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The Crosswalk Devotional: A Daily Devotional Chris... - When the World Glorifies Darkness, Choose What Is Good · The Light

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  Speaker 1: Welcome to the Crosswalk Divotional. We're glad to have you
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  Speaker 1: listening with us. Today's topic is how to choose what's
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  Speaker 1: good even when the world around you is glorifying evil.
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  Speaker 1: We'll return with the devotional after a brief message from
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  Speaker 1: our sponsors. When the world glorifies darkness, choose what is good.
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  Speaker 1: Written and read by Whitney Hopler. Do not be overcome
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  Speaker 1: by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12, 21
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  Speaker 1: NIV While visiting an independent bookstore, I browsed the spirituality
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  Speaker 1: section and was disappointed to see lots of books about
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  Speaker 1: spiritual darkness and very few about God and the light
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  Speaker 1: of hope He shines into our fallen world. I considered
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  Speaker 1: just leaving without saying anything, but I felt like I
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  Speaker 1: should try to have a conversation with the woman at
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  Speaker 1: the front desk. So I silently prayed for courage. Then
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  Speaker 1: I told her that I had been looking for books
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  Speaker 1: on God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and other related topics.
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  Speaker 1: She rolled her eyes and suggested that I visit a
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  Speaker 1: Christian bookstore in the area. But I sensed that I
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  Speaker 1: should ask her some questions about the selections in the store.
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  Speaker 1: Why so many books about the dark side of the
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  Speaker 1: spiritual world, like the occult, but so few about God's goodness?
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  Speaker 1: Why sell books about demons but not about holy angels?
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  Speaker 1: It turns out that she was the store owner and manager.
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  Speaker 1: Even though my questions and tone of voice were polite,
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  Speaker 1: an angry expression flashed across her face, and she blurted out,
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  Speaker 1: I just stock what sells the most. If you want
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  Speaker 1: something else, then go somewhere else. After I nodded and
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  Speaker 1: walked out, I prayed for God to reach out to
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  Speaker 1: her and shine light into the darkness that surrounded her
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  Speaker 1: so she could see the value of what's good. In
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  Speaker 1: Romans 12, 21, the Bible urges you to fight back
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  Speaker 1: against being overcome with evil and instead to overcome evil
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  Speaker 1: with good. Physically, if a room is completely dark, you
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  Speaker 1: can drive away the darkness by turning on a light.
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  Speaker 1: Even a small flashlight or candle flame cuts right through
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  Speaker 1: the darkness. Spiritually, if people in this fallen world around
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  Speaker 1: you are glorifying evil, you can overcome that by making
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  Speaker 1: choices that reflect God's goodness. Choosing what's good may be
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  Speaker 1: unpopular sometimes, but it's always worth it. When you choose goodness,
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  Speaker 1: even though others around you are choosing spiritual darkness— You
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  Speaker 1: welcome God's power to flow through your life freely. God
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  Speaker 1: will empower you to make the good choices he leads
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  Speaker 1: you to make day by day. When someone speaks hurtful
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  Speaker 1: words to you, God will give you the strength you
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  Speaker 1: need to answer with kindness. When others tell lies to
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  Speaker 1: get ahead, God will help you tell the truth. When
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  Speaker 1: people around you are selfish, God will empower you to
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  Speaker 1: be generous. The more you seek God's guidance for your decisions,
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  Speaker 1: the more God will give you the power to follow
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  Speaker 1: through with those decisions well. Every day you face choices.
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  Speaker 1: You choose how to treat your family, friends, co-workers, and
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  Speaker 1: strangers who are unkind. You choose what you watch, what
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  Speaker 1: you talk about, and how you respond when you're treated unfairly.
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  Speaker 1: The world will tell you often to put yourself first,
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  Speaker 1: hold grudges, and seek revenge when you're hurt. but God
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  Speaker 1: calls you to be a light in this dark place.
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  Speaker 1: You might think your good choices don't matter very much
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  Speaker 1: in this world that's full of other people glorifying evil,
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  Speaker 1: but never underestimate the power of a good action you
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  Speaker 1: do with love. Doing something kind for people can make
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  Speaker 1: them feel loved. Speaking honestly to people can bring hope
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  Speaker 1: that breaks through their confusion or suffering. Choosing to forgive
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  Speaker 1: people for their mistakes can break a cycle of anger
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  Speaker 1: that's lasted for a long time. When you choose what's good,
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  Speaker 1: you show the world what God's love in action looks like.
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  Speaker 1: So don't let the darkness around you change who you
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  Speaker 1: are on the inside. Pray for help from God's Holy
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  Speaker 1: Spirit and stand strong in the Holy Spirit's power as
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  Speaker 1: you make your decisions every day. As you choose what's good,
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  Speaker 1: God will use your light to make a real and
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  Speaker 1: positive difference in the lives of those around you. Intersecting
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  Speaker 1: Faith and Life As you consider how to choose what's good,
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  Speaker 1: even when the world around you is glorifying evil, reflect
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  Speaker 1: on these questions. Where in your daily life do you
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  Speaker 1: notice the world glorifying things that don't please God? When
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  Speaker 1: have you felt tempted to respond to someone's sinful choice
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  Speaker 1: by going along with it? rather than speaking up against evil.
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  Speaker 1: What's one act of goodness you can do today for
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  Speaker 1: someone who has been difficult or unkind to you? How
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  Speaker 1: does knowing that God gives you strength through the Holy
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  Speaker 1: Spirit change the way you view challenging situations? What are
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  Speaker 1: some simple habits you can set in your life to
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  Speaker 1: protect your mind and heart from dark influences? Further reading.
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  Speaker 1: 3 John 1 11 Deuteronomy 30.15. Psalm 34.14. Matthew 5.16.
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  Speaker 1: Amos 5.14-15. Thanks for listening to today's devotional. If you
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  Speaker 1: liked what you heard today, we want to make sure
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  Speaker 1: you know about our sister podcast, Your Daily Prayer. When
• 6:14
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  Speaker 1: so your days begin in conversation with God. If you're
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: looking to grow in prayer or start your day with
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: your heart focused on the right things, search for Your
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