2024-06-11
James 1:22 NIV
When you listen to or read God’s Word but don’t apply it to your life, you deceive yourself. How so?
(1) You settle for knowledge rather than experience. The Bible says, “If anyone… knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them” (James 4:17 NIV). How does that grab you? When you know the truth but don’t act on it, you’re not simply making a mistake or exercising poor judgment – you’re sinning. The Bible says knowledge without obedience is sin.
(2) You compare yourself with others. Paul writes, “Don’t compare yourself with others” (Galatians 6:4 MSG). “When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise” (2 Corinthians 10:12 NIV). That enables you to remain carnal but comfortable, and the older you get, the more seasoned you become at doing it. Over time you build a reservoir of responses, and when the truth gets too close for comfort, you have 101 reasons why it applies to everyone except you.
(3) The Word moves you briefly but doesn’t change you permanently. There is nothing wrong with responding emotionally to spiritual truth. But if you go merrily on your way without changing your behavior in the slightest, your spirituality boils down to nothing more than a vapid emotional experience.
(4) You substitute communication for transformation. You talk the talk but don’t walk the walk. You think if you speak eloquently and convincingly about a point of Scripture, you’re covered – off the hook. You’re not! James says, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”
Soul food: Eze 20-21; Mark 14:66-72; Ps 48; Prov 14:33-35
2024-06-10
John 16:33 NLT
Stress is like kryptonite (Superman’s nemesis), and it’s out to knock off your cape and diminish you to a heap of trembling, useless mush. What should you do?
(1) Immerse your exhaustion. Try a bubble bath. Even simply standing in the shower can assist in washing away fatigue and reviving your breathless body tissues and brain cells. Feel the moment and focus on the water’s invigorating sensory contribution to your skin; allow it to spread resilience to your spirit. You say, “That doesn’t sound very spiritual.” Job’s friend Zophar said to Job, who had more troubles than you will ever see, would disagree with you: “You will forget your misery; it will be like water flowing away” (Job 11:16 NLT).
(2) Request help! Allocate responsibilities and chores. When everyone does their portion, no one is left depleted. “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 NLT).
(3) Release perfectionism. Nobody is perfect but Jesus, and you’re not Him. Let some things go. Tomorrow, give up a few more. Over time, those chores will stop nagging at you, and you will truly feel the stress in the pit of your stomach disintegrate. You will never be totally free from stress, but you can learn to cope with it and conquer it. Jesus said, “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NLT).
Soul food: Eze 16:53-19:14; Mark 14:53-65; Ps 1; Prov 14:29-32
2024-06-09
Isaiah 55:12 GNT
Let’s look at three proven and effective strategies for dealing with stress.
(1) Place your self on your daily to-do list. Designate fifteen minutes twice a day to renew, regroup, and restore. Distance yourself from the stress source, even if that simply means stepping outside for a few minutes and going for a walk to refresh your brain. Sing your favourite song or do whatever helps you to chill. And persevere when other events threaten to crowd you out. You’re important – learn to value yourself.
(2) Lighten up! The Bible says, “The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10 KJV), and when your joy goes, so does your strength and ability to cope. Some people think Christians should always be sober, humorless, and as quiet as the grave. But Jesus arose from the grave – and that’s one of the best reasons in the world to celebrate.
(3) Relax your stiff muscles with five-minute stress-relievers throughout the day. Stop thinking and move! Stretch out, bend over, roll your tense shoulders, chase the dog – get that invigorating blood flowing throughout your body while your mind takes a minibreak. Turn up the praise music and line dance while pushing a vacuum cleaner… swing dance while stirring the food on the stove… and boogie with the grocery cart in the cereal aisle! Physical activity triggers your brain to secrete beta-endorphin, which helps calm you.
You weren’t meant to live under stress. The Bible says, “You will go out with joy and be led out in peace.” And that came straight from the mouth of the One who created and redeemed you.
