BBD 08.30.18 Tamed (Classic)

#1 · August 29, 2018, 11:17 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on August 29, 2018, 11:17 pm
Posted by: burningbushdevo <burningbushdevo@...>

Classic from 2011

Burning Bush Devotional

29 August 2018

There is now a new email list in addition to this one. The new email list will consist of short quotes from the Burning Bush archive and will be sent on a more frequent basis. I will be able to send the new email more frequently because of not having to post to websites or archive the emails anywhere which has become time consuming with the current email. If you want to receive the new email send an email with your name to theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com And of course you can unsubscribe anytime.

Tamed

For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.” - Matthew 18:11-13 NKJV.

It was several years ago now that I first encountered Big Daddy the cat. He was hanging around our house, and at that time we had a cat outside. Big Daddy would eat our cat's food and so I tried to scare him away. I threw rocks at him. I yelled at him. I chased him. I shot at him with a sling shot and a BB gun. But he kept coming back. Big Daddy was a big (larger than any cat I had seen before), solid white cat, and you could tell that he had been in a lot of fights; one ear had been damaged, and he was just scary to look at.

It took about three years before Big Daddy was able to tame me. He was able to tame me because I grew tired of trying chase him off, and so I finally let him eat our cat's food. Before long he was up on our bench on our back porch waiting to be fed every night. One night I risked his tearing my hand off and petted him, he liked it and made some kind of noise. He apparently had been someone's pet in the past, and just wanted some human attention. This lasted for a few months until he stopped showing up at night, and now I am sorry that I didn't get to know Big Daddy sooner than I did. He was just a big baby in a scary cat's body!

The illustration that Jesus gives of a shepherd leaving the 99 sheep to find one that is lost, gives us an idea of the lengths that God will go to so that the lost person might come to know Jesus. Our Lord is persistent. He is persistent much like Big Daddy was persistent in his pursuit of me. We try to scare away the Son of Man, but He doesn't leave. We try to act like He's not there, but He doesn't leave. We flee from His presence like Jonah tried to do, but He follows us, He pursues us. He woos us (John 6:44 “draws” us). Jesus says in John 6:44 NKJV, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.” This word “draws” comes from the Greek word “Helcuo.” Other verses where this word is used translates it as drag or dragged. The picture is almost one of God dragging us kicking and screaming to salvation. In the end, we have a choice. However, if we choose to reject God, our rejection of God is not based on any lack of God's exertion or effort at “taming” us.

We have the example of the Son of Man coming to seek and save the lost. What are we to do who know Jesus as our Savior? Jesus says, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me (Luke 9:23).” As believers, we should follow the example of our Lord. We should go to great lengths to win the lost to the Lord. They will try to chase us away. They will try to scare us. They will try to act like we are not there, but we must not give up. We must keep on, no matter how many times they reject us. We must keep on until finally they have been “tamed” and know the Lord as their personal Savior.

Copyright © 2011 - 2018. Ed Wrather. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of those first devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to prison facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

Visit the Burning Bush websites:

www.theburningbush.net

www.theburningbush.org

The Burning Bush websites are celebrating 20 years online since January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been spreading the truth of God's Word to more than 11,000 subscribers across the world.

Amanda Stiffler Goodridge, a Facebook friend, shares a message of hope and encouragement as she tells how God helped her recover from losing their home in a fire and from a serious illness. Here’s the link to a short youtube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZ1CSwDbu3k&app=desktop

You can leave comments/feedback about the devotionals at www.theburningbush.net.

There is a translation tool on theburningbush.net website in the top right hand corner of all of the pages.

Check out the Scripture Index being constructed for the Devotionals at the Burning Bush website. The Links are in about the middle of the home page. Topics for each devotional are now being added to the Index.

Please continue to pray for healing for Michelle Abetz, Brandy, Beverly (Jeanie’s sister), Brent Baker, Gary Kirk, Caleb Freeman, Chris Ramber, E.L. Fowler, Hillary B., Buck & Barbara Wright, Wendy Lu, Joseph C., Mary S., Vicki Dudgeon, Ruby H., J.E. McGuire, Richard & Sharon’s grandson, and Jeanie.

Please pray for an end to the racial hatred in the USA and that it will be replaced with peace and love. Many prayer needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page. You can also post your prayer requests there (Of course, I am always in need of prayer - please pray for me. 03.18.18 I accepted the call to be the pastor of Fairview Baptist Church in Elk City, Oklahoma. Please pray for me and for this church.).

You can contact Ed Wrather at theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com View LinkedIn profile with endorsements at www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=92988105

If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank email to burningbushdevo-join@welovegod.org

There is a complete devotional archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/DevotionalArchive.html.

Devotion vs Devotional: We do our devotions, we read devotionals.

You can unsubscribe to the burningbushdevo devotional group by sending a blank email to burningbushdevo-leave@associate.com and then respond to the confirmation email.

