Jy kan op twee dinge reken wanneer jy God volg: swaarkry tot jou voordeel; en genade wat jou te midde van die swaarkry staande hou. Bid jy om geduld? Maak reg vir swaarkry; daar is geen ander manier om geduld te verkry nie, want geduld groei slegs in die grond van teenspoed. Besef sommer nou dat sommige mense waarvan jy nou niks hou nie, presies diegene is wat jou geestelik volwasse sal maak en jou sal help om jou roeping te vervul. God het gesê, 'Moab sal my dienaar word...' (Psalm 60:10). Die Moabiete was die moeilike buurvolk van die Israeliete wat hulle tot raserny gedryf het. Sulke mense kan ons egter ook nader na God dryf! Dus, wat/wie dryf jou tot raserny? Wat bring die slegste in jou na vore? Wat dryf jou op jou knieë? Wie beproef jou geloof? Wie ontwikkel jou karakter? Ons probleem is dat ons om sekere dinge bid, maar nie God se proses verstaan nie. Dis slegs wanneer ons God beter leer ken dat ons daarin insig verkry. Dit werk so: jy vra van God krag en Hy laat jou toe om te sukkel sodat jy kan ontwikkel. Jy vra wysheid en Hy laat jou netelige situasies hanteer waarvoor daar geen maklike oplossings is nie. Jy vra sukses en Hy gee aan jou die vermoë om te werk en die wysheid om te skep. Jy vra Sy guns en jy kry verantwoordelikheid (dan wil jy daarvan weghardloop!).God is op hierdie oomblik in jou aan die werk! Jy mag miskien nie eens daarvan bewus wees nie - daarsonder sal jy egter nie bekwaam wees om dit wat God vir jou voorsien te hanteer nie.
Sielskos: Ef. 4:17-6:24; Joh. 1:14-28; Ps 29; Spr. 22:26-29 "For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name..." Hebrews 6:10
The story is told of a woman who cleaned the same office building for many years. When asked how she endured the drudgery of doing the same chores day in and day out, she replied, "It's not drudgery. You see, I'm working for the King and He's pleased along with others when I do my best." This woman found the secret to satisfying work. Her focus was not on the tasks, but on the Lord and people. She focused on serving the Lord and her fellow man. How about you? When was the last time you found joy in your work? The Bible gives us a key: "Whatever you do...do all for the glory of God." When we work for the Lord and to serve other people, work can bring us joy and fulfillment. It all depends on our attitude. Are you anticipating another day of drudgery? That's what you'll probably get. But if you're planning to live this day to please God and to serve others, you may be surprised how the drudgery is replaced by meaning and purpose. ROMANS 5:20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, When a top executive is charged for corruption or a church minister is caught in the very act of adultery, you will probably hear the phrase “fallen from grace” being used of them. We have come to believe that when someone falls into sin, he falls from grace. But God wants us to know that when someone falls into sin, he does not fall from grace—he actually falls into grace! Thank God His grace is there to put the person back on his feet. The Bible tells of prostitutes and corrupt tax collectors—sinners—who fell into God’s grace and got back on their feet. If the sin in their lives could stop God’s grace, they would never have been able to receive His grace of healing, help and power to live right. Now, it is important you understand that God hates sin because it destroys our lives, relationships and bodies. Sin is evil! But sin is not overcome by us talking about it and relying on our willpower to overcome it. It takes God’s grace to destroy sin. In fact, it is when you are under His grace that sin has no dominion over you. (Romans6:14) It is when you see His grace in providing His Son to put away your sins and make you eternally righteous that sin will not dominate you. The devil will say to you, “You think that you can still expect God’s blessings after what you did this morning?” That is when you must remind yourself that Christ alone is your perfection and righteousness. All of us have faults. None of us deserve God’s blessings. That is why we plead the grace of God, which is His unearned, unmerited and undeserved favor toward us. Sin does not and cannot stop God’s grace. If His grace can be cut off by sin, Jesus would never have come to save us because we were all terrible sinners. But praise God, “where sin abounded, grace abounded much more”! My friend, God’s grace is bigger, deeper, wider and more powerful than all the world’s sins put together. Receive His grace right now to walk in total victory over that weakness or evil habit in your life! Were your growing up years hard years? Family pain is the deepest pain because it was inflicted so early; it involves people who should have been trustworthy. You were too young to process the mistreatment. You didn’t know how to defend yourself. Besides, the perpetrators of your pain were so large. Your dad, mom, uncle, big brother—they towered over you, usually in size, always in rank. When they judged you falsely, you believed them.
As a result, you’ve been operating on faulty data. “You’re stupid, slow, dumb like your daddy, fat like your momma.” Decades later, these voices of defeat still echo in our subconscious. But they don’t have to! Romans 12:2 says to let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. You are God’s child. His creation. You’ll get through this! You’re part of His family. There's a Dennis the Menace cartoon in which Dennis and his friend Joey are walking away from the Wilson's house with their hands full of cookies. Joey asks, "I wonder what we did to deserve this?"
Dennis tells his friend, "Joey, Mrs. Wilson gives us cookies not because we're nice, but because she's nice." The same can be said of our Heavenly Father. He gives, not because we're good, but because He's good. He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us for our iniquities. Instead, he is the one "...who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's." (Psalm 103:4-5) The church names we banter about? They don’t exist in heaven. Because it’s not the denomination that saves you. And I wonder, if there’re no denominations in heaven, why do we have denominations on earth?
