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Devotions

A Reservoir of Living Water

David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit” (Jeremiah 17:7-8, NKJV).

Consider the one who trusts God in the hard places: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord.”

This Christian is “planted.” He has roots, stability, a reservoir of living water. He is always spreading out, fruitful and green with fresh life. Consider again where scripture says, “[He] will not be anxious [fearful] in the year of drought…” (Jeremiah 17:8). When things get intense and bothersome, he will not be afraid.

This person says, “Jesus, I give up looking to any person to bring me out of my trial. You are my only hope. I look to you to bring me out of this.” The Lord desires this kind of faith from us in everyday matters. You may object, “But, Brother Dave, I'm still unemployed, still having trouble.” We still must believe God's Word when it says, "Trust me, and you'll be blessed!"

You may answer, “I don't know what I'm going to do. It looks so hopeless. I don't see any sign of help or deliverance.” To all these things, God still says, “Trust me, my child, and you'll be blessed.”

It does not matter whether your trial is with your family, with your business or with provision. If you put your total trust in his Word and his faithfulness, God has promised to bless you; and he cannot lie. When the heat comes, you won't even be bothered. When the wind comes, you'll stand strong because you will have learned to trust him. You'll be a green tree bearing the abundant fruit of confidence, and everyone around you will be given hope and encouragement as they behold your quiet trust.

Returning to the Good Book

Gary Wilkerson

As a young pastor, I was very ambitious. There’s a publication called Outreach Magazine, and it has a category for the top 100 fastest growing churches in America. When I was early in my work as a pastor, I wanted to be on that list. I wanted to build a megachurch. 

One day, though, I realized that the Bible on my nightstand was underneath a book about how to build a church, which was underneath a book about how to build your staff, which was underneath another book about how to preach great sermons. I’m pretty sure my Bible was still somehow getting dusty underneath all of these other books. 

I’m reminded of the verse that says, “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6, ESV). The glory of God is what should really matter to God’s children. When we see the face of Christ, what else really matters beyond that?

Sometimes the things of this world start to shine a brighter light in our lives, though, than the things of Christ. Look at your nightstand or end table and see where your Bible is. It should have more to say to you than any book on counseling or inspiration or spiritual growth.

The Old Testament commands, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do 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). Hundreds of years later, the Apostle Paul wrote to believers, “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope” (Romans 15:4). 

If your Bible is near the bottom of the pile like mine was, you need to refocus on Jesus. Go after the Bible, and you will help yourself and other people far more than you will with a thousand other books. 

What Brings Heaven to You

Tim Dilena

You exercise faith everyday. Let’s take one example from the doctor and the pharmacist. You go to a doctor whose name you can barely pronounce and whose degrees you have never verified. He gives you a prescription you cannot read. You take it to a pharmacist you have never met before. He gives you a chemical compound you do not understand, then you go home and take the pill according to the instructions on the bottle. All in trusting, sincere faith.

When it comes to your spiritual life, you need faith to get over the hurdle of determining that God exists. You use faith for the next hurdle: Who is this God you gave your life to? You face another hurdle that takes faith: fighting the devil as he tries to mess you up on the greatness of God. 

Why? Because biblical faith always depends upon its object.

You can have little faith in thick ice and still survive; you can have great faith with thin ice and drown; it’s the object of faith that is the issue. The Bible never says to believe only; it says to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible never says to have faith only; it says to “have faith in God” (see Mark 11:22).

If the God you put your faith in is misconstrued, then so is your faith. The best way to grow faith is to do as Peter tells us to, “in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18, ESV). The best place to start that growth, in order to know God, is through reading and studying the Word of God.

Your faith is only as great as the God you believe in. He must be the object of your faith. Since God does not change, your faith can still be strong in tough times. You don’t need great faith; you need faith in a great God. As Charles H. Spurgeon once said, “Oh, brethren, be great believers! Little faith will bring your souls to heaven, but great faith will bring heaven to you.”

“Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by him in peace, without spot and blameless” (2 Peter 3:13-14). 

After pastoring an inner-city congregation in Detroit for thirty years, Pastor Tim served at Brooklyn Tabernacle in NYC for five years and pastored in Lafayette, Louisiana, for five years. He became Senior Pastor of Times Square Church in May of 2020.

Limitations of the Miraculous

David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

Nobody had ever seen as many supernatural works as Israel. God provided miracle after miracle for them, and yet each work left the people as faithless and unbelieving as before. You would think that the ten plagues on Egypt would have produced faith in the Israelites. When Egypt was afflicted with flies, none were found in Israel's camp. When Egypt fell under total darkness, there was no darkness in Israel. However, none of these plagues produced faith of any kind.

Even after God opened the Red Sea, Israel's faith lasted only three days. Scripture says, “They did not remember the multitude of your mercies, but rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea” (Psalm 106:7, NKJV). The psalmist was saying, “They even doubted God at the Red Sea, the very place where he performed one of his greatest miracles.”

We are so like Israel. We want God to speak a word, grant us a miraculous deliverance, quickly meet our needs, remove all our pain and suffering. In fact, you may be saying right now, “If God would just get me out of this mess, if he'd give me this one miracle, I would never doubt him again.” 

What about all the miracles he has already performed for you? Have you allowed them to produce in you a faith to help you in your present trouble?

Two precious men of God from the Zulu tribe in Africa visited Times Square Church. An incredible revival was taking place among the eight million Zulus, and God was doing miraculous things among them. That is not what these men wanted to talk about, though. Rather, what impressed them most about the revival were the “overcomer Zulus”, those who stood for Christ, burning witchcraft books and witnessing boldly, even though they were being tested and tried severely. These people were once evil with murderous spirits, and they were being transformed into the image of Jesus.

I believe the greatest sign or wonder to the world in these last days is not a person who has been raised from the dead. No, what truly makes an impact on the mind and spirit of the ungodly is the Christian who endures all trials, storms, pain and suffering with a confident faith. Such a believer emerges from his troubles stronger in character, stronger in faith, stronger in Christ.

No Water to Drink

David Wilkerson (1931-2011)

"Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink…. And the people murmured against Moses, and said, ‘Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?’” (Exodus 17:1-3, NKJV).

God had led Israel to the driest place in the whole wilderness. It was a testing place with no stream, no well, not even a trickle of water. Most baffling of all, Israel was led there “according to the commandment of the Lord.”

God himself had allowed his people to grow thirsty. Babies were crying, children wailing, grandparents suffering parched throats. Parents looked at their families and thought, “In a few days, we'll all be dead.” They turned in anger to Moses, crying, “Give us water to drink!” They were still depending on man and the flesh.

I want to stop here to point out something. First, God took Israel to Migdol by the sea to test them, and they failed to trust him. Next, he took them to Marah, where he had another plan of deliverance; and they failed again. Now he had brought them to Rephidim for more testing.

Do you see the pattern? If you don't learn to trust the Lord in simple, childlike faith when you're being tested, he will bring you to yet another testing ground.

Israel was in just such a place once again. They were hot, thirsty, angry; but God already had a plan. He was not going to let them die. He had chosen beforehand to have them walk up Mount Horeb to a reservoir of water that he had prepared long before. That source would last not just a day, a week or a month but thirty-eight years! However, God was waiting for a response of faith from Israel. 

Our loving, heavenly Father would never lead his children into a dry desert only to let them die of thirst, especially when he had a reservoir stored in a nearby rock. God has always had a plan for his people. He has a plan for you right now, to deliver you from your present trouble.