2020-03-18
Isaiah 50:4 NIV
Isaiah writes: “The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.” Let’s face it; if you told a person everything you thought, you would hurt them or they would leave you. There are private parts of you. Maturity means you don’t have to say everything you think. Indeed, much of what you think hasn’t been thoroughly thought through! That’s why you need to pray and ask God for “a well-instructed tongue.” Read these three Scriptures carefully: “Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin” (Proverbs 13:3 NIV). “Those who guard their mouths and their tongues keep themselves from calamity” (Proverbs 21:23 NIV). “Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless” (James 1:26 NIV). There are two occasions in particular when your tongue can get you into trouble: (1) When you’re angry. Emotional outbursts usually result in harmful comments you don’t mean and will regret later. (2) When you’re tired. Exhaustion lowers your guard, and at such times thoughtless comments can slip out. Always wait until your judgment is clear and you can think things out before you speak. Paul said, “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Colossians 4:6 NIV). What does salt do? It flavours, preserves, cleanses, and heals. And that’s how your words should be.
Soul food: Job 1-4; Matt 23:23-39; Ps 19; Prov 8:6-7
Jesaja 50:4 AFR53
Jesaja skryf: ‘Die Here het my ‘n geoefende tong gegee, dat ek kan weet om die vermoeide te verkwik met woorde; Hy wek elke môre, Hy wek my oor om te hoor soos die leerlinge.’ Kom ons wees eerlik: as jy vir ‘n persoon alles wat jy dink sou vertel, sou jy hulle seermaak of hulle sou jou verlaat. Daar is omstandighede van jou wat privaat is. Volwassenheid beteken dat jy nie alles hoef te sê wat jy dink nie. Baie van wat jy dink is inderwaarheid nie deeglik deurdink nie! Dis hoekom jy moet bid en God vir ‘n ‘geoefende tong’ moet vra. Lees die volgende Skrifgedeeltes aandagtig deur: ‘Iemand wat op sy woorde let, bevorder die lewe. ‘n Bitsige antwoord kan alles ruïneer’ (Spreuke 13:3 NLV). ‘Wie ‘n wag voor sy mond het, bly uit die moeilikheid’ (Spreuke 21:23 NLV). ‘As jy dink jy is godsdienstig, maar jy hou nie jou tong in toom nie, bedrieg jy jouself. Jou godsdiens is niks werd nie’ (Jakobus 1:26 NLV). Daar is twee spesifieke geleenthede waar jou tong jou in die moeilikheid kan bring: 1) Wanneer jy kwaad is. Emosionele uitbarstings lei dikwels tot kwetsende aanmerkings wat jy nie bedoel nie en later oor spyt is. 2) Wanneer jy moeg is. Uitputting laat die wag voor jou mond verdwyn en laat onbesonne opmerkings uitglip. Wag altyd tot jou oordeel helder is en deurdink dinge voordat jy praat. Paulus het gesê: ‘Met woorde wat altyd vriendelik en sinvol is, moet julle gereed staan om die regte antwoord vir elke mens te gee’ (Kolossense 4:6 NLV). Dís hoe jou woorde moet wees.
