2024-11-13
Proverbs 27:1 NLT
Unexpected events can knock us off our feet. And while some of us get knocked down and out, others get back up and go on. They refuse to accept defeat as being permanent. They’re like the man who said, “I’m never down; I’m either up, or I’m getting up.” They see everything that happens in life as a learning experience. Losing a loved one is heart breaking, but it can also be a wake-up call to live every day of your life to the fullest. Losing a job can be traumatic, but it can also bring to the surface talents and abilities you never knew you had. Struggling to overcome a bad habit can lead to reprioritizing your life and instituting healthy habits.
You can prepare for the worst by saving money for emergencies, taking classes about new products and technology, keeping your relationships and contacts current so when you need to call someone for help, someone will willingly pick up the phone. Doing so is like having a spare tire and tools in your trunk for changing a flat. You hope you never need to use them, but you keep them ready to go in the event you hit a bump in the road.
Above all, keep your relationship with God in good repair! “The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand” (Psalm 37:23-24 NIV).
Soul food: Rom 3:21-6:23; John 10:1-10; Ps 133; Prov 29:15-18
Spreuke 27:1 NLV
Onverwagte gebeurtenisse kan ons van ons voete af slaan. Terwyl sommige van ons platgeslaan bly, staan ander weer op en gaan aan. Hulle weier om die nederlaag as permanent te aanvaar. Hulle is soos die man wat gesê het: ‘Ek is nooit af nie; ek is óf op, óf ek is besig om op te staan.’ Alles wat in die lewe gebeur, sien hulle as ‘n leerervaring. Om ‘n geliefde te verloor is hartverskeurend, maar dit kan ook ‘n wekroep wees om elke dag ten volle te leef. Deur te sukkel om ‘n slegte gewoonte te oorkom, kan daartoe lei dat jy jou lewe herprioritiseer en gesonde gewoontes instel.
Jy kan vir die ergste voorberei deur geld vir noodgevalle te spaar, klasse oor nuwe produkte en tegnologie by te woon, jou verhoudings en kontakte op datum te hou sodat wanneer jy iemand vir hulp skakel, daar iemand aan die ander kant is wat gewillig is om die foon op te tel. Om dit te doen is soos om ‘n spaarwiel en gereedskap in jou kattebak te hê om ‘n pap wiel mee om te ruil. Jy hoop dat dit nooit nodig sal wees om dit te gebruik nie, maar jy hou dit gereed vir ingeval jy ‘n slaggat tref.
Bo dit alles moet jy sorg dat jy jou verhouding met God in ‘n goeie toestand hou! ‘Die Here bepaal die rigting van ‘n mens, en met sý lewe is Hy tevrede. Al sou so een struikel, hy sal nie val nie, want die Here hou sy hand vas’ (Psalm 37:23-24 NLV).
Sielskos: Rom 3:21-6:23; Joh 10:1-10; Ps 133; Spr 29:15-18
2024-11-12
Romans 12:11 NIV
Just as an EKG can measure the health of our physical heart and blockages that can threaten it, it’s helpful to have an instrument that can measure the level of our zeal, commitment, and wholeheartedness when it comes to serving the Lord. The following six questions will do just that:
(1) Do I talk openly and frequently about my commitment to Christ in order to create a kind of public accountability for my actions?
(2) Do I accept the responsibility to grow? Do I read books and practice skills and get together with those farther down the road who can help me improve?
(3) Do I complain about problems in a way that cleverly rationalizes a half-hearted involvement?
(4) Do I handle discouragements by talking with God and requesting strength to persevere?
(5) Do I acknowledge and celebrate even my small steps in the right direction?
(6) The apostle Paul writes, “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” Zeal describes passion, persistence, and power. And these are things I am able to track and guard. Am I honest about my level of zeal these days? When my zeal is flagging, do I take steps to renew it?
Think about each of these questions carefully and prayerfully. Be honest with God and with yourself. And if you don’t like the answers, decide today to take action. Spend more time alone with God in prayer and reading His Word. Having a burning zeal for God is like tending a fire; it requires constant fueling and maintenance. And no one else can do that for you.
Soul food: Rom 1:1-3:20; John 9:24-41; Ps 99; Prov 29:11-14
Romeine 12:11 NLV
Net soos ‘n EKG die gesondheid van ons fisiese hart en blokkasies wat dit kan bedreig, meet, is dit nuttig om ‘n instrument te hê wat ons ywer, toewyding en heelhartigheid wanneer dit kom by die dien van die Here, te kan meet. Die volgende ses vrae sal presies dit doen:
1) Praat ek openlik en gereeld oor my toewyding aan Christus om ‘n soort openbare aanspreeklikheid vir my dade te skep?
2) Aanvaar ek die verantwoordelikheid om te groei? Lees ek boeke, oefen vaardighede en ontmoet mense wat my kan help verbeter?
3) Kla ek oor probleme op ‘n manier wat halfhartige betrokkenheid weerspieël?
4) Hanteer ek teleurstellings deur met God te praat en vir Hom die krag om te volhard te vra?
5) Erken en vier ek selfs my klein treë in die regte rigting?
6) Die apostel Paulus skryf: ‘Moenie sleepvoet wees in julle toewyding nie; wees entoesiasties; wees werklik diensbaar vir die Here.’ Toewyding beskryf passie, volharding en krag. Dit is dinge wat ek kan dophou en oppas. Is ek tans eerlik oor my vlak van toewyding? Wanneer my toewyding afneem, neem ek stappe om dit te vernuwe?
Dink versigtig en met gebed oor elkeen van hierdie vrae. Wees eerlik met God en met jouself. As jy nie van die antwoorde hou nie, besluit vandag om tot aksie oor te gaan. Bestee meer tyd alleen met God in gebed en deur sy Woord te lees. Om ‘n brandende ywer vir God te hê, is soos om ‘n vuur op te pas; dit vereis konstante brandstof en onderhoud. Niemand anders kan dit namens jou doen nie.
Sielskos: Rom 1:1-3:20; Joh 9:24-41; Ps 99; Spr 29:11-14
2024-11-11
2 Chronicles 25:2 NIV
The Bible says, “Amaziah… did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, but not wholeheartedly” (vv. 1-2 NIV). Contrast that with what God said about David: “I have found David… a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do” (Acts 13:22 NIV). This can be a little bewildering because when you read about David’s life, you find chapters of adultery, murder, and cover-up. He’s a disaster as a husband and inferior as a dad. But his heart is devoted to God. How do we know? Because when he makes mistakes and sins, he repents and desires to get right with God again. When David guided the return of the ark of the covenant to Israel, he danced before the Lord “with all his might” (2 Samuel 6:14). He put his whole self into it. If you wonder how that dance looked, the text reveals it involved King David “leaping and dancing before the Lord” (v. 16).
The heart, in early history, was the core of a person. It meant not only feelings, as we many times think of the heart, but the center of a person’s being, especially the will. So, wholehearted devotion to God reveals what you choose to embrace with all your energies. Amaziah lived twenty-nine years of his life finessing his commitment to God. He did what was right, but his heart was elsewhere. David, in spite of his flaws, pursued God with all his heart. So the word for you today is – strive for wholehearted devotion to God.
Soul food: Isa 63-66; John 9:13-23; Ps 115; Prov 29:7-10
