2025-09-05
1 John 3:21 NKJV
When you willfully do wrong, you experience anxiety, stress, and insecurity. “‘There is no peace,’ says the Lord, ‘for the wicked'” (Isaiah 48:22 NKJV). Whenever you choose a plan of action incompatible with what you believe to be right, you forfeit your peace of mind. For instance, a person may accept a job or duty that forces them to do something against their spiritual convictions, something that violates their conscience. Numerous women have faced the predicament of compromising their values so they can get a promotion or attain other advantages. To them at the time, it looked like their only option. “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 16:25 KJV).
This is when a strong spiritual foundation is essential. It takes faith and bravery to let your convictions direct your behaviour and your choices. The truth is that God is ultimately responsible for your advancement and promotion. His Word says, “Promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another” (Psalm 75:6-7 KJV).
Don’t think you can do right in your own power. Sometimes the temptation to manipulate or lie so that you can advance your career is just too much to withstand. That’s when you need to draw on God’s strength. David said, “The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1 NKJV). Prayer: “Father, please keep me from falling into temptation, and deliver me from the Evil One. Help me to do what’s right.”
Soul food: Eze 37:1-40:9; Matt 24:1-14; Ps 78:9-16; Pro 20:11-14
2025-09-04
Ecclesiastes 9:9-10 MSG
The following definition of love and marriage is a time-tested formula that would be hard to improve on: “Love is friendship that has caught fire. It’s quiet understanding, mutual confidence, sharing, and forgiving. It’s loyalty through good times and bad. It settles for less than perfection and makes allowances for human weakness. Love is content with the present, hopes for the future, and refuses to brood over the past. It’s the day in and day out chronicle of irritations, problems, compromises, small disappointments, big victories, and working together toward common goals. If you have love in your life, it can make up for a great many things you lack. If you don’t, no matter what else there is, it’s not enough.”
The Bible says, “Relish [enjoy, Savour, delight, and take pleasure in] life with the spouse you love… every day… Make the most of each one!” And if you want to make your marriage work, observe these five rules:
(1) Never both be angry at once, and never yell – unless the house is on fire.
(2) Yield to each other. If you have to choose between making yourself or your mate look good – always choose your mate.
(3) Neglect the whole world rather than each other, and never let a day end without saying at least one complimentary thing to the one you love.
(4) Never meet without an affectionate welcome, and never go to bed angry.
(5) When you make a mistake, talk it out and ask for forgiveness.
Now, since God came up with the idea of marriage, pray and ask Him for help with yours. He will do it!
Soul food: Eze 34-36; Matt 23:23-39; Ps 78:1-8; Pro 20:7-10
2025-09-03
Jeremiah 1:12 NKJV
Talking about the power behind the Reformation, Martin Luther said, “I simply taught, preached, wrote God’s Word; otherwise I did nothing. And then, while I slept… the Word so greatly weakened [the erroneous system] that never a prince or emperor did such damage to it. I did nothing. The Word did it all.” Later, when Luther was asked about his preaching philosophy, he added, “I just threw the Bible into the congregation and the Word did the work!”
As human beings, we accomplish a lot with our words. For example, when we order something by phone, our words set a chain of events in motion, and in due course, what we want is delivered to our mailbox. Words perform, and that’s particularly true when it comes to God’s words. He said, “I am ready to perform My word.” God works through His words. Check these words out: “Who says to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited,’ to the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built’… who says to the deep, ‘Be dry!’… and to the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid'” (Isaiah 44:26-28 NKJV).
Things happen when God speaks, and things happen when people speak what God has already spoken. And what’s more, amazing things happen in those who receive what God speaks, namely “the word of God, which… effectively works in you who believe” (1 Thessalonians 2:13 NKJV).
The fact is that God’s Word refreshes us, heals us, gives us wisdom and discernment, brings us joy and enduring hope by making us spiritually healthy, prevents foolishness and warns us of impending danger, and promises both earthly and eternal rewards when we obey its principles.
