noah lived when the rest perished. He became heir of righteousness when others were condemned. May God make us all so, and unto His name shall be the glory.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From: David Jeremiah’s “Turning Points” Magazine & Devotional

Turning Points

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Flooded With Faith (Featured Daily Devotion)

Day 3

Wednesday

Flooded With Faith



Hebrews 11:7

By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared and ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

   You’re a farmer living in medieval times. A passerby explains the features of his new smartphone. It gives you a weather report for your harvest season, a rotation schedule for using the oxen that the villagers share, the going price for chickens that your wife raises, music to listen to while you work, and you can talk to the blacksmith in the next town (and see his face) without leaving your farm. Would you believe him?

   It’s a thought almost as mind-bogging as Noah hearing that rain---Which he’d never seen before---would fall from the sky and flood the earth. And Noah’s job assignment form God for the next 100 years? Build a boat to carry your family and sundry creatures to safety. Noah tried to explain it to his neighbors. But who believe such a preposterous story? Especially a wicked generation notorious for rampant iniquity, riotous violence, and religious indifference.

   Faith can be a lonely place. Noah worked day after day on a boat that attracted contempt. He trusted God implicitly for a flood of rain he’d never seen. Noah’s faithful testimony gives every believer the strength to hold on in impossible circumstances. When people insult your testimony, and you wonder how God will ever bring meaning and order out of the broken pieces of your life, take a faithful stand for Him.

Recommended Reading: Isaiah 54:8-10

Quote

Faith sees the invisible, believes the unbelievable, and receives the impossible.

Corrie ten Boom

From: David Jeremiah’s “Turning Points” Magazine & Devotional

Turning Points

Faithful Walking (Featured Daily Devotional)

Day 2

TUESDAY

Faithful Walking


Genesis 5:22

And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:

   It was a story that touched the world. David Vetter, the little boy with big brown eyes, lived his life inside plastic isolator bubbles to protect his body from germs. Tragically, a cure for his fatal immune disease never came, and David died after a bone marrow transplant one month after his twelfth birthday in 1984. Fighting bacteria is a lifelong ordeal for our human bodies. And for the Christian, living in a sin-infested world is also a lifelong ordeal.

   Even though the environment around us may be toxic, it is possible to faithfully walk with God. If you’re an ordinary person striving to possess extraordinary faith, consider the life of Enoch. He was an everyday kind of guy---not a prophet like Moses or a statesman like Daniel. He lived in a culture of such prevailing wickedness and rebellion that God ultimately judged the entire world with the Flood. But Enoch didn’t use the wickedness of his culture as an excuse for faithless living. He walked with God.

   Keep walking on the road where God has placed you at the time in history. And be and extraordinary person of faith---walking with God.

Recommended Reading: Philippians 2:12-15

Quote

His is a joy which consequences cannot quench. Hi is a peace which circumstances cannot steal.

Max Lucado

From: David Jeremiah’s “Turning Points” Magazine & Devotional

Turning Points

Monday, October 1, 2012

Walking and Pleasing (Featured Devotion Daily)

Day 1

Monday

Walking and Pleasing
Heb. 11:5

By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.


   In today’s world, the “centenarian club”---those living to age 100 or more---is a select group. Thousands of years ago, prior to the great flood, the goal was not living to 100 but living to 1,000! No one made it, but Methuselah came closest, dying at age 969 years (Genesis 5:27). Methuselah’s father, Enoch, was a rarity in those days---he lived only 365 years. But there was a special reason why his lifespan on earth was cut short.

   Enoch’s life on earth ended unexpectedly because God removed him from earth, presumably to heaven. We are not told why God took Enoch, but we are given two clues. First, Enoch “walked with God’ (Genesis 5:22). Noah is the only other person in the Bible who “walked with God” (Genesis 6:9). Second, we are told that Enoch lived in a time of great violence and sin on the earth suggests that God removed Enoch from that environment as a reward for his righteousness.

   Regardless of how long we live, our goal today and everyday should be to walk with God in a way that pleases Him.


Recommended Reading: Genesis 5:18-24


Quote

If I walk with the world, I can’t walk with God.

Dwight L. Moody

From: Turning Points Magazine & Devotional
Turning Points

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

TESTING the FABRIC OF YOUR LIFE Pt. 1

From the Featured Devotional "Perfect Pieces"

   There was a time when the mark of a well-heeled gentleman or lady was seeing them pull out a fine, linen handkerchief. The dinner table hosted by that same elegant couple would be covered in a beautiful linen tablecloth. And when they retired at night, they would cover themselves with the softest and coolest of linen sheets. (It’ why today, “sheets” are called “bed linens.”)

