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Daily Devotional with Pamela Crim | BIG Life Mentor
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Daily Devotional with Pamela Crim | BIG Life Mentor
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When Jesus tells a story, you listen. When Jesus repeats 3 stories with the same meaning, you REALLY listen. Every story he told during his time here on Earth was of important purpose, but to repeat the same lesson 3 times in 3 ways tells us Jesus desperately wants us to get this message. Today’s parable is part of that trilogy teaching. The Lost Sheep, The Lost Coin and the Lost Son. The teaching of the Lost Sheep was recorded by both Matthew and Luke, so we already looked at that teaching earlier in our series. But now as we look at the accounts of Luke, we see the remaining 2 stories taught
Luke 12: 16-21 Then he told them a story: “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’ Yes, a person is a fool to store up ear
Jesus tells a little story with big impact. Luke 8: 16-17, “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. For all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all.” Imagine a dark room where you can see nothing. You light a lamp so you can find your way around. How ridiculous would it be to cover that light up and stumble your way through darkness again? You have light now – use it! Jesus is r
If there’s one of these stories that Jesus told that has most impacted my life, it is this one. It’s a guide for daily living and it will meet you exactly where you are every day of your life. The moral of the story – JUST BE FAITHFUL. What happens when you are faithful with little? God sees you can be trusted with more. What happens when you aren’t faithful with little? God knows he simply can’t give you more. Whatever you’re doing with what you’ve already been given determines what you’re given next. The story Jesus tells is about money, but I assure you this is a lesson on more than just fi
Before we read this story Jesus told, I want you to do something. I want you to see it. Don’t just read the words on the page. Step into the story. Picture the wedding. Picture the bride. Picture the bridesmaids. Picture the anticipation of the groom’s arrival. To really understand what Jesus is saying, we need to understand a little about Jewish weddings in His day. There were several important stages in the Jewish wedding process. First came the arrangement. The families were involved in establishing the marriage, and there were formal agreements and financial arrangements that made the comm
Jesus also told them other parables. He said, “The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a king who prepared a great wedding feast for his son. When the banquet was ready, he sent his servants to notify those who were invited. But they all refused to come! So he sent other servants to tell them, ‘The feast has been prepared. The bulls and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the banquet!’ But the guests he had invited ignored them and went their own way, one to his farm, another to his business. Others seized his messengers and insulted them and kil
Today we will study a parable that seemingly has nothing to do with us. It’s easy to assume Jesus just told this story so the Pharisees who were in the crowd realized how bad they were. But haven’t we learned if Jesus told a story then, it applies to us today? Haven’t we discovered so far in our study of the parables that Jesus’ stories are layers and layers deep? So, as we read this next story, as yourself this question – “Am I faithfully tending what God has entrusted to me in this life?” Remember this is all on lease and God’s going to ask for it back. Even your very life! Matthew 21: 33-45
Matthew 21: 28-32 But what do you think about this? A man with two sons told the older boy, ‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’ The son answered, ‘No, I won’t go,’ but later he changed his mind and went anyway. Then the father told the other son, ‘You go,’ and he said, ‘Yes, sir, I will.’ But he didn’t go. Which of the two obeyed his father? They replied, “The first.” Then Jesus explained his meaning: I tell you the truth, corrupt tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the Kingdom of God before you do. For John the Baptist came and showed you the right way to live, but you didn
Jesus has great news for us today: We can be screwed up and late to the game, but if we will simply be available and show up, God has grace for us, work for us to do, and a great reward in store. Matthew 20: 1-15: For the Kingdom of Heaven is like the landowner who went out early one morning to hire workers for his vineyard. He agreed to pay the normal daily wage and sent them out to work. At nine o’clock in the morning he was passing through the marketplace and saw some people standing around doing nothing. So he hired them, telling them he would pay them whatever was right at the end of the
Jesus is serious about forgiveness. He gave his very life to forgive you. And … he asks you to forgive every other soul who has hurt or offended you. Yes, everyone for everything. Now I don’t know, but maybe that’s a nearly impossible task. Forgiving them – what? They aren’t even sorry. Why should you offer them forgiveness? If for absolutely no other reason, because of this – JESUS SAYS TO. And if Jesus says to forgive, then it’s for a good purpose and you can trust him. Jesus teaches this lesson in another parable and this story makes it very clear the torment we subject ourselves to when we
Matthew 18:12-14, “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away! In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish.” Here Jesus tells a story that shows the individual value of each and every one of us to the Father. God knows about you. He knows where he wants you to be and when you have wandered
Matthew 13:52, “Every teacher of religious law who becomes a disciple in the Kingdom of Heaven is like a homeowner who brings from his storeroom new gems of truth as well as old.” Well what on earth is Jesus trying to show us here? Being a teacher of religious law means you know your Bible. You know facts. You know history. You know verses. You know order. But there’s more than just knowledge of the Bible for us – we are invited to become DISCIPLES. As a disciple of Jesus, we are his STUDENTS. Do you see the interesting dynamic Jesus is introducing here – for those who call themselves teachers
