Patience and Endurance

TODAY’S VERSE
Being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience.
Colossians 1:11


TODAY’S THOUGHT
In his letter to the Colossians, Paul admonishes the Christians to “live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way.” He then tells them how. He says to exercise “great endurance and patience.” Endurance and patience please God. This is a lot easier when there is hope. When things seem to be going our way it is easy to endure. It is during difficult situations where all seems lost, where hope is nowhere to be found, that we must trust God and be strengthened in a way that only He can do. We come to Him, with all His glorious might, and choose to deliberately be patient and endure. It is an act of faith, one that is pleasing to Him. Today, trust God and His power, put your situation into His hands and choose to be patient and endure.


TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear Father, help me trust in Your power and might and exhibit patience and endurance today in all I do.
AMEN


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Seek Him First

TODAY’S VERSE
But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Matthew 6:33 (NASB)


TODAY’S THOUGHT
It’s easy for us to assume what God’s will is instead of asking Him for it. The truth is that God’s ways are not always our ways. Jesus said to seek His kingdom and righteousness before anything else. So if we want to live out God’s will in our life, then we must seek God first. A quarterback has the same goal as his coach. They both want to win the game. But the Coach is better versed in the game. He has more experience and a more comprehensive view of the whole game. If the quarterback is going to do his best, he needs to work in harmony with the coach. How much more should we align our behavior and attitudes with God Almighty? A hurtful situation, a wayward son, a sudden illness, a loss of a job. Life has many twists and turns. When they come, stop and seek God. Let Him know your thoughts, your apprehensions, your fears, and frustrations. Come to Him, seek Him first and He will direct your path.


TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, I confess that I do “my own thing” so many times. I do not take the time to know your will. I just assume that what I am doing is the “right” thing. Forgive me. Help me to stop when I am tempted to run in a certain direction. Help me to seek You first.
AMEN


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Blessing Or Blesser?

TODAY’S VERSE
Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”’
Luke 17:17-19 (NIV)


TODAY’S THOUGHT
It is so easy to seek the blessing more than the blesser. There were ten lepers all with the same putrefying disease. All with the same hopeless situation. Unless. Unless the Jesus that they heard about could really do miracles. Unless this Jesus was as compassionate as everyone said He was. They came to seek a blessing and as Jesus came down the road, a blessing they received. All ten were healed. But only one gave thanks to the blesser. He was the one that was touched in his body and his soul. He is the one that stopped to worship and give thanks. The nine came to get a blessing, the tenth met the blesser. How different are we? Is it possible that we have gotten so used to our faith that we are running on auto-pilot? We get our daily dose of blessing and go down the road as if nothing significant has happened. But let something go wrong. Then what do we scramble for? We cry out again like the leper for a blessing. But, it is not a blessing that we need. It is the blesser. It is Jesus, who loves us, that we need to seek. We need to come to Him and let Him know our situation and then commune with Him and let Him guide us. He is what our soul requires. Today, let us commit our situation to God and come to Him, seeking the blesser, not the blessing. He is the blessing.


TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, forgive me for being more worried about blessings than worship. Forgive me for taking You for granted. You are what my life needs. You are the blessing. Today, I choose to seek Your fellowship more than anything else. In Jesus’ name.
AMEN


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Serving God Hands Down



Serving God Hands Down

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Bible Reading: Mark 9:43-50

If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. Mark 9:43

THIS NEXT story actually happened. Really.

Two police officers spotted a young man staggering along the roadside carrying a Bible under one arm. The other arm was tucked tightly under the Bible in an at­tempt to stem the flow of heavy bleeding-where the man had chopped off his own hand!

Yes, you read that right. The guy had cut off his own hand. He said he lopped it off to obey Mark 9 :43: “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.” Apparently his hand had touched something or taken something it shouldn’t have, so he took Jesus’ words literally and whacked off the offending member. Fortunately the police offi­cers were able to retrieve the severed hand from a trash can, and doctors sewed it back on.

