2020-01-25
Psalm 34:19 NLV
Wanneer iemand jou hart gebreek het. Wanneer iemand vir wie jy lief is jou hart breek en jou vertroue verraai, is jy op ‘n weerlose plek. Die Vyand sal die ervaring gebruik om jou sover te kry om vier dinge te doen wat jou seerder sal maak, jou geestelik sal ontspoor en God se seën van jou sal steel: 1) Jy isoleer jouself en vervreem en vermy ander mense. 2) Jy verloor jou sin van vertroue en verdink die beweegredes van almal wat jy ontmoet. 3) Jy laat bitterheid toe om ‘n impak op jou verhouding met jou familie en diegene in jou sirkel van invloed te hê (sien Hebreërs 12:15). 4) Jy slaan terug en vergeld kwaad met kwaad (sien 1 Tessalonisense 5:15). Moenie dit doen nie! Staan eerder op God se Woord: ‘Die Here is naby dié wat hartseer is. Hy help hulle wat geestelik stukkend is.’ ‘…Ek sal hulle gehuil in blydskap verander. Ek sal hulle troos. Ek sal hulle vreugde gee in die plek van hartseer’ (Jeremia 31:13 NLV). ‘Die Gees van die Here is op My omdat Hy My aangestel het om die Goeie Nuus vir die armes aan te kondig… dat gevangenes vrygelaat sal word, die blindes sal sien, die onderdruktes bevry sal word van hulle verdrukkers’ (Lukas 4:18 NLV). ‘Raak saam met alle ander slegte dinge ontslae van alle bitterheid, woede, wraak, geskel en gevloek. Wees eerder vriendelik met mekaar. Gee vir mekaar om. Vergewe mekaar soos God julle vergewe het op grond van wat Christus gedoen het’ (Efesiërs 4:31-32 NLV). Het iemand verkeerd teen jou opgetree? Vergewe hulle – en hou aan om hulle te vergewe totdat jy vryheid in jou gedagtes ervaar. Dis ‘n daaglikse gewoonte wat soms soos drie treë vorentoe en twee treë terug voel. As jy egter jou oë op Jesus hou, sal jy daar kom.
Sielskos: Jes 4-7; Matt 10:1-10; Ps 100; Spr 3:7-8
2020-01-24
1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT
When we’re tempted to take the wrong path. We’ll all face temptation at some point. Even Jesus did. Out in the wilderness, the enemy tempted Jesus three times. But each time, He replied using Scripture. He chose to declare God’s truth rather than give in to the enemy’s temptations. When we’re feeling tempted, we need to do the same thing. We need to be memorising Bible verses so we know what to declare when we’re tempted to take the wrong path. The psalmist wrote: ‘I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you’ (Psalm 119:11 NIV). We need to store up God’s Word in our hearts and minds so we’re prepared when we face temptation. Here are some verses we can stand on: ‘The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure’ (1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT); ‘I can do all this through him who gives me strength’ (Philippians 4:13 NIV); ‘Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings’ (1 Peter 5:8-9 NIV); ‘Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh’ (Galatians 5:16 NIV). We need to be declaring verses like these out loud to help us make the right decisions. With God strengthening us, we can be courageous enough to overcome temptation.
Isa 1-3; Matt 9:27-38; Ps 96; Prov 3:5-6
1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT
When you violate your marriage vows. You violate God’s Word, break your spouse’s heart, embarrass the cause of Christ, live with the fear of exposure, and trade short-term pleasure for long-term pain. So before you get involved, seek God’s help, and stand on His Word. “Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another…God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery” (Hebrews 13:4 NLT). “Put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires” (Colossians 3:5 NLT). “Don’t participate in…promiscuity and immoral living…Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires” (Romans 13:13-14 NLT). “Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does…Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body” (1 Corinthians 6:18-20 NLT). “The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure” (1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT). If you’re toying with the idea of having an affair, or you’re already in one, or you’re trying to get out of one, stand on the Word of God today and believe Him for victory.
Soul food: Isa 1-3; Matt 9:27-38; Ps 96; Prov 3:5-6
1 Korintiërs 10:13 NLV
Wanneer jy jou huweliksbeloftes verbreek. Jy oortree God se Woord, breek jou eggenoot se hart, lewe met die vrees om uitgevang te word en ruil korttermyn plesier vir langtermyn pyn. Voor jy dus betrokke raak, soek God se hulp en staan op sy Woord. ‘Respekteer die huwelik in alle omstandighede. Wees getrou aan julle huweliksmaats. God sal almal wat immoreel lewe en in die huwelik ontrou is, in die oordeel bring’ (Hebreërs 13:4 NLV). ‘Daarom moet julle die volgende wêreldse dinge afsterf wat deel van julle lewe is: seksuele sondes, alles wat julle onwaardig maak om God te ontmoet, wellus, slegte begeertes en gierigheid…’ (Kolossense 3:5 NLV). ‘…Ons moet nie betrokke wees by… seksuele en losbandige uitspattigheid… nie. Nee, soos ‘n mens jou klere aantrek, moet julle die Here Jesus Christus ‘aantrek’, en nie ‘n duimbreedte toegee aan die begeertes van julle sondige natuur nie’ (Romeine 13:13-14 NLV). ‘Vlug dus weg van seksuele losbandigheid. Geen ander sonde beïnvloed ‘n mens se liggaam so direk soos hierdie een nie… Of verstaan julle nie dat julle liggame ‘n tempel van die Heilige Gees is wat in julle woon en deur God aan julle gegee is nie? Julle behoort nie aan julleself nie, want julle is teen ‘n duur prys gekoop. Daarom moet julle God met julle liggame verheerlik’ (1 Korintiërs 6:18-20 NLV). ‘Onthou, die versoekings wat oor julle pad kom, is nie uniek nie; ander ondervind dit ook. God is getrou. Hy sal keer dat die versoeking te sterk vir julle word. Midde-in die versoeking sal Hy vir ‘n uitweg sorg sodat julle kan volhou’ (1 Korintiërs 10:13 NLV). As jy met die idee speel om ‘n affair te hê, of as jy alreeds in een is, of as jy probeer om uit een te kom, staan vandag op die Woord van God en glo Hom vir ‘n oorwinning.
Sielskos: Jes 1-3; Matt 9:27-38; Ps 96; Spr 3:5-6
2020-01-23
1 Corinthians 9:25 NRS
When you are trying to lose weight. Studies confirm that today over half the population of the western world is overweight. If you are one of the many people battling a weight problem, and the repeated cycles of failure that often accompany it, here’s the good news: God can help you win the battle! Often it’s not about what you are eating, it’s about what’s eating you. We overeat to find comfort and relief from stress and anxiety, but it’s a short-term fix and it doesn’t work. The psalmist went directly to the root of his problem: “Search me…and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life” (Psalm 139:23-24 NLT). God can relieve the “anxious thoughts” within you. The Holy Spirit is the greatest therapist in the world. When you surrender and ask Him to take up residence within you, you discover that “the fruit of the spirit is…self control” (Galatians 5:22-23 NIV). He can give you the power to control your appetite, and start living by the Scripture: “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31 NLT). So make this your prayer today: “O Lord, if you heal me, I will be truly healed; if you save me, I will be truly saved. My praises are for you alone” (Jeremiah 17:14 NLT). The word for you today is – with God’s help you can lose weight, and keep it off for good.
Soul food: Exo 39-40; Matt 9:14-26; Ps 91; Prov 3:3-4
