Billy Graham - Unto the Hills: A Daily Devotional

Unto the Hills

Billy Graham

UNTO
the
HILLS

A Daily Devotional

Copyright 1996 by Billy Graham. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Published by W Publishing Group, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, Tennessee 37214.

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations in this publication are from the King James Version of the Bible. Other Scripture quotations are from the following sources: The Amplified Bible (AB), Old Testament, copyright 1962, 1964 by Zondervan Publishing House, and from The Amplified New Testament, copyright 1958 by the Lockman Foundation (used by permission). The Jerusalem Bible (JB), copyright 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd. and Doubleday and Company, Inc. Used by permission. The New Testament: a New Translation, copyright 1964 by James Moffatt, published by Harper & Row, Inc. (MOFFATT). The New American Standard Bible (NASB), 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by the Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. The Holy Bible: New International Version (NIV), copyright 1978 by the New York International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. The New King James Version (NKJV), copyright 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers. The Revised Standard Version of the Bible (RSV), copyrighted 1946, 1952, 1971, 1973 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. Todays English Version of the Bible (TEV), copyright 1966, 1971, 1976 by the American Bible Society. Used by permission. The Living Bible (TLB), copyright 1971 by Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, Ill. Used by permission.

The meditations in this book are excerpted from the following publications by Billy Graham: Angels, copyright 1975, 1986; Approaching Hoofbeats, copyright 1983; The Holy Spirit, copyright 1978; How to Be Born Again, copyright 1977; Peace with God, copyright 1953, 1984; The Secret of Happiness, copyright 1955, 1985; Till Armageddon, copyright 1981. Sermon excerpts from Decision magazine are copyrighted by the Billy Graham Evangelical Association, 1300 Harmon Place, Minneapolis, MN 55403.

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Graham, Billy, 1918 Unto the hills.
1. Devotional calendars.
1. Title.
BV4811.g62 1986 242'.2 86-24534
ISBN 0 -8499-1334-9 (hardcover)
ISBN 0 -8499-3993-3 (foreign edition)

Printed in the United States of America
02 03 04 05 06 PHX 16 15 14 13 12

Contents

OUR family has lived for many years in a comfortable log home in the mountains of North Carolina, 3,200 feet above sea level. There is something serene about living in the mountains or on a hill.

When Jesus appointed the twelve apostles, He called them unto the hills and they came to Him (Mark 3:13). Our Lord frequently retreated to the hills or mountains for moments of solitude when the crowds became too great.

But as English devotional writer Oswald Chambers has noted, we were not made for mountaintop experiences alone. We are made for the valley of life. God will sometimes allow us a view from the hills, but only so that we might be refreshed enough to return to the valleywhere the action isthat we might be of service to Him. Mountaintops are for views and inspiration, but fruit is grown in the valleys.

As much as my wife, Ruth, and I enjoy our home in the hills of North Carolina, we spend very little time there because God has called us into the valley of life where the lost people are. If we spent all of our time in the hills and on mountaintops, how would we effectively serve God?

I have compiled some thoughts from more than fifty years as a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ in hopes of better equipping you as you live for Christ in the valley.

Some of you will read this book as you search for answers to the problems in the valley of life. You have tried everything else and have not found satisfaction. It is you that I am particularly interested in reaching.

Others of you who are already believers still need assurance that, as you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, God has not forgotten you and is, in fact, still with you. I hope this book will be a help to you, as well.

While the hills and mountains are a wonderful place to get away from it all, we must always remember that our ultimate and certain help comes from the Lord who made the mountains and the valleys. David expressed this beautifully in Psalm 121:

I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.
My help cometh from the Lord,
which made heaven and earth.

(vv. 12)

May God bless and direct you as you read Unto the Hills.

January 1

A CLEAN SLATE

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Psalm 51:10

DID you ever have the experience in school of erasing an entire blackboard? When the slate has been wiped clean, it is as if nothing at all had ever been written on it.

This is what God does for us when we come to Him confessing our sin. First John 1:9 says, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

How many times in your life have you wished you could start all over again with a clean slate, with a new life? Resolve right now to allow God to wipe your slate clean by confessing your sins and letting Him give you a brand new start.

The apostle Paul did this when he said, Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13.14, RSV).

Our Father and our God, I come to You conscious of my sins and failures but confident in Your love and mercy toward me. Thank You for giving Your wonderful grace and forgiveness to me and for wiping the slate of my life totally clean. Let me start all over with You and live in Your purpose for my life, now and forever, through Jesus Christ my Savior. Amen.

January 2

LOST AND FOUND

I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me. John 14:6, RSV

RECENTLY, while returning to my hotel in a major city, the driver turned left when he should have turned right, and it took him awhile to figure out how to get to our destination. He had to stop and check his road map.

Often in life just one wrong turn, just one wrong decision can take us where we do not want to go or, more importantly, can keep us from going where we do want to go.

There is an ancient saying that all roads lead to Rome. When one is lost on a road to Rome or anywhere else, all that is needed to find the way is a good road map or directions from someone who knows the way.

Not all roads lead to God, as some suggest. There is a roadblock which keeps man from reaching God, no matter what road he takes. That roadblock is sin. But God has provided a mapthe Bibleand He has provided One who knows the way and can give directionsJesus Christ.