2017-09-18
Mark 11:25 NKJV
No matter how much two people love each other, conflicts are sure to arise that call for extending grace and showing forgiveness. Do you know that couples who are happy and stay married have the same number of disagreements and conflicts as couples who are unhappy and get divorced? Statistically, that is true! It’s not the absence of conflict that preserves marriage, but the ability to manage conflict when it happens. So how do you “manage” conflict? By practicing the kind of self-control that keeps conflicts from mushrooming into hurtful and divisive standoffs. It also means knowing what to do with hurt feelings like anger, disappointment, and dashed expectations. In other words, it means knowing how to forgive it and forget it. But emotional hurt and tension are almost impossible to forget; the harder we try, the more we remember. So what’s the answer? Remember to forget! Try to act like God, who chooses not to hold against us what He knows about us. He says in His Word: “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins” (Isaiah 43:25 NKJV). That means if you are holding something against your spouse, there’s only one solution: Forgive it and forget it. You may never forget how you’ve been hurt, but you can choose to forgive it and move on. No, it’s not easy, but you can do it. How? By remembering the things, known or unknown to others, that God has forgiven you for and extending that same grace to your spouse.
Soul food: 2 Tim 1-4; Mark 13:24-37; Ps 3; Prov 24:23-25
2017-09-17
1 Corinthians 9:25 NLT
When you’re being stretched spiritually, your faith in God grows. When you’re being stretched mentally, your old ideas are challenged and replaced with new ones. When you’re being stretched relationally, selfishness dies and love grows. So, are you being stretched right now? God allows us to have stretching experiences that prepare us for the race He has called us to run in life – and every so often your soul will “hit the wall.” No amount of strength and no amount of pressing will move the problem. This is soul stretch! Often, these moments aren’t the real test; they are just warm-ups that prepare us for future challenges. They are points of reference designed to keep us from panicking when we’re in the midst of the real race. Remember that God never allows a person to run for Him, or with Him, who hasn’t been stretched in their thinking, their faith, and their ability to live and love. So when you face a problem that just won’t move, remember to take a deep breath and remind yourself that God is stretching you. It’s the stretching of the soul that enables us to face situations we think will kill us, but don’t; to endure times when we think we won’t make it, but do. Sooner or later we will all face difficult times and relationships, but they are just the deep knee bends of life. So when it feels like you’re being stretched to breaking point, don’t quit. See it for what it is – preparation for running and winning your God-assigned race in life.
Soul food: 2 Ki 6:8-20; Eph 1:15-23
1 Korintiërs 9:25 NLV
Wanneer jy geestelik uitgedaag word, groei jou geloof in God. Wanneer jy in jou denkwyses uitgedaag word, word jou ou idees uitgedaag en met nuwe idees vervang. Wanneer jy in jou verhoudings uitgedaag word, verdwyn jou selfsug en groei die liefde. Word jy tans uitgedaag? God laat ons toe om uitdagende omstandighede te ervaar om ons voor te berei vir die wedloop wat Hy ons geroep het om in die lewe te hardloop – en elke nou en dan tref jou siel ‘n muur. Geen hoeveelheid krag of druk kan die probleem beweeg nie. Dit is oefening vir die siel! Dikwels is hierdie oomblikke nie die ware toets nie, dit is net opwarming wat ons vir uitdagings in die toekoms voorberei. Hulle is verwysingspunte wat ontwerp is om ons te keer om paniekerig te raak wanneer ons in die ware wedloop is. Onthou, God laat nooit ‘n persoon toe om vir Hom te hardloop, of saam met Hom te hardloop, wat nie in hulle denke, geloof en vermoë om te lewe en lief te hê uitgedaag is nie. Wanneer jy dus ‘n probleem teëkom wat nie wil beweeg nie, onthou om diep asem te haal en jouself daaraan te herinner dat God jou uitdaag. Dis die uitdaging van die siel wat dit vir ons moontlik maak om situasies en tye te hanteer waar dit voel of ons dit nie gaan maak nie. Vroeër of later sal ons almal moeilike tye en verhoudings teëkom, maar dit is net strekoefeninge van die lewe. As dit dus voel dat jy tot breekpunt gestrek word, moenie tou opgooi nie. Sien dit vir wat dit is – voorbereiding vir die wedloop in die lewe wat God vir jou gekies het.