   Linen is one of the oldest and most prized of textiles. Linen cloth has been discovered in caves in Europe, in the Qumran caves near the Dead Sea, and in the tombs of Egyptian royalty. The Egyptians wrapped their wealthy and royal dead in linen cloth because of what it represented to the dead: lightness and comfort---not to mention prestige and wealth.

   And guess who else made abundant use of linen cloth---and guess where they learned its value? The Israelites brought with them from Egypt the knowledge of how to create linen and an appreciation for its comfort and hard-wearing quality. And they must have brought more than knowledge with them---they must have brought bolts of linen itself, “fine woven linen” (Exodus 26:1, 31).

   Fresh out of Egypt, Moses was incorporating linen into the curtains of the tabernacle and the robes of the high priest. “Linen” is mentioned nearly 90 times in the Old Testament and almost 20 more times in the New Testament. It was clearly the fabric of choice in the ancient world. And it is becoming increasingly a fabric of choice today, experiencing something of a revival. Besides being cool in hot temperatures, linen is extremely durable and long lasting---and a man or woman in a linen suit today still carries a cachet of sophistication.

THE LINEN LEXICON

   I discovered a whole new lexicon of words associated with the processing of linen fibers. The words even sound like the process—harsh!—as you will see. Linen fabric is woven from linen fibers that grow inside the stalk of the flax plant. So the process is one of breaking down the rough, outer stalk to reveal the beautiful fibers within. (Keep that image in mind—I’ll come back to it in a moment.)

   Here’s a summary of the steps need to produce linen fabric:

   • HARVEST: the flax plant needs to be pulled up, roots and all. Taking a shortcut by cutting the stalk above the roots releases the plant’s sap and harms the quality of the fibers. Total commitment to the correct procedure is required.

   • RIPPLING: the stalks are run through a machine that rips off the leaves and seeds.

   • RETTING: soaking the stalks to soften them prior to removal. This was originally accomplished by soaking the stalks in water for several weeks. Today the stalks are soaked in an acid bath, then pressurized and boiled.

   • BREAKING” the softened stalks are then crushed between heavy rollers to break up the outer stalk into pieces.

   • SCUTCHING: the crushed and splintered stalks are then hit with rotating paddles to release the linen fibers from the splintered stalk.

   • HECKLING: the fibers are combed with heckling combs to separate the short (undesirable) fibers from the long (desirable) fibers. Only the long fibers are woven into thread.

   • SPINNING: twisting the long linen fibers into thread.

   • WEAVING: weaving the linen threads into fabric.

   • FINISHING: the finished, natural color fabric can be bleached, dyed, or printed according to need.

   I’ll never look at another piece of linen the same way! I would not enjoy being jerked up by the roots, then rippled, retted, broken, scotched, heckled, spun, and bleached or dyed. And then after all that be measured, cut, pinned, and stitched! But that process proves and important point: transformation can be a painful process. Whether its linen, wool, cotton, or any other fabric that we take for granted, a price is paid to get it to its place of beauty and usefulness.

   And (I told you to keep the image of processing linen in mind) the same is true in the spiritual life. Going from the image of the fallen first Adam to the image of the loving last Adam, Jesus Christ, involves the spiritual equivalent of retting, breaking, scotching…well, you get the idea.

THE ADVERSITY ADVANTAGE

   Plant and animal fibers take a painful path to arrive at their destination, and sometimes it feels that we do as well. But just as with fibers, there is an advantage to adversity, a plan for pain, a reason for roughness. Simply put, we couldn’t get where God intends us to go without adversity.

   What is God’s destination for us? His plan is for us “to be conformed to the image of His Son that [Christ] might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8:29).

   And what does God use to conform us to the image of Christ? The “all things” Paul wrote about in verse 28—the hard things that we don’t think are for our good in any way (Romans 8:28). Paul says they are for our good! They are the events and circumstances, painful as they sometimes are, that---if we allow them to do their work---will transform us into the image of Christ.

   We learn the way Christ learned so we can gain the advantage of adversity: “…though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered” (Hebrews 5:8). If Christ, the son of God, was obedient to the Father… if the Father wants us to be like Christ… and if Christ experienced adversity to learn obedience…then we will learn obedience, and become like Him, the same way.