Soul food: Matt 5:3; Luke 18:9-14; Isa 57:14-21; 2 Sam 7:18-29
2024-06-08
Job 11:15 NLT
When you ignore the warning signs, chronic stress can take a toll on your body. So what are some of the signals? Well for starters, your stomach churns at any form of disagreement. When you can’t find an outlet for pent-up frustration, you resort to overeating, smoking, drinking, drugs, and generally abusing your body. You isolate yourself, which affects your loved ones. Debora M. Coty writes about what she terms the “Three Fs: outward fussing, inward fuming, and chronic fatigue.” She jokes, “I knew it was time to address my stress issues when my growl grew louder than the dogs, and my family tactfully suggested I get a rabies shot.”
However, it’s the signs you don’t see that can do the most damage. Cortisol, a hormone our bodies release in the grasp of stress, adds to out-of-control feelings of powerlessness and hopelessness. And studies verify that over time, stress raises your blood pressure, contributes to migraines and tension headaches, and results in the plaque that leads to heart disease. Chronic stress has been observed to increase cardiovascular risk by almost 50 percent! Not to mention documented connections to alcoholism, anxiety attacks, asthma, cancer, colds, depression, flu, insomnia, obesity, strokes, and ulcers. And those uncontrolled crying spells you encounter when you’re exhausted are no coincidence. Stress lowers estrogen levels, which can activate emotional outbursts.
If this describes you, take action! Rearrange your priorities, slow down, start taking control of your life, and turn to God. When you “prepare your heart and lift up your hands to him in prayer… You will be strong and free of fear” (vv. 13, 15 NLT).
Soul food: Eze 14:1-16:52; Mark 14:43-52; Ps 129; Prov 14:25-28
2024-06-07
Proverbs 15:31 NKJV
One expert points out that leaders touch your heart before they ask for your hand. That’s the law of connection. Before a leader can touch a person’s heart, he or she has to know what’s in it. And you learn that by listening. A reluctance to listen is too typical among poor leaders. Over half of all management problems are the consequence of faulty communications. And the vast majority of communication problems stem from poor listening. Many voices are clamoring for our attention. As you think about how to listen, keep in mind that you have two reasons for listening: (a) To connect with people, and (b) To learn about them. That includes your competitors.
Sam Markewich quipped, “If you don’t agree with me, it means you haven’t been listening.” Though of course he was joking, the sad truth is that when a leader views another organization only as competition, he or she focuses attention on building their own case or championing their own objective and forgets to learn from the other group’s efforts.
Now, you don’t necessarily want to base your actions on what the other person is doing, but you should still listen and learn how to improve yourself. It’s a costly mistake to get so busy doing your own thing, or trying to make things happen, that you’re not paying attention to what’s going on around you. Every day you live and every experience you have, both negative and positive, can teach you valuable lessons. But you must listen!
Soul food: Eze 10-13; Mark 14:27-42; Ps 124; Prov 14:21-24
2024-06-06
Genesis 2:18 NIV
God designed your marriage partner to meet your physical needs, your emotional needs, and yes, even some of your spiritual needs. Adam enjoyed perfect health, worked at the perfect job, and lived in the perfect environment. He even went for walks with God every day. Nevertheless, he was lonely and incomplete. So God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” Note the word “helper.”
God intended your partner to help you grow and fulfill your destiny. There is an intimate physical, emotional, and spiritual bond between you. No one on earth will ever know you better than your God-given mate. He or she should be your closest friend, counselor, and confidant. That calls for communication! And good communication is based on asking the right questions and listening carefully to the answers.
It calls for turning off the TV, your laptop, iPad, and cell phone. It means asking, “How are things with you today?” then listening long enough for hidden emotions to surface. Listen until you understand your spouse’s concerns, feelings, fears, hopes, and dreams. Listen accurately, so you can assess his or her real needs – needs you are best equipped to meet. Your questions reveal your level of caring, and the answers you get in return can become a foundation for a long, happy marriage. That’s exactly what God had in mind when he said, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one” (v. 24 NAS).
Soul food: Eze 5-9; Mark 14:12-26; Ps 4; Prov 14:17-20