You may subscribe to the html text group (Because of time constraints the devotional is only being sent now in html format) by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-join@associate.com and you may unsubscribe by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-leave@associate.com and then respond to the confirmation email. If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

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To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org

Posted by: burningbushdevo <burningbushdevo@...>

Classic from 2011

Burning Bush Devotional

29 August 2018

There is now a new email list in addition to this one. The new email list will consist of short quotes from the Burning Bush archive and will be sent on a more frequent basis. I will be able to send the new email more frequently because of not having to post to websites or archive the emails anywhere which has become time consuming with the current email. If you want to receive the new email send an email with your name to theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com And of course you can unsubscribe anytime.

Tamed

For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.” - Matthew 18:11-13 NKJV.

It was several years ago now that I first encountered Big Daddy the cat. He was hanging around our house, and at that time we had a cat outside. Big Daddy would eat our cat's food and so I tried to scare him away. I threw rocks at him. I yelled at him. I chased him. I shot at him with a sling shot and a BB gun. But he kept coming back. Big Daddy was a big (larger than any cat I had seen before), solid white cat, and you could tell that he had been in a lot of fights; one ear had been damaged, and he was just scary to look at.

It took about three years before Big Daddy was able to tame me. He was able to tame me because I grew tired of trying chase him off, and so I finally let him eat our cat's food. Before long he was up on our bench on our back porch waiting to be fed every night. One night I risked his tearing my hand off and petted him, he liked it and made some kind of noise. He apparently had been someone's pet in the past, and just wanted some human attention. This lasted for a few months until he stopped showing up at night, and now I am sorry that I didn't get to know Big Daddy sooner than I did. He was just a big baby in a scary cat's body!

The illustration that Jesus gives of a shepherd leaving the 99 sheep to find one that is lost, gives us an idea of the lengths that God will go to so that the lost person might come to know Jesus. Our Lord is persistent. He is persistent much like Big Daddy was persistent in his pursuit of me. We try to scare away the Son of Man, but He doesn't leave. We try to act like He's not there, but He doesn't leave. We flee from His presence like Jonah tried to do, but He follows us, He pursues us. He woos us (John 6:44 “draws” us). Jesus says in John 6:44 NKJV, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.” This word “draws” comes from the Greek word “Helcuo.” Other verses where this word is used translates it as drag or dragged. The picture is almost one of God dragging us kicking and screaming to salvation. In the end, we have a choice. However, if we choose to reject God, our rejection of God is not based on any lack of God's exertion or effort at “taming” us.

We have the example of the Son of Man coming to seek and save the lost. What are we to do who know Jesus as our Savior? Jesus says, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me (Luke 9:23).” As believers, we should follow the example of our Lord. We should go to great lengths to win the lost to the Lord. They will try to chase us away. They will try to scare us. They will try to act like we are not there, but we must not give up. We must keep on, no matter how many times they reject us. We must keep on until finally they have been “tamed” and know the Lord as their personal Savior.

Copyright © 2011 - 2018. Ed Wrather. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of those first devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to prison facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

Visit the Burning Bush websites:

http://www.theburningbush.net

http://www.theburningbush.org

The Burning Bush websites are celebrating 20 years online since January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been spreading the truth of God's Word to more than 11,000 subscribers across the world.

Amanda Stiffler Goodridge, a Facebook friend, shares a message of hope and encouragement as she tells how God helped her recover from losing their home in a fire and from a serious illness. Here’s the link to a short youtube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZ1CSwDbu3k&app=desktop

You can leave comments/feedback about the devotionals at http://www.theburningbush.net.

There is a translation tool on theburningbush.net website in the top right hand corner of all of the pages.

Check out the Scripture Index being constructed for the Devotionals at the Burning Bush website. The Links are in about the middle of the home page. Topics for each devotional are now being added to the Index.

Please continue to pray for healing for Michelle Abetz, Brandy, Beverly (Jeanie’s sister), Brent Baker, Gary Kirk, Caleb Freeman, Chris Ramber, E.L. Fowler, Hillary B., Buck & Barbara Wright, Wendy Lu, Joseph C., Mary S., Vicki Dudgeon, Ruby H., J.E. McGuire, Richard & Sharon’s grandson, and Jeanie.

Please pray for an end to the racial hatred in the USA and that it will be replaced with peace and love. Many prayer needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page. You can also post your prayer requests there (Of course, I am always in need of prayer - please pray for me. 03.18.18 I accepted the call to be the pastor of Fairview Baptist Church in Elk City, Oklahoma. Please pray for me and for this church.).

You can contact Ed Wrather at theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com View LinkedIn profile with endorsements at http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=92988105

If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank email to burningbushdevo-join@welovegod.org

There is a complete devotional archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/DevotionalArchive.html.

Devotion vs Devotional: We do our devotions, we read devotionals.

You can unsubscribe to the burningbushdevo devotional group by sending a blank email to burningbushdevo-leave@associate.com and then respond to the confirmation email.

You may subscribe to the html text group (Because of time constraints the devotional is only being sent now in html format) by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-join@associate.com and you may unsubscribe by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-leave@associate.com and then respond to the confirmation email. If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

--
To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org