   It should go without saying---but it always helps to refresh our memories (2 Peter 1:12)---that Christians are not immune to adversity. Christ alone is a sufficient example, but we have many more besides. The apostles and missionaries described in the Book of Acts continually faced opposition for the sake of Christ. Paul actually lists the kinds of adversity he endured in 2 Corinthians 6:3-10 and 11:22-33. And because he rarely traveled alone, those with him were subject to the same kinds of trials.

   The advantage of adversity is this: It is a refining process that results in purity. Like the Old Testament images used by the prophets, we are refined in the fire of adversity to purge the dross from our lives (Isaiah 1:25; Ezekiel 22:19-22; Malachi 3:3). Once you “take away the dross from silver…it will go to the silversmith for jewelry” (Proverbs 25:4).

   When flax stalks submit to the adversity of the refining process, the linen within becomes fit for the hands of a master weaver and tailor. Likewise, when we submit to the adversity of refining in our lives, we become like silver in the hands of the Master Jeweler who continues to shape us into the image of His Son.

THE PURITY PLAN

   If we agree that there is an advantage to adversity, what do we do to gain that advantage? What should we do---not just to endure adversity but to prosper under it?

   First, begin with the end in mind. Be like a flax stalk that sees itself as a fine linen handkerchief in the hand of an appreciative owner. If you don’t believe there is an ultimate purpose in adversity, you’ll neither endure nor prosper. Embrace the promise of Philippians 1:6: “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”

   Second, expect adversity. Too many Christians make the mistake of thinking God has promised to keep them free of trouble. You won’t find that promise in the Bible. In fact, the apostles taught “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22b). You are less likely to resist that which you expect.

   Third, be thankful in adversity. You don’t have to praise the Lord for your troubles, but you should give thanks to God in the mist of trouble. Why? Because you know that God is going to use the adversity to make you more like Christ (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

   Fourth, be anxious for nothing. Even though you know God’s “purity plan” involves adversity, don’t be anxious about the future, Trust God through prayer and thanksgiving for every event in life, and then rest in His peace (Philippians 4:6-7).

   Let the fabric of your life be tested! The garment God is making is one that will last forever.

From: Turning Points Magazine & Devotional
Turning Points

Saturday, September 22, 2012

LIFE in PIECES

From the Featured Devotional "Perfict Piece"

   Folks visiting New York City today think the traffic on the streets is a problem---and it can be. But a few decades ago, the traffic on the sidewalks could be just as dangerous, at least in the one-square mile section bounded by Fifth and Ninth Avenues and 34th and 42ns Streets. Why? Because that section of New Your City ---south of Central Park in lower Manhattan---is the world-famous, historic Garment District (increasingly referred to as the Fashion District).


   The sidewalks in the Garment District used to be filled with runners, pushing and pulling large racks of suits, dresses, overcoats, sportswear, winter wear, and formal wear between shops, studios, and stores. If you weren’t careful, you were as likely to get run over by a garment rack on the sidewalks as a taxi in the streets. The sidewalks in the Garment District are still bustling today, though with fewer garment racks since less and less manufacturing of clothing is actually being done in the District today. But the Garment District is still the world’s commercial capital of fashion.

   When New York City was America’s only large city, everything happened there including, in the early 1800s, the manufacture of clothing for Southern slaves. Then the Civil War created a need for hundreds of thousands of uniforms for the Union Army, and they were made in New York City. As more and more people began buying clothes instead of making their own, the Garment District solidified its hold on garments---both design and manufacturing---in the area now known as the Garment District. Only with overseas outsourcing in recent years has manufacturing in the District declined somewhat. But the Garment District is still the heartbeat of American fashion and for much of the world.

Patterns and Pieces

   Regardless of what kind of garments are being created in the District---whether haute couture (French for “high fashion”) destined for the runways at Fashion Week, or children’s clothes destined for the backyard sandbox---every garment has something in common: they are created from patterns and pieces.

   A fashion designer may draw the initial design as a completed idea, but the final product is the result of many pieces, cut from patterns, that are sewn together. If the garment is a custom, bespoke item made to fit a single customer, expert tailors cut the pieces from cloth by hand before handing them to a seamstress. If the garment is destined for retail shops across the country and thousands of copies are planned, the pieces are cut by computer-controlled cutters from stacks of cloth, producing scores of pieces at a time.

