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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

The value of a confidant

‘The soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.’
1 Samuel 18:1 KJV

The UCB Word for Today - 31 JULY 2020

It hurts when you discover that not everyone has your best interests at heart. So you must learn to be more discerning, and know on what level to interact with people.

Usually only a few people belong in your inner circle. That’s why you must be wise when it comes to who you allow into that circle.

We see this illustrated in the lives of David and Jonathan. David was at odds with King Saul, the father of his best friend, Jonathan.

Jonathan kept David’s secrets and protected him with his very life, even when faced with displeasing his own family. Jonathan wasn’t seeking to elevate himself, inflate his own self-importance, or orchestrate his own advancement through his relationship with David.

Simply stated, they had a ‘soul connection’. The strength of a confidant lies in their silence. If someone’s a gossiper, they automatically disqualify themselves.

We must be able to rest in the security of these relationships, in order to express ourselves, gather information, and glean wise counsel. Otherwise, we reap the consequences of having the wrong people know too much about us.

Confidants not only maintain our secrets, they refuse to exploit that privileged information for their own gain. They really care about us, and don’t throw our past mistakes in our face.

They refuse to utter the words ‘I told you so’. Such people are in your life for the long haul, and you must recognise and cherish them.

Job 17-19, 1 Corinthians 2

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

You can bounce back

‘Pursue…overtake…recover all.’
1 Samuel 30:8 NKJV

The UCB Word for Today - 01 AUG 2020

Are you battling a stubborn habit like drugs and alcohol? Gambling? Overeating? Pornography?

Here’s good news. Jesus said He came ‘that captives will be released’ (Luke 4:18 NLT).

You can recover. You can get back what you’ve lost, or something better.

How? By doing two things David did when the Amalekites destroyed his home and took his family captive:

1) He turned to God for strength. ‘David strengthened himself in the Lord’ (1 Samuel 30:6 NKJV).

Face it; if you could solve the problem yourself you’d have done it. Acknowledging your powerlessness is the first step to victory.

But acknowledging it is not the same as giving in to defeat and despair. It means that you can’t, but God can, and He will when you surrender to Him.

2) He turned to God for a strategy. ‘David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop?

Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all”’ (v. 8 NKJV).

Note the word ‘pursue’. David was relentless; he didn’t stop until he recovered everything the enemy had stolen from him.

And that must be your attitude too. You say, ‘But I’ve failed so often.’

The Bible says, ‘Though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again’ (Proverbs 24:16 NIV). You say, ‘How can I be righteous in God’s eyes and keep falling?’

Because your righteousness is not earned by your performance, it’s transferred to you through Christ’s performance on the cross (see 2 Corinthians 5:21). Knowing that will give you the faith and courage to ‘pursue…overtake…and recover all’ – and bounce back.

Job 20-21, 1 Corinthians 3

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Keep praying and believing (1)

‘Pray without ceasing.’
1 Thessalonians 5:17 NKJV

The UCB Word for Today - 02 AUG 2020

During his lifetime, nineteenth-century British evangelist George Müller ‘prayed in’ more than £5.7 million to feed the orphans in his care – more than £86 million in today’s terms. He didn’t believe in broadcasting his financial needs, yet he always had enough to pay his grocery bill – because God supernaturally provided.

However, Müller’s faith was stretched in other ways. For example, he prayed regularly over a list of five men he earnestly desired to see won to Christ.

The first man gave his life to Christ after five years, the second and third after ten years, and the fourth after twenty-five years. But here’s the clincher: Müller prayed for the fifth man’s conversion for a whopping fifty-two years!

In fact, the man made a profession of faith in Christ a few months after Müller’s funeral. Would you pray about something for fifty-two years without some visible sign of an answer?

You should, and you must! In Müller’s own words: ‘God delights to increase the faith of His children.

We ought, instead of wanting no trials before victory, no exercise for patience, to be willing to take them from God’s hands as a means. Trials, obstacles, difficulties, and sometimes defeats, are the very food of faith.’

If you’re praying and asking God, ‘Will You?’ His answer is, ‘I will!’

Psalm 91:15 tells us, ‘He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honour him’ (NKJV). And in Jeremiah 33:3, God says, ‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know’ (NKJV).

So the word for today is – keep praying and believing.

Luke 14:25-35, Psalms 79-80

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Keep praying and believing (2)

‘Keep on asking and it will be given you.’
Matthew 7:7 AMPC

The UCB Word for Today - 03 AUG 2020

Observe three things:
1) Jesus never said that following Him would be easy. ‘In the world you will have tribulation’ (John 16:33 NKJV).

