2026-10-15
Romans 12:9 NLT
When it comes to serving others, try to live by these three rules:
1) Serve sincerely. ‘Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them.’ God knows your heart, so be honest with yourself about your true motives in serving and sacrificing for others. If you need help in this area, turn to the Scriptures: ‘For the Word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword… and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart’ (Hebrews 4:12 NKJV).
2) Serve silently. ‘When you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet… that [you] may have glory from men’ (Matthew 6:2 NKJV). Note the words, ‘do not sound a trumpet’. When people take your kindness for granted or fail to appreciate the things you do for them, don’t toot your own horn. Look to God for your reward, not people; otherwise you’ll be disappointed. ‘As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters… so our eyes look to the Lord our God’ (Psalms 123:2 NKJV).
3) Serve selectively. You’re not called to go to every place, meet every need, and help every person. On two different occasions God stopped Paul from going into Asia to preach the gospel. But look what happened next: ‘And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”…immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them’ (Acts 16:9-10 NKJV). Why is this important to know? Because when God guides you, He provides for you!
Soul food: Exo 28-29; John 4:27-38; Ps 100; Pro 26:27-28
2026-10-14
Joshua 7:10-11 NKJV
The walls of Jericho had fallen, and Joshua was flushed with victory. Their next challenge was the town of Ai, with a population of only 20,000 people. So Joshua decided that 3,000 of his soldiers could do the job. He was wrong. ‘The men of Ai chased the Israelites from the town gate as far as the quarries, and they killed about thirty-six who were retreating…The Israelites were paralysed with fear at this turn of events, and their courage melted away’ (vv. 4-5 NLT).
What caused this? Achan, one of Joshua’s soldiers, had disobeyed God’s command and taken the spoils of Jericho and hidden them in his tent. As a result, Israel went down in a humiliating defeat, and Achan and his family were stoned to death in the valley of Achor. Joshua had a meltdown. He tore his clothing and fell on his face and prayed, ‘Oh, that we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of the Jordan!’ (v. 7 NKJV). Note what God said to him: ‘Get up! Why do you lie thus on your face? Israel has sinned.’
There’s an important lesson here: there’s a time to pray and a time to ‘get up’ and deal with the issues God’s talking to you about! Sometimes we pray hoping that God will overlook our disobedience or change His mind. But God’s goal is to change us! Why did Achan take the spoils of Jericho? Because he didn’t trust in God’s ability and willingness to provide for him. Is God dealing with you about the same thing?
Soul food: Exo 25-27; John 4:13-26; Ps 89:38-52; Pro 26:23-26
2026-10-13
Isaiah 48:17 NLT
You’ll probably travel several different paths on your way to your destiny. When Luciano Pavarotti was a boy, his grandmother often put him on her lap and said, ‘You’re going to be great – you’ll see.’ But his grandmother had dreams of him becoming a banker! Instead, he became a schoolteacher. He taught primary school for a while, occasionally singing at special events. His father was the one who challenged him to develop his voice, telling him he was settling far short of his potential.
Finally, at age twenty-two, Pavarotti stopped teaching to sell insurance. He continued to look for something stable on which he could rely financially in case he could not make it in the music world. The insurance business allowed him time to take voice lessons, and, as they say, ‘The rest is history.’ In an interview, the opera star said, ‘Studying voice was the turning point of my life.’ Then he added, ‘It’s a mistake to settle for the safe path in life.’
It takes courage to leave a position you consider safe and launch out in a new direction, but without risk, you can never realise your potential or know all God created you to be. The greatest risk of all is to take no risk because the person who risks nothing accomplishes nothing, has nothing, feels nothing, and, in the end, becomes nothing. God may lead you along several different paths on your way to your destiny, but if you submit to His will and follow His guidance, you will surely succeed.
Soul food: Exo 22-24; John 4:1-12; Ps 89:15-37; Pro 26:20-22
2026-10-12
Isaiah 32:17 NIV
We are the sum total of everything we have experienced – both good and bad. We can engage in wishful thinking and imagine that our past negative behaviour had never occurred, or we can decide to accept the reality of it. How we choose to respond to the past will determine our destiny. We have all sinned, and we either responded by asking for God’s forgiveness and going forwards, or we are still stuck in guilt. Indeed, we may actually develop anxiety about possible consequences.
Many people are plagued with jealousy because of their own infidelity or prior indiscretions. They live in fear that one day they will reap what they have sown. Some have even resorted to verbal and physical abuse of their partners in order to ward off what they feel will be inevitable.
When we repent, we must believe God’s Word: ‘Their sins… I will remember no more’ (Hebrews 10:17 NIV). God doesn’t remember confessed sin, so we need to stop rehearsing it. God doesn’t want to hear about it ever again: ‘When sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices’ (Hebrews 10:18 NLT).
Once is enough. There is no need to repent continually. To do so is to offer another ‘sacrifice’. Too many people sacrifice the rest of their lives on the altar of remorse over past transgressions. Yes, you should make every effort to line up your life with the requirements of God’s Word. And when you’ve done that, then stand on this Scripture: ‘The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever.’
Soul food: Exo 19-21; John 3:22-36; Ps 89:1-14; Pro 26:17-19
2026-10-11
2 Corinthians 9:7 NIV
God can be sitting on the sidelines watching you struggle financially or actively involved as your financial partner. It all depends on what kind of steward you are. Your finances are yet another area of life where you can begin to experience an interactive relationship with your heavenly Father. But if you want God involved in your finances, you need to put your finances to work for God’s interests. ‘Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well’ (Matthew 6:33 NIV).
That means you need to give. And you can start with what He’s already given you. That might mean a percentage of your next month’s salary or a part of your net worth. Wherever the voice of generosity leads you, you need to follow it. Again, this isn’t about giving to get. It’s about neutralising the fears that have been hindering the spirit of generosity inside you. It’s about discovering the thrill of taking part in God’s plan and experiencing the security that comes from knowing that your provider is the One who owns all provisions. When you sow, God shows up in amazing ways.
‘God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you. Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous’ (2 Corinthians 9:10-11 NLT). Once you experience the perfect provision of a loving heavenly Father, your fears will begin to evaporate.
Soul food: John 14:26; Acts 2:1-21; Rom 8:26
2026-10-10
James 2:9 NLT
James wrote to the church: ‘Suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewellery, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor” – well, doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives? If you favour some people over others, you are committing a sin’ (vv. 2-4, 9 NLT).
The early church grew rapidly because prejudice had no place there. Although the Jews and Samaritans despised each other, Jesus made a place for Nicodemus, a Jewish leader, and the Gentile woman at the well who’d been married five times. The early church made room for Onesimus, the former slave, at the same table as Philemon, his wealthy former master. The gospel gives everyone, everywhere, a place of dignity at Christ’s table.
The sin of discrimination stands on two legs: prejudice and presumption. And they should have no place in your life. The ancient prophet Habakkuk climbed up in his watchtower in order to ‘watch to see what [God] will say unto me’ (Habakkuk 2:1 KJV). Too much of our Christian experience is taken up with us saying something to God, and spending too little time listening to what God is saying to us. He definitely has something to say to us about discrimination. So ask Him to help you to view people through His loving eyes. You just might see a few people differently than you have in the past.
Soul food: Exo 16-18; John 3:9-21; Ps 110; Pro 26:13-16
