Fruitful: May 6, 2016

TODAY'S WORD FOR FRIDAY MAY, 6 2016.

FRUITFUL

DEFINITION:

Producing good results; beneficial, profitable, abounding in fruit; producing abundant growth.

SCRIPTURE:

And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty. Matthew 13: 7-8.

I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. John 15:5

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

We want to look at the word fruitful today as it refers to being spiritual fruitful. In the verse above (John 15:5), Jesus says He is the vine and we are the branches and if we abide in Him we will bear much fruit. When we read these words we think of bearing fruit producing spiritual results as relating to bringing others to know Christ. As believers that is what we are called to do.

The key words in this verse are "abide in Him." Abide means to remain or stay close to. We are to stay close to Jesus like a branch attached to a vine. Abiding in Him gives evidence to our salvation and results in us bearing fruit. This fruit is not just soul winning but abiding or remaining in Christ which produces in us spiritual fruit that includes spiritual attitudes of love, obedience, faithfulness, honesty and a desire to continually serve the Lord.

The apostle Paul tells us that "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, fruitfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22). Abiding in Christ also produces the fruit of righteousness which not only changes our attitudes but also our actions.

In Hebrews 12:11 we read, "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful." Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

When we think of being fruitful we think of a farmer. For a farmer to be successful he must have successful crops. To accomplish this he must have the right soil, rain, sunshine, seasons, cultivation, and then the blessing of God. Even a farmer today who is not a believer in Jesus will tell you that he needs the blessings of God on his crops if they are to be successful. He may refer to "Mother Nature" because he does not know God, but what he is really saying is that he needs God to bless his crop to have success.

When one becomes a believer in Jesus he or she must first have a deep desire to abide in Christ and to live a life that honors Him so that one's life can be fruitful. Our desire should be "to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God" (Colossians 1:10).

As do the farmers, a believer must have the right soil; a personal relationship with Jesus. They must have the rain and sunshine; this is the daily communication with God through prayer and reading God's Word. Then there must be the sowing and the cultivation; the going out among the world and walking in your faith and talking about your faith in Christ. Finally, you need the blessing of God. It is God's blessing that brings a bountiful fruitful harvest. This is an earthly example of how God works to enable us to be fruitful.

Do you want to be fruitful? Are you committed to serve God with all your heart, soul and mind? Have you experienced fruit in your Christian life? Read John 15:5 and you will see what the Lord says you need to do to bear fruit. Bearing fruit is not an option given to the believer. Our Lord expects us to bear fruit and He is standing near to make us fruitful.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in I John 1:5.
This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in I John 1:5

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

PRAYER:

Help me and my family today to abide in You. It is our prayer that as we endeavor to abide in You that You will abide in us so that we can be fruitful in furthering Your kingdom. Bless us this day and guide us (our family) in every step we take and every word we speak.

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Generous: May 5, 2016

TODAY'S WORD FOR THURSDAY MAY 5, 2016.

GENEROUS

DEFINITION:

Unselfish; liberal in giving; showing a readiness to give more of something, such as money or time, than is necessary or expected.

SCRIPTURE:

All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor. Galatians 2:10

Blessed is he who is generous to the poor. Proverbs 11:

It is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

As believers how are we to be generous to others? Today we want to share with you several Biblical directives about being generous to others.

God is a generous God who has given us everything we need and He calls on us to be generous to others.

Giving to the poor and the needy was a mandate given by God to Moses which he in turn was to give to the Israelites. At harvest time the Israelites were to leave the edges of their fields un-harvested to provide food for the needy.

In Galatians 2:10 we read that when Paul was beginning his ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles, the apostles James, Peter and John instructed him to remember the poor.

In Ephesians 4:28 Paul advises that we do something useful with our hands so that we are able to have something to share with those in need.

In Proverbs 25:21 we are told to feed our enemies if they are hungry. We are not inclined to be generous to our enemies and to do so is most difficult. Jesus tells us to love our enemies and do good to them as we are told in Luke 6:35.

In Philippians chapter four, Paul thanks the church at Philippi for their generosity in sending him aid when he was in need. In verse 18 Paul says that gifts to God's servants are "a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice pleasing to God."

As believers we are not only expected but commanded by our Lord to be generous to the poor and needy, to our enemies, and to God's servants.

Our parents trained us and constantly reminded us that God wanted us to be generous in helping the poor, the needy, our enemies and those who were God's servants. Our parents practiced what they preached to us. They were generous in their giving and this served as a great example to us. Just as God instructed Moses to teach the Israelites to be generous we must teach our children to be generous. Children are naturally inclined to be selfish. They must be taught to share and be generous.

