Tag: Pass It On

Pass Along What You Have Learned

On By Ed AlgreenIn A Lamp unto My Path, Adoration, Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Awesome God, Beyond Description, Blessing, Celebrate God, Needs, Praise, Praise-worthy, Recognize God, WorshipLeave a comment

DATE POSTED: Thursday, July 13, 2023, and I was blessed to be at O’Brien, FL when God inspired me to prepare this devotional. My Footnote will tell you how to find, read or listen to any and all episodes that I have shared over the years.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE FROM THE Living Bible (TLB) IS FOUND IN 2 Timothy 2:2; 9;

THE BIBLE TEXT IS:  2 For you must teach others those things you and many others have heard me speak about. Teach these great truths to trustworthy men who will, in turn, pass them on to others.
9 It is because I have preached these great truths that I am in trouble here and have been put in jail like a criminal. But the Word of God is not chained, even though I am.

MY INITIAL THOUGHTS: We may feel useless if we feel like our teaching or preaching is falling on deaf ears. But some may abuse the knowledge graced to them if they look down on others who may feel not as fortunate. We must not become like the Dead Sea, where its rich waters are not passed on through other tributaries. No matter what may happen to great teachers and preachers, the Word of God remains as strong as when it originated. Join me as we look closer at this humble teaching by an awesome messenger of Jesus Christ.

APPLICATION OF THE WORD: I wonder what crosses our mind first when we think about attending church and listening to a pastor’s sermon! I’ve heard some say that they felt ‘shouted at’ by the pastor and that they would never return to that church. Some feel like a pastor does pretty much like Jesus and preaches in riddles, for they can’t seem to apply his words to their lives. Personally, I’ve heard teachers who explain the Word of God so well, that I become anxious to return and hear another teaching as soon as possible. But let’s try and catch a glimpse of what Paul was passing on to his ‘son’ in the ministry, Timothy. Although I didn’t include verse 1 of this chapter, Paul reminded Timothy that God graced him with the knowledge, opportunity and willingness to minister in His name. Does this help you who may feel inadequate to teach or preach because you didn’t attend seminary, or because you have no line of Bible scholars in your family tree? Friends, I believe that some of the best sermons that have truly touched my heart, came from Godly laypersons who accepted the call to share a few words from a church pulpit. I believe that they got in touch with Jesus and asked Him to open their eyes of understanding and to give them the boldness that they needed to proclaim the Word under the inspiration and power of the One who wrote those sacred words. Friends, I am a firm believer that a man who stands in a pulpit on Sunday and tries to deliver a word that he gained from other scholars, or that he knows must be directed to certain parishioners who went astray during the past week, or to unleash the anger and frustration that has bound that preacher during the week, will ultimately hurt the gospel of Jesus Christ. For it is much like Paul shared in verse 9 above, God, nor His Word has changed because of the circumstances of the week, or because that preacher is bombarded by the works of Satan for whatever reason. When we allow the power of God to envelope us, renew us and give us the wisdom and boldness to pass along what He has graced us with through His Word, and through other teachers that have touched our lives, then Jesus Christ will be magnified and lifted up. And when this happens, the glory of God will fill that place where you are sharing, and others will be touched and empowered to go out from that place and share all that has filled their hearts in that service. Parents pound in their knowledge, habits and wisdom into their kids, so that they might leave home one day and become an example of those parents. So it is with church, let’s plan to attend this week with minds like sponges that will soak up the wisdom of all that God speaks and teaches through His servant in our church pulpit. Others are depending on us and we want them to know and love this Jesus of ours in much the same way that we do. When Jesus fills us, that’s what we can expect to leak out from us in our daily encounters with others. Pastors – preach it and teach it in a way that you would want other good men and women to pass it along to others they come into contact with. Fellow Christians – Unless we know Jesus personally, and fill ourselves totally with Him and His principles, then our witness, our teaching and/or our preaching will be in vain. Don’t be lazy today, get into the Word of God and let it saturate your mind and your person. Don’t be absent, nor distracted on Sunday, listen carefully to what God has ordained for your pastor to share with you, because others are waiting to be blessed by you as they watch your life and listen to your words in great anticipation.

BLESSINGS WORTH NOTING: Oh that we would listen to our pastors preach the Word Of God knowing that we are equipping ourselves to go out and share all that we have learned.