Sielskos: 2 Kon 6:8-20; Ef 1:15-23
2017-09-16
Spreuke 4:23 DB
Jy kan met oefening ‘n goeie denker word. 1) Goeie denkers tref voorsorg. ‘Getroue werk lewer wins op…’ (Spreuke 21:5 NLV). Wanneer jy getrou werk, struikel jy nie toevallig oor sukses en vind later uit hoe dit werk nie. Of jy nou in die bediening of in die sakewêreld staan, jou vlak van sukses sal dramaties verhoog as jy ‘n hoë waarde op goeie denkwyses plaas. Die skrywer Victor Hugo het gesê, ”n Klein man bestaan uit klein denke.’ Mense wat nie goeie denkwyses beoefen nie, vind hulself dikwels waar hulle aan die genade van hulle omstandighede oorgelaat is – of aan ander mense se denke. Omdat hulle nie in staat is om probleme op te los nie, kom hulle telkens dieselfde struikelblokke teë. Omdat hulle nie vooruit dink nie, is hulle gewoonlik net besig om op hulle omstandighede te reageer. Daar is ‘n ou Duitse spreekwoord wat lui: ‘Eerder ‘n leë beursie as ‘n leë kop.’ Goeie denkers kom hulle moeilikhede te bowe, insluitend ‘n tekort aan hulpbronne wat dikwels slegte denkers se sukses kelder. In sy boek, As a Man Thinketh, skryf James Allen, ‘Alles wat ‘n man bereik of nie bereik nie, is ‘n direkte resultaat van sy denke.’ Glo jy dit? As jy doen, sal jy ‘n hoë waarde op goeie denkwyses plaas en dit ‘n prioriteit in jou lewe maak. 2) Goeie denkers kyk vir die beste uit, nie die slegste nie. Hulle lewe volgense hierdie Skriftuurlike beginsel: ‘Weet julle waaraan julle moet dink in plaas daarvan om julle te sit en bekommer? Dink aan dit wat vir God saak maak, dinge wat ordentlik en reg is, dinge waaraan God sal dink en waarvan Hy sal hou, dinge wat God sal sê goed is…’ (Filippense 4:8 DB).
Sielskos: Miga 5-7; Mark 13:12-23; Ps 19; Spr 24:19-22
Proverbs 23:7 NIV
With practice, you can become a good thinker. Observe two things: (1) Good thinkers have foresight. “The plans of the diligent lead to profit” (Proverbs 21:5 NIV). The word diligent means “to work, study, and plan.” You don’t stumble into success and figure it out afterward. Whether you’re in business or ministry, your level of success will increase dramatically if you place a high value on good thinking. Novelist Victor Hugo wrote, “A small man is made up of small thoughts.” People who don’t practice good thinking usually find themselves at the mercy of circumstances – or other people’s thoughts. Unable to solve problems, they find themselves facing the same obstacles over and over. And because they don’t think ahead they’re habitually in reaction mode. An old German proverb says, “Better an empty purse than an empty head.” Good thinkers overcome difficulties, including lack of resources, that often leave poor thinkers at the mercy of good thinkers. In As a Man Thinketh, James Allen says, “All that a man achieves or fails to achieve, is a direct result of his thoughts.” Do you believe that? If you do, you’ll place a high value on good thinking and make it a priority in your life. (2) Good thinkers look for the best, not the worst. They live by this scriptural principle: “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things” (Philippians 4:8 NIV).
Soul food: Mic 5-7; Mark 13:12-23; Ps 19; Prov 24:19-22