The scripture gives us some guidelines on being generous:

• When we give we are to give in love. Love for the Lord and love for others should be what motivates our acts of generosity (I Corinthians 13:3).

• We are to give cheerfully because God loves a cheerful giver as recorded in II Corinthians 9:7.

• In Acts 11:29 we are first required to be generous to the poor and give according to our ability. The more God has blessed us with the more He requires of us. If God has blessed us with time, talent and or treasures we are to share these, based on what He has given us, to the needy, the poor, and our enemies and with those that serve Him in the ministry.

Finally, the scriptures tell us the blessings of being generous that we can expect when we give to those He requires us to give to. In Hebrews 13:16 we are told that when we give with sacrifice, God is well pleased. In Acts 20:35 (above), Paul tells us that when we are generous to others we will be blessed by God. Proverbs 11:25 says that being generous to others, enriches us and in I Timothy 6:17-19 we are told that we will be rewarded when we are generous and ready to share.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in I John 1:5

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

PRAYER:

Thank You for the ability that You have given me to be generous with those who are in need today. Help me to be alert to the leading that Your Holy Spirit gives me today. May my family be known as a generous family that acknowledges that we have received so much from You that we cannot help but give and give even more back to others in Your name.

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Gracious: May 4, 2016

TODAY'S WORD FOR WEDNESDAY MAY 4, 2016

GRACIOUS

DEFINITION:

Merciful; compassionate; kindly; courteous.

SCRIPTURE:

For you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. I Peter 2:3 RSV Translation.

The words of a wise man's mouth are gracious, but the lips of a fool shall swallow him up. Ecclesiastes 10:12.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Do you know many people today that are consistently gracious? To be gracious means to be compassionate, thoughtful, helpful and kind. To be gracious in the evil world that we live in is most difficult. When we as children, youth or adults go about our daily activities it is most difficult for us to always be gracious. People and situations can irritate and upset us to the point that we are not gracious.

God has given us a standard, as believers that we should be living by each day. Let us look at a few scriptures. In Exodus 34:6 God was speaking to Moses concerning the Children of Israel and preparing Moses in how the Children of Israel were to honor and serve Him (God) by obeying His commandments. God was making it clear to Moses that He expected the Children of Israel to worship and honor Him with obedience, love and graciousness. When Moses asked to see the Glory of God the scripture says, and the Lord passed before him and proclaimed "The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth."

God made it clear to Moses that He expected the Children of Israel, just as He does for us today, to be gracious in all we do, because He is gracious. Moses response was to bow to the ground immediately and worship the Lord.

In Luke 4:16-30 we read about Jesus’ return to Nazareth, the place where He grew up as a carpenter's son. They all knew Jesus as a boy but did not know Him as their Messiah.  As Jesus often did, He went to the Synagogue to teach. He quoted from Isaiah 61:1-2 which was a prophecy about the coming Messiah. At first all spoke well of Him and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth." And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?"

But when Jesus said he was the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah 61:1-2 they could not accept it and turned hostile toward Jesus and tried to kill Him.

Despite being rejected, misunderstood or even persecuted Jesus set a standard for us as believers to be gracious in whatever situation we are in. As parents we need to begin with ourselves and learn to be gracious to all we meet, whether it is family or complete strangers. Probably the most difficult task that we have is teaching our children to be gracious. This will be difficult because they will have to deal with peers who are not gracious and then to react and defend one's self with graciousness is most difficult.

One of our daughters came home from junior high school one day, totally upset. Someone had taken her brand new blazer jacket out of her gym locker during gym class. Although she was well aware that most all of her peers in the school were more well-to-do than our family, we tried to comfort her with the thought that perhaps the girl needed it more than she did.

In addition, we told her to think of the guilt the girl would feel whenever she would wear the blazer. Regardless of our words of consolation, she wasn't feeling very gracious toward the unknown thief but she did understand that she was to be graciously forgiving even as Jesus has so graciously and mercifully forgiven us.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in I John 1:5

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

PRAYER:

Help me to respond to the examples You have given me in Your Word to be gracious to everyone I meet today despite how they may treat me. May I, through my words and deeds, honor Your name and may others see Christ through me not only by my actions but by my reactions.

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Allergy: Tuesday May 3, 2014

TODAY’S WORD FOR TUESDAY MAY 3, 2016.

ALLERGY

DEFINITION:

An overreaction of the immune system to a previously encountered ordinarily harmless substance resulting in skin rash, swelling of mucous membranes, sneezing or wheezing. Having an allergy to something; averse.

