2021-09-08
Psalm 103:6 NKJV
When O.J. Simpson was tried for the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown, the jury ruled “Not guilty.” In court, Nicole’s mother wept and said, “God, where are you?” It’s a question we ask when life seems unfair. The Bible answers, “For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:14 NKJV).
But we want the score settled now. So we struggle, we question, and we doubt. The psalmist did too: “How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked?…Deliver the poor and needy” (Psalm 82:2-4 NKJV). We wrestle with such questions because they have no easy answers.
Then twenty-one psalms later, David, who’d been forgiven and restored after committing adultery and murder writes: “The Lord gives righteousness and justice to all who are treated unfairly…The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him. For he knows how weak we are” (Psalm 103:6-14 NLT).
Bottom line: the same grace and mercy that God extends toward you, He offers to the one who hurt you.
Soul food: Eze 31-33; Luke 20:20-26; Ps 27; Prov 20:5-6
2021-09-07
Genesis 39:2 NKJV
Admission to certain social clubs depends on your family of origin: blue blood, or blue collar. Sadly some employers and some churches do that too. But God doesn’t.
Imagine you were Joseph. You share a father with your siblings, but four different mothers have given birth along the way. You dad’s a con artist. He has been one his entire life and everyone knows it. The whole community knows he cheated your uncle out of the estate, and then hid behind his mother’s skirts before running off like a coward to avoid being killed. Your great uncle tricks your dad into marrying your mother’s sister, perhaps by getting your dad so drunk during the wedding feast that he didn’t know which sister he married. So he ended up marrying the plain one instead of the pretty one. But that didn’t faze him, he just married both of them! The one he really loved couldn’t have kids, so he slept with the nanny. He enjoyed it so much he started sleeping with most of the kitchen help too. No wonder you always thought that your brothers looked like the cooks!
But big doors swing on little hinges, and Joseph’s life is described in one verse: “The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man.” Successful in spite of family dysfunction and betrayal. Successful in spite of slander and thirteen years of false imprisonment. And with God on your side, you can overcome your beginnings and succeed too. That’s why the most important thing you can do is to build, maintain, and prioritize your relationship with God.
Soul food: Num 29:1-6; Matt 24; Rev 11:15-19; 1 Cor 15:50-58
2021-09-06
2 Corinthians 9:6 NKJV
Jim Penner says: “It was a cold snowy day as my mother drove my sister and me to church. Living at the bottom of the Rocky Mountains I’d become accustomed to slipping and sliding. I remember my mother being tense…and hoping she’d have enough traction to make the curve without plowing into the semi-truck ahead. Her tires were bald – new ones were low on our priority list that included food and shelter. As Mom placed a check in the offering that day, I remember thinking there were better uses for those funds. Yet here she was tithing! Surely God would understand we had so many needs at home. But there was a contentment about her…a peace that passed understanding as she gave to the Lord cheerfully and gratefully…After the service a church elder walked over to her and said, ‘I see your tires are bald…come by my shop tomorrow and I’ll give you some snow tires.’ Mom said, ‘But I can’t pay you.’ ‘No problem,’ he replied, ‘I just want to help.’ That day I witnessed two levels of giving: mom with her offering, and a kind man who wanted to help another human being.'”
Big things come from little things, and “he who sows bountifully will…reap bountifully.” As John Mason observes, “The miraculous realm of God always has to do with multiplication…Suppose a kernel of corn produces one stalk with two ears, and each ear has 200 kernels. From those 400 kernels come 400 stalks with 160,000 kernels…all from a single kernel. Some blessings are material, some spiritual. We don’t always know what we need most, but God does, and a generous spirit opens the floodgates of heaven.”
Soul food: Eze 27:25-30:26; Luke 20:9-19; Ps 112; Prov 20:1-4
2021-09-05
Romans 8:6 CEV
Pessimism affects you spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. Negativity is directly related to heart disease, immune system deficits, and the ability to cope with physical pain.
