2020-03-28
Daniël 1:8 NLV
Die Bybel sê: ‘Daniël het egter besluit dat hy nie homself met die koning se kos en drank gaan ontheilig nie. Hy het die hoofamptenaar versoek om nie daarvan te eet nie.’ Hierdie spesifieke kos en drank was aan die heidense gode as ‘n daad van lofprysing geoffer en vir Daniël was dit onaanvaarbaar. Dit sou sy karakter in gevaar stel en hy sou dit nie toelaat nie. Daniël het goeie redes gehad as hy sou kies om ja te sê. Hy was ver van die huis af en kon doen wat hy wil. Plus, as hy dit nie geëet het nie, sou hy die koning beledig – nie ‘n goeie loopbaanskuif nie! Daniël het egter geweet dat God se Woord duidelik is as dit by afgodery kom en God het hom daarvoor geseën. Hy is op die ou einde op ondenkbare maniere beskerm, onderhou, bevorder en voorspoedig gemaak. Sy filosofie was: ‘As God ja sê, sê ek ja. Wanneer God nee sê, sê ek nee.’ Hy het sy oortuigings bepaal voor hy in Babilon aangekom het. Het jy al besluit wat jou kernwaardes is? Het jy in die goeie tye die tyd geneem om te bepaal wat jy in die moeilike tye sal doen en nie sal doen nie? As jy dit nog nie gedoen het nie, begin dadelik daarmee. Daniël se vriende het waarskynlik vir hom gesê: ‘Niemand sal weet nie.’ Hy het egter besef: ‘God sal weet en ek sal weet. Ek hoef nie saam met jou te leef nie, maar ek moet met myself kan lewe.’ Jou gedagtes en idees moet altyd oop vir verandering en verbetering wees, maar jou kernwaardes moet ononderhandelbaar wees. Lewe dus volgens jou oortuigings.
Sielskos: Job 32-34; Matt 26:14-25; Ps 69:19-36; Spr 8:30-31
Daniel 1:8 NCV
The Bible says, ‘Daniel decided not to eat the king’s food or drink his wine because that would make him unclean.’ This particular food and wine was offered to pagan gods as an act of worship, and for Daniel that was unacceptable. He was being asked to compromise his character, and he wouldn’t do it. There were many reasons why Daniel could have said yes to eating the king’s food and drinking his wine. He was far from home and could do what he wanted. He had been taken to Babylon to serve King Nebuchadnezzar after Jerusalem had been taken and the Israelites were in exile. Nobody back home would ever know he had done it. Plus, if he didn’t eat it, he would be insulting the king, which probably wouldn’t be a good idea for his career. Daniel knew God’s Word was clear when it came to idol worship, and God blessed him for it. He ended up being protected, preserved, promoted, and prospered in incredible ways. He had established his principles and convictions before he got to Babylon. He already knew what he would and wouldn’t do, before the situations arose. Have we taken the time to decide what our core convictions are? Have we spent the good times determining what we will and won’t do during the hard times? If not, we need to. It doesn’t matter what other people will think of us, it matters that we do the right thing in God’s eyes. Even if no one else would notice us do something, God sees everything we do. Our thoughts and ideas must always be open to change and improvement, but our core convictions must be non-negotiable. We need to stick to our principles, even when we’re tempted.
Job 32-34; Matt 26:14-25; Ps 69:19-36; Prov 8:30-31
2020-03-27
Philippians 3:14 NLT
One of the reasons Paul was so successful was because he was focused. ‘I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize.’ He was determined to live fully for Jesus and persevere until he reached heaven. Are we this focused on living for God? In today’s world, there are so many things which compete for our attention. We can feel like we’re trying to juggle too many things, and we can’t concentrate on any particular one in case we drop the others. Maybe we’re juggling work or study, family life, friendships, relationships, serving at church, our relationship with God, and our hobbies. Whereas Paul was so focused on his relationship with God, we can end up sacrificing time with Him in order to keep up with everything else. But the Bible says: ‘Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need’ (Matthew 6:33 NLT). It might seem impossible to focus on God first, above everything else we need to think about. But God reminds us that when we focus on Him, everything else falls into place. We need to get to a place where He is the first One we think about when we wake up, and the last One we think about when we go to bed. We need to be focused on what He wants us to do each day, rather than what we want to do. We need to be flexible enough to change our plans, if God has something different for us. When we focus on Him, the things we worry about fade away. We’re reminded that He’s bigger than any problems we have, and that He’s powerful enough to change any situation. So let’s live our lives focused on Him.
