Prayer, Share and Pure

VERSE:               1 Timothy 5:22

    Do not lay hands on anyone hastily, nor share in other people's sins, keep yourself pure.

REFLECTION:

    This verse has three important suggestions for Christians.  First, the laying on of hands is something that should not be taken lightly. You cannot go around just laying hands on people, expecting God to move in their lives.  The laying on of hands needs to be done only when a person comes to you and asks for help, i.e. healing.  God also wants Christians to have the right mindset when laying hands, and this is where the next two components of this verse come in.

    Don't share in other people's sin.  For example, compromising your faith and going to a bar with people just to make them happy is like enabling them to sin.  You cannot profess to have true faith in God if you willingly participate in sinning with others.  Drinking just to make them happy is wrong.  Using foul language just because your friends do is wrong.  Stand firm on your faith, let God guide your heart, and then you will be able to follow the third key, keeping yourself pure.  The only way to do that is to flee from sin and keep your eyes on Jesus.

    If you can keep yourself pure and avoid sharing in other people's sins, God will give you the ability to lay hands on someone.  That is the perfect time for that person to need it, for God will have compelled

them to ask.

PRAYER:

    Pray for God to lead you not into temptation, so you can avoid other's sins.  Pray for discernment when you are asked to lay hands on someone.

Promises

VERSE:                    Lamentations 2:17

 

    The Lord has done what He purposed; He has fulfilled His word which He commanded in days of old.  He has thrown down and has not pitied, and He has caused an enemy to rejoice over you; He has exalted the horn of your adversaries.
 
REFLECTION:
 
    God has done what He has said.  He daily fulfills His word.  But the problem with many people is that they don't understand what He has promised.  Yes He does promise that bad things will happen to us if we continue in our sins.  But He has also promised hope and prosperity to those who put their trust in Jesus.  In order to find out what God has purposed you need to read the bible daily.  Don't just read it passively but involve yourself in the word by studying it and read it for the relevance of your life.
 
    Sometimes it seems as if those who aren't Christians get all the breaks but that is not always true.  You must look at the heart and look at the bigger picture.  Are those non-christians really happy.  Think about movie stars or athletes, they might have a lot of money but if they don't have Jesus their life is nothing.  I believe that everything happens for a reason.  We might go through trials when our adversaries may seem like they are exalted but maybe it is a wake-up call to have Jesus change something in your life.  Be sure to study your bible and be prepared to know what God promises when you go through a trial.
 
PRAYER:
 
    Pray for guidance and direction when studying your bible.  Ask God 
to open your heart and mind to His word.

Whose Team Are You On?

VERSE:                                    2 Peter 1:10-11

 

    Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

 

REFLECTION:  

    Whose side are you on?  Have you been diligent in your allegiance to God? You have to be diligent in calling whose side you are on.  If you are on God's side then you are on the right team and He will help to prevent you from stumbling.

 

    If you are playing football for a team but don't know whether you play on offense or defense or special teams you will stumble as you try to run out at the last minute to play.  Also how effective will you be if you don't know what to do when you get out on the field.  If you don't want to stumble in this game of life then make sure you are playing on God's team.  His team is so good that He has promised everyone who plays on it a spot in the hall of fame.  If we strongly draw our allegiance toward God He will not only help us to not stumble but an entrance will be supplied in to His everlasting kingdom.  God doesn't want us waffling on whether we play or not He wants us on His team and ready to give 100%.  

PRAYER:
 
    Pray for God to tell you what your role is on His team.  Stand up firm and strong in your election to Jesus.  Pray for the lost.

Food For the Soul

Welcome to my new blog. I have two others depending on your fancy. I have a leadership blog that discusses leadership topics and on weekends discusses ways leaders can relax. I also have a sport blog that I occasionally will write about interesting sporting events. This is my new one. Every week I will post this and I call this one Bible Verse for the Week. It gives you a verse or verses and my reflection and then a short prayer. Enjoy!

VERSE:                                             Proverbs 19:2

    Also it is not good for a soul to be without knowledge, and he sins who hastens with his feet.

REFLECTION:

    Knowledge is so important for the well‑being of your soul Knowledge of God and God's word will bring your soul comfort and peace.  Those who don't follow the precepts of God's word have feet that follow sin.  How is your soul doing?  Is there turmoil in your life, or peace?  While it is true that Jesus did not promise our life would be easy if we followed Him, He did say He would give us peace.  That is a peace during times of trouble and turmoil.  But to really feel and experience the peace that Jesus gives, we must have knowledge about Him and His word The easiest way to receive this knowledge is to read God's word daily.

    Do you read God's word daily?  Even if your only exposure to God's word is the Bvftw (Bible Verse for the Week), it hopefully helps you gain some knowledge about who God is and what we are to do as Christians.  Reading the word is food  for your soul.  If you never fed your body you would starve to death, or you would get so desperate that you would seek out anything to eat.  If you don't feed your soul God's word, your soul will starve to death, or it will start to give in to the cravings and seek out other ways to be fed.   That might mean that it seeks out evil, getting fed from the only type of knowledge it finds.  If your soul doesn't know the truth, then how can it avoid the danger?  That is why this verse says that those without knowledge will let their feet take them to the sinful knowledge.  If you don't know any better why would you think what you are doing is sin?  God wants us to be knowledgeable about Him.  He desires for us to read the word so we don't have feet that hesitate but feet that run to Him.

PRAYER:

    Pray for knowledge and discernment when reading God's word.  Pray for a deeper desire to know God.