Next week
Is looking to be a busy one, loads of stuff to do in the run up to the weekend away. Michael (my manager person) is on holiday. Still have got over half my talk to write. Still got Freshers ideas to impliment. A ton of emails to send. Plus people to have meetings with and loads more stuff. But you know what, I don’t care how busy it is as it is all for the glory of God and bringing his kingdom to the earth. But it would be cool if you could pray for me, for like strength and stuff.
Cheers guys, God bless :)
Xxx
Storms of Life
One thing we quickly discover is that life contains a variety of storms; some are furious and some are subtle. One of the more deadly storms, deception, can blow into our lives without warning. The greatest protection against this formidable storm is to cling to the Truth of God’s Word. It is our best source of instruction. In it we learn that appreciation, reverence, and obedience are three principles that lead to victory in times of trial.
Have you made a commitment to study the Bible each day? Do you apply it to the problems, crises, fears, and decisions you face? When you do, you will quickly discover that you are able to face the difficulties of today and the uncertainties of the future with a sense of strong assurance; all because you are grounded in God’s word.
Charles Spurgeon said, “When a home is ruled according to the Word of God, angels might be asked to stay a night with us, and they would not find themselves out of their element.”
The Bible is our compass through the difficulties of life. “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work”(2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Make a habit of spending time reading and applying His Word to every area of your life. When you do, you will find hope, encouragement, and strength to face the storms of life.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for Your Word. Please forgive me for neglecting it so often. I pray that you would help me to make time in your Word a priority. May the Holy Spirit apply it to my heart so that I may meditate upon it all day long. I ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
“As for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it” (2 Timothy 3:14).
Fully Trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ
BIBLE MEDITATION:
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6
COOL THOUGHT:
John G. Patton was a Bible translator in the South Sea Islands. While translating, he came to the word “believe” and searched for a word that the native people could truly understand. He wanted something that meant commitment and trust, but he couldn’t think of a word. Then one day, a messenger rushed into Mr. Patton’s room out of breath. Needing to rest, he flung himself into a big chair and leaned back in complete relaxation. Patton asked the native for a word to describe what he did when he sat down and completely trusted in the chair to hold him so he could relax. That’s the word he used for “believe.”
When a person quits trying and begins to trust the Lord Jesus, that’s “belief.”
ACTION :
Who have you been sharing Christ with that hasn’t yet been saved? Ask God to give you a word that will break through the barriers and bring salvation to this person.
Back to Work with Rick Warren
When _The Purpose Driven Life_ by Rick Warren became a huge hit several years ago, my church did a congregation-wide study on it. This was a fruitful study — every Christian can benefit from learning more about worshiping God, enjoying fellowship within the community of Christian believers, becoming more Christ-like, serving within the church, and sharing the gospel with others (those are the 5 main “purposes” in the book, for those of you who haven’t read it — http://purposedriven.com).
Despite the broad appeal of Warren’s main points, however, I was left feeling a little — well — purpose_less _in my daily working life. We spend the majority of our time working — sometimes in jobs we don’t want to do — and it can be difficult to see a direct connection between those jobs and Warren’s 5 purposes. It is tempting to react like former CEO and President of Adidas, Erich Stamminger, who, after reading _The Purpose Driven Life_ and converting to Christianity, “asked Warren if he should leave his post as the company’s head in order to become a pastor” (Read more here). Fortunately, Warren told Stamminger to keep his job, and this conversation forms part of Warren’s recent sermon series in which he encourages his congregants in their daily work, saying that work is not a punishment, but part of God’s design for man that will continue into heaven.
When I first came across these words from Warren through the high calling blog (a wonderful resource for figuring out how Christianity and daily work relate to one another), I was relieved. I felt as though a major gap in _Purpose Driven Life_ — and in evangelical culture at large — was being slowly filled. Our work — as _work _— matters, and that’s simply not a message that gets a lot of pulpit time, despite its extreme relevance to the average church-goer. Christians need to articulate a theology of work that extends beyond the job as a tool for evangelism or as funding for one’s “real” church ministry. That’s an area where Warren’s message has needed a little work. According to the linked Christian Post article above, when Warren advised the Adidas CEO not to quit, Warren told him to find purpose in his work by using his job as a platform for Christianity and by praying for his co-workers. Obviously, these are very good things to do, but they leave the work itself seeming kind of pointless. Now, however, Warren is coming closer to a more complete vision of Christian work in his current sermon series, which stresses that work itself is good, that it pre-dates the Fall, and that it’s something that will continue into heaven. That’s the kind of message that can give real “purpose” to our daily lives, especially on a cold Monday morning like this one, when getting out of bed and going to work is the last thing I want to do.
(More articles at www.ThinkingThroughChristianity.com) http://dlvr.it/2nfh1lwww.ThinkingThroughChristianity.com) http://dlvr.it/2nfh1l
Work Is God's Gift
The Christian believes that all work is a gift from God. If work is a gift from God, then it is also a sacred duty. Therefore, not to do the work which God has given to us is to rob the world of the gift which God would give.
To be faithful is what Our Lord requires in all of life. Faithful means doing the best and contributing the most we can — always. Faithful also means showing appreciation for the gifts which God has given.
“Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the the Lord. —I Corinthians 15:58
