The Daily Word: Tuesday, October 31^st, 2017
Lamentations 4:1-5:22
Hebrews 2:1-18
Psalm 103:1-22
Proverbs 26:23
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

The precious sons of Zion, valuable as fine gold, how they are regarded as clay pots, the work of the hands of the potter! – Lam 4:2

We must know what we are worth to God. We are “valuable as fine gold.” We are God’s priceless possessions! But sometimes we forget that. Sometimes we only feel like clay, instead of the precious resources God created us to be. Sometimes when we struggle with sin, we forget our value, and the enemy tricks us into thinking we are less than the treasures God created us to be! It is only by knowing what we are worth that we can live out our destiny as sons and daughters.

God spared no expense to save you. He paid the highest price to get you back! He sent His Only Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins. He gave us all He had to give: His very life. He did it so you and I could know we are sons and daughters: more precious than pure gold, and infinitely valuable to Him!

Prayer:

Father, help me to know my worth! You paid the highest price to save me. I am forever grateful, in Jesus’ name!

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Monday, October 30^th, 2017
Lamentations 3:1-66
Hebrews 1:1-14
Psalm 102:1-28
Proverbs 26:21-22
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past… – Heb 1:1

God speaks “at various times and in various ways.” Sometimes He speaks through His prophets. At other times, He whispers to His people in the still, small voice (1 Kings 19:12). He speaks through His Son, “…whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds” (v 2). On this side of the Cross, He speaks through His Holy Spirit, who will guide you into all truth (Jn 16:13).

God is still speaking; and He has more ways of getting you a message than you could ever possibly count. Do you need to hear from Him? All you have to do is ask!

Prayer:

Father, thank You for always speaking to me! Help me to make time to listen, in Jesus’ name.

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Sunday, October 29^th, 2017
Lamentations 1:1-2:22
Philemon 1:1-25
Psalm 101:1-8
Proverbs 26:20
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

Where there is no wood, the fire goes out; and where there is no talebearer, strife ceases. – Prov 26:20

Surround yourself with the right people. The “wood” is someone who stirs up your passion for the Lord. Do you surround yourself with people who love Jesus more than you do? Do you spend time with people who know God’s word better than you do? If you don’t surround yourself with people who are passionate for Jesus, your own passion will fail: the fire will go out! But if you surround yourself with people who inspire you to love God like never before, your light will burn brighter than ever!

Don’t surround yourself with the wrong people. The “talebearer” is that one person who constantly creates division and distress. Maybe it would be wiser to just move on? Avoid people who push you away from the Cross, and get close to people who pull you closer!

Prayer:

Father, surround me with the right people: friends and family who pull me closer to the Cross. Help me to avoid the wrong people: talebearers and backbiters who push me further from You. I trust You for the wisdom to know the difference, in Jesus’ name.

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Saturday, October 28^th, 2017
Jeremiah 51:54-52:34
Titus 3:1-15
Psalm 100:1-5
Proverbs 26:18-19
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men. – Titus 3:8

If you fail to do “maintain good works,” is your salvation in question? Absolutely not. Salvation comes first, and good works follow. You are saved, “…not by the works…which [you] have done, but according to His mercy” (v 5). Salvation is a gift; we cannot earn it!

We do good works, then, not to be saved – but so that others might be saved. You are saved by grace, through faith – and not of works. As long as you believe in Jesus, your salvation is secure! But the people around you need to see the goodness of God so they want salvation too!

Prayer:

Father, help me to maintain good works! I am so thankful for the gift of salvation which You have given me. Help me to love You with all my heart, in Jesus’ name.

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Friday, October 27^th, 2017
Jeremiah 51:1-53
Titus 2:1-15
Psalm 99:1-9
Proverbs 26:17
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you. – Titus 2:6-8

Showing is different than telling. Scripture tells us not only to preach with our words, but also with our actions. Good leaders don’t have to repeat themselves over and over again; they simply lead by example, and ask people to follow their lead.

Do you want your friends and family to show “integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, and sound speech that cannot be condemned” (vv 7-8)? Show them how it’s done. Be the person you want other people to be, and watch as they follow suit.

Prayer:

Father, make me a pattern of good works! I want to lead by example. I want to show other people what righteousness looks like by relying on Your Holy Spirit and the power of the Cross like never before!

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Thursday, October 26^th, 2017
Jeremiah 49:23-50:46
Titus 1:1-16
Psalm 97:1-98:9
Proverbs 26:13-16
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

For He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, and the peoples with equity. – Ps 98:9

God will come to judge the world. Scripture says that, when Jesus comes again, “All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats” (Matt 25:32). Those who are righteous will inherit the kingdom (Matt 25:34), but those who are wicked will face “everlasting punishment” (Matt 25:46).

Does the thought of judgment make you nervous? It shouldn’t! In fact, it should make you joyful! When we think of God judging the world, Psalm 98 tells us to, “Sing to the Lord with the harp…and the sound of a psalm” (v 5). When we think of standing before God and having our lives evaluated for perfection, we are to, “Shout joyfully before the Lord, the King” (v 6)! And here is why.

Those of us who know Jesus have nothing to fear. We know how we will be judged. Not guilty! We know the verdict He will pronounce over us. Righteous! Thank God that because we are “hidden in Christ” (Col 3:3), we have nothing to fear!

