2025-07-11
Matthew 5:41 NKJV
Try to picture this: You’re in a restaurant with someone whose meal costs $15.00, and you’re watching them struggle over the tip. They have $2.00 left over, and they know that a 10 percent tip is considered the very minimum. They waste five minutes getting change for that second dollar so they can leave a $1.50 tip rather than leave a little extra. What would have happened if they had left the full $2.00? They may have made the waiter’s or waitress’s day. Fifty cents may not seem like much, but the message that goes along with it can mean the world of difference to someone, especially if they’re having a rough day. It says, “Thanks, you did a good job, I appreciate you, you’re valuable.” Maybe the message gets lost – your server just sweeps up the tip without counting – but God blesses you for doing it anyway.
“Whoever sows generously will also reap generously” (2 Corinthians 9:6 NIV). Think about it: You can increase the happiness of others and bless yourself with mere pocket change. This is just one tiny example of the many ways in which the small things we can do have surprisingly big repercussions. Small acts of kindness set the tone for your day. Going the extra mile – whether it’s a slightly larger tip or an unexpected compliment or gift – costs very little and gets you a lot.
And here is an important thought: We can have mountain-moving faith, understand and explain all the deep doctrines of the Bible, and get top marks for personal holiness, yet God’s Word says that without love, we are “nothing” (See 1 Corinthians 13:2).
Soul food: Acts 10-11; Matt 9:1-13; Ps 118:19-29; Pro 15:33
2025-07-10
Philippians 2:4 NKJV
If you are in a position of leadership, try to be aware of how you respond to the feelings, thoughts, and opinions of those around you. What you say as a leader will resonate more deeply with people than what others say, so you must be sensitive to this. Even when someone offers an idea that you feel has no merit, resist the temptation to immediately dismiss it. A simple “Thank you for your input” is called for, not “No, that won’t work.”
When you’re dismissive toward someone, it sends this message: “I’m ignoring you and your idea. Your feelings and views don’t matter. Your concern is unimportant to me.” Spoken or unspoken, these statements hurt a person’s sense of value and need for respect. This is particularly true if the person thinks they have earned the right to special regard. The old saying is true: “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
When you’re dismissive toward others, they will find a way to display their irritation, and sometimes it’s in a way that can cost you dearly when it comes to fulfilling your vision. You can avoid this by becoming more aware of how you come across to others. The only solution to this problem is to step outside yourself, listen intently to others, and endeavour to understand and respectfully handle their concerns. You will gain great benefits if you do. “Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”
Soul food: Acts 8-9; Matt 8:28-34; Ps 118:10-18; Pro 15:31-32
2025-07-09
John 8:12 NKJV
In his book Deep Thoughts, Jack Handey writes: “As the light changed from red to green to yellow and back to red again, I sat there thinking about life. Was it nothing more than a bunch of honking and yelling? Sometimes it seemed that way.”
Many of us are waiting for the green light we have already been given. Jesus said, “He who follows Me shall… have the light of life.” When do insight, illumination, and direction come? When you take the first steps of faith. We are not advocating a thoughtless or prayerless approach to decision-making. You need to know that God is calling you. But you can be so afraid of doing the wrong thing that you never do the right thing. It’s wise to think and rethink, but not overthink. Over analysis results in spiritual paralysis.
A pastor explains: “If you try to logically figure out the will of God, you’ll never take a step of faith. Why? Because the will of God is not logical. It’s theological.” The word “theos” means “God.” So, “theological” denotes adding God into the equation. The pastor continues: “That’s why it doesn’t always add up on our human calculators. The promptings of the Holy Spirit won’t always make sense to your logical left brain. In fact, God ideas often seem like bad ideas. But that is when you need to allow the Holy Spirit to override your intellect.”
The disciples Jesus called did two things. They worked miracles, and they made mistakes. Had they been unwilling to make a mistake they would never have experienced the joy of working a miracle. So, go when the light is green.
