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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

The Huddle
18 JUNE 2023

‘I appeal to you…in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another.’
1 Corinthians 1:10 NIV
To lead your family effectively, you need to learn how to huddle regularly. The 'huddle' is where a team:

1) sets its goals;

2) discusses the division of responsibilities;

3) tackles the issues that determine whether it wins or loses.

Parent, even though you call the plays from overhead, your family must be taught how to accomplish them on the field. That means working through things, talking through the disagreements, motivating and appreciating each member. Try to listen with an open heart. Don’t just hear what your children say, try to understand how they feel. Yes, you’re the boss, and yes, you can try to enforce your will if you want to. But sooner or later you’ll have trouble, for resentment grows when people feel left out. Every member of your team has got to be part of the decision-making process. Involve them! Ask God to help you look beyond what you want to what’s best for all of you.

And don’t fall under the spell of instant gratification. What looks good to you today could be taking you off the path to a better tomorrow. And don’t let 'outsiders' into your huddle. Tell them to stay in their own. Too often their opinions are based on hearsay, self-interest or jealousy. Respect the privacy of your team. Build loyalty. Huddle regularly in prayer. When you do that, everybody wins!

Luke 11:1-28, Psalms 66-67

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

How to develop patience (1)
19 JUNE 2023

‘It is better to be patient than powerful.’
Proverbs 16:32 GNT

The Bible says that when you pray, God can answer instantly. But nowhere in the Bible are you promised ‘instant patience’. Patience is a quality of character, and character is built over a lifetime of walking with God through good times and bad. One Bible teacher says, ‘Patience is just faith taking its time.’ Here is how God develops patience in us:

1) Interruptions. You sit down to eat dinner and your phone starts ringing. You’re in the bath and someone comes to the door. You’re quickly working to meet a deadline and visitors arrive. It’s said that when Brahms was writing his famous ‘Lullaby’, he encountered so many interruptions, it took him seven years to compose the piece. Someone joked, ‘When you’re writing a lullaby, you need all those interruptions to keep you from falling asleep at the piano.’

2) Delays. We hate to wait. We have a microwave mindset – we want what we want – in seconds. We have fast food, quick-cook pasta, and instant coffee. We’re like the man who prayed, ‘Lord, give me patience, and I want it right now!’

3) Irritations. Long lines, lost keys, late planes, phone calls, cold food, flat tyres, occupied bathrooms, traffic jams…the list is endless.

Do you know that 90 per cent of heart attack sufferers have the ‘hurried’ Type A personality? The Bible says, ‘Impatience will get you into trouble’ (Proverbs 19:2 GNT). We speak of the patience of Job, who said, ‘All the days of my hard service I will wait for my renewal to come’ (Job 14:14 NIV). Pray about it, exercise patience, and be confident in God!

1 Chronicles 22-24, Acts 18

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

How to develop patience (2)
20 JUNE 2023

‘Whoever is patient has great understanding.’
Proverbs 14:29 NIV

Patience begins by changing the way you view something. When you’re impatient, you have a narrow perspective. All you see is yourself: your needs, goals, schedule, desires, and the way people are messing up your life. Basically, the root of impatience is selfishness. Try to see things from the other person’s point of view. If you want to succeed in marriage, learn to see life from your partner’s point of view. If you want to succeed as a parent, learn to see things from your child’s point of view. If you want to succeed in business, learn to see things from your customer’s point of view. If you want to be a successful employer, learn to see life from your employee’s point of view. Try to discover why the other person feels as they do.

If you never had to deal with irritations and interruptions, you would never develop patience. You must accept the truth that God is directing your steps, and that trust doesn’t require explanations. The Bible says, ‘The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?’ (Proverbs 20:24 NLT). Patience is a mark of maturity. When babies don’t instantly get what they want, they get upset. Maturity includes the ability to wait, to live with delayed gratification. ‘Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly’ (Proverbs 14:29 NIV). A person of understanding and wisdom who learns to see life from another’s (and God’s) point of view, is able to be patient. So, pray and ask God to give you a new perspective on things.

1 Chronicles 25-27, Acts 19:1-22

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

How to develop patience (3)
21 JUNE 2023

‘Being cheerful keeps you healthy.’
Proverbs 17:22 GNT
Here are two more things you need to do in order to develop patience:

1) Develop a sense of humour. The Bible says, ‘A relaxed attitude lengthens a man’s life’ (Proverbs 14:30 TLB). Scientific studies reveal that people who laugh, live longer. Humour is a stress dissolver. It’s an antidote to apprehension. It’s a tranquiliser without any troubling side effects. It’s a shock absorber for the potholes of life. Someone once asked President Abraham Lincoln how he handled the tensions of the Civil War. He said, ‘If it hadn’t been for laughter, I could not have made it.’ When you can laugh at it, you can live with it. And besides, if you learn to laugh at your problems, you will never run out of anything to laugh at!

