NOTHING You do for God is USELESS

 Scripture:

“So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.”  ‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭15‬:‭58‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

Paul tells the Corinthians to be strong and immovable. He continues to encourage them by saying to always work enthusiastically for the Lord because nothing we do for the Lord is ever useless. Paul believed that we must always be about the work of the Lord, no matter how bad things get around us because our reward is not here on this earth, but in heaven, when we are finished here. 

Application:

We must always be about the work of the Lord. It is the only thing that will last forever. When we are working for the Lord, Paul tells us it is never useless. Sometimes we may feel like what we are doing for the Lord is useless, but Paul would differ. he would say ANYTHING we do for God is never USELESS. God will use what we do for Him. What we do for ourselves can be useless at times, but what we do for God is never useless.

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, help me to never see what I do for You as useless, but as making a difference in eternity. Help me to have a right view of sowing Gospel seed and leaving results up to You. Show me how to serve You well and to have the right disposition and expectations when I do. I want to please You with my life. Help me to be strong and immovable and to abound in the work of the Lord.

Your Son,

Jeff

Real Love

 Scripture:

“Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.”         ‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭13‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

As Paul was speaking about love, he added these statements concerning love that are powerful. He says that love never gives up. It never loses faith. It is always hopeful. It endures through every circumstance. Paul’s view of love is very powerful and we are to be people who are known for our love. 

Application:

Jesus said we would be known for how we love one another. We must ask ourselves, do we love like Paul described? If so, we should never give up on people, never lose faith, always be hopeful, and be willing to endure anything with people. Real love is sacrificial and we, as followers of Christ, but learn to love sacrificially. Our love cannot be conditional or end because people didn’t respond the way we wanted them to.

Prayer:

Lord, let my love be pure and holy. Help me to love with the true love of God. Let my life be full of Your love. Help me to never give up on people and to never lose faith. Teach me to love like You love because Your love is perfect love. Love through me my Lord!

Your Son,

Jeff

Purpose

 Scripture:

“So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.”  ‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭9‬:‭26‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

Paul is writing to the Corinthians here and telling them to put Christ first and to live primarily for Him rather than ourselves. He makes his point when speaking of his own life and says that he runs with purpose in every step, not just shadow boxing. Paul was fully committed to Christ and the message of the Gospel. He was self supported most of the time, yet he did it with intentionality. He didn’t hit at the air. He landed his punches with purpose.

Application:

Living with purpose and living by the Spirit sometimes feel like a conflict. Purpose seems to be something today where we mark out our journey and live to accomplish that thing. Paul’s definition would probably differ from ours. He might say that his purpose was to do whatever the Spirit says, which would then seem  random and without a clear purpose in our eyes. When your purpose is following the Spirit, it may appear that you don’t live with purpose. As for me, I want my purpose not to be just a statement I make up, but I want my purpose to be fulfilling everything God has for me.

Prayer:

Father, I want to run with purpose in every step. I want to see Your kingdom come in my life. My purpose is to fulfill Your purpose. Guide me into living as one with You. I want to fulfill Your purpose and not just come up with my own. Lead me daily and let me walk with Your purpose in every step.

Forever,

Jeff

Imitate Me

 Scripture:

“For even if you had ten thousand others to teach you about Christ, you have only one spiritual father. For I became your father in Christ Jesus when I preached the Good News to you. So I urge you to imitate me.”1 Corinthians‬ ‭4‬:‭15‬-‭16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

Paul says here that there could be ten thousand teachers of God’s word, but the Corinthians only had one father, Paul. He says he became their father when he preached to them the Good News. He finishes that statement by saying, “So I urge you to imitate me.” When you say those words, you are confident that you are living in step with the Spirit. 

Application:

I want to live a life where I can say to people, “Imitate me.” As a spiritual father to the Corinthians, Paul told them to imitate his life and ministry. He knew that if they followed his path, they would be fine in their walk with God. I want to set an example for those around me of what it looks like to follow Christ wholeheartedly. 

Prayer:

Lord God, I love You and want to represent You well in this earth. Teach me to live a life that can be pointed at and confidently say, “imitate me.” Empower me to live so that others have a point of reference of what it looks like to follow You well. Help me to point people to Jesus, but to show them what a life filled with the Spirit looks like, 

Forever Yours,

Jeff

Oneness with Christ

 Scripture:

“God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”  ‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

Paul says here that God will do what He says He will do. He goes on to say that He has invited us into partnership with His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. We are meant, not only to get saved, but we have been invited into partnership with Christ. 

Application:

The past couple years I have been finding myself desiring oneness with the Lord. I want to walk in perfect partnership with Christ. I want to say what He would say, do what He would do, and act like He would act. I want to live life like Jesus would in human skin. I have been saying it for quite a while now, I don’t want to do ministry for the Lord any more, I want to do ministry with the Lord. 

Prayer:

Father, I long for oneness with You. I want to do what You are doing, say what You are saying, and live how You would live among us. Help me to hear Your voice clearly and to operate in complete obedience. Show me how to live my life in total obedience to You in every area. Let my life simply be a vessel You can live through and pour through. Teach me to walk with You as one in all things.

Yours Forever,

Jeff

Humility Wins Every Time

 Scripture:

“You rescue the humble, but your eyes watch the proud and humiliate them.” ‭‭2 Samuel‬ ‭22‬:‭28‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

David wrote this song to the Lord about God’s faithfulness and strength. In this verse, he says that God rescues the humble, but that God’s eyes watch the proud and He humiliates them. Humility goes a long way with God.

Application:

God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble. We must learn to live in submission and surrender to the Lord and allow Him to fight our battles rather than trying to defend ourselves. We must humble ourselves before Him and He will raise us up. God responds to the humble, but the proud He opposes. As for me, I want to walk in humility and put my complete trust and confidence in the Lord. He had my back and He will fight my battles.

Prayer:

Father, teach me to walk in humility before You all the days of my life. I love You want to accomplish Your purposes for my life. Help me to live fully submitted to You. Let my answer always be YES when You speak to me. Make Your will clear and I will follow. Help me to walk in the fear of the Lord at all times.

Your Son,

Jeff

A Father’s Love

 Scripture:

“The king was overcome with emotion. He went up to the room over the gateway and burst into tears. And as he went, he cried, “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you! O Absalom, my son, my son.””  ‭‭2 Samuel‬ ‭18‬:‭33‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

David mourned deeply for his son Absalom. A basal on had tried to overthrow David and take his kingdom away from him, but David didn’t want anything bad to happen to his son. He wanted his son to be safe from all harm above everything else. When he got the news that his son had died, David was distraught.

Application:

A father’s connection to his son is deep. As it is hard to understand why David would put up with the things his son had done, is hard to imagine, but his father’s heart was strong. Sometimes our children can cause us to make mistakes, even when they have messed up deeply. We must guard ourselves from allowing our children’s lives to pull us away from God’s will and intention for us.

Prayer:

Father, help me to fulfill Your will in my life above all else. Teach me to listen and respond correctly to Your voice. Help me to do everything You have laid out for me. Open the right doors and close the wrong doors. Show me Your path and help me to say “yes”. Help me not to make mistakes because of my children.

Your son forever,

Jeff