2024-07-17
Judges 7:4 NLT
Gideon chose thirty-two thousand soldiers to fight the Midianites. But the truth is, you don’t need lots of people in your life, you just need the right people. So when Gideon said, “Whoever is timid or afraid may… go home” (v. 3 NLT), twenty-two thousand soldiers left. But God told him he still had too many, and added, “I will test them to determine who will go with you and who will not.” Consequently, Gideon ended up with three hundred soldiers – but they won the day! Don’t worry about numbers; God can still do more with less. Just be prepared to lose some friends, for where God is taking you, they can’t go.
God took the same spirit that rested on Moses and placed it on seventy leaders so they could help him (See Numbers 11:16-17). That’s what you need – people with the same spirit as you. Just because somebody is talented doesn’t mean they belong in your life. If spiritual gifts are the standard by which we measure, what about Balaam’s donkey? He prophesied (See Numbers 22:21-33)! The important question is, “Does this person have the right spirit?”
As you work with others, recognize that we all have certain things in common. People like to feel special, so compliment them (just make sure it’s genuine). They want a better tomorrow, so give them hope. They want direction, so lead them. They’re self-concerned, so address their needs first. They get low emotionally, so encourage them. They want success, so help them achieve it. Your success depends on having the right people in your life – and that’s why you must pray and rely on God’s guidance.
Soul food: 2 Sam 12:1-14:20; Luke 7:24-35; Ps 118:10-18; Prov 18:7-9
2024-07-16
Acts 20:30 NKJV
Paul writes: “From among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears. So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified” (vv. 30-32 NKJV).
When someone claims “special revelation from God” that doesn’t line up with what Scripture teaches, don’t buy it! Do what the Bereans did: “They received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true” (Acts 17:11 NIV). Whose teachings did the Bereans put under the searchlight of Scripture? Paul’s!
No leader, regardless of the size of their following, is beyond such scrutiny. Indeed, good leaders welcome it. “But doesn’t God still have more to say to us?” you ask. Yes, and when you take your last breath, you still won’t know everything. Does God have new and effective strategies for reaching the world with the gospel in this age of technology? Yes, and we must embrace and utilize them in order to reap the final harvest. But we must never compromise when it comes to God’s Word. “From among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things.” Sometimes the greatest threat to truth comes from those we know, love, and have worked with, who have gotten off track. So, what’s the answer? It’s simple. Always ask, “What does the Bible say?” and make that your benchmark.
Soul food: 2 Sam 7:18-11:27; Luke 7:11-23; Ps 118:1-9; Prov 18:4-6
2024-07-15
James 4:3 NIV
A pastor writes: “According to legend, King Midas loved gold so much that when Dionysus granted him a wish, Midas asked that everything he touched would turn to gold. At first, Midas was delighted with his request, but when he discovered that his touch made food inedible and his embrace made loved ones lifeless, he stumbled upon what sociologist Robert Merton called the law of unintended consequences. Like Midas, getting what we want can result in… undesirable consequences. So much for the Midas touch. Sometimes an unanswered prayer is God, in His sovereign wisdom, sparing us the pain of unintended consequences. Sometimes God allows what His power could prevent. Most of the time that causes us a great deal of temporal angst, but someday we will owe God as many thank-you’s for the prayers He did not answer as the ones He did.”
James writes, “You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” (vv. 2-3 NIV). C. S. Lewis said, “If God had granted all the silly prayers I’ve made in my life, where would I be now?”
The pastor continues: “Many of our prayers are misguided. We pray for comfort instead of character. We pray for an easy way out instead of the strength to make it through… Many of our prayers would short-circuit God’s plans and purposes for our lives if He answered them. Maybe we should stop asking God to get us out of difficult circumstances and start asking Him what He wants us to get out of those difficult circumstances.”
