By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible. – Hebrews 11:24-27

After Moses was rescued from the Nile River, he was brought up in Pharaoh’s palace. Yet the exalted position and the privileges of rank did not draw him away from following God. When he was forced to decide, Moses chose the path God had set before him, despite all of the sacrifices and hardships God’s purpose entailed. He was willing to suffer rather than to take the easy way, because he had a clear understanding of what mattered most.

The temptations that we face in our day are not new. They are the same lures that the devil has been using for thousands of years. The hardships that we endure are not new. They are the same difficulties and suffering that God’s people have faced through the centuries. Peter wrote, “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you” (1 Peter 4:12).

There are people who proclaim a painless path of following Christ. They teach that if we just believe enough or give enough or try hard enough, everything will go smoothly and we will be exempt from the burdens of life. While it is not hard to see why such a message is appealing, it is still a false message. Nowhere in the Bible are we promised that our path through life will be easy if we do right. Instead we are promised that the rewards of doing right outweigh any suffering that we might endure. The rewards God promises to those who faithfully serve Him make it worth any sacrifice required to do His will. ( Daily in the Word)

David Stone

Lakeway Baptist Church

Humble, Tx.

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. – John 14:1-4

All around us in the world we see reasons to be worried and troubled. Sickness and hatred, disease and difficulty are widespread. Yet these things are not new. They have been part of life ever since the Fall of man. They were present in Jesus’ day as well. And the night before He was to go to the cross, Jesus told His disciples not to worry—not because nothing would ever go wrong, but because there was a promised place and a guaranteed future waiting for them. Every person who has trusted Christ as Savior has the hope of Heaven before him.

Dr. Lee Roberson wrote, “Heaven is a promised place. Heaven is an assured place. Heaven is a place beyond the dreams of men. I have preached about Heaven for almost eighty years. The promises of God have never lost their precious appeal. Heaven is eternity. Heaven is real. Heaven is God Himself.” This present world is not all there is. We have a home with God waiting for us that can never be lost or taken away. We have a settled and certain future that is guaranteed for all eternity.

It is no wonder that the world lives with doubt and worry. They have nothing that is truly reliable and dependable. Every human source of comfort and security can be lost. Only the Divine promise of a prepared place offers us an unshakable source of peace. Only the hope of Heaven lets us keep our hearts from being troubled.

When our focus is on Heaven rather than the things of this world, we need not live with worry and fear as our constant companions. ( Daily in the Word)

David Stone

Lakeway Baptist Church

Humble, Tx.

It would be good if we learned to look at things the way God does. That’s especially true when it comes to death. Rather than thinking of death as precious we tend to think of it as painful and pitiful. We speak as though heaven was a demotion rather than a promotion, a loss rather than a gain. Rather than viewing death as going home we think of it as being taken from our home.

The devil, the deceiver, has convinced us that death is something dreadful rather than delightful. But if we would but believe what God says it would dismiss the dread we have of it. It is sad that we are so deceived about it that we are deprived of the delightful thoughts of the thrilling things death brings us to. We torture ourselves needlessly. Instead of doing that let us form our conclusions by considering what God tells us about “the death of His saints”. That will put joy in your heart, a song on your lips, and a spring in your step.

Death is the conclusion of all our troubles and trials, suffering and sorrow, grief and gloom, painful problems, tears and terror, and days of despair.

Death is the coming of our heavenly home, funeral for fears, Christlike character, permanent pleasures, and eternal enjoyment.

Death is the commencement of separation from sin, perfect peace, endless enjoyment, reunion with relatives, shocking surprises, and jubilant joy.

There are no words to describe the glories that death will bring to us. Let us then conduct ourselves with cheerfulness, forget our fears, focus on our future, dispatch our duties, ponder God’s promises, anticipate our arrival, reckon our rewards, investigate our inheritance, mourn without murmuring, and be thankful for our treasures.

Naturally we can’t see what God sees, but we can know what He says and that enables us to see what He knows, and that fuels our faith and enables us to enjoy what is to come before it gets here. That’s what faith does – “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” – Heb. 11:1. In light of that we have to conclude that our last day on earth will be the best day of our life. It is no wonder that Paul said “to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21). So when you feel the worst has come, just remember that the best is yet to come. – HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346