Tag: Paul

Encourage One Another

On By Ed AlgreenIn Encourage, encouragement, EncouragerLeave a comment

Saturday, 2016-10-01

Scripture

Bible Reference: Romans 1:11-12

Bible Text:   11-12 For I long to visit you so that I can impart to you the faith that will help your church grow strong in the Lord. Then, too, I need your help, for I want not only to share my faith with you but to be encouraged by yours: Each of us will be a blessing to the other.

Bible Translation: The Living Bible (TLB)

My Take

I believe that way too often we ignore the needs of the person who comes to our rescue and helps us through life’s hardest challenges. Like any good pastor today, Paul was anxious to go and deliver the Word to the Roman church, because he wanted to encourage them in their faith and their ongoing ministry. To ensure that we get the right picture, let me suggest that this may mean our local pastors being so fired up about the Word God has given them to share with us in weekend services, that they can hardly wait for the moment that they stand in our pulpit to preach the Word. Now back to the story – Paul told the people that in spite of the spiritual gift he had for them, he was expecting to also be blessed by their spiritual gift to him. Friends, for the man standing in our pulpit, preaching his heart out and speaking exactly what he feels led by God to share with us, have you ever thought about how you might minister back to him? I believe that after many corporate services, we are in so much of a rush to get to the local restaurant that we never stop to think about patting the pastor on the back to encourage him, or ask him how you might pray for him, or share with him how God is blessing you, and your hope that God would do the same for your pastor. There may be some who show little concern for their pastor, because you look at him as a paid employee who is simply doing what he is paid to do. Friends, I believe that a pastor’s job is very similar to that of a teacher, where it’s more of a heart-for-the-job attitude, than any amount of money they may be paid to do the job. I believe that pastors spend limitless hours ministering to the needs of the sheep, that most parishioners never have a clue about. I believe that most pastors are so underpaid, that they face financial challenges far worst than most of their parishioners. I believe that God is speaking to us through these verses today by simply encouraging us to not settle for what we might receive from His servants, but be constantly thinking about what we might give, or how we may encourage God’s servants – our pastors. This weekend, let’s remember what Paul was asking for, and be encouraged to respond to our pastors with encouragement before they have to ask us for it. I believe that God will especially bless us for encouraging His messengers/servants to continue on in the teaching and preaching of His Word!

Prayer

Thank You Lord Jesus for Your grace, and for Your mercy on even us. Thank You for blessing us with shepherds who have chosen to serve You by serving us and encouraging us. Lord, please touch each and every church attendee this weekend with a spirit of encouragement for our pastors. As they pour their hearts out to us, may we in turn be grateful and encourage them in return. Lord, we want to please You in every thing we do. I believe that by placing Paul’s desire for encouragement in Your Word, You wanted to remind us of the human needs of our pastors also. May we be alert to their needs, so that together we may receive every blessing that You have in store for us. May You be glorified in all that Your churches attempt to achieve this weekend, for I ask these things in the precious name of Jesus, AMEN!

Footnote

If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. 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 www.nuggetsfromgodsword.org 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!

How to Defend Against Every Kind of Attack

On By Ed AlgreenIn Follow Christ, Imitator of Christ, ObedienceLeave a comment

THE HOLY BIBLE – Easy-To-Read Version (ERV) ~ 2 Corinthians 6:6-7 ~ We show that we are God’s servants by our pure lives, by our understanding, by our patience, and by our kindness. We show it by the Holy Spirit, by genuine love, by speaking the truth, and by depending on God’s power. This right way of living has prepared us to defend ourselves against every kind of attack.

THOUGHTS: There are many who accept the Lord thinking that all of their troubles will now be gone, as they will now associate themselves with ‘holy’ and ‘righteous’ people. Friends may I remind you that as long as we remain on this sinful earth, we will encounter sinful, hurtful people, as there are many who will cross our paths that have decided to stay clear of our best friend, our Savior and our soon coming King. Prior to the verses listed above, Paul had just shared with the Corinthians how much he and his team had endured in their ministry. Fortunately for us, Paul went on to tell them what he attributed his success to in dealing with sinful people and their deliberate attack on children of God. This is helpful information for us, as we are bound to find some awful, unfortunate, opposition as we seek to spread the Good News, and light, among a world filled with darkness, deceit and bad intentions. Here are some things that Paul teaches that might help us stay stronger in our faith and true to our Master, especially as we deal with the vices of Satan here on earth:

  • Purity – keep ourselves pure in God’s sight and our earthly opposition will see the evidence of a man/woman controlled by God. I consider purity to be a true and consistent witness for God. True to His teachings and always consistent in obedience to His Word no matter who our audience might be;
  • Understanding – Don’t be so quick to jump to conclusions that a person is wrong or unfaithful, but instead try to look at them through the lens of God. I believe He sees them as His very own creation that just needs a little encouragement, teaching and mentoring by one of His stronger servants at the time;
  • Patience – Isn’t it strange how we get so impatient with someone who is doing precisely what we struggled with just a very short time ago? Wouldn’t it be better to share with them a spirit of understanding because you can relate to their dilemma? Wouldn’t it encourage them to know that you are living proof of what our awesome God can do in the life of a messed up, weak individual?
  • Kindness – Part of the reason that the unsaved is having a second look at a Christian, is because they see where we have a sense of calm over us; a strength inside of us that they just can’t comprehend. While I believe that God can miraculously open their eyes to this, I also believe that unbelievers will see this through the characteristics of the believer. Kindness is especially important in this fast-paced, selfish, unkind world we live in. After all, why would we be ‘kind’ to a total stranger, or to one who is out to get us? This is a character of God that must be displayed in Christians, if we ever expect for the lost to see Jesus in our actions.

Fortunately, Paul went on to say how he gained the strength to do the above, so that we might also know how to gain and stay attuned to the blessings of God in and through the characteristics listed. Paul shared that he depended on the Holy Spirit; through genuine love; by speaking the truth, and by depending on God’s power. So friends, when you read the above and allow your minds to wonder into the question as to who can possible achieve such things, allow God to use the qualities Paul told us that helped him. Remember, God is all powerful, and that you and He can accomplish great things – greater than anything you could ever imagine!

PRAYER: Lord God, Your holiness and Your character is what we desire, so that the world might recognize to whom we belong. We have so many temptations and trials thrown at us every day, and we can only do this thing called ‘life’ – Christian Life, through the power of Your Holy Spirit, through our genuine love for everyone, by always speaking the truth in love, and through Your awesome power. It is only then that I believe we will stand a chance at defending ourselves against every attack of Satan. We know that greater is He that is in us than he that is in this old wicked world. Please have Your will and way in me today, and please touch the lives of those that will read this devotional today, for I ask this in the precious and holy name of Jesus, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will 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 blogger.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely 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, Sebring, FL! 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!

Necessary Actions for Effective Ministry

On By Ed AlgreenIn Men, Prayer, WomenLeave a comment

The Holy Bible  (The Message – 1 Timothy 2:8-10): Since prayer is at the bottom of all this, what I want mostly is for men to pray—not shaking angry fists at enemies but raising holy hands to God. And I want women to get in there with the men in humility before God, not primping before a mirror or chasing the latest fashions but doing something beautiful for God and becoming beautiful doing it.

Thoughts:  In giving direction to Timothy for ministry among the churches, Paul knew that the driving force behind a successful work of the Lord would be: prayer; commitment by the church (Christian brothers and sisters); their respective attitudes, and their roles being controlled by the God they intended to serve. Friends, these same characteristics are necessary for the successful work of the Lord in our day also! To achieve the desired dedication, commitment personal effectiveness of the people, Paul had a few guidelines for Timothy to teach them, and since I already stated that this is much like our efforts today to spread the gospel, I believe this applies to us also. Here’s what Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, taught us:

MEN – Pray, pray, pray! As I studied this deeper, there is indication that Paul wanted men to pray everywhere. That tells me that we are to pray even in public places, not just in our closets as alluded to in earlier scripture. Also, just as Solomon did in 1 Kings 8:22 and Psalm 141:2, Paul felt it was important that men lift up holy hands before a holy God. Not only is this a sign of surrendering self to God, but doing this in all holiness is also reemphasizing Psalm 24:3-4. Prayer should be the first thing a Christian man should do in every circumstance. In fact, Paul indicated that this should be done rather than showing our anger against those who abuse us or harm us in any way. Think about it Brothers, when we ‘PRAY’, we are showing respect to God, humbling ourselves to His authority and His power to fulfill His way in our circumstances, and to grow us into being more like Him. Going off and doing our own thing defies submission to God and shows disrespect to the authority of God.

WOMEN – Depending on the Bible version you read this verse in, women may be offended by what Paul was teaching here. But ladies/friends, please allow me to remind you that the Word of God is not intended to be a ‘feel good’ book of instructions for everything you may like. In fact, why have a book of instruction if you want it to always make you feel good about what you are doing, or want to do? Based on supporting study material, I believe Paul is instructing our beautiful ladies to not spend so much time on the physical appearance, but instead on the inward person. For the outward appearance will attract undesirables, but the inward loving, caring, beauty and example of a God-fearing woman will serve to display the love and concern of our loving Father who wants so badly that all may come to know Him personally. Your humbleness to your Christian husbands will be a display of the respect Jesus showed for His Father in depending solely on Him for knowledge, timing and direction. Further, women have a built in mechanism that tends to nurture their children, much like Jesus wants to nurture all those that surrender their lives to Him and His authority.