   Weather by hand or by computer, the result is the same: pieces of cloth that will ultimately be stitched together to make a beautiful and useful garment. Will the day come when a single garment can be fashioned from a single large piece of cloth---one piece for one garment? I haven’t heard of the being done---and I’m not holding my breath. The only way to get stripes, checks, and other design elements to match up perfectly is to cut and sew the pieces by hand.

   Not surprisingly, the same is true when it comes to fashioning the garment we call life.

The Master Tailor

   Suppose I had ordered a new suit that was to be delivered on Friday afternoon to my office so it would be ready for me to wear on Sunday morning. The delivery person arrives with a box instead of a typical garment bag. Inside, I find a collection of pieces of cloth and a note: “Sorry we didn’t have time to sew your suit together. The pieces are all here---you should be able to stitch it together with no problem. Good luck!”

   Good luck indeed. You might be able to handle that task but I certainly could not. It takes a master tailor to sew the pieces together properly. And the same is true with the pieces of our life. Only God is able to take decades of “pieces” from our experience and create a garment of beauty, purpose, and uniqueness---the only life of its kind in human history! God is the Master Tailor who fashions the garment we call “You.”

   In this issue of Turning Points we will look at how God does something far more amazing than anything a human designer and tailor can do---take the past, present, and future pieces of our lives and fashion them into a garment that begins to look more and more like the image of Christ.

   You and I may never have the need, or the budget, for a custom-made suit of clothes from the best tailors in the Garment District. But we have something even better: a custom-tailored life designed and created by the Master Tailor Himself!

From: Turning Points Magazine & Devotional, August 2012, By Dr. David Jeremiah
Turning Points

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Don't Miss: "Perfect Piece"

Don't miss out on the Turning Points, "Perfect Piece" devotional.  We will be featuring this masterfully crafted devotional here on "Heaven Bound."  Let us know how this has helped you in your life's walk with Christ.

Look for the first post on September 22, 2012 entitled "LIFE in PIECES."

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Featured Devotional "Perfect Piece"

   As a child of God, when looking for spiritual guidance and great devotional materials, the choices can be overwhelming. There are many great devotional writers that offer helpful Christ centered material to those who long for a closer walk with Jesus. Some of the masters include: Max Lucado, Andrew Murray, Charles Oswald Chambers and the list goes on and on. One of my favorites is Dr. David Jeremiah from “Turning Points,” a ministry of “Shadow Mountain Community Baptist church.” His spiritual insight to the word of God, and his candid ability to help others see the truth in God’s word, make him one of the devotional masters.


   In his “Turning Points Magazine and Devotional, “Perfect Piece,” Dr. David Jeremiah has woven a master piece. In it, Dr. Jeremiah skillfully intertwines the fabric, a child of God, and the Master Tailor, Jesus Christ to fashion the “Perfect Piece.”

Here is his welcome introduction to “Perfect Piece.”
“Dear Friend,

   If I looked in your closet, would I discover that you have a favorite fabric? Perhaps wool for its warmth, cotton for its softness, synthetic because it’s wrinkle free, or even linen because it’s cool and breathable in the summer. We all have a variety of fabrics and garments that we enjoy.

   But there’s one thing I daresay none of us has. Except for a scarf of shawl, none of our garments are seamless. All of our paints, shirts, dresses, coats, and other garments are made of pieces sewn together. And what is true about our clothes is also true about our lives: none of us is a seamless garment of perfection. Each of our lives is a collection of pieces---the moments, events, and circumstances that, pieced together, make us who we are.

   By contrast, Jesus owned a seamless tunic, “woven from the top in one piece” (John 19:23). That garment was like His seamless life---a life uncomplicated by scraps and fragments of sin, bad choices, or broken dreams. Fortunately, God is in the process of conforming the “pieces” of our lives into the beautiful, seamless image of Christ.

   In this issue of Turning Points, we will explore the way God is knitting and weaving together all the pieces of our lives. And that includes the pieces we think are fragments or scraps---they all have a perfect place in the Taylor-made garment God is creating for us.

Please join me for a creative look at the work of God, the Master Tailor!

Gratefully yours,

David Jeremiah”

From: Turning Points Magazine & Devotional Aug. 2012
Turning Points

   I hope you enjoy these devotions as much as I have. I will post them every week. Also share your thoughts with us and how it has helped you in your life.

Thank you

Louis Edwards