Soul food: 2 Sam 3:22-7:17; Luke 7:1-10; Ps 109:16-31; Prov 18:1-3
2024-07-14
2 Corinthians 12:9 NKJV
First, acknowledge your inadequacy to God. Joni Eareckson Tada says, “Deny your weakness, and you will never realize God’s strength in you.” God told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Anything that makes you lean on God is a plus and not a minus.
Second, stop putting yourself down. You say, “But I lack the qualifications to do the job.” God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called. How? By filling them with His Spirit. “I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit” (Joel 2:28-29 NKJV). God isn’t limited by age, gender, race, or academic status. The only thing that limits Him is the limit you place on yourself or allow others to.
Third, don’t buy it. Advertisers spend billions of dollars to convince you that without their product you are inadequate or incomplete. Don’t believe them! Begin to say, “I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14 NKJV).
Fourth, view the excellence or superior performance of someone else as a source of motivation rather than intimidation.
Meanwhile, don’t lose sight of your unique giftedness. Yes, you are gifted in some area. “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them” (Romans 12:6 NKJV). Your gift may be undiscovered, undeveloped, or unused, but it resides within you. Today unlock it and begin to use it.
Soul food: Matt 5:8; Ps 24:3-6; 2 Pet 3:3-14; 1 John 3:1-3
2024-07-13
2 Corinthians 3:5 KJV
The fear of inadequacy is a state of mind in which you think your best is not good enough. Usually, it originated in childhood when our parents, teachers, and others we considered important, failed to appreciate and affirm us or compared us negatively to someone else. You will see it from Moses, who felt inadequate to be the spokesman and liberator for the Israelites, to the late pop star Michael Jackson, who exerted himself to attain physical and professional perfection. No statistics can measure the number of abandoned dreams due to this paralyzing emotion.
To rid yourself of it, you must learn to embrace these two truths: (1) Apart from God you are inadequate. (2) Infused with God’s strength, you are adequate to any challenge He calls you to face. Paul writes: “Not that we are fit (qualified and sufficient in ability) of ourselves to form personal judgments or to claim or count anything as coming from us, but our power and ability and sufficiency are from God. [It is He] Who has qualified us [making us to be fit and worthy and sufficient] as ministers… of a new covenant” (vv. 5-6 AMPC).
Many of the heroes in the Bible struggled with the fear of inadequacy, so you’re in good company! Moses told God, “I can’t go and talk to Pharaoh, send someone else” (See Exodus 3:11; 4:13). The real story of these Bible heroes is that they overcame their fear and said yes to God. They stepped out in faith and said in essence, “Lord, I am depending on you for my success.” Our human ego likes to look good and claim the credit. But God puts us into a position of forced dependence so that the credit for our success goes to Him.
Soul food: 2 Sam 1:1-3:21; Luke 6:37-49; Ps 109:1-15; Prov 17:27-28
2024-07-12
James 1:19 NIV
There is no magic trick when it comes to influencing and impacting others. The Bible gives you the formula, and here it is:
(1) Try to listen carefully. The truth is that people don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care. They tend to filter what they hear through their own life experiences, hang-ups, and the particular problem that’s on their mind at that moment. So, if you want people to listen when you speak, listen carefully to them.
(2) Don’t say too much. If you tend to talk too much, or too fast, here are three tips to slow yourself down: (a) Stop. Just stop talking. Inhale. Count to ten. Excuse yourself and go to the bathroom. (b) Practice not interrupting. Allow the other person to finish what he or she is saying. (c) Ask yourself why you’re talking so much. Is it insecurity? Or anxiety? Or a need to control? Or a desire to impress? The reason many of us try to convince, impress, or control others is because we have a hard time trusting God to work things out. Just deliver the message and trust God to do the rest.
(3) Keep your anger in check. If you implement the first two principles, you will tend to do fine on number three. It will just happen. The good news is, starting today you can learn to do all three things. And if you practice them consistently year after year, when you get to the end of your life, looking back, you will be glad you took God’s Word and His wisdom seriously.
Soul food: Eph 4:17-6:24; Luke 6:27-36; Ps 79; Prov 17:24-26
