The Gnat vs. the Bee (and other devotionals)

The Gnat vs. the Bee

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” James 1:25

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

James 1:23-24 paints a picture of a man in a hurry. He has a lot on his mind. He takes a casual glance at himself and rushes on. If the Bible is like a mirror, then this man is simply getting a glimpse into the Word and not really applying it to his life.

Most Christians I know today are this kind of Bible student. They are like a gnat bouncing here and there instead of being like a bee and diving in and staying long enough to extract the sweetness.

Contrastingly, the man in verse 25 gazes into the Word. This is someone who delights in God’s Word, who applies God’s Word, who cherishes God’s Word. Are you like that? Or do you take a passing glance at God’s Word and move on to the next thing on your TO DO list?

ACTION POINT:

Which sounds more like you…the passing glance or the careful gaze?

~Adrian Rogers~

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Four Ways to Bring Out the Best in Others 

 

Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.Romans 12:10

Some people bring out the worst in me. If they are insecure—I feel insecure. If they expect perfection—I feel disapproval. If they are demanding—I feel guilty, even manipulated. But there are others like my friends Bill, Andy and Josh who bring out the best in me. If I am tired they give me energy. If I am discouraged they affirm who I am in Christ. If I forget the awe of God they remind me of His awesomeness. Yes, those who elevate my faith help me rise above my fears. Love believes the best. Here are four ways we can help bring out the best in someone else:

Strengthen Their Strengths
When we strengthen believers we strengthen ourselves. As followers of Christ, we are the body of Christ. So, to support one part of the body brings health to the whole body. For example, a person gifted in exhortation needs encouragement. A merciful person desires compassion. We strengthen another soul when we treat them how they prefer to be treated. Therefore,assess the giftedness of family, friends and co-workers. Strengthen their strengths with words and deeds.

“So in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others” (Romans 12:5).

Forgive Their Weaknesses
People regularly disappoint. They show up late to a meeting. They back out of a commitment. They are dishonest. They are not thorough. They overcommit. They are ungrateful. They forget. They are insensitive. So, how will we respond to another’s weaknesses? Forgiveness doesn’t mean we enable bad behavior. We can still kindly discuss their character flaws. Love lets go of resentment and offers another chance. We forgive. We allow sinners like us to rebuild our trust.

“Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my [Paul’s] ministry” (2 Timothy 4:11).

Serve Them Selflessly
Service shows we care. When we cook a meal, clear the table or clean the car we free another to engage in something they enjoy. A servant spirit does not wait to be told what to do—instead we look for opportunities to meet a need. We give a gift. We network colleagues. We mow a neighbor’s lawn. We sit with a sick friend. Indeed, the person served feels valued, appreciated, and loved. Service is contagious, as the one being served desires to pass on the blessing to others.

“Do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love” (Galatians 5:13).

Pray for Their Heart
When a person knows we pray for their heart—they know we love them from the heart. We pray for their heart to be joyful in the hope they see in Jesus. We pray for their heart to be guarded by the incomprehensible peace found in Christ. We pray for their heart to understand and experience the riches of God’s grace and love. We pray for their heart to be led by the Holy Spirit. Heartfelt prayer for other hearts brings out their best for the Lord. Thus, pray for humble hearts in Christ!

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe” (Ephesians 1:18-19).

Prayer: Heavenly Father, show me how to bring out the best in those I encounter in life.

~Wisdom Hunters Devotional~

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And do not present your members to sin as instruments to be used for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who are alive from the dead and your members to God as instruments to be used for righteousness.(Rom 6:13)

 

I went one night to hear an address on consecration. No special message came to me from it, but as the speaker kneeled to pray, he dropped this sentence: “O Lord, Thou knowest we can trust the Man that died for us.” And that was my message. I rose and walked down the street to the train; and as I walked, I pondered deeply all that consecration might mean to my life and—I was afraid. And then, above the noise and clatter of the street traffic came to me the message: “You can trust the Man that died for you.”

 

I got into the train to ride homeward; and as I rode, I thought of the changes, the sacrifices, the disappointments which consecration might mean to me and—I was afraid.

 

I reached home and sought my room, and there upon my knees I saw my past life. I had been a Christian, an officer in the church, a Sunday-school superintendent, but had never definitely yielded my life to God.

 

Yet as I thought of the darling plans which might be baffled, of the cherished hopes to be surrendered, and the chosen profession which I might be called upon to abandoned—I was afraid.

 

I did not see the better things God had for me, so my soul was shrinking back; and then for the last time, with a swift rush of convicting power, came to my innermost heart that searching message:

 

“My child, you can trust the Man that died for you. If you cannot trust Him whom can you trust?”

 

That settled it for me, for in a flash I saw that the Man who so loved me as to die for me could be absolutely trusted with all the concerns of the life He had saved.

 

Friend, you can trust the Man that died for you. You can trust Him to baffle no plan which is not best to be foiled, and to carry out every one which is for God’s glory and your highest good. You can trust Him to lead you in the path which is the very best in this world for you.
—J H. McC

 

“Just as I am, thy love unknown,

Has broken every barrier down, 

Now to be Thine, yea, Thine ALONE,

O Lamb of God, I come!”

 

“Life is not salvage to be saved out of the world, but an investment to be used in the world.”

~L. B. Cowman~

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Running Inside the Lines

In Philippians 3:14, Paul provides a powerful insight into his passion.  Here is what he says,

I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Paul clearly had a goal in mind, a sense of his destiny.  And he was undaunted in seeking to reach it.

In fact, the phrase "I press toward the goal" could literally be translated from the Greek text this way,  "I run within the lines."  It paints the picture of a runner, running down a track, staying in his lane.

He is not overreaching his bounds, running in someone else's lane.  Rather, as he goes for the goal, he is running within the lines with the goal in mind.
In a little mission in Medford, Oregon, many years ago, there was a young man with a terrible drug and alcohol problem.  One night God got a hold of his life.  It was a truly dramatic conversion. 

I was that young man.  And for several decades now, I have been seeking to lay hold of the reason for which He laid hold of me.  I knew that night that God had a destiny for my life.  And that is the goal I strive and press forward to achieve.

God has a destiny for your life, too.  God laid hold of your life just like He did mine, for a purpose.  If you have not already done so, you must understand and press forward to fulfill the destiny God has for your life.

~Bayless Conley~