Friends, if we are to see the work of God flourish, we must take our respective roles very seriously. God used this opportunity to help Paul see how to grow the churches in His day, and His Word still speaks just as clearly and loudly to us in growing and nurturing His church today. Are you on board?

Prayer:  Thank You for Your precious Word dear Lord. Thank You for considering us and how we might accept You, know You intimately, and showing us the way that we might love and care for others as You would. Please speak to myself and our Christian men that we might learn to pray more and learn to be more submissive in our prayers, so that Your perfect will might be accomplished in our world. Without You in our lives, we have absolutely nothing to offer this world that might serve to improve their standard of life. However, because You hold the key to eternal life and heaven, Your rewards are simply ‘out of this world’. May the unsaved recognize this before it is eternally too late. May we, as Christians lean on this as our encouragement for self, and as our determination to share the love of Jesus with all that we know and come into contact with. May our precious ladies have an example to follow in us as their earthly leaders, caretakers and lovers. May they see Jesus exampled in us, and may they in turn, seek to live disciplined and controlled lives led by Your sweet Holy Spirit. All to You I surrender Lord. More of You and Less of me, is my song of dedication to You today oh Lord. Thank You for taking time to listen, comfort, cheer and encourage this child today! Please be a special blessing to all who will read this devotional. May they be drawn to You. For I praise You and request my petitions in the wonderful name of Jesus, my Lord, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE:  If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will 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 blogger.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely 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, Sebring, FL! 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!

Brighter Days Ahead!

On By Ed AlgreenIn Hope, HumilityLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.

(Bible Translation and Location: The Message – 2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

Thoughts:

Ever notice how you might visit a person laden with pain and discouragement, so much that they can barely move, but when they see you for the first time in a very long time, how they don’t notice the pain and they are ready to go wherever you take them? They quickly become very refreshed in their mind? I believe it is very easy for us to get in that rut also, because we tend to lose hope and the joy that once filled us, especially if we are not humanly seeing results. Paul had a similar experience in ministering to the church in Corinth. For with the bare eye, one may have looked at Paul and quickly agreed that they would stay far enough away from whatever he was proposing to them, because it only got him beatings, imprisonments and hardships. However, to the Christian who witnessed the joy, inward excitement, boldness and peace that exuded from this man of God, I believe that they would deeply desire a similar walk to that of Paul. In these verses, Paul is warning the church that we need to look beyond what might bless us today, and focus on the far-reaching effects of the gospel being proclaimed. You see, our hearts should overflow today when we do the Master’s work, especially when we do it in earnest for the Master’s sake and His glory alone. It is hypocrisy to promote self when attempting to teach and/or preach and/or witness, for without Christ we are nothing. It is His grace that saved us, His love that sustains us, and His promise to welcome us home in glory that center our hearts on Him, in anticipation of our glorious reunion with Him! I’m afraid that when we get discouraged, it may very well be ‘self’ that is not being satisfied. Let us always remember that our Christian work here on earth is to bring glory to God. When an earthly war is over, it is the country who sent the soldiers into battle that wins, not the soldier who fired the last shot. Many earthly soldiers will gladly place their life on the line for their country, are you and I willing to do the same for the battle we fight against Satan? Let’s learn to allow God to use us in His service for His glory, rather than us mentioning God’s name while promoting self. There is a hope friend! Let is rejoice in that hope as we present the gospel through our words and actions each day, knowing that one day soon we will be with the Master in all His glory!

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, Creator of all things, Savior of this world, please help me to keep myself in proper proportion to the One in whom I represent and witness to others about. Like Paul, I too must stay focused on who I’m working for and who will receive the glory from anyone touched by Your message. Lord, I am convinced that as I see glory going up to You by folk, there is little value in what I may have contributed to that, because I am merely Your messenger obeying Your commands. My desire is that I may be obedient to what You require of me. I am merely an instrument in Your hand to accomplish Your work with those who need You. You have strategically placed me here, with all of the experiences I have encountered, so that others who need You might identify with You through my earthly experiences. Thank You for choosing me to be Your child and Your servant. May Your Holy Spirit continue to use me – my talents, my experience and my hope, is my humble prayer this morning. Lord, may Christians that meditate on this devotional identify with what I have shared and grow stronger in their relationship with You. May the lost that You direct to this devotional find hope in the mighty works that You do, knowing that they too can become Your child, when they accept You as Lord and Savior of their life. I ask all this in the precious and all powerful name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will 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 blogger.nuggetsfromgodsword.org and read more, or you may freely 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, Sebring, FL!

What Adds To Your Worth?

On By Ed AlgreenIn WorthLeave a comment

The Holy Bible

      As it is, we see that God has carefully placed each part of the body right where he wanted it.
      But I also want you to think about how this keeps your significance from getting blown up into self-importance. For no matter how significant you are, it is only because of what you are a part of.

