2021-08-03
Philippians 4:8 NLT
We don’t have to look very far to find things to complain about. God placed Adam and Eve in the garden of Paradise where they had everything they needed to be happy. But they chose to focus on the one tree they couldn’t have.
God miraculously divided the Red Sea, guided the Israelites through the wilderness and provided food from heaven each day so they’d never go hungry. And they appreciated it…for a while: ‘They…sang his praise. But…soon forgot what he had done’ (Psalm 106:12-13 NIV). That’s why Paul wrote ‘Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honourable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise…Then the God of peace will be with you’ (Philippians 4:8-9 NLT).
When life is good, having a positive outlook feels quite straightforward. But when things aren’t going so well for us, we have to make a conscious choice to focus on faith over fear, hope over despair, or solutions over problems. It’s not easy, but we can do it by keeping our eyes lifted towards God.
When Paul and Silas were in prison, they could have given in to discouragement and hopelessness. But they didn’t even complain about their situation – instead they chose to focus on God by ‘praying and singing hymns’ (Acts 16:25 NIV). Even if our problems aren’t solved in the way we’d like, when we focus on God and all that’s good, He’ll lift us above our circumstances and give us peace in the midst of them.
Deut 22-24; Luke 11:1-13; Ps 78:56-64; Prov 16:33
2021-08-02
1 John 1:9 NCV
We don’t have to tell others about our sins, but we do have to tell God. When we keep silent and try to hide them, they can eat away at us and steal our peace. David said, ‘When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat’ (Psalm 32:3-4 NLT).
Confession can do four things for us: 1) It lets us experience God’s forgiveness. He already knows about our sins, but we can’t experience His forgiveness if we make excuses or try to shift the blame onto someone else. ‘If we confess…he will forgive our sins.’ It’s up to us to make the first move.
2) It restores our emotional and physical energy. Hiding or denying our sins is very draining, but confession and true repentance lift the weight of guilt off our shoulders. David said, ‘My strength has failed because of my guilt’ (Psalm 31:10 NASB). But he also went on to write: ‘Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt…And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone’ (Psalm 32:5 NLT).
3) It lets us move on. Receiving God’s forgiveness wipes the slate clean and lets us make a fresh new start.
4) It helps us grow. We can learn a lot from our mistakes. When we confess them to God and accept His forgiveness, we can begin to make them work for us instead of against us by seeing them as learning opportunities rather than failures.
Deut 18-21; Luke 10:38-42; Ps 78:40-55; Prov 16:32
Philippians 4:13 NLT
Even when we can’t choose or control our circumstances, we can still decide how we’ll respond to them. Paul was in prison when he wrote, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always’ (Philippians 4:4 NKJV). The Bible says: ‘What you say can mean life or death. Those who speak with care will be rewarded’ (Proverbs 18:21 NCV). Our words have power, and we can speak positive words of light or negative words of darkness.
The trouble is we don’t always recognise when we’re speaking negative words over ourselves, because being pessimistic can become a habit. We unconsciously develop a distorted and untrue view of ourselves when we constantly think and say things like, ‘I’m not good enough,’ or ‘This is too hard; why should I even try?’ We settle for defeat when with a few minor attitude adjustments, we could open the door to amazing possibilities.
The worst part of negative self-talk is that we don’t just limit ourselves; we limit God (take a look at Psalm 78:41). As His redeemed children, within each of us is the power to think better, talk better, and do better. Paul said, ‘With God’s power working in us, God can do much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine. To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever’ (Ephesians 3:20-21 NCV).
If you’re inclined to be pessimistic and speak negatively about yourself, today, make a decision to declare instead: ‘Whatever God says about me, I will say too!’ Here’s a great verse to help you get started: ‘I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.’
Eze 20-21; Luke 19:28-40; Ps 111; Prov 19:18-20
2021-08-01
Proverbs 24:3 NLT
Families should be sources of love and comfort, but the reality is that they can also be sources of tension and misunderstanding. One of the important things we can do to address this is to try and improve how we communicate.