Soul food: Acts 6-7; Matt 8:18-27; Ps 118:1-9; Pro 15:27-30
2025-07-08
Galatians 6:9 NKJV
One of the greatest predictors of success in any endeavour is persistence. It’s not only how hard you try; it’s how long you try. We tend to overestimate how much we can accomplish in the short term. And according to an American pastor and author, we also “underestimate how much we can accomplish over the long haul. Why? Because energy is exponential. The harder you work and the longer you work, the more it pays off. In a study involving Japanese and American first graders, kids were given a difficult puzzle to solve while researchers measured how long they would try before giving up. On average, the American children lasted 9.47 minutes. The Japanese children lasted 13.93 minutes. That is a 47 percent difference. Want to guess who scores higher on standardized math tests? Success in any endeavour is a by-product of trying harder and trying longer.
There are no substitutes. There are no shortcuts. It doesn’t matter whether it’s athletics or academics, music, or math [or ministry]. Study after study has shown that it takes about ten years or ten thousand hours to become great at anything. You need to work hard and work long. In the words of Malcolm Gladwell, ‘Ten thousand hours is the magic number of greatness.’ Are there any God ideas you’ve given up on? Any God-ordained passions that you have stopped fighting for? Any God-sized dreams gathering the dust of disobedience? Don’t give up on them. You need to try. Then you need to try harder. And then you need to try longer.”
Soul food: Acts 3:11-5:42; Matt 8:10-17; Ps 109:16-31; Pro 15:23-26
2025-07-07
Ephesians 4:3 NIV
A lady told her friend, “My husband and I have a very happy marriage. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for him, and there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for me. And that’s the way we go through life – doing nothing for each other!” We smile, but that’s not so funny when it’s true. That attitude paves the road to disaster in marriage, business, church, personal relationships, and everywhere else. Often people join a team for their own advantage – they want supporting players so they can receive all the accolades. But ultimately, that attitude not only hurts them, but it also hurts the people they work with and hinders the results they otherwise could have had.
President Woodrow Wilson asserted: “You are not here merely to make a living. You are here to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and to impoverish yourself if you forget the errand.” Here is a true statement, if ever there was one: When you use people, exploit them, and take advantage of them, you inevitably fail in life.
Is it easy to work with others and always get along? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. That’s why Paul writes, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” You have to work at it. When someone criticizes, offset it with a compliment. When someone complains, find something to be thankful for. When someone comes across as self-centred, remind them that the collective goal you’re striving for is greater than any one individual.
Soul food: Acts 1:1-3:10; Matt 8:1-9; Ps 109:1-15; Pro 15:22
2025-07-06
Psalm 133:1 NKJV
Reason three: temperament. Some people aren’t naturally outgoing. When they face challenges, it never occurs to them to enlist other people’s help in order to accomplish their goal. When you operate alone, you will achieve a certain amount of success, but when you cooperate with the right people, you will achieve things you never dreamed possible. When you do everything alone and never partner with others, you produce huge hurdles to your own potential. Dr. Allan Fromme quipped, “People have been known to achieve more as a result of working with others than against them.” That’s certainly an understatement!
Like Chuck Swindoll says: “Nobody is a whole team…We need each other. You need someone and someone needs you. Isolated islands we’re not. To make this thing called life work, we gotta lean and support. And relate and respond. And give and take. And confess and forgive. And reach out and embrace and rely on [others]. Since none of us is a whole, independent, self-sufficient, super-capable, all-powerful hotshot, let’s quit acting like we are. Life’s lonely enough without our playing that silly role. The game is over. Let’s link up.”
If you desire to accomplish something big, you have to join with others. One is too small a number to greatly succeed. The Bible says, “Behold, how good and… pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!… For there the Lord commanded the blessing” (vv. 1, 3 NKJV). Did you get that? When we work together, God commands His blessing to be upon our efforts. And without the blessing of God, there is no true and lasting success.
Soul food: Ruth 1:3-18; John 6:41-69
