There’s nothing sadder than internal division and strife within a Church. For Satan doesn’t need to attack from outside the walls when he can use the Body of Believers to annihilate each other. This cautionary verse tells us to be on guard against murmuring, back biting, and back stabbing which can only lead to ruin.
Tag: church
I Corinthians 11:28 ” A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.”
Paul had not been with the Believers of the Church in Corinth for about three years. But he had gotten wind of the abuses that were happening concerning the Lord’s Supper…or if you will, Holy Communion or the Eucharist. Here he was instructing them to stop and soberly scrutinize and determine whether they were worthy of taking Communion…before they partook. When something becomes so ritualistic and automatic, we tend to perform it without thinking…going through the motions without allowing it to impact us. We are to examine ourselves first, before we participate…for who better to ascertain our own spiritual condition than us? And don’t worry, what you choose to ignore…the Holy Spirit will be faithful to point it out!
Exodus 4:13 ” O my Lord, please send by the hand of whomever else You may send.”
God had gotten Moses’s attention with a burning bush. But when God spoke to him out of it…Moses still wouldn’t believe Him. In their short conversation, Moses objected five times, giving excuse after excuse of why he wasn’t the person to deliver the Hebrew children out of Egypt. Here in verse 13, we find Moses still hesitating…asking God, “Isn’t there somebody else you can send?” When we have no self-confidence, self-esteem, or self-worth it’s difficult, if not almost impossible, to see in ourselves what God sees in us. For God sees our potential and we need to be brave enough to trust Him.
Isaiah 32:8 ” But the noble man makes noble plans, and by noble deeds he stands.”
When we allow the wise counsel of the Holy Spirit to direct and guide our decisions…our decisions will be excellent ones. When we listen to that still small voice rather than blurting out the first thing that comes to mind…our words will be timely and principled. When our plans align with God’s plans for us…we can stand firm with integrity and strength, knowing we are right where God wants us…in the center of His Will.
Mark 5:41 ” Little girl, I say to you, get up!”
The Greek word for “get up” has several definitions…all that could apply to young ladies around the world today. Wake up girl, and realize the potentially dangerous position you have placed yourself in all for the sake of popularity. Get up girl, and walk away from the relationships that are wrong…that fill you with fear and shame, or make you feel powerless. Rise up girl, and refuse to believe the lie that you’ll never amount to anything…that it was your fault…that there’s no way out…that you’re not needed or loved. Be mindful, that no one but Jesus will ever love you as much as He does. No one but Jesus will save your soul and give you eternal life. No one but Jesus will always be there for you, no matter what.
Wake up girl, and take a hard look at where you’re at…are you truly happy with your situation, or do you need to make a change? Jesus is waiting.
Jonah 1:17 ” But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.”
God has an uncanny way of getting our attention…of controlling situations until suddenly we find the walls closing in around us. And most times, we’re there because of our own disobedience. We’re self-absorbed and engrossed in the idols of this world…or we’re preoccupied and fixated on what others think of us rather than God. Either way, we end up in dire circumstances with no way out. And as the old saying goes, “Sometimes you have to end up in the gutter to finally look up.” Jonah was running from the Lord in disobedience, when God got his attention by confining him in the belly of a fish for three days. Three long days to think about what he had done…three long days to repent, relent, and be restored. Have no doubt about it, if you’re running from the Lord today, He will get your attention sooner or later.
Isaiah 55:11 ” So is My word that goes out from My mouth: It will not return to Me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”
Today marks the 6th Anniversary of Safetypinlove.com! This Daily Devotional has become a labor of love for me and now spans across 129 countries around the world…reaching countless people for the Gospel. It has shown me in a real way that God uses common, ordinary people to do His work…and with Him, anything is possible. Looking back over the years, the lessons I’ve learned are many…for I’ve grown in discipline, obedience, and trust – Praise God! Thank you to all my friends that have been on this journey with me from the start…your encouragement and love have kept me going when doubt filled my head . Thank you to those around the world that have stumbled upon this site…know that it isn’t by chance you’re here…for the Holy Spirit has directed you to God’s Word and His Word never returns void. Finally, thank You Lord for Your faithfulness, for this is all for Your glory!
Ezra 4:24 ” Thus the work on the House of God in Jerusalem came to a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius King of Persia.”
The important part of this Scripture is not what is said, but rather the space of time between when the building of the Temple stopped and it was restarted. For it was 16 years that no work was done at the building site. How many people do you think looked at the Temple foundation year after year and considered all the work a loss? We will all have setbacks in life…times when our forward motion is hampered or even stopped for a season… and we don’t know why. This delay is not a time to declare defeat…for with God, any setback is only temporary in His timetable. And if we have faith and persevere, any delay will have success in the end.
John 9:1-2 ” As He went along, He saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked Him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ “
Jesus saw this blind beggar as an opportunity to heal a broken human being. But His disciples only saw him as a chance to debate the beggar’s situation…totally ignoring the man…they gathered around, talking about him rather than to him. As Believers, we love to talk about ministry work, out reach into the community, and other things we should be doing for the Lord. We’ll debate, plan, and call together committees…always talking about but never actually getting around to doing. The Lord is calling all of us to personal ministry…to rolling up our sleeves and ministering to that blind beggar sitting in front of us. He wants us to stop just talking about it and start doing something.
II Samuel 7:22 ” How great You are, O Sovereign Lord! There is no one like You, and there is no God but You, as we have heard with our own ears.”
Verbal histories from our elderly family members give us insight into just where we come from. Those precious stories are filled with important events, human struggles, and surprising accounts of things we had no prior knowledge of. Within those verbal histories, we hear bits of wisdom, sage advice, personal warnings, and lots of humor. With our own ears we listen as important information is given to us about the past. But have you ever thought about how important it is to give a “verbal history” to your children or grandchildren about God’s influence in your life? A once I was… but now I am… testimony showing the Lord’s redemptive power over sin in your life is more important than any other story you could share with them.
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