PRAYER BECAUSE OF THE IMPACT OF TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Thank You for Your Word oh Lord, and for those whom You have graced with the knowledge, power and boldness to share the Word with us. As we are blessed and as we are fed, may we then go on to bless and feed others. Please teach us to stop criticizing our teachers and pastors, but to pray for their boldness in sharing the wisdom You have blessed them with. As we benefit from that wisdom, may we be open to sharing all that we have learned, so that others may be blessed to do the same. May our witness be fruitful, and may we live out our witness, as evidence that You live and reign within us, oh Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There’s another page on my website, entitled ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading or listening to this devotional, please go to this page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin or continue your walk with Jesus. If you would like to read more of my devotionals, or subscribe for a daily email containing each new devotional, please go online to NuggetsFromGodsWord.org. For my podcast, go online to Apple Podcasts or, using the Apple Podcast app, simply search for Nuggets From God’s Word to hear more episodes, or click ‘Follow’ to be notified of Podcast updates. Friends, please allow me to encourage you to find a church home near by your home and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

A Reminder of Who our God Is

On By Ed AlgreenIn Memorial, Miracles, Miraculous, RememberLeave a comment

Post Date:

 Monday, 2017-08-07
SCRIPTURE

From:

 Joshua 4:21-24 (TLB)

Text:

 21 Then Joshua explained again the purpose of the stones: “In the future,” he said, “when your children ask you why these stones are here and what they mean, 22 you are to tell them that these stones are a reminder of this amazing miracle—that the nation of Israel crossed the Jordan River on dry ground! 23 Tell them how the Lord our God dried up the river right before our eyes and then kept it dry until we were all across! It is the same thing the Lord did forty years ago at the Red Sea! 24 He did this so that all the nations of the earth will realize that Jehovah is the mighty God, and so that all of you will worship him forever.”
OBSERVATION:
God performed many miracles for the Israelites as he brought them across the desert from Egypt to the land He had promised them for their freedom. In wanting these miracles to be burnt into their minds and referred back to often, God demanded that they build a memorial in, and near the Jordan River crossing so that if they forget to tell their children, they themselves will see the memorial and ask about it’s purpose. God still acts miraculously in our lives today, so let’s examine if we might learn something to apply from this experience!
APPLICATION:
Cemeteries are plastered with memorials of loved ones buried there. Some tomb stones are simple, with the name and dates between which the person lived, while others may have a favorite saying of the individual or their favorite verse. Crosses, flowers and placards naming person(s) killed in a car crash are often seen along road-sides. Huge memorials are placed at military cemeteries marking the names of individuals who served and died while defending our country in war. National disasters, such as the 9-11 event have similar huge memorials established. However, what do we do to preserve the memories of the huge evangelistic events, such as the one where God spoke to our heart and where many miracles may have been witnessed? Many great things may have been said at the funeral of your grandfather, but how will those things be related to your grandchildren many years down the road? Our memories seem to be getting shorter and shorter as we depend on computers more and more! It might be good for us to do something like Joshua did and place a marker, or a memorial about certain highlights in our lives, so that our children, grandchildren and future generations might be told of that awesome miracle that God performed in our lives. Hearing our story might be the exact encouragement that a relative or friend needs when they are drifting away from God or beginning to question His awesome power. Friends, we may never encounter a Red Sea or Jordan River miracle like Joshua and his people did, but as God personalizes our miracle, it sure would be good to establish a memorial of that miracle, if for no other reason than to cause family and friends to ask you about it when they visit – giving you the opportunity to brag on God and His awesome miracles in your life. Don’t feel like you will be bragging on yourself, for there was nothing that Joshua and his thousands of men did to help hold the Jordan River waters back while they all crossed to the other side on a dry river bed. Only God can receive the praise for that!
PRAYER:
Heavenly Father, we are often overwhelmed by the miracle-working God that we serve, for Your Word relays incident after incident of Your great power. These miracles still happen today, because You are still alive and very active in the lives of Your children. Help us to stop attributing Your wondrous works to things such as good luck; or the good doctors; or happen-chance. If we have faith to trust in You enough to ask for Your divine help, then please help us to be bold in declaring Your miracles that You might perform to help us through a situation. Just as You proved Yourself faithful to Joshua and the Israelites, we know without a doubt that You can do it again for us, no matter what our need might be! Praise to our awesome God! AMEN!
FOOTNOTE:
There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’.  If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!