2) Deepen your love. Paul writes, ‘Love is very patient’ (1 Corinthians 13:4 TLB). That means when you are impatient, you are being unloving. When you love someone, you’re concerned about that person’s wishes, distresses, needs, and point of view – not just your own. When you are filled with love, almost nothing can provoke you to anger or impatience. On the other hand, when you are filled with anger, almost anything can provoke you. Under pressure, whatever is inside you is going to come out. So, deepen your love. ‘Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love’ (Ephesians 4:2 TLB).

And one more thought: when you learn to love the people who irritate you, you take a weapon out of Satan’s hands that he can use against you. Today pray, ‘Lord, make me a more patient person.’

1 Chronicles 28-29, Acts 19:23-41

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

How to develop patience (4)
22 JUNE 2023

‘The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives…peace, patience.’
Galatians 5:22 NLT

You will notice that in listing the fruit of the Spirit, patience comes right after peace. Why? Because when you have peace in your heart, practically nothing can cause you to feel impatient. But these qualities are the fruit of the Spirit, not the effort of the flesh. You can’t psych yourself up and say, ‘I’m going to be patient if it kills me.’ If it is the genuine fruit of the Spirit, you will have genuine inner peace, and certain circumstances won’t bother you the way they used to. Why? Because you are depending on the Lord.

Patience is a kind of faith. It says, ‘I trust God. I believe He is bigger than this problem. I believe He has His hand in these irritations and can use them in my life for good.’ Frustration says, ‘Why did this happen?’ Faith says, ‘God, what do you want me to learn here?’ Abraham was 100 years old when his second son, Isaac, was born. That’s a long time to be patient.

The toughest kind of waiting occurs when you are in a rush and God is not. It’s hard to be patient when you’re waiting for an answer to prayer: for God to change your financial condition, or your health problem, or your family problem, or that relative who bothers you. Being patient is both the evidence of your faith and the test of your faith. It’s at such times that God whispers, ‘Be still, and know that I am God’ (Psalm 46:10 KJV). In other words, ‘I’m in control, I have a better plan, I’m working things out for your good!’

2 Chronicles 1-3, Acts 20:1-16

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

What are your values?
23 JUNE 2023

‘The integrity of the upright guides them.’
Proverbs 11:3 NIV
Here are some values based on Scripture:

1) God’s sovereignty. ‘You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed’ (Psalm 139:16 NLT). You can rest in knowing that God has the last word on everything that concerns you (see Psalm 138:8). When all is said and done, you have an ordered destiny. When you know that, you don’t have to try and manipulate people and circumstances to your advantage. You simply have to walk through the doors God opens and be at peace with the doors He closes, knowing He always has your best interests at heart.

2) Integrity. ‘The integrity of the upright guides them.’ As you walk in integrity, you will experience God’s peace because you know you have done the right thing in His sight. Integrity is not only being honest or telling the truth, but also ensuring what you say is the truth. In other words, you make your word your bond. Psalm 15:4 says that one of the traits of a person who abides in God’s presence and does His will is that they ‘keep their promises even when it hurts’ (NLT).

3) Humility. ‘Humility precedes honour’ (Proverbs 15:33 NLT). Humility is not a sense of worthlessness, but instead an acceptance of your God-given strengths and God-allowed limitations. Your strengths should not make you arrogant, and your limitations should not make you apprehensive, for God has promised, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness’ (2 Corinthians 12:9 NKJV).

2 Chronicles 4-6, Acts 20:17-38

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Is it God’s plan?
24 JUNE 2023

‘Listen for God’s voice … he’s the one who will keep you on track.’
Proverbs 3:6 MSG

After being anointed king of Israel, instead of immediately going to Jerusalem and claiming his throne, David was forced to spend years living like a fugitive and hiding in caves because Saul was out to take his life. More than once he must have asked himself, ‘What about the promise God gave me?’ Then an interesting thing happened. One of David’s soldiers found Saul asleep; he came to David, saying, ‘God has delivered your enemy into your hand…let me strike him’ (1 Samuel 26:8 NKJV).

What an opportunity! Get rid of the man who wants to kill you, come out of hiding, and claim your throne. After all, you’re already anointed to be king! It all made sense, except for one thing – it wasn’t God’s plan. As much as David wanted to rule Israel, he knew that in order to succeed he must do it God’s way.