I know this is a crazy thought—but what would happen if all the churches agreed, on a given day, to change their names simply to “church?” And then when people chose which church to attend, they wouldn’t do so by the sign outside, they’d do so by the hearts of the people inside. And then, when people were asked what church they attended, their answer wouldn’t be a label but just a location. And then, we Christians wouldn’t be known for what divides us; instead we’d be known for what unites us—our common Father. Crazy idea? Perhaps. But I think God would like it. It was His idea to begin with! from Lucado Inspirational Reader Let us run the race that is before us and never give up. Hebrews 12:1
The word race is from the Greek agon, from which we get the word agony. The Christian's race is not a jog but rather a demanding and grueling, sometimes agonizing race. It takes a massive effort to finish strong. Likely you've noticed that many don't? Surely you've observed there are many on the side of the trail? They used to be running. There was a time when they kept the pace. But then weariness set in. They didn't think the run would be this tough… By contrast, Jesus' best work was his final work, and his strongest step was his last step. Our Master is the classic example of one who endured… He could have quit the race. But he didn't. Just Like Jesus (Max Lucado) "What is this confidence that you have? We trust in the Lord our God..." 2 Kings18:19,22
During the filming of the old classic movie, Ben Hur, Charleton Heston had a terrible time learning to drive the chariot. When it came time to film the key sequence of the chariot race, Heston told the director, "I think I can drive the chariot, but I don't think I can win the race." The director replied, "You just drive, and I'll see to it that you win." Wouldn't it be great if we could be assured of victory in life? Wouldn't you like to know that, even though the circumstances don't always seem to be in our favor, the ultimate outcome would be positive? There is good news. This principle does hold true. Those who place their trust in Jesus Christ, who seek to follow His guidance and direction for living, can be sure of ultimate victory through eternal life. Live life God's way. He assures the victory. JUDE 1:20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
When my daughter Jessica was little, she woke up one night crying. She was not sick, but would not stop crying even though her mother and I tried to pacify her. I did not know what to do. I went to the restroom, sat on the floor and cried out, “Holy Spirit, You know what is wrong with my child. You know what she needs better than I do, so I yield her to You now.” I started praying in tongues and she stopped crying immediately! Now, I wish that such instantaneous results are the norm, but they are not. On another occasion, I experienced severe pain from the back of my neck to my shoulders. I prayed for healing, but the pain persisted for quite some time and I was quite concerned. One night, in my room, I knelt down and prayed, “Holy Spirit, You know this condition. I don’t know what it is, but I am asking You to make perfect prayer against this condition.” I started praying in tongues. I don’t know how long I prayed, maybe an hour or so, until I felt the burden lift. I finally fell asleep, still in pain. But when I woke up, all the pain was gone! When you are faced with a crisis, you can tell the Holy Spirit, “I don’t know how to pray about this problem. I have done everything I know, but I don’t seem to be getting my breakthrough. Help me pray, Holy Spirit.” And as you pray in the Spirit, you will feel like there is a prayer going on within you. Flow with it until you feel a release. You will feel peace, the burden lifting and a note of victory inside you. The Holy Spirit will assure you that everything is going to be all right or He will prompt you to do something. Then, you will find that what has been hindering you from receiving your breakthrough is removed, and in its place is the answer you need! LEVITICUS 16:14 He shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.
If you have watched the movie, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, you would remember that when the lid of the ark was lifted, strange-looking creatures floated out and destroyed the people around it. Interesting as it may be, this is biblically inaccurate—the ark of the Bible did not contain strange-looking creatures. What were the things inside it then? There were three items in the ark: the golden pot of manna, Aaron’s rod and two stone tablets on which God had written the Ten Commandments. (Hebrews 9:4) These items are actually symbols of man’s rebellion. The golden pot of manna represents man’s rejection of God’s provision. The rod of Aaron represents man’s rejection of God’s leadership and the two stone tablets of God’s commandments represent man’s rejection of His standard of holiness. But because God delights in mercy, He had these items put away in the ark and covered with the mercy seat, which had two cherubim on it. (Hebrews 9:5) And once a year, the high priest would enter the holy of holies where the ark was and sprinkle the blood of the animal sacrifice on the mercy seat. This means that God’s eyes, represented by the eyes of the cherubim, did not see the symbols of man’s rebellion. As long as the blood was there on the mercy seat, He saw only the blood and accepted the people. Today, Jesus is our High Priest and He Himself has sprinkled His own blood on the true mercy seat in heaven—the throne of grace. (Hebrews 9:23–26) Interestingly, the number of times that the Old Testament high priest had to sprinkle the blood on the mercy seat—seven—speaks of Jesus’ perfect sacrifice. And because His sacrifice is perfect and He is perfect, we who are in Christ have perfect standing forever before God! My friend, as you come to God today, don’t worry about falling short of His standard of holiness. He does not see your sins. (Hebrews8:12, 10:17) He sees His Son’s blood on the mercy seat. You have perfect standing before Him forever! |
Ana & Andre Schoonbee God uses us to motivate and encourage the body. Authors
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