2021-07-11
Luke 5:9 NKJV
Lesson two: God is interested in your success. Peter knew Jesus was a great teacher and that He could even heal the sick. What he was about to learn, however, was that Jesus wants you to succeed in your career. Peter probably had the best nets, owned a good boat, and knew exactly where to catch the most fish. And his income depended on a good catch. But after fishing all night and catching nothing, Peter made the best move of his life: He got Jesus involved in his business!
Did you know that God wants you to succeed? Don’t you want your children to succeed? So does God. The question is: Do you take God to work with you? Is your business available to Him to use at any time? Is He able to minister to people through you?
Too often we try to separate the secular from the spiritual; we have our Christian life nicely partitioned off from our career. But this prevents God from blessing your business or job. When you realize this, if you’re wise you’ll begin to operate according to the principles of Scripture.
Here’s one of God’s success principles for your business or career: “Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do” (Joshua 1:8 NLT). God, who’s the CEO of the universe, says: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you by the way you should go” (Isaiah 48:17 NKJV). Today claim that promise!
Soul food: Ruth 1:3-18; John 6:41-69
2021-07-10
Luke 5:3 NKJV
Lesson one: Invite Jesus into your boat. That’s the starting point! Always! Nothing has greater influence on your personal success than whether or not you have Jesus Christ in your life. By himself, Peter fished all night and caught nothing. But when he brought Jesus on board, he caught more fish than he had ever caught before. Now, Jesus never performed a miracle without a purpose. He always used His miracles to illustrate principles. So this incident teaches you what to do when you’ve failed, or when your best is not good enough.
For Peter, his boat represented his livelihood. When you’re a fisherman, your boat is your business! It’s significant that Peter invited Jesus into his business, and Jesus used it as a platform for his ministry.
Are you willing to do what Peter did? If you are, the Lord will bless your business. Indeed, He’ll bless anything you give Him. If you give Him all your life, He will bless all of it. But if you give Him just part of it, He will bless just that one part.
And here’s another thought: Having Jesus in your boat eliminates the fear of failure and reduces your worries about the results. When Peter made Jesus his fishing partner, the results were incredible. But don’t miss the sequence. First, Peter used his boat for Jesus’ purposes. Then Jesus blessed Peter’s boat and used it to take care of all Peter’s needs.
Jesus said, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” (Matthew 6:33 NLT). Did you get that? “Everything you need.”
Soul food: Acts 1:1-3:10; Luke 6:27-36; Ps 109:1-15; Prov 15:22
2021-07-09
Proverbs 3:5 NKJV
In 1987 the Minnesota Twins baseball star Kirby Puckett saw a childhood dream come true when he led his team to a World Series Championship. Greg Gagne, the Twins’ shortstop, described the scene in the clubhouse after their win. He related the hugging, the shouting, the laughing, the obligatory dousing of champagne over the players’ heads, and the presentation of the trophy. But the memory that would stick with him forever, he said, took place ten minutes into the celebration when he noticed the normally ebullient Puckett sitting silently on a stool away from everyone else. Gagne wove his way through the media, players, and coaches, sat down beside Puckett and asked him what he was thinking about. With deep sadness in his eyes, Puckett said, “If this is all there is to it, life is pretty empty.”
Can you relate? You may have a great job, an excellent salary, a fine house, a wonderful family, good health, and even a low golf handicap – but no real peace. If so, you’re not alone. There are multitudes of people out there just like you.
King Solomon’s fame spread throughout the world. In his day he had more money than Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and Donald Trump combined. Yet he wrote, “When I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless” (Ecclesiastes 2:11 NIV). What answer did Solomon come up with? “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV).
Soul food: Joel 1-3; Luke 6:17-26; Ps 79; Prov 15:18-21
2021-07-08
Proverbs 12:23 NLT
Do you have a hard time refraining from offering unsolicited advice? Do you routinely use expressions like “You should,” or “You shouldn’t?” People tend to resent someone who always assumes that they know what’s best for them. Even when you feel like you’ve earned the right to speak into someone’s life, proceed with caution. Saying “Have you considered?” sounds a lot less controlling, and will be more readily received, than telling somebody “You must,” or “You mustn’t.”