The point? You had better know what the Bible means, not just what it says. If you took Jesus’ commands in this section literally, you and I and every believer alive would need to get in line for several amputations! Who hasn’t ever sinned with their eyes (lusting, coveting), hands (stealing, hitting), or feet (walking where they shouldn’t)? If you did exactly what the Bible said in this spot, you would need artifi­cial limbs.

Jesus was exaggerating for effect and emphasis. People do this all the time: “I’ve told you a million times.” “I was so embarrassed I could have died.” “I could eat a horse.” The statements aren’t literally true but overstated to drive home the point that we were really, really annoyed, embarrassed, hungry, defensive, etc.

The real point Jesus was driving home wasn’t that you should whack off body parts left and right. It was that you have two ways to use your physical body-for God’s purposes or against God’s purposes. If your goal is to serve God, and you let your body do things that don’t please him, your body has become your enemy. Jesus wants you, his follower, to give to him not just your soul but your eyes, hands, feet, and every other part of you.

Paul put it this way: “I plead with you to give your bodies to God” (Romans 12:1). God isn’t interested in watching you chop yourself to sinlessness, but rather he wants you to discipline your physical body to match your spiritual commitment. It’s not a lot easier, but it’s a lot less bloody!

REFLECT: How are you using your body to serve God?

PRAY: God, I want to honor you with my body. Help me discipline my physical body to match my spiritual commitment.

The Faith Factor

The Faith Factor

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Bible Reading: Hebrews 11:1-6

What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. Hebrews 11:1

THE SAME Kim who can see her friend Robin becoming a Christian has a hard time seeing what God has to do with her schoolwork, so she worries about grades con­stantly. The Ian who sees God at work as a result of his quiet time sometimes thinks he alone is responsible for his financial needs, so he seldom gives any of his hard­earned cash to God in the church offering.

What kind of faith is that?

Faith is like the pitcher on a baseball team-you can’t have much of a game without one. The Bible uses strong words to describe the role of faith in the Christian life: “It is impossible to please God without faith” (Hebrews 11 :6); “It is through faith that a righteous person has life” (Romans 1:17); “Everything that does not come from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23, NIV). The apostle Paul said faith was one of the three great qualities in the Christian life-along with hope and love (see 1 Corinthi­ans 13:13). You can’t get along without faith.

But at times faith can be slippery. Sometimes your faith can peer into a situation and see God at work. Other times the eyelids of doubt, worry, or spiritual ignorance droop across the eyes of faith, blinding you to what God wants to do. Sometimes you can say, “I do believe!” But other times you beg God to help you trust that he really wants-and will do-what is good for you. If you ever feel stuck between belief and unbelief, you’re normal.

God’s Word flashes two pieces of encouragement as brightly as neon signs for us. First, God is the one who deals out faith to begin with (see Romans 12:3). You don’t have to earn it or buy it. God gives it. Second, faith grows when you dig into the Word of God (see Romans 10:17). As you bury yourself in God’s Word through reading, studying, memorizing, and sharing the Bible, you can expect your faith to have more “I do believe” and less “Help me in my unbelief.”

Rest assured: Jesus’ disciples-even though they watched him up close and per­sonal for three years-were often short on faith. Can you imagine? With their own eyes they saw Jesus raise the dead, heal the sick, calm the storm, and cast out de­mons-and they still struggled with faith.

When you wish you had bigger trust in God, pray these words straight from the mouths of Jesus’ closest disciples, and be confident God will grow your faith in him: “We need more faith; tell us how to get it” (Luke 17:5).

REFLECT: How are you going to grow in faith? What is God’s plan to help?

PRAY: Say thanks to God for providing the Bible to build your faith.

Nasib

Nasib Nasib Oliver Cadwell. Usia 25 tahun. Mengambil jurusan keuangan. 3 tahun pengalaman kerja. "Sempurna. Dialah yang kita butuhka...