So when you attempt great things for God, expect difficulties – and delays. When construction crews work on a road, they often put up a sign: ‘EXPECT DELAYS’.

The walk of faith is littered with these signs. Abraham and Sarah waited twenty-five years for Isaac to be born, so why do you think your answers should be instant?

2) You must persevere to receive. Waiting is an uncomfortable concept for us.

We’re used to having everything ‘on demand’. If someone tells us to wait, we find an app on our phone and speed up the process.

But there’s no shortcut when it comes to perseverance. Sometimes faith is painful because God is stretching your capacity to receive.

So press through the pain – there’s gain on the other side! ‘Keep on asking and it will be given you.’

3) The end result of faith is larger territory. Twice after Isaac dug a well, the Philistines laid claim to the water.

But when he dug a third time, the conflict stopped, and he named the new well Rehoboth, which means ‘a broad place’ (see Genesis 26:18-22). Isaac kept on digging, and when the breakthrough came, he declared, ‘At last the Lord has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land’ (v. 22 NASB).

And the lesson Isaac learned is still part of our faith curriculum. We must stretch our faith when there’s no stretch left, and we must pray beyond delay.

Job 22-24, 1 Corinthians 4

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

God wants you to become more patient

‘Tribulation worketh patience.’
Romans 5:3 KJV

The UCB Word for Today - 04 AUG 2020

The older we get the more patient we become, even though we have less time ahead of us. Why?

Perspective! Our problems haven’t changed, but our perspective has. We’ve lived long enough to say ‘this too shall pass’, or ‘His grace is sufficient’.

Instead of complaining, which only makes the problem worse and robs us of joy, like Joseph, we look back on experiences we thought we’d never get through and say, ‘You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good’ (Genesis 50:20 NASB). The word for today is – God wants you to become more patient!

Patience is one of the nine fruits of the Spirit named in Galatians chapter five. But it’s a very slow-growing fruit that thrives best in the soil of troubles and trials.

Some of us are like the lady who prayed, ‘Lord, give me patience, and I want it right now.’ Sorry, that’s a prayer God can’t answer. James writes: ‘When troubles…come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For…when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.

So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing’ (James 1:2-4 NLT). When you think about it, patience is simply trusting God with things like ‘how’ and ‘why’ and ‘when’.

As you look back on some of the things you wanted so badly and would have rushed into, you realise God pulled back on the reins and kept you from getting into some major messes. Impatience is one of the dominant characteristics of children; it’s spiritual immaturity.

So be patient!

Job 25-27, 1 Corinthians 5

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

How to deal with difficult people (1)

‘Strive to do what is good for each other.’
1 Thessalonians 5:15 NIV

The UCB Word for Today - 05 AUG 2020

Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as ‘the helper’. And as you submit to Him, He’ll help you handle the difficult people in your life the right way.

Paul writes, ‘Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption’ (Ephesians 4:30 NIV). Don’t offend, or inhibit, or block the Holy Spirit from working in your life.

You say, ‘How would I do that?’ Paul answers, ‘Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice’ (v. 31 NIV).

That’s a list of pretty nasty stuff! And Paul’s point is this: either you allow your responses to be ruled by that nasty list, or to be ruled by the indwelling Holy Spirit.

The choice is yours. The Bible says, ‘Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold’ (vv. 26-27 NIV). When you retaliate in anger, you give the devil a foothold in your life – a beachhead from which he can attack you in other areas.

When that happens, not only are you dealing with the hurt caused by the difficult person in your life, you’re dealing with the added hurt that comes from giving the devil a foothold. So what should you do?

The Bible says, ‘Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you’ (v. 32 NIV). In other words, remember the love, patience, and grace God has shown to you, and extend it to others.

That’s a strategy that never fails!

Job 28-29, 1 Corinthians 6

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

How to deal with difficult people (2)

‘In your anger do not sin…[or] give the devil a foothold.’
Ephesians 4:26-27 NIV

The UCB Word for Today - 06 AUG 2020

God designed us in such a way that in times of intense difficulty, we have a built-in moment to turn to Him for help. The primary place in your brain that processes strong negative emotions, such as rage and fear, is called the amygdala.

And when it’s removed from certain animals, they become incapable of expressing rage and fear. Normally when input comes into your brain, it goes to the cortex for processing.

In about 5 per cent of cases, however, when something extremely emotional happens, it goes to your amygdala, and the thinking part of your brain gets short-circuited. But in between your brain’s intake and your body’s response time, there’s what researchers call the ‘life-giving quarter-second’.

And that quarter-second – although it doesn’t sound very long – is huge. Paul writes, ‘In your anger do not sin…and do not give the devil a foothold.’