This story should make you think twice, and pray before acting. When Abishai offered to kill Saul, he had David’s welfare at heart. So be careful; your friends can give you advice contrary to God’s will.[/b[ That’s when it’s hard not to go along with it, or defend your decision by rationalising that the end justifies the means. [b]Never let anyone, however well intentioned, persuade you to do what you know is wrong. ‘Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice…he’s the one who will keep you on track’ (Proverbs 3:5-6 MSG).

2 Chronicles 7-9, Acts 21:1-17

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Integrity (1)
25 JUNE 2023

‘He who walks with integrity walks securely, but he who perverts his ways will become known.’
Proverbs 10:9 NKJV

What would you say is the single most important characteristic of a person who wants to be successful and make a difference in the world? Some would say intelligence. After all, knowledge is power in numerous ways. Others argue it is intensity, that spirit of conquest supplemented with a passion that becomes contagious. Yet others propose that it is insight, good old common sense accompanied by the ability to clearly perceive certain issues.

The Bible says the most important quality in success is integrity: ‘He who walks with integrity walks securely, but he who perverts his ways will become known.’ You will eventually ‘become known’ by your integrity or the lack of it. We have all known people along life’s road who possess extraordinary intelligence but no integrity, and they are no longer in the race. Others with great intensity and passion but little integrity have ended up the same way. The same result is true of people with great insight but no integrity. The thesaurus equates integrity with such words as ‘honesty, completeness, and incorruptibility’.

Integrity begins in your private world; the part of you that’s known only to God and yourself. Then it shows up in your personal world; the part of you that you reveal to a small circle of intimate family members and possibly a few friends. After that comes your professional world. Here people know you by your product, your work ethic, or your skill set. And they all ask the same question: ‘Can I trust you?’ Finally, your integrity shows up in your public world. So here is the question: do you have integrity?

Luke 11:29-54, Psalms 68-69

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Integrity (2)
26 JUNE 2023

‘The godly walk with integrity; blessed are their children who follow them.’
Proverbs 20:7 NLT

Here are six ingredients which are always found in lasting success:

1) Information. If you don’t stay informed, you will be left behind.

2) Intuition. This is sometimes referred to as ‘to know in your knower’.

3) Initiative. This is when you are willing to step out in faith and act on what you know intuitively.

4) Intentionality. This is when you are willing to set specific goals and timelines for reaching them.

5) Intensity. This calls for more than starting power, it requires staying power.

6) Integrity. This is the glue that holds the previous five things together. And it’s rooted in that private life you develop alone with God.

We often hear architects, engineers, and builders say, ‘This building has structural integrity.’ What do they mean? That the public beauty of a tall skyscraper relies on its private, unseen foundation that is dug deep into the earth and solidly constructed. It is that hidden life of a building that brings structural integrity.

Likewise, it’s the hidden life of a fruit tree – the unseen root system that digs deep into the earth – that produces those juicy, delectable fruits. And so it is with you. Integrity must be rooted in your private life. Don’t wait until you’re thrust into the public arena before paying attention to your integrity, for then you will have waited until it’s too late. Your talent may bring you success, but it takes character to protect and maintain your success. The truth is that when your integrity is rooted in your private world, it’s reflected in your personal world, your professional world, and your public world.

2 Chronicles 10-12, Acts 21:18-40

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY™

Sharing our lives
27 JUNE 2023

‘Let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds.’
Hebrews 10:24 NIVUK

Robert Putman made a staggering statement: ‘As a rough rule of thumb, if you belong to no groups but you decide to join one, you cut your risk of dying over the next year in half.’ It’s hard to imagine anyone disinterested in reducing their risk of dying by 50 per cent. That’s why some churches have adopted this motto: ‘Join a group or die.’ One of the characteristics of the early church was their faithfulness to connectedness, because they knew connectedness doesn’t merely happen. They met together daily. They ate together. Over time, however, that happened less. So the writer of Hebrews said: ‘Let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another’ (vv. 24-25 NIVUK).

One author puts it this way: ‘In sports, the more an athlete needs encouragement from the fans, the less likely he or she is to get it. Rarely do fans of a losing team think when a slumping player comes up to bat, “Let’s consider how we can spur him on.” Too often, people who need cheers the most get them the least. Every day, everyone you know faces life with eternity on the line, and life has a way of beating people down. Every life needs a cheering section. Every life needs a shoulder to lean on once in a while. Every life needs a prayer to lift them up before God. Every life needs a hugger to wrap some arms around them sometimes. Every life needs to hear a voice saying, “Don’t give up.”’

2 Chronicles 13-14, Acts 22