2021-08-02
1 John 1:9 NCV
Sunday school teacher Ranai Carlton writes: “I was trying to teach the children that we all need God’s forgiveness. So, I asked one of the girls, ‘Lisa, when is a time you might need God’s forgiveness?’ Her blank stare prompted a response from my son, ‘It’s okay, Lisa. You don’t have to tell her.’ Then he turned to me and said, ‘We don’t have to tell you our problems. This isn’t the Oprah Winfrey Show.'” You don’t have to tell others about your sins, but you do have to tell God. David said, “When I kept silent about my sin…Your hand was heavy upon me” (Psalm 32:3-4 NAS).
Confession does four things: (1) Lets you experience God’s forgiveness. He already knows your sin, but He can’t forgive you when you blame-shift and make excuses. “If we confess…he will forgive our sins.” The first move is up to you.
(2) It restores your emotional and physical energy. Nothing’s more draining than denial, and nothing’s more invigorating than a clean slate. David said, “My strength…failed because of my iniquity” (Ps 31:10 NAS). Reflecting on his affair with Bathsheba, he said, “When I kept silent…my vitality was drained…I acknowledged my sin…You forgave the guilt” (Psalm 32:3-5 NAS).
(3) It lets you move on. Confession lets you hit the “reset” button and start again. It’s important to draw a line between the past and the future in case you’re tempted to regress.
(4) It lets you grow. Thomas Edison said failure taught him 10,000 ways not to make a light bulb. Making failure work for you instead of against you, starts with confessing it to God and accepting His forgiveness.
Soul food: Deut 18-21; Luke 10:38-42; Ps 78:40-55; Prov 16:32
2021-08-01
Proverbs 24:3 NLT
The storms of life will test whether or not you’ve done a good job with your family. And an important key to succeeding at home is communication.
So, ask yourself these four questions: (1) How well do I communicate with the people I love? You may unwittingly have adopted a style that doesn’t work well for you. For example, do you retaliate? That has a degrading effect. Do you dominate? That has an intimidating effect. Do you isolate? That has a frustrating effect. Or do you co-operate? That has an encouraging effect. If you’re in the habit of using any communication style other than a cooperative one, you must work to change it if you want to build a good relationship with your family.
(2) Have I identified my communication killers? The Internet, cell phones, texting and TV are among the chief culprits. Would it surprise you to know the average couple spends less than an hour a week in meaningful conversation, and approximately five hours a day watching television?
(3) Do I encourage everyone to speak their mind? And when they do speak freely do you criticize, pout, or retaliate? Differences of opinion can be healthy. The Bible says, “Iron sharpens iron” (Proverbs 27:17 NKJV). Handled respectfully, different opinions can make things better for everyone.
(4) Do I think creatively? Do you spend time together as a family? Do you call your mate during the day and try to meet sometimes for lunch? Do you drive your kids to school or soccer practice so you can talk to them? Communication can happen anywhere, but it only happens when you make it a priority.
Soul food: Lev 24:17-22; Deut 15:7-11; Matt 5:38-48
Spreuke 24:3 NLV
Die storms van die lewe sal toets of jy ‘n goeie werk met jou familie gedoen het. ‘n Belangrike sleutel om tuis sukses te behaal, is kommunikasie. Vra jouself dus die volgende vier vrae af:
1) Hoe goed kommunikeer ek met die mense wat ek liefhet? Jy mag dalk onbewus ‘n kommunikasiestyl aangeneem het wat nie goed werk nie. Slaan jy byvoorbeeld terug? Dit het ‘n vernederende effek. Domineer jy? Dit het ‘n intimiderende effek. Isoleer jy? Dit het ‘n frustrerende effek. Of werk jy saam? Dit het ‘n bemoedigende effek. As jy in die gewoonte is om enige ander kommunikasiestyl ipv die saamwerkende styl te gebruik, sal jy dit moet verander om ‘n goeie verhouding met jou familie te bou.
2) Het ek my kommunikasiedoders geïdentifiseer? Die Internet, selfone en televisie is van die groot sondaars. Sal dit jou verras om te weet dat die deursnee paartjie minder as ‘n uur per week in betekenisvolle gesprek deurbring, maar ongeveer vyf ure ‘n dag televisie kyk?
3) Moedig ek almal aan om hulle eerlike mening te deel? Wanneer hulle vrylik praat, kritiseer, pruil of slaan jy terug? Verskille in opinie kan gesond wees. Die Bybel sê: ‘Yster slyp yster…’ (Spreuke 27:17 NLV). Wanneer dit met respek hanteer word, kan verskillende opinies dinge vir almal beter maak.
4) Dink jy kreatief? Bestee julle tyd as ‘n familie saam? Bel jy jou maat gedurende die dag en probeer om hom/haar êrens vir middagete te ontmoet? Vat jy jou kinders skool of sportoefening toe sodat jy met hulle kan gesels? Kommunikasie kan enige plek plaasvind, maar dit vind slegs plaas wanneer jy dit ‘n prioriteit maak.
Sielskos: Lev 24:17-22; Deut 15:7-11; Matt 5:38-48
Proverbs 24:3 NLT
Families should be sources of love and comfort, but the reality is that they can also be sources of tension and misunderstanding. One of the important things we can do to address this is to try and improve how we communicate.
Here are four questions we should ask ourselves: 1) How well do I communicate with the people I love? We might have unknowingly started using a communication style that doesn’t work well. For example, we might retaliate, use intimidating language, or ridicule others. But if we communicate from a place of love, we’ll encourage and build up our family members.
2) What are my communication killers? We should consider what external things prevent us having meaningful conversations with our family. Things like spending lots of time on social media and watching TV are just a couple examples. That doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy these things, but we should check if we’re using them to excess.
3) Do I encourage everyone to be honest? And taking this a step further, when people do say what they’re really thinking, do we then criticise, retaliate, or turn moody? Differences of opinion can be healthy. The Bible says, ‘Iron sharpens iron’ (Proverbs 27:17 NKJV). When they’re handled respectfully, different opinions can make things better for everyone.
4) Do I think creatively? It might seem strange to suggest an ice-breaker, but doing something like arranging a board game night, a fun quiz night, or a family book club could help to get everyone talking and spending time together.
Lev 24:17-22; Deut 15:7-11; Matt 5:38-48