That quarter-second is the time when the Holy Spirit can take control. That’s when you can choose to give the foothold to the Holy Spirit, or you can give it to sin.

That one quarter-second in your mind can be an opportunity to say, ‘Holy Spirit, I’ve got this impulse right now; should I act on it?’ It’s amazing how the desire to hurt someone you love can be so strong, then lead to such pain when you indulge it.

But another piece of good news is that when you blow it – and you will blow it – God sends another quarter-second right behind the first one. He’s committed to you, and He will keep working with you until you get it right!

Job 30-31, 1 Corinthians 7:1-19

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

How to deal with difficult people (3)

‘He did not retaliate.’
1 Peter 2:23 NLT

The UCB Word for Today - 07 AUG 2020

No one mastered the art of dealing with difficult people better than Jesus. The Romans wanted to silence Him, Herod wanted to kill Him, Pilate washed his hands of Him, religious leaders envied Him, His family thought He’d lost His mind, His townspeople wanted to stone Him, Thomas doubted Him, Peter denied Him, Judas betrayed Him, soldiers beat Him, the crowds shouted for His crucifixion, and His closest followers ran out on Him.

Yet Jesus never prayed for God to remove the difficult people from His life. If He had, there would have been nobody left.

Sometimes even prayer can be misused as a way of avoidance. Sometimes we ask God to remove a difficult person from our life because we’re not willing to confront that person honestly.

And if God answered that prayer the way we wanted, we’d lose the opportunity for growth that is His great desire for us. Jesus’ teachings about dealing with difficult people flowed out of deep, intimate, painful experiences and wisdom.

And they’ve influenced world leaders and movements like no other words that have ever been spoken – from Mahatma Gandhi to Martin Luther King Jr to Nelson Mandela. Peter writes: ‘If you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you.

For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps…He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered.

He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly’ (vv. 20-23 NLT). And you are called to follow His example.

Job 32-33, 1 Corinthians 7:20-40

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

How to deal with difficult people (4)

‘Do not take revenge.’
Romans 12:19 NIV

The UCB Word for Today - 08 AUG 2020

Jesus said, ‘You have heard that it was said, “Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.” But I tell you…If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other…also’ (Matthew 5:38-39 NIV).

Though the ‘eye for an eye’ statement sounds harsh to us, it was actually an enormous step forward in the ancient legal world, where powerful people could kill you for a slight injury. This law limited retribution by teaching proportional justice.

But it still leaves us with a problem. Instinct says if someone hurts you, you hurt them back – and the pain you experience always seems worse than the pain you cause the other person.

In an experiment, a group of subjects was paired up, and each person received pressure against their finger. Then they were told to exert the same amount of pressure on the other person’s finger.

When it was their turn, they always inflicted more pain than they received. Always.

The result is an eye ‘plus-a-little-something-extra’ for an eye. You say, ‘But this person hurt me and they should pay for it.’

How much should they pay? God alone is capable of answering that question fairly!

And His Word says: ‘Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.

In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’ (Romans 12:19-21 NIV).

Job 34-35, 1 Corinthians 8

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

How to deal with difficult people (5)

‘Turn…the other cheek.’
Matthew 5:39 NCV

The UCB Word for Today - 09 AUG 2020

Jesus said, ‘If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other…also.’ In Jesus’ day, society was built around shame and honour.

The left hand was considered unclean; it was not to be used for eating – or for hitting. So a blow to the right cheek would be done with the backhand.

It was a way to publicly insult someone. A backhanded slap was something done only to a social inferior, such as a slave or a child.

So when someone insults you, what should you do? Everyone expects one of two responses: retaliation or cowering. Jesus is saying, ‘Your safety and your honour are in the hands of your heavenly Father.’

So now we get creative. One possibility is that we could turn the other cheek.

Our enemy can’t backhand our left cheek. Either he has to fight you as an equal, which he doesn’t want to do, or he has to find a nonviolent way to resolve the conflict. So, who do you get insulted by?

‘Slaps’ often take the form of barbs, digs, and ‘backhanded’ comments. Someone demeans your idea at work.

Someone accuses you falsely at home. A relative says something judgmental about you.

What is your first instinct – retaliation, fear, or both? With the Holy Spirit helping you, there’s a new possibility.

Don’t run and hide. Don’t strike back. Confront the other person with honesty and strength. Be creative, patient, and active.

Lovingly work towards reconciliation. It is the reason the Bible calls the Christian life a ‘high calling’ (Philippians 3:14 KJV).

So, the next time someone upsets you, ‘Take the high road!’

Luke 15:1-10, Psalms 81-83