Here are four questions we should ask ourselves: 1) How well do I communicate with the people I love? We might have unknowingly started using a communication style that doesn’t work well. For example, we might retaliate, use intimidating language, or ridicule others. But if we communicate from a place of love, we’ll encourage and build up our family members.
2) What are my communication killers? We should consider what external things prevent us having meaningful conversations with our family. Things like spending lots of time on social media and watching TV are just a couple examples. That doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy these things, but we should check if we’re using them to excess.
3) Do I encourage everyone to be honest? And taking this a step further, when people do say what they’re really thinking, do we then criticise, retaliate, or turn moody? Differences of opinion can be healthy. The Bible says, ‘Iron sharpens iron’ (Proverbs 27:17 NKJV). When they’re handled respectfully, different opinions can make things better for everyone.
4) Do I think creatively? It might seem strange to suggest an ice-breaker, but doing something like arranging a board game night, a fun quiz night, or a family book club could help to get everyone talking and spending time together.
Lev 24:17-22; Deut 15:7-11; Matt 5:38-48
2021-07-31
2 Thessalonians 3:11 NLT
We can come across people who seem to like to interfere and meddle in other people’s lives. Whereas people who gossip tend to gain a lot of their information indirectly, and talk about others behind their backs, people who meddle like to draw out personal information directly from their subjects. They might try to get information about our relationships, our money, what we eat, what we’re planning to do about something, and so on. Some people ask out of a genuine desire to help or to pray for us, but those who just want to interfere might ask to satisfy their curiosity, to make themselves feel better about their own lives, or to tell us what they think we should be doing.
We’re called to help, encourage and pray for others, but we need to be careful that we’re not crossing the line into meddling. We don’t need to know every little detail about a person’s situation to be able to do those things for them. Even if God prompts us to give a word of advice or share a Bible verse with them, we don’t have to know why.
Proverbs 26:17 says: ‘Interfering in someone else’s quarrel as you pass by is like grabbing a dog by the ears’ (NCV). A dog’s ears are very sensitive, and if someone pulls them, they’re likely to get bitten. God classes meddling as a sin: ‘If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs’ (1 Peter 4:16-15 NLT). So let’s make sure we’re keeping our curiosity within the bounds of what’s appropriate.
Deut 14-17; Luke 10:25-37; Ps 78:32-39; Prov 16:31
2021-07-30
Genesis 24:19 NKJV
The story of Rebekah teaches us a very important truth about life: when opportunity comes, make sure you’re ready to embrace it. Rebekah didn’t think about the extra effort and time required to give water to ten thirsty camels. She didn’t say, ‘It’s going to take ages, it’s tiring, and it’s not my job, so I’m not getting involved.’ She lived by the principle: ‘Whatever work you do, do your best (Ecclesiastes 9:10 NCV). She didn’t suddenly develop a work ethic or become servant-hearted when Eliezer showed up, she lived that way every day. Rebekah didn’t quote the Torah or ask Eliezer what his religion was. Instead of trying to be ‘super spiritual’, she chose to simply be kind. And her faithfulness in the small things was rewarded with something beyond what she could expect or imagine.
God watches our attitude and actions in small things; He notices faithfulness in small moments, in daily routines, and in unglamorous service. It’s not just about who we are when other people are around, it’s about who we are when nobody else knows or notices what we’re doing and when there’s no chance of getting recognition or reward from them. When Rebekah took Eliezer home to meet her family, they wanted her to wait for ten days before going to meet Isaac. That was customary. But Rebekah said, ‘I will go’ (Genesis 24:58 NKJV).
When God opens the door of opportunity for us and invites us to step through it, we shouldn’t delay, or think, ‘Other people are more qualified for this than me.’ If God calls us, we can be certain it’s right for us, so we can confidently move in the direction He’s leading.
Deut 11-13; Luke 10:13-24; Ps 78:17-31; Prov 16:26-30