Prayer:

Father, thank You that I don’t have to fear Your judgment. I know You have already pronounced and proclaimed me not guilty. Thank You that I get to live my life with confidence that in the Last Days, I will be absolutely carefree, in Jesus’ name!

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Wednesday, October 25^th, 2017
Jeremiah 48:1-49:22
2 Timothy 4:1-22
Psalm 95:1-96:13
Proverbs 26:9-12
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

“We have heard the pride of Moab (he is exceedingly proud), of his loftiness and arrogance and pride, and of the haughtiness of his heart.” – Jer 48:29

All the nations that were destroyed in Old Testament Scripture had something in common: they were proud. Pride is, “a feeling of deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one’s own achievements.”[1] Pride causes us to look at what we have done, and to forget what God has done. Pride takes our focus off the Cross, and instead causes us to focus on earthly measures of success. Pride causes us to build up treasures that will not stand the test of time – money, power, and success – instead of “treasures in heaven” (Matt 16:20). Pride causes us to think we don’t need God. Pride leads to destruction.

How do we kill our pride? Ask God to remove it. You don’t have to fight pride. The Holy Spirit will deal with it for you; but you have to give Him an invitation:

Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. – Ps 139:3-4

Invite the Holy Spirit to search your heart, and take out anything that doesn’t belong there. God is always willing to pull up pride by the roots; and as He does, you will experience everlasting life.

Prayer:

Father, search my heart. Pull out pride by the roots. I invite Your Holy Spirit to search me, to know my heart, and to try me: to see if there is any wicked way in me, and to change everything that needs to be changed!

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Tuesday, October 24^th, 2017
Jeremiah 44:24-47:7
2 Timothy 2:22-3:17
Psalm 94:1-23
Proverbs 26:6-8
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth… – 2 Tim 2:24-25

Sometimes compassion looks like correction. Being a disciple of Jesus doesn’t mean you’re a pushover. You still must correct those who aren’t in agreement with the Gospel; but correction must come from a place of gentle humility and love.

The catch with correction is that it matters how you do it. The word “correction” in our text today is the Greek paideuo,[1] which means to child-train. When Scripture calls us to “correct” people who don’t understand the Gospel, it doesn’t mean we are to verbally abuse them. It means we are to gently and slowly guide them to the truth, just as a parent trains a child. Discipleship means standing your ground, not lashing out! When you correct, are you correcting in love?

God has been so infinitely patient with us. In return, all He asks is that we would be patient with others.

Prayer:

Father, thank You for gently correcting me. You have raised me like a child. You have been so patient with me! Give me the strength and discernment I need to be patient with others.

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Monday, October 23^rd, 2017
Jeremiah 42:1-44:23
2 Timothy 2:1-21
Psalm 92:1-93:5s
Proverbs 26:3-5
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

Now … all the people, from the least to the greatest, came near and said to Jeremiah the prophet, “Please, let our petition be acceptable to you, and pray for us to the Lord your God…,  that the Lord your God may show us the way in which we should walk and the thing we should do.” – Jer 42:1-3

The people came to Jeremiah with a prayer request: pray to your God. But wasn’t He their God too? Why did they need Jeremiah to pray for them, instead of praying to God directly?

God is the God of Israel; but the Israelites didn’t receive Him as theirs. God’s people didn’t understand that He was always willing to receive them as sons as daughters, so they didn’t go to Him in prayer. What a tragedy! Whenever we insert a middleman between us and God, we dilute the communication He wants to have with us through prayer. You are the person with the most authority over your life. You can go to God directly, and ask for whatever you need, because He is your God!

You don’t have to live your life asking someone else to pray for you. Receive God as your Lord and Savior; and then pray to Him yourself!

Prayer:

Father, thank You for always receiving me. You are my God, and I am Your child. I know the door is always open to prayer, in Jesus’ name!

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.

The Daily Word: Sunday, October 22^nd, 2017
Jeremiah 39:1-41:18
2 Timothy 1:1-18
Psalm 90:1-91:16
Proverbs 26:1-2
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:  

Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. – 2 Tim 1:6

To “stir up” means to kindle, to inflame one’s mind & strength, and to ignite one’s zeal.[1] God has placed a gift inside of you. He designed you to do something no one else on this earth can do! But if you want to let that gift come out, you have to stir it up: kindle it, let it inflame your mind and strength, and allow it to ignite the zeal of God in you!

The way you stir up the gift of God is through the laying on of hands. Paul was Timothy’s mentor: his father in the faith. Paul and Timothy both knew that when Paul prayed for Timothy, something was going to change. Something was going to get stirred up. There were things God wanted to do through Timothy that wouldn’t be ignited unless Paul prayed for Timothy with the laying on of hands!

It’s impossible to receive the laying on of hands when you’re alone in your room. You can’t get the laying on of hands through a televangelist or a youTube channel. Find a church, and get plugged in. It is only through the laying on of hands – other believers praying for you in person – that the gift of God which is in you will come out!

Prayer:

Father, thank You for the laying on of hands! Thank You for the amazing gift You have deposited in me. I want it to come out, and I know I need to have anointed men and women of God lay hands on me to make that happen!

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© Michael D. White, 2017. All rights reserved.