The Message: 1 Corinthians 12:18–19

Thoughts:

I love the words of Paul as he taught the church at Corinth, who were obviously challenged with working together with each other to accomplish the work of the church. We may sometimes say that they were off doing their ‘own thing’! Paul cautioned that no matter how significant they thought they were, it is only because of the added strength and combined qualities of the body (the church) with whom they were associated with, and worked together with, for the common cause of Christ. So I reflected on the success, or lack thereof, of the local church today. I realize that the primary source of strength for the  local church comes from God. But I also know that we, the people, are the church, and if we are to be collectively effective in ministry for our Lord, then we must make every effort to work as one. Paul likens the church to the human body, in that the hand can’t get across town to do anything for a person in need without the feet to carry it, the heart to provide the blood and every part of the body to do it’s part. Likewise, we must remember that the church will not be productive if we can’t get ourselves together and work towards the same goal of ministry. Think about it friends, if we don’t display love one for another, or if we are always gossiping about other members, how effective will our words – our ministry, be when we go before the unsaved person? Don’t we realize that successful ministry is only possible when the unsaved see us come before them with a clear expression of Christ’s characteristics, and a working part of the local church? Unfortunately, our inability to work together with the local church is a clear deficiency of Christ’s qualities in our lives. I can confidently assure you that it’s not our Brother or our Sister in deep trouble and causing havoc in our lives, but it’s me oh Lord standing in the need of prayer? How is it with you friend? Anything you need to reconcile with God to help you be a useful part of the local church body?

Prayer:

Lord Jesus I plead with you today to touch my heart, and the hearts of Your people who are struggling so much to get over self and truly recognize that they are only who they are because of what they are a part of, as declared by Paul. Father I believe that it is probably more important now than ever before that Christians fully exemplify You, so that the unsaved may catch a glimpse of the Father. Lord, I pray that we might truly unite as a true church, a true representation of You. Please touch Your people once again Lord, so that we may truly set self aside and allow You to reign in and through us to accomplish Your work set aside for the church. I ask this humbly in the name of Jesus, my savior, AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will 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.

Using The Spiritual Gift(s) Given to Us

On By Ed AlgreenIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

The Holy Bible – New Living Translation

1 Corinthians 12:4-7

4 There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. 5 There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. 6 God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. 7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.

My Thoughts:

Believers in the Corinthian church had challenged Paul with their doubts, questions and misunderstandings about the gifts that Christians are blessed with by the Holy Spirit after accepting Jesus as Lord. I believe that God influenced Paul to write about this and that his writing and explanation would be included in the Bible to serve a purpose in our churches by Christians even today. Friends, it is so easy to sit back and soak in the preaching of God’s Word, pat the preacher on the back and go on back home feeling satisfied that we have done our Christian duty for the week. After all, many churches see most members for a weekend morning service, and provided that all the expectations are adhered to, such as no more than 1 hour service, then they may return the next week. I hate to burst your bubble Brothers and Sisters, but that’s not Christianity, that’s church attendance – much like you might do when you take your spouse to the movies. Paul is explaining here that as a child of God, we receive God’s Holy Spirit, who resides within us to guide us, protect us, give us God’s wisdom and be our personal comforter. We are also given a spiritual gift that is customized just for us. Some of us may have the gift of preaching, or of teaching, or encouraging each other, or praying for each other, or witnessing to unbelievers, etc. However, because these gifts are given by the one and only God, they are to be used for His glory while helping others out. Because our gifts are used for the glory of the same God, we can conclude that we are on the same team, making every effort to please the same team leader, God. To sit and sour and say that you have no gift, is to call God a liar, because He declared through His servant Paul that a gift is given to every believer. For us to say that we are incapable of fulfilling or using the gift given to us is an insult to God, because we are actually doubting His Word and His ability to fulfill His promise. Friends, let us seek God’s face and ask Him to make very evident to us the special gift(s) He has blessed us with, then lets commit to using it/them for His glory, through the power of His blessed Holy Spirit. Others will be blessed and God will be glorified. Imagine the joy this will bring to your heart!

My Prayer:

Holy Father, thank You for the precious gift of Your Son, Jesus who, through His sacrifice we can become a child of the King. Thank You for going a step further and providing Your Holy Spirit to indwell us with power from above to handle everyday situations and to overcome challenges that are often beyond our control. Thank You for the gifts given to us to bless others with, so that You may be glorified. Please highlight the gift within each one meditating on this devotional today so that we may be refreshed on our purpose here on earth, and so that Your church may indeed be Your church. I can only imagine the overwhelming offerings of praise at our weekend services if Your children would be obedient to You and actually use the gifts empowered by Your Holy Spirit to bless others this week. Please glorify Yourself through us dear Jesus, for I ask all this in Your precious and wonderful name, AMEN!
**If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will 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.