Posts from November 2022 (Page 2)

*The God Of Increase I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 1 Corinthians 3: 6-7 It’s easy to get mixed up about the role we play in the Kingdom of God. The Lord has given us the inexpressible privilege of being partners with Him in the greatest venture of all time: reaching every person on the planet with the message…

He Made It All All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. John 1:3 When John penned those words in the first century, he and some of his readers had been eyewitnesses to the life of Christ. One of their tasks of faith was to hold Christ’s humanity on one hand and His divinity on the other, something we also must do. We must remember that the One who was born in a…

Integrity He also chose David His servantAnd took him from the sheepfolds; From tending the ewes with nursing young He brought himTo shepherd Jacob His people,And Israel His inheritance. So David shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart;And guided them with his skillful hands. Psalm 78: 70-72 We know King David as one of the most gifted leaders the world has ever known. His bravery inspired incredible exploits by the Mighty Men, his battle strategy won many conflicts,…

Getting Back To Work Now when our enemies heard that we knew about their plot against us, and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each one to his work. Nehemiah 4:15 If the measure of a man is how much it takes to get him to quit, then Nehemiah would rank near the top of anyone’s list. Nothing could keep this guy down! He began with an almost impossible task, and his”staff members” were…

Leaders Are Learners Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in [union with] Him [reflecting His character in the things you do and say—living lives that lead others away from sin], having been deeply rooted [in Him] and now being continually built up in Him and [becoming increasingly more] established in your faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing in it with gratitude. Colossians 2: 6-7 One of the most attractive traits of a powerful leader…

Sharing Your Faith Be persistent and devoted to prayer, being alert and focused in your prayer life with an attitude of thanksgiving. At the same time pray for us, too, that God will open a door [of opportunity] to us for the word, to proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I have been imprisoned; that I may make it clear [and speak boldly and unfold the mystery] in the way I should. Colossians 4:2-4 Paul understood that evangelism is…

Thanksgiving Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness and delight;Come before His presence with joyful singing. Know and fully recognize with gratitude that the Lord Himself is God;It is He who has made us, not we ourselves [and we are His].We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with a song of thanksgivingAnd His courts with praise.Be thankful to Him, bless and praise His name. For the Lord is…

  Master Your Response Understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Let everyone be quick to hear [be a careful, thoughtful listener], slow to speak [a speaker of carefully chosen words and], slow to anger [patient, reflective, forgiving]; for the [resentful, deep-seated] anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God [that standard of behavior which He requires from us]. James 1: 19-20 One of the most important lessons any of us can learn (or need to learn) is…

Sharing Success He died in a good old age [his seventy-first year], full of days (satisfied), riches and honor. Solomon his son reigned in his place. The time that he reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. Thus David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. 1 Chronicles 29: 26-28 As flawed people who try to walk with God, the best legacy we can leave our children is twofold:…

Treasure In Clay Pots But we have this precious treasure [the good news about salvation] in [unworthy] earthen vessels [of human frailty], so that the grandeur and surpassing greatness of the power will be [shown to be] from God [His sufficiency] and not from ourselves. 2 Corinthians 4:7 In Corinth and throughout that part of the Roman Empire, wealthy people often concealed their valuables in ordinary, unadorned clay pots. These pots were so common that, they hoped, thieves wouldn’t think…