2020-08-25
1 Thessalonians 5:18 NLT
God is crystal clear on this issue: We are all called to be thanks-givers. Who? You! When? In all circumstances! Why? Because it’s God’s will for you! Whatever else you may be confused about concerning God’s will, this part is clear. It’s not a suggestion – it’s a commandment. And since there are more commands in Scripture about thanksgiving than anything else, God evidently enjoys receiving thanks. The psalmist said, “I will praise the name of God with a song; and…magnify him with thanksgiving. This also shall please the Lord better than an ox or bullock” (Psalm 69:30-31 KJV). Why does God need to remind us to give thanks? For the same reason you remind your child to do it – it’s considerate, and until it becomes habitual, we forget! David, a man after God’s own heart, prodded his often-forgetful soul into thanksgiving: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103:2 KJV). When you feel ungrateful, stop and read David’s “benefit list” in your Bible – it will fire up your attitude of gratitude. Even when circumstances don’t look good, God can turn them around for your benefit. In all things He deserves your thanks. Even at his lowest point in the belly of a whale, Jonah recognized the need to thank God, and “out of the belly of hell cried…I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving” (Jonah 2:2, 9 KJV). So make a habit of “giving thanks always for all things unto God” (Ephesians 5:20 KJV). In other words, develop an attitude of gratitude.
Soul food: Judg 19:16-21:25; Luke 17:11-19; Ps 119:137-144; Prov 18:22-24
2020-08-24
2 Timothy 2:22 NLT
Proverbs 7:19 is potentially one of the most danger-filled sentences in the Bible. It reads: ‘My husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey’ (NIV). The rest of Proverbs 7 sets out the story of a young man being lured in by a woman whose husband is working away. It applies to so much more than adultery. It’s a picture of every time we do something that we know isn’t the best choice, just because we had the opportunity to. It’s also about the times that we don’t do something we should, because no one will know. It echoes every time we allow ourselves to be lured into talking negatively about someone, because we’re pulled in by the ‘persuasive words’ of those around us (see Proverbs 7:21 NIV). It mirrors when we get distracted by the ‘coloured linens’ of social media, when we’d planned on reading the Bible (see Proverbs 7:16 NIV). The ‘adulterous woman’ (vv.5 NIV) embodies every temptation and distraction that we face each day. At the end of Proverbs 7, Solomon pleads with us to ‘listen…pay attention… Don’t let your hearts stray away towards her. Don’t wander down her wayward path. For she has been the ruin of many; many men have been her victims. Her house is the road to the grave. Her bedroom is the den of death’ (vv. 24-27 NLT). We all know from experience that when our ‘hearts stray’ and we ‘wander’, it’s almost always unintentional. We get drawn in. This means that the only way to avoid it is to be intentional first. Pray for your eyes to be more open to temptations, to recognise distractions, and actively move away from them. Close the app, walk away from the conversation, say goodbye to whatever your ‘adulterous woman’ happens to be.
Judg 16:1-19:15; Luke 17:1-10; Ps 119:129-136; Prov 18:21
2 Timoteus 2:22 NLV
Die Bybel beskryf die toneel vir ons: “‘Ek het nou na jou toe gekom. Ek het na jou gesoek en hier het ek jou nou gekry. Ek het my bed oorgetrek met beddegoed van bont Egiptiese linne… Kom ons verlustig ons in liefdeslus, dwarsdeur die nag tot môre-oggend. My man is nie by die huis nie… Eers met volmaan sal hy weer terugkom.’ So oorreed sy die jong man met haar mooipraatjies… Hy loop dadelik agter haar aan. Hy was soos ‘n bees wat na die slagpale gelei word. Hy was soos ‘n wildsbok wat in die slagyster trap en ‘n pyl kloof sy hart. Hy was soos ‘n voël wat blindelings in ‘n vangnet vasvlieg. Hy het nie geweet dat sy lewe verby is nie” (Spreuke 7:15-23 NLV). Kom ons moderniseer die toneel. Die bed kan ‘n waterbed of die agtersitplek van ‘n motor wees. Die linne kan ‘n dik mat voor ‘n kaggel wees. Die kruie kan bier en pizza saam met sagte agtergrondmusiek wees. Vandag noem ons sulke ontmoetings ‘vriende met voordele.’ Dit beteken dat elkeen die voordele van seksuele intimiteit geniet, sonder ‘n greintjie toewyding of kommer oor die ander persoon se welstand. Kundiges kan ‘n groeiende berg bewyse dokumenteer dat dit altyd op dieselfde manier eindig: met skuldgevoelens, depressie en verwoeste lewens. Salomo pleit: ‘Luister na my, my seuns. Slaan ag op wat ek sê. Moenie julle ophou met so ‘n vrou nie. Bly uit haar pad uit. Baie is al op haar kerfstok. Sy het al talle sterk mans so laat ondergaan. Haar huis is die kortpad na die doderyk, die voorportaal van die dood’ (verse 24-27 NLV). Met ander woorde: Verwyder jouself van skadelike situasies voordat jy daarin vasval!
Sielskos: Rig 16:1-19:15; Luk 17:1-10; Ps 119:129-136; Spr 18:21
2 Timothy 2:22 NLT
The Bible sets the scene for us: “‘You’re the one I was looking for! I came out to find you, and here you are! My bed is spread with…coloured sheets of Egyptian linen…Come, let’s drink our fill of love until morning. Let’s enjoy each other’s caresses, for my husband is not home. He’s away on a long trip…and won’t return until later this month’…and enticed him with her flattery. He followed her at once, like an ox going to the slaughter…like a stag caught in a trap, awaiting the arrow that would pierce its heart…like a bird flying into a snare, little knowing it would cost him his life” (Proverbs 7:15-23 NLT). Let’s modernize the setting. The bed could be a water bed or the back seat of a car. The linens could be plush carpet in front of a fireplace. The spices could be beer and pizza accompanied by soft background music. Today we call such liaisons “friends with benefits.” It means each has all the benefits of sexual intimacy without a shred of commitment or concern for the other person’s well-being. And experts can document a growing mountain of evidence that it always ends the same way: with guilt, depression, and devastated lives. Solomon pleads: “Listen to me, my sons…pay attention to my words. Don’t let your hearts stray away toward her. Don’t wander down her wayward path. For she has been the ruin of many; many men have been her victims. Her house is the road to the grave. Her bedroom is the den of death” (vv. 24-27 NLT). In other words: Remove yourself from harm’s way before you get in over your head!
Soul food: Judg 16:1-19:15; Luke 17:1-10; Ps 119:129-136; Prov 18:21
2020-08-23
2 Corinthians 5:9 NIV
Paul writes: “We make it our goal to please him…For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (vv. 9-10 NIV). If pleasing people is your main goal in life, you’ll be disappointed. The moment you stop pleasing them, chances are they’ll criticize you or leave you. Plus, they won’t be with you when you stand at the judgment seat of Christ to be evaluated and rewarded! Bottom line: You’re not assigned to everybody! So once you discover your God-given gift, ask, “Lord, to whom are You sending me?” “One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: ‘Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.’ So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God” (Acts 18:9-11 NIV). To whom has God sent you? As surely as a plant only thrives in the right kind of soil, you’ll only succeed in the place to which God has assigned you. Peter did well preaching to the Jewish people, whereas Paul writes, “God…was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles” (Galatians 1:15-16 NIV). You must love people, and listen to the right people. But when it comes to your calling – you must be led by God! So go where He sends you and trust Him to take care of you.
Soul food: Job 2:7-10; Job 40:1-5; Job 42:7-17; Jas 5:10-11
