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“Get busy living or get busy dying” – The full Forward to my new book, “Up!”

October 29, 2018 MatthewRuttan

Here is the complete Forward to the new book “Up!” It explains what it’s all about, and some very important Thank Yous at the end!

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Introducing TheUpDevo.com, your daily partner for a practical faith Today

November 1, 2016 MatthewRuttan

Life is tough. So do you want to get up, look up and be up? If so, the “Up!” daily devo can be your daily partner for a more practical faith Today.

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Take the word with you The "Up!" Devotional for November 22 Today I’d like to offer a very practical, super-simple, down-to-earth, easy-peasy, knock-it-out-of-the-park idea: Take your Bible with you. Let me explain. Followers of Jesus think the Bible is very important. It’s the primary place where we learn about God’s will and wisdom for our lives. Many of us hold the conviction—as I hope you do—that the more you get into God’s word, the more God’s word gets into you. But some of the people I talk to get into a rut. Or they get tired. Or lazy. Or busy. Or distracted. They start each day two steps behind and end the day exhausted. We know we should read our Bibles every day… but struggle. I get it. That’s why you should take your Bible with you as you go about your day. Maybe it’s a smaller Bible that you have, or just a New Testament. Maybe it’s the free app on your phone from YouVersion. Recently I was in the doctor’s waiting room. So I pulled out my Bible. Maybe you have a few extra minutes over the lunch hour. Instead of going online and getting frustrated because of the thoughtless and insane things people say and post, why not open your Bible for a few minutes? Maybe it’s while waiting for the bus, or for your kid to finish swimming lessons… Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” But not if we keep it shut. Take the word with you. By Matthew Ruttan #bible #truth #dailydevotional #GodsWord #discipleship #faith #inspiration

A FROG in your heart The "Up!" Devo for November 21 I was visiting a woman in a nursing home. She has aches and pains. She’s had more than her share of heartache. Through it all she’s had an enduring faith in Jesus. On this particular visit, she told me her outlook on life: F.R.O.G. Um, pardon? Then she explained it: “Through every stage of life I’ve had to remind myself to FROG: Fully Rely On God.” Aha! She had come to know and trust the God “who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine…” (Ephesians 3:20). Today, this week, this month, this year, every year… I encourage you to FROG. To help with this, here’s what you can do: (1) truly trust in God’s presence, power and provision, and (2) spend less time fretting about things in the future you can’t control. Easy, right? Not always. If it was easy everyone would already be doing it! But ours is a God of love “who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.” You may not always have a frog in your throat, but you can have FROG in your heart. (Sorry, couldn’t help myself.) Trust in God’s presence, power and provision, and spend less time fretting about things in the future you can’t control. By Matthew Ruttan --This Sunday at Westminster in Barrie is Part 2 in the Armageddon series: ‘Why will the world end, and how?’ --Bible quotes are from the NIV. #frog #faith #trust #dailydevotional #inspiration #stress #worry

It’s not imposing, it’s loving The “Up!” Devo for November 20 To the Colossians, Paul wrote: “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Colossians 4:6). Keep that in mind for a moment. There’s a story about a man who went to India and struck up a friendship with a woman. She had never heard about Jesus. So he started telling her about him, about the love, truth, forgiveness, purpose and peace he offers—not only to people in his part of the world, but to people everywhere; it is open and equally accessible to all. As he spoke and talked about Jesus, a smile came across her face. When he had finished talking, she said, “Thank you so much. I have always loved this person you describe, and now you have told me his name.” The woman had a deep, inner longing for a personal encounter and relationship with God. And then someone helped her put the pieces together. It reminds me of what the French mathematician and theologian Blaise Pascal is reported to have said: “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of each man which cannot be satisfied by any created thing but only by God the Creator, made know through Jesus Christ.” Sometimes we think that talking about Jesus or our faith is somehow “imposing” on someone. But it’s not. If we are, as Paul recommended, “full of grace” and “seasoned with salt,” we may be helping them connect with the God whom they are already longing for—the One who offers love, truth, forgiveness, purpose and peace. “Thank you so much,” she said. “I have always loved this person you describe, and now you have told me his name.” Talking about Jesus isn’t imposing on someone, it’s loving someone. By Matthew Ruttan #faith #Jesus #evangelism #relationships #light #saltandlight #colossians #inspiration

The dangers of the ‘prosperity gospel’ The “Up!” Devo for November 19 Some people think that if you believe in God, your life will always prosper in a very material way. You’ll always have success, abundance, a plump bank account, a clean bill of health, clear skies, and a lack of hardship. This thinking comes in a variety of forms, sometimes called the “prosperity gospel.” But it’s un-biblical. Your faith in Jesus will definitely bring amazing things into your life—hope, strength, love, truth, salvation, forgiveness, purpose… the list goes on. But there can also be a lot of difficulty too. Just look at Jesus. He was the only perfect person to ever live. Ever. His was a life of 100% love, truth and obedience—100% of the time. And yet his life was anything but easy sailing. Just check out Luke 22:44: “And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” And then he was tortured and crucified! If you think your faith should give you a free pass, you are (a) possibly deluded, (b) buying a lie that is un-biblical, (c) mistaking God for Santa Claus, (d) setting yourself up for failure, and (e), perhaps blinding yourself to how a big, awesome God can and does work in and through every chapter of your life. How quickly we forget Jesus’ words: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:25). You can’t always have it easy. But you can always have God. And that is what true wealth is all about. By Matthew Ruttan #prosperitygospel #wealth #faith #inspiration #hardship #bible #relationshipwithGod #Jesus

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