As one author writes: “Even if you have knowledge and insight into a certain situation, sometimes it’s prudent to keep silent and give another the joy and fulfillment of explaining it.” Being an “expert” on almost every topic is a sure indication of pride, and it’s repulsive to God and man. Even if you’re brilliant but humble, your very presence can cause those with low self-esteem to feel uncomfortable and inferior. Displaying intellectual superiority simply alienates people, and can cause them to look for areas of weakness in your life in order to cut you down to size.
If you tend to be a know-it-all, you may need to do some honest soul-searching. Is your display of knowledge a disguise for insecurity? Do you long for attention or appreciation from others because you’re not getting it from the source you desire? Try this: Listen attentively, ask for ideas, resist correcting and disputing, and limit your opinion to one or two points. You’ll be surprised how quickly your relationships will start to improve. People enjoy a dialogue, not a monologue, so live by this time-tested scriptural principle: “The wise don’t make a show of their knowledge.”
Soul food: Jer 51-52; Luke 6:1-16; Ps 137; Prov 15:15-17
2021-07-07
Psalm 119:11 NIV
Senator Bill Nelson trained for and flew on a six-day space shuttle mission aboard the Columbia just prior to the Challenger disaster. In his book Mission he explains how difficult it is to maintain a proper orbit in space. There’s no resistance in space, so an astronaut can literally turn that huge orbiter over by himself. To maintain a proper orbit, the onboard computers constantly make course and altitude corrections by firing small rockets which make minute adjustments, while larger jets burn fuel to make major adjustments. These rockets are critical, for if they don’t consistently fire at the right time, the space vehicle can veer from its orbit and go tumbling into outer space or crashing into Earth’s atmosphere.
There’s an important lesson here for each of us. Left to ourselves, we tend to veer out of our spiritual orbit into lukewarmness and indifference. Or worse – we end up in sin and rebellion. That’s when the rockets of prayer and Bible study, “fired” on a continuous and consistent basis, help us to keep our course correct, and prevent our lives from spinning out of spiritual control.
Bible study and prayer go together. You should pray before you read the Bible to ask God to help you understand it. And you should pray after you read it to ask God to help you apply what He has told you. Like a faraway lover, God’s love letter to you is the Bible, and prayer is the telephone you pick up and talk back to Him. That’s why it’s crucial to maintain your daily prayer and Bible study.
Soul food: Jer 49-50; Luke 5:27-39; Ps 122; Prov 15:10-14
2021-07-06
Proverbs 1:10 NLT
You’ll never have a more important job in life than being a parent. And as long as your children are under your roof, you are responsible to God for them.
With that in mind, do these: (1) See who influences your child most. Your son or daughter will gravitate toward certain kids for a variety of reasons. These are the ones they “hang with.” They text them, talk with them on the phone, invite them to the house, sit with them in church, and so on. You can’t monitor every relationship your child has, but you need to know the ones who influence them most.
(2) Get to know their close friends. Notice the way they talk, dress, show respect or a lack of it, and how they play and interact with your family. Don’t be afraid to ask them questions about their parents, the church they attend, and if they’re old enough, their relationship with Christ.
(3) Check your child’s overnight accommodations. If your son or daughter is invited to a friend’s house, talk with the parents and become aware of any activity that might be planned outside the home. Make sure they have adequate supervision. Tell your children you expect them to show courtesy and respect, and ask them to inform you if there’s a problem of any kind.
(4) Look out for warning signs. When your child is running with the wrong crowd, chances are you’ll observe signs like indifference toward spiritual things, an openly defiant spirit, and an attraction to music, dress, and entertainment you don’t necessarily approve of.
“Isn’t that very demanding?” you ask. Yes, and it’s also very loving and protective!
Soul food: Jer 45-48; Luke 5:12-26; Ps 110; Prov 15:8-9
