The family was enjoying a meal together after the morning worship service. Grandmother, always interested in her granddaughter, Sara, turned to her and asked, “What did you learn in church today?”
“Well,” she said after thinking a moment, “I learned that the church is God’s house. But you know, Grandma, I never see Him when I go.”
That makes me wonder what Sara might have been looking for. Surely there were songs and the reading of Scripture, perhaps the people greeted one another and exchanged smiles and handshakes. There certainly must have been sermons about the church being “God’s house” that she had listened to in the past. But Sara was not able to “see” God in what is called His home. Perhaps no one ever explained to her how one might recognize God.
Paul, in describing how Christians ought to “fellowship” said, “Try to understand what the Lord wants you to do.” The problem is not that we do not understand what we are to do, for there are many examples in Scripture about how Christians are to behave. In all honesty, the problem has never been how but actually doing what we understand what God wants us to do.
The early church was known for the loving and protecting, sharing and caring way Christians honored and respected each other. This came from their reverence for Christ and their desire to live lives that pleased Him. Could it be that people looking for God in our churches cannot see Him “in His home” because we lack His compassion and care for one another?
Prayer: Help us, Lord, to reflect Your presence in our lives by the care and concern we have for one another. May everyone who knows us see Your love in all that we do. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Scripture For Today: Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. Ephesians 5:15-21
The family was enjoying a meal together after the morning worship service. Grandmother, always interested in her granddaughter, Sara, turned to her and asked, “What did you learn in church today?”
“Well,” she said after thinking a moment, “I learned that the church is God’s house. But you know, Grandma, I never see Him when I go.”
That makes me wonder what Sara might have been looking for. Surely there were songs and the reading of Scripture, perhaps the people greeted one another and exchanged smiles and handshakes. There certainly must have been sermons about the church being “God’s house” that she had listened to in the past. But Sara was not able to “see” God in what is called His home. Perhaps no one ever explained to her how one might recognize God.
Paul, in describing how Christians ought to “fellowship” said, “Try to understand what the Lord wants you to do.” The problem is not that we do not understand what we are to do, for there are many examples in Scripture about how Christians are to behave. In all honesty, the problem has never been how but actually doing what we understand what God wants us to do.
The early church was known for the loving and protecting, sharing and caring way Christians honored and respected each other. This came from their reverence for Christ and their desire to live lives that pleased Him. Could it be that people looking for God in our churches cannot see Him “in His home” because we lack His compassion and care for one another?
Prayer: Help us, Lord, to reflect Your presence in our lives by the care and concern we have for one another. May everyone who knows us see Your love in all that we do. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Scripture For Today: Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. Ephesians 5:15-21
One of my most prized possessions is my mother’s Bible. Shortly after she went to be with the Lord, I was leafing through the well-worn and tear-stained pages. In the margin next to Ephesians 3:20 she wrote in red letters: “If God is your partner, make your plans large.”
In that passage of Scripture, Paul wrote, “Now unto Him, who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.” What power, Paul?
Here Paul is speaking about the mighty power – the very same power - that raised Christ from the dead: the power that is available to Christians that comes from the living God – Creator and Sustainer of the universe. This power from God enables us to accomplish not only more than we can imagine and is possible for us to do on our own - but we are empowered by God Himself to accomplish exceedingly abundantly more than we might even be able to ask or think!
God wants to work in and through the lives of His children - you and me. He wants to make His mighty power that raised His Son, Jesus Christ, from the death and the grave available to each of us. So we must expand how we think – and that comes from studying His word.
“Exceedingly” in this verse suggests excessiveness and “abundantly” means overflowing, or an overabundance of something. But he does not end with those words. He continues by adding: more than we can ask or think! And, that’s difficult for anyone to imagine! But...
If we sincerely take God at His Word, the only limitations on Christians are the ones we place on God.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, it is beyond our abilities to truly understand the “mighty power” that is available to us. Increase our faith so we, in turn, can do more for You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Scripture For Today: Now unto Him, who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us. Ephesians 3:20
One of my most prized possessions is my mother’s Bible. Shortly after she went to be with the Lord, I was leafing through the well-worn and tear-stained pages. In the margin next to Ephesians 3:20 she wrote in red letters: “If God is your partner, make your plans large.”
In that passage of Scripture, Paul wrote, “Now unto Him, who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.” What power, Paul?
Here Paul is speaking about the mighty power – the very same power - that raised Christ from the dead: the power that is available to Christians that comes from the living God – Creator and Sustainer of the universe. This power from God enables us to accomplish not only more than we can imagine and is possible for us to do on our own - but we are empowered by God Himself to accomplish exceedingly abundantly more than we might even be able to ask or think!
God wants to work in and through the lives of His children - you and me. He wants to make His mighty power that raised His Son, Jesus Christ, from the death and the grave available to each of us. So we must expand how we think – and that comes from studying His word.“Exceedingly” in this verse suggests excessiveness and “abundantly” means overflowing, or an overabundance of something. But he does not end with those words. He continues by adding: more than we can ask or think! And, that’s difficult for anyone to imagine! But... If we sincerely take God at His Word, the only limitations on Christians are the ones we place on God.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, it is beyond our abilities to truly understand the “mighty power” that is available to us. Increase our faith so we, in turn, can do more for You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Scripture For Today: Now unto Him, who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us. Ephesians 3:20
The new bank president decided that he would meet individually with each employee to introduce himself. He wanted them to know that he was very interested in their work and how important they were to the success of the bank.
After introducing himself to all of the employees, he asked one of them to come to his office. After she sat down, he asked, “How long have you been working here?”
Proudly she responded, “Forty years. And in all that time I’ve only made one little mistake.”
“That’s amazing. Wonderful!” he grumbled. “However, be more careful from now on!”
We all make mistakes. And there are at least three things we can do about them:
We can promise never to make another mistake. That, however, is impractical since we know that such a ridiculous promise would be impossible to keep.
We can give up and never do anything else and live like a hermit in a cave for the rest of our lives. And, we know that’s impractical because life goes on.
Or, we can learn from our mistakes and profit from them as though they were our teachers. When things do not work out as intended, or our plans go astray and things get “messed up,” we need to admit it, look for how and why things “blew-up,” seek the help and advice of others, go to God in prayer, and ask for His wisdom which is available upon request.
Prayer: Lord, Your Word assures us that “if we lack wisdom and want to know what to do” all we need to do is ask You. May we seek Your guidance and insight. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Scripture For Today: If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. James 1:5-9