Sielskos: Job 1-4; Matt 23:23-39; Ps 19; Spr 8:6-7
2020-03-17
Lukas 4:16 NLV
Wanneer iemand sabbatsverlof neem, is dit omdat hulle tyd nodig het om te rus en hulle batterye te herlaai. God het ook sabbatsverlof geneem: ‘Op die sewende dag was God klaar met alles wat Hy gemaak het en het Hy gerus na al sy werk’ (Genesis 2:2 NLV). Die Bybel sê wel dat God nie sluimer of slaap nie (sien Psalm 121:4). As Hy dus ‘n dag in die week afneem, het jy dit ook nodig! Nie te lank gelede nie het die meeste families op ‘n Sondag kerk toe gegaan, huis toe gekom en middagete geëet en dan die middag spandeer om te rus of mekaar se geselskap te geniet. Nou stoom ons sewe dae ‘n week voort, volspoed op die pad na uitbranding of ‘n vroeë dood. Wetenskaplike sê dat ons liggame geneties saamgestel is om te vereis dat een dag uit elke sewe dae gebruik moet word vir fisiese, emosionele en geestelike vernuwing, om sodoende ons hoogste potensiaal te bereik. Toe Truett Cathy sy eerste restaurant, The Dwarf House, in 1946 oopgemaak het, het hy die tradisie dat hulle op Sondae toe sou wees, ingestel. Daardie tyd was dit algemeen in die praktyk, maar nou is dit baie ongewoon om op Sondae toe te wees. Cathy, ‘n toegewyde Christen, het egter nooit daarvan afgesien nie. Dit het hom ook nie ‘n verlies laat ly nie, maar groot dividende afgewerp. Hy het een van die populêrste en winsgewende kitskos konsessierestaurante in Amerika begin – Chick-fil-A. Die Bybel sê: ‘Die sewende dag is die Here jou God se rusdag. Niemand in jou huis mag op daardie dag aangaan met gewone werk nie…’ (Eksodus 20:10 NLV). Jy het elke week een dag sabbatsverlof nodig – neem dit dus!
Sielskos: 1 Tess 1-5; Matt 23:13-22; Ps 11; Spr 8:4-5
Exodus 20:10 NIV
Anyone who likes to exercise knows that it’s important to take rest days to let our bodies recover. And the same principle can apply to other parts of our lives too. We need to take rest days in order to recover and refuel. Even God took a rest day. ‘By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work’ (Genesis 2:2 NIV). If we fail to take rest days, we can end up burned out and unable to serve God or even do the normal everyday activities in our lives. When we have a lot to do at work, home, or church, it can be tempting to keep working until it’s all done. But we’ll ultimately work better and be healthier if we take regular rest days. That’s why the Bible says, ‘The seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work.’ Rest days also give us an opportunity to reconnect with God. When everything else in our lives quietens down for a while, it’s easier for us to focus on God and listen to His voice. It’s on these days that we can ‘be still and know that [He is] God’ (Psalm 46:10 NCV). Rest days remind us that we’re humans who can’t do everything. They help us to rely on God to provide, rather than relying on our own strength. Sometimes we can feel like resting is inconvenient but God never intended for it to be a burden for us. Jesus said: ‘The Sabbath day was made to help people; they were not made to be ruled by the Sabbath day’ (Mark 2:27 NCV). God knew we would need rest days, so let’s take them.
1 Thes 1-5; Matt 23:13-22; Ps 11; Prov 8:4-5
Luke 4:16 NLT
When someone takes a sabbatical, it’s because they need time to rest and recharge their batteries. God took a sabbatical: “On the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day” (Genesis 2:2). Now, the Bible says that God “neither slumbers nor sleeps” (See Psalm 121:4). So if He took a day off in the week, you need one too! Not long ago most families went to church on Sunday morning, came home and ate lunch together, and spent the afternoon resting and enjoying one another. Now we huff and puff seven days a week, hurtling down the road toward burnout or even an early demise. Scientists say that our bodies are genetically wired to require one day out of every seven for physical, emotional, and spiritual restoration in order to perform at our highest potential. When Truett Cathy opened his first restaurant in 1946, The Dwarf House, he established the tradition of closing on Sundays. Back then that was an accepted practice, but now it’s extremely unusual, especially for a restaurant chain with hundreds of outlets in malls. But Cathy, a committed Christian, never wavered. And rather than costing him, it paid huge dividends. He built one of the most popular and profitable food chains in the USA – Chick-fil-A. God knows that the fastest way to burn out is to try and burn the candle at both ends. That’s why the Bible says, “The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work (Exodus 20:10 NKJV). Every week you need a one-day sabbatical, so take it!
Soul food: 1 Thes 1-5; Matt 23:13-22; Ps 11; Prov 8:4-5