Matthew 13: 47-51, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a fishing net that was thrown into the water and caught fish of every kind. When the net was full, they dragged it up onto the shore, sat down, and sorted the good fish into crates, but threw the bad ones away. that is the way it will be at the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the wicked people from the righteous, throwing the wicked into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Do you understand all these things?” So, Jesus is saying in the end there will only be 2 categories of people and they w
Yesterday we studied the Parable of the Treasure. Now, Jesus continues his teaching with another similar story tied to it. They go together, so let’s read them together. Matthew 13: 44-45, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field. Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it.” Remember yesterday was all about a man who discovered hid
Matthew 13:44, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” I want you to imagine for a moment coming to the end of your life, and standing before your Creator as he shows you a life of your movie. Everything you did in your entire lifetime. And imagine realizing you missed the whole point of life. Sadly, that will be many of us. Oh we’ll make it to heaven, we’ll gain our ticket of entrance into the Holy Gates – not because of a single thing we did, but all as humble and unwo
Have you ever made homemade bread with yeast? How much yeast do you put in with the flour and water? Just a tiny amount. How much of a difference does the yeast make? ALL THE DIFFERENCE. As Jesus was teaching, he knew everyone listening understood this because bread wasn’t something they picked up at the grocery store. It was made every day in their homes. The women especially knew exactly what He meant. They had watched a tiny handful of yeast disappear into a massive bowl of flour, only to come back hours later and find every bit of dough changed. So Jesus said… Matthew 13:33, “The Kingdom o
The next parable Jesus tells is one of the most debated in Scripture. Unlike some of the other parables, Jesus never explains this one. That means faithful Bible scholars have reached different conclusions. Let’s read it for ourselves. Matthew 13:31-32, “He put another parable before them, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” So…what do you think? Is
In our study of the parables of Jesus, we find the next story he tells. Remember, that’s what a parable is – it’s a story along with a teaching. It’s earthly stories with heavenly meaning told for a purpose by Jesus. Matthew 13: 24-30 Here is another story Jesus told: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew. “The farmer’s workers went to him and said, ‘Sir, the field where you planted tha
While Jesus walked this earth, he taught us the truths of God and the secrets of living well. In just 3 years of ministry he said everything he needed to say, and he said it perfectly. Now, over 2000 years later, his words are our perfect guide for life. Some of Jesus’ teachings were on deeply spiritual things that he knew we would struggle to understand. Not all things needed to be understood, but for some things we would need to understand so we could live well. For these things, Jesus often taught in parables. Parables are stories. The word parable means “to throw alongside”. So, Jesus is t
It’s back-to-school time. Today, I have friends walking their baby into kindergarten for the very first time. And I have other friends helping their baby move into a college dorm. Those two days feel worlds apart… until you’ve lived them. Those of us a little farther down the road know the truth. One day you’re zipping a backpack that’s almost bigger than they are. The next day you’re hugging them goodbye in a parking lot, trying not to cry until they can’t see you anymore. The days are long. The years are unbelievably short. And that’s exactly how it’s supposed to be. We aren’t raising childr
Is there something from your past holding you back? It could be 50 years ago, or 5 days ago. Regardless, past regrets, guilt, and shame have a way of holding on to us. We replay the stories we have no way of changing because what is done is done. You can’t go back. You can’t undo it. So, what do you do? Too many of us are serving life sentences for sins Jesus already died for. We keep dragging yesterday into today and wondering why it’s so hard to move forward. We allow our worst moments to become our identity. We introduce ourselves to God with our failures, while He calls us by our name. May
Maybe you’re living out a story that doesn’t look like you imagined. You had dreams, you had desires, you had plans … and your life seems to have fallen flat. You’ve been left wanting – left waiting – left wondering. When will things change for you? How much longer do you have to wait? What if what you want will never happen? Then what? Will you just be miserable? Or what if it does change? What if your waiting is over. What if the very thing you’ve always wanted is on it’s way to you now, it’s literally happening. Then what? Will you finally be happy? One thing I know for sure – we’re in a co
Last week we talked about valleys and mountains. Valleys being those dreaded low places in life, and mountains being those beautiful highs. We all want to stay in our mountaintop experiences, but we can’t. Do you remember why? Because nothing grows on top of a mountain. If you go high enough, the view is breathtaking, but the air is too thin for anything to grow. And that’s the way we are. The highs are beautiful, but we’re not growing when we’ve reached the pinnacle. God wants His girls continually growing. Don’t you realize there is so much more potential in you? God loves you so much, He wo
Jesus said in John 10:27, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” Here’s what Jesus didn’t say – “Only a select few, super spiritual will hear my voice.” No, he said, “My sheep listen to my voice.” Jesus calls himself our Good Shepherd. What does that mean? In ancient Israel, a shepherd wasn’t just the owner of sheep – a shepherd was the one who lived with the sheep. His entire life was dedicated to his sheep. He slept near them at night. He protected them from danger. He led them to green pastures to eat and water to drink. The shepherd of this day knew each one of she
Have you ever questioned if God really likes you? We’ve been told over and over again that Jesus loves us … but does he like us? Is he pleased with us? How does he see us when we fail? When we struggle? When we wander? I met a beautiful woman at our Colorado Retreat named Stevie. Stevie is this strikingly woman with black hair, a huge smile, tattoos, and rides a Harley. Honestly, she’s pretty cool. At Retreat, Stevie shared her testimony so boldly and courageously that you couldn’t help but listen. She said she had been married, then after divorce she went wild. She did everything wrong. She r
