I remember all those long days of training while in the Navy. We would go to sea and run drill after drill; training activity after training activity, and all to prepare the crew to deploy to places where hostilities might occur. And to arrive at the optimum state of readiness, the training was little by little over an extended period of time. We didn’t just train one day and were good to go. No. It was slow, tedious, and each drill built upon each other.
Pleasing God, Making Disciples of Jesus Christ
Pleasing God, Making Disciples of Jesus Christ
Ministries
Proverbs 1:2-7 – To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth —
Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles.The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Proverbs 1:7 – The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. THEME OF THE DAY. LIVING AS OVERCOMERS. Nothing will come into our lives today which caught God off guard. Nothing will happen to us that doesn’t have a Divine Hand guiding it. No tough circumstance will develop that isn’t coming from the loving heart…
Proverbs 6:6-11 – Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. 7 Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, 8 she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. 9 How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? 10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding…
As we read Paul’s penetrating statement in today’s scripture, two things are present. First is the affirmation – “You were running well.” The Apostle Paul does something else. He asks a soul-searching question of spiritual accountability – “Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” Today’s Nugget explores this passage and our willingness to do two things in our relationships with other Christians: love them without conditions and invest in their spiritual lives.
Heaven. The Bible doesn’t give us a lot of detail about heaven, but what we know thrills the soul. In the Revelation, the Apostle John describes some of the characteristics of this promised land for believers (Revelation 21:1-4). Yes, heaven is going to be an incredible place, but I want us to think about heaven today, not in the direction of a place we are going, but to a Person we will see.
I know today’s theme has obvious answers. We have responsibilities that won’t allow us to simply pull up the covers and snuggle in for a long winter’s day of sleep. In today’s scripture, there are two spiritual truths which will energize and motivate us to get out of bed and into our day with eternal purpose: the love of Christ and our union in Christ. These two truths enable us to start each day, no matter the season, with joy, purpose, and a rejoicing heart.