Soul food: Eze 31-33; Matt 23:13-22; Ps 27; Pro 20:5-6
2025-09-02
Hebrews 11:27 NIV
V. Raymond Edman said, “To be torn… by external forces, and still… preserve one’s inward integrity, is to know the discipline that endures.” So when you’re faced with opposition, do you automatically throw in the towel, or like Moses, do you persevere?
Chuck Swindoll characterizes Moses as a man “who hung tough, who refused to give in or give up, who decided that no amount of odds against him would cause him to surrender… He possessed the disciplines of durability. He endured the contempt of Pharaoh… the stubbornness of the Hebrews who grumbled, blamed, complained, and rebelled… the criticism of Miriam and Aaron, his own sister and brother. When ten of the twelve spies came back with their nay-sayings, Moses stood fast. When Korah and Dathan and Abiram led a conspiracy against him, Moses remained ‘resolute.’
‘When you have fought to a standstill… stand your ground’ (Ephesians 6:13 PHPS)… when the wicked appear to be winning… in times of crisis… when no one will know if you compromised… when big people act contemptibly small… when people demand authority they don’t deserve. Stand firm… keep your head… stay true… endure! You may be getting shaky… [or] begun to listen too closely to your critics. Maybe you’ve started giving in… in little areas… because you’re tired. Moses endured – even in his eighties. How? By focusing… on ‘Him who is invisible.’ He fixed his heart and soul on the One who, alone, judges righteously. He continually reminded himself that his sole purpose was to please, obey, and glorify Him and to gain His approval at all cost.”
Whatever you’re facing, stand strong and don’t give up!
Soul food: Eze 27:25-30:26; Matt 23:1-12; Ps 112; Pro 20:1-4
2025-09-01
1 Peter 4:8 NLT
You don’t have to be alone to be lonely. Some of us are married to emotionally unavailable spouses. Some of us put up with verbal and emotional abuse because we prefer anybody’s company to our own. Some of the loneliest people you will meet are in crowded bars at “happy” hour. They mingle, but they don’t connect. What is the answer?
(1) Get involved in a cause greater than self-interest. After the Prodigal Son had spent his last penny partying with so-called friends, they forsook him, and he ended up alone in a hog pen. On the other hand, when the disciples were persecuted for their faith, the Bible says that “being let go, they went to their own company” (Acts 4:23 KJV). They had friends who shared their faith and their vision, who knew how to pray with them, strengthen them, and stand by them. And God has people like that who are waiting to become part of your life; you will find some of them in your local church.
(2) Practice being accepting of others. When you love and accept people as they are, they’re drawn to you. “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8 NLT).
(3) Reach out. Begin nurturing your relationships by connecting more often with the people you know and value. Don’t get sucked into the Facebook/email/text-message-only communication vacuum. The founder of Wired Magazine says that his favourite form of communication is face-to-face, his second is by phone, and his third is via internet. Take a leaf out of his book.
Soul food: Eze 24:1-27:24; Matt 22:34-46; Ps 20; Pro 19:24-29
2025-08-31
2 Timothy 2:2 NIV
A leadership expert who conducted a poll to find out how people came to be leaders writes: “I asked if they became leaders because (a) they were given a position; (b) there was a crisis in the organization; or (c) they had been mentored. More than 80 percent indicated that they were leaders because someone had mentored them in leadership – had taken them through the process… As leaders, if we feel any uncertainty or insecurity about the leadership development process, it is usually not related to the training we give. The uncertainty we feel comes when we contemplate releasing our leaders to lead.
It is not dissimilar to what parents feel with their kids. My children are grown and have families of their own, but when they were teenagers, the hardest thing for my wife and me was releasing them to go their own way and make their own decisions. It is scary, but if you don’t let them try out their wings, they will never learn to fly.
As I have grown older, I have come to think of myself as a lid lifter. That is my main function as a team leader. If I can lift the leadership lids for the members of my team, then I am doing my job. The more barriers I remove for my people, the more likely they are to rise up to their potential.”
Jesus told His disciples, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain” (John 15:16 NKJV). If you want lasting fruit and enduring results – take the time to develop leaders.
Soul food: Jonah 1:10-2:10; Matt 12:38-42
