Below The Surface

April 25, below the surface.

Have you ever been deceived by the tranquil surface of a river?

Only to learn that deadly currents surge below?

In larger bodies of water, this is often the case.

The danger is not always evident until we look deeper.

And the same could be said about our own lives.

Maybe we're kind, hardworking, patient, and generous even.

But these surface attributes match the deeper condition of our heart.

Today we'll meet Terry, a shining example of a church going good-hearted man.

But beneath the surface, he was still separated from God.

Terry's here to share with us his true story.

On this unshackled, daily devotional.

If you did examine my life, you would have said I was a good person who worked hard,

got good grades in school, and tried to make the world a better place.

In high school, I was active in sports, especially baseball and football.

I helped my mother and her job as a physical therapist and in doing so, discovered I wanted to work with young people.

I had no idea that I needed salvation just as much as a hardened criminal.

Mom always took us to church, but I never heard the gospel there.

I didn't know what a Christian was, and never heard the Bible preached in church.

And yet even when I was in high school, God reached out to me by way of people who gave me tracks that described God's love and the way to salvation.

In college, a friend discovered a church that taught the Bible, and we both went one Sunday and gave our lives to Christ.

I bought a Bible and began reading 10 chapters a day.

I also began memorizing a verse of scripture each day.

Now don't think that just because you become a child of God, everything will go your way from then on.

It won't.

What has I learned to trust in the Lord and let him live his life through me?

I had a joy that was indescribable.

Others were aware of the peace I had, no matter the circumstances.

And they were drawn to Christ too.

God has allowed me to coach at a Christian school for 25 years now, and lead many young people to Christ.

Believe me, there's no better career than that.

Jesus condemned the Pharisees in Matthew chapter 23 for their obsession with appearance, while their hearts wandered far from God.

In verse 27, Jesus says,

For ye are like unto whited sepokers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

Friend, the lesson for us today is to examine our heart.

For even as believers, we can become focused on carrying out the acts of a good Christian, while our heart follows after dangerous worldly philosophies.

So the next time you want to know if you're bringing honor to your Lord and Savior, look below the surface.

Will you receive this truth today?

Unshackled, the longest running audio drama in history airs on over 3,000 radio stations worldwide.

Real people, real life stories, stirring dramatic accounts of hopelessness, and the hope that changes everything.

This award-winning program grips the heart with compelling and relevant stories of transformed lives.

Without Jesus Christ, we are all shackled by sin, by our wrong choices, disobedience, and selfish motives.

But God is at work, and the power of Christ sets us free of our bondage.

Unshackled daily devotionals are a daily reminder of God's presence in your life, produced in Chicago by unshackled of Pacific Garden Mission.

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