Author: Dwight Clough

"Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how He has had mercy on you." – Mark 5:19Jesus sent this man home with a story, not with a theology text. God works inside the stories of our lives and then sends us to those we love with the compelling story of what He has done. You can argue with theology — and people usually do. But it’s hard to argue with a story.So let me tell you a short story. One day, a friend was praying with me about a hurting…

Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones. – Mark 5:5We arrive here just after the storm on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus calmed the wind and the waves. I think we all remember that God brought the disciples through the storm so they might see a clearer picture of who Jesus is.Today I’d like to look at the storm from the perspective of this desperate, demonized man. Here is a man who was in torment. He had no rest day or night. He was driven away from people…

… the fruit of the Spirit is … joy … – Galatians 5:22Well, folks, today is my 50th birthday. Ancient to some of you, spring chicken to others. To me, it’s quite a journey. I can be a natural pessimist. Like someone on the web wrote about Eyeore, I can “find the dark cloud behind every silver lining.” As I look over my life, there are so many reasons why I wish I could go back to my twenties. I wish I could push “rewind.” But, of course, I can’t.One day I was feeling a deep sadness about all this.…

… My power is made perfect in weakness. – 2 Corinthians 12:9As I exit my 40’s today, I want to share a few things that I probably knew in my twenties, but only really understood when I got a little older. It’s trite, but I’ve had to come back to this a thousand times: Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care. And, along with that, if you don’t take the time to learn the other person’s language, he or she will never know how much you care.Everybody’s deepest secrets are about the same. We…

Our guest author today is Chris Breen. She sent me these thoughts some time ago, and I wanted to share them with you.Apart from Me, you can do nothing. – John 15:5God places us in a funnel. By allowing circumstances and people to pressure us, He eventually moves us into the neck of the funnel, where there is only me and Christ. He squeezes all effort, all religion, all ability, all knowledge out of us, to bring us face to face with our absolute inadequacy apart from Him. Nothing that comes into our life catches Him by surprise. He has…

"Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how He has had mercy on you." — Mark 5:19The man Jesus delivered from a legion of demons begged to go with the Lord and His disciples. But Jesus turned him down.Think for a moment about what Jesus was turning down. This man would probably be a loyal follower who would stand by Jesus no matter what. More than that, he would be great PR, a wonderful credibility builder.But Jesus said no. Go home. People are more important than publicity.There is an order…

He satisfies your desires with good things. — Psalm 103:5The verse does not say that God satisfies our good desires. It says that He satisfies our desires with good things. That’s why I take all my rotten desires to God. Desires I would hate to share with you, I freely confess to God. I know He won’t give me what I want. And we can be happy about that, because the Bible promises He will give us something far better. Be encouraged!Dwight Discoveries Devotional – Inspiration in Your Inbox is provided daily byDwight Clough Ministries, Inc.1223 West Main Street #228Sun…

"Which ones?" — Matthew 19:18Jesus is so perceptive. The rich young man comes along and wants to strike a business deal with Jesus. "How can I negotiate for a share of eternal life?" he asks. Jesus gives a reply that probably no evangelical has ever repeated to a seeker, but Jesus gives it and it fits: "If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."Wait a second! we say. I thought we were saved by grace through faith, not by works. We think that salvation is free and easy, but Jesus alone among all men understands how costly salvation really…

David asked, "Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?" — 2 Samuel 9:1The kindness of God. I wonder how often God’s intentions are misunderstood. In 2 Samuel 9, David is clearly established as king over Israel. He is the dominant power, not just in Israel, but in the entire region. Members of the former dynasty, the house of Saul, have nowhere to hide. If he wants to purge any potential threat of future civil war, now is his chance.But David isn’t thinking in those terms. Instead, he is…

"Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?" — Mark 4:38I’d like to focus in on the word "care." We all know the story. The storm is out of control. Jesus is asleep. The waves are swamping the boat. The disciples are terrified.Where was God’s care? In a sense, that’s an unfair question, because we have a big advantage. We are looking at this storm 2000 years later. We know that God’s care was there all along. The disciples didn’t know how to stop the storm. So they did the only thing they knew how to do, they found Jesus inside…