The famous Mayo Clinic conducted a thirty-year study of eight-hundred patients – and the results are telling. The pessimists’ risk of early death was 19 percent higher than that of the optimists in the group. In Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life, Dr. Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania concluded that optimism and pessimism affect your health almost as clearly as physical factors.
Have you ever said, “I’m sick to death of this”? Then do something about it – quickly! If you hold onto that thought for too long – it may come true. One of the great findings of modern medical science is that the words we speak don’t just affect others, they affect us too. Indeed, sometimes they affect us even more! Words are powerful. You believe and internalize what you repeatedly say. That means you have the God-given ability to change your perception of your own abilities from limited to limitless.
Let’s be clear about what that does and doesn’t mean. It doesn’t mean you can play the guitar like Eric Clapton or paint like Van Gogh just because you decide to and want to. But it does mean you can do whatever God has told you to do in His Word. Whatever He calls you to do, He will enable you to do. And that’ll happen when you line up what comes out of your mouth with what’s written in His Word.
Soul food: Judg 16:23-31; 2 Cor 12:7-10
2021-09-04
Philippians 4:8 NLT
Positive self-talk isn’t a new concept; it’s a Scriptural one. Paul writes, “Fix your thoughts on what is true…honourable…right…pure…lovely, and admirable…things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
Here are three ways you can do that: (1) Avoid comparisons. Each of us has a different skill set. You’re unique. The way you do things may differ from the techniques of others, but that doesn’t make it wrong. As the old saying goes, “There’s more than one way to skin a cat.” (Try not to imagine how that adage originated!) Comparison is unwise, unfair, and fosters negativity. Unless you’re the reigning world champion, there’ll always be somebody better than you at a specific skill. So what? You don’t need another tiara!
(2) Tack on hope. The Bible says, “Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept on…believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, ‘That’s how many descendants you will have!'” (Romans 4:18 NLT). And the Psalmist said, “I will yet praise him, my Saviour and my God” (Psalm 42:5 NIV). There’s power in the word “yet.” It can miraculously transform your “I can’t” perspective, into “I can with a little more time.” The difference is subtle but profound.
(3) Act positively to actually become positive. In Winning the Stress Challenge Dr. Nick Hall cites a study confirming that signals transmitted to a person’s brain when they’re behaving a certain way, provoke similar physical and mental changes to those elicited by real emotional responses. In other words, putting on a happy face can truly make you feel happier. Try it!
Soul food: Eze 24:1-27:24; Luke 20:1-8; Ps 20; Prov 19:24-29
2021-09-03
Job 9:27 NLT
Let’s begin by acknowledging that sometimes life is hard. And some of us have it harder than others. That’s why the Bible says there is “a time to cry and a time to laugh” (Ecclesiastes 3:4 NLT). But what if you just keep “crying” about life? How can you reduce the strain and drain produced by negative self-talk?
Here are three ways: (1) Cut and paste. Train yourself to recognize negative inner chatter the minute it starts and delete it immediately. If you have to, take a chain saw to it. If it helps, make a “time out” signal with your hands as a physical reminder to yourself. But don’t stop there. Replace those negative thoughts with Scriptural self-talk. “Whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from troubles” (Proverbs 21:23 NKJV).
(2) Tweak your tone. You know how the doctor says, “This may pinch a little,” as he jabs a needle into your arm? Borrow his technique and reduce big ugly blackhead wordage to smaller, unintimidating blemish terms. “Impossible” is a brick wall compared to “this may take some work.” Wouldn’t you rather tackle a project that’s “challenging” rather than “unmanageable?”
(3) Be your own BFF (Blessed Friend Forever). Using your BFF voice, intentionally over-dub that negative droning voice inside you. Speak to yourself like you would to your very best friend. The Bible says, “David encouraged himself in the Lord his God” (1 Samuel 30:6 KJV). Reboot your mind. Reprogram your thoughts. There’s power in God’s Word. So, whatever He says about you, start saying the same thing and watch your life change for the better.
Soul food: Eze 22-23; Luke 19:41-48; Ps 142; Prov 19:21-23