SCRIPTURE:

Avoid from every form of evil. I Thessalonians 5:22

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

We have several grandchildren that are allergic to several kinds of foods. Even a small amount of these items are detrimental to their health and can even lead to death. For some reason many people today struggle with allergies. For some it is food, for some it is plants and for others it is the air because of the allergens in it. An allergy makes an individual very uncomfortable and normally affects their physical well being; therefore, it is necessary to do all one can to avoid the cause of the allergy.
Each of us as believers in Jesus has dangers that we need to stay away from to maintain our spiritual health. These dangers are spiritual allergies. This scripture that we have put above makes it clear as to what we are "allergic to" spiritually. It says for us to stay away from every form of evil. This should make us think about the choices we make in life.

We need to remember that when we take part of something that is clearly evil it is not good for our spiritual vitality, our mental stability or our physical well-being. The temptation to do evil is always present like an allergy that we have to fight daily. Just as everyone with an allergy has to avoid the cause, so Christians must avoid situations that lead them to do things that are evil.

In II Timothy 2:23 we are reminded to, "avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife." These are evil and we as believers must treat them as an allergy and avoid them. In Titus 3:9 we are told to, "Avoid foolish disputes, contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and useless." Some arguments or disputes could have merit when they are made to defend our faith but this takes discernment on our behalf. But for most arguments, they have no spiritual merit thus they only cause dissension. So do your best to stay away from these "allergies."

Are we willing to make an effort daily to steer clear of the things that we are spiritually "allergic to"? We should avoid sin in our lives as we avoid everything we are allergic to. We need to nip temptations in the bud. Psalm 34:14 tells us to, "turn from evil and do good." When we sin and do evil it is because we choose to do it. It is a conscious choice. God wants us to choose to turn from evil and choose to do good.

Allergies sometimes cause death but choosing evil and rejecting God always leads to death. Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life.”

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in I John 1:5

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

PRAYER:

Give me the wisdom to avoid foolish and ignorant disputes as I face life in this sinful world. Help me to communicate to my family and my friends the importance of avoiding foolish arguments and disputes because they are useless and do not honor You. Make my testimony of my faith shine today in a way that others may see Christ through me.

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Mediator: May 2, 2016

TODAY’S WORD FOR MONDAY MAY 2, 2016.

MEDIATOR

DEFINITION:

One who reconciles disagreements between two or more estranged people; one who settles an issue.

SCRIPTURE:

For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.
I Timothy 2:5

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Mediation is not without a price. Just ask someone who has hired a lawyer. Literally millions of dollars are spent on mediation by two parties when they face some sort of disagreement.

Has it ever occurred to you that you have a most important case pending? It is YOU versus GOD. Romans 3:23 tells us that “all have sinned.” God is perfect and without sin and our sin separates us from God. In Isaiah 59:2 it reads that “your iniquities have separated you from your God.” We are in disagreement with God and our relationship with Him is broken. Therefore we need a mediator.

God sent His Son to die on the cross to cover our sins in order that we could be reconciled to God. As we said, mediation comes with a price and Jesus paid dearly by dying on the cross to cover our sins. In ITimothy 2:5, Paul not only instructs Timothy but reminds us that the man Christ Jesus is the one and only mediator between us and God.

We cannot come to God except through Jesus. Jesus said this to us as recorded in John 4:6: “No man comes to the Father except through Me.” We ask you the question, “Have you met with your mediator today?”

Our children, like all children, did not always see eye to eye on issues all the time so they would get into verbal fights with each other. Each one thought that they were right and the other child was wrong. Once in a while it usually ended up that they would have to come to one or both of us to plead their cases. There sometimes was such a serious disagreement between them that the usual loving relationship between them was broken. They needed us to be a mediator to reconcile them.

Children are not the only ones who need a mediator to reconcile broken relationships in life. Most of the problems in our world are related to broken relationships over issues. Mediators are necessary to solve the issues of these broken relationships.

We could not get along it seems, without a legal system of lawyers and judges who serve as mediators in settling disagreements between two parties. Even in churches today, pastors become mediators for those who come for counseling to settle their disagreements. Governments and political leaders have disagreements which are usually solved when a third party mediator comes on the scene.

Our lives constantly are in a position where mediation of some sort is necessary. But the most important mediator for those of us who are believers is the mediator that God has provided us through His Son Jesus Christ.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in I John 1:5

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

PRAYER:

Thank You God for sending Your Son to be the mediator who is always there to intercede for me before You. Give me the courage each day to talk to You through Your Son to confess my sins and ask for Your direction and open my ears to hear Your voice as I read Your Word. Help me to exalt Your name in all that I do.

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