Job 29-31; Matt 26:1-13; Ps 69:1-18; Prov 8:27-29
Philippians 3:14 NKJV
Part of Paul’s amazing success was because he was so focused. “I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call.” Focus can bring energy and power to almost anything, whether spiritual, mental, or physical. Sociologist Robert Lynd observed that “knowledge is power only if a man knows what facts not to bother about.” The birthing of a potential breakthrough often results from sharing many good ideas. But to take ideas to the next level, you must shift from being expansive in your thinking to being selective. A good idea becomes a great idea when it’s given focus time. It’s true that focusing on a single idea for a long time can be very frustrating, but your perseverance will pay off. The mind will not focus until it has a goal. But the purpose of your goals is to focus your attention and give you direction, not identify a final destination. As you think about your goals, make sure that they are: (1) clear enough to be kept in focus; (2) close enough to be achieved; (3) helpful enough to change lives. Paul described his goal as “the upward call.” When you think only of yourself, you’re thinking “downward,” but when you think of others, you’re thinking “upward.” These three guidelines will get you going. And be sure to write down your goals. If they’re not written, you can almost be guaranteed that they’re not focused enough. And if you really want to make sure they’re focused, take the advice of theatrical producer David Belasco, who said, “If you can’t write your idea on the back of my business card, you don’t have a clear idea.”
Soul food: Job 29-31; Matt 26:1-13; Ps 69:1-18; Prov 8:27-29
Filippense 3:14 NLV
‘n Deel van Paulus se sukses kan toegeskryf word aan die feit dat hy so gefokus was. ‘Ek jaag wenpaal toe, na die hemelse prys wat God aan my wil gee…’ Fokus kan energie en krag aan amper enigiets gee, of dit nou geestelik, emosioneel of fisies is. Die sosioloog, Robert Lynd, het opgemerk dat ‘kennis slegs mag is, indien ‘n mens weet aan watter feite nie aandag gegee moet word nie nie.’ Die geboorte van ‘n potensiële deurbraak is dikwels die gevolg wanneer jy verskeie goeie idees met mense deel. Om idees egter na die volgende vlak te neem, moet jou gedagtes minder uitgestrek en meer selektief wees. ‘n Goeie idee word ‘n uitstekende idee wanneer jy die tyd neem om daarop te fokus. Dit mag dalk frustrerend wees om vir ‘n lang tyd op een idee te fokus, maar jou volharding sal vrugte afwerp. Die brein sal nie fokus totdat dit ‘n doelwit het nie. Die doel van jou doelwitte is egter om jou aandag te fokus en rigting te gee, nie om ‘n finale bestemming te identifiseer nie. Soos jy oor jou doelwitte dink, moet jy seker maak dat hulle: 1) duidelik genoeg is om in fokus te bly; 2) naby genoeg is om bereik te kan word; 3) nuttig genoeg is om lewens te verander. Hierdie drie riglyne sal jou aan die gang sit. Maak seker dat jy jou doelwitte neerskryf. As jy hulle nie neerskryf nie, kan jy amper gewaarborg wees dat hulle nie genoeg gefokus is nie. As jy waarlik wil seker maak dat hulle gefokus is, neem die raad van David Belasco aan: ‘As jy nie jou idee op die agterkant van my besigheidskaartjie kan neerskryf nie, is jou idee nie duidelik genoeg nie.’
Sielskos: Job 29-31; Matt 26:1-13; Ps 69:1-